Joining 6: Departure of One Written December 2002

By: Arinson Tidochi

I own neither Dragon Ball Z nor Ranma ½, and I don't have any money anyways, so please don't sue me. I'm not making any money out of this fanfiction, I'm just doing it for fun.

One of my friends was the EM (Episode Master) of a role playing game and had his villain give an amusing speech.

"Greetings you sick maggots. I'm Lord Saibon. So I hear that from where you come from, you are supposed to be great people. Well you're in my realm now, and I want to see just how strong you disgusting maggots really are. I Lord Saibon, have the ability to strip anyone that comes here of anything that I want to. With the snap of my fingers I can send you anywhere I so desire. I could strip you of all magic, weapons and abilities, then I'll just see how strong all of you really are! Oh, one thing that I didn't mention is no one escapes alive without getting through me!!!"

- Lord Saibon

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A desperate struggle for survival. Three beings of earth facing off against a creature that could only be described as a being of hell. Between the three of them they represented three different races. Between the three of them they represented three completely different personalities. However, between the three of them they represented two central goals: To protect themselves and to protect all of those around them. In these goals they were united, despite any differences that may exist between them. For these three goals they would fight with all of the strength that they held.

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"Move it Gohan!" Krillin yelled, throwing forward a ki blast into the back of the creature. "Whoa! It's coming right for me!" Gohan shouted out, quickly running to the side.

The odd creature ran like an ape of some kind, using its feet as much as its hands for movement. It moved extremely fast, much faster then what would be expected for its large size.

Gohan quickly flew up and to the side, barely avoiding the range of the creature. "Kamehameha!" he yelled, throwing down a ki attack at it.

The energy attacks served little more than to annoy it. Piccolo jumped into the path of the creature. "Why don't you fight a fellow demon?!" He yelled. "Ha!" Piccolo threw out a large blast of energy. It didn't do much damage, but it served its purpose. The blast caught the creature's arm in mid-stride, throwing off its balance long enough for Piccolo to escape its range. The three of them returned to the triangle format, returning to the deadly waiting game with the creature.

"I don't know how long I can keep this up Mr. Piccolo." Gohan called from the other side of the creature. "I'm beginning to get worn out."

"Don't say that!" Piccolo yelled at him. "We don't know how much it can understand, we don't want to expose any weaknesses!" "Any new plans Piccolo?" Krillin asked, "Or do we just keep doing what we're doing?"

"Not many other options." Piccolo said. "Our attacks aren't very effective but at least it seems intimidated somewhat by them. We just need to hold out."

"Ah man." Krillin said, looking at it as it turned to him. "It's looking right at me. Why does this sort of thing always happen to me?"

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A large island of stone in the middle of the sea. Waves whipped wildly about the island almost creating a mosaic from an aerial view. High above the island a large aura of yellow could be seen with high amounts of electricity cackling about within. In the middle of the aura a man could be seen gathering the storm.

Far below a single boy of 17 years of age stood on the rocky surface. It seemed almost like a joke that he would try to resist the onslaught coming from above. It was obvious that he stood no chance of matching the huge amount of power building itself up just a quarter mile above him.

The boy was smiling.

******************************************

"I'm almost there!" Goku yelled. "Come on guys! You need to hang on just a little bit longer!" "This isn't good." Goku thought to himself. "That Vegita guy's powerful level just took a huge increase, and Ranma's power is just staying the same. Come on Ranma, it's all up to you now!"

"Faster Nimbus!" He shouted out again.

******************************************

"Oh no, oh no!" King Kai yelled out panicking. "Vegita's going to destroy the world and only a lonely human boy is standing in his path. Why couldn't Goku be there?" He clenched his fists and looked towards the ground. "I hate the way it always turns out." He turned his head up and yelled into the air. "Come on Ranma! We're all counting on you!"

******************************************

"Tell me Kami, what do you see?" Mr. Popo asked hesitantly, afraid of what he might discover.

Kami lowered his head. "I'm afraid that it doesn't look good Mr. Popo. Vegita is gathering his strength for an attack against the earth itself, and Ranma doesn't nearly hold enough power to stop him in a head on battle of energy."

"Is there no hope?" Mr. Popo asked sadly. "No hope that the earth may be saved?"

Kami sighed. "There is only a small sliver of a chance that Ranma could counter his attack. But don't worry Mr. Popo. There was no chance at all of him defeating Saffron but he pulled through in the end. As far as I can tell the boy has never failed when everything was on the line. He'll find a way, somehow."

Kami lowered his head. "Come on Ranma." He prayed. "Show that my faith in you is not misplaced."

******************************************

"Oh my." Kasumi said as a cup shattered in her hands.

"What is it Kasumi?" Mr. Tendo asked from his game of Go. As he turned his head Genma deftly ate one of his pieces.

"A bad omen father." Kasumi responded.

******************************************

"Only going to get one shot at this." Ranma said out loud, staring up at Vegita. "I've got to do it on the first try." "I won't let anything happen to you Akane." He thought to himself. "I'll save you and the world all at the same time."

"Ha!" He yelled, his aura exploding. With a radius of 400 meters around him rock leapt up from the island in a spiral pattern. "Relax." He thought to himself, staring up at Vegita. "Bring the body to a perfect state of no energy." Ranma powered down, all of the power of his body disappearing.

"What is that boy doing?" Vegita asked himself. "He's powering down, is he a fool? I can't believe that he'd just let the earth be destroyed without a fight!"

"That energy he's producing is awesome." Ranma thought to himself. "I can see the spiral that's he's creating. I just need to turn it into a windstorm and then complete the final step."

"Hiryü Shöten Ha!" Ranma yelled out. Almost instantly a tornado of awesome proportions raged out. It quickly spread to the 800 meter diameter and then exploded outwards even more. The water surrounding the island began to follow its lead, spinning in a circular pattern that surrounded the island. The waves leapt up higher and higher, soon reaching over twenty feet in height as they spun about.

"Do you think that this will do you any good?!" Vegita yelled down at the boy. "You're wasting your time, now die!" Vegita cupped his hands together onto the energy.

"Now!" Ranma yelled. He whipped both of his hands around him, causing two large vacuum snakes to wind up into the tornado. In the same motion, Ranma gave a single mighty leap, propelling himself up into the air. With the reduced pressure in the center of the tornado he had no trouble covering most of the distance between him and Vegita in a single leap.

"Gamit gun!" Vegita yelled, pushing both of his hands downwards into the center of the spiral. Ranma flew up and held out both of his hands, actually making contact with the side of Vegita's energy blast.

"First to make it mine!" He yelled. Using his spiritual discipline he dominated a portion of Vegita's energy. "Take this!" He yelled, throwing it back up at Vegita.

Vegita stared at it as it approached. "How?" He asked himself. "NO!" he yelled, being caught on the energy. He flew off into the sky.

"There's too much left!" Ranma yelled to himself. "Final step!"

The Hiryü Shöten Ha continued to draw on the power of the energy that was flying down its center, continuing to weaken it. But it had just too much.

"Like the Shi Shi Hokadan his attack travels on a bath of charged air." Ranma thought. "If I can remove the air that it's traveling through then I can influence its path." Bringing his hands together, Ranma gained control of the void that the Yamasen-Ken created. Using his spiritual energy he kept the air from rushing in upon it. "This will be kind of like a rail car." he thought.

Ranma brought up the slices of void and brought them below the quickly descending blast of energy. Using his telekinesis he gave the energy a slight slant, and then used the void to try to further shove it off its path.

"No, not enough!" He yelled. Ranma powered up. "This is going to work, I know it!" He said to himself, his face filled with determination. "Mokou Takabisha!" Expending the last of his energy Ranma sent out a massive blast of energy which began to race the other attack to the ground.

"Gotta make it faster!" Ranma yelled. He brought together the air in front of his attack and increased its density. His attack reacted almost instantly, its movement picking up speed almost double of that of the Gamit gun.

Ranma's Mokou Takabisha came and hit the side of Vegita's attack. Working together with the slices of void, they edged the ball of energy off of its central path. Tearing a huge rut in through the center of the island, it flew off perpendicular to the surface of the earth and went off into space.

"Close call." Ranma breathed a sigh of relief. He slowly lowered himself to the surface of the earth and fell over. "I did it." He laughed. "I actually did it!"

