Twisted Crystal
Chapter 2, Part 1
Friend or Foe?
The sun rose high over the district of Nerima, farther west than the region of town where the festivities of the previous night had taken place. It was quite a pleasant morning for this side of town, but as everyone in the Nerima district knew, beautiful mornings led to big trouble. A carp suddenly broke the surface of the waters in a small familiar fish pond, off the main house in the courtyard of the Tendo Dojo. Battle sounds suddenly flooded the streets, waking up many members of this quiet neighborhood who were within earshot.
"Ranma! Face me!" cried a harsh voice. "Come on, boy, defend yourself!"
"I am, Pop! I am!" Ranma hollered. Genma, wearing his white gi, leaped through the air and dropped a kick down at Ranma's shoulder. Ranma fell back stunned. "Oww! Hey! Watch it, Pop! That stings!"
"Ranma, my boy, would you suck it up and face me like a man!? How do you expect to inherit the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts if you can't live through a simple training exercise?" Genma shouted at him in mockery.
"I already told ya, Pop! I'm fighting my hardest. I just don't know what's wrong with me!" he cried in dismay.
"Likely story, Ranma. Stop your whining, for once!"
"Ranma! Mr. Saotome! Breakfast is ready!" a young girl's voice called out softly.
"Looks like you lucked out this time, my boy. Coming Kasumi!" Genma leaped forward, hurling himself at Ranma. He planted a hand on Ranma's head to give himself a little boost and knocked him backwards into the fish pond. Genma shook his head sadly and dashed off to the breakfast table. "You're getting way too sloppy, Ranma!"
A girl, Ranma's age, with short black hair walked out into the courtyard and caught a glance at Ranma sitting in the fish pond. "Umm... Ranma! Look at yourself!!" she shouted.
"What's wrong, Akane?" Ranma stopped talking and sat their silently staring at Akane. Then he opened his mouth slowly, "My voice.. I'm a guy, aren't I?" he asked in almost a whisper. Akane nodded slightly. Ranma looked down at his hands and the rest of his body. He clutched his chest. "I'm in cold water and I'm a guy!" he shouted. The rest of the people in the Dojo stuck their heads out the door and stared, then Genma and Soun,who was Akane's father, came running out to get a better look.
"Ranma! Ranma! This is wonderful! Now there is no delay, we can have you and Akane married in no time!" Soun exclaimed.
"No time for that, Tendo," Genma said pushing him aside violently. He grabbed Ranma by the shoulders and pulled him from the fish pond. "How'd you do it, boy? Tell me!? You've ridded yourself of the curse! Come on and tell me!"
"Lemme go, Pop!" Ranma shouted. "I don't have time for this." Genma dropped him to his feet and Ranma idly tried to wring out his clothing, while it was still on his body. "Come on, I may be able to explain while we eat. I'm starved."
Ranma had been staying with the Tendo's for a long time now. He was engaged to Akane, who he found totally unattractive and a violent tomboy, but it was an engagement arranged by their parents. Genma and Soun had been friends for years and this had been decided since before either of their children were born, but in a sense Ranma was caught in a second curse. Of course, Akane had her moments when he actually could tolerate her, maybe even like her a little, but for the most part he just wished that he could get away from it all and find a cure for his curse.
Normally cold water turned him into a female, hot water reverted him to normal, but now it was apparently different. His father, Genma, suffered from a similar problem, though his curse was to change into a huge panda. They had gotten this curse from a strange training ground in China and it was something that neither of them, or the few friends of theirs who also suffered from these types of curses, could rid themselves of.
On top of all that, Ranma had a problem with women... and a similar one with men. It seemed every girl within five miles was in love with him, mainly as a guy.. and a few of the men were in love with him as a girl. But more often than not, all he got were challenges to martial arts competitions due to some declaration of love. It was all very very common around Nerima.
"Last night, I sort of got into some kind of strange fight. It's real hard to explain. Okay, I was trying to get Mr. P," as he mentioned the piglet, a small black form in Akane's arms began squealing as if he had a sudden revenge to get on Ranma. "Shut up, bacon breath. Anyway, I was chasing him and I came across this woman. She trapped me in some sort of light thingie but then this girl blocked her and gave me an opening for an attack.
