[Ranma][Fanfic] Childhood of a Modern Dynasty - Chapter 19: End of the
Amazon Way
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Childhood of a Modern Dynasty
Chapter 19: End of the Amazon Way 

Ranma 1/2 characters/situations created and copyright by Rumiko
Takahashi/Shogakukan/Kitty/Fuji/Viz - Used without permission

Childhood of a Modern Dynasty series created, written, and
copyright 1998-1999 by Jim Lazar

An ongoing series set after the end of the Ranma 1/2 manga and anime.

<Speech text in angle brackets is thought by character.>
"Speech text in double quotes is spoken as Japanese."

E-mail comments and/or criticisms to: jim [at] animeprime.com

Make sure to check out my Modern Dynasty website for
all released CMD stories, graphics files, and other information:
http://www.animeprime/ff/md
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April 20, 1999 - Joketsuzoku, China


     Genma was fighting with a skinny Amazon when he saw the tornado
dissipate and Soun falling to the ground with Hinako in his arms.
"Tendo!!" he cried out, helpless. He slammed his opponent in the face
and then ran over her on his way to try to save his friend. As he
realized that he wouldn't make it in time, he cried out again. "Soun!!"

     Soun crashed into the ground at high speed, taking most of the
impact on his back. After the dust settled, he didn't move.

     Little Hinako looked up his chest, from where she had fallen.
"Soun?" She reached up and nudged him. "Soun!!"

     Hinako was so concerned she didn't see the Amazon looming behind
her. She also didn't see the long spear aimed for her back.

     But Genma did. He reached his friend and Hinako just before the
spear could pierce the little girl's back. He and the Amazon rolled away
locked in a tight ball. They struggled until the spear was broken. The
struggle ended at that point because the spearhead had been driven into
Genma's stomach before being broken off.

     The Amazon rose, pulled her dagger out of its sheathe, and cried
out, "First blood!!" before plunging the dagger towards Genma's heart.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Elsewhere, things were not going much better. The original plan had
hinged on more of the Amazons in the village joining Yukiko's group, so
that Ranma and Sanma could get to the Elders. Unfortunately, not enough
had.

     Several of Yukiko's Amazons now lay in their own blood. Dead or
dying, it was hard to tell in the heat of battle. Although taking losses
themselves, the Circle's Amazons were clearly overwhelming the small
band of fighters by sheer force of numbers.

     Ranma started to see that their original plan of convincing enough
Amazons to attack and overwhelm the Circle wasn't going to work, so
they'd have to use the backup plan, as risky as it was. As he continued
to fight with a couple of Amazons, he started to make note of where the
original group of Yukiko's Amazons was. Only the fact that the Amazons
who entered with him all had a red tunic and skirt under their armor,
allowed Ranma to tell how many of their original group were still in the
fight. He could see Amazons without red tunics fighting for them, but it
was harder to tell how many were currently on their side.

     Sanma, Yukiko, Ryoga, Ukyo, and several of the other Amazons who
had accompanied them to China were in Ranma's sight. He couldn't see the
others, but he could see that other Amazons had come at the sound of the
battle and were standing at the fight's edge, uncertain of who to fight
since everyone was dressed as Amazons. Since the newly arrived Amazons
had no idea why the Amazons were fighting each other, let alone a way of
knowing that the red tunics indicated who as who, they just stood at the
edge of the fight and waited for someone to tell them who to kill. The
fact that both groups of Amazons were both asking for help from the
Amazons at the edge of the battle only helped confuse the matter
further.

     Finally, Ranma saw the group of Elders standing on the roof of the
Circle looking down on the battle with a look of utter satisfaction and
pleasure on their faces. Rage boiled up within him when he saw their
attitudes and the fact that they were not even in the fight yet. He
looked over to his sister. "Sanma, this isn't working!" Sanma didn't
seem to hear Ranma, since she was still dodging sword thrusts from her
opponent.

     Ranma swept the legs of his two opponents and did a high back flip
to land at Sanma's back. Sanma almost swung around and bashed Ranma
before he spoke. "Sanma, this isn't working!"

     Sanma trapped the sword meant for her head between his palms and
wrenched it out of the Amazon's grasp. "Tell, me about it. At this rate,
it's only a matter of time before someone gets killed." They both looked
away as a huge tornado formed at the edge of the fight. "Whaaa...?"

     "Hiryu Shoten Ha blast," Ranma commented, needlessly.

     Sanma nodded. "Damn, we've got to get to the Circle NOW!!"

     "We can't hold back anymore. Saving our energy is useless if
everyone is dead by the time we get to the Circle."

     "Right. Let's do a full spectrum series into the fighters and then
directed blasts towards the Elders on the rooftop."

     "We may end up hitting some of our own people that way, but it's
the only chance we have. On three..."

     "One..." Ranma called out.

     "Two..." Sanma followed.

     "Three! Moko Takabisha!!" they both cried in unison.

     The two Ranmas aimed their hands towards opposite sides of the
fight and let loose a variety of chi balls of all sizes and beams of
energy into the crowd. It was a most impressive sight.

     One of those chi balls happened to fly across the battlefield and
blasted an Amazon warrior who was just about to plunge a dagger into
Genma's heart. The force of the blast sent her flying across the
battlefield, where she crashed into the side of a hut and fell
unconscious to the ground.

     Ranma and Sanma didn't see what affect their blasts had, since they
had started running full bore towards the Elders on the rooftop after
releasing the salvo. In all of the confusion the blasts had caused, some
gaps had formed in the mass of fighters. Those were enough to let Ranma
and Sanma get closer to their target than they were previously.

     The Elders had frowned at hearing and seeing the Moko Takabisha
blasts. Their eyes turned black briefly when they looked at each other
and then in unison they looked out at Ranma and Sanma. "Amazon warriors!
You must stop those two," the Eldest commanded and pointed at Ranma and
Sanma. "At all costs, stop the collectors!!" The Eldest suddenly
flinched, realizing she had misspoke. "Stop the impostors!!" 

     If nothing else did, this use of 'collectors' confirmed for Ranma
that the Circle was under the same influence as Aftershave had been.
Aftershave had used the exact same term when he was possessed. <Why do
they refer to us like that?>

     This command from the Elders drew the attention of all of the
Amazons. Normally this would be a bad thing, but Ranma wanted as many
Amazons as possible to see them at that point. Ranma and Sanma did a
final high leap over the heads of the Amazons and landed on opposite
sides of the roof that the Circle had been watching the battle from.

     "Hiryu Hibashira Ha!!" Ranma yelled and forced a pillar of hot chi
energy out of his arms and towards the Elders.

     Sanma did likewise, except with cold energy. "Hiryu Hyouchuu Ha!!"

     As the two energies mixed, a pair of powerful vortexes formed and
crashed against the members of the Circle. Despite their age, they held
up easily against the onslaught. Too easily. Aftershave had showed great
pain almost immediately, but the Elders were just standing in the center
of the twin vortexes without any sign of pain or discomfort. In fact,
their faces showed a smug grin, which seemed to mock their attackers.
This of course made Ranma and Sanma even madder. This helped make
Ranma's hot blast stronger, but Sanma had to fight to maintain her cool
fighting energies.

     Ranma grew very worried after several minutes elapsed and the
Elders showed no signs of the pain or black skin that Aftershave had
when they broke him free of whatever was controlling him.

     Sanma realized the solution first. "Shit... we can't do them all at
once."

     "Damn... you're right... but how do we refocus on one without the
other six attacking us?"

     Before Sanma could respond, the solution jumped onto the roof.
Yukiko, Ryoga, Ukyo, and several Amazons took up positions near the
trapped Elders. Ryoga looked at the Ranmas. "Refocus on the Eldest now!
We'll keep the others occupied!"

