"This is the last tape," Nabiki pointed out. "We should find out what becomes of Ranma on this one. What say we go ahead and watch it tonight?" It was pretty much a unanimous vote in favor of watching the final tape right away. "Great Grandmother, how long you think it take Airen to return after tape watched?" Shampoo asked. "I don't know child," Cologne said. "I guess if he comes back at all it will be up to the whim of Bastet-sama." "I just hope it ends better," Akane said. "I never liked either ending of the original Evangelion." "Yeah the TV series ending was just lame," Nabiki agreed. "The movie was better, but it was a real downer. If nothing else, Ranma is bound to improve that part. He's nothing if not exciting." "Got that right, Sugar," Ukyo said. "Can we start the tape now?" "Alright, alright, keep your shirt on," Nabiki quipped. (oO\O/Oo) "The Fifth Child will be arriving soon," Misato mentioned to Hyuga and Ritsuko as they sat with each other in one of the few cafes still open. "Does Asuka know he's coming to replace her?" Ritsuko asked. "That won't be necessary," Misato said. "Why not?" Ritsuko asked. "I don't expect the Fifth Child to be around very long," Misato smirked. "Explain that, please," Ritsuko said, perplexed. "Well, sources say..." Misato began to explain. (oO\O/Oo) "You guys sure you want to be here?" Ranma asked again as he, Asuka and Rei walked through the park. "I'd feel better if you were home." "There's no way we're letting you do this alone, Variable-chan," Asuka said in irritation. "Asuka is correct," Rei said. "Prudence dictates that you have backup. You, yourself, told us that we shouldn't go anywhere alone now that the Commander is aware of our situation. I fail to see where this does not apply to you as well." Ranma sighed. "I know you guys can take care of yourselves," Ranma said carefully. "It's just that if it comes down to a fight, I'd feel better if I knew you were safe and didn't have to worry about you accidentally getting' hit by a stray ki blast or something." "Well, we're not sitting at home like some demure, little housewives while you go off to fight an angel, Idiot," Asuka snapped. Ranma smiled. He was very glad to see that Asuka had almost made a complete recovery and was nearly back to her old self. Those hours of meditation, along with his and Rei's ever-present support, had paid off. "I guess that's the price I have to pay since I couldn't handle being in love with a demure, little housewife," Ranma chuckled. Both girls smirked. Suddenly, Ranma heard whistling. Pausing, he looked around. He spotted the silver-haired boy leaning casually against a tree whistling 'Ode to Joy'. "I like that song," the boy said. "Truly, singing is one of the greatest gifts to come from you Lillum. Raise your voice in song and your heart will be lifted too. Don't you agree, Ranma Ikari?" "I might, depending on who's singing, Kaoru Nagisa," Ranma replied. "I see you know who I am," the boy said pleasantly. "I have arrived to be the replacement pilot for Unit 02." "I know what you're here for and I doubt very much if you could replace Asuka-chan," Ranma snorted. "You just don't have the metal to fill her shoes." "Why would you say that?" Kaoru asked. "You haven't even seen me pilot yet." "Don't need to," Ranma smirked. "I can already tell you don't got what it takes." "I'm hurt," Kaoru said. "I thought you'd be nicer." Ranma shrugged. "I probably would be to someone who wasn't here to wipe out all life on this planet," Ranma said conversationally. "So you know why I'm here as well," Kaoru said, mildly surprised. "Yup, and I'm here to see that you don't see the inside of NERV," Ranma said. "I see. So you intend to have it out man to man, as it were?" Kaoru asked. "As it were," Ranma agreed. "Consider yourself challenged. Right here, right now. Winner takes all, loser goes back to whatever hell spawned him." "My, aren't we dramatic," Kaoru giggled. "It's a dramatic moment," Ranma shrugged. "I suppose it's only fair to tell you that I have far more power than you," Kaoru said. "You would need an Eva to defeat me." "I suppose I should tell you that you're hopelessly out-classed in skill," Ranma countered, "and I don't need an Eva to take you down." "We shall see, Ranma Ikari," Kaoru said pleasantly. "But before we begin our battle, please introduce me to your friends." "This is Asuka Langley Sohryu and Rei Ayanami," Ranma said, indicating each girl respectively. "And will they too be participating in our battle?" Kaoru asked. "They are here to ensure that nobody interferes," Ranma said. "Otherwise they will only be observing your beat-down. They haven't seen me fight without holding back, you see. They wanted a demonstration of what a high-end martial artist is capable of." "A martial artist, you say?" Kaoru asked, intrigued. "Only