He wondered idly how humans could work this way. One minute, fighting for his life and the life of his new bride, the next, relaxing as if he were on a vacation. Of course, he WAS on a vacation. Sort of.

Ranma could feel the imminent dawn as it came up on the horizon. He felt the world hold it's breath and exhale as the sun, once more, came up to say hello. Even with his eyes closed, he could tell that there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It would be another beautiful day and there would be nothing to stop him from enjoying this extended honeymoon.

Ranma opened his eyes and blinked in the bright morning glory. He smiled as he could see the golden reds and autumn fall colors as they spread to the blue up above. He loved the sunrise. It reminded him that, to all things, there is an endless circle. Just as the sun and the earth renew their relationship every new day, he and Akane would have to face the fighting again when they eventually returned to Japan.

Ranma turned down the length of the ship as the lights went off. It still amazed him that a ship this big could actually just be out here, floating alone in the vast field of blue. Ranma stood from the bench where he had been seated. He walked to the railing and looked over the edge. Well, okay, not really blue. More like a blue-green, but still quite pretty. He hadn't even thought to ask where his mother had gotten the money to send the two of them on a cruise to Australia. Akane hadn't asked either, as far as he knew.

An odd smile grew across his face. They hadn't spent much time out of their hotel room during the less than ideal trip to Germany. Ranma sobered at the thought. Akane had so wanted to stay longer there too. She seemed so happy. Ranma shook his head and began to walk towards the back of the ship. Port? Rear? He could never keep all those odd names right in his head.

He admired the high polish that was set on the planks as he walked along. Good sturdy wood and solid steel. Of course, he was a little apprehensive about going on a cruise after Akane made him watch that stupid gaijin movie. He thought that it was kind of ridiculous as a movie premise anyway, but people seemed to like it. Akane really liked it.

Ranma came around the side of the deck and smiled at the gentlemen that were standing there. The older man Ranma knew as the Captain of the ship. He supposed that if one got high enough in the ranks that you wouldn't have to drive the ship anymore. You could order one of your lackeys to do it. Ranma shook his head; it reminded him of Kuno. The Captain sipped at his tea as he watched the dawn and smiled warmly as he noticed Ranma.

He nodded and bowed congenially and Ranma returned the greeting. That was one thing that'd he'd have to say. This was the friendliest boat he'd ever been on before. Ranma corrected himself. This was really a ship. He strode happily down the side of the ship and slowed his pace slightly when he heard soft giggling. It almost sounded like Akane, but she would probably still be sleeping in their cabin. He stopped and looked up towards on of the upper decks. A pair of teenage girls stood at the top whispering to each other. When they saw that he had heard them, they waved, smiled and blew him a kiss. Ranma smiled and blushed. He waved back and hurried on.

Boy, he thought, They sure looked great in bikinis though. Not as good as Akane, but good nonetheless.

Ranma's thought turned darker as he thought back to the previous night. He and Akane had returned from Germany without much noise, but once they were back, all Hell broke loose. All the fiancés went after Akane and all the men went after Ranma. It was only through teamwork that they defeated them all, though Akane had been hurt in the process. A nagging little voice reminded him of his own injuries, but Ranma paid it no mind. He was used to them, Akane was not.

Ukyou had made a particularly nasty gash down Akane's right arm, which Ranma and the ship's physician had to tend to. Ranma was glad that she hadn't needed stitches, but it was deep enough. She had some dinner and they had made love in the silent ocean night last night. He had awoke early for the dawn and had let her sleep. Ranma bit back some angry thoughts. He thought that he had the problem with Ukyou fixed, but then something like that happened and it was right back from where he started.

He expected something like that from Kodachi or even Shampoo, but Ukyou had even been at the wedding. Akane counted her as a friend. Ranma sniffed. He had as well. He sighed. Maybe there would be enough of their friendship left to salvage after they returned, but he didn't know. Ukyou had hurt Akane. Which meant that any friendship they had would now be conditional.

Ranma shook his head at the thought. It just wasn't LIKE Ukyou to attack like that. Like she'd been possessed by something. Perhaps the old crone had done something to her? That would explain the suddenness and the combined attacks of the three...Ranma would have to think on that more. But not right now. Ranma turned down the short tunnel towards their cabin, which was on the other side of the ship, and used his little card to unlock the door.

