Disclaimer: The characters used within this are mostly the property of others. I have a few originals, but the vast majority are not original. Everything here is fiction. This is for entertainment only and not for profit.

-=oOo=-

Araiansu - Chapter 16

-=oOo=-

Jacob told his daughter, "You look exhausted."

"I am."

"I thought you quit at a decent time last night."

His daughter glared at him.

"Ah, never mind."

Sam sighed then said quietly, "We thought about having another child, but there is no time, and well would you want to raise a child in this mess? That is probably what has me annoyed. Ranma is great, lack of sleep and all, but just knowing that any future children I might have might be assassination targets has me so thrilled."

"Yah, people can be anything but reasonable, and your costing a lot of them their power and prestige. I know it sucks but you knew this going in kiddo."

"I know."

"What of Mars?" her father asked. "I distinctly remember you having plans there.."

"Thanks mostly to Siler and Heimdall, it is coming along well. Heimdall really is someone you want on your side when it comes to terra-forming a planet. His satellites protect the thin precious atmosphere we have begun to establish. Our city of cargo containers is now under a ten mile glass dome made of thousands of triangles of thick superstrong glass alternating with solar panels. It is actually similar to the stuff used on cell phones, just far thicker and stronger. They actually have crops growing in there!" enthused Sam.

"What of Atlantis?"

"It was never intended to be just a city. It was and is a seed. It was meant to help rebuild the Lantean civilization wherever it may go. It goes where it is needed, but always returns to its home in the Atlantic ocean. There is now more land mass around where Atlantis rests than Atlantis itself, and it is always being added to. People flock from all over the world to come there in the hopes of one day going into space or even to Mars."

"And the one you called the liar?"

"He was silent for awhile. He became irrelevant when people stopped listening to him. Not long ago, I heard he was proclaiming it was all a plot of aliens to grow alien babies in our bodies or some such nonsense. He is, of course, not the primary problem. People need to learn to reject lies, even if they are easier and more seductive. Speaking of the Liar, somehow, we aren't quite sure how, but the news of our medical technology on the Liberator was leaked out to him of all people. The guy had the nerve to send a message via a back channel than either we used it on him or he would tell the world we were keeping it from them."

"I assume you didn't."

"Of course not. The guy predictably held a rally the next night where he spoke of all the stuff they were stealing from those who had a right." Sam snorted. "Ranma dealt with it."

"Oh? How did that turn out?"

-=oOo=-

The mob was riled up. The liar was sitting behind several inches of bullet proof glass as he continued to lie. Suddenly a flash of light appeared before them. Ranma appeared in his formal EDF uniform.

"Guards! Get him!" the liar shouted in panic.

"I don't recommend this," Ranma said clearly and loudly easily dodging the first several attempts to take him down non lethally.

"This won't work. You are outclassed," he said dryly.

The crowd continued to watch as dozens of secret service agents and private guards tried to stop him. He had no gun, so they continued to try to use non lethal force lest others be killed. Ranma continued to dodge.

"Very well, if you insist." Ranma moved almost too fast to see. Each touch causing one of his attackers to slump to the ground until it was just the plexiglass barrier between them and the suddenly cowed crowd. Ranma walked over to the liar and his microphone. He said, "The guards are simply unconscious. I do not kill without need."

One guard he missed tried to shoot him with an AR15. He knocked the liar out of the way and dodged the shells only for them to start to crack the plexiglass. Ranma returned fire with a ki blast blowing the arm off of the attacker before jumping up to the light bar where he was hidden and then jumping down with his body. He then cupped his hands gently around the bloody stump and sealed it before also knocking the man out. The gun he threw into the sky barrel up and shot a massively powerful ki blast at it incinerating it.

He then calmly walked back over to the podium. The liar was backed against he wall, "Don't kill me. I'm sorry I lied. Don't kill me."