you Lillum would make an art out of a thing like war. I look forward to seeing your art, Ranma." "I'll try to make it impressive since it's the last thing you're gonna see," Ranma said. "Now are you done yappin' so we can get this over with? I'm normally not eager to hurt someone, but I know that only your death will guarantee the safety of the life on this planet." "That is true," Kaoru said. "If it's any consolation, my death is the only thing that will prevent me from reaching my goal." "I figured," Ranma nodded. "Then get ready." "You may attack whenever you are prepared," Kaoru smiled, merely standing with his hands in his pockets. "Yo, I hate to break this to ya, but if you plan on hiding behind your AT barrier, you're gonna lose," Ranma pointed out. "So you know about that?" Kaoru asked. "But do you really know what it is? You Lillum don't understand. What you call an AT field is really the barrier that contains the power of my soul." "You're wrong," Ranma smirked. "We call it ki, or our life force. Most people don't believe in it, but all high-level martial artists have learned to harness that energy to some degree. Some of us more than others." Ranma blurred from sight only to reappear with his foot extended head level in a side-kick that would have taken Kaoru's head off if his AT barrier hadn't stopped it. "I must admit, Ranma, you are certainly fast," Kaoru smiled. "But as you can see, it won't do you any good." "I wouldn't be so sure about that," Ranma smirked. "If the AT barrier is all ya got, then you're seriously screwed." Ranma lowered his foot and held up his hand. Four blades of blue-gold energy formed, extending from each knuckle. Ranma made a casual swipe at Kaoru's AT barrier. The silver-haired boy's crimson eyes widened as four slashes gaped in the reddish barrier. "Wha-how?" Kaoru stammered, his cool demeanor breaking. "Now ya understand how out-classed you are?" Ranma smirked like a cat toying with its prey. What followed wasn't pretty. Kaoru found himself unexpectedly on the receiving end of a horrible beat-down. Every time he attempted to use his AT barrier to protect himself, Ranma would use his Nekoken claws to rip it to shreds. The silver-haired boy had even attempted his levitation ability to try and evade Ranma's attacks. The first two times, Ranma used the trees to jump high enough to drive the Fifth Child back to the ground in a most abrupt way. Finally, Kaoru rose up high enough that Ranma couldn't get to him. "It seems we have reached an impasse, Ranma," the battered Kaoru shouted down at him. "I cannot match you down there, but you cannot get to me up here." "Are you sure of that?" Ranma smirked. "Unless you have some ability I have yet to see," Kaoru called back down. "I've got loads of abilities you haven't seen," Ranma laughed. "Try this one. KIJIN RAISHU DAN!" Ranma launched two vacuum blades of inverted ki at the floating, silver-haired boy. Kaoru made no effort to avoid them as none of Ranma's other ranged attacks had penetrated his AT barrier. Thus he was quite shocked when the two blades passed right through the barrier followed by his torso, neatly quartering his body in a spray of red mist. As body parts rained down, Ranma looked away from the grisly scene. For the first time he noticed the audience that had gathered, made up of NERV security personnel. Rei and Asuka stood nearby. Rei appeared unphased by Kaoru's gruesome end, but Asuka was looking decidedly ill. Ranma approached them. "I'm really sorry ya had to see that," Ranma said sadly. "That's part of the reason I wanted ya safe at home. I didn't have a choice though. If he had allowed me to beat him into submission, I'd have used a pressure point technique to stop his heart, giving him a quick, clean end." "You did what was necessary," Rei assured him. "That was awful, Variable-chan," Asuka said, "but Rei's right. You had to stop him before he killed us all." "Doesn’t mean I'm proud of it," Ranma said. "Killing is something I've been against nearly all my life. Destroying those weird monsters is one thing, but Kaoru could have been a person." "Do not let his appearance fool you, Ranma," Rei spoke. "Kaoru Nagisa was as much a monster as any of the other angels that have threatened our world. His goal was nothing less than the extinction of all people. That is what made him a monster." Rei stepped forward and hugged Ranma. "You have a gentle heart, Koi. That is why I love you." "What she said," Asuka chimed in and joined the embrace. Ranma just stood there quietly absorbing the comfort the girls were offering him. It reassured him to remind himself that because of what he had just had to do, they would live. "So that was the 17th angel?" Misato asked as she and Ritsuko walked up. "Yeah," Ranma said. "One more to go, well, maybe two more if