Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 is the property of Rumiko Takahashi and her publishers. I am merely using the characters for the purpose of profit-free entertainment and make no claim on them. Vincent Seifert has kindly provided webspace for most of my fanfics and links to the rest at the following address: http://www.csus.edu/indiv/s/seifertv/kagami/ You can contact me at: kagami@jeack.com.au --- AN AWAKENING OF DEMONS Cardinal Points - An Integral Concept: Each of the four Demon Lords represents one of the cardinal points: the principal points of the compass - East, South, West, North. In turn, each Demon Lord has four cardinal servitors directly below them, again representing the four cardinal points. These servitors are usually the Lord's most powerful demonic servants and in many cases, they represent ancient beings that sometimes seem vastly more powerful than the Demon Lord himself. In these cases, a new Lord must overcome his servitor in some form of contest before that being will agree to serve him, though precisely why such an ancient being would agree to serve a Demon Lord remains a mystery. The four cardinal servitors represent an extra source of power that the Demon Lord can call upon, with each servitor usually granting a ruling Lord some type of increase in power or new ability. This makes direct command over his cardinal servitors the very first action that a new Demon Lord has to achieve in order to secure his position. (Note that while I have consistently used the masculine possessive above, the new Demon Lord might very well be female or neuter, rather than male). A Character List: CHIKUMO, also CHIGUMO Position: A spider demon. Follower of Shukumaru. Age: Unknown. Character: Unknown. Powers/Attack: (1) Mental attack. (2) Dream invasion. Notes: (1) Chikumo (also written as Chigumo) means 'earth spider'. (2) Perished in a dream assault on Ranma. Brief History and Description: One of four elemental spider brothers, Chikumo commanded the element of earth in Shukumaru's service. He and his brothers sought revenge for the loss of their fourth brother to the South. Chikumo survived the final battle against Yami-no-Tsume eighteen years ago only to perish as he invaded Ranma's dreams in order to control him. A mental voice, apparently that of Yami-no-Tsume, appeared in Ranma's mind and destroyed him. Chikumo appears as a large clear crystalline spider with a facetted surface. HEIZEN-TO-NO-KAMAITACHI Position: A cardinal servitor of the Demon Lord of the South. He represents the North. Age: Unknown. Character: Psychotic. Powers/Attack: (1) Sickle Tail: As a sickle weasel, Heizen-To's tail has developed into a massive curved blade of metal. Called the 'Cutting Wind', his tail can strike with blinding speed and slice through anything it hits. Notes: (1) Heizen-To can be translated as 'without compunction'. (2) Kamaitachi can be translated as 'sickle weasel'. Brief History and Description: As one of three brother sickle weasels, Heizen-To desired to grow his tail-blade with the deaths of his victims. However, they always worked as a team, with his elder brother knocking down a victim, Heizen-To cutting, and his younger brother healing the wound. As a result, his tail never increased in size. Eventually, Heizen-To's mania overcame his sanity and he slew his brothers. He embarked on a spree of savage murders, killing many humans and demons, and growing his tail and gathering great personal power. Finally, he became a cardinal servitor to the Demon Lord of the South and serves as an assassin. Heizen-To attempts to assassinate Ranma and Shukumaru during their confrontation at the Tokyo harbour piers but Ranma manages to detect him and hurls both himself and Shukumaru away from the killing blow of the 'Cutting Wind'. The mission having failed, Heizen-To retreats but declares that they will meet him again. Eighteen years ago, he killed Shukumaru's human lover, Hikaru, at the behest of the Demon Lord of the East after bringing word of her indiscretions to his attention. He was acting as Ambassador to the Eastern Court then. Heizen-To appears as a molten silver wolf of enormous size with a massive metallic sickle at the end of his tail. HIKUMO, also HIGUMO Position: A spider demon. Follower of Shukumaru. Age: Unknown. Character: Unknown. Powers/Attacks: (1) Flame Ghosts: Hikumo can summon up spirits of flame to attack opponents. Notes: (1) Hikumo (also written as Higumo) means 'fire spider'. (2) Perished