"Knight to king-bishop three."
	
	"..." Cloud had his characteristic blank look on his face. 

	Xelloss sweatdropped. "In layman's terms, it means I picked up the 
horsey guy and moved him in an L-shape to the second space in front of the
priest on the king's side." 

	Cloud grunted. Not seeing any better option, Cloud did the same 
on his side of the board. 

	Xelloss sighed and thought to himself, "I swear, the lengths I go to 
sometimes... I can't believe this oaf doesn't know how to play chess. Ah well.
He'll understand my point when we get there." Xelloss moved deliberately,
moving each piece with a confidant click. Cloud moved randomly, picking the 
pieces that looked the best to him at the moment and moving them wherever he
well pleased. Xelloss corrected him whenever he broke a rule. 

	"No, Cloud, the bishop moves diagonally. Like this." 

	"No, Cloud, pawns don't move backwards."

	Cloud picked up the next piece that struck his fancy. "What's this 
one?"

	Xelloss smiled. "That, my boy, is the queen. It's the most powerful 
piece in the game. It can move as far as it is unblocked along any diagonal or
any straight line."

	Cloud blinked. "A queen. Like my Aerith."

	"Exactly, Cloud." Xelloss pressed his attack, moving his pieces toward 
Cloud's position. Cloud continued to move without method, only stopping to think
when his queen was in danger. Eventually, Xelloss had all but pinned Cloud's 
forces on Cloud's half of the board. It was Cloud's move, and his beloved queen 
was open to attack. Realizing the status of his new-found favorite piece, he 
paused.

	"Is something wrong, Cloud?" Xelloss queried softly. 

	"My Queen. How can I protect her?"

	"Well, I see two things you could do, my friend," Xelloss calmly 
stated. "You could attempt to withdraw her from her position, or..."

	"Or?" Cloud stared at the board, unable to offer an alternative. 

	"Or you could retaliate against whomever is threatening her."

	"But how can I..." Cloud trailed off as an idea came to him. He 
picked up a knight and captured the offending piece. Xelloss answered by moving
a bishop in to attack Cloud's queen. Cloud, intent on defending his prized
piece, moved a pawn in between the bishop and his queen. Xelloss continued to
harry Cloud's queen, but Cloud in turn countered or destroyed each piece Xelloss
tried to use.

	"So you see, Cloud, by putting your queen in a seemingly precarious 
position, you can force your opponent to make rash or," the Mazoku paused, "Even
fatal moves."

	"So?" Cloud asked, a look of utter confusion on his face.

	"Cloud, imagine that these are the forces of Heaven," he gestured to 
his own group, "and that your pieces represent the forces of Hell. Look at my
army. What do you notice about it?"

	Cloud stared blankly at each side of the board. "That you're missing 
more pieces than I am."

	"Exactly. And how did that happen?"

	"My queen was in danger, and when you moved to take her, I was able to 
wipe out the attacking force."

	"And if you were to show Heaven that your Queen was vulnerable, and 
they attacked or threatened to take her..." Xelloss trailed off.

	"...I would be able to wipe out the threat to my Aerith." Cloud drew 
his sword. "Is she in danger?!"

	"No, no, Cloud, everything is all right... but if you were to make it 
seem like she was in danger, you could turn it back on them and make them pay
for what they have done to her."

	"There would be no real threat to her?"

	"Of course not, Cloud. Would I allow that to happen to your Queen?" 

	Cloud responded by sheathing his sword. "Tell me more."

	Xelloss smiled as only a Mazoku could and opened one eye. "It works 
like this," Xelloss started, as Cloud stood abruptly.

	"My darling," Cloud said, "please join us." 

	Aerith entered the room, walking slowly. She was dressed in a black 
evening gown, with a red sash. It was strapless and low-cut, more so than what 
she normally wore, and was made of crushed velvet, very tight to her body. The 
back was just low enough so her wings were not encumbered by it. Her face was
covered in more make up than normal, and her hair was in its standard brown
ponytail. Cloud favored her with an adoring look as she walked over to his side.
"Have a seat, my love."

	"No need," Xelloss said as he stood up. "I'd like to speak with Aerith 
alone for a moment." Cloud shot Xelloss a glare. "Don't worry, I won't be long,
and I won't harm her. You'll be with her in short order." Cloud nodded his 
reluctant assent and teleported away.

	Xelloss extended an arm to Aerith. "Shall we go, my dear?"

-------------------------------

	Nabiki Tendou tapped a pencil idly with her left hand as she rested her
chin in her right palm. Darshu looked at her in disbelief. 

	"You've got to be joking, Nabiki."

	"I'm not joking, Schneider-baby. You'll be fighting the newest Omega 
entrant this week, Nuku Nuku of the Cybergrrlz."

	Darshu grunted. "You think so little of your champion that you're 
scheduling a fight between him and a scatterbrained girl? I can't believe this!
First you give me false information about that pink-garbed joker's abilities,"
Darshu counted on his fingers as he continued, "then I get bad directions to the
exit of that godforsaken dirtball, then daddy's little boy makes fun of me in
front of the very fans you want me to impress! I'd call last week a complete
disaster, and this week doesn't look any better. What are you THINKING?!"

	Nabiki got a quizzical look on her face. "Why, whatever do you mean, 
Schneider-baby? I had the correct and organized information placed on my former
secretary's, that 'scatterbrained girl' as you called her, desk."

	Dark Schneider's gaze turned from annoyed indignance to gleeful 
expectation. "Thank you, Nabiki. I have a whole new outlook on this match now.
When am I scheduled?"

	Nabiki grinned, "First up. Don't disappoint me. I'm counting on 
you. Oh, and take this with you." Nabiki handed Darshu a small object. He looked
at it with a little bit of confusion.

	"What in the hell is this?"

	Nabiki smiled back at Darshu. "Think of this as a final attack. Trust 
me."

	Darshu slid the item into his pocket. "Alright. I'll beat the girl up 
for what she did to me. I shall see you later, Nabiki."

	Nabiki turned on her best sultry look. "I'll be waiting, Schneider-baby.
And don't get hurt, hmm?"

	Darshu answered with his usual confidence, "Don't worry about me. 
This will be easy."

	As Darshu left the room, a pair of kawaii eyes poked around the door 
to Nabiki's office. "Miss Tendou, you wanted to see me?"

	Nabiki put on her most friendly smile. "Good afternoon, Lilith! I've 
got some news for you I think you might be interested in. It's about the
object of your affections."

	"Hiro-kun! Wai! What's up?" Lilith bounced into the room like only 
a succubus could. 

	"I talked to Hiroshi last week. It seems the poor boy is hopelessly 
infatuated with you but he doesn't know how to show it or say it-"

	"Really?!" Lilith interrupted. "But he knows I have feelings 
for him, too. Why doesn't he just speak up?"

	Nabiki looked back at her. "I don't think you know Hiroshi as well as 
I do. I went to school with him for years. He's always been a shy type, never
really comfortable with the opposite sex. I mean, when you came on to him, he
didn't respond as you expected, did he?"

	Lilith pouted. "No, he didn't! Most men would leap at the chance to be
with a girl like me! He must just be confused!"

	"Besides," Nabiki interrupted, "Would Hiroshi have called Akane to get 
revenge on Marlo if he didn't have feelings for you? He was outraged at what
Marlo did to you because he cares about you."

	Lilith looked at Nabiki with narrowed eyebrows. "But if Hiro-kun 
does feel that way about me, why doesn't he just tell that clone bitch to go
back to the vat she was spawned in?"

	Nabiki continued, "You didn't let me finish earlier. When I spoke 
with him last week, he admitted that he's gotten over his puppy love for Rei. He
just doesn't know how to gracefully deal with the situation."

	Lilith crossed her arms in thought, stood for a minute, then wai'
ed. "I know exactly what to do! If I go out and tell him exactly how I feel, he
won't be so shy about admitting it to me! Thanks, Miss Tendou!" Lilith skipped
out of the room.

	Nabiki's secretary popped into the room. "Miss Tendou? Your next
appointment is here."

	Nabiki sighed. "Send him in."

-------------------------------

	"...so you see, as illustrated by this bar graph, the ratings share of 
my fights clearly surpasses those of our other main event level talent in the
pansy wussy little Gamma division," Marlo Semaj explained, using a hat rack to
point at the features of his PowerPoint presentation. "Clearly, you must see it
was a mistake not to book my title match tonight, since the 18-34 demographics
have--"

	"Marlo?"

	"Yes, Ms. Tendou?"

	"Ratings isn't spelled with an E," Nabiki pointed out. "You're really 
trying to convince me, aren't you? I'm impressed, even if your lack of decent
education is being made glaringly obvious. I guess word is getting around that I
prefer a more organized, businesslike approach to this crazy show."

	"Ah... of course, of course!" Marlo said, turning off the projector and 
filing the oak desk it sat on away in his personal space. "Nobody appreciates
good organization more than me. You've got no idea how much Controversial Jack
kept misusing my talents! He might have had the brilliant foresight to hire me
for Ultra, but near the end, I have to wonder if he was sniffing glue or
something--"

	"So, you want a Hardcore title shot?" Nabiki asked, the ass-kissing 
amusing, but time consuming.

	"Yes ma'am! I feel I have a lot to contribute to Ultra. As your 
Hardcore champion, I could put asses in seats better than that chunky,
I-Know-The-Secret-Of-The-Crying-Game tomboy!!"

	"Akane TENDOU, yes," Nabiki emphasized, putting a hint of displeasure 
in her voice... mostly just to watch him squirm. "...but I see your point. I'm
not sure Akane is going to be a good long term draw for Ultra... she's more used
to being kidnapped than being a champion. She's had her moment in the spotlight,
and I'm happy for her, but I have to do what's best for business. Family can't
come before business."

	"Yes ma'am!! And right now, *I* am best for--"

	"I'm not done talking yet," Nabiki warned... rising from her desk, to 
pace her office. "You see, I have a little problem as well. Right now, I have a
known drawing talent sitting on the shelf drawing a paycheck without actually
working. I've been thinking of what to do about that, something to motivate
him... Marlo, would you be interested in doing me a favor?"

	"If I do, do I get my title shot?" Marlo asked.

	"Let's just say I'd be more open to the idea, if you could prove your 
worth to me. I know you have a history with this individual, and of all people,
you could probably coax him back into the fold. I don't care how you do it...
but I want you to get Ranma Saotome back in the ring."

-------------------------------

                              LIVE!
                      FROM THE ULTRADOME!
                     THE BIGGEST SPECTACLE
                    IN ANIME AND VIDEO GAME
                      SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT
                        AND IMPROFANFIC!
                        IT'S TIME FOR...

         { M A G I C A L  T R O U B L E S H O O T I N G }
         {      C R O S S O V E R  F I G H T I N G      }
         {             F E D E R A T I O N              }
         {                .-----------.                 }
         {                | U-L-T-R-A |                 }
         {                `-----------'                 }
         {          http://www.improfanfic.com          }

      Episode #43: Heaven, Hell, and the Bottom Line
        or: The Sanity Stops Here
      This Episode Written By: FalChaMlink
      With assist by: Twoflower
      MTCFF Ultra created by Twoflower

-------------------------------

	In the year 2000, in an era yet to come, an era long past, a wind rose. 
It blew past bakeries and pastry shops, carrying the sweet smell of freshly 
baked bread. It swept past a magazine stand, ruffling pages on the display 
issues. On and on the wind blew, past schools and homes, past factories and 
rice paddies. Wind chimes blew, adding their tinkling melody to the sound of the 
wind. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings
to the epic that is Ultra (except for that whole episode one thing. But we won't
talk about that). But it was a beginning. 

	The wind could be traced to a large dome in central Tokyo. Shopkeepers
and homeowners nearby who knew what was coming had prepared hours before for the 
commotion to follow the now infamous line:

	"ARE YOU READY FOR SOME ULTRA VIOLENCE??"

	The crowd cheered as one as if a switch had been thrown. The air pushed
along by their screaming "Of course!", "Hell, yeah!" and the like threw open the
doors to the Ultradome and sent a shockwave of sound through Tokyo... in
addition to destroying the Spanish announcer's table.

	Tarou removed his airline-quality ear protectors slowly and glared at
Hiroshi. "The question, Hiroshi, is whether YOU are ready for some Ultra
violence. If you're as irritating as you were last week, I'll take what's left
of that table over there and jam a piece of it into every bodily orifice you 
have."

	Hiroshi gulped and focused his attention on his microphone. "Good
evening folks, and welcome to ULTRA!! We have one of the most FRABJABULOUS shows
you'll ever see, here tonight! First up on the card, we have the amazing debut
performance of Omega's newest fighter, former secretary of Controversial Jack
and the latest entry into the Cybergrrlz stable, Nuku Nuku! Tonight, she faces
an up-and-coming Omega powerhouse, a bastard in his own right, Dark Schneider!
Following this colossal battle, we have a Lambda challenge five weeks in the
making. Mai Shiranui and Andy Bogard face off against Ken and Sagat. Will they
be able to counteract Bison's seemingly unlimited continues? Will Andy deliver
his promised revenge on Bison and his minions? Can they do it?! Can they pull
off a dramatic upset?!"

	Tarou coolly glanced at Hiroshi. "Maybe if you shut UP so we can get 
to the matches, they'll have a chance to do it this week. The way you're going
we'll be here another month before any fighting gets done. Unless..." Tarou
menacingly smacked his right fist against his left palm.

	"Annnnnnd, moving STRAIGHT on to the next match on our card for the 
evening," Hiroshi continued, putting down his intro script card, "we have the 
Gamma title defense on delay from last week. Earth's Greatest Hero and former 
champion Mr. Satan challenges Morrigan Aensland for the newest addition to her 
ensemble, the Gamma championship belt!"
	
	"Wow," Tarou snorted, "that effectively doubles the amount of clothing 
she wears."
	
	"That's right, P-... I mean, Tarou!"
	
	Tarou shot a glare that screamed excruciatingly painful DEATH at Hiroshi. 
Hiroshi sweatdropped, then continued, "Now, on to the grasslands of Africa where 
our first incredible match is about to commence!"

-------------------------------

	Dark Schneider was standing on the battlefield, a large plain,
with very little cover. He looked out and smiled. "This will be perfect.
She'll come onto the field, and I'll burn her to a crisp." His
countenance darkened. "It's the least she deserves, after almost getting
me killed last week." He cracked his knuckles. "This will be...", he
thought, and stopped as Nuku Nuku came in through a portal. 

	Nuku Nuku was dressed in a standard schoolgirl fuku. She came out and 
waved at Darshu. "Hi, Mr. Schneider! I'm sorry I gave you the wrong papers last
week, but I was trying really hard!"

	Darshu stared blankly back at Nuku Nuku. "Whatever."

	Goku appeared between Nuku Nuku and Darshu. "Are both of you
ready?" Darshu nodded.

	"Yes, Mr. Goku, and I'm ready to make Gally-san and Ifurita-san
proud!" Nuku Nuku said, bouncing happily.

	Goku nodded. "Alright. You know the rules. Fight!" Goku said, as he
teleported away.

][ OMEGA MATCH #1
][ DARK SCHNEIDER vs. NUKU NUKU
][ FIGHT!

