al709382@campus.ccm.itesm.mx

			Lightbirds, by Jorge Pratt


Legal disclaimer:
	Ranma 1/2 and all relative indicia are the property of 
Rumiko Takahashi/Shogakukan Ltd.
	I only used a few things from the FF series and Chrono 
Trigger, but they're Squaresoft's property.

Foreword:
There's not really much to say about this, except that it is the third 
and (hopefully) final installment in this "phoenix" saga. However, I 
must clarify something about the style I use for it. Since this story is 
full of reminiscing and flashbacks, the characters often narrate the 
events from their own points of view and I switch from Third to First 
Person narrative.
	The places where this style is used are marked by [[ and the 
ending of these sections has a ]], (except in the prologue and one 
section of the second chapter, which are also FP narrations,) since 
the tales are sometimes interrupted by someone else. For example, 
when a character begins to narrate, the paragraph would start with [[ 
preceded by his/her initial. If the paragraph isn't limited by ]] then it 
means he/she will continue speaking during the next paragraph. 
Otherwise, another character will begin narrating from his/her point 
of view.

Just as an example, here's an excerpt from Lightbirds:

	R[What the hell was this guy doing?! Attacking my sister, 
no less!!]
	P[Of course, since this was the first time I saw them I didn't 
even know this girl was her sister...]
	"Oh, right..." Ranko interrupted the narration, "We're twins 
and you didn't even notice?"
	
This was a place where Phaeron and Ranko were describing how 
they met. Get the idea?

Another thing you should look for is the use of the Mt. Phoenix saga 
(the final story arc of the manga) in this story. Although some of the 
events will be lifted straight out of the manga, complete to the 
dialogues, there are others which will be radically different.

	Well, that said, welcome to the last part of "Song of the 
Phoenix"!


			*	*	*

			PROLOGUE

	The Caller has succeeded, eh?
	Who would have thought the little wench could pull it off... 
Ah, of course, she had _Dysmerc's_ help. But she should have died 
with the Caller, as the first time...
	Cordis... I shall destroy her, as soon as I get ahold of a new 
body... Yes, her and all of her family, starting with her sister. Nobody 
crosses me and results unscathed...
	But still, what will those two do now? Do they think that by 
being together all of their troubles will end? Heh, I beg to differ... 
The hardship will just _begin_... The Caller was a mistake... Their 
love was a mistake. And I have yet to correct that.
	Besides, they met thanks to ME. Hadn't I killed our mother, 
those girls wouldn't have left Japan, and I wouldn't have used him to 
hunt them down. They would have never even heard of each other 
had I not interfered.
	Ah, yes, I still remember Coldfire. Raphael. He will be the 
first to die. He double-crossed me. Traitors among demons are not 
seen with good eyes...
	Beware me, then, people of Earth. I have seen Hell, for I am 
a spawn of it. I know the Shadows, since they are my home. And I 
know Fear... because I _am_ the Fear.
	I turn around... There's someone else here in the Shadows. 
Oh, so it's _you_... I have not seen you in a long time, my partner... 
Ah, so you want to help me, eh? Listen, and listen well.
	Your name... They shall come to fear it as they fear mine... 
Welcome to the fray... Dyspherum.
	Odium Herus...
	And Debilitatis Cor.
	There will always be Fear.
	And there will always be Hate.


			*	*	*

			*	*	*

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

			TerBril productions
			present...


