Ah My Goddess Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Sailor Goddess ❯ Earth Divine Power, Makeup ( Chapter 7 )

Sailor Goddess

A Ranma One Half Fan Fiction

By Michael A. Ivins

 

Ranma, and all of his/her friends and family are the creation of Rumiko Takahashi. I do not own any of them, nor do I own any of the characters from Ah! My Goddess or Sailor Moon. I'm writing this for fun, not profit. I'm so poor that suing me wouldn't do you much good.

 

WARNING: This is a sequel to a previous fic I wrote called, “Nodoka's Lessons.” That was a Lemon fic. While there won't be as much emphasis on sex (it will be more implied than described) in this sequel, it will deal with subjects like incest. If these subjects offend you, stop reading.

 

Chapter 7

Earth Divine Power, Makeup!

 

After Ranma and the cat goddess parted company the redhead used a patch of dirt to transport herself back home. When she arrived at home Ranma found the house deserted so she decided to go check out Sailor Moon. She pulled her notepad from stuff space and looked at the names. Usagi was the name of blonde with the odd ponytails. Past life memories told her this had to be Princess Serenity of the Moon. The blonde had included her address in the information she had given.

 

She looked at the address, then pulled a map out of a drawer. It didn't take long to get the approximate location of the girl's house. She decided that she would go there directly rather than call ahead. The warning about Sailor Pluto made her feel cautious about approaching the other senshi.

 

She conjured an outfit of light blue slacks and a dark blue shirt in an effort to change her look. Then she looked in the mirror and used the skill she had just learned to turn her hair black again. With that she left the house and took to the rooftops. As an additional precaution she engaged the umi senken cloak to make herself invisible.

 

She was sifting through some of the memories that had shaken loose during her effort to deal with the cat-fist and wasn't paying as close attention to where she was going as she should. Thus it was that she leapt too strongly and overshot her landing. Instead of falling to the street below she found herself floating in the air above the street.

 

“Huh? I thought I had to sprout wings to fly.” She managed to navigate to the next roof and landed on it. She took a moment to regain her composure and resolved to pay better attention. Thinking back on it, she realized that she should have known she could do this because she had levitated through the roof the previous night.

 

Before long she arrived at the street she had looked up on the map. She looked at her note pad again and checked the house numbers. She changed her hair back to red and went to the door to knock. Ranma assumed that the woman who came to the door was Usagi's mother. She was still wasn't used to being taller than so many of the people she met.

 

Mrs. Tsukino looked up at the beautiful red haired girl and asked, “Can I help you Miss?”

 

Ranma introduced herself. “Hi, I'm Saotome Ranma. I met Usagi yesterday at an ice cream parlor. She seemed really nice and I was hoping to visit her today. I'm sorry I didn't call ahead. Is she at home today?”

 

Usagi's mom apologized, “I'm sorry Miss Saotome. Usagi went off to meet with her friend Rei at the Hikawa shrine.” She gave directions.

 

Ranma bowed. “Thank you Mrs. Tsukino.” Thinking to score points with Usagi's mother she commented, “I can see where Usagi gets her good looks from.”

 

As the redhead walked away Usagi's mom thought, “She seems like a nice girl.”

 

When she got to the shrine, Ranma paused outside and used her enhanced senses to probe inside. She could detect three people, all of them women. All of them felt like the girls she had met at the ice cream parlor.

 

Ranma went up the stairs. When she stepped through the gates a light seemed to flare into existence. Ranma felt herself passing through a wall of warmth and peace. She got the oddest sensation that the shrine was welcoming her. Her hair billowed behind her as if blown by a strong wind, the braid whipping. She wasn't sure if she heard it or imagined it, but Ranma thought there was a sound like a choir singing.

 

From the house next to the shrine three girls came rushing out. The blonde tripped and fell on her face while the girl in a shrine maiden's outfit dropped to her knees in front of Ranma. The girl with the short blue-black hair (looks a lot like Akane) just stood with her mouth open.