Around him the spiral continued to spread, whipping up the waves higher and higher. "That can't be good." Ranma thought to himself. "It looks like it's going to turn into a tsunami or something."

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It was a ship gently rocking in the waves of a storm. The beautiful blue of the sky was a sharp contrast against a vast darkness that was obvious in the distance. The waves began to erupt, becoming more and more violent. People were scrambling about the surface of the ship, panicking in their efforts to become ready for the storm. The waves swept higher, placing the ship in even greater danger. It didn't seem likely that it would survive for much longer.

******************************************

It was the Tendo dojo. The entire family was gathered about the television. A definite tension seemed to be in the air. Outside the light of the day seemed to be obscured and a harsh rain could be heard pattering on the ceiling outside.

"I wonder where this storm swept from; the satellites weren't able to predict it." Mr. Tendo commented.

"I've got a feeling that my boy has something to do with it Tendo." Mr. Saotome said calmly, staring at the TV.

"Any sign of Akane yet Kasumi?" Mr. Tendo asked, turning to his eldest daughter.

Kasumi shook her head. "No, I'm sorry Father; there has been no word from her."

Genma calmly put his hand on Mr. Tendo's back. "Well, I suppose that there's no help for it, she'll show up soon enough I'm sure."

Mr. Tendo nodded. A moment later he broke down and started bawling. "Ahh my little girl is out in the storm all alone!!! Please Akane, return to your family!! Oh my little girl!"

"Come on daddy, you know Akane." Nabiki commented lazily from the couch. "She's probably just training or something." Mr. Tendo sat up, still sniffling. "You're right of course Nabiki." He broke down crying again. "My little girl!!!"

Nabiki's eyes caught Kasumi's. They both nodded to each other and stood up to leave the room. Together they sat in the kitchen.

"Did you feel it this morning Kasumi?" Nabiki asked, looking her older sister in the eyes.

Kasumi nodded. "Yes I did. Akane used a high power spell from her room. I think it was a teleportation spell."

Nabiki frowned and leaned on the table. "Yes, it was a high powered spell. Akane tends to overdo things but I don't think that even she would use that much energy to travel anywhere on earth, it was simply too much."

Kasumi gasped, "Do you mean?" "Yes, I do." Nabiki finished. "Either she went to an alien world or she traveled to another dimension. I'm not sure why she would do that, but that's the only possibility. And this storm is probably related to those aliens that we were watching on TV earlier."

"Oh my." Kasumi said, thoughtful. "Akane is such a rash girl, you don't suppose that she went to fight them do you?"

Nabiki shook her head. "No, Akane is too inexperienced to use her magic against people like that. Besides she isn't so stupid that she'd rush into a battle that she knew she couldn't win unless she absolutely had to. That's more Ranma's territory."

"My, you're right." Kasumi said. "Maybe Mr. Saotome is right and Ranma has something to do with this storm. Maybe he went to fight the aliens."

"Well that is what Mr. Popo said after all, that Cologne had some crazy new training for him." Nabiki sat up. "I think that Cologne was scheduled to get back a few hours ago, maybe we should visit the Nekohanten and find out what she knows. We need to figure out if Ranma had something to do with causing this storm."

"I wouldn't want to intrude on her." Kasumi said gently.

Nabiki sighed and rolled her eyes. "You won't have to; I think I want to visit her alone. You should just keep your senses open so that you'll know when Akane returns to this world."

"I'll keep watching out for her." Kasumi said. "And you be careful out in the storm Nabiki."

Nabiki smiled as she returned to her feet. "Hey, have you ever known me to be any other way?"

Nabiki calmed herself down and found her magic. Forming within herself and image of the Nekohanten, she used her magic to transport herself there. She disappeared within ten seconds, leaving not a trace.

"My, I hope that she doesn't get discovered." Kasumi said to herself.

******************************************

"This place is clean." Nabiki thought to herself. "I guess that Mousse and Shampoo have been doing a fine job taking care of it."

"Hello!" She yelled out, "Is anyone here?" Shampoo jumped down the stairs. Looking at Nabiki, her eyes narrowed. "What you doing here?"

Nabiki shrugged. "I'm just here to talk to Cologne. I want to know what Ranma's been up to in the past year." Nabiki lazily took a seat on a stool.

"Why you care?" Shampoo asked. "I think this storm may be related to him." Nabiki responded. "I'm just trying to scratch my curiosity."

The door opened and a small hunched figure hopped through. "That's quite a storm that's been whipped up." Cologne said.

"Great grandmother, you return!" Shampoo yelled happily. She rushed over to the old woman. "Ranma with you?"

Cologne shook her head. "No child. Before I left my future son-in-law he was traveling for the final stage of his training with Kami. I would imagine that even as we speak he is fighting against the aliens." She looked up at Nabiki. "Oh, we have a visitor. What may I ask are you doing here?"

Nabiki smiled and crossed her legs. "Actually you just answered my main question. Now I have another one for you."

"Not now." Cologne said. "I am tired; I will answer your question in the morning. Prepare my bed Shampoo."

"Yes Great grandmother." Shampoo said obediently. She then went upstairs.

"I want you to make time now, this is important." Nabiki said, leaning on her hands. "I need to know whether you think this is a natural storm or not. Is it possible that Ranma's fight would cause a storm like this to take place?"

Cologne looked at her curiously and then hopped on to a seat next to her. "I'm not sure why you asked but I'll be honest with you." She said wearily. "Just a short time ago I felt an outrageous power building up from where they believe that the center of the storm is located. If Ranma transferred even a fraction of that power into a Hiryü Shöten Ha it would be simple for a storm of this magnitude to be produced."

Nabiki smiled. "Thank you, that was all that I wanted to know." She stood up. "I'll see you later Cologne." She walked over to the door and stepped outside into the rain, closing it behind her.

Cologne's eyes widened. "I just felt an impressive magic used outside!" She looked thoughtful. "I wonder if that Tendo girl was responsible for it. Things may be more complicated then I had previously imagined."

******************************************

Back in her kitchen Kasumi looked at Nabiki expectantly. "What did you find out?" She asked.

"It's not a natural storm, so we can interfere." Nabiki said.

"My, then I guess that we'd better get started." Kasumi said smiling. "We have a busy time ahead of us."

******************************************

A large and twisted form facing off against three smaller forms. Out of nowhere a storm whipped up, spilling rain onto the battle field. The sky darkened and made the entire scene somehow more appropriate.

"It's coming again, look out Krillin!" Gohan yelled. "Oh no!" Krillin yelled. He began to back pedal quickly. The creature was faster and was quickly closing the distance. Its eyes were hungry, desperate for a meal. "So long." They could hear in their minds. "So long since I have feasted on the soul of one of this world. It's a taste that I have long missed."

"No Krillin, off to the side!" Piccolo yelled. Gohan whipped forward both of his hands. "Kamehameha!" Moving quickly the creature jumped high into the air, causing the blast to entirely miss. "Krillin!" Piccolo and Gohan yelled together.

"Ha!" Piccolo yelled. He quickly threw up a large blast of energy which slammed the creature in the rear end. The extra momentum caused it to fly over Krillin's head. It paused in mid-air.

"You mean that thing can fly?!" Krillin yelled, staring up at it. "Move out of the way you fool!" Piccolo yelled at him. Smiling the demon flipped down and landed an inch in front of him.

Krillin looked like a deer caught in the head-lights. Staring up at it he made no moves to resist his inevitable fate.

"Krillin!!!" Gohan yelled hopelessly, staring at his friend with tearful eyes.

"Damn, with him gone we'll have that much more trouble holding out!" Piccolo thought to himself.

The creature rapidly descended both of its claws on its pray, expecting a quick meal.

It was mistaken. It clawed at the rock for a moment, and then yelled out in rage. It was a horrible sound which sent shivers through the spines of all of those watching it. Except for one.

"What happened?" Gohan asked.

"Turn around Gohan!" Piccolo yelled. Gohan turned around slowly. The demon creature was still paused. Then it too curiously turned to look behind Gohan.

What they saw was Goku standing dramatically and staring at the creature. Krillin was sitting next to him, still flustered from his close call.

"Daddy!" Gohan yelled. He jumped at Goku. Laughing, Goku caught him. "I'm here now Gohan, everything's going to be alright."

