Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns all rights to The Ranmanverse. I'm just borrowing her characters for this story.
Notes: I know this took waaaaaay too long to post. I hope you all can forgive me. My thanks goes out to my proofreader Angela for saving this chapter. Her help as usual was invaluable!
This is dedicated to all of you who stuck with this story, but mostly for Mii-Chan Chan for writing to me personally to tell me how much she wanted this story to get finished.
Now on with it...
"Is finished," Shampoo announced holding up the vile of clear liquid. As she stared at it she couldn't help but be held in awe. To think that something so small could wield such power and that it had lay hidden deep within the forests of her village. That she had been able extract and create it left her with a sense of pride. She knew her great-grandmother would be pleased.
Kuno, who had decided to check up on her progress, now jumped up from where he sat waiting impatiently. He grasped the vile from her outstretched hand, staring at it intently. If it could really do what the Amazons claimed it could it would grant him ultimate power. Something he vitally craved his every waking moment.
He smiled wickedly. He would show Akane Tendo who was boss. She would yield to him whether she liked it or not. He wouldn't give her a choice. The thought filled him with elation. She would be his again. This time he would not be denied.
"Shampoo thought it take longer, but able to procure vital property in last extraction. Is very clean. Leave user wanting more."
"Yes, yes, I know all that," he replied impatiently. "I also know you can use it to leave a subject open to suggestion. Tell me Shampoo," he said, a sinister tone lacing his voice. "How much would be necessary for this to occur?"
Shampoo frowned. She couldn't help but feel that she'd been asked this before. The memory was hazy, almost like it was some sort of dream. What was happening to her? She shook her head as if to clear it, trying to focus her thoughts.
She felt a moment's pity for whoever it was Kuno planned to use the drug on. The thought of being controlled by him was more than a little revolting. The feeling was only fleeting however. It was none of her business. As long as her tribe got the compensation it was owed, that was all she really cared about.
"It not take much," she replied. "Serum highly concentrated, leave you with more supply."
"Excellent," he commented absently. Not only would he save on supply but his buyer pay big money for it, as would others.
"Average size person get high when inject mere five cc. Little more for mind control six cc should do. Last only as long as drug in system."
Kuno nodded. This he knew as well, but he only needed her under his control long enough to get her to marry him.
"And the overdosing risk? I was told that it leaves no trace."
"Is correct, no trace. Take too much any drug is fatal. Seven cc dangerous, eight for average person lethal."
He checked his watch. It was now nine thirty. Akane would be getting ready for work soon. He knew from Shampoo that she had a set tonight. He would simply lie in wait for her. If he wanted something done right he knew he'd have to do it himself.
He grabbed a syringe off the table and extracted 8cc of the serum into it, carefully placing a cap over it when he was done. Somehow he thought having slightly more of the drug than was necessary for suggestion would to his advantage. He stared at the concoction for a moment longer, another sly smile surfacing across his lips. It wouldn't be long now.
"Start mass production immediately," he told Shampoo handing her the rest of the serum. His voice held a tone of dismissal. It irritated Shampoo to no end.
She watched him leave, grateful that this job was almost over and she could soon return to China. ****
Ranma stared down at her gently sleeping form and smiled. The soft glow of the moonlight filtered through the window framing her sweet face, making it seem almost angelic. He would not need to invade her dreams this night.
They had made love for hours. She had given herself over to him completely, and he had relished every moment, taking her to heights she could not have dreamed possible. In turn she had given him what he had most desired, his need to taste the very essence of her, that pure, raw and unadulterated sensation of her life force.
Ranma felt a tremor run through him at the mere thought.
She looked so peaceful lying there and for the first time in a long time he felt it too. A kind of contentment had settled over him, making him feel strangely whole. It wasn't something he was used to and he had to admit it unnerved him somewhat. That this mere girl could have him so turned around he could almost forget what he was.
He sighed wholeheartedly.
Of course he could never forget. It wouldn't do to forget.
