From: nakazawa@phakt.usc.edu (Rei Nakazawa) Newsgroups: alt.ql.creative Subject: Ranma 1/2-QL Crossover (2/3) Date: 23 Nov 1994 20:55:37 -0800 Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA Message-Id: <3b16c9$qh4@phakt.usc.edu> Here's part 2, reposted by permission of the author. If you miss any parts due to Thanksgiving, let me know. Enjoy! -Rei Nakazawa Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime.stories From: JSL6416@ACS.TAMU.EDU Subject: Ranma - Leap and a Half 2/3 [FanFic] Message-ID: <941116001913.42228dcd@ACS.TAMU.EDU> X-World-Archive: Ranma/ranma.leap.half.gz Organization: WPI Discordian Society, Undocumented Cabal of the Accursed Saint Shiranto Joe Date: Thu, 17 Nov 1994 00:33:00 GMT Formula 119 presents... (in less than a second and longer than an eternity Doctor Sam Beckett exists bodiless in a limbo of white electricity and blue light, being flung through time and space, Heaven only knows where and when to. A smell like burning ozone and the sound of a high-pitched whine fill his ears and nose; his body feels as though it has been immersed in warm water; his eyes see nothing but what can only be described as "everything", much like seeing his life flash before his eyes, but instead seeing the lives of EVERYONE in the course of a nanosecond. The whole sensation seems to last forever, and then it ends as soon as it starts, and the Leap is complete...) (there is an incredible flash of blue and white light followed by the immediate dying down of the strange whining sound that accompanies every Leap. The feelings of nausea and euphoria vanish as Doctor Sam Beckett feels the ground slam itself beneath his feet. Sensations of dizziness are replaced with the feelings of disorientation and fear which he always feels when being tossed into the life of yet another person that history has somehow wronged) Old man : Go south for thirty kilometers, you can't miss it. Sam (suddenly notices the little bearded man with glasses standing before him. Next to the man is a huge ox) : I-I'm sorry? Old man : SOUTH! Go SOUTH! Thirty kilometers! Good grief, you'd think you were deaf or something! Sam : Uh, all right... Thirty kilometers south, you say. Thanks. (Sam waves to the man as he turns around... and suddenly he notices there's no ground beneath him. Sam looks down just in time to discover that he's just walked off a cliff with a rapid river flowing about a hundred feet below) Sam (waving his arms around to regain his balance and failing miserably) : OoooOOOOH BooooOOOOOYYYYY!!! (falls over the ledge) Old man (calling out) : That's NORTH, you idiot! (to himself) Honestly, that boy has absolutely NO sense of direction at all... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- R A N M A 1/2 A LEAP AND A HALF Written by BENARES -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Official disclaimer : Quantum Leap is the property of Universal Pictures Ranma 1/2 is the property of Rumiko Takahashi Part Two of Three March 15, 1992 Sam : Just a little bit over! Old man : Good grief, just grab the stupid thing! (Sam is hanging onto the root of a tree that is protruding from the cliff-face, trying to reach for a long rope that the old man has tied to a rock on the ledge. Sam is finally able to get a handle on the rope and pull himself back up, although he notes that the heavy pack on his back is seriously slowing him down. After a lot of effort Sam claws his way back onto solid ground and rolls over panting) Old man (collecting his rope) : What's the matter, can't tell north from south? Sam : I just got a little d-disoriented , that's all... Old man (taking his ox by the reigns and walking off) : Whatever... (shaking his head) Dumb kid... (Sam finally decides that he can sit up and looks around. He is in the middle of a huge grassy meadow strewn with hills (and one large cliff to the north). The weather is very pleasant, a few wispy clouds hovering in the sky. Sam calls out for Al but there's no response, so he takes his only lead and trudges on south. After sixteen kilometers and three hours later Sam decides to take a break and collapses with the heavy backpack) Al (suddenly appearing from his glowing doorway) : Do we need a workout, Sam? Sam (refusing to budge from the prone position) : Whoever I Leaped into must be a giant of some kind! This stupid backpack has to weigh at LEAST a hundred and fifty pounds... Al : No, as a matter of fact you have Leapt into March 15, 1992, into the life of one Mister Rai-Oga... (looks at his keypad) Oops, I mean RY-ouga Hibiki, age seventeen, male... Actually he's only a little taller than me. Sam (sitting up) : He must be one powerful