"This woman that attacked me was fast and very powerful! Even with the speed of my Kachu Tenshin Amaguryken training, she avoided all of my attacks easily by teleporting in and out. Though she gave up and vanished. I was sorta confused, and to thank her I went with the girl who saved me to some cafe and this woman found me there." While speaking, Ranma grew more and more aware of a grim demeanor which was overtaking Akane. He could see the look of hatred spreading across her face at the mention of this other woman and the date at the cafe. He tried to ignore it as best he could. "Anyway.. she took this stone from inside me and then vanished with it. I transformed into my girl side, but I was all distorted and mutated and what not. Then after fighting these two girls who claimed to be Sailor Moon and Sailor Jupiter, or some junk, I was changed back," Ranma explained.
Genma and Soun sat there silently. Both of them nodding in understanding. "That could also explain why your martial arts aren't up to par, but what is this crystal?"
"I dunno! But I gotta find this woman, or those Sailor people and get it back!" Ranma said in desperation. "I'm nothin' if I can't fight!"
"It would seem that way," came a familiar, almost cackling voice. It was the Anything-Goes master, Happosai, a perverted old man of incredible martial arts skill. He was nearly unmatched. His tiny two foot frame stood silhouetted in the doorway.
"What do you want, you freak of nature?" Ranma asked softly.
"Ranma.. Ranma.. I'm insulted! I only came to give you and Akane a warm hug and help you out as best I can." Happosai sat down on a small cushion and stuck a pipe in his small mouth. "It sounds like you've gotten a taste of the Negaverse," Happosai explained.
"Oh yeah? What's that?" Ranma asked.
"Yes, Grandfather Happosai, please tell us," said Soun's eldest daughter, Kasumi. She was the woman of the house since they lost their mother so long ago.
"I don't know much at all, really. The Negaverse is a dark place that wants to conquer our planet and this universe. That's about all I can tell you. It's just a legend. The crystal you talk about is very interesting, though, Pig-tailed boy."
"Oh, you're no help!" Ranma shouted. He threw up his hands and then stood. "I gotta get that crystal back. I'll be home for dinner," he said. Ranma ran off and tossed himself high up into the air. Spring boarding off of the Dojo's perimeter wall he launched himself to the rooftops to find the mysterious woman who had robbed him of his fighting skill.
"Ranma! What about school!?" Akane called after him. "Honestly.."
Somewhere dark, not anywhere near the city that the Sailor Scouts or Ranma dwelled in, Queen Beryl sat upon her throne. Like always a dark crystal ball hovered in front of her. She was looking down at Zoisite who stood proudly holding her dark crystal.
"Zoisite, I must commend you on your retrieving the first Rainbow Crystal, but you know that there are six more more to be recovered."
"Yes, I know, your majesty. I was just about to seek out the next one."
"Excellent," Queen Beryl said with a tinge of pleasure. Zoisite released the dark crystal that he controlled and it spun slowly in the air. "Dark Crystal, guide us to the next human who holds a Rainbow Crystal!" The crystal flared and there was a swirl of dark energy. Which shifted into the image of a tornado. A figure began to emerge from within, he was tall and wore a long white robe with a strange pattern on the front. He had long black hair and very thick glasses.
"Zoisite, you know what to do," Queen Beryl said with narrowing eyes. Zoisite nodded and vanished into the darkness.
"Ranma!" came a shout from behind, extremely feminine. "What you doing here?" A purple haired girl rode her bike along side Ranma as he ran along the side walk. He was a bit too disoriented to walk on the fences, and he had fallen from the rooftops more than once. Apparently his balance along with everything else had been thrown off greatly.
"Uh.. hey Shampoo," he said with a worried glance. She was from China, near the place where he received his curse, and her strange Amazon laws had left he and she arranged to be married. Her laws demanded that any outsider of the opposite sex who defeated an Amazon in combat must be wed by that Amazon, while if it were of the same sex hunted to the ends of the earth and destroyed. Ranma was thankful that all the male/female confusion was in the past. Of course, this left him with yet another fiancee.