Ah, Ranma thought, The wonders of technology...

He quietly opened the door and peered inside. The bright golden sun streamed through the small porthole set high in the far end of the cabin. It fell on Akane as she lay on their bed. The light blue cotton sheets were strewn all around her and Ranma blushed at the thought that he had a great deal to do with that. He smirked and lightly closed the door behind him. He stepped lightly to the bed and snuggled gently behind his raven-haired wife. She stirred slightly but didn't wake as he lay there watching her. The sun kissed the edges of her hair with brilliant sunlight, making the black shimmer in his eyes. The tan she'd been working so hard on in Germany was finally paying off. Unfortunately, it also showed exactly where her sundress went as well, though Ranma thought to himself that she hadn't had it on THAT long...

He reached up and breathed a kiss on her shoulder. She smiled as she awoke and rolled over to face him. Ranma looked into her brown eyes and smiled a soft smile at her. He leaned in and gently kissed her, letting their lips just touch before he began to pull away. She wrinkled her forehead in annoyance and wrapped an arm around his neck. She pulled him in and returned his kiss a little more forcefully than he gave it. Ranma wasn't complaining. Her tongue slowly slid between his lips and met with little resistance on the way. She idly stroked the back of his head as she rolled more of herself on top of him.

He tried to scoot away, but had to put a hand under him to keep them on the bed. Akane began to giggle and Ranma joined her at the joy both felt for the other. Without moving from under her, Ranma lifted the both of them enough to set them more in the center of the bed, which jarred the sheets loose from her breasts. Ranma set his hands on her waist and pulled himself down. He set light kisses on her collarbone, to which she sighed as the sensations fluttered through her.

Her hands wrapped around his head and he could feel her pulling his head down her body. He resisted slightly and stopped as her left breast came level with his head. He lifted up on her waist as he wrapped his lips around her nipple. He stroked gently back and forth with his tongue, then switched to the other breast to give equal opportunities. His hands slid up from her waist to the small of her back and he stroked it lightly with the tips of his fingers.

She breathed in heavily and lifted her body from him. She pushed downward into another passionate kiss as her hands began to undo the fastener on his shorts. Before she could get her lips on him, Ranma pulled her up and rolled on top of her. She giggled slightly and raised an eyebrow at him. He smiled slyly and began to kiss down her body again.

Akane gasped at the sheer feeling of his lips moving slowly down her body. He paused shortly as he lifted her legs gently to his shoulders. Akane closed her eyes as his tongue found its mark. She rocked back and forth against the fire that began to glow from the embers of their passion. She grabbed his hair, needing something to keep her from completely exploding. She could feel his tongue as it moved alternately between slow and fast rhythms. She startled herself as a tiny yelp escaped her lips as her vision blurred with pleasure.

He slowed and stopped licking and Akane looked down. He was just looking back with a grin on his face. He whispered something she could feel, but not hear. Then she knew what it was.

"Ranma!" she warned, "Don't you DARE!"

The pleasure shot through her as his tongue whipped around in little circles faster than her mind could keep up. His strong hands held her in place as she bucked against the sensations. She could feel the climax building in her and tried to slow it down as it crashed in waves around her. She tried to breathe, but could only draw ragged gasps as he slowed to a somewhat human pace. She smacked his head lightly and pushed him away, rolling over.

"You and your GOD DAMNED CHESTNUTS!" she yelled as she grabbed one of the pillows.

She whipped it around and caught him in the face, knocking him to the floor. Ranma looked back up at her and grinned.

"So, that's how you want to play this?" he murmured, jumping back on the bed.

She swung the pillow at him again and he caught it. Akane let go and grabbed another pillow, just as she was hit on her shoulder. She spun and let her pillow find its mark. She began to laugh, which made Ranma begin to laugh. Akane chirped as the pillows gave way to the marital arts contest around them and feathers were flung everywhere. Ranma finally encircled his love in his arms and kissed her lightly as little yellow feathers floated down around them. Ranma drew her down to the feathered floor in a spiraling kiss that lifted their passion once more.

"Oh Ranma..."

