Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma or anything remotely having to do with Ranma. This is a fan fiction created for my own enjoyment and for the enjoyment of others. A lot of the other characters, however, I do own, such as the soldiers, technology, science, magic, and names of the Chaos Empire. If you want to use them, at least ask first.
Also, feel free to review, ask questions, or even flame the story if you don't like it. At least have a point when you review though. Saying it sucks doesn't really do anything other than waste my time. Tell me WHY it sucks and help me to change it. To everyone else, enjoy my first attempt at Fan Fiction.
Sparks stuttered from the broken console, illuminating the room in flashes of light that did more to blind and offset night vision. Ten year old Ranma struggled from under the wreckage of a bulkhead, his right arm hanging useless at his side. A slight trickle of blood trailed down his arm to slowly drop from the end of his fingertips. He didn't have time to stop the bleeding though. There had been other people in the building when he had been blasted into it. So much for being the best.
Ranma staggered his way to the door and cursed as it failed to open automatically. The shorted out console must have shorted out the door as well. Looking around, he sighed as he saw the only way out was back the way he came, through the hole in the roof where he had crashed through. Why did I try to fight on my own. Beating up droids in practice made me too cocky. Not a good way to learn to call for backup when he needed it.
All thoughts were cut off as a massive, dark form floated down through the hole. It was ten feet tall, made entirely of black metal that seemed to suck in the light around it, a pit of darkness in the flickering light. A Trian Death Droid (TDD). A killing machine sent in to destroy the living portion of a base. And it had targeted one Ranma Saotome as the nearest candidate for elimination.
Ranma tried to call up his ki, to will himself to keep fighting, but he was so tired. It was a struggle to move. But move he did, as he barely dodged a blast that blew open the doors. He threw himself through the burning metal and into the hallway beyond, his body screaming in protest at the action. Soon as he could stand, he started lumbering towards the exit. He had to get out of the base to get help. Most of the defense droids had already been destroyed and those that weren't were occupied defending the rest of the base. This fight was only between Ranma and the TDD.
A heavy crash signaled the droid entering the hall but Ranma didn't have the moment necessary to turn and look at his pursuer. Instead, he put all his energy into reaching a portion of the base that had some defenses. A girl suddenly hurtled into the hallway from another open doorway and Ranma didn't have enough time to avoid running into her. Instead, he grabbed her about the waist with his one good arm and kept on running for the exit, ignoring the girl's protests.
Finely honed instincts made him twist to the side as a crackling ball of energy shot through the air where he was just standing a moment ago. Unfortunately, he slammed into the wall of the hallway dodging and bounced off, stunning him for a moment. He didn't have enough time to dodge the next blast and braced himself for the impact.
A moment past and nothing happened, not even the sound of an explosion signaling a miss. However, he did feel something, a sort of electrical charge in the air that was making his senses go haywire. It was giving him a headache actually. He looked around and saw the girl in his arm. Her eyes were glowing and she was staring directly behind him.
He turned and saw the ball of energy suspended in the air, not moving. The girl stared directly at the energy ball, the sheen of sweat beginning to form on her brow. The TDD also seemed to be immobilized. Ranma gently set the girl down and reached into his subspace pocket for his gun and started firing away at the drop. Unfortunately, the pistol didn't do much against armor, as it was more of a last resort weapon that Ranma had been forced to take anyway. Cursing to himself, he put the weapon away and looked around for something to do, someway to help safe this girl. It was obvious she couldn't move. Not if she wanted to keep the droid immobilized.
Taking a deep calming breath, Ranma once again tried to gather his energy. He reached out and took hold of his ki, pushing it into his palm. He felt weak as his life drained into the ball in his fist. It took almost everything he had, but he launched the ki attack at the TTD. The blast impacted the droid and enveloped it in smoke, the sound of wreckage hitting the ground music to Ranma's ears. He would have jumped for join when he saw his attack strike the droid, but didn't have the energy to feel joy. Instead, he leaned heavily against the wall, panting for breath.
When the smoke cleared Ranma slumped to the ground. The TDD was still standing, although there was a gouge in the armor where Ranma had managed to blast away an arm of the droid. Now they were even. Unfortunately, that left the droid in better condition than Ranma. He felt his eyes start to droop. NO. CAN'T FALL ASLEEP! CAN'T LOSE! But his body didn't listen. Even as the top ten year old in the academy, he was still only ten years old.
Ranma was sad. Not for himself. He knew he would die fighting. Didn't think he would only be ten but that was life. No, he felt sad that he wasn't able to protect the girl. NO! He had to protect her. He struggled to his feet, intent on putting every last thing he had into one last attack.
Suddenly, the wall near the TDD exploded inwards and an armored figure stepped into the hallway. It was just as tall as the TDD, a walking suit of armor, a battloid. Ranma looked at the thing through bleary eyes and recognized the crest. Keone Jameson, foster father to Ranma and the best hand to hand fighter in the Empire. His voice came over the loud speaker. "Get her out of here. I'll hold this hunk of metal off. I've got two CAMs coming to finish it off. Now go."
