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From: "DB Sommer" <sommer@3rdm.net>
To: "Jurai Knight" <jurai-knight@home.com>
Cc: <ffml@fanfic.com>
Subject: Re: [FFML][R1/2][fanfic] Quantum Destinies 9
Date: Mon, 28 Jun 1999 11:47:54 -0400
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Yea!  Public comment!  ^_^

I am in the process of migrating my stuff to a brand new computer system,
so I am catching up on my private email replies to this section as quickly
as I can.  Please bear with me.

Chapter 9 - The Rules of Engagement

        If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not
        fear the result of a hundred battles.  If you know
        yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained
        you will also suffer a defeat.

                            Sun Tzu "The Art of War"

% Appropriate enough. Here's another quote he made that's not quite as
famous:

'Are you kidding? I was drunk when I wrote that crap. Don't tell me anyone
took it seriously.'

--Sun Tzu, after recovering from a month long drinking binge only to
discover the manuscript he wrote during that time had somehow found its
way to print.
%

Heh.  That actually makes sense in a Ranma-esque world.  ^_^

see the clock
without his glasses.  He prayed that he could get another few hours of
sleep, and he wondered once again if he might not have made some sort of
miscalculation in coming home to his 'wife'.

% A bit late for recriminations, isn't it?

True, but getting out of that chaos was his primary goal.  Home seemed
like a 'safe bet.'

was content.  The love of her life had returned to her, changed by his
time on the road, matured into the man she always hoped he could be,

% porked out with an additional sixty pounds of weight.

Judging by the way he's drawn, I'd say so.

fantasy, and he
would have to deal with this Nodoka, not his own wife.  A lump formed in
his throat as he worried about his own Nodoka.  She would not suspect
that a stranger now slept in their bed.

% Sort of like this Nodoka is doing now

Yeah, but he sees his other self more negatively.

That concern had been partly
responsible for his restless night, and the other part had been the
great temptation given him, to forget his own troubles for a time with
the obviously willing woman at his side.  He could still picture the
disappointed look on her face when he refused her as gently as he was
able to as they went to bed.

% Good luck on managing that a second time. She does have a katana in the
house, you know. ^_^

Prof. Saotome: Now, dear, put down that sword.  Of course I still find you
attractive.   ^_^

and Genma had found himself unable to relax.  Sooner or later, he would
have to give in to her ardorous demands, and that foregone conclusion
raised an interesting philosophical question: would that be considered
adultery?

% That's true. It's not like he is not sleeping with Nodoka Soatome, it's
just not 'his' Nodoka Saotome.

Exactly.

   Meanwhile, Ranma slept the sleep of the blessed.  His eyes had
closed the moment his head hit the pillow.  However, instead of being
awake and agitated like his father, the pig-tailed boy foundered in the
sea of someone else's dreams and memories.

% Or two 'someone's' in his case.

There are also bits and pieces of more, too.   ^_^

   Troubled by the disturbing images all night long, the young man's
dreams verged on nightmares.  Some were scenes that, almost, reflected
his own past, yet verged disturbingly at seemingly random points.  In
one, he and his father ran from Shampoo all the way from her home
village to the Tendou home.  The reason being that the young Amazon had
to kill the 'girl' that defeated her in front of her village.  But, in
yet another sequence, he defeated her while in male form in the Tendou
home, and she then declared that he was her husband.  It continued as
Shampoo, Akane, Ukyo, and even Kodachi all fought to be his bride.

   However, after a brief period of respite in his dreams, the images
changed in his slumbering mind.  Now Ranma found himself caught up in
vivid scenes of a very different type with Shampoo, beginning with the
two of them locked into a passionate embrace.  He felt both of her
callused hands caressing his body as he returned the favor upon her own,
a softly-whispered 'Airen' repeated into his ear as she nuzzled at his
neck.  The dream quickly turned far more erotic and intense, images
swiftly crossing his mind of another life with Shampoo, the two of them
married and loving each other with all of their being.

% Whoo boy. This guy is going to be having problems. ^_^

Things will be changing from the baseline setup, after the drastic alteration
that Genma and Ranma (when he was inhabiting S1/2 Ranma) have done.

Expect to see more of this world over time, as Prof. Saotome tries to rebuild
a life that he had no part in creating.  ^_^

% I wonder if he'll try to build his own Nuku-Nuku as well.

Hmmm... getting the parts might be a tad difficult in this timeline.

darkness where he was, or
even who he was.  His breathing was hard and panting, as if having just
run a marathon, and his manhood was very solidly erect.

% Along with the wet spot on his sheets. ^_^

Heh.

oddly distant, as if he was watching someone else doing them.  He could
see all of his actions and remember every event now, but that was all
that he could recall of them.  None of his thoughts or feelings were
available to him, like he had been some sort of a marionette on strings.

% An appropriate comparison, since that is basically what he was.

Exactly.

***** Earth  0.000,0.000

   Hikaru Gosunkugi

% Well now, we haven't seen him in a while.

Voodoo Boy will be making his presence felt from time to time now as he
plots, plans, and schemes.

walked quietly within that region of the Mobius
Institute known as 'The Stacks'.  This place was where many of the
various books and tomes on all things mysterious and magical were kept
for reference use by its agents, except for the powerful and dangerous
ones.

% The Necronomicon. The Darkhold. How to Become a Politician. Nothing but
pure evil.