Shampoo had also been inflicted with the pains of Jusenkyo, the Cursed Springs, and became a small pink furred cat when she got splashed with cold water. Cats... Ranma hated cats. He was more than terrified of them. He shook his head and tried to focus. "I've got to find these girls and get something they took from me."
"Girls do something to Ranma that he rather not talk about? Shampoo not like sound of that," she said with her eyes narrowing. Ranma stopped running and Shampoo swirled her bike and flipped off of it.
"Hey, Shampoo, do you have a delivery or something to make?" Ranma asked her. She shook her head and smiled. He flinched as he saw what was coming. Shampoo threw herself at him and wrapped her arms around his neck in a warm embrace.
"Great-grandmother give Shampoo a break for while. Business is slow this time of day."
"Yeah.. well, you think you could come with me?" he asked her softly, almost unheard.
"You want take Shampoo with you!?" she gasped. "Oh! Ranma! Shampoo gladly come to date with you! Shampoo been waiting so long!"
"Ah!! It's not a date, Shampoo!" he screamed. "I just need your help.. I'm not feeling too good. I won't be able to fight, if I need to," he tried to explain calmly.
"That no matter to Shampoo. Shampoo still honored you ask her to come. Wo ai ni!" she cried out squeezing him tighter.
"Come on, Shampoo, lemme go!" Shampoo released him and he stepped back.
"Where we going?" she asked him.
"The other side of town. I gotta get this crystal back, even if it means getting back my girl side."
"Ranma! You no have girl side no more?" Shampoo gasped. He nodded grimly.
"But I can't fight anymore, Shampoo. That's what I need you for. My balance is thrown, my attention during a fight drifts, I can't seem to block anything and I can't concentrate at all."
From farther above the two a man stood on the roof tops, clad in a white robe, his black hair fell around his waist. He pushed a pair of thick glasses up on to his forehead. What's this I hear? Ranma's been weakened? Now's my chance to destroy him in physical competition! I can finally claim Shampoo's heart. She'll have no choice but to marry me, he thought to himself. Laughing inwardly he began to follow them from high above.
Usagi sat in her classroom with a bored look on her face.. and she yawned as though she'd fall asleep. Her teacher, Miss Haruna seemed to be babbling on about some nonsense and Usagi suddenly realized that paying attention to her would perhaps be better than just thinking about paying attention.
"All right class, these are the three essay questions I want you to work on over the weekend," she said writing on the black board. "All the information should be in your notes."
Usagi's mind began to wander again as she looked over to her best friend's empty desk. Poor Naru, she's been out for a week. I guess she's still depressed about losing Nephlyte. Her mind thought back to the touching scene where some strange girl, the same that had attacked Ranma the day before, in fact, had killed Naru's love. A man that Usagi had been fighting as Sailor Moon for weeks, suddenly had a good streak. It was really tragic, and apparently Naru was taking it hard. Unable to get her attention off of Naru, she decided that she'd have to drop by her house later and check in on her.
After school, Gurio convinced Usagi to let him tag along, but she seemed skeptical. Anyway, he and Usagi were sitting quietly on the floor in Naru's room not long after school was out. She sat near the window peering out while Gurio and Usagi sat farther from her, searching for something to say.
"Oh, Naru! You shoulda been in gym class today! Gurio got tangled in the volleyball net! It was classic," Usagi said cheerfully.
"Yeah, but only because someone with long blond pig-tails tripped me and made me fall! Hey, Naru, you wanna hear a joke?"
Usagi leaned closer and whispered to him, "No jokes. Don't you have any gossip?"
"Gossip? Yeah! I heard that millionaire Maxfield Stanton disappeared!" he shouted loudly. Usagi grabbed the back of Gurio's head and slammed his face into the floor. Unfortunately, Maxfield Stanton was what Nephlyte had called himself to disguise his evil identity. It was he that Naru had fallen in love with.
"Hey you guys wanna go for a walk?" Naru asked.
"You wanna go out!?" Usagi gasped.
"Yeah.. it's such a beautiful day," she sighed. "We should enjoy it. Then later let's go see the Sailor V movie."
"You feel up to it?" Usagi asked.
"Yeah, it's about time don't you think?" Naru asked her smiling. Usagi nodded and Gurio seemed to get all excited.
