Raging Demon
Part 3
The end of it all.
Dan wandered through the streets of Nerima with the Chinese in tow,
Ranma had been gone a week now and they all feared the worst had
happened. The small band had remained holed up in the house for all of
that time and was starting to relax. Eventually they would have to
return to their lives.
Soun and Genma remained in the home mourning for their families and
growing steadily weaker by the day. Cologne, Shampoo, and Mousse had
begun to plan their return to China as well. The air around the survivors
was quiet and somber.
The faint hope still burned for Ranma in some though; Shampoo kept a
vigilant watch from the boy's old room gazing into the streets for long
hours. Fortunately Cologne had been forcing her to eat, so she was still
healthy in body if not mind. They still went out in to the streets in
hope of finding some sort of clue to the demon who had single handedly
destroyed Nerima's martial arts circles. After a while it became obvious
that their little group was not the only one victimized by the deadly
martial artist's wrath.
Dan grit his teeth in anger as he slumped down on a bench with the
Amazon's standing around him. "It is over, I have lost hope in the son in
law," said the old woman with a very tired looking face as she sat
quietly beside him. Shampoo looked at her with a completely shocked and
horrified glare before she ran off crying to herself. Mousse watched
impassively, but a hint of pain flashed across his features and he
glowered at Cologne for a moment before letting the matter pass.
"So, this is it then?" asked Dan as he turned and smiled at them weakly.
"I'm afraid so, we will return to China and attempt to cope with the
loss of our family, and then move on. What of you young Dan?" she turned
and looked him up and down, if the situation was not so bad he would have
correctly suspected her of sizing up a possible replacement.
Dan looked away from her towards the sky and sighed heavily. "I'm going
to find him, and kill him."
"How do you plan to do this?" asked the woman with a sudden interest.
"I'll find a way, he won't disappear forever, when he resurfaces I'll
find him and destroy him. I wouldn't let my guard down, he's targeted
you."
"He already has his target, Ranma is gone. I imagine it was just a ploy
to lure him out," said Cologne calmly. "Even if you find him, how can you
hope to defeat this being?"
"I know how," said the boy as he looked at his arm and clenched his
fist. "I can, beat him...it won't be easy though."
"What? And you did not tell us of this?" snapped the old ghoul angrily
as she whirled around and attempted to strike him with her staff. He
caught it and she narrowed her eyes at him.
"It wouldn't have mattered, I have to find a way to get him to confront
me. It won't work unless I get him to fight me, you can't trap him, it's
not possible," replied the boy simply as he hung his head and looked away
from her again.
"What do you mean?" snapped Cologne, "Trapping a man is easy."
"One of the techniques he gained with the demonic power was
teleportation," replied Dan calmly.
"I see, come Mousse we will return to the Cat Caf� and begin our
preparations," said Cologne as she hobbled off with the boy.
"What about Shampoo?" whined the boy.
"She will be fine, there is no danger," said the woman calmly.
"I'll keep an eye on her Mousse," replied Dan as he stood up and started
walking in the direction she had run in.
Mousse growled at this, but allowed it. Dan had shown himself to be
quite trustworthy, and he seemed to have a minimal interest in women.
Over the past week he had been extremely over protective of Shampoo, he
wouldn't even let her bathe alone. He sat in the room with her with his
back turned and had been badly beaten several times because of it, yet he
still remained vigilant. This was the first time he had allowed her out
of his so-called sight knowingly. [Shampoo had used several inanimate
objects to fool him during the week when she needed a break from him.]
Shampoo was sitting on the edge of a fountain gazing into the waters
with a haunted look in her eyes. "So, we finally separate? I miss Japan,
when home."
Dan nodded and frowned; something she said clicked in his head. "So, we
finally separate," he felt a cold chill down his spine as he realized her
words. "No! He's not gone! Come on Shampoo we have to get back to the
Dojo now!"
"What?" gasped the girl in confusion.
"Don't you see? This is the first time we've been apart!" snapped the
boy angrily as he pulled her hand and drug her behind him.
A firm look crossed her features as she started to run beside him and
kept up easily.
Soun Tendo held a drink up to the shrine that now held photos of his
entire family, his face was strangely calm and dry. At one time it had
been merely his wife's photo in the small wooden shrine, but now he had
lost everything. He and Genma sat side by side in silence. Saotome was in
much better condition than Soun, but still did not look good. His friend
had lost everything he lived for, he imagined he wouldn't last much
longer and pledged to stand by him. His own grief was not miniscule
either, he had lost a son, his only heir.
A training sword clattered to the ground behind them, it was resting in
the corner of the Dojo and it simply fell over. In the dark shadows of
the room two glowing red dots formed revealing a kneeling figure waiting
patiently as the two men slowly turned to face it with looks of terror on
their faces.
