Disclaimer: If I hear that Oscar Meyer song one more time, I think I'll have a nervous breakdown. Oh yeah, and anything that isn't a blatant ripoff of something else is probably a subtle ripoff of something else. Thus, not mine.
The Inner Demon
Chapter 18: Crisis on Infinite Earths
Umm... no...
Chapter 18: Crisis in Infinite Nerimas
Er... okay, still not quite...
Chapter 18: Crisis in an Infinitely Messed Up Nerima
Fine. If you feel that way.
Somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, not too far from Hawaii...
A silver skinned man wearing a green cloak rose from the waters and was momentarily groggy, "How long have I been out?" Suddenly an image flickered across his mind and he flew in haste toward land.
Queklain had been trying to tan on the beach when the man arrived, "Hey! Look at me and feel de fear! Dis in't a mask."
The man looked at Queklain in disgust and vaporized him with a single silver energy ray from his green gloved palm.
"It appears that much time has passed since I was last counted among those that walk this Earth," He spoke cryptically, "Know that The Spectre has returned."
Part 1: Section 9? Gotcha!
Ranma instantly stood and cracked his knuckles.
The woman snorted derisively and vanished with an electrical sound.
Ranma shrugged and faded from view himself.
Several blocks down the road, the woman reappeared and spoke aloud, "So you can see me."
Ranma reappeared, "Broad daylight, right?"
Pedestrians sensed a fight coming and cleared away. Some still had casts, crutches, and such from similar incidents.
The woman drew an automatic weapon of some sort and opened fire.
Ranma seemed to simply step out of the way of each bullet, "Impossible!"
"Nothing's impossible, Y'know?" He suddenly materialized close by and slapped her.
"What? You slapped me?" She seemed utterly incredulous.
Ranma took that opportunity to sweep her and pick up her weapon, which he promptly ate, "Yum."
The woman looked at him with goggle eyes from her prone position, "What are you?"
Ranma kicked her across the street and proceeded to leap after her.
The woman raised her left arm. Her hand bent back to unleash a salvo of small rockets.
Ranma casually hopped from rocket to rocket until he reached her.
"click," the arm sounded. Despite unloading all of her rockets and causing a nice bit of collateral damage, she hadn't so much as grazed the boy, who grinned menacingly before grazing her with a light kick that sent her flailing awkwardly through the air and painfully into the pavement.
Ranma approached with a sinister chuckle.
Just as he reached her, she drew a knife, stood, and brought the knife through the air in a wide arc.
Ranma smashed the blade with his bare hand and then grabbed her wrist, "Now, now, what did your parents tell you about playing with sharp objects?" He gave her a hard knee to the gut, followed by a front kick that sent her clear across the street again.
He clearly intended to follow her when something caught his attention, "Someone left a baby alone in the park with candy!" He bounded off, presumably, to a park that wasn't covered in rubble.
Later...
"It won't happen again, sir!" the woman shouted with a pleading tone.
"No, it won't Major," Herb sat on his special throne in his dungeon room, "Go to Lab 32 and get yourself cleaned up. Retrieval of Lan Tsu has afforded us some insights into certain modifications that can be made to improve your effectiveness."
The Major stood and bowed deeply before exiting.
"It is clear that the fat has hit the fire," Herb muttered, "Soon, I may have to take matters into my own hands." He stood and flexed his arms, "I think I've already recovered. Kodachi, it is time to collect the other sailors."
Tofu's Clinic, Thursday...
Kodachi had been Herb's spy among the Sailors from the first. She'd long ago guessed what the Sailors really were, and made a deal with Herb to made her the 'Magical Pretty Princess', which would, of course, mean that she'd be spared. Then the shrivelled midget woman Cologne showed up with the Magical Pretty power. That meant that Herb was just using her. Not that that surprised her.
"Okay, we've got to get out of Japan ASAP," Kodachi said to Cologne and Kasumi, "It's the only way that we can be sure to prolong our lives."
"I don't know, our techno babble about us being the enemies of bad things seemed awfully convincing," Kasumi said nervously.
"What, were we supposed to say that we were the pawns of an evil organization while Dr. Tofu and Herb were directly watching us?" Kodachi asked with a venomous look.
"But Dr. Tofu is such a nice man!" Kasumi protested, utterly ignorant of Kodachi's vitriole.
"Do you want to live?" Cologne spoke up, "Because I am tired of being a lab experiment."
Kasumi closed her eyes and thought, "Sorry about this Akane, Nabiki, Daddy..."
