[FFML] [Fanfic][X-COM][Teen Titans][Ranma 1/2] Reflections Lost on a Dark Road (ch5)

[Justin Wagner]

A/N This is the last chapter of the "First Contact" Intro Arc.
Structurally (and editorially) these first couple chapters have been
somewhat annoying to pull together. They're a lot rockier than our later
stuff. It'll be a relief to have things converging properly again.

- - -

Pre-crossover Chapters: Pre-crossover chapters of Lathis' "Teen Titans
and the Lost Boy" and the sequel "Dark Titans" can be found on his FFN
author site. Cap'n Chryssalid's "The Road to Cydonia" can be found,
likewise, on his FFN site or his TRTC Ufopedia archive.

http://www.fanfiction.net/u/992366/Lathis
http://www.fanfiction.net/u/235984/Capn_Chryssalid

Crossover Chapters: Chapters of this specific fanfic are to be hosted on
Cap'n Chryssalid's archive and on FFN

http://www.fanfiction.net/u/2754251/

- - -

- - -

Nigh on two months have passed since Ryouga freed Terra from her stone
prison, restoring the Titans to their full number after long last.  The
reunion has been anything but quiet, though, with deception and disaster
tearing the team apart just as quickly as it came back together.  With
Robin and the original Titans drawn to Tamaran for Starfire's 'wedding',
it fell to Ryouga, Terra - as well as some unexpected help from
unexpected friends - to avert disaster in the underwater city of
Atlantis.  Everyone is back together again, now, and taking a well
deserved breather from their adventures.  But as unseen forces
manipulate from the shadows, and disaster looms from both without and
within, their tenuous peace is doomed to be shattered... and sooner than
they expect.

It has been five months since the inclusion of the Nerima Crew into
UNETCO as the war between X-Com and the alien visitors enters its
seventh year. Despite the destruction of Earth's last alien refuge and
the annihilation of the conspiratorial Sirius Group, the organization
has been hit hard by Cydonian reprisals, and stretched thin by
increasing commitments in the Far East to counter abductions of martial
artists and the psionically gifted. Even as the buildup culminates for
the last great push against Mars itself, distractions and complications
continue to arise within the ever present specter of alien terror.

- - -


Reflections Lost on a Dark Road
First Contact
Chapter V


- - -

Cap'n Chryssalid
Lathis - "Enjoy if you will, Tolerate if you won't."

- - -

New Chitose Airport

Ryouga slowed to a walk when it became clear the two targets meant to
stand and fight. Flipping his laser rifle back over his shoulder,
keeping his eyes on the deadly girl in particular, the slightly older
Hibiki signaled for the conscripted police to keep a distance. Nabiki
was on her game. It helped that they finally had an armed drone in the
air in addition to satellite surveillance. These two weren't going
anywhere. Reaching for his HV-SOCOM, his fingers brushed the pressure
lock on the holster, unclipping it. But not actually grabbing it.

That umbrella shield...

'I - I want one!' he realized, with a huff of displeasure. Where did
this copy get a nice piece of gear like that?!

Either way, it seemed shooting at the bastard was, for the moment, a
waste of ammo.

"You're a little different from the last one they sent!" he yelled,
buying a little time for Kuno to catch up. "Let me guess: you're that
girl's bodyguard, right?"

The Doppleganger turned to stare at alien girl oddly.

"Body guard?" he asked, perplexed.

"I think the less you think about my body the better, at the moment,"
the possible Trenchard replied with a slight blush, awkwardly
positioning her arms across her chest in an embarrassed display.

Shrugging, the clone glared back at Hibiki.  "Look, evil clone guy, we
aren't looking for any trouble. We just want to get back to California.
I realize you probably don't have enough control of your own actions to
understand, but I don't want to hurt you.  Just let us go and this
doesn't need to go down like this."

"Evil clone? ME?!" the other Ryouga snarled. "Oh, let me guess, you
think you're the real Ryouga Hibiki? You've got balls, making a claim
like that!"

"You won't be the first copy I've gotten rid of."

Slamming his foot into the asphalt of the tarmac, Ryouga directed a wave
of ki into an array of breaking points centered around the pair of
infiltrators. A crackle of green ki rippled through the flat ground
before directing itself downward with an earth shaking rumble. A large
circular crack split the runway, centered around Raven and the displaced
Hibiki, who recognized the triggering of breaking points all around
them. Rather than explode upwards, they triggered in the opposite
direction, pulverizing and depressing the ground around them in a giant
ring.

Or, they should have.

Seeing the technique, the younger Ryouga smiled. Before it could go off,
he knelt down and slammed his palm to the ground... and nothing
happened.  Nothing at all. No explosions, no strange effects, nothing.

The weakness of the breaking point, even a big one, was that most of the
force of it was wasted. A best case scenario was that an opponent would
take maybe half the blast and shrapnel from the omni-directional
explosion. Directed blasts were doable, but weaker overall. However, if
one put a target in a depressed area, like a crater or ring, and
triggered breaking points around them, the topography would direct
nearly the full force of every single explosion into the center, vastly
increasing the damage done.

Instead of turning the damned doppelganger and its Ethereal escort into
chunky salsa, however, the breaking points had somehow been nullified.
Lieutenant Hibiki scowled at the display. He - he hadn't even seen what
his clone had done. It wasn't any ki technique he immediately
recognized; he didn't even sense more than a faint echo of the
doppelganger's aura, as muted as it was, spread out into the ground.
Just what had he done to stop his technique?

'Strange.'

As if to answer, the clone rose to his feet, smirking.

"So, looks like you did get a little training in your cloning tank, eh
Mirror Me?" he asked. The tone was gloating.  For just a moment, the
lieutenant found he preferred the other doppelganger to this one. At
least when that one had gloated, it hadn't been quite so snide. "A
little on the crude side, though ... say, aren't you supposed to have an
evil goatee so that people can tell us apart?"

The girl at the doppelganger's side groaned and elbowed him in the side.
"You have got to stop watching Star Trek with Cyborg."

Motioning for Kuno to move around to the right, the Lieutenant glared at
this strange double.

'He has a completely different breaking point style?' That didn't seem
possible. The only styles the aliens knew were his old one, Cologne's,
and the other conventional Amazon techniques as executed by Pi Lu. Did
this represent some new original interpretation on the part of the
clone? That had to be it.

The other Doppelganger had developed Mettayatara Metsubushi
(Indiscriminate Blindness) after all. This one was the same, just
focused on a different approach to the Art. In which case...

'Let's test the limits of this nullification technique of yours!'

Pushing his aura back into the ground, point by point, he sent a
directed cascade of breaking points in an extending arc head of him.
Each explosion in turn set off other breaking points, even without
additional injections of ki. It was a technique designed primarily to
uproot and destroy terrain and obstacles in a wide cone, so the target
could be attacked more effectively at range. Trees, fences, concrete
blocks, buildings, even trenches. All would be shredded to bits.

Again, the doppelganger smiled.  Shaking his head sadly, he knelt down
and slammed his palm to the ground again, holding it there longer this
time. Again, the detonations simply stopped with no visible effort on
the clone's part.

'Why is he using his hand? I developed the method to use the technique
with my feet months ago.'

Besides that, Hibiki was able to make out something odd, this time. The
technique, whatever it was ... it wasn't fighting against his BT, like
when he had fought Pi Lu and the other him, it was somehow stabilizing
the breaking points. Even with points that were on the brink of
detonating, somehow, his dark ki was pushed out, expunged from them, and
the breaking points returned to a completely normal state.

It wasn't quite like anything the lieutenant had ever seen or read
about.

'Is this... elemental rebalancing?'

And then, his insufferable twin lashed out, stabbing the index and
middle fingers of his other hand into the ground.  Hibiki watched the
ground like a hawk, but he didn't see any ki going into the ground at
all -- when suddenly, the ground right beneath his feet, and Kuno's
feet, exploded upwards into geysers of rock and debris!  The X-Com
operatives were sent tumbling head over heels by the completely
unexpected attack.

Quickly recovering from the attack, the swordsman took that as his cue
to move in on the girl.

Hibiki's eyes never left the other him. The actual breaking point
triggered had been rather weak, compared to what he had encountered
before. Even Kuno, pummeled by months of training against the rest of
India Squad, recovered quickly from it. The double stabbed his finger
into the ground again - the lieutenant now suspected the copy had to do
it, rather than projection via the other extremities - and just as
before, there was no resonation with breaking points nearby. Was it some
sort of sympathetic reaction?

No matter.

Fortunately, since the last Doppleganger encounter, he had trained for
this situation.