little-- (looks at Al) What happened to YOU? Al (holding up the little computer terminal so that it blocks Sam's view of his face) : What? Oh, oh nothing... Sam (pointing at Al) : You've got a black eye! Al (moving the keypad and looking embarrassed) : Yes... Sam (smirking) : What happened, you accidentally discover that one of your girlfriends is married the hard way? Al : As a matter of fact,no! Our... GUEST did this to me. He thought he was being abducted or something and began attacking everyone that entered the waiting room. He beat up almost all of the security guards-- Sam : And you, too. Al : YES, and me, too; you don't have to rub my face in it! Sam (still smirking) : Sorry. Al : Where was I? Oh, yeah... Anyway, he only stopped when Tina went in there to try and calm him down. He started blushing when she talked to him, and after a while she was able to explain that he WASN'T being abducted by aliens. She's still in there with him ... (Al begins to frown) Sam : Has Ziggy found out why I'm here? Al : No, she's still working on that. Ryouga says he was going west to Tokyo before you jumped in. Sam : West? Some man I met a while back said I was supposed to be going south. Al (punching some buttons) : What do you know, it IS south. Just about nine miles over these hills. Sam (stands up) : Well, I guess (hefts up the backpack) Ugh! I guess I'll just have to... (drops the backpack) TOKYO?! I'm back in JAPAN!! Al : Well, uh, so you are. However, until we find out exactly why you're here it MIGHT just be a coincidence... Sam : Coincidence my ass! Being in TOKYO only four MONTHS in the future, a little FAR FETCHED for a coincidence! Al (shaking his head) : Nope nope nope... We already rechecked all history scenarios involving EVERYONE you already met here last time, and their lives turn out just fine. Sam (scratching his chin) : I don't get it... Al : Listen Sam, I'll go back and try and find something that can be of help. In the meantime (points into the distance), you've got a little hike ahead of you... (Al pushes some buttons on his keypad and a glowing sheet of white slides out of empty space. Al walks into it and the magic door slides shut behind him. Sam sighs, hoists the backpack onto his shoulders, and trudges on over the hills. About two and a half hours later Sam enters the suburbs of Tokyo. After looking about for somewhere to stop Sam finally finds an empty lot and drops the backpack) Sam (to himself) : Great, Al COULD have at least told me where this guy lives... (Sam decides to sift about in the backpack, hoping to find some sort of indication as to what Ryouga's address is. He finds foodstuffs, a tent, clothes, a sleeping bag, an incredibly heavy umbrella, everything needed to survive in the wild... except an address book. Finding an empty box in the back of the lot, Sam hides the bag and covers it over with some roofing tiles, then decides to go exploring. As he passes a glass window he gets a good glimpse of what he looks like : a black-haired Japanese male with a very defined build, wearing a sleeveless black shirt, black pants, and a yellow and black bandana. Sam notes that the bandana he is wearing looks exactly like the one worn by the pig that had attacked him in his previous Leap; come to think about it, Ranma had mentioned Ryouga's name just before booting the pig into the air) Sam : There's NO way this could be a coincidence, now... Akane : Ryouga-kun! Sam (spins about startled to see a familiar face) : A-Akane! It's, uh, nice to see you again! Akane : You too! So where have YOU been for the last two weeks? Sam : Two weeks? Oh, um... around. You know - here, there... So how are you? How's, uh, Ranma? You two been getting along? Akane (looking annoyed) : Ranma? THAT jerk? Hah! Ranma : I wouldn't be such a jerk if you weren't such a tomboy! (Ranma jumps from out of nowhere and lands on Sam's shoulders, forcing him to the ground) Sam : Yeaargh!! Akane : I'm not a tomboy, you BAKA! Ranma : Uncute! Sam (shoving Ranma off his back and getting to his feet) : Hold it, you two! What's all this about? Akane : Ranma's an idiot, that's all. Ranma : Macho chick! Sam (trying his best to keep down the squabbling) : Hey, hey! Let's just try to stay calm, everybody... There's no reason you two have to argue about... about... What ARE you two arguing about, anyway? Ranma : Why should YOU care, P-Chan? Sam (looks at Ranma in confusion) : Who's P-Chan? Akane : Leave Ryouga-kun out of this, you imbecile. Ranma : Who's the imbecile, you ditz! (all of a sudden Al pops in out of nowhere a few meters away from Sam and waves him over. Sam reluctantly leaves the arguing couple and sneaks over to