[FFML] [TEASER][R.5][DARK] The Rage

I started this fic a year or so ago, and kind of lost interest in it once I started other projects. I kept it in the back of my mind for a while, though, and I think it's time to take another crack at it.
C&C is, as always, more than welcome and greatly appreciated.
Note: I'm also re-starting my Knight and Gos MSTings, if anyone has a fic they want riffed. If you don't mind soem C&C mixed with stupid jokes just submit a fic and I'll try to get to it.

---------------------------------

Ranma 1/2 was created by Rumiko Takashi and is used without permission. Any characters in this fic who do not appear in the manga or anime, however, are mine.

Ranma 1/2
The Rage

-------------------------------

Seven thousand yen.
HIkaru Gosunkugi had to resist the urge to take it out of his wallet and count it one more time to be certain he actually had it. He'd learned his lesson about holding money where other people could see it.
Each step he took on the mostly empty sidewalk made the butterflies in his stomach move with growing intensity. He couldn't believe he was doing this, that he was actually going to buy it.
It has to work, he thought as he rounded a corner that led into a small side street. No, it will work.
He knew. He didn't know how, but he knew that this was the one.
His feet brought him to a halt outside his destination, a small wooden door in an otherwise empty span of brick. The sign above the stained entryway was a simple wooden banner proclaiming it "The Coven".
Hikaru's hand siezed the doorknob and a fleeting chill ran through him. His skin tingled, as if every sense were...
"The hell with it," he grunted. Hikaru turned the knob and the door swung inward without a sound.
Time to spend that seven thousand yen...

It was only his second time in The Coven, but he still felt the same tingling dread he had the first time he had found the strange shop. The air smelled of dust and a strange musk that seemed to creep up his nostrils to carress his brain. The only light came from dimly burning candles which sat atop shelves coated with dust and crates that held God-knew-what.
Hikaru treaded carefully through the congested, crooked ailes as the incense prevalent in the air filled his chest and head. He called out timidly for the owner.
"Mister Gosunkugi," said a smooth velvet voice from the shadows.
Hikaru turned to see him standing near a stack of boxes. A robe of dingy red cloth hung from his rangy frame to fall to his feet in a cascade of random folds. Not a hair was present on his tanned and weathered face, the scalp covered in tattoos of a nature Hikaru could not divine.
The eyes, however, held him fast. Deep green orbs that drew his own gaze like twin magnets, windows to a soul both deep and old.
Gosunkugi took another breath of the heady incence before answering, "Mister Chandraskatta. You startled me."
"My apologies," the Indian man smiled. "May I assume you have come back for it?"
"Y... yeah." Anxiety welled up in Hikaru's chest, growing with each moment spent in the dark and dusty shop, from staring into Chandraskatta's eyes.
"You do not seem certain," he said in that same calm voice. "If you are unsure, then I am afraid I cannot do business with you." Chandraskatta turned then, dismissing Hikaru with a soft swish of his robes across the floor.
"WAIT!"
"Yes?"
"I... I am sure. I do want it!"
Chandraskatta turned his head, one green eye studying him as if it could see into his very soul.
"Truly?"
"Yes!"
The Hindu man's left eye continued to gaze at him, into him, through him for what felt like an eternity before he answered.
"Very well. Wait here."
Though he didn't say so, Hikaru felt a surge of relief when Chandraskatta disappeared into the shadows the light of the scattered candles didn't touch. The man's very presence was enough to make him feel as if... what?
That he was nothing. Those emerald eyes seemed to hold a universe of wisdom, seeing all and missing none...
"This incense must be getting me high," Hikaru muttered. Yeah, that had to be it. Right?
"Here it is, young man," Chandraskatta's voice drifted from the shadows as the man glided into view. In his hands was a box made of dark oak, a gilt handle atop it made of what looked to be solid gold.
Just the handle by itself's gotta be worth a million at least, Hikaru thought to himself as Chandraskatta drew up in front of him.
Before he realized what was happening, Hikaru had fished out the seven thousand yen from his wallet and handed it over.
"To open the box," Chandraskatta began, "merely twist the handle to the right."
"I got it," Hikaru replied as he hefted the box in his hands. It was surprisingly light.
"I am obliged to inform you that I do not accept returns, nor do I give refunds."
"No problem." Hikaru turned to leave, yet was stopped when one of Chandraskatta's thin hands appeared on his shoulder. Various sygils were tattooed in black ink on the skin, the grip strong as iron.
What the...?
Hikaru looked closer. He could have sworn that one of those tatoos had moved...
"There is something else I must tell you," Chandraskatta said as he turned Hikaru around to face him. Gosunkugi again found himself locked by those haunting eyes, drowning in them, lost...
"Mark these words, Hikaru Gosunkugi, and mark them well. What you hold in your hands is the power you claim to crave.
"It will grant you any wish, any at all, but only once. Do you know the nature of a wish?"
"Yes..."
"We shall see."
Hikaru shook his head, confused. Everything seemed so cloudy, so vague.
"Be careful of what you wish. You will get it, and everything that comes from it is yours to face and yours alone."
"I understand." Hikaru turned around, walking to the door as fast as he could without breaking into a run.
"Enjoy your purchase," he heard Chandraskatta say as he stepped into the clear air outside The Coven.
"I know I will," Hikaru didn't hear the strange mystic say.

