Dark King Ascending
a Sailor Moon/Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
by SoftRogue
whiteb100@hotmail.com
Disclaimer:
I do not own any of the characters mentioned here.
If I did, I'd have lots of money. But I don't.
**********
Chapter 2
**********
The tension around the table was so thick you could cut it with a butter knife (or something else really dull, like Kuno's wit). Ranma had disappeared over two hours ago without a trace. While it's true he'd disappeared before it was usually accompanied by loud noises signifying that yet another of Ranma's rivals or fiancées had arrived. But this was different, this was unusual, this was unsettling even.
Because Kasumi had cooked dinner.
Never before had Ranma missed the start of one of Kasumi's meals whenever he was staying at the dojo. In fact, the residents of Nerima could set there clocks by when Kasumi served dinner; Ranma had regularly ended fights prematurely (in other words; he had kept the taunts to a minimum and simply waded into the fight to finish it quickly) and raced back to the Tendos' in order to make it back in time for dinner to be served.
But that was over an hour ago.
Nabiki watched the others around the table with a mix of humor and slight concern. Kasumi, dear patient and caring Kasumi, had simply kept the food warm and waited. Genma kept trying to open the warmers to steal food, but was kept in check by Nodoka and her sword. Soun was currently in the processes of rehydrating himself after balling his eyes out about some nonsense about Ranma running away to join the circus (or something like that; Nabiki learned long ago how to tune her father out).
The real show, however, was watching Akane's face.
For the past two hours, Akane's face had gone from outrage to indifference. Indifference to denial. Denial to concern. Concern to worry. And then worry back to outrage. Part of Nabiki was hoping that Ranma wouldn't be showing up anytime soon, just to see how long Akane could keep her emotions bottled up before she went on a rampage and went after the usual suspects (Ukyo and Shampoo). Another part of Nabiki wished Ranma would show up so she could see what Akane would say and do to him to vent her frustration.
Some popcorn would be good too.
But another part of Nabiki; a small part, mind you; was just a little bit worried. While she couldn't deny that she liked the big lug (not that she would admit it to anyone); she thought she had a handle on what was going to happen to him and when. The fact he disappeared with out any foreknowledge on her part concerned her. Nabiki prided herself on knowing on what was going on in the aquatranssexual martial artist's life, usually because no one else knew what was happening (not even Ranma).
Mt. Akane was about to blow when Nabiki heard an odd noise coming from outside. Looking around, she saw she wasn't the only one who noticed it. Finally looking out the open patio door, she found the source of the sound.
To her utter disbelief, Ranma was slowly walked atop the retaining wall around Tendo household holding an umbrella against the slight rainfall. Not only that, he was whistling a cheerful tune off key. As he moved along the wall as if without a care in the world, Nabiki was completely stunned. She had seen Ranma display all sorts of emotions during his two years stay in Nerima, but she had never seen him like this. He looked so happy and content with life.
Ranma dropped off the wall casually and aimlessly strolled over to the patio door. Stepping inside, he carefully shook out and closed the umbrella. He looked around the table before he turned to Kasumi.
"Ah, geeze. I'm sorry, Kasumi. Ya didn't have ta wait for me."
Startled by Ranma's apology, the eldest Tendo sister blinked and said, "Oh, it was no problem, Ranma-kun."
"How dare you make me wait for you to show up for dinner boy!" Genma bellowed as he jumped to his feet.
Everyone paused and looked at Genma as they all sweat dropped. "Yea, whatever Pops." Ranma said as he took his seat at the table.
As the food began to be passed around the table, it was apparent to Nabiki that Ranma's flippant attitude had thrown Akane for a loop. After everyone had been served, Akane finally asked in a low voice, "Where were you, Ranma?"
"I'm sorry, Akane. What was that?" Ranma asked as he picked up a pickle of off his plate.
"I said...Where Were You?" she growled, her face slowly going red with anger.
"Oh." Ranma said as he plopped the pickle into his mouth, "I went over to Juuban ta help a bunch of cute girls in really short skirts."
The only sound that could be heard in the Tendo household was Ranma munching away on his pickle. "Man Kasumi, these pickles are great! Are they a new recipe?"
Ranma's offhand comment set off a torrent of words from most of the other occupants in room.
"My son is so Manly!"
"WHAT!?!"
"Why yes they are. I'm glad you like them."
"WAAAA!!! Now our families will never be joined!!!"
"RANMA! How Dare You Cheat On Your Fiancée!?!"
"Huh? What's all the fuss about?" Ranma asked as he looked up from his plate curiously.
"Ranma." Nabiki said carefully after everyone stopped and stared at the pigtailed boy, "Are you feeling alright?"
"Sure. Why, what's wrong?"
Pausing for a moment before continuing, Nabiki said. "Would you mind repeating what you just said?"
