Insertion

    Part 75

    Another Chinese Adventure!

+++++++++++++

    Carrot smirked as he stood on the shores of
China. They had landed in the wilderness and the
group stood in the sand, looking into the thick
forest that ran along the edge of the beach.

"Wow," muttered Usagi as she stared at the tree
line, it stretched as far as the eye could see in
either direction.

    "It's just the beginning. It's been a long
time," commented Yohiko calmly as she stared at
the shores.

    "Kinda weird looking at it again isn't it?"
said Carrot as he smirked at her.

    "Yes," said the woman as she glanced at Usagi
for a moment. "It's been a very long time."

    "What do we do now?" asked Ryoga as he frowned
at the pair.

    "Ask our guide," replied Carrot as he turned
to look at Plum.

    Ukyo stepped forward. "I've got my own reason
for being here." She started to walk away, but
Carrot grabbed her shoulder.

    "Not so fast, you have no idea where you're
going," he said calmly.

    Plum blinked at this and stared at the
brunette for a moment. "What is talking?"

    "Where are we going? What's our route?" said
Carrot as he pulled his hand off of the frowning
Ukyo.

    "We go this way," said Plum as she pulled out
a map and pointed out their route. It was drawn
onto the map with a highlighter.

    "Why does it go around this area?" asked
Carrot as he smirked at her.

    "We are going to Mount Phoenix," said the
girl. "Lots of dangerous people in area."

    "You mean the Musk," said Carrot with a small
chuckle.

    "Yes, this where Musk tribe live. Not many
left, but still better to avoid them," said Plum
with a small nod.

    "We'll be fine," said Carrot. "We'll shave a
day off our trip by going through there."

    "More like add a day," said Yohiko irritably.

    "Well, that depends on how our old friend
feels about us. Either way, we should be able to
gain safe passage at least," responded Carrot.
"Especially after he hears that most of us are
just passing through."

    "Ukyo isn't, she might compromise the rest of
us," pointed out Yohiko.

    "Aw, don't be such a spoilsport," snorted
Carrot cheerfully.

    "What are you talking about?" asked Ryoga in
confusion.

    "Yeah?" agreed Usagi.

    "We're going to pass through Amazon held land,
and Musk held land to get where we're going. I'm
friendly with the Amazons," said Carrot with a
small sigh. "That shouldn't cause too much
trouble. Plus, Ranma is the Princess of the Musk
now or something, so that should get us through
there. Ukyo can take care of what she needs after
we've gone."

    The girl flashed an angry looking frown at
him.

    "You've waited this long, waiting until we've
passed through to do whatever you need won't hurt
you," said Yohiko firmly.

    The girl nodded and turned her head away. "I
guess it will be the fastest way to find the
place."

    "Right, you're catching on," said Carrot
cheerfully.

    "Why don't we just fly there?" asked Usagi.

    "Sure, if you want to carry Ryoga across
China, go right ahead," said Carrot as he smirked
at the girl. "Plum can't fly either. I'm sure
she'll need a lift, plus that leaves another one
of us to carry Ukyo, meaning we'll all have
passengers."

    Usagi looked at her cousin and frowned. "I get
the point."

    "Hey! I am not fat!" snapped Ryoga irritably.

    "No, but you're heavy," responded Yohiko. "I'm
not lugging you around, and I don't trust you with
my daughter."

    "We didn't know!" cried the boy defensively.

    "Let's not start that again, you're going to
make me angry just talking about it," snorted
Carrot.

    "Can we go now?" muttered Plum.

    "Yeah, good idea," agreed Yohiko.

    Carrot sighed and pulled on Ryoga's collar to
keep the boy moving in the right direction.

++++++++++++++

    Two days later...

    "Where are we?" grumbled Ryoga as he glared at
the rope tied around his wrist. Plum was tugging
him along with a sort of lazy expression on her
face.

    "We could have been there by now," whined
Usagi.

    "Relax and take in some of the culture,"
replied Carrot as he slapped at his neck.

    "Well the culture is covering me with bug
bites!" snapped Usagi as she did the same thing.

    "Quit whining," grumbled Yohiko as she looked
up at the mountains that surrounded them on either
side.

    "Where are we anyway?" repeated Ryoga.

    "About a mile into Musk held territory," said
Carrot. "Well, the map is kinda old, and the
Amazon's thought they'd died out, so I doubt if
they hold much of the land anymore."

    "Yeah, we'll probably miss them, but they
should be somewhere in this area."

    "After we pass through here, then we go about
a hundred miles to get into the mountains where
the amazons live. We got a while to walk yet."

    "This would have taken weeks, thank goodness
for modern transportation," said Yohiko with a
small sigh.

    "Yeah, I miss the train," commented Usagi.

    "Well there aren't any trains that come here,"
snorted Carrot. "It's called a 'remote region' for
a reason you know."

    "Yeah, yeah," grumbled Usagi.