	Darshu extended his hands towards Nuku Nuku. "Magnard!" he yelled, as 
the ground split underneath her feet and magma and rock shards flew from the
ground. However, Nuku Nuku had already jumped out of the way, landing a good
distance from the gout of lava. Darshu growled, cursing inwardly and how much
faster she was than he'd been expecting.

	Nuku Nuku landed, and dashed at Darshu, her fist prepared to smash 
directly into his stomach. He waved his hand in front of him, and yelled,
"GUNSN-ROH!" as a wall of flame appeared between him and Nuku Nuku. She flinched
back, and quickly dove out of the way, as a burst of flame came from out of the
wall.

	Darshu stepped out from the flames, and smiled evilly as he pointed his 
hands at Nuku Nuku. "Damned!" A concussive blast came from his hands, which
Nuku Nuku rolled under. As the concussion ball made a nice indentation in the 
landscape, Nuku Nuku sprung up at Darshu. He jumped back as Nuku Nuku dove at
him and drove her fist into his chest, almost cracking his rib. Darshu winced, 
as he yelled "A LUCARIA!". Nuku Nuku swiped her other hand around in a sweeping 
strike to the side, but Darshu was no longer there.

	Nuku Nuku turned around, only to see a stream of flame coming at her, as
Darshu used a Vau Waoh. She flipped away as Darshu swept the magical fire
towards her. She executed a series of flips, staying just ahead of Darshu's
magical flame-thrower. The spell dissipated, leaving Nuku Nuku standing 
unscathed, except for some minor holes in her fuku.

	Darshu smirked, saying, "That was a bit fun, but now it ends!" He
reached into his pocket, pulling out Nabiki's secret weapon. He put it on the
ground, and let it go, as he thought, "I don't know what the hell she was
thinking... but I hope this works."

	Nuku Nuku looked at it, and her eyes became big and shiny, like when 
Sana-chan saw a block of sugar. "Wai! Mousie!" she yelled, and started running 
after it on all fours.

	Darshu almost sweatdropped before regaining control and advancing 
on Nuku Nuku. "So Nabiki wasn't such an incompetent after all," he thought.
"Now I have her. Missiles of Light, Strike! ANTHEM!" Darshu screamed, as
arrow-shaped projectiles flew towards Nuku Nuku, and battered her, hitting 
her in the head, neck, back, and legs. Her left hind leg buckled under 
her, and she collapsed to the ground.

	Darshu walked slowly up to the damaged cyborg. Her sensor ears were 
twitching wildly, her skirt was tattered and burnt, and even some of her 
internal systems were exposed. Nuku Nuku worked her mouth, seemingly attempting 
to say something. "Mou...sie... Sorry... Gal... san... Ifur... san..." she said, 
as Darshu gathered fiery energy in his hands.

	"It's over for you. Your first match, and you didn't even get a win. So
sad. SEPULTURA!" Darshu said, as he grinned, and released a barrage of fireballs
towards Nuku Nuku.

	Nuku Nuku lay there paralyzed, unable to do anything but watch as the 
fireballs flew ever closer. The world slowed down for an instant, and she 
remembered how Papa-san had saved her before... before. But now there was no one
here to save her. She closed here eyes, and waited for the inevitable.

	The fireballs impacted, and she was obscured from view as a firestorm 
sprung up all around her.

-------------------------------

	Hiroshi looked at the screen in dumbfounded shock, as did the rest of
the crowd. "Darshu... just OBLITERATED Nuku Nuku in her first match! I know that
he's not the nicest guy, but Nuku Nuku's just a girl! I mean, come on!"

	Tarou smirked as he responded, "You pay your money, and you take your
chances. If you can't take the heat, stay out of Hell's Kitchen. The little girl 
just didn't have what it took."

	Hiroshi stared at Tarou. "That's really harsh, even for yo... OH MY
LINA!" Hiroshi screamed, as the UltraTron showed Goku covering Nuku Nuku with
his body. "Goku has once again protected a fighter from complete obliteration!"

	The entire Ultradome watched Goku stand up...

-------------------------------

	... as he moved to confront Darshu. "That was unnecessary."

	Darshu stood toe to toe with Goku. "This is my match. I merely won in the
manner I saw fit."

	"Don't worry. You won," Goku said, giving Darshu a glare that could melt
planets. "But if you keep displaying such callous disregard for other
fighters, and bystanders' lives, I might have to teach you a lesson."

	"Well, we'll just have to see, won't we? Goodbye," Dark Schneider said,
as he walked out a portal that had just opened behind him. Goku was left by
himself with Nuku Nuku lying on the ground.

	"Thank... Goku... san..." Nuku Nuku said, as Goku smiled, and picked
her up.

	"Just doing my job, Miss, " Goku said, smiling as he walked towards
a portal. "I'll take you back to your friends now."

-------------------------------

	Hiroshi looked at the UltraTron in shock. "That was..."

	Tarou chuckled. "Pointless? Stupid? Sickening?"

	"STUPENDOUS!" Hiroshi yelled. "Goku, the golden tower of Saiyan whoopass,
once again showed that he IS the Omega referee, and protected Nuku Nuku from 
destruction by standing up to Darshu, and Dark Schneider, Omega badass and
Bastard extraordinaire, BACKED DOWN! What EXCITEMENT! WHAT! A! MATCH! And that's
only the first of many, folks! We'll have even more explosions, excitement, and
even more SUPER-AMAZING MATCHES FOR YOU! SO STAY TUNED!" Hiroshi collapsed into
his seat, as the camera light went off.

	Tarou turned off his mic and looked at Hiroshi, "Just remember. Darshu
should be the person that you focus on. Not Goku. Not Nuku Nuku. Darshu. Got 
it?"

	Hiroshi looked back at Tarou. "Hai..." he shakily said, as Tarou walked
off. Man, he wished Daisuke were here. At least he wouldn't have to deal with
all of these death threats.

-------------------------------

	Gally looked at the damage Dark Schneider inflicted on Nuku Nuku.
Her legs were badly damaged and the center of her back was marked by a small
crater, from where one of the Anthem bullets had hit. She'd taken at least 35%
damage to her neck. Other than that, she was just slightly singed.

	After thinking for a bit, Gally frowned. There was too much damage done
to critical areas. Maybe if it were spread more evenly, it could be a 
coincidence, but the only worse thing Darshu could have done was to hit her in
the head. He knew a lot more about Nuku Nuku than he should have. She
would have to look into that.

	Gally looked up at Goku. "Thanks for bringing her back, Goku."

	Goku smiled back at Gally. "You're welcome. It didn't look like she
could make it back herself anyway, and you fighters are so busy... Well, I've 
got to go." Goku waved and disappeared.

	Gally turned her attention back to Nuku Nuku and Ifurita. Ifurita was 
talking to Nuku Nuku, who was lying in a hospital bed while being worked on by 
repairbots.

	Nuku Nuku looked despondent as she talked to Ifurita. "Nuku Nuku is... 
sorry, Ifurita-san. I... tried so hard to... make you and Gally-san... proud of
me.... and I lost! Waaah!" Nuku Nuku broke into tears, sobbing into Ifurita's
shoulder.

	Gally saw Ifurita stiffen up, suddenly looking very uncomfortable. Ifurita
glanced up at her, so she mouthed the words, "Comfort her." Ifurita looked puzzled
for a second, but then hesitantly wrapped her arm around the anrdoid catgirl.

	Nuku Nuku sniffled a few more times and looked up at Ifurita. "Thanks,
Ifurita-san! You made me feel better!"

	Ifurita stiffened up, and it looked like she was trying to think of 
something to say. "You're welcome, Nuku Nuku." Ifurita then stood up and walked
out of the room, as Gally followed right behind her.

	As they made it out of the room, Gally shut the door and turned to
Ifurita. "What's Nuku Nuku's full condition?"

	Ifurita stared off into space and started rattling off figures. "Her
legs are 85% damaged, knees and hips being the most heavily damaged. The attack
to her back hit her spine, doing 53% damage to her spinal column. She was
lucky that she was built so well. Her neck took 38% damage capacity, with two
vertebrae being cracked. Nuku Nuku was very lucky."

	Gally raised an eyebrow at Ifurita. "And her emotional status?"

	Ifurita blinked a few times and said, "I don't think I'm qualified to
answer that. I am more suited for battle."

	"Guess," replied Gally.

	Ifurita stood in thought for a few seconds. "Well, she seemed like she
was mostly okay, but dealing with what was probably her first real loss affected
her. That... " Ifurita paused for a second, "hug I gave her seemed to help a 
great deal. She will probably be alright."

	"Who in the Omega league do you think she could beat?"

	Ifurita paused for a moment, and then began speaking, "Any of the magic 
users can keep her at bay, because she can't teleport. The EVAs have no
problems, because of the AT fields. Sephiroth is too powerful, with too many
techniques. CyberAkuma has too much raw power. Maybe Dan Hibiki or Voiduck, but
they have a few tricks that could give them the win. And against either of us,
she would be far outclassed."

	Gally sighed. Well, this wasn't good at all. They needed Nuku Nuku to
be a formidable fighter for when they made their move against Mewtwo.

	"So, how's the kid doing?" Gally turned around, and there was
Controversial Jack, looking in through the window at Nuku Nuku.

	Gally smirked at Jack. "Okay. You weren't worried about her, were you?"

	Jack waved his hands wildly at Gally. "Nonono! I was just... making
sure, ya know? Being nice. My new image, and all. Jack Lysias, all around nice 
guy, that's me!" Jack said, as he poked himself in the chest.

	Gally smiled. "She'll be fine." She then turned to Ifurita. "See what
you can find out about her. Her past, her creator." Ifurita nodded, and moved
off.

	Jack glanced at Nuku Nuku, and at Gally. "Good. I'm glad to see I left
her in such good hands. Just hope she isn't too much of a handful."

	"Not at all, Jack. Not at all," Gally replied.

	"Well, I've got to go. Big campaign against the Beekster and all." 
Jack moved to walk away, and then turned back. "Don't tell Nuku Nuku I came to
check on her, okay?"

	"Will do, Jack." Gally walked back in to Nuku Nuku. 

	"Hi, Gally-san!" Nuku Nuku said, although she couldn't do much but wave
her hand, since Gally was so far away.

	"Are you enjoying it here, Nuku Nuku?" Gally asked her.

	Nuku Nuku bounced up and down. Well, as much as you could when your legs
and spine were damaged. "Yes! I met you and Ifurita-san, who's such a nice
person. Both of you are so nice to me! I just wish I could have make you proud
in my fight!"

	"Don't worry." Gally said, as she smiled. "You did a good job. I'm
proud."

	"Thanks, Gally-san!" Nuku Nuku said happily.

	Gally walked up to Nuku Nuku and patted her head. "Now, you just rest
up. One of us will be back to check on you soon."

	"Okay! Bye bye!" She waved as Gally walked out the door.

	Gally smiled to herself. She wouldn't tell her, but if she had 
overheard Jack with her sensor ears then Gally couldn't be held responsible.
Gally walked down the hall, back towards Washuu's room. She just hoped that they
could find some way to get Washuu back to normal. 
	
	Gally's visage suddenly shifted to the kind of face you would expect on 
a Battle Angel. If Mewtwo was really needed to cure Washuu then Gally hoped, for
his sake, that he would agree. Heavens have mercy should he refuse.

-------------------------------

	Mewtwo brooded. He rested his chin on a three-fingered ball of a hand 
as he contemplated his victory over that evil, spiky-haired scientist. >>My
first mission is accomplished,<< he thought. >>Washuu can no longer continue her
Pokemon experimentation, and her underlings are now free from her oppression,
free to do as they wish.<<

	Mewtwo got up and started pacing around the room. >>I do not understand 
these humans and their silly 'matches'. Their entertainment, their obsession
with win and loss under a specific set of rules, their preoccupation with
statistics and symbolic articles of clothing... they are meaningless compared to
ultimate goals. Washuu's pet, the strange Pokemon with a worse call than even
Togepi<< Mewtwo [shuddered] >>may have beaten me according to their
specifications and awarded Washuu the 'win', but it is I who have proven my
superiority.<<

	The tall, menacing psychic Pokemon stopped and debated internally for a 
while. >>When the foolish human Yotsuya contacted me for my interview after the
match, he tried to emphasize the fact that it was my first 'loss' according to
their federation. Do the humans believe that I do what I do based on glory
through numbers? Do they think I would stoop to their level in that regard? I
have but one constant mission: ensuring the freedom of all Pokemon. If others
such as Washuu's pets Gally and Ifurita are freed as a result, so much the
better. Everyone capable of handling freedom should have a taste of it.<<

	Mewtwo and walked to his right, toward a large mural on his wall. >>No 
matter. I am finished with the 'Cybergrrlz'. Now, I must continue my mission.
There are yet Pokemon who must be freed.<< Mewtwo looked at the mural and
pointed a stubby hand at the wall of pictures of all known Pokemon. His finger
settled on a small yellow duck with a perpetual headache. >>This possessed 
Psyduck, along with those Pokemon still held by trainers, are still being 
held against their wills.<< The lanky Pokemon mulled over which to take care
of first.

-------------------------------

	Mai knocked on the door to the Hungry Wolves' dressing room. "Andy!" 
she spoke loudly. "We have a match soon! Andy!" She received no response from
her partner. "Andy! Fifteen minutes! Come on!" Mai tapped her foot for a moment,
then opened the door.

	Inside, Andy Bogard looked at her with inquisitive eyes. "What's all 
the screaming about, Mai?"

	"We have a match in ten minutes, and I can't exactly go out there 
without my partner or we'll get disqualified."

	"What happened to Andy? Where is he?" Andy asked.

	Mai shook her head sadly. "I don't know anymore."

	"How about I team up with you in your match. I might be able to pass 
for Andy. Then after the fight, I'll help you find him. He's my little brother
and it's my duty to help him out if I can." He pulled on Terry's gloves, jeans,
jacket and Fatal Fury cap. "Let's go!"

	Mai sighed heavily. "Yeah... let's go."

	"Don't worry, Mai. We'll find Andy. Now let's get out to the ring."

-------------------------------

	Lilith skipped down to the announcer's table, as Hiroshi was gearing up
for the beginning of the first Lambda match.

	"Hi, Hiro-kun!" Lilith said, as she grabbed a chair, and sat next to
Hiroshi.

	"Um.. Hi, Lilith." Hiroshi responded, looking very nervous.

	"I decided I should come out and show the ENTIRE world how much I love
my Hiro-kun! Wai!" Lilith wai'ed, as she grabbed Hiroshi's arm, nuzzling up
close to him.

	"Well... that's nice..." Hiroshi cautiously said, looking around for an
EVA to smash the ceiling in. "Could you let go? I'm about to... And we're BACK!"
Hiroshi yelled, as he pulled his arm from Lilith's grasp. Lilith hmphed,
settling for leaning against him.

	"And now for our Lambda match for the evening! Bison's Busters are 
ringside and ready to go," stated Hiroshi.

	"Wai! You're so professional, Hiro-kun!" Lilith once again latched on 
to Hiroshi's arm. Hiroshi started looking very uncomfortable in his seat, and
looked like he was about to bolt from the arena.

	"Hey, cloney, you're not gonna run, are you? Miss Tendou would not
approve." Tarou growled at Hiroshi, as he took an insulin shot to protect
himself from such overwhelming cuteness.

