[FFML] [Ranma] Hearts and Minds, Part 10 of 10 [1/2]

[Gary Kleppe]

                             HEARTS AND MINDS
                                 PART TEN

                        Ranma 1/2 manga fanfiction
                              by Gary Kleppe

	The characters of Ranma 1/2 are the creation of and rightful
property of Rumiko Takahashi. They are used here without permission.
This story may be freely redistributed, but it should not be altered
substantially or used for profit in any way.

	Comments and criticism will be greatly appreciated. All
previous material is on my fanfic page:
http://www.garykleppe.org/fanfiction.php


                                  ______


	Kodachi stood in the darkened bedroom, gazing at the slumbering
faces dimly illuminated in moonlight. Hikaru and Ririko. That's what
Ranma had said their names were. They lay almost soundlessly sprawled
out on their futons, even their breathing barely audible. So very
adorable. So very precious. So very... vulnerable. Kodachi smiled.

	From what she'd been able to glean, Ranma was still out of the
country. Kasumi, the priestess who knew secrets that might be able to
counter Kodachi's weaponry, was with him. The other one, the skater who
had managed to turn Kodachi's pets against her, was still in town, but
not in this house. The only ones present were two of the children's
grandparents, and they would be sleeping at this hour. Kodachi could do
whatever she liked here, and by the time they even knew about it she
would be long gone.

	But what would that be? In situations like this, Kodachi relied
on her own instinct to guide her actions. It was an inner sense that
would always provide her with the appropriate action to take when she
listened to it. But now no such inspiration seemed to be forthcoming.
This was dismaying. Had she finally developed that most pathological of
psychiatric disorders, a conscience?

	No. Rules of right and wrong were nothing more than constraints
set up by society in order to confine its members to narrow, limited
paths. Kodachi was above and beyond such things. The one law she lived
by stated that she was Kuno Kodachi, the Black Rose. That was reason
enough to do anything, and it was reason enough to refrain from doing
anything.

	And that, she realized, was where she had gone wrong. It was a
self-imposed rule, but an ironclad one: she had to be who she was. And
she had violated it, both earlier and now. She had attacked her former
rivals with transformation water out of a desire for revenge over her
losing Ranma, and her coming here tonight was also to take revenge for
her later defeat by the skater.

	This was not her. Revenge was the province of the weak and
fearful, always. It was a way of trying to deter one's opponent from
wanting to engage in future contests, used when one feared not being
able to compete in such contests. It was not Kuno Kodachi. To seek
revenge for a past defeat subsumed that one had *been* defeated. She
knew the right way to deal with defeat; it did not exist if one simply
refused to allow it to.

	Kodachi knew exactly what to do. Silently, she searched across
the children's desks for some suitable items to utilize.

                                  ______


	The jeeps full of Mongol soldiers drove away one at a time,
falling into an orderly procession along the dirt road with each one
directly behind the next. Ryoga watched from behind a tree, resisting
the urge to call out as he spied Akane in the back of one of them,
handcuffed, the soldiers' guns pointed at her head.

	"What do we do now?" he said, exasperated. With Mu Si having
gone back home, Ranma's father run off and possibly dead, and Ranma and
Akane captured, they were down to just three, less than half of what
they started the trip with. How could they possibly accomplish anything
now?

	"We go on to the capital," Kasumi said. "That's where they'll be
holding Akane and Ranma."

	"We should figure out a plan first. There are only the three of
us remaining," Tofu said, echoing Ryoga's earlier unspoken thought.

	"I know. But we still have the one person we need the most."

	"Who's that?"

	"That's Ryoga here."

	"Me?"

	"Yes." Kasumi smiled at him. "Back at the remote base, I was
able to tap into the spirits of the dead to provide extra power to Mu
Si. I'll be doing the same for you here. In the city there's a much
greater number of such spirits so it will work much better for you."

	"I don't know...." Tofu looked thoughtful. "Are you sure this is
safe?"

	She nodded. "Ryoga's in no danger at all. He's already nigh-
invulnerable. With this extra power, not even an anti-tank gun will be
able to faze him."

	"We certainly can't leave Akane and Ranma in those people's
hands," Ryoga said. "I don't think we have much choice."

	Tofu nodded. "You're right. Let's go, then," he said, his tone
betraying a good deal of uncertainty.

	Ryoga waved the two of them ahead. "I'll be right behind you."
The puzzled glances Tofu had given Kasumi meant that they needed to
talk; Ryoga recognized it from the way Akari looked at him sometimes.
They walked off at a brisk pace, hand in hand. He let them get out of
earshot, then followed, staying a respectable distance behind but near
enough not to lose them.

	It was all very strange. Up until now, Kasumi had stayed mostly
quiet, letting others plan out the strategies and tactics. Now she was
suddenly leading the group, and she seemed absolutely sure, not only of
what they should do but of what the result would be.

	Still, as he'd said, they didn't have much choice. Ryoga on his
own wouldn't even be able to find the city. He had to trust that Kasumi
knew what she was doing.

                                  ______


	Back at the Amazon village, Ti Pi returned to join Tatewaki, Mu
Si, and Hikaru, all of whom were crouched behind a hedge overlooking the
Council Hall.

	"Did you get it?" Mu Si asked.

	"Yes I did." She handed him a flask of liquid. "This is a potion
of free thought. If, as you suspect, Shan Pu is under any kind of mind
control, drinking some of this will snap her out of it. The hard parts,
as I said before, will be getting past the guards into the Chambers, and
then getting her to drink it."

	Tatewaki nodded. "The second matter is up to Mu Si, who will be
the one to actually go in. As to the first, we have a plan. But we will
need your help to execute it."

	Ti Pi knelt behind the hedge. "Tell me everything."

	"I shall." Tatewaki smiled. "You know of course that I dislike
being immodest, but this plan affords me the opportunity to demonstrate
skills that I particularly excel at."

                                  ______


	"ARE YOU MAD?!" Tatewaki bellowed loud enough to make Ti Pi's
ears hurt. "Surely the gods, the heavens themselves must revulse at such
a suggestion! Surely what's right and proper should be maintained, and
not defiled by the creation of some third-rate bowdlerized version."

	"There's nothing wrong with watching Sailor Moon in the
Cantonese dub," Ti Pi said steadfastly. "I happen to like it better that
way."