It was actually the counter he'd developed against the Indiscriminate
Blindness move, but it would work here, too. A blast of ki preemptively
entered the earth, saturated the breaking points nearby, and detonated
them. It was simple enough to control the actual reaction and have the
points go off without doing much actual material damage. A puff of smoke
rose from nearby, where the breaking point the other him had attempted
to set off vibrated harmlessly, the actual points of detonation already
expended. It would take time for the lay of the land to restore them;
this fight would be over by then.

"How are you doing that? I've never heard of the breaking point being
used without resonation," he had to ask, slowly walking towards the
other him, careful to prematurely burn out the nearby breaking points.
His battle aura expanded as he directed it into his arms and legs.
Whatever tricks this copy had, it could be useful later against Cologne.

The doppelganger frowned as he watched what Hibiki was doing, sneering
slightly.  "Just like an evil clone, you'd rather destroy everything
around you, than admit you're outmatched.  Sadly, considering you didn't
have to go through what I did, I doubt it would help you even if I did
explain it."

The clone then held his hands before him, and a small sphere of ...
something gathered between his palms. It was odd, Hibiki couldn't
actually see anything being gathered, but he could certainly feel it.

"Of course, you're only looking at the 'surface' of things, which,
considering it's me, I suppose isn't that much of a surprise," the
younger Ryouga added with a smirk.

Hibiki noted his doppelganger give his companion a nod, obviously a
signal of some sort, but didn't have time to decipher its intent, when
Ryouga suddenly slammed both palms into the ground, full force.

Despite the fact that he was certain that he'd burnt out all of the
breaking points around him, the ground all around them, reaching out for
over a dozen yards in every direction, suddenly began to quake.
Measuring the scale of the attack, Hibiki slammed his heel into the
ground, trying to burn out the breaking points before they could
explode, but there were too many, too spread out, too deep -

A second later, like an exploding volcano, the entire section of tarmac
detonated!  Hibiki couldn't see it all, blasted into the air and being
tossed around like a rag doll. Kuno would have been too, he surmised,
being pummeled by boulders and jagged debris.  The dust cloud kicked up
was large enough to swallow up even the hovering helicopters. The dirt
and gravel had doubtless forced the aerial vehicles to pull back, as the
engines would start to clog.

When all was said and done, the entire area was in ruins.

Hibiki staggered back to his feet, just in time to see a black shape
rise up out of the ground nearby. A moment later, it vanished, revealing
Raven and his doppelganger in the center of the wreckage, no worse for
wear. Most of the dust settled quickly, but a few tenacious clouds near
the epicenter of the blast persisted.

Wavering somewhat weakly in the center of his crater, the Lieutenant
released aa surge of ki which blasted the asphalt back and away.
Finally, the uniformed Hibiki cut the flow of ki to his legs. Amazing.
This copy had a breaking point style that surpassed not only Pi Lu, but
himself as well. If he hadn't unleashed a shishi hokoudan through his
feet to lessen the impact as much as possible, it could've been
dangerous.  A quick flight and a rough landing would have been the least
of his worries, especially considering he was without the personal armor
he'd come to rely on so much lately.

"Kuno!" he called out, seeing a blue blur finally recover from the
assault enough to begin regain his footing. "CQC. Capture if possible."

"The Blue Thunder STRIKES!" Kuno bulled through a cloud of rubble, arcs
of transparent force carving a path ahead of him. Stopping briefly, he
pulled back his sword for what appeared to be a thrust.

"Now!" he cried. "Feel the bite of righteous vengeance! Shin Kokuzan!!"

(True/New Sky Arc Decapitation)

This time, rather than an arc, a faint pulse rippled through the air.

Even almost fifteen meters away, the alien girl's barrier of black
energy warbled and shook, actually eliciting the young woman to actually
arch an eyebrow in interest. A second later, and Kuno's sword skittered
across the surface of her protective disk, the power of the slash
driving her back an inch as some of the force rebounded. Backpedaling,
they swung around to the right.

The Ryougas came in on the left.

An akichi linear step closed the distance between them in a heartbeat,
faster than either Kuno or Raven would have been able to react. The
older of the two spun on landing, a blazing orb of black and green
already in his right and left hands. Licks of green ki shot out from the
barely contained and highly concentrated attacks, mentally compacted
into tightly woven spheres. Even the faintest ki sensitivity could feel
the storm of emotive energy locked within.

"Shishi Hokoudan!"

Ryouga spun about as well, but rather than match ki with ki, the
doppelganger brought up his umbrella in a flash, the yellow forcefield
flaring to life once more.  Both of his shishi hokoudan's smashed into
the barrier, detonating with enough force to send the clone skidding
back several feet. None of the damage penetrated to his enemy, though,
much to the lieutenant's annoyance.  A second later, Ryouga's umbrella
snapped closed and he surged forward rapidly, thrusting out with the
implement with savage force.

To the younger man's surprise, the uniformed Hibiki opted to catch the
weapon, butterfly style.

"That was a mistake, attacking me head on with a weapon." Fingers
clamped down on the T-brella. "I'll melt the both of you like butter!"

Sparks shot out from where the older Ryouga held the weapon, spikes of
black ki drilling into the metal through even the smallest micro-level
imperfections and stress lines. Through the breaking point, he could see
it: a complex titanium weave and dense unknown element at its core,
along with an array of sophisticated electronics. But...it wasn't alien
tech. It didn't even feel like normal human or UNETCO issue technology.
Still: most of the basic elements were the same. It wasn't like 'survive
in nuclear fire' level Cydonium exotic alloy.

Scarred fingers imprinted on the metal.

Against reason, the smirk on his opponent's face only widened, despite
the situation, so much like another hated enemy. The copy's finger
obviously depressed a small button on the hilt of the umbrella.  It took
a second to warm up, but then Hibiki found his hands clamped to the
umbrella, his entire body wracked with agony as electricity suddenly ran
through his body. The surface of his palms burned, despite the extreme
heat conditioning of the Smelting Point.

'An electrical attack? Like Asura's lightning bolts?'

He shook and shuddered, before the younger warrior finally ended the
electrocution - by lifting a foot and planting it squarely into Hibiki's
chest with enough force to send him bouncing over a dozen yards across
the shattered tarmac.

Even as he hit the ground, engrained muscle memory allowing him to
reorient back into the soles of his feet, his battle aura dissipated
what it could, mimicking the insulation and conduction features of the
personal armor he often wore. Ranma had survived actual lightning on
several occasions; most of the shock was shunted into the ground,
preventing ventricular defibrillation and nerve damage - an essential
skill when one handled and sparred with stun rods and when an
anticipated enemy (the Trenchard, Koichi Ayabe) was a master of using
electrical techniques to instantly kill. Never mind the fact that the
secrets of the Drowned Asura were in the hands of the enemy.

None of that helped to temper the pain of burned fingers and scorched
skin.

Ryouga laughed in amusement.  "Really? Really? You didn't see the
'electrified umbrella' trick coming there?  Man, you really are full of
yourself, aren't you, Cloney?"

"Tch! You're too late," the older Hibiki remarked, spitting onto his
right palm, the liquid sizzling as it evaporated. "My Satsugai Tenketsu
(Killing Point) already has you."

Though the practitioner himself had been repulsed, his black and green
aura still clung to the weapon, lingering within the metal lattice of
the T-brella. It brushed past the normal breaking points within all
materials as it turned into an oscillating vibratory wave.
Unfortunately, the material had been too complex, too unfamiliar to
attenuate to properly in the scant few seconds he'd held it, so the
technique was far from perfect, but still, the umbrella began to shake
as the wave bounced back and forth within the area encompassed by the
poisonous aura, slowly building up speed as it went. It was moving
through the molecules, vibrating, far too fast to track.

The younger clone stared at the glowing umbrella, amazement covering his
face.

"That's almost the same concept as my Fatigue Fist ...  I was thinking
along the same lines myself, once, but ... this application was too
dangerous for my liking."

Suddenly, Ryouga slapped his palm sharply to haft of the umbrella,
instantly dousing the black and green flames with his own aura and
setting it to shaking down the entire length. A moment later, he slapped
his hand down onto the umbrella again, gripping it tightly.

He let out a relieved sigh. "That was tricky...  You use really dirty
tricks there, my friend.  Setting up a vibration in the atomic lattice
of the metal? You were just gonna try to melt it, weren't you?  You
really are unlucky today, though.  As I said, I've been developing a
similar technique of my own."

Spinning the umbrella about, the younger Ryouga clucked disapprovingly,
apparently not able to prevent all of the damage.  "Expunging your aura
was the easy part, though.  Preventing the vibrations was more
interesting.  I needed to basically grab the lattice work, essentially
dumping a large amount of weight across it to deaden the vibrations."

