Insertion
Part 14
The start of a business.
++++++++++++++
Ranma Saotome stared at the growing patch of grass in the back of
the Tendo home and frowned. "This is..." he muttered under his breath.
"Maybe I could..."
"What are you doing?" asked Akane as she approached from behind
him.
He glanced at her and smirked, taking his eyes away from the spot
in the yard. "Nothing, just training."
"Oh," she said as she sat down on the back porch to watch.
He glanced at her and smirked. "You want a job?"
Akane paused, looking up at him dumbly. "Huh?"
"I'm going to turn this security thing into a business," said the
boy with a slight shrug. "I'm thinking I'll need more than just me.
I've got something in mind, and if it goes as planned..."
Akane looked at her hands for a moment, thinking it over. She
didn't remain that way long, and nodded her head. "Sure."
"We've got this thing at the museum right?" asked the girl as she
stood up and walked up to him.
"That's right, so we're already establishing a reputation," said
the boy with a small nod. What he was planning could be bigger though,
but there was no need to discuss it just yet.
++++++++++
A short time later, both Ranma and Akane were sitting at their
desks in class.
"Wow! Akane, is that really you and Ranma?" said Sayuri as she
shoved a newspaper in front of the girl's face.
"Yeah," said the girl with a smirk on her face as she looked at
the photo that had been printed. It showed her and Ranma standing on
either side of the gemstone.
"That must have been so cool! Getting to go to that fancy party!"
exclaimed Yuka. "So romantic! And you got to see that diamond! It's
huge!"
Akane frowned a little at that and shook her head. "It was pretty
boring actually. We didn't get to do anything at the party really,
mostly we just stood around that gem, and kept people back."
The girls' faces fell at this, but they remained cheerful. "So,
how is that going anyway? You and Ranma are engaged?"
Akane looked over at him for a moment. "No, not at all. Our
parents want it, but we just wouldn't work out. We decided that for
ourselves a while ago."
"But, he's so handsome!" cried Sayuri.
"He's kind of a jerk. Deep down he's a nice guy though, pretty
smart too," said Akane with a shrug.
"But, why not then?" muttered Yuka as she failed to understand.
"We just aren't compatible," replied Akane with a small shrug. The
truth was, she was beginning to wonder why she didn't like him so much
when he had first arrived. He'd made it clear that there was someone
else he was in love with from the start, so she decided it was best
not to think about it.
The rest of the day went on undisturbed.
++++++++++
Hotaru blocked several light strikes from her sensei and smiled.
He was still tagging her lightly from time to time, but she was doing
very well under his tutelage and she knew it.
"All right that's enough for now," said Ranma as he began to
notice her growing a little too tired.
"Thank you Ranma-sensei!" said the girl cheerfully as she bowed to
him.
Ranma smirked, it had taken a few weeks to get her to practice
when he wasn't there, but she caught on after a while. He knelt down
beside her and smiled. "Have you been practicing your meditation?"
"Un!" said the girl cheerfully with a quick nod.
"Okay, go ahead then," he said as he sat down across from her.
The girl did as she was instructed, and quickly fell into a
meditative state. He raised his eyebrow at this; she was doing far
better in that respect than he had expected.
Her father walked out and smiled at them with a mug of coffee in
his hands. The girl had actually started looking forward to the
lessons. She had grown calmer, and wasn't nearly as shy as she used to
be. "I'm really glad I allowed this."
++++++++++++
"So? Mom is coming by this weekend?" said Ranma as they strolled
towards the usual bar.
"Yeah, Ranko's going to have to make a few appearances," said
Carrot with a small nod.
"Man," muttered Ranma grumpily. "I hate when we have to do that."
"Yeah well, live and learn. She seems to like her," said Dan with
a small shrug.
"I'm just glad I don't have to be the one doing it," muttered
Ranma dejectedly.
"I think we can bring Jadeite back," said Carrot suddenly.
"Huh?" said the other three voices inside his head.
"I said..." said Carrot.
"I heard you!" snapped Dan. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"We can bring him back, I'm sure of it. You heard what the others
said, he's not really dead. Just sort of sealed away," said Carrot
calmly.
"So? How the hell are we supposed to do that?" snapped Ranma. It
was obvious that he was very interested to hear what the boy had to
say though.
"When I said we, I actually meant Pissant," replied Carrot. He
stopped them in the middle of the sidewalk and leaned against a fence
that ran along beside it.
"Me?" muttered the voice timidly.
"That's right, alone you probably couldn't do it, but when we
combine our chi like we did before. That white power actually seemed
stronger," said Carrot calmly.
"How do we get to him?" asked Dan with a small frown.
"We see if we can get the others to bring us to him," replied
Carrot calmly.
"That's crazy!" snapped Ranma.
"Is it? They seemed pretty upset about what happened to him to
me," said Dan with a small frown forming on their face.
"I liked him, I'd be glad to help him if I can," said Pissant
cheerfully.
"The question is, can we get the others to help us, and trust them
enough not to turn on us?" said Dan seriously.
"I think that we can," said Carrot calmly.
"How is that?" muttered Dan.
"We ask them," replied Carrot.
"Just go up and ask?" said Ranma.
"Sure, why not? The worst that could happen is them saying no,"
said Carrot. "Then we just forget about this."
"Okay," said Dan with a small shrug.
++++++++++++
"Well, if it isn't Genaku," said Kunzite as he noticed the boy
walk into the bar.
Nephrite and Zocite both nodded a greeting at him.
The boy smirked and calmly walked up to them. "We need a booth
today."
