Ranma 1/2: Ranma No More Alternate History By: Dani Yanega yanega@mindspring.com (please respond to this e-mail address) Chapter One Two figures stand on a cliff over looking a mist-covered valley. The beauty of the valley is lost on them, as they look at the hundreds of springs of varying sizes and shapes. Each of the pools contains bamboo poles of differing heights and numbers, depending on their size. There is a lush, dense forest circling the valley on three sides, leaving the cliff as the fourth side. "Jeez, pop this don't look like a dangerous training ground. Are you sure you read it right?" Asks the boy as he glares at his father from the corner of his eyes, his father straightens and standing a little taller responds to his son. "Insolent boy, I know what I am doing, just because it doesn't look dangerous doesn't mean it isn't." The man stands with his arms crossed over his massive chest looking out over the valley with a stony glare; the young boy shrugs his shoulders and rolls his eyes. Both men are wearing dingy white gi. The older man is tall and over weight, but toned with years of fighting and training. There is, however, the start of a paunch. He wears a white bandana over his head that is tied in place with another one; there is also a pair of wire rim glasses perched on his nose. He appears to be in his early forties. The boy is about sixteen, with raven black hair tied into a short pigtail, with eyes as blue as arctic ice. He stands 5' 10", with an average build. He is carrying a loaded backpack like his father, but his is much bigger. He looks out over the valley, with skepticism, his posture is relaxed, but he seems coiled like a snake ready to strike. He exudes confidence, and power, as he turns toward the entrance of the valley. While they head down into the valley a rustling can be heard in the bushes behind them but the men didn't seem to notice. A pair of dark brown eyes glow with the fire of anger as they watch the men leave. [I got you now Saotome; revenge will soon be mine.] The rustling slowly moves to follow the two men. Then suddenly it starts to move away from the direction they had gone. From the area of the rustling an angry shout can be heard. "WHERE IN HELL AM I NOW!" The two men enter the valley; off to one side they notice an old hut. When they reach the edge of the springs, they drop their packs and make ready to do battle. As they jump on top of the poles, an old Chinese man dressed in a gray uniform comes out of the run down hut. "Mr. Customers, please to wait!" Shouts the guide, he comes running up, panting heavily and waving his arms in a warning gesture. "Ok, Ranma my boy lets see what you got!" Can be heard from the older man as he and his son start fighting, Ranma responds with a condescending tone, and sneer on his face. "More than you can handle oyaji." The two fighters leap from pole to pole, with graceful, fluid motions. While shouting taunts at the other. The old guide tries to get the fighters attention and shouts another warning but it is cut off, the guide winces, when... "Oh, please Mr. Customers is _very dangerous_ must not fight at Jusenkyo, must stop before fall in..." It is too late, though, Genma using a spin kick, hits his son in his solar plexus and sends him flying breathlessly. \*/*\*/ Into the valley comes a young man about sixteen and very muscular. He has black shore hair with deep brown eyes that are full of rage, hate and depression. He is about as tall as Ranma and is wearing a yellow and black dotted bandana that is tied around his head. He is also wearing a yellow shirt, with brown pants, which have leather ties crisscrossing the lower half of his legs and soft sole leather boots. He carries a huge backpack with a red umbrella on top. He enters the valley and sees the two men fighting. He focuses on the younger one, and growls, as he narrows his eyes. "Now I will get my _revenge_, Saotome!" He reaches up, taking hold of the umbrella he withdraws it, and starts forward until he sees the other boy fall into one of the springs. His eyes go wide at what he sees and hears next. The guide shakes his head sadly, then sighs deeply as he goes over to the pool in which Ranma is just emerging. \*/*\*/ Ranma hits the water with a loud splash, he feels his body tingle and begin to shift its shape. When he breaks the surface of the pool, she hears the guide speaking, "Oh, so sorry Sir, Mr. Customer fall into Spring of Drowned Girl, very tragic story of girl who drowned 1500 years ago. Now whoever fall in spring take body of girl." Hearing this, she looks down and opens the top of her gi. Her mind goes numb, as she no longer sees a toned muscular chest, but instead there is now a pair of very well endowed breasts. She reaches a hand down to feel between her legs finding that, what should have been there isn't. Ranma's eyes stare blankly ahead. She does not move as the numbness slowly settles on the rest of her body. Genma stares, unmoving from shock, at his _manly son_, watching as Ranma slowly and mechanically climbs out of the spring. She turns her back on her father and the guide. It is then that she notices the other boy frozen in mid stride with a look of horror on his face. Ranma looks at him with fear, horror, and disbelief emanating from her eyes. The other boy begins to slowly back away from the springs. \*/*\*/ Ryoga keeps the beautiful red-haired girl in his sights as he backs away from the pain, horror, fear, and depression he sees play across her face. He can't believe what his eyes are telling him, his mortal enemy has just been changed into a girl. This breaks through his anger, his hate and makes him realize if he stays there he will be cursed too. He watches as the father's shock turns to disgust and loathing, he watches the man walks up behind Ranma, then punches the back of her head, knocking her to the ground. She struggles to get to a kneeling position, while clasping her head. "Stop acting like a weak girl, boy, take this like a man. You must make sacrifices for the Art!" Genma snorts with disgust as he towers over the struggling girl. Ryoga snarls in anger as he starts forward umbrella at the ready, forgetting for a moment the danger to himself. All he wants now is to beat some sense into the unfeeling man. When something strange starts to happen to Ranma, she begins to scream and clutch her head as if she is in great pain. She leans forward