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Ranma 1/2 
The Crystals of Reality

by James Epnett
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Chapter 2 - Ranma (Part 1)(Draft)


Cologne's eyes opened slowly. She was aware that she was
not in the best of condition. Her body was sore, more so
than usual. It wasn't the normal aches and pains caused
by old age, but aches and pains of a major thrashing. 

	She sat up slowly and realized she was in complete
darkness. This hardly surprised her. She sat there for a
moment, silently, listening. The room was small, this
she could tell by how dense the echo of her own
breathing was. But there was something more -- two more
sets of breathing.

	It only took Cologne a moment to figure out who
the other two people were. "Shampoo, Mousse, can you
hear me?" 

	No answer. Cologne frowned and climbed to her
feet. She moved slowly through the room, her eyes
adjusting to the dark slowly. 

	"Welcome, Cologne, to my reality." 

	Cologne froze as the voice boomed throughout the
room. She looked around herself and then up at the
ceiling. "You have yet to collect the subconscious of
three people, Ka'lar. I know this, or I would not still
be here. The Crystals will not allow you to destroy
their present Guardian." 

	"What do you know, old hag?" Ka'lar's voice
dripped acid. 

	"I have been the Guardian of Reality for two
centuries. I know quite a bit more than you, young one."
Cologne looked around the dark room, wondering where the
fool could be.

	"A position that I should have held. Oh well, it
is of no consequence." Ka'lar paused, as if for ominous
effect. "The subconscious of three youthful teenagers
shall soon power the Crystals, and as I selected the
three, the Crystals shall fall under MY control. 

	"You are meddling with a force that can not be
strong-armed to do as you command, Ka'lar. You can't
FORCE the crystal's to do your will." Cologne looked out
into the darkness. She had to reason with him. "They
aren't as powerful as you think." 

	There was a long silence. Ka'lar's voice suddenly
filled it. "We shall see, Cologne." Another pause filled
the void of silence in the room. "The Amazons were fools
to entrust the Crystal's to you."

	"We shall see who the fool is, Ka'lar. I wont sit
by and watch you destroy this planet." 

	"Only conquer it," Ka'lar corrected. "The Earth
will be mine to command."

	Cologne moved down into a siting position and
crossed her legs Indian style. "We shall see, Ka'lar."
She closed her eyes slowly and lowered her head. 

*	*	*

	Ka'lar huffed in frustration and turned from the
interface that allowed him to view Cologne in the
darkness of her cell. He turned and moved back towards
the large throne he had created for himself. 

	The room was a magnificent one. It had taken him
only a moment to will it into existence. At the center
of this room stood a large display, the one from the
closet in the upper level of the Cat Cafe. Within the
display hovered the three Crystals of Reality. There was
something different about them, however. They no longer
gave off such a brilliant glow. 

	Ka'lar sat down in his throne and looked out over
the room. He shook his head. "If only I could destroy
you, Cologne. But alas, I can not." He looked down
towards the Crystals. "And it's because of you. No
matter. Once I have taken control, you shall do as I
command."

	Ka'lar reached down next to him and activated a
control. From within the middle Crystal came a long
stream of light. It rose through the room and pulsed
across what looked like a movie screen. Ka'lar smiled.
"Let's see how contestant number one is handling his
nightmare reality, shall we?" 

	Ranma image blared across the screen. He slept
silently on his futon. 

*	*	*


	Ranma started and his eyes opened suddenly. His
breath came in deep gasps as he lay silently on his
futon, staring up  at the ceiling. 

	A low mumbling caught his attention, and he turned
his head to the left to see Genma sleeping next to him,
his face down on a pillow, his midsection and rear
arched into the air. 

	Ranma rolled his eyes and sat up. He looked over
at the clock on the table and shook his head. The clock
read 4:12am. He yawned and stretched. He would be the
only one up right now, this he knew, so he figured he
could train for a few hours before Kasumi awoke to cook
breakfast. 

	Ranma paused and looked back over at Genma. He
shook his head and glanced back at the clock. <This all
seems familiar,> he thought. He closed his eyes for a
moment and tried to remember. 

