[Episode 121528] [Episode 121528]Ranma awoke to a great headache. Thanks to his life, he was no stranger to pain. To him, pain was a fact of life. He had taken to heart the saying, 'No pain, no gain." He found it weird that so many at school would shy away from pain, as if it was something bad or wrong with pain. Pain was merely an indicator that one was performing just below one's limit. Pain was not something to be rejected, but embraced, accepted, and adjust what one was doing slightly.
The pain of the headache was no problem. It was the flood of information, knowledge, and sensations that that speeding through his mind... that was a problem.
He lost himself in the flood... the mediation techniques Master Po had taught him, helped lessen the flood, but it just seemed to go on and on... and on... and on...
He heard a female voice yelled, "Stupid tomboy, why did you do that?" With a start, he realized that the female voice was his own... and he was not speaking in Japanese. What language he did not know, nor how he had learned it. But then he did, he had studied it for several years to learn several ki techniques that ended up being actual magical spells that he needed to protect New Nerima with. Where New Nerima was, he did not know.
His face was just as puzzled as Akane's, but Akane did not care what he said, she never listened to him, so it did not matter what language he spoke, the spells upon Akane would always cause her to assume the worst of him and mallet him.
Spells upon Akane? Where did that come from?
Before he could figure that one out, he was out like a light. Akane's swing was getting better, she actually knocked him through the window, instead of the wall, this time.
This time... Why did he feel like he had done this before?
Because since several weeks after the failed wedding, Akane had grown more hostile and abusive to him after the few weeks of calm before the storm.
Akane was almost always in a constant bad mood these days, and the others... Serenity's spells upon them were almost as bad.
Who was Serenity? And why did the name cause him to shuttered as Kodachi's laugh did?
The fight with the spell-dumb panda was over pretty fast when Ranma used an old technique to surprise him. How a technique he had been using for hundreds of years could surprise his old-man....
Hundreds of years? He was only sixteen... no wait... he was, actually, seventeen, his birthday was nine months before Akane's. That was a day he really wished he could have avoided, to find out that his birth had gave Soun and Mrs Tendo hope to try again for a boy, only to get Akane out of it. He should have been in Nabiki's grade-level, but the spell-stupid panda did not wish to bothered by such details.
Breakfast, of course, was a disaster. Akane tried to poison him again. It was not her fault Serenity had bespelled her to poison him when she really tried to cook for him. If she cooked for anyone else, the food would be edible, not as good as his own, Nabiki's, Kasumi's or Nodoka's, but still passible.
Nabiki does not cook.... where did that come from?
It was a stranger day then most.
He actually knew most of the answers to the questions asked in the class. But then, the teachers had been asking the same questions over and over again. Everyone gave him funny looking when he mentioned that the teachers should not ask the same questions over and over again, expecting different answers to the same questions, day after day.
At lunch, he noticed a girl... young woman... with green hair, red colored eyes, and this spot on her back that if you touch it just right, she will do anything for you... He did not want to know where that came from.
He was a bit relieved when she kept her distance, especially, when the thrice Serenity-spawned demon-girl of an Amazon decided to force some love-potion spiked food down his throat. He simply used a magic-nullifying ki technique, and Shampoo was as weak as he was when Serenity gave Happosai that magical 'ultimate weakness' technique to use on him.
It was a bit funny to see the Serenity-spawn get knocked out by Gosunkugi, of all people. But then, he could blow up mountains when he wanted to, so it was no big surprise, when he thought about it.
As he left school, that green-hair young woman was following him. He as of half of a mind to shove that silly looking key-staff of her up where the "sun don't sunshine," but she would enjoy that, although, not as much as her blonde friend would. That not even mentioned what that quiet, blue-hair girl enjoyed, it's always the quiet ones that surprised you how kinky they were.
He shook his head, he did not anyone who was half-gaijin, or had blue-hair. Even she did have that thing she did when she was tied up, on her knees, begging to be hurt, that had a strange appeal to him.
He shook his head again. He tried to answer Akane's question that she asked, but got malleted again before he could. At least, Akane was not bespelled to enjoy stepping on his manhood and balls like that raven-hair psycho did. Boy, was she a psycho... she enjoyed dressing him up in girly clothes, but left what was suppose to be covered exposed, and what could be exposed covered. Always pressing or squeezing his balls so much so you would think her life depended upon getting the elixir of life from his manhood.
He took a bit of pleasure in showing that one the proper way to please me and her true place in life. It was so easy, he wondered why no one had done so before him. But then she did seem fixated on him, using him to take her frustrations out on, when she could use that other guy.
