Chapter 14: Lake Purgata

   Everyone stared around at the swirling black mists within the 
legendary lake. "So, this is Eterna," Akane mused.
   Fuu frowned, and shook her head. "It wasn't like this before. 
Something terrible must have gone wrong here."
   A shrill, maniacal cackle boomed through the blackness. "Aha! 
Visitors! Welcome to my abode...Lake Purgata! I'm sure I'll be more 
than happy to receive you...if you LIVE LONG ENOUGH!"
   Everyone glanced at each other nervously, a dread feeling 
overcoming them. Ranma scowled. "This is gonna be rough," he said 
warily.
   Without warning, a black fireball zoomed out of the mists and 
slammed into Ranma. He staggered, as the dark flame engulfed him, 
then vanished. Everyone looked at him with concern.
   Ranma rubbed his head. "Agh." He blinked. "Somethin' ain't right 
here."
   "What's wrong, Ranma-san?" Fuu asked.
   Ranma shook his head, frowning. "I can't sense Hikaru anymore. I 
usually feel her buzzin' around in there when I'm in control. It's 
like she went to sleep or somethin'."
   "She's alright isn't she?" Umi asked.
   "I don't know," Ranma replied.
   While this statement sunk in, two foggy whirlwinds slowly formed 
in the large cavern. Before anyone could react, one had surrounded 
the group from Nerima. The other enveloped the Magic Knights, 
including Ranma, and Lantis.

   Akane was the first to regain consciousness, blinking rapidly. Her 
head ached horribly. She looked around. Unlike the entry cavern, this 
place was full of clear water, yet still felt ominous, malignant, 
evil. 
   Ukyou lay sprawled on the rocky floor about a meter away. Shampoo, 
in cat form with a jeweled collar around her neck, curled on her side.
 A duck with a white stone on a short chain around its neck snored 
softly near the cat. Akane frowned; where was Ryouga?
   Then she saw the pig.
   Cowering in one corner of the watery cavern was P-chan, with a 
studded yellow collar around his neck, from which hung a glowing 
green gem. He glanced at her, and bowed his head shamefully.
   Akane blinked. "P-chan? How the..." Then she thought for a moment. 
That collar wasn't his usual cute little bandana. And he never had a 
gem before. 
   A horrible realization washed over Akane, as she stared at the 
piglet. Part of her wondered how she'd managed to miss the connection 
for so long.
   "Ry--Ryouga!?" she gasped.
   "Buuuiiiiii...." the piglet offered.
   "Akane-chan? Where are we?" Ukyou mumbled groggily. "Why does it 
feel so wet here?"
   Akane didn't respond. She was still in shock.
   The cat and duck stirred. *Aiyah*, mewled a voice inside 
everyone's mind. *where this place?*
   Everyone stared at Shampoo, who arched her back, and blinked at 
them. *What wrong?* the voice said again. 
   "Sh--shampoo?" Ukyou asked.
   *Of course it Shampoo. You know Shampoo turn to...* Shampoo 
trailed off. *Aiyah.*
   "How are you doing that?" Akane wondered.
   */The soul speaks clearly in the place where souls exist without 
form/*, intoned a new, haunting voice. */Every second, an infinite 
agony. You scream out for nonexistence, as an end to the torment, and 
nobody heeds your call. This is Purgata, the Lake of the Damned./*
   Everyone blinked. Hesitantly, Mousse spoke up in their heads, *So 
those of us with curses are trapped like this.*
   A pig sighed. *Perfect.*
   Akane whirled on the pig. "You." Ryouga shrank back into his 
corner reflexively. "All this time..."
   "Akane..." Ukyou warned. "We don't have time for this right now."
   "Butt out, Ukyou," Akane snapped. Returning her full-force glare 
to the piglet, she continued, "Just how long were you going to keep 
doing this, huh?"
   *Akane-san...gomen nasai...*
   Ryouga's crystal flared green. The water around him boiled as a 
green aura expanded from his small shape. 
   */Ahhh...such delicious agony. You belong in Purgata, porcine one. 
You've got a lifetime's worth of experience with living damnation./*
   *I don't know who you are, but SHUT UP!* Ryouga shouted in his 
porcine soul-voice. *You couldn't possibly know about my pain! My 
suffering, my living personal hell! You don't know anything about 
damnation!*
   */Oh, I don't, do I?/*
   Suddenly, a wave of pure, undistilled agony washed over them. 
   Pain.
   Awareness.
   Trapped.
   Alone.
   Despair.
   Suffering.
   Anger. Bitterness.
   Betrayal.
   Sadness.
   Depression.
   Longing. Longing for an end.
   And end to the damnation.
   They were floored by the depth of the horrible emotions. As wave 
upon wave of the agony of purgatory slammed into them, Ryouga's aura 
filled the chamber, causing the waters to glow green.

