Heart Of Flame, Breath Of Fire

Part 5: The Last Straw

by Sean D'Anna

=====

[No real Dragon lore was used in this fic. I just made it up to fit what I 
wanted. Mostly because I'm too lazy to do the research.] 

"Jesus!" cried Cartson as he watched the flames erupt from the pipe and heard 
the jaws snap shut beneath him. His eyes went wide and he pressed himself 
against the wall and waited to move when the creature turned around, but it 
never did. It simply slunk back into the darkness of the pipe and vanished. 

He had jumped onto the top of the pipe as the creature advanced on him. The edge 
stuck about two feet out of the wall. He had realized that if he stayed in front 
of it he would have died. In a split second he made his decision and swung 
himself up over the pipe with a single smooth motion, just as the flames erupted 
from its mouth. He gasped for breath and began to hyperventilate as the shock of 
what had happened hit him. He looked down and saw that his shoes were melting 
onto the top of the pipe. His face and body had been badly singed by just the 
heat from the blast. He jumped down to the side of the pipe and tried the ladder 
that went up to the manhole gingerly. It hissed as he touched it and he pulled 
away reflexively. "Shit, I gotta get the fuck out of here!" he said excitedly as 
he glanced back at the pipe nervously. He knew that most of them interconnected. 
"I can only hope I don't run into that again," he muttered as he climbed into 
the pipe opposite the Dragon hole. "Christ, a genuine Dragon," He'd r
ather deal with a man with the heart of one any day. 

The next morning Ryu stumbled into Nerima looking tired and worn. He walked 
towards his home relentlessly. Those who saw him simply gave way to the 
disgusting slime covered individual who staggered past and ignored him. 

At one point a police officer tried to stop him and he simply swatted the man 
out of his way sending him into a garbage pile unconscious. He was in no mood 
for delays. He just wanted to get home and take a hot bath. That was when he met 
the first of his problems for the day. Ryoga Hibiki, the lost boy of course 
didn't recognize him because of the filth that covered him but stopped him to 
ask for directions. 

"Where is the Tendo dojo?" he asked not noticing the condition of the man in 
front of him as he was studying the photo in his hands carefully. 

Ryu glanced at the photo in his hands and frowned. "You looking for someone?" he 
asked him with a dark tone in his voice. 

"Yea, You seen this guy before?" asked Ryoga with a serious gaze. 

"Nope, never seen him before," answered Ryu as he walked around the lost boy. 

"Thanks anyway," muttered Ryoga. He looked at the photo and noticed the golden 
eyes of the boy. "Wait a minute!" he cried and wheeled around. "You're him!" he 
cried and started to run after him. 

"Shit!" cried Ryu as he charged into the crowd. He jumped over several fences 
and Ryoga followed obliviously. No mater where he went, he couldn't lose the 
lost boy, even when Ryoga veered off it always put him directly in his path. 

Then a realization came to Ryu and he jumped onto a wooden post that was jutting 
from the water in one of the larger drainage ditches. "Come and get me," he 
cried 

Ryoga stood on the fence and glared at him. "No fair!" he yelled. 

"Before we get into a fight, you and I are going to talk about this, agreed?" 
called Ryu from his perch. 

Ryoga glared at him for a moment and sighed. "Fine." 

The two of them sat in Ryu's apartment a few moments later, after Ryu washed 
off. Ryoga simply glared at him and sat silently. 

"Why are you chasing me?" asked Ryu as he sat down across from the boy. 

"If you hurt Akane I'll..." said Ryoga as he stood and grabbed for Ryu's shirt. 

He backed away barely in time and hopped on top of the chair. "Look if you won't 
tell me what this is about..." 

"Enough talking, Your gonna give me that dragon heart right now!" yelled the boy 
as he charged Ryu and grabbed his neck. 

Ryu choked and hung helplessly in his grasp as he clutched at Ryoga's arm 
desperately. 

