Previous parts of this fic can be found at Fanfiction.net, or if it's
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http://www.rcbooks.org

 Rain

 Part 14

 The Gateway

+++++++++++

 Mousse was in the shadows near the outskirts of Nerima. His training
kicked in, as he saw absolutely nothing on the road. That in itself
wasn't unusual, save for the fact that time seemed to have stood still.
There wasn't even a blade of grass blowing in the wind, and that bothered
him. He could hear nothing except the gentle beating of his own heart.
"Something isn't natural here," he muttered quietly. 

 "You're tellin me?" said a familiar voice from behind him.

 Mousse whirled around, throwing a hail of weapons at the intruder.

 Raiden responded by grabbing one of the chains and running a powerful
current of electricity through it, sending the boy to the ground.

 "Who's this?" said Urd as she poked the fallen boy with her toes. The
rest of the Gods walked up to the scene and looked down at him dumbly.

 "His name is Mousse, he's one of those Amazons," said Kura as he knelt
down beside him.

 "Jumpy isn't he?" muttered Fujin.

 "He's still alive at least," grumbled Benten irritably as she looked
down at him for a moment.

 "Not for long he isn't," commented Amaterasu as she looked at the
horizon. "They're still a good way off, but they'll have to come through
here."

 "Straight for Tokyo," said Belldandy with a worried looking frown.

 "No," said Amaterasu coldly. "Amatsu Mikaboshi is smart, he won't waste
forces on Earth first. He'll head straight for Heaven, and worry about
this place later on."

 "The only way for a horde that size to get up there..." said Kura as he
looked over his shoulder. "It's still there?" He turned towards the other
gods and gave them a questioning gaze.

 "Yes. It's sealed, but Amatsu Mikaboshi won't have any trouble breaking
the seal," said Amaterasu.

 "He's that strong?" muttered Skuld with a worried frown on her face.

 "We should meet him there then," said Kura as he turned his own gaze
towards the horizon. 

 "You're going to let him unseal the gate?" gasped Belldandy.

 "We don't have much choice. There were a hundred and fifty gods to stop
this attack last time. They won't waste forces trying to stop him here
either. Our only hope for beating him is to join the main forces above."

 "He's right, the Yggdrasil system will be their main objective. That and
trying to seal father away somehow," agreed Venus.

 Benten and Urd looked at the goddess for a moment.

 "Sometimes I wonder if you're really as dumb as you pretend to be,"
commented Benten.

 "Gee thanks...Hey!" 

 "We don't have time for this," said Yamma as she moved into the middle
of the group.

 Mousse started to stir.

 "Hey, he's waking up," said Fujin.

 Kura paused and looked down at the boy for a moment. "Mousse."

 "Saotome," growled the boy painfully as he sat up.

 "That isn't my name. What the hell are you doing here?" said Kura
coldly.

 "I was sent by Cologne, to assess the situation," said the boy as he
staggered to his feet.

 "Good, now go back and tell her that the entire army of hell is coming
this way, and don't come back," said Kura as he turned away.

 "What? How dare you!" snapped the boy angrily.

 "Don't forget who you're talking too mortal," said Raiden with a
dangerous look forming on his face.

 "You expect me to just turn back and run?" said the boy. "While you stay
here and fight?"

 "No, we aren't staying," said Kura calmly. "That would only get us all
killed."

 "What?" said the boy in confusion.

 "Cologne knows exactly what's coming this way," said Yamma with a small
frown on her face. "I've watched that hag for almost three hundred years
now. She can sense exactly what's over that horizon."

 "So, she's trying to get rid of Mousse?" said Venus as she turned to
look at the boy.

 Mousse realized that all of the gods were giving him strange looks.
"What?"

 "That old woman sent you here so you'd die," explained Fujin calmly.

 "How terrible!" exclaimed Belldandy.

 "Sucks to be you," commented Skuld.

 "She what?!" cried the boy in a panic.

 "There's about ten million demons marching this way over that hill
there. You were hiding in the shadows. That's a bad place to be when
you're trying to hide from demons," said Raiden calmly. "Go on and get
out of here. You won't do any good to anyone if you die here and now."

 "You're just going to run away?" said Mousse in shock.

 "There's no reinforcements coming here. Staying would only be death. We
know exactly where those demons are going," said Amaterasu calmly. "When
they get there, we'll be waiting."

 "Let me go with you then," said Mousse firmly. "I can't go back now. 
She'd just send me out again to see when they were getting close."

 "He's right you know," said Yamma.

 "All right, we'll take him to the gateway. No further than that though.
They shouldn't press on beyond that, so if he stays on the other side of
the gate from the horde, he should be safe," said Kura.

 "He's your problem then Kura," said Amaterasu. "Don't forget who is in
charge here."

 "I haven't forgotten, Master," replied the god placidly as he bowed his
head.

 "Master?" said Mousse dumbly as he looked at the woman. He wanted to
laugh at his old rival, really he did. The look on the goddess's face
told him that he wouldn't last very long if he did.

 "Come on," said Amaterasu as she started walking.

 "Couldn't you just, ya know, zap us there or something?" asked Mousse.

 "We can't waste energy that way," replied Raiden. 

 "He's right, the horde will be traveling the same way. They'll need time
to recharge as well. Traveling up from hell takes a lot of energy,"
agreed Fujin.

 "How long?" asked Mousse nervously.

 "Few hours at most," replied Raiden calmly. "The minor demons won't be
drained, it's the hell lords who have to recharge. They're the ones who
would have opened the gateway."

