Avenging

Book 2: Act II

Have a Hydra New Year

Prologue and Chapter 1

As always you can contact me at

tsommer

My works are stored at

, A03, and mediaminer for older stuff.

As always, I do not own the rights to the numerous characters or series within.

Writer's Notes:

So, we finally begin with an overall story arc involving those guys that have been periodically harassing our heroes since midway through Act 1. Our multi-headed serpents are up to more skullduggery than ever, as you're about to read.

Also since the Hydra cast will be consistent for this, and they've been very spread out over the course of books 1 and 2,, we'll include a list of Dramatis Personae and where they appeared if you want to refamiliarize yourselves with them.

Hydra:

Imperial Hydra: Kin Ono, Dr. Tofu's mom. Head of Hydra working through controlled robots so no one knows she's the one in charge.

Super Villain Squad members:

Mentallo: Kyosuke Kasuga. Mid-level telepath, low level telekinetic. Joined Hydra when Madoka broke his heart.

Fixer: Hiroshi Karigari. Inventive genius who made a variety of scientific objects, including Hornet. Joined in order to get radioactive shielding for his first robot, Marie.

Monster Ape: Unnamed Hydra scientist who created a chemical that made him as strong as an ape… by turning into an ape man. Still retains his intelligence, and is content with being unable to communicate through speaking.

Sub Division: Grapplers: Former professional female wrestlers who joined for a variety of reasons

Titania: Mio Hayase. Older of the paired team of her and Letha. Superior athlete, though Letha is better. The louder, and less aware of the two. Perhaps from one too many chair shots to the head, combined with being a largely anti-social sociopath.

Letha: Kai Sampagita. Titania's protégé eager to be a world class fighter and enjoys a good contest. Superior athlete. Joined mostly because of abusive mother issues which has made her resentful of the world.

Poundcakes: Cybernetic alterations enable her to create shockwaves with her feet. Only current super powered member of the Grapplers. Fromer Miss Big Hips Japan winner.

Hydra Appearances:

Act 1 Chapter 7. Imperial Hydra ordered Fixer and Mentallo to test a stolen AIM device. Wasp and Giant Man stopped them on their maiden mission.

Act 2: Chapter 1: Marie broke Mentallo and Fixer out of jail. Prevented Hornet from inadvertently sinking Japan.

Act 2 Chapter 8: Imperial Hydra wants her son, Tofu, married. Poundcakes was chosen for the date, which went south. Ranma and Nabiki fought Letha and Titania.

Act 4 Chapter 1: Imperial Hydra sent Master Hydra (Orochimaru) and the Super Villain Squad to crash a party of the rich and famous. The collection of bodyguards fought them off, and all but Master Hydra escaped. (he was killed).

Act 5 Chapter 9: Imperial Hydra sets events into motion to destroy SHIELD's helicarrier

Book 2, Act 1 Chapter 2: Titania, Letha, and Monster Ape tried to intercept Discus from delivering an AIM item which turned out to be Ein, the data dog.

And with that refresher course, we can start the show….

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Prologue

The Great Hall of the Serpent was packed wall to wall with hundreds of Hydra agents: nearly all the personnel of their main operations base located in the heart of Japan. Word had already circulated Hydra was about to deliver the biggest news since their attempt at blackmailing the world with the Death Spore Bomb and excitement was at an all-time high. The general consensus of late was that Hydra had been resting on their laurels for far too long and perhaps their mission would never see fruition. But being informed the speech would be one to advance their agenda for world domination, and that the Imperial Hydra himself would be giving it, had everyone eager for what happened next.

The lone figure on the stage was a fit woman, her features marking her as Japanese, in a tight outfit that showed off much of her flesh. It was the standard outfit designating her as one of several 'Madame Hydras' in the organization. VI in her case. Currently she was the highest ranking one, and word had come from the Imperial Hydra himself she was not to meet with any 'accidents' the way some of her predecessors had. The competition tended to be literally cutthroat amongst the higher ranks at times. Rumor had it she was more mentally stable than most Madame Hydras. Always a bonus.

