"C-c-c-cold....  C-c-can't f-f-feel my l-legs...."

	"Oh man."  Ranma brushed away as much snow as he could before gently
rolling the harem girl onto her back.  His arms still in contact with her
shoulders, he sat up and looked down at her in panicked hesitation.  She
was trembling wildly, her face was completely flushed, and her skin had
taken a bluish tint, more prominently in the legs--apparently she had never
developed much of a tolerence for cold weather.  He was certain that her
back was at least slightly frostbitten.  And to make matters worse, her
body seemed to be in a state of shock--he wasn't a doctor, but it was a
safe bet.

	When she started to close her eyes, Ranma gasped and pulled the robe over
her.  "Nononono, you can't fall asleep now, you gotta stay awake!"  He
shook her and she opened her eyes a bit; then he grabbed her legs under the
robe and started rigorously rubbing her up and down, trying to get the
circulation back into her limbs.

	She moaned lightly--in pleasure, he imagined uncomfortably--but she was
still steadily closing her eyes.  "Ack!  Whad'r'ya doin?  Don't fall
asleep!"  He took her hand and patted it, then rubbed it hard, but he got
little reaction.

	Then, desperate, he hugged her tightly to his chest and pressed his mouth
against hers.  Within seconds, she responded by tensing her facial muscles
and meeting his kiss; he could feel her drawing from his body heat to warm
her lips and mouth, and her whole face was brightening.  But when she
slipped her tongue into his mouth, he backed off, and would have been
sweating if it wasn't so cold.  He considered what he had just done a
necessary tactic, but if Miko found out, he'd almost surely get pounded for
it--no wait, that was someone else....

	He turned his attention back to the girl, who was now sleepily smiling up
at him, eyes more than half open.  He blushed a little, then said, "C'mon.
I got to get you someplace warmer."  He slipped one arm under her
shoulders, one under her legs, and stood up, hefting her against his chest.
 Then, making sure the robe was securely protecting her, he ran down the
hill and headed back in Miko's direction, worrying.

		

	Ranma ran up the next hill calling, "Miko!"  But when he reached the top,
he found no one around, just mounds of rapidly-melting snow which were
patched too irregularly to hide anyone underneath.  He ran a little further
and repeated his call, but was left unanswered.  The girl in his arms
mumbled uncomfortably with her lazy head on his shoulder, her left leg
spasming a bit--she was still shivering.  Ranma glanced down at her and
groaned.  He'd have to hurry so he could get her to someplace warm.

	Fearing that she had been blown off the hill--and trying not to think of
worse--he ran to the side opposite the rice field.  Looking downward, he
saw a lone shape curled up several dozen yards from the base of the hill.
He tried to call out her name again, but the word choked in his throat.
Instead, he just ran.

	When he reached the spot where the shape lay, he gasped and started to run
back when he realized that the SHAPE was a blue and orange striped cat--a
BIG blue and orange striped cat (somewhat damp with melted snow).  But he
calmed himself somewhat when he further realized that it was unconscious.
He was ready to bolt just the same.

	Ranma took a step away, and paused curiously when his right foot found the
ground a few inches lower than his left.  He took a step back to see what
he had stepped in.  It was a small crater roughly the shape of a basketball
player's foot.

	He gasped when further inspection--from standing since he didn't think
about putting the girl down--revealed that there was dried blood on some of
the grass.  He panicked when he followed the trail to a large patch of
red-coated grass nearby.  He turned his head in all directions, hoping he
had somehow missed the young, redheaded girl lying (safely) in the area,
but he still saw nothing but the oddly-colored cat (which he tried not to
look at).

	Something was terribly wrong.  He needed to find Miko fast.  His instincts
told him that that was her blood.  But where was she?  If she was bleeding
and she moved, or was moved, then there had to be a trail.  But he had
never had the patience of a tracker.  He glanced at the big cat, whom he
remembered being a companion of Miko's, and cats had pretty good smell....

	No.  His fear of cats was too great.  He wouldn't be able to concentrate
on anything--including what he would do when he found her.  There had....

