Meiyo Ai shoshite Nikushimi
Chapter III
The Judgement of Bookyaku
Part II: The First Night
A Ranma « Fanfic
by Joseph Kohle
All characters of the Ranma series are the products of Rumiko
Takahashi's imagination and are used without the permission of her or
the innumerable companies that have rights to her products. This is not
intended for sale and all creative and copyright privileges and rights
belong to the author and Rumiko Takahashi.
He was running, at least he thought he was running. The world
around him was blacker than the devil's soul. Airless, without scent,
silent, an impenetrable mesh of emptiness surrounding him, suffocating
him. But there was something there, something behind him, hounding
him, thirsting after his soul. If he stopped running, he would be lost
forever. So he ran and ran, hoping that somehow he might escape this
horrid, unending nightmare.
How he got here, why he was here, he did not remember. Even his
own name was a fleeting shadow, a vague impression of wild abandon-ment, of sorrow and loss, of pain, of skill. Akane. It was that word
again flashing through his mind, but what it was or who it was, was
beyond him, only that it was important to him.
"Where am I? Who am I?" He had no voice, but the words came and
echoed in his ears anyway. Behind him he felt the malicious delight of
his pursuer. It wanted him to run, it enjoyed his fear, his helpless state.
I'll face it. I'll stop running. I do not want to run, I never run from a
challenge. He started to slow at least he thought he slowed, there was
no change in the darkness. The presence gloated in triumph, then there
was someone next to him, another person, another mind, familiar yet
unremembered and unknown.
"Don't stop. If you stop, you'll die. You can't win here, not here. Just
run with me, soon we'll find a safer place, a better place."
"Who are you?" he asked, picking up his pace again. He knew the
Other was right. It would be impossible for him to defeat something he
was not able to see. More than that though, he thought that he could
trust the Other. There was something familiar about the Other. The
Other was going to help him. So he ran.
"You know, just give it time. You must find yourself again. Do not
give into Bookyaku." Bookyaku? The word stirred a memory, but as he
tried to grasp it, it slipped away as if it were water in a net. "Do not
force it. It must come to you. Just run now, just run." He ran.
"Tofu-sensei! Tofu-sensei! Let me in! Please let me in!" Akane
shouted in a grief stricken voice. She kicked the door again, the solid
oak trembling under her attack. "He's dying, let me in!"
Ranma was cradled in her arms, his body limp and cold. If it were not
for the irregular rise and fall of his chest, anyone would have decreed
him dead and beyond help on first sight and touch. "Please," Akane
wailed desperately, "Let me in!" She pulled back her foot, preparing to
smash the door, when it suddenly swung inward, revealing a very
surprised Ono Tofu.
"What..?" he began to ask. Akane pushed past him and rushed back
into his examining room, where she placed Ranma on the table. Dr.
Tofu was a few steps behind her. "What is going on here, Akane?" he
asked walking up to her, then he noticed Ranma lying prone on the
table.
Instantly he was a doctor, checking Ranma's vital signs. "What
happened to him?" he asked after a moment.
"Cologne, threw something at him. Said was his punishment. He
caught it and collapsed. I can't wake him. He was burning up, then he
was freezing. He's dying. He's dying." Sinking to the floor, Akane
started crying. "Baka, I told you not to go. I told you. Ranma no baka.
Baka, baka, baka, BAKA!" The last one came out with a massive sob.
WHACK...Her head suddenly snapped to the side, her cheek burning,
tears of pain stinging her eyes. Blinking, Akane glanced up to see Tofu-
sensei standing over her, his hand raised to slap her again. Grief was
incinerated as pure rage entered her heart, forcing her body and mind to
act as one. Jumping to her feet, she pulled her hand back to slug Tofu-
sensei, unaware of the fact that it was Tofu-sensei. Her vision was
blurred in her anger. "WHY YOU.." she began.
Someone's hand grasped her raised arm and restrained her. "I'm sorry
I slapped you, Akane, but you were going into shock. I don't need two
patients."
"Nani?" Akane blinked, reality slowly coming back to her. The calm
words and reassuring presence of Dr. Tofu calming her. Confused she
looked at Dr. Tofu. He was gently holding her upraised arm, a serious
look on his face, and behind him on the table...Everything snapped back
into focus. "Oh, Ranma," Akane lamented quietly, "I'm sorry."
"I don't think I need to worry about you going into shock now," Dr.
Tofu said releasing her hand and turning back to Ranma.
"Shock?" Akane asked, but Tofu-sensei ignored her.
"Now tell me exactly what happened."
Shaking her head to clear the last few cobwebs, Akane explained how
Cologne had challenged Ranma, and when he had shown up she had
started talking about Ranma being punished for crimes against the
Amazons. "She explained them and then said something about the
Judgement of Bookyaku. Then she threw something at him and he
caught it. The next thing I know he is on the ground screaming and
then he falls quiet."
"I didn't think, I grabbed him and ran here. I just didn't want to go
through this again. Once was bad enough." A stifled sob escaped her
lips. "Please Ranma, don't do this to me. Please."
"Akane," Dr. Tofu said threateningly, "You're slipping. Concentrate
on what is happening, not your feelings."
"H-hai," she answered, reaching up to rub her temples, just to do
something.
"Has he been holding this the entire time?" Dr. Tofu asked suddenly.
"Huh? Holding what?"
"This," Dr. Tofu lifted Ranma's right hand. In it was a hideous
looking statue. Actually it wasn't that it was hideous, really it looked
like nothing, but as she starred at it, she started to see terrifying visages
in it's swirling chaos. Shuddering she dropped her eyes from it, focusing
on ranma's face instead.