Shaking his head, Ryouga continued, apparently willing to give Hibiki
any and all the time he required to fully recover from the full body
shock he'd received.

"Picture this, Evil Me.  You grabbed the base of a ladder and started
shaking away like crazy.  Given enough time, the ladder would fall over
or collapse. I just dumped five fat guys on the ladder, then 'bam',
suddenly you can't move it an inch. Not with the little bit of energy
you put into it, anyway."

The young man's smile suddenly vanished, replaced with a deep frown.  A
moment later, he slung the umbrella back behind his back, handle
positioned carefully for quick retrieval.  Ryouga then dropped himself
into a low combat stance, lifting his fists defensively before him.

"Alright, whatever you are," he concluded. "I've given you more than
enough time to recover. Are you ready to give up, yet?"

"And you said I was full of myself?" the other Hibiki commented, rolling
his shoulders. "I have to admit, I'm impressed and a little envious
about how easily you can use your version of the breaking point. Your
basic ability even surpasses my own technique, but I think there are
some serious limitations. I mean, have you even figured out how to use
it on people yet?"

"Use it on people?  Are you insane!?"  Ryouga gasped. "Why the hell
would I want to do something like that to a person?"

The lieutenant glanced at his clone, apparently unhurried in his
explanation.

"You're a martial artist, like I am... you have my memories, or at least
most of them. Don't pretend to be something you're not. Even if you
never want to use a killing move, I know you've thought about it," he
reminded him, stating the obvious. "Either one of us could already kill
a normal human being with a simple reverse stab or open palm thrust. Our
bodies themselves are killing techniques."

Smirking, he decided to further explain, "I believe the ultimate
expression of the breaking point is to destroy anything with a touch, be
it Earth, Water, Air or Heaven... in other words, to destroy the very
spirit of your opponent. This is what's called True Mastery."

...

Ryouga glared at his wicked double.  "Feh! Now I know that you're the
evil clone. I use my martial arts to protect people, not kill them."  He
shrugged helplessly.  "I mean, sure, there was the whole Ranma thing,
but I'm hoping we're both past that by now.  Well, I am, anyway.  With
all you're talk about killing and stabbing, I doubt that you are."

Clenching his fists tightly, the younger man looked up at his older
analogue, staring at him in a new light, now.  "I had been hoping to
just leave, to get back home ... But you, the way you think.  You're too
dangerous to be left free.  I can't let you hurt anyone else!"

And then Ryouga charged.

"Well..." the native Hibiki said. "I suppose it doesn't matter if you
agree or not."

The uniformed lieutenant lowered his arms and tensed his legs. A sudden
blast of ki tore up the ground at his feet, rocketing him forward. A
heartbeat later, he used an akichi, and nearly vanished in a blast of
linear movement. Ryouga brought his arm up in time to block, catching
his opponent's wrist. The ground shattered as the force of the blow
directed down into his feet.

The older Hibiki's palm opened and closed, and a black and orange piece
of cloth shot out and into his grip. It hardened instantly as the Hibiki
style tetsununo (Iron Cloth Technique) turned the bandanna into a foot
and a half of blade. Ryouga broke contact before the weapon could come
around and find flesh. His opposed number snarled, left hand coming up
as a half dozen of the projectiles let loose, just a few feet from their
target.

Leaping straight up, the force of his leap shattering the ground beneath
him, Ryouga shot up over the swarm of bandannas.  As he dropped back
down, he began to spin in the air, before slamming back to the ground
with a massive axe kick aimed to shatter Hibiki's shoulder. Rather than
attempt to block the strike, Hibiki dove to the side, just barely making
it as his opponent's foot crashed into the ground with the force of a
small bomb.  He didn't have time to counter, though, as the younger
warrior quickly followed up, shifting after him with a series of
sweeping kicks that tore furrows into the pavement with each pass.

"You use your martial arts to protect?" Hibiki asked, surprisingly calm
given the ki attacks he had used and hate filled aura around him. "What
is this, an anime?" he spun his arms, moving in and breaking the stance
of his opponent. "No shit you use your power to protect."

An open palm strike to the chest sent the younger Ryouga back a step.

"Yourself!" the older him struck, hands blurring at the two exchanged
blows and blocks. "Others!"

A blast of ki shot into the ground - the younger Ryouga sensed it, but
had no way to nullify it while in ongoing hand to hand combat. He could
feel the breaking point slice open a triangular section of asphalt
before upending it, like a man sized blade. He ducked, anticipating
where it would come from, and tried to jump away.

The older him intercepted, having used the attack as a rouse.

A blow to the stomach took him an inch or two off his feet and into the
side of the asphalt spear, smashing it into pieces. His hands flew up,
deflecting a snap kick, and returning a spinning heel that managed to
hit the older him in the jaw. Grunting at the blow, Hibiki brought up
his right arm, trapping the leg, while the left arm shot around and up
on the inside, aiming for the tibia, and meaning to break the leg in
two.

Thinking quickly, Ryouga twisted and kneed, wrenching his leg free.

"Everyone fights to protect something," the older him remarked, bringing
one hand up and sheathing it in ki, for a shishi hokoudan enhanced blow.
"I've killed one of you before to protect what I fight for. I'll do so
again, and again, and again! No matter what they send against us. I'll
destroy it."

Banking so much on his next blow, Hibiki lashed out with his empowered
strike - only for Ryouga to twist to the side at the last moment. The
strike skimmed across his chest, singing his nice polo shirt, and Ryouga
wrapped his arm around the older fighter's extended arm, wrenching
upward once it was captured, and lashing out behind his back with his
free arm, slamming his elbow into Hibiki's temple with freight train
force.

He leaned forward, preparing to repeat the strike, but then he felt
Hibiki's foot reach up and press into his back.  A second later, he was
launched forward as the murderous fighter pushed with all the strength
in his leg. Ryouga quickly flipped through the air, landing with
practiced ease.  He carefully scanned his opponent, trying to take stock
of the situation.  A number of faint bruises were already forming on the
older fighter's head, where Ryouga had slammed him, first with foot,
then elbow.

A sudden, amusing thought struck the younger warrior.

He gave an enraged growl, then charged back in, recklessly.  Lashing out
with a sloppy haymaker, he was not surprised when Hibiki ducked beneath
his swing and pummeled his stomach with a crushing jab. Slowly, Ryouga
began to fall forward, and a curious look spread over Hibiki's face as
his double all but seemed to collapse over his shoulder -

...

Only to huff when Ryouga's collapse suddenly halted, and his hands
raised up high into the air.

"Maybe, if you want to protect someone!" shouted the younger martial
artist, "You should stop hitting like a baby!"

Ryouga then dropped a punishing double fist onto the back of Hibiki's
skull, dropping him straight to the ground to eat rubble. Only for
something to come rocketing back up, catching him on the lower lip. His
upper teeth buried into his cheek with a spray of blood. It hadn't felt
like a normal blow. It anything, it felt like a ki attack. But he'd been
watching his opponent's hands. Where had the attack come from?

"That's enough. I'll show you a baby's kick."

Surging up to his feet again, and spitting out some of the bloodied
rubble he'd nearly swallowed, the older Hibiki grabbed the younger man's
wrist.  Hibiki then planted a reverse axe kick into the younger man's
right kidney. It wasn't just a body blow, but a targeted attack at the
internals. Fortunately, training in the breaking point went a long way
towards cushioning vulnerable organs from the ravages of blunt force
trauma, and the lead up had been more than enough to allow the younger
fighter to twist to the side. There was just no other way to survive
what the training involved. A sufficiently powerful blow could never be
totally absorbed by just muscle and bone.

Still, it almost knocked Ryouga off his feet; pins and needles shot
through his midsection.

The kick, a moment after landing, morphed into a rising snap kick, the
toes catching him on the side of the face, aiming to blind, but a quick
shift prevented that. The impact still jarred the eye in the socket,
however, and it momentarily went dark. It wasn't so much the power of
the blows, but the calculated, brutal precision. This opponent wasn't
like Mammoth or even Starfire, it was like going all the way back to
fighting Ranma again. He couldn't just trade normal strikes with this
older doppelganger; despite his near berserk fury he possessed more than
enough skill to make up for it. He also knew the breaking point, knew
the training, and knew its limits. As did Ryouga.

Blocking the next blow - trying to think like his opponent - he caught
the strike to the arm aimed to paralyze the nerve clusters. Retaliating
with an elbow, his opponent fell back and abruptly spun. An instant
later, Ryouga hit the asphalt with a crash, imprinting his upper body
into the shattered tarmac. He quickly rolled, brought his hands up, and
blocked a kick before it could bury his face into the ground. Hibiki's
boot came to a stop before it could hit.