	He suddenly shrugged, stood from his futon and
stretched. He yawned as he felt his muscles loosening
from the previous nights sleep. But suddenly something
didn't feel right. He froze and wiggled his hips a bit.
He look down at his waist and felt his cheeks growing
warm as they also tinted a rosy red color.

	Again, he suddenly felt a surge of familiarity
wash over him, like he had dreamed it the night before.
He shook his head and moved around to the closet,
pulling a pair of pants out. He balled them up and moved
towards the door. He peeked his head out and looked
around. It was clear. 

	He sighed in relief and moved out into the
hallway. Slowly he tiptoed towards the bathroom, and
each step only seemed to cause more noise. It was
unnerving.

	Ranma reached the bathroom and slowly slid the
door open just in time to remember something else. He
knew, KNEW he had bumped into Nabiki the morning before,
or in a dream. He wasn't sure, but he was sure that
Nabiki stood behind this door. 

	His face pulled back in a look off horror and
shock as Akane hurried out of the bathroom, almost as if
she hadn't noticed him, and right into him. 

	He felt her soft body push up against his maleness
and a stream of embarrassment and fright washed over
him.

	Akane's eyes went wide and she cried out. "Oh,
Ranma! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to --" Her words caught
in her throat. She felt something, something hard. It
pressed into her belly as her body collided with
Ranma's. 

	Ranma with drew and stepped back from Akane. "A--
Akane, it's not what it looks like..." His pants
fluttered uselessly to the ground. 

	Akane's face tilted downwards and she could see
what had just jabbed her in the belly. Ranma's shorts
were propelled away from his body by what could only
be... Only be... Akane's expression slowly faded to one
of anger. "RAANNMAAA!!" 

	Ranma backed up further, his face a deep red and
extremely warm. He was dying from the embarrassment of
the situation. Not only that, but this had been one of
his worst fears -- Akane seeing him like... like this! 

	Ranma snapped out of his thought as he felt his
body lifting off the ground and up into the air. 

	"You-- you pervert!!!" 

	He heard Akane's voice as he flew through the
ceiling of the Dojo and high into the dark sky. 

*	*	*

	Ka'lar laughed almost uncontrollably as he watched
Ranma rocket through the sky. "Oh poor, poor Ranma. How
humiliating." 

	He cleared his throat as he tried to stop
laughing. "But surely there must be other things that
frighten you. Things that aren't so normal." 

*	*	* 

	Ranma screamed as his body fell helplessly through
the air. His legs and arms flailed as the ground rushed
up towards him. 

	He grunted hard as he hit the ground, his breath
escaping him as the shock of impact jolted his senses.

	He groaned and opened his eyes slowly. They were
invaded with sunlight, and he squinted as the overly
bright light flooded over him. He could feel that he was
now fully dressed, and this confused him even more. 

	As his vision of the area came into focus, he
could see that he lay in front of Furinkan High, in the
school yard. He sat up and sprung to his feet. He looked
down at his body and realized he was not only fully
dressed, but carrying his backpack and school books. 

	"Ranma Saotome! Prepare for battle!" 

	The familiar cry of the "Blue Blunder" was one of
the only things that seemed normal at this moment in
time, as he had heard the call EVERY day after school
since he first arrived. Instinctively, he spun around to
see Kuno moving down the school yard at full tilt, his
bokken held high above his head. 

	Shaking off the extreme confusion of what had just
happen, Ranma dropped his books and backpack and rose
his arms in his usual defensive stance. 

	Kuno cried out as he pulled his bokken down
towards Ranma. 
	
	Ranma, who knew exactly what to expect, rose his
arm over his head to block the bokken. It struck his arm
with incredible force and speed. 

	Kuno darted past Ranma and turned to face him. 

	Ranma, who's back was turned to the upperclassmen,
stared at his arm as a feeling of intense pain surged
through it. 

	Ranma had blocked that move SO many times in the
past, and had never felt more than a light ache. This
time was different. He held back fiery hot tears as the
pain surged through his arm like electricity.

	He spun around to face Kuno and suppressed a
shocked gasp as his eyes fell on his opponent. 

	"Prepare for death, Ranma Saotome." 

	Ranma was having a hard time trying to understand
what was happening, and it only became harder as he
realized that Mousse now stood in front of him.
Unconsciously, he took a step back and rose his arms.
"What do ya want, Mousse?" Ranma blurted, overlooking
the fact that the person before him had been Kuno less
than 20 seconds ago.

