Homecomings And Amazons!
Rarity: Hello Darlings! We're back, sorry it took so long. Anyway, our days at Camp Everfree have come to a close. And now it's back to home and cashing in on some favors. And now, cue the music!
*Smile BOMB*
As the music starts, Ranma and the others can be seen falling from the sky, smiles on their faces as they fall through the clouds. The title of the show appears in stylized letters.
Running in a crowd, in a faceless town
I need to feel the touch of a friend
Ranma can be seen running at top speed as the Mane 7 are seen running behind him one by one. First Sunset, then Twilight, Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity and then Fluttershy.
In the countryside, I wander far and wide
The isolation gets me again
Celestia and Luna are then seen running in a field only to be cut off by a giant shadowy figure appearing out of nowhere to block their path. Cut to a close up of Celestia and Luna panicking.
I don't know where to go
When I feel like crying, oh my
It's time to challenge myself, do something new
I want to stop and grow up a bit
Ranma and the others are then seen running to aid their friends. Ranma fires a Hadoken at the shadow as the Mane 7 and even Flash fought off other shadowy figures with their own abilities. At the last line of lyrics, Ranma does a chop and ends the last figure, as it fell, Ranma and the others all jump to different sides of the screen.
Then suddenly, my power and confidence start swelling up
Magically erupt
And it's all because of the kindness that I feel
From people I don't even know
The scene changes to show Rainbow Dash training in the woods, then Applejack powering up with a green aura around her, then Rarity generating a whip of blue lightning and twirling it around her. Pinkie is then seen firing her bazooka as Fluttershy summons spiritual animal heads and sending them out in an attack. The scene then changes to Twilight remembering Midnight Sparkle and being broken out of her bad memories by a smiling Sunset.
Then suddenly, my intuition and my wisdom grow
And then I know
The scene changes to show a line of shadowed villains, each one glaring red eyes at an unknown target before showing Celestia, Luna, Cadence and Master Asia looking worriedly at Ranma who is then seen struggling to stand, his body beaten and bruised.
That most of all I sense compassion's real
Thanks to strangers wherever I go
Flash and the girls help Ranma to his feet as they stare forward to face whatever was in front of them. As a giant twister came rushing at them, Ranma and the others jumped away.
Thank you for waking me up!
The scene then changes to show Ranma and the others smiling and falling from the sky towards the screen. The final scene shows Ranma standing in the middle of his friends and allies as he winks and makes a gun with his fingers, acting like he was firing at the screen.
It was nighttime at Camp Everfree, and most campers were either hopping into bed or getting ready for bed or reading a book. All except for Ranma and the Mane Seven, who were making their way to a place they had been meaning to take Ranma but they had been distracted by other things. They only had a few days left at camp and they wanted to show Ranma the Crystal Cave. The place where they first got their geodes.
Ranma couldn't help but whistle at the sight of the cave. It was huge on the inside and covered in shimmering crystals that reflected even the smallest amount of light. All in all, he had NEVER seen a place of such beauty before. It was almost like something from a dream.
"Man... this place is incredible." He said as he looked around. Sunset and the others chuckled at their boyfriend's expression, remembering that they had similar expressions when they first saw this place.
"Yeah, it is awesome, isn't it?" Rainbow said as she strutted around the cave.
"Yeah, this place sure brings back memories." Twilight said as she sat down and looked around the cave that once housed their geodes. "Can't believe that it's been a year since then."
"Me neither." Applejack agreed. "But I sure don't miss fighting Gloriosa in her corrupted magic form. That fight was a tough one. No matter how much we fought, she just kept regrowing those plants again and again."
"Yeah, but that was then. If we fought her again now, we'd show her a thing or two." Rainbow said, throwing some jabs in the air. Ranma chuckled at his rainbow haired girlfriend.
"Yeah. And you have me this time. I'd be able to take her down." Ranma said.
"Yeah well, you already had you're fight at camp with that Orochi thing, so I think that's enough for one trip." Sunset said as she crossed her arms. Ranma scratched the back of his head and chuckled.
"Heh heh. Right." He said.
"Remember that party we threw after that whole mess? It was soooo FUN!" Pinkie cried out as she bounced around.
"Oh course I remember darling." Rarity said in her extravagant way. "And it was FABULOUS! The dresses, my designs of course, the music, which we preformed, the lights, the dancing. (Sigh) Oh, the memories."
Ranma shook his head as Rarity fantasized about her own recollections. He looked over and saw Fluttershy blushing as she got up from the spot where she had been sitting with Tsukiro on her lap, put the little wolf on the ground by her feet and started switching her weight from one leg to the other with her hands behind her back. Ranma tilted his head as he walked over to his busty, pink-haired girlfriend.
"Yo, what's up Flutter-chan?" He asked.
Fluttershy looked to Ranma and then to the others. All the girls smiled as they all circled around Ranma as he and Tsukiro both tilted their heads in confusion. The pigtailed boy looked around at the seven of them and wondered just what was going on and whether or not he should be worried.
"Ranma..." Fluttershy began.
"Weeee have a little surprise for you." Rainbow finished. Ranma looked even more confused.
"A surprise?" He asked. They all nodded.
"It's just a little gift from all of us." Pinkie said as she looked to Sunset. She nodded and nudged Fluttershy.
Fluttershy took a deep breath and pulled her hands from behind her. She opened her hands and Ranma gasped at what she was holding. In her hands was a yin and yang shaped crystal. It was mostly blue but had waves of red going across in the way color dye waves to the bottom of a glass of water. It was beautiful in the way it was made, he just KNEW that Rarity must have been the one to make it.
"W-what is this?" Ranma asked.
"It's...your own geode. In a way." Sunset said.
"My...geode?" Ranma asked. They all nodded.
"Yeah. We all thought that it was only fair that you got something to remember your first time at Camp Everfree." Twilight said.
"The others managed to find the materials, yours truly crafted it into the beautiful work of art that it is." Rarity said. "Although, for some reason, no matter what I do, it won't stay one solid color. It just keeps changing to the way it is now. Oh well."
"Still...it's beautiful you guys." Ranma said as he took the yin/yang shaped geode by the string it was on and put it around his neck.
