Greetings... This is my first posting to the FFML.
The initial chapters of Wildfire (currently undergoing a rewrite) may be 
located at:  ketheria.anifics.com  I do suggest reading them if you are
not familiar with this fic (from Tannim's or Rakhal's sites or FFnet).

C&C is welcome on any and all of the other chapters and fics available
at that site. ketheria_mt@comcast.net

Chapter text formatted with 3FT. 

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 

[Ranma/O!MG + sm + tm]

The thunder of hooves was a familiar sound to the chariot's driver.
Two mighty stallions pulled the chariot across the heavens. It was his
duty, and, although it was a never ending task, it was a
responsibility that he bore with pride on any normal day. This day,
his responsibilities had an addition that he welcomed with all his
heart.

She had returned home.

He laughed aloud with joy as his chariot rumbled across the sky above
her home. Looking over the side, he caught sight of her near the
central pavilion. Her face was turned up as she followed his progress
through the air. Her distinctive crimson hair caught the rays of the
sun and seemed to dance with a flame all their own. He tore his gaze
away from that welcome sight long enough to guide his team down to
her.

In moments, the chariot was stopped not far from where she was
standing. She walked toward him slowly as he jumped down from his
chariot. Grinning widely, he moved up to her and enveloped her in an
exuberant hug. "Ah, Kinhoshiko," he exclaimed happily as he spun her
around, "it is so good to see you again!"

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

DISCLAIMER: I lay no claim to characters from Ranma 1/2, Tenchi,
Sailor Moon, Ah! My Goddess! Or any other character of any other anime
that may, inadvertently or not, be within this story. They are the
property of their respective authors. Characters and situations from
those series are used without their consent. This is a work of
fanfiction for which I do not expect nor will accept compensation.

This fiction is based upon Ranma 1/2, with strong influence from Ah!
My Goddess and lesser cameos from the Sailors and Tenchi.

First Draft 09-04-03

------ Wildfire Chapter 6 (Draft)------



Clouds drifted lazily past the flying island that had been her home
ever since Urd had abandoned her here so long ago.

With one final, loving tap, she settled the last screen into place. It
had taken her what seemed to be several months to rebuild the shrine,
but the job was finally complete. Where a delicate Grecian style
structure of crystal and stone once was, now a wooden building with a
distinct Japanese styling stood.

The sun dipped lower toward the cloud masked horizon. When it settled
into the proper position, the warm golden rays shone full into the
interior of the shrine. Each of the four walls was dominated by the
wide sliding paper screens that allowed air and light to enter freely.
The black marble gate stone, once elevated above the floor of the old
structure, was now flush with the smooth wooden floor of the shrine.
It was the center point of the building, occupying the place under the
high peaked roof.

To the east and west of the shrine, the gurgling fountains and shallow
pools remained. The constant sound of the flowing water formed a
soothing counterpoint to the occasional rush of wind. The area south
of the shrine had been extensively reworked. An ornate park of marble
sculptures and tall, mazelike hedge rows had been relocated to another
part of the isle. Now, a clearing of packed dirt was all that
remained. This training area showed signs of constant and heavy use.
North of the shrine, a small, well tended rock garden separated the
shrine from another, smaller building of similar styling.

The redhead paused as a now familiar sensation gathered. She fought to
control the wild and tenuous whip of energy that surged about her.
However, as with all previous attempts, she found herself unable to
retain a hold on it. With a brief vision of a mangled pot dancing in
her eyes, her form twisted and melted. The change was not as drastic
as it had been before, but there was still a still a small difference
in the height of his two forms. The willowy curves of his feminine
form melding into his wiry masculine frame.

He sighed as he knelt once more, faced the repositioned sun and
settled down for a wait. The change no longer really bothered him. It
was the fact that it remained out of his control, once again, that
annoyed him immensely. In the month before Urd had brought him here,
he had learned how to control his form with sufficient application of
ki. Now, in attempting to control the change, he felt like he was
fighting a natural part of himself. He'd had no control over the
changes since his arrival.