"You don't know how glad I am to see you Goku." Piccolo said with a smile on his face. "I'm glad to see you too Piccolo." Goku said. "I'm glad to see that all of you are alright. I'm sorry that I'm late."

"It's alright Goku." Krillin said, standing up. "Now that you're here everything's going to be alright."

Goku set Gohan down. "I brought some senzu beans for you guys." Goku said. "Piccolo, catch!" He flipped something through the air that Piccolo caught.

"Senzu beans restore your power don't they?" Krillin asked excitedly. Goku nodded. "That's right; I've got one for you and Gohan as well."

Piccolo looked down at the senzu bean cautiously and then ate it. Almost instantly his muscles bulged out and an aura sprang up around him. "I feel great!" He said.

"Gee, I don't know Goku." Krillin said. "Maybe you'd better just keep them for yourself."

Goku shook his head. "No, I'm going to need your help soon. Hey, I'll split one in half. Then I'll have one left for Ranma." Goku split one of the beans in half and handed one to each Gohan and Krillin. They each ate one.

"Hey Goku, did you sense that huge power that just built up a few moments ago?" Piccolo yelled at him.

Goku smiled. "Yeah, and Ranma did it! He somehow stopped an attack that could have destroyed the earth!" Piccolo smiled back at him. "That kid is amazing."

Goku frowned and shook his head. "It's a shame that the saiyajin wasn't defeated by the attack. It was such a great effort too."

Everyone's eyes bugged out of their heads. "You're saying that he's not defeated?!" Krillin yelled out in fear. "Are you sure father?" Gohan asked. Piccolo nodded cautiously. "Yes, I expected as much. I just didn't want to believe it."

The demon growled impatiently. Goku frowned and looked at his friends. "Now listen you guys, we're going to have to split up into two groups. I have a weapon that will work against this demon so I have to stay here. I'm going to need two of you to go and help Ranma against Vegita."

"I'm staying with you Goku." Piccolo growled. "I was once a demon too so I know how this thing thinks. You're going to need my help."

Goku nodded. "Alright." He looked down at his two smaller friends. "Krillin, Gohan, I'm leaving this to you." He handed Krillin a senzu bean. "Make sure that you get this to Ranma, I can sense that his power is extremely diminished. With both of you and Ranma at full strength you should be able to handle the saiyajin. Just make sure that you're careful."

"Ah man, I was hoping that I wouldn't have to see Vegita ever again." Krillin said, depressed. Gohan looked up at his dad with a determined face. "We'll do it Father, you can count on us."

Goku laughed and put his hand on Gohan's head. "I know that son. I see that you've really grown up in the last year."

"Yeah!" Gohan said excitedly. "Piccolo trained me father, I could stay up as late I wanted! He was great!" Piccolo growled and turned away. "It's time Goku, it's not going to let us talk any more."

Goku chuckled and leaned down next to Gohan. "Just don't let your mother find out, you might get Piccolo in trouble." Gohan smiled up at him. "I won't father."

Goku's face became serious. "Krillin, it's time to go. Please look after Gohan for me."

Krillin nodded. "Leave it to me Goku." He turned to Gohan. "Let's go." Gohan nodded. Together they flew off towards Ramna.

The creature growled again, turning to Goku. "Ready Piccolo?" Goku asked with a smile. Piccolo smiled back at him. "It looks like we're a team again ay Goku?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah, it looks like it."

"So what kind of weapon do you have?" Piccolo asked.

"Super Holy Water." Goku responded.

Piccolo laughed. "Never thought I'd be happy to hear that." He went into a fighting stance. "It's coming Goku!"

"Yeah, I'm ready." Goku said, going into his own fighting stance.

******************************************

The earth was far below and the air was thin. A large beam of energy could be seen flying towards the upper atmosphere. As the beam drew closer a form could be seen upon it. It was a small man with large black hair. Some kind of a tail could be seen on top of the beam.

Putting up a great effort Vegita struggled off of the beam. He paused for a moment, gathering himself. "Damn him, I'll kill that boy!" He yelled out loud. "He is dead!" Vegita flew down back towards the island.

******************************************

"Might as well not try to fight it anymore." Ranma thought to himself. He then allowed the cold rain to touch him, triggering his transformation. Ranma then slowly struggled to her feet. "I can feel that guy's power, it's still outrageous." She thought to herself. "I can't believe that he's still so strong after everything that's happened to him. I don't think I have enough energy left to stop him."

Ranma laughed to herself. "At least he doesn't have enough energy left to hurt the earth." She smiled. "I can feel some impressive powers approaching, maybe they're coming to help, Kami knows that I need it right about now. Oh shit, here he comes."

A form lowered itself below the clouds and onto the ground. It was Vegita, the three stab wounds were still apparent on his torso. It looked like they had already scabbed over and that he had somewhat recovered. There were scorch marks all over his body. He was not smiling.

"I can't believe this guy!" Ranma yelled to herself. "I'm almost completely spent and I'm not the one who was impaled or hit by an energy blast which could destroy half the earth." She fell into a fighting stance. "You came back for more huh? Not very smart of ya."

Vegita scowled at her. "A girl again I see. Well, it makes no difference. Boy or girl you'll die anyways. I have to hand it to you kid, you're the first one to ever do that to me."

"Hey thanks, I really appreciate that." Ranma said, smiling.

Vegita began to walk towards her slowly. "I hope that you have a few more tricks left. If you don't then this fight won't last much longer."

Vegita's movement began to speed up. Soon he was running towards her. "This is bad; I'm so dizzy I can barely see straight." Ranma thought to herself. "All this rain and I've used up almost all of my energy, I think I've got a cold or something."

"Prepare to go to hell!" Vegita yelled. Before Ranma had a chance to move he had already covered the distance. Scowling he planted his foot directly into Ranma's side, sending her flying to the ground, clutching her torso.

"I don't have the endurance for this!" Ranma thought desperately to herself. "I've got to do something fast or I'm done for!"

Vegita grabbed one of her arms and began to swing her around. "Why don't you take a seat?!" He yelled. He then slammed her into the stone, sending her several feet into the now broken ground.

"Gotta by some time." Ranma thought. "Time for the Umisen-Ken!" Her look became apathetic (Which was extremely easy for her at this point) "No! Vegita yelled, throwing an energy attack at her. But it was too late, Ranma had disappeared.

"Why you! Take this!!!" Gathering his energy Vegita sent out a massive blast of energy with himself as the focus point.

"I can't believe it!" Ranma yelled to herself. "Still so much power, I can't get away!"

The attack spread outwards and quickly encompassed the entire island. When it cleared the island was completely gone, with only Vegita hovering above the water, breathing hard. He was smiling. "Good bye Ranma." He said out loud. "You were a worthy warrior, but no match for me."

******************************************

"Oh no, something horrible just happened!" Gohan yelled, watching the huge blast of yellow energy in the distance.

"I think you're right Gohan, Ranma could be in trouble!" Krillin yelled back to him. "We need to hurry!"

******************************************

It was dark with heavy winds and rain. Now only three figures interrupted the darkness.

"This thing is faster then it looks!" Goku yelled, maneuvering out of the way. He was moving quickly, easily dodging every attack that the creature threw at him.

"You're amazing Goku." Piccolo yelled at him. "What kind of plan do you have?

"I wish I could say that I have a plan Piccolo, but I'm afraid that I don't." Goku yelled back at him as he ducked under a claw. "Just help me keep him off balance until an opening shows itself. I just wish our friend would get thirsty if you know what I mean."

Piccolo laughed. "I understand Goku." Piccolo stepped forward and threw a large blast of energy which hit the creature in the side of the head.

Screaming, the creature turned to him. Seeing an opening, Goku darted in and punched it below the jaw. Furious but largely unharmed, it attacked him with both of its claws. Faster then the eye could follow Goku dodged under both of its arms and dived under its legs.

"Kamehameha!" He yelled from the other side. He sent a huge blast of energy into the creature's back which picked it up off of the ground and sent it flying forwards into a huge rock column which shattered instantly on contact.

"Incredible Goku." Piccolo said smiling. "You're much stronger then before."

Goku smiled for a moment but then frowned. "Ranma's power just took a massive nose dive. Can you feel that Piccolo?"

"Yeah, I feel it. It feels like trouble." Piccolo responded.

