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All original Ranma1/2 Characters and Backstory Copyright
Rumiko Takahashi, and are used without permission.
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Coutuva.
Yue - Part Sixteen
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Her purloined mount nickered quietly as she stepped
to the ground and cast the reins over its back, too distraught
to be concerned with it any further.
Upon awakening with a burning, near panicked urge to
quit the house and be gone from the village, she had ridden
hard until her heart had stilled. That, however, had left
her standing alone, gazing upon a scene of utter destruction.
Where she had once known there to be a lush, open
grassland pocked with shimmering pools now lay a barren
floodplain, immersed in muddied sludge. And strewn like the
toys of some pampered child were broken, splintered lengths
of bamboo, which she assumed to be the vestigial remnants of
the most-feared Training Ground.
Frowning, she cast about for some sign of life, noting
naught but the distant fragments of a small structure, near
consumed by the mire.
"Why... Am I here?"
"Akane..." I gotta get up," Ranma's voice intruded,
jolting her from her best sleep in recent memory.
"Huh?" Ranma? what...?"
"Someone's outside," he explained quickly, as she felt
herself being gently but firmly lifted away from his warmth.
A moment later, she was watching him stride across the room,
looking none too impressed.
He opened the door, and after a brief exchange with
someone she couldn"t hear, he closed it, turned back toward
her and frowned.
"Ranma...?" Who was it?" she asked, rising to sit
amid the blankets.
"A sentry... Had a message for the Princess," he
stated, with a tight frown.
"A message?"
"Yeah. Elders want an appointment."
"Why? What do they want?"
"Dunno. All the sentry said was that she was
'Requesting an audience on behalf of the Council and Matriarch'.
Didn't say what for," he responded, as he strode up beside her.
"Not that it matters... She ain't here," he observed, gesturing
toward the sofa, and the neatly folded blanket at the near end.
"What? Where would she have gone?"
"Couldn't tell ya," he shrugged, looking around the room.
"Bathroom, maybe?" he speculated aloud, until he walked to the
back door and took a good look out its window. "Nope...
Door's open."
She frowned. "Then where would she go?"
He knelt beside her. "Got no idea... But she must be a
long ways away. I'm feelin' really weak... Kinda like something's
sucking away my energy..." he frowned, with a look toward the
window. "Guess that means we gotta go find her. If she goes too
far..."
"You could both die," a certain graveled voice completed,
from just beyond the entry.
"What're you doin' here?" he growled, body tensing. She
took his hand, hoping he'd get the hint.
"The same thing you are. Wondering what happened to the
Princess," the Elder replied, hopping into the room. "One of
the smithy horses went missing this morning, and she was seen
near the paddock just after sunrise. We're readying a search
party... You'll need to..." she continued, at which Ranma pushed
himself to his feet.
"Yeah, I know. Just don't expect me to help ya," he
stated, meeting the old woman"s gaze.
Her eyes narrowed. "I expect you to just come along and
mind your own business. Swear it... Or I'll leave you to find
your own way," she demanded, leaning toward him. "And who knows
what could happen in the time that would take."
She bit her lip as he glared back at the old woman, his
teeth nearly grinding. Abruptly, his shoulders fell. "Fine.
I'll swear it... Just don't pull anything, or the bets are off."
"Whatever makes you happy. Be outside in five minutes.
If it warms up much more, the trail will disappear," the woman
ordered, then in two hops disappeared out the door.
Ranma watched her go, then turned back with a surprisingly
mischievous glint in his eyes.
"You ever ride?"
"Bareback?" she gasped, as Ranma settled himself onto the
huge, scruffy, brown and black-coated animal they"d been led to.
"Sure. Best way," he grinned back, extending a hand
toward her.
"Right," she frowned, hands on her hips. "You expect me
to get way up there? Without a ladder?"
"Nope," he responded, clucking the horse sideways toward
her, leaning over and taking her hand. A moment later, she found
herself sitting in front of him, his arms sliding under hers and
taking hold of the reins.
Before she could calm her flaming cheeks enough to respond
to his smug grin, however, a runner dashed up to the already
saddled Elder.
"The Matriarch left already..." she gasped out, at which
Cologne growled.
"How long ago?"
"About half an hour."
"Damn... I was afraid of this," the old woman frowned, her
staff cracking sharply across her horse"s haunch.
The smell was becoming unsettling. The insects were
already beyond irritating. The very setting invoked naught but
painful reminders.
