Dual Destinies
 
Do I really have to keep writing this disclaimer? Oh well. Dual 
Destinies is mine. Ranma ½ is Rumiko Takahashi's. That's it.
 
 <>: Thoughts
{""} Telepathic communication
 
  Chapter 22
 Tattoo You Too!
 
 The sun was showing off its usual morning brilliance as it began its 
journey up from the horizon. In the backyard of Nodoka Masaki's 
house, a young girl was tossed unceremoniously to the ground. She 
landed on her rear with a soft thump.
 "Ouch! That hurt!" Akane whined as she painfully picked herself off 
the grass. She then faced her sparring partner, who looked back at her 
with a firm gaze.
 "Learning the martial arts was never easy Akane." Ranma Blue said as 
he took another stance. "You said you wanted to get better! Don't tell 
me that you're having second thoughts about it!"
 "No way!" Akane said with determination. She then rushed at her 
former fiancée and tried to land a straight kick to his midsection. The 
pigtailed martial artist simply sidestepped the attack, grabbed her by the 
ankle and used a twisting motion to cause her to fall on her stomach. 
 Akane angrily got up for the umpteenth time and shouted at him, 
"Come on! All you've been doing for the last twenty minutes were 
blocks and throws! That's not much better than before, when you just 
dodged! Swing at me!" By now she was huffing and sweating very hard, 
while Ranma Blue wasn't even breathing hard. She then tried to catch 
her opponent in the face with a right cross to the chin. 
 Ranma Blue ducked the blow, grabbed her wrist and before the Akane 
knew it, had her in a full nelson. Using just the barest fraction of his 
augmented strength, he hoisted her off the ground until her feet dangled 
above the grass. Akane could only stare dumbfounded at her legs as she 
tried to figure out how she got into that position so quickly. She tried 
kicking at her captor's legs, but with no leverage and considering how 
strong he was now, her efforts were barely even noticed.
 Ranma Red looked on from the back porch, while casually leaning 
against door. He shook his head as he saw how easily Akane had fallen 
into that trap. No doubt that she need a lot of work.
 "Akane, you're letting your anger get the better of you again!" He 
stated as he walked over to where she was being held. He then turned to 
Ranma Blue. "You better drop her, we need to talk." 
 After waiting a few minutes for Akane to cool down, the twins faced 
the former Tendo girl and began discussing her weaknesses in the 
fighting arts.
 "Akane, you rely too much on brute force. Now I know we promised 
to help improve your skills, but unless you can calm down and think 
your actions through, it's going to take a long time!" Ranma Red said in 
a firm tone.
 "But it wasn't fair!" Akane complained. "Your brother didn't do 
anything but block, throw and use some holds on me!"
 "The reason why I did that Akane," Ranma Blue answered, "was 
because that was all I needed to beat you! I know we promised not to 
just dodge your attacks, but if you want to get better, than it's time you 
realized the weak points in your fighting style."
 "What do you mean?"
 "For one thing Akane, I noticed that you tend to throw punches and 
kicks too predictably. I mean, you weren't telegraphing your moves as 
obviously as you were when we first met you, but I could still see them 
coming just the same."
 "Yeah." Ranma Red agreed. "Another thing that you seem to lacking 
is in defense. All you do is attack, attack, and attack! Not only does that 
make you easy to predict, but also you're wearing yourself out that 
much faster and you're leaving yourself wide open! You're also not 
compensating for whenever Blue puts you in a hold or throw." 
 "You need an overall improvement in speed, endurance and tactics 
Akane." Ranma Blue continued. "Brute strength isn't going to get you 
very far. Not that I'm insulting you Akane, but the moves I used were 
the same level as a red belt's."
 Now in the past, Akane would have either ignored Ranma's advice or 
get angry and send him into low Earth orbit (LEO). Indeed, she was 
getting a bit irritated of being shown her faults. However, the past events 
had taught her that anger was not going to help her. She had just started to 
take control of her own life, and she needed all the support she could 
get. She was still having some flashbacks of those demons and how close 
she had come to being wiped out of existence. Fortunately, with Zuruka 
and Arcodos destroyed, the memories had begun to fade.
 "So what can I do?" Akane said finally.
 "I think it would be a good time to work on defense. Once you can 
take as well as dish out, we'll then start to train in those other areas." 
Ranma Blue said as he took his stance and waited for Akane 
 "Couldn't you teach me some chi attacks? Or maybe some of those 
new tricks that you learned?'
 Ranma Red and his brother shook their heads while the magic-using 
Masaki answered. "Can't do that."
 "Why not?"
 "Well, for one thing, your ki isn't focused enough to control your 
battle aura, let alone project it. We're pretty sure that you could learn a 
couple of chi attacks in time, but as for now, you still have to build up 
your physical skills. Furthermore, we can't show you magic or 
elemental power, because Soren and Taron warned us that only the 
Chosen Twins were allowed to wield them."
 "But they can use those powers!" Akane said.
 "That's because they were the original Chosen Twins!" Ranma Blue 
replied. "Besides, they're immortal. According to them, the Contract 
specifically states that only two MORTALS may use the powers of the 
Chosen Twins, namely… the Chosen Twins. Us."
 "So I can't learn those techniques?"
 "Sorry Akane." Ranma Red said. "But you can probably imagine how 
much havoc and destruction would be caused if more people had our 
abilities. Heck, even Cologne asked me to teach her how to teleport and 
stuff like that! It took a while for me to convince her that it wasn't a 
good idea. Training you in chi attacks should be enough though, when 
you're ready."
 The youngest sister brightened at the notion and took a stance. "Well 
let's get started! The sooner I get better, the sooner I can learn how to 
use chi!"
 As Akane and Ranma Blue took their stances, Ranma Red smiled. It 
seemed that Akane was finally starting to understand her real worth and 
would be able to handle herself fine in the future. As he watched the two 
exchange blows, he started to think about the past two weeks and of 
things yet to come. The creation of the Ranma twins. The training to 
prepare them for the Dark World. Their marriage proposals to Shampoo 
and Ukyo. Their final confrontations with Ryoga and Mousse… 
 It was then that Ranma Red paused in his thoughts. <Speaking of 
those two, I wonder what they're doing now?>
 
