"Well, here we are," Ryger just commented in his gruff voice.
"His cave," Uko said unnecessarily and pointed towards the black cavern entrance in front of them.
Ranma couldn't help but grin. "Well, looks just like a big hole in the mountain side... but it'll have to do."
Uko nodded when hearing that and threw the bear a sly grin. Ryger looked angry, but he seemed to have a sense of humor, because he just sighed and lead them inside.
It was much more comfortable than Ranma or even the troll-woman had believed, and most important: It was dry and safe.
"On the other side of my cave, there's another exit... I block it with a boulder, most of the time. But we can go through there for a nice little shortcut. It leads to another path between the northern hills."
"As I said, Ekana's troops will very likely have used that path," Uko pointed out. "But if we're lucky, they will already have passed through."
"Good for us, bad for Tokoi," Ranma grumbled. "We want to warn them IN TIME, remember?"
"Don't worry, by going through my cave, you probably will have saved some time," Ryger said. "Well, it's gettin' late... I'll let you two stay here... tomorrow morning we can continue our way."
"You're coming with us?" Ranma said in surprise.
"Of course!" The bear seemed to grin. "I can't let a rookie like you and a clumsy troll-girl walk all the way to Tokoi by yourselves."
"Oh, we will be SO lucky to have you with us," Uko grumbled.
----
The ground of the cave was very hard, but surprisingly, Ranma was having a good sleep that night. Perhaps it was because all of the previous nights, he had to worry about being captured by Ekana's troops. At least the previous owner of Boy had a warm blanket strapped to his saddle...
Uko really seemed to be a master of survival, as she didn't mind sleeping directly on the hard and cold floor. Well, perhaps it was because of her thick troll-skin...
When Ranma woke up the next morning, he could see the fuzzy face of Ryger hovering over his own. "Morning!" the bear greeted him.
Ranma sat up. "Morning..." he groggily replied. He looked around the cave. "Where's Uko?"
"Oh, she's already scouting ahead. She wants to know if there are some black knights on the path we're going to take. I hate to admit it, but she really is a better scout than me..."
Ranma felt pity for the mighty bear. If he was anything like Ryoga, he had to have the worst sense of direction of all the forest animals in this region... Hell, maybe even of all in Ja'an.
"Want some breakfast?" Ryger asked and trotted over to a corner of the cave, where various pieces of meat were lying.
"Raw meat, you mean?" Ranma asked. The bear grinned. "You humans always have to cook your food, huh? Well, doesn't matter, you can make a small fire... my cave has an air shaft." And he gestured upwards with his paw.
Ranma followed the gesture and really, up there was a small hole in the ceiling. Shrugging, he prepared a small fireplace on the ground of the cave and roasted some meat for a quick breakfast.
While he and Ryger were munching on their food (of course, the bear was eating it raw), Uko suddenly came running in the cave, panting heavily.
"Black ones!" she shouted. "Down the path! Fighting against our soldiers!"
"What?" Ryger growled and jumped to his feet.
Ranma also threw his breakfast aside and grabbed his sword. "We have to help them!"
----
They cries of battle and the clanging of weapons echoed through the forest, as Ranma, Uko and Ryger were hurrying to the battleground.
When reaching the big clearing where the battle was raging, they could see that most of the fighters wore the black armors of Yokot, while only in their middle, they could see a small number of warriors dressed in white and gold. Among them, there was also a beautiful girl wearing a white robe, swinging around a long staff.
"Kasu!" Ranma shouted in surprise as he recognized the female mage. In determination, he drew his sword.
"Let's go!" he said. "Let's help them out!"
Spurring his steed, he raised his weapon above his head and let out a mighty yell. Following him shortly, Uko and Ryger also shouted their battlecries.
The three mighty shouts made many of the black knights turn their heads in confusion. Then they gestured to the approaching trio, and several knights got ready to deal with it.
And once again, Ranma's black armor made them make a mistake. The black knights believed one of them would be chased by a savage bear and a furious troll-woman, so they only concentrated on attacking those two... But when Ranma reached them first, his attack totally surprised them, so he and his two new companions managed to strike down several black warriors without having to fight them.
