Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Ranma 1/2: The Truth and the Tempest ❯ Demon Days ( Chapter 39 )

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

[Author’s Note: The characters and setting herein- with the exception of one or two O.C.’s of my own design- are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. We now return to our story in progress.]

Ranma ½: The Truth and the Tempest

Chapter 39: Demon Days

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It had been several blocks before Ranma suddenly blinked and drummed his feet to a halt. “Hey… hold up. Something doesn’t feel right.”

“Ran-chan, nothing feels right out here!” Ukyo skidded and stopped as well, taking an instant to twirl her combat spatula in a tight circle, splitting a lone imp in half. “We got fog and freaks all over the place, I think it goes without saying that something doesn’t feel right!”

“No, I’m serious.” Ranma stood stock-still in the middle of the road, eyes darting left and right. Mist continued to roil around them, and it wasn’t hard to notice the ambient light was rapidly falling. The streetlamps were starting to take on an almost ethereal gleam, and random howls and screeches continued to echo from all sides. “I got a bad feeling about this…”

Akane nodded slowly, one hand adjusting the cord that held her sword in place. “You’re not the only one; I think I can feel it too.” She swallowed hard. “I can’t tell if it’s getting colder, or if it’s just me…”

Shampoo blinked, glancing around from side to side in confusion. “This strange… where gray pervert midgets go? Can hear them, but no see.”

“I can’t see them either; it’s like they up an’ vanished or something!” Ryoga tugged his bandanna angrily. “What’re they trying to do, mess with us a little more than they were?”

“Better stay on your guard; those things can blend into fog no sweat. But even so…” Shingen’s eyes narrowed and he lowered his naginata into a ready position, blade low to the ground. “I haven’t heard of imps just scurrying away for no good reason. I think something’s about to happen, and they know it.”

For a few moments, nobody moved. The sounds of imps cackling grew fainter still, followed by hands tightening their grip on various weapons. Even the light whistle of the breezes in the street grew dulled to the point where there was almost no sound at all. The mist thickened ever so slightly, the shadows darkening further and stretching across the road more so than they already had. Akane gulped; it felt like her heart was starting to echo in her eardrums. Shampoo tugged on one of her sleeves nervously.

Mousse’s gaze traveled along the road, scouring one side and then the other- and abruptly stopped. “I don’t know if it’s just me…” His hand flew to the double scabbard on his hip. “But don’t those shadows look a little too long? And I could almost swear they’re growing longer by the second.” The others blinked and snapped to attention, each one confirming in turn that Mousse wasn’t seeing things. Great swaths of pure blackness were stretching from nearby alleys, walls, telephone poles and the like, running together and blending to create what appeared to be a solid wave of shadow that was inundating the street. It ebbed forward, inching slowly but surely towards the feet of the seven warriors before it. Everyone wearing a warding pendant began to feel a light burning sensation as the pendants reacted to the encroaching miasma, scintillating with an intense blue-white light.

“Okay, now I got a really bad feeling about this!” Ranma’s hands whipped close to his body as he began to gather ki between his palms. “What the hell’s that joker playin’ at now?”

“I don’t know, but I’m starting to get a serious case of déjà vu.” Akane stepped backwards rapidly, eyes locked to the pool of pure black that was slithering towards her feet. “Guys, whatever you do, don’t step in that stuff! I don’t know for sure, but it feels like…”

“Feels like it wants to suck ya into it, sugar?” Ukyo replied in a trembling voice.

Shingen growled. “Dammit. This is more than just some sort of illusory psych-out, this is maboroshi ryu- goddamned demonic Shadow Art. Some bastard’s using pure Dark Energy against us!” He swung his weapon back. “Brace yourselves, and whatever you do, don’t let it pull you away from…”

His words were suddenly lost as the sea of black surged forward, leaping off the ground and crushing forward like one great tidal wave. Ranma cried out in anger as he released his Moko Takabisha, pummeling the shadows with brilliant red ki and smashing part of the wave to pieces. Shampoo squealed as tendrils snapped at her legs, then swung her bonbori this way and that, batting the offending objects to the side. Ryoga and Mousse smacked another oncoming shadow wave dead-on, while Akane had unsheathed the Saito blade and was cutting neatly- albeit frantically- through another mass of shadow tentacles that was threatening to snare her arms and legs. Shingen spun his naginata in a wide arc, then slammed the blade directly into the pavement, creating a ki wave that knocked another section of shadow back. He stood back up just in time to see even more shadow energy out of the corner of his eye, rearing up to strike at him- and an instant later, Ukyo had slapped the concentration of darkness so hard it practically burst under the force of the blow.

“This is ridiculous!” Ryoga hollered as he swiped at the formless black miasma with his umbrella. “There’s too much of this junk to beat back, it just keeps coming!”

“Less talk, more fight!” Ranma snapped, unleashing another ki blast into the blackness at the same instant Akane fired off her own blast. “Hey ‘kane, you alright?”

“I think so,” she fibbed, a slight tremble evident in her voice. “But how the hell are we going to get out of this? There’s so much of it…”

“I knew it!” Shingen angrily smashed his naginata directly into a thick concentration of shadow, then ripped it across the road, tearing up chunks of asphalt along with the black ooze. “He’s trying to make us wear ourselves out bit by bit; the more we fight this, the less we’ll have when we DO face him!”

Ranma cracked his knuckles and sidled next to Akane, standing back to back as ki literally engulfed his fists. “Well then we’re just gonna have to take this junk out all at once!” His hands shot up; chill winds began to emanate from him as the Soul of Ice took its effect…

…and the next instant, the shadow surged forward with unprecedented force and speed. Ranma didn’t even have time to calculate how he was going to snare the blackness in the Hiryu Shoten Ha before fighting suddenly became a moot point. Ebony chains exploded from the sea of shadow, snapping around weapons, wrists, legs, waists or anything else they could get a hold on. Each chain quickly coiled tighter than a python catching its prey- and began to pull downwards, into the darkness at their feet. Akane screamed out Ranma’s name and tried to fight her way towards him, but to little avail. Ranma, likewise, called out her name and managed to somehow wrest his arms free of his bonds, pressing across the growing lake of darkness and lunging for her outstretched hand.

He was barely able to lock his fingers with hers when the chains pulled taut once again, breaking their grip and pulling the two teens apart again. Akane shrieked, and Ranma’s heart froze as he saw her being sucked into the darkness, just as he was being sucked in himself.

