Disclaimer; This fanfiction uses existing ideas, characters and or worlds, but is an independent work of art. I own nothing, hence the reason for publishing my writings here instead of in real books where I could make some money.


Chapter 46

In Atlanta, Lord "Peewee" Talon was relieved to be back within the comforts of his lab. There was, after all, not place like home.

His employees were glad to see him, but were immensely surprised when the boy immediately set about scrapping all his research concerning werecreatures.

"What the blazes are you doing?" demanded the bald power-house woman. For as long as he'd known, Talong had been obsessed with getting a DNA sample of a werecheetah for study, and had been close to success in it several times. Now he had come very close to unlocking its secrets – or so he had claimed before being dragged off by his mother – and was suddenly throwing it all out.

"Conserving my good health," Erwin snapped. "From now on, I'm ceasing all research on human and humanoid DNA, and focusing on something safer … perhaps botany … there's always need for better crops or prettier flowers!"

Being preoccupied using his highly advanced computer to order botanical equipment over the internet, Erwin failed to see the worried glances exchanged between his six employees.


In Nerima, Kuno Kodachi shivered and dropped her shears in the middle of cutting a dead leaf from the rose stem.

Her father was hiding somewhere in the masses of tourists in Hawaii, her brother was imprisoned in a mental institute on an island outside Tokyo, one catering particularly to criminally insane.

Kodachi had planned on seeking out the redheaded harlot to reclaim her precious Ranma, but being suddenly stuck with all the financial responsibilities of the Kuno clan, her experiments being under scrutiny by the National Board of Health for potential risks to the neighbourhood and training for another tournament in Martial Arts Gymnastics … she just didn't have the time.

Ranma seemed to be fine, if the news she got about him in the gossip magazines and the most recent article about his company in "Botany Quarterly" was close to correct. The harlot had once been depicted in his place, with his name as her own … she had immediately contacted the editor about the error and demanded to learn her true name, not the one she claimed as her own.

And just then, in the middle of pruning her black roses, she got the feeling that someone would rob her of her high standing in flower culturing.

This did not bode well.


It towered high into the air.

Its whiteness gleamed in the sun.

The nearly indistinct lines that made it up became even less noticeable as they fell into shadow.

Ranma hated very few things outright, but he hated it with a passion.

Tearing another sheet of paper from the top of the stack in front of him, Ranma idly wondered if hiring someone to read those papers and make a summary for him would be even more work for him than it already was … already his paperwork could have filled the entire Tendo home from top to bottom. Idly, he started wondering how many forests had been sacrificed for his paperwork alone, and whether it was possible to produce an environmentally friendly paper substitute. He would have to research that at a later date, because unfortunately he had work to do.

His only consolation was that he was only a clone, and that his actual self was back home, teaching his three students, and that he got to see his friends from Furinkan Science Club every day between forms and papers.

"Koki-sama!"

Speak of the devil.

Almost kicking down the door to his office was Kashima Iwo's girlfriend - as the word around the watercooler claimed - and the head of the Military Research department.

Trailing behind the young woman, whose hair was looking even more uptight and frazzled than usual, was the lobby secretary, who looked quite harassed and annoyed.

"We've made a break-through in the armour project!" the scientist declared, ignoring the secretary opening the door and unhappily inspecting the new hole in the wall where the handle had struck it.

"Really?" Ranma asked excitedly. At least it was a break from the monotony of paperwork.

"Well, we haven't fully tested it yet, but based on your calculations and additional information offered by Diggers-san, we've come up with a way to introduce a shield mechanism to the entire armour without making certain parts unprotected or extending the shield so it goes beyond the armour in any direction … we're preparing a battery of tests right now!"

"I can't really miss that, can I?" Ranma insisted while trying not to sound desperate, and got up from his seat. "I'll have to do this later, show the way!"

"But-"

"No time to argue," Ranma interrupted before the receptionist could persuade him into returning to his paperwork or the scientist could claim he wasn't needed for the tests. "We've got a test to see!"

There was a second reason Ranma was so excited about the armour, and that was simply because several people he knew had suits of armour and though it might be inconvenient and constricting, there might come a time when he would need the extra protection.

Maybe he could try the armour on …


Pikat had just finished the female form of the kata Ranma had recently taught them when the sensei in question shot up.

"THEY SHOT ME OUT OF A CANNON INTO A WALL!" he bellowed in shock.

