To: ffml@fanfic.com
Cc: silentnova@go.com
Date: Thr, 25 Nov 1999 12:50:40 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [fanfic]
This is my first post to the ffml, so hello. I am looking for ways to improve this story, so if you see anything, help me please?. I'm very timid and scared (I shame my father, he calls me an ungrateful son), so don't yell okay?
Eternal Blue
A fusion fanfic by Troy J. Thomas
The characters in this story, with exceptions, are creations of others. No
attempt has ever been and no attempt will ever be made to gain external profits
from these characters. Any growth by the author will be limited to improved
writing skill and expanded ego (Yeah right!). I wanted to say something else here, but I just can't remember...
Prologue (First Draft: 1999-11-23)
Every morning Katsuhito Masaki looked out of his bedroom window to see Atlantis
Lake. His home, also home to his son-in-law, Nobuyuki, and his grandson, Tenchi,
had possibly the grandest view of the sparkling lake of all their neighbours. It
was a gift he never took for granted.
This morning seemed no different than any other that had ever come before in his
long life. Yet a feeling fluttered in his stomach was one that he couldn't
simply ignore. It was the feeling of change.
His entire life had been shaped by change. He tried to never let it get him
down, but sometimes he felt as though everything he had worked was for nothing.
He tried his best, yet he couldn't bring himself to accept the fact he was the
one who brought his entire family to crises that was close in the future.
"Whoever said that life was a symphony of sorrow was correct!" he chuckled. Then
slowly and mechanically he opened his window and let fresh air flood into his
room. Slowly the smile turned downward and he hung his head and moaned, "My
whole life has been one big, long lie, sometimes I wish I could go back and undo
everything I've ever done!"
Then light forced his eyes to blink. Looking up, Katsuhito saw it was the light
of the sun reflecting off of the lake. He leaned forward taking in the silent
brilliance with inspiration.
As quickly as the sight had appeared, it disappeared, Katsuhito tipped his eyes
skyward and once again smiled. "Perhaps you're right Achika, maybe there is
nothing to moan about. After all, I can't change the past!"
Placing his hands on the window railing, Katsuhito launched himself out of the
window. When he landed on the ground, he hit it laughing. "I'd like to see
another man my age try that!" He did a few quick flexes to prove he was the king
of the block.
Fortunately for a neighbour who was only a few metres away from where Katsuhito
landed, it was a challenge that seemed too preposterous to take up. Wedge, the
man's name, called to the old priest, "So Katsuhito, you're still as reckless as
ever! I don't know any other old fart who would try such a dangerous stunt like
jumping out of a second story window unless they were either crazy or stupid."
The tone of Wedge's voice implied that perhaps Katsuhito was guilty of both
titles. "Good morning to you too Wedge!" Katsuhito turned around to look at the
burly man who had appeared behind him, or in other's point of view, the man
Katsuhito had appeared in front of. "I saw my darling girl for one quick second
and she, like always, reminded me of the important things in life!"
Wedge nodded in agreement. Then a stern looked crossed his face. "So Katsuhito,
I wanted to tell you that I caught your two grandsons, Ranma and Tenchi trying
to sneak into the Magic Forest again!" He smashed one of his hands into the
other. "How many times do I have to tell them to stay out of there? And then
that Ranma had the nerve to mouth off to me!" He chuckled with a hint of
satisfaction. Obviously he had taught the son of his greatest enemy a lesson in
manners never to be forgotten.
Katsuhito looked a tad annoyed, but the look quickly passed from his face. He
understood all too well Wedge's frustration. "Don't let them get to you Wedge,
they're simply over-anxious to begin training again!" Both men burst out loud
laughing. Every person on the block knew what torture Katsuhito put the two boys
through when they strayed out of line. Unfortunately for both Ranma and Tenchi,
everybody felt they deserved such punishment, or training, as Katsuhito
preferred to call it.
The neighbourhood of Loki Villa was often accused of being the strangest
neighbourhood in all of Atlantis City. The people living there usually denied
such claims saying that perhaps Senklip Heights was even stranger, since reports
of monster attacks filtered out of there every once in a while. Yet for all
their words, Loki Villagers never actually did anything to show such rumours
were false.
"It was nice talking to you Wedge, but I'm afraid I'm running a little late this
morning. I have to make sure those rascals aren't trying to break into the
shrine again!" Katsuhito began to laugh again and walk away towards the hill
where the shrine was located, which appropriately enough was named Shrine Hill.
Wedge's eyes widened in alarm. "Break into the shrine! But what about the
monster that's sealed inside?" He quickly caught up to Katsuhito and looked at
the old man in shock. "What about our safety?"
Katsuhito stopped and gave Wedge a mischievous grin. "There's no need to worry
old friend, when the guardian sealed the monster up, he did so with the hope
that the monster would disappear one day and be reborn with a second chance at
life! Look at Ranma and Tenchi, they're monsters, yet they get chance after
chance after chance!" Katsuhito didn't bother to add that those two also
received a bump on their heads almost constantly.