"I won't let you use it to hurt Akane or anyone else you evil bastard. Give it 
to me so I can beat Ranma!" he yelled. 

Ryu stopped struggling and kicked Ryoga in between his legs and bit his arm 
hard. It was barely enough to get him to free his neck. "I thought better of you 
Hibiki, I didn't think you'd stoop to robbery," said Ryu as he gasped for 
breath. 

Ryoga stood and lunged for him. "Shut up you! I've heard all about you!" 

Ryu jumped and ran leaving Ryoga to crush his furniture easily beneath his 
weight. "You want the heart so much? Take it. I've had about all I can stand of 
it." said Ryu angrily as he tore open his shirt and exposed his chest to Ryoga. 
He walked up to the boy and placed the confused navigationally challenged boy's 
hand over his heart and growled. "Go ahead Ryoga. Take it out and eat it. It 
will give you the power you want so badly. I hope it makes you happier than it 
has me." 

"What?!" said Ryoga in complete shock. 

"You want the dragon heart so badly? Take it out of my chest and eat it. If you 
want it that is what you have to do," said Ryu almost screaming now. 

"But, I..." stammered the boy. 

"You idiot. You can't even tell when your being used can you?" said Ryu as he 
looked away from Ryoga in disgust. "I used to look up to you ya know. I've heard 
stories about your strength and power. Now that I meet you I realize I was a 
fool, you're just an overgrown baby who isn't smart enough to think for 
himself," sneered Ryu as he saw on the remains of his living room. 

"Wh-What did you say?!" roared Ryoga as he lifted him up by his shirt. 

"Am I wrong Ryoga? Look at yourself, look at how you're acting. You think Akane 
would love you now?" said the helpless boy from his grasp. 

"What, I...How did?" said Ryoga in horror as he put the boy down. 

"I know a lot of things. I know your Akane's pet. I know you're in love with 
her..." said Ryu coolly as he glared at Ryoga in disgust. 

"You shut up you! What would you know about my feelings?!!" he cried angrily as 
he threw him into a wall. 

"I know enough, you don't deserve Akane. Attacking someone weaker than yourself 
just because someone told you they might be dangerous. Why don't you try 
thinking for yourself for once instead of destroying other peoples lives with 
your interference," said Ryu weakly as he struggled to his feet. 

"How dare you!?" said Ryoga angrily as he charged again pinning Ryu to the wall 
and crushing his chest with unbelievable force. 

"How dare you attack me? I've done nothing to you or Akane before today. I'm 
just trying to live another day and I don't need this from you," said Ryu 
coldly. "Right now I could care less about you and your petty problems. You 
could kill me easily if you wanted too, but I'm not afraid of you Ryoga. You're 
a lot of bad things, but not a killer." 

Ryoga growled angrily and lifted the boy up by his neck again. "I won't allow 
you to talk to me that way!" 

"Go ahead take the plunge. Prove your man enough to kill me and maybe you'll be 
strong enough to do it to Ranma when you get the chance, or do you even really 
want to any more? Did you ever want him dead? I wonder about you sometimes," 
said Ryu as he gazed calmly into Ryoga's angry face. 

"You shut up you!" cried Ryoga as his grip loosened. 

"Why? What are you gonna do kill me? Looks like your already trying. You're 
pathetic, look at you. A man who spent almost a year of his life living as the 
pet of a girl who never really loved him. A pathetic coward who hid behind her 
affections, just to piss off Ranma. You have someone waiting for you, why are 
you still here? Can it be that you still haven't given up? You're still trying 
to be more than a pet for her? That's all you ever were you know. A pet," Ryu's 
eyes went wild as he said this and glared directly into the mouth of Ryoga's own 
anger. 

The lost boy reacted as if he had been struck and staggered back with Ryu still 
in his grip. He felt the despair rise in his heart and fill his soul. "You what 
are you doing?" he said trying to control his emotions. "I'll show you." 