Dismissing his students for the day as fast as he could without damaging their training, Ranma stormed into his house and tore the phone from where it had been sitting peacefully only to stare at it in his hand.

He forgot that he didn't know the number for his company.

BeeBee removed the communications device from his hand, helpfully dialled the number and handed him back the phone, giving him a peck on the cheek before practically skipping back to the sofa where Kasumi was relaxing for a moment in front of the TV – her favourite anime was on.

He was transferred from the front desk to the Military Research Department, where Ranma immediately started yelling at the first person to answer. One did simply not fire ones boss out of a cannon … especially not into a brick wall not more than a few feet from the muzzle.

Being turned into canned soup within the suit was not a pleasant experience, especially not for someone as strong as Ranma. Thankfully, it was only a clone, so he wasn't really hurt, but still …

Eventually, Ranma's tirade wore down to a level where the other person could get a word in.

"Not a scratch!" the woman on the other end squeaked as Ranma took a breath. This caught his attention.

"What?"

"The armour!" clarified the unidentified woman. "Not a scratch on it! Not a thing out of place!"

Like ice water dropped into a raging volcano, Ranma's outrage evaporated at this news.

As he absorbed the news, Ranma realised that his scientists had confirmed whether he was the real him or the clone before allowing him to conduct the tests they had lined up, and being fired out of a cannon had been the last on that list.

Ranma recalled a long explanation of the tests they had already done, such as the acid test where they poured acid onto the finished model with the shielding embedded into it, to observe if there was any visible effect on the surface or deeper.

The memories of watching them fire an anti-tank ballistic at the suit worn by a dummy standing on a float outside Tokyo flashed before his eyes.

For safety, the police and explosive experts from the military were present to supervise, and make sure they didn't do anything wrong … they had been very astonished to discover that even the powder residue from the resulting explosion from impact, something that would normally be positively etched into regular armour even if it hadn't been directly hit had washed off after the brief dip in the ocean before it was retrieved.

"Are you sure?" Ranma croaked. If this was true, all their tests had not managed to damage the suit. Granted, at present time, the person inside would be killed by the pressures exerted on it from such tasks as taking a mortar round head on, but that was the next thing they were scheduled to fix. "Does that mean we're ready to proceed?"

"But we wanted to go out to celebrate," moaned the woman. "We've just achieved something no human has ever accomplished! We've made an indestructible suit of armour!"

"It is far from indestructible!" Ranma snapped. "The suit is useless as anything but decoration as long as kinetic energy is transferred through it to the wearer!"

"Sorry," the woman whimpered, shocked at the bite to Ranma's tone. He hardly ever raised his voice to anyone, unless someone got hurt … that he did it when he received the memories of his clone, it was understandable that he felt somewhat miffed, but no one had gotten hurt by her statement of the suit's durability.

"No, I'm sorry for yelling," Ranma sighed. "Go out and celebrate after work, just get started on the next improvements first."

Hanging up, Ranma pondered on his reason for agreeing to get into the suit when he knew the risks.

The answer was simple: It was a deathtrap, but the only effective way to know the exact effects it had on the human body was to stuff one in there. No one else could live through the test to tell about it, so his clone had volunteered instead of wasting time constructing a mechanical gizmo to measure the internal forces of the suit. Or making a computer simulation … while they might be fairly accurate, they weren't to be trusted … too many chaotic variables for the programmer to take into consideration, much less include.

Something small, red and furry passed by Ranma's ankles, slowly followed by an already crawling Rei who squealed excitedly at the slow game of chase.

When Rei was almost on the creature, it hopped a little further away, and the chase was back on.

It amazed Ranma how quickly Rei had developed in the short time since she entered this world … normally, crawling wouldn't start to take place until three to six months. The cause might be the mix of harpy and weredinictis heritage, but Ranma, being the proud father, was certain she got it from him despite Nodoka saying that Ranma didn't crawl until nearly his third month.

The red creature was a Pau that Gina had brought home for Rei on a brief trip to Jade to further explore the underground home of the Shadow Elves, and like most of them, this one was red, looked somewhat like a fox with a cat's tail, six appendages used for locomotion and intelligent action. It had immediately taken to the infant, and was named "Paah" by Rei … this name might change in a few years when the girl was old enough to invent a more intelligent name.

