al709382@campus.ccm.itesm.mx
The Caller's Plight by Jorge Pratt
Legal Stuff you already know
Ranma 1/2, all its characters and relationships are the
creations of Rumiko Takahashi.
Final Fantasy 1, 2, 3 and 5 are trademarks of Squaresoft.
Chrono Trigger is also a Squaresoft trademark.
Author's Foreword
Well, well, well... So, I'm writing the sequel to The Four
Birds of Fire after all. What am I, a masochist? (Don't answer
that.) What drives me into writing these ridiculously LONG
stories anyway?
Alas, here I am again. Seriously speaking, though, I
actually had fun spewing -- I mean, thinking up this story. It's
got all the best elements of TFBOF and even more (groan).
Actually, it even picks up where that one left off (or should I
say, where it begins?) You'll also find something quite
interesting between some of the main characters, but I've said
too much.
Well, enough preamble, let's get on with The Caller's Plight
already!
(Continuity note: The Four Birds of Fire was set after what
would be volume 33 of the manga. This sequel begins three years
later, and yes, you must have read TFBOF or the Guide in order
to understand the events of this story. For example, why there
are two different Ranmas here.)
PROLOGUE
A gigantic flaming bird engulfed all of Nerima Ward.
A beam of pure white light filled the Saotomes' room.
"Wait!" Seraphim vainly shouted.
The Tendos and the Saotomes that were outside became
frozen in shock.
"Ranma!" Akane yelled again as she followed her fianc�'s mad
dash towards the room. Everything around them was completely
covered by the Phoenix' powerful aura, giving the surroundings a
reddish hue. But Ranma-kun didn't even notice it. He was
utterly focused in stopping his sister from completing the Caller
technique before it was too late. He just HAD to stop her.
What... what the hell was she thinking?! Even Cologne had
warned her that the Caller could kill her! So what if she'd been
practicing for three years, she was not strong enough to
withstand that much power!
"STOP!" with that Ranma plowed right through the door to
the room. The place where Ranma-chan was standing was now
shedding a blinding light, but he could see the female angel
desperately try to reach for her. He quickly followed suit and
lunged for his little sister. Ranma-chan slowly opened her eyes
to see him, but she was never able to see his hand catch her as
her world became intensely white.
* * *
The trees stretched high overhead, the long trunks
becoming lost in the distance. The bright sunlight, filtered by
the distant treetops, illuminated sparse patches of green in the
grassy surface.
The air was warm, as was also the grass beneath her. She
was in a clearing surrounded by many exotic plants, the likes of
which she had never seen before in her life. No, wait... She
_had_ already seen these plants, but it certainly wasn't while
she was alive. No, she had seen them once, in a time when she
had "visited" this place, three years ago...
Ranma-chan looked at herself and confirmed her suspicions
when she noticed she wasn't dressed, even her hair was flowing
freely. When the realization came to her, she sat up and closed
her eyes, holding her knees in her arms.
"It didn't work..." she sighed sadly.
She was dead.
And she was in the Gates to the Light.
* * *
* * *
[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
TerBril Productions
present
THE CALLER'S PLIGHT
by
Jorge Pratt
[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
"I no doubt deserved my enemies,
but I don't believe I deserved my friends."
(Walt Whitman, in Bradford's
_Biography and the Human Heart_)
First Test:
Rebirth
A second chance
But why hadn't it worked? Ranma-chan could not believe it.
Even after all the training, the Caller technique had backfired
anyway. Even though she had already mastered every single ki
technique she could get out of Cologne, she had failed at this.
But why? All she wanted was a friend, someone to talk to.
Practically everyone she knew was doing his or her best to split
apart Ranma and Akane, nobody cared about the "little sister".
Even Kuno, whom she considered one of her closest friends, had
doubled his efforts against her brother. And her family had
practically forgotten her, since it was like a miracle to see
their son finally getting along with Akane. Why, even Yuannyan
had already married Herb. And after all this time, it appeared
some couples had started to form as well. It was a time when
she felt more lonely than ever.
That's why she had tried to bring him back. Sure, she
could call Seraphim any time, but that wasn't enough. There was
only one person she could rely on completely, her best friend.
But he had sacrificed himself so others could live. He was
truly worthy of being called "Phoenix".
Ranma-chan sighed again and opened her eyes. Looking up
at the distant treetops, she wondered what was happening back
home. Her brother was probably in shock as he fell into that
grim trance again, as he did when Coldfire had almost killed her.
But aside from him and Akane, nobody else knew about how close
she had already been to dying. There would be no way to
comfort them when they discovered she was dead for real this
time. It was just how she felt after Phaeron died.
Wait a minute... Of course!
Wiping the tears from her face Ranma-chan got to her feet,
noticing how light she had become. If she had died, then it
meant Seraphim and Phaeron would probably come to meet her!
>From _that_ point of view, the Caller hadn't been a total
failure. After all, she did want to talk to them again, right?
And now she had all of eternity to do just that.
Smiling to herself, she began to head towards the Light.
She remembered the path clearly, considering she had already
been here once. Everything was the same as she remembered: the
twisting path, the flowers that lined its sides, the small stream
that it crossed... but there was something different, though.
The first time she came here, there had been no animals, or
even signs that one had been here. However, this time she
easily heard the chirping of birds, crystal clear to her ears.
Even a few butterflies fluttered around her as she walked
onwards. Did it mean she was truly dead now? Was this her
time?
But suddenly every single sound ceased as a high-pitched
shriek filled the Gates. It was the shriek of a bird of prey,
possibly an eagle or a hawk. Yet it was different. She knew
that sound very well, for it was the last sound she heard
before dying.
It was the cry of the Phoenix.
"Phaeron-kun?" she asked to no one in particular. She
looked about, waiting for an anwer. When none came, she resumed
her journey, but again the shriek came. It was louder this time,
and to her ears it appeared to be full of despair. That was
strange. It had been three years since they last saw each
other, why would he be upset?
She called out once more, and as before was met with
silence. Shrugging, she headed for the Light once more. She
would have plenty of time to meet up with him, anyway. But now,
there was NO WAY she would stay away from the Light. She
already knew what it was like being close to It, and with each
step forward she grew more eager to fuse with It.
Finally, she came to the Passage. The place where the
trees were lined up in parallel rows alongside the path. A
powerful golden sunlight filled the region, giving it the look of
a cathedral. And at the end of the Passage, was the Light.
"Welcome..." came a calm, soothing voice, as a wide beam of
white descended in front of her, "...sister Ranma"
Ranma-chan smiled in reply, "Hi, Seraphim-chan."
The angel girl eyed her worriedly. Finally, she spoke,
"Why?"
"Huh?"
"Why did you do that?" Seraphim asked. "I warned you about
using my Magicite like that."
"Oh..." Ranma-chan looked down, avoiding Seraphim's gaze, "I...
I wanted to bring back Phaeron-kun. I mean, he saved my life
about a dozen times... I never even had the chance to thank
him."
Seraphim took Ranma's hands with her own, "I understand.
But you could have called me first. I would have talked to
brother Phaeron."
"You mean you can actually talk to him?"
Seraphim smiled, "Ever since he died, he has been staying
here, at the Gates. He never went into the Light so he could
look over your family. That's why I can talk to him."
Ranma looked at the taller girl incredule, "He's been dead
for three years and he never went in?"
"I'm not the one to explain why," Seraphim showed a warm
smile, "but in the meantime, I want you to meet a few of brother
Phaeron's friends, my siblings."
On cue, another beam of white appeared in front of Ranma-
chan. However, this beam split in three, a tall winged figure
materializing in each. When the light receded, she saw three
other angels. They were different to Seraphim, though. The
tallest one, a handsome male, had only a pair of wings, unlike
Seraphim's four wings, and brandished a flaming sword by his
side. The next two were also females, and as the previous had
only two wings. However, they seemed to be opposites, since one
of them wore an Amazon-like white garb, complete with gold
gauntlets, while the other was dressed in a gown and held a
broad golden shield with her right hand.
"Sister Ranma..." Seraphim said, "...I want you to meet
brother Uriel, sister Etheldred and sister Bryna. They were
very eager to meet you."
"Indeed," Uriel said, "Sister Seraphim and brother Phaeron
have said quite a bit about you and sister Yuannyan. That is
the reason why we wanted to meet our little sister."
"Not only that," Bryna added, "but we are also eager to
restore our young Cordis Fortitudo."
Ranma-chan blinked, "Who's that?"
Seraphim said, "You surely remember her. She is brother
Phaeron's Guardian."
"Yes," Etheldred spoke, "but we hadn't been able to find her
until now. Sister Seraphim tells us you and sister Yuannyan
were once able to call her, isn't that right?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Ranma-chan said,
sincerely confused.
Seraphim put a hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry, it's just
that you met her before your accident at Jusenkyo. The
experience must have erased most of your memories of your life
in China, even that of Cordis. But you'll sure be surprised when
you meet her again, though. That's because she has kept her
true self a secret from everyone but you, sister Yuannyan and
brother Phaeron."
"Then... she's someone I know?" Ranma-chan asked, trying to
remember.
The four angels smirked, "Sister Cordis Fortitudo was
someone very close to you, sister Ranma," Uriel said. "As
sister Seraphim told you, it will be quite a surprise when you
meet her again."
"Surely you will remember once we are Inside," Bryna said.
"Shall we?"
The other three angels nodded and escorted Ranma-chan as
she continued walking towards the Light. She was so close now,
she could already think of herself as being Inside. The feeling
that overcame her was of great peace, but she still felt a
little uneasy. If Phaeron hadn't gone Inside just so he could
retain his role as a protector, that meant he had never
experienced this before. She would have liked to see him before
going into the Light, so he could at last remove the burden that
had kept him from this for so long...
Without warning, the Phoenix' shriek came to her ears once
more. But this time it was deafeningly close, and it seemed to
be full of defiance and negation. She and the four angels
quickly bolted around and gasped. What they saw was a
magnificent bird of Phoenix, larger than a condor and covered in
red, green and purple feathers. And it was darting straight at
them at breakneck speed.
Seeing them frozen in surprise, Phoenix took the
opportunity to quickly fly past them, turn around, dive between
Ranma-chan's feet and rise back up, carrying her on his back and
soaring _away_ from the Light. Four surprised angels and an
equally surprised Ranma-chan could just watch its movements.
Suddenly Seraphim snapped back to her senses, "B-brother
Pheron!" she yelled, as the foursome rose above the ground in
Phoenix' pursuit. "You're only making this worse than it already
is!"
Phoenix opened his beak to reply, "I will never allow this
to happen!" His wings became narrower, allowing him to gain a
higher speed and easily leave them in his fiery wake. In the
blink of an eye he had already carried Ranma-chan back to the
forest, and was now weaving a trajectory among the trees.
Ranma-chan clung tightly to the feathers in his back, holding on
as tight as she could as the speed nearly tore her from him.
"Phaeron-kun! Calm down!" she called. He sighed and ignored
her. There was no way he could just let her die like that.
Seeing she wasn't getting through, she clenched her legs on
his avian shoulders and her hands let go of him, immediately
grabbing hold of a tree branch overhead just as she hooked her
legs around his neck. Phoenix' eyes bulged out as he was choked
by both her hold and the momentum he had. Suddenly losing his
strength, he fell to the grass, pulling Ranma-chan along. But
even though she landed right on top of him, Phoenix barely felt
her, as if she had become incredibly light.
"N-No!" he thought, "She's already been here too for long!
If she stays here any longer she won't be able to go back!" He
scrambled from beneath her and stood upright, stretching his
wings again so he could take off as quick as possible. "Now,
climb onto my ba--" he turned away as soon as he saw her, his
red feathers somehow becoming even redder.
"Hm?" Ranma-chan blinked in confusion. She got to her feet
and walked towards the blushing bird, then stood in front of him.
Immediately he turned away one more time. Not understanding his
behavior, she looked down at herself, "Now what... Oh. C'mon,
Phaeron-kun, it's okay. I mean, we're both dead, right?"
"No!" he suddenly whipped his head towards her, but then
blushed even more and pulled a wing over his eyes. "I won't
allow it!"
"But brother Phaeron," Seraphim finally caught up with them,
"You know it's time."
"Oh, yeah? And what about that other time when we fought
Coldfire?"
Seraphim shook her head, "It wasn't her time then. We all
knew that. But now it's different. It's time she comes with us."
Phaeron couldn't believe his avian ears. What in the world
was Seraphim talking about, dammit! How could she say it was
time?! After all this time of playing guardian, he couldn't just
let this happen!
"Look, I don't care if it's time or not, I can't let anyone
die thanks to me, especially her!"
Seraphim kneeled and petted his back, "I know, brother
Phaeron, but you have to realize there isn't much we can't do.
Believe me, I don't like this any more than you do, but it's my
duty as a Messenger."
Ranma-chan also kneeled and brought Phoenix' wing down,
forcing him to look at her, "Phaeron-kun, it's not like I'm giving
up or anything, but... but maybe it IS my time."
Phoenix closed his eyes, "You died twice thanks to me..." His
voice suddenly roared throughout the forest, "AND THERE WON'T
BE A THIRD TIME!!" He darted upwards and hovered a few seconds
in midair, then shot out like a bullet towards the Light.
"Brother Phaeron, what have you done?" Seraphim whispered,
astounded.
"What happened? Why was he acting like... like he didn't
want me to go?"
Seraphim turned to her, "He... he's always like that. He
just can't stand the thought of seeing someone close to him
die." She helped Ranma to her feet, "Let's go."
She suddenly stopped, her eyes glowing faintly. Her halo
became intensely bright, Ranma-chan had to look away from her.
But she heard Seraphim speak, as if she were hearing half a
conversation, "Yes, brother Phaeron just left... I feared he
might do something rash... Well, it's because of how he feels...
I didn't know that... He did WHAT?! Why in the name of the Three
Realms would he do that?! B-but then he... I-I don't have that
much power... How long, then?"
"What happened?" Ranma-chan asked.
Seraphim returned to normal. She looked gravely at Ranma-
chan, "Brother Phaeron has spoken. And he has been answered."
"What do you mean?"
Seraphim smiled, "I didn't know it was _that_ strong..." she
said to herself, "Looks like he asked for another chance to be
given to you. Guess it's not your time after all."
"But what's gonna happen to him?"
"He... he has died. He didn't just become One, he actually
gave up his own soul this time."
Ranma-chan let go of Seraphim's hand, frightened, "Then all
I did was useless?"