			Song of the Phoenix
			Book 3

			L I G H T B I R D S


			By Jorge Pratt

			The First Age:
			Beyond Time


The Caller's success

The winter landscape of Nerima was quiet and serene, with utter 
silence dominating the region. It was New Year's Day, and the peace 
came from the slumber that still possessed most of the city. But all of 
a sudden, the loud boom of a column of light erupted from a vacant 
lot. Dozens of faint glimmers joined the column, followed by a 
sudden scarlet illumination that immersed most of the city in its 
power.
	And then... peace.
	Peace... as the Caller ended in complete success.
	"...I love you..."
	She could only feel her spirit burst in happiness, both at the 
words and the voice that pronounced them. It was as though she had 
wagered her life just to listen to them, and she was well aware she 
had. But it had been more than simply her life she had gambled with; 
her very soul and heart had been put to test so harshly these last few 
days. She had endured so much to bring this moment to life; tears 
streamed down her cheeks, tears that, for once, were of pure bliss as 
she buried her face in his shoulder.
	Breaking the silence, she softly replied, "Welcome back..." 
With a smile, she tightened her hold on him.
	He hardly believed it to be true. It was something he had 
waited no less than fifteen hundred years to relive, something that 
kept driving him onward through the eons. And yet, now that it was 
actually happening, he felt the greatest burden being relieved from his 
shoulders, from his heart. He had been born again. And he owed it all 
to her. The girl... no, the _woman_ he loved. She had matured so 
quickly as of late; it was her inner strength which finally made this 
come true. Admiration and boundless respect for her quickly took 
shape in his mind, but they slowly descended to his heart to melt into 
the warmest love he had ever felt towards this short, red-haired girl.
	Meanwhile, the troop assembled around the vacant lot could 
only stare in surprise at the couple. Ranma, Akane, Nodoka, Ukyou, 
Shampoo, Mousse, Yuannyan, Ryouga, the Musk warriors, even 
Crystallus and Melaia were all frozen in place, as relief and even glee 
began to spread inside them. The Caller had worked perfectly. Ranko 
and Phaeron were alive and safe.
	They were still holding each other after a few minutes. 
Phaeron was exactly as before dying, he was still wearing the winter 
clothes and had his medallion around his neck. Ranko, on the other 
hand, donned nothing except the light gray gown that her angelic 
sister had given her. However, she was fully exhausted. Despite being 
successful, the Caller had depleted all of her energy, even turning her 
back from her Esper shape to her normal human body, which is why 
she could only rest against Phaeron's sighing chest.
	"H-Hi..." he whispered, closing his eyes.
	"Hi," she replied, and snuggled her head a bit in his 
shoulder.
	"How did you...?"
	"I... had a dream last night... I knew it would work... 
Phaeron-kun, I..." she found the strength to look up at him, her eyes 
teary. She still couldn't believe this was happening. He was back! She 
had brought him back...!
	"Ranko-chan..." he hugged her a little closer, gently pushing 
her head against his shoulder. He blinked, feeling her long hair even 
though he was still holding her pigtail in his fist. Stroking her head, 
he slowly ran his hand down to her neck, delighted with the scarlet 
cascade, until his hand reached bare skin. He quickly stopped, the girl 
was so _cold_! She was so deep in happiness she had completely 
forgotten she was only wearing a sleepgown; she could catch a cold 
like this. Smiling at her, Phaeron immediately lit up his warm aura. 
	"I had a dream last night too," he said.
	"Like mine?" Ranko sighed as the aura restored her 
strength. But it wasn't only her physical state what it healed, but the 
myriad of emotional wounds that his death had caused. Every one of 
them was swiftly erased by the familiar orange field she was in, as his 
strong chi served as proof of the Caller's success. She needed to feel 
that; her previous attempt at the dreaded technique, added to the fact 
that _she_ had brought him back, unaided, had still left uncertainty 
inside her. She feared it would only be a dream, she feared there 
would be a flaw, or even that there could be another deadline, like 
the one that had haunted her for the past four months. But his 