Especially the last.  ^_^

Each of those codices were kept very securely locked up and
spell-warded in the vault, accessible only with permission of Director
Kasuga himself.

% And the janitor, of course. Janitors have the keys to everything.

Probably true.  Ever wonder what the janitors might be like here?

   The smell of old paper and preservative agents permeated the air in
this section of the Institute, but Gosunkugi ignored the odd odors as he
poked among the various books, seeking some means for exacting revenge
upon that 'pure-bred' bitch that Ranma has

% had

oops.

on his leash, Kodachi Kunou.

% I didn't know Gos was aware of her attraction for Ranma.

Oh yeah, I think I even had him comment on it, since the fight was over
Ranma.

If he could hurt the girl Ranma 'loves'

% 'loved' would be better, I think.

I think you are right.

for hurting the woman of his
dreams, poetic justice would be served.

% Yeah, but Gos isn't much of a poet.
% I guess that also means he's targeting her instead of Ranma.
Interesting.

He's after both of them, but Kodachi was the girl who actually hit his
'love goddess'.

So the young esper had gotten
up well before dawn to have peace and quiet during his search.  The
population of magic-wielders working for the Institute was composed of
many notoriously late-risers who preferred to do their studying at
night,

% Naturally.

Geeks who can do magic.  ^_^

so he felt reasonably assured of solitude as he searched for the
instrument of his vengeance.  He was perusing an index when a finger
poked him in the back.

% An index finger? ^_^

Heh.

   "Ahhh!" cried Gosunkugi, certain he had just lost a dozen years off
of his life.  The older cadets often told stories of the creatures that
were rumored to wander around loose through the lower halls (aside from
the elderly Director Kasuga), and he was certain that one of them had
just come for him.

% Yes. It was Beelzabubba, the Cabbage Demon. An evil side-order of
Lucifer's.

Hmmm...

   "Gotcha," snickered a female voice behind him.

   Gosunkugi whirled around, clutching the index book to his chest like
a shield, to see a girl who was quite familiar to him standing there and
looking very smug.  She was currently dressed in the white and red robes
of a Shinto shrine maiden, and a somewhat thick pair of glasses perched
on her snub nose, giving her a more mature look.  Her lustrous, tawny
hair was tied back into a loose ponytail.

   "M-Minami-chan," stuttered Gosunkugi when he recognized the young
ghost sweeper

% Hey! I know her. ^_^

I would hope so.  ^_^

standing where he had been certain a fiend from the lower
pits of Hell would be.

% Given her temper, he might be better off with one. ^_^

It's a close call.  I picture her as being like a brunette Lina Inverse at
times, after some of her responses in Shampoo 1/2.

"What's the big idea, scaring me like that?"

    "Oh, Gos-kun," said Minami sarcastically, "you are such an easy
target."  She smiled brightly at him, pushing a lock of loose hair back
behind one ear.  "What brings you down here this early in the morning?"

   "Research," mumbled Gosunkugi.

   "What was that?" asked Minami, wondering when he was going to ask
her about the changes to her appearance.  Feeling a little hurt and
annoyed by his lack of perception, she turned so that he could better
see her.

% A boob job?

Sort of.

   "Just some research," said Gosunkugi more clearly.  The small lie he
had worked out in advance came easily to his lips, so it was unfortunate
that she had a spell of Lie Detection on him.

% That's a bit awkward. How about something like.

'...lips. Unfortunately for him, she had cast a spell of Lie Detection on
him. He missed her eyebrows raise in curiosity at the lie as she wacthed
him even more closely.

% or something like that. That's all I could come up with for right now.

Ah, thanks.  I will change it for the true 'final' version.  ^_^

"I'm falling a bit behind
in one of my courses here at the Institute,

% It's called, 'Tenticle Demons: How Multiple Appendages Can Help You Make
Friends.'

ROFL!

so I'm looking for some more
reading material."  A brief fantasy of enchanting Akane Tendou into his
arms rose unbidden to his mind, so he failed to notice that the young
ghost sweeper was twirling a lock of her hair and now looking more
crossly at him.  "So, uhm, what brings you here this morning?  I thought
your first class wasn't until nine?"

% Dyed her hair?

Kind of...

   "I was doing some early reading before classes when I happened to
notice you back here," replied Minami, briefly wondering what his real
purpose here was, even as her finger tucked her hair back into place.
*For a telepath, he certainly doesn't make it easy on a girl,* she
thought, mildly exasperated with the thin boy.  *I spent over two hours
yesterday with that book on cosmetic sorcery, and the idiot hasn't even
noticed.*

% Heh. Facelifts without the stretchmarks. Is the effect permenant or
temporary?

I am thinking temporary.  More permanent changes might lead to nasty
side-effects.  I thought it gives this version an interesting twist from the
'original'.

any Institute resources for personal reasons was very much against the
rules, and it could result in severe penalties if it was learned that he
had done so.  He also felt wary due to the intense looks that she was
giving him, as if she expected him to do something, and he wasn't doing
it.

% Ghost sweeper or not, still a typical woman.

Of course.

   "Hikaru Gosunkugi," said Minami finally in irritation, "aren't you
going to say anything about my appearance?  I'm trying out a new look,
and you have yet to say a single word about it."

   "Uh-uhm," stammered Gosunkugi, caught flat-footed by her accusation.
He was doing a good imitation of an animal surprised by the headlights
of an oncoming car.