“Don’t let them pull us apart!” Shingen bellowed, his weapon and his arms snared by his own set of chains, which he was stubbornly wrestling against. “We’ve got to stay together!” Beside him, Ukyo and Ryoga were both fighting a pitched battle against the black shackles, and both were clearly losing, though to his credit Ryoga had managed to break several chains before they had encircled his elbows. Not far from them, Ranma could just make out Shampoo and Mousse in identical dire straits; she was up to her waist in shadow, while he was trying desperately to pull her back out again.

Dammit… no… I’m not gonna let this crap take her away from me… ACCHAN! Fire blazed in Ranma’s eyes and his ki flared brighter than before as he tried to fight his way out of the shadow trap, but the more he fought, the tighter the chains grew. Desperately he lunged time and again towards Akane, who was almost entirely engulfed by the shadow, but every time he managed to almost reach her, more snares burst from the blackness and pulled him back. He kept twisting out, breaking chain after chain, but they seemed endless. He gritted his teeth and yelled out in anguish, pushing against the bonds with all his might… yet could do nothing as he saw Akane and several of the others pulled into the abyss at their feet.

He thought he saw a faint flicker of motion on the periphery of his vision- something flashing through the mist, in the near vicinity of where Ukyo and Shingen were being pulled in- and the next moment, all was black as the darkness engulfed every last one of them.

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On a rooftop not far from Furinkan, the great seven-foot Tengu stood in a state of intense concentration. His wings were spread and arms outstretched, tracing arcane symbols in the air. His eyes flared crimson and his breath grew harsh as indigo-black streaks of ki oozed from his fingertips, dribbling through the air and seeping down the sides of the building to join with the shadows of the alleys and streets below. Thin fingers of blue lightning arced through the roiling, smoky ki as his hand motions became more intense.

“Bind.” His index fingers snapped up. A throb of energy pulsed through the blackness, echoing down to the street level. “Draw!” The index fingers curled. “Separate!” The Tengu suddenly brought both palms together, then swept his hands outward in wide arcs. There was a sudden deep rumbling of the earth… and an instant later, four great globules of shadow hurtled up from a nearby roadway that led directly to Furinkan’s front gate. The black bubbles pulsed and quivered, then burst apart from one another, flinging themselves hither and yon across the city blocks of Nerima. The Tengu jabbed the air with his fingers and the spheres altered their paths yet again, and then a third time, until finally they dropped to the ground with a series of heavy thuds.

Kurowashi let out a long breath and dropped to one knee. “It is done.” He paused, then chortled, a heavy basso chuckle. “Let’s see how well they like strength in numbers when the balance isn’t tilted in their favor.”

The petite girl in the purple bodysuit next to him giggled, then frowned. “You seemed to have a touch of trouble for a moment, dear Kuro-chan. A tad rusty, are we?”

“Try being bound inside a transformation curse for a year and see if you aren’t out of practice, child.” The Tengu folded his arms and glared at the streets below. “Those whelps are quite strong to have resisted the Shadow Maze’s pull for as long as they did; Saotome in particular was one of the tougher ones to snare.”

Yoko flipped her bangs petulantly. “The way that boy is about his mate, it’s hardly surprising. He really was so fun to watch each time something new fell between them.” She paused, then looked at the large demon with a concerned eye. “You did manage to separate them, didn’t you?”

“Rest assured, you’ll have your fun soon enough,” the Tengu replied, cracking his knuckles. “Saito’s heir is all by her lonesome, blocks away from any of the others- and they’ll all have their own adversaries to contend with.” His wings flapped once, spreading outward. “And even if they aren’t done in, my shadow art hurled them far enough back that not a one will arrive before the Master’s Gate is complete.”

Yoko nodded and licked her lips. “Then perhaps I shall pay little Miss Tendo a visit,” she purred, running a fingernail along the tattoos on her right forearm. “And you- what will you do?”

Kurowashi’s avian face curled into a crooked smile. “I have unfinished business with a former Host.”

There was a rustling of feathers and a great rush of air, and the Tengu bounded from the rooftop, soaring towards a distant side street where one of the ebony spheres had descended. Yoko giggled sadistically, and a moment later she was bounding across the rooftops herself in another direction, her fingernails stretching into wickedly curved claws.

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Ranma stirred. What the hell… what just happened… He felt a rush of icy air across his chest and winced as sensations began to return to him. His fingers twitched, arm muscles tensing and relaxing in turn. He drew in a long breath, feeling the pavement under his back- and his eyes promptly shot open.

No. Oh Kami, no… that shadow… those chains… pulling at me, yanking me into… into some kinda empty place, away from… NO! He jerked to the side and rolled up onto his elbows, quickly springing to his feet. “Akane!” His head snapped up and he quickly ascertained he wasn’t anywhere near the street they’d been on; from his vantage point, he was smack in the middle of a residential district at least seven blocks back from where he had been. “Shingen?” His eyes narrowed as he glanced right and left, noting that local alleys and the tops of the concrete walls were bristling with what appeared to be solid walls of darkness, affording no real shortcut options or escape routes. Ranma shuddered and rubbed his temple feverishly as he realized he couldn’t feel any auras in his near vicinity- nothing human, nothing demonic, nothing at all. “AKANE! WHERE ARE YOU?”

“She isn’t here, Ranma,” said a voice directly behind him. “Nobody else is, just you and me.”

Ranma practically jumped out of his skin and spun on one heel. “Dammit, Ryoga! Don’t sneak up on me like that, ya almost gave me a heart attack!”

“I wasn’t sneaking up on you, you damn dummy!” Ryoga shot back as he pulled himself to his feet. “You just didn’t bother to look behind you, that’s all.” He cracked his neck and glanced up the shadow-saturated road. “What kind of a mess have you gotten me into now, Ranma…”

“Oh sure, go ahead an’ blame me when you practically begged us to bring ya with us! I thought you were done with that, pork butt!”

“Wha- HEY! Stop calling me that!”

“I would if you’d stop blamin’ me for every damn thing under the sun! Ya think those shadow-things were my fault? Or those chain-things? Huh?”

“Okay! OKAY!” Ryoga groaned, holding his hands up. “I wasn’t trying to; it was just a reflex, alright? I’m sorry!” He hung his head and blew out a long breath before looking up again. “I just got kinda surprised, that’s all. Damn shadow just swallowed me up for a moment, freaked me out a bit.” Like frickin’ Toma’s island all over again…

“Yeah, me too.” Ranma gritted his teeth and glared up the street. The shadow partitions sealing off the alleys and estate walls seemed too high to leap over, but he could just make out the flickering indigo bonfire that marked Furinkan in the distance- even through the fog that continued to roll in. “That son of a bitch… he really is turning this all into some damn game.” He screwed his eyes shut and clenched his fists, focusing inward on his mind’s ear, probing for a response from another. Akane, where are you? Can you hear me? Please… tell me where you are…

“So where the hell are we now?” Ryoga groused, hefting his umbrella. “I know we’re supposed to be heading for that big light thingy, but I don’t know if I’ve been through this part of town before, or… Hey! Are you listening to me?”

