RANMA1/2: BURNT LANDS
Book I - Beginnings
Chapter two:  Project Jusenkyo

	Ranma was tired, hungry, confused, but mostly he 
was wet.  Being wet isn't normally that bad for him, he got 
treated better, he could fit into smaller places, and he was a 
bit fast.  Only now, what he really needed was some 
weight.
	Of all of the transportation he could use, Ranma 
always preferred to ride a motorcycle.  There was 
something about motorcycles that drew him to them, some 
beauty that attracted him.  He rode a motorcycle almost 
since he could fight, and he considered himself very good 
at them.  Unfortunately, the thing he was riding on, while 
close to a motorcycle, didn't quite fit the bill.
	It wasn't that the thing was too slow, or that it was a 
badly made piece of machinery.  In fact, it was better than 
most of the things he rode.  The problem was, it was big.  
The thing was built to power through obstacles instead of 
going around the.  And now, with his lowered weight and 
size, Ranma had an increasingly hard time controlling the 
thing.  Plus, if he slowed down the police would be able to 
track him.
	As the tunnels began to get more and more narrow, 
Ranma had to work harder to keep himself seated on the 
bike.  It wasn't like he had much of a choice.  He had given 
his word he'd help this girl, Akane, and he couldn't break it.  
And it wasn't like hot water was abundant in these sewers, 
unless of course you feel like rolling in hot sewage.
	Ranma, as can be predicted, did not feel like rolling 
in sewage.  For that matter, he didn't feel like doing any of 
this, but he made a promise - and he was bound be his 
promises.  He was forced to deal with the reality at hand, 
how to ride this bike with a quarter less mass and strength 
than he normally had.  
	Thinking for a while, he knew he had a way ... if he 
wanted to use it.  With this female body's flexibility and his 
innate reflexes, he could let go of his mind, and his body 
would be able to give beyond his normal limits.  It was a 
kind of self-hypnosis, but it had side affects.  It tended to 
bring memories back to the surface as daydreams. They 
were completely realistic, and always the worst memories 
he had.
	He couldn't decide for a moment.  It wasn't until he 
almost didn't make the next turn that he realized he didn't 
have a clear choice.  If he slowed any further, those cops 
would catch him, and if he kept as he was going he'd end 
up as part of the wall.  No longer hesitating, Ranma let his 
mind slip into another state and began to dream.

[FLASH]
	"... but Pop, shouldn't we be in hiding right now?   
Thanks to you, we're wanted men."  asked a thirteen-year-
old Ranma.
	Genma looks sternly at his son.  "Don't blame me 
for that accident, I could not have predicted that the man 
would be important!"
	"Yeah, but I wanted to work for the medicine.  We 
didn't have to steal it!"  
	"Would you have your mother die in the interim?  I 
told you, it would have taken too long.  We needed the 
medicine immediately."
	"But Pop...."
	"Boy, we cannot argue right now.  We are here."  
Genma said as he points to a large, low standing building.
	The building was plain, nothing at all distinguishing 
about it.  While big, it was not imposing; and from the 
looks of it, it hasn't been painted for some time.  The off-
white color seemed to further the look of insignificance 
this building held.  Ranma couldn't believe this was the 
research facility his dad told him about.
	"This doesn't look like the great research facility 
that you talked about.  Are you sure this is the place?"  
Ranma asked using his what-are-you-doing-this-time tone.
	Genma looked at a piece of paper in his hands, then 
back at the building.  "Well, this *is* the address on the 
paper, and you know Yoiko wouldn't give us the wrong 
address.  Hopefully, it will be better on the inside that it is 
on the outside...."
	"Pop, anything would be better than this place's 
outside.  I still don't want to stay in a place with holes in 
the walls."
	"....besides," Genma continues without listening to 
Ranma (not an unusual occurrence), "we don't *want* to 
attract attention.  This is the perfect place to lie low for a 
while, we can finally stay in one place for a few days."
	"Alright, but if this place has rats, I'm outta here!"
	Genma walked calmly up to the door and knocked.  
Pound! Pound!  Pound!  Abruptly, the door cracked open 
and a Chinese head popped out.  The head looked at the 
two of them for a moment, examining them up and down, 
then swung the door the rest of the way open.  The light 
reveals a slightly pudgy, middle age, Chinese man who 
quickly begins talking in a thick accent.  