% Appropriate, since if he doesn't get the message soon, she might conjure
one up and hit him with it.

Could be.

   "You might be interested in knowing that I am going to be attending
the Academy alongside you and Kasuga-sempai,"

% Weee! Even more havoc and chaos on the way.

It's getting there.  ^_^

   *Girls,* thought Gosunkugi, confused by what had just happened to
him.  He liked Minami, but the young ghost sweeper was often an enigma
to him, and she wasn't nearly as interesting to him as Akane Tendou.

% Wouldn't be Ranma 1/2 if she was.

Yeah, everyone wants Akane.   ^_^

distance and paused for a moment.  Then, with a final surge, the book
leaped clear of the shelf, falling free of the volumes to either side of
it, and plummeted the short distance to whack Hikaru Gosunkugi squarely
on the top of his head.

% It was: 'How to Pick Up Chicks' by a Captain D'Amour. Truly no more evil
book existed.

Just having it will earn you the death sentence in a hundred counties.  ^_^

   The sunken-eyed youth collapsed to the ground, stunned by the
unexpected impact.  After a moment, he shook his head, stared at the
book resting in his lap, and almost heard it purring there.

% Book: I'm just an innocent book. Really. Read me and your soul won't be
damned or anything.

Of course not.  ^_^

   When Gosunkugi saw these words, he began to chuckle softly.  Then
the chuckles slowly became louder and more menacing, until he broke off
into a fit of coughing.

% Heh. Ruining the effect all right. Good ole' Gos.

Yep.

After catching his breath, he whispered, "Soon,
Ranma Saotome, I shall destroy that bitch of a noblewoman, and then you.
Prepare to face the doom I shall prepare for you."  He could hardly wait
to start reading the book.

% The first words upon it were, 'I will not eat green eggs and ham.'

Hmmm...

and quickly slipping
it on as he walked, Ranma left his room and quietly paced the distance
to his parent's room.  His ears detected some faint sounds as he drew
nearer to it

% Well, since his mother is downstairs, we know what sound it isn't. ^_^

Yeah.  I might get lynched if I do too much with the Nodoka/Genma
scenes.   ^_^

even as a stray thought occurred to him as he paused
outside the door.

% Ranma: Would I look pretty in a red dress?

Heh

He would have to leave soon if he was going to make
his scheduled appointment for the duel with Nabiki.

   *I guess the old fool is learning the effects of an alcohol binge on
a body that isn't prepared for it,*

% Ah, so it is 'those' kind of sounds. There has been more than one
occasion when I was worshipping the porcelin god, so I can sympathsize.

Yeah, some mild alcohol poisoning.   ^_^

   Inside the bedroom, Genma rolled over on his futon and sincerely
wished that he was dead.  The din caused by Nodoka's movements in the
room a short while ago had set off a pounding in his head worse than
anything that Happosai had ever caused him.

% I know that feeling. It's the elves in your head pounding on the inside
with their little pick-axes.

That's one way to describe it.

   The early morning sun caught Genma squarely in the face,

% turning him into ashes

He wishes.  ^_^

affected him as
badly as it had.  For decades, he had rigorously conditioned his body to
consume very large quantities of liquor without suffering any lingering
effects.

% Genma: I am not a lush. A true martial artist must be prepared for when
enemies might force alcohol down his throat and try to inebriate him. It's
training, I'm telling you.

The scary thing is that I can see Genma saying that.

Now, he felt like his head was an anvil being used to forge
sword blades for an army, and he wished that he felt well enough to wipe
the smug expression from the boy's face.

% No. In order for him to do that, Ranma would have to be drunk and Genma
would have to be sober.

At the very least.

   "You aren't really my father, and you aren't really dying," said
Ranma coldly.  He reached down and hauled Genma up by his lapels.  "You
really don't want to test me, old man.  I know the troubles that you've
caused in the past, and you aren't going to do it here.

% Yeah, right. I'll take that bet. This is Genma. He can have you up to
your neck in crap within a week.

If that long.  ^_^

This is a whole
new world, and you don't know the rules.  I'm not the same sort of Ranma
that you're used to dealing with, and I'm far more intelligent than that
ignorant jock you raised."

% Oh, good one, Ranma. Why don't you just put the 'kick me' sign on your
back.

Arrogance, thy name is Ranma.   ^_^

   Genma groaned as the room whirled, and his stomach made disturbing
noises.  It appeared that Ranma was already on to him, and he hastily
began to try and come up with some sort of backup plan,

% Try throwing up on his feet. That should make him leave and give you
some time.

I'd say so.

   "How dare you speak to me this way, you lazy boy?" scolded Genma.
"You should be grateful to have me around now.  My example will make a
real man out of you, not some pathetic scribe like you've been so far,
and I can teach you many things that this other Genma never knew."

% You know, I almost feel sorry for the poor, deluded fool.

Almost?  I'm actually getting some sympathy for Genma in how I write him?
Wow.

   "Like what?  How to dodge out of a bar bill?"

% Genma: Among other things.

Another Genma-ism.   ^_^

   Genma kept talking without appearing to notice, "Face it!  You're
just a punk kid playing dress up in that outfit, but I can make you the
real thing.  I can make you into a real martial artist, even better than
that ungrateful boy I used to call my son.  How does that sound... son?"

% Heh. Actually a pretty good offer there. That's exactly what the other
two versions of him in his mind would think of him.