"We've got to get rid of this thing as quickly as possible so that we can go help him." Goku said, returning to his fighting stance.

"I'm with you Goku, let's finish this thing." Piccolo said, also returning to his fighting stance.

******************************************

First a blinding light. And then. darkness.

"Am I dead?" Ranma asked himself. Or maybe herself, he couldn't really tell the difference right now.

"I can't feel a thing." Ranma thought to himself, "I wonder if this is what it feels like to be dead."

He could feel the darkness rushing in upon him, the urge to sleep. "That feels comfortable." He thought. Suddenly he felt the urge to struggle, to not let it touch him. "I can't!" He yelled to himself. "I can't let it get me!"

After struggling for what seemed like hours Ranma gradually became aware of himself and his surroundings. He was a she, and she seemed to be immersed in a cold liquid of some kind.

"Did I fall asleep in the bath?" She asked herself. "I must have been sleeping for a long time if it's already this cold." Suddenly she panicked. "Oh no! If Akane finds me here she'll be angry!"

She started to struggle and began to choke on water. "This is salty, this can't be a bath!" Finally she became aware of her surroundings. She was suspended in the ocean with no land in sight. The once raging storm appeared to have calmed down somewhat, and it was no longer raining. However it was now twilight because of the falling of night.

"My light form must have floated on the water." She thought to herself. "I wonder if I have enough energy to fly."

She desperately tried to bring her form out of the water, but she didn't have enough power left. "I guess that I'll have to settle for this." She thought to herself. She made herself weigh less and let the water do the rest of the work.

"I think I feel some faint power levels near here. I need to get to them. I just hope that they're traveling in my direction." She thought quietly to herself. Putting up a great effort she began to move herself slowly towards the energy.

******************************************

It was an empty expanse of water. The setting sun created beautiful patterns across the ocean horizon. A single figure floated above the water, a small man who appeared to be grievously wounded. It was taking him effort to even stay floating above the water.

"Damn that kid, he ruined everything!" Vegita said to himself. "It's a risk for me even to stay here now. If Kakarot does return and is only as strong as that boy was he may be able to defeat me in my current condition. It might be a good idea to cut my losses and leave before something else happens."

"Hey you, Vegita! You're not going anywhere!" A voice yelled.

"Who's there?!" Vegita yelled back, turning around. Floating in the air before him were Krillin and Gohan. Gohan had tears in his eyes; he was staring at Vegita furiously. "You killed Ranma didn't you? You're a monster!"

Vegita smiled at them. In his current condition it was a horrible thing to see. "Yes, I killed him, but I wouldn't feel bad about it if I were you. He fought well, even until the end against a vastly stronger force. He died a death worthy of a warrior."

Krillin gritted his teeth. "If you and that brute Nappa hadn't come here in the first place there would have been no need for anyone to die. Do you think that you can just leave here freely after all of that?"

Vegita laughed. "Oh, do you think that you can stop me?" His expression turned cruel. "Trust me, I don't want to leave. Nothing would bring me greater pleasure then to kill all of the ridiculous people on this world, but now is not the time. Things have become more complicated then what I originally expected. You can trust me though, soon I will return and make all of you pay."

"That's what you think!" Krillin yelled. Whipping his hands forward he sent out a large blast of energy. Vegita disappeared and appeared a foot above Krillin.

Krillin stared up at him in fear while Vegita stared down at him smiling. "I think that you're the one who should be concerned about escaping." Bringing his hands together he bashed Krillin on the shoulder, sending him flying down into the ocean.

"Hey!" Gohan yelled, flying forward and punching at Vegita. "Know your place kid!" Vegita yelled. With his left arm he grabbed Gohan's punch and after circling around behind him he used his right hand to strike the back of Gohan's neck, knocking him cold. Snorting with disgust, he threw him aside into the ocean.

"They were fools to challenge me." Vegita thought to himself. "It's time to leave. If I play my cards correctly I can still become immortal before Freezer is even aware of the Dragon Balls." He clenched his fists. "But that would still leave the damn mage Babbiti to deal with. Even if I were immortal I'm not sure if I could defeat him. I need to figure out something else." Vegita smiled to himself. "Yes that's it, I have the perfect plan! Just you wait Babbiti; I'll get you and your demon!" Laughing, he flew over to the space pod that was waiting nearby and entered.

******************************************

The demon creature almost seemed to smile. Staring at Goku, an aura of darkness sprung up around it.

"I don't like this." Goku said while carefully examining it. "Its magical energy just jumped dramatically."

"Is that right?" Piccolo asked. "Then we should finish the job quickly. Special beam cannon!" Pointing his fingers at the creature he caused a spiral of energy to shoot outwards. The monster simply disappeared.

"What the?!" Piccolo yelled in shock. "Goku, behind you!"

Goku never even bothered to look, he knew what was there. "Kao-ken attack!" He yelled. In the same instant he attacked with a back kick almost straight up directly behind himself.

The creature only managed to scratch his right arm before he made contact. It stumbled backwards gasping in shock. Goku turned around to find its mouth opened as wide as possible. Its eyes were bugged open in shock, not at all comprehending what was happening.

"I've got its mouth with telekinesis Goku." Piccolo said, smiling. "But I don't know how long I can hold it. Finish it now!"

"Right." Goku said. Opening the small jar he threw the entire contents down the throat of the creature. It paused for a moment, almost confused. Next it began to look sick. Only a few moments later it disintegrated into a dark mist, floating up into the air.

Piccolo approached Goku. "Are you alright Goku? I think I saw that thing scratch you. Even a scratch is often enough to kill."

Goku shrugged and examined the scratch. It was extremely small and was somewhat black. "Naw I'm fine Piccolo. I can't sense any black magic at all coming from this thing."

Piccolo chuckled. "I guess that I was worried about nothing." Piccolo looked up into the air. "I think that Vegita's power just disappeared. Is it possible that he ran away?"

Goku shrugged. "I wouldn't know, I've never met the guy. I doubt that he is at all cowardly though. He probably just decided that with me and Ranma showing up things were just getting too complicated."

Piccolo nodded. "I suppose that you're right Goku."

Goku frowned. "I'm worried about Ranma, let's go see if we can help find him."

"Go on ahead Goku, there's something that I want to take care of first."

Goku looked at him curiously. "If you say so Piccolo, I'll see you later. Flying Nimbus!" Goku leaped into the air onto a flying cloud and disappeared into the now night sky.

Piccolo scowled to himself and looked towards the ground. "I still have that Mire guy to deal with. I don't know what he's after but if he gathers all of the dragon balls then there's going to be serious hell to pay for all of us." He chuckled. "Hell to pay, what an appropriate choice of words."

Piccolo flew up into the air. "First I need to visit that turtle island and see if I can't get the dragon radar."

******************************************

It was currently twilight. The previously raging wind and raining skies had subsided to a more moderate breeze and drizzle. A lone woman was suspended high in the air. She was so far above the ground that she couldn't be made out from the earth's surface.

"That was quite a job." Nabiki said to herself while wiping some sweat off of her forehead. "I don't know what Ranma did to cause a storm like that but I hope that he doesn't do it again anytime soon."

She sighed. "Well I suppose that I'd better get home soon. Kasumi is probably waiting on me, and I wouldn't want to cause any concern with father."

Nabiki relaxed herself and formed within her mind an image of her room. "It should be safe to transport directly there." She thought to herself. When she was about to force her position to change a strange twitch of her magical senses stopped her.

"What was that?" She asked herself curiously. "I think I sense a magical trinket of impressive power down below."

Pausing to make herself invisible, Nabiki lowered herself below the clouds and towards the ground. She was currently above a vibrant and now flooded forest area.

"The wildlife seems to be bothered." Nabiki noted. "I suppose that the sudden appearance and disappearance of an unnatural storm has disturbed them."

She was right, cries of distress could be heard from all over the forest. A displaced tribe of squirrels was huddling together on the top of one of the trees. A pride of deer seemed to be taking swimming lessons in the water below. A monkey that appeared to be mutated was using its three arms to swing quickly through the trees.

"I think that it's directly below." She thought to herself. "Yuck, this place is gross. I'm going to have to be careful not to touch anything."

She lowered herself to the surface of the water and looked down into the murky depths. "Why do I even bother?" She thought to herself. Then she smiled. "Maybe it's something valuable that I can sell for a huge profit!"