	Mousse only laughed and bolted towards Ranma.
"Fist of the White Swan!" Mousse called as he lifted his
arm into the air and unleashed his metallic claw. 

	It flew through the air, towards Ranma, who ducked
below it. It flew over the pigtailed martial artists
head and suddenly began to draw back towards Mousse. 

	Ranma didn't know what hit him. The breath was
forced from his lungs as his feet left the ground, the
claw wrapping around his feet, the chain dragging him.
He cried out in pain as he landed on his back and
grunted loud. 

*	*	*

	Ka'lar leaned forward in his chair, watching the
screen as Ranma slid across the ground helplessly. "So,
Ranma has a fear of losing. But I think it runs deeper
than merely losing battles." 

*	*	*

	Ranma leapt to his feet as the chain on Mousse's
claw unwrapped from around his legs. His body ached in a
way he had not experienced since his early days of
training.

	Mousse laughed at Ranma and his lips pulled back
in a menacing sneer. 

	Ranma looked at Mousse and ran the back side of
his hand over his lips. That look was unnatural, even on
Mousse's face. He had trouble imagining it on Ryoga's
face. 

	Mousse suddenly charged forward, his arm extending
with one of his sword breaker claws covering his hand. 

	Ranma had time to note that the claw reminded him
of Wolverine's claws, from the X-men, before he spun out
of the way. but again, he instantly knew something was
amiss as one of the sprockets of the claw tore through
his shirt, into his side. 

	He wailed in agony as he lost his footing and spun
out of control, landing hard on his knees and hand. his
hand came instinctively up to his side, where he could
feel the shredded cloth of his shirt. He could also feel
a warm, thick fluid soaking his shirt. He didn't have to
look to know what that was. 
	
	Ranma grimaced and leapt to his feet. "Mousse,
would ya cut it o--" Ranma spun around and his words
caught in his throat. He blinked and rubbed his eyes. 

	Ryoga stood before him now, snickering softly as
he sized Ranma up. "You don't look so good, Saotome." 

	"What's you're problem, P-Chan?" Ranma snapped
back. "Where are Kuno and Mousse," Ranma demanded, his
tone accusing. 

	"Whatever are you talking about, Ranma?" asked
Ryoga, his tone mocking. 

	But Ranma noticed something else. On top of that
mocking air, there was a hollow overtone, one that was
just noticeable. It were as if there was no vigor to
Ryoga's words. Ranma narrowed his eyes. 

	"You wanna fight too?" Ranma demanded, coming to a
defensive stance. 

	"You know what I want." Ryoga smiled, bracing his
legs to charge. "To beat the hell out of you, RANMA!!!"
Ryoga sprung forward suddenly, his speed greater than
Ranma had ever seen it. 

	Ranma dodged to the side, hoping to avoid the
inevitable left-right combo Ryoga had always been so
keen on. But he had misjudged. 

	A roundhouse to the midriff sent a stunned Ranma
hurdling through the air. Ranma screamed as his body
slammed into a large tree and embedded into it.

	Ryoga approached the tree slowly, snickering as he
crossed the school yard. 

	Ranma pried himself from the tree and fell to the
ground, landing on his hands and knees. He looked up,
his energy sapped. 

	Ryoga stopped over Ranma and looked down at the
pigtailed martial artist. "You're not worthy of Akane."
Ryoga stated, his tone cold, yet hollow. 

	Ranma groaned from weakness and felt a sudden
fiery pain in his jaw as he suddenly lifted into the
air, Ryoga's fist the cause of the impact.

	Ryoga watched Ranma sore through the air and into
the side of the Furinkan High Gym.

	Ranma pulled himself up off of the floor of the
Furinkan High Gym. He wavered slightly as he looked out
the hole in the building to see Ryoga approaching him.
This was it, he had to fight back. He didn't know why he
hadn't been. With all the energy he could pull, he
bolted towards the lost boy. 

	Ryoga stopped and watched Ranma come towards him. 
	
	Ranma pulled his fists back level with his chest
and yelled, "Katchuu Tenshin Amaguriken!" His fists
began to flail madly, but precisely, towards Ryoga's
chest and midriff.