“I’m listening,” came the reply through clenched teeth. “And as far as where we are, we’re not where we’re supposed to be.”

Ryoga rolled his eyes. “Oh, that’s a big help… and what’s the deal with all that black stuff on the sides of the street? Is that supposed to be a wall?”

“Your guess is as good as mine,” Ranma replied, opening his eyes with a dejected sigh. “Looks like walls to me… so the jagoff’s probably tryin’ to make us take the long way to get him.”

“What about the others, you think they’re in the same kinda…”

“I don’t KNOW, man, but we stay here and keep on talking, who knows what’s gonna happen to the rest of them! C’mon, we gotta move!” Ranma turned on his heel and started to run; Ryoga blinked, stumbled once and began to run as well.

“Okay, I can get moving, but move WHERE? Just follow the road or wherever we don’t see a black wall?” Ryoga sidestepped to the left, raising his umbrella as he came to a nearby alleyway. “Who says we can’t just bust outta here and take a shortcut?” The umbrella lashed out and smacked against the shadow wall over the alley- which promptly stretched like rubber and then rebounded, throwing Ryoga off-balance for an instant.

“I think those damn walls just said so, Ryoga,” was Ranma’s humorless reply. He skidded to a halt and glared at the black partition. “Either that, or maybe ya just didn’t hit it right.” His hand flew to his wakizashi’s hilt, drawing the blade and striking in one fluid motion. Sparks flew and a gash opened up across the nearest mass of shadow- which quickly filled itself in, sealing the gash almost as fast as it opened. “Okay… that doesn’t work either, and I’ll bet ya anything it ain’t gonna let us jump over it. You got any better ideas?”

Ryoga snarled and punched the road beneath him, creating a rather nicely sized pothole. “What the hell kind of a trick is this, anyway?”

“Beats the hell outta me… but whatever it is, it’s doin’ more than just holding us in. I can’t feel a single damn battle aura anywhere nearby- not even yours, man.” And you can call me a Chinese lapdog if all this shadow ain’t screwing it up so I can’t Link with Acchan or Shingen. He angrily flipped his pigtail over one shoulder and started running again with Ryoga close behind. “Just like a mouse in a maze.”

“More like Pac-Man if you ask me. I’m actually kinda surprised that white-haired bastard isn’t sending some of his goons after us…” His train of thought ground to a halt as the pavement under their feet abruptly shook and a very large figure suddenly loomed out of the fog. “Uh… guess I spoke too soon.”

“Gee, ya think so, Ryoga?” Ranma snapped as the fog thinned ever so slightly, revealing a great humanoid standing over eight feet tall with skin that looked like solid stone, clad only in an off-white breechcloth. A sudden shriek echoed from behind the two teens, followed by numerous giggles as a bevy of imps, lesser oni and a number of avian demons resembling multi-eyed crows approached from the far end of the street. Several additional shrieks indicated more of the same lesser demons- and a few True Oni- just beyond the rock golem in front of them. The giant stone man grinned, a deep, gritty laugh emerging from somewhere in his chest. He took one step, then lunged forward, slamming both hands into the street so hard that his fingers were buried up to their knuckles. The beast reared back again- and with a horrific crack, yanked a prodigious chunk of concrete directly out of the road and held it over his head.

Ryoga’s eyes widened in shock, then narrowed. “Great. Penned in again, there’s only the two of us, and that guy wants to play Extreme Frisbee.”

“And those buddies of his ain’t spectators,” Ranma growled, sheathing his sword. “We gotta get outta here, and we gotta do it FAST!” His body coiled, knees bending as he prepared to spring through the stone man’s legs…

…and the man reared back and flung the concrete discus fast and low, skimming the ground like a lawnmower with a speed that made Ranma gasp. Instead of springing forward, Ranma found himself dodging to the side just as Ryoga leapt in the opposite direction; the two each collided against the barrier lining the street as the chunk of pavement exploded a yard beyond where they had been standing. Ranma grunted as he pushed away from the shadow barrier, tucked and rolled forward, intending to uppercut the giant before it knew what he was doing. “Hey, gravel breath! Try chewin’ on this for a change! JINRAI TEKKEN!” Ki burst from his knuckles as he drove his fist into the giant’s left cheekbone, creating a minor sonic boom that reverberated up and down the street and knocked several watching imps silly.

The giant recoiled slightly- then grinned. “Feisty one, aren’t you, little Hunter?” he chuckled in his gravely voice before driving his own fist into Ranma’s solar plexus, knocking the breath from his body and sending him airborne. At that instant, a cadre of lesser demons decided to make their presence known and charged from the other side towards the descending Ranma and a less-than amused Ryoga. Ranma just barely managed to catch his breath and righted himself in mid-flight before he slammed into the pavement head-first.

“You want some, you little creeps? C’mon then, come get some!” Ryoga proceeded to lambaste any and every imp within reach with his umbrella, scything half a dozen away with two great sweeps. “Mess up my day, will ya? Mess up my friends’ day, will ya?” He hefted the umbrella and promptly flung it at one of the larger of the oni in the group, cracking it in the forehead and breaking its neck. “Big mistake, guys!”

“Ryoga, hate to tell ya this, man, but we got bigger problems than the small fry!” Ranma gasped as he elbowed two batlike demons out of his face. Ryoga spun around, about to ask what he was talking about, but quickly refrained when he noticed the stone giant gripping a nearby telephone pole at the base. The beast grunted and pulled, tearing the pole out of the ground as though it were made of paper, then brandishing the massive thing like a spear as he took several surprisingly agile steps towards the two teens.

“Oh. Right. DAMN!”

“You’re quite amusing to watch, puny humans,” the stoneman grumbled. “But now, I’m afraid you’ll have to die.” A quick step, and the telephone pole shot forward, very nearly clocking both Ranma and Ryoga in the face; the golem gave the pole a sharp twist and swung to the side, smacking Ryoga across one shoulder and sending him flying into a nearby wall. He grinned, then swung back around, aiming for Ranma’s head, but Ranma had recovered somewhat from the earlier gut punch and sprang skyward, the telephone pole missing him by inches.