And then it happened. He came out from the left curtained side in a rare personal appearance before the troops. The Imperial Hydra's garb was loose fitting, almost to the point of bagginess, and unique in the organization, as befitted his status. He walked until he stood to the left of Madame Hydra and held his arms high in the air, fists aimed skyward.

All obeyed the signal, matching his gesture and chanting the slogan at the top of their lungs. "Hail Hydra! Immortal Hydra! We shall never be destroyed! Cut off a limb and two more shall take its place!"

All watched in rapt attention as their supreme leader spoke. "Let this be the day when everything changed. When Hydra, after moving into position for years, at last strode forward toward its true goal of world domination. And this time we will not be stopped. Not by Nick Fury. Not by brightly garbed idiots with super powers. Not by governments. And certainly not by our eternal nemesis, SHIELD.

"In times past I would be the one to spearhead this charge, but things are going to be different. As we are heralding a new age, so too will a new structure emerge in our eternal organization. And the one who will be personally leading you in this endeavor will be introduced to you now. Come forth, Hydra Commander!"

From the side opposite which the Imperial Hydra emerged came another uniquely garbed agent. His outfit was in-between that of the Madame and Imperial Hydra. More militaristic than what Hydra personnel wore in the cut of the outfit. He had a gun holstered at his hip, the only evident weapon. He wore a helmet that reached down the back of his head almost past his neck. But what was most striking about him was the mirrored faceplate that hid his features. If anything, it would be disturbing to look into what should be someone else's face only to see a distorted version of one's own face staring back.

He stood before the crowd with an air of command, one that made rabble follow, and those that would rather led be wary.

His voice echoed throughout the room, the acoustics allowing his voice to be heard as if he was near every member of the crowd despite his distance from it. "As the Imperial Hydra informed you, I will now be leading Hydra operations directly from this day forward. My word is as supreme as our leader's. I will be obeyed without hesitation or question.

"I *am* in charge of what I say I am.

"As our leader hinted at, the time of building up power as at an end: the time to unleash that power is upon us.

"In the past we attempted to take everything in one go: Hydra Island and the Death Spore Bomb. A sound plan to be certain, one that came within a hairsbreadth of success, were it not for Nick Fury's individual heroics.

"But the problem with such plans is they are all or nothing. And when the dust settled, we held nothing in our grasp. Half of everything we had resided on the bottom of the ocean: a head removed. But our slogan is no mere chant: it is the nature of the beast we are. While it took time, we grew two heads to take its place, and now all our heads are in position to strike simultaneously everywhere, not in grand announcements that will make the populous tremble, but from the shadows where we will take down our prey with the world none the wiser, sinking our fangs deep into the vital areas of the globe.

"This time we move to undermine the foundation of the corrupt leadership of the world, seizing it for ourselves to transform society into the image Hydra envisions.

"However, it is one thing to state such grandiose goals, but quite another to show we can achieve them. Petty speeches are thrown out by every lying politician there is. I am not given to hyperbole. You will bear witness to our ability right now. Turn on the projection!"

Above the audience, so all could see, a gigantic hologram of the SHIELD helicarrier appeared overhead. It was flying over a non-descript desert, rock and sand as far as the eye could see in the brightest day. The crowd hissed cruel epithets at the centerpiece of their arch-foes arsenal, a weapon that had been directly responsible for the destruction of multiple Hydra bases over the years in their eternal war.

"Months of manipulation of our various foes have come to this moment. The helicarrier has been sent to Rumekistan to squash an uprising we are responsible for. Normally their interference would enrage us, for this is a classic SHIELD tactic. However this time is different, as you will observe." To a communicator woven into his glove he said, "Is it in position?"

"Five seconds." Was the reply.

Out loud Hydra Commander said, "Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Fire!"