"Pathetic. Just Pathetic. Is this the man you choose to lead you? I didn't start this fight, but I am going to finish it. You tried to blackmail us into given you preferential treatment with technology we had been entrusted with by the Asgard. That is technology we are not allowed to share, because people like you would abuse it. Were you really so stupid to think we had forgotten about you? That just because we ended the public feed that we stopped recording you?"

Ranma said, "Zen replay the recording."

In the auditorium there was a large screen in the center of the stage. On it they saw the liar talking to his doctor.

"I'm sorry sir, but your lifestyle and age has consequences. There is not much I can do."

"It doesn't matter. They have magic that can heal all this, and they will use it on me if they know what is best, or I'll unleash the mob and let them rage."

"You would cause the death of potentially thousands to save your own skin?"

"What do they matter?" he asked as if actually curious.

"They are human beings. I may have agreed to be your doctor for the money, but I can't countenance this."

"If you betray me, the non disclosure agreement you signed will be the least of your worries. I will bury you!"

"I'm done. Take your medicine, or better yet don't. The next prescription you need get someone else to fill."

The video ended.

Back in the auditorium Ranma said, "He would have us save his life. No, we will not do that. Furthermore, I state this on behalf of the alliance. We do not support liars and propaganda. Those involved in using either to change governments are denied and banned from all EDF resources for a period of no less than ten years. For the worst, we will have a list of lifetime bans later this evening. If you continue to believe that he will help you steal what is not yours to take then know you will not succeed. My father was a liar and a crook, yet he at least had redeeming aspects, and as his son I loved him, even when I hated him. I see no such redeeming qualities in this man. Look at him. He talks tough, but in the face of someone who can actually stand up to his threats he cowers. He is the stereotypical bully we were all warned about. Yet you follow him? Why? We showed you exactly what he was, yet still so many believe they were lies. I am here before you. Surely you believe some of what you have seen about me now? None of this makes sense to me. Do you have no dreams of your own? Do you have no pride in your own work, in your own voice? Build your own dreams and stop trying to steal everyone elses."

He paused to consider his words before speaking again.

"As to the technology he mentioned. Yes it exists, and yes we have been using it. Most of the people we healed with our own energy were fine, but we were all tired and it is delicate work at the best of times. A small percentage had cancer before. Another small percentage had it after, or other problems. We are human, taken for all in all. We make mistakes and try to fix them."

He paused for several seconds to gather his thoughts again.

"The reason healing with ki is so difficult and requires so much medical knowledge is the human body is very complex and it is very easy to make a mistake and help something to heal in a way that is not quite right. Your own doctors spend so long in medical school for the same reason. Mistakes are even easier when one is exhausted, but there was no one else who could do what we did. If you will examine your medical records of the ones we healed you will no doubt find some patterns where one day a few were significantly worse and then the next day they were healed. We healed them the rest of the way in the medical pods in their sleep and then returned them where they were. If we missed anyone from the group we healed that needs further treatment, just let us know. We will finish our work."

He again paused in thought.

He said, "Before I came here, I asked the Asgard and they have agreed to duplicate the tubes we have that heal most injuries in Atlantis, onboard Nozomi, and on Mars. They have agreed. These use science thousands of years in advance of your own. The danger that could be wrought if one madman, or even one pathetic loser such as this got his hands on such power is incalculable, so no, we won't release them in general. We have met a race called the Tollan. They once shared their technology with another planet in their system. They foolishly managed to destroy themselves and their planet, causing the Tollan's own orbit to shift. Their planet was, in the end, destroyed, yet they managed to save the bulk of their population and rebuild. They learned their lesson. Power without wisdom generally leads to ruin."

He paused to pace back and forth and look at the liar who was slinking away before turning back to the audience. "That is ultimately what this movement is, isn't it? Yes it has a power of its own, but there is no truth in it. There is no wisdom in it. We would prefer to stay out of politics but even we can see a difference between working towards a better future and futile dreams of rebuilding a past that never existed."

He looked out over the crowd. He then looked back to see more agents there, that were slowly clearing the ones he had downed. They did not attack. He continued.

