FanFiction.Net - unleash your imagination
| FanFiction.Net - unleash your imagination |
|
| Home Just In Communities Forums Beta Readers Dictionary Search | Login Register Extras |
No Need for Destiny
Chapter 13
No Need for Remembering
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.
She could remember her younger self, the version of her that existed before she was sent into the distant past of Jurai, learning of this that legendary woman—not knowing the middle name since it had never been published, and trying to be like her. She could remember countless daydreams, desires to emulate her, even before their mother died, even before the Saotomes had arrived. She had admired the woman for her power, her control, and her total ruthlessness in the battlefield of modern business.
It had been Nabiki Tendo’s first and only case of hero worship.
“Odd that I’ve always worshipped myself,” she muttered, as she checked her appearance. “I wonder if that counts as egotistic or narcissistic.”
She was about to go in front of several high-profile businessmen who would be offered a chance to buy into the latest project of the Kuramitsu clan and their company on Earth. It was the most efficient method of CO2 reduction available, given the world’s technology. In effect, it would be an environmentalist’s dream to even be connected to such a project.
Nabiki saw it simply: either you believed the Earth was warming up because of human CO2 production, or the sun was warming the Earth via the same means. Either way, Kuramitsu Industries had the answer. And with public demand for a “carbon footprint reduction”, the project stood to be a major achiever of profit, especially for those wanting to support the Kyoto Protocols, but not actually change anything.
She had started the company earlier on Earth, trying to prepare the world—and keep it around long enough—to join galactic civilization. She had been able to construct a solar-powered CO2 converter, out of present day tech, plus a few modifications none would have suspected. It would give it the appearance of being new technology, but capable of doing what others had never considered. It was the first step of a list of additions she was planning to make to ‘ease’ Earth towards the future.
She nodded, looking into the mirror, before dismissing it. Nabiki Kuramitsu had one last important thing to look at after all, before the important business meeting; besides her appearance.
It was not only her trump card against the fiancées that awaited her and her husband when they ‘rejoined’ history, but also her own private hope and salvation; public acceptance.
She turned to face four separate cryo-regeneration tubes that she had set up, after entering a secured room within PI. Even her husband had no idea these existed. It had been her plan since before Washu had returned to her role as a lowly four-dimensional being.
Well, Ranma hadn’t known until about a few days ago, but he wasn’t going to stop her, and might even support her on implementing it.
She had a plan, one which she had the full support of those associated with her husband, to pull off... mostly. It was a long-shot; that much she knew. Even with what was owed to her by their deal with Hild; it was still a long shot, considering it might very well oppose it.
But it was one she knew provided her the best chance of keeping her husband.
Nabiki chuckled a bit. “Before the jump, I would have sold him for profit.
“Come to think of it, I did,” she murmured, remembering her battle with Kinnosuke.
She shook her head. Remembering who she had been was always an embarrassment to her. No, thoughts like that belong in the long-dead past.
I am a different person now, not her. I am more than I was in all aspects.
Smiling a bit, she bowed to the first tube on the left, and proceeded to head towards the exit. She could think more on how to ‘return’ them later. For now, she had to prepare herself to deal with a much more dangerous opponent: elderly businessmen.
Enma sat on the main seat of his ship, the Phlegyas. It had been many centuries since he had received a Tree Ship from his father, even longer since he had been let out of his father’s sight. The man had been worried how the Great Fall would have affected him. After all, the man had witnessed Ground Zero for the fall of billions.
Ranma Saotome Kuramitsu was right. There were times Enma’s father stayed with him, watching him, comforting him, as the nightmares returned. No one could have survived that ... and been anywhere near mentally okay.
“So many suffered from it,” he mumbled, watching the twirling colors of the huge nebula before him.
“They got over it though,” said the voice of an older man, as he strode onto the bridge.
“Teleporting around in secrecy, brother-dear?” asked Enma.
“Secrecy is best for our plan, Enma,” said Ran, coming into view. “We both have people we want returned sooner to us.”
