Disclaimer:
I hold no claim of ownership over the Japanese anime known as Ranma ½ nor the American cartoon known as G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero.
Timeline:
G.I. Joe is around five months before the events in G.I. Joe the Movie. It has been a year and a half ever since the episodes of Arise Serpentor Arise took place.
Ranma ½ is three weeks after Ranma's battle with Saffron.
The year is 1987
A G.I. Joe/Ranma ½ Crossover
Crossing the Line
By Darksoar
Chapter 1
Revelations and transitions
Part two
Akane was sitting down on the couch in the living room, eagerly waiting for her fiancee to return home. Though the television was on, her attention wasn't focused on it. At the moment she was entertaining a fantasy concerning her trustworthy mallet and Ranma.
She was smiling in anticipation, and the desire to perform some extreme bodily pain on a certain Saotome could be felt a mile away. The two fathers and her sisters noted the expression on her face and acted accordingly; they kept a safe distance. They all knew who she was waiting for, and were very glad that they weren't the poor unfortunate who Akane would soon unleash her wrath upon.
At this point Ramna's tomboyish fiancee was mumbling to herself, and her fists were tightly clenched. If anyone had come close enough, they would've had heard, "That baka thinks he can get away from me? From me? Well, I'm going to teach him a thing or two. That two-timing, perverted, insensitive playboy is probably out flirting with those other floozies, and if he thinks he can get away with that then I'm personally going ram my mallet right up his!"
Where Akane would ram her mallet up was left to imagination as she suddenly heard someone speaking right outside the front porch. The sliding door was open so the sound traveled to her ears rather easily. As she recognized the voice of the speaker, a hunter's gleam entered her eye.
"Hey, why don't you come inside and have some tea or something? After all, you took the time to come all this way-"
That was all that was said before an eagerly fuming Akane Tendo pounced. She stomped her way towards the front porch, unconsciously holding her two hands in position for summoning her mallet. Upon stepping outside the door, she immediately challenged Ranma in a low, dangerous tone that spoke of violence on the horizon.
"Where did you go this time, Ranma! The Nekohanten! Ucchan's! Kami-sama help me, the Kunou's residence! You ran away to go flirting with those hussies and YOU HAVE THE NERVE TO BRING ONE OF THEM BACK TO THE HOUSE FOR TEA! HOW DARE YOU!" Without further adieu, she called forth Mallet-sama and raised it, about to indulge herself in one of her favorite past times, e.g. Pound the Baka.
Her anger fizzed out, her mallet blinked out of existence, and complete surprise overwhelmed her. Her mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. For the second time in a day, Akane was stunned speechless.
Before her, standing next to Ranma wasn't Shampoo. Nor was it Ukyou or Kodachi or any one she knew. In fact, it was a he. More than that, he was dressed in a local peace officer's uniform. And he was in what Akane recognized as a karate defensive stance, with his eyes tracking her every movement.
Feeling horrified at the prospect of what would have happened if she had not ceased her sudden attack, Akane's mouth wasn't quite in working order. Her mind was of an agreement with her mouth. To put it simply, "……………………………………………………"
Taking some guilty pleasure and satisfaction at Akane's reaction, Ranma managed an adequate solemn face, as well as an equally serious tone of voice as he said, "Takuki-san, allow me to introduce my fiancee, Akane Tendo. 'Kane, this peace officer who you almost struck is Ken Takuki." He paused, then was about to say something else, but thought the better of it.
But he reconsidered it again, wavered, then fell to the temptation. Schooling his face into what he hoped was a serious expression, he turned and faced Officer Takuki.
"Takuki-san, isn't it a crime to try and attack an officer of the law with, um, physical violence?"
Ken glanced at the teenager briefly, then regarded Akane with a hard, no-nonsense glare. "Yes," he stated curtly, "it is quite against the law. Unless, Ms. Tendo, you can give me a satisfactory explanation on why you come barging out of your house like some crazed homicidal psychopath, you should know that such action alone is suitable grounds for taking you down to the precinct and booking you for, as Ranma put it, threatening an officer of the laws with physical violence."
If Akane had been shocked before, now she was totally stupefied beyond simple comprehension. Today had been something else; first Ranma, completely out of the blue, manages to dodge her mallet, and now this. It was too much for her to take. The thought of being booked like a common criminal was the final straw. With that, her eyes rolled back and she fell to the floor in a dead faint.
Ken Takuki was dryly amused, and he turned to his companion. "Well, that's a new one. I've never had someone faint after I tell them of the possibility of going down to the precinct.
Still feeling guilty as well as whole lot of surprise, Ranma shook his head. "I didn't expect her to react this way," he muttered to the older man. "I guess I'd better take her upstairs to her room before someone notices and all hell breaks loose."
He walked inside and quickly looked around. From the sound of it, Kasumi was doing some late cleaning in the kitchen. Nabiki was nowhere to be seen, thank goodness, and the two fathers attention was focused on their usual game of shogi. A rare stroke of good fortune!
Gently picking up Akane's unconscious body, he nodded to Ken. "Takuki-san, please wait here. I'll be back in a few minutes." After receiving a nod from the peace officer, Ranma readied himself. Now he would have to depend on his speed and hope for the best.
Taking a deep breath, Ranma darted rapidly, yet soundlessly through the open entrance, past the kitchen, past the two older men, and leapt up the stairs in a single jump. Snapping a quick look into the second floor hallway, Ranma was glad to see no one in view. He stealthily made his way to Akane's door and opened it. Slipping inside, he gently closed the door; thanks to his intimate knowledge of her room, he could successfully navigate it in the dark.
The young martial artist laid down his burden and turned to go, feeling that he had stretched his luck as far as he dared. Ranma didn't want to think about what Akane would've done if she had suddenly regained consciousness during his sprint down stairs. Before leaving her room, he paused and looked at her.
Throughout the entire Jusendo escapade to the failed wedding, Ranma's feelings and emotions concerning a certain uncute tomboy had gone through several major upheavals. He had been pretty certain that he loved Akane; his reaction to her apparent death had shown him the truth. Truth to tell, he'd been willing to get married to her if she was willing to get married to him.
Unfortunately, she'd seen fit to place all the blame on him for the wrecking of the wedding; she'd jumped to conclusions and believed that he had setup the whole thing with Nabiki's help. That was when their relationship took a turn for the worst. With her stubbornness, anger, and hate driving her, Akane's attitude eventually regressed to the point where it mirrored that of the early days when she and Ranma were little more than strangers. Basically, she didn't trust him at all and seemed to eagerly seize any chance, however minor, to hit him. His unprofessed love for her had taken an incredible beating, perhaps never to recover fully again. Not that Akane gave it a chance to revive, that is.