	"Oh, you make fine subjects.  Very strong and fit, 
yes come on in, Mr. Guests."  the Chinese man said.  
"Consider me guide for this place."
	The men walked inside of the building.  Following 
the Chinese Guide, they began making their way through 
what looks to be a long abandoned  warehouse.  
Whispering to his father, Ranma remarked, "This doesn't 
look any better on the inside, either."
	The Chinese guide swung around with marked 
amusement on his face.  "Oh, Mr. Guests, you not see it all 
yet.  I guarantee, you like what you find!"
	They continued to walk forward in silence.  Ranma 
still wasn't impressed by what he saw, but he held his 
tongue.  Finally, they reached a small gate which the 
Chinese Guide pulled up.  Behind the gate, a small, well 
crafted elevator stood empty.  Walking in after the Chinese 
guide, the two Saotome men could only gape in wonder at 
the things they saw below.
	As the elevator descended, Ranma and Genma 
managed to catch a few glimpses of what was below.  On 
the lower levels was a huge amount of equipment as well 
as a high tech lab unmatched by anything they could 
imagine.  Just as they were about to leave the elevator, 
Ranma saw the words "Project Jusenkyo" written on the 
door.

[FLASH]
	<Okay, that wasn't so bad.  It wasn't like I relived 
any of the bad parts ... yet.  Of course, if I go back I'm 
gonna have to relive those scenes.> he though as he 
returned to consciousness.  As he made another turn, 
Ranma felt the strain on his arms and knew he had to go 
back.  Without the trance, his body couldn't handle the 
bike.
	<If only I could relive the boring times, like the two 
months after we got there.  But no, it's always the stuff I 
hate.  Okay, here goes.>  Ranma took a final deep breath 
then slipped back in.

[FLASH]
	"Very good, Mr. Guest, you finish already!"  said 
the Chinese guide to Ranma.
	Ranma stepped off the treadmill, showing only the 
slightest signs of exertion.  "Great, this is a piece of cake!  
Only, when are we going to get to the *real* 
experimenting?  All you've done so far is do tests on us!"
	The Chinese Guide looked at him questioningly.  
"Is no good for you?  You rather have chemicals put in 
body so you grow green hair?"
	Ranma laughed lightly at his questions.  "It's not 
that I *want* to be experimented on, it's just that all the 
waiting is getting me nervous.  I mean, if we're supposed to 
be participating in this experiment, I wanna get it over 
with.  Besides, you haven't even told us what we are 
supposed to do, or what you guys are trying to do."
	The Chinese Guide smiles.  "Oh, is that why Mr. 
Guest?  Since, can't have you nervous (it makes tests bad), I 
show you what we do."  He leads Ranma into the next 
room.
	For the last two months, Ranma and his father had 
only been examined physically.  The scientist seemed 
interested in testing their strength and fitness, but never did 
blood tests.  They seemed especially interested in how their 
bodies worked when cold or hot.
	In a moment, the Chinese Guide opened a door for 
Ranma that led to a giant labroom.  Inside the room were 
various instruments and equipment, as well as a quite a few 
animals.  The Chinese Guide turned around to look at 
Ranma. 
	"You see, we no experiment for humans.  We trying 
to make formula that changes an animal into another.  We 
need to test human reactions so we can make formula for 
turn animal into human.  Right now we have one for human 
girl, we now making one for human man."
	Ranma stood there confused.  "B-But, I don't 
understand.  How can you make an animal change into 
another animal?  And how do those test you are always 
doing on me and Pop relate?"
	"Excuse me, sir."  a tall looking man says to the 
Chinese Guide.  "Let me try to explain this to him."
	The Chinese guy nods to the man, and the man 
begins to talk.  "See, we are making a drug that alters DNA, 
causing it to change when exposed to extreme 
temperatures.  Only thing is, the temperatures have to be so 
extreme right now, that the animal ever survives.
	"That's where you guys come in.  We are trying to 
see what changes occur in the body when it gets heated or 
cooled that might tell us what is going on.  We need to test 
humans so that we can be sure it'll work with more 
complicated DNA.  So far, the simpler the DNA, the easier 
it is to change."
	Ranma was still a bit lost, but he understood more 
than before.  "So, what have you got so far?"
	"Well, we are almost able to change a fruitfly into a 
moth with it surviving.  It seems that in the presence of a 
magnetic force it works better, we just have to find one 
weak enough.  Oddly enough, the weak ones work best.