	Ryoga crouched suddenly, which caused Ranma's own
speed, and the fact that no target was present, to
nearly fall forward. 

	Ryoga didn't give him the opportunity. "Bakusai
Tenketsu!" Ryoga stabbed his index finger into the
concrete floor at Ranma's feet.

*	*	*

	Ka'lar watched with great interest and intrigue.
"Come now, Ranma. Every martial artist lives with the
fear of defeat. What are you're true fears." 

*	*	*

	Ranma's body exploded through the wall of the gym,
along with several pounds of the floor from within. He
flew wildly through the air and landed in the swimming
pool. 

	Ran-chan exploded from below the water, gagging
and gasping for air. She suddenly sunk below the
surface, unable to hold herself above. From below, she
could see Ryoga and Akane approaching the pool. 

	Akane looked down into the pool. "What a loser.
What did I ever see in him?" She paused and giggled.
"Oh, that's right, nothing."  

	Ryoga laughed, his normal, insane laugh. He looked
down at the pool, then to Akane. "Come my love. Let us
retreat from this place, and leave Saotome to HER fate." 

	Akane laughed, her voice the same as Ryoga's -- It
lacked a certain realism. 

	Ranma, who had somehow heard the entire exchange
below water, felt as tough something within her had just
died. Her mouth opened and a scream ripped from her
lungs as something more powerful than physical pain
flooded through her -- emotional hurt, jealousy, rage. 

*	*	*

	"So you truly fear losing Akane, do you?" Ka'lar
smiled. "Now we are getting to the root of it all. But I
know there is more. The Crystals will not let you rest,
Ranma, until you're subconscious is theirs. They will
drive you over the edge of normal emotional balance. In
the end, you will give up, just as the others before
you." 

*	*	*

	Ranma screamed until she could scream no longer.
She sank down to the bottom of the pool and let her eyes
close in exhaustion. 

	"Ranma."

	Ranma twitched slightly as the air continued to
drain out of her lungs. The voice echoed softly through
her head, a familiar voice. 

	"Ranma. you must swim."

	The voice was soft, coaxing. The appeal of it's
words were strangely strong to Ranma.

	"You have to rescue Akane and Ryoga...." 

	The voice trailed of slightly. Ranma opened her
eyes and looked around herself. 

	"...must save Shampoo... Mou.... I as well..." 

	The voice faded in and out, like a radio with bad
reception. Ranma suddenly felt a flood of energy rush
through her body. The voice was right. She had to move,
or she would drown. 

	Slowly, Ranma began to drag herself towards the
shallows of the pool.

*	*	*

	Ka'lar's eyes flashed in rage. He had come so
close to letting the nightmare overtake her. That voice.
He recognized it. 

	Ka'lar rose from his chair and stormed over to the
interface. He linked it up and looked into the darkness
of Cologne's cell. 

	Cologne sat silently where he had left her. Her
eyes were closed, and her face relaxed, calm.

	"Cologne!" Ka'lar bellowed. 

	Cologne's eye twitched slightly as the sound of
Ka'lar's voice registered. She continued to breath
deeply, a thin coat of sweat forming on her tiny face. 

	"Cologne! Do not meddle in my plans, Cologne! The
fate of the two children and yourself may be none too
pleasant if I find you meddling!" Ka'lar stared into the
interface for a long moment. When he realized Cologne
would not answer, he shut it off an stormed back to his
throne. 

*	*	*

	Cologne's body convulsed slightly as she continued
to concentrate. Her breathing remained steady and
regulated. 

	"You must swim, Ranma." Cologne's voice was but a
harsh whisper. "You must leave the pool... You must
fight it...." Cologne could handle the strain no longer. 

	Her body went limp, and her head fell to the side,
and she was unconscious.

*	*	*

	The voice had faded, but Ranma knew what she had
to do. She had to fight.... Fight what? She wasn't sure.
But she knew she had to escape the swimming pool.

	Her lungs ached for air, and felt as though they
were going to burst, when suddenly, her efforts had paid
off. 
	
	Ranma's head exploded from below the surface of
the pull. She struggled to keep her head up as she moved
towards the shallow end of the pool. As soon as her feet
could touch the bottom, Ranma began walking towards the
edge of the pool. 

