Hina Digger Chapter 6, a Love Hina + Gold Digger Crossover fanfic

I have to admit, I'm rather chuffed with how well this has been recieved.

To dragonienandshikamaru; I know, he was nigh unstoppable before, with Star Platinum awake NOTHING's gonna get close to him.

To Nanya; Well, I wanted to make it clear just how far Granny Hina would go to get her grandson back. And the Lagoon crew DO get results.

To SketchFan; More madness to come bro.

Halibel: Suspicious.

Kyugan: Really?

Chapter 6.

Armageddon roared defiance as the Atlantean defenses opened fire on it, a hail of powerful laser fire and other nasty forms of death battering against it in a bid to wipe the monstrosity off the face of the ocean floor. So far they'd only managed to get its undivided attention, which for the record, WASN'T the smartest thing to do. It DID however allow for the team sent in to disable the automaton's power source to beat a hasty retreat.

Cheetah looked up in the midst of her fondle…er, EXAMINATION of her beloved Kryn Prince, despite Stripe's assurances of his well being as Penny chided her, reminding her that Tyr was ready to send her after Gina and Keitaro. "Honestly," Gina's rival muttered, looking at the lycanthrope in annoyance "You're getting as bad as Gina these days!"

"Well!" the were-cheetah exclaimed in annoyance, "At least I'M not a VIRGIN, unlike some frigid people I know!"

Penny's look of utter embarrassment almost made it worth the look of confusion on Stripes face. Almost. So after reassuring the Kryn prince that she did indeed still have her virtue, the adopted sibling of Gina Diggers stepped through the portal Tyr opened and found herself standing right in front of her errant sibling. "CHEETAH!" Gina cried, leaping into the startled Lycan's arms "Oh, I never thought I'd be so glad to see my baby sister!"

"Okay, Okay I missed you too!" Cheetah chuckled good naturedly "Lay off the mushy hugs! You're getting my coat all sweaty!"

Kahn chose to wait before the reunion was completed before clearing his throat tactfully, introducing himself to the lycanthrope before bringing her up to date. "Yeah, we saw all that in the pool." Cheetah admitted, grinning at the flush on Gina's face "First time kissing a girl eh sis? How was it!"

"If I may?" Kahn began, trying to diffuse the situation before Gina set fire to something with her blush or bare hands "We're trying to locate Keitaro and Princess Lynn, preferably BEFORE they find each other."

"Right, Lynn's the one with the big rack right?" Cheetah asked sarcastically, Gina chortling at the joke concerning Keitaro's diminutive physique, before waving her hand dismissively tilting her head slightly "Anything else?"

"Yeah, watch out for those swords of hers." Gina warned, pointing behind them at the Golem, who was still shelving books despite being severed at the waist.

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'Well…this is new.' Keitaro noted, feeling oddly calm despite himself as he placed a hand to the mirror's surface, the silent specter behind him copying his movements, causing the glass to crack under the preassure.

He wasn't too surprised, after all, he'd read enough ghost stories to know that those that had near death experiences tended to pick up a few unwanted tagalongs. The problem was he'd seen his life flash before him numerous times in the past, and this certainly didn't look like any ghost he'd ever heard of before, for one thing he didn't know of anyone with blue skin.

'Perhaps it's Atlantean?' he wondered, taking in the being's stern, watchful features, only to shake his head 'No fins…maybe alien?' He flexed his fingers, watching curiously as it mimicked him, 'or something I picked up on the mountain?'

Shaking his head, he eyed the pile of tomes that had fallen to the ground in dismay, wondering if he'd be charged for handling them so roughly and just how he was going to get them back, only to blink as the specter began picking them up and returning them to their rightful positions as if they weighed nothing at all. 'Looks like it reacts to my will.' He noted, sweat-dropping as it returned to it's silent vigil at his back, 'I wonder what the downsides are?' he muttered, just knowing there was fine print somewhere only to blink as he heard a familiar voice calling out.

"Oi! Keitaro!" Cheetah's voice echoed around the corners, drawing ever closer to the ronin's position amidst the sound of footsteps and what sounded like a heatedly conversing Gina and Khan "You in here? C'mon we're going!"

