DISCLAIMER: I don't own Ranma ½ or any other property which might show up. What I do own is the idea for this story it's self. I make no money writing this, nor do I desire fame. It's purely for my own entertainment. If others enjoy this story too, that's all I could ask for.

Warning: This story is an Alternate Timeline. There will be out of character interactions. If everyone stayed in character, events would never have deviated from cannon. While I hope for humor, the story may take several serious and/or dark turns at times. Then again my sense of humor may not be yours.

Wings of Confusion

There are certain truths that are immutable. The sun will rise in the east and set in the west. Fish breath water instead of air. Nabiki Tendo is greedy. All these are true, and they do not change. Another thing that was indisputable was that each time loop would begin with Ranma Nightbane waking up from a table impacting his head. It always happened, and likely would continue happening for as long as these loops lasted.

It was with more then a little surprise that Nightbane awoke in a very pink bedroom as a female wearing a night gown, also pink. Okay, no headache this time. That is odd. I don't recognize the room either. A picture of... Me? And three people I don't know, is this suppose to be my room? A diary was found on the desk. Opening it provided a name, Usagi. That is, that is fouled up. At least I'm suppose to be sixteen.

The alarm clock said it was barely five in the morning. A hello kitty calendar said it was probably Monday. From what month it was turned to, likely a school day. With a groan Ranma checked the closet. Ugh, not skirts. I can't fight in those. They are too short, and the colors are horrid. The blouses aren't much better either. Wait, where are my bracers? It is a good thing I found a way to hide my wings without them in Paragon.

There was one outfit set out already, and it sent shivers down Ranma's spine. It was clearly a school uniform. It was also clearly worse then anything in the closet in terms of decency. It might have taken a hundred years, but even the 'great' Ranma Nightbane had learned feminine modesty. It had helped to have memories of centuries living as Amnara Nightbane. Not that she'd had much modesty either.

"Aren't there any pants?" She muttered aloud.

With another sigh she realized the use of magic to create cloths would have to wait. Without a known and steady food source using magic would have to be kept to an absolute minimum. A lesson had been learned though, starving herself was not a good idea. That meant finding a way to feed sooner rather then later. There were times being an unaligned demon was more trouble then it was worth.

Three hours later two adults, one male and one female, looked out at the back yard in wonder. Their daughter was in the back yard going through some sort of dance, again. It was the first time they had ever witnessed such a thing. That the dance was actually a series of martial arts kata didn't register. After all, they knew Usagi didn't know any martial arts. In fact it was well known how clumsy the girl was.

Which raised a few questions. The first of which was 'when did she learn this?' Following that her parents were wondering when Usagi had stopped being clumsy. For almost an hour they had watched their baby girl flow through graceful movement after graceful movement. The dance slowly wound down to a conclusion. In it's wake the two parents clapped. The unexpected sound drew Ranma's attention.

"Hello... mother? Father?" She asked hesitantly.

China

At that same moment another awakening was taking place in the remote mountains of China. One moment Usagi Chiba had been falling asleep next to her husband of fifteen years. The next she was emerging from an ice cold pool of water and wearing an ill fitting dingy white training gi. It was very unusual. Normally when this happened she awoke in her bedroom at nearly eight in the morning.

Let's take stock, Usagi thought to herself. There's an overweight man holding a sign and saying something about curses. There's a panda in a training gi standing on one of the bamboo poles. It's morning. And I'm soaking wet. Wait, curses? Why does that sound familiar? Ugh, can't remember. Did that guy just say 'spring of drowned girl'? I know I should recognize this from somewhere.

When hot liquid was poured on the 'young' Usagi she found her body shifting into that of a teenage boy. With a horrified scream 'he' glared at the former panda nearby. An aura of power black as midnight, sprang into existence into the newly turned boy. Upon seeing it a bald and overweight martial artist named Genma took off running. All thoughts of calling his son a 'weak girl' had died, at least for the moment. All that mattered was keeping his skin intact.