"How does it look?" He asked. All the girls smiled and Tsukiro howled in approval.
"I think it looks pretty gosh darn good on ya, Sugar Cube." Applejack said, tipping her hat to her boyfriend.
"I think it looks very handsome on you, darling." Rarity added.
"Totally!" Pinkie said.
"I think it's unanimous." Sunset said as she walked up to Ranma and wrapped her arms around him and kissed him.
"Hey! Don't hog the boyfriend Sunset." Rainbow said as moved in to kiss Ranma.
"Oh! OH! Me too! ME TOO!" Pinkie said as she ran in to get her own kiss.
Ranma couldn't help but laugh as he somehow ended up having to kiss all of his girlfriends. During the chaos, none of them noticed that the geode around Ranma's neck glowed slightly. The next day, all the campers were getting ready to head back home. Ranma for one was glad to be heading back. Not that he didn't have some fun while at Camp Everfree, but he was eager to get back home and pick up his training.
Not only that, but he smirked as he remembered the bet he made with some of his girlfriends and how they were going to have to pay up once they got back home. He hated to admit it, but there was a pervy part of him that was looking forward to seeing Rainbow in that unitard and Pinkie in a maid outfit.
"Alright kids! It's time to board the bus!" Celestia said through a megaphone. Ranma looked over and smiled as he headed out of his cabin with Flash.
"Well, this was a fun adventure." Flash said as he wiped some sweat from his brow. "Say Ranma, where's your little wolf of a sidekick?"
"Huh?" Ranma asked, then he remembered. "Oh right, Tsukiro is hitching a ride in Fluttershy's backpack again."
"Ah." Flash said in understanding.
"And just what exactly is next for you, oh sensei?" The blue haired boy asked his friend and teacher. Ranma couldn't help but chuckled at his friends' antics.
"Well, besides cashing in on that bet we won at the beginning of camp, I think I'll work on some new techniques with master and make some time to take each of the girls out on a REAL date." He said. Flash laughed at Ranma's answer.
"Well, I bet the girls will be happy to hear that. Any idea where you'll be taking them or who you'll be taking out first?" Flash asked. Ranma placed a finger to his chin.
"Well...to be honest, I have no idea." He said. "We never really talked about it to be honest. I guess I'll have to ask them."
"Good luck with that pal." Flash said with a smile. Ranma smiled back at his friend as he sighed. Just then, a pink blur tackled him to the ground.
"Ranma! Can I sit with you this time? PLEASE!?" Pinkie begged. Ranma laughed at his crazy girlfriend.
"Sure Pinkie. You can sit next to me this time." He said.
"HOORAY!" She said as she nuzzled her cheek against Ranma's and started kissing him. Flash shook his head at the two of them.
"Geeze. Couples are so lovey dovey." He said, before someone smacked him over the top of his head.
"OW!" He cried as he rubbed his head and turned to see Sunset.
"Just remember that the next time we hear you talking about Queen Twilight." She said, causing Flash to chuckle.
"Eh...heh heh heh." Was all he managed to say.
Not long after that, and after saying goodbye to Timber and Gloriosa, our group of heroes found themselves on the bus and heading back towards civilization. Pinkie was cuddling up to Ranma, clutching his arm and rubbing her head against his chest, as Ranma was just leaning back and relaxing.
"Hey...Ranma...?" Rainbow asked with a little bit of fear in her voice.
"Yo Rainbow." Ranma said with one of his eyes closed.
"Um...listen. You're not REALLY going to make us go through with that bet thing...right?" She asked with a scared and sheepish smile. Ranma closed his eyes and chuckled a little.
"Sorry Charlie, but a deal's a deal. Next training session, you are wearing that unitard." He said, causing Pinkie to turn her head around to look at Rainbow Dash "Exorcist style" and grin evilly.
"OOOHHHHH, I am SSSOOOOO going to enjoy thissssssssss." She said as she giggled maniacally. Rainbow groaned as she hung her head. The others laughed at her, but Rarity decided to pop AJ's bubble.
"What are you so happy about? Don't you remember? YOU have to be my model once we get back." Rarity said, causing Applejack to stop laughing and hang her head.
"Aw crap, I forgot." She said.
"Well, at least all I have to do is dress as a maid." Pinkie said, before giving Ranma a sultry look.
"I bet you're looking forward to seeing that, aren't you?" She asked. Ranma blushed slightly.
"Yeah, I am actually." He said with a smile.
"Hmph. Perv." Twilight said, causing all of them to laugh.
Not too long after that, the bus finally arrived back in town and all the kids got off, looking forward to heading back to their usual hang outs. Ranma and his harem sighed and stretched as they got off the bus and breathed in the fresh air.
"Oh BOY! Does it feel good to be back!" Rainbow Dash said as she finished stretching out her back.
"Yeah, and we still have two months of Summer left to enjoy." Sunset said. "So, what should we do first now that we're back?"
"How about we all head to the Sweet Snacks Cafe? My treat." Rarity suggested.
"All in favor?" Sunset asked. As an answer, everyone in their group cheered.
"I'll take that as a yes." Rarity said as she dialed a number on her phone.
"Geoffery? We're back from camp. Could you be a doll and come pick us up by the bus stop and take us to the Sweet Snacks Cafe? Thank you Geoffery, you're a dear." She said as she hung up.
"And I'll call sensei and let him know we're back." Ranma said as he pulled out his cell phone and called his master.
"Hello Ranma, back at last?" Master Asia asked his pupil. Ranma smiled at hearing his master's voice again.
"Yep. I'll swing by later, me and the girls are going to the cafe to chill for a bit." He said, earning a laugh from his master.
"Ok. Just don't have too much fun boy." Master Asia said in a teasing tone. Ranma blushed at what his master was implying.
"M-M-MASTER!" Ranma exclaimed as his master laughed at the sound of Ranma's voice.
"Screw you, ya old perv." Ranma said as he hung up.
"What was that about?" Twilight asked. Ranma looked at her and sighed.
"Master is a teasing jerk." Ranma said as the two of them went to catch up with the others.