	"Have you no sense of value?!" Tatewaki threw up his hands.
"Would you turn down a Beethoven symphony to listen to J-Pop?! Would you
turn down a gourmet meal for a can of spam? Would you--"

	"The dub isn't *that* bad." She understood why Hikaru had wanted
her to perform opposite Tatewaki instead of himself. Ruse or no, he
would likely have wilted after about fifteen seconds of Tatewaki's
onslaught. "I thought they had quite a good voice actress for Yuet Yea
Tou."

	"Her name is *TSUKINO USAGI!*" he screamed. "Could there be any
more--"

	"You there!" One of the guards called to Tatewaki.

	"Eh?" The two of them turned to look.

	The guard stepped forward, her eyes narrowed sternly. "The
Council of Elders is in session. You need to take your argument
somewhere else."

	Out of the corner of her eye, Ti Pi saw a certain duck waddle
into the Hall, slipping under the gaze of the guards. "Sorry," she said.

	"I, too, humbly apologize," Tatewaki said with a bow, which Ti
Pi took as him congratulating himself on his performance.

	"That's all right. Just don't do it again."

	The two of them moved a little ways down the path. Their part
was accomplished, now it was up to Mu Si. And... Ti Pi looked around.
Where had Hikaru gone?

                                  ______


	After morphing back into human form, and checking to make sure
his glasses were on -- now was not a time they could afford any mistakes
-- Mu Si tiptoed down the stairs and walked into the Council room.
"Shan--"

	He halted as a man in a Mongol army uniform pointed a rifle at
his face. Another such man had another such gun pointed at the Elders,
who occupied their usual seats. And in the middle of it all stood Shan
Pu.

	"Throw down all your weapons," the soldier said.

	"Don't be ridiculous," Shan Pu said. "We don't have the time
that that would take. Just keep an eye on him. He carries plenty of
weapons but they're all of the martial arts variety, no guns."

	The potion, Mu Si remembered. He needed a clever way of getting
her to drink it. Think of a really, really cunning plan.

	"Ummm..." He held it up to her. "Shan Pu, drink this!"

	"Eh?"

	"It's a potion to remove mind control. Because, er, because I
*don't* think you're being controlled. But Ti Pi does, and this'll prove
that she's wrong."

	Shan Pu accepted the flask and sniffed at it. "Ah yes, a potion
of free will." She put it to her mouth and gulped down about a third of
it, then set it down on a table. "Satisfied?" She motioned with a thumb.
"Now go and stand next to Elder Ban."

	Mu Si did as he was told, his mind boggling. Had they come up
with a control method that was strong enough to resist the potion? Or
was Ti Pi's potion a dud? Could she be in on the whole thing?

	Shan Pu abruptly turned towards the door and pointed. "And you.
Don't think I don't see you there, young man."

	All eyes turned to see Gosunkugi Hikaru standing there. Both
soldiers turned, pointing their guns, and Hikaru raised his hands above
his head. "I'm not armed," he said in Japanese. "Please don't shoot!" Mu
Si stared. Where had he come from? How had he gotten down here without
being stopped by the guards?

	"I don't think he'll be armed," Shan Pu said to the soldiers,
motioning for them to lower their weapons, and they did. Hikaru breathed
a very audible sigh of relief as one of the soldiers patted him down,
then returned to his position.

	"Why did you call him 'young man'?" asked Elder Lan. "Aren't you
and he the same age?"

	"Oh, you are amusing," Shan Pu responded, her sharp glare
indicating that she hadn't come here to be amused. She turned back to
Hikaru. "As long as you're here, go out into the kitchen and fetch some
water for our brave fighting men. And don't try poisoning the water or
anything like that. I'll be able to tell."

	"If we're having refreshments, I'd like some hot tea, please"
Lan said.

	"No!" Shan Pu snapped, then regained her composure. "Just do as
you're told, boy." Hikaru left the room, and Shan Pu switched back to
speaking Mandarin. "Now then, Elder Lan, we have some business to
discuss, don't we?"

	"What will happen to us?"

	"Ah. Tragically, the Council of Elders will be killed. You see,
everyone thought our old friend Lieutenant Amar was done for. But he
managed to crawl out of the healer's and somehow sneak past the guards
to enter these chambers. And with his dying breath, he managed -- or
will shortly manage -- to set off a bomb and blow up this building. Then
Shan Pu, having been lucky enough to have left the building just before
the bomb exploded, will reluctantly take over as Chief Elder. She, of
course, will be forced to institute new security measures, including the
detention of any who have a habit of asking the wrong questions."

	"Lieutenant Amar is already dead," Elder Ban said. "He died last
night. And all of the assistants at the healer's are quite aware of it."

	"I see." Shan Pu smiled at Ban. "Then our old friend Lieutenant
Amar, before he had even encountered Mu Si and his group of friends, had
managed to sneak into this building and place a bomb with a timer -- set
to go off shortly. Thank you for that correction." She turned back to
Lan. "But before any of that happens, there are some questions I'd like
you to answer concerning the running of this village."

	Lan chuckled. "Do you think I will assist you in your attempt to
usurp power?"

	"Yes, I do. I know you, and I know how that analytical mind of
yours works." Shan Pu's smile broadened, becoming almost shark-like. "If
you cooperate, I won't kill you... yet. That leaves you with a chance of
being rescued. Not much of a chance, but any chance is better than no
chance."

	Lan paused to consider for a moment. "What do you want to know?"

                                  ______


	From her box, the real Shan Pu listened as Zhen Biaozi
questioned the Chief Elder. Elder Lan very skillfully replied in ways
that honestly answered what was asked but did not volunteer any scrap of
information beyond it. She was obviously stalling for time, hoping that
help would arrive. But it didn't seem like it would.

	For Shan Pu it was maddening, having her identity appropriated
right in front of her face and not being able to do anything about it.
Once again, she thought over her options. She could will herself back to
human form. If bursting out of the case didn't kill her, and if it
didn't set off the bomb which was obviously in the same case that she
was, and if the soldiers didn't shoot her on sight, then she would have
to fight Biaozi. It would be a contest between two identical combatants,
except that one had decades more fighting experience, and the other was
weak from not having eaten and from being locked in a box for nearly a
full day. Or she could make noise, let the others know that she was
there. But Elder Lan clearly already knew, and the knowledge wasn't
doing her much good. None of those ideas would work. Shan Pu needed to
think of something else, and time was running out.