But even so, her heart pounded her ribs as she stood
holding her mount"s bridle, unsettled by her merely having
thought of departing.
It was as if she were being commanded to remain.
But for what purpose, she still could not discern.
Nothing of use remained, and in fact, the brownish slime that
covered the expanse seemed itself devoid of life. That
observation came to her as no surprise, particularly given the
apparent makeup of the slime.
Releasing the horse, she frowned at her lot and cast a
gaze over the treeline, hoping to find an escape from the
cloistering, stable-like stench. And, in the doing, she hoped
to perhaps find the chance to reason out her course.
As she considered, she noted how she"d felt the wane of
her constitution as she put distance between the village and
herself, lending credence to the tale woven by the Elder.
However, it also served to underscore the folly of the entire
foray, especially given how drained she now felt.
"Perhaps I am indeed taking leave of my senses..." she
mused, shaking her head. As the thought played in her mind,
however, she happened to glance out over her surroundings, and
noticed that she could no longer even locate her fateful pool.
The entire area bore no identifying features, and
unlike its state in her age, seemed to have only one ready
access route. A small, ironic smile crossed her face as she
noted it would be a fitting locale for an ambush. The smile
faded however, when she noticed a presence approaching from
behind.
"Something told me I might find you here."
Rounding on the speaker, she broke into a snarl. "You...
You have a nerve in showing yourself... By right, I should
gut you where you stand," she hissed, her hand reflexively
closing. "But as of now, I would not... Even if I could avail a
weapon," she added, meeting the woman's widened gaze. "For as
I reason it, to do so would grant you that which you most
certainly do not deserve."
"What do you mean...?"
She narrowed her eyes. "An *honourable* death."
The woman"s face fell, then she drew a heavy sigh and
lowered her eyes. "I had hoped... To find you more reasonable,
Liang Yue. I was on my way to speak to you this morning, and
when I saw you leave, I followed you. My intent was to see you
alone, and discuss..."
After very nearly chewing off the end of her own tongue,
Yue decided she'd heard enough. "It matters not! I have
nothing more to say to you -- and I will no longer hear the
words of one so completely without honour," she spat, then
turned and started toward the treeline.
She heard the woman shudder behind her, and couldn"t
suppress the satisfaction that crossed her visage. But,
before she managed another step, a sudden anguished growl
stopped her in her tracks.
"Damn it, Liang Yue! Don't do this! There are already
whispers of a coup; if you leave like this, there *will* be a
revolt! Is that what you want...? Is that what you're looking
for?" she shrieked, the fear in her voice actually touching Yue's
heart -- and incensing her beyond restraint.
She turned back to the woman with fists clenched. "NO!
It is *YOU* and that band of so-called Elders that have brought
this about! You... "People" have no right to even call
yourselves after that noble race... And in truth, it is likely
your acts have brought on their wrath, and it is that for which
you suffer now! No, you are indeed the authors of your own
misfortune... And I can only hope that by leaving this wretched
place, I can distance myself from your inexorable journey to
Hell!"
The Matriarch's face purpled. "NO! I will NOT be held
responsible! I AM an Amazon! I love the Amazon race! I would
gladly *die* to preserve our way of life!" she cried, her entire
body shaking. "And that... And that is the only reason I agreed
to all of this! It was to *save* the Amazon race! To give my
people back their pride! And I will not have you -- Or
anyone -- Tell me it was wrong! The means doesn't matter... As
long as the Amazons survive!"
She regarded the heaving, gasping woman in total
incredulity, then sighed. "And worse, you hide your heinous
acts behind a guise of nobility. Truly, you all deserve your
fate," she noted with a sad shake of her head, and turned to
resume her departure.
But just as her eyes broke away, a battle cry tore the
air behind her, followed close by the ring of drawn steel.
In an instinctive blur, her arm went behind her back
and she spun into the attack, only to brace as the Matriarch's
body fell hard into her shoulder. As it sagged against her,
sticky warmth oozed over her sword hilt and onto her fingers.
The unsettling rattle of a fallen weapon brought her back to
the moment, just as the Matriarch's arm rose to enclose her --
in a tight, heartfelt hug.
"My thanks to you, young Princess..." she whispered
hoarsely, amid a noisy sniffle. "Perhaps now... The healing...
Can truly begin..." she breathed, then with a strength belying
her wound, stunned Yue by kicking her near leg from beneath her.