	"Very tragic legend of girl who drown in spring one thousand five hundred
year ago."  The voice rang like a memory unbidden.  It could have been the
Jusenkyo guide, or it could the dark guy, or it could have been his voice
who spoke in the back of his mind--he wasn't sure.  It didn't matter.  But
with that statement in mind, he knew exactly where she was.  And he wished
he was wrong.  Without another thought, he started running again.

	Similar to the one before, another voice invaded the back of his mind:
"Hurry."

		

	A short time later, following the direction of the obviously out-of-place
storm, Doshin found Twilight's body crumpled on the damp ground.  At first
he thought she was dead, but when he knelt down beside her, he could see
that she was only unconscious, very minor injury otherwise.

	He laid his hand on the cat's shoulder and shook her a bit roughly,
asking, "Twilight!  Are you alright?"

	The shimmercat slowly blinked her eyes open and looked up at her master,
then clamored to her feet.

	Doshin stood up and took a step back to give her room, then continued his
inquiries.  "What happened?  Did you find Miko?  Do you know where she is?
Twilight?"

	The shimmercat shook her head violently, but only to shake off her
weariness and discomfort as she tried to think of how to answer his
questions.  Then she raised her head curiously, her ears perking in
alertness, when she smelled something unusual in the air.  Doshin looked
around, worried, asking, "What is it?"

	Twilight trotted across the grass, limping for a few steps until she was
sure her bones were holding up, and pressed her nose to the ground like a
bloodhound.  Doshin followed her until she reached a small patch of
dark-colored grass--drying blood, he realized.

	He immediately knelt over the spot and rubbed some of the coloring onto
his fingers--it wasn't dry yet, so the owner was only recently injured,
although the moisture from the snow was no doubt slowing the drying
process.  Doshin whipped his head in Twilight's direction and growled, "Is
this Miko's blood?!"  Twilight lowered her head and whined, giving an
affirmative.

	Doshin closed his eyes and clenched his teeth.  He should have stopped
this when he had the chance.  Now he feared that, even if he hurried, he
was too late.  But he had to try.

	He opened his eyes and looked around a few seconds longer, then glanced
back at the cat and spat, "Let's go!  There're signs that she's being
dragged away!  Help me follow the trail!

		

	Just before the Jusenkyo springs were within sight, Ranma stopped off at a
clear, sunny spot just inside the jungle.  He didn't want to have to stop,
but he didn't know what to expect when he found Miko (or he wished he
didn't), and he wouldn't be able to do much with both arms full.  Anyway,
the girl had tightened her grip around his neck and he could feel her
brushing her nose against his shirt, so he concluded that she was probably
well enough to go unsupervised, at least for a little while.  She was still
cold and restless.

	He gently set her down on the grass despite her mewling protest--she was
still too weak to put up a physical protest.  She clasped her elbows and
started shaking as he pulled away from her, whatever warmth he had provided
her seeming to leave with him.  She stared up at him piteously, almost
insanely, begging him not to go, threatening to die of insecurity if he left.

	When it seemed that she was going to panic, Ranma quickly knelt down
beside her, laid a restaining hand on her shoulder, and felt her forehead
with the other, whispering, "Please.  Don't move.  Just lie here and get
some rest."  He readjusted the robe across her body like tucking in a child.

	Rapidly eyeing the area, he continued, "The storm should have scared off
all th' animals, so you'll be safe here.  And the sun should get ya warm
real quick."  He looked back at her and said sternly, "Now please... I
hafta go now, okay.  I'll be back as soon as I can, hopefully with help."
The girl started to say something, but then nodded and rested her head to
the side.

	As Ranma sprang up and sprinted off, he pointed a finger and called back,
"Just stay there."  Then he turned away and ran faster.

		

	"Shit!  MIKO!!!"  He practically flew through the forest, dodging trees
that appeared devistated by some high-powered battle (Miko's duel with the
dark man), when he caught a glimpse of a colorful figure, crimson-haired
head hung low, bound to a bamboo pole poking out of the pool he would one
day be cursed in.  He broke through the treeline calling her name over and
over, his heart racing at a dangerously fast pace.  But he came to a dead
stop, even his heart seeming to fail, totally unprepared when she looked up
at him.