Still enraged, Usagi chased after the panda-man. As he ran the ancient youth felt a well of little used power surge. Usagi tapped into it, and found a whip of dark energy forming in his hand. With a flick of his wrist the whip lashed out. It easily managed to wrap around Genma's neck. Another flick of Usagi's wrist sent the overweight man flying into a cliff. While still angry, seeing the cloud of dust and rubble managed to sate him, for the moment. The whip vanished back into the ether.

If there had been anyone on the cliff he didn't notice.

Tokyo

The class was starting to get worried. Usagi Tsukino had shown up to class on time. She never showed up to class on time, yet even before the first student had arrived the red haired beauty was seated in her desk. Not only that, but she was actually paying attention in class. Both were commonly considered signs of impending doom. That they were happening at the same time could only mean the world was going to end.

As the morning progressed students and faculty alike grew increasingly scared. It wasn't just one class that Usagi was paying attention to. It was all of them. Math, history, even english classes were all focused on with unwavering intensity. By the time lunch period had rolled around everyone was walking on egg shells. While it was true people can change, they never did so overnight. Everyone in the class gave a collective sigh of relief when they saw the red haired girl eat a bento three times the size of their own within seconds.

The next class was gym, which Ranma was not looking forward to. In all the time she'd lived control over the curse had yet to be gained. As she slowly approached the locker room the air around Nightbane grew colder. Ugh, I am tired of everyone here thinking that I am that ditz. And gym class? Why do I need that? On my own I maintain a level of fitness not seen in centuries, at least. Still grumbling under her breath, Ranma entered the gymnasium.

Upon entering it, she revised her opinion. The room it's self had three rows of bleachers completely smashed. There were holes and scorch marks on the walls and ceiling. As well as deep furrows on the ground and a wall. And in the middle of the gym stood a familiar blond giantess. What has happened here? Ranma had to wonder. The giantess seemed surprised by Ranma's presence too. Which was comforting in a way. It meant that not everyone blindly thought her to be Usagi.

The blond woman sighed tiredly and spoke. "Greetings class, I'm sure you're wondering where Tanaka-San is. Unfortunately he had a run-in with a werewolf last night. My name is Mason Susan, and I will be taking over his classes. Excuse me a moment."

Mason pulled a pair of odd looking goggles over her eyes and shifted the ever present trench coat to draw a pistol that looked more like a toy. Ranma looked in the direction Mason had turned to face, and felt concerned. There floating in the air was what appeared to be a samurai in full armor with sword drawn. Several gasps told her the sword was real, not a part of the spirit. A few comments indicated no one else could see the samurai as well. As beams of pure energy blasted from the pistol Nightbane was leaping through the air with a foot extended.

"Hey, that tickles," the succubus shouted as her foot impacted the blade.

'That' proved to be the beam of energy which had splashed harmlessly against her back. The katana spiraled out of control until it was embedded in the floor a foot away from fellow classmates. The samurai spirit had vanished when Ranma kicked it's blade, only to reappear and recover it's sword. Not good, that sword it's self is the foci of possession. Nightbane moved with such speed that she seemed to teleport. And it was a good thing she did.

Steel bit into flesh as Ranma imposed herself between the katana and a red haired teen from her class. Shit, it is enchanted! The whine of an energy weapon being fired filled the air again and again. The unexpectedly intense agony caused the demoness's eyes to roll back into her head. With consciousness fading quickly, she didn't see the specter discorporating. Nor did Ranma see the sword being picked up and taken into the gym teacher's office.

Naturally no one noticed the small black cat watching.

Gates of Eternity

There is a place outside of time that is perpetually shrouded in mist. Within that mist stands a single arched doorway. It isn't connected to anything. Nor does it serve any discernible purpose with it's existence. And yet this door is the single greatest secret in the known universe. The number of people who know of it can be counted on one hand. And of those, only one has regular access to the door. This door is known simply as the Gates of Eternity, or time gate to some.