A short while later, all eight of the lovers where settling down at the cafe and waiting for their orders while Fluttershy was reluctantly forced to leave Tsukiro in the car with Geoffery. As they were waiting, Rainbow was trying once again to talk Ranma out of the bet they made at camp.
"Come on Ranma! I'm begging! You know I wouldn't make you go through with anything embarrassing from a stupid bet, right!?" The rainbow haired girl begged. Ranma just smirked at her evilly.
"Actually Rainbow, I know that YOU WOULD do that to me. So...no. You've still got to wear the unitard. Noooo take backs." He said, wiggling his finger at her.
"Yeah! I want to see you ROCK that unitard, AND YOU ARE NOT TAKING THAT FROM ME!" Pinkie shouted. Sunset pat the crazy girl on the head.
"There there Pinkie." She said soothing voice.
"And Applejack, don't forget. You owe me some weeks of modeling." Rarity said as she grinned like a devil at the blushing blonde cowgirl.
"Ah, come on Rarity. Do I..."
"Uh uh uh." Rarity said. "A deal's a deal, darling. You don't want to set a bad example for your dear little sister, now do you?" Rarity said in a smug tone of voice. Applejack sighed in defeat.
"Dohhhh. I hate it when you're right." She said. All the others laughed at her dismay as the waitress brought their food.
"Alright, chow time!" Ranma said as he and the others got ready to dig in.
Sadly, their joyous meal was interrupted when the wall was smashed in. Everyone screamed, and when the dust settled, a certain purple haired, red eyed girl that they were hoping they would never see again.
"SHAMPOO!" Ranma and his crew shouted in shock.
"Ni hao. Shampoo come to claim husband. You home wreckers give him NOW!" She shouted in anger. Ranma and his girls all glared at the Chinese Amazon.
"Geeze lady! Can't you take no for an answer!?" Ranma said as he walked over to the Amazon.
"Let me try and put this in terms you'll understand. And I'll use SMALL words." Pinkie said as she got in front of the Amazon.
"HE! NO! LIKE! YOU! DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE WORDS COMING OUT OF MY MOUTH!?" She said one word at a time. Shampoo just 'hmphed' at the crazy pink girl.
"You no get in way. Shampoo take care of you, after she take care of rainbow pride girl." She said, pointing towards a growling Rainbow Dash.
"I'm STRAIGHT YOU IDIOT!" Rainbow shouted at the Amazon as she marched up to the woman.
"And in case you forgot, I kicked your ass last time. And if you think you can beat me this time...OOHHH sister are you in for a shock." Rainbow said as she cracked her knuckles.
"Hold it Sugar Cube." Applejack said as she cracked her own knuckles and then her neck.
"You got to pound this wannabe man stealer last time. Let ME have a shot at her this time." She said as she glared at the Amazon's red eyes.
"Shampoo be happy to take care of you, fake blonde."
"FAKE BLONDE!?" Applejack cried out in angry shock as the others just 'ohed' at thinking that the Amazon had crossed a line she'll wish she hadn't. Applejack placed her hat on Pinkies head and got right in Shampoo's face.
"Outside. NOW!" Applejack said. And with that, the two girls were outside, sizing each other up for what was promising to be an epic fight.
"Um...Can we get our orders to go?" Ranma asked.
Outside, Applejack starred down her Amazonian rival. Shampoo took a deep breath before taking up a fighting stance as Applejack did the same. Applejack took up a south paw Muy Thai stance and charged at the purple haired man stealer. Shampoo side stepped and went for kick to the ribs.
(Insert Fight Song: Wake Up by No Resolve)
But Applejack caught it with her elbow and lashed out with a spinning back kick. Shampoo was caught off guard and ate the kick as Applejack went in for an elbow strike, knee strike and then two haymakers. Shampoo ate the elbow but managed to block the knee and haymakers and retaliated with a chop to the neck and palm strike to the chest that she followed up with a spinning heel kick.
Applejack reeled from the kick as Shampoo slid into a scissor take down and tried to get Applejack's leg in a lock in order to break it. Big mistake. Applejack slipped out of the Amazon's grasp and went for a choke hold. Shampoo gasped for air, surprised that her attempt to end the fight quickly had quickly turned against her.
Applejack applied more pressure hoping the Amazon would pass out soon, but Shampoo wasn't out of the fight yet. She shot her left hand backwards and scratched at Applejacks' eyes. As the blonde girl screamed and let go of her, Shampoo slipped out and struck at the woman behind her and elbowed her in the gut and rolling away to get enough room to strike out with a double mule kick.
Applejack rolled with the kick but soon found herself trying to escape the speedy Amazon's follow up assault. Shampoo did a forward flipping axe kick, aimed to take Applejack's head off, but missed by a hair. Applejack took this time to roll to her feet and charged back at the killer from China.
The blonde cowgirl came in with a downward hook punch and right cross, but Shampoo avoided them with ease. But she wasn't expecting Applejack to come in with a right elbow to the chest. Shampoo coughed then caught a backfist to the face as Applejack poured on another rain of blows.
A left cross was followed with a left front snap kick and then a spinning heel kick. Shampoo flew from the final kick and growled as she shot a upwards axe kick that caught Applejack in the chest and sent her back a few steps. Shampoo then got up and charged, firing a triple jumping kick and then struck with whip hand strikes that knocked the farm girl around like a ragdoll before striking with a double palm and then jumped into a ariel mule kick and flipped back to the ground.
Applejack rolled on the ground, panting for breath. This woman was tough, but she wasn't down for the count yet. She glared at her Chinese rival, and as said rival came at her, Applejack was ready. Shampoo threw punch and then followed with an upward palm and front kick. But Applejack blocked the punch, leaned back to avoid the palm heel strike and as soon as she threw that last kick, the farm girl caught it.
"Bad idea." Applejack said with a grin.
Shampoo gulped as Applejack did a leg sweep and then twisted Shampoo's leg into a painful lock and stomped on the Amazon's other leg. Shampoo screamed in pain as Applejack used her superior strength to apply enough pressure that Shampoo felt like her leg was a second away form breaking in two.