Soun felt a chill run down his spine.
"You're in cahoots with Herb, aren't you," Genma stated with a sinking feeling as he gazed about the Headquarters of the MIB-J, Ravenloft. There were many obvious metahumans here and there. It looked like a fairly loose high tech office. Genma sat in a conference room of some kind with bullet proof glass for walls. There were various runic diagrams on the glass that Genma realized would render the occupants invisible and almost invulnerable.
"We do not approve of Herb's methods, but you, of all people, ought to know the level of influence the Legacy has over us," Amon stated gravely.
"You know I could destroy you all in an instant?" Genma's tone took a peculiarly frightening aspect.
"Wonderful thing, Orbo," Amon snorted, "Besides, as long as you're here, Herb won't be able to kill you. The balance of power can be maintained."
"Balance of power, eh?" Genma scratched his chin thoughtfully.
"The Galactic Police's Earth representative vanished in that earthquake a few days ago. Missing, presumed dead," Amon informed Genma.
Konatsu had lost one of his false eyebrows.
"Damn, they were expensive too," he muttered.
"I thought you made them from construction paper," Mihoshi said, innocently.
Konatsu pouted indignantly, "Well, I found the safe house, so you can just keep your thoughts to yourself!"
Kiyone took a swig from her hip flask as she surveyed the seedy motel room around them. A motel that charges by the hour, what a find.
"I say," a thin man with a strong british accent and a rather bland tweed suit spoke in a book laden study somewhere in London, "Norbert, there is a man at the gates that says he's here to kill us."
"Well, Gilbert, we can't very well let that happen, can we?" Norbert, a paunchy man with a gray mustache, similarly clad, replied.
"Shall I get the submachine guns?" a cockney boy dressed like a chimney sweep asked the two men.
"Indubitably, Edward," Gilbert answered.
Part 2: Ambition
Hiroshi watched as Big K was given a shiny coat of wax. He shivered in his bat boots at the thought of tromping through the city in a huge mech. He was going to step on everyone he could find!
Shin muttered something about getting a new job as he shifted around in his Robin costume.
"The Timeline has been repaired!" Zarela spoke as he materialized in the hanger.
"What?" Hiroshi seemed genuinely confused.
Gosunugi looked up from his Akane doll, "Don't worry about it."
"Okay," Hiroshi nodded as he climbed into the Big K.
"I am Herb Aldebaran," a voice echoed throughout the cave.
Zarela and Gosunkugi stood and stared into a dark corner of the cave hangar.
Gosunkugi transformed into Velius.
"My, my," a cloaked figure with a european sword decorated with a dragon motif. It was a claymore (large two handed sword), but the figure wielded it with ease in one hand, "Aren't you going to return my introduction?"
"Run!" Velius boomed at Hiroshi and Shin.
Aldebaran rushed forward and swiftly decapitated Zarela.
Hiroshi panicked and leapt from Big K, hitting the ground and running with a limp to an emergency elevator with Shin on his heels.
Zarela's body dissolved.
"All I wanted was to protect my family..."
Velius feinted and fired repeated blasts of green energy at Aldebaran, who swiftly deflected each one with a sweep of his sword.
Velius growled, "Flare!"
A huge ball of flame exploded around Aldebaran, who emerged in a dash, running Velius through with his claymore.
Velius staggered back.
Aldebaran pulled the sword free and made his way toward the elevator.
Velius exploded in a cacophony of light and sound.
"Akane! Only once did I ever speak to you! Alas!"
Hiroshi and Shin staggered out of the elevator's exit (a phone booth) and made their way hastily down the sidewalk.
An instant later, the phone booth shot into the air and crashed into the street, causing several auto accidents.
Aldebaran leapt from the hole in the ground left there and quickly overtook the pair. Shin dodged down an alley as Hiroshi took an impromptu fighting stance, "Stay back! I know Judo!"
Aldebaran chuckled. A sudden wind allowed Hiroshi to glance under the man's hood, "You! Why?"
Aldebaran growled and ran away.
Kiyone was writing something on a pad, Mihoshi was staring at the radiator, and Konatsu paced impatiently.
"If only we knew what happened to Ryoga," Konatsu muttered.
The door to the motel room flew off its hinges as the cloaked figure entered.
"Herb?" Konatsu squeeked.
"Correction. I am Herb Fomalhaut," the figure explained as he drew a dragon claymore, "And I am here to do what Lan Tsu failed to do!"
