AMG Chap. 9Aiyah! *My* Goddess?!Chapter Nineby Trella AND Jim Bader
Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi is the sole creation and property of Ranma & Co...half a mo’...have I got that right? Well, close enough, anyway. All characters that are not of my own creation...are the creation of someone else.
Note to my readers on Timm’s site: This chapter is, as yet, INCOMPLETE. I’m working on it as I can, but I’m a slow writer at the best of times. As soon as I get more done, I’ll send it up the line, but in the meantime, read and hopefully enjoy...
Being a collaboration between Jim Bader and myself, your humble narrator, wherein Ukyo takes herself a little excusion to China’s favorite tourist location and finds herself in a severely life-changing situation
"Welcome, humble Sir, to Jusenkyo Travel Services," said young Plum to the eminent tourist, "You wish to visit Cursed Springs of Eternal Sorrow? Then this one will happily guide you on behalf of this one's noble father, the entrusted Guide of Jusenkyo."
Ukyo seemed amused as she studied the face of a young girl (all of twelve if she was a day) who had come out to greet her upon her arrival in the Bayankallah Mountains. Cologne had said that someone would be there to meet her at the landing strip, where her small cargo plane had come down in a more-or-less intact condition, to show her the way to the Springs, but in all truth she had been expecting to meet someone a bit...taller.
"You're the Guide, Sugar?" Ukyo asked the young Chinese girl.
Plum hardly faltered on being addressed by the "handsome youth" before her, even though she had been expecting some balding, overweight American Tourist, not the incredible STUD who stood before her! His voice was surprisingly mellow and friendly, and she felt an early adolescent rush of hormones at the thought of actually conversing with such a "virile" specimen as this. Though much too young to be dating (she internally made a face at the thought of what her father would say on that subject), she was enormously grateful for all those Japanese language lessons her father had forced her to undertake (though where he had learned his own Japanese was a mystery in itself), glad that it would allow her to converse with him in his native language and thus justify her spending more time in his presence.
"Is please to say that honorable father is official Jusenkyo Guide, descended from a long and illustrious line of Jusenkyo guides, stretching back many generations," Plum answered, "Honorable father was unable to come here on his own, but he entrusted this one to see to the task of servicing a guest of Matriarch Cologne. Now, is please to come this way, honorable customer, this one will show you way to reach Jusenkyo."
"Then lead on, Sugar," Ukyo urged before adding, "By the way...what's your name?"
Plum felt a rush of excitement-(He wants to know my name! Maybe this Summer Job won't suck as much as I'd thought!) Aloud what she said was, "Is please to call this one Plum, is name given to this one by blessed Mother, who smiled down upon this one from the Heavens."
"Oh, too bad," Ukyo sympathized, "I lost my mother when I was too little to remember."
"No, this one does not mean her mother is past living," Plum hastily corrected, even as she sympathized with the young man's plight, even as she pointed skyward, "This one means she smile down from the Heavens...as in from space. She is an Astronaut with the Chinese Space Program, currently on assignment to International Space Station, whose name the government does not want us to pronounce."
"Oh," Ukyo blinked her eyes, then said the word, "You mean...Space Station Free-!"
"Aiyii!" Plum exclaimed as she glanced from side-to-side, "Please not to say word, Honored Customer! Government have ears everywhere, might hear you!"
"Oh...sorry about that," Ukyo amended, then added, "If your mother works in space, what are you doing here?"
"Oh, this one's parents are separated," Plum explained, "Have what Americans call...joint custodialism. Spend half time visiting with father when mother way doing important business. It rough sometimes, big commute from Beijing to Country."
"I can bet," Ukyo nodded, "So...you're here to guide me all on your own?"
"Oh no, Honorable Customer," Plum bowed, "Matriarch Cologne assign Woman of Amazon tribe come help escort us...Enforcer name..."
Ukyo's battle hardened reflexes caused her to react automatically, whipping her Battle Spatula out into hand just in time to deflect the passing hiss of a huge broad ax, which arced her way from out of no where. The ax rebounded off her weapon and went whizzing back the way it had come, back to the outstretched hand of a young woman very near to Ukyo's own age...a brown haired warrior wearing a fancy, embroidered red-and-black Cheosang, whose hair was done up into a stylish pair of odangos.
"...Perfume," Plum lamely finished, introducing the ax-woman, who smiled at Ukyo in a faintly predatory manner.
"Nihao," the warrior made her ax all but disappear as she bowed from the waist and crossed her arms in formal greeting, "You nice moves for outsider womans...you is one whom Perfume must protect at command of great grandmother?"
"Great grandmother?" Ukyo blinked.
"Adopted," Plum readily explained, then she addressed herself at the brown haired warrior in fluent Mandarin, which was answered just as readily before the two girls bowed to one another.
"You come now," the warrior smiled in a way that made Ukyo feel somewhat nervous, "Take you most of way to Jusenkyo."
"Not all the way?" Ukyo asked, feeling oddly reluctant for some reason to add the word "Sugar," lest the other girl take it to mean some kind of invitation.
"No one in right mind go all way to Jusenkyo," Perfume explained, "But way from here to there is very dangerous...outsider no come here unless they have Amazon guidance."
"Perfume is best tracker in her village," Plum stage-whispered for Ukyo's benefit, "She see no harm come to handsome Outsider...but watch step. Enforcer very powerful fighter, almost as good as Tribal Champion, no make angry or..." she made a noise and drew a finger meaningfully across her neck.
Ukyo well understood the risks of upsetting an Amazon and nodded with an affable smile, "No problem, Sugar...in fact, I learned to respect Amazons after trading enough blows with one back in my own...um...village. In fact, it's because of her and her great grandmother that I'm here on official business."
"You is one who fight with Shampoo?" Perfume sounded impressed and had the arched eyebrows to prove it, "And you still live?"
"Just barely," Ukyo chuckled a bit with the irony of reflection, "Shampoo and me have been sparring with each other for months, but somehow neither one of us could ever get the upper hand in those encounters...and then...well...a while ago she risked her life to save mine, so now we're a lot closer than friends...real close, in fact..."