"Th-that's what Cologne threw at him, I'm sure it is," Akane
exclaimed stepping closer, "But I thought he dropped it on the ground.
How is he holding it, his body was limp?"
"It still is." For a few moments Tofu-sensei explored around Ranma's
hand and forearm, gently prodding certain points and then attempting
to move his fingers. Finally he let it drop and shook his head in puzzle-ment. "He's not holding it. His muscles are completely relaxed, his hand
should not even be in that position. Something else is holding that thing
there."
"But what's wrong with him?" Akane demanded, stepping up to
Ranma's inert form. His face was pallid and waxy looking, a ghostly
white. He looked so weak. Gently, Akane brushed her fingers across
his cheek. The skin was cool and dry, almost like parchment. She
pulled her hand away after only a few moments. She didn't want to
remember him like this, not like this. Turning away from him she
stumbled over to a stool in the corner and sat down.
"I don't know," Tofu-sensei answered, moving around the
examination room, grabbing items as he went, "His blood pressure is
dangerously low, and his breathing is very shallow and erratic. I can
barely feel his heart beating. But those things can be stabilized with
drugs and a few machines. It's his ki that I'm worried about. It's not
there."
"That's impossible. He'd be dead if it weren't there," Akane argued
vehemently.
"I know. I wish I knew what Cologne did to him. I don't understand
what this oblivion thing has to do with anything. It's impossible to force
the ki out of a person's body." He was back beside Ranma again, half a
dozen syringes in his possession. Picking up an alcohol pad he wiped
down Ranma's arm and injected the syringes into his blood stream one
after the other. After a few moments, Ranma's breathing became
deeper, more steady. A slight flush heated up his cheeks.
"I need to check a few things, see if I can discover what Cologne did
to him," Tofu-sensei explained as he turned to Akane, "Could you
watch him for me, make sure nothing goes wrong. If anything changes
call me." Akane only nodded before Dr. Tofu left the room. Sighing,
Akane pulled her stool next to the examination table and took Ranma's
hand. His skin was warmer under her touch now. Maybe he would be
fine. Maybe.
Ono Tofu left Akane with Ranma and hurried first to his small office
where he made a phone call. Akane was in no state to call her family,
being too concerned for Ranma, and he realized they needed to know.
There was a strong chance that Ranma was not going to survive the
next few hours much less the night.
Nabiki answered the phone. He talked quickly to Nabiki explaining a
little of what had happened. That Ranma had been hurt and was at his
clinic. That it might be serious. He was not about to let them know
how serious until he found out himself. At the same time he informed
her that Akane was with Ranma and would probably be here the night.
With that he thanked her and hung up, hurrying from his office to his
study.
The study was a simple room. Bookshelves lined the walls, over-flowing with book and manuscripts dealing with hundreds of medical
subjects. A single table was In the center of the room, a chair pushed
up to it, a single lamp illuminating a reading area. Overflowing the table
were several dozen books and scrolls he had been studying. Ignoring
these, he went straight for a set of shelves in the rear of the room and
began rummaging through some thick Chinese scrolls.
In the back of his mind there was an idea of what he was looking for.
The way Akane had said the punishment Cologne had inflicted upon
Ranma and the statue had made him think that Bookyaku was not the
Japanese word oblivion. Since Japanese had many roots in China, he
believed it might be some sort of Chinese spirit or demon, that was the
only explanation for what he had seen.
When talking with Nabiki, he had withheld information. He had done
the same with Akane. Telling her about Ranma's lack of ki had been
against his better judgement, but he needed someone to know besides
himself. Akane had been right when she had said that a person would
die without ki. The problem was Ranma was not without ki, it just was
not in his body. Somehow the statue had absorbed Ranma's ki.
Examining the statue he had noticed a faint twinge in its own black
aura, a slight color and pattern of blue that was as distinctively Ranma's
as his genetic code. With the power of the aura around the statue, he
was now surprised he had even seen that slight indication of Ranma's
own.
Any normal person would have been swallowed and subdued
instantly by such a strong aura. Even just being around the object, he
had felt small tugs at his own ki, and he knew how to control and
protect his better than most. For Ranma to resist as much as he was,
especially being in direct contact with the statue and most likely linked
to it, was a testament to his strength. He was stronger than Tofu had
ever realized, perhaps one of the strongest ever. That was not
surprising knowing Ranma's skill and recuperative abilities, both highly
advanced and instinctive for one so young.
Even with his strength though, Tofu had seen the greater aura slowly
winning out. Ranma did not have much longer before he was consumed
and his body would die shortly afterward, if it wasn't possessed. It was
just like Cologne to meddle in something this dangerous. I hope she has
a way to break this. Ah, here it is.
He pulled a well oiled parchment from the back recesses of a shelf.
All of these documents had belonged to his Master, until he had died
leaving Tofu as his heir. This room represented the knowledge of
nearly fifty generations of great healers and practitioners of the spiritual
arts.
Moving to the table, he untied the scroll and unrolled it. His practiced
eye scanned the characters quickly, skimming through most of the
scrolls information. It was mostly on Chinese mythology and the affect
of the beliefs on the balance a body had to maintain to remain healthy.
Near the end of it though, there was a section dealing with actual
spiritual beings that could directly affect or even destroy the balance
within, and among them he found what he was looking for.
It was similar to the kanji for the Japanese, yet there were some
subtle differences in the formation. It wasn't oblivion, it was the name
of a vengeful spirit connected somehow to the Amazon tribe in China.
Well that explains why Cologne used it. Other than that information
though, there was nothing except a warning that stated that the thing
resided in physical objects, and should never be allowed to enter a
living vessel not warded against it.