"I know how you feel. But if his soul has disappeared,
then..." a thought passed through Seraphim's mind as she saw a
small glimmer in the corner of Ranma-chan's eye. "Wait. I can
take you back to your family, but there is one thing I can do to
bring him back. It will be very difficult, though."
"Let's hear it."
"Before I tell you, you have to know my power is not too
great, since I am just a mere angel. In any case the plan
works, I can only keep him alive for a little over three months,
maybe four. Should I continue?"
"W-what? Four months?!" It was practically nothing, Ranma-
chan thought. If Seraphim had said a year, three years, it might
be acceptable, but "a little over three months"?! He would be
dead again by Christmas!
"I know it's not much, but that's the best I can do. Do you
still want me to do it?" Ranma-chan nodded silently. Heck, it
was better than nothing, after all. A lot of things could happen
in four months. "Okay, then. I don't think you'll remember any
of this, but I have to tell you, in case the plan doesn't work."
She then looked at Ranma-chan softly, "About sister Cordis
Fortitudo, she is your--"
Before she could finish, both she and Ranma-chan felt a
sudden presence, ominous and looming. The redhead saw nobody,
although Seraphim could easily discern the being's figure. And
Seraphim was afraid.
"Dysmerc..." she gasped, her voice nearly a whisper.
"Five Tests..." it spoke. "They shall now begin..."
"Five tests? What..?" Ranma-chan wondered, but her thoughts
were cut short. A powerful white light covered everything as the
Gates evanesced before her eyes.
Burnt ashes
Star-Peak Mountain, in the World of Ruin. History is about
to change...
Phaeron weakly opened his eyes. In pain, he turned to see
Akane and Ranma-chan. He smiled, despite his injuries. But then
he saw the others trap Coldfire. His heart nearly stopped when
he saw the aura of his nemesis.
He weakly tried to reach forward, "No... don't surround
him..." he said. "Don't surround Coldfire..."
Calling his strength, Phaeron staggered to his feet.
Suddenly glowing red, he shot out a large ki ball upwards, "Flare,
revised!" Somehow, he felt his ki being bolstered by someone
else. The ball exploded high up in the air, releasing a shower
of sparks. Akane and Ukyou quickly turned to him. The explosion
also alerted Crystallus, who groggily tried to stand up. Ranma-
chan weakly opened her eyes.
"Blue Bird..." Phaeron chanted, closing his eyes. A great
sorrow filled him.
One minute.
The airship Falcon shot towards the Star-Peak Mountain
from its base in the Veldt.
"You're really in for it, demon," Ranma said. "No matter
what, you won't hurt my sister again!"
Coldfire's aura had turned violet.
Phaeron opened his arms, "Red Bird..."
Forty seconds.
The Falcon passed over Doma castle.
"For all that you've done, we're gonna bring your damn head
to the ground!" Ranma was begining to back up to attack.
Coldfire's aura was dark blue.
"White Bird..."
Thirteen seconds.
Crystallus panicked and immediately covered Ranma-chan.
Suddenly the Crusader Magicite dropped from the Crystal Armor's
belt.
The people of Nikeah saw the golden glimmer of the Falcon
heading for Star-Peak.
"Get him!!" Ranma and the others charged Coldfire.
Coldfire's aura exploded.
"GOLDEN BIRD OF PHOENIX!!" Phaeron also climaxed and dashed
towards Coldfire at top speed, passing the others and grabbing
Ragnarok in the way. The sword became Magicite in his hands.
The Crusader Magicite came to life.
One second.
Coldfire brought his hands together, "STELLAR CRA--"
Phaeron crushed him in a bear hug. Time stopped. The
airship was in view. He looked back at Ranma-chan and Akane,
but neither the redhead nor Crystallus was in sight.
"Ragnarok! Fa kansti aris ULTIMA!!"
"Crusader! Fa kansti teris MERTON!!" two other voices
yelled.
An intense blast of nuclear fire encased Phaeron and
Coldfire even before the Ultima sphere appeared. But then the
swelling ball of blue energy engulfed the fire.
The mountain.
The peninsula.
* * *
Everything around them was white, and extremely hot.
Somehow, the Falcon had resisted the combined powers of Ultima,
a massive shockwave of energy, and Merton, a miniature nuclear
explosion. It was a miracle the metallic ship hadn't vaporized.
As the light slowly receded, they could see the floorboards
that made up the deck of the ship. Ranma and Akane looked at
each other, realizing they hadn't died after all. A few other
people became visible as well. Ryouga and Ukyou were incredibly
relieved when they saw their respective loves were uninjured.
Slowly, as the light faded, four others came up to them.
"Ranma alright?" Shampoo asked.
"What in the world happened?" Mousse was still wobbling
dizzily after the blast. Kodachi glomped onto Ranma, but somehow
Akane didn't mind. She felt something was missing, but couldn't
tell what it was.
Kuno used his bokuto to prop himself to his feet, and
looked around as well. "Pigtailed girl!" he called out," Where are
you?" Ranma and Akane became alarmed and looked for her as
well.
"Ranma, where are you?" Akane called.
"I thought she was with you," Ranma-kun said.
"She was," Ukyou answered, "but she woke up when Phaeron
used one of his ki blasts."
"Then that crystal bird covered her and she yelled
something," Akane added. "Something like 'merton'. But she
disappeared after that."
As they continued their calls, they didn't notice the three
older figures that appeared on the deck as the light finally
disappeared. A look of sheer relief and incredulity was locked
in the face of Locke, Celes and Setzer as the three warriors
ran their hands across their body to check for injuries.
"We... we survived..." Setzer said.
"Merton and Ultima..." Celes tried to make out what had
happened.
"What in blue blazes did Phoenix do?!" Locke wondered.
The troop from Nerima finally noticed them. "Who are you?"
Akane asked.
Celes turned to her, "Oh, you must be one of the girls
Phoenix had come to rescue. We are three of the Returners, and
my name is Celes Chere. This is Setzer Gabbiani, and my fianc�,
Locke Cole."
"Excuse me..." Setzer said, rubbing his head, "Do you by any
chance know what just happened here?"
"I think I can help with that," Crystallus said, coming into
view. Ranma-chan lay on his back, barely conscious.
"Pigtailed girl!" Kuno carefully helped Ranma and Akane bring
her down to the deck of the ship. Crystallus settled next to
her, trying to regain his strength.
"So, what happened?" Locke inquired.
"M-Mer..." Ranma-chan mumbled weakly.
"We had to use Merton," Crystallus said. "I noticed
Phaeron was about to use Ultima against Coldfire, so _we_ had
to strike first so he wouldn't kill himself."
"You okay, kid?" Ranma put a hand on his sister's shoulder.
She weakly brought up her own hand to meet his and nodded.
"She'll be all right," Crystallus began casting a healing
spell, "it's just that she overexerted herself, especially after
being injured like that. I'm more worried about Phaeron. He
might have been hit by Merton as well."
Ranma-chan coughed, "He... he was..." she said, almost
whispering. "That was the whole idea," she surprised herself by
having that thought.
Slowly, the light around the ship faded completely.
Everyone on board was awestruck at the sight of the gigantic
crater below them, still sizzling from Merton's power. Suddenly,
two crystalline glimmers shot out from the middle of the crater,
one heading towards the mainland and another to the airship.
"Where's Seraphim?" Ranma-chan wondered. Then she blinked,
"Why the heck did I think about that? It's like I'm waiting for
someone to come up here."
The first Magicite became lost in the clouds, although they
could notice it was dark-colored. But then he second one came
crashing to the airship's deck, stopping a few inches away from
Ranma-chan and Crystallus. It was surrounded by a faint red
aura.
"P-Phaeron?" Crystallus said.
"What!?" Ranma-chan found the strength to speak along with
her brother. She quickly took the Magicite, almost certain it
would break. In fact, she expected it to shatter, as if she had
lived through this once before.
"He... He turned himself to Magicite?" Celes said.
Then, as a final shriek came from the rock, the Magicite
turned to ashes.
And Crystallus flew away, bellowing in agony.
The loss of a friend
The airship landed in the desert, just outside a
magnificent castle. The sand storms in the region must be very
strong, for the castle appeared to have been buried in sand
quite recently. It also seemed to be very ancient, though the
several air-vents and engines on its walls said otherwise. As a
matter of fact, the entire castle appeared to be a vehicle of
some sort.
A pair of soldiers came up to the ship, both of them riding
strange, ostrich-like yellow birds. "Welcome to Figaro," one of
them said when he saw Locke. "King Edgar shall be informed of
your arrival." As the riders returned to the castle, they
couldn't help but notice an air of sorrow around the ship's
passengers.
"Hey! Locke!" a tall blond man, with his hair pulled in a
ponytail, came out of the castle a few minutes later, as the
troop approached the gates. He donned an elegant steel armor,
beneath which he wore lavish royal attire. The long gray cape
on his shoulders trailed in the sand behind him.
"Hi, Edgar," none of the Returners was as cheerful as him.
Although their attitude surprised him, he still turned to the
nine other people behind them.
"Welcome, my friends, to the great Figaro, the desert
castle. I am the king, Edgar Roni Figaro." He immediately
addressed the five girls, "And fear not, precious ladies.
Whatever it is that afflicts you, your sorrows shall vanish
soon, I assure y--" Celes bonked him on the head, "Please," she
said, "Nobody's in the mood for your hopeless flirting, okay?"
Edgar was about to reply, but it took only one look at
them, especially at the girl who appeared to be in shock while
holding some ashes in her hands, to convince him. "Very well,"
he said, more serious, "Chamberlain, please make sure our guests
receive the finest accommodations possible." The palace guard
behind him nodded and led everyone else to the living quarters.
Then Locke looked sternly at his old friend, "Edgar, may I have a
word with you?"
* * *
"Please, no... Not Phoenix!"
She was only twenty years old, but everyone who saw Terra
Branford knew immediately she was the most powerful of the
Returners who saved the world merely a year ago. Her vast
inner strength was nothing compared to the great power she had
been endowed with. Green-haired and stunning, an armor-clad
warrior with a golden heart, the Esper blood in her veins was
easily recognized.
That is the reason why she was so deeply wounded when she
arrived at Figaro and learned of Phoenix' demise, only a few
hours after she perceived the combined forces of Ultima and
Merton. During the War, she had come to know Phoenix. Most of
the children in her village, Mobliz, would have died if not for his
magic. To hear of his death was simply heart-breaking,
especially for the daughter of an Esper.
"I'm very sorry, Terra," Celes said, "I know your father
Maduin and Phoenix were very close friends. I just wish he
could have let _us_ help too."
Terra didn't make an effort to hide her tears, "But... how?
He is Phoenix! He can't just... he _can't_ die!"
Celes sighed, "Believe me, I feel just like you. Phoenix
helped us lots of times, either in person or by teaching us his
spells. And this was the _one time_ that he needed us... and
we could only save his friends."
"I... I feel useless," Terra said. "What good is it that I
can morph into an Esper if I can't help?"
"You feel useless," Celes shook her head, "but I feel more
like a leech. Phoenix thought we only cared about acquiring his
magic, that even though we fought to save this planet, we used
him like an object. And the worst part is that it might be
true." She couldn't suppress a sob, "I can't even imagine how
Locke feels."
Terra suddenly looked at her worriedly, "Oh, God... Locke...
And with you two about to get married... Where is he?"
Celes sighed again, "Poor Dear. He's up in the tower. I
think Sabin and Shadow are coming up with him, but he only wants
to be alone. But still..."
"'Still'?"
"I feel sorry for Phoenix' friends. They haven't said a
word since we got here..."
* * *
Locke Cole looked up at the darkened skies. The moon
itself seemed to reflect his grief as he heard the Lunaris
wolves howl in the distance. But he didn't even feel the cold of
the desert night, for he could still feel the raw energy of
Ultima pressing against his skin.
"WHY?!" he suddenly punched the wall beside the staircase,
cracking the stone slightly. "Why didn't you let us help?!" He
then threw another punch, aiming for the moon, "Damn you
Coldfire, whoever you are! Phoenix was our friend!" Once again he
tried to hit the wall, but a larger hand stopped his fist.
"Yes, he was our friend. But you mustn't punish yourself
for something that can't be changed."
"Leave me alone, Sabin," Locke turned away from the martial
artist, "You know very well how I feel."
Sabin Ren� Figaro took a deep breath, "I know perfectly
well how you feel. The Empire took away my father, my friends,
and even my planet. But Edgar taught me to be strong, even
though he was hurt by father's passing as much as I was. It
was the same when our world's balance was destroyed by Kefka.
It didn't matter what we tried to do, we couldn't stop him. But
instead of crying for the past, we never gave up. We tried our
best to restore this planet and succeeded. And it was all
because we wanted to give hope to the people."
Locke was still not listening. The rugged youth tried a
different approach, "Now Phoenix has died. You blame yourself
for not being there to help him, but that is not true. Setzer
told me the whole story, and from what I made out you did help
Phoenix. He knew the risks of fighting that demon, and that's
why he didn't want you to take those risks. Instead, you helped
him by saving his friends after he used Ultima. I can't imagine
a greater way to honor such sacrifice than by fulfilling his
wish. So stop your whining. Phoenix must have taught you to be
brave, or have you forgotten Rachel? I'm not saying that you
ignore his death and everything, just that you show how much
you appreciated him by enduring this. Show him you can be as
strong as him. Make him proud of you. That is the best way to
honor his memory."
Locke finally turned back to Sabin. He could hardly
recognize his fellow Returner. Even though he still looked the
same --muscle-bound, brush-haired, wearing a dark tank top and
white trousers-- his demeanor was totally different. Locke
could easily see how much Sabin was affected by Phoenix' death,
yet another casualty to be endured by the hardened martial
artist. "Thanks, Sabin. But I still think I could have done
something to help. We defeated Kefka, for crying out loud! We
could have handled a two-bit demon with little effort!"
"That two-bit demon cost the life of more than one Esper,
you know," a voice came from the penumbra in a corner of the
tower. Slowly, a man dressed entirely in black stepped out. Two
gleaming katanas rested by his sides.
"What do you mean, Shadow?"
The ninja took off his mask, revealing a brown-haired man
with a stern demeanor. His face had no feelings, though his
eyes showed a sorrow almost equal to Locke's. "I mean that the
demon fought by Phoenix was an Esper. And that Esper was none
other than the one used by Emperor Gestahl to create the first
Magitek Knight."
Locke and Sabin's eyes widened, "You mean Kefka and the
demon were the same person?!" Shadow nodded. "Oh God..."
"See what I mean?" Sabin said. "If you must be angry at
someone because of Phoenix, then be angry at Kefka... again."
Locke turned back towards the stars, "But still... I wish
there was something I could do..."