When, without warning, a green orb snapped into place under the well
worn footwear.

It quickly engulfed Ryouga's arms, caught as they were blocking the
kick, and flared up just an inch from the tip of his nose. His eyes
widened; there could be no doubting it. This opponent... could fire full
power ki attacks from his feet?! Maybe even from any part of the body!

Without another word, Hibiki's shishi hokoudan fired.

A wave of force uprooted slabs of asphalt and, under that, wire mesh.
Debris flew from the point of impact, the center of the explosive ki
attack. A depressed crater melted away around the two martial artists,
cutting through to the packed sandstone and earth beneath the airport
runway.

Standing over his opponent, the UNETCO Lieutenant's eyes flashed as he
fired again, boiling away another layer of earth. The crater-within-a-
crater widened, cracks in the battered firmament finally giving way and
upending entirely. Black smoke rose from around his boot, coiling up
into the air around his standing form. Bits of green fire clung to his
clothes and those of his opponent.

"Now," was all he said, the churning inferno wreathed around his right
arm crackling like a bonfire.

Unleashing that hellstorm down and into his pinned opponent, the
lieutenant felt him move at the last second. Murderous ki extended like
a lance down into the bottom of the crater, carving a perfectly circular
hole, like a giant hole puncher cutting through a ream of paper. Layers
of sediment could be seen, just barely, in the dark depression. It was
wasted energy.

Ryouga lay, rolled on his side, one hand on the ground.

A last-millisecond application of the breaking point had carved out
enough of a depression to shift most of his body into. A half second
longer and he would have been in the center of that last attack.

"I guess I didn't pummel you enough," the older Hibiki observed, jumping
away a few feet. A long line of cloth unwrapped from around his waist,
just above his belt. In moments, it grew out to a length of about four
feet. With his other hand, he reached behind his shoulder, retrieving a
smaller, thinner, umbrella of his own, colored entirely grey and white.

Ryouga spit out a bit of blood as he rose to his feet.  He was more sore
than he'd expected after all that, but even with his fancy techniques,
his opponent still lacked the raw firepower that his normal opponents
could bring to bear. He wasn't stronger, he was just... nastier. Still,
this wasn't good. He would need to end this quickly before his
opponent's tricks could wear him down. Ryouga eyed the length of cloth
and the umbrella that Hibiki was wielding now.

So, he wanted to move to weapons as well? Nodding to himself, Ryouga
unlimbered his umbrella once more, twirling it about once to test its
weight.

"You act like I've never been hit with a ki blast before!" He lifted his
free hand, waving his opponent in tauntingly. "Bring it on!"

Dropping into a defensive position, he held his umbrella out before him,
his other fist held tightly to his side.  The murderous fighter was more
than eager to comply, charging in with surprising speed.  Even faster
than Hibiki, though, faster than the older fighter could react, a sphere
of ... something grew in front of Ryouga's clenched fist.  In an
instant, it swelled, taking on a livid golden glow before Ryouga punched
out.

The sphere of tightly packed energy slammed directly into Hibiki's
chest, his own momentum preventing him from dodging the swift projectile
-

...

It hit like a train, somehow possessing a mass, a heft, that was beyond
description.  It was as if the younger warrior had just crushed him with
the entire world at once.  The deceptively small sphere of glowing
golden light picked him right up off his feet and actually carried it
along with it as it flew through the air. It was hard to describe, as
his body quailed at the extreme and sustained pressure on them. It
wasn't hot at all, and he couldn't feel any anger or depression from the
sphere, but it was heavy in a way he couldn't believe.

'This... isn't a ki attack. Or rather: this isn't our ki. This is...!'

Finally, two dozen yards away, the ball of light dissipated in his
clenched hands.

Glaring up, he raised an arm, intercepting a slippered foot before it
could find his chin. The energy of the flying kick redirected down into
the ground, the pavement under his left foot cracking. Arm and foot
snapped apart with a blast of air, and a slender umbrella shot up as the
younger Ryouga was already in mid swing with his umbrella, using it
baseball style, two handed and using his entire body's momentum behind
it.

The futuristic umbrella slammed into his own harder than he could have
anticipated.  A deafening clang rang out as the weapons crossed, and
only the indestructible nature of his slender umbrella prevented it from
folding in half like a match stick. Somehow, that umbrella felt like it
weighed a ton! Raising his median of gravity up and 'out' of the ground,
he skidded to a stop before he could plow into a parked plane.

A quick glance over his shoulder confirmed that it was currently empty.
Good. It wouldn't do for a bunch of civilians to see him tossing energy
bolts around. Focusing his attention back on his charging opponent, he
took a half second to think about that attack he had just been hit with.
He'd been expecting - waiting, even - for the other him to use a shishi
hokoudan. There was no way a Ryouga Hibiki, clone or not, lacked the
ability.

That "ki" attack before felt... it felt a bit like a breaking point
resonation.

It wasn't emotive; it wasn't pure ki; reason indicated it had to be
elemental. Earth ki. That was troublesome. This copy had a remarkable
degree of attunement with the Earth and the associated elements of the
Wu Xing. But... that was only trouble if it got a clean hit. The younger
fighter should have saved that move for an emergency. Just using it like
he had, instead of as a true finishing move, was a mistake.

Charging in to meet the foe, Hibiki countered the downward stroke of his
enemy's umbrella with his own. The blow sent a wave of force into his
arm, but it was easily directed back into the ground now that he could
anticipate the unbelievable of weight to the umbrella. Bringing his left
arm out, Iron Cloth cutting through the air, he noted the double as it
barely managed to twist the weapon around to block. As expected, the
material - though mundane compared to alien alloy - managed to parry the
strike.

"Zantetsununo."

(Iron Killing Cloth Technique)

The belt sword hummed with energy as he brought it back and around,
hitting the now upright T-brella again. Hibiki shifted the impact of the
edge, digging it against the frame of the sturdy weapon. When it came
back, a sparking nick was left behind. A counter strike punched through
the air to the left of his face, quickly dodged.

Umbrellas clashed with a resounding clang, neither one yielding to the
other, one man using the two handed style the other one handed. Ryouga
brought his weapon around, only to find it blocked by crossed umbrella
and beltsword. Dancing back, he narrowing avoided being impaled by his
opponent's belt blade. The T-brella came down again, deflecting it
before it could extend and slice into leg and ligament. The weapons
clashed, came around, and hit the ground on the other side, shattering
tarmac.

Roaring, the T-brella came back around in a low strike. Sparks flew as
they went back and forth, for once, neither able to overpower or
outmaneuver their opponent. Despite the spiral of hatred and rage he
kept cycled up, the older of the pair found himself smiling. This
copy... whatever else it was, it wasn't like the one from before. It
wasn't just the techniques or the intent in his aura. This wasn't just
an opponent he needed to defeat. This was... this was another martial
artist.

'I can't believe I'm enjoying this! Why? Why?'

Why? It was just another damned alien-human copy, just like the last
one. Wasn't it?

'That's right. I should've used a killing or crippling move from the get
go, or a psi-attack, but this guy is...'

That was it: this one fought, not just to win, but to live.

Blocking the strange umbrella with his belt sword, he focused, and it
morphed instantly into a whip, coiling tightly around the damaged
weapon. The weight of it was deceptive, even to someone who had learned
to inject ki into bamboo to make it as heavy as lead. Against most any
opponent, it would be a tremendous shock and a devastating weapon. The
belt ensnared the T-brella, and the locked back into 'iron cloth' form,
creating a vice stronger than a loop of tempered steel.

With a yank, he pushed the weapon out of the way and slammed the butt of
his alien alloy umbrella into his opponent's nose. He'd momentarily
considered trying to hit the ren-zhong point, the meridian between the
nose and upper lip, but that was a killing move. Trying to crush the
copy's nose was more amusing, and despite his feelings before, Hibiki
hadn't held back in delivering the blow. A spurt of crimson shot out
from the left nostril in a messy spray. His stunned state wouldn't last
long, even with an injury like that. The clone was a Hibiki. He would
shrug it off in the time it took most people to swat at, and miss, a
fly.

Instead, four breaking points exploded all around them, the force of the
blasts directed at one spot.

Rather than attack, the lieutenant took the opportunity to wrench the T-
brella out of his opponent's hands. Flipping it around and taking the
second umbrella by the hilt, he grinned bloodily at the comforting
weight. It was a pleasant reminder of the old days. Back before... all
this.