	Hiroshi looked back, startled. "No, of course not! And the Hungry
Wolves are... wait, isn't that Terry?" Hiroshi gasped. "Could Lina have brought
Terry back from the dead, to take on the Busters in the Ultimate Revenge?"

	Tarou rolled his eyes. "It looks like you get stupider when your
girlfriend shows up, clone-boy."

	Hiroshi once again pulled away from Lilith, as the match looked like it 
was going to start. Lilith went to grab him again, and he looked at her, and 
made sure to keep his arm free. "Please, Lilith. I've got a match to announce 
now." Lilith pouted, and walked away. "Well, damn."

	M. Bison's face appeared on the UltraTron. Seeing Andy dressed as he 
was, he raised an eyebrow quizzically. "I thought I took care of you, Bogard."

	Andy looked around, confused. "What's he talking about?" He paused 
for a moment. "Wait a minute! Are you the bastard who took Andy?! I'll get you
for this!" He turned to Mai. "I'll handle these guys, then I'll go help you find
little brother. Okay?"

	Mai sighed. "Fine, you can go first, but be sure to tag out if you get 
in trouble. I can take care of myself in a fight, you know."

	Andy replied by jumping into the ring, adjusting his cap and pumping 
his legs a few times, settling into an attack position. Bison thought for a
moment, then commanded Sagat to enter the ring. 

][ LAMBDA MATCH #1
][ HUNGRY WOLVES vs. BISON'S BUSTERS 
][ FIGHT!

	The bell rang, and the fight was on. Sagat opened with a Tiger Shot, 
which Andy deftly dodged. 

	Sagat moved in for some hand-to-hand fighting where his longer legs 
would give him an advantage and threw a roundhouse at Andy. Andy raised his arms
to block, then ducked into a sweep, taking Sagat's legs out from under him.
Sagat responded by throwing a fierce jumping knee, something Andy wasn't
prepared for. Andy took the brunt of the blow and staggered backward. He wiped
his arm across his mouth, then said, "Nice moves, but let's see how you deal
with this!"

	Andy jumped forward, jacket flaring out behind him as he started 
throwing vicious punches and kicks at Sagat. The Muy Thai warrior blocked most
of them, but was being pushed back toward the ropes. Realizing he was in
trouble, Sagat threw a combo of his own back at Andy. "TIGER RAID!" he screamed
as he launched three quick kicks, one to the legs, one to the stomach and one to
the jaw. He followed with a flying kick to Andy's chest, knocking Andy back to
the middle of the ring. Andy stood dazed for a moment. Sagat saw his chance and
launched a fireball at Andy. 

	"POWER WAVE!" A burst of flame ran along the ground from Andy's fist 
as he punched the ground. Andy's flame and Sagat's projectile canceled, but the
damage from Andy's strike was much more psychological than physical. "WHAT?"
Sagat thought. "I didn't know he could do that!" Sagat looked at Andy, puzzled.
"Who are you?"

	Andy laughed. "You haven't heard of me? I am Terry Bogard, the 
strongest fighter in the world!"

	Hiroshi facefaulted along with 29,942 of the audience members. (The 
other 58 were standing in line to use the restroom.) "What an INCREDIBLE
development! Andy seems to think that he's his brother!" he exclaimed.

	"Probably the only thing Andy has on Terry is his success in the female 
department. Not like he deserves it. That wuss isn't man enough for ERK." 

	Tarou was cut off by a fan to the face from Mai. "Leave my Andy-chan 
alone!" Mai turned back to watch the fight in the ring and worried, thinking,
"What's gotten into him? Andy-chan, snap out of it... Andy, come back to me..."

	Andy had finished introducing himself as Terry and prepared to lay the 
good old-fashioned Bogard smackdown on the Thai boxer. 

	"POWER WAVE!" The flaming wave came at Sagat as the kickboxer threw a 
weak Tiger Shot to cancel it out. 

	"BURN KNUCKLE!" Andy flew through the puff of smoke left by the 
canceling projectiles and slammed his glowing blue fist into Sagat's jaw,
knocking him slightly off the ground. 

	"POWER DUNK!" Andy jumped into the air and came down on Sagat's head 
with a flaming fist. The momentum from Andy's blow sent Sagat down into the
ropes, which recoiled him slightly, leaving Andy time for his final blow.

	"RISING TACKLE!" Andy shouted as he sprung from a handstand into a 
rising drill kick which sent Sagat flying out of the ring. Thinking quickly,
Bison pushed his joystick up, causing Ken to jump and make the tag. The Shotokan
martial artist emotionlessly hopped into the ring and stared at Andy.

	"Andy Bogard has removed half of Bison's Busters from the match! Will 
he be able to contend with the manipulated Masters?" Hiroshi excitedly queried.

	Bison smirked evilly. "Ah, Terry, nice to see you again."

	Andy glared at Bison. "What have you done with my brother, Bison?"

	Bison simply said, "I won't lie to you. I kidnapped your brother, a 
capable fighter, so I could attempt to control him with my Psycho Power.
Unfortunately for Mr. Bogard, his body wasn't compatible with my efforts. He did
not survive his injuries. My condolences."

	Andy stood still in shock for a moment. "You... you killed MY 
BROTHER! I'll get you for this!" Andy hurled himself at Ken in rage, throwing
blow after blow toward the red-clad American. Bison simply held the joystick
away from Andy and Ken obediently blocked each strike in turn. As Andy began to
slow his attacks down, Bison saw an opening and commanded Ken to do a hurricane
kick. Ken's feet struck Andy's body again and again and again, knocking Andy
back a few steps and finally to the mat. 

	Andy struggled to his feet, dazed. He could hear Mai screaming, "Tag 
out! Tag out! You've done enough!"

	Andy shook his head and again went after Ken, screaming with anger. "I'
ll get you! Little brother, if you're watching me up there in Heaven, I'm doin'
this for you! CRACK SHOOT!" Andy did a forward flip into a dropkick on his
opponent. Ken staggered backward, then returned the favor with a Shoryuken
followed by a fireball set perfectly to intercept Andy on his way down. Andy lay
on the mat for fully half of the ten-count, then dragged himself up again.
"For... Andy... I can't lose..."

	Mai jumped up and down and waved her arms wildly. "Tag out! I can 
handle him! He's tired and I'm not! Get out of the ring, Andy!"

	Andy turned to Mai, confused. "But I'm not Andy..." Seeing the 
opening, Bison directed Ken into another brutal attack on the blond cap-sporting
fighter. Andy collapsed to the mat once again as Bison backed Ken away from the
fallen Bogard.

	He would not stay down this time, however. Once again, he picked 
himself up slowly, avoiding the end of the countdown. Mai yelled, "ANDY! Let me
in! I can finish him!" 

	Andy looked back at the bouncy Shiranui ninja and said firmly, "No. 
This is my fight for my little brother. I can do this."

	Mai looked to the referee and pleaded, "Can't you do anything? Can you 
force him to let me tag in?" The referee simply shook his head and motioned for
the fight to continue.

	Unfortunately for Andy, he was simply too drained to be effective, and 
Ken's next combo was too much for him to take. One series of punches later, Andy
was down for the count.
	
	"And it's a crushing victory for Bison's Busters, but the bigger 
concern right now is for the physical and mental state of Andy Bogard," Hiroshi
stated soberly. "A team of technicians is coming down right now to take Andy to
the medical ward. We'll keep you updated if we hear anything, folks. We'll be
right back after this message."

-------------------------------

[SCENE: A couple walking near a hill after a spring rain. A rainbow arcs
overhead.]

GIRL:  What a lovely day.  Shall we spread the blanket here, honey?

GUY:  Sure, dear.  

[The couple sits and begins to lay out a picnic-style meal.]

GUY:  This looks great!

[They eat, until Marlo Semaj comes up to them and interrupts politely.]

MARLO:  Nice meal ya got there.  What all ya got?

GIRL:  I made sandwiches, brought some fruit, lemonade...

MARLO:  That's nice.  Got anything for dessert?

GIRL:  No, I guess I didn't think of that.

[Suddenly, small, colorful pellet-like candies rain from the sky.]

GIRL:  I wonder what these are?

[Marlo picks up a handful of Skittles and shakes them in front of her face.]

MARLO: These? These are sugary Skittles! There's a rainbow of flavor in every
bite!

GIRL:  I don't know... what's a rainbow taste like?

MARLO:  Want to find out?

GIRL:  Sure!

[Marlo suddenly reaches into the background and picks up the rainbow, wielding
it like he would one of his pieces of furniture. He then proceeds to beat the
couple about the head and shoulders with the rainbow.]

MARLO:  TASTE THE RAINBOW!  TASTE IT!  TASTE IT!

ANNOUNCER:  Skittles, the official candy of Ultra.  Taste the rainbow.  

-------------------------------

	Mai put both her hands around Andy's limp left hand and sighed. "Andy-
chaaaan... what happened to you? I know it was hard losing Terry... I was there
for you, remember? I've always been there for you, but you didn't tell me things
were so wrong..."

	Andy dreamt. He was Andy. He remembered a King of Fighters tournament
match he watched his brother fight. He remembered cheering Terry on as Terry 
fought the Korean team's leader in an incredible duel. "GO TERRY!" he yelled as 
Terry's Burn Knuckle met the Tae Kwon Do master's flying kick. Terry's Rising 
Tackle met the Korean's Flying Slice. Blow after blow, the fighters went back 
and forth in an epic battle that Terry barely managed to win. Terry fell to his 
knees when the Korean martial artist went down, and threw his hat into the air 
in victory as Andy came up to congratulate his older brother.

	Mai cried softly. "Andy... come back to me... Andy..." 

	Mai felt a quick tap on her shoulder. She turned around to see Athena 
Asamiya standing behind her. "Konnichi wa, Mai," Athena whispered. "I knew you'd
be here, and I wanted to know if there was anything I could do to help you out."

	Mai shook her head, "Not really... well, I don't want to impose, but..."

	Athena looked at Mai with concern. "You won't be imposing. Sie and I 
weren't busy this week, so we were just hanging out tonight anyway. He can take
care of himself. What do you need, Mai?"

	Mai looked up at Athena with tears in her eyes. "Can you just sit with 
me here for a while? I need someone to talk to."

	Athena smiled at Mai. "Sure, Mai. Not a problem." Athena gave Mai a 
friendly hug. Mai put her head on Athena's shoulder and let the tears flow
without trying to stop them.

	Meanwhile, Andy dreamt. He was Terry. He remembered a King of 
Fighters tournament match he fought while his brother watched. He remembered his
little brother Andy cheering him on as he fought the Korean team's leader in an
incredible duel. "GO TERRY!" Andy yelled as Terry's Burn Knuckle met the
Tae Kwon Do master's flying kick. His Rising Tackle met the Korean's Flying 
Slice. Blow after blow, the fighters went back and forth in an epic battle that 
Terry barely managed to win. He fell to his knees when the Korean martial artist 
went down, and threw his hat into the air in victory as Andy came up to 
congratulate him.

	Images swirled further in Andy's mind. Flashes of faces went by in 
series in his mind. Andy. Terry. Andy. Terry. Mai. Mai? Mai... Mai had
shown concern for him today in the fight... Mai usually only reserved that look
for Andy... but he was Terry! Andy! Terry! AndyTerryAndyTerryAndyTerry! Moving 
on and on like a slot machine wheel, the images spun, until finally they 
settled on one face...

	...Andy woke up and felt Mai's hands holding his. "Mai?" he asked, 
blinking his eyes to clear the fog of unconsciousness.

	Mai looked toward him and tilted her head slightly, cheeks still moist 
from tears shed. "Andy?"

------------------------------

	It's true, many niceties were being skimped on during the Nabiki 
Tendou Era of Ultra. However, there was one facility that she wasn't 
willing to clamp down on: the dojo.

	There were a number of rooms suitable for training, but nothing 
compared to the main dojo of the UltraDome. It had a copy of the 
standard Ultra ring, plenty of freeweights and rowing machines and 
such; and lately, it was a popular place to brush up on your skills, 
given that anybody who couldn't keep up was under the pink slip axe.

	Tonight, however, the fighters of Ultra were either off for the 
night or too busy with their own fights. The dojo was quiet, save for 
the rhythmic pounding of fist on sandbag.

	He felt each punch through the bag, as he braced it with his arms. 
The impacts were strong, true... but they weren't strong enough.

	"Come on, Akane! You can hit harder than that," Ranma encouraged. 
"You have to focus more!"

	"BAKA! I'm doing the best I can here!" Akane yelled back, 
pounding the bag hard enough to rattle Ranma's teeth. Of course, that 
also made her wince, but in sympathy for Ranma and herself. Akane 
flexed a bit, clearly in pain as she did.

	"It's still bugging you?" Ranma asked.

	"Stupid Marlo and his post-match beatdowns," Akane grumbled. "I 
SWEAR, I hate that guy's guts! At least Kunou and the others back home 
had some sort of honor. He's just a punk who... rrghh."

	"We should go to Doctor Tofu. We have this week off, you know--"

	"I'm fine," Akane said quickly, resuming her training, punching 
the bag over and over, but very, very carefully. "If I stop and rest 
I won't be ready for my next fight. This place is a lot more 
challenging than I thought it was going to be, and I've been too slack 
in my training since you left... Ranma?"

	Ranma braced the bag a bit harder, trying to make the target 
stiffer for Akane. "Yeah?"

	"When are you going to have your next fight?"

	The bag went a bit looser, as Ranma was distracted by the 
question. "I've... well, frankly, I've got no idea, Akane. I'm not 
ready yet. You heard what Doctor Tofu said. I've got to find my peace 
in battle before I can risk fighting again. Otherwise, I might just 
turn into a psycho again. GOD, I hate this! I'm a weakling."

	"You're not a weakling!"

	"Yes, I am! I lost all control months ago, and I still haven't 
gotten it back," Ranma reminded. "I'm not LIKE this, I'm always in 
perfect control! But now, I can't even trust myself to go near a 
fight. I swear, if you hadn't stopped me, I would've cleaned Marlo's 
clock at UltraRage, that sniveling little... never mind. Look, Akane, 
you've got to be careful here. Fighting in front of millions of people 
each week, proving yourself to them again and again, it can really mess 
with your head. Back home, all I really had little duels with little 
rivals, nothing that could've prepared me for this. I just don't want 
what happened to me happening to you."

	Akane stepped away from the punching bag, taking a few good, deep 
breaths. "It's not going to happen to me. I don't care what anyone 
else thinks of me. Finally I've got a place where I can prove to 
MYSELF I'm a real fighter and not just that girl you're always saving 
from..."

	She paused. Rather. Awkwardly.

	But Ranma just smiled, and laughed it off. "Heh. You know, a 
LOT has changed, hasn't it? I mean, with you and with me. Who'da 
known?"

	"Hey, it's not like we can be sixteen year old high school 
students forever!" Akane joked, rubbing her knuckles a bit. "Everybody 
has to grow up in their own way, even Nabiki. Although I wish 
she'd grown up in a different way-- OW! Quit poking my hand, baka!"

	"I'm just checking," Ranma said. "I'm gonna go get you some ice. 
If I'm really going to be your personal trainer I'd better start 
issuing orders, and number one is to go LIE DOWN on the mat there and 
rest until I get back. Put a cold, wet cloth over your face too. It 
always gets me back to 100%, for some reason."