"Oh," Perfume seemed to nod with understanding, "You then is pledged to Shampoo? Then you is family to Perfume...am very honored. You must be strong fighter if you not get Kiss of Death but Kiss of Marriage."
"Ah, well..." Ukyo decided to change the subject rather than to have to explain herself in more detail, "Say...can you tell me if there's anything really weird, unusual or dangerous that I ought to know about before we get started?"
"Oh, is not to worry, Honored Customer," Plum assured, "Way is dangerous to Outsiders, but no so dangerous if know the way. Is nothing really...weird or unusual...that this one can think of..."
"Just watch your step," Perfume mused as she gave Ukyo a wink, suggesting that maybe Ukyo might need to be on her guard not just against unknown dangers but quite possibly from her supposed "protector."
Together the three of them started off into the woodland, away from the field airstrip and on their way into the heart of the Bayankallah forest...
"Excuse please, honored Enforcer," Plum said after several minutes of tracking through what seemed like fairly untamed Chinese wilderness, "But this is not normal way to Jusenkyo from Nyanchiczu village?"
"The village in that direction," Perfume nodded her head to the side, then nodded again forward, "This way short-cut, take us faster to place of Cursed Springs. No have to go directly to pools of sorrow this way, only have to avoid a few lesser problems..."
"Problems?" Ukyo asked, "What problems?"
"Is nothing worry about," Perfume assured, "You safe with Perfume long as stay on safe trail."
"Safe?" Ukyo repeated.
"Unless count Big Scary Monster that live in woods," Plum added with a bit less confidence in her voice than their Amazon escort was demonstrating.
"Big scary monster?" Ukyo blinked.
"Is no worry about," Perfume assured them, "Big Scary Monster only come out at night when hungry for meal. We no tempt by going near cave..."
"Cave?" Ukyo blinked, "What cave?"
"Is place in mountains that no go near if avoid," Plum explained, "Called 'Big Scary Monster' cave, place no one want see if no crazy."
"You mean there's a monster in the area that patrols these woods...and you people haven't done anything about it?" Ukyo asked.
"Oh yes, try many times deal with monster," Perfume replied, "Elders once sent three of best, most seasoned warriors to fight monster. Could hear belch all way back to village."
Ukyo thought that one over before saying, "Have you ever gone to fight this monster yourself, Sugar?"
"Elder no let Perfume go," Perfume replied, "But once she come near to fighting Monster, chase off before Salt and Pepper get near it."
"Salt and Pepper?" Ukyo replied.
"Know them," Plum replied, "They scary more than Monster."
"Two senior warrior who train a lot," Perfume replied, "No want get near them, they very...what word for very, very much into training?"
"Intense?" Plum ventured.
"Intense?" Ukyo repeated, "What do you mean by..."
An explosion rocked the ground, causing Ukyo to instinctively reach for her baker's peel while Perfume braced her legs and Plum dropped down to her knees and looked understandably worried. Another explosion was heard to resound from quite close nearby, leaving Ukyo with the impression that they had accidentally stumbled into a military testing range, to which effect she asked, "Who's shooting at us?"
"No shooting at us," Perfume calmly replied, "Is Salt and Pepper training."
"Oh no!" Plum whimpered, "Is bad, is very, very bad! When those two fight, is like Chinese Army play war games!"
"Is no fight," Perfume replied, "Is training."
"Training," Ukyo repeated again, then flinched as yet another explosion rang out from even closer nearby.
All at once a figure appeared, followed by another, to all appearances flitting from treetop to treetop like a pair of giant, human-sized crickets before alighting on the ground and falling into matching combat postures. One stood on one leg and held a pair of butterfly swords in her hands, the other crouched low with a triple-sectioned staff and each looked deadly serious in both their postures and expressions.
At a glance Ukyo could tell that they were Amazons from both their style of dress and their general behavior, and obviously they were both warriors, if a bit older than Perfume herself by as much as a few odd years, but there the similarities between these two ended as one warrior had dark hair streaked with white while the other had amber-gold hair streaked with flecks of red and auburn, and their outfits clashed in both color and symbols, implying that these two were from rival clans from the mutual dislike that was plain on both of their faces.
As Ukyo registered this the black-and-white haired warrior standing on one leg made a flashing move and struck her two swords together, causing a spark to ignite that arced from where she was standing to her fiery haired opponent, who in turn whirled her three-section staff around and deflected the blast, turning it sideways so that it hit the ground a distance away and caused yet another explosion. The first warrior struck again with another strike as she rapidly shifted her pattern, but this time when the flash was deflected it wound up spiraling in Ukyo's direction.
She had a moment to yelp as she got her spatula into position, but before the blast could strike her it was caught and deflected off of Perfume's axes, going harmlessly to the side and resulting in yet another violent explosion. The motion caught the attention of the two warriors, who both froze in place with matching surprised expressions.
"You miss," Perfume said, her tone more annoyed than angry at the near catastrophe that had come so close to hitting those under her protection.
"Enforcer!" both older women turned and lifted their weapons as they made respectful salutations, then the black-and-white haired woman said, "We didn't see you standing there..."
"You appeared so suddenly," the fiery haired woman added quickly, "There was no time to see you..."
"Try looking before you attack next time," Perfume said coolly before switching back to Japanese, "This warrior is under protection of Elder, no let harm by Amazon, she on mission for Great-grandmother."
"This...Outlander...is here on behalf of the Matriarch?" said the first warrior with a puzzled expression, her command of Japanese evidently much better than Perfume's.
"You putting moves on her, Young One?" the fiery haired warrior said with a suggestive expression.
"No on this one," Perfume half smiled, "She nice looking, but other claim her."
"Pity for you, huh?" the first one smirked, "So, Japanese...what business you have with us?"
"It's...kind of private," Ukyo shrugged, only Perfume scowled slightly and looked at the white-and-black haired woman crossly.
"You no ask what Elder Business, Salt," the Enforcer scolded, "Practice Chi Attacks on own time, no when Perfume busy showing way to Guest of Great-grandmother."
"Oh," the fiery-gold warrior (whom Ukyo took to be named Pepper), "Is that the way it is? And what else do you intend to show her, Little One?"
Ukyo was becoming somewhat concerned about the situation when Perfume did not reprimand the older woman or disabuse her of this insinuation, "Just guide for now, keep safe from other dangers."