"What for?" asked Zocite as he looked at his companions for a
moment.
"Because I've got something to discuss with you," said the boy
calmly.
The trio looked at one another again, and followed him over to a
dark corner of the bar.
"What are you up too?" asked Nephrite suspiciously.
Ranma sat down, and they followed. After a moment of silence, the
boy spoke up.
"I'm only going to offer this once. If you say no, I won't bother
with it again," said the boy calmly.
"We aren't going to leave Beryl," snapped Kunzite angrily. The
others mirrored his angry expression.
"Good, cause that's not what I'm asking," said the boy with a
small shrug.
"What is it then?" muttered Zocite with a slight blush on his
face.
"I think I can bring Jadeite back," said the boy calmly.
"So?" snorted Kunzite. "Beryl will just kill him again."
"Not if he's here with me," said Ranma calmly.
Zocite started to laugh. "With you? Are you mad?"
"No, he can lay low with me for a while, until queen bitch calms
down, or you win this little war you're planning."
Nephrite looked at him for a moment and frowned. "You're serious?"
"All I need to do is find a way to get to him, and get back here
with him," said the boy calmly.
"Why would you do this?" asked Nephrite coldly.
Ranma merely grinned at him. "To tell the truth, I need his help."
"Pardon?" said Kunzite skeptically.
"Did Nephrite tell you of my last meeting with him?" asked the boy
calmly.
The trio nodded, Nephrite had a small frown on his face as he did.
"Well, I'm going to start a security business. I like that kind of
work," said the boy with a small smirk.
"So you need someone older to get things moving," said Kunzite.
"It'll be a lot easier if I have someone older," agreed Ranma.
"There's a motive I can understand," said Zocite cheerfully. He
looked at his companions and shrugged his shoulders. "Why not?"
+++++++++++
Ranma stepped out of the dark porthole and glanced around in
confusion. "Where the heck are we?"
"It's a storage room, mostly old junk. Weapons mostly, a lot of
Mercurian technology. Mostly useless to us, these things can't harm
the senshi, and magic is more effective," commented Zocite as he
appeared behind him.
"Where's Jadeite?" said Ranma as he frowned at them.
"He's in the throne room. Beryl should be gone, but I think it
would be a better idea to make sure before we go waltzing in there
with you," said Kunzite.
+++++++++++
Several moments later, Nephrite waved them into the throne room.
Jadeites dried out husk was sitting inside a large crystal off to the
side of the room.
"How do we get him out of there?" asked Ranma coolly.
"Easily enough, if he's revived he should simply come out on his
own," said Kunzite with a shrug.
"Good," muttered Ranma as he walked up the crystal and put his
hands up. "I hope this works."
The three generals stepped back in shock as a white light blasted
out from his palms. After a moment Ranma cut off the beam of energy
and stepped back from the crystal.
"What was that?" gasped Nephrite in shock.
"I'm not sure, I found it by accident a few weeks ago," said Ranma
as he watched the crystal. A smile slowly formed on his face as the
energy did exactly what he had expected. The dead form of Jadeite, was
quickly being revived. He appeared to be simply sleeping now. After a
few seconds, the man fell through the outside of the crystal and
slumped down on the ground, groaning painfully.
"What happened to me? Where am I?" he gasped. His body spasmed,
and he jerked violently forward. "What?"
Ranma stepped back in shock as something dark and evil looking
slowly rose from his back, it seemed like a dark shadow almost. It
screeched at him angrily, and he blasted it with a small ball of white
light, dispersing it in an instant.
"What was that?" gasped Nephrite in horror.
Ranma narrowed his eyes and frowned. "I don't know. Help me get
him out of here."
"If we open a porthole in here, Beryl will know about it," said
Kunzite calmly. "We'd do better to take him back the way we came."
"Did it occur to you that she might ask where he went?" said
Zocite with a small frown.
"Blame it on me. Tell her I lied to you and said I'd join,"
replied Ranma calmly. "You brought me to see her, and I escaped."
"That's a little far fetched," snorted Kunzite irritably.
"Not really, the Senshi are trying to kill me after all," said
Ranma with a small shrug. "We share a common enemy, so things will
probably go a little smoother if you point that out to her."
"We'll be punished," said Kunzite sourly.
"Not very harshly," noted Nephrite.
"In Beryl's standards, that will be quite painful," said Zocite.
"Relax, we'll be laughing about this in a few weeks," said Ranma
irritably. This was not the time for a mutiny.
Kunzite and Zocite frowned at this, but helped him lift Jadeite
and carry him away.
+++++++++++
"How stable is this porthole?" asked Ranma as they stood around
the exit to the Dark Kingdom.
"What do you mean?" snapped Nephrite angrily. It was him who had
made it, and he looked like he took the comment personally.
"No. I mean, will it take any more energy to transport more?"
"Not really, the energy is in creating and closing the porthole.
Maintaining it is easy," said the man with a frown on his face.
"Where am I?" muttered Jadeite dumbly.
Ranma shrugged his shoulders and shoved him into the porthole. He
stumbled forward and fell into it.
"Help me," said Ranma as he began to toss various things through
the hole. Anything that wasn't nailed down really.
"What are you doing?" said Nephrite dumbly.
"Taking some of this stuff. You said it's not useful to you. I bet
I can find interesting ways of using it," said the boy as he smirked
at them.
Kunzite and Zocite shrugged their shoulders and began to toss
things into the vortex.
+++++++++++++
Several minutes later, the group walked out and found a large pile
of objects on top of the fallen Jadeite.