-------------------------------

	The alley was deserted. There was nothing there except dumpsters and the
general litter found in similar backstreets and alleyways across the world.
Nothing, that is, except for the two fighters facing off at the opposite ends of
the aforementioned alley. 
	
	"This time you're going down, Bison," Terry growled. "I'm putting an 
end to your plots and your scheming for good." 

	Bison made no comment. He simply hovered in the air for a moment, 
grinning, then lowered himself slowly to the ground. 

	And with that, Terry shot into action. "POWER DUNK!" He leapt into the 
air, and came down with a crushing blow, fist flaring with ki - and completely
missed as Bison rolled out of the way. 

	Terry leapt back into a ready position. Bison advanced slowly. Then he 
suddenly shouted "DOUBLE DREAD KICK!", somersaulted into the air, and delivered
two legs full of Psycho-power directly to Terry's head. 

	As Terry reeled in pain, Bison drew back. 

	The two circled each other for a second, each fighter searching for the 
edge on the other. Terry leapt forward again and executed a sweep kick, knocking
Bison off of his feet. 

	While the massive evil tyrant was off guard, Terry sent punch after punch 
into Bison's torso... only to discover that the evil tyrant had blocked each one
in turn. To Terry's further dismay, Bison proceeded to grind a Psycho Fist into
Terry's gut, sending him flying backwards. 

	As Terry got up, Bison grinned at him and slowly drew his thumb across 
his throat. 

	Terry snarled, "Not this time, you megalomaniac bastard. You're going 
down. BURN KNUCKLE!" He raised his arms, charged for a split second, and flung
himself across the alley. Bison nimbly sidestepped it, and Terry went flying
past. 

	Once Bison was facing Terry's back, he screamed out "PSYCHO CRUSHER!" 
and dove headfirst at Terry's midsection, as the whole of his body began to
glow with Psycho Power.
	
	Terry spun around. His eyes widened in shock, and nanoseconds later he 
was slammed into the side of the alley with the full speed of Bison's trademark
ending move. Bison hopped up again, ready to fight, should the deadly attack not
prove enough to destroy the red-capped fighter. 

	Terry, however, slowly slid down the wall, coming to a stop in a 
position that quite obviously indicated that something inside him was broken. 

	Bison chuckled. As he walked away from the crumpled Terry, the words 
"GAME OVER" appeared on the screen, followed by the words "Continue?" and the
number 9. Then the 9 became 8, and 8 became 7, and then it didn't matter anymore
as Terry punched a hole right through the arcade game's screen. 

	"DAMMIT!" He grabbed the top of the "MegaFightingRageMatch Mark 3" and 
with scream of fury, he deftly separated it from the rest of the machine. He
proceeded to punch, kick, and toss the game around until all that remained was a
pile of plastic, metal, and electronic board shards. Having completed his
objective, he leaned against another machine and panted for a moment. 

	With sense returning to him, he surveyed the wreckage of the fighting 
game. "Skuld's going to be mad about that," he muttered to himself. "She made
that game for me last week. Looks she'll be up to Mark 4..."

	He glanced around Heaven's Arcade for another game which he hadn't 
beaten or beaten up yet. Nothing seemed promising until he laid his eyes on the
newest game in the Arcade - the MTCFF Ultra Game. He sauntered over to it and
slid in a token. After a quick moment of thought, he selected Dan as his 
fighter. He sat down on a stool and prepared to deliver a can of whupass. As the 
match started, Terry's thoughts wandered to his brother. 
	
	"Back, back, C, C, D. *sigh* What to do about Andy..." On the 
screen, Dan executed a Super, dealing massive amounts of damage to
his opponent. 

	"This latest development isn't good at ALL....Back, Quarter-Front-
Roll!" The character shot off a ki blast. "Why was he doing that? I know he's
always idolized me, but that seemed a bit much." Dan was suddenly caught 
in a combo by the opponent.
	
	"Wearing my hat, wearing my clothes, using my gloves... Damn, should 
have blocked that!" Terry punched a the jump button repeatedly. 

	"Using my moves, using my lines, using my NAME?!" He pressed a 
sequence of buttons and rolled the joystick. Nothing happened. 

	"Come ON, you! I KNOW that's the right combo for that move!" He pounded 
furiously on the buttons of the arcade game. 

	"A, A, B, Back-to-Forward-Roll! I don't see why it isn't GOING!" He 
slammed the joystick into position, and yanked it around to the front. Nothing. 
	
	"DAMN little brother anyway! Why did he have to be a hero? Getting 
hurt like that..." Dan died a horrible gruesome death. Terry slumped in defeat.
"And I can't go down to check on him..."

	He got up and wandered out of Heaven's Arcade. Once outside, he turned 
towards his apartment. He shuffled along, head hanging low. As a result, he
bumped smack into someone, bowling them over completely. 
	
	"Oops. Excuse me..." Terry looked up to see that he'd accidentally run 
smack into Shinji Ikari. "Shinji! Dang, I'm sorry." 

	He extended Shinji a hand and helped him to his feet. "What are you 
doing here?" Shinji brushed himself off.

	"I was going home, Bogard-san." 

	"Call me Terry, kid. Say, listen. I have a favor to ask you."

	"Ano, what's that?" Shinji asked, perplexed. 

	Terry began walking again. Shinji hesitantly followed. 

	"Well, you know my brother's in the hospital now, right?" Shinji nodded. 

	"Yes. I was sorry to hear it." Terry suddenly wheeled around to face 
the Eva pilot. 

	"Shinji - I need you to go check on him." 

	"M...me?" Shinji stuttered. 

	"Yeah. You." 

	"But why?" 

	Terry gripped Shinji by the shoulders. "Listen, kid -little brother 
might be dying down there for all I know. And you're the only one I know who
can leave Heaven whenever he wants."

	Shinji shook his head. "Oh, no, that's not true - anyone can go, as long 
as they get authorization-" 

	Terry cut him off. "Authorization which requires massive amounts of 
signatures and forms and red tape." He made a face. "That could take weeks,
months, even. I need to know RIGHT NOW. And that means I need you." 

	"I...I'm really not supposed to unless it's official." 

	"Please, Shinji." 

	Shinji Ikari sighed. "Hai, Bogard-san." 

	Terry grinned. "Call me Terry, kid."

------------------------------

	"Welcome back, folks! Next up is our first Gamma match of the evening, 
an exciting title defense between... DEAR LINA, what's that?!" Hiroshi asked
excitedly as the lights dimmed.

	Controversial Jack strolled down the entrance ramp, Shingo and Daisuke 
on either side and Mr. Duck on his shoulder. The trio made a beeline for the
announcer's table, spotlight trailing them the whole way. Jack spoke up, "Don't
mind if I borrow this, do you, Hiroshi? Didn't think so," and took the
microphone from the pale-haired announcer.

	"BEEKER!" Jack screamed into the microphone in an almost Haohmaru-like 
manner. "Tonight is the beginning of the end for you!" Tarou shot him an evil
glare as he continued. "Mark my words, one by one the title belts will fall to
my..."

	"...our, Jack. Our," Daisuke reminded.

	"Hush, Daisuke, you're cramping my style. The title belts will fall to 
our fighters! Let the Lord of CHAOS rule!" Mr. Duck squeaked in agreement.

	The crowd went absolutely crazy, chanting, "CHA-OS, CHA-OS, CHA-OS!" 
Jack waved his arms up and down, egging the crowd on. 

	Suddenly the UltraTron flickered and the Ultra logo was replaced by 
Nabiki's ubercalm countenance. "Ah, Jack. Nice to see you again. I heard your
boast and frankly, I'm not impressed. Your fighters must prove that they can
handle the rank and file of Ultra before they can challenge my champions. Who's
that you have with you, Jack? Oh, Shingo. I believe there's a certain Gamma
division member who currently has a matter to take up with you, Shingo."

	The quick-change artist turned sheet-white as he realized what was 
coming. "Iori," he quietly said.

	Nabiki continued, "Mr. Yagami, would you care for a match with our 
dear Shingo here?" 2.7 seconds later, Iori was at the end of the entrance ramp,
dragging Yohko behind. "I'll take that as a yes. Do you agree to a match with
Iori, Shingo?"

	Shingo opened his mouth to reply, "I..." and was quickly interrupted 
by Jack.

	"Of COURSE he agrees! What kind of a man do you think Shingo is?" He 
turned to Shingo and whispered, "You are a man, right? I'm not going to have
this come back and bite me in the ass later, right?" Shingo nodded quickly.
"Thought so."

	All of a sudden the lights went off again. "The hell is it THIS 
time?" asked Tarou impatiently.

	A whoosh was heard as if something very large was being unfurled. 
Suddenly above the announcer's table, the kanji for "Welcome back, Daisuke,"
appeared in all their flaming splendor. 

	Jack elbowed Daisuke playfully. "Hey Dai, looks like your girlfriend's
here."

	Daisuke paled. "Just what I need... hey Jack, you wouldn't mind 
managing Shingo alone this match, would you?"

	Jack narrowed his eyebrows quizzically. "What, you're bugging out on 
me? Come on, Daisuke, you're a part of CHAOS, aren't you? You've got to stick
around for the match!"

	A very feminine, very determined voice was heard from above. "Dai-chan! 
Did you miss me?"

	"...not particularly," commented Daisuke.

	"I've got a gift for you, my love! Catch!" The lights came on and 
Daisuke looked up to see a bouquet of wilted black flowers coming down at him.
Along the way, the flowers drifted a little too close to the flaming banner and
ignited. The stunned former announcer caught the bouquet, noticed the immediate
danger to his personal safety, and hurled the flowers toward the ring. The
impromptu projectile impacted with the nearest ropes, catching them ablaze.

	Nabiki sighed and said, "I guess I'll have to talk to my distributor 
about that. Well, unless we want a delay in tonight's show, we can just make 
this match an inferno match."

	Jack interjected, "Sounds fine to me! Up for it, Shingo?" Shingo 
began to protest, but Jack interrupted, "Of course you are! Get in there and
make us all proud!"

	Nabiki looked at Iori. "Any objections, Mr. Yagami?" Iori grunted a 
negative. "All right then. Get on with the match. We have more scheduled after
this and I will not delay the Gamma title defense another week."

	Iori jumped over the ropes and stretched, preparing for the fight. 
Shingo nervously cleared the flames and stood opposite Iori in the ring.

	"In case you've forgotten, everyone, the inferno match involves two 
fighters duking it out inside a ring of flames!" Hiroshi explained in his
hyperactive way.

	"Whoever would have guessed," Tarou said bitingly.

	"And the first fighter to become a walking lighter loses! Let's get on 
with the match folks, it's sure to be a barn-burner!"

	"That one was so bad it doesn't deserve a comment," Tarou remarked. 
"Let's get this started. I'm tired of listening to you."

][ GAMMA MATCH 1: SPECIAL INFERNO MATCH
][ IORI YAGAMI vs. SHINGO YABUKI
][ FIGHT!

	Shingo shakily addressed the obviously still Not Happy Iori. "Um... 
thanks for letting me borrow your gloves!" He dodged a roundhouse from Iori. "I
wouldn't have taken them," Shingo neatly jumped a sweep, "if you'd had a match
later that day." Shingo rolled to the side to avoid a flame wave sent by the
enraged Yagami. "I won't do it again, I promise!" Shingo finally talked long
enough for Iori to land a punch to his gut.

	"Feh," Iori snapped. "Shut up and fight, Kusanagi bastard-child. I 
didn't come here to listen to your apologies." 

	Shingo decided it was a good time to listen to the blazing red-haired 
bishounen. "SHINGO KICK!" he announced as he flung himself toward Iori. Iori
ducked and countered with an uppercut to the back of Shingo's thigh. The young
copycat winced and favored his injured leg when he landed.

	Shingo pleaded with Iori. "I was going to return them as soon as I was 
done! I just wanted to learn a new technique!" Iori just grunted and launched a
furious attack in Shingo's direction. Iori slid in, driving his elbow into
Shingo's chest. He followed it up with a hook to the boy's jaw and a sweeping
low kick that knocked Shingo off his feet. Shingo rolled to his feet and
attempted to counter with a jumping knee to Iori's jaw...

	...unfortunately for Shingo, his weakened leg didn't get him as high 
off the ground as he expected, and he hit Iori in the chest instead, not doing
much damage. 

	Iori took a step back and reached an arm behind him. "Taste the fury 
of the Yagami flames!" Iori rapidly flung three waves at Shingo. The first two
were avoided by the quick-change artist, but he just couldn't get around the
third, his outfit clipped by the flame.

	"And that does it! Shingo's caught on fire! The match goes to Iori!" 
Hiroshi stated excitedly.

	"No, it doesn't, you idiot," Tarou replied.

	"Huh?" 

	"According to the rules of the inferno match, the fight ends when a 
contestant is caught on fire by the flames under the ropes. Or in this case, on
the ropes. Flames thrown by people in the match don't count," Tarou said.

	"Tarou, you're sounding more and more like Daisuke every day."

	"I should kill you for that."	

	Hiroshi sweatdropped. "And now, back to our match!"

	Shingo desperately thought of something he could do to get into 
punching range without being completely battered in the process. Finally an idea
came to him. "Shingo power, henshin! Form of... Mano!"

	The next thing Iori knew, he was staring at a virtual copy of Yohko 
Mano, 108th generation Mamono hunter. 

	Well, except for the legs. And the height. And the face. And... well, 
he didn't look much like her at all. He had the outfit and the wig, though.
	
	Hiroshi was yelling frantically. "Amazing! And with one use of his 
henshin power, Shingo has taken the form of Iori's girlfriend. Will this give
Shingo the advantage? Will Iori see through his disguise? And... did he just
bounce?"

	Tarou once again wore his customary smirk. "Well, he makes a pretty 
good girl, for an idiotic little rebel."

	Iori saw through the disguise and gave Shingo a kick to the knee, but 
not before Shingo pulled off Iori's gloves. "Ha! Now we'll have a flame-free
fight!" Shingo victoriously shouted as he reverted to his normal outfit. Then
Iori did something Shingo never expected.

	Iori was laughing madly. "You think you've taken away the Yagami 
fire? Watch this, and maybe you'll learn this time that the gloves don't make
the flame."

	"But I thought..." Shingo blurted before Iori unleashed another fire 
wave.

	"You think too much. Notes. Feh. Strategy. Feh. Just fight."

	Shingo ran in as fast as he could and started trading blows with the 
other fighter. Shingo got his fair share of punches in, but he just couldn't
compete with the older, stronger Iori. The Yagami flamethrower finished the
close-up duel with a series of jabs to Shingo's chest and stomach. Shingo fell
to the ground in pain. Iori just stared at him disinterestedly. Shingo stumbled
to his feet, grimacing in pain as Iori spoke.

	"You know nothing of the true warrior's flames. You're too weak." 
Iori winced slightly as he summoned a flame without his gloves. "Die."

	Shingo saw the fire coming, but in his weakened state, he didn't have 
the speed to dodge. He only knew of one way to block the projectile coming, but
he didn't have the gloves... but Iori could do it without the gloves. Shingo
prepared his move. "SHIKI ARA KAMI, IKUZE!!"

