[Ranma][FanFic] Hengeyokai, parts 1-2
Luke Thrythlind Green
drenched and soaking.
"Stupid old man," Ranma muttered ringing out "her" gi. "Just had
ta come ta this place." She sat down on a rock and grumbled as she
slipped the gi back over her body. "Ya'd think he'd have known well
enough ta research why they were called cursed springs."
She hunched over, not crying, most definitely not crying. Her
voice was catching because she was angry at the old man, she was not
crying like some weak little girl.
The sound of a crash from the springs caught her attention and she
was up and running, a look of rage on her face. That had to be the
old man!
************
"Give up little fox!" the demon roared, laughing. "You cannot beat
us, no matter what shape you take."
The demon was a form of empty black and white in the approximate
shape of something human, but it had no true form. All about the
scene similar demons crowded in on a red-haired woman carrying a
katana.
Early! They had come early, before she could find eleven others to
fill all the posts of the circle. No matter how adaptable she was,
they were right. Alone she couldn't take them all.
She panted and considered her options, and found herself only one.
Destroy at least one of them and the invasion would be delayed.
Perhaps long enough for another circle to start and finish this time.
"Come on then!" she shouted, growing taller, voice roaring to match
the demons as she burst into a fierce, cutting wind. "Let us see how
many of you are destroyed before I die!"
************
"I knew you'd come back here old man!!" Ranma shouted as she burst
into the clearing. "Now get ready to..." She stopped as she saw that
the noise had not come from her father as she had assumed, but a young
man, maybe two years older than her. A young man that was currently
gripping the guide by the throat.
"Stay out of this girl," the young man said, smirking confidently.
"This isn't your fight."
"Hey, who you calling girl?!" Ranma demanded.
"Oh, I suppose you had a dunk in the pools then," the man said.
"Yeah, whatever," Ranma snapped striding forward. "Now put the guy
down and get out of here before I tear ya ta pieces."
"If you interfere with me," the man said. "Hn, you won't like it."
"Put your money wear your mouth is pal," Ranma retorted.
"If you insist," the young man said, letting go of the Jusenkyo
guide. "We'll finish this after I have my fun with this fresh meat."
He cracked his knuckles.
Neither warriors paid attention to their chi senses noting the
fierce battle taking place in the spirit world.
***********
The fox paused in one of her true forms, a small, red fox that
looked much the worse for the wear. As her enemies searched about for
her, surprised at the sudden "disappearance" of their quarry, she
caught her breath. Then she returned to the astral combat, bursting
into the fury of a volcano's inferno this time.
***********
Ranma staggered backward, shaking her head. She couldn't seem to
get around this guy's defenses at all. Maybe if she were still a guy
she could have given him a run for his money, but as a girl. As a
girl she was getting her ass handed to her.
Still, a martial artist's duty was to protect, and that's what she
was doing. She gritted her teeth and arranged herself to attack one
last time, still wondering just why the jerk was wearing pantyhose.
***********
She was focusing on one demon, or so she hoped, they looked
relatively the same, and she thought he was weakening.
The fiery body she had taken had given way to a rocky behemoth with
which she smashed into her target. Even in that form it was easy to
see her wounds and fading strength. She was going to die soon, she
just had to take one of them with her.
The demons and spirit barely concerned themselves with the mortal
battle taking place adjacent to there own.
***********
"Give up, little girl," the young man taunted, finally breathing
heavily himself. "Your good, but you just got that body, and you
haven't trained in it. There's no way you can beat me."
"I don't lose, jerk," Ranma spat, standing up despite the pain that
seemed to be coming from everywhere.
"Do you want me to kill you?" the young man asked. "Don't think I
won't do it."
"I ain't letting you rob that guy," Ranma insisted.
"What concern of yours is that?" the man asked.
"Martial artist's duty, pantyhose-freak," Ranma snapped. The young
man's smirking, superior expression vanished.
"Oh...now you will die," he promised coolly.
***********
The form she had saved for last, empowered by the water magic of
the region, a standing whirlpool of water, was now in play. And she
was dying yes, but she could feel her opponent's desparation as well.
He would die with her, and it would be another hundred years before
they could invade.