the hologram) Sam : Al, something happened! These two are acting like they hate each other! Al (casually looks at the twosome) : Oh, that... Don't worry about it. Sam : Don't worry about it?! Al, what's the probability of them breaking up? I think I might have come back to do something about this. Al (waving his arms about) : No, don't worry about it! There's still a one-hundred percent chance the two are going to get married; Sam, this is how they ALWAYS act together. Sam (looks at Akane. She looks ready to break Ranma's jaw) : What? Are you sure? Al : Sam, these two are classic cases... They both LOVE each other, but they've got so much EGO that they aren't going to tell each other and are INSTEAD going to act the exact opposite of how they feel. You remember what Akane said in her room on Christmas. Sam : Yeah, I-I guess so. So have you got anything yet? Al : Not a single thing (Sam face faults). But Ziggy's now absolutely sure that it will have something to do with Ranma and Akane. Whatever IT is... Sam (frustrated) : I already figured out that part, Al! Did you get anything out of Ryouga? Al : No, although Tina (grimaces) thinks he's... CUTE. (Sam snickers at this) It's not funny, Sam, stop laughing! Sam (covering his mouth) : I'm sorry... Say, I didn't know Tina knew Japanese. Al : Oh, she doesn't. Ryouga seems to know some good English, though... (Al's little terminal squeals loudly) Huh? Sam : Did something come up? Al (reading the terminal) : Not again! Sam, Ziggy's history database is changing on her! Something's happening... (looks at the keypad in astonishment) Oh my God. Sam : History changed again?! Al : I don't know how, but... yeah. Ziggy says that within twelve hours Akane's... going to die. Sam (Sam nearly falls over in shock) : That can't be right!! Al : Local records show that she (keypad beeps) drowns, exact time unknown, but her body winds up on the coroner's desk in a couple of days. Sam : Get me the specifics, Al! QUICK! Al (hitting the keypad as it continues to whine) : Ziggy doesn't HAVE any specifics. Something has just caused history to change, and because it JUST happened Ziggy can't get a clear lock on any information that gives any details, just the autopsy report stating around what time she died and how! Sam : Dammit! I must have done something! Al : What makes you say that? Sam : Well, what else COULD it be? I'm the only variable! Al : Don't forget, Sam, our records looked fine at first when you Leapt into Tsubasa, but SOMETHING caused time to change... (thinks for a second) Hey! Who's the only other person that can change history besides YOU! Sam : No, Al, it couldn't be the "evil Leaper". I shot Zoey when she tried to kill Alia and me, remember? Al (chews on his cigar in frustration) : Nuts, that's right... Sam : Well, at least I know HOW she dies. I'll just have to stick by her and make sure she stays away from any dangerous sources of water. Al : Sure, how hard could THAT be? (Sam looks over to where Akane and Ranma are arguing. Or rather, WERE arguing; the two are gone. Sam asks Al to locate them, and Al obliges, targeting them at the Tendo dojo. With the hologram's help, Sam quickly locates the Tendo home and goes in. Akane and Ranma are taking their shoes off and are about to enter the house when they surprisedly notice Sam come in) Akane : Ryouga-kun? What are you doing here? Ranma : And how'd you find your way here so FAST? Sam : I, uh... Well, I was wondering if I might be able to stay for... for DINNER. Ranma : Whoa, you couldn't have picked a worse night of the year! Akane : Shut up, Ranma! Ryouga-kun LOVES my cooking, don't you Ryouga-kun? Sam : Oh, um, sure. Nothing better on the planet. Ranma (walks up to Sam and sympathetically pats him on the shoulder) : Wow, I'm SORRY, P-Chan. I must have landed on your head harder than I thought. Sam (genuinely confused) : Who's P-Chan? (Ranma never has the chance to respond since Akane quickly drives an elbow into his face and drives his face into the pavement, causing the ground to crack like an egg. Sam staggers at the amount of damage he thinks must have been caused to Ranma's face, but before he can administer any aid...) Ranma (getting up with a lot of bruises by no real damage) : That HURT! Akane : Good! Now, Ryouga-kun (takes Sam's arm), you can help me out in the kitchen while I prepare dinner. Sam : Sure, no sweat... (thinking) My God, the people around here must be built like freight trains! (Sam follows Akane into the kitchen and does a few cleaning chores while Akane works on cooking the evening meal. Ever so often Sam looks up from washing dishes and cutting vegetables and watches Akane