Just something fun and kinda silly I'm writing to pass the time. Since the
chapters are rather short, I'm sending several of them bundled together.
Also, my main fics are anything but forgotten, and I expect to have the next
chapter of 'Wrath of Gods' ready in approximately a month or so.

Disclaimer time: Rumiko Takahashi, Shogagukan, Kitty and Viz Communications
own Ranma 1/2. AIC and Pinoeer LDC own El Hazard.

My heartfelt thanks to Latin_D for helping me revise this.  :)

Corwin (ely7@inter.net.il or corwin@virtuallyjeannie.com)
http://www.virtuallyjeannie.com/ranma.html

* Previous chapters can also be found at:
http://www.fanfiction.net

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------

Ranma, Prince of Roshtaria

Prologue

"Come back here, dammit!"

"Aww, do we have to do this now? I'm tired after all that fighting..."

Ryoga threw his backpag on the ground, wiping the sweat from his brow.

"Don't be a coward, Ranma! You promised me this duel a week ago!" the
bandanna-clad boy yelled at his would-be opponent.

"Yes, because I planned to have it a week ago! I wasn't tired then... why
couldn't you come earlier?!"

"Damn you, Ranma... if only you've known the true depth of my suffering..."

Before Ranma could do anything, Ryoga raised his head to glare at Ranma, as
tears flew freely down his cheeks.

"I've seen true Evil, Ranma... and her name is Chibi-Usa! So... pink, and
so... fluffy... I tried to escape an entire week!"

"So, widdle P-Chan bit on more than he could chew?" Ranma jibed, but there
wasn't much force in his retort.

"Enough of these foolish games, Ranma. I have come for our duel of honor.
You cannot refuse me!" Ryoga cried out, not even trying to stop his flood of
tears.

"Aww, geez," Ranma groaned in disgust. "Alright, if it means that much to
you, we can have the duel now. Hibiki... defend yourself!"

Both boys leaped into the air at that point, launching themselves at each
other. Ryoga tried striking with his umbrella in a wide arc, his opponent
already compensating for the attack and adjusting his trajectory. Just
seconds before the boys met in mid-air, Ryoga suddenly froze.

His eyes widening, Ranma was so shocked to see his rival suspended above
ground level in that manner that he lost control over his attack. Ranma
winced in sympathy for the fanged boy when his knee impacted against Ryoga's
crotch.

Bouncing off Ryoga's chest, Ranma fell to the ground, managing to land in a
crouch. He looked up, expecting to see a mad Ryoga shouting about cheating
and unfair attacks... only to do a doubletake when his friend continued to
hang suspened in mid-air.

'How did he do that?!' Ranma thought in awe, walking around Ryoga's still
body cautiously. 'It's gotta be some kind of new technique!'

After waiting for a couple of minutes for Ryoga to attack him, Ranma got
bored and jumped upwards, sending a light punch into the lost boy's face.
When the latter didn't show any signs of acknowledging the attack, Ranma
repeated it a bit faster. Four hundred and seven punches caught Ryoga
squarely in the nose, but achieved absolutely nothing.

Ranma landed back on the ground and turned away from Ryoga.

'Either this is an ultimate technique that blocks all of the damage done to
the body... or something is seriously wrong.'

The pigtailed boy sighed, finding himself truly at a loss. Just when he was
about to go and go and call Cologne for some advice, he heard a voice
calling out to him. What was even stranger was that the voice seemed to be
in his head.

--------------------------------------------------

'Am I going crazy?' Ranma wondered for the eights time that evening, as he
walked through the desolated halls of Furinkan High.

Everyone had left for their homes hours ago, leaving only him and Miss
Hinako at detention together. Eventually, the childish teacher got bored and
sent Ranma home before his time was up, retreating into her office to fetch
her things. Not on to look a gifted horse in his teeth, Ranma bolted outside
before the teacher changed her mind... only to come face to face with Ryoga,
who just had to show up for their duel.

Ranma couldn't blame him for wanting to fight. With his directional sense
and Jusenkyo curse, Ryoga didn't have the luxury of postponing these things.
And a duel of honor to settle their differences once and for all was
certainly something Ranma craved as well.

'Well, no point in worrying about that now,' Ranma thought glumly, glancing
through an opened door. He saw Miss Hinako standing motionless inside the
small office, her eyes looking vacantly at him.

'Damn, this thing - whatever it is - got her too!'

Yet again, Ranma wondered if he was going crazy, but dismissed the thought.
Something was definitely going on. As he listened to the voice in his head,
that seemed to be getting stronger every time Ranma went further into the
school, the pigtailed boy hoped that no one else had been caught up by the
phenomenon.

He continued descending into the school's basement, not noticing neither the
two silhouettes to his right nor the money and pictures that were frozen in
the process of exchanging hands.

--------------------------------------------------

Ranma's journey brought him to a small locked door. It seemed rusted and
about to fall off, and as far as he could tell, no one had used it in
decades. He knew that he had to break the door down and continue. While he
had no way of explaining where that knowledge came from, Ranma knew that to
be the absolute truth.

A simple ki-enhanced punch took care of that problem. Ranma entered a
hexagonal chamber, and froze in place.

It was empty!

The voice in his head had obviously lied to him!

It took all of Ranma's willpower not to laugh out loud. The voices in his
head were feeding him lies! Oh, joy. The school's councellor would surely
have a field day if Ranma told him that.

Despite his best efforts, a small chuckle escaped Ranma's lips. It was
harmless, really. After all, he was entitled to have a small nervous
breakdown, and it wasn't like anyone could see him...

Ranma's theory was quickly proven wrong, as the chamber was suddenly
illuminated with strange lights. Several beams of focused energy shot at him
at great speeds, and it took all of Ranma's energy to try and avoid them.
And he did just that; except for the final beam that managed to tag him on
his right wrist.

Instead of the searing pain that Ranma had been expecting, the white light
that engulfed his wrist was harmless... and almost soothing, in a way. The
pigtailed boy felt himself being drawn towards its source, and took a few
unsteady steps in its direction before shaking his head ruefully.

He wasn't about to give into mind control that easily!

Ranma prepared to fire his ki blast at the beam's source and make a break
for the exit, hoping that it would be a sufficient distraction for whatever
machine operated it. However, at that moment, a vertical sarcophagus
descended from a previously hidden compartment near the chamber's ceiling.

Mesmerized by the sight, Ranma felt himself being drawn towards it. And this
time, nothing he'd tried to do in order to fight that compulsion worked. It
just seemed... right... for some reason.

The sarcophagus opened with a slight hiss, the air previously contained
inside it escaping its prison. Ranma could only gape as a beautiful young
woman with luscious, blue hair stepped outside, only to trip and start
falling towards the floor.

Ranma's body was in motion before the pigtailed martial artist even realized
what it was doing, and caught the woman in the midst of her fall. She closed
her eyes, letting her head rest against his chest and sighing.

Puzzled by her actions, Ranma patiently waited for an explanation.

When he saw that none was forthcoming, as the woman just seemed content to
stay in his embrace, he decided to take the initiative. Gently yet
unmistakably firmly he held the blue-haired woman at arm's length. Her eyes
opened and stared questioningly at his for a few long moments, before Ranma
broke the silence.

"Who are you? What's going on here?"

The blue-haired woman sighed one final time, hugging him and stepping back a
few steps.

"To think that I waited for ten millenia just so I could send you away," she
said softly, looking down at the ground, before her head whipped back up to
look at him.

A wind slowly picked up in the chamber, carrying her long tresses with it.

"My powers have grown weak with the passage of years," she told Ranma,
giving him a forlorn gaze. "Unless I sent you to El Hazard now, all will be
lost."

The wind had strengthened in the meanwhile, and Ranma had to really strain
to hear the woman's words. He tried shouting through the howling wind....
asking for an explanation; or, at the very least, for her name...

Ranma was ready for several things to happen next. To have the blue-haired
woman rush towards him and grab him into a deep kiss was not one of them.
His mind shut down mere seconds later, somehow still managing to catch the
woman mumble that she loved him before everything went dark.

And... were those tears running down her face?

--------------------------------------------------

End of Prologue.

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------

Ranma, Prince of Roshtaria

Chapter 1

"Ranma! How dare you kick me in the balls and run away, you coward!"

The pigtailed boy groggily opened his eyes and looked around. Wasn't he in a
basement just a moment ago?

And then, it all came rushing towards him. The girl, the weird lights,
punching at Ryoga's nose while he was frozen, accidentally...

Ranma blinked. Ryoga wasn't frozen anymore. And he was very angry, and
suffering from a broken nose from the way his angry shouts were distorted.

Shouts that were coming closer and closer.

Gulping, Ranma prepared to quietly utilize one of the secret Saotome
techniques entrusted to him by his wise father and hightail out of there. A
girl's shout interrupted all that.

At first, Ranma thought that his knee had impacted on Ryoga's crotch harder
than he'd imagined - accidentally, of course - but when he heard Ryoga
crying out his ki attack a split-second later, he knew better.

Something that could make P-Chan squeal like a pig had to be big, bad and
scary.

Ranma ran towards the battle, following the green depression blasts that
were raining like Heaven's wrath on gigantic bugs. The whole scene was so
surreal that it reminded Ranma of Starship Troopers. A quick assessment of
the scene revealed that it had in fact been a real girl that'd shouted for
help. Quite a lovely girl in very revealing clothing.

Grinning, Ranma cracked his knuckles and leapt high into the air.

'Bugs are for the squishing!'

He'd be damned if Ryoga would get to have all the fun!

Cupping his hands at the apex of his flight, Ranma shouted, "Moko
Takabisha!" and launched his own ki attack at the attacking bugs. Taken off
guard by his surprise attack, the giant bugs were scattered everywhere. They
didn't even put a decent defense when Ranma descended from the sky and
started raining hundreds of blows on them...

