Disclaimer (of course)- I do not own .Hack or Ranma 1/2, obviously. They are owned by much better people than me...
Online Personalities
By Phantom Dragn
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Prologue- The Calm Before the Storm
After Saffron, one of the strangest and most insanely illogical things happened in Nerima. It was not supposed to happen, by any means, especially not in Nerima, center to all strangeness and powerful beings.
It was quiet.
In any other city, in any other place, this might have been great. However, in a place accustomed to godlike beings, impossibly old masters, and princes of all kinds, this was akin to a harbinger of the apocalypse. No adventures, no invaders, no supernatural problems.
Something had to happen, somehow. However, the residents of Nerima, arguably the greatest fighting force in the world, didn't seem to notice. Years passed mildly, as Cologne and Shampoo backed off, the incident with Saffron showing both just how dangerous Ranma had become, and how strong the bond between him and Akane was. Ukyo moved around a lot more, having opened a small chain of Ucchans, and Ryoga passed through, "sparring" with Ranma with enough power to break rock and steel with near misses. Luckily, they had control enough now, and reconstruction wasn't as common anymore.
At the Tendo Dojo, things had changed a lot. Akane and Ranma's relationship had gotten a lot better. Life and death situations tend to do that. Nabiki was working as a businesswoman, probably sending other executives crying, and Kasumi was in college, finally pursuing her dream of being a doctor.
Seemingly set in time, Nerima sat through technological advances, as The World came into being without notice, and the problems concerned with it resolved without too much head turning from Nerimians. It was, after all, a relatively normal thing for the city used to destruction and mysterious anything.
For The World, it had also become more peaceful. As the past incidents became forgotten as new members joined and old ones left, including many of the heroes who had saved it. New upgrades and software developed. Level caps were lifted and soon there were powerful level 100+ players walking around. Physical abilities in the real world could translate to the virtual one, giving advantages to those involved in sports or gymnastics and the like. Monsters and dungeons grew bigger and in bigger quantities to the game, as graphics and items got better as well.
Of course, there were computers in Nerima, and the World permeated the city as more and more people joined. It was nothing compared to the still beyond belief battles the Nerima Wrecking Crew still had, but it was fun to actually have the fight yourselves.
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Eh, my first chapter of my first fic. Getting used to writing something like this, so just the prologue for now. Will update at least one more chapter soon, though it will probably be slightly short as well.
Please comment/review this, flame if you must, I know it can't be that good, being my first try :P.