 Mousse nodded nervously. He didn't like this, but going back to the Cat
Cafe would only result in Cologne sending him out on another suicide
mission. He knew her well enough to believe the gods. 

 After a few moments of walking, he turned towards Kura. "So, she's your
master? What about Happosai? Or your father?"

 "Genma Saotome isn't my father, and Happosai is my student," said Kura
calmly. "Or he was that is."

 "What?" said the boy in shock.

 "Happosai was always a poor student, he's distracted easily, and
undisciplined," said Kura with a smirk on his face.

 "Now, no need to be so harsh," said the old man as he hopped up beside
them.

 "I should destroy you for treating your own master that way," said Kura
as he glared down at the troll.

 "Well, it was all in good fun," muttered the old man nervously.

 "However, given the chance, I'd do the same thing to her," said the god
with a smirk on her face.

 "I'm glad you understand," chirped the old man cheerfully.

 "As for Genma, that idiot doesn't realize that I've been training him
for the past thirteen years or so. I didn't realize it myself until
recently."

 "Didn't seem that way to me," muttered Mousse.

 "It was sort of subconscious really. I'd force him to adapt to my own
style while he trained me. Over time, he started to pick up my habits and
style, not ever realizing that the style he and Soun had learned from
this fool was being overridden."

 "So, Kura. What are you going to do after the battle?" said Venus as she
walked up and shoved Mousse out of the way rather roughly. She latched
onto his arm and smiled at him.

 "Not now Venus, this isn't the time," he replied firmly.

 "You're assuming we're going to win," said Amaterasu as she glanced back
at the young goddess.

 "Of course we are, we always win," said the girl with a small shrug.
"We're the gods after all."

 "Amatsu Mikaboshi was winning until we sealed him away," replied Kura.
"There is a very real chance that we might lose this battle."

 Skuld looked up at him, she had been walking beside Raiden up to this
point. "What?"

 "We shouldn't be thinking this way," muttered Belldandy.

 "It is best to face reality child. If we fail now, the war between
heaven and hell will erupt once again. There will be chaos for eons. That
is, if he fails to take heaven this time. We may not be able to seal him
away, but still force him back."

 "Then you should just kill him then," said Mousse.

 "No! We can't do that!" exclaimed Belldandy.

"Why not?" said Yamma. "Mikaboshi, like father, is outside the Doublet
System."

 "Doublet System?" said Kura in confusion.

 "It's a failsafe system to prevent a war like this from happening. If a
god kills a demon, then a god dies. The same thing happens in reverse as
well."

 "So why fight now then?" asked Urd with a frown forming on her face.

 "Mikaboshi is the lord of all evil. No demon can resist his will," said
Kura. "They'll fight, even knowing it will lead to their own
destruction."

 "That's right, I'd forgotten that you didn't know about that," said
Raiden calmly. "It's possible that you don't have a double Kura."

 "I'm not willing to find out if I don't have to," said the god with a
frown forming on his face. 

 "This doesn't look good," muttered Mousse with his head hung low.

 "It's not a good situation," replied Amaterasu. "Come on, we're here."

 Mousse looked up and blinked. He was looking at a small and ancient
looking temple. "What's this?"

"The Gateway," replied Kura. "You mortals have never noticed it before,
because until now it was sealed away. It's a doorway to the heavens."

 "Shouldn't this be, somewhere else? I mean, there are places a lot
more...holy..." said the boy in confusion.

 "There are many gates, this one is just the closest," replied Amaterasu.

 "There are seven gates spread out across the world, this one is the one
Amatsu Mikaboshi chose to invade from."

 "Why?" muttered Mousse in confusion.

 "Probably because I was reborn here. Demons have a nasty tendency to
hold grudges," replied Kura with a small shrug.

 "So you're leaving then?" asked Mousse.

 "Don't get too happy Mousse," snorted the God casually.

 "Right," muttered the boy.

 "I suggest you keep heading towards the city," said Amaterasu.

 "Good luck," said Mousse as he started walking away.

 "Well, shall we go?" asked Benten.

 "No," said Kura calmly. "We didn't come here to unseal the gateway."

 "What?" said Yamma with a small frown on her face.

 "We don't need the gateway to get to heaven, he does. It's better if he
wastes his power unsealing it," said Amaterasu as she nodded at her
student in approval.

"Right," agreed Kura. 

 "Why come here at all then?" asked Venus in confusion.

 "We're going to strengthen the seal?" asked Benten.

 "No, that would be a waste of time and power," said Amaterasu.
 
 "Then why?" asked Yamma.

"We're going to set up a little trap," said Kura calmly. 

 "What? For Amatsu Mikaboshi?" said Venus.

 "That would be pointless," said Amaterasu. "As it would be for any of
the demons, however."

 "The hoards," said Fujin with a frown forming on his face. "They're weak
enough that we can get rid of them all at once, giving us an advantage."

 "Not much of one, Mikaboshi rivals father in power," said Kura flatly.

 "He's right about that," said Raiden crossly.

 "The rest of you go on ahead, Kura and I can handle this," said
Amaterasu as she nodded towards her companions. "Meet with the forces
that should be waiting at the gates."

 Raiden and Fujin nodded, and all the gods vanished in a flash of light.

 "One of us has to stay behind," said Kura as he looked at his master for
a moment.

 "Yes. I..." started the woman.

 "No. I'll do it," said Kura as he glanced at her. "You'll be needed to
help lead the troops."