     "Thanks, pal!" Ranma and Sanma both called out and then moved their
vortexes to the Eldest.

     As the Ranmas' vortexes refocused on the single Elder, the others
started battling with the other six Elders. Like Aftershave had been,
they found the Elders to be inhumanly strong. Unlike Aftershave, the
Elders were trained warriors and they soon were overwhelming their
attackers.

     Meanwhile, Yukiko's Amazons were trying to keep the Circle's
Amazons from getting onto the large roof, but some had slipped through
and were advancing on Ranma and Sanma, who were unable to use their
hands to defend themselves while holding the Eldest in the vortexes.
That didn't stop them from kicking a few shins in an attempt to keep the
Eldest in their vortexes as long as possible.

     The Eldest started to scream and writhe in pain as a black aura
formed around her body. As her skin turned black, an inhuman sound
emanated from her throat.

     Seeing the transformation begin, Ranma wanted as many Amazons to
see it as possible. "Look! She ain't herself!!"

     Sanma added her voice to the shout. "She and the other Elders are
being controlled!"

     Some of the Amazons had halted in amazement at seeing and hearing
the Eldest, but some were so caught up in the heat of the battle, that
they continued their attacks.

     In the blink of an eye, Ranma stopped his vortex and shot off a
quick single-handed Moko Takabisha blast, which hit the Eldest dead
center on her chest. With one last inhuman scream, the black skin
exploded from her body and fluttered into the wind.

     The Eldest dropped to her knees. "Wha... what happened?" she
muttered in Mandarin

     "Eldest! Call off the attacking Amazons!!" Yukiko cried out in her
native tongue.

     The Eldest shook her head. "Where am I?"

     Ranma and Sanma had refocused their vortexes back to the other
Elders to keep them at bay while the Eldest got her bearings. "Eldest...
you were being controlled! Stop the Amazons now!!" Ranma pleaded in
Japanese.

     The Eldest's mind finally cleared and she was able to comprehend
what she saw before her. "All Amazons! Stop fighting!" She held up her
golden cane to back up her command. Most Amazons stopped their fighting
at the cry and passed the word to those out of earshot.

     Seeing the Eldest defeated and their leadership over the Amazons
vanishing, the other Elders no longer had to hide their true forms and
lashed out to those nearest them. Ukyo, Ryoga, and Yukiko were suddenly
blasted backward as a large black aura appeared around the Elders.

     "Weak fool!" one of the Elders cried out with an almost inhuman
voice and held a hand towards the Eldest. A black ball of energy formed
and shot out towards the Eldest.

     Ranma acted by instinct and tackled the Eldest to get her out of
the path of the blast, but her right arm was caught in the blast and
became a blackened stump.

     After burning the Eldest's arm, the blast carried on, bored through
a large nearby hut, and then impacted against a nearby hill, causing a
huge explosion.

     Cries of sheer terror rippled across the Amazon warriors. "The
Blackness!" one Amazon warrior yelled in Mandarin and leapt onto the
rooftop. Several other Amazons followed her lead.

     A murmur ran through the crowd as the word sunk in.

     A tall, green-haired woman in a slinky black leotard with a lightly
armored breastplate and skirt landed by Ranma's side and recited one of
the Amazon's ancient prophecies in Japanese. "When Blackness returns,
all shall perish, save the true Matriarch of the Amazon Tribe."

     Ranma looked at the woman who had joined him on the rooftop and
recognized her as one of the warriors he had been fighting earlier. And
defeated soundly if he recalled correctly. "What does that mean?"

     The woman looked sadly at Ranma. "We shall all die, but die
honorably as warriors." She turned towards the other Amazons and spoke
at the top of her voice in Mandarin. "The Buyierfei are among us. Let
none of the black demons live through the day, lest we dishonor the Gods
who gave us life and gave their life for ours." The call to arms was
repeated as the news flowed across the large battlefield.

     All around the clearing the few Amazons that were still fighting
each other stopped at hearing the cry and made their way toward the
Circle's hut. Many leapt onto the roof and started battling with the
possessed Elders. A couple of black blasts flashed out and vaporized
several of the attacking Amazons. Fortunately, the Elders seemed to only
be able to generate the blasts sporadically or the fight would have
ended very quickly. And it would not have been in the Amazons' favor.

     Ranma and the others were practically pushed aside as the Amazons
battled with their ancient enemy for the first time in over four
thousand years. Ranma and Sanma didn't understand most of the Mandarin
that the Amazons were shouting back and fourth, but they knew exactly
what 'Buyierfei' meant.

     The Elders were finding themselves overwhelmed by sheer numbers, so
they clasped their hands together and projected a wall of energy out
from their bodies. The wall repelled their attackers, many falling from
the roof. Yukiko, Ranma, Sanma, and a handful of Amazons managed to keep
from being pushed from the roof by hanging onto anything that was handy.

     In Ranma's case that was the breasts of the green-haired Amazon who
had landed near him earlier. After the energy blast subsided, he
awkwardly removed his hands from her breasts. "Sorry." She said
something, but it was lost in the ever-increasing sounds of the battle.

     Yukiko got back to her feet and jumped at the nearest Elder with
her staff. The Elder held up a frail looking hand. But looks can be
deceiving.

     "Look out!" Ranma cried, but too late. The black ball of energy
shot towards Yukiko and impacted against her chest. To Ranma's
amazement, nothing happened. Yukiko was wrapped in a brief golden glow,
but was otherwise unharmed. "Whaaaaat?"

     Yukiko hadn't had time to do more than call out Shinuma's name
before the blast hit. Not having the luxury of time to wonder why she
was still alive, with her staff in hand she shot towards the Elders. Her
first blow smashed one of the Elders halfway into the rooftop, the
second sent an Elder sliding across the roof, almost over the edge.

     "Moko Takabisha!!" Ranma called out and sent a strong beam of
energy into the nearest Elder, who withstood the blast, but seemed to be
stunned by it. <They are wearing out. Odd that they are withstanding our
blasts so easily, the Buyierfei in the Monolith were usually killed with
a single blast.>

     Sanma let a series of precisely aimed chi balls fly, scoring direct
hits on each of the five Elders still on the roof. The Elders staggered
under the blows, but did not fall.

     Ryoga and Ukyo were tossing bandannas and spatulas into the fray,
most hitting their intended targets. Instead of red blood, a thick black
liquid oozed out of the wounds on the Elders.

     The combined and repeated attacks were starting wear down the
Elders. They now had large splotches of black skin that were starting to
flake off. Their eyes were continuously black and the black auras
surrounding them were fluctuating wildly.

     Yukiko was in mid-swing when an Elder grabbed her from behind. She
felt pain shoot through her body as a powerful energy flowed from the
Elder and into her. "No!!" She realized too late that they were trying
to take over her body. Her eyes went dark and she slumped to the ground,
followed by the unconscious Elder.

     Sanma saw this from across the roof. "Fight it, Yukiko!"

     Yukiko was kneeling on the roof, dazed. Her skin seemed to flicker
from its normal color to black and back again. Suddenly she screamed.
"Nooooooooo!!" With a flash of golden light, flakes of black skin were
blown off her. "Two down..." she gasped, and then fainted.

     Ranma and Sanma had surrounded the other Elders and were trying to
get them between two vortexes again, but had only been able to snare two
so far. The Amazons, Ryoga, and Ukyo were hounding the other three.

     Ryoga slammed his umbrella into the stomach of one of the Elders
and then opened it to hide a series of fast punches and then a savage
kick, which sent the Elder tumbling from the roof. She was pounced on by
a hoard of Amazons. Seconds latter a high pierced scream rang out from
below.