A true Faustian offer from one of the more hated father figures in anime.

   "You aren't worth it," said Ranma in disgust, partially at his own
loss of control, partially in shame at feeling tempted by the offer.  He
turned to leave, pausing for a moment to say, "And don't you even think
about trying anything with my mother."

% Of course, she might try something with him. ^_^

True.

   "Hello?  Fuyutsuki-san?  Genma Saotome here.  I have something I
wish to discuss with you...."

% This bodes ill.

It does indeed.

   Nodoka sighed.  Genma had come home stinking drunk last night, and
it was the first time that she could recall ever seeing him in such a
condition.  Even at the celebration party after their marriage, he had
remained very sober, and his strong sense of self-control had always
been one of the things that had attracted her to him.

% Heh. Good luck. This one is pretty much a hedonist.

Yep.

She set the tray
of tea down and knelt by his side.

   "Genma dearest," Nodoka said softly.  She heard him groan under the
covers while she poured some hot tea into a cup.  It was a special blend
that her mother had always used whenever her father was recuperating

>from one of his occasional drinking bouts.

% Paprika, crushed jalepeno peppers, and gunpowder. It either sobered you
up or killed you. Either way the hangover would go away.

Sounds like the drink in Back to the Future III.

   When the herbal concoction hit his system, Genma sat straight up,
and his eyes went wide.  He blinked rapidly, and he felt like someone
had just stuck a firehose in his mouth and turned on the water full
force.  All of the remaining pains of his hangover were experienced in a
single, blinding instant, rather than gradually over a period of time.

% I assume she made certain there were no sharp objects within reach.

Of course.  ^_^

   Genma swallowed the tea, and his eyes only bulged a little at the
reaction it caused in his body this time.  Seeing Nodoka's unforgiving
eyes upon him, he meekly held out the cup for a refill.  He drank down
six more cups of tea before the pot was empty.  By the time he was done,
he felt almost normal.

% He will also feel like going to the bathroom. ^_^

Yep.

   "Now, will you tell me whatever made you make such a disgusting
spectacle of yourself last night?" asked Nodoka calmly.  She took the
empty teacup from his hand, set it on the tray, then waited with folded
arms for his answer.

   Genma felt that lying would be a prudent course of action right now,

% He got that right.

Sometime ya gotta go with your instincts.

   "Nodoka-chan?" said Genma, beginning to panic, visions of a sword
taking his head filling his mind for a moment.

% Heh. Wrong world.

Well, we haven't seen this Nodoka really mad, yet.   ^_^

   "I want you to listen to me well, Dearest," said Nodoka, her voice
sounding like plush velvet covering a steel gauntlet.  "I know that you
have not been happy with the thought of Ranma becoming engaged at his
age,

% Nonononono. That was the other Genma. This one will engage his son to
anything on two feet as long as he feels he can get something out of the
deal.

Precisely.  Feel sorry for Ranma.  His life is going to get a whole lot more
difficult soon.

   Genma blinked in surprise, but the kiss was unexpectedly arousing.
It had been a very long time for him, and now that his headache was
gone, he felt up to other activities.  Ranma's recent warning was
already forgotten as he pulled Nodoka in for a deeper kiss, an act that
apparently surprised her.

% Oh dear.

Well, it was not unexpected, I would hope.

   Tiger yawned much like her feline namesake, blinking sleepily as her
jade-green, slit-pupilled eyes adjusted to the early morning sunlight
streaming in through the window.  Her tapering, cat-like ears perked
forward as she smiled upwards at her 'Kinnousuke-sama'.  She was wearing
a sheer silk teddy in deep blue, because she knew that he liked seeing
that color on her.

% And that there were occasions when he liked to wear it instead.

Heh.

preferring to focus
his mind on his plans for his conquering of Nabiki and her organization
to the exclusion of much else, but this morning was a different matter.
He had not played with any of his toys for a number of days now, and his
body was telling him that it had been long enough.

% Kinnosuke: Tiger, fetch me my building blocks. My body tells me it is
time to play with my toys.

Heh.

   "Kinnousuke-sama," purred Tiger, her passions feeding on her love
for him and growing more and more intense.  Subliminal programs awoke in
the depths of her mind, and her hands began moving to touch certain
shiatsu pressure points on his body, those which would enhance sensual
excitement in the human male.  She felt his hands moving slowly about
her body, and a sigh of bliss escaped her lips.  Her ears rotated back
in pleasure as she sat up, her legs straddling his waist, and her hands
continued to probe around his torso.

% I see that they are programmed well. ^_^

Top of the line models.   ^_^

   As he hovered on the brink of his own release, Kinnousuke lost
himself in the fantasies his mind conjured up by the motions of their
two joined bodies, and he passionately whispered, "Oh, Nabiki-chan...."

% Whoops! Someone isn't going to be too happy now.

That's putting it mildly.  One catgirl scorned about to appear.

   Anger soured the sweetness of the intense sensual pleasures once
again washing through Tiger's body a second time, but her programmed
responses judged that her master was at the right point to let her send
him off the edge into his own climax.

% Hmm. Can't turn off her programming even when angry, too bad for her.

As physically powerful as they are, it's a necessary safeguard.