"Oh, I said that I went over to Juuban to help a bunch of cute girls in really short skirts. Man, it was a good thing Ryoga wasn't there or he would've died from blood loss."
Before anyone else was able to say anything (or do anything) to Ranma, Kasumi said, "Juuban? Oh, you must be talking about the Sailor Senshi, right?"
"Yea, that's them. How come you know about them? I ain't never heard of them before."
By this time, the 'adults' were off in there own world. So they missed it as Kasumi looked down and adjusted the hem of her apron and blushed. "Everyone's heard of the Sailor Senshi, they're famous throughout Japan. And...well, I've always been a big fan..."
"Let me get this straight." Akane demanded as an eyebrow began to twitch, "The Sailor Senshi, a bunch of super-heroines, came here and asked for your help. You of all people?"
"Well, one of them did, yea." Ranma said as he looked directly at Akane.
Nabiki could practically hear Akane blow a fuse. Looking closely at Ranma's face, she could see he was telling the truth. "Now why in the world would the Sailor Senshi; a group of super powered magical girls; ask for you for help?" she asked.
"Cause they needed it. After all, I'm the best there is."
"Be careful, Ranma, your ego is showing."
"Huh? It is? Where?" Ranma asked as he checked his pants and patted down the front of his shirt.
'OK...This is the real Ranma.' Nabiki thought to herself, watching the pigtailed boy with a critical eye, 'Now...what isn't he telling me.' "So Ranma, your telling me that the Sailor Senshi jut showed up and asked you for your help?"
"Well...one of them did, yea." Ranma answered, starting to look a little nervous.
"And this Senshi just came up to you, out of the blue, to ask for your help? And you've never even knew who they were until tonight, correct?"
"Uh, exactly." Ranma said, starting to sweat slightly, "Oh, look. I'm done. Don't worry, Kasumi, I'll take care of my dishes. Man I'm tired, I think I'll go to bed early tonight. Well, good night!"
'Gotcha!' Nabiki thought as she smirked at Ranma's retreating back. 'Your hiding something. Now...what to do about it?' Her plans were slightly sidetracked as she noticed the condition of the others around the dinner table. 'Sigh But first, it looks like I'll have to 'fix' my family.'
**********
Throughout history, many a plan had been hatched behind closed doors. For the most part, these plans were insidious in nature. Whole nations had been overthrown by plans created in 'starlight chambers'. A plan had just been fabricated that was no less determined than those other plans, if not as diabolical in nature.
"She's late." Rei Hino said as she paced around the shrine.
"She said she would be here, so she'll be here." Haruka Ten'oh replied from the cushions she and her lover were resting on.
"Come on!" Rei voiced angrily. "Even dumpling head over there was on time!"
"Umph!" Usagi Tsukino said, her mouth stuffed with a blueberry muffin. "Gulp Yea! I mean; Rei, that's mean!"
Ignoring Usagi, Rei looked at the other people gathered in the shrine. "You all remember the plan, Right?"
"Yes we do." Michiru Kaiou said, resisting the urge to roll her eyes at the shrine maiden.
"We don't let up on the questions until Setsuna tells us all about this Ranma guy!" Makoto Kino said with enthusiasm.
"Yea! Like is he available!" Minako Aino voiced with a determined look in her eye.
"Exactly!" Makoto replied.
"Perhaps we should just start without her." Ami Mizuno said softly, knowing exactly what her fellow Senshi were thinking.
"You have something to tell us about last night?" Rei asked the blue haired girl.
"Indeed." Ami said as she opened the Mercury Computer, "Donnelly MacDhu repeatedly identified himself as a member of something called the 'UnSeleighe'. By cross referencing that information online I came across several references in Western Mythology; specifically from Celtic and Gaelic Mythology."
"Huh?" Usagi said for the rest of the Scouts.
"Irish Legends." Ami clarified. "According to those legends, there were a variety of mythological creatures somewhat similar to our own kitsune and water kappa. The most powerful of these were known as the Sidhe; also referred to as Elves."
"You mean like Beelzebub's little helpers?" Minako interjected.
Pausing for a moment, Ami opened and closed her mouth for several times before saying "No. Not like Santa's little helpers. These Elves were also sometimes referred as 'The Fair Folk'. They were tall and beautiful; impossibly so; and were immortal. Perhaps the most famous of the Sidhe was Lord Oberon."
"Like from Shakespeare's 'A Mid-Summers Night's Dream'?" Michiru asked with curiosity.
"Exactly. Besides the Sidhe there were a variety of other creatures. Overall, their demeanor would range from curious and mischievous to cruel or down right vicious. These creatures were aliened into two sides, the 'Seleighe' and 'UnSeleighe' Courts. The Seleighe Court for the most part apparently wished to have little to do with humankind while the UnSeleighe Court would like nothing better than to eradicate humankind completely. From my research, the Sidhe were very powerful and used magic as easly as we breathed."
