Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Suikoden Fan Fiction ❯ One Hundred and Nine ❯ Reliving the Past ( Prologue )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

One Hundred and Nine

by RaZiel

Disclaimer: For those who've read this before, just skip over this part. For those who haven't... I do not own Ranma 1/2, it is the property of one Rumiko Takahashi and a bunch of companies who have the rights, same thing goes for Suikoden II (the difference being that it's Konami who made it, and I guess that means THEY own it... I think...)

" " denotes speech.

' ' denotes thoughts.

Prologue: Reliving the Past

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

"I don't know about this Pop. It feels wrong," said a pigtailed teen while adjusting the top of his once-white training gi.

The teen stood atop a small cliff that overlooked a valley shrouded in mist. A few bamboo poles managed to break through the dense fog and alerted him that this was the place he'd been looking for. Akeen observer might have been able to divise a multitude of springs, from which the bamboo emerged.

"Nonsense boy. This is the Legendary Training Ground of Jusenkyo. Countless martial artists have trained here before and now it's our turn!" exclaimed the man who stood next to the teen. Overweight, but obviously capable of managing himself, Saotome Genma tugged his white bandanna softly while congratulating himself for having found the place. This would be their last stop before returning to Japan and meeting the Tendos.

'Perhaps Nodoka will feel that Ranma is manly enough after this one...' he thought to himself. Even after all this time he still regretted having signed that contract. At that moment, he felt that it was the only way he could take his son out into the world for training, so he didn't even hesitate. Over the years, however, a sense of urgency had developed deep within him. This had been the cause for many of Genma's less-than-stellar deeds. In his mind, he saw this training trip as a kind of curriculum. If there weren't enough "manly" experiences documented by the end of the journey... Well, he didn't really want to think about what would happen then. He knew his wife was a very loving mother, but honour was highly valued by her faily as well.

Shaking himself out of his reverie he urged his son to accompany him as he quickly made his way towards the valley of the cursed springs.

He dumped his travelling pack as he jumped up towards one of the poles.

"Come on boy! Or are you too weak to fight your old man?" he taunted while balancing in a basic crane stance.

"Ha, you wish!" he replied while settling into a tiger stance atop a dfferent pole.

Both fighters began the training, their movements were poetry in motion as a dance of blocks, evades, and punches mixed in perfectly with the kicks and the jumps. It seemed like an elaborate choreography.

Had the Jusenkyo Guide not overslept that day, things might have gone by a little differently. Then again, Ranma would not have fulfilled his destiny otherwise.

A lucky punch by Ranma set his father flying into the spring of the drowned panda. Given his own limited knowledge about the training area he was surprised when the black and white bear replaced his father as his opponent.

Ranma was a seasoned fighter, however, and, since there was no one to divert his attention from the battle, he was able to dodge most of the panda's attacks.

A weak pole turned out to be his undoing. When he lost his footing, he was unable to recover in time to prevent the fall.

The Guide apeared at this point and, after a few moments of lamenting his customers' bad luck, he fished Ranma out of the water and laid him out to rest on his bed.

No significant change had occurred to Ranma, other than three strange tatooes on both the backs of his hands and his forehead he remained unchanged.

The Guide was sure that the spring was cursed, but he could not remember what the curse was.

That night, Ranma dreamed...

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

Jowy Blight stared into the corridor through the open door. He had just sent both Jillia and Pilika to safety. To live at the Artreides manor, which was now empty.

'Only one thing left to do,' he thought with a heavy heart, as he prepared himself mentally to go to Tenzan Pass, to face his destiny.

Suddenly, a glow surrounded his right hand, as the Black Sword Rune came to life. Its overwhelming power compelled Jowy to stop in his tracks. Struggling, he fell to his knees, his face contorted by the pain, as he held his right arm by the wrist with his left in an attempt to control what was happening.

"What's... this... I... Riou...?"

As suddenly as the glow came, it went away. Jowy was once more in control of both his hand, and the Rune.

'I felt Riou's Rune calling out to me,' he thought, 'I'm not ready to face him yet... but I can't leave him alone,"

Determined to help the man who had once been his best friend, the king of Highland rose to his feet and set off to the place where he sensed the Bright Shield Rune had been calling for him. A chill travelled down his spine as he realised where he was going.

"The Beast Rune..."

