I would like to thank Ghost in the Machine pre-reading this chapter with his trusty baseball bat and microscope.
Constructive criticism is always welcome.
I don't own any of these characters or situations. They belong to someone else. Also this is done purely for fun, not profit. Any resemblance to persons living, dead, yet to be born, or visiting from other dimensions is purely coincidental. I'm doing this for fun.
Boldly going where others had gone before and meekly going where few have been.
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University Part 13
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Ranma had no idea how she ended up high above the Earth in her Senshi form, nor did she particularly care. Right then she was seeing red and wasn't particularly thinking straight. Hovering there, clear of the atmosphere, she pulled more power into her scan. The jump in power extended her senses as she sought to discover where they took her Tenchi. The trail faded out when it got beyond the orbit of Mars where it got lost in the background distortions that had plagued her and Pluto for the last few weeks.
Frowning, Ranma opened up and poured more power into her scan than she ever dared before. When it became a question of power, for Ranma, less was better - the fear of losing control always lurked in the corners of her mind and held her back. She had erected self-made barriers between her and "it" and carefully maintained them. Now it was the fear of losing someone near and dear that assaulted those self-erected barriers, breaching small parts of them like holes in a dam. Ranma felt a slight sensation of euphoria as the massive energies flowed through her. Shaking off the feeling, she concentrated on redirecting this wellspring of energy until it pushed through the considerable interference that shrouded everything.
It was if a layer of dust was blown clear of a photograph, giving her a clear view of the picture.
Ranma traced the thin line in space made by the alien ship beyond the orbits of Saturn and Neptune. Pushing further out, she felt the passage of the offending ship that carried the man she loved until it pulled along side one of thousands of ships that were just outside of the Oort Cloud that surrounded the Solar System. A rather large ship that clearly was the flagship.
Anger and other dark emotions raged through her at the thought of Tenchi being in the hands of people that callously endangered innocents with their senseless attacks. This created a spike of energy that Ranma would have found surprisingly pleasant if she were paying attention.
Without a second thought, Ranma went into 'super' mode with wings of fire and small flares sprouting and returning to her body. She tightened her fist around the hilt of her sword as it formed in her hand and she prepared to go and reclaim Tenchi. Not sparing any time for planning, Ranma cut a opening in space/time and moved through it.
She was going to get Tenchi back or kill each and everyone of them trying.
She materialized about three hundred thousand miles from the main body of the fleet and began scanning the thousands of ships more carefully. Something in the back of her mind, acting like a tactical computer, began plotting several avenues of attack. Ranma noted about a hundred or so ships breaking from the main fleet, heading her way. "Maybe I don't have to kill them, I'll just put the fear of god into them," she thought as she redirected more power to her weapons and less to her senses. "But if they hurt Tenchi..."
Another spike of energy flowed through her as it traveled in on that emotion. The tiny hole widened in the mental dam that held her power in check. Ranma was forced to pause when a wonderful, dizzy, and slightly intoxicating feeling came over her with the power. Ranma revealed in the sensation briefly, almost losing herself in it.
Ranma shook her head, clearing it. "That's never happened before," she pondered momentarily. She blinked a few times and centered herself emotionally. "I'll deal with it later," she concluded before returning to the matter at hand.
Invisible to all, a woman watched everything with interest in her aged eyes. She smiled. "Perfect," she thought.
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"Umm... sir?" A young tactical officer said nervously. "We thought we had a massive energy reading from above the third planet, it then disappeared and is suddenly now approximately two hundred, fifty thousand miles away and closing rapidly."
The Admiral just looked at the young officer. Seeing it was a relatively new addition to the crew, me mustered a smile to boost morale. "Very good," he said with warm authority. "Dispatch the nearest squadron to intercept."
"Aye, sir," the officer replied as he passed the orders. "Six hundredth and fifty second is on its way."
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Tenchi was confused. One moment he was under a strangely dressed man in the snow, the next he found himself in a large, dome-like room. Before he could mount an offensive at the man on top of him, the cross-dressing man got off him and apologized.
"I'm sorry, your lordship, I have to report in," he explained as if it explained everything.
Tenchi sat on the floor, dumbfounded by the unexpected turn of events. He managed to look around and couldn't help but spy his house. It was intact and carefully placed in the center of the massive room - complete with the surrounding landscape. He sighed.
"Great. Just great. And right in front of Ranma too!" he groused to himself.
The man in the shrine maiden's uniform was busy talking into a tiny microphone as the man in the Hawaiian shirt rubbed his arms for warmth.
"Sorry about the surprise," the man in the loud shirt said sincerely. "But we had orders to get you out of there for your own safety."
Tenchi blinked once. Twice. Three times. He then rubbed his forehead and sighed again before asking, "What's going on?"
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Ranma closed the distance between her and the oncoming ships. She could've done so faster, instantly even, but she decided to make a show of it: a show of force. Her sword faded into nothing as she directed raw energy to her hands. Small balls of concentrated energy formed in the palm of each hand as she powered up two solar flares - ones that were more powerful than she had ever dared to make. Holding her arms out to the side, hands glowing with contained power, set her sights on the largest ship in the fast approaching group.
The well-oiled war machine in her mind went into action as it examined the oncoming fleet's scans and offered countermeasures for them. Ranma ignored the offered jamming as she wanted to make perfectly clear to the kidnappers what she was capable of doing. Also in the back of her mind, other calculations were being made on where and when to lob the first of her powerful attacks. It was tricky because she wanted to have the first salvos be near-misses - shots across the bow - to show that she meant business. She was planning to sending a message, loud and clear: You're messing with the wrong girl.
Figuring she was close enough that there would be no mistake about what she was capable of doing, Ranma reared back and prepared to fire the first shot.
"Sun! What are you doing!" came a call from nowhere. Ranma ignored it as she fed still more power into her hand.
"Sun! Stop! Think about what you're doing!" Ranma continued to ignored it while concentrating on making fine adjustments to her impending attack.
"RANMA!" the voice bellowed.
This got Ranma's attention as she jumped at her true name being called like that. "Who-?" Ranma asked in confusion as she looked around.
"It's Pluto," the voice said firmly. Ranma now recognized the voice of the Senshi of Time. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"
Ranma looked at the bracelet on her wrist as sound vibrated through it. "They took Tenchi-"
"Who took- oh my," Pluto responded in a truly surprised way. "I... see... but you're not going to do Tenchi any good if you do something that will get him killed," Pluto said loudly and sharply. "Think! Why else would they take him?"
Ranma hesitated as the emotions that fueled her drained away and she thought about what was going on. Realizing her true position and the one that Tenchi was in, Ranma stopped her advance and withdrew from the approaching fleet slightly.
"Wh-what the hell am I suppose to do?" Ranma asked trying to sound angry, but instead it came out shakily.
"We have to assume that he is safe for now - unless you do something stupid. Like attacking them outright," Pluto said calmly. "We need to plan... there may be more people involved than your boyfriend."
Ranma looked at the fleet, with its many ships - the advancing ones were close enough to see clearly now. Ranma weighed the words of the oldest Senshi. She then carefully dissipated the energies that she had gathered for her assault.
"Okay," Ranma said in a still shaky voice. "I'm on my way back. The usual meeting place?"
"Yes," Pluto replied. "I'll try to get everyone there. You go get Ami, Haruka and Michiru and met back at the shrine."
Ranma sighed as she looked in the direction of the distant ship she suspected of carrying Tenchi. She then summoned her sword and cut a path back to Japan.
The old woman was puzzled. At first it seemed that everything was working slowly toward her goal, then in an unexpected twist, Sailor Sun appeared and headed right toward the main Jurian fleet. She watched in glee as Sailor Sun tapped into a tiny fraction of her true power, prepared two massive solar flares, only to stop and retreat back to Earth.
