On Sun, 25 Oct 1998, Jurai-Knight wrote:

Quantum Destinies
Chapter 13 - Turning Points

    "Hello," he replied.  "So what are we going to do this session?  
More sparring?"

    "No," said the other Ranma after a moment.  She opened her 
eyes.  "I thought we'd just talk.  I think I'm the only one that you 
_can_ really talk to about things.  So... has life gotten exciting 
enough for you yet?"  She smiled.

Yes.

    "Well, I don't really have much to do when you're awake," 
answered the other Ranma.  "I just sort of fade back into your 
subconscious, since I'm really just part of you now.  Imagine my 
surprise when I found out the _real_ reason why you built that 
Resonator gizmo."  She smiled at him.

To get girls!

    "BZZT!" buzzed the other Ranma with a grin.  "Wrong answer, 
Ranma.  Care to try for double Jeopardy, where the scores can 
really add up?"

And when did MainRanma learn about this?

    The other Ranma darted over and bopped her fist against his 
forehead.  "Idiot!" she cried out.  "Are you being dense on purpose 
again?

Yes.,

have been.  You were _bored_ being a scientist.  Now, you've seen 
how your life could have been as a martial artist, and... you... 
like... it."  She punctuated her statement by poking him in the 
chest with her forefinger after each word.

Well, yeah...

    "That's... ridiculous," said Ranma slowly.  "Your life is _hell_!  
You turn into a girl when splashed with cold water.  You have 
multiple fiancees fighting over you.  Enemies come out of the 
woodwork wanting to grind you into the dirt.  What makes you 
think that I want to live a life like that?"

	He can read your mind, you know.

    "That was Akane's fault!" shouted Ranma.  "She discharged the 
emergency capacitor!  I had no way of knowing that a power 
failure was going to happen!  It's _not_ my fault!"

Hah.

you hoped for something like the accident to happen.  It gave you 
an excuse to stay in my more exciting life.  Am I right?"

eeble.

    "What about Shampoo?  You could have just walked away from 
that.  Isn't she just another slave girl in your world?  You owed 
her nothing."  The other Ranma slowly walked around him as she 
spoke.

    "It wasn't... right," muttered Ranma.  "I had to try.  It's a 
martial artist's duty to... help...."  Ranma looked stunned as he 
thought about what he had just said.  The other Ranma nodded.

But you weren't a martial artist until very recently, were you?

    "Now you understand," said the female Ranma.  "Your life is 
never going to be the same again, and you're secretly glad."

	You'll be even more thrilled when the Nyanniichuan comes!

over to where she was sitting.  Nabiki was frowning.  "When were 
you planning on telling me about Ranma?" asked Nabiki.

"When I announced the wedding date."

    "Tell you what, Sister?" replied Akane innocently.  Nabiki 
looked at Akane with one raised eyebrow.

	"That he's an aquatranssexual..."

    "I spoke to Father this morning," said Nabiki as she slid into a 
seat next to Akane.  "He told me that you called him about 
Ranma.  Why didn't you tell me that he challenged some Arena 
bimbo and lost?"

You didn't ask.

    "Why did Father arrange a marriage meeting between you and 
Ranma without even asking me if I had an interest in him?" softly 

	Because your father has more than one functioning brain cell. 

    "What?" asked Nabiki, no longer bothering to hide her surprise.  
"You've always hated Ranma.  You thought he was a weakling, 
and you've said so at dinner many times.  You always seemed to 
enjoy picking on him, and beating him up whenever it suited your 
fancy.  Why the sudden about face?"

	I got horny, sis!

    "That was before I saw him fight," said Akane in a slightly 
breathless tone.  "Oh, Nabiki, you can't know what it's like for me!  
None of the boys can beat me in a fight anymore.  I'm faster and 
more skilled than any of them.  How could I ever be interested in 
a guy who can't stand up to me?"

Well, there goes the Gosunkugi solution...

    "Didn't you beat him unconscious just a few days ago?" asked 
Nabiki.  "How could you still think he was anything special after 
that?"