It seemed that her attitude became worse every day. Now, Ranma was determined to put a stop to it before it was too late. He'd been through hell, practically, heck, he'd even KILLED FOR HER and she didn't even seem to take that into consideration.
Shaking his head, Ranma took one last glance at his fiancee's face and quietly said, "I'm sorry about this, Akane, but you're blaming me for something I had no part in. I wish the situation could be different, but it's not. The fact is I won't follow the same rules that you're used to me going by. Good night, and I hope you realize that before you get hurt."
Ranma doubted that Akane would come to her senses about the truth of his "wedding plot" and dubbed it 'wishful thinking' if she would. He quietly slipped out of her room, silently closed the door, and made his way down the stairs.
Ranma walked towards the front porch,
trying to look casual. Unfortunately he was no actor. If anyone had been paying sufficient attention, they definitely would've noticed it. But luckily Kasumi remained busy in the kitchen and Genma and Soun were still deeply engaged in their game. It had been a clean, successful operation.
Ken was patiently waiting for him outside. Ranma nodded towards the open gate and the two of them headed there. Once out of hearing range of anyone in the Tendo house (hey, can't be too careful), Ranma began, "Takuki-san, thanks a lot for walking with me from the park. You just saved me a lot of trouble with my fiancee."
The peace officer cocked his head to the left and said, "Saving you trouble? What are you talking about? I was just doing my duty; it was a simple case. She came at me with harmful intent and I warned her about the lawful consequences."
"I see," Ranma said, managing a straight face. He knew Ken was not stating the real reason why, but it didn't matter to him.
"Well, anyways, at least I didn't have an entirely boring night. I want to ask you a question that just occurred to me. Aren't you an extraordinarily skilled martial artist?"
Ranma beamed at the praise. "Of course! From what I've seen, I'm the best martial artist of my generation!" Every now and then, his ego had to come out for some serious stroking.
"Then please explain to me why do you allow a considerably lesser skilled person like Akane to smack you around like you were some sort of rag doll?"
At first, the teenager was reluctant to answer.
Then he sighed wearily, as a heavy burden was placed on his shoulders. "It's a long story, a very long story which you probably wouldn't believe, and I'm not really sure how I should tell it."
Ken scrutinized him with an experienced eye. He had a general idea of what happened in Ranma's everyday life and he knew that the younger boy rarely had a moment of peace. Ken had seen him fight other highly skilled martial artists. Being a martial arts practitioner himself, he knew he was simply outclassed when it came to Ranma and his ilk. Despite the amount of property damage done, Ken was sharp enough to realize that there was no real need to try and apprehend the martial artists. For one, it was rare that innocent bystanders got hurt, and two, a person would have to be suicidal to get between a pair of almost superhumaningly strong combatants. Takuki was devoted to his job, but he preferred to avoid the emergency room if possible.
The peace officer had come to know Ranma pretty well, enough to know that it was near impossible for the teenager to lie. From what Ken had observed, it seemed to go against Ranma's nature to even try and do so. As Ken studied Ranma's eyes, he detected no trace of falsehood; from what he saw in there, it seemed that Ranma was finally trying to come to grips with his life. His eyes spoke of an age-old weariness, of inner pain, bitterness, and torment, and of anger. But Ken had also seen great determination and unshakable resolve. It gave him hope for this young man whom life had stacked all the cards against.
Ken nodded to him. "Okay, but remember, if you ever have to talk to anyone, you know where to find me. I'll be willing to lend an open ear and maybe some advice."
Never had Ranma been given such an offer that was completely free of price tags or conditions. It was, simply put, a foreign concept for him that it was all he could do just to nod dumbly in response.
Barely suppressing an amused grin at Ranma's slack jawed expression, Ken patted him on the back and started off down the street. "Till next time, Ranma," he called over his shoulder.
Ranma automatically bowed and said, "See you later, Takuki-san." As he watched the older man's figure grow smaller, he couldn't help but wonder about something that had been bothering him for a while.
Could it be Ken Takuki was a true…friend to him?
Was it even possible? If it was, then it was a novelty for him.
He sighed. Yet another thing to think about, he decided, and turned to walk inside.
Tomorrow was going to be a busy day.
Early the next morning, a lone individual was at the park, wearing only long, black silk pants and he was barefoot.
Although he'd not experienced a nightmare the night before, which was rare, Ranma had a lot on his mind. He still had yet to come to peace with Saffron's death; in addition to that, he was just embarking on a journey of self improvement. There were many things to focus on, and the turmoil of guilt on his soul didn't make it any easier.
To help, he was practicing the art of Tai Chi. The cool wind rustled through his air; the short, cut grass crinkled under his bare feet; the morning sun warmed him pleasantly.
Ranma Saotome felt alive this particular morning.
Breathing in and out smoothly and regularly, the youth considered the routine he was about to do. It was simplistic and easy; it was also ideal for Ranma to help dissolve several days worth of stress.
Around nine years ago, Genma had brought Ranma to a JDSF military base in Hiroshima. Ranma's father had heard that there were several men there who were also skilled martial artists and wanted to see if they could give him a good match. After Genma easily defeated local self defense instructor, he'd been asked by the commanding officer if he wouldn't mind staying for a few days and show his men a thing or two.
Of course, Genma being Genma, master of opportunism that he was, immediately agreed to it. The two Saotomes were given a room to stay and were allowed to eat with the rest of the soldiers in the mess hall. The next couple of days passed by with Genma teaching the soldiers, sparring (and learning) with those skilled martial artists, and enjoying the free board and room in the meanwhile. With much free time on his hands, Ranma had taken to wandering around the base, seeing everything with an enthusiam only a eight year old could possess.
Ranma had met an American military officer he dimly remembered as "Hoser-san" during the two weeks he and his father were there. With Genma busy most of the time, the youngster took an immediate liking to Hoser-san, and, in the following days, spent a good amount of time with him. Eventually, the odd pair began sharing; Hoser-san had shown Ranma some of the Tai Chi Chuan he knew and in return, the boy demonstrated some of the basic tenets of Anything Goes.
Fortunately, Genma had been sleeping off the effects of some booze he had purloined somewhere the night before, else he would frothing mad at his son revealing his family's art, to a gaijin, no less!
