Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Winds of Change ❯ Another One! ( Chapter 1 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Winds of Change

 

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AN: Hi! Welcome to my new fanfic! If there are any notes to be added, be it cultural clarity or other thing I’ll be addressing it here. As for this chapter. This is the first time I tried depicting two parallel scenes. My idea was to create “pictures” of what’s going on. Hope I did a good job.

Hope you enjoy! Have fun and if you have time please tell me what you think!

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Disclaimer: I do not own the world of Ranma ½ in any way I just like to play around in the sandpit created by Takahashi Sensei. I don’t make any money by writing this so keep your lawyers at bay!

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Chapter 1: Another one!

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Ranma Saotome was not in his happy place. He was stuck in the middle of class staring unable to accept reality. His mouth; hanging open in a way that was almost comical. His face; blank with disbelief as he stared much like a deer caught in the headlights of the proverbial car. Or at a fully loaded freight train to be more exact. A freight train that had its horns blaring.

All of his classmates had a finger pointed at him. Their faces; incredulous, frustrated, tired. Some bore a hint of envy in their features. Others were shaking their head. Waiting for the inevitable explosion. There were two who had distinctly different reactions. One was obviously annoyed while the other was slowly turning red with anger. The classroom was silent, too silent. Only the unyielding ticks of the clock could be heard as the soulless automaton kept measuring time without a care, remorse, or regret.

The teacher slumped into his chair. He too was in shock. “Go to a university they said! Get a teacher’s degree they said! It’s a respected and well-paying job they said! What a joke!” he thought questioning his life decisions. This place was nuts! Completely bonkers!

The man leaned forward. His forehead almost touching the surface of the desk. He took a deep breath. Then he slammed his head against the wood. A loud bang echoed across the classroom. The unfortunate educator let his forehead rest for a few moments. Praying. He rose from the surface only to repeat the process. Another loud bang echoed throughout the room. It soon became a rhythm. The thumps came at regular intervals. One could have used it as a second means to measure time.

This was the calm before the storm. A storm that would hit home hard. And Ranma was in the front seat for it. He heard the growl. A sound almost animalistic in nature. They were the first gusts of the typhoon heading his way. It was a growl filled with righteous anger. The demand for immediate retribution. Soon he heard a feminine roar. The dreaded calling of an enraged dragon. The demand for vengeance. A telltale sign of what was to come. It was going to be one of those days. He heard the whistling, the dreaded hammer approaching his skull. Akane's instrument of punishment was in mid-descent.

“No! Not another fiancé!” he wailed silently just before the wooden bringer of doom made contact.

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Some distance away… actually quite far away. Up, way up. Passed many artificial objects circling the planet. On the opposite side of a huge greyish rock, known to many as Luna or Moon, a large object floated across the void of space. Its polished surface glittered in the sunlight. Its cylindrical shape rotated in an almost casual manner. Slowly, ever so slowly it approached an even bigger one

The second craft was sleeker, its features more defined, it radiated a sense of power and danger. Its arrowhead-like shape was dotted with numerous protrusions. It bore a coating of dark grey. As if trying to blend into the darkness around it. Both crafts were surrounded by countless smaller ones. They were whizzing around their larger cousins. Landing on them, pushing and pulling on the bodies of the enormous vessels. Gently gliding the huge ships towards one another.

The spectacle took place in absolute silence. The only sign of communication between the ships came in the form of frequent and repeated flashes of light. Flashes that were picked up by the lens of a nearby camera. The device was nestled on the surface of a small asteroid that just happened to be passing through. The recording device was small and well concealed. Finding it was an almost impossible task. Attached to the small thing was a cable that snaked around the unremarkable piece of space debris. It led all the way to the other side carrying the images with it to another craft lying in wait on the surface. This one was tiny compared to the other two. Barely a hundred feet at its longest.

Within its confines, two human-shaped beings were watching the live feed. One, a dark-haired woman was watching the screen with no small amount of irritation. She was tapping her finger on her console. Making a glance at her companion every now and then. The other one was more active. His fingers danced on the keyboard in front of him at break-neck speed. His focus was on a secondary screen displaying a long string of code. Suddenly he came to a halt. His expression changed into one of satisfaction. He turned to the woman with a smile. One of victory. “Lieutenant!” he said cheerily. “We’re in!”