prepare... something; exactly what he can't say, but whatever it is it's sure generating a lot of smoke) Sam (trying to see through the ever-decreasing visibility) : You know, I can help you with that if you want. Akane : No thank you, Ryouga-kun , I'm doing just fine. (after about an hour darkness has settled outside and the family has settled down to eat. While Akane and Kasumi lay out the table Sam goes to the bathroom to wash up; he notes how red his eyes, or rather Ryouga's eyes, have become after spending over an hour inside a thick cloud of burning smoke. After cleaning out his eyes as much as possible with a towel Sam finds a place to sit next to Akane and settles in along with the rest of family. As he looks around at the others he notices that the air seems somewhat heavy, almost like the group expects some form of doom to be lain upon them) Soun (visibly sweating) : I thought Kasumi was cooking tonight. Akane (smiling) : Nope, I asked Kasumi-onechan if I could surprise you tonight with some cooking of my own. Genma : Well, we're all pretty... um... surprised, aren't we Ranma? Ranma : Good thing I already knew about it, otherwise the shock might have killed me. Genma (grabbing Ranma by the shirt) : You KNEW about it and you didn't warn us?! (Al walks into the room and takes a look at the feast set out on the table) Al : Oh, WOW! Sam, you lucky devil, you get to have GENUINE Japanese cuisine tonight! And it looks DELICIOUS, too. (Al steps over to the table and takes in a big whiff; after a second he frowns and takes a look at the cigar in his hand, then shakes his head) You know, Sam, I might just be a hologram but I SWEAR I can smell smoke... Sam (quietly to Al) : I know, it looks pretty good. (out loud) I don't know why you people are complaining. Akane put a lot of work into this meal; you just aren't giving it a chance. Ranma : Oh? Then why don't YOU eat some FIRST, P-Chan? (in open demonstration to show everyone how safe it is Sam takes his chopsticks and, after spending about two minutes trying to remember how to use them, picks up a piece of squid and takes a bite. Everyone watches him in anticipation to see what his reaction will be, especially Akane. Al looks at Sam with some curiosity as well. After a wait that seems like days there is a loud SNAP as Sam's hand spasmodically crushes the chopsticks) Al : Sam? Sam, speak to me! (Sam's eyes begin to water) Akane : How was it, Ryouga-kun? Sam (slowly able to sputter out a response that sounds like gagging) : V-very good... y-you're an exce-...excellent cook-k-k. (staggers up) If you'll exc-cuse me, I need to go t-to the bathroom... (Sam casually leaves the room. As soon as he's out of sight the family can hear what sounds like running and the slamming of the bathroom door) Al : Goushii, center me on Sam quick! (vanishes) Soun (sadly) : Poor Ryouga-kun, he was a good boy... Ranma : He's a goner. Nabiki : I think I've got enough to order a pizza. Akane : Hey! (meanwhile, in the bathroom...) Al (shrugging) : Well, the food LOOKED good, anyway. Just keep your head down, Sam. Take long, deep breaths. Sam (head over the toilet) : That had to be the most toxic thing I've ever consumed in my LIFE... Bwwweeeaagghhh! Al (averting his eyes) : Oh, gross. Sam (after flushing the toilet) : Al, I want Ziggy to run a check on someone named P-Chan. Ranma keeps bringing up that name for some reason. Al (looks at his keypad) : Uh, P-Chan, P-Chan... Ah, here it is. Some little black pig that Akane adopted a while back. Sam : Ranma's calling me a pig? (suddenly there is a scream and a loud splash from outside. Sam quickly shakes away his stomach sickness and bursts out of the bathroom. He makes his way to the outside and sees Akane splashing about in the carp pond) Akane : Gack! I can't swim! Sam : Oh my God! (makes a dash for the pond) Hold on, I'm coming! (just as Sam is about to leap into the pond the ground gives out from under him and he falls onto the grass. Sam quickly looks up to see Ranma standing a little ways back with his foot extended) Sam (quickly getting up) : What the hell did you trip me for?! She's going to DROWN! Ranma : Ryouga, you moron... She can't drown in that pond, it's only two feet deep. (Akane hears Ranma and stops thrashing, then notices that she's sitting down in the pond. She climbs out of the pond and regains her composure, although she's blushing wildly from embarrassment) Sam : What happened? Ranma : She was trying to force feed me that rubber tire... Akane : It was broiled octopus, you jerk. Ranma : ...when she slipped on the rocks and fell into the pond. Akane : I wouldn't have fallen in the pond in the first place if