 

The light faded and Ranma looked around. With a shrug and a smirk she said, “I guess that kills any chance I had of coming in quietly.”

 

Ami laughed while Usagi picked herself up off the ground. Rei stayed on her knees and was bowing. The shrine maiden finally said, “Blessed Lady you honor our shrine.”

 

It took Ranma a moment to realize she was the one being addressed. In spite of accepting the curse she wasn't used to being called a Lady. She requested, “Would you please stand up. I was a mortal just a few days ago. I don't deserve this kind of greeting.”

 

Rei straightened up but stayed on her knees. “But you're a goddess. I must show respect.”

 

Feeling a little exasperated, Ranma grabbed Rei's hands and pulled the girl to her feet. “Fine, you've shown respect. Can we get on to the reason for my visit here?”

 

Wanting to obey the deity, Rei answered, “Uh… right. Why have you come to our humble shrine?”

Ranma explained, “Since I met you girls at the ice cream shop I've found out some really major big things. One of those was that in a past life I was Sailor Terra.”

 

Ami exclaimed, “I knew it! I saw the mark! I knew it had to be you. You look just like her too.”

 

After dusting herself off, Usagi stepped forward, looking undamaged from her fall. She must use stuff space herself because she produced the brown rod from out of nowhere. She held it in both hands with her head bowed as if making a presentation of it. Reverently she said, “Please accept this.”

 

Ranma sighed and said, “Would you girls stop treating me like I'm some kind of…”

 

“Goddess?” Rei asked.

 

Ranma felt uncomfortable being treated this way. “Yes. Just a few days ago I was no more special than any of you. In fact I was even less special because I wasn't a Senshi.”

 

Usagi had to challenge that. “Actually you were always a Senshi. You just didn't know it yet.”

 

The redheaded goddess took the rod and said with a sigh, “I'm not going to argue the point with you. I just want to point out that the whole goddess thing is still new to me and it makes me uncomfortable to be treated like I'm above you. Personally, I hope I will always feel that way. Please work with me on this.”

 

The other girls nodded but didn't look convinced.

 

Ranma studied the rod for a moment. She had a feeling about the device and reached out to it with her new magic senses. She could sense a pattern of magical and ki energies that were bound into the rod. She had the feeling that there was something wrong with the rod. Not quite sure what she was doing but with the distinct feeling that it was right, she reached out with her power and prodded at the pattern, causing it to realign. Suddenly the henshin rod glowed brightly and when the glow faded the rod that had looked like it was made of some brown stone was now formed of a pale brown crystal. The ornament on the end seemed to be changed from gold to platinum or some other silvery looking metal.

 

Studying the rod again, Ranma felt a little angry. She had not advanced enough in her training to be doing that kind of magic. Someone had been messing with her head. Someone had anticipated that Ranma would come into possession of this magic stick and had programmed into her the exact instructions on how to modify it. She didn't care if it was for her benefit or not, she didn't like being manipulated that way. She was going to have to have some words with Urd and maybe with Kami-Sama about this.

 

Usagi looked shocked. “What just happened?”

 

Ranma looked at the rod for a moment before answering. She wasn't going to admit her mind had been tampered with. “I had the feeling that there was something wrong with this. I poked at the patterns of magic and it went through this change. I hope I didn't break it. The magic inside looks Ok.”

 

After giving it some thought she said, “I was going to ask how to use this thing, but I think I know. I guess I should see if it will even work on me.”

 

The goddess held the rod above her head and in firm tones said, “Earth Divine Power Makeup!”

 

As the others watched, the familiar lightshow began. Unnoticed by all, Sailor Pluto teleported in to watch from a short distance away. With her were Uranus and Neptune. The three Outers crouched behind bushes where they were concealed from the view of the girls who watched Ranma.