It smiled and stood slowly revealing a feminine figure. "Your time has
come."
Genma looked on in shocked terror when Soun merely nodded and stood
awaiting his destiny. His expression quickly changed to one of confusion.
Mousse walked towards the Cat Caf� just in front of Cologne, the trip
was made silently. He stopped at the door and turned around waiting for
her to unlock the restaurant. He waited, and waited. "Where?"
After a moment of standing and waiting for the small potted plant to
unlock the door Mousse adjusted his glasses and looked around in
confusion. "Old woman?" He stepped forward searching the street before he
finally tripped over something in the middle of the road. Without
thinking he picked it up and stared at it for a moment, it was a gnarled
old staff. Just like the one Cologne always carried with her.
"Old Ghoul!" screamed the boy in alarm, he staggered back and almost
lost his balance when he stepped back to find there was no ground under
his feet. Quickly turning with his weapons ready he snarled as he saw the
manhole cover opened in the street with no sign of the old woman
anywhere.
"Mousse!" cried a familiar voice causing the boy to turn away from the
hole.
"Genma and Soun are gone," snapped Dan as he struggled to catch his
breath. Shampoo was right behind him still unable to speak.
"I just found this, he must have grabbed her and pulled her under the
street," said Mousse angrily. "I can't believe I didn't hear anything,
that old ghoul is pretty tough though."
"I'm going down to see," snarled Dan as he jumped into the hole.
He saw what he expected when he reached the bottom, a large room with
many pipes connecting together. The walls were burned and shattered in
various places. The old woman and the demon were long since gone. Shampoo
came down behind him and looked around in terror.
"Great Grandmother?" Her world was crumbling apart, this thing had
destroyed everything she cared about. Dan moved back towards the ladder
and started his way back up gently coaxing her up just ahead of him. She
stopped and snarled angrily as a scream escaped her lips, Dan looked on
calmly and waited for her to finish. "When you go to destroy demon, you
take Shampoo with you."
"Keep moving, I don't want to get caught here," answered the boy simply,
he knew he didn't have much of a choice about it.
The climbed out of the hole and frowned at what they saw, the Cat Caf�
was in flames, the door shattered, and the windows broken. Smoke poured
out of the windows darkening the street as it billowed up into the sky
and blocked out the sun. Various weapons were strewn around the manhole
and embedded in the building. It was obvious what had happened.
"Mousse! How we not hear? Is impossible!" snapped the Amazon angrily.
She did notice something strange though, inside the building a battle
still raged. A purple clad figure with a shock of red hair stood
imposingly while Mousse lay at his feet in defeat.
Facing off against him was someone they thought was dead. Dan rushed
forward, and jumped through the flames into the inferno. He stared down
the demon as Ranma Saotome spared a quick glance, he was tired and worn
looking with several tears in his shirt and several obviously good hits
to his face.
The thing looked Dan dead in the eyes and he froze in place.
"Impossible."
"Hello Dan. It's been a while, as much as I'd love to stay and chat,
I've got places to be," he lifted Mousse over his shoulder and stepped
back into a particularly large set of flames only to vanish into the
smoke and heat.
"You bastard!" snarled Ranma angrily as he charged forward. In a single
instant all the flames vanished, the Cat Caf�'s dining room was damaged
from the battle and Dan's dramatic entrance through the window, but no
fire damage could be seen anywhere. Shampoo tentatively stepped over the
broken window and hopped into the restaurant.
"You know him?" she asked him with a dangerous tone to her voice.
"You bastard, you unbelievable bastard! Carrot! I'll get you for this!"
screamed the boy in rage.
"It almost worked, me an Mousse got the drop on him!" snapped Ranma in
frustration as he slammed his fist into the wall creating a hole there.
Shampoo blinked and looked at him for a moment. "You trick Shampoo?" She
began to pop her knuckles and snorted angrily. "How dare you..."
"Don't even start," snapped Dan as he shoved her into a chair. She gave
him another glare of pure contempt, but let the matter pass.
"Wait a minute, that guy seemed to know you!" snapped Ranma as he
realized what Shampoo was talking about only moments before.
"I do know him, that was the man who I thought died in China," replied
the boy angrily as he slammed his fist through one of the tables and fell
to his knees. "This explains everything."
"What are you talkin about?" roared the pigtailed boy as he lifted Dan
by his shirt and shook him violently.
Dan shoved him back and snapped. "Akuma wasn't like this, he was a cold,
dangerous, and very serious martial artist. He would have destroyed you
outright, no games, and no tricks. Carrot is different, he's a sadistic
bastard, cold, calculating, and very smart. I should have seen this
before."