'CRAP!' Keitaro swore, ducking behind a pillar as he heard them round a corner, his eyes wide with terror as the Spirit, whatever it was, hovered near him protectively 'This is bad! I gotta hide this thing!'

"I think I heard something behind that pillar." Cheetah noted, Keitaro's eyes widening as he heard them coming closer, cursing the lycanthrope's sharp hearing before shutting his eyes and beginning a silent mantra inside his head.

'Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide!' the Ronin pleaded, teeth grit tight as he focused within 'Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! Hide! PLEASE Hide!'

He flinched as the spirit seemed to draw closer, a light sigh escaping from him as he felt it fade into his back with a feeling that could only be described as a full-body sneeze. Eyes opening he looked up into the confused face of Cheetah, who had just rounded the corner. "What're you doing hiding back here for?" the lycanthrope wondered, eyeing the half-naked Ronin in confusion, "For that matter, what happened to your shorts?"

Keitaro didn't have long to think of an excuse, for at that moment Lynn charged around the corner with a battle-axe in her hands, eyes locking onto the nervous Ronin like guided missiles, one of which was sporting a magnificent shiner. "I have you now!" she cried, leaping at the terrified figure before her, only to blink as she was caught in mid-air, held up by the back of her robes by an annoyed looking Cheetah.

"Now this can go two ways." Cheetah began, letting her fangs grow slightly for emphasis "There's the easy way which is very easy, and consists of you calming the heck down and promising not to harm anyone."

It didn't take a genius to know that Lynn wouldn't like to find out what the HARD way was. So with a huff, the Princess promised on her honour not to castrate the relieved Ronin, though this didn't stop her from glaring pointedly at him as they made their way back to the portal, Gina making a quick pit-stop to pick up the books they'd been looking at, before sending them back to her father's library courtesy of her handy-dandy light-gate generator.

"Thanks for everything Kahn." Keitaro offered, while Gina had Cheetah bring her up to speed with what was going on "And sorry about all the trouble." He added with a nervous smile, scratching the back of his neck as he watched several golems carrying repair tools rumble past.

"Not at all." Kahn assured the Ronin, a benign smile on his tattooed face as they shook hands, "Princess Lynn has returned," he reminded the ronin "and I am certain that with time she'll forget what happened here."

'I doubt it.' Keitaro muttered, eyeing the aura of DOOM that hung over the princess as she glared spitfire at him, making a mental note to bring a peace offering the next time he came here...that or a riot shield. He blinked, looking back as Cheetah grabbed him by the collar of the Gi Kahn had leant him (Arctic wear wouldn't be practical in Atlantis) only to yelp comically as he was dragged after the sisters as they entered the portal.

"A most charming group." Kahn noted with a smile, Keitaro's exclamation of alarm getting promptly cut off as the portal shut "I hope they choose to visit again." He blinked as a pair of arms wrapped around him, blushing at the feel of two large, squishy mounds pressed against his back.

"Ka-hn" Lyn purred, in a manner that sent a shiver down the librarian's spine "Your Empress requires your attention."

Needless to say it was a good thing the requirements for becoming a sage didn't include celibacy.

"Princess Tyr?" Stripe whispered, drawing the monarch aside to avoid worrying the refugees that had been pouring in with their cladestine conversation "Are your forces enough to stop Armageddon?"

"I fear not!" Tyr replied, looking devastated at her peoples' suffering as a mother walked past, trying to calm her wailing babe to no avail "Atlantis is surely doomed if we don't do something soon!"

"The send me back!" the Kryn prince insisted, ignoring her denials and concern for his safety "Millions will suffer unless that thing is stopped here and now!" he stated, face set with resolve "Before that, MY life means noth-!"

"DON'T YOU DARE FINISH THAT SENTENCE STRIPE!" cheetah yelled, raising herself out of the pool like some vengeful sprite as Gina dragged a waterlogged Keitaro out by his collar. "If you think for one minute that I'm gonna let you-!" She trailed off as a glow erupted from the pool, heralding a burst of familiar maniacal laughter as Gyphon's face appeared in a pillar of water.

"Didn't Armageddon squish him to a paste?" Keitaro asked, idly pulling a fish out of his gi as he wondered if there was another person out there with his 'immortality factor'. He hadn'tgotten a good look at Gina's book earlier so he couldn't be certain.