He believed it wouldn't be very long before his invitation was
answered. Although he had no certain way to determine exactly how long
he had been here, he was certain it had to have been many months, or
even a few years. Thankfully, his time here had not been boring. The
very timelessness of the place made it impossible to be distracted by
the passage of time. That wasn't the real reason, however, that he had
not succumbed to terminal boredom. Were it not for his sensei and the
skills and knowledge that they offered, then he may very well have
gone crazy anyway. It was in just this sort of setting, when the old
shrine still stood and and the sun was in that location, that he met
his first sensei. Of course, he had been a girl at the time...

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

Haisano gazed upon the sun as it hung motionless above the cloud
covered horizon. Urd had abandoned her here, with no obvious way off
this strange island, what she guessed was several days prior. It was
hard to determine the passage of days when the sun never moved. In
that time she had discovered her ki was walled off or blocked somehow.
She could sense it, but she couldn't manipulate it or use it to
enhance herself in any way. It was worse than that moxibustiation
weakness point Happosai had used upon her. At least with that, she
could still use her ki for movement and speed. At odd times, she could
feel her level of ki fluctuate. It almost felt like she was giving her
ki to someone else.

After the first few hours, once she had been able to move again,
Haisano wasted no time in searching for a way off this strange
mountain top. This exploration revealed that she was not on a
mountain, but on a strange little island floating over and among a
seemingly endless sea of clouds. She decided to explore her prison, as
she saw it, in more detail when it became apparent that Urd was not
going to be returning any time soon.

Throughout her exploration, the sun had neither risen further into the
sky, nor set. It remained stationary just above the horizon. It also
seemed much smaller than it should be, although the warmth and
remained the same. Since it didn't move, every part of the island
received light from the star in different proportions. One side was
always in direct sunlight. The other was always in the shadow of the
island itself; a form of perpetual twilight. The plants on the direct
side grew thick and tall, and were of a hearty tropical stock that
could readily withstand the constant heat. Most of the island's
streams wound their way amongst the roots of these trees before making
the final plunge off the side. The middle sections of the island
supported plants with more temperate requirements. The dark side was
mostly covered in ferns and similar soft light plants.

Throughout her search, she had found a multitude of places where
training could be performed. All across the flying island, there were
clearings and glades, pools and waterfalls. In places, clearings were
filled with an assortment of fixed obstacles, beams and poles for
practice. In others, the growth of the flora created a natural
arboreal gymnasium. Most appeared to be for weapons use, but, she was
confident she could adapt to using them to keep up her unarmed skills,
if she were to be stuck here for long.

Scattered across the island, she found several large trees that stood
out from the rest. Each one stood in its own pond of water which had a
series of stepping stones leading out across the pond to the base of
the tree. Of greater note to her, in each great tree she could sense
massive amounts of ki. They greatly resembled the sacred tree at the
Masaki shrine, but were several times larger. At first, she kept well
clear of them, but eventually her curiosity won out over caution. She
approached one of those strange trees. As she stepped out upon the
first stone, she had felt the ki surge within the plant. Streamers of
light shot out from the leaves and bounced off the surrounding pond.
The reflected streams of light formed a broad, multi-hued beam of
energy that lanced up into the clear sky above. At the same time, her
vision started to black out.

Uncertain as to the cause of this event, she retreated quickly and
returned to large atrium to think. So now, she found herself staring
at the burning orb hanging motionless in the sky. She should have
burned out her eyes by now, but the light didn't bother her at all.
Even the brilliant spark moving away from the sun was easy to pick out
against the overall glare of the sun.

Haisano blinked a few times and looked away for a moment and then
looked back. The spark was still there, but now it was apparent to her
that the spark was moving closer and growing larger. The glittering
mote of light swelled as it drew closer. It wasn't long before she
could make out a shape within the brilliance.