"And later on...if you camp out alone?" the one named Salt smirked hugely, turning a wry look at the very woman whom she had been glaring at so hatefully a moment ago, "Ah, to be young and carefree about your habits..."
"We were never that young," the other warrior said with a faint sniff, but she nodded as if this were the most profound of observations.
"Ignore them," Perfume told Ukyo, "Senior warrior always think they so clever because they learn technique younger warrior no learn until Elder say is ready."
"So," Ukyo said, standing a bit more at ease, "Y'all were just practicing some special Chinese Amazon techniques here, huh?"
"Always try out new techniques," Salt replied, "Call new maneuver 'Flashing Sunblade Attack.'"
"Is better than your last technique, the 'Spiraling Falchion Attack,'" countered Pepper.
"Oh, just because I had a little problem with turbulence that day," Salt griped.
"Which is how you wound up corkscrewing yourself into the ground when you missed me," Pepper replied.
"Oh yeah?" Salt bristled, "Maybe I should show you how I do number when there no strong wind to throw me off?"
"If you can get your fat butt off the ground to gain enough altitude," Pepper countered.
Ukyo's eyes widened as she watched the two intensify their insults until they were at it again, clearly having ignored or forgotten all about them. They vaulted high into the air and continued their clashes with more blasts resounding further on into the valley while Perfume just sighed as if in clear exasperation.
"Is safe now?" Plum asked, having taken her hands off her head to look around, "They gone yet?"
"They gone," Perfume replied, "Is maybe safe to come out from hiding."
"What the heck was that all about?" Ukyo asked in dismay.
"Salt and Pepper is cousins from rival clans," Perfume replied, "Been quarreling long as can remember. No actually hurt each other, but always sparring, always training to fight, and many time they use special attacks they just learn to prove which one is better."
"So those two are rivals, huh?" Ukyo said as she slung her spatula back over her back, "Any idea what started the fracas between them?"
"Not even sure they remember," Perfume replied, "But hear rumor once it over size of sparrows in Canton, Beijing and Joketsuzoku. Odd thing they never go to Beijing and Canton to find out."
"They crazy!" Plum declared, "No pay any attention where they fight, blow up things at random, more damage to countryside than to each other!"
"Huh...sounds pretty familiar," Ukyo remarked, "So, this is your idea of just plain old everyday happenings, huh?"
"Is for Joketsuzoku," Perfume replied, "But this nothing...you should see when Elders fight. Nobody safe, only take cover and much pray."
"Yes, like when my grandmother use Martial Arts Mahjong with Elder Sweet," Plum remarked with a slight shudder, "That get plenty scary!"
Ukyo gave a slight smile at this, which prompted Perfume to say, "You find funny?"
"Not so much, Sugar," Ukyo replied, "It's just...I'm starting to understand Shampoo a lot better. If this is the sort of place where she grew up..."
"Things different in you country?" Plum asked with a rather overly hopeful expression.
"Not as much as I'd thought," Ukyo shrugged then said, "C'mon, let's go find Jusenkyo so I can do what I came here to do, then maybe I'll stop by and give your village a lookover, just so I can satisfy myself on a few points."
"You funeral," Perfume shrugged, "But no get into any challenge matches or Perfume have to step in and enforce will of great-grandmother."
"Right, got it," Ukyo replied, "Last thing I want to do is cause any trouble, Sugar."
Plum looked at Ukyo curiously and asked, "Why you call Perfume name Sugar? She no look anything like her."
"Ah...just an expression, nothing personal meant by that," Ukyo replied.
"Is so?" Perfume cocked an eyebrow and smiled, "Thought maybe you think Perfume is sweet like honey. You very cute youself for outlander, no mind you flirt with Perfume, but Shampoo maybe get jealous with Cousin if she hear talk like that."
And with that the Amazon meaningfully bumped hips with Ukyo, who gave a mild start at this and looked mildly unsettled as the Amazon sauntered by her with exaggerated hip motions that gave her fanny a swaying stride that even a confirmed Heterosexual could not have failed to take notice.
"Oboy," Ukyo said faintly, wondering just how serious the sort of trouble she would be in if she made a mistake around the Amazon, such as challenging her to a battle.
"You better watch self around that one, Honored Customer," Plum stage-whispered, "She mostly like girls, but if she see cute guy she maybe make exception."
"I'll...try and keep that in mind, Sug-erh...Honey," Ukyo amended, not seeing the way the younger girl blushes happily as she took her statement as a compliment, even though Plum knew that Honey was well grown and had a very different color and hairstyle...to say nothing of being notoriously top-heavy.
Together they foraged ahead through the rough woodland trail, Perfume taking the lead, on their way to Jusenkyo...
"Well, there is Jusenkyo," Plum announced after arriving at the edge of a mist-filled hidden valley, "Home of famous Springs of Cursed Sorrow. Before you is one hundred pools, each one with different tragic story. Tourist be very, very careful approach Jusenkyo, no want to fall in or become part of tragic story."
"No problem there, Sugar," Ukyo replied, studying the valley that stretched below them and thinking to herself that they seemed surprisingly ordinary for a place that had been responsible for so much mischief, "I've already seen how these suckers can mess things up for people. In fact, that's kind of why I'm here, on account of some friends who've already got Jusenkyo curses."
Perfume looked towards the other girl and said, "You know Jusenkyo story...and still you come here? What great-grandmother thinking?"
"That maybe I can find a cure in a hair of the dog that already bit, Sugar," Ukyo replied, "Seems Cologne thinks there might be a remote chance of curing those curses I already know about by sprinkling some Nanniichuan or Nyanniichuan water over the heads of the victims."
Perfume shook her head and replied, "No know about that...never heard of Jusenkyo water being used that way, but then most Amazons smart enough to avoid cursed springs or else happen to them what happen to Perfume cousin."
"Yeah, that's what I mean," Ukyo replied, "It's for Shampoo's sake, as well as a guy we both know and care about, that I've gotta do this. If there's even a chance of curing Ranchan and Shampoo of their curses..."
"You very brave," Perfume said with renewed respect for her Japanese companion, "Risk much to help Perfume cousin. But is you no afraid you might get cursed by Jusenkyo?"