	It was the *way* he collapsed...

had just been thrown for a loop.  Akane could be incredibly 
stubborn when she wanted to be.  Still, something could possibly 
be salvaged from this situation.

Money.

    "Well, I have first pick in these situations since I'm older than 
you," said Nabiki in a reasonable tone of voice.  "I'm sure that I 
can help Father find you someone.  My interests in Ranma go far 
beyond simply how good he is with his fists.  If a fighter is what 
you want, then I'm sure that something can be arranged."

Not Tarou!  Nooo!

    Akane slammed her fist on the table, causing her bowl to jump.  
She glared at Nabiki.  "I have a fight scheduled with _Ranma_ in 
less than three weeks!  If _he_ beats me, then he's going to marry 
_me_!"  A few of their classmates looked in curiosity in their 
direction.

Come again?  That wasn't the conditions I remember...

                    ******************************

    Kodachi had just walked into the cafeteria when Akane made 
her announcement.  An expression of surprise appeared on her 
face.  *Who does Akane Tendo think she is, some sort of Chinese 
Amazon? 

	No more Amazon mating customs for you, young lady!]

 She's not worthy of a man like Ranma Saotome, so it 

looks like it's up to me to see that she doesn't get him.*  She sent a 
brief glare at Akane's back before sitting down to eat.  A smile 
was on her face as a brief fantasy about Ranma floated across her 
mind a moment later.

	It involved a tub of whipped cream and hot wax...

voice as she replied to her sister.  "Akane... Ranma has to get 
himself out of the Arena before he can keep his fight appointment 
with you.  When he does that, I fully intend to be waiting with 
Father to greet him.  Ranma has qualities that will be excellent for 
furthering my career."

	Gullibility...

    Akane grabbed Nabiki by the front of her uniform with her left 
hand while cocking back a fist with her right.  "Ranma is going to 
show me how much of a man he is when I fight him," said Akane 

	Even if he does do it as a girl...

softly.  "If he manages to defeat me in a fight, then _I_ intend to 
be the woman that he marries.  Don't get in my way, Nabiki.  If it 
comes to a fight between us, then you're going to lose.  You 
should know that you're no match for me.

	And no simulator is going to make you one!
	"I am so a good pilot!  I've spent hours on the simulators!"
	"And?"
	"And enough with the simulators, I want a real man!"

    "We'll see who isn't a match for who when this is all over, 
Akane," whispered Nabiki.  "I fully intend to be the one to win."

	tch.  Let the wookie win, Nabiki...

    They stood now at the base of Mount Phoenix.  Herb took a 
deep breath.  *The first stage of my revenge is within my grasp,* 
she thought with a smile as she gazed upwards at the mountain.  
Lime and Mint tried not to stare at her chest but failed.  Herb 
chose to ignore her companions' idiocy this one time.  Besides, 
she was getting tired of beating them up.

	Ah, air support.  Smart move.

    "Uhm," muttered Mint as he looked around.  "How do we do 
that?"

	We look for the big sign that says "Go Away!  No One Here but Us 
Chickens!" 

    Herb looked at the sky as if seeking strength from the gods.  
Her lips moved as if she was muttering obscenities of some sort.  
*Why am I cursed to have only idiots for followers?* she thought 
angrily.

Because they killed everyone with a brain early in the testing.

    After Jun Fan Lee had left, Director Sasaki contemplated his 
options.  *The Master will need to be informed of this particular 

"The Master"?  Uh-oh.

    "Jun Fan Lee has just left," stated the Director.  "He expressed 
interest in training one of my fighters.  Should I allow this?"

Yes.

    "Allow it," suddenly commanded the Master.  A rumbling 
laugh was heard over the line.  "This interests me greatly.  
Prepare for my arrival in ten days time.  I have been curious about 
this Ranma Saotome since the telecast of his fight.  He claims to 
be a practitioner of a dead school of martial arts.  I find this to 

Oops.  Happi didn't make it, hmm?

be... deliciously intriguing.  If he is indeed a practitioner of the 
Anything-Goes School, then nothing would please me more than 
to turn him to my cause.  Shadowlaw can always use another 
capable warrior."