From the ground came a quartet of cobalt-colored beams, appropriately enough, from the Cobalt Cannon Damocles himself had created, reverse engineered by Hydra's own Fixer. Each struck the helicarrier in the proper places to maximize destruction. One went through the center striking deep enough to destroy its main power unit. The second destroyed the auxiliaries that would have kicked in with the destruction of said unit. The third sheared the main propulsion drive that propelled the ship, while the final one struck the bridge, melting all the command personnel who had been foolish enough to be there, waiting for a chance to physically observe what was to be their death strike at a Hydra base that had never existed in the first place.

According to Hydra's experts, any three were enough to destroy the helicarrier, but it had been decided to include a bit of redundancy, just in case something went wrong.

Nothing did.

In fact, the opposite occurred as the helicarrier erupted into an airborne fireball, detonating with enough force for people to feel the explosion from thirty kilometers away. The experts had thought there was only a 23% chance of that happening, the more likely scenario the symbol of SHIELD's might to simply crash and kill all on board from the altitude it had been at.

The room was struck dumb. Never in their wildest dreams had the rank and file of Hydra believed they would witness the destruction of the most recognizable instrument of war belonging to their rivals. But then the shock faded and the room roared in savage approval of the blow struck against their foes. Some of them hugged each other in elation at the success.

Hydra Commander allowed them to bask in the glow of annihilation and what it meant to them. Once the initial wave passed, he reasserted control. "This blow is more telling than any of you might guess. The entire command structure of SHIELD was on board, in their infinite stupidity, and thus dead. With this massacre the agency will be reeling, and it is up to us to take advantage of it, but not by attacking. Oh no. We are far more dangerous than that.

"Our spies have been carefully positioned to take temporary command of SHIELD, and they are already prepared to move personnel around, assigning more of our people to key positions in this emergency. Specifically, recruitment. For you see, given the thousands that died on board that symbol of oppression, more people will have to join to replace them and… take up the good fight for the security of the world."

They could feel his smile beneath the mirrored surface.

"Many of you will be shedding your Hydra skin and wearing the garb of our enemies, while your loyalty will be ever toward us. You will become the core of the new SHIELD which emerges from the desiccated husk we have created. You will control it from within. What once weakened us will now strengthens us. The resources of our enemies will become assets for our cause. We will be financed by the very governments we seek to undermine and control.

"SHIELD will become yet another head of Hydra!"

More raucous applause, perhaps even more fervent than before, thundered in the ears of the members. And all looked upon Hydra Commander as the author of these triumphs. The Hydra chant reverberated throughout the room, led by the new leader. And as soon as the height of it passed, he walked off the stage with both Imperial and Madame Hydra at his sides.

Once backstage the Imperial Hydra spoke. "The most inspiring speech we've had in our history. The troops are more motivated than ever."

"I suspect watching the helicarrier getting blown up had more to do with it than my oratory skills," he said with a touch of humility. "But thanks."

Imperial Hydra continued. "SHIELD infiltration will commence by the end of the week. It's going to take a while for the chaos there to die down enough for things to start proceeding on their end. All of that will be under the table, so it would be better if you didn't show your shiny face to the infiltrators. It would be more advisable for you to circulate among some of the other operations we're setting into motion, letting them see you and adding a personal touch, even if it's not needed. The rank and file observing you everywhere will ease them for when you officially take over everything from me."

"Do you have a solid grasp on the time table for it?" Hydra Commander asked.

"I was going to play it by ear," Imperial Hydra admitted. "I'll start fading into the background, like today, and let you call the shots in front of everyone. To be honest you've taken to this even better than I hoped. The open acknowledgement of your being in charge and meeting the troops will familiarize yourself with them. The logistics side of things take longer to master. I had to take it over from my… predecessor since that wasn't his forte. But it will come, I'm confident."

Hydra Commander nodded. "I'll personally drop in on Columbia, Zurich, and New York. I want to feel Don Fortunato out face-to-face. New York might be tricky."