Enma sighed, turning his attention once more to the gases before him. “Will this plan even work?” he asked. “My mother is still alive, sealed at the Gates of Time until Serenity is reborn.”
“I know that,” said Ran. “But the Gates don’t exist on Pluto, just an entry point for them. It exists inside some pocket dimension, outside of space, time, and thought. As such, a point to reach it can exist anywhere, given the right circumstances.”
Enma looked uncertainly at his older brother. “Then shouldn’t we simply be able to break into it?”
Ran snorted. “Not without killing her, Enma. Those Gates were designed with failsafes. After all, we don’t want them to implode, and if it was so easy, don’t you think you’d have teleported into it by now?”
Enma released a low growl. “And you think this ... insanity of yours will work?” he asked, motioning to the nebula before them.
“Of course, otherwise I wouldn’t have proposed it,” he said with a smile. “It is quite simple: since we can’t use any means to force Sol to move quicker in time; not without Jurai and Seniwa noticing, then we’ll just have to do it for another Sol.”
Enma slowly turned back to face the nebula before him. It was a simple plan. Well, simple considering a master of temporal magic and a Godling had come up with it.
Sol could not be touched by galactic law. Neither Jurai nor Seniwa would allow anyone or anything near Sol for a long time—not even the people of Alpha Centauri, thanks to what remained of the original accords with the Sol Kingdoms, and the new ones forged by the Alpha Centauri, of which Enma himself was the defacto leader, being the only surviving Royal from Sol.
Funny how even when you don’t want power, when you just want to be left alone, people will give it to you. Since he was the last remaining Royal, the Senate—or what had been formed of the remaining planetary Senates after the Great Fall—had proclaimed him ruler until Serenity returned and assumed her throne on Selene once more.
I just wanted my family returned to me. I didn’t want to be a leader.
But the people demanded his place in power, and he knew his mother would want him to do such, until the Court returned. With a heavy heart, he relented to their demands, and assumed control over Alpha Centauri.
He just wanted the Royals to hurry up and return. He missed his mother, his grandmother, and his ... sisters. “This nebula is big enough for two Sol Systems,” Enma grumbled.
Ran shrugged. “Double our chances,” he added. “Got your devices in place?”
Enma slowly nodded, leaning back into his command chair, as screens appeared before the two, showing strange devices, fusions of technology and magic, antennae pointed at the nebula.
“And you’re certain no one will notice this missing?” asked Enma. The last thing he wanted to do was make trouble for his father. The man had been the reason he was able to even start to bounce back from the Fall, let alone tolerate running the Alpha Centauri Systems.
“I don’t like running my empire at times, but at least I know I can correct the mistakes I see.”
“We created this place deep inside Seniwa space,” said Ran. “We set this up for our experiment, and we put it somewhere that none of the neighboring systems will be affected by the existence of it.”
“I know that,” spat out Enma. He did love his older brother, but the man sometimes spoke to him as it he was an infant. “I also know you need my help to move the project along at an accelerated temporal pace in order to speed up the possible creation of a Sol System, complete with the necessary planets, moons, and assorted system debris.”
“We both can handle the chaos factors,” said Ran, looking once more at the nebula. “Admit it; you want this to work almost as much as me.”
Enma looked away from his brother. Rebirth? Reincarnation? Could they really have a way to speed up Queen Serenity’s plan? Could they fully restore Sol to the point where the souls of the dead would be drawn here, to be reborn here? “So then, why haven’t we asked Father for his support?”
Ran sighed. “Dad doesn’t want to touch Sol. Hell, it is by Mom’s pestering that he even sets foot on Earth to ensure the place is developing without interference, let alone to catalog history. He wants to keep it as outsider-free as possible, to keep us from being erased from existence. ”
“Will it?” asked Enma. He still wasn’t too sure on paradoxes and the like, his training in temporal magic lagging a bit.
Ran shook his head. “If Mother knows, she’s not telling me. She said it is something I will address in my own time. Probably means when I pull something stupid I’ll end up stuck at her Temple until history can be restored,” he muttered the last part. He was very upset that his mother. The Elder Goddess Tokimi, was refusing to answer many of his questions now. To him, it felt as if she was trying to purposely limit his intelligence and ability to act.