     "Three down." Ryoga had barely finished his statement when he saw
Ukyo grappling with another one of the Elders. Before his eyes the black
aura started to flow from the possessed Elder into Ukyo. "No!!" Without
thinking, Ryoga threw his hands in front of him, generated a beam of
pure energy, and shot it towards the Elder. The blue beam, which had
traces of red sparks in it, hit the old woman in the small of her back
and she convulsed in pain. In an explosion of light, the black skin
fragmented and fell from the woman.

     "Four down." Ryoga dragged himself over to Ukyo, who had collapsed.
"Damn... these bastards are tough."

     Ranma and Sanma now had the remaining three Elders trapped in a
pair of vortexes. The power behind the vortexes started to fluctuate and
diminish as Ranma and Sanma passed the point where their bodies could
focus chi reliably. At that point, it was only their stamina and
willpower that kept the vortexes from collapsing altogether. But even
the Ranmas have their limits.

     Amazons had appeared and were taking turns attacking the writhing
figures. Almost simultaneously, the three Elders cried out in torment
and their black skin exploded into a fine black dust.

     Ranma and Sanma let their vortexes dissipate and collapsed to their
knees. "That's all seven... shit," Ranma tried to look around for other
signs of trouble, but found he couldn't focus his eyes.

     Sanma was in about the same condition. "Damn... is everyone
alright?"

     "I don't know..." With a thud Ranma dropped to the rooftop and
found that it felt really good not to move, so he decided not to for a
while.

     Sanma came to same conclusion and collapsed to the rooftop. As her
eyes slowly closed, she could have sworn she saw a black,
multi-tentacled creature out of the corner of her eye.


***********************************************************************
>From the personal journal of James Davidson:


September 23, 2057

     "You fell asleep in the middle of the fight?!" I asked Sanma.

     Sanma fidgeted and looked embarrassed. "Well, sort of..."

     Akane tried to save her husband any embarrassment. "James, the fire
and ice dragon attacks are very exhausting. Especially when you're
trying to release someone from the Buyierfei's control."

     "Okay. I was just amazed that any of the Ranmas could get that
tired after what you've told me about some of their bigger fights."

     Sanma smiled slightly. "Well, trying to fight over three thousand
Buyierfei at one time does tend to wear you out. Is that a big enough
fight for you?" She smiled lopsidedly, obviously boasting of her
experience.

     "Huh? I thought only the seven Elders were possessed?" I frowned
and wondered if I missed something.

     Sanma quickly explained. "Yes, there were only seven possessed
Elders. We didn't find this out until later, but the only way the
Buyierfei can take control of a person is to overwhelm them with
numbers. Usually, it takes at least five hundred Buyierfei to take
control of a single human and even then there has to be something for
the Buyierfei to exploit."

     "Exploit?"

     Akane spoke up this time. "The Buyierfei have to exploit a weakness
in order to control a person. In the case of Aftershave, that weakness
was his anger and hatred for Ranma and me for Shampoo's death. They
entered his mind and used his emotions to control him. When he found out
she wasn't dead, he almost regained his control, but they were too well
entrenched inside of his mind for him to resist."

     Sanma took up the explanation. "Apparently after we escaped from
the monolith and then left to return to Japan, the Buyierfei appeared in
the Amazon village and took over some of the Circle members. The
possessed Circle members and other Buyierfei then attacked the Amazon
who was the Matriarch at the time. She was able to resist being
possessed, but the possessed Elders overwhelmed her and killed her. The
rest of the Circle were possessed after a short fight in the Circle's
hut."

     "Then they made Aftershave Matriarch in order to capture or kill
you all?"

     "Right. I guess his intense anger towards us helped the Buyierfei
control him better. It took them a while to fully control the Circle
Elders to the point where the Buyierfei could reliably do more than just
issue orders to the other Amazons without their true forms being
revealed, so he was a natural choice to go after us."

     "I see. So Yukiko's strong will prevented her from being taken
over?"

     Sanma shook her head. "Yes and no." I looked quizzically at her and
she explained. "Yukiko did have a strong will, but the armor of the
First Matriarch also has the ability to repel the Buyierfei energy."

     "Ah, I see. That's why she wasn't hurt by the blast earlier in the
fight either."

     Sanma nodded. "Exactly."

     "So what happened after you took a nap?"

     Sanma huffed. "After I PASSED out from my HEROIC exertion, the
Amazons had some more Buyierfei to deal with. And then..." Sanma stopped
speaking and glanced at Akane, who stiffened.

     "And then?"

     Akane answered softly. "And then they had to take care of the
wounded... and the dead."


***********************************************************************
April 20-May 9, 1999 - Joketsuzoku, China; Nerima, Japan


     After the Elders--or to be more precise, the Buyierfei that had
possessed them--were defeated, the Amazons started milling around and
tending to the wounded. After an all too brief pause in the fighting the
rooftop of the Circle's hut exploded. The already exhausted fighters
still on the roof were thrown off and landed in scattered clumps around
the outside of the building. Ranma and Sanma grunted, but did not stir
from their exhausted slumber.

     In the wake of the explosion, several Amazons started to get hit by
unseen opponents. The assembled Amazons lashed out, but had trouble
connecting with their invisible Buyierfei attackers. Every now and then,
one of the black creatures would flash into existence when an Amazon
managed to make contact with it.

     The tall green-haired Amazon traded blows with one Buyierfei. Or
tried to. Her slashes only managed to cut empty air. Then she recalled
the special Buyierfei combat training that all Amazons had to endure as
they became warriors. She had never thought she'd have to use it, but
now she was glad she paid attention. She did a back flip to gain some
distance from the Buyierfei who had attacked her. She then stood with
her right leg ahead of the left and held her long sword under her arm
with the blade held horizontal to the ground and projecting behind her.

     The green-haired Amazon flinched after she was hit in the stomach
and bright red stain spread across her armor. With a quick fluid
movement, she spun around in a tight circle on her left foot. Her sword
sliced through the invisible creature that had just hit her and it
became visible as it crumpled to the ground, dead. The woman grinned and
then raced off across the battlefield in search of more prey.

     As she ran to a new position, she saw that other Amazons were using
the same technique to battle the creatures. Others were trying more
direct measures such as slashing blindly at the air, grouping up in
threes to catch Buyierfei when they hit one of the others, and using
small darts to try and pinpoint the location of the invisible creatures.
Several floating wounds with black blood oozing out of them could be
seen around the battlefield. The Amazons thought of them as 'targets'
and were doing a decent job of making mince meat of the wounded
Buyierfei. Unfortunately, the invisible Buyierfei were also returning
the same sort of punishment on the Amazons.

     Ryoga helped Ukyo up from where she had fallen and then looked
around trying to figure out what was going on. He could only see the
Amazons, who were being randomly attacked by something he could only
catch a glimpse of. "What's going on?"

     Since Ukyo was to only one present and conscious that had seen the
Buyierfei before, she knew exactly what was happening. "It's the
Buyierfei."

     Ryoga frowned, but remained alert in his fighting stance. "Didn't
we just defeat them?" Suddenly, he felt something jab his stomach and he
lashed out at his unseen attacker with his umbrella, but it didn't
connect with anything.

     Ukyo took a few swings in front of her with he spatula, trying to
keep the Buyierfei at arms length, or spatula's length in this case.
"The ones that were possessing the Elders, yes. These invisible ones are
more like the ones we fought in the Monolith. Maybe..." She was
interrupted when Yukiko staggered up behind them. The three fighters put
their backs together in hopes of preventing the Buyierfei from attacking
from behind.

     "What can we do?" Yukiko asked, looking around at the battlefield.
Amazons could be seen swinging wildly at the unseen Buyierfei with their
weapons. Some of the hits impacted and several black corpses were
scattered across the battlefield. Unfortunately, there seemed to be some
Amazon ones, as well. The red and black blood started to flow together
as each side took casualties.