"What is going on?" She pondered as she watched the fleet stop its advance once their target disappeared. She then gave a shrug of her shoulders. Still, it was by far the most fun she had had in ages. Ranma unexpectedly breaking off what should have been an attack confused her for a moment.
"Hmm... I must look into this," she thought with an amused grin. "Can't have my future friend, slave or toy go astray, can I?"
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"Sir! It's retreating! - It's gone!"
Admiral Karikachi nodded smugly. "Of course. It clearly saw what it was up against and decided to save itself. Not so brave now, is it?"
The others on the bridge just nodded absently, but politely, in agreement while they monitored their screens.
"Can you track it? Did you get a bearing on where it was going?" The Admiral asked of his tactical officer.
"No, but we did get a strong reading when it first appeared," the uniformed officer replied. "It manifested itself above the third planet."
"That's where command said it went after it destroyed the fleet stationed here," the Admiral thought aloud with a nod.
"Yes sir," the tactical officer said. "It is safe to assume that this is where it came from."
"Very well," the Admiral said with authority. "Then it is our job to track it down and make it answer for the crimes it committed against the Jurian Empire. Bring the fleet in closer... to a point just outside the orbit of the fourth planet - we wouldn't want it to get away."
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Sun, Mercury, Neptune and Uranus faded into Rei's room at the Cherry Hill Shrine. Pluto and the others were already there, waiting. The four girls detransformed and made their way to their usual spots around the room.
"Okay, what's wrong?" Usagi asked once everyone was seated.
"They took Tenchi," Ranma answered evenly in a voice laced with emotion.
Ranma's fellow Senshi were quiet as they digested what Ranma had just said.
"They?" Michiru asked. "Who are... oh my god - you don't mean?"
"I didn't foresee anything like this," Pluto stated. "It didn't show up in any on the timelines. But since you upped the power in your scans, the Gate are working better than they have in a while."
"What are we going to do!" Ranma asked, half panicked. "When... in front of you, what the hell am I going to do?"
At that point, the room then became too noisy as the other girls began to ask Ranma too many questions at the same time. Ranma was clearly getting frustrated with the situation and was saved when order was restored when Usagi caught everyone's attention with a loud, but well timed, "Excuse me!"
Usagi had learned the value of firm diplomacy. A heavy silence blanketed the room.
"What happened?" Usagi asked while eyeing the others in the room. "Tell us everything, don't leave any detail out."
"We was at the park-" an emotionally frazzled Ranma began.
"In this weather?" Haruka interrupted.
Usagi gave Haruka a sharp look that shut her up. "Please continue," she said as she motioned to Ranma to go on.
"We were at the park," Ranma began again, "and...
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Tenchi rubbed his forehead for the sixth time as he felt frustration build inside him. He looked at the tired looking officer before him and each gave a measured look at the other.
"We have to go back for her," he stated firmly and matter of factly. "If there is a danger, like you claim, then there is no way in hell I'm going to leave Ranma back there."
The Officer of the Day sighed not quite to himself as he addressed the pigtailed man. "I'm sorry sir, our orders were to extract you as soon as possible. Our orders didn't include any... extra personal."
"Ranma is not an extra personal!" Tenchi snapped back. "She's...," his voice trailed off as he tried to find the right words. "... someone special."
The older man eyed the younger one with understanding. "I'll bring it to the attention of the Admiral's staff," he said. "In the meantime, may I suggest that you relax," he waved at the house in the middle of the room. "We are not sure when it will safe to approach the Earth again."
Tenchi sighed heavily. "Ranma seemed happy and nervous at the same time, like she had come to some sort of decision...," he pondered. "I wonder what it was."
Walking over to the side steps of his house and popped down. He began ruminating over the last few weeks. "Ranma has been close and distant at the same time. I hope she's all right."
He reached down and ran a finger along the edge of the step he was sitting on. "Dammit, I wonder what the hell she's going to think about all of this," he thought as he looked around the vast room and paused. "How am I going to explain it?"
He sat up straight on that thought. "Oh man, I can't just say: 'Say Ranma, I'm a prince from outer space' - right," he took is the room again from his seat on the steps. "Then again... if they bring her here, she'll freak out."
He pursed his lips as his eyes narrowed. "I gotta go get her myself," he concluded aloud. Tenchi stood with a purpose and strode over to where two blue uniformed men were guarding the door to the room. As he approached, the men turned to face the heir to the throne.
"Hey you," Tenchi said loudly to the pair. "Where's my grandfather?"
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"... then Pluto contacted me and told me to come back. She said that doing something stupid might get Tenchi killed. So, here I am."
Silence revisited the room as everyone mulled over the tale Ranma had just told.
"Oh my," Rei said softly.
"You said it," Minako said.
"You know what this means, don't you?" Ami asked of everyone and no one in particular. "This means that there is no doubt that they know that Ranma is Sailor Sun."
Silence ruled the room for a few heartbeats.
"And they probably know who the rest of us are," Usagi added. "Everyone's families may be endangered."
Everyone looked wide-eyed at each other.
"Oh shit." Who said that was unclear, but it reflected everyone's thoughts. The room broke into haze of loud talking and general pandemonium.
"Okay! Okay! Quiet down! Quiet down!" Usagi said loudly, somehow bringing the room back into order. "We need to get everyones family to a safe place," she declared.
"Where would you suggest that be?" Rei asked.
"For starters, anyplace that they wouldn't be normally," Usagi replied sharply. "They have obviously been watching Ranma and her boyfriend for some time now, so if we can get them someplace other than their regular haunts, they should be okay." Usagi then mentally added, "I hope."
"That might be hard to do-" Rei began.
"Oh-oh," Ranma said with wide eyes, derailing the current crisis.
"What's wrong," Rei asked.
"I can sense them," Ranma said in a spaced-out way. "When they... kidnapped Tenchi, I kinda... stepped up the power I use when I scan... and... it pushed the interference away."
"You can sense them now?" Ami asked.
Ranma replied with a short nod. "Yes... they're moving closer to the Earth. They're somewhere between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars."
"How come you can sense them now?" Ami asked in a voice filled with curiosity.
Ranma blinked at her friend. "Like I said, I kinda pushed my power higher than I liked. It sorta 'blew' the interference away."
"Why didn't you use that before?" Rei snapped at Ranma. "It would have saved us a lot of trouble."
"Because I was scared, okay?" Ranma shot back. "I wouldn't have got what I did if I didn't lose control."
"You did lose control - all because now your boyfriend's in danger," Rei said in irritation. "Now you suddenly decided that it was all right."
"I wasn't thinking and lost control!" Ranma defended in a voice that would have cut through steel. "Don't you understand what it means if I lose control? No - of course you don't. You have no clue what the hell your talking about and you think-"
"Listen here-" Rei interrupted sharply.
"No, you listen-," Ranma barraged in, beginning her retort.
"ENOUGH!" Usagi loudly proclaimed, stopping the escalating argument. "Right now we have more than enough problems to deal with without making it worse by bickering over something that doesn't matter. We need to concentrate on the situation that's happening NOW."
Ranma and Rei shared a mutual glare before they softened. "Right... sorry," Rei offered.
"No problem," Ranma replied, tugging on her ponytail as she sighed and looked away. "I'm sorry too."
There was a moment of silence as the heat of Ranma and Rei's spat dissipated.
"Okay," Usagi said after all was calm. "Pluto, this is the fleet we've been expecting?"