--------------------------------------------------

The giant bugs kept on pouring out of everywhere, but even their enormous
numbers were no match for the two expert martial artists. It was a long and
hard battle, but in the end only the three humans remained conscious, two of
them standing proudly over the crushed and broken bodies of their attackers,
while the third was looking at them with unmistakable adoration.

"Hey, are ya alright, lady?" Ranma asked the woman he and Ryoga had just
saved.

Looking at him with eyes full of wonder, she nodded, not trusting her voice
at the moment.

"Princess! Are you alright?" a dark-skinned, bearded man shouted at her with
concern, rushing over to the young woman with a few soldiers.

Ranma merely snorted at the disgusting display. Even engrossed in the
battle, he could feel those cowards hiding in the nearby bushes for the past
ten minutes, waiting it out.

'Well, it's not like they're martial artists or anything,' Ranma thought in
disdain.

Finally finding her voice, the Princess pointed at Ranma and shouted, "He's
so cool!"

A vein popped on her advisor's forehead, but to his credit, he remained
perfectly civil otherwise. Another person nearby, however, wasn't as
reserved.

"Ranma! How dare you come and steal my victory like that?!" Ryoga roared,
gaining everyone's attention. "The offense of the bread was one thing... but
this! I will never forgive this offense!"

"You mean, rushing over and helping you fight lots of huge bugs trying to
kill you?" Ranma remarked casually.

"Of course!" Ryoga shouted indignantly, raising a shaking fist to the
Heavens.

"What a strange person," the Princess commented, frowning slightly.

Deciding not to dwell on that too much, she turned towards Ranma and put on
her best smile.

"Hello! My name is Rune Venus, and I would like to thank you for saving me,
kind sir," she said cheerfully, batting her eyebrows near the end of the
sentence.

"P-Princess! Protocol states..."

"And where was your protocol when the Bugrom attacked me a while ago,
Londs?" Rune Venus retorted, cutting off her advisor's tirade before it even
started.

"Like I was saying," the Princess continued, beaming at Ranma. "You saved my
life, and I would like to reward you for that. You may ask anything you
want."

Blushing, she added, "Anything," quietly, looking away coyly.

"Ranma! Have you no shame!" Ryoga roared, as the guards and Londs just gaped
at their ruler. "How dare you betray Akane like that?!"

"Akane? Is she your... significant other?" Rune Venus asked with a slight
trace of disappointment in her voice.

"Nah, just a fiancee," Ranma replied off handedly. "She's not my only
fiancee, though."

"You have several girls engaged to you?" Londs asked in shock.

"I can see why..." Rune Venus murmured quietly.

"Highness! We must return to the royal palace, before the Bugrom regroup."

Rune Venus looked like she was about to protest, but thought better of it.

Nodding, she said, "Very well."

When a few of the guards ran off to secure the way to the airship, Rune
Venus turned towards Ranma and smiled warmly.

"Please, would you come with us to Roshtaria? I still haven't thanked you
properly."

Rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment, Ranma tried to resist. He
didn't last for long. In under two minutes, Rune Venus was walking towards
her airship hand in hand with Ranma, her guards tailing the two.

Suddenly, a roar came from behind them all.

"Ranma! How dare you try to leave me here!"

"Oh my, I completely forgot about that other guy," Rune Venus said in
embarrassment, blushing.

"Come on, Ryoga, we don't got all day," Ranma threw over his shoulder,
continuing to walk. "So, Rune, you were talking about your cooks..."

"Ah, yes! As royalty, I obviously have the best chefs in Roshtaria working
for me."

"That's good to hear," Ranma said with a smile. "Teach kept me late at
school, and then I missed dinner with all this fighting. Expending so much
energy always makes me hungry."

Yawing, Ranma added, "Oh yeah, it makes me sleepy too."

Rune Venus smiled seductively.

"As a Princess, I also have the best bed in the palace."

"Umm, that's nice," Ranma remarked, suddenly finding himself completely
awake.

His danger sense, that was practically screaming its head off at him, was
probably the cause of that.

--------------------------------------------------

"Damn you, Ranma, this is all your fault!" Ryoga screamed in utter rage,
punching at the bane of his very existence.

Ranma swiftly moved out of the way, allowing the lost boy's fist to make a
nice indent in the dungeon's wall.

"Are ya stupid or something?" the pigtailed boy shouted at his companion in
disbelief. "She wanted me to sleep with her! What did ya want me to do, say
'yes'?"

"At least we wouldn't be here, then!" Ryoga retorted angrily, making another
attempt to kill him.

"Oh man, you are stupid," Ranma said with a sigh. "If there's anyone to
blame here, it's you! Who was it that lead us to this stupid dungeon in the
first place, P-Chan?!"

"Stand still and die, Saotome!" Ryoga cried out, grabbing the umbrella that
the palace guards hadn't had the courage to try and take away from him and
sending it flying towards his opponent.

"What are you so upset about, anyway?" Ranma asked curiously, leaping over
the speeding projectile to land in a crouch next to Ryoga and performing a
vicious uppercut to the lost boy's chin. "With the Bakusai Tenketsu, you
could get us out of here in no time! And besides, those guards are a joke!
They couldn't stop us even if they tried!"

"Oh yeah!" Ryoga exclaimed, stopping in his tracks and slapping his chin.

When Ranma rolled his eyes in annoyance, Ryoga backhanded him across the
room to impact on the heavy wooden door.

"That's for that uppercut, fiend!"

"Moron!" Ranma shouted, springing to his feet.

"Enemy of all women!" Ryoga retaliated, taking a bandanna off his head and
starting to spin it.

The two fighters were about to charge each other, when the door fell
outwards. Blinking simultaneously, they looked towards it curiously. Two
soldiers stared at them for a few moments, deep fear seeded on their
features.

"Goody!" Ranma said happily, cracking his knuckles.

--------------------------------------------------

"Please don't leave, Ranma!" Rune Venus begged, draped all over Ranma's
chest and trying to stop him while he was walking forward with a scowl on
his face.

"And what am I, dead meat?" Ryoga growled, leveling a hateful gaze at his
arch-nemesis.

"You too can stay, Dead Meat," the Princess said offhandedly.

"My name is P-Chan!" Ryoga cried out, before realizing what he'd said and
flushing scarlet.

Noticing Ranma's smirk, he cracked his knuckles and charged him, crying,
"That's the last offense, Ranma!"

Wrapping one arm around Rune Venus' slim waist to protect her, Ranma leapt
skywards, rebounding off the ceiling and coming down with both feet at the
small of Ryoga's head. The lost boy dropped like a sack of potatoes.

"No one beats the Saotome Shooting Star kick!" Ranma boasted. 'Or any of its
revisions.'

"Oh, Ranma, you were so great! Just like a true Prince..." Rune Venus
gushed, slowly tracing circles on his chest.

"Well, I am the best," Ranma answered confidently, albeit blushing from the
up close and personal attention he was receiving.

"I fight on!" Ryoga exclaimed then, rising up from the floor like a zombie.

"You ruined the moment, you moron!" Rune Venus screamed, lifting the lost
boy's umbrella with both hands and smashing it into his head several time
before dropping it over his still form.

"Now, where were we?" the Princess asked Ranma sweetly, smiling sunnily at
him.

Ranma looked between the growing lumps on Ryoga's head and Rune Venus'
pleasant smile several times, before dropping his head into his hands and
moaning quietly, "Violent chicks..."

--------------------------------------------------

End of Chapter 1.

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------

Ranma, Prince of Roshtaria

Chapter 2

"So you want me to substitute for your sister during that meeting?" Ranma
asked in irritation, trying to shake Rune Venus off him.

Clutching to his right arm like a drowning man grasping a lifeline, the
Princess looked up at him with puppy-dog eyes.

"Please! Without both my sister and I appearing there together, the fragile
alliance we have with the neighboring kingdoms will crumble!"

Ranma gave off a snort and turned his head to the side, unable to bear her
look.

"And besides," Rune Venus continued, unabashed. "You look just like her!
Well, almost. Her hair's red, and she doesn't put it in a pigtail... and you
are a very handsome man while she's an annoying little brat... and the
muscles on your arms are just..."

Ranma shuddered, and fixed the Princess with a hard glare.

"There's no way I'm going to be..."

A servant with a glass of wine approached the two from behind. Suddenly, he
tripped for no apparent reason, sending the beverage towards Ranma's back
and drenching the pigtailed boy.

Looking down at herself, Ranma decided that finishing her sentence with "a
girl" just didn't seem appropriate anymore. Freeing her hand while Rune
Venus was frozen with shock over what had just occurred right in front of
her eyes, Ranma gave Ryoga a baleful glare. The lost boy just smiled
innocently, retracting his foot.

"Oh goodness, Roshtaria's problems are solved!" Londs, who had appeared out
of nowhere, shouted in excitement. "Praise the Heavens! The Princess is
back!"

"Call me a Princess once more and you'll be eating through a tube for a
month," Ranma growled, baring her teeth slightly.

"Incredible!" Dr. Schtalabaugh exclaimed from the doorway. "She even talks
like the Princess!"

Ranma sighed and gave up. There was nothing she could do to stop these
people from sneaking up on her suddenly like this, despite her extensive
martial arts training.

"You do realize that I'm not really a girl, right?" she said to the elderly
man. Turning towards Londs, she added, "And that I can kick the crap out of
ya all in a few moments if I wanted to?"

Londs didn't seem quite so eager to get Ranma to cooperate, immediately
hiding the royal dress he'd been holding out to the red-head behind his back
and whistling innocently.

Suppressing a groan, Ranma looked at the chocolate-haired Princess. It was
difficult, but a man had to do what a man had to do... even if the man was
in a girl's body at the moment.

