Ranma-chan: Genie of the Ring
By Tuisto, with permission from Disruptor.

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Disclaimer: All characters in the story are subject to Rumiko Takahashi and all parties, that include, but may not be limited to. VIZ studios, corporate holders of the legal copyrights, proxy agents, and the guy that got Mrs. Takahashi's coffee this morning. That said, Since there's no profit in this and I'm only doing this for the kicks, so um, could ya, like you know not sue me? Thanks.

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Chapter 24

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In a darkened cave just outside Nerima kneeled the figure of Hazid, silhouetted only by the candles of his alter to his Lordship, the great and powerful Elvis, and his spell ring of arabic text.

"Oh great and powerful lord Elvis, grant me the strength for your holy task!" Hazid shouted, before he began to chant an arcane spell for magiks.

"To Ranma held in places of truth. Though the distance be great, over land and over sea. Spirits of new and of old, take me to them now to fulfill our masters' destiny!" Hazid shouted as the red jewel in his turban glowed softly, and in a swirl of red smoke, he slowly faded away.

When he opened his eyes Hazid found himself on a mountainside flat shelf. Looking down he saw the massive mysterious temple of The Truth.

Smiling he thought, 'thank you lord, now to capture her once and for all…'

"ARHHHHHH!" he screamed in anguish before he could move onto finish his quest, the vise like pain having returned, along with fresh blood on the sides of his head from hands trying to stop the pain. As the pain subsided he thought, 'yes lord, I understand now, time is of the essence to capture your prize.'

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Akane and Kasumi were resting after getting a crash course on magical defense and countermagic spells from the monks of the Truth Temple. In fact, truth be told, Akane was exhausted, who knew that a bunch of old monks could keep them training for almost 12 hours, nonstop! Of course the 4 hour tea ceremony and ritual temple prayer were nice though. Kasumi on the other hand looked and felt like she could still run a thousand kilometer marathon and not be winded.

'I wonder what my wish did to Kasumi, she's so… so… un-Kasumi like now. So focused.' Akane thought to herself.

As the door to their resting chamber opened Akane and Kasumi could only gape stupefied, as they saw Ranma standing there in the doorway. The still very much female, very much Genie Ranma that is.

Kasumi was the first to come out of the shock (heh, being an android has perks after all you know) and asked.

"R-Ranma, w-hat happened? I thought that the Temple was a cure for you?"

Akane nodded vigorously with Kasumi's sentiment.

"Well, heh-heh" Ranma began nervously. "it is and it isn't… kinda'. The Temple kinda' made me choose. Probably the first REAL choice I've ever had in my life."

"Okay Ranma, so you've chosen to stay a female genie?" Kasumi asked unsure if she liked where this was going.

"WHAT? NO! As a genie I'm a puppet slave, and as a man, I'm almost an animal. I think the Temple wanted me to chose one OR the other. I refused and accepted them both equally." and with that Ranma poured some hot water over her, now his head triggering the curse.

"See? The neko-ken is now physical and not just mental."

Yes, indeed they saw what Ranma meant. What with his soul-piercing yellow feral cat eyes and clawed hands. Ranma though was thankful that the tail from his dream hadn't manifested itself in his new male form… yet…

"Oh my." That was Akane doing a fine Kasumi impression

'hey, wasn't that my line?' Kasumi thought with some small amount of irritation.

"Oh, and I think the Temple also showed me what this Hazid guy's problemme is and maybe a way to stop him."

"Really Ranma?" Akane said with some hope entering her voice.

"Um, yeah. Hazid seems to be like an Elvis Presley worshiper or something, pretty nuts if you ask me. Well anyway he…, hold on a sec." Ranma paused and concentrated hard and shifted into his, now her, genie form. "As I was saying he seems to have a series of blood clots in his brain causing a build-up of pressure on the brain making him delusional I think." And with that Ranma held her hand out and in a show of magical prowess formed the image of Hazids' brain that the temple had shown her earlier.

As both Akane and Kasumi fought down the bile of seeing such a VERY graphic lifelike, even pulsing image of Hazids's brain. Kasumi stopped to think, 'I wonder, Ranma seems so much more sure of herself now, even more intelligent. Could acceptance of this matured Ranma this much?'

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As Hazid approached the Temple of Truth three monks stepped out.

"Leave this place, you are not welcome here." The obvious head monk warned.

Hazid smiled crookedly and said. "No monk, I don't thank that'll do at all. I've come too far to reclaim my Masters prize." And with that said Hazid's hand glowed a soft red as he slowly waved it infront of the monks.