***

Yoko lay still. The timbers in the ceiling knotted in the morning light around her cabin on the ship. She could hear them creaking against the gentle seas beyond, rocking her back towards the settled sleep she had been enjoying. Yoko looked down to her waist and gently stroked the head of the black haired lad she found there. Ranma was so obedient, yet she idly wondered what visions passed behind his eyes. Things that only he saw. A reality that only he knew.

She cursed the whole lot of them again. If she had been given more time, she could have properly constructed a reality for him and could even share in it a little. Now, he was little more than a mumbling toy. An automaton that bowed to her command and yet, that had its advantages. A thought flickered through her mind. Why would she have to give him up?

Wasn't this the Shiro Daiou? Wasn't he going to overthrow Ten'imuhou-sama? If he were really that strong, then she wouldn't have to give him up, but instead use him as a bargaining piece. Ten'imuhou-sama held little regard for anyone or anything except himself.

And the damned girl in that room of his.

He said that she was to be his queen, but he also said that if he could possess her power, then she would be meaningless to him. Yoko had no illusions that it probably applied to her as well. But she had no power of her own, beyond the fact that she controlled Ranma. Which meant...What? She had no idea.

She rolled Ranma aside and made sure he was asleep as he mumbled lightly. She covered him with the top sheet and kissed his forehead absently. She got up and pulled a robe around her. As she tied it at her waist, she made her way to the large flat table across the room. Around the room were scattered all kinds of ocean navigation devices. Paper maps, little things with bits of string on them and a couple of large telescopes rounded out the captain's quarters. Yoko had Ranma throw the captain and crew overboard shortly after they left. She hadn't need of them, after all.

She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and touched the signet on the edge of the table and a map slowly coalesced into existence above it. They hadn't made very good time out of Kellenel, but good enough to keep pursuit to a minimum. They were out to open sea now.

Yoko tapped the signet once more and the display vanished. She returned to the bedside and put on the little sandals she had found in one of the crew quarters earlier. They didn't fit very well, but at least it was some protection from the harsh wooden planks on deck. She opened the door and stepped outside, closing it behind her.

She looked around the ship. It was a fairly old model, not too much appeal other than the fact that it would get them to where she wanted to go. It was about fifteen meters in length and half again as wide. All wood. Not like the metal battleships with which the islandnations fought. A single mast dominated the center of the ship with a couple of smaller sail arms sticking out at odd angles from the back of the ship. She supposed those were the wind makers.

Yoko made her way around the door and up the steps that bordered the captain's quarters to the navigation deck above. Along the front edge of the upper deck was a curving montage of panels that made up the main navigation for the ship. Yoko smiled. She had been raised in a sailing family and their ships had been a great deal more complex than this one. She touched the main control and it lit at her command. She pulled up the navigation beacons on another screen and noted her position.

She frowned. They were drifting west instead of east. She corrected the course and laid in a new plot, which would take them northward to Ten'imuhou-sama's castle, where she could pick up his beacon. The triangulation must have been off a little too, because it said that they were now only two hundred or so miles from the shore of the northern continent. Yoko rechecked triangulation again and received the corrected data. She frowned at having to use such an antiquated piece of junk, but she had no other choice.

The beacon at Kellenel was still giving her a reading. She was also receiving a beacon from Akamerajh and Sethett. She giggled at the thought. The last time she was on Sethett, she nearly killed the poor Duke's only bastard child. Well, it wasn't HER fault the little girl couldn't take an orgasm or two.

"Or ten," she replied softly to herself.

She typed in Ten'imuhou-sama's frequency, but got no reply, which meant they weren't in range yet. Well, perhaps they'd pick it up when they lost the Kellenel signal, which she estimated would be in about two days travel time. She touched the automated pilot again and the ship corrected, as per her instructions. She watched behind her as the windsails came into existence on the two stern masts. She wrapped her robe around her as the wind whipped up into the main sail as it appeared.

Yoko watched in the distance. Ten'imuhou-sama's island was far off in the distance, but she could still picture it in her head. She also pictured the journey that all who went there had to go through. She pictured the huge chunks of ice that almost obscured the entrance, and how it would somehow appear to allow a ship to navigate inside. Once inside, there were two ways to go. People who weren't wanted had to traverse through that horrid glacier, while people who were wanted got a doorway into the castle. She hoped that he would open a portal, but she didn't know. She didn't think he was expecting her to bring him in like this, as it hadn't been the plan, but she didn't care. Her plan had worked and that's what mattered.