"So where do we find this guy?" asked Ranma coolly as he cracked his
knuckles and glared at the boy with a gaze of pure hatred.
"We don't, he'll find us," replied Dan bitterly. "For what he's done
here I'll kill him myself, that is if either of you don't get to him
first."
The two martial artists in the room nodded coldly. Shampoo stopped and
stared at the ground for a moment as something blew against her leg. She
stopped and picked it up gasping in shock.
"What is it Shampoo?" asked Ranma coldly.
They stood on the side of a mountain three days later, in front of them
was a small hole barely large enough for a human to enter. "Are we
ready?" asked Dan impatiently as he flicked on his flashlight and sucked
in a nervous breath.
"Let's go, there's no way he can handle all three of us," replied Ranma
bitterly as he cracked his knuckles. Shampoo nodded in agreement and
started towards the cave, she peered into the hole and stuck her foot in
turning around to face them.
She looked like she was about to speak when she jerked forward into the
darkness of the hole violently. The two boys rushed forward with shocked
expressions on their faces as they dove to save her. Ranma's hand just
missed her as she seemed to vanish into the floor, he watched silently as
a small slab of stone slowly slid into place on the ground. He screamed
as he punched the ground causing it to crack, but not break. "Shampoo!
No!"
"Damn it!" snapped Dan as he rushed into the darkness followed
immediately by Ranma. They froze when they saw the sheer massiveness of
the cavern they found themselves in, Ranma groaned in frustration when
three huge tunnels presented themselves, each moving in a different
direction. Both boys looked on in surprise as a series of torches lit up
along the walls of one of the tunnels. The pair stepped forward
cautiously into the cavern.
Shampoo stood up and rubbed her bottom while cursing in Mandarin, it was
a childish trap and she fell for it completely. She found herself in a
cell with around thirty young girls. "Where this?" she wondered out loud.
"Welcome to the club Shampoo," said a familiar voice. She turned slowly
and saw Ukyo standing next to her with a sad smile on her face.
"You alive!?" screeched the Amazon in joyous surprise as she flung
herself in a rough hug around the girl's neck. "Shampoo never think happy
see Spatula girl!"
"We all are, he's got some collection," said another familiar voice.
Nabiki Tendo stood next to the bars that held them in place and
indicated a long row of cells that lined the wall, inside of them Shampoo
saw many familiar faces. "Aiya!"
"Hey, is that Shampoo?" said a familiar voice.
"Pig boy?" the girl in question rushed over to the edge of the cell by
the bars. The cells themselves were little more than holes cut into the
rock walls. "Great Grandmother teach breaking point yes?"
There was a strange silence from the other cell. "It won't work."
"These cells have some sort of weird spell on them, we can't use chi
attacks to get out, and we can't pick the locks." Ukyo handed the Amazon
a bent up looking spatula, the handle looked almost melted.
"Shampoo just break then," snapped the Amazon as she grabbed the bars
and started to strain.
"You think I haven't tried that?" snapped Ryoga from his cell.
"Where Mousse?" asked the Amazon as she gave up and looked around the
room.
"He's here somewhere, I remember him screaming bloody murder when he was
brought here," said a new voice from Ryoga's cell.
"Pantyhose?" asked the girl. Several of the unrecognizable girls in the
cell with her looked at her in confusion.
"Shut up!" retorted the voice bitterly.
"Is ok, Ranma is here! He win for sure!" said the girl with a smirk
appearing on her face.
"Don't be so sure, he beat my cursed form alone, with his bare hands,"
said Taro coolly.
"Ranma defeat Saffron too!" retorted the girl, "Is much stronger than
Pantyhose monster!"
"Who do you think the light fixture is up there?" asked Ryoga calmly as
he pointed to a small cage on the ceiling.
"Is only baby now! Even stupid stick boy beat now!" retorted the amazon
bitterly.
Everyone fell silent as the purple clad figure approached them slowly.
He had a strange smile on his face and an almost pleasant stroll.
"What you is wanting?" growled Shampoo angrily as she reached for him
through the bars.
"Which one of you is Ranma Saotome's fianc�e?" he asked calmly ignoring
her anger.
Ukyo and Shampoo looked at each other and blinked the pair raised their
hands quietly. Nabiki Tendo started to snicker despite herself from her
corner of the cell. The pair turned their heads in annoyance to stare at
her when they noticed that more than half of the girls had their hands in
the air. Those that didn't looked like they wanted too.
"Very well, enjoy," stated the man as he pulled on a hanging chain that
rested on the wall.
A door opened in the ceiling above them and Genma Saotome fell from it.
He was bound and gagged.
Ukyo pulled the gag off and stared at him with a slowly seething anger.