 "Are you certain?" she asked him coldly.

 Kura merely nodded. "Help me set up the spell, and I'll make sure it
goes off without a hitch."

 "Escape if you can," she said to him as she gave him a hard glare.

 "I'll do my best, but you and I know the chances of that," said Kura
flatly.

 "This is why you wanted the others to leave," she said as she turned
towards the growing orange light from the horde on the horizon. It was
the burning of any life that they crossed.

 "I didn't want Urd to figure out what was going on," he said as he hung
his head a little. "I know she won't forgive me if I die again, but..."

 "I understand," said the woman as she nodded and raised her hands to
begin the spell. 

 Kura merely did the same and closed his eyes.

++++++++++

 Akane ran as fast as her legs would carry her. She moved across a small
field outside of Tokyo and paused at the glowing light that began to form
on the horizon as the demons approached. "He'll be there." She scowled
angrily at the things in the distance. They were still too far for her to
see them.

 "Akane Tendo," said a familiar voice from behind her.

 She spun and gasped as she saw Tatewaki Kuno standing there. He had a
sword in his hand, and was wearing armor. "You should not be here. There
is danger ahead."

 "I know," she said firmly.

 "I go to my death," he said quietly as he looked at the horizon. "You
need not do the same. I ask you to leave now, so that you might live, and
my sacrifice will have meaning."

 "I've got to help him," she said as she turned her back to him. Her gi
ruffled in the wind as she stood looking at the now setting sun. "You
can't stop me."

 "I see. Then we shall die, together," he said as he moved up beside her
and held out his tachi to her.

 Akane looked at him in confusion and grasped the short sword. 

 "I do not wish you to die this day, Akane Tendo. Perhaps we will
survive," he started walking forward again leaving her standing there
alone.

 She nodded and steeled herself before rushing forward after him.

+++++++++++

 Ukyo sat alone in the Ucchan. Her head rested in her palms as she stared
out the window of the restaurant and frowned. Tears formed in her eyes
and fell onto the surface of the grill, evaporating with a small hiss. 

 "Why am I? That jerk..." She turned in frustration, wiping her eyes with
her sleeve. The memory of him reappearing back in front of her after the
others had vanished.

+++++++++++

 "What do you want? Don't you have somewhere to be?" she snapped angrily
as she frowned at him.

 "Ukyo, I want you to promise me something," he said to her as he hung
his head in shame.

 She paused, he looked almost humble. "What?"

 "Promise me, than no matter what happens, you won't come after me," he
said quietly. His head turned up and his blue eyes paralyzed her for a
moment.

 "What? You egotistical..."

 "Ukyo, promise me. You'll stay here. I know you don't really hate me,"
he said as he grabbed her shoulders.

 "Why should I?" she asked as she turned away.

 "Because if you show up, I'll have to protect you above all else," he
said as he forced her to look at him with a gentle push from his hand
against her cheek. "I made a promise, and I have to keep it. If you're
there, I'll have to defend you, and that could compromise my mission.
Please."

 She looked at him dumbly. "What?"

 "Ukyo, I don't know if you'll ever know what it is I'm going to face
right now. I hope you never have to see it for yourself, but if you have
a sudden change of heart, or start feeling guilty and come after me.
You'll do more harm than good."

 She looked away from him. "Why? I'd never..."

 "Ukyo, please. I need to know I don't have to worry about that," he said
gently.

 The girl was flustered beyond belief. She'd never seen him like this. "I
promise. I won't come after you."

 "Ucchan, please believe me. I'm sorry for the way I've been acting,
but..."

 "But?!" she cried angrily.

 "This is that important, please believe that," he said as he looked her
in her eyes again.

 She nodded and pulled away from him. He smiled again and walked out into
the rain. "Maybe we'll meet again one day Ucchan. I hope we do." He
vanished into the softly falling rain.

 "Ran...chan..." she muttered as she backed away and turned to her work
once more.

+++++++++++++

 Kodachi Kuno frowned as she slipped out of the shadows and saw her
brother meet up with the Tendo girl. "She is here as well? Most
disturbing." Running a hand through her hair she watched their brief
exchange and snorted in disgust. "It seems that she is as much into my
brother's delusions as he is."

 The pair started moving again and she chuckled to herself. "Fools. So,
she believes that she can take my Ranma-sama away? I will have all three
of my Ranma-samma! That little witch doesn't deserve even one of them!"
She pulled out her ribbon and began to bounce along behind the pair,
laughing madly. "Don't worry my darling! Kodachi, The Black Rose, is
coming to you!"

++++++++++++++

 Night had fallen, Cologne looked towards the horizon with Shampoo at her
side. "They grow nearer."

 "Mousse," muttered the young Amazon with a hint of worry in her tone.

 "Do not worry child," said Cologne. "Mousse is a fool, but he is a
capable warrior."

 Shampoo frowned at this and nodded her head. "Shampoo understand."

 "Good, it is best if we wait inside," said the old woman as she turned
back towards the restaurant.

 Shampoo nodded, and followed. 

+++++++++++++

 Kura stood waiting patiently as the demons approached. He knew they
would be there within the hour. He steeled himself and frowned. That is,
until he felt something familiar near to him.

 "What the? No! What is she doing here?!" he muttered to himself as he
turned and saw Akane Tendo and Tatewaki Kuno moving towards him.

 The pair stopped when they saw him.

 "So, we meet again, Saotome," said Kuno with a small nod.