Moving toward her little floating prison was a chariot drawn by a pair
of matched white stallions. Flames leapt from the hooves of the
magnificent beasts as they galloped through the sky. The chariot
trailed a stream of fire behind the two flashing wheels. Silver and
gold inlays ran the length of the vehicle adding to the brilliance. In
the chariot, with one hand firmly holding the reins, stood a man. He
was the source of the brilliant light.

As the chariot thundered overhead, casting the warm radiance down upon
the island, Haisano stood and stepped out from beneath the arches of
the atrium. As she did so, she heard a delighted laugh from the man.
Unlike the laughter she was accustomed to hearing, the man's voice was
full of mirth and joy. She stepped around the atrium, expecting to see
the glowing chariot receding into the distance. Instead, she saw that
is was slowing, and circling back toward her prison.

Now that it was moving slower and descending to land, she was able to
make out more details on the lone occupant. He was a caucasian man,
appearing to be in his mid to late twenties. His full beard and thick
head of wavy golden hair streamed out behind him along with a golden
cloak. Armor of European design, fashioned from small overlapping
scale-like golden plates covered his torso, but his arms and head were
bare. A large sword, also of European design, was strapped across his
back.

The man's eyes twinkled above a broad grin as he reigned in his steeds
and stopped the chariot a few meters from where Haisano was standing.
He hopped from the back of his hovering chariot, setting his golden
scale armor to jingling. His fur lined boots thudded onto the packed
dirt of the practice ground. Standing at least two meters tall, he
towered over her.

Upon the man's face, Haisano could easily pick out markings similar to
the ones she saw on Urd's face, and, more recently, upon her own.
Centered on his forehead, was a star burst similar to her own. At the
corner of his eyes, where she had a pair of curved marks resembling
claws, he had a single long diamond shape. Even more startling were
his eyes. His left eye was a bright blue, similar to her own. His
right eye, however, was a rich emerald green. Haisano had never seen a
person with eyes of different colors before then. She was distracted
enough by this observation that she was totally unprepared for him to
step up to her and envelop her with his arms.

"Ah, Kinhoshiko," he cried as he spun her about, "it is so good to see
you again!" Haisano stiffened with outrage at the unexpected and
unwelcome contact. "Let me have a look at you," he said as he set her
upon her feet and stepped back. Before he had move more than a single
step, her fist flew up and embedded itself in his face. Even with the
difference in size, her blow knocked the blonde stranger back into the
side of his chariot.

"Are ya' done squeezing me yet?" she snapped as she glared at the tall
god and settled into a ready stance. "You try something like that
again, you pervert, and I'll kick your but off this rock!" Haisano was
prepared for almost any reaction. The usual response she got from all
the perverts was a declaration of love, or lust. The next most common
reaction was cries of vengeance or for some perceived slight. Failing
that, her rivals would come up with some other form of response
combining some aspect of the two. She didn't expect the stranger to
burst into laughter.

She stood in her ready stance and stared at the stranger in stunned
amazement. She had smacked him almost as hard as she usually hit Kuno,
and he was laughing at her. Her face flushed darker as her anger grew.
She reached for, and found, that deep well of power that she
discovered access to during her battle with Saffron. Her ki was
blocked off, but this was even easier to summon than before. Winds
erupted about her as her aura flared into a flaming crimson pillar of
power. "And just what do ya think is funny?" she snarled as he slowly
stood once more.

Holding up his hands he gestured in a placating manner. "Peace, My
Lady," he said. He wiped his eyes as he continued to chuckle, "Peace.
I laugh not at you, but at myself. When I was told that you had
returned once more to your home I could not wait to welcome you back.
In my joy at seeing you here after such a long time I forgot myself
and overstepped the bounds of courtesy."

"You're darned right you did!" she snapped, "Who do you think you are,
waltzing up and grabbing me like that?" Her glare didn't diminish as
she waited for him to explain himself.

