"Ranma?"
"Yeah, old man?"
Gneiss ignored the old man comment. The boy had realized quickly his situation now, how he was current lost in the past and at the moment had no way of going back to his present. Gneiss didn't think he was a vain person, but he kept harping about some mirror for the first few days.
"Your.. Jusenkyo Curse.. there’s something I've been meaning to discuss with you." Gneiss said, sitting down by his desk.
Great. Just Great. Bad enough he had made him demonstrate a hundred and one times that blasted Gender Bender curse. He was kind of curious when the old goat had accused him of being a Rakshasha at first, but at least he stopped calling him that.
"What now?" Ranma snapped with a bitter and depressed tone of voice. He swore to god if this creep was a perverted lecher like Happosai he'd kill him, be damned if Kasumi got mad at him for being such a rude guest.
"I believe with enough research and experimentation, there may be a way for you to expel the foreign magical influence that causes you to transform when splashed. However.." Gneiss chuckled mentally. While he didn't really know that for sure, he had to come up with a reason to keep the boy here in his tower because of that blasted Neko-ken. It didn't help Ranma one bit to be living in a world comprised of many different type of were-creatures, cats being a numerous number among them. It was for his own good of course, so he didn't feel bad about lying to the boy a little. Who knows? Maybe it can be cured.
"Pfeh. Whatever." Ranma shrugged. "Look old man, I've heard the same Rhythm and dance a thousand times. It just ain't in my Karma to get this curse cured. I'm not that lucky."
"Still.." Gneiss insisted, "If you agree to stay here, and help my apprentice Theodore with his studies, I promise to do the best that I can to find you a way home, and to find some way to cure you of your curse and that Neko-ken Bezeker thing." Not that Theo needed the help, but both boys were in the same boat as far as it concerned knowing people in this world. Theo came from Earth, were he did most of his growing up, so he knew few to no people in this world to call friend. Same with Ranma, only he didn't even have the luxury of knowing anyone.
"Look, I know you wanna help me and all..."
"Did I mention I'll supply you with all the food and training I can give you? I know you want to learn Aural healing, young Theodore told me all about it."
"... so I'll think I'll stick around and see what you can do!" Ranma finished with a silly looking grin. Free food? Awesome. Learn that Aura healing trick? Uber cool points. Possibility that he'll be free of the Neko-ken and that Jusenkyo curse? Hell where should he sign up? A chance to torture Theodore and call it training? Hook. Line. And Sinker.
"Excellent."
***
"What the heck is the point of this, you old fart? Are you trying to kill me?" Ranma glanced uneasily at the bubbling cauldron below him. It didn't help matters he was chained head to toe in some of the strongest metal he had ever come across. Mythril or something he thought.
Theo grunted, barely able to hold the rope that kept Ranma suspended in mid air over the bubbling cauldron. The young mage hadn't know the purpose of this exercise, until Gneiss explained this is the way most Aura mages learned to heal themselves. He was suddenly very glad he had run into Ranma, or this might have been him being tossed into a pot of boiling acid. He felt bad for the other boy, but you always look out for number one right? Right.
"Stop bitching Ranma. You wanted to learn this, didn't you!?" Gneiss roared from where he was lounging in a lawn chair, a crystal goblet filled with beer in his hand. He reached up and took off his shades, "Drop him, Teddy." the old man ordered, putting his glasses back on and taking a sip of his beer.
Ranma screamed, trying desperately to get out of his bonds, "NO! DON'T DO IT ALVIN! PLEASE!" he pleaded.
Theo twitched. It was bad enough Gneiss refused to say is god given name, and now this guy was butchering it. "As you wish Master." Theo said spitefully, letting go of the rope with a sinister smile on his lips.
Ranma swore as he started to fall that Theo mouthed the words to him, "That’s Theodore asshole!" He didn't have time to retort as he splashed down in the acid.
***
A little while later...
"Stupid old man." Ranma grumbled, leaning against the wall in Gneiss's 'Gym' trying to catch his breath.
"It hurts so much." Theo whimpered, face down on the floor, large shards of ice buried along his entire backside.
"Next time.." Ranma panted, clutching his gut where he started focusing his Aura to heal the damage he had taken from an Aura beam. "... lets not raid his liquor stash."
Theo groaned, pulling out a shuriken from his forearm, "Or his porno collection."
"Or his 'Alchemy' supplies! The ones he smokes all the time."