"We know the additional medical tubes will not be nearly enough. We plan to ask for lists of children. Their parents or guardians can of course come with them. We will heal all we can. We have already released some medical knowledge where we thought we could safely do so anonymously. You may have seen several different companies claiming to own the patent on the same new revolutionary technology. They don't. It was freely given. We just underestimated the greed. We will continue to do what we can, including to heal who we can with our own energy and teach others to do the same. We ask that you each to do what you can, not for the past, but for the future."

Ranma turned back to the liar and glared, letting a little of his killing intent leak out in a menacing aura and stopping him from leaving. The man pissed his pants. The cameras caught it all.

Ranma asked, "Is this really the coward you came to see?" He turned back to the crowd. "I had the skill to be able to kill by the time I was probably seven. I said my father was not a good man. Most would say he was a child abuser, though I never thought of him that way. He was, however, frighteningly good at forcing me to become better at martial arts. Needless to say, I vowed long before I met my wife that I would never train any children of mine as I had been trained, yet even with all my training and all the fights I got into I never ever killed until one day someone even more powerful than I was at the time kidnapped the young woman I was engaged to. I actually thought I was in love back then."

He paused to look around the audience. They were listening. "Boy, I was an idiot then, but I was only about sixteen at the time, and I suppose we are all idiots at that age. I brought my friends with me and we fought all the way up and down a mountain for hours, but Akane was dying and the others were not far from losing, and probably losing their lives as well. There was a cure, but Saffron was blocking it from me. I asked. I begged. He denied me even as he tried his best to kill me. I had brought them here to this mountain where it seemed we would all die. It was then my training to never kill shattered. I formed a technique I had been considering for a long time into a new way. Saffron was annihilated."

The coward stood up on shaking needs with wet pants. "I bet that is all a lie. It sounds like something out of a TV show. Your just a weak woman pretending to be a man."

Ranma laughed. "What kind of insult is that anyway? My wife is one of the strongest women I've ever known. I've been quite fortunate to know many women in my life that are strong in one way or another. One of the strongest I have ever known held her family together with no special strength but a kindness I could only dream of ever having. Still, if you believe women are weak, then I suppose I could do my part to disprove it." He pulled a bottle of water out of nowhere and poured it over his arm, instantly becoming a very attractive red headed woman.

"I used to think of this body as a curse, but then, as I've said before I was fairly dumb when I was young. I would like to think I have improved a little as I've gotten older. The body before you is a woman's body. It is my body just as the other was. When I first got it, this body was untrained and lacked much of the strength I have gained through hard work since then. I suppose, since you say you believe I lie, I should do a small demonstration. I assure everyone here that no one will be harmed, though my friends may have to help with that."

"You sound like a weak woman," the liar said while semi hiding behind another agent.

"You sound just like my father. He would attempt to use the hyper masculinity he forged in me as a lever to get me to act in certain ways, and it worked. I was, as I mentioned young once, but I grew up. I see that you have not. Either way, the time for talking is passed. You claim you do not believe. Perhaps I can change that."

Arctic cold began spinning around Ranma. In an instant the area was transformed into the coldest place on Earth. This was quickly followed by searing heat spiraling in the opposite direction around it. Ranma shot both of her hands in the air launching a bar of cold swirling ki wrapped in hot swirling counter rotating ki.

Absolute chaos erupted as out of a clear sky a massive Tornado formed, centering around the stadium. It was perfectly controlled. The eye in the middle where the people were was still relatively safe, even as lights and structure were ripped away. People panicked and ran in all directions.

Ranma asked calmly, "Is this a trick of a weak woman? "

"It's a trick!" he shouted.

The winds wind from controlled fury to out of controlled chaos of the tornado absolutely decimated the arena walls.

"Really?" Ranma again asked calmly, frost appearing in the air where she breathed out.

"No, I knew you were not lying, but I counted on you not being willing to do anything to call me out on it. Everything I said is a lie. I tell nothing but lies. That is how I make money and get power. Lies, lawyers, and blackmail. That is my entire life. Are you happy now?"