   Umi, Fuu, Lantis, and Ranma found themselves sprawled on a dirt 
footpath, which led into a misty valley.
   "Where are we?" Umi asked.
   "This place casts a foreboding aura, wherever it is," Lantis said.

   "No...." Ranma whimpered.
   Everyone turned to him. He had become ghostly pale, and trembled 
slightly, staring into the mist with undisguised horror. "Why here? 
Again?" Turning his head to shout at the gods, he bellowed, "WHY 
ALWAYS HERE, DAMN YOU!? WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!?????"
   The others stared at him. After a moment, he settled down, now 
looking more angry than scared. 
   "Ranma-san?" Fuu questioned. "You know where we are?"
   Ranma nodded. "That voice back there called this Purgata...that's 
not the right name for it, but it's damn close."
   Lantis looked at the trail which led downward into the mist-
shrouded valley appraisingly. "Perhaps this merits closer inspection.
"
   "No," Ranma said. "Don't go in there. You'll regret it for the 
rest of your life if you do."
   "What's down there that has you so spooked, Ranma?" Umi asked.
   Ranma swallowed, his voice cracking slightly as he spoke the hated 
name, carrying all the bitterness of a mouthful of bile. "Jyusenkyou.
"

   Hikaru awoke. She blinked--something was wrong. <Ranma?> she asked.
 She received no answer.
   She tried to open her eyes, and found she had none. She tried to 
see through Ranma's eyes, but they no longer existed.
   She felt an air of depression around her, and became aware that 
she was suspended in liquid. She couldn't move, couldn't breathe...
all she could do was be aware. 
   She sensed others nearby. Concentrating, she discovered they were 
Ukyou, Mousse, Akane, Shampoo, and Ryouga. They all radiated despair, 
so much so that the water around her was hot and heavy with it. 
   She began to hear them speaking, although it seemed to be 
voiceless communication.
   *The agony...worse than dying...*
   *Shampoo no think she can take this anymore...*
   *Never felt such...horror before.*
   *Is this...is this what it's like...to be dead? Or worse?*
   *The world...is a dark...and lonely...place...*
   */Beyond hope, beyond care,/* intoned a strange and yet hauntingly 
familiar voice. */In this eternal, hellish existence, what is there 
to hope for but an end to the pain?/*
   *An end...to the pain...*
   *Shampoo want nothing but end.*
   *Anything to stop this torture.*
   *....but....why....why is this happening to us?*
   *Pain...I've known nothing but pain, my entire life...I'm ready to 
end it...gods, let it stop...*
   */Yes...you understand what it's like./*
   *Please, end our pain.*
   */No. Your pain will continue, and you will never know anything 
else but pain./*
   *Why? What are you doing this for?*
   */Because I had to endure this pain for an endless eternity. So 
everyone should know what it's like./*
   **{No.}**
   *Huh?*
   *What?*
   */Who's there!?/*
   **{Don't give in to this pain, everyone. There is hope.}**
   */Hope!? HA! There's no such thing as hope./*
   **{There is always hope, if you do not give in.}**
   */You don't know what you're talking about./*
   **{Yes, I do. Don't give in to the pain. Overcome it. Hold hope in 
your hearts.}**
   */SHUT UP!!!/*
   *Who are you?*
   **{Your friend. Always, no matter what, your friend. Let me help 
you.}**
   *Yes, please, help us. End our suffering.*
   */There is no end.../*
   **{The suffering can end. Keep hoping.}**
   *Hope...what good is hope? We're trapped here...*
   */That's right, for all eternity!/*
   **{No, you're not. Don't let this beat you. You're stronger than 
this. Think positive thoughts. Keep the hope alive.}**
   *There's no hope for us.*
   **{There IS hope!}** Concentrating harder, and not sure if she 
could keep this up, Hikaru continued, **{I know there is hope because 
I've seen hell, and I survived.}** She began feeding them images.
   Zagato's spell.
   The dungeon of the palace.
   Fighting the Musk.  
   Being raped.
   Blackness, despair.
   Then, light. Peace.
   Happiness.
   Warmth, caring.
   Her bond with Ranma.
   Rayearth.
   *I...I see...*
   */NO! IT'S ALL A LIE!/*
   *But there's nothing for me to hope for...*
   **{You have nothing to complain about! Snap out of it! You can 
break free of this! Just like I broke free...}**
   *Hikaru...thank you...we needed to know there is hope...*
   */THERE IS NO HOPE!/*
   *Shut up! There's always hope! You just give up too easily!*
   */DAMN YOU!!!!!!!!/*