	"Oh, and we were able to synthesize the drug for 
changing a animal into a female human.  Soon, we'll get the 
one for a male human.  But like I said, we have to find out 
how to get those changes to work, and to get them to be 
stable enough to be under our control."
	Ranma couldn't really sympathize with him because 
he had no idea what the man was talking about, but he did 
wish the man well.  Turning back to the Chinese Guide, he 
asked him, "You think Pop can see this?"
****Half an hour later****
	"....stable enough to be under our control."  the tall 
scientist finished saying.
	Ranma leaned over to his father and whispered, 
"See, I told you that this was what they were doing.  I bet 
you never expected to be involved in genetic testing.  
Maybe I can get them to change you into something that 
can't talk, like a baboon.  Not that you'd look different."  he 
chortled.
	Genma's face turned red ... then purple ... then 
finally settled on something on the yellow side of plaid.  
With  the quickness of a cat, he grabbed his son and sent 
him sailing, right into on of the experiments.  The good 
thing was, Ranma wasn't actually hit by anything; the bad 
thing was, Ranma did manage to send a glass flying.
	Everyone could only stare in shock as the tall glass 
of liquid flew in the air.  They all saw it in slow motion as 
the glass finally reached a table on the other side of the 
room, and break.  The contents spilled all over the table, 
drenching the equipment and experiment on it.  Then 
everyone went back to normal.
	"Hey, what do you think your doing?"  "Do you 
mind."  "You can't do that in here!"  "You ruined my 
experiment"  "That's not my stethoscope!"
	Everyone was screaming and yelling at each other.  
Accusations and apologies flew threw the air, when 
suddenly somebody yelled.  A small, red-haired girl 
screamed at all the people, "STOP!  Look at this, I think 
we've found our solution!"
	Everybody moved to the table she was at, the same 
one the glass broke on.  Ranma tried to look over the group 
to see what they were whispering about, but to no avail.  A 
second later, they all started cheering and Ranma yelled 
out, "Can somebody tell me what's so important."	
	The girl ran up and hugged him.  "You did it!  You 
discovered the thing that makes the drug work!  It was 
water, all this time it was water.  It's polarization makes it 
so that the induction of a temperatured water will cause a 
change depending on the temperature!"
	"W-What?"
	The Chinese Guide danced around in joy and said to 
Ranma, "Mr. Guest, cold water changes the animal into 
another.  Hot water changes it back. So simple, yet we 
never figure it out!"
	Time drastically slowed.  Ranma could see 
everyone's faces, the smiles and laughs all flowing together.  
He could feel his own excitement, but he knew something 
was wrong.  Moving faster than most could see, yet too 
slow to him, he looked directly at his father and had his 
suspicions confirmed.  His father was looking around with 
the same worried expression on his face.
	Both of them knew that something is wrong, both 
felt their senses scream with danger.  They both sought to 
figure out what was wrong, yet failed to do so.  They 
couldn't move fast enough, one of the first times in their 
lives they weren't skilled enough.  And when the explosion 
hit, they had no time to warn anybody.
	Screams and blood, the sound of an explosion, and 
the sight of men rushing into the room; they all filled 
Ranma's head to the point of spilling over, and then 
suddenly stopped.  He vision became suddenly clear, and 
he felt his body being thrown through the air.  
	In  front of him, he saw several people burst apart.  
He saw several of the scientist fly into their experiments.  
There were other explosions from the equipment itself, and 
several of the men rushing in were caught in the chaos as 
well.  At the last moment, Ranma felt his back collide with 
something glass, and as the pain overtook him, he passed 
out.
[FLASH]
	"NNNNOOOOOO!" Ranma screamed on the bike. 
He saw this reality again, but only for a moment.  The next 
second, he was flung back into the chaos of his memory.
[FLASH]
	A young girl rocked back and forth as she sat on the 
floor.  All around her were bodies and blood, the stench of 
burnt flesh just beginning to fill the room.  She kept 
whispering to herself, "This isn't happening.  Pop isn't dead, 
these people aren't real. This isn't happening...."
	The man in charge of this operation, a long time 
soldier known for his brutality, overlooked the bloody field 
with pride.  He was glad that this sting went so well, he 
actually planned for all of the people to die.  His only 
regret, and even that was small, was that he lost his second 
officer in the attack.  He sighed, "Well, we can't have it 
perfect all the time."