Shadow put his mask back on, "Maybe there _is_ something,
thief."
Locke snapped back like a cobra, "I'm NOT a thief! I'm a
treasure hunter!"
Shadow smirked, "Very well, treasure hunter. Another Esper
talked to me a few minutes ago, and I think we've found the
perfect treasure for you to hunt..."
* * *
"How is she?" Ranma-kun asked as he came back into the
room. Akane and Ukyou, despite their own feelings, were trying
to comfort Ranma-chan. In her hands she held a small vase,
where the ashes of the Phoenix Magicite were contained.
Akane stood up and came to Ranma-kun, "Not very well," she
whispered. "This hit her harder than we thought. I didn't know
they were such close friends."
Ranma sat on the bed, next to his sister, "I'm sorry," he
said, putting an arm around her shoulders. She immediately clung
to him, still clutching the vase in her hands. Ranma looked up
at Akane when he realized the redhead was crying.
"I've never seen her like this," Akane whispered.
"Well, he had been her friend for over 15 hundred years..."
Ukyou said, "and he saved her life lots of times."
Akane thought back to the time when her mother passed
away. She was too young at the time to realize what was going
on, but she knew what Ranma-chan was going through. The poor
girl had been in shock until her brother arrived, there was no
telling how she really felt.
"We'll be next door if you need us, Ranchan," Ukyou said.
"I'm really sorry, Ranma," Akane hugged her and came out of
the room, following Ukyou.
Both Ranmas remained silent for a few minutes, while
Ranma-chan relieved her chest. She held the vase so tightly it
seemed it would break in her hands. Finally, Ranma spoke, "I
know how you feel, sis. Remember how we felt when Mom took us
to the park. But as hard as this may be, you gotta let go." He
looked straight in her eyes, "Right now, I'm sure Phaeron is
watching you, just like he watched us while we were the same.
Do you want your best friend to see you cry?" she stopped her
sobbing for an instant, "Now, Pop may be an idiot but he still
taught us to be strong. So calm down. I miss my sister, the
tomboy," she smiled weakly. "Atta girl," he smiled back, "Try to
get some sleep. We still gotta figure out how to go back home."
She slowly let go of him and idly let him take her clothes off,
but never let go of the vase. Once she was in her tank top and
boxers, he tucked her in bed and hugged her.
"T-thank you, oniisan," she said.
"No problem, sis," he said as he got in the next bed. After
a while, seeing her brother was fast asleep, she put the vase
on the nightstand next to her.
"Good-bye, Phaeron-kun," she said, before falling asleep.
* * *
It was past midnight. The entire castle was silent. Even
the wolves outside had returned to their dens.
Suddenly six fast silhouettes ran past the gates, silent
like prowling cats. They all wore black robes and masks, but the
armor beneath could be easily discerned. Surprisingly, there
wasn't a single guard in the courtyard who could notice their
presence. Once they reached the interior, the group split.
Hidden in the shadows, one of the intruders threw off the robes
and flew upwards. Two others headed for one of the rooms while
the rest remained hidden in the hallway.
The Rebirth had commenced.
Ranma-chan slowly opened her eyes. She thought she had
heard something, but she wasn't sure what. Without getting up,
she scanned the room with her eyes. Nope, everything was in
order. Shrugging, she put a hand on the vase, and went back to
sleep.
That was close, the masked figure thought. Taking a deep
breath, it loosened another screw in the air vent above Ranma-
chan's bed. Being as careful as humanly possible, it removed the
grating and silently leapt down to the floor, kneeling as soon as
it landed. A second figure landed next to the first, making only
a low noise as its feet scuffed the stone floor. Both of them
slowly circled Ranma-chan's bed, careful enough not to awake the
siblings. Then the first figure headed for the door, waiting as
the second reached for the vase with the ashes. Any moment
now... Just a little farther...
"What the hell are you doing?" Ranma-kun asked, suddenly
holding the figure's arm in an iron grip.
"Huh? Oniisan...?" Ranma-chan sat up, rubbing her eyes.
Before she could notice the thief, the figure by the door darted
a quartet of throwing stars which embedded in the wall,
surprising both Saotomes. Making use of the distraction, the
thief quickly took the vase and ran out of the room before any
of the Ranmas could stop him.
"Hey!" Ranma-chan was out of bed and chasing the dark
figures in a flash, quickly followed by her brother.
"What's all the racket?" Ukyou came out of the room next
door. She and Akane dashed after both Ranmas as soon as they
saw them. Soon the entire Nerima crew was chasing after the
thieves.
"Get back here!" Ranma yelled.
The figure who had thrown the shuriken called, "Your cue,
'Mr. Thou'!" Suddenly another masked man appeared in front of
Kuno. It was a heavyset man, wearing a dark blue samurai armor
and brandishing a bokuto.
"So, finally an adversary proper of the great Blue
Thunder!" Kuno said, whipping out his own wooden sword.
"And thou seem a worthy opponent for my blade!" the
samurai said, rushing forward to atack.
"Bring back friend!" Shampoo threw one of her bonbori at
the thieves. Ukyou and Kodachi sent a barrage of spatulas and
pins as well. "Stop, you thieves!" Ukyou yelled.
"Esper Girl, your turn!" the leader called again.
The wall next to the three girls caved in, cutting them off.
Then a humanoid creature with bright pink fur and ankle-length
hair floated out of the opening. "Who you?" Shampoo backed to a
fighting stance. The female Esper hissed and dashed towards
them.
"Looks like they want to set us apart!" Ryouga said.
"Well I'm not going to fall for it!" Mousse answered.
"Your turn, thief," the leader said to his partner. He
fumed and blew a smoke bomb, standing still as the remainder of
the Japanese teenagers ran past him. Without warning, he
captured Mousse.
"Let me go, you thief!" Ignoring his struggling, the thief
searched Mousse's robes and took out a veritable arsenal. "Get
OFF me, I said!" Mousse threw his opponent away and attacked
with a spiked ball. "What, you _still_ have weapons?!" the thief
asked, astounded.
The chase moved out to the courtyard. Two more masked
figures joined the leader, who still held the vase. But it was
pointless, Ranma-chan thought. They were too fast, they'd never
catch up with them. And they were stealing the only thing left
of her best friend. She already felt bad, this only made it
worse. Actually, it was _depressing_...
"Oniisan! Ryouga! Do the Shishihokodan!"
She didn't need to say it twice, already the trio was
covered by a green aura. The stone beneath their feet cracked
under the pressure. One of the figures took out her
broadsword.
"Uh-oh," the leader saw the intense ki irradiated by the
fighters. "Ready, RunicBlade?" The figure next to him nodded and
held the sword with both hands.
"Now! Shishi-hoko-dan!"
"Yow!" the figure staggered at the sight of three immense
pillars of light shooting upwards, then fusing into a single
gigantic shot that was about to crush them into pancakes. "Hope
I can take this," she thought, then stopped running and aimed her
sword upwards at the energy ball, "RUNIC!"
Ryouga was completely drained of energy, but both Ranmas
and Akane gasped. The biggest Roaring Lion Bullet they had ever
seen fizzled, and then its energy was sucked into a sword held
by one of the interlopers.
"Ryouga-kun!" Akane kneeled next to his friend, worried.
The siblings still continued to give chase. Seeing this, the
leader sent the last of his partners to hold them back.
"Stall them, Fighter!"
"Right!" the martial artist ran back to the pair and shot
towards them with a dashing punch. Ranma-chan leapt over him
and continued, but before her brother could follow the warrior
smashed into him, shouting something like "Tiger Break!"
The leader smirked, "Heh. All down and she's no match.
Gambler, GO!"
On cue, the leader jumped down to the desert sands and
landed on the back of a large yellow bird, like an ostrich. Yet
another masked man rode alongside him. "Time to get the guys
back together!" Gambler said, bringing his hands upwards, "Flare!"
A large blazing ball exploded just outside the castle.
"Thou art certainly strong, but I'm afraid I must leave,"
the samurai disappeared in front of Kuno.
Ukyou swung her spatula to hit the Esper, but missed and
hit the wall, causing it to give out in a cloud of dust. When
the dust settled, the Esper was gone.
"Give me back my weapons!" Mousse had nearly ensnared the
thief with a few dozen miles of chains before the opponent
shouted, "Warp!" and vanished.
"Come on," the fighter and the swordswoman regained their
strength and leapt down to the desert.
"GET BACK HERE!" Ranma-chan shouted as she saw the seven
riders fleeing. She was about to fire another Roaring Lion
Bullet when her brother put a hand on her shoulder.
"Let him go."
"Oniisan...!"
"They're gone, Ranma," Akane said.
"What's going on?" Edgar came out to the courtyard, still
groggy. When he saw the thieves ride away, he suddenly shouted,
"Chamberlain! Figaro must be protected!"
"I don't care! I'm going after--" before Ranma-chan could
finish, the entire castle shook as the Figaro Submerge Mode was
activated. The towers were pulled closer to the castle and the
courtyard was covered by a metallic overhead. In a few
seconds, Figaro Castle was completely buried beneath the sand.
"Let me out! I have to catch them!" Ranma-chan pounded her
fists against the walls. Seeing it was useless, she just punched
the wall and leaned against it.
"I'm sorry, but desert thieves are very dangerous," Edgar
said. "I'm afraid I can't let any of you chase them, otherwise
you might never come back."
"But who were they?" Akane asked.
"Probably fanatics," Edgar said, "If the demon you fought
was the same as Kefka, then the members of the Cult think they
can revive their master by using Phoenix' ashes. Anyway, it's
best if you stay here. We'll take care of those jackals."
Akane looked at the insulated gates, shut tight to keep
the sand out of the castle. "Then Phaeron is really gone now..."
For the sake of a friend
The leader rode his Chocobo bird through the desert. One
by one, his partners joined him. Once the castle was out of
sight, the entire troop cheered.
"Finally!" Locke said, taking off his mask.
"Those guys really pack a punch," Sabin said.
"I never realized I missed my Esper side so much!" Terra
sighed in relief.
"Whoa... Where am I...?" Celes was still wobbly after
absorbing the energy from the Roaring Lion Bullet.
"I have to say, I regret cutting my duel short," Cyan
Garamonde, former retainer and new king of Doma, said. "The lad
I fought could have become a mighty knight had I remained to be
his teacher."
"Don't worry, 'Mr. Thou'," Sabin teased, "From what I hear,
he's already as conceited as you."
"Thou shan't mock me further, knave!" Cyan unsheathed his
katana.
"Calm down, you guys," Locke said. "We still gotta get to
Thamasa. Shadow, how're you doing?"
Shadow smirked, "For once, your skills as a burglar payed
off."
"For the last time... I'm not a thief! I'm a TREASURE
HUNTER! TREASURE HUNTER!!"
"...Even though you hunt for treasure in other people's
pockets," Sabin added.
Locke fumed, "Well, I'm not the one who almost ruined the
plan." He turned to Shadow, "What's with you, anyway? I thought
ninjas were supposed to be masters of stealth."
"Everyone can make mistakes, thief," Shadow said,
nonplussed.
Suddenly a female voice came to them, followed by a wide
beam of pure white, "Please, don't argue, gentlemen. You've all
done an extraordinary job."
Everyone but Shadow was awestruck, "S-Seraphim..."
Shadow took off his mask, "My pleasure, Seraphim. After
all, Phoenix saved me from dying when the Tower of Kefka
collapsed."
The angel girl fully materialized and flew alongside the
riders, "Now, all that remains is to go towards Thamasa..."
"But I don't understand," Celes said, "If we're going to
resurrect Phoenix, why didn't we just ask them for his ashes?
Why did we have to steal and fight?"
"Didn't you see them?" Terra said. "If we asked them to
hand him over, they'd probably have ignored us, even if we tried
to explain what we're trying to do. Phoenix' death really hit
them hard."
"You don't know how hard, sister Terra," Seraphim said.
"Anyway, what's done is done."
"Ah, there she is," Setzer said, pointing forward. "I knew
we'd need the Falcon for this."
Seraphim smiled, her eyes showing a dreamy look, "Let us
go, then, to Thamasa."
"It's been a while since we last saw Strago and Relm,"
Locke said.
"Yes... Relm..." Shadow's thoughts drifted away.
Seraphim turned back to the desert, to the place where
Figaro castle used to be, "Don't worry," she thought. "As
promised, I'll bring back brother Phaeron, just like you wanted...
even if it costs me my wings."
* * *
The village of Thamasa is a small, well-kept community in
the Southernmost continent. Its people, descendants of the
great Mage Warriors of yore, are friendly and hospitable. The
architecture, like in most World of Ruin towns, has a sober
Victorian style, tough this particular village tends to adorn the
houses' cornices and friezes with elegant figurines of dragons
and griffons. But the strangest house of all is the home of one
Strago Magus, fellow Returner and a powerful Blue Mage. His
granddaughter, Relm Arrowny, was also very gifted. She was a
skilled artist, and her paintings were always very "lively."
A loud noise resounded just outside the village, like the
sound of an airplane landing. Muttering, old man Strago got out
of bed and put on a robe, angry at being awakened so late in
the night. He took his staff and headed for the staircase, lit
only by the moonlight that came through the windows. Resting
his weight on the staff, he slowly descended the steps one by
one, until suddenly the lights went on and he unwillingly decided
to go down all at once.
"Blast it, child! Don't do that!" he said, rubbing his head.
"What are you doing, falling down like that?" the ten-year-
old asked, "You should really act your age, Gramps."
"You really need to learn respect, you--" he was
interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Let's see who that is, okay, Interceptor?" Relm petted the
large Doberman that sat beside her, who happily licked her hand.
Strago got to his feet and muttered something before opening
the door.
Relm's eyes widened, "You're back!" she said she leapt into
Shadow's arms. Interceptor also threw himself at his master.
"Whoa! Calm down, child!" Shadow showed a warm smile.
"I took care of Interceptor for you," Relm said.
"I know, and I'm proud of you. But right now we need you
to do some sketches, okay?"
"'We'?" Strago turned back to the door and saw his old
friends were there as well. "A-an Esper?!" he stammered at the
sight of Seraphim.
"Hello, brother Strago. We are sorry for intruding, but
this is an emergency."
"That's right," Locke said, "But first, there's some
explaining to do..."
A female figure moved among the trees, silent as an elf
and graceful like an antelope. She was clad in ebony robes from
head to foot, yet her lavish red hair flowed freely in the wind.