That thought settled it. Focusing her powers she caused a light green aura to surround herself. She then gently lowered herself into the water. It parted about a half centimeter from her skin, never even touching her.

"Wow, this water is at least 200 centimeters deep!" She thought to herself. "That storm might have been even worse then I thought. I really hope that it drains soon." She brought herself to the bottom of the water.

"The water is clear enough but there's so much mud I can hardly seen anything." She thought. "Ah-ha, here it is!" Reaching into the mud she found a small object in the shape of a sphere. When she pulled it out it reflected the sun's light from above. "Beautiful." She said to herself.

It was a small orange ball. Inside seven different small stars could be seen suspended. "I wonder how much this would go for." She asked herself. "Well, I guess I've kept the others waiting long enough, it's time to leave."

With those words she disappeared, causing the water to rush in upon the position that she had been filling.

******************************************

It was a lonely ship floating in the ocean. The water had calmed and the rain had ceased, but the damage had been dealt. Sailors moved about the surface of the ship working on repairs. Many inappropriate words could be heard floating up into the night air.

On the surface of the ship a young man could be seen working who stood out from the rest of the sailors. He had a yellow bandana, a yellow shirt and green pants.

"That was a harsh storm." Ryouga said to himself. "I'm lucky that I was inside when it came. Hey, you guys need a hand with that?"

Three sailors who were struggling to carry a large plank looked at him speculatively. The lead one spoke up. "Yeah, but I don't think that a scrawny kid like you would be able to help. We don't want you to get hurt. What?!" He gasped in amazement as Ryouga lifted the plank easily out of their grasps and began to carry it at his side.

"Where do you want it?" He asked them. Mouth still opened wide, the man pointed at a point close to the edge of the ship."

"I'm sorry Akari." Ryouga thought to himself. "I only meant to go to the store and pick us up some supper but I somehow ended up on this ship in the middle of the ocean. I promise that I'll make it up to you."

Ryouga was setting the plank on the ship when he felt a chill run up his spine. "I think I sense an extremely familiar energy nearby." He thought to himself. "I've become much more sensitive since I spent that time training in the mountains so I don't think it's a fluke."

Ryouga walked to the opposite end of the ship and tried to see as far as he could in the murky darkness. "Stop the boat!" He yelled. Several sailors who had witnessed his strength scrambled to throw the anchor overboard.

Ryouga peered a moment later into the darkness. "Damn it, this is no good." He said out loud. He turned around. "Does anyone happen to have a flashlight or something?" He thought for a moment. "Never mind, I'll handle it myself."

"I hope that Akari doesn't give up on me before I get back." Ryouga thought to himself, getting depressed. "Shi shi Hokadon!" He yelled. Instantly a large column of energy left his outstretched hands and flew above the ocean water. Closing his fists, Ryouga caused the energy to pause in mid-air and simply to float, holding its position.

"Much better." He thought to himself. Around him people were staring in fear and amazement. "I think I see a shape out there." He said. "Hey, could somebody let down a boat? I think there's someone out there!"

Needless to say the crew quickly complied. A boat was lowered into the water and Ryouga quickly jumped down into it, careful not to be splashed. He quickly and smoothly rowed himself over to the form. Careful not to get wet, he gently reached over the side of the boat and gingerly grabbed the collar of the person. With a single motion he brought him over into the boat and set him down.

"Looks like a girl." Ryouga thought to himself, staring at her. "She looks familiar, I wonder if I've seen her before." His eyes widened in recognition. "My god, is that Ranma!? He's barely breathing!"

He rowed himself back over to the side of the ship. In a single motion he picked her up and jumped up onto the ship. Without even responding to the looks of shock on all of the crewmen he went downstairs to his room.

"It's kind of cramped in here." He thought to himself. "But it's much better then the open sea. I need to warm him up before he gets sick." He laid Ranma on his bed and bundled her up with several blankets.

"What was he doing in the middle of the ocean anyways?" Ryouga asked himself, taking a seat and staring at Ranma's limp form. "I hope that he wakes up soon so that I can beat some answers out of him."

There was a knock on his door. "What is it?" Ryouga yelled without taking his eyes off of the wet girl. The door was gently opened to reveal the captain of the ship. (Just think stereotypical pirate guy)

"Rrrrr matey, me thinks that you brought a girl aboard. Ye intend to keep her here?"

Ryouga looked up at him. "Is there a problem with that? He needs to be warm if he's going to have a chance of living."

The captain shook his head. "No problem matey, but she needs to change her wet clothes. If you don't want to handle it we have a female here with us."

Ryouga's nose started bleeding. "Yeah, we would need to change her clothes wouldn't we? She, she can handle it." The captain then left the room.

After he left, a middle aged woman walked into the narrow space. "Ryouga Hibiki right? You're a paying customer?"

Ryouga nodded. "That's right. Even though I used my grocery money by accident." He finished bitterly to himself.

The woman nodded. "Right then, take the girl this way, we'll take good care of her. Before we go, give her a drink of his." She handed him a bottle.

Ryouga opened it and took a whiff. He wrinkled his nose. "What is this? Alcohol?" The woman nodded. "Right, it will warm his system right up. We're clearing out a room especially for her even as we speak. Right this way."

Ryouga gently picked up the slim girl form and stared at her curiously. "What secrets do you have Ranma?" He asked himself, looking at her cold face.

******************************************

"Man, Vegita really did a number on me!" Krillin complained, floating out of the water. "Yeah, my head's still ringing." Gohan complained, also rising above the water.

"Hey, there's nothing to worry about now." Krillin said positively. "I think that Vegita left and your father will take care of that demon in no time."

"Yeah." Gohan agreed, still downcast. "But what I about Ranma? I don't think that there's much of a chance that he survived that last attack."

Krillin nodded still smiling. "Yeah, but just think about it. We'll wish him back with the dragon balls! It'll be easy."

Gohan shook his head. "But what about that Mire? He said that he wanted the dragon balls for something. He may even be looking for them right now."

Krillin frowned. "You're right. But he said that he had no interest in doing anything here on earth. I think that we should just let him collect the dragon balls and make his wish as long as he's not planning on doing anything else here."

"I don't know if that's a good idea Krillin. Even if he wasn't lying that might mean trouble for someone else, and I don't want that."

Krillin sighed. "I suppose you're right." He looked up at Gohan. "But right now we should be focusing on trying to see if Ranma's still alive."

"Right." Gohan agreed. "Now Gohan, clear your senses." Krillin told to his smaller friend. "Assuming that Ranma's still alive his power couldn't be much greater then an ordinary person's. We're going to need to look for a slight power."

******************************************

"It's good to be home." Nabiki thought to herself as she landed in her room. "I'll put this here for safe keeping." She opened up her clothing drawer and set the strange ball inside.

She walked over to her door and opened. She then walked down the hallway and down the stairs into the kitchen. Kasumi was sitting at the table and was looking quite tired. Nabiki sat down next to her.

"My, that was quite a job." Kasumi said to her, smiling. Nabiki nodded to her while leaning back. "You said it, I don't know what the hell Ranma did to cause that storm but I hope that he'll refrain next time."

"You look tired." Kasumi said gently. "You should go to bed. You do have school tomorrow after all."

"But what about you?" Nabiki asked incredulously. "You have to be as tired as me; you were out in that storm too."

Kasumi shook her head. "No, I was out so late I didn't have time to plan breakfast for tomorrow. I need to prepare the kitchen before I go to bed."

Nabiki sighed and smiled slightly. "You always take such good care of us, just like mother used to."

Kasumi leaned across the table and put her hand on Nabiki's shoulder. "Yes I do work hard." She said while smiling. "But I enjoy serving the family and Father. You also do a lot of good for us Nabiki. I don't know what we'd do without the money that you bring in."

Nabiki looked up at her. "Yeah, but you guys still owe me. I'm keeping a running tab of all the expenses that I'm put through because of you."

Kasumi smiled at her, as if she didn't quite believe her. "Anyways, you should get to bed." She told her younger sister. Nabiki tried to nod but she yawned instead. She then returned to her feet and walked up the stairs.

Kasumi stared after her. "My, what a gentle girl." She thought to herself. She then sighed. "Well, I guess that I'd better get started."

Kasumi returned to her feet, only to see Mr. Tendo standing in the corner of the room.

