These are the words of Hung Nguyen. I just have permission to post them and make it easier to read. Just want to give his stuff the recognition it deserves.
I am scrunching both works into one story, maybe even adding something extra. Any new updates will be told here. Think of this as the "Remastered version". Welcoming new and old readers alike!
Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2, Tekkaman Blade and Vandread all belong to their blah, blah, blah...
italics: Thoughts
[* *]: Telepathic communication
Chapter 23 Part 2
Finally... Here's Ranma!
"Hmmm... I don't find records of a Ranma Saotome in any of the old personnel and passenger logs of all the Colony ships." Parfet stated as she poured over the ancient files. The Nirvana still possessed all the data from its previous incarnations as a Colony vessel and the Ikazuchi.
Magno nodded as she stood behind her at the console in the Engineering Section. "Hmmm. I expected as much. Looks like Duero's theory was right. Slade... I mean... Ranma existed before the time of the Great Migration a hundred years ago."
"Huh? But the doctor estimated him to have been born in the late 20th century of old Earth! Are you saying that he's REALLY over five hundred and fifty-years old?!"
The old woman gave the brown-haired girl a bit of a whimsical smile, then took on an introspective expression. "Hmmm... actually, I would say he'd be about... five hundred and sixty-six... maybe sixty-seven years old... yes, that sounds about right. Ah, and his birthday is next month. I must remember to throw a party for him. I certainly hope Barnette can cook a cake big enough for five hundred and sixty-eight candles."
This caught Parfet by complete surprise. "What? How would you know about that, Captain?"
The pirate captain did not answer her question as she turned around and headed toward the door. She stopped at the opening and addressed Parfet without turning around.
"I believe that if you look up the file name Genesis R-44, you should be able to find his name and birth records. That data is encrypted and will take some time to retrieve. Once you have the data, report to the Conference Room immediately."
She then left the bewildered engineer in the Sick Bay as she headed down the hallway.
On the Observation Deck above the Bio-Park, Slade looked out at the star-studded void in deep thought.
I'm... Ranma Saotome. It's been so long. I've waited so long to finally remember who I was. But now, the question is... what do I do from here on?
"Mr. Alien?"
Slade sighed as he turned to face Dita and saw that Jura and Meia were with her as well. Nothing was said for a long time and the three girls became nervous at the prolonged silence. Finally, he spoke.
"It's Ranma."
"Huh?"
"My name is Ranma Saotome. If you can't call me Slade, then call me Ranma. This Mr. Alien stuff had gotten REALLY old."
Meia nodded as she agreed. "He's right, Dita. Slade... I mean, Ranma is his real name after all." She then addressed him. "So... you remember everything now? Where you came from and who you are?"
"Who I was." Slade corrected. "I haven't gone by the name of Ranma for a really long time. Not since I became a Tekkaman."
"So how does it feel?" Jura asked. "Are you happy now that you remember who you were?"
Slade paused, then shook his head. "Actually, I think I was better off not knowing my past. All of those memories... they were all painful, and I realized why I shut them out."
"What do you mean?" Dita asked.
"Do you remember that little boy you saw in my mind? That was me. All those wounds he... I had, especially that scar, was because my father threw me into a pit of starving cats when I was six."
"What?!" Jura exclaimed in disbelief. Meia and Dita were also in a state of shock. They had learned from Slade that the term 'father' was the male version of the ohma, when men and women once lived together. They couldn't believe that a parent would so willingly do that to a child.
Slade sighed again as he explained. "It all began a long, long time ago... when my idiot father decided to take me on a training trip..."
The Engineering Section...
"Ah, here it is!" Parfet said as she finally discovered the file named Genesis R-44. Standing next to her was Duero.
The doctor nodded as he looked over the data. "It appears to be a lineage record. This must list the family histories and relations for all of the original passengers and crews of the Colony ships. See if you can find the family name of Saotome."
"Okay." The bespectacled girl started to scan through the files, until a few minutes later, she came across a certain record. Her eyes widened as she read the date. "No way! It can't be!"
Duero nodded in agreement, though his reaction was far less expressive. "Fascinating. That does explain certain things, though it still leaves many questions unanswered. I believe that we should see the Captain now."
The Observation Deck...
"... and the last thing I remember was falling into that pool and the Tekkapod engulfing me." Slade said after giving the three girls a summary of his past life as Ranma Saotome. "Then, I woke up in this time period, went out into space, and eventually made my way to Tarak. I snuck aboard the Ikazuchi and... well, you know the rest."
"Yes." Meia nodded. "That was when we all met in the Paksis Core."
"Wow!" Dita exclaimed. "Mr. Alien is REALLY old!"