Somewhere in China, three days previously…
 Mousse was tired. It had been a week since he left Japan. He had 
only arrived at the border of the Quing Hai province three days ago. He 
figured that he had another week and a half to get to the village of the 
Joketsuzoku. Although he was looking forward to seeing his family and 
friends again, he was also in a depressed state.
 When he had left the village a year ago, he had sworn that he would 
not return until Shampoo was his bride. Although his parents had 
regarded his obsession with Cologne's great-granddaughter to be a 
fool's quest, they still wished him luck and told him to come home 
soon. He had traveled as far as Hong Kong, before he heard that 
Shampoo had been in Japan. By the time he had traversed half the 
distance to Japan, he had then gotten information that Shampoo had 
returned to the village in disgrace.
 Hoping to console his intended future bride, the myopic Hidden 
Weapons Master had made a beeline straight to the village, only to find 
that she was again gone, this time with a Jusenkyo curse and her great-
grandmother. Seeing that he had wasted a lot of time, he decided to go 
to the place where all of Shampoo's troubles were, Japan. He had hoped 
to end her woes, thereby win her affection. Unfortunately, all of 
Mousse's plans were sent down the sewer when he met up with Ranma 
Saotome.
 The Chinese boy's mood darkened when he thought about his biggest 
obstacle to Shampoo's heart. <Damn you Ranma! You've taken away 
everything that I wanted and now, I have to go home in disgrace! If only 
there were some way to get revenge!>
 
 Somewhere in another part of the Quing Hai province, a certain lost 
boy was also thinking dark thoughts about Ranma. Actually, he was 
thinking of TWO Ranmas. 
 Ryoga Hibiki had been fuming for a fortnight after he had learned 
that his greatest rival had become twins. After bolting out of the Tendo 
dojo from Akane's declaration of love for Ranma, Ryoga had promptly 
gotten lost in his rage, and had in fact found himself in China! (Don't 
ask me how!) Since then, he had been trying to find a way to get back to 
Japan and give the Ranma twins the beating of their lives. It wasn't until 
a week ago that he had started to rethink things.
 Remembering back to when one of the twins had easily beaten him 
in their supposed 'final duel,' the bandanna-wearing martial artist knew 
that he needed something really big to beat his opponent. He also had to 
consider that the other twin might also be just as strong, (And he is). 
Over the past several days, Ryoga had been training to improve his 
martial arts. He had been getting into a lot of challenge fights and 
brawls lately, as he eagerly took any opportunity to better himself. 
 Unfortunately, none of his opponents had even one millionth of the 
power that Ranma Blue had displayed. The fights had improved Ryoga 
somewhat, but he still wasn't considered even the slightest challenge to 
either twin. Ryoga knew this and had become even more depressed. (If 
that's possible!) He would have gone further into his depression if not 
for a rumor that he heard two days ago. It was because of that rumor 
that he had been searching the region ever since. He knew that when he 
found it, he would be able to exact his final revenge against the 
person… persons that were responsible for his misery.
 
 That night, Mousse had set up camp in one of the deep forests that 
was near the mountain regions that led to the Amazon village. He 
figured that he could get to the foot of the mountains in a day, perhaps 
two. As he sat down on a log and watched his dinner cook in a small pot, 
a thought occurred to him.
 <Hey! Since I've got a week to get back home, I can make a stop at 
Jusenkyo and cure myself!> Mousse had never really thought about 
ridding himself of the Drowned Duck Curse before, since he was too 
busy trying to win Shampoo. She seemed to treat him a little better as a 
duck. Now that he had been forced from Shampoo, there wasn't any 
reason why he should have that curse anyway. The thought lifted his 
spirits somewhat, as he would no longer have the troubles that the 
magic of Jusenkyo had caused.
 Like Ryoga, Mousse had to be extremely careful when he was a duck 
in the restaurant districts. Several times before, many shopkeepers had 
tried to make a meal out of him. On other occasions, young children 
had tried to catch him as a pet. The near-blind boy shuddered as he 
remembered encountering Asuza Shitori.
 That meeting was one he could have done without. As soon as the 
martial arts figure skater had spotted him, she had gone into her 'oh 
how cute' mode and had chased him around town. She kept on calling 
him René and when she had finally had gotten a hold of him, Mousse 
had been subjected to the most horrendous torture of all. She had taken 
him back to her house and dressed him up in a bonnet, fed mud pies, had 
his feathers plucked (her attempt at giving him a haircut) and many 
other indignities. He had soon become desperate and had started 
throwing his hidden daggers and shurikens at her, but she deflected 
them and started using them against him (she thought he wanted to play 
William Tell). 
 It had been a grueling eight hours before he could get away. When he 
arrived at the Nekohanten, both Shampoo and Cologne had scolded him 
for being late. The pounding they gave him was refreshing, compared to 
spending all that time with Asuza.
 Just as he had finished his reverie, Mousse noticed that his dinner 
was starting to boil over. Quickly leaning forward to rescue his supper, 
the near-blind martial artist suddenly got the feeling that he was being 
watched. Putting the pot down on the ground, he got into a stance with 
his arms held at the ready. It was then that something leapt at him from 
the trees above.
 "FOOD!!!"
 Mousse reacted quickly at the attack and threw forth a barrage of 
chains and sharp implements. The attacker deflected the projectiles 
with what appeared to be a huge… paintbrush? The unknown assailant 
charged at him and started swinging his strange weapon. Mousse 
countered by hauling out a couple swords and the two parried, thrust, 
slashed and stabbed at each other. 
 After a few minutes of furious fighting, Mousse finally got the drop 
on his opponent by tossing up a ball-and -chain, which KO-ed his attacker. 
There was a surprised yelp of pain as his opponent fell flat on his back. It 
was then that Mousse leaned forward to get a good look at him.
 It was a scraggily looking, bald old man with a thick white beard. He 
was wearing a short brown robe. He had skinny legs and was barefoot. 
As Mousse stared in disbelief at who his attacker was, the old man 
uttered out pitifully, "Got anything to eat?"
 