"Oh my. How long have you been standing there Father?" She asked. He seriously walked up to her. "Long enough to hear everything Kasumi." He said to her. "I don't really like the idea of my little girls putting themselves in danger."

Kasumi smiled at him gently. "Don't worry father, we weren't in danger. Calming a storm is really a very simple task."

Mr. Tendo sighed. "You're right of course Kasumi." He gave her a sideways glance. "Tell me, is Akane's disappearance related at all to this power that you girls wield?" Kasumi nodded. "Yes it is, but I think it would be better if you didn't know everything. Just know that wherever Akane is I think that she's safe, because the one who called her would never deliberately put her in danger.

He nodded. "If you say that it's true then that's all I need to hear. I just worry about my little girl." He gave Kasumi a hug, and a moment later was bawling.

"There there Father." Kasumi said gently, comforting her father.

She stared past his shoulder. "I just know that the man of light would never put Akane in danger." She thought to herself.

******************************************

It was a dimly lit room that only appeared to have three walls with a barrier of some sort creating the fourth wall. A young girl that was surrounded by golden robes was sleeping on a hard bench. A half eaten loaf of stale bread was sitting on the ground.

"I wish that they'd take off this collar long enough for me to make myself something to eat." She thought angrily to herself. "I don't see why they're so paranoid about me escaping anyways, the jerks."

A large form walked to the entrance of the cell. "It's time Missy Tendo." A voice called from outside. "It's time for the big trial."

Akane sighed as she sat up. "It's time for me to be put on display you mean." She grimaced. "Oh well, I might as well get this over with so I can get back to earth."

The ogre pressed a button on the wall, causing the barrier to disappear. "Right this way Miss." He said, smiling almost fondly down at her.

She managed a slight smile back up at him before her face returned to a scowl. "I'm getting out of this hell hole as soon as this collar comes off my neck!" She fumed to herself.

The ogre Jake led her through a few hallways before coming across what could only be described as a very drab and very large courtroom. It was like a mini coliseum in proportions, with the judge's seat and the spots for the prosecution and defense in the center. All of the furniture was made out of solid stone, to Akane's dismay.

Also to her dismay was the sheer proportion of the crowd that was in attendance. It almost seemed like all of hell had come out for the trial, as if it were the activity of the century. (Which it probably was) Even more disturbing were the large blue ogre standing behind the defense's bench and the large red ogre standing behind the prosecutor's bench. Both were wearing business suits that were many sizes too small for them and seemed to be taking their competition entirely too seriously.

"I'll show you Goz!" The red ogre yelled at the blue one. "I'll prove that girl's guilt and then you'll have to do all of this week's paperwork."

"That's what you think Mez!" The blue ogre shouted back. "She's innocent, just look at her! You're the one who's going to be doing the paper work."

Akane's eyes started to twitch. "Excuse me?" She said to Jake. "Don't tell me that these idiots are going to be handling this case." He shrugged. "Sorry, nothing we can do about it. Obviously we can't have a damned soul handle your case. That just wouldn't be proper. So you're stuck with these two." After saying that Jake walked into the crowd and took a seat on a bench, causing about four spirits to dive out of his way.

Still looking pissed, Akane walked over to the blue ogre. "Akane Tendo; pleased to meet you." She said; a definite edge to her voice.

"I'm Goz, pleased to meet you too." The ogre said down to her.

"So what kind of evidence are you going to present on my behalf?" Akane asked him harshly. He looked at her blankly. "Evidence? Why would I need a thing like that? I'm going to prove that the prosecution is stupid and is obviously wrong."

"We'll see who's stupid!" The other ogre yelled back at him. Akane fought against the urge to mallet him but barely decided against it. "I can't believe this!" She yelled to herself. "This gets worse every second!"

A young precise looking man wearing a business suit and sporting a halo walked out to stand beside the judge's chair. "Attention of the courtroom please." He said, his amplified voice filling the entire room. "Finally someone who looks almost human." Akane thought to herself, relieved.

After making sure that he had everyone's attention the man began to speak. "What we have here is case number five: Hell vs. Akane Tendo."

"There have only been four cases before?" Akane whispered to Goz. "Yeah." He whispered back. "They usually happen when someone complains of unfair treatment. Usually the ruling is that the treatment will become twice as harsh as before."

Akane shivered slightly. "Well, this is hell after all." She thought to herself.

"Excuse me Miss, but would you please keep silent?" The man asked, but the tone of his voice made it sound like an order. "Yes of course." Akane responded automatically. "Wouldn't want to make this guy angry." She thought to herself.

"The honorable judge Maimer residing." The man announced. There was an instant reaction from the crowd as it became filled with murmuring.

"Who is Maimer?" She whispered to Goz. "Is he bad?"

"He's the judge for the fourth level of hell." Goz whispered back. "This must mean that too many people have died recently and King Yemna was too busy to take the case. This is bad." Behind the other bench Mez was looking extremely pleased about something.

"Can he be that bad?" Akane asked herself. She then looked furious. "But there's no evidence against me, he couldn't possibly find me guilty of anything!"

A dark missed wrapped itself about the judge's chair. Gradually a form could be made out from inside the mist that appeared to be man like. It was an old man with pale skin and black robes that seemed to sharply contrast each other. His expression was set and cold. It didn't look like he had either frowned or smiled in at least several hundred years.

"I am Maimer, and I will see this case." He announced. "Hell vs. Akane Tendo. I am the judge and the jury and if I decide that the situation calls for it, the executioner as well."

Akane found herself gulping in sheer aversion of the man and his words. "This guy looks so cold." She thought to herself. "Will he really give me a fair trial?"

"He's known as the Damner." Goz whispered in her ear. "Not to frighten you, but I think we have a fight on our hands."

"You mean on my hands." Akane thought to herself, extremely annoyed.

"Because I feel like it, the prosecution will speak first." The man announced. "Tell me why this girl should stay here in hell for all of eternity."

"Objection!" Akane yelled, jumping to her feet. "You can't possibly expect that idiot to present any real information can you?!"

"What?" Mez yelled, insulted. "Overruled!" Maimer said calmly. "I understand that he is an idiot but I feel that it is fair because the defense is also an idiot. It should be a level playing field. Now take a seat Miss Tendo."

For some reason Akane felt herself compelled to take a seat, so she quickly did.

"Now continue." The judge ordered Mez, who still looked rather flustered. "I have a witness to call." He announced. "Generic damned soul number 5,897." There was a chattering that filled the crowd as a small spirit proudly left the stands and floated over to the desk.

The neat and precise man stepped forward. "You know that there's a magical spell of truth set up so that you couldn't lie even if you wanted to?" The spirit nodded. "Good, take a seat." The man stepped back.

The spirit seemed to enjoy every second as it took a seat in the chair. Mez began to pace back and forth in front of it. "Now tell me number 5,897, what happened the afternoon proceeding the night of yesterday?"

"Oh, he's hamming it up trying to look smart." Goz muttered to himself. "We'll see how smart he is when he loses." Akane looked pissed as she stared at the spirit. "He's an idiot but at least he's on my side." She thought to herself. "Though frankly I'd be better off handling my own defense."

"It happened like this." The spirit chattered out. "This huge blast of energy came out and destroyed lots of stuff. Six hours later I saw a golden form fall down from the sky. She was wearing golden robes and had silver earrings. She was obviously a mage!"

The crowd filled with excitement. Mez nodded. "Tell, me, is this girl here the one who caused that blast?"

"Objection!" Akane yelled out, jumping to her feet. "He already said that I fell six hours after the blast, he couldn't possibly know whether or not I was responsible."

"The objection passes. Mez, I find your question stupid and ignorant. Please rephrase it or allow the witness to go up for cross-examination." The voice said coldly.

Akane breathed a sigh of relief. "At least Maimer seems to have some sense." She thought to herself. "He seems to realize that this entire case is ridiculous." She then took a seat.

"Uh, yeah." Mez said, his confidence broken somewhat. "Tell me, is the girl that you found the one sitting on that bench over there?" He pointed at Akane.

"Objection!" Goz yelled, jumping to his feet. "Honor, it is rude to point!"

"Take a seat you fool. I don't give a damn how he gestures to her. The objection is overruled."

Looking chastised, Goz took a seat. "Don't make him frustrated." Akane hissed to him. "You'll only get us in trouble."