	She stumbled and fell forward as she reached the
most shallow portion of the pool, landing hard on the
side of her face, scrapping her cheek. 

	She winced and decided to just lay there, coughing
and sputtering, breathing heavily. She shook her head
and opened her eyes. The sight didn't please her. 

	Ranma now lay in a puddle of water. The night air
was chilly, and fell around her like a blanket. She
shivered lightly and rose her head from the puddle to
look around herself. She lay in an alleyway, in the
middle of one of the more industrial areas of Tokyo. 

	Ranma's gut twisted in remembrance. She had been
here before. Not in real life, she knew, but in her
worst nightmare. 

*	*	*

	Ka'lar observed the look of terror that had begun
to form over Ranma's young, feminine face. He rubbed his
chin in thought. "What could this be, Ranma? Not the
normal fear of abandonment, I think."

	He looked towards the massive screen displaying
Ranma's time in the Crystal. He sat back slowly and
rested his arms on the chair's arm rests. "This could
prove to be the breaking point," he observed, smiling
that thin-lipped smile.

*	*	*

	Ranma scrambled out of the small puddle. She
didn't like this. The last time she had been here, it
was only a dream, a figment of her imagination. Now, she
wasn't so sure what was going on, or what was real. 

	She DID know that all the abuse she had just taken
against Kuno, Mousse, and Ryoga was unfeigned, at least,
because she could still fell the cuts and bruises on her
body. The first time she had felt real pain since she
was still normal, and in training with Genma.

	Ranma spun around and looked behind her. A small
tin can bounced uselessly down the alleyway. She was
becoming jumpy. <It's not real,> she thought as she
began down the long, dark alley. <It's a dream.>

*	*	*

	"What is this fear?" Ka'lar asked, reaching out to
a small stand next to him, he retrieved a small bucket
of popcorn and tossed some into his mouth. 

	"Come on, Saotome. Give in." 

*	*	*	

	Ranma looked all around herself. It was happening
all over again. And she knew what happened next. 

	A vice like grip suddenly constricted her
shoulder. 

	Ranma squealed in pain as she felt her body being
pushed forward, into the wall of the alleyway. 
	
	"Don't scream," a gruff, distorted voice commanded
her. 

	Ranma could only nod in reply as the pain of in
her shoulder grew more intense. It WAS happening again.
She felt the grip move from her shoulder to right arm.
She felt her "attacker" pull her arm sharply, locking it
behind her back. 

	Her squeal of pain was muffled by a hand that
suddenly wrapped around her mouth, a large, male hand. 

	Ranma whimpered in terror as she felt herself
being dragged down the alleyway by her unseen attacker. 

*	*	*

	"So, Ranma. This is one of the fears that drive
you. It must be a recent one, as you have been cursed
for less than 11 months." Ka'lar watched as the
shapeless attacker drug Ranma down deeper into the dark
alley. 

	"You're afraid of being helpless and at the mercy
of an attacker," Ka'lar said. He frowned suddenly at the
thought of what he was witnessing. He may do many
unspeakable things, but there was one thing he would
never do. "Not only an attacker.... A rapist."

*	*	*

	Ranma kicked her legs uselessly as her attacker
pulled her deeper and deeper into the darkness of the
alleyway. She had to get away, she knew she could -- She
was one of the strongest martial artists in Japan, the
heir to the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial
Arts. She was Ranma.

	But none of that meant anything here. She was at
the mercy of the man who had attacked her. She could
feel a deep foreboding building in the pit of her
stomach as the man threw her down onto the cold ground. 

	Ranma writhed for a moment on the cold concrete
ground. She tried to flip over but found she was
suddenly locked down to the ground, a pair of hands on
her body. She felt an inrush of fear as one hand pressed
her down onto the ground at the small of her back, while
the other hand pressed down on the back of her thighs. 

	She struggled against the large, stone-like hands
to escape. But she knew that she would not. Only, unlike
the nightmare she had once had, this was more real. She
could FEEL what was happening twice as well as any
dream. 

	She felt an inrush of panic as the hand on her
thighs began to slide up her legs, across her butt. She
felt the hand press up against her butt in a way that
slid her lower body up into the air, so that she was
arched up, laying on her knees and chest. 

