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Disclaimer time:
Rumiko Takahashi, Shogagukan, Kitty and Viz Communications own Ranma
1/2. Kosuke Fujishima, Dark Horse Comics and Studio Proteus own Oh! My
Goddess (Ah! Megami-sama).
With thanks to my pre-readers for this chapter: Dave Menard, Jeremy
Fogelman, Thomas Hackwood.
Corwin (ely7@inter.net.il or corwin@virtuallyjeannie.com)
http://www.virtuallyjeannie.com/ranma.html
* Previous chapters can also be found at:
http://members.xoom.com/phu_lam/index.htm
http://tannim.anifics.com/rfics.html
-- Attached file included as plaintext by Listar --
-- File: wog-ch8-draft2.txt
Wrath of Gods
Chapter 8
"It should be over by now."
Lying on her back, the teenage girl idly twirled a pen in her right hand
and looked at the patterns it made in the air.
"Any moment now, she'll come back home."
Maybe not a moment, but she could wait. After all, there wasn't anything
else to do but lay on the bed and talk to oneself to pass the time.
"Will she understand?"
God, she hoped her sister would understand her motives. It wasn't really
her choice, after all, and had there been some other way...
"Will she ever forgive me?"
Well, if she'd understand, it's a step in the right direction. Isn't it?
Forgiveness can't be that far behind. And people forgive their kin, it's
their nature.
"Will I ever forgive myself?"
--------------------------------------------------
"Ranma."
The pigtailed boy jumped to his feet immediately, upon hearing his name
whispered in his mind.
"Mother! You're alright!"
"Of course I am, my son," Amaterasu's voice assured him gently.
"Mother, I'll wait here until Akane wakes up, and then..."
Amaterasu cut Ranma off, before he would make a promise that she wasn't
sure he could keep.
"Ranma, as a goddess and ruler of Japan's heaven-space, I cannot support
you or your actions..."
"Mom!" Ranma cried out, hurt.
Unabated, Amaterasu continued, "...officially. As your mother, however,
I'd like to give you my blessing."
"That... that means a lot to me, coming from you," Ranma said slowly,
lowering his head. "Thank you."
"I don't have much time to talk, my son," Amaterasu said, her voice
sounding more urgent than before. "Take good care of your fiancee, and
continue believing in yourself. If you do that, then there is no
obstacle that you two would not be able to overcome together."
"I understand, mother. I will make you proud..."
Ranma felt his mother nod approvingly to his promise. The mental link
between them ended with Amaterasu's parting words...
"Break the world's shell!"
--------------------------------------------------
"Ranma!" Akane cried out in panic, her eyes opening. A few moments later
they've found their target, and the girl relaxed visibly, seeing that
Ranma was all right and at her side.
"You're ok! Geez, why did you hafta be so careless? Ya let a simple
second class goddess take you down!" Ranma chided her, trying to act
casual, as if nothing happened.
"Shut up, you idiot! That's the thanks I get for shielding you?!" Akane
shot back angrily, scowling.
"That ain't how I remember it! You just flew backwards and got knocked
out on a wall!" Ranma retorted, putting his hands on his hips.
"Oh yeah? Without my glorious sacrifice, it'd be you splattered all over
that wall, not me!" Akane replied, snorting in contempt.
Grabbing his head in both hands, Ranma moaned, "This can't be
happening..."
"And while we're discussing all of your stupid stunts..." Akane
continued irritably.
"We are?" Ranma asked, peaking from behind his hands.
"Yes, you idiot! Now pay attention!"
"Talk about uncute..." he muttered, matching Akane's scowl with one of
his own.
"How did you get inside my head?" Akane asked curiously, looking at
Ranma sideways.
"Ah, who'd want to be inside your tomboy head anyway?" the pigtailed boy
grumbled, pointedly turning away from her.
"Ranma..." Akane drawled out, cracking her knuckles menacingly.
"All right, all right..." Ranma gave in, waving his hands. "It's a link
we share."
"And?"
"That's all I remember, I swear!"
"So, we can talk to each other telepathically... or we could, at one
point?" Akane wondered, trying to initiate contact.