 A few hundred yards away, Ryoga was still searching the forest.
 <Damn! I know he's got to be around here! The people of that last 
village said he was traveling through this forest! Hmpf! I never thought 
that I would have to see him again! But he's the only one who could give 
me the power to beat those twins! It's a small price but…>
 Ryoga wandered about aimlessly for another fifteen minutes. It was 
then that he heard a familiar voice shouting out a short distance in front 
of him.
 "AAAAAAHHHHH!!! YOU ATE IT ALL!!! MY STEW IS GONE!!!"
 Ryoga began running in the direction of Mousse's voice. When he 
came to a small clearing, he saw Mousse staring at an empty pot in his 
hands and a few feet away, sat an old man that was smiling and rubbing 
his full belly. 
 "It's you!" Ryoga exclaimed happily as he ran over to the two.
 Mousse turned angrily at the old man and pulled forth a wicked-
looking club as he prepared to bash him into next week. "You greedy 
pig! You could have left me some!"
 The Hidden Weapons master swung back his arm and aimed for the 
old man's bald head. But just as the blunt head of the club came down, 
Ryoga kicked it out of Mousse's hands.
 "Hey! What are doing?" Mousse said angrily as he turned to face the 
new arrival. He then squinted in confusion as he saw who it was. 
"Ryoga? What are you doing in China?"
 "Don't hurt him!" Ryoga said as he tossed away the club.
 "What do you mean? He ate all my dinner!"
 "If you kill him now, he won't be able to make us into the strongest 
men in the world!"
 "Huh?"
 The old man had been listening in on their conversation and smiled.
 
 A while later, the old man waved goodbye to the two as he happily 
walked off with a bag of instant ramen noodles and his huge paintbrush 
slung over his shoulder. At the clearing, Ryoga and Mousse stared at 
the ink drawings on their abdomens. Both of them could feel the power 
surging from their stomachs. The Marks of a God were starting to take 
hold. 
 "Are you sure about this?" Mousse asked as he rubbed his belly. "I've 
never heard of Martial Arts Calligraphy before. This thing looks silly."
 "Trust me!" Ryoga assured. "The thing may look stupid, but it works! 
When I had it before, I could beat Ranma with one finger! I could beat 
him even in my cursed form!"
 "I don't know… if this thing was so great, then why did you get rid of 
it before?"
 Ryoga winced at the memory, then replied, "At the time, it made me 
look stupid in front of Akane."
 "So why do you want it now?" Mousse asked suspiciously. "And why 
did you rope me into this?" 
 "Look, I know that we haven't always seen eye to eye, but we both 
hate Ranma right?"
 Mousse snorted. "Hah! There's an understatement! A day doesn't go 
by that I don't think about wringing Saotome's neck! So what about it?"
 "With these tattoos, we can beat Ranma and his twin into a bloody 
pulp and finally get our revenge!"
 "Wait a second! What are you talking about? Ranma doesn't have a 
twin!"
 Ryoga then went into the story that Akane had told him before she 
had admitted her love for him. He also related his previous encounters 
with the Ranma twins. After he finished, Mousse was still a bit 
unconvinced of Ryoga's plan.
 "What do have to lose? Both Ranmas have taken Akane and Shampoo 
away from us! There's nothing left but to beat them!"
 "But… I'm supposed to be in the Amazon village by the end of the 
month! If I don't show up, they'll hunt me down! Let me tell you, having 
one Amazon mad at you is bad, but you DON'T want the whole bunch 
ticked off at you."
 "So what? You're invincible now! They wouldn't be able to within five 
feet of you! Besides, with these marks, no one would stand a chance! 
Like I said, what have we got to lose?" 
 Mousse nodded. With Shampoo no longer available to him, he didn't 
really have any reason to go on living. He had been thinking dark 
thoughts about Ranma ever since he had lost the Honor Duel. If he 
returned to the village, he would be branded as a disgrace and would be 
ridiculed for the rest of his life. What did he have to lose? Ranma Red 
had taken it all.
 "I'll do it!"
 The two partners shook hands and then headed for the nearest port 
city, which would lead them back to Japan and the source of their 
miseries.
 
The Realm of Oblivion…
 Since the deaths of Arcodos and Zuruka, the Realm of Oblivion had 
been designated as a free zone until some other demons of the Dark 
World laid claim to it. As of now, two new servants of Sharoka were 
watching the events unfold on a viewing portal. Unlike the previous 
inhabitants, these two could almost be labeled as human. 
 Like Arcodos and Zuruka, these new ones were identical in 
appearance. However, that's where the similarities end. For one thing, 
they were female. They had humanoid bodies with albino skin. They 
also possessed long, ebony hair that was done up in elaborate ponytails 
and their eyes glowed with jade. They each had long fingernails that 
were painted scarlet red. Both wore flowing robes that seemed to be a 
cross between a kimono and a monk's garb. Underneath their robes, 
they had on outfits that looked like traditional training gi, each in their 
respective colors. The first one's outfit was black with white highlights.
 The other had the reverse with white robes and black highlights. The 
two females also wore black sandals and seemed to radiate an evil that 
was both seductive, yet deadly. 
 The only trait that set them apart from passing as human beings were 
their ears. They were pointed and framed their faces like horns. As of 
now, they twitched in anticipation of the coming carnage and destruction.
  "Well now Katoka!" The black robed one said. "It was too easy to 
entice those two into accepting the Mark of a God!"
 "Yes." The white robed one agreed. "Vengeance has always been a 
good driving factor to controlling these mortals, Makana!"
 "Little do they know that the symbols they wear are not the real 
Marks of a God, but marks of our own! Our agent has done well!"
 As if on cue, the old man appeared in a flash beside them and smiled. 
In another flash, he transformed into an impish creature with pointed 
ears and blue scales. He bowed to his mistresses and then vanished.
 "Master Sharoka will be proud of us when these two destroy the 
Chosen Twins! We shall succeed where Arcodos and Zuruka had 
failed." Katoka snickered a bit.
 "Bah! Those two were incompetent! Not worthy to even grovel at the 
master's feet!"
 "Not that I'm doubting that our plan will work, but in case that it 
should fail…"
 "Do not worry sister, we still have… him." With these words, Makana 
pointed to a small globe that hung in midair. Inside the sphere, swirling 
energies danced about, waiting to be released. It wouldn't be long before 
the Ranma twins would be facing their hardest challenge yet.
 