"Dita, stop calling him that!" Jura scolded. "His name is Ranma, so use it!" She then addressed him. "Still, what you've told us sounds so... unbelievable! Your ohma didn't even bother to read through an entire manual that was only three pages long?"
Slade shrugged. "Hey, I didn't say that my father was the sharpest tool in the shed."
"And strapping you down with lead weights, then pushing you off a cliff?!"
The White Tekkaman sighed. "It was his idea of endurance training."
"And tying a steak on your back and letting wolves chase you?!"
"Speed and stamina training."
"Forcing you to eat nothing but rice?"
"Discipline... and because he hogged all the good stuff. He always had that fat belly."
"Breaking into other people's homes and stealing things?"
"He called it stealth training, but I think it was because he was too cheap to rent a hotel room and he never got a job."
"Making you swim across the ocean to another country?"
"Once again, too cheap to buy plane tickets."
"And he didn't even know a single word of the local language?"
"What can I say? He gave idiots a bad name. Now do you understand why I would rather forget those kind of memories? Just about everything in my childhood was both painful and embarrassing, and I did things that I'm not too proud of. Of course I was only a kid at the time and I didn't know any better. After that Cat Fist training, I had lost a lot of respect for him. I was planning to leave him after the journey, but that became a moot point after Jusenkyo."
All three females nodded, then Meia decided to pose a question. "By the way... Ranma, what about your fahma? What was she like?"
"My fahma?" Slade was briefly confused, then realized whom she was referring to. "Oh, you mean my mother. Well, I can't remember much. The last time I saw her was when I was five years old. Maybe it's better off that I don't remember her. I mean, she never even tried to contact me for over ten years. I never knew her and she'd be nothing but a stranger to me if I ever met her. Heck all I really remember was her name."
"What was it?" Dita asked.
"Her name was... Nodoka Saotome."
The Conference Room...
"Here it is, Captain." Duero said as he read the file that he and Parfet had found. "Ranma Saotome, born June 16, 1980... hmm, it looks like my estimates were a bit off. His father, Genma Saotome... and mother... Nodoka Saotome..." He looked back at the aged woman sitting before him. "So now we know where he got the name for Ezra's baby. However, you've still haven't explained to us why you would know so much about Slade's history and where to find this particular file."
"I would think that the answer would be obvious, Doctor." The aged woman said with a tired sigh. "I would know these things, because..."
"RANMA SAOTOME! PREPARE TO DIE, YOU BASTARD!"
Jura, Meia, and Dita were taken totally by surprise when Ukyo the Seventeenth appeared on the scene with Battle Spatula in hand and wearing an expression of utter rage.
"Ukyo? What are you doing?" Meia asked.
The okonomiyaki girl said nothing as she glared at Slade with murder in her eyes. After she had heard about the truth of his past, she had gone into a fit of anger and vengeance that knew no bounds. To think that she had actually developed some feelings for this... this JACKASS! This was the one who had disgraced her family! He was the one that she had been conditioned to despise since the time she was born. And now, at last, the Kuonji clan would finally have its due! The source of her family's dishonor will finally answer for his crime!
For Ranma, it felt as if a ghost from his past had come back to haunt him. In this girl, he could see another Ucchan, who was then a rough-and-tumble playmate from his childhood. The way she held her weapon and the stance she took reminded him of someone from his younger days. Then he realized just why she reminded him of his childhood friend. Who else could she be descended from, other than his old buddy...
"Ucchan?"
"Don't call me that!" Ukyo snarled. "You have no right to use that name! Not after what you did to my family!"
Meia, Jura, and Dita looked at Slade with confusion. Normally, he and Ukyo got along amicably. What would have caused such a reversal?
Slade was also a bit puzzled as his childhood memories were of a young boy that had given him free okonomiyaki every day during his childhood. Those were the few happy times of his newly-remembered past.
"I don't understand. Why are you mad at me?"
"Don't give me that!" Ukyo shouted. "It was because of you that my family's honor suffered for centuries! Now it's time to make you pay!"
"Look, I really don't know what you're talking about." Slade responded earnestly. "All I remember was my old buddy Ucchan back when I was six..." He paused as he thought back. "... so why are you upset about something that happened over five hundred fifty years ago? C'mon, you're not even the same Ucchan. He was a boy."
That last statement caused Ukyo XVII to stop in her rage in confusion. She gave her family's hated enemy a puzzled look, then said. "Wh-wha? What are you talking about?! Don't try to confuse me! My ancestor was the original Ukyo that you abandoned! You stole her dowry and left her in dishonor!"