He shook his head again. Dinner was as lovely as always. Nabiki's cooking was world-famous after all. No, that was not right, Nabiki was bespelled not to like anything feminine or traditional. No, it was Kasumi's cooking they had enjoyed last night... as they had every night for the past decade or so. No, it was not decades, it was weeks... no months.
He took the roof of the Tendo-ke to sort out his thought, waiting for everyone to go to sleep so he could go to Master Po's for help.
Just about when he was ready to go, he felt her, on the roof with him. He knew her... somehow, just as he knew she had been following him all day. He also knew, as surely as his name, that she had the answers to what had been happening to him all day.
He swallowed as he heard the sound of clothing being removed, and a bit of relief swept through him as he heard a weapon, a staff, which he knew was shaped like a key, being placed on the ground slightly away from her.
Somehow he knew that she was kneeling in such a way to show her openness and desire to be used. He also knew it would not be proper to talk just yet. He would be punished if he did. He did not wish to be tied up and used as a demonstration for the young purple-hair girl's education on how to disciple unruly males again. Oh, he had worse while training his body to master the lightning and the storm. No, it was the fact that the purple-hair girl never seen to learn that whatever the lesson was, so she would have to do it over and over again, with tears in her eyes, whispering apologies to him all the while for she had to do what she had to do to him. She never learned, and never could survive the disciple herself, that truly hurt him. He also had it a point to try to help that purple-hair girl as much as he could, when he can.
He centered himself as Master Po had taught, letting go off everything but the Present. That was one of the toughest things Master Po had ever taught him, and one of the hardest for him to learn. That was harder to learn then learning to kill with a sword.
"What you do want?" he found himself asking after some time. It was the obvious question to ask, everyone wanted something for him, usually something more then he could ever give.
After some moments of silence, he asked, "Why are you here?" She had been following all day, why did she wait until now to talk to him, why here, why now? When not before, or will others watching.
Her answers surprised him.
He never found a way to destroy a Sailor Crystal, not even their immature form of Star Seeds, yet, here one of those that fought him... loved him... was offering her own up to him. He examined it, eagerly looking closely to find a weakness in the crystalline structure that he could exploit and save so many lives. But according to Sailor Pluto, none of that had happened yet.
Future past-lives had been messing with his head all day. But while holding her Sailor Crystal, his mind cleared. The knowledge was still there, but it was organized and contained, not floating and running over his thoughts. He was examining the crystal and the ki that seem to be flowing into it with his own ki.
"eat it"
He was hungry. It had been over eight hours since he had last ate anything. He did not know what he had in his hands, but it looked like one of those space-age foods that Nabiki kept going on and on about. Nabiki seemed to like them, so he ate the space-age crystalline meal.
Wow, Nabiki was right, that was very filling. He felt as if he had several full, seven-course meals. He felt himself drifting a bit, he could see the green-hair girl in his arms and a green-colored cord running from the girl to out in space. He followed it, curious as to what it is.
He felt POWER... with all capital letters. That was the only way he could describe it. He could do anything with it... He could take over the world... but he had no need for it. He could just take anything he wanted... but he had what he needed. He could have all the food in the world... but a meal was more enjoyable shared and made with love. He could right every wrong... but how would anyone learn? He could cure his Jusenkyou curse... but he desired it... and it had helped out several times. He could be the ultimate martial artist... but the Art was not about power, it was about balance, something he lacked, and improving oneself. Yes, the Martial Arts was the Art of War, but it was not the War Without -- with others --- rather it was about the War Within -- with oneself. No one could know everything about the Art, there was always some more to learn... to knowledge everything was to know nothing. There would always be someone, somewhere, greater then himself, to pull him and others higher, just as he, himself, trying to push others higher, but his mistake was, he should not have pushed, but pull... and pulled each in accordance with their nature, not his.
He shook his head and the feeling of ultimate power left him. The feeling of the green-hair girl in his arms also left him. With wide-eyes, he saw the girl turn into light and break up into numerous sparkles. He somehow knew, if those sparkles went out or he did not collect them all, Setsuna Meiou would be lost for all time.
In desperation, he gathered the sparkles with his ki as he would when focusing and gathering his ki for his Mouko Takabisha. Once gathered, he rushed to Master Po.
He told Master Po everything, about the girl and what the green-hair girl had told him, as well as all that he felt and remembered during the day.