As if on cue he again felt the tingling sensation begin at the back of his skull. Ryoga had been trying to contact him for several minutes now. He closed his eyes against it. Ryoga was never very adept at sending messages long distances. All he ever managed was to give Ranma a searing headache.
Still, if it was pressing enough to try and contact him this way he knew it must be important. After scrawling Akane a quick note and sparing another quick glance at her sleeping form, he made his exit via the window.
He arrived at the loft shortly afterward, where Ryoga was anxiously awaiting him.
"Where have you been?" his friend asked the instant he strode through the door.
Ranma ignored the question. "What is so important Ryoga?"
"You're not going to tell me what happened?"
"Nothing to tell."
"Oh I highly doubt that," Ryoga suggested, a sly smile creeping up his handsome face.
Ranma gave him a look that told him to drop the subject. For now Ryoga complied, he would get the details out of Ranma later.
"I'll ask you again, what is so important?"
"You were dead on," Ryoga replied, getting down to business. "It's definitely drugs, but not just any run of the mill drug. The stuff these guys are messing around with makes heroin look like candy."
Ranma's brow furrowed at the suggestion.
"The high is apparently very clean, and not only does it leave the subject wanting more, it also leaves no trace in the system if the subject should happen to take too much." Ryoga smiled. "But even more importantly it can also leave them open to suggestion."
Ranma raised his eyebrow at this bit of information. Create your own power of mesmerism, he thought sickly. The last thing he wanted was for Kuno to have that kind of power. He knew instantly who he'd try to use it on first.
"And you're sure of this?"
Ryoga smiled, one of his lecherous smiles that let Ranma know he'd been up to no good. "Remember that girl that was sent to spy on Akane?"
Ranma's frown deepened. "Shampoo?"
Ryoga nodded. "She's one hot pistol by the way. Turns out she's an Amazon from China. Her tribe dabbles in such things and was commissioned to create and supply the drug. Shampoo was sent here to oversee the project. Apparently this Kuno is paying a very hefty sum for it."
"So the Amazon's make a major profit and Kuno gets corner market on a new wonder drug."
"It would seem that way."
"And you say Shampoo gave you this information," Ranma inquired, a sarcastic lilt to his voice. Ryoga gave another lecherous smile.
"With a little persuasion she was more than willing."
Ranma frowned at the insinuation. "I take it she doesn't remember you persuading her?"
"Of course not," Ryoga replied with a bit of indignation, as if he resented the implication. "She doesn't even remember showing me the lab, or the many deadly plants she is using to synthesize the drug."
Ryoga smiled as he watched Ranma's eyes widen with the news. "So they're smuggling the plants in from China?"
"Well, they aren't going through customs that's for sure," Ryoga replied. "From what she told me it took several months but she's just about perfected the formula."
"So it's just a matter of time before it hits the streets," Ranma commented, more to himself than to Ryoga. He then lifted his head and gave his friend a firm stare. "We have to stop it."
At the comment a large Cheshire grin began to form on Ryoga's face. The suggestion was music to his ears. It was about time he got to utilize his skills. Action was what he wanted, and he was glad to hear his old friend was on board.
"The lab is located in one of Kuno's many warehouses. It's actually underground, so that if anyone were to check it out they wouldn't find anything suspicious. There are guards that make the rounds and one is stationed outside the lab at all times," Ryoga commented he then raised an eyebrow in jest. "Of course for us this won't be a problem."
Ranma ignored the implication. He wouldn't need to resort to violence. One firmly planted suggestion would be all it would take. He would put a stop to a lethal and dangerous drug hitting the streets and take this Kuno down so he could never again threaten Akane.
He stared fixedly out at the night sky, his thoughts now focused solely on what he had to do. Throwing open the window, he glanced briefly over his shoulder at Ryoga.
"Let's do this."
Before he could reply Ranma was gone, so fast that Ryoga felt the rush of wind he left in his wake. The smile once again resurfaced on his lips. He suddenly felt his senses tingle with excitement. This is what he yearned for, what he longed for. Finally it felt like old times.
