Part 3: Ragna: Story 02

Tch, you just spoiled the mood. To be honest, I really don't care what happens to that guy. All right, suit yourself.

I turn around and leave.
I got better things to do than waste my time with the two of them.
We decide to leave Litchi to her freaky gelatin fetish. Let's move along.


By the time I reach the central levels, the sun's already long gone. The fog is thick as hell...the moonlight doesn't even reach where I am. I can barely see my own feet...

...Although I ain't complaining. The night and the fog are actually pretty convenient... Everyone drops their guard at night... Everyone.

The Kagutsuchi Library branch is right up ahead. I can almost smell the stink of it. If I trash this one too, I'll be that much closer to wrapping this whole thing up.

Now that I think about it, how many branches have I destroyed? ...Then again, I guess it doesn't really matter. I'm gonna destroy them all, anyway.



I dunno if it was the moon or what, but...it got real bright there for a second.

Is the moon always this bright...?

The moonlight reminds me of the church in the old neighborhood. The moon was always real bright there.

That reminds me... He always used to say how he was scared of the moon... He would always come to me saying, "the moon's gonna fall" or something like that.

In my memories...I can hear them calling me...

Goddammit, why do I keep thinking about that? Gah! Screw this...



I'm so busy thinkin' about my past, I almost run into the damn door. It's a big
steel piece of shit, and it looks like they put some sorta Armagus seal on it
too.

The Ars they put on these things could turn a guy into pulp in a matter of seconds... This one's no different.

Damn, that was close...

It takes my right hand and me a couple seconds to pump out our own unlocking
Ars. ...All Right, maybe "unlocking " isn't quite accurate. It's a little more
like "kicking down"...



Huh? There's no...

Something doesn't feel right...but hell, does it ever? I put both hands on the door and shove. It swings open easily enough...Damn, it's dark in here... I can barely see.



That's...strange.

OK, something's up... I should've run into a couple groups of soldiers by now...

...Hello! Mr. Grim Reaper is here! I've come to invite all you guys to the underworld! Excuse me! Pizza delivery here!
Well, it doesn't look like a trap...What the hell's goin' on?

I tighten my grip on my sword and keep moving.

There's another huge set of doors in front of me, but these are open a crack, and a sliver of light spills out from between them.

Well, I guess it's not too different from the other branches.

Is there someone there...? For some reason my heart's beating a mile a goddamn minute. I put my hand on the door.



RAAAAAAAAAARGH!

I throw the door open with a yell, swinging my sword in a wide arc as I leap into the room--My sword stops short, and I can see it resting on the thin blade of a katana. The person on the other side of the katana lets out a laugh that sends a shiver down my spine.


Anime siblings: A hotbed of homoeroticism.

Hehehe...Is that how you greet people? Boy, you never change, do you?
...Jin! Why the hell are you here!?
"Why"? Heh, I thought that was obvious...I came to see you, Ragna.
You were...waiting for me?
Mmhmm...Still, I am pretty amazed...You have the highest bounty on record...The NOL practically rules the world, and they're still afraid of you...The Reaper. Ask anyone on the street...And they'll know the name..."Ragna the Bloodedge"...
I could care less about that!
Hahaha... But that's strange, Brother...I didn't think you had the aptitude to use Armagus. Or does it have something to do with that Azure Grimoire?
Shut up...! I've got a ton of questions...for you. But...
But...?
I think I'll beat the answers out of you, instead!
Hahahahaha! I love it...This is great! What a reunion, eh, Brother?
Jin, you bastard.
Haha, give it your best shot... I'll be happy to kill you again!


So this matchup isn't as bad as the last one. Still, Ragna is at a disadvantage against Jin, due to Jin having a slightly better neutral game, much better air game, and the ability to throw projectiles. Beating him is still feasable, however. General rules are don't try to fight him in the air, and stay at mid-range, ideally close enough to hit him with Ragna's normal B moves.

Patience is a good thing here, since trying to rush in and get too close will get you hit by one of his DPs (Dragon punch, AKA SHORYUKEN), which have tons of invincibility. You'll want to watch the other player and see how frequently they throw these out, and then try to bait them and take advantage of their high recovery time. Bait and punish is the general strategy here.

Fun fact: It's pretty hard to bait a computer.



...What's the matter, Brother? Hahaha...You're not gonna finish me off...?
Like I said, I need answers. Besides, I'm not here for you, anyway. If you wanna die on your own, then be my guest.
Soft... You're too soft, Brother...Hahaha... That's why you can't protect anything...or anyone...Guagh! Ugh...
Shut up and stay down. Oh, and watch out...or the moon might fall...
Tch! Shit...Shit...Shit! I'm a goddamn idiot! Why the hell am I so soft with him!?

Pain shoots through my hand, but I hear a loud noise echo off the cold walls, and the pain in my hand doesn't feel so bad anymore...

Hmph. All these branches look the same. I feel like I've been here before.



I arrive on the floor I've been looking for. 'Course, all these places look the same. Somewhere under here is the Cauldron...

Now then...Hm?

I feel a shiver run up my spine and whip around to see a silhouette. Its face is smooth and white. No mouth, no nose, nothing...I open my mouth to yell, but nothing comes out.

I...I can't move...

I can't move my right hand...I feel something weird...some odd feeling, like someone's squeezing my chest.

It's a few moments before I realize what it is...

Fear.



END OF UPDATE

BONUS

Here's some Sol Badguy Ragna concept art:






Under Heaven's Destruction, Ranga VS Jin Theme