"Well, they obviously exist." Rei pointed out, "So if they are so powerful, what happened to them?"
"They went Underhill." A voice said from behind the priestess.
"GAH! Don't DO That!" Rei said as she jumped up and around to face Setsuna.
"About time she did that to someone else besides me." Usagi muttered loudly.
"What's 'underhill', Setsuna-mama?" Hotaru Tomoe asked quietly; speaking for the first time.
Gesturing for Rei to sit down, Setsuna took her own seat and began to talk. "Underhill is difficult to explain. The closest, and easiest, description is that is a side-real dimension that exists outside of the space/time continuum."
"That's the easiest?" Usagi asked perplexed.
"Is that even possible?" Ami asked the red eyed woman seriously. "I mean, I know that Einstein postulated the existence of such. But to find actual proof that such a place exists..."
"Excuse me." Makoto said raising her hand for attention, "But for those of us who aren't geniuses...what the heck are you talking about?"
"Well..." the blue haired girl paused to consider how to proceed, "Imagine for a moment you had a piece of three layered cake laying on its side."
"Can it be chocolate cake?" Usagi asked enthusiastically.
"Yes it can." Ami said with a small smile.
"With chocolate frosting?" the blond ponytailed girl asked with her eyes beginning to glaze over.
"Of course."
"And sprinkles and vanilla ice cream?"
"Not yet." Ami answered, trying her best to hide her grin at her friend's sudden disappointment. "Now, imagine that the center layer is our plane of existence. The other two layers are different planes of existences; for example, the Negaverse would be one of the layers. The three layers all connected together by the frosting. Theoretically, there are an infinite number of different planes or layers. Now, add a scoop ice cream to the top of the cake."
"Ok." Usagi said quietly with a hint of drool, to the amazement of the other Senshi who were watching their future Queen actually pay attention to a lesson.
Continuing with her explanation Ami said, "Now then, the ice cream. It is not part of the cake of itself, but it's touching all the layers. That, in a nutshell, is what Setsuna is referring to when she says that Underhill is a side-real dimension that exists outside of the space/time continuum. Do you understand now?"
Nodding her head vigorously, Usagi said "Yea, it's simple when you explain it like that. It's part of the universe but at the same time it's not. And since the ice cream is not part of the cake; I mean that since Underhill is not part of the normal universe; that's why Setsuna wasn't able to warn us about this attack since it's originating from outside of normal time."
The rest of the girls were feeling a mix of shock and awe. Shock at the thought that Usagi was able to not only grasp a complex concept but to also expand on it. Awe at the fact that Ami was able to explain it in such a way that Usagi was able to understand it at all. At least until...
^Gurgle^ "Sorry. All this talk of cake is making me hungry." Their leader apologized as she reached for several of the awaiting muffins.
"You know," Ami mused as she looked at Setsuna, "I've always believed that the Gates of Time existed in such a place..."
"No. The gate exists elsewhen."
Not wanting the discussion to become a dissertation on the theories of quantum mechanics, Haruka interjected "So, if these Elves or whatever are so powerful; what happened to them?"
"'Cold Iron'." Setsuna explained, "Also known as steel. To one of the Sidhe its' mere touch acts like an acidic poison. With the advent of steel, they were slowly forced farther and farther away from their lands here in our world until they finally retreated Underhill; where they're safe from that metal. Unfortunately, as time progressed, the process of steel manufacturing has changed and in some cases has been replaced with different alloys."
"What do you mean, Setsuna-mama? Isn't steel steel?"
"No. Not only has the process of steel been changed over time to make it stronger and lighter, the way it was forged has changed as well. Nowadays, impersonal machines create it. In the past, however, it was literally crafted by blacksmiths. They would pour their hearts and souls into the crafting of the steel. Without that personal touch it seems that 'Cold Iron' has lost it's effect."
"So how are we suppose to fight these Elves if we've got nothing to beat them with? Especially if they can shrug off our attacks so easly?" Rei demanded.
"Well, after analyzing the data from the battle last night, I have good news and bad news." Ami answered as she consulted the Mercury Computer, "The good news is that magical artifacts; such as the Space Sword, Silence Glaive, and the Time Staff; should be effective against such creatures. Also, as it became obvious last night, they are affective by physical damage. The bad news is that, unfortunately, the creatures are evidently use to physical confrontation and, well, lets face it, besides Makoto, Haruka and; to a lesser extent; Rei, the rest of us do not have the training to effectively fight hand-to-hand in a protracted situation."
"So, next time we see them, we just kick their ass. Literally." Makoto said as she smacked a fist into her palm.
"Exactly." Setsuna said as she rose to her feet. "Well then, if there's nothing else..."
"Hold it right there." Rei said angrily, "You have some explaining to do about last night."
"Yea. Who was he?"
"How do you know him?"