"I'm pretty sure it DID." Gina replied, the group getting into an earnest discussion, as Gyphon grew steadily more annoyed at being ignored. He was a vengefull spirit of pure destruction dammit! How could they NOT give him their undivided attention?!

"ENOUGH!" the mage bellowed at last, causing the cavern walls to tremble "UNLESS YOU WANT THE SEAS TO FLOW RED WITH BLOOD YOU'LL ALL SURRENDER TO ME BY TOMMORROW'S END!" and with that he disappeared he water falling back into the pool, drenching the onlookers in the process.

"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the seabed." Ace muttered sullenly, slapping his ears to get the water out "G? I hope you got a plan, 'cause things are REALLY buggin' out down here."

"Not to worry!" Gina assured him, while Keitaro tried to find his glasses, the specs having been washed off in the flood Gyphon's exit had produced "Just you leave everything to me-EEEEEEE-!"

"We're doomed." Penny muttered, as Keitaro knocked her rival off her feet, the duo landing in a tangle of arms and legs that could have looked suspicious to anyone else. Well, a few atlanteans looked a little scandalized, but then they'd never met the ronin.

Naru moaned as she slowly came to, wondering if anyone got the number of the building that ran her over. Blinking blearily, the sound of chains rattling on her straight jacket revealed that it hadn't been a dream.

"You okay Naru?" Kitsune's voice called out, the leader of the Hinata Harem turning to eye her best friend, blinking at the sight before her. "Something on my face?" the resident fox asked jokingly, patting her face for emphasis, the shackles around her wrists clanking as she moved.

"How come YOU"RE not trussed up?!" Naru asked, feeling indignant at the thought of being the only one treated like a nutcase. I mean she was a Toudai initiate for crying out loud! They couldn't treat her like some wanted felon!

"Motoko's wearing one too." Kitsune pointed out, thumbing into a corner, where the resident Kendo-ka was rocking back and forth, her knees drawn up to her chest and a traumatized look on her face.

"Can't sleep…boils will get me…can't sleep…boils will get me…"

Naru sweatdropped, suddenly feeling a lot better about herself as she looked around the dingy cell suspiciously "Where're Su, Shinobu and Mutsumi?" she asked, noting that half the Hinata crew were missing.

"No clue." Kitsune admitted, shrugging offhandedly, "Motoko was already in here when I got thrown in." she sighed, looking absolutely disgusted at her self "I tried flirting with the guard, big mistake."

"Jealous girlfriend?" Naru replied, wincing at the thought but not surprised that her friend would use her figure to her advantage. I mean it was Kitsune for crying out loud! She even flirted with Keitaro to get out of paying the rent!

"Thick as a brick." Kitsune countered, looking embarrassed at Naru look of disbelief "I swear he was like a Neanderthal, kept asking the same questions over and over again no matter what I said."

"The boils…" Motoko muttered unintelligibly, sounding lost and far away, her skin shuddering in revulsion as she tried to make herself smaller in her corner "They're everywhere…so many…no escape…"

"I think they did something to Motoko." The fox muttered, sweat dropping as soon as she said it, before sighing and shaking her head in defeat at the situation "But she won't snap out of it to tell me what."

"This is all that pervert's fault!" Naru swore, thrashing in her restraints ineffectively "I'll bet those perverts are in cahoots with them and they're taking advantage of Mutsumi, Su and Shinobu right now!"

Shinobu gazed in awe at the sight before her, unable to believe that something could be that big. She stared at it in awe, before turning to the officer on her right. "Is it…for me?" she asked, hardly daring to hope.

"Yes it is." The Captain replied, a smile on his face, "It's all yours Shinobu-chan."

Shinobu squealed and leapt forward, pouncing on the massive, limited edition life-size 'Rocket-man' plushy and rolling around with it on the ground. The assembled senior officers of the Hinata police force felt a slight warmth in their gnarled, knotted hearts at the sight.

"She must really like dat Keitaro guy." The massive sergeant noted, eyeing the little girl as she latched onto the plushy like a limpet. A rather amourous, jail-baiting limpet that could whip up a mean dish, but a limpit nontheless.

"Young love is truly a beautiful thing to behold." The captain replied, smiling fondly as the girl rubbed her face into the doll's shirt in what would have been a disturbing manner if she wasn't so gosh darn cute "It was nice of you to fetch it for her."