"Had enough, bitch?" Applejack asked. Shampoo growled at her American enemy.
"No. Kikoken!" She shouted as she threw out one hand and fired a blast of pale blue ki.
"AGH!" Applejack screamed as she was blasted back.
"APPLEJACK!" Ranma and the others cried out as they saw their friend and lover get blasted in the face.
Shampoo smirked as she slipped out of AJ's grip and sweep kicked her legs out from under her. Applejack coughed as she hit the ground as Shampoo rolled back to her feet and went for another attack. AJ growled as she kicked the Amazon away and rolled to her own feet.
"Cheap shot." AJ said as she channeled ki into her fist.
"Here's mine. Power Wave!" And with that, Applejack slammed her ki infused fist to the ground and fired a green energy wave straight towards Shampoo.
"Aiyah!?" Shampoo cried in shock as she dive rolled out of the way of the charging wave of ki. But that was just what Applejack wanted.
As Shampoo rolled away form the blast, Applejack charged in and caught her with a flying knee strike to the face. Before Shampoo could rear back from the blow, Applejack grabbed the Amazon's head and started slamming knee after knee into the other woman's face. She then smashed her elbow into Shampoo's face and did an over the shoulder throw, slamming her to the ground.
Applejack then went for an armbar and in one motion, snapped the Amazon's arm out of it's elbow socket. Shampoo screamed in pain as Ranma and the others cheered for the blonde cowgirl. Applejack then kicked Shampoo in the face and got back to her feet and picked the woman up by the collar.
"And this is for calling me a fake blonde." She said as she slammed a fist into Shampoo's gut.
"Shin..." Applejack said as she then did a jump, rising uppercut to the Amazon's chin.
"SHORYUKEN!" Applejack cried out as she rose into the and landed gracefully as Shampoo fell to the ground like a dead weight.
Ranma and the girls rushed towards Applejack as the crowd that had been watching the fight cheered for the hometown cowgirl fighter. Ranma hugged Applejack and kissed her before checking her face and eyes where Shampoo shot that last ki blast.
"No serious damage, I think." Ranma said. Applejack chuckled at her boyfriend's words.
"Yeah, but if it hadn't been for your training, I think I might have been blinded by that last shot." She said, before Pinkie and Rainbow hugged her from both sides.
"Wicked finishing move AJ!" Rainbow said.
"Totally! And where did you learn that energy wave thing!? That was too cool!" Pinkie exclaimed. Applejack chuckled again.
"Well, that one was an Applejack original. But, truth be told, I got the idea from a video game Sunset and I played a few times." She said with a slight blush. Now it was Sunset's turn to chuckle.
"Who says you can't learn anything from video games now-a-days?" She said as she hugged her friend. "I'm just glad you knocked that psycho's lights out."
"Yeah, but where did you learn the Shin Shoryuken?" Ranma asked. AJ blushed again.
"Master Asia showed it to me and I've been working on it in secret," Applejack admitted. Ranma smiled.
"I told you that you had more talent than you gave yourself credit for." He said.
"N-no..." Came Shampoo's voice as she struggled to get back up.
"What!? You're still up!?" Twilight exclaimed as the Amazon tried to get back to her feet.
"You...no...break...Ama-zon...tra...di...tion..." Shampoo said, only to get hit in the back of the head by one of Rarity's diamond shields and fall back to the ground.
"Shut it bitch." Rarity said as she huffed at the Amazon.
"Yeah! Stay down and stay away from OUR boyfriend!" Pinkie said as she kicked the downed girl.
"Um...I know she's a bad person but, don't you think that's going a bit too far?" Fluttershy said.
"Well..." Twilight started to say.
"Just leave her." Sunset said. "She got what was coming to her."
"Agreed." Ranma said. "Come on guys, let's get out of here before something else happens."
With that, Ranma and the others left as someone called an ambulance and the police to pick up Shampoo. But before they could arrive, a shadowy blur swept the unconscious woman away and off to a nearby rooftop.
"I must say Shampoo, I'm very disappointed." Said the shadowy figure. Shampoo struggled to open her eyes and gasped as she saw who was in front of her.
"G-Great grandmother!?" Shampoo exclaimed, wincing in pain. "Wh-when did you...?"
"Save your strength child." She said as she walked over to her fallen great-grandchild.
"That woman really did a good job on you, didn't she?" Said the old woman as she looked over Shampoo and hit a few acupuncture points.
"Rest Shampoo, once you wake up, we'll deal with those girls and get son-in-law on the first plane to China."
As for Ranma and his crew, they were dragging Rainbow Dash by the heels to Ranma's place. Why are they dragging her? Well...
"NNNOOOOOO! Don't make me! Please!"
It was time to pay up on the bet.
"Come on Rainbow, I've already got into my loser outfit." Pinkie said, gesturing to her maid outfit.
"I don't care! I! Am! NOT! Dressing up in front of all of you in that unitard!" Rainbow screamed as she fought to break free.
She managed to kick herself free and ran...only to find herself levitated up off the ground by Twilight's magic. She growled as she turned to glare at her glasses wearing friend.
"Youuuuuu traitor." She said. Twilight just chuckled.
"Sorry Rainbow. But a deal's a deal." She said as she levitated the sulking rainbow haired girl towards her fate.
Master Asia cracked his neck as he looked to see his student and his girlfriends...and one of them screaming about not wanting to go through with something while being levitated. He titled his head and scratched his head.
"Um, what's going on?" He asked. Ranma turned to look at his mentor.
"Oh, nothing. Just cashing in on a bet that I won." He said with a smug look.
"MASTER! HELP! SAVE ME!" Rainbow screamed.
A few moments later, Master Asia got an answer to his question. Rainbow was pushed out by maid outfit wearing Pinkie, and the poor multi haired girl was wearing nothing but a unitard. At seeing Rainbow's new outfit, Master Asia tried his hardest to hold back a laugh as the old man blushed for the first time in a long time.
"What...on...Earth?" He asked between laughs. Sunset smirked as she pulled out her phone.
"Just the spoils of war." She said as she took pictures of Rainbow.