If it was punishment for nearly obliterating Earth, he felt she should at least tell him so. Even his Father had forgiven him for that near folly, understanding the grief and pain he too was feeling.
But she would give no reason, no excuse, and no cause for her current treatment of him. “We must walk our own path,” he said, looking at the gases before him. “I may be the child of a Goddess and mortal, but I would gladly live a shorter existence to get my love back. But even I know she wouldn’t want me going to certain extremes to do so.”
“Dad would be so proud,” mumbled Enma, remembering the bedtime stories their father used to tell them about the bearded idiot and the warped city of Tokyo-3. One of the strangest ways to get a lesson across...
“So I will try a way that will harm no one,” said Ran.
“What about the lives born and lost during the temporal process?” asked Enma.
“We will not interfere,” he said. “To them, time will proceed as it always has. The only difference is that while they experience eons, we’ll experience a few centuries. The sensor beacons will still record everything, and alert us in time to stop the system from ripping itself apart.”
“System evolution in a single millennium,” muttered Enma. It was on a scale grander than anything he had ever considered. “And if it fails?” he asked.
Ran sighed. “I have enough power to transport the whole thing outside the galaxy. If it goes nova or turns into a black hole, it won’t harm this galaxy for a long time.”
“So we’re going to just hope that no one in the galaxy notices a large temporal anomaly this large for close to a millennium?”
“Leave that to me,” smirked Ran. “After all, keeping places secret is what I do best. Well, aside from my Mother.”
“And the people on these worlds won’t notice any differences?” he asked.
“Not at all,” assured Ran. “Granted, they’ll somewhat be in their own little dimension, but I am going to maintain a small nanoscopic wormhole between here and Sol, in case the souls need a conduit.”
“This is going to cause so many problems...”
“What could go wrong?” asked Ran.
In less than a millennium, the Godling would regret ever asking that.
“‘What could go wrong,’ you said,” grumbled Enma, as he looked over the sensor readings.
“Don’t blame me for this,” grumbled Ran, as he looked over the incoming stream of data. “How was I supposed to know this was going to happen?” he asked.
Enma sighed, as he looked over the data.
The nebula had spawned two Sol-type systems, which was not that bad. Each had the right number and types of planets, in the right orbits; each with the right amount of moons. In effect, they were cloned systems. So in truth, the basic principles of the test had succeeded. Each Earth-planet had humans on them.
Sadly, the Earths of each system were vastly different. Continental formation was severely off, as well as the base elements within the electromagnetic and sub-quantum building blocks of the system.
One system, labeled Avalon, seemed to possess a high-magical environment, something they had been hoping to generate, with hopes of it drawing the souls of the fallen Court from Earth. Sadly, it was too unstable. Already, several high-level mage-like entities and species had already formed on this world, including no less than eight godling-like persons. No, the place was steeped in primordial magic, and would be only safe to observe for centuries to come, lest they be corrupted by it.
The other system was labeled Edo, showing signs of fighting-style cultural developments leaning towards what their system was terming Asian-style—indicating information entered into their main information hub by either Ranma or Nabiki. The strangest part was that signs showed early-stage experimentation with using a variation of ki to enhance themselves. While Avalon was a system filled with magic, Edo seemed to be a system filled with spirit. But how far such a world could develop on this track was unknown, or even if such a track would fall to the track of science.
“We have a world filled with chaos magic, another filled with warriors,” said Enma, “and not one damn soul resonating with Sol Kingdom energy,” he spat. “It’s a failure,” he said.
“Oh, I wouldn’t say that.”
The two gulped, as they slowly turned around, spotting their father sitting in the command chair.
“Enma,” he said, nodding to his youngest present son. “Ran.”
“D-Dad,” said Ran. “Um ... what are you doing here?”
“PI thought I should know something important that one of its children found out,” smirked Ranma.
