Volcano Girls, by Talk Of The Town
Chapter 2: The Sisters Tendo
A sizzling orange burst flew from her hand, and liquified the asphalt where it struck. She hovered intently, demanding one last time, "Where is he, you demented bitch?!?"
Said demented bitch shrugged from where she was standing, several feet away from the melting, bubbling blacktop. She was laughing maniacally, and rather familiarly. "Now now, I wouldn't dare tell you where my darling is...you might try something like take him away from me." As she said this, a long tendril of costume snaked away from her arm, unbeknownst to the first party. This tendril slowly took shape in the form of a large scythe-like weapon, intended to be thrown at said first party.
From where she hovered, the first party couldn't help but think she had heard that laugh somewhere before. Oh well, no time to think about that now. She quickly built up another blast to fire at the figure clad in black-and-blood. "If you don't tell me where he is in 5 seconds, I swear, I will fry you to a crisp, or my name isn't Firestar," she said, dangerously calm and in control.
"Oh, but why wait 5 seconds?" With that, the Blood Rose threw her blade at Firestar. It disintegrated in the wake of a massive blast of microwaves emitted by Firestar, and the Blood Rose, once known as Kodachi Kuno, also disintegrated under the intense heat and radiation.
One look at what Firestar did, and her face froze in a tapestry of shock and fear. She had lost control, like she always did, and now......
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Akane awoke with a yelp. *Man, what a weird dream. I mean, I was....what was I doing? Kuso, I hate when I forget my dreams, especially the ones I want to remember. All I seem to remember is that I did something that I regretted, and it wasn't pleasant. Oh well...it was just a dream.* rationalized Akane as she groggily pulled herself out of bed. *What time is it? Seems rather late in the day...*
It was actually around 10 o'clock, which was late for Akane. Even though she was on break from school, she usually woke at about 8 or so to do some light training before breakfast. "Oh well," she said aloud. "Guess I'll have to make that lunch in this case. Hmm, wonder where that baka of a fiancé is? He might actually want to spar today," she hoped. Then she remembered what he considered sparring with her, and sighed resignedly. "Well, at least I can practice those kata I saw him doing yesterday...they looked simple enough."
With this statement, she slipped into her favorite yellow gi and walked down to the dojo. She did a couple of warmup stretches, idly noting that she felt quite limber and warmed already. Almost as if she had been in a sauna, only nowhere near as uncomfortable a heat.
She slowly began the dancelike kata that Ranma had been doing yesterday. She slid gracefully into each movement, letting herself get lost in the moment. Her mind went blank as she concentrated on each stance, every individual kick and punch, getting them down perfectly.
Slowly, her mind began to come back from its blank state, and it immediately began to register things as wrong. For one, where was that weird orange haze coming from? It almost seemed to be emanating from her. For another, she didn't sense her feet hitting the ground when she moved; it was like she was floating or something. She wondered whether this is how Ranma felt when going through katas, when she looked down and realized something rather startling.
She WAS floating, and she WAS emanating a faint orange glow.
With that, she let out a short yelp and fell down to the floor. Luckily, she was only a couple of feet in the air, so she didn't hurt herself.
Akane looked down at herself in horror. "What the hell was that?" she asked herself in a whisper, barely audible, yet loud and discordant in her ears.
Suddenly, she heard the sliding door that connected the dojo with the rest of the house open, and Kasumi's head popped in, wearing a typical Kasumi smile. "Good morning Akane! There's still some breakfast left for you when you're finished practicing," she beamed.
Akane shook herself out of the daze she was in. "Hai, Kasumi...I'll be there in a minute," she said uncertainly.
Kasumi noted Akane's hesitation, and asked, "Are you alright, Akane? You seem to be slightly upset about something."
*More like shocked and scared as hell...* Aloud, she said, "No, it's nothing Kasumi, I just fell while doing a kata I saw Ranma doing."
"Ah, alright then Akane-chan. Breakfast is waiting," Kasumi said, satisfied with the answer. She then disappeared to return to the kitchen to get started on cleanup.
"I have to find out what in Kami's name that was," stated Akane quietly. "But, breakfast would belp..."
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Nabiki was sorting through her files, organizing everything for when school would start in 3 weeks. *Yeah, I've got time to do this still....but I'm bored,* thought Nabiki.