He didn't seem to notice it though. "Thank heavens! Untie me quickly!" He
stopped and looked around the room when no one moved to help him.
"Uh-oh."
"Not until you explain this old man," snarled Ukyo.
Shampoo didn't care about Genma right now, he was an evil man, but
hardly worth the trouble. Especially when he had all those other girls to
play with. She blinked and frowned suddenly realizing something. "Where
Akane?"
"Akane? She's not here, I thought she was still with Ranma," said Nabiki
with a worried look on her face.
"She kidnap same time you," replied the Amazon in confusion.
The Tendo girl merely raised her eyebrow and said nothing further.
Carrot smiled to himself as the screams of pain started, "Ah, to do the
world justice makes the soul sing!" He sat down at his throne and looked
at the progress of the two men in his maze. The struggled with dead ends
and trap doors at every turn, still they pushed onward very determined.
Naturally he had left a little surprise for Ranma and his dear old
friend. "This should be fun!"
Dan growled in frustration as Ranma openly screamed his rage. They had
found another dead end. "Damn it!" screamed the pigtailed boy. The walls
of the cavern had become smooth and flat, after a short time Dan realized
that they were in some sort of labyrinth. He shone his light back and
fourth, the torches had long ago stopped lighting the way making
navigation even more difficult.
A low voice echoed through the cavern causing both boys to freeze.
"Who's there?"
Ranma slowly turned around snatching the flashlight away from Dan and
shining it towards the sound of the voice. She screamed in pain as the
light ripped into her eyes and shielded her face.
"A-Akane?" Ranma burst forward taking the girl into his arms and
grabbing her roughly. "You're alive!"
"Ranma?! I'm so glad! I was so scared and alone!" she started to sniffle
and sob as she stayed in her fianc�e's arms for a long moment. "Quick!
Get me out of these!" she lifted her arms and showed the pair the chains
that kept her in place.
"I'll kill him for leaving you down here alone!" snapped the boy as he
broke the chains with his bare hands.
"Let's get moving, we have to find him, he's down here somewhere," said
Dan calmly as he took back the light and started forward again. "I'm not
sure how much battery power is left in this thing."
Ranma and Akane realized they where in each other's arms and Ranma
jumped away. "Yea, we'd better get moving."
"Let's go and get the others!" said Akane with a remarkable calm about
her.
"After we get you somewhere safe!" snapped Ranma as he grabbed her by
the arm and held her fast.
"R-Ranma?" said the girl with a soft look on her face it quickly turned
into a scowl. "No. I won't let him get away with what he did to me!"
snapped the girl, it seemed more like she was talking to herself than
Ranma.
"Something ain't right here," commented Dan as he continued to trek
forward.
A few moments later a set of bars slammed to the ground on either side
of him trapping Dan inside. Ranma rushed forward and started to pull at
the bars when an identical set slammed around himself and Akane. Ranma
found himself in a box like cage, while the other two sets of bars seemed
to rise all the way into the ceiling.
The floor under Dan and Akane shot up at an amazing speed like some sort
of pressurized elevator leaving a long pillar of stone behind.. Ranma
watched in helpless shock as the bars slid upwards and the floors
returned to their original position, both Akane and Dan where gone. He
cried out to them but no answer came leaving him in the darkened silence.
He slumped down against the bars and pounded at the floor. "I'm sick of
this!"
"Come now Saotome, it's all most over, all you have to do is figure out
how to get out of that cage and the exit of the maze is straight ahead,"
said a voice calmly from the shadows. Two glowing red eyes slowly grew
into a purple clad boy of about his own age with a shock of red hair. He
had a familiar looking sword at his side and Ranma's thoughts went back
to the battle at the Cat Caf�, the flames there had been nothing but an
illusion.
"Admiring my work? I've defeated every single person you've ever faced,
all of your family and friends are in my hands. The best part is, there
isn't anything you can do about it." A small laugh escaped the man's lips
as he said this.
"Why are you doing this?" asked Ranma coldly, he had a deadly calm about
him.
"To prove a point," replied the boy with a shrug. "But mostly, cause I
can."
"You bastard!" roared the boy in anger as he charged the bars of the
cage like a wild beast.
"Calm down, you'll never get out of there unless you use that useless
melon on your head. I suggest you prepare yourself Saotome, I guarantee
you'll get the fight of your life when you reach that cave," said Carrot
as he vanished back into the shadows once again.
Dan continued down the small tunnel the rising floor had brought him to,
after a few moments he found himself staring at a strange sight; a raised
round platform. The floor was made up of some sort of grating and red
lights where built into the floors giving the room a strange dark glow
about it. All around the platform was a steep drop off, he couldn't see
the bottom and could not tell exactly how deep it was. Tentatively he
jumped onto the floor and started towards the door on the other side. He
stopped cold when another figure stood imposingly in the doorway waiting
patiently.