"How did he do all that stuff?"
"Was he reincarnated from the Silver Millenium?"
"Is he available?"
"What's his number?"
Everyone paused to look at Minako and Makoto before they rolled their eyes. "And how come he hasn't helped us before." Usagi added, looking at Setsuna pleadingly, "Please, Setsuna, tell us."
Setsuna looked around the room for a moment. "Very well." she finally said as she sat back down.
Folding her hands in her lap, the green haired woman closed her eyes in thought. Breathing deeply, she opened her eyes and began to speak. "To the best of my knowledge, Ranma is not reincarnated from any other soul." she paused to mutter something under her breath before saying, "As to why I've never asked him for his help previously, simply put his aid was never needed before."
"Excuse me?" Rei asked, "'His aid was never needed before.'? We could have used his help countless times! You saw how powerful he is!"
"Well...actually from my data, he is not that powerful at all." Ami commented.
"Not that powerful?" Makoto questioned, "He shattered two of those golem things with one blow and threw over a thousand punches in a few seconds."
"My scans show that he is about as powerful as we were right after Luna gave us our first Henshin Pens. Besides that; and a slight trace of an unidentified magic; this Ranma person apparently was able to perform those maneuvers on pure skill alone."
"Ki." Rei blurted out.
"What?" Makoto asked.
"That must have been what I was sensing last night. Ki is a person's life force; it's what I use for my fire readings. But to be able to generate enough Ki to do what he did is unheard of."
"So how did he get so good?" Michiru asked cursorily.
"Since the moment Ranma first began to walk, his training began. At age five, he was taken from home to spend the next ten years or so training from the moment he got up to the moment he went to sleep without any rest. And for the past two years he has been almost constantly challenged by adversaries who were either equal to or even greater in skill and power than he is."
"Wow." Minako breathed, off in her own world.
Narrowing her eyes in suspicion, Haruka asked "So, you just happened to know him and just happened to go fetch him at the moment we just happened to need him? I don't buy it, there's something you're not telling us."
Looking around with her red eyes, Setsuna said simply "He was my Ace."
Seeing the blank looks on the other girl's faces, she clarified. "Since Artemis and Luna began their search for Usagi, the most probable future led to Crystal Tokyo. However, the future is not set in stone. There exist junctures, crossroads if you will, that could have effected that outcome. The major ones you all know, such as the fights against Pharaoh 90 and Beryl. There were, however, also minor crossroads; and it was against such a turning point that I would have asked for Ranma's assistance if things turned out differently. Now, if you would excuse me, there are things I must attend to." Rising to her feet, Setsuna reached out and grabbed a hold of the Time Staff and disappeared.
Usagi looked at the place Setsuna had just stood deep in thought. She had questions that she wanted to ask the older woman, but she also knew they wouldn't be easly answered. Like why Setsuna had tried to avoid the subject of Ranma? And what had she muttered before? And why she hadn't mentioned specifically what event she was apparently holding him in reserve for? And Usagi was determined to get her answers.
"Hey, dumpling head. Aren't you paying attention? Do you want to go get some ice cream?"
But first, there were more important things to consider.
"Yay! Ice cream!"
**********
Newton's Law states that an object in motion tends to stay in motion. This is a fact that's been proven over and over again. In fact, currently on the highways of Tokyo this fact was being demonstrated once again.
"So, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Haruka said as she cut the steering wheel of her car to the left and right, dodging and weaving in and out of traffic.
"Well," Michiru replied after a moment's thought, "Since Hotaru went with the others for ice cream, she won't be home until later this evening. So once we get home I'll put on the French Maid outfit and you get the brandy, whip cream and bananas."
Haruka's mouth hung wide open and her head was cocked to one side; causing her to avoid four bicycles, two cars and a group of pedestrians by two feet (she would have normally been at least a foot closer).
"Well, I'm thinking that now." The blonde finally stated, "But that isn't what I was thinking about a moment ago."
"Oh. Then in that case, you were thinking about what Setsuna said."
"Exactly. She was lying to us."
"No. She just wasn't telling us the whole truth, that's all."
"So, what are we going to do about it?"
"Well, first thing we need to do is find out everything we can about this Ranma person. And not the kind of information Makoto and Minako want to know."
"I guess I can look up Ritsuko."
The aquamarine haired girl looked closely at her lover. "And who is this Ritsuko person?"
"Oh, Rit-chan is an old friend of mine. She's always been in the know about what's going on. And she's pretty cute too."
"I see." Michiru replied frostily.
"What's wrong?" Haruka asked, hearing the change of tone in Michiru's voice.
"If you don't know, it doesn't matter."
"Oh, ok. Anyway, did you want me to get some cherries as well?"
"Never mind about that." Michiru said as she turned to look out her window, "I suddenly have a headache."
"What did I do? What did I do?"
**********
To be Continued...