Pluto held out her staff and produced a three dimensional image of the Solar System. "Yes," she answered. "This is where it is," she continued as she pointed to a place between the orbits of Saturn and Jupiter. The ships were represented by small pin-pricks of light that collected into an orderly blob of light.
"There's so many," Michiru softly commented.
"We can't fight that," commented Haruka.
"We're going to have to," Usagi said in a no-nonsense way. "First, we need to get our families to a safe place."
The others in the room blinked a few times at Usagi's words before the meaning of them sank in.
"What? Why?" Rei asked.
Usagi sighed. "Like I said earlier, there is no doubt that they know that Ranma is a Senshi," she explained. "If they can figure out that Ranma is one of us, then it is a sure bet they know who the rest of us are. We need to get our families to safety before anything happens to them."
Being reminded of Tenchi's plight reignited Ranma's anger toward those that took him. "I'm going to get Tenchi," Ranma declared as she rose from her seat, transforming as she did.
"Wait," Usagi said in a pleading way. "You can't go - they just might kill him just in spite."
"Well what the hell am I supposed to do?" Ranma, now Sailor Sun, snapped back. "Just let them have him?"
Usagi stood, walked over to Ranma, and gripped the smaller redhead by the shoulders. The grip wasn't very forceful or strong and Ranma could have easily broke the hold, but she did not resist. Usagi had captured Ranma in the eyes with her own and addressed her softly. "Now listen, do you want to get your boyfriend killed?"
Ranma physically shuddered at the thought before shaking her head.
"Then stop thinking with your glands and start thinking with your head," Usagi sharply said while leaning back slightly. "They took Tenchi - in front of you - they were obviously sending you a message. Do you understand?"
Ranma was captivated by the force of the blond's personality. Over the years, Usagi's leadership skills peeked through the wide-eyed innocence of youth, and this time it was in full force. Ranma dumbly nodded in agreement to Usagi's words.
"We need to come up with a plan," Usagi said evenly. "WE need to get him back without endangering him. Do you agree?"
Ranma nodded her head with eyes still wide.
"Then settle down," Usagi continued in a more gentle way. "There may be more hostages than we know of and we'll have to try and rescue them all. Okay?"
Ranma sighed. She was defeated by Usagi's reasoning and nodded in consent. Usagi rewarded Ranma with a smile and massaging her shoulders.
"Okay," Usagi said while directing her attention to the oldest of the Scouts. "Pluto, can you use the Gates now to see if anyone else got abducted?"
Pluto nodded as she studied the Garnet Orb at the top of her staff.
"While Pluto and Ranma are working up some intelligence, I want the rest of you to get our families to a safe place, somewhere that they wouldn't usually go," Usagi said firmly.
"Th-that would mean we would... might have to tell them the truth," Ami pointed out nervously.
"Not necessarily," Usagi countered. "I'm sure that we can come up with something... creative. Whatever it is, I'll leave to you, Rei and Makoto to work out. But get our families into hiding somehow until this is over with."
The girls stood and nodded.
"After everyone has done that, get back here," Usagi side firmly. "We have a rescue to plan." She then focused on Ranma in front of her. "What about you Ranma? Do you have anyone?" Usagi asked of the emotionally charged Senshi.
Ranma thought deeply for a moment, then nodded her head. "Yes. My sister is anyway with her boyfriend at some engineering thing, I'm not really sure where. Everyone else... is where they always have been, but since granny died..."
Usagi drew Ranma into a hug, a comforting one. "It's okay," she said with a smile. "The others can take care of your family and get them to safety. I need you here to help Pluto gather as much info on our enemy as we can. We'll get Tenchi back - you'll see."
Ranma couldn't help but smile at Usagi's optimism.
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By the time the Scouts returned, two and a half hours had passed. It took some convincing from some of the families to leave, but with the Senshi being well known and explaining the dangers there were only minor problems. Ami and Rei came up with the scheme of telling the families that due to mistaken identities that they were in danger. As lame as the excuse was, it seemed to work fine for everyone, save one lone exception.
Ami and Haruka walked into the room in the midst of a conversation.
"I'm going to have a lot of explaining to do to my mom when this is over with," Ami said forlornly.
"That bad?" Haruka asked.
Ami nodded. "She's mad and feels like I didn't trust her," she replied. "I'm never going to hear the end of it."
"How did it go?" Usagi asked, curious as to what the two were talking about.
"It went surprisingly well - except for Ami's mom," Rei answered. "Everyone else pretty much cooperated. We told them that their daughters had already been moved to safety and that they should too."
"How did you get around that it was just them and no one else?" Usagi asked.
Rei smirked. "That was easy... Makoto came up with it."
"Oh?" Usagi asked with giving the brown-haired Senshi a questioning look.
"Um... yeah," Makoto said quietly. "We sort of said that we were in danger because of a case of mistaken identity. We were already in a safe place because we, that is our civilian halves, were targets."
"Yeah, and we added that we were worried about our families, so we insisted the Senshi warn them," Rei finished.
Usagi stared at the three girls, blink-blinked, and then focused in on Ami. "That actually bought that story?" she asked incredulously.
"Yes," Ami replied. "That is, except my mom."
"Your mom?"
"Ami's mom... well. She needed more convincing," Rei added - not so helpfully.
Usagi exhaled a long slow breath. This wasn't good. "What did you have to do?"
"I had to show her," Ami said. "She wouldn't budge unless she had proof that I was okay."
"Show her? As in...?" Usagi prompted.
"As in 'Hey mom, did you know I'm a Sailor Scout?', show her," Rei answered not to helpfully for Ami.
The rest of the Scouts groaned. "You didn't..." Michiru began before trailing off.
"We had too," Rei defended her friend. "Her mother wasn't going to budge until she knew where Ami was."
"It won't take her long to figure out who the rest of us are," Usagi said pointedly.
"I'm sorry," Ami said, distress clearly lacing her voice. "I shouldn't have been with Rei or Makoto when we went to my mom's. I should have left it up to them to handle it and now I've made a mess of things."
Ranma sighed as she considered Ami's feelings. It wasn't long ago that she was in the same boat. "Don't worry Ami" she said supportively while drawing the short-haired girl into a half-hug. "My granny knew and it was okay."
Ami just nodded in reply as she and Ranma ignored the looks from the others over Ranma's revelation. The moment dragged out until it reached an uncomfortable level of quietness. Pluto then cleared her throat.
"Ranma and I have located her boyfriend and his family," Pluto announced to the returning Scouts. "They kidnapped his whole family - obviously they were not leaving anything to chance." The breaking of the silence was like a wall falling and everyone immediately relaxed slightly.
"So, what's the plan?" Makoto asked as everyone settled into their traditional spots around the room.
"The plan is that Ranma will open a way to the ship that her boyfriend and family are being held at and we get them out," Usagi answered. "It sounds simple, but we can expect resistance the moment our presence is detected."
"Right," Pluto added. "We are going to time our assault when everyone is in one spot at the same time."
"We get in and out before they know what happened," Usagi finished.
"Why not have Ranma go in using her time-thingy," Rei interjeced. "She could be in and out before anyone knew she was there."
"That was suggested already," Usagi said, glancing at Ranma. "I have my reasons for not going that route."
"What are they?" Ami asked inquisitively.
Usagi looked at Ranma and back at the others. "Lets just say, it was a command decision and leave it at that," she explained.
Rei opened her mouth to say something more, but was derailed by the look Usagi was giving her.
"How much resistance are we talking?" Michiru asked.
"Not really sure," Usagi admitted. "Ranma recognized some of Tenchi's relatives, but she was sure about some of the others."
"So who do we grab and who do we leave?" Ami asked.
"We grab everyone," Ranma answered with a smirk. "If we end up grabbing the wrong person, then we'll have hostages."