At first glance, she would resemble a ninja, with the standard
dark uniform. Her sleeves were tucked into shining gold armlets,
letting her hands free, while the legs of her uniform were also
contained by gold anklets. A strange, loose belt around her
waist, and a gold plate on the forehead of her mask, completed
the picture of the single most powerful Esper to ever walk on
the World of Ruin.
A great battle had just happened, or so she heard. It
must have been, for she felt the power of Ultima and Merton in
the air. But that wasn't the reason why she had come. No, she
had come because she knew Phaeron was here.
Supposedly, he had been brought to this little town, but
she hadn't yet found him. Still, it wouldn't hurt to eavesdrop on
Strago Magus, and see what was going on...
They were upstairs, in Relm's room. She was gathering her
paint and brushes while the grown-ups continued talking to each
other. How boring, she thought. They only had to ask her to do
that painting, but nooo... they _had_ to give a lengthy
explanation. She did like the part about somebody from another
world, coming to save an Esper...
The figure outside shook in anger... Phaeron was DEAD?!
And it was because of a little wench?!
"So that's it..." Celes said. "You didn't explain this to us
before, Seraphim."
"Did I really need to? You saw yourself how bad that poor
girl felt. If I had let this continue like it was, she would have
killed herself, sooner or later."
Good, the girl outside thought. It would be better for
that insolent wench to die before _she_ found her.
"Well, I would have never imagined we would be part of the
plans made 'up there'," Locke said, pointing upwards. "But there's
something that bothers me, though. I mean, we already have
Phoenix' ashes, why not just burn them? Isn't that what the
legend of the Phoenix says we should do?"
Seraphim shook her head, "We _don't_ have his ashes,
brother Locke. What we have are the ashes of a Magicite rock.
If we were to burn them, we would only recover brother
Phaeron's essence. He would have neither body nor spirit.
However, we can use sister Relm's ability to make living
paintings for our end. If she mixes the ashes with the paint,
then makes a painting of him, she can give him a body. Then all
that we would need is for me to give brother Phaeron's soul to
that painting and... voil�!"
"But are you sure about this?" Celes asked. "Remember
that Relm has tried to make sketches of Phoenix in the past but
they never came to life."
"That's because of the legend of the Phoenix itself," Strago
said. "According to myth, there can only be one bird of Phoenix.
If she wanted to sketch him, the drawing would never leave the
paper. But now, since he is no longer alive, she can paint him
and the painting would come to life. Then, by using the ashes
of the original Phoenix, we would recover the real one. And as
Seraphim said, the only thing left would be his soul."
"I'm ready," Relm said, already wearing her beret and holding
her paintbrush.
"Did you mix the ashes we gave you?" Seraphim asked.
"Uh-huh, and I got some on my brushes too."
"Well, let's get this started, then."
The girl outside climbed a nearby tree and sat on the
lowest branch. She wouldn't move until Phaeron was alive again.
Relm sat down before her canvas, "I only saw him when he
was a bird. I need you to describe him as a guy."
"I'll help you," Seraphim smiled. "Don't worry, this will be
your best work yet."
"Oo-kay," Relm put paintbrush to canvas.
"This shall take quite a while," the girl outside thought.
Actually, it took two weeks. For some reason, Seraphim
vanished after the first week, only to return a few hours later.
Relm was truly putting a great deal of effort in this painting.
In it, she painted Phaeron both as a human and a bird, the
latter side of him soaring in the background while the human
side stood in the center, dressed in his usual orange gi and in
a fighting stance. She was careful enough not to paint the eyes
of either until Seraphim told her to.
Finally, the painting was nearly finished. All that remained
were the eyes. But Seraphim was nowhere near.
"So, where is she?" Locke asked, impatient.
"Yes, where is the little wench?" the girl outside wondered.
She never did like Seraphim, but this time she actually needed
her to be here.
"Quiet, you'll wake Relm," Celes shushed Locke. The ten-
year-old was sleeping soundly on her lap, finally receiving her
much-needed rest. She turned to Shadow, "She's a little angel
when she sleeps."
Shadow smiled, "As innocent as her mother. Sometimes I
think she could give Seraphim a run for her money."
"She could, yes. But all little children are like that,"
Seraphim said as she descended upon the room.
"Where were you, anyway?" Locke asked. "She's almost
done!"
"Just giving a lift to one of brother Phaeron's friends..."
Seraphim said. "But I see poor sister Relm has really outdone
herself this time," she examined the painting, "I think we should
wait until she wakes up. After all, she needs to rest."
Humans. They are so weak, the girl thought.
* * *
Ranma came back to the Tendo Dojo. It was already dark,
and his sister had just left with Seraphim less than hour ago.
He couldn't wait to see the look in Akane's face when he told
her what his sister had done. But... Sheesh! What the heck was
she thinking?! That idiot Kuno was already a nuisance, he would
be even worse after this. And then there was that _other_
business, when Seraphim picked her up... One thing was certain:
his sister really knew how to keep a secret.
"Welcome back, Ranma-kun," Kasumi greeted when she saw him.
"Hi, Kasumi. Where's Akane?"
"She's upstairs, I think. "
"Thanks," he went upstairs, heading for Akane's room, but
she was out in the balcony, silently looking up at the stars.
"Yo, Akane."
She turned around, "Hm? Oh, Ranma." Her gaze returned to
the dark curtain of the sky. Finding her behavior strange, he
walked over to her. "Did she leave?" she asked, still looking at
the stars.
"Yep. It's gonna be weird around here."
"You know, Ranma, I'be been thinking..."
"That's a new one."
She ignored him, "...remember the time when we were going to
China, in Herb's boat, and she came over to talk to me?"
"Remember? We were both conscious at the time. She made
sure I didn't forget any of it."
"Well, do you remember what she said about... leaving?"
"Let's see... she said she was sorry and that she would
get out of... our... life..." his voice drifted away as realization
hit. "Oh, great. I knew there was something funny going on."
"Do you think she meant it?"
He sighed, "I hope not. Besides, it's not like her. After
all, we finally saw Mom again, nobody's cursed, and we're getting
along. Maybe she just wants to be away for a while."
"But still..." Akane finally turned to him, "Do you think this
has something to do with... you know... with Phaeron-kun dying?"
"I dunno. Maybe she just wants to see her twin again."
Akane smiled a little, "Yeah, you're right. I guess I'm just
being paranoid. I mean, I've hit you hundreds of times and
you're still here." He didn't notice she was holding his hand, "But
this _is_ the first time one of our friends dies. Why, a few
minutes ago I even thought I heard his voice."
"Yeah, you and everyone else in the city," he thought,
recalling what happened mere instants after his sister left.
"You know..." he said to Akane, "this has made me start thinking
about a lot of things too."
"I find that hard to believe," Akane giggled.
"No, no. I'm serious."
"You hardly ever are."
"C'mon, cut it out. I--"
"But I can't cut it out. It'll grow back anyway."
"Will you let me talk?" Akane stopped giggling. "I mean, you
saw what happened to me when she was about to die. I've been
thinking a lot these past few days, about what would it be like
if... if something like that happened to you."
Akane looked up at him, surprised. "Ranma..."
"I can't hide this anymore," he thought, "Heck, my own
sister knows exactly what I feel for Akane, because we used to
be the same person." He turned to Akane, trying to force the
words out and actually finding it easy to say them, "A-Akane-
chan, if you would have died, I'd... I'd..."
<CLICK>
Ranma and Akane immediately turned to the door, where
Genma and Soun were busy trying to change the battery of the
camcorder.
"Way to go, Ranma-kun," Nabiki said, sulky, as she payed
Kasumi. "You just cost me a thousand yen."
"You should really be ashamed of yourselves," Nodoka
loomed over Genma and Soun, "Spying on them _and_ recording a
private conversation. You should commit seppuku right here and
now."
"Oh no, they won't need to..." Ranma also loomed over his
father before Nodoka turned Genma into the second Saotome to
orbit the Earth. Ranma quickly chased after his free-falling
father.
Akane didn't notice any of this. Her heart still beat
rapidly, her face was still blushing. "'Akane-chan'? Ranma..." she
turned down to see him run out of the house, "You... you really
feel that way..." a sudden smile of joy appeared on her face, and
she heard him yell to his father.
"...tapes of me and that _uncute TOMBOY_!!" he continued.
"Then again..." Akane's smile flustered.
* * *
"All set," Relm said, cracking her knuckles.
"Very well," Seraphim sat down next to her, then turned to
the people around them, "Now, when the picture comes back to
life, I'll need all of you to cast a sleeping spell on him, just as
a precautionary measure," everyone got ready, "Okay, sister
Relm, I'll describe brother Phaeron's eyes..."
Relm began getting a dreamy look in her eyes as Seraphim
continued her description. When the angel girl finished, Relm
swallowed hard and resumed her painting.
"This is it..." the girl outside crossed her fingers.
"I'm done!" Relm exclaimed, and stepped back.
"Get ready..." Seraphim said.
A powerful aura of light began to surround the painting.
[Insert Terminator 2-type special FX here] Then, very slowly, a
hand rose from the canvas. And another. Both hands grabbed
hold of the edges of the painting. The Phoenix bird in the
background fused with Phaeron's human side. Then, with a
tremendous effort, the figure in the painting pulled itself out
of the canvas.
"Now!" On Seraphim's call, they all cast the Sleep spell on
him, immediately knocking him out. She quickly kneeled by him,
putting her right hand on his forehead and her left on his
chest.
"You better do this right, Seraphim..." the girl thought.
"...for the life of Lael Phaeron..." Seraphim prayed, "...give
me the strength to bring back his soul, and resurrect his spirit!
Cordis Fortitudo, help me restore my noble brother!" There was a
flash of light so powerful even the Esper girl outside the house
had to look away.
When the light vanished, all was still. Only a few golden
glimmers surrounded Seraphim and Phaeron. Slowly, she bent down
and kissed his forehead.
And Phaeron of Fenix came back to life.
"...Chance..." he mumbled, still not fully awake, "...another--
huh?" He opened his eyes to find himself in the house of Strago.
He shot up like a bullet, "Where am I?!" He suddenly saw the
angel beside him, "Seraphim! I'm... I'm...!" he said excitedly,
running his hands over his body.
"Yes, brother Phaeron. You're alive," she showed him the
warmest smile she had ever let anyone see.
He looked all around him, "Locke! Celes! Sabin! You're all
here!" his excited smile suddenly turned into a worried look
when he remembered something, "Seraphim, where is she?! Is she
alright?!"
"'She'?" the girl thought, cocking an eyebrow.
"Calm down, brother Phaeron. She's fine. I brought her
back too, but right now she doesn't remember anything about what
happened in the Gates. Don't worry. But you need to rest."
He got to his feet with the speed of an arrow, "Rest? How
can I? I gotta get back before Ranma-chan kills herself!"
"'Ranma-chan'?!?!" the girl outside fumed in a way that could
put the Vesuvius to shame.
"Whoa! Brother Phaeron, listen to me! I brought both of you
back three years before that happened! To everyone here you've
been dead for only two weeks!"
"T-two weeks?" Phaeron slowly cooled off.
"That's right. You have plenty of time to go and see
sister Ranma again. Right now you must be tired."
Phaeron smiled, "Oh, alright. Guess I need to show a little
gratitude to you guys anyway!" he turned to the Returners.
"So, that is the name of the little wench who caused his
death, eh?" the girl thought, coming down the tree and silently
leaving the town. "Now I remember that name... from the images
Seraphim showed to him while we were in our own world..."
The girl spread her arms, causing a rift in space. As she
stepped through the portal, she laughed in the way only B-ko
and Kodachi could cackle. Her deep black eyes turned blazing
red. She had business to conduct. Business with a certain
Ranma Saotome.
And the Esper vanished into the void.
Phoenix Reborn
"It's too bad you gotta go back so soon," Yuannyan said,
hugging her sister. "You barely stayed here one day!"
Yuannyan, Ranma-chan and Herb were at the gates of the
palace. Seraphim waited by Ranma-chan's side, still giggling at
Herb's reaction from when he met her.
"Yeah, too bad," Ranma-chan said, "but Seraphim-chan told
me there's something very important back at the dojo. Who
knows? Maybe Akane finally killed oniisan," she smirked.
"Okay. Maybe we'll go visit one of these days," Yuannyan
tightened her hug, then released her twin sister.
"I-It's time she gets going..." Herb stammered, his gaze still
fixed on the angel.
Ranma-chan hoisted her pack, "Well, see ya soon, Yuan-
chan." She began heading away from the gates, Seraphim following
her.
"Wait! Seraphim-chan!" Yuannyan called.
"Hm?" the angel stopped then came back a few steps.
Ranma-chan turned around.
"Seraphim-chan..." Yuannyan whispered, "Have you told her
'bout... you-know-who?"
Seraphim smiled, "Don't worry. I'm sure you will both see
'her' soon." She briefly turned to Ranma-chan, making sure she
was out of earshot, "I have a feeling 'she' will show up soon to
see both of you again."
"Uh... right!" Yuannyan winked. "Bye Zhaodi-chan! Bye
Seraphim-chan!" she waved as the angel hoisted Ranma-chan by
the shoulders and started flying away.
"Why'd we have to leave so soon, anyway?" Ranma-chan
asked.
Seraphim smiled, "You'll find out..."
* * *
"So, what is it?" Ranma-chan asked, seeing they were now
flying over the outskirts of Nerima ward. It was Sunday
afternoon.
"All in due time, sister Ranma."
"You've been saying that for the last two hours. C'mon,
tell me."
"Well..."
"Oh, forget it," Ranma-chan said, sulky. Suddenly she heard
the sound of a large bird of prey, shrieking behind them, "Eh?
Yow!" A blazing white fireball passed them by, causing a slight
vacuum in the vicinity. "What the heck was that?!"
The fireball slowed down slightly, revealing the shape of a
large white phoenix. A large grin was on the face of Crystallus
as he shot towards the Tendo dojo. "Brother Crystallus, you
already know..." Seraphim smiled softly.
Still wobbly after the surprise, Ranma-chan said, "Okay, you
can put me down now. I can walk from here." The angel floated
slowly to the ground, setting Ranma-chan in the middle of the
street. She landed next to her.
"Hmm..." Seraphim looked around, "I better change before
anyone sees me." She arched her back forward, closing her eyes.
Slowly, her four wings started to fade back into her body. Her
halo became smaller and smaller, until it was only a faint golden
glow around her head. The gown transformed into a white blouse
and skirt, while a pair of white shoes covered her feet. "Okay,
now I look like a normal girl," she said, tying her long blond hair
into a ponytail. She didn't notice the broad ring of light that
surrounded her.
"Ready to tell me n--" Ranma-chan was covered by a part
of the ring and immediately put her hands to the sides of her
head. Her eyes were blank for an instant.