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

'I feel the pull of several True Runes...' the man thought to himself as he ran towards his destination.

The Highland soldiers were no match for him. Just some weak men who stood between him and his goal. A couple of Hell spells and he had taken care of everyone.

The warrior felt the Rune on his right hand react and stopped for a moment. Getting in touch with the sentient being he shared a symbiotic bond with, he felt for anything that would have caused it to react. His eyes widened as he felt the presence of a Rune he had faced some time ago.

Quickly going into motion once again, he sped towards his destination. There was no time for rationalisation or analysis of the situation. He just had to get there as soon as possible.

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

"You see Riou," explained the Highland army's strategist, Leon Silverburg, brother to the Legendary Mathiu who had been a key player in the Gate Rune Wars and the formation of the Toran Republic, "the Beast Rune needs blood in order to awaken," he drew a knife from within the folds of his coat.

Riou cursed inwardly. They had managed to defeat Seed and Culgan, they had gotten here while the Rune was still dormant, and it would be all for naught? Leon Silverburg was betraying everyone?

Grasped by Viktor's hands, the Star Dragon Sword had gone unnaturally silent. What had once been the Night True Rune seemed almost scared, as it felt the power sealed within the mark in front of the group. But it was even more afraid of what was behind it.

"No... It's impossible, we defeated it back in Gregminister. There's no way it can be here now..." the sword spoke, and for the first time, the tone of cockyness and overconfidence in its voice was gone.

"If blood is all it needs..." a familiar voice spoke from behind the man with the knife.

Suddenly, a sword burst out of the surprised strategist's chest, as the backstabber was impaled from behind.

"...THEN BLOOD IT SHALL HAVE!!!"

No one noticed Leon Silverburg's body fall to the ground, or the pool of blood that formed around him, they didn't even notice the Beast Rune glowing as it became aroused by the taste of the sacrifice.

Everyone's gaze was locked onto the killer. There was a number of people who wanted the man dead, but not a single person in the room expected to see Luca Blight weilding the Dragon King Sword that had belonged to emperor Barbarossa.

"Ha ha ha! Did not exect to see me again? How could you think I would be killed by the likes of you?" the former king of Highland stared straight at Riou at this point. The leader of the Dunan Liberation Army felt unparallelled fear. He was sure that no man could survive the onslaught they had submitted Luca to.

"After jumping off the cliff I spent some time to recover from my injuries, but I wasn't worried. I knew that we would meet here, the call of the Beast Rune is just too strong," he said as the glow from said Rune intensified.

"I couldn't just die without showing you my latest toy now could I?" he said as he waved his sword around, "Barbarossa was a weak man, he failed to fully grasp the power of his Sovereign True Rune, but I have learned how to harness it in its entirety since acquiring this sword from his dying hands,"

Then, he began to laugh.

All of the warriors were frozen in fear at the sound of his horrendous laughter. None of them reacted as he fell to one knee and drove his left fist into the ground, effectively bonding with the Beast Rune.

"ALLOW ME TO SHOW YOU MY TRUE POWER!!!"

An explosion of light resulted as both Runes struggled with Luca's demented psyche for control of the awesome energies that were being unleashed.

When the glow subsided Luca had changed. He had doubled in size, he'd towered over everyone before, but there was no comparison now. Three golden dragon heads grew from his back and gazed at the party of warriors from over the enhanced madman. Two wolf heads replaced the man's shoulders as his skin turned to gray and hardened.

The sword had become one with his right hand, and embedded in his now bare chest, were the Beast Rune and the Sovereign Rune.

"Heh, now you will face true terror..."

Perhaps sensing what was about to occur, the swordsman simply known as Genshu quickly called upon the power of his Mother Earth Rune.

"Guardian Earth!!!" he yelled as all of the warriors were covered with a protective aura. Not a moment too soon either, since the barrier absorbed the massive attack that came from the extended dragon heads.

It took all of Genshu's willpower to maintain the barrier erect and unflinching. After what seemed like an eternity, the assault stopped, and the swordsman fell to one knee in exhaustion.

"I -cough- won't be able to... do that again..." he whispered as he tried to catch his breath.

"You won't need to," responded the man wrapped in ornate robes from neck to foot. Rune Master Crowley's best student Mazus looked at the monstruosity in front of him with a wary eye, "My Thunder Rune will take care of him,"

"Mazus! Don't be careless!" Genshu shouted back at him, having somewhat recovered from the ordeal.

