Categories > Anime/Manga > Ranma 1/2
Mentat Nibunoichi
Part 1:
In the canon timeline, a pigtailed martial artist with foot-in-the-mouth disease and an ego the size of a planet would fall into a seemingly harmless spring and emerged as a furious, petite red-headed beauty with the same foot-in-the-mouth disease and planet-sized ego.
In this timeline, however ... said pigtailed martial artist with foot-in-the-mouth disease and an ego the size of a planet would still fall into a spring ...
... though a different one with a slightly different outcome.
How different?
Well, dear readers ... let's find out.
******************** ****
Akane had slammed her mallet into her fiancee's head rather hard while he was in his cursed form yet again.
He had been a 'baka hentai' and thus needed her daily prescribed Mallet of Justice 'treatment'. She being the 'doctor' and her fiancee being the 'patient' of course.
The only difference being she had slammed her mallet downwards into his head instead of upwards into his jaw.
The fact that her fiancee would have never wanted, much less warranted such treatment from her never crossed her mind. With a loud "Umph!" the Golden Child of Nerima growled as she swung around on her heels before leaving the scene.
A few minutes later ...
A pair of eyes on the unconscious body opened and the beautiful woman got up from the ground. She looked around, drinking in the scenery, before looking at herself. Carefully, she studied her well-toned and sculpted body as if looking at it for the first time.
Shaking her head in wonderment, she sighed as if disappointed with her attire. Her hands reached out behind her head, taking hold of the braided pigtailed hair before untying it, letting it all fall out, to cascade gently down her shoulders.
How long has it been? she wondered. A day? A month? A year? A decade? A century? A millenia? And what place was this? Her mind wondered. "Ranma! Would you like some cookies?" a gentle voice called out. 'Ranma? Is that a name?' she wondered then remembered she had to answer or the caller might get worried and discover something that she didn't want the caller to find out.
Instinctively, the beautiful woman touched the strange tattoo on her forehead and she was able to reply in kind.
"Thank you. That would be nice."
She slowly got to her feet and walked into the house in style. As she stepped into the house, she saw one of the most beautiful, gentle and demure women she had ever seen. She must be one of the re-incarnated Angels of Biblical legend, she thought. She looked so naive and dumb that she would die an early death or worse on her homeworld of Drakonis IV.
"Ranma! I would like you to pose for me in this suit." a female voice spoke. The beautiful woman turned to look at the speaker.
"What do I get in return?" the woman asked instinctively.
The reply seemed to surprise the speaker for she went silent for a few moments as though barely able to believe what she just heard.
"Say that again!" she asked a bit more loudly.
"What do I get in return?" the woman repeated.
"Nothing! You will pose for me like you promise or you know what will happen ..." the teenaged girl warned.
For one moment there was silence before it was broken by the sound of laughter from the woman.
"What's so funny?" the teenaged girl asked, she asked maintaining her icy calm facade.
"Come back to me when you have a better offer," the woman spoke before heading for the tea room.
"Thank you, Kasumi," the woman spoke as the eldest Tendo sister headed for the kitchen.
The cookie was quite delicious. She began revising her estimates of the eldest Tendo sister a little. Her asset value had just gone up by 0.3%.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
There was the sound of two feet pounding on the ground getting closer and louder as they approached the room.
"RANMA NO BAKA!" screamed a short-haired teenaged girl in pure feminine rage as she caught sight of the object of her wrath.
Taking out the biggest mallet anyone had ever seen, she swung it down on her doomed fiance ... only to miss as the woman sidestepped her at the last second before slamming her into the wall with her hands around the neck and dress.
"RANMA! HOW DARE YOU HIT AKANE!" shouted an all-too-familiar voice at once.
"THAT'S RIGHT! APOLOGIZE TO YOUR FIANCEE AT ONCE!" echoed a second voice.
It was none other than the Dynamic Duo of Soun and Genma's Team Moron of Martial Artist Dads.
"Apologize? A good idea." The woman said much to the surprise of the onlookers for Ranma had never apologize to his fiancee or anyone for that matter in his entire life ... before.
"Akane, my dear fiancee .... " the woman spoke calmly as she bent down to the unconscious mallet-wielding girl. At these words ... a hush descended upon the gathered audience.
"He's never addressed Akane by the words 'my dear fiancee' before, Tendo'" a male voice spoke.
"I know, Saotome ..."
"I wish to apologize for hitting you when you attacked me ... " the woman paused briefly as Kasumi said, "Oh my ... isn't Akane sleeping?" the eldest Tendo sister pointed out.
Ignoring the eldest Tendo sister's interruption, the woman continuing "And I wish to apologize once more for what I am going to do to you in the coming future should you ever try to attack me again. I also wish to apologize for putting your dearest family in pain amplifiers before making sure they die in extreme pain should they ever come to your defense. Farewell ... my dearest fiancee ..." The last words were spoken gently and sweetly thus making it all the more chilling with what she did next.