The Earth Realm, three days later…
 After finishing their training session with Akane, the Ranma twins 
walked to school with her, Nabiki and Ukyo. As they headed toward 
Furinkan High, Ranma Blue found himself absently sneaking glances at 
Ukyo's chest. He tried to be discrete about it, but eyes just didn't want 
to obey his brain.
 <What am I doing? I shouldn't be acting like some hentai! I know 
Ucchan is really cute, but… I never knew she was THAT cute!> Ranma 
Blue winced a bit when he noticed that a certain part of his anatomy was 
hardening a bit. He quickly began thinking of icebergs, snow and other 
images of cold objects in an attempt to cool down his arousal.
 Ukyo smiled a bit as she caught the reaction that she was getting 
from her fiancée. <Yes! I KNEW that Ranma honey would notice! Am I 
glad that I went shopping with his mother yesterday!> Ukyo blushed a 
bit when she glanced down at her chest. To those who knew her, Ukyo 
had been wearing chest bindings to keep her bosom flat when she had 
been masquerading as a boy. Since then, it had been a habit for her to 
restrain her breasts. Although it had recently gotten more painful as her 
body underwent further changes and her chest had become more 
pronounced, Ukyo thought that it was something that she could still 
endure.
 Now however, with her engagement with one of the Ranma brothers 
assured, Ukyo had decided to act less tomboyish and more feminine. 
As a result, she had asked his mother to go shopping with her for more 
appropriate clothes. In the last few days, she had bought several tasteful 
dresses, some sensible casual wear, and the proper… undergarments, 
including replacements for her chest wrappings. For the first time in 
her life, Ukyo absolutely reveled in her newfound identity as a female. 
The looks she was getting from Ranma Blue were undeniable. He liked 
her in a bra. It was then, that she had some very wicked speculation as to 
what to wear on their wedding night. She smiled as she made a note to 
ask Shampoo about it.
 The group arrived at Furinkan High with no troubles and spent the 
morning in relative peace. Students had noticed the changes that Nabiki 
and Akane were undergoing, and were stunned when the older sister 
announced that all outstanding debts that were owed to her were hereby 
canceled. This put her flunkies in a state of shock as she told them that 
their services were no longer needed. 
 Gossip had become rampant among the student population during 
lunch hour. Many of them thought that this was one of Nabiki's 
elaborate schemes to score a big profit, but they couldn't find any 
evidence to support that hypothesis. Furthermore, Nabiki had begun 
to… flirt with the other older boys. Everyone had thought of her as 
some ice-princess and it was a shock to his or her systems to see the 
older sibling of Akane acting with a warmer personality. It wasn't long 
before Nabiki had started to get date offers.
 Akane was also the recipient of many overtures by the male students, 
much to the dismay of Kuno. The insane kendoist had tried several 
times during the day to enforce his supposed claim on Akane, with the 
same results. Hordes of angry adolescents would trash him or the 
Masaki twins would pound him into the pavement. 
 In fact, the two Ranmas were just finishing the daily thrashing of the 
so-called Blue Thunder, when his twisted sister appeared. Both of them 
shuddered when they heard the familiar, yet skin-crawling maniacal 
laugh that heralded the arrival of the Black Rose.
 {"Oh no! Not her!"} Ranma Blue complained.
 {"Well, I guess we should have expected to see her sooner or later."} 
Ranma Red remarked as both turned to face the shower of black rose 
petals that blew across the school's front yard.
 Sure enough, there was the Black Rose of St. Herbereke in her 
school uniform, twirling her ribbon and laughing.
 "Oh ho ho ho ho ho! Ranma darling! Can the rumors be true! I see it 
is! I have TWO TRUE LOVES!"
 "What are you talking about Kodachi?" Ranma Red said in disgust.
 "Why isn't very obvious?" Kodachi said as she approached them. 
"The fact that I now have TWO of my darling Ranma-samas to marry! 
Why the gods themselves must be rewarding me by giving me twice as 
many Ranmas!"
 "You're out f your mind!" Ranma Blue said as the two of them 
backed off. "There's no way we're going to marry you!"
 "Yeah!" Ranma Red agreed. "Besides, we've already got fiancées!"
 "Of course you do darlings! You have me!"
 "No we don't!" Ranma Blue said firmly. "We're going to marry 
someone else!"
 "What?!" Kodachi said in a surprised voice. "Who would dare 
compare to your beloved Black Rose? Surely not that Chinese hussy 
and that spatula-wielding tomboy! Why they're not even fit to grovel in 
my presence, let alone even consider the right to marry you!"
 It was at that time that Ukyo had come onto the scene.
 "Hey! You leave my fiancée and his brother alone you snob!"
 Kodachi turned her attention to Ukyo and sneered, "So! The lowborn 
cook deigns to wear female clothes in her pitiful attempt to win my 
darling Ranmas! It seems that I must teach the harridan a lesson in 
trying to steal the men of another woman!" Kodachi pulled out a couple 
of her clubs and readied herself to do battle.
 Ukyo was more than irritated that Kodachi was claiming BOTH 
Ranmas. She took out her large spatula. "Who are you calling lowborn? 
And how do you figure both Ranmas belong to you?"
 "Why it's quite obvious!" Kodachi said in a high-and-mighty tone. 
"My beauty, my charm and my loving ways makes me the only one 
qualified to have either one of them! Since I would not wish for one or 
the other to suffer in your presence, I think that the best way is for me 
to keep both of them!"
 "That's it! I thought that you were just a little off in the head, but now 
I see that you're a total nut! Come on!"
 It was at that time, a familiar bicycle came flying into view and a 
purple-haired blur launched itself from it. Shampoo promptly glomped 
herself onto Ranma Red.
 "Nihao Airen! Happy to see Shampoo, yes?"
 "Sure Shampoo, but now is not the time!" Ranma Red replied as he 
tried to disengage himself from her crushing embrace.
 Shampoo was a little confused as she asked, "What wrong?"
 "Take your hands off him, vile peasant!"
 Shampoo turned around and saw Kodachi clearly becoming steamed. 
"What psycho girl mad about Ranma?"
 Ukyo decided to answer. "This snob thinks that both Ranmas belong 
to her."
 "What?!" Shampoo responded in a slightly angry tone. She promptly 
released Ranma Red and took a fighting stance next to Ukyo. Hauling 
out her bonbori, she hissed at Kodachi, "Crazy psycho girl not have 
Airen or future brother-in-law! They belong to Shampoo and future 
sister-in-law!"
 "Hmpf! It is quite obvious that the two of you are deluded! The only 
girl that my darling Ranmas love is me!" Kodachi tossed one of her 
clubs at Ukyo, which its head spouted hidden spikes.
 Ukyo deflected the projectiles by using her spatula. "Now you're 
really acting crazy!" Ukyo stated. "Ranma honey already said he loved 
me and proposed to me two weeks ago!"
 Shampoo nodded. "That right! Other brother defeat Shampoo and 
promise to marry her! Also said that he loved her!" 
 "Lies!" Kodachi roared as she leapt toward the two and twirled her 
ribbon. "The only person who will have those two darlings is me!" She 
lashed forward with her ribbon's razor sharp edge, intending to inflict 
massive damage to her two rivals.
 Ranma Red and his brother decided then to put a stop to this 
ludicrous situation. Concentrating his powers on her ribbon, the magic-
using Ranma caused the long silk line to wrap itself around Kodachi's 
body. The Black Rose found herself completely ensnared in her own 