"Not exactly. The way I remember it, Holy Bell could merge with Bell-
chan at the physical level," Ranma replied, while deep in thought and
scrunching his forehead.
Seeing a blush spreading all over Akane's cheeks, he guessed what she
was thinking about and said teasingly, "No, not in that way. Who's the
pervert now, huh?"
"Get on with it!" Akane shouted, embarrassed.
"You know, Akane, I don't have any problems seeing you as a demon right
now," Ranma mused, tapping his chin thoughtfully.
"Why, thank you! And as your reward, I'll cook an elaborate meal
tonight, just for you!" she replied, smiling sweetly.
"Ack! How... elaborate?" Ranma asked carefully, trying to act very
nonchalant about the whole thing.
Brushing a stray strand of hair away from her face, Akane replied, "It
depends on how soon you'll quit fooling around and just tell me
everything!"
"So, I already told ya that Bell-chan and Holy Bell can physically
merge. Well, that got me thinking. If Holy Bell lost her physical form
but Bell-chan had ta call her, how would she do that? And then it hit
me. There must be some link between the two of them, that goes beyond
their bodies or even their minds. A link between two souls."
"But what does that have to do with us?"
Shrugging, Ranma said, "Well, you're my angel, just like Holy Bell is
Belldandy's one."
"So... I have a soul?" Akane asked, blinking in surprise.
"Huh? Why shouldn't you have one?"
Ranma turned to stare at Akane, visibly making her nervous by his
scrutiny.
"I don't know... I don't know anything anymore," she said, sighing and
shaking her head.
"No kiddin'," Ranma agreed, nodding. "I thought I knew Nabiki, and then
she goes and sells us out like that."
"Nabiki..." Akane growled, her eyes narrowing.
"Hey, Akane, you're not thinking of doing something rash, are ya? I
mean, think, she's your sister!"
"A sister doesn't betray you! A sister stays beside you no matter what!
A sister doesn't sell you for a couple of yen!!!" Akane cried out, her
voice getting stronger and stronger with each sentence.
"So what will you do?" Ranma asked, tilting his head slightly. "Do you
want to be as bad as her?"
"That girl... she hurt us. She will pay; she has to!"
"I can't argue with that." Ranma shrugged. "In fact, I wholeheartedly
agree with ya. So, how about we use a little something from our past
life to avenge ourselves?"
"What did you have in mind?"
"Well, I had this dream recently, where I..."
--------------------------------------------------
"Nabiki Tendo."
"Huh? Who said that?" the brown-haired girl asked, while looking to her
sides to locate the speaker.
"Did you forget about me already, Nabiki? I'm hurt."
"R-Ranma?!" she cried out, startled, jumping from her bed to land on the
floor in a heap.
"The one and only. Didn't expect me to be here, did ya?" Ranma taunted,
stepping out of the shadows.
"B-But, the goddesses..." Nabiki stammered, while trying to put as much
distance between herself and the demon.
"Those incompetent fools? You really thought they'd get the better of
me?" Ranma asked, grimacing.
"Especially with me protecting Ranma?" another voice added to Nabiki's
right.
Turning towards it, Nabiki came face to face with her younger sister.
"Akane? I'm so glad you're here!"
"Yes, I'm here, because your little plan didn't work!" Akane said
angrily, balling her hands into fists.
"I don't care how you did it, Nabiki," Ranma spoke, gaining both
sisters' attention. "All I want to know is why. Was it really all for a
handful of yen?"
"No!" Nabiki cried out, scrambling to her feet. "I made a deal with the
goddesses... I told them your conversation with Belldandy, and they
promised to return Akane home, alive and safe! Kami-sama himself sealed
the contract!"
"And what made you think I'd stab Ranma in the back just like you did
and leave him to his doom?!" Akane asked, incredulous.
"Akane, please hear me out!" Nabiki pleaded with her sister desperately.
"He was going to elope with a goddess, I was just trying to protect you
from..."
"I don't need your protection! I'm a guardian angel and bodyguard to one
of Nifelheim's finest operatives of all time! Ranma... is my entire
life. Did you really think I'd ever leave him?"
"But... but..."
Nabiki tried to find any other excuses, but all she could do was open
and close her mouth like a fish out of water.