Seeing that their comrades had been tricked, the other knights attacked Ranma and his friends furiously. The golden-clad defenders of Kasu seemed surprised at that turn of events, but when they saw how more dark warriors were falling under the strikes of Ranma, Ryger and Uko, they took their courage and fought with a new resolve.
Only a short time later, the forces of Yokot were defeated, and the last black ones that were still standing decided to retreat.
Kasu's soldiers cheered with joy when they realized that they had won. Then, they got silent when a sleek figure, dressed in white, marched through their rows.
Ranma dismounted from his horse, but kept his helmet on.
Kasu was throwing him an uncertain smile as she addressed him: "We thank you for your help. If it wasn't for you, we would have stood no chance against them. But I have to ask: How can it be that a knight of Yokot is turning against his comrades?"
Ranma grinned behind his helmet. "Maybe it's because... I am not a knight of Yokot." And he took off his helmet.
Kasu certainly looked surprised. "Ranma? But how..." She really was confused for a while, then she smiled at him with a sigh and shook her head. "I have to admit, you are the last one I had expected." She turned around to the soldiers. "It's all right! He's one of us!"
Turning back to Ranma, she had to shake her head again. "You of all people... just where have you been all the time? I had given up hope you would actually come..."
"What d'ya mean, all the time?" Ranma asked. "It was only a few days, was it?" And he quickly told her how he had appeared in Na'aj, met Ekana and escaped with the help of the mermaids.
"A few days?" Now Kasu looked really surprised. "Well, time is really something strange, isn't it? While it only was a few days for you, several months have passed since I have contacted you."
"What?" Ranma shouted. "But how can that be?"
"My only guess is that time proceeds much faster in Na'aj than here in Ja'an... And, to be honest, I really didn't expect that you would appear in Na'aj, of all places, after entering this world..."
Then she made an inviting gesture. "But let's talk about all of that later. Here, come join us in our camp. And your friends are welcome as well. We have much to talk about..."
----
And a little while later, Ranma and his friends were sitting within the small camp of the Tokoian soldiers, talking and laughing and enjoying the company of much more pleasant people than the black knights.
"I'm afraid we have to leave soon," Kasu said. "It was just a big coincidence that we met you... Actually, we're on a special mission... We're travelling through Ja'an to gather more allies that could help us in the upcoming battle against Ekana. And now that we know she has crossed the mountains, we have to hurry even more."
"But you certainly must have a army to defend Tokoi while you're away, don't you?" Ranma asked.
But Kasu shook her head. "Actually, there are only a few people in Tokoi that know how to fight... we would have never expected Ekana to find a way over the mountains. This small group of warriors are all the men and women from Tokoi that really know how to use a sword... That's why we need to gather more allies." Then she smiled. "But don't worry, we have already visited many other kingdoms and most of them are ready to help us, as Ekana is planning to conquer all of Ja'an. We're almost finished with our journey, we only have to go to Fourincan, the fortress of the Steppe Riders. Please, come with us and tell them everything you have seen while travelling with Ekana's army, that might convince them to join our cause..."
"Okay, sounds great!"
Then Ranma had to think about something. Kasu unintentionally had reminded him of the black general he had seen within the army of Yokot... Still, the memory of that warrior's dark aura gave him the creeps, so he told Kasu everything about her.
Every soldier sitting near them got silent after Ranma had finished his story.
"The Black Valkyrie..." Kasu murmured.
"You know her?" Ranma asked. Kasu shook her head. "Not really, but you have to know, there is a prophecy about a black general of the knights that one day will lead the army of Yokot to Ja'an... and that she will conquer it. The prophecy also says that she is an invincible enemy in combat."
Ranma froze. "B-but that's just a legend, isn't it? I mean, no one can be that strong..."
"Oh, but you told me that you felt the aura of darkness and doom that seemed to surround her, did you?"
Ranma looked down. Kasu was right, it was a feeling of doom that came to him every time he had looked at that dark general. And if the Black Valkyrie really was such a strong opponent...
Kasu stood up. "We have no time to lose. We have to leave and head for Fourincan immediately. It is only a matter of time until Ekana's troops reach the fortress. And if the Black Valkyrie is with them..."
She shuddered. "I don't want to imagine what would happen to them. Hurry, let's go!"
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(Posted Sat, 04 Nov 2006 10:16)
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