AN: Thanks for all the reviews! I'll hopefully try to keep this as original as I can. Doubt I'll be overly successful though. This chapter starts out in a narrative like the last chapter, and then it switches to a first person, in the middle of things. The whole story will be told either in a narrative, or an 'in the middle of things' first person experience.

TIME'S MISTRESS, TIME'S SLAVE

CHAPER ONE

CHANGING THE FUTURE

The Gates of Time

I'll tell you something. Before any large changes to someone's fate in the time line, it's always a good idea to watch their entire life, so that you not only change it at the right moment and in the right way, but also so you understand your target. It is also wise to look at as many upstream branches of the time line as possible to see what your changes will bring.

So I watched Ranma Saotome's life yet again, but this time paid particular attention to the last few weeks of his life.

After reviewing it for the umpteenth time, I cursed. There was no possible way to stop his/her/whatever's death with out direct intervention. I would need to be physically there. I just couldn't stop it from here through the Gates.

And I would need help. Help from the girls. I just couldn't cover all of the player's in this mess at once.

Stumped on how to ask the girls for help with this, I went and looked at some up stream probabilities. One, they might help me get an idea on what to say to the girls, and two, I needed to anyway.

Now I don't shock easily, but this did shock me. In over two thirds the good time lines, both Ranma and this Herb character were Senshi, one's that don't even exist! Some how, some way, both Ranma and Herb, became Sailor's Sun and Earth, respectively in those time lines. Those Senshi never even existed before! How the hell did that happen?

I rewinded those time lines to see how Senshi that don't exist can. "It was me? I did this?" I asked out loud after seeing my self help create them.

"Yes you did." A voice I know well said. It was my own voice. 'Great.' I thought 'Another visit from myself.'

"Yes it's me, you." My future self said as I turned around. "You know, it went slightly different this time around. You weren't supposed to find out about Ranma's death, I was supposed to tell you, and then I was tell you about Ranma and Herb being Senshi much later. I don't know what went wrong." My future self said shaking her head.

My eyes went wide. "You mean, you're in the wrong past?" I asked.

"Looks like it." She said flatly.

I swore. A lot. She then followed suit. After our cursing session I asked "So what now?"

"Well, I guess I can tell you what I can that I know, I can't hurt my future here." She said.

"That's not like us, just giving out information, but I'm not about to look a gift horse in the mouth as they say." I laughed.

We then sat down in the kitchen area. Hey this is a pocket dimension, it has all it needs to be a self contained world, or a house at the very least. I got us some snacks and something to drink and she started talking.

"Ok, you know about Ranma and Herb, so I don't need to go there." She started off with. "So I'll go over what you don't know. Chaos himself is coming." She stated flatly. I gasped.

"But all my searches showed that he wasn't coming! He didn't like the odds!" I exclaimed. All the Senshi's enemies, from Beryl to Galaxia were just his play things, to gage the level of challenge he could expect from us. After Usagi beat Galaxia, he didn't like the odds and left us alone, or so I had thought.

"It was a ruse, to get our guard down." She said, saying what I had already guessed. "Ranma is, well he's one of Chaos's favored." She continued. I winced. That was bad. Being one of his favored is, well let me put it this way, Pandora was one of his favored, and we all know how that turned out. They all usually end up destroying a civilization or word or universe or even dimension. It sucks. And usually, they're like Ranma, nice people who do it by accident for the best of reasons.

Normally, I'd just take out a chosen of Chaos, no matter how good a person they were, but this wasn't a normal situation. "So, if he's a favored, why is it that we got him to help us as a Senshi? And what about Herb?" I asked.

"Remember the Prophesy of Chaos?" She asked. I nodded "Remember the last line, 'And lo, the favored shall lay the favoring low, and assume the mantle'?" She quoted. I nodded again. I think I know where this was going. "Well your to help Ranma succeed in fulfilling the prophesy." I knew it. This wasn't the first time that Time has made me help fulfill a prophesy it wanted fulfilled. I was like its errand girl for those kind of things. God there's times I hate my job, and Time it's self too. It looked like this was shaping up to be one of those times.

"So I have to help fulfill another prophesy. That explains Ranma, but Herb?" I asked.