Ranma bent down and kissed her on the lips, before getting straight back up to her feet and leaving the room while everyone was still in too much of a shock to stop her.
A few minutes later ...
"H-h-h-he k-k-k-k-kissed A-A-Akane ... " a voice finally broke the silence in the room.
"W-W-When h-h-he w-w-was a-a-a g-g-girl .... " a second voice stammered.
"He's gone insane!"
"We got to stop him! The Tendo-Saotome pact is in jeopardy."
"Are you a fool, Saotome? He threatened to kill us!"
"The boy appears to have finally snapped!"
"This does not bode well!"
"Silence, everyone!" a voice shouted. It was Nabiki.
"It's clear that Ranma is not himself. Until we know what is going on, none of you are to try anything!"
The two fathers would have challenged the order but seeing that it was from the middle Tendo sister who could make their lives a living hell, they did not do so.
"Hello, Yuki. This is Nabiki. I have something for you to do ... "
Outside Nerima Ward ...
A woman in silk pants and shirt had entered one of the shops to look at the wares. Her eyes moved quickly from one attire to another.
"Would you like try an outfit?" a female voice asked disturbing the woman's silent observation.
"I would like outfits 6-3-20-6," the woman replied.
"That would come up to 30 000 yen," the salesgirl rang up on the register.
The woman took out the money from her purse and paid the salesgirl before collecting her purchases and leaving the clothing store. The woman had not gone far when she felt something ... odd ... like someone was following her. Without slowing down or looking back, she walked straight on towards the crowd in front.
To disappear into it without a trace. A teenaged girl hurried up into the crowd looking frantically around but there was not sign of the target.
There was a tap on her shoulder and she spun around in shock.
"Why are you following me? Speak ... " the pitch of the voice changed as it echoed through the girl's head.
"It was Nabiki. She sent me to follow you," the girl replied.
"Are you alone?" the woman asked again.
"No. There are two others in the area."
"Are you carrying any listening, recording or communication devices of any sort?"
"Yes."
"Give them to me."
The girl hesitated slightly before giving her all the communication devices. The woman examined them briefly before returning them back to the girl.
"You won't remember having this conversation with me or anything to do with me. The only thing you will know is that Ranma has gone to Hokkaido for a training trip."
The woman spun the girl around by the shoulders and when the girl looked back, she was gone.
Suddenly ... there was a beeping tone on her cellphone.
"Akiko ... where are you? Have you found Ranma?"
"He's headed for Hokkaido ...." the girl replied.
Elsewhere ...
The woman who was being pursued by multiple search parties stepped up and looked at the open window of the ladies' restroom. Suddenly, her form shrunk, shifting to that of a swallow before leaping up and taking off into the sky.
******************** ****
My name is Ranma Atane, Mentat Master of Assassins, Second-In-Command of House Ordos and chief advisor to the Executrix, one of three contenders to the Golden Lion Throne. I am also the sole survivor on Drakonis IV after our remaining forces were eliminated by House Atreides and their Fremen allies.
The Great Hall of the Executrix is in ruins. Taking one last look at it, I study it carefully before making my way to an escape ship which is a secret known only to me.
So far so good ... The passageway to the hidden hangar appears to be largely deserted and spared of damage from the recent fighting between our remaining forces and those of House Atreides.
As the large Guild Heighliner leaves Drakonis IV with frigates full of Atreides troops and war machines, which I know are now leaving for Geidi Prime, I step into the cockpit of the ship and start its engines.
The control mechanism, computers and machinery slowly hum to life. The engines have started. As the large vessel leaves orbit, I activate the ship's sensors. Everything within a hundred light years become visible. I tap on a hidden panel. The large gate covering the entrance of the underground hangar begins to move. I tap another key.
The entire corridor behind the large solid metal gate lights up. I push in the remaining key and the small ship lifts up courtesy of the same contra-gravity engines used by our laser tanks on Arrakkis. I punch in a code and the small ship moves forward gathering speed as it finally reaches the edge of the ramp.
There is a WHOOSH sound and I head for night skies to my new destiny.
As the ship flew through the darkness of deep space, I pondered my options carefully. There was little doubt as to who was going to win the War of Assassins. Barring a miracle which I seriously doubt, House Harkonnen was also doomed. House Atreides had already captured Arrakis and with it, control of the Spice.
He who controls Arrakis, controls the Spice.
He who controls the Spice, controls the Universe.
The Spice extends life.
The Bene Gesserit sisterhood who use it acquire a form of prescience.
It also helps the Guild Navigators to fly their ships over great distances through the spacetime continuum.