"Huh? Dowry? I don't remember anything like that. All I remember was Pops taking your family's cart as a gift and..." His voice trailed off when Ukyo's last statement registered in his mind. Wait a second! Did she just say HER?! "Hold on! What did you just say? You're saying Ucchan was really a girl?"
"Of course she was!" Ukyo snarled. "I'm her direct descendant and the seventeenth girl to be named Ukyo! From that day, we had declared a blood feud against the Saotomes for dishonoring us! She was to be your wife and the cart you took from my family was part of the deal! Your father promised! But you and that worthless father of yours stole it and left her on the side of the road! For centuries, the Kuonji Clan has hated the Saotomes and now you will pay!"
This information completely knocked Slade and the others for a loop. Of course, Dita, Jura, and Meia were not familiar with the term wife, but the Tekkaman and former heir to the Anything Goes was rendered speechless.
Ukyo... a girl? I was supposed to marry her? My father arranged for all this?!
Before the situation could escalate any further, a vid-screen appeared between the two of them, displaying the image of Vivian Magno.
"Slade, would you please report to the Conference Room? I have something very important to discuss with you."
"Uh... Captain? This... isn't the best time."
"Now, Slade... I mean, Ranma." Magno said with an insistent tone. "This cannot wait."
When the vid-screen vanished, Ukyo and Slade looked at one another. The okonomiyaki chef glared at him and wondered how she could have ever fallen for him. Her hands clenched her battle spatula so hard that the metal threatened to cut into her skin. Her mouth became a firm straight line, then in a barely controlled tone, she said to him, "This is NOT over! I swear by my ancestors that I will make you pay for what you did to my family!"
With those words, she turned around and departed.
Slade shook his head sadly and gazed at Jura, Meia, and Dita. Letting off a tired sigh, he remarked in a sad voice. "Now you can see why I was better off NOT knowing my past." He turned about and started toward the nearest exit. Just as he neared the doorway, he muttered out loud to no one in particular. "Damn you, Pops. Five hundred and fifty years later and I'm STILL paying for your crimes."
Meanwhile, on the all-male planet of Tarak...
Within the Grand Citadel of the capital city, Grand Pa contemplated in his private chambers. Months ago, he had received the message pod from the Nirvana, warning him and the leader of Mejele of the impending arrival of the Harvesters. However, he had dismissed the message as nothing more than a Mejele trick. You couldn't trust women. They were monsters after all, and they would suck the innards of men if given the chance.
In any case, there hadn't been any sign of the so-called enemy since the message pods had been received. Besides, even if the Harvesters did exist (which ironically they didn't any more), they would have never gotten past the Outer Space Perimeter Defense Grid, which was littered with space mines and automated cannons. Any ship that got too close without the correct codes would be obliterated. That was the main reason why the females were not able to invade Tarak. Incidentally, the only person who ever got through unharmed was Slade, since the grid's sensors were set to detect spacecraft and would not react to any human-sized intruders.
The leader of the all-male world decided that there was nothing to worry about.
It was then that an aide suddenly burst into the room, clutching a report in his hands.
"Grand Pa! Grand Pa!"
"What is the meaning of this? How dare you disturb me without first announcing yourself?!" The old man roared. Though he was well over one hundred years old, his voice still carried the force and strength of his younger days.
The aide stopped before his ruler and gave him a bow. "Please forgive me, your Excellency! I have urgent news to report! Tarak space has been invaded!"
"What?! Invaded?! Impossible! Who dares to cross our borders?! Is it the women of Mejele?"
"No sir! It is neither the monsters from Mejele or the pirates that have been raiding our supply ships. As far as our long-range scanners and scouting forces can tell us, this is some unknown alien fleet!"
"What about the Defense Grid? Didn't it stop them?!"
"We received reports that the Defense Grid systems did activate when the invaders encountered it, but according to the latest readouts, the entire network of mines and auto-guns were obliterated in a matter of minutes."
"Obliterated?!"
"Yes sir. Furthermore, our advance scouts and patrol fleets have begun engaging the enemy and are reporting heavy casualties. They cannot hold out for very long and are requesting for reinforcements from the main fleet!"
"Ridiculous! We are the proud men of Tarak! Our manliness cannot be defeated so easily! This must be a trick by the women!"
"I'm afraid that I must disagree with you, my Lord." The aide said in a trembling tone. Disagreeing with Grand Pa was akin to treason and the penalty was the firing squad.
"What do you mean?! This HAS to be the work of the women! Who else could it be?!"
The aide gulped and took a deep breath. "My Lord Grand Pa. According to the evidence being sent back to us by our spies on Mejele, the women are being attacked by the same enemy!"
On Mejele...