   *Damn you to hell, Nabiki Tendou,* thought Tiger angrily, even as
she felt her beloved's body slowly calming beneath her.  *Tearing down
your precious organization will be a pleasure, and I swear I will see
you brought low before Kinnousuke-sama.  However, I do hope it is after
intense resistance on your part.*  A wicked smile crossed her lips as
she gently moved herself off of her master, gathering up her clothes in
an idle fashion and pulling on her yukata.  *Please resist me with all
your might, so that I can have the pleasure of shattering your will even
as my fists break your body.*

% That first confrontation with the cat-girls is going to be nasty.

Quite.

   Unaware of the thoughts running through Tiger's mind as he absently
watched her dress, Kinnousuke was enjoying the pleasant afterglow of his
recent activities, endorphins now running strong throughout his body.
He studied Tiger, picturing Nabiki's face atop the catgirl's exquisitely
toned shape, and smiled.

% Yeesh. What a slimball.

Thank you.  ^_^

   "Good morning, Kinnousuke-sama," said the two catgirls brightly in
two-part harmony.  They paused for a moment in the doorway, their noses
catching the scent of recent sexual activity in the room, and the duo
shot brief glares at Tiger.

% Yeah, but she's not all that happy either.

Nope.

   *Soon, Nabiki,* Kinnousuke thought with glee, *you too will kneel
before me and take your proper place as a woman, serving me as is my
right as a man.  Soon.*

% Heh. He's even worse than Nabby is with Ranma.

Well, sort of.  She just wants Ranma to fall into place as her spear-carrier
like the one in AVST is.  ^_^

but what she had once
taken for a near-solution to an anti-gravity device was something else
entirely.  She was contemplating that as she began serving breakfast to
her mother and father.

% She's serving? How ladylike.

Bridal training as a form of punishment.

She did not notice the smile on Nodoka's face,
nor the troubled look that was on her father's.

% That's bad news.

Yep.

   "Ranko-chan, I have good news," said Nodoka with a smile.

% No. I'm pretty sure it is what is referred to as 'bad news'.

Heh.

   "Hmm?" mumbled Ranko, looking up from her rice bowl.  She met the
other woman's gaze and felt a quiver of worry.  "What is it, Mother?"

   "This week, I've arranged for you to meet with three nice boys and
their families to discuss a possible marriage between one of them and
yourself," said Nodoka very pleasantly, clearly expecting her daughter
to respond with joyous enthusiasm.

% Oh, so this version of Nodoka is as delusional as Kunou. That's nice.

Well, sort of.  I think of her as more delusionally hopeful than just plain
delusional.

   "I won't," said Ranko firmly through gritted teeth.

   "You will," responded Nodoka, her voice as sharp as the edge of a
drawn katana.

% Heh. Nice turn of the phrase.

Thanks.

of the one on her mother's face.  "Besides, I'm not old enough to get
married."  Then, a wry smile appeared on her face, and she said, "After
all, you didn't get married until you were nineteen."

% Like that would stop Nodoka now.

Of course not.

   "How old I was is not an issue here," said Nodoka crossly.  "You
need a young man in your life to calm you down and give you direction,
young lady.  Marriage will give that to you.

% Depends on the guy, actually.

True.

Kami-sama knows that I was
not nearly as wild and willful as you are when I was your age, Daughter.
I was a dutiful child, and I married your father out of obedience and
love for my family's wishes.  You are a little younger than I was, but
you will do the same and be a dutiful daughter."

% Not bloody likely.

It could happen.  ^_^

   Genma continued to remain silent, but the paper barrier crumpled
ever so slightly in his grip.

% Heh. She did make it sound rather bad, didn't she.

Yep.  ^_^

   Realizing that the situation was not going to be changed with words,
Ranko muttered, "So who have you chosen for me to see?"

   Thinking she had won the battle,

% Sucker.

Heh.

Nodoka smiled victoriously and
said, "Well, one of them you already know.  Kaneda Tendou.  I know he's
a little younger than you are, but he comes from a fine family."

% It was then Ranko grabbed a knife and tried slitting her wrists.
Unfortunately, it was a butter knife, and the cuts were ineffectual.

She's obviously not motivated enough.  Does that mean she likes him
a little?  ^_^

   Ranko's eyebrow twitched slightly.

   "The second boy comes from a fine family of rural samurai stock, and
they have an excellent reputation for loyalty and honor," said Nodoka
pleasantly.  "He is the heir to the Hibiki School of Martial Arts, and
his name is Ryouga."

% Wonder how late he'll be for that meeting.

What's a month between prospective spouses?   ^_^

   Ranko was mildly intrigued at that one, but she refused to give her
mother any positive responses.

   "Finally, the third boy comes from one of the Noble Families of the
Empire," said Nodoka quite happily.  "He is the heir to the name and
title of his clan, and his name is Tatewaki Kunou.

% Ranko tried cutting her wrists again with the butter knife. This time
there was some success as the idea of being married to Kunou made her try
even harder.

Heh.  More motivation here.

If you marry him,
then you will become a Lady of the Empire.  Isn't that a wonderful
thought?"

% Ranko: Why, yes it it. It...it's almost as wonderful as me poking my eye
out with a pencil. Why don't I get one and you two can keep eating?

Well, that might get Nodoka's attention that her little girl isn't interested.

   *Wonderful,* thought Ranko sarcastically, trying hard not to twitch
a second time.  "If you think it's such a wonderful thing, why don't you
marry him?"  She paused to catch her breath, then said sarcastically,
"Of course, Mother, I will do as you ask.  After all, you were such a
good judge of men."  She rolled her eyes towards the man hiding behind
the shaking newspaper.