House Ordos is well-known for its use of forbidden technologies. One of which is sitting aboard this ship. And which I am about to use. During the Great Spice Wars, House Ordos fearing a breakdown in the flow of Spice had authorised a secret experiment to work on a way in which to enable ships to travel great distances without the Spice Melange. This tiny ship is the final culmination of all that we could come up with .... The most advanced technology that House Ordos has ever produced.
A hyperspace drive or hyperdrive completely equipped with hyperspace sensors. Yet ... hyperspace technology is still highly experimental and ... delicate at this stage.
I am taking a big risk by activating the hyperdrive ....
MENTAT PROJECTION ...
22% chance that the ship would be vaporised ...
26% chance that the drive would not work as desired ...
32% chance that there would be a malfunction and I would wind up ...
20% chance that everything would work as predicted ...
I would go with the odds for now ...
My fingers move to key in my last authorisation code and everything fades away around me.
********************* ***
Three weeks later ...
My ship is running low on food and supplies. I am fortunate. The sensors on my ship have picked up signals from another world. After deciphering the signals, I realise that it is not any world that I am familiar with. I land the ship and conceal it in a cave.
What place is this? A place with so many springs? Fumbles
I lose my balance and fall into one of the springs below.
There is only I thing going through my mind as I fall towards the spring. s#@!
******************** ****
One hundred years later ...
A familiar scene of a pigtailed martial arts teenager with his beer-bellied and bald-headed Dad in white gi that captivated anime fans all over the world and the focus of countless fanfics was taking place.
"Son! This is it! The Valley of Sorrows! The Ultimate Training Ground! Come up here if you dare!" the bald-headed martial artist announced as he leaped to the top of a bamboo stilt sticking out of the water.
The Jusenkyo Guide who had just run out of the hut ... saw what had happened and shouted out loudly.
"No! This place is cursed! Leave quickly!"
"I don't know ... Pops! There's something strange about this place!" the martial artist teenager in the attire we are so familiar with replied a little uncertainly upon hearing the Jusenkyo Guide's words.
"Are you saying that ... you are afraid?" the bald-headed martial artist mocked.
"Like a little girl?" he drove the barb in deeper.
"And that I would have to get a skirt soon for my ex-son?" and with those words, the final nail in the coffin for what was about to take place.
"That's it, Pops! Your fat ass is mine!" the pigtailed replied before leaping towards the top of another bamboo stilt.
"NO! YOU MUST NOT ..." the Jusenkyo Guide shouted as loudly as he could ...
"Bring it on ... little girl ..." came the bald-headed martial artist's mocking reply.
And with those words ... battle was joined.
A couple of minutes later ...
The first to fall into the Cursed Springs was of course, the overweight martial artist.
"Mr. Customer ... you fell into Spring of Drowned Panda ..." he spoke when a much larger and more powerful animal exited the pond to hit the teenaged martial artist who was too stunned to move ...
"Excuse me ... this not Spring of Drowned Panda (in which the panda assaociation gave a sigh of relief ^_^) ... this spring of Drowned Snorlax! Very tragic tale of Snorlax who drowned in this Spring ...," only to stop when he heard another splash.
"Mr. Customer ... you fell into ... "
The Jusenkyo Guide fell silent as he tried to figure out what the spring was as words failed him.
"I don't know." He finally admitted his ignorance.
"Nobody has ever fallen into this spring before." He continued.
A head rose out of the water choking slightly in the water as clothes were thrown out of the pool.
The Jusenkyo Guide remained calm being used to such incidents but the huge, massive Snorlax was not.
It appeared to be in a state of sleep ... its massive bulk covering more than a couple of Springs.
"We really have to get new clothes! My clothes are way too small and tight," the figure replied, getting out of the water quickly ... in a rather topless state ... and a rather high-pitched voice.
The Jusenkyo Guide looked away, out of a sheer sense of modesty.
"Nani?" the figure muttered, sensing that something was wrong for the first time. Looking downwards, said figure noticed something different for the first time.
"Ano ... " A pair of 'something' rather large at chest level obstructed the view to the waist and silk pants below.
Without feeling for the missing part, said figure realised what was wrong immediately.
"Obaa-san ..." the figure spoke softly, causing the temperature to drop by a few degrees. The Snorlax began to shiver but not from cold.
Eyes narrowed, fists clenched, the figure leaped at the Snorlax who disappeared leaving the figure on the ground in the dust.
The figure got up from the ground slowly, grumbling.
"D*! Height's changed. Weight's changed. Balance's changed. Everything has changed."
"Mr. Customer ... " The figure turned towards the Guide.
"Change is only temporary. Hot water changed back. Come with me." The Guide implored.
A few minutes later ...
"Cold water changed back to cursed form. No known cure," the Jusenkyo Guide explained.
"What do the other springs have?" the female voice asked.