you count Gendo." Ritsuko snickered. "I wonder what he'd think if he heard his own son calling him an angel," Ritsuko asked. "The bastard would probably be flattered," Misato answered. "What are you guys doing here anyway?" Ranma asked. "We detected his AT field," Ritsuko informed him. "When we tried to call you guys in, the girls explained you had already engaged the angel without an Eva. Naturally, we had to see that so we rushed right out." "You were awesome, Ranma," Misato said. "This was the least destructive angel battle there has been. I'm proud of you." "I'm not," Ranma sighed. "But I can deal with it." "Well, let's go get the debriefing over with and you can all go home and relax," Misato suggested. "Good idea," Asuka said, much to the agreement of Ranma and Rei. (oO\O/Oo) "All the pieces are in place," Hyuga commented to Ranma as they walked though the corridors of NERV. "We've spent the last week positioning the assets so we'll be ready when the time comes." "Good," Ranma said. "Have you been able to find out anything on SEELE's timetable?" "Our sources say soon, but they couldn't give us a solid date," Hyuga said. "They're reporting that the UN is moving a lot more men and equipment into Japan, mostly infantry reinforced by light tanks and IFV's (Infantry Fighting Vehicles)." "Okay," Ranma nodded. "The girls and I are ready. You guys just watch each other's backs. This is gonna get ugly, real ugly." "Will do," Hyuga said. "You guys be careful too." (oO\O/Oo) "This is unbelievable," a SEELE monolith exclaimed. "How is it possible that the Third Child defeated the 17th angel in bare-handed combat?" "Perhaps he isn't human? Perhaps this is more of Gendo's duplicity, cloning another child using angel DNA?" the German accented monolith suggested. "Impossible," Keil spoke. "I was there when Yui Ikari gave birth to him." "But if he is human, what of our plans?" another monolith spoke. "Is the Third Child not the embodiment of the goal we seek? Bringing mankind to the next stage in human evolution?" "No," Keil said firmly. "Our goal goes far beyond merely an exceptionally powerful normal human." "Then what are we going to do about Ikari?" the German monolith demanded. "Steps have been taken to remove Gendo Ikari and bring NERV Tokyo's assets back into SEELE control," Keil stated. "The pieces are in place and are awaiting the execution orders." (oO\O/Oo) "Soon Yui," Gendo said to the massive visage of Unit 01. "You must wait just a little bit longer, but we are close to achieving our dreams. Please be patient for just a little bit longer." (oO\O/Oo) Asuka and Rei walked in the room where Ranma sat having a snack before bed. The pigtailed martial artist inexplicably felt a shiver run down his spine when the two girls bracketed him on either side, both wearing determined looks and not much else. "Should I get some cold water?" Ranma laughed nervously. "That won't be necessary," Rei replied. "Huh?" Ranma sweated. "Rei and I have discussed this. You think our time together is almost over," Asuka said. "You could be taken back to your reality at any time after SEELE attacks, which could be any day now. We've decided that tonight you're going to make love to us as a man." "We do not wish to lose you without having expressed our love for you in this manner," Rei stated. "But what if...?" Ranma started to ask but was interrupted. "What if we get pregnant?" Asuka asked with a grin. "Well, then if you get taken from us, at least we have a little piece of you with us all the time, and it will hardly be a problem before SEELE attacks. Besides, Liebling, we already know you know how to make a girl feel good as a girl. Are you saying you're not man enough to do it as a man?" No further persuading was necessary after that as Ranma took the challenge to his manhood and ran with it, resulting in two very exhausted, very happy, and moderately sore girls. Ranma would have gloated about them passing out before him had he not looked like a victim of Miss Hinako's ki draining attack. Still, Ranma reflected, the experience was utterly incredible. Not better than as a girl, but not any worse either. As a guy it was more intense. As a girl, she had more erogenous zones and the climaxes were more involved and longer lasting. It all balanced out. (oO\O/Oo) Ranma took out his cell phone as it began to ring while he and Rei walked through the nature trails. The caller ID said the call came from Asuka, whom they were waiting for while she got a checkup from Dr. Akagi. "Hey, Koi," Ranma said, answering the phone. "If you're concerned for the Second Child's wellbeing, you will bring Rei to me right now," Gendo said in a gloating tone. "What have you done with her, you filthy bastard?" Ranma hissed. "If she's hurt, your life won't be worth spit." "The brat is perfectly fine for