Ok, sports fans, here it ends; at least this part of it. The second story, Winds Calling, will take off of this, after the brief epilouge. e-mail: oddball22@hotmail.com DISCLAIMER: Isn't it sad when the only humor I can come up with are disclaimer jokes? And now, the conclusion... Ranma 1/2: New Challenges Winds of Change Chapter 11 "It's just you and me now," Kenji intoned, still floating in his self-made tornado. Winds continued to circle the cavern. "You think you can stand against me, boy?" The floating Fire Lord bellowed. Kenji was silent, causing his opponent to laugh. "I don't care what powers you think you have, you'll never be at my level! I have lived for over a century and I have more magic abilities than anyone on the face of the planet. I proved that when I defeated the other lords and entombed them with the Elemchrys. When they are dead, I shall use the power the Elemchrys absorbed, and I will be truly unstoppable. And not even you or your friends will be able to stand against me!" With that, he launched his attack. Multiple fire balls burst forth from the air around the fire lord and streaked toward their target. "KIJIN BOUHUUKEN!" With arms out and palms foreword, powerful winds blew forth from Kenji and sent all the fireballs off target to impact into the cavern walls. The blast of wind continued on and slammed into the fire lord, propelling him backwards. This time however, he managed to compensate with enough force to avoid hitting the wall. "Impressive, but ultimately futile!" the Fire Lord boasted. "You only have one power. I have three!" The now-berserked youth's eyes went wide as the fire lord launched his second attack, which was ten times more furious than the first. More fireballs appeared, rock spikes launched from various points in the walls, and water molecules in the air condensed into rain. In response, Kenji began to control the air, forming a dense wind barrier around his body. He then took off, flying rapidly around the cavern, weaving in and out of the path of fireballs and rock spikes. The rain was easily blown off before hitting him, since they both knew Kenji would lose if he got wet. The fire lord watched in glee as he continued the assault, but his expression changed to sudden surprise when Kenji kicked off a wall and shot like a torpedo into the burning master. Kenji's fists burrowed into the fire lord's stomach, doubling his opponent over in pain, but the fire lord instantly responded by exploding, sending Kenji spinning away and out of control. He stabilized himself just enough that when he hit the rocky wall, it wasn't bad as it could've been. Still, he was stunned for a few seconds, during which the lord of fire renewed his attack. The amnesiac took off again as more projectiles set their sights on him, but this time was a little different. Instead of trying to hit him directly, the fireballs were exploding as they got near him, forcing him to concentrate even more on dodging. Kenji was beginning to feel the heat from the explosions and from the air that was slowly getting warmer. He had to do something fast, or it would become too hot to breathe. Putting on as much speed as he could, the boy completed his latest pass around the cavern and sped for the fire lord. He feinted with a wind blast then shot straight up. The fire lord laughed as he easily dodged the wind blast, but then he lost sight of his opponent. He snarled as he scanned the room then caught some movement from above. Too late. Kenji rebounded off the ceiling and shot straight down, grabbing the fire lord on the way. The two grappled shortly in mid-air before striking the ground that landed the fire lord on his back. Just before impact however, he managed an explosion packed punch that struck Kenji's midsection and sent him flying away to land a few yards off. Both combatants lay on the ground, trying to recover their strength before their opponent. The younger man recovered a split second before his enemy, and was up and running at him when the Fire Lord rose. This time, there was no flashy attacks or ki blasts. The berserked amnesiac merely engaged his opponent at point blank using all the martial arts abilities he had. Punches and kicks were thrown that his enemy could barely keep up with. On the ground Kenji held the advantage, at least that's what it seemed like. The Fire Lord tried to fight back at first, then with a grin, held back as he worked on a different tactic instead. With a crouching uppercut, Kenji broke through his enemy's defenses and struck his opponent with such force, that the Fire Lord was momentarily lifted off the ground and knocked onto his back. For a second, the two combatants looked at each other, then the berserked young man advanced on him. "This ends now," Kenji huffed quietly. The Fire Lord grinned. "Indeed it does." Kenji realized almost too late what his