Chapter 13: Countdown to Ignition
Genma lay in his bed focusing on healing as fast as he could. His early warning system was ringing off the wall. It had started at dinner time. One of the doctors had come in to check his face and was rather surprised that the patient had made so much progress (all right – Genma was vain). Then the doctor seemed to take a good look at Genma, and carefully wrapped the face again without another word. Shortly thereafter, the whispering had started – people talking just out of reach of Genma's abused ears. Then the TV had died. When Genma called the nurse, she told him that there was an issue with the receiver and asked if he wanted a DVD instead. He politely turned her down. As she left, an intern walked in and increased the pain medications flowing into his system, but his body began to reject it, slowing his ability to heal. His mind was also growing fuzzy, convincing him that they were trying to knock him out. Normally, he would have allowed that, but he no longer felt safe, so he ripped out the IV.
Damn it! He should have focused on his left leg. The upper bone was a jigsaw puzzle though and he hadn't felt up to the task all day (Genma had done a very thorough job on himself trying to knock the cat spirits off). Now he was desperately piecing it back together. He knew someone was coming for him – he felt like Don Corleone from the movie "The Godfather" trapped in a hospital. He figured it would still take a few hours to get mobile (and it would hurt like hell). That's when he felt the dart in his neck. His eyes widened as Sasuke appeared in front of him.
"Good evening, Mr. Saotome," Sasuke said pleasantly. "I just have a few questions for you before the police come. I'm expecting Inspector Ojima to arrive in about ten minutes."
"Get me out of here and I'll give you anything you want!" Genma whispered urgently – whispering had been all he could manage since this morning.
Sasuke moved closer to the bed and dashed in to pluck out the dart. Genma's arm was still broken on that side and the little thief was out of the way before Genma could get his healed arm around to Sasuke's head. "Sorry Mr. Saotome, but I can't do that. My employer would be very angry with me if I helped you get away. As it is, he will be a little angry that I didn't kill you, but since the police now know where you are, your death would look a little too convenient." The little ninja then brightly added, "Besides, I'm not really much of an assassin."
"Then I have nothing to say to you," hissed Genma.
Sasuke put on a sorrowful face. "I'm sorry, Mr. Saotome, but that's not really true. You see, Kodachi has been experimenting with various truth serums, and several of them actually work."
Genma's eyes became very wide. "Truth serums?" he mouthed.
"Oh yes," Sasuke agreed with his sorrowful face. "But, you see, she doesn't think they work. She never seems to get the right answers out of Ranma. He keeps saying that he loves Akane and not Kodachi, and that just can't be right, can it?" he added with a shake of his head. "So, I guess they don't work and you have nothing to fear. Where's the money you stole from Mrs. Saotome?"
"I'll never tell you that it's hidden under the State Street Canal bridge in Nerima," Genma hissed, and then his eyes widened in shock.
"Thank you very much, Mr. Saotome," the ninja said brightly. "That was very helpful. You see, my Boss is very fond of money, and he likes it to go where he put it. I'll just make sure it ends up in a secure account under Mrs. Saotome's name. That will make my Boss less angry with me. By the way, the truth serum is also a mild sedative and makes you very talkative. I am sure you and Inspector Ojima will have a lot to talk about on the ride back to Nerima." Genma felt the blood drain out of his face.
"Now, I really must be going, Mr. Saotome, but I do have one more message for you," Sasuke said with a smile.
"Wait!" Genma cried hoarsely. "Take me wi-" He was cut off as Sasuke dashed forward and smashed the broken leg through the cast. Genma screamed silently in pain.
"That was for Ranma!" Sasuke hissed and then vanished.
"Oh crap, crap, crap" Genma moaned to himself. The thought that the little thief just set him further back ran through his head. He'd have to get even for that. Genma worked on clearing the stars from his head. He started to focus on speed healing again, but his reserves were so low after what Ranma did to him last night. He wasn't sure if he even had enough to finish the leg and heal enough of the rest of him to be able to stumble out of here. It didn't help that Sasuke's drug was playing games with his mind.
He spent a few minutes focusing on regaining his concentration, and then focused on building enough reserves to crawl to another room. Maybe he could hide under a sleeping patient's bed. He threw himself to the floor, crashing down on the working arm and ignored the pain flaring from everywhere with a tremendous effort. The broken leg refused to work, but the other just had a broken foot. He could make it work, but it hurt a lot. Thank heavens the broken cast was still immobilizing the other leg, otherwise he might have had a bone shard poke out. Genma slid across the room in pain and out into the hallway.