Then the demon noticed what was happening in the mortal world, and
acted.
***********
~Ah shit,~ Ranma thought to herself as she felt her arm snap. She
gritted her teeth and kicked upward into her attackers groin.
~That'll hurt.~
Still, whatever she had said, she had pissed off the young man
finally, and he had charged in blindly. As the bandit doubled over in
pain and released her from the hold he had been trying to place around
her, she followed up the strike. Leaping into the air and coming down
into an ax kick that drove the jerk into the ground.
Just for good measure, and to be sure he wouldn't get up, Ranma
took a book from a soccer player he had met once and smashed the young
man's head.
"That should keep him unconscious a while," Ranma gasped. "I told
you, Ranma Saotome doesn't..." A dark miasma surrounded her opponent
suddenly. "...lose?"
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" the young man laughed loudly as he snapped
awake, standing up in front of Ranma as if nothing Ranma had done had
hurt him. "My thanks mortal, for weakening this vessel enough for me
to take him."
"What are you talking about?" Ranma asked nervously, getting into
the best stance she could. She wasn't chi blind, and though her
senses weren't masterfully attuned yet, she recognized a demon when
she saw one. She hadn't seen one quite like this before though.
"In thanks I will just kill you," the young man said. Suddenly he
was growing into something huge and bestial. Ranma could only stare
momentarily before the creature slammed an arm forward throwing Ranma
back through the trees.
The minotaur like beast flexed its muscles inquisitively after
watching the little mortal girl's flight. There had been so many
other things he would like to have done with her, including use her as
a host for one of his comrades. Still, a promise was a promise.
~Such pleasant powers this mortal has. Though when his spirit
recovers their may be trouble. Perhaps a deal is in order,~ he smiled
and started to take flight for the East.
The plan would be delayed, until he could find hosts or bodies for
his other comrades and have them all on the same plane of existence.
But it would not be as long delayed as the fox had obviously hoped.
***********
The fox had reacted with surprise when her target simply vanished
from the spirit realm. She barely caught sight of it's dark soul
appearing in the mortal realm before her other enemies started tearing
into her, catching her in her distraction.
The laughed at the small, bleeding fox as she shrank down into her
hybrid form, dying and incapcitated.
"We shall meet our comrade in the mortal realm soon," they laughed.
"And then this whole universe shall be for the likes of us. Have fun
in your last moments fox."
They faded away, letting the fox crawl off, hoping to find someway
to live. Surely they had defeated her well enough that she wouldn't
be a problem. And with her gone, no other Earth spirit knew of their
coming, they were assured of victory.
***********
Ranma was dying, she could feel her life leaking away. And what
was worse was that she would die as a girl. Still, she took comfort
in the fact that it had taken a demon to beat her, after she had
already fought as well.
Well, she wouldn't let death beat her easily, either. She would
shut down a number of her systems and gear her body toward healing
and, failing that, maintenance. Maybe she could hold on long enough
for somebody to find her and help her. Maybe.
As she faded away her vision started to blur and she could see
something crawling toward her, but certainly that was just her
imagination. Ranma shut her eyes as everything started turning to
black.
***********
The fox hesitated as she reached the girl, or boy rather she could
see both forms. The mortal's spirit was hanging on tenaciously with
the sort of determination only that race of heros and villains could
attain.
Still, she was going to die. The fox thought she could hold on
another hour, maybe two, but nobody would find her in time to help
her. The other mortal in the area was out cold from some attacker as
well.
She didn't have much time to do this, so she had to make her
decision quickly. The time of mortals and spirits mixing was long
past, but if she took this route it would begin again. For this
mortal would have to find eleven more mortals to impart a shard of
hengeyokai life force to. Twelve mortals, twelve animal spirits, to
fight the twelve demons seeking to break their universe.
It had to be done. She would die, but first she would merge her
life force into this mortal and impart as much of her knowledge as she
could before her soul left for the heavens. And the first mortal
hengeyokai in three hundred years would be born.
***********
Ranma sat bolt upright as something seemed to be flow into her.
She arched her back, mouth open silently in shock and surprise before
screaming in outright terror.