“Sorry, but I got no plans on dyin’ today!” He twisted in midair and planted his feet on one of the shadow walls lining the street- noting, as he did, that they seemed to grow upwards in time with his ascent. I knew it. No chance of jumping these goddamned walls… He coiled for a microsecond, then leaped again, past the head of the giant and rebounding off the other side of the street. He passed the giant’s head again; there was a sudden flash and a shower of sparks as Ranma’s sword was drawn, crashing across the back of the granite-like head of the beast. Ranma hit the ground, spun on one heel and darted in- but the demon merely shook off the blow and thrust at Ranma’s head with the telephone pole once more.

“Okay, I’ll give ya props for being tough,” the pig-tailed one snarled. “And ya may be fast- but I’m FASTER!” His body blurred an instant before the pole collided with his face- and the stone man blinked in surprise as Ranma reappeared, standing on top of the pole. A cocky grin flashed across his face- and suddenly he was racing along the pole, sword blazing left and right, until he was practically on top of the giant’s shoulders. The wakizashi flashed like lightning, followed by several hideous scraping sounds akin to claws on a chalkboard. The stone giant’s grip on the pole faltered as multiple score lines appeared along his weapon, followed by the entire thing breaking to bits.

Ranma shifted his weight, balancing on the demon’s arms as he swung the sword up again- but then stopped and stared. “What the…”

An instant later, his leg had been hooked by a massive stone hand and he found himself hurled to the ground, his back slamming against the pavement almost hard enough to knock the wind out of him again. His sword fell from his grasp as he rolled to one side, gasping for breath and pulling on his inner ki reserves to dull the pain. The giant stood in front of him, hands on hips, laughing- with no mark of any sort on his skin.

“A valiant effort, Sagara’s heir. But you must realize I can’t be cut.” He looked scornfully at the dropped wakizashi and snorted. “Not by a Hunter who doesn’t even know how to use his own weapon, anyway.”

Ranma gritted his teeth and pulled himself up, his aura flaring bright crimson as he fought his own wounds off. “Can’t be cut, huh. You so sure ‘bout that, marblehead?” He bent down and snapped up the wakizashi, interrupted only by a flash of pain shooting up his spine. “Fact is, I’m just getting warmed up here! Divide and unite, NIBAIKOTSU!” Both hands gripped the sword as white-gold light shot along the blade; once again the blade swelled, grew, then split in twain, replacing the single wakizashi with twin scimitar-style weapons which he quickly brought up into a ready position.

“So you still wish to break through me? Very well… let’s just see you try it!” Massive stone hands grappled the pavement yet again, ripping another chunk of road up and over the golem’s head. Behind him, the troupe of Oni began to cheer him on, leering at Ranma with their bulbous yellow eyes. Ranma’s eye twitched as he locked eyes with the stone beast; he could almost hear the gaggle of imps behind him, making ready to trip him up at a moment’s notice. His grip tightened on each sword as the stoneman took a step, preparing to hurl the slab his way.

It was then that something happened that Ranma wasn’t expecting. Had his aura sense not been dulled by the shadow partitions lining the road, he might have felt it an instant before it occurred, even without the additional sense granted by his Hunter blood. As it was, though, he felt very little, relying only on his eyes and ears to read the stoneman’s moves.

Just as the golem hurled the slab of pavement and Ranma readied himself to strike at it, a foot collided with the top of his skull.

“RANMA! THIS ONE’S MINE!”

For the first time since he could recall in recent months, Ranma found his head utilized as a springboard as Ryoga pounced over him, sailing through the air to meet the oncoming projectile headlong. His right arm jabbed outward, mere seconds before the slab collided with him- and the slab promptly exploded into hundreds of shards, peppering the newly-startled golem with asphalt shrapnel. The beast shook the debris off, then bellowed and swung his fists directly at the sides of Ryoga’s head. One hand shot out and intercepted the golem’s right hand, while another collided with his left, and the next thing anyone knew, Ryoga was locked up with the stone man, each one pushing resolutely against the other with all the force they could muster.

Ranma shook his head to clear the stars and stared. “Ryoga, what the hell do ya think yer doing?”

“What do you think I’m doing, Ranma?” Ryoga shot back through clenched teeth. “You get out of here; I can handle this freakshow by myself!”

“By yourself? Are you insane?”

“I’m trying to help, you moron! What, you think I’m just gonna let this thing beat both of us silly so that neither of us gets to that Astaroth prick?” The golem tensed up and pushed harder, causing Ryoga’s knees to buckle, but he promptly dug his heels in and refused to budge more than an inch. “Look, I’m not tryin’ to show you up, so stop your damn grandstanding and get a move on!”

Ranma blinked and stared at Ryoga for an instant- which quickly passed as a trio of imps decided to charge him from the rear, screeching and grasping at his arms and legs. He quickly spun in a circle and brought Nibaikotsu’s blades across their faces, obliterating them all before turning to face the grappling duo again. “Ryoga, you don’t have to do this…”

“Don’t I?” He turned his head and smirked. “Just get outta here and thrash the bastard one for me, okay?” Ryoga turned his eyes back to the stoneman, glared and shoved back, pushing the demon a full half-inch before the two reached stalemate again. “And besides… you got somebody waiting for you out there, don’t you?”

Ranma’s eyes widened. Oh damn, he’s right… Acchan! He shook his head again and hefted his twin swords onto his shoulders. “I won’t forget this, old buddy,” he murmured, pulling into a low crouch. “You better not get yourself killed, or I’m gonna kick yer ass!” His legs uncoiled like an Olympic sprinter, propelling him narrowly past the massive stone man and into the faces of the Oni squad behind him. The Oni stared, slack-jawed, as the pig-tailed teen lunged into their midst and proceeded to cut through them with ease; within seconds, the Oni had turned to powder and Ranma had disappeared, running like a bat out of hell.

Heh… guess you forgot, Ranma. You might not be able to cut this guy, but I got no problem with it! Ryoga grinned, but the grin quickly evaporated as the stoneman took a different tactic and pulled upward. Ryoga found himself airborne, then winced as one massive hand yanked his arm hard, turning him in a half-circle at the apex of his ascent. He shot his hands out to either side in a desperate block as two stone arms flung themselves around him, and the next thing he knew, he was in the most uncomfortable bear hug of his life.

“You may have let your Hunter friend escape, young one,” the demon growled, “but you’re not going anywhere. Time to die.”

“Like Hell it is,” Ryoga snarled, snaking his hands up and planting them on the golem’s wrists. He took a deep breath, then began pushing outward with every ounce of strength he had left. I hope to Kami this works; haven’t tried it yet, but if Shingen said I could, then… might as well give it a shot! A strangled growl escaped the Lost Boy’s throat as he pushed, and the golem squeezed, until finally the stone arms’ grip loosened ever so slightly. An instant later, the demon roared and squeezed back harder than before- but the only thing he was grappling was a beige shirt and a freshly crushed backpack.