"Sailor V, my favorite!! Yeah!"
In another part of town, the rest of the Sailor Scouts, Ami, Rei and Makoto, were sitting around at Rei's temple talking with Luna of the things to come. Where they would be going and who was going to be in charge.
"Did you find any more about what the Negaverse is after, now?" Ami asked Luna with her soft quiet voice.
"Yes! When I checked in with Central Control, I was told they're now after something called the Rainbow Crystals," Luna explained.
"I thought they were after energy," Rei said with a puzzled look to the feline.
"Yeah, but maybe these Crystals give them more energy," Mako-chan suggested.
"Whatever it is, it's not going to be good. But if they get their hands on those Crystals the Universe is history!"
"Why the Crystals?" Ami asked.
"Well, it's a long story that goes back over a thousand years, when the Moon Kingdom and the Negaverse were at war." Luna went on to explain to the Scouts how Queen Serenity had trapped the Shadows in the Silver Emperium Crystal. Then how it shattered scattering the Shadows trapped in each of the seven Rainbow Crystals. The three girls listened patiently, nodding. "Count on them coming back for the other six. If they get all seven, we're doomed!" Luna exclaimed.
"I think we can handle 'em. Sailor Moon and I took care of Ranma well enough," Makoto said.
"Luna, how are we supposed to know where these Rainbow Crystals are, anyway?" Ami asked.
"There's an alarm in the Crescent Moon Wand that reacts to them."
The girls gasped slightly and then Mako-chan spoke up, "I thought the Crescent Moon Wand was for transforming people back from Negamonsters."
"It is, but it's also got a homing device that will track down the Rainbow Crystals."
"Do you think Usagi's the person who should keep it? She's not the world's most responsible person. She'll probably use it for a nutcracker.. or worse," Rei said.
"No, I think the responsibility is good for her. Anyway, I wouldn't have been ordered to give it to her if she weren't ready," Luna defended. "Now, if you guys don't want her as you're leader, that's okay, but you've all got to agree."
"You can change your orders?" Makoto asked.
"Listen, if anything causes friction between the Sailor Scouts, we've got to try to fix it right away!" Luna said.
"She whines too much to be leader!" Rei protested.
"She does.. but she's getting a lot braver," Luna pointed out. "I think you guys should give her a chance."
"I'm way braver than she is," Rei said.
"Luna's right," Ami said. "She has come a long way."
"Ami!" Rei pinched the back of Ami's leg and she bit her lip.
"Ami, are you all right?" Luna asked.
"Still, I think Rei would be a much better choice," Ami said.
"Thanks!" Rei said cheerfully.
Luna lowered her head. "Okay. If you all agree then we have no choice but to tell her."
"I don't agree. She's got guts. She just doesn't always know it," Makoto said firmly.
"Mako-chan! Let's call her on the communicator right now. As Scout Leader she should be here, right?" Luna suggested. Makoto nodded and pulled out a small thin panel. In a little circular view screen, Usagi's face appeared.
"Come in, Usagi."
"Hi Hi!" Usagi said cheerfully.
"Hey Usagi, listen to me. We're all over at the temple and Luna got the buzz on some heavy Negaverse stuff. Why don't you come over?"
"Oh, I'd love to... but I've got a real full afternoon booked. Naru and I are going to check out the new Sailor V movie. Wanna come?"
Rei, Ami and Luna all sighed heavily in disappointment.
Ranma and Shampoo stood on the top of a building. Ranma's eyes scanned the streets. They were in the spot where he had fought the two girls the night before, and now he was looking for them again. He'd rather find that other woman, but he had a feeling that those two girls would do just as good. But where were they?
"What they look like again?" Shampoo asked looking around as well, standing uncomfortably close to Ranma.
"I told you already, Shampoo. On has these strange meatballs on her head and long blond pig tails. The other had dark brown hair it was tied up too. They were wearing school dresses, or their sailor uniforms."
"But, Ranma.. All these girls wearing school dresses."
"Yeah, Shampoo, I see that." Ranma sighed. Suddenly Shampoo sensed something, though Ranma seemed rather oblivious. She looked behind them, then noticing a shadow, she peered upward.