She'd just seen a man possessed, was that what was happening to her
now? Was something going to turn her into a hell-bent monster? The
terror subsided as images and things began to slam into her head.
Images of demons and the end of worlds, her own and the kami plane.
Snippets of secrets known by a master shape-shifter. Most important
of all, the urge, the need, the awareness that there needed to be
eleven others, and how to recruit them.
Then it was over as something seemed to pass on, a desparate and
sad spirit fading into the ether. Fading away with one message.
"Stop them before its too late," the woman called out.
"What the hell?" Ranma asked as she tried to sort out what she'd
learned.
"There you are boy!" a voice shouted just before hot water was
thrown over him. "What are you doing just..."
"Hey!!" Ranma shouted. "What did you do that for?"
"You didn't change back!!" Genma blanched, what was he going to
tell Nodoka. "And why is your hair red now."
"Change back?" Ranma snorted. "What do you mean change back...how
come you're not a panda?"
"But, but," Genma blubbered, trying to get across the idea that
hot water was supposed to change Ranma back.
"Never mind, Pop," Ranma snapped. "I figure it out later. Now we
gotta do some heavy training, because I just nearly got myself killed
trying to take on this jerk who has the gall to get himself possessed
by a demon just after a knocked his ass to the ground."
"But, but, but," Genma continued. Ranma frowned, apparently she
wasn't going to get any sense out of her pop until she changed back
into a guy.
"Of all the," Ranma muttered. "It's my girl body, I gotta train."
She shook her head as she willed the change, not thinking about
exactly how she knew to do that. It was natural that was all.
Genma stared as his red-haired daughter became a red-haired son.
"Now, pop," Ranma said. "I'm serious, gotta do a lot of training,
cause there's some fights coming up that are gonna get messy. Pop?"
But Genma had fainted.
"Ahh, now what am I going to..." Ranma paused and considered what
had just happened. "Errr...how did I do that?"
------------------------------
From: thryt...@yahoo.com (Luke Thrythlind Green)
Subject: [Ranma][FanFic] Hengyokai 2
X-Moderation-Queue-Date: 19 Mar 2002 07:23:00 -0800
"I told you, Pop," Ranma said. "I can't teach you,
I didn't really learn it, it just happened!." Ranma
frowned, he hated getting knowledge like that. He
didn't understand the basis of it, and couldn't repeat
the information to anybody.
He knew how to inact change forms between most any
animal from the size of a mouse to the size of a large
bear. He just didn't understand how it happened, and
hadn't taken the chance to try out these new tricks to
see if he could reverse engineer the knowledge.
At the moment he was staying in one of his six
"true" forms, trying to remember exactly what
happened. He remembered the demon, he remembered
some...thing entering him, her at the time, and then a
blur of images followed by his pop splashing him with
hot water.
There was a certain degree of urgency involved
here, something about that demon and the end of the
worlds that he had to do something to stop. It had
been all so clear for a moment and then, gone, a
confused jumble.
"Sirs, perhaps there is help in the surrounding
villages," the Guide suggested. "The Amazon elders
have great stores of knowledge about Jusenkyo."
Ranma nodded politely, that wouldn't help his
situation. Jusenkyo was a shapechanging magic, but
something else had made him a natural shapechanger,
something the curse would usually just roll right off
of. Of course, the curse had made one parting shot,
which is why Ranma had six forms he considered true
and natural rather than the standard three for a
hengeyokai.
"Amazons," Genma scoffed. "How would a bunch of
women help us?"
"Oh very powerful, sirs, very strong," the Guide
explained. "They have much wisdom gathered over three
thousand years."
"Sounds good," Ranma said. "An' then maybe on the
way I can figure out what the trick to this is."
~I'll need to learn more, I might need to teach one of
the others.~
Ranma paused as he tried to remember what others.
Whatever that spirit had done before she died, and
Ranma was sure she died, he wished she could have gone
about it in a better way.
There is no way Ranma could, or would unless
desparate, teach someone the same way. The most he
would impart was a basic instinct to such between the
natural forms. If they wanted to become master
shapeshifters, well, they'd just have to wait until he
learned how he did what he did.
Ranma did NOT like instant ability like this. It
completely messed his ability to judge what was
possible.