"Risk of the game, Sugar," Ukyo replied, patting her back-pack as she added, "But I've come prepared for the occasion, so what are the odds that it could happen?"
"Around Jusenkyo?" Plum said nervously, "This one grow up there, never yet been cursed, but still no want to take unnecessary chances around springs. Once boy and man come through here, but they no leave here same way, and other boy almost get cooked as pig by father..."
"Yeah, I heard about that," Ukyo said with some irony, "And another guy came here looking to borrow some Jusenkyo water, only he slipped and fell in because of his poor eyesight."
"Aiyaa," Perfume exclaimed, "You know Mousse?"
"Unfortunately," Ukyo could understand the other girl's dismayed reaction, "He's mostly harmless, if you can ignore the fact that he's incredibly violent and jealous of Ranchan. Take away his glasses and he's more of a threat to passers-by than he is to whoever he means to attack."
"Aiyaa," Perfume repeated again, "You know Mousse all right. Him plenty big pest for Perfume cousin."
"Well," Ukyo shrugged, "Guess we'd better take this show down there if I'm gonna get this done by nightfall. I'm hoping to catch that plane back out of here in the morning...assuming they can get it fixed up by then."
"Maybe ask Shampoo father for help," Perfume remarked, "Hairbrush good mechanic."
"Hairbrush?" Ukyo asked with lifted eyebrows, "Shampoo's father's name is...Hairbrush?"
"Is good Amazon name," Perfume replied, "Even though he born outsider."
"Funny," Ukyo scratched along the side of her head, "Shampoo never mentioned her father before..."
"Why you surprised?" Perfume asked, "He only man, and Shampoo mother is tribal Healer of village..."
"Whoah-waitaminute!" Ukyo reacted, "Are you telling me that Shampoo's mother and father are still both ALIVE?"
Perfume blinked at this, "You no know?"
"Shampoo never told me," Ukyo explained, "In fact...I was kind of under the impression that she was an orphan, and that she was raised by her-uh-your great-grandmother..."
"She was raised by great-grandmother, same as Perfume," the Amazon Enforcer explained, "Have special deal...ah...what word for agree?"
"Agreement?" Ukyo responded.
"Yes, that word," the brown-haired Amazon nodded, "Make deal with Healer Comb, raise Shampoo in house of Matriarch. Perfume also have deal with parents. Mother...no can take care well of Perfume because...she have special...um..."
"Condition?" Ukyo suggested.
Again Perfume nodded, "Is good you know, you smart for Outlander. Perfume need special training to become Enforcer to Amazons. Great-grandmother teach Perfume how become strongest warrior of own age, second only to Tribal Champion, Perfume cousin. We train together, get strong together, but Perfume no compete with Shampoo in tournament. Have different place, serving will of tribal council."
"So, you're as tough as Shampoo, eh?" Ukyo asked in a mix of dismay and appreciation, recalling the many times that she and Shampoo had clashed together with neither one emerging the clear victor. Of course remembering this also brought back to Ukyo the purpose for her being here, and with that came the resolve to move forward, even as she felt a faint stab of jealousy at knowing that Shampoo still had parents who were among the living...
The place looked much as Ranma, Shampoo and Ryoga had variously described it, but hearing about it and actually seeing the infamous Cursed Springs was two different things. So many springs, and each one cursed? Well, no...Plum had told her that some were uncursed, blank templates awaiting impression...but other pools were cursed for hundreds, thousands...maybe a couple for tens of thousands of years? Could there be a too too tragic story of dinosaur what drown in spring 75 million year ago? If there was, Ukyo hoped she would never know.
What Ranma had never told her was how downright *spooky* the place seemed. There was an air...almost a miasma about the springs, an almost wilfull malice tainting the atmosphere. It was just as well, Ukyo thought, that she was here in the middle of the day. At night, as moisture laden air rose out of the ground, there'd be a fog thick enough to do any gothic horror movie proud. And it certainly hadn’t escaped her notice that Perfume, who hardly seemed to be the type to be afraid of anything (except for that “monster†she went on about...Ukyo still didn’t know if the Amazon Enforcer was serious or was pulling the local equivilent of a Kansai tall tale), had stayed at the edge of the Springs, not daring to advance further.
The Guide knew which Spring held which curse. For hundreds of years there had been a Guide to the Springs, the responsibility held by the same family all those long years, and the lore handed down by oral tradition. There were, of course, springs which held unknown curses, far too many, in fact, but once a curse had been identified, and it's spring determined, it was incorporated into the body of knowledge each Guide held within their head. And when a person did, inevitably, fall into a spring, it was a Guide's task and duty to explain the new facts of life to the unfortunate victim, as gently as possible.
But it was not the Guide who was with Ukyo, but his daughter. And while she had proved attentive (generally) to her lessons, there was still much the child didn’t know. Too many of the Springs were unknown to her. And even the best of Guides (and her father was one of the better ones) couldn’t stop a person from entering the Springs when they’d a mind to.
As Ukyo moved back and forth between the springs, Plum by her side, looking for the ones she needed to cure the ones she loved, she felt this spring or that one...tug at her, with varying degrees of force and persistence. She approached one pool that tugged rather a bit harder than the others. Still, it wasn’t anything a highly skilled and trained martial artist couldn’t handle...if it wasn’t for that little patch of wet, slippery clay right where she placed her foot. The chef only had enough time to mutter “Oh, sh...†before her legs went out from under her and she was precipitated into the water.
The shock and surprise of finding herself so submerged caused Ukyo to swallow some water. As she sputtered and struggled to return to the surface, she felt...the most damnably *strangest* sensation she had ever felt, the muscles and bones in her body shifting, altering...stretching or compressing...and all within an instant.
Coughing, Ukyo broke the surface and groped for the edge of the pool. Her flailing hands were caught by Plum, who helped the soaked girl out of the water. “You very very lucky†, Plum observed. “You only fall in Pool of Drowned Bishonen Man, so you no be affected too much†Except that it made Ukyo look even hotter, Plum thought. The young Guide-in-Training’s hormones had begun to bubble when she first met the visitor, and kept perking right along...but now, those hormones were practically carbonating.