"Wasn' doin much." The sergeant replied, shrugging his shoulders offhandedly, "So I went to dem tourism guys and says: 'You gimme der best doll on market for little gurl.' And dey gimme dis."

"And I'm certain you PAID for it right?" the captain insisted, smiling up at the sergeant, who's eyes, despite their bestial glare, seemed to twinkle in what could have passed for silent mirth in a troll.

"I tried payin'" he admitted, his lips quirking at the edges "but dey says 'no need to pay, on der house don't shoot', so I picked it up an' came back 'ere."

The captain eyed the massive Vulcan Cannon strapped to the sergeant's back, nodded slowly, before turning to address the young woman at his side. "And thank YOU for the plans to the Hinata dorms, agent 623." He offered gratefully, "We couldn't have pulled off the mission without you."

"Ara-Ara!" the infamous agent 623 replied, smiling politely up at the man with her hands clapped together "Not at all, I was glad to help out." She eyed the ecstatic Shinobu for a moment, before turning to the captain "Any news?"

"We're still trying to locate any signs of Keitaro-kun." The captain assured her, not wanting to have to deal with the infamous 623 digging deeper into their affairs "Don't worry, the chief won't let us down."

"Ara-Ara I'm not worried!" the elusive 623 assured the man, smiling pleasantly up at him as she held up a plate, upon which lay several watermelon slices "Want some?" she offered cheerfully "They're full of vitamins!"

"My mother always told me those could kill me." the scruffy looking sergeant muttered suspiciosuly, but everyone, including the orangutan, took a slice and chomped away without much fuss. It was that or invoke the ire of agent 623.

Keitaro whistled as he walked down the corridor of Gina's underground lab, internally wondering if this was still a dream.

He'd come back with Gina, Stripe and Cheetah rather than stay behind in Atlantis, not really digging the seafood diet all that much, and wasn't regretting the decision in the slightest. The Ronin was currently nose deep into 'Getting into Tokyo U for Dummies', marveling at how easy and well planned the study techniques were, when the sounds of a scuffle came to his attention.

Blinking in confusion, he realized he'd walked past the door to the gym, from which the sounds had emanated. His curiosity getting the better of him, the Ronin opened the door just in time to see Cheetah purr like a kitten as she caressed Stripe's embarrassed face. "Um…" he stammered, startling the duo as he chuckled nervously, "Wow…um…I've heard of 'petting' and all but…um…" he chuckled "Wouldn't you be better off doing that in your room or something?"

"PERV'RRRRT!" Cheetah snarled, subconsciously shifting into her full hunting mode and lunging at the Ronin, scaring at least ten years off his life as he launched himself down the corridor, at alarming speeds.

"GOMEN NASAIIIII!!!!!"

Cheetah blinked, gazing after the Ronin in surprise. She could have sworn he was right under her when she'd lunged, yet for some reason he'd actually gone from standing like a deer in the headlights to halfway down the corridor in the blink of an eye. "Chee…Cheetah?!" Stripe gaped, startled at her sudden change and even more sudden ferocity, causing the lycanthrope to flinch and change back.

"Stripe? What's wrong honey?" she began, looking at him in concern as she shifted back, looking nervous "Please don't look at me that way…" she looked him over desperately "You…you're not afraid of me are you?"

"I…I had no idea how dangerous you become if you lose your temper." The lord of El-Dorado muttered, not looking her in the eye "No idea at all…" he looked away "I-I'll be back Cheetah." He stated shakily "I have to…take a break."

He stepped out of the gym, just as a confused looking Gina came in, to find her sister cursing on the floor. "DAMMIT! $#%&!!" Cheetah swore, as her sister put two and two together from the claw marks on the floor and her torn clothing "How could I have been so careless?!"

"Yeah, but he knows you're a lycanthrope." Gina reasoned consolingly, patting her fretting sibling on the shoulder as best she could, the girl was over seven feet tall "He KNOWS you can change form and stuff."

"BUT he's never seen my CHEETAH form before." Cheetah countered "THAT form's nothing but teeth, claws and Razor-blade coated vocal chords!" she blinked suddenly "What are you doing here anyway? The only time YOU use the gym is after dinner on the treadmill."