opponent was up to. He quickly threw himself to the right, which saved his life, but wasn't enough to completely miss the rock spike that struck him from behind. Instead of impaling itself through his heart, it wound up lodging itself in his upper left arm. Kenji screamed as the pain tore at his mind and body, forcing him to his knees. His strength began to leave him, even as he desperately fought to keep it. A shadow fell over his body, and glancing up confirmed his enemy standing in front of him, laughing with his victory.. "Impressive boy," he spat out, "but I'm afraid it's over." He lifted Kenji's head up by placing his left hand under the boy's chin, then reared back with his right only to drive home with another explosive punch into the youth's face that slammed the poor boy against a wall. The rock surface siderwebbed behind him, then his body slumped to the ground leaving him in a seated postion. The world was a blur around him and Kenji tasted something salty and coppery in his mouth: Blood. The wound in his left arm was the worst however, since it felt like he no longer had that appendage. The only feeling from his limb was a slightly painful throbbing that was paled by the agony the rest of him was experiencing. Kenji frantically racked his brain for an idea, because if he didn't do something fast, he was dead. That's when his eye caught the glint of the silvery object glistening off to his right. A closer look revealed it to be Ukyo's battle spatula, laying abandoned. His gaze snapped back up to see the Fire Lord advancing. "Make this easy on yourself and I'll finish you quick," he offered. Kenji forced his strength back up. "Not... over... yet!" With that he pointed his hand at the grinning wizard. This time, he made a fist and the flames burning around his opponent suddenly went out. The Fire Lord's grin disappeared and his hands went to his throat. His face betrayed utter terror as Kenji continued the attack, forcing all the air away from his enemy, including the air needed to breath and fuel the flames. His advesary fell to his knees, hacking and wheezing in an attempt to bring much needed oxygen to his burning lungs. The amnesiac knew he couldn't keep up the attack for long, so throwing his remaining strength out, he concentrated another blast of air and lifted the spatula up. It floated up off the ground, oriented itself on the gagging Fire Lord, and shot off like a bullet. The powerful sorcerer couldn't even scream as the razor sharp spatula bisected his midsection and implanted itself there. The lifeless body of his enemy collapsed to the floor and silence prevaded. In the silence that ensued, Kenji couldn't really believe it was over. He forced his battered body to it's feet, then staggered over to where the Fire Lord lay, unmoving. The sufferning youth studied the face of the man who was his enemy, and was about to relax when the eyes reopened and turned their glare upon him. "Well... played," the downed adversary wheezed. "But neither... shall you win. For with... this last spell... I entomb you with me!" The Fire Lord's body began to spasm, catching fire once again. Then his body blew apart in a fiery explosion. The exploding balls of flame crashed into various parts of the weakened cavern walls and pillars, causing a long overdue chain reaction. The whole cavern began to tremble and shake as a pillar gave out and collapsed. The young boy suddenly realized that the rest of the cavern would soon follow and if he was still here when it went, he would be buried under tons of rubble. Frantically, Kenji looked around for an exit, despair mounting when he realized they all were blocked. Now outside, the remaining members gathered together as they felt the mountain vibrate with the force of a minor earthquake. Ranma checked around and to see how badly everyone was hurt. Shampoo had revived by then, but she couldn't walk via a sprained ankle and a fractured arm. Mousse was also limping and part of his robe and flesh on his right side was burned away due to a fireball strike. Soun was sporting a broken leg and Genma had heavy burns on his left arm and body. Ranma and Ryoga had no serious injuries, just scratches and bruises. Akane was the least damaged with only a few bruises. Ukyo was still alive though badly burned, and with a head injury, she wouldn't last long unless they got her to a hospital. Of Konatsu, there was no sign since his disappearence into the abyss Cologne arrived a few minutes later. "Where have you been, ya old ghoul!?" Ranma let out his anger. "We could've used your help back there! Your great-granddaughter could've used your help!" Cologne bopped him on the head with her staff. "Don't question me son-in-law. I had business that needed to be attended to." She quickly surveyed the party. "I suggest we save the arguments for later and get the wounded some medical