Suggested changes: {before : after}
On Sat, 26 Jul 2003 21:02:42 -0700 Brian Randall <brian@azurite.org>
wrote:
Right. I haven't posted anything since before February 26th, as
until quite recently, I'd lost my internet connection. However, I still
spent a good deal of all that time away from the net writing, working on
stories such as this one -- indeed, this chapter and the next one (or
two) were with pre-readers before I lost my connection. Unfortunately,
at about the same time my connection was restored, {Tradgedy : Tragedy} Struck (tm)
in the form of a failed backup, and pretty much everything I've ever
written... ever... was erased.
However, before the failed backup, Ginrai requested copies of my
latest stories, out of what he insists is not the ability to see the
future, and instead was simple curiosity. So because of that, he was
able to send most of my own writing, at least, back to me after {Tradgedy : Tragedy}
Struck (tm). So. Thanks to Ginrai, Larry F's archive of all my
distributed work, and google's cache of my website, things will
eventually be back on track, and most of what's lost are a few
unreleased stories that I didn't like much anyway, and chances are,
neither would you. I apologize for the absence, and moreso for being
unable to send out all that saved C&C -- not to mention the backlog of
stories by writers who I appreciate that I had WANTED to C&C later.
"To a large degree, yes," Motoko answered, {eyeing : eying} Keitaro worriedly.
"Oe-sensei and I will help you unblock those passageways -- part of it
is by proper breathing, and... he will use pressure points for most of
the rest."
"Yeah, that's it. Well, I'll hit the pressure points, if you're
ready," Ranma said slowly. "But... before I do that, you need to
understand that we need to do this every day for at least a month. Is
that okay with you?"
And just where are those pressure points?
Keitaro's eyes widened, and the deadness about him lessened as he
returned to his normal state, {if : except} his nose was bleeding. Ranma stepped
behind Mutsumi, reaching up under her arm, and poked two fingers into
Mutsumi's chest, touching three separate points on her back at the same
time. The redhead held the pressure points for a moment, until stray
hairs on Mutsumi's head began to rise, as though statically charged.
He wasn't outside yet, which probably meant he was sleeping right
then, too. Well, that just meant there was more time for her to warm up
before he got downstairs. Her unarmed forms were improving under his
guidance, though she'd seen him pick up more than a few tricks of {her
own : hers}. The last time he'd snatched her sword, he'd managed to reproduce
her own air-slash technique. His own barehanded ki-attack was beyond her
at the moment, but he'd dismissed it as being designed specifically for
himself.
"It's a super-special training technique," the girl explained,
peering down from the trapdoor above. "I got it from a book that
Haruka-san dropped, but I changed my mind after I saw what a Ranma did
around cats. I'll get help!" The girl's footsteps echoed across the
planks above her, pattering quickly away.
How did Haruka get a book on Turtle-fist? I think Suu says later that
she found the instructions on the Internet.
"It could be for the best," Motoko reasoned, paling when she
{consider : considered} what Keitaro said.
"Gah!" Naru managed, dropping Keitaro's hand and blushing darkly. "I
swear I was only hauling him outside to have my way with him!"
That sounds so much better. :}b
Ranma and Motoko shared a blink, then took a step back, {eyeing : eying} Naru
appraisingly. "Um, we'll go jogging without you, today," Motoko
suggested. "You two... uh... have fun."
In due course, the pair had reached the bottom {of the descent :}, and
then proceeded to crawl through a network of tunnels, Sarah pausing on
occasion to consult her hand drawn map. "I think it's this way," she
said, pointing to an open space ahead of them, illuminated by the
flashlight. "Or... the next one to the right. I'm not sure."
A square section of the ceiling flipped downward at that precise
moment, and a panicked Shinobu tumbled free, landing squarely in Ranma's
extended arms.
"... or maybe I do, but that's still not the point," he grumped.
Great timing.
"{I still say that : That} looks easy," Ranma said stubbornly. "Can I see the
other bottle?"
"I suppose {: we} could," she replied after a moment, shrugging. "But if
you don't want to talk, you don't have to."
"We work together," she said, grinning. She turned to Kintaro, who
was tightening the spokes on her tire carefully. "Aniki, can we stop in
a town tonight?" She had taken to addressing him the same way that Ranma
had, after the first week or so of {travelling : traveling} together.