"I recommend a change of plans regarding Egypt," Imperial Hydra noted. "We need to pull our forces out of there. I hate abandoning that area, but that insufferable Baron Blood has made Cairo his base of operations and that vampire war is heating up. Our troops are going to come under assault in a manner we'd be hard pressed to defend against. Undead are nothing but trouble."

Hydra Commander stopped walking abruptly, making his companions do the same. "And speaking of trouble, we'll need to take care of the Avengers."

That made Imperial Hydra cock his head quizzically. "They've interfered with a number of our operations over time, but nothing major like they did to AIM."

"They will create problems for us. They require being dealt with, the sooner the better." The sound of the material of his gloves rubbing against itself caught the pair's attention. The fist at his side was squeezed that tightly.

Despite his intensity, Imperial Hydra radiated wariness. "Killing the Avengers won't be easy."

"Neither is taking over the world, but we're going to do it anyway. The best outcomes are always worth the effort."

Even through the robot, Kin Ono, Imperial Hydra, could feel the malevolence radiating through the mirrored mask of her successor. It was a palpable thing, and it made him more dangerous when he was that way. Much of history was made by people running on that kind of intensity and emotion.

Good times were coming. She could feel it in her bones.

Hydra would be in good hands. And the world would be in Hydra's clutches. It was all coming together, slowly but surely.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chapter 1

Nabiki stood outside of the door to the Saotome's bedroom. She knew Ranma was in there and Genma wasn't, so it was time to make her move. She had already decided on a course of action, and when Nabiki Tendou did that, she was like a laser beam in both speed and precision.

And yet she stood outside the door for nearly a full minute. For some reason, she couldn't seem to force her arm to reach for the doorknob.

"Quite being a wimp," she told the limb

It still wasn't moving.

"You know it's the right thing to do."

Nope.

"He owes you money."

Her leg reacted first and kicked the door open so fast it was like a reflex.

The approach caused Ranma to jump up and fall into a fighting stance nearly as fast. When he saw who it was, he eased up only a touch. "What's going on?"

"I want my money," Nabiki said.

"What money?" Which relaxed Ranma because if she had fallen under someone's mind control again with murder on her mind, like the last time, she wouldn't be asking for cash. It was a totally Nabiki thing to do.

Nabiki shook her head. "Sorry, I was thinking of motivational speeches that produce results. What I meant to say was, since the Dads are insistent about this uniting the families thing, we should probably go out on a date for their benefit before they come up with some hairbrained scheme of matching us up."

The thoughtful gleam in his eye meant Ranma was considering the request which made Nabiki slightly irked. Why didn't he just say yes? He should be flattered she asked him out.

Finally he nodded. "Yeah, why not? I mean we're not talking about setting up an engagement, just dating stuff."

He had accepted. The hard part was over. Time to set ground rules. "Since I asked you out we're going dutch."

Ranma thought the person asking typically offered to pay, but then this was sort of his first official date. Although he had gone out with Akane and Kasumi at the same time that one time. Which couldn't really be classified as a date since it was with two women. It had been such a weird thing them insisting he take them both out like that.

But this was a one on one and hey, if Ukyou and Mousse could do it, he could do it too. "Sure. But since you asked you pick out the places." Now he'd get a feel for how dates were supposed to go.

"Okay. We'll just do that dinner and a movie thing. You busy tonight?"

"Nope."

"Tonight it is then." As she turned to go, she was weirdly not nervous. She felt kind of numb. But it was good to feel Ranma out and see if there was any romantic potential there.

And she'd inform the dads. Worst case scenario was the date would go poorly, but they'd quit leaning on her to give him a try since she had.

And if it went well, who knew what the future would bring.

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Genma looked at his oldest friend, who was not as delighted as Genma thought he should be. They had intended to unite the families since their youngest were four years old. Soun was all for it with no reluctance, heck he had tried to get the girls to try and go out with Ranma to start on that path, just as Genma had with the boy. Not that they had managed the least bit of success. But now Nabiki and Ranma were going out all on their own without having to be knocked out, handcuffed, and left in the middle of nowhere, forcing them to get to know each other as they fought for survival on their way back home.