Scooping up his baby girl, Ranma tickled her tummy and laughed as she giggled and changed into her griffin form. Giggles were replaced with content purrs from the tiny thing.

The Pau used its fairy-like wings to flutter up to Ranma's shoulder, where it perched and joined in the tickling with the soft, round end of its tail.

Life had returned to a somewhat normal state the days following the start of Ranma's lessons.

The Talons had left, taking with them Nodoka's teenage girl spirit, and leaving her with the pride of a mother and grandmother. After all, not many fathers had the time or energy to run an entire successful company, do some research, teach three students in Martial Arts, play with his child, have a nice meal with his family which included his mother, and keep seven women sexually sated. The last would undoubtedly lead to more grandchildren for her, which was the second reason she was thrilled about it … the primary reason being that he was being manly and assertive, something few men his age were with women.

Gina left every few days to continue her work as an Archaeologist, but the time away lessened now that she had someone to return to in the same way as her sister had. She now understood why her father was so sombre during her youth, after her mother was banished to Jade … it was something she could not live with, and so she made sure to spend as much time as possible with family and friends without destroying her chosen vocation. She also found that Wild Horse Inc. was the only company she would trust with her inventions, and like her youngest sibling signed on as a free-lance scientist for a modest pay plus royalties for anything of hers that was used by the company.

BeeBee had once more taken up her job as Ranma's personal assistant, though not the clones. She preferred the real thing. Wherever Ranma went, she remained within earshot - ready for anything he needed. This meant that she often observed the lessons Ranma taught, and if not, she did something on the ground outside the dojo … knitting seemed to have become a hobby for her … especially tiny blue socks and mittens.

When not getting nookie or taking care of bodily functions and needs, Brianna was holed up in her chosen room, which served as sanctuaries for the women that more often shared Ranma's bed. She cackled maniacally every time she was outside or not otherwise occupied, though, so Ranma knew she was up to something. The only sounds emerging from the closed room were hisses, crackles, booms and clanks. Ranma had a sneaking suspicion she was making plans for the surveillance and security satellites for the Penal Colony on the Moon, and pitied anyone dumb enough to break the rules there when that idea became reality.

Sheila resigned her post as an Edge Guard in person, and so was in Jade for a few days to traverse the distance between Seer's Hamlet and the Werewolf village. "With all this technology surrounding me, I feel like I've been rushing most everything else lately, so a good, long walk felt good." She had said cheerfully when asked why she hadn't just let Ranma bring her there directly. For some reason, he got the feeling Gar would have a "talk" with him in the not-too-distant future.

Charlotte spent large portions of her day either watching cooking programs or sitting with Kasumi in the kitchen. She wanted to be the bestest mother there ever was, and good mothers knew how to cook!

Kasumi, on holiday from College, sat with the harpy and happily offered advice that wasn't included in the programs.

Lydia had taken the compound's security on herself, and was often seen patrolling the fence or roof when not training, learning Ranma's lessons from a distance to better herself. She was still convinced that the wererat population would try to kill her for her apparent betrayal, not letting herself be fooled by the arrest of the Wererat Leader.

Depositing Rei in the living room under the caring eyes of Kasumi and Charlotte, Ranma stretched his back.

"I'm going over to the office for a little while," he announced. "They've had a breakthrough, and I need to make sure they don't get too relaxed."

"Please be gentle with them, Ranma-kun," Kasumi smiled.


At Wild Horse Inc. the scientists were excited about the success of the armour, but Ranma's appearance made some of them worried about him holding a grudge for what his clone experienced.

Fortunately for them, Ranma was not one to physically retaliate so late after a violation against him, especially against untrained civilians … however; he made a list as long as his arm, citing things that were required of the suit of armour before it could be declared a finished product ready for use.

Smirking evilly, Ranma looked on in satisfaction as his scientists realised that though he wouldn't hurt them, he'd make them pay through the nose in effort.

"Are you serious?" asked Amai Anko, the assistant head of the department.

"Quite serious," Ranma confirmed.

"But why would you need even half of these?" asked the woman.

"You need reasons?" Ranma asked. "Very well. The additional shield around the armour is insurance, extra protection. Parts of it will of course be adjustable, such as the soles of the feet and the flat of the hand, so you won't go sliding around on thin air or have things slip through your fingers.

"The thrusters are in case of zero gravity, one has to have a way of moving around in those cases … and I suppose they would be useful for an extra boost in speed and dodging … or to slow down from a fall at terminal velocity … they all need to be individually and collectively controlled.

