(Continued from part 1) :


Hokuto stared upward in the sky, to where Sypha and
her prisoners disappeared, just as the first drop of
rainfall hit her on the head.
"It won't be long now," she realized, "before it may
be too late to look for the Dragon's Tear."
Flooding was not terribly common in the history of
Jusenkyo, but the Shadow Weaver knew it was considered
a disaster in the capitol of springs. It was a time
where the magic of the cursed springs intermingled,
and since the curses were mixed there was no telling
what would come from someone getting dunked.
She felt a presence nearby, one that was overshadowed
by Sypha and the thirteen leaders before. Closing her
mind to the world she focused her mind on the new
presence, one similarly tethered to a marking pole as
the leaders had been.
Hokuto shattered the illusionary curtain that hid
the Jusenkyo guide and his daughter from view,
revealing the two tied to a nearby pole. Both were
gagged as well as bound, such as to not alert anyone
to their presence, unlike the thirteen leaders.
She quickly made her way to their side, ungagging the
Jusenkyo guide.
"Ah! Terrible, terrible!" the guide screamed in his
native Chinese tongue. "We must leave to higher
ground, quickly!"
"All in good time," Hokuto assured him, switching to
Chinese herself and ungagging Plum. "Do you know where
the Dragon's Tear is?"
The guide shook his head. "That's not important!" He
pointed to the clouds in the sky. "A great disaster
will befall us if the springs flood! We must leave
quickly!"
"Alright, alright, just hold still!" Hokuto stepped
away from both the guide and his daughter, leaving both
bound and in a state of panic. Closing her eyes the
Shadow Weaver's own shadow spread across the ground,
running over the ground where the two captives sat. She
thought of the overlook she and Ranma were at when they
came to the Cistern Valley, and focused on that thought
intently.
She ignored the startled cries of the Chinese as they
melted into Hokuto's shadow, opening her eyes only when
they were completely swallowed-up by the blackness.
But, no sooner had the two disappeared another caught
her attention-- the marking pole Sypha carried into
the air was falling at a rapid pace. Ranma clung for
his-- no, HER-- life at the high end of the pole as the
thirteen leaders trailed helplessly behind, still
tethered.
Quickly estimating where the pole would land-- over
the spring which it originally came-- Hokuto forced
herself to concentrate. She enlarged her shadow,
sweeping it across the pole-less spring, and widened it
to completely engulf the cistern. She imagined the same
overlook she sent the guide and Plum, and felt herself
melting into the shadow.
Before she disappeared completely into her own
shadow, Hokuto felt the pole and its captives fall
through.
And yet, it seemed a little lighter than it should
have been.