"Rune, you won't try to make me go through all that, right?" Ranma asked
sweetly, batting her eyelashes at the Princess.

Rune Venus blinked.

"Ranma... you must understand that it is very difficult for me to flirt with
an identical double of my own sister," she said uncomfortably.

The pigtailed girl sighed, and ordered a cup of hot water from a nearby
made. The woman wasn't a fool, and had heard the rumors of the strangers and
their super-human powers.

Ranma got his water in under a minute.

Splashing himself to return to his normal body, Ranma was about to try his
unbeatable technique - no girl had been able to withstand it, so far - on
Rune Venus, when he felt a sudden displacement of air followed by something
holding onto his chest powerfully. The pigtailed boy sighed deeply, and
looked down into the Princess's watering eyes.

"Ranma... you won't leave me in my hour of need, will you?" she asked him in
a small voice, sniffling.

A tremor went through Ranma's body at the first sight of her eyes brimming
with tears.

"Without the Alliance, everything will fall to the Bugrom! Ranma, please
save us! Please!"

Ranma stiffened when two tears made their way down the Princess's cheeks.
Reaching up to her face, he awkwardly wiped them off.

Giving Rune Venus an uneasy smile, he said, "All right. I'll help you."

A glass of cold water drenched both of them at that moment, and Rune Venus
leapt backwards, crying out in shock. Ranma leveled another glare at the
innocently smiling Ryoga, and narrowed her eyes.

'Just you wait, P-Chan...' the red-head promised to herself darkly.

"I'm not wearing that dress!" she snapped at Londs angrily, who shrunk under
the force of her glare. Casting Rune Venus a worried glance, Ranma asked,
"Is there really no other way to do this?"

"Well..." the Princess said thoughtfully, tapping her chin. "I could always
go out and address the assembly with my husband by my side! That would be
enough to quieten them!"

Recoiling as if shot at the hungry gaze that accompanied those words, Ranma
uttered one word as if it were the vilest of curses.

"M-Married?!"

Rune Venus nodded happily, and asked Londs if there was a minister present
in the palace.

Squeaking in terror, Ranma ran over to the Princess and grabbed her arm,
hauling her out of the room.

"No time for that!" the red-head exclaimed on the way, Rune Venus nodding
sadly in approval.

'No way, now how!' Ranma thought darkly, following the maids who were
leading the way.

Seeing Ryoga smirk at her plight as she passed him on the way out only
served to fuel the raging hailstorm in her heart. Ranma vowed to get even
with him, even if that were the last thing she would do.

--------------------------------------------------

Ranma entered the room and took her seat, scowling angrily at everyone's
greetings. Rune Venus had the decency to blush and smile apologetically at
the gathered rulers, who nodded knowingly in return.

"All right, I don't want to spend more time than I have to on this," Ranma
addressed the assembly. "Whaddya want?"

"May I say how lovely you look today, Princess Fatora," one of the braver
guests ventured. "And those pajamas look absolutely astonishing on your
royal..."

Ranma's left eyebrow twitched slightly, and her glare intensified tenfold.
Gulping, the speaker hastily ended the greeting and shrunk back into his
seat.

"You are all afraid of the recent Bugrom attacks, are you not?" Rune Venus
asked the room, diffusing the explosive atmosphere for the time being.

"Yes! Our countries will fall unless we do something!"

"Two of my border cities have already been conquered by the Bugrom forces!"

"The way things are looking at the moment, our country will be the next to
fall to Queen Diva's vanguard!"

The Princess sighed and raised her hands to quieten the room, when she saw
Ranma standing up. The red-head laughed triumphantly before striking a pose
and smirking.

"Leave those bugs to me! I'll crush them all!"

Standing up as well, Londs announced, "Yes! Princess Fatora has graciously
decided to go and meet with the priestesses of Mount Muldoon!"

"I did?" Ranma asked, furrowing her brow in thought.

Then, it hit her.

"Why, yes! Sure I did! Mount Muldoon it is! I'll leave right away!"

Not even bothering to wait for an answer, Ranma turned around and left the
room in a hurry.

'I can't believe it! Finally, a chance to escape that Princess chick before
she starts talking about marriage again!'

As soon as Ranma left, the room exploded into chatter.

"Highness, is it true?" one of the delegates asked Rune Venus hopefully.

"Is Princess Fatora going to ask the priestesses to unseal the Eye of God?"
another questioned, his hands clasped under his chin.

The Princess raised her arms slowly, and the room immediately quietened,
everyone hanging upon her words.

"It is true, my friends. My sister will do everything in her power to save
us all. Please, have faith in her."

With that, Rune Venus stood up graciously and left the room as well, Londs
trailing her from a short distance.

--------------------------------------------------

"Come on, P-Chan, we're leaving," Ranma shot at the fanged boy, throwing his
heavy backpack at him.

"Why?" Ryoga asked curiously, shrugging the insult off.

"Please, wait!" Rune Venus cried out at that point, rushing into the suite
both boys were temporarily given for their stay at Roshtaria.

"Umm, Rune, we kinda have an important mission and... uhh... we should leave
right away! Right, Ryoga?"

Ranma turned to look at her rival, daring him to disagree. The lost boy
yawned theatrically, smirking at the red-head.

"I don't know, Ranma. I feel awfully tired. It has been a long day, after
all. Why don't we stay for the night?"

Growling, Ranma lunged for Ryoga and put him in a chokehold.

"I think we should go. Now!"

Ryoga swiped at Ranma clumsily, hitting his nose when the red-head jumped
away. Grabbing his umbrella from the pack Ranma threw at him earlier, Ryoga
prepared to strike his adversary with it when he caught the Princesses
disapproving glance out of the corner of his eye.

Most of his anger left him at that point, and Ryoga subconsciously rubbed
the back of his head. That girl sure could pack a punch!

Satisfied that her beloved would not be harmed, Rune Venus turned towards
Ranma. Staring at the red-head almost on the verge of tears, the Princess
pouted as cutely as she could.

"Would you stay? If only for one night?"

Ranma still didn't look convinced.

"You could even sleep in your own bed," Rune Venus said, adding sadly,
"Alone."

"Of course I'll sleep alone!" Ranma shouted in indignation.

"Good! Then it's settled!" the chocolate-haired Princess announced
gleefully, glomping onto the red-head's arm.

Ranma hung her head, sighing in defeat. As she allowed herself to be lead to
her new sleeping chambers, she couldn't help but wonder how much her
situation would have been worse had she turned back into a male. The
affection Rune Venus showered her with in her current form was a mere
fraction of what Ranma had been forced to dodge previously as a guy.

The mere concept made Ranma shudder.

'At least Rune isn't a lesbian,' the red-head thought with no small amount
of relief. 'I don't know what I'd do then.'

Stripping down to her boxers, Ranma made herself comfortable on the large
bed. It didn't take her long to fall asleep.

And while Ranma was dreaming of running away from a horde of new fiancees
that resembled Rune Venus, the mysterious woman that had apparently sent her
to another world and a female yet still bearded version of Londs, a shadowed
shape detached itself from a wall.

Smiling widely, the short woman began stalking towards her prey...

--------------------------------------------------

End of Chapter 2.

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------

Ranma, Prince of Roshtaria

Chapter 3

"My Princess, you've come to me at last," a voice sultrily exclaimed. Waken
from her slumber, Ranma stiffened as she felt hands probe her nether areas.
"Fatora, my love, now that I've returned from a trip to my parents, we can
finally indulge in our hot, lesbian... activities."

Alielle's head peaked up from under the sheets, followed by her upper body,
and she smiled at Ranma's frozen face, waving a pair of handcuffs in front
of the red-head.

Images of the dream with Londs intertwined with the frightening nightmares
of Kuno confessing his love and hunting his pigtailed goddess, despite
Ranma's best efforts to block them out. "Y-You..." the pigtailed girl
stammered, his eyes flashing dangerously. "You sicko! DIE!"

A fist whizzed by the short blue-haired girl's right cheek, her agility
saving her from a nasty bruise.

"Ooh, S and M!" Alielle exclaimed, purring. "Kinky!" She turned away from
Ranma and wiggled her butt at the red-head suggestively.

"Get lost!" Ranma exclaimed, clenching and unclenching her fists
hysterically.

Alielle pouted. "How rough... I have just the thing for the occasion!" The
blue-haired girl reached into the cleavage of her nighty, pulling out a
twenty-inch dildo and presenting it to the other girl.

"That's it! Die, bitch!" Ranma growled and launched herself at the other
girl.

--------------------------------------------------

Explosions rocked the castle at night, waking up everyone. Soldiers rushed
towards the source - Princess Fatora's room - but were hesitant to enter it
due to the Princess' reputation. Eventually, Londs and Rune Venus arrived on
the scene, just in time to see a charred girl crash through the doors to the
royal suite.

"And stay out!" Ranma-chan yelled from the inside, throwing the disfigured
dildo after her. A gaping Londs with a slight trail of drool running down
his chin intercepted it, saving the fleeing girl.

"A lovers' quarrel," one of the soldiers whispered, the rest nodding in
hushed awe. Some were drooling slightly.

Rune Venus sighed heavily, massaging her temples. "Go back to your posts."
As the soldiers obliged, she continued telling herself, 'It's not Ranma's
fault. Nothing is Ranma's fault. He is too perfect.'

A loud cry of "Where on El Hazard am I now?!" was heard throughout the
palace grounds, and the Princess had her answer. It was all that other boy's
fault! Ryo-something... whatever he was called, anyway.

Noticing a half dozen soldiers that still had to vacate the premises, Rune
Venus beckoned them over to her. "Find that other boy and beat him up."

The soldiers looked at their Princess with fear evident in their eyes, but
gulped as one at her seething glare. Saluting, they ran off with a cry of
"Yes, Ma'am!".