Yoko opened her eyes again to the ocean blue ahead and left the ship to its devices, as she went back down below to wake Ranma for the day.

***

"There you are."

Akane turned away from the sunset and saw her husband walking towards her from the port side walkway. She giggled to herself. He was still having problems making his way around the ship. She blushed in the thought that they had certainly become comfortable finding their way around each other.

"I haven't gone anywhere," she said softly.

Ranma smiled and wrapped his arm around her as they both turned back to the sunset. Earlier in the day, the ship had turned southward for the final leg to Australia. Ranma couldn't wait. He had promised himself that he would take the opportunity to learn to scuba dive. Even with his curse, it had always been something that fascinated him. He didn't know if he could handle the claustrophobic nature of it, but it intrigued him nonetheless.

Ranma looked casually at his bride. The past couple of days on the ship was enough to lighten her black hair to a lighter shade and he noticed idly that she had a couple of dark brown streaks sun-bleached into the back of her hair. He also liked the yellow bikini with the blue flowers that had become one of the only things she chose to wear on this trip. He looked down her back to the sarong that covered her bottom. How he did like that bottom. He brought his eyes up to keep other parts of him from rising. Another thought crossed his mind and he looked down to her arm.

"How's your arm?"

Akane looked back at him and then down to her arm with a smile.

"It's much better," she said, "I should be able to take off the wrap in a couple more days."

Ranma nodded and pulled her closer. He gave her shoulders a squeeze and went back to watching the sunset. Akane turned in his grasp and looked at him in the waning sunlight. Ranma smiled shyly at her examining glance. Akane looked up one side of the ship and nodded. She then looked down the other side and nodded likewise. Ranma wondered about what she was nodding and frowned questioningly as she pushed him back towards the bench behind him. She sat him down and stood in front of him, her arms folded across her chest.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Just wondering how adventurous you are?" she replied smoothly.

An odd smile settled on her lips as she leaned in and kissed him. Her hands rested lightly on his chest and began to venture southward. Ranma felt as she began to stroke him and he broke the kiss, looking around.

"Aw," she clucked, "And here I thought that you weren't afraid of anything."

"I ain't afraid of anything, but what if they caught us doing something?" he asked.

"Hmph," she huffed, standing up straight again.

She folded her arms across her chest again and raised an eyebrow at him.

Ranma caught her drift and blushed at the thought. Like they hadn't been doing that enough in the past two weeks. Ranma supposed that it was to make up for all that they hadn't done before. He blushed and looked back up at her.

"W-What do you want me to do?"

The odd smile returned to her lips.

"Just sit there," she said, her hands reaching for his shorts, "And try not to make too much noise."

She brought his manhood into the light and smiled. She looked down both sides of the walkway as she freed it into the sunlight and swung her leg over as she straddled him. Ranma was simply content in watching his wonderful bride as she did something else with her hands. He gasped slightly as she took him with one of her hands again.

"Ready?" she whispered.

He looked into her deep, dark eyes and simply nodded. Ranma gasped a louder as he could feel himself enter her. She slid fully on him and slowly began to rock back and forth. The sensations shooting through him burned like liquid fire along his hips and up his spine. He closed his eyes against the pleasure of it all, but couldn't resist watching Akane as she rocking slightly on his hips.

She put her hands on his shoulders to steady herself and smiled as the sensations swept through her. Ranma began to put his hands on her hips and she stopped rocking.

"A-a-ahh," she whispered to him, "You just sit there."

He smiled and put his hands on the edge of the bench as she began again. Ranma gripped harder as he felt himself build towards climax. Akane's breath began to become more and more ragged as she reached the summit of their passion as well. A small sound escaped her and she set her forehead in the nape of his neck as she rocked faster. Ranma couldn't hold back any longer and wrapped his arms around her. She didn't resist as they both came in the quiet air of the ocean.

Ranma let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and she looked at him. He pushed an errant strand of hair from her face.

"I love you Akane," he said.

She smiled and kissed him lightly.

"I love you too Ranma."

"We'd better get below if we want to continue this," he said, "Or at least get to somewhere less public."