	She remembered what Kasumi had said about the curses. Jusenkyo
magic worked by binding a portion of the drowned creature's spirit to
the victim. That gave those spirits a limited amount of influence over
the cursed individuals. In the old days, Ranma sometimes seemed like a
magnet for water, no doubt due to the influence of the girl who died at
Jusenkyo. She later got him pregnant and still later abandoned him. In
this case, Shan Pu *was* the spirit that caused Biaozi's transformation.
Could she use that connection to reclaim that part of herself and turn
Biaozi back to normal? Or if nothing else, could her spirit influence
what happened to Biaozi in some small way and interfere with her plans?

	Shan Pu closed her eyes and let her cat body relax. She
concentrated on the rhythm of her breathing and let her mind expand. It
was worth a try. At this point anything was worth a try.

                                  ______


	Hikaru came back into the Council chambers bearing two cups of
water. He passed by Shan Pu who gave a quick sniff and then waved him
on, barely even looking before going back to the discussion she was
having in Mandarin with Elder Lan.

	His five minutes or so alone in the kitchen had given him a
chance to think. Shan Pu, obviously, didn't have to be told how old she
was. So when Lan asked her *Aren't you and he the same age?* it was
clearly intended as a clue for him, especially considering that she'd
said it in Japanese. It meant that this person who they'd thought to be
Shan Pu under mind control wasn't actually Shan Pu at all but was
actually somebody older. Either this as yet unknown person had managed a
full mind-body transfer -- stranger things had happened -- or she was
simply an impostor who'd figured out how to convincingly look like Shan
Pu. He and his friends had screwed up, came up with the wrong answer to
the puzzle, and would have to pay the price. Lan's asking for hot tea
had to be a clue too, but Hikaru had no idea what she'd meant by that
one. So he'd gone ahead and brewed some tea, but left the urn full of it
in the hallway outside the room, hoping that he'd figure out what to do
with it later or that someone else could make use of it.

	He set the cups in front of the soldiers. There was no question
that he'd have to try something, before the soldiers and the fake Shan
Pu killed them all anyway. But what could he possibly do? The sham Pu
could still see him even when he masked his presence. True, she wasn't
paying much attention to him right now. So maybe he could get away with
something, but it would have to be subtle. If he did anything obvious
like try to take away their guns then they'd all know.

	He glanced down at the table and then an idea formed. Probably
not a good idea, but an idea. He wasn't even sure what it would
accomplish. But he had to do something.

                                  ______


	"Is there anything else I can tell you?" asked Lan, her voice
heavy.

	"No, I think that covers it." Biaozi smiled. "Thank you very
much for your cooperation." She couldn't help feeling a bit smug. Lan
had dragged things out as long as she could, waiting for someone or
something to show up and save her. But no one had. No one would.

	Biaozi glanced down at the case that contained the bomb.
"Corporal, it's time to set up our little goodbye present."

	For a moment, nobody spoke.

	"Corporal, did you hear me?"

	"Yes, ma'am," came the soldier's voice.

	"Then kindly do what I've asked you to."

	"No, ma'am."

	"Corporal, are you refusing a direct order?"

	"Yes, I am, ma'am."

	"Corporal, General Ha himself placed me in command of this
mission," Biaozi said indignantly. "If you disobey my orders, I'll see
you at court martial."

	"Ma'am, with all due respect, I don't think blowing up a room
full of unarmed civilians is a legal order."

	She let out an exasperated breath and turned to the other
soldier. "Private..."

	"Uh uh. No chance, lady. I've seen how you operate. How you bump
off anyone in your way without a second thought. Frankly, I don't trust
you."

	Biaozi's mind boggled. Were Ha Bu's troops so undisciplined that
their allegiances could change so easily?

	Then she noticed the potion bottle on the table. The empty
potion bottle. She put two and two together and realized what had
happened. Had the youth -- Gosun-something? -- done it while she hadn't
been paying attention? Or did they have an unseen helper? The soldiers'
minds, of course, had never been magically controlled. But it seemed
that the potion of free will still stimulated free thought and critical
thinking, qualities that were rather inconvenient in low-level combat
troops.

	"Back home they told us that these women had deposed Ms. Zhen in
a coup and were ruling by force," the private said. "It's pretty obvious
that we were fed a line of crap." The other one nodded.

	"Fine," Biaozi grumbled. If you wanted something done right....
"I'll do it myself. You watch the prisoners."

	"No, ma'am." The corporal raised his weapon. "Stand away from
the case, ma'am."

	"Let's talk about this, soldier." Biaozi surreptitiously slipped
a certain packet out of her pocket and into her fist.

	"Yes, let's all talk," Lan said. "I think we can come to an
understanding and settle all of these matters without more violence."
The others gave audible breaths of relief as they began to move more
freely.

	Biaozi threw her item to the floor. It exploded into a cloud of
green gas. She waited the usual few seconds and listened to the sound of
unconscious bodies hitting the ground. The gas was made from Yaocaicun
herbs; a marvelous invention. It produced what was essentially a short,
severe allergic reaction. Any human being who hadn't taken the antidote,
as Biaozi had, would fall asleep in seconds. Then the gas would
dissipate on its own, leaving no trace.

	She flipped open the compartment of the case that contained the
bomb. *If you want something done right, do it yourself.* It was a rule
that had served Biaozi well over her ninety-plus years. A corollary of
the rule was that any plan that depended on the cooperation or
competence of one's allies needed to have a contingency alternative that
didn't. Biaozi knew that the only person she could really rely on was
herself. And her so-called sisters had expected her to go willingly to
her death, to nobly step aside and leave the fate of her people in the
hands of younger generations. Not likely. The future was too important
to be left in the hands of youth.

	An axe's blade slammed into the table. "Shan Pu, STOP!" It was
Mu Si.

	"You?" Biaozi was perplexed for a moment, and then remembered
his curse. "Ah, you changed yourself into a duck, didn't you." The gas'
major limitation was that it only worked on human beings.

	"Shan Pu -- if it really is you -- don't do anything more, or I
swear I'll--"

	"No, you won't. This is why." In one quick motion she grabbed
the silk sheath dress that she wore and pulled it up past her head. It
flew across the room, leaving her naked. "This is what you've always
wanted." She spoke with the slow, even voice that made people want to
accept verbal suggestions. "It is me. You know it is. And you know I'm
not under anybody's control. I've been working for the other side all
along. I had to. I only did what was necessary. But I don't need to
pretend anymore. You and I can be partners. In every sense." She slank
forward, pressing her body against his.

	"No, Shan Pu." He grasped her by the shoulders and pushed her
away. "You're right, it is what I wanted. What-- what I still want. But
I won't let you kill my friends! I won't let you help foreigners invade
our village!"

