------------------------------ CUT HERE ------------------------------
wyrm@mail.utexas.edu <<<<No other address. Write here!
<<o-<o>-================-<o>-o>>
For a split second, a brief, almost unnoticed exchange took place.
Nabiki saw the Amazon standing across the room, her eyes widening as her
magickal sight showed her things ordinarily hidden from Sleepers...and saw
the inhuman soul inhabiting the Amazon's undead corpse.
Shampoo locked eyes with Nabiki as well, and her own eyes widened as
she saw the sparkles in her aura. Nabiki was using magic...no, not just
magic, True Magick. Suddenly, Nabiki's aura turned to crimson rage. Nabiki
was a mage, she realized, and she probably knew what she was.
"*MONSTER!!*" Nabiki barked; Shampoo watched in almost fascination as
Nabiki's hand flew up. On her finger was a ring set with a ruby -- or what
appeared to be a ruby. Either way, it sparkled angrily. A bright flash
came forth, accompanied by the sound of what can only be described as a
very big furnace going on.
To Akane's great surprise, a fireball leaped out from the crystal and
curled lazily as it rushed through the air, forming a neat helix in space
and throwing off sparks as if it was a grinding wheel. Ukyou ducked,
letting the fireball pass overhead without damage to herself. Akane felt
the heat from the ball of fire even from her position as it made its way
to a very off-balance Shampoo.
Shampoo felt the hot heat on her face as the fireball dominated her
vision.
All of this happened in a fraction of a second.
<<o-<o>-================-<o>-o>>
H U N T R E S S
By Thomas R Jefferys
<<o-<o>-================-<o>-o>>
With thanks to J. D. Farber
Ranma 1/2 and associated characters created by Takahashi Rumiko.
Vampire: the Masquerade, the World of Darkness and all that jazz created
by White Wolf Game Studios.
The WoD critters have been ruthlessly twisted to various sinister purposes
by yours truly. I'll say it again, this is MY GODDAMN FIC!!!
WARNING TO DISCIPLES OF THE RED-THROAT: "Vampire: the Masquerade" is all
about personal horror; being a vampire is not fun. You'll get plenty of
dark humor free with a fill-up, though. If you don't like darkness in your
Ranma fanworks, delete this document now and disavow all knowledge of its
existence.
Additional dialogue by Monty Python.
<<o-<o>-================-<o>-o>>
CHAPTER 5: The Confession
Shampoo could not dodge as she was temporarily off guard, and was
unceremoniously slammed full-force into the wall. The Amazon was burnt,
although not badly enough for Nabiki's tastes. The display caused Akane to
gasp with stupefied shock.
"NABIKI! WHAT ARE YOU--?" Akane shouted at her sister, but was
distracted by an inhuman hiss from the other end of the room. Akane spun
to see Shampoo slowly straightening to confront her sister. The youngest
Tendou sister froze with a look of pure horror on her face. A metallic
*clang* failed to catch her attention.
Shampoo's face was twisted into one of savage rage. Her lips pulled
back to articulate her snakelike hiss, and a pair of characteristically
long fangs came into view. But it was Shampoo's eyes that really terrified
Akane; they were catlike, gleaming gold and glowing eerily and vile in the
darkened room. Suddenly, Shampoo's hands tensed, and with a quiet *shing*
fingernails lengthened and thickened into vicious talons.
The horrid knowledge came to her in a flash.
And then Akane knew...
Akane knew just _what_ she had invited into her home.
"Oh my god..." she whimpered in a voice ready to scream. Akane never
got to that, though, as her mind decided to take a coffee break. Her
unconscious body collapsed in a faint.
Nabiki had no time to check on her sister; she needed to take care of
this thing NOW. She sent off another blast. Shampoo dodged to the side,
letting the shot incinerate the rice paper wall. Fangs bared, Shampoo
rushed Nabiki. However, that only won her a fire blast in the face.
Shampoo howled as she slammed into the far wall.
Relaxing, Nabiki cautiously stalked toward the wrecked wall. She
doubted that Shampoo was really dead, so just to make sure, she raised her
hand again, calling for the flame. She shredded the long cellulose chains
of the wood, energizing them. The rubble caught fire and burned, although
nothing else was touched. The sorceress watched the wood and paper burn
itself to a cinder.
"Nabiki! I heard screams and magick use," came a voice from the
closet, and Ryouga opened its door to emerge from it. His sense of
direction still placed him in the damnedest places. Ryouga glanced at the
burning rubble and the disordered room, then back at his wife. "What the
heck happened?"