Ranma jumped off the pole in the nick of time,
abandoning the leaders to the strange blackness that
engulfed the cursed spring. She watched while the rain
grew in intensity as the shadowy blackness consumed the
thirteen and the pole, then collapsed on itself as if
it never existed.
"Interesting trick," Sypha noted. Ranma turned her
head to see the sorcerer standing on another pole. "I
wonder how draining it was for her?"
"That's it!" Ranma cried, rolling up her sleeves.
"I've been soaked, slashed, and dropped from hundreds
of meters in the air by you, and that's pushing it!
C'mon and fight me like a man!"
"Odd choice of wording, but...." The sorcerer
shrugged, then raised her arms, twiddling her talons.
"I will put you in your place!"
Launching herself from the pole Sypha dove straight
for Ranma's position, arms first, hair trailing behind
in the wind. Ranma dropped to her stomach just as her
opponent zoomed past, then rolled out of the way as
Sypha came in her second pass. As soon as the woman's
exposed underside was made open the martial artist
thrust her feet straight up. She caught Sypha with the
blow, sending her soaring into the atmosphere.
Sypha landed on her feet a few meters away, obviously
not through with taking her licks. She raised her claws
out before her, and fired them. Ranma jumped straight
up as both claws flew by, then planted her feet on
them as they went on their return path, carrying her
straight back to the enemy. But the sorcerer woman
was not about to take the attack, as she jumped
straight up herself, and thus altered the return path
of the claws, forcing Ranma off balance and back onto
the ground.
Sypha wheeled around and dove spinning in a drill
attack, forcing Ranma to dodge out of the way. Both
recovered at the same time, and for Ranma it was all
she could do but dodge the long-reaching sorcerer's
claw arms. Needing room to clear out a counterattack
the martial artist cupped her hands together and
launched a ki bolt straight into Sypha's gut, sending
her flying back with a blast of solid air.
Slowly the sorcerer got to her feet, wiping her
mouth with the backside of her sleeve. "Is that how
you wish to play?"
"There's more where that came from!" assured Ranma,
thrusting her arms forth with a second ki blast.
Sypha raised her claws up in what appeared to be a
futile, desperate defense, but to Ranma's surprise the
ki blast washed in a sphere around her. A small globe
of energy formed, rotating quickly around her in a
diagonal pattern. Ranma fired a second blast, yielding
a similar result, save the new energy globe spun in a
perpendicular axis to the first.
"Energy absorption?!" she realized.
The enemy warrior lowered her claws and pointed them
in the martial artist's direction. "Absorption, and
reflection!" The energy globes were pulled into the
mass steel of the claws, producing a single larger
energy bolt that quickly slammed into Ranma's body.
Staggering back, but still on her feet, Ranma
realized that it was pointless to continue in that
line of attack.
Reach, she realized, was the key to all of this.
Sypha definitely had it with those long claw arms of
hers, that's for sure. No matter how tall I am she's
got those gorilla arms that can get me long before I
can get her.
On the other hand, she could eat any ki attack I
throw at her. Which means there's very little I can do
to actually hit her....
Unless....
Gathering up her courage and pride, Ranma summoned a
strength of will within, thrusting her arms out,
aiming at Sypha. Ki energy crackled around her
fingertips like electricity. Sypha merely smiled,
readying herself for the inevitable incoming attack.
Ready to absorb the attack, which was what Ranma was
counting on.
"Moko Takabisha-- Streaming Bullet Attack!" she
cried, cupping her arms together.
A glaring blast of ki energy leaped from Ranma's
hands and toward the waiting Sypha, who, as expected,
raised her arms in a defensive stance to absorb the
ki attack. Ranma poured more energy into the stream
of bullets, knowing full well that if Sypha could
withstand the onslaught the return attack would be
devastating.
That is, if the sorcerer COULD take it.
She felt herself slowly draining away... wasting
away, even, as more ki energy was poured into the
attack. Sypha, too, showed signs of fatigue as the
number of swirling globes increased in such size that
the signs of an opaque energy sphere threatened to
engulf her. It was this knowledge that helped the
martial artist keep going.
Akane, Ryoga... everybody, help me!
Her thoughts carried elsewhere as consciousness, too,
was sapped away through the ki attack, pushing herself
to the limit. Ranma's eyes fluttered; she could no
longer see Sypha in the blindness of the light, but in
reality she knew she was getting tired....
And it took one second of weakness for Sypha to
capitalize on, as the full fury of the reflected ki
attack slammed into Ranma like a runaway freight train.
Pain washed over her many times over, pummeling her
with the fist of many foes. Ranma's thoughts drifted
as she herself drifted back with the blast, with
memories of many foes long gone, long beaten, past and
present. They laughed at her, one after another; her
pride used against her.
Without fanfare the reflected attack ceased, leaving
the martial artist down on the ground, flat on her
back against the wet grass.
Ranma felt sore all over her body as Sypha towered
over her, claws gleaming in the rainfall.
"Now it's over!" the sorcerer declared, raising her
right claw in the air.
But before she could attack both fighters heard a
loud explosion, and in the blink of an eye Ranma could
no longer see Sypha, as she was being propelled
backward by some type of large projectile. Lifting her
head the martial artist saw the woman and the
projectile splash down at a spring several meters
away.
Turning her head around Ranma blinked. Sitting up,
she rubbed her eyes, unsure if she was actually seeing
a rusted, military-green World War II-style tank
sitting on top of the grass and cisterns of Jusenkyo,
its long barrel cannon smoking after firing a clean
shot. It was an old Japanese tank, that much she knew,
but the emblem was unknown to her-- it was very faded,
but it somewhat resembled an octopus.
A hatch opened on top of the turret as Ranma stood
up on her feet, and the sound of the old song "Flight
of the Valkyries" could be heard from within. A
helmeted pilot poked his head out, and when he removed
the headgear Ranma shook her head.
"Well, how'd you like that?" asked Mousse, slipping
himself out of the tank. He leaped over the turret
and stood tall at the edge of the tank.
"Mousse," Ranma said, "what the heck is that doing
here?"
"This?" He patted the barrel like an old friend.
"It's our tribe's secret weapon, of course. Left over
from the old war days by some Japanese guy's private
army, and we brought it back here."
The weapons master scanned the horizon, toward where
Sypha disappeared. "If the shell didn't get her, the
spring will."
But a splash from one of the pools gave the two a
strong indication that the sorcerer did indeed survive
the attack. A single claw thrust into the sky,
attached to the long-sleeved dress that the sorceress
wore.
Dripping wet, Sypha pulled herself out of the spring,
unchanged, and with a palm-sized crystal in her claw.
"W... what?!" gasped Ranma.
"The Dragon's Tear?!" Mousse cried in recognition.
"Ha-hah!" laughed Sypha. "I hardly believed I could
find this artifact through your aid, Amazon! I should
have to thank you later."
"B... but you fell in a cursed spring!" Ranma
complained. "Why are you still human?!"
"That's not yours!" the Master of Hidden Weapons
yelled, rushing toward the sorcerer angrily.
"Oh, you wish to fight as well?" Sypha shouted,
lowering her claw. "Insect! I'll deal with you as
quickly as your fellow!"
Ranma watched as Mousse and Sypha began their match,
going at several bouts, each turning out without any
significant advantage. She wanted to rush in to help,
but the fact that Sypha did not transform disturbed
her greatly.
For that matter, where was Hokuto, and the thirteen
leaders? Swallowed by shadowy darkness, it was no doubt
the Shadow Weaver's doing, but where did they go?
And what the heck was Mousse doing with a fifty-
year-old tank?!
"What the hell is going on?" she wondered aloud.
As if in answer the martial artist heard the sound
of thunder in the distance, appearing at the same
instant as a bolt of lightning. Ranma shielded herself
as the lightning burned a large black spot near her
position, holding her arms over her head to deflect the
flying dirt and debris.
She stared at the blacked spot, but only for a
moment, as a silhouette caught her attention more.
Standing on a pole behind the blackened grass and dirt
stood a human figure, dressed in large, concealing
robes and vestments of a Shinto priestess. She stood
with her arms folded, staring down, with a bamboo
umbrella spread open over her, propped up by her arms.
It was a sight all-too-familiar to the martial artist,
and one that she hoped would not appear.
No way... Ranma thought, not now....
"Rain, rain," she muttered, "go away; come again
another day. But not today, not now, as I will tell
you how-- how on this very day, on not a holiday, that
God doth send forth... this message from Heaven,
displaying disappointment and remorse. A day that one
almighty shall weep, a time all shall feel it creep,
the soul of all in each and every one as it fall. I
speak only of endless tears, shed for humanity in all
its pride, hopes, and fears." She fixed her eyes on
Ranma coldly. "The world weeps for you in this display
of endless tears."
"It's been a while, Ranma Saotome," Shizuka Minazuki
said in a deep tone.