 "What the hell are you two doing here?" cried the god angrily as he
appeared in front of them. "Go home! Now!"

 "I won't leave you alone," said Akane firmly as she glared at him. 

 "You don't know what you're doing!" he snapped. "Both of you leave!
Right now!"

 "I will not. I will fight this evil that threatens my home," said Kuno
as he looked at the growing orange light in the distance.

 "It isn't threatening your home! Leave now!" said Kura as he turned to
glare at him.

 "I'm staying!" insisted Akane. "I won't let you fight alone!"

 "I'm not fighting alone!" said Kura angrily as he threw his hands into
the air.

 "It is my duty as a samurai to face such evil," said Kuno.

 "No. It's my duty! This isn't a battleground! It's a trap, and you two
will only get in the way!" said Kura as he frowned at them.

 "A trap?" said Akane dumbly.

 "This temple is a gateway to heaven," said Kura with a sigh. "The main
force is there, where you can't go. You can't help in this battle." He
looked at the both of them for a moment. "I'm just here to spring the
trap and then I'll escape."

 "Take me with you then!" said Akane.

 "I can't," said Kura with a small shake of his head. "If you go, there's
no coming back."

 Akane scowled at him. "I don't care!"

 "Akane, no. Just go, please! You're compromising my mission by being
here!" he pleaded. 

"It is time," said Kuno as he looked over Kura's shoulder.

 "No!" gasped the god as he looked at the pair in horror and then saw the
hoard approaching them from over a hilltop. "Go now!"

 "We will not leave!" snapped Akane.

 Kura hung his head and saw that it was too late. "I can't stop you," he
said with a heavy sigh.

 "It is time to fight," said Kuno firmly as he drew his blade.
 
 "I'm in charge," said Kura firmly as he looked at them. "If you two are
going to be here, I can't do anything about that now. Stay out of the
horde, stick to the edges and fall back when they approach. If you keep
moving to the north, they won't follow you."

 The pair looked at him for a moment and he smirked at them. "Earth isn't
their objective this time. They're here for this gateway. I'm not trying
to stop them, just weaken their forces a bit."

 "So that they are weakened when they face the army waiting above," said
Kuno with an understanding nod.
 
 "That's right," said Kura with a slightly surprised frown on his face.

 "A tactic befitting of Musashi himself," said Kuno.

 "If you don't survive, I'll introduce you," said Kura as he stared at
the approaching horde.

 "You want us to run away?" asked Akane.

 "I'm going to try and escape myself," said Kura as he frowned at her.
"You'll die needlessly if you don't. Fight what you can, but don't try to
take them all out. This isn't Furinkan, Akane."

 She scowled and nodded at this reluctantly.

 "It's almost time to spring it," said Kura as he noticed them nearing
the temple that was a short distance away. "If it looks big, or too
human, you're in way over your head. Run as fast as you can. Don't let
the weaker ones lull you into a false sense of security, they may let you
kill enough of them to draw you in and try to surround you."

 "You've done this before?" muttered Kuno in surprise.

 "I told you I was a god Kuno," replied the deity as he opened his palm
to reveal a tiny cloud. "There's another reason you should stay out of
the horde."

 "What's that?" asked Akane dumbly.

 "This," said the god as he raised his hand. The sky opened up above
them, rain pouring down into the horde for a moment. They demons began to
scream in pain as the water quickly transformed into razor sharp spikes
of ice.

 Kuno and Akane gasped.

 Kura walked onto the hilltop and frowned as he raised his hands. "Let
those who stand before me be destroyed! Return to your prisons demons!" A
wall or red light surrounded the gateway, the lesser demons that were
inside, or touching it already vanished in tiny balls of flames.

 The horde noticed him, and began to swarm towards the group.

 "Get ready," said Kura.

 Akane drew the tachi and kept the scabbard in her other hand, wielding
them as if she had two blades.

 Kuno closed his eyes and took up an offensive stance with his sword.

 The wall of demons rushed towards them like the waves of the sea.

 Akane stepped forward, feeling the heat of the monster's breath as she
lashed out with her blade, hacking one of them in two. It screamed
painfully and was quickly replaced by two more. They were disgusting
creatures, looking like a cross between a rat and a lizard, with humanoid
faces and sharp teeth. The creatures laughed and giggled like hyenas. 

 Kuno strolled forward making massive strokes with his blade, taking
dozens of the creatures out in his strokes. "Monsters! You will not fell
the Mighty Blue Thunder of Furinkan High!"

Kura was in front of the both of them, using ice blades like shiruken as
he carved a path through the evil creatures. The shower grew more
intense, impaling thousands of the creatures as they swarmed. He looked
up and saw the hell lords approaching.

 Akane twisted and turned, surrounded on all sides by the things. Her
blade working in tandem with the scabbard as she cut a path of
destruction. She screamed angrily as she was forced back. Twisting the
sword around in her hand and stabbing back to remove one of them from
behind her. She spun around and took its head, jumping into the air and
further back.

 "Kuno!" she cried as she saw him battling nearby. He was covered in
blood, not all of it demonic blood either. The things were crawling on
him, scratching at his body and face. He didn't seem to notice as he
steadily moved back, hacking and slashing with deadly results.

 A spear stabbed at her and she gasped. The demons had grown larger, the
second wave had hit, and the tiny troll like things were now coming at
her with weapons.  Stumpy little spears and knives.

 She rolled away through the crowd of monsters, knocking a large number
of them away as she found herself surrounded.

