Disclaimer:
Domo Arigato Takahashi-sama for your wonderous work in
Ranma 1/2. I would never presume to claim your work
for mine own, I simply borrow from your genius to
entertain those who would read my work. Please send
not your Legions of Rabid Attack Lawyers for I am a
simple person and broke to boot.
I have made several adjustments and hopefully cleaned
up my style a bit - I would appreciate C&C
Prolouge: Birthing Plague
Ranma ran. His clawed feet propelled him through the
bushes at a pace most would consider reckless under
circumstances less dire, his smooth black fur
protecting his flesh from the tearing brambles that
surrounded him. Behind him, to close for comfort, he
could hear the hunters, baying in rage as he eluded
their pursuit. 'Damn them! Damn them all!' His
salvation was suddenly before him then, in the form of
a tunnel barely large enough for him to squeeze into
in his present form, one that _they_ would stand no
chance whatsoever of entering. Diving into the
bolthole he began to dig, desperately trying to widen
the gap before his pursuers were upon him. Less than
half a bodylength inside his hopes were smashed,
destroyed as he would soon be, the tunnel dead ended
into stone.
Pulling himself out, he could make out the hunters
forms as they crashed through the bushes, almost upon
him. This was it then, this was where he would make
his stand, this was where he would sell his life, and
perhaps avenge the lives of his warren brothers by
taking as many of the damned wolves with him as
possible. Standing on his hind legs, he could feel
his body shift to match his will, drawing his blade he
faced his end.
The wolves, while faster than any mere man, were no
match for his raw speed. Before the knew he was
there, he was among them, darting between the legs of
the first while slashing its groin with his blade,
smiling at its scream of agony. Driving his dagger
into ball-less's spine, he launched himself at the
castrate's packmate, sinking his incisors deep into
its throat and tearing out a mouthfull of flesh as it
reeled back from his assault. For a moment, he felt
that he might win, just for a moment, then the third
one blindsided him, driving him into the dirt keening
in pain. Pushing for all he was worth, he tried to
win free, but while he was their superior in speed,
when it came to raw power, the wolves had him clearly
outmatched. Blow after blow rained upon him, keeping
him pinned till the rest of the pack arrived and tore
him apart...
------------------------------------------------------
With a scream, he shot up in bed, regretting it
immediately, waves of pain crashing in his head as he
collapsed back down. Where was he? The sharp smell of
antiseptic and the pinch of an IV in his arm gave
answer. A hospital.... Why? A fight? Memories of
an argument, an argument with Akane... Then Ryoga,
angry... Nothing new there... A fight, yes, a fight..
A momentary mistiming and a blow getting through...
Into the garbage cans... Something coming out,
something disturbed by his landing... A c.. Ccca..
One of THEM... Landing on his chest... To much, last
straw... Now this...
'So hot.. Im on fire.. So dry..' A hand to his
forehead confirmed the fever, the aches and pains
associated with illness, not injury. 'Sick? I never
get sick!' All pride aside, it matched up, while the
bruises from his fight had long since faded, he
hurt... Pain in his head, soreness in his throat...
'Gotta get up... Gotta drink something, anything...
So hot' With a grunt of effort, he levered himself
into sitting position again... Fighting waves of
nausea he stood and made his way to the door, drawn up
short by the pain in his arm as the IV made itself
known again. With a snarl he jerked it out and
continued. Into the bathroom, water... Yes water
would be nice.. Drink... Voices, mutterings... "Who's
there?" Turning a little to quickly for comfort he
found that he was still alone... Turning the water
off he yelped at the unexpected pain from his hand
'Whaa?' A bandage there... Pull it off... His hand
was swollen, with a small bite wound festering lightly
in spite of the antibiotics... 'Where did that come
from?'
'The infection, thats prolly what made me sick...
Yeah thats it, Pops'll have a field day with this, a
little scratch like that laying me up...' Visions of
his fathers jibes and the extra training that would
come from this dancing through his head, Ranma made
his way back to the bed... --no, not here, go--
Turning quickly, he scanned the room, looking for the
voice "Whadaya mean not here? Who's there?" The rooms
only other occupant, an old man on a respirator, had
no answers for him. --go, find the others, out of here
and they will find you-- "What others?" 'What the
hell am I doing? Im having a conversation with
myself... Thats it, the damn tomboy's hit me one too
many time with that mallet, and I've lost it...'
"Look you... Me... Whatever... I aint goin' nowhere
but back to bed. You got a problem with that?" Suiting
actions to words, he made it about halfway before his
stomach made it's displeasure with him known to any
and all who would listen.
"Okaayy, then again, maybe I'll see what I can
scrounge up for eats first..." 'Ucchan's should be
opening soon... I'm sure she wouldnt mind parting
with a couple of okonomiyaki for a sick man.' With
that thought, he had the window open and was out and
on his way... Compleatly overlooking the fact that
all he wore was a hospital gown.
It was a testament to his training and conditioning
that he made it at all. As it was, it was almost two
hours before he arrived at the Ucchan, and the
pre-dawn glow was making itself known.
"I was wondering if you would actually make it this
far." The voice from the shadows caught him off guard
as he whipped around in a combat crouch to face it.
"Who's there? Show yourself!"
A piece of the shadow broke away revealing a young
woman dressed in dark clothing, she looked to be maybe
a little older than Kasumi, raven hair bound in a
simple tail down her back. Moving slightly quieter
than a ghost she aproched him.
"I begin to see why you were chosen, few are those who
are able to travel in the throes of the plague"
"Plague? What do you mean?"
"In time you will know." She looked him over for a
moment. "Mother has chosen well it seems."
"What are you talking about? Who's mother?"
"She is the one who speaks to you, who tends you
during your plague, filling your blood with memories
of what once was, and can be."