"Sister Ranma?" Seraphim put a hand on the girl's shoulder,
worried. The ring disappeared.
"I... No..." Without warning the effect of the light vanished
and Ranma-chan dropped to her knees, looking exhausted.
"Are you alright?"
"S-Seraphim-chan..." Ranma looked up, her face filled with
worry, "Why didn't you tell me...?" Her voice was barely above a
whisper.
Realization hit Seraphim like an announcement of new taxes.
Her transformation... It must have somehow given Ranma-chan the
memory of using the Caller... and dying! She was supposed to
remember all of what happened at the Gates, but not so soon!
"I'm sorry, sister Ranma," Seraphim hugged the smaller girl,
"I didn't think you were ready."
"B-but..." Ranma-chan's eyes widened tremendously, "I
remember who... I... Cordis..." Her face turned from worry to
utter surprise and confusion. Seraphim let go of her as the
redhead looked down at her hands, which were now trembling
slightly.
Seraphim swallowed hard, "Are... are you sure about that?"
Ranma looked Eastward, "Yuan-chan... You didn't tell me
either..." she smiled, "You should have told me..."
The angel looked at her sternly, "Sister Ranma, do you
remember about brother Phaeron?" Ranma-chan turned to her
slowly, a what-are-you-talking-about look in her face. "She
must have recalled only a few things about the Gates," Seraphim
thought. "It should all come back to her in a few hours, but
right now it looks like she doesn't remember anything about him."
She said to Ranma, "Never mind. Can you stand up? We have to
get you home."
Ranma-chan nodded slowly, still trying to figure out the
flood of memories that were coming to her head. She remembered
turning nineteen... Her brother and Akane getting along... It
was all so confusing!
"Seraphim-chan..." she said quietly, "You brought me back,
didn't you?"
The angel nodded, "I did, sister. It seems you have cleared
your thoughts now."
"But there's something I can't remember... something about
Phaeron-kun..."
Seraphim smiled tenderly, "Don't worry. You'll find out
quite soon. But you... It must be strange for you being fifteen
again."
Ranma-chan nodded, "B-but I'm already nineteen... And..." a
smile appeared on her face, "Mom! Oniisan!" she began running
towards the dojo.
"Looks like she's back to normal," Seraphim smiled. "The
same old sister Ranma, only with a couple new memories." Not
used to running, she staggered a little before going after
Ranma-chan.
They were just outside the gates when an all-too-familiar
battle cry made itself present for the 513th time, "Ranma,
prepare to d--" Ryouga suddenly landed harmlessly on the ground
in front of a surprised Ranma-chan.
"What's the matter with you?" she asked, blinking.
"I was about to challenge you, but..." he scratched his head.
"Okay, there are two Ranmas. You..." he pointed at Ranma-chan,
"...don't stand between me and Akane-san anymore..." he made some
figures in the air with his fingers as he tried to figure things
out, "...but you _did_ kick me into the spring... but I don't turn
into P-chan anymore... but _you're_ always tricking me with your
stupid disguises... but you tried to save my life once... but
I've saved _your_ life a couple of times... then again..."
"Okay whatever," she pushed him down the road. He
continued talking to himself, as he walked away from the dojo
without even noticing.
"Wasn't that a little cruel?" Seraphim giggled.
"Nah. By the time that idiot figures things out he'll be in
Seattle or somewhere else. It's fun to tease him sometimes, you
should really try it." She giggled and went through the gates,
Seraphim coming in after her.
"...I'll be back in a few minutes," Nodoka said, as she
stepped out the door.
Ranma-chan's smile returned while she threw off her
backpack and ran towards her, "Mom!"
"Hm? Oh, Ranma-chan!" Nodoka ws surprised to find her
daughter was hugging her tightly.
"Auntie Saotome? Who's there?" Akane called from inside the
house. When she too came out, Ranma-chan gave her the same
greeting she gave her mother. "What...? R-Ranma?" for some
reason, her voice was still a little shaky, something Ranma-chan
was quick to notice.
"Akane? Why're you crying? Did oniisan do something?"
"Hm? Oh, no! Nothing at all!" Akane wiped her face, a warm
smile appearing on her face. "H-hurry up! Come on in!"
"Yo, Akane, where'd you run off to?" Ranma-kun also came
out. He too, like Akane, was smiling. "Hey, sis!"
"Oniisan!" she hugged him as well, not realizing all three of
them were apparently happy about something.
"Sis, you gotta see this..." Ranma-kun said, leading her to
the house while Akane and Nodoka welcomed Seraphim.
"This... you did this, didn't you?" Akane asked, not able to
take the smile off her face. Seraphim just smiled back.
"...you're not gonna believe this..." Ranma continued. "Well,
here you go!" he gave her a slight push to boost her into the
living room. When she looked forward, she immediately felt her
eyes begin to flood.
There he was, just like she remembered, in his usual
Rocketeer-like jacket and trousers, flashing the smile he always
gave her. A smile she thought she would never see again.
"Hello, Ranma-chan. Did you miss me?"
Before he knew it, Phaeron was already being hugged very
tight by Ranma-chan, who virtually tried to bury her smiling face
in his chest. Tears streamed down her cheeks. Every second
she stayed in that position felt like an eternity. He felt
Phaeron hesitate for a second before he returned the hug, which
only made her tighten her grip. He felt his ribs close to
breaking, but for once he didn't care.
"Phaeron-kun..." she said softly.
She stayed like that for about a minute, while Akane and
Nodoka just smiled at the redhead, tears coming from their eyes
as well. Seraphim showed a smile of both happiness and
satisfaction. Ranma-kun just snickered amusedly at his sister's
reaction.
"Easy, Ranma-chan," Phaeron said, "You look like you haven't
seen me in... in _three_ years..." he smirked. In front of him,
Seraphim was waving and motioning for him to keep quiet. "Why,
I'd say you were _dying_ to see me!" he winked at Seraphim. She
smacked her forehead.
Ranma-chan suddenly opened her eyes, "T-three years...?"
She looked up at him with a gaze that could melt the Arctic
glaciers, "Three YEARS?!" Phaeron swallowed hard.
"What's she doing?" Akane felt impending doom for Phaeron.
She suddenly stood up, pulling him by the collar. "Eh,
sorry 'bout that...?" Phaeron tried to say.
Ranma-chan's voice turned soft once again, "Phaeron no..."
she let go of him, as he breathed a sigh of relief... "BAKA BAKA
BAKA BAKA BAKA BAKA BAKA BAKA BAKA!!!!!" Each yell was followed
by a tremendous blow to his gut.
"Ouch," Ranma gulped.
"BAAAAAKAAAAA!" she finished with a blow from a wooden
mallet of her own.
"W-well... ugh..." Phaeron grunted, falling over in pain, "nice
to see you too..." his voice drifted away as he lost
consciousness.
"What?! What happened?" Crystallus asked, flying back into
the room.
"I didn't know she wanted him to _stay_ dead," Akane said.
"Ranma-chan..." Nodoka looked as her daughter buried her
head in the unconscious Phaeron's chest, relieving the sorrow
she had contained for so long.
"Um, what happened here?" Crystallus looked nervously at
his Esper brother.
Finally vacated of her sorrow, Ranma-chan looked up at him,
"Crys... Crystallus?"
"Oh my," Kasumi came into the living room and saw the prone
body lying on the floor. "We better move him."
Ranma-kun and Crystallus pulled Phaeron upstairs while
Kasumi and Akane prepared a futon for him in one of the rooms.
Nodoka kept Ranma-chan downstairs, "I want to talk to you," she
said, smiling warmly at her daughter.
A few minutes later, they were both hovering around
Phaeron while Seraphim, downstairs, explained to the rest how
she brought him back. Ranma-chan was a deep shade of red while
Nodoka smiled at her.
"So that's it..." she said. Ranma-chan nodded slowly. She
had already told her about what happened at the Gates, and
something else. "Well, I'm glad you're alright, then," Nodoka said,
"but the next time you feel lonely, just talk to me."
"Mom..." Ranma-chan looked up, "Seraphim-chan told me
something... about bringing him back..." she looked nervous for a
moment. "Don't worry, Ranma-chan, you can tell me," her mother
messed up her hair.
The redhead took a deep breath, "Well, she said she could
only bring him back for--"
"What a haul!" a midget old man came in through the window,
completely oblivious to the people inside. "Heh heh heh! Look at
all these silky treasures!"
Nodoka gasped, "You?!"
Happosai looked up, "Ah! If it isn't my Ranma-chan! And..." he
eyed Nodoka curiously, while Ranma-chan moved between to block
his view, "Oh! I remember you!" he pointed at Nodoka, "You're
Genma's wife! What a coincidence to have two such lovely women
here!"
"Get AWAY," Nodoka calmly unsheathed her katana. "I still
remember what you did in the past."
"He WHAT?!" Ranma-chan stood up in surprised anger. "What
did you do to my Mom?!" She was already doing that blue-aura
thing she learned from Akane.
"Oh, I didn't do anything..." Happosai put up an innocent
face.
"You tried to take my son away from me as soon as he was
born!" Nodoka pointed the sword at his nose.
Ranma-chan shuddered in disgust, "You dirty old..."
"But why dwell in the past..." he flashed a wicked smile,
rummaging through his bundle of underwear. "Right now, I'd
rather see you... in this!" he leapt at her with blinding speed,
holding a bra and panties in his hands....
...and crashed into the small crystal aura shield Phaeron
was now holding up in his hand. He smirked as the old pervert
slid off the shield with a screech.
"Why you..." Happosai rubbed his head. "Eh? You! You're the
one who's making those shields! Now I can have my reven--"
"Mom! Sis! You okay?" Ranma-kun burst into the room after
he heard Happosai's shout. The old man blinked, then pointed at
him, then at Ranma-chan, then at Ranma-kun again... He clutched
his chest, undergoing shock symptoms. "That's right. This is the
first time the old goat sees us as different people," Ranma-kun
said.
Happosai was trembling like a fireman at a pyromaniac
convention. Beads of sweat rolled down his head as he blinked
like crazy. "T-two o-of y-you..." he stammered, "Th-that means..."
he grinned, lust on his mind, "My Ranma-chan! Now you can come
with m--" he was sent out of the time zone by four simultaneous
fists.
"So _that's_ the old freak..." Phaeron said, sitting up.
"We've fought him hundreds of times," Ranma-chan said, "Why
can't he just give up?"
Phaeron smirked, "Well, you've fought him all right. But you
could always do better..." he prepared for her reaction.
"Shut up, you baka!" Ranma-chan smiled and happily sent him
flying after Happosai.
"Yes, I understand what you said..." Nodoka smiled warmly,
putting a hand on her shoulder.
Ranma-chan couldn't remove the smile from her face. It was
him all right. Phaeron of Fenix. And he was alive! Phaeron was
_alive_!
But for less than four months.
Back in business
Phaeron walked down the street, still tottering to the
sides as he shook his head. "One thing's for sure," he said to
himself, "that crazy girl still knows how to punch." He leaned
against a wall, trying to get his eyes back into focus. He
looked forward, his blurry vision becoming clearer. Then a
familiar building appeared in front of him. "Well, whaddaya
know..."
Yotsuya closed the door to room 3, holding a large bag of
canned goods in his arms. He looked around, just to be sure.
Good, there was nobody near. Now all he had to do was get to
the next door and--
"What do you think you're doing?" Phaeron popped up behind
him. "Those are _my_ cans, you know."
Yotsuya didn't even flinch, "I was merely taking proper care
of them. They had been left misplaced for two weeks and they
could have spoiled."
"Yeah, right," Phaeron ripped his goods out of Yotsuya's
arms and headed for his room. But as he rummaged through his
pockets, he suddenly realized he had lost the key. "Oh great,"
he thought, "I must've lost it during the fight..." like Yotsuya,
he looked around to check for anyone near, then tiptoed past
room 1 and headed for the manager's room.
"You insensitive--" Kyoko was smashing Yusaku's head with a
phonebook when Phaeron came in, "Oh! You're back!" she stopped
the pounding.
"Thank God for that..." Yusaku said before collapsing.
"Where have you been?" Kyoko asked, "You leave for two
weeks without saying a word and now you show up just like that!
We were becoming very worried!"
"I, uh, I'm very sorry about that," Phaeron rubbed his head,
"I'll tell you about it tomorrow, 'kay? But now it's getting late
and I seem to have lost my key..."
"All right, I'll give you a replacement," Kyoko looked in a
drawer, "But you really have to give me a good explanation
tomorrow after you come back, got it?" she glared at the
teenager.
Phaeron blinked in confusion. "Maternal instinct. Get used
to it," Yusaku said before Kyoko calmly smashed his face with
the phonebook. Not one to spread gossip, Phaeron quietly left
the room. But as he passed by room one, he couldn't resist the
temptation. He knocked on the door, and Mrs Ichinose stepped
out. "Hey! We haven't heard about ya in ages!" she said.
"Mrs. Ichinose: Mrs. Otonashi. Godai. Manager's room. Go."
he pointed down the hall. The stubby woman was there in a
flash. "Well, that gets _her_ off my back. Now for a good
night's sleep..." he said as he got into his room. He just
dropped his canned food on the floor and closed the door,
groggily walking towards his futon. He kneeled in front of it,
and dropped on top of... the floor. He quickly got up on his
elbows and looked for the futon, but it just wasn't there. He
rushed for the light switch and turned on the lights. His room
was utterly vacated of furniture.
"Mr. Yotsuyaaaa...."
* * *
The Southern continent, in the World of Ruin. Before the
Cataclysm, it had been a place where technology and commerce
thrived, due in part to the Empire. But after Kefka destroyed
the Balance of the Statues, this continent suffered a far worse
fate than any other part of the world. The earth was ripped
open, many people died. The debris and corpses floated eerily
towards the center of the continent, only to form the most
terrifying structure on the planet: the Tower. After Kefka's
fall, the Tower was turned to ashes along with its master. All
that remained of its looming presence was a large pile of
blackened dust, with a lone reddish feather mounted on its top,
ever-lasting warning of the great evil that once brought death
to this doomed world. Strangely, not even the gale winds of the
Plains could manage to scatter these ashes, as if the magic
power they once contained continued to protect them. Still, the
most versed magic-users could not sense Kefka's presence within
then, not even Strago and Terra. However, and to insure the
evil would never rise from these ashes, the Returners have
vowed to mantain a constant vigil over them.
Even so, a day came when nobody was guarding; it wouldn't
have made a difference, nonetheless, for what was about to
happen couldn't be stopped by anyone. A day when great magic
power arrived at the world. A day that wouldn't be easily
forgotten by the Espers.