"Ranma! Look out!" she cried.
"Ranma!! Shampoo is my woman! Prepare yourself!" The white robed man was dropping out of the sky from above. He extended his hands and a huge spiked ball attached to a chain dropped out of each of his sleeves. They were aimed straight at Ranma.
"Mousse! What you doing!?" Shampoo demanded. Then she grabbed Ranma and jumped out of the way as the chained balls shattered the roof-top.
"I'll finally finish this, Shampoo. Then you'll have to marry me!" Mousse said laughing. He waved an arm and four knives flew toward the two of them. Shampoo pushed Ranma away from her and then fell to the other side. Mousse landed nimbly on the top of his spiked ball and flipped forward at Ranma.
"Mousse, leave me alone, would ya? I don't want your crazy Amazon chick!" Ranma pleaded. "I just want my crystal thingie!"
"I'm sorry, Ranma, but I don't care!" Mousse laughed and extended a foot to slam into Ranma's chest, but Shampoo tackled Mousse out of the air and the two rolled off of the roof. Both landed softly on their feet down on the streets.
"Mousse, Shampoo no let you do this. Ranma you go! Find crystal, I hold him here." She turned her attention to Mousse. "This no time for you silly games, Mousse."
"Shampoo, I don't want to fight you. Can't you see, I do this out of love?" He pushed back his glasses and stared at Shampoo. All ready he was feeling quite broken by her actions. His heart ached so much at the sight of her defending his mortal enemy. She glared back at him, a frosted glance of hatred.
Ranma shrugged and dropped off of the roof-top on the other side of the building then continued his search for the two girls he had met earlier. He heard Shampoo and Mousse in the distance as well as the muttering of a gathering crowd.
"Oh Shampoo.. my darling Shampoo! If I defeat Ranma, then his hold over you will be no longer!" Mousse said passionately. He charged forward and wrapped his arms around Shampoo.
"Hey!" cried the man he was holding. "Let me go! Help!"
Mousse looked up. "Shampoo? Why do you sound so masculine?"
"You stupid," she said. "Shampoo over here. Put on silly glasses." Mousse flicked the glasses down over his eyes and saw that he was hugging a passing man and quickly pushed him away, knocking him to the ground. Then he turned and saw that Shampoo was gone.
"Shampoo! Wait!" he called out. Then he pushed his glasses up on to his forehead and charged forward. Moments later a few kids gathered around a man in a white robe, he seemed very much attached to a cement pole, one that the cringing Mousse had slammed face first into.
"I feel like Ryoga," Ranma sighed. "Where am I?"
"I heard that, Ranma! And I should crush you right now, but you know how I am about bullying the weak," came a voice from behind him. A young man in a yellow shirt and black pants was standing over him, arms crossed against his chest. Ryoga was also a fated member of the crew who suffered from the Jusenkyo curse. He was Akane's little pet piglet, the one and only P-chan that Ranma had been chasing the day before.
Ranma sighed and shook his head. "So where'd you come from, P-chan?"
Ryoga pulled a huge bamboo umbrella from his back and pointed it at Ranma. "Watch yourself, Saotome, or I may just decide to finish you off. Once I learn more about this crystal, you may not have little P-chan to push around. I haven't forgotten about yesterday. You know how hard it was to get home? It's a good thing Akane happened by or I may be somewhere in Okinawa, by now."
"Stop right there, pig-boy!" Ryoga turned around and saw that Shampoo was standing there, holding her bonbori offensively in front of her. "You no touch Ranma." She smiled briefly as she looked over Ryoga's shoulder at Ranma. "This one exciting day, Ranma. You owe Shampoo big time." He just shook his head as the fierce expression replaced itself on her face. "We go now. You stay." Ryoga shrugged and slung the umbrella over his shoulder.
Chapter 1, Part 1 - Jupiter Comes with a Hiryu Shoten Ha!?
Chapter 1, Part 2 - Jupiter Comes with a Hiryu Shoten Ha!?
Index
Chapter 2, Part 2 - Friend or Foe?
("Twisted Crystal" is a story which revolves around the well designed characters of "Ranma �" and "Sailor Moon".)
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