And honestly, that was not exactly one of the best plans they had come up with.

But now Soun was showing no enthusiasm at all. Quite the opposite, actually.

"What's wrong?" Genma asked.

"I'm concerned," Soun fretted. "What if in asking Ranma out Nabiki has ulterior motives?"

"You mean knocking him out when his back's turned and robbing him blind?"

"Don't be absurd! My little girl wouldn't do something like that!" Soun shouted, then became eerily calm. "But if any of my daughters were capable of such an act, it would be her. No, I'm afraid she might be a little bit like her mother."

"I thought Kasumi was the most like her" Genma said.

Soun snorted loudly. "No. When Miyako wanted something, she became… creative in achieving her goal. Nabiki's very much a chip off that old block when it comes to personality. I admit, I am relieved she's accepted taking on the role of fostering the Tendou School of Martial Arts into the next generation." He could tell because she wasn't constantly inflicting bodily harm upon him in the guise of 'learning' the ins and outs of the art'. "But her asking Ranma out on an official date when she was trying to get her sisters to do it…, it might mean her focus has shifted, and she's interested in Ranma romantically. And Miyako could get… frisky when she went into that mood."

Well, Genma knew what *that* meant. Still, most fathers couldn't come out and say 'she might screw him blind' of their daughters. "Trust me, the boy's all bluff and bluster when it comes to that aspect of women. He also shares my immunity to feminine wiles. If she comes on too strong, he'll just bolt, and luckily for us he can overpower her." He held his hand to his chin in thought. "But you have to admit, that would unite the houses all the quicker if that is her plan and she outmaneuvers him."

"I want the houses united," Soun insisted. "But, recently I've come to the conclusion that my girls are growing up at an alarming rate, and perhaps still figuring out what will make them happy." He sighed. "Kasumi is leaving, Nabiki is accepting of carrying on the family legacy, Akane is at peace with herself in a way I've never seen before. They all seem happy and I want them to be happy when they settle down with Ranma. I mean, I like the boy and I want him to be happy, too. So where I once wanted them to hurry and get it over with, now I think a slower pace is called for."

They would also have to be fine with Ranma being Captain Japan, and the risks that came with it, Genma tacitly did not say aloud. He had developed a fair number of recriminations himself. While he wanted the houses united, it wouldn't be fair to whoever Ranma ended up with having that surprise sprung on them after the wedding. Would-be world conquerors blowing up your spouse was a threat every good wife should know going in. Sort of like if your husband was a policeman, in the military, or an emptier of industrial grade sceptic tanks. He did like the girls, (even if Nabiki put him the most on edge), and wanted his son's marriage with one of them to be a happy one for their sake as well as his. But there was no need to feel them out on the super hero issue until he hit it off with one and things were likely to turn in that direction.

At least Ranma had made it clear he enjoyed his guise as an Avenger, the inverse of when they had returned to Japan. He had grown as well and learned what made him happy. Yes, perhaps taking their time would be best.

Which is why he was forcing a half dozen condoms on Ranma no matter what the boy said. If he tried balking, Genma would reveal that his mother had become… creative when she decided Genma was the one for her, and the lack of condoms was the reason Ranma was around today. True, it turned out for the best in the end, but he really should have been consulted on it first rather than her bringing it up by telling him, "Congratulations, you're a father."

Ah well, when all was said and done, women were women. You either learned to live with them or without them. And in his case he'd learned to do both for more time than most men.

But there was no need to enlighten Ranma on Genma's own… unusual past. There was a reason he had kept on the run for so long before settling down for a normal life with Nodoka… at least until the super soldier serum thing. But thankfully that had happened to Ranma and not him.

No, he just turned into a panda when splashed with cold water was all.

"At least there aren't any damned vampires," he grumbled.