"I'm sorry to say Grand Ma, but the fourth, sixth, and eighth divisions of the Primary Patrol Fleet have been wiped out and the remaining ships are reporting heavy losses." The aide said as she went on with her report to the supreme leader of the female world.
"This cannot be." The old ruler said in disbelief. "How could the men have gained superiority over our forces?"
The younger woman cleared her voice and said, "Begging your pardon Lady Grand Ma, but our sources do not believe that this is the work of the men."
"And why is that?" Grand Ma demanded. Like her male counterpart, she had dismissed the message from the Nirvana as pure fantasy and was blaming the opposite gender. "Who could it be, but the males?"
"My Lady Grand Ma, our long-range sensors indicate that their Defense Grid has completely collapsed and their own forces are engaging the same alien fleet as we are. Furthermore, the enemy seems to possess a kind of bio-technology that is far beyond the science of Tarak and our own planet of Mejele."
Grand Ma's blood began to run cold as she recalled message that the Nirvana had sent, warning her that the enemy would attack not only the women, but the men as well. She felt a chill go down her spine and began to wonder if these were the Harvesters that the pirates had tried to alert them to.
Little did Grand Pa and Grand Ma know, that the Harvesters were no longer a danger to them. However, their replacements, the Radam, would prove to be far worse.
Aboard his flagship, which was five times larger than a Harvester mothership, Darkon nodded as he summoned for his newest subordinate.
"Report, Dagger! How goes the invasion of Mejele and Tarak?"
A figure in green-hued armor appeared, kneeling before his master. He was the latest of Darkon's lieutenants and had been created to replace Lance. Unlike his predecessor, Dagger was larger and more robust.
"All is going according to plan, Lord Darkon." Dagger replied as he bowed his head. "As we expected, their puny armies are no match for our Spider-Crabs. Their feeble weapons possess little firepower and their so-called planetary defense forces are nearly helpless. Their troops are being defeated in space and within a matter of weeks, all resistance will be crushed and both planets will be completely under our control."
"Excellent, Dagger!" The Radam Warlord said. He was immensely pleased after suffering countless defeats against Slade and the Nirvana. Since attacking them directly had proven futile, he had decided to attack their final destination and wait for them to come to him. With the added resources of both worlds, his greatest opposition to galactic conquest would finally be eliminated.
"Yes, my Lord Darkon." Dagger said. "However, may I also add that we are encountering some considerable resistance from the Tarak forces? Though I have no doubt that our side will eventually triumph, their mecha weapons the Vanguards are proving to be an annoyance."
Darkon chuckled as he responded. "A minor delay of the inevitable. It makes things more interesting when your opponent TRIES to put up a fight. Though the men of Tarak will make excellent slaves and their industrial resources will be needed, it is the world of Mejele that I am interested in conquering first."
"Mejele?"
"Yes, Dagger. Mejele is quite a fertile world and will make the perfect breeding ground for our Tekkapods. Tarak is barren and it would take far more time for our plants to thrive. Therefore, I intend to turn Mejele into my own greenhouse. Once the pods have spawned and turned the inhabitants into our servants, we shall then conquer Tarak. For now, I intend to reduce the defenses of both planets so that when I arrive, there will be none that can stop me!"
"Brilliant plan, my Lord!"
"Yes. Mejele is an all-female world, and as the old Earth expression says... ladies first!"
Darkon let off a series of maniacal laughter, which echoed throughout the hallways of his flagship.
Deep within the flagship, a lone figure floated within a Tekkapod. He had been inside for some time and was undergoing a process which would give him the power to defeat his greatest foe.
Soon, very soon, I shall emerge as the penultimate Tekkaman! Thought Saber as his body was being pushed toward its limits and beyond. He was feeling excruciating pain, but he paid it no mind. He was well aware that the process would eventually kill him. However, it didn't matter. Time after time, Slade had defeated and humiliated him. All he was concerned about was to destroy his opponent once and for all. Afterwards, the entire universe could collapse in on itself for all he cared.
We shall finally see which of us is better! In a way, it's amusing how the twists of fate has brought us together to this point in time, isn't it Slade? Or should I say... Ranma? Oh yes, I understand now just what it is that keeps drawing us together. No matter how much we try, we can't stop our contest until there is a victor. We're two of a kind, you and I. However, the universe does not require the two of us and I will make certain that there will be only one!
The Tekkapod he was in began to bubble and increase in its glow. Saber was nearing his goal and woe to any who stood in his way.
The Nirvana's Conference Room...
"You wanted to see me, Captain?" Ranma asked as he walked into the room.
