Ranma had a strange sense of déjà vu coming over him. There he was, in the storage bay of a cargo carrying helicopter, Pegasus they called it, flying towards a cabal base with the intention of slipping in, disabling a pilot and either taking a scientist away, or flying away with the chopper he was on, but first he had to be dropped on a mountainside.
“How’d she convince me to do this again?” he spoke over the radio. Apparently the world had advanced a good deal in twenty years without war in some areas used in war, communications for example. These radios were designed to pick up multiple frequencies while scrambling a message over several in near random intervals. Ranma’s was small enough to fit in his ear without being uncomfortable.
It was the voice of the dead sniper, Madson, that responded, “Because she’s manipulating and presumptuous?” Ranma fumed at that. It almost sounded smug.
“That and you haven’t developed the balls to say ‘no’ to her,” Ransom piped in.
“Okay, this is degrading. I’m getting lip from guys who’ve been dead for twenty years.”
Borden’s voice picked up over the link. “Aww, don’t be like that. We like you.” It was almost sultry the way she said it. It also made him sure they were all laughing at his expense deep down.
“Ha ha ha ha. Look, he’s blushing.” Apparently, Kroker was openly laughing at his expense.
“Just remember the plan, Saotome,” he heard Nabiki speak over the comm. line. Sure, she could be condescending, but this was ‘business’.
It had also become personal.
The delay in the wet dock from Ranma’s attack had led to a problem. Kunz had communicated to them some ways out that he was to be moved within a half hour, but the laser weaponry that the cabal had developed from his research was already gone. That meant that the original plan for getting Kunz out, using a chopper mounted long range laser to kill the pilot, was out. Instead, Ranma would have to go in and take the pilot out without alerting an entire base of trained mercenaries and soldiers.
Oh, joy.
Of course, the easiest way would be to ambush the first soldier Ranma’s size, steal his uniform, dress up in it, memorize the guy’s name, and simply walk through as if he belongs there. There was just one problem with that.
Ranma was the best. He wouldn’t stand for acting as anything other than the best anymore. That meant no more disguises, no faking his voice, no dressing up. Sneaking in without being noticed, however, was exactly up his alley.
Before Ranma had left Nerima, Genma had made two things perfectly clear: that the Yamasenken was to never be used, ever, and that the Umisenken was only to be used against someone using the first. Ranma was disappointed that the most powerful skill sets of his school couldn’t be used, but as the creator of those skills was banning them, he would respect that. It didn’t mean he couldn’t make his own, however.
Ranma had spent a great deal of time trying to find another method of invisibility. In the end, he realized who he had to talk to. Tofu had the answers. After a lengthy search and a little correspondence, Ranma had a new stealth style. After a short time, he had improved it, making it his own.
Of course, having a stealth style and needing it are two different matters. In the end he saw he only needed it to run across the runway in the valley between the two hills. Between the Abrams and Mammoth tanks moving about all over the place, there was simply too much noise to notice a single man. Still, he maintained his silence, climbing the rather significant rock face. Finally reaching the top, he saw the pilot, lighting up another cigarette, his fifth judging by the butts on the ground, seemingly waiting for the all clear to go into action. Ranma snuck up behind him, delivered a sharp blow to the side of the man’s neck, and dragged him into the Chinook helicopter nearby.
An elderly man, strapped and locked into a rear seat, noticed the unconscious pilot being thrown in and spoke up, “Who are you?”
Flashing the name his usual grin, Ranma replied, “The cavalry.” Touching his ear, he activated his radio to the Antaeus task force. “Ranma here, Chinook secured. You are clear to begin the assault.”
“Acknowledged, Ranma.” Nabiki then relayed to the vehicles, “This is Command to Kroker and Borden, begin assault. Patton, move up to the airstrip to provide repairs.”
“Damn it! I am not a nurse!”
“Shut it! Minitech’s working on your damnable tank, so just hold your horses! Madsen, refit for a Hornet, we need more firepower covering Patton. You and Ransom have that honour.”
“Roger that, Command,” came the Englishman’s straightforward reply.
It wasn’t long into the assault that Nabiki heard something worrying. It came in the form of Church’s voice asking, “What on earth are they growing in those biospheres?” Logs from Borden’s camera showed a pair of massive biosphere’s over a hundred metres each in near semi-spheres, with what at first glance looked like some kind of tropical jungle, until you realized that it was one mass, and that that mass was moving as if it were breathing.
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(Posted Mon, 29 Mar 2010 23:33)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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