Chapter 9
Fun with Amazons, Part 1
"And that's the situation," Max finished, putting a hand on the young boy's shoulder. "Kenshiro will be living with us from now on."
Each of the other family members, including a soaked Ranma-chan, gave the boy a look. Kasumi seemed happy at the prospect of a younger brother; Nabiki was feeling even more suspicious than before; and Akane was just surprised, although trying to keep a better attitude about the boy. Ranma was still angry at her father for going to China without her, but gave the boy a light smile nonetheless.
"I want you all to treat him as you would any other member of the family," Max added.
"Even you?" Ranma-chan quipped sarcastically.
"Especially me, boy."
Ken looked at Ranma, confused, then turned to Max. "Boy?"
"That's right, Ken. This is my son, Ranma. But he's currently in the form of his Jusenkyo curse. Like the one I've got."
"Oh," the boy said.
"So you brought home a new family member," Ranma said, standing up and cracking her knuckles. "Big deal! That ain't gonna stop me from poundin' your ass, Oyaji! That's what you get for going back to China without me!"
"You never asked," Max said.
"Like hell I didn't!" Ranma yelled, lunging at her father. Soon, the two were outside by the pond, trading strikes with each other. Kenshiro watched in amazement as the father and son/daughter exchanged blows back and forth.
"Er…so, this is how our family can be sometimes, anyway," Carlos said. "But don't worry, we're a nice, normal family most of the time."
"Yeah, as normal as they come," Nabiki quipped under her breath.
Outside, Ranma managed to get a strike in, and knocked her father into the koi pond with a splash. "Ha! You've gone soft, old man! What happened to you on that trip of yours?"
As if to answer his question, a large, fierce-looking tiger erupted from the pond, pouncing on the shocked martial artist. All of the others, including Carlos, looked on in surprise.
"Oops. I forgot to mention this" read a sign the tiger held up with its tail. Turning it around, it read, "I decided to give my curse a little upgrade." Looking down at the terrified girl under his claws, Max got off of her. He didn't want to activate it just yet. Heading for the house, he walked inside, found the kettle Ranma had been saving, and doused himself.
"And with that," he said, drying his hands as he walked back to the group, "Please welcome Ken to the household. And be extra nice to him; he may only be five, but he's already had a hard life." Throwing the towel over his shoulder, he left the room, Carlos following him.
Kasumi stood up, walking overt to where Kenshiro was sitting. "Ken, have you had lunch yet?" The boy shook his head, and Kasumi lead him towards the kitchen. "Then you can help me prepare for the others." Perking up a smile, the boy followed.
Nabiki shook her head with a sigh. "Great. Another freeloader. Just how many people is he gonna bring back here?"
"Onee-chan! That's not very nice!" Akane snapped.
"Oh? Becoming more fond of Ranma, are we?"
"I didn't say that!" she said, going red. "I just think Ken seems okay. We've always wanted a younger brother, anyway."
"Maybe, but I still don't trust Ranma's old man. He and daddy are becoming weirder and weirder by the day. Their presence here can't be a good thing."
Akane rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say…I'm gonna go check on Ranma." She walked over to the aqua-transsexual, who was still passed out by the koi pond. Nabiki stood, looking at the doorway to the basement, where her father and his friend had just gone. "I'll find out just who this guy is…and what he's up to."
"A tiger. Nice touch."
"Thanks," Max replied, lying back into a recliner. "By the way, where's Mousse-er, our new friend?"
"Mordecai? He said he was gonna get his own place in the city. Didn't wanna intrude."
"I guess that's okay. It's getting pretty crowded here, anyway. What'd you guys do while waiting for me?"
"Oh, we just hung out. He pulled a few pranks on the Amazons before we left, though. Ruined one of their sacred ceremonies, or something."
"Tell me more," he said.
"Let him tell you," Carlos replied. "I'm too tired after that last trip, anyway."
"Hey, you didn't have to fight off a 500-year-old wasp demon!" Max retorted.
"Okay, fine. That doesn't mean I just sat around the whole time. Either way, I just wanna lie back for a bit."
"Don't get too comfortable," Max said, rummaging through his bag. "We've gotta make another trip soon."
"Oh, c'mon…where to this time?"
"Some scientists convention out in India. I'm gonna see if we can make a connection within the scientific community. You don't have to come, though."
"Nah, it's okay. I've kinda' always wanted to see India, anyway."
"That's good," Max said. He pulled a small cloth out of his bag, and unwrapped it, revealing severed robotic arm, and a small, flat piece of detailed metal.
"What're those?" Carlos asked, looking at them.
"Things I took from the cyborg. This thing was all that was left of its head," he said, lifting up the flat piece. "I think it's the brain chip."
"And you wanna analyze them."
"Exactly," he replied. He shoved the items into a nearby safe, and locked it. "Should be fine there. Rest up for now, we'll be leaving tomorrow."
"What were you so scared about?" Akane asked as they walked down the path of the reservoir. "You were passed out for an hour."
"It's nothing," Ranma said, not looking at his fiancé. He was still in girl-form, and not in a very good mood from earlier. "I can't believe he left for China without me…not to mention getting a different curse!"
"Don't let it get to you," Akane said. "I'm sure you'll get your chance to go back to China." She and Ranma had grown a bit more accustomed to each other over the past week, even though they still weren't happy about their supposed engagement. Ranma had told her about his father's words on the issue, and Akane seemed to calm down and accept it. Since then, they seemed to get along better.
"I know I will," she responded. "I just hope it's sooner than later. I'm tired of this body, and all the unwanted attention it attracts!"
Akane raised an eyebrow. "Didn't I see you using that body to get some free ice cream yesterday?"
"That's different!" Ranma retorted. "I wouldn't even be able to eat that stuff as a guy! It's too embarrasin'! I might as well make the most of what I've got now."
"Just like your father mentioned at our first meeting," she quipped. "Anyway, at least they don't insist on us being married anymore. Probably a good thing, too, considering you got yourself engaged again three days ago."
"Hey! That wasn't my fault, okay? I didn't mean to knock her out with her own weapon!"
"Yeah, well, she sure showed her gratitude enough," Akane said, rolling her eyes.
"Will you please leave me alone? I swear, I don't wanna see that crazy chick again any time soon! It's Oyaji's fault she's after us, anyway!"
"Simply avoiding her won't solve the prob-"
A wall of some residence they had just walked in front of suddenly exploded, and debris crumbled to the ground in front of them. When the dust cleared, they saw the familiar Chinese girl holding a sword. "Ranma!" she said, with a glare.