Rolling the scroll back up, he set it aside and started to ponder the
situation. There was nothing helpful in the scroll or in any of his other
manuscripts. He had read them all and knew all of their contents in a
general way. None of them dealt with this particular spirit, and it was
only mentioned in a scroll about myths and personal belief. Besides a
few small rituals there was nothing he could do.
Nabiki returned the phone to its cradle, her mind spinning with un-answered questions. Ranma was hurt, seriously. That was the second
time this week. For Ranma that was a frightening statistic. He rarely
went to the hospital, since he was rarely that injured or recovered
before anyone could get him there, but now twice in a week. And
Akane was with him again.
There was something going on here. She knew that. Their story in the
hospital was as believable as cheap property in Tokyo. There were
more holes in it than in Kuno's sanity and yet everyone went along with
it, so she had been forced to accept it. Then Ranma broke off their
engagement, and suddenly they were actually getting along like best
friends. And now this. This and Akane was with him. She hated
mysteries she could not solve.
"Who was on the phone?" Her father called from the living area
where he was busy cheating as Genma looked frantically for the British
Prime Minister.
Turning around Nabiki walked towards them. "That was Tofu-sensei.
Ranma's hurt, pretty bad. Akane took him to the clinic. She's there with
him now." I wish Dr. Tofu had given me more information. What was
wrong with Ranma? Tofu-sensei would never call if it were not serious.
He did sound a little distracted.
"Huh?" she asked, when she realized the others had been asking her
questions.
"What's wrong with him?" Genma asked curiously. He was not too
worried. Ranma was strong. Anything short of being hit by a speeding
vehicle or a gunshot was not going to hurt him too much, but he was
still his son, so he was slightly worried and curious.
"He didn't say. But it sounded like it was very serious."
Soun broke down at this, crying uncontrollably. "Now our lines will
never be joined, Saotome-kun."
"But Akane is with him. Maybe this will bring them together. My
son's folly in breaking the engagement will be rectified."
"Oh yes, how true. Happy day. Happy day." Soun decried tears of joy
streaming down his face.
"But is Ranma-kun going to be okay?" Kasumi asked worriedly.
Nabiki had not even heard her oneechan enter the room, but her
comment had the desired effect. The room went quiet as the two
fathers starting to understand the entire situation.
"Did you say serious?" Genma asked cautiously, looking pleadingly at
Nabiki as if she could change the truth.
Nabiki only nodded in response. At least they were finally paying
attention to reality. Sometimes those two could be incredibly dense.
She knew it had been the worry on Kasumi's face that had done it.
Generally any response other than happy acceptance from Kasumi was
like a slap in the face for everyone involved.
"I must go. He's still my son," Genma explained as he began grabbing
a few things. Soun began helping his friend, talking with him quietly,
reassuringly. Nabiki thought about going for a second, but dismissed
the idea. It would not really help her, although she did want to satisfy
her curiosity. Uncle Genma would report back with information, and
besides, Akane needed to return home eventually. Genma waved his
farewells and left the house quickly, leaving Soun crying in his wake,
lamenting the loss of his future son-in-law despite all that had recently
happened.
I wonder how serious this is. I hope it's not life threatening. Instead
of her own confusion, worry started to gnaw away at her. Ranma was
part of her family. His presence had become as necessary as night.
Things would not be the same if he were not here. Please be okay
Ranma. I still need questions answered. There was no way she was
going to let her feelings have that much control. Always a reason.
There must always be a reason.
Time had no meaning for him. Each moment was the same as the last
as same as the next would be, all just flowing into a seamless illusion of
forever. One second or one year it did not matter, it would have been
the same. The only perception of advancement was The Other speaking
to him, telling him what to do, where to go, where not to go.
The Other had told him to let his memory come back, but he needed
to know who he was, why he was here. Since he had nothing to do
besides running, he had time to search for them, and so he did. For a
time he was able to regain a few things, flashes of a past, pictures of
people, impressions of feeling, but before long they began to be ripped
from him again.
No matter what he did he was unable to hold onto them, the harder
he tried the more slipped through. Something was ripping them from
him, forcing him to forget. Finally he had to fall back on simply finding
one memory, one image to fill his mind, and holding onto it for as long
as he was able. If he lost all of his memories, he would be lost forever.
So he fought and fought unwilling and unable to give into what seemed
inevitable.
Some memories returned to him with greater frequency than others.
It was not that he sought them out, but when they returned he
remembered having them in his possession before. Most were people.
An older woman holding him, a long-haired girl wielding a large
spatula, a panda and an older man together, and a girl with short
blue-black hair always seemed to return. The girl with short hair was
the most predominate next to a vision of falling into water and his body
changing. He preferred those two even though they gave him strange
and conflicting emotions because it was easier to hold onto them once
he had them.
Now he was holding tightly to the vision of the girl with the short
hair hovering above him. He thought he was on the floor in it. She had
a drawn and worried expression, her eyes filled with fear. Blood
dripped from her arm, which was gently stroking his forehead. Maybe
this was the last thing I ever did? Can I be dead? But I thought you
were supposed to relive your life than, not lose it?
He could still feel the malevolent presence that was following him,
trying to trap him. Several times it had come close, but it had been
distant and just on the verge of his senses for a while. Actually it hasn't
come near me since I found this piece of my life. Is it ripping them
away. Am I supposed to defeat it? How can I do that? I'm barely
making it as it is.
"Watch out!" The Other's voice snapped into his head. Startled out of
his thoughts he suddenly noticed that the presence was close, on top of
him, and then he was fighting for his life.
A dark oppressive net swallowed him, trying to bind him as burning
claws raked at his mind, trying to tear away his latest memory, his only
hope of survival. "Stop fighting. It's useless mortal, you cannot beat
me. Give in, it would be easier, painless. No cares, no worries. Do you
want the pain of life? Here taste it."