weapon. As she plummeted to the ground, Ranma Blue used his power 
over gravity to slow her decent and gently set her down on the lawn.
 Just after she had been laid down on the grass, the twins calmly 
walked up to her with stern expressions. Kodachi was very shocked at 
what happened and could only stare up at them.
 "Kodachi." Ranma Blue began. "This has gone far enough. "
 "That's right." Ranma Red agreed. "It's time we set you straight! We 
DON'T love you! In fact, I don't think we even like you!"
 "No!" Kodachi said shaking her head. "It can't be true! You do…"
 "No we don't!" Ranma Blue said in a firm voice. "We should have 
ended this when it first started. We didn't want to hurt you or anyone 
else, but it looks like we have no choice! Understand this! We're going 
to marry Ukyo and Shampoo!"
 "No darling! You can't mean it! After all we've meant to each other…"
 "We have meant nothing to each other!" Ranma Red said, cutting her 
off. "You treated like we were some kind of possession! We were never 
yours, nor will we ever be!"
 "It's time you got over us! Akane made it clear to your brother that 
she doesn't love him! Now we're following her example!"
 "It cannot be! What foul sorcery has those two harridans cast upon 
you to treat your Kodachi so?"
 "I assure you Kodachi. We're in our right minds! For the first time in 
a long time, we know what we want. We want to marry Shampoo and 
Ukyo! WE DON'T WANT YOU!"
 Both twins took a moment to pause before continuing. Ranma Red 
let off a long sigh as he said, "Kodachi, you've been living in a dream 
world. Your delusions over our feelings were nothing more than a 
fantasy! You never listened to what we had to say. You would always 
assume that we loved you, despite that we constantly told you to take a 
hike! Well enough is enough! For the last time Kodachi, WE… 
DON'T… LOVE… YOU! Leave us alone!"
 Releasing his hold on her ribbon, Ranma Red and his brother waited 
for Kuno's sister to untangle herself. She had clearly become more 
tearful with each word that was being said to her. The last sentences had 
struck her to the very soul. As she stood up, she bowed her head and 
sobbed quietly. After a minute, she bolted from the school with her 
face in her hands. The twins started to chase after her, but then thought 
it better to give her some space. Their fiancées walked up to them and 
looked in the direction of the fleeing gymnast.
 "You know… we could have done that a lot better." Ranma Red said 
to his brother. "We hurt her feelings."
 "I know." His brother nodded. "But I'm afraid that no matter how we 
told her, she was still going to be hurt! I think that it's best she be told 
the truth. By not setting her straight, we were just leading her on."
 "Nothing more you or your brother could have said to her Ran-chan." 
Ukyo said. "If she can't understand straight off, then I guess there isn't 
anything else that can be done."
 "Yeah… well, I guess there will be some people who just won't let 
things go." Ranma Blue stated.
 As if on cue, the group heard a crash in the background. It was then 
that the twins heard a familiar cry.
 "RANMA, PREPARE TO DIE!!!"
 At first, they thought it was Ryoga, but then the twins also heard 
another voice.
 "SAOTOME! PREPARE TO PAY FOR TAKING MY SHAMPOO!"
 There was a huge explosion and the crowds of students went 
scattering like ants. Before them, the Chosen Twins saw their former 
archenemies appear before them with battle auras glowing and 
expressions of utter hatred etched across their faces. Behind them, 
their fiancées also looked in surprise.
 "Mousse?" Ranma Red said.
 "Ryoga?" Ranma Blue said.
 "Aiya! What Mousse doing here? He supposed to be in China! 
Amazons will hunt him down if he no be there!" Shampoo said.
 Mousse let out a laugh as he scoffed, "I have had it with those laws! 
They have kept me from what I want long enough! Once I have reduced 
Ranma Red to a smoldering corpse, you'll belong to me! Then you'll 
see that I am the better man! You'll be mine at last!"
 Shampoo stepped back as she heard these words. This person was 
not the same whimpering and pathetic fool that she had known before. 
He radiated intense power and believed every word he said. He was 
different and that did make her uneasy.
 Both the twins knew something was up. Both Ryoga and Mousse 
were not acting the same as before. They had never seemed so 
bloodthirsty in the past. They had made death threats in the past, but 
they never went too far. They had always had some control and their 
pride always prevented them from using lethal tactics. Now it appeared 
that they were in the grip of a more dangerous mania. It was certain that 
they were out for blood, their blood.
 "Ryoga!" Ranma Blue started. "Our last fight was supposed to have 
ended the feud! You lost! You can't challenge us! I thought honor was 
satisfied!"
 "HONOR?!" The lost boy sneered. "You have no concept of the 
word! You and your brother beat me up the first time and it was your 
fault that I got cursed! It's because of you that Akane will never know 
how I feel about her! No! It's time we really settle things! My life has 
been a living hell since I met you and the only way that I can get any 
peace is to beat you and your brother into a bloody pulp!"
 "What about you Mousse?" Ranma Red asked. "You lost that Honor 
Duel and if you're not in the Amazon village by the end of the month, 
they'll hunt you down!"
 "Hah!" Mousse declared with contempt. "With the power I have, 
those Amazons don't have a prayer of killing me! My business is with 
you Ranma Red! Because of you, I can't take Shampoo as my bride! 
Once I present her with your carcass, she'll see that I am the only one 
for her! I should have killed you in the past, but something always got in 
the way! Now nothing is going to save you!"
 "ENOUGH TALK! FIGHT!" Ryoga roared as he and Mousse charged 
at the twins with battle auras blazing.
 Ranma Red barely managed to teleport himself, his brother and their 
fiancées out of the way. As Mousse and Ryoga reached the spot where 
their opponents were, there was another huge explosion. Concrete and 
other debris went flying all over, causing the crowds of students to run 
off in panic. Twenty feet away from the wanton destruction, the twins 
and the two girls reappeared. Both Ranmas took a stance and motioned 
for Shampoo and Ukyo to take cover. A fight was inevitable.
 "Oh boy! Since when did they get that kind of power?" Ranma Blue 
queried.
 "Yeah! And they didn't even notice that innocent bystanders are 
around!" Ranma Red agreed.
 "What do you think? Have they snapped?"
 "I'd say so. It's like they don't even care anymore." 
 Turning back to their fiancées, Ranma Blue ordered, "Ucchan! 
Shampoo! Get back! Now!"
 "But Ran-chan!"
 "They've totally lost it! Make sure everyone stays clear! This is 
going to get real ugly!" Ranma Red added.
 The two girls looked at their future husbands in concern then 
nodded. As they ran off to warn everyone to stay clear, the Chosen 
Twins began sizing up their opponents. Mousse and Ryoga stood and 
waited for the Ranmas to make the first move. The two began focusing 
their ki energies and probed their opposition for weaknesses. 
 Ranma Blue's eyes snapped open when he realized what they were up 
against. {"Damn! They're wearing the Mark of a God! Both of them!"}
 {"That's weird. I don't remember that tattoo being able to give Ryoga 
that much power before."}
 {"Yeah, well we do know how to beat it!"} 
 {"Right! You take Ryoga, I'll take Mousse!"}
 Both pigtailed martial artists charged at their attackers, hoping to 
finish the fight quickly. However, other beings had different things in 
mind.
 