"Yah! Shampoo!" Ranma-chan squeaked.
"Kill!" the girl yelled, swinging her weapon at the martial artist. Ranma leapt to the rooftops to run away, and Shampoo gave chase. Akane watched them go, her dumbstruck face following them until they were out of sight.
"Honestly…"
At a large palace-like building in Bombay, a fancy party was in full swing. Hundreds of people, dressed in expensive clothing, were ambling about, talking to each other. Long tables lined the center and walls of the place, covered with elegant foods and champagne, while receptionists carried trays between partygoers. At the center of the front wall stood a small stage and podium, with a banner proclaiming a welcome to all the world's greatest scientists. There were several displays up and down the ballroom as well, showing new inventions and technologies the guests had brought.
Max and Carlos, dressed in expensive-looking black suits, took their time in taking in the scene in front of them. "And how did you get invited to this again?" Carlos asked.
"I didn't. Josef said one of his connections was invited, but declined. He told me to go in his place, and said I could bring a friend. He said we might be able to expand our horizons here."
"And that's what we're here for?"
"Pretty much. There's gotta be at least one brain in this place that'll offer us some help. Let's take a look around."
They did so, spending a good hour looking around at the displays and exchanging a few words with some notable scientists. Across the room, a scrawny, bald man with a beard and glasses pulled a pill from his pocket, and popped it into his mouth before taking a long swig of champagne. He turned around after feeling a pat on his back, facing a tall albino in a suit.
"Hey, Rust! Still no end in sight for the pill popping, huh?"
"Oh, back off, White! You're one to talk, with the extra pink makeup you've been plastering on!"
"Yes, but at least he managed to impress a few ladies with his little act." A short, big-headed man with an eye patch and a metallic arm walked up beside the albino. "No such luck for you, I see."
"Big talk for a midget virgin, is what I say!" the man retorted, picking up another champagne glass from a passing waiter.
"You don't have to yell it so loud," the short man said, his smile disappearing.
"Well you did kinda' bring it on yourself, Billy. Though, who could blame you, with the speech impediment and the huge head."
"Plus, I think that arm gives most people the creeps," the bearded man said.
"Oh sure, gang up on the boy genius at the big Science Con! You guys just make me sick sometimes!" He took a glass of champagne for himself before downing the whole thing.
"Fine, fine, Billy. Just what the heck are you two doing here, anyway?"
"We could ask you the same question, Rust. We heard you haven't been doing so well lately. Is it true you might have to sell the Venture Compound?"
"Don't jump to conclusions, Pete. It just so happens that I have an upcoming meeting with General Manhowers to make a deal for the military!" He took another swig.
"I dunno, Rust; does the military even trust you anymore, after your Oo-Ray incident?"
"My what?" Venture said.
"Never mind. Hey, by the way, where's Goldie Locks at? I thought he still followed you everywhere you went."
"Oh, how should I know? Brock doesn't care for these shindigs, so he just disappeared out onto the party patio. Probably won't be seeing him 'till morning."
"You can say that again," White said, looking at his partner.
"Brock Samson: slayer of men, conqueror of women," Billy finished.
"Will you two knock it off?" Venture said. "They're gonna start the presentations soon, and my stupid brother's up first, so leave me alone for a bit."
About ten minutes later, a man in a suit approached the podium, and messed with the mic before it came to life. "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I'm proud to announce the start of our presentations for this year's convention for development in the field of science. We have many well-known guests here tonight, each of them ready to reveal a knew invention or technology ready to progress mankind. And I hope every one of them will capture our hearts and attention as they have done over the years." The crowd applauded. When they were done, he cleared his throat to speak again. "Our first presentation comes from the main attraction at last year's Convention in Rio for his work on advancing teleportation. Please welcome, the son of the late great Jonas Venture; the one, the only, Dr. Jonas Venture, Jr.!"
A louder applause followed, and a short, but nonetheless well-built man, sporting a ponytail and metallic arm of his own, walked up to the podium, pulling up a stool to be able to reach the mike. "Thank you, ladies and gents. It's a real pleasure to be presenting one's work first among all the other great scientific minds in the world. Hell, I'd have done the introduction myself to save time, but the company insisted on having their fifteen minutes before things really got down to business."
A light burst of hearty laughter followed; Dr. Venture scoffed. A few paces behind him, Max and Carlos had their attention focused on the covered machine behind the scientist on stage.
"Anyway, enough with the warm-up." He stepped down from the stool, and grabbed hold of the sheet covering his machine. "Last spring, I was asked by the EPA to come up with a solution to the problem surrounding nuclear power. I've spent months on this piece of work since. I present to you the greatest new invention this year…the Radioactive Converter!" Pulling the sheet off, he revealed a small, metallic capsule, big enough for two or three people to fit inside. It had an entrance hatch with a small window, and what looked like a small exhaust thing on top. "This baby can convert the most toxic or radioactive substance into a nice, clean substitute for water to be used in a plant's cooling system! No more piling up of dangerous waste in your own backyard. Instead, we'll turn it into something useful! With this baby in use, we can make nuclear energy the cheapest, safest, cleanest form of energy yet, solving the global energy crisis!" A round of applause came from the audience. "Thank you, but I'd rather demonstrate it for you first! Good waiter!" he said, turning to one of the men in the crowd. "Will you please bring me a bottle of your strongest stuff?"
The man nodded, and headed for the stock room. Max watched him go, then turned to Carlos. "I think we've found a good choice for a connection."
"Are you sure? We haven't seen his thing work."
"Oh yeah? Just watch." He pointed to the stage, where Jonas was removing the bottle of grain alcohol from the machine. He opened it, poured a glass of what looked like clear water, and handed it to someone at the front of the crowd. The person sipped, and expressed shock at the normal taste. The crowd cheered once again, and Jonas bowed. "He's very good at what he does, way better than his brother. We might as well go and talk to him now, 'cause I think we've seen enough."
"That was some presentation," Max said, walking up to Jonas. It had been thirty minutes since his presentation, and they had finally found him beside one of the tables. "Maybe now, those Greens will only have the terrorist excuse to push." He held out his hand. "Genma Saotome."
The dwarfish man smiled, and shook. "Jonas Venture, Jr. Call me J.J. Don't believe I've seen you around before."