    Ukyo had been silent for most of the trip and
hung back away from the rest of the crowd. She
snorted at the bickering and glanced around at her
surroundings. "So, Ranma should be near here
somewhere?"

    "We aren't sure of that, we got about a
hundred mile diameter area that might be possible.
Don't go wandering off just yet. We may run into
them, if not, you can always backtrack. It'll be a
good way for you to get familiar with the terrain
anyway," said Carrot calmly.

    The girl snorted again, but complied anyway.
"Why should I trust you?"

    "Why shouldn't you?" replied Yohiko as she
smirked at her.

    Ukyo grumbled and looked away from her
purposefully.

    "Stupid trees!" growled Usagi.

    "You'll look back on this and be glad it
happened," commented Carrot.

    The bushes all around them suddenly shifted
and the group looked at the large group of armed
men that now surrounded them.

    "Hiya!" said Carrot cheerfully.

++++++++++++

    Usagi growled as she swung back and fourth,
she had been bound by her ankles and wrists and
was being carried on a pole between two of the
men. "Yeah, I'm sure I'll treasure this memory."

    "It builds character," commented Carrot from
his own pole just behind her.

    The whole group had been captured. Ryoga was
rather angry about allowing themselves to be taken
that way, but he accepted it. It wasn't a
situation he couldn't escape from. Especially with
Usagi and her parents there.

    Ukyo had also put up no resistance, without
being prompted by the two adults.

    "We're never going to get there at this rate,"
grumbled Plum from her position at the back of the
line. She was being pulled along by her wrists as
her arms and legs were too small to really string
her up like the others had been.

    "Relax, I've got it all under control," said
Carrot cheerfully.

    "Right, try not to piss them off, the already
don't like you," said Yohiko irritably.

    "Well, they don't exactly like you either,"
said Carrot with a small shrug.

    "Quiet down!" snapped one of the larger men
carrying him. He had fangs and stripes on his face
like a tiger. He also had a tail, and his ears
were like those of the animal that was in his
blood.

    "Heh, you look strong, this should be a good
fight," said Carrot as he glared at the man for a
moment.

    The tiger man snorted at this and turned away.
"Stupid trespassers."

    "You should put up signs or something if you
don't want people on your land," commented Yohiko.

    "Are we sure?" asked one of the men carrying
her.

    "No, but Lord Herb can tell us," commented the
one behind her.

    "Still, it should be interesting if they are!"
said the first one.

    "Yeah, a tournament again!" said the one in
back. "Real girls! We've got three that look like
they might be! I'll win me a wife for sure!"

    "Are you sure those things are titties?"
commented the first one.

    "I dunno," commented the other one. "Maybe we
should look."

    Yohiko snapped her head around and stared at
him.

    "What are you looking at prisoner?"

    "Uh oh, so much for that plan," commented
Carrot.

    "No! You may not feel to see if they're real
or not!" screamed Usagi.

    "Aiya! I'm too young to have breasts! Stop
that!"

    "You Jackass! Of course I look like a boy! I'm
supposed too!"

    "Bloody hell," said Carrot with a final sigh.
He strained for a second and snapped the bonds on
his feet and hands. The two men carrying him
blinked in surprise.

    "What do you think you're doing?" snarled the
Tiger man.

    "Trying to keep your men from getting
themselves killed," replied Carrot as he started
walking towards the others.

    "Pardon?" muttered the tiger man as he blinked
and faltered out of his fighting stance for a
moment.

    By the time Carrot got close enough, it was
already too late.

    "DIEEE!" screamed Yohiko as her body suddenly
exploded with power. Her wings shot out of her
back and began to knock her captors away easily.
"Usagi! Are you all right?"

    The girl was sitting on the ground looking
somewhat dazed as her mother hovered over her
protectively. Black tendrils of her clothing were
lashing out at the Musk as they tried to move in
around her. They were growing more cautious
though.

    Ryoga rushed up from behind with Ukyo at his
side, they both kept their distance. Carrot
noticed Plum was hanging off the lost boy's neck
in his arm.

    There was a trail of men lying on the ground
behind them.

    "That's enough!" demanded Carrot as he stood
firmly in the middle of the path.

    Everyone turned to look at him and he sighed.
"Damn, I'd forgotten about how perverted these
idiots are." He glanced around at the fallen Musk,
and the few others who were still circling the
scene warily.

    He paused when he heard growling behind him
and turned to face the angry looking tiger man.
"So, it was an ambush?!"

    "The hell it was! You idiot! You can't just go
around grabbing girls' breasts! They get all
pissed off when you do!" snapped Carrot.

    The man faltered and stared at him. "What?"

    "Well look at them! You're lucky no one is
dead!" said Carrot as he looked at the man for a
moment. "Calm down all of you!"

    The group of angry women, and one little girl
all glared at him.

    "Yohiko, I'm betting at least you and Plum had
some idea about this. Come on, give them a break
will ya?" he said with a small sigh. "We'll go
talk to Ranma first before we send them to
extinction."