"That's in violation of..." Konatsu began before Kiyone grabbed him and launched the two of them through a nearby window while Mihoshi provided cover fire.
She ran down the street with Konatsu in a fireman's carry, "I apologize for acting out of my rank, sir, but we have to get you to safety."
"Waah!" Konatsu tried to wriggle free.
There was a sudden cry in the distance.
"All I wanted was Kiyone's approval..."
Kiyone gritted her teeth.
"Oh God!" Konatsu choked out, "He's coming here!"
Kiyone glanced back long enough to see Fomalhaut leaping toward them. She dropped Konatsu, "Run!" and drew her blaster.
Not fast enough, Konatsu had barely made a yard before Fomalhaut made a bound over Kiyone and took Konatsu down.
"Ukyo! I couldn't save you! Arg."
Kiyone turned, but Fomalhaut was gone, "What do I do now?"
Kodachi led Cologne and Kasumi to an experimental helicopter that waited in her backyard.
Before they could board, another Herb interposed himself between them and their escape route, "You are lucky that you are needed alive."
"Herb," Kodachi spit the name out.
"You may call me Herb Sol," the figure laughed, "Cologne, hold them."
Cologne grabbed hold of both of the others.
"You don't think I really trusted you, do you?" Sol laughed.
Karasuma was on look out when Herb Algol swept by her. She turned to fire, but he was inside Ravenloft before she could expend a single shot, "Amon! We have problems!"
"I knew it," Genma stood, "Now it has to be finished."
"Stay put!" Amon commanded as he left the conference room.
His first step out was his last.
"Gah! What will happen to Shampoo now?"
The figure entered the conference room, stepping over Amon's body.
"You aren't Herb," Genma spoke flatly.
"Correct. I am Herb Algol," The figure didn't make any further threatening move, but he was dragging a dead psychic, so it stood to reason that that didn't make him any less dangerous, "This is your invitation to Hell, Genma Saotome."
Genma threw a bolt of energy that incinerated Algol on impact.
Legacy headquarters stood in ruins as the final Herb choked the cockney boy.
"Who... gurk... are you?" the boy gasped.
"Herb Polaris," The man spoke with cold hatred, "You could call me Herb Prime or just plain Herb, but I suppose you won't be calling much of anything anymore, eh?" The sentiment was punctuated with an audible crack.
Ranma stood at the damaged Cat Cafe, "Well, so much for that. I wonder if Haruko's making Okonomiyaki?"
Shampoo and Happologne caught him as he turned to leave.
"There is a grave disturbance in the...," Happologne began.
"Force?" Ranma chuckled.
"Yes, I suppose you could call the mystical ley fields a force of a kind," Happologne nodded.
"You've never seen Star Wars, have you?" Ranma deadpanned.
"I have seen wars fought amidst the stars if that's wh-,"
"No, that's not what I mean. Shut up," Ranma turned again.
"The world needs your help!" Happologne shouted irritably.
"Yeah, about that," Ranma spoke, "I'm gonna destroy the world today, so if you have any, like, vacation plans er anything, y'know..."
"..."
"Alright Saotome," Happologne narrowed her eyes shrewdly, "If you save the world, I'll let you marry Shampoo."
"Who's Shampoo?" Ranma blinked.
"Shampoo is Shampoo!" Shampoo stomped.
"?"
"Save the world or else!" Happologne punctuated the command with a thwap.
"Well, if you put it that way...," Ranma looked thoughtful.
Akane was just heading home from the still closed school when a rapidly moving figure stopped in front of her.
"Haruko?" Akane raised an eyebrow.
Haruko punched her in the gut really hard, "That's for last night!"
Kuno ran toward Akane from the other direction, "Akane! I was looking for you! It would seem that... uh oh."
Haruko gave Kuno a mean look, "I don't like you."
"Ah, I assure you that there doth be a logical explanation!" Kuno backed away.
"Didn't I tell you what would happen if I saw you again?" Haruko growled.
At this point, Akane stood and cold cocked Haruko, then proceeded to savagely beat her.
Kuno blinked.
Akane stood, panting, "There..."
"Er... I think we fixed time," Kuno peeped.
Akane gave him a killing glare, "I don't know what you're playing at, but you should go now."
Kuno nodded and walked calmly away.
Last Tuesday Night...
"You know what I've just realized?" Akane looked at the two Harukos, "I don't really care about Nerima at all. What do I care if this dinky little ward full of psychos and perverts gets erased from time? In fact, that would almost be merciful!"
"Uh... erased for all time?" the Haruko Akane was there to beat up asked.