     Ukyo sighed. "In the Monolith the Ranmas managed to burn the
creatures with their Moko Takabisha blasts, but it looks like they are
out of the fight." She looked over at the unconscious forms of Ranma and
Sanma. At least she hoped they were just unconscious.

     "Geeze, they are getting soft!" Ryoga commented.

     Ukyo gaped at her boyfriend. "Did you see all the chi that they
were throwing around earlier?!' She scrunched her face up as she
remembered something. "Wait a second... didn't you blast someone
earlier?"

     A look of remembrance crossed Ryoga's face. "Yeah... when you were
about to be killed."

     "Thank you... Can you do it again? The Amazons seem to be taking
care of some of the Buyierfei, but not enough and not fast enough."

     "I don't know... it felt... different than when I do the Shishi
Houkou Dan."

     "Give it a shot-" Ukyo looked around and then pointed at an area
with only a few Amazons in it. "-over there."

     Ryoga held his hands out and concentrated. After several moments,
he frowned and dropped his hands. "Nothing's happening."

     Ukyo frowned as well and patted him on the back. "That's okay...
I'm sure it happens to Ranma once in a while."

     "I can't understand it... it was so easy last time."

     "Is anything different now?"

     "Well, you're not in danger right now... I just reacted when I
thought you were going to die."

     "Well, that might happen if you can't do it again!" Ukyo shouted,
trying to draw out the same feelings from him. "Oh, to die so young!
What a waste for a beautiful girl like me!"

     Ryoga tried again, this time concentrating on Ukyo. A small ball of
chi appeared between his hands. He smiled then concentrated harder.
Suddenly, he pictured the love of his life in his head and his
confidence snapped into focus. Fueled by his love and confidence, a huge
beam of blue energy with red sparks radiated from his hands and sliced
through the air and at least two invisible creatures that fell to the
ground in pieces. The beam impacted against a hut, causing a fairly
sizable explosion. "Damn..." he gasped, backing up from the force of the
blast.

     "Yukiko... tell the Amazons to drop to the ground! Ryoga blast in a
wide arc." Ukyo quickly commanded and pointed to the main battle. "Do it
now!" 

     Yukiko straightened and then called out in Mandarin, "Amazons! Your
Matriarch commands you to drop to the ground!! Incoming blast!" She
looked over at Ukyo. "Is that alright?"

     Ukyo smiled and nodded. "Go, Pig-boy." She then dropped to the
ground, pulling Yukiko down with her.

     "Don't..." Ryoga thrust his hands in front of him. "Call..." He
swung over to face the battlefield, where Amazons were dropping like
flies. "Me..." A ball of blue chi formed between his hands.
"Pig-boy!!!!" A large blast shot from between his hands and across the
heads on the Amazons. He started to sweep it across the battlefield in a
smooth arc. Occasionally, a black form would flicker and then explode
into pieces as the beam hit it. He repeated this several times until all
was still. "I think that's it... how many do you think there were?"

     Ukyo shrugged. "I think I saw a couple dozen flicker and die, but
it's hard to say for sure until we count the pieces."

     The Amazons started getting to their feet and looked around for any
sign of Buyierfei that had escaped Ryoga's blast. A couple Amazons had
to lash out as they were attacked, indicating that there were still some
Buyierfei alive.

     The tall, green-haired Amazon started ordering the other warriors
around and soon they seemed to have dealt with the remaining Buyierfei.

     After the attacks by their unseen enemies stopped, several of the
warriors stood guard as others attended to the wounded and covering the
dead. The badly mangled bodies of both the Amazons and the Buyierfei
littered the battlefield that was once the quaint Amazon village.

     As Yukiko looked at the scene of carnage in front of her, tears
started to flow from her eyes. The mangled bodies would appear in her
nightmares for years to come. "Now what?"

     Ryoga and Ukyo sighed.

     "Now we celebrate our win and mourn our loses." Ukyo shuddered as
she got her first real taste of death. She didn't like it at all. The
single hijacker she had helped Akane kill seemed so long ago and such a
small matter compared to what had happened here. Ryoga slipped his arm
around her and tried to comfort her. Ukyo clung to his hand for the rest
of the day.

     "Shampoo!"

     Yukiko looked around and saw her father running up to her.
"Father!" She jumped into his arms and held on for dear life.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     A figure that looked like Ranma, but wasn't, walked across a desert
seemingly unaffected by the dust storm that raged around him.

     Suddenly, his skin turned black and he collapsed to the ground. He
convulsed in pain and shifted back and forth between his female body and
male body.

     After several minutes, she shook her head and her skin returned to
normal. "What?" She stared into the distance, as if communicating with
something far, far away. "No! The bitches couldn't have overcome our
control." She paused, as if absorbing some information. "Ah, the
collectors were there."

     She stood up, transformed back into a man, and began walking. "I
think we'll have to do something about the collectors and the
Un-cute-one after all. They are becoming more of a nuisance than their
use as collectors aids us."

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Later, Ranma stirred from his deep slumber and awoke. He looked
around the hut he was in and called out, "Hello?" He looked over and saw
Sanma and his father sleeping nearby. A large bandage covered his
father's exposed stomach. "Pop?" He was about to nudge his father when a
voice stopped him.

     "Don't... Just let him sleep for now."

     Ranma looked over to the source of the voice and saw Dr. Tofu come
in through the door. "How bad is it, Dr. Tofu?"

     "Not too bad. His... girth stopped the spear from going in too
deeply," Dr. Tofu said, briefly checking the bandage to make sure there
was no more bleeding.

     Ranma exhaled deeply, not really wanting to hear the rest of the
news. "So what about everyone else?"

     "After you two passed out, some more Buyierfei appeared. The
Amazons and Ryoga managed to kill them all... or at least those that
were attacking. It's very strange to fight a opponent you can't see." He
remembered how worthless he felt without being able to use his pressure
points to help in the last part of the fight. Unfortunately, he felt
really needed for his medical skills after the fight ended. He could
live without ever being needed that much again.

     Fortunately, Shinuma had been able to help treat the wounded as
well, but he carefully made sure to avoid mentioning that he was a
veterinarian and not a human doctor to his patients. Of course, since
most of them didn't speak Japanese, he shouldn't have worried.

     Ranma thought back to his encounter with them in the monolith. "I
know, it was even worse when you're surrounded by thousands of them."

     "All told, there were twenty-seven Amazons killed and dozens more
wounded."

     Ranma gasped and then heard Sanma gasp from behind him.

     Sanma wiped the sleep out of her eyes. "Twenty-seven?!"

     Dr. Tofu nodded. "I've had my hands full treating what injuries I
can. Um... I'm afraid Mr. Tendo took a bad fall from that tornado the
Amazons whipped up."

     Ranma frowned. "How bad?"

     "I don't know yet, but he's paralyzed from the waist down at the
moment. It could be temporary. The Amazons are arranging transport for
the more severely wounded, so we'll know more once we can get him to a
hospital." He gestured to Ranma and Sanma to follow him as he walked
over to a sliding door and opened it.

     Beyond the door, Soun lay on his back with a small, crying child
draped over his artificial breasts. When Dr. Tofu, Ranma, and Sanma came
in, Soun looked up. "Ah, I see the heroes of the day have awakened."

     Ranma gulped. "We don't feel like heroes... so many dead and
you..."

     "Nonsense, my boy, without you two the Amazons would have become
slaves to those demons and who knows what else might have happened."

     Sanma knelt down by Soun's side. "But your legs..."

     "Now, now, my lad... I'm sure I'll get better. This is just
temporary."