"Camus!" Mazus ordered, "I need your help. Use your Rage Rune to aid mine!"

The red headed soldier realised what the mage was trying to accomplish and saw the wisdom behind his words. He began focusing his inner power just as Mazus focused his.

"NOW!!"

"FINAL FLAME!!!"

"THUNDER STORM!!!"

Then both voices were joined as one.

"COMBINATION ATTACK!!!"

The silouettes of both the Rage and the Thunder Rune appeared before the spellcasters before they merged into an unrecognisable shape.

A humongous bolt of lightning crashed through the ceiling of the castle and struck the abomination dead center. The blast zone quickly erupted into molten lava as a volcano exploded from beneath the former tyrant.

The warriors fell back as mayhem ensued and a glimmer of hope began to emerge.

The hope was quickly crushed as the maddened laughter of Luca Blight drowned the sounds of destruction.

"It's my turn now!!!" he yelled as a multitude of emerald blasts rained down upon the elite fighters of the City State of Jowston.

They were thrown about like rag dolls, having received the full brunt of the attack. A man in a black trenchcoat weakly stood up, concentrating his remaining energy into his Rune.

"SCREAM!!!" Khan exclaimed as the Resurrection Rune he wore powered up and unleashead a healing wave upon his companions, mending much of the damage the blasts had caused.

While the demented powerhouse was still revelling in his superiority, the recovered fighters decided to make haste and seize the opportunity.

"I need you to distract him," the armoured man told the only female in their group, "this spell takes time," was the only explanation he offered.

Sierra needed no further encouragement. She immediately burst into motion as their enemy finally realised, with no small measure of satisfaction, that the fight was not over. She began dancing around him, dealing blow after blow, but not a single one was even felt by the hulking beast.

Finally deciding that enough was enough, Luca leapt forward with such speed that the vampire was caught off-guard. After raining a couple of devastating blows on her,he finally hurled her over to the wall, where she became embedded.

'It c-can't be! Nothing that big sould move so fast!!!' she desperately thought as he began to divert his attention towards the remaining fighters, 'No! I must not let him interfere with the spell!'

As a last resort, Sierra focused all of her inner power into the Rune on her right hand. A powerful glow expanded from around her as she prepared to cast her most powerful spell.

"BLACK SHADOW!!!"

From the depths of her Darkness Rune, an orb of pure ebony emerged and enveloped the form of Luca completely. A maelstrom of chaotic energies battled within the orb as the dark forces battled the prince of darkness himself.

As her spell resolved, Sierra's eyelids fell, her energy completely spent. "I hope I bought you enough time Pesmerga..." she said as she fell into unconciousness.

An angered howl was all the warning the warriors got as the darkness shattered, releasing Luca from his prison. He was now beyond mere amusement and had began feeling annoyed.

"EMPTY WORLD!!!"

The Blue Gate Rune was nothing more than a shade of the True Rune of the Gate, but it was enough to allow Pesmerga to summon a demon from the nether realms.

A dimensional gate formed just in front of the transformed sovereign, and as he looked at the unexpected development with a curious eye, he was surprised by the unnatural beast that emerged from within the gate's confines.

The horned being opened its gaping maw, revealing its jagged teeth, and began to focus energy. After merely a moment, it let loose with a devastating blast of pure Hellfire. Enough to kill an ordinary man ten times over.

Luca Blight was anything but an ordinary man.

"ENOUGH!!!" he shouted, his booming voice expanding throughout the room like a shockwave.

His shoulders began to sparkle as both wolf heads came to life and expelled twin beams of destruction. At the same time, all three of the golden dragon heads released powerful energy waves, while both Runes in his chest glowed.

Once again, the attacks connected, and the heroes were battered away.

Only Leknaat's disciple remained standing. He'd reacted quickly enough to erect a small barrier around himself, which was able to shield him from damage.

'There's no hope,' the leader of the Liberaton army thought as he looked over his tired companions, the people who had fought alongside him in order to bring peace and justice to the warring lands.

"Don't you dare give up Riou!"

'That voice!' he thought as he managed to pull himself up and stare right into his sister's face.

"Nanami?"