	Yagami fire met Kusanagi flame in the middle of the ring, each 
canceling the other. When the puff of smoke from the inferno within an inferno
cleared, Iori was standing and Shingo was on the ground near the ropes, writhing
and screaming in pain. Iori walked up to his opponent slowly and looked down at
him with a scornful expression.

	"Hmph," Iori said. "You don't understand the true pain of the flames 
you now summon, you Kusanagi bastard." Shingo barely managed to pull himself up,
still grimacing in pain. When Shingo finally stood up, Iori planted a foot into
his chest, knocking him back into the flaming rope.

	"And that ends the match. Iori claims his tenth win in Ultra and 
revenge on the little punk who stole his gloves... one of those who dare to
challenge Miss Tendou," Tarou evenly stated. 

-------------------------------

	Ranma had stalled a bit, to talk to some of the other fighters... 
get briefed on what was going on tonight. It helped to stay informed, 
especially if he was sort-of working with Daisuke and Jack's little 
gang.

	There was a lot of violence out there. For some reason this came 
as a shock to him, despite knowing Ultra was all about violence to 
settle your problems. In the hazy days he spent relentlessly going 
after the championship, it all felt natural... but now, whenever 
someone talked about how much they wanted to take out some other 
person, it just made him feel queasy.

	Not a good state to be in. He was RANMA SAOTOME, heir to the 
Saotome School of Anything-Goes Martial Arts. He certainly didn't feel 
like a pacifist... more like he was voluntarily avoiding hostility. 
Just in case. But sooner or later, he know, he'd have to face this...

	Bag of ice in hand, he walked back into the dojo. It was a pretty 
big room, which is why he wasn't immediately alarmed at the lack of 
Akane. But a quick search, showing a wet towel dropped on a nearby mat 
and a note left near it, started the slow descent into dangerous 
territory.

		 Dear Ranma Saotome,

		 Hi! How are you? I am well. It is good to see you again.
		 How is the family? How's your head? Are you going to come
		 down to the boiler room and face me like a man or do I have
		 to take out my frustrations on your horse of a girlfriend
		 again? Let me know ASAP, thanks.

			 Love, Marlo
			 PS: You suck.

	He clutched the plastic bag of ice so tight that his hand went 
numb. His heartbeat was the only sound rocking in his ears. Blood 
pumped, heated up, he could FEEL something rising... and knew damn well 
what it was. It was the urge to kick Marlo's teeth through the back of 
his head. To just beat on him and beat on him and beat on him until he 
was breathing through his NECK...

	Ranma staggered backwards, until he hit the wall. This wasn't 
happening. This COULDN'T be happening. But he knew Marlo like the 
back of his hand, through their extended history, and knew Marlo could 
push all the right buttons to set him off... Ranma's current fragile 
state of mind partly the fault of Marlo Semaj.

	But Akane was in trouble. Ranma couldn't go to any of his friends 
and beg for help... he might be unsure of himself, he might be walking 
right into a trap, but he had to go alone. That's just what Ranma 
Saotome IS, regardless of the situation.

	He ran from the dojo at full speed, headed for the facility 
stairwell.

-------------------------------

	"And we're back from commercial!"

	"I think they realized that already, Hiroshi," Tarou sarcastically 
remarked.

	Hiroshi simply ignored him and moved on. "Now, folks, on to our 
Gamma title match! The competitors are about to come down to the ring, and
there's our challenger now!"

	Mr. Satan strolled down the entry ramp and waved to the crowd as they
chanted his name. He could do this. He could take his belt back, and he 
could get away from the winged slut's offer. How? He'd think that up later.
For now, he'd do his best to implement his plan of action. Mr. Satan boldly
strode up to the ring and stepped in, ready for battle.

	"And now, your Gamma champion, Morrigan Aensland!" said Tarou.
	
	Morrigan entered from the opposite side, flying in as gracefully as she 
could. A few male members of the crowd whistled their appreciation, one 
holding a sign reading, "I'll take the belt off you any day!" Morrigan 
stopped, hearing their calls, and landed quickly. She blew the group a kiss
and winked, causing two of them to faint. Morrigan then took to the air once
again and landed nimbly in the ring.

	The referee dropped his arm from above his head, and the match was on.

][ GAMMA MATCH #2: TITLE DEFENSE
][ MORRIGAN AENSLAND vs MR. SATAN
][ FIGHT!

	Morrigan immediately went into a ready position. "I assume you won't 
be up for any of my offers this time, hmmm, oh noble one?" Satan shrugged
noncommittally. "You're no fun," she whined. "I guess I'll just have to take you
out the old-fashioned way." She settled in for the fight, then facefaulted at
the next thing she saw.

	Satan was gazing at her with a completely adoring look on his face. 
Morrigan took this as a good sign and began utilizing the fullest extent of her
charms. She smiled seductively and leaned over toward Satan, causing the male
audience on that side of the ring to have a sudden need for a handkerchief.
Satan took a step toward Morrigan. Further encouraged, she stretched out
backward, almost causing her chest to expand beyond its clothing barrier. 

	"Wow, she must have special-ordered that outfit. I don't know of any 
fabric that can stretch THAT far!" Hiroshi exclaimed.

	"Maybe that's because your current red-eyed girlfriend doesn't have the 
figure to put her outfit to the test, clone-boy," Tarou smartly replied.

	"..." Hiroshi boldly proclaimed as he tried to think of something that 
wouldn't lose him his job, or his life.

	Meanwhile, Satan had been advancing as before, and was now within a 
handful of steps of the succubus. Morrigan lay down on the mat, curling one leg
and touching a hand to her lips as she purred at him from the ground. Another
step. Morrigan stood and ran her hands up her legs slowly, drawing Satan in for
the kill. Satan took one last step and gazed at Morrigan. She reached out to
him, moving her wings around him in an attempt to embrace him and apply the kiss
that would finish him off.

	"Is Mr. Satan succumbing to Morrigan's charms? Will she make this an 
easy, quick victory? Will he get the action that Morrigan promised?!" Hiroshi
excitedly queried.

	"What, did they push the wrong button when they cloned you, or are you 
just naive? He's going to 'get it' either way," Tarou coolly said.

	Morrigan leaned in closer to Mr. Satan... and then it happened.

	"SATAN PUNCH!" Mr. Satan propelled himself full-speed at Morrigan from 
the bare inches away that he was. Though he didn't have time to build up enough
momentum to do significant damage from his punch, Morrigan was startled enough
for Satan to continue his move. He bounced off the ropes, keeping an arm out to
snag Morrigan around the neck, and carried her directly into an overhead hold. 

	"I would NEVER!" Satan shouted as he slammed her into the mat.

	"BETRAY!" He spun and smashed Morrigan into the nearest turnbuckle full-on. 

	"MY WIFE!" Morrigan recoiled off the offending obstacle and Satan drew 
her over his head, introducing her to the mat once again.

	"Like THAT!" Satan screamed as he grabbed Morrigan around the neck and 
applied a DDT with all his might. Morrigan stayed on the mat, seeming to be down
for the count, and Satan, exhausted, panted and wheezed from the effort he had
expended.

	"What an AMAZING display of loving devotion and wrestling skill from 
Mr. Satan! Has he put Morrigan out for the..." Hiroshi trailed off as the crowd
started chanting as one, "SA-TAN! SA-TAN! SA-TAN!"

	Satan turned to the crowd, drinking in their shouts of adulation. He 
LIKED this. As he stood beaming at his fans, he thought, "Earth's Greatest Hero
is back on top! I've reclaimed my rightful position of WHAT THE?" Satan dropped
to the mat as he had his legs taken out from under him by a sweeping kick from
Morrigan. 

	"You know, big man, that almost hurt," Morrigan noted. Satan quickly 
rose, adrenaline pumping once again. "Very few men have spurned my advances..."
she delivered a high kick to Satan's face, "and lived to tell about it."
Morrigan launched a quick punch toward Satan's midsection. Satan deflected the
blow easily. "So, you're ready to fight me now, is that it?" Satan glared at her
evilly and grunted an affirmative. "Okay. No more joking around. SHADOW BLADE!" 

	Morrigan launched herself at Satan, using her wings, fists and feet to 
hit him from every angle. Satan backed into the corner, reeling with the blows
and trying to block futilely. As her attack finished, he ran at her with a
flurry of punches. Despite Morrigan's use of arms and wings in blocking, Satan's
enraged punches flew so fast that even she had trouble stopping them all. Satan
continued to push Morrigan back with jabs, hooks, and roundhouses until she
pressed against the ropes. 

	"Looks like Satan's got Morrigan on the ropes! Will she be able to 
counter the unstoppable force that is SATAN POWER?" Hiroshi turned four shades
of purple as he worked himself higher than caffeine could ever take him.

	"An eighty-year old nun could stop his Satan power!" Tarou smirked.

	Morrigan leaned against the ropes and grinned at Mr. Satan as he 
prepared to throw a devastating blow. "Oh, you want to get closer?" Satan backed
away, not wanting to defile himself by willingly touching that... that
SEDUCTRESS. When he flinched back, Morrigan saw her chance and gave him a swift
jab to the throat. As Satan staggered backwards, Morrigan laughed evilly. "It's
time to end this. I've got places to go, people to do, you understand."

	Satan braced for the assault he knew was coming as Morrigan screamed, 
"DARKNESS ILLUSION!"

	Morrigan glided smoothly toward Mr. Satan, prepared to strike. As she 
struck Satan's upheld block, he flinched but held fast. Satan blocked, wondering
what sort of evil final attack she'd hit him with.

	Then the second Morrigan hit him from behind. Startled, Satan let down 
his guard, and both Morrigans pressed with a barrage of punches and kicks. Satan
attempted to defend himself from the onslaught, but the large amount of blows
took its toll on the already drained warrior. Satan's tired body hit the ground
as the illusory Morrigan faded away. Morrigan smirked down at Mr. Satan as the
referee slapped the ten count on the mat. 

	"And an AMAZING victory for the Gamma champion, Morrigan Aensland, 
coming back from being lambasted by Mr. Satan and his mad wrestling SKEELZ!"

	Tarou huffed. "Amazing? Hardly. It'll take more than that rabble to 
dethrone her. She's got promise, and in Miss Tendou's organization, people with
promise go far."

	Hiroshi stared at Tarou, then quickly refocused his attention on the 
camera. "And with that chilling statement, a word from our sponsors!

-------------------------------

ANNOUNCER: Coming this summer. From Victoria's Secret. A whole new style in
lingerie. 

(Four women are shown lounging around on various geometric shapes as they model
the articles of clothing.) 

ANNOUNCER: Made from 100% leather, taken from newborn calves slaughtered under a
full moon on Walpurgistnacht. 

(A woman approaches the camera, walking with an exaggerated sway. She is wearing
a black leather teddy, adorned with straps, belts, and stainless steel studs.)

ANNOUNCER: Specifically designed for women who aren't afraid to show their WILD
side....we present - The Morrigan Collection. 

(The woman fades back, only to be replaced by another, this one in a matching
bra/panties set, of similar style, although these are red.)

ANNOUNCER: The Morrigan Collection is an adventure in itself. Available in three
styles - teddy, bra/panties set, or bustier, and three colors - black, red, and
green....

(The second woman fades back, and another steps up to the camera. She is wearing
the teddy, as well as a pair of black silk stockings, with embroidered bats
running the full length of the hose. The stockings are held up by a bat-wing
style garter belt.))

ANNOUNCER: The matching silk stockings and garter belt add an air of mystique
and elegance to any of the items in the Morrigan Collection. 

(The third woman fades back and the final woman approaches the camera. She is in
a green Morrigan Collection bustier, and modeling a pair of green opera gloves.
The gloves are topped by a ring of black fur. She is also wearing a pair of 4
inch stilleto heels.)

ANNOUNCER: The final two items in the Morrigan Collection complete the ensemble
perfectly. The silk gloves, topped with real werewolf fur, whisper "I'm
dangerous..." The stiletto heels murmur "Take me...."

(The women all fade to the background as Morrigan herself comes on-camera. She
is wearing a full set of the Morrigan Collection, in all black.)

MORRIGAN: The Morrigan Collection. The ONLY thing YOU should be caught dead
wearing.

(The camera fades out on Morrigan's seductive smile...)

QUIET V.O.: Not available in white. 

-------------------------------

	Steam hissed. Pipes throbbed and sweat from minute leaks in the metal 
rivets. The overhead lamps did very little to help illumination. All in all, it
was the perfect place for a stock evil scheme, and Marlo felt that was very
important.

	He checked on Akane, who was still out cold. Pouring a little 
chloroform in her water bucket before she toweled off did wonders, but he wasn't
taking any chances; she was chained to a barcalounger and would not be going
anywhere. Not until he got what he wanted.

	So, he resumed paging through the Swedish furniture catalog, wondering 
what dinette set defined him as an individual, until the eventual arrival of the
one he sought.

	"I'm here," Ranma announced, through the hazy darkness. Marlo looked 
up; there was only one door to the boiler room, and the voice was coming from
that rectangle of light pouring in through it.

	"Hey, Ranma!" Marlo greeted, putting a bookmark in his catalog, and 
getting to his feet. "My my my, you look TENSE. Are you sweating? Why're you
holding a bag of ice water?"

	"What. do. you. want?" Ranma spoke, very slowly, very calmly. Although 
Marlo watched as his hands tensed and untensed, part of him said, 'This is
probably not a good time to tease him' but that was the same part that kept
telling him not to park in handicapped 
spaces and not to kick puppies, so he ignored it.

	"Relax, Saotome! It's so simple, even a retard like you could 
understand," Marlo said, approaching. "I see you see your love muffin in my
relaxing recliner. Wasn't that nice of me? She's very snoozy and comfortable. I
haven't touched a hair on her head yet, and I won't, IF you get back in the ring
with me."

	Ranma stepped backward. "Wh-what?"

	"You're a drain on Ultra, boyo," Marlo told him. "A black hole for 
profits. We're paying you even though you haven't had a fight in front of the
fans in weeks! Miss Tendou isn't happy about this, and when she's not happy, I'M
not happy. So I'm calling you out, Saotome. You can stand there waving love
beads and singing Kumbayah while I beat you about the head and neck if you want,
as long as you're out there making money. In return, your cutie pie walks. This
is me being a nice guy, you see. Sure, I chemically KOed thunder thighs over
there, but I'm showing mercy and honor in my challenge! So. Deal or not?"

	Ranma's head throbbed. Everything in him wanted to [HURT] Marlo. Lots 
of people would probably approve of it, too, given his 'popularity' with
Ultra... with the Ultra audience. In his mind he could hear them cheering him
on... he pushed THAT sound right out, and focused. He would not lose control.

	"I'm not getting back in the ring," Ranma spoke, with determination. "
Not until I'm ready. MAYBE then I'll fight you, but it'll be on my terms, not
yours. No deal."

	Marlo's cheerful Mr. Nice Guy grin faded. He advanced, carrying a steel 
chair. "You listen to me, Ranma Saotome," he said, voice angered. "I am being a
very reasonable person, but I can be very unreasonable, too. If you don't do
this, I don't get my Hardcore title back. If I don't get my title back, I am
going to hound you until the end of days. You and chubby cheeks there. Week in
week out, I'm going to beat your 60's hippie ass, just like I'll beat you right
now. You gonna put up a fight, big man?"

