Okay, so I lied, there have been some changes but not as extreme 
as I was going to make earlier. As to the whole Nuclear missile 
reality thing: WHO CARES? It's happened, it's over, live with it!:)

--------

                            RANMA 1/2:
                            AFTERMATH
                          by Erin Mills
                  with apologies to Rumiko Takahashi
                  

    He was running. Where the hell was she? Everyone else had gotten 
into the shelters. He himself had about three cops on his tail trying 
to get him to the shelter.
    The streets of Nerima were empty, silent except for the air raid 
sirens that permeated the night air. Somebody had obviously screwed 
up. Whether it was the U.S. or China, no one could say. But he 
figured he had about ten minutes before it was too late.
    He found himself outside the Tendo dojo. He smacked his forehead. 
God, what an idiot he'd been, of course she'd be here!
    He dashed into the house, up the stairs and into the bedroom, 
opening the door so fast that the wooden duck-shaped sign flew off 
the knob and onto the floor.
    There was a form in the bed, the sheet pulled over it's head.
    He approached the bed, uneasy. There was something familiar about 
this setup. His hand reached toward the sheet, grabbed it and pulled 
it off the bed. 
    The rotting corpse of Akane Tendo stared him in the face. He 
recoiled in disgust and shock...
    Then Akane sat up.
    "RAAAAAANNNNMAAAAAAA!!!!!" she bellowed. He screamed.
    
    Ranma Saotome sat up on his futon, sweat rolling off his body. He 
sucked in huge lungfuls of air. Then, when he'd calmed down 
sufficently, he rubbed his eyes.
    The dream again. Every night for the past four years he'd had the 
dream and every night he awoke screaming and covered with sweat. He 
looked out the nearby window. The sun was beginning to rise. 
    Ranma cast off his blanket and stood, looking out the window at 
the vast expanse of desert that Nerima and indeed, all of Japan had 
become.

    It had happened. World War Three. Only not between the U.S. and 
the former USSR. No, it had happened between the U.S. and China. 
Those who remembered what the two nations had decided to blow the 
living hell out of each other over were now so much dust and 
semi-radioactive carbon molecules. 
    Nerima was complete chaos when news of the first strike came. 
There was a mad dash to get everyone into the shelters. Families were 
divided, many people didn't even make it. Ranma had found himself in 
a shelter with most of the people he knew: Ryoga, Kuno, Mousse, 
Shampoo, Ukyou, Cologne, Nabiki, his father, and Soun Tendo.
    It was only after the doors were sealed that everyone realized 
that both Akane and Kasumi were missing. 

    In the months following, everyone in the shelter, (25 people in 
all) tried to pass the time as best they could. Despite all the 
promises, the U.S. had developed a nuclear warhead with enough power 
to screw up the functions of nature for over a year in a radius of 
4,000 kilometers from the main target. The target had been Beijing, 
China.
    Aside from a few rampant cases of cabin fever (put down by Ranma 
and Co.) things were peaceful. There was enough food and water in the 
shelters to last five years. There was an emergency gasoline-powered 
generator, so they had electricity and heat. 
    However, it was soon discovered that not all the radioactive 
seals had taken. 
    Shampoo had died in the first year after the initial blast. 
Somehow, she had found a place where the seals were weakened and 
slowly died of radiation poisoning. Everyone else, who were also 
feeling some of the initial effects, found the room and sealed it 
off.
    Unfortunately, it happened to be the room where Shampoo had been 
sleeping. Getting blasted with radiation for eight hours a night for 
six months had taken it's toll, and she spent the next six dying in 
front of everyone's eyes.
    When she died, the grief had been too much for Mousse to bear, 
and he had run off screaming towards the main doors. Despite an 
attempt by Ryoga, Kuno and Ranma to stop him, Mousse managed to get 
out of the shelter and into the radioactive wasteland Japan had 
become.
    Luckily for everyone else, the shelter's main door was an airlock 
setup so no radiation managed to get in.
    A year after Mousse's escape, it was determined that the world 
outside was once again inhabitable. Japan had become a blasted 
desert, the only remains of Tokyo were the now considerably shorter 
skyscrapers. Those who were lucky enough to get into the shelters 
quickly found each other. 
    After a head count was taken, it was discovered that Akane never 
made it, and two of the persons unaccounted for were Kasumi Tendo and 
Dr. Ono Tofu.
    Soun, unable to cope with the emotional loss of two of his 
daughters, died of grief soon afterwards. Considering what happened 
next, it was probably a good thing he did. 