soothing aura, his warm touch, his tight hold on her were all she 
needed to make those fears vanish. She wouldn't revive Dysithal with 
her fear; she couldn't, anyway, since every doubt in her mind was 
cleared.
	Phaeron felt her chi begin to interact with his own, as she 
tried to communicate what she felt through her own life-force, and 
fill his heart with it as much as his aura filled hers.  "Did you see 
Cordis?"
	"Yeah..." she said, "And then you..."
	Both opened their eyes at the memory. Ranko suddenly 
gasped in worry, she immediately looked all around. Phaeron also 
searched the area, stepping back slightly. They had been so 
enraptured by their reunion they had almost forgotten of the other 
being that had made it happen.
	"Hou-chan!" Ranko found the feathery lump beside her, the 
little phoenix' wings frazzled and disheveled. They kneeled and lifted 
him, then Ranko took him in her arms, mixing her aura with 
Phaeron's so as to warm up the small bird. Hou-chan slightly opened 
his eyes, sending out a faint shriek. She quickly surrounded the bird 
with a healing spell, bolstering the aura's strength.
	"Thanks, Hou-chan," the couple said, softly stroking his 
neck. "So..." Ranko said, "It wasn't you after all..." she looked up at 
Phaeron.
	"It was me, alright," he replied, "Hou-chan and I were the 
same person, but his mind was asleep. Kind of like the way you were 
while you and Ranma were the same."
	"Poor Hou-chan..." Ranko held him close to her chest, 
stepping back. But suddenly she felt a tug around her neck. Blinking, 
she looked down. She and Phaeron were surprised: her emerald was 
joined to his ruby thanks to Phaeron's topaz, the "fidelity" gem of the 
Brindstone Ring. But as soon as they noticed it, the topaz glowed 
and it split in two: each half swirled around the other gem, until 
Ranko's emerald and Phaeron's ruby were surrounded by brownish-
gold rings. Blushing brightly, they sent cocked glances at each other 
and smirked.
	"R-Ranko-chan...? Phaeron--kun???" Akane cautiously 
approached the couple, deeply worried about them despite the warm 
relief she felt in her chest. "Is it really you?"
	"See, oneechan?" Ranko still shared a gaze with Phaeron, "I 
told ya I knew."
	"Know what...?"
	"Ranko-chan!" Nodoka suddenly crushed her daughter in a 
hug, "Thank the Light it worked! I was so worried!"
	"M-mom..." the redhead gasped for air. Hou-chan squirmed 
a little and escaped the hug.
	"Mrs. Saotome, did you know...?" Phaeron asked.
	"Yes," she replied, unaware of Ranko's purple face, "When 
Seraphim-chan came to take you, I went before the Light to ask for 
this favor. That's why they sent you and Hou-chan here." Her eyes 
dropped a little, "Otherwise, Ranko-chan might have not endured 
Dysmerc's tests..." Her face brightened up as she smiled, "I was 
afraid that the Caller could fail again... But my prayers were heard..."
	"Um, Mom..." Ranma came up to them, pointing at his 
unconscious sister. Nodoka blinked and released Ranko.
	"Oh, oneechan," Yuannyan smiled softly, releasing a cure 
spell towards her twin. "It's so good to see you back, Phaeron-kun..." 
she looked up at him.
	"How do you feel?" Akane asked, still a bit uncertain.
	He simply looked at the pigtail in his hand, then at the topaz 
ring around his medallion's ruby. "Reborn..." he replied. "In more 
ways than one."
	"More ways...?" Akane blinked, but then looked at Ranko 
and understood what he meant, "Oh..." She smiled warmly, "You... 
you two deserve this. You've been through so much..."
	"It doesn't matter now," he kneeled, seeing how the redhead 
was shaking her head as she awoke. "It's over. It's finally over..." he 
looked into her eyes. She blushed strongly, but smiled and returned 
the gaze. He helped her to her feet, then took off his jacket and 
covered her with it. Waiting no longer to congratulate her, Akane 
and Yuannyan hugged Ranko tightly, almost sharing in the happiness 
she felt.
	"You're back, eh?" Ryouga approached Phaeron, sending a 
brief glimpse towards the redhead.
	"For good," the Esper said, "But..."
	"Don't worry," Ryouga dismissed with a hand, "I'm over it. 
You're the one she loves. And now..." he slowly turned towards 
Akari.
	Slowly, each of the warriors entered the vacant lot, making 
sure everything was all right. Yes, this was him. The Esper Phoenix 
they all had known as a friend was back, permanently. There were 
two people missing, though...