   The group had finally convinced Ranma to enter the valley. 
   The mist clung to them as they stood at the threshold of 
Jyusenkyou. Umi and Fuu gasped. Lantis made a slight impressed sound.

   "It's...beautiful..." Umi gasped.
   "Yeah, until you know what it can do to you," Ranma said sourly. 
Then he noticed something strange. "Hey, what the hell?"
   He made his way carefully over to one side of the valley. Near the 
edge of the training ground, one spring was glowing bright green. The 
others stood near him.
   "Why is that spring glowing?" Fuu wondered.
   "Just what is this place?" Lantis asked. 
   "These are the Pools of Sorrow," Ranma said solemnly. "They end 
and ruin lives."
   Umi frowned. "Are the springs supposed to glow like that?"
   Ranma shook his head. "No, they don't glow. That's what I can't...
" then he gasped, and turned pale.
   "Ranma-san? What's wrong?"
   Ranma stepped backward from the spring. "That spring--the one 
that's glowing..."
   "What about it?" Umi asked.
   "It's...it's Nyanniichuan. I'm sure of it."
   "Nyanniichuan?" Lantis said, uncertainly.
   Fuu drew a breath. "Isn't that...the spring...."
   Ranma nodded. "Yes, it is."
   The four stared at the glowing water. 

   *I can feel hope again. The pain is going away.*
   *Shampoo not depressed now.*
   *There's no reason to brood over sorrow.*
   *Have to move on with life.*
   *I...suppose I can find something else to live for...*
   **{Yes, that's it...just a little more...}**
   */CURSE YOU ALL TO HELL!/*
   *Already been there. Didn't care for it.*
   
   "What the--?" Umi shouted. 
   Nyanniichuan began to shift from a green glow, to a pure red glow. 
Its waters begin to churn.
   "Everyone get back!" Ranma yelled, and rolled away from the spring.
 The others did the same.
   Suddenly, several shapes burst out of the spring. Ranma gasped, as 
did Umi and Fuu.
   Ryouga, Shampoo, and Mousse, restored to human form, landed first, 
followed by Akane, and Ukyou.
   And lastly, Hikaru erupted from the spring like a blazing phoenix. 
An aura of fire surrounded her as she glided to the ground in front 
of Ranma, and grinned at him.
   "Hikaru?" Ranma, Umi, and Fuu gasped. Hikaru giggled.
   "Looks like for now we get to fight side-by-side, Ranma-kun," 
Hikaru said. Ranma chuckled, grinning, and hugged her.
   As the others rose from the ground, Nyanniichuan disappeared. In 
its place, a glowing blue portal hovered, beckoning to them.
   Looking around at each other, the group mutually decided to check 
it out, and the ten warriors made their way into the portal.



____
------------------------------------------------------------
Ryodachi Kouma
"The Eternal Lost Lurker"
squn29a@prodigy.com
My Web Page is UPDATED! Check it out!
http://pages.prodigy.com/EtLostLurker

no da.