"Oops," said Ranma sheepishly as he dug his friend out.
"Where am I?" muttered Jadeite numbly.
"Relax, I just woke you up from a rather nasty sleep. You'll be
all right in a few hours," said the pigtailed boy cheerfully.
"What are you going to do with all of this junk?" snorted Zocite
as he kicked at some of the equipment.
"Some of it I'm going to sell the patents too. Others I'll use in
my new business," said Ranma cheerfully.
"Well, have fun," said Kunzite with a small shrug. He and the
others turned towards the porthole.
"Wait. I haven't thanked you yet," said Ranma as he stood up from
where he was kneeling and smirked at them evilly.
"Huh?" said Nephrite dumbly.
The trio turned and saw a small multi colored ball of light
swirling around in his palms. They were standing right beside one
another in a tight group.
"Moukou Takabishi!" cried Ranma as he blasted the energy forward.
The Dark Generals managed to scream just before it engulfed them.
The blast died down, and the vortex vanished as it came in contact
with the energy bolt. After the blast cleared, the three generals were
lying on the ground in a heap. Three dark shadows were hovering in the
air just over them.
Ranma smirked and repeated his attack at them. They vanished,
leaving only a few wisps of dark power behind. "Gotya!"
++++++++++++
Jadeite jumped up in shock. A terrified look on his face as he
gasped for breath suddenly. "Where?" He looked down at himself and
noticed he was lying in a small cot in a mostly barren room.
"Welcome back Jadeite," said Genaku as he smirked at him. The boy
was sitting on top of a dresser and eyeing him coldly.
"Where am I?" asked the general.
"It's a hotel room, the others are here too?" said the boy calmly
as he jumped up. The man glanced around and noticed the other three
still sleeping on futons along the floor beside him.
"What's happened to me?" he muttered as he held his head for a
moment and groaned painfully.
"Nothing much, you've been working for Beryl for a while now, and
when you failed, she sealed you up rather than revive you," said the
boy with a small shrug. "You're going to stay on earth for a while
now."
"Beryl?" muttered the man in shocked horror. "I couldn't
have...how could I? No! It had to be a terrible dream!"
"Heh. I thought so," muttered the boy as he formed a ball of white
light in his hand. "This is most interesting."
"What did you do?" muttered Jadeite as he looked at the boy for a
moment.
"It seems I have the ability to break Beryl's hold over you. When
the other's wake up, I'm going to offer them the same choice I'm about
to give you. One, you go to the closet on the right, and back to her."
"And the other?" said the man as he glared at the boy.
"You pick the other closet, and stay here with me," said Ranma
with a small shrug.
Jadeite stood up and looked down at himself. He wasn't wearing
anything but a pair of boxers. "Wha?"
"Make your choice Jadeite," said Ranma with a slight smirk on his
face.
Jadeite stood up and opened the closet. He paused and stared at
the contents in shock. "You're kidding right?"
Ranma merely chuckled and shook his head for a moment.
"Wait in the room next door, the others will make their own
choice," said Ranma as he nodded at the door that led between the two
rooms.
Jadeite waited about an hour before Zocite and Kunzite came
through. They were wearing the same thing he was.
Finally, ten minutes later Nephrite walked in with Ranma behind
him. All five of them were dressed exactly the same.
Ranma smiled and put four silver cases down in front of them. They
each took one.
"Well. It looks like we're going to be working together again.
I've decided to choose my side now. I'm making my own. Beryl will be
trying too kill us, and the Senshi are still our enemies. They will
try to destroy us on sight if they can. Don't bother even trying to
explain things too them at the moment. We'll work out something with
them later," said Genaku with a small smirk.
"What is this?" said Nephrite as he leaned forward and stared at
Ranma.
"This is my security force. We're going to become highly
specialized security guards. An elite force so to speak," said the boy
with a small shrug. "I rented out these rooms for about two months,
they'll be our base of operations." He pointed out the pile of
equipment they had lifted from the supply room.
"We took that much?" said Kunzite in shock.
"Yup," said the boy cheerfully.
"All this for a rent a cop company?" snorted Nephrite.
"No. That's just a front," said Ranma as he put on his shades and
dusted off his suit jacket. "We're about to become the best kept
secret in the universe."
The four men stared at him dumbly for a moment. "Huh?"
"We work in secret, we have no names, we don't exist," said Ranma
coldly. "Welcome to the Men In Black gentlemen." He put a few packs of
business cards on the table and smiled at them.
"What?" said Kunzite dumbly.
"We're going to become the defenders of Earth once again. The
senshi are not enough. They can't keep up with all these attacks that
are happening. Now that Beryl has lost her generals, things are going
to take a turn for the worst. She'll have to use youma to collect
energy. That's where we come in. We're protecting the Earth from the
scum of the universe. Just like old times."
The three men blinked and looked at one another for a moment. They
each opened the cases they had been given. Inside was a pair of
sunglasses and a business card.
"N?" muttered Nephrite.
"Z," said Zocite with a small frown.
"I'll bet I'm J. Yup," said Jadeite as he glanced down at his own
card and smirked.
"That would make me K," said Kunzite.
"Gee I wonder what you might be Genaku," deadpanned Jadeite.
"R actually," said the boy with a shrug. "I go by Ranma these
days, you should start calling me that. People will think it's weird
if you call me Genaku."
Ranma walked over too the door that led outside and opened it. He
stuck his head out and moved back in again.
"Ranma? What's going on?" said Akane as she glanced around in
confusion. She was dressed in her business suit again, and had an
impatient frown on her face.