 

Normally, when one of the other Senshi transformed, rotating bands of light appeared to encircle each one while the girl would float a short way off the ground and twirl around. Their clothing disappeared and the fuku appeared on them after a brief moment of nudity.

 

With Ranma the glowing bands were there and she did float. As the glowing bands of light rotated the Goddess marks on Ranma's face glowed brightly. However her clothing actually morphed into skintight neck-to-toe white bodysuit and a short pleated skirt. The skirt was a pale brown. On her upper body was armor that covered her breasts and upper back. Instead of a sailor flap on the back there was a short cape that attached to the armor on the back. The bow on the front was only slightly larger than a bow tie while the bow at the back of her skirt was smaller than the regular Senshi bow and the ribbons that trailed were shorter. She was wearing gloves that went up to her elbows. Her tiara had a green stone. On her feet she had boots with a rippled sole for traction.

 

The three current Senshi looked at the outfit and Usagi commented, “That's different.”

 

Ranma looked down at herself and compared what she had on to what she had seen in pictures of the Senshi. She said, “Well, the body suit is tight enough that it would be indecent if I didn't have the skirt and breast armor.”

 

Off behind a bush Pluto was gripping her staff tightly. Her lips seemed to move silently for a moment before she opened her eyes and frowned angrily. She directed a look at Uranus and Neptune and with a motion of her head indicated that they should leave. The others each placed a hand on her shoulder as she teleported them all away.

 

The goddess noted, “Wow, I didn't know if that would actually work.”

 

Ami nodded. “I wasn't sure either. I've never heard of anything like this happening before. I even did a search on the Mercury Computer and couldn't find anything.”

 

The goddess prodded her thigh with a finger and frowned. Experimentally Ranma moved around and did a couple of punches and kicks at empty air. Finally she asked, “Usagi, would you come here for a moment?”

 

When the blonde was standing close the redhead asked, “Poke your finger at my shoulder, please.”

 

Frowning the girl with the long ponytails did as requested. When she did she commented, “This feels like metal or maybe hard plastic.”

 

Ranma nodded. “From the inside this bodysuit feels like cloth but when I poke it from the outside it feels like completely rigid metal. It seems to be some kind of armor. I'm guessing the breast armor, skirt, gloves and boots are more for appearance than protection.”

 

Ami had been scanning the goddess with her computer. She commented, “The outfit looks similar to one of ours, but with the armor suit, it's more practical. With our uniforms our legs and upper arms are vulnerable.”

 

Ranma took a moment to assess herself with her ki and magic senses. “Well it looks like the Senshi powers got added to my goddess powers.”

 

Ami nodded. “I figured that if it worked at all the Senshi powers would either be added to your goddess powers or would replace them. Wow, I guess that means you are a… Senshi Goddess.” The last words were spoken in a tone of reverent awe.

 

Trying to lighten the mood, Ranma commented, “Well, at least when I go out crime fighting at night I have the right outfit to wear.”

 

Ami's mouth dropped open and she pointed at Ranma. “You were `crimson haired avenger' I read about in the paper?”

 

Looking embarrassed, Ranma admitted, “Uh, yeah. That was me. It seems goddesses don't really need much sleep. I needed to do something useful so I stopped a mugging, caught a couple of purse snatchers and pulled some people out of a burning building.”

 

Ami was still astonished. “You say that like it's no big deal.”

 

Ranma shrugged. “Well… it's not a big deal. I used to do stuff like that back when I was just a martial artist. After all it's a martial artist's duty to protect those who can't protect themselves.”

 

Usagi smiled. “It sounds like the Senshi in you was peeking out.”

 

“Um… maybe.” Ranma wasn't sure how to feel about that possibility.

 

The blonde guessed, “So goddess was the new job you were talking about?”

 

“Yeah,” Ranma confirmed. “I started training today. A goddess named Bast was helping me learn some techniques. Say, you have a cat named Luna, right?”