"The power is in you young Daniel, but you are not a master yet," said a
familiar voice as he jumped down on the floor directly across from him in
a battle stance. Dan followed suit with a hard glare in his eyes.
"Moukou Takabishi!" cried Ranma as he released the blast against the
bars, only to have it reflected back into his face. He was thrown back
into the other side of the cage and stayed on the ground groaning in
pain. "What is this stuff made of?"
"Why?" asked Dan as he stared his old friend down with a look of
complete hatred.
"Because every story needs a villain!" retorted the boy with a laugh.
"Damn it Carrot! This isn't a game! These are real people!" screamed Dan
with a rage burning in his eyes.
"So?" replied Carrot indifferently.
"You bastard! I'll kill you for this!" snapped the boy.
"Calm down, if you come into this fight upset you'll lose," said Carrot
simply.
Dan froze again and looked at him oddly. "You don't want to win do you?"
"On the contrary, I've made it so I have to win," he grinned and slammed
his foot into the ground, a Kanji burned over his head and he smiled at
the expression on his friend's face.
"Shin Akuma?" gawked the boy as he staggered back.
"Not so confident anymore Dan?" quipped the boy. "Shall we begin?"
Dan frowned and glared at his opponent. "Lets."
Ranma looked at the bars in front of him in frustration. "Damn!" He
sighed and looked up gritting his teeth as he tried to think. "I've got
to get the hell out of here!" He squinted his eyes and looked into the
two corners of the cage, two small metal pins where stuck into the
corners of the cage. "What the hell?" He pulled them out and the front of
the cage fell forward landing with a loud clang and raising up a huge
cloud of dust. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
The battle between Carrot and Dan raged on, they pounded on each other
with brutal efficiency. The two had kept it pretty basic up to that
point, using only punches and kicks as they beat on one another
relentlessly. Dan was doing very well, but Carrot was obviously winning.
"Experience wins out in the end," chuckled the boy as he landed a good
kick that sent Dan to his knees. Carrot rushed forward performing a
hurricane kick and Dan barely moved away in time. The boy landed from his
attack near the edge of the platform and smiled. "Impressive, most
impressive."
Dan stood from his knees and felt a sudden surge of power inside of him
as he stared Carrot down. "You want to play with special moves? Fine,
Shinku Hadoken!"
A massive shock wave of energy blasted from the boy's hands and slammed
into Carrot's chest sending him flying off the platform and reeling into
the darkness below.
Dan was not fooled for a moment, he knew Carrot would be waiting for him
when he found the end of this stupid maze. "I'll get you for real next
time."
Moments later Dan found himself staring at a large demon shaped throne
in the center of a dirt filled arena that was lit by a lantern of some
kind from above. He stepped forward and smiled as Carrot sat in the
throne looking just as beaten and worn as he did.
All around him were cells along the wall that held the entire cast of
Ranma 1/2; everyone from one shot villains, to Ryoga and Mousse. All of
them where alive, and most of them looked unhurt. All eyes were on him,
some watched him with hope, others with arrogant indifference.
Carrot stood and walked towards him calmly. "You realize I could have
destroyed you," he said to the boy.
"You could have tried," retorted Dan angrily. He spat on the ground and
lifted his fists up.
Carrot rushed forward and the pair became a blur of punches and kicks
brutally beating on each other while those in the cells cheered or merely
watched in silence. The stopped for a moment as two elbow strikes slammed
into each other creating a lock for a moment. "Weak," muttered Carrot
with a laugh.
Dan retorted by punching the boy dead in the face with his free arm. He
cupped his hands at his side as Carrot staggered back growling angrily.
"Hadoken!"
The boy jumped just in time to avoid the blast and sailed into the air
in a flying kick that would finish the fight if it connected. Dan's eyes
went wide as he realized that the hadoken was a fake out.
"Shin Shoryuken!" screamed the boy as a massive wave of energy slammed
outward from his body as he rose into the air. Those watching from the
cells where slammed back against the walls from the sheer power of the
move. Those that managed to keep on their feet gaped in awe at the sheer
power of the move.
"So, that is what he meant," said Cologne as she stood next to Herb. The
man gave her a quizzical stare but remained silent as he watched the
battle.
"It is unfortunate that he lost," he said simply before returning to his
seat in the back corner of the cell.
Dan realized that he had not felt the move connect, but it was too late.
He landed on the ground wide open and felt a pair of cold hands on his
back. The world became a flash of light and pain as he realized Carrot
had teleported out of range and hand returned to finish him off. The
flash of the raging demon engulfed him completely.