"Sorry. This took a bit longer than expected," said Ranma
sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head. "Guys, meet agent A."
The four men simply waved dumbly. None of them was quite sure what
to do now.
"Ranma?" asked the girl in confusion. "What is this?"
"You said you wanted a job right?" said the boy with a small
chuckle. "Well, this is our first day."
He handed her a card and she glanced at it for a moment. "Men In
Black?" She looked up at him and frowned. "Men?"
"It sounds better than People In Black, or Men In Black and a
Woman," he said with a smirk. "It's catchy and easy to remember,
that's all. Don't take it personally."
"Who are these guys?" said the girl irritably as she eyed the four
men suspiciously.
"Very old friends of mine, don't worry," said Ranma cheerfully as
he put his shades on and smirked.
"This is a bit much for security guards," commented Akane.
"We're expensive security guards," said Ranma with a shrug. "Don't
worry, we're fully funded."
"Funded?" said Akane in confusion.
"Give her the speech," said Jadeite cheerfully.
"Yeah, tell her," agreed Nephrite with a small chuckle.
"Jerks," grumbled Ranma as he flashed them a sour frown.
+++++++++++
A few hours later, Ranma sat in front of the television once
again. He had a scowl on his face as he stared at the screen.
"Men In Black?" grumbled Dan.
"Shut up! It was a good movie!" snapped Carrot.
"This wasn't one of your brighter moments Carrot," said Dan.
"Man, that was stupid," grumbled Ranma.
"Actually, I thought it was kind of nice," said Pissant.
"Whatever, it'll catch on," said Carrot irritably.
"We've decided to be against them both then?" said Dan with a
small sigh.
"They're both trying to kill us, so why not?" snorted Carrot
angrily.
"I don't want to fight with the Senshi," grumbled Ranma.
"We don't have much choice. They aren't exactly asking us about
ourselves before they attack," snorted Carrot.
"I've got to admit, using the security agency as a front was a
good idea," said Dan with a small sigh.
"What do you think Akane thinks of all this?" asked Carrot.
"We're still keeping a lot of secrets from her," said Dan with a
small shrug. "We should continue to do so. Some of this is a little
too far fetched."
"More far fetched than protecting the planet from a bunch of
invading monsters? With four magically powered warriors, and a whole
bunch of advanced technology that we managed to get our hands on
somehow?" asked Carrot.
"Yes," said Dan calmly. "We'll let her in on more when she needs
to know. It will probably never come up."
"Here's hoping," said Carrot with a heavy sigh.
+++++++++++
Akane was lying on her bed and staring at the card. It was a bit
much, invading monsters and the Sailor Senshi? If it wasn't that weird
boy who had walked into her life a few months ago, she'd never believe
it. Still, it surprised her that he'd invited her into something like
this at all. She wasn't nearly as good as he was at martial arts, and
she'd felt more like a sidekick recently.
Still, she'd always wanted some sort of adventure in her life.
Something real, where she could actually use her skills for something
more meaningful than beating up hormone driven perverts at school.
She flipped over onto her back, looking at the card for a long
time.
"I guess I'm in," she muttered with a sigh.
+++++++++++++
Setsuna stood up for the first time in weeks, the green goo that
had once surrounded her entire body was now dripping from her naked
form as she stepped out of the healing chamber at last. She had a cold
scowl on her face as she grabbed a towel that had been set up for her
and wrapped it around her body.
"Tsuki. Come here," she said quietly.
The girl was in front of her in an instant. "You called me?" She
bowed her head slightly as she said this.
"Yes, you have done well, despite a few mishaps. I am proud of
you, but you are not yet ready." Setsuna held out her hand, and the
girl placed the Time Staff in her hand.
"That was harder than I'd thought it would be," grumbled the girl
with a small frown.
"Like all things, it grows easier with time. You have plenty of
time child," said the woman with a slight smirk on her face.
"Yes Mistress," muttered the girl as she perked up and sat down in
one of the chairs in the room.
Pluto walked towards the time gates and frowned. The image of
Crystal Tokyo was flickering. "This is not good. It seems I have a lot
of work to do yet." She snarled and glared into the gates a little
harder. "Genaku, I know it is him who is causing this. This time, I'll
destroy him for sure. Nothing will stop me, and I will ensure the
future of Crystal Tokyo at any cost."
Tsuki watched the scene calmly, a rather bored expression on her
face. She used to think it was scary at first, but she soon learned
that the woman was almost always like that when she watched the stream
of time flow through the gates. The snarling angrily was a bit new
though.
"Oh well," she said with a small shrug.
++++++++
Meanwhile, on yet another plane...
"Nephrite! Before me!" bellowed Beryl angrily. "Kunzite! Zocite!
Where are you! If you do not appear before me, I shall destroy you
all!" She seethed in anger as no response came.
"Where are those imbeciles?" she paused and noticed something off
to the side of the throne room.
"Where is Jadeite?" she said coldly as she strolled over to the
empty crystal.
Taped to the front of the crystal, was a small note.
"Dear Beryl, we quit. Signed, Your Generals."
She growled angrily and shook with rage. "This isn't possible!
How? They shouldn't be able to break my will! It's not possible!"
That was when she noticed a small side note at the bottom of the
page.
"Hiya! Borrowing your generals for a while! Genaku McTome!" There
was a small face with its tongue sticking out at her drawn in the
corner.
She lifted her hands in the air and screamed in rage.
++++++++++
TBC...
Next Time: A new threat in Nerima?
Why you might ask?
I decided I liked having the genrals around, and I didn't want to
kill them off. That's all really.