	Ranma realized the reason why Marlo hadn't advanced on him was because 
he was walking backwards; backing away from the fight. He stumbled over a
discarded wrench, Marlo now towering over him.

	"But you're not going to be enough," Marlo added, smacking his fist 
against the chair. "I'm going to make HER scream for mercy. She's going to learn
to RESPECT me. All my life people have been dissing me, laughing at me, kicking
me out of tournaments and mocking me... and I'm not going to take it anymore,
especially from some stupid little girl. I'm going to hurt her, Ranma. Hurt her
bad. And it'll all be YOUR FAULT because you wouldn't dare to face me!"

	Staring at the ceiling, Ranma wondered why he was staring at the 
ceiling, until he realized he'd been hit in the head with a chair. He couldn't
fight back. Something in him wanted to, pushing, trying to get out as Marlo
advanced on the sleeping Tendou girl in her soft chair, wanting to BULLY Marlo,
to MAIM him and DESTROY anyone else who dared to mock Ranma Saotome like this,
and take away what he cherished...

	...and then he felt totally at peace.

	Ranma sat up, confused. It was like all the noise in his head went 
away, and everything was calm once more. He felt like himself. Before the
incidents, the trouble, the confusion. He stood, distanced from everything and
quite relieved about things. He dropped the empty plastic bag that was still on
his hand, ready to go and...

	But he still didn't feel like striking Marlo. Something was wrong. He 
wanted to save Akane, before she got hurt, but his aggression was totally gone,
even with Marlo raising his chair over Akane, ready to--

	Then someone tackled Marlo.

	Both went down into a tangled heap. The brawl was immediate, with raw 
fighting and kicking and scratching and mixing it up. Not martial arts, nothing
so organized or planned, but a crazed frenzy of violence that was EASILY
overcoming the Furnityre Savior's extremely limited hand to hand combat
ability...

	Ranma stood frozen, as this savior who had come to their rescue made 
total mincemeat out of Marlo. He was beaten inside and out, even past the point
where he'd lost consciousness; a vicious mauling, with rage poured into it by
the bucketful.

	Finally, the brawler untangled herself, and spat on the unconscious 
Marlo. She walked over to Akane... ripping the chains that kept her bound in
half, metal snapping from sheer adrenaline pumping through her muscles.
Breathing hard, she stepped into the light, to face Ranma...

	His tiny little world went upside down.

	"If YOU'RE not going to fight him, then *I* will," Ranma-chan said, 
glaring down Ranma. "And I'm not going to be kept locked up any longer, so you'd
better get used to the idea! Ranma Saotome is back in black. Or red, to be
specific."

	The female Ranma put two fingers to Ranma's forehead, pushed, and he 
fell over. Everything went black.

-------------------------------

	Shinji trudged along the hallways of the Ultradome, heading in the 
general direction of the medical ward. 

	"Why on Lina's green Earth did I let myself get roped into this? I 
could be in Heaven, in my room, listening to my music..." 

	He stopped short. "Maybe I won't go. Maybe I'll just head back to 
Heaven and see what Lina wants me to do today." 

	He continued to stand in the middle of the hallway for a moment. "Or 
maybe not." He continued plodding down the corridor until a sudden explosion
of pink came from around the corner.
	
	"OOSHA! Greetings, heavenly compatriot Shinji Ikari!" 

	"Um...hi, Dan."

	"Would you, perchance, know the way to the cafeteria? I was meandering 
these fine halls, practicing and refining my grasp of the Manly Art of Taunting,
when I suddenly realized that I had forgotten which way the place of much
eating enjoyment lay!" 

	Shinji blinked. "Um - it's that way, Dan. I think." He pointed in the 
direction Dan had just come from. 

	"YOSH! Much thanks, Shinji! Now we shall see how well the food can 
withstand the intense hunger of TAUNTING GODHEAD LEGEND STONE-COLD DAN HIBIKI!" 

	Dan flexed his mighty forearm and ran off around the next corner. 
Shinji just stood frozen in place for a moment. Then he sighed and began moving
towards the medical ward again. 

	"That was surreal..." Shinji walked in silence for a while. As he 
was just about to round a curve and enter an elevator, he suddenly heard
something that stopped him in his tracks. 

	It was Xelloss' voice. 

	"...So you understand the operation, then?" 

	Someone else chuckled softly. "Of course." It was a young male, that 
much Shinji knew, but he couldn't place who the voice belonged to.

	 "Good. Get to work. I've got to attend to some, ah, business back at 
base." 

	"And what's that, then?" the other voice questioned. 

	"Oh, it's this Aerith character. She's just more trouble that she's 
worth. I'm afraid I might have to... deal with her. Forcefully, if necessary."

	Shinji's face went sheet white instantly. He nearly gasped in surprise 
before catching himself. "Kill Aerith?" he numbly thought. 

	Xelloss continued. "But I digress. Carry out your mission quickly and 
efficiently." 

	Shinji heard someone walk down the hallway. Then the doors to one of 
the countless elevators opened and closed, and the corridor was silent again.
"They're ... they're going to kill...OH MY LINA." Shinji took off at full tilt
back down the hallway.

	In the now-deserted hallway, a chuckle was heard. A door opened to 
reveal Pantyhose Tarou. 

	"My, my, my. How interesting. Nabiki would love to hear about this." 
He grinned.

-------------------------------

	Ranma sat bolt upright, the wet towel flying off his forehead and 
smacking against the far wall.

	Quick assessment. In Akane's dressing room. Akane sitting nearby 
looking surprised. Slightly damp. In male form. ...probably sane. Okay. Life
could now continue.

	"Oh, good, you're awake," Akane said. "I was starting to worry. When I 
woke up, I found you in your girl form, unconscious, and Marlo beaten to a pulp.
I got you some hot water and a cold cloth, like you said works best... Ranma,
what happened? How did we end up in the boiler room? I couldn't make heads or
tails of it. Did you fight Marlo? Are you okay?"

	"No, I didn't, and yes, in a manner of speaking," Ranma said honestly, 
getting the creeping horrors. "I'm back to my old self..."

	"Really? That's great! Ah, wait. Didn't you just say you didn't fight 
Marlo? Ranma, you're not making sense."

	"Not much is making sense to me lately," Ranma said, climbing out of 
bed. "Akane? Do me a favor and keep me away from cold water. I think I found the
peace in battle. The problem is, the battle found someone else to do its fight,
and she's not very peaceful at all."

	"Ranma, you're scaring me."

	"I know. Me too. Get Doctor Tofu on the phone. My problems just 
developed problems."

-------------------------------

	Terry paced anxiously in Heaven's Arcade. The wreckage of three more 
games lay in a pile behind him. "I hope Shinji gets back soon. The more I think
about Andy's match earlier-" He looked up as Shinji came barreling into the
room. "TERRY!" he shouted. 

	"Whoa, whoa! Calm down, kid! Is Andy that bad?" 

	"No, no, Terry! Listen! You have to listen to me!" Terry sat Shinji down 
on a stool.

	"Breathe, kid, breathe. Now... what happened?" Shinji panted heavily. 
He was covered in sweat. "Did you run all the way from the Pearly Gates?" 

	"Never mind that now... Xelloss..." He stopped to catch his breath. 
"Xelloss is... is going to KILL Aerith!" 

	Terry recoiled in shock. "He's going to WHAT?" 

	"Kill her! I heard him! He said it!" Shinji was nearly hysterical. "I 
was in the 'Dome, going to the medical ward, and I heard him say it... he 
was going to 'take care of her'. He's going to kill her, Terry! Kill Aerith!"
He broke down sobbing.

	Terry sat down hard on a stool. "That's- that's big news, kid." He 
thought for a moment. "We have to go save her." Shinji looked up, shocked out of
his tears. "What?" "We have to go save Aerith," Terry repeated. "She let me take
out Bison. I owe her. YOU owe her. She helped make you an Angel." 

	"But how are we going to save her?" Shinji asked, wiping his eyes. "She'
s in Hell, a place of eternal suffering and pain, filled with innumerable demons
and lost souls, guarded by Satan, Asuka AND Xelloss, and she's most likely being
kept deep within the palace of Hell itself, surrounded with traps and vicious
minions! How are we going to get past all that and save her?" 

	Terry grinned. "We'll manage, kid."

	Shinji sighed. "So are you going to ask Lina for permission or will I?" 

	"There's no time. We have to move NOW." Terry stood up, as Shinji 
boggled at him. 

	"You're suggesting an assault on hell without God's permission?" 

	"Yep. By the time we ask her and assemble a strike team, it'll be too 
late. It doesn't sound like Xelloss is the type to dally about these things." 

	"Wait. You're also suggesting we go in ALONE?" 

	"Of course. We can do it," Terry said. 

	Shinji stared at him. "Have you always been this crazy, or is this a 
recent development?"

	Terry was already out the door. "Time's a wasting! Let's move!" Shinji 
sighed and followed him.

-------------------------------

	"Oh, Dimitri--" *click*  "--live from Market Square--" *click* "Sit 
down, shut up--" *click* 

	Sie Kensou sighed.  There was just nothing on today.  "I hope Athena 
gets back soon. This is getting boring." He continued to flip through the
channels rapidly, only pausing for a moment on each to hear snippets of
dialogue. He idly moved through the cable stations until he ran across a local
music video channel, which was showing Athena's latest creation.

	Taking a quick glance at the clock, he settled in to watch the show 
with a smile on his face. He could wait a while longer.

-------------------------------

	Yashiro Nanakase was prepared to lambaste some goody-two-shoe ass.  He'
d been wanting to knock the tar out of people for the last two weeks, and now he
finally had his chance. "'bout damn time," he mumbled as he and his partner
moved toward their target. 

	"Out of curiosity, Yashiro, why are we after these two?"

	Yashiro shrugged.  "Xelloss said they knew too much.  Personally, I'd 
rather beat that pansy James's face in, but our purple-haired leader told us not
to." Yashiro looked down at his slightly smaller partner in crime. "I'd much
prefer to act on my own, but that's gotten me in enough trouble lately. Let's
just do as he says so I can get back on his good side. Then maybe I can smash
Team Twerp."

	His younger partner smiled.  "We'll get the belts back, Yashiro.  Don't 
worry about that."

	The pair of Void followers came up on one of the Ultradome rec rooms.  
Inside they spotted their target, one Sie Kensou. The younger member of the Void
spoke softly, "Yadana, tsuyosou." The Void advanced on its unsuspecting prey.

-------------------------------

	The last portion of VH1's hour documentary on Athena Asamiya ended.  
Sie sighed. "Athena's not back yet. The situation must be worse than they
thought. Maybe I should go check on her." He paused. "Nah, she probably wouldn't
want me getting in the way." He once again brought up the controller and began
surfing. Sie paused for a moment to catch some sports news on the ESPN worldwide
broadcast. Then everything went black.

	"Nice shot, Chris," Yashiro complimented as the young Void devotee 
withdrew his blackjack. "Nice to be working with someone who actually focuses on
their job."

	Chris grinned evilly and said, "Not a problem, buddy.  Now, shall we 
have a little target practice with our new punching bag? I'll hold him and you
can get the first few hits." Chris picked up the limp Sie and winked at his
friend. "Shall we begin?"

	Yashiro wound up for the first blow.  "This should be fun."

-------------------------------

	Athena slowly walked back to the room where Sie said he'd wait for her. 
The last time she checked, Andy seemed to be recovering well from the physical
trauma he'd endured, but it remained to be seen whether his mental state was
back up to par. She sighed softly as she opened the door. She hated seeing
friends get hurt like that.

	The young singer paused.  "I didn't close that door, and Sie doesn't 
usually shut himself in," she muttered. Athena ran through the door and stopped
in the middle of the room. "SIE!" she yelled. It only took a quick glance to her
right to find him. 

	"Oh no!  Sie!" Athena worriedly exclaimed as she shook her friend and 
teammate. He was lying slumped against the wall, bruised and somewhat bloodied.
Whoever had done this obviously didn't want to kill him, merely scare him. She
wasn't sure if they succeeded, but she did know one thing.

	Athena Asamiya was scared out of her mind.

-------------------------------

	"I still think this is a bit crazy, you know," Shinji said to Terry, as
they snuck through the corridors of Nibelheim. "The two of us could never
stand up to Cloud and Xelloss by ourselves."

	"Sssh!" Terry hissed at Shinji, as a pair of guard demons walked by the
doorway they were hiding in. "Are you trying to get us killed? And besides, we
won't have to handle them. We'll just make sure they don't see us."

	"And if they do?" Shinji replied.

	"They won't. Stop worrying." Terry replied sharply, as they moved back
into the main corridor.

	Shinji walked silently through the halls of Nibelheim, keeping his
eyes peeled for any guards. They couldn't afford to be spotted at all. Then
there would be no way they could save Aerith. The one thing Shinji regretted
about this, is that there was no way he could use this opportunity to save
Asuka. After all, then they'd have to face Cloud, and two angels would have no
chance in.. well, in hell of getting to Aerith.

	Terry and Shinji came to a closed door. "Okay, I think this is it. On
the count of three, I'm gonna bust through this door. Ready?"

	Shinji shook himself out of his introspection. "Hai. Let's go."

	Terry was slightly taken aback at the vehemence of Shinji's statement,
and then smiled. The kid was getting a backbone. It might take a while, but he's
gonna be OK. "Alright. One, two, BURN KNUCKLE!" Terry flew at the door with a
ki-charged fist.

	The door never stood a chance.

	Terry and Shinji flew into the room, and stopped dead in their tracks.
"Wow, that's an impressive trap," Terry commented. Shinji gasped.

	Aerith was wearing a fairly tattered outfit, and had a gag in her mouth.
Her head was shaking side to side wildly, and she seemed to be trying to say
something. She was chained up to a table, which straddled a pit of lava. A pair
of swinging axe blades, one just above at her head, and one just below her
knees, were swinging progressively closer. When the axes got close enough,
they'd cut through her arms, legs, wings, and the table, and she'd die one of 
the most painful deaths in Hell's history.

	Shinji rushed over to Aerith. "Don't worry, Aerith. We're here to-
Yeow!" Shinji yelled as a small, piranha-like creature jumped out of the lava
at him and fell onto the stone. "... dear God in heaven." Shinji started to
untie Aerith as Terry moved to pull out her gag.

	As Shinji removed the last chain and Terry removed the gag, Shinji
looked to see if Aerith had any injuries. He didn't see any, which was good, but
they'd have to get her checked up in heaven. "I'm so glad you're safe, Aerith!
Xelloss said he was going to kill you!"

	Terry commented, "Yeah, and the kid was really worried." Aerith didn't
respond.

	Shinji opened a portal out of Hell. "Come on Aerith!" She turned to
look at Shinji, with a sad look in her eyes.

	"I'm sorry, Shinji."

	"What?" Shinji said, as the room suddenly started filling with demons.
Shinji stared at the demons in shock. "There must be at least hundred of them!"
he thought. He started to get ready to fight, and Terry cracked his knuckles.
As they prepared to attack, a voice broke in. 

	"Hello, Shinji." Shinji stopped dead in his tracks, and turned around.
There was Cloud and Asuka standing right by Aerith. "Thank you for coming to our
little party. Welcome to Nibelheim."

	Terry looked back at Cloud, and growled. "This was a setup."