    The tiger man bared his fangs and moved to
grab Carrot in anger.

    The man casually sidestepped and grabbed his
neck, lifting him off the ground and dangling him
there for a moment. The man's claws quickly
bloodied his arm, but a protective wrapping moved
up from his clothes and prevented any further
damage. "Calm down. We're old friends of Herb's
bride. We need to talk with him."

    The beast man glared at him, but calmed
considerably. "You are the ones we were told
about! I'll never allow you near the Queen!"

    "Queen?" said Carrot as he arched his eyebrow
slightly. "Well, she's one of them. The rest of us
aren't. That's his old teacher, and I'm a relative
of his. Can't you see the resemblance."

    "Relative? You've come to kidnap the queen?!"
cried the man in alarm as his struggles increased
again.

    "Stop that!" snapped Carrot as he shook the
man violently. "I'm not his father. Relax would
you, the girl he was engaged to is married now,
there's no danger of a kidnapping." He turned his
head and frowned at Ukyo for a moment. "You, come
here."

    The girl reluctantly did so, stopping long
enough to kick one of the downed men in the
stomach. The remaining warriors started to emerge
from the bushes with their weapons drawn.

    Carrot sighed. "I know you want revenge, but
you're going to behave yourself until we're gone
at least. After that, you do what you want."

    "Why are we going to see Ranma?" snorted
Yohiko.

    "We may get ourselves an ally out of this,"
said Carrot calmly. "Ranma might help us."

    "We attacked him the last time we saw him,"
pointed out Yohiko.

    "We also introduced him to his husband, or
wife...whatever the hell Herb is to him,"
responded Carrot. "I think he might appreciate
that."

    "He might not be happy about it," replied
Yohiko.

    "What's all this about Ranma?" said Ryoga with
a small frown on his face.

    "Don't you start. Ranma Saotome is off
limits," said Carrot calmly as he leveled a small
glare at the man. He dropped the tiger man on the
ground and snorted. "We come in peace, we need to
talk to your leader. There's trouble on Mount
Pheonix."

    The beast man's eyes went wide and he glared
at his former captor. "Lies!"

    "I don't care about Ranma Saotome, or his
relationship with anyone from Japan. I'm also
pretty aware of what Saffron and his friends will
do if the Pheonix God is allowed to rise again."

    "The Pheonix God?" said the tiger man in
shock. "What do you know of this?"

    "That young girl, is from Jusenkyo. She is the
daughter of the guide there. People from Mount
Pheonix chased her to us, and we were attacked. We
learned that the people there are seeking
Jusendo."

    "That means..." said the tiger man with an
angry growl.

    "Yes, the rise of the Pheonix God is near. You
know, I've heard old legends about a battle
between a Dragon and a Pheonix. I wonder, do the
Musk have anything to do with that legend?"

    The tiger man stared up at him and a cold
smile formed on his lips. "You're perceptive for
an outsider."

    "It's what I do," replied Carrot with a small
chuckle. "Whatever concerns we might have with
Ranma Saotome, they can wait until this is over."

The beast man nodded and signaled the large group
of warriors with his clawed hand. "We will take
you to Lord Herb. Perhaps he should hear of this."

    Carrot nodded and motioned for the others to
follow him. Ukyo walked up to his side and glared
at him angrily. "What's going on here?"

    "This is much deeper than your revenge Kuonji,
and much more important. Something terrible is
about to be unleashed on the world, and we're the
only ones who know about it."

    "So tell someone else!" she snapped.

    "Tell them what? That a demigod is about to be
reborn in a remote region of China, and they
should send an army to stop it? I'd like to have
some credibility in the future."

    "What the hell are you talking about? What
demigod?"

    "Lord Saffron. The ancient enemy of our
people," replied the tiger man as he moved in step
with Ranma. "This is not to be taken lightly. The
last time the Pheonix God came, he enslaved most
of the world. Saffron is over a thousand years
old, but lives in the body of a child. When the
time comes, he'll use the magic of Jusendo to
transform, and become his true self again."

    "I've never heard of this," snorted Ukyo.

    "Yes, luckily, we were able to stop him. His
rule lasted only a few months. The Great Musk
King, Cumin, defeated him, but at a high cost."

    "High cost?" muttered the girl in confusion.

    "Surely you've heard the legend of the Dragon
and the Pheonix Kuonji," said Yohiko as she moved
up beside the trio. "The Dragon defeated the
Pheonix, but it was reborn in flames."

    "Yes, and his rebirth, destroyed Cumin,
leaving his young son Herb to rule in his stead."

    "Hmmm, Herb is older than I had thought,"
commented Carrot. "I'd heard of Saffron before,
but I had no idea he was a problem of
this...magnitude."

    "Because of his blood, Lord Herb matured very
slowly. He has just become an adult within the
last few years," said the tiger man with a slight
snort. "He is very powerful now."

