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Innortal
Author of 38 Stories |
No Need for Destiny
Chapter 12
No Need for Falls
Disclaimer: I don’t own this series or any other series. I am just floating an idea. I am making no money, nor plan to, off this venture. If you think of suing me over this, then grow up.
I would like to first personally thank all of those reviewing my stories. I enjoy reading your comments, and try to correct the grammatical errors I miss with my final read-through as well as my spell checkers. The suggestions you all make will help make this story better for everyone to enjoy, as well as allow my to fix some plot holes I may unintentionally leave. If you find any, let me know, and I will correct them and repost the chapters.
And he would trade it all in a millisecond, if the woman he was watching would return to him the way she had been.
“Saturn,” he murmured, as he watched the reborn love of his existence walk down the sidewalk, enjoying the day.
Ranma Chaotica Kuramitsu, known as Chibi-Ranma, and as Ran to said girl, watched from the rooftop, happy to see her alive, healthy, ... and single.
He had already prepared for this day. Like his father, he could disguise his appearance to look any age, without the use of technology—unlike a certain priest whom shall go unnamed. So, he would have no trouble looking the sixteen years Saturn resembled now. He had even gone as far as securing an identity within the primitive logistics system that the people of Earth were currently using.
After all, it was all for one purpose: to see if the soul and heart of the one female he had ever formed a connection with ... still existed.
Unlike most of his siblings and his parents, he had neither the need nor the desire to find a second mate. No, he was perfectly content with Saturn. Then again, women—and sadly, a few men—still seemed to seek his father out. And he was very certain his father had no desire for another wife, let alone a first husband.
The men had no chance, even after the true side effects of the female Jusenkyo curse were discovered by Ran’s sister.
The women...
Then again, the might be more his mother Nabiki’s fault that his father’s.
Shaking his head, he noticed a few boys seeming to follow his love, a menacing aura about them.
He growled, tightening his hands into fists, the nails nearly piercing his skin. His parents had warned him that Saturn had led a difficult life until this point, where a Kuramitsu was allowed onto Earth once again. But to see such trash doing so, brazenly in front of him...
“They ... will ... suffer!” he growled out, before disappearing. No one would threaten his love, not after he finally had found her, even if ... she didn’t want him again.
Hotaru cringed at those words, knowing what they meant. She had hoped that these boys would leave her alone, once they entered high school.
Sadly, she was wrong. Boys like that tended to repeat said patterns, unless beat down. And she couldn’t do that without revealing her magic girl identity.
“I think you fools will leave or die,” said a new voice, a voice that seemed to stir ... something ... inside the Senshi of Saturn.
Both she and the three boys turned, spotting a new boy standing in the entrance of the alley, his black hair tied into a pigtail, his clothes loose American designed once, and his eyes hidden behind a pair of expensive sunglasses.
“What are you going to do, rich kid?” asked the middle boy, assuming the clothes indicated his wealth.
The stranger growled. “Either leave or ... I will kill you. I will not repeat myself.”
The boys paused at this, seeing the figure flex his hands, forming fists, before untensing his hands.
“Three against one,” said the middle boy. “I think we’ll win.”
The stranger growled, before thrusting his hand against a dumpster inside the alley. Before anyone could ask what he was trying to do, black energy seemed to gather around the hand, as the dumpster slowly began to ... melt.
Within a few seconds, the dumpster was gone.
“Okay,” said the stranger, smiling, as he cracked his neck, rolling it from side to side. “I’m ready. Are you?”
Pluto stood before the Gates, trying to trace the lines of destiny, and determine who or what would be the downfall of the Sol System.
She had a lot riding on this, on her ability to perhaps see the chaos that the Gates were unable to focus on: she had a child. She had her son to ensure of surviving this storm.
Enma was a little over four years old, or he would be soon, as of tomorrow. And though his birth and existence gave her some of the greatest joy she had ever known, it did little to quell the rumors generated by the small prince’s birth.
The rumors that had arisen from his birth were too numerous to count. Some stated that there was a lost princess out there, somehow hidden to protect her. After all, a princess had to be birthed before a prince. That was the way of things.
Then there were those rumors that took on a darker undertone, suggesting that the lineage of Pluto had made dark allies.
Needless to say, Enma spent much more time in training with his father than with any tutors that the royals had access to. Even his education had been more cosigned to the tutors from Seniwa than from those of Sol.
But trying to track down an event that seemed mired in chaos was hard to do, especially for a magical construct that seemed to be solely intoned to the forces of order, and nearly blind to any force that had a drip of chaos in it. In effect, she was blind to see the coming storm, only that which would survive the Hell it would bring.
“Mama?”
Blinking, she turned towards the voice, seeing her small son standing before her, looking at her. “Enma?”
“MOMMY!” he cried, as he tackled the Senshi. “Grandma said you were busy, but I really, really, really wanted to see you. And then I was here, seeing you! WAH! I’M SO HAPPY!”
Pluto could only stare in shock. Her son ... at the tender age of almost four ... without any training ... had just teleported to the Gates of Time ... without any formal ceremony to give him access to either the needed power for such, or the ability to pass the safeguards for such.
“Son,” she stared, rubbing his head, “you just ... teleported here?”
“Yeppers,” he said, nuzzling his mother. He was very happy that he had been able to find her. “I missed you!”
She sighed, ahs she hugged him tighter. While she had been busy here, she had forgotten that she had a very lonely child that wanted to be with his mother whenever his father was not around.
This ... was going to take some getting used to.
He was just glad to spend time with them.
“DADDY!” the three cried, as they rushed the pigtailed royal from another world and time, intent on extracting as many hugs, kisses, candy, and assorted presents that they could.
He wished that if they could ask, he could say that he had pulled off this miracle.