Soon after, indignant cries shortly followed by sounds of an intense battle
filtered into the palace. The Princess paid them no heed.

Left alone, not counting Londs, who was avidly trying to take out the dildo
that was stuck in his mouth, Rune Venus allowed herself to smile. It was not
a nice smile. First, that other boy would get his. Then...

The chocolate-haired Princess glanced at her sister's bedchambers, currently
occupied by God's gift to her. She licked her lips.

--------------------------------------------------

"Did you sleep well, Ranma?" Ryoga asked the red-head with a smirk. "I could
hear your screams way over from the fountain outside."

"And what were you doing there, moron? Getting yourself lost?" Ranma shot
back snidely.

Ryoga growled and balled his fists, but a female shout stopped him in his
tracks.

"Fatora!"

Ranma paled for a moment, feeling someone firmly attach themselves to her
butt, before her body started shaking and her face adopted an unhealthy
purple shade. "D-D-DIE!" the enraged red-head yelled, as her battle aura
exploded all around her.

Guards and maids ran away, shrieking girlishly in terror, and even Ryoga
took a step back at the sheer power his rival put out. Alielle, however,
continued to latch onto Ranma's curves and even managed to cop a feel.

"DAMMIT! Get off, perverted lesbo chick!" Ranma yelled trying to shake the
determined girl off of her. Running out of options, she struck the ground
with her right heel, crying out desperately, "Bakusai Tenketsu!"

Nothing happened, but Ranma didn't give up, continuing to try and duplicate
the technique, no matter how futile it might have been.

Upon yelling "Bakusai Tenketsu!" for the fortieth time, the ground
underneath her rumbled and a myriad of sharp stones erupted from underneath
El Hazard's surface.

Ranma and Alielle were pelted by countless small stones and slumped to the
ground, sporting a multitude of bruises and small cuts. Alielle's face
somehow managed to land on Ranma's right breast.

"FIEND! How dare you steal my trademark technique!" Ryoga roared, finally
shaking out of his stupor at seeing his most hated rival duplicate the
technique in so short amount of time and revising it to work with his foot.
Balling up his right fist, the Lost Boy shook it at the prone pair. "First
the offense of the groin, and now this? Saotome Ranma, I shall never forget
this offense!"

"Ranma?" Alielle groggily asked. "Who's Ranma?"

Ranma groaned and tried to bang his head against the ground. Unfortunately
for him, he was too worn off from trying to shake off the over-zealous
blue-haired girl and the damage done to his system from the side effects of
the Bakusai Tenketsu. "Hot water... my kingdom for a cup of hot water..."

Hot water was immediately dumped over his head. Looking up gratefully, Ranma
was able to spot Rune Venus tackling him with a flying glomp. Nuzzling her
face to his, she purred.

"My dear Prince Charming, you know not how much I suffered while we were
separated!"

"It was only for one night!" Ranma squeaked.

"One night too much," the Princess retorted with a pout.

"Hey! What about MY GROIN?!"

Everyone turned to look at Ryoga, who had realized just what he had yelled
out loud.

Rune Venus frowned. "Guards! Dead Meat is acting like a pervert again."

Fifty guards with spears and swords surrounded the Lost Boy, trembling
slightly in his presence yet obeying her unspoken command nevertheless.

"RANMA!" Ryoga roared, grabbing his umbrella and waving it threateningly to
keep the guards at bay. "This is ALL YOUR FAAUUULT!!!"

"So, where were we?" Rune Venus asked, tracing the outline of Ranma's jaw
seductively. "Oh, yes! We were discussing spending a night together." The
Princess grinned, very catlike.

"This... isn't Fatora?" Alielle asked quietly. "This is a guy?" After taking
the liberty to explore Ranma's body on her own, she smiled lecherously,
exclaiming, "He's a hunk!" and latching onto his right foot.

The pigtailed boy fainted.

--------------------------------------------------

"Let's go, already!" The pigtailed boy started walking for the boarding ramp
of the flying ship that was going to take Ryoga and he to Mount Muldoon.

"Please, Big Brother Ranma!" Alielle begged, latching onto his chest. "Let
me come with you!"

"Get it off! Get it off!" Ranma yelled, jumping around.

Rune Venus ran towards him, shouting, "Wait, my love!"

"Ah, hell! She's here too." Ranma groaned. Hearing someone chuckling, he
shot Ryoga a dirty look.

"Please, my Prince! You mustn't forget Ura!"

"Ura? Who's Ura?" Ranma asked confusedly, momentarily halting his attempts
to dislodge Alielle off of him. That proved to be a mistake, as the sneaky
girl cuddled even closer to him.

Ranma was about to pry her off when he felt something. 'A presence; one I
had not felt for a long time,' he thought grimly.

"Prince Ranma," Ura said, running over to the pigtailed boy and wrapping
himself around his body.

Ryoga stared in awe at the cat that had just talked and became a living
armor. He was going to ask the Princess about Ura when desperate cries got
his attention.

"GET THEM OFF! GET THEM OFF!!!"

"The great Ranma Saotome? Scared of a mere cat?" Ryoga asked, barely
managing to hold in his laughter. 'Alielle I can understand. She's one scary
girl. But a cat? A CAT?!' Suddenly, Ryoga grinned. 'This is it! The key to
defeating that cheating bastard!'

"Oh my!" Rune Venus exclaimed, covering her mouth with her right hand.
"Perhaps this wasn't such a good idea." Wincing as Ranma's cries escalated,
she commanded, "Ura, please get off of Ranma."

The cat complied, and Ranma scurried over to the flying transport, Alielle
still attached to him. He raised the ramp and quickly waved his hand at the
ropes holding the transport in place, willing them to release it.

Ranma's face adopted a surprised expression when the ropes snapped, as if
cut by a knife. 'Hmm, gotta be the air pressure,' he thought, wrinkling his
forehead, his problems momentarily forgotten. 'Cool!'

Seeing the flying ship slowly embark without him, Ryoga growled, adding this
offense to the already impossibly long list of transgressions Saotome had
committed against him. Picking up Ura, he bunched his legs and jumped onto
the deck.

"Wait!" Rune Venus yelled after him. "But what about Ranma's reaction to
Ura?"

Ryoga grinned. "Don't worry, I'll make sure he remains alive and in one
piece," he said to her cheerfully. 'You and I are going to become very good
friends, Ura. Yes, we are...'

Frowning slightly, the Princess waved at the departing ship. 'I shouldn't
worry so much. After all, Ranma can handle anything. Can't he?'

--------------------------------------------------

A blue-skinned woman walked over to Prince Gallus, her hips swaying
seductively as she walked. Brushing away a loose strand of hair that covered
her right eye, she bowed to him formally.

Gallus nodded at her in welcome.

"For which purpose have you summoned here, my Lord?" Kiriya asked, rising
from her bow.

"Princess Fatora appeared yesterday alongside my bride to be and her older
sister, Princess Rune Venus. Together, the two were able to gather the
support of the Alliance."

"Princess Fatora?!" the woman exclaimed in shock. "But that's..."

"Impossible, I know. I didn't go through all the length of kidnapping her
just to let her go. Rune must have somehow found a double." Gallus waved his
left hand in an uncertain fashion. "Now, this fake is going to Mount Muldoon
to ask the three sages to unseal the Eye of God."

"The entire situation must seem extremely ironic to you, my Liege." Kiriya
chuckled, careful not to get carried away and risk angering him. "The only
real way to disprove their claim and discredit Rune Venus would be to reveal
that you are the one who has the real Princess Fatora."

Gallus grinned, the smile failing to reach his eyes. "I have leaked
information to the Bugrom about the fake Princess' journey." Rubbing his
temples, he finally looked her in the eyes.

The beautiful blue-skinned woman recoiled from his weary expression.

"The new Bugrom Commander may be better than anything the Alliance has...
but that doesn't say much. I am tempted to say he has no brain, but that
would describe any given human." Gallus shook his head. "Following this line
of thought, this... Commander's... brain activity goes into the negative
outside of battle."

"How so, Lord Gallus?"

"I had been informed that upon receiving pictures of Princess Fatora of the
highest, which I had taken personally, he drooled over them and started
ranting, disregarding the information on her travel route that was included
in the missive."

"That borders on the unbelievable," Kiriya said to herself, shaking her head
slowly in puzzlement.

"And yet, it is the truth." Gallus handed the woman a crossbow and a knife.
"Assassinate the imposter before she gets to the priestesses."

Kiriya took the proffered weapons, eyeing them strangely. "My Lord, surely
we possess better choice of arms..."

"This mustn't be traced to us," he cut her off. "Now go, and make the
Phantom Tribe proud."

Bowing silently, the blue-skinned assassin turned around swiftly and left,
melting into the shadows.

--------------------------------------------------

End of Chapter 3.

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------

Ranma, Prince of Roshtaria

Chapter 4

After getting to Mount Muldoon, Ryoga, Ranma, Ura and Alielle disembarked
the transport, continuing their journey on foot. This time around, Ranma
didn't try so hard to push the enthusiastic girl off of him, only making a
token effort in hope she would give up. The pigtailed boy was more than
content to hold her as buffer between he and Ura.

"What now?" Ryoga asked, looking at the towering mountain.

"Now... we climb," Ranma replied ominously, drawing a glare from the other
boy.

"I know that!"

"Then why did you ask, blockhead?"

Ryoga threw his pack onto the ground, swerving around to glare at his
nemesis. "This is..."

"The final offense, right? Saotome, prepare to die?" Ranma asked lazily.

Steaming, Ryoga shook his balled fists at his rival in impotence. A mew
caught his attention, and he looked down at Ura, who was staring at him with
a confused expression on his face. 'Yes, Ura... we'll be very good
friends...' he thought with an evil grin.

Picking up the sentient cat by the scruff of his neck, Ryoga thrust it into
Ranma's face.