The stranger's chuckles died away as his amused expression faded and a
sense of sadness grew. "I see. You did loose much of thyself, Lady
Kinhoshiko. I apologize for welcoming you back in that manner." The
man spread his hands wide as he continued to speak. "I am known as
Odur, God of the Sun, Category One, Class Two, Limited. I am husband
to Freya, driver of the Chariot of the Sun, and heir to Odin and
Lodur." He then bowed low to her in European fashion and intoned, "At
your service, My Lady."

Haisano blinked and relaxed her stance a bit when he mentioned having
a wife. The power she had gathered dissipated slowly as a smirk formed
on her expressive face. "Odor?" she asked. "What kind of name is
that?"

The god winced slightly and shook his head. "No, not odor," he
corrected with a strained smile, "Odur. O - d - U - r."

Haisano shrugged and brushed aside the correction, "Whatever. That
doesn't tell me why you grabbed me like that."

"As I said," Odur replied cheerfully, "I was so overjoyed to see you
alive once more I forgot that you may not remember me. I was well
known to you in one of your prior incarnations, Kinhoshiko."

"Prior what?" the red-head asked as she raised a hand to forestall any
other comments.

"Incarnation. As in, reincarnation," he explained. "When you were Sol
Haisano, Goddess of the Sun, you knew me very well." He paused then
grinned, "I was like the son you never had."

Haisano felt her stomach lurch at his comment. She could almost feel
the blood draining from her face. "W-what? What do you mean, son?" she
demanded.

"Well, okay, not really a son," he admitted. "You were my mentor
before I was given my first domain." Haisano sighed with relief as he
continued. "Now, it seems that it is my turn to return the favor,
after a fashion. I have been given the honor of instructing you rules
and responsibilities associated with your newly recovered divinity."

The redhead stared at his smiling face for a moment, expecting him to
continue. When he did not, she muttered, "What?"

"That means," he said, "I am you new sensei!"

"What?" she repeated. She waved her hand before he replied again and
added, "I mean, what rules? What responsibilities? What are you
talking about?"

"Ah, I understand," Odur said, nodding. He thought for a moment before
he continued speaking. "Well, I ask you, is a martial artist free to
do whatever she wants, to whomever she wants?"

Haisano snorted and, thinking of a certain old pervert and panda,
said, "Depends on who ya ask."

"I am asking you," the god replied softly and without the smile of
moments before.

"No. A true martial artist cannot be and is not free to do, as you
say, whatever she wants to whomever she wants. That is completely
opposite the code. A true martial artist should use the art to protect
those who cannot protect themselves. The art should not be used to
injure or kill unless to protect the life of another."

Odur nodded and, with his wide grin back in place, said, "Good enough.
The rules for a deity are not very dissimilar."

"So," Haisano drew out the word as she peered cocked her head to the
side and looked up at the tall god from under her brows. "You are
saying being a god or a goddess like being a martial artist or
something?"

Odur laughed again as he responded, "Yes, or something. As a martial
artist, you believed that it was your duty to protect those who could
not protect themselves. The martial code laid down some basic rules
for you to follow and you undertook them as well as can be expected
considering how your mortal life went."

"'As well as can be expected?'" Haisano repeated with an annoyed tone
of voice.

"Well, yes," he said. "Consider who it was that raised you for most of
your mortal life. It is amazing that your basic nature wasn't
perverted into something that would have made you totally unfit to
resume your role, Kinhoshiko. As it is, you have a great deal of
information to relearn and forgotten skills to unlock. There has been
some damage, but I am confident that, given time, we can repair that
damage. However, with some key parts of yourself still missing, it
will not be easy."

The redhead glanced down at herself then "Hold on there! What do you
mean by that. What is missing?"

Odur leaned against the side of his chariot. His smile dimmed and he
seemed to consider her question for a moment before responding. "I
will answer that by asking you this question. Who are you?"

"My name?" she asked. When he shrugged, she said, "I'm Ra... I am
Haisano."

"Ah," the god said as he smiled slightly at her, "you were going to
say 'Ranma,' correct?"