in Shukumaru's rebellion. Brief History and Description: One of four elemental spider brothers, Hikumo commanded the element of fire in Shukumaru's service. He was destroyed in the final battle eighteen years ago, frozen and shattered by Kori-Otome's attack. Hikumo appears as a large flame-red spider, about three feet across. HIWAI OUSHI Position: An oni. Follower of Shukumaru. Age: Three hundred years old. Character: Arrogant, lustful, perverted. Powers/Attacks: (1) As a demon of some age, Hiwai protects his soul in an unusual location, within his male member, keeping his body invulnerable to most weapons. Notes: (1) Hiwai Oushi can be translated as 'obscene bull'. Brief History and Description: A bull-ogre of three hundred years, Hiwai Oushi attempted to capture Ryoga while the latter was trapped in his cursed form. The 106th Devil Hunter of the Kuno Clan, Kodachi Kuno, appeared in time to save P-chan. After a desperate battle, Kodachi managed to discover and destroy Hiwai's soul, thus slaying the oni permanently. Eighteen years ago, Hiwai Oushi commanded Shukumaru's lesser oni in an attack on Yami-no-Tsume's headquarters. He survives the battles then, only to fall to Kodachi in the present. Hiwai Oushi stands over eight feet tall, with a impressively muscled figure and an imposing bull's head. His black horns are streaked with gore from his past kills. Obviously male, Hiwai has a large male member that he proudly displays. HONESHI THE BONE LORD Position: An oni. Follower of Shukumaru. Age: Unknown. Character: Enjoys converting the living to undead. Powers/Attacks: (1) Animation of bones. Notes: (1) Honeshi translates as 'bone death'. Brief History and Description: A powerful oni whose main passion is slaying the living and animating their bones for his own amusement, Honeshi has little use for other beings. Shukumaru commands his interest and temporary loyalty by offering him the chance to kill many demons during her rebellion. He disappears after she is imprisoned. Honeshi is a near-skeletal figure, almost six feet in height. JAKUTEN Position: Shukumaru's demonic servitor. Age: Unknown. Character: Servile and unctuous. Powers/Attacks: Unknown currently. Notes: (1) Jakuten can be translated as 'weakness'. Brief History and Description: Jakuten seems to be Shukumaru's relay to her oni servants, launching the army of ogres at the Ranma and friends at the Tokyo harbour pier before leaving with two kitsune-tsuki (fox-demons) to abduct Nodoka Saotome. In other words, he's Shukumaru's general dogsbody. Jakuten is a short (about four feet tall) demon with large bulging eyes and a lizard-like face. His ears stick out prominently from the sides of his head. He carries a wooden, metal-shod staff. KORI-OTOME, also SHIMOYAKE Position: A cardinal servitor to the Demon Lord of the East. She represents the North. Age: Unknown. Character: Frigid. Powers/Attacks: Unknown currently - freezing attacks. Notes: (1) Kori-Otome translates as 'ice maiden'. (2) Shimoyake translates as 'frostbite'. Brief History and Description: Kori-Otome is the sister to Yuki-Onna and is one of the four cardinal servitors to the Demon Lord of the East. She represents the Northern cardinal point. Her personality can be best described as frigid and she has once rebuffed the advances of Raiha the Thunderbeast. Eighteen years ago, Shimoyake was instrumental in surprising and defeating Shukumaru's sudden assault on Yami- no-Tsume. She destroyed Niwatori and Hikumo by freezing solid their bodies. Kori-Otome appears as a six-foot tall albino woman with pale blue hair and blue eyes. MAKIZOKU ANSOU, also YAMI-NO-TSUME Position: Demon Lord of the East. Father of Ranma and Shukumaru. Lover of Nodoka. Age: Unknown. Character: Arrogant, desires a son to inherit. Powers/Attacks: Unknown currently. Notes: (1) Makizoku Ansou can be translated as 'demon noble dark claw'. (2) Yami-no-Tsume can be translated as 'claw of darkness'. Brief History and Description: Nineteen years ago, Yami-no-Tsume was the Demon Lord of the East. He fell in love with a mortal woman, and took human form and the name of Makizoku Ansou to woo her. The woman, one Nodoka Saotome, reciprocated his ardent desires and became pregnant with a child. Unfortunately, once Nodoka told him she was pregnant he vanished from her life. Despairing, bereft of honour, and certain that she had been abandoned, she attempted to kill herself. However, a human suitor of hers discovered her in the act and convinced her to