    "But is he powerful enough?" commented Carrot
carefully.

    "He'd better be," snorted the beast man with a
slight growl of irritation.

    "I wasn't implying that he was weak, calm
down. We don't know how powerful Saffron is, nor
do we know how strong Herb is in relation to him."
Carrot had some idea, but he was pretty sure Herb
wouldn't last long.

"Anyone who would know of this battle, is long
since dead," replied the beast man with a small
sigh.

    "I would think so," said Carrot. "I've noticed
you're not as human looking as the Musk I've seen
before."

    "Yes." It was a statement with no malice in
it.

    "Are most Musk like you? I've seen Herb, and
Lime and Mint."

    "We vary. It depends how long our bloodlines
go back," commented the beast man. "Most of our
wives came from Jusenkyo until the fall about a
hundred years ago. However, we did take women from
neighboring villages on occasion."

    "The closer your family is related to
Jusenkyo, the more you look like the beasts in
your line," said Carrot with an understanding nod.


    "Yes, only the more human looking members of
our tribe ever leave the village."

    "That would make sense, although I imagine the
few exceptions gave rise to the legends about
lycanthropies that seem to run about most of the
world."

"Yes," said the beast man with a slight chuckle.

++++++++++++

    "Captain Toras, what brings you back from
patrol so early?" said Herb as he stood up from
his throne within the small palace. It was nestled
within a tiny village well hidden in a small
valley between several large mountains.

    The tiger man bowed deeply and growled. "I
bring distressing news."

    "Yes?" said Herb seriously as he motioned for
the man to rise.

    "Reports, from outsiders we met on our patrol.
They speak of Mount Pheonix," said Toras with a
firm conviction in his voice.

    "Outsiders?" said Herb with a small frown.
"Should we trust them?"

"They knew too much for it to be false," responded
Toras. "A little too much if you ask me. They also
claimed to know both you and the Queen."

    "I thought I told you about callin me that!"
snapped Ranma as he entered the room. He was
dressed in rich silk clothing with an armored
breastplate over his chest.

    "Well, I am the King," said Herb with a small
sigh. "You are my mate, that makes you..."

    "Don't you dare say it!" snapped Ranma
irritably.

    "Fine," said Herb with a small sigh.

    "Well, well, look what the cat dragged in,"
said a quiet voice from the shadows. A man walked
out and smirked at the pair on the throne with a
staff in his hands. He bowed to them and chuckled.

    Toras bolted upright and growled at the man.
"Who are you? How dare you..."

    "I am Xellos, I've come to soften the way a
bit for dear Ranma's friends," responded the
mazoku calmly. "I'll be out of your hair in a
moment, don't worry."

    "Who are you?" snarled Herb as a glow started
to form around his body.

    "Someone who far exceeds any dragon in power,"
replied Xellos with a dangerous tone to his voice.
"I suggest you pay attention for a moment. What I
have to tell you is important."

    "Who the heck are you?" growled Ranma.

    "No human exceeds a dragon in power! Fool!
I'll destroy you!" growled Herb as he started to
step forward.

    Xellos's eyes glowed with a purple energy as
he stared the man down calmly. "Whoever said I was
human? In any case, you've got some old friends
visiting Ranma."

    "Wha?" said the pigtailed boy as he stepped
back.

    "Some of your friends from Nerima have come to
China," said the man as he turned his back on the
pair and paced a bit in front of them.

    "No! Guards! Make em go away!" cried the
pigtailed boy as he jumped behind his throne and
peered around it.

    "At once!" said Toras as he turned to leave.

    "I wouldn't recommend that," warned Xellos.
"You're going to need their help in order to
defeat Saffron."

    "What?" said Herb as his face went pale.

    "The Lord of Mount Pheonix is rising again
Herb," said the priest calmly as he turned to look
at him. "You're not powerful enough to face him
yet. In dragons' terms, you're still a fledgling.
You haven't even had your first molting yet."

    The man staggered back and slumped down onto
his throne. "It can't be!"

    "Saffron will destroy you as you are now, but
you already know that. You remember just how
strong your father was."

    "What's he talkin about?" asked Ranma as he
peered at his husband in confusion.

    "Just the end of the world as we know it, if
you fail to kill Saffron that is. However, you're
about to get all the help you'll need. If you're
smart enough to listen."

    "Xellos! That had better not be you!" said
Carrot as he shoved the doors to the throne room
open and walked in with a scowl on his face.

    "Oh! Fancy meeting you here!" said the priest
cheerfully.

    "What the hell is he doing here?" snapped
Yohiko.

    "Hi Uncle Xellos!" said Usagi cheerfully.

    "Hello," said Ryoga nervously.

    "Hey, it that guy again," muttered Plum.

    "You're..." said Ukyo with a small frown.

    "AAAAAHHHHH! They've come for me! Don't let em
get me!" cried Ranma as he dove for cover. "I
didn't mean to do it! Please don't..." He blinked
when he peered out from behind his throne and saw
only once fiancee standing there. "Huh? Ucchan?"