Since break had started a week ago, Nabiki had been bored as sin. All the usual suspects were being waaaay too quiet for her liking. The Kunos had barely been heard from, Ryoga was lost in Kami knows where, the China contingent had been busy with an unusual upturn in business at the Nekohanten, and so had the Ucchan's. Even Ranma and his father were fairly tranquil.
Previous experience told her that this wasn't unlike the calm before the storm. And considering how calm things had been, she was expecting a huge blowup.
She shook herself out of her reverie and found something that interested her. *Oh, I haven't looked at this in a while,* Nabiki murmured internally. Her backlog of photos of Ranma-chan and Akane that she sold to Kuno.
While flipping through the makeshift album, fondly recollecting the memories of each photo, she noticed some heavy condensation on the page she had just had her hand on. "That's weird...I don't even feel cold," she said to no one in particular. She touched her hands together, and they felt perfectly normal, neither colder than the other. She put the album down, and walked over to the thermostat right outside the door of her room. She checked the temperature: 74 degrees, which was the temperature outside, meaning neither the air conditioner nor the heater was on. "Hmm, how odd," said Nabiki quizzically. As she leaned against the wall, tapping her pen thoughtfully on her lip trying to puzzle this out, she idly noted that the pen felt rather heavy and cold against her lip. She glanced down, noted the pen was covered in ice from her fingertips up, then looked back to the thermostat, still wondering why there would be condensation.....
Wait, her brain said. Stop all activity, and look at the pen again.
She slowly took her brain's advice and looked down. Yes, that pen was covered in ice.
Nabiki slowly walked back to her room, closed her door gently, put the pen down on her desk, then plopped into her chair. "NOW what the hell is going on!?!?!?" Nabiki practically yelled, losing all semblance of control.
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"Where are Ranma and Saotome-kaasan, anyway?" Akane inquired of Kasumi.
"Oh, they went on some sort of short training trip for the weekend," informed the eldest Tendo sister. "Saotome-kaasan seemed in quite a hurry to leave. Ranma didn't look so enthusiastic, though. I hope they're having fun."
"Hmph. Just like that insensitive baka to leave without telling anyone," grumbled Akane. *Great,* she added mentally, *I was hoping he would help me figure out what the hell happened before. That moron may be an insensitive hentai, but he does know what he's doing with martial arts. Maybe he could have helped me figure out what was going on...."
"Um, Akane? Could you do me a favor and take this book back to Dr. Tofu for me? I've been meaning to return it, but I keep forgetting to," asked Kasumi.
Akane said distractedly, "Hmmm? Oh, sure Kasumi-oneechan." *Maybe Dr. Tofu will know what to make of it?*
Having said that (mentally at least), she took the book from Kasumi and hurried out. She wanted an answer to what was going on, and fast.
She didn't notice the title of the book, or its import to the situation; Human Genetics: A Study of Anomalies.
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Kasumi gave a small smile. As she watched her youngest sister walk off to find out more about what changes she was going through, she gave a thought to her other sister, Nabiki. *Well, Nabiki's a bright girl, she should be able to figure it out soon enough. Still, a nudge in the right direction doesn't hurt,* thought Kasumi, as she idly turned back to the sink.
When she turned back, she realized she had left the washcloth over in the dining room. "Oh my. When will I ever stop being so forgetful?" Kasumi tried to frown, but couldn't quite pull it off. Shrugging, she raised her hand and concentrated on the washcloth. It easily levitated off of the table and hovered over to her hand, where she closed her fingers around it gently, as if it were porcelain.
*Well, I do hope Nabiki figures it out soon,* mused Kasumi as she started wiping down the kitchen counter. *I have a feeling they'll need their powers soon...*
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Nabiki looked at the ice melting off of her pen. She struggled to grasp what was going on, but got nowhere.
"Okay, let's look at this logically," Nabiki said, in an attempt to calm herself. "I notice that the page I had been holding in my album has heavy condensation on it, when while I was touching it it didn't feel cold in the slightest. Then, the pen I had been holding when I went to check the thermostat was covered in ice from my fingertips on, yet I still didn't feel it. Could it be that I'mthe one that's making things cold around here?"
She frowned at that; everyone already called her the Ice Queen, she didn't need physical proof of that as well. Still, she couldn't help but wonder....
"Ah, I got it! A test," Nabiki declared triumphantly. "This oughta prove that I'm not some weirdo like everyone else around here. Now, all I need is something....ah, that's it!" She looked over at her electric blanket, which was out of her closet and plugged in for some reason. "Funny, it's like someone set it up here so that I would find it."