But the reason they were all gathered was far from that.
No, they had been gathered because of the emerging power of the three.
Princess Minako Venus had been showing signs of achieving her Senshi transformation ahead of her ancestors, achieving it possibly before she even entered puberty. The effects her existence was having on Venus itself were spectacular. Already, crop yield had tripled since her conception, and the oceans were showing vitality never dreamed of before.
Princess Usagi Serenity was having a similar effect. But slightly ... off. Some plants were giving a better yield. But this was producing pink corn that tasted like bubble-gum, and they had recently discovered a new lake made of a jello-like substance. They suspected that it was because of her innate connection to the House of Serenity’s main magical artifact: the Ginzuishou.
Enma was a little more difficult to explain. Why Pluto was showing a bit more energy in the environment, his power was shifting only around him, namely teleporting to wherever his mother was at that moment. So far, it seemed to be only centered on his mother, but there was worry that it might try and center on his father. If so, it might exhaust the child’s developing magic to the point of death.
There were other problems. Usagi, unlike her siblings, did not want to practice Infinity Style. Like her mother, she preferred to be refined, diplomatic. And while that might have been fine before, he was not going to allow it ... not for any child of his.
Not after things like Kain.
“Okay guys,” said Ranma, “ready to begin?”
“I don’t wanna!” cried Usagi.
Ranma smirked. If there was one thing he had learned as a father—and a grandfather is several cases—was how to capture the interest of a child, especially if he was teaching them. “You don’t want to learn how to do this?” he said, as he gathered ki into his hand, forming a ball of energy. Exerting a little more concentration, the ball slowly began to warp into the serpentine form of a dragon.
The three children looked on in awe, staring as the dragon seemed to circle just above their father’s palm, the beard on its chin almost seemingly flowing about the air as it moved.
“That’s sooooo cooooool!” yelled Minako.
Enma nodded, his mouth open.
“I wanna make a bunny!” yelled Usagi. “Can you make it a bunny, Poppa?”
Ranma nodded. Sometimes, it was all in the way you presented things.
“Everything is set up to handle at least seventy nine percent of the current population in Sol,” said Nabiki. “If needed, we can use Colony Seven through Forty to act as a ferry-point, and move excess people to neighboring systems. Full time to system evacuation is currently set for seventeen days with available resources.”
“Almost tempted to start shipping out civilians,” said Queen Saturn. “I do believe we are nearing the point of interest.”
The others nodded sagely.
“The problem is how do we know we aren’t shipping out the threat as well,” said Queen Mars.
“What about the backup biosphere equipment?” asked Ranma.
“We have them installed throughout the system,” said Queen Mercury, whose citizens had been the main drive to install and maintain such technology. “We’ve added several layers of magical shielding above what was provided to us, as well as installed the main hubs deep underground. It isn’t much, but it should add a measure of protection when they come.”
The others remained quiet, trying not to bow to the pressure that such a grave statement seemed to illicit.
“And if that fails as well?” asked Queen Neptune. “There are many living things on each world. I would hate for such a natural gift to be destroyed if we should ... fail.”
“My son has been given knowledge by Tokimi,” said Ranma. “If we enter the situation that will lead to what we suspect,” he added, looking towards Nabiki with his eyes, “then he can seal off the magical umbrae, until the worlds choose another to wield their power. After that, we can release the umbrae, and the worlds will thrive once more.”
“And what we’ve added?” asked Queen Mercury.
“They are part of the umbrae,” said Nabiki. “If sealed, the worlds will revert to what they were before Sailor Magic imbued them with life. The ecosystems will be saved, and continue to grow. The nature of the crystals you use for power will rebuild the cities and ensure they continue to work.”
“Forgive us if we hope not to need such a failsafe,” said Queen Serenity.
“No offense taken,” said Nabiki.
“The combined fleets currently assigned to this sector can be here in minutes,” said Ranma. “If fleets already here can hold out, we can easily overwhelm any possible forces summoned here.”
The others gravely nodded.
“Any further information on where an attack might come from?” asked Queen Nova.
Nabiki shook her head. “From what the Intelligence Services of Jurai and Seniwa have determined ... to be honest, this part of space doesn’t hold any significance to the forces either in the Renza Union, or minor forces within Seniwa or Jurai space. There is just no strategic, nor resource importance to this system.”
“Then why attack us?” asked Queen Mars. “It makes no sense, and we are far from the only system in this sector with Sailor Senshi.”
Ranma shrugged. “For all we know, this system may be attacked merely as a test or an example of someone or something’s power.
“Regardless, the reasons are unimportant,” said Ranma. “All that matters is that we ensure everyone that can, does survive.”
The others slowly nodded.
“If that is all,” said Queen Mars, standing from her seat, “I need to return to my palace. A few of the ministries are trying to persuade me to pull money from our defense budgets for other issues.”
“One can only build a military so much, before the public begins to fear a totalitarian regime,” said Nabiki. “But the ships you have built within the last decade have more than doubled your fleet. The planetary defense grid is above expectations,” she added, as Queen Mercury smiled, “and your soldiers are making full use of the training programs we gave them.
“For now, there is little more we can do, let alone slide by the public mind, without explaining the reasonings behind such.”
The others slowly nodded. Revealing to the general public what they knew was not a good idea in their opinions. After all, the general panic it could cause, as well as the rapid fear, could very well spell the doom they were trying to avert.
“As far as I can see,” said Queen Serenity, “we have nothing more to discuss. This meeting is adjourned.”
Playing.
“I hate to put so much onto my little Venus’s shoulders,” said Queen Venus.
“No one likes to saddle others with their burdens,” said Nabiki. “Well, no one but the truly lazy,” she added, recalling her own father as well as her husband’s.