"Hey. You still alive?" he asked the expanding dust cloud.

The younger him stepped out of the ring of craters, looking very little
worse for wear, and spitting a bit of rock out of his mouth.

Ryouga smirked, at the question. "Still alive?  That lame attack of
yours wouldn't even hurt you, what makes you think it would even sting
me? Still, if you think you need to take a break, feel free."

For some reason, the sight of it made the older Hibiki smile.

'This guy... isn't like the other one at all. Kind of a brat, but
nothing like a real enemy.'

"Why?" he felt the need to ask, but knew it would likely go unanswered.
"You said you were headed to California. Why? I doubt it was for the
beaches."

The younger Ryouga considered the question, taking the momentary lull in
the action to catch his breath.  This fight hadn't exactly gone the way
he thought it would, though he was sure he could win in the end.  Of
course, the older Hibiki did seem to have a ... slight advantage, now
holding all the umbrellas, as it were.

In the privacy of his mind, he had to admit, this clone of him was good;
a little too good.  The young Titan was starting to think that the
apparent year or two age gap between them was more than just cosmetic.
Skill, in spades - though he was still no Ranma - the ability to use ki
attacks and breaking points from places other than the hands, a bit more
speed, too, though not by a huge margin. The double's toughness was
definitely lagging, but not really enough to let him end the fight
decisively.  And so much hatred wrapped up in him! Well, maybe not in
him, but it sure as hell was around him! That battle aura was all but
screaming for carnage: so much vitriol and poison, so much burning
rage...

Suddenly, Ryouga took a step back.

"Why am I going to California?" he asked. "That's none of your damn
business!  All I gotta do is wait for Raven to finish off Kuno, then
we'll drop you like Gosunkugi, you half baked test tube baby!"

Hibiki growled at the less than complimentary comparison. Surging
forward, umbrella in each hand, he lashed out with a downward slash with
the lighter of the two weapons, before following up with an air
sundering thrust from the heavier weapon. Skipping backwards, Ryouga
slid out of reach of the first attack, then side stepped the next,
taking a few long steps to keep out of reach.  He continued his retreat,
gathering a smaller sphere of the not quite visible energy in his hand
and launching it at the ground next to Hibiki.

Rather than crush into the ground, the energy sank into the ground
seamlessly, only to cause a massive eruption of asphalt and dirt to
blast out from the epicenter.

'A distance tenketsu using his ki attack?' Hibiki thought in
appreciation. 'Nice. Very nice! What else can you do?'

The uniformed fighter protected himself easily by snapping open the
alien alloy umbrella, using the canopy to block the bulk of the debris,
but the maneuver bought his copy the time he needed to gain more
distance. It seemed that the younger fighter was intent on waiting him
out, continually backing off and throwing more invisible blasts to throw
up a blinding smokescreen.

The seasoned warrior wouldn't let such a meager defense stop him.

He couldn't afford to give the younger fighter's - admittedly sketchy -
plot a chance to work.  If there was even a slight chance that Kuno
could lose against the nearly beaten Ethereal girl, he had to make sure
he was there to drop her. A psi-attack was tempting, but unnecessary.
This was a martial arts duel now, between martial artists; not to
mention that the way both of their auras were burning he doubted he
would be able to actually manage a useful attack anyway. That in mind,
he flared his aura further, blasting away the dust cloud by pure force
of will.  Charging forward, he lashed out savagely, one umbrella
following the other in rapid succession as he demolished the runway in
his pursuit.

Now that he was focused solely on defense, and unburdened by his heavy
weapon, the frustrating little bastard was proving hard to hit, and even
the glancing blows did little more than throw off his rhythm for a
moment.  He had no idea what this guy was made of, but he found himself
a bit envious of his resistance to damage. Not that it would help as
much in his line of work, since you couldn't tank a plasma blast or a
psi-attack, but it would be useful as a martial artist, if not as a
soldier. Setting himself up for a particularly cunning combination,
lifting his foot to strike out with a rapid tenketsu to lead into a
devastating combo with the umbrellas -

Suddenly Ryouga stopped his flight. In an instant, the younger warrior
reversed his direction, switching from defense to offense so quickly
that he nearly penetrated Hibiki's defense completely. Instinct was a
powerful defense, though, and Hibiki stepped back, crossing the
umbrellas before him to catch the surprise uppercut. Except the uppercut
missed him by a good foot?

Wait: uppercut?

Realization, stark and merciless, settled on Hibiki just a second too
late as the sound of the howling winds began to build in his ears.
Sloppy. He'd gotten sloppy. This was a move he'd seen a dozen times and
more, and one he bloody well trained against literally every week.

"Damn you, RANMA!!!"

The winds kicked up, hot and then cold, slamming into the lieutenant's
face. This had to somehow be Ranma's fault. GODS but he hated the hiryu
shoten ha. GODS how he was sick of it and all the endless variants
Saotome came up with every five days. Being tossed up into the air,
without the ground to root him, pummeled by cutting winds and two
hundred miles per hour debris... it was about the most annoying
technique a fighter of his inclination could imagine.

So.

For a moment, Hibiki hung in midair, being slowly lifted higher and
higher with each passing second.  Electricity crackled within the wind
of the forming tornado and a light burned between Hibiki's outstretched
hands.   Heat swirled up, the contrast of forces surging for just a bit
more power, just a bit more energy, to kick in past the point of no
return. The end result, after a moment's lengthy pause, was an anemic
blast of air up and away.

Hibiki landed on his feet, his battle aura of black and green completely
absent. Ryouga watched him with something akin to confusion. They both
knew Herb's trick, but this wasn't it. He clearly had no idea how
someone could simply shut off such a monstrous aura so abruptly. They
hadn't been circling long, and the hot ki in the area likewise dimmed on
command.

It wasn't just that, though.

"Of all things. You use Ranma's stupid trick," the older Hibiki growled,
more put-out than really angry, now that the safety on his self-hypnosis
had tripped and deactivated. "As if I wouldn't come up with a way to
counter it. The cheating bastard tries to hit me with it every time we
spar."

"I ... have no idea what you just did - not even sure how that was
actually possible - but parlor tricks like that won't stop me," the
younger martial artist growled, annoyed that his, admittedly shaky, ace
in the hole had been foiled so easily.

Not waiting for his opponent to make some pithy response, Ryouga charged
forward again, intent on taking advantage of the strange chi drain the
Rising Dragon usually inflicted, however small.  Hibiki brought the
umbrellas up again, blocking with the slender one while slashing down
with the larger, heavier umbrella.  Twisting nimbly to the side, Ryouga
avoided the downward slash, but his fist clanked lightly against the
slender umbrella.

Rather than try to push forward and break the block, though, he pulled
back slightly, to run his finger down the length of the metal umbrella
with blinding speed. It looked like he'd been aiming to knock it out
with a breaking point, but the metal... wasn't like anything natural. It
didn't respond to him at all. A second later, he leapt back out of range
as Hibiki slammed a charged foot into the ground, causing a small
explosion.

"Alright. I think that's enough."

Hibiki took a step back, away from his younger double. He contemplated,
then, reactivating his internal enhanced battle aura using self-hypnosis
again. He didn't even need the psi-amp to do it, it just made the
transition easier. However, at this point, aside from the Urakaze
Tenketsu and some of his Last Resort techniques, the last major weapon
in his arsenal was the Satsugai Tenketsu, used not on an umbrella, but
on flesh and blood. He had killed the last doppleganger in much the same
way, using an inferior version of the technique, and from what he had
seen of this one it wouldn't be nearly as difficult or dangerous to get
a good hold long enough to set off an irreversible Killing Point.
Earlier, when the fight started, he wouldn't have even given it much
thought.

But now, after all this...

Especially after seeing the emotional calm and elemental composure this
him had...?

"Yeah. This is enough," he said again. "You." He pointed at the clone.
"You're under the impression this is a duel between you and me, and I
suppose it was, but think about it. If you beat me and rescue your
girlfriend back there, do you really think you'll escape?"

He pointed up.

"Can you see them? Up in the clouds? I have a squadron of F-15s and F-
16s overhead, sortied from the JSDF base about fifty miles from here. I
have roughly forty police and national law enforcement agents, including
snipers, on the ground and in the air covering every escape route. I
have a satellite and a drone recording our every move."

He lowered his finger.

"I just got word Mousse and Ryu are back up and in action. You're
surrounded. You're out-gunned. There's no where you can hide... even if
you fled to the States, we'll simply contact NSA and Homeland Security
to place you both on the terrorist watch list. You'll never get on a
plane or boat or train... never walk in front of a camera... without
calling down someone like me."