putting her forehead to the ground. Ryoga watches in shock as Genma draws his leg back and kicks his screaming child in the stomach, lifting her off the ground a few feet. She lands on her side, still holding her head and curling into the fetal position, while silently screaming. Ryoga gasps and his eyes widen when, Genma with a look of pure loathing, leans down and grabs the girl by her bright red pigtail. He jerks hard on her hair trying to haul her to her feet. Ryoga did not think he could get any angrier with the man, when a great red aura flares up round the pained girl. It explodes into existence knocking the guide to the ground just inches from one of the springs. Genma was not so lucky he takes the brunt of the fiery blast and is knocked smoking, backward and into one of the pools. When he emerges, water is dripping off his seven-foot tall black and white fur covered body. The guide stands up shaking his head and tsks. "Oh, sir you fall into Spring of Drowned Giant Panda, very tragic story of panda who drown in spring 2000 years ago." Ryoga's eyes go even wider. When a Panda emerges from the small pond, he turns and runs from the valley of Jusenkyo, hoping he never sees it again. \*/*\*/ Ranma watches the boy go, through her mind's confused haze she finally recognizes the fleeing boy. It was her friend from junior high Ryoga Hibiki, what she didn't understand was why and how he got to China. She slowly gets to her feet, Ranma breathes a sigh of relief, when she notices that the screaming voice in her mind has subsided to a quiet whimper. It feels like her mind was shredded into tiny pieces then put into a blender on puree. She turns to face the guide and panda. Ranma suddenly feels she is being pulled away from where she is but she knows she is not moving. Ranma watches as though she is watching a movie scene being played out in front of her. The guide has retrieved some hot water and pours it on the panda that returns him to human form. He then tries to do the same to Ranma but she stops him, as the guide explains. "See sirs hot water turn you back, so sorry cold water make you change again. So sorry again can not use Jusenkyo to cure curse, once cursed by springs, no other springs work." /*\*/*\ Genma takes a step back from his child as he sees the ice cold stare of hatred looking back at him. His eyes widen in fear as he realizes, it is not his son's eyes alone that look back at him but the eyes of a stranger, mixed in with his son. Ranma slowly advances towards her father. "You have hurt him for the last time, as of this moment on to you he does not exist." She says with deadly calm. Genma goes into shock. That does not sound like his son, her voice is heavy with a Chinese accent. Then what Ranma is saying registers, and his eyes go even wider as he sputters out... "B..but you are my heir what a..about the joining of the schools, you m..must fulfill the agreement, you c.can't do this!" Ranma-chan raises an eyebrow at the new information. Staring suspiciously at the wet and sweating man, she asks him. "Joining the schools? Fulfill the agreement? What agreement?" Realizing he said too much Genma tries to divert Ranma's attention. "What has happen to you son you're suppose to be a man not this _weak_ little girl." He finishes crossing his arms and glaring at his 'daughter'. Genma smiles inwardly, as he knows what buttons to push to get Ranma away from a subject or revelation he doesn't want him to have. Ranma-chan looks at her father then smiles a smile that contains so much feral anger that Genma backs up a couple of steps, being reminded of what happened with the Neko-Ken training. He is not paying attention and starts to topple into another spring. Waving his arms, he just begins to catch his balance, when Ranma jumps at him. She grabs her father by the throat and pulls him down to face her. Which is a real feat for a girl of 5' 2", considering Genma's bulk. Ranma's voice is cold and unemotional, as she snarls out some words quietly to herself, while staring into her father's eyes. Genma gulps as he sees his son's eyes start to glow with a lavender fire, then he screams as he feels his mind is being torn apart. Ranma suddenly drops Genma and backs away. As a combination of great emotional pain and disgust fills her eyes. She narrows her eyes as she growls out her warning to Genma, with a voice that promises _death_ if he refuses. "There will be no joining of the Anything Goes Martial Arts Schools, or a fulfilling of an agreement made by two _drunken_ fools. As of now you have no son _you_ have killed him. Ranma's part of the pledge you made to his mother has been fulfilled. You will fill all the other pledges you have made for he _will not_." With that Ranma spits at the ground in front of her father turns and heads off into the mountains. The guide watching all this just shakes his head with some confusion, then notices the direction the young girl is headed and tries to warn her. "Sirs please to be careful you heading to Musk territory is very dangerous for female persons" Ranma's eyes flare with angry fire, she says nothing nods at his warning but continues in that direction. As the guide turns back to the now standing Genma. Genma grabs a hand full of the guide's his shirt and screams into his face. "WHAT HAPPENED TO MY SON!" The guide looks at him with pity and shakes his head. "I no know Mr. Customer this never happen to victim of Drowned Girl Spring before." "Is there someone who _would_ know? I need to get my son back." Genma shivers as he remembers the look of hatred his son leveled at him. The guide pries Genma's hand from the front of his shirt. "It seems son no want back with you." States the guide flatly, while trying to brush out the wrinkles, Genma put in his top. "Elders at Joketsuzoku village of Amazons may know." "Take me there." Says Genma with a look of distraction, he stares in the direction his child went, heading toward the mountains. The guide leads Genma in the opposite direction his son has taken. In the bushes all this plays out before the eyes of the eternally lost boy. He watches Genma and the guide leave Jusenkyo, Ryoga comes out from the bushes and stares in the direction the guide took Genma, and he too spits after the disappearing form of Genma. He then turns and starts after the boy turned girl, making sure to keep the springs to his left and staying as far from them as possible.