Nabiki sighed almost sadly. "It...It was Shampoo, Ryouga..." she
replied in a low voice. "She was a vampire, and it was she who attacked
Ranma. Fortunately, I destroyed her." She said a silent prayer for her
soul.
She heard something drop to the floor, and someone (she was sure it
was her husband) shout a warning, "NABIKI!" Spinning around, Nabiki tried
to launch off another bolt before Shampoo swept her up in a bear-hug,
holding her fast from the rear.
Shampoo's icy voice sent shivers up Nabiki's spine. "Destroyed?
Hardly, Nabiki-chan."
-====||====-
Tonight was a rotten night to be Kuonji Ukyou.
Ukyou was upset that Nabiki had sucker-fireballed Shampoo, and wanted
nothing more than to reduce Nabiki to a fine paste. There wouldn't be
enough left of Nabiki to smear on a cracker when Okonomiyaki Ukyou had
gotten through with her. Unfortunately, that would have to wait; Ukyou
would check to make sure Shampoo was all right before taking any action
against the middle Tendou sister. That was Ukyou's plan up to this point.
She turned to render aid to Shampoo...
And Ukyou discovered (or at least, had a *damn* good guess of) just
_how_ Shampoo killed Mousse. That discovery shed a lot of light on what
happened tonight, and Ukyou realized she didn't know Shampoo nearly as
well as she thought.
Her Big-Ass Spatula dropped from nerveless fingers. The metal form
made a metallic *clang* as it struck the floor, which failed to catch very
much attention to those in the room.
"Oh my god..." Akane whimpered, then feel to the ground.
"Sh-Sha-Shampoo..." Ukyou stammered in horror as she slumped against
the wall.
Her friend was a monster.
Let's just say that the glowing eyes, elongated fangs and vicious
claws were a big tip-off.
-==--==--==-
Ryouga growled, seeing his wife threatened. He was about to advance
when Shampoo projected in a clear voice across the room to him, "Stop,
Ryouga. If either of you so much as twitches...if I see just one sparkle
of magick use, I'll rip out your spine, Nabiki-chan." Ryouga snarled in
frustration but did as he was told.
Nabiki reviewed her situation. She had some prior experience with
vampires and their varied abilities. From what she'd seen and experienced
so far, Shampoo probably had Auspex, Fortitude, Obfuscate, Celerity and
Potence. All in all, she didn't have many options. At that thought, she
felt two small pricks at the base of her skull; that told Nabiki that
Shampoo was dead serious. Nabiki scowled mentally, /*Gods, but that was an
awful pun!*/
"I have no desire to harm you, Nabiki-chan," Shampoo whispered into
her ear.
"Could've fooled me! *ah!*" Nabiki shot back. Shampoo tightened her
grip around her captive's chest, restricting Nabiki's ability to breathe.
"You should know better, Nabiki," Shampoo hissed. "I say again, I
don't wish to harm either of you, but I _will_ make your husband a widower
if you try anything. Am I making myself clear?"
"Crystal."
"Good," Shampoo said. "Now, I need a cease-fire. You will sit down and
hear me out. I swear on Amazon honor that I will not harm either of you if
you do this."
/*And I'm a monkey's uncle.*/ Nabiki asked, "How do we know you'll
keep your promise? *aah!*" Shampoo squeezed again, tighter this time.
Nabiki felt her ribs creaking against each other. /*Shut UP, Nabiki!*/
"Because I swore on my honor to you. Do not insult that honor again,"
Shampoo growled. "Now, do you swear you and Ryouga will hear me out?" This
she asked loud enough for Ryouga to hear.
"Yes, I give my word that we will hear you out," Nabiki replied in
kind.
Shampoo's eyes swiveled to Nabiki's husband. "Well, Ryouga?"
Briefly, Ryouga considered using some of the Saotome School of Dirty
Tricks, the set of fighting techniques Ranma used on Ryouga when his
stomach was embossed with the Mark of the Battling God (a goofy doodle).
He ultimately decided against it; the School of Dirty Tricks didn't work
particularly well on *him*, and he _wanted_ to lose! This left Ryouga with
only one option, "I too give my word."
"Good. Now, we're going to go nice and slow-like. I'll release the
bear hug smoothly..." Nabiki felt the arms around her chest loosen and
open up deliberately. "...so we're cool at all times, and when you're
free, walk casually to your husband. There..." Nabiki was now free, so she
stepped calmly toward Ryouga. Once the couple and the vampire were on
opposite sides of the room, the tension almost literally drained from the
room.