Magno nodded as she motioned for Parfet and Duero to leave the area. The doctor and the engineer gave her worried expressions, but obeyed her silent command and departed. When the door slid shut, the leader of the pirates and the Tekkaman faced each other.
"Sit down, Ranma." Magno said as she gestured to a nearby chair.
"I'll stand, if you don't mind." Slade said simply. He was still feeling some frustration over what had happened with Ukyo. It was bad enough that he remembered the misery and hardship he had endured during his first life, but having one of his friends turn on him so suddenly had been unexpected and unpleasant. "And the name's Slade. I really don't care for the name Ranma. Besides, I haven't gone by that name in a long time."
"But it is your true name, Ranma." Magno insisted. "It means Wild Horse, doesn't it? That was the name your father gave to you."
Slade's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "How would you know what my name means and that my father gave it to me?"
Magno sat in silence as she looked over his features and nodded as she gazed into his gray-blue eyes. "Yes. I always thought that you had the same eyes. It's been so long, but I still remember that shade of blue. And as I look at you now, I can see the resemblance."
"What are you talking about?" Slade started to become uneasy. Magno seemed to know more about him than he did and that was making him nervous. Could she be telepathic?
The aged pirate captain pressed a button on her console and a small panel opened up on the center of the Conference Table. Suspended in an anti-gravity field, a clear cylinder floated up and hovered two feet above the surface of the table. Within the tube was a rolled up sheet of parchment, contained inside a nitrogen environment to prevent any further degradation. Slade noted that the edges were yellowed and cracked, indicating that the parchment was extremely aged. It would have crumbled away centuries ago if it wasn't meticulously preserved. He also noted that there was a darkened area near the bottom half of the rolled sheet that looked to be an ink stain.
"Do you recognize this?" Magno asked.
Slade shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "It's just an old piece of paper. What's that got to do with me?"
She nodded in thought. "Yes, I suppose you wouldn't remember. You were only five at the time."
"Huh?"
She pressed another button, causing another panel on the table to open in front of Slade. A sensor pad appeared.
"Place your hand on the sensor." She instructed.
"What?"
"Place your hand on the sensor." She repeated.
By this time, Slade was getting irritated. "Look, I don't have time for any games! You said that you wanted to talk to me about something important! Now either you tell me what it is, or I'm leaving!"
"Slade..." The old woman said in a more forceful tone. "Put your hand on the sensor... now!"
The young man let off a snort of disgust before placing his right hand on the pad. Immediately, the sensor glowed as the computer began scanning. At the same time, a holographic projection appeared next to the parchment, indicating that it was also being scanned. In a minute, the analysis was complete and the results were displayed. On the right side of the image was Slade's base DNA sequence. On the left side was the DNA sequence of the skin cells that were discovered preserved within the ink stains. Slade's eyes widened as he read the final results.
DNA MATCH... ID CONFIRMED AS RANMA SAOTOME...
Magno trembled as she asked the computer, "Is there any probability of error?"
The computer replied.
ERROR PROBABILITY LESS THAN NEGLIGIBLE.
At that moment, the captain of the Nirvana stood up with a tender expression on her face. Tears began to well up in her eyes as she approached the still shocked Tekkaman. Her body trembled with excitement as she immediately embraced him and began sobbing into his chest.
"My boy! (sob) My boy has finally come back to me! (sob) After all this time! (sob) I thought I had lost you! Ranma! Ranma! (sob) I'm so happy! (sob) I'm so very happy!"
Slade was at a total loss of what to do, and of course he panicked. He gently but firmly pushed away the weeping woman and held her by the shoulders. His expression was of absolute confusion as he addressed her in an edgy tone. "Whoa! Hold on! What are you talking about?! What do you mean I'm your boy?! Just who the HELL do you think you are?!"
Vivian Magno's eyes furrowed a bit, though she gave him a bit of a smile when she replied, "Ranma... I know it's been five hundred and sixty-three years, but that is still no excuse to talk back to YOUR MOTHER!"
To be continued...
Preview...
Slade: "I can't believe this! It's bad enough my old memories have come back to haunt me, but now the Captain lays THIS on me?! I'm her SON!? It can't be! How could this...? It makes no sense! This has to be some kind of joke! Next time, on TekkaDread Remastered: 'A Mother's Tale'."
Magno: "My son… I'm so sorry…"
Author's Notes
Well, that takes care of this part and I know I'm a stinker for leaving you hanging like this. So did I fool anyone here? How many of you thought that Magno was a descendant of Nodoka instead of the original? How did Nodoka survive this long? What's her story and what is going to happen once the Nirvana reaches their ultimate destination and the final showdown with the Radam? Well, all I can say is watch for the next episode.
Please read and review!