The two younger Kuramitsu boys began to grumble under their breath, having forgotten that the ships all shared information with the main hub aboard PI, including ‘secret’ projects.
“You do realize that Serenity most likely anchored those souls to Earth in the Sol System,” Ranma said, standing up. “Didn’t want them reborn offworld and unable to return to face Metallia.”
The two brothers looked slightly stunned, before they switched to embarrassment.
“I see,” said Ranma, sadly shaking his head. “You know if you would have asked either me or Nabiki about this before doing it, we would have told you that.”
Enma snorted. “Right; before or after flying off the hook at a project that essentially would have been akin to us playing God?”
Ranma sighed. They might have been right. After all, they did create intelligent life ... well, semi-intelligent, given some of the signs he was seeing. He’d have to have PI create and send several drones into the systems to study them further. Ranma was certain Tokimi would like a peek at the data. “Maybe so, but something of this magnitude shouldn’t have made you hide things from your family.”
Ran looked away. “So what now, since my family seems finally willing to answer my questions once again,” he said, a bit of bitterness seeping inside his voice.
“Sometimes son, it is about asking the right questions, as well as being able to truly understand the answers.” Ranma went over to his sons, placing one of his hands on each of their heads ... before making them headbutt each other with a loud thud.
“And sometimes it’s about not pulling stupid shit,” he finished, watching as they rubbed their heads where the forced collision had occurred.
“You ever notice Dad’s points always end up with us getting a bit of pain?” asked Enma.
“Welcome to the true family legacy, little brother,” grumbled Ran.
Ranma looked over at the console once again. Edo and Avalon...? Well, PI must have chosen those names for a reason. But why would PI look into that historical database Nabs created to pick names for those systems? “You two are going to have to watch over these systems,” said Ranma. “That means full system monitoring, defense screens to keep out pirates and such, and full scans to track the path of their history, biologic developments, and growth.”
“Babysitting, you mean,” said Enma.
“Welcome to parenthood, son,” Ranma said with a smile. “And just shy of a hundred million children; we’re so proud of you.”
“But I can’t do it!” yelled Enma. “I mean, I could some of the time,” he said, a bit pale, seeing his father glare at him, “but I have the Alpha Centauri system to run!”
“I thought you hated the job,” said Ran.
“Be quiet,” said Enma quietly. Sure he hated it; he didn’t want to be a leader, especially not to a group that large. But he certainly didn’t want to baby-sit two more systems on top of that.
“Then you are lucky to have a brother who will share your duty here.”
“Me?” squeaked the godling.
Ranma nodded slowly, his eyes closed, and a devious smile on his face. “And I’m sure you two can come up with the perfect arrangement to make this work out. You can even ask Tokimi to set up a zero-point transport site so you don’t have to worry about transit times.
“Well then, I’ll leave you boys to discuss your schedules. Don’t forget, we have a family dinner tonight, and Nabiki wants everyone there. Later,” he said, quickly fading from sight, as he teleported away.
“This wrong enough for you?” asked Enma.
“Oh shut it!”
Her name was Hippolyta Artemis Kuramitsu. She had been born a little over two thousand years ago, a ... present from her parent’s celebration of their fifteen thousandth year of marriage.
And when her parents found out what she did, she was as good as dead.
It had been a simple mission for one of the youngest children of Ranma and Nabiki Kuramitsu: scan the Earth for any signs of the reborn Court, check for signs of alien influence, make the rounds to the data collection stations that were monitoring development for checkups, and report in. In all, it should have taken little more than a month or two, as she needed to consult with locals, upload the sensor data from the scanning equipment cloaked on and in orbit within the system, and find whatever she could that might have historical value that had been abandoned, so as to archive it.
It was so simple, and she had been happy to have it. Her parents had been wanting to let more control of the company be in the hands of their offspring who wanted it.
And Hippolyta definitely wanted that nice cushy office job. Sure, she was well taught in Infinity School, and definitely had the mind for GP work. But she wanted a stable life, a job where she could enjoy the nightlife. She didn’t want a massive responsibility like her older siblings had, she wanted ... well, middle management.