     Ranma and Sanma were amazed that the usually quick to cry Soun
Tendo was so calm and collected. But as they looked down at the crying
child, they thought they knew why he was being so brave. Or who he was
being brave for.

     "Ms. Hinako, are you okay?" Ranma asked.

     Little Hinako looked up, tears still streaming from her eyes. She
obviously hadn't cleaned up since the fight, since her red tunic and
face were all dirty.

     "Come on... you should get cleaned up."

     "No! I want to stay with my Soun!"

     Soun smiled. "Hinako... please. I want you to look pretty. Go clean
up." He reached out his hand and stroked her hair.

     "Okay, but don't go anywhere." Little Hinako jumped to her feet and
ran out to get cleaned up.

     Ranma and Sanma both had to resist the urge to crack a joke about
him not being able to go anywhere in his condition. "Mr. Tendo..."

     Soun broke down and started to cry. "Damn, if only I had insisted
she stay at home I'd be a whole man."

     "I don't think you should blame her for your injuries."

     "I'm not!" Soun yelled, then softened. "I would do anything to
protect her. I should have had the foresight to insist she stay at home.
Then all of this could have been avoided."

     Ranma frowned. "Ms. Hinako is not one to be told no, like a certain
headstrong daughter of yours. I'm just glad Akane is safely on her
honeymoon."

     Soun frowned. "Do Hinako and Akane really seem alike to you?"

     Ranma shrugged. "A little. They both drive the men they love
crazy."

     Soun allowed a small smile to form on his lips. "Am I that
transparent?"

     Sanma shook his head. "Nope... Nabiki let us off the hook for some
of our debt to her if we'd try to get you to pop the question to her on
this trip."

     "So my middle daughter is playing matchmaker." Soun's smile
vanished. "Too bad it's too late now."

     Sanma frowned. "Why is that?"

     If Soun was able, he might have jumped down Sanma's throat. "Why?!
Look at me!" He gestured at his immobile legs. "I can't marry her like
this! She deserves a full man who can protect her and give her
children!!"

     Sanma smiled broadly. "Mr. Tendo, take it from one who knows...
being a man is more than that. It's what you are inside that she loves.
Just like Akane looked at Ranko and me the same way when we lost our
manhood..." She paused when she realized that was the truth. Some of her
previous anxiety and doubts about how Akane saw her suddenly vanished.
She still had some deep emotional problems to deal with, but a part of
her suddenly saw some hope where none had existed before. "Ms. Hinako
will still love you no matter what. If she can't... maybe it wasn't
meant to be."

     "Mr. Tendo... if Sanma can get that deep, you'd better listen to
her." Sanma glared at Ranma. "Him."

     Soun sighed. "My lads... I can see Akane has chosen well. All three
of you will make her fine husbands."

     "Thanks... Father," Ranma said.

     "Yeah, what meathead said." Sanma grinned.

     Soun scratched his chest and then frowned. Looking down at his
chest, he looked over at Dr. Tofu and asked, "Um.... how long until
these things go away?" He indicated his artificial breasts.

     "The Amazons said it would be a few days before the effects of the
herbs wear off."

     "Great..." Ranma intoned flatly, looking at his own set of
artificial breasts.

     Sanma glared at Ranma. "Shut up! You've got it easy!"

     "Sorry, Sanma... I forgot you were stuck with yours full time. But
you have to admit... Pop looks really bad with breasts." Ranma looked
over at the other room where their father could be seen sleeping.

     Sanma followed his gaze and saw the two large breasts rising and
falling with Genma's breathing. "Tell me about it." Sanma hoped she
didn't look that bad when she was that age.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Yukiko had gotten out of the First Matriarch's armor and put on a
simple non-ceremonial outfit reserved for the Matriarch. In this case,
'simple' meant that it was a long flowing robe, with gold trim and a
fancy dragon pattern on it. Despite her protests, she was holding the
golden Matriarchal staff that the Eldest had brandished earlier.

     Yukiko knelt by the Eldest's bedside while Dr. Tofu attended to her
wounds. The biggest of which was her burned arm, which was little more
than a stump now. Her father, Shinuma, Powder, several Amazon warriors,
and the three Elders who had lived though the battle were all standing
around the bed.

     Dr. Tofu finished wrapping the bandage back around the stump and
stood up. "I'll need to amputate it now, before it can infect the
healthy tissue."

     The Eldest almost seemed to laugh. "No need... I shall not live. My
only regret is to die in dishonor."

     There were cries of protest.

     Powder spoke. "Eldest... there is no dishonor in your actions. The
Buyierfei controlled you."

     The Eldest shook her head. "For thousands of years the Amazons have
been honor bound to be prepared to battle the Buyierfei-" She kissed her
fingers on her uninjured arm and pressed them to her forehead. The other
assembled Amazons repeated the gesture, carefully using the same arm
that the Eldest did. "-when they returned from the Blackness from which
our ancestors banished them. That was the most sacred duty we have been
sworn to uphold as Amazons. When they did return, we Elders were
found... lacking in the ability to foresee them and take measures to
prevent their return. Shadowfall is near."

     "That's not true!" Ranma called from the doorway. He walked in with
Sanma, Ukyo, and Ryoga.

     The Eldest looked over at Ranma. "Yes, it is. Cologne saw the signs
and we banished her for her foresight. We were so complacent with our
peaceful life that we didn't want her making waves in the Amazon Way.
You confirmed that the Buyierfei had returned, but again, the Circle
didn't act. We accepted that you had destroyed them despite all that the
ancient scrolls tell us about the black demons."

     Sanma knelt down beside the Eldest. "Eldest... we thought they were
destroyed too. Don't blame yourself for things outside your control."

     The Eldest patted Sanma's hand softly with her good hand. "Like
many non-Amazon women, you are very kind. But kindness will get you
killed in battle."

     Sanma didn't feel like correcting the Eldest about her gender.
"Maybe, but that's what makes us different from the Buyierfei. If we
forget that we are people first and fighters second, then why bother
fighting the Buyierfei?"

     The assembled Amazons all kissed their fingers and pressed them to
their forehead again at the mention of their enemy's name.

     The Eldest coughed violently and then studied Sanma for a few
moments. <She handles herself on the battlefield like an Amazon by
birth... no... better than any Amazon I've ever seen. Maybe it's time
for a change... time for...>  She gathered the last of her strength
before speaking. "Very wise... Eldest. The Amazon's need new blood to
lead them in this time of great challenge." The Eldest coughed a few
times and then pressed her hand against Sanma's forehead. "I pass to you
before I pass to the next world. Lead well, Eldest of the Amazon tribe."

     "What?" Sanma asked confused.

     The Eldest slumped and her hand dropped to the bed's surface. Dr.
Tofu quickly checked her condition and then looked up. "She's dead."

     The Amazons all bowed and looked at Sanma. "Eldest, may you die
honorably," they called out in Mandarin.

     "Err... can someone tell me what's going on?" Sanma asked, looking
around at all the Amazons who were all saying something in her direction
that she couldn't understand.

     Powder stepped forward and bowed to Sanma. "In death, the Eldest
has passed to you. You are now Eldest of the Amazon tribe and leader of
the Circle."

     "Eh?"

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     "No way, no way, no way!" Sanma shouted later after they had
reconvened in the large hut that the Amazons were going to use for the
Circle until the old hut could be rebuilt.

     "That'll teach you to sound so smart," Ranma said, unable to hide
the smile on his face.

     "Shut up!"

     "Make me!"

     "Amazons... silence this MAN!"

     Ranma suddenly found himself with an assortment of very sharp
weapons at his throat. "Err... sorry."

     Sanma waved her hand and grinned. "I could get used to this."

     "Power crazed bitch," Ranma muttered.