the moment," Gendo said. "Should you like to keep it that way, you will do as I say. Report to my office...now." Ranma was growling when he crushed the phone in his hand. "What is wrong, Love?" Rei asked. "Gendo...he's got Asuka and he says if we don't want her hurt we have to go to him," Ranma snarled. Rei immediately pulled out her phone and called Misato as they headed toward Gendo's office. "It has begun," Rei simply said calmly. (oO\O/Oo) As soon as she got off the phone with Rei, Misato surreptitiously activated a small transmitter that sent a prearranged signal to the company of JSDF troops hidden inside the Geo-front. It let them know to move into position and prepare for the coming assault. Misato nodded to Ritsuko and quietly let Hyuga know what was happening. Hyuga began to quietly lock down the facility, sealing all the blast doors and access points possible to make it as difficult as possible for the opposing forces. "Here we go," Ritsuko said as she and Maya began typing furiously at their terminals. "The Magi are under attack. Someone is trying to hack in and open us up!" "Right," Misato said. "Do what you can to stop them. Aoba, sound the alert, we are under attack." "Yes, Ma'am," the longhaired man acknowledged, turning on the warning klaxons and the PA. "Attention all NERV personnel, we are under attack by unknown forces, repeat, we are under attack. All personnel to alert stations. This is not a drill, repeat this is not a drill!" (oO\O/Oo) Outside, a black shrouded figure silently slipped up behind a NERV security guard posted at one of the entrances to the Geo-front. The figure slipped a garrote around the guard's neck and swiftly took him out. Several other black-shrouded figures carrying submachine guns and other equipment appeared. Unfortunately for them, their stealth approach was wasted. The doors into the Geo-front should have been open so they could slip inside by now. Instead, they were still locked down tight. One of the men moved forward and attached a breeching charge to one of the doors and then faded back with his comrades. The device detonated, blowing the heavy reinforced steel door open. The invaders charged through the opening and swiftly made there way down the corridor. Similar scenes were happening at various other entry points around the Geo-front. It wasn't long before each of the invaders found the surprise the defenders had waiting for them. As soon as the invaders appeared, JSDF forces dressed in NERV security uniforms opened fire on them. The attackers soon found themselves outgunned since instead of handguns and a few submachine guns, they found themselves facing a fully equipped combat unit with M-249 SAW machineguns, M-16's equipped with M-203 40mm grenade launchers, and heavier M-240 7.62mm machineguns. The invaders pulled back under a withering amount of suppressing fire laid down by the well-equipped defending forces. (oO\O/Oo) Gendo ignored the alarms as he led Rei and Ranma to Terminal Dogma. "SEELE is too late," Gendo laughed as they entered the chamber containing the white body of the second angel, Lilith, suspended from a cross in the middle of a pool of LCL. "It is time to finally bring all my plans to fruition!" The bearded man stepped towards Rei, but Ranma stepped between them. "I ain't gonna let you do it, Old Man," Ranma growled. "You're not getting near Rei." "If you value the life of the Second Child, you will step out of the way," Gendo threatened. "Are you friggin' stupid, Old Man?" Ranma asked incredulously. "Do you honestly think I don't know what you have planned? If I let you do what you plan on doin', Asuka is dead anyway, as is Rei and everyone else on this planet. I know you intend to initiate the Third Impact, and I'm gonna stop ya." "I think not," Gendo sneered, pulling out his pistol. "Now stand aside!" "You know I can take that from you and shove it where the sun don't shine before you could even think about stopping me," Ranma said calmly. "You might be able to dodge the bullet, but then the bullet would be heading right for Rei," Gendo said smugly. "I doubt you'd want her to get hit." "Are you willing to take that chance?" Ranma asked menacingly. The pair stared at each other, neither willing to be the first to blink. Then it happened. Gendo pulled the trigger. Ranma twisted out of the path of the bullet and launched a spinning back kick at Gendo which was stopped by the sudden appearance of an AT field barrier. A quick glance at Rei revealed that Rei had used her own AT barrier to stop the bullet from hitting her. Then the fight was on. "You wanted to see the Nekoken, Old Man," Ranma growled, baring his fangs. "Well, you're gonna get to see it real close now." With that, Ranma exploded into motion as Gendo fired his pistol at Ranma while alternately trying to defend against