"Yeah, if you... I... We... Haruko follows after the doc, then Nerima will be dissolved in time," the Haruko from the past explained.
"Well, if that happens, then my needlessly complex plans will all be for naught!" the rooftop Haruko exclaimed, horrified, "Thanks for the warning, Tofu ain't that important anyway."
"Oh no you don't!" Akane grabbed Haruko, "You are going to follow Dr. Tofu, and I am going to make sure that none of this crap ever happens!"
"You can't make me!" the rooftop Haruko stuck out her tongue.
Akane sputtered angrily for a bit, then beat the living heck out of the rooftop Haruko and sent the past Haruko into low orbit. Thus, she accomplished the goal that she hadn't intended to accomplish.
She then wandered the streets and ultimately into the woods, sputtering and screeching. If the powers that be are merciful, then she was probably overwritten by her other self.
Back to the present...
Ranma, Shampoo, and Happologne managed to gather Kuno, Kiyone, Haruko, and Karasuma, the only MIB-J agent known to survive Herb's assault, in the Cat Cafe, which was obviously out of business at the moment.
"Herb is behind all of the monster attacks and has stolen from our Mr. Saotome here several stones of great mystical potential," Happologne addressed the people present, "He has destroyed the organizations that police such things as well as our connection with the Galactic Police and the other MIB. It should go without saying that, whatever he intends, the consequences of his success will be dire indeed. We are the only ones with the knowledge to stop him."
"What can we do to thwart the fiend?" Kuno asked.
"First, neither you nor Ms. Haruhara can use your sailor powers," Happologne answered, "If our conjectures are correct, based on input from all of you, then it is essential that your power take no further root in your souls."
"Then how am I to aid you if not as one of the repulsive sailors?" Kuno asked.
"Are you not a 'peerless' swordsman?" Happologne asked mockingly.
"Indeed I believed I was, but I recently found myself bodily transported past time as I understand it and have come to think that perhaps I am not so great," Kuno admitted.
"Sometimes one must be content to take a supporting role," Happologne told him.
"Enough!" Kiyone started, "We know where Herb is! Let's plan an attack."
"Indeed," Happologne nodded, "He has a small base of operations here in Tokyo that is virtually unguarded. Mr. Saotome, Shampoo, Ms. Haruhara, and Ms. Karasuma will attack this base while Officer Kiyone, Mr. Kuno, and I gather more information. Herb is quite powerful and may have taken special precautions. It may become necessary to fall back and regroup, in which case we will be able to strike Herb's pursuing forces in a pincer attack with secondary forces and redouble our assault."
"Got that?" Ranma asked with an irritating smirk, as though he knew something that the others didn't.
"Yeah, about this," Kiyone spoke through her teeth, "Why is he with the assault group?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Happologne asked with a similar smirk.
Ten minutes later... in front of a flower shop...
"This is Herb's base?" Karasuma asked incredulously.
"Haruko need find switch on roof," Shampoo ordered.
"Find it yerself," Haruko gave a dismissive wave of the hand.
"Only spatula girl can find it!" Shampoo growled, "Shampoo no like this more than spatula girl."
"Fine, fine," Haruko snorted and leapt amazingly to the roof of the three story building in one bound.
"Now, pig girl need go in and watch for secret entrance opening," Shampoo told Karasuma, who muttered something under her breath before entering.
A moment later, Karasuma flew through the window. Ryoga sans bandanna leapt through the gaping hole and stood before Ranma and Shampoo as pedestrians dashed for cover. A car swerved to avoid the rising Karasuma and ploughed into another car. As Karasuma reached her feet, she dove back to the relative safety of the sidewalk.
"Adramelk?" Ranma asked Ryoga.
"Wrong," Ryoga punched Ranma hard enough to send him flying through the building across the street. Ryoga unleashed a loud war cry as he leapt over the wreckage in the street and pursued Ranma.
Shampoo helped Karasuma and urged her back into the shop, "We must be hurrying!"
Part 3: Is This Really Much of a Crisis?
Shampoo dashed into an alcove in a wall amidst flowers and gunfire as Karasuma covered her as best as possible. They made their way down a spiral staircase into the first basement. Haruko was already waiting for them in from of an ominous door.
They nodded seriously to one another before bursting through and quickly surveying the area. Nabiki Tendo lay on the ground, clearly out of it as a woman with purple hair and piercing red irised eyes choked Akane, who struggled in the woman's grasp, "Where are the other Sailors?"