"I'm a bit new to the scene; and I got admission from a friend." He took a swig of a drink he picked up from a tray. "I'm really just here to find a good connection. I'm forming a business that'll deal in technology development, and I'm going to need a consultant."
"A research business, eh?" he said, tweaking his beard. "Sounds interesting. What's your resume like?"
"I'd rather show you in person, though not in front of all these people."
"Secret work, huh?" he said with a grin. "I like the sound of that. Tell you what, come with me to Spider-Skull Island, and show me your work. I'll make my decision from there."
The two shook once again, just as the announcer was at the podium again. "Our last presentation will be given by the other son of the late great Jonas Venture. You all know him as Rusty the Boy Adventurer; Dr. Thaddeus Venture!"
A light applause, though nowhere near the level the other presenters got, rang out from the crowd. Venture acted like it was the best of them all, though, waving happily at the crowd. "Thank you, thank you!" he kept saying, long after the applause had died down. Clearing his throat, he began. "Since the dawn of existence, man has sought to advance civilization…"
Max groaned as Venture went on with his speech. Carlos, who'd been helping himself to some food, walked over to meet him. "Do we even need to stay and listen to this guy? You said yourself he was practically nothing."
"You're right. Let's just find a way to kill time until Jonas is ready to give us a lift," Max said, just as Venture began to wrap up his speech.
"And so, without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you…"
He was cut off by an explosion from outside that sent a light rumble through the building. The crowd began to murmur in fear, and the staff began running in different directions.
"Hey, what the hell's going on here?" Venture yelled, and the crowd turned its attention away from him. "Oh, sure! This has to happen to me, but not to anybody else! I didn't even get to show my awesome invention, for Pete's sake- aaaaaahhhhh!!!"
He was forced to dive out of the way of a falling chandelier before he finished his sentence. Partygoers began scrambling for the exits before a loud, high-pitched voice sounded over a giant loudspeaker.
"Attention do-gooder super scientists! This is the Mighty Monarch! Prepare to meet your doom at the hands of the biggest, most ass-kicking name in super-villainy!"
Max, who had made his way towards the entrance, looked out the door. A giant, flying golden pod, shaped like a cocoon, was hovering in front of the palace. "Wonderful," he said.
In a hotel room overlooking the palace, a tall, severely muscular man with a blonde mullet looked up from the two women he'd been servicing for the last few minutes. Looking out the window, his face drooped. "Oh, for crying out fucking loud…"
The Monarch let go of the speakerphone he'd been holding as he sat in his command seat. "Oh, this is the prefect opportunity to strike at Venture! Right when he's about to reveal another one of his lame-ass inventions! Engineering!" he yelled, turning to a group of henchmen in butterfly costumes. "Keep her steady as she goes! I don't want any shaking when we use the secret weapon I cooked up!" The men worked faster, and the Monarch turned to one of his screens. "Number 21! Come in!"
The screen came to life, revealing a stocky, heavyset man in a similar uniform. "Right here, sir!"
"Prepare the targeting systems, and be on the lookout for any big names we might know! I want to see if I can single out Dr. Venture after we've caused enough initial mayhem!"
"Okay, but I'm warning you, the targeting's been acting up weird lately."
"I'm not the one who tried to use it to go duck hunting while flying over the Everglades!" the Monarch bellowed. "Get the systems up, and no messing around this time! Number 24!"
The second screen lit up, revealing the other henchmen, with a deeper voice. "Yeah, boss!"
"Arm the cannons! I want to give them a little appetizer before we unleash my secret weapon on them! For it will truly be a weapon of shock and awe! At first, it will seem like a harmless swarm of butterflies approaching. Little do they know that each magnificent insect is laced with enough explosive serum to make each butterfly a miniature hand grenade! And not only that, they've been held down in pods for so long, they'll fly restlessly in all directions! Yes, just wait 'till you get a good look at my horrifying Incendiflies!" he yelled, raising his fists in the air.
"Uh, about that," #21 quipped.
"Huh? What do you mean 'about that', what's wrong?"
"I've got some bad news. Number 47 kinda' forgot to feed the butterflies last week, and, well, you know they don't live very long…"
"What? You're kidding me! I had this planned out perfectly! Where's Number 47?!"
"I think he's in the john," #24 quipped.
"Make sure he never leaves the room alive!" the Monarch said with a sinister voice. "Eject him from the cocoon while he's still on the can! Fine then, if we can't use the primary weapon, go onto the next one! Use the napalm rockets-"
"We're out of those, too," #24 said.
"What are you talking about? I thought you'd stolen a whole damn heap of those from Sgt. Hatred last week!"
"Yeah, it turns out they weren't full of napalm at all, but a bad mix of Everclear and cherry Gatorade," #21 said. "Must've been having a wicked binge party."
"They probably drank the real stuff, explains why they blew up so easily while arching Captain Flameout last week," #24 added.
"Okay, fine. What about the 10-pound bomb supply?"
"That's a no-go, we used those up last week when Monstroso came at us for crashing his break party," #21 said.
"Fine! Whatever! Tell me what we do have, and use it already!"
"Well, for artillery, all we've got left are some of those 5-inch rounds we took from that mothballed battleship," #21 said.
"Idiot, those are flare rounds, they aren't gonna work in this situation!" #24 responded.
"I'm not gonna lose my temper," the Monarch seethed, clutching his fist while the two henchmen continued to argue over the screen. "I'm going to resist the urge to fill you schmucks with the explosive serum and fire you out of my cannons!" His face suddenly calmed. "Wait a minute; that's not a bad idea! 24! Has Number 47 been ejected from the cocoon yet?"
"Sorry, boss, I already hit the button!"
"Oh, forget it. We're running low on good henchmen after last week's disaster, anyway. Just fire some of those flares to distract them while we prepare for a ground attack!"
A 1969 Dodge Charger zoomed through the palace grounds, coming closer to the giant, hovering cocoon. The man behind the wheel watched as a large cannon emerged from a lower point in the cocoon, and began firing something at the building.
"Crap," Brock muttered to himself. "How am I supposed to fix this? I don't have anything to-"
He was cut off by the impact of a large object on the hood of his car. Hitting the brakes and getting out, he sneered at what he saw: a henchmen with his pants down, and a frozen look of fear on his face.
"Fire!" the Monarch yelled over his intercom. The cannon continued to fire flares, some of which bounced harmlessly off the buildings' surface, while others crashed through windows.