"The Peebo AI chip will help with keeping track of everything and will warn of low levels of any system or approaching object outside the field of vision, which leads me to the chi sonar, which will have to be made.

"A Stuff-Space generator or five in a utility pouch shouldn't need any explanation.

"Having a parachute tucked into a compartment near the shoulders should also be obvious, but to clarify, high falls shouldn't be an ignored possibility at any time, so better to be prepared than sorry even if our aim is to create a buffer for kinetic energy between the armour and user. After all, it would be most annoying to have to warn several miles of people within the predicted crash-site so they won't get blown over or incinerated upon impact, and at high enough velocity, we would need to bring digging equipment to get the armour out of the ground.

"For similar reasons, a floatation device should be installed along the neck and arm pits, and a signal light to go active upon impact with water so the recovery team can find them without much trouble.

"Easy entery and exit for the suit is simply to eliminate the need for an engineer or three each time it has to come on. I want to be able to get into the suit on my own, and so should everyone. Have I covered enough of the list, or should I go on?"

Grumbling, the woman realised that anything on the list could be justified in some way, and would likely have been suggested even if this had been a government project … but the government would have budjet cuts, and several things would have to be removed. This was not the case at Wild Horse Inc. as everything that made up the suit was actually very cheap, and Ranma was not known for letting things he wanted pass him by, least of all when the protection or safety of others came into play.


Several hours later, Ranma's participation and supervision of the project, which his scientists had jumped into eagerly after the explanation of why and what was to be done, led to something most uncomfortable: Nabiki stepping in.

"You're coming with me, Koki," she announced a second before grabbing his shoulder and pulling him away from the computer circuitry he was working on integrating into the suit to give the Peebo AI access to information from it.

"Nabiki?"

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" the enterprising young woman demanded.

"Five?" Ranma ventured. "So I owe these guys an hour overtime, not the end of the world …"

"It's nearly eleven," Nabiki deadpanned. "And Kasumi is getting impatient … I believe she was to be the 'main attraction' tonight-"

"Kuso!" Ranma swore and with movements faster than the normal human eye could follow packed up his equipment and redressed in his shirt which had become constrictive and hot at some point. "She'll never forgive me!"

"She might," Nabiki corrected. "But not for a while … and she won't get angry, just disappointed."

Ranma paled at what Nabiki implied. A disappointed Kasumi was a hundred times worse that enduring the sad look he'd seen the child-like Ryo-oh-ki from "Tenchi Muyo" make when the Emperor of Jurai didn't compliment her on her singing! It was almost worse than that time Rei had gotten a scratch and was crying in pain and confusion! And he'd cause Kasumi to feel that way, so instead of having the alternative to become angy, he felt guilty!

"Gotta go!" he yelled before disappearing in a swirl of light.

The instant Ranma showed his face in his bedroom, he was assaulted with hugs and kisses.

In the passionate embrace, Ranma noted that he was alone with Kasumi, which was unusual.

"Kasumi-chan?"

"Please take a seat, Ranma-kun," the flushed Kasumi encouraged brightly. "I have some news, and wanted us to be alone when I told you."

Ranma wanted to ask if it was bad news sinc she wanted him to sit, but wisely kept it in and did as asked.

"Ranma-kun," Kasumi sighed and joined her lover on the bed. "Do you think Rei is going to be lonely, not having any other children her age to play with?"

"Not really … how can she with six maternal figures in addition to her mother, and me?" Ranma said carefully. "I'm sure she'll find some friends when she starts school in a few years … right?"

"No, she'll have friends sooner than that," Kasumi disagreed cheerfully. "In eight months and two weeks, to be precice …"

Ranma, despite his unlocked intellect where it came to Martial Arts and Science, did not see where his girlfriend was taking this conversation. He couldn't for the life of him figure out how Kasumi could be so certain of his daughter's social life that far in advance.

"Ranma, I'm pregnant."


Author's Notes: This is the last official chapter of TBP … an epilogue will be posted within the next couple of months. I'd like to avoid getting flames for this, if at all possible. This is a short chapter, with a lot of rushed action, I know … I just can't seem to get inspired for this story any more and that is the result of forcing a story. I got the word count as close to 4000 as possible (not counting the Author's Notes) but didn't make it … Happy New Years.