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Ranma couldn't focus on the dinner. The little 'gifts' from his father hidden in his wallet (which were never going to come out since he wouldn't let himself get caught in a situation that required them. He could take Nabiki in a straight up fight if it came to that.), felt like they weighed a ton. It was the idea that gave them weight, he knew, but it was the first time he carried such things and it felt weird.

Sure there would come a time (many years from now) when such precautions would be necessary, but not at his age, on a first date, and not with Nabiki Tendou. He'd never even visualized her naked like he did Kasumi or Elektra. Which he only did because he had seen them naked, and once an image was captured by the eyes, sometimes it was burned into the mind for life. When it came to healthy women under circumstances like that… well it was part and parcel with being heterosexual.

The pair had been unusually quiet, hardly saying a word. Ranma did want to impress her, but he had no idea how. Outside of entering talks regarding a monetary venture of course.

Wait, maybe that was it. They could talk money in a roundabout way. "So, you seem to have settled into the idea of running the dojo pretty well, right?"

Nabiki felt a bit of gratitude at Ranma bringing up a topic she'd put considerable thought into lately. She had also been irritated at the lack of conversation since she had no idea of what to talk about either. She wasn't used to non-essential banter most of the time, and given the tension in her she had barely spoken. She hated being uptight like that, but this was basically new territory for her. The few guys she had gone out with, at one date only, were intimidated by her confidence, brains, and ability to break all their limbs without breaking a sweat.

At least Ranma was comfortable with all those attributes, so she could speak her mind. It was coming up with the topic that had been difficult, Until now. "Yep. Since I'm committed, I need to learn all the ins and outs of running it for profit. Dad knows how to do it, but in hearing him talk, it's painfully obvious he wasn't maximizing the profit potential."

"How so?"

"He just wanted to teach whoever might be interested in martial arts and leave it at that. Talk about going nowhere." She shook her head sadly, like when Ranma listened to Sewer Man regale him about the wonders of raw sewage. "I'm thinking marketing in combination with establishing the Tendou School of Anything Goes as the premiere martial arts school in Japan. For instance, I've beaten super villains on two different occasions. That carries a lot of clout."

He'd beaten them on about two hundred different occasions, but he kept that to himself. Even if she did know his dual identity. "It is."

"I'll start small, get some talent out of the students, hit the high-profile tournaments, get the accolades so we become a brand name. Then it's selling off franchises to whoever wants them. Mucho dinero Saotome. Mucho dinero."

In principle what she was saying made sense, but it didn't match his idea of keeping things fairly simple and straightforward. One dojo, good size classes. Teach them so they really learn the art. And winning those tournaments for prestige. He'd rather be small and elite than spread thin and watered down. No training journeys to magic pools in China, though.

There were some sacrifices that were too much, even for the art.

Once started, Nabiki really became enthralled talking about her plans, an enthusiasm absent in the date until this point. "It'll take a while though. I'm going to need college and learn everything I can about owning my own business and how to run it. I don't really need a prestigious school so much as a good one."

"Don't they usually go hand in hand?"

"Not always. Some people put more stock in a name than what it can actually do for you. I'm already looking at which one will serve me best. It's my last year, you know. I have to be on the ball. You've still got a year, though."

Ranma shook his head. "Doesn't matter. What I'm going to do for a living, they don't teach at colleges. Not even that Alice Academy, even if some of the graduates have become super heroes."

"No college at all?" she said with a touch of incredulity.

"Got a career lined up, and I'm working at it already. I'll be even better at it once my commitment to school ends, which is what graduating high school means."

Now Nabiki understood. "So, you're pulling down a lot of cash on your… side hustle?"

Recalling the numbers in his bank account made him smile, not that he was greedy, but there was something to having disposable income as Ryouga liked to call it. "Yeah, Kunou knows how to take care of us pretty nice."

Her next comment carried a bit of bite. "Never had you figured for a corporate stooge."