“I can only hope we did not burden them too much,” said Queen Serenity. “Our intentions were for the best...”
“A saying from our time,” said Nabiki; “the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.”
The others nodded as the children continued to play.
“Have we done the right thing?” asked Queen Venus.
“You ask now, after they’re born?” said Queen Serenity, glaring at her friend. She still had yet to forgive the Queen of Venus for omitting certain facts about the birthing process.
“It seems wrong to ever consider that we had them merely to be pawns in the coming battle,” said Queen Venus. “I merely want to confirm that like me, they were had not to play parts in this war, but because we wanted them, and we love them, no matter what fate has in store for us.”
“You never need to ask such things,” said Ranma.
“I know,” she said, “but on occasion, it still helps me to hear it.”
“We are not responsible for how we come into the universe,” said Nabiki. “we are responsible however, for what we do in it.”
Ranma sighed. He truly hated it when Nabiki fell into those philosophical mindsets.
“Daddy?”
He opened his eyes, looking at the hopeful face of his second blond daughter in this system, her hair in similar twin pigtails, as her mother wore. “Yes, Usagi?”
“Can you play with us?” she asked, her eyes mimicking the Puppy-Dog attack he had showed her a few years earlier.
“Go ahead, dear,” said Queen Serenity.
Ranma sighed once again as his daughter dragged him to his other children, as they decided to play.
“I must say, Lady Nabiki,” said Sailor Pluto, “you seem to be ... open ... with your husband.”
Nabiki smirked. “Outside of this system, females tend to outnumber males. As a result, polygamy is not only accepted, but widely practiced as well. Of course, that only counts if all parties agree to it.
“I was his second wife,” said Nabiki, staring at her husband and the three children, wondering perhaps if she was ready for her next child with him. After all, it had been a while since the last birth, and she was wondering if perhaps she would like to go la natural for once. She’d only done that for her first daughter’s birth.
“I didn’t know that,” said Queen Venus.
Nabiki nodded. “We don’t talk often about the first woman he married. She ... died, at least in the truest sense of the word.”
The others stayed silent, not pressuring her on any deeper explanation of her words.
“I wouldn’t have kept him to myself,” Nabiki continued. “In the end, his father wrote more debts in his name than even I could count, and I didn’t fancy myself spending the rest of my life cleaning up that man’s mess.
“I guess that is why I discounted him, shunned him to my sister.”
“You weren’t the first?” asked Serenity,
Nabiki shook her head. “Before we came to where we did, I doubt I would have even tried. He had skills, but no wisdom. And for me, that was a major turn-off.”
“What changed?” asked Queen Venus.
“He did,” said Nabiki. “A good man convinced him that he needed to grow in his mind, and quit being so ... childish,” said Nabiki. “And as he blossomed into a man none would have suspected he could, I fell for him.
“But his first wife was quicker, and she convinced him to do what none of his other suitors could: she convinced him about the real existence of love, and they were married.”
“And how did you come into his heart?” asked Serenity.
“A lot of luck, and her good graces,” said Nabiki, sipping her tea. “It was the happiest day in my life when we were married.”
“So, was there a third wife we don’t know about?” asked Queen Venus, amusement in her voice.
“Nope, ten thousand years as a mainly monogamous couple,” she replied with a smirk. “Present company excluded of course.”
The others giggled slightly.
“So then, Lady Pluto,” said Nabiki, her tone a bit more serious, “any problems with your fellow countrymen about you having a son?”
The Senshi sighed. “For the most part, my mother has ensured that those who saw him as a threat or an abomination were ... dealt with. However, there is still some uneasiness about his existence.
“Still I would not trade it for anything,” she said with a smile, as her son tackled his father, allowing his half-sisters to pile on top of him.
“And what’s this I hear about an arranged marriage?” asked Nabiki, turning to Serenity.
“Not arranged,” said Serenity with certainty. She was still a bit shocked at how vocal Ranma had been when she had suggested it like that. “A mere betrothal; King Endymion wanted to see if his son and my daughter could find love together. I wouldn’t force them into it.”
“Not after that argument,” Venus said with a smirk.
Serenity glared at her friend, before continuing. “We haven’t worked out many details, but the announcement is planned for later on this year.
“Speaking of which,” smirked the Queen of the Moon, as she looked over at Nabiki, “I heard that Queen Nova has asked for certain profiles of single Kuramitsu men. Care to explain?” she asked.
“Her daughter, Beryl, had a crush on Prince Endymion,” she nonchalantly replied.
“Had?” asked Pluto.
Nabiki shrugged. “We met with them last year for a banquet, with my son Soun. The child was so bewitched by him, she followed him the entire night, wanting to hear any stories he told.”
“Then why the others?” asked Venus.
“Either she knows more single women that she wants to try and set up,” said Nabiki, “or Beryl has a roving eye, and her Mother is not yet certain her desires for Soun are more than a crush.”
Serenity shrugged. “Hell, we all know single women in this system that have trouble finding a good man.”
“We know married women in this system with the same problem,” injected Venus, giggling lightly.
They could only continue to giggle, as they watched the future play with the present, as father and children continued to play and have fun.
It was something that would disappear very soon from their worlds.
But whatever has a beginning must always have an end.
And the end was now.
“It is time, my love.”
“Yes, let the purge of this system begin!”
“Do we have a pawn?”
“Yes, a lonely little cow who will get what she and they all deserve!”
Then again, the Kuramitsu clan would be arriving soon, and they did have some available sons, if Soun Kuramitsu had been any indication.
“What do you need those outsiders for?”
She twisted around, trying to spot whoever had intruded into her private sanctuary. “Who are you? Reveal yourself!”
“Why do I need to, child?” asked the voice, taking on a female tone.