you hadn't been chicken enough to RUN AWAY from me! Ranma : Well, you didn't have to chase me! (Sam rolls his eyes and sits down on the back porch while Ranma and Akane go at each other again. Al is standing there watching them as well) Sam (slumping his head into his hand) : Don't they EVER stop? Even for just a LITTLE while? Al : Someone should write a comic book about those two... Sam (looks at Al) : Please tell me Ziggy has come up with something, ANYTHING! I don't think I can take much more of this Leap... Al (studies his keypad) : Well, let's see... No, Ziggy says that while her database is slowly clearing up she's having trouble interfacing with her Japanese counterparts to get any useful data. Something about time zones... Sam (exasperated) : This is absolutely ridiculous! How am I supposed to save her life if I don't know anything about how she loses it? Kasumi (calling from inside the dining room) : Ryouga-kun? Sam : Yes? Kasumi : Would you be a dear and help me with cleaning up this mess? Sam : Yeah, I'll be there in a sec... (Sam gets up and enters the dining room... Or what's left of the dining room; apparently some kind of food fight took place while he was in the bathroom : the walls and floor are completely caked in what Akane had spent most of the afternoon cooking. Sam looks around wondering why no one else is available to help (or perhaps just hoping that someone will come to his aid), and discovers that the rest of the family is dutifully avoiding its chores by watching television or playing shogi. Sam sighs and begins to help Kasumi pick up the mess. Outside, Ranma and Akane are still arguing) Akane : Are you saying I'm uncoordinated? Ranma : Uncoordinated? Of course not, I'm just saying that you're the clumsiest person in Japan. (there is a ringing at the main gates. Ranma runs over to them (and skillfully dodges the birdbath that Akane throws at him) to see who it is) Guy on bicycle : Telegram for Ms. Akane Tendo. Ranma : I'll take that. Akane (pounding Ranma in the face before he can take hold of the letter) : I don't think so! (takes the letter from the messenger) Thank you. Guy on bicycle (tips his hat) : Don't thank me, ma'am, I'm just doing my job (rides off into the distance). (Akane opens the telegram and quickly reads the note) Note : "Dear Akane - I must speak to you at once about a very urgent matter regarding my ailing grandfather. Meet me at the Mikado Dam lookout as soon as possible. Signed, Shinnosuke" Ranma : Shinnosuke? Why didn't he just come here instead of sending a letter? Akane (angry) : Hey, this letter is private! (Akane quickly runs into the house and puts on a jacket and her shoes) Ranma : Where are YOU going? Akane : I'm going to meet Shinnosuke-kun at the Mikado Dam like he wants. Why, do you have a problem with that? Ranma : Of course not, why should I? Akane : Good. I'd hate to think you'd suddenly become jealous of Shinnosuke-kun (closes the gates behind her as she leaves) Ranma (to himself) : Jealous? ME? Hah! (stands around for a minute, then decides on a course of action) Of course, it wouldn't hurt to go see what they're talking about... (puts on his shoes and runs out the gate) (inside, Sam has has just finished tossing the last bits of scrap into the trash compactor) Kasumi (smiling) : Thank you, Ryouga-kun, that was very helpful. Sam : No problem. (as Kasumi leaves the room Al pops in with a concerned look on his face) Sam (notices Al's expression) : You find something? Al : Ziggy just hit the mother-load, Sam. (reads from his little computer terminal) In fifty minutes Akane is going to fall into the Mikado Dam! Sam : What?! How? Al : There's a lookout platform built near the dam's edge. Apparently it wasn't built very well because when she AND Ranma stood on it the combined weight caused the thing to snap apart! There is now a (pushes a few buttons on the terminal) HOLY SMOKES!! There's a NINETY-SEVEN percent chance that she will drown to death in the dam! Sam : My God... Al : Ranma tries to dive in after her, but he never finds her and has to save himself. After her death, Ranma will blame himself for the whole thing and fall apart completely, becoming a hopeless drunkard and ending up married to someone named (keypad beeps) Kodachi, who completely sucks his life away! Sam : Then I've got to keep Akane from leaving the house... Nabiki (walking out of the kitchen with a soft drink) : You're a little late, Ryouga-kun, she left a few minutes ago. Al : Oh no! Sam : Dammit! (runs out of the house as fast as possible) Nabiki : I wonder what all THAT was about? (Sam bursts out of the gates and looks around the dark streets. There is