    "Don't you dare call me that!" cried the girl
as she pulled her spatula from behind her back.

    "Ukyo!" snapped Carrot as he whirled around to
face her. Xellos started creeping off while his
back was turned.

    "No you don't," said Yohiko as she snagged his
collar.

    "I was being helpful! Honest!" said the priest
somewhat pathetically.

    "That woman!" gasped Herb dumbly.

    "Hello again," she said with a smirk on her
face. "I can see you two have grown quite
comfortable."

    "You've come to take my mate away have you?"
snarled Herb as his power flared out suddenly.

    "Actually, we're here about Saffron," replied
Carrot with a small shrug.

    "I know you...two of you?" gasped Herb in
horror. His head darted between Yohiko and Carrot
for a moment.

    "Relax, we aren't here about Ranma. Well, most
of us aren't. Just Ukyo here, all she wants is
revenge, she sort of tagged along for the ride
though."

    "What?" said Ranma in confusion.

    "I'll get you yet!" snapped Ukyo hatefully.

    "Over my dead body!" snarled Herb.

    "Hey! I don't need your help damn it!" snapped
Ranma as he shoved his husband aside.
"Ucchan...I..."

    "That's enough! You two can work this out on
your own later, I don't particularly care,"
announced Carrot firmly. "We've got bigger
problems."

    "What the heck are you talking about?" snapped
Ranma.

    "Saffron," responded Herb with a sudden calm
coming over him.

    "That's right," said Carrot with a smirk on
his face. "The Demigod has been reborn. I'm
wondering just how much help you can be."

    "You're going to fight Saffron?" snorted Herb
in disgust. "You won't last a minute against that
monster."

    "Just like I wouldn't last a minute against
you, right?" replied Yohiko with a smirk of her
own.

    Herb turned his head away from her. "Saffron
is far beyond my power. I'm not strong enough to
face him. It's too soon."

    "Then you're going to need our help," replied
Carrot.

    Herb frowned at them. "It seems you have me."

    "What the hell is going on here?" cried Ranma
as he looked around the room in confusion.

    "We aren't here for you Ranma. There's
something more important right now," replied Ukyo
as she leveled a glare of hatred on the boy.

    Carrot and Yohiko turned to look at her in
surprise.

    "When it's over, you and I are going
to...discuss this," she said coldly.

    "Ucchan...I..." stammered the boy with a hurt
look on his face.

    "Later Saotome," said Carrot before he could
speak. "The fate of the world is in our hands.
Your personal problems can wait."

    "How dare you speak to my queen that way?"
snapped Herb.

    Ranma hit him over the head with his own
throne. "I told you about callin me that!"

    "Ouch," commented Usagi. "Wait...those two are
married?" She got a slightly sick look on her
face. "No way! They're both such cute guys!"

    "Ranma...you really..."

    "What of it porky?" snorted the pigtailed boy
as he crossed his arms and blushed.

    "You mean to tell me, that you left
Akane...for a man?" said Ryoga in disbelief.

    "It ain't like that!" snapped Ranma angrily as
he moved into a combat stance, ready for Ryoga to
start crying out for vengeance.

    "BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!"

    "What the hell are you laughing at?" snapped
the pigtailed boy.

    "Ranma! Married a man! Ha! I don't believe it!
Mr. Manly! HA! HA! Macho jerk! Married a man!
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!"

    Herb recovered and sent a huge ball of chi
into the boy, silencing his laughter.

    Ryoga stood up and blinked. "That hurt!"

    "Enough! We've got enough problems as it is!
You can be civil until later," said Yohiko as she
stepped between them.

    "Bad move lady," said Carrot just before Herb
blasted her as well. "Are you through yet?"

    "But, they're so cute!" said Usagi with tears
of confusion in her eyes.

    "I'll explain it later dear," said Carrot
cheerfully.

    "Okay..." muttered the girl in confusion.

    "Well, I've said what I needed to," said
Xellos as he vanished into the shadows.

    "Where the hell do you think you're going?"
snapped Yohiko as she stood up and jumped after
him. He was gone when she landed and she snapped
her fingers. "Damn it."

    "Who was that?" said Ranma as he frowned at
where he had been.

    "Xellos is..a sorcerer. He's helpful
sometimes, but he has a nasty tendency to withhold
information. You shouldn't trust him, not
completely," replied Carrot.

    "Oh," said Ranma with a small shrug.

    "So, what should we do Lord Herb?" asked
Toras.

    "What was your plan?" asked the King as he
looked at Carrot.

    "We were on our way to Mount Pheonix, we need
to get the map of Jusendo back from them."

    "The map will be useless. They already know
where Jusendo is by now," said Herb calmly.

    "We don't, do you?" asked Carrot.

    "Lost, to the winds of time," said Herb as he
shook his head.