-------------------------------------

Hikaru sat in his bedroom, staring at the antique box which rested in front of him on the desk. The black wood taunted him with the mysteries of what lay inside beyond the name of the object he had just bought for a measly seven thousand yen. There were no seams visible, not even any that he could feel with his fingers. How the hell was it supposed to open?
Maybe I should have the box appraised, he thought as he traced his fingers over the woven golden threads of the handle. It might be worth something.
He took a deep breath to steady his nerves. It was time. The handle twisted easily, stopping with a soft click. Hikaru gasped as thin lines lanced out from the gold handle across the top half of the box, the sections sliding away one by one to reveal what lay beneath.
It rested atop a plush cushion of purple silk in the center. The Wishing Orb itself was rather small, a dull silver sphere only a little larger than a softball.
It was a little less than Hikaru had expected. There was no fanfare, no smoke that coalesced into a genie, no brilliant light. Just a silver orb in a box.
Okay, it was a lot less than he had been expecting.
Dubiously, he hefted the orb in his right hand and held it to his face. It was light, far too light to be solid silver. He'd been gypped again...
-- I am listening --
"What?!" Hikaru jerked in his seat, head whipping around to find the source of the voice. "Who said that?!"
-- I am listening --
"Who are you?!"
-- Speak with your mind, Hikaru Gosunkugi --
-- Like this? --
-- Yes --
-- Who are you? --
-- I am listening --
Hikaru frowned slightly. Obviously, this kami... spirit... whatever, wasn't big on conversation.
-- This is where I make a wish, right? --
-- Yes --
Hikaru knew what he wanted. He wanted Akane to be his. He wanted her to love him as much as he loved her!
But there was a problem. Oh, yes, a big problem.
Ranma would stand in his way, as he always did. Wishing for the strength to defeat the pig-tailed bastard would not be enough. Ranma would keep trying. He and Akane would never have peace...
What was it that made him so irresistable to women? What quirk did he posess that made them want him so desperately no matter how much of a jerk he was?
-- Sometimes I just wish he were someone else entirely... --
"OH SHIT!"
-- It is done --
-- HEY, WAIT! I DIDN'T MEAN IT! --
Silence was his only reply. Hikaru glared at the Wishing Orb, unable to believe how stupid he had just been.
"I wanted to wish for Akane to love me, damn it!" he screamed as he shook the orb.
"Hikaru? What are you doing up there?"
"Nothing, mom!"
He hung his head, berating his own stupidity. Wishing for Ranma to be someone else? What the hell would that accomplish?

------------------------------------

Ranma woke to find the sun in his eyes, and his father standing over him.
"Get up, boy!" Genma bellowed.
"What do you want, old man?" Ranma growled. Just the sight of his father first thing in the morning irritated him to no end.
"I've been lax in your training, son. You've been getting lazy."
"You're one to talk!" Ranma barked. Genma was really starting to piss him off.
"I said, get up! It's time to train!"
Ranma rolled aside just in time to avoid his father's blow to the stomach. He gained his feet in one fluid motion and attacked.

Genma was caught completely by surprise at the speed of his son't assault. Twin fists snatched at his gi with surprising strength and his feet lost hold of the floor.
He was aware of the window glass shattering at his back, and righted himself before hitting the ground. The boy was going to be agressive this morning, eh?
"Get ready, you old fart!" he heard Ranma shout. Genma saw him bolt out the window, legs tucked in and arms extended behind him. The elder Saotome landed in a crouch and prepared for the diving kick that was sure to come.
"MOKO TAKABISHA!"
"What the hell?!" Genma barely managed to leap back before the ki orb smacked the ground with murderous force, throwing a cloud of dust and debris into the morning air.
"Son, what are you doing?!"
"You're the one who wanted to train, old man!" Ranma returned as he landed in the crater left by his attack and charged.
Genma soon realized that this whole training thing had been a bad idea when he found himself struggling against the ferocity of Ranma's attack. Despite his best efforts at dodging and evading, the near-amaguriken speed of his son's blows still managed to connect.
"RANMA!" A hard shot to the left shoulder... "What are you..." Jackhammer blow to the solar plexus, breakfast coming up, blood?... "... doing..." he wheezed just before a savage fist to the right temple sent Genma Saotome's lights out.

Ranma stood panting over the unconscious form of his father, sanguine rage singing in his blood. He wanted more, he wanted to fight!
"Next time you wanna fight, you worthless barrel of monkey shit," he snarled, "you better bring the noise! And you better bring it louder than I can!"
He turned around to see several sets of eyes staring at him in complete shock.
"What?"
"R... Ranma..." Soun stammered. "Was that... um... really necessary?"
"He had it comin', and you know it. Aw, screw this, I'm goin' to school."
Ranma noticed with some satisfaction that the assembled Tendos did not hesitate to get out of his way.