"I swear, if you post those photos Sunset Shimmer..." Rainbow growled. Sunset chuckled at her embarrassed friend.
"Don't worry, I won't. I'll just...save them for fun, later." She said.
"Oh! OH! Send me some PLEASE!" Pinkie begged, only to be grabbed by Rainbow and yanked back.
"I will kill you..." She threatened, an aura of ki coming off her for added effect.
"Ehhhh heh heh heh. Right." Pinkie said with a scared smile. But then she smirked as she looked to Ranma.
"I bet you're enjoying the view." She said. Ranma scratched the back of his head as he blushed as red as his shirt.
"Um...Maybe just a bit." He admitted. Rainbow blushed as she did her best to hide her butt, but to no avail.
"Well come on Dashy. Let's get this training session over with." Applejack said.
"Right." Rainbow answered with a pout.
And with that, Ranma started warming them up, but Master Asia was curious as to why Applejack was covered with bruises.
"Applejack, what happened?" He asked. Applejack sighed.
"Remember that Amazon woman we told you about? She showed up again and attacked us. I took her on this time. And I kicked her butt." She said with a smirk. Master Asia nodded.
"I see. Well..."
"You may have beaten my great-grandchild, but this battle is far from over little girl." Came a voice that cut Master Asia off. They all looked up and dived away as something crashed down in the spot they were a second ago.
"What the heck!?" Ranma cried out as he and the others looked at what just crashed into the yard.
In front of them, was a small old woman, who looked ancient, in a green Chinese outfit, with long white hair and carrying a walking stick that was longer than she was tall. Ranma and the others looked in confusion at the new arrival.
"Who the heck are you?" He asked. The old woman turned to look at the pigtailed boy.
"Oh, how rude of me. Allow me to introduce myself, I am the elder of the Joketsuzoku Amazon Tribe, Cologne. I also just happen to be the great-grandmother of your new bride, Shampoo." The old woman said.
"My WHAT!?" Ranma shouted.
"Wait, did you say GREAT granddaughter?" Twilight exclaimed. "But...that's not possible!"
"Actually, it is." Master Asia said as he dusted himself off and looked towards the old woman who just landed in front of them. "Don't forget just how old I am."
"And what do you mean, new bride? In case you didn't notice, Ranma is SPOKEN FOR!" Rainbow said as she cracked her knuckles and neck. Cologne turned to the rainbow haired woman.
"I'm truly sorry, but once claimed by an Amazon..."
"There's no getting out of it except death, right?" Master Asia cut off the ancient Amazon. Cologne turned to the old martial arts master and narrowed her eyes.
"You certainly know a bit about our traditions. By the way, have we met before? You seem familiar." She said as she glared at Master Asia.
"It no matter!" Came the voice of Shampoo as she landed beside her great-grandmother.
"Ranma is Shampoo's Airen, if you no stop getting in way..."
"Hush child!" Cologne said to her great-granddaughter, who was still nursing her dislocated arm.
"I know I've seen you before stranger. Now tell me who you are." Cologne said as Master Asia gave a chuckle.
"I'm surprised you don't recognize me. I mean, after all, I'm one of the only people in life who ever managed to defeat you in your prime. Multiple times at that. My dear Cologne-chan." He said.
The elder Amazon's eyes went wide as she recognized the tone of voice and the nickname. There was only one man that both called her by that name AND managed to defeat her. But it...it couldn't be. Or could it?
"No...could it be?" She asked out loud. Master Asia's smirk grew as he chuckled again.
"Age hasn't been kind to you my dear. You've shrunken. And lost some of your beauty too." He said. Cologne lost her look of shock and glared at the old man.
"I'll admit, the centuries have been kinder to you than they were to me, Kurosu Shuji." Cologne shot back.
"Kurosu Shuji?" Ranma asked with the others mirroring his confused expression.
"My name." Master Asia answered, causing the young children to look at him in confusion.
"My birth name. Shuji Kurosu." Master Asia said to Ranma and the others.
"Wait, how on Earth could this old ghoul know your actual name? I didn't even know your real name and I'm your student." Ranma said in shock.
"Great-grandmother, you know this old man?" Shampoo asked. Cologne took a deep breath and sighed.
"Shampoo. Say hello to your great-grandfather. My ex-husband." Cologne said as she gestured towards Master Asia.
"EEEEEEHHHHHH!?" All the young adults gasped in the biggest shock they've gotten in quite some time.
"Wait...Th-this man!? He...he..." Shampoo said, startled beyond belief.
"That old crone is your ex!?" Ranma gasped.
"NO WAY!? FOR REAL!?" Pinkie asked in equal shock.
"You married an Amazon!? And the great-grandmother of this man stealing bitch, no less?" Rainbow chimed in.
"Unfortunately, yes." Master Asia said. "And it looks like you're still the same battle axe I left all those years ago, Cologne."
"And it looks like you've still got that rebellious streak in you still. Such a shame." Cologne said with a shake of her head.
"Ok, somebody fill me in on what's going on." Twilight said. "Cause I'm confused. And don't like being out of the loop on anything."
"Yeah, I'd like some background on this love affair too." Sunset chimed in. Master Asia sighed.
"I suppose you all might as well know that truth." He said as he took a beath and began his tale.
"Long ago, while I was still living in China and training at the Shaolin monastery. I was wondering the countryside looking around at the scenery. My travels actually ended up with me meeting a beautiful young woman."
"I ended up following her and I ended up seeing her and a bunch of other women chasing after a midget of a man who was stealing their underwear of all things. On a whim, I ended up helping her deal with that little underwear thief. Afterwards, Me and the woman I met, Cologne, started talking and getting to know each other."
"It was at this time, I actually started to fall in love. But she told me about the laws of her people. And so, we fought, and I won. We spent some very good years together. But..." He started to trail off.
"What? What happened?" Ranma asked.
"Yeah, come on. Spill." Sunset said. Master Asia sighed, but Cologne was the one to continue.
"He up and left me, that's what happened." Said the old Amazon. Master Asia narrowed his eyes at his former lover.
"I had a good reason for leaving Cologne." He said as he looked back on the memories of why he left.