Ranma nodded weakly and guided the girl away. She looked nearly as tired as he did but other than that he didn't have time to examine her. The two kids just stumbled along towards the exit, the leaving behind the sounds of fighting. When they finally made it through the blast doors and into the sunlight, the two were completely exhausted. Ranma sighed in relief to see the outside. A group of droids and personnel were running towards then, a large cloaked figure in the lead.
The large man stopped just short of reaching Ranma and the girl. Ranma looked at the big man with wondering eyes. Was that the sound of bells just a moment ago? A moment later and Ranma's eye went wide. That was the cloak of a full Technomage. The Technomage swept back his hood, revealing his black on black glowing eyes and a long dark hair, tiny silver bells woven into the ends of two long braids. That explained the sound. But what was a Technomage doing at the academy?
His question answered itself as the girl next to him suddenly found a new source of energy and sprang into the Technomage's arms, giggling in delight. "Hello great grandfather." Great grandfather? The man looked barely out of his thirties. Then again, most technomages aged really slowly so maybe he was.
Ranma struggled to attention, saluting the Technomage before slumping over in exhaustion again. A group of medics suddenly surrounded Ranma, poking him with instruments and injecting him with painkillers and healing enhancers. He struggled weakly against the medics, claiming he was fine and didn't need any drugs in his body. The medics just ignored him and kept working.
The little girl whispered something into the Technomage's ear, causing the big man to smile. He nodded and put the girl down, who then walked over to lean over Ranma, who by that time was lying on the ground. "Hi. I'm Tristina. Want to be friends?"
Ranma woke up with a light rain hitting him in the face. He looked into the cloudy sky as he realized he had forgotten to setup the static field before he went to sleep. His own internal clock, having finally adjusted to local time, told him it was just about five in the morning, about the time his father attacked him the day before.
Sure enough, a dark shadow lumbered through the rain and launched itself at Ranma. Ranma parried the attack, knocking his father away and off the roof, before following up with a sidekick to the head. He kicked slow enough that his father was able to block and retaliate. Ranma grinned. Lazy and fat though his father may be, the man was an excellent fighter. Once he got back in shape, he would be more fun to spar with. Currently though, all he could hope for was to learn some new moves from the old man. He deliberately dialed down his own speed, fighting at the level that his father did, then upping the intensity whenever his pops decided to try something new.
They spent the better part of an hour that way, Ranma finally managing to enjoy the fight. He took his time to learn his father's techniques, refining them and incorporating them into his own style. Grinning, Ranma decided to beat Genma with his own style and began to fight like the old man. The look of surprise on Genma's face was priceless and Ranma wished he'd had a holo cam to capture the image. Eventually though, the smells of breakfast cooking caught his attention and Ranma ended the fight with a spinning sidekick that rocketed Genma into the wall and into unconsciousness.
Ranma exited the furo and headed for the table. Breakfast passed by quickly and uneventfully with Genma out of commission. Ranma thanked his mother for the wonderful food, then quickly got ready for school. As he picked up his pack, he remembered the mountain of notes he had stuffed into his bag and pulled them out to start going through them. Most were pretty standard, asking who he was and where he was from, what kinda things he liked to do. A few were pretty graphic and had him blushing red from his toes to his head. He put the rest of the notes aside and decided to read them later, so that he could manage to look at his class mates without blushing. He kissed his mother on the cheek goodbye and made his way out the door.
Nodoka waited a moment until she was sure her son was gone, then began sorting through the notes. Most she discarded as mundane but a group of them caught her attention. The requests were quick specific and she found her breath quickening and she turned to look at her husband with a decidedly hungry gaze. She would have to give some of these suggestions a try. Then she remembered that these were for her son and she just smiled. Oh…so manly.
Ranma made his way across the roofs of Nerima, blazing a speedy trail towards school. Since he already knew where the school was, there was no reason for him to walk the streets. Mere minutes later he arrived on the school grounds, a good half hour before school was scheduled to start. He was surprised to see a large gathering of students already at the school. It wasn't boys like last time. Instead, it seemed like nearly every girl in the school was in the courtyard, gathered around a much smaller group of girls.
Ranma wisely decided to avoid that many girls in one place and stealthily made his way into the school building. He made his way to the vice principles office and found the man waiting for him with the challenge test. Grinning, Ranma pulled out a pencil, grabbed the test, sat down and twenty minutes later, and handed in the fifty question test. The vice principle just stared at Ranma before taking the test and running it through the scanner. Other than poor marks in English, Ranma passed and was moved up a grade. Ranma was handed his new schedule with directions on which room to go to. A student aide was called in a Ranma was led to his new room.
He was the first one in the room other than the teacher. He took a few moments to get to know the instructor, explaining about his time in the military academy. The teacher nodded knowingly but suggested to Ranma that even though he may know the subject, he should still participate to help the others learn as well.
Wow, never thought of it that way. Ranma stood next to the teacher as the students came filling into the room. Most just stared at Ranma, while many of the girls looked at something in their hands, sighed to themselves, then nearly tripped as they walked to their desks. Amongst the last to arrive was Nabiki Tendo, who gave a surprised look that was quickly hidden beneath icy calm. Ranma nearly sighed to himself as he watched her walk to her desk. When Kuno walked into the room, Ranma nearly had a fit before he could control himself. Kuno on the other hand had so such restraint.