"Oh yeah…" Gina noted, wincing slightly, knowing this was probably the worst time to be the bearer of bad news "Figured you'd want a head's up, Dad wants to meet the guys," she nodded at Brittany knowingly "ESPECIALLY Stripe."

"Oh no." Cheetah moaned, getting to her feet with a look of long-suffering dread "Not the whole boyfriend-to-father chat thing."

'DAMN that was scary!' Keitaro gasped, making a mental note not to piss Cheetah off again in future as he felt his pulse drop from mach one to something a little more comfortable. In his distress he noticed he'd somehow gotten himself back up to the main house.

"I'd hate to be stuck down there." He sighed as he thought back to the winding corridors and Gina's arsenal of things that were designed to hurt anything they didn't recognize, which for the moment included him "I'd probably set off Defcon 10 or something…"

"Keitaro?" Stripe's voice called out from the side, the Ronin turning to see the Kryn prince leaning against a window, looking up at him in surprise as he made his way towards him "I didn't see you there."

"I'm sorry about earlier." The ronin offered, wondering if he'd walked in on a 'private' moment between the two "I really should've knocked, curiosity killed the cat and all." He winced as he realized whom he was talking to "No offence meant."

"None taken." The Kryn prince chuckled, honestly amused at the reference, it DID suit the situation to a tee rather well, before looking out the window again, arms crossed and a solemn look on his face.

"Something wrong?" the Ronin asked concernedly, walking up beside the taller Kryn, leaning against the windowsill to rest his legs. The two stood in silence for a few seconds, before the Prince sighed softly, shaking his head.

"I'm…worried I may not be right for Cheetah." Stripe admitted at length, earning a look of surprise from the Ronin. "In my homeland I was raised to be the strongest of my people in order to protect them. Being around Chee…Brittany, makes me feel insufficient." He shivered as he recalled her beast form "Her power is too intimidating."

"Is that all?" Keitaro asked, looking at the man in surprise "That's all that's bothering you?" he shook his head in disbelief "Stripe we've both known Cheetah-san and Gina-san for the same amount of time, surely you aren't the only one who hasn't noticed how gentle Cheetah is when she's around you?"

Stripe blinked, looking at Keitaro in confusion as he elaborated. "Sure she's tough," the ronin insisted "for crying out loud have you SEEN the stuff she's done?" he waved an arm for emphasis "But around you she lets her guard down, she acts like a REAL girl, not some hyped up super hero from a comic book." The Ronin smiled at the Kryn "She lets you see the side of her only her family sees, to me that's not intimidating at all."

"Well put." An older voice noted, the two men snapping round to face a bearded, older man in a smoking jacket. His hands held behind his back "A fine summarization, couldn't have put it better myself." He nodded to them again "Stripe of El Dorado and Urashima Keitaro I presume?" he turned to face the Kryn "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation and while I can understand your concern Stripe, your BEING counters what you believe in your mind." He held up a finger "You're using Cheetah's abilities as a scapegoat to cover your own insecurities and your fear of commitment." He smiled kindly "I don't condemn your fears, commitment IS daunting, but look at what you stand to gain from it."

"You must be Doctor Diggers," Stripe acknowledged "Gina's father and Cheetah's guardian." He nodded in understanding "Perhaps you're right, Gina informed me that as a magic user you can read and interpret the aura of a person, so what you say is true." He nodded, "I'll think deeply about what you said."

"Stripe?" Cheetah called out, looking between the men carefully as she made her way towards the prince. "Are you okay?"

"Let's leave those two alone." Dr. Diggers suggested, placing a hand on Keitaro's shoulder and walking down the hallway with him, Cheetah and Stripe's conversation dulling as they rounded a corner out of sight.

'This is Gina-san's father?' the Ronin wondered, looking into the man's features, recognizing Gina's blue eyes in the man's handsome, bearded face 'And did Stripe say he was a mage? I wonder if he's more powerful than Gyphon?'

"While I prefer not to blow my own horn." Dr. Diggers opined a small smile crossing his features "I will admit to be QUITE above the skill level of Gyphon." His smile widened at the ronin's look of surprise "Don't be alarmed, as Stripe said, I'm quite adept at reading people." He smiled at the Ronin, looking him over carefully as he did so, "So you're the supposed 'immortal' that Gina's been dragging along with her?"