"What," Akane began, "the hell was THAT all about?!"
"Uncle Saotome must have really pissed in Ranma's corn flakes this morning," Nabiki said in a worried voice.
Akane stared up steps Ranma had taken, still trying to take in the surreal scene that had played out in the garden. She had never seen Ranma attack his own father with such ferocity, and what he had said!
She considered marching up there and asking what the bloody hell his problem was, but decided that perhaps bothering Ranma right then would not be a good idea.
"Call an ambulance!" she heard Kasumi cry out. Akane ran out to where her eldest sister knelt beside Genma and gasped in horror at the blood that coated his mouth and stained the top of his gi. A hideous bruise had already formed on the side of Genma's head, growing from deep purple to almost black.

------------------------------------------

Tatewaki Kuno waited stoically at the gates of Furinkan High that calm autumn morning. The gentle breeze ruffled his hair and hakama, and his worn mind replaced the school with a palace, his bokken a gleaming blade honed to razor sharpness.
The foul sorcerer Saotome would come through here, and this would be the day of reckoning. The soundtrack from The Seven Samurai began to play in his mind, and he already had a horrible haiku to his victory and his two loves composed and available.
The students just as stoically ignored him. Fights between Kuno and Ranma were commonplace to the point of being mundane. No one was particularly interested in seeing Kuno get his ass handed to him anymore.

Ranma stomped toward the front gates of Furinkan Hellhole, his anger growing with heach step. Akane hadn't followed him from the dojo, and so much the better. He was in no mood to put up with that tomboy bull dyke today.
His fists clenched and unclenched, the desire to use them on someone... ANYone... growing stronger and stronger. And really, who didn't deserve it? After all the punishment he'd endured since coming to this backwater town, wasn't it about time he started dishing some out, himself? How much longer was he gonna be a fucking doormat for anyone who wanted to use him?
Ranma's eyes narrowed as he spotted a familiar figure in a blue kendo outfit standing at the front gate.
"Goody," he sneered. "Looks like another prime candidate's shown up."

Kuno drew his noble blade as the sorcerer Saotome approached. The vassals and serfs had already run for cover from the titanic - and predetermined - battle that was about to commence.
In reality, few noticed. A couple of students saw the look on Ranma's face, though, and felt sorry for the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High. Saotome definitely looked pissed off.
"HOLD, CRETIN!" Kuno boomed. "Thou shall not escape the divine wrath of Heaven this day!"

Akane stopped near the entrance, thankful that she still worked out every day. She saw Ranma, fists clenched and a look on his face that lanced any anger she had over what he had done earlier.
If Ranma had looked angry before, he looked absolutely bloodthirsty now.
And Kuno was standing in his path...

"You ready, Kuno?" Ranma said in a low voice. "You ready for me to shove that bokken so far up your ass that you'll pick splinters outta your teeth?"
"You..." Kuno sputtered. "You... dare... to speak to me in such a..."
His next words were lost along with several teeth as Ranma's lighting-fast punch landed. Stars danced in Kuno's vision as he heard the bone shatter and tasted the coppery tang of blood.
More blows rained down on him, sending pain radiating throughout his body as he felt ribs crack.

Akane watched in horror as Ranma began to beat on the prone upperclassman with savage glee.
"GET UP!" she heard Ranma scream as he yanked Kuno's battered and bleeding form to its feet. Kuno's face was puffed and bloody, both eyes already swollen shut. His jaw was disfigured, obviously destroyed.
Horror welled up in her gut as Ranma's knee landed in Kuno's.

"You like that?" Ranma roared, the lust to inflict pain nearly giving him an erection. "You like that?! You want a little more?!"
Kuno gurgled incoherently.
"Comin' right up, shithead!"
Ranma spun the bludgeoned Kuno around, sending him head-first into a tree with a satisfying crack.
Through the red haze that covered his vision, he noticed the crowd of students. He could feel their fear. It called to him.
What the hell's happening to me?
The rage swelled yet again, and that tiny voice was lost in its torrent.
"RANMA! STOP IT!"

Akane stood there, fists ready. Ranma was out of control, a monster! He faced her, eyes wild with hatred. His body trembled with anger, with pure burning fury.

Hikaru Gosunkugi watched, terrified at the insanity unfolding before him.
"What have I done?" he asked himself. "What in God's name have I done?"

----------------------------------------------

And there's the teaser! I tried to look for this fic, and realized that it didn't make it onto my computer, and my old hard drive has already been recycled. Too bad, because I don't remember a whole lot of the original version.

Anyway, I hope you like this.

BTW, if anyone's interested, this is what happens when you write a teaser with Disturbed playing on WinAmp. ^_^

Knight Writer