live. He married her and took her name, promising to treat her child as his. This was Genma Saotome. One month after Ranma's birth, Ansou appeared at the Saotomes' doorstep, bleeding from grievous wounds suffered in a desperate battle against his full demon daughter, Shukumaru. He explained the story behind her betrayal and his forced disappearance, begging Nodoka's forgiveness. Ansou bequeathed his power to Ranma before dying. Apparently Yami-no-Tsume sought out Nodoka Saotome after learning that she was destined to give him a son. A male heir was the one thing the Demon Lord of the East desired more than any other, and his fascination and obsession with Nodoka to the point of neglecting his realm led to Shukumaru's rebellion. Ansou was apparently very handsome as a human but little is known about his true form. MASAKADO Position: Demon Lord of the South. Age: Unknown. Character: Self-indulgent, power-hungry. Powers/Attacks: Unknown currently. Notes: None. Brief History and Description: Located in Okinawa, Masakado intends to kill the offspring of Ansou and lay claim to the position of Demon Lord of the East. To this end, he has dispatched Heizen-To- no-Kamaitachi, one of his cardinal servitors, to slay both Ranma and Shukumaru. Eighteen years ago, Masakado was due to marry Shukumaru to seal the East and South in an alliance. Shukumaru had other ideas and began a war between the South and West to mask her own plans to acquire the Eastern Throne. The war has lasted almost to the present, only simmering down two years ago. It is still unknown whether Masakado realizes the role Shukumaru played in starting the war. His actions show he intends to conquer the East directly now, rather than seek to wed Shukumaru again. A self-indulgent Epicurean of questionable tastes, Masakado sees the present conflict as a game of enjoyable proportions. Apart from this, little is known about him. MIZUKUMO, also MIZUGUMO Position: A spider demon. Follower of Shukumaru. Age: Unknown. Character: Unknown. Powers/Attacks: (1) Poison Attack: Mizukumo injects a virulent toxin into the bloodstream of anyone he bites. Notes: (1) Mizukumo (also written as Mizugumo) means 'water spider'. Brief History and Description: One of four elemental spider brothers, Mizukumo commands the element of water in Shukumaru's service. He is the only surviving spider demon of the four brothers in the present. He played an important role eighteen years ago, distracting Yami-no-Tsume in the very last stages of the battle. He was also vital at Kaminari-jinja when he bit and poisoned Akane Tendo. Mizukumo appears as a large bluish-white spider. MUKETSU THE FLESHLESS Position: A gaki. Follower of Shukumaru. Age: ~500 years old. Character: Loyal, bloodthirsty, likes to kill. Powers/Attacks: (1) Souldrain. Notes: (1) Muketsu translates as 'without blood/killing'. (2) Perished in Shukumaru's rebellion. Brief History and Description: Muketsu is a gaki, a lost human soul reborn as an endlessly hungry and soulless being. He was originally a bloodthirsty warlord in the Muromachi period and when he died, he was punished by transformation into a gaki. Suffering eternal hunger in Jigoku, Muketsu managed to escape into the world of the living where Shukumaru rescued him after he attracted the attention of a Devil Hunter. He bound himself over to her and served her loyally. In her rebellion eighteen years ago, Muketsu sacrified himself to permit Shukumaru to land a near-fatal blow on Yami-no-Tsume and was banished back to Jigoku as a result. Muketsu appears as a thin human being with glowing black eyes, emanciated to the point of starvation. NIWATORI Position: An oni. Follower of Shukumaru. Age: Unknown. Character: Gloryseeker, insecure about his name. Powers/Attacks: (1) Kazekiri the Windcutter: A large dual-bladed weapon joined by a single haft. Niwatori can hurl this a considerable distance and it returns to him like a boomerang. Notes: (1) Niwatori means 'chicken'. (2) Perished in Shukumaru's revolt. Brief History and Description: Niwatori is a powerful oni lord with a hawk's head. He always seeks to cover himself in glory in order to wash away the stain of his humiliating name given to him by a sadistic parent. Thus, he joined Shukumaru's rebellion and fought well in one of the diversionary attacks, killing many Gokuraku-Cho in battle. He dies in Shukumaru's assault on Yami-no-Tsume, falling to Kori-Otome's freezing attack. Niwatori appears as a powerfully-built demon with a near