Part 14
The start of a business.
++++++++++++++
Ranma Saotome stared at the growing patch of grass in the back of
the Tendo home and frowned. "This is..." he muttered under his breath.
"Maybe I could..."
"What are you doing?" asked Akane as she approached from behind
him.
He glanced at her and smirked, taking his eyes away from the spot
in the yard. "Nothing, just training."
"Oh," she said as she sat down on the back porch to watch.
He glanced at her and smirked. "You want a job?"
Akane paused, looking up at him dumbly. "Huh?"
"I'm going to turn this security thing into a business," said the
boy with a slight shrug. "I'm thinking I'll need more than just me.
I've got something in mind, and if it goes as planned..."
Akane looked at her hands for a moment, thinking it over. She
didn't remain that way long, and nodded her head. "Sure."
"We've got this thing at the museum right?" asked the girl as she
stood up and walked up to him.
"That's right, so we're already establishing a reputation," said
the boy with a small nod. What he was planning could be bigger though,
but there was no need to discuss it just yet.
++++++++++
A short time later, both Ranma and Akane were sitting at their
desks in class.
"Wow! Akane, is that really you and Ranma?" said Sayuri as she
shoved a newspaper in front of the girl's face.
"Yeah," said the girl with a smirk on her face as she looked at
the photo that had been printed. It showed her and Ranma standing on
either side of the gemstone.
"That must have been so cool! Getting to go to that fancy party!"
exclaimed Yuka. "So romantic! And you got to see that diamond! It's
huge!"
Akane frowned a little at that and shook her head. "It was pretty
boring actually. We didn't get to do anything at the party really,
mostly we just stood around that gem, and kept people back."
The girls' faces fell at this, but they remained cheerful. "So,
how is that going anyway? You and Ranma are engaged?"
Akane looked over at him for a moment. "No, not at all. Our
parents want it, but we just wouldn't work out. We decided that for
ourselves a while ago."
"But, he's so handsome!" cried Sayuri.
"He's kind of a jerk. Deep down he's a nice guy though, pretty
smart too," said Akane with a shrug.
"But, why not then?" muttered Yuka as she failed to understand.
"We just aren't compatible," replied Akane with a small shrug. The
truth was, she was beginning to wonder why she didn't like him so much
when he had first arrived. He'd made it clear that there was someone
else he was in love with from the start, so she decided it was best
not to think about it.
The rest of the day went on undisturbed.
++++++++++
Hotaru blocked several light strikes from her sensei and smiled.
He was still tagging her lightly from time to time, but she was doing
very well under his tutelage and she knew it.
"All right that's enough for now," said Ranma as he began to
notice her growing a little too tired.
"Thank you Ranma-sensei!" said the girl cheerfully as she bowed to
him.
Ranma smirked, it had taken a few weeks to get her to practice
when he wasn't there, but she caught on after a while. He knelt down
beside her and smiled. "Have you been practicing your meditation?"
"Un!" said the girl cheerfully with a quick nod.
"Okay, go ahead then," he said as he sat down across from her.
The girl did as she was instructed, and quickly fell into a
meditative state. He raised his eyebrow at this; she was doing far
better in that respect than he had expected.
Her father walked out and smiled at them with a mug of coffee in
his hands. The girl had actually started looking forward to the
lessons. She had grown calmer, and wasn't nearly as shy as she used to
be. "I'm really glad I allowed this."
++++++++++++
"So? Mom is coming by this weekend?" said Ranma as they strolled
towards the usual bar.
"Yeah, Ranko's going to have to make a few appearances," said
Carrot with a small nod.
"Man," muttered Ranma grumpily. "I hate when we have to do that."
"Yeah well, live and learn. She seems to like her," said Dan with
a small shrug.
"I'm just glad I don't have to be the one doing it," muttered
Ranma dejectedly.
"I think we can bring Jadeite back," said Carrot suddenly.
"Huh?" said the other three voices inside his head.
"I said..." said Carrot.
"I heard you!" snapped Dan. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"We can bring him back, I'm sure of it. You heard what the others
said, he's not really dead. Just sort of sealed away," said Carrot
calmly.
"So? How the hell are we supposed to do that?" snapped Ranma. It
was obvious that he was very interested to hear what the boy had to
say though.
"When I said we, I actually meant Pissant," replied Carrot. He
stopped them in the middle of the sidewalk and leaned against a fence
that ran along beside it.
"Me?" muttered the voice timidly.
"That's right, alone you probably couldn't do it, but when we
combine our chi like we did before. That white power actually seemed
stronger," said Carrot calmly.
"How do we get to him?" asked Dan with a small frown.
"We see if we can get the others to bring us to him," replied
Carrot calmly.
"That's crazy!" snapped Ranma.
"Is it? They seemed pretty upset about what happened to him to
me," said Dan with a small frown forming on their face.
"I liked him, I'd be glad to help him if I can," said Pissant
cheerfully.
"The question is, can we get the others to help us, and trust them
enough not to turn on us?" said Dan seriously.
"I think that we can," said Carrot calmly.
"How is that?" muttered Dan.
"We ask them," replied Carrot.
"Just go up and ask?" said Ranma.
"Sure, why not? The worst that could happen is them saying no,"
said Carrot. "Then we just forget about this."
"Okay," said Dan with a small shrug.
++++++++++++
"Well, if it isn't Genaku," said Kunzite as he noticed the boy
walk into the bar.
Nephrite and Zocite both nodded a greeting at him.
The boy smirked and calmly walked up to them. "We need a booth
today."