	Biaozi stared directly into his eyes and puckered her lips. At
the same time she stuck out a finger and lifted her hand into position.
Just one jab in the chest. That was all it would take.

	"No!" Mu Si grabbed her hand. "It-- it's you! From the skating
rink! And the campsite! That's why you had to cover your face there!"

	"You're right." She twisted in his grasp and squeezed his wrist
between her thumb and forefinger. He winced in pain. A knee to the chest
sent him tumbling onto his rear end, landing near the door. "A day late
and a dollar short, but I suppose you should still be proud of having
figured it out."

	Mu Si got up and launched a volley of knives. Biaozi reached up
and swatted each one away with ease.

	"Is that all you've got?"

	Mu Si reached inside his robes and pulled out a flail with one
hand and a machete with the other. He began to inch forward. Biaozi knew
enough about the Hidden Weapons technique to know how this would go.
She'd have no trouble getting rid of this set of weapons, but then there
would be another, and another, and more after that. Dealing with all of
them would be tedious, and she might eventually make a mistake.
Fortunately, she had a better option.

	Extending her hands toward Mu Si, Biaozi focused her energy to
generated a certain special form of ki. "Sweltering dragon's fire!" she
announced. A sphere of air in front of her began to blaze with power as
it sailed toward Mu, briefly engulfing him before dissipating.

	Mu Si looked down, obviously surprised to find himself unharmed.
"Is that all *you've*-- huh?" He looked at his weapons. Their metal was
warped, stretched and bent out of shape. "Aaaaa!"

	Biaozi chuckled. She would have to thank Ha Bu for teaching her
that attack. It was very handy for dealing with military types, but it
had other uses too.

	Mu Si reached for another weapon. He pulled out a scimitar. Its
shape was distorted and its blade dulled.

	Slowly but deliberately, Biaozi advanced toward him. "Let's end
this." Her breath was heavy in her chest. She could feel her heart
pounding. It had been a while since she'd had any sort of combat
workout. She really needed to practice more.

	"No!" Mu Si lifted the scimitar and threw it at Biaozi. The
unexpected move surprised her, but she still had no problem reaching up
and knocking the item out of the air. A volley of warped hand weapons
ensued; she blocked each one that got near her.

	Mu Si ducked back into the hallway. Biaozi stepped forward and
followed him out of the room.

	"Take that!" Mu Si began taking books off the shelves and
lobbing them toward Biaozi's head. She smacked each one out of the air
before it hit.

	"Just tell me when you're through," she taunted as she took a
step closer.

	"Take *that!*" He grabbed and threw the nearest object, a waste
basket. She knocked it away and it bounced noisily against a wall. She
wasn't worried about him damaging anything; the Mongols had already
looted most everything valuable anyway.

	She took another step closer.

	"And *that!*" Another object, some sort of metal urn.

	She hit it. It broke. Steaming liquid from the urn splashed out,
some of it on her legs. Legs that a second ago had been muscular
powerhouses were now wobbly sticks that seemed like they might collapse
at any moment. She was old again. How-- Where--

	"Shan--?" Mu Si pushed his glasses closer as if unable to
believe what he was seeing.

	Biaozi tried to talk but could barely even breathe. Her chest
felt as though it were being squeezed by an invisible hand. *It can't
end like this,* she thought. *It can't--*

                                  ______


	Mu Si stood staring, unable to comprehend what he'd just seen.
It was far too vivid to be a dream. So either someone had slipped him a
hefty dose of hallucinogens, or he'd simply gone mad. Those were the
only things that could explain Shan Pu turning into an old woman and
then dying of a heart attack on the spot.

	A noise came from back in the Council Chamber. "Mrrroooowl!"

	What now? He stepped back into the room.

	"Mrow!" The noise had come from Biaozi's case, the one that
she'd said contained a bomb. An adjacent section was closed and locked.

	Zipping back into the hallway, Mu Si searched his fallen
adversary and came up with a set of keys. He went back to the container
and started trying each key. The first was obviously too large. He tried
the second and it didn't fit either. The third fit and turned. The box
opened and a familiar pink cat scurried out, then morphed into another
Shan Pu.

	"The bomb!" Pu two said. "Is it--" The two of them looked. An
LED readout on the device showed just dashes. She breathed a sigh of
relief. This had to be the real one, Mu Si thought. The other one had
looked and sounded the same, but this one acted like he'd expect Shan Pu
to act.

	Shan Pu turned and hugged Mu Si. They embraced, and for those
few minutes it didn't matter who would be marrying whom or what the
future would bring; they were just two people who were grateful for each
other.

	Shan Pu perked up as if remembering something. "Where's Zhen
Biaozi? The other one who looked like me?"

	"Dead," Mu Si answered. "She collapsed right after she became
old. I don't know what happened."

	Shan Pu nodded. "It was her time. When it's your time, you have
to go." She reached for her dress that lay on the floor. "I think we
should try reviving the Elders."

                                  ______


	Soldiers hustled Akane up a ramp and through what looked like a
service entrance to the Mongolian governmental palace. They pushed past
a guard station, down a hallway, and past another set of guards into a
wide room lined with plush sofas. Reaching the middle of the room, they
let Akane drop to the floor.

	Akane recognized the man standing over her. Last time she'd seen
him, his hair had been much longer and he'd been female. But there was
no mistaking the tall, muscular frame and the impossibly clear
complexion. "Ha Bu," she said.

	The man nodded, then turned as a fresh batch of soldiers came in
carrying Ranma's unconscious form. Obviously none too pleased, he yelled
something at them, and they set Ranma down very gently onto a couch.

	"What are you going to do to him?"

	"Nothing," Ha Bu answered. "I brought him here only so that he
and I could talk. I actually owe Saotome Ranma a debt of gratitude after
our previous encounter."

	"So you dropped a bomb on him? Is that how you repay your 'debts
of gratitude'?" Akane could feel her face turning red with anger.

	"I thought our discussion would be easier if some of his more...
troublesome associates were removed first," Ha answered calmly. "From
what I know of Ranma, a little thing like this shouldn't cause him any
major harm. Actually, I'm surprised he's been out this long."

	"Yeah, well, he hasn't quite been himself lately." Akane cut
herself off. There was no reason to give Ha more information that he
could use against Ranma if it came down to a fight. It was none of his
business anyhow.