As a whole they stumbled, wheeled around and fell into the
sticky, brownish ooze, both disappearing beneath the dark, oily
surface.
A warm, gentle breeze rippled the tall grasses that
surrounded her, assuring her that in fact, she was awake and
aware. She could smell the air, see the clear blue skies and
hear the cricket's songs, but even so, it was not a familiar place.
She also noticed that she was quite alone.
"What manner of trickery is this, now?" she frowned,
turning to look for some clue. When she saw what stood behind her,
however, her breath caught in her throat.
"The Castle?" she breathed, hands coming to her gaping mouth.
And as she blinked to ensure she saw truly, her surroundings
became those of the castle grounds, and she found herself standing
in the midst of the approach road.
Her eyes widened. "No... Am I... Am I back... In my own
age?" she gasped, breaking into a run toward the massive wooden
gates. She managed only a few strides, however, before her notice
was taken by her raiment.
"By the Gods..." she expressed, stopping short to find her
armor, sword, boots and jewelry all as they were... On the day that
changed her life forever. Tears welling, she reached to her hair,
noting it was as she always kept it... Down and flowing over her
favorite ornate headband, the one sporting a pair of hand woven
tassels.
"It is true... I am home..." she breathed, raising blurred
eyes toward the castle. "I AM HOME!!" she cried out, again breaking
into a headlong bolt. A moment later, she reached the castle gate,
and stopped in her tracks.
The gate was open.
Drawing her weapon, she edged up to the opening and peered
around the door, relieved to see the sun court intact. Her relief
was tempered, however, by that which she realized next.
"There is... No one about?""
Stepping through the entry, she passed into the main court,
and warily made for the passage to the Elegant House. The lack of
guards, courtiers or even servants greatly uneased her, bringing
her to fear the worst. And her unbidden recall of the words of
Elder Shan, back at their first meeting, only served to heighten
that fear -- and quicken her pace.
Finding the House empty, she very nearly ran the passage to
the Throne Room, praying to the Ancestors she would find someone
alive. That hope dimmed as she approached the Chamber of Court,
and noted no sound save the echo of her own feet.
Entering the Chamber, she cast about wildly for any sign of
recent use, only to feel her heart fall to the pit of her gut when
none could be found.
"Then it is true... They are all gone..." she choked,
scabbarding her weapon. "I... I am too late..."
"No, my precious daughter... You are exactly on time," a
shocking voice announced, from the center of the room.
Her head snapped up. "Who..." she began, until her eyes
found the beautiful, elegantly attired woman standing before her.
"Gods... It... It can"t be..." she breathed, wiping
harshly at her eyes. Blinking them clear, she steeled herself, and
looked again. The sight was the same.
"Muh... Mother?" Is it... Is it truly you?" she gasped,
heart leaping.
"Yes, Yue... And I have missed you... So very, very much.
And you... You are still as beautiful as the day I last beheld
you," she nodded, reaching up to gracefully catch a tear.
Her chest crushed. "Mother!" she cried, eyes flooding as
she dove into the woman's receptive arms, propriety bedamned. She
felt the softness of the silk and the warmth of her embrace, and
reveled in the scent she remembered from back to her girlhood.
"Praise the Ancestors... You live... You truly live!" she sobbed,
tightening her hug.
Her mother returned the act in kind, then sighed.
"No, sweetheart... Sadly, I do not."
"How say you...?" she blurted, reeling back.
Her mother lowered her face, then drew a sigh. "I am long
passed from this plane, my child... As are your Father and your
grandparents. We perished... In the wars that followed your
disappearance," she explained, raising her eyes once again.
"But... But I laid hands on you; I can smell you -- you
stand on this floor! You must live!" she protested, fighting back
a different kind of tears.
"No, Yue. It is only since we are both tied to the Spirit
world that we may touch."
"Then... Why... Why are you here -- What is this place?
D-do you seek to torture me...? Am I... In Hell?" she gasped,
reeling until she felt her mother take her shoulders.
"No, my dearest child... You are here... Because I love
you."
She gaped up into her mother's face. "Because..." she
stammered, her legs trembling as she fought to stiffen them.