Carrot looked down at his opponent and smiled as he noticed he was still
conscious. "Well, I am impressed Dan, and insulted that you didn't think
I'd see that set up a mile away."
The boy staggered to his feet and Carrot just punched him in the face
sending him back down.
Dan laughed loudly and glared at Carrot in triumph. "You've lost Carrot,
you're injured. You're in no condition to fight Ranma."
The boy locked a chain around his neck and wrists and there was nothing
Dan could do to stop him. "You think so? I've got a special surprise for
Ranma. You'll want to watch."
At that moment Ranma burst into the room from a small doorway that led
into the lower parts of the caverns. His face was a mask of pure rage.
"AKUMA!" his scowl quickly turned into a cruel smile when he saw the
condition of his opponent. He was beaten badly and limping towards his
throne.
Dan looked up from his chains and smiled apologetically. "Sorry Ranma."
"Don't worry, I've got him covered," replied the pigtailed boy with a
confident smirk.
"You fool, you don't really think I will be your opponent?" snapped
Carrot angrily as he pushed a button on his chair. A wall slid open just
beside the throne revealing a dark clad figure in a delicate silk Kimono.
Ranma felt his heart jump into his throat, her eyes bored into him with
a pure hatred as they burned red. "Akane?" he whispered gently before
turning to Carrot. "What have you done to her? Let her go!"
"I'm not holding her fool, remember what she said back in the cave. "I
won't let him get away with doing that to me?" She was talking about
you," said the boy with an evil smile.
"Me?" gasped Ranma in shock.
"It didn't take much to convince her, I offered her limitless power.
More than even you could possibly equal, the last straw came when I
showed her the bucket of fianc�es over there," Carrot indicated a rather
full cell opposite him. Ranma noticed his father inside with what looked
like a severe beating, he was also still tied up and gagged, the girls
inside had hung him upside down in the middle of the cell.
Ranma turned towards him and glared at him hard. "I won't fight her, I
don't fight girls."
The man merely smiled and pushed another button on his chair, cries of
alarm filled the cavern as foot long spikes emerged from the ceiling of
the cells. "Then your friends, your family, everything you've ever known
will die with you!"
Ranma glanced around the room in a panic and noticed faces around him
looking on in fear, desperate hope filled his mind. His mother, the
Tendo's, everyone he'd ever known. "No!"
"Lose, and they die as well," snapped the man bitterly.
"You'd better win Ranma!" screamed Ukyo from her cell.
"You'd better not hurt Akane!" cried Ryoga angrily from his cell,
everyone surrounding him promptly swatted him.
"Defeat her and everyone goes free, lose and they all die," snarled
Carrot as he motioned to Akane. The girl's eyes went red and she jumped
forward landing in an aggressive stance.
"I can beat this tomboy anytime!" cried Ranma defiantly.
"Are you sure?" asked Carrot in amusement. "Akane, if you win I'll spare
your family if you wish."
"What do I care? Kill them," replied the girl icily. Ranma froze with a
look of complete terror on his face once again.
"You see Ranma, she is completely converted. It was not I who captured
your father and the Tendo patriarch. She brought them to me. Now, she is
mine, forever," Carrot cackled madly from his seat as he watched the
drama unfold before him.
"And together we will rule the galaxy as father and son!" quipped Dan
sarcastically.
"Don't be foolish, I wouldn't trust her as far as I could throw her
now," snorted the boy arrogantly. "She is a willing student though."
Akane gave Ranma a bitter and hate filled smile as she stepped forward
impatiently awaiting the battle. "She's cute when she smiles," thought
Ranma with a rough snort.
"Fight!" screamed Carrot from his seat.
Ranma met the girl in the air and dodged a super fast series of punches.
"Snap out of it Akane! People could get hurt!"
The girl smiled and grunted as an energy ball blasted from her hands
catching him dead in his chest. Ranma slammed into the ground and
screamed in pain. "Snap out of it you stupid Tomboy!" Akane grunted again
as her aura flared up. Ranma found himself catching fire as she blasted
him with a red version of the energy ball, he rolled across the floor
desperately to put out the flames and was stopped cold as Akane put her
foot into his chest. He was only a little singed, but the pain was
obvious. She tossed him up and grunted again. Ranma tried to regain his
balance in the air and was caught by Akane's Shoryu Reppa, three
successive Dragon Punches in a row slammed into his body doing more and
more damage with each blow. He staggered back under her power and fell to
his knees.
"Finish him!" cried Carrot as he stood up from his chair.
"I bet you always wanted to say that huh?" muttered Dan darkly from his
place beside him.
Akane looked back at the pair and turned back towards Ranma. He smiled
and laughed slightly, "Killed by Akane, how ironic, I finally get it from
the uncute tomboy who can't even kick."