     Sanma ignored Ranma and looked over at Powder. "So how do I get out
of this?"

     Powder answered without pause. "You die."

     Sanma gulped. "No, really... how?"

     Powder shook her head. "I'm sorry, but the Eldest is a lifetime
position. Before you die you can name your successor, but the role of
the Eldest does not pass to that person until you die."

     "But... I never accepted the position!"

     "It doesn't matter. As a member of the Amazon tribe, you are honor
bound to accept the responsibility once it is passed to you."

     "I'm not an Amazon!"

     Ranma leaned over to Sanma. "Yes, we are... Cologne declared us
Amazons, remember?"

     Sanma frowned. "Oh, yeah... damn. Um... I'm hardly old enough to be
called 'Eldest'."

     Powder shook her head. "Age is not important, although to my
knowledge you are the youngest to carry the title of Eldest. Most of the
Elders are elected to the Circle in their first century. The former
Eldest was but sixty-two when she took over the position when the Eldest
before her died.

     "But I'm only eighteen!"

     Ranma coughed. "Um... actually you're only a few months old...
since the split and all."

     Sanma glared at Ranma and thought about ordering an execution or at
least something really nasty and unpleasant.

     Powder again explained. "There are no age requirements. The current
Eldest just has to make her choice and all Amazons are honor bound to
accept that decision after she passes."

     Sanma muttered something that normally shouldn't be heard in mixed
company.

     "Um, is this a good time for me to resign as Matriarch?" Yukiko
asked suddenly.

     "No," Powder said flatly.

     "Wait! If she can resign, why can't I?"

     "She cannot resign either."

     "WHAT?" three voices exclaimed at once. Those voices belonged to
Yukiko, Shinuma, and Aftershave.

     Powder explained. "When the Eldest passes from the old to the new,
the Matriarch cannot pass for at least a year and then only for just
cause. That is Amazon law."

     "Stooopid law."

     Ranma huffed. "Tell me about it... I almost got killed by you and
then married to you because of one of those dumb laws."

     Yukiko frowned. "I don't remember that."

     "At least you have a way out eventually! I'm stuck for life!" Sanma
shouted

     Shinuma spoke up. "Is there anyway out of this?"

     Powder shook her head. "I'm sorry, but no. Failure to follow these
laws would require all Amazons to give you and your families the kiss of
death to ensure their honor. Failure to kill you all would mean an end
to the Amazon Way... very dishonorable."

     Yukiko perked up. "How so?"

     "Dishonor enough to require all Amazons to take their own lives to
restore honor to the Amazon Way... if only in death."

     Yukiko's mood darkened again.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     "I don't want to be leader of these weird women!" Yukiko cried,
later that night as she and Shinuma held each other in front of a fire.

     Shinuma pulled his fiancee closer to him. "I know, but right now
we'll have to try and restore some stability to the Amazons. Once things
settle down, we'll find a way out for you."

     Yukiko cried softly. "I just want to go back to Japan and be your
wife and help take care of all the animals... I can't be these women's
'Matriarch'!"

     Shinuma stroked her hair softly. "I know... we will get married
soon. I promise. But I don't think it's right to just abandon your
people."

     "My people? I don't know any of these people! I better off not
knowing anything about Shampoo's past! Yukiko no want to remember or
have anything to do with this stooopid past!"

     Shinuma could tell Yukiko was very upset, because her speech was
starting to revert back to her old style like it usually did when she
was agitated or confused. "Yukiko, stop it. You are the sum of your past
and your present. You can't just ignore it. Your cooking and martial
arts skills all come from your past. You may not remember it, but it's a
part of you... a part of the woman I love."

     "Why couldn't Yukiko just have never remembered Ranma and been
happy in Shinjuku with you?"

     Shinuma leaned down and gave her a long kiss. "You're not happy
now?"

     Yukiko smiled and nodded. "I am when I'm with you."

     "Then you will always be happy because I have no intention of
leaving your side."

     "Wo ai ni..."

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     The next day, Dr. Tofu arranged for a large group of Amazons to
help him transport the wounded on carts to the nearest hospital, which
was a two-day journey. Genma and Soun were part of the wounded, of
course. And where Soun went, Ms. Hinako went. Ryoga and Ukyo went along
to make sure that everything went well on the way and eventually to
return to Japan.

     Ranma and Shinuma stayed behind, hoping they could find a way for
Yukiko and Sanma to get out of their forced positions as the new leaders
of the Amazon tribe.

     Ranma had wanted to go along, but Genma had insisted he was more
useful in the village. After a long verbal fight in which Ranma had to
restrain himself several times from pounding his wounded father, Ranma
reluctantly agreed to stay while Sanma tried to stabilize the Amazons
and get out of her unwanted job. Since a part of him wasn't in a hurry
to return to a house where Ranko was married to his Akane, he decided
there was no harm in sticking around the village for a few weeks.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Back in the Amazon village, Yukiko and Sanma first had to stabilize
the shaky leadership of the Amazons before they could try to find some
way out of the positions they had been forced into, assuming they even
could. Stabilizing the Amazons meant choosing three more Elders to
complete the Circle. It had almost been six when the three surviving
Elders declared that they were dishonored and were resigning from the
Circle.

     Sanma and Yukiko nixed that idea and used their authority to
declare their honor restored. They spoke eloquently for an hour of the
honor of surviving in the face of a powerful enemy and the need of
experience to keep the Amazon Way from coming to an end. In the end, the
Elders conceded to the wishes of the 'noble' leaders of the new Amazon
Way.

     The truth was somewhat less noble: Yukiko and Sanma figured if they
were stuck in the job, the Elders couldn't get out of it that easy.

     The three new Elders were harder to arrange and ended up taking
them three full days to select from all of the possible candidates.
Yukiko and Sanma had no idea about which of the Amazons would be good
for the job. They ended up consulting Powder for information and in the
end choose two from her list. The third was Powder herself, since she
seemed to have a good head on her shoulders and was almost the only
Amazon that they knew well enough to trust.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     A couple days after the battle, most of the major damage had been
repaired or removed from the battlefield. The remains of the Buyierfei
had started disintegrating almost immediately into a fine black dust,
which was carted away as far from the village as possible.

     A large wake was held for all the Amazons who died. Normally an
Amazon wake took weeks to prepare, but in this case the circumstances
dictated that the honored warriors be put to rest as soon as possible.
It was a somber event, with very few speakers. Mostly family members who
spoke of their honored relatives who died honorably fighting the
Buyierfei. Only Yukiko spoke for the Eldest and Elders. And that was
only to declare their honor restored, as was the custom for any Elder
who died in dishonor, no matter the circumstances. If the death was
particularly dishonorable, an appeal could be made by the
highest-ranking warriors to withhold the restoration of honor, but in
this case, no one chose to exercise that right.

     After the traditional seven-day mourning period after the wake, the
bodies were laid to rest on top the ancient burial mound of the Amazons
and set ablaze. It was only three days later when the large fire had
reduced the bodies to ash that tradition dictated the first meeting of
the new Circle could be held.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     The first meeting of the new Circle was very awkward since Sanma
and Yukiko had no idea what to do. Powder had been seated between Yukiko
and Sanma to help them with the proper procedures. "Matriarch, first you
must declare the session open and then instruct the Eldest to go over
the list of action items."

     Yukiko nodded. "I declare this session open. Due to the Eldest not
speaking Mandarin, we will conduct all business in Japanese. Eldest,
please start on the list of action items."

     Sanma nodded and looked for the list that the six Circle members
had compiled before the meeting. "Um... okay. First is Aftershave's
punishment."

     Yukiko spoke right up. "That's easy... no punishment. He not
responsible for his actions."