	She looked around the room. Nearby, a bulky man with forearms
covered in gorilla fur -- whether real or fake, Akane couldn't tell --
sat next to a busty woman in a skimpy bikini. Behind them, a man with an
elongated neck and misshapen mouth fondled another woman's exposed
breasts. Several other such couples sat scattered around the room,
including a seven-foot-tall man that Akane remembered meeting back at
the Cat Cafe those years ago. "These, plus a handful of others, are the
last remnants of the Musk Dynasty," Ha said.

	"And the women? Do you keep them as slaves?"

	Ha chuckled. "Nothing so crude. They are given a free choice.
They may stay here and provide hospitality to our special forces, or
they can go out on the street and fend for themselves."

	"It figures," Akane said. "I don't know why I imagined that you
might develop some respect for women after being stuck as one."

	"Respect? We're *subsidizing* them. And they clearly appreciate
it. We get about five times as many applications for these positions as
we can use."

	Akane fumed, too mad to even articulate what she was mad about.

	Finished with Ranma, the group of soldiers conversed briefly
with Ha in what Akane assumed to be Mongolian. They then converged
around her.

	"What's this?" she asked.

	"I owe *Ranma* gratitude," Ha said. "I owe *you* nothing
whatsoever. But I will be kind enough to provide you with space in one
of our holding cells." He waved the soldiers away.

	"You JERK!" Akane yelled as they dragged her out.

                                  ______


	The physician felt Ranma's head, then pressed her stethoscope
against his chest and listened. "He's a bit banged up, but he'll be
fine. He should be coming around shortly."

	"Thank you, Doctor," Ha Bu said, dismissing her with a nod.

	Major Cogenki entered. "The other prisoner is in holding,
General. Any orders?"

	Ha considered. While Ranma was clearly the strongest of the
group, the two others with whom he had fought on Horaison Mountain were
certainly capable fighters, much stronger than any of his human troops.
This woman was surely not in their class, but still, perhaps it would
not pay to underestimate her.

	"Assign a Musk as her guard," he said.

	"Yes, General. I'll check on who's on duty." The major saluted
and exited.

                                  ______


	"Here," Kasumi said. "This is where we'll start."

	She, Tofu, and Ryoga had walked through city streets and come to
what looked like a park that had fallen into disuse. Weeds poked out
through cracks in the pressed stone walkways. Scraggly bushes and
overgrown trees encroached on the paths. Overflowing trash receptacles
and park benches stood off to the side. A bearded man in a long brown
coat lay on one bench.

	Tofu paged through one of the guidebooks that they'd gotten from
the rebel group. "According to this, we're in what used to be the Palace
Gardens. Nominally they're a public park, but the previous regime
couldn't afford to keep them up, and the current one hasn't gotten
around to doing anything with them yet. That big complex in front of us
is the Government Palace. They'll be holding Ranma and Akane somewhere
inside." He paused, surveying the surroundings. "Kasumi, are you sure
it's a good idea for us to stay this close? Can't you power Ryoga up
from a distance, the way you did at Jusenkyo?"

	"No, that wouldn't work. This place isn't like Jusenkyo. Too
many people make it too hard to keep the energy focused. I need to be as
close as possible." She looked at him wide-eyed, as if pleading with him
not to argue. "It has to be like this."

	Tofu paused for a moment. "Let's do it, then. Are you ready,
Ryoga?"

	The Lost Boy set his backpack down next to a bench. "Anytime."

	Kasumi smiled at him. "Go around to the other side before you
start. I'll reduce my aura so that anyone is less likely to notice me
here. But you, Doctor, will need to keep an eye on me."

	Tofu nodded. "You can count on me, Kasumi. For everything."

	"Thank you!" Kasumi hesitated for a moment, then threw her arms
around Tofu.

	Ryoga began to walk around towards the corner of the building.
Kasumi's eyes lingered on Tofu briefly before she pulled away. She sat
on the bench and her eyes went blank. Tofu crouched behind a clump of
trees and waited.

	As he followed the wall around, Ryoga could feel the power
already starting to build. But that would only be half of what he
needed. He remembered all of his fights with Ranma back in the old days.
Ranma had often beaten him, not with superior strength or speed, but by
some sort of trick. He couldn't let that happen here. In this fight he
had to engage not only his muscle, but his brain. The lives of a lot of
people were at stake here. He had to stay alert and had to keep thinking
about what he was doing.

	It was up to him now. As Ranma might have put it: *Don't screw
up, pig-boy.*

                                  ______


	Akane peered through the bars of her cage. Her guard was a
short, thin man with what looked like a huge skunk's tail sticking out
of his pants. Obviously a Musk.

	That's great, she thought. Ranma had explained what Musk were
like. While they were inhumanly good fighters, they had certain very
definite weaknesses which she could exploit. She would just wait until
her guard brought lunch, and then she could escape. She didn't like
taking advantage in this way, but he certainly had it coming, and as a
real woman she was certainly at least as capable of using feminine wiles
as her husband was.

	Except, she thought, it might not be so easy anymore. She
remembered the women upstairs. In the old days most of the Musk had
never even seen an exposed breast, but obviously things had changed for
them.

	Akane frowned. Her idea *could* work. She would just have to
take it to the next level.

                                  ______


	"Ha Bu!" Ryoga shouted. "Come out here!"

	He stood on a staircase, between two statues that each depicted
a warrior on horseback. Behind him was a public square that looked to be
nearly three hundred meters wide. Passers-by pointed at him and backed
away discreetly.

	Okay, he thought, time to show these Musk that he meant
business. The trick would be to get their attention without harming any
innocent people. With the massive power he could now feel surging
through him, he could probably demolish a good chunk of the city. But he
was there to avenge the dead who were now feeding him energy, and he
wouldn't do that by indiscriminately creating more of them. He
especially couldn't risk a full Shishi Hokodan; at his current power
level that would surely level the city like a nuclear bomb.

	A pair of sedans sped across the square's stone tiles. They
screeched to a stop near the bottom of the stairs. Uniformed men got out
of the car and crouched behind it, aiming rifles at Ryoga. One of them
barked out something through a bullhorn in what Ryoga assumed to be
Mongolian.

	Ryoga aimed at the car and a regular Shishi Hokodan fired from
his outstretched arms. Recoil pushed him back and he had to brace
himself to stay on his feet. That didn't usually happen. The men dove
for cover as the attack careened into the parked vehicles, reducing them
to scrap metal. Of course, he thought, he was tapping into the
depression and anger of the Mongolians killed by Ha's regime. He didn't
own the emotional energy and so he wasn't immune to its effects as he
usually was. That also meant that if he ended up blowing up the city,
he'd go with it himself.

