Disclaimer: Ranma ½ and its characters and settings belong to Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Kitty, and Viz Video.

Prologue

A young woman opened the door to the 24-hour diner and went to a table. She looked around and saw the place was remarkably clean for a city-type diner. The young woman had a look of sadness in her eyes and seemed quite depressed.

She looked up as the waitress approached and said, "I'll have a burger, fries, and a gallon of green tea, please."

"I'll be right back with your order," the waitress said.

The young woman's interest was caught as a song played throughout the diner.

She knew the song.

It was "I Am The Wind".

'That song, it describes me well,' she thought.

~Just like the wind,
I've always been
Drifting high up in the sky that never ends~

'Always drifting. And always alone. Forever so alone.'

~Through thick and thin,
I always win
'Cause I would fight both life and death to save a friend~

'I tried , but I failed.'

~I face my destiny
every day I live
And the best in me is all I have to give~

'Sometimes it's not enough, though.'

~Just like the sun
(Just like the sun)
When my day's done
Sometimes I don't like the person I've become~

'I do not like the person I have become now.' She wrung her hands together. 'Will I ever be able to wash all the blood off? How can I atone for what I've done?'

~Is the enemy within a thousand men?
Should I walk the path if my world's so dead ahead?~

'It is dead ahead. It has been dead for SO long. But I have no choice in it.'

~Is someone testing me every day I live?
Well, the best in me is all I have to give~

'Is someone testing me? If so, why? Why would they torment me like this?'

~I can pretend
(I can pretend)
I am the wind
(I am the wind)
And I don't know if I will pass this way again~

'I will pass this way again, but will the city still be here? Or just will it be empty grassland?'

~All things must end
Goodbye, my friend~

A tear slid down the girl's right cheek. She looked like she was about to burst into tears. 'Goodbye. I'm always saying goodbye. I see them when they are born and when they die again.'

~Think of me when you see the sun or feel the wind~

'The sun,' thought the girl with sadness, longing, and an ache in her heart. 'Will I ever see it again? I would give anything to see it just once more.'

~I am the wind,
I am the sun
And one day we'll all be one~

'How I look forward to that day,' thought the girl. 'Then I can finally rest. My quest will be over.'

~I am the wind,
I am the sun
And one day we'll all be one

I am the wind,
I am the sun
And one day we'll all be one

I am the wind,
I am the sun
One day we'll all be one~

The girl went to the restroom and broke down crying. 'Father, Nabiki, Akane, Ranma, Ryoga, Genma, Nodoka, please forgive me! I didn't mean to; I didn't know what I was doing with that box — I just didn't understand! I didn't mean to let the demons loose and have civilization destroyed and the earth enshrouded in darkness for eternity! I didn't mean to let the evil loose in our world to feed on our despair! I didn't mean to get you all killed then!!!'

She kept sobbing until the waitress knocked on the door and said her order was ready. She mumbled out that she would be right there, then dried her eyes and washed her face.

She opened the door and stepped out into the diner. She saw her meal on the table. And with that, to the table, and her meal too, walked Kasumi The Immortal, Kasumi The Adventurer, Kasumi The Swordswoman, Kasumi Despairing One, Kasumi… Darkness Bringer.

Author's notes: I'm aware that some of you might not have heard of the 'Darkness Bringer trilogy' sf-fantasy series. That's because the series was out of viewing many years ago. I saw it when I was a kid and I'm 30 now. In the series, a young girl (in her teens) accidentally opens a cursed artifact box that lets a wave of demons loose in her world, which destroy civilization. The girl is cursed by the gods to be immortal, hunt the demons, and lock them in the box again. People have been reduced to the stone age, and a large black whatever of darkness covers the world. The darkness would not be lifted until the demons were caught again. The girl sees civilization rebuilt over the centuries, then it collapses and is rebuilt again. Even a million years later, she still lives and humanity has just 'discovered' electricity in the last couple of decades. The girl is also cursed with having her friends, family, and her true love reincarnated time after time again. She knows when they will be born and she goes there to see them. She is there when they die, too. As part of the cruel punishment decreed by the gods, they can never remember their past lives or what they were once to her, but she can.

Special thanks to my very cool pre-reader, Asgeras, for going over this and pointing where corrections were needed.

Webmaster: Larry F
Last revision: May 21, 2007