The female huffed, annoyed. “About time!”

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Ranma kept on running for dear life. Yes. This was one of those days alright. One where it would have been better to stay in bed. At first, he thought his new fiancé was different from the regular mold he was blessed… rather cursed with.

The girl seemed to be well-tempered albeit a bit strange. She was downright civil in fact. She even defended him from Akane’s rather volatile temper. She wasn’t too bad on the eyes either. Creamy white skin, long slender legs. Firm muscles that were honed by years of exercise. All contained in a petite form. Her chest was smaller than Shampoos but larger in volume than Akane’s. Her neck was delicate, but not overly so. It was so inviting. So kissable. Her face, cute in all the right ways. Full lips, a small button nose, and large blue eyes that almost seemed to sparkle. Almost like a puppy asking for a treat after doing something naughty. Her hair was one single golden cascade that fell well past her slender waist, grazing the very ground she walked on. Her voice had a certain melodic ring to it. Her movements were graceful, ladylike, but there was a hint of girlish innocence to it.

And there was that smile. For a few short seconds, he actually thought she would be different. Then she learned about the fiancé dilemma. The smile was replaced by a scowl. The sing-song voice turned into a bear-like growl. She reached behind her back and pulled out an axe of all things. Not just any axe. The thing was large. Large to the extreme. Bigger than Ukyo’s spatula. How she could keep it concealed under the school's uniform was a mystery to him.

Ranma’s sense of danger spiked. He remembered what the girl had said before the madness was unleashed on him once more. Martial Arts Lumberjackery. That was her trade! He knew there and then that her delicate face and small form concealed a fighter that could not be taken lightly. He was no fool. When things started to turn pear-shaped he knew what to do. The Saotome Special Technique was made use of not long after.

A swishing sound interrupted the boy’s train of thought. Something was approaching from behind. He risked a glance back and almost got a heart attack. There was a hatchet in the air heading right at him. It was further confirmation of what he already knew. This new girl might look cute. But her wrath. It was something else! He reacted by ducking away from the projectile. The tool flew by him and slammed into a telephone pole. The force behind the mundane tool was insane. The hatchet embedded itself deep inside of the wood. For a moment or two, it looked like the thick pillar would make it. Then with a great crack and amidst the sound of snapping wires, it fell down smashing two fences, throwing smoke and ash into the air while at it.

The boy dodged dislodged cables and splinters as he kept moving. He jumped to avoid another hatchet. The thing bounced off the pavement underneath him. It flew on and embedded itself deep into a concrete fence. He didn’t dare look back anymore. He just ran. Ran as fast as his legs allowed him.

The new girl wasn't the only one out for blood. “Get back here you pervert!” hollered Akane’s voice in the distance. “How dare you get another hussy!”

“You better explain this right now, Ranma, Honey!” screamed, demanded one Ukyo Kuonji.

“Yup! Here we go again!” he thought with dismay.

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The cockpit was filled with impatient tapping. The sound conveyed annoyance and boredom in equal measures. Again and again, the finger came down awfully close to the button responsible for arming the tiny ship’s weaponry. “Are we going to do something other than just sitting around?” asked a female voice.

“Relax! This is just like fishing! You have to wait till just the right moment.” informed a much calmer male voice. “Besides, the biggest bang we have onboard is that single nuke. What good could that do against a full-fledged battleship?”

“I still say this is stupid!” came the rather irritated retort. “Why didn’t you hack into the warship’s computers or something? You could gain weapon’s control, set off something near a powder room, create an engine cascade, overload the reactor, or whatever.”

The male glanced at his companion. His expression was calm and collected. “It’s rather simple my dearest subordinate,” he explained patiently. “I prefer to keep my hide in one piece!” With his thoughts in the open, he returned his gaze to his screen. His eyes once again focused on his secondary panel.

“This still sucks!” grumbled the woman.