"Yes, release your anger, only your hatred can destroy Ranma. But how can you? 
If you kill the only man she loves how will she ever love you?" said Ryu with 
his insane smile growing wider. 

Ryoga pushed through his emotions and formed a ball of Ki in his hands. "Your 
trying to get me to kill you aren't you?" he stammered through the cloud that 
covered his mind. 

"I'm trying to get you to try," said Ryu with a frown as he produced his own 
massive Ki ball. It was nearly twice the size of Ryoga's Shi shi houkou dan. 

"Why are you doing this?" said the lost boy with tears in his eyes as he finally 
started to lose his control. 

"Why are you?" answered Ryu calmly, his Ki blast faded away. 

Ryoga turned away from the boy and blew the wall of the Home away taking a good 
portion of the ceiling with it. A large section of the street was destroyed. 
Fortunately no one was hurt. Cars and pedestrians were light in the neighborhood 
at this time of day. 

Ryu looked at Ryoga and smiled. "Well, now that we got that out of the 
way...Tea?" he said as he pointed towards the kitchen. 

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" screamed Ryoga as he shoved the boy to the 
ground. 

Ryu stood and dusted himself off. "I should ask you the same thing boy. Nothing 
I told you was a lie, and look at how you reacted. You could have killed 
someone." 

"-I- could have?! You bastard! How dare you toy with my feelings like that?!!" 
cried Ryoga as he shoved Ryu into what was left of the wall. 

"Ryoga, unless you could kill someone, even someone like me. Not even a dragon's 
heart will help you defeat Ranma. If you had it that Shi shi houkou dan would 
have destroyed half of Nerima. If Cologne got her hands on it imagine what she 
could do to Ranma and Akane's lives. Sometimes when you really love something 
you have to let it go," said Ryu as he gazed at Ryoga with pity in his eyes. 
"She doesn't need your protection from me, or Ranma." 

Ryoga reared back for a punch and growled showing his fangs. He looked at his 
hand and then Ryu, who was smiling darkly. "Oh god," he cried and dropped him 
before running out into the street. 

Ryu shook and fell to his knees. He felt his stomach turn as he steadied himself 
and lay against the remains of his apartment. "So much for my deposit," he 
muttered and laughed. He was now dirtier than he was when he came in from the 
sewers. He was covered in blood and dust from the most dangerous game of Russian 
roulette he had ever played. "It seems fate is dead set on keeping me alive for 
something," he sighed as he lay back and closed his eyes. "All right, I'll 
bite." 

An hour later Ryu stood and looked around. He sighed heavily and stood glancing 
at the broken furniture and plaster from the ceiling and walls. "I've had 
enough," he said quietly and grabbed an English style umbrella from the corner 
before stepping out into the street. 

Akane walked down the street after Ukyo as they searched for Ranma. Neither of 
them had been successful in their efforts and he had not been seen all night. 
They were returning home to regroup and Akane frowned as she saw him approach 
them. Ryu was walking towards her and Ukyo with an umbrella slung over his 
shoulder and walking towards the west. 

Ukyo looked at Akane when she stopped and frowned as she noticed her glaring at 
the approaching man. "Akane what's up?" she said looking worn. 

"Ryu," said Akane simply. 

"Hello Akane, I was just on my way to say goodbye," said the boy as he 
approached. 

"Where is Ranma?" said Akane as she glared at him with hope filled eyes. 

"He isn't at the dojo?" A look of genuine surprise crossed his face. 

"What have you done with my Ran-chan?" screamed Ukyo as she woke fully and 
slammed her spatula into Ryu's head sending him sliding across the pavement on 
his face. 

"Looks like you had quite a battle. Wanna tell us about it?" said Ukyo coldly. 

"It wasn't Ranma if that's what you mean, I had a run in with that Hibiki kid 
and it didn't go well," he said as he stood and gingerly touched the scraped 
skin on his face. 