(2/1/3)
a Sailor Moon/Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
by SoftRogue
whiteb100@hotmail.com
Disclaimer:
I do not own any of the characters mentioned here.
If I did, I'd have lots of money. But I don't.
**********
Chapter 2
**********
The tension around the table was so thick you could cut it with a butter knife (or something else really dull, like Kuno's wit). Ranma had disappeared over two hours ago without a trace. While it's true he'd disappeared before it was usually accompanied by loud noises signifying that yet another of Ranma's rivals or fiancées had arrived. But this was different, this was unusual, this was unsettling even.
Because Kasumi had cooked dinner.
Never before had Ranma missed the start of one of Kasumi's meals whenever he was staying at the dojo. In fact, the residents of Nerima could set there clocks by when Kasumi served dinner; Ranma had regularly ended fights prematurely (in other words; he had kept the taunts to a minimum and simply waded into the fight to finish it quickly) and raced back to the Tendos' in order to make it back in time for dinner to be served.
But that was over an hour ago.
Nabiki watched the others around the table with a mix of humor and slight concern. Kasumi, dear patient and caring Kasumi, had simply kept the food warm and waited. Genma kept trying to open the warmers to steal food, but was kept in check by Nodoka and her sword. Soun was currently in the processes of rehydrating himself after balling his eyes out about some nonsense about Ranma running away to join the circus (or something like that; Nabiki learned long ago how to tune her father out).
The real show, however, was watching Akane's face.
For the past two hours, Akane's face had gone from outrage to indifference. Indifference to denial. Denial to concern. Concern to worry. And then worry back to outrage. Part of Nabiki was hoping that Ranma wouldn't be showing up anytime soon, just to see how long Akane could keep her emotions bottled up before she went on a rampage and went after the usual suspects (Ukyo and Shampoo). Another part of Nabiki wished Ranma would show up so she could see what Akane would say and do to him to vent her frustration.
Some popcorn would be good too.
But another part of Nabiki; a small part, mind you; was just a little bit worried. While she couldn't deny that she liked the big lug (not that she would admit it to anyone); she thought she had a handle on what was going to happen to him and when. The fact he disappeared with out any foreknowledge on her part concerned her. Nabiki prided herself on knowing on what was going on in the aquatranssexual martial artist's life, usually because no one else knew what was happening (not even Ranma).
Mt. Akane was about to blow when Nabiki heard an odd noise coming from outside. Looking around, she saw she wasn't the only one who noticed it. Finally looking out the open patio door, she found the source of the sound.
To her utter disbelief, Ranma was slowly walked atop the retaining wall around Tendo household holding an umbrella against the slight rainfall. Not only that, he was whistling a cheerful tune off key. As he moved along the wall as if without a care in the world, Nabiki was completely stunned. She had seen Ranma display all sorts of emotions during his two years stay in Nerima, but she had never seen him like this. He looked so happy and content with life.
Ranma dropped off the wall casually and aimlessly strolled over to the patio door. Stepping inside, he carefully shook out and closed the umbrella. He looked around the table before he turned to Kasumi.
"Ah, geeze. I'm sorry, Kasumi. Ya didn't have ta wait for me."
Startled by Ranma's apology, the eldest Tendo sister blinked and said, "Oh, it was no problem, Ranma-kun."
"How dare you make me wait for you to show up for dinner boy!" Genma bellowed as he jumped to his feet.
Everyone paused and looked at Genma as they all sweat dropped. "Yea, whatever Pops." Ranma said as he took his seat at the table.
As the food began to be passed around the table, it was apparent to Nabiki that Ranma's flippant attitude had thrown Akane for a loop. After everyone had been served, Akane finally asked in a low voice, "Where were you, Ranma?"
"I'm sorry, Akane. What was that?" Ranma asked as he picked up a pickle of off his plate.
"I said...Where Were You?" she growled, her face slowly going red with anger.
"Oh." Ranma said as he plopped the pickle into his mouth, "I went over to Juuban ta help a bunch of cute girls in really short skirts."
The only sound that could be heard in the Tendo household was Ranma munching away on his pickle. "Man Kasumi, these pickles are great! Are they a new recipe?"
Ranma's offhand comment set off a torrent of words from most of the other occupants in room.
"My son is so Manly!"
"WHAT!?!"
"Why yes they are. I'm glad you like them."
"WAAAA!!! Now our families will never be joined!!!"
"RANMA! How Dare You Cheat On Your Fiancée!?!"
"Huh? What's all the fuss about?" Ranma asked as he looked up from his plate curiously.
"Ranma." Nabiki said carefully after everyone stopped and stared at the pigtailed boy, "Are you feeling alright?"
"Sure. Why, what's wrong?"
Pausing for a moment before continuing, Nabiki said. "Would you mind repeating what you just said?"