"Shadowlaw"?  It's official, this is a crossover...

place, as shown by the memory transferal effect.  That the device 
worked was simply unquestioned, but Ranma may have only been 
lucky since he had been operating under a false assumption.

oops/.

dimensional coil.  That possibility frightened Genma somewhat, 
but his scientific curiosity was intrigued.  With such a technology 
at its disposal, then the potential for learning and advancement 
from the sharing of ideas between timelines was immeasurable.  

Not to mention the harm...

Ranma's Quantum Resonator technology may have been only the 
most basic application of Genma's own theories.  Once a timeline 
developed it, then it was conceivable that a method of physical 
travel could also be developed.

    *Indeed,* thought Genma with wonder, *there might be 
timelines that have _already_ developed it.*

Uhoh...

    Ranma peeked into the kitchen and then grinned.  Shampoo 
was cooking something on the stove, and it smelled really good.  
He still couldn't believe how lucky he was to own a beauty like 

Oh, band Four or Five?  I forget.  You may want to Band-stamp these a bit 
better...

    His brief blackout before the slave auction must have been due 
to his excitement.  His father had not noticed anything wrong, and 
Ranma had apparently responded to him normally.  They had 

Well, except for calling him "Pop".

gone to the pre-auction inspection, and that was when he had seen 
_her_.  Even with her hands manacled together, she had looked 
like a princess.  He knew that he had to have her.  His father had 
tried to interest him in some less-expensive girls, and one Korean 
girl had rivaled Shampoo in beauty.  However, his mind was made 
up.

	Mina Li misses again...

stories that the Chinese Amazons were trained in kung fu.  Ranma 
hoped that she was pretty good.  *It might be nice to have a live-
in sparring partner to practice with.  I'll have to go easy on her 
though, since she's just a girl.*

idjit.

    He was the first of his friends to own a female slave, and he 
was the envy of his fellow male Academy cadets.  His friend Ryuu 

!?  Surprise!

was already making plans to purchase one.  He had shown Ranma 
some photos of the types of girls available from the American 
Prefectures.  Ryuu had long been fascinated by them.  The girls in 
fringed buckskin were sort of interesting, but Ranma was sure that 
a girl like Shampoo would be able to satisfy him for a long time.

Permanently...

    There had been an unexpected problem with Akane Tendo.  As 
captain of the Male Martial Arts Club at the Academy, he had 
developed a semi-friendly rivalry situation with Akane.  She was, 
after all, the captain of the Female Martial Arts Club.  He had 
never thought of her in a romantic way, but she had apparently 
seen things differently.  When he had been showing pictures of 
Shampoo around, she had gotten angry at him, hit him, and 
stormed off.

	Gee, it seems to be an automatic response...

    *Forget about Akane Tendo,* he thought with a grin.  *Just 
_look_ at the body that Shampoo has.*  He went back to ogling 
her form from his position in the doorway.

And that's all you;ll be able to do too, fanboy.

to the next hour.  He hadn't been able to concentrate on his 
morning classes because today was going to be the day that he 
became a man.

Oops, used wrong bath water, sorry Ranma!

have a girl to help around the house with the chores.  Shampoo 
did any chore that she was asked to do, and she seemed to like 
Ranma's mother.  Nodoka had even taken her shopping for some 
second-hand clothes that would be appropriate for the new 
addition to the Saotome household.

Hmm...

had seemed fascinated by the family dojo out back.  Ranma had 
shown off some of his moves, and noticed she had watched him 
with an interested expression.  He felt that things were 

"Shampoo can do better."

kill before he had to be back for afternoon classes.  Shampoo was 
humming a tune that he didn't recognize as she cooked.  While he 

	"Men are Good for Nothing," an old Amazon favorite.

    The tarp covering the rear of the truck was flipped back, and 
Per Fum found herself eyeing several young men armed with 
rifles.  All of them were Japanese, and they looked pleased to see 
her.  Per Fum got a strange sense of worry at the way that some of 
the men were looking at her.  No man in the village would have 
_dared_ to look at a warrior of her caliber with such expressions.  
To see it on outsiders was rather disconcerting.

But I thought you 8wanted* men to like you?