The tranquility in movement and relaxation of the mind inherent in Tai Chi helped by easing his tension. He only focused on the practice itself; having earlier sorted and prioritized amongst the various issues he was facing. In doing that, he had come to see that by dealing with the smaller, immediate issues, the difficulty in facing the larger ones lying in the background would be greatly decreased.
The realization did much to encourage him; for in truth, at times, Ranma had felt that he was going up against an almost impossible goal. But it wasn't in him to quit so easily, even if the odds were against him one hundred percent. No, he would go through this with all of his strength, skill, and every ounce of willpower he had. He meant for today to be a very important and meaningful milestone in his quest for betterment of self. Ranma took the events of last night to be a positive sign; everything had turned out to be more successful than he had thought.
Today would be a day of changes and surprises, for everyone, for him. He'd already gotten a good start by waking up earlier than even Kasumi usually did. He imagined Genma's reaction, with a good amount of amusement, when his son would not be present for their daily morning spar. And how would Akane behave like today after those multiple shocks to the system the day before?
As Ranma finished the closing form, he looked directly ahead, closed his eyes and gathered his thoughts. When he was done, Ranma slowly opened his eyes and went to collect his shirt and slippers.
It was time.
7:15 am.
The students who were usually among the first ones to arrive at Furinkan High were startled to see someone who was usually late. It caused them to do several double takes in order to verify to see if they identified the person correctly at first sight.
They had. It was, without a doubt, the foremost trouble-making student ever to set foot in Furinkan High School, Mr. Chaos Endowed himself, Ranma Saotome.
He was wearing his usual outfit; red Chinese silk shirt with sleeves rolled up, black silk pants, and black slippers. However, if the martial artist was aware of the glances, he didn't show it. In fact, he leaned backwards against the Furinkan front gate, staring down at the ground with arms crossed over his chest. There was a subtle, yet definite I-don't-want-to-be-bothered air about him that discouraged anyone from approaching too close. Even his friends Hiroshi and Daisuke received the message and kept their distance. But as friends should be, they were a little concerned about his unusual behavior and stayed within hearing range.
If a poll had been taken right there, it would have been shown that a good number of the students had a feeling that something…different was going to happen today. And the more perceptive ones would've quickly intuited that Ranma would be the cause for it.
With all the speculation going on, Nabiki walked intently towards her sister's fiancee. People noticed her mood and quickly made way for her, towards her sister's fiancee. Nabiki wanted answers now. Earlier in the morning, Akane had utterly refused to exit her room, claiming that she was feeling sick and had a headache. This revelation had Soun going full blast with his tearing routine and nearly snapped the phone cord as he frantically dialed Dr. Tofu for advice. Kasumi, rolling her eyes at her father's ridiculous antics, went up to see Akane.
Besides Akane being suddenly sick, the other odd thing to happen in the morning was that Ranma turned up missing. Genma said that when he woke up, he had discovered his son's absence, but he didn't know where he had gone.
Immediately, Nabiki's well oiled mind started running. There was an obvious connection between Akane getting sick and Ranma's absence. She was worried about Akane and wanted to find out what Ranma knew, no matter if he was the cause or not. However, Nabiki did not have enough time to question Akane, as Kasumi was already there. Reluctantly, she had eaten, showered, and left for school.
Now, the Ice Queen of Furinkan strode towards Ranma's solitary figure in her best no-nonsense mode. When she was this way, hardly anyone had refused any request that she had asked of them. Perceptive as she was, Nabiki immediately picked up on his quiet and serious demeanor. 'I bet it'll take me less than thirty seconds to crack through that," she thought, smirking.
Stopping to just two feet away from her quarry, Nabiki cleared her throat to get Ranma's attention.
There was no response.
She cleared it again, louder this time. 'Strange, he's usually aware of his surroundings. He'll probably come out of whatever weird martial arts meditation he's in and jump ten feet in the air and say something like "Nabiki, where'd you come from?'.
She was proved wrong. There wasn't even a twitch from the martial artist, not a single acknowledgement of her presence. He might have been carved out of rock.
Nabiki wasn't exactly flustered, but now she was getting a bit annoyed. Ranma had never ignored her successfully for this long before. Time to resort to audio. "Ranma," she snapped in a sharp, accusing tone that emphatically demanded an immediate, direct answer, "do you know why Akane was sick this morning?"
Her sister's fiancee was as cooperative as a statue. When a couple of seconds passed, and he still hadn't answered, the older girl was about to step up to the next level of interrogation. But before she could do so, Ranma unexpectedly broke his silence.
Still gazing down at the ground, Ranma replied calmly, "She's not sick, Nabiki."
The Ice Queen considered a moment before replying; the words were consistent with Ranma's behavior pattern, i.e. he was already denying early in the conversation, but his tone wasn't. Instead of being indignant and defensive, Ranma was the total opposite; cool and collected. Something wrong with this picture and Nabiki had to find out what it was.
Taking her time to respond to that outrageous claim, Nabiki affected a disbelieving air. "Not sick? So why is it that she's not coming to school today and Kasumi is nursing her in her room?"
"She just thinks she's sick."
"You will forgive me if I don't buy that line, Saotome," she commented sarcastically, "and I know that you are responsible for her current condition. I don't care how, why, or what. All I care about is that you'd better give me a good answer, one that I like." She didn't say 'or else', but she knew Ranma knew she implied it.
Nabiki was surprised when she heard his answer. "Well, hearing it from you, Akane sounds really sick. You know, instead of asking me all these questions, you could be taking her to the hospital."
The middle Tendo sister narrowed her eyes, her mind racing. This was not good; Ranma was unexpectedly giving her a successful runabout, and the longer he did that the more her control of the conversation deteriorated. She couldn't figure it out, but Ranma was definitely not himself today, for lack of a better term. In fact, Nabiki could swear that it seemed that the martial artist was thinking before speaking. She had thought it unlikely, perhaps even impossible, but she suspected that Ranma was deliberately trying to annoy her. One thing was certain; this wasn't normal behavior for him.
Maintaining her cool demeanor while encountering an unpredictable Ranma took some effort, but she managed it. Mentally switching gears, she admitted, "Okay, it's not that serious. I'm just concerned about her; I mean, Akane's never been sick in the morning. I just want to know what happened to her. I have a very good feeling that you're involved somehow; Uncle Genma woke up this morning to find you gone. You weren't anywhere in the house. Why is that, hmmm? You have to say that it looks very suspicious, on your part."