One thing puzzled Plum...why did Ukyo let out such a wail of despair when the Guide informed him which spring he had fallen into? Shouldn’t be *that* bad, after all. As far as Plum could see, her manly visitor hadn’t changed *that* much...a slight bit taller...a bit broader around the shoulders...buns tighter, too...
After the pair made their way to where Perfume stood waiting, Ukyo went through what seemed to Plum to be a bizarre ritual. He patted his chest and wailed out, “Where’d they *go*?!†...and then, to Plum’s secret delight, shamelessly felt her crotch. Ukyo then slumped hard to the ground.
The young guide looked at Perfume in puzzlement. “Why does he act in this manner? Falling in the Spring of Drowned Bishonen Man shouldn’t be *that* bad...†she asked in Chinese. In the same language, Perfume answered back, “What do you expect, changing from a girl to a guy like that...â€
Plum blinked. Hard. “What? He...she...honored visitor is a *girl*? But I thought...â€
And at the edge of the infamous and notorious Jusenkyo Cursed Springs, the Pools of Eternal Sorrow, were three figures, one standing with a grimace and her fingers in her ears, and two slumped on the ground, wailing and sobbing in unison, if not harmony...
Perfume mercifully figured that Ukyo had enough adventure and mishaps for one day, and that she, or currently he, should have a nice rest in some quiet location. There being no such place in this part of China, however, the Amazon enforcer helped the still stunned chef to Joketsuzoku. The walk helped clear some of the cobwebs out of Ukyo’s mind, and he *did* have the example of...well, now that he thought about it, damn near everyone he knew and cared for had a Jusenkyo curse. So then, *their* example to draw on. They coped...*somehow* they coped, so could she...errr...he. This pronoun business, Ukyo thought, is going to be a real pain. Still, she/he was a martial artist, and the way he was acting after being cursed was quite undisciplined, though understandable. And this gave her/him a whole new connection to Ranma and Shampoo both.
As befitted a village of warrior women, Joketsuzoku was fortified by a wall. Not a terribly high one, it was true, but that, the fierce reputation of the inhabitants, and the two sentries that greeted Ukyo and Perfume on their approach to the gate, would have been enough to scare off most bandits. The pair were armed with halberds, with which they had blocked the entrance gate by crossing them. These were not the decorative or ceremonial sort of pole-arm used in old western armies, but massive and nasty things that could cleave an ox in half with one swing, should the user be strong enough. And the wielders certainly looked that...they were the brawniest, beefiest women Ukyo had seen. Not at all delicate and beautiful like Shampoo...or Perfume, for that matter, these two were slashed and scarred on their arms and faces, suggesting these Amazons played rough with each other...as if the brief encounter with the curious duo of Salt and Pepper hadn't already informed her of that.
And yet, grim, mighty, and merciless as these guards might be, one stern glance from Perfume cause them to raised their crossed weapons, allowing the cursed chef and her escort admittance. Ukyo had long wondered what Shampoo's home might look like...and now, under circumstances she had never imagined, she was able to satisfy her curiousity. She found the houses and fields to be...almost quaint, and rather rustic. Not much in the way of luxury, she could see that. And apparently, not every woman was an Amazon warrior...she saw some working in the fields, along with their menfolk...others, who were indeed warriors, were practicing their skill at a variety of arms. As Ukyo and Perfume passed by, the various farmers or fighters looked up from their work...and rough-hewn daughters of the blade they might be, their collective hearts went pat-a-pit at the sight of the chef. There were huskily murmured comments of "Hey, big boy, wanna try out the Log of Challenge? Maybe I'll let you win..." Of course, such suggestions were uttered in Mandarian, so Ukyo couldn't understand them, but a leer was the same in any language.
There were rather a lot of leers directed towards her. Ukyo hadn't yet seen the "new her" in a mirror, so she couldn't understand the reaction she was causing. Perfume could, though, and could also see that unless she defused the situation fast, she might very well have a catfight break out.
So, in what (in other cultures and conditions) might be called her quarterdeck voice (with which she had peeled the skin off recalcitrant Amazons with choice Chinese curses), she briefly addressed the crowd. “This one is to be honored as a guest among us, and is already pledged to Shampoo...so hands *off*! Anyone that tries anything will answer to me...and *then* to Shampoo...and *then*, most likely, to Cologne!†She didn’t say anything about Ukyo being a Jusenkyo-cursed girl...her fellow Amazons didn’t need to know that, and it would just lead to more trouble if they did.
Having to go against Perfume was bad enough...Shampoo was worse, especially knowing her temper once aroused...and Cologne? Best not to think about it. The crowd that had gathered to hear Pefume and gawk at Ukyo dispersed, grumbling about how the village’s most famous daughter got *all* the hot guys, or that the stranger wasn’t really all *that* cute, really...
Pefume signed in relief. One potential crises averted. After all, the only thing about as dangerous as an angry Amazon was a sexually aroused one. And Ukyo’s male form *did* seem to have that effect...even Perfume could feel it, a bit. Perhaps an effect of the curse, but that was Cologne’s problem. She was the one who sent the girl, after all. Her task now was to introduce the newly cursed girl into the village’s interim leadership, to obtain permission for a brief stay.
Pefume led Ukyo to one hut, in the center of the village, that was somewhat grander in design and larger in size than the rest. “This is the Council Chamber†, the Enforcer explained. “We need the permission of the council for you to stay until you’re fully recovered from your...incident. Unfortunely, we have to ask Be Dea for this...â€
“Be Dea?†It was a name Ukyo had never heard before.
“Yes,†Perfume said with a haughty sniff. “The second in line to the Matriarchy, and Cologne’s bitter rival. Since both Shampoo and I are the Matriarch’s protege’s, and you are bound to Shampoo...well, I can’t tell *how* this is going to go. If Be Dea allows you to stay, it will most certainly be for her own ends.â€
“Now wait...there’s something I don’t understand here...this whole Matriarch thing...I mean, I’d have thought you Amazons would have someone...well...*grander* in charge...â€
“Once upon a time, we *did*†the Enforcer explained. “We actually had a queen, and under her was the office of the Matriarch, sort of an advisor and substitute ruler. But that was thousands of years ago...from what I understand, the last queen was slain in battle far away, and afterwards, our original homeland was over-run. We are brave, and mighty, and supremely skilled in arms, but even we can succumb to force of numbers. We left our homeland to the invader and wandered til we came here. The remains of our royalty having been exterminated in the fights against the invaders, and the battles we had to fight in our travels, the only office of authority left was that of the Matriarchy.â€
Ukyo nodded her understanding. “Rather like that whole Stewards of Gondor thing in Tolkien†.