"Okay, this is completely lame. But at least the ground assault will go as planned! Henchmen!" he yelled, going back to the microphone. "Load everyone up in the armory, and prepare them at the exit hatch! We're going to storm this place, and take Dr. Venture by force! And the best thing is, there's so far been no sign of that blasted Swedish Murder Machine! Looks like Venture came to work without his guard dog, making our job so much easier! Keep firing!"
Using a wide outdoor staircase as a ramp, Brock floored the gas pedal, sending his Charger into the air, holding the unconscious henchmen out the window with his left hand as he approached the cannon. Hurling the body at the cannon, he watched as it got stuck in the large barrel, then lit a cigarette as his car soared to the ground.
When the henchmen tried to fire the cannon one last time, it backfired, causing an explosion that sent flames shooting into the armory, causing a chain reaction that began destroying the lower half of the cocoon.
"What the hell was that?" the Monarch said, feeling the rumble of the explosion. "21! Status report-"
"Abandon ship! Dear God, abandon ship!"
"Dammit, 21, tell me what's going on!"
"It's horrible, sir! Some guy in a flying muscle car threw Number 47 into the cannon just as they were preparing to fire another flare!"
"Yeah, half the squad's on fire, and the other half are trying to claw their eyes out from the excess smoke! It's total chaos down here!" #24 added.
"Shit!" the Monarch yelled, clenching his fists again. "Samson found us! Knew I shouldn't have jinxed it! Quick, take evasive actions, switch engines to backup power!"
"The engines are failing, sir! The cocoon's going down!"
All around the chamber, warning signs began to flash, and alarms began to sound. The Monarch simply slumped down in his seat as the giant cocoon began to descend.
"Crap."
Max and Carlos watched with disturbed, yet interested expressions as the giant cocoon crashed to the ground; they had to hold in their sniggers as flaming henchmen emerged from the wreckage, screaming and running in all directions before they were subsequently run down by a Dodge Charger.
"Now, I think we've seen enough," Carlos said.
"Yeah," Max agreed.
A few hours later, they landed on Spider-Skull Island in Venture's experimental jet. Minutes after that, they were talking to him in his office.
"Okay, here we are," he said, holding out his hands to note their location. "Show me your 'resume', if you will. I'm still quite anxious."
Pulling a thermos from his jacket and putting it on the floor, Max proceeded to strip off his clothing down to his boxers. Jonas raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Max picked up the thermos, unscrewed it, and doused himself.
The dwarf's eyes went wide when he saw the transformation. The large tiger walked around the room before returning to Carlos' side, who produced a thermos of hot water, and doused the tiger, reverting him back to Max.
"Impressive," Jonas said. "Very interesting, I have to say. But, what exactly is your angle, here?"
"I told you I wanted to have you as a consultant," Max said, putting his clothes back on. "This was just to show you what I can do already. And to give you something in return for your help."
"I appreciate it, but there are already people in this world who can transform into animal-like beings. What does this give me?"
"None of them can transform fully, and easily back and forth like I can. Plus, this isn't the only possible transformation for me. It can be applied to anyone who unlocks the secret. If you promise to help me, I'll allow you to examine me. I'll even let you in on the cause of the transformation, and where you can find it."
The short man smiled. "A generous offer. Well, this is certainly an interesting phenomenon. People changing into animals, triggered by water. Never heard of anything like that."
"And, if you're the first person to study it, you'll be able to take the claim for its discovery. I'm not interested in it, because I've got other plans for the future. What do you say?"
J.J., still smiling, got up from his seat, and walked over to shake Max's hand. "I say, 'deal'. I'll be looking forward to finding out how to harness this power you've got. And, in the meantime, I'll help you get your technology business started."
"Glad to hear it."
Their handshake was interrupted by a loud rumble from within the compound, followed by what sounded like slurred screaming. "What's all that?" Carlos asked.
Jonas twiddled his fingers. "Oh, that? That would be Ned, up in his bathroom. Sounds like he found another spider on the toilet." He went back to his desk, and pressed a button on his intercom. "Oh, Captain? Can you go and make sure Ned doesn't destroy the lower floor again?"
"Aye, boss. But don't expect me to be cleanin' up no urine trails this time. I spent all day the last time he saw one o' them arachnids crawlin' around."
"I understand, Captain, I'll get the cleaners to take care of that." He let go of the button. "Poor Ned is terrified of spiders. Always needs to get someone to kill it for him. Anyway, I'm glad you gentlemen stopped by. My autopilot will give you a ride home. Contact me when you get your business up and going."
"Will do," Max said, heading for the door.
"Any other questions for me before you go?"
"Not now."
As the experimental jet flew them back to Japan, Carlos turned to his partner. "What was all that about, anyway?"
"I gave him some motivation in order to get him to help us. I figured the Jusenkyo curse would be the perfect front."
"But the curses aren't exactly scientific," Carlos replied. "Aren't they technically supernatural, hence the term 'curse'?
"Yeah, but he doesn't know that," Max answered. "I'll hold off telling him the location of Jusenkyo for now, but once he starts studying the springs, he'll keep at it forever, trying to find some scientific answer. He'll probably never find anything."
"But that's not our problem, is it?"
"Exactly. Now, we've got him on board as a consultant. This will be good in getting our names out there to get our business up."
"I was just wondering, though; how come you didn't show him those pieces of the cyborg?"
"I'm going to study those things myself first. They could be from some common model, anyway. He wouldn't have been impressed at that. However, if they're from something completely unknown, I want to know it first."
"I get it." He leaned back in his chair, stretching himself out. "Still no idea who sent that cyborg after you?"
"Nope," he said. "I'm gonna grab some Z's. I've got a doctor's appointment when I get back." And with that, Max yawned, and drifted off into sleep.
Somewhere in the Nevada desert, a long highway was cut off by an enormous road block, which was surrounded by several police cruisers, all with lights flashing in the night.
A black-haired officer in a bulletproof vest and sunglasses laid down a spike strip in the road before running back to the roadblock. "Spike strip's set," he said to another officer, this one dressed in shorts, wearing a cowboy hat, and looking through night-vision binoculars at the road in front of him.
"Good work, Junior. Look alive, people!" he yelled back to the group of officers behind him. "Fast Eddie McLintock's been back in Reno only a few days, and he's already caused seven pileups! That's not gonna happen here tonight!"
"Lieutenant, are you sure it's a good idea to be doing this at night?" an older, Mexican-sounding officer yelled back.
"Yes, Garcia, it is! We've never pulled this kind of operation at night before, and Eddie won't be expecting it! We've got no other choice after what he's done to us during the day!"