Akane felt a smile grow on her lips as she performed the Raging Demon on
the now defenseless Ranma. When it was over he hung limply in her grasp
breathing harshly, yet somehow still alive.
Carrot smiled as he stood next to them in the center of the ring.
"Before you die, I have a question for you Ranma. Why is it that you are
willing to die, and allow everything you hold dear be destroyed rather
than fight this girl?"
The boy looked at him in his daze and somehow managed to laugh despite
the pain. "You don't know?" he whispered harshly.
"No, I am curious. What could possibly cause this?" asked the boy
impatiently. "Tell me and I will spare your family."
Ranma looked into Akane's eyes and hung his head back, he whispered
three little words. "I love her." With that said he waited for the
deathblow.
Carrot raised his hands in triumph and laughed. "I've done it! At long
last I've done it!" Quickly turning to face Dan he pointed at him
arrogantly. "I told you I could do it!"
The boy looked at the scene in shock and simply sat slack jawed. "What
the?"
The dull red glow of Akane's eyes faded away and she looked at the boy
in her arms in shock. "What? What did you say?"
The boy looked up and her in surprise, he still couldn't move and he
attempted to turn his gaze away from her as he spoke as loudly as he
could, which was only a whisper. "I didn't say nothin."
Akane fell to her knees holding him as a look of horror crossed her
face. "What have I done!? Ranma!!" Tears flowed freely from her eyes as
she held the boy in her arms. He was beaten to within an inch of his
life, literally.
The next thing that happened no one in the room was expecting. Several
large television screens replayed the moment over and over. Inside the
cells people watched in shocked horror or disgusted indifference. "I love
her." Ranma stared at the scene in shocked horror as Akane cried while
holding him close to her body and apologizing for what she had done again
and again.
Ukyo and Shampoo stared at the scene in silence as a few of the girls
around them cried. "That was so beautiful! I just have to break the
engagement with him!" the motion was pretty popular to most of the girls
in the room. A few others simply sat in silence, only Ukyo, Shampoo, and
Kodachi had looks of absolute defeat and terror on their faces. No matter
what happened, there was no way Ranma could deny saying it this time.
Carrot's hand fell on her shoulder and she looked up at him with a glare
of pure contempt. He smiled back at her and put his finger to her lips.
"I come with a warning Akane, you will never use the Raging Demon again.
Without evil intent in your heart you will die, and so will everyone
within a twenty meter radius of you; I managed to keep the effects of the
move watered down so to speak. It was intended as an ultimate killing
attack. If you manage to survive attempting it again, and the chances of
that are quite high, you will become the demon again. This time not even
Ranma can save you from that fate." He turned away and walked over to Dan
unlocking his chains and leaving the keys on the floor. "You had me
scared there for a moment Saotome, I almost didn't think you where going
to say it."
Dan reared back as soon as he was free and punched Carrot dead in the
face. "You bastard!"
The boy merely looked at him and smiled. "That was the reason we came
here after all isn't it? We made a bet and I won."
"Do you have any idea what you've done?" screamed the boy in shocked
terror and pure anger as he attempted to tackle his one time friend.
Unfortunately he fell under the pain of his own injuries and Carrot
skipped away. A doorway of some kind opened behind Carrot and he smirked.
"Come on Dan, we have to go."
"Why the hell should I go anywhere with you?" snapped the boy angrily.
"Because there is a lot you don't know about our situation." With that
said Carrot stepped through the porthole and vanished.
Dan turned and looked at the pair apologetically. "I'm sorry, I had no
idea until the very end what was going on."
They looked at him and nodded gravely. "Will we see you again?" asked
Akane tentatively.
"Probably not, I've got to hunt him down and make him pay for what he
did here," said Dan as he looked angrily at the porthole. "I've got a lot
to learn yet, but I'll beat him if it's the last thing I ever do!" he
rushed forward and vanished leaving them behind in the cave.
"Man, what a great exit!" laughed Carrot as he clapped his hands and
waited on a rock that sat in the middle of the field they found
themselves in.
"Where are we?" asked Dan impatiently.
"Don't know," replied Carrot honestly.
"Why aren't we home?!" snapped the boy angrily as he pulled Carrot up by
his shirt.
"Hey, you heard the lady, we go home when these bodies die," replied the
boy with a knowing smile.
"Oh," Dan looked thoughtful and sighed.
"I've got more wonderful news," continued Carrot with a smirk. Dan never
liked what he had to say when he said that phrase.
"Remember that wonderful meal we had our first night there? You know the
sushi and rice?" said the boy with a wink.
"Yea, what of it?" snapped the boy impatiently.
"That wasn't sushi my friend, that was mermaid," Carrot tilted his head
back and laughed at the look Dan had gotten all of a sudden.