Ranma's attacks with the AT barrier that was being generated by Adam, which was grafted to his hand. As swiftly as it started, it was over. Ranma fired a vacuum blade that tore through the barrier and severed Gendo's arm at the elbow. Gendo screamed in pain and dropped his gun. "I won't lose now!" Gendo screamed. "Not when I'm so close to having Yui back!" With that, Gendo grabbed up his severed arm and charged toward Rei, intent on forcing Adam into her. At the last moment, Ranma leaped between them. Both Ranma and Gendo's face took on a look of shock as the angel sunk into the pigtailed martial artist's chest. Ranma felt his ki gutter for a moment, then suddenly an intense pillar of energy burst from him, shooting toward the ceiling of the chamber. Gendo was instantly incinerated as if caught in a nuclear blast. The only thing that spared Rei was her AT barrier. The pillar rocketed up through the roof of the chamber and rose high into the air above Tokyo-3, forming a cross-shape in the air. (oO\O/Oo) Ranma found himself on a desolate plain of blasted rocks and sand that had been turned to glass. In front of him was an indistinct figure that resembled an Eva, except it was his size. "Join with me," the figure said. "Who the hell are you?" Ranma demanded. "I am the one you call Adam," the figure said. "Join with me." "Not a chance," Ranma denied. "Then you will be destroyed and I will take your body to complete my purpose," Adam said. "You can try, but Ranma Ikari doesn't lose," Ranma smirked, cracking his knuckles. "Game on, Asshole." Ranma immediately found himself on the defensive as Adam's arms shot out, lengthening grotesquely as Unit 03's had done. Easily avoiding them, Ranma lashed out with his Nekoken claws but was surprised to find them ineffective. He dodged several more arm strikes and then darted in to go on the offensive. The pigtailed martial artist unleashed a Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken on Adam's torso and sent the glowing, indistinct being flying backward and skidding across the blasted terrain on its back. Adam rose to his feet, seemingly unharmed. "You are impressively powerful for a Lillum," the angel observed. "You ain't seen nothin' yet," Ranma blustered. He was, however, getting a little nervous. Adam had taken everything Ranma had thrown at him thus far, including the Nekoken claws, and didn't seem phased. Ranma slipped into a defensive stance as he watched the angel come at him again. Again, he dodged as the arms shot out at him. Bouncing around the landscape, he observed Adam for some clue as he evaded the angel's attacks. The angel appeared to be made of a glowing white mist, devoid of any features, yet Ranma's blows had hit something substantial. Jumping out of range, Ranma fired a Mouko Takabisha, probing to find a weakness. The ball of golden energy streaked in and burst against an AT barrier. However, Ranma noticed a brief red glow come from the slightly darkened spot on Adam's torso. Suddenly, it hit Ranma; the dark spot was the angel's core! Smirking, Ranma leaped in, preparing an assault against the core only to find himself slammed to the ground violently. "Did you think we could not learn, Lillum?" Adam laughed. Ranma dragged himself to his feet, somewhat stunned from the blow. He realized that the angel had used its barrier like a giant flyswatter to swat him down. Then he was back on the defensive again, dodging Adam's arms. Growling in a feral manner, Ranma launched a vacuum blade at Adam. Adam put up the AT barrier but the blade passed through it and then neatly separated the top left portion of Adam's torso from the base of the neck to the left armpit. The severed portion exploded into white mist before reforming as if nothing had happened. "No way!" Ranma snarled in dismay. "You begin to understand, Lillum," Adam's voice mocked him. "You cannot defeat me. Surrender and join with me." "I ain't never met no one that couldn't be defeated," Ranma shouted defiantly. "You're goin' down, Mist-for-brains!" Slowly, a plan began to percolate to the surface of Ranma's mind. (oO\O/Oo) Asuka slowly struggled to consciousness. Her eyes flickered open and she looked around groggily. She quickly recognized she was in her Eva. "How did I get here?" Asuka muttered, forcing herself to become more alert. She could hear what sounded like muffled explosions from outside. Reaching down for the controls, she powered up the Eva and gasped. The exterior views showed she had been submerged underwater. "Um...Misato? Anyone?" Asuka said, keying the comm. "Asuka? Is that you?" Misato's voice came back. "Where are you?" "I'm in my Eva," Asuka answered. "I just woke up here. What's going on?" There was a pause as Misato talked to Hyuga before coming back. "Asuka, NERV is under attack," Misato said. "So far