"Then what's with all the extra police cruisers? There are only four of us here!"
"It makes it look like the whole department's here, that's why! It's a visual aid for us! He was last seen on I-80, and he's got the whole State Department trailin' him! Heard it on the radio!"
"Lieutenant, eyes on the road!"
"Shut up, Junior, shut up!" he retorted, putting the binoculars back up to his eyes. "I know what I'm doing!" He looked out further down the desert road. "I think something's coming! What's that I see? Talk to me, people!"
"Relax, that's just a Chevy truck!" Junior replied.
Back behind one of the cruisers, a black officer raised shotgun into the air. "Lieutenant, I get to shoot on sight this time, right?"
"Do not shoot!" he yelled, turning around. "For the last time, Jones, no shooting! If anyone shoots at him, there will be no group photo! Understand? Good!"
"If we don't get to shoot, then why the hell am I holding this?"
"It's another visual aid! It implies authority, just like the extra police cruisers! Just sit tight, and no shooting!"
They continued to wait. After a minute or so, they heard a familiar noise in the night air. "Hey, Lieutenant, that sounds like sirens!"
"Sirens! Wonderful, that means the State Troopers are chasin' him towards us! Get ready! Everyone get ready!"
"Hey, lieutenant, what's that down there?"
"Where? What're you pointin' at?"
"Right there!"
Down at the bottom of the hill, a hole was appearing in the road, as though something was digging up from the ground. "Holy…what on…look, never mind that! Just concentrate on those sirens! Eddie'll be comin' through in no time!"
The sirens were becoming louder and louder. Meanwhile, someone wearing a bandana and carrying a parasol appeared out of the hole in the ground. "Dammit, that was a horrible trip! Where am I now?" He sat down in the middle of the road, and pulled out some sort of map, oblivious to the situation up the road.
"Lieutenant, down there!"
Looking through the binoculars, he saw. "Holy- somebody's sittin' in the road! Hey, son! Get outta' the-"
He was cut off by the sound of a speeding car approaching from behind them. Before they could even turn around, a black Trans Am, using the cars behind the roadblock as a jump, soared into the air, playing a novelty horn before crashing back to the ground, and speeding away. "Eat my dust, coppers!" a redneck voice said over a loudspeaker from the car.
"Holy mother of-"
"Fast Eddie McLintock! Son of a bitch!"
"Look out son!" one of them yelled.
Ryoga was still looking at his map while sitting in the road. "God, are they noisy around here!" he said to himself. Hearing something approaching him, he turned to see a black car speeding towards him, honking at him to move. Pulling out his umbrella, he waited for the car to close the distance before knocking it high into the air with one swing. It crashed to the ground, rolling over and over before crashing into a boulder.
"How rude," he said before returning to his map. "He really should watch where he's going from now on." About a minute later, he heard people running down the hill, and turned to see four police officers. "What now?" he said.
"Shit, holy shit, son! How in the hell'd you do that?" the older officer said.
"Huh?" Ryoga quipped.
"Everybody calm down! Son, Lieutenant Jim Dangle, Reno Sheriffs Department; you just manhandled, no, owned the fastest drug runner in the country! And we are awed by your ability, son!"
"I did?" Ryoga said blankly, looking back at the wreck he'd caused. "You mean that?"
"Yeah, son, you knocked Fast Eddie McLintock clear off the road, no one's ever done that before!"
"Seriously, that guy's been a pain in the ass for us. He's caused seven pileups in the last couple'a days. He has been a thorn in our side, and I wanna shake your hand for takin' care of him for us, and saving us another shit load of paperwork. C'mon, join us in our group photo, too!"
"Yeah, the photo, that's a good idea!"
"Uh, that sounds nice and all, but I really need to get going. Though I was hoping you could point me in the right direction," he said, holding out his map.
"Uh, sure, pal, anything," Jones said, looking at the map. "Where're you headed?"
"Furinkan High School."
"Huh?" Garcia said. "There any high school with that name around here?"
"None that I know of."
"Uh, son," Jones said, "This here's a map of Australia."
The other men went silent while Ryoga took the map back. "Oh," he said. "That explains why I passed Perth a few hours ago. Must've taken a wrong turn, because I'm sure I should've reached Tokyo by now."
The officers could only stare. "Uh, Travis, why don't you go dig Eddie outta' that wreck."
"Yeah, boss-"
The sound of a crash brought their attention to the roadblock, where several police cruisers, traveling at alarming speeds, collided head-on with the roadblock, eventually forming a large pileup.
"Holy shit!"
"Shit, shit! We forgot about the roadblock!"
"Well, the spike strip works."
"They're comin' this way, run!"
The cops scrambled away as cop cruisers began tumbling down the hill towards them. Ryoga had ducked into his hole to avoid it all. "That was strange…" Ryoga said to himself. "I'm glad they got their criminal, though. At least I know where I am now. I have to head west to find Furinkan! Ranma! You won't escape our duel, you coward! Westward I go!" he yelled, as he dug further into the ground, heading east.
"I know I shouldn't be mad, but I just can't help it," Kikyou said, sitting in her comfy leather chair. She was in a small office room, sitting across from a man in a suit wearing glasses; she was dressed in modern clothing as well. A coffee table sat between them. "I went so long thinking he'd betrayed me; that he was with me just because of something I had. It's only f-…well, a few years later that I realize he's innocent on the matter, but he's already moved on, even found another woman." She sighed, lying back in her chair. "I don't know how I can continue facing him anymore."
The psychiatrist looked at her for a moment, contemplating his thoughts. "Have you tried to simply avoid him?"
"We're going to inevitably cross paths in what we do. We have a common go-…er, profession. I can't avoid him anymore than I already am." The priestess had altered her story in a number of ways, for obvious reasons.
"I see," the shrink replied. "Too much damage has already been done for you two to have a chance together again. Yet, you feel he will always remain a part of your life." He sat up in his seat, holding his fingers together. "I can't recommend that you try to patch things up with him, but I will advise that you try to cope with him nonetheless. He's clearly had problems of his own if you were both deceived by the same problem." He pulled out a pen and a small piece of note paper. "In the meantime, I'm going to prescribe something for you…"
Ranma-chan, nearly out of breath from her little excursion, rested against the wall of a shop. She'd managed to lose the attacking Amazon further back, and now wanted to rest.
