Many of you have seen most of this before. It appeared on FFML early
last month. It's been edited and expanded in preparation for posting to
RAAC. Any comments would be appreciated!




		PROLOGUE

	It has begun.

	I look upon the destruction and it amuses me. I see friends dead
and dying, victims of an irresistible force that they could not run away
from, nor halt by might or by reason. It amuses me, for it is a doom
that I have wrought.

	I was the fiancee of Ranma Saotome, by virtue of an arrangement
made by our fathers. Other women wanted him for themselves; they stood
in our way and ruined our chance to be together forever. For that
unforgivable crime, I unleashed the darkness in my soul, a darkness born
of years of anger and of pacts with the unspeakable.

	The irony is delicious. The love Ranma holds for his dear
fiancee prevents him from fighting back. Can you appreciate the irony,
Ranma? Perhaps not.

	I see a vision of the future. A barren and dead world, with only
myself remaining, unable to die as the dark forces feed on my madness.
Perhaps those who die now will be the lucky ones. I care not. I have
come too far already.

	I hear screams, screams of agony as more attempts to halt the
devastation are met with failure. Delightful.



		FINAL EMBRACE

	by Keener Barnes and Gary Kleppe

	Characters created by Rumiko Takahashi; used without permission.



	Kasumi's limp form crumpled raggedly as it made wet contact with
the concrete wall. She had been one of the last of the survivors and had
thought her voice could reach into that bottomless void which had been
her sister. Casually, her mind drifted off as her lifeforce ebbed away.
My, the house was so dirty, mustn't let the company see this, and she
really should make something for when the fighting was over. They would
be hungry after all that exercise.
	
	Akane strode though what was left of her house and surveyed the
devastation. All that was left was a half eaten shell of the old home, a
fitting place for her last victim's final moments. A yellow bandanna was
wrapped loosely about her head. Ryouga's last gift; he too had made the
mistake of trying to reach out to her. 

	But her eyes bore the real testament. They swallowed the light
and greedily begged for more. Not even the love of her own father had
been enough to fill the emptiness. Only darkness dwelled in her heart
now. But, she chided herself, that was why she must feed; now where had
Ranma gotten off to, she wondered. Then, she felt his presence; a
lifeforce like no other. Her new masters would be pleased.

	Ranma simply let the wind scour him clean. His clothes in
tatters, he stared out towards where the koi pond once was. Where a tree
had stood and he had trained, fought and lived. Now there was nothing,
his friends were long gone and he hadn't the strength to save even one
of them. No, no use trying to fool himself now, even if he had access to
the strength needed he wouldn't have been able to use it. 

	Made impotent by love, he had stood by as the dark force had
consumed her soul. Had watched passively as friends were killed. Ukyo's
screams for help still reverberated throughout his soul. He fell to his
knees screaming as loud as his lungs would allow. Hoping to burst them,
or at least drown out their screams for help.

	"How much do you love me?" asked a voice, gentle as a cherry
blossom. Akane smiled at Ranma's back. Whatever his answer, it wouldn't
be enough. Ranma shivered and slowly turned to meet his destiny.

	"Enough to save you my child, even if he doesn't know it yet."
Nodoka walked carefully out of the shadows, her blades held limp at her
sides. "Enough to give you the redemption you seek."

	Akane smirked at the warrior woman. Once Ranma's mother had been
a source of awe for her. A mother and wife without giving up any
strength in the bargain, everything that she had ever wanted to be. But
that was then, now the woman was below contempt. The woman's strong
words were filled with sound and fury, but after Akane has torn the life
from her body, they would signify nothing. With a feral growl, she
leaped at Nodoka, her eyes blanketing her face in shadow.

	Nodoka moved swiftly and slashed hard at the young girl, her
blades working hard and close but never seeming to break through Akane's
defenses. Arms draped in a deep shadow blocked the swords, and she could
gain no ground. When the girl struck back at the swordswoman, she found
herself forced to her knees. The martial artist broke from the fight and
stood up to her full height. 

	A smile that radiated beyond the shadows dared Nodoka to take
advantage. The older women got to her feet and raised her swords to the
heavens. Then she struck, as Ranma screamed!