Usagi sighed. "Ranma... we've talked about that."
Ranma looked down and stubbed her toe at the floor. "Right - sorry."
"There will be no hostage taking on our part." Usagi said clearly to everyone in the room. "If we grab someone by mistake, we will let them go. Understand?"
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Tenchi waited impatiently for his grandfather to finish whatever it is he needed to finish and come and talk to him. "I gotta talk him into letting me go back and get Ranma," he thought for the thousandth time since he arrived at aboard the ship. "If the situation is as the... whoever that guy was said, then I gotta get her."
He stopped his pacing and eyed the door for the hundredth time. "Stay where you are", "we have to take care of some details", "don't wander off", and "we'll be there soon" were the explanations that were passed down to him while he waited. "It's not so much the wait... okay maybe it is the wait," he thought bitterly. "But why give me lame excuses like I was child? Dammit, I'm almost twenty. I'm not a kid anymore."
He walked around his out-of-place house for the umpteenth time
"And where in the hell is everyone else?" Tenchi asked aloud to no one. "I mean, Ryoko, Ayeka, and... Washu? Where is everybody." He stopped in his walk. "What the heck is going on?"
He sighed heavily and continued his trek around the house. He studied it for any signs of damage. This kept his mind occupied while he waited and he was pleased with the fact that there were no outward signs of damage. He paused and ran his hand over some weathered boards that sided the house and smiled. There were a lot of memories here and he would hate to have anything happen to it. Resuming his walk, he rounded the a corner where Azaka and Kamidake, Ayeka's log-like bodyguards, were stationed just as the door on the far side of the large transporter room opened.
"Tenchi!" A pair of excited voices rang out.
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The room that Pluto and Sun elected to stage the rescue from was near the massive transporter room that Tenchi was in. It was a small utility junction that housed maintenance crawlways, duct work, and various other minor necessities for the function of the ship. It was narrow, long, strictly utilitarian and had a grated, removable floor that had pipes and other assorted fittings running its length. It wasn't a very large room, but it was large enough to fit a handful of men, their equipment, and various other tools to move about freely.
And it was directly across from the Senshi's objective.
The bulkhead at the back of the room glowed faintly as a thin line appeared on its surface. It quickly lengthened to stretch from the floor to a point about six feet high. The middle of the line widened until it was a wide tunnel, eight and a half feet across that hung on the surface of the metal wall. Ranma, as Sailor Sun, was the first through the opening followed closely by Mercury. Both girls looked about for any signs of discovery and felt relief that there were none.
As Mercury scanned what was beyond the door, Sun motioned with her hand. Soon the rest of the Senshi, with the exception of Pluto, silently piled into the small room.
"Is this the right place?" Moon whispered softly.
Mercury nodded as she replied in a low voice. "Yes. According to what Pluto and Sun found out, Tenchi should be in the room across from this one. There is a hallway - about four meters wide - that separates us."
"Right," Moon said. "Everyone remember the plan?" She was answered by many nods. She then turned her attention to a fretting redhead. "Sun, my offer for you hanging back still stands. Do you think you can stay in control?"
Sun nodded. "Yeah. I'm better - calmer. I can handle it. I - I just can only imagine the horrible things that they might be doing to Tenchi right now."
"It's okay," Moon said in a comforting way. "Pluto said he was just fine."
"At least up to ten minutes ago," Sun said.
Moon sighed. Having to deal with an emotionally stressed Senshi was difficult.
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"Oh Tenchi, I was so worried," Ryoko said as she pawed on the pigtailed boy. "I would have rescued you earlier, but some people wouldn't let me." The last said with a glare aimed at a primly dressed girl that pawed Tenchi's other arm.
Tenchi had just pried himself out of the death grip that Ryoko had him in, just to run into another female octopus by the name of Ayeka.
"Urk!" Was all Tenchi managed to get out before being squeezed by the smaller woman.
"Tenchi! You're safe!" Ayeka exclaimed while giving him another squeeze that would make a python proud. "We're all together again!"
"Let go, you old hag. Tenchi is mine," Ryoko shot out in frustration.
"Yours!" Ayeka shot back. "Why would he want anything to do with an ancient relic like you?"
"Ancient relic!" Ryoko shrieked as she began to power up. "You old, overweight snob!"
"I would rather do without either of you," Tenchi said firmly as he untangled himself from both girls. "I am not a plushie to be fought over."
Both girls stopped glaring at one another and focused their attention on a now irate man.
"T-tenchi?"
Before the situation could get anymore awkward, the door slid open again the Tenchi spied his grandfather, his great-grandfather, and a important uniformed man.
"Grandfather!" Tenchi called out while untangling himself from the two female octopuses. "I need to go back to Earth. There is someone I need to get."
Yosho raised an eyebrow as Tenchi began to explain.
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"Okay - ready?" Moon asked. Everyone gave affirmative nods as the tension rose in the small room. "Let's go."
Carefully, Neptune forced the door open and slid it silently into its pocket in the bulkhead and stepped aside to allow Sun passage, followed by Mercury. Though she and Mercury had scanned the hallway to make sure it was clear before entering, Sun instinctively looked around before stepping into the hall.
The corridor was wide and covered with smooth, silvery walls that were interspersed with darker vertical lines. The floor was a darker shade of silver that matched the lines on the wall, and the quietness of the place made Sun feel like she was sneaking into a holy place like a shrine. Sun tried to shake the exciting, creepy feeling that made her long for a bathroom, but quickly sobered up as she recalled the reason she was there.
"Hang on Tenchi," Sun thought with grime determination. "I'll get you out of here."
The group of fuku-clad girls crept across the corridor, stopping before the door of there objective. Mercury tested the door and announced, "Just as we expected. It's locked."
"Right. Sun," Moon motion to the Senshi. Sun walked up to the door and began to feed power into her fist.
"Remember: Control," Moon reminded Ranma. Moon had been growing ever concerned about Ranma's emotional stability since her grandmother passed away. If anything did happened to Tenchi, Moon wanted to be on hand to help control Ranma. This was the main reason for attempting the rescue this way.
Ranma thought about the amount of power she was feeding into herself and powered down. "Some things are better handled the old fashion way," she thought with a smirk. Taking one last scan to make sure nothing alive was in the path of the door, she reared back her foot and gave the door a good, solid kick. The door didn't even give any resistance to Ranma's kick as it buckled out of its frame and into the room beyond.
Not bothering to take in the scenery, the Senshi poured into the room, Mercury just behind Sun, just incase that she was needed to use her 'Bubble Spray" to confuse any opposition. At first there was none as the group of girls fanned out to set up a perimeter around the hostages.
What they weren't expecting was for the hostages to fight back.
----------
Tenchi was in he middle of listening to his grandfather explain the reasons why they were pulled off planet when the door exploded inward. The heavy door skipped across the floor like a pebble on water before coming to rest against the side of the house. The door made a clanking sound with each bounce.
Tenchi's attention riveted to the entryway, he watched as scantily clad girls rushed into the room.
"We're being attacked," the Admiral automatically responded by yelling into his com-link. "Get a squad in here now!"
Ranma sized up the threat factor in the room and found in negligible until she sensed several power spikes. She was soon faced with a cyan-haired women that was charging at her with a sword made of pure energy.
"Ryoko," Ranma thought as she remembered the cyan-haired colored woman. It wasn't everyday that you kissed a girl that good looking and forgot - and Ranma hadn't even if it was an accident. The remembrance of that interesting moment was overshadowed when Ryoko pulled out a glowing rod, wielded it like a sword, and charged Ranma.