"What are saying boy," Genma demanded. "We don't
have time to be stopping so you can sow some oats."
"Ehh? I know why I want to hurry, why do you?"
Ranma asked. "Never mind, Pop, there'll be food
there."
"What are we doing just standing there boy?" Genma
demanded. "Get moving to that village!"
************
Ranma walked behind Genma, so he could keep an eye
on the old fart, and practice a little undisturbed.
First thing she had discovered was that her male and
female body's were in approximately the same physical
condition, though SHE was faster and HE was stronger.
It was also apparent to him that exercise in one
form did not necessarily carry over to the other
except in small amounts. This was both good and bad.
It was good in that he always had a tremendous reserve
of endurance to fall back on. It was bad in the fact
that that meant he'd have to train in both forms
equally hard.
That meant twice the amount of work for the same
increase. Or he could ignore one side and just
improve the other, but that would negate the benefit
of having a reserve of endurance. She'd have to see
if there would be similar problems for maintaining her
power in any of her other forms as well, but it felt
like it was mainly a male/female problem.
That wasn't the only change, he/she felt as she
changed behind her father. Ranma's chi control was
much better and her chi had been heightened greatly.
There was also a very strong elemental nature to her
aura, and not of any one particular element either.
He'd have to play around with his chi a little to
figure out what he could and couldn't do now.
Then there was the amusing fact that her yang chi
became dominant in her female form, while her yin chi
turned dominant in her male form. Apparently the
universe had a sense of humor.
That brought up the last major change Ranma could
identify. SHE wasn't having a hissy fit about being a
girl. This was further pointed out by the fact that
she was using the term hissy fit in her thoughts.
Really, this form felt just as natural to her as her
male form.
She did manage to grumble a little at that, voicing
some remembered dislike of any trace of femininity.
The universe really did have a sense of humor.
She was brought out of her reverie in time to note
her father brush a branch out of the way and get
drenched with some old rainwater that had apparently
been sitting on the large leaves.
"Good one, Pop," Ranma smirked as the village came
into sight. The panda glared at him and then started
a tirade that was obviously centered on Ranma being
female. "Quiet Pop, we're getting into town."
She looked around and noted some sort of tournament
was going on. She scanned the crowd and noted a bench
full of food, and was about to approach it when she
noted the sign on the bench marking it as "First
Prize."
"Huh," Ranma said, not bothering to realize that
she shouldn't know Chinese of any dialect. "I'll have
to look for food elsewhere."
Ranma paused as her recently enhanced chi senses
picked up on something in the area. She hadn't found
it yet when she noted one of the contestants, and
behind her in the crowd. She could find that big chi
aura in a moment, probably an elder and unsuitable,
but...
"Two and three," Ranma whispered, only barely aware
of what he meant by that. Then she frowned.
"Ohhh...she did NOT just call me that."
************
Cologne turned as she felt the strong chi that had
entered the village. It wasn't entirely human,
seemingly tied into the elements that made up the
world and life. Finding the outsider was the nearest
thing to instantaneous she had ever accomplished.
The red head started for the first prize table,
making Cologne's mouth quirk up. Perhaps the spirit
folk, or whatever she was, would give her
granddaughter a taste of humility. That was not to be
however, as the girl stopped and shrugged. Cologne
sighed for the lost chance at some amusement and
continued to watch the stranger.
The girl suddenly started looking about the area as
she felt Cologne, or perhaps some other of the elders.
Then the girl's eyes stopped, focused on the
tournament and the crowd beyond. She blinked a
moment, and Cologne watched her mouth three words in
Japanese.
Looking down the line of the girl's sight, Cologne
found Shampoo awaiting her next round, and behind her
Mousse cheering her on.
~What interest does that girl have in my
granddaughter,~ Cologne wondered as Shampoo stepped up
to her next, and final round. Then fate stepped in.
************
"Looks like I finally get to drive your high bred
skull into your neck, Xian Pu," the giant was saying
with a smirk.
"In your dreams, Dou Lu," Shampoo answered back.
"You can't possibly beat Xian Pu, Dou Lu," Mousse
declared.
"Mu su, stay out of women's business," Shampoo said
coolly and with a hint of disdain. "Go bother the
outsider girl over there."