Down in the kitchen, Kasumi sneezed loud enough for Nabiki to hear her.
Ignoring the sneeze and the funny feeling she was getting, she went over to find that it felt warm to the touch, about 85 degrees at her estimate. "Okay, time to see how much of the meditative techniques I remember from when I was little," said Nabiki. She closed her eyes, and willed her mind to a blank state. Then she concentrated on her hands, imagining them radiating cold force.
Had her eyes been open, she would have boggled at the sight of her hands with what appeared to be shards of ice condensing in the air around her wrists. But, she didn't, she only noted that she felt...something about the air around her hands. Shrugging mentally, she reached out to grab the blanket.
As she grabbed it, she opened her eyes when her tactile sense noted that the blanket had gone rigid. The sight that greeted her sent many different emotions through her. One was amazement that her electric blanket was now a sheet of fabric encased in ice. Another was excitement that she was able to do that, and so easily. Yet another was shock, for the same reason as her excitement. And lastly, she felt annoyed, for she'd have to buy a new electric blanket.
"So," Nabiki began, voice tingling with amusement, "I did freeze my pen. And my blanket. This could prove to be quite intriguing..."
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Akane knocked on the door of Dr. Tofu's clinic, then walked in. She was rather in a hurry to figure out what exactly was going on with her, and patience was never one of her virtues. "Tofu- sensei? Are you there?" she asked, slightly nervous.
"Ah, Akane-chan! How are you? Not ill, I hope," ventured Dr. Tofu, who waltzed into the waiting room where Akane was currently.
"Well...." began Akane, clutching the book that Kasumi gave her to return, before remembering that was the reason she had come in the first place. "First, I need to give this to you. Kasumi thanks you for lending it to her."
"Ka-Ka-Kasumi?" stuttered Tofu, as his glasses began to fog over.
"Um, Tofu-sensei, please don't go to pieces now, there is something I need to talk to you about that is very urgent," Akane pleaded.
That seemed to snap Tofu out of it. "What is it Akane?" he asked softly.
Akane launched into a recap of what had happened earlier today, beginning with the weird dream that she couldn't remember. When she had finished, she said, "Well? What could that have been?"
Tofu had been listening intently; now he said, "I don't know what to make of it, Akane. Perhaps you can show me what happened?"
Akane looked puzzled. "But how can I repeat that?"
"You said you were doing a kata when you started glowing," stated Tofu. "What were you thinking of when you were doing it?"
"Well, I just let my mind go blank, and concentrated on flowing smoothly into each move."
"I see," muttered Tofu. Louder, he asked, "Do you think you can do the same thing, just let your mind go blank? Right now, I mean."
Akane blinked. "I...I guess so. But why?"
"I want to try something. If my guess is correct, you may be able to control it. Now, let your mind go blank and try summoning the glow."
Akane looked apprehensive, but went ahead. She closed her eyes, and let her mind concentrate on nothing but summoning the glow.
Tofu winced in shock when he saw a bright orange aura flare up around Akane. Idly, he noted that her hair became suffused with reddish streaks mixed in with the black. He crept a bit closer, while saying in a calm voice that gave away none of the fear he was currently feeling, "Alright, Akane, just concentrate on that now."
Akane just sat there, still glowing.
As Tofu approached, he noted that the closer he came to Akane, the warmer he felt. *Well, this definitely isn't ki-based...ki doesn't warm air up like that,* thought Tofu glumly; he had been hoping for an easy explanation to this puzzle. Suddenly, an inspiration hit him. He walked over to his closet and retrieved an unusual box. It had a probe at one end that looked like a mutant microphone, and a gauge with lots of numbers on it.
Tofu silently thanked his friend at Mishima Heavy Industries for lending him the Geiger counter. He didn't think he'd ever need it, but he had obviously been proven wrong. Switching it on, he frowned when he noted that the device began to go crazy the moment it was activated. *Either this thing is broken, or Akane's radiating heavy doses of microwaves,* he chuckled internally. Then, the final piece of the puzzle clicked into place. Tofu dropped the Geiger counter as the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.
Swallowing the forming lump in his throat, Tofu said with a slightly trembling voice, "One last thing, Akane. Follow my voice, point where it's coming from, and imagine firing the glow in this direction." He quickly got behind the steel door leading from his office to the waiting room. "Okay, now!!" Tofu yelled, so as to be heard through the closed door.