    Ranma dressed quickly. He wore pretty much the same clothes he 
had in the past, except the red silk chinese shirt had been replaced 
by a black one, in respect for Akane.
    Ranma was currently living in a small shack built on the site of 
the Tendo dojo. He had shunned most company for the last two years, 
only leaving whenever a mutant threat had appeared or when he needed 
supplies.
    He had filled out in the four years since the end of the world. 
The only noticeable flaw was the five inch scar that now ran down his 
cheek. A souvenier from an old adversary. Ranma pulled on the leather 
trenchcoat he used for protection from the sands, left the shack and 
began hiking towards Shantytown.

    Shantytown was exactly that. A conglomeration of huts and shacks 
built by the 300 survivors of the war. There were a few businesses 
and a schooling system of sort had finally been implemented last 
month.
    Hell, there was even a restaurant. One which had been around 
since before the war. Ucchan's, Ukyou Kuonji, proprieter.
    Ukyou arose that morning, excited. If Ranma was holding to his 
usual schedule, he was due into town today to pick up supplies. He 
always stopped by the new Ucchan's to say hello. 
    Ukyou was not only the owner of Ucchan's, she also served on 
Shantytown's regional governmental board. The board consisted of 
herself, Nabiki, Cologne, Kuno, and Ryoga. Ranma had been part of the 
board shortly after the first mutant attacks,but he had grown 
disgusted with the whole idea and wandered out into the ruins of 
Nerima. He'd lived like a hermit ever since, but whenever a mutant 
pack decided to attack Shantytown, you could bet Ranma would be back.
    Ukyou sighed and fingered the patch that covered her right eye 
and the scars that came out from under it, onto her cheek...

    It was a month after the release from the shelters. The few 
hundred survivors of the holocaust had wandered through the ruins of 
Tokyo, looking for pieces of the world they knew. The rebuilding had 
just begun to get under way.
    In a perverse sense, Akane and Shampoo's deaths had actually 
helped. Thrashed by grief, Ranma, Ryoga, and Kuno had managed to 
successfully destroy most of the rubble that was obstructing the 
construction of what was to become Shantytown. 
    The sun was beginning to set. Ukyou had been near the edge of the 
camp the refugees had staked out. She had taken it upon herself to 
keep an eye out for any trouble. The world just wasn't safe anymore.
    She shivered in the leather bomber jacket she had found earlier 
that month. The weather was very unusual. Ukyou had heard that when a 
nuclear explosion went off, the average temperature around the 
blast range had fallen to around -20 degrees F. That seemed to be the 
case at night, but the days were usually unbearably hot. In fact, it 
had gotten so hot that Ukyou had undergone a major change in 
wardrobe. These days she was prone to wearing a cream tank top and 
blue jean cutoffs, changing into long jeans and a sweater when the 
sun set. A pair of hiking boots completed both ensembles.
    She stood on the outskirts of the camp, the last rays of sunlight 
glinting off her four foot combat spatula and the smaller throwing 
ones in her bandoleer. 
    She heard a movement behind her. In a flash, the spatula was out, 
and pointed at the newcomer. It was Ranma.
    "Hey, whoa, hold it Ucchan!" 
    Ukyou exhaled and lowered the cooking implement.
    "Dammit, don't scare me like that!"
    "You've been feeling it too, huh?" Ranma asked.
    He had been plagued with a feeling of uneasiness for most of the 
day. He had felt a presence just on the outskirts of his vision. A 
feeling of being...
    "Watched?" asked Ukyou. Ranma nodded.
    "Something is out there," he said. "Waiting,"
    "Waiting,"
    The two childhood friends looked out at the desert night. After a 
while, they were joined by Ryoga and Kuno. They too were feeling 
something odd.
    "There is an evil bode in the air, Saotome," Kuno said, bokken in 
hand.
    "Stay alert," Ranma replied. "It's due to happen soon,"
    Then the mutants attacked.
    