Keitaro dimly imagined a shotgun being polished somewhere but pushed it aside "Ano…I'm sorry if I've been any trouble Doctor." He stammered, scratching his head "I mean, I'm more of a hindrance on missions and I know I'm a klutz-"

"But you've put yourself in danger when you had no reason top do so and rather than let Cheetah fret over what happened at El Dorado you put her safety above your own." Dr. Diggers cut in, a smile on his face as the Ronin blinked "Thank you for looking after my girls, and I'm sorry for all the trouble you've been through."

"N-not at all!" Keitaro stammered, a little thrown at how well he was being treated, he was used to being berated for things that WEREN'T is fault. To be appraised for his actions was new to him. It completely threw off his game plan.

"Also." The doctor cut in "While I commend your desire to protect them, don't you think concealing your little tagalong to be a tad unfair?" he sighed at the ronin's look of surprise "As I said, I'm good at reading people." He looked over the man's shoulder, Keitaro realizing that the specter was hovering just behind him, arms at its sides but eyes narrowed like a hawk's.

"You can see this thing Doctor?" Keitaro asked, pointing over his shoulder at the spirit in surprise. Thus far no-one had been able to see the thing but him, even Tark and Mesha hadn't reacted to it, though they seemed a little confused around him at times, sending him odd looks. And there was that one time he'd almost bumbed into Mesha and the spirit had pushed her back, the elf looking around wildly for the culprit that had grabbed her chest.

"Quite clearly." Dr. Diggers assured the ronin, quirking an eyebrow at the apparition behind the man as he spoke "What fascinates me is that it appears to be composed out of your own aura, rather than having attached itself as most spirits do."

"So what, this things a part of me?" Keitaro wondered, looking over at the muscular spirit in dazed confusion as it continued to stand guard behind him "But…I don't look anything like that!" he insisted, pointing at it for emphasis.

"Not physically." Doctor Diggers noted, chuckling slightly at the boy's distress, "But your aura is fairly large for someone your age." he explained "I've seen adept Aura-mages that would kill for one such as yours."

"What exactly is an Aura?" Keitaro asked, turning back to the Doctor as they continued to walk, the ronin scratching his head in confusion as he tried to comprehend everything the man was telling him at once "I mean, is it like Ki or something?"

"No, Ki is the life-energy of the human body." Doctor Diggers contradicted "Likewise Chi refers to the life energy that surrounds us from Plants, the Earth etc." he held up a hand, a glowing aura surrounding it as he spoken "Aura, on the other hand, is the energy of the human spirit, and can be used in a variety of ways that Ki cannot, though the same could be said for Ki in other fields."

"Sounds complicated." Keitaro noted, sweat dropping as the explanation went right over his head, only to blink as the Doctor patted him companionably on the shoulder, an almost grandfatherly smile on his face.

"You're a good man Mr. Urashima." the archmage stated, smiling at the confused Ronin as he spoke "But you shouldn't heap so much on your shoulders," he chastised, though it was more of a gentle rebuke "let other help out too."

"Dad?" Gina called out, rounding the corner with a look of surprise, looking between her father and the startled Ronin in confusion, and a little concern "So that's where you went! Have you seen Cheetah and Stripe?"

"I left them chatting a while back." The doctor replied, before patting Keitaro again on the shoulder "Take care of yourself Keitaro." He paused "Oh! And come talk to me if you have any further questions, I know a few good universities that'd be happy to have you." He offered, before promptly fading out of existence.

"Well I'll be." Gina noted, a pleased smile spreading across her face as she watched her father disappear to places unknown, and probably best left unsaid, all thing sconsidered "You two actually clicked!"

"Eh?" Keitaro asked, blinking out of his stunned trance at the mage's exit to gape at the woman, wondering if he'd inadvertently passed some sort of bizarre test without noticing (it wouldn't have been the first time ^_^) .

"Dad's really protective of me and Cheets," Gina replied with a loving, yet long-suffering smile "You know how most fathers polish a shotgun in front of their daughter's dates?" she asked at the Ronin's confused look "Well MY dad magically set his HEAD on fire."