The pigtailed boy's eyes widened and he flailed his arms helplessly, an
expression of absolute horror on his face. In less than five seconds Ranma
was running away screaming, leaving nothing but a dust cloud behind.

Ryoga laughed at his rival's distress, before Ura scratched his hand and he
was forced to let the cat go.

"Not nice," Ura said, shaking his head in disapproval.

"To each, their own," Ryoga replied with a shrug. Then we suddenly became
aware of the fact that Ranma was nowhere in sight. "Saotome!" he roared.
"How dare you leave me all alone?!"

Grabbing his pack, he started running in the direction he had last seen
Ranma. After going for several meters, he stopped, ran back and picked up
Ura, only to continue running with a vengeance.

"Come back here, you coward, so I may destroy your happiness!"

The scenery changed and Ryoga continued to gain altitude as the road became
more and more steep. Cursing the other boy for making the climb difficult by
raising so much dust in his wake, Ryoga continued heading forward until he
came to an intersection.

"Damn you, Ranma, for making me choose right from wro-- left!" The Lost Boy
seethed a few moments in anger, before rearing his head backwards and
roaring, "RANMA!!! For the offense against my grammar, I'll...!"

"Let's go."

"Huh?" Ryoga looked at his feline companion in confusion, all signs of his
previous anger gone.

"Choose," Ura replied, nodding at the intersection.

Ryoga concentrated. He closed his eyes, trying to become one with the
environment. The howling of the wind, the rustling of a few leaves picked up
by it... a distant cry of some exotic bird he could not recognize. Feeling
completely at ease, Ryoga concentrated on the auras of everyone around him.

Locating Ura, he congratulated himself on a job well done and set his mind
to find the nearest powerful aura. While Ranma was a coward with no honor or
morals, Ryoga had to admit he was powerful.

"Aha!" the boy exclaimed finally after several excruciating minutes of
searching. He shouldered his pack and proclaimed, "To the right! Let's go,
Ura!"

The cat shrugged and jumped onto the backpack, curling into a ball. Snorting
at the freeloader taking advantage of his generosity, Ryoga reminded himself
that Ura was a vital element in the destruction of Saotome's happiness, and
promptly blamed the pigtailed boy for this latest offense.

--------------------------------------------------

There! A perfect opportunity!

The assassin lunged at the fake Princess' unprotected back, masking her
presence entirely with one of her illusions.

A guarantied success!

A miss?

Kiriya frowned. Fatora's double had crouched down at the last possible
moment, narrowly avoiding her attack. And the imposter acted without a care
in the world, masking the maneuver as attempts to dislodge the over-zealous
girl hanging all over their body. Kiriya easily recognized the blue-haired
girl as Fatora's lover from intelligence reports she had seen earlier on.

The blue-skinned woman shook her head at her stupidity. Of course Lord
Gallus would not send her on a simple mission! The double had to be trained
in self-defense!

A crossbow appeared in her arms, ready to use at a second's notice.

Kiriya let loose an arrow, aiming directly for the head.

The double chose that moment to turn around, the arrow wheezing by his head.

HIS head?!

Fatora's double was a man?!

A very handsome man, Kiriya had to admit.

Was it getting hot in there? Mount Muldoon began to feel like the Desert of
Bleached Bones.

Kiriya's right eye twitched. There was no time to think about the
temperature! She had to get the boy's name and address!

The woman blinked. That couldn't be right. She had a crossbow in her hand...
why? Was she supposed to do something with it?

Inspiration struck her then, a hidden memory that chose that time to reveal
itself.

It was a gift! A gift for her Prince!

She frowned momentarily. Wasn't it actually from her Prince?

No matter! She had a gift, and her Prince would get it!

Kiriya drooled slightly, wiping her mouth with her left sleeve. He was just
too cute!

--------------------------------------------------

"Hi," Kiriya said seductively, kneeling in front of Ranma and offering him
the crossbow. Looking up at his face, she found herself lost in his
blue-gray eyes.

"Umm, okay." Rubbing the back of his head with his left hand nervously,
Ranma took the proffered weapon. Unable to come up with anything to say, he
chuckled nervously, shaking Kiriya from her reverie. "My name's Ranma."

She sighed dreamily at the sound of his voice, repeating the name quietly to
memorize it.

"You're... err... cute."

'He complemented me!' Kiriya thought excitedly, almost breaking into song
right then and there.

"Yeah... I mean... I've never seen a girl with blue skin before. It... suits
you, I guess."

The Phantom Tribe assassin looked at him dumbly. "Don't I look like a
gorgeous tanned blond?"

It was Ranma's turn to stare at her in confusion. "Umm... no?"

"Is it possible that you can see through my disguise?" she asked, panicking
slightly.

"What disguise?" Alielle asked innocently. "Are you from the Phantom Tribe?
Is that why we didn't see you before?"

Kiriya stared at the shorter girl. "Are you sure I don't have any disguise
on?"

Alielle nodded slowly.

"Damn. Forgot such a basic trick, basically Illusions 101, and all because
of a cute guy!" Kiriya ranted, ending up in a pout at the end of the
sentence.

"Riiight," Ranma drawled out. Then, he perked up suddenly. "Hey, you said
you could create illusions, didn't you?"

Kiriya nodded wearily, not understanding the sudden shift in the pigtailed
boy's attitude.

"Can you... teach me?" Ranma asked, his eyes shining. "To hide myself from
view, and make those illusions?"

Dumbfounded, Kiriya stared at the boy in amazement for a long while, before
finally speaking. "You're not afraid of me? I've practically admitted that
I'm from the Phantom Tribe, and I came with weapons to assassinate you...
how can you act so carefree?!"

"You came to kill me?" Ranma asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Kiriya slapped her forehead, as her mission finally came back to her. She
chuckled nervously. "Err... yeah."

Ranma shrugged. "Get in line. Lots of people want to kill me. They get
priority."

"And where do I fit in?" Kiriya asked curiously.

"The queue."

She blinked at his words. "The what?"

"The queue," Ranma explained. "Everyone who wants to kill me gets a number.
You're currently at five hundred and forty seven."

"Oh," she said simply, digesting this information.

"You know, I'm kinda glad you want me dead," Ranma said with a relieved
smile. "Most girls I meet just want me." He sighed heavily. "You have no
idea how exhausting that is."

"I'll bet," Kiriya replied with a chuckle. Smiling she took back her
crossbow from the pigtailed boy's hands. "Since there is a queue, I'll have
to watch you from now on. Otherwise, I just might lose my turn and would
have to start all over again from scratch."

Ranma shrugged. "Sounds reasonable. I'll let you tag along, if you promise
to show me those stealth techniques."

The blue-skinned woman gave him a warm smile. "I don't see anything wrong
with that. Since you're practically as good as dead, it's not like I would
be betraying my tribe by teaching them to you."

Ranma nodded at that.

"Hey, are we going to stand here all day or are we going to climb to the
mountain's top?" Alielle asked impatiently, jealous of the attention Ranma
was giving the other woman.

Looking at herself, Kiriya frowned. "The priestesses might not appreciate
one of the Phantom Tribe on their holy mountain."

Ranma thought this over for a few moments, before flashing Kiriya a
victorious grin that turned her knees to jelly. "You can create illusions
around yourself, right? I just happen to have the perfect one in mind..."

--------------------------------------------------

"My Princess..." Londs said uncomfortably, trailing off in uncertainty.

Rune Venus spared him a glance. "Yes?"

"Highness, I've been wondering whether it was wise to start preparations for
a wedding as soon as the visitors from another world left on their journey.
We still don't know if they are spies, and their strength and fighting
abilities are a threat to the stability of the royal city of Florastika, not
to mention Roshtaria itself! I humbly ask that you reconsider this matter."
Londs finished speaking, and bowed his head low, mentally preparing himself
for a rebuke.

"Tell me, Londs," Rune Venus asked slowly, and the bearded man bowed even
lower, if that was possible. "What are these preparations you have
mentioned? I am only engaged to Prince Gallus and have no intention of
cutting the courtship short."

Looking at his Princess with wide eyes from his kneeling positing in front
of her, Londs exclaimed, "Highness! But what of your command this morning to
prepare for a wedding between you and the pigtailed boy that looks like the
splitting image of Princess Fatora?"

Rune Venus stared at the man in confusion. "You thought I was serious about
that?" She cocked her head, blinking several times. "I... was serious,
wasn't I? I wonder what came over me..."

"It must be the foul Saotome's dark magicks!" Londs proclaimed, rising to
his feet and shaking his right fist at the Heavens in righteous fury. "I
shall send ten soldiers after him... twenty... our entire army!"

"Don't you dare lay a hand on my Ran-chan!" Rune Venus cried out,
backhanding Londs. The man was sent off his feet reeling from the blow and
flew out of the balcony, screaming like a little girl as the ground rushed
to meet him.

"Ranma... whatever you did to me..." the Princess mused out loud, staring
into the horizon melancholically. "I felt so alive... a liveliness I sorely
lack now..."

A picture of a pigtail appeared in her mind's eye, beckoning her... calling
to her very heart.

'What is your power, Ranma?' Rune Venus thought, sighing wistfully.

--------------------------------------------------

End of Chapter 4.

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------

Ranma, Prince of Roshtaria

Chapter 5

"Hey there, Red," Ranma greeted the dark-skinned girl with the unruly, fiery
hair when his little group met her near the entrance to the priestess'
shrine.

Shayla-Shayla was momentarily annoyed that a mere mortal man greeted her,
the Great Priestess of Fire, so casually... until she noticed that he was no
man. Nay! He was a god... Adonis himself made flesh. Her perfect boyfriend!

Ranma felt a sudden chill, as if someone had just walked over his grave.
'I'm too young to die!' he thought desperately, but forced himself to smile.
"We are looking for the three sages, also known as the Great Priestesses of
Mount Muldoon."