He paused, then drove the point home with a nail.

"You want to protect that girl?" he asked, knowing well the answer.
"Give up. That's the only victory you'll find here."

The other Ryouga frowned, still in his fighting stance. Clearly his
instincts were telling him to charge forward again. Perhaps he thought
he could win this fight ... that his opponent had just been - been a bit
lucky up till this point. Hibiki could see the hot blooded need to fight
just looking for justification to keep going. Hell, he understood it
perfectly. It wasn't like he felt any different.

'So,' the lieutenant thought. 'What will you do?'

...

Ryouga had to admit... there were an awful lot of police around.

Which really made no damn sense! If this was the Headmaster's work, how
had his influence spread so far, especially since last he'd heard, the
monster was still in prison?  He was certain that escaping the police
wouldn't be a huge problem, but only if he could actually make it past
this ... Ryouga Hibiki of dubious morality. But what would they do when
they needed to stop to eat?  To sleep?  What would they do if they did
escape and brought this entire mess down on the heads of their friends?

A part of him really didn't care. A large part of him wanted to take
this fight to its ultimate conclusion.  He was sure that he could take
this bastard.  Just because he was older, faster, and more - he would
have spit the word were he speaking - skilled, he was also just so
blatantly evil that there was no way that he could lose to him! Plus,
this wasn't just some guy in big red powered armor, or some thug with a
super powerful punch. Evil and wrong-headed though he was, this was
another practitioner of the Art. Fighting him was... exciting.

'I want to win!'

But, he wasn't alone, was he? This wasn't just his fight to win or lose.

Looking around anxiously, Ryouga never gave up his stance.  "What's the
matter?" he asked. "So scared of me that you need to hide behind an army
of armed soldiers and war machines?  I mean, c'mon?  Threatening me with
Mousse of all people?  Where's your pride, man?"

The older Hibiki stared at him with a level, appraising look.

"I'm a soldier. My responsibility is to my mission, my comrades, my
country and my people. I gave my word, my oath, my life to them. So if I
have to swallow my pride to fulfill my responsibilities, then I will do
so." He narrowed his eyes slightly. "This is your one and only chance.
Stand. Down. Or I will shut you down."

Ryouga looked around again.

"Alright then. Say I do stand down," he added as much scorn and
derisiveness to the words as was possible for a Hibiki "What then?  No
offense, but you psychos have been trying to kill us from the start.  If
you're just going to take us out back and shoot us, well, frankly, I'd
rather die on my feet.  And if you need a hundred guys to do it, well
hell, that just looks good on me, now doesn't it?"

The other him smirked at the statement.

"Spoken like a true Hibiki. Grandpa would be proud," the older fighter
replied. "You're a clone of me, and that girl back there playing tag
with Kuno is either an infiltrator or a loose psychic. I'm not exactly
eager to have another copy of myself running around, but what happens to
you is up to Command, not me. I just bring them in. If you aren't
infiltrators, if you're human, then we'll tag you, screen you, and find
you a nice place to retire to."

He quickly added, "However, if you are enemy agents, that's another
story. But do you really have a choice? The alternative is you go out
with a bang, kill maybe a dozen cops, and we let the docs study your
corpse."

Ryouga rolled his eyes.

"Look, for the last time, you are the evil clone, not me! And ... well,
yeah, Raven is kind of a psychic, but last I heard that wasn't a crime.
Who are you supposed to work for, anyway?  Why are the cops even backing
you up?  I know Mousse is supposed to be Justice League, and Ryu is
supposed to be in the SNDF with Ranma, but how in the heck did an
obvious fake like you pull the wool over anyone's eyes?"  Snorting to
himself, he then looked to the side and muttered under his voice, "I'm a
'way' better Ryouga than this clown."

"SNDF? Justice League?" The older him raised a single eyebrow in the
universal gesture of unconvinced inquiry. "Really? 'Justice League'? ...
That some Super Sentai series or something? If you must know, I'm
currently operating under the authority of the Public Security
Intelligence Agency and the Japanese Ministry of Justice. So are the
rest of my team.... and Ranma and his group. You should know this
already."

"And why the heck would I know any of that?" Ryouga barked back. "You
can't be a part of the Japanese military because we went to the States,
like, months ago!"  Man, he seriously wanted to hit something.  "I mean,
come on, just look at yourself! You're overflowing with evil ki! Or you
were, just a minute ago! You toss around killing techniques without even
blinking. You - you use guns!?  Can you seriously look me in the eyes
and say that I'm the evil clone here?  It's like someone hand crafted
you out of my nightmares."

"Oh, gee, thanks," he - the other him - remarked, taking out the
holstered laser pistol in question. "Oh no! A gun! I must be the evil,
because super heavy umbrellas and swords and ki attacks and, uh yeah,
tornados! They're all fine, but guns are super evil, right?"

Ryouga gave the older him a scathing look.

"It doesn't matter one lick what you think I am anyway, as long as you
come along peacefully." He motioned for the younger man to turn around.
"You have most of my memories, so you know when someone's going to cuff
you. Go on, hands behind your back."

"What for?" Ryouga barked acidly.  "Is this some kind of trust exercise?
Those things wouldn't stop either of us from tossing in our sleep."

He still didn't like this alternate him; he was pompous and arrogant.
Just cuz he got in a few lucky shots here and there.  But ... it didn't
really matter what happened to him.  Raven and Kuno were still dancing
about, but he could tell she still hadn't recovered fully from whatever
it was that had happened to her earlier.

"Look... Mr. Hibiki... if you promise me that Raven won't be injured ...
then - then - I promise that I'll go with you willingly." He held out
his hands before him. "I want your word, though.  On the family name."

"You know, I'm not Tetsuya, you don't have to call me Mister Hibiki.
Hell, we're supposed to be the same age. The other one was identical..."
he shook his head, and nodded. "I'm not in charge, but while I am, I'll
do what I can to keep that girl from being killed. Provided she follows
your example and gives up. I'll swear it on... gods... on our family
name."

Motioning him to turn around, the younger Ryouga warily did so. Snapping
a pair of cuffs around the younger man's wrists, the Lieutenant
activated the restraint function. Naturally, these weren't typical
police handcuffs. Those wouldn't have held even his elementary school
self. These were alien alloy, unbreakable to even someone of his unique
capabilities.

The restraints self tightened, molding to the wrist to prevent normal
forms of escape. Even dislocation of the bones of the hand wouldn't be
able to get them off. Holstering his laser pistol, silently glad he
didn't end up using it, he noticed the look on the would-be clone's
face.

"You didn't notice it before? Thought we'd use regular cuffs?" Hibiki
asked. "Come on. Let's go check on your little girlfriend."

"Oh, and as for my evil ki..." he said, grabbing the younger Ryouga's
shoulder to get him moving. "That's in the eye of the beholder. You can
keep shooting flowers out of your ass if you want. I've got other
priorities."

"Yeah, you just keep justifying," Ryouga muttered. Idly, he tapped a
finger against the cuffs. It was the same stuff as the umbrella before.

He then turned towards the distant fight.

"Raven!" he yelled. "You can stop manhandling Kuno. We... we need to
surrender!"

Even across the distance, he noted Raven stare at him incredulously.
"We need to what?"

She didn't lower her guard, still floating backwards quickly to avoid
the slashing sword of the samurai, but she quickly shifted her path to
bring her in their direction.

"The maiden is clearly possessed by a demonic force! The righteous power
of Tatewaki Kuno, Age 20, compels you! Step into the light and release
the girl, creature of evil!" Kuno laughed madly, raising his sword up to
strike a triumphant pose. Thunder and waves crashed, and a halo seemed
to encircle the noble swordsman.

"Nice to see you're as un-killable as always, Kuno."

"Mine opponent, despite her previous appearance, has not been
particularly pernicious in her attacks," he observed, batting away a
shadow tendril that tried to dirty his self-absolved halo. "Cease thy
shadowy attacks, woman! I'm trying to speak here!"

Raven's only response was an inquisitive quirk of one eyebrow.

"Mousse and Ryu are incoming with Red team and SWAT," the non-bound
Hibki explained, clearly talking to the kendoist. He glanced over to
Raven. "I'm having them form a perimeter as we speak. You - Raven - this
is over. Remand yourself to our authority immediately."

The dark girl turned her eye Ryouga's way.  "Are ... you certain?
They've proven to be nothing but treacherous and offensive since they
first made their presence known."

Ryouga returned her look with a smirk of his own.  "Naw, that's just how
Kuno normally is. You were just lucky enough that you didn't have to
deal with him much.  Still, Raven-" he started again, this time his
voice taking on a much more serious note.  "You said you wanted me to
take the lead, well... listen to me now.  Mr. Hibiki here--"

"I'm not that old. Don't call me 'Mister.'"