    "So we do need the map. They'll be difficult
to follow. They can fly, it would be too easy to
spot us or distract us if we tried to just follow
them. Plus, for all we know, they're already
there."

    "I understand, the map is needed to simply get
there," said Herb.

    "I can get us there, but we need map anyway,"
said Plum. "There is a map to Jusendo on the wall
of my home. I'll bet Pheonix people knew location
already, they needed map to enter mountain
safely."

    Everyone but Carrot turned to look at her.

    "I thought you could," responded the man as he
smirked at her. "Still, I took a look at that map.
We need it to get into Jusendo. Only one entrance
is the real one, the rest are traps."

    "He's right," said Plum.

    "So what can we do?" asked Ranma.

    "Offer any help we can, if we can stop
Saffron's rebirth, we must do so," said Herb.

    "The Amazons might be helpful," said Carrot.

    "We'll send for a representative," said Herb.

    "We don't have time," pointed out Carrot.
"We're going that way anyway."

    "I shall accompany you," said Toras.

    "No, you'll stay here. I'll go," said Herb.

    "Lord Herb!" cried Toras in shock.

    "I'm going too," said Ranma firmly.

    "No, you'll stay here. If something happens to
me, my people need a leader. They will need you
especially if I do not return."

    "What?" gasped Ranma in shock.

    "He's right Ranma. If we fail, Saffron will
come here, and he'll die anyway. Saffron may
ignore you and your people if Herb is with us.
You're no threat to him without Herb."

    "But...no way! I ain't..."

    "You are a ruler of the Musk! You have
responsibilities now!" snapped Herb angrily.

    The pigtailed boy frowned and stared at the
man for a moment. "I..."

    "Your people are more important Ranma," said
Carrot calmly.

    The pigtailed boy clenched his fist and
frowned at Herb. "You'd better come back."

    "If I do not come back in a week, take the
tribe and move into the jungles to the south,"
replied Herb calmly. "We'll just have to wait
until Saffron's rule is over, and live quietly
until he dies. Do not attack him if we fail, or
all the Musk will perish."

    "What?" cried Ranma in shock.

    "He's right Saotome, but we won't fail," said
Carrot with a small chuckle. "You of all people
should know, that we don't fail."

    The boy looked at him for a moment. Finally he
nodded his head. "If it was anyone but you..."

    "Don't worry, I'll try to bring him back in
one piece," said Carrot cheerfully.

    "So, we should get going?" said Ryoga.

    "No, you'll stay here tonight. It's dark, not
even my people will roam these woods at night,"
said Herb with a small frown.

    "Something out there?" asked Carrot.

    "Not in so many words," said Herb with a small
chuckle. "There are those with too much of
Jusenkyo in them. They no longer live amongst the
Musk."

    "In these woods?" asked Usagi nervously.

    "No, far to the south. They avoid us for the
most part, still, occasionally one of them will
wander nearby," replied Herb calmly. "Beasts know
when they are outclassed. Still, they are strong,
and dangerous."

    "I see," said Carrot as he nodded. "We need
rest anyway. We wouldn't make the Amazon village
until the middle of the night anyway. I don't feel
like trying to get past their patrols and into the
village. They are likely to think we're some sort
of criminals. It would take much more time to
explain things to them."

    "He's right," agreed Yohiko. "It's best to
approach them in daylight."

    "So, you will stay here for the night," said
Herb with a small sigh. "I shall have rooms
prepared for you."

    "Herb, you know what I can do. These women are
under my protection, make sure it's clear," said
Carrot firmly.

    The Musk King nodded slowly and flashed a
glance at Toras.

    "I shall get them cloaks," he said with a
slight bow of his head. "Please follow me."

    "Wear what he gives you, most of the people
here have never seen a woman before," said Yohiko
to the girls. "That goes for you too Kuonji, it's
best not to take chances."

    The girl growled, but nodded.

    The group followed the tiger man out of the
throne room and walked through the halls. Carrot
moved up to his side and casually started a
conversation.

    "You seem remarkably calm," said Carrot as he
smirked at Toras.

    "I have a wife," he replied with a small
shrug.

    "Oh?"

    "Yes, there are more women here than most
people know about. We tend to be secretive about
women when we do get them," said Toras with a
small chuckle.

    "I thought I'd seen a few heavy cloaks in the
village," commented Carrot.

    "Really? I didn't think you'd see more than
one. We have to be very protective of women here,
for obvious reasons."

    "Well, I suggest you keep your mouth shut
about these girls. I defeated both Ranma and Herb
alone when they were in Japan," said the man
calmly.

    "What?" said Toras.

    "You heard me, if one of them goes missing, I
will be quite angry," said Carrot with a slightly
amused chuckle. "Otherwise, we'll get along fine."

    "You shouldn't be so greedy," commented Toras
in amusement.