Shayla-Shayla's heart melted at his words. He had been searching the world
for her, no doubt to try and make her his wife. The fire priestess blushed
slightly, as more intimate images started forcing themselves into her mind.
She wasn't like that!

Besides, duty always came first! She would go and work... maybe gamble a bit
afterwards and get a few drinks. And he would just wait for her at home,
always happy to serve her every whim... all night long...

"Hey, are you alright?" Ranma asked with concern, waving a hand in front of
the girl's face, which was visibly burning up.

She leaned into his loving embrace, sensing the obviously shy boy's desire
to hold her in his arms.

"Hey, leave Ranma alone, you floozy!" Kiriya shouted in agitation, coming
very close to drawing her crossbow. "I want him!" Noticing Ranma's
questioning gaze fall on her, she added, "dead." quietly so that only he
would hear, berating herself for her slip of tongue. And just why had it
sounded so... right?

"And who might you be to stand in the way of lo... err, the Great Priestess
of Fire?!" Shayla-Shayla asked dangerously with a low growl.

"Yeah, lover," Alielle purred, attaching herself firmly to Kiriya's chest.
"Tell her who you are, Fatora dahling." The last word was drawled out
seductively by the short girl who also used the opportunity to wink at the
priestess playfully.

"Those shameful yet strangely enticing lesbian acts in public..."
Shayla-Shayla said in shock, recoiling from the little group. "It can't
be..."

Alielle nodded enthusiastically, only adding to the priestess' agitation.

"Not... the legendary lecher, Princess Fatora of Roshtaria, and her
insatiable side-kick, Alielle?" Shayla-Shayla asked in genuine fear, backing
away and covering her privates with her arms just in case. "The fabled
dynamic lesbian duo?"

Kiriya blinked at this turn of events. There had obviously been a
misunderstanding! She wasn't a lesbian. After all, she wanted Ranma...

Dead. She wanted Ranma dead. It was getting harder and harder to remember.

In any case, all she had to do was show this poor, misguided woman the error
of her ways...

Kiriya took a step forward, raising her hands upwards to give away no signs
of malice. Unfortunately, she forgot that Alielle had become one with her
cleavage and lost her balance. Tripping over, her arms flailed but couldn't
save her balance and she pitched forward with Alielle. Thankfully, she
landed on something soft.

Not expecting such a soft landing, her hands began exploring the smooth
substance underneath them.

Kiriya ignored the building up heat until she and Alielle were blasted away,
Shayla-Shayla rising to her feet unsteadily with a full-body flush. "T-The
d-dreaded Monkey Swinging On A Rope From Above Swift Death Glomp!" she
breathed out in awe. Shuddering, she erupted in flames, trying to cleanse
herself with the holy fire.

By the look on her face, it wasn't working.

"What a terrifying technique!"

Ranma looked at her strangely. "Looked to me like they tripped. Geez."

An exclamation of pure joy was heard from the side. Turning around to face
its origin, Ranma and Shayla-Shayla saw Alielle clenching and unclenching
her right hand, looking at it in wonder. Her eyes still glazed, she raised
her palm to her face and licked it.

A tremor went through the petite girl's entire body.

"So smooth... creamy..."

Ranma shuddered, the fire priestess mirroring his actions.

Shayla-Shayla looked at him suspiciously, wondering if perhaps he was some
kind of pervert as well, since he was traveling with the duo. It wouldn't do
for the future father of her children to be that much of a pervert!

Guessing what was going through her mind, Ranma waved his hands to the
negative quickly. "No! Nonono! They do it to me as well... the small chick,
at least; I'm still not sure about the other one."

Shayla-Shayla sighed sadly. Poor guy. He was obviously telling the truth,
for how could he lie?

Alielle's glazed over eyes cleared. She looked at the still hallucinating
Kiriya - in Fatora's guise - who had hit her head rather nastily after being
hit with the blast of fire magic, before setting her sights onto
Shayla-Shayla.

"I see red-heads," she murmured, loud enough for everyone to hear; to hear
and be very, very afraid.

--------------------------------------------------

"You stupid bimbo! Why did you have to go and do that?!" Ranma grumbled,
walking around the empty temple, which looked like a gigantic library filled
with a multitude of books on the inside.

Alielle raised her nose high into the air with an indignant huff. "It's not
my fault she left so suddenly."

"She broke the freaking sound barrier trying to get away from a lesbo with
sick, perverted intentions!" Ranma continued to rant at her.

"I assure you that my intentions were as pure as ever," Alielle replied with
a cute pout.

The pigtailed boy waved his hands at her in disgust. "Aww, just forget it!"

"Forgotten!" she exclaimed excitedly, immediately glomping him as if nothing
had happened.

Ranma sighed. This wasn't fair! Even Nerima wasn't that bad. Well, except
for that Kodachi chick going gaga on him. Or Shampoo doing the same after he
beat her by accident. Or Ucchan falling for him at the age of six when he
beat her up. And again, after he mentioned she was cute. Or the girls at
school when he smiled at them occasionally...

The boy blinked.

This had _always_ been so bad! Well, almost. Akane didn't love him. Or did
she? She had to, based on the other examples. Then again, she could have
been the exception to the rule.

Either that, or she was masking her emotions. No other girl around him ever
did that; not even that weird chick that sent him to this land.

She was sad... or maybe that's just how he got, when he started thinking
about her. The mixed blessing of an eidetic memory allowed the pigtailed boy
to replay the entire scene in his head. There were many things he had only
noticed after reviewing it that he had outright missed or dismissed as
unimportant the first time around.

The rags she wore. The sarcophagus-like device, probably the place where she
had been, waiting for him. Waiting for ten millennia. Ten millennia...

She loved him, that girl. She said so clearly herself, but that was hardly
necessary. That girl had obviously sacrificed so much for waiting for him...
only to send him away; for good, as far as he could tell, since she never
mentioned a way back.

And Ranma felt so impossibly sorry for her....

Because he didn't love her back.

How could he? He didn't even know her! Did you really fall in love with
someone at first sight? Could that be possible?

Yet, it didn't matter, for he had not fallen for the mysterious woman's
grace.

He wept for her tears... for her heartache...

She had kissed him before sending him away. The tears in her eyes... were
they tears of joy, for finally seeing him? Tears of sadness, for having to
part with him?

Tears that flowed down her perfect porcelain cheeks because she knew she
could never have him?

Ranma cursed loudly, getting the attention of his two female companions. He
gave them a scowl and vaulted to the second floor of the temple, leaving
them to look for clues as to the priestesses' whereabouts among the various
books left on the gigantic round table in the middle of the temple.

That blue-haired woman was the embodiment of tragedy. She said she had been
weakened by the passage of years... millennia...

Would she survive for much longer on her own? Especially since she
supposedly used the last of her powers to open a dimensional rift to El
Hazard?

To transport two people to this world from Earth was no mean feat.

Two people? Only he had been with that girl, but Ryoga froze...

Ranma's pigtail stood on end suddenly as his face went completely white,
draining of all color.

Oh, God. Oh, God, no.

Not them.

Ranma felt like crying. It was so simple! They had been closer to ground
zero than Ryoga, and he did see their shadows while walking through the
deserted school.

The pigtailed boy groaned. Oh joy. What was next, his old man showing up and
starting to sell him to the highest bidding girl?

Ranma shuddered, a look of absolute terror on his face. He had felt a very
familiar ki signature that faithful day just moments before the fight, but
couldn't concentrate on it when Ryoga called out his challenge. The Lost Boy
was a skilled fighter - though obviously inferior to his superb skill in the
Art - and had to be taken seriously. There was no time to check out ki
signatures at the time, and later... later things became... complicated.

But what if...?

--------------------------------------------------

The mighty Bugrom army advanced on the frightened people slowly, the humans
backing away, unable to even slow down the invaders' advance. Suddenly, two
shadows loomed over the humans from above.

The first thought that went through the defenders' heads was that they were
surrounded. However, when no attack came they tensed, fearing what the enemy
had planned something truly insidious.

"Hold, foul villains! Your dastardly deeds stop here!" a mustached man in a
black martial arts gi proclaimed loudly.

"Indeed!" his companion in a white gi thundered, brushing a hand against his
golden spiky hair. "All your bases are belong to us!"

Whispers spread out amongst the humans at the display, while the Bugrom
stared at the two people who dared to oppose them strangely.

"Fear us!" the heavyset man in the white gi exclaimed, striking a pose. "For
I am the Crouching Tiger!"

His companion, also of golden hair, posed similarly. "And I am the Hidden
Dragon! Together we form The Hired Help!"

The duo leapt from the building tops they stood on, and jumped into the
Bugrom horde. A melee broke out, the area seemingly completely dominated by
the gigantic bugs. The human defenders were about to say a quick prayer for
the golden-haired duo's sake, when a blinding white light bathed the area,
causing everyone to look away or risk losing their sight. A shockwave
followed shortly afterwards, knocking the humans to the ground.

When the light receded, only two figures remained standing on the
battlefield. Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon clapped each other on the
back to congratulate themselves for a job well done, before turning towards
their awestruck spectators.

"I believe there is the small manner of our fee," the heavyset man started,
rubbing his stomach affectionately...

--------------------------------------------------

End of Chapter 5.

--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------

Ranma, Prince of Roshtaria

Chapter 6

"Hinako! Nahato! Attend me!"

A pair of children walked over to the man who had just called for them,
bowing before him.

"Lord Gallus, for which purpose have you summoned us?" the blue-skinned boy
asked with the utmost respect.

Hinako, who had been sucking on a lollipop, nodded her head enthusiastically
in agreement, also eager to find that out.

"It appears that my carefully laid plans had been foiled," Gallus told them
through gritted teeth.