"Damn, that Shampoo's persistent. I can't go on like this much longer." Hearing a loud whistle, he looked inside the window of the shop he stood next to, and saw a heated kettle sitting on a stove. "Good timing, though," she said, dousing herself with the hot water, reverting to his male form. "I've gotta find some way to get rid of her."
Sensing a closing presence to his back, he whipped around, catching a wooden staff in his hand, looking at the culprit in front of him. "Who are you?" he said, looking at the old woman.
Cologne smiled. "Well, well, this is certainly a surprise. I had no idea that we were looking for the same person, son-in-law. Quite a fine specimen."
"Son-in-law?" he said, confused. "Does that mean…"
"That's right. Shampoo certainly has gotten herself a real catch, I must say." Breaking her staff out of Ranma's grip as if it were nothing, she poked him in his chest. Backing away, the boy sneered. "Forget it, old hag. I don't care who you are; I've got no intention of marrying Shampoo!"
"Hmm. We'll see just how long you keep those intentions, with your current condition." She leapt up to the roof of the shop. "I'll be downtown if you change your mind!" She bounded away, laughing to herself.
"What the hell's with that old bag?" Ranma said before continuing on his way.
"Are you really sure about this?" Dr. Tofu asked as he continued to massage different points on Max's back.
"Believe me, I've given it all the thought in the world," Max answered. "I've decided it's certainly in my best interest."
"Well, it can give someone like you better control over your energy," Tofu said. "But changing one's metabolism is always risky."
"Maybe so…but I'm not one to ever back away from taking risks."
"I can see that," said the doctor as he continued his work. After a few more minutes, he backed up, allowing Max to sit up.
"Well, it's all finished," he said. "Your metabolism should work more smoothly now. Still, you'll need to be careful in what you do."
"I understand. Thanks, Doc," Max said, walking out the door. After Tofu was out of sight, he walked down the sidewalk, into a nearby alley. Looking around to make sure no one was looking, he held up his arms to look at them. This is it, he thought. The moment of truth. That little session changed my metabolism enough; I'll see whether or not my Hokuto Shinken can help me manipulate my chi enough to change. Sitting down in a cross-legged position, he closed his eyes, and began to build up his chi. Although it went slow at first, he upped the dosage as seconds went by, and then began to manipulate it. Feeling his body begin to change, he continued, not breaking his focus as his chi flowed through his body.
When he was done, he opened his eyes. Looking at his hands, he noticed they looked a bit smoother, with fewer wrinkles. Did it work? he wondered.
Looking around, he found a mirror leaning against the wall of the alley. Kneeling in front of it, he took a look at himself: as he had hoped, his body was now younger by more than twenty years. His skin was smoother, his face less rugged. "Like a charm," he said. Standing up, he stretched his arms out before performing a few moves. "Not bad."
Hearing a knock just outside his office, Dr. Tofu looked up to see a young woman in a business suit. "Oh, hello," he said. "How can I help you?"
She walked over to his desk, holding up a slip of paper. "I'm here to pick up a prescription my psychiatrist prescribed for me."
"Ah! Then you must be Kikyou!" he said. "Dr. Matsuno called ahead and told me to expect you." He took the slip from her before standing up. "I'll go fetch it from my stores, if you'll wait a bit." He went back through another door in his office.
Kikyou sighed as she looked around the office, wondering just what, if anything, this futuristic medication would do to help her uneasiness.
Cleaning himself up, Max straightened his gi top out, which was just barely hiding his chest scar, and walked back out into the street, heading back towards the dojo. On his way, he decided to stop at the doctor's office to thank the man once more. Walking inside, he looked around. "Doc? Hey, Doc!" he said. Noticing someone else inside, he stopped. "Oh, sorry. Thought the doc was still here."
"It doesn't matter," the woman said calmly, not moving. Walking up beside her, Max caught her face out of the corner of his eye. Surprised, he took a full look. "Kikyou?" he said.
Nah, he thought to himself for a split second before she turned to look at him. "Who are you?" she asked. "How do you know my name?"
"Huh?" Max quipped. "Oh, that! Sorry, I thought you looked like someone I knew…wait, that's really your name?"
The young priestess frowned. "I'll ask you again: who are you?"
"Genma Saotome," he answered.
"And why did you call me Kikyou?"
"Cause you kinda' look like her. The one I know, I mean. Seriously, it's just a coincidence."
The woman seemed to calm down at this. "I suppose so." She turned away.
Sighing in relief, Max relaxed enough for his gi top to open. She's not too bad, he thought. Putting his hands behind his head, he turned to face her. "So, what are you here for? Massage? Acupuncture? Or something a bit more complex?"
Sighing again, she turned back to him. "I really don't feel it's any of your concern-" Opening her eyes, she stopped in midsentence, her mouth slightly agape as she noticed something frighteningly familiar on his chest.
"Huh?" Max said, still holding his hands behind his head. "What's wrong?"
Kikyou did not respond, her eyes fixated on Max's now exposed Big Dipper-shaped scar. Ho-Hokuto? she thought. Looking up at his face, her eyes went slightly wide. No…no, it's not possible…
"Oh, the scar!" Max said. "Yeah, I get a lot of looks thanks to that. It's nothing, really, I got it in this weird freak accident-"
"Excuse me, miss, here's your prescription," Tofu said, holding out an envelope encasing the medication. "Oh, am I interrupting something?"
The woman snapped out of her trance, shaking her head. "I'm sorry," she said, taking the envelope and laying some money on the desk. "Thank you." She walked out without another word. Both Tofu and Max watched as she left. The doctor then turned to the now-younger man. "Is there anything I can do for you sir?"
"Huh?" Max quipped. He was a bit confused, until he caught on. Dammit, I forgot I'd changed. "Uh, nothing, I must be in the wrong place. Sorry to bother you." With that, he left for the dojo.
Ranma was at the entrance to the dojo, still in his male form. He hadn't seen any signs of the Amazons since he'd run into the old woman, and considered it a blessing that he'd gotten home undisturbed.
"I guess I'd better tell Oyaji that they're in Japan looking for us," he said to himself. "Maybe he'll know what to do about 'em."
"Airen!" came the dreaded voice once again.
"Oh no," the boy quipped. Turning to his right, he saw the purple-haired girl standing there with a wide smile on her face. "Wo ai ni!" she chirped, chasing after him.
"Augh, not this again!" Ranma yelled as he leapt to the roof and began to run.
"No way," Carlos said, looking at the young man in front of him, and taking notice of the scars on his chest. "What'd you do to yourself now?"