human body. He has a hawk's head with feathers, curved beak and radial eyes. His feet are large talons. RAIHA THE THUNDERBEAST Position: A cardinal servitor to the Demon Lord of the East. He represents the West. Age: Unknown. Character: Somber and humourless. Powers/Attacks: (1) Raiha (Lightning Attack): Raiha can emit a blast of lightning from his jaws and can permit a Demon Lord who commands him to also use this power. Notes: (1) Raiha means 'lightning attack'. Brief History and Description: Raiha is one of the four cardinal servitors of the Demon Lord of the East. He represents the Western cardinal point. He served Yami-no-Tsume eighteen years ago as Chancellor of the Eastern Court and a personal advisor. Today he grants his powers to Shukumaru. He acted as Shukumaru's secret weapon at Kaminari-jinja, the Shrine of Thunder, and his sudden appearance nearly spelled the defeat of Ranma and his friends. Raiha appears as a huge wolf composed of crackling blue lightning. He can also changed himself into a normal-sized blue-furred wolf. SHUKUMARU Position: Ranma's half-sister. Age: ~50 years old (still young for a demon). Character: Arrogant, hates Ranma and Nodoka, seeks power. Powers/Attacks: (1) Raiha (Lightning Attack): Shukumaru can breath a blast of lightning at her victim(s). (2) Dokkasou (Toxic Flower Claw): Vitriol drips from Shukumaru's claw to corrode anything she touches or attacks. (3) Sendokutsume (Thousand Poison Claws). Notes: (1) Shukumaru can be translated as 'perfect destiny'. Brief History and Description: Shukumaru is Ranma's half-sister, the daughter of Yami-no- Tsume, the Demon Lord of the East and Ranma's actual demon father, and an as yet unnamed demoness. Nineteen years ago, Yami-no-Tsume assumed human guise and discarded Shukumaru's mother to court a human woman: Nodoka Saotome, Ranma's mother. He sought to beget a male heir to inherit the Eastern Throne after him. This is the root of Shukumaru's hatred for the Saotomes. She also lost her only love at that time, a human boy called Hikaru Gosunkugi, due to the machinations of her father, who wanted her to marry Masakado and seal an alliance with the South in order to safeguard his heirless position. Shukumaru slew her father in a savage battle, hoping to claim both revenge and his position as Demon Lord of the East. Unfortunately for her, Ansou sealed her away in a magical prison as his last action and the seal has only deteriorated recently. Now she has returned and her lust for vengeance is even greater with eighteen years of bitterness behind it. She intends to kill Ranma and Nodoka, and claim the position of Demon Lord of the East. Shukumaru stands nearly six feet tall, with white skin, long white hair, piercing blue eyes, and pointed ears. Her cheeks are traced with black markings and her fingers end in sharp claws, denoting her demon heritage. UMIBOUZU Position: A cardinal servitor to the Demon Lord of the East. He represents the South. Age: Over five thousand years old. Character: Very arrogant and bored. Powers/Attacks: (1) Fuuin (Power of Sealing): Granted to Umibouzu by Susanoo-oh, his power permits him to go unnoticed in modern times; there are other applications as well. (2) Ankoku Shizumaru (Black Suppression): This seal imprisons anyone captured by it and locks them away in a pocket dimension of utter darkness. Also usable by the Demon Lord. Notes: (1) Umibouzu can be translated as 'sea monster' or 'sea monk'. Brief History and Description: Umibouzu is one of the four cardinal servitors of the Demon Lord of the East. He represents the Southern cardinal point. With the death of Yami-no-Tsume, he has finally shown up in Tokyo Bay to find out why the successor to the title has yet to contact him - the eighteen year interval is but a blink of an eye to such an ancient beast. His appearance sets up a challenge match between Ranma and Shukumaru. Ranma inadvertently saves his revenge-hungry half-sister from an assassination attempt by an agent of the Demon Lord of the South and Shukumaru withdraws from the challenge. Umibouzu agrees to grant his power to Ranma in future battles - but not to serve him. Eighteen years ago, Yami-no-Tsume draws on his power to seal Shukumaru away. Umibouzu appears as a classical Western sea serpent: black scaled and fluked with a huge serpentine head. His vast body stretches over a kilometer in length. Called the Great Devourer, Umibouzu has long been the bane of many ships and sailing vessels throughout the ages.