"There's no time to explain now! Luc!" she yelled while approaching the green-clad mage, "I need you to do this with me,"

Luc seemed shaken. Leknaat had said once before that no man could contain the power of two True Runes. This Luca Blight had done what his master had deemed impossible!

The shouts approaching him seemed to bring him out of his stupor as he concentrated on the task at hand. He knew Nanami held a Flowing Rune, he looked at his own right hand, and with his Cyclone Rune...

"I know," he said, "Let's do it,"

"MOTHER OCEAN!!!" she screamed out as the higher form of the Water Rune reacted from her hand.

"SHINING WIND!!!" Luc cried out as a hurricane erupted from within his own Cyclone Rune.

"COMBINATION ATTACK!!!" they yelled as one while their powers merged into a completely different spell.

Luca was blown away as the same powerful winds that healed the fallen warriors buffeted at his body. He slammed into the far side of the corridor and actually went through the wall.

The fighters began to rise, all of them healed, however, the spiritual energy of those who had utilised their Runes remained exhausted.

"Riou?" a familiar voice asked.

Turning to see who called out to him, Riou was amazed at seeing his childhood friend, and most dangerous rival, Jowy, standing a few feet away.

"I'm sorry Riou, I really am. I tried to put a stop to this long ago, but it was the only way peace could be achieved,"

"Jowy," he responded, "Why?"

"YOU!!!" the rubble covering the transformed Luca was sent flying in all directions as he pepared to deliver the most powerful strike yet.

"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!!"

A blood red arc of energy sliced through the distance between them once the former king of Highland cleaved the air with his sword-arm. The power being exuded from the attack was sensed by all, and it was heading straight for Riou and Jowy.

Something cracked within Riou, as he felt himself and his best friend in danger. It felt as if a seal had been broken and, as confirmed by the glow surrounding his hand, his Rune evolved.

"FOREVER SIGN!!!"

The Shining Shield Rune now occupied his hand flashed with a brilliance previously unseen. It expanded until a gigantic shield covered both of them and protected them against the attack.

But it wasn't over.

The shield began to shine even brightier than before. Riou turned to Jowy. "Come on Jowy, let's do this together,".

The Black Sword Rune, having felt its twin evolve, quickly experienced the same process, and Luca felt the full wrath of the Black Blade Rune.

"HUNGRY FRIEND!!!"

Just when the multitude of swords approached the surprised Luca, the power contained within the Shining Shield was finally cut loose. The former tyrant was impaled by countless blades as the powerful blast tore through him.

Jowy felt the sickness that had been afflicting him for so long suddenly vanish, as the powers of both Runes coalesced into one, the healing and protective power of the Shining Shield being perfectly at balance with the destructive forces of his own Black Blade. The two parts of a whole.

A deafening roar was heard once again as the bearer of the wildest True Runes underwent his final transformation.

Gone were the dragon heads from his back, to make up for the loss, his body had gained even more height and bulk. His hair, once midnight black, was now ashen white, and his eyes burned with a crimson flame.

"YOU JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND IT DO YOU? MAYBE ONCE YOU HAD THE POWER TO DEFEAT ME, BUT WITH THESE RUNES I AM INVINCIBLE!!!"

Maniacal laughter filled the destroyed hallway once again.

Both Riou and Jowy were wiped out from the sheer amount of will required to control their Runes, so they had no hope of ever standing up against an even stronger Luca Blight.

"NOW GET READY TO DIE!!!" he yelled as he prepared to deliver the final blow.

A deafening silence suddenly covered the whole area. Nothing could be heard save for a soft whisper.

"Judgement..."

Dozens of shadow spirits appeared before Luca and slammed into him, raising him higher and higher into the air. At the very apex of his ascent, a blow as strong as a thousand hammer strikes slammed into him and sent him crashing into the ground.

Everybody immediately turned to look at the newcomer. Dressed in red, carrying a bo staff and wearing a lilac/green coloured bandana, a teenager stood before them.

None of them knew who this person was, except for Viktor.

"Tir?"

It couldn't be! This young man was the hero of the Gate Rune Wars? The one responsible for the creation of the Republic of Toran? The one who had defeated Barbarossa?

"We meet again Viktor. I see you still hold the Night Rune," he commented, sparing a glace towards the Star Dragon Sword, held tightly within the bear-man's grip.