“Take a guess which one of those things has the softer IT defense? A battleship or a freighter? If they ever figure out we’re here...”

“All right, all right!” the female responded her tone growing irritated. “I get that! But what can you achieve with that? What use do we get out of seeing a damn freighter’s inventory? It’s the battleship we need to blow up!”

“Relax I know what I’m doing.” responded the man in the same calm manner as before.

The woman let out a groan. “I’m losing my patience!” she warned. Once more her finger resumed tapping dangerously close to the arming switch. “Boss! We are sitting here with our arses in the breeze you know! For now, we have the advantage of surprise. We can give them a bloody nose now. Before the fighting starts… If they find us…”

“BINGO!” hollered the man starting the female. “Fuel containers! Breaching explosives! Anti shipping rounds in all flavours! HELL, YEAH!”

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Ryoga came to a stop at a crossroad. He glanced around trying to determine his whereabouts. The last time he checked it was Russia. The army had certainly given him the chase.

“Shpion!”

That’s what they called him. He had no idea what it meant, but it must have been something bad. As in really, really bad. If anything the amount bullets they flung after him was spectacular.

He had no idea why those people were so angry. What had he ever done to them? Sure he had a little accident with that strange-looking flying contraption… But why the fuss? It was nothing that could not be fixed with a hammer and a fresh coat of paint.

Sure the thing he damaged looked kind of expensive. It had a circular shape to it. And it had no wings. He also failed to see any engines. It also had a strange otherworldly feeling to it. And the thing seemed to hover in the air without any effort. But still... It was an honest mistake.

He even tried to apologise! To tell them that he really didn’t mean it. But did they listen? Of course not! Instead, the whole area went berserk with everybody out to fill him with holes of all calibres. Things only got worse when he blew up that other contraption. The one that looked like some gigantic humanoid. The locals went completely livid at that.

Tanks, planes, helicopters, people armed with honest to God lasers chased after him for hours if not days. It was a hellish experience. The worst of it all was that he did nothing to them! What was their reason to be so angry with him? It was not as if the army couldn’t just build a new one. They got money and people for that kind of stuff.

One thing the ever-lost-boy was sure of. There could be only one person behind his misery! Ranma Saotome! It had to be him! Not only was his nemesis keeping him away from the love of his life, Akane, but now that coward even managed to sick the dammed Russian army at him! The bastard!

The paper in the boy’s hand crinkled as he unwrapped it. It was a map of Siberia. He glanced around trying to find a landmark he could use to orient himself. The most striking one he could find was a snow-capped mountain in the distance. It was a majestic sight to behold. Almost like Mt. Fuji. The buildings around him also looked awfully familiar. “Must be somewhere in the Eastern parts…” he mumbled. He also remembered seeing the sea at one point… And the city did look rather large… “Maybe Vladivostok?” he reasoned with himself. It was certainly a step in the right direction.

“Out of the way!” hollered a familiar male voice in the distance. Ryoga didn’t care. He was too busy trying to figure out how to cross over to Japan. It was early spring. Swimming was out of the question. The water was just too damn cold for that. He had to get a ship. Maybe if he volunteered to work for safe passage…

“Run!” hollered the same voice. “Are you deaf or suicidal!” Several rather large logs landed all around Ryoga littering the street, damaging the pavement. One of those contained a series of discarded axes. Someone rather familiar, wearing a red Chinese shirt, zipped past. The person made a rather sharp turn at a corner and took off at full speed.

“Ranma!?” Ryoga whispered in surprise. “What is he doing in Russia?” he asked.

A threatening roar of something rather large heading for him made Ryoga move. Steered by sheer instinct he hopped into the air to avoid the danger. When the pig-boy’s eyes landed on the source of disturbance he was in for a surprise. It left him speechless.

Of all possible things, there, in front of him, was an entire tree racing through the place he’d just occupied. Leaves and broken branches were flying everywhere. Much of the road was left in ruin thanks to the phenomenon. Riding on top was a golden-haired girl with a scowl that would make even the bravest of men pause. “Get back here you cheater!” she hollered in a thick accent. Slamming her axe of ungodly size into the ground and with a simple pull, she managed to change the trajectory of the fallen trunk. Seconds later she and her means of transportation vanished around the corner leaving behind utter destruction, lumber, and a lot of leaves.