The demon’s eyes widened. “What the…” He stared at the items in his hands for an instant, until a defiant ‘bwee’ sound drifted up from his feet. He dropped the shirt and the pack and glanced down just in time to see a black piglet- in a crumpled pair of trousers- abruptly transform back into human form.

“Heh. Guess he was right when he said I could change if I wanted to.” Ryoga locked eyes with the flabbergasted demon and lunged forward again, jabbing his index finger into the thing’s lower abdomen. “Now chew on this, freak! BAKUSAI TENKETSU!”

The golem barely had time to scream before exploding in a maelstrom of rock and white ichors.

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Ranma’s ears perked up at the sudden scream accompanied by the sound of breaking concrete. He slowed for an instant, turning his head back the way he had came and peering around, before shaking it off and resuming his mad dash through the shadow-encased street. That dummy better be okay… but then again, knowing that guy’s power like I do, he might just put up a decent fight yet. He paused long enough to slice his way through another cadre of imps, then smirked. Heh. For all I know, he mighta tried using the Breaking Point on that mammoth; assuming it works on living stone the way it does ordinary stone, then maybe…

He shrugged, then turned his attention back to the road. It was still closed in on most sides by the blackness with the occasional twist and turn, and to his eternal displeasure, continued to thwart his efforts to break through. “Friggin’ thing goes on forever,” he groused, vaulting over a trio of albino serpents and lobbing off their heads as he did so. “Can’t jump over ‘em, can’t cut through them fast enough.” He sprang to one side of the street and proceeded to assault another section of shadow with both halves of Nibaikotsu, but to little avail. “Gonna take me all night to even get to the end, let alone find that white-haired bastard.” A lesser oni howled and tried to grab and bite him from behind, but he quickly turned and dispatched the beast with little trouble. “Can’t even feel right with these walls blockin’ my senses off, can’t hear…”

Ranma!

He froze in mid-stride, skidding to a halt. “What the…” His eyes widened and he frantically began searching the street left and right. “Was that…? Akane? AKANE, WHERE ARE YOU?”

Ranma, where’d you go… where is everyone… Ranma, can you hear me? HELP ME!

His eyes narrowed. I knew it… I’d know Acchan’s voice anywhere! Acchan! Where are you?

I… I don’t know… it looks like I’m still in town, but there’s black walls everywhere! Ranma winced; the tone of the Astral was heavily distorted and faint, but he could hear the panic in her mind. I don’t see anyone else, I can’t even feel much of… of…

There was a pause. Oh… oh, no. It’s that… that lackey of his is right in front of… Ranma, where are you? Please!

“Dammit!” Ranma screamed, slamming a fist against the shadow tunnel and starting to run again. “Damn it all to Hell an’ back again! That’s it, I’m gonna kill that bastard twice for this! Yankin’ me away from ‘kane, throwin’ us in some stupid maze, can’t jump the walls, can’t hack the walls, freaks comin’ out of every last goddamned shadow…”

His feet abruptly locked up again and he blinked twice before snapping his attention back to the black miasma. Shadow… up and down the streets… oh, DUH! I don’t believe it, it was right there the whole time and I never even realized it! Kami, how could I be such a BAKA! He relaxed his grip on Nibaikotsu, letting the weapon’s energy recede and re-merge until it once again resembled an ordinary wakizashi. Slamming it back into the saya, he turned to the wall and smirked. He could see out of the corner of his eyes, there were more lesser demons drifting towards him from either end of the road, while the indigo bonfire from Furinkan still seemed some distance away over the tops of the shadow maze.

“If I can’t cut it or go over it, then I’ll just have to go through it,” Ranma quipped, pulling his hands close to his chest. Don’t worry, Acchan… I’m on my way. But you’re gonna have to guide me. Just hang on. He drew closer to the shadow, pulling his aura in tighter and tighter.

Just as the first wave of imps was about to lunge at him, his aura disappeared completely and the Umisen-ken joined him with the shadows, leaving behind a number of bewildered demon-kin.

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Where am I? What just happened… all those shadows, those chains… pulling me down… away… Ukyo’s chest tightened and her body twisted, trying to throw off the icy sensations racing up her spine. Good gods, they were everywhere… darkness… the cold… so cold… Her face contorted in panic and sweat fell from her temples. One arm thrashed to her side, finally registering the hard surface she was lying on. “S-stop… make it stop, please… d-don’t take them away… someone, PLEASE…”

“Ukyo, calm down!” The voice broke through the residual sensations, halting her panic-induced thrashing. She felt a gloved hand resting on her shoulder, lifting her up until she was being cradled in one arm. She shuddered, then snapped her eyes open and looked up. “It’s okay. Just settle down; I was hoping you wouldn’t have to deal with something like this. Wishful thinking, I suppose.”

Ukyo let out a relieved sigh. “Shin-kun… what in the name of won ton soup just happened?” She reached up and grabbed his shoulder, pulling herself to her feet as quick as her feet would allow. “Felt like I was gettin’ pulled three ways by a wild tiger or something. You okay?”

“I’ll be fine; what about you?” At her nod, Shingen let out a sigh of his own, then turned to glare down the fog-filled road they seemed to have landed in. “Well, as for what just happened, we’ve just fallen victim to something called a Shadow Maze- which is another way of saying that what I didn’t want to happen, just happened. We’ve been split up.”

Ukyo’s eyes widened, darting left and right as she fumbled with the grip of her combat spatula. “Split up? Ya mean everyone else is… just gone?”

“Not gone, I don’t think. If that demon’s playing the sort of game I think he is, he’s toying with us- wearing us down before we reach him, bit by bit.” He hefted his naginata as a sudden baying of unearthly beasts echoed down the shadow-lined road. “That Greater Tengu’s probably behind this, that type of demon practically specializes in Shadow magic. I know, I’ve had to fight my way out of Shadow Mazes before.”

“So what’re you saying, sugar? We just got dumped off-course by that black blob and now we’ve gotta get out and find the others?”

“That’s about the size of it,” Shingen muttered, pointing up and to the far right where a flare of indigo light could just barely be seen. “My guess is we’ve gotten pushed back from where we were by at least seven blocks, maybe more. On top of that, those walls ain’t gonna let us out easily; they take forever to break through and you can’t jump over them in the slightest.”

Ukyo gritted her teeth. “That ain’t all, I’ll bet; I’m getting bad vibes just lookin’ at the damn things.” She inched her hand towards her throwing spatula bandoleer. “Those black walls get any closer together, I think I’m gonna get claustrophobia…” A howl echoed from behind her, causing her breath to catch in her throat. “W-what was that?”