Something caught Katsuhito's eye interrupting his speech. "I'm sure even you'll
give them a second chance after you're through killing them!" The old man
doubled over in laughter, somehow through first-hand experience of himself, the
boys had learned how to pull the occasional prank without being caught in the
act.
"What do you mean by that?" Wedge asked. Slowly he traced Katsuhito's gaze
towards his home. "Oh...my...god..." He took a few steps forward in shock. "My
house...why is toilet paper all over it...?"
"My those two certainly have a lot of energy!" Katsuhito commented. He then left
Wedge to fret over the mess his home had come to and began to whistle a happy
tune someone had taught him long ago. The song escaped his mind every so often
and a few lyrics popped out of his mouth, "�It'll never disappear�"
A warm gentle came off Shrine Hill chasing away the cold air that had come off
the lake the night before. The breeze was so nice that it seemed to increase the
joy that was in Katsuhito's melody a few folds.
Shrine Hill, coupled with the view of Atlantis Lake, had managed to drive the
prices of the homes that sat in its shadow skyward. Only those who already lived
there could afford the luxury of the view. If one were to take a good look at
the hill, they'd see that as it climbed towards the heavens, the Magic Forest,
which was on its slopes, grew denser and bluer.
At the top of the hill stood the Masaki Shrine, which had often played an
integral part in the history of the. Stories told of how wars had been won on
its grounds and how many people had sought refuge there in the darker pages of
Orpheus' history.
Local legend states that the people living near the Masaki Shrine had to donate
money to keep the monster sealed underneath to keep it in check. Unfortunately
for the local residents who were believers, Tenchi and Ranma, who ironically
enough were priests in training, weren't as religious as they were, so the two
boys had time and time again tried to break into the Shrine's sealed room all in
the name of adventure.
It wasn't that their energy was unappreciated, it just was that Katsuhito knew
what was in the sealed room and feared for the boys' safety every time they had
tried to enter it.
Yet in a small way he felt that perhaps he was still viewing them as children
instead as the young men they were. "Maybe I'll give them a challenge, if they
pass it they can explore the inside of the Shrine!"
He smiled, he knew the perfect challenge for the two, the forest that was
beginning to surround him had in local lore, been the centrepiece of legends for
hundreds of years. He in fact knew all of the legends and he knew that a few
were true.
Soon the path began to climb upwards, which was a sign that the Shrine was near.
>From there he could see the entire forest in relative safety, since priests from
the Shrine had over the centuries cast warding spells to protect it from evil
monsters. And the Forest Hedge kept out the rest of the monsters that the magic
couldn't.
Soon his mind drifted back to the monster Wedge was afraid of, the one sealed
beneath the Shrine. Katsuhito, in a sense, knew the legends to be true, the ones
about how a hero had sealed it in a tomb never to be opened again.
Yet the shrine records were quite different from the legends. Although they
contained information that someone unacquainted with history might easily mix
together with fantasy to create a story to be told by a fireside during a stormy
night, they were mostly factual.
The man who had written the records described in detail how the hero had
defeated the monster. �He was weeping as he lowered the tomb into the ground. He
cried to the heavens about how sorry he was and how he wished that everything
could have gone different.� These writings, Katsuhito remembered from the
lessons he was taught and had been teaching Tenchi and Ranma, had been passed
down from one generation of Masaki Shrine priests to the next.
The Masaki Shrine, which stood before Katsuhito in wonderful beauty, had been a
major landmark in the city of Atlantis for thousands of years. Every year it
received thousands of tourists and patrons either for its sights or its
services.
In the past week alone, Katsuhito had serviced two weddings. The look of joy on
the peoples� faces that were involved was contagious and had kept the mood of
the shrine upbeat for days afterward.
Unfortunately over the past week, Ranma and Tenchi had upped their attacks on
the Shrine�s sealed door quickly turning the joyous mood into a sour one.
Katsuhito had taken a warped pleasure from watching them run around trying to
complete the extremely difficult task he had set them out to do as punishment.
Quickly passing over the shrine grounds, Katsuhito came upon the building where
the sealed door was located. Casting a quick glance inside, he saw that it
hadn�t been disturbed. He smiled, as young as the boys were, they had developed
a cleverness that could match his own. They knew better than to attack elsewhere
after being foiled in another direction, a two front war was too much work, even
for their boundless energy.
He expected them to try the sealed door in less than a week though. He had to
prepare for the eventual assault, so that the boys wouldn�t find themselves in
too much trouble.
In a few moments, a plan formed in his mind. Although Katsuhito would�ve like to
have thought that he could've convinced Wedge to not see the boys sneaking into
the forest, Wedge was too stubborn and loyal to the government to even listen to
such a proposition.
He had to come up with another way to let the boys sneak into the forest.
�Perhaps if I were to distract him, maybe I could involve Genma in this plan.�
Katsuhito chuckled. Of course Genma wouldn�t know he was being involved in a
plan at all. �Slip Genma a bit of information about Wedge having an excellent
lunch�Genma will most definitely serve a most useful purpose!�
The pleasant thoughts of Genma greedily eyeing Wedge�s lunch for the next week
was enough to trip memories of Katsuhito�s days with his daughter Achika. How
she often came home crying about how Genma had taken a few of the weaker boys�
lunches and ate everything like a pig.