Two other forms passed by him. Both female.

“Get back here Ran-chan and take your punishment like a man!” yelled one.

“Another hussy?! You are so dead Ranma!” mirrored the other.

Ryoga’s face grew red with anger as the limited information at his disposal registered. “Ranma Saotome! You are so dead!”

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A blinding light filled the darkness of space as the explosion ripped the body of the freighter to shreds. Large chunks of the ship’s hull were flung in all directions. Small fragments of hardened alloy were flung everywhere. The smoke and light of the calamity completely engulfed the battleship obstructing it from view. Seconds later there were a series of blinding flashes.

Down below. On the surface of the Moon, a series of great fireballs came to be. Earth’s faithful companion gained a dozen new scars. Ones that were not natural in origin. Yet more were about to come to be as a rain of shredded metal was about to fall to the surface.

“That’s that!” summarised the male of the extraterrestrial duo. “One pirate battleship well and truly buggered!” His female counterpart leaned against the back of her chair. The expression on her face, a mix of disdain and satisfaction at the same time. Sure the danger was adverted. Just the way it was achieved. The route of the feeble and cowardly. Cloak and dagger. She would have preferred sending out a drone and calling in some heavy firepower. Then she would have gotten the party she was so itching for.

“Yes, Captain!” she acknowledged with a bitter voice. Not getting her fight carried a bitter taste but one can’t have everything. With an uncaring movement of her finger, she flicked a switch on her holographic panel. The ship released its hold on the asteroid. She almost cut the live feed showing the now utterly annihilated enemy when the displays all around suddenly flared up with a series of warnings. The light from the explosion started to subside. The freighter was indeed gone. The warship on the other hand…

“Shit! Active scan! We got pinged hard!” yelled the male.

The woman floored the engine amidst the most vulgar vocabulary at her disposal. The small craft took off like a jackrabbit, wobbling in protest at the sudden increase in velocity. A mere seconds later a ray of pure blue light tore through the space rock they had commandeered as cover.

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The head of a girl rose from the pond. Water was dripping from her bright red hair. Her blue eyes, in furious search of her pursuers. “Good!” she whispered in relief adjusting the waterlily resting on top of her head. “Finally got rid of them!” she added silently.

However, the pond and its surroundings looked mighty familiar. An old traditional Japanese zen garden. Spacious and elegant. Well kept and... "Shit!" It clocked.

In her blind dash to be rid of her pursuers, she ended up at the Kuno’s place. “Of all the!” she muttered sinking back underneath, the last part of her outcry silenced by the water of the lake. She had to find a way out of here. Preferably before the local crazies find her. Three fiancés and a seething Ryoga were enough of a company already. The last thing she needed was to add two complete lunatics to add to the tally.

Down underwater her mind went to work. Her goal was to get out of this predicament. Quietly slip past the people already looking for her. Then she was off to Ginza. The chances of them finding him in that crowd was slim to none. By evening Akane should calm down sufficiently enough for a safe approach. In theory!

As she was pondering on things something kept nagging him. A small annoying detail. A feeling as if he forgot about something. Something rather important. Something that she should really not have forgotten. Suddenly she was reminded of the missing piece of information as the huge jaws of an enormous reptilian snapped closed around her leg. Mr. Turtle. Kodachi Kuno’s pet crocodile. She had completely forgotten about that thing.

The surface of the water started to ripple, then bubble as the misunderstanding below became heated. Seconds later the combatants broke through. The reptile doing its best to close its gaping maw and swallow its prey. He was denied this satisfaction for now. The girl refused to become an easy dinner and kept the crocodilian's mouth wide open using her bare hands. As far as she was concerned she preferred to stay off the menu. The thing was bigger than she remembered. It also got much stronger.