% Heh. Sorry, You're not going to get any help from him.

Well, this version of Genma is trying to stay on his wife's good side.

   "You could show a little more enthusiasm," said Nodoka, irritated.

% She could always hit Nodoka to show her said, 'enthusiasm'

True.

"Whether you like it or not, one of these three boys is going to become
your future husband, so I want you to be on your best behavior when you
meet them.

% Ranko: Should I mention the fact that I have four different kinds of
STD's. (You have to admit, that would dim the interest of any prospective
groom. ^_^)

Except maybe Kunou.  ^_^

   Ranko had wondered about that, and she did have fun with her mother
picking out pretty clothes to wear.  Like most young women, she liked
shopping, and she knew her wardrobe was a little small for a girl her
age.  So any chances to expand it were always welcome.

% Nice to see her acting feminine.

Well, she isn't a total tomboy.

to eat.  She watched Ranko eat very quickly, but still just below the
borders of good manners.  She decided to say nothing, content with the
small victory that this current exchange with her daughter had given to
her.

% 'Small victory'? I wonder what she would consider a major one then.

I'm saving that for later.  ^_^

   Now, she had been given access to a doorway, a portal into these new
worlds.

   All she had to do now was build the key, and that doorway would be
hers to open.

% Heh. I have a feeling her fiance problem is about to be taken care of.

Could be.

   "It's a private matter between him and me," said Nabiki as she did a
few more limbering-up exercises.  Her body felt supple and strong this
morning, and she knew that she was quickly drawing near the level of
conditioning that her counterpart enjoyed.

% Should pass it eventually since QD Nabiki is 'genetically perfect.'

Eventually, but not just yet.  Wait until their training gets further along
though.

and he was a bit stronger that she was, as well as being able to take a
little more punishment.  However, she was faster, and her counterpart's
skills seemed to be a little better than those that Ranma obtained from
his own counterpart.  She was certain that other Nabiki would be able to
take down that other Ranma in a one-on-one fight, so she was extremely
confident she would win here today.

% Except there is now another download in the mix.

True.

 After all, she had already beaten
him once before, and going at each other in a real fight would only give
her the opportunity to prove her superior fighting skills to him even
more decisively.

% Someone is in for a rude awakening.

To say the least.

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

   Akane paused at the gates to Furinkan Military Academy

% Ah. I've missed her.

I am surprised sometimes by the reception this version of her gets with
readers.  "Kinda creepy but interesting," has been used to describe her.

   A commotion over by one of the cherry trees on campus drew her
attention, and Akane witnessed a fight between two cadets taking place.

% Akane: (to the fighters) Can I play too?

Heh.

   "The winner is my little brother," said the older boy angrily, "and
I don't appreciate you mocking his skills.

% Akane: Fine. I'll mock yours instead.

^_^

If you're so very good, then
perhaps you might put your fists where your mouth already is?

% Akane: Nah. I'd rather put it where your mouth is.

And she did, too.

   "Do you think she might get invited to join the Combat Club?"

   Akane's eyes brightened at that last one, and she whirled to face
the male cadet who had just spoken and asked, "What did you just say?"

% Heh. I can see that catching her attention.

Yep.

   "I'm Sakura Kasuganou," said the other girl neutrally.  "Seventh Dan
of the School of Holy Imperial Fighting."

% Holy Imperial Fighting?

Mike Allen suggested that in his pre-reader comments, and I thought it
had a vague Ranma-esque sound to it, as well as sounding cool to me.  ^_^

   "I'm Akane Tendou.  I'm unranked but mostly use the same school as
yourself."

   "You fight well, Plebe," Sakura said with a friendly grin.  "It took
great speed and skill to defeat Yatagi-baka as quickly as you did.
Perhaps you might like to test your skills against me sometime soon."
She held out her hand.  "Would you like to be friends?"

% Akane: Sure let's head butt one another until we bleed as a gesture of
friendship.

Not quite that bad.  Expect to see more of Akane's new environment down
the ways.

                  ******************************
   Anji Kyuuzan and Soujirou Seta watched Ranma from one side of the
main building as he made his way past them.  Anji's eyes blazed with
hatred for Ranma, for making him look bad to his boss.  He knew that
today was going to be his last chance for redemption.

% Ah well, can't win them all.

Nope.

*Ranma Saotome,
soon I shall redeem myself, with your broken body as the coin,*

% I'd wager Ranma will be the one making change on Anji's twenty yen butt.

Heh.  Yep.  ^_^

   Then the moment was gone.  Returning to himself, Ranma briefly shook
his head to clear it.  He paused in his approach to Nabiki, and he felt
that familiar tingling sensation starting up as he came near her.  He
ignored his feelings of attraction with some difficulty.  It did not
matter what he might or might not feel for Nabiki at this time; she was
only his opponent now.  In a sense, she represented the ultimate test of
his martial arts skills; a warrior who was trained to an equal degree as
himself, and an opponent who would know all the same tricks that he
knew.  Defeating her would be to ascend to the top of the final mountain
and embrace the new life he had found for himself, and he wanted to win
against her more intensely than he had ever wanted anything else in his
life.  This would be his test, and he would not fail.

   "Ready, Ranma-kun?" asked Nabiki pleasantly.  "You can always choose
to back down, you know, and take your place in my shadow.  Or, if you
think you can, you could show me how much of a man you are.  Not that I
think you have any chance of defeating me."