"I actually felt happy in that village of yours. Spending day after day training and spending time with you were some of the best days of my life. However, two years after we were wed, I caught sight of a tradition of your people you neglected to tell me about. I saw a woman who had come to take back a lover of hers that your people kidnapped after he bested one of your fighters. She managed to best her opponent, but as soon as her back was turned, the woman she defeated stabbed her in the back!"
"WHAT!?" All the mane seven said. Ranma however, just growled as he understood.
"Just like with me when I still had my curse." He said. "When a man beats them, they marry them. But when a girl beats them, they do whatever they can to kill them."
The girls all looked appalled but Shampoo just huffed as if Ranma and Master Asia were talking about the weather.
"So? It Amazon law. In order to regain honor, Amazon what loses to outsider woman must avenge herself." She said.
"You don't have to go and kill them though!" Fluttershy shouted at the Amazon woman.
"Yeah! You can challenge them to a rematch, but killing them when their back is turned is just going too freaking far!" Rainbow Dash said.
"I agree," Master Asia said. "That's why after I saw what happened, I went to talk to Cologne and she acted much the same as Shampoo over here. It was then that I had a flashback to my old commanding officer back in my days as a samurai trainee. So, I decided to leave the village and never return. I asked my, then wife, Cologne here to come with me. I begged, but all she did was refuse and try to stop me."
"She didn't take it lightly, but my mind was made up. So she tried to stop me. Her, and some of her Amazon sisters. They all failed, and I left my 'ex-wife' with a broken heart. And a few broken ribs too." He finished. Cologne scoffed.
"That's not all you left me with. It wasn't until sometime after you left that I found out I was with child. I raised our babe and taught her the ways of Amazon life, but I never bothered to mention you because to me, and the tribe, you were basically dead." The elder Amazon said.
"And if I had known you were pregnant, I would have waited until that baby was born and take her with me so that she wouldn't have to be raised like a murderous witch like her mother." Master Asia said, his normally calm deminor turning to icy rage.
"IF you had done that, you would have been hunted down, my love." Cologne said, her own battle aura flaring in response to Master Asia's. Ranma and the others gulped at the feeling the two ancient masters were giving off. Shampoo gulped as well, for she not only had just found her great-grandfather, but now she was about to see him and her beloved great-grandmother throw down in a clash of the titans.
"I'll only ask you this once Cologne. Leave me and my student alone. I will not ask you again." Master Asia said. Cologne glared at her former lover.
"Sorry my love, but you know that as the matriarch of the Joketsuzoku, I can't let my, I mean, our great-granddaughter, end up without her betrothed. So, either he mans up and accepts his fate as my new son-in-law, or I'll be dragging him back." She said.
"Read my lips," Ranma butted in. "Go. To. Hell."
"Yeah, what he said." Rainbow said.
"Pack up and leave." Sunset said, crossing her arms.
"Scram or else." Applejack said as she cracked her knuckles.
"You're outnumbered. Leave." Master Asia said as he took up a fighting stance. Cologne's answer was to take up one of her own.
"This won't end like last time, dearest." She said. Master Asia only smirked.
"True. This time I won't even have to try."
And with that, Master Asia dashed forward to strike at Cologne, only for the elder Amazon to leap into the air and go for a counter strike. Or at least, tried to. As soon as her staff went for a his head, Master Asia caught and twisted it around and spun the midget woman around in the air like a child's toy.
Cologne shook her head and righted herself in the air and flipped forward to do a flip kick to his head, only for her foot to pass right through Master Asia's afterimage. Her eyes went wide and she turned quickly to see Master Asia just push her forward. Cologne flipped and landed on the ground as she looked towards her former husband. Master Asia just smirked and gave her the come here motion with his hand.
Cologne growled and channeled ki into her cane and swung it, unleashing a wave of ki at the old master. But Master Asia just smiled and with one swipe of his hand, sliced the ki wave in two, sending both halves flying in opposite directions. Ranma, Shampoo, and the others all gasped at Master Asia's display of raw power.
Cologne rushed at her former lover and struck at him with a relentless barrage of cane strikes, punches and kicks. But to everyone's shock, all Master Asia did was casually avoid all her strikes as if they were in slow motion. Cologne was starting to get annoyed at the fact that her ex-husband was toying with her like she was a child. Cologne struck the ground, causing an explosion to erupt and block Master Asia's vision with a cloud of dust.
She lashed out with a sweep kick, only for her to hit nothing. She looked around and went wide eyed as she barely rolled out of the way of Master Asia's crashing stomp kick. He smirked at his former wife as said old woman growled and struck the ground again, sending out a shockwave at the wise old master. But Master Asia just scoffed and punched the ground, sending out his own shockwave to cancel out Cologne's.
Cologne charged at him again, but Master Asia just parried every one of the old woman's attacks and once he saw an opening, struck her with an open palm strike to the side of her head. Cologne went flying from the attack and then found Master Asia's foot crashing into her stomach. Cologne crashed to the ground and barely had time to flip away from the old man.
Master Asia charged after the old Amazon, and they clashed at lightning speed so fast only Shampoo, Ranma, Pinkie and Rainbow Dash could keep up with their speed. Shampoo couldn't believe that someone was actually forcing her great-grandmother to go all out like this. This man, who was apparently her great-grandfather, was starting to look like a beast in a league of his own.
Back with the fight, Master Asia was hardly winded, but Cologne was getting worried. She hadn't been in a prolonged battle like this in an awfully long time and her former husband was proving why he had earned the title, 'Undefeated of the East'.
"Kikosho!" She shouted as she leapt into the air and brought her hands together and fired a large ball of ki at Master Asia. Master Asia just scoffed again and brought his own hands together and gathered his own ki.
"Denjin Hadoken!" Master Asia cried as he fired a blast of electricity charge ki that not only clashed with Cologne's blast, but had powered right through it and blasted her away.
"Great-Grandmother!" Shampoo called out in worry.
"Yeah! Nice shot master!" Ranma cried out to his master.
"Yeah, blast her into next week!" Rainbow added in.
Cologne shook her head as she smarted from that last attack and looked at the smiling face of the man she once called lover. She flipped back to her feet and inched closer to him, this time taking her time and not charging in.