     Powder leaned over and whispered to Yukiko. "Excuse me Matriarch,
but it isn't your decision. The Circle will vote, with the Eldest being
the tiebreaker if needed, and then you must either agree to their decree
or reject it. If you reject it, then they will have to come up with
another decision until you agree to one of them."

     "Wouldn't it be faster if I just state my solution and they vote on
it?"

     Powder nodded. "Yes, but that is not the Amazon Way."

     After about an hour of going back and forth with decrees that
Yukiko turned down, the Circle finally passed a resolution that Yukiko
could live with. Mostly because it was the first one not to require
Aftershave to be folded, stapled, or mutilated in any way.

     "By consensus of the Circle and the Matriarch: Aftershave shall be
banished from the Amazon tribe, but will be allowed to remain in the
village due to his relationship with the Matriarch. He will not be
allowed any say in Amazon matters and is forever banned from being
Matriarch."

     Yukiko still couldn't believe that there wasn't a law on the books
that forbade a man from being Matriarch, but it turns out there was a
loophole in the laws governing who could become Matriarch. Since blood
claims to the Matriarch are only valid for the women members of a family
line and only the Circle can elect a Amazon from outside the blood lines
that go back to the original Amazons, the laws assumed the Circle would
only name a woman to the post.

     Yukiko raised her golden staff to indicate her acceptance of the
proclamation concerning Aftershave's punishment. "Next."

     "Next is a resolution to amend the laws of the Amazon tribe to
prevent any man from being elected or holding the title and position of
Matriarch of the Amazon tribe."

     That resolution passed without any discussion at all.

     Sanma looked at the list. "Next is... WHAT?!"

     Yukiko frowned and looked at Sanma. "What's the matter?"

     Sanma read the item that had shocked her. "Next is the marriage of
Ranma Saotome to Nipplering."

     Yukiko gasped in surprise. She looked to Powder for an explanation.
"Powder?"

     Powder spoke up. "It appears that Nipplering has claimed the right
of marriage to Ranma."

     "Why?"

     "He apparently touched her breast while engaged in mortal combat."

     Yukiko flinched. "And that means she has to marry him?"

     Sanma wasn't too surprised that there was a law like that. She had
first hand knowledge of some of the stupid laws that the Amazons had.
She might have laughed at his predicament, if not for the fact that she
seemed to be stuck as the Eldest for the rest of her life.

     "No." Yukiko and Sanma relaxed. "*HE* must marry her. No woman is
obliged to marry any male unless she is defeated by him."

     Yukiko sighed. She realized she should have guessed that the woman
would have the choice and not the man. "Yuki... I guess we better talk
to Ranma and Nipplering."

     After being summoned, Ranma and Nipplering--a tall, gorgeous,
green-haired Amazon in a black leotard--walked in. Nipplering kept
making eyes at Ranma, which Ranma was blissfully unaware of.

     "Now then... Nipplering, please state your claim," Powder said as
the couple sat down at the Circle's edge.

     "I, Nipplering, on my honor as an Amazon warrior declare that this
man-" She pointed at Ranma. "-did fondle my breast while we were engaged
in mortal combat with the enemy."

     "Ranma Saotome, what say you?" Powder asked.

     Ranma stammered, but then found his voice. "Err... um... I'm really
sorry about that. It was an accident."

     "So you deny you were proposing to her?"

     "What?!" Ranma shouted, jumping to his feet.

     "It is an ancient Amazon tradition to grab the breast of the one
you love in battle to propose marriage."

     "I didn't know that... it's just a mistake!"

     "No matter. Nipplering, do you wish to claim this man as your
husband?"

     "Yes, I do and his father already accepted a wedding present of a
gold bra that has been in my family for generations."

     Ranma went pale. <That's why he was so insistent on me staying
here. Just you wait, old man!!>

     Powder nodded. "Yes. I remember the evil pervert who tried to steal
it from you years ago when you were but a C-cup." She looked at Ranma.
"With a gift already exchanged, you are honor bound to marry her,
Ranma."

     "I'm not marrying her!" Ranma was starting to panic as he saw that
he was being railroaded into another Amazon engagement. <I can't believe
this!> He looked at the tall Amazon and cringed. She was beautiful, but
she was huge. Easily a half meter taller than Ranma and very muscular,
but at the same time feminine. Unlike some of the other large Amazons,
at least Nipplering didn't have any chest or facial hair.

     Sanma, on the other hand, was desperately trying not to laugh.
"Powder, surely there must be some way out for Ranma."

     Powder thought for a few moments. "Yes, he can die."

     Sanma rolled his eyes. "Gee, can't you get out of anything around
here without dying?"

     Powder thought for a few moments and then answered with a straight
face. "No."     

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Ranma tried desperately over the next half-hour to come up with a
way out of his predicament. The Elders dismissed all of his arguments,
so unfortunately Yukiko and Sanma couldn't do a thing in this case. "But
I can't marry Nipplering! I'm already engaged to Akane Tendo!"

     "You claim a prior engagement?" one of the Elders asked.

     Ranma nodded, hope returning to him.

     Powder spoke. "Um, sorry to mention this, Ranma, but Akane Tendo
just got married in Japan, didn't she?"

     Ranma flinched. "Yeah... but just to a woman..." He immediately
regretted saying that as most of the Amazons in the makeshift Circle hut
glared at him and some even readied their weapons. "I mean... that she
had promised to marry me and Sanma later."

     The Elders all conferred for several moments before Powder spoke.
"I'm sorry, Amazon law recognizes marriages between two women, but not
marriages to multiple partners, so we can not honor that as a valid
engagement."

     Ranma's mood sunk to its lowest level and then a thought struck
him. "Wait... I'm still technically engaged to Yu... Shampoo, aren't I?"

     Yukiko flinched, but before she could say anything the Elders all
nodded their agreement.

     Powder nodded before explaining. "That is correct... and an
engagement by defeating an Amazon in battle supercedes an engagement by
breast fondling."

     A smirk that showed that Ranma was very pleased with himself spread
across his face. The smile remained until he saw the angry look that
Yukiko was directing at him. He gulped loudly as he realized that this
was not the same girl who used to want to marry him. <I may have just
made this worse.>

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     Days later, the Tendo sisters, Ranko, and Nodoka all stood at the
gate outside the Tokyo Airport's International Terminal. They had been
there for an hour already, impatiently waiting for their returning
friends, family, and lovers.

     Suddenly, a smile spread across Kasumi's face and she ran towards
Dr. Tofu and gave him a long hug. Other welcomes would have to wait
until they were alone.

     Ryoga and Ukyo were next. Ukyo was obviously mad about something
and stormed out of the gate. Akane was about to hug Ryoga, but then
stopped. Some of the pain of his deception about P-chan still lingered
in her heart. "Um... welcome back you two." She gave Ukyo a big hug, but
noticed she was really tense. "What's the matter, Ukyo?"

     "The bastards in customs wouldn't give me my spatula back," Ukyo
said, then added a few unladylike expressions.

     Akane had to smile at that.

     Nabiki came up and patted her on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Ukyo,
I know some people... I can probably get it released."

     Ukyo's mood brightened. "Thanks..."

     They all turned when they heard Nodoka and Kasumi gasp. And then
the race was on. Nodoka shot towards her husband, who was sitting in a
wheelchair and the Tendo sisters all homed in on the gurney that Soun
lay on. Little Hinako was holding his hand and trotting along next to
him. Two Amazon women, who had accompanied the group back to Japan, were
pushing both the wheelchair and gurney. Another dozen or so Amazons
followed behind them, looking very uncomfortable without their weapons.
They were constantly scanning the airport, as if expecting an attack at
any moment.