"-might be an insufferable ass," the younger Hibiki continued. "But I
think we can at least trust him to keep you safe as long as we're in his
charge."

She didn't turn her back on Kuno, who had finally relented in his
assault, but slowly floated to Ryouga's side.  Landing gently on the
ground, she took a hold of his sleeve so as to lean against him so that
he could help support her weight.  The look on her face could only be
explained as questioning, but finally she nodded.  "You're right.  We
can't fight these odds ... not like this.  Still, if he betrays us - "

Ryouga beat her to the punch, glaring at Hibiki. "If he betrays us, it
will be the last mistake he makes."  Taking a deep breath, he then
straightened his back proudly.  "Alright, Toy Soldier, let's go
already."

"Like I need you to tell me that."

"But lieutenant, are you sure this is right?" Kuno asked, walking up
with his sword resting on his shoulder. "Should the fight not end with a
great display of clashing powers, or a tremendous explosion or a crying
maiden - say, that one, since she is available - " he pointed over at
Raven with his free hand. "Wailing for her beloved to survive the
terrible clash of blades? What happened to the erstwhile tornado I felt
forming?"

"Fizzled."

"A true shame." The sword gleamed as it caught a ray of light, as he
stared off at a distant memory. "So it falls on the house of Kuno to
provide the day's pathos?"

"No, it doesn't. I'm sure we'll have another near death experience on
the battlefield next week," the older Ryouga predicted, voice deadpan.
"In the meantime, cuff the girl so we can call this Op. You-know-who's
already giving me lip about all the property damage. And there she goes
in my ear about 'pointlessly indulging in martial arts duels.' Yes, I
know you heard that."

Raven complied, putting her hands behind her back as the man she had
been fighting snapped cuffs on her. It was... it was just wrong. This
was the sort of position the criminals she and Ryouga apprehended ended
in. They would always slump as the police led them off, or bused them
into a van, looking dejected and defeated. But they deserved it!

She didn't! They didn't!

She and Ryouga hadn't done anything wrong. They were heroes! They should
be the ones watching and joking while the criminals were led off. It
should have been those two in their position! Or... or even when
superheroes fought, which she had to admit kind of happened an awful
lot, no one got arrested for it. No hero turned other heroes in to the
police, even when they were technically vigilantes. This was just wrong
and frustrating and... and wrong on every level!

"Chin up, girl."

She heard the tone, recognized the voice as the other Ryouga's, and
turned her head.

Only to find something snap around her forehead, like a tiara. It locked
in place with an audible snap, reminding her immediately of this
annoying toy Beast Boy had once used to raise a racket back at the
Tower, months ago. Except this time, whatever it was, was attached to
her head.

"Hey!" Ryouga - her Ryouga - immediately objected.

"Relax," the older one said, walking in front of them. "Psi-scrambler.
Perfectly harmless. I'm not gonna take the chance your lady friend here
grows another pair of eyes and tries to eat one of my men."

Rather than protest, Raven just leveled a droll expression at the older
Hibiki.  "If using this thing makes you feel safe, then feel free."

Chuckling, Ryouga walked up beside her, closing in until their shoulders
were touching.  "Don't worry, Raven.  I'll protect them from scary
little you ... Well, except for Kuno, feel free to eat him if you want."

Raven turned to regard the swordsman, only to run her tongue over her
lips tellingly.  "Mmmm, with all that gristle and deluded nobility?  I'd
likely get indigestion."

"I suppose it is comforting, all things considering," Ryouga quipped,
"That evil clones or not, that some things don't change."

The violet haired girl shrugged her shoulders.  "I don't know, from what
Mousse said, it sounded like Nabiki was involved, actually organizing
their efforts.  Doing anything productive hardly seems to be in
character for that one."

Ryouga laughed out loud.  "What?  Nabiki, orchestrating the movements of
a group of evil doppelgangers? What could be more Nabiki-ish than that?"

"Oh?" The older Hibiki interrupted, having overheard. "It's sad, but it
does seem kind of in character for her." He then winced at some barely
audible objections in his earpiece. "Geez, I was kidding. It was a
joke."

Kuno strolled over, sword still in hand, but with no intent to use it.

"How are we moving them out, sir?"

"Helicopter at this point. Hell if I know where Command is gonna send
them once we're in the air. Hisen doesn't have the facilities as far as
I know, but maybe...? We were supposed to return with one corpse and one
human it was holding captive, not... not another me and the pint sized
class-AA psychic over there." The uniformed Hibiki took a deep breath
and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "This is a real mess."

A couple seconds later, a tired looking man with a white bandanna jogged
over. Right behind him was the familiar form of Mousse, in a new set of
white robes. He seemed a little pale, but clearly on his feet and
active. The two quick stepped and came to an abrupt stop near the two
captives. For a few seconds, Ryu and Mousse glared at the two who had
beaten them before.

Then Ryu nodded, once, at the captive Hibiki.

"Good fight," he remarked, without malice.

Mousse scoffed. "Mission accomplished at least. Just once, can we have a
mission where the harmless girl doesn't turn into a monster or have a
killer doll or make the walls bleed?"

"That is what makes our adventures so amusing, my near sighted friend!"

"..."

"Ryu." Hibiki cut in. "The perimeter."

"Secure, sir. We have SWAT from here to the highway. Two planes on
standby. ATC will probably be requesting they start landing again soon."

"We can't stay here," Mousse observed.

"No, and I'm just getting word we don't have the full facilities for a
double-A at Hisen, but they're working on something." He took a few
seconds to consider the options. "Alright. Ryu. Oversee final cleanup of
the scene. DisInfo is probably going to go with a bomb story. Watch the
comm for updates and make sure this place is spotless by the time you
leave. If there's a psychic imprint left by the girl, I want it washed
clean. The last thing we need is a back trace to source."

"Kuno, you and Mousse are with me. We need to find an intermediate site
while they set up the equipment at Hisen. Nabiki. We have the targets; I
want their records erased. That includes all public databases..." he
paused, obviously carrying on a conversation though his earpiece. "I'll
submit that with my report. Yes, I know. Good!"

Sighing, he gave the two captives a hard stare.

"Right," he finally said, and motioned Mousse and Kuno to escort the
pair. "We're going to extraction point beta for now. I'll work out
something en route."

The two started walking, allowing their CO to fall behind and follow.
He'd retrieved a large tablet-like device, and seemed to be quickly
scrolling through something with his index finger. Raven and the younger
Ryouga were quickly ushered past a line of heavily armed police officers
- all giving them a wide berth - and into a waiting van, black, with
government issue plates. The five were able to fit inside fairly easily,
and a moment later, they took off.

For a while, the noise of the engine was the only sound breaking the
silence.

Then with an exaggerated move, Kuno reached under the seat to retrieve a
small duffel bag. A second of rummaging later, and his hand emerged with
a bottle of water. Seated next to his captive, he held it out in a
gentlemanly offer, silent but genuine. Seated opposite, Mousse shook his
head in amusement.

'Typical.'

Raven shook her head at the offered drink.

"No, thank you," she replied, a little pleased by the polite offer.

Ryouga tried to hold his peace ... he really tried, but sitting there,
watching Kuno drinking a water bottle, and Mousse sitting back like a
good little soldier, he couldn't help himself.

He began to snicker.

Immediately, eyes began to fall on him.  Even Raven nudged him not so
gently with a kick to the foot. The two leaned forward to whisper.

"What?" she hissed quietly.

"N-nothing," he managed to fight out between strangled laughter.

"If it's nothing, then quit it," she muttered. "They're going to think
you're going insane."

Another choked laugh.  "I'm ... I'm trying - "

But he could not.  A moment later, he broke into side splitting
laughter.  "Oh man!  I'm sorry - I'm sorry.  It's just: Kuno?  Mousse?
SIR!?"

He nearly broke down completely.  "These guys, following you?" He stared
pointedly at Hibiki. "I mean, I don't really know this Ryu guy, but
seriously!  What bet did you lose to get stuck with those two?  And what
Prime Minister did they offend to get stuck with us as their leader!?"

"Ryouga!" Raven barked, scandalized.  "Can you possibly try to insult
everyone a little more?"

Mousse and Kuno both scowled, and turned to their officer.

"These men have saved my life," the older Ryouga explained, slowly, his
voice deceptively calm. "Besides that, they've put themselves on the
line time and again for their country and the human race as a whole. I'd
watch what I say about them when you're around me."