"Oh, I said that I went over to Juuban to help a bunch of cute girls in really short skirts. Man, it was a good thing Ryoga wasn't there or he would've died from blood loss."
Before anyone else was able to say anything (or do anything) to Ranma, Kasumi said, "Juuban? Oh, you must be talking about the Sailor Senshi, right?"
"Yea, that's them. How come you know about them? I ain't never heard of them before."
By this time, the 'adults' were off in there own world. So they missed it as Kasumi looked down and adjusted the hem of her apron and blushed. "Everyone's heard of the Sailor Senshi, they're famous throughout Japan. And...well, I've always been a big fan..."
"Let me get this straight." Akane demanded as an eyebrow began to twitch, "The Sailor Senshi, a bunch of super-heroines, came here and asked for your help. You of all people?"
"Well, one of them did, yea." Ranma said as he looked directly at Akane.
Nabiki could practically hear Akane blow a fuse. Looking closely at Ranma's face, she could see he was telling the truth. "Now why in the world would the Sailor Senshi; a group of super powered magical girls; ask for you for help?" she asked.
"Cause they needed it. After all, I'm the best there is."
"Be careful, Ranma, your ego is showing."
"Huh? It is? Where?" Ranma asked as he checked his pants and patted down the front of his shirt.
'OK...This is the real Ranma.' Nabiki thought to herself, watching the pigtailed boy with a critical eye, 'Now...what isn't he telling me.' "So Ranma, your telling me that the Sailor Senshi jut showed up and asked you for your help?"
"Well...one of them did, yea." Ranma answered, starting to look a little nervous.
"And this Senshi just came up to you, out of the blue, to ask for your help? And you've never even knew who they were until tonight, correct?"
"Uh, exactly." Ranma said, starting to sweat slightly, "Oh, look. I'm done. Don't worry, Kasumi, I'll take care of my dishes. Man I'm tired, I think I'll go to bed early tonight. Well, good night!"
'Gotcha!' Nabiki thought as she smirked at Ranma's retreating back. 'Your hiding something. Now...what to do about it?' Her plans were slightly sidetracked as she noticed the condition of the others around the dinner table. 'Sigh But first, it looks like I'll have to 'fix' my family.'
**********
Throughout history, many a plan had been hatched behind closed doors. For the most part, these plans were insidious in nature. Whole nations had been overthrown by plans created in 'starlight chambers'. A plan had just been fabricated that was no less determined than those other plans, if not as diabolical in nature.
"She's late." Rei Hino said as she paced around the shrine.
"She said she would be here, so she'll be here." Haruka Ten'oh replied from the cushions she and her lover were resting on.
"Come on!" Rei voiced angrily. "Even dumpling head over there was on time!"
"Umph!" Usagi Tsukino said, her mouth stuffed with a blueberry muffin. "Gulp Yea! I mean; Rei, that's mean!"
Ignoring Usagi, Rei looked at the other people gathered in the shrine. "You all remember the plan, Right?"
"Yes we do." Michiru Kaiou said, resisting the urge to roll her eyes at the shrine maiden.
"We don't let up on the questions until Setsuna tells us all about this Ranma guy!" Makoto Kino said with enthusiasm.
"Yea! Like is he available!" Minako Aino voiced with a determined look in her eye.
"Exactly!" Makoto replied.
"Perhaps we should just start without her." Ami Mizuno said softly, knowing exactly what her fellow Senshi were thinking.
"You have something to tell us about last night?" Rei asked the blue haired girl.
"Indeed." Ami said as she opened the Mercury Computer, "Donnelly MacDhu repeatedly identified himself as a member of something called the 'UnSeleighe'. By cross referencing that information online I came across several references in Western Mythology; specifically from Celtic and Gaelic Mythology."
"Huh?" Usagi said for the rest of the Scouts.
"Irish Legends." Ami clarified. "According to those legends, there were a variety of mythological creatures somewhat similar to our own kitsune and water kappa. The most powerful of these were known as the Sidhe; also referred to as Elves."
"You mean like Beelzebub's little helpers?" Minako interjected.
Pausing for a moment, Ami opened and closed her mouth for several times before saying "No. Not like Santa's little helpers. These Elves were also sometimes referred as 'The Fair Folk'. They were tall and beautiful; impossibly so; and were immortal. Perhaps the most famous of the Sidhe was Lord Oberon."
"Like from Shakespeare's 'A Mid-Summers Night's Dream'?" Michiru asked with curiosity.
"Exactly. Besides the Sidhe there were a variety of other creatures. Overall, their demeanor would range from curious and mischievous to cruel or down right vicious. These creatures were aliened into two sides, the 'Seleighe' and 'UnSeleighe' Courts. The Seleighe Court for the most part apparently wished to have little to do with humankind while the UnSeleighe Court would like nothing better than to eradicate humankind completely. From my research, the Sidhe were very powerful and used magic as easly as we breathed."