	Ryoga shook a raised fist. "Ha Bu!" he repeated. The men in
uniform began hustling civilians away. Good.

                                  ______


	Akane heard the jingle of keys as they turned the lock of her
cell door. She stood and stepped back, and the door slid open. "Mmmm, is
it lunchtime already?" she purred.

	The Musk guard looked at her and his eyes bulged. "Guh-- muh--"
he stammered. The tray wobbled in his hand, nearly spilling as he stared
up and down her body, her very healthy and very female body without a
stitch of clothing on.

	Akane eased toward him. Then her knee swung up, forcefully
connecting with the area between his legs. "PERVERT!"

	The Musk staggered. The tray clattered to the ground,
splattering rice and soup against a wall. With a series of rapid-fire
chops and kicks, Akane put the hapless guard down for the count. She
very quickly dragged him onto the cell's cot, grabbed her clothes, and
pulled the door shut from the outside.

	So, she thought as she slipped her clothes back on, now what?
She could confront Ha Bu, but she wasn't anywhere near powerful enough
to take him on. She doubted if even she and Ranma together could beat
him, certainly not with a dozen or so Musk on his side and Ranma in a
weakened condition.

	She moved along a wall down the hallway, as stealthily as she
could manage. Surprisingly, the soldiers who'd been here when they'd
taken her in were now absent. She glanced through an outer window. In
the parking lot down below, police and soldiers were hustling people
into cars and trucks. Evacuation? Was Ha Bu going to demolish the
building? Was he fighting with Ranma, or about to? If she stayed, she
might just end up getting caught in whatever disaster these people were
rushing away to avoid. But then again, Ranma might need her help.

	Akane decided to explore a little more. Farther down the
corridor she came to the loading area through which she'd been brought
in. A ramp led through an opening to the outside. Again, no persons were
present, and even all of the vehicles were gone. But on the receiving
desk stood a stout, short-legged bird. It strutted around in a circle,
as if waiting for something or someone. Akane looked closer and saw on
the bird's leg a strap which attached a tiny carrier case.

	Curious, Akane reached out, and the bird didn't flee when she
touched it. She unhooked the case and opened it to inspect the cargo. It
was a gemstone in verdant green. Why would anyone...

	A pale red light shone from within the gem. Akane stared at it,
looking closer as the image started to resolve, and saw her husband. In
the gem, Ranma was sitting upstairs in Ha Bu's room, locked in an
embrace with one of the Musks's comfort women, laughing as his hands
explored every part of her shapely anatomy. That JERK! Was he really
doing that while for all he knew his wife was locked up in a cell? How
DARE he--

	A blast of energy suddenly rocketed forth from Akane's hand,
smashing the section of the wall in front of her to splinters.

                                  ______


	"What the heck was that?" Ranma strained to see out the window.
He'd been watching Ryoga take out soldiers and tanks with a combination
of ki blasts and good old-fashioned violence. But he hadn't seen him do
anything this last time and the sound had come from a different
direction.

	"Nothing that need concern you," Ha Bu replied. "As soon as the
civilians are finished evacuating, my special forces will deal with this
miscreant."

	"Looking out for civilians? That's a considerate and responsible
thing to do. Doesn't sound like you, Herb."

	"I care nothing for the welfare of humans, Saotome. But the
business of running a country requires their continued functioning. I've
several deals I'm negotiating for foreign investors to take advantage of
Mongolian labor and other resources. It's better to keep the public
unaware of... certain things, and that requires keeping them away when
those things are happening."

	"You're all heart." Ranma watched through the window as a
soldier hefted a bazooka over his shoulder and fired. The blast left
Ryoga's head covered in soot but it didn't seem to faze him. He brushed
his face off with his sleeve, then threw off a Shishi Hokodan that
scattered the cluster of soldiers like bowling pins.

	*I should be out there with him,* Ranma thought. Ryoga was doing
incredibly well so far, but soon he'd have the "special forces" to
contend with. Against a dozen or so Musk, there was no way he wouldn't
get taken down, unless he had some sort of secret that Ranma didn't know
about. Then again, if Ranma joined the battle, so would Ha Bu. So for
now he'd wait. He was obviously going to get his chance to fight soon,
and when that came he needed to be ready.

	He had two problems. Ha Bu was an exceptionally tough opponent,
and surely wouldn't fall for the same trick as last time. Second, Ranma
himself wasn't up to snuff at the moment. Lili, the curse spirit, had
left him, and taken with her a good portion of his strength. Whether
there was anything he could do about either of those two problems, he
didn't know. But he needed a plan of some sort. If it were just himself,
he'd have no qualms about just charging in and making it up as he went
along. But it was the Mongols that this guy's gang had enslaved. It was
the Amazons who he'd attacked before and would again if not stopped
first. It was even Akane who according to what Ha had said was locked up
in some dungeon or something. For their sake, he needed to get it right
the first time, because there might not be any second chance.

	Okay, then. Clearly Ha Bu could generate vast amounts of energy,
and his dragon heritage gave him a much greater control over how he
wielded that energy. But he still had to generate it somehow. Did he use
an emotion, like he and Ryoga did? Somehow he didn't see Ha as the
depressive type. He did have plenty of confidence. Was he using a
souped-up version of Ranma's own Moko Takabisha? What else could it be?
What quality defined him best? Arrogance? Complete lack of any sense of
humor? Just generally being an asshole?

	"What I don't understand is why you were interested in taking
over this country in the first place," Ranma said. "I thought you guys
were just interested in perfecting animal-style martial arts."

	"Ah, but a ruler must have a kingdom to rule. When I succeeded
to rulership over the Musk Dynasty, I realized that my people faced
imminent extinction. The number of Musk had been steadily dwindling.
There were very few suitable and willing mates for our people, and the
Chinese government's 'one child' policy made the situation far worse.
Couples in our part of China wanted boys to work their farms; girls
would be aborted or even suffocated at birth so that the couples could
try again for a male. As those boys grew up it of course led to a
surplus of men."

	"That's why you decided to move?" Ranma laughed. "To meet
girls?"

	"To establish a base of power. I had been approached by
representatives of a certain overseas government. They were concerned
about China gaining too much leverage and usurping their status as the
world's preeminent power. They saw me as someone who could challenge
that. Taking control in Mongolia was no great feat, but when I managed
to expand our borders to include a sizable section of China, I think
even my benefactors were surprised."