Nabiki was certain she had Ranma where she wanted him. Now she felt confident that his façade would crack wide open and he would start babbling out denials.
However, with such expectations, Nabiki nearly facefaulted as Ranma did the last thing she expected; he started chuckling and for no apparent reason that she could see.
Raising her eyebrows in confusion, the Ice Queen wondered what on Earth was Ranma's game today. She didn't like it; she preferred a more controllable, predictable Ranma than the one she was currently trying to fathom, without much success.
What the hell was going on here? Did she suddenly step into the Twilight Zone or something?
Ignoring the startled looks from the other students, she regained enough of her composure to ask him in an irritated tone, "What's so funny, Ranma?" The Ice Queen found the thought of her somehow missing something that Ranma had caught onto very disturbing. If anything else, Nabiki hated being left in the dark.
Winding down on his brief spurt of mild laughter, Ranma finally looked up and for the first time, she saw his expression clearly. As their eyes met, upon seeing the sudden intensity and incredible determination of his stare, Nabiki inwardly flinched. But her pride didn't allow her to look away. Hell, with so many witnesses around, she had a reputation to protect, dammit, and her backing down from Ranma would seriously undermine, if not destroy, it.
So she squared her shoulders and met his gaze head on.
Ranma was the first to speak. In a clear, crisp condescending tone he said "You don't get it, do you, Nabiki? Hell, I don't think anyone gets it. But I thought if anyone would get it, it'd be you. But, unfortunately, you see, you're part of it as well. It's hard to see something for what it really is when you're inside."
"It? What are you talking about Ranma? You're not making any sense." Nabiki didn't show it, but she was getting more irritated by the moment.
Continuing as if she hadn't spoken, Ranma firmly stated, "I find it funny how Akane became sick. I find it funny how everyone reacts when she became sick. I find it funny how everyone automatically assumes that it's my fault that she's sick." His voice hardened, turning bitter and angry, as if long dormant emotions were breaking through. But, aware that he was losing control, Ranma paused a moment. He forced the majority of his emotions into a dark hole somewhere and sealed it tight.
He continued in a more restrained manner, "I find it funny that for the longest time, I was surrounded, and still am in some instances, by block headed idiots like my father, Kunou, Mousse, Ryouga, Kodachi, and Shampoo! I find it funny that they piled all their garbage, all their troubles, all their fantasies and dreams right onto my lap. MY LAP!" he emphasized in a louder voice. "As if I don't have enough problems with my curse, with cats, with fiancees popping out of the woodwork," he spat, saying the word as if it were a curse.
Now speaking with more heat and passion, but still held for the most part in check, Ranma continued, "I didn't ask for any of this, hell, I didn't ask to be engaged to anyone! Not to Ukyou, not to Akane, not to Shampoo! Although I'll admit I do share a little of the fault in both Ukyou and Shampoo's case, I sure as hell didn't have anything to do with my engagement to that tomboy! And she's the one who hits me the most times with that damned mallet of hers every time she gets angry!" At this point, Nabiki could read in his face that despite his control, his emotions were struggling to resurface.
"Fine, I'll tell you want you so desperately want to know! You want the reason behind your little sister's so called sickness? It's like what I told you; Akane isn't sick. She's in shock, fully and completely. The reason why is because she experienced something that totally defied her expectations and she wasn't able to bear it. That's what's wrong with her."
"I've got a feeling that I'll be saying this a lot during the next couple of days. I guess this means you're going to be the first to hear it: I've had enough, do you hear me?"
Nabiki was about to ask another question, but Ranma overrode her. He wasn't planning on stopping for anything. Hell, even if the Prime Minister himself was present, Ranma was going to speak his mind without a trace of doubt.
"I'm tired of being treated like I'm some sort of prize to be won; an object to use and abuse, as anyone sees fit; or someone to be blamed for his or her problems. I'm tired of people running my life and making major decisions on my behalf without my say so. I've had enough of all of IT. So, as of today, I'm drawing the line right HERE, right NOW, and anyone who crosses it, God help me, they will live to regret it a hundred times over. I won't tolerate bullshit that anyone, whoever they may be, thinks he or she can push onto me."
Ranma didn't say anything else. He didn't have to, for his point had been made, clear as a bell. Whether people understood it or not was their problem, he figured. He would be happy to 'help clear' things up for them. By what he saw, Nabiki had been temporarily struck dumb by his declaration and was now staring at him as if he suddenly grew another head.
Despite her reaction, Ranma knew that she would soon recover from her shock. He also knew, without a doubt, that she would soon try and squeeze an advantage from it for her.
'Let her react; Let her think; let her study. Let her try to make a profit out of this. If I know her at all, I bet she'll come to think that she can use this to try and twist me to her own uses. Just let her try. I'll be ready.'
Although some seventy students were around them, though at a respectful distance, all had heard him. They'd kept their peace, witnessing one of the most unusual dramas they had ever seen in all their time of knowing Ranma Saotome.
And now, as Ranma looked over Nabiki's right shoulder, he saw one of them, a certain individual, who coincidentally fit into his 'master plan'.
The cursed teen grinned, and it wasn't a nice one. Rather, it reminded some of the onlookers of a hungry lion on the hunt.
It was going exactly as he had thought it would. Cocking his head to the left, he regarded Nabiki for a second, "S'cuse me, Nabs, but there's someone I gotta catch. Later."
With that, he simply walked past her as if she didn't exist.
Tatewaki Kunou was presently daydreaming about his Pig-tailed Goddess™. With his ever present bokken in its sheath, he ignored the rest of his fellow students as he neared Furinkan High's gate. Deep down inside, he carried a small amount of guilt that a scion of the noble House of Kunou would debase himself to entertaining such delusional fantasies, but he could not help himself. For him, she was the epitome of feminine beauty, the perfection of womanly charms. From the first time he had well, come into contact with her, Tatewaki had been hopelessly smitten.
Since then, he had taken it on as his personal quest to endeavor in winning her love. However, as a ancient wise man had once said, the course of true love never did run smooth. Countless were the times he had thrown himself into her passionate embrace, only to be rebuffed, many times. It was true that there were only a few instances when Tatewaki and the Pig-tailed Goddess™ had spent precious time together, but he was absolutely sure that her heart belonged to him and no other.
He was positive, and had evidence to prove his claim, that whenever the fair maiden had rejected his gentlemanly gestures of affection, she did so while under the twisted spell of his none other than his arch rival, Ranma Saotome.