All of a sudden, he was treated to the door being slagged, slowly but surely. He was then glad he decided to stand to one side of the doorway. "Okay, stop Akane!!!!" shouted Tofu in a slightly scared voice. He noted that the door seemed to stop actively melting.
As he kicked the door open, so as not to touch the scorched metal, he told Akane, "Okay, open your eyes."
Akane was then treated to the sight of the devastation she had wreaked on the door to Tofu's office. She had only one reply to that.
She fainted.
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As Akane came to, she found that she had had some blood taken from her, and was resting in a bed in Tofu's clinic. "I really hope I was imagining that I melted the door like I did," said Akane aloud, trying to get Tofu's attention.
"No, you weren't," Tofu said matter-of-factly from the next room. He sounded slightly distracted. "Akane, would you come in here please?"
Akane complied, sliding out of bed and walking into his office, all the while staring at the door she slagged. "So, what's wrong with me, Tofu-sensei?" she asked point blank.
"Nothing is wrong with you, Akane. You're just..." Tofu stopped, trying to think of the best way to explain this, then arriving at the solution. "Have you been watching the news lately, Akane?"
Puzzled by the non-sequitur, she said, "Um, yes, but why?"
"Well, there has been mention lately of occurrences in America of super-powered people, people whose genes allow them to perform superhuman feats. Have you heard anything about that?" inquired Tofu.
"Yes," Akane said warily. "I don't understand what that would have to do with.....wait, you don't think?"
"I drew some blood before, when you fainted," Tofu started with the explanation for his rationale. "With my limited capabilities here, I was able to extract some of your DNA. Upon close examination, it was quite different in certain areas. The exact areas that are different from the norm in most of these...I believe they are called 'mutants', for lack of a better term."
Akane just stared, dumbfounded.
Taking that as a sign to continue, Tofu continued. "I could have been wrong, so I sent the DNA sample to my friend in America, a renowned geneticist by the name of Dr. Henry McCoy, via email. Hopefully, with any luck, I should get the results in...." With that, a beep emitted from his computer, signaling he had new mail.
"Well, that was rather quick," Tofu said. As he stood up to go to the computer, he saw Akane bolt for the monitor, and click on the New Mail Icon. As she started reading, she began to wonder whether this...power she apparently had was a good or a bad thing.
"Dear Tofu-san,
Well well, it seems that you have a young prodigy on your hands. From what you describe of her, she already has incredible control over her power, and it only manifested today as well! Such control is rare to find in today's youth. But, to business; as you can tell from how I speak, your results were on the money. She is definitely a mutant. Her DNA indicates that she has the ability to generate and radiate microwave radiation at will. It also indicates a practical immunity against radiation, meaning that she won't become sterile from using her power. She has some incredible potential, especially if she can control it as well as you say this soon after her power's manifestation. Should she be interested in joining our merry little band here, just write me, and I'll talk to the Professor. In the meantime, watch over her. And for goodness sake, ask this Kasumi that you keep speaking of out already! Until next time then, old friend.
Yours,
Dr. Hank McCoy"
One result of that letter was that Akane decided that this power was definitely not a bad thing. Another was the ego boost of someone she didn't know praising her on her talent and ability. And one final one was that she was determined to use this power to protect people, and to hone her ability in the Art.
If you're wondering how her mind made such a grandiose leap, suffice it to say that she was so dazzled by the mere possibility of outdoing Ranma in SOMETHING that she became quite ambitious.
"Tofu-sensei, will you help me train in this ability?" pleaded Akane. Right now, she needed to trust Tofu, because he was in a position to help her out. Besides, she was pretty sure all this was covered by doctor-patient privilege...wasn't it?
Tofu was taken aback. "Um, sure Akane...but wouldn't Dr. McCoy and his friends be better suited for that?
"No, I don't want to leave here for that," replied Akane quickly. "Besides, I trust you to help me out."
Tofu sweatdropped. "Thanks, I think. Well, when do we begin?"
"Tomorrow. Meet me at the dojo by 7 AM?"
"Sure, Akane."
"Oh, and Tofu-sensei?"
"Yes Akane?
"When ARE you going to ask Kasumi out?" A small smile crept across Akane's lips. Finding out exactly what was going on made her feel immensely better; hence the subject change.
The combination of total subject change and the mere thought of Kasumi caused Tofu to fall flat on his face.