Keitaro blanched at the thought, envisioning sitting across from a Ghost-Rider like Dr. Diggers stroking a magical shotgun, earning a chuckle from Gina as she guessed the cause for his distress. "Don't let it bother you," the archaeologist assured the ronin "the fact he didn't use it means he saw something in you he liked."

'Why doesn't that fill me with confidence?' the Ronin muttered darkly. After all, as a mind reader, there were several things he'd rather the doctor didn't see…his 'accidents' at the inn for example. Or the collection of hentai magazine's he'd collected during his ronin years.

"Anyways, forget about that and help me find Cheetah and Stripe would you?" Gina asked, tugging him out of his thoughts as she dragged him down the hallway, "I've already checked her room so an extra pair of hands could really help out."

"What about the guestrooms?" Keitaro tried, wondering if this was such a good idea, knowing what Cheetah was likely to do if they interrupted her again. His suspicions were confirmed when the first door he turned to examine had a sign on the handle reading:

DO NOT DISTURB! Especially YOU Gina!!'

"Found 'em?" Gina asked, noticing him hesitate in front of a door, "What's the matter? Are they in there?"

Before Keitaro could stop her, the blonde had reached past him and opened the door, their eyes bulging at the sight before them, before Keitaro grabbed Gina and slammed the door shut behind them, face redder than a boiled lobster as he dragged her down the corridor at top speed, just as a disgruntled looking cheetah stuck her head out the door, glaring pointedly at them.

"Sorry about that." Keitaro apologized for what felt to be the umpteenth time, "I tried to stop her but..." he gestured helplessly towards Gina, who was trying to get Cheetah to speak to her again, albeit ineffectively.

"It's quite alright." Stripe assured the ronin, knowing it wasn't his fault "We really shouldn't have been doing THAT with the door unlocked."

Keitaro blushed at the memory of what he'd seen, knowing that his friend Haitani, 'or was it Shirai?' would've died and gone to pervert heaven at the sight of the two cat-people going at it like, well…cats in heat.

"What's up with those two?" Ace asked, looking over his shoulder in confusion at the Diggers sisters as Gina continued to apologize "What happened while you guys were at the mansion while I was getting this C-130 ready?"

"Um Ace?" Keitaro asked concernedly, eyeing the dashboard in alarm even as Stripe stiffly informed the pilot he was better off not knowing "What's that blinking red light on the control panel mean?"

"Holy Smoke!" Ace swore, "Someone's got a missile lock on us!" he pressed a few switched as he spoke "I better identify my I.F.F code before those scrubs blow us away!" He blinked as the radio cracked as soon as the code was activated.

"T'anks fa confoimin' who youse is wit' dat I.F.F code, Ace ol' buddy-boy!" a female voice with a thick Brooklyn accent cackled over the speakers "Now me N' my Night Flight can blow youse ta Kingdom-SMITHEREENS!"

"Old girlfriend?" Keitaro asked innocently, earning a deadpan look from the pilot and a snort from Stripe, just as a missile rocketed past, missing them by scant centimeters, but shaking the plane all the same as it detonated.

"ACE!" Gina yelled, coming up from the back, her eyes wide and her precious trilby perched at an angle on her head "You're console is buzzing like a hornet's nest in a blender! What's going on out there?"

"Nothing serious." Ace replied with a shrug as he flicked a few levers, deviating slightly from the original flight path as he kept a watchful eye on the radar "They just unloaded all their missiles at us s'all."

"You don't seem to worried about it!" Keitaro yelled,looking decidedly put on by his friend's calm demeanor. After all, the last the ronin had checked, getting hit by missiles, especially ballistic ones, hurt. A LOT.

"Don't sweat it K'," Ace assured the Ronin, a smug look on his face "At ten feet off the turf with my ECM blaring in their faces EVERYTHING'S a target to those radar guided missiles. Their proximity fusses will detonate WAY before they even get NEAR us." He smirked "And the explosions' heat will take care of any heat-seekers that were fired too!"

Sure enough, the area thirty feet behind the C-130 became a fiery mess of shrapnel, the radar guided variety detonating prematurely as their heat-seeking brethren locked onto the explosion and promptly collided with one another in a blaze worth of a Spielberg movie.