	She raised her head in tired jerks, as if she were just interrupted from a
long sleep, and when she managed to get her head up to its full height, it
wobbled on her flimsy neck as if she were severely drunk.  Her face was
scratched and scraped--not nearly enough to majorly mar her beauty, but
more than enough to make every inch of skin painful to touch for weeks.
Blood trickled freshly from her nose and the side of her mouth; it was easy
to tell that someone had hit her very hard.  Her eyes were squinted, her
left eye bruised and nearly unopenable, but he was sure that she could see
him; she managing a weak, lopsided grin in greeting.  It looked like she
had been crying.

	Like a sadist's sick fantasy, her body was bound to the pole so tightly
that the vines binding her seemed to cut into the skin, and her arms were
tied behind her back so forcefully that her chest was thrown forward, as if
her captor had tried to wrap her around the pole instead of merely holding
her.  Her clothes were ripped and he could see that she was slightly
windburned and bleeding from numerous tiny cuts.

	Ranma almost fell to his knees, mouth gaping and eyes wide in disbelief.
He tried several times to say something, but the words slipped out in mere
gasps for air.  In the meantime, Miko drew a short breath and muttered
cheerfully, almost euphorically and somewhat unsteadily, as if she were
really very drunk, "Gardian Spirit... I knew you'd come t' save me again...."

	Hearing her voice had reminded him what words sounded like, so he was able
to formulate his own: "W-w-what... happened?"

	"Sorry about your girlfriend...."  Ranma looked away from Miko to see who
had addressed him, anger welled in his eyes.  A few pools away and to his
left, the samurai was bound to a pole in a similar manner; although he was
missing his shirt and he seemed to be in much better condition than Miko.
But it wasn't he who spoke--he was still unconscious.

	From out of the brush beside the pool stepped a dark-haired,
sinister-looking man--the swordsman who had helped the clown back at the
inn, but he was wearing nothing more than a pelt of wolf's fur around his
waist.  He folded his arms and walked over to stand beside the samurai
while finishing his thought, "But it would appear that your young love has
really gotten on Lon's bad side, and that's a dangerous position to be in.
I would not have been able to stop him if I wanted to."

	Ranma growled and took a threatening step forward before the swordsman
suddenly reached behind his back and pulled forth a gleaming butterfly
knife, point aimed at the samurai.  Hesitating, Ranma clenched his fists,
quivering with furious energy, and yelled, "Coward!  Why'd ya hafta beat
Miko halfta death!?!"

	Pae-Kau shook his head, a bit annoyed.  "I didn't even touch her.  I would
not be so sadistic.  Anyway, she's not the one I wanted.  She was merely
convenient bate to lure you here...."

	"BAIT!!!  I'll KILL you for what you've done!"  Ranma couldn't help but
take another step forward, but then he found the swordsman's weapon resting
up against the samurai's chest.

	The swordsman sighed and hissed a bit harshly, insult rustling under his
breath, "As I told you, I did not touch her!"

	"I did."  Ranma turned his head to see Lon, the hulking neanderthal
himself, standing off to his left in front of the treeline--he just seemed
to appear out of nowhere.  And he looked as ugly as hell without his mask
and only wearing the samurai's robe around his waist.  He folded his arms
and grinned a frightening grin, then spat, "The runt had it coming for what
she did to my hand."  He held up the hand he was referring to long enough
for Ranma to see the multitude of black dots decorating the skin, as if
that was all the justification he needed.

	"Bastard!"  Ranma lept at him with foot extended; Lon didn't even attempt
to move.  Just as the foot landed, Lon slapped his leg to the side and
grabbed one of his arms.  Then, jerking him around, he quickly threw his
other arm around Ranma's torso, pinning his other arm to his side.
Disappointed, Lon muttered to himself, "Hmph.  You fought alot more
impressively as a girl."