	He had been told to destroy this installation and any 
evidence of its existence.  This wasn't government 
approved, so it had to be eliminated.  <Such a shame> he 
thought, <This technology is more advanced than some of 
the government's>.  The oddest thing was, the government 
refused to tell him what the project was about.
	The man walked among the littered floor, noting a 
distinct discrepancy in the number of bodies there were 
suppose to be.  They had more than enough animals, but 
not enough bodies.  He continued to walk among the ruined 
lab, looking for clues as to what had happened.
	"Capt. Sauryl, we found another live one!  This one 
is in crit. condition though."  yelled a low ranking officer.
	The Captain turned his attention to the man's words 
then nodded.  "Lead me to him, I want to see who he is."
	With the quick answer of, "Sir.", the young officer 
lead Capt. Sauryl to the back of the lab.  Lying in a pool of 
blood, broken glass having pierced through her belly, was a 
young girl.  Somewhere between twenty-three and twenty-
six, the young girl was a prominent figure on the list of 
researchers.
	Captain Sauryl looked at the young officer intently, 
telling him without words to give the briefing.  The young 
officer promptly took out a folder and began to read aloud. 
"Amy Holland, age 24.  Second high researcher in 
temperature control.  Graduated top of her class from PTI, 
and is considered one of the best in her generation."  the 
officer looks at the Captain for the last part, "The 
instruction say that she is wanted ... dead."
	The Captain looks back to the girl; and without the 
slightest hesitation on his part, he pulls out a gun and 
unloads three round into her.  The girl didn't even time to 
speak before she died.  Finally, the Captain puts away his 
gun and turns back to the officer.  
	"I want the bodies rounded up and burned.  Tell the 
men to take al the animals into the woods and shoot them.  
And as for that girl," he points to the girl sitting on the floor 
and whispering to herself, "Take her into the van and I'll 
interrogate her myself.  You have your orders, move it!"
	The men flew into action, sweeping up the bodies 
and transporting the animals as quickly as was humanly 
possible.  The young officer himself went to attend to the 
young girl.
	She sat there rocking still, her mind not willing to 
accept what had happened.  She was beautiful, her long red 
hair perfectly complimenting her blue-green eyes.  The 
officer looked at her just budding figure and a familiar 
feeling began to stir in his loins.  Remembering the 
Captain's well known reputation of passing the "spoils" 
down to his men when he finished, the soldier hoped that 
he'd get his chance soon.
	Using brute strength, he hauled the girl onto his 
shoulders and carried her to the van.  She didn't struggle at 
all, which brought a smile to his face.  Unlike the other 
men in his section, he didn't like it when a girl fought back.  
When he finally got there, he dumped her into the interior 
of the van, hearing her say one word as he departed, 
"Ranma."
	
[FLASH]
	Ranma was breathing hard now, his body using up 
most of his reserves to keep going.  He didn't want to go 
back, but now he had to complete it.  He couldn't just leave 
at a memory like that, he had to finish the whole thing.  
Letting his mind go once more, he went back to the final 
part of the memory.

[FLASH]
	Ranma couldn't even remember much about after 
the explosion, only the vague recollection on going into 
shock and being carried somewhere.  Looking around, he 
saw that he was in a small, well furnished room.  Inside, 
there was a small kitchen, a place to sleep, and a bathroom 
on the other side.
	He got up, and felt ... different.  He needed someone 
to explain what had happened, and he was certain that 
somebody had to be there.  Tilting his head in all 
directions, he finally caught sight of what he was looking 
for.  He saw, in the bathroom, somebody he didn't 
recognize, and they were looking back.
	As he got closer, he saw that the person was 
definitely female, and she held the same expression on his 
face as he did.  Almost there, he picked up a cloth to wipe 
off his damp feeling hair ... and saw her do the same.
	The warning signals went off.  This girl was dressed 
exactly like him, she bared a distinct resemblance to him, 
and she just did the same thing as he.  Moving forward 
some more, he knew what it was.  He was facing the 
bathroom mirror, and that girl was him.
	"NNNNNOOOOO!" he screamed out, but it didn't 
help.  He recalled what the scientist said about the formula, 
"They found the answer.  Cold water changes me into a 
girl, hot water changes me back."
	Almost panicking, he suddenly calmed down.  "W-
Wait, what am I doing?" he actually laughed, "They made 
the discovery, there must be a cure!  Jeez, I feel like a dolt 
now!  All I gotta do is get back to the lab ... the lab...."	