"I have heard about the Bugrom Commander, my lord, but I was under the
impression that Kiriya was to rectify that problem," Nahato said in
confusion.

Hinako blinked and continued to look on.

Gallus' shoulders sagged and he sighed wearily. "Fools. It seems I'm
surrounded by fools." Shaking his head, he muttered, "Good help is so
difficult to find these days."

"But you found me just a few days ago!" Hinako gushed, beaming at him
radiantly.

Gallus took one look at her and sighed again. "I know."

Nahato snickered quietly, and Hinako for her part shrugged and skipped off
to explore the large underground cavern they were in.

"What do you require me to do, my Liege?" Nahato inquired, serious again as
soon as the two were left alone.

"Kiriya, that weak fool, that... female..." Gallus spat on the ground in
disgust. "She had failed. Miserably. With repercussions that may affect our
plans."

"Had she failed and gotten herself imprisoned before she could take her own
life?"

"Worse. Kiriya had... fallen in love. With our greatest enemy. At first
glance."

Nahato forgot about all formalities at that point and boggled at the older
man.

Gallus nodded sadly, grasping the boy's shoulders. Looking him in the eyes
sternly, he whispered harshly, "Our quest of vengeance is in peril, my dear
child. The time draws near that I am discovered and the army mobilized
against us. Recently, two exceptionally strong beings capable to stand up to
the best the Bugrom can dish out and win have entered the game."

"My Lord, how can that be?" Nahato asked in wonder.

"I know not. However, it won't be long before they are formally approached
by the Alliance. And without the threat of the Bugrom, the accursed
Roshtarians could turn their entire army against us."

Nahato grimaced. "There must be a way to resolve everything and buy us more
time," he commented thoughtfully.

"And there is." Gallus chuckled deeply. "It is simplicity at its best. We
fight fire..."

The boy's eyes widened, and he cut in urgently, exclaiming, "With fire!" and
smacking a fist into the palm of his other hand.

Gallus smiled. "No matter how powerful these Crouching Tiger and Hidden
Dragon may be, no one rivals the power of the legendary Demon Goddess,
Ifurita!"

"Ifurita? What's that?" Hinako asked innocently, having come over while the
two were engrossed in their conversation.

"It's a who. Well, technically, you can call it a what. But it is alive.
Well, it's a she, not an it. You see..." Nahato stopped in the middle of his
ramblings and looked at Hinako.

He received a blank look in return.

"You don't see..." the blue-skinned boy said with a deep sigh.

"No matter!" Gallus interrupted. "Go to the Forbidden Island and awaken
Ifurita right away, Nahato. Go, my minion!"

The man then spontaneously burst into laughter, leaving the two kids staring
at him in confusion.

"Umm, where is the Forbidden Island, exactly?" Nahato asked the room dumbly.

Gallus continued to laugh madly, and Hinako blinked when the boy's eyes
swept over her face.

Nahato sighed.

--------------------------------------------------

"Thank you kindly, Sirs!" a burly villager gushed, serving Genma another
helping of supper. "We don't know what we would've done if you two hadn't
shown up!"

"I bet we'd lose our yearly food supply to the Bugrom," a ten-year-old boy
groused quietly from his place in the far off corner. "Not that there
would've been much of a difference."

"Hush, child!" His mother looked at him sternly. "At least we still have a
roof over our heads. Giving her husband a glare, she added, more for his
benefit than the boy's, "And your stupid, good for nothing father might have
gotten maimed or even killed while trying to repel the attack! Who would
have provided for us then?"

Genma, for his part, was oblivious to all of that. There was plenty of food.
It was his to feast on. He was in Heaven.

A teenager with a goatee approached the eating martial artist, careful not
to stand between him and the food. "Excuse me. Are you the one who had
defeated the Bugrom army that was attacking this village?"

"Who are you?" Genma asked rudely around a piece of chicken. "Do you bring
food?"

"I bear no gifts for you, noble stranger," the teenager replied with a smile
dancing on his lips.

Genma snorted and returned his attention to the food. "Go away. Bring food."

"Excuse me," the teenager tried again, brushing a hand through his goatee.
"I offer something even better than simple nourishment."

In a rare moment of clarity, Genma raised his face to stare at the teenager
dumbly. "Who are you?"

"You may call me Yvgeny," the teenager replied with an annoying smirk.
"Yvgeny Kent."

"How do I get rid of you, Eve Genie?"

"Not Eve Genie but Yvgeny," the teenager corrected the heavyset martial
artist with a twitch in his left eye. "In any case, I have come to offer you
free promotional service!"

"Can you eat it?" Genma asked between bites, filling his mouth with pieces
of salmon.

"Mr. Crouching Tiger, by promotional service I mean free commercials. Our
subscribers might be interested in hiring you and your friend for new jobs,
and that would in turn result in more food."

"Should've said so in the first place," Genma commented lazily, washing down
the food with a bottle of wine. "What's this 'subscriber' business, anyway?"
he asked curiously.

"You can't eat it," Yvgeny said wryly, his eyebrow twitching again when
Genma nodded in all seriousness at his words. "Since I happen to work as a
freelance reporter I plan to get your story and post it in the Daily
Roshtaria, a newspaper I have a contract with."

"I'll have to work?" Genma asked pitifully, stopping in mid-bite and looking
at the teenager with infinite sadness in his eyes.

Yvgeny sighed. "No, Mr. Crouching Tiger, you won't have to work. People
would be interested in legendary fighting powers that rival the Demon
Goddess Ifurita's, but..."

He must've blinked, because the next thing he knew, Yvgeny was held by his
throat and lifted into the air by Genma's right hand. "Where have you heard
this name?" he hissed dangerously, looking around wildly.

Yvgeny coughed, making choking noises. "Legend of the... Demon Goddess...
Ifurita... that sleeps forever... on the Forbidden Island."

Genma released the teenager, turning towards his friend swiftly. "Come, S--
Hidden Dragon! We must fight evil and right wrongs once again!"

The crowd cheered as they took off into the sky, turning into small dots on
the horizons mere moment later. The reason for their festivities became
evident to Yvgeny once he noticed that the two strangers left without
finishing their meal, leaving enough food for the entire village to exist
for a month in relative luxury.

--------------------------------------------------

"So, let me get this straight. This Lord Phallus..."

"Gallus!" Kiriya yelled in exasperation. 'How difficult was it to remember
one simple name? Or was he doing this on purpose?'

"Yeah, right, whatever." Ranma waved his hand in a dismissive manner.
Looking at the female assassin, he asked for clarification, "So this guy
sent you here to kill me?"

Kiriya blushed under the boy's scrutinizing gaze, nodding shyly.

"It makes sense, I guess." Ranma sighed. "So, what did I ever do to him?"

Kiriya blinked at the question. "What did you do to him?"

The pigtailed boy threw his hands up in exasperation. "Yes! What did I do to
cause him to go after me? What is this all about? Bread? A jealous fiance?"
Shivering, Ranma asked in an unsteady voice, "A dowry?"

Kiriya shook her head slowly to the negative, immediately noticing Ranma's
immense relief. Continuing to puzzle over it, she explained, "Prince Gallus
had kidnapped the real Princess Fatora for certain... experiments. Your
arrival threw off his plans and you became an obstacle. Hence, I have to
kill you and everything will be alright again."

"Oh," Ranma said slowly. "Ya know, that's the dumbest reason I've ever
heard!" he exclaimed a moment later. The boy mumbled afterwards, "I mean, a
bread feud I could understand..."

"We have to save my darling Fatora!" Alielle gushed suddenly, her face
nestled in the valley between Kiriya's breasts.

The disguised assassin looked down dumbly. 'When did the perv get there?'

"Don't worry, we'll save her," Ranma assured the petite girl, regretting his
words almost immediately when she zoomed and latched onto him instead. 'Such
speed...' he thought in awe, futilely trying to pry her off of him. 'Such
tenacity and strength...'

Ranma blinked, an idea forming in his head. 'Could this be the legendary
Lesbo-ken?'

Seeing Ranma's glazed over eyes, Kiriya sighed. 'He's probably thinking of
new martial arts techniques.' Sighing once again, even more deeply, she
thought, 'Why can't he ever get that look when he thinks of me?' Catching
herself, she added mentally, 'So I can seize the opportunity while he's off
guard and kill him easily, of course!'

"Your breasts feel so nice when you inhale deeply," Alielle murmured,
breaking Kiriya's train of thought.

"Get it off!" she yelled, jumping to her feet and trying to shake the
over-zealous girl off her bosom. After running in circles around Ranma for
several minutes and launching a long stream of obscenities that made him
blush the disguised Phantom Tribe girl finally settled down in defeat with
Alielle still just as firmly attached to her.

"I swear," Kiriya said listlessly, "you're almost as scary as the legendary
ultimate warrior."

Ranma perked up immediately at her words. Looking at her with puppy-dog
eyes, he asked, "Can you tell me more about him? Please?" His eyes twinkling
with excitement, he thought, 'This guy must know lots of secret scrolls with
El Hazardian martial arts techniques! Finally, a worthy challenge on this
world!'

Kiriya seemed to be a little put off by the maniacal laugh that escaped
Ranma's mouth briefly, but her resolve crumbled when the puppy dog look
returned full force. "In El Hazard, there is a prophecy of a legendary Demon
God, the strongest of them all. It is a weapon, sealed a long time ago
during the Holy Wars."

Ranma's smile diminished somewhat when he heard that the ultimate warrior
was a weapon. "Aww, and I wanted a good fight with this guy..."

"Ahh, but the weapon is rumored to be alive," Kiriya replied with a smile,
immediately gaining Ranma's attention again. Bowing her head, she stared at
Alielle's joyous expression, trying very hard not to shudder. "I'm afraid I
don't know much more on this. I am, after all, an assassin; not a lore
master. What I have told you now is merely information that is known to
every child in El Hazard."