She laughed, which he could feel all the way down. It was a new sensation that startled him. He'd never felt something like that before and he liked it! Akane looked at him strangely as she could feel his arousal at it. They shared a silly grin and she got off him. She resituated her bikini bottom as he put himself back together. A distant noise drew Akane's attention out to the southern sea. Ranma got up from the bench and looked in the distance. Jagged flashes of lightening stroked the midnight black sky and Ranma could tell that the roiling black clouds in the distance could only mean that a large storm was in their path. He looked to Akane, who held her hands at her heart, a worried look on her face.

The lightening flashed again and Ranma could hear his heartbeat once. In that deafening thump, his vision blurred inwards in a nauseating rush. He went to his knees and clutched at his head in agony. He looked up to Akane for help, but was startled by the sight that greeted him. It was another young woman. She had hair as dark as Akane's but her whitish skin betrayed the difference between them. She didn't have her hands close to her heart, but instead stood in defiance of the on-coming storm, one hand on the side of the ship. And the ship...It was no longer large and white, but small and wooden. A kind of dark wooden brown that only aged vessels can produce. The woman looked at Ranma.

Her face. He'd seen her somewhere before. Somewhere like a dream in his memory. Just as soon as he had begun to grasp her identity, the vision washed across his eyes like rain on a slickened window. The ship, the young woman, the sky beyond were all washed away, leaving what he knew was the truth. Akane stood there, worried look apparent on her face once more. The ship was white once again and the storm was still coming in the distance. Akane was at his side in an instant, helping him to his feet.

"I'm sorry that it was that good," Akane smiled to him, "Maybe we shouldn't-"

"No, it wasn't that Akane," he said, leaning back against the side of the ship, "I just...I don't know. Something happened and things changed. Maybe I've just had too much sun."

Akane smiled at him and gave him a light kiss.

"Yeah, we'll get below and I'll get some ice, okay?"

Ranma nodded as a headache began to grow behind his eyes. He let Akane lead him back to their cabin and he sat on the edge of the bed. Akane looked through the bathroom cabinet, but swore slightly.

"Ranma, we don't have any aspirin. I'll get some when I get the ice, okay?" she said, "You just lay down and try to cool off in the meantime."

She pushed Ranma back onto the bed and took off his shoes. She grinned as she undid his shorts again. Ranma looked down at her and she smiled back at him.

"Hentai," she said softly, "Just lay there and try to relax."

"Kawaiikune," he replied through his headache.

She kissed him on his forehead and grabbed the keys as she left. Ranma looked up at the smooth ceiling as the distant thunder underscored his throbbing head. Maybe it was heatstroke, he didn't know. He hadn't ever had that before, but he knew what it was supposed to be like.

Ranma closed his eyes and tried to relax. His thoughts once again drifted back to the vision that he just had. He tried to remember the specifics of the woman's face, but there was a haze of emptiness covering it up. The pain also threatened to grow at the thoughts. Ranma relaxed once again and concentrated on focusing himself. The day they had returned to Japan, he'd been having these weird kinds of dreams. They were so real, but when he woke up, they would fade quickly into the haze of morning memory.

The ship began to rock a little more. Ranma supposed that the storm outside had begun to roll closer. He didn't mind really. The ship lolled gently back and forth and the pain eased in his head. Ranma closed his eyes and drifted to sleep.

***

Yoko cursed herself at her own laxity. She had forgot to check the weather patterns and summer in the northern stream often meant big storms. She swore as the rain began to fall lightly around her. She had tacked out of the main path, but knew that the trailing edge would be bad enough to tear the ship apart. The controls sputtered to life and the rudder creaked as it turned against the building seas. Worse yet, it looked as though the powders were wearing off already. She couldn't believe it really; those powders had been strong enough to kill a pecarico, let alone a human male. She smiled and shook her head absently. He definitely was Senshuken.

Yoko kicked the bottom panel and the windsails came to life behind her. She turned the ship out of the path of the storm and wiped the rain from her eyes. Her drift had been too far east and not enough north. She cursed again. It was a simple thing that escaped her notice until then.

The navigation board lit and began to signal something. She pulled herself to it in the howling winds and smiled in triumph. It was Ten'imuhou-sama's signal! She locked the pattern in to the system and the rudder changed course again. They would have to ride the storm for a couple hours, but it probably wouldn't be enough to sink them. Yoko frantically wiped the water from the controls again and tapped in the new correction.