Unsure of what just happened the junior monk mouthed-off. "What was that, the best you can do?" he almost had time to snicker before the doorway they were standing in front off exploded in a impressive shower of wood splinters and with a loud "BOOM!" knocking the three monks unconscious.

As Hazid walked by, and in the case of the head monk on them, he muttered with a smirk. "Hardly, that was practically nothing." answering the junior monks question. Even though said monk was unconscious.

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"BOOM!"

"What was that?" Akane asked the other two girls.

"Hazid is here." Ranma practically growled.

"Ranma, you said he's doing this cause he's sick?" Akane asked and Ranma just nodded the affirmative.

Akane rubbed the ring bringing Ranma to a ramrod strait attention. "What is your wish master?" Ranma said in a flat voice.

"Ranma, I wish that Hazid was perfectly healthy." Akane smiled and thought 'Yeah that'll work he's just doing this cause he's sick, when he's healthy he'll stop.'

Ranma's eyes flared with red light several times before she turned to Akane and Kasumi and said "I'm sorry Akane, but he's still protected against genie magic, he's still "sick"."

'DAMN! That didn't work!' (guess who)

"Akane quick, he's coming, um wish that you two were rested and ready to fight or something quick!" Ranma said urgently.

'Okay Akane, now it's show time, think, think, Hazids a wizard, a sick loon, but a strong wizard… I got it!'

"Okay Ranma, I wish that You, Kasumi and I were all well rested and ready to fight Hazid, and I wish to be a Sorceress strong enough to beat Hazid!" Akane said with a smile and though. 'NOW that'll work for sure!'

'YOU IDIOT! IDIOT! IDIOT! IDIOT! IDIOT!' were Ranma's thoughts as her eyes glowed red and the power welled up from within her to grant the wish and said.

"Wish Granted."

Just as the door to the chamber was blasted open by Hazid, Kasumi (feeling very rejuvenated) watched in morbid fascination as Akane shrank and aged rapidly, now looking very much like a Japanese twin of Cologne. Even her clothes reformed to fit the smaller frame of her "baby" sister.

Just as Akane had gathered her bearings and mumbled in an aged scratching voice "Wha…huh?" noticing her new problemme.

Hazid finished mumbling a spell then shouted over the din of a Temple in utter chaos, "RETURN!"

With that the ring on Akane's finger slowly faded away, at the same time Ranma felt as though a switch in her had just been shut off with an audible POP she winked out of existence where she stood leaving only a wisp of red smoke in her wake.

Across the room, Hazid was grinning like the madman he currently was, as the ring slowly materialized in his hand. He rubbed the gem in the ring once, then the red smoke came pouring from the ruby, coalescing and forming a kneeling Ranma-genie-chan. And while screming with horror in her head she said "What is your wish my master?" in a flat voice.

Hazid, no longer concerned with those other two girls just said "I wish for you to take me to the great palace of our lord savior Elvis, known as Graceland!"

Ranma's eyes flared with red energy and as she said in a flat voice "Wish Granted" Ranma and Hazid faded away in a puff of red smoke.

Kasumi just stood there shocked beyond belief at how fast things had gone from bad to, 'oh shit this is really bad!'.

"Oh shit this is really bad!" she said as it was no time for proper eloquence, then added, "Come on Akane, we've gotta' save Ranma!"

Then she turned around to see Akane, the sight broke Kasumi's mechanical heart. Akane, aged and shrunken, shaking with quite sobs muttering "I've lost him, I've lost him." over and over again.

It was all Kasumi could do, to run to her and grab Akane up in a fierce hug, minding the new delicate nature of her aged baby sister.

"Shhh calm down Akane, shhh." Kasumi said reassuringly while rocking the diminutive Akane in her arms, remembering how she did this for Akane after the passing of their mother. She continued, "We'll get him back, you'll see."

Trembling Akane scratched out, "B-but how! Ranma and the jerk Hazid are in America now! We'll never get there before Hazid does all sorts of perverted things with Ranma! Waaaaa!" Akane wailed doing a fine impression of Soun "Fountain-san" Tendo.

"Akane, I'm not entirely sure myself. But Ranma made you a powerful Sorceress right?" seeing Akane nod, she continued, "Well with that and me here, we're going to find Ranma where-ever she might be, then we're going to get her back and kick Hazid's ass for messing with our family!" Kasumi said with firm resolve.

Akane couldn't help but nearly gape at the fire and conviction in Kasumi's eyes, and maybe even hate at Hazid. This, the same sweet innocent oblivious Kasumi who often could be seen being followed by small cute woodland creatures and singing birds, the same Kasumi who on more than one occasion had a rainbow appear before her path on clear summer days.

'Maybe, maybe we have a chance after all.' Akane thought after seeing her sisters resolve.

T/B/C!