Before the gates stands a lone figure holding a key shaped staff. In his life he has used many names, many identities. But the first one he ever had is Eric Von Mason. A lot can be said about this man. That he is brave. His loyalty too has been tested many times. His honor has been said to be beyond reproach by many in the past. It has also been said that if Hellen of Troy's face could launch a thousand ships, his would send them home. In other words Eric Von Mason is not a pretty man. In fact it is the opposite.

At the moment there is another word that best describes him, and that is pissed. "I can't believe it! There's actually someone manipulating the loops? When I find whoever's doing this they'll wish they'd never been born!"

After contacting his wife the man began the exhausting task of tracking down who is messing with time, which he knew could very well take a thousand years.

China

It had rained earlier in the day. A fact which Usagi was content with, even if the man claiming to be her father hated being a panda. Privately she thought the form suited him. From what the moon princess had seen the man was fat and lazy. A skilled fighter, true. But he was nothing compared to her teacher. And if he thought pathetic distraction attempts were fighting dirty, she could definitely teach him a lesson. The Nightbane branch of Anything Goes cared about one thing only, winning the fight by any means needed.

Now the man from that training ground was leading them towards a village surrounded by wooden palisades. As they neared Usagi muttered a quick incantation to the Lady of Twilight. Demonic magic briefly flared, granting her the ability to reed and understand Chinese dialects. What the incantation did not do however was let her speak them. That only time and study could accomplish, there were no shortcuts. Or if there were the Lady of Twilight denied Usagi them.

"Honorable customers in luck. Today is tournament." The guilde told them in broken Japanese.

The panda had spotted a table laden with food and immediately started to eat. Usagi had considered joining in, but noticed a sign proclaiming it the first prize. Stupid panda, she thought while watching the final fight in the contest. While both warrior maidens were clearly tired, it had been an enjoyable match to watch. So from where she sat Usagi clapped loud and hard. This then drew attention her way, as well as to the panda.

In a mandarin dialect the girl said "You, outsider! Your panda is eating my prize!"

Usagi sighed at what appeared to be the first in a likely long string of misunderstandings. "Guide, could you please explain to her that that isn't a panda, and that his actions are his own doing?"

Tokyo-Juuban district

A teenage girl with fiery red hair stood on the edge of a low building. She was wearing a black sailor fuku with white plunging neck that revealed ample cleavage and white trim. and Red bows adorned her stomach and back as well. The skirt was entirely too short to be decent, showing off her shapely butt. On her brow was a golden circlet with a red jewel in the center. Her hair was done up with two round buns, each trailing off into long pony tails. In the center of each bun was a red jeweled pin. Black elbow length gloves adorned each arm, with matching black knee length boots. In both cases the trim was done in an almost glowing shade of white.

"Parks are for playing tag and going on dates," the girl proclaimed. "I am the beautiful sailor suited warrior of lust and justice Sailor Eclipsed Moon, and I will punish you!"

As she drop kicked the latest monster to attack Juuban Eclipsed Moon thought. I still can not believe I got roped into doing this instead of Usagi. And what is this 'warrior of lust and justice' thing? Casually Eclipsed Moon evaded a barrage of vines shot at her. While the monsters were getting increasingly dangerous, they still didn't exactly challenge her martial skill. Then again, she thought as unexpected claws tore through the heroine's achilles tendon.

When a bitterly cold fog bank engulfed the park she tried to roll away but felt too sluggish. A vine managed to ensnare the injured sailor senshi. The sound of an energy beam echoed from no where and everywhere as someone cried "Crescent Beam, then a thump could be heard as it hit something. Someone else called out "Soul Fire" before a bolt of heat passed nearby. Yet another person cried "Supreme Thunder". A couple seconds later Eclipsed Moon was free yet still twitching from being electrocuted.

Soft hands in silk gloves grabbed her and dragged the injured senshi out of danger. Then the fog finally started to dissipate. The claws proved to have belonged to a demonically possessed house cat. A fact which made Eclipsed Moon feel a bit better. Cats after all were furry monsters out to devour flesh. Most were anyway. In fact now that the fog was gone hundreds of cats were swarming the area. And they were all converging on the senshi.