Further contemplation of the subject was rudely interrupted by an irritatingly familiar voice coming from his right.
"Kunou."
If Tatewaki had been more grounded in reality, he would have described the voice akin to a razor sharp katana being unsheathed. If he'd been more perceptive, he would've surely sensed the potential threat behind that voice posed an extreme danger for him. Somewhere in an often ignored portion of his mind, a very small voice that tried valiantly to serve as his common sense screamed at him that an immediate tactical withdrawal was wise. Like every other time, Kunou ignored it with ease.
"State your business, Saotome. I do not wish to waste my morning in idle gossip with you."
"I challenge you to combat. Right now, at the track and field. You win; I release the Pig-tailed Goddess™ and Akane Tendo from my spell over them and I swear I won't ever involve myself in your dealings with them. I win; you swear never to touch the Pig Tailed Goddess ever again or to attack me without first giving an official challenge."
Kuno sniffed contemptously, "You do not have suitable cause to subject a son of the noble Kunou house to such proposals. Fiend, retract thy statement else taste the wrath of Tatewaki Kunou, the esteemed Blue Thunder of Furinkan High!"
Ranma shrugged, completely ignoring the taller boy's suggestion. "Nope. Agree to my terms or else you'll be known as the Yellow Coward of Furinkan High. Everyone," he waved his hand towards their audience, "is waiting to hear your reply, Kunou. Which will it be?"
As Ranma's challenge rang throughout the air, Nabiki finally regained her senses and blinked her eyes. She was startled when she saw that Ranma wasn't in front of her anymore. That was soon remedied when she heard him speaking in such firm and emphatic tones which Nabiki had never heard from him before.
Turning around, she automatically motioned to her assistants to approach and at the same time, got a handle on what was going on. Ranma was full of surprises today, and Nabiki had the feeling that he was just beginning.
Now that she had a moment to think things over, she felt…, actually she didn't know how she felt. Well, at least she knew that she was confused. Oh yes, and she was still feeling angry from Ranma's casual dismissal of her. Another day she would have taken harsher retribution against Ranma for being so cavalier in dealing with her, but today proved to be an exception. She wasn't just angry and annoyed; her interest was greatly aroused, as well as her curiosity. Questions were rampaging through her mind, and more were being added as she gazed appreciatively upon the muscular form of Ranma as he challenged Kunou.
'Why was Ranma doing this? Who put him up to it? Did he plan this by himself? Is this somehow responsible for Akane being sick? Does daddy and Uncle Genma know of this?'
Unfortunately, the source of those answers to those questions was otherwise occupied at the moment, and Nabiki knew that it wasn't a good idea to interrupt an official challenge. She'd have to settle and question Ranma later. One thing she instinctively knew, however, was that the week was going to be very interesting.
Silence prevailed.
A hush fell over the gathered group of students as they awaited a response. This was a first. Usually, it was the older boy who initiated the challenge, but today it was the reverse. Which wasn't the least normal, but then again, anything involving Ranma wasn't for that matter.
Tatewaki Kunou's face was a study in pure, unadulterated wrath as he fought to compose himself and also to draw his bokken and cut down the nefarious Saotome where he stood. As much as it nettled him, he was forced to admit that the fiend had made an official and, unfortunately, legible challenge. And in order to protect his honor and not lose face in front of the student body, Tatewaki had only one choice he could make.
Standing straight and tall, the kendoka raised his wooden blade and pointed it directly at his rival. At last in control of his anger, he said but two words.
"Challenge accepted."
"And the terms?" Ranma wasn't taking any chances. He wanted to absolutely make sure that Kunou knew what he was getting into. The pigtailed boy had counted on the rest of the students for serving as invaluable eye witnesses.
Gritting his teeth, Tatewaki quickly considered the terms. He would have liked to raise some protest, but as he went over them, he saw that he stood to gain a lot, should he emerge victorious. And even should he lose, he would still have the voluptuous Akane Tendo to pursue with all his heart. It would be a shame to lose the lovely attentions of the Pig-Tailed Goddess™ though.
Grudgingly, he nodded his acceptance, however reluctant, of the fiend's terms and sheathed his bokken. "Shall we proceed to yon battlefield, rival mine?"
With an inscrutable expression, Ranma replied with unusual equanimity, "Sure."
Ten minutes later, at Furinkan's track and field, the two rivals stood ten feet from each other, ready to commence the challenge.
Ranma was completely calm, as well as silent. This struck his fellow students as very strange; usually Ranma would be hurling insults at his foe or boasting of his own prowess. The 'Wild Horse' had his reasons for not doing so; he wasn't telling, though.
Although many students had gone to their beginning morning classes, a good number had remained to watch the fight. True to form, Nabiki and her subordinates were working the crowd, taking bets. Since it was proven to be a fact that Kunou would never win a fight against Ranma, the shrewd middle Tendo sister decided to capitalize on something else. Thus, she started the bets going on how many minutes would it take Ranma to beat Tatewaki.
After the last bets had been taken, a dead silence fell upon the spectators. No one moved a muscle, seemingly not wanting to distract either fighter.
Tatewaki Kunou placed his right foot forward and set back his left foot with the heel slightly raised. In one swift motion, he drew his bokken and leveled it above his head and across his shoulder. With that done, he bellowed a battle cry and darted forward.
Ranma saw him coming and dropped into a loose side bow stance. His face showed almost no emotions at all, beyond a calm readiness.
"The vengeance of heaven is slow but sure!" cried Tatewaki as he began closing the distance between them.
A distant part of Ranma's brain wondered exactly where Kunou found the extra air to shout like that while running. The rest of him focused on the approaching battle. That portion told Ranma not to hold back as much, because for this part of his plan to be successful, he had to unleash at least some of his true strength.
When he got within striking range, the kendoka shifted his wooden blade to the right and abruptly slashed across, aiming for Ranma's chest. Not surprisingly, the pigtailed martial artist simply leapt over the slash.
In midair, Ranma gritted his teeth in silent annoyance at Kunou's tirade. Employing his mastery of Anything Goes, he twisted his body to the side and kicked his opponent squarely in the jaw. Momentarily stunned, Tatewaki staggered backwards a step. Upon landing, Ranma immediately dropped into a crouch and did a footsweep, knocking the kendoka's legs out from under him.
Although stunned from the kick to the jaw, Tatewaki, through sheer willpower, forced away the pain and controlled his fall, guiding it into a backroll. Coming quickly into a crouch, the older boy lashed out twice in wide arcs to discourage any further attacks and also to buy him some time to come up with a possible tactic to use against his foe.