The Realm of Oblivion…
  "Look Katoka! They've taken the bait!" Makana stated as she gestured 
to the viewing screen.
 "Indeed!" Agreed her sister. "The Chosen Twins only think that they 
are battling the Mark of a God, but they shall soon discover that they 
are up against something far worse!"
 "I do so enjoy tormenting these mortals! It shall be glorious when 
the Dark World conquers the Earth! Ah… so many souls to torture!"
 
On the Earth Realm…
 "What?! Ryoga and Mousse are fighting the twins?" Akane said in 
disbelief.
 "Yeah!" Ukyo confirmed. "They told us to get everyone out of the 
way!" Looking back in the direction of the fight, they could hear the 
sounds of heavy impacts and explosions.
 Akane's expression took a dark look as she began heading toward 
where the battle was taking place.
 Ukyo looked in shock at the youngest of the three former Tendo 
daughters and then reached out to grab her arm. "Hey! Where are you 
going Akane?"
 Akane looked back and said in a cold voice, "I'm going to see Ryoga 
and give him a piece of my mind for lying to me all this time!"
 "What?! Are you nuts?! It's like World War Three out there!"
 Akane shrugged off her arm and continued to head toward the chaos.
 
 Ranma Red narrowly dodged a hard right by Mousse, which shattered 
one side of the school's outer wall. Then Mousse launched a barrage of 
daggers, chains and other sharp projectiles at him. Despite his enhanced 
speed, the magic-using Masaki found himself hard-pressed to dodge.
  <Whoa! Since when could the Mark of a God make someone that 
fast? I thought it only worked if you ATTACKED them!>
 "What's the matter Saotome? Too much for you?" Mousse taunted as 
he launched another barrage.
 "I'm just getting started! By the way, the name's Masaki! MOKO 
TAKABISHA!"
 The sudden blast of chi caught Mousse off guard, but as the yellow 
ball of energy hit him in the chest, both he and Ranma Red were 
surprised to see his body simply absorb the attack.
 Mousse smiled maliciously and said, "Hah! You can't hurt me! I'm 
invincible!" He then shot a third volley of weapons at his opponent. This 
time, he was successful in nailing Ranma Red in shoulder. The red-
shirted martial artist winced a bit as he felt a dagger graze his flesh. 
Things were only going to get worse.
 On the other end of the battle area, Ranma Blue was also having 
problems. As long as Ryoga was being protected by the symbol, Ranma 
Red's brother knew that he couldn't physically attack him. He had been 
trying his standard chi blasts, hoping to wear him down, but Ryoga 
simply countered each attack with his own chi technique.
 "SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
 Ranma Blue barely managed to duck under the blast of depression-
fueled chi energy, which caused another section of the outer wall to 
crumble.
 <Is it just my imagination, or has his Normal Shi Shi Hokodan 
gotten stronger?> It was then that Ranma Blue decided to change 
tactics. Cupping his hands forward, he let loose with an elemental 
attack.
 "GUST ATTACK!"
 The sudden jet of high-pressure air smashed into Ryoga with the 
force of a speeding bullet train. However, the Hibiki boy stood his 
ground.
 Ryoga laughed and said, "That trick won't work this time! I'm strong 
enough to take anything you can dish out! SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
 "GUST ATTACK!"
 The huge blast of chi energy smashed into the wind attack head on. 
But instead of blowing out, the chi attack actually managed to get within 
two feet of Ranma Blue before exploding. Ranma Blue was knocked 
back a few feet before he dug down and stopped being pushed back.
 <Uh oh! That mark is not only increasing his strength, but it's also 
boosting his chi abilities! I'm going to have to use my stronger 
techniques to get him into the position I want!>
 Concentrating his ki into the moisture of the air around him, the 
elemental powered twin invoked one of his newer techniques.
 "ICY MISTS! CONFUSION!"
 Suddenly, the entire area was blanketed in a freezing fog. At the 
same time, Ranma Blue activated his camouflage technique. 
 Ryoga became angered as he found that his line of vision now 
clouded by the swirling mists. His body tingled with a familiar 
sensation as he felt the icy cold water droplets touch his skin. He 
focused his ki inward as he tried to resist being transformed into a pig. 
Then the surprise came. He didn't change. After a minute of straining, 
he felt a warm sensation start to spread from his abdomen. Looking 
down at his belly, he pulled up his shirt and saw that his Mark of a God 
was glowing red. Somehow, it was preventing his curse from being 
activated.
 The lost boy let loose with a hysterical laugh as he realized the 
benefits of the tattoo. "H ha ha ha ha! Nice try Ranma! But you don't 
beat me that easy! The Mark of a God is also keeping my curse in 
check! Come out and fight you coward!"
 <Now that's new!> Ranma Blue thought. Even though it was not his 
intent on transforming his opponent into his cursed form, it was still 
surprising to see that the tattoo did something other than making Ryoga 
impossibly strong. Something was definitely wrong. Still, the elemental 
Ranma was confident on beating him.
 "If you want me, come and get me! MOKO TAKABISHA! SCATTER!"
 Ryoga was pelted by a dozen small chi balls. Although the tattoo 
allowed him to absorb the blasts with relatively little pain, the attack 
still angered him.
 "Why you! Take this! SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
 The bandanna martial artist fired off another massive chi blast in the 
direction of the last attack. Of course, his foe had already moved to 
another position and fired off another attack.
 "MOKO TAKABISHA! RAPID FIRE!"
 The stream of chi blasts was deftly avoided. Then Ryoga retaliated.
 "SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
 Once again, he missed as Ranma Blue kept on moving and using his 
hit-and-run tactics.
 "MOKO TAKABISHA! SCATTER!"
 "SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
 "FLAMING CHI WAVE!"
 "SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
 "MOKO TAKABISHA!"
 "SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
 "MOKO TAKABISHA! RAPID FIRE!"
 "SHI SHI HOKODAN!"
 This strange little dance went on for several minutes as Ryoga 
twisted and turned in the fog, trying to draw a bead on his elusive 
adversary. He was so absorbed in hitting Ranma Blue that he didn't 