"Good! Now that's out of the way, we can wake the others!" Shampoo
chirped with a gloom-defeating, uber-kawaii smile on her face.
The Hibikis stared at her evenly. "Well, at least undeath hasn't
dampened your cheery disposition..." Nabiki remarked.
-====||====-
Upstairs, a very asleep teenaged girl was very not restful in that
sleep. Her long hair held in place with bows, the black mane moved with
her head as it twitched from one side to the other. Sweat beaded on her
brow, dampening her pillow.
The dreams had returned tonight, as they did the previous night, and
the night before that, and the night prior to that one, and the proceeding
night... This pattern continued back in time for the last three months.
Tashimi was getting tired of this rut, tired in all possible ways. It
made her cranky, exhausted, and her grades and training were getting
harder to maintain at their current level; they would soon slip if
something didn't change.
She let out a yelp as she tossed herself out of bed and onto the
floor. "OW! Shit!" Tashimi swore as she rubbed her sore posterior.
Glancing at the clock, she sighed with annoyance, "Another sleepless night
ahead. Joy."
-====||====-
"Good grief," Nabiki sighed as she stood above Ukyou, who cowered in
the corner whimpering to herself.
"...I'm gonna die Ranchan's gonna die Akane's gonna die we're all
gonna die..."
Nabiki calmly removed the ever-present Spatula of Doom from Ukyou's
bandoleer. After taking a few practice swings, she finally brought it
firmly down onto its owner's head.
"...Shampoo's already dead and she's gonna kill us--!"
* **C*L*A*N*G*!** *
That stopped Ukyou's mad rantings quite expediently. It also made her
crumble to the ground like a sack of kidney beans. "One problem solved,"
Nabiki remarked, tearing the Big-Ass Spatula from Ukyou's head (*RIP!*).
To solve the next problem, she gathered a scruff of Ukyou's shirt, then
used it as a handle to lift her up. Nabiki calmly slapped her silly.
*SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!*
*SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!*
*SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!*
*SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!*
*SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!*
*SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLAP!*
*SLAP!* *SLAP!* *SLA--
"ENOUGH ALREADY!!!!" shouted Ukyou, shoving Nabiki away from her. The
abused girl had cheeks raw and beet red from the beating and would likely
bruise.
"You okay, Ukyou?" asked Shampoo.
Ukyou stiffened at the sound of the lilting voice. She became acutely
_aware_ of the vampire behind her. She slowly turned to face the pale
Amazon who stared at her with an eerie calm. "Sh-Shampoo..." she stuttered
as she hid behind Nabiki and Ryouga.
Shampoo saw her fear and sighed.
-==--==--==-
"Time to make the doughnuts, Akane!" chimed a cheerful voice, stirring
Akane from her forced sleep.
Her memories from before she fainted were a little scrambled here and
there. What exactly was it that caused her to faint, anyway? She could not
remember much. Akane looked up at Shampoo, for the first time really
noticing her pale complexion. Too pale.
Cologne's voice echoed from the past...
("Shampoo is dead.")
/*Literally,*/ her mind added. The memory of what Shampoo had become
came crashing back to her. Akane trembled with fear as she looked into the
Amazon's eyes and saw for the first time the lifeless void hiding behind
them. Eyes sweeping her with an utterly cold gaze of an inhuman predator.
A hunter that hungered for blood. Her blood.
Akane screamed, scrambling back away from Shampoo. She cared only
about getting away from those horrible eyes, her dignity be damned.
"G-G-Get away!" Akane stuttered, flattening herself against the wall.
Her behavior made Shampoo start, but she was not on the whole
surprised. "Huh? What's wrong, Akane?" the Amazon asked, taking a step
closer.
Akane flinched away, cowering away from Shampoo like a mouse shadowed
by a cat. "Please, leave me alone! I don't wanna die! I don't wanna die!"
the once-proud woman sobbed.
Shampoo stared in bemusement, then in disappointed disgust. "Jeez,
Akane! For all your bitching, I'da thought you woulda had more backbone to
go with it!" griped Shampoo. "C'mon, Akane. This is beyond pathetic; this
is downright wretched."
Akane's fear peaked. Dropping to her knees, she tried to ward off the
vampire's eyes with her arm. Her voice shaking, she pleaded, "Please... oh
please..."
/*C'mon, Akane! Don't do this to me!*/ Shampoo thought. "Akane, don't
worry. I'm not going to hurt you," Shampoo tried to console the frightened
woman. Shampoo laid a hand on Akane to try to comfort her.