A bright azure blaze came from the clouds, but it wasn't a
shooting star. As its descent brought it towards the Southern
continent, a closer look would allow one to see it was a very
special artifact. A strange hexagonal stone, an obsidian with a
lapislazuli embedded in its center. Due to the unusual colors,
one would not believe it to be a Magicite. And yet, it was.
The Coldfire Magicite.
Still sizzling from Ultima's power, the Magicite crashed deep
into the pile of ashes, burning straight through it. Some might
say it was the Magicite's rage, while others would argue it was
the flames that engulfed it, but everyone will agree the Magicite
suddenly caused the pile of ashes to be consumed in a massive
bonfire. The evil magic of Kefka, joined with the Rebirth of the
Phoenix of Gray.
Not far away, a lone rider came to the site. Sabin and his
chocobo bird were quickly headed for the dreadful spot, as the
martial artist muttered something about never leaving one's
post. But even if he had stayed, it wouldn't have made a
difference. A human hand rose violently from the ashes, then
another. When the blond man was completely free of his bonds,
he took the red feather and placed it in his hair, above the
left ear. His blazing red eyes scanned the landscape, trying to
find the object of his hatred. Seeing nobody, he spread his
arms as more ashes covered his body and transformed into lavish
robes. The man was now dressed in a scarlet royal attire, with
a leather belt and black boots, and an emerald vest over his
torso. A green coat with furry yellow edges covered his
shoulders, falling down his back. The man's face also became
visible, his eyes surrounded by dark patches like a racoon's.
Another hand, slightly smaller, rose from the ashes. The
man noticed this and the thought of a great opportunity passed
his mind. With an evil smirk on his face, he brought a hand
upwards, creating a dimensional rift with the greatest of ease.
Just then, Sabin arrived at the site. His eyes nearly
bulged out in a mixture of fear and rage at the sight of the
man. "You?!" he spluttered, "It's impossible!"
Grinning, the man bent down to pick up the other's hand.
And then, with a terrifying shrill cackle, Kefka vanished forever
from the World of Ruin.
May heaven help Earth and Esper World.
* * *
Phaeron woke up in pain (understandably, considering he had
had to nail down every single piece of furniture to the floor
after recovering them from Yotsuya, and literally cover the
futon with chains). As he automatically reached out to deliver
great deals of punishment to his alarm clock, he felt another,
more delicate hand cover his and turn off the alarm before he
did. His eyes snapped open in response, but he could only see a
red blur in front of him.
"Yaah! What're you..." was his greeting, as he leapt out of
the futon.
"A simple 'good morning' would be enough," Ranma-chan smiled.
Her brother, Akane and Seraphim (in her human disguise) were
also in the room. "Sorry, I thought you were Akemi," he
apologized. Ranma-kun's ears were still ringing from Phaeron's
yell. "What time is it?"
"Too early for screaming," Ranma rubbed his ears.
"And just in time for school," Akane said.
"School? Oh, right. I have been missing for two weeks
there too." He got up and started to get dressed when he
noticed Seraphim, "Huh? You're coming too?"
"That's right," she said, showing off her school uniform,
"Figured I'd take a look and see where you study."
Phaeron smiled, recalling the other students' reaction when
they saw he and Ranma-chan were in their class. "You're sure
gonna get a lot of admirers there, just like some other girls I
know..."
"Shut up, Phaeron-kun," Ranma-chan said, sulky, "Besides,
they're not after Akane anymore."
"That's if you count Kuno out," Akane shuddered slightly.
"Anyway, we better get moving," Ranma-kun pointed at the
clock. Once Phaeron was ready, they all started to leave, but
Ranma-chan lagged behind for a moment. "Wait, Phaeron-kun," he
turned around, "I, uh, this is for you," she showed a wrapped
package she had been carrying. When he took it, it was revealed
to be a small cake. "Um, _Mom_ made it," Ranma-chan quickly
explained, "to thank you for all you've done for us."
"Well, now..." Phaeron smirked when he noticed she was
redder than her hair, "Tell her this is very nice of her." He
began to put it on top of a cabinet, but he remembered Yotsuya
and decided to take it with him. Soon they were back on the
road, headed for Furinkan High. "Oh, and..." Ranma-chan said
nervously, her voice trembling, "about Seraphim-chan bringing you
back, I..."
Phaeron turned to her, still smirking about the present,
"What?"
She fell silent for a moment, "Never mind."
Akane looked at the cake, then turned to Ranma-chan, "But
Auntie didn't--" the redhead quickly covered Akane's mouth.
"You don't want to ruin the effort, do you, sister Akane?"
Seraphim smiled at her. Phaeron walked about ten yards ahead
of the group, but Ranma-chan caught up with him. "What's the
matter with her?" Akane asked to Ranma, "She even missed
training with you and your father."
He shrugged, "I dunno, maybe she's just glad to see him
back. He _is_ her best friend, you know."
"No, no. I mean in general. She's been acting very nice
for her. _Too_ nice. I don't want to sound suspicious or
anything, but she's just acting weird."
"What do you mean?"
"Come on, didn't you see her? Last night, offering to make
dinner for all of us... She tried to help me do some homework...
Then Kasumi told me she even helped her with the laundry. And
that was just what happened _last night_. Today, breakfast...
making sure the bath was ready... and _that_." she pointed
forward, where Phaeron was carrying the cake.
"Well, sister Akane..." Seraphim tapped her chin, "you have
to realize she practically died a few weeks ago. Most people
who suffer that kind of trauma change dearly in their behavior
towards those who surround them. That kind of people become
more appreciative of others. Brother Phaeron himself has
changed in a similar way."
"That's right. He's not as aggressive as he used to be,"
Akane noted.
"Then sister Ranma wants to make up for what she almost
lost by helping out her family, that's all."
Akane looked thoughtful for a moment, Ranma-chan was
laughing at something that Phaeron said. Akane insisted, "But
look at her! She's acting like an eight-year-old that has a crush
on her teacher!"
Ranma cleared his throat, and trying to change the subject,
said, "Um... Guess she's just like _you_ then."
"What do you mean by that?"
"C'mon, what happened to your 'Dr. Tofu'?"
Akane smirked, "You're still jealous?"
Ranma snapped back, "Jealous?! Over a baka like you? You're
kidding me, right?"
"Who're you calling baka you... you... you baka?!"
<ring ring>
"What, can't you think of any other insult to yell at me?"
"I sure can, hentai!"
<RING RING>
"Hey! You stopped calling me that a long time ago!"
"I can see now that I never should have stopped!"
SLAM!!
They both turned forward again to see Shampoo's bicycle
embedded in Phaeron's face.
"Hm? Who Shampoo hit? It no Ranma." Shampoo bent down to
examine the squished boy beneath her bike. When he saw his
face... "Aiyaaaa! It ghost! Ghost get away from Shampoo!" she
screamed as she bludgeoned Phaeron's head with her bonbori.
Repeatedly.
"Stop that, Shampoo!" Ranma-chan took away her round
maces. The Amazon continued to hit him nonetheless.
"Shampoo, darling, where have you gone?" Mousse leapt over
a nearby fence and landed on the street. "For you, my Shampoo,"
the myopic boy offered a bouquet to Seraphim. "Over there,
brother Mousse," she giggled. He put on his glasses and looked
around, finding his beloved bashing a red puddle on the street.
He jumped for her, "Shamp--" Her fist became one with his face.
"Mousse get away. Shampoo have to deal with ghost first."
"Hm?" he looked closely at the puddle, "Agh! It IS a ghost!"
he pulled Shampoo away and swung a large scimitar at Phaeron.
The Esper barely recovered in time to clap his hands on the
large blade, "Will you two calm down?!"
"Please," Seraphim said, "this is brother Phaeron, flesh and
blood. I helped revive him."
Shampoo and Mousse looked back and forth between Seraphim
and Phaeron, "Then he no ghost?" Phaeron shook his head.
"You're the real Phaeron, then?" he nodded. "And you brought him
back to life?" Mousse turned to Seraphim and she nodded too.
"Now that we got that straightened out," Phaeron said, "we
better get moving or else we'll be late." He ran ahead of the
group.
"Hey, wait!" Ranma-chan called.
"He doesn't know, does he?" Akane said, "About what's been
happening at school these last few weeks?"
As Shampoo returned to her deliveries with Mousse
following her (and running head-on into a bus), Ranma said,
"Guess he'll find out now, then."
* * *
The front yard of Furinkan high school was packed. It
would seem almost half of the male student population was just
standing there, waiting. Those who didn't know martial arts were
getting ready with weapons ranging from mallets to hockey
sticks. As the rest of the students arrived, two of Akane's
friends, Sayuri and Yuka, stopped to look at them.
"Hmph," one of them turned away irritated. "Idiots."
"Jerks. It's even worse than when they chased Akane."
Hearing them, one of the guys turned to his partner, "Come
to think of it, they're right. Besides, Kuno hasn't even made
the challenge yet."
The other fastened his boxing gloves, "Whaddaya mean? If
we wait for Kuno to give his 'you have to defeat her in order
to date with her' speech, we'll never win."
"Come on. I mean, what're we doing here? We know we're
gonna get beat up again. If Miss Hinako doesn't zap us, then
Kuno'll make Swiss cheese out of us."
Another student approached them, "And even if we manage to
get past those two, Saotome will send us flying."
The boxer folded his arms, confident, "Ah, but you forget
the last possibility. I would happily leap into the fray if only
I were to be smashed by _her_ hands."
"Yeah, but there's a one in a million chance _she'll_ be the
one who knocks you out. It's not worth risking a broken rib if
you can't even get close to her."
"Yes, but somehow I know I'll be hit by neither Kuno, nor
Miss Hinako, nor by that fool Saotome. In fact, I have a feeling
_she_ will give me a broken leg..." a grin appeared on the boxer's
face.
"Another? You already got _two_ broken legs, remember?"
The boxer looked down at his wheelchair and facefaulted on the
casts that engulfed his legs. "See? That's what you get from
trying to leap down from a tree so you could land next to her."
The girls who were listening smacked their foreheads.
Suddenly the students stepped aside as a figure in samurai
garb stepped out from the school, wielding his bokuto by his
side, and with his eyes closed. Once he reached the middle of
the yard, Kuno stopped and silently put his bokuto in front of
him, resting on it as if it were a cane. Then, calmly he said,
"Leave. All of you."
The consternation from the students was quick, "What do
you mean, 'leave'? You know why we're here!"
Kuno didn't pay attention, "You _will_ leave, either broken
or unharmed. Such is your choice. But you will never again
pester the pigtailed girl in this manner."
The students glared at him, "Shut up! You know you want a
part in this too!"
Kuno opened his eyes. He remembered the events that took
place last Saturday, when the pigtailed girl left. His petit mind
was still reeling from what happened back then. "That is true,
to some extent. But again, leave. For your own sake."
"And wait 'til you give that stupid speech? Never!"
"Yeah! One of us will defeat her, and then date with her!"
Kuno suddenly felt a bolt of anger travelling down his
spine, "NO. None of you will lay hand upon her, I forbid it. She
is not property of any man, as she is her own master. If you
dare continue this foolishness, I shall smite the lot of you." He
took his bokuto and adopted a fighting stance.
"Yeah, right. You're only one and there's a lot of us."
"We've been waiting to do this for a long time..." they all
backed up to attack,"Get him!"
Kuno saw the rushing mob coming for him, and remembered
the encounter he had with the samurai Cyan Garamonde. He had
used a special sword technique to immobilize Kuno for an instant,
but the Blue Thunder still had time to learn such technique.
Standing on one foot, Kuno spun in place, keeping his bokuto
steady in front of him and lifting a cloud of dust. He suddenly
stopped and swung his sword in a circle, finishing up with an
overhead chop and the cry of "Stunner!"
Unfortunately for him, he didn't know magic. The mob buried
him.
"What's going on?" Phaeron wondered as he saw a huge cloud
of dust in front of Furinkan. He decided to stop by the gates
and see what was happening. The rest arrived a few instants
later.
"That's weird," Ranma-chan said, "They never begin without
us."
"Looks like they got tired of waiting for you, so they
started beating each other up," Ranma said.
"Akane! Over here!" her long-haired classmate called.
"Now what happened?" Akane asked.
"Those jerks were waiting for Ranma's sister but Kuno tried
to talk them out of it, so they attacked him instead."
Akane blinked several times, "He did what? Are we talking
about the same Kuno who calls himself Blue Thunder?" her friend
nodded.
"Looks like you really flipped him out, eh sis?" Ranma
nudged his sister. Seraphim giggled quietly.
A hand brandishing a bokuto managed to rise from the pile
of students, "The Blue Thunder will not be swayed!" Kuno shouted
before the mob covered him again.
"Oh, for goodness' sake..." Phaeron stretched his right arm
forward, aiming his fingers outwards. Slowly, he lifted his hand
and then quickly brought it down again. In the yard, a flash of
light made everyone but Kuno fall asleep.
Both Ranmas, Akane and her friends blinked in confusion,
"How... How'd you _DO_ that?" Ranma-chan said, her voice barely
audible.
"Being dead for a few years does wonders with one's
techniques," Phaeron winked.
"While brother Phaeron was at the Gates, his mental and
spiritual powers increased a tenfold, because he didn't have any
physical barriers there. His soul was free," Seraphim said, "In
other words, being a spirit helped improve his ki."
"There are lots of other things I can do now," Phaeron
smirked, "But right now I don't want to talk about them. Let's
get inside, shall we?"
But as they headed for the building, Kuno noticed Ranma-
chan and Akane. "Ah! My loves!" he breathed as he glomped onto
them. Just when he saw Phaeron (and started wondering what was
going on), they reflexively punted him into the stratosphere.
"Great. After all I did, he's still doing that," Ranma-chan
wiped her hands, "Wish he'd stop chasing us all the time."
"You didn't exactly tell him to stay away, you know," Ranma
said, "It was more like a red carpet invitation."
"I know, I know. It's just I thought he'd act like a normal
guy after that."
"Normal? We're talking about Kuno here," Phaeron said.
"Anyway, we b-- ugh!" Kuno landed on top of Ranma-kun
before he could finish.
"I was correct!" he said, recovering his sword, "A ghost has
appeared before my presence!" He thrust towards Phaeron.
"Why does everyone think I'm a ghost?" he said as he
avoided the blow. "I was just revived by Seraphim! It's ME!"
Kuno stopped a minute to think (!?) this out, but then he
thrust again, "Cretin! How dare you stage your own death in such
manner!"