Akane stared out the bedroom window of her room
longingly, staring at the stars that twinkled into
existence as the sun disappeared into nothingness in
the horizon.
Many frantic weather reports on the news told of a
freak weather pattern in the China area; while cloud
formations usually traveled to Japan from China in this
case it was the other way around. A heavy cloud quickly
made its way across the sky, in a straight line toward
the Tibetan highlands. Akane did not need a map to know
what was there, but she could not figure out why the
clouds would go there.
"Ranma," she said to the stars, "come back safely."
Something pricked at the back of her head, and Akane
jumped back away from the window as a heavy claw
slashed down from above. She yelped in surprise as a
black blob of cloth dropped from the roof above and
into the bedroom in one sweeping motion. Stainless
steel claws flashed from beneath the mass of blackness,
and Akane knew who it was.
"Cinder!" she realized, edging her way back to the
door.
"Your ally is not here!" the salamander hissed with
delight. "I thought the viper would be here before me,
but it seems I am the quicker!"
"'Viper?' Akane repeated, puzzled, reaching her hand
to the doorknob. "I don't know what you're talking
about!"
"That's not important!" snapped the master of fire.
"Step away from the door!"
Akane refused, knowing that it was her only avenue of
escape. With a swift motion she turned the knob and
pushed herself out, just before an energy blast
shattered it into a million pieces. Certain that the
noise alerted the others below she dashed toward the
stairs, and leaped down.
She tucked herself into a roll as she landed, but
crashed against the opposite wall , near the main
entrance to the house. Akane quickly got to her feet,
knowing Cinder would not be far behind, and slid out
the front door.
Only to be confronted by a mass of black cloth with a
single glowing red, mechanical eye.
"You know, I DO like it outside more," Cinder
taunted in a threatening tone. He grabbed Akane by the
shirt, lifting her off the ground and slammed her
against the wall. "Where is the Shadow Weaver?" he
demanded.
This isn't working out like it's supposed to! Akane
thought, clamping her hands on Cinder's arm for
support.