"Well, they obviously exist." Rei pointed out, "So if they are so powerful, what happened to them?"
"They went Underhill." A voice said from behind the priestess.
"GAH! Don't DO That!" Rei said as she jumped up and around to face Setsuna.
"About time she did that to someone else besides me." Usagi muttered loudly.
"What's 'underhill', Setsuna-mama?" Hotaru Tomoe asked quietly; speaking for the first time.
Gesturing for Rei to sit down, Setsuna took her own seat and began to talk. "Underhill is difficult to explain. The closest, and easiest, description is that is a side-real dimension that exists outside of the space/time continuum."
"That's the easiest?" Usagi asked perplexed.
"Is that even possible?" Ami asked the red eyed woman seriously. "I mean, I know that Einstein postulated the existence of such. But to find actual proof that such a place exists..."
"Excuse me." Makoto said raising her hand for attention, "But for those of us who aren't geniuses...what the heck are you talking about?"
"Well..." the blue haired girl paused to consider how to proceed, "Imagine for a moment you had a piece of three layered cake laying on its side."
"Can it be chocolate cake?" Usagi asked enthusiastically.
"Yes it can." Ami said with a small smile.
"With chocolate frosting?" the blond ponytailed girl asked with her eyes beginning to glaze over.
"Of course."
"And sprinkles and vanilla ice cream?"
"Not yet." Ami answered, trying her best to hide her grin at her friend's sudden disappointment. "Now, imagine that the center layer is our plane of existence. The other two layers are different planes of existences; for example, the Negaverse would be one of the layers. The three layers all connected together by the frosting. Theoretically, there are an infinite number of different planes or layers. Now, add a scoop ice cream to the top of the cake."
"Ok." Usagi said quietly with a hint of drool, to the amazement of the other Senshi who were watching their future Queen actually pay attention to a lesson.
Continuing with her explanation Ami said, "Now then, the ice cream. It is not part of the cake of itself, but it's touching all the layers. That, in a nutshell, is what Setsuna is referring to when she says that Underhill is a side-real dimension that exists outside of the space/time continuum. Do you understand now?"
Nodding her head vigorously, Usagi said "Yea, it's simple when you explain it like that. It's part of the universe but at the same time it's not. And since the ice cream is not part of the cake; I mean that since Underhill is not part of the normal universe; that's why Setsuna wasn't able to warn us about this attack since it's originating from outside of normal time."
The rest of the girls were feeling a mix of shock and awe. Shock at the thought that Usagi was able to not only grasp a complex concept but to also expand on it. Awe at the fact that Ami was able to explain it in such a way that Usagi was able to understand it at all. At least until...
^Gurgle^ "Sorry. All this talk of cake is making me hungry." Their leader apologized as she reached for several of the awaiting muffins.
"You know," Ami mused as she looked at Setsuna, "I've always believed that the Gates of Time existed in such a place..."
"No. The gate exists elsewhen."
Not wanting the discussion to become a dissertation on the theories of quantum mechanics, Haruka interjected "So, if these Elves or whatever are so powerful; what happened to them?"
"'Cold Iron'." Setsuna explained, "Also known as steel. To one of the Sidhe its' mere touch acts like an acidic poison. With the advent of steel, they were slowly forced farther and farther away from their lands here in our world until they finally retreated Underhill; where they're safe from that metal. Unfortunately, as time progressed, the process of steel manufacturing has changed and in some cases has been replaced with different alloys."
"What do you mean, Setsuna-mama? Isn't steel steel?"
"No. Not only has the process of steel been changed over time to make it stronger and lighter, the way it was forged has changed as well. Nowadays, impersonal machines create it. In the past, however, it was literally crafted by blacksmiths. They would pour their hearts and souls into the crafting of the steel. Without that personal touch it seems that 'Cold Iron' has lost it's effect."
"So how are we suppose to fight these Elves if we've got nothing to beat them with? Especially if they can shrug off our attacks so easly?" Rei demanded.
"Well, after analyzing the data from the battle last night, I have good news and bad news." Ami answered as she consulted the Mercury Computer, "The good news is that magical artifacts; such as the Space Sword, Silence Glaive, and the Time Staff; should be effective against such creatures. Also, as it became obvious last night, they are affective by physical damage. The bad news is that, unfortunately, the creatures are evidently use to physical confrontation and, well, lets face it, besides Makoto, Haruka and; to a lesser extent; Rei, the rest of us do not have the training to effectively fight hand-to-hand in a protracted situation."
"So, next time we see them, we just kick their ass. Literally." Makoto said as she smacked a fist into her palm.
"Exactly." Setsuna said as she rose to her feet. "Well then, if there's nothing else..."
"Hold it right there." Rei said angrily, "You have some explaining to do about last night."
"Yea. Who was he?"
"How do you know him?"
"How did he do all that stuff?"