She began to wipe the controls again, but paused. The rain had stopped. She wiped her eyes and looked out across the ship. There was no rain pattering down on the ocean weary vessel. She looked out across the sea. A calm blackness lay beyond, the ocean eerily calm against a totally black sky. No lightening flashed. No waves rocked the ship. Just...calm.

"Good evening, Renbo-chan," a voice said from behind her.

Yoko spun and backed away. A calm, utterly serene face greeted her. His sallow blue eyes pierced the blackness around the both of them. He smiled a dangerous smile and raised his great sword. Yoko backed up towards the opposite end of the deck, but tried to remain calm. He pointed the sword toward the deck and drove it in with a quick thrust. She jumped at the thunk, but remained passive, despite the beating flutter of her heart.

He walked silently to the controls and looked them over without touching them. He smiled and nodded once or twice at the choices, but made no more noise. Yoko wondered what Jinjutsu was doing. Normally, of all the Senshuken, he kept to himself, doing only the minimum of Ten'imuhou-sama's jobs. It was almost like he was the lord and Ten'imuhou-sama was the servant. Another thought struck her. No, not servant...student.

"Yoko, my dear, what in the world are you doing?" he asked, not raising his eyes from the brilliant patterns of lights on the display.

"I'm taking the Shiro Daiou to Ten'imuhou-sama, just like HE and I planned," she replied, trying to sound imperious.

"Kind of a roundabout course, don't you think?" he asked finally raising his eyes to her, "And does this course involve having sex with him?"

Yoko's hands fluttered absently as she tightened her little sarong. She could feel the blush rising and looked away.

"That's what I thought. You see, I cannot allow you to bring him to Akuji. The woman he is currently fawning over presents something of a minor problem for Akuji's future and Shiro will take her from Akuji," he said as he pulled the sword from it's spot, "And it was quite interesting to watch you manipulate Kowaku into taking you with her to Kellenel."

"How could you-?"

"What? Watch you? Oh, Yoko...You're so transparent. Your plans to use Shiro as a pawn in your play for power is also transparent to me."

He leveled the sword at her and she shrank back.

"I'm sorry Yoko, but for now, Shiro Daiou must live."

He began to advance on her and the fear gripped her. She couldn't breathe as the heat swept around her. The heat almost as sweltering as a desert blast. She knew it was his battle magic, but it still overwhelmed her. She backed away and screamed as if her life depended on it. Which it did.

***

The darkness wrapped itself in a comforting embrace around him. The dark of the room didn't bother him; he'd been in dark places before. And besides, he had his eyes closed. It felt better when he had his eyes closed. The pain in his head went away for short periods when he had his eyes closed.

Ranma thought back to what happened on the deck, just a little while ago. Not only the lovemaking, but the vision as well. The lovemaking was wonderful, naturally. It had been something new and exotic and all too exciting. He was adventurous, but damn...He'd have to hand it to Akane for that one.

But the vision. He had seen that girl somewhere before. Ranma muddled it around in his head for a couple minutes and came up with the answer. It had been a dream. A dream that had begun while they were in Germany. He couldn't remember all of it, something about a swirling vortex of light. And the sensation of both he and Akane being thrown into it, like a great hand had swept them inside.

Another part of the dream that he could remember involved a set of girls that he knew weren't real. Ranma struggled to remember their names, for he knew they had names, but that escaped him. The girl on deck had a name as well.

Something pretty normal, he thought.

But it too, escaped him. The pain subsided as he could hear the rains stop outside. It felt good and he drifted quietly towards sleep when a scream shattered his mind. Like ragged nails on a blackboard, it bit through the calm and jolted him upright. Ranma jumped from his place on the bed and threw open the door.

He stopped in his tracks as the deck before him was that of the ship from his vision. A simple, dark brown deck like that of an old galleon, replete with huge mast sticking up from the center of the deck. Sounds of a man laughing made Ranma turn to the deck above his cabin. He couldn't do anything, his feet felt as though they'd been glued to the deck.