"Yes, that's right." The spirit said. "That is the girl that I found over there."

Mez paused for a moment, looking uncomfortable, and then continued his pacing in front of the spirit. "Tell me, that girl that you pointed out, does she look like she's guilty?"

"Objection!" Akane yelled out. "He's asking for a personal opinion, that couldn't possibly apply to this case!"

"Over ruled." Maimer ordered. "I'm curious to hear what he has to say. Take a seat Miss Tendo."

Looking miffed, Akane returned to her seat. The spirit paused and appeared to closely scrutinize Akane for a moment and then spoke up loudly. "Yes, look at that mean face that she's making right now. And she's so aggressive. Doesn't someone that aggressive seem like they would do something so mean as to attack hell?"

"That is quite enough." Maimer ordered before Akane could object again. "Your role is to answer the question, not ask questions. It has been noted by the stand that you think the girl in question looks mean. Are you finished Mez? If so the spirit can be put up for cross-examination."

Mez paused for a moment and then looked downcast. "I'm done." He announced and walked back over to his seat.

Goz stood up and walked over to the witness. "Do you see that red ogre sitting over there?" He asked, pointing to Mez. "Don't you think that he's an idiot?"

"Objection!" Mez yelled. Akane buried her face in her hands and resisted to urge to clobber both of them. "This can't be happening." She thought to herself. A blue aura sprung up around her at the rage she was feeling.

"The defense is putting words in the witness's mouth!" Mez yelled out. "Let him decide on his own how he feels about me."

Akane looked up to stare at Goz, her blue aura flaring about her. "The objection is sustained." Maimer announced. "If you don't have a real question then please retire the witness."

Now it was Goz's turn to look uncomfortable. "Uh, do you see that girl over there?" He asked, pointing at Akane. "Great." She thought to herself. "Whatever happened to it being rude to point?"

"Do you think that she's cute?" There was a murmuring in the crowd; Akane felt a slight blush come to her face.

The spirit thought for a moment and then bobbed up and down. "Yes, especially with that bright blue aura!"

"That's all of my questions your honor." Goz said triumphantly, sitting down. Akane gave him the evil eye.

"So what we've determined about that defendant is that she's cute and that she looks mean enough to do something like what the case is about." The judge said; his voice not at all amused. "Number 5,897, you may take your seat."

"Wait!" Akane yelled, jumping to her feet. She walked out from behind the bench and stood beneath Maimer, looking up into his cold grey eyes. "These two are absolute idiots; will you let me defend myself in this case?"

Maimer paused for a moment, looking down at her. "You realize that Mez doesn't stand a chance against you. In order for you to defend yourself I'll need to bring in a real attorney to make things fair."

Akane nodded. "That would be alright, as long as I don't have to put up with those idiots anymore."

"Hey!" Goz and Mez yelled together.

"I have made my decision!" Maimer said, pulling a dimensional hammer out of his sleeve and hitting his desk. "Goz and Mez will be replaced with Akane Tendo and Mr. Burner, respectively."

The crowd went crazy. Little spirits could be seen body surfing up and down the coliseum stands. Some of them erupted into fights for no reason and others started dancing.

"Silence!" Maimer yelled. "The court room is still in session. Instantly all of the spirits froze in mid movement. "Mr. Burner, please show yourself." Maimer finished.

A man appeared in a puff of fire. He was dressed in a business suit and a top hat. He was an extremely good looking man with blue eyes and blond hair that could be seen from under his hat. What stood out about him were the horns that were poking through his hat and the red tail that could be seen out of the back of his pants.

"Yes, I'm here." He said neatly. "I do hope that this doesn't take long, I'm scheduled for my tea break in exactly half an hour."

Akane stared at him. "This is my adversary?" She asked herself. "I would have better off with Mez, even with that idiot Goz defending me."

Maimer nodded to him. "Goz and Mez, get the hell out of here." While grumbling the two ogres stood up and went into the stands to sit next to Jake.

Mr. Turner turned to Akane. "Ah, a fair lady. I do wish you good luck."

Akane blushed slightly. "He's a demon stupid." She chastised herself. "Uh, you too."

He smiled at her. "Oh, I certainly don't believe that you mean that. It is your soul on the line after all." Akane shivered slightly and then walked to take a seat behind her bench.

He turned to face the spirit. "Is this my witness?" He asked the judge. Maimer nodded, appearing to have a great deal more respect for this new lawyer then for Mez. Mr. Burner turned back to him. "Tell me sir; did the girl have those robes that she's currently wearing when you saw her fall from the sky earlier?"

The spirit nodded. "Yes, those golden robes exactly."

"Quite right." Mr. Burner said. "How was it that you knew that she was a mage?"

The spirit looked slightly uncomfortable. "She was dressed like one, I thought it was obvious."

Mr. Burner paused. "Tell me, have you seen those golden robes somewhere before?" The spirit shook its head.

Mr. Burner turned to Maimer. "Sir, I have some evidence to present to the court if you are so inclined." Maimer nodded. "Show me anything you want."

Mr. Burner pulled something out of his pocket; it looked like a small golden stone. Holding it out in front of him, he conjured forth an image of a brilliant golden robe. "Tell me, is this the robe that the girl was wearing when she fell from the sky and still is wearing?"

The spirit made a big show of examining it. "Yes it is." It quipped.

"Then I have a statement to make." Mr. Burner began to speak with an amplification spell. "This is the official robe worn by Mapleticiracianerfilintian who is an arch-magus and is in fact the leader of the council of seven mages which guards the borders between the dimensions."

He turned to look at Akane. "Furthermore, her magical signature taken shortly after her fall demonstrates that she is clearly a direct spiritual descendent of the arch magi himself. I propose that such a mage would easily hold enough power to cause such a destructive blast."

Akane stared at him in shock. "A direct spiritual descendent? What the hell does that mean? And by that name he just said did he mean. Maple?"

The crowd went crazy, but froze as it saw Maimer reach for his mallet. "Is that all Mr. Burner?" He asked.

The lawyer shrugged. "To tell you the truth, yes. There's nothing else to really ask. Your witness." He said politely, bowing to Akane.

Akane stood up and looked very nervous. "Uh-oh." She thought to herself. "I need to think of something to follow that and quickly."

She coughed for a moment to clear her throat and then began to pace in front of the witness. "Tell me," She said cautiously, "Where were you when the blast first took place?"

"I was actually on the opposite side of hell at the time, so I didn't see it." The spirit said.

"Whoa, it must be huge." Akane thought to herself. "So you're saying that you didn't actually see the attack?" She asked.

"That's right." The spirit said.

"But you are the only one who actually saw me fall from the sky." She said, more of a comment then a question.

"Again that's right." The spirit said.

"Think Akane!" She yelled to herself, powering up. Suddenly the spirit was looking very intimidated. She calmed down and her aura disappeared. "Tell me," She said, "Do you know of any spells that would cause an attack that big?" The spirit shook its head. "Not personally no. But then again in life I never had much experience with magic."

"What if I told you that I've only had my magic for a year and that I myself don't know any magic spells that could do that? I mean, I'm only 17 after all."

"Your honor, I have something to say." Mr. Burner stated, standing to his feet. "It is well known that Mapleticiracianerfilintian's preferred form is that of a 15 year old boy. It's obvious that physical appearance means nothing to a user of magic."

Maimer nodded. "That information is correct. Miss Tendo, please make your questions relevant to the case."

Akane blanched. "What the hell?!" She thought to herself. "I didn't know that!"

Then inspiration struck her. "Sir," she said, imitating Mr. Burner. "Have you noticed anything strange about me since this case has begun?"

The spirit looked uncomfortable and looked up at Maimer, who nodded down at it, his face still cold. The spirit turned back to her.

"Yes miss, you don't act anything like what I would expect from a mage."

"What do you mean?" Akane asked.

"Well, you're too incompetent to be a real mage." The spirit said slowly. Akane suddenly looked very pissed. "What did you say?!" She yelled, almost ready to attack the spirit.

"Please miss, don't intimidate the witness." Mr. Burner said firmly. Akane slowly calmed down. With her voice grating, "Please continue."

Hesitantly, it did. "Well, mages are supposed to be really smart, or at least that's what I've heard. But you seem to know only a little more about magic then I do. And mages are supposed to have safe guards and stuff. I don't think that a real mage would let himself to fall into hell on accident."