In an instant he was out the window, the smile never leaving his handsome face. *****
Akane walked slowly toward Club Kindred, unable to remove the smile that seemed to radiate from the very core of her. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been this happy. And she owed it all to, unbelievably, a vampire. She shook her head at the madness of it all.
"I've got to be crazy," she said aloud, still smiling. Crazy or not it had been incredible. She felt herself flush at the memory. His desire, it had been hot and raw and it had ignited her so fully that she hadn't been sure she could sustain it within herself. Orgasm after orgasm had hit her, she hadn't had a moment to breathe, and all she could think was that she never wanted it to stop. Even now….
She shook her head as if to clear it. When he'd tasted her blood the feeling had been so erotic that it had been easy to surrender to it. He'd brought her to heights she hadn't thought possible. Of course they probably weren't possible under normal circumstances.
She felt her heart tighten at the thought. These circumstances were so far from normal she was sure they would eventually and inevitably cause her pain. Deep down she knew this and yet she couldn't stay away. It was more than what he could do to her. It was what he was despite what he'd become.
He'd faced things she couldn't even imagine facing. Things he'd had to come to accept. Having to cope with not only a destructive and selfish father, but a curse that turned him female, and then of course to top it off the ultimate betrayal. It might have broken a lesser man, but not only had he adapted, he'd done it without having to sacrifice lives. He'd stayed true to his former self, keeping his honor intact.
Of course some might argue that what he'd done to her had been less than honorable. Akane frowned at the thought. He hadn't done it out of malice. The feelings he'd displayed were genuine, she had felt that. It wasn't as if it was some sort of sport for him. There was also the little matter of just how much pleasure she had derived from the whole experience. She shivered at the mere thought. No, somehow she just couldn't be angry at his methods. There was also the fact that he'd saved her on more than one occasion.
Even though she'd been disappointed when she'd awoken to find him gone, the note he'd left on his pillow had eased that somewhat. She smiled as she thought of it. It was nice to know that what they'd shared had meant as much to him as it had to her.
He'd explained that he'd had to hurry off, something unexpected, but that he would see her later at Club Kindred. She found she couldn't wait to see him again. The very thought sending thrills of anticipation throughout her being.
So lost in these thoughts was she that she didn't even hear Kuno sneak up on her from behind.
He was so quick and swift that she hadn't had time to even scream before he had her firmly in his grasp. She felt a cloth being pressed over her face, the smell of the chloroform filling her nostrils, making her legs weak and her head spin.
She tried to fight the dizziness to no avail and cursed herself silently for not paying more attention to her surroundings. There was a buzzing in her head that seemed to grow louder and louder, the blackness behind it calling her, forcing her down into its depths.
It was all very quick. After a brief struggle Kuno felt her go instantly limp in his arms. He smiled wickedly at her prone form. He finally had her. It would figure if he wanted something done right he'd have to do it himself.
He glanced around briefly to see if anyone had noticed, and like he had expected no one was around this side of town at this hour. He was free and clear.
He scooped her up quickly and headed for the dark sedan parked on the corner. Once inside the tinted windows afforded them complete secrecy. Even if by some chance someone were to come by now they would never know a girl lay unconscious in the back seat.
"To the mansion and quickly," Kuno barked the order to his driver. Without so much as a word in reply the sedan began to move, pulling away from the curb and driving off into the night.
As the miles began to pass Kuno stared down at the sleeping girl in his lap, he had done it, she was back and it had been easy, so easy that he couldn't understand why it had taken this long.
He frowned at the thought. There had been no lurking man with red eyes moving faster than the speed of light. No hypnotic suggestions to be held captive by and certainly no vampires!
A sly smile began to creep across his face. He pulled the vile out of his pocket, eyeing it with smug fascination. She was his again and with this he'd make sure she stayed that way forever.
Well there you go... hope it was worth the wait! If it was let me know! JA!