She did not want the responsibility that she had just gotten herself.
“I just wanted to help them out,” she muttered.
She had forgotten her parents’ main rule: do not get involved. Trying to preserve the time stream was very difficult without Sailor Pluto, who had promised to monitor the path of history so they wouldn’t do something stupid before the Great Fall.
Then again, it wasn’t that she had done something stupid that was upsetting Hippolyta. No, it was what she did that it hadn’t felt a bad idea at the time.
She knew it had to happen now. She knew it was meant to be.
She just didn’t see how her parents would respond to what she did.
“I can just see it now. ‘Hi Mom, Dad; guess what? I am Queen of the Chinese Amazon Nation, as well as several others.’
“Yeah, I’m sure they won’t kill me,” she muttered. “No, nothing wrong, except I created the very Amazons that hounded Dad.”
She cringed a bit. That cushy office job was looking more and more like a dream every minute now.
“My Queen,” said a warrior female as she entered the hut, “we are ready for the ceremony to celebrate our new home.”
“I’ll be out in a minute, Har,” said Hippolyta, smiling as best as she could. As the woman left, Hippolyta sighed.
“Well, it needs done every fifty years or so; so I’m pretty safe ... for three thousand years.” She tried to smile. “Surely I can think of something by then.”
She was determined to not end up like Enma and Ran had with the cloned systems. But sadly, Fate had other ideas for the neo-warrior-queen.
“The food is good,” muttered Ranma, as he and Nabiki ate at a stand during the fair near what would one day be Tokyo.
Nabiki nodded, keeping quiet. She knew very well what the early eras of Japanese History were like for women. But she didn’t let anyone try and boss her around. She just had to find creative ways of dealing with them.
“It is amazing, isn’t it?” asked Nabiki, as they watched the crowd celebrate
Ranma nodded from their small table, as they watched the crowd celebrate a ceremony that he had never heard of. “I wonder how long it will be before it is forgotten in the sands of time.”
Nabiki slowly nodded. It was a fun ceremony, and the people seemed to be enjoying the spirit of the event—as well as the spirits of inebriation, so much so that many weren’t following the usual platitudes of the supposed roles of males and females. “You ever been here before?” she asked.
“I think there is a training hall around here when Pops and I came through here,” he said, looking at the mountains in the distant. “It used to be a shrine, but the priest changed that around the 1800s, I believe. Nice family ran it, and I think Pops got us chased off before he could do anything really stupid.”
“How’d he manage that?” asked Nabiki.
“The guy who was the current priest was the Grandmaster of the style, but his daughter was the current Master. Pops spouted some bullshit about girls and the Art, and next thing I knew, he was running ahead of me, and flaming arrows were falling on us.”
Nabiki giggled a bit at the story. “I wonder if we ever built a Dojo around Japan, would something similar happen.”
Ranma chuckled a bit. “We better get back to the lodge,” he said, looking around. “I think the debauchery of the night has yet to reach a crescendo.”
“And you fear your dear beloved wife might snatch up some unsuspecting local girls for a night with us?” Nabiki ask with teasing eyes.
“History bears out my fears,” he said, as they walked down the street, many ignoring them as they continued to enjoy the celebration. “We really need to find someone to explain this to us,” he said, ignoring Nabiki’s mock-hurt expression.
“I can help you with that, if you like?”
The two paused, before looking to their side. Before them was a tanned skin woman, late-to-mid twenties, with purple eyes and white hair, wearing a loose kimono that did nothing to hide her figure, quite the opposite in fact; it seemed to enhance her natural beauty.
But that wasn’t what intrigued the couple: it was the power that was radiating off her.
It wasn’t human.
“And who might you be?” asked Ranma, allowing a bit more power to flow into his body. Whoever she was, she was strong in power; he knew that much. She was close to what he had felt around Tokimi when she assumed human form. And he knew for a fact she was always seriously restricting her power to do that.
“I am Daimakaichō Hild,” she said with a smile, bowing slightly, offering a deep view of her cleavage.
“One of the new deities here,” said Nabiki.