 

Usagi looked surprised. “How did you know that?”

 

Somewhat evasively, Ranma explained, “From memories of when I was Ruby I know you had a Mau advisor named Luna. Do you remember that Ruby had an advisor too?”

 

Usagi frowned, “You had a cat as an advisor too?”

 

Ami chimed in, “It was in the Mercury Computer. Your advisor was named Bubastis. I understand she was pretty broken up over your death.”

 

Ranma nodded. “Queen Serenity put her in stasis just like Artemis and Luna. Unfortunately her stasis capsule stopped working a few thousand years ago and she ended up in what we now call Ancient Egypt. The Egyptians decided that a talking cat just had to be a goddess. Sometime later some real gods got curious about her and they did for her what was done for me a couple days ago.”

 

Ami guessed, “They made Bubastis a goddess?”

 

Ranma nodded. “Haven't you ever seen pictures of old Egyptian treasures that included statues of cats or a statue of a woman with the head of a cat? That was her.”

 

Ami asked, “Are you saying that your old advisor became an Egyptian goddess?”

 

“Yep,” Ranma affirmed. “She shortened her name to just Bast. She can change into a humanoid woman who has cat ears and a tail. This morning and early afternoon she helped me get over my fear of cats. She also taught me a cool martial arts technique.”

 

In a thoughtful tone Usagi said, “Luna told me that she and Artemis used to be able to change into humanoids. That was one of the things they lost while they were in stasis, along with most of their memories.”

 

Ami chuckled. “So after all this time Bubastis is still your advisor?”

 

Ranma nodded. “You could say that but it would be more accurate to say she is one of my sensei. But more than that, she's my friend. I won't lose my friend again.”

 

Usagi said with a wistful sigh, “That is so cool to get a friend back after thousands of years.”

 

Ami offered, “You should come to the next Senshi meeting. Since my mom will on duty at the hospital this Saturday we're going to be gathering at my home in the afternoon.”

 

Mindful of the warnings given by Luna, Ranma asked, “Will the Outers be there?”

 

The short haired girl paused. “You know about them?”

 

Evasively Ranma tapped a finger on the side of her head and replied, “Silver Millennium memories.”

 

“I guess that makes sense,” thought Ami. “Oh, right. They're always invited, but rarely show up.”

 

“I think it would be a good idea if I could meet them.” Ranma was careful not say why she thought it was a good idea.

 

Ami nodded. “You're right, that would be a good thing. I'll let them know you'll be there and ask them to come.”

 

Usagi put in, “Haruka, that's Sailor Uranus, is sort of a fan of yours. She's followed your exploits and really admires your martial arts skills.”

 

“And had Sailor Pluto use the Time Gates to spy on my life,” she thought. Out loud she said, “Maybe she and I could compare notes on martial arts techniques.”

 

“She'd love that,” Usagi agreed.

 

Curious to see how they would react, Ranma decided to give out a little information. “I don't know how much I'll be able to participate in Senshi business. I have goddess duties and training for them. On top of that at some point in the relatively near future I'll have to cut back my activities. I'm pregnant. After my twins are born I'll probably be pretty busy taking care of them.”

 

Ranma had to suppress an urge to laugh. All three of the other girls looked like their eyes were going to pop from their sockets.

 

“You… you're… having… a baby?” Usagi was having trouble with this.

 

Rei was also having trouble wrapping her mind around this. “A pregnant… goddess?”

 

Ranma rolled her eyes and told them, “I got pregnant before I was changed into a goddess. I understand that goddesses can become pregnant. Unlike mortals, for a goddess she has to want to become pregnant or it doesn't work.”

 

Ami had to ask, “But aren't you really a boy who changed to a girl? How is it possible for you to get pregnant?”

 

With a sigh Ranma said, “I don't know why people have so much trouble with this concept. Yes, I was born a boy. The curse made me so I changed from male to female and back. When I'm a girl, I'm physically completely female with all the same organs and everything. I can even get pregnant if I want. I did want to.”