"Sorry I didn't tell you sooner," Max said, putting one hand behind his head. "I just didn't feel like spending all my time in a forty year-old's body, that's all."
"How'd you do it?"
"You remember Miss Hinako? Well, same thing, just in reverse. I need a large amount of chi to do it, but my new martial arts style allows me to build it up with no problem."
"Sounds cool. While you were away, our new friend showed up." He turned to the bathroom door, and out walked the body of Mousse, with its new inhabitant. He was dressed in a black suit with a longcoat, with his hair tied back into a ponytail.
"Welcome back," Max said. "You're looking sharp."
"Of course. You didn't think I was gonna stay in those lousy robes, did ya'?" he said. "I got plenty o' room in this thing to conceal all my little weapons and gadgets."
"Your eyes look a bit clearer," Max said, noticing.
"Had the laser surgery yesterday. No more glasses, no more blind-as-a-duck crap. I can see you've been quite busy yourself," he said, gesturing.
"Hey, you got a young body anyway, and you're both older than me. Is it wrong to want a body that's closer to my real age?"
"Point taken," he replied. "So what do we do next?"
"I'm not sure," Max said. "We managed to get a consultant, but we need a backdrop for this business if we're ever gonna have it."
"And what do we have?" Mordecai asked.
"The remains of that cyborg, which I'm going to study. In the meantime, we need to find a steady source of income, preferably close to home."
Mordecai took a look around the basement. "You ever thought of looking into Military Contracting?" he asked.
"Maybe," Max replied. "What are you getting at?"
"I told you, I had plenty of connections back in our world. I can get them again easily."
"Are you talking a Private Military Company? Mercs?" Carlos asked.
"Possibly. But you guys keep talking about that cyborg, so I figured you had some sort of a plan for technology development. And you always wanna start by seeking military funding. They pay the best, and they're always looking for new innovations. It'll be a perfect start for this company."
Max thought about the idea, and smiled. "I'm really glad we ran into you. Something tells me we're gonna need you the whole way."
"Glad to hear it."
"But one more thing," Max said. "I'm still dying to hear just what happened back at the Amazon village-"
A loud rumble, followed what sounded like a scream of frustration from Ranma, drew their attention upward. They all bolted up the stairs, and arrived at the garden to see Ranma leaping around the place, evading the purple-haired girl that was following him.
"Stay away from me, Shampoo!" the boy screamed as he barely dodged her once again. The girl acted like she hadn't heard him, and smiled happily as she continued to pursue him. Ranma spotted Max and the others, and stopped after landing on the wall. "Soun! Where's Oyaji? And who're those two guys with you?"
"Oh, no one in particular." Noticing Shampoo, he pointed her out. "You'd better move, son!"
"Huh?" he said, turning just in time to see Shampoo leaping towards him. Jumping into the air to dodge her, he smirked. "Ha! You'll hafta be faster than that-"
He went dead silent as he noticed he was falling towards the koi pond; and that Shampoo had rebounded off the wall, and leapt after him. "Craaaaaaaaap!"
"Ooh," Mordecai said. "That can't be good."
Up on the roof of the house, Cologne had been watching the whole event. "Looks like you'll have to be faster in the future, Son-in-Law! Hahaha!" A quizzical looked crossed her face. "But, how is Shampoo going to continue as a-"
Ranma's sudden scream of terror drew her attention back to the pond. Now in girl form, she was running around the garden with a white-and-purple cat firmly attached to her hair. "GETITOFFGETITOFFGETITOFFGETITOFFGETITOFF!!!"
"What on earth?" she said to herself. Below her, Max shook his head. "Looks like the time has come." He turned to leave. "Where're you going?" Carlos asked.
"Just to grab something."
Eventually, Ranma-chan ran head-on into the wall, and crumbled to the ground, leaving a small imprint of herself. Shampoo-neko continued to claw at her face, in a feeble attempt to do some permanent damage. A few seconds later, it finally happened.
"Meow." Standing up and crawling like a cat, Ranma-chan began to hiss at Shampoo-neko. Although not deterred at first, a final growl sent the smaller cat running for cover.
"Shampoo!" the old woman said, leaping down from the roof. "What's wrong? Why are you giving up so easily?" Walking closer to Ranma, she turned back to her great-granddaughter. "What are you so scared of? She's merely crawling on her-"
A sudden swipe at the ground sent the old woman leaping back in shock. Long shavings of grass and soil had been ripped up from the ground by the single swipe. "What on earth?"
Ranma continued to growl, inching closer to Cologne. "That pose…no, it couldn't be!"
"I'm afraid it is, old bag," she heard someone say from behind her. Looking back, she saw Max approaching with a sack in his hand. "You might wanna back up for a bit."
Cologne did so, but remained close enough to see. "And just what do you intend to do? The Cat-Fist is said to be an unbeatable technique!"
"Whoever said that never bothered to use common sense," Max retorted, stopping a few feet in front of his son/daughter. Sticking a hand into his bag, he quipped "Here, kitty."
With a loud yowl, Ranma-chan leapt at her father with every intention of ripping him to shreds. Pulling his hand out of the bag, Max produced a ball of yarn, and tossed it to the side just before Ranma got to him. The martial artist changed direction in mid-air, and happily chased after it, eagerly playing with it. Soon, she had gotten herself wrapped up in yarn, and was rolling around on the ground. Finally, Max produced a hypodermic, shoved it into Ranma's neck, and the aqua-transsexual fell asleep.
"I win," he said, turning and walking back into the house. Cologne looked back and forth between him and the sleeping Ranma-chan, utterly amazed. "Unbelievable," she said. "Who would've thought the Neko-ken would succumb to the simple nature of a cat…"
"That's what you get for relying so much on all your ancient styles, old bat," a familiar voice came from behind.
Turning around, the old woman leapt back, holding her staff pointed out at the boy. "Mousse!" she said. "What are you doing here?"
"Whatever the hell I feel like," he said. Unless you've already forgotten that I'm no longer part of your tribe."
"So you say!" she retorted. "You sure had quite a way of announcing it!"
"I thought it was a pretty reasonable goodbye."
"You interrupted and ruined our most important ceremony! In the most horrific ways, no less!"
"Come on, it was just a bit of PCP."
"The sacrificial bird attacked the neighboring tribal priestess! Our younger girls were horribly traumatized by that disgusting pornography! And the most proud female warriors of both tribes were completely at the mercy of random male passerbys! It's a miracle war didn't break out!"