It didn't work.
Waiting until the second slash was halfway completed, Ranma moved like the wind, for once utilizing his full speed. He blurred forward and appeared only a foot away from Tatewaki. Before the startled older boy could react, the Anything Goes practitioner was already attacking.
The other students winced in sympathy as they saw a completely one sided fight as Ranma simply beat down Kunou relentlessly. They were shocked and more than a little scared by the way he was fighting. The pigtailed boy wasn't throwing insults, fighting near his opponent's level, or following his usual tactics. Instead, they saw a harder, serious, and intensely focused stranger in his place.
A quick left hand chop struck at a single pressure point on Kunou's wrist, forcing him to drop his weapon. In lightning quick motions that were all but invisible, Ranma threw two consecutive right jabs, followed up by a left straight to the chin, barely holding back. Weaponless and hurting from the combination, Kunou was wide open to the triple blow follow up; a savage roundhouse to the rear of the jaw, a left hook to the temple, and a right uppercut. His head was knocked back, and when it resumed its normal position, Ranma wasn't surprised to see that Kunou was still conscious.
He unleashed a left uppercut, this time bending his upper body lower, thus springing up with greater force. Once again, Kunou's head snapped back and Ranma relentlessly continued the assault. With a loud kiai, he stomped forward with his right foot, and worked his fists into a blur, striking the Blue Thunder eight times on his body. Although not at Amaguriken speed, the eyes of the other students only caught the barest of flickers of motion. Two punches for the chest, the solar plexus, the stomach, and the abdomen. Incredibly, despite the blows, Tatewaki managed to stand, though he was unsteady, staggering off balance, and was blinded by the pain for the moment.
Ranma let him sway for a moment and backed up half a step. With another loud kiai, he lashed out with strong, yet lightning quick palm strike to Kunou's chest. The force behind the blow lifted the hapless Blue Thunder off his feet and sent him flying backwards to land heavily several feet away.
When Tatewaki didn't immediately get up, Ranma nodded in grim satisfaction. He went, picked up the dropped bokken, and began purposely walking towards the slightly moving figure.
Upon reaching him, he saw that the Blue Thunder was curled up and alternating between coughing and gasping in big breaths of air. He stopped and stood a foot away from him. Despite his outward calmness, some of the tension had built up from his 'talk' with Nabiki. Now, on the eve of the first step in truly making a difference in his own life, Ranma dispelled that tension and hardened himself. He was still adamant about settling things with Kunou.
After a minute, Tatewaki was able to regain his equilibrium and had recovered his normal breathing rate. Opening his eyes, the first thing he saw was the figure of his most hated adversary. Automatically he tried to climb back to his feet, only to realize that the cursed Saotome had stolen his bokken and was pointing it at his throat. Wooden or not, the point was still sharp enough to poke a hole in his throat should Ranma was of a mind to, with sufficient force behind it, of course.
Most of the Kunou family had, to a certain degree, a remarkably deluded mind, but fortunately for Tatewaki, he wasn't as misguided as his sister or his father. To be sure, he was still delusional, had a remarkably quick recovery from injury, and was incredibly stubborn as well. He was all these things, but surprisingly he was not a complete idiot. Kunou knew that he was in a hopeless position, and he had no room to maneuver. So it was that brimming with self righteous indignation, humiliation, and fury, Tatewaki leaned back on his elbows, glaring at Ranma all the while.
"Fool, you dare tempt my ire by thinking to threaten me by my own weapon? Do you not know the danger of do-urrk!"
The Blue Thunder of Furinkan High suddenly found out that it was difficult to talk normally when the tip of a sharp, pointed object, a bokken in this case, dug painfully into his throat.
"Shut up, sempai." That last word was spoken with a grim sarcasm. "I am going to say some things that I want you to hear, and you're not gonna interrupt me. Because if you do, I'm gonna keep poking this wooden stick here in your throat. The more you interrupt me, the more deeper I'll poke. Capeesh?"
"Foul enemy of wom-urrrg!" As always, Kunou was a slow learner to certain things.
"Will you be quiet; or will you force me to rip you a new one?"
"I, the Blue Thund-urrrk! Auurrgh!" True to his word, Ranma pushed the bokken a little bit deeper; as it was, Kunou couldn't speak a word without gagging first. He could barely breathe at this point without adding to the pain. It galled him. But he realized that he had no choice in the matter. And that galled him even more.
For once in all the time Saotome was his rival, Kunou was forced to accept his utter defenseless postion and to submit to the hated underclassman. He was delusional, not suicidal. The Blue Thunder clearly heard the uncompromising tone in Ranma's voice; saw a glint of hardened, cold determination in his eyes. Tatewaki was suddenly doubtful that his rival's threat about 'ripping him a new one' was a mere jest. It seemed to him that Saotome was deadly serious, and a chill swept over him.
Satisfied that Kunou would hold his peace at least for the moment, Ranma eased back on the bokken. Already his sharp eyes could detect the beginnings of a bruise on the Blue Thunder's neck, but he ignored it. With his blood still running hot from the excitement of the fight, Ranma had to force himself to calm down in order to properly finish this business.
"I win," he stated loudly, finally, "and you'll uphold your end of the terms. No arguments, no complaints. Agree as an honorable man would."
There was no immediate reply. Ranma could tell the reason just by looking in Tatewaki's eyes that there was great conflict. Principle Kunou's eldest was stuck between the mighty titans of pride and honor. Before, they worked hand in hand for Tatewaki, even at times he'd ignore one and focused on the other. But now, Ranma had cleverly manipulated circumstances so that there would be unfortunate consequences should Tatewaki decide to do that now.
"I know not what is your objective, Saotome, but-"
"But nothing. And stop trying to stall or change the subject. Will you uphold the agreement we made regarding the terms or will you not?"
When Tatewaki still made no reply, Ranma added, "Everyone's waiting to hear what you have to say, upperclassman." Which was a subtle reminder that Kunou would lose face, big time, should he choose to go back on his word and honor.
After what seemed to be an eternity, the Blue Thunder averted his gaze from Ranma and his demeanor became aloof and detached. Then, in a harsh, grating sort of way, he began speaking.