 

Ami nodded. Rei just seemed off in another world. She said the word, “Twins,” in a dazed tone.

 

Usagi waved a hand in front of Rei's face and got no response. She said, “I think you broke her.”

 

Ranma put a hand on the shrine maiden's shoulder. That seemed to shake her out of her introspection. She fell silent and blushed.

 

“I'd better get back home now,” said Ranma. “My wife will wonder what I've been up to.”

 

Ami was boggled. “You're a pregnant woman… with a wife.”

 

It was getting to be fun to keep hitting these girls with weird concepts and see how they reacted.

 

“Of course, my wife. I was a guy when I married her. She's pregnant too, by the way. I'll have to tell you about it sometime.” She sank into the ground and transported to the flowerbed in the back yard of the Saotome home.

 

Ranma walked into the house and found both Akane and Nodoka were home finally. Akane notice the outfit and asked, “Are you a Sailor Senshi now?”

 

Realizing she had forgotten to change out of the battle suit, Ranma shrugged and said, “You know how Toshi said a big pool of weirdness was built up behind the block he put on my chaos attraction?”

 

Both of the mortal women nodded. Ranma explained, “Well, more of it broke loose today. The good part is that I'm cured of my fear of cats and I can now do the real cat-fist. Today I also found out that I am the reincarnation of a princess from an ancient interplanetary kingdom. I was Sailor Terra, the Senshi of Earth and I had a talking cat who was my advisor. I met with some of the Senshi and got a magic artifact that lets me change into Sailor Terra again for the first time in 20,000 years.”

 

Nodoka studied her daughter's face. “You're not joking, are you?”

 

Ranma shrugged. “I'm afraid not. The whole chaos thing is pushing the limits of coincidence. You remember I told you I took Skuld for ice cream yesterday at an ice cream parlor in Juuban?”

 

The other two women nodded.

 

“I guess the Sailor Senshi (or at least the ones for the inner planets) like ice cream too. They were at the same ice cream parlor in their civilian forms. We didn't figure out the relationship at the time, but did today. I'm supposed to go to a Senshi meeting next Saturday to meet all of the rest of the Senshi.”

 

Akane looked troubled. “Should you be telling us this? Aren't the identities of the Senshi supposed to be secret?”

 

Ranma shrugged. “I don't know, since you already know about the goddess thing, this doesn't seem such a big deal anymore. Besides, I didn't tell you their names or where the meeting is.” That last was said with a slight smile.

 

“Even so, maybe you should change out of that costume.” Nodoka was trying to be practical.

 

Ranma shrugged again and her clothing morphed into a black skirt and red shirt. “Here's more stuff that strains coincidence. You know that talking cat that I mentioned as my advisor when I was a princess? She later became a goddess and she was the one who taught me how to master the cat-fist. In fact she created the cat-fist techniques in the first place. It was never meant for mortals, it was only supposed to be used by gods.”

 

Frowning, Nodoka asked, “Genma tried to teach you a technique that's only supposed to be used by gods?”

 

The goddess nodded. “Yeah. Sort of emphasizes how stupid he was, doesn't it?”

 

Almost growling, Nodoka answered, “That's understating it by quite a bit.”

 

Ranma stepped up to her and put a hand on her shoulder. “Mom, it has finally been put right. Let it go. I have.”

 

Nodoka took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I'll try.”

 

The redhead elaborated, “I don't have to be crazy to use the cat-fist ki claws now. I spent a lot of time today training to use them. It takes some very fine control to just do superficial damage without killing someone. The claws can shred stone or even metal.”

 

Akane shuddered as she considered that. “That's… impressive.”

 

Ranma nodded. “Also a bit scary. If the nekoken hadn't basically turned me into a playful kitten, some people could have been killed.”

 

In a tone of disbelief, Akane protested, “Playful kitten?”