"Hey, watch it!" Phaeron swerved to the sides, avoiding the
sword, "You'll ruin this!" he pointed at the cake he held with his
left hand. Seeing it was no use, he jumped away, "Okay, you
asked for it..." he reared his open hand backwards, and pushed
the air in front of him with a powerful heave. Kuno was easily
blown into the middle of next week. "I almost forgot..." Phaeron
snapped his fingers and the unconscious student began to wake
up.
"C'mon, let's get inside before anyone sees us," Ranma-kun
said, just as a few other girls arrived at school.
"Pathetic idiots," one of them said, looking at the guys.
Ranma's class was about to start. Minus a dozen male
students, the classroom was full. So, it came as a surprise to
see Phaeron and a new student walk in.
"It's him! He's back!" most of the girls in the class said
excitedly when he sat down. Ukyou nearly fell off her seat.
Seraphim giggled when they surrounded him, but then she noticed
most of the boys were drooling as they saw her.
"Good morning, class!" Miss Hinako cheerfully fluttered in.
"We have a new student here... Hm?" she saw Phaeron sitting at
his desk, "Mr. Phaeron, it's about time you came back! Where
have you been for the last two weeks?"
"I, uh, I had a small accident, while travelling. I had to
stay at a, um, hospital for two weeks."
Miss Hinako sent him a scolding glare, "Well, some of your
friends could have told me. We were becoming worried here," she
looked at the girls, "As punishment, you will have to do all the
asignments we did these two weeks, and you'll bring them in
tomorrow."
"Good thing I learned that Haste spell," he thought. "Yes,
sensei. And by the way, I have to talk to you about my name.
Looks like I have a last name now."
"We'll talk about that after class. Okay, now that we have
that settled, let me introduce another new student. Class,
meet... what's your name again?"
Seraphim rose from her seat, "Good morning. I am Laris
Brillan, which in my country means 'evening star', but you can
call me Seraphim, like my friends."
Miss Hinako said, "Laris Brillan? That doesn't sound like a
gaijin name to me..."
"Oh, it's because I'm from the same place as brother
Phaeron."
"So you're brother and sister too?" Hinako fluttered her
arms excitedly, "Whee! We have another family here!" She didn't
notice the sighs of relief coming from all over the classroom,
once they were assured Phaeron and Seraphim were related.
"So, Laris Brillan, eh?" Phaeron said. He knew he
recognized that name, but couldn't recall where he had heard it.
Seraphim smiled, "That's the name I had before I became an
angel."
"Okay," Hinako took her file again, "It says here you too
have been transfered from Thamasa University, and that you like
to help all sorts of people. And that you are always very calm
and optimistic..." her eyes turned away slightly from the paper
and focused on the Saotome siblings, "Maybe you can help me
teach some manners to the delinquents in this class."
Seraphim smirked, "You can count on it, sensei."
"Okay. Miss Brillan, take that seat next to Hiroshi" --the
boy fainted in happiness-- "and in front of Daisuke" --he passed
out with a grin on his face-- "so we can begin class," Miss
Hinako finished. "Now, on Friday we saw...."
Finally the bell rang, and the halls were suddenly flooded.
Only Miss Hinako's class was still crowded, as now three clusters
were formed inside. Two of them, composed of boys, tried to get
a date with either Seraphim or Ranma-chan, while the one made
up by girls was practically asphyxiating Phaeron. Seraphim
simply vanished in a beam of light, while Ranma-chan leapt out
the window with Ukyou. Phaeron also leapt out of his prison and
quickly dropped a piece of paper on Hinako's desk. "What's this?"
she took it and started to read, "So, Phaeron is his _last_
name. His first name... L... Raa... Lae... How do you pronounce
this?"
Meanwhile, Phaeron had already jumped out the window,
"Sorry, gotta go!" he said as he fell. He turned downwards and
nearly suffered a heart attack, "Yow! Watch out!" he said as he
nearly fell on top of Akane. He kicked the side of the building
and pushed himself away from it, landing near the gates.
"Where are you going?" Akane asked.
"Sorry, I really have to fly. Got some unfinished business
back at the Maison. I'll see you later!" he said, and then threw
his backpack upwards. He leapt into the air and, spreading his
arms, he was enveloped by a blinding light. Everyone had to
turn away from him. When the light disappeared a magnificent
Phoenix, the size of a condor and covered by a powerful aura,
dove to catch the backpack with its claws and headed for Maison
Ikkoku. A whole minute passed before anyone could recover his
or her senses after seeing the bird.
"Wow," Ranma said, awestruck.
"How did he do that?" Akane asked.
"Great. I'm not the only bird anymore," Crystallus said as
he appeared next to them.
"Okay, let me get this straight," Ukyou said, following
Ranma-chan, "This Seraphim offered to bring him back, that's why
he's here. He's not a ghost. But then would you explain to me
HOW he managed to turn into a bird?"
"That must be because he was dead for some time,"
Crystallus said, "Well, all Espers can turn from their original
body into a magic creature at will. For example, this is my
normal body, while the Crystal Armor is my Esper form. However,
since the magic in this planet is not as powerful as that of
other worlds, it's harder for us to morph. That's why I can't
'Fuse' with others right now."
"...but since he was already at the Gates," Ranma-chan
guessed, "...and Seraphim-chan told us _that_ gave him greater
power, then that means he can transform into a Phoenix whenever
he likes."
"Yes, I should say so," Crystallus agreed, "But how do
_you_ know about the Gates? Only us phoeni have been there."
Ranma-chan looked at him nervously but her brother was
quick to answer, "Remember that Coldfire nearly killed her," he
put an arm around her shoulders, "You must have seen something
when that happened, right?"
"R-right," she said, not ready to tell them about what
would have happened in three years.
"Well, I'll go see if I can find Seraphim," Crystallus said,
"Farewell." He flew off towards the sky, a glimmer in the
distance.
"And I gotta go to my restaurant," Ukyou said, "See you
later, Ranchan. You too, Ranchan," she blinked akwardly for an
instant and then headed home.
"He's really different from what I remember," Akane said.
"Guess being dead changes anyone's personality," Ranma
agreed.
"You can say that again," Ranma-chan said under her breath.
"I sure hope this time it lasts," Ranma stretched his arms
upwards, yawning, "Wouldn't want any of that guy's enemies
kidnapping any of you again," he nonchalantly put a hand on
Akane and his sister's shoulders.
"Ranma..." Akane looked up at him, blushing slightly.
"Besides," he continued, "I already had enough trouble
having to deal with _one_ crazy tomboy..." Akane and Ranma-chan
suddenly glared at him...
Frozen flames
A large black bird settled on the roof of Maison Ikkoku.
"So, that's the story," Phaeron said to the crowd gathered
in his room.
"Yeah, sure," Mrs. Ichinose said.
"Do you really expect us to believe you had an accident
while climbing a mountain and you lost your memory for two whole
weeks?" Akemi accepted a beer from Mrs. Ichinose.
"Why do you have to look for ways to make other's life
complicated?" Kyoko asked, "He said he had amnesia, and that's a
good reason to be missing." She stood and headed for the door.
Before she left, though, she sent a frigid glare at Yusaku. The
room temperature dropped significantly.
"It's not like I want to butt in..." Phaeron said, "But what
happened?"
"Nothing, really," Yusaku said, "It's just that a cousin of
mine asked me to take care of her baby daughter for her. Of
course, the Loon Squad here managed to make it look like she
was MY daughter!" he glared at Akemi, Yotsuya and Mrs. Ichinose.
"Hey, don't blame it on us!" Akemi said. "It was your own
fault!"
"I have to agree," Yotsuya said, and turned to Phaeron,
"For some reason, when Godai-kun introduced his niece to our
manager, he started having a reverie about--" he found it
difficult to speak having a pillow stuffed in his mouth.
"I don't need you 'explaining' anything, all right?" Yusaku
tried to shove the pillow down Yotsuya's throat.
"As it turns out," Mrs. Ichinose said, "At the end of the
daydream he said something about Kyoko holding his daughter. Of
course, she was holding Yusaku's niece at the time..."
"And one thing led to the other..." Akemi said.
"But I could have handled it myself if not for you!" Yusaku
yelled, "Everything you said made it look like she _was_ my
daughter!"
"Hmph. You try to help a neighbor..." Mrs. Ichinose crossed
her arms.
"Next time I need _YOUR_ help, I'll just put the barrel of
the gun in my mouth!"
Meanwhile, Phaeron was sneaking out of the room, trying to
slip out before anyone noticed. "Hey! Where're you going?" Akemi
called.
"You didn't tell us what really happened! And you know what
that means!" Mrs. Ichinose warned. Phaeron stopped dead in his
tracks: if he left them, they'd probably start thinking he would
have something to hide, and that could lead to horrendous
misunderstandings. And knowing these guys...
"All right, all right. I'll tell you the truth. What
happened is that a demon kidnapped my friends so I teamed up
with some others to find them and we travelled to another world
where magic reigns supreme and then we had a great battle where
I ended up killing myself but then one of my friends helped bring
me back to life but that didn't happen until two weeks later.
Capisce? So long." He ran out of the house. He didn't notice the
black bird that watched him.
"What did he say?" Akemi said, staring blankly into space.
"Hmmm..." Mrs Ichinose tried to think it out, "I guess he
said that he teamed up with some friends so they could become
stage magicians or something like that, and one of the tricks
was faking his own death. But he also mentioned travelling, and
I guess he said something in Italian, so he and his friends must
have gone to Italy to become magicians. "
A few minutes passed in silence as everyone tried to find
any sense at all in what Mrs. Ichinose said. Finally, she spoke
again, "You know, I think that kid has something to hide..."
The black bird took off.
* * *
While all this (and more) happened at Maison Ikkoku, Akane
and the Ranmas were arriving at the Tendo dojo.
"Sheesh! Finally, we're back!" Ranma-chan began tearing at
the uniform, "One more minute in this thing and I would have
exploded!"
"Yuck. Little Ranma pieces all over the house. That's not
a pretty sight," Akane giggled. "Come on, I'll lend you some of
my clothes." Both girls climbed up the stairs.
"C-crazy t-tomboy..." Ranma muttered before collapsing on
the door. "Guess I asked for it," he thought, "after calling her
that way. But really! Sis didn't have to hit me too!"
"Hm? Oh, Ranma!" his mother saw him lying on the floor,
"What are you doing? If you're tired, it's better to go upstairs
to your room!" she lifted him off the ground, and then was
marveled at his quick recovery. "Or, if you're not tired, you
can join us. Your father and I have been discussing some things
you and your sister have to know."
"That's more like it," they heard Ranma-chan's voice,
"Thanks a lot, Akane." Both of them came back downstairs. Akane
had simply changed to her pink skirt and yellow sweater, while
she had lent Ranma-chan a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. The
redhead also had a ponytail now instead of the usual pigtail.
"Really, Ranma, you always said none of my clothes fit
you," Akane said, noticing the lack of insults.
"And they don't," Ranma-chan said, "these jeans are baggy,
and it's a good thing this is a sweatshirt otherwise it would've
been too small for me..." she noticed a BIG bokken had just
materialized next to Akane, "...but that's because we're different
people, right!" she forced a smile, causing Akane to calm down, "I
mean, we have different constitution and everything..." the bokken
went back to... to wherever it came from.
Nodoka smiled inwards when she saw her daughter was
finally wearing women's clothing. "Good, you're back," she said,
"we've been waiting for you."
A man wearing a dark armor and covered by a black cape
walked down the street towards the Tendo dojo.
The Tendos and the Saotomes were gathered in the
living/dining room. It was sunset, and the warm evening breeze
entered the house freely through the open door. Nodoka, Genma
and Soun were sitting at one side of the table, while both
Ranmas and Akane sat opposite to them. Kasumi and Nabiki sat
at one of the remaining sides. The side closest to the garden
was empty. Just at that moment, P-chan decided to drop by.
Akane was quick to hold him.
"Well, now that we're all here we can discuss some very
important matters," Nodoka said. "First of all, Akane-chan, thank
you for convincing Ranma-chan to wear clothes appropriate for
her."
Ranma turned to his sister, "Yeah, if you'd kept borrowing
mine, I would have run out of good clothes."
"But I know that you still refuse to wear _all_ the proper
clothes, Ranma-chan."
"Come on, Mom, not again. You know I hate bras."
"Yes, I know. And I know you hate them because you have
never actually worn them." She looked away, "But probably not
even you are strong enough to stand wearing them..."
Ranma-chan's response was immediate, "What do you mean?!"
Nodoka still didn't face her, "If you were only to wear them
fo a week, you'd see it's no so bad. In fact, maybe you'd agree
to wear them from now on. But since you're not as strong as
your brother..."
Angered, Ranma-chan bolted to her feet, "I can do it! I'll
show you that I can!"
"You baka," her brother said.
Nodoka smiled at her, "Then you agree. If you can stand
them for a week, you'll be able to wear them all the time.
Alright?" Ranma-chan then realized what she had agreed to and
smacked her forehead.
Nodoka giggled, "Now, the next thing is about you and
Akane-chan, Ranma," he suddenly sat up in worry, "It's about time
we decide about your engagement..." Akane and Ranma felt their
blood freeze in their veins, "...and how we are going to cancel
it."
The man in dark armor was a few blocks away from the
Tendo dojo.
Those who weren't shocked simply stared at Nodoka wide-
eyed. "M-mom?" Ranma-chan asked, "Did you say 'cancel'?"
Nodoka waited until they all recovered. Ranma and Akane
turned to each other, not knowing what to say. "We can't force
you to marry," Nodoka said. "I had a long talk with Dear and
found out how many times you were engaged, Ranma. But I also
became aware of what those other poor girls must have felt.
Now, I have also talked to Ukyou-chan and the girl Shampoo, and
I have decided that this engagement must be made void. Akane-
chan, to you I say that I'm sorry if this engagement has caused
any trouble, since you didn't even know my Ranma before you
were notified of it. However, the only reason I decided to
nullify the engagement was because you two have become more
mature than when you first met. In other words, the engagement
is void so you can decide who you want to marry, and therefore
it's up to you if you want to keep the engagement, or if you
want to marry somebody else. After what we all saw last
Saturday --except for you, Ranma-chan--, I have realized that
making this decision is very hard for you to do, so you have
until Christmas to make up your mind."
The room was silent for a long time, as Ranma and Akane
were practically frozen. Ranma-chan swallowed hard, after all
she knew how her brother felt about Akane. P-chan, however,
saw the perfect opportunity. Now, if he could only find his
former self, Ryouga...