The memory he was holding became real, he was living it. Pain
washed over his body, the scents and feel of the room becoming real,
the girl's soft skin and warm presence cradling him. Everything burned,
he was tired. He could feel his life leaking out on the floor. In her eyes
he saw her fear and pain, tears streaked her cheeks, blood dripped from
her arm to splatter in hot drops against his cheek. Suddenly he knew he
had hurt her, caused that wound.
"Life, that's what it is like. Pain, indecision, suffering. Do you want
that? I can give you peace." He did not want to trust the voice. It
dripped honey and trust, but underneath it was pure hunger. It was not
peace but oblivion that the thing offered, he did not want that. He
wanted his life back, his memories.
"Nooooo!" he screamed and began to revel in the feel of the memory,
the pain was real. Pain meant you were leaving. He etched the scents,
the sights, the feel in his mind. But as each was etched an invisible claw
raked across his mind obliterating them. He was unable to keep up. The
realism disappeared, the picture frayed, becoming tattered. No, no, no,
no, no. I don't wanna die. I don't wanna.
Just her face remained, a vague impression. He clutched at it, giving
everything that he could. Not her, don't take her. She's all I got. Can't
lose her, can't let him win. Her face frayed, and disappeared. He howled
in frustration, his own consciousness fading, disappearing, dwindling.
Plllleeeeaaaasss........His cry bled off into nothingness.
"I'm trying." But he was beyond hearing.
Akane watched Ranma patiently, her hands gently caressing his
forearm. Please be okay Ranma. Please come back to me. She had been
sitting for awhile. Tofu-sensei was still gone. At least Ranma was
resting peacefully. There had been no movement, no sign of any life
accept the rise and fall of his chest, the comforting warmth of his hand.
As she sat, she only starred at Ranma, watching him, silently begging
him to come back to her. It required too much energy to do anything
else. If she started thinking about them she knew that a breakdown
would be unavoidable. Please be okay.
There was a flutter of movement beneath her hand. Startled she
looked closely at Ranma. His breathing was becoming faster. Suddenly
he clenched her hand tightly, her knuckles cracking under the pressure.
His body arched off of the examining table, a quiet protest of pain
escaping his lips. Then he collapsed back on the table, his entire body
going limp. The breath sighed out of his lips and he was silent.
It took a moment for everything to connect in Akane's mind, then
she started screaming his name, over and over as she tried to think of
something to bring him back to life. CPR! She dimly remembered
taking the class in school. Breathing and beating the heart. Numbly she
was standing up, and moving to him, hitting his chest once, twice.
Nothing, she climbed up and kneeled next to him, automatically doing
everything she could remember.
She did not even realize she was glowing, her aura shining brightly,
her voice calling out to Ranma with each compression. One, two, three,
four, five, breathe. One, two, three, four, five, breathe. The rhythm was
all that mattered to her now. Keep Ranma alive.
There are no clues to work with. Idly his hands stroked the rolled
parchment. He had to speak with Cologne and make her reverse her
work and free Ranma; however, there was the fact that she had done it
purposefully and wanted Ranma to die. In that case there was nothing
he would be able to do. He was not going to give up. He still had
colleagues, maybe one would know something he could use to save
the boy.
Sighing, he put the scroll down and returned to his study and began
making phone calls. He did not have much time, very little time, That's
when he heard Akane start to scream Ranma's name.
Genma was partway to the clinic when a strange feeling passed over
him, like a shadow covering his heart. His heart sped up, adrenaline
pumping into his body. Something was wrong, horribly wrong. Ranma!
His eyes widened in shock and then he started running.
He was falling, falling fast. There was nothing to grab onto that could
stop his dizzying plummet. The thing that had destroyed him was with
him as he fell, laughing at his misfortune and gloating over its victory.
Lashing out, he tried once again to find something, anything that might
help him. A scrap of memory, a fleeting impression, even just a name or
The Other, but there was nothing.
"Someone help me!" he screamed into the blackness. It was no use.
There was nothing. He was doomed. Nothing. Nothing. Then there was
something, so faint he barely recognized it. It was like a small breeze
lightly soothing him on a hot, stagnant day. He followed the feel of it,
trying to find the source. The thing had not noticed yet. It was getting
stronger, almost intelligible. It was insistent, filled with anguished
pleading. He reached for it.
His tormentor noticed what he was doing. There was the sudden
feeling of something descending towards him, trying to stop him. He
touched it.
There was a scream of rage.
A shout of joy.
He heard the words ring in his head, the memory return.
"Ranma come back to me!"
"I'm Ranma," he shouted in triumph and lashed at the descending
oblivion. I'm Ranma.
When Dr. Tofu entered the examination room, his worst fears were
confirmed. Akane was kneeling next to Ranma on the table performing
CPR. Her aura was glowing brightly in the room, flowing over the
Ranma as he lay on the table. The statue was a swirling black, the blue
of Ranma's aura completely gone from its surface. No there it was. He
saw a flash of blue that flitted across the surface for a second before
being suppressed again. There was still a chance.
He rushed forward, not evening hearing the door to the clinic open.
First he checked on Akane. She was doing the procedure correctly,
although she was talking under her breath. He heard Ranma come back
to me said as she performed compressions, one word for each down
stroke, then she lifted his head, and breathed into his mouth, rasing his
chest. Then she was back to the compressions, calling Ranma again.
That she was doing CPR right made his job easier. He quickly
touched several pressure points that would allow more of the oxygen
she was giving Ranma to be directed to the brain, several others made
his heart more receptive for the compression.