% Oh yeah! Poor gasoline on the fire.

She's certainly revving up his fighting spirit.

   "Uh huh," muttered Yohko, her gaze locked on observing the almost
patternless motions that the two martial artists were using.  She caught
a brief glimpse of Kyousuke coming towards her, but she very purposely
ignored him as he slowly approached.  She had forgiven him over the
weekend, but she enjoyed having him feel the need to pursue her.

% Nice to see that sub-plot still around.

I try to show a little of different subplots each chapter.

   *You're done for, Ranma-kun,* Nabiki thought confidently.  *I've
taken your full measure, and you're no match for me.

% I have a feeling she'll be eating crow soon.

But he does look pretty much beaten at the moment.

   "Simple," said Ranma with a cocky grin.  He ran right at her, head
on.  "I'm Ranma Saotome, of the Anything-Goes School of Martial Arts,"
his voice rose as he loped at her, "and when I really need to win, I
NEVER LOSE!"

% I do believe this fight is almost over.

Yeah.

Nabiki's head snapped to one side, her body instinctively rolling
with the blow to minimize the damage, but a sharp cry of pain escaped
her lips anyway.  She had lost the initiative,

%That's what happens when you get those low rolls in RPG's. ^_^

I hate when that happens.  ^_^

garbed. *Today, Ranma,
I will tell you the truth about me,* she thought with a faint quiver of
nervousness in her stomach.

% Somehow, I doubt if he'll be feeling up to 'True Confessions' today.

Not really, no.

   Waving at the car for the driver to take her brother to Whitehall
Academy, Kodachi smiled at seeing his unconscious form slumped in the
back seat.  Within moments after leaving Kunou Manor, Tatewaki had begun
another tirade against 'the vile Ranma Saotome'.  After listening to
this for almost five minutes, she had knocked him unconscious with a few
well-placed strikes from her fists

% Heh. Something else Kunou will blame on Ranma.

Of course.  ^_^

and spent the remainder of the trip
in blissful quiet.  Their driver had wisely said nothing about that.

% He was probably happy about it.

Could be.   ^_^

   "You're not... gonna... beat me," grunted a weakening Nabiki, and
she gathered her strength for one last effort.  Her body gathered itself
beneath him, but Ranma's next punch knocked her unconscious a moment
later.

% And we have a winner.

By a knockout.   ^_^

   Over on one side of the crowd, Anji narrowed his eyes as he watched
Ranma emerge victorious against Nabiki.  He turned to Soujirou and said,
"When he goes into the locker rooms to change, then we take him.  He's
injured and easy prey now."

% Now they might stand a chance. Nahh.

Ya never know.

able to go clean himself up.  He was going to be late for his first
class, but it could not be helped.  He hoped Miss Kisaragi, his new
instructor, would not be too upset with him.

% The spy Hinako sicced on you? Nahh.

Heh.  Spy?  What spy?   ^_^

   Anji stepped forward, slowly cracking the knuckles of his hands as
he smiled coldly at Ranma and said, "So we meet again at last, Ranma
Saotome.  You can't know how much I've been looking forward to this."

Ranma; You're a masocist? Ewwww.

Anji: Aw...c'mon, I been waiting to get beat up by you.

   Soujirou casually flicked a thumb along a stud on the haft of his
bokken, and the wooden blade suddenly split evenly down the middle along
its length, to reveal the gleaming steel of a katana.

% Neat.

Thanks.

His smile turned
much colder, and a glittering appeared in his eyes as he gazed at Ranma.
The footprint on his face did somewhat diminish the intimidation factor
a little though.

% Heh.

^_^

   "I'm going to teach you a new meaning of suffering, Saotome," said
Anji coldly.

% Only in the sense Anji will be the one suffering.

True.  But he doesn't know that.

command that
arose from the depths of his hindbrain and was just as quickly forgotten
again a moment after he subvocalised it, *-boost-.*

% Ah, another genetic advancement.

Yep.  One that will be useful down the road.

Anji's chest, the sound of cracking ribs greeting his ears as the other
bully lazily flew back to crash into the wall.  And as quickly as that,
it was finished.

% And thus falls the last of the unintinidating Wolf Pack. Maybe they
should resort to wearing animal masks and ripping off people's precious
metals. ^_^

Aw, ya guessed who I was using.   ^_^

   "I-I'm fine, Sensei," said Ranma, standing up without any tremors in
his legs remaining.  He studied his two former attackers for a moment or
two.  "Am I in trouble, sir?"

   "No, Ranma," replied Fujinami, standing back up.  "Don't worry about
this.  Two on one strikes me as a case for self-defense,

% Combined with the fact that this is the sort of test run they wanted run
on the project children. Anything short of outright murder and Ranma will
get away with it.

Pretty much.

and I'm aware
of the histories of these two troublemakers.

% So am I. They are losers. I think they were 0 and 4 in their fights
without coming close to victory. Gos could probably take them.

Well, not that bad, but they are going up against high level opponents.

yet.  She had taken
great care to array herself in a casual pose that would allow her face
and figure to catch the morning light to best effect, and the way she
was seated would display a somewhat brazen amount of leg for his viewing
pleasures.

% Heh. How devious.

She thought so.  ^_^

see Yuka setting down the textbook she was studying.  Nabiki smiled at
the other girl and asked, "Can I have some water, please?"