Ryu was dazed and staggered for a moment before regaining his balance. "What the 
hell?" he muttered before he saw the battle spatula's flying through the air and 
pin him to a large tree. 

Ukyo placed the blade end of one of the weapons under his throat. "What have you 
done with my Ran-chan?" she repeated. 

"I haven't seen him," said Ryu groggily. 

"He went looking for you, he thinks you killed Shampoo," said Akane quietly. 

"I did kill Shampoo," said Ryu looking at Akane. There was no emotion on his 
face. 

She was devastated. She fell to her knees and looked at him in shock. "I-I 
thought you were my friend," she sobbed. 

"You don't understand do you? I would never hurt you, Ukyo, or Ranma. Shampoo is 
another matter," said Ryu sullenly. 

"What do you mean another matter?" screamed Ukyo as she swung the blade end of 
her battle spatula at his head. It sliced through the tree over his head and he 
glared at her coolly. 

"Go ahead and kill me if it will make you feel better. I'm tired of running," 
said the boy. 

Ukyo clutched the weapon and stared at him, before putting the blade against his 
neck. She wavered for a moment and pulled back slightly giving the boy a little 
room. 

"Akane I'm sorry but, I...Shampoo would have killed me. I didn't have a choice, 
it was a matter of life or death, she had me cornered," said Ryu as he gazed 
directly at her. 

"Why would Shampoo kill you?" said Ukyo as she punched Ryu in the gut. So far he 
had made no move to escape. 

"You don't have to hit me, I am talking," he grumbled earning another blow to 
his stomach. Akane was either didn't care anymore or was too shocked by his 
words to stop her. 

He looked up at her and frowned, "Because of my heart. If someone were to remove 
it and eat it they would gain all of my powers. Cologne will not stop until I 
leave or she gets it. It would be a powerful asset for both her and her tribe," 
said Ryu as he coughed and tried to regain his breath. 

"Is that ..." said Akane in confusion. 

"That's why I came to your dojo, without your help I won't survive the year. 
There is something else as well, I have a c..." Ryu was cut off by some very 
familiar laughter. 

Ranma stalked the tunnels under Nerima angrily. He had long since lost his way 
but no longer cared. Cologne had not yet shown up to see him yet and he knew 
nothing of her plans. Ryu had yet to surface in Nerima so he came down after 
him. He plodded on for what seemed like days beneath the city, now he was tired 
and lost. He had a strange thought and looked up. There were no man hole covers 
anywhere and the ground was dry and the pipes clean, he had not had to crawl for 
a long time either. All this was strange. All of the other passages were damp 
and slime covered, they were littered with holes and debris from the water and 
trash from the city. These tunnels were clean and dry, even a little warm. They 
twisted in strange angles and seemed to go deeper and deeper down into the 
ground. "What the hell?" he muttered as he plodded on, he didn't have much of a 
choice now. 

A short time later he reached a large cavern. He gasped and looked around in 
awe. It was brightly lit with a few lamps and electric lights, but that was not 
the most amazing part. Every where he looked was gold of some kind. Gold nuggets 
littered the floor and assorted gems and jewelry were piled in heaps all along 
the floor with coins, plates, and even a few rolls of golden wall paper sat 
propped in a corner. Several pedestals stood in random corners around the room 
with strange looking statues and jewelry in display cases. Ranma reached out to 
see if he was imagining the wealth he saw around him. 

"Hey! What are you doing here? Don't touch that fool!" cried a gruff voice. 

Ranma spun around in a defensive stance. 

Ryu ripped himself free of the trunk easily and turned to see Taro standing 
angrily with his foot inside the trunk of the tree. He spun around and punched 
at Ryu. 

"You bastard! When I catch you again I -will- eat you!" cried Ryu as he dove 
away and ran off in the direction of the Dojo. 

Ukyo and Akane followed immediately. 