He looked left and then he looked right.
Two SWAT teams – check.
Full body armor – check.
All carrying infrared motion sensors – check.
Automatic guns – check.
Safeties off – check.
One Inspector Ojima grinning at him – check.
One totally screwed martial artist – check.
Inspector Ojima came forward and said: "Thank you Mr. Saotome. You see the doctors were arguing that you couldn't be moved in your condition. You just proved them wrong. I think it's time we moved you to a prison hospital, don't you agree?" Two of the armored policemen pressed gun barrels against his head. Another one came forward with a syringe and shot the contents into his neck. Genma's last thought before losing consciousness was hoping that he might out-sleep Sasuke's truth serum.
Judge Sanu sat looking through Ranma's file. "No bloody way," he said out loud. "There's no bloody way anyone could have a family this messed up and not be totally psychotic."
"If his history is well known, this might be why people admire him," Ryuu said as he took out the bottle of whiskey. "At least the Mom got help, and is willing to be supervised…"
Sanu looked at his henchman: "Not good enough. I want the Saotome honor blade locked in my safe before sunrise. I doubt she took it with her. Get her medical records and find out who her lawyer is."
"What about the father?" Ryuu asked meaningfully.
The judge said crossly: "I'm not suppose to order a hit – I am a federal judge. If I don't follow the Law, then I'm nothing. But, someone like this is bound to cross the line in other places. Let's find out where…" He paused for a moment and then asked: "You checked the fingerprints?"
"Yes, boss. I couldn't check the footprints, but I did snag some fingerprints. For some reason, the prints in the computer are a little off-sized. Someone didn't scan them in correctly, but there's no doubt about it, even with the size difference. The girl is Ranma Saotome."
"So be it…" the Judge said.
Ojima strolled into his precinct extremely happy with himself. Genma was taken without a fight and now resided in a special prison cell made to hold Martial Artists. The part-time panda was handcuffed to the bed and if he put any strain on the handcuffs at all, an electric shock shot through the cuffs. There was also a sprinkler system that would kick in triggering a shape change making Genma too big to fit through the doors (it was a tight fit as it was for the man). Of course, that was once Genma was all healed up. The Inspector didn't think that was happening for a few days anyway, even if the man was a Martial Artist.
He nodded to the officer on Desk Duty and walked back to his office. When he unlocked and opened the door, he was very surprised to see a middle-age woman with short black hair dressed in a grey gi waiting for him – surprised enough to give actually a start. The woman looked at the clock on the wall: "Good morning, Inspector. Did you have a successful hunt?"
"Jouda, what the hell are you doing in my office?" he growled at her.
"It seems a file on Ranma Saotome magically appeared in the 'Halls of Justice'. I need to know what is in it before Akane Tendo returns to the city," she said.
"There's nothing in the file that Akane needs to worry about. There was no reason to mention her fights with Ranma, nor is there a reason to mention that he's been helping her recover from post-traumatic stress disorder. If I had mentioned it, Kuno would have made the file vanish to protect his precious nephew," The Inspector made the word 'nephew' sound like he was referencing a pile of refuse. "As it is," Ojima went on. "Akane's file has long since vanished even though she only had a few childish misdemeanors in it from not knowing her own strength. Besides, if you want to reference Ranma's judicial file, make a request like any normal person – if you have the legal grounds that is." He walked around her and the desk and sat in his chair.
"I did!" Shizuka hissed. "I filed the request three months ago on behalf of the Ono clinic to get Akane's and Ranma's files. Tofu is their attending physician – he has a right to make the request!"
"There's no legal reason for him to have the file!" Ojima shouted back.
"That wasn't the point! He just wanted to know if such files existed! Both requests were returned 'null', not 'rejected'! There were no files three months ago! It's a matter of public record that he made the request! Nothing has happened in the last three months to warrant creation of that file. Ranma has been extremely stable since he and Akane settled their relationship. You had that file created!" she hissed again.
"Prove it!" he hissed back. "Judge Kato created the file, not me. If you want to go after Kuno's pet judge, be my guest."
"You strong-armed him! Why? You've always been the one to pursue truth! You have the people's trust. Why abuse it?" she shot back.
"I didn't abuse it! That file contains the truth!" he returned.
"The Saotome's are very private people, including Ranma! How could you possibly know the truth?" she snarled.
"Because I can see the scars on the child! Do you know what it's like to see Ranma walking through town and see him hold his head high while those scars show so…" the Inspector stopped. He opened a drawer and took out a glass. However, before he reached for the bottle of sake next to it, he stopped. Very deliberately, he closed the drawer, stood up, and hurled the glass into a corner shattering it.