	Ranma coughed a few times, then pushed himself up on his hands and yelled,
hopelesssness beginning to seep into his voice, "You got me here, okay!
Now let Miko go!  You're killing her!"

	Pae-Kau folded his arms, shook his head, and sighed, "Alas, my friend
wants to do just that; and HE wanted YOU here to kill you as well.
However..."  The swordsman lowered his head a bit and smirked slyly.  "I
may be able to convince him otherwise."  Ranma just growled, his eyes
starting to water, feeling further talk on his part to be futile.

	The swordsman turned the blade over and over in his hands and sighed anew,
"I sincerely pity you.  I can't imagine what it could be like to be cursed
with the body of a woman."  Ranma widened his eyes in surprise.  The
swordsman continued, ignoring him, "For such a warrior to be hindered by
such an inferior frame.  I can think of no worse fate."  He looked up and
gleamed proudly.  "That is why I am prepared to do you a favor.  You see, I
have a curse as well--much more ferocious than yours I can assure you."

	Ranma growled darkly as he looked for some opening to make a rescue, "Just
shut up and get to th' point!"

	Pae-Kau bowed his head and became more serious.  "I am prepared to share
the cure with you."

	Ranma's eyes widened and he held his breath.  "C-cure?  Y-you have a cure?"

	Pae-Kau tapped the point of his blade against Reikiba's chest and laughed,
"Not yet.  But I will just as soon as I create the Spring of Drowned Man."
Ranma gasped in shock.  Pae-Kau pointed the blade downward, indicating the
spring in front of him, and said, "This one is uncursed, or so I am told.
Just waiting for someone to fall into it.  Think about it--you'll be fully
restored to manhood again."

	Ranma knew he shouldn't have, but he hesitated.  How could he even
consider letting someone drown for his own personal gain?

	The swordsman added temptingly, "I'll tell you what.  I really can't let
you just throw away this offer, so I'll make you a deal.  If you kill the
samurai personally, I will convince Lon to spare your girlfriend."  He
glanced harshly at Lon and growled, "I think he's done enough to her already."

	Lon shifted his weight and grumbled, "I suppose I do feel better now.  I
can part with one of them."

	Ranma glanced over in Miko's direction, still not believing he was
actually considering the proposal--but he had to help Miko fast.  As if
hearing his thought, Miko lethargically lifted her head in his direction
and glared at him questionably.  But her eyes, however squinted, didn't
betray the fear and concern in her expession as she shook her head
slightly, warning him that she would never forgive him under those terms.

	Ranma winced and shook his head, deeply ashamed to have even thought of
it.  He threw his eyes in the direction of the swordsman, then tried to
throw himself forward, shouting, "You're sick!"  But even Lon's relaxed
hold was too strong for him to break.

	Pae-Kau sighed, "Very well.  I should have known that would be your
decision.  I just hope Lon is quick with your death."

	"Ack!"  Ranma clenched his teeth as Lon lifted him into the air and
tightened his grip in a bear hug, aiming to crush the life out of him.  A
bead of sweat escaped Ranma's brow as he quickly found it hard to breath.

	"No!  Leave Gardian Spirit alone!"  Miko cried furiously at Lon, her blue
aura glowing brightly.  She had to help him!  She simply wouldn't let him
die!  He deserved to live more than she did!  She called upon any strength
still remaining in her broken body and struggled against her bindings,
allowing the excruciating pain her movements caused to further her
determination.  "Let him go!"  Her rage burned hot and her aura started
slowly searing away at the vines.

	Lon glared at her and spat, "Shut up!  At least you're goin to die
together!"  Ranma, noticing what the redhead was doing, gasped shrilly
through his teeth, "Miko... stop... stop...."  If she snapped her bindings,
then she would fall into the pool--and he was doubtful that she was in any
condition to swim out.

	Pae-Kau watched the drama and groaned, then sighed in aggitation, "I had
better hurry and get this over with."  He turned away, held out his weapon
arm, then slashed twice at the base of the pole, only two thin streaks in
the air; he stood up with his weapon still out in the completion of the
strike and muttered contemptably, "Then I can leave Lon to his petty
butchery."  A second later, a wedge started slipping from the pole and the
samurai started to topple forward.