"Yeah. Least it wasn't so bad as that time we released those uber-cute Peechu things from his dungeon." Theodore shuddered as he said that. Those creatures hadn't been as 'cute' as they first appeared when they started pulling out mallets.
Ranma sniffed, a nostalgic feeling over coming him. "Well.. lets get out of here Theo. Gniess should be back from Durpan soon, if he catches us here..."
"I'll kill you." a very familiar and mostly unwanted voice sounded behind them. Ranma and Theo froze up, turning slowly to face their master as a feeling of absolute dread crawled up their spines. "Hehe..heh..." Ranma spared his friend a glance, before he sighed. "All right, master. You can only kill one of us before the other escapes.." he said as he quickly kicked Theo to the ground, breaking the boy's leg as he started to run like hell, "IT'S BETTER THIS WAY THEO! I'LL NEVER FORGET YOU FOR SAVIN ME BUDDY!"
"DIE RANMA!"
Theo groaned as Gneiss left him to chase after Ranma. That bastard broke his leg and left him to die! Listening to the maniacal explosions erupting from deeper in the tower, he realized he got off light compared to what Ranma was getting. "Heh. Thanks buddy."
***
"You sure this is gonna work?" Ranma whispered to his fellow companion in suffering.
"Nope." Theo said truthfully.
"Then why we doin it? Old man Gneiss is gonna be pissed when he finds out?"
"Spite, Ranma, Spite."
"Ah, heh.. yeah.." The pigtailed boy grinned evilly.
***
"DIE YOU BASTARDS!" Gniess screamed, his multicolored rainbow styled hair flittering about rapidly as the two apprentices dodged beams of fractured death, which missed them and caused lots and lots of property damage.
"Ahh Come on Master! You know Merigold likes you with brighter hair! What gives?" Ranma managed to shout through his chuckles.
Theo collapsed as the dwarf in question, who was visiting, suddenly blushed and asked, "Oh Mister Gneiss! I didn't know you were interested.." she held her flaming cheeks, "I suppose we could go out some time..."
Gneiss stuttered in shock, "Now wait a minute here Merigold! I can't possibly go out lookin like this! If Dee'm or Bugie saw me I'd never live it down!"
Ranma collapsed, howling in laughter as his master turned a brighter shade of red. Guy was going to become a Tomatoe person if this kept up.
"Oh.. I'm sure we can do something around here.." Merigold twidled her thumbs, idly toeing the ground nervously.
***
"Okay Ranma. I think I've come up with a way to seal the Neko-ken."
"Eh? Master? Why can't you just get rid of it?" Ranma asked, boggled. Over the last few months Gneiss had been examining the Neko-ken. Said it was some kind of magical matrix that threw him into a Bezerker state, the trigger being cats. The boy could have told him that, but the guy seemed analytical about everything.
"No one on the world has the power to delve that deep into your mind boy! Do you want it sealed or not?"
"Eh, sure. What do I got to do."
Gneiss had been about to say "Sleep." but a certain situation involving Merigold, him, a tub of oatmeal, and a picture crystal that some how got sent to the conclave reminded him just how angry he was. "I want you to.. DIE!" He screamed, launching a painful looking beam of energy.
Ranma was so surprised, he didn't even get a chance to say "That’s not fair!" before he was smashed into unconsciousness.
***
"Master Gneiss?"
"Hmm, what is it Theo?"
"Ah.." Theo scratched the back of his heed, nervously. He didn't look forward to explaining this to his master. "I was doing inventory among your magical specimens, when I noticed the thought leech was... missing."
"Hmm? Missing you say?" Gneiss raised an eyebrow, before turning away from his apprentice to gaze at Ranma currently playing with a few were-cat children. Their parents were friends of his, it didn't take long for the old man to convince them to let them stay a few weeks here, provided he tutored them a little bit so they wouldn't fall behind in school.
"Yes Master."
"I must have forgotten to write it down. I used the thought leech to 'seal' the Neko-ken in Ranma." Gneiss explained, "I couldn't remove the magical matrix that was buried in his mind, so I attached the leech to the boy and just made sure it knew to eat all fear generated by cats and the like."
"Ah.." Theo nodded dumbly. He really didn't know what the hell his master was talking about, as far as he knew the thought leech Gneiss had was already dead. Guess he was mistaken. "That’s nice."
"Yes, it is." Gneiss reached over and slapped the boy on the back of the head, "Go catalogue my underwear, Teddy!"
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(Posted Fri, 23 Jan 2004 19:57)
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