we've managed to keep their infantry pinned down, but they are trying to breech the vehicle access points so they can get their mechanized units inside. You're currently submerged in a lake just outside the Geo-front. We need you to take out their mechanized forces. Can you do that?" "Roger, no problem, Misato," Asuka said in a determined voice. "I guess it's time to quit sandbagging on my sync ratio then?" "Affirmative, this is the big one, Asuka," Misato agreed. "Rei and Ranma?" Asuka asked. "They are with Gendo," Misato said. "Since the Third Impact hasn't begun yet, I assume they are okay for now." "Roger," Asuka smiled. "Well, good luck to you guys. Stay safe. I've got work to do." "Good luck to you too, Asuka," Misato replied. Asuka looked up and saw a ship burning above her. She maneuvered the Eva around so that when she stood it would be right over top of her. As she stood, she caught the hull of the ship and lifted it clear of the water holding it over her head. Instantly, she came under fire from the light tanks that lined the roadway next to the lake. Their shells detonated harmlessly against Unit 02's red armor. Asuka smirked and heaved the ship at them, taking a good number of them out in a massive explosion. She then leapt out of the lake into the midst of the vehicles, wracking havoc among them as she kicked them into each other like exploding soccer balls. A rocket attack exploding against her back made Asuka turn around to see several VTOL's attacking her. Leaping toward them she smacked one out of the air and grabbed the tail section of another, tossing it into still another one. All exploded into fireballs. Turning again, she saw five more coming in firing wildly. Asuka shoved out with her AT barrier, allowing the ordinance to detonate harmlessly against it before it struck the VTOL's and blew them to pieces as well. Turning again, she launched a spinning back kick at another VTOL followed by an ax kick to a second. The few remaining aircraft suddenly pulled back. "That's what I thought," Asuka said smugly, squaring her Eva's shoulders and turned toward the next group of enemy forces. Just as she turned, she caught a cruise missile to the head. Sensing a second coming in, she put her hand up to catch it a heartbeat later. Both missiles detonated. The ground forces were about to breath a sigh of relief when the red Eva strode unscathed from the cloud of smoke and fire. Suddenly, a huge cross-shaped pillar of energy rose into the air. The sight of it made Asuka's blood run cold as a feeling of dread suffused her. "RANMA!" Asuka screamed in anguish, somehow knowing the energy had something to do with her loves' battle. She turned and began to run to the nearest point of entry to the Geo-front. She had to get in there to help Ranma and Rei. "Asuka, you have incoming," Misato said urgently. "Nine contacts inbound. They appear to be Eva units. Probably the production series SEELE was working on." All at once, Asuka was filled with a terrible rage. These bastards were going down and everyone else better pray that Ranma was okay. (oO\O/Oo) Ranma smirked as he faced Adam. He had a plan now and this angel was going down. Ranma spat some blood on the ground from the beating he had taken to test certain aspects of his plan and give Adam a false sense of security. Now it was Ranma's turn to dish out some punishment. He gathered his energies and prepared his assault. "KIJIN RAISHU DAN REVISED: TENKAZE!" Ranma yelled and began to fire off a score of vacuum blades at Amaguriken speeds. Adam smugly took them and was quickly dismembered. The severed parts turned to mist and began to reform as before, but this time, Ranma followed them in. Adam was helpless to do anything as his limbs were reforming and Ranma capitalized. With the quick use of the Nekoken claws, a moment later Ranma had torn out Adam's core. Tossing the red sphere in the air, the pigtailed warrior fired a Mouko Takabisha. The golden energy struck the red sphere and exploded spectacularly. Adam's body dissolved to mist, which was quickly scattered to the four winds. The threat gone, Ranma collapsed to the ground, exhausted and hurting from the beating he had taken. His eyes drifted closed as consciousness fled him. (oO\O/Oo) "Ranma," a voice called to him urgently. "Ranma, please awaken. I require your assistance." Ranma felt himself being shaken and his eyes flickered open to see Rei's crimson orbs looking down at him with concern. "Ranma, are you well?" Rei asked. "I-I think so," Ranma said, doing a quick scan of his body, surprised at what he found. "Not only am I good, I don't think I've ever felt this strong before. My ki feels boundless." "I believe you have acquired Adam's S2 organ," Rei explained. "How long was I out?" Ranma asked. "You were unresponsive for several minutes," Rei