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Chapter 2: The Sisters Tendo
A sizzling orange burst flew from her hand, and liquified the asphalt where it struck. She hovered intently, demanding one last time, "Where is he, you demented bitch?!?"
Said demented bitch shrugged from where she was standing, several feet away from the melting, bubbling blacktop. She was laughing maniacally, and rather familiarly. "Now now, I wouldn't dare tell you where my darling is...you might try something like take him away from me." As she said this, a long tendril of costume snaked away from her arm, unbeknownst to the first party. This tendril slowly took shape in the form of a large scythe-like weapon, intended to be thrown at said first party.
From where she hovered, the first party couldn't help but think she had heard that laugh somewhere before. Oh well, no time to think about that now. She quickly built up another blast to fire at the figure clad in black-and-blood. "If you don't tell me where he is in 5 seconds, I swear, I will fry you to a crisp, or my name isn't Firestar," she said, dangerously calm and in control.
"Oh, but why wait 5 seconds?" With that, the Blood Rose threw her blade at Firestar. It disintegrated in the wake of a massive blast of microwaves emitted by Firestar, and the Blood Rose, once known as Kodachi Kuno, also disintegrated under the intense heat and radiation.
One look at what Firestar did, and her face froze in a tapestry of shock and fear. She had lost control, like she always did, and now......
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Akane awoke with a yelp. *Man, what a weird dream. I mean, I was....what was I doing? Kuso, I hate when I forget my dreams, especially the ones I want to remember. All I seem to remember is that I did something that I regretted, and it wasn't pleasant. Oh well...it was just a dream.* rationalized Akane as she groggily pulled herself out of bed. *What time is it? Seems rather late in the day...*
It was actually around 10 o'clock, which was late for Akane. Even though she was on break from school, she usually woke at about 8 or so to do some light training before breakfast. "Oh well," she said aloud. "Guess I'll have to make that lunch in this case. Hmm, wonder where that baka of a fiancé is? He might actually want to spar today," she hoped. Then she remembered what he considered sparring with her, and sighed resignedly. "Well, at least I can practice those kata I saw him doing yesterday...they looked simple enough."
With this statement, she slipped into her favorite yellow gi and walked down to the dojo. She did a couple of warmup stretches, idly noting that she felt quite limber and warmed already. Almost as if she had been in a sauna, only nowhere near as uncomfortable a heat.
She slowly began the dancelike kata that Ranma had been doing yesterday. She slid gracefully into each movement, letting herself get lost in the moment. Her mind went blank as she concentrated on each stance, every individual kick and punch, getting them down perfectly.
Slowly, her mind began to come back from its blank state, and it immediately began to register things as wrong. For one, where was that weird orange haze coming from? It almost seemed to be emanating from her. For another, she didn't sense her feet hitting the ground when she moved; it was like she was floating or something. She wondered whether this is how Ranma felt when going through katas, when she looked down and realized something rather startling.
She WAS floating, and she WAS emanating a faint orange glow.
With that, she let out a short yelp and fell down to the floor. Luckily, she was only a couple of feet in the air, so she didn't hurt herself.
Akane looked down at herself in horror. "What the hell was that?" she asked herself in a whisper, barely audible, yet loud and discordant in her ears.
Suddenly, she heard the sliding door that connected the dojo with the rest of the house open, and Kasumi's head popped in, wearing a typical Kasumi smile. "Good morning Akane! There's still some breakfast left for you when you're finished practicing," she beamed.
Akane shook herself out of the daze she was in. "Hai, Kasumi...I'll be there in a minute," she said uncertainly.
Kasumi noted Akane's hesitation, and asked, "Are you alright, Akane? You seem to be slightly upset about something."
*More like shocked and scared as hell...* Aloud, she said, "No, it's nothing Kasumi, I just fell while doing a kata I saw Ranma doing."
"Ah, alright then Akane-chan. Breakfast is waiting," Kasumi said, satisfied with the answer. She then disappeared to return to the kitchen to get started on cleanup.
"I have to find out what in Kami's name that was," stated Akane quietly. "But, breakfast would belp..."
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Nabiki was sorting through her files, organizing everything for when school would start in 3 weeks. *Yeah, I've got time to do this still....but I'm bored,* thought Nabiki.