% Yuka: Actually, I think I saw some lemonade in one of those specimen
cups. It was yellow, anyway. I'll go get it for you.

Ewwww....

   "Here you go, Nabiki-sempai," said Yuka, handing her a glass filled
with water.  "I'm glad to see you're all right."

   "How did we do at the gambling pools?" asked Nabiki,

% Yuka: Well, let's just say we should be expecting a visit from a couple
of guys named 'Guido' and 'Luigi' any minute now.

Heh.

pigtailed boy to be
the instrument of opposition to him yet again.  *It would have all been
so much simpler if those two idiots had managed to defeat him.  Now I'll
have to put Tiger and my other two beauties to work.*

% Cool. Cat girl action soon. They should be more threatening than the
Wolf Pack.

Much more.  Expect to see the action really kick into high gear with them
in the picture.

   "I see that I now have your attention, Tendou-san," said Kodachi
with a slight grin, her eyes boring into Nabiki's.  A sizzle of some
sort of invisible energy seemed to pass between the two of them, even as
the aristocrat girl continued to speak cordially.  Yet there was a hint
of challenge in her voice that Nabiki could not miss.  "Forgive me, but
I thought it amusing to introduce myself to you this way."

% I had forgotten that they hadn't met each other yet here.

Not just yet, but think of the memories that QD Nabiki has of the other
girl from her AVST Nabiki memories.

   "I'm not laughing," grumbled Nabiki.

% Kodachi: Well I'm not a stand up comedian, am I? So I don't have to
amuse you, just myself. OHHOHOHOHO!

Heh.  Kodachi is usually easily amused too.

"What do you want, Kunou?"

   "What was the meaning of this fight I have heard tell of, between
you and Saotome-kun?" asked Kodachi, a glint of potential violence in
the violet of her eyes.  Unconsciously, she compared Nabiki's body to
her own, and she found herself a little jealous of the older girl's
build and muliebrity.

% Darn. Another word I must look up.

The female version of virility.  Reading my stuff is educational.  ^_^

   "It was a private matter between us," said Nabiki, feeling even more
irritated at being interrogated like this,

% She's the one used to doing the interrogating.

First Ranma, now Kodachi, what's the world coming to when a couple of
Science cadets think they can interrogate a Security cadet?  ^_^

   "It's personal," said Nabiki simply, "and I don't care to explain it
to you.  So be on your way... underclassman."

%Heh. Nice touch.

Thanks.

   "This isn't over between us, Nabiki Tendou," Kodachi called out over
her shoulder as she walked away.  With grace born of years of training
at being ladylike, she made her stalk from the locker room look very
regal.

% Heh, again.

I was picturing Ayeka from Tenchi Muyou to get the walk image.  ^_^

Citizen in the
Empire, and he even participated in the remaining time of the class.
Today's topic was about the notion that "every Citizen was a soldier to
defend the Empire in time of need."

% Ah, the propaganda machine is in full swing.

Always.

Despite his abilities at recall,
all Ranma remembered of the class was how attractive Kisaragi-sensei
looked in her dress.

   However, the next couple of classes were exercises in boredom, and
Ranma almost fell asleep a couple of times.

% No cute teachers in class, eh?

Nope.

Eventually he was released

>from his scholastic purgatory, and went to his lab.  He slid his key

into the door, only noticing the new addition of a large padlock at the
last moment, one that did not open to his key.

   Ranma paused in the doorway, blinking in surprise at the new lock
and wondering what it meant.  An envelope lay against the base of the
steel door, and it caught his eye as he wondered at the addition of the
padlock.  He picked the envelope up and discovered a note addressed to
him within it.

   The note read, "Cadet Saotome, after reviewing the progress of your
efforts with your father, I have decided to terminate your research
subsidy, and your equipment will be packed up and returned to the
Ministry of Science for salvage and disposal.  Per your father's
request, this class period is to be added to your physical training
regimen with the singular goal of improving your conditioning to even
higher levels.  Sincerely, Kouzou Fuyutsuki, Presiding Dean of the
Imperial Academy."

% Guess what, Ranma. You've just been fu*ked again

Yes.

% And now we know what the 'other' Genma was up to. Very devious, and
there isn't much Ranma can do. He can't conjure up the equipment and no
one will believe him if he claims his father's mind has been taken over by
another version of him. They'll think Ranma's crazy, maybe as a result of
using the machine. Nicely played on S 1/2 Genma's part.

I thought so.  Amazing what the combination of the two version of him can
do when Martial-Genma is in charge, isn't it?

   "I'm not going to be beaten by that fat, drunken fool," said Ranma
softly to the empty air.  "I'll figure a way out of this, I swear I
will."

% But it will take time.

Yep.

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

   Kodachi seated herself gracefully and said, "Yes, Dean Fuyutsuki, I
am acclimating myself well so far."  *Especially now that I no longer
have to contend with that annoying barbarian, Akane Tendou,*

% But now she must deal with the far more devious Nabiki.

Precisely.  The next level of opponent.

   Kodachi blinked, feeling for a moment as if the temperature in the
room had risen several degrees.  She lowered her gaze and felt her blush
deepening.  The chance to spend time with Ranma would be worth any sort
of physical discomfort to her.  And she was curious to see how far she
could train herself as well.  It was a win-win situation.

% Until she finds out who the other person in the class is.

True.

To be continued in my reply to part two of DB's commentary.

Jurai Knight