Ukyo was a closet “Lord of the Rings†reader. Perfume...wasn’t, so she could only look blank to the chef’s remark.
“Whatever†, Perfume said with a shrug. “I’ll go in first, explain the situation, and then you’ll be summoned.â€
Perfume entered the hut, leaving Ukyo out alone with those Amazons who had decided that even if they couldn’t touch, they could still look. And looking they certainly were...the intensity of their collective gazes made Ukyo quite nervous, and he had to loosen his collar. The low growls he kept hearing didn’t help, either.
Just in time, Perfure stuck her head out the curtains of the door, motioning Ukyo in. It took the neo-boy’s eyes a time to adjust to the murk and gloom inside...what light there was reflected off the myriad of weapons adorning the walls of the chamber, some plain and business-like, others ornate, but all meticulously maintained. And at the end of the chamber was the Amazon council itself, with a wizended gnome in the center. She looked rather like Cologne, Ukyo thought...so old and wrinkled that individuality itself had long since vanished from the face, and looked as if she had spent the last thousand years in the bath. It was in the clothes that there was the most diiference between the eldest “elders†of the tribe. Her tunic was orange, with a tellow trim, unlike Cologne’s own favored green with white edging. And there was a different kanji enblazoned on the tunic’s front than Cologne’s.
But, Ukyo thought, put both eldes into the same clothing, and he wouldn’t be able to tell them apart. They were both “old mummies†, as Mousse called them.
“So, you are the stranger who became cursed for the sake of one of us. Tell us, please, how that came to be...†commanded Be Dea, in a harsh and gravelly voice.
And Ukyo did tell Be Dea and the council, precisely and in detail, of the reason for her mission, and why she was so indebted to Shampoo. The elder Amazons believed it because, after all, it *was* the truth as Ukyo understood it.
And Be Dea took thought, that Cologne was foolish enough to allow such a doomed errand, regardless of it’s nobility (and Be Dea could recognize, as well as anyone, the depths of Ukyo’s obligation. Strange, though, that Cologne never wrote or said anything about it...but then, the Matriarch *did* tend to be secretive). This was a chance to possibly embarress her political rival, in it’s own proper time. Meanwhile, she thought, there would be no harm in allowing this outsider to reside for a few days, and she might be able to even persuade the cursed stranger to come over to her side in a power struggle with Cologne. There was all that...and the faint stirrings of an emotion she had thought long since ossified, awakened ever so slightly from looking on Ukyo’s male form...
“Very well†, Be Dea proclaimed, “You may remain with us for a few days. You shall have our protection and our hospitality during that time.†(And, Be Dea thought to herself, that should be enough to buy the cursed girl’s gratitude, especially if she comes to blame Cologne for her new...situation.)
The old crone then turned to Perfume, and still speaking Japanese for Ukyo’s benefit, instructed, “You, Enforcer, are responsible for this one’s safety *and* behavior. Do not allow her to Challenge or be Challenged...see to her needs of food and shelter.†The Elder paused a moment in thought, then returned her attention to Ukyo.
“You should remain in your cursed form for the rest of the day. That should allow you to become accustomed to your new form in a safe environment.†And she twisted her face into what was meant to be a re-assuring smile.
Ukyo shuddered internally. “Kami-sama, what a clock†, she thought, “but at least she’s polite...â€
She and Perfume respectfully bowed their way out of the Council building, and made their way toward the Enforcer’s home. They, or rather, Ukyo, acquired a...following as they proceeded, forcing Perfume to several times bark out some words in Mandarin, which caused the crowd of admirers to back off a little. It was with some relief that they arrived at the Enforcer’s abode. Befitting her status in Amazon society, it was a bit larger than the common dwelling, solidly built, with a door frame so low that anyone entering had to stoop low to enter. In fact, Ukyo had noticed that most all the homes had that curious feature, and she asked Perfume about it. The answer chilled her.
“It’s so that, if we are attacked and the enemy should force their way into the village, their heads are low for cutting off as they enter...in such a way, one may stand against many.â€
The interior of the house was, again, rustic...which did not mean the furnishings were crude and roughly hewn. The Amazons had some accomplished craftspeople, Ukyo could see, but they didn’t go in much for modern ideas of comfort. And like the Council chambers, there were many weapons adorning the walls, as was to be expected in the home of an Amazon Enforcer...but the fresh honeysuckle that covered a low table and scented the air wasn’t a feature the chef would have expected. Nor were the posters of Clint Eastwood on the walls. (Joketsuzoku didn’t have a movie theatre as such, but Saturday night was none the less movie night, held outside, and Perfume was a closet spaghetti western fan).
Perfume gave her guest the Grand Tour, which mainly consisted of pointing out the sleeping room and the washroom, then left Ukyo to clean up after her long ordeal while she cooked up a meal.
The chef stripped out of her filthy clothes (not having any chance to clean them after falling into her very own cursed spring, of course), and...examined...herself. Only thing was, while Ukyo *thought* in terms of female, her body clearly...wasn’t. The first thing s/he noticed was...the absence of breast. She was used to having full and rounded breasts, that strained against the confining binding strips of cloth when she dressed “boy†, and while she found the things to be a nuisance at such times, she was also somewhat...proud of her adornments. Now, however, all she had were flat and well developed masculine pecs, as befitted a devoted practitioner of the martial arts...a very *male* practitioner. At least she still had nipples, although for the life of her, she couldn’t figure out just *why* men had them.
Since her eyes were traveling downward anyway, her gaze next fixed on her belly. Flat and hard muscled...rather like Ranma’s, she thought, having had the advantage of seeing the boy without a shirt, in both his forms. It was with a certain amount of satisfaction that she realized that while Ranma’s girl form was more...curvy...than hers...Ukyo’s male form could give Ranma’s competition.