“You know of us, I assume,” said Hild.
She nodded. “You started developing when human civilization began to reform after the Great Fall,” Nabiki said. “I believe Tokimi termed you ‘New Gods’, since eventually, you will most likely start reaching the level of power of the Elder Goddesses ... in a few billion years or so.”
Hild smiled a bit at that. Even if he didn’t say it, she knew it irked Kami-sama just a bit that he wasn’t at the top of the food chain. Then again, you never really knew with him.
“A bit far from your power base, aren’t you?” asked Ranma. “I thought you were a Norse deity.
“Kami-sama redid the system a while ago,” said Hild. Sure, it was much more efficient, but she found herself doing more paperwork than ever before. “New management style, and as such, I was promoted to Daimakaichō.”
“Okay,” said Nabiki, noticing how everyone else seemed to be ignoring their conversation, let alone that an obvious foreigner was near.
“They can only see me if I wish it,” said Hild, picking up on Nabiki’s confusion. “Right now, they simply see three people who are reuniting after a long visit, and hearing a similar conversation. Their priests might see through it, but they’re currently drunk and one is getting intimate with a priestess; naughty boy.
“Anyway, this ceremony is to celebrate the defeat of some minor demon about forty years ago. The little pain only pulled warlords and such here. Sure, they ended up defeated, but still, he just brought them here. They found him, declared him a major demon,” she said with a snort, “and finished him off. They celebrate like this because without him, no warlord or pompous fool with an army sees this place as worth even bothering.”
“I assume you came for something else besides to give a small history lesson,” said Ranma.
“Smart as ever, I see,” said Hild with a seductive smile. Oh yes, she would enjoy this. And the best part was she had beaten the fools in Asgard to this prize. “I have a deal for you,” said Hild.
The two looked at her with curiosity. “Oh?” said Nabiki.
Hild nodded. “One I am sure you will accept.”
“No offense,” said Nabiki, “but I would find it hard to believe any deal offered would be consequence-free.”
“Normally, yes,” said Hild, smirking. “What is the phrase they use in the West in your time: the devil is in the details?
“But this agreement is very simple,” she said. “In exchange for what I’m asking, I will guarantee that whatever moves you make will not change history as you know it.”
“Does that mean what led to us will remain as it was, or that whatever events we remember will not shift?” asked Nabiki.
Hild smirked. Yes, she liked this woman very much. “When you entered into the past, you carried with you the code for all of the history of the world up to the point you entered the past; something like a backup copy of reality so to speak. So we can ensure that history will follow you.” She could mention the fact that the code seemed to indicate a duality present in their time, suggesting that everything that was occurring was meant to occur, including their inclusion in the past. But that alone could weaken her bargaining position. After all, why reveal that what you promised would be done regardless? It was very bad for business to do so.
But it seemed Nabiki understood that. “This would also include if we were meant to be in the past?” she asked. “I know some of it must have been meant to occur, especially with Hippolyta creating the very Amazons of Jusenkyo,” she said.
Hild nodded. “Yes, it also states that you have parts in history.”
“Great,” muttered Ranma. “I can’t wait to see what tragedy I caused myself next. My luck, I’ll be related to P-chan.”
Hild said and did nothing new. After all, why spoil the surprise that the code was speaking of. “I will also inform you of events the code says you must attend or deal with.”
The two travelers nodded slowly. A little forewarning would be nice.
“We—and by we I mean both sides—would like to be able to access the Sealed Systems,” she said.
The two felt their eyes open wide. “Sealed Systems?” Ranma asked.
“You know, those two systems Enma and your Godling son created,” smirked Hild.
“And what makes you think they exist?” asked Nabiki.
“Because one of their creators was from this system,” said Hild. “While being the child of an Elder Goddess would prevent Ran’s history from being revealed to the System, Enma’s is not so protected,” she said. “And from what his file says, there are more than a few nasties on those worlds that I would prefer to keep in check,” she said. “Including a certain Ruby-Eye demon,” she said.
The two cringed at that. “And what will be the limits of this link?” asked Nabiki.