"Not really."

The winds he called up slowed until they stopped.

Ranma asked, "Avon, did I hurt anyone?"

"Let me go!" he whined.

"No, a couple were close but we beamed them away. Mostly we just beamed away dangerous debris."

"Give my thanks to everyone up there."

"Of course."

Ranma turned to the liar. "I am not holding you. Run if you wish."

The secret service agent and the Liar quickly got off the stage.

"I apologize for that. I really should learn not to lose my temper, but this man is responsible for so much pain and suffering." He looked out to the audience to get their measure. "You are also guilty for supporting him, for helping him in his mad quest for power and to avoid jail for his many crimes. Please, stop wasting your lives. Our world faces so many threats. We can face those threats and move forward stronger, or we can remain divided, with each country, state, organization, or person each out for themselves growing weaker all the time. I have made my choice. Mars is only a start. There are many new worlds out there for the human race. There are in fact many worlds where there are already humans living. The future has infinite promise, but it is not free and you have to work for it."

With that Ranma flew into the sky and vanished in a burst of light.

-=oOo=-

"Damn, he, well she at the time, was pissed," noted Jacob.

"Yes, he was."

"So did Ranma use that story to get that response?"

"He did. Oh he would have been okay if he didn't take the bait, and he and I agree that the show of power was a shitty way to change minds. He didn't have a better idea so he went with it. Liberator had a heads up before he beamed down."

"What happened afterward?"

"The liar tried to charge Ranma with trying to kill him, but the FBI refused to take the case, since it was clear that had Ranma wanted him dead, he would be dead. The secret service also tried to charge him, but as it was on video that he only defended, so was okay there. He probably got out of other potential charges due to the fact that he saved the liar's life and the agent who shot when his protected was behind Ranma was fairly stupid. Even in the best case, that bullet could have easily gone through Ranma and still killed the person behind him. Ranma ended the threat, and yes he target what he hit. The guy is suing him demanding he fix his arm, but even if we could do that we aren't."

"I wouldn't either."

Sam nodded. "A court did rule he was responsible for the property damage, though the US government quietly picked up the tab pointing out that had the EDF charged them for the work they had already done defending the planet the planet would be bankrupt. Of course then the liar's last lawyer quit, and so far he has been unable to get more. Ranma had the observation of the liar reinstated, but this time there was no view on the current president."

"Well that ended better than it had any right to."

Sam nodded again. "Ranma was uncertain if he had done the right thing or not. I thought he had and told him so. Whether or not the controlled hurricane was a good idea was debatable, but once he told the story, he almost didn't have a choice when the liar called him out on it. Many of the liar's guards just walked away. He is still out there stirring trouble, but is limited in what he can do now. The amount of money he can swindle has also fallen off, though his creditors demanding payment have not. He is expected to declare bankruptcy, again, soon. He has doubled down on the rhetoric calling Ranma and the Earth Defense Force enemies of the human race, despite all the evidence to the contrary. The sick part is, there is a still a large segment of the population it is working with."

Jacob said, "You would think the laws against inciting violence would be upheld."

Sam snorted. "You would think that wouldn't you? The funnest one is the morons think they can sue us for discrimination, as if being a lying sack of crap is a protected class. There have actually been judges the dipshit appointed that ruled in their favor. We added the judges in these rulings and all the lawyers on their side to the banned for life list. It is getting ridiculous, but as there is a lot of money to be made from our work, it is amazing how quickly minds are changing."

"No surprise there. Are you sure there is not some sane way of just winning the court cases?"