Akane was backing away from a man. Ranma growled to himself. This man had been in his dream as well, and he knew that the giant sword he carried wasn't meant for slicing cheese. The man glanced down at Ranma and smirked. He then brought his sword around and casually connected with Akane's neck. The blade met little resistance as it passed through and Akane crumpled to the deck, out of Ranma's sight.

Ranma, mouth screwed up in a gale of impotent rage, howled inhumanly and released his madness towards the man with the sword. The man glanced and frowned, just before he phased out. The rage blast slammed into the upper deck and blew out half of it. Ranma leaped to the remainder of the upper deck, just as the storm came back into existence around him. He landed on the deck and the wind was knocked from his lungs as the deck lurched out from under him.

He lifted his head in the raging waters that mirrored his emotions. Tears joined the rainwaters as Akane's face met him not six inches away. Ranma gasped as her eyes shot open and she muttered something against the howling winds. The calm returned to the ship and Ranma began to scream at his own sight.

"R...Ranma...Help me..." Akane's head muttered to him, "Save...me..."

Her eyes glazed over as her head lolled back and forth in the calming seas. Ranma stood and faintly heard himself continue to scream, even as the head lolled back towards the body and all was strangely quiet once more.

Ranma didn't want to move, lest the head roll around and talk to him once more. He could feel his sanity slipping from his grasp and wondered why he still felt human. Why hadn't the Nekoken taken him yet? Anything to take him from this sight.

"D-Dreaming..." Ranma muttered to himself.

"Dreaming? I think not. I'm sorry that I had to kill her, but she was beginning to be a nuisance in the grander scheme of things," a familiar voice intoned from the deck near the mast, "You have to live to fulfill your part in that."

Ranma swung around to face the deck, the rage building once again behind his eyes and he threw himself off the deck towards the man with the sword. The man stepped aside as Ranma flew in. Ranma jerked himself to a stop next to the man and threw several hundred punches at the man, who jumped back in surprise. The man brought the sword up to guard and Ranma heard his fists ring clear in the darkness off the metal of the blade.

Ranma pulled back and rammed a chi powered punch into the deck across from the man, whose legs buckled as the boards gave way. Ranma jumped into the hole after him and whipped his head around to his left to keep from being met by the hilt from the man's sword. The man jumped back out of the hole and Ranma followed.

The man tossed a barrel and a couple of pins at Ranma, which he easily avoided. The man made his way to the main mast as he did so and brought his sword to bear against the huge mast. He swiped it several times with his great sword and pushed the mast away from him. The mast tipped easily and came down in a thundering crash between he and Ranma, who had to jump back to avoid it.

Ranma huffed once as he was thrown on his butt as the deck rose at an angle under him. Both edges of the ship continued to rise as the mast bit the ship in half lengthwise. Ranma scrambled back under the inclining deck and hung onto the other side of the railing. His sight was drawn to the upper portion of the deck, where Akane lay, a crumpled form on the deck. Ranma was once again vaguely aware of his sobbing screams as her body and head slowly slid from sight when the end of the ship went beneath the waves.

An explosion drew his attention away from the back end to the front end, where the man with the sword was chopping off huge sections of ship. Ranma watched in horror as the man took some perverse glee in watching the sections slip into the sea. He looked up towards the section of ship that Ranma was hanging on and waved goodbye.

Ranma gasped as the man phased out once more. The huge waves of the surrounding storm rushed in and battered his soul against the remains of the wooden ship. Something whispered to Ranma. He couldn't hear it above the soul of the storm. He strained against the crash of the thunder and the waves as they slammed against his battered body. Again, it whispered to him.

He sputtered and coughed as seawater rushed into his lungs. He felt the cold water as it rushed into his legs as the section he was on finally began to go under. Something shifted and suddenly Ranma's head was underwater. As he came up again, he coughed and threw up the water from his lungs as best he could. He raised himself to his elbows as calm descended once again around him. The man with the sword was standing on the water near him. He knelt to Ranma, who tried to plead with the man.

"P-please..." Ranma choked, "Let me die-"

The man shook his head in what Ranma thought was sadness and sighed briefly.

"No Shiro, you will not die this night, nor any in the near future," He said drawing a large dagger from his belt, "You will come north to the glaciers there and you will find her."

And with that, the man struck Ranma across his forehead, rendering him unconscious.