	All at once, memories of what happened flooded 
back to him.  "There was an explosion, the whole lab was 
destroyed.  Everyone was killed, I couldn't see Pop.  That 
man in black shot that girl, I remember.  I remember it all.  
There is no cure ... there is no lab."
	His senses flared a moment, signaling him to the 
entrance of the Captain.  Ranma remembered his face, and 
he knew who he was.  For once Ranma's mind was 
perfectly clear, and he fell back into the "shocked girl" act.
	The Captain walked blithely in, proud to see that 
his instructions had been followed perfectly.  He planned to 
reward his soldiers ... as soon as he was done himself.  
	Grabbing Ranma by the sides of his shirt, the 
Captain pushed him down onto the sofa.  Admiring the girl, 
he didn't even notice the dangerous look in Ranma's eyes.  
In a moment, Captain Sauryl turned his attention back to 
Ranma's face, noting how beautiful it was.  The Captain 
had to be sure not to harm the "girl's" face during the 
interrogation.
	"What do you know about this place?  Who are you"  
he asked roughly.  Receiving no answer he pinched one of 
Ranma's pressure points and repeated the question.
	Ranma would normally have been amused by this 
man attacking him like that, but he had something to 
accomplish first.  Acting like the pressure point hurt, he let 
a tear fall from his eye then quickly answered.  "I-I don't 
know anything.  They just b-b-brought me here t-to do 
experiments on.  What are you go-oing to do with m-me?"
	The Captain smoothly backhanded her and said, 
"You do not ask the questions!  You understand?!  You 
don't ask me anything!"
	"B-But I just wanna know what happened to all the 
people, what will happen to me."  Ranma cried out.
	The Captain's smile turned cruel.  "Ah, what 
happened to the people?  I can tell you that, I had them all 
killed!  There's nobody but you alive, and that will be 
corrected soon ... after me and men have our fun."  He 
began to move closer to Ranma and whispered, "I hope 
you're a virgin, I do love virgins."
	It was Ranma's turn though.  The knowledge that 
his father had been killed was all he needed to know.  He 
turned his eyes towards the Captain, letting the man see the 
coldness that laid in them.  The Captain actually took a step 
back as Ranma began to speak.
	"You just ... killed ... my father.  You killed a lot of 
innocent, good, people.  And you plan on killing me after 
you're through with 'your fun'.  Now let *me* ask you a 
question, who's a girl here?" his voice was soft at the last 
sentence, yet held a dangerous tone.
	In a slit second the Captain had his gun out and 
aimed, only a quarter second to slow for Ranma.  Ranma 
had the man disarmed and screaming in a matter of 
seconds.  Less then ten seconds later, the man was dead and 
stripped.  Ranma changed into this man's clothes and 
headed outside.
	Two men, hearing the screams, merely remarked to 
each other, "It sounds like he's really enjoying it!"
	"It does, doesn't it."
	"I hope he leaves enough for us!"
	"Don't worry about leaving anything, he didn't get 
the chance to do anything." Ranma said behind them, right 
before he unloaded a pistol on them.
	There were twenty men in all, each considered 
guilty by Ranma of murdering his father.  Twenty men, 
each armed, and all military trained.  They could take out 
most small armies ... but this time, they didn't stand a 
chance.  When an hour was done, Ranma had the blood of 
twenty men on his hands ... and he knew only one was 
guilty.  Following orders had been everyone else's crime, 
but only one gave those orders.
	Ranma cried for many reasons that day.  He cried 
because he lost a father and companion.  He cried because 
so many innocents had been killed by the assault.  But 
mostly, he cried because he lost something.  By killing 
those men, he lost a bit of that innocence that people loved 
about him ... and he knew he could kill again.  Ranma cried 
for hours ... hours by himself.

[FLASH]
	Ranma awoke to find that the bike already stopped.  
He had reached the end, and he was crying on the floor.  He 
was never the same since that day, but looking back he 
knew it wasn't all his fault.  This was one time that reliving 
his memories helped, and he felt good.
	Looking to the left, he saw a door to a room.  
Remembering Kenshin's instructions, he knew Akane 
would most likely be there.  There was no clear course of 
actions at this point, so he did what he normally would ... 
he just walked in.
	The room was dark, and almost eerily silent.  