"Come back here you jackass! I'm not through talking to you!" cried Ukyo angrily 
as she retrieved her battle spatula from the ground before following. 

Nabiki Tendo sat and glared at the table at another set of embarrassing photos. 
In the days since Ryu had arrived in Nerima she had tried everything to get some 
sort of information from him. He had simply avoided or ignored her since the 
initial encounter. 

She had managed to get photos of him that made him appear to be a child 
molester, a panty thief, and a homosexual. She had posted them on the walls of 
the school in the hopes of getting some sort of reaction out of him. Nothing she 
did worked, he hadn't noticed or cared about his sudden drop in popularity at 
school; and most of the students respected him, if only because of what he had 
done to Kuno. She followed him to his home and still learned nothing. No matter 
what happened he simply ignored her. She was getting angry and would soon resort 
to more, serious, methods if she didn't get results. She smiled as she looked at 
the amount her friend had given so generously for the lessons. The gold nugget 
was almost ninety seven percent pure, she couldn't even lift it. It was worth 
close to a half a million American at current market rates. The boy was loaded, 
she began to form plans in her mind to crack through his shell. There was always 
some way to get to anyone, and she would find it. 

Cologne smiled as her prey moved towards her in the street. She knew he would 
return here eventually; they always did. She jumped from her perch in the tree 
and onto the wall that separated the Tendo dojo from the rest of the world just 
as Ryu hopped over the fence followed by the Taro boy. Ukyo and Akane followed a 
few moments later. Cologne frowned, the girls could be a problem and get in the 
way. "I guess I'll just have to work around them," she muttered to herself. 

Ryu was about to jump onto the roof of the dojo when he stopped suddenly and 
turned to face his pursuers. "No more running, if they want to die so bad I'll 
just have to oblige them," he growled as he prepared himself. 

Taro turned the corner and sneered as Ryu stood waiting. "I have you!" 

At that point Cologne hopped over with a cold look on her face. "No boy, I have 
him." 

"Back off hag, he's mine!" snorted Taro as he advanced on Ryu carefully. Ryu was 
slowly circling towards the center of the yard. 

"Silence young one, He has injured my kin. Is your quarrel worse?" she asked 
coolly. 

Taro growled and glared at her. "Yes, but I don't feel like arguing about it. 
You get first strike, that's all," he said reluctantly. 

Cologne nodded and turned to see the girls move up behind him. "Leave," she said 
simply. 

"Not till he Tells us where Ranma is," said Ukyo. 

"He's under the city in the drainage system searching for him," said Cologne as 
she pointed a gnarled finger at the boy, "He'll return in a few days when he 
figures out he isn't hiding down there anymore." 

"Why can't you fools just leave me alone damn it!?" cried Ryu angrily. "You 
think I enjoy killing your kind?" 

"Feh, you'll not kill the both of us," said Cologne. "I'll take back the heart 
you've stolen boy. It should not be in the hands of someone so reckless as you." 

"Bitch, it's my heart you're talking about here! I've grown rather fond of being 
alive, if not living anymore. You'll have to take it," said Ryu angrily as his 
battle aura flared. Ukyo and Akane shrank back from the pure heat of it. 

Taro's eyes went wide as he stepped to the side. "No don't let him!" 

"What?" said Cologne in shock. 

"Don't you know old woman? He hasn't stolen anything!" screamed Taro as he dove 
for Ryu, it was already too late. 

Ranma turned to see the large American who had attacked Ryu standing across the 
room from him. "Don't touch that fool! That's dragon's gold!" he whispered 
hoarsely. 

"What?" said Ranma dumbly. 

"Fool, what kind of hunter are you? Don't you know that you should never touch 
dragon's gold!? They can smell you on it in an instant and they don't like 
people who touch their things. He'll hunt you to the ends of the earth if you 
lay a hand on it." 

"Hunter?" said Ranma dumbly. 

"You're down here after the young Ryu kid aren't you?" said the man nervously. 