"Many of them yes. Many of the others could be won on appeal and we will do our best. The entire justice system isn't corrupted, at least not yet, but when the people you are trying to convinced just believe in whatever made up fantasy they are told to believe, what exactly is the point? Ranma's presentation convinced a large chunk of them. The rest we just seem to have to manage. Heimdall is convinced it is some form of mental illness. He is kicking around some ideas to undo the lead poisoning most of us have to one degree or another. He also released an extremely efficient electric motor design and tweaked the battery design that Rommie found to make it even easier to mass produce. He highly suggested we start using these in aircraft and stop with the petroleum products, particularly leaded gasoline. There are dozens of companies working on them. Many of them are trying to patent their own version, but we made sure to copyright and patent everything to death to make sure that some company couldn't claim ownership. Our key restriction is companies that use what we provide can't themselves be on the ban list or sell to someone on the list."

"Are people keeping the terms of the deal?"

"After we ended up basically beaming all of a companies equipment to the moon when they blatantly violated the terms, they all seem to be on board now. It is heavy handed, but again, we lack a better idea."

"You have been busy. I think the economic pressure is liable to work better than the political pressure. So what is next?"

"Next, I have a class of students teaching them to control their ki. It is not entirely what I would have wanted. I prefer to be out there or at least figuring out technology or something, but I'm hardly the only talented engineer, but the number of people that can train other people in ki is highly limited, and with how much we used healing all those people, we now have more students than we can handle."

"I'm sure Ranma prefers you not be out there."

"If you so much as hint about packing me up and putting me somewhere safe, I'll…"

"Actually Jack. He heard part of our recent discussion about children. Of course after Jack ran away from my ire and several low powered ki blasts Ranma wisely remained silent. Dana caught him doing the sweetest thing, and after being sworn to silence by her father, promptly blabbed to me."

Jacob blinked. "What was he doing?" he warily asked.

"He was studying if it was possible for him, or rather his female form to carry a child to term. He figured if we ever did decide to do so, well his female body is technically younger, but the Asgard tell me that if I choose to do so that my body is also more than capable."

"So did he figure it out? He hasn't found a way yet, short of going back to his universe to find something to temporarily lock his curse. I haven't told him yet that I found out about it. He figured everything out except for that."

"So you would what? Transport the child between wombs?"

"The Asgard have a program that facilitates that. Ranma would have to take certain drugs to prepare her body before it, but it would work."

"And is this something you want?"

"Ranma doing his part? Maybe someday. I don't mind carrying a child, and if I did I'd ask the Asgard to help out with one of their gestation chambers. The main thing right now is it is not a good time to have a child, but I did appreciate Ranma's effort, even if I never told him. Mostly I don't want to let Ranma know that Dana blabbed. It wouldn't affect our love of her one wit, but Dana might think it would, at least briefly, and besides, a girl has to have some secrets."

Jacob laughed. Then he sobered. He asked, "Has Ranma's curse ever affected anything?"

"Ranma's DNA over time has become closer between his two forms, with only the gender really differing. It is a combination of the Chinese woman who died so very long ago and Ranma's own. We think she was a carrier of the Lantean gene sequence needed to activate their technology. It is why Ranma is an almost match. It passed strongly to our children. It is not quite enough to activate the technology but Heimdall has offered to make the remaining genetic changes if they wish it. So far, they have not, nor has Ranma. Genetically our children are blessed. They have my brains, Ranma's tactical mindset and not insignificant brains, and the potential to be true life energy adepts, much more strongly than even Ranma had. They just need to grow into it."

"It is good when children can grow beyond their parents. I'm proud of you kiddo."

"That reporter called it a new age of mankind. There is still so much to do, which reminds me we still need to visit the Nox sometime to learn more about being Ki adepts. With Anubis dead and the remaining system lords fighting each other perhaps the Nox will feel like they can come out again, at least for one trip."

"You and Ranma should go to them."

"What? There is so much to do. Last time we left.."

"Don't even pretend that is a valid reason not to go. The Asgard likely know their location, or could get a message to them. You have been working for ever such a long time. If you don't take a break kiddo, consider what mistakes you might make if your are tired?"

"That is low," muttered Sam.

"Is it?"

Sam replied, "No your right. I just worry that something will blow up while we are gone."