	"So why attack the Amazons?" Ranma said. "It's not like they're
of vast strategic importance."

	Ha Bu smiled. "Oh, but they are. There are resources of vast
power hidden in that part of the world. Forces that even I barely
comprehend. Jusenkyo is only one of them."

	"Oh, that's great. Go messing with powers you don't understand.
*That* always works out well. Brilliant idea, Rufus T. Firefly."

	"I do not understand the reference."

	Ranma smirked. "You need to watch Hiroshi's collection of old
foreign movies."

	"Insolence does not serve you, Saotome," Ha Bu said. "Trifle not
with dragons..."

	"...for I be crunchy and good with ketchup. Yeah, yeah. If
dragons were so darn great, how come they're so darn extinct?"

	"An infestation of microbes may wipe out a tribe of humans, but
that does not necessarily make a virus a higher life form," Ha Bu said
with some rancor. "Humans destroyed dragon civilization, turning them
into slaves. Human cities used 'dragons in a box' as defense against
invaders. And not long after, when dragons were wiped out, they were
erased from the pages of history as well."

	One of Ha's Mongol military flunkies came into the room, and
they conversed. *I struck a nerve there*, Ranma thought. Wisps of white
haze sparked near Ha, and Ranma could feel the heat emanating from them.
He wondered how Ha would react to being reminded that, according to *his
own* story, his presumably human ancestor somehow dunked a dragon into
the spring of drowned human woman. *That* would wound his pride.

	Pride... was *that* what he was using to generate energy?
Certainly he never seemed to get tired of telling Ranma how great his
dragon lineage was. And when Ranma had first met him, his power had been
somewhat reduced, because of...

	Wait a minute, he thought. Did Ha Bu still have... Shan Pu had
said there was no safe way to remove it, so maybe he did. And that meant
there might be a chance. He just had to hope that there weren't two
different ones.

	"Hey, I'm hungry," Ranma said as the military officer finished
up and left. "Got anything to eat around here? It doesn't have to be
anything fancy. Just bread and--"

	"You'll be served when a meal is scheduled," Ha Bu replied
curtly.

	"Okay." He would wait. "Hey!" He looked out the window. "A bunch
of Musk are about to take Ryoga on."

                                  ______


	The man in the bandanna swung his fist, knocking the one with
the tiger-striped shoulder pads into the air. He flew up and then down
in the path of an arch about the same size as the one in St. Louis.

	Jim Wesley watched from the sidelines with the other members of
his team. "That was one of ours, right?" asked Carl Jorgensen.

	"Yes," Bob Michaels said. "The one in the bandanna is the one
who needs to be stopped. His name's Hibiki Ryoga."

	"It'll be burnt smudge when I get through with him." Jorgensen
stared at Ryoga, whose clothes spontaneously burst into flame. Ryoga let
out a surprised yelp and jumped back. Then he looked down at his legs
and torso. His shirt and trousers were on fire, but it didn't seem to be
hurting him.

	A crowd of Musk encircled Ryoga, then closed in. Ryoga brought
his fist down on one in a panda skin, driving him into the concrete. The
other Musk hit, kicked, chopped, and blasted at him but he didn't seem
to pay it any mind. One of them, a tall man with thin, elongated legs
and neck, screamed as he ran out of the pack, his shirt torn and arms
covered with burns. An energy blast flared from Ryoga's hands and
knocked him away.

	"Next time wait for an order before you attack," Michaels said
in the measured tones of someone trying to hold back anger. "It
obviously didn't hurt him, but it did hurt the ones on our side, and the
fire might spread to the palace." He turned to Wesley. "Can you drain
him?"

	"I'll try." Wesley closed his eyes for a moment. He opened his
mind, and torrents of emotion buffeted him from all sides. The man named
Ryoga was the great hope, the great avenger. They had only wanted to
live free. The usurper had taken their country, their land, their lives.
The usurper had to die! The--

	With a phenomenal effort, Wesley forced his mind closed.

	"I can't," he said. "He's a lot stronger than before. It'd be
like trying to drink the Mississippi dry." He paused to think for a
moment, to try to make sense of what he'd experienced. "He's being fed
energy from somewhere. From a lot of places. There must be some central
point of control but I couldn't zero in on it."

	They watched as more Musk were tossed away or punched into
unconsciousness. "Find it. Cut it off at the source," Michaels said. "Do
whatever it takes to disable this guy. Jorgenson, go with him. Crandall
and I will stay here. If the Musk fail, we'll keep him busy as long as
we can to buy you some time."

	Wesley nodded. He had his orders and would carry them out. It
didn't matter that his emotions screamed that he was on the wrong side
of the battle. Such feelings were unreliable and couldn't be trusted. He
did what he was told.

                                  ______


	"Yeeeowtch!" screamed the Musk with tabby-cat stripes on his
shirt. He pulled his hand back, his claws now a mangled mess. The attack
had been flawless; Ryoga hadn't seen the strike coming. But connecting
and actually doing any damage were two different things.

	Ryoga elbowed the cat-Musk in the face and followed up with a
kick to his chest that knocked his opponent into the air. The Musk
expertly flipped in mid-flight, landing upright. Then he pitched forward
and his face slammed into the concrete.

	Ryoga remembered serving as a demonstrator for Akane's class on
fighting multiple opponents at her training hall. *Take out the biggest
one first,* she'd told the students as her first piece of advice. Now
Ryoga had followed that advice and taken out all of the big ones, then
the medium-sized ones, until there were only three left: One with a
monkey's tail, one with a helmet that looked like a rooster's comb, and
the one with wolf ears who had been there at Mount Horaison. The Monkey
hung on Ryoga's back, jumping away every time Ryoga made a grab for him
and then jumping back on right away. The other two just circled around
him as if searching for an opening. It was something of a Mexican stand-
off; they were too fast for Ryoga to hit, but they had no attack that
was effective against him.

	Ryoga surveyed the area. Poles stood at the corners of the
square, each topped by a light fixture shaped something like an old
straw boater's hat. He moved to one of the poles, pulled, and ripped it
from its base. The pole, nearly thirty meters in length, wobbled in his
grasp, and he had to move his grip closer to the middle of the pole. He
swung the pole at Rooster and Wolf-ears -- Mint, Ryoga remembered was
this one's name -- but they again dodged effortlessly out of the way.