Ranma surprised that Ryoko wasn't running away from her captors, but instead attacking her. "She doesn't know us," Ranma concluded mentally. "She probably thinks were part of them... then why try an attack now?"
Feeling like she didn't have the time to explain or find out what was going on, Ranma settled for quickly disarming Ryoko and rendering her unconscious with a pressure point attack. So quick was Ranma's counter that hardly anyone had seen the motion. Ryoko was laid gently on the floor by Ranma before she smoothly stood and caught up to the rest of the Senshi, who were engaging the blue uniformed guards.
Tenchi focused in on the girl that had just laid Ryoko out on the floor and was apparently leading the attacking pack into the room. He naturally assumed that she was the leader. As with the other girls, there was something around her that prevented him from actually seeing her. It was like a rainbow, the type of thing that happens when light is refracted at odd angles. Tenchi couldn't even make out her hair color in the ever-shifting light.
Tenchi stood his ground and withdrew the hilt of the Tenchi-ken and the blade snapped into life as he brought it into a guarded position. "If it's a fight they want," he thought as the girl froze at the sight of Tenchi standing there. "It's a fight they'll get." He then summoned his Wings of the Lighthawk.
"Oh my... what did they do to you?" Ranma asked a powered up Tenchi. She couldn't help but be concerned for the pigtailed boy. She didn't have any time to consider Tenchi's condition as Tenchi went on the offensive. Not wanting to hurt him, Ranma found herself ducking, weaving and occasionally parrying Tenchi's thrusts.
"Ten-" duck "-chi," the Ranma tried to reason as she dodged. "We're-" sidestep "-to rescue-" fall back "-you." parry "Stop."
Tenchi hesitated and quickly broke from the fight. Making sure than he was in an easily defensible position, he questioned the strange girl. "Who are you? And how do you know me?"
"I'm - crap," she began to answer, only to be interrupted by two short blasts of - "Laser fire? What the hell is this? Star Wars!" Ranma thought incredulously. She deflected or absorbed the energy of the shots easily enough with her shielding, but had to stop and assist Jupiter in taking down more than a few of the blue-uniformed soldiers.
Seeing the royal guards being manhandled by the Senshi, Tenchi renewed his attack on the redhead. Ranma was nearly caught flatfooted as she didn't consider Tenchi a threat. She blocked a swipe of his sword with the bracer on her forearm, causing sparks to shower down on both of them. The two disengaged again and back away from one another.
"Will you stop that!" Ranma yelled. "We're trying to help you!"
Tenchi ignored the words of the redheaded Senshi as he concentrated on how to press the attack. "Helping me?" he asked. "By coming in here and attacking me?"
Ranma was visibly getting frustrated as Tenchi renewed his assault. "What in the hell is going on? You'd think he would be glad to be rescued." Out of habit, Ranma continued to dodge somewhat absently as she mentally tried to ponder what could be the matter. Because of her current form, Ranma wasn't as pressed as she was in her ordinary form, but Tenchi's power-up compensated and he managed to keep her on her toes.
For Tenchi, it was an exercise in frustration. Not because that he couldn't lay a finger on the elusive girl, but because her moves were so familiar. Tenchi sped up his movements and his arms and blade blurred. By not really concentrating on the fight, Ranma was again caught flat footed and let out a slight "eep" as Tenchi's blade smashed into her shielding, creating showers of sparks to rain down from the points of contact. Unhurt, but confused, Ranma stepped up the speed of her counters, blocking more of his efforts with her own sword.
"Tenchi stop. We're here to help you," Ranma implored yet again.
This brought some attention from the pigtailed boy as a small fact seeped into his brain. Breaking from his attack, he dropped back and held his sword high in a guarded way.
"And why in the hell is he acting this way," Ranma thought worriedly. "... he couldn't be part of all this... can he?"
"How do you know my name?" He demanded loudly, uncertainty lacing his voice as it rang out in the large room.
"Um... Ranma told me," Ranma stammered out and immediately regretted it. "Great," she thought, "How am I going to explain... wait a minute! I was going to explain anyway."
Tenchi's face hardened. "If you even touched Ranma," he threatened as he focused on the possibility of Ranma being endangered. "There will be no place in the universe for you to hide."
"Umm - right," Ranma said, slightly nervous and flattered at the same time. "Damn it, Tenchi listen to me," she continued sharply with exasperation clearly in her voice. "Damn... stupid disguise field," she muttered. She lowered her guard and looked at the man in front of her.
Tenchi slightly lowered his guard in response, but not as much.
"Listen, we're here to rescue you," Ranma explained in a controlled, even way. "Ranma said you were kidnapped and we came to free you and the others. We're not the enemy - did they do something to you?"
"I've seen these moves somewhere... and recently," Tenchi thought in the back of his mind as he went over the fight in his mind. He stared at the girl in front of him, but any details to her identity were shrouded in a rainbow-like effect around her. "But the only person I've been sparring with lately has been... nah. It couldn't...be...?"
Tenchi narrowed his eyes and stepped forward and performed a complex thrust with a twist intended to change the direction of the blade in mid-swing. The Senshi he had been fighting performed a very familiar counter move, one of the first things he picked up from a certain classmate. "It couldn't be...," Tenchi thought once more.
"Ranma?" Tenchi ventured.
-----------
It was the most fun she'd had in centuries. Having detected Ranma's movement through space/time, she followed and gleefully watched as the Senshi barged into the room in their attempt to rescue the hostages. Though it was fun, it was counterproductive to what she had hoped would have happened.
"She's not going to evolve if she keeps holding back," the hidden observer thought. "And what's she doing with that boy?"
Studying the interaction between the redheaded senshi and the pigtailed boy, a scowl formed on her face. "This is not good. The little fool thinks that such a pathetic creature like a mortal is important."
She sighed her mouth formed a thin line. "I might have to step in in and help the little idiot."
----------
Deep inside the house, isolated from the fighting that was going on around it, a redheaded child-like genius was closely examining a most disturbing find.
"How could these have slipped by me?" She pondered as she ran still another scan. "If Tsunami didn't insist that I do a wider search that encompassed everything I have stored and not just what her and I worked on, I would have never found this."
Washu studied the objects closely with various scanners and devices she had scattered throughout her lab. "These are a masterful work of engineering art," she concluded. "Just the thing that Tech-master T'Pau would create."
The objects in question were two small silver ear rings, each with five small rods dangling from the hoops. The small rods were made of a combination of metal and blue gem-like devices that resembled tiny cylinders beaded together. Washu had just barely managed to scratch the surface of the mechanics of the ear rings and was struggling to understand what she did manage to get. Next to the rings was a box with the designation number laser stenciled on the top.
"Magnificent," she thought to herself. "T'Pau out did herself, but she was always better than Tsunami and I... I wonder where she is right now?"
Washu's mind momentarily drifted back to those hectic days when everything seemed to be insane and urgent after the fall of the Moon Kingdom. It was after the colony on the newly named Jurai system was safely established and matured that T'Pau decided to head into the depths of space to find what else was there. T'Pau had left all her work and inventions in Washu's hands for safe-keeping, loaded up a spaceship of her own design manned by a crew of people just as curious as she, and headed out into parts unknown.
That had been over thirty thousand years ago.
No one had seen or heard from her or her crew since.
"She must have known, even back then, that Sailor Sun would become a problem...," Washu concluded. "Now, how to convince Fire Walker- no, Ranma to use them?"
That thought brought her back to her current situation. "That pompous idiot!" Washu muttered with much disdain. "The jackass of an Admiral has no clue what he is dealing with..." those words trailed off as she considered the evidence. "It wasn't Ranma, but it was Ranma... if it was her, then how?"