"Was he reincarnated from the Silver Millenium?"
"Is he available?"
"What's his number?"
Everyone paused to look at Minako and Makoto before they rolled their eyes. "And how come he hasn't helped us before." Usagi added, looking at Setsuna pleadingly, "Please, Setsuna, tell us."
Setsuna looked around the room for a moment. "Very well." she finally said as she sat back down.
Folding her hands in her lap, the green haired woman closed her eyes in thought. Breathing deeply, she opened her eyes and began to speak. "To the best of my knowledge, Ranma is not reincarnated from any other soul." she paused to mutter something under her breath before saying, "As to why I've never asked him for his help previously, simply put his aid was never needed before."
"Excuse me?" Rei asked, "'His aid was never needed before.'? We could have used his help countless times! You saw how powerful he is!"
"Well...actually from my data, he is not that powerful at all." Ami commented.
"Not that powerful?" Makoto questioned, "He shattered two of those golem things with one blow and threw over a thousand punches in a few seconds."
"My scans show that he is about as powerful as we were right after Luna gave us our first Henshin Pens. Besides that; and a slight trace of an unidentified magic; this Ranma person apparently was able to perform those maneuvers on pure skill alone."
"Ki." Rei blurted out.
"What?" Makoto asked.
"That must have been what I was sensing last night. Ki is a person's life force; it's what I use for my fire readings. But to be able to generate enough Ki to do what he did is unheard of."
"So how did he get so good?" Michiru asked cursorily.
"Since the moment Ranma first began to walk, his training began. At age five, he was taken from home to spend the next ten years or so training from the moment he got up to the moment he went to sleep without any rest. And for the past two years he has been almost constantly challenged by adversaries who were either equal to or even greater in skill and power than he is."
"Wow." Minako breathed, off in her own world.
Narrowing her eyes in suspicion, Haruka asked "So, you just happened to know him and just happened to go fetch him at the moment we just happened to need him? I don't buy it, there's something you're not telling us."
Looking around with her red eyes, Setsuna said simply "He was my Ace."
Seeing the blank looks on the other girl's faces, she clarified. "Since Artemis and Luna began their search for Usagi, the most probable future led to Crystal Tokyo. However, the future is not set in stone. There exist junctures, crossroads if you will, that could have effected that outcome. The major ones you all know, such as the fights against Pharaoh 90 and Beryl. There were, however, also minor crossroads; and it was against such a turning point that I would have asked for Ranma's assistance if things turned out differently. Now, if you would excuse me, there are things I must attend to." Rising to her feet, Setsuna reached out and grabbed a hold of the Time Staff and disappeared.
Usagi looked at the place Setsuna had just stood deep in thought. She had questions that she wanted to ask the older woman, but she also knew they wouldn't be easly answered. Like why Setsuna had tried to avoid the subject of Ranma? And what had she muttered before? And why she hadn't mentioned specifically what event she was apparently holding him in reserve for? And Usagi was determined to get her answers.
"Hey, dumpling head. Aren't you paying attention? Do you want to go get some ice cream?"
But first, there were more important things to consider.
"Yay! Ice cream!"
**********
Newton's Law states that an object in motion tends to stay in motion. This is a fact that's been proven over and over again. In fact, currently on the highways of Tokyo this fact was being demonstrated once again.
"So, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Haruka said as she cut the steering wheel of her car to the left and right, dodging and weaving in and out of traffic.
"Well," Michiru replied after a moment's thought, "Since Hotaru went with the others for ice cream, she won't be home until later this evening. So once we get home I'll put on the French Maid outfit and you get the brandy, whip cream and bananas."
Haruka's mouth hung wide open and her head was cocked to one side; causing her to avoid four bicycles, two cars and a group of pedestrians by two feet (she would have normally been at least a foot closer).
"Well, I'm thinking that now." The blonde finally stated, "But that isn't what I was thinking about a moment ago."
"Oh. Then in that case, you were thinking about what Setsuna said."
"Exactly. She was lying to us."
"No. She just wasn't telling us the whole truth, that's all."
"So, what are we going to do about it?"
"Well, first thing we need to do is find out everything we can about this Ranma person. And not the kind of information Makoto and Minako want to know."
"I guess I can look up Ritsuko."
The aquamarine haired girl looked closely at her lover. "And who is this Ritsuko person?"
"Oh, Rit-chan is an old friend of mine. She's always been in the know about what's going on. And she's pretty cute too."
"I see." Michiru replied frostily.
"What's wrong?" Haruka asked, hearing the change of tone in Michiru's voice.
"If you don't know, it doesn't matter."
"Oh, ok. Anyway, did you want me to get some cherries as well?"
"Never mind about that." Michiru said as she turned to look out her window, "I suddenly have a headache."
"What did I do? What did I do?"
**********
To be Continued...
(2/1/3)