Akane resisted the urge to summon her battle aura. "I agree one -hundred percent." She admitted, gritting her teeth. "Your honor, I'm done with this witness."

Maimer nodded. "Take a seat." He motion for the spirit to leave, which it quickly did.

"Now does anyone have any more witnesses or are we ready for the final statements?" He asked. Mr. Burner shrugged. "I'm done, there's nothing else to discuss."

Akane also nodded, still miffed about the spirit's testimony. "Mr. Burner, you're first." Maimer said to the demon.

Mr. Burner stood directly in front of the judge and looked at him in the eyes. "Sir, I feel that you completely understand the point and have already made your decision so I'll make this short. An energy attack came down and six hours later this girl fell down herself. It's obvious that as far as sheer magical potential goes she would easily have the power to do this. Furthermore she appears to have ties to the arch magi Mapleticiracianerfilintian and he is well known for disobeying laws that he himself created. Thus it seems entirely likely that she may be responsible for this attack." Mr. Burner finished neatly and nodded to the judge. "That is all, may I leave? It's time for tea."

Maimer nodded as Mr. Burner disappeared in a flash of fire. "Now Miss Akane Tendo, it is your turn."

Akane gulped as she stood up and went to stand before the judge. "This entire charge is ridiculous." She began. "There is no evidence against me that isn't circumstantial. I just happened to fall down from the sky six hours after the attack, and I don't have any idea who could have thrown it! Besides, why the hell would I be interested in doing something like that? Even if I did have the experience to throw an attack that large why would I waste my time?" She paused. "Uh, that's all I have to say. Thank you judge." She bowed to him.

Maimer sat still for a moment. "I have finished deliberating." He said, "And I have reached my final decision."

Akane held her breath. Maimer pulled out his hammer and leaned over his desk to stare into her eyes. "Akane Tendo, I find you innocent. Before this case even began it was discovered that the damage was caused by a ki attack and not a magical one. Therefore it is logically impossible that you are responsible."

Akane's face went through a series of shifting emotions. First she was relieved, then thoughtful and then furious. "Are you trying to tell me that you knew that I was innocent before we even began?!" She yelled. "Why the hell did you bother with this trial at all?!" A blue aura sprang up around her.

Maimer stared coldly into her eyes. "King Yemna ordered that the citizens of the first level of hell receive some entertainment every several hundred years, and the time was up. It was your own misfortune that you were caught and in any case, it doesn't matter now."

Akane nodded slowly, still looking furious. "In any case, can you get this damn collar off of me so I can go?" She asked. "I'm in a hurry and have wasted enough time already."

Maimer shook his head. "There is still paper work to deal with; you cannot leave until twelve hours have passed."

"What? Twelve hours?!" Akane yelled. "But I'm innocent; you can't keep me for twelve hours!"

Maimer looked at her impassively. "I apologize but rules are rules. You will not leave hell for twelve hours."

"Dammit all!" Akane said hopelessly to herself. "Ranma needs my help! Twelve more hours will simply take too long."

A large explosion could be heard in the distance. The spirit crowd reacted almost at once by piling out of the court room to go see what was going on. Two demons that appeared to be severely wounded appeared next to Judge Maimer.

"Sir!" They yelled. "A prisoner has escaped from the 4th level!"

"What?!" Maimer yelled. "How, how did he escape?!"

"He grabbed the keys off of the belt of a guard that was passing by!" The demon said. "Then he escaped! He was simply too strong!"

Maimer paused and then looked thoughtful. He turned to Akane. "Tell me Miss Tendo, do you have any experience with fighting?"

Akane felt uncomfortable under his gaze. "Well, a little." She said hesitantly.

"If you can use your magic to capture this prisoner then I can release you instantly." The judge told her. "There would be no need for paper work."

"This could be really dangerous." Akane thought to herself. "Imagine, someone attempting a jailbreak in hell." Her face became determined. "But this may be my only chance to help Ranma."

She looked up at Maimer. "If you take off my collar then it's a deal."

"Remember." Maimer said, almost amused. "If you just leave then you'll be in trouble when you die."

Akane looked up at him seriously. "On my honor as a martial artist I promise not to leave before beating this criminal."

With a single swipe of his hand Maimer removed the collar from Akane's neck.

Akane stood still as if paralyzed as her powers flooded back to her. "Amazing." She thought to herself. "It feels like a part of me that was lost has returned." She broadened her magical senses. "Alright, let's see if I can find this criminal."

******************************************

It was a dark little planet. A building made entirely out of some white plastic rested on its surface. The building had some alien other-worldly look to it.

Inside a large man, close to seven foot, was walking swiftly down a hallway. He stopped in front of a large door and knocked on it.

"You may enter." An almost feminine voice responded from inside. The man pushed the door open and walked inside.

The room appeared to be an audience chamber. Two thrones were positioned in the front of the room, one almost twice as large as the other. In the larger throne a strange creature that was completely white except for some purple on its torso and limbs was sitting. A hole in the back of the throne allowed for its tail to be comfortably coming out of the back. In the smaller throne was a strange little man. He was completely yellow and looked almost bug like, with small robes and a little black 'M' positioned at his waist. Both of them were much smaller then the man with the black robes who stood before them.

He instantly fell to his knees and pulled back his hood. "Master Freezer, Arch Mage Babbiti, I have something to report."

Freezer spoke up. "Yes Captain Ginyu, do continue please."

Captain Ginyu cleared his throat. "Vegita has decided to leave earth. I believe that he will head off to Namek next. First Apprentice Mire is hot on the trail of the dragon balls and is likely to soon make the wish that you have requested."

"Good, good." Babbiti squealed with glee. "That is very good news indeed. Continue apprentice."

After pausing for a moment Captain Ginyu continued. "The greater demon that was summoned by Mire to beat the defenders has already been defeated by the warrior known as Goku, who is a saiyajin."

Freezer paused. "A saiyajin did you say? I thought that the three that I spared were the only saiyajins left alive."

Captain Ginyu shook his head. "No, that is not the case. It appears that one other survived and due to some confusing circumstance has become an ally of earth. Furthermore, he has the ability to sense magic. I had thought that I killed him on Snake Way, but by accident I left him alive."

Freezer shook his head. "I don't want any saiyajins alive. Captain Ginyu, I want you to return to earth and finish the job that Vegita could not. I want you to destroy all intelligent life."

"But why Freezer?" Babbiti asked him curiously. "Why should you care about that backwater little world? You are the greatest of the demon lords after all, why should some little saiyajin matter to you?"

Freezer leaned forward onto one of his hands. "I have always sensed that the saiyajin race would become my greatest enemy, and now with this Goku who can sense magic it seems even closer to reality then before. Besides," He added, "This whole situation stinks of that mage Mapleticiracianerfilintian."

Babbiti nodded. "Yes, I agree with you there. That meddling little mage always gets his hands in on our business somehow; I don't see why this situation should be any different." He looked up at Captain Ginyu. "First apprentice, I want you to kill all intelligent life. But spare the Nemekian who has created the dragon balls until such a time as First Apprentice Mire has made his wish."

Captain Ginyu nodded. "Understood Masters. It will be as you desire."

He paused for a moment. "Teleport now!" He yelled. He then disappeared into thin air.

"What do you think Freezer," Babbiti asked his larger ally, "Will he succeed?"

Freezer frowned slightly as he leaned on his hand. "Unless that mage directly interferes, yes. However for obvious reasons that is extremely unlikely." Freezer thought for a moment. "There is a good chance that Ginyu will issue some sort of challenge and allow the defenders to prepare themselves first, if that happens they may discover a way to defeat him."

"Why do you say that?" Babbiti asked.

"From what he said Goku wasn't the one who drove Vegita off, even though he was roughly as strong as Vegita. That means that there must be another warrior on earth with similar strength to those two. Between them it's possible that they may defeat a warrior even of greatly superior strength such as Captain Ginyu. However, even if this happens you will still get your wish."

"So what would you do in such a situation Freezer?" Babbiti asked curiously. Freezer closed his eyes. "I haven't decided yet. Maybe I'll just destroy the earth from here and get it over with. I also haven't decided what to do with Vegita yet. For him I think I'll just let him go and hunt him down myself on Namek. That would be the most fun."