Master Asia held out one hand in a mocking way as he bid her to come at him again. Cologne, however, wouldn't take the bait so easily this time. Ranma and the others all stared in awe at the sheer skill of the two fighters.
"Wow. I knew Master Asia was powerful, but this is just crazy! He's just toying with that old woman." Twilight said as she readjusted her glasses.
"Yeah, boy he wasn't kidding about not even having to try." Sunset said. Shampoo growled at the two Americans.
"Grrrr! Great-grandmother just warming up! Just watch, you see. Chinese Amazons are greatest in world!" She said with a huff.
"Says the girl who got beat by two members of our group and got one hit K. by our boyfriend." Pinkie said smugly.
Back with the fight, Master Asia was starting to get tired of his and Cologne's stare down.
"What's wrong Cologne? Getting tired of losing to an old man?" He asked with a smirk. Cologne just scoffed as she started to circle around the old master.
"I'll admit, this is a bigger challenge than I thought it would be. But this ol' gal still has a few tricks up her sleeves, my dear." Said the aged Amazon.
And with that, she dashed at Master Asia, swinging her walking stick and firing wind blades at him! Master Asia kept his cool and avoided the attacks as Cologne closed the distance and did a low sweeping attack with her stick at Master Asia's feet.
Master Asia leapt into the air, but that was just what Cologne wanted. She smirked as she launched herself upwards and struck with a barrage of spinning kicks to her former husband. Master Asia blocked and parried the kicks like it was nothing, but then Cologne used her hair to trap Asia's hands together and made a lunge for his heart with her stick.
But at the last second, Master Asia brought his elbows and knees together and not only caught the stick but shattered it to pieces! Cologne was so shocked by what just happened that she didn't have time to register Master Asia shoot out both his feet and kicked Cologne so hard that all the air went out of her lungs. But with her hair wrapped around his wrists, she didn't fly very far. And Master Asia used his predicament to yank Cologne back and spin her around, freeing his hands and also throwing her to the ground!
Shampoo gasped as Ranma and the girls cheered for their mentor as he dived towards Cologne. Cologne panicked and barely rolled out of the way before Master Asia crashed into the ground. Cologne growled and decided to stop holding back on her former lover.
"I've had enough of this." She muttered as she gathered her ki for another attack.
"Now let's see how you deal with this! Shoryuha!" She shouted as she fired a blast of yellow and blue ki in the shape of a dragon at Master Asia. The eyes of their young watchers all went wide in shock, but Master Asia kept his calm and brought his hands together at his side.
"KamehameHA!" He shouted as he fired the charged blast of ki at Cologne's attack.
The two blasts collided and caused a huge explosion, sending Shampoo, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Twilight flying from the shockwave.
"Oh no, girls!" Ranma cried as he fought to keep himself anchored to the ground.
"I've got them!" Rarity said as she created a forcefield that caught the flying girls and created another one that blocked the rest of the backlash form the explosion that almost swept the others away.
"Thanks Rarity!" Rainbow said over the roar of the explosion.
As the roaring winds died down, Rarity dropped the shields and all of the young adults watched as the dust settled. From out of the dust cloud, they could make out Master Asia still standing tall and Cologne looking rather worn out.
"Have you had enough yet?" Master Asia asked, his eyes narrowing. Cologne huffed as she tried to keep herself up.
"You've...huff...definitely gotten...huff...better." She said as she tried to stand upright.
That was one of her strongest attacks and she put everything she had into it. And still this old bastard was able to stand up tall like he hadn't exerted as much as her. She hated to admit it, but as long as this man was in Ranma's corner, getting him married to Shampoo was going to be nearly impossible. She took a breath and sighed.
"Alright. I'll concede...for now. But mark my words, dear husband, one way or another, that boy WILL marry our great-granddaughter. And THAT is an Amazon guaranty." She said. Master Asia just stared at her with eyes that could cut through concrete.
"You're guaranty is about as empty as your bed has been for the last several centuries." He said. "Now get lost while I'm still in a good mood."
Cologne mumbled under her breath as she turned her head to her great-granddaughter.
"Shampoo, let's go." Was all she said as she turned and started to hobble off.
"B-but great-grandmother..." Shampoo started.
"Now child!" Cologne snapped back at her heir. "We've been beaten this day. But that doesn't mean that the war is over just yet."
"Yes, great-grandmother." Shampoo said as she nodded her head in sadness and started after her great-grandmother.
"Yeah, that's right! Get lost ya whack job!" Rainbow said to the retreating Amazon.
"Grrr. Shampoo be back, fat ass!" Shampoo said as she ran to catch up to her great-grandmother.
"WHAT!?" Rainbow said as she tried to charge at the retreating woman while her friends held her back.
"Rainbow! Calm down! She's not worth it!" Sunset said.
"Yeah! Just let her sulk on to whatever hole she and that mummy of on old bat crawled out of." Applejack said.
Rainbow growled as she tried to calm down. While this was going on, Ranma and the others walked over to Master Asia who was watching his ex-wife and his great-granddaughter leave his home, and, in a sense, his life.
"Master...I..." Ranma started to say, but Master Asia cut him off.
"It's ok Ranma." He said. "It's just...one of those things. The kind of things that tends to happen in life. Lovers come in and then they leave. And sometimes they come back with something that makes you wonder about...what might have been."
Ranma didn't know what to say. All the time he's been with Master Asia, the man had hardly ever spoken of his past. And now here Ranma was, finding out that one of the biggest pains in his neck that he only gained because of his father, was the great-granddaughter of his master's wife.
"Gosh. I mean...gosh I don't know what to say." Fluttershy said from behind Ranma.
"There's nothing to say." Master Asia said as he turned to walk off.
"Um...Master Asia? Don't you want to...you know...go after them and talk to your great-granddaughter?" Twilight asked. Master Asia sighed.
"Part of me does, yes. But...at this point, what can I say? She's part of something in my life that I actually regret, and she chose to stay with it. Maybe, if I had known Cologne was pregnant all those years ago...but, a man can't live in 'what ifs'." He said as he walked off.