"An outsider?" Dou Lu frowned.
They all remembered last year when two guards had
failed in their posts to do some gambling instead. A
group of slavers armed with guns had attacked and
killed a number of warriors before they could be put
down.
"She's with the Jusenkyo Guide," Shampoo said,
waving her hand. "Probably here on business or
something. What, Dou Lu is afraid of a measly
Japanese bitch?" Dou Lu grumbled at the insult, but
couldn't think of a retort.
"She's looking this way," Mousse noted. "And she
doesn't look happy."
"Oh forget her," Shampoo said. "I want to get to
my prize." She jumped to the log and waited for Doll.
"It isn't your prize yet puny girl," Doll growled,
following.
************
Ranma watched as the purple haired girl fought the
giant on the log. She shivered slightly as she
watched Shampoo, not from the thought of facing the
girl. Rather it was two things that had her
uncomfortable.
The first was the act that she had to do to make
the two hengeyokai like her. She had never kissed
anyone before. What happened when, not if, they took
it the wrong way? And what if she did it wrong and
they thought it was gross or something? Would she go
through life being known as a bad kisser?
The second reason was the animal spirit that
Shampoo was most allied with. This was far more
intimidating to Ranma's mind, though for once the very
thought didn't send him screaming in for. She'd just
have to remember to ask somebody else to work with the
girl more often.
~Why a cat?~ she asked. She had power though, and
tenacity. That was very good for what was coming.
Ranma frowned and wished she could put together more
than a fragment thought of what was coming.
"Uh, sir," the Guide said behind him. "What you
doing?" Ranma turned around to see his father
demolishing the first prize feast amongst the stares
of many Amazons.
"KUSO-OYAJI!!!!" Ranma shouted just before the
table exploded as a bonbori impacted it.
"Why did you let your panda eat my prize?" Shampoo
demanded. Ranma was about to answer when the Guide
translated.
~Hmm, probably a good idea to let them think I
don't know the language for now,~ Ranma said, then
realized that she knew the language. She blinked,
growled and then spoke to the guide. "Could you try
to explain Pop to her?"
Ranma smacked her father on the head and growled at
him. The panda grumbled as if to ask what that was
for.
"That was the prize for the tournament jerk!" Ranma
explained. The girl spoke again.
"She say give her panda as payment," the Guide
said.
"Can't do that," Ranma said. The Guide translated.
"Then she say if you beat her then the prize would
be yours," the Guide say.
"A duel for the feast, eh?" Ranma asked listening
to the various comments around her. Something about a
no-win situation and the kiss of death. ~Well, that's
convenient...just have to make sure I win. Should be
easy.~
That powerful aura approached again and he saw a
withered old woman sitting on a stick, judging by the
auras, she was related to the girl. Then that boy she
had seen earlier approached and glared at her, making
overly protective comments under his breath.
"I'm game." Ranma fought to keep her smirk in
place as she answered, wondering if either of the
other people would interfere.
She considered her plan carefully, viewing as she
would any battle. Only the rules and goals of this
battle were vastly different.
************
Cologne pogoed forward to watch the situation with
a sense of concern. The red-head was an unknown
quantity, and she had not missed that the girl did not
need to be told that the feast was a prize. Which
probably meant that she was going into this with eyes
wide open about the Kiss of Death.
Cologne moved to her daughter and laid a hand on
her arm.
"Be careful young one," Cologne warned. "I suspect
there is a trap in this game for you."
"The trap is for her, Grandmother," Shampoo
insisted. "She loses, she dies. She wins, she still
dies when I kill her later. Besides, is too late now,
I offered, she accepted. I can't back out now."
"That is true," Cologne nodded. "But you should
know that your opponent is only partially human, there
is a touch of something in her that has not been
common since the days I was born." Shampoo blinked
and looked at the red-haired girl more cautiously now.
"She is still somewhat human," Shampoo said
finally. "She can die."
"But Xian Pu, if the old monkey is right then you
could be killed!" Mousse moaned. That settled
Shampoo's mind, a bonbori smash to Mousse's head later
and she was on the log.