Shizuka was unfazed by the glass. But she was watching the Inspector wrestle with himself. Very deliberately she said: "There are no scars on Ranma's body. I've seen him stripped down to his boxer shorts. He heals perfectly every time – no matter what happens to him. You see something else. In fact, you can See him. You can See all of us. That's why no one can lie to you."
The Inspector sat down again, and looked Shizuka in the eyes. "I don't want the ability. I see things every day that people get to ignore, but I can't. You're lucky – Nerima gives you Strength and Stamina. I get the Sight, and I can't turn the bloody thing off. So I attack the Pain I see instead. It allows me to sleep through the night knowing one more bastard is off the street. And tonight, I got one of the biggest bastards of all. Over ten years of child abuse finally answered. I get to sleep tonight."
Shizuka sat down opposite the Inspector. "What's in the file, Inspector?" she asked quietly.
He looked at her and shrugged. "Just the truth, Mrs. Jouda. The truth. That there was significant hearsay to warrant an investigation into Genma Saotome's parenting style. That a Chinese national named Mao Molin was Ranma foster parent for a while. That Nodoka Saotome suffers from an obsessive-compulsive disorder and is no longer a danger to her child, but the court has decided to appoint Soun Tendo and Kasumi Tendo as Ranma's guardians. Nodoka can be with her son under their care as long as she takes her medicines. That Genma Saotome attacked his son and endangered his wife's well being and has since been removed from the Tendo household. That a restraining order was issued against Genma Saotome. That last night, Genma attacked Ranma once more, and has been taken into custody. His son is in the hospital recovering."
"You've left a lot out of the file, especially timing and sequencing, Inspector," she stated.
He shrugged again. "Ah, yes. The second greatest way to lie is to tell the Truth, but only part of it. Still, I have not invoked the greatest way to lie, so I can live with myself."
"What's that, Inspector?" Shizuka asked in the same quiet tones.
"The greatest way to lie is to say nothing at all," he answered. "For me, it's too close to the greatest sin to invoke." At her raised eyebrows, he completed, "The greatest sin is to see an injustice and do nothing at all."
Akane sat up on her futon screaming. "Ranma! Ranma!"
Nodoka was there like a shot and embraced the hysterical girl. "Honey, stop! Ranma's at home! It's all right!"
"NO! It's not. I can't find him. I can't find him at all," Akane screamed.
Nabiki pushed Nodoka aside. "AKANE! WAKE UP!" she yelled while shaking her sister. Other people in the cabin were also awakened by Akane's cries.
With a start, Akane opened her eyes, and looked confused. Terrified, but confused. "You were dreaming, Akane! And talking in your sleep," Nabiki told her. Akane grabbed her head with her hands and seemed to just sit there. Nabiki turned to Nodoka, "Sorry Auntie, but I've seen her do this before. If you don't wake her up properly, you can get hurt." Nodoka just nodded her head.
"She hasn't done this for a long time now. Not since Ranma ended the attacks at school," Sayuri said.
"The what?" asked Nodoka.
"Before Ranma arrived, Akane use to be attacked on a daily basis by many of the jocks at school. They were trying to fight her because they had the notion that no one could date her unless that person defeated her in combat," Sayuri explained.
"WHAT? Why wasn't it reported to the police?" Nodoka demanded.
"Because Tatewaki Kuno was behind the attacks and he had his father's protection. None of the teachers would corroborate the story," Yuka added bitterly.
"Akane would literally beat all of them up once a day. Daddy wasn't concerned so long as no one ever touched her," Nabiki said. "The attacks ended when Ranma became Akane's fiancé. None of the jocks felt they could beat Ranma, so it stopped." Nabiki sat down next to Akane and put an arm around her. "Akane? Are you all right now?" she asked.
"No," Akane said in a hushed voice. "No, I don't feel all right. I can't feel him, Nabiki."
Nabiki didn't have to ask who 'him' was. "Maybe it's just the distance?" she prompted.
"No, I could feel him when we arrived yesterday, but ever since last night, he's been in trouble. I'm sure of it now. Now I cannot pick him up at all. He's been there since Jusendo," Akane said.
Nabiki felt her blood run cold at the mention of that place.
"Now, I can't find him at all," Akane whispered.
"Then he's not dead," Sayuri said in firm tones. Akane looked up at her in shock. So did the other three women. "If he was dead, Akane, his spirit would be with you – you'd know. But he's tired and worn out. He's probably healing after another of those grand battles. You're just too far away right now."