"My son!" Tofu turned at the cry, but was almost bowled over by
Saotome Genma as he rushed to his son's side. At the last moment, Dr.
Tofu side stepped staying on his feet. Roughly he pushed the boy's
father out of the way.
"Stay out of the way," he said. Meekly, Genma nodded and backed
up, fear in his eyes. Turning back to Ranma, he checked a few more
signs. It was no use. Ranma had no ki available, it was going to be
almost impossible to bring him back to life. There was a slight flash of
blue across the statue's black aura. He's still fighting. I've got to do
something.
He turned from Ranma and began rummaging through several small
vials until he found the one he wanted. It was a black, viscous liquid.
Grabbing a syringe, he filled it mostly with a sugar solution and then
pushed the syringe into the vial and drew a small drop of the liquid,
turning the clear solution black. Anything more would destroy the brain
tissue and many nerves.
Returning to Ranma he was about to inject it into the boy's arm,
when he felt Akane start to channel her ki, unconsciously. Surprised he
looked up. Tears streaked the girl's face, her blue aura swirling around
her. "Ranma come back to me!" she screamed and hit his chest in a
rather strong cardial thump. He heard his ribs creaking. At the same
time he felt her release a blast into him. Ranma's body jumped on the
examination table.
There was a flash of blue from the statue forcing the black back. He
suddenly drew in a ragged breath and then exhaled it. Dr. Tofu thought
he heard him speak, "I'm Ranma." But if he did, he did not say
anymore. Instead his body started moving fitfully, jerking as if he were
fighting.
Putting the syringe back, Dr. Tofu gently helped Akane off the table.
She was crying in relief; however, he did not have the time to deal with
it. He gave her into Genma's care. Akane collapsed against Ranma's
father, crying into his chest. Confused, Genma could only hold the girl
who had just saved his son' s life. Tofu barely noticed, he had to help
Ranma somehow.
Now it was a fight. Although he was still at a disadvantage and might
not be able to beat this thing, he knew he could not lose if he con-tinued. He was Ranma. He knew his name, and with his name came
other connections, more memories. Who he was, what he did. His
parent's names entered his mind with their faces. Other faces started
entering and he finally remembered the girl with the short, dark hair.
Akane Tendo. Although he did not know what she was to him, he
knew her now.
So it was a fight. He had gained some of himself back and was able to
hold his own and protect himself. His name held power for him,
protecting him from many of the attacks. He did not know how he lost
it to begin with, but the thing musty have caught him off guard. Not
this time.
This was not a fight in the normal sense of the word. There were
no physical attacks, no dodging, no maneuvering for position. It was
will against will. One was trying to wipe out the other's memory, the
other was simply blocking the attacks with pure stubborn resistance. He
would not give in this time.
"Start attacking him," the Other's voice was suddenly in his head.
"How?" he asked confused. He was barely defending against the
thing now. If he attacked, the thing was assured of getting through his
defenses. "Besides then I'll lose."
"It's a gamble. I need something to happen, and this might get them
to do it."
"Get who to do what?" Ranma grunted as another attack came. He
barely managed to push it away. Too many things were flashing
through his heads. Past experiences were returning at irregular times,
the attacks had no, no pattern, and now the Other was asking him to
attack. It was too much.
"Will you just do it." The command was easy to understand. Mentally
sighing, he agreed.
As the next attack came he braced against it. It slammed into his
barrier. This time when it withdrew he followed it back and lashed at
the source. There was a grunt of surprise. It seemed impossible for him
to hurt the thing, but enrage it he did. Suddenly the struggle became
more physical, much more deadly.
The creature started lashing at him and not his memories, although
every so often he went for those. Ranma found himself defending two
fronts, one that required all of his concentration and the other that he
had no idea how to defend.
Slowly he was beaten down, pain flashing through his senses. He had
no body, but he had a form that was being ripped at and torn. The thing
lashed out, and Ranma screamed in pain as part of his form separated
only to reform with him later. Snarling in rage he attacked.
His form lashed out and struck something. There was a below of pain
in his ears. Smirking with satisfaction, he lashed out again and again. It
became easier with each use. It was like using a physical body, but
everything was just more sensitive and more chaotic, but he was able to
do this.
Again and again he attacked, gaining back the ground he lost. He felt
the things fear radiating in the darkness. Obviously it had not counted
on this strong of a challenge. Then it attacked again. Ranma braced
himself, but not enough. The blow ripped through his defenses and
found his memories. With a cry of rage and dismay, he pushed away the
raking claw that was trying to shred his past.
With excruciating slowness the attack was repelled with minimal
damage, but as he gathered his strength, the darkness began to glow
red, and then burn as heat washed over his form, burning it. Searing
agony filled his body. He was burning, the heat boiling his form. He
screamed in pain. The rest of the battle and everything else lost in the
pain of the burning, fiery heat.
Dr. Tofu watched in awe as Ranma fought. There were only a few
muscle movements, but that was unimportant. The battle was spiritual
not physical, and that one could be seen circulating around the statue in
Ranma's right hand.
A solid black aura covered the statue, but on one side a spot glowed
a bright blue. For a few moments it expanded trying to consume the
entire black, but the other spirit retaliated stabbing into the heart of the
blue. Each attack caused Ranma to retreat, but only on ground. He
brought himself back into a small area, but glowed even brighter on the
black. Many times the black struck at Ranma but was repelled with a
burst of blue with each attack, and then something amazing happened,
Ranma struck back.
The blue arced across the black, leaving a clear trail behind it. The
black reacted with vicious efficiency. Ranma was beleaguered by the
attack, his position become overshadowed by the intensity of the
attack. It was like Bookyaku had lost control and was in a rage.