     Since the Amazons were wearing armor, they attracted a lot of
attention from people passing by. The glares that the Amazons gave in
return quickly produced a large buffer space around the group.

     While Nodoka attended to her husband, the Tendo sisters all gave
their father hugs and kisses.

     "You scared us so much, Father," Kasumi said.

     "Nothing to worry about dears, I'll be up and walking in no time,"
Soun said, cheerfully.

     Dr. Tofu knew he was being brave for Hinako's sake. The tests in
China had shown that there was a chance of recovery, but Dr. Tofu would
have been more confident if they had been able to get him to a decent
medical facility sooner.

     After they finished fussing over the wounded, Akane looked around.
"Where are Ranma and Sanma?"

     Awkward glances went around the returning group of travelers, until
Dr. Tofu stepped forward and took Akane's hand. "Um, as we explained on
the phone, Sanma still is trying to find a way out of being the Eldest
and Ranma... stayed behind to help."

     Before the travelers left to return to Japan, the group of Amazons
who had returned to Japan with them had showed up with some letters.
There had been some hope that Ranma and Sanma would be able to accompany
them back, but the letters made it clear that they wouldn't be able to
come back right away. Ranma's explained his newfound fiancee problems,
but insisted that he would find away out and urged them all not to worry
Akane over it. 

     Akane frowned and fingered the two rings she wore on a necklace
around her neck. She sensed there was something more to the story, but
she decided she could wait to get the full story. "And what's the deal
with all the Amazons?"

     One of the Amazons--a short, skinny, blue-haired woman, who seemed
too frail to be a warrior--walked forward and bowed to Akane. "You are
Akane Tendo?" Akane nodded. "I am Soapring, I speak for these Amazons.
As you are the highest ranked Amazon present, we are yours to command."

     Akane looked confused. "Huh?"

     Dr. Tofu stepped forward to explain. "Yukiko sent the Amazons along
to protect the Tendo and Saotome families in case the Buyierfei attack
us here. After you told us you had encountered them in Hawaii, we sent
word back to the village. Apparently, that news made the Amazons very
nervous. They began preparations to do battle with the Buyierfei if and
when they show up again. Part of that was making sure no harm came to
you, since you're honorary members of the tribe and have already
experienced battle with the Buyierfei."

     The Amazon warriors all kissed their fingers and touched their
foreheads.

     "I guess it's useful being part of the Amazon tribe after all,"
Ranko said, smugly.

     Ukyo laughed a bit. "Sanma doesn't think so."

     "I still can't believe that Sanma got stuck being Eldest of the
Amazons." Ranko started laughing.

     Ukyo smiled, but wondered if she should tell them exactly why Ranma
really couldn't return, but figured it was better for now that Akane not
know. There was still hope that he would get out of both of the two
engagements he was now honor bound to make good on.

     Akane looked back to Soapring, "So why am I the highest ranked
Amazon here?"

     "Yea! Why?" Ranko asked, miffed that she wouldn't be considered the
best.

     Soapring answered. "Since you have defeated both the current
Matriarch and the former Matriarch in mortal combat, that makes you the
highest ranked here."

     "Huh? I know I defeated Shampoo, but I never even met the previous
Matriarch."

     Soapring frowned, as if confused. "You did fire the blast that
defeated Aftershave while he was Matriarch, didn't you?"

     Akane realized she had been mistaken about whom Soapring had
considered the former Matriarch. "Yeah... I guess so. But Ranma and
Sanma really were the ones who defeated him."
 
     Soapring nodded. "Maybe, but by Amazon tradition the final blow is
the most honorable."

     Akane sighed in resignation. She didn't like the idea of having the
Amazons around, but figured they would be useful if the Buyierfei
happened to show up in Nerima, although she doubted they would. "Fine. I
guess we can find room for you all... somewhere."

     All the Amazons bowed to Akane and then the odd collection of
people made their way out of the airport.

                    -C-           -M-           -D-

     When they returned, the Amazons quickly spread out and searched the
house and yard for signs of trouble before allowing anyone inside.

     "Gee, you'd think we were at war or something," Nabiki commented
wryly as she walked inside the gate.

     Soapring spoke. "We are."

     As the gate closed behind the group, a small white duck that had
been circling the house settled onto a nearby rooftop and stared at the
Tendo house through thick glasses. 


***********************************************************************
>From the personal journal of James Davidson:


September 23, 2057

     "That must have been a rough time for the Amazons."

     Sanma nodded. "Yes, the Circle was the heart of the Amazon tribe.
With it in tatters, the Amazon Way almost came to an end. If not for my
noble leadership, it most assuredly would have."

     Akane chucked suddenly. "That would sound great if I didn't know
that you spent most of your time in the village trying to get out of
being Eldest."

     "Hey! At least I didn't get engaged to two more women like Ranma
did!"

     Akane sighed. "True. What was he thinking anyway? Drawing Yukiko
back into that engagement to get out of another."

     Sanma smiled. "Well, he never was that bright."

     Akane and I exchanged knowing glances when Sanma unknowingly
insulted herself.

     "How did he get out of it?" I asked.

     Akane smiled. "That'll have to wait. I'm afraid that Sanma and I
have to go out of the country tomorrow."

     "Where?"

     Akane looked nervous for a brief moment, but then answered my
question. "China. To... visit some old friends."

     "Can I come with you? I have an appointment with Nijiko tomorrow,
but I could postpone it."

     Akane shook her head. "I'm afraid this is something we have to do
alone. And Nijiko is a hard woman to get an interview with, so it
wouldn't be wise to put it off."

     "I know. I guess I'm spoiled with the kind of access you give me
that it was very shocking to encounter all the bureaucracy I was
presented with before I even had had a chance to request an interview."

     "Well, she runs Tendo Enterprises in a very hands-on manner. That
means she's always busy doing something."

     "I'd have thought that you were in more demand?"

     Akane chuckled. "Me? Nonsense. All the kids run everything around
here. Sanma and me aren't even active members of the Task Force. If the
Buyierfei show up we take the lead, but otherwise we sit back and let
the kids run the show."

     "So you're sort of retired?"

     "They kids like to think so. They fret over us so much and we try
to put their concerns to rest by taking it easy."

     Sanma huffed. "Yeah, but that's so boring."

     "What my headstrong husband means is that he likes to blow stuff up
once in awhile."

     Sanma smirked and patted her chest. "Keeps me young."

     I looked over at Sanma. "Didn't you just go on a mission recently?"

     "That's right! And a very important one!"

     Akane smiled. "He had to go help get a team that got their
equipment stuck in mud down in South America."

     "Hey! Those trucks were really stuck!"

     I tried not to laugh, but was unsuccessful. "Why did you go on a
simple mission like that?"

     "Well, mostly to get out of the Compound. Didn't get to blow
anything up, though." Sanma pouted.

     "Maybe next time, Honey," Akane said, and leaned over and gave her
husband a long kiss.


[End - Chapter 19]

Coming soon: Chapter 20: A Mousse Flew Over the Tendo's House
=======================================================================
The real author's (Jim Lazar) notes/ramblings:


Things are starting to heat up... don't blink or you're miss something.


I'd like to thank my pre-readers Jyh-I Lu, EBJ, David Johnston, Jonathan
Ng and Thomas C. Kinnen for helping me find and fix problems with this
story. FFML members Christopher J. Olsen, and Michael A. Chase were also
helpful in fine tuning this story. Thank you all. Of course in the end,
any mistakes and botched characters are my fault.


Revision 0.0 - Rough draft (March 1,  1998)
Revision 0.3 - Pre-reader draft (June 28, 1998)
Revision 0.4 - FFML draft (July 11, 1998)
Revision 1.0 - Final version (July 24, 1999)
Revision 1.1 - First RAAC posting (July 30, 1999)