But then...and Ukyo gulped nervously...her eyes settled on that essential difference that made her now male. She *was* an “innie†...now she was definately an “outie†, and there it was, hanging out in plain sight. Her mind ran through all the names she heard it called, and in her more fervid night-time dreams, she imagined amusing herself with the one attached to Ranma, but she never thought she’d...have a cock of her own. Just wasn’t in her vision of the future, that.
And then she became aware of a sensation that was familiar enough, but unsettling in it’s implications. She needed to pee. Badly. There wasn’t enough time to splash herself with hot water, resume her true form, and take care of her needs...besides, she’d have to learn to do...that...in her male form sometime or other anyway. There was the toilet (which Ukyo found rather odd, such a thing being in the same room as the bath)...but how to do it? How? If she stood, like the guy she was at the moment, she might get herself all wet...so she sat.
Thus relieved, she filled the bath and proceeded to wash. And the washing itself felt...strange and alien...as if she was washing someone else’s body instead of her own. The water was lukewarm at best, not enough to trigger a return to her natural form. She was hesitant in washing...It...uncertain about actually touching it...but it needed to be done.
Last of all she washed her hair, which, thank Kami, remained long. She didn’t know *what* she’d do if her boy-body had short hair. *Some* things *truly* did not bear thinking about. It was while brushing her hair out that she happened to look into Perfume’s bathroom mirror. She paused...she just *had* to pause...and examine her new face. It was the first time she’d seen herself...as a boy.
It was her, all right, looking back out of the mirror...but a clearly male version of herself. A lot of the cuteness of her feminine face had gone, leaving it somewhat narrow and angular...but the attractiveness was still there...in fact, Ukyo, to her embarrassment, found herself gazing deeply into her own reflected eyes, with her hand caressing her cheek, as should would a lover’s.
She blinked, breaking the hold her mirror-image had on her, and dressed in a long robe Perfume had left her. She’d have to tend to cleaning he clothes later...tomorrow sounded good, since she was feeling tired and hungry. She wondered what Perfume might be cooking, and how good it would be. The way she was feeling, she was almost desperate enough to try Akane’s cooking.
A meal of Orange Chicken, dry-cooked green beans, and a crab-cucumber salad afterwards (and Perfume proved herself quite a competent cook), the two talked...about the Curse, about Shampoo, about their lives in China and Japan...hopes, dreams, aspirations...but Ukyo found it hard to keep her eyes open.
Perfume smiled in amusement, not at all offended by the chef’s yawns. “You go sleep†, she commanded. “You have long day behind you, so it no surprise you be tired. You get sleep, and in morning we get hot water and turn you back into girl you are.â€
And so Ukyo slept...and dreamed. Very odd and disturbing dreams, they were...she was in her boy-body, even in her dreams...and *things* were being done to her, to her maleness...things she had heard about from particularly filthy locker room talk (from both the boys’ and the girls’ locker room)...but what made it disturbing was that it was her girl-form that was actually *doing* those things...touching...stroking...kissing...licking...
She awoke with a start and a low groan. Geez, just when...things...were getting interesting, too, she complained to herself. She looked at her watch, illuminated by moonlight streaming in through a high window. She grunted when she saw it was only 2 am. She rolled over in her borrowed bed and tried to get back to sleep, but her mind kept replaying scenes from her dreams, of she doing...things...to herself...or rather *himself*.
She felt...something...something not quite...right. Something *wrong* with her (gulp) maleness. She rolled back the light bed covers and opened up the robe she had worn as a nightgown, and saw...it. Ukyo just couldn’t believe it. How could she *possibly* get...excited...by her own self? And yet...she couldn’t dispute the evidence standing up and “staring†her in the face, any more than she could deny the strange urges that were coursing through her. The fact was, while her *body* was clearly and indisputably male, her *mind* was still female, and she was reacting to her cursed form in the same way as any other female who saw it reacted.
She knew what “boners†were, of course. Having spent as much time in the guise of a boy as she did, she’d heard enough “shower room†talk from the guys...she just never expected to have one of her own. And while she *never* believed the lines guys used about “it†hurting, in order to coax their girls into doing something they were generally reluctant to do, it *was* feeling a bit...uncomfortable.
And it was just so...*hard*! Like an inflexible steel rod.
What was she to *do*? She *couldn’t* go to sleep this way...*it* was too hard, and she was just too keyed up. She had to do *something*...
She had heard about something called...jerking off. It didn’t sound too much fun, but, recalling what she had heard about it, she slowly reached a trembling hand down and took hold on her shaft...and squeezed. A bit too hard. That *hurt*!
Never having any experience with such protuberances before, she fumbled around with it...squeezing a bit too tightly, pulling a bit too hard...and although she could see Perfume sleeping across the room, and *knew* that disturbing her host, especially under *these* condtions, just would not be the right thing to do, she couldn’t prevent the pained cry that escaped her lips.
Perfume came awake instantly. Any untoward sound might be a threat. She looked, and saw Ukyo caught...red handed, as it were.
The Enforcer could see what Ukyo was trying to do...also that Ukyo was having a deal of trouble with it, given the sounds she was making.
It wasn’t that Perfume didn’t like men...sexually, that is...it was just that her unique condition made her hypersensitive to any little prick (1). But she *was* responsible for Ukyo, although she doubted Be Dea had quite *that* sort of thing in mind...and she really couldn’t let her guest squeeze it off...and it was the middle of the night and she *needed* her sleep...so...
“If you keep doing that, you only going to hurt youself. You better let me lend hand...†Perfume offered.
If it were possible to die of terminal embarrassment, that’s just what Ukyo would have done. Instead, she had to settle for turning beet red and stammering, “H-h-how did you...†She tried to hide what she had a firm grip on, but the shock of being discovered made her clumsy. As a result, her...cock...was boldly pointing up in the air.
“You make too too much noise trying out equipment...â€
“I’m sorry...it just won’t go away! I...I didn’t know what to do with it...â€
Pefume got up out of her bed and approached Ukyo, who was still trying to hide her upright shaft, without much luck. To Ukyo’s continued mortification, the Enforcer mounted onto her bed and nestled herself behind the transformed chef, encouraging Ukyo to lean against her. It hardly helped matters, as far as Ukyo was concerned, that Perfume seemed to favor long, slinky, and *quite* transparent nightgowns, revealing all her bountiful charms.