    "These women don't belong to me Toras, they're
free to do as they choose. None of them would
choose to remain here, I know them well enough to
know better," said Carrot calmly. "Besides, two of
them would kill anyone who tried to abduct them
quite easily, and at least one more would give you
a nasty thrashing at least. They are powerful
warriors."

    "I'd noticed. Which two should I be wary of?"

    "Now that...is a secret," said Carrot
cheerfully.

    "Hmmm, you're a wise man for one so young,"
said Toras with another chuckle.

    "I'm not as young as I look," replied Carrot.
"Besides, these women would mostly make poor
wives. They are remarkably destructive, especially
if they are unwilling wives, and they would be."

    "Yes, most women are," commented Toras. "They
do grow to accept us over time. Most of the time
anyway."

    "Where are Lime and Mint anyway? I haven't
seen them around," commented Carrot.

    "In their homes. They are relatively weak
fighters. They look remarkably human, so they
accompany royalty when on missions outside of the
village. They also work as spies for the area
around us."

    "Sort of representatives of the Musk to the
rest of the world?" commented Carrot.

    "Yes, they have worked past their weak
bloodlines remarkably well. They are very skilled
for mostly human warriors," agreed Toras. "I am
proud to have them in my guard. They are the
youngest ever to receive as many honors as they
have."

    "Yes, they seem to work well together. Gave me
a little trouble as well," agreed Carrot.

    Toras stopped at a closet in the hallway and
removed several dark brown cloaks. "Here, give
these to the women."

    Carrot took them and smiled at the man.
"Thanks." He turned and started to hand them out.
After a moment, four irate looking women were
following the men.

    "These things itch!" snapped Yohiko.

    "Aiya. You don't have anything smaller?"
muttered Plum.

    "Relax, it's only temporary," said Carrot.
"Quit whining and come on. We need sleep."

Ryoga grumbled irritably as he walked in the
middle of the mess, someone on every side of him
to keep him from wandering off.

    "These three rooms will be yours for the
evening," said Toras.

    "Come on," said Yohiko as she pulled on
Carrot.

    "Um..." muttered Ryoga in confusion. "I guess,
I'll take this one and you guys take that one."

    "What? You get a room to yourself?" snorted
Ukyo angrily.

    "Well, the rest of us are girls," pointed out
Usagi.

    "He's your cousin, you stay with him, and I'll
take the kid," said the chef as she pulled Plum
into one of the rooms and closed the door behind
her.

    "Wait!" said Ryoga as the door closed in his
face. He froze and then slowly turned to face
Usagi. "I uhhh..."

    The girl was staring at the floor with her
cheeks flushing bright red. "Great."

    "Look, I'll stay in the hall, and..." started
Ryoga.

    "No, I guess it can't hurt anything. I mean,
it's not like we have anything the other hasn't
seen before..." muttered the girl.

    "But..." said Ryoga as he glanced at Carrot
and Yohiko's room nervously. "I don't wanna die!"

    "Oh, don't be such a baby. We'll be fine. It's
not like I'm gonna try anything. I mean, I'm your
cousin!" said Usagi irritably.

    "But still..." whimpered Ryoga as he was
pulled into the room forcibly. "I'll just stay in
the hall..."

    Usagi sighed and tossed some blankets on the
ground off the bed along with a pillow. "Look, you
sleep there, and I'll sleep here. We'll be fine.
We're family remember? It'll be fine."

    Ryoga sighed and nodded his head in defeat.
"Fine."

    "If you have to go to the bathroom, wake me
up! I won't be angry, and we don't need to be
looking for you in the morning," said Usagi
firmly.

    The boy sighed and nodded again.

    Usagi shrugged her shoulders and started
taking off her shirt and rummaged around in her
traveling pack.

    "What are you doing?!" cried Ryoga in alarm.

    "Changing clothes. Don't be such a baby!
You've seen them before," snorted Usagi as she
frowned at him. "Relax. I'm not gonna try
anything."

    Ryoga turned red and turned his back to her.
"It's not you I'm worried about!" he replied
irritably.

    "What?" said the girl dumbly.

    "Look I could have stopped you if I'd wanted
to. I wasn't exactly saying no back then. So
please keep your clothes on!"

    Usagi blushed and sighed. "All right, but I
need to change. I'm all sweaty! Just stay like
that until I'm done."

    Ryoga did just that, after a few minutes Usagi
climbed into bed, and he lay down on the sheets on
the ground to sleep.

+++++++++++++++++

    Ranma sighed as he sat up in the bed and
gasped, he was covered in sweat and breathing
irregularly. The Dragon King was in his female
form and sighed with the cutest expression on her
face. She also looked somewhat worn out. "Okay,
your turn."

    The pigtailed boy nodded and grabbed one of
the two pitchers that sat on the small nightstand.
He climbed out of bed and poured some of it out
over his head. Herb did the same with the other
pitcher and they moved back under the sheets in
the opposite forms once again.

    Ranma looked at him and smiled weakly. "This
part still bugs me a bit."