 "Damn you!" she screamed angrily as she took the things limbs away with
a furious display of slashes.

 "Oh ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho!" cried a chillingly familiar voice from
above them.

 Akane gasped as a bouquet of flowers landed at her feet, black roses.
She jumped into the air, spears whizzing by her as she twisted in mid
air. The flowers exploded below, blanketing the area in a cloud of gas.

 She landed on the ground, knocking several of the things away with a few
well placed kicks as they tried to spear her in mid air again. "Kodachi!"

 The girl was standing just outside the demonic horde, a cruel looking
smirk on her face. "Akane Tendo."

 "What are you doing here?" muttered the girl as she backhanded one of
the things that dove for her from behind.

 "I came to claim my Ranma-sama!" said the insane girl with a small
chuckle.

 Akane ignored the reply and continued to fight. "Damn! Don't you let
up?!" she screamed angrily at the monsters as they continued to swarm.
She was growing tired and a few slashes and cuts were starting to appear
on her body.

 She gasped in shock as another rose planted itself in the ground at her
feet. She jumped back again just as it exploded, nearly becoming skewered
in the process once again. "I don't need your help!" she snapped angrily
at the gymnast. 

 "Help you? My dear girl, I'm trying to be rid of you," said Kodachi
cheerfully. 

 Akane gasped when she realized something, none of the little demons were
attacking the girl. "What the?"

 "Little witch! I'll never allow you to take my Ranma-sama away!" cried
Kodachi as she lashed out with her ribbon, forcing Akane to back away and
cut into the horde that was still trying its best to kill her.

 "Damn!" she screamed in frustration.

 Kodachi laughed madly as she danced among the creatures unharmed,
whipping her ribbon around and making jabs at her rival.

 "No! You don't know what you're doing! Stop it!" screamed Akane as she
jumped towards her.

 "I'll finally be rid of you!" snapped Kodachi hatefully.

 Akane gave a battle cry as she attempted to use the scabbard to slash at
the girl. It was neatly sliced in half by the ribbon. She landed opposite
her and was once again swarmed by the tiny demonic creatures. "Damn you!"

 "I'll do anything to have my Ranma-sama to myself!" cried the girl.

 Akane steeled herself as the gymnast dove for her from the sky. "No! I
can't!" she muttered to herself as she clutched the tachi in her hands.
She was shaking uncontrollably.

 Kodachi landed, blanketing the area with her spinning ribbon and cutting
the demon horde around Akane to pieces. The shorthaired girl spun to
avoid the attack, narrowly missing it as a large portion of her right
sleeve was shaved away.

 Both of the girls froze suddenly. Akane had her back to Kodachi and her
eyes were closed. 

 The gymnast was merely standing with a smile on her face. She opened her
mouth to speak, and blood poured out.

 Akane opened her eyes with a horrified look on her face and released the
blade's hilt. Kodachi staggered back with the blade stuck in the center
of her chest. 

 "No!" muttered Akane in horror as she staggered back.

 The demons backed away and watched as Kodachi continued to move
backwards, a shocked look in her eyes. She stopped suddenly and brought
her hand up to her cheek. There was a smear of blood on her face now and
she looked at her hand in confusion. Slowly, her eyes turned towards the
sky. 

 The shower of ice shards was moving up behind her and she screamed as it
consumed her, impaling her thousands of times.

 Akane simply looked on in shock as she began to back away from the
oncoming shower. She turned and started to sprint towards the crowd of
demons that were behind her. Quickly she dove into them, snagging one of
the thing's spears as she went. 

 The things came to life in an instant, screeching madly as they attacked
again. She screamed as she continued to sprint towards the end of the
battlefield, spinning the spear around her body skillfully as she carved
out a path in front of her.

+++++++++++++++

 Kuno snarled in anger as he continued to slash through the beasts. His
blade working as they crawled across his body, latching on to him and
slowly forcing him to the ground. Once that happened, it was all over. He
staggered to his knees and snorted. "I fight on!" Looking up, he saw a
massive set of jaws and teeth moving towards his face.

 Then, there was a spray of red. 

The kendoist-turned-Samurai blinked. He expected there to be more to
death, after all, his face had just been bitten off.

 "Are you going to sit there? Or fight!" cried a familiar voice.

 "You!" cried Kuno in shock as he realized that the creature that had
attempted to take his life was now impaled into the ground with a rather
large blade sticking from its neck.

 Mousse frowned at him and spread his arms just behind him. "Ranma was
right, they won't move too far from here." Two massive blades shot out
from his forearms and he pushed his glasses up his nose for a moment. "If
we fall back now, we should be able to escape."

 "Escape?" muttered Kuno in disgust.

 "Dying now would be pointless," said Mousse. "We've done all we can.
It's up to those gods now. Who better than to leave this in the hands of
the Gods?"

 Kuno knocked a few of the beasts away from him and snorted. "So be it.
Your words ring true, perhaps we can fight again one day?"

 "Not likely," grumbled Mousse in irritation. "While you were busy
talking, we were surrounded."

 Kuno snorted. "So, shall we die with honor?"

+++++++++++++++++++

 On a jet-black horse that stood ten feet tall, a massive figure shrouded
in darkness looked out over the battlefield. The ice bounced harmlessly
away from those that stood in the group. Hell lords and class ranked
demons. They moved in files towards the temple and stopped just in front
of the red wall.

 Hild, the figure on the horse hissed angrily. "Dispel that."

 The massive dragon lifted its head up from behind her, looking at it for
a moment. "No. We have no time for such foolishness. Continue, let the
horde be sent back."