Akane flinched away. "P-Puh-Please, don't hurt me!" she whined.
"Caine's skiing holiday..." swore Shampoo, thinking how to get through
to Akane. Her behavior reminded Shampoo of Soun and Genma facing (read,
cowering in craven fear before) their perverted, cruel and thankfully late
master, Happousai.
-==--==--==-
A few feet away, Ranma slowly stirred awake from her unconsciousness.
Things were still a little foggy, but she had the distinct impression that
there was evil afoot. A few seconds later, she remembered pain of getting
the crap beaten out of her while male, and a vampire's fangs piercing
her/his throat. The vampire was...
Shampoo! Shampoo was a vampire!
A vampire had been invited into her house! A vampire who was now in
her house at this very moment!
Akane screamed, which drove the point home for Ranma.
Weakly, Ranma swiveled her head to find Shampoo by Akane. The monster
now had Ranma's wife cornered, and Akane was clearly frightened. Old
instincts to protect Akane and the family asserted themselves, and new
energy surged forth as she sat erect.
"Shampoo," Ranma snarled hoarsely, "get away from my wife!" Shampoo --
no, the monster -- turned toward her. Seeing her husband awake, Akane
scrambled toward Ranma and ducked behind her. Ranma managed to get to her
feet and took a ready stance. "You touch her," Ranma warned, "and I'll
kill you!"
Nabiki rolled her eyes. "Oh sure, brother-in-law," came the sarcastic
rebuttal. "You can barely stand on your own two feet, and you couldn't
even beat her when you were at 100%. You seriously expect to be able to
carry through your threat?"
Ranma had to think a bit about that, but steeled herself, "Maybe not,
but I'll sell my life _dearly_!"
Nabiki, the family mage, stepped in front of Ranma. "Now now, Ranma,
you must be smarter than this. You won't even be hors d'oeuvres for her,"
Nabiki answered. "Besides, there's more to this than meets the eye. She
promised not to do anything to us... for now."
Ranma blinked at Nabiki, even as Shampoo frowned at the same Tendo
sister. "What's with this 'for now' crap? Does it have anything to do with
my holding your neck hostage?"
A know-it-all smile crossed the mage's face. "Mois?"
"Enough!" barked Ranma, her strength returning quickly. "What is this
all about, Shampoo?"
"Coming clean, Ranma. It's about coming clean." Shampoo sat down,
bidding the others to do the same. "This is going to take a while."
After a visit from Mr. Teapot to restore Ranma to masculinity, the
five humans sat in a rough arc, with Shampoo at its hub.
Shampoo took in a calming, albeit useless, breath to steady her
nerves. She was about to lay her cards out for all to see. For a
supernatural creature like herself, this is a dangerous act, especially
for Kindred. After all, none of the other supernatural categories had a
group of societal rules that enforced death onto those 'not of the Blood.'
"Where to begin..." Shampoo sighed. "First, I am a vampire. That about
says it all about _what_ I am." Shampoo took a moment to look into all of
their eyes. The only two persons who didn't show overwhelming fear in that
declaration were the Hibikis. "As to *who* I am... I'd like to say that
I'm still the Shampoo you knew and loved. However, I really can't. The
Embrace is too traumatic; it changes someone's soul forever. The best I
can say is that I've tried to carry over as much as my old self as
possible to the other side."
"Th-Then it's true?" Akane asked. "You really drink blood?"
"Yes," Shampoo said with little but bluntness.
Ranma rubbed his neck. "I can vouch for that," Ranma said. His voice
carried a stabbing accusation that struck home in Shampoo's soul.
"How long, Shampoo?" Ukyou asked. The meaning of the question was
intentionally vague, but very much understood.
"Twenty years."
"That was about the time you disappeared," Akane said.
Shampoo smiled sardonically. "My Embrace was the reason I _left_. In
fact..." She cast a glance at Ranma. "...the last time you two saw me, I
had already been brought over."
Ranma dusted off the memory. The fact that Shampoo had suddenly jumped
back from nuzzling into his neck, with a look of horror on her face to
boot. With this additional information, that behavior suddenly became
clear. "You were about to feed on me, weren't you?"
"Yep."
"...oh deity..." Akane whispered. (Vewy, vewy quietwy.)
"Indeed," Shampoo agreed. "You also must realize that I am taking a
grave risk revealing myself to you. The Kindred -- that's what we call
ourselves -- maintain a Masquerade. We are not to reveal ourselves to
those who are not like us."
"The First Tradition?" Nabiki asked.