"We have to go back!" Akane whispered.
Nodoka nodded her head, "I'll have a boat sent out for us at first light. We'll tell them you are coming down with something and we have to get you home. It's pretty much the truth." She got up and pushed a futon next to Akane's. "Come lie down again, Akane. You won't do yourself any favors staying up all night. Nabiki and I will stay with you." Nabiki nodded her head.
As the three women settled down, Sayuri and Yuka drifted back to their own futons. "I didn't think you really believed in the Afterlife, Sayuri," Yuka whispered to her. At her friend's questioning glance, Yuka continued: "I mean, what you said about Ranma coming to Akane if he was dead."
Sayuri sort of smiled. "I keep my own secrets," the young woman said. "Besides, it's not a matter of believing in the Afterlife so much as believing in Ranma."
Hiroshi looked out across the harbor, watching his uncle come out of the boat rental place. The flight down here was easy enough. His uncle worked as a package delivery man among the islands and had managed to swap for the Niijima route by calling in a favor. "It's all set," he told his nephew. "They will let me have the boat as soon as dawn breaks. We will nip out to Jinaito Island, get the ladies and run back to the airport. I have to be in the air by 10AM, or someone will start asking questions."
"Not a problem, Uncle," Hiroshi told him.
His uncle nodded. "Good, let's grab a bite to eat and hit the sack. Tomorrow, once we hit the airport again, help me run over the manifests and get Mrs. Saotome and Akane situated. Then take the other three girls and trade in their tickets to get seats for the four of you back to Tokyo."
Now, it was Hiroshi's turn to nod. The small jet was made for cargo, not passengers. Only three people could fly in it legally. Hiroshi was to fly back with Nabiki, Sayuri, and Yuka on a passenger flight. They would trade in the five tickets for four seats. His mom would pick them up at the airport and get them back to Nerima.
"No side trips, young man!" his uncle teased him. "I know Yuka is your girlfriend. I don't want to find out that you went to Okinawa instead."
"That's right," Hiroshi said sarcastically. "I plan on eloping with Yuka as soon as you turn your back."
"Weirder things have happened," his uncle said. "Just keep in mind that your mother will kill me if it does. Please have mercy on me."
"What's it worth to you?" Hiroshi said cheekily.
"Yeah," his uncle replied, "You have been around Nabiki Tendo a little too much…"
Henna looked out her window into the night. "The potion was used last night. Soon, Cologne will report that Ranma is stuck as a female and I can make my move. In the meantime, I can work on how to transfer my spirit to a new body. I'll need blood to get it done though once I find a suitable host," she thought. "The Musk are no use – they have retreated to their mountain fortress to ponder the story they got from the Phoenix people. Herb is suddenly acting less headstrong and more thoughtful. The Phoenix people are still licking their wounds from Saotome. Maybe it's time for the Han Chinese to take more active interest in the local land. I have to be careful though, I don't want the Tribe exterminated – I'll probably need a new body once every fifty years or so without the Sprite."
She continued: "I also need to look at the Tribe to decide which one of them to use – the younger, the better. Too bad it has to be an Amazon, some of the women in the other local villages are quite beautiful. We have lost a few men to them – maybe I can use that as a cause of war."
As she pondered that, a voice sounded behind her: "What are you thinking so hard about, Henna?"
Henna turned to see the Sprite in the mirror. The thing had somehow repaired the blisters on its face but seemed more tired lately, despite the fact Henna had reduced the drain on it. "Nothing to worry yourself about, Hag," Henna told it. "Just planning your funeral. I figure four days of celebration will just about do it."
"Yes, that will be pleasant," it agreed peacefully. "I imagine Hell will be celebrating twice as long to have you among them."
"Sorry to disappoint you, but I will be officiating at your funeral. I'm taking steps now," she told it snidely.
"Ah yes. Planning to butcher a few dozen of your sisters are you? I'm always amazed at how you manage to stretch the Binding without violating it. I'm sure Lotion's days are numbered too," the Sprite said knowingly.
That gave Henna pause. Actually, Lotion was an ideal candidate for a new host.
"Also, isn't the separation of the soul from the body called 'death'?" The Sprite asked. "That's a nice way to fulfill the Oracle I suppose – leave your body, technically dying, and kick someone else out of theirs and take their place. Lotion is already a noted warrior, I'm sure she could go far without your interference. You'll go even farther as her. I suppose we will both be happy; you get a fresh new life and I'm free of you."