Ukyo watched nervously as Perfume’s hands made their way southward. “Ummm...I don’t know about this...â€
“You no worry about Shampoo†Perfume said. “This just to make you relax and sleep. Is no...no...emotion in this...I responsible for you well-being, after all...just following orders...â€
“Ummm...yeah...but I don’t thi...oh GOD!...don’t think this is quite what your elder meant...†Ukyo gasped as she felt Perfume’s cool hand wrap itself around her maleness. She had always imagined her first sexual experience would be with Ranma, but here she was, a *guy*, with a total stranger’s fingers on her...cock.
Sometimes, she thought, life was too weird for words.
Then all thoughts were knocked out of Ukyo’s head when Perfume ran her fingers along the length of her shaft. The gender-altered chef’s entire body went as stiff as that member in Perfume’s hand at the first carressing stroke of soft, gentle fingers.
Ukyo had expected...well, she didn’t know *what* she expected...from those nasty locker room conversations, when she was trying to be “one of the boys†(while not letting her secret, let alone her breasts, out), she had thought maybe Perfume would do something like pump her hand up and down, as if she were at work on a butterchurn.
She hardly anticipated these...almost teasing strokes...fingers sliding over the front of her...her thing...up and down, up and down...her body had relaxed somewhat after the first initial shock, but now it was squirming and writhing on the bed, and she was uttering low, almost whimpering sounds...
It was embarrassing...the whole situation was embarrassing, but she just couldn’t help it. She couldn’t keep herself still, the sensations were too intense, too...*good*...It didn’t help that she was imagining Sahmpoo doing this to her...Akane doing it...even, oh KAMI! girl-Ranma doing it.
And that led to another thought. Since she was now doomed to spend at least part of the time in a male body, she was in a very good position to learn how the equipment...worked...and what would feel good.
Oh gawds...did she know what was feeling good...right now!
It meant, instructed the small part of Ukyo’s mind that was working at all, that she’d be better able to...please...Ranma than the other girls...because she would *know*, from first hand experience, how it *felt*.
Ukyo’s mind then decided to stop working, and just enjoy what was happening, and she lost her embarrassment in the pleasures of the moment. As Perfume’s fingers continued to stroke along her cock, her own fingers twisted themselves in the sheets as she quivered. She was becoming aware of a strange sensation, one she had never felt before...building...building...And her back arched right off the bed as she screamed from an intense burning sensation...down there...she couldn’t make up her mind if it hurt, or if it was the most incredible thing she had ever felt. Just before her eyes squeezed shut, she could see something white jeting out of her shaft.
She crashed back down onto the bed, but she couldn’t keep still...her body was out of control. She twisted herself over the bed, and began to scream.
Pefume couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Her experiences with men and boys were extremely limited, but from that, and from girl-talk, she *knew* that no one came like...this. She could feel each pulse before it emerged, and when it did, it shot inches into the air...and there seemed no end to Ukyo’s output. It was drenching her hand, and glazing Ukyo’s belly...and it was so *hot*, too. It was as if the neo-boy had been storing up enough cum to fertilize the entire village.
It seemed like long minutes were passing for Perfume, and for Ukyo it was as if she were locked into an eternity of ecstasy, but it couldn’t have lasted *that* long. The chef finally stopped spurting. She knew she should do something...nice...for Perfume, but she found she was utterly exhausted. She just couldn’t...couldn’t stay...awak...
Hmph, Perfume thought to herself, how like a man. Right to sleep without even a word of thanks. Well, I suppose it’s understandable...she’s had a trying day...and *Ancestors*, I wouldn’t have believed anyone could squirt like *that*. She looked at her cum-drenched hand. Now what do I do with *this*, she pondered. She started to go get a towel, but a glance at the slumbering form of Ukyo made up her mind, and she licked the cum from her hand, eyes widening at the taste. Then she *did go get that towel, becuase Ukyo’s belly was dripping with the stuff, and it wouldn’t do to get it all over the bed. There was enough of the goo on the blankets as it was.
And despite Perfume’s claims of the whole thing just an example of looking after her guest’s elfare, she had to admit to herself that she *was*...affected by what she did. And there was *so* much cum! Well, she didn’t feel like taking a cold shower...and it was obvious that Ukyo wouldn’t be doing anything but snoring for some time...so she’d have to resort of her own fingers. Once she carefully washed her hands, that is. Despite licking and sucking her guest’s pearly cum from her fingers, she couldn’t take the chance that any might still be lingering. That would result in...uncomfortable situations.
Morning was...uncomfortable...for Ukyo. She just couldn’t help blushing fiercely every time her eyes caught Perfume’s at breakfast...and Ukyo *was* a she now, having taken advantage of some cold water as soon as she got up. There was the great need to return to her true form for one thing...and there was also the fact that her belly was still somewhat encrusted. And she remembered all too clearly just what had happened last night.
And yes, she *did* help in washing up the blankets. To her further discomfiture, considering she was responsible for making them all nasty in the first place.
Ukyo stayed in the village for a few more days, somehow remaining female all that time, much to her relief. No more...embarrassment...at night. She *did* have to put up with the occasional question, translated by Perfume, about when she would turn back into a boy. She had the impression that the questioners didn’t have in mind a game of “patty-cake†.
She felt a bit...sad...to leave Joketsuzoku...she had come to learn a bit about the Amazons. She was escorted to borders of their territory by Perfume, with a promise to meet again.
As the cursed chef started to make her way down the mountain to the airstrip, she saw two other people approaching her. One of them looked...
“Ryoga? Hey, Ryoga, is that you?†she shouted.
“Hey, Ukyo†Ryoga (for indeed it was he) called back. “What are you doing in Afganistan?â€
“Afganistan?†Ukyo stammered. “This is *China*, sugar...and whose your friend here?â€
Ryoga laughed in embarrassment and rubbed the back of his head. “Ummm...heh heh...Ukyo, this is...heh...Inanna...she’s...well, she’s a goddess...â€
More to come, not finished with this one yet...