absolutely no one in view) Sam : Quick, Al! How do I get to Mikado Dam? Al (reading his keypad) : Let's see... Go up the street, turn at the second left, then go five miles connection terminated... What?! Sam : Connection terminated? Al (hitting his keypad) : No, Ziggy, not now! Sam, Ziggy's connection into the Japanese database system has just been cut off! Sam : Cut off?! Al : Their main datatransfer computer wasn't advanced enough to handle Ziggy's interface. Their whole system just crashed... Sam : Good lord, Al, get me the directions to the dam!! I haven't got a lot of time!! (thinks for a second) Ask the guy in the waiting room if he knows where it is! Al : Good thinking, Sam! I'll be back in a jif! (Al flips a switch on the keypad and vanishes. Sam paces about waiting for about a minute before Al reappears) Al : Alright, Sam, I've brought Ryouga into the imaging chamber with me. He's going to give us directions to the dam. Sam : Great! So, where to? Al (appears to chat to the empty space next to him, then looks back at Sam) : Okay, go down this road... (at the Mikado Dam Akane is standing about on the lookout platform, trying to shrug off the cold of the night and ever-so-often looking down the road hoping to spot Shinnosuke. Unfortunately the road is remaining quite barren of life. The only noise is that of the water as it flows into the dam from its river source and pours through the dam's piping system, crashing to the river's bottom one-hundred meters below) Akane (to herself) : I hope Shinnosuke-kun didn't forget that he sent me a letter. He can be so absent-minded sometimes... (meanwhile in a nearby tree Ranma is sitting on a branch wondering where Shinnosuke is, as well) Ranma (thinking) : I hope he hurries up! I'm beginning to freeze up here! (looks at Akane, who is oblivious to Ranma's presence) I wish I'd been smart enough to bring a jacket like her... (somewhere in Nerima...) Sam : Are you SURE it's this way? Al : He's sure that it's south... What? Make up your mind, you just said SOUTH! Sam : This is getting us nowhere, Al. How much time is left? Al (looks at the keypad) : Thirty-five minutes. (to the empty space that is Ryouga) Have you EVER been to this dam before? Well, then why can't you remember where it is? You're bad with directions?! (begins to lose his temper but quickly calms himself down) Listen, just PICK a direction, okay? THERE, that wasn't so hard, was it? (to Sam) Alright, head due east! Sam (dubious) : Due east... (begins to run) (Back at the dam...) Akane : Where IS he? Ranma (to himself) : Good question... Good grief, I'm tired. Well, it can't be much longer. I'll just hold out until he gets here. (Ranma begins to nod off) (Back in Nerima...) Al : Now take a left. Sam (completely out of breath) : No! Al, I've been running around for almost half-an-hour and I've gotten NOWHERE! This is only two blocks from the Tendo dojo... I've been running around in circles! Get rid of that guy and try to initiate some kind of satellite hookup with the Japanese historical archives, or use a telephone or SOMETHING! But I need something RELIABLE! Al : Alright, Sam. (Al turns to Ryouga, who is looking about trying to figure out where exactly he has led Dr. Beckett at this point. Ryouga is wearing a white form-fitting bodysuit) Al : Sorry, kid. We're going to have to find some other way of getting directions to the Mikado Dam. Ryouga : I'm sure I can find it. Just give me a little while longer, I'll- Al (angry) : We don't have time for you to guess your way around this city!! In TWENTY MINUTES a young girl is going to DIE, and I'll be damned if it's because we got LOST trying to find her!! Ryouga : A young girl? Al : I think you know her - Akane Tendo. Ryouga (staggers as though he's just been shot) : AKANE?! Akane's going to DIE?!! Al : She's going to drown after falling into the Mikado Dam, but we can't rescue her because we can't find it!! Now I don't know what kind of problem you have finding your way around the world, but you're our only source of information right now, and if you can't help us then you'll just be in the way, so either be of some real help or leave!! (Ryouga grits his teeth and clenches his fists tightly, so tightly that the blood stops circulating within them. Akane. Akane's going to die! Akane's going to die, and it's going to be because he got lost again! Tears begin to form in his eyes as he shakes with anger at himself, at his own feelings of helplessness and fear. Of all the times in the universe this is the most crucial and he's only in the way! If he could only force himself to remember the way to the dam! If only he could remember which way to