Leaving the ear ring-like devices on the flatbed of the scanner, she crossed to the other side of her lab and began cross referencing any and all places that Ranma was before she lost her tap on the tracker and compared them to the destruction of the fleet. She studied the readouts for what would probably be the hundredth time since this all started and then it hit her: "We got a reading from Fire Walker - Sailor Sun - when she attacked the fleet," Washu realized. "Unless she lost all control over her cloaking, we should not have been able to do that."
She studied the readouts and played back the records. "She, that is Ranma, was definitely asleep or at least in bed when it happened... someone went through a lot of trouble to replicate Fire Walker's energy signature. But who?"
Washu thought over that troubling idea. "No," she concluded. "The forms matched too well... but, how? And who?"
A creeping sensation passed through her small body as she concentrated on the problem without the multiple distractions that had been plaguing her recently. She considered all of the possibilities. The creeping feeling turned into a cold one as ran across an idea that she had before, but didn't pursue. "It's the only one that makes sense...," she pondered aloud. "But if what I suspect is true, then we're all in big trouble."
Deciding that appearing like a child would not help the situation, Washu's small body expanded into her adult form. "I have to convince the Admiral of the seriousness of the situation, Tenchi can help in that by getting me in to see the Emperor." She said to herself as she sat up from the floating pillow that was she chair and started for the door to her lab. "They must listen! I'll find a way to make them understand."
On that proclamation, she opened the door and was greeted by the sounds of fighting.
-----------
Ranma straightened at the sound of her name. "Um..."
Tenchi swallowed hard and repeated. "Ranma?" He then absently ducked a body being hurdled his way.
"Damn," Ranma sighed out. "I just can't catch a break. I wanted to tell him, but not like this," she thought as she leapt over Sailor Jupiter as she skidded under her. Jupiter got up from where she was thrown and rejoined the fray.
"Hi, er... sorry about this," Ranma said sheepishly, ignoring the fight around her in favor of Tenchi. "Now you know want I wanted to tell you."
Tenchi stared at the Senshi before him and watched as if a veil had been lifted between them. "Ranma! It is you!" He said more firmly as recognition worked its way into his brain. He then leaned to one side as a blue uniformed man sailed past him on his way to landing that would lead to unconsciousness. "It is you!"
"Heh. Uumm.. surprise?" Ranma said in the same sheepish tone, deflecting a few pot shots that came her way with her sword, hardly noticing what she was doing. "I wanted to tell you, but things gotta a little out of control."
Tenchi looked hurt for a moment, then looked at Ranma with a neutral expression. "Why didn't you tell me to begin with?"
"You'd think I was crazy," Ranma defended. "I was going to show before you got kidnapped."
Ranma blocked an attack from a guard. Irritated at the interruption, she fired off a small ball of energy that sealed the door to the room preventing more renforcements from entering. "Say... what's going on?" Ranma asked with her hands on her hips while cocking her head to one side. "Why are you fighting for the people who kidnapped you?"
"Umm...," Tenchi began only to be sidelined by dodging debris from the fray going on around them. "That's kinda complicated."
Ranma knocked out two guards that tried to double team her without batting an eye. She crossed her arms and made a slight pout. "I have the time."
"Well... you see," Tenchi began, "I'm descended from... ahhh, a royal line."
Ranma raised an eyebrow, but said nothing for a moment while giving Tenchi a measured look. Both ignored the combat that continued around them. "A royal line?"
"I'm sorta third in line to the throne of the Jurian Empire," Tenchi explained lamely. "Umm... That's an intergalactic empire."
"So you're like a prince or something?" Ranma asked as a loud explosion rang out throughout the room. "Why didn't you say something?"
Tenchi deflected a few pieces of debris that flew his way without thought. "You'd think I was crazy."
"Heh. Right," Ranma agreed.
Among the din of the surrounding fight, a silent moment was shared between the two.
Tenchi blink-blinked as the chaos seeped into their moment. "Let's stop the fighting first and then finish talking about this," he proposed.
Ranma looked around and realized that the fighting was now down to the senshi mopping up the last of the opposition. Uranus and Neptune, along with Saturn had accounted for the bulk of the unconscious and wounded men on the floor with Mercury surprisingly managing to make some impressive victories for herself. Moon was standing over the unconscious form of the elaborately dressed man that Ranma just realized was related to Tenchi.
"Ahhh... good plan," Ranma agreed. Determined to find out exactly what in the hell was going on, she leaked some chi into her voice and bellowed loudly. "Okay everyone stop right now!"
The chi enhanced voice of Ranma shook the room and reverberated throughout every person. The room instantly froze and were greeted to the sight of Tenchi closely standing side-by-side Ranma.
"Now," Tenchi began, speaking for the pair. "What's going on?"
-----------
The watcher scowled, then smiled. "Well, it was entertaining while it lasted. Who would've have known the little fool would get attached to one of THOSE creatures."
She screwed her face up into a smirk. "Heh. It is good to know that someone of my stature can be surprised. Ahh... mortals - how unpredictable. I guess there's no choice - I'll have to take matters firmly into my own hands."
----------
After much sorting and explanation, a quiet fell over the room that dragged on for minutes. "So Ranma," Tenchi finally said, "you're Sailor Sun?"
Ranma looked rather embarrassed for some reason as she meekly nodded. She looked at Tenchi with a now quizzical look, cocked her head to one side. "And your a prince from outer space?"
Tenchi scratched the back of his head nervously. "Well... yeah... kinda. Er... yes I am."
Both youths stood and stared uncomfortably at each other for a few heartbeats. It didn't help that everyone else was looking at them. Ryoko had recovered from her nap and Ayeka was standing beside her staring daggers at the redheaded senshi that seemed too familiar with Tenchi.
"Er, listen," Ranma said in an uncertain voice. "Can we go somewhere and... talk?"
"We're not letting you out of our sight with him," Ayeka said firmly. "There is strong evidence that you destroy-"
"I didn't destroy nothing!" Ranma shot back with much venom. "What about your robots or whatever the hell you call them dropping down on Tokyo and trying to kill-"
"We had nothing to to with that," Emperor Azusa said while rubbing a sore spot on his arm. "I do not deny that those powersuits resemble ours, but I can't explain how they got here."
"This is all ridiculous," the Admiral said in a huff. "We have the people - especially that redhead," he motioned toward Ranma with a hand, "who were behind the deaths of several thousand Jurian Naval personal and we're letting them make excuses for themselves. I just should call security and throw the lot of them in the brig."
Ranma opened her mouth for a retort, but was beaten to the punch by another redhead.
"You are an idiot," Washu said, rapidly losing patience with the self-important officer. "You have the barest idea what you're up against. So SHUT UP!"
The officer was taken aback for a brief moment before flying into an indignant rage. "Listen here, this is my ship, I'll run it any way I see fit. You get in my way I'll have you in the brig as well, do you understand?"
"And you listen here you overstuffed, pompous ass. 'That redhead' controls enough power to wipe this entire fleet out without breaking a sweat," Washu shot back, irritated with dealing with the one track officer. "I was part of the team that helped put her together - I know what she can do and believe me, you and your fleet are no match."
"Impossible. The fleet gathered here-"
"Would be like a gnat," Washu interrupted sharply. "I know what's going on, you don't. So shut up and maybe the Emperor will let you keep your commission. Interrupt me again and I'll see to it your cleaning toilets for the rest of your career."
"What do you mean 'team that put her together'?" Sailor Moon asked, stopping anything more the Admiral had to say.
"Well you see-," she began.
"Then there is the DNA evidence," Mercury chimed in, addressing the Admiral. "The slight differences of the pilot's DNA match yours... Jurai's?... to a tee. There is no doubt of the origins."