	"Where's Seraphim?" Akane wondered, "And where's 
Raphael-kun? They should be here to see this!"
	"Oh yeah..." Ranko said to herself, then walked towards 
Phaeron. "Before I forget..." she smiled and took his hand. He smiled 
back. "Phaeron-kun, you..."
	"Uh-oh..." Yuannyan noted the glint in her twin's eyes.
	"YOU BASTARD!" Ranko grabbed him and tossed him 
into the ground, then picked him up and punched him into the tree. 
"You blind idiot! Blind blind blind blind BLIND! WHY did you keep 
acting like 'just a friend,' anyway?! Couldn't you see it from the way I 
acted?! You stupid jerk!"
	"Ugh... Sorry..." Phaeron staggered, then collapsed on the 
snow.
	"Didn't we see this already?" Ranma cocked his head.
	"Jerk... Stupid JERK!" Ranko breathed heavily. "He 
could've told me how he felt from the beginning, but nooooooo... he 
HAD to pretend being a 'best friend'!" she threw her hands up,  
"Aaargh! Baka!"
	"I'll NEVER understand that girl," Ranma shook his head.
	Of course, it was not as if it were all his fault, Ranko 
repeated herself. She had also been too proud, maybe even _shy_, to 
tell him how _she_ felt. Agh! But he could have at least _hinted_ 
how he felt! Oh, yeah... he _did_ give her that necklace... and the 
Mokona doll... and the Wall Ring... He had kept protecting her 
despite her own protests, and only a fool wouldn't have realized his 
emotions after that little talk on Valran's cliff. "Yeah, I guess I'm a 
fool..." she thought with a smirk. 
	"Phaeron-kun no baka..." Ranko suddenly smiled softly, 
kneeling by him to hold him on her lap.
	"As I was saying..." Ranma repeated.
	Akane could only smile in happiness at the couple. She had 
seen then suffer so many ordeals, she had been confided with their 
deepest secrets... and now, her best friends were finally together. Joy 
is the only word that could describe the feeling that she felt for 
Ranko and Phaeron, as the initial, simple relief faded away.
	A few feet away, Ryouga silently stared at the redhead, still 
a bit surprised to notice her long hair. Yes, it was all right now. She 
had helped him mature, he even met Akari thanks to her, in a way. It 
was only fitting that she should be rewarded... Ranko, his best friend. 
Sighing, Ryouga turned away, headed towards Akari.
	Nodoka and Yuannyan also looked at them, smiles shaping 
in their nigh-identical faces. Angel and daughter were at last relieved 
to see no more obstacles in the couple's way. And by closing her 
eyes, Nodoka showed the deepest gratitude towards the Light... And 
yet, there was something else. Nodoka's eyes suddenly opened, going 
wide as her silent prayers were replied by a female voice. Cordis' 
voice.
	"Sorry 'bout that..." Ranko gently stroked Phaeron's 
forehead, brushing away a few locks of hair. "But I really..." she 
blushed mightily, "I mean, I..."
	"I know," he replied, looking up at her. How liberating it 
was to say those words. He _knew_. He actually knew how she truly 
felt for him, even if she didn't actually pronounce the words. But it 
didn't end there. She knew about his feelings too, and she _accepted_ 
them... He weakly reached up for her face; she smiled softly and 
placed a quick kiss on his forehead.
	"Awww..." Ranma crossed his arms, mocking them. Next to 
him, Akane frowned slightly at him, but then smirked and poked him 
in the ribs. He turned bright red and looked away, recalling that had 
happened between them just a few minutes before the Brindel's 
arrival. Sweat rolled down his forehead. He had been _so_ close to... 
to telling Akane that he...
	"C'mon, you guys," Akane said, crouching beside them 
while trying not to disturb them, "You'll catch a cold."
	"Hm?" they looked at her, then snickered at themselves. But 
just as they were standing up...
	"What the..." Ranma said involuntarily. Once more, the 
Brindstones were glowing.
	"WARRIORS OF EARTH..." came a loud, deep voice. All 
of a sudden Ranko and Phaeron's gems began to glow wildly. With a 
red haze, the being known as Crimson Star manifested itself above 
the vacant lot.
	"WE ARE THE BRINDEL..." the Emerald Star spoke this 
time.
	"The Stars..." Phaeron gasped, although Crystallus could 
only stare in silence one more time.
	"WE'VE SEEN YOUR PLIGHTS... AND STILL WE 
AWOKE THANKS TO YOU..." the voice seemed to be aimed at 
Ranko.
	"IT IS TIME FOR YOUR REWARD TO COME... THE 
REWARD FORSEEN SINCE THE BRINDSTONE RING WAS 
GIVEN..."

