... and died, mercilessly, cruelly, at the deep hand of darkness, in the 
blasphemy of space.

The shrill cry of eternal night, resonating with each endearing thud, the 
pounding of blood in his ears, the pounding of war drums, heartbeats, 
ebbing, ending.

So much destruction... the decay was spreading through the sands and the 
seas before him.  The death... my God, how could it all end this way?  
The Silver Millenium, the glorious kingdom, all of it, turning quickly to 
a land ruled by ruin and loss.

Endymion, Prince of the Earth, clawed at the rubble in his grasp.  He 
held the sword to his side, striving to focus his power into standing, 
and failing, falling once more into the ground fated to be his deathbed.

He could not even spit out the dust in his mouth.  "Serenity... I... 
have... to protect... her...."

He turned, wanting to face the sky, the Earth that he so beloved.  It 
looked back at him, a stark, hazy, lidless blue-green eye.  His last 
sunrise, so he thought, but the soft, sudden glow washed away into an 
iridescent, ethereal pillar, a static whirlwind of cloth cloaking the 
figure of a young woman.

The Goddess of the Future held only sadness in her features.  "Endymion, 
I have been asked by the Almighty to grant you a wish.  How may I help?"

He stared, squinting his eyes to focus on the one he knew only from 
legends, trying to breathe evenly, summoning voice and reason.  "Skuld-
sama... I... wish..." he clutched the hilt of his sword, his injuries 
claiming their portions, "I can... protect... Princess... Sere... 
nity..." a spasm, coughing, "for... all... time."

No sooner had he finished had he expired.

Skuld lifted her arms slowly, light and wind erupting through her, 
illuminating a mesh of reality, spreading infinitely outward, swirling at 
her position, upward and beyond - then, it settled, resonating and, in 
moments, intangible.  She opened her eyes, liquid and forever.  "Wish 
granted."

Behind her, a myriad of pinpricks of light streak toward the blue planet, 
the final testimony to Queen Serenity's powers, promising the future 
existence of protectors of the Emerald of their skies.  Was that a 
flicker in one of those specks?  Was there suddenly two presences in the 
light?  Did the light change color?

No, it was all probably just a trick of the imagination.

***


First Born
by Pervert and Switch

Prologue: It was a dark and stormy night...


***

The car purred as it rushed down the unlit stretch of road.

Nodoka turned to her child, connecting, all the while minding the trail.  
"Now, Ranma, your father told me he's going to take you on that training 
trip sometime soon.  Promise me you'll be good."

The toddler cooed happily, "Hai, mama."

She smiled openly, "That's a good boy.  When you get home, I just know 
you'll be a wonderful martial artist."

Ranma put on a serious face.  "I'll try, mama."

She smoothly rounded a dark corner.  "I just know you wi-"

As they rounded the bend, an oncoming car came full-on within their 
sights.  The drunken driver of the other car realized that he had driven 
into the other lane - too late.

Two veering, careening cars fell off the road.

Silence crept along the twirling treads.

"Itai..."  The three-year old clutched at his unmoving companion.  
"Mama... wake up..."  He began to cry, the only sound from the wreckage 
long into the night.  "Mama... mama..."

***

In the lobby of an orphanage, Kenji Tsukino knew that he was going to be 
a father.  "Are you sure about this dear?  We can always try again for 
our own baby.  We don't need to adopt quite yet."

His wife knew this, too, only that she did not know that the package was 
already being delivered.  "I know that, Kenji."  She put a hand to his 
cheek, soothing him.  "I just want to.  We've talked about this before, 
right?  I just want to raise a child now."

He could only smile, hold her hand and calmly accede.  "I understand."

A balding, thinnish man came from the beyond the door, beckoning them to 
enter.  Looking around, they saw a young boy with an open face and sad 
eyes.

She walked up to the boy, knelt to his eye-level and said, "Hello, my 
name is Ikuko, what's your name?"

The child frowned, as though in deep recollection.  "Ranma."

She held his eyes, genuinely touched by the deepness in them.  "Why are 
you sad, dear one?"

Ranma's frown deepened, and he closed his eyes, but still he could not 
relieve the trauma inflicted one month ago.  "I don't 'member 'nything."  
He sniffed, and she knew he was struggling to keep from crying.  "I 
wanna... but I jus' can't."

Touched by the boy's apparent sadness, they asked the manager about the 
boy's history, then to fill up the necessary papers.

***

The elder Tsukinos arrived late one afternoon.

Ikuko carried her precious bundle into the house, leaving Kenji to park 
the car.

"Mama!"  Ranma was happy to greet them, then curious about the package 
his mother brought in so carefully.  "Who's that?"

Ikuko smiled beatifically.  "She's your new baby sister, Ranma-chan.  Her 
name's Usagi."

Ranma's face lit up in recognition.  "Bunny-chan!"

She nearly laughed at his simple delight.  "Hai, Ranma-chan... bunny.  
Now, remember: You're her older brother, so you must always protect her, 
alright?"

It was adorable to see him pout and puff slightly, ready and eager to 
take on his first responsibility.  "Hai, mama, I promise."

She felt drowsiness taking its hold of her.  "Good, now I have to go to 
sleep soon, alright.  Having Usagi was very tiring.  Why don't you go 
greet your father in the garage?"

"'kay, mama."  In seconds, Ranma was already halfway to the garage.  
"Papa!"

Ikuko smiled again, then went into kitchen.  She placed her gaze on her 
neighbor, who was currently cutting vegetables in preparation for dinner.

She smiled as she spoke, "Thank you for watching over Ranma today while I 
was at the hospital, Setsuna-san.  I am very grateful."

The tall, statuesque woman turned her head, allowing the light to make 
green tinges in her black hair, and smiled enigmatically.  "Think nothing 
of it, Ikuko-san.  I'll just finish this stir-fry and then I'll be 
going."

"So soon?"  She noticed the nice, modest purple dress that her neighbor 
wore - apparently, she had rushed over from work, and must have been 
tired.  "You've done so much for us, and Ranma just adores you.  The 
least I could do is offer you dinner."

Setsuna finished putting in the vegetables, and was cleaning the knife 
when she said, "Thank you for your kind offer, Ikuko-san, but I'm afraid 
I have a prior commitment.  Some other time, perhaps."

Ikuko seemed placated, helping her stir the meal.  "Alright, I'll hold 
you to that, Setsuna-san." 

***

A splinter of light fell on the carpeted floor.  The careful steps of a 
curious imp up past his bedtime sounded too much like a pool disturbed by 
dewlets.

Ikuko opened an eye, confirming that her son was peering intently at his 
newborn sibling.  She wondered what he saw in those young eyes, in the 
small, chubby face that caught his attention so.

He pecked her on the cheek, something like she herself had had times 
before.  "Love you, Bunny-chan."

Ranma left the same way he came, a smile his mother's only commentary as 
she, too, left to sleep.