Shampoo started. "How did you --?!" the Amazon began, then stopped
upon second thought. "Never mind. The Awakened know of our existence and
some basics about us. Forget I asked."
"'The Awakened'?" Akane gasped. "You mean Nabiki is a vampire too?!"
** THUD! **
Shampoo and the Hibikis practiced their synchronized face-fault
routine.
"Chigau!" Nabiki denied aggressively. "She means I'm a MAGE!"
"'Awakened' as in 'Awakened to the True Magick!'" clarified Ryouga.
"Nabiki-chan is human! An extraordinary human, but human nonetheless!"
"Ask her to tell you all about it later, Akane," Shampoo sighed as she
righted herself. "This is far more important. The important thing is the
Masquerade protects both the Kindred and the Kine... humans." Shampoo
corrected for her audience, cutting off any questions about terminology.
Only two were likely to know what these words meant. "'Ignorance is
bliss,' after all. I would've kept my condition a secret if you hadn't
found out the hard way, but things didn't work out that way."
"What's this all got to do with us?" Akane asked Shampoo.
"The Jyhad," Shampoo answered simply, and then began explaining. "The
Kindred are organized into at least four sects: the Camarilla, the Sabbat,
the Inconnu, and free agents, plus maybe a few small minor factions. The
Jyhad is the hidden war for power amongst the Kindred sects. It has been
fought since the beginning of recorded history, using humanity as fodder,
tools, and a source for new soldiers for that war."
Shampoo stared straight into Ranma's eyes. Ranma felt a cold chill
race down his back; Shampoo was about to give some very unpleasant news,
he knew. He would not be disappointed.
In a parody of a WWII US recruitment poster, Shampoo said, "Ranma, the
Sabbat wants _YOU_ in the Jyhad!"
The silence was deafening.
Ranma was stunned. The stun turned to horror. The horror turned to
betrayal, and then into anger. "So that's your plan," Ranma hissed.
Shampoo blinked in confusion. "Nn?"
"Get out of our house, monster!" Ranma bellowed.
Shampoo gasped at that shout's abruptness, even as the voices echoed
that last word, /** monster, monster **/
"Ranma? What are you--?" Shampoo started to ask, but was cut off.
"SHUT UP!! You really have traded in your humanity for this, haven't
you? You couldn't get me as a regular human, so turn me into a vampire and
gain a husband eternal." At this, all present gasped.
"I'm right, aren't I?" Ranma mimicked Shampoo's voice in a seductive
parody, "'Join us, Ranma! You'll gain power beyond your imagination! And
spend eternity with me!' HAH! I'm NOT going to join you in your hell, and
that's final! NOW GET OUT!!"
Shampoo's eyes widened with shock. This was not good. Ranma had
completely misinterpreted her meaning. "R-Ranma! Y-You don't understand!"
Shampoo desperately tried to recover favor with her audience, but...
"I've heard enough," Nabiki declared as she stood, already reaching
out with her will to raise the temperature around Shampoo. "You will leave
us, Shampoo, and never return." Rings of angry flames erupted around
Shampoo, seemingly entrapping her. The Roetschreck reared its ugly head,
and panic gripped her soul as Shampoo let out a shriek. "And don't think
you can avoid my magick this time. These rings of fire will escort you out
of the Dojo. If you're not gone on the count of three, those rings will
explode and burn you to a crisp."
The flames snapped at Shampoo, and she shook in fear. Desperately, she
tried to reason with the mage, "B-But you don't--!"
"One!"
"Nabiki, please! They have to--!"
"Two!" Nabiki continued the count undeterred.
Shampoo's heart fell. Letting out a sob and a barely heard, "I'm
sorry," she sprinted out of the tea room and into the pouring rain. The
rain washed away the two trails of blood tears tracing down her cheeks,
but did not extinguish the magickal fire. Only when she jumped the wall
did they vanish, but Shampoo did not stop nor turn back.
Soon, the only remainders of Shampoo's passage were a set of broken
shogi and a few drops of vampiric tears.
<<o-<o>-================-<o>-o>>
---------------------
## ## ## ## ####### ## ## AKA Tom Jefferys, Time Lord for Hire
## ## # # ## ## ### ### "Have TARDIS; Will Travel."
## # ## ### ##### ## # ## Wielder of ANVIL and SPAM!
### ### # ## ## ## ## [ Will code for food! ]
## ## ### ### ## ## ##_of_UT haunts <wyrm@mail.utexas.edu>
"Don't make deals with Dark Lords."
-- Wyrm's 34th Law (Inverse's Law)