“That can be decided at a later date,” said Hild, as she looked behind her, revealing the lodge that the Kuramitsu elders would be staying at that night.
“Oh?” asked Ranma.
Hild nodded as she began to walk towards the lodge. “We have ... other matters to attend to,” she said with a smile.
Nabiki giggled a bit, as Ranma began to rub his forehead. “Why not just get a coat that says what I am: Universe’s Favorite Horse: One Ride per Person?”
“I’ll get you one for your next birthday,” said Nabiki. “So I guess this means you’ll want to take her up on the offer?”
“We need to,” said Ranma irritably. “After all, we need all the help we can get stabilizing the time stream, and she is willing to go ahead on the promise of later talk for the deal.”
Nabiki nodded. “I would imagine she knows something she doesn’t want to say.”
“So then is it worth the price?”
Nabiki smirked. “Well, who are we to live so cautiously. We’ve bedded Goddesses, why not the Queen of Demons?”
“So we are doing this?” he asked.
She nodded. “But rest assured that tomorrow, we will be going into deep details about this agreement.”
“Why bother?” he asked glumly. “We both know it’ll bite me in the ass one way or the other.”
Nabiki just shook her head. Really, you’d think she was her sister with how Ranma acted towards sex sometimes.
Sugoroku Mutou Kuramitsu, known sometimes as Solomon, sat on a bench, trying to understand just what he had witnessed in a vision.
A dusty land, pyramids, mysterious items, creatures that could be commanded, and a great monster that was barely kept from destroying all life on their world...
“Why did I receive such a vision?” the man asked himself, as he stared off into the skies outside the temple.
He had been having troubling dreams for many weeks now, as if something was calling him. So much so, that he had asked his father for permission to visit Jurai and seek help at the Temple of Tsunami. He would have tried the Temple of Tokimi, but his brother Ran had informed him that she could not help him.
He said ‘could’, but Solomon wondered if he had meant ‘would’.
So he came here, and the visions seemed to grow in strength. He could taste the air, feel the sand between his toes, the sun beating down on his older form.
“I hope I don’t end up looking like that,” grunted Sugoroku. “Me? Grey hair? Short and pudgy?”
He snorted at that, his hair being very important to him. He had even had his Ship alter his hair color, giving it three distinct colors. Sure, if he wasn’t careful it would be a trait passed onto any children he had. But he was only a few thousand years old, so such things were not a concern at the moment.
He rubbed his head. “I could be out on a date, enjoying the company of a lovely young lady from work. But no, I have to be in a Temple on the other side of the damn galaxy, trying to understand why my mind insists on playing a dream in repeat.”
“Maybe this is what you get for being such a playboy,” said a demure female voice.
Sugoroku gulped, as he slowly turned to face his dreaded sister-in-law. “Um ... Lady Seto, um ... how nice of you to greet me here.”
Before him was his sister-in-law, the Devil Princess of Jurai. He still wasn’t certain how the politics had worked, or why his brother had to abandon the Kuramitsu name to marry her. Truthfully, given her ... unique way of doing things, he was quite certain that he didn’t want to know. All he knew was that they had met at G.P. Academy (yet another Kuramitsu who went into law enforcement, even if it was in blood only and not name), and that she had given the poor soul one option: marriage or death.
He never could make the easy decisions...
He was relatively certain that his brother was still part of the Kuramitsu clan, even if he was supposed to be the Kamiki clan head. He did suspect it either had to do with an honor agreement between the Kuramitsu clan and the Kamiki clan, or a lot of alcohol. And knowing his parents, most likely both.
Sometimes, he wondered if his mother had any particular reason to keep pimping out his father at times.
“You know I know of several single ladies within the Jurai court,” she said with a smile.
“Um, no-no, that’s okay,” he said quickly, cursing his brother Ran for allowing him to fall into the web of the Devil Princess. “I ... um ... I have to solve what my dreams mean first,” he said, wondering if he could rapidly make it into the Temple and avoid his dreaded sister-in-law.