"Just what I didn't want to subject them to." Sailor Eclipsed Moon muttered as her 'loyal soldiers' were buried under a mountain of clawing and hissing flesh. "Moon tiara action!"

Eclipsed Moon removed her tiara, which turned into a disk of black energy. As it was thrown the senshi leader noticed it was barely traveling through the air. But then the monster it was thrown at also could barely move. Her allies too seemed caught in the distortion. Then with a shudder the distortion expanded to suround the senshi of the moon too. Why are the cats unaffected by this field? Moon thought as the moon 'frizbee' made it's slow way towards their enemy at a pace that might take days to finish.

Tokyo-Nerima district

"As you can see there has been no change so far in the unusual situation here in Juuban. Three days ago I'm informed the plant like akuma appeared and started attacking civilians. Athorities are still baffled by the distortion surrounding the battle between akuma and what I'm told was six teenage girls"

Nabiki Tendo was grinning ear to ear as she watched the news program. Already several plans were going through the teenage girl's mind. This was definitive proof the sailor senshi existed. And that meant they could be tracked down. And there was a lot of money to be made by anyone who knew who the senshi were. Sailor Eclipsed Moon was very popular with boys for obvious reasons. While there were rabid fangirls of the other five senshi.

With her mind made up, the girl started out the door. Only to be brought to a halt by a most improbable sight. There was a panda carrying some blond haired girl over it's shoulder. The girl was wailing in a most annoying manner in a high pitched voice. And it was most definitely a girl. If the skirt hadn't given it away, what Nabiki saw underneath it would have. Right, time to go, the middle tendo sister thought as she mechanically walked up to her bedroom. Her face felt like it was glowing from the deep blush.

"I'm no prude," she muttered. "But that was too much."

An hour later a still blushing Nabiki made her shaky way into the dining room. An obviously overweight man in a white training gi was sitting at the table. At least she thought it was suppose to be white. There was also a young man of maybe sixteen with dark hair tied in a most unusual style. That almost looks like that girl's hairstyle. The boy looked over and saw her. He smiled warmly, although there was a slight edge to his eyes.

"I didn't know you studied the Nightbane school of Anything Goes." He commented offhandedly. "As one of it's masters, I'll have to test your skills later."

Tokyo-Juuban District

As the dark energy disk finally impacted the yoma whatever unnatural field had slowed down time ended. It also seemed to snap the felines out of whatever had been controlling them. After that however Eclipsed Moon had no idea what occurred. The pain of hitting the ground, as well as a rock poking at a lightning induced hole in her side and mental exhaustion had caused the senshi to pass out. Because of this she didn't notice how or when she was moved.

By the time the red haired senshi had regained consciousness she was in the cherry hills shrine, most likely. She was also surrounded by five girls curled up and sleeping. Almost like Akane was after a neko incident back in Paragon. Wait, neko-ken? I was afraid this might have happened. Ow, my side still hurts. I had thought this imbecilic transformation provided a means of speedy regeneration? Oh, that is right. Mother managed to hit me with her lightning assault.

As the other girls started to awaken the one known as Makoto Kino eyed Eclipsed Moon critically before saying "You know, dressing like that is not very manly."

"When will you drop this manliness obsession, Mother?" Eclipsed Moon asked with a sigh. "Ouch, do you realize it is your fault I am injured? Or what it will take for me to recover?"

While the nearly constant hunger was gone, even healing a minor bruise took weeks at times. For injuries like this however even being well fed wasn't quite enough. No one person could safely sate her and heal such a gaping wound. It was a huge temptation to use the one who caused such pain to heal. Yet she didn't try it. It still felt wrong to use her own mother in that way. Fortunately there were others who had drawn the succubus's ire available.

By the time Ranma returned home she felt extremely full. It had taken more to heal then expected. So much more that a nagging worry plagued Ranma's conscience. What if she'd fed too deeply? The last time she'd done that, Ranma had nearly killed a man. It had been when still new to her new nature. When Ranma's male form had still been human. Since it had happened Ranma had been careful about her feeding. But never before had it taken that much to recover from an injury.

