Gladius Sanctus
By Kyle Emmerson
Ranma 1/2 and all of its characters and situations are
the creation and property of Rumiko Takahashi. I use
these characters and situations without permission.
Prologue: Arcanis Caudex
****
The weapon felt so natural in her hands. As though it had been forged
for her. The way it melded to suit her specifications exactly. As though
it had seeped into her pores and it was a part of her. The pain the blade
felt, she too could feel. She sheer feeling of the intense high that even
being in contact with the weapon sent her over the edge, somewhere between
ecstacy and Nirvana.
She could see her reflection in the smooth steel. Her features seemed
amplified, as if she had gone through a two second makeover. Her usual
short dark hair seemed... extraordinary. Her deep brown eyes were
different... they could pierce to her very soul. There was a fierce air of
radiant brilliance emanating from the blade. The woman in the reflection
was not her. It was someone far more... sophisticated. Someone she could
never be...
Not without the blade...
"Hey, Akane. Whatcha doin'?" Ranma asked, popping up behind her.
Akane immediately snapped out of her reverie and dropped the blade
back on to the table. She spun around to meet Ranma's gaze and sneered.
"What do YOU care?" she shot.
Ranma furrowed his brow in annoyance. "Well, obviously NUTHIN'.
'Specially about some stupid uncute tomboy like you!"
Akane wasted no time in her wind-up. She drew her fist back as far as
it would go, while still allowing her to keep her balance.
Then came the pitch, which, as usual, struck Ranma off guard. He
caught it in the side of the head, and was ultimately send to the ground
with a loud thud.
Akane stormed off in annoyance, only to glance back at the blade.
Ranma squinted up at her as she left the store, the midday sun
reflecting from the glass door into his eyes. Standing up, he sighed.
"Uncute," he muttered.
"Young Miss in a temper today, yes?" the proprietor asked, showing a
toothy smile towards Ranma.
Ranma shrugged. "Today?" he asked. "Try all the damn time."
"Ahh, perhaps I can interest you in love potion from the far reaches
of the Mulai-mulai tribe of the Amazon? They say it raise fertility and
make womans flock after man!"
Ranma snorted. "Trust me, old man. I need that like I need a hole in
my head."
"Ooh, sorry. No sell those. But shrunken heads! Lots!"
Ranma just stared at the man. "Ya know what? Nevermind," he looked
around the establishment with mild interest. He looked down at the blade.
"What's this anyway?"
"Ooh. What young miss look at. I no know whole story of that one, sir.
It supposed to be cursed, but I see nothing wrong with sword."
"You got a lot of cursed stuff in here?"
The man smiled. "Yes! I have lots cursed items. What you looking for?"
"How about cures?"
The man raised an eyebrow. "You have curse, young sir?"
Ranma scoffed. "You could say that. Ever hear of Jusenkyo."
The man's eyes widened with complete and utter shock. "What... you...
Jusenkyo? Mount Quanjing?"
Ranma nodded.
"Ooh. No have cure for that, young sir. Only cure can be found at
Jusenkyo itself."
Ranma nodded. "I figured as much."
"But I do have this," he bent over behind the desk and began to
rummage through some old papers. A moment later, he produced a small
scroll.
Ranma took it from him and unrolled it. After a few moments of trying
to read it and then figuring that he didn't know Chinese as well as he
thought he did, he passed it back to the man. "I can't read Chinese.
What's it say?"
The man blinked in surprise for a moment. "It not Chinese, sir. This
scroll over two thousand year old, but I know it about Jusenkyo. Man who
give it to me say so. Say only to sell to one with curse, and no other."
"Well, whatever language it is, I can't read it."
The old chinese man shook his head. "I no can read it either, sir. It
is... ara... araman.. no, that not right..." He reached over and pulled
out a small dictionary. After the flip of a few pages, he located the word
he was looking for and looked towards Ranma.
"It Aramaic, sir."
****
As short as it is, this is another idea I've been tossing around. It's
pretty basic right now, but it involves a lot of interaction between Ranma,
Akane, the sword and the scroll.
Anyhoo, let me know what you think. (And let me know if I screwed up my
latin. I had a very limited source. ^_^)
-------------------------
| The TydRipper | "Tyd, you need a smaller
| | .sig. :-)"
| Master of the Tides, | - Gary Kleppe, FFiRC
| Devourer of noodles, |
| Writer of Ranma Fics, |
| Baka to the end... |
-------------------------
Questions? Comments? Flames? Email Me.
~ The TydRipper
http://www.nabiki.com/tydi-oh-ki <--- Regularly updated site!
kyle_emmerson@yahoo.com <--- My usual e-mail.
I also keep some of my stuff archives on Sofaspud's Couch at
http://www.sofaspud.org/
http://www.nabiki.com/gokami <--- Another of my many projects...
[This Space for Rent]