"Yo, I'm here," Phaeron said as he descended on the garden
outside the room. A quick look at their faces was all he needed
to realize something had happened, "What's going on?"
"We, uh, we have to decide if we want to keep the
engagement," Akane said, her voice barely audible.
"But as I said, you don't have to decide now," Nodoka said.
"You have a little over three months to make up your minds, so
there is no reason to worry about it yet. What we have to
worry about, though is the next issue." Phaeron sat down at the
empty side. Feeling the tension around her, Ranma-chan moved
out from between Ranma and Akane and sat next to Phaeron.
"What do you think?" he whispered.
"I dunno. They have to decide for themselves. Mom gave
them until Christmas, but I don't think there's anything in the
world that could snap them out of it right now."
"What we really have to decide right now..." Nodoka
continued, "is whether or not we go back to our own home."
Ranma-chan couldn't believe it, but Akane and Ranma did
snap out of it when Nodoka spoke. "Mom, are we leaving?" Ranma
asked.
"There are eight people in this house," she said. "Kasumi-
chan told me that your father took a job at a nearby clinic so
he could pay for his expenses as well as yours. That might
have worked for a while, but with myself and Ranma-chan living
here now I realize it must be very difficult for the Tendos to
have an entire family freeloading."
"No, really, it's no problem at all," Kasumi said.
"There are many sources of income with Ranma in this
house," Nabiki said, pretending to take a picture of Ranma-chan.
"Not only that, but Ranma-kun and Akane have to live close
to each other if they are to make a good decision," Soun said.
"Well said, Tendo-kun," Genma shook hands with him.
"I could work too," Ranma said.
Akane turned to him, "Are you sure, Ranma?"
"No problem. I can take a part-time job with Ucchan, doing
deliv--"
"So THAT's why you want to work."
"Hey, I'm just trying to help out here! But who'd want to
live with a jealous tomboy anyway?"
"Then I can--" Ranma-chan tried to say.
"And who would want to live with a baka like you?!"
"Only someone who wouldn't die because of your toxic
cooking!"
"Then that same person can live with the hentai you are!"
"THEN I CAN WORK," Ranma-chan's voice made itself be heard.
Even Phaeron backed away slightly from her.
"Do you want to work, Ranma-chan?" Nodoka asked. Ranma
and Akane became quiet.
"Sure. It's no big deal. I've already worked at
restaurants twice, once with Shampoo and a second time with
Ucchan. I can do it again. Besides, if I work at Nekohanten
again, I could get the old bag to teach me some techniques."
"Do you think you'd make enough?" Phaeron asked.
She shrugged, "Enough for me and Mom, I guess." She smirked
mischievously, "Remember how crowded those places are whenever
I work there? I'd sure get plenty of tips."
"I'm not sure about this," Ranma said. "You know _why_
those places were crowded."
"Your brother is right, Ranma-chan. It's not such a good
idea to be a waitress at a place where there are so many
teenage boys."
"Hey, it's me, Ranma Saotome. Don't worry 'bout anything.
I'll be all right."
"She's right, Mrs Saotome," Phaeron said, "I guarantee,
she'll be all right." Ranma-chan turned to him briefly, but he
didn't notice her smile.
"Then what we have to settle is where we're going to
sleep," Nodoka said.
"Ranma-chan can sleep in my room," Kasumi said, "But Ranma-
kun would have to share master Happosai's room..." He shuddered
mightily.
"Oh, great. It would've been better if you'd thrown me in a
cell full of cats..."
Genma and Soun saw a golden opportunity, "He could sleep
in Akane's room."
"WHAT?!" Akane and Ranma were shocked.
"Hmm," Nodoka thought of a solution, "for the time being,
maybe I could sleep in Kasumi-chan's bedroom, so Ranma didn't
have to share the pervert's room. But then that leaves Ranma-
chan out."
"She can sleep in my room," Akane offered, "ANYONE's better
than that snoring baka."
"Really, Akane-chan? Anyone?" Happosai appeared out of
nowhere. He was casually booted out again.
"Alright, then we have to set a couple of cots for you
two," Soun said.
The man in black reached the outer gates of the Tendo
dojo.
"Well then, everything's settled," Genma said.
"Not really," Ranma said. "You know, it's kinda confusing
sharing the same name with another person. Not that I mind, but
it's really weird sometimes."
"That's right, you two have the same name," Akane said to
both Ranmas.
"I had been thinking about that too," Nodoka said, "and
maybe it's time we find another way to call each of you."
"Aren't the suffixes enough?" Phaeron asked, "I mean, Ranma
and Ranma-chan?"
"You really have to learn how to use that, Phaeron," Akane
said.
"It would be enough..." Nodoka said, "but the problem is that
it's Ranma's own name, besides it isn't a name fit for a girl."
"Oh, right, I'd _looove_ to have everyone call me Zhaodi,"
Ranma-chan said sarcastically.
"Why not? Yuannyan calls you Zhaodi. And that's the way I
used to call you," Phaeron said. She sent him an "oh, come
_on_" glare.
"Then what do you suggest?" Ranma asked.
"I don't know... How 'bout Yoiko? I used that name once."
"You want Ryouga to kill you?" Ranma cocked one eye, "You
might as well call yourself Gyouko and have that old man chase
you again."
Nodoka intervened, "But there are other names... Ranko-
chan."
Ranma-chan looked at her nervously, "I... I don't think so."
"Why not?" Akane asked.
"'Why not'? Because that reminds me of all the times we had
to lie to Mom, that's why!"
"But I don't mind it," Nodoka said, "And it suits you better
than Ran_ma_. After all, how can you call a girl 'horse'?"
"Well, I kinda like 'Ranma'. I've been called that way for a
long time."
"I like 'Ranko-chan'," Phaeron said, "and it does suit you
better."
Ranma-chan looked up at him, remaining thoughtful for an
instant, "All right. But just as a nickname, okay? I mean, I don't
want to pay Nabiki another five thousand yen so she can get me
new records that say 'Ranko Saotome'."
Nodoka smiled, "Don't worry. It will be just a nickname, like
you said, so there's no confusion between you and your brother."
"Then everything's set then," Phaeron said, as he got up.
"If you'll excuse me, I'll go have a glass of water." Before he
left the room though, he turned to Ranko, "So, 'Ranko-chan', eh?
I'll have to get used to it." Kasumi also left, as she remembered
she had to sweep the porch. Nabiki began to head for her room.
Ranma waited until Phaeron was out of earshot, "You know,
you better teach him how to use that 'chan' or else people will
start getting ideas," he joked, but then was surprised as Ranko
said nothing.
Kasumi dropped the broom in shock.
"YOU KNOW WHY I'M HERE," the man said.
Suddenly Phaeron came into the room. He was wearing some
kind of dark blue armor, almost black. A long cape was draped
over his shoulders.
Ranko shivered slightly, as a fearful memory came to her
mind, "Geez, you trying to give me a heart attack? Where did you
get that outfit?"
Without a word, Phaeron dropped and hugged her tightly.
Everyone facefaulted as she was both surprised and confused.
"Phaeron?" Akane stared at him wide eyed.
"Ph-Phaeron-kun?"
Ranko was starting to blush when the _real_ Phaeron came
back into the room. He dropped the glass, shocked, as soon as
he saw who was in the room. Everyone realized who this "fake
Phaeron" really was. Ranko screamed inwards.
Without the slightest warning Phaeron sent a massive wave
of ki towards Coldfire, knocking him away and crushing him
against the outer wall. "What the hell are you doing?" Coldfire
asked, barely avoiding the fist that was sent his way. Phaeron
then followed with a slicing side-kick that Coldfire backflipped
away from. Phaeron attacked with a dashing two-fisted scissor
punch that connected with Coldfire's gut and flung him across
the garden into another wall. "Blazing Bullet!" Phaeron launched
himself at Coldfire. Seeing this, the dark phoenix leapt upwards,
"Will you calm down?!" But Phaeron still leapt upwards to attack.
"All right, you asked for this! Demolish!"
The expanding energy field took Phaeron by surprise and
sent him crashing into the grass below. Coldfire floated down
slowly, only to be greeted by two shouts of "Moko Takabishya!"
and a force that surpassed that of the Shinkansen Bullet train.
Coldfire crashed next to the pond. In front of him, Ranma
and Ranko were preparing for a second blow. To his right,
Phaeron was holding an aura shield that was shaped like Ukyou's
spatula. And to his left, Akane readied her mallet while Nodoka
unsheathed her sword. Genma and Soun were backing to a
fighting stance.
"Great," Coldfire smacked his forehead. "I'm not here to
hurt anyone! Believe me!"
"Like heck we're gonna believe you!" Ranko yelled, "You
killed me, remember?"
Coldfire's aura sizzled, "All right, I'll make you believe me!"
Coldfire suddenly made a beeline towards Ranko, avoided
Ranma's 798 punches, sidestepped Ranko's 963, then swept her off
her feet and brought his face closer to hers... only to have
his nose meet the dirt as she smashed his head on the ground.
And all of that happened in only two seconds.
"What do you think you're doing?!" Phaeron scooped him up
with his aura spatula and flung him into the wall again. Seeing
it was useless to head towards Ranko, Coldfire quickly sought a
new target. A target that would convince them of his
intentions.
Mimicking his actions from before, Coldfire shot towards
Akane, ducked her mallet and twisted to avoid Nodoka's thrust,
then swept Akane of her feet. Before anyone could reach him,
Coldfire had completed his objective.
He kissed Akane.
"GET AWAY FROM ME, YOU HENTAI!!" Akane malleted him into
the ground, but he still managed to create an aura shield around
both of them. Of course, he was careful enough to create a
barrier within the shield so Akane couldn't reach him.
"You..." Ranma hissed through clenched teeth.
"Don't you dare..." Ranko was already glowing red.
"If you hurt her..." Phaeron was summoning the Four Birds
of Fire.
"Sorry, but I had to convince you. I AM NOT GOING TO HURT
ANYONE. Besides..." he added with a smirk, "if I wanted to, you'd
all be dead right now."
A small shape arrived at the Tendos', after having sensed
a great power nearby. When she saw Coldfire, Cologne's eyes
narrowed. She leapt down from the wall, prepared for any attack
the demon might initiate.
"So, we meet again," she said.
"Look, I don't know why you're all so mad at me," Coldfire
said, "But I'm here only to visit, okay?"
"You don't know, eh?" Ranma cracked his knuckles. "First
you kidnap Akane and my sister, you make us fight against people
we didn't even know, and you actually killed her!"
Coldfire blinked in honest confusion, "What're you talking
about? The last thing I remember is taking your fianc�e and
Zhaodi back to World of Ruin."
Cologne looked at him closely, "Could it be...?"
"I don't care if you got Swiss cheese memory," Phaeron
said, "You are going to release Akane. NOW."
"Wait," Cologne put her staff in front of him, "He is right.
If he wanted to harm anyone he would have already hurt Akane.
And I also sense a very different ki coming from him, almost
opposite as that which he previously had."
Coldfire called back the shield, leaping away from Akane
before she attacked. Not dropping their guard, the rest watched
his every move. But Coldfire never attacked. He didn't even
summon his ki. "So, will you let me explain now?"
* * *
Again, they were sitting at the table. Coldfire had allowed
them to tie him up with everything ranging from ropes to
buddhist scriptures to steel chains. Only Cologne dared sit
close to him. But just as a precaution, Phaeron and Ranma sat
to either side of Ranko, who was enveloped by an aura shield.
"So, you don't remember _anything_ that happened in the
World of Ruin?" Phaeron asked.
"Nope. And I can't even remember _why_ I kidnapped you,"
he turned to Akane and Ranko.
"What do you remember about her?" Cologne pointed at the
redhead.
"Almost everything. But I still don't remember why I used
to hate Zhaodi. Would you tell me about that?"
"Wait," Ranko said, "You called me Zhaodi. Do you remember
what happened before Jusenkyo? About Pandi-chan?"
Coldfire smirked, "I remember as much as bird-boy here.
And besides, why shouldn't I call you Zhaodi? That's your name,
isn't it?"
"Hmm," Cologne turned to Phaeron, "It would appear that
when you died, both of your minds fused into one. But since you
have a greater will, you managed to erase Coldfire's demonic
soul. In other words, he's just like you."
"Hey, don't insult me!" Coldfire objected, visibly annoyed,
"There's no way I could be a double of this wimp."
"...or, he might have developed a new, rebellious personality
based on your mind," Cologne said. "Maybe you can let him go
now."
Phaeron retrieved the shackles. "That's better," Coldfire
said, stretching his arms.
"Hey..." Ranko said, "You remember _everything_ that
happened in China?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Well, I guess what happened at Jusenkyo made me forget
most of what happened after I met you and Phaeron-kun."
"Okay, so what do you want to kn--" Phaeron dragged him
out of the house and into the dojo, leaving the rest of the
people blinking in confusion. "What're you doing?" Coldfire asked,
upset.
"Okay, tell me the truth. What are you doing here?"
Phaeron's voice was serious.
"I told you. Since you came back to life, it's only natural
for your 'other' to return too, right?"
"Okay, then... what do you remember about Ranko-chan?"
"You mean Zhaodi? I told you, I know what you know: 'we'
left our town and headed for China,about 1501 years ago. We met
the twins, they split us apart, and after some time all four of
us drowned in some pool." A smirk appeared on his face, "So,
where is it?"
"Where's what?"
Coldfire smirked evilly, "You know. The medallion. Where is
it? Don't you want to show it to them?"
Phaeron turned an incredibly-deep shade of red, "Look, none
of us is going to say anything about the medallion. And _you_
are not going to tell Ranko-chan about what happened. Got it?"
"Why not?"
Phaeron crossed his arms, "Do you remember how they 'split'
us apart?"
"Sure, it was some weird incense burner, right?"
"That's a lie and you know it. Remember that the twins and
I decided to make up that burner story so we could keep _her_
safe..."
Coldfire snapped his fingers, "That's right! It wasn't a
burner, it was _Cordis_ who split us apart!"
"Yes, but Ranko-chan doesn't remember everything about her.
So, if you say anything about her _or_ the medallion, I'll have
your head, understood? She has to remember about it by
herself."
Coldfire began to head back to the house, "Don't worry.
Remember that I know _why_ you're doing this..." he smirked as he
saw Phaeron's reddish hue, "Hey, Zhaodi!" he called, "Do you know
about--"
"Shut up, you idiot!"
End of the First Test...
... and Dysmerc grows.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
End of message
Don't worry. The rest of the story is completely finished, so
you'll get your answers to every single question I brought up
with this first chapter.
The TerBril
(who plans on regaining his own life.)