attention." Akane stood up and looked back towards the shaking mountain. "But what about Kenji-kun and Konatsu-kun? We shouldn't have left them. We have to go back for them." Ranma nodded. "Okay, I'll wait for them. Everyone else should head back down and take the wounded. Ryoga, you carry Ucchan and take care of her." Ryoga nodded as picked her up. "You can count on me, Ranma. But you better come back." To which Ranma nodded. "I'm staying too!" Akane said. Ranma tried to protest, but Akane cut him off. "I'm not that badly injured and the others will be fine without me. You may need backup if any elementals show up." Cologne began to hustle the others away as the mountain shook to some more internal explosions. Pieces of rocks and boulders broke away and tumbled downhill. "You think they made it okay?" Akane asked tentatively. he thought to himself. Out loud he said, "They'll make it. Kenji was sporting some pretty awesome power there when we left. I think he can take care of himself. And Konatsu's gotten out of worse situations before." Ranma's fists clenched. "Still, I should've stayed! Then maybe..." his voice trailed off in frustration. Just then, the top of the mountain exploded in a rush of fire, rocks, and billowing gray smoke. Akane gasped and pointed as a large object shot out of the mountain. It arced as it went a short ways up, then began it's downward decent. "What's that?" she asked. They both narrowed their eyes in an attempt to figure out what the strangely moving object was. Then Akane gasped as she made out the movements of arms and legs. "That's, that's Kenji!" she cried in horror as the obviously unconscious form tumbled helplessly through the air.. Ranma swore, then was off, moving as fast as he could to reach him before the unconscious youth hit the ground. Akane took off after her iinazuke, but could barely keep up. Ranma mentally calculated where Kenji would end up, then as he reached the spot, he put all his strength into a leap and to intercept the falling form in the sky. Snatching him out of the air with grace, he returned to the ground and fell onto his back with Kenji on top. Akane arrived and helped Ranma up while checking the amnesiac's injuries. "I don't think anything's broken," said Ranma. "But he's badly beaten up and burned. And this spike has gotta come out so we can bandage his arm." Akane held up the body, while Ranma grasped the spike. He took a deep breath then slowly pulled the spike out, causing Kenji to groan in pain in his unconscious state. "At least he's still alive," Akane offered hopefully while Ranma ripped his sleeve off and wrapped it around the wound. "That should do for awhile, but we need to get goin' if we want him to stay that way." "What abou Konatsu?" Akane asked worridly, glancing back at the moment. Ranma shook his head. "Knowing him, he'll probably be back at the train stop or even Nerima by the time we return. That mountain's coming down, so there's no chance of going back in to make sure." Akane nodded hesitantly, knowing he was right, but still not liking it. Ranma picked Kenji up, then the two rushed down the mountain to join their friends. In the shadows nearby, a pair of eyes watched the boy in the red shirt pick up Kenji, then take off down the hill with the girl. the figure thought to himself. He stopped and pondered some things for a moment. He allowed himself a quick chuckle, then ran off to find his new master. Kenji slowly opened his eyes and suddenly wished he hadn't. His body ached all over and the bright light was intensifying his headache. He groaned and tried to move, then felt a pair of hands restrain him. "Kenji-san, try not to move just yet," came a female voice he barely recognized. "Light... too much," his own voice came out very hoarse and it surprised him since it didn't sound anything like his normal voice. "I understand, hold on," replied the voice. Kenji sensed the light level dim and he tried once again to open his eyes. At first, everything was a blur, then gradually things came into focus. He was in a room, lying on a bed with some equipment nearby that was hooked up to him. He turned and saw the woman standing by his side. "You're, Saotome's mother..." he croaked, to which she nodded. "Wh-where am I?" "You're in a hospital," she replied. "My son brought you in several hours ago, and you've been in surgery since then. You just got out an hour ago. Ranma's visiting his other friends right now but I can get him if you like." Kenji shook his head. "Is everyone else, okay?" Her brows furrowed, as if debating how much to tell him. "They are all recovering and having their wounds attended to. I think you should rest right now and save your strength." Kenji nodded and suddenly felt very tired even as he closed his eyes. "Saotome-san?" "Yes?" "Tell your son and his friends... thanks." "I will, but you can tell them yourself