Karasuma drew a bead on the woman's head and fired, only to witness the bullet ricochet as though it had struck metal.
The woman dropped Akane, who seemed to sink into a stupor, and turned to face the intruders, "Perhaps you can tell me?"
Haruko laughed and drew her spatula.
Karasuma stumbled a bit and began to summon her eldritch pig.
Shampoo brandished her bonbori.
The woman drew a submachine gun, "What, no introduction?"
Then all hell broke loose.
Karasuma and Shampoo dove for cover behind columns that were placed haphazardly about the room. The room was dimly lit and some of the rugs that lay about concealed pits, as Shampoo discovered after nearly falling, "Aiyaah!"
Haruko leapt into the hail and somehow dodged the bullets, which couldn't even be seen. She brought the spatula against the woman's head.
CRASH!
Ryoga threw another punch, sending Ranma flailing into a streetlight.
"Gah! What is wrong with you now?" Ranma flinched as he bounced backward to avoid another one of those punches.
"You killed Haruko! You piece of crap!" Ryoga shouted as he shattered a nearby wall.
"Oh? Then why does she endlessly pester me, eh?" Ranma laughed as he narrowly avoided a left hook, "You don't believe in ghosts, do you?"
"You've tortured me for years!"
"Like?"
"How about Jusenkyo? Or Hokkaido? Or virtually any time we've met?"
"Let me introduce you to the concept of mental manipulation."
"What?"
"You see, both of us are unique beings of immense power, but we have one achilles heel."
Herb looked at the red gem in its ornate case and chuckled, "I never thought it would be this easy to find the phoenix stone!"
"With the right knowledge, anyone can alter the mind of anyone else," Ranma adopted a serious look.
"Are you saying the Devil made you do it?"
"I'm saying that I have very little memory of doing much of anything in your presence, much less to you."
Ryoga growled and threw a hard kick that took the wind out of Ranma's sails, "Then who am I? Who am I?" Ryoga kept hammering Ranma, then sent him flying through another wall.
Ranma arose, surrounded in a blue aura, "As of this moment: Dead meat."
When the spatula-to-the-head attack failed, Haruko managed to disarm the woman of her gun by spraying her eyes with some kind of sauce and biting her wrist. It was like biting an aluminum can. Which really didn't bother Haruko too much.
Shampoo and Karasuma's pig attacked the woman from both sides. She took the hit, then backflipped and fired rockets from her hand, somehow. Since she couldn't see, the rockets flared wildly and hit random targets.
Karasuma managed to dodge long enough to scoop up Nabiki as Shampoo scooped up Akane. The pig took a few hits shielding them as Haruko emerged behind the woman and gave her a hard tap to the back of the head.
The stream of rockets ceased as the woman attempted a spinning backhand. All that she hit was a concealed iron door, which crumpled on impact.
"Ooh! Don't wanna get hit by that," Haruko commented.
The woman threw a knife in the direction of the voice, catching Haruko by surprise. She took the knife in the shoulder, "Urg!"
The woman then leapt into a flying kick at Haruko, but was intercepted by Shampoo's bonbori. The woman flailed into one of the columns, which fell over. Shampoo moved in for a deathblow just as Akane revived where she'd been laid down, "No! Down get near!"
It was too late. A bubble of energy emanated from the woman, paralyzing Shampoo, "What happening to Shampoo?"
The woman stood and threw one vicious punch after another, casually deflecting any attempt to rescue Shampoo.
Akane stood with a small chunk of a column shattered by rockets and hurled it with all of her strength.
It "clanged" against the woman's skull. She tottered for a bit, then just fell over.
Shampoo dropped to her knees.
"Akane?" Haruko looked genuinely confused.
"It's nothing big. I want to know why my home was attacked. Let's go on," Akane spoke seriously.
Shampoo decided to keep watch over Nabiki and the woman. Karasuma lent her the eldritch pig before she, Akane, and Haruko (who pulled that knife out when no one was watching) proceeded through the revealed door.
"What's next in this place?" Karasuma wondered as they made their way down another staircase.
Ryoga and Ranma were fighting like monsters, tearing through concrete and steel as though though putty and paper. People ran this way and that as a punch crushed a car or a kick took a chunk out of a building. The police had arrived at this point, but they had to settle for trying to create an orderly evacuation.
"You've gotten strong," Ranma spoke with an evil chuckle.
"You've gotten stronger," Ryoga growled.
"Let's end this!" Ranma bull rushed Ryoga.