"Sorry to disappoint you again, but you won't be happy," Henna said. "You see, there are those pesky contracts with those seven Demon Lords I made all those years ago. You remember: the contracts that sold both of us for a boat load of power."
"I seem to remember something about them. Since you thought we were immortal, you thought that the end clause would never kick in. As a safety precaution, you sold us seven times to seven equally powered high demon lords, figuring that if any one tried to collect, the other six would stop him. Our deaths would trigger a massive war in Hell, so Hell itself would never let us die, otherwise Heaven would win by default. Just to keep the pot stirred, you told all seven lords of your treachery, gloating all the while. It succeeded in stopping any one of them from interfering with us. I seem to recall you remind them every so often. "
"That's the nature of the contracts," Henna agreed. "Unfortunately, you are actually dying, so Hell will be going to war over you. Demons never could figure out how to compromise, so I believe they will be at it a good long time. I may even manage to pick up more power by playing one against the other. I'm sure I'll have lots of fun. You on the other hand will not – you'll have seven demon lords vying for you knowing that the winner will rip you to shreds over and over again in vengeance for the war. I may even pick up a few points from Heaven over the entire matter."
"Henna!" the Sprite gasped. "You wouldn't actually let that happen to me? To anybody? Do you know what you'll unleash on Earth as well? A war in Hell will be mirrored on Earth! And it will last a long time – millions will perish!"
Henna smirked nastily. "I'll be laughing all the while, just gathering power. I'll be especially laughing at your fate, Sprite."
"I see," the Sprite said calmly. "At least I don't have to feel guilty now."
"Guilty for what?" Henna asked suspiciously. "What minor thorns have you placed in my way now?"
"Just seven little thorns, Henna," the Sprite told her whimsically. "You see, you're right. Demons don't know how to compromise, but they do know how to bargain, so I opened up seven pathways and spoke to all of them. I told them that I could offer a way out of the war if they let me off the hook. You see, I will no longer be the Sprite once I die – I'm just not worth much more than anyone else after death. But, since you were the one taunting them, they hate your guts, and if it's one thing demons know how to do, it's hate. They want you badly."
Henna's eyes opened wide, "You're lying!" she cried. "You have no power to open channels to Hell!"
"No, but you do, Henna," the Sprite smiled. "And you lost control of a lot of power when you were trying to torture a human a little while back. I managed to snatch just enough of it. I recently used it to heal my face and open the channels."
"What have you done?" Henna asked in a whisper.
"I introduced the concept of a calendar to them," the Sprite declared brightly. "Something I learned from you. I also introduced the concept of sharing. That didn't go over nearly as well as the calendar, but they could accept it *if* it was part of a contract. Then it was just a letter of the law that had to be met – nothing more, and nothing less. So, now there is a contract that keeps me out of Hell and that will move you from one demon to another automatically, following the days of the week, once you die. Isn't that nice? I just prevented millions on Earth from dying needlessly!" it exclaimed.
Flames shot from Henna's eyes. "I WILL KILL YOU NOW!" the witch growled loudly.
"BRING IT ON, BITCH!" the Sprite hissed. "I may spend a million years as an earthworm for this, but it's done. You cannot send me to Hell. I DON'T FEAR DEATH!"
Henna let her power drop. The moment the Sprite died, so would she.
The Sprite recognized the shift in posture and smiled in triumph. "By the way, Henna, I'd like to introduce you a new member of the household." There was a soft "poof" in the corner and a tall (but minor) demon with extremely long claws stood there, looking at Henna coldly. "This is Ba," the Sprite introduced the demon. "He's a soul catcher. His job is to grab your soul as soon as it leaves your body for any reason. He's protected by the seven contracts, so he will not be going anywhere. See, I even thought of you when I made the new contract – I got you a chauffeur." The Sprite made a gesture of mock disappointment, "Darn, I guess Lotion won't be tossed out of her body anytime soon. For that matter, you won't be sending your spirit out to take a look around or walking through anyone's dreams either." With that, the Sprite vanished from the mirror.
Henna just stood there, quietly seething and watching her "chauffeur" coldly staring at her.
Tatewaki closed the burner phone he bought at the last train stop. It was all set. He had spread the word that Ranma Saotome was gone. Those poor fools would immediately present themselves to Akane as soon as she was in Nerima. He snorted to himself - as if they were worthy of her. They would attack her once she denied them and he would save her. Then she would proclaim her undying love for him. He spent the remainder of the night planning the wedding as the train sped towards Tokyo.
Next up: Ignition
4/1/2014: Added correction provided by Flameraven1.
4/2/2014: Added correction provided by Saggit.