    "<Your papers are not in order,>" said the soldier to Per Fum.  
A few of the guards raised their rifles into a ready position.  "<If 
you would please step out of the truck for a few minutes, then I'm 
sure that we can clear this up.>"  He gestured for Per Fum to get 
out of the truck.  She looked at Khu Lon for guidance.  Khu Lon 
simply stared back without moving.  The Matriarch's eyes were 
glinting slightly.

These men are dead.

    "<It will take as long as it takes, Miss,>" said the soldier 

Not to worry, I rarely manage more than two minutes before climaxing...

mats were rolled up against the walls.  The guard commander sat 
down at the desk near the front.  He pulled out a package of 
cigarettes and offered her one.

They smelled funny.

    "<What does _that_ have to do with my travel papers?>" asked 
Per Fum, sounding a little flustered.

	I want to see if you really do have a heart-shaped birthmark."

    "<I have to make sure that you're not smuggling drugs or other 
contraband items,>" said the man smoothly.  He left one hand 
resting on the pistol while he took puffs from his cigarette with 
the other one.  "<I have also been curious to see what an Amazon 
looked like unclothed.  Strip!  Now!>"

	Should've just bought Amazon Naturist Magazine...

    Mu Tsu eyed the men surrounding the truck.  It would be no 
great difficulty to kill five or six of them before they could open 
fire.  The remaining six would be a little more challenging, but it 
was still quite doable.  He mentally tallied the bladed weapons 
concealed on his person.  If they did end up having to kill the 
guards, then it must be made to look as much like random bandits 
as possible.  Once he had decided on his strategies, he diverted 
some of his attention back to fantasizing about his beloved Xian 
Pu.

Uh-ohh.  this Mousse is seriously dangerous...

*These outsider men are so weak,* she thought with derision.  
*Even the weakest of our adult men is tougher than this one.*

And Win Pi has terminal asthma~!

    "<Throw yourself to the floor when I give the word, Pei Mei,>" 
said Khu Lon softly.  "<I fear that Mu Tsu and I may be forced to 
kill these stupid outsider men in a few moments.>"

oops.

    "<I will drag the bodies into the barracks, Matriarch,>" said 
Mu Tsu.  "<We could burn the bodies along with the building.  
Should I strip them and make it look like some sort of bandit 
ambush?>"

Damn, he's good.

    He put his arms around her and Shampoo's posture suddenly 
stiffened.  "What Ranma doing?" she asked in a serious voice.

	Being an idiot.

moment.  He had never expected her to attack him.  He looked up 
in shock as Shampoo looked down at him angrily.  *She decked 
me!* he thought, with surprise evident on his face.

	Duh!

    "Read contract!" Shampoo commanded him while he was 
laying on the ground.  "Shampoo not allow kiss unless Ranma 
defeat Shampoo in single combat!  Shampoo Amazon warrior!  
Ranma read contract!"

But it's in chinese...

    *What did she mean by reading her contract?* he wondered 
with a frown.  *Isn't it a standard slave ownership contract?*

No.  While you're at it, I'd recommend rereading 8carefully* in that new 
martial arts technique book.
 > 

    "<Hello, ladies,>" said the young pilot with a smile.  "<Is there 
anything that I might do for you?>"  Per Fum felt his eyes linger 
on her longer than she felt was necessary, but she did nothing.

You can die.

    "<We require passage to Japan,>" replied Khu Lon.  "<How far 
East would you be able to take us?>"

Poughkeepsie, maybe...

    "<Well, there are a lot of pilots that hang out in Shanghai,>" 
replied the young pilot as he put the cap back on his head.  
"<Most of the best ones in the region can be found there.  You 
should be able to find an independent charter that could take you 
to Tokyo, or wherever it is that you have to go.>"

Avoid the ones who aren't actually standing upright in the bar...

    "<Well, I have to drop this mail off at the postal drop for the 
local carrier to pick up,>" said the pilot.  "<It was a light run this 
time, so I don't have any cargo to unload, just the mail.  I assume 
that the local garrison commander has already checked your 
paperwork?>"

yes, and a few other things...