"Yes, yes, yes," the other redhead of the group said with arms flapping in exasperation at being continually side-tracked. "What everyone has said is true. Nothing is adding up as it should and I haven't had the time to look into every aspect of it, but there is a logical explanation."
"Well if you have one, we'd love to hear it," Neptune said dryly.
The redheaded scientist nodded and opened her mouth to speak. She paused in thought. "First, let me establish my credentials," she said as she turned to address Sailor Pluto. "Hello Wind Walker," she greeted the much taller women. "It's been a long time."
Sailor Pluto blinked inn confusion and studied the other women. "Wind Walker?" she wondered. "Wind Walker? I haven't been called that since..." Sailor Pluto kept her mask of coolness as she studied the redheaded women before her. "I'm sorry, " Sailor Pluto said cautiously. "Have we met?"
Washu nodded. "Yes, a very long time ago."
Pluto's face wrinkled as she studied the woman. Ranma who was watching the entire exchange grasped onto a fragment of a dream she had. "Washu...," Ranma whispered. "Tech Master Washu."
Pluto shot a look at the smaller redhead, then at the taller one. "Tech Master Washu? Tech Master Washu!" Pluto said as recognition set in. "How?"
"It's a long story Pluto, and there will be plenty of time for explanations later," Washu said with a wave of her hand. She looked over to Ranma, who was standing comfortably close to Tenchi, and smiled. "I just wanted to establish some credibility among you."
"Ranma, you know this woman?" Mars asked cautiously.
Ranma nodded. "Yes, I remember her from a dream I had... the one where I'm going into the Infusion tubes."
"You remember that?" Washu asked wide eyed not realizing that she had side-tracked herself. "You seemed to retain more of your memories than expected considering the number of times you must have been reincarnated."
Ranma shrugged. "Bits and pieces. Tenchi and I have been talking about what happened. He knows we had nothing to do with the destruction of the fleet..."
"... and I can say that we had nothing to do with the attacks," Tenchi interjected.
"... and I believe him," Ranma said flatly.
"How can you believe him?" Mars asked in disbelief. "I know that he's your boyfriend but-"
"I believe him," Ranma repeated just as flatly before continuing. "Moon, do you remember when I asked you what do you use as a guide?" Ranma asked. "Do you remember what you told me?"
Sailor moon nodded. "Yes," she answered. "I told you we use our hearts."
"Well my heart tells me that Tenchi and the rest are telling the truth," Ranma said. "They have no reason to attack us - there's no motivation."
"How about the destruction of their fleet?" Mercury asked. "What happened then?"
Washu opened her mouth to answer the question, but was interrupted.
Ranma shook her head. "I don't know," she admitted. "I do know that, like Washu said, nothing's adding up or making sense."
Mercury furrowed her brow, causing her eyes to narrow. This didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the occupants of the room. Washu was about to capitalize on the lull in the conversation to state her theory, but was beaten to the punch.
"What?" Moon prodded before Washu come get a word out.
"I think I know what's going on, I'm trying to find the right word," Mercury answered. "What's that word... it's on the tip of my tongue. You know where someone sets someone else up for a crime? Damn. it's on the tip of my tongue."
"Framed?" Neptune offered.
"Yes! That's it," Mercury said excitedly as she latched onto the word. "Framed! From what I heard from Ranma's boyfriend and what I know... I think we were all framed."
"Well, if someone is setting us up to fight," Pluto said. "Who and why?"
"I have a theory that explains everythi-" Washu began quickly, only to be cut off.
"You don't know how disappointing this is," a voice rang out loudly in the room. Everyone blinked at each other before it dawned on them that none of them were the one that spoke.
When this was realized, everyone in the room spun as one to face the speaker. She was short - short enough that she reminded Ranma of a certain Amazon elder. What alarmed Ranma was the fact the this stranger was able to get there without Ranma detecting her. That alarm went to "full out battle mode" when Ranma realized that she couldn't really detect anything from the old woman standing before her with any of her Senshi senses.
The stranger leaned heavily on her staff and sighed. "All of you were supposed to be fighting now. I expected carnage and destruction. I was especially expecting more out of you," she said while shooting a disapproving look at Ranma. "You are most disappointing."
"Who are you?" Sailor Moon asked. "And why have you done this?
The old woman cocked her head and smirked. "You know, no matter where I go, you always seem the same... and as far as why? Heh, I did it for her." She finished with a hard look at Ranma.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Ranma asked while building up power. "Whoever this is, she's good at either masking her power or using just a little efficiently," she thought. "I gotta stay sharp."
"Well I must be going now," the woman said suddenly, ignoring Ranma's question. "And I had as much fun as I can get from this, but don't worry - I'll be back. Once I find an amusing way to end all of your miserable lives."
On that, the Mistress faded from sight - Ranma was on high alert for anything and captured the Mistress' mode of transportation.
"She's tearing through time and space like I do," she concluded before announcing, "There's no way I'm letting that psycho get away."
In one swift move, Ranma leapt across the room, stabbed her sword into the closing tear in space/time, widened it and followed the Mistress to wherever she went.
"Sun wait!" Sailor Moon called out, but it was too late. Sailor Sun - Ranma - was gone.
----------
Ranma twisted and turned as she followed on the heels of the escaping Mistress. Determination filled her as she focused on the obvious trail that the Mistress left behind in the fabric space/time.
"There's no way in hell I'm letting that psycho get away," Ranma repeated to herself as she followed. Being led by her emotions, it never occurred to her to wonder why following the Mistress was as incredibly easy as it was, since she couldn't detect her before.
As Ranma approached the other end of the wormhole, she summoned her sword and prepared for an ambush. Stepping through, she quickly got into a defensive stance and raised her sword to guard against any attack. Ranma was disappointed. She expected to be attacked immediately the moment she stepped through. The wormhole closed behind her with an audible 'pop' and she was left alone on a barren world.
Studying her surroundings for any trace of her prey, Ranma took in the bleakness of it all. She found herself in a jagged, mountainous area with not even a hint of vegetation. The mountains were weather worn and craggy, shadows dropped sharply in the intense sunlight.
At the foot of the mountain were the weathered, stone remains of a a temple-like structure. The roof was gone, half the columns had fallen, and those that still stood were heavily eroded on one side. The age of this structure, Ranma could only guess at.
Putting her natural curiosity aside, Ranma extended her senses to locate the Mistress and quickly scanned the globe she found herself on. What she discovered alarmed her. "There's no life," she thought in mild panic. "No life anywhere."
A cold chill ran through Ranma as she poked another hole in the dam of her self control governing her powers. She feed this into the scan. "She's not getting away from me," was the determined thought that justified her increase in power.
Extending further out, Ranma tapped into the "flow" or "rhythm" of the alien universe, what she found appalled her further. "There's no life anywhere - in the whole universe," she concluded as a deeper chill ran through her. "There are traces that life was here, but all the life force is gone. What happened?"
"Welcome," a voice greeted Ranma. "So glad you could make it."
Ranma spun around, returned to a defensive stance and raised her sword preparing for the expected attack. The Mistress was standing, not twenty feet from her, near the remains of one of the columns. She was regarding Ranma with deep eyes that sparkled with mirth.
Ranma studied the Mistress with all the power she had in her senses and couldn't really find any details. What Ranma was able to tell came mostly from what she could see and that wasn't much. The Mistress stood in plain sight and seemed to study Ranma with those mirthful eyes that made Ranma feel most unclean. That's when Ranma noticed it.
In seemed like the rippling in the air, not to unlike what one would see coming off the pavement on a hot, summer day. This one surrounded the Mistress.