Ranma frowned, rubbing his chin in thought. "This weapon thingy just might
be worth my time. Maybe I'll even pick a few techniques from it."

"But what about Fatora?" Alielle asked curiously. "And talking to the
priestesses about unsealing the Eye of God?"

Ranma shrugged. "A little detour wouldn't hurt. We don't know where Fatora
is being held, so it doesn't matter which direction we travel in. And as for
the priestesses... well, maybe Ryoga will meet them? He does end up at the
strangest places..."

--------------------------------------------------

"Where are you, enemy of all women?!" Ryoga roared, charging blindly in a
random direction. "Come out and fight, you coward!"

Ura was trudging after him half-heartedly, having gotten off the backpack
earlier. 'Ura hope Stupid Boy get lost. Leave Ura alone.'

Hearing a surprised shriek, the Lost Boy stopped in his tracks, looking at
its source. Immediately, his face froze in an expression of shock. Ura
followed his companion's gaze as well, and wisely stepped back, well out of
the danger zone.

Several more shrieks followed the first, coming from all around the still
boy.

Blood gushed from his nose and he fell onto his back in a dead faint, barely
missing getting hit by a huge missile created from water.

Ura shook his head, uttering one word sadly. "Idiot." Hearing footsteps
rapidly approach him, he turned his head to the left to see who was coming.

"Are you with this... this... pervert?" a handsome lavender-haired woman in
her early twenties asked the talking cat, finishing wrapping herself in a
towel.

Ura was a smart cat. He shook his head to the negative.

"Can we kill it?" several girls clad only in towels asked in unison,
brandishing blunt bathing utensils.

"You know you cannot commit murder in this holy spring," the lavender-haired
woman who seemed to be in charge admonished them. "Maim him; preferably
where it hurts the most."

And so, the slaughter began. Ura was forced to look away and suppress the
urge to wince at the level of violence committed by the girls.

Eventually he sat on the ground, facing away from the Lost Boy's comatose
body as the beating went on, crossing his legs as he did so. Ura was a male
cat, after all.

Walking away from the slaughter that was nearing its end - the under-dressed
women stalking away from the prone boy in a huff - the same woman squatted
down next to the cat, taking Ura into her arms. The sentient feline idly
noticed that she had managed to get dressed in the meanwhile.

"You lied to me, didn't you?" she asked gently, with small traces of
admonishment in her voice. "You _are_ with that perverted boy."

"Ura no like Stupid Boy. Boy Stupid, so Ura no like."

"I see," came the reply. The woman smiled. "My name is Miz, and water's my
biz! But you can call me Miz Mishtal."

"Ura like Natural Lavender better than Stupid Boy. Too too nice woman take
Ura to real owner, yes?"

Miz blushed to the roots of her hair, and it took her a few long moments to
get her mouth working again. When it started complying wither again, she
asked, "Who is your owner, Ura?"

"Fatora..." The cat smiled suddenly. "Ura make mistake. Ura no belong Sadist
Bitch. Ura Ranma!"

Miz blinked, trying to process the information.

"You take Ura to Ranma, yes? Ranma smell cat, Ura like. If Ranma female cat,
Ura have lot children together."

Miz looked at Ura for several long moments, before erupting into a fit of
laughter. "You're just precious, baby! Did you know that?" She hugged the
feline to her chest.

Ura endured.

"I'll tell you what. If you know how to find this Ranma, I'll help you out!"
Miz smiled again, wondering, 'Ranma... why does his very name make me
shiver?'

"Ranma go find priestess. Unlock Eye of God. Too too eager Princess ask,
Ranma go."

Miz's smile only grew in size and volume, if such a thing were possible. 'He
is looking for me! It must be fate... and when I return his cat to him, he'd
take me in his manly arms and...'

Seeing his companion begin to slip into a dazed state, Ura tried to talk
even faster, skipping more words as he did so. 'If not say right away, she
not think right for hours. Ranma too too nice person for own good.'

"Ranma gone. Stupid Boy take Ura away. Say go find Enemy of All That Lives.
Say find Ranma then. Ura has nothing better do, so Ura follow. Ura always
follow orders. Sad fate. Even more sad death when come. At least there is
symmetry."

Miz shook out of her daydream, looking at the feline in horror. 'The Enemy
of All That Lives!'

"Can it be?" Miz murmured softly to herself.

"Can what be?" two voices asked from behind her.

Turning around with Ura in her hands, she saw two younger women standing
there, one with a smirk on her face.

"Afura! Shayla! We must hurry!" Miz yelled, grabbing each of them by an arm.

Ura fell down to the ground and landed on his feet gracefully.

Panicking, Miz started running out of the water resort, shouting over her
shoulder, "We must save my destined from Ifurita!"

The other two girls paled at this and dropped the parcels in their hands,
jogging after her and calling out Miz's name.

Ura, for his part, was left behind, totally forgotten. He sighed. 'Such is
life.' Walking over to Ryoga, he kicked him as hard as he could in the face.

The Lost Boy didn't even flinch.

Deciding it was time for more drastic measures to wake his companion up
before the angry females decided to return and dish out more punishment, Ura
steeled himself and sank his teeth deeply into Ryoga's groin...

--------------------------------------------------

"Ah, my beloved Ranma-sama... if only I were with you..." The raven-haired
girl sighed, standing atop the Bugrom fortress, heedless of the dangers to
her should she trip and fall.

A snort brought her attention to another's presence. "Come, sister dear.
There is no time to waste on your foolish crushes."

She didn't turn around, continuing to stare into the distant horizon. "A
foolish crush would better describe your pursuit of that pigtailed harridan.
The love between myself and my Prince is different... true..."

"I care not for that scum. He had already been given my permission to date
with you." The boy brought his hand on his sister's right shoulder. "The
Tendo bitch requests our presence in the royal chambers."

"Not too fond of the woman that supplied you with pornographic pictures of
your 'beloved', are you?" Kodachi barbed, chuckling. "The person who got you
this prestigious position in the army?"

"I am no fool, sister dear," Tatewaki replied sharply, turning her around
until she faced him. "Nabiki Tendo does nothing for free. Or if there is no
amusement involved; amusement at the expense of others. I fear that in this
case it is both."

"You are quite right, I would say," the raven-haired woman replied, her eyes
twinkling in amusement. "If nothing else, her newly-gained powers suggest
that. It suits that vermin that she would be able to speak to lowly bugs."

Tatewaki nodded quietly, seeing no trace of ridicule in his sister's eyes.
"We must be cautious." The teenage boy glanced at his right arm, which was
covered in a golden armband, his sister following his gaze with a knowing
smile. "While this may give me access to the power of the gods themselves,
the Tendo girl controls its source."

"Not to mention holding the key to even more power, of course," Kodachi
commented lazily, bringing her ponytail forward over her right shoulder and
examining it idly.

"Indeed." Tatewaki looked visibly uncomfortable to admit that, and Kodachi
almost laughed out loud at his comical expression.

"She needs us, brother dear. She needs you..." the raven-haired girl smiled,
"for only you have the power to use the divine armor."

"And what of your power?" Tatewaki asked, curiosity seeping into his voice.
"I do not believe even Queen Diva knows of it."

Kodachi's face twisted into a wicked smirk. "You might say that my power is
what will keep the Tendo girl in line... for now. She had already had the...
pleasure... of experiencing it."

Tatewaki nodded in satisfaction. "That will suffice. Now, let us be on our
way to the war council. We still have much territory to conquer."

Kodachi nodded silently, and the two entered the Bugrom fortress. They
walked through the long corridors of the citadel, various Bugrom soldiers
bowing before them as the Kuno siblings walked proudly with their heads held
high, not even acknowledging their presence.

"Where have you been, Tatewaki?" Nabiki demanded harshly as they rounded a
corner and came face to face with her.

She was so agitated that didn't even use the pet name she had for him,
Kodachi noted with an inner smile. "Brother dear was with me, Nabiki Tendo,"
the ponytailed girl said calmly.

Nabiki looked like she wanted to add something, but a glance at Kodachi's
deceptively serene face cured that desire. "Why didn't you tell me about
this 'Fatora' character when you first got the information?" she demanded of
the kendoist, cutting right to the chase.

"The likes of you are not my superiors," he replied with an arrogant smirk.

"What my slow yet well-meaning brother wanted to say," Kodachi added with a
disturbing smile on her lips that didn't quite reach her eyes, "was that he
is deeply sorry for not realizing the importance of the information."

Tatewaki glared at his sister, but said nothing and nodded, turning his head
away from Nabiki.

"I was informed that you received a letter and several pictures," Nabiki
said, ignoring the entire incident and reaching out with her hand. "I want
them."

"Five thousand yen," Tatewaki deadpanned, without even gracing the middle
Tendo daughter with a look.

Kodachi chuckled, earning her a furious gaze from Nabiki. "My brother is
merely joking, of course. You shall receive the information you desire in an
hour, after I had time to compile it together for your convenience, my
Shogun."

Nabiki brushed a hand through her short hair, showing her irritation.
"Whatever. Just make sure I get it as soon as possible, Kodachi. We have a
more urgent problem on our hands at this point."

The self-proclaimed Black Rose raised an eyebrow. "And what might this...
problem... be, Nabiki Tendo?" She let out a short laugh, covering her mouth
with the back of her right hand demurely. "Could it be that there is
something even the Divine Shogun of the mighty Bugrom empire cannot handle
on her own?"

"Stuff it, Kodachi," Nabiki shot back curtly, gaining the other girl's
undivided attention by the urgency underlining her voice. "This involves a
power beyond even _your_ wildest dreams. Her name is Ifurita and she is
about to awaken from her slumber..."

--------------------------------------------------

End of Chapter 6.

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