Beryl looked around, gathering mana in her hands. “Come out now, that is an order!”
“Petulant child!” growled the voice. “I have merely come to offer you your fondest desire.”
“I neither need nor want your help,” said Beryl. She was finally getting over an old crush, the last thing she needed was voices that had no form, or promises for things she no longer wanted.
Besides, people still looked at her funny after she had somehow turned her cousin’s hair bright orange. She still swore that it had merely been too much Norpse root.
“You would reject me?” asked the female voice.
“Why must all voices never listen?” asked Beryl, staring at the ceiling.
“Fine then,” growled the voice. “If you reject my offer for power and your fondest desires, then we have nothing more to discuss.”
Beryl began to relax, wondering if the thing had been more bark than bite.
She discovered her answer, as pain lashed across her head.
“Your participation is not required, fool,” said the voice, as it began to laugh.
Queen Pluto hissed as she fired another Dead Scream at the invading hordes, as she rushed her grandson to a waiting dreadnaught. If she could, then he could escape and survive. That was all that mattered to her now. If anything, her senses spoke to her what she already knew: today she would die defending her kingdom.
She felt a little sad at what she had to do now. It wasn’t a grandmotherly thing to do, knocking out your own grandchild so that he didn’t die beside you.
No, he would survive. That much she would make certain. It wasn’t like his mother could help protect him here. She would have been pulled to the Gates and sealed within that bubble of reality until a Serenity released her, thus ensuring that Gates of Time would not be captured.
It sucked, but it was the rule.
What could have happened? Why are they attacking us? Only beings shrouded in pure chaos could confuse the Gates so much. Before we knew it, they were everywhere, as if by a magic more powerful than that of the Moon Family.
Enma; my grandson, forgive an old woman for not letting you fight beside me here. But I want you to survive.
“Ma’am!”
She stopped before several guards, all outfitted with heavy infantry gear. “Are the civilians loaded?”
“Yes, your highness,” said their leader, a large and burly man who had been in the Royal Guard for four hundred years. “We have the best crew available to pilot it. They’ll be safe until we wipe this filth out.”
She kept quiet, not telling the man what her gut was telling her. After all, he might survive. “Place my grandson aboard. Despite his father’s training, I fear him staying here can only end in his death. No matter what, he is not to take command, nor force you to return to the battle. The main priority is the civilians and his survival, not his ego or desire to save us.”
The man nodded, motioning for two of his squad forward. “Take the Prince to the ship and launch. Protect him with your lives.”
“Sir, yes sir!” they yelled, as they carefully took him from their Queen.
Queen Pluto watched as her grandson disappeared down the corridor. Yes, he would survive, and lead the Kingdom of Pluto one day—assuming that those who still felt like he was a bad omen were dead.
Wiping away a stray tear, she turned towards the remaining soldiers. “Okay, I don’t know where these creatures of chaos came from. But I know where they’re going!” She raised her hand, as her Garnet Staff materialized. “I say we send them to Beyond the Veil!”
The guards chorused their approval, as she turned back down the hallway, hearing the howls of the youma. “SEND THEM TO HELL!” she yelled, recalling a phrase she had heard from one of those movies they had received from Seniwa.
Ranma Saotome Kuramitsu... Watch over my daughter and my grandchild when you arrive. I know you’ll be here soon, I can sense you coming.
I was happy to see you reach my lonely little girl, even staying in her heart, even if she rarely showed it to you.
Protect my precious family, Kuramitsu. Protect them all!
Nodding, she began to push her energy into her Staff. She may go down, but those bastards were going to have to work for it.
“Fine... Fine,” he said, shaking his head.
“That was not normal, dear,” said Nabiki, looking him over. “What was it?”
“Something’s wrong,” he said, knowing that putting off any semblance of normalcy in front of Nabiki would just end up with him receiving more pain later on. After ten thousand years of marriage, she could read him like an open book.
She nodded, standing back up. “PI, increase speed to maximum, sound battle stations!”
“Mom?” said Genma, standing up from his own seat.
“Trust us, son,” said Nabiki, “I trust your father’s gut. And if he feels something is wrong, then we can’t take a chance that this isn’t the thing we’ve been afraid of.”
The GP man nodded, as he darted off to his tree ship. “Figures, I finally get to meet my newest siblings, and a war breaks out.”
“Father’s gut instincts should not be joked about,” said Soun, running beside him.
“What do you care, this isn’t your vacation time,” was heard as the two rounded a corner.
“Mom,” said Rei, “should we call for backup? The fleets can be here in minutes.”
“Not until we enter into normal space, dear,” said Nabiki, as she prepared the systems for a fight. If it was real, she could command the tree ships currently inside the massive ship from PI’s command bridge. “If it is a false alarm, we would be setting bad precedent.”
“And if it’s real?”
“Then we need to tell them where to drop out of hyperspace at,” said Ranma, standing up.
“Entering normal space in three ... two ... one,” said Nabiki, as the massive ship entered the Sol System ... and straight into Hell.
“Enemy fleet outnumbers us 5:1!” yelled a woman at one station.
“Sir, we lost the Gulliver!” yelled a male at another station.
Miro growled. The fleet was losing, and if his screen was correct, the other fleets in the system were faring just as well against the strange enemy as they were.
“Sir, I’m detecting a new ship in our vicinity... IT’S PI!”
Miro’s eyes shot wide. “On screen!”
The image of the main screen shifted to a gleaming ship that seemed made of wood, as it glided across the battlefield. In one instant, three enemy battle cruisers that had been responsible for a majority of the damage to the Uranus Fleet were taken out, as long red energy beams lashed out at them, ripping them to shreds.
“Sir, they are sending out a powerful message,” said the Communications Officer. “It’s getting through the jamming signal! Message received, the Seniwa and Jurai fleets are in route!”