Ryouga barely managed to hold in another bout of chuckles.  "B-but it's
Mousse and Kuno!  When I think back to Nerima, we were practically the
Three Stooges - "

Suddenly, his laughter stopped, Raven catching his eye.  "That's enough,
Ryouga.  Both of our friends, and you yourself, have come a long way
since Nerima.  This situation might be beyond strange, but don't you
realize that you're insulting yourself, as well as the Kuno and Mousse
that we know, all of whom have gone on to become heroic and selfless
people?"

That little rebuke was enough to dampen his amusement.  Pouting
slightly, he looked down at his feet.  He did feel a bit bad now.  It
was so easy to forget that Kuno was in their sister team, and that
Mousse had actually joined the Justice League itself.

"Fine ... fine-" he quickly followed by muttering under his breath "-
This other me is still a jerk, though."

Keeping a reproachful eye on her companion for a moment longer, Raven
finally nodded to herself, confident that her lesson had been received.
All of this self deprecating humor wasn't good for Ryouga.  He needed to
start finding out who he was for himself, rather than defining himself
by the tasks he had been assigned by others.

Deciding to give him some time to think on that, she turned her
attention to Mousse.  The tall boy - well, not really a boy anymore, now
that she thought about it - was looking pale and drawn, but not
seriously damaged from their encounter, which was comforting.  Still, he
seemed like the best bet to get a decent conversation from, given her
other choices.

"So, Mousse ... when was the last time you were back to the village?"

The weapons master stared at her, just then, with a sort of intense
expression.

"What?" he asked, quietly.

"The Amazon village?" Raven repeated, a bit more curious now.

Mousse turned to his commanding officer, as if asking something
unspoken. Next to Raven, Kuno kept silent, staring down at his bottled
water. Ryouga sensed it too, a change in the air, and in the emotions of
the three slightly older martial artists. Finally, Hibiki let out a low
breath and picked his tablet back up. It seemed to be silent permission
to do as he pleased, so Mousse turned to face Raven, schooling his face
and voice.

"The last time...?" he began, carefully hiding his eyes behind his
glasses. "The last time was to visit my mother. She was having a
property dispute."

Raven nodded.  That sort of thing seemed to be quite common in the
village.  Just because it was so rustic and scenic didn't mean it wasn't
loaded with politics all its own.

"That was nice of you.  I don't think we actually met your mother when
we were there.  Tell me, have you heard any more concerning the results
of the Council's vote?"

It still brought a smile to her lips, thinking back to the theatrics
Mousse unleashed to show his gratitude for 'sparing his life' for
breaking Amazonian law.  As if he was ever in any danger.  She somehow
doubted that she would be able to get a foot massage from the long
haired man before her, he ... didn't seem to be quite as open and
friendly as his counterpart had turned out to be.

"The Council," he very nearly spat the words out. "Wait... when were you
at the village? Don't tell me you were one of -- " he actually bit his
tongue. "Anyway, there is no Amazon Council anymore. If you're referring
to their last ruling, they made their decision... and paid for it."

Well, that was very much like Mousse, wasn't it, so melodramatic. Maybe
he was more like his doppelganger than she thought?  She rolled her eyes
before responding.

"Paid for it?  Honestly, you make it sound the end of the world."  She
considered his words more closely. The vote had been to bring the
village more into the modern age, rather than stagnate in their rigid
traditions.  Perhaps they had moved ahead their society more quickly
than she'd imagined.

"And the council has been dissolved?" she asked. "Did they decide to
replace it with some form of democratic system?  I knew they were
planning on modernizing the village, but I didn't think they would make
such a bold move so soon."

Ryouga scoffed.  "Yeah, right, I can't see even half of those old ladies
giving up their comfy council seats without fighting tooth and nail."

Mousse crossed his arms as he leaned back into his seat.

"The Council wasn't dissolved," he explained, speaking deliberately.
"About four months ago, Shampoo sent a letter back home, warning them
that the village was going to come under attack. She pleaded with them
to either evacuate or step up security. Ku Lon used her influence over
Sin Ke and Pi Lu to block the measure and censor any attempt at debate.
A month later, all three betrayed the village. When I said 'there is no
Council' I meant that all but Ku Lon are now dead. The old Amazons are
gone."

Raven blanched, an impressive feat for the already pale girl, but before
she even had the chance to gasp in shock, she was cut off.

"That's bullcrap!"  Ryouga barked.  "I spoke with Cologne just a few
weeks ago, and she was in the village. She never mentioned anything like
that. And Cyborg and Starfire are in contact with the village all the
time."

Raven shook her head.  "That can't be possible.  What attack could have
possibly been dire enough to threaten the Amazons?  Their alliance with
the Tamaranians would be more than enough dissuade anything barring
intergalactic warlords."

"I was there," Mousse said, simply.

"As was I," Kuno added. "It was a black night to be sure."

"We were all there." This time it was the older Hibiki who spoke up, "My
team, Ranma's, even Akane and the Musk. Our first terror site. I'll
never forget that smell... that mix of blood, shit, and charcoal. I
don't know what these Tamaranians are, but if they're more damned
aliens, then I wouldn't put it past Cologne to hook up with them. But
the village itself is gone. Just empty streets and burned buildings."

"Terror site?" Raven asked.  "What are you talking abou-"

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Ryouga barked furiously.
"There's no way the village is gone!  I'm pretty sure Lotion would have
mentioned something like 'Oh, by the way, our village was burned to the
ground,' when she spoke to Cyborg three nights ago!  I don't know what
kind of sick game you're playing, but I don't want to hear it!"

"Ryouga, calm down," Raven cut in, concern in her voice.  She then
turned back to the older version of the same.  Something had been
bothering her since they'd been in the airport.  She'd dismissed it at
the time, since it was too implausible, but considering everything else,
it was starting to appear worryingly possible.

"Mr. Hibiki, you said this happened less than four months ago?" she
asked, to be sure, and he nodded. "I know this is going to sound
strange, but ... what is the current date, by the western calendar?"

"You've been wandering around and don't know the date?" he asked. "It's
February ninetieth. Two thousand and seven."

Raven's expression changed, then, her eyes widening.

"You say you spoke with Cologne? A few weeks ago?" the Lieutenant's eyes
went from the girl to the slightly younger him and then back. "Our Intel
is that she escaped off-world. There are no records of either of you two
going back more than a week..."

An idea, somewhat ridiculous, tentatively scratched the surface of the
older Hibiki's thoughts.

"This Cologne you spoke to," Hibiki then asked. "Was she old, or young?"

For his part, Ryouga frowned. It seemed fairly impossible, but not
totally out of the bounds of their normal insanity.  Hadn't Starfire
already mentioned taking a short stint into the future of her own?  It
did explain a few things, though not most, like, if they had traveled
through time, then why the heck would 'he' still be there?

"Old, of course," he finally barked back. "And what do you mean 'escaped
off world'? Did she go to Tamaran or something?  And who the heck would
she be escaping from? These other aliens you were hinting at?"

"She was escaping from us," Mousse answered, a dangerous glint catching
his glasses.

"Not us, specifically," the older Ryouga corrected. Taking a hold of the
sleeve of his right arm, he rolled it up to bunch around his shoulder,
revealing the vine-like scar left behind by that battle. 'Something to
remember me by' - those were Cologne's words. Even with his healing, he
knew he would carry her mark the rest of his life.

"This is the handiwork of the Cologne I was talking about, the younger
Cologne," he continued. "She's a copy of the old granny we know, the one
that taught us the breaking point. The enemy - the aliens - managed to
turn her, but instead of using the original, they created one based on
her younger self, but with all her age and experience. She's a mix of
human and alien, now, what we call a Trenchard."

"The fight that gave me this scar... Ranma and I tried to take her on
and she nearly killed us. Even after her older self showed up to help."
He scoffed, resting his arms on his legs. "Last we heard, she fled to
join the other hybrids like her on Mars, but we've found more than a few
of her presents still lying around."

"Like you," Mousse added, arms still crossed. "Other hybrids.
Experiments she helped work on. We kill them before they kill us."

"Indeed!" Kuno agreed, capping his bottled water. "If it exists on this
Earth, truly ours is the justice of heaven."

Ryouga laughed derisively.  "Oh, the 'justice of heaven' of Kuno, is it?
No wonder we're not even injured."

Before the proud swordsman could explode, Raven leaned forward.  "That's
enough, Ryouga.  Everyone, listen.  I don't think the situation is what
any of us believe it to be."

She turned to Mousse.  "You believe us to be aliens or clones, but that
is not the case- " 'for the most part' she added mentally, "If what I
believe happened, did happen, I believe we are... displaced in time.