"Yes. All that has happened... And all that has not
happened... Is because of my love for you," the woman smiled gently,
reaching up to brush back a lock of her hair. "You know... Of how
you were my world, Yue... My only child. I lived, I breathed -- I
existed for you. I was beyond merely shattered when we lost you
that day, and in truth, I felt that I had died within my still-living
body. Even your Father -- the Emperor -- was crushed by his
devastation. He used all he could avail to seek out your fate -- and
as he hoped, find you alive and return you safe. Sadly, it was not
to be, and with all our forces in search of you, we were conquered
within the year," she sighed, into an ironic smile. "I still recall
it well -- my only thought as I lay on the block... Was that mayhap,
I would soon be holding my dear child again."
Yue felt both her heart and her gut wrench. "Mother...
Forgive me... I meant not... To cause such grief," she sobbed,
pulling her into another tight hug. "But when I stopped to drink..."
"You need not explain, my child. Just know that everything
that has occurred has been orchestrated for one, two-fold purpose...
That when all fell into place, you would regain the shining future
denied you in our age, and you would in turn set aright the course
of the Amazon Tribe, steering it from its path of self-destruction.
And for his part, that young man will not only live a very special
life, but a place of honour awaits him in the Realm of Light."
"I... I... But... Gods," she babbled, unable to find
either the question, or the words to ask it. She gathered her face
must have reflected her trouble, as her mother smiled knowingly.
"I understand that this may be overwhelming... But it is
the truth. That boy coming to China, falling in the pool... His
hosting your Chi, your sustaining his life after he suffered that
mortal wound... All of it, including the acts and even inaction of
so many others -- were all to support this outcome, my daughter.
And now that this final piece has at last been played, I, and in
fact all of us, can go on to our destined eternity."
"Final piece...?" she asked, only to see her mother again
smile, and gesture beside herself.
"Greetings, Liang Yue... Or should I say, "Your Majesty","
the voice of the Matriarch opened, as the woman faded into view
already holding a bow.
She gasped, unable to find words.
"Yes, Young Princess. You defeated me, and I am now passed
from the plane of Mortals. But, when we both fell into the mire
that used to be the Cursed Pools, the "Chi transfer" took
effect -- although slightly differently. My blood... Was on your
hands. That gave the diluted magic a path, shifting my Chi directly
into you. You now have your own life force, Liang Yue; when you
return to the Mortal plane, you will have a normal, human lifespan."
"My... My own life?" she echoed, her heart alternating
between sinking and soaring.
"Indeed, my daughter. This too was arranged, albeit at the
last possible moment. By giving you her life, she is absolved of
those acts that had her condemned to the Dark Realm."
Immediately, she pressed her hand over her fist and bowed
deeply. "I... Thank you, Majesty; I... I will try to prove worthy
of your indescribable gift," she vowed, fighting back new tears.
"No, Liang Yue -- I am not the Matriarch any longer -- not
that I ever truly was. You now hold that title, and I go to my
rest happy, knowing you will wear it far better than did I. After
all, had you not fallen in the spring, you would have eventually
become Matriarch back in your own age," she smiled, at which her
mother nodded.
Her jaw dangled. "Ma... Matriarch...? Me...? B-but...
I..."
"Yes, Yue... Such was your path... Until fate played its
hand. But now, all is as it should be... You are where you belong."
She reeled. "It... It is like a dream..."
"It is no dream... It is your destiny, Liang Yue," the
former Matriarch stated, stepping up to take her hands. "Good luck
and live long, Majesty... I will be watching," the woman smiled,
then wrapped her in a huge, emotional hug. "I would have wanted a
daughter just like you... I only wish we could have known each other
longer," she whispered, and with a sniff, rose, smiled and then
turned to stride quickly from the room.
"Despite all, she had a good heart..." her mother sighed,
watching the woman depart.
After finally swallowing the lump blocking her voice, she
lowered her face. "I am ashamed... I accused her of such horrible
things," she confessed, at which her mother shook her head.
"She understands, Yue... She had already planned to
abdicate, but as circumstances were what they were, I was able to
intervene and negotiate this outcome," she indicated, stepping up
and opening her arms. "My time has come, my darling child... I
must go to my long-abated rest. Use your new life well, and know
that I love you... And I will continue to be with you."
"I... I love you, Mother," she breathed, accepting the
hug as more tears began to spill from her eyes. "I swear... I will
make... All of you proud."
Her mother kissed the top of her head. "My darling, you
already have."
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End - Yue - Part Sixteen. A Ranma1/2 Fanfic by Coutuva
Comments Welcomed -- Flames Extinguished!
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