"Yes," replied Ranma angrily, but his anger was not directed at the man. 

"My name is Cartson," said the man extending his hand. 

Ranma glanced at it and frowned. "Ranma," he stated simply. 

"Sorry, I forgot where I was for a minute," said the man as he pulled his hand 
back quickly, he seemed both afraid and excited at the same time. 

"Where the hell are we?" asked Ranma. 

"Were in a Dragon's maze. I never thought I'd see one of these much less be 
stupid enough to get lost in one," muttered the man. 

"What?" said Ranma as he sweated a little. 

"Jeez, don't you know anything kid? Huntin' a dragon heart without knowledge of 
at least -some- lore is crazy. Those old tales 'll save your ass more often than 
you think," said Cartson with a small laugh as he pat Ranma on the back and led 
him to a corner where they were away from the entrance. 

"What the hell are you talking about? I'm here because Ryu killed my friend," 
said Ranma with a frown as he looked the man up and down. He recognized who he 
was now. 

"Oh, I see. That makes things a little simpler. Well, how should I put this?" 
the man sad down on one of the plain rocks in the cavern. "Asian Dragons build 
complex underground mazes to guard their treasure. They collect gold 
instinctively and use it for nesting. The mazes are easy to get into but near 
impossible to get out of, It makes sure the chicks don't get out and works like 
a security system and food trap. European dragons are dumb and powerful animals 
so they usually just pick a cave or something, but Asian Dragons plan their 
homes carefully. You probably didn't even notice the walls moving and shifting 
behind you as you came in did you?" 

Ranma went pale. "No," he said partially for an answer and partially because he 
realized that the man was right. 

"Well, that's how it works. There'll be switches that open the doors back to the 
surface, they'll be hard to get too, but I think we can do it if there are two 
of us," said Cartson calmly, he scratched the stubble on his face in a 
thoughtful gesture. He had calmed considerably and seemed to be in control of 
the situation now. 

"What do you mean, as in a real dragon?" said Ranma dumbly. 

"Yea, nearly fried my ass earlier, that was a close call. I only hope we can get 
out before he gets back," said the man gruffly. 

Ranma's mind went back to the eight-headed serpent of Ryugenzawa. He shivered 
involuntarily. Cartson walked over to the entrance way and started into the 
tunnels with Ranma following carefully 

"This one is very cleverly built so it's probably a China dragon, they're a 
little sharper than the Japanese variety. That's what the legends say anyway," 
Cartson inspected the walls carefully. "He used pipes instead of just digging so 
it wouldn't be spotted easily, very clever." 

"What legends? What difference does that make?" asked Ranma skeptically. 

"Well, Chinese dragons are much smarter and larger that most. They are also the 
most powerful. Fortunately they all but wiped each other out about a thousand 
years before humans appeared on earth. The few remaining dragons became real 
pests until they were destroyed by Sorcerers and adventurers, became literal 
gods, or simply killed each other. They were supposed to have died out about two 
thousand years ago. That was when the last great Dragon Sheng Long vanished," 
said the man as they entered the caverns. "It's said he was so powerful he 
achieved godhood before he disappeared, no one knows how or why either." 

"And I think you've been reading too many comic books. If they died before 
people came, did how did the legends start?" snorted Ranma. 

"Tell that to your friend Ryu. He's no Goku I'll tell you that. He's got him a 
genuine Chinese dragon heart. Not like the European versions we usually hunt 
for. The only way that is even possible is if Sheng Long stayed hidden for all 
these years, got real friendly with him and lent it to him. The heart don't last 
long after the dragon dies, and I don't think a little pansy like him could kill 
one of those monsters. Besides, If that's true then he'll be real protective of 
it, cause if Ryu gets killed he'll die too. So I'll have to kill him first, and 
even the best hunter can't kill a dragon in his own lair. We need to get out of 
these tunnels and back topside or we are fucked my friend," said Cartson 
somberly. 