answered. "Come, we must go. Asuka needs us. SEELE's Evas are attacking." "Shit!" Ranma said leaping to his feet. "Let's go!" "Major Katsuragi says our Eva's are waiting for us," Rei said as she and Ranma ran through the corridors. (oO\O/Oo) Asuka was in the zone. Consumed in a blood frenzy, she was tearing into the white Evas like a scythe through wheat. The German redhead was literally tearing them apart with a frightening ferocity. She had already crushed the head of one and then broke its body. Four more had been carved to pieces by their own massive blade weapons, but her power cable had been severed in the fight. One had fallen when it managed to pin her down. Asuka used an integral weapons system that she hadn't ever had the chance to use before. Her pylons opened up and a set of massive spikes shot out, embedding themselves into the head of the Eva attacking her. Asuka picked it up and threw it at the next attacker before charging them both and burying her fist through both their torsos. Her battle awareness, which Ranma had trained into her and honed to a razor edge, made her look over to see one of the remaining Eva's had thrown its massive weapon at her. Asuka ripped her arm free of the two Evas it had impaled and directed her AT barrier between her and the thrown weapon. It was then that the oddest thing happened. The huge double ended blade struck the AT field and it changed. Suddenly, it was a familiar-looking two-tined spear. Asuka's eyes widened in surprise as the weapon tried to force its way through her AT field. Then to Asuka's horror, her battery power ran out, dropping her straining AT barrier and allowing the lance through. The lance buried itself in Unit 02's eyes and exploded out of the back of the Eva's skull. Asuka screamed in agony as her left eye exploded from the neural feedback she received with her sync ratio well over 100 percent. Her back arched up off the seat as she clamped her hand over her destroyed eye. Unit 02 fell over backwards but didn't fall as the end of the lance held it off the ground. Slowly, the damaged white Evas began to regenerate themselves around the red Eva. Soon they were nearly completely healed and as one took to the air before descending on the fallen Unit 02 like a pack of vultures. They ripped into Unit 02's torso armor and then the Eva's exposed innards, ripping and shredding them before taking flight again leaving Unit 02 a grisly disemboweled mess. It was this scene Ranma and Rei arrived on the surface to see. The blue Evas ran at full speed toward their fallen comrade and saw Unit 02 raise its hand skyward. Then eight more lances streaked down to impale the stricken Eva. (oO\O/Oo) "ASUKA!" Ranma screamed as he reached the surface just in time to see the white Evas take flight, dragging the entrails of Unit 02 upward with them until they snapped. "NO!" he shouted in denial as the lances rained down on the eviscerated Eva even as he ran toward it. (oO\O/Oo) On the surface of the moon, the Lance of Longinus quivered and began to glow where it was thrust upright in the lunar surface. Suddenly, its form changed to a bolt of pure energy and it streaked back toward Earth. (oO\O/Oo) Ranma didn't even notice when the Lance of Longinus appeared in his hand. All he knew was the white Evas were as good as dead for what they had done to Asuka. He barely noticed that one of them had already paid the price when the returning Lance skewered it through the core in a gory explosion of body parts and blood before it reached Ranma. Without hesitating Ranma heaved the weapon once again into the air toward another of the airborne foes. As the Lance became an energy bolt once more, Rei reached Unit 02 and swiftly pulled a lance from the stricken Eva's body before launching it skyward. Ranma's target exploded messily while Rei's plummeted to Earth with the copy of Adam's weapon embedded in its core. The other enemy Evas descended to the ground to fight the newcomers. The fight was as short as it was shockingly brutal. Ranma had vaporized one of the remaining white Evas with a super-powered Mouko Takabisha and literally ripped three more apart with his claws. Rei accounted for two others with surgically precise strikes of the Lance that Ranma had tossed her when it had returned to his hand. The last body hadn't hit the ground before Ranma was running toward Unit 02. He ripped the cover off the entry plug insertion point and carefully removed the plug, laying it gently on the ground before ejecting his own plug. Leaping to the ground, he sprinted to Asuka's entry plug and ripped it open. Ranma was horrified when he got a look at Asuka. Her left eye was a gory mess and she was bleeding from several places where she had taken sympathetic wounds that matched the places the lances had pierced her Eva because of her