“Probably any number of things, Ucchan,” the tall Hunter replied, reaching over and giving her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t let it psyche you out; just stick with me and follow my lead. We’re gonna get out of this.” Make that we HAVE to get out of this; the longer we stay here, the worse things are gonna be when we DO get to the school. Can’t even sense auras properly in this maze… I really, REALLY hate Tengus and their goddamned maboroshi ryu…

“I think we’ve got company, Shin-kun.” She took a quick step and pressed her back to his, lifting her weapon as the sound of shuffling feet drew closer- many shuffling feet. The mist began to dissipate, thinning to the point where the outlines of several dozen imps could be seen encroaching from both sides. Their emerald eyes glinted in what little light remained as they began to spread out, slowly circling the two fighters. Ukyo’s eyes narrowed and she bit her lip. “Just like a pack of rats, huh. One’s not a big problem…”

“But a swarm of them is.” Shingen tightened his grip on his naginata; the blade shone bright gold for an instant as the serrations appeared along both sides. Ukyo did likewise, swinging the spatula into a ready position, one hand close to her vest. The imps started to giggle maniacally as more and more emerged from the mists, crouched low and prepared to charge the duo en masse.

Their attention was so focused on Ukyo and Shingen that they never saw the attack before it hit.

Shingen’s eyebrows shot up as a faint humanoid silhouette emerged within the depths of the fog in front of him- and a second later, the air exploded with a myriad of slashing noises and tortured cries. Dozens of shuriken erupted from the mist, cutting a swath through an entire section of imps, scattering some and obliterating a few that were unfortunate enough to take shuriken to the neck. The shadow disappeared, then just as quickly reappeared in the midst of another clump of imps. “Get away from this place, you vermin!” the figure shouted, drawing a straight blade and spinning in a circle, knocking the demon-kin about.

Ukyo gasped. “I… I don’t believe it… is that… what’s he doing out here?”

“We’ll have time enough to ask later, Ukyo, but right now I think our friend just bought us an opening!” Shingen whipped around and swung his weapon in a wide arc just as the remaining bewildered imps recovered and swarmed the streets. “CHAIN BLADE!”

“KINBAKU GOMU IRI TAKISOBA!” was Ukyo’s response as she deftly procured her stash of trick noodles and flung them in an arc of her own; they quickly found their marks on the hands, arms and necks of multiple imps, snaring them in an effective stranglehold. A hard yank, and the imps found themselves airborne, hurtling directly towards the incoming spatula in her other hand. She slashed three to bits with one strike, pounded another into the pavement and sent several others flying skyward where they were quickly dispatched by the shadow with the straight blade- now revealed to be a scarlet-clad kunoichi who wasn’t looking quite as feminine as usual.

A screech of pavement being shredded echoed up and down the street at the same time as Shingen spun Karasuhebi’s cobra-like blade up and down, thrashing through huge swaths of imps with ease. He changed his grip and turned on one heel, then thrust straight out, harpooning another batch as the blade stretched to ridiculous lengths. “Ukyo, jump!” he shouted, drawing the weapon back again and then swinging hard. She nodded, spun on one heel and leaped into the air just as he brought the segmented blade low along the ground like a lawnmower, smashing through even more imps while she peppered them from above with throwing spatulas. Another volley of shuriken spiraled through the air courtesy of the third attacker, who bounded from one side of the road to the other, harrying the imps as much as possible. It wasn’t long before the last of the imps was carved and stabbed into powder and Shingen pulled himself up to his full height, returning his weapon to its usual state.

The kunoich dropped to the ground next to Ukyo and looked up with an apologetic smile. “Sorry I’m late, Ukyo-sama…” was all that got out before the brown-haired girl dropped her spatula and grabbed him by the shoulders.

“Konatsu! Oh, thank Kami… I thought you’d gone and left town and that I wasn’t gonna be able to…” She shook her head, then started shaking him hard enough to make his eyes spin. “Where have you been? Why’d ya have to go and run off before we even talked things over? And what’re you doing out here, don’t ya know the town’s full of freaks right now? You have any idea how dangerous it is?”

“I… I just w-wanted to h-help,” Konatsu mumbled dizzily. “H-have a few t-tricks of my own, s-still one of the best kunoichi around…”

“I know that,” muttered Ukyo in a more subdued tone. “I know yer one of the best, ‘natsu, and I’m sorry I haven’t said so much, but still!” Her anxiety started to rise again and she was about to give him a diatribe on taking stupid risks, when she felt a gentle pressure on her left shoulder.

“Ucchan, he did give us an opening against that horde,” said Shingen gently as he moved his hand from her shoulder to her upper back. “And from the few times I actually saw him just now, it looked like he held his own pretty well. Besides… you knew about the danger and you saw fit to come along, didn’t you?”

“Well… yeah, but that’s different! I mean, I was… you know, one friend trying to help out a… I mean…” Her words ground to a halt, and a moment later her shoulders slumped in defeat. “Okay… maybe it’s not that different…” She looked up, noting Konatsu had managed to recover from most of the shaking. “Are you okay, Natsu-chan?”

Konatsu quickly perked up at the name. “I’ll be fine, but what about you, Ukyo-sama? Are you hurt at all?”

“Trust me, I’m okay. A little shook up about everything, but I’ll be all right.” She paused and gave him a wan smile. “I had Shin-kun here watching my back up till now.” Shingen scratched the back of his head and smiled awkwardly.

Konatsu’s smile faltered for an instant, but he quickly covered it up. “That’s good… I was afraid you might’ve gotten overwhelmed out here, and I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to find you in time.” He wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and dropped his gaze to the ground. “Ukyo-sama, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to leave you the way I did… I just… well…”

Ukyo’s face fell and she reached forward, prodding Konatsu’s chin up so his eyes met hers. “Stop that, okay? You don’t have to apologize; Kami, I’m the one who oughta be apologizing to you, ya big lug!”

“No, I should have stayed and just talked things out with you, instead of running off and sulking when I could have been of some help to you…”

“Natsu, will ya cut it out already?” Ukyo heaved a sigh, then reached up and tousled his hair. “Okay, granted you did get me kinda worried when you disappeared, but I probably wasn’t much help either… you’ve been a really good friend, the least I coulda done was said thank you.”

Konatsu blinked. “You were worried about me?”

“Of course I was, ya dummy.” She gave him a warmer smile and dropped her hand from his head to his shoulder. “Look, we can talk about this later, right now we’ve really gotta…”

“GET DOWN!”