			*	*	*

Cordis smiled to herself, witnessing the events thanks to an image 
produced by Dysmerc. Nodding, she sighed in satisfaction as her 
human sister and her friends were finally at ease.
	"It's over, then?" she turned to the Neutral angel.
	"No," she replied, "It's barely beginning."
	"But I don't think they'll do it," Cordis said, smirking.
	"True," came a third voice, "Regardless of what the Stars' 
reward may give them, they'll probably turn it down."
	"I thought so," Cordis smiled again as she saw the four-
winged Seraphim appear next to them. With a sigh, the angel of inner 
strength put a hand on the younger being's shoulder. They had almost 
become like siblings, ever since Seraphim was freed from her 
Magicite stone five hundred years ago. But Cordis could barely 
remain silent. She knew that the Brindel warriors themselves 
wouldn't be the only ones to receive a reward, and now that the Stars 
were awake...
	"I heard about brother Dysithal," Seraphim said, "As you 
would put it, 'she wiped the floor' with him."
	"Yes," Cordis closed her eyes, "Little sister is also very 
strong... She really takes a lot after Mother." The thought reminded 
her of something. Snickering, she took Seraphim's hand and lead her 
away from the image.
	"What..."
	"Something big's gonna happen," Cordis said, "And we want 
to keep it a surprise."
	Saying nothing else, Cordis, Dysmerc and Seraphim 
vanished from the Gates. They were headed for the World of Ruin.

			*	*	*

The troop stared agape at the Stars, wondering what sort of reward 
they were planning to give them. After all, they had been Brindel 
warriors for barely a month. And not even the Espers knew what 
awaited them.
	"JOIN US NOW, WARRIORS OF EARTH..." Emerald 
said, "AND WONDER..."
	Without another word, Emerald and Ruby fused into one, 
shaping a large yellow sphere which came crashing upon Ranko.
	The redhead's Brindstone glowed as she, the Astbrindel, was 
possessed by the essence of both Stars. While her hair flowed 
upwards, shaping a flame, her eyes glowed and became bright green. 
Utterly silent, even as she was surrounded by a cloudy aura, she 
summoned her staff and quickly thrust it into the ground. With the 
Star's power and command, the Caller came instantly. Every Brindel, 
even the Espers and Nodoka, was summoned by the Astbrindel. The 
gems glowed once more, releasing a wide ring that engulfed every 
wearer of a Brindstone. The Lunbrindel and Solbrindel, Akane and 
Ranma, were then connected directly to Ranko and each other by 
bridges of light, shaping a perfect triangle in whose center a dark 
sphere appeared. But when the rings contracted, they absorbed the 
fighters into the jewels. The golden triangle flashed brightly as the 
black sphere expanded.
	Meanwhile, a normal human stared in complete shock at 
everything that was happening. Gulping loudly, Akari Unryuu could 
only see Ryouga and the others be pulled into their own gems. What 
in the world was happening? She had never seen anything like this 
before, even while her dreams were always very surreal. Stunned 
beyond belief, she could barely hear the hurried footsteps 
approaching.
	"Mousse-samaaaaa!" Mink yelled. Panicking, as he saw his 
adoptive mother being possessed by the Brindel, little Hou-chan tried 
to shriek as well. Following the example, Akari began, "R-Ryouga-
sa--"
	With a shimmer, all of the gems floated in a circle around 
the Astbrindel emerald, then one by one shot into the dark sphere, 
disappearing within it. Within the roar of the Caller, the three 
remaining Brindstones fused into one. Like a shooting star, they  rose 
from the vacant lot, escaping Earth and headed for Esper World.
	"Ryouga-samaa!"
	"What in world happen?!" Mink yelled.


-End section 1


The Zephyr
al709382@campus.ccm.itesm.mx