Moving into the room, he saw what resembled a human 
form on the floor a few steps away.  He was just about to 
reach out for it, when his hand instinctively came up and 
blocked a shovel aimed at his head. 
	This wasn't exactly what he expected, but he didn't 
exactly know how long he was out.  About to palm strike 
his opponent, he was surprised by a foot connecting with 
his ribs.  This person was better than he gave them credit 
for.  Unfortunately for them, he didn't have time to play.
	Letting the other person go for another attack, he 
tensed up and let it flip him back.  Rolling into the motion, 
he stopped himself and pulled out the PL at the same time.  
In one motion, he had the person surprised and locked into 
the sight of the gun.  
	"Whoever the hell you are, you better drop the 
shovel and show your face.  I really suggest you cooperate, 
unless you *want* a hole in your chest."
	The person hesitated for a moment, only moving 
when Ranma began charging the PL.  The person quickly, 
and angrily threw down the shovel and slowly moved its 
hand to the wall.  Slowly, the person switched on the lights, 
and starred at Ranma with her angry, blue eyes.
	"Alright, you caught me!  Now what are you 
planning on doing?" the girl asked irately.  She was 
beautiful in her own right, slender and athletic, with long 
black hair down her back.
	Ranma decided to surprise the girl, he flipped the 
gun in his hand and holstered it.  "Akane, right.  I'm not 
here to hurt you.  Your brother, Kenshin, sent me."
	She walked up to Ranma with her eyes bright with 
hope.  "Kenshin?  He's okay, and he sent you?  That's great, 
where is he?"  when she finished she was standing only a 
few steps away, close enough for Ranma to see her full red 
lips, and feel her hot breath.
	<Wow, she's pretty good looking.>  he thought, and 
remembered her question.  "Kenshin?  Oh yeah, Kenshin.  
He's fine, but he told me to take you home because...." he 
collapsed weakly.  Looking up he had just enough time to 
see the stun stick in her hand.

	"Wake up already!"  Akane said to him.
	He looked down and saw his female body tied up 
and bound by all manner of ropes and cables.  He was still 
a bit groggy, but managed to say a few sentences.  "I'm 
awake ... in pain, but awake.  Why'd you tie me up for?"
	"I have no idea who you are, but I do know 
Kenshin.  Kenshin wouldn't just let anybody near me, much 
less have somebody take me home.  I figure your not the 
cops cause you would have just shot me, but you aren't just 
a normal girl either.  Who are you, and what do you want?"
	"Okay, you violent tomboy, you must know better!  
I can tell you that I'm not your normal 'girl', and I most 
certainly aren't a cop.  Look, Kenshin *did* send me, he 
said something about you guys being on the run, and I 
figure he wanted to lay a false trail away from you."
	"Yeah, but why have you take me?"
	"You kidding," he scoffed, "you wouldn't survive 
twenty minutes on your own.  Sure, you might be able to 
survive the tunnels for a while, but I bet you never even 
been on the run by yourself before.  I've been on the run for 
three years so far, maybe your brother recognized it.  
Anyway, I made a promise to get you home safe, and that's 
what I'm going to do."
	"You know, I actually believe you.  I don't know 
why, but I do.  As far as you taking me home, forget it.  I 
don't need any jerk girl weighing me down.  I can handle 
myself!"
	"Really, are you sure?  How about a bet?  I think I 
know something you want."  Ranma said, a mischievous 
glint danced in his eyes.
	Akane was interested in this, she did want to know 
how that girl caught her.  "Yeah, what do you have that I 
could need?"
	Ranma wiggled in his bonds for a second, managing 
to get one wrist free.  "What about this little bracelet here?"
	Akane's eyes went wide.  "How did you get that?  I 
do need that ... fine, I challenge you.  If you win, I'll do 
what you want.  If I win, I get the bracelet."
	Ranma smiled to himself, then nodded 
enthusiastically.  He waited for a moment, expecting her to 
unloose his bonds ... then she attacked.
	The first hit caught him off guard, the second hit 
because he wasn't used to fighting tied up, but the third 
never touched.  Akane found herself hitting air as the tied 
up girl twisted and turned out of the way.  It was beginning 
to frustrate her that this girl was tied up and still giving her 
trouble.
	Reluctantly, Akane closed her eyes for the final 
blow.  Gathering all of her energy, she got ready to perform 
one of her family's strongest techniques, the hammerfist.  