 

“Think about it,” urged Ranma. “During the times I was in that state clothes got shredded, weapons destroyed, but other than a few superficial scratches nobody actually got hurt.”

 

Akane looked thoughtful now. “I guess you're right.”

 

Ranma shuddered a little. “It had to be frustrating for the Nekoken spirit. I saw it inside my mind. It was a big, growling, snarling beast that looked as if it would like nothing better than to shred people into sushi. It must have been my own spirit that toned it down and held it back.”

 

“You saw it inside your mind?” Akane was having a bit of trouble with the concept.

 

The goddess confirmed, “It was a sort of dreamscape that I reached while in meditation. I had to confront the spirit and conquer it to master the cat-fist.”

 

Nodoka put her arm around her daughter's shoulders. “That must have been terrifying for you.”

 

Ranma shuddered. “It was. The cat goddess who was helping me told me that what I needed to do was to change how I looked at the spirit. I had to try and look at it like it was a cat I used to love back before the cat-fist training. In the effort to do that I broke through into memories of a past life, actually a lot of past lives. Now I have so many old memories, I'm having a hard time sorting them out.”

 

Concerned for her child's mental state, Nodoka asked, “What will you do?”

 

Ranma's expression became grim. “I don't need to sleep much, if any. I can spend some of the time you are sleeping in meditation. That way I can try to look at those memories, maybe organize them and integrate them with my current memories. I may need help from one of the other gods with this, because I've never done anything like this before.”

 

The auburn haired mother gripped her daughter tighter and said, “I have faith in you, dear. You will do it.”

 

Ranma felt grateful that even as a goddess she could still draw comfort from her mother's embrace. She smiled at her mother. “Thanks Mom.”

 

Akane leaned in to kiss her currently female husband on the cheek. “I don't know anything about being a goddess, but I'll give what moral support I can.”

 

Ranma grabbed Akane by the shoulders and kissed her on the lips. When they separated Ranma told her, “I don't know how I'd get through this stuff if you two weren't here to support me. You help keep me sane.”

 

Akane shook her head. “You're a survivor. You'd make it even without us. We just make it easier for you.”

 

“I don't know about that, but thanks for being here.”

 

The former Tendo said, “I know I wasn't always the most supportive in the past. I'm trying to make up for it now. I'll help in any way I can.”

 

Ranma kissed her again. This time the kiss was more lingering.

 

When they broke the kiss Akane said, “I'd offer to go off to bed with you, but we were just about to sit down to dinner.”

 

“I'll join you, but I don't need much. These days the two of you are all I need to feed me.”

 

Akane colored slightly at the implication.

 

Just then the doorbell rang and Ranma went to get the door. It was cousin Toshi again, this time in the form of a male sorcerer. After he came in he said, “I finally remembered what that symbol on you face reminded me of.”

 

Ranma raised an eyebrow and asked, “And what was that?”

 

The sorcerer explained, “I chanced to meet the Sailor Senshi during one of my adventures and they told me how they came to know when someone was one of them. With their magically enhanced senses they were able to see the symbol for the planet the girl was the Senshi for. If what they told me is true that would make you the reincarnation of Sailor Earth.”

 

In a dry tone Ranma told her cousin, “That's Sailor Terra.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Ranma explained, “During the process of taming the cat-fist I accidentally unsealed the memories of all my past lives. I found out that I was the Princess of the Earth and named Ruby. I was also Sailor Terra.”

 

Toshi looked down at the floor a little depressed. Finally after a moment he said, “You just seem to be a step ahead of me all the time lately.”

 

The redhead shrugged. “Getting changed into a goddess will do that. Because of that change I now have access to more resources that I ever had before. I may have access to more resources than you do.”

 

He nodded. “I'm sure of it. After all, I'm just a sex changing sorcerer. You're a goddess with other divinities who can help you.”