Ranma frowned and followed reluctantly as they passed deeper into the tunnels. 
"What's the big deal about this heart anyway?" snorted Ranma casually. 

"You don't know?" said Cartson with a mildly surprised glance. 

"Nope," said Ranma as he leaned against the wall. They had come to a dead end 
and Cartson had started muttering to himself as he searched for the switch that 
would open the door. 

"Whoa!" said Ranma as the wall he was leaning on slid in a little. The wall in 
front of them lifted noiselessly. 

"Hey! Good job kid," said Cartson as he trudged onward. "Hope the batteries 
don't die," he muttered as he adjusted the beam on his flashlight a little. 

"You still haven't told me what the big deal is," said Ranma with barely 
disguised interest. 

"Well, if you catch a dragon and kill it, or someone with the heart of one. It 
doesn't matter which, anyway, if you cut out their heart and eat it just as they 
die, you gain the powers of the original dragon," said Cartson as he inspected 
the ceiling carefully. Ranma stopped several feet away and looked on 
uninterested. 

"So?" he muttered as the man pushed a switch and ducked the spear that flew out 
of the wall nearby. 

"Watch out for fake switches," he muttered as he continued on unfazed. "Where 
was I? Oh yea, Anyone can learn to throw a chi blast so that isn't really all 
that great. Besides most of the blast would be too large ta' do any good in a 
real fight anyway. European hearts are what started that old fire-breathing act 
you see in the circus nowadays. The real beauty of the of a dragon heart is the 
extra benefits you get," Cartson got a greedy gleam in his eye. 

"Which is?" pressed Ranma, it was almost as if Cartson didn't want to tell him 
everything for some reason. 

"Extra toughness, super strength, enhanced speed and senses. Still not the best 
part, the best part is the immortality. A man with a dragon heart is 
like...like... Lets put it like this, if your heart were a battery, having a 
dragon heart would be like putting a nuclear power plant in your chest instead. 
If you take care of it, it'll keep you going forever." 

"Boy he sure is long winded..." muttered Ranma to himself as they passed a few 
more doors. Ranma was beginning to get the idea and had spotted a few of the 
switches and traps himself. The traps were nothing special, more to waste time 
than anything else. Ranma walked for about two hours with Cartson before 
something he said hit him hard. "Cut out his heart and eat it," he turned and 
stared at the man. 

"Wait a minute. What do you mean cut out his heart and eat it?!" said Ranma in 
disbelief. 

"I mean just that," said Cartson simply. 

"But he's a man, you can't do that!" gasped Ranma. 

"Like hell I can't, when I get that heart I'll live forever. It's worth a one 
bad meal and a little personal discomfort. I'll regret it when I'm a thousand 
kid," snorted the man indifferently. 

"If someone like you doesn't kill you and eat your heart first," retorted Ranma. 

"Look kid, if you don't like it then mind your own business. I'm sure you'll 
feel all happy about it when you're on your death bed and I'm still in my 
twenties," said Cartson as he shoved another switch. 

"That is, if you live that long," said a voice from behind the two of them. It 
was deep and rough sounding, and it also sounded amused. 

Ranma and Cartson, turned and looked behind them too see a large serpentine head 
with a golden mane surrounding it behind them. With its horns it took up almost 
the whole tunnel. 

"Shit," said Cartson quietly. 

"Boo," said the creature. 

The two men started screaming. 

TBC... 

Double Cliffhanger. Yes, Score, all right! What has Ryu got up his sleeve? Will 
he really kill Cologne and Taro? What about the girls? I guarantee you'll be 
surprised...if you haven't figured it out yet. 

Ryoga will make another appearance, as will Mousse and Shampoo. We'll find out 
where they have been during all of this. 

And then there is Ranma and Cartson. They have met the Dragon on his own turf, 
now what? Cartson has already made it clear they don't have much of a chance 
against it in its lair. C&C to Carrotglace@juno.com