Lost in Infinity
A Ranma 1/2 - Naruto Crossover
Prologue Part 1
Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Kishimoto, and Ranma belongs to Takahashi. So there.
Author's Notes: I originally started this story out because I really wanted to see how Ranma and the others would interact, if Ranma was in the Naruto universe. At the moment, however, I have only the begining and the end of this story, but not much of a middle. For the first few chapters it will be quite Ranma-centric, and slowly smoothen out to encompass all the characters. Still tweaking the storyline, so that's subject to change. Lastly, personally I found the story a little drab after I read it a few times. Please let me know if you feel the same, or if it's okay, cause if it is, I definitely need to work on this. Last note, updates may be slow, but I'll keep them consistently long. Thank you.
The dark hazy sky seemed to only hold the pale crescent moon, its cruel smile blurred by the myriad of clouds. The air was still, slightly misty, the ground laden with dew of the earliest morning. In a modern timescale, it was roughly three hours past the mid of night. The quiet that permeated the surroundings couldn't have been better, according to the lone figure treading through the forest.
It moved, swiftly, gracefully. Past the trees, underbrush, and bushes. It kept moving, nary a sound save for the relative din of the air being displaced and the infrequent snapping of twigs here and there. Finally the forest blended into a clearing as the figure kept moving eastward.
Just as subtly as the trees gave way to tall grass, grass gave way to rocks, and soon the figure was seen hoping from flat plain to flat plain, scaling the mountain in its path like it was merely an ant hill. In no time, the figure reached the summit of the mountain, and stopped moving, as if it had been struck dead where it stood.
In lithe movements, the figure removed its face mask and head covering, showing that 'it' was a 'she', as waves of jet black hair crashed along her back. She then proceeded to loosen the strap on her pack, which was tightly packed and strapped to her back. The first item she retrieved was a ribbon of darkest blue which she then used to tie her hair into a loose ponytail.
Just beyond her reach from her position was a curious structure, that very much resembled a boulder. However, the only thing it had in common with a boulder would have been its appearance, as for all intents and purposes, it was an altar. Though long forgotten in an age of technology and civility, the altar had been in much use in its early days as a platform of preparation by those familiar with the arcane arts.
The girl, or young woman, as it seemed that she was just barely into her twenties, moved towards the altar, and placed her pack beside it on the ground. She then removed most of her belongings, as well a tome which glowed mysteriously. The tome was placed onto the altar, which also curiously glowed in tandem.
Cool as her countenance was to any external observer, her insides were a jumble of acids bubbling like an overactive volcano. She was nervous with anticipation, and the hand that drew the arrays of inscriptions on the ground shook slightly. She paused and drew a deep breath, and continued with her work.
In her mind, her thoughts continued to swirl violently as she worked, remembering, storing, and bringing to the fore memories of the past and plans for the future. This night would bring the culmination of close to a year's worth of careful planning. Her ambitions would be fulfilled. The Power that she sought would soon be hers.
As the soft breeze that had built up slowly blew, the pages of the glowing volume upon the altar stayed exactly as it had been left. She checked the book from time to time as she worked, maintaining silence and concentration, such that would not be expected from one so young. Ambition does that sometimes.
Ever since she was young, she had always been belittled, either for petty things like her size, or even her gender, and also sometimes for the social stigma attached with her position in society. A cruel society that cared not whether the poor child had food and a place to rest, but more of the status of her clan. At some point, she decided that she would become strong, and make them acknowledge her existence, not for her clan, but for herself. Then, she would make them pay.
It was this train of thought that had allowed her to keep alive to this point, and she knew it was nearly time. The arcane arrays were nearly complete, and with the power that would soon be hers, her goals would then be attainable.
Between the time she had begun till now, the clouds began to amass, eerily analogous of the glow of the of the tome that continued to grow, coming to a zenith as the final inscription was etched. Examining her handy-work, she stalked back to the altar. She looked up and stared at the sky, noticing the mass of blackness that was the heavens.
She raised an eyebrow, since the tome never mentioned such things. She turned back to the book, sending the thoughts of the weather to the back of her mind. It was a trivial matter after all.
'Time to start', she thought, and slowly, she turned the page of the book, from the instructions on preparations, to the page detailing the ritual itself, as well as the incantation required. She close her eyes, and started to intone the incantation.