"There's a... small ripple event around her," Ranma thought as the staring contest between the two women continued. "I've seen it before... it's..." Ranma then mentally slapped herself, angry that she should have realized it sooner. "I can see that you have a disguise field around you," Ranma called out. "Now show yourself you coward."
The old woman was unmoved by the taunt. Her smile just widened and she leaned against her staff more heavily. No matter how much effort Ranma put behind her Senshi senses, she couldn't penetrate the disguise field. The old woman chuckled.
"What the hell so funny?" Ranma asked outraged at feeling slighted.
"You are," came the snide reply. "Tell me, how does it feel to be some mortal's lapdog? Their slave?"
Ranma was confused by the question, but the tone that it was delivered in made her shake with rage. "What in the hell are you talking about!" an angry and confused Ranma asked. "I'm no one's slave!"
"How does it feel to be torn away from the people you love? Your family?" the old woman asked. "You never really had a choice in your life. I bet you didn't know that Queen Serenity was leading you around by the nose."
"Queen Serenity is dead!" Ranma said sharply. "She-"
"Dead like you were? And are now?" the old woman cut Ranma off. "If you want proof that she was around and pulling your chain, I can think of none better."
Ranma mind froze, her mind reeled at the suggestion.
"Could she be right?" her mind raced, before Ranma shook her head. "Idiot! She's trying to mess with me."
Ranma took in a deep breath of air and address the Mistress again. "That doesn't matter right now. Right now all that matters is that you almost caused a war that would have left millions of innocent people dead."
Silence fell as the Mistress cocked her head and seemed to contemplate something. "And this upsets you?" she finally asked in a confused way.
Ranma stood in stun silence, looking at the rippling form of the Mistress. "Of course it upsets me! It would upset any sane being!"
The Mistress chuckled.
"What the hell's so funny!" Ranma asked, exasperated at her foe.
"You are," the Mistress replied. "You already asked that, remember?"
Ranma seethed. The Mistress was hitting all the right buttons that angered Ranma, but she was determined not to lose control of her frail emotions. She did that once and it nearly cost the lives of innocent people. Ranma steeled herself before narrowing her eyes as the shadow resumed its chuckling before falling into silence once more.
"As far as my motives go," the Mistress said with all seriousness, "I did everything for you. To help you."
This answer was unexpected.
Ranma opened her mouth to say something, but snapped in shut audibly. "Wh-what do you mean by that?" Ranma finally demanded. "How could endangering everyone around me help me?"
The Mistress sighed. "To make you realize what you are. What you truly can be," the Mistress said as if she were addressing a five year old. "You shouldn't care about those creatures, they are far too beneath you."
"Creatures? What creatures?" Ranma asked in a mixture of confusion, frustration over what was said and her inability to pierce the Mistress' disguise field. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"You know," the Mistress said in her mocking way. "The Senshi, humans in general... your lover boy."
Silence fell between the two woman as anger boiled inside Ranma. "Who in the hell do you think you are!" Ranma roared indignantly. "God or something!"
Ranma could see the shadow cock her head to one side.
"As a matter of fact, that is exactly what I am," the old woman said as cold as death. "I am a God..."
Ranma heard the capital 'G' in the word 'god' and her anger evaporated at the other woman's proclamation and changed to controlled confusion.
"... as you can be."
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"Have you found her yet?" Sailor Moon asked frantically as Sailor Pluto focused her attention on the Garnet Orb on her staff.
"Almost," Pluto answered. "Thank goodness Sun is still wearing the tracker, otherwise it would impossible to find her."
"What is the tracker tuned to?" Washu asked as she waved her hand and two flat panels appeared in mid-air.
"Transferring the information now," Pluto answered as she waved her hand in an complex pattern.
Washu nodded as she typed quickly. "Gonna need some help here," she muttered to herself as she summoned a marble-sized orb. The small ball floated free of Washu's hand and hovered in mid-air. A ghostly image seem to grow from it and the form of a elaborately robed woman slowly solidified, but like a phantom, the image remained transparent.
"Tsunami," Washu said. "We need your help in tracking Ranma."
"What's the situation?" the ghostly form asked.
"She's chasing after the Mistress," Washu answered as see scanned for a trace of Ranma's tracker. "If what I suspect is true, she's in big trouble."
The rest of the room were helpless spectators as the drama unfolded further. Pluto, Washu, and the newcomer were busy trying to locate the wayward Senshi.
"What do you suspect?" Moon asked.
"I think the only thing that explains all the variables is-"
"I think I got a trace," Pluto interrupted with intensity as she tried to focus on the sliver of a signal among the mass of background noise.
"Where?" Tsunami asked as she floated over to where Pluto was.
"Here," Pluto said as she pointed into the halo of light that surrounded the top portion of her staff. Tsunami studied the display and crossed back over to Washu who was still having difficulties.
"Look in this sector, that's where Pluto traced her," Tsunami said as she pointed to the corresponding point on Washu's floating display with a transparent finger.
"Got it," Washu said sharply as her fingers danced on the keyboard. As she worked, she muttered, "Ranma's crossed the dimensional boundaries of several different universes, several times, that's why it was so hard to trace her even with the tracker."
"Where is she?" Tenchi asked as he leaned forward for a better look.
"It is hard to explain unless you are well versed in fifth dimensional physics," the ghostly form of Tsumami replied. "But it's safe to say that she is far from here."
"Got a picture!" Pluto announced as she widened the viewing area with her staff. Washu stepped forward and helped fine-turned the settings, making the picture focus into razor sharpness.
"Oh my...," someone said.
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"Enough!" Ranma said in a commanding way, irritated at the conversation. "Come out and face me as your truly are - or you too afraid?"
The Mistress giggled like a schoolgirl as she looked at Ranma. "Very well. If you think you can handle the truth," she said more mockingly.
The short, huddled figure of the Mistress turned solid and wavered as the disguise field was deactivated. The wavering of the field created a silhouette of the Mistress' true form as it morphed into a woman about a half a head taller than Ranma. And all that could be seen from the outline of the woman's body was...
... she wore a fuku.
"You're a Senshi," Ranma said in stunned amazement.
"Oh, I'm more than that," the disembodied voice of the Mistress said as the swirling air around her vaporized and the details of her true self sharpened.
---------------
"Impossible," Sailor Moon said firmly as she viewed the scene.
"No. It isn't. It makes perfect sense," Washu said evenly. "It explains everything."
---------------
Ranma's mind reeled further at the sight before her. She took an involuntary step backward, away from the woman who smirked so knowingly at her. Ranma deepened her scan to be sure no deception was being made - she found none. The fully revealed woman appeared to be in her mid-twenties and stood a good two inches taller than Ranma. The Mistress' teal fuku contrasted nicely with her long, flowing, red locks of hair that cascaded down past her shoulders.
Ranma's most feared nightmare had fully materialized before her.
"What's the matter?" the fully revealed Mistress asked coyly. "Don't tell me I scare you."
Ranma stood frozen in her effort to comprehend what she was seeing and feeling. There was no doubt that this was the true form of the Mistress. "It's impossible," she muttered through her shock senses.
"Come now, Sailor Sun," the Mistress continued in the same mocking tone she used earlier. "You of all people should know for every time line, there is a universe - a dimension."
"You're-," Ranma stumbled out. "Me."
The Mistress nodded her head, her red hair swaying with the motion.
"In all the endless universes, in all the tens of thousands of years, I've only found one other like me," she said while keeping the smirk on her face. She then brightened it into a smile. "I guess, in a way, that makes us like sisters."
All Ranma could do for a reply was to stare dumbly at the women who appeared to be a slightly older version of herself.
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