"Wh-where are you going?" Pinkie asked. Master Asia sighed.
"I just want to be alone for a while kids. That's all." He said as he walked off. Ranma and the others all breathed a heavy sigh as they watched him walk off. Ranma was the most hurt, cause he couldn't think of anything to say or do to help the man who was like a grandfather to him.
"Wow. What a day, huh?" Twilight said as she put a comforting hand on Ranma's shoulder.
"Yeah, no kidding." He answered.
"So...what now?" Asked Applejack. Ranma sighed again.
"I think we'll skip training for today guys." He said as he put his hands in his pockets and walked off.
"Darling, where are you going?" Rarity asked. Ranma stopped and turned to his girlfriends.
"I...don't really know. I just, need to process." He said.
"Hey, she's not your great-grand kid. Look, I know you feel shocked like Master Asia does, but..." Rainbow Dash tried to say as she cut Ranma off.
"What she's trying to say is, we get that you and he are shocked. But you shouldn't let it bum you out. I mean, so that lunatic of an Amazon is related to your master, that doesn't change anything." Sunset said.
"I know." Ranma said. "It's just...shocking. That's all."
"I think what we all need is a day just to get over all this...this..." Rarity tried to chime in.
"Crazy family type drama?" Pinkie suggested.
"Yeah, let's go with that." Rarity said. Ranma forced a smile.
"Yeah, how about we all just go see a movie or something tomorrow?" He suggested. They all nodded.
"Good idea." Twilight said.
"You guys go on ahead." Sunset said. "I've got to get back to my day job."
"Day job?" Ranma asks.
"Yeah. I work at a Japanese restaurant at the mall. I'm a single girl in the big city, gotta make ends meet somehow." She answered.
"Oh." Ranma said.
"Hey! I just thought about something." Pinkie buts in.
"As much fun as our group dates have been, don't cha think we should start dividing up who gets Ranma for a solo date?"
"Oh crap! That's right!" Ranma exclaimed. "I was just talking to Flash about that before we left Camp. With Shampoo and that old ghoul popping up, I totaly forgot."
"Well, um, we could...go ahead and settle it now." Fluttershy suggested.
"I'm all in." Rainbow said.
"Count me in too." Applejack said.
"Well, if it's unanimous..." Rarity said with a smirk.
"ROCK, PAPER, SCISORS!" They all called out as they played for who would get to date Ranma on what day of the week. Ranma just sat down and ruffled the head of little Tsukiro as they watched the girls go at it. Several minutes later...
"YES! I'M FIRST!" Cried out Sunset.
Meanwhile, Shampoo and Cologne were marching off to find a place to stay for the night. Shmapoo was struggling with her emotions. On one hand, she was angry at being denied her betrothed once again by the seven American homewreckers, and on the other hand, she was trying to come to grips with the fact that the man who trained her betrothed, the man who stopped them this time, was her great-grandfather.
As for Cologne, she was having her own internal struggle. She never thought that she would see the one man who had taken her heart again after all these years. And yes, he was as powerful as all the stories said he was. But, there was something nagging at her from the back of her mind. She could tell the old man was holding back, it was obvious. But there was something else.
She wasn't sure, but she could just sense something was off about the man. He was powerful, so powerful that, even while holding back, he could have wiped her out with little effort. And yet...and yet...
'Something just didn't sit right with me. It was almost like...like he was conserving his power. But why?'
Sunset: Hey everyone! Sunset here, and in our next episode, me and the girls all decide on the order in which we get to have our solo dates with Ranma. And I'm first! Anyway, me and Ranma are going out on the town, little do we know, someone is spying on us. Who is it? Find out on the next Equestria Wild Horse: Late But Great Summer Dates! We'll see ya there!
Ending: Talent For Love (Sung by Fluttershy)
(As the music starts to play, painted pastel styled screen shots of Fluttershy, Ranma and the others slowly pass by on the screen)
Life is so full of hurry and hustle
Sometimes I think it's passing us by
The days are like hours, hours like minutes
I'm caught up in it till I look in your eyes
And to my surprise I find there is a heaven
Timeless and real, making me feel
Free and alive
(Scene changes to a painting of Fluttershy looking over a meadow. It shows a close up of her smiling face as another painting takes it's place, showing Rainbow Dash, playing her guitar on stage. Change to a painting of Applejack wiping the sweat off her forhead as she works on her farm.)
You touch me, you kiss me, and time has no meaning
I'm on a rocket to some other zone
Baby, you thrill me - whatever you're doing
Don't think of stopping until we are light-years away
All alone, cause I want to keep this
Treasure for my very own
Your talent for love
(Change to a painting of Twilight looking up at the stars through her telescope. Change to a painting of Rarity modeling one of her dresses. Next is a painting of Pinkie throwing one of her parties. Then comes a painting of Sunset, painting herself and her friends. The picture slowly fades to reveal a painting of Ranma smiling at the screen.)
Trying to move forward, pushing and shoving
People all get in each other's way
But when two lovers find their own magic
Nothing else matters, cause they know it will stay
And I know somehow our spell will not ever be broken
Timeless and real, making me feel
Free and alive
(Change scene to a painting of Ranma walking aimlessly while looking to his right. Scene changes to a close up of Ranma's face before sliding to a picture of Fluttershy. Then it changes to pictures of each of the girls. Next comes a picture of the seven girls waving to Ranma before it swtiches to another close up to Ranma's face, showing him smiling.)
You touch me, you kiss me, and time has no meaning
I'm on a rocket to some other zone
Baby, you thrill me - whatever you're doing
Don't think of stopping until we are light-years away
All alone, cause I want to keep this
Treasure for my very own
Your talent for love
(Switch to pictures showing Ranma hanging with each of the girls. First, him playing guitar with Rainbow, then helping Applejack with her farm work, then him and Rarity dancing, then a picture of him and Twilight stargazing while sitting and leaning on each other, then a picture showing him and Pinkie laughing while partying, then the scene changes to him playing games with Sunset before changing to a picture of him and Fluttershy holding hands under a tree. The final picture is a group painting of Ranma with all the girls, all huddled together and smiling.)