 "Master? Are you sure?" said one of the demons that stood along beside
him in shock.

 Mikaboshi roared in anger and bit down on the thing, leaving only his
legs behind. "Do not question me again! Forward!" it snarled.

 The others continued forward, moving through the barrier unharmed.

 Kura stood in front of the gateway with a smirk on his face as he looked
up at them. The plan had worked; Mikaboshi was too impatient to waste
time getting his horde through.

 The rows of demons stopped in front of him as the gates to heaven opened
up behind him. Two stone doors that led to a bright white light just
behind him.

 "So, we meet again," said Mikaboshi as it narrowed its eyes at the god.

 "Yes," said the deity calmly.

 "A clever trap, you are to be commended," said Hild as she nodded at
him. "But far from enough."

 "I know," said Kura calmly. He steeled himself and moved into a fighting
stance. The sky above him roared angrily.

 "You will die!" snarled the angry looking dragon as it slowly stalked
forward.

 "I was ready to die when I came here, but I'm not ready to give up just
yet."

 "You cannot stop us from moving forward, you pitiful thing," said Hild
coldly.

 Kura merely smiled at her, his eyes moved through the ranks and fell on
Mara. She was looking at him with a sort of shock on her face. "You
should have joined us."

 "I'll be destroyed first," he replied to her.

 "So be it!" snarled Mikaboshi as he roared and dove for him.

++++++++++++++++

 Akane gasped as she lay on the grass. As Ranma had told her, the horde
had not followed her very far once she'd started moving away from the
temple. Tears filled her eyes as she watched the wind blow across the
open field where she was lying. The thunder rumbled in the distance
behind her, she could not move anymore from pain and her injuries.

 The spear she had stolen was lying on the ground nearby; a patch of
brown dead grass surrounded it. The blisters on her hand she had received
from using the weapon were still boiling on her hands painfully.

 "Ranma..." she whispered to herself.

 A sound, slow staggering came to her as she lay there on her back. Her
eyes went wide as she jumped to her feet, ignoring the jolt of agony it
caused. She reached out her hand, and the spear was once again in her
hands despite the pain it caused. She gasped at what she saw before her.

 Tatewaki Kuno was still alive, his blood soaked blade was still in his
grasp and he panted. His face and hair were covered in blood, and she
could still see the scars he had received in battle. He stumbled over too
her and fell to his knees. He was grasping his right arm over a
particularly nasty wound.

 "We made it," she said quietly as she dropped the spear once again.

 "Indeed," he said as he nodded at her. He fell onto the ground and
rolled over onto his back. "Perhaps I shall rest here for a time."

 Akane smiled at him and nodded her head, doing much the same thing. Her
smile quickly faded as she remembered who they had left behind.
"Ranma...Kura...please be all right."

+++++++++++++++

 Kura jumped above the massive jaws as they came down for him, the
snakelike neck snapped up towards him with its jaws moving towards him at
a speed he could not dodge.

 He closed his eyes and grit his teeth, waiting for the end. 

 "Hayashita Shishihoukoudan!" cried a familiar voice from behind him.

 The dragon roared as a coat of ice filled his mouth as a ball of white
energy slammed into his muzzle.

 Kura slammed into the ground rolling over as the beast crushed the ice
easily and turned towards the gateway.

 "Ryoga?" muttered Kura as he saw a familiar figure walking out of the
doorway.

 "Huh. Did you really think I'd leave my fate in your hands, Okami?"
snorted the boy as he smirked at him and crossed his arms over his chest.

 "Ryoga! You've got to leave! You'll be killed!" said Ranma as he rushed
up to the boy's side. He paused and noticed that the demons were backing
away from the boy.

 "You're already too late for that, Okami," said Ryoga with a sort of sad
smile on his face.

 Kura stepped back from him and turned towards the demons.

 "What's going on?" he muttered as he saw gods filing out of the gateway
and onto the field.

 "These cowards wanted to wait for these monsters to come up to us, while
you fought down here!" snarled Ryoga as he scowled at the demons. "I
won't have it!"

 The large group of gods was growing larger and larger; they unsheathed
various weapons and started to advance.

 Mikaboshi roared, rearing his head back. "Destroy them!"

 Both factions rushed forward, colliding midway in front of the gates.

++++++++++++++

 Cologne frowned as she looked off into the horizon from the window of
the Cat Cafe. "It has begun."

 "What?" muttered Shampoo in confusion. "Shampoo not know what
happening."

 "The gods and demons have met in battle, it will devastate the world,"
said Cologne with a heavy sigh.

 "Mousse!" gasped Shampoo as she stepped towards the door.

 "If Mousse is there, it is already too late Shampoo," said the old woman
with a fake sigh. The girl would probably be saddened, but she would get
over it soon enough. No one would be the wiser from her little plot to
finally rid her family of the annoying boy.

+++++++++++++++

 Kura fought hard against the demons before him, a hard punch slammed
across his jaw and he was thrown onto his back. "Damn, she hits hard."

 Mara frowned at him and slowly stalked forward. "I owe you a lot of
pain."

 Kura staggered to his feet again and frowned at her. "I said no, and I
meant it. You shouldn't have kept pushing!"

 Mara snarled at him and kneed him in the groin, forcing him to stagger
back and gasp in pain. "Damn!" He coughed for a moment and glared up at
her. "You know, I've tried to be nice about this!"

 "Wha?" she muttered at the look in his eyes.