realize that his chi had been building up incredible amounts of heat and 
that he had been moving in a spiral. When he had completed the spiral, 
Ranma Blue let him have it.
  "HIRYU SHOTEN HA REVISED! PART 1!"
 The cool chi met with Ryoga's hot chi with the usual results. He was 
tossed into the air by a huge cyclone and was buffeted by the intense 
winds. To his dismay, he found his body twisting and turning as he flew 
through the cyclone. Then he saw that his tattoo change its expression 
several times during his contortions.
 That was the moment that Ranma Blue had been waiting for. Timing 
his next move accordingly, he quickly changed his cool chi into a 
blazing battle aura and used his elemental powers to swirl the icy mists, 
lowering their temperatures around him. This caused another explosion 
of differing temperatures and…
 "HIRYU SHOTEN HA PART 2! FIST OF THE RISING DRAGON!"
 The cyclone that erupted from this imbalance of hot and cold 
launched Ranma Blue upwards like a rocket and sent him shooting 
toward Ryoga. The pigtailed martial artist had one arm raised above his 
head with fist clenched and was spinning like a drill (If you've seen 
Ryu's Shoryuken from Street Fighter II, then you can imagine this). The 
blow collided with Ryoga's midsection with incredible force, just as 
the lost boy's body had twisted into a position in which his tattoo was in 
its most vulnerable position.
 Ryoga felt a stinging pain as his breath was knocked out of him. He 
also felt another familiar tingle. <No! He got me while my mark had 
changed expression! It's fading!> Looking down at his stomach, Ryoga 
saw with disappointment as his tattoo lost its integrity and disappeared. 
He began crying in anguish as the two of them plummeted to the ground 
when the cyclones dispersed.
 On the other end of the battlefield, Ranma Red had also figured out a 
way to beat his super-powered adversary. Just after he dodged another 
volley of Mousse's weaponry, the magic-using martial artist split into 
two images, then into four, then into many more.
 "SPLITTING CAT HAIRS!"
 The images of Ranma Red surrounded Mousse in a circle, floated 
and began rotating. The near-blind Mousse snorted. "Hah! You think 
using that mummy's techniques is going to save you?" Crouching down 
in what appeared to be a standing fetal position, the myopic magician 
suddenly stood up straight with arms flung out. Form his sleeves and 
other pockets in his robes, he launched a ridiculously huge barrage of 
chains, knives, blunt objects, (and yes, even a kitchen sink) in all 
directions. 
 Mousse knew that by firing a massive volley in all directions, he was 
sure that he would hit his opponent from his hiding place in the illusion. 
That is, if he WAS in the illusion.
 Unknown to Mousse, Ranma Red had been taught another fundamental 
of magic. The art of creating illusions from a distance. The moment that 
he started the Splitting Cat Hairs technique, he had teleported a safe 
distance away from the fight while still maintaining the illusion. Mousse 
was wasting both weapons and energy as he vainly tried to hit what he 
thought was Ranma Red. His body twisted and turned from within the 
circle and when the Masaki twin sensed that his tattoo was in the right 
position, he then launched his final attack.
 "SHADOW STORM!"
 Rushing forward toward the flailing Mousse, Ranma Red's body left 
a trail of eight shadowy images of himself behind him. Just as Mousse 
saw Ranma Red approach him, he had twisted his body to a position in 
which his mark was weak. It was then that his foe gave him a massive 
uppercut that knocked him into the sky. As he started to fly upward, 
Mousse was then hit from one side by a dark image of Ranma Red as it 
came at him with a flying punch. The another shadow hit him from the 
other side. Then another and another. Each time he was hit, the Hidden 
Weapons master was knocked higher into the air. By now, his tattoo had 
already faded away. When the last shadow delivered its blow, Mousse 
found himself falling head first toward Ranma Red. Then the sibling of 
Ranma Blue let loose his final blow.
 "SPIRIT GEYSER!"
 Slamming his open palm to the ground, Ranma Red was surrounded 
by a blue white hemisphere of energy which then erupted into a huge 
column that shot up and blasted Mousse. The Chinese boy was sent into 
an arc, which propelled him thirty feet from his previous position and 
he landed on his back with a thud. Then all was still.
 Ryoga and Mousse were sprawled out on the ground. Both of them 
were battered and bruised beyond belief. Their clothes were either 
burned or tattered and their faces had glazed expressions. It was 
obviously unconscious. 
 Ranma Red looked up and saw his brother float down toward him. As 
soon as he landed, he looked over Mousse's insensate form and said, 
"Went a little overboard, didn't you?"
 Ranma Red playfully punched his sibling in the shoulder and said, 
"Hiryu Shoten Ha, Part 1and 2?"
 Ranma Blue shrugged and grinned sheepishly, "Didn't know what 
else to call it."
 "Ranma!"
 Both twins turned to see Akane, Ukyo and Shampoo running toward 
them. The two opened their arms to embrace their fiancées as Akane 
slowly approached the bodies of Mousse and Ryoga. She looked down 
at Ryoga and became angry with the person who she once thought was a 
true friend.
 "Ran-chan! You did it!" Ukyo praised as she gave him a passionate 
kiss.
 "Aiya! Shampoo so happy!" The Amazon copied her future sister-in-
law and planted a wet smooch on Ranma Red.
 Both boys returned their kisses and relaxed a bit now that the fight 
had ended. Then they heard Akane scream.
 "WHAT'S THAT?!"
 Quickly disengaging themselves from their future spouses, the twins 
took a stance and looked over in the direction of Akane's scream. What 
they saw made their eyes widen and their blood run cold.
 Both the bodies of their fallen foes had begun to glow with a dark 
black aura that radiated pure evil. Akane had tried to move back, but her 
legs had become frozen with shock. Ranma Red noticed this and use his 
magic to teleport her to a position behind Shampoo and Ukyo. The 
twins, their fiancées and Akane all stood motionless as they observed 
Mousse and Ryoga undergo a horrifying transformation.
 Both the forms of the defeated martial artists floated up from the 
ground and became upright. They were their auras became even more 
darker, which then enveloped the two in black cocoons of evil magic. 