With all of her energy gathered, she targeted the right spot 
and let loose.  Hitting with all of the force in her body, 
Akane sent Ranma flying into the wall.  Ranma hit the wall 
with a loud crack, and the entire wall caved back.
	Akane was certain she won, and as the dust cleared 
away from the body, Akane could only gape at the girl 
before her.  Ranma took all of the blow, hitting the wall 
with enough force to break it, yet he got up.  Akane felt her 
heart sink as she realized that she couldn't win.  All of her 
reserves were spent in that attack, and she barely stand.
	Ranma made his way to Akane, a fiery look filling 
his eyes.  He watched as Akane closed her eyes to his 
attack.  She was expecting impending doom, and finally 
she felt his blow ... he tapped her head.
	"Okay, I win.  Now untie me, would you."  Ranma 
said to her.
	She just stood/sat there in awe for a moment.  A 
moment passed before she realized what Ranma said, and 
she cut off his bonds.  "I guess you win."  she quietly spoke.
	"That's alright, I never really wanted this in the first 
place - I'll take my gun back - so if you'll just release me of 
my promise, I'll be going.  It's best this way, I guess." 
Ranma smiled at her.  
	Akane felt more like normal now.  She nodded her 
head in agreement, "Imagine, the two of us traveling 
together."
	Ranma chuckled, "We never get along, what with 
your violent nature...."
	"....and your huge ego.  Yeah, well ... just hand me 
back the bracelet, I'll release you from your vow, and we 
can go our separate ways.  I'm just glad you are a girl, I 
would have hated to lose to a guy!" Akane added.
	"Oh yeah, here you go...."  Ranma said as he 
reached for the bracelet, then his smile dropped, "Hey, this 
thing won't come off!"
	"What?!" yelled Akane, taking a few moments to 
calm down before speaking again. "You must not be doing 
something right!  Here let me try ... oh my God, it really 
won't come off!"
	"That's what I've been trying to say!  I guess you'll 
have to go without the damned bracelet!"  Ranma said.
	Akane shook her head in disagreement, "Uh-uh, I 
need that bracelet, I'm not releasing you from your vow 
until I get it!"  
	Ranma's face turned red, "Look here, I'm not gonna 
travel all around God knows where just so you can get a 
stinking piece of jewelry."
	"You look here," Akane interrupted, "that so called 
'stinking piece of jewelry' is the reason my brother and I are 
out here.  He told me that it is the key to the resistance, and 
that's why I need it.  I don't care where you have to go, I 
just need that bracelet."
	"The resistance, that's why you're on the run, right?  
Great, in addition to theft, I can go to jail for treason, too!  
Alright, tell me where you live, I'm gonna get you home.  
Hopefully when we get there, somebody will be able to 
take this thing off!"  Ranma said.
	"Okay, I live in a small bunker near Tuscany, it's a 
large city to the north...."  
	"Oh, I know where Tuscany is!  I just can't believe 
you came all the way here from there!  This is going to take 
a long time."
	"Well, on the way here we took motorbikes...."
	"Akane?"
	"Yes?"
	"Where do you suppose we can find a motorbike 
around here, in the sewers?"
	"Well, I don't really know."
	"Exactly, it's going to take a long time.  We're going 
to have to get to a hiding place first."  he said, remembering 
Kenshin's words.  He looked at her again, seemingly 
examining her body, "You look manly enough, you can 
pass for one.  You gonna have to cut your hair though!" he 
adds.
	Akane looks at him confused, "What do you mean, I 
look like a man, but I have to cut my hair?  Why do I have 
to pass for a man?"
	Ranma merely smiles, "Where I'm going, you don't 
want people to know you're a woman.  Most of the guys 
we're going to meet haven't seen, much less been with, a 
woman in years.  We have to be safe!"
	Akane gets an exasperated look on her face, "Okay, 
but what about you, you don't look much like a man either."
	"That can be fixed."  Ranma says, and he begins to 
make a small fire.  After a few minutes, he judges the water 
to be hot enough and pours in on himself.  
	"Alright, I've got a long story to tell you,"  he says as 
he hands her a pair of scissors, "but in the meanwhile, you 
gotta cut your hair."
	Akane sat down numbly on the floor, and listened.  
She was in for a long story....
*******END OF CHAPTER TWO********
As always, all comments, scorns, and threats to maim me are welcome.
I don't know if this'll meet the expectations of some of you out there,
but here's to hoping, eh.

                                                        Joshua Stevens "Josh"