Miro sagged in his chair. They were saved.
“Sir, PI is releasing ... smaller ships,” said the person manning the Sensor feed. “They are spreading out and engaging the enemy fleet. They’re also deploying ... white wings of light?”
Miro stared in awe as ten wings of light seemed not only to spread out from PI itself, but the smaller ships it had just released. He remembered meeting the Kuramitsu, when their Lord had demonstrated such an ability himself. “Lighthawk Wings,” he said at a near whisper.
“Unknown energy sources leaving PI!” yelled the Sensor Officer.
Miro could only stare as the screen zoomed in on the source, revealing... “Lord Kuramitsu?”
“Go, son!” yelled Ranma. “I’ll be fine! Go protect your heart!” he yelled, as he darted deeper into the system.
Ran nodded, not able to stop from smiling at his father’s words. He had known all along how his family felt about his interest in Saturn: any woman who could win his heart, and had a soul as good as hers, was a worthy match in their books.
Nodding, he released his full set of wings as well, ten Wings of the Lighthawk. Unlike his father, who would hold back to protect those deeper within the system, he was in the outer territories, which meant he had more room.
He could only hope he was within time to save his love from the invading forces.
One was on a descent to Luna.
The other ... was headed right towards him.
Ranma growled in anger, the four wings of the Lighthawk glowing around him, as he darted towards the target. It had dared attack his home, his family, his domain, and his friends and family.
It ... would die.
Now, the fool would die. And all life would be purged from this system.
“Take care, my children,” said Nabiki, as she had PI target several more enemy ships. “Do everything you can, but do not, I repeat, do not make yourselves sacrifices for freedom!”
“You worry too much, Mother,” smirked Rei, as she stopped communicating.
“Several enemy ships have been eliminated,” said PI in its dual harmonic voice. “Continuing with the purge of the enemy from this system. Several Sol Fleet ships have requested assistance. Remote-controlled Tree Ships are engaging at maximum power.”
Nabiki nodded, as she entered in more commands. This is it. This is the battle that will decide what happens to Sol. This is what happens that will decide if the worlds remain dead or alive.
“PI, I want every single enemy ship eliminated. No survivors, no surrenders, no chances.”
“Understood, Lady Kuramitsu,” the ship replied.
“I am currently detecting two major power signals. One is currently being engaged by Lord Kuramitsu. The other is currently heading for the Moon Palace.”
“Can we assist?”
“Negative; we are currently engaging seventy-point-seven-eight percent of the enemy fleet, as well as supporting the remaining forces of the combined Sol military.”
“Where are the Seniwa and Jurai forces?”
“Three-point-four minutes out from suitable hyperspace windows to emerge and engage the enemies.”
“Damn,” muttered Nabiki, grabbing her hand, as her fist had been tight enough to break the skin. “I wish I could be out there helping him,” she murmured, wishing she didn’t need to stay with PI so that the ship could continue to attack. But with the unconnected Tree Ships still out there, they needed a pilot within PI to maintain their actions.
“Ranma, you better kill that bastard,” she muttered, ahs she began to evade the enemy fleet that was sent to destroy her.
“Like I give a fuck,” growled out Ranma. “I want you to suffer for all the pain you’ve caused.”
“Such pain,” smirked Orichalcum, “such suffering, anger, resentment, hatred,” it added. “I shall feast upon your soul!”
“And I’ll cut your head off,” shouted Ranma, a Lighthawk blade barely able to miss the Leviathan, but not the enemy ship behind it.
“You may try, mortal!” shouted Orichalcum, as it evaded yet another attempt to remove its head. “My mate and I were bred to wipe those of this system away from reality, to send these order-obsessed creatures into the Pit!”
“Never!” said Ranma, as he made another pass by Orichalcum. He had to be careful. At the current power levels he was at, he could easily vaporize the very planet he was supposed to be born on in about ten thousand years.
“So, you wish to stop Destiny?” said Orichalcum.
“You aren’t Destiny,” growled Ranma. “You are just some sick shit that thought it could do some mayhem.”
“Believe what you will, it matters not!” yelled Orichalcum as he charged at Ranma, his mouth opening ... and glowing. “Feel the darkness I represent, feel my power!”
Ranma prepared to take on the attack, Luna behind him, and his mind already guessing what would happen to the natural satellite if he avoided the strike.
“DIE!” screamed Orichalcum.
The green ray lanced out across space, striking the Lighthawk shield, as it battled against the energy of the self-proclaimed dark god. He could feel it, the very darkness in his soul rising like bile in his throat, as it tried to corrupt him, and destroy him from within.
And while the wings may be gifts from Goddesses, Ranma’s soul was still that of a mortal.
“Give in to your darkness,” chanted Orichalcum, trying to break the human before him. “Allow it to fill you, infuse you with its power...”
Ranma’s eyes widened, as he began to pour his own energy into the field that surrounded his body, keeping the void of space from claiming him. “Is ... that ... all ... you’ve got?” A third pair of Lighthawk Wings joined the other two, as he overpowered the ray of hatred and darkness.
“What?” growled Orichalcum, ceasing his attack. “Why didn’t that work?”
“Make me feel like my life has been a waste,” said Ranma, glaring at the large green serpent. “I’ve been through hell and back, death and beyond. You think some pitiful mental jinx attack you can make will affect someone like me?”
“Pitiful,” growled Orichalcum. “It was more than enough for us to seduce the little Princess of Earth, more than enough to convert the majority of those cattle on Earth into an army to slaughter everyone here,” it growled, before its face took on a menacing appearance. “It was more than enough, to slay those little spawns of yours.”
Ranma paled, as his senses lashed out, trying to find his children here.