Ukyo felt a sudden jolt as Shingen shoved her and Konatsu roughly to one side- and her eyes shot open as a gray-skinned woman’s head lunged out of the fog almost right next to them. She barely caught a glimpse of the woman’s sickly yellow eyes before her mouth snapped wide open, revealing jaws set with rotting, sharklike teeth. She felt Konatsu rolling, turning his shoulder to accept the brunt of the impact, then saw Shingen lash out with his left arm. In an instant, the woman screeched and caught his forearm in her jaws, sinking her teeth deep into his jacket sleeve. Ukyo shrieked; Shingen growled in pain and the woman snarled, tugging her head back further into the mist, which had thinned to the point where all three could see the serpentine neck connecting the head to her body more than two yards away.

“Oh my God! Shingen!” Ukyo gasped.

“What’s happening? That creature just came out of nowhere!” Konatsu’s hand flew to the ninja blade at his side just as Shingen twisted and yanked back, pulling the long-necked woman off balance.

“It’s nothing,” the Hunter gasped through clenched teeth. “This is why I hate Shadow Mazes…” He let his naginata fall to the ground next to him. “Messes up your peripheral senses, can’t track auras properly…” His right hand flew to his lower back, grasping something beneath his jacket. “And it lets bitches like this catch you OFF GUARD!” With a rush of strength, he pulled with his left arm again, but the rokurokubi refused to relinquish her grip and moved with his motion- just as his right hand retrieved his jade tanto and stabbed her through the neck. The demon screeched and pulled away rapidly, white fluids spilling from her wound. Shingen dropped to one knee, not so much from his injury but more to retrieve his primary weapon; Ukyo caught a glimpse of his sleeve and saw that a good deal of the outer leather had been ripped away, revealing the inner lining of chain mail which had absorbed more of the demon’s attack. In several places, the chain links had broken and blood was welling out slowly.

“That hurt, you impudent Hunter!” the long-necked woman cried. “I think I’ll hurt you doubly for that! BURN!” Her neck reared up like a dancing cobra, light flashed in her eyes and she exhaled a gout of fire directly at the trio in front of her.

“MAKOTO TOKU!” Shingen’s left hand shot forward, the pentagram on the back of his glove shining bright as his ki shield sprang up a bare instant before the flames struck. The woman glared and continued to breathe, but the shield stood its ground and only shuddered once under the onslaught. The flames grew higher and hotter- which is when Konatsu decided to make his move.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not about to sit idly by and do nothing; I didn’t throw myself into that pool of shadow to be a spectator!” Before Ukyo could say anything, the kunoichi disappeared in a cloud of pink smoke. The inferno continued to burn for several seconds longer, until his voice abruptly emerged from- presumably- directly behind the snake-woman. “HAPPO BIJIN SHURIKEN!” Wet stabbing sounds followed his cry; the demon howled and the stream of fire suddenly ceased. From their vantage point, Ukyo and Shingen could see the woman writhing as she tried to rid herself of the volley of throwing stars stuck in her back. She swung around, whipping her arms to try and strike her attacker- and Konatsu exploded from the fog behind her back, dragging his blade across the backs of her thighs and eliciting a hideous shriek.

“Hey, save some o’ that freak for us, kiddo!” Ukyo hollered as she bounded into the fray, drawing her combat spatula and proceeding to beat the rokurokubi about the face and neck. “Try an’ take a bite outta my Shin-kun, will ya? CHEW ON THIS, BITCH!” She swung hard and caught the demon with an overhead strike hard enough to slam its face to the ground, sprang away, breathed hard… and suddenly blushed at what she’d just said. Did… did I just say… did I say he was MINE? Uh oh… an’ I haven’t even talked about anything with him yet…

“I’m not done yet… you little striplings!” the woman groaned, pulling herself up. “Mustn’t let you through… not until… Lord Astaroth is ready!”

“Yeah, well the next time you see your Lord, tell him he made a big mistake,” Shingen snarled as he raised his right hand with three fingers extended. “KONPAKU KAKI BAKUHA!” White-gold ki engulfed his hand and shot forth like a lance, piercing through the kimono-clad demon’s breast and continuing on, dispelling a great deal of the fog in its wake. The snake-necked woman squealed in agony and dropped to her knees, then burst into a cloud of white that spiraled up and disappeared into the fog.

Shingen let out a relieved sigh. “Not too fond of those demons, either- those snake-necks just love to toy around,” he chuckled as he rolled up his tattered left sleeve and Konatsu bounded back out of the fog, sheathing his blade.

“Are you gonna be okay, Shin-kun? Looks like she bit ya pretty deep…” Ukyo trailed off, then looked at him with a hint of moisture in her eye. “You didn’t have to do that, getting yourself hurt for my sake…”

“There wasn’t time, she snuck up on us too fast for me to do much else.” His hand glowed a soft yellow-gold as he passed his palm over the lacerations in his flesh, sealing them partway. “Armor took care of the worst of it, so I wasn’t too worried… but armor aside, you think I was gonna let her just take a chunk out of either of you? Not bloody likely, Ucchan.”

Ukyo flushed slightly. “Guess that’s the third time you’ve saved my ass, sugar.”

The taller man stood up and shrugged, giving her a slight wink. “Call it a habit, I guess.” A nearby cough alerted the two of them to Konatsu’s presence.

“So what happens now? Are there more of those beasts out there, and we just have to keep going through them?” the kunoichi remarked, a slight flush on his own face. I guess it’s true, she really does seem to have feelings for this man… first Ranma-sama, and now him. Guess I can’t really compete if she’s that attracted to… well, the manly type, even with the way she dresses and acts. But… she did say she considers me a good friend, and she was worried about me… The flush left his face and he straightened up. And for right now, that’s good enough for me. She’s right, we can talk about this later.

“I really have no clue as to what else may be out there, but the others are headed for the school right now, and I’m in no mood to leave them high and dry!” A chorus of growls suddenly echoed through the fog, prompting Shingen to heft his naginata onto one shoulder and narrow his eyes. “Yep. There’s more out there… and by the growls, I’m guessing Hell Hounds. This isn’t going to be easy.”

Ukyo reached up and gave his shoulder a quick squeeze. “We kinda knew it wasn’t gonna be easy goin’ in; now that we’re this far, I ain’t backing out now.”

“I can’t say I understand all of this, but if I can help out, I will,” Konatsu added, resting a hand on his sword. At that moment, the fog roiled and swept aside, revealing no less than two dozen of the grotesque Hell Hounds that had invaded Furinkan just days before. Smoke wafted from their sunken nostrils as each set of flaming red eyes fixed themselves on the prey before them. Konatsu blanched upon seeing them, but swallowed hard and settled into a ready- albeit shaky- stance; Ukyo did likewise while Shingen grasped his weapon in both hands, unlocking the blade’s form once again.