Ryoga's battle fury grew more intense than ever as Ranma lifted him off of his feet in the charge and brought the two of them toward a seemingly random direction at full tilt.
Words from some deeply imprinted memory began to speak themselves through Ryoga's mouth, "Open seven doors to reach the bweeee!"
Ranma had sent both of them into a fire hydrant. P-chan was being held quite tightly by Ranma-chan, who muttered, "God, it would be so much easier just to be rid of you, but a promise is a promise. For now."
A large truck blared its horn. Ranma-chan looked up. A moment later...
Karasuma, Akane, and Haruko had descended the staircase and walked directly ahead, ignoring the rooms on their sides. At the end of the hall was a large iron door with a forboding dragon motif. Haruko smashed the door down with a single punch, "Knock Knock!"
It was like a room from a medieval dungeon. Dark stone walls, chains, a throne (throne?) and some kind of slick mold over everything. Dank and dark, what more could you want?
Of course, not all of the action in the room was directed toward the visual analysis of the mold, there was a black cloaked man standing behind the throne, facing away from them.
"I've been waiting for you," The man turned and revealed his face.
"Ranma?" Akane was shocked, did that mean that Ranma was the Kamaitachi?
"Actually, my proper name is Herb Aldebaran. You see, my 'parent' form has departed from this place to fulfill his destiny. I'm afraid you are much too late," Aldebaran laughed cruelly.
"Then I'll bet you're the one that's been haunting our dojo!" Akane screamed angrily.
"Come again?" Aldebaran blinked.
"DIE!" Akane leapt at Aldebaran and began to furiously whale on him with savage punches and kicks, knocking the throne over.
Haruko shivered.
"What... is she?" Karasuma asked, nervously
"Not very ladylike, that's for sure," Haruko said just prior to passing gas loudly, "That was you."
In a few moments, Akane dragged Aldebaran's shivering form over to the other two and laid him in front of them, "Where did Herb go?"
"Make it... stop... why?... why me?" Aldebaran began to sob softly.
Haruko nudged him lightly with her boot.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" he flailed and rocked.
"I think ya may a gone too far," Haruko commented.
"Uh... oops?" Akane looked embarassed.
Suddenly, a man in a tux rushed in looking dishevelled, "I'm sorry it took so long for me to get here, but the streets are a mess and...," He looked at the quiverring form of Aldebaran, "and... uh?"
"Who are you?" Karasuma asked.
"Chewbacca," the man replied grudgingly.
"You don't look hairy to me," Karasuma remarked seriously.
"Why does everyone tell me that?" Chewbacca roared.
"Er, well, I thought that this guy and Akane were the same person," Haruko scratched the back of her head.
"Are you saying you think I'm hairy?" Akane seemed confused, but that could change to anger in one wrong statement.
"No! I mean, I thought that you were, like, given magic powers or something by that creep, Tofu," Haruko chuckled nervously.
"And became a man?" Akane turned red. Uh oh.
"Uh... well... I thought something... happened a few days ago... with some Jusenkyo water...," Haruko fumbled through the words as Akane got redder and redder.
"Well, that's obviously wrong," Chewbacca broke in, "How could you think that, you goofball, you!" Chewbacca playfully rubbed Haruko's head.
"Well, we'd better leave and take Aldebaran with us before something worse happens," Karasuma spoke as she lifted Aldebaran in a fireman's carry and made her exit. Haruko followed hurriedly.
"That was close," Chewbacca muttered.
"Yeah," Akane breathed a sigh of relief, "Much more and they might've hit on something they don't need to hit on. Now let's hurry and go before they miss you."
Herb sat in a comfortable chair in his spacious cabin in the S.S. Limemint, gazing covetously at the pouch sitting on his desk. He had everything he needed now. If this plan didn't work, though, he still had three of the sailors.
Ed woke up with tread marks on her body and clutching a hyperventilating piglet, "Woooah! Did Ed fall down?" She looked around. Wreckage was everywhere, "Um. We'd better go, piggy!"
AN 5/12/05 : Chapter 18 down, two more to go. I don't think it'll take much of a guess to know where Herb is going. Probably, some of the "mysteries" in the story are painfully obvious to you by now. I'm going to promise that something will take you by surprise. Oh yeah, and I'm thinking about putting out some spin off "Inner Demon" stories about things like Genma's early travels and such. Just like one or two chapter stories. There are a lot of things that simply aren't going to be revealed in the scope of Demon. Already it has been noted that I try to say too much at once, so I may as well leave a few things vague. Whatever happens, I just want to get this one story done.