Minako...
Usagi...
Enma...
His son, he could barely sense him, fear and courage racing through the boy’s body. He had no idea that the boy had just woken up from his forced slumber, nor that he was trying to find a way to return to Pluto and save his grandmother.
The girls... “You ... BASTARD!” yelled Ranma, as the intensity of the Lighthawk wings seemed to grow exponentially, as the full ten wings formed.
“Oh,” smirked Orichalcum. “Did I do something?”
“You will die here,” growled Ranma, as the power of his wings seemed to fold in onto themselves.
Orichalcum just smirked, knowing that an emotional opponent was always the weakest.
But a pissed Saotome is always the strongest, as Ranma disappeared before him. “What?” asked the dark god, before pain lanced through his body, thousands upon thousands of cuts forming, as Ranma’s attack continued.
“You took that which cannot be returned for your own selfishness,” Ranma muttered, his voice seemingly muttered as he used the Soul of Ice to keep from making a mistake, wanting the snake to suffer.
Ranma then appeared before the beast, his ten wings slowly forming into a single lance. “Death is too good for you, but it is all I have time for.”
“No,” whispered the injured Orichalcum.
“NOW DIE!” yelled Ranma, charging though the green beast, tearing it apart as he went, being as violent and as brutal as possible. For him, it made sense to do it that way; what better way to kill something that fed off human misery, than by giving it a realistic example of such.
Ranma was gasping for breath as he exited the beast, its shattered form floating around him. He had failed to protect his children, failed to save lives, even if he had defeated one of their killers.
“No, I can’t feel guilt now,” he muttered, forcing his eyes to stop before tears could be produced. “I ... I have to protect the others...”
He was silenced as a white wave of energy passed through him, halting his thoughts, as his mind failed to detect any dark signatures. They were all ... gone.
“What the...
“No. NO! SERENITY!” he yelled, as he dove towards the Moon Palace.
“We are detecting no life forms present on any of the ships, Lady Kuramitsu,” said PI.
“What the hell,” she muttered. “Where did they go?”
“We detected a high quantum signature matching that of the Royal Moon Family’s special artifact. However, we are unable to confirm this, due to a subspace disturbance where Lord Kuramitsu was fighting.”
Nabiki nodded. Did Serenity do that? “Continue to destroy the enemy ships; we can’t take a chance they’ll be back.”
“Understood.”
“Status of the system?”
“We are currently scanning both the system as well as communications from the Sol fleets. We have confirmed fatalities among the royal families.”
Nabiki paled.
He paused at her form, seeing her breaths turn shallow, as she lay on the ground.
“R-Ranma,” she muttered, looking at him.
“Stay calm, I’ll try and heal you,” he said, falling to his knees, and bending over her form.
“It ... it is too late for that,” she said, tiredly placing a hand against his cheek.
“But I can—”
“No,” she said, crying slightly. “You can’t. This is the price for using the Ginzuishou to the levels I did, it takes my life. If you try to heal me, it will even take yours as well.”
“You...”
“I ... I had to seal them away,” she said. “Metallia was too far into Beryl’s soul, using her own insecurities to keep her in control.”
“The enemy?”
“Sealed in a mini-universe,” she said.
“Our ... our daughter... She...”
“She will be reborn, as will be the others in the court,” said Serenity, smiling at him. “Minako and Usagi will return, but ... but they will have to fight the evil when it returns. They will have to, or the enemy will also be reborn.”
“But I ... I killed one,” Ranma said. “Reborn?”
“I can’t speak for the one you slew, but Metallia can only be killed by the powers of this system,” she replied.
Ranma growled. “Even now, I can’t stop them...”
“There are some enemies and some things even you cannot control,” she said, as her hand started to slide down his face.
“Serenity...” he said, looking on her with sad eyes.
“I loved you, you know,” she said. “One of my greatest regrets will be that I couldn’t be with you like I wanted.
“When our daughter is reborn, watch over her, ensure her destiny,” said Serenity. “Pluto ... she has Luna and Artemis at the Gates, I sent them there, to help Usagi when she comes back.”
“I ... I understand,” he said, wishing he had more time.
“My will ... will guide you,” she said.
Ranma nodded, giving her a light kiss on her lips ... as her breath ... stopped.
He began to cry, as he laid her back onto the cold floor, closing her eyes, as he placed her hands over her chest. He had no idea where the Ginzuishou had gone. But he saw several lights flying away as he landed. It must have decided to hide itself, until Usagi was reborn.
He still found it hard to believe that this was all happening, that this world was falling apart before him ... and there was very little he could do to prevent it.
His mind was stopped from further contemplating this fate, when he felt a sudden surge in power to dangerous levels. “Oh no, CHIBI-RANMA!” he yelled, blasting off through the roof.
On a plant, beside the throne of the now dead queen, the last petals of the flowers began to fall.
He could feel his love from far away, even as he sped towards her, going as fast as he dared within the system, so as not to disturb reality.
Well, that, and his path allowed him to plow through enemy vessels in a quick pattern, a living torpedo that brought only death in its never-ending trail.
There she was, before him, and to his surprise, he felt the presence of a single Lighthawk Wing.
“No,” he whispered, as he sped up. He had warned her never to use that outside of their practice. The very act could damage her body and even her soul.
But he rushed forward, hoping to prevent the damage he knew she would incur.
But fate would not look kindly on any Kuramitsu this day.
But the enemy was relentless, seemingly unending, as it continued to attack her world, her home.
In the end, she was forced to pull out the one technique she knew very well could kill her, aside from the one attack all Senshi had that would very well do them in, draining their magic to the point it would consume their lifeforce as well.
She released one wing of the Lighthawk, the very limit that she was capable of. And even that hadn’t occurred until a few years prior, thanks to the excellent teachings of the man she loved.