	Ranma fought relentlessly. Her futile struggle was
rewarded by the hand on her back grasping her arm again
and twisting it up behind her. She winced in pain and
cried out. 

	"I said don't scream!" the attacker threatened,
squeezing Ranma's arm -- hard. 

	Ranma bit her lip and squealed against the violent
motion. 

	The attacker slowly fingered the elastic band at
the waist of Ranma's pants. He slid his fingers down
into them and pulled them abruptly down, along her
thighs. 

	Ranma held her legs together, pinning the fabric
of her pants so they would go no further down than her
thighs. 

	The man growled and twisted her arm painfully. She
yelped in pain and her muscles loosened for a split
second. 

	It was all the man needed. He wedged his knee
between Ranma's small legs and pried them apart. He
pulled her pants down until they touched his knee, which
gave him good range between her thighs. 

	Ranma started and her eyes widened as she suddenly
felt the attackers hand slide up between her thigh,
across the fabric of her boxers, to caress her soft
mound. 

	Ranma felt something she had never felt in the
nightmare, but knew it was something that,  deep down
inside, she had feared -- Her crotch began to moisten as
her attacker's hand rode up below her boxers, across her
smooth outer labia. 

	She squirmed and writhed beneath the man, her eyes
squeezing shut as the faceless ravager assaulted her
vulva. Red hot tears of shame and helplessness rolled
down the pigtailed martial artists cheeks as the man
slid his index finger past her outer labia, spreading
her inner lips as he suddenly thrust his hand forward.
His middle finger joined his index finger, and his palm
pressed down against her fleshy mound. 

	Ranma couldn't help but cry out, feeling something
within her body tear as the man's fingers slid deeply
into her, causing a stuffed feeling that made her
uncomfortable. 

	The man pulled his hand back and thrust his
fingers forward again. 

	Ranma squirmed and felt her attacker twist her arm
again. She fell almost completely silent as a deep sense
of shame overwhelmed her, her canal growing steadily
wetter. She was enjoying it, on some morbid, twisted
level, and it made her feel sick in side. 

*	*	*     

	Ka'lar turned his head away from the screen. He
closed his eyes and the screen suddenly went dead. 

	"Not so easy, is it?" 

	Ka'lar looked up to see the interface had
reconnected to the Cologne's cell. "What are you talking
about?"

	"The human mind can be a dark place, Ka'lar. Some
things aren't meant to be seen." Cologne stared into the
darkness, leaning on her cane as she listened for his
answer. 

	"And what makes you think any of this disturbs me,
old woman?" Ka'lar demanded, a slightly shaky overtone
lined his voice. 

	Cologne only shook her head. "I know you too well,
Ka'lar. You were one of the only males held so high
among our tribe."

	"That was a long time ago," Ka'lar replied,
standing from his chair. "Things change, Cologne."

	"One thing hasn't," Cologne corrected, looking
towards the interface, as if she could see Ka'lar. "You
still hold some moral value."

	"Nonsense." Ka'lar approached the interface, the
expression on his face returning to one of stone.

*	*	*

	Cologne looked towards a sudden bright flash and
suddenly Ka'lar's face appeared before her, like a
holographic image. The head dwarfed her, and his look of
anger was plain to see.

	"I WILL have the Crystals, Cologne."

	"I know how you reacted," Cologne continued. "You
may have been, and still are, quite the renegade, but
when it came to rape..." 

	"Shut up!" Ka'lar demanded. 

	Cologne continued, ignoring his demands. "Look at
how Ranma suffers. She believes that she is truly
experiencing what is happening. She feels dirty,
disgraced, violated." 

	"It's only a dream," Ka'lar assured, looking
directly at Cologne. "Ranma won't be physically harmed."

	"But what about mentally?" 

	"Does it matter? Her subconscious will belong to
the Crystal soon."

	Cologne watched as Ka'lar vanished from view
again. She sighed and sat down. "Damned fool," she
mumbled, laying her staff down next to her. She closed
her eyes and lowered her head. After a moment of
concentration, she spoke. "Ranma... Don't give in... It
is but a dream, an illusion, you must fight it...."

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Next: Chapter 3 - Ryoga

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