"I, Tatewaki Kunou, do hereby accept," saying the word 'accept' as if it left a foul taste in his mouth, "my defeat in single, honorable combat against Ranma Saotome. Furthermore, I will accede to the following conditions proposed prior to said combat; I, with all witnesses present, swear never to harry or express my love in regards to the Pig-tailed Goddess™. Additionally, I also swear I shall not assault Ranma Saotome without first conveying an official challenge. Thus I swear all these things effective, on the honor of the noble House of Kunou, as of today!"
Though he didn't show it, Ranma let out a mental sigh of relief. Surprisingly, he did not feel elation to any great extent, though he was pleased that it had worked out as well as it had. The young Saotome had thought that Kunou would be much more resistant than this, but as it was, he gave silent thanks above. Maybe he'd underestimated Kunou's sense of honor and fair play. Or maybe it was that he had controlled the whole affair to work to his advantage all the way. Whichever it was, it was the results that mattered the most.
"Okay then, that's it. Till our next official challenge, Upperclassman Kunou."
Ranma shifted the bokken to his left hand and offered the other to the Blue Thunder. At first, he thought that Kunou wouldn't accept it, but he was mistaken. Hesitantly, with great reluctance, Tatewaki lifted his hand and took it. Pulling the kendoka up effortlessly in one smooth motion, Ranma regarded his rival. He was both surprised and impressed; if their positions were reversed, Ranma wasn't certain he would be able to sufficiently let go of his pride enough to accept the gesture.
One thing was clear to him; behind the visage of a bokken wielding, pseudo Shakespeare and samurai enthusiast, Tatewaki Kunou possessed unexplored depths to his character.
Even to himself.
A couple of feet away, amidst the group of students who had watched the entire fight, Nabiki stood with her subordinates. Now as she saw Ranma helping Tatewaki up, her 'shock meter', already cracked in some places, shattered totally.
However, she was made of firmer stuff than her younger sister. She did not faint nor did she mentally blank out for an hour or more. However, it was safe to say that later on she would require time to fully assimilate what she'd experienced.
"Now that's something you don't see everyday," she muttered, summing up how everyone felt at the moment.
Throughout the rest of the day, the news about the morning fight sped throughout Furinkan like wildfire. Although Ranma beating Kunou wasn't anything new, it was how he did it that provoked sufficient interest to be inducted into the rumor grill. Never had anyone seen Ranma attain victory through use of force; and it wasn't just a victory, it was an overwhelming revolutionary turn of events that promised to change everyone's view of the pigtailed martial artist. Not only that, but also the way how Ranma stood up to Nabiki earlier provided extra ammunition for such a promise.
Many who had heard the second set of news were in shock. To nearly the entire school, the idea of standing up and telling off the infamous Ice Queen was completely foreign. Everyone wanted their reputation and social standing to remain preserved; none liked the thought of their secrets being paraded in Furinkan's halls on display for all to see. After all, who did?
Many a student took a perverse pleasure that since there were many firsthand eye witnesses during the confrontations with Nabiki and Tatewaki apiece, the Ice Queen couldn't charge a cent for details. However, it seemed that Nabiki was affected by that scene with Ranma. Her subordinates received her silent message that she wanted to be left alone. No one else dared or wanted to approach her.
Virtually tons of speculation, wild guesses, and their ilk ran amok throughout the grapevine. Heads turned, furtive glances taken, and hushed whispering started wherever Ranma went. Staunchly, he ignored it and continued on with his day. At the same time, he gave off an aura that matched Nabiki's in effect. Hiroshi and Daisuke, being his closest friends in Furinkan, stayed close but kept silent. Although they should've been wary of him because of the brutal way he'd forced Kunou to heed the terms, they instinctively knew that Ranma wasn't a danger to them. They also suspected that there was a lot more to come, and it was mutually agreed between both of them that Ranma wasn't done yet.
"And now, students, please turn to page 45. Now as you see Figure 3-4, the right angle is at 90 degrees, always, without exception." Mr. Yamato, a balding, middle aged Math teacher was currently lecturing on Trigonometry in homeroom 2-A. Considered by most of the students as one of the most boring teachers in all of Furinkan's faculty, it took an effort just to stay awake in class.
Ranma, Hiroshi and Daisuke had the misfortune to be among the unlucky twenty five students in said class. Fortunately, the three friends had seats at the back in the same row, so they were relatively shielded from Mr. Yamato's near sightedness. Surprisingly, Ranma wasn't sleeping, but neither was he paying attention to the lecture. It seemed to his two friends that Ranma had withdrawn into himself; some place where he could block out his surroundings and do some thinking.
Hiroshi and Daisuke thought it was a good thing he'd done that. They weren't sure of otherwise how he might respond to the level of fear being shown of him by their fellow classmates. It was as if everyone else sitting around the trio were afraid that Ranma might suddenly go berserk or something.
Such reactions coming from their classmates really disappointed Hiroshi and Daisuke. The two boys had thought their fellow students and friends were better than that. Perhaps they'd overestimated them.
Thirty minutes before Trigonometry ended, both of them were passing back and forth a single notebook that served as their communications relay. They timed the passing in such a way so that they didn't get caught. By the time, the bell rang, their 'conversation' was a couple of pages long.
Hiroshi: I don't believe these idiots! After all Ranma's done for them, after all he's been through, they decide to turn on him like this!
Daisuke: Hiro, don't be too hard on them. They're just afraid. They've never seen Ranma act like this before and it scares them.
Hiroshi: Scared? Why they should be scared of him? He hasn't done anything to anyone who didn't deserve it and he's always protected, or at least tried to, those weaker than him.
Daisuke: That's true but you gotta remember. They don't know Ranma like the both of us do. As a matter of fact, probably aside from the Tendo family and maybe Ukyou, no one knows Ranma better than us.
Hiroshi: Heh, damn right! Everyone thinks that we just 'hanging on' to Ranma, as if we're trying to grab onto some of that attention for ourselves. Well I'd admit that it was like that when we first got to know him, do you remember those days Dai?
Daisuke: Do I ever! Remember that one time we were bothering him with all sorts of idiotic questions about whether he'd gotten Akane into the sack yet? Remember what happened when he got so distracted by our questioning?
Hiroshi: By either luck, accident, or fate Akane batted a foul ball right into his cheek! Man, my sides were starting to hurt from hiding all that laughter back. And when we found about the existence of the 'Pig Tailed Goddess?
Daisuke: Geez, I forget how many times we asked him to set us up with her! It was a wonder he didn't lose his patience and smack us into next week!