In response, Haisano shook her head swiftly, "N-no. He is just a bad
memory. I am no longer that person. I am Haisano, now."

"I see." he said with a sight frown. "In that case, tell me of your
parents."

Haisano flinched and her face hardened. "Oh, right," she sneered,
"them. They are just as dead to me as Ranma. I have no parents!"

"Interesting," he murmured. He looked at her for a moment then shook
his head and said. "Kinhoshiko, you are wrong. It is Haisano who is
but a memory. Ranma is very much alive. Haisano loved her parents and
honored their memory. If you were truly Haisano, you would know that.
You are Ranma."

"I," she began then bit her lip. After a moment, she continued, "I
gave up that name. My family rejected me. They rejected what I had
become. They wouldn't allow me to make my own decisions or give me any
way to keep everyone's honor intact.

She shuddered as she wrapped her arms around herself. "Don't you
understand? I sacrificed my own honor to remove myself from that
family. When Ranma's mother rejected me as well, I decided to give up
the name of Ranma, also. I have memories of Haisano. They aren't all
good, but her life can't have been as bad as Ranma's. Besides, she was
the spirit of Jusenkyo, I gave myself to her willingly in order to
defeat Saffron and rescue Akane. Why can I not use her name?"

The blonde god looked down at his feet in apparent thought for a
moment following Haisano's response. After a moment, he glanced up at
her without moving his head. "If you cannot accept your life as Ranma,
how do you expect to accept the full memories of Sol Haisano's mortal
life? She was the last daughter of the House of Sol in the Second Age
of Man. Are you sure you can deal with the reasons why she was the
last? She became the Goddess of the Sun and an active supporter of the
Lunar Kingdom that united the Third Age. She fell along with the
Kingdom she supported. Will you be able to accept why that happened?"

"I'm sure I can accept her life... my life," Haisano replied with
confidence she did not feel.

Odur pushed away from his chariot and towered over the petite red-head
and glared down at her. "Well then, 'Haisano,' perhaps you can tell me
what your duties as a Category One, Class One, Unlimited deity are?"

She stared blankly at him for a moment. She started to speak a few
times but nothing came forth.

"Where," he continued after a momentary pause, "does your power
originate?"

Haisano remained silent.

"What are the rules for using that power?"

"I-I-I d-don't..." she stammered before he cut her off.

"Who are your friends? What allies can you call upon? Who are your
rivals or even your enemies?"

"Enemies?"

Odur disregarded her question and continued his questions one after
another. "What was the name of your father? Your mother? Her co-wife?
How about your brother and sister?"

"I had a brother and sister?" Haisano asked softly.

"How and why did you become a goddess, Haisano? That much, at least,
you should remember!" Odur fell silent, finally giving her a chance to
respond.

For several minutes, they stood like that. He waited patiently as
Haisano looked away and thought over his questions. Eventually, she
looked up at him once more and slowly replied. "I... no. No, I do not
remember. Are you happy now? I do not remember any of that."

"Good." Odur said with a smile.

"'Good!'" Haisano retorted. "Is that all you have to say? You rant at
me like that and then all you have to say is 'Good?'"

Odur smirked. "Yes," he said with a sharp nod of his head.

Haisano flushed in anger and clenched her fists as she fought to
contain her anger at the annoying god standing near her. After a
moment, she composed herself and found her center once more. She
looked back up at him when he continued speaking. "It is good that you
see and admit your lack of knowledge. From that beginning, I can show
you how to take the reins of your destiny in hand once more. You took
the first step when you ended the engagements that Genma established
for Ranma. However, in refusing to acknowledge your life as Ranma, you
risk ignoring what that life has taught you. Do not cheapen the life
you have had or the good you have done in spite of the hardships. By
throwing away that life, you do far more harm to yourself than to
those who you seek to punish by it.

"So, If I am not Haisano, then who am I?"