 

Ranma chuckled. “If you want to put it in those terms I'm also still a sex changer. The only reason I'm staying female is my pregnancy. Now that I am a goddess I don't know that changing into a guy would endanger my babies, but until I do know, I'm not going to take that chance.”

 

Toshi smiled. “That's probably a good idea. There are deities you can consult about that. You might want to talk to some of them fairly soon.”

 

The goddess agreed, “I'll do that. Mom is making supper. Did you want to stay and eat?”

 

The sorcerer politely declined. “Thank you, but no. I have eaten before I came here.” He got up and left.

 

At dinner Ranma did eat, and it looked about equal to what a normal person would eat as a hearty meal. Compared how much the martial artist used to eat, it was barely a snack.

 

Ranma had been about to go outside to perform katas when Skuld came in from a bowl of water in the kitchen. She brought with her some books that she gave to Ranma to read. These were books on psychology. It was explained that when Ranma started on her job of helping people confused about their sexuality, the information in the books would help in counseling those people.

 

Elsewhere Sailor Pluto sat on a couch she had brought before the Gates of Time. A bottle of brandy sat on the floor next to her feet. She was holding her Time Staff in her lap.

 

She was contemplating what to do about Saotome Ranma. Now that Saotome was a goddess, she was too powerful to attack directly. With Senshi powers added to goddess powers, that made her doubly dangerous to mess with. There had to be another way.

 

Timelines had shifted and split. There were now two equally viable futures that could come about. In one of those futures Crystal Tokyo did come into existence but it would take two thousand years longer to bring it to fruition than it should have.

 

In the other possible future Crystal Tokyo did not arise at all. To be sure that possible future looked pleasant enough with Earth civilization expanding into space and making great leaps and bounds. The only thing wrong with that was it was not a rebirth of the Moon Kingdom. Usagi didn't become the queen and the Senshi were relegated to the role of crime fighters instead of leaders in the world government.

 

That was intolerable. Crystal Tokyo had to be created. The Moon Kingdom must be reborn.

 

The timing of the split was too close to be a coincidence. Within minutes after Saotome Ranma became invisible to the Time Gates, the timelines had split. Saotome had to be responsible either from something she had already done or something she was going to do.

 

Pluto tried to track the goddess by looking at the mortals she interacted with, but that was so difficult as to make it nearly impossible. It was easy enough to see what the mortals said in the past, but trying to view the future was like looking at multiple ghost images all at the same time. It was like each event she tried to preview had dozens or even hundreds of possible outcomes.

 

She had already tried to use the Gates to plot what might happen if she took action against Nodoka or Akane or even their babies. Almost every possible plan she could think of resulted in her own death and in many cases other Senshi died as well. The few cases where Setsuna herself didn't die, it didn't change things enough to be worth doing.

 

There had to be a way! She was the Senshi of Time. Very well, if she couldn't attack Ranma in the present and there was no way to track her now or in the future, maybe Pluto could tamper in Ranma's past. Yes, that was a good avenue to explore.

 

Other than the transformation into a goddess, the most pivotal moment in the martial artist's life was falling into the spring and getting the girl curse. She turned the Gates to view the events at Jusenkyo.

 

After reviewing the fight on the bamboo poles several times and from several angles Setsuna thought about how to tamper with things. If it were possible to apply a slight force to Ranma's flight from Genma's blow that might have the desired result. She entered in the command to the gate to show a simulation of what would happen if a slight braking force were applied.

 

In the simulation she watched as Ranma fell, not into the Spring of Drowned Girl, but onto the strip of ground that separated that pool from the next one. The boy was stunned and when he got up he tripped and fell into the Girl spring anyway. The outcome was delayed by a few minutes but otherwise it was unchanged.

 

She tried adding energy to the flight so Ranma overshot the pool and hit the ground on the other side. Once again he was wobbly when he got to his feet and ended up falling into the pool to get the same curse. That wasn't going to work.