Since break had started a week ago, Nabiki had been bored as sin. All the usual suspects were being waaaay too quiet for her liking. The Kunos had barely been heard from, Ryoga was lost in Kami knows where, the China contingent had been busy with an unusual upturn in business at the Nekohanten, and so had the Ucchan's. Even Ranma and his father were fairly tranquil.
Previous experience told her that this wasn't unlike the calm before the storm. And considering how calm things had been, she was expecting a huge blowup.
She shook herself out of her reverie and found something that interested her. *Oh, I haven't looked at this in a while,* Nabiki murmured internally. Her backlog of photos of Ranma-chan and Akane that she sold to Kuno.
While flipping through the makeshift album, fondly recollecting the memories of each photo, she noticed some heavy condensation on the page she had just had her hand on. "That's weird...I don't even feel cold," she said to no one in particular. She touched her hands together, and they felt perfectly normal, neither colder than the other. She put the album down, and walked over to the thermostat right outside the door of her room. She checked the temperature: 74 degrees, which was the temperature outside, meaning neither the air conditioner nor the heater was on. "Hmm, how odd," said Nabiki quizzically. As she leaned against the wall, tapping her pen thoughtfully on her lip trying to puzzle this out, she idly noted that the pen felt rather heavy and cold against her lip. She glanced down, noted the pen was covered in ice from her fingertips up, then looked back to the thermostat, still wondering why there would be condensation.....
Wait, her brain said. Stop all activity, and look at the pen again.
She slowly took her brain's advice and looked down. Yes, that pen was covered in ice.
Nabiki slowly walked back to her room, closed her door gently, put the pen down on her desk, then plopped into her chair. "NOW what the hell is going on!?!?!?" Nabiki practically yelled, losing all semblance of control.
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"Where are Ranma and Saotome-kaasan, anyway?" Akane inquired of Kasumi.
"Oh, they went on some sort of short training trip for the weekend," informed the eldest Tendo sister. "Saotome-kaasan seemed in quite a hurry to leave. Ranma didn't look so enthusiastic, though. I hope they're having fun."
"Hmph. Just like that insensitive baka to leave without telling anyone," grumbled Akane. *Great,* she added mentally, *I was hoping he would help me figure out what the hell happened before. That moron may be an insensitive hentai, but he does know what he's doing with martial arts. Maybe he could have helped me figure out what was going on...."
"Um, Akane? Could you do me a favor and take this book back to Dr. Tofu for me? I've been meaning to return it, but I keep forgetting to," asked Kasumi.
Akane said distractedly, "Hmmm? Oh, sure Kasumi-oneechan." *Maybe Dr. Tofu will know what to make of it?*
Having said that (mentally at least), she took the book from Kasumi and hurried out. She wanted an answer to what was going on, and fast.
She didn't notice the title of the book, or its import to the situation; Human Genetics: A Study of Anomalies.
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Kasumi gave a small smile. As she watched her youngest sister walk off to find out more about what changes she was going through, she gave a thought to her other sister, Nabiki. *Well, Nabiki's a bright girl, she should be able to figure it out soon enough. Still, a nudge in the right direction doesn't hurt,* thought Kasumi, as she idly turned back to the sink.
When she turned back, she realized she had left the washcloth over in the dining room. "Oh my. When will I ever stop being so forgetful?" Kasumi tried to frown, but couldn't quite pull it off. Shrugging, she raised her hand and concentrated on the washcloth. It easily levitated off of the table and hovered over to her hand, where she closed her fingers around it gently, as if it were porcelain.
*Well, I do hope Nabiki figures it out soon,* mused Kasumi as she started wiping down the kitchen counter. *I have a feeling they'll need their powers soon...*
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Nabiki looked at the ice melting off of her pen. She struggled to grasp what was going on, but got nowhere.
"Okay, let's look at this logically," Nabiki said, in an attempt to calm herself. "I notice that the page I had been holding in my album has heavy condensation on it, when while I was touching it it didn't feel cold in the slightest. Then, the pen I had been holding when I went to check the thermostat was covered in ice from my fingertips on, yet I still didn't feel it. Could it be that I'mthe one that's making things cold around here?"
She frowned at that; everyone already called her the Ice Queen, she didn't need physical proof of that as well. Still, she couldn't help but wonder....
"Ah, I got it! A test," Nabiki declared triumphantly. "This oughta prove that I'm not some weirdo like everyone else around here. Now, all I need is something....ah, that's it!" She looked over at her electric blanket, which was out of her closet and plugged in for some reason. "Funny, it's like someone set it up here so that I would find it."
