It was a very different-looking Ranma who came out of a japanese taxi the next day. The first thing someone from the old reality who knew him would have noticed was the different set of clothes. The chinese shirt and pants combo had been replaced by a catholic priest's black suit and a long white trenchcoat over it. His hands were sheated in white gloves, each of them with a phrase written on their back, "Jesus Christ is in his Heaven" on the right hand and "Cast in the Name of God" on the left hand respectively. A simple silver cross hanged from his neck, completing the tableau.
But the changes didn't stop at a new wardrobe though. He was also taller and better built, thanks to healthier nutrition and lifestyle. In appearance, he was still an attractive seventeen years-old teenager (but more along the lines of a bishounen than his former 'cute' outlook). His eyes, however, were those of a much more experienced person a boy his age should be.
And with good reason... Paladin Ranma Saotome of the Vatican's section XIII, otherwise known as the Order of Iscariot, had seen more than the majority of combat veterans during his career as an exorcist and vampire hunter. He was one of the top agents of Archbishop Enrico Maxwell in the eternal fight of Good against Evil.
*****
The Great Will of the Universe had rewritten History as Ranma knew it before. After a young Ranma in the throes of the Neko-Ken had been calmed down not by an old woman but a young nun, sister Angela had brought him to the church she resided in to check on his injuries and call the authorities.
Her report to her superior caught the attention of Iscariot. The whole story reeked of a demonic ritual in their opinion, the 'father' had obviously tried to sacrifice his child and got him possessed in the process. So when Genma came to steal his son back, he had the nasty surprise of running into a big snag: Namely an angry paladin with big swords, countless sharp knives and the righteous wrath of a servant of God.
Father Alexander Anderson was a compassionate man who ran an orphanage near Rome when not on Iscariot duty. If you're not a vampire or a blasphemer, one good way of pissing him off is to abuse innocent children. Genma didn't know what hit him. It didn't help his case that the mad priest had sensed the taint of True Evil in his soul, thanks to Happosai's training, as well. Genma barely escaped becoming a blessed blade pincushion and ran into the night.
After that, Ranma had accompanied Anderson back to the Vatican where a professional exorcist cured him of the Neko-Ken. He was sent to the paladin's orphanage and raised in the catholic faith from this point on. There he learned real morals and the fact that life wasn't only about martial arts.
Somehow Ranma learned of Anderson's true mission and decided to follow in his footsteps. He resumed his martial arts training and threw himself in his religious education at the same time. After years of hard work, dedication and unwavering Faith, Ranma had finally succeeded.
While Alexander Anderson was a regenerator and a mean swordfighter, Ranma had developed his mastery of holy magic to levels unheard of since the times of the Old Testament. He could heal the sick and wounded or destroy the undead with a touch. With only a prayer to the Lord and his angels, Ranma could summon and use holy power to various ends. He was no slouch in the fighting department too as his martial arts powers enabled him to fight ghouls and vampires on somewhat equal terms.
Thanks to his powers and success in accomplishing his missions, Ranma was considered one of the elite agents of Enrico Maxwell, along with Alexander Anderson, Heinkel Wolffe and Yumiko Takagi.
But the best thing regarding his old life now, in Ranma's opinion, was the vows he took when he was ordained priest and paladin.
"Chastity... Celibacy..." said a dreamy Ranma to himself "I just love the sound of those words!" No more girl problems for Ranma Saotome... Honor was satisfied since he renounced all family and temporal obligations when he chose to become a man of the Faith.
Ranma suddenly frowned, thinking back to his last mission. Something had happened then and now, doubt was slowly eating at his soul.
*Flashback*
Belfast - Catholic district - A week ago
Ceras Victoria screamed in pain as she was violently thrown into a wall, her Hellsing uniform shredded in various places. The unfortunate brick wall exploded from the impact and the young vampire crashed painfully on the pavement behind.
Ceras sat up, wincing along the way, and reached for a gun. She almost had it when a boot stomped right on it, denying her access to the much needed weapon.
She looked up and saw Ranma towering above her, the gleaming energy swords of his 'Blade Barrier' circling around him in an offensive/defensive screen. She saw the glowing hands who had ripped through the ghouls and the Freak vampire who sired them earlier approach and gulped. Around her, the remains of her unit were scattered, still moving but incapacitated. Her master was in London and she doubted he could teleport here in time to save her anyway.
Then something peculiar happened. The eyes of the Iscariot paladin and the Hellsing vampire crossed. For a few seconds, time stood still as the priest saw fear and paradoxically something an undead monster shouldn't have. Ceras closed her eyes, waiting for the end.
It didn't came. She heard the sound of creasing paper and reopened her eyes. She saw Ranma disappear without a word in a flurry of bible pages. She also felt the consecrated zone he had installed to fight in dissipate as well.
Later, she would ask herself why Ranma had spared her. Come to think of it, he hadn't killed any Hellsing agent unlike his predecessor, paladin Anderson. She absent-mindedly fingered the faint scar on her neck at the memory of the insane Sword Dancer. Something was up with that new paladin, she just knew it. Perhaps Sir Integral, Walter or Alucard could make sense of what happened.
*End Flashback*
Ranma shook his head. This was not the time to daydream about the Past. He had escaped sanctions from archbishop Maxwell only because his record had been spotless until now. He was sure his superior hadn't been fooled by his excuses. That was surely the cause of this new assignment in his homeland, far away from England and blonde vampire temptresses.
Indeed, father Ranma Saotome was not in Japan for personal reasons but to accomplish an important mission in God's name. That's why he was now...
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See other episodes by Jamil Nate
(Posted Thu, 18 Sep 2003 23:51)
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