Master Po got an ancient tome of lore, that mentioned how Masters of Old would change themselves into Ki-Dragons, beings of pure ki, as well as techniques that could give ki solid form. Together, they worked on how they might restore the young woman. It was all theorical, with very little to suggest it would work, but there was nothing else.
The two of them went to Ranma's room in the Temple, where they would have some privacy. Ranma sat at the head of his bed roll, while Master Po sat at the foot of the bed roll. Ranma released the fading sparkles onto the area above the bed roll. Both concentrating on restoring the form of the young woman.
Master Po kept his shock and fear hidden as he saw a greenish, glowing P appear on his student's forehead, one that was slowly appearing where a person's would be on the bed roll as well. A golden symbol appeared on his student's forehead as well, but it was covered by the greenish P, and could not be made out.
Just as that mysterious symbol disappeared, a naked young girl solidified on the bed roll. She took a deep breath, and the greenish P disappeared from her forehead at the same time the greenish P from his student's forehead did.
Smiling, he congratulated his student on their succession, and left to give him and the young woman time along to sort things out.
The two young people talked for bit, until they needed to get back to their respective places before Ranma, at least, was missed and questions that should not be asked just yet, asked.
It was a bit before dawn when Setsuna arrived back at the apartment she and the other Outer Senshi lived in. As she entered, she was surprised to find Hotaru, laying on the couch, obviously waiting up for her. She tried to be quiet to allow her to sleep.
"Setsuna-mama," Hotaru's sleepy voice called out. "Did it work?"
"Yes, Hotaru-chan," she replied. "Ranma-dono accepted my Sailor Crystal and I'm free from the Neo-Queen."
Hotaru became fully awake and asked, "Free?" She looked at the new Setsuna fully, and gasped in surprise. "Oh my."
Under Hotaru's gaze, Setsuna felt self-conscious. Her body had been recreated to her Master's specification, which was that of a powerful, female martial artist (using his curse-form and Shampoo's bodies as templates). She was wearing: a Chinese, silk red shirt, black Kung-Fu pants, black Kung-Fu slippers, and nothing else. Not that she needed anything else. A bra, for her, was wasted. Panties, well, those would just get in the way. Her hair was done in quick pony-tail, and would reach her ass when it hung freely. She had taken some time to adjust the clothing so the fit was more in keeping with her new form and showed it off as well as she could.
"Wow," Hotaru said after taking in the new Setsuna. She wondered if she would look as good after she gave Ranma-san her Sailor Crystal. She could hope so, she was tired of being weak. She knew that her weakness was not natural, but conditioning of Mistress Nine to control her, which Usagi/Sailor Moon had not knowingly continued when she was reborn. Although, she wondered now, if it was on purpose.
Hotaru hugged Setsuna and begged, "Please, please, please, Setsuna-mama... tell me where Ranma-san is? I don't wanna be the Princess's weapon anymore!"
Setsuna blinked. She never had thought of it as that way. But that was how many saw Sailor Saturn. Which was why when Neo-Queen Serenity assigned Hotaru to deal with Ranma, she would fall for him, because of his nature and how he would see her as a person, not a weapon.
Plus, there was another issue involved as well. Setsuna asked softly, yet watching her carefully, "Hotaru-chan, but what if Ranma-dono wishes for you to be his weapon?"
"But... but..." Hotaru replied. She had not thought of that. Her eyes got wide, would she just be exchanging one user for another?
Setsuna hugged the young girl to her, to comfort her. "Hotaru-chan, I have given my very essence to Ranma-dono, for that is what a Sailor Crystal is. There is nothing... *nothing* I would not do for him. I don't know if that's because of all the love and care he has given me throughout my past lives, or because I gave him my Sailor Crystal... Although, it would explain, in part, the Inners and their blind devotion to the Princess. Even at Ranma's worst, he is always loyal and honorable, and gentle when he wishes to be. Ranma knows what it's like to be seen as an object, the Neo-Queen saw to that, repeatedly. But still... there are many dangers out there... we may all need to be Ranma's weapons for the coming battles... but Ranma, himself, will be a weapon as well. Unlike the Neo-Queen, he will leads us into battle, not follow behind us."
Hotaru relaxed a bit and tried to understand what Setsuna-mama was saying. Still, something told her, deep within herself, that she would be better off in Ranma's service, even as a weapon or whore, then in the Princess's service, as a general or angel. She whispered, "Please, Setsuna-mama. Please."
Setsuna sighed and said, "We will need to find a time when he's alone... so the others wouldn't disturb us. Maybe tonight... or the next night, Ho-chan."