go! For Akane-san's sake, if only he could remember... Suddenly an image forms in Ryouga's mind. An image of...) Ryouga : THE DAM!! I know the way!! Al : Are you SURE? I mean ABSOLUTELY SURE?! Ryouga (confident) : I'm SURE, dammit!! Tell your friend to follow my directions!! Sam : Well, Al? Have you got anything yet?! Al (hesitant for a moment, then answers) : We got it. (Things are still quiet at the Mikado Dam. Akane's bouncing around on the platform trying to generate some heat but it's only having minimal success. Shinnosuke sent a telegram, a rather urgent-sounding one at that, so why isn't he here yet? Suddenly Akane hears what sounds like the rustling of leaves. She turns around and hears noises coming from the nearby trees. Getting into a defensive stance she is about to go check out the noise when suddenly...) Ranma : Waaaagghh! (falls out of the tree and lands in a bush) Akane : Ranma?! Ranma (getting up and caressing his neck) : Ow! I knew I shouldn't have fallen asleep in that tree... Akane : What are YOU doing here?! Ranma : I just felt like seeing what Shinnosuke had to say. I guess he decided to stand you up. Akane : He'll be here. I know he's dependable... Say, I know why you're here! You were jealous!! Ranma (annoyed) : Jealous? ME?!! Why should I be jealous?! Akane : Just admit it, Ranma! Ranma (walks out of the brush and across the street, stopping five feet from the platform) : What should I admit?! I wasn't jealous!! Why should I be jealous just because Shinnosuke likes a tomboy like YOU?! Akane : I'd rather be a tomboy than a gender-switching pervert!! Ranma (stepping towards Akane in anger) : You know something, Akane? I've can't believe I ever said it... (suddenly Sam sprints out from down the street and runs as fast as he can to the twosome) Sam : Get away from the platform!!! Ranma (steps onto the platform) : ... BUT I'M SORRY I EVER SAID YOU WERE CUTE!!! (as soon as Ranma finishes his statement the support beams for the platform shatter into little shards of metal and the whole thing topples over. Akane screams and claws onto the surface in an effort to keep from slipping, but the platform is too slick and Akane slowly slides down. Ranma is able to grab one of the remaining support frames and sees Akane five feet below him in danger of falling) Ranma (stretching out his arm) : Akane!! Grab my hand!!! Akane : I can't... hold on... Ranma!! (Ranma tries to lower himself so that Akane can get a hold of his hand. Akane looks down and sees the drop below -- thirty feet into the rushing water as it heads into the dam's piping system. She clenches her eyes shut and tries to keep herself from moving) Ranma : Akane, you've got to open your eyes and look at me!! Take my HAND!! Akane : I c-can't! I'll fall!! Ranma (stretching a little bit further down) : C'mon, Akane...! (Akane opens one eye and slowly tries to reach out to Ranma, but she loses her grip and her body slides off the platform. She grabs the edge with her hands but her grip is bad and she's losing her hold) Akane (both eyes open wide now) : RANMA!! Ranma (stretching as far as he possibly can and reaching for her hands) : Just... a little... more... (Ranma makes a quick grab for her wrists but is too late. Akane's fingers lose their hold and she falls into the rapid waters below. Running, Sam sees her and dives off the edge into the waters below) Ranma : AKANE!! (Ranma lets go of the support beam and follows Sam into the cold water. Sam bobs out of the water and looks around but he sees no sign of Ranma or Akane) Sam (trying to keep his head above the rushing water) : Al, it's too dark! I can't find her!! Al (hovering just above the water and cross-checking his computer terminal) : Found her, Sam! She's twenty feet ahead of you and thirteen feet under the water. (Sam pushes his arms as hard as he can and tries to overtake Akane. Al redirects him if he gets too far away, and eventually Sam is able to make his way through the freezing water and catch up to her. He dives down into the water and somehow is able to drag her back to the water's surface) Sam : She's unconscious, Al! Al : You're going to have to worry about that later, Sam!! (points ahead to the dam, which is now only thirty seconds away) Sam : Dammit! (struggles unsuccessfully against the current) If we get sucked into the pipe system we'll be spat out over the cliff-face! (Sam tries to swim with all his might but he's still rapidly moving along with the water. He's about to get sucked into the pipes when suddenly a figure in the water grabs him by the shirt and slows the water's pull on him) Sam : Ranma?! Ranma (paddling as fast as possible) : Who