"Riight... Look lady, I dont have time for this, as
interesting as your story is, Im hungry, sick, and my
head is killing me. So, not to be rude, but could you
leave this for later?"
Her voice was tinged with light mirth as she turned
away. "As you wish, young Warrior. When you need my
answers, ask your bretheren, they will find me, ask
for Sakura Walks in Shadows, and I will come." With
that she slipped back into the shadows and was gone.
'Sheesh... What a nut.' As he turned to knock on the
door, the last of his strength failed him leaving him
collapsed on the steps.
Ukyo was not a happy camper. Between prices on
supplies, slow business and Hinako-sensei's piles of
homework, stress was mounting to an extreme. Now added
to that, Ranchan was in the hospital with an unknown
disease. 'Leave it to Ranchan.. Could'nt get a cold or
the flu or something normal... Nooo, HE has to catch a
bug nobody's _ever_ heard of.' Her morning
preparations were interrupted by the sound of
something large impacting her door. 'What is it now!?'
"Tsubasa, you jackass! If thats you Im gonna pound
you into the middle of next week!" Storming over to
the door she yanked it open only to have a hospital
gown clad Ranma tumble in and lie there unmoving.
-------------------------------------------------------
Ranma finished gnawing the ropes and sat back to
admire his handiwork. While it would not affect the
ship under normal conditions, the partially chewed
ropes would give way under heavy strain, say that
caused by any number of squalls common this time of
year. The ropes giving way under those circumstances
would cause an untold amount of havoc on the decks,
possibly even sinking the ship... This was good. The
dutch traders were unwelcome, gaijin who brought their
rifles and black powder, disrupting the peace and
harmony of his homeland in ways that would not _could
not_ be tolerated. Chittering an order to his
companions, he led the way down the anchor line and
into the bay, swimming as fast as his four feet could
carry him to the shoreline. Their departure was
noticed by a lone crewman on deck, who muttered
something about rats and sinking ships before
returning his attention to his rum.
-------------------------------------------------------
He was awake again, or he thought he was at least, his
last clear recollection being the strange woman in
front of Ucchan's. Where was he now? His mind was
filled with disjointed memories, dreams blending with
reality, all overlaid with a chittering that he could
almost understand. 'Sleep' It said, 'Sleep for there
is more to see.' Not having the energy to to do
otherwise, he complied.
-------------------------------------------------------
He found himself standing on a hilltop, looking at the
skyline of Tokyo in the distance, the city seemed
different some how, wrong in ways he could not begin
to understand. The chittering, now a voice he could
follow, one he felt he could trust though he knew not
why, surrounded him once more. "What you feel," It
said, "the discomfort, is that wound in the Emerald
Mother's flesh, the entrapment of the Wyld in the
Weavers webs." Looking closer, the scene before him
altered, distorting slightly. He could see the hill
he stood upon, and the surrounding countryside take on
a slightly untamed, though healthy and vibrant aspect,
whereas the closer to the city he looked, the less
healthy it seemed. The voice was right, it was like a
wound, not a mortal blow, more of a festering tear in
the harmony around him. The very essence of the land
itself seemed bound and constrained, begging to be set
free, pleading for release from the seemingly endless
strands that bound it tight. Worse, it was not the
city alone, for the countryside around it was slowly
being drawn in, captured, restraind, ordered and
regulated.
"Look now upon the works of man, who in allaince with
the Weaver is bringing this age to a close."
"What do you mean? Whats going on? Who are you?"
"You have many questions warrior, I am here to answer
them." A haze formed in front of him, slowly
resolving into the form of a giant rat, about ten feet
tall at the shoulder... Oddly enough, this didn't
bother him. Then it spoke again, in the same
chittering sing-song language that he could somehow
understand. "To answer your last question first, I am
Rat, your Mother and guardian. As for what is going
on, you have been chosen from amongst your homid kin
to join my ranks as a Warrior for the Emerald Mother,
known as Gaia to the Sunset People. As for what I
meant earlier, that will become clear in time"
Absorbing this tidbit brought the next question "Why
me? I mean, I'm the best martial artist around, but
what can I do about this?" He waved at the cityscape
before them. "This isn't something you can handle with
your fists."
"Why you? Why not? You are as you claim, a skilled
warrior, and warriors are what I need. True, you alone
cannot affect much, then again, who can tell..." The
last was said with an expression that was _way_ to
reminiscent of Nabiki for his liking.
"Wait a minute here... Theres more goin on here aint
there, you want more than a fighter dont you? You have
something in mind, don't you."
"That I may young warrior, that I may. If I do, I am
sure you will figure it out in time. For now, let us
say that you have talents that can be of great use to
me, in return for which I am granting you strength,
speed and abilities beyond what you could achieve on
your own... Provided of course you survive your
re-birth." That said, the apparition faded, as if it
had never truly been there at all.
Ranma stood there, re-playing the conversation in his
head when something that was said finally penetrated.
"Hey!! Whadaya mean _IF_ I survive?!?!"
-------------------------------------------------------
Tbc
For those of you unfamiliar with the World of
Darkness, more will be revealed shortly, for those of
you who are enlightened, Im sure you realize what is
going on by now..
For those of you who wonder about the Nezumi, this may
give you some insight:
http://members.tripod.com/wwta/Breeds/Ratkin/Tribes/Nezumi/nezumi_tribe.htm
SoulSurvivor
Questions? Comments?
E-mail me at:
simkin@rocketmail.com
We are the equalizers, the Low Born, the ultimate
truth. When our Hakken brothers realize the need for
us again, they will come, and we will make a
killing...literally.
-- TienBao, Nezumi Warrior
(Hakken - Werewolf)
(Nezumi - Wererat)
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