    "How so?" asked Herb as he looked at her with
a small frown. They were currently lying on the
sheets next to one another doing nothing.

    "It feels weird when you first put it in
there, it's not so bad after a moment, but just at
first," responded Ranma with her face scrunched up
slightly.

    "I'm going away for a while tomorrow. Maybe we
should try that foreplay thing I heard about while
I was in Japan?" offered Herb.

    "I ain't puttin that thing in my mouth!
Gross!" said Ranma in disgust.

    "Okay. I guess I can understand that, I don't
really want to do that either," replied Herb.

    "Yeah, how can girls do that? I mean, I heard
once that they put the whole thing in there!" said
Ranma with a small shudder.

    "Yes, it does seem kind of unbelievable,"
commented Herb. "How would they breathe?"

    "I dunno, maybe they don't do it for that
long? Besides, that's guy stuff. I don't wanna
know what that tastes like! Ick!" responded Ranma.

    "Maybe...if we were both girls?" said Herb
with a slightly thoughtful frown. "Then it
wouldn't be so bad?"

    "Yeah, but what's the point of that? I mean,
it'd just be that hole," pointed out Ranma.

    "Well, it does seem kind of sensitive,"
replied Herb.

    "I guess so," said Ranma with a shrug.

    "I want to touch them again too," said Herb as
he looked down at Ranma's chest. "I like doing
that."

    "I think you get more out of it than I do for
some reason," said Ranma as he looked at Herb's
now flat chest in contemplation.

    "I'm not sure," replied Herb.

    "Should I turn into a girl then?" asked Herb.

    "Where did you hear about that anyway?" said
Ranma as she looked at Herb in confusion.

    "Some Magazine I saw in Japan. I found it next
to the trash. I'd heard that reading is a good way
to find things out about places. It was something
about 'Woman's something or other'. There was also
this interesting test about 'How to tell if your
boyfriend is cheating on you.'"

    Ranma shrugged. "Oh."

    "It was quite confusing, but there was some
mention of putting it in your mouth. It's supposed
to be pleasurable, but I'm not sure for who."

    "Well, I don't want to find out that bad,"
replied Ranma with a slight shudder. "Not with a
guy anyway."

    "Okay, so girl it is. I can always change back
if we don't like it," said Herb. "It said
something about it being 'safe sex'. I wasn't
aware that there was danger in this. It doesn't
seem that bad really."

    "I dunno, most chicks are pretty weak. I guess
that's more for normal girls. Maybe they get hurt
easily doin stuff like that?"

    "Hmm, could be," said Herb with a shrug.

    "Hurry up will ya? I think I'm leakin again,"
said Ranma as she lifted the sheets and looked
down. "Yup. Wonder why that happens?"

    "I'm not entirely sure," responded Herb as he
poured the cold water over his head and shrugged.
She sat down in the bed and climbed back in.
"So...who gets to be on top?"

    Ranma pulled out a coin and sighed. "Flip ya
for it."

    "Heads," said Herb.

    "Tails, you got bottom," said Ranma
cheerfully. "So who's first? Flip again?"

    "I think we can both do it at the same time,"
said Herb as he looked at the redhead.

    "Oh, that makes it easier then," replied Ranma
with another shrug as she started climbing on her
mate.

+++++++++++++

    Ukyo glared at the wall opposite her with Plum
next to her in the bed. The pair was sitting
upright with bloodshot eyes.

    "How long they do this?" muttered Plum.

    "I don't know," said Ukyo irritably.

    The screams increased in volume and the wall
opposite the pair vibrated violently as Carrot and
Yohiko continued their third coupling of the
night.

    "I no can sleep," said Plum.

    "I'm going to kill them both," growled Ukyo.

    "Tell them stop maybe?" muttered Plum.

    "I am not going in there. I don't want to know
exactly what they're doing to make this much
noise," snorted Ukyo.

    "Plum have pretty good idea," snorted the
girl. Her Japanese was getting worse as the night
drug on.

    "I've lived in dorms before, so I'm familiar
with it, and this is the worst I've ever heard
it," snarled Ukyo.

    "You hit Plum on head now yes? Maybe get some
sleep?" muttered the girl as she looked at Ukyo.

    "You sure?" asked the chef.

    Plum nodded wearily.

    "Okay," said Ukyo as she bopped the girl just
hard enough to send her out.

    "Great, at least it's just me now," she
muttered as she continued to stare at the wall.
One of the pictures that were hanging on the wall
fell to the ground as the wall continued to shake.

    "Damn you Ranma! Now I have one more
humiliation to endure because of you!" she
snarled. She fell back onto the bed and put a
pillow over her face. "Sugar, you're starting to
sound like Ryoga; and you're talking to yourself!"

    Finally, the pillow's muffling of the noise,
coupled with her extreme exhaustion finally sent
her into her dreams.

+++++++++++++++++

    TBC...

    Next Time: Amazons, and the Hot Springs Demon!
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