“What the hell does she feed this thing with?” Ranma wondered while doing her best not to get eaten. After a few seconds of struggle, the girl kicked the amphibious creature rather hard. Repeatedly. It was enough to make the crocodilian reconsider its choice of cuisine. The reptile beat a hasty retreat sulking at its prey’s insistence on living.

Ranma didn’t stay around for a possible second round. She got out of the water as quickly as possible and collapsed some distance from the pond’s shore. Before she even had the chance to let out a sigh of relief she heard the dreaded words.

“Pig-tailed-girl! It is truly you! I, Tatewaki Kuno feel truly honoured that you have decided to grace my humble home with your presence!”

Ranma would have preferred an appointment with the dentist.

“You harlot! How dare you show your face here!?”

And there was the other sibling.

With all that racket going on staying was the worst possible idea. It was sure to attract others. There was only one reasonable thing to do. She ran for it. The fence was close enough. Maybe, if she’s fast enough. Maybe if she can shake the Kunos in the narrow streets.

Over the concrete barrier, she went and down onto the street. Ranma made a silent landing on the ground. She quickly glanced around. Nobody! She was lucky! Now it was time to floor it!

“There you are!” screamed a brunette swinging a gigantic spatula at her. So much for a silent getaway. In her haste, Ranma forgot to check the roof. She dodged barely avoiding contact with the weapon. The tool carved a deep gash into the thick stone fence behind the water-based girl. A few strains of her hair did not make it. She could only stare as the wind carried her severed locks of his hair away. Ranma gulped, frozen in place by shock and fear.

“He’s here! I’ve got him!” yelled Ukyo a clear signal to the others in the area.

Seconds later an axe-wielding blonde rushed around one corner while Akane rushed forth from the other direction. Both of them had murder written on their faces.

“Hey! You know that it was my father who got me saddled with half a dozen engagements. Right?” pleaded the currently female groom. She hoped she could talk it out. That reasoning might reach her rather volatile brides.

“It’s your fault just as much!” yelled the chef. “You are just trying to talk your way out of it!”

“How can it be my fault!” came the heated retort.

“You could have stopped your father!”

“How? I don’t even remember being engaged to anybody before coming back from China! I was a toddler when my father made those dammed deals!”

He received no answer to that one. An axe and a mallet started their descent. There was a telltale ring in the air. That of a bicycle.

“You are not getting away this time Ranma!” came the holler from nearby. That one was Ryoga.

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“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” boomed the female alien as she steered her small craft across the battlefield. The warship hunting her vessel took heavy damage from the explosion earlier. Its body bore several scars from the blast. However, it was far from being crippled and even in its damaged state the vessel still had more than enough power to take down a small patrol boat. The space all around was turning hostile rather quickly as more and more of the battleship's weapons came to life turning the huge void-craft into a lethal imitation of a disco-ball.

“You see those missiles on our rear Captain? I don’t want to?” yelled the woman as her hands danced across the controls keeping her small craft on the move.

“No can do!” yelled back the other.

“Just drop the shields and blast ‘em!”

“Like hell I am!” barked the male.

“You hard of hearing boss! Missile! Boom! We stop weaving! We dead!” she yelled raising her voice over all the beeps created by the warning signals. A series of kinetic rounds flew by at an alarming speed. Without a sudden, violent change of course it would have been a direct hit.

“Starboard! Two triple turrets of ray emitters locked onto us!” explained the male. “If we drop shields they will cook us in one go! I don’t know about you, but I’d prefer not to be torn to atoms!” he informed before his face went white. “Incoming combat drones off the port bow! They’ve got nukes!”

The female screamed in frustration. More cursing left her lips. “Okay! That’s it! Hang on Cap! Time to do something crazy!” she called out steering the boat towards the behemoth.

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A lone wall with a gaping hole in it. That was all that was left of the once bristling bathhouse of Nerima. And a pile of rubble. Its owner was on his knees. Crying at his misfortune. Unable to understand how this catastrophe could befall him. And he had no insurance. A grave mistake to make for somebody residing in the area.

“Let me go!” yelled Ranma struggling to break free from the embrace of his Amazon fiancé. Or wife as far as the girl was concerned.