 "I'm tired of being nice, Mara," he clenched his fist and stood upright.

 "Uh-oh," she said as she backed away.

 Raiden and Fujin knocked away the demons they were fighting with an
almost casual air about them. They floated to his side and frowned at
Mara. "Need any help?" asked Fujin.

 "I can handle myself, keep an eye on the big guy," said Kura as he
nodded towards where Mikaboshi was watching the battle. He and Hild were
on a hilltop nearby, watching impassively.

+++++++++++++++++

 "This battle disgusts me," snarled Mikaboshi angrily. "Not one of the
gods has fallen yet! Have you grown so weak?" 

 Hild looked at him in surprise. "What? We can't kill the gods! We can
only hope to beat them back until we can seal them away!"

 Mikaboshi turned and narrowed his eyes at her. "If it was anyone else,
you would be in my belly by now, Hild. Think carefully, and explain this
to me."

 The demoness swallowed and shifted from her place on her mount, edging
away from him. "The Doublet System!" she muttered.

 "What is this, 'Doublet System' you speak of?" hissed the dragon.

 "If we kill one of the gods, one of us dies," said Hild fearfully. "The
same goes for if they kill one of us! It's a safeguard against war!"

 "I see," said the dragon with an icy tone to his voice.

 "We have not lost yet, Master," she said with the confidence returning
to her voice.

 "No, we have not," agreed the dragon. "And Hild?"

 "Yes?" she asked him.

 "Goodbye Hild," replied the dragon as he bit her in half.

+++++++++++++

 Kura paused as Amaterasu suddenly froze in place. "Wha?" she muttered in
horror as she fell to her knees.

 "Master!" cried Kura as he dropped Mara to the ground. The demoness was
flinching as he raised his arm into the air to strike her. 

 All the gods and demons paused and turned to the scene. Amaterasu was
lying on the ground, dead. "No!" muttered Kura as he lifted up her head
and looked into her eyes.

 "Kura!" cried a voice from overhead. "We've got serious trouble!" said
Raiden as he landed beside his brother and lifted him forcefully away
from the goddess's body.

 Fujin landed beside him as well. 

 "What?" said Ranma sadly.

 "Look," said Raiden as he pointed up towards the great evil dragon.

 Somewhere in the crowd, another god fell from an unseen foe. The demons
and gods all backed away from him.

 Disturbed whispering started among the crowd as they all turned to see
Amatsu Mikaboshi chasing down his own generals, and snap them up into his
massive jaws.

 "No!" cried someone nearby in horror.

 The demons began to back away, moving into the crowd of gods as their
master began to slaughter his own kind. For every demon that died,
another cry of pain and terror echoed through the god's camp.

 "He's killing them!" said Ranma in shocked horror.

 "We've got to stop him!" cried Yamma no Kami as she started to rush
forward. 

 "Come on! All of us!" cried Kura.

++++++++++++++++

 Amatsu Mikaboshi paused as he saw the entire combined army of heaven and
hell slowly approaching him. He chuckled to himself as they moved
forward. "Yes, come to me. All of you come to your death!" He turned
towards them, and charged full on. Only to find his claws beginning to
crunch into the ground. He looked down and saw the ice beginning to form
at his feet. One of his demons was frozen up to his waist by the ice, and
he raked his claw across the unfortunate being.

 "Are you not prepared to give your very lives for the sake of evil!?"
roared the dragon across the gathered army. "Come to me my servants! Give
your lives so that I might rule all!"

 There was an angry cry from the army gathered there, beams of various
power pulsed out from the crowd and pushed the dragon back. The thing
roared in anger, but a few of the weaker willed demons started to stagger
forward from within the crowd.

 Kura rushed forward, moving ahead of the army and screamed as he exerted
himself. A wall of ice formed between himself and the oncoming demons,
blocking their path.

 "You interfere with me again godling?" snarled the beast as he looked
down at the man for a moment.

 "I'll never let you win! No matter how many times it destroys me!" he
spat back defiantly.

 "So be it," snarled the dragon as it suddenly jumped to live and
attacked. The claws and teeth were impossibly fast as Kura dodged
desperately. 

 The wall of ice shattered in places, and the demons began to file
through the holes towards their master. A glazed look filling their eyes.

 The god knew he wouldn't last, and forced a beam of water out of his
hands at the thing as it snapped towards him again. 

 "NO!" cried a familiar voice as he found himself shoved out of the way.
Mara had broken free of his power and shoved herself in his place.

 He gasped as he found himself skidding across the ice. He rolled onto
his side and looked on with wide eyes. Mara clutched his muzzle in pain,
blood pouring out of her mouth as she found herself being raised into the
air by the demon god.

 "You dare defy me! Die!" snarled the dragon as it opened its mouth and
breathed a burst of flaming dark power, consuming her completely and
slamming into the gathered army below, forcing a rift as the gods and
demons strong enough to resist his will were forced to move.

 "Mara! NO!" screamed Kura as he staggered to his feet and looked up at
her.

 The skeleton hanging from the monster's jaws slowly turned its head
towards him, and then fell apart, clattering to the ground below.

 Kura froze and looked on in shock. He turned his gaze up to the massive
dragon and screamed in rage. Power built up in his hands and he shot a
powerful jet of water from his hands at the thing. It quickly froze,
changing into a spear of ice that pummeled the thing in its neck
relentlessly. "Die! Monster! Die!" he screamed in rage.