That made him indignant. "We are not corporate stooges. Except Iron Rose. She's definitely one. The way she talks up her boss even when she's not around, she acts like the woman walks on water." Seeing people like Aqueduct actually walk on water revealed it's not actually impressive. "Don't get me wrong, I met Kunou a couple of times. She's got her nose up in the air a bit, but is basically a pretty nice person. And for the record she doesn't give orders. Her input ends with financing. Even Shellhead only has one vote equal to everyone else. It's a good deal.

Nabiki looked away and rolled her eyes. Wealthy people weren't altruistic or they didn't stay wealthy for long. There had to be a catch to bankrolling one of the premiere super hero teams in the world- aside from keeping the world from being blown up. Ranma was being naïve. Nabiki knew if she were in Kodachi's position, she would certainly have some scheme in place to have the Avengers function as muscle for her interests.

Ranma turned the conversation back to Nabiki. "You did do a good job taking out those two guys. Even Butterfly wasn't a total clod."

A suspicious gleam came to her eye. "I hope you're not trying to talk me into joining you in your side hustle." She didn't care how much the pay was. She wasn't going to have anything try to immolate or chew on her again. Not by design, anyway.

He shook his head. "It's a bad idea on every level. You have to want this to do it, and want it bad. There's too much pain, sweat, and tears to last at it if you don't. Even if you got powers, it's more than that. Sure, you can tell yourself when you're powerful it comes with responsibilities, but you have to be responsible for yourself first and foremost. Try forcing yourself to do it, and you'll be miserable the rest of your life. I mean you could grow into it, I guess, but I'd try and talk someone out of it that wasn't up to it. And you're not."

That pricked her pride for some reason. "I could probably do it if I had powers."

Ranma shook his head. "Nah. Powers don't change you into something you're not. Even if you got Hulk strength and endurance, you're still you." Perhaps that wasn't, the best example. It was clear Ryouga's mind was affected in that gamma bomb explosion, but at the same time the Hulk still felt like Ryouga, just a Ryouga that was a lot more emotional. And spoke in third person a lot.

"Power corrupts, Saotome," she insisted.

The head shaking was more vigorous. "Power doesn't corrupt: it allows you to be who you always were. And some people aren't really good even when they might think they are."

More naivete. Power changed people. It wouldn't change her, of course. She knew who she was and power would simply let her be more of herself. But Kasumi? Hardly. If there was one person who was inherently who she'd been her entire life, it was her older sister. Give her the power of Thor, and she'd use it to water the plants, not electrocute people with lightning bolts.

Akane, though? With her leg issue holding her back, if it was gone would she wield that sort of power? That would open avenues for her she hadn't had access to. It would let her have experiences she never dreamed. The sort of experiences that could change a person. Yeah, it was practically a guarantee she'd be bludgeoning everything that irked her with a hammer.

And the more powerful you were, the more likely you were to abuse it. There might come a day when Ranma found his teammates perpetuating injustice rather than justice, and would be in for a rude awakening. Teaming up gods, monsters, and billionaires was a recipe for disaster.,

But in Ranma's defense he wasn't cut from that cloth. He was the type that was… well Captain Japan. In thinking about it, while it made him reliable, it also meant he didn't have an edge. Not an edgelord, kami above save her from those, but the Mr. Goody Two Shoes type was something she found as appealing as a flat soft drink with a side of white bread. Not even toast, just plain bread. Sure, it could sustain you in a pinch, but it sure as heck wasn't what you wanted to settle for. Especially when it came to relationships.

Having a body like Ranma, that was nice, though. Sort of made up for the less desirable parts of his personality, maybe. Especially that asset she saw the one time she had inadvertently walked in on him when he was about to bathe. That was one mighty attribute she wouldn't mind encountering firsthand.