Down in the kitchen, Kasumi sneezed loud enough for Nabiki to hear her.
Ignoring the sneeze and the funny feeling she was getting, she went over to find that it felt warm to the touch, about 85 degrees at her estimate. "Okay, time to see how much of the meditative techniques I remember from when I was little," said Nabiki. She closed her eyes, and willed her mind to a blank state. Then she concentrated on her hands, imagining them radiating cold force.
Had her eyes been open, she would have boggled at the sight of her hands with what appeared to be shards of ice condensing in the air around her wrists. But, she didn't, she only noted that she felt...something about the air around her hands. Shrugging mentally, she reached out to grab the blanket.
As she grabbed it, she opened her eyes when her tactile sense noted that the blanket had gone rigid. The sight that greeted her sent many different emotions through her. One was amazement that her electric blanket was now a sheet of fabric encased in ice. Another was excitement that she was able to do that, and so easily. Yet another was shock, for the same reason as her excitement. And lastly, she felt annoyed, for she'd have to buy a new electric blanket.
"So," Nabiki began, voice tingling with amusement, "I did freeze my pen. And my blanket. This could prove to be quite intriguing..."
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Akane knocked on the door of Dr. Tofu's clinic, then walked in. She was rather in a hurry to figure out what exactly was going on with her, and patience was never one of her virtues. "Tofu- sensei? Are you there?" she asked, slightly nervous.
"Ah, Akane-chan! How are you? Not ill, I hope," ventured Dr. Tofu, who waltzed into the waiting room where Akane was currently.
"Well...." began Akane, clutching the book that Kasumi gave her to return, before remembering that was the reason she had come in the first place. "First, I need to give this to you. Kasumi thanks you for lending it to her."
"Ka-Ka-Kasumi?" stuttered Tofu, as his glasses began to fog over.
"Um, Tofu-sensei, please don't go to pieces now, there is something I need to talk to you about that is very urgent," Akane pleaded.
That seemed to snap Tofu out of it. "What is it Akane?" he asked softly.
Akane launched into a recap of what had happened earlier today, beginning with the weird dream that she couldn't remember. When she had finished, she said, "Well? What could that have been?"
Tofu had been listening intently; now he said, "I don't know what to make of it, Akane. Perhaps you can show me what happened?"
Akane looked puzzled. "But how can I repeat that?"
"You said you were doing a kata when you started glowing," stated Tofu. "What were you thinking of when you were doing it?"
"Well, I just let my mind go blank, and concentrated on flowing smoothly into each move."
"I see," muttered Tofu. Louder, he asked, "Do you think you can do the same thing, just let your mind go blank? Right now, I mean."
Akane blinked. "I...I guess so. But why?"
"I want to try something. If my guess is correct, you may be able to control it. Now, let your mind go blank and try summoning the glow."
Akane looked apprehensive, but went ahead. She closed her eyes, and let her mind concentrate on nothing but summoning the glow.
Tofu winced in shock when he saw a bright orange aura flare up around Akane. Idly, he noted that her hair became suffused with reddish streaks mixed in with the black. He crept a bit closer, while saying in a calm voice that gave away none of the fear he was currently feeling, "Alright, Akane, just concentrate on that now."
Akane just sat there, still glowing.
As Tofu approached, he noted that the closer he came to Akane, the warmer he felt. *Well, this definitely isn't ki-based...ki doesn't warm air up like that,* thought Tofu glumly; he had been hoping for an easy explanation to this puzzle. Suddenly, an inspiration hit him. He walked over to his closet and retrieved an unusual box. It had a probe at one end that looked like a mutant microphone, and a gauge with lots of numbers on it.
Tofu silently thanked his friend at Mishima Heavy Industries for lending him the Geiger counter. He didn't think he'd ever need it, but he had obviously been proven wrong. Switching it on, he frowned when he noted that the device began to go crazy the moment it was activated. *Either this thing is broken, or Akane's radiating heavy doses of microwaves,* he chuckled internally. Then, the final piece of the puzzle clicked into place. Tofu dropped the Geiger counter as the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.
Swallowing the forming lump in his throat, Tofu said with a slightly trembling voice, "One last thing, Akane. Follow my voice, point where it's coming from, and imagine firing the glow in this direction." He quickly got behind the steel door leading from his office to the waiting room. "Okay, now!!" Tofu yelled, so as to be heard through the closed door.