 Mikaboshi ignored the attack and dove for him once again, his jaws
opened wide. Kura stood defiantly, changing the shift of his power wave
into the thing's mouth. It ignored that as well, and Kura prepared to die
once again.

 Kura jerked back suddenly and slid across the frozen ground. He shook
his head and looked around dumbly. He was covered in ropes and chains and
looked up to see Mousse standing on top of the wall with the ropes firmly
in his grasp. "No one can kill you until I've had the chance, Saotome!"
His face was a smirk and he jumped down as the Dragon turned his
attention towards him in anger.

 The ice wall shattered as wave after wave of power shot from the army
behind them, driving the beast back. The spellbound demons slowly shook
of the effects of his control as he lost his concentration and joined
into the blast as well. 

 The evil god roared as he struggled against the combined might of all
the gods and demons alike. Kura stood up and joined in as well. 

 Amatsu Mikaboshi snarled hatefully as he looked up into the sky and saw
the clouds overhead beginning to swirl in a familiar way. "No! I won't be
defeated!" He roared as the light of Kami-sama's seal blasted down from
heaven and pushed him back into hell once again.

 For the first time in millions of years, the gods and demons cheered as
one, their enemy finally defeated.

 Kura sighed and hung his head in exhaustion; the fighting was finally
over.

 Mousse smirked down at him. "Well Saotome, it seems that you can't marry
Shampoo after all. I guess that means I win."

 The god looked up at him and accepted his extended hand. "I guess so,
you finally beat me, Mousse."

 Kura blinked. "You're not dead? What?"

 "No. Why would I be dead?" asked Mousse in confusion.

 "How did you get here? I thought..."

 "That idiot Kuno," snorted Mousse. "I helped him escape, and ended up
trapped in the middle of those little monsters. I saw they were avoiding
this place, and fought my way here."

 The god blinked at this and shrugged his shoulders. "Well, I guess it's
over then."

 Mousse merely smiled and pushed his glasses up his nose. Kura grinned
and took them off of his face. "You don't need those," he said
cheerfully.

 Mousse blinked and frowned in confusion for a moment. 

 "See you around 'Duck-no-more'," said Kura as he waved and vanished into
the crowd that surrounded him.

 "Hey!" said Mousse as he started after him. "Hey...I can see..." he
muttered to himself.

 "Well, congratulations then," said another familiar voice.

 "Hibiki?" muttered Mousse in confusion.

 Ryoga was standing there with his arms crossed over his chest and
smiling at him. "I guess this is goodbye, Mousse."

 "Huh?" said the boy as he frowned at the lost boy. "What do you mean?
It's over, we won."

 "Yeah. We did," said Ryoga cheerfully. "I have something to ask of you."

 Mousse frowned at this. "Huh?"

 "Tell Akari I said goodbye, and tell her I died like a man," said Ryoga
as he turned away from the boy. "Tell Akane for me as well. I'll miss
her, at least until I see her again."

 "Wait!" cried Mousse as he moved after the boy. "What do you mean? What
are you talking about?"

 "I'll see you soon Mousse," said Ryoga as he started moving towards the
gateway to heaven with some of the gods. 

 The boy realized that both factions were starting to vanish a little at
a time. "You mean..."

++++++++++++++

 Kura staggered across the field searching through the crowds. The bodies
of the fallen were already being moved away with a sort of silent
respect. He passed by a few of the fallen gods on his path through the
crowd and hung his head in sadness. His master was gone as well,
Amaterasu, the sun goddess. She would need a replacement, but one of the
other pantheons would be able to cover until the new goddess of the sun
was ready. It could take centuries before one could be found.

 Tears flowed down his face as he found the spot where she had died. She
had already been carried off, and he knelt to the ground. "Master..."

 A firm yet gentle set of hands fell onto his shoulders and he looked up
to see Urd smiling at him sympathetically. She took him into her arms and
he rested his head against her shoulder for a moment.

 "It's over," she said quietly.

 "I know," he managed to choke out.

++++++++++++++++

 A short time later, he stood alone in the field. Urd was waiting for him
by a nearby road, silently and patiently.

 Kura was looking down at where Mara had died saving him. He simply
looked on in silence, thinking to himself for a long time. Finally, he
reached down and put a single black flower on the ground. The same one
she had brought him after he had begun to receive his memories back. He
smiled as a small light formed in his hand and the plant rooted. 

 "You'll grow strong," he said to it gently. He stood up and turned away,
leaving the spot in silence.

 He walked back to Urd's side and smiled at her for a moment. "It's time
to go home." 
 
 "Back to the Ucchan's?" she asked him.

 "Yeah. Come on, I still got a promise to keep," he said with a small
wistful sigh.

+++++++++++++++

 "What?" muttered Fujin and Raiden dumbly.
 
 "You heard me! Get back to work you idiots! How dare you leave all those
chores unfinished!" cried Ukyo angrily as she stared at the pair of gods
in front of her.

 "We had to go save the world! You ungrateful little..." grumbled Fujin.

 "Yeah! And for the last time, I don't do dishes!" snapped Raiden.

 "Just finish your work, and you can do what you want!" retorted Ukyo.

 "But, we're tired! We've been fighting all day!" whined Fujin.

 "Yeah!" agreed his brother.

 "Go!" cried Ukyo as she shoved them back into the kitchen. She turned
back to the door and started working on the grill again. Ranma, or rather
Kura, would be back soon. "Great. Those two freeloaders," she grumbled
with a smile slowly forming on her face.

+++++++++++++++++

 The End.
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