later." Kenji nodded again and closed his eyes; sleep quickly claiming him. Sometime later, he awoke once more, feeling much better than before. This time, Ranma and Akane were sitting in his room. Ranma was asleep in a chair across from his bed, and Akane was reading a magazine when she noticed him and smiled. "How are you feeling?" she asked coming over to him. "A little weak, but much better," he replied. "How long has it been?" Akane inhaled. "Since you came in? Two days. You had several serious injuries and your ki was all drained. I don't know what you did back there, but it really messed you up." Kenji sighed and glanced up at the ceiling. "I should've expected that." (Power comes with a price), the thought echoed in his head. "How much do you remember of the past few days?" He closed eyes and thought. "Not a whole lot. I woke up a while ago with Mrs. Saotome here. Before that, well," and then he went on to describe all that he remembered after being captured. "I remember Ukyo screaming and some other voices, but that's it. I don't remember anything after that." "So, you don't remember any of those abilites you were using before you made us leave?" came Ranma's voice as he walked over. Kenji shook his head and sat up. "No, I just have vague memories of the whole thing. Almost like a half-remembered dream." He closed his eyes and sighed. "I wonder if this is just how I'm gonna have to live now. Am I doomed to have a faulty memory for life?" He opened his eyes again. "Hey, how's everyone else doing?" "My pop's okay," Ranma laughed. "Gotta admit, it takes a lot to keep him down. We're fine as you can see. Shampoo's got a fractured arm, but she was released a short while ago with Mousse who just suffered some bad burns. Tendo-san, though, has a broken leg. Really, you're the only one left in the hospital since your injuries were the worst and the doctors say you'll be gettin' out when you feel up to it." Akane spoke up next. "Cologne examined you when you were asleep. Whatever happened back there, the immense ki drain seems to have affected your life force. She believes that you may have actually lost several years off your life span." "Several years?" Kenji asked disbelievingly. He sighed and seemed to collapse further into his bed. "So that was the price." He noticed their looks of confusion so he reluctantly explained. "When I was trying to summon up my strength, I felt a power inside that I couldn't get to. A voice warned me I shouldn't, since there was a price attached to it, but I went for it anyway." Kenji laid back down while he tried to figure out the small detail that was nagging him. Out of the blue, he figured out what it was. "What about Ukyo-san?" Akane and Ranma looked at each other and exchanged worried glances causing something decidely unpleasant to form in the amnesiac's stomach. "What's wrong?" Akane sighed. "Most of her physical injuries are healed, it's just that, well, she's in a coma. The doctors don't know when she'll get out of it." Crushing forces assaulted the bedridden youth, even as dizziness and weakness made their effects known. His strength waned and he closed his eyes. "This is all my fault," he said trying to unsuccessfully hold back the tears. "If I had just been a little sooner, stronger..." With a great force of will, Kenji held the tears back. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he heard Akane speak again. "There was nothing you could've done. Nothing any of us could've done. All of us, including Ukyo, knew the risks when we went after you." "But don't you see!" he blurted out. "You shouldn't have come after me! I told you idiots it was my problem and look what happened! But no, you couldn't stay out of it and Kuonji paid the price!" He turned his head away. "Just go away." There was silence for in the room for a few moments. "Fine!" Akane said, angrily. "If that's the way you feel, so be it!" Ranma frowned. "Akane..." "No, Ranma." She waved him off, then turned back to the boy in the hospital bed. "Some of us were trying to be your friends and help you, but if you insist you don't want that, then forget it." She turned to go. "But just think about the kind of life you'll have if you continue to push everyone away." She grabbed her fiance. "Come on, Ranma. It's obvious he doesn't want our help." Kenji felt a tightness in his throat and something else in his stomach that was quite unpleasant, but he couldn't make himself say anything. Akane's exit stopped at the door. "Oh, I almost forgot! This is for you." She pulled out a small blue spherical amulet and tossed it to him. "It was given to us by some old guy in the mountain and said it was for you. He died after giving it to us. Ukyo managed to hold onto it, even through the injuries she incurred." "For... me?" Kenji rolled the marble-like object in his hand. It was cold to the touch. "Don't