All of a sudden, he was treated to the door being slagged, slowly but surely. He was then glad he decided to stand to one side of the doorway. "Okay, stop Akane!!!!" shouted Tofu in a slightly scared voice. He noted that the door seemed to stop actively melting.
As he kicked the door open, so as not to touch the scorched metal, he told Akane, "Okay, open your eyes."
Akane was then treated to the sight of the devastation she had wreaked on the door to Tofu's office. She had only one reply to that.
She fainted.
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As Akane came to, she found that she had had some blood taken from her, and was resting in a bed in Tofu's clinic. "I really hope I was imagining that I melted the door like I did," said Akane aloud, trying to get Tofu's attention.
"No, you weren't," Tofu said matter-of-factly from the next room. He sounded slightly distracted. "Akane, would you come in here please?"
Akane complied, sliding out of bed and walking into his office, all the while staring at the door she slagged. "So, what's wrong with me, Tofu-sensei?" she asked point blank.
"Nothing is wrong with you, Akane. You're just..." Tofu stopped, trying to think of the best way to explain this, then arriving at the solution. "Have you been watching the news lately, Akane?"
Puzzled by the non-sequitur, she said, "Um, yes, but why?"
"Well, there has been mention lately of occurrences in America of super-powered people, people whose genes allow them to perform superhuman feats. Have you heard anything about that?" inquired Tofu.
"Yes," Akane said warily. "I don't understand what that would have to do with.....wait, you don't think?"
"I drew some blood before, when you fainted," Tofu started with the explanation for his rationale. "With my limited capabilities here, I was able to extract some of your DNA. Upon close examination, it was quite different in certain areas. The exact areas that are different from the norm in most of these...I believe they are called 'mutants', for lack of a better term."
Akane just stared, dumbfounded.
Taking that as a sign to continue, Tofu continued. "I could have been wrong, so I sent the DNA sample to my friend in America, a renowned geneticist by the name of Dr. Henry McCoy, via email. Hopefully, with any luck, I should get the results in...." With that, a beep emitted from his computer, signaling he had new mail.
"Well, that was rather quick," Tofu said. As he stood up to go to the computer, he saw Akane bolt for the monitor, and click on the New Mail Icon. As she started reading, she began to wonder whether this...power she apparently had was a good or a bad thing.
"Dear Tofu-san,
Well well, it seems that you have a young prodigy on your hands. From what you describe of her, she already has incredible control over her power, and it only manifested today as well! Such control is rare to find in today's youth. But, to business; as you can tell from how I speak, your results were on the money. She is definitely a mutant. Her DNA indicates that she has the ability to generate and radiate microwave radiation at will. It also indicates a practical immunity against radiation, meaning that she won't become sterile from using her power. She has some incredible potential, especially if she can control it as well as you say this soon after her power's manifestation. Should she be interested in joining our merry little band here, just write me, and I'll talk to the Professor. In the meantime, watch over her. And for goodness sake, ask this Kasumi that you keep speaking of out already! Until next time then, old friend.
Yours,
Dr. Hank McCoy"
One result of that letter was that Akane decided that this power was definitely not a bad thing. Another was the ego boost of someone she didn't know praising her on her talent and ability. And one final one was that she was determined to use this power to protect people, and to hone her ability in the Art.
If you're wondering how her mind made such a grandiose leap, suffice it to say that she was so dazzled by the mere possibility of outdoing Ranma in SOMETHING that she became quite ambitious.
"Tofu-sensei, will you help me train in this ability?" pleaded Akane. Right now, she needed to trust Tofu, because he was in a position to help her out. Besides, she was pretty sure all this was covered by doctor-patient privilege...wasn't it?
Tofu was taken aback. "Um, sure Akane...but wouldn't Dr. McCoy and his friends be better suited for that?
"No, I don't want to leave here for that," replied Akane quickly. "Besides, I trust you to help me out."
Tofu sweatdropped. "Thanks, I think. Well, when do we begin?"
"Tomorrow. Meet me at the dojo by 7 AM?"
"Sure, Akane."
"Oh, and Tofu-sensei?"
"Yes Akane?
"When ARE you going to ask Kasumi out?" A small smile crept across Akane's lips. Finding out exactly what was going on made her feel immensely better; hence the subject change.
The combination of total subject change and the mere thought of Kasumi caused Tofu to fall flat on his face.
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