“Ranma take Shampoo on date? Yes?” she asked.

“Hell no!” responded the boy. In his opinion, the girl was not playing with a full deck. She was thinking about dates while surrounded by a virtual battlefield. Ukyo and the lumberjack girl were busy duking it out on top of the ruins. Doing their best to murder one another. Akane was engrossed with trying to knock the male Kuno into low Earth orbit while the latter was spouting poetry. Bad poetry!

The female side of the Kuno crazies was currently in a faraway land. Under the influence of a drug of her own make. Dreaming about her wedding while unknowingly enduring an embrace similar in nature to Shampoo’s as Mousse, the local part-time duck, was busy declaring his devotion rather loudly. To the wrong person.

Ryoga? He was probably off somewhere in the countryside trying to find his way back. Usually, it took weeks. Ranma was fine with that. He would have preferred months.

Ranma took a deep breath. His eyes were closed. A new emotion was making its presence known. He felt tired. Uncaring. It was the same thing all over. Frankly, he was sick of it all. The whole mess. The fighting. The screaming. 

He hoped that after the failed wedding things will start to calm down. That maybe, just maybe people will back off and give him some room. He was sorely disappointed. Instead of a brake the phenomenon he dubbed the “fiancé wars” had become even more fierce. The small skirmishes of yesterday were turning more violent as the women in his life shifted gears. Did they care about him? Of course not.

He was tired. It was just "Me! Me! Me!” Neither of the women after him was interested in his input to the whole debacle. After two entire years, he had had enough. He was completely done with the whole situation.

“I’m gonna whack Pops extra hard this evening!” he thought angrily knowing well that even now his father was lazing away at the Tendo’s place mooching off of other people’s hard work. “Fat bastard!” he muttered under his breath.

“So we go on date now?” asked Shampoo tightening her octopus-like hold.

“You landed on top of my head with your bike! Got splashed with water. Chased me across half the neighborhood as a cat and herded me into the female side of a bathhouse. A bathhouse that is now completely wrecked partially because of your antics.” Ranma answered angrily. “After all that crap!? Take a guess!”

“Yes!? Oh husband, Shampoo so happy!”

The boy groaned. This was so typical of the girls he was engaged to. They didn’t even try to listen to him when they got like that. "Have you got ears on that head of yours?" he asked without ever wanting to hear the answer.

He resumed his struggles to get out of the amazon hug of steel. It was no use. The girl simply didn’t budge. He had no idea how she did that. She was not THAT strong. Amidst struggles he noticed an old lady walking past.

The woman was old, ancient even. Each and every step of hers was carefully calculated to ensure that she would get to her destination safely. By Ranma's estimate, the woman had a death wish. One had to when trying to make use of an area that was all but a warzone. Even worse was that the girls fighting were far too enthralled by “winning him over” to notice the sudden intruder.

The axe girl managed to finally disarm Ukyo launching the chef’s spatula away from the combatants. Somehow the thing gained an insane velocity. The weapon impacted mere inches behind the old lady burying itself deep into the wall. A shiver ran across the boy. If it had hit home...

Ukyo was not halted by the loss of her main tool of combat. Making use of her explosive dumplings she created an opening to return the favour with success.

The heavy tool flew high into the sky as the girls fought on with bare hands. Ranma went pale as he noticed the destination of the gigantic battleaxe. The old woman. It was a perfect collision course.

He struggled and kicked. He screamed at Shampoo. The Amazon didn’t relent. She didn’t even notice that there was a non-martial artist in mortal peril. With a weapon that big the frail body of the elderly woman didn’t stand a chance. If that thing hit home she would be pronounced then and there. The Amazon didn't budge. Ranma increased his struggles, eyes focused on the falling weapon. “Let go of me you insane Chinese fool!” he yelled. No avail. The octopus hug remained firm. There was no escape. Ranma closed his eyes awaiting the impact. More like the splash.