Hotaru smiled. She had waited this long, she could wait another night or three. Although, she was a bit puzzled about who the others were and why they would interfere. Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama would be following their example. After all, they were guilt of treason by association and past actions against the Princess, anyway.
Hotaru went through the next couple of days in a bit of a daze, she was looking forward too much to giving Ranma-sama her Sailor Crystal and being free of the Princess's manipulations. That would mean being some young man's sex slave, seemed but a small prize to pay for a chance at a new live, unburdened by her old one. After all, the Inners seem to enjoy being the Princess's sex slaves, even making silly jokes about boys. Plus, there was the fact how nice and handsome Setsuna made him out to be. Oh, she knew that Setsuna was biases towards her Master, just as the Inner Senshi were towards the Princess, but unlike them, Setsuna mentioned some of the bad things he had been forced to do because of the Princess and her actions against him. The way she saw it, she gets a new life and a boyfriend/husband all in one package.
It was late at night when Setsuna woke her up with, "It's time, Ho-chan."
Hotaru blinked, time for what? Then she remembered and jumped out of bed and rushed to her closest, thinking what should she wear? What does a girl wear to her enslavement/freedom appointment with Destiny and her new Master? She did not know... The others were right, she was hopeless. She just stood there, undecided, until Setsuna came behind her and hugged her to her chest.
With a smile in her voice, Setsuna replied, "Can't decide what to wear, Ho-chan?"
Hotaru gave a weak nodded of her head, unable to speak without getting hysterical. She wanted this to be perfect. If Ranma-sama rejected her... her mind would not accept that possibility.
Setsuna pulled out a simple dress and some shoes, and she helped her get dressed.
Hotaru did not like the outfit, it seem to make her more childish then she was. Dammit, she was almost seventeen, chronological, but trapped in an nine-year old's body because of the Princess... and Mistress Nine. She sighed as she saw Setsuna was wearing that Chinese/Kung Fu outfit. Setsuna looked good in it. She did not think Setsuna had worn anything else since she returned. She hoped when she got back she would look as good as Setsuna.
Setsuna hissed, "Ho-chan, we have to go now... or else..."
Hotaru did not want to know what "or else" was. She was very afraid "or else" would be "or else she could never go." With that in mind, she half-pulled, half-pushed Setsuna out the door and out of the apartment complex.
Once outside, Hotaru asked, "Where is he?"
Setsuna pointed towards Nerima Ward and said, "That way... we should get there a bit after one o'clock."
"One A.M.?" Hotaru asked startled. "But..."
Knowing Hotaru's fear that she would not make it because of her weakness, Setsuna reassured her, "Most of the time is by train, Ho-chan. And if need be, I'll carry you the rest of the way. You'll get there."
The next couple of days was strange for Ranma. He had a serious case of deja vu, to work through, as well as, knowing all the insanity and chaos in his life had one cause, some Royal bitch with a stick up her butt by the name of Serenity.
But even knowing that everyone was crapping on him because of Serenity's meddling in his life, did not lessen the hurt he felt each time Akane bashed him with her mallet because she was too weak to fight off Serenity's spell to make her more violent. Nor Nabiki fought the spell to make her more greedy. He did take solace that Nabiki's greed helped the Tendos out, putting fish and meat on the table, so they did not have to have just rice and pickles.
As he sparred with his father, his anger at Serenity burned. As he tried out //new//, remembered techniques, he could see the glimpses of the Martial Arts Master his father was and could have been had Serenity not bespelled him into the lazy, stupid panda he was now.
It was a bit frustrating at times, he had all this extraordinary knowledge of hundreds of years of researching, training, and pushing the Art inside his head, at his fingertips... but his body was not up to the demands of such stuff... not yet anyway.
Plus, he knew he had to pretend as he had been, least Serenity take a more active role. Something he would not survive in his present form. So he had to secretly work on improving his form with Master Po and the other Shaolin Masters.
He had not wished to endanger or get them involved in his battles, but as they pointed out, what Serenity was doing and wanted to do, was against the teaching of Buddha and Shintoism. They too had to help, to defend their Ways and Teachings.
He was glad the Shaolin Masters were helping him. Some of the techniques and training methods he had originally used in his past lives were desperate and he was damn luck to survive some of them. At the time, he did not have a choice in the matter, but now... with their help, he could go slower, saner, and even get better results because of that.
It was a bit after midnight, when one of the Masters came to the room he was mediating in and told him he had visitors, the one that had been here before with a little girl with purple hair.