"Ahh, now that is the question, isn't it," he said with another broad
smile. "You have had many names. You were known as Haisano, Fire
Talent, of the House of Sol to the people of the Second Age and Sol
Haisano, Goddess of the Sun to those of the Third Age of Man. That
name was yours in another life and should you choose to use that name,
then that is your choice. More recently, your reborn spirit was called
Takashina, Honorable Virtue. To the ancestors of the Celts, you were
Edana, the Fiery. In the Gaelic tongue, you have been called Ona, the
Graceful One. To the people who later became the Nyuchezu, you were
Serilda, the Warrior Maiden."

"However," he continued, "you are who you choose to be. In the end,
what is in a name? Recently you have been Ranma the Wild Horse and
unofficially, Ranko the Wild Child. Either would suit your current
incarnation perfectly. As the goddess Haisano, one of your foci was
honor. In this life, you have been following that focus as best you
knew how. Considering that, either Ranma or Ranko Takashina would be
an appropriate name. You are, above all else, the Kinhoshiko, the
Golden Star. No matter what name you choose to go by, many will always
refer to you as such, myself included."

"That doesn't really help, you know," Haisano complained. "You say all
that as if I have had many lives. Why don't I remember them?"

"As I had said, you have lost much of yourself. None of your past
lives since Sol Haisano's sacrifice ever survived to reach Jusenkyo
and merge with the part of yourself trapped therein. Your enemies saw
to that. Even so, there is much of your essence still tied up in the
magic that was Jusendo. In time, you will eventually recover it all.
When those who bore the curse of Jusenkyo died, the part of yourself
that was tied to their life force was released to once again return to
the springs. Now that you have merged with that part of yourself,
those fragments will return to you. With them will come the
accumulation of the experiences gained from their life."

Haisano became troubled over this revelation."Does that mean," she
asked," that their souls will come to me instead of being reborn?"

"What?" Odur exclaimed, then shook his head. "No, no worries about
that. The souls of those cursed by the power of Jusenkyo will go on to
their final destination as decreed by their life. What you will
recover is the bit of your own spirit that clings to them and powers
their curse."

"Oh," Haisano sighed, "That's okay then."

Odur nodded, then continued his explanation. "Unfortunately, time is
not something that is on your side. There are events occurring that
you are not prepared to face as you are now. So, you may need to take
a more direct hand in the recovery of your memories, your power, and
your heritage. Should you turn your back upon your life as Ranma, then
you will find recovering yourself that much harder to accomplish."

"If my spirit is stuck to people with the curse," the red-head said,
"how am I supposed to get it back? I wont have to kill them, will I?
If so, I ain't gonna do it!"

"No. That won't be necessary Kinhoshiko." Odur replied. "That,
however, is a lesson for another day. Going back to the point I am
trying to make, what you choose to be called is entirely up to you.
What other people call you is entirely up to them. You cannot force
someone to use one name over another when referring to you. So, why
should others be able to force you to use a different name? Do not
allow the actions or inactions of those who were your family and
friends decide your name or your future. Once you are fully restored,
the system will log your chosen name. Be certain that it is the one
that most suits you.

You should not be asking me who you are. I should be the one asking
you. So, Kinhoshiko, who are you?" As he spoke, Odur jumped back onto
his chariot and gathered the reins. "I must return to my duties, or
Freya will be crying an ocean of gold awaiting my return."

Before she could respond, Odur let out a yell as he snapped the reins,
urging his stallions back to work. "I will return, Kinhoshiko," he
called back to her. "Think on what I have said."

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




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

------ end Wildfire Chapter 6 ------

Notes

Edanna - Celtic 'Fiery'
Ona - Gaelic 'Graceful One'
Serilda - Germanic 'armed maiden of war'
Takashina - Japanese 'honorable virtue' (neutral/female)
Kinhoshiko - Japanese 'golden star' (gender neutral)
Haisano - Japanese 'fire talent'

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



C&C welcome.

ketheria_mt at hotmail dot com


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