It was unfortunate for Achika that her sister Nodoka had ended up marrying the
slob, yet the lessons of time taught Achika to accept fate as it was and Genma
as a family member.
After over twenty-five years, Katsuhito was sure that Genma's greed hadn�t
changed one bit. He knew that Genma�s insatiable hunger was enough to drive him
to steal another�s lunch if it seemed too delicious to pass up.
Poor Nobuyuki was proof of such a claim, often he had lunch with Genma and he
often found his lunch missing if he went to the washroom for even a second. He
also usually found that Genma would be nowhere in sight while a cheque for both
their meals would be sitting on his empty plate.
Change, such a funny word, for as dishonourable as his father was, Ranma had
made up for in honour. In fact, Ranma often stood up against his father in his
principles of defending the weak and protecting their interests, no matter the
cost to his reputation.
People often thought of Ranma as an exact duplicate of his father until he had
saved a young girl from a weak forest monster and demanded nothing in return.
Then people realised they had misjudged the boy and took him into their hearts.
But as honourable as Ranma was, he had a streak of mischief in him and often
ended up in compromising situations with girls in his age group.
Although Katsuhito stressed Ranma�s innocence, people�s opinion of him seemed to
be that he is an okay kid with a perverted side that could be eliminated only if
he had a girlfriend. Katsuhito belted out a laugh at the thought, Ranma's
parents had quite a surprise in store for him that would soften people's
opinions of his perverted side. Katsuhito really wanted to see the look on the
poor boys face in two days time when they would finally make good on a promise
made sixteen years ago.
Ranma Saotome was a fireball, the most stubborn of any person Katsuhito had ever
seen. No matter the circumstance, Ranma refused to back down from a challenge,
even if the task seemed impossible. Katsuhito truly enjoyed setting the bar
higher every time the boys found themselves in hot water if only to see Ranma
heading head first into solving the tasks puzzle.
His personality though is what Katsuhito enjoyed the most about him. Ranma�s
unquenchable thirst for life is what seems to allow people to forgive him time
after time after one of his mishaps occurs.
Ranma�s cousin, Tenchi Masaki was as equally forgivable. Together they were
collectively called the Adventurers of Atlantis. Yet as equally mischievous and
adventurous as they were together, they were different too.
Where Ranma had an unlimited amount of energy, Tenchi had gentle calmness that
surprised most adults. Where Ranma was as cool as ice in martial arts training
and competition, Tenchi had a style based on drawing from his desire to succeed.
In Katsuhito�s wizened opinion, they were as much alike as they were different.
Tenchi had filled with both joy and pain. When Achika had passed away, Katsuhito
thought himself to have lost the entire world, but when he saw the pain in
Tenchi�s eyes he knew pain to be second only to that of Tenchi.
Over the fourteen years of his grandson�s life, Katsuhito had watched with an
awareness of the tenderness in Tenchi�s heart and made sure that no pain could
ever match the days of Achika�s passing away.
When Tenchi befriended Ranma when they began to attend school together,
Katsuhito knew his duty was completed, Tenchi could grow and become the man who
Katsuhito wished he could�ve been.
Katsuhito had changed over his long life, he was sure of that much. Where he
once had dreams in his youth, he now only had wishes in his prime. Where he had
desires in the time of plenty, he now only had what he needed.
There was a feeling of change in the air and where Katsuhito once would�ve tried
to reach it and to direct it, he now knew his time was drawing to a close. Time
was calling for the energy of youth and at its forefront Ranma and Tenchi stand,
they, who through blood are related and through soul are brothers, are the ones
to lead time to a new world.
Katsuhito stood in the middle of the shrine grounds. �Perhaps I�m little too
deep in thought, I should really be looking for a task for those two to
accomplish before they get here instead of wandering aimlessly around!� Shaking
his head and laughing, Katsuhito began walking back down to his home to eat
completely forgetting what he was going to do.
Author's notes:
These notes are for the first draft of this Eternal Blue chapter. They are for
my benefit, yet if you agree or disagree with my notes or have your own
suggestion to make, please contact me with the comment or suggestion at my e-
mail address: silentnova@go.com, I�ll be more than happy to read them and take
them into consideration.
1999-11-23
-I really like what I see, I hope that I've said what I've needed to say
-I may need to clarify a few things first though, but I need pre-readers! I
can't see what can be improved, since I'm biased about my own work
1999-11-22
-I believe I�ve been a little too grandiose near the end, perhaps I should make
Katsuhito make light of the thoughts?
1999-11-19
-I'd like to see more of the hill, the Magic Forest, the Shrine, and the Shrine
Path
1999-11-17
-Started the prologue today
-The prologue needs to be increased in size
-It seems there's not enough description of the surroundings: Katsuhito's
bedroom; Masaki household; Atlantis Lake; Shrine Hill; and the neighbourhood
around the Masaki household
-Include the settings of the path to the Masaki Shrine and the Masaki Shrine
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