Instead, there was a thud. He opened his eyes. The axe had missed. Relief. The old woman escaped death. She dodged the thing. How she did that he had no idea. The dent in the pavement was quite noticeable. “Is she some retired Ninja!?” he wondered. "One can’t be that lucky!” Without a care in the world, dodging pieces of debris, flying explosives, hypersonic chunks of wood the old woman moved on, leaving the area as the boy observing her almost collapsed in relief. He would have of not for the grip that kept him trapped.

“Die Ranma!” And there was the proverbial black knight. Ranma signed in resignation as he saw Ryoga racing at him. Ready to inflict pain. Ryoga’s scream re-directed Akane’s attention. Away from the Shakespearian samurai and to the trapped martial artist.

“How dare you play around like that!” yelled the enraged Tendo. Her hammer of vengeance rose into the air once more. Ranma didn’t even care. With Shampoo holding him in place and Ryoga charging at him with murderous intent, it was better to get hammered. He waited for the inevitable.

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Space rapidly returned to its silent, calm self as the gigantic battleship thrashed around in midst of its death-throes. Explosion after explosion crept along its fuselage shedding it of its outer layers as the concussive forces within tore the construct apart from the inside.

The small craft responsible for this limped away. Its condition was not much different from the behemoth's. Large chunks of its body were missing. Its once neat and well-kept camouflage in tatters. The pilot had to fight only to keep it going in a straight line. The male alien slammed a maintenance panel shut. He glanced around nervously as the entire bridge resonated with his action. Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead as he waited for something to happen. Nothing did. Once he was sure the ship won't fall apart around him he returned to his seat.

“Lieutenant!” he called out wiping some oil off his hand.

“Yeah, boss?” asked the female.

“Flying into a battleship’s landing bay, full throttle.”

“Yeah?”

“That was insane! Even for you!”

“I know!”

“You saved our hide!”

“Sure did!”

“Remind me to forward you for promotion!”

“Couldn’t have done it without you blowing a hole in the bay doors with that hacking stunt sir.” The aliens exchanged a smirk. The leader lifted a fist. The subordinate mirrored it. “Just don’t ask for a reproduction contract sir!” remarked the female.

“I doubt that’s a good idea. One of us would commit murder within a cycle!” They laughed as they bumped their fists together. “So what are we playing with?” asked the male.

“Not much!” admitted the female.

“Shoot!”

“Well...” she began not really sure where to start. “Your jerry-rig returned main power. That's something. Main reactor is limited to ten percent by the safeties. For good reason is might add.”

“Okay and?” asked the leader.

"It's not good!" she replied.

"Shoot Lieutenant!"

“If you insist." remarked the female alien. "You will not like it, however. Artificial gravity is toast. We’ll go to zero-G as soon as the buffers run out. The reserve reactor is gone. Main weapons are off-line, as are the secondaries. Battle Shields are history. Nav shields MAY work. Engine nacelle one is somewhere behind us in the wreck. Number two may give us twenty percent. For short bursts. Emergency thrusters, operable. Some of them. FTL is out of the question. Navigation computer is barely functioning. Our emergency beacon had been launched and is beeping fine. On-board comms are done. We are down to hand-held devices. Life support has been shot to bits. We have a dud proton torpedo stuck in our hull. And the toilet seat is up!”

“Well, shit!” summarised the leader in deep thought. He absently hurled his toolbag on the cracked console in front of him. The cockpit started to groan again. Metal was grinding on metal. Both extraterrestrials glanced around nervously. The movement ceased. The aliens let out a sigh of relief.

Barely did they relax they were startled by a long excruciating sound. A metallic grind, followed by a great loud snap from the direction of the rear. Both of them glanced at the holographic picture behind them depicting the space to the rear of the vessel. On it, they saw a shape. A large chunk of debris tumbling in the void. Falling away from the ship. It was very familiar. Just as it was about to disappear into the darkness it lit up with a blinding light.

“I believe that was engine two.” remarked the female.

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Evening had come and gone. By the time Ranma finally got back to the Tendo residence it was close to midnight. He was tired, hungry, and annoyed. Akane’s hammer-blow hit him at just the wrong, or right angle depending on point of view. It certainly helped him in losing his pursuers.