"Take Nozomi and Rommie, or heck take one of the Goa'uld cargo ships if you want, though they are slower and annoyingly vulnerable. You could also take some of the apprentices and see if the Nox would train them."

"That is an idea. Cally would be a good candidate. That and some of the children we healed that are developing ki abilities quickly."

Jacob replied, "It makes sense to me, but I'm not the one that has to talk my family into thinking splitting up is a good idea."

"You will watch over them while we are gone? Maybe drag Mark around now and then?"

"On my life, you need not have ask."

"I know Jack will too. Sometimes, I think I am unfair to him. Had things been different."

"He is a grown man who understands and doesn't care a wit. Heck him and Villa are often seen watching Simpson's episodes from the future."

"I really shouldn't have told him about those."

"It is fine."

-=oOo=-

It turned out that Ranma was in favor of the idea. He just was not particularly looking forward to the family meeting.

Their family listened closely. Avon was the first to speak, "So, mom and dad get a break somewhere safe and take a break from all the stress. Am I missing something? I thought there was some controversy here."

"I love you too," said his mother.

Jenna said, "I have no problems with it. I think I would like to go sometime, but I agree Cally can be first. She has always been the kindest of us all."

Cally blushed.

Villa said, "It all seems kind of boring to me. I mean I'm all for martial arts and control of ones own energy, but the whole bit where they usually let even their enemies go always seemed odd to me."

Sam said, "They were preparing for war. Perhaps they overestimated Anubis's threat or perhaps we just got lucky, but they clearly have limits."

Dana added, "We know, but we just can't imagine waiting so long to fight back. Sure if you are really powerful as they no doubt are you can afford to give more chances, but look what that got the Tollan. I guess they agree now. I suppose I wouldn't mind going, but it can be later."

Cally said, "I do want to go. I think I could learn a great deal."

"So we are all agreed?" Ranma asked, "If there is a decision you don't feel comfortable making you will defer to those we trust?"

They agreed.

-=oOo=-

"This is Andy Davis and I'm here to tell you about a remarkable story. There is a race of people called the Nox that are mostly pacifists. I say mostly because they recently started to rearm and prepare again, since they are concerned that threats like we recently faced may still come again. The Earth Defense Force's leaders Ranma and Samantha Carter are taking the Nozomi on a trip to visit them. Yes, you heard it hear. They are inviting along up to one hundred others consisting of the children they healed that have made great progress in learning to manipulate their own energy in the hopes that the Nox might consent to teach them. So this will be up to fifty children and one parent per child."

"The Nox refer to people that have mastered these skills as life adepts. We know that the race that came before modern man, which are sometimes referred to as Lantean and other times referred to as Alteren, and even occasionally Ancients were composed of life adepts, and that those skills passed onto humanity, save that they have been dormant from lack of use. This is a fantastic opportunity for these children to learn from the last true masters of the art, if the are willing to teach them. We wish them well. I know I'm not the only one eager to see what they are able to learn."

-=oOo=-

Author's Note: Originally when I wrote the draft, Sam ended up pregnant due to them getting careless after all the work healing. Unfortunately, this just didn't work with the rest of the story, so the editing pass here changes this. I think the chapter still works. I debated ended this after the first couple scenes, but wanted a balance to the chapter and more than a few thousand words. Basically, I decided in later chapters to change this, and am now going back and making the update. It is one of the advantages with writing a large amount of material up front, in that it is easier to make major corrections before they are posted.

This is of course all fiction. The political thread does continue somewhat throughout, but does drop in importance. The problem here is there is no solution that they can just use to fix things and the solutions that are being used here are, well, just being more powerful and using their resources to lead. I don't particularly like the solution here since it wouldn't work if you were not more powerful. It was, however, the best solution this group had available, and even with all they are doing, there will likely be no day in the story where everyone comes together for the common good. Democracy is hard. Lies are often more compelling. For it to work well the people have to work hard to ascertain truth and I have no idea how to get that to happen in general. The point the story tries to make is it is all going to be a lot of hard work.