    The majority of the mutants who attacked were irradiated humans 
who were slowly dying and driven half mad by the radiation that was 
destroying their bodies. They attacked without rhyme or reason, 
slaughtering anyone who got in their way.
    The four Nerimites did their best to protect those who couldn't 
protect themselves. RAnma and Ryoga attacked with bare fists anf ki-
blasts. Those not fast enough to avoid Kuno's bokken thrusts found 
themselves hard pressed to breathe. Some even galloped off into the 
night, small razor edged spatulas protruding from various appendages.
    Then the call came. A call hauntingly familiar, and yet seeming 
borne of the bowels of Hell. A call of four names:
    "HIBIKI! KUONJI! KUNO!" a pause "SAAAOOOOOTOOOMMMMMEEEE!"
    The four looked around, and saw, standing on a sand dune outside 
of camp, back lit by the moon, was a figure with one glowing green 
eye.
    The figure was bald, dressed in tattered robes with two huge 
claws coming out of the sleeves. As he approached, they could see 
that he was wearing one half of an inch-thick pair of glasses. The 
claw on his right hand was made of metal and seemed to be permanently 
bonded to the skin, the other claw was actually the nails of the 
left hand, each at least half an inch thick.
    For a moment the four friends stared at this strange apparition. 
It raised a claw and pointed at them.
    "You will DIE! For Shampoo!" it bellowed.
    Realization hit them like a Mack truck. It was Mousse!
    Mousee charged forward, claws at the ready. Ryoga jumped towards 
him, attempting a flying kick.
    He was fairly surprised when Mousse rolled under him, turned and 
elbowed him in the mouth, sending one of Ryoga's fangs flying.
    Ryoga got up and grabbed Mousse's robes. Mousse smiled, revealing 
fangs of his own, and bit Ryoga's hand. Ryoga screamed in pain as the 
needlelike teeth penetrated his skin. Mousse raised his metal claw. 
Ryoga blocked the strike, saving his face but getting some really 
horrible cuts on his forearm.
    Kuno and Ukyou had managed to sneak up on Mousse. Kuno made a 
motion to strike, but Mousse had seen it coming and made a gesture 
with his left hand. Instantly a katana shot into his grip and Mousse 
used the blade to separate Kuno's left hand from the rest of his body.
    Kuno yelped in agony and fell to his knees. Ukyou grabbed Kuno by 
the jacket and dragged him to safety. 
    Mousse turned his attention to Ryoga and was greeted by the full 
force of the Shishi Houkouden. Mousse went flying about ten yards, 
and landed on his feet. He charged forward, raising his metal claw.
    Ryoga tried to block, but Mousse was just a little bit faster. 
The mutant managed to gouge three perpendicular scars on Ryoga's 
chest. Ryoga grimaced at the pain, but held his ground.
    Meanwhile, Ranma and Ukyou were charging forward, intending to 
put the insane being out of their misery. Ukyou cut loose with a 
volly of spatulas that embedded themselves in Mousse's back. Mousse 
howled in pain and turned, snarling.
    Ranma and Ukyou leaped into the air, Ranma preparing a kick and 
Ukyou unslinging the combat spatula. Both attacks would've been 
successful if Mousse hadn't blocked the kick with his left hand and 
grabbed the spatula with the right.
    He threw Ukyou over his shoulder and she crashed into the ground, 
throwing up a pile of sand. Ukyou stood up, a little dazed and saw 
her combat spatula was broken and unusable. She went to the bandoleer 
and found she was out of throwing spatulas.
    "Aw, hell," she said, and charged forward.
    Ranma dodged left and right. Somehow, Mousse's reflexes and 
strength had been increased during the year he'd spent in the 
wastelands. Ranma let Mousse have it with the Tenshin Amaguriken, but 
that only seemed to make him even more enraged. Mousse managed to 
grab him by the shirt.
    "Now, you die, Ranma," Mousse growled, raising his right hand, 
claw at the ready.
    "Not so fast, ugly!" Ukyou yelled. She charged forward, leaped 
and kicked Mousse in a spot where one of the throwing spatulas was 
embedded, driving it in further! Mousse let out an inhuman wail, and 
thrust his right hand toward her.
    Ukyou saw a flash of moonlight, and then felt a searing pain in 
her right eye. She cried out in agony and fell to the ground, 
clasping her hands to her eye socket, which was bleeding profusely.
    Ranma saw this, and became enraged. The ki-energy built up and...
    "HIRYU SHOTZEN HA!"
    The technique lifted Mousse into the air. As the mutant was 
rising, he snarled in anger and lashed out with his left hand. Ranma 
felt a sting on his cheek, and saw Mousse go flying and hit the 
ground, hard.
    Ranma crouched next to Ukyou, helping her up. She whimpered in 
pain.    
    "Let's get you guys some medical attention," he said. He failed 
to notice that he cheek was bleeding as bad as the injuries his 
friends had suffered.
    Later, the final count showed that the mutants had injured forty 
people and killed seventeen. Genma Saotome was one of the slain.
    Ranma went back to the scene of the fight with Mousse, ignoring 
the doctors protests. Mousse was no longer there, but there was a 
message scratched into the sand.
             