"Hope you didn't pay to much for those missiles Dark Bird!" Ace teased the female mercenary captain over the radio, prompting a hail of Gatling gun bullets that liquidated the right wing engine. "You guys had better Ghost." He ordered, all jkidding gone from his expression as he focused on flying his ailing craft "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

Stripe looked ready to argue, only for Gina to assure him that the pilot knew what he was doing, Keitaro strapping himself into the backseat beside the Kryn prince after patting the pilot farewell on the shoulder,getting the last buckle in place not a moment too soon, as the Gina Mobile dropped the remaining ten feet to the floor without even bending a fender. "What's that whistling sound?" Gina wondered, only for Stripe to alert them to the threat of falling bombs, Keitaro sticking his head between his legs seconds before Gina shifted into second, tearing of into the desert at 380 MPH, just as Ace unleashed his 'secret Weapon'.

"I gotta get me one of those." The Ronin muttered, as Ace praised Gina on her holographic projector's effectiveness, the mercs that had been trailing the carrier flying off with their tails between their legs, Ace somehow managing to pull a barell roll with his stricken craft to mock them.

"Stick around and maybe I'll make you one." Gina offered, a familiar glint in her eyes as she winked at the Ronin seductively "Though it'll cost ya handsome."

You didn't need to be a genius to understand the 'payment' Gina had in mind, at least Keitaro didn't. Thankfully Cheetah chose that moment to start speaking to her sibling again, demanding that Gina find the nearest, cleanest restroom before her bladder burst.

"Are you SURE we have to go in there?" Keitaro muttered, eyeing the massive pillar of ethereal energy with justified concern. It looked like a yellow version of the life stream to the ronin, and everyone knew how well falling into THAT had gone for the persons involved.

"Looks like it reaches all the way to the stratosphere." Cheetah opined, following after her sister with Stripe and Keitaro bringing up the rear, the former dragging the latter behind him with a gentle, but firm grip on his sleeve. The group blinked as they stepped through the light and into a sudden darkness that fell over them like a shroud, the sound of woods at night all around them as Gina muttered something about dropping her flashlight.

Keitaro, who'd been eyeing the dark woods around them warily, flinched as he felt something wrap around a part of his anatomy he felt rather attached to, blushing scarlet as he felt the fingers fondle it exploringly. "Gina? That's ME." The embarrassed Ronin whispered, hoping that Cheetah didn't hear as Gina let out a shocked squeak.

"CHEETAH!" Stripe yelped, startling the duo out of their thoughts, his voice laced with mortification and shock, as it seemed the younger Diggers sibling wasn't all that different from the elder after all "Your hands are cold!"

"Sorry muffin!" Cheetah offered, though Keitaro could FEEL the guilt-free grin in her voice, not to mention the glint of her pearly whites hovering in the darkness like the cheshire cat's disembodied smile "Can't see a thing, thought it was the flashlight."

"Don't let her fool you, boys." Gina countered, the blonde nudging Keitaro in the elbow as she grinned in the general direction she'd heard her sibling's voice "Were-folk can see in the infrared spectrum!"

Cheetah growled and there was a blinding flash of light as the flashlight activated, the lycanthrope handing the tool back to her smug sibling with a mutter of 'it was by your foot' before stomping off to stand beside Stripe, Gina scoffing and pulling out her tricorder as she tried to pick up traces of the Hindrium element they needed.

Something snapped in the darkness, causing Keitaro to freeze up as a sudden chill ran up his spine. Something out there was watching them with an intensity that rivaled the patented Haruka-death glare, something that had terrified him as a child the one time he'd walked in on her suffering a hangover. Beside him, Cheetah looked in worse state, her fur standing on end, amking her look two sizes bigger than normal, actually trembling in fright as she tried to convince Gina to leave as she trembled in fear, only for Gina to refute the idea, passing the noise the Lycan had heard off as an owl or some other woodland critter.

It was at that moment that the werewolves broke from the shadows and attacked.

And I think I'll just leave off there for now.

Halibel: Evil.

Kyugan: Aren't I?

I am the soul of my words...Text is my body, and fiction is my blood...I have written over a thousand words...unbound by death...nor tied to life...Have endured great flames to write many fics, but still these hands have never held anything...so I pray...I pray for UNLIMITED REVIEWS!

Archer: Oh you did NOT just-!