"What are you doing in this classroom, foul sorcerer. This is the room of Tatewaki Kuno, age 17, the Rising Star of Furinkan High School, known as the Blue Thunder." Outside the room, thunder peeled dramatically and Ranma almost clapped at the theatrical timing.
"I tested out of my last class and was assigned here by the vice principle."
"What? Surely you jest? Then again, it is only fitting that you would want to bask in the greatness of a true samurai and learn from the scholar such as myself. Very well, I shall allow it." Kuno then turned and headed to the back of the room, taking a seat at his desk just as the bell rang to begin school.
Ranma just looked at Kuno like he couldn't believe it. What world did this guy live in? One moment it's like I'm his most hated mortal enemy, the next I'm some servant begging to learn at his feet. Ranma pulled his ponytail over his shoulder and started playing with the end of it while he waited for the teacher to introduce him to the class.
Akane looked at the desk next to her and wondered where that pervert who was trying to seduce her sisters was hiding. No doubt he was trying to spy on a girl somewhere. She humphed to herself and turned back to listen to the lesson.
When the bell for lunch rang Ranma bolted from the class and through the open window. It wasn't that the class was boring. Actually, the teacher managed to maintain Ranma's interest for the entire portion of class. It was the constant glances from the girls in the class that had him on edge. He needed to get away from those hungry looks. Soon as he landed outside, he saw more girls with the same look. Taking one last look around, he vaulted to the top of the school, mentally thanking whatever power there was out there that the roof was empty. He pulled out the lunch that his mother had prepared for him and thankfully ate his lunch in piece.
Nabiki sighed in frustration, despite bringing in a fortune that morning. She had sold two types of pictures that morning. They were of Ranma his shirt off, changing into a new one after his fight yesterday. The difference between the two pictures was that the more expensive one had Ranma's phone number on the back. But no. What had her annoyed was that Ranma was nowhere to be seen at lunch. She had been intent on laying down more rules, as well as setting up payment arrangements for him to keep her from selling his address. She had gotten reports that Ranma had jumped to the roof but after sending someone up there, had found no sign of him. She spent the entire lunch frustrated and only remembered to eat with five minutes to go in lunch.
Back in the class room, Ranma continued to squirm under the looks of his classmates, continually playing with his ponytail, binding and unbinding the end with a little silver clasp. It was really little more than a ring of silver with a simple hook on the end, to be used in place of a hair tie. It had been a gift almost three years ago, when his hair had finally gotten long enough to put into a ponytail rather than a pigtail.
When school ended, Ranma had never been more relieved in his life. He quickly made his way to the vice principle and explained that he wanted to test out of school entirely. The man merely shook his head and explained that someone Ranma's age HAD to be in school according to the law of the nation, no matter how smart he may be. Ranma left the school for home, his head hanging in defeat as he bounded across the rooftops towards home.
As Ranma opened the door to the house, he was met by his mother, who had a stack of notes for him. These notes weren't the same as the ones he had gotten at school today and yesterday. When he asked his mother what they were, she just smiled at her manly son.
"These are date invitations."
Author Notes:
Wow. Another day complete in the life of Chaos Soldier Ranma. Another glimpse at his past and some of the people who influenced his life. Tristina, Keone, Sargon (The big guy in the cloak). What does it all mean for our favorite hero in the future?
For those of you who are wondering, the Chaos Empire and its accompanying characters and technology, were created by me in a book series that I am still trying to finish. If you have any questions about them, I am more than willing to answer them. Just send me an email to learn more. You can view my email on my profile.
Additionally, I know that I have made Akane into some kind of uncontrollable angry girl. Unfortunately, that is how she ended up in this reality. I was hoping to let this come out in the story, but I think I'll do some background explanation here.
When Genma moved in with the Tendo family, Ranma began sending most of his salary to help offset the free loading his pops was doing. This he did at the suggestion of Jonathon Avery, our dimensional hoping, all knowing father figure who pops in every now and then. Anyway, the amount Ranma sent was more than enough to cover Genma's expenses and supplement the income of the family. Because of that, Nabiki didn't turn into quite the Ice Queen Mercenary that she does in the canon. Because of that, Nabiki in turn helps Kasumi with the house, sometimes cooking or helping out with the cleaning. Since Kasumi isn't stuck taking complete care of the family, she has time for a social life and has started falling for the good Dr. Tofu. Because Kasumi is actively pursuing Dr. Tofu, Akane has had no one to fantasize over and to use as an example of a non perverted boy. The hentai squad in the morning only reinforces her anger tendencies and the belief that everything can be solved with her fists. Nabiki hasn't helped stop the morning fights because A)She likes making money on the bets, B) Akane doesn't want/like help and C)She is still upset with Akane for not helping around the house.
Anyway, I'll get off my soap box now and get this posted. I look forward to your reviews and love reading each and everyone one of them. Stay tuned to the next chapter as we see Ranma the player in action. (Or so people think. Poor Ranma. All that attention.)