ask us why we held onto it for you, we're just a bunch of idiots, remember?" And then she was gone. Ranma looked at him and shrugged. "Ya gotta trust someone, sometime." Then he left as well. No sooner had they left, then the amulet began to glow. Different shades of blue swirled around the sphere. A cone of light emitted upwards and within it, an image of an old man appeared. The figure began to speak. "Soyokaze Kenji, if you are listening to this, then I am dead. My name is Natao Quan, also known as the Water Lord." The man's face fell a bit and his tone became heavy. "I am responsible for your memory loss as well as where you are now. Allow me to explain." he thought, his face darkening. "During a meeting of the Lords, we held a scrying session to glimpse the future. The results foretold the death of the Fire Lord by one who wields the power of wind. This is nothing new; the foretelling of the deaths of lords has happened before. Usually they take the time to train a successor. "Garon, the fire lord, chose instead to initiate a complex spell to trap the wind sect using an Elemchrys, a powerful magic amplifier. He only got as far as entombing the Wind Lord, however, in a cavern with the Elemchrys. The rest of the wind sect sacrificed themselves to prevent Garon from gaining their power, or sealed themselves away to save their lives. Unfortunately, three people who could wield the power of wind were still accessible to Garon. You, your sister Yuri, and your father, Soyokaze Taynor. Kenji's eyes widened. "My... family?" Quan continued as if he didn't hear him. "Your father left the wind sect to marry Suliya, a member of the ninja clan Garou. When Garon discovered this, he hunted your family down and cast a flame spell on the house where you lived. I learned of this and attempted to stop it, but I could not. The best I could do was save you, as you were the only person I detected still alive in the burning house. I sealed your memories and sent you away to those who could protect you." "Like that worked," Kenji spat out bitterly. "Stupid old man." The old water mage ignored the comment and sighed. "My hope was that Garon would not be able to find you until you were strong enough. I sealed your memories so he wouldn't be able to track you if you used your wind abilites, or if he tried to search for your mind through telepathic means. I also wanted to spare you the pain of your family's death until you could deal with it. I'm sorry. If you're reading this, than chances are he's found you. I can only hope you'll be okay." Kenji's rage broke loose. "OKAY!? I'm far from it, old man! It's a good thing you're dead or else I'd kill you myself!" In his angry haze, he nearly missed what Quan was saying. "...has one other function. Hold it in your hands and rub it to warm it up. It will designate a direction which will lead you to your home North of Tokyo. It will only recognize your aura, so it's only usable by you. Good luck, Soyokaze Kenji." The image faded and for several minutes, silence reigned. Kenji sat stunned, trying to absorb this new information. "My family, dead?" he asked quietly, fear tinging his voice. He received no answer to his question. He then remembered how he had just pushed Akane and Ranma away. All of a sudden, Kenji felt so very alone, and it scared him. Ukyo slowly became aware of her surroundings. The first thing she felt, was the hard ground she was laying on, face down. The second was that in was pretty cold around here. She slowly opened her eyes and sat up. she wondered. She was in what appeared to be a forest and the sky was a sickly gray. She stood up. "Hello?" she called. "Ranchan? Akane-chan?" No one answered, so she tried a few more names. "Ryoga-kun? Konatsu-kun?" Still nothing, then, "You called Ukyo-sama?" She spun around and saw Konatsu leaning against a tree, still wearing his dark red, faded and patched ninja outfit. "Konatsu-kun, you're alive!" she said in a relieved voice. "Where are we? Where are the others?" The male kunoichi walked over to her. "Are you sure you want to know?" Ukyo looked confused, but nodded. "If you want answers to your questions, you must take a journey." "A journey? Where?" Konatsu pointed and a path opened in the forest. "How did you do that? And what's happening to you?" Konatsu's form was becoming translucent as it slowly rose into the air. "I can only stay so long." Fear rose up in Ukyo's stomach. "Are you dead?" He shrugged. "All I can tell you is that we will meet again if you want, in this life or the next." He began to rise higher into the air. "Wait, don't go!" Ukyo begged. "Where am I!? Where do I go!?" "That, you must discover for yourself, and you must do it by yourself! Farewell, Ukyo-sama!" And then he was gone, leaving the okonomiyaki chef by herself. She took a last glance around, shrugged, and began to walk down the path.