Her thoughts were still up in the air when dinner ended and they each paid their part of the check. She had figured the date would let her know if trying to pursue something physical with Ranma was worthwhile, or even if dating him was more intriguing than she thought. Or if he was a total dud and never to darken her shadow again. Kasumi or Akane's would be fine, but hers would be off limits. But in truth nothing had been resolved in her mind. It felt like everything was still as it was before they'd been on an official date, and she had no idea what that meant.

The original plan had been to head home after dinner, but instead Nabiki opted for something different. "Let's take a walk through the park." Those carried potential for romance. She wasn't sure why, but people insisted it was. Maybe it had to do with being around mother nature, birds and the bees and what not.

"Sure."

Hmm. Neither eagerness nor revulsion. She had no idea of what was going on in Ranma's mind either. It didn't really matter until she decided what was in hers, she supposed. But she liked having an idea of what the metaphorical electroencephalogram was like so she could plan accordingly.

Women were supposed to be mysterious, not men.

She wasn't bringing up hand holding. Guys did that unless the woman was desperate, and desperate women were kind of pathetic in her eyes. Of course she still didn't know if she wanted him to ask or not, since she had no idea of what her response would be.

Perhaps… yes. She wanted him to ask. If for no other reason than feminine pride. And she'd agree just to see what it would feel like. Maybe it would jumpstart something since it felt like her feelings were in idle.

At last he moved closer. It could be coincidence, or it might be design. She heard guys would sometimes take the slow approach. Yeah, Ranma she could see going slow. This might be it….

…And then shouts from in front of them disrupted whatever had been about to happen, if anything. It was cries of terror. A moment later people started shooting past them individually or in pairs.

Ranma grabbed a guy and asked what the problem was.

"Amphibians!" was the response. He was released.

Nabiki and Ranma looked at one another. He asked the question, "How many amphibians does it take to terrify a park full of people?"

The question was answered, in a roundabout way, as a megaphone enhanced voice announced, "We, the Tadpoles of Doom, are now in charge of this park and all the people that haven't already fled for their lives! We demand the release of our leader, the Languorous Leap Frog, from his unjust incarceration! Everyone knows prisons are out and freedom is in! So free him! Until you do, this park is our hostage!"

Ranma slapped his hand to his forehead as Nabiki said, "Languorous? He doesn't even know what that word means. No would-be bad guy wants to be called a fancy form of lazy. He's just saying it because he thinks it's alliterative."

"The only thing more pathetic than a Daredevil loser are the losers that follow them." Ranma bemoaned.

Nabiki suspected what would come next. "Want me to run cover for you while you suit up?"

"Nah. These guys are idiots. The cops could take them no sweat, so a known martial arts master like Ranma Saotome would have no problem taking them down." And he left to take the park back from amphibian clutches.

As the sounds of pain came from the direction Ranma had headed toward, and none of them in Ranma's voice, Nabiki noted this didn't ruin things: it helped crystalize her thoughts.

She was not interested in a guy whose first inclination was to take on a career that consisted of pummeling gaudily outfitted morons. Dignity in a relationship had to be maintained, and there was none to be found in, "Honey, I'm off to beat up a bunch of idiots dressed up like tadpoles." It was a phrase no boyfriend of hers should utter, and it was clear from his conversations earlier that night that it would be a lifetime of that nonsense.

No way.

If Akane or Kasumi were desperate enough to want to deal with that crap, they could help themselves. She was out of the picture as far as she was concerned. She gave things a serious thought, and as tonight had proven, there was no future to be found there.

At least she had resolved a situation that had been nagging at her for a while. There was something to be said for that.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

[End Chapter]

And here we have the end of the Prologue and Chapter 1. A bit brief but it helped set things up as well as pushing a bit of character development and plot resolution thrown in there.

And I assure you, it's Hydra, and not the Tadpoles of Doom that are the main threat in the next arc. No Shyamalan like twist to this.

And yes, Hydra Commander's garb is inspired by GI Joe's Cobra Commander. Fun fact, the first comic story with GI Joe was originally going to be a Nick Fury vs Hydra story that was adapted to it. He's like a derivative form of Hydra offspring.