His breath caught in his throat at that. He knew who that had to be. He found himself scared shitless about meeting her... now. He was just wearing his Kung Fu pants, which were all sweaty. He had spent almost as much time with Sailor Saturn as with Sailor Pluto. Hell, he had spent almost a quarter of his past lives on his knees before her, and the rest trying to protect her, to have some hope against Serenity. All of the Senshi, it was Pluto and Saturn that he knew the most of. If Pluto was his heart, that Saturn was his hope.
As he entered the room with the two Senshi, he could not help noticed how young and innocent Saturn looked, even more so then he recalled from his past lives' memories.
It amused him a bit to see Saturn was as nervous as he was.
He really hoped this would work as Set-chan thought it would. Not just for the sake of dealing with Serenity, but for Saturn's sake.
He watched as Saturn underwent her transformation into her Senshi form with a bit of amusement, noting how long and unnecessary it was. He also noted that her form seem to gain a bit more maturity, more of what he recall of her with the transformation.
He stood, paralyzed, as he watched Saturn remove Serenity's joke of a uniform, whose only purpose he could figure out was to show off the Senshi's feminine beauty. It had no magical armor or protection to it. Something he had to take advantage of many times.
He let out a breathe that he had been holding as Saturn removed her Sailor Crystal.
And then all hell broke loose. Or so it seemed.
Black lightning shot out from Saturn's Sailor Crystal, which seemed to have cracks and was oozing out darkness. The black lightning seemed to strike at everything, including Saturn herself.
And the most scary part was, there was no sound... to anything.
Knowing it was folly, but needed to help, Ranma reached out and grabbed Saturn's Sailor Crystal with his hand, using his ki and will to calm the storm. Where the black lightning stook him, he could feel his ki being drained away. He knew he had to contain it somehow... so he did the only thing he could. He swallowed it.
The pain was enormous, but Saturn's form was reduced to purple sparkles and black lightning. If he did not act fast, he would lose her forever. And he could not allow that to happen. He had to pay back her kindness and gentleness that she gave him, especially when it had cost her her life before Serenity.
So he accepted both the sparkles and lightning equally. The black lightning he accepted into his form, and the sparkles he held in his hands. Recalling everything he could of Sailor Saturn: mistress, angel, slave, friend, lover, student, and healer.
Setsuna could only stare in awe as Ranma reached out for Hotaru's Sailor Crystal. He was fighting the Silence... and winning... controlling it...
Somewhere in her ancient memories of past lives, she recalled that the Silence was not natural. It was the corruption of the Saturn Power. When Serenity had tapped into the Saturn Power she did not wish to soil herself with Saturn's Power of Death, she had just wished to access the Power of Rebirth, so she may resurrect her Senshi whenever she wished. And in splitting the two that were to be used together, gave birth to the Silence. That was one mistake of Serenity's that she did not wish to correct, but that Serenity was more then happy to allow Saturn to pay for.
She watched in fascination as her Master concentrated, and the sparkles that was Hotaru gathered into a human form. She also noted the symbol of Saturn was upon both Ranma's and Hotaru's forehead. Below the purple symbol of Saturn on Ranma's forehead was also the green symbol of Pluto, and below that, a golden symbol, she could not make out.
She knew from her past lives, that Mamoru was in fact the Senshi of Earth, although, neither of Serenity nor her Court would acknowledge that fact. Plus, she also knew that Serenity's magic suppressed his magic then same as the other Senshi.
She smiled as the new Hotaru solidified. She would have a powerful, female martial artist's body, with long light to dark purple hair that fell to her heart-shape ass, long, sensual fingers, cute nose, and hairless from the neck down, like herself. They would look like sisters, who had simply dyed their hair different colors. As her eyes were a rosy-red and the new Hotaru's eyes were a rosy-purple.
Once finished, Ranma collapsed, but Setsuna was able to catch him in her arms. She kissed him, and set him down next to Hotaru. She removed his pants, and tried to deal with his wounds from the lightning and all as best she could. Mostly cleaning with some soapy water she got from a sink, and caressing sore muscles with her hands.
Some time later, Hotaru awoke, and helped Setsuna tending to their Master. She found her healing powers were still intact, and working even better then before. Nor did they tire her out like before. In quick order, Ranma was as good as new.
Ranma explained a bit of his "normal" life to Hotaru, and wished them well, as he needed to return to the Tendos before he was missed.
Setsuna and Hotaru reluctantly left him, and he headed back to the Tendo-ke.
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(Posted Tue, 19 Oct 2004 03:18)
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