For a moment, but a moment, she believed she would win.
Those thoughts disappeared as she saw what was slowly making its way towards her world.
A planet killer.
Well, not one she had ever seen. But it bore the marks of one: overpowered, huge, and a main gun the size of a small moon.
And the dull glow that was beginning to form at the end of the barrel of the cannon signaled the end of her time to contemplate. The enemy meant to destroy the source of her power. With Saturn gone, so would be the mana tap for the Sailor Crystal that granted her line their powers.
But beyond such concerns, were the billions of life forms, people and animals, which would end up on the other side of such blasts.
So this is it?
I did so want to see Ran-kun again.
But I must protect my people!
Nodding sadly, she placed herself between the huge weapon and her world, her Silence Glaive pointed at it, as she diverted her power into it.
“Death...”
Power flowed along the weapon, her purple eyes flashing with power.
“Reborn...”
A sudden sense of power appeared to her senses. Could it be her love? Could he have finally arrived?
“Revolution!”
It didn’t matter. It was her choice to protect her world, as the energy of her final attack leapt forward to strike the incoming energy of the enemy planet killer.
It was a battle where in the end, there could be no winners.
Goodbye, Ran. I will miss you, my love. May we meet in the next life.
Ran had arrived, only to find the dead and broken form of his love, lying in space, the enemy celebrating their kill by attrition.
Their death was quick, far quicker than he felt they deserved. But before the last remaining one had passed, he got what he wanted.
He knew where they had come from.
And they would pay!
But his rage, his anger, they needed to vent, to be vented over the death of his soul mate, a love he had been coming to finally propose to, now that her customs would allow them to marry.
And she was gone.
So he was here, now, above the Earth, power gathering in his hands. This world had cost him his love, his happiness. He had gotten that much out of the creatures that had overwhelmed his love.
Even if it would deny him existence, he would deny them a chance to repeat such a mistake.
“CHIBI-RANMA!” came the yell of his father, traveling across the void of space, due to the nature of their powers.
“THEY DESERVE DEATH!” he yelled, the ball growing once again.
“They were used, son!” Ranma yelled. “Those demon snakes did this, not the humans!”
“I don’t care!”
“You can’t do this!”
“They took my sisters!” Ran shouted. “They took my love! Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t send this wretched ball of shit into Oblivion!”
“Because ... if you do ... they won’t be reborn.”
“... What?” asked Ran, the ball no longer growing.
“Serenity, she used the last of her life force to send their souls forward in some sort of reincarnation move. They’ll be reborn, but only on Earth.”
“...”
“And they are the only things that can keep whatever took over Beryl and humanity from constantly coming back.”
“Why?”
“For that ... you’ll have to ask your Mother,” said Ranma. “I don’t fully know what was going on, but Serenity did. And I trust her.”
“Saturn ... she’ll be reborn?”
“Yes son, you’ll have a second chance with her. But if you destroy the Earth, she’ll have nothing to come back to.”
His hands dropping to his sides, the ball of energy dissipated, the Lighthawk wings that had been summoned by the angry Godling slowly fell away, as Ranma grabbed his son into a deep hug.
“I ... I loved her with all my heart!” he cried, as his father tried to comfort him.
“I know, son,” said Ranma, trying to comfort his son. He knew all too well the pain of losing a woman whose very existence seemed to make life worth living.
It had just happened to him once again.
Nabiki slowly walked in, her own eyes showing the bags of lost sleep, as they rushed to save the survivors. That fact that there were any was a testament to how quickly the ships of planetary kingdoms and PI had been able to remove the darkness that seemed intent to purge all life from the worlds, and hold them back until Serenity made her sacrifice.. “I have the reports.”
Ranma remained silent, looking out the window.
Nabiki sighed, as she began to read off the statistics. “About ninety-nine percent of Earth’s population is gone. PI suspects that whatever possessed Beryl used their life force to create the army that attacked. For the system as a whole, eighty-seven-point-six percent of the fleet is gone or crippled; sixty-three percent of the population is gone or missing.”
“The royal families?” he asked, his heart telling him the answers would not be liked.
Nabiki looked off to the side, as she stepped beside him. “With the exception of Enma and Sailor Pluto ... all gone. According to the computer in Castle Pluto, she’s been sealed at the Gates, until a Serenity summons her.” What when unsaid was that there was no Serenity to summon her. They were all dead.
“They didn’t deserve this,” mumbled Ranma.
“No one deserves this, Ranma-kun,” said Nabiki.
“Serenity had to seal Beryl too,” he said, his voice hoarse. “That ... that thing that called itself Metallia was infesting her, and the best Serenity could do was sealing them away.”
Nabiki nodded, remembering the smiling little girl who could have almost passed for a relative of Ranma’s. They had even planned to introduce the girl to a few bachelors they knew, since she seemed to just be getting over her small crush on Prince Endymion, assuming it hadn’t been true love the girl had felt for Soun.
“Can ... can Tokimi help?” he asked.
Nabiki sadly shook her head. “To reverse time requires all three Goddesses. And we both know this is something she cannot change.”
“I could hope,” he wished.
Nabiki nodded. “I heard Chibi-Ranma lost it.”
Ranma nodded. “He nearly destroyed everything here to avenge Saturn. The only thing that calmed him down was telling him of what Serenity did.”
“You think she really sent their souls forward?” asked Nabiki.
“I have to believe it,” said Ranma, sadly. “I want them all back,” he mumbled.
She hugged him, allowing him to cry into her shoulder. Enma was safe in the medical bay, Rei watching him. Chibi-Ranma was currently somewhere ... most likely blowing something up to ease his stress. And like her, she knew her husband needed comfort as well. Though it may have been short, the incident opened up old wounds, of the time they lost Washu.