The words in the tome themselves started to glow, as the book's glow was sucked in. Even the arrays on the ground started to glow with power, energizing the ground. The power inducted into the words she spoke filled the ambiance with a thick feeling. Slowly, the volume of her chanting started to rise, and the swirl of raw energy filling the air around here became tangible and visible to the naked eye.
The sky rumbled in acknowledgment, and lightning fell in the surroundings. She paid it no heed as she continued to chant. The swirl of power started rising towards the sky. All of a sudden, she felt a wet feeling on her nose. Then her forehead. Then her hands. It continued to spread. All the while, a sudden pitter-patter of droplets filled the air. The drops of rain drizzled at first, building in volume as she continued to chant.
Still, she pressed on, without any misgiving. By this time, the swirl of power was spinning violently in the space above her, confined within the width of the arrays she had prepared. The rain was steadily increasing, becoming a full-fledged storm unnaturally in a matter of minutes.
She could feel it. It was nearly complete. So close. So very close indeed.
It was at this time that a certain famous law decided to come into play in a way its namer would have been proud of.
A heavy, rolling thunder was heard. Of course, preceding the sonic boom was its cause, a bright flashing bolt of lightning. Its target seemingly predetermined by some higher power, it struck the altar, causing the altar itself to blast into pieces. It also had the side-effect of throwing the book several meters into the air, and hurling the girl so far back that she nearly fell off the cliff-side.
The heavy downpour continued falling and falling, scratching away at the ground. She opened her eyes, and felt the rain entering, causing her to shut her eyes and turn to the side. She steadied herself as she tried to rise, shaking the cobwebs from her head. It was then, that her senses picked up what her eyes would have.
The spinning blaze of energy started whirling wildly as it picked up in power. She felt a burst of uncontrolled energy, as the blaze peaked and went back to normal. It kept peaking randomly, each time brighter than the next, and she was very, very sure that this was not supposed to happen. Her cold, calm facade slipped as her eyes gazed upon the wet earth where the arrays were drawn.
The cluster of rocks that were once the altar had been thrown to the ground with so much force that some of the ground which had parts of the array on them had been nicked off. It was to her horror as tendrils of energy started to snake out of the swirling light, connecting with the array. The energy crackled insanely all around her.
Worse yet was the rain that still poured, as if it was threatening to flood the entire forest. Although she didn't realize it, the downpour was slowly corroding the inks of the array. With the rain, the rocks, and the backlashing energy finally wiping the array clean, the unstable spell construct began to collapse. Before her fearful eyes, the swirling energies imploded in a sharp burst.
It air suddenly felt stale, devoid of life as it was sucked in with that last burst. Her breathing was ragged, as she got to her feet, swaying slightly as she favored her uninjured left foot. All of a sudden, from the apex of the swirl that had imploded came one last, brilliant, bright, explosive flash. A great thunderous din echoed, shaking the very core of the mountain.
As her eyes perceived the flash of light and the corona spreading across the sky in every direction, she felt a pull in her chest. With a tight tug, she felt her soul rip from her body, leaving her mind behind. She limply dropped to the ground, her last thoughts echoing as her consciousness ebbed away.
'Why the fuck didn't I just do it indoors like every other sensible mage...?'
Although the spell failed in the end, the young woman would have no idea of the repercussions of pooling so much energy in one place. The spell was originally intended to draw as much dormant energy from other worlds, universes, and infuse it into the caster. Though the backlash was only physically visible on her world, but the magic itself was ancient, and it coursed through the multiverse, causing all manner of chaos.
The effect the spell had on the many worlds it swept across were myriad; in many worlds, strange phenomena affected weather and climates. In others, refined chaos, the essence of magic, was stained, causing countless deaths of those adept in the use of magic. In some, the effects were as trivial as a passing storm, or a light breeze that would cause you to get goose-bumps. Some worlds, however, experienced the displacement of people and property. People would disappear in one place, and reappear halfway across the world. Houses would suddenly materialize in a busy street.
In two distinctly different worlds, the distinct but similarly destined people would find their lives from then onwards derailed, forcing destiny and fate to rewrite themselves in order to keep up with the chaos in their lives.
Author's Notes: Well, thats the first prologue. Hope you liked it, if you didn't then please point out what it was that irked you, so that my writing can improve, as well as the storyline. Thanks again. ;)