Hiroshi: Yup, those were the times. But we're getting off track here. Ranma's done a lot of dumb things, but I think he's done even more good for the entire school. For example, I can't count the number of times he's chased Happousai out of the girl's locker room, or help return their stolen unmentionables.
Daisuke: A very valid point. It reminds me of something I read in a book about human nature. I forgot the title, but it describes Ranma's situation rather nicely.
Hiroshi: Do tell.
Daisuke: Well, in the book, there was a short story about a king. This king was a good and noble king, making sure his laws were just, making his taxes reasonable, judging cases as fair as he could, having the welfare of his realm in mind, you know, those sort of things. Well, after nearly twenty years of being such an ideal king, he was found out in a scandal involving one high-born lady of the court. And she was married, to boot. Well, to make a long story short, the populace, his subjects, forgot about all the good he'd done for them in a surprisingly short amount of time. They began to call for his dethronement and basically turned their backs on him. Instead of forgiving and forgetting, they started howling for his blood and chased him out of the kingdom. He died of heart break and depression a short time later, a bitter and coldly indifferent man who held little resemblance, save physically, to that of a once great king.
Hiroshi: Nice. I think I see where you're going. It just takes one wrong act to be done in order to transform a person into a criminal in everyone else's eyes. It doesn't matter if his track record was that of a saint, does it?
Daisuke: I'm afraid not, Hiro. And that is kind of what's happening to Ranma. Our classmates, even if they don't like Kunou that much, are shocked. All this time, they've grown used to Ranma acting the way he's been acting all this time. And when out of the blue, he does something unexpectedly like threatening Kunou's life with his bokken (personally I thought it was overdue), it threw them for a loop. They suddenly started thinking if he'd lost it, and were scared of the harm he was capable of with all the skill at his disposal.
Hiroshi: You hit it right on the mark, bud. However, I'm getting kinda tired of their stupid behavior, human or not. Ranma's not a saint or anything, but he's also done a good amount for the school! But look at them! They're treating Ranma as if he had some sort of disease or something! I've got half a mind to walk up and knock some sense into them, right away.
Daisuke: I know how you feel. I'd like to do something among the same lines. But hang on and don't do anything now, all right Hiro? Come lunchtime and we'll talk it over. I'm sure we can think of something that'll help Ranma.
Hiroshi: Okay Dai. But we'd better do something, cuz I'm not sure how long our bud can last with everyone like this. Give a few more days and it'll get to him. Then he'll have a bigger problem on his hands!
When the lunch bell rang, Hiroshi's patience was just about wasted. This had come about by the constant note passing and head turning by his classmates, all regarding Ranma. This had served to effectively annoy and irritate Hiro, who, after only a few minutes of watching this activity, was ready to start shouting in all their faces to shut up and telling them off. Thankfully, the notebook conversation managed to calm him down sufficiently enough to hold on, as Dai had suggested.
As everyone collected their book and bags, some took this opportunity to take a last glance at Ranma. That was when Hiro and Dai acted like overprotective bodyguards. Hiro glared furiously at them, making a great show of scowling aggressively and gritting his teeth together. Dai simply affected a small frown, a look of obvious disdain, and a cool, challenging look in his eyes.
Feeling uncomfortable at being caught staring, their classmates hastily left the room, leaving Hiro, Dai, and Ranma, who was still in deep thought. Shaking his head in disgust at the attitudes of some people, Hiro stood up and went to his pigtailed friend.
"Ranma, class's over. It's time for lunch." he placed a concerned hand on Ranma's left shoulder and shook him gently. If his classmates had seen him do that, they would've probably tried to stop him. However, Hiroshi was firmly convinced that Ranma, no matter what happened, would not hurt or threaten him of his own will.
His faith was affirmed when the young martial artist blinked once, coming out of his introspection, and stood up. Looking around, Ranma saw that the room was empty of people save for the three of them. Scratching the base of his pigtail in confusion, he asked, "Hiro, Dai, where is everyone?"
Stifling a laugh, Hiro smiled. "It's time for lunch, man. What say we go outside and get some fresh air or something while we eat our bentos?"
If it was any period that Ranma liked the most in Furinkan, it was most definitely lunch period. Usually, he had a delicious, tasty bento cooked by Kasumi and would sit in his favorite spot, which was under the oak tree, with either Ukyou, Akane, or the two boys, depending on his mood and needs at the moment. Based on past experience, Hiro and Dai knew that Ranma would cheer up, or feel better at the very least, come lunch. They planned to talk to him, if he was willing, about what happened that morning.
They were correct in one aspect, but they were wrong in another.
As soon as Hiro said the word 'lunch', his mood indeed changed. But instead of shifting from a sort of distracted introspection, a switch seemed to flick the other way, fueling Ranma with a sudden surge of energy. Had Hiro and Dai been able to see Ranma's aura, they would've been surprised. It was a bluish determination, more than matching Ranma's usual yellow confident aura in intensity. As it was, Hiro reflexively took a step back, surprised at this abrupt change. Dai looked on with amazement, and with a little apprehension.
Ranma Saotome's eyes were alive, radiating with pure determination and unbreakable resolve. To his friends, it looked as if he'd decided upon a difficult decision that had been plaguing him for some time. It would turn out that they were correct.
Hesitantly, Daisuke asked Ranma, "Hey Saotome, what's wrong?" Hiroshi mutely nodded his agreement with the question.
Ranma just stood there. For a moment he was silent, as if gathering his thoughts. Then he met Daisuke's eyes and smiled faintly.
"Nothing's wrong, Dai. I've just made a difficult decision, one that, for a long while, I've never thought I could ever determine on acting upon." He paused for a second, then continued, "I need to go now, even though it'll probably mean missing the remaining half of the day. It doesn't matter anyway; what I have to do is more important to my life in the future."
It was Hiroshi who ventured to ask the obvious question, "Where are you headed?"
Ranma's answer was quick and offhanded. "I think I need a long, good chat with my mother, Nodoka Saotome."
End Chapter 2
Author's Notes:
Whew, a tough one to write! Thank goodness it's done! To the readers, sorry about the delay. At the same time while I was writing this, I was also doing some heavy editing for the prologue, as well as writing the second chapter of my 'The Incredibles' fic.
C&C is very welcome and appreciated. In the future when I reach a certain chapter, perhaps chapter six or seven, I'll start doing a rewrite of earlier chapters and posting them up on the FFML, implementing all the suggestions and corrections everyone sent me - ).
Stay tuned for Chapter 2, as we see what the Joes are up to, and Cobra starts the beginning stages of their plan. See ya there!