    "<You don't need to see our paperwork,>" said Khu Lon in a 
soothing tone of voice.

    "<I... don't need to see your paperwork,>" said the man with a 
slightly confused voice.

Oh, boo...

    "<How did you do that, Matriarch?>" asked Per Fum.  Wonder 
was on her face.  She had never seen anything like that before.

    "<The Suggestion Point,>" answered Khu Lon with a smile.  
"<It has a strong influence on the weak-minded, like that one.  A 
stronger will would be unaffected and aware of it being used.  I 
would not be able to use it on any reasonably competent martial 
artist, for example.  It's a parlor trick that is occasionally useful, 
no more.>"

	"The Force is strong in this one..."

    Per Fum made a brief squawk of protest before moving to help 
with the luggage.  She eyed the plane that she was going to be 
spending the next several hours riding in.  She sighed.  *It doesn't 
look like I'm going to be comfortable for this entire trip.*

Nope.

    *It was all so simple,* Soun thought as he placed a fresh 
cigarette between his lips and lit it.  *I'm surprised that I didn't 
see it myself.  Leave it to Nabiki to see opportunity in the most 
unlikely places.*  Ranma's Arena contract could be bought out 
through the penalty clause, so there was no reason why Soun 
himself couldn't do so.  He smiled as he leaned back in his seat.  It 
would deplete the family assets a bit, but he felt that it would be 
well worth it in the long run.

	Mr. Tendou, meet Shadowlaw.

    *If you lose in the Arena, Ranma Saotome, then your contract 
will be mine.  You'll make Nabiki a wonderful husband.*  Soun 
smiled.

Schmuck.

    It read, "Be it known that an Amazon of the Joketsuzoku 
village is only required to give herself to a man who has defeated 
her in single combat.  Be it also known that resistance against 
such advances is protected under Imperial law pursuant to the 
Treaty of Surrender signed between the Empire of Japan and the 
Joketsuzoku Amazons."

Yay!

    Ranma frowned.  *Father is not going to be happy that I got 
beaten up by a girl.  I think that I'm going to pass on classes today 
and go try out my experiment downstairs.  It will give me 
something else to think about.*  He headed for the stairs to the 
basement.  He noticed Shampoo was still doing her exercises in 
the dojo outside.

	"I wonder if stun guns count?"

                    ******************************
practice time."  Ranma felt it was his destiny that called him to 
work down here in the coolness.  He was certain that his theories 
were correct, and that his invention would revolutionize the 
Empire.  The chokehold on space travel that the French had 
managed to maintain would be broken when Ranma achieved his 
goal, the creation of an anti-gravity field.

Uh-oh.

with a smile as he eyed his equipment.  *Prepare to make 
history.*

As the first man to be turned inside out...and live.

    He got up from his chair and approached the distortion area.  It 
was almost perfectly circular, and it rippled as if it was alive.  He 
walked around behind it and it looked identical to the front, a 
rippling circle of bluish energy suspended in midair.  A big grin 
came across Ranma's face.  *This should be a region of neutral 
gravity.  I wonder what would happen if I stepped into it?*

Don't do it, it's a Slider!

    His experiment was a failure.

Define failure.

	Okay, now the question is, where did he end up?
	Band Sixteen:  He's gonna be kind of surprised when he comes out 
of the basement and discovers his mother hasn't seen him in ten 
years...and that slavery is illegal, and he's already defeated 
Shampoo...and there's another Ranma in the locality.  Not to mention all 
those enemies...
	Band America:  Well, since the Ranma of that world is safely over 
in the US, all SliderRanma has to deal with is the fact that the house is 
owned by a completely different family.
	Band Two:  We didn't see what Ranma was up to in the "solo 
Nabiki" world, so who knows?
	Band One:  Worst case scenario.  Since the Tendou family *knows* 
Ranma is dead/escaped, the presence of a live Ranma is just filled with 
neat potential for them to torture out of him.  (And somehow3 i don't 
think this Ranma is as tough mentally as B1Ranma...)
	Band Zero:  This Ranma gets to be the one who meets Ukyou, 
etc...could be very amusing...


SKJAM!