	Mocking laughter told him that he shouldn't have wasted his
breath. Akane walked up the length of the blades, having already exposed
a great deal of length from her back and she placed her hands on either
side of Nodoka's face. Mist began to pour from of the woman's eyes and
mouth, as the shadow girl seemed to drink in her very essence.

	"This ends now." Ranma whispered. Akane turned an amused glance
toward her new challenger and was surprised at his lack of aura. No blue
or red flames sheathed his body. No irrepressible light shone off him
like a beacon, and his body wasn't quivering with rage. In fact, his
shoulders took on a resigned look and the only stress visible on his
face was a single tear.

	Confused, yet confident, Akane sneered at the little man. "Of
course it ends, you are the last. If only you had been stronger...
pity."

	"Akane, I love you. I always will. I once asked my mother why
she had let dad take me away, I asked her how she could leave me alone,
do you know what she said?"

	"What?" Akane sneered.

	"No matter where you went, I was always with you. When you
climbed the mountains, I followed. When you swam the great oceans, I was
there. I will follow you to hell, because love connects us soul to soul.
No matter what happens to you, I shall always accompany you. I never
thought I'd meet someone I'd want to tie my soul to. Someone I'd follow
in life and in death." Ranma said as he reached out to Akane with his
palm outstretched to her.

	"Until you met me? My how touching." Akane laughed.

	"Akane? This truly is a dark and lonely place, let's find a new
place." Ranma's palm began to fill with a radiant azure light. "A place
where we can be happy... forever."
    
	"What?" Akane's eyes went wide as she registered the incredibly
powerful sphere that was forming in Ranma's outstretched hand.

	"Jisatsu Bakuha..."

	< BOOM! >


		EPILOGUE

	It's finished.

	The darkness that is my soul emerges from its hiding place. No
need for concealment now. My spirit expands, looking over what it has
wrought. It is good.

	Police officers are surveying the devastated dojo. Ranma Saotome
and Akane Tendo are pronounced dead. Two young lovers, perished in a
double suicide. How romantic.

	Tough luck, Akane. No doubt wherever you are now, you've learned
your lesson. Dark power isn't easy to control. It's not for amateurs to
play around with. It takes a lifetime to learn. A lifetime of broken
promises, of abandonment and betrayal, of having the light within you
run away leaving you behind. You need to have nothing left to lose. So
sorry you found that out too late.

	Had I the capacity for it left in me, I would be feeling a touch
of guilt over the way things turned out. After all, I was the one who
called the forces of darkness to Akane. Her anger was the hole in her
defenses. Anger easily turns to hatred, and hatred to black. I know that
all too well.

	What a fool you were, Ranma Saotome. All my life I only wanted
one thing, and that was you. It was being denied you that made me this
way. When I found you again, I would have given it all up for you. Well,
maybe not given it *all* up -- but at least you would have been spared.
In the end you wouldn't have wanted any more than that anyway. But you
had to stand by Akane. It was she whom you truly loved. Bah! What is
love? Where did it get you in the end?

	My soul flows back to my lifeless body. Tapping into its dark
power, I quickly undo the deterioration that my shell has undergone
since my leaving it. The heart begins to pump, and blood circulates. I
emit a low moan.

	I take a look at the stage where so many of my plays took place.
Unbidden, my mind begins thinking back. As I expect, I find times of
sorrow and pain, but am mystified to find something strange intermingled
with it all. Why does my heart seem to beat again whenever I remember?
The stinging in my eyes are a minor nuisance and I brush them away with
slight exasperation at my apparent lack of control.

	One of the police officers on the scene notices me. "Holy -- Get
a medic over here quick! I think we've got a survivor!" He turns to me.
"Take it easy, lady, it's gonna be all right."

	I move over to my dear departed fiance, and crocodile tears
begin to flow. "Ranchan!?! He's -- He can't be -- NO!!!!" I grab his
body in a final embrace, as I gloat inwardly.

	The acting comes easy to me; but then, I've had a lot of
practice. For years, I played the perfect fiance: cute, understanding,
always sweet and kind. Ranchan, I would say, I'll always be there for
you as your friend. I only want what's best for you. If you really love
Akane, if being with her instead of me is what will make you happy, then
I'll support your decision. But think it over carefully. You might be
making a mistake.

	Told you so.