Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ The War of Two Families ❯ Prologue: In the Dead of the Night ( Prologue )

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Prologue: In the Dead of the Night

The night was warm and peaceful. The only sound was the light tapping of shoes as a lone man walked down the hall. Through the giant glass windows the man could see the harbor. Even in the darkness, the clear blue color of the sea was visible. Anucklempre was such a beautiful country. Too bad that its sinful ruler has to relinquish his hold on this land and turn it over to Jusoun. For years Jusoun had attacked Anucklempre with no success in conquering it. But now, he had discovered the key to Anucklempre's downfall. The youngest princess, Akane Tendo.

He stopped in front of a pair of heavy wooden doors. Was this it? Quietly, he reached inside his pocket and pulled out a map of the palace. Well, it wouldn't hurt to try. Gingerly, he pulled the handle. It wouldn't budge. So, the powerful Tendo family locks their doors at night, huh? If he wasn't scared of the consequences, he would have kicked the damn door down. Instead, he pulled out a paper clip and began picking the lock. In no time, the intruder was able to unlock the door and sneak inside.

There was no light in the bedroom except for the dim burning of a single candle. He quietly surveyed the room. In the middle was a large bed with silk drapes hanging down on three sides. So the slut can fuck around in peace, he thought with disgust. Taking out a small, three-inch knife, the intruder quietly lifted the drapes. The limited light of the candle managed to illuminate the face of the occupant.

The princess was beautiful. Short black hair framed the heart-shaped face and although her eyes were closed, he remembered the unbelievably violet color of them when he was dragged from the dungeons to court so that the king could brag about capturing an important general of the Jusoun army. Suddenly, the girl moaned and turned over. Slowly, her eyes fluttered open. It was when she saw the man over her bed with a knife in his hand did her eyes register fear. Seeing that she was about to scream, the man quickly cupped his hand over her mouth and whispered, "Make one noise, Princess, and the last thing you'll see will be me." He rubbed his thumb over the handle of the knife to emphasize his point. When she nodded, he took his hand off her mouth.

Immediately, she hissed, "How did you escape the dungeons? No one in the history of my father ruling has ever escaped!"

*flashback*

When the guard came to give him his dinner, he attacked. Soun Tendo, barbarian as he was, still made sure his "prize" was fed. The jackass didn't know that by letting the guards unlock the cell door to give him his food, they were giving him an escape route.

It was simple. With his superior martial arts skills, he was able to overpower the guards easily and knocked them out with their own batons and swords. It was too bad that he was outnumbered on the battlefield. Otherwise he would have never been captured by the Anucklempre army. But then, this temporary inhabitance in their empire had done him some good. He had found the weakness of the king of Anucklempre: his daughter. Would the king choose his kingdom over his own daughter? With a map he had stolen from one of his guardians, he set out to find Akane Tendo.

*end flashback*

He looked at her. "Well, make sure the history books know that I have escaped. Now come." The grip he had on her wrist was like iron. Akane struggled against her captor but she ceased when she realized there was no chance of her escaping.

"You prick, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"For a princess, you have very naughty language," he said gruffly, "you better watch your mouth or you'll regret it."

They had passed the palace entrance now. Akane was amazed that the guards didn't stop them until she looked closely at them and realized they had their throats slit. Akane started to feel real fear creep in. But no, she wasn't going to back down against this jerk who had kidnapped her!

"Then what should I call you?" Her voice rang out with indignation. "There is no way in hell I'm going to address you like you're above me! I'm royalty. You're not."

He stopped her. "What the--" Suddenly, the man unsheathed a sword and held it by her neck. "Look," he commanded.

Akane gulped and obediently looked at the sword. She peered at the words inscribed on the gold handle. Instantly, she paled. "Oh, my God..."

"That's right, Princess," his voice dripped with sarcasm as he moved closer to her, "I'm the Crown Prince of Jusoun, Ranma Saotome."