"I'm home!" She called out upon entering the residence.

Tokyo-Nerima District

"Oof!"

A teenage girl with brown hair in a pageboy cut grunted as her back impacted the wall. She was wearing a button up yellow tee shirt tied at the belly and short tan denim shorts. The reason the girl was currently upside down and embedded in a wooden wall was not immediately clear to her. Sure there was a matter of the unverifiable pledge between two families. But it didn't explain why Nabiki Tendo was being thrown around the family dojo like a rag doll.

Nor did it explain why this boy, Ranma according to his father, insisted on being called Usagi. Why he thought Nabiki knew martial arts was also a mystery. One that was becoming rather painful. For two hours this boy had been tossing her around. And when her younger sister had tried to interfere Nabiki had witnessed what was quite possibly the most humiliating way to be defeated. Even unconscious her sister was still blushing.

"Disappointing," Usagi snorted from where she stood. "You stopped practicing years ago, that ends today."

Nabiki slowly pealed out of the indentation, only to fall onto the floor with another grunt. Most of her body hurt, although nothing was actually bruised or broken. The only real injury was to her self control. Nabiki Tendo prided herself on being able to remain cool and detached. Yet this person was able to consistently bypass her control. Why's he doing this to me? Akane's the heir to the dojo. When the boy next spoke it was almost like he could read her thoughts.

"The berserker might be the dojo's heir, but you don't practice the Tendo style. Who taught you the Nightbane school? They didn't do a very good job."

"But I don't," Nabiki started to protest.

But she vaguely remembered finding an ancient scroll when five. It hadn't made any sense when the young Nabiki had tried reading it. But the scroll did have funny pictures. Most were confusing, but for a while she'd tried imitating the pictures on her own. No one else had known about it, and the hobby had been abandoned when her mother died. Even the poor attempts to copy the scroll's pictures had instilled a sense of confidence. Confidence that Nabiki still relied on.

Tokyo-Cherry Hill Shrine

Two bodies shifted on the bed. While most of her friends were curled up on the floor in various locations of the shrine, Ami found herself on Rei's bed. The sheets were damp, and Ami realized her body felt sticky. It also ached in ways she'd not felt since the last time the senshi had trained under their sensei Mistress Nightbane. While disturbing, something else felt off. A twitch merely called further attention to the offness.

The last thing she clearly remembered was fighting a plant like monster, and then cats. Hundreds of biting and clawing cats. Just the mere thought of them sent shivers through Ami's spine. That Luna and Artemis were related to those little hellspawn made her instantly distrust them. When she opened her eyes the senshi of ice found a leathery wing in her face. There was a time when such an event as waking up to leathery wings would have immediately set her on edge.

Training under Ranma Nightbane had done much to dispell that prejudice. Living in the city of Paragon for twenty years had furthered her education. There the magical girl had encountered many demons and demonically appearing people who were firmly on the side of love and justice. Sure there had been evil demons too. But Ami had learned that not all things that look evil actually are. It was a hard won lesson, and one that had cost her a year in prison for attacking one of the city's heroes just because he happened to be a demon.

Even after twenty years defending that city and world some of the others still had trouble with attacking demons on sight. In fact, the only reason Rei Hino didn't attack 'Usagi' in this loop was because their mistress and sensei had conditioned the girls to accept their place under the Nightbane clan head. The exact nature of that position was a good question though. The brand upon Ami's breast marked her as property. Yet Mistress Nightbane treated them more like students and friends, usually. When hungry or injured Ami knew they were more akin to a thick juicy steak to the succubus.

Her hand traced along the wing searching for the source. When the question apendage found a shapely female form the immediate assumption was that it was Ranma Nightbane. This was quickly dispelled by spying raven hair instead of red. As the last dregs of sleepiness rapidly evaporated Ami sat up. The blue haired woman rolled off the bed and came up in a defensive crouch. The action however called attention to something else.