He was launched up into the air and away to the South-West. His destination was Tokyo Bay. Right into an outbound ship. He had one hell of a time explaining it to the captain. He convinced the captain to let him go, but only managed to swim halfway back before he got fished out of the water by the coast guard. They were less understanding. It took him hours to get released.

And of course, there was the way home. He had no money, no nothing. This left him with only one means of travel. Walking and more walking. For a few split seconds, he considered riding the bumpers of a train but with the day as it was he was not about to take chances.

He pulled himself past the front gates of the dojo and into the house itself using a large stick he had found on the way. As he approached the fridge he noticed a small note hanging from the door. On it, he found Kasumi’s neat, orderly handwriting.

“I made sure to leave something for you.” it read. “Remember to heat it up before eating.” A smile came to Ranma’s lips. At least there was one person in the house who cared about his well-being. He opened the fridge expecting a generous serving of leftovers only to come face to face with a few morsels and a note on an otherwise empty plate.

This time around the writing on it was much less refined. Bulky and altogether an eyesore to behold. “Tasted great! Thanks, Kasumi! Genma.”

Ranma’s face went red with anger. “That fat bastard!” he muttered under his breath slamming the fridge shut. “He ate all of it!” he growled. Ranma contemplated charging up the stairs to unleash a surprise sunrise attack of his own making on his father. His stomach expressed its agreement.

Suddenly the shadows of the kitchen were banished by the lights coming on. Ranma whirled around to find Akane at the entrance eyeing him with suspicion. “About time you got back!” she called out. “You done rolling around in bed with your newest toy?” she asked none too kindly.

“You talk as if it wasn’t you who sent me flying!” he responded in a heated tone. “All the way to the sea!” he added. Gone was his tired feeling from earlier. Winning the argument became his priority. “They barely let me back in the country.”

“Really!?” asked the girl approaching him, jabbing a finger into his chest. “Tell me the, why were you making out with Shampoo earlier instead of helping me with Kuno. And how did you hook up ANOTHER FIANCÉ! Have you got no shame!”

“It’s not as if I asked for it!” Ranma yelled back. “You want to know how I ended up with her? Ask my old man!”

“So where were you? I bet you were out flirting!” screamed the girl increasing the volume of the fight, making the residents within the house stir in their sleep.

“Don’t know! Maybe I had to swim back!?” responded Ranma. “You never even listen to me before knocking me into the stratosphere!”

“I do it because you deserve it! You pervert!” yelled Akane. The volume of the argument kept on growing. Some of the neighbors were starting to wake up wondering what was up with the Tendos this time around.

“Says the flat-chested macho chick who is more likely to kill a boy than kiss him!” remarked Ranma sardonically. Akane saw red. She grabbed hold of the nearest heavy object she could find. In this case, it was the kitchen table.

The boy’s smug expression was replaced by that of horror as the weapon was brought to bear. The room and that table, there was no getting away. Even the attempt of dodging was out of the question. With the window closed that route promised to be a messy getaway. The enraged girl prepared for the swing.

“Hey! Wait up! Not in here!”

His pleas fell onto deaf ears. “You JERK!” hollered the female martial artist as she unleashed her spent-up anger. The deal was sealed he was out of there.

The table was hurled at him, much like a whip. The contact between it and her source of anger, namely Ranma, was accompanied by a great crackle. The force behind the blow catapulted the boy through the wall and off into the distance. He left behind one, now half-wrecked, kitchen. The table in her hand. It had shattered.

Akane slowly relinquished her hold on her improvised weapon allowing the abused piece of furniture to fall to the ground. At least what was left of it. The gaping hole in the thick oak tabletop made it a total loss.

Her breathing came in hard puffs as she stared at the form of her fiancé as he flew off into the distance. “There!” she thought. Satisfied. “He got what he deserved.”

Behind her, there was an audible smack. Flesh meeting flesh. It was accompanied by a long groan as one Nabiki Tendo massaged her throbbing temple. “Really little sis!” she exclaimed. “This! Again!”

“Oh my, looks like we’ll have to do some remodeling!” remarked another female voice.