More of the mutant canines began to wander in from the fog, their hissing barks adding to the growing noise permeating the roadway. One hound, about the size of a wild lion but without the mane, padded forward from the rest of the pack, saliva dripping from its fangs. It sniffed the air, then reared its head back and roared- and the pack surged forward like a tidal wave.

“You ready?” Shingen shouted over the pounding of clawed feet.

“Not really, but I ain’t leaving ya!” Ukyo hollered back. Konatsu said nothing, but nodded, his eyes starting to narrow at the encroaching demons. Shingen nodded and spun his weapon in a figure-eight before drawing it back in a wide arc…

The Hell Hounds picked up speed, preparing to pounce…

…and the street erupted in violence as Shingen unleashed Karasuhebi’s Chain Blade, ripping the front lines of the pack apart in a maelstrom of white light and thrashing blades. The weapon twisted and turned in a manner which would make a rhythmic gymnast proud, while its wielder turned and dived, driving his feet and the butt of the polearm into whatever Hell Hound was in reach. Konatsu unleashed his shuriken barrage once more, then leaped skyward and produced several rolls of red cloth from within his sleeves while Ukyo peppered the oncoming canines- literally- with packets of cayenne pepper and the last of her throwing spatulas. The ‘peppered’ demons whined and clawed at their eyes for an instant, then charged Ukyo- but quickly stumbled and fell over each other as Konatsu’s bolts of cloth whipped through the air and snared their ankles, tying their forelegs up in rather decorative red bows. The kunoichi fell to the ground, plunging his sword into the back of one hound, then springing into a handstand to spin-kick two additional hounds across the face simultaneously.

The bows on the demons’ feet weren’t designed for strength, however, which quickly grew evident as the Hell Hounds ripped their bonds open with ease and lunged at Konatsu, which caused Ukyo to scream and jump into the fray herself, batting hound after hound aside until she reached… a blank spot on the pavement. A sweatdrop ran down her head as she realized he had darted under their legs and was outside the pack, whereas she had just leaped inside. “Oh hell…”

She was just about to lose control and start swinging madly when the chain blade burst through the ranks of the pack, bursting five hounds like balloons; the next thing she knew, Shingen had charged into the midst of things like a raging bull and was pounding foe after foe with his fists, heels, and both ends of Karasuhebi. “Don’t even think about it, you psycho bitches!” he bellowed, smashing one hound’s face in with a Jinrai Tekken punch; another hound quickly lunged at him and pushed him to the ground, trying to snap and claw his face to ribbons, but Shingen’s hiking boots shot up and punted the beast off, sending it crashing into several of its brethren. “Both of you, get close to me; I’m gonna end this right here and now!” An instant later, Ukyo and Konatsu had batted or slashed their nearest opponents away and had crouched next to Shingen, just as the Hunter fully extended his chain blade and began to spin the weapon in circles.

The blades began to gouge and score the pavement on all sides, and more than a few of the hounds was lacerated as the naginata spun faster and faster, whipping the air and fog into a frenzied dance. “Time for you dogs to go to sleep, then we’re going after your master!” Shingen’s eyes shifted from blue-green to vibrant gold; Ukyo and Konatsu stared, mouths agape, as an identical scintillating aura engulfed the thrashing blade that seemed to be spinning in a globe around the three of them. “Ikusen Yaiba no Teikiatsu Ultimate Form! RAGNAROK HURRICANE!” Ki shot through the distended blade with renewed ferocity- and the entire street was engulfed in a whirlwind of vacuum blades that tore through not only the Hell Hounds, but the pavement, sections of exposed brick wall, the base of two nearby lampposts and no less than five unattended garbage cans. Roars and screeches erupted from all directions as demon after demon was eviscerated by either the whirling blade-chain or the scything rushes of air it spawned. The din grew to an unimaginable frenzy, white particles permeating the air- and moments later, it had all died down.

Shingen stopped spinning his naginata, the blade retracting and re-molding into its normal spear shape. He lowered the weapon to one side, let out a satisfied sigh- and dropped to one knee, breathing hard. Ukyo and Konatsu glanced up and sprang to their feet, taking an arm each and propping the tall Hunter up.

Every last one of the hounds had been annihilated.

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A violet eye twitched. “It would appear our guests are being… entertained,” Astaroth chuckled in an amused baritone. One hand moved in an arcane pattern ending in a sharp downward thrust, and the smile on his face faded somewhat.

“Though they seem to be dealing with our kin a tad too well. Quite tenacious, even those without Hunter blood…” The white-haired demon’s brow furrowed. “Tenacious indeed. That Lost Boy would have been the one to face off against Stonekin… and Yamashira seems to have gained another companion. Kurowashi’s touch may be slipping.”

His hand resumed its tracing motion in midair. “Still, it matters little.” He cast his gaze on the circle several stories below him; the gaps in the outer rim were sealing quickly and fresh runes were emerging within the indigo light. “All is in readiness. Only a little longer; they’ll be arriving just in time for Completion. And then…” He sneered. “Then Sagara and Saito will be mine.” His hand stopped moving again as he stepped back and closed his eyes. “Hm. I wonder how the rest are faring…”

To Be Continued.

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Author’s Note 5/10/06: I apologize for being late with this update, but things have been hectic with me recently. Work events plus a family crisis pushed things back considerably, and it took me a while to get back into gear, writing-wise. I’ll try to get back into the swing of things, but I can’t promise anything. Due to recent events, I sometimes won’t have much choice but to be late on the update. I’ll still try to shoot for once every 2-3 weeks, though. Thank you for your continued support, and keep sending those reviews in; they help give me inspiration and incentive.

Kinbaku Gomu Iri Takisoba- a special technique used by Ukyo, trapping the target with a thick rope of rubber noodles. Appeared in the manga during the fight with Tako.

Happo Bijin Shuriken- Eight Ways Beauty Shuriken, one of Konatsu’s ranged attacks from the manga.

Makoto Toku, Konpaku Kaki Bakuha, Ikusen Yaiba no Teikiatsu- techniques described in previous chapters, used by Shingen.

The long-necked woman, as mentioned, is called a rokurokubi in Japanese folklore- whether they breathe fire or not is something I don’t know. For the sake of this story, this one could.

The title of this chapter was borrowed from the name of the recent album released by the famed Britpop/alternarock virtual band, Gorillaz. I rather like some of their music. Thanks again for stopping by and reading; hopefully you’ll come back and read some more. Until next time.

-Neon Ronin