Rolling had actually hurt. Something was on Ami's back. Something which had been pressed painfully. There was also an unusual sensation of movement coming from her rear. Deal with that later,Ami decided. Her transformation pen appeared in Ami's hand, but she held off using it. Discovering who, or what had been sleeping with her was a higher priority. It was a question answered moments later when the unknown figure sat up.

"C-CATS!" The woman screamed in terror.

Mention of the evil beasts caused Ami to freeze for a moment. Then realization of who had screamed sank in. Followed closely by the realization that Rei Hino now had wings just like Ranma Nightbane's. Yet another thunderous revelation struck the blue haired genius next. Kami, did I sleep with Rei? Why can't I remem... What is that? A blood red snake like object flitted into view from behind Ami. It's tip was pointed like an arrow head, and it was thin.

The object seemed to move on it's own. When the genius grabbed it, she yelped in sudden pain. At which point she felt something impact the wall. Yet it wasn't her back that hit. There was also a slight breeze. In a near panic Ami brought out the mercury computer and scanned her long time friend. The information revealed was not very encouraging. Succubus-servant, see threat classification file 381-B? As she read the referenced file Ami spoke.

"Rei, calm down. Something ah, happened to us. I'm trying to figure out what it was."

"Calm? I'll show you calm!" The shrine maiden snapped.

Rei reached for one of her spirit wards on the dresser, only to recoil at the touch. The spiritually charged paper had actually singed her fingers. Even as the shrine maiden shook her hand in shock her long time friend was reading about succubi. And what the file said was disturbing on several levels...

Succubi, also known as the scourge of temptation. There are actually two known types of this demon. Natural succubi are capable of blending in with humanity. The only feature to reveal a succubus's nature is her bat-like wings. That they can be hidden makes tracking one down difficult at best. While most known as temptresses, a sucubus is not inherently evil.

The danger of them is two fold. When their hunger grows too strong they feed until nothing is left of their victims. For men, this invariably means death. With women however the result is different. Upon being drained completely, women undergo a metamorphosis into servant class succubi. These can be told apart from natural succubi by their red skin, horns, and tail. Unlike the natural variety, servant class can not hide their distinguishing features.

While little is known about their society, servant class are called such because they are thought to be little more then slaves to their creator. Researchers have yet to determine the exact nature of this servitude. While there is speculation it's nature is that of mental domination, others put forth the hypothesis that it is more of a mother and daughter relationship. Conflicting evidence supports both claims equally.

The reason for so many conflicting theories and little fact stems from the nature of researching these demons. To date no researcher who has encountered one up close has returned. Whither they have died, or something else happened is unknown. It is this researcher's belief that they are still alive. Yet if they are, those who have come before may well be lost to us. It is my recommendation that all report of succubi activity be handled by the royal guards. Anyone else would be in extreme danger.

Gates of Eternity

Eric Von Mason groaned. There was nothing he could do about the current situation. Nothing that wouldn't make things worse that is. But maybe there was a way to minimize the damage. Those measures required approval however. He still couldn't figure out who was causing these changes in the timeline. There wasn't suppose to be a four way war in the Juuban district of Tokyo. Nor was there suppose to be an as yet unwritten training scroll in the Tendo dojo for the 'Nightbane' school of martial arts.

That the scroll had been inserted without his noticing at a point several years before the recursions begin was as worrying as the fact it wouldn't be penned for thirty years of linear passage. Which meant it would be unwritten until after the time continuum was mended. When the telephone rang Eric blinked in confusion. I didn't know this place had a phone. Sure enough there was a telephone that looked like it came from the nineteen thirties sitting on a wooden pedestal.

Tentatively Eric picked up the receiver. "Hello?"

"Sorry Guardian, but I'm afraid your request got denied."

"Who is this?"

"Call me Perth, we haven't actually met yet. Father would have informed you directly, but I'm afraid he's in a meeting right now."

"This meeting, it wouldn't have anything to do with two magical girls becoming servant-class demons would it? Or is this about the 'tainted light' and her activities at a local high school?"

This was going to be a long cycle, Eric knew it.