Genma meanwhile sat and peacefully munched while
Amazons were visually measuring him for a throw rug.
He was quite confident in his son's ability to win,
and settled down to watch the show.
As expected it was short, sweet and to the point.
Within a few seconds Ranma had kicked the
purple-haired girl off the log and to the ground. She
landed and a sour looking woman stepped forward to
raise her hand as the victor.
Shampoo shook her head clear as she stood up and
glared before smirking and striding toward the girl.
Ranma turned to face Shampoo, seeming totally naive on
the surface, but Cologne could feel her preparing her
chi.
Shampoo laid a hand on the girl's chin and started
to place the Kiss of Death. Cologne's eyes bulged as
the red-head's chi concentrated enough to be visible
to her and then travelled up the throat towards the
mouth. But she didn't have time to warn Shampoo.
Shampoo was surprised when the girl swiftly turned
her head so that her kiss wasn't placed on the
Outsider's cheek as planned. When the girl grabbed
her, gently but firmly holding her in place, she was
even more surprised.
Then came the kiss.
It was like molten rock and freezing sleet being
rammed down her throat while animals howled into the
night sky. It was ecstatic and painful all at once.
Then it was over.
"I'm sorry, little sister," the outsider girl said
in Chinese. She spoke sadly, formally and quietly as
Shampoo started to crumple to the ground, feeling very
sick. The girl lowered her gently. "But you're
needed."
Shampoo passed out of consciousness, and missed all
that happened after.
Then Guide was grabbing the Panda and the Outsider
and dragging them out of the village.
"VERY bad, very bad sirs," the Guide said. Ranma
wasn't paying attention to the Guide, she had one more
thing to say.
"And don't even THINK about sending that puny
wannabe warrior BOYFRIEND Mustcache or whatever,"
Ranma shouted in Chinese. "Ain't no way HE can come
close to beating me!"
"Sirs, you is very crazy no?" the Guide asked as
they hard a male voice screamed and charged forward.
"I need to talk ta the guy," Ranma said shrugging
as she started running on her own. "You guys go on
ahead, I'll slow him up."
"You sure, sir?" the Guide asked before noticing
that the panda was already well down the path back
towards Jusenkyo.
************
A raven flew in through the Guide's window and
landed on the floor to turn into the panda man's son.
Ranma's father answered this bit of sensory
information with the option of fainting.
"Young sir, you is alive?" the guide said
wonderingly. "How you change to bird?" the Guide
asked. "Jusenkyo?" He had thought that the pools
mixed, not replaced old curses.
"Jusenkyo can't touch me," Ranma said. "And I
changed to a bird when I took out Mousse."
"Oh, sir, you not worried about them coming for
you?" the Guide asked as Ranma calming started fixing
dinner.
"If I heard right, those two will be the only ones
coming," Ranma said. "An' what I did to them will
take a little longer to work itself out than what
happened to me. About two days I think."
************
Cologne watched over Shampoo as she shook and
shivered. A fever was raging through her body, and
her chi was transforming out of control. That
outsider girl had definitely laid a trap for Shampoo,
though Cologne had seen the look of remorse that
followed the kiss.
"What do you think it is elder?" one of the others
asked. Cologne shrugged.
"Perhaps this is a technique called the Kiss of
Death and the outsider was defending her life,"
Cologne said. "But the girl showed an interest in
Shampoo from the moment she saw my granddaughter. I
do not yet know her intentions." A few more Amazons
arrived, bearing a stretcher with Mousse in a similar
state of affairs.
"We found him about two miles outside of the
village," the women said. "It looks as if he had been
defeated and immobilized before receiving
that...attack." They didn't know what else to call
it.
"Apparently she had an interest in Mousse as well,"
Cologne said, looking over the blind boy's chi. "What
was she here for?"
************
Doll watched smuggly at the insensate pair of
Amazons in the infirmary. She would never have
fallen for such a cheap trick. Still the girl had
humiliated her in front of the village. Outpowering
HER, she was the strongest of the village, not that
little runt. Perhaps she should try to mix something
into the girl's medicine.
[I will do some MA&M later, in the next week or so,
when I get a chance to pull my D&D out, but for now I
got a few scenes in mind for this]