	Stalemate, Ryoga thought. What would Ranma do?

	"Wow!" He pointed behind Mint and Chicken-man. "Is that a naked
woman?"

	"Where!?" They turned to look.

	Ryoga swung the pole back the other way, clobbering both of them
in the head. He dropped the pole and suddenly reached up, catching
Monkey's leg in his hand. "Sorry, boys, looks like you screwed up," he
said as his fist rapped against Monkey's skull. "Don't be embarrassed.
It can happen to anybody."

	That was that. What next? He spun around to see a pair of
Western-looking men in civilian clothes, one of them tall and blond, the
other with glasses and a mustache. Ryoga had seen the first one before.
It had been that night when they'd broken into the Mongol base to free
Kasumi and Mu Si.

	Suddenly the world changed. The Mongol palace and city had
disappeared. Ryoga was standing in a vast field, with neatly arranged
rows of corn stalks more than a meter high stretching off in every
direction. "Aaaaaarrrgh!" he screamed. How could this happen? How could
he get himself lost without having even moved?

	Then he remembered. Back when they'd gone to rescue Kasumi, one
of the Westerners had fooled Doctor Tofu by projecting illusions into
his mind. At least that was how Ranma and the others had explained it.
So this wasn't real. Despite what he saw, he was still in front of the
Mongol palace. But even knowing that, how could he fight back without
being able to see what he was doing?

	Okay, he thought, he hadn't really moved. So those two would
still be in front of him. Ryoga raised his hands and fired off a Shishi
Hokodan. He felt the recoil knock him back, and this time he didn't
resist it.

	The real world clicked back into place, like changing the
channel on a television. Ryoga landed with a thud onto his rear end. At
the other end of the public square, the two Americans had also been
knocked back and were picking themselves off the ground; Ryoga couldn't
make out what they were saying and probably wouldn't have understood it
anyhow but they certainly didn't sound happy.

	Now was his chance. Ryoga took a step toward the men. But
suddenly he was back in the cornfield. He pushed himself backward, and
his surroundings changed back to Mongolia.

	So that was it. The illusion power could only reach so far. But
Ryoga had no attack that would be effective from that distance either.
Certainly he couldn't target a Shishi Hokodan accurately at that range,
and there was nothing he could throw that far either that they wouldn't
be able to dodge.

	The answer was simple, really. He just had to ignore what the
guy made him see and walk over to him. He could win this fight. All he
had to do was to walk about a hundred meters in the same direction.

	For anyone else it would have been easy. For Ryoga, it was as
easy as flapping his arms and flying to the moon.

                                  ______


	*What the heck is he doing?* Ranma wondered as he watched
through the window. Usually Ryoga just charged into battle without a
second thought. But now, when there was no apparent reason he couldn't
just charge over and kick those guys' butts, he stopped to think. Go
figure. Okay, his shirt and pants were still burning, and soon there
wouldn't be much left of them. But it didn't seem like him to quit a
fight just because he was afraid of flashing his you-know-whats to the
world. Not when there weren't any women around, anyhow.

	Ha Bu grimaced with his I'm-surrounded-by-idiots expression.
"Most of the Musk, the finest warriors in all of China, defeated easily.
What trickery is your associate using, Saotome?"

	"Y'got me," Ranma said. Not that he was about to tell Ha Bu even
if he did know anything.

	"I'm forced to deal with this situation personally. You shall
remain here."

	"Not bloody likely, Herbie. If you're joining the fight, so am
I." Ranma jumped to his feet and moved toward the door. "After you?"

	The door opened before either of them got to it. A serving woman
stood there, bearing a tray with some bowls of rice and a pitcher of
water.

	"About time!" Ranma said. "Mind if I take that from you?"

	The woman looked puzzled for a moment. Then with a smile, she
shifted her tray to one hand, and unfastened her bikini top with the
other, pushing out her naked breasts for Ranma to see.

	"No. NO!" Ranma waved his hands. "That wasn't what I..." At
least there was one silver lining in Akane still needing to be rescued.
Usually when things like this happened to him, then as soon as he turned
around, there she was.

	The door slammed open, and Akane barged in.

	"It--" Ranma stammered, "it's not--"

	Akane pointed. A massive burst of energy streamed forth from her
arm, tossing Ha Bu to the floor.

	"Heh." Ranma saw Akane looking at him, and carefully backed up
several steps. "Can we talk about this?" He pushed the half-naked
serving woman away.

	"So you think you can fly with dragons, girl?" Ha Bu rose up on
one knee and reached forward, and a narrow beam of power sliced through
the air.

	Akane twisted. The blast caught her below the shoulder as it
whizzed by, slicing a gash in her shirt. "Yeeowtch!" She dove behind one
of the sofas. "Ranma!" she called out. "Stand with her."

	"Huh?" He followed her eyes to see the topless servant girl.
"You *want* me to..."

	"Just do it, you jerk!" Akane said. "I'm using it to generate
energy!"

	"You're getting emotional ki power from... *that?*"

	She ducked as Ha tossed off several more bolts, leaving sizable
holes in the couch and blowing clouds of fluffy upholstery into the air.
Back at Horaison his attacks had been much less focused, more diffuse.
Was he trying to avoid damaging the palace, Ranma wondered?

	He bounded over to the serving girl. "Hey, baby." He put an arm
around her shoulder. "Whaddaya say we ditch the idiot and the tomboy and
go have some fun?"

	Akane scowled. "WHY, YOU..." An aura like red-hot magma churned
violently around her.

	"Blast HERB!" Ranma yelled, wondering if he should also dive for
cover. It was a somewhat tricky balancing act. Akane had to stay
genuinely mad at him enough to control the feelings that she was using
to power her attacks. If she failed to own her emotions, the attack
would blow up in her own face. But he didn't want to make her so angry
that she'd turn the attack against him.

	A torrent of energy slammed into Ha Bu with the force of a
runaway locomotive. He fell back, dazed. Ranma noticed something in
Akane's pants pocket glowing a deep crimson. Was that where she was
generating all this extra power from? He hoped Ha wouldn't figure it
out. Then again, knowing him, even if he did he might try to fight her
anyway out of sheer vanity.

	Now or never, Ranma thought. Ranma bounded over and grabbed the
water pitcher from the table.

	"What good's that supposed to do?" Akane said. "Your curse
doesn't work any more, remember?"

	"Who said it was for *me?*" Ranma zipped across the room and
upended the contents of the pitcher onto Ha Bu.



(Continued in next post)