"What for?" asked Zocite as he looked at his companions for a
moment.
"Because I've got something to discuss with you," said the boy
calmly.
The trio looked at one another again, and followed him over to a
dark corner of the bar.
"What are you up too?" asked Nephrite suspiciously.
Ranma sat down, and they followed. After a moment of silence, the
boy spoke up.
"I'm only going to offer this once. If you say no, I won't bother
with it again," said the boy calmly.
"We aren't going to leave Beryl," snapped Kunzite angrily. The
others mirrored his angry expression.
"Good, cause that's not what I'm asking," said the boy with a
small shrug.
"What is it then?" muttered Zocite with a slight blush on his
face.
"I think I can bring Jadeite back," said the boy calmly.
"So?" snorted Kunzite. "Beryl will just kill him again."
"Not if he's here with me," said Ranma calmly.
Zocite started to laugh. "With you? Are you mad?"
"No, he can lay low with me for a while, until queen bitch calms
down, or you win this little war you're planning."
Nephrite looked at him for a moment and frowned. "You're serious?"
"All I need to do is find a way to get to him, and get back here
with him," said the boy calmly.
"Why would you do this?" asked Nephrite coldly.
Ranma merely grinned at him. "To tell the truth, I need his help."
"Pardon?" said Kunzite skeptically.
"Did Nephrite tell you of my last meeting with him?" asked the boy
calmly.
The trio nodded, Nephrite had a small frown on his face as he did.
"Well, I'm going to start a security business. I like that kind of
work," said the boy with a small smirk.
"So you need someone older to get things moving," said Kunzite.
"It'll be a lot easier if I have someone older," agreed Ranma.
"There's a motive I can understand," said Zocite cheerfully. He
looked at his companions and shrugged his shoulders. "Why not?"
+++++++++++
Ranma stepped out of the dark porthole and glanced around in
confusion. "Where the heck are we?"
"It's a storage room, mostly old junk. Weapons mostly, a lot of
Mercurian technology. Mostly useless to us, these things can't harm
the senshi, and magic is more effective," commented Zocite as he
appeared behind him.
"Where's Jadeite?" said Ranma as he frowned at them.
"He's in the throne room. Beryl should be gone, but I think it
would be a better idea to make sure before we go waltzing in there
with you," said Kunzite.
+++++++++++
Several moments later, Nephrite waved them into the throne room.
Jadeites dried out husk was sitting inside a large crystal off to the
side of the room.
"How do we get him out of there?" asked Ranma coolly.
"Easily enough, if he's revived he should simply come out on his
own," said Kunzite with a shrug.
"Good," muttered Ranma as he walked up the crystal and put his
hands up. "I hope this works."
The three generals stepped back in shock as a white light blasted
out from his palms. After a moment Ranma cut off the beam of energy
and stepped back from the crystal.
"What was that?" gasped Nephrite in shock.
"I'm not sure, I found it by accident a few weeks ago," said Ranma
as he watched the crystal. A smile slowly formed on his face as the
energy did exactly what he had expected. The dead form of Jadeite, was
quickly being revived. He appeared to be simply sleeping now. After a
few seconds, the man fell through the outside of the crystal and
slumped down on the ground, groaning painfully.
"What happened to me? Where am I?" he gasped. His body spasmed,
and he jerked violently forward. "What?"
Ranma stepped back in shock as something dark and evil looking
slowly rose from his back, it seemed like a dark shadow almost. It
screeched at him angrily, and he blasted it with a small ball of white
light, dispersing it in an instant.
"What was that?" gasped Nephrite in horror.
Ranma narrowed his eyes and frowned. "I don't know. Help me get
him out of here."
"If we open a porthole in here, Beryl will know about it," said
Kunzite calmly. "We'd do better to take him back the way we came."
"Did it occur to you that she might ask where he went?" said
Zocite with a small frown.
"Blame it on me. Tell her I lied to you and said I'd join,"
replied Ranma calmly. "You brought me to see her, and I escaped."
"That's a little far fetched," snorted Kunzite irritably.
"Not really, the Senshi are trying to kill me after all," said
Ranma with a small shrug. "We share a common enemy, so things will
probably go a little smoother if you point that out to her."
"We'll be punished," said Kunzite sourly.
"Not very harshly," noted Nephrite.
"In Beryl's standards, that will be quite painful," said Zocite.
"Relax, we'll be laughing about this in a few weeks," said Ranma
irritably. This was not the time for a mutiny.
Kunzite and Zocite frowned at this, but helped him lift Jadeite
and carry him away.
+++++++++++
"How stable is this porthole?" asked Ranma as they stood around
the exit to the Dark Kingdom.
"What do you mean?" snapped Nephrite angrily. It was him who had
made it, and he looked like he took the comment personally.
"No. I mean, will it take any more energy to transport more?"
"Not really, the energy is in creating and closing the porthole.
Maintaining it is easy," said the man with a frown on his face.
"Where am I?" muttered Jadeite dumbly.
Ranma shrugged his shoulders and shoved him into the porthole. He
stumbled forward and fell into it.
"Help me," said Ranma as he began to toss various things through
the hole. Anything that wasn't nailed down really.
"What are you doing?" said Nephrite dumbly.
"Taking some of this stuff. You said it's not useful to you. I bet
I can find interesting ways of using it," said the boy as he smirked
at them.
Kunzite and Zocite shrugged their shoulders and began to toss
things into the vortex.
+++++++++++++
Several minutes later, the group walked out and found a large pile
of objects on top of the fallen Jadeite.