	Cloud smiled back at Terry. "Of course, Bogard. We make it seem like
My Queen is in danger, and you slaves of Lina come running. You are so
predictable." 

	Shinji felt horrible like he hadn't felt for a long time. They couldn't
rescue Aerith, and he had brought himself and Terry to their deaths. He wasn't
even going to be able to save Asuka, and they were going to weaken Heaven even
further. He was a complete failure.

	He could almost hear his father. "You are a failure, Shinji. You have
shamed everyone you ever fought for. You will die. Your friends will die. Asuka
will forever become Hell's slave. And there is NOTHING you will be able to do
about it. You are such an incompetent brat. You were never good enough to pilot 
an Eva anyway. You are a failure, Shinji."

	"No I'm not," Shinji mumbled to himself.

	His father smirked. "You are weak, Shinji. A weak, flawed, incompetent
failure. You will never succeed."

	"Yes. I will."

	"Never, Shinji. Lina has you under her control. You are her puppet
forever. And soon she will destroy the world. What will you think then? After
helping the enemy? After causing the death of all you hold dear?" Gendo smiled
his most sinister smile, and suddenly looked shocked as Shinji looked up at him.

	"No. Lina would not start Third Impact. I am not her puppet. I am not a
failure. And I can save Aerith! You don't scare me anymore, Dad. Not anymore."

	 Cloud was still talking. "Well, let's go, Aerith. Be nice enough to 
die, boy...." Cloud turned to Aerith, "...and of course, my queen, you.."

	"No."

	Cloud turned back to Shinji. "What?"

	"No. I will not just let you kill me. I will NOT let you win!" Shinji
screamed, as an AT field SLAMMED into existence. "YOU WILL NOT WIN!" the younger 
Ikari yelled out, as he flared bright white.

	When the room was visible again, most of the demons were blown away, and
Terry, Cloud, Asuka, and Aerith were on the floor. Cloud stood up, helped Aerith
up, brushed himself off, and smiled at Shinji. "Very impressive, boy. But you
are not going to enslave Aerith again. I'll leave Asuka to take care of you."
Cloud said, as he disappeared, his words trailing off as he left.

	"BURN KNUCKLE!" Terry yelled, as he flew through the space Cloud just
occupied, just missing him. "Damn! Little coward!"

	Shinji turned back to Asuka. She was wearing her new black and blood red
plugsuit, and cackling evilly to herself. "Hello, Asuka."

	Asuka stared at Shinji with her red, hatred filled eyes. "Why hello,
Shinji-kun. And how is Heaven's finest little puppet doing today?"

	Shinji looked directly at Asuka. "I was never Heaven's puppet, Asuka. I
thought I had made that clear when I left. And you aren't Cloud's puppet, 
Asuka?"

	Asuka walked right up to Shinji. "I AM NO ONE'S PUPPET! My lord has 
given me enough power to be free from anyone! And now I can get revenge on 
all those who abused me! Gendo, Lina, Sephiroth, and you!"

	Shinji was taken aback. "Me? I never abused you? You always beat me up!"

	Asuka screamed at Shinji. "Don't play innocent with me! You were always
being a pervert, always showing me up, and ALWAYS GOING FOR ATTENTION! You NEVER
thought about ME! You and Wondergirl always saved the day. I never got the
credit! You were the first into Ultra, and the first to hold the belt! I will
NEVER FORGIVE YOU!" As she finished this statement, she teleported Terry, 
Shinji, and herself outside the castle. As Shinji seemed a bit puzzled, Asuka 
smirked. "My Lord wouldn't like me destroying his castle." Asuka 
closed her eyes, started to cough black blood, and shuddered. She twisted into
the form of EVA-02, as Shinji shook his head.

	"I'm sorry Asuka. I never really disliked you. I never tried to show 
you up. I was just surviving, the only way I could." Shinji turned to Terry. 
"You've got to go."

	Terry looked confused. "What, kid? We've got to beat her! Then we can go
and get Aerith! Besides, I can't leave you here!"

	Shinji looked back at Terry. "This is my fight, and my responsibility.
Maybe if I were nicer to Asuka, maybe if we had stood up to Gendo sooner, maybe
we could have stopped this. But she's confused, and I have to deal with that.
You, however, do not. I will not let another death be on my head." Shinji pushed
Terry backwards.

	"Wha'?" Terry eloquently said, as he fell through a portal Shinji had
created behind him. The portal closed as soon as Terry fell through.

	Shinji flickered, as EVA-01 started to appear in his place. You could
almost hear, as if it was the last thing he said after phasing out of existence.
"I'm sorry, Asuka. I'm so sorry."

	Krillin suddenly appeared through a portal near the battlefield, as did a 
myriad number of cameras. "I don't know what that crazy lady's thinking, but 
whatever. Fight!"

][ OMEGA MATCH #2
][ EVA-02 (ASUKA LANGLEY) VS. EVA-01 (SHINJI IKARI)
][ FIGHT!

	The second Krillin said that, he was flying the hell away. "This is
fricking INSANE. I'm not going to ref a match in HELL." Krillin was immediately
gone. 

	EVA-02 immediately dove at EVA-01, progressive knife in hand, which EVA-02
blocked with an AT field. Asuka was madly pressing the prog knife towards
Shinji, trying to get through the AT field. Meanwhile, a conversation was
quickly going on between Asuka and Shinji. 

	"Asuka! You don't have to do this! I don't hate you! Please, talk to me!
We don't have to resort to this!" Shinji screamed at Asuka.

	"YES WE DOOO SHINJI!" Asuka screamed back, wildly. "I will NOT listen to
you, puppet of Lina! You just want to show me up again, and I'll be under her
control too! I'll NEVER BE CONTROLLED AGAIN! I DO WHAT I WANT, AND I WANT YOU
DEAD!" Meanwhile, EVA-01 grabbed EVA-02's arm and flung it a good half mile, as
it crashed hard into the ground. 

	"Asuka! Calm down! I just want to talk!" Shinji pleaded, as EVA-02
jumped at EVA-01, prog knife extended. The knife crashed against an AT field 
head on. It didn't look like Asuka wanted to talk.

	"Well, I want to KILL! With you dead, I'll never have to worry about
you ever AGAIN!" EVA-02 suddenly broke through EVA-01's AT field, but EVA-01
slid under the strike, grabbed EVA-02's arms, placed its feet in EVA-02's
stomach, and flipped, kicking Asuka into a building. EVA-02 slumped against the
ground. 

	"Asuka... I'm sorry... I didn't want to hurt you. I don't want to hurt
you. Let me help you. Please, Asuka. Please!" EVA-01 was holding its hand out to
EVA-02.

	"Shinji.. Shinji-kun..." Asuka whispered.

	"Asuka. Come back. Let me help you..." Shinji said to Asuka. "Please."
EVA-02 was shakily reaching its left hand out to EVA-01.

	"Shinji-kun..." Asuka's voice suddenly twisted. "You baka." Suddenly,
Shinji felt a sharp pain in his stomach, as Asuka stabbed him with her prog 
knife.

	"Asuka... Asuka..." Shinji whispered. "No, I'm trying to help you. Can't
you see that?" 

	"Oh sure, you're trying to help me... you're trying to help me to my
DEATH!" Asuka screamed back at Shinji, as EVA-02 was battered EVA-01 back and
forth. "YOU. WOULD. KILL. ME. IF. LINA. TOLD. YOU. TO." Asuka
screamed, punctuating each word with another hit, "PUPPET!!"

	Shinji started to cough blood up, but managed to kick EVA-01 in the 
stomach, and break out of the hold. EVA-01 looked back at EVA-02, with an almost 
sorrowful look on its face.

	As Shinji started to disappear through a portal, he managed to form 
three words. 

	"No. I. Wouldn't."

	EVA-02 stopped in its headlong charge towards where Shinji used to be,
as Asuka processed that last statement. "Huh? Why wouldn't he?" Asuka shrunk
down to normal form as she paused in her confusion. "Of course he'd kill me.
He's Lina's puppet." Asuka's face suddenly locked into a visage of 
understanding. "Of course! Shinji lied, because of Lina's control!"
	
	Asuka now looked like she was ready to go and kill a few people. Or a
few hundred. "He was lying to me! He was manipulating me! He doesn't like me at
all! He was just here to rescue that bitch Aerith for Lina! And I was just his
little side project! 'Let's have a little fun with Asuka!' Baka!" Asuka started
laughing again. "And I'm going to KILL him for that!"

	Asuka doubled over in laughter as she ranted to herself. "Yes, Shinji. 
I'll show YOU what it's like to mess with Asuka Langley Soryuu! Next time
I see you, it'll be your FUNERAL!" Asuka's psychotic laughter reached a fever
pitch, as she teleported back to the castle.

-------------------------------

	The Ultradome was dead silent. Even the snack-food vendors were quiet. 
The whole arena seemed to have had a spell cast on it. A spell that turned every
last occupant into a living statue: unmoving, unspeaking.

	"WOW," said Hiroshi. He was sitting bolt-upright in his seat.
	
	The phrase shattered the curse, and the Ultradome filled with noise 
again. Mainly that of Hiroshi's voice.

	"What an AMAZING MATCH, folks! Heaven and Hell duke it out again, this 
time MANO-A-MANO! In a SPECTACULAR development, Eva pilots Shinji Ikari and
Asuka Langley Soryuu have had a COMPLETELY UNSCHEDULED match in the very CENTER
of Hell ITSELF!" 

	A vein in Hiroshi's temple began throbbing. "And, in an even MORE 
INCREDIBLE battle, Asuka has proved herself the stronger pilot! This doesn't
look good for Heaven! What will happen to Shinji? What will happen to ASUKA?
What lies in store for both the forces of Heaven and of Hell ALIKE?" 

	From apparently out of nowhere, a rolled-up fightcard smacked Hiroshi 
across the back of the head. 

	"Calm down, Clone-Boy. It's just an Omega battle," Tarou remarked, 
tossing the paper back on the table. 

	"But WHAT an Omega battle! What emotion! What moves! What a FIGHT! 
That, folks, is the DEFINITION of a slobberknocker!"

	"Whatever." Tarou glanced at the fightcard for the last time tonight. 
"And unless something else comes up in the next five seconds, we're done."

	Hiroshi turned to the camera. "That's all we've got for tonight, folks. 
See you next week! This is Hiroshi-"
	
	"And Tarou-"

	"...saying good fight, good night!"

	The red light on top of the camera dimmed, signaling the end of another 
episode of Nabiki's Ultra. 

	"Night, you pale-haired freak." Tarou got up, and began walking away. 
Suddenly he stopped, and turned his head back to look at Hiroshi. "Better on the
comments, this time, Clone-Boy. Miss Tendou will be pleased." Then he continued
walking. 

	Hiroshi gulped. "Please, Lina, gimme back good old Dai... soon... 
please?"

-------------------------------

	"Whatta dey gonna do wid'out me?"

	Meowth sat in the pilot's chair, munching on one of the emergency 
rations from the back compartment. He was proud of his victory in the Lunar
Eclipse Rumble. Team Rocket had come out on top... well, at least in part. He
was the only member that did any good in the first place. "If dat woithless
James hadn't had me to slip 'im dat device to fry deir opponent, dey nevah
woulda won dat match."
	
	He kicked back, resting his short legs on the control panel. "I 
wonder if dey've lost the belts yet. Ha! Who'm I kiddin'. Dey've probably lost
'em already. Dey ain't got a chance wit'out me."

	Meowth casually tossed the remnants from the ration package back over 
his shoulder. "I gotta get back. Dey need me." He grabbed the control stick and
turned the shuttle to face Earth. He boldly pushed the button for the
thrusters...

	...and nothing happened. "Dat cheap Jack musta used a second-rate 
shuttle. Now how am I gonna get back? JESSIE! JAMES! Where are youse..."

-------------------------------

	As Nabiki looked over the report of today's airing, she permitted 
herself a smile. Darshu had once again proven his superiority over the riff-raff
of the Omega division. Morrigan's spectacular defeat of Mr. Satan, a huge crowd
favorite, had drawn incredible ratings. Plus her continuing controversial offer
of bedding anyone who beat her drew in the 18-30 crowd like flies to honey.
Speaking of controversy, even that joker Jack helped her out with his supposed
uprising by keeping his fans around. Not that he was likely to win anything
soon, if he kept Shingo as a fighter. And if Hiroshi and Lilith got together
per her request, there'd be plenty of room for a good catfight before Hiroshi
"settled" on Lilith. The ratings would definitely be working in her favor.

	Nabiki picked up the ratings statistics for this week. Oh yes. If 
these numbers continued, the sponsors would bring in the cash. They'd see that
Ultra had a firm hand at the wheel, one that knew how to run a multinational
business. With the continued support of the commercial industry and with the
removal of dead weight in the form of those so-called fighters, referees and
security she'd fired, profits were running high. Nabiki leaned back in her
chair, crossing her arms after another week of success. Indeed, her Ultra was
shaping up nicely.

-------------------------------

	Deep in the bowels of Hell, someone was crying.

	Not that this was unusual, mind you. People cried all the time during
the course of a normal day in Hell. People cried as their intestines were pulled
through their nose by fish hooks. People cried as they were turned into
processed luncheon meats. People cried as they watched Super Mario Brothers: The
Movie for 4,235th time.

	However, this cry was not accompanied by the normal wails, blood, and
other standard indications of success that demons chat about when they drink
their Goddamn Tea after work.

	This cry was not the cry of a tortured soul.

	It was the cry of a tortured angel.

	Aerith was lying on her bed, as she cried and sobbed into her pillow.
"Why does Cloud have to do this? He got what he wanted. Why must he go and fight
heaven? What does it gain him? It's all Xelloss' fault." She flipped over and
lied on her back as tears ran down her face. "I mean, he was never the most 
brilliant person, But that purple-haired demon is being so blunt in his 
manipulations! I just wish I could tell him... could snap him out of it, 
somehow...."

	"Ah, but that, my dear, wouldn't be a good thing." Xelloss suddenly 
stood beside the bed.

	Aerith quickly stood up and choked back her tears. She glared at 
Xelloss, disgust clearly visible in her eyes. "You do remember what we talked
about earlier?" Xelloss said, with his standard Mazoku grin.

	"Yes, Xelloss." Aerith said, with some venom in her voice. "No 
convincing Cloud to give up his throne. No dissention." Aerith felt 
uncomfortable, as she always did around him. There was something wrong with
Xelloss. Normal demons were bad, but he was... cruel, was the only way she could
put it. Even Sephiroth had certain obvious evil goals. This was so... twisted.
His smugness, his manipulation, it all made her more angry than she had ever
been before.

	"And I won't hurt your precious Cloud," Xelloss said, as he smirked at 
Aerith. "Right?"

	"Right, Xelloss." Aerith was now almost growling. You could almost see
the flames of anger in the angel's eyes. If she had her Princess Guard now... 
but she couldn't, or Cloud would be hurt. "But how would you hurt Cloud? You 
need him!"

	Xelloss smile grew even wider. "Well..." Xelloss trailed off, as he
leaned in, and opened an eye. "I could kill you with no trouble whatsoever,
trust me. And blaming it on a plan organized by Lina herself would be child's
play. Cloud would gladly attack Heaven in a 'righteous' fury, after losing you,
and would promptly get stomped. And then I could easily find another puppet."