"Her, and yes I meant to say that, and you better start thinking of them in the female too, help will be needed. I've said too much on this already, but I will say this, the Senshi powers that they use are not false or made up. Look for them, they were never used and abandoned, but the keys to unlocking there power are hidden in the Mercury Computer. Have Ami find them. Good luck and good bye." She said disappearing.

"Damn it!" I cursed "Why do I always have to be so mysterious!" I yelled.

Sighing, I decided I had to get the girls together to tell them about this. I then smiled. For once, I was going to be blunt and to the point with them. That should give them all heart palpitations.

Digging out my communicator, I called up Ami. "Yes? Oh hi Setsuna." Ami said absentmindedly. I was obviously disturbing her homework time. "Can you get the other girls to meet me at the shrine? And bring the Mercury Computer, I need you to look for some thins in it." I told her.

"This is going to be bad, isn't it?" She said with disgust. "And here I was hoping you were right, when all logic told me you were wrong. See you there." She said, turning off the communicator.

Sighing at her accurate guess, I prepared to move my self back into the time stream. I was giving myself a week before Ranma's death, and I hoped it would be enough, but it was all the time I could give my self. I laughed. The so called 'Mistress of Time' was worried that she doesn't have enough of it. If only the others could appreciate this irony. Well maybe Ami could, but she's the only one.

Well I stepped on through the portal to the shrine, and all the girls were there. Sneaking up behind them all I said "Hello."

As they all jumped a little I stifled a laugh. Ah that was a great way to relieve stress.

"Girls," I started, when I was interrupted by Ami sighing voice saying

"Who is it this time?"

"It's Chaos himself." I said in reply.

"Chaos, Chaos,… where have I heard that name before?" Usagi asked herself.

I mentally screamed. 'How? How could such a dizzt grow into Neo Queen Serenity? One of the wisest, calmest, and infallible beings I know of? It's madding!' I thought to my self. After taking a deep breath, I said "He's the being behind all of our enemies Princess."

"Oh yah," She said snapping her fingers "Galaxia mentioned him. I thought he wasn't coming." She said, suddenly looking serious.

"I thought so too. It was just a ruse. I found out about this in a, indirect, I guess you could say, way. I found out about one of his chosen." I started, When Rei said

"Well let's kick its ass then!" and the others nodded in their agreement.

"NO!" I shouted.

"Huh?" they asked as one.

I sighed. "His chosen are not like his pawns. They exist for the sole purpose of spreading chaos, and are usually never even aware of his influence on their lives. Now usually this does stop me from eliminating them, but this one is different."

"How so?" Hotaru asked.

"Other then his, or should I say her coming death would start World War Three, she is the one spoken of in the Prophesy of Chaos." I said.

"Can you explain that?" Usagi asked, still all business.

"Certainly Princess." I said, getting a reaction of surprise from her. "It's like this. The chosen of Chaos are spreaders of chaos, and are usually not aware of his influence on their life. They have the unfortunate curse of usually ending their civilizations, which is why I usually terminate them. How ever, in this case, he, I mean she," the stared at me for that slip up "is part of the Prophesy of Chaos, the last part, on his Prophesized final defeat. If any defeated him before, he could come back, after a little while of energy gathering, but if she beats him, he can't come back."

"Why?" Usagi asked.

"Princess, I may not say. For one of you may let the reason slip, and she can not know of the Prophesy for it to work." I told her.

"Fine, but who is this 'She' you keep referring to?" Usagi asked.

"And what was I supposed to look up?" Ami asked.

"Let me tell you about the life of a boy named Ranma Saotome." I started.

"I thought we were talking about a girl here?" Makoto asked.

"We are, or we will be." I said.

"Huh?" came from every one present.

"Just listen. And as I tell this tale, while you listen Ami, I want you to look up the protocols for initiating the powers of the Senshi of the Sun and Earth. I don't know where they'd be, probably under 'Classified' and 'Abandoned Projects'." I said looking at Ami, who then got her Computer out.

"Now to begin our tale." I said, going into a abbreviated version of Ranma's life for them.

AN: Well there it is, the first chapter. I don't think I've ever rewritten a chapter more times then this one, nine times to be exact, but it just wouldn't come out right. I chose the over used Sun and Earth, yes, but hey, they're the only large astral bodies left in this solar system other then some large moons. And yes I am fukuing Herb. Well next chapter I'll probably get to the Senshi meeting Ranma. At least I plan on it. Don't know if it will work out that way though. Bye.