"Oops," said Ranma sheepishly as he dug his friend out.
"Where am I?" muttered Jadeite numbly.
"Relax, I just woke you up from a rather nasty sleep. You'll be
all right in a few hours," said the pigtailed boy cheerfully.
"What are you going to do with all of this junk?" snorted Zocite
as he kicked at some of the equipment.
"Some of it I'm going to sell the patents too. Others I'll use in
my new business," said Ranma cheerfully.
"Well, have fun," said Kunzite with a small shrug. He and the
others turned towards the porthole.
"Wait. I haven't thanked you yet," said Ranma as he stood up from
where he was kneeling and smirked at them evilly.
"Huh?" said Nephrite dumbly.
The trio turned and saw a small multi colored ball of light
swirling around in his palms. They were standing right beside one
another in a tight group.
"Moukou Takabishi!" cried Ranma as he blasted the energy forward.
The Dark Generals managed to scream just before it engulfed them.
The blast died down, and the vortex vanished as it came in contact
with the energy bolt. After the blast cleared, the three generals were
lying on the ground in a heap. Three dark shadows were hovering in the
air just over them.
Ranma smirked and repeated his attack at them. They vanished,
leaving only a few wisps of dark power behind. "Gotya!"
++++++++++++
Jadeite jumped up in shock. A terrified look on his face as he
gasped for breath suddenly. "Where?" He looked down at himself and
noticed he was lying in a small cot in a mostly barren room.
"Welcome back Jadeite," said Genaku as he smirked at him. The boy
was sitting on top of a dresser and eyeing him coldly.
"Where am I?" asked the general.
"It's a hotel room, the others are here too?" said the boy calmly
as he jumped up. The man glanced around and noticed the other three
still sleeping on futons along the floor beside him.
"What's happened to me?" he muttered as he held his head for a
moment and groaned painfully.
"Nothing much, you've been working for Beryl for a while now, and
when you failed, she sealed you up rather than revive you," said the
boy with a small shrug. "You're going to stay on earth for a while
now."
"Beryl?" muttered the man in shocked horror. "I couldn't
have...how could I? No! It had to be a terrible dream!"
"Heh. I thought so," muttered the boy as he formed a ball of white
light in his hand. "This is most interesting."
"What did you do?" muttered Jadeite as he looked at the boy for a
moment.
"It seems I have the ability to break Beryl's hold over you. When
the other's wake up, I'm going to offer them the same choice I'm about
to give you. One, you go to the closet on the right, and back to her."
"And the other?" said the man as he glared at the boy.
"You pick the other closet, and stay here with me," said Ranma
with a small shrug.
Jadeite stood up and looked down at himself. He wasn't wearing
anything but a pair of boxers. "Wha?"
"Make your choice Jadeite," said Ranma with a slight smirk on his
face.
Jadeite stood up and opened the closet. He paused and stared at
the contents in shock. "You're kidding right?"
Ranma merely chuckled and shook his head for a moment.
"Wait in the room next door, the others will make their own
choice," said Ranma as he nodded at the door that led between the two
rooms.
Jadeite waited about an hour before Zocite and Kunzite came
through. They were wearing the same thing he was.
Finally, ten minutes later Nephrite walked in with Ranma behind
him. All five of them were dressed exactly the same.
Ranma smiled and put four silver cases down in front of them. They
each took one.
"Well. It looks like we're going to be working together again.
I've decided to choose my side now. I'm making my own. Beryl will be
trying too kill us, and the Senshi are still our enemies. They will
try to destroy us on sight if they can. Don't bother even trying to
explain things too them at the moment. We'll work out something with
them later," said Genaku with a small smirk.
"What is this?" said Nephrite as he leaned forward and stared at
Ranma.
"This is my security force. We're going to become highly
specialized security guards. An elite force so to speak," said the boy
with a small shrug. "I rented out these rooms for about two months,
they'll be our base of operations." He pointed out the pile of
equipment they had lifted from the supply room.
"We took that much?" said Kunzite in shock.
"Yup," said the boy cheerfully.
"All this for a rent a cop company?" snorted Nephrite.
"No. That's just a front," said Ranma as he put on his shades and
dusted off his suit jacket. "We're about to become the best kept
secret in the universe."
The four men stared at him dumbly for a moment. "Huh?"
"We work in secret, we have no names, we don't exist," said Ranma
coldly. "Welcome to the Men In Black gentlemen." He put a few packs of
business cards on the table and smiled at them.
"What?" said Kunzite dumbly.
"We're going to become the defenders of Earth once again. The
senshi are not enough. They can't keep up with all these attacks that
are happening. Now that Beryl has lost her generals, things are going
to take a turn for the worst. She'll have to use youma to collect
energy. That's where we come in. We're protecting the Earth from the
scum of the universe. Just like old times."
The three men blinked and looked at one another for a moment. They
each opened the cases they had been given. Inside was a pair of
sunglasses and a business card.
"N?" muttered Nephrite.
"Z," said Zocite with a small frown.
"I'll bet I'm J. Yup," said Jadeite as he glanced down at his own
card and smirked.
"That would make me K," said Kunzite.
"Gee I wonder what you might be Genaku," deadpanned Jadeite.
"R actually," said the boy with a shrug. "I go by Ranma these
days, you should start calling me that. People will think it's weird
if you call me Genaku."
Ranma walked over too the door that led outside and opened it. He
stuck his head out and moved back in again.
"Ranma? What's going on?" said Akane as she glanced around in
confusion. She was dressed in her business suit again, and had an
impatient frown on her face.