 

A thought occurred to her and she programmed in a smaller increase in speed. In the original event Ranma had splashed down nearly dead center in the pool. With the newly changed speed of fall he came down on the side of the pool and hit his head on a rock. The result was an unconscious Ranma who drowned. Pluto idly wondered if a new drowning victim would change the template on the pool to Spring of Drowned Martial Artist.

 

That looked like what she had been hoping for. Still, it wouldn't do to just kill the boy without checking for consequences. She ran the view forward to see how major events would unfold without Ranma there.

 

Without the engagement to Ranma, Akane continued the daily fights against the Horde of Hentai. At one point they came close to overpowering her and she panicked. In so doing she summoned mallet sama and used it on some of the boys, killing two. While their deaths were ruled self-defense, the girl was so distraught over it that she later killed herself. The death of “his baby” drove Tendo Soun over the edge and he killed himself.

 

Looking at that Setsuna shrugged and decided it was no great loss.

 

Later, when Happosai escaped from the cave, there was no Ranma there to temper his spree. When Pantyhose Taro appeared on the scene and there was no Ranma there and the battle got intense and there were innocent casualties.

 

In nearly every event bad situations were worse without Ranma there. Some things did come out better without him, but those events were few. She hated to admit it but the world was a better place for having Ranma in it.

 

Still that didn't answer the question of what Ranma's death would do to the future of Crystal Tokyo. She moved the period of view forward and looked at the simulation of the time one year ahead. When she tried to view the future of the Senshi the Gates displayed a cemetery. She zoomed in the view and saw a grave marker with her own name on it. The image changed to pan over markers that bore the names of all the Senshi civilian forms.

 

The view zoomed out and she could see Usagi standing by the graves. The blonde's manner was somber and she was leaning on a cane. She looked at Setsuna's grave marker and muttered, “If only you weren't such a fool. You were the one who told us not to interfere in the affairs of gods and then you violate your own rule and actually killed a goddess. Did you think the gods wouldn't take revenge on the Senshi?”

 

Tears began to drip down the face of the Senshi leader. “If you had been the only one to die, I might forgive you, but did you have to take my dearest friends with you? I almost wish I could have died too so I wouldn't have to live with the grief. I know we didn't always agree on everything, but until you pulled this stunt, I never hated you before, not like I hate you now.”

 

In the image Usagi turned away from the grave markers and made her painful way down the path. From the difficulty she had in walking it looked more like she should be using crutches than just a cane.

 

Ok, so maybe killing Ranma at Jusenkyo wasn't such a good idea. That little scene at the cemetery was even worse than the simulations she'd run to see what would happen if she attacked Ranma's wives. If the Senshi were dead, there would be no Crystal Tokyo. There was still the chance that everyone could be reincarnated again, but without their souls being sent forward in time, there was little likelihood that all would be alive at the same time at any point in the future. If the gods were angry enough, they might even have a way of specifically preventing it.

 

There had to be other ways. Maybe seeing to it that he got a different curse would be enough. She reached for her bottle.

 

For the first time she actually noticed that the bottle she picked up wasn't the same one she had started with. This bottle was brown while the others had been clear. There were other empty bottles on the floor by her feet. She looked at the label and recalled that the person who had sold it to her had called it “Tennessee sippin' whiskey.” She wasn't sure but thought it meant that the liquor could be better appreciated if sipped instead of gulped. She shrugged and gulped down the last of the liquid in the bottle.

 

She had been so absorbed in her task that she had not remembered getting more bottles. It was a safe bet that she wasn't thinking as clearly now as when she had begun. She would stop now and go home for a night's sleep. It was apparent that this was a problem that didn't have an easy solution.

 

Author's Note: Obsessions can be unhealthy and we will see that this one will have serious consequences for Sailor Pluto. With her power over Time she might have the most subtle strength of any Senshi, but she's taking on a fight that is out of her league now.