"You made a mistake, Nabiki Tendo, but this time we'll make sure you pay
for it," Ranma said sternly, locking his eyes with hers.
"No, Ranma! Please! You told Belldandy that you'd gladly trade your life
for Akane's! I heard you!" Nabiki played her trump card, praying that
it'd be enough to get her through the nightmare that her life became
recently.
"Yes," he said simply, his gaze not wavering in the slightest.
"That choice was his to make, Nabiki!" Akane shouted, walking over to
stay by Ranma's side. "You had no right to judge and condemn him, no
matter what lies you might tell yourself to feel comfortable!"
In a clear voice, as if reciting a passage from a book, Ranma said,
"Nabiki Tendo, for conspiring against a first class demon and shoving
your nose into matters that were not of your concern, you are hereby
sentenced to receive a curse. One that shall remain on you until the day
of your death. Good bye."
"NOO!!!"
A flash of light later, the sole remaining occupant of the room slumped
to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably.
--------------------------------------------------
"What now?" Megumi asked her newfound friend, both of them sitting
around the dining table in her apartment.
"We need to set up a base of operations and locate my brother," Marller
replied, not looking away from the diagrams she'd been examining.
"Is he still alive?"
"Yes, I can tell," the demoness answered, nodding. "Although it's
greatly subdued at the moment, I can feel his life-force."
"Is this a demon thing?" Megumi asked timidly, shifting uncomfortably in
her seat.
"Nah, not really," Marller replied, chuckling. "Anyone directly related
to him by blood should be able to sense Ranma's presence, if they're
close enough."
"Does that mean that your brother is somewhere in Tokyo?"
"He could be anywhere in Japan..." Marller elaborated, stretching out
her hands to the sides widely, "that's as far as my senses go. But once
we get started, I can triangulate his location."
"Really?" Megumi asked excitedly, moving closer to Marller.
"Yep. I'll have to hack inside the Yggdrasil. Messy job, wish my brother
were here to do it instead. He's the real whiz in the family," the
demoness replied, getting back to her diagrams, adding quietly, "not to
mention having the right contacts to get these jobs done."
"But didn't you say that he was..."
"Shadow ops?" Marller offered, smirking.
"Yes."
"What do you think he did there? Hacking computer systems was one of the
requirements from the agents."
"Umm..."
Sensing Megumi's next question, Marller decided to explain this point
again.
"Our technology is far more advanced then yours. I thought we covered
that already?"
"Um, we did. I just didn't really believe you," the brown-haired girl
sheepishly answered, studying a particularly interesting spot on the
floor.
Laughing heartily, Marller slapped the other girl on her back a couple
of times.
"Good! Doubt everyone! You'll live longer."
"O-Ok."
"Hey, don't act so scared, kid! You're on the right side!" Marller
encouraged Megumi, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Together, we'll find
my brother and bring the revolution!"
"Yes, you're right. Together... for the world's revolution!" Megumi
agreed, wondering inwardly how exactly she got the nerve to help a
demon.
"You're catching on, Megumi!" Marller quipped, nodding approvingly.
"T-Thanks."
The two sat in relative silence for a few minutes, before Marller looked
at the other girl with a calculating eye and asked, "Hey, are you dating
anyone?"
Blushing furiously, Megumi looked away.
"Um, I really appreciate the offer and everything, but..."
Barking out another laugh, Marller explained, "Don't fret, I'm not into
girls myself. I have this friend, though..."
--------------------------------------------------
"Belldandy... such a sweet child..." the Goddess of the Sun murmured,
getting off the phone, the latter disappearing into nothingness after a
few moments.
Amaterasu was about to go and visit her friends in Egypt, when she felt
a dark shadow behind her. Getting into a combat stance immediately, her
magic blazing, she shouted to the clear blue sky around her, "Who's
there? Show yourself!"
The wind carried back a hoarse whisper.
"Amaterasu..."
Whirling around, the goddess turned to face the ghostly image of her
brother.
"Susano! What do you want, you bastard?!"
"Oh my, is that any way to greet your dear brother? I'm shocked!" he
replied, putting both hands over his heart and pretending to be hurt.