                           "I WILL RETURN,"
    
    Ranma knew Mousse meant it...        


    Ukyou had become more cynical after that day. She gave up on 
Ranma, convinced that he'd never love her the way she looked now. 
Still, she looked forward to Ranma's visits, even though he still 
blamed himself for the death of Akane.

    Meanwhile, while the two friends were lost in reflection, Mousse 
himself was thinking about the past. Specifically how he was going to 
make the survivors pay for letting Shampoo die, and especially those 
who he had stupidly thought were his friends.
    HA! His only friends were the humanoid animals he now led. Formed 
from the radioactive air, dogs. birds, fish, and rats had survioved 
and changed, adapting to the climate and growing in intelligence.
    They had changed thier names calling themselves Dawgs, Brrds, 
Rattz, and Phiish. At first, they continued hunting each other, but 
then Mousse had appeared and united the four tribes, telling them 
that it was the humans to blame for the worlds troubles. The tribes 
had believed him and soon were united with Mousse as their leader.
    Mousse felt that the time of the human had passed. He was going 
to unite all the mutants of the new Earth and rule, but first, he had 
a settlement to wipe out and a debt to repay.
    "Satori!" he called. A Dawg dressed in black leather approached 
him. Satori was a breed of German Shepherd and Mousse's second in 
command.
    "Inform the troops that we're going on the move," said Mousse.
    "Against the village, lord?" 
    "Not yet, first we must find a certain place. Then we'll expunge 
the settlement once and for all!"
    "What would this be, lord?" asked Satori.
    "I have discovered directions to an underground missle silo. We 
will travel there. I'm sure at least one missle will be there, and if 
it is, we will use it to kill them all, or failing that, make them 
like us. We will not fail again! Go!"
    "Yes, lord," Satori bowed and left. Mousse grinned, sunlight 
reflecting off his fangs.
    "You will die, Saotome. For Shampoo,"
    
    
 ----------------
 
 There you have it. Now maybe I can get on with the rest of the 
story, ne? :)                        
                                        ---Erin 2.5