"Sounds to me like the most fun any of you've had in years."
"Be quiet!" she yelled. "Face it, Mousse! You're dug in too deep for us to just let you go! Did you really think we would so easily?"
"No, I think you're stupid enough to try, anyway." Pulling his hands out of the pockets of his longcoat, he beckoned to her. "Let's dance, hag."
Placing his sleeping son/daughter on a futon, Max wiped his head. "I've had a rough day; I'm turning in."
"It's only 6 pm," Carlos responded. "Plus, didn't you wanna see what happened between Mordecai and the Amazons?"
"He had me at PCP," Max said. "I'm done for the day. 'Night."
The screams of a thousand eternally damned robots filled the air, only to be drowned out by the Robot Hell jazz band rehearsing their big number. As they wrapped up the piece, the Robot Devil stopped playing his golden fiddle. "Wonderful, boys! That was almost perfect! But each of you missed a beat about a century back! This time, make it perfect, or it's the magnet chamber for the next three days! From the top!"
Drooping their heads, the bots prepared to continue, until the drum riser was destroyed by something burrowing out of the ground. The drummer hell-bot scurried away.
"What in Robo-Jericho?" the Devil said as he watched a young, Asian boy in a bandanna climb out from the hole under the drum set. Brushing the dirt out of his hair, he pulled out a beaten and torn map. "Okay, now where am I?"
The Devil walked up to answer his question. "Why, this is the most diabolical place of damnation on the East Coast, my dear boy! Robot Hell, the hell for robots! You probably made a wrong turn, I do believe the hell for Asian people is somewhere beneath Bangkok! Unless, of course, you're into suffering of the electrical rhyming type!" Moving closer, he raised his eye at the boy. "Are you?"
"Huh? No, I'm not!" Ryoga retorted. "I'm trying to find Furinkan High School in Tokyo! I'd like to know where this location is, though, to know how far I am from my destination."
"Well son, you're somewhere underneath the worst theme park in New Jersey. I'd say you've got a ways to go," he said, holding his gold fiddle behind him. "Though, with your sense of direction, you'll find Walt Disney's untouched grave before you pinpoint your desired destination!" Walking away, he stopped, turned around, and narrowed his eyes at Ryoga. "Of course, if you really want to get there without any problems, you could make a certain deal with a certain Devil in a certain location that serves as a place of suffering for the robots of the world!"
"What are you saying?" Ryoga said.
"Oh, nothing. Just that when you make a deal with the devil, you can get anything you want with little or no repercussions!"
When Ryoga continued to stare blankly, the Devil went into a fit. "I'm saying I'll help you get to where you wanna go, you dolt! But it will cost you."
"I don't have any money."
"Oh, we're not after money, my dear boy. It's not much use down here."
"What do you want, then? My soul?"
"Maybe," the Devil said. "Or, it might be some other part of you: your eyesight, your sense of taste, your reproductive organs, or your unparalleled martial arts ability! It could be any of those!"
"But I need those to fight my nemesis when I find him!" Ryoga said.
"Listen, lost boy. You can continue looking for your home, and your arch-nemesis or whatnot until time stops, or you can risk a very small part of yourself and get there instantly! What do you say?"
Ryoga thought to himself for a moment. "How will you decide?"
"Oh, it will be random, of course!" Turning to large contraption covered in a sheet, he yanked off the sheet to reveal a gameshow wheel. "I got this cheap off The Price Is Right! Barker owed me one for giving him the ability to castrate any animal in the known universe! Anyway, the wheel merely contains several different parts of the human body, mind and spirit. I'll spin it, and we'll take whatever it lands on! It probably won't even land on something very important to you!"
Ryoga looked at the wheel; while it did contain things like 'SOUL', 'EYESIGHT', 'HAIR FOLICLES' and 'FIGHTING ABILITY', it had many smaller things like 'FASHION SENSE', 'COOKING SKILL' and 'MALIGNANT TUMOR'. Turning to the Robot Devil, he said, "And you're sure I probably won't end up losing something important to me?"
"Definitely probably not! Just sign here!" he said, pointing to a paper contract on a nearby table. Hesitating for a second, Ryoga picked up the pen, and signed.
"And here we go!" the Devil said, spinning the wheel. After a couple of seconds, it began to slow down. As it passed 'HAIR FOLICLES', Ryoga breathed a sigh, but cringed again when it came to 'FIGHTING ABILITY'. As it passed, it moved a couple more spaces before it appeared to be stopping on 'SOUL'…before it suddenly jumped another space, and came to a stop on 'SENSE OF DIRECTION'.
"Agghh!" the Robot Devil shrieked, clearly shocked.
"Wait," Ryoga said, starting to realize the situation. "You mean, I not only get to go where I want, but I get rid of my lousy sense of direction as well? Oh, this is awesome!" he yelled, pumping his fist in the air.
"Oh, what a devilishly ironic outcome!" the Devil said, sobbing into his hands.
"Hey! Don't back out on this, a deal's a deal! Now, take my lousy sense of direction and send me to Furinkan High School, chop chop!"
Sighing, the Robot Devil turned to a control panel. "Very well…" he said, pushing a few buttons. A second later, a portal opened out of thin air. "Just walk through the portal, and our deal will be finalized," he said, still sobbing.
"Yes! Goodbye years of being lost, hello Furinkan! Here I come, Saotomeeeeeeee!" he yelled, dashing forward and crashing out the nearest wall, missing the portal by several feet.
As the portal closed, the Robot Devil perked up. "Of course," he said, "in a DOUBLE devilishly ironic outcome, one can't get rid of one's lousy sense of direction one almost got rid of in a deal with the devil if one can't find the portal that will finalize said deal with the devil, thanks to said lousy sense of direction! Ahahahahahaha!"
All of a sudden, a short, dark-skinned film director with a high voice and a sweater walked out in front of the Devil, and shouted, "What a tweeeeeest!" before the Devil subsequently pummeled him with his gold fiddle. The rest of the hell-bots joined in as well.
Well, that's it. Sorry about being late, but a lot of things have been happening. My jobs have been keeping me busy, etc.
Just so you know, this takes place towards the end of Venture Bros. Season 2, just before Showdown at Cremation Creek. Hence the Monarch continuing his feud against Venture, etc, etc.
Well, I hope you all enjoyed it. I'll get ch.10 up when I can. Happy trails.
Next time: Hell Hath No Fury Like A Miko Scorned!!!