	Aerith drew back. This monster was beyond description! "Get away
from me, hellspawn." Her anger was even stronger now; could that be hate she
felt?

	"That's a lot of hatred for a little girl like you. Maybe I'll keep
you around for amusement afterwards. You have such delicious emotions." 
Xelloss turned around, and started to walk out of the room, and stopped.

	"Oh, do be a dear and get yourself presentable." Xelloss turned back to 
her, and eyed her rumpled dress and tear-stained cheeks. "It wouldn't do to have
Cloud think you were sad, now, would it? That's a good girl." Xelloss said, as
he shimmered and disappeared.

	"No, it wouldn't." Aerith collapsed on the bed, crying again. "Cloud,
why do you have to be so confused. Why do you have to hurt so many people? Lina,
Gourry, Shinji, Asuka... and me. Why?"

	The walls had no answer for her, except for the echoes of her sobs.

-------------------------------

	"Gimme another," Jack said, motioning for the bartender's attention. 
Daisuke sweatdropped. This was Jack's sixth Instant Hell Murder of the night, in
addition to the two Halloweens and the three Hibiki Rollers. And he looked the
worse for wear because of them. The leaders of CHAOS were both sitting in the
Ultradome's bar, bummed at the incredible loss Shingo had taken. Dai was perched
on a stool, while Jack appeared to be sprawled equally over a stool and the bar
itself. 

	Jack was a mess. His hair appeared to be in worse shape than usual - 
his spikes were drooping and coming apart. His tie was crumpled and bent, his
shirt looked like it hadn't been ironed in years, and his pants were spotted
from where he'd spilled various mixed drinks all over them. There were dark
circles under his bloodshot eyes, and new worry-lines in his face. 

	Daisuke was, well, Daisuke. He looked as sharp and smooth in his 
tuxedo as he always had while announcing for Ultra. The only real difference was
his expression, which somehow seemed more mature.

	"Jack - uh... do you know how many drinks you've had so far?"
	
	"I can count, boy!" Jack held out his hands. "One...three...eight....
five...eleven...wait, lemme start again..."

	"Never mind, Jack, it doesn't matter."

	Jack shook his head. "I'll get it... I just need more fingers..." He 
began tugging at his shoe, trying to pull it off without untying it. 

	"Don't bother, Jack. I think you've had enough," said Daisuke as he
motioned for the bartender to go away.

	"Awww....but I'm not DRUNK enough yet..." Jack looked up at the 
ceiling. His eyes unfocused. "I can still remember... wha's-his-name getting
beaten by... by... whoever he got beaten by."

	Daisuke shrugged. "Fighters lose, Jack. That's the way of Ultra."

	"Not MY fighters. Not MY Ultra." Jack thumped his chest with his fist. "
In MY Ultra, everybody won. Everyone got a shot. Nabsy... she... she cheats. She
sets people up. Like Nuku Nuku. That... wasn't right. Her way... it's not right.
Dammit, it's not AMERICAN!" Jack slammed his fist down on the table.

	*squeak!*

	"DAMN straight, Mr. Duck!" Jack tried to stand up and failed miserably. 
The end result was Jack laying on his face, barstool caught between his legs. 

	"Listen, Jack." Daisuke squatted down beside the middle-aged stable 
manager. "We're just starting. Neither of us likes Nabiki's way of running
things. We both know it's wrong. That's why we formed CHAOS. But we can't just
expect waltz right in and have her hand us all the belts! It's gonna take time."

	"Time..." Jack mumbled. "No. What we need is... better fighters. Shin...
Shingo...'s a good kid, but he's not enough. We need fighters... in Lamba...
Omega... not just Gamma. Gottsa find...better..fightersh..." He collapsed. 

	Daisuke bent down and lifted the fallen Controversial Jack up. "C'mon, 
Jack. Let's get back to the hotel." They both moved slowly towards the door,
Jack leaning heavily on Dai for support. As they neared the exit, Daisuke
suddenly had a thought. 

	"Wait a minute... I can't drive yet! Aw, MAN!" He trudged out the door, 
Jack on his shoulder, as the former head of Ultra began singing a ribald
drinking song.

	"Weeeallll... My Ulllttrraaa done left meeeee, for a cold, hard,
biiiitch... and my fiiiiighters can't wiiiiin a fiiiight..." Jack sang as loudly
as he could, drawing the attention of most of the people in the bar.

	Daisuke sweatdropped, and lead Jack, stumbling, out of the bar.

-------------------------------

	Shinji was sitting in God's Waiting Room, after being released from 
Heaven's Medical Ward. The place was decorated in tasteful whites and creams
which seemed to set the eyes at ease. Bright green plants were scattered
throughout the room, meant to make one feel more at home. The furniture was
overstuffed and comfortable. A small speaker set in the ceiling emitted flowing
heavenly-type music, with absolute clarity. The final touch on the room was a
monstrous picture window, looking out on the whole of Paradise. All of this was
doing absolutely nothing to make Shinji any less nervous.

	 "I wonder why Lina decided to call me. Well, no I don't. I know 
why she summoned me." Shinji sighed and slumped forward in his seat. "I know
damn well why she summoned me. I led a team composed of me and Terry into the
very center of Hell, staged an infiltration of Nibelheim, and entirely failed
to save Aerith." He sighed again. "And it was all without her permission. But
the main thing is that I failed." He buried his face in his hands, and the room
was silent for a minute or two. "Well, maybe she won't be too mad. She is God,
after all, and I'm sure she'll understand..." 

	The door to God's office exploded outward in a burst of fire.

	 "SHINJI! Get in here RIGHT NOW!" Shinji's eyes bulged. He gulped. 
"Well, here goes nothing..." He got up and tentatively walked towards the
destroyed doorway. Readying his nerves, he walked inside. Once he'd crossed the
threshold of the door, however, his nerves of steel melted into slag quite
quickly.

	If you've ever read any of the Old Testament, you know the ancient 
Hebrews' view of God - a vengeful, angry, viscious being, ready to smite
unbelievers at the drop of a hat, or a sparrow, or at the least little blasphemy
from someone's mouth. Take this idea of God, multiply it tenfold, and you have a
pretty good idea of what Lina Inverse, current God, looked like. She was
stitting in a chair behind her desk. In front of her lay the remnants of several
dozen stress toys. She glared at Shinji, her eyes burning with holy fury. 

	"Have a seat, Shinji," she said, in a strangely calm voice. 
	
	"SURE she'll understand. I AM a baka..." thought Shinji as he meekly 
sat in the small chair provided. 

	There was a moment of silence. Then Lina stood. "So, Shinji. I heard 
you had a little... adventure earlier today." 
	
	Shinji nodded slowly. "H...hai..." 
	
	God began pacing back and forth behind her desk. "You went down to 
Hell, on your own..." 

	Shinji broke in. "Ano... Lina-sama... Terry was-"

	"DON'T INTERRUPT ME WHEN I'M TALKING! You went down to Hell, 
EFFECTIVELY by yourself, on complete and utter hearsay, I might add. You staged
a direct intrusion on Cloud's castle, which very well might cause him to do the
very same to us. You might have angered Asuka to the point where she'll never go
back to herself again. And you very well might have pissed off Xelloss, which,
and I speak from personal experience here, is a VERY BAD THING to do! And to top
it ALL off, you did it without even PRETENDING to ask me first!!!" Lina finished
off her rant behind her chair, gripping it hard enough to leave permanent marks
in the synthetic leather. 

	Shinji had just sunk lower in his chair with each accusation. By this 
point he looked liable to sink straight through the floor and go back to Hell. 

	"Dammit, Shinji," Lina said, as she walked around to the front of the 
desk. "Why don't you say something, instead of just sitting there?" 

	Shinji kept his head down. "Gomen nasai, Kami-sama...." 

	Lina snorted. "That's all I ever hear from you, Shinji. 'Sorry' this, 
and 'Excuse me' that. I swear, you're almost as pathetic as Gourry, if not
more." 

	Shinji winced, and began quivering slightly. 

	God started to circle the cringing Eva pilot, talking as she went. "You'
re never going to get anywhere in this world unless you develop a backbone! Your
whole life, you've let people push you around. Your father, Asuka, the world!
And there's no 'you' left. You've been run over and manipulated so many times,
there's just no part of you that isn't somebody else's wishes, someone else's
desires." Lina stopped circling Shinji and stared down at him. "There will be a
formal reprimand for this, but no other action is to be taken. I have a feeling
you'll end up punishing yourself more than I ever could." She pointed at the
door. "You are dismissed, Shinji." 

	He didn't move. Instead, he sat in the chair, gaze fixed on the floor, 
unmoving. 

	Lina blinked. "I said, you are dismissed, Shinji." 

	The bandaged pilot got up, very very slowly. He moved towards the 
destroyed door at a snail's pace, head hung low. 

	"Tell Terry to come in before you leave." Shinji didn't even nod. 

	As he crossed into the waiting room, he noticed Terry sitting on one 
of the couches. "She wants to see you," Shinji said, very softly. 

	Terry had to strain to hear him, but he managed. "Alright." He patted 
Shinji gently on the back. "I'm here for you, Shinji. Go get some rest." Shinji
gave the martial artist a hollow stare. His eyes were cold and empty.

	Terry shivered, and watched the boy head towards the door. Then he 
turned and walked into Lina's office. And as Shinji left the waiting room, a
single tear rolled down his cheek.

-------------------------------

][ ULTRA EPISODE 43 RESULTS/RECAP

][ DARK SCHNEIDER defeats NUKU NUKU and is now at 3W/2L
][ BISON'S BUSTERS (Ken Masters/Sagat) defeat the HUNGRY WOLVES (Mai
   Shiranui/Andy Bogard) and are now at 3W/1L
][ IORI YAGAMI defeats SHINGO YABUKI and is now at 10W/8L
][ SIE KENSOU is punked by CHRIS and YASHIRO
][ MORRIGAN AENSLAND defeats MR. SATAN - now at 4W/2L and retains the GAMMA
   CHAMPIONSHIP BELT
][ RANMA SAOTOME meets RANMA SAOTOME
][ RANMA SAOTOME thrashes MARLO SEMAJ, no status change
][ TERRY BOGARD defeats ARCADE MACHINE, no status change
][ SHINJI IKARI takes some initiative with prompting from TERRY BOGARD
][ EVA-02/ASUKA LANGLEY defeats EVA-01/SHINJI IKARI and is now at 5W/6L
][ MEOWTH misses JESSIE and JAMES
][ SHINJI IKARI gets a talking to from LINA INVERSE
][ JACK LYSIAS gets DRUNK off his ASS

AUTHORS NOTES

Falcon:  No skip for the newbies.  Our first Impro part was Ultra, and the first 
explicitly "group" part.  Were we crazy?  Probably.  Did we turn it out well?  
That's for you to judge.  Here's how it broke down:

Falcon - Gamma and Lambda prefights/fights/Pokemon stuff
Mechalink - Omega fights/postfights
Cham - Lots of Terry/Shinji plot and Jack/Dai closer
All of the above - Everything else ^_^
Twoflower - Everything involving Ranma, Akane and Marlo

Special thanks to Twoflower for covering the Ranma angle for us. We had no clue
what to do with it. He did, so we let him take it when he offered. Arigato 2f
^_^ Thanks to Kristen Smirnov for helping us along as she kept us informed of
the angles she was working with, the direction she was taking them, and the
angles she wasn't touching. Thanks Illy-chan. A big thank you to Ardweden and
Ravi for spending six hours helping us with grammatical and other silly mistakes
(Bad monkey! Ellipsis abuse! *WHAM*) Thanks to the Eternal Lost Lurker for the
Skittles commercial (hope we didn't screw it up too badly). Thanks to DamienRoc
for prereading and for helping to keep us under control as we got stressed out.
Thanks to Steven Scougall for help with the Shingo angle, and good luck to
Steven as he writes 44. Let's continue to make Season 5 rock the world.

Cham: Wow. I have donated my entire life to this Impro for a week. I have slaved
over it and toiled. I have sweat blood and various other bodily fluids. And all
in all, I have one thing to say about it. What the HELL was I thinking? This has
to be the stupidest thing I have ever done in my life! Well, there was that one
time... but we won't talk about that. But seriously... I had fun being one of
the Triad of Gods of Ultra for a week and a half. Really forms the ego, you
know? Anyways. MASSIVE thanks to our prereaders: Lurker, Illyria, NeoPuu,
DamienRoc, and most especially ravi and Ardweden, who took seven hours to sit
down with us and go over just why our prereader's copy sucked. The rest of this
speech goes to the other two Stooges, bitches, or whatever you call us...

Mechalink: Hell. Bloody hell. This is probbably one of my stupider actions, and
I don't care. Nyah ;P.

Thanks to all the prereaders, who are listed above. Illy-chan, ravi, and Ard-
chan. Wai! Oh, and the entire chatroom, for putting up with the crazy person
at 3 in the morning.

Well, for FalChaMlink, I'm Mechalink, Signing off.

See you on the flip side.

Falcon
falcon815@hotmail.com

Cham
chamelaeon@hotmail.com

Mechalink
mikey44@hotmail.com

] [ ANGLE SUMMARIES

 ][ = Angle continues, may have new developments
 [] = Angle is closed, might have been replaced
 }{ = Entirely new angle
 ??  = Possible new angle?  (Can be derived from events)
 XX = Didn't touch on this from past episode very well or at all

[]  Mr. Satan vs. Morrigan
  (He's been beaten twice, probably won't get another shot soon.)
][  Mewtwo vs. Washuu / the Cybergrrlz
  (Gally finds reluctant help in Ash and less reluctant help in Nuku Nuku)
][  Heaven vs. Hell
  (Xelloss blackmails Aerith, Asuka firmly on Hell's side)
][  Marlo vs. Akane rivalry for the Hardcore belt
  (Ranma goes crazy, beats up Marlo)
][  Nabiki's profit-mongering reign over Ultra
  (She's pushing Morrigan and Darshu at the expense of other fighters)
][  Ranma's many wild emotional issues
  (Ranma becomes his own worst enemy with a split personality/body issue)
][  Jack and Daisuke, Ultra managers
  (Take a loss, Jack gets downhearted)
][  Bison vs. SNK/Capcom
  (Bison's men defeat the crazed Bogard; is Andy recovering at long last?)
][  Yashiro is furious about his loss of his title and stature
  (Instead of acting on his own, follows Xelloss' orders)
][  Shingo stole Iori's gloves, possible rivalry
  (Shingo now knows a bit more about the true nature of the flames)
][  Hiroshi and Tarou, the Odd Couple
  (Hiroshi's liking his new partner less and less)
][  Morrigan vs. every red-blooded male in Ultra ^_^;
  (Defended her title successfully, did not have to use her offer)
][  Meowth is still apparently Lost In Space
  (Meowth misses Team Rocket)
][  Shermie stalks Daisuke
  (She's getting more and more brazen all the time)
??  Mewtwo v. Pokemon trainers and/or Voiduck
  (He wants them all to be free, but who's his next target?)
XX  Yohko and Iori's relationship
  (Yohko's there, not much else)
XX  B-ko and Sephiroth, Lovers
  (How will she react to his renewed focus on attaining power?)
XX  Sephiroth, the man who would be God
  (How will Heaven and Hell react, and who will he strike next?)


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