Turning to face his rising oponent, he spoke,"Luca Blight... I've heard about you, but it seems the tales did not make you justice,"

"I will enjoy watching your last breath boy, and everyone will know that Luca Blight was the one to kill Toran's treasured hero," he snapped right back at him.

In the blink of an eye, both fighters were in motion. Tir had already penetrated Luca's defenses and landed several crippling blows on him. Well, crippling for anyone else, as it was Luca hardly felt them. He seized the opportunity while they were in close quarters to end it quickly, however, his sword thrust was expertly parried by the seasoned warrior.

Both of them parted, taking a moment to analyse what they had discovered during the breif bout. Then, they were at it again. Trading blows in a dance of death that would enthrall even the blind, for their inner energies battled as well. It was truly a spectacular fight.

Human limitation began to take its toll on Tir as he began to actually receive blows instead of just evading. In a last-ditch move, he employed a burst of power from his Soul Eater True Rune to blind his opponent momentarily, while he backed away to regain his breath.

While his opponent was incapacitated, Tir quickly made his way over to Riou and Jowy, who were both mesmerised by the battle that was still taking place before them.

"There is only one way to defeat someone with two True Runes," he said between ragged breaths, "to have two True Runes,"

Both friends stared at each other after these words, would they be willing to give up the power of their Runes?

Luc cut in, in a desperate manner, "There's no way you can weild two True Runes, it's impossible!!!"

"Tell that to him," Tir responded, as he stared at the recovering abomination.

"I'll also need the sword," he said looking straight at Viktor.

"Hey, you know that it's not really up to me. I mean, the sword has a mind of its own and if it doesn-"

"Give me to him," said the sword, cutting off Viktor's reply in half.

"If you say so..." he grumbled.

As he gripped the sword, Tir felt the latent power that hid within it. Turning to face Jowy and Riou he extended his left hand towards them. With a final reassuring look, both leaders grasped Tir's hand with their own right hand. A powerful aura burst between the three as the power threatened to overwhelm them all.

Then, a burst of light, and in Tir's hand there was neither the Shining Shield nor the Black Blade.

A shield with a sword crossing over the back was now depicted in the hero of Toran's hand. The True Rune of Beginning.

He stood, both Runes on the back of his hands,and holding a third one between them. As he faced the now standing Luca Blight, he felt the first stirrings of power within him.

"Go away, everyone...NOW!!!!" he shouted as he finally lost control over the Runes.

The warriors were quick to leave, Riou and Jowy spared one last look at the struggling hero before also departing.

His body was slowly adapting to the power of the Runes, but the time he needed would not be given to him by Luca, who had finally realised what his opponent was up to.

He broke out in a sprint, intent on finishing him off before he could become a nuisance. Tir cursed as he was forced to desperate measures.

"I'm sorry Star Dragon Sword," he whispered as he forced his Rune to awaken the true power of the Night True Rune.

Time seemed to freeze for Tir as his advancing opponent suddenly slowed almost to a stop. He then realised that it was he who had sped up. His head was pounding from the assault on his body. He needed release and fast!

Finally, he stood in front of his slowed oponent and wispered something into his ear.

"Oblivion..."

A flash of black, and then there was nothing more.

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

Author's Notes:

Hi guys! I'm back! (well, not really...)

This is the result of a rather nasty thing us people in the reading business like to call a "writer's block". Basically, I couldn't get past a scene in the Second Stallion and just kinda stopped until I could figure it out. After I finally did that... let's just say I ran out of time, since I'm up to my neck notonly in midterms, but also finals!!! for the past week I've been juggling exams, and the same will happen for the next 3/4 weeks. I ask one thing of you... BEAR WITH ME PLEASE!!!!

Now that we've gotten that out of the way...

I whipped this up just yesterday, the reason being that while in my "relaxing time" between exams, my copy of Suikoden III just stopped working. I didn't even get to finish the first chapter with Geddoe! So I was pretty pissed. Then I began to think just how much Suikoden II ruled. Then I just wanted to write some rune magic...

Treat this as a oneshot for now, cause I have no plans whatsoever to continue this in the near future... late future is a whole different thing.

Anyway... let me know what you think about this. Drop me a review if you're either in ff dot net or mm dot org. If not, just e mail me at ironneko@yahoo.com.ar (I prefer comments be sent here) or MSN ironneko@hotmail.com

See you next time...