"Sorry. This took a bit longer than expected," said Ranma
sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head. "Guys, meet agent A."
The four men simply waved dumbly. None of them was quite sure what
to do now.
"Ranma?" asked the girl in confusion. "What is this?"
"You said you wanted a job right?" said the boy with a small
chuckle. "Well, this is our first day."
He handed her a card and she glanced at it for a moment. "Men In
Black?" She looked up at him and frowned. "Men?"
"It sounds better than People In Black, or Men In Black and a
Woman," he said with a smirk. "It's catchy and easy to remember,
that's all. Don't take it personally."
"Who are these guys?" said the girl irritably as she eyed the four
men suspiciously.
"Very old friends of mine, don't worry," said Ranma cheerfully as
he put his shades on and smirked.
"This is a bit much for security guards," commented Akane.
"We're expensive security guards," said Ranma with a shrug. "Don't
worry, we're fully funded."
"Funded?" said Akane in confusion.
"Give her the speech," said Jadeite cheerfully.
"Yeah, tell her," agreed Nephrite with a small chuckle.
"Jerks," grumbled Ranma as he flashed them a sour frown.
+++++++++++
A few hours later, Ranma sat in front of the television once
again. He had a scowl on his face as he stared at the screen.
"Men In Black?" grumbled Dan.
"Shut up! It was a good movie!" snapped Carrot.
"This wasn't one of your brighter moments Carrot," said Dan.
"Man, that was stupid," grumbled Ranma.
"Actually, I thought it was kind of nice," said Pissant.
"Whatever, it'll catch on," said Carrot irritably.
"We've decided to be against them both then?" said Dan with a
small sigh.
"They're both trying to kill us, so why not?" snorted Carrot
angrily.
"I don't want to fight with the Senshi," grumbled Ranma.
"We don't have much choice. They aren't exactly asking us about
ourselves before they attack," snorted Carrot.
"I've got to admit, using the security agency as a front was a
good idea," said Dan with a small sigh.
"What do you think Akane thinks of all this?" asked Carrot.
"We're still keeping a lot of secrets from her," said Dan with a
small shrug. "We should continue to do so. Some of this is a little
too far fetched."
"More far fetched than protecting the planet from a bunch of
invading monsters? With four magically powered warriors, and a whole
bunch of advanced technology that we managed to get our hands on
somehow?" asked Carrot.
"Yes," said Dan calmly. "We'll let her in on more when she needs
to know. It will probably never come up."
"Here's hoping," said Carrot with a heavy sigh.
+++++++++++
Akane was lying on her bed and staring at the card. It was a bit
much, invading monsters and the Sailor Senshi? If it wasn't that weird
boy who had walked into her life a few months ago, she'd never believe
it. Still, it surprised her that he'd invited her into something like
this at all. She wasn't nearly as good as he was at martial arts, and
she'd felt more like a sidekick recently.
Still, she'd always wanted some sort of adventure in her life.
Something real, where she could actually use her skills for something
more meaningful than beating up hormone driven perverts at school.
She flipped over onto her back, looking at the card for a long
time.
"I guess I'm in," she muttered with a sigh.
+++++++++++++
Setsuna stood up for the first time in weeks, the green goo that
had once surrounded her entire body was now dripping from her naked
form as she stepped out of the healing chamber at last. She had a cold
scowl on her face as she grabbed a towel that had been set up for her
and wrapped it around her body.
"Tsuki. Come here," she said quietly.
The girl was in front of her in an instant. "You called me?" She
bowed her head slightly as she said this.
"Yes, you have done well, despite a few mishaps. I am proud of
you, but you are not yet ready." Setsuna held out her hand, and the
girl placed the Time Staff in her hand.
"That was harder than I'd thought it would be," grumbled the girl
with a small frown.
"Like all things, it grows easier with time. You have plenty of
time child," said the woman with a slight smirk on her face.
"Yes Mistress," muttered the girl as she perked up and sat down in
one of the chairs in the room.
Pluto walked towards the time gates and frowned. The image of
Crystal Tokyo was flickering. "This is not good. It seems I have a lot
of work to do yet." She snarled and glared into the gates a little
harder. "Genaku, I know it is him who is causing this. This time, I'll
destroy him for sure. Nothing will stop me, and I will ensure the
future of Crystal Tokyo at any cost."
Tsuki watched the scene calmly, a rather bored expression on her
face. She used to think it was scary at first, but she soon learned
that the woman was almost always like that when she watched the stream
of time flow through the gates. The snarling angrily was a bit new
though.
"Oh well," she said with a small shrug.
++++++++
Meanwhile, on yet another plane...
"Nephrite! Before me!" bellowed Beryl angrily. "Kunzite! Zocite!
Where are you! If you do not appear before me, I shall destroy you
all!" She seethed in anger as no response came.
"Where are those imbeciles?" she paused and noticed something off
to the side of the throne room.
"Where is Jadeite?" she said coldly as she strolled over to the
empty crystal.
Taped to the front of the crystal, was a small note.
"Dear Beryl, we quit. Signed, Your Generals."
She growled angrily and shook with rage. "This isn't possible!
How? They shouldn't be able to break my will! It's not possible!"
That was when she noticed a small side note at the bottom of the
page.
"Hiya! Borrowing your generals for a while! Genaku McTome!" There
was a small face with its tongue sticking out at her drawn in the
corner.
She lifted her hands in the air and screamed in rage.
++++++++++
TBC...
Next Time: A new threat in Nerima?
Why you might ask?
I decided I liked having the genrals around, and I didn't want to
kill them off. That's all really.