"You will be, if you don't get your ugly mug out of here!" Amaterasu
warned him, charging up a moderate sized mana bolt.
"Such harsh words, spoken by such a pretty mouth..." the Storm God said,
walking slowly towards her, while keeping one hand behind his back.
"Stay back!" Amaterasu cried out, backing up a few steps.
"Are you sure?" he asked, smiling widely.
"Yes! Now get lost before I..."
"Before you... what?" Susano asked, the humor gone from his voice. As he
brought his hand from behind his back, Amaterasu's eyes widened in
shock.
"No, it can't be..." she whispered, shaking her head in denial. "How did
you get the God CD?!"
"That's not the only CD I have, my dear sister. Look behind you," Susano
offered, pointing to something behind her.
Amaterasu noticed the shadow of the new arrival, and turned around
quickly to see whom she was dealing with. Her eyes widened in
realization, and as she hurriedly scrambled to erect a protective
barrier, she cried on the inside, with the knowledge that her son will
have to pay for her mistakes.
'Oh my God! I was wrong... Ranma... I have to warn h...'
--------------------------------------------------
Ranma recoiled suddenly and clutched his chest in pain, as if shot.
"What's wrong, Ranma? Are you hurt?" Akane worriedly asked, hovering
around him protectively.
"Something's just happened to mom. I have to go and see her!" Ranma got
out, struggling against the pain.
"In Heaven? Are you crazy? You'll be killed on sight!"
"But I have to do something... anything!"
"We will, Ranma... we will. But it won't do your mother any good if we
rush into a trap. She's counting on us to save her and we have to stay
alive and free to be able to do that."
"Yes. You're right, Akane. My mother would have wanted me to think
things through first."
"I'm glad you're back to your senses now, Ranma."
"I... I am."
"Are we going back to that shrine?"
"No, it's too dangerous. If mom's been captured, than all the places
that would normally be under her protection have been compromised."
"So does that mean we're going camping again?"
"No. I think it's about time we paid an old friend of ours a visit..."
--------------------------------------------------
"Oh, no..." Urd gasped, her eyes widening in shock. 'Not the First Sign
of the Apocalypse?!'
"What's the matter?" Skuld asked, walking over to her sister.
Not getting any answer, she followed her gaze and mirrored her sister's
actions. Outside the window, the sun was colored in red and surrounded
by a corona of darkness.
"Amaterasu?" Skuld asked, when she'd finally gotten control of her vocal
cords again.
"Must be. Kami-sama is the only other god that can make that happen and,
somehow, I can't see him behind this."
"But what does this mean?"
"Amaterasu is no longer on this plane of existence."
Seeing Skuld's confused look, Urd elaborated, "Once, a long time ago,
Susano and Amaterasu had a fight, and she went into a cave to sulk.
Until the gods finally managed to trick her to get out, the entire world
was covered in darkness. Kami-sama decided to prepare for that
possibility, and created a few protocols in the Yggdrasil."
"So what we're seeing now..."
"Is the backup initializing. Right."
"Wow." Skuld whistled. "That must've taken a lot of time to program...
and the hardware Father probably needed..."
"It's not all that great, kiddo. Do you really think some modern gizmo
can truly replace the Goddess of the Sun?"
"What do you mean, Urd?"
The Goddess of the Past leaned back against the wall and closed her
eyes.
"The backup is just that - a backup. It will last for two weeks... a
month, tops. If Amaterasu won't return by then..."
"Eternal darkness?" Skuld asked, biting on her lower lip.
"Yep. And Kami-sama can't just choose another goddess to fill in for
Amaterasu. The Goddess of the Sun is one of those truly irreplaceable
gods, see? The rest of the Sun Deities only channel her power."
"Do you think that, maybe, Ranma had anything to do with her
disappearance?"
"C'mon, you're grasping at straws, Skuld," Urd replied, shaking her
head. "He will never do anything that'd hurt his mother, and you know
it. You do bring an excellent point, though."
"What's that?"
"Now, Ranma will be even more unstable than before... especially if
Amaterasu isn't coming back again..."
--------------------------------------------------
End of Chapter 8.