high sync ratio and the properties of the lances. Cradling her in his arms, Ranma extracted her from the entry plug and carried her a short distance away before laying her out on the ground. Her ki was very weak and becoming weaker as he watched. She wasn't breathing and he couldn't find a pulse. Tears streamed down his face as he watched his beloved die before him. "Ranma," Rei said, appearing across from Asuka's body, "we can save her, but we don't have much time." "H-how?" Ranma sobbed out. "We have to let our energy flow into her and direct it into regenerating the damage her body has sustained," Rei explained. She picked up Asuka's hand. "Take her hand and with your other hand take mine. This will complete the circle." Ranma did as he was instructed, instinctually knowing what to do thanks to the remnants of Adam still within him. He let his ki flow into both Rei and Asuka while Rei did the same. Slowly the trio began to glow and Asuka's ki grew stronger. Soon her wounds began to fade and her eye reformed as her body rebuilt itself. Suddenly, Asuka's body convulsed as she sucked in a deep breath. Her eyes popped open wide in surprise. "Oh thank the Kami!" Ranma gasped and grabbed the redhead in a tight embrace. A smiling Rei quickly joined the hug and the three teens held each other and cried. "How do you feel, Asuka-chan," Rei asked. "I-I feel...great," Asuka stammered. "My eye...h-how?" "We healed you, Koi," Ranma said with a tender smile. "We couldn't bear to lose you." "Something else has occurred," Rei commented. The pair looked at her questioningly. "Sense your ki, Love," Rei smiled. "I-it's enormous," Asuka said in awe after closing her eyes and focusing inwardly. "W-what happened?" "We are bonded now," Rei answered. "Ranma and I both have S2 organs, making our ki nearly inexhaustible. Through the bond, you can now draw ki from us as if you had your own S2 organ." "She's right," Ranma said in surprise. "I can feel it. I can feel the bond with both of you." The trio returned to their embrace and held each other happily, reveling in each other's presence, knowing the others were healthy and profoundly happy. That's how Misato and the others found them. The trio was quickly informed that the UN forces that SEELE had sent against them were defeated and that Kaji, together with several international law enforcement and intelligence agencies were taking the members of SEELE into custody. "Where's Ritsuko?" Ranma asked. Misato looked down, blinking back her tears. "S-she didn't make it," Misato said softly, grieving for her lost friend. "What happened?" Ranma asked. "One of SEELE's assassins made it to the command center," Misato said. "He was about to open fire on me when Ritsuko jumped in front of me. She took a burst in the chest and died instantly, but it gave me time to return fire. He didn't outlive her long." Misato's grief choked off anything else as she began to cry in anguish. Ranma took her in his arms and held her. He was joined shortly after by Rei and Asuka. "I'm so sorry, Misato," Ranma said comfortingly. "She was my friend too." "S-she was a hero," Misato sobbed. "I'll miss her so much." "I will too," Ranma said, tears running down his own face. "She will be remembered." (oO\O/Oo) The credits began to roll on the screen as the last scene faded away. Nabiki stopped the tape and began to rewind it. Kasumi was busy passing a box of tissues around as several sniffles were heard from around the table. "Aiya, that was too too sad," Shampoo said softly. "Who knew Blonde-genius-woman have it in her to die warrior's death?" "Yeah, but I'm just glad Asuka lived," Ukyo said. "Ranma would have been devastated if she hadn't. Ritsuko's death hurt him enough." "At least it ended better than the original," Akane pointed out. "Now that this is over, when do you suppose my son will return?" Nodoka asked. "Yes, we must know so that we can plan for the foolish boy's wedding immediately upon his return," Genma said. "Quite right, Old Friend," Soun chimed in. "You fools just don't get it, do you?" Nodoka hissed. "Ranma is marrying nobody until Genma cleans up the mess he made of my son's life! That's if he returns at all. Elder, do you have any idea when that might be?" "I'm sorry, Child," Cologne said. "It could be any time now, or he could be gone for the same period of time that elapsed during his adventure in that other world. I suppose it's up to the Kami." After some discussion, it was decided that either Ranma would return by morning, or they would have to wait the year or so that elapsed in the NGE world before Ranma returned to them, if at all. It was also agreed that the Amazons and Ukyo would stay over at the Tendo home should Ranma be returned to them by morning.
Back to The Wild Horse Thesis Index - Back to Ranma 1/2 Shoujo-Ai Fanfiction