The energies pulsed and throbbed with increasing intensity and 
suddenly, they increased in size to about twenty feet in height and 
twelve feet across. With a final blast, they exploded and revealed Ryoga 
and Mousse. But one could not call them human anymore.
 What was once Ryoga Hibiki was now a twenty-foot monstrosity 
that had huge, six-foot long tusks protruding from its lower lip. Its head 
was like a warthog's and it snorted viscously at the twins with red in its 
eyes. Its upper torso was bare, and like a human's. It was thickly 
muscled and its well-developed arms were as thick as small tree trunks. 
In each massive hand, it carried what looked like a huge bamboo 
umbrella, but when it swung each weapon to open it up, the sides 
revealed rows of spikes and sharp blades.
 When the umbrellas closed, the tips sprouted forth sharp blades the 
had double edges and were each six feet in length.
 The lower half of the monster resembled a warthog's back half, if it 
was standing upright. It was covered in gray fur and the legs terminated 
in pig hooves. The monster stomped its hooves with such force that the 
school grounds shook as if it was experiencing a small seismic tremor.
 Looking over to where Mousse was, the twins were equally 
dismayed as to what he had become. Like Ryoga, the once human 
Hidden Weapons master had his curse horribly amplified. Mousse's 
head resembled that of a duck, but underneath the upper portion of its 
bill were rows of jagged teeth. Its eyes also glowed with red fury as it 
stared at the Chosen Twins. 
 Its upper half was human and bare, but on its back was a set of huge, 
feathered wings. Each feather seemed to be made of metal as the 
sunlight glinted off their surfaces. It was then that the twins noticed that 
the feathers were razor sharp. Its hands were covered in feathers and 
each finger had a long four foot talon protruding from their tip.
 The lower half of the monster also looked humanoid, but it was 
covered in white feathers and its feet resembled talons of an eagle's 
rather than the webbed feet of a duck's. Behind it was a feathered tail 
that completed the appearance. 
 The only real similarity between the two transformed martial artists 
was the Mark of a God that was etched on the abdomens. However, both 
Ranmas knew that it wasn't the same symbol they had fought before. 
Their suspicions were confirmed when each tattoo suddenly contorted 
and changed into a new design. The new symbols were bright red and 
had formed the Kanji symbol of Akuma (the Demon). It was then that 
they heard malicious laughter coming from somewhere above them. 
 Looking above them, they saw two ghostly figures appear above 
them. Their eyes widened even further as they beheld the forms of 
Katoka and Makana. The replacements of Arcodos and Zuruka smiled 
down at the twins and then introduced themselves.
  "Greetings Chosen Twins! I am Katoka. This is my sister Makana! 
We serve the almighty Sharoka! Welcome to your final battle!"
 "You're in league with Arcodos and Zuruka?" Ranma Blue asked.
 "Hmpf!" Makana snorted. "Do not insult us! We are far superior to 
those idiots! We shall succeed where they had failed miserably!" 
Turning her attention to Mousse, she nodded to him and gave out a 
silent command. 
 Mousse spread his wings and flapped them once. The resultant 
backlash of wind sent Shampoo, Ukyo and Akane flying backward 
twenty feet from where the twins were standing. Since the two Ranmas 
had augmented strength, they managed to stay on their feet. Looking 
back to see if the girls were all right, they became surprised to see a 
transparent dome suddenly appear, blocking them off from the girls. 
Looking around, they saw that the dome covered an area of about a 
hundred and fifty feet and was about seventy feet high. The two found 
themselves completely isolated from the outside. Worse yet, they were 
trapped inside with Mousse and Ryoga.
 "Don't bother to try and blast your way out of that barrier!" Makana 
cackled. "It is one of our most powerful spells and I doubt you'll 
survive long enough to attempt it!"
 "Oh and don't think those fools Soren and Taron will be able to help 
you either!" Katoka added. "They're too busy with helping the deities of 
this world, in keeping the Ultimate Force System from crashing! And 
even if they weren't, the barrier is also cutting off all communication 
you have outside of the dome!"
 Looking back at Akane and their fiancées, both of the Masaki twins 
strained to hear the three as they frantically shouted and pounded at the 
dome. When they couldn't hear the slightest sound, they tried using 
their telepathy skills. That too, also met with resistance.
 {"Damn! I can't contact them or anybody in the Realm of Infinity!"} 
Ranma Blue remarked.
 {"Same here! We're really stuck!"} Ranma Red said.
 Looking down at their expressions of frustration, the twin sisters 
laughed and then gestured to their monstrous puppets. Both Dark 
Worlders uttered a single command, "KILL!"
 The two demons began advancing on the Masaki twins as Akane, 
Ukyo and Shampoo could only watch helplessly from outside the dome. 
There was no doubt in anyone's minds that the two former rivals of the 
two brothers were now beyond any hope. They were now driven by a 
single purpose. The deaths of the Chosen Twins! Things looked bleak…
 
In the Realm of Oblivion…
  The small globe that Katoka and Makana coveted began to increase 
in its brightness as the energies within began to take shape. Soon, its 
role in the future of the world would be played out.
 
To be continued…
 
Author's Notes
 It's done! Chapter 22 is done! Ryoga and Mousse have become what 
they hated most. They have let vengeance take over their souls and are 
now slaves to their own curses! Will Ranma Red and Ranma Blue be 
forced to do the unthinkable? Will they actually have to KILL their 
former rivals? Is it too late for any hope of bringing them back from the 
abyss?
 I'm not telling… yet! Mostly because I'm still debating as to whether 
or not the story will have more of an impact, if two of the supporting 
characters were to bite the big one! I spared Akane from that fate, but 
these two may not fare as well. How about it? Should they die or not?
 For those of you who are still wondering where Soun Tendo is, 
he's… nearby. For those of you who think you know where he is, write 
to me. I may let you in on the secret!