“So what now?” he asked, tears falling.
“We use the plan we never wanted to: Tokimi said that her son should be able to seal the umbrae on each world and moon. When the Senshi are reborn, we can unseal them, and allow life to grow there again. It’s supposed to be some sort of semi-stasis. The nature will survive and grow, but slowly. She says it’ll be about one year here for every second there, until the seal is opened.”
“At least the biospheres will stay around,” he muttered.
“Should be helpful when we catch up,” said Nabiki. “I imagine some of these places will look pretty good when the Senshi reopen them,” she added.
“They’ll be war-torn,” he said, his grief making him forget their earlier conversations on the subject.
“The planets will heal them as they sleep,” said Nabiki. “Without the need to sustain themselves in our dimension, the planetary mana can fix the cities, the systems, even the land itself.”
“Well ... that’s good,” mumbled Ranma. “So now we just have to watch Earth for when they return, and ensure the survivors we’re shipping to Alpha Centauri will survive.”
Nabiki nodded. “Aside from the tribes of primitive cultures and a few kingdoms that somehow survived the demon’s gathering, we won’t need to do much clean-up on Earth. Besides, a lot of those areas are already destroyed.”
“How long?”
“About a day for the ships to finish evacuating the survivors, another day for Chibi-Ranma to seal the umbrae.”
Ranma nodded. “Any word yet about Jurai’s response to PI?”
“High level secret,” said Nabiki. “But the Emperor does want to have a nice chat with us about why we have ships of their Goddess.”
“I doubt saying that we got them for sex would be acceptable,” said Ranma, trying to add humor to everything.
Nabiki chuckled slightly. “Yeah, deity prostitution will not likely be accepted. We just have to hope Tsunami will defend us.”
He nodded, as he turned around.
“Where is Serenity’s body?” Nabiki asked, looking around.
“I put her in the Royal Crypt,” said Ranma. “She ... she would have wanted to be there.”
Nabiki nodded. After all, this had been her home, why would they want to remove her from it?
“We should also make sure the dead are buried,” said Ranma. “It wouldn’t seem right to just leave them to rot.”
“I’ll have it done,” Nabiki nodded.
As the two left the Palace to continue the evacuation, Ranma turned, spotting the now bare plant sitting beside the throne. “Life will return, it always does.”
“What was that?”
“... Nothing,” he said, as he and Nabiki left the palace for the last time.
Not that Pluto needed it. But until Sailor Pluto could be freed from the emergency seal placed upon the Gates, she could not assume the throne, and thus be the anchor the planet’s magic needed to save its biosphere. Enma was unable to, as his mother was still alive. This meant all the planets and moons, save Earth, needed to be sealed, until Serenity’s Plan finished, and her Court were reborn on Earth.
“And that’s the last one,” said Ran, as he sealed away the umbrae on the moons of Pluto.
“Thank you, my son,” said Ranma, still clutching his youngest child, and sole surviving royal of the massacre.
Ran nodded, and prepared to leave, before he felt his father’s arm grab him, and pull him into a hug.
“We lost many we cared about here,” said Ranma, looking towards the fading light of Sol.
“We should have been able to save them,” whispered Ran, tears beginning to leak from his face, as he remembered seeing the light fade from Saturn’s eyes.
Enma held on tighter, his memories showing him the screams and death around him, as the staff tried to get him to the lone spaceship currently within the castle docking-bay. Self doubt and self hatred were filling him. He hadn’t even known that was why they had started off running in that direction, until his grandmother struck him.
But at least for the moment, he could take comfort in his father’s arms, and the fact that his mother was still alive. Many didn’t have that fortune.
Ranma could remember Serenity’s last smile, as the life faded from her eyes. Would she be reborn as well? Would the others? She had said something before all of this, something about making sure she could watch over the Earth, even in death. But what this was, he couldn’t say.
“We’ll see them all again,” said Ranma, holding his hurting sons. “We’ll see them soon.”
“We better,” sniffed Ran, his free hand fingering a small box inside his pants, which contained a present he had been hoping to present to his soul mate that day.
Enma nodded slowly, crying into his father’s chest, as he finally broke down.
It was an easy mistake to make. After all, no one other than Orichalcum itself knew that it was not a creature of a single mind, a mind that Ranma Saotome Kuramitsu had thought destroyed.
Each piece was part of a hive mind. And as long as one piece remained ... it would survive.
But such an evil could not be simply destroyed as a physical attack, and the pieces began to glow a deep green with the last vestiges of energy it had left, and started to float towards Earth. It would still destroy humanity, even if it took ten thousand years, it would win and destroy the world the ten-winged one had protected.
And its target would be the single small kingdom that had survived the Great Fall, and the purge of life.
The Great Leviathan would be reborn, and would have its vengeance.
But among the wreckage, among the dead bodies and burning debris, one small pod continued to function, its systems coming online after the set time for interaction with the station’s main computer core failed to occur.
System error has occurred.
Initiating area scan...
Area scan reports full habitat failure.
Scanning for viable data links.
No viable data links found.
Activating full system analysis.
Initiating Option Omega subroutine.
Analysis complete.
Initiating small atmosphere release. Destination: Earth. Time till arrival: 9986.5 Earth Cycles.
The small pod ejected a slight amount of atmosphere. Not enough to endanger the precious cargo it carried, but enough for it to eventually escape orbit, and land on the fallback area within the last stable ecosystem within Sol.
And with that, the small pod, labeled Project: Ares made its way to Earth.
In orbit around the world known as Mercury, a similar pod was initiating similar actions, with a two year difference in arrival dates.
Even with the fall, Project: Hermes would survive as well.
Thanks for reading.
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