	"Murderer!"  Two lassos of jungle vines shot out from the jungle, one
looping around the top of the bamboo pole and one finding its way around
Pae-Kau's neck; with a hard yank, they were both pulled towards into treeline.

	At the same time, there was a tremendous roar and a large orange and blue
striped jungle cat pounced out of the trees and landed on Lon's head.  With
a cry of pain as the cat latched on and started boxing his face, he
stumbled forward and cast Ranma to the ground.

	Ranma fell hard to the ground coughing and wheezing as he watched Miko
continue to struggle against her bonds, slowly burning through them with
her aura.  Ranma flailed a hand in front of him while clutching his stomach
with the other, desperately gasping the words "calm down" over and over.
But Miko didn't seem to hear him. When he heard one of Miko's binding
crackle and snap, he gathered enough strength to shout, "No!"

	Miko gasped hard when she heard the snap and her body shifted forward, her
blind rage suddenly replaced by mortal fear, her aura suddenly running
cold.  Her eyes flew as wide as they could and her heart jumped.  But she
only fell forward a little bit before her bindings caught her--the vine had
broked from around her shoulders and had loosened around her upper arms,
but it was still tight around her legs (for now).  Beads of sweat sprouted
on her forehead and she was afraid to even breath.

	Quickly leaning forward, Lon was able to throw the shimmercat off balance.
 He then grabbed the massive beast around her belly, turned, and threw her
into the air over the jungle.  She yowled as she fell into the treetops
several trees away.  Lon then turned back to Ranma, his eyes narrowed, and
growled.

	"Miko!  Are you okay?"  Ranma pushed himself up on his arms and divided
his attention between Lon and Miko.  Lon had just tossed the cat
away--which Ranma was half-glad for--and for now, the giant was just
watching him like a preditor, just waiting for him to look away.  Ranma was
ready to spring over to Miko in an instant, but he knew he'd never be able
to untie her and jump away before the giant got them--he was too close as
it was.

	With shimmering eyes and wavering voice, Miko whispered, "G-Guardian
Spirit....  Help me...."

	His vision still divided between the two, Ranma held out a finger toward
Miko and muttered, "Just stay calm.  I need to take care of this bastard
first."  Miko grew twice as fearful as her guardian slowly got to his feet
and faced his hideous adversary.  She whined shrilly, "But he's a monster...."

	Ranma raised his hands in a standard attack pose and half-smiled.  "Don't
worry.  I've got it covered."  Lon narrowed his eyes and crouched down,
growling, making him appear much more brutish and demonic.  (Hey, he was
ugly to begin with.)

	Miko gasped and bit her lower lip.  Ranma didn't take his eyes off the
giant, but he acknowledge Miko's worry by smiling even more (slyly); he
assured her, "We'll be going home soon."

	Miko felt choked with tears.  She whispered, "Guardian spirit, I...."  But
she didn't want to finish her declaration--it might have made him lose his
concentration.  She hoped she had spoken too quietly to be heard.

	Ranma taunted, "Okay Ugly, come and get me."  Lon clenched his fists and
snorted like a bull, making Miko wince.  They stared at each other a few
seconds longer, making Miko sweat nervously, and then the giant charged.

	But no sooner had Lon taken a step, Ranma thrust his hands forward, palms
outward, and yelled, "Mouko Takabashiya!"  A large, bright blue ball of
concentrated chi energy flashed between the two fighters, making Miko flinch.

	However, instead of being knocked back by the force of the chi blast, Lon
lowered his shoulders and raised his arms and slammed into the blast
head-on.  !BOOM!  The blast exploded outward and backfired on Ranma,
throwing him back several yards; of course it didn't help when Lon burst
through the explosion and continued running forward.

	"Ack!"  Miko was whipped back against the pole by the explosion, hitting
the back of her head hard, and the vines snapped in several more places
when she bounced forward again.  She was barely conscious when she plunged
headfirst into the pool.