"Is that my son fighting?" Genma asked quietly.
The question broke Dr. Tofu's concentration on the battle. "You
can see it?" he asked incredulously.
"It just appeared a few moments ago," Genma said. Akane turned
around in his arms and looked at the sight. Her face fell as she saw
Ranma's position.
"Hai," Dr. Tofu said quietly, "A spirit is trying to possess his body,
and it is much stronger than Ranma. I'm amazed he has lasted this long.
Look at the power of that thing."
"You mean Ranma is going to...?" It was impossible for her to finish
the question. What had happened a few minutes ago was still etched in
her mind. She did not want to feel that way again.
"Don't give up hope yet," Genma said, "Ranma is not one who will
go down easily, look."
They all turned back in time to see Ranma react to the pressure on
him. He exploded out of the shell surrounding him and struck back at
Bookyaku, his blue aura arcing across the black striking hundreds of
times in a second, as if he had employed his Tenshin Amiguriken
attack.
Bookyaku was not about to give up. They all saw the change in the
attack, Ranma missed it. Bookyaku slammed through Ranma's
defenses, stabbing straight to the heart of Ranma's position. Akane
gasped in horror, breathing the word no very softly.
But Ranma was there, blocking it at the last moment, straining to
push the attack back. Slowly he did, and as the attack was finally
pushed away, Bookyaku attacked again. The aura turned crimson and
then sooty red, and then expanded to cover Ranma's body. A scream
broke his lips, his blue spot shrank quickly to a small dot on the red
glowing ball.
With a low cry, Akane was by his side her had reaching to brush his
forehead. She snapped it back with a hiss. "He's burning up, his skin is
like fire."
Tofu touched Ranma's arm, the heat was intense. It was not like a
fever, but it was burning the body like one. He needed to cool the boy
down, or his body would be cooked. "Help me, we need to get him in
cold water, preferably ice." He grabbed Ranma's writhing form in his
arms, ignoring the heat and carried him out of the examination room to
his bathroom.
Dumping him into the tub, he turned on the cold water. The water
began to fill the tub, Ranma's thrashing causing more of the water to
cover him than necessary, he changed into his female form, and
suddenly went calm, a sigh of relief escaping her lips.
"Wh-what happened?" Akane asked, looking at Ranma closely. She
reached out a hand. "He's normal again. No heat."
"That's not all," Dr. Tofu said, looking closely at Ranma and the
statue. The auras were half and half now, but more importantly, there
was some ki in Ranma's body, not exactly his own, but very similar,
maybe the curse's magic energy. "He has some ki back in his body, and
the auras are even around the statue. Somehow we just gave him a
chance to live. If he stays stable like this, we might be able to find a
cure."
"Then we've gotta start looking," Genma said quickly, "We can't let
him die."
"I need time to figure this out, call colleagues, get some answers,"
Dr. Tofu explained, leaning down and lifting Ranma-onna's body from
the tub, "Right now we need to watch Ranma and make sure he stays
like this. I'd like one or both of you to stay for tonight, until we can get
some people to watch over him."
"Why don't we take him to the hospital?" Akane asked as they
walked back to another room, a small bedroom. There was a single
bed, two chairs and a desk in the room.
"Because they'll just declare him in a coma and hook him to
machines, and they won't let me near him. I'm not trained for that, and
I need to deal directly with him," he explained as he placed Ranma-
onna on the bed.
"Oh," Akane yawning, "I guess I can stay and watch him."
"I will too," Genma said, "That is a father's duty."
Dr. Tofu gazed at them for a few moments and then nodded. "Okay,
but I think you need some sleep, Akane. The kitchen is down the hall,
there is some cold leftovers there and a full pantry. I'll leave you for
now." Genma and Akane only nodded before sitting down, and scoot-ing up to the bed. Neither noticed Dr. Tofu leave the room.
The first thing he noticed upon waking was that he was somewhere.
The black emptiness no longer surrounded him. The next thing he
realized was that he preferred the black nothingness. Around him was a
blasted wasteland. Cracked, hard, red earth stretched to the horizon on
either side of him. In front it slammed into a distant range of jagged
peaks, behind a burning lake of molten fire blocked his path.
Above him burned a black sun, a gapping hole in the burning sky.
Hell, I'm in Hell. I guess those Christians were right, but where are the
devils, the eternal torment. Or maybe this is it. Am I supposed to spend
eternity alone in this damn place? He chuckled and was pleased to
actually hear his own voice.
The last thing he remembered was the burning pain, and then some-thing soothingly cool being spread across his body. After that there was
nothing, a blank space that left him here.
"I guess Akane was right. I shouldn't have gone to fight the old
ghoul. Now I'm dead, aren't I?" He actually wasn't sure. He was tired
and sore. His side throbbed painfully. Curious he check it. There was
no blood, but the wound seemed to have opened a bit at one end.
"At least I've got my memory back." He thought that was a good
thing, but then again. It might be worse to be stuck here forever,
always remembering his past. "I don't understand. If I lost, why do I
have my memory. That thing was trying to wipe me out. Maybe I
haven't lost."
Intrigued he looked around once more. This looked like a place some
hideous, unseen terror would reside. It was possible. He remembered
giving the thing a run for its money, and he was never one to give up.
Maybe it brought him here because it was more powerful here, or he
was less powerful. Either way it did not matter. He was still here, and it
was not home.
He starred at the mountains in the distance. "In the movies, they'd
have the hero go and fight the beast to win his freedom. Maybe I've
gotta beat the thing. Like that's possible." He sighed and pushed
himself to his feet. "I've got nothing better to do." He started walking
toward the distant mountains. It was the only direction that seemed to
lead anywhere.