"Shizuka?!" Ranma exclaimed, voice betraying
surprise. "B... but... how?!"
The priestess of Genbu snorted, twirling the umbrella
behind her, scattering the rainfall. She stared upward
toward the dark sky, seemingly oblivious to the danger
presented by Sypha not far off. "The rain of my
name carried me here as quick as they could... because
you don't understand what's at stake."
"I think I understand most of it!" the martial artist
shouted back.
Carefully adjusting her stance on the pole Shizuka
turned to face Ranma. "Do you, now?" She took one step
forward, into the empty air, discarding her umbrella
behind her as the priestess plunged toward the pool
below.
Ranma wanted to shout a warning to the lame-brained
girl, but it was too late. She winced, anticipating the
form the priestess of Genbu could possibly take... but
there was no splash. Opening her eyes a crack Ranma
blinked involuntarily as Shizuka stood amidst the pool
on her bare sandals, standing on the surface as if it
were solid as the ground itself.
The priestess stepped up and out of the spring with
the same calm expression, turning her left arm aside to
flash Ranma a look at the snake-pommeled Viper Swords,
as if it were a threat. Each sword was decorated with a
snake head, mouth wide open barring fangs, directed in
the direction away from the blade, and toward Ranma.
She guessed that it was more than just a decoration,
as the snakes, unlikely though it seemed, appeared to
long for the martial artist's soul.
"Where is the Dragon's Tear?" Shizuka demanded.
"I would've figured you'd be after that, too," Ranma
replied, slowly edging her way backward. "Well, I don't
have it; don't you realize what I could do with it
right now?"
"Of COURSE you don't have it," Shizuka snapped. For
the first time she glanced in the direction of the
gruelling fight between Sypha and Mousse, both of which
were showing off their aerial dexterity. "Mousse COULD
have it, if Sypha is still fighting.... But where is
our mutual friend, Hokuto Takemasa?"
"Sypha's got it," the martial artist answered
finally. "So long as Mousse keeps her busy she can't
use it for... whatever it is she wants it for."
Shizuka took several great strides, easily catching
up to Ranma's backward pace. Quickly, she slapped her
across the face. "You FOOL!! Do you have any idea what
you've just done?!"
But it was already too late, as Mousse's body slammed
on the ground next to the two girls, obviously beaten
and out for the count. Sypha soon landed thereafter,
standing only a few meters away from her enemies. She
held the Dragon's Tear in her left claw triumphantly.
"I can feel the power coursing through my veins!" the
sorcerer cried triumphantly. "I was but a shadow before
Amazon master, but with this... the Dragon's Tear...
the missing link... I am unstoppable!"
"Sypha," Shizuka noted, folding her arms.
"Now what?" demaned Ranma. "The Dragon's Tear only
releases curses, doesn't it? What could you possibly
have that couldn't be countered with your black magic?"
"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed Sypha. "You pathetic human, did
you really believe that one who has been touched by the
gods would voluntarily walk amongst you?"
Thrusting the Dragon's Tear into the air, Sypha
commanded, "Now, Dragon's Tear, remove the revolting
seal of humanity from my form!"
Both Ranma and Shizuka shielded their eyes as a
great flash of light blasted Sypha. The gales brought
about by Shizuka's rainstorm grew in intensity, as if
the balance of nature were thrown into chaos. But the
moment of chaos vanished as quickly as it came, for
when the two girls could see again, there was no woman
where Sypha once stood, leaving the Dragon's Tear on
the ground, open for the taking.
However, any thought of retrieving the artifact was
swept away from a more awesome sight. The two stared
upward in awe, in the full majesty of the great,
serpentine creature levitating in the sky. The giant
serpent's body wound about in the air, seemingly too
large and long to be real. The creature sported four
limbs, each ending with four enormous talons, where one
of the foreclaws held a deeply violet crystal orb. Its
reptilian eyes stared down at Ranma and Shizuka-- a
lean and hungry look filled with anger and pride. It
was there that Ranma found recognition.
Sypha is a celestial dragon.



(continued in part 3)

----------------------------------------------------------
* "Decepticons Forever!" --Ravage, Beast Wars
* "You make [Kodachi] sound appealing." --kayin
* "[Y]ou're lamer than your signature and screen name indicate." --Chris Davies
* "I sold my soul to buy a copy of the dubbed 'Ukyo Can Cook'"

--Razorclaw X (http://www.crosswinds.net/~slythe/index.html)
Author: "The Wheel of Fire", "The World's Worst Ranma Fanfic!", "The Geometry of Shattered Souls", "The Geometry of Vanished Souls", "The Balance of Power", "The Wraith of Blaze", "Mister Prickly".
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