"You mean?"
"Yup, we're gonna be wandering around for a while." Carrot started
walking away while Dan simply stood looking stunned. "Let's get moving
buddy, It might not be safe here after dark."
Dan turned to see the boy walk into a young girl dressed in Chinese
style clothing. Carrot stood and dusted himself off. "Sorry kid, I didn't
see ya."
"Stop right there!" screamed the girl angrily.
"I said sorry," replied the boy in confusion.
"Evil creature who knows no love for man. Tonight is the night your
nightmare ends, with the light of my love I shall destroy your evil
darkness!" Carrot looked down and noticed her clothing and the large
sword in her hand.
"Oh, shit."
Dan had a huge grin on his face as he jumped forward in full "fight the
evil monster mode." As the girl finished her speech he had a single
thought. "This could be fun!"
"Devil Hunter Yohko is here!" cried the girl.
Another girl appeared behind her armed with a spear. "And Devil Hunter
In Training Azusa!"
"Bloody hell," sighed Carrot.
Epilogue: Twelve years later...
Dan sighed as he walked beside his old friend. "Well I like being her
errand boy, it's always interesting," said Carrot. "Still I can't believe
you sicked that girl on me."
"You're still hot on that? It was twelve years ago and you deserved much
worse after what you pulled!" retorted Dan.
"At least I didn't try to hit on the Sailor Senshi," grumbled Carrot.
"Hey, I'm not the one who yelled "Hey look! The Sailor Senshi!" the
moment I saw them! Poor Luna about had a heart attack! They weren't even
in costume," retorted Dan. "Besides, Sailor Mars, she was
so...so...ferocious! I can't believe you resisted Usagi like that, she
was a babe!"
"Dude, she was a complete ditz! Besides, she kept trying to purify me
with that damn wand of hers. I'll admit I enjoyed kicking Endimyon's ass,
he was a perverted child molester," snapped Carrot before he changed the
subject again. "Now that A-ko was a babe."
"So you scored, big deal! B-ko was hotter! Besides, I scored in Burn up
and Bubble Gum Crisis!" cried Dan defensively.
"Ooh, with Priss, and you had to be a girl to do it too!" retorted
Carrot with a smirk. "I scored too! I couldn't listen to that B-ko
anyway, she was a psycho hose beast."
"Dan?" said a familiar voice from behind them. The two boy's turned
around slowly, this was the first time they had been recognized after
arriving in a new dimension.
"Akane?" replied the boy dumbly.
"It is you! You came for our wedding?" she cried throwing herself in his
arms. "I like your hair!"
Dan blinked, he had almost forgot that both he and Carrot kept it in a
ponytail now.
Carrot smiled and walked up to them. "What try is this one?"
Akane almost passed out as she looked at the boy in terror. "Y-you?" She
took up a defensive stance and backed away.
"Relax Akane, he's my partner now, we work together fixing...problems,"
said Dan as he tried to calm her. "We're here to help, both of us. He's a
different guy now, he kinda got over the whole demon thing a while back."
Akane looked at him warily and seemed to accept this. "This is the
seventh wedding attempt."
"Well, that explains why we're here," snorted Carrot. "We have to make
sure this wedding happens."
"She's probably really frustrated with them," said Dan with a nod.
Akane didn't understand what they were talking about and grumbled. "You
bet I am."
"Well, you don't have to worry Akane, we'll make sure it happens if we
have to keep them away by force!" announced Carrot proudly.
"R-really?" said Akane with a look that could only be relief appearing
on her face. She gave Carrot a distrusting look again and Dan laughed.
"It's OK Akane, trust me. He's here to help."
"O-ok..." said the girl reluctantly.
Carrot's eyes burned red for a moment behind their backs and Dan spun
around and glared at him. "That's not funny!"
"It was meant to be," replied the boy with a smirk.
Dan shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "Anyway, I scored better than you
in Tenchi."
"Walking in on Ayeka in the bath is not scoring," retorted Carrot.
"True, but it's still more than you got," was the reply. "At least I
didn't sleep with Leona."
"So what if I did? I did better than you did in Dirty Pair and The
Slayers!" snarled Carrot as he started to get into the argument again.
"Yea, but both Puna twins..." sighed Dan.
"You shut up you!"
Akane blinked and looked back at them. "What are they talking about?"
She dismissed the matter and the two boys argued all the way to the Tendo
Dojo.
The end.
C&C to Carrotglace@juno.com
URL: Http://www.geocities.com/tokyo/fountain/3203
There it is! The first fanfic I ever wrote. Hope you enjoyed it even if
it is a little primitive. I still enjoy reading it from time to time. Ja
ne.