"I wonder where that other thing went to. Maybe it could help."
Shaking his head, he picked up the pace. The mountains looked pretty
far away, and he had no, no interest in staying here longer than
necessary.
Akane walked to school in a half daze. The night had been long and
resulted in little sleep. She and Saotome Genma had watched Ranma in
shifts of two hours. Of course her last one had ended just as she was
supposed to go to school so she was exhausted and emotionally strung
out.
Luckily nothing had happened to Ranma after that one episode, but
still that once had been enough. She knew her heart had stopped when
his had. Everything had come crashing down around her. Even after
going through the entire moment several times in the last few hours,
she had no clue how she had managed to pull herself together and save
his life. She had just known that she could not bear his death.
"Hey, sis. Wait up for me." Nabiki's greeting brought her to a stop,
until Nabiki caught up. "How's Ranma? Is he okay?" Her voice
dropped off and she fell silent as Akane looked up into her sister's
expectant face. "That bad."
"His heart stopped last night." Nabiki sucked in a breath in surprise.
"He-he almost died. If I hadn't known CPR, if Tofu-sensei hadn't been
there..." She left it hanging and let her head drop wearily. Maybe I
should go home. I'm too upset for this. What if Ranma wakes up while
I'm gone? Or..or..No! No he won't die. He won't.
They walked on in silence. The younger was too preoccupied and too
exhausted to think of useless subjects to chatter about. The older was
preoccupied also but not with the same thoughts. She was wondering
about Ranma and Akane. The last time she had seen Akane like this
was when Mother had been sick. They had all understood what had
been wrong, but were hoping for the best even though they knew she
was going to die.
"Is he going to get better?" she asked quietly. It was something she
wanted to know, but she was not prepared for Akane's reaction.
Kasumi probably would have been hard pressed to deal with what
happened next.
Akane simply collapsed to the ground and started sobbing. These
were not the quiet tears of disappointment or rejection, or even the
uncontrollable grief of their father, they were closer to an emotional
breakdown. Each sob wracked Akane's entire body as her grief poured
out, her voice muffled by her hands yet still loud.
Shocked Nabiki could only stand in place and watch her sister. What
am I supposed to do? She' s never been like this before, not since
mother died. Finally something took over in her and she knelt beside
Akane and wrapped her arms around her. Akane grabbed Nabiki and
held tightly to her, her face buried in Nabiki's breast. Slowly Nabiki
began to rock her sister and soothe her with gentle words. It was all
she could think of. She had no clue what was happening inside Akane,
but she wanted to help and so did as much as possible to comfort
Akane.
This was her sister and she was suffering. She was known as a hard
uncompromising young woman that loved money more than anything
else, but Nabiki loved her family more than anything else in the world.
She never showed it, what with her many extortion schemes and her
distant attitude to everyone, but she knew where her duty lay.
Most of her money went to the family in some way or another. Few
knew of it because she handled the family accounts personally, allowing
no one else to see where the income was coming from. Besides she had
to make it look like her father was earning most of it, since the dojo
had been in decline for several years, and she would never dishonor her
father by showing that he could not raise his family on his own. Soun
was just not as strong of a martial artist as he had once been. The death
of his wife had sapped his strength, making it harder for him to deal
with life.
Nabiki had realized this quickly and started funneling most of her
money into the family accounts. Some of it was invested, the rest used
to pay the bills and keep them solvent. She did this without acclaim,
without gaining anything. She did it because she loved her family and it
was the only way she could show that love.
Nabiki held hr sister and just let her grief run its course. After a time,
Akane's sobs died down and finally stopped, but she still clung tightly
to Nabiki. Gently Nabiki stroked Akane's hair, still rocking her like a
small child. "You love him, don't you?" she asked. She had suspected
as much for a long time and this just confirmed it, but she wanted to
hear it from Akane.
She knew how much it hurt to keep everything locked inside. She had
done it since her mother's death. Each day it was harder, but after a
time it simply became impossible to find a release, and without a release
things just festered and made life harder to bear. So she had started
denying everything and turning to the small pleasure of beating people
with her schemes. Nabiki knew Kasumi held everything at bay by
simply taking mother's place. Akane had turned to martial arts to
relieve her emotions, finding violence a good outlet that didn't show
anything.
Akane nodded her head against Nabiki's chest. "I don't want to lose
him," she whispered.
Even after he broke off the engagement? I really should ask her about
that, but it might hurt her more, and I don't want to take a chance at
being crushed by one of her mallets. "Do you wanna talk about it?" she
asked carefully. It was a way to get the information she wanted and
maybe ease her sister's pain.
"No," she said quietly, "I-I don't..it's too soon. I'll just cry."
"Why don't you go home?"Nabiki suggested as she stood up, pulling
Akane with her. Akane shook her head. "Okay, but if you start feeling
like you're going to lose it, go home. Promise?" Akane nodded.
Nabiki picked up her bag and realized Akane did not have one. At
least Kasumi gave me her lunch. She gave Akane her lunch, and started
leading her toward school. "Nabiki?' Akane said.
"Hai."
"Thank you, for being there."
"Hey just don't let it get around, sis" Nabiki said lightly. Things were
getting to close to her range of uncomfortable. "Remember I've got a
reputation to worry about."
Akane smiled a bit. "I understand, so do I." Her eyes were shining
with love though. Nabiki turned away and started walking to school.
What has Ranma done to us? Things were so much simpler without
him. I don't know whether to thank him or hit him.
Akane was at lunch when she finally lost it that day. After the scene
with Nabiki she had been able to control her emotions and plod through
the day like a somnambulist. She only talked when people asked her
questions, and then only answered with a few words. Kuno had earned
a foot implanted in his face, and after that he had left her alone. All in
all she figured the day would end soon and end well. She wanted to go
back to Dr. Tofu's. Then Shampoo showed up.