“Maybe afterwards,” Seto said, her smile kind, but it left little to the imagination that she was not even close to being finished with trying to set her brother-in-law up.
“Sure,” he said smiling, and praying that whatever the dream meant, he would be far away from the Devil Princess as possible.
As she departed, the man let out a deep breath. “Yep, definitely need to spend some long ... centuries ... trying to figure this out.”
Sadly, he knew what he was going to have to do. Teleporting back to his ship, he had it recall all of the possible data from his dream that matched the criteria of one world.
“Looks like I’m heading to Earth,” he said, as the main screen showed a nighttime image of a giant stone sphinx. “Burning deserts have to be better than marriage,” he muttered.
Ryoko slowly felt consciousness return to her. It had to have been a nightmare, right? Her, related to Mihoshi? That meant the infamous Space Pirate was a direct blood relation to the heads of Galaxy Police.
“Are you okay, Ryoko?” came the concerned voice of Sasami.
“Ugh,” she groaned, as she sat up, finding out she was on a couch. “Yeah, I think so; had the weirdest dam... uh ... darned dream. What’s up?”
“Nothing much,” said Sasami. “But your brother has some great stories.”
Ryoko blinked. It was real?! She sat up quickly, turning towards where she sensed her mother, to find her in adult form of all things, chatting with the blond man who had arrived on a Jurai-like ship.
“And then our second daughter went into the fashion industry for a while,” said Mikumo. “She really enjoyed it, started her own line independent of the family company. She said she wanted to make it on her own merits, and she did. We were very proud of her.”
Washu smiled, crying slightly as she heard the stories of the life she had missed because of the damned mission she had set herself upon. It sorely made her wish that in a way, she could have had both that life and the one she had now, as it was doubtful she would have had those adventures in her past if she had stayed with Ranma.
It didn’t make the pain any less for the Elder Goddess. “So what has been going on since then?”
“Stuff it, Mom,” said Ryoko, rubbing her brow, as if she was hung-over. “I figured the real surprise to you would be the fact that Mihoshi is related to you.”
Washu blinked, before looking over towards the ditzy Galaxy Police officer, who was currently cheering for some sentai force to defeat the monster of the week. “She ... is?” she asked, gulping the last part.
Mikumo nodded. “From what I’m told by Yosho, I’m surprised you didn’t know. I thought the way she kept ending up in your lab—a place guarded by a DNA scanner—would have tipped you off.”
“She usually missed small things like that,” answered a strange voice. “She was always looking at the big picture.”
The group turned as one, spotting two people at the door into the living room of the house. One was the disguised Crowned Prince of Jurai, still appearing as the old monk who ran the shrine.
The other was a man wearing grand robes, with long black hair that was braided, a clean-shaven face, and deep blue eyes.
“Great-great-grandpa!” yelled Mihoshi, as she lunged across the room to tackle her ancestor. “What did you bring me?” she asked quickly.
Ranma chuckled a bit, as he patted her on the head. “They’ll be time for presents later, child,” Ranma said, as he maneuvered her away from him. “Right now, me and your great-great grandmother need to chat some.”
“Okay, but they better be good presents,” said Mihoshi, as she went to chat with Tenchi, who was looking with confusion between his grandfather and the man who had once been married to Washu.
Ranma turned towards Washu, a smile still on his face. “My Love, you have no idea how I’ve longed for this day.”
Washu blinked at the image, before she stood up slowly, walking over to the blue-eyed man, smiling.
Ranma looked at her, his first true love, walking over to him. Oh, how he had longed these many centuries to even hold her one more time, to see her, to smell her scent in the air.
That made it completely understandable he would be unprepared when Washu hit him with a right hook, sending him into the wall.
“Uncute tomboy...” muttered Ranma, as the world went dark.
“Whoops,” said Washu. “Um ... I guess the fake memories messed with me a bit,” she said.
Mikumo sighed. “Oddly enough, that was what Dad figured you’d do when you met again.”
Sasami went to get the First Aid kit, but couldn’t shake the feeling that somehow ... Tsunami was a bit upset at that.