else, dummy? Sam (notices that they're still being drawn into the dam) : We're not going to make it!! Ranma (turning around) : Then we're going to have to go through it! HOLD ON!! (for a second Sam could swear that Ranma's voice has changed and that his hair has turned red, but he quickly dismisses it as the affects of hypothermia working on his body. He follows Ranma's instructions and holds on tightly to both Ranma and Akane) Ranma (holding arms out at the swiftly oncoming dam) : HOUKO TAKABISHYA!!! (an amazing burst of energy flies from Ranma's hands and strikes the dam, ripping a large hole through it and changing the direction of the current. The threesome are swept through the large hole along with the water. In one swift move Ranma quickly removes Sam's belt and flings it upwards, latching it onto a guard railing and suspending the group over the hundred-meter fall. Slowly Ranma hoists all three up until they are back onto the dry road overlooking the dam trying to catch their breaths) Sam (gasping for air) : That was s-some of the most AMAZING physical f-feats I have ever... (Ranma and Sam take a good look at each other. Sam notes that whoever this is she looks exactly like Ranma except that she has red hair) Sam : Who...? Red-haired girl (interrupting Sam and looking completely and utterly amazed) : Ryouga! You didn't...!! You're still...!! How come you haven't...?!! (the girl never gets a chance to finish talking. A large crack originating from the hole in the dam makes its way across the street and ruptures a steam pipe between Sam and the girl. Sam quickly leans over Akane to protect her from the scalding water, which decides to subside almost as quickly as it started but not before it soaks him and the strange girl. Sam quickly checks Akane for any signs of injury; aside from extremely cold skin and some inhaled water she should be fine with a few days of rest. Sam looks back over to where the red-haired girl is. And sees Ranma sitting in her place with a scald-marks all over his arms and face. Hypothermia. That has to be it. Sam was hallucinating due to hypothermia) Sam : Ranma? Are you okay? Ranma (frazzled by all the hot water) : Y-yeah... (Ranma quickly regains his senses and looks at Akane) AKANE!! Is she--? Sam (calming him down) : Don't worry, she's going to be fine, she just needs a warm bath and some rest. (Ranma gets up and goes over to an unconscious Akane and looks her over carefully. For a second Sam sees what might be a tear coming from Ranma's eye... Ranma picks up Akane in his arms, then looks at Sam) Ranma : Um... Listen, Ryouga. I may have said some... er... rude things to you in the past, and I'll probably say them to you again in the future, but... uh... but for now... (holds out a hand) Thanks, Ryouga. I'm really glad you were here. Sam (takes Ranma's hand) : Take care of her. (Ranma walks down the street back to the Tendo dojo. Sam stays behind so that he can talk with Al) Al : Jeeze, that was a close one... Sam : No kidding! I was beginning to see things back there. Al : Hah, YOU were seeing things?! My nerves were so shot you wouldn't BELIEVE what I hallucinated! Sam : What? Al : Well, something screwy was fiddling with the old noggin because as soon as you hit the water I thought I saw Ryouga here turn into a little black PIG! (turns and talks the invisible Ryouga) Can you BELIEVE that? A pig! (to Sam) I guess I calmed down after that steam valve doused you, because I stopped seeing things at THAT point. (laughs, then looks at Ryouga with curiosity) Hey, are you alright? You're sweating... (Sam walks over and inspects the remaining wreckage of the lookout platform) Sam : So is that IT? Did I fix history once and for all? Al (reads his little flashing keypad) : Yep, she lives... No problem. Sam : No problems, huh... Al : You sound skeptical, Sam. Sam (pointing at the broken support beams) : Look carefully at these beams, Al. Al (looks at the beams) : Boy, there sure are a lot of nicks in those things! Sam : Yeah, nicks... Al, someone SABOTAGED these beams. Al : What?! Who'd want to do that? Sam (looking curiously at the beams) : What is THIS? Al : What do you see? Sam (catching some kind of glint from within the wreckage) : It almost looks like a small piece of metal... (slowly Sam reaches for the item when...) (a bright blue and white flash lights the sky, and with a whine that sounds like a blast of air the ground falls out from under Doctor Sam Beckett as he loses sight of the world and Leaps...) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- End - Part Two -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Part 3 coming up not too long from now...