It was the middle of the lunch hour when the dreaded ringing of
Shampoo's bicycle reached her. The next thing Akane knew, Shampoo
was stopping her bike and dismounting in front of her.
"What do you want?" Akane growled at the girl. This creature was
responsible for ruining her date with Ranma, for what was happening
now. Akane held no, no love for the girl.
"Shampoo want see husband," Shampoo explained looking around
the area Akane was sitting, "What violent girl do with Ranma?
Shampoo want Ranma marry her so he not die."
That did it. "You ignorant, half-brained, backwater hick! You don't
want your precious husband to die?" Akane's aura was glowing brightly
as she stood up, facing the suddenly nervous Amazon. "Maybe you
should've thought of that before placing that stupid curse on him."
"What stupid girl mean?" Shampoo asked, "Husband have thirteen
days before he die."
"Thirteen days!" Akane exploded stepping forward. She saw Ranma
in her mind, his body arching and then going limp, his last breath
escaping his lips. "He's unconscious right now. The only reason he's
alive is because of Dr. Tofu and myself. How do you expect him to
marry you like that? Huh? Why don't you tell me that you damn bitch!
C'mon. Tell me! What has the cat got your tongue!" She spit the last
one viciously.
Shampoo was shaking her head in disbelief. "That not right. Great-
grandmother say he be okay for fourteen days. Judgment of
Bookyaku supposed to work that way. Husband not supposed to have
almost died first night." Tears were in the girl's eyes.
"That ghoul lied to you then!" Akane screamed, "And it is still your
fault. You should never have come to Japan. I hate you! I hate you!"
Her mallet was in her hand. She brought it down onto Shampoo's head,
but Shampoo moved at the last moment. Akane did not give up though.
She swung again and again, forcing the girl against the tree. A cruel
smile touched her lips. She would make this girl suffer for hurting
Ranma.
"Why couldn't you just leave Ranma alone? He doesn't want you. He
never did." She swung the mallet down on Shampoo's confused face. It
stopped short of the target. Confused Akane glanced down to see
Cologne holding the mallet still with her staff. Akane opened her mouth
to speak but was beaten to it by Shampoo.
"Great-grandmother," Shampoo said in Mandarin, kneeling on the
ground next to the ghoul, "My husband is dying. He is not awake.
According to that girl he almost died last night. You said he'd be fine.
That he'd come around in a few days and marry me. Now he is dying
and I can't marry him."
"Are you sure, Shampoo" Cologne asked.
Shampoo nodded. "Ask her?" She pointed at Akane who was
watching in confusion, not understanding a single word of Chinese.
Cologne turned to Akane. "Is it true that son-in-law almost died last
night?"
"What you don't know? You're the one who did it. Are you that
stupid ghoul!"
"Ah, I did not expect this. I must go see son-in-law now. You will
take me to him." Her finger jabbed at Akane.
"Why should I?"
"Do you want him to die?" Akane shook her head. "Then take me to
him." Akane sighed in defeat and let her mallet disappear. Anything to
get Ranma back. Anything to make sure he did not die. Grabbing the
remains of her lunch, she motioned for the two to follow her.
Cologne examined Ranma-onna minutely. She checked all of her vital
signs, her ki, and spent several moments examining the statue. Finally
she nodded satisfied at her observations, then turned back to group.
"This is not what I expected, but it'll do," Cologne said leaping to the
desk and sitting down, "Son-in-law will live until the rising of the new
moon, as long as he stays in this form. Somehow the curse is keeping
him alive and protected from Bookyaku. He won't wake until the
Judgement is lifted. In his other form he will die quickly. I'll let him die
on the new moon if I do not get his father's solemn pledge and Akane's
pledge that he will marry Shampoo."
"No, no, I won't let you do that. It's his choice," Akane shouted,
taking a step toward Cologne.
"It's your choice. You can lose him in death or only to another
woman. It's up to you." With that the ghoul left the room and the clinic
dragging a confused yet happy Shampoo with her, and leaving Genma,
Akane and Dr. Tofu in shocked silence. This was finally broken as
Akane rushed to Ranma-onna's side and held her close, crying. It's not
fair. I lose you no matter what. It's not fair.
Author's Notes
Well that is done. A little long for just a few things like that? Well
I like to sit and write. Actually I think I rushed the ending a bit. Maybe
I'll change it latter, but then that is latter, this is now.
So what'll happen to Ranma? We'll he reach the mountains?
What is Akane going to do? Was Cologne serious? How does
Shampoo feel? And what about Ukyou and the others? Can Dr. Tofu
find a cure? All these questions will be answered as The Jundgement of
Bookyaku continues on in MASN.
Sorry, just had to do that, this is starting to look like a soap
opera. And what about that mysterious man in the shadows? (Don't ask
he doesn't exist ^_- But I'll start working on the new one as fast as I
can. Of course I've gotta figure out what I wanna do with the next
episode.
Hmm, a few things to explain. I actaully consider Nabiki to be
like this. I mean she does love her family, I just have not have not had a
lot of time to develope her, so I sort of threw it all together in a great
stew. She'll be a more active character latter on. Actually you'll see
that at most I'll bring one or two characters in each part. It's harder to
handle more than that. Dr. Tofu doesn't get my attention until a lot
latter, but I did give a little bt about him here.
Not much else to explain. I always leave hanging ends. I mean
who is this Other Ranma met, and what does it want? Well I won't tell
you.
Well enough rambling. I hope you enjoyed this installment. Until
next time.
Peace
Joseph Ashira Kohle