"Big customer fell into Spring of Drowned Snorlax. There are also other springs such as Spring of Drowned Falcon, Spring of Drowned Dog, Spring of Drowned Pig, Spring of Drowned Girl, Spring of ... " the Guide went on.
"You're telling me whosoever fell into one of these springs would take the form of whatever creature drowned there?"
The Jusenkyo Guide nodded his head.
"Could you show me a map of all these springs?" the female voice asked.
The Jusenkyo Guide pulled out his map from one of the draws and the figure studied it intently.
"Interesting ... " female voice muttered. "And the curses merge instead of supplanting the previous curse?" she asked as she returned the map back to the Guide.
The Jusenkyo Guide nodded his head in reply.
A black-haired woman with a body to die for, stepped out of the hut and looked towards the springs once again.
"What is Miss Customer doing?" the Guide asked as the woman.
"Nothing much ... " she replied as she walked towards the springs heading for one particular spring ....
"Miss ... dangerous ... Please leave the area immediately!" the Jusenkyo Guide shouted, fear entering his voice.
Said person ignored the cries and finally stopped at one of the springs that lay at the center of all the springs.
She hesitated for a moment before jumping in.
********************* ***
I remember .... now ...
My mind blanked out after leaping into what I believed to be the oldest and most powerful spring in Jusenkyo ...
The Spring of Drowned Dragon Mage ...
I was wrong ...
The Spring of Drowned Dragon Mage was so powerful that it overwhelmed my senses and blew my mind.
I was out for a long time ...
Until the battle with the Phoenix God ...
When Ranma Saotome dug deep into his reserves to alter total defeat into total victory ...
Since that battle at Jusendo ...
I had awakened ...
Once again ...
But I was still not strong enough to seize control of the body from Ranma Saotome ...
His will is strong ...
and difficult to overcome ...
Even for a Mentat ...
I am not ashamed to admit that fact ...
But Akane ... I thank you for this ...
Your blow to your fiancee's head had finally weakened his grip on the vessel that we share ...
Unknown to him ...
But known to me ...
For that ... I will grant you one boon ...
Your death will be a quick one ...
********************* ***
The sentry guards were pleased to see a woman walking up to the rocky tunnel they guarded.
"It's a woman!" the first guard cried out with excitement.
"Yeah ... with big breasts!"
The woman came towards them with the grace of a panther and spoke...
"I would like to meet your Prince Herb."
Half an hour later ...
"You wish to use the locking ladle on yourself, Ranma?" the Musk Prince inquired the woman in front of him.
"I wish to be a woman, way in, way out," came the reply.
"If you desire to do so, far be it from me to deny you your heart's desire. But pray tell me, why the change of heart, Ranma Saotome?" the Musk Prince asked again as he sipped the tea from his teacup.
"I wish to embrace my destiny. A true warrior must not fight their own fate. It is the duty of all living creatures to play the roles in life that their Creator has pre-ordained. ..." the woman replied.
"And this is the face of a person who embraces her destiny." the woman replied as she gestured.
"So be it ... Lint. Bring the Locking Ladle."
The woman smiled in gratitude.
Turning his eyes back to his guest, he asked, "Who are you?"
"Ranma Saotome."
"Lying to your benefactor is not a sign of goodwill."
"There is no fooling you, is there?" the woman asked rhetorically as she unbraided her hair that was tied up into a pigtail.
Prince Herb had dropped the bombshell literally.
"The Ranma I know would never have given up his manhood for anything. And he would have been more uncouth and uncivillised, unlike you. And you still haven't answered my question," the Musk Prince stated.
"You are brighter than the others. I am Ranma alright. Though not the same Ranma you know. I am Ranma Atane, Mentat Master of Assassins, second-in-command of House Ordos, chief advisor to the Executrix and master of Drakonis IV."
******************** ****
Somewhere ...
"Somebody ... Anybody ... HELP ME!" a voice screamed through the ether.
I have got to get out of here! And warn the others! The tiny consciousness of Ranma continued to ram itself against the prison only to find himself unable to break out.
"You're wasting your time ... " a voice spoke.
Ranma turned around towards the owner of the voice to see a large dragon gazing at him.
"There is no barrier. It's just physical space that has been warped inwards. Things come in but they cannot get out."
"Who are you?" Ranma asked.
"I am Xan Tien, a Chiang-ku Dragon. I have been here since the day you fell into the Cursed Springs."
******************* *****
"So what can you tell me about this place ...?"
"It is a creation of the mind."
"A creation of the mind?" Ranma asked again.
"Yes ... a creation of the mind," the dragon added, its voice deep and strong.
"Then if it is a creation of the mind ... how come I can't get out ... its my mind right ... so this place should conform to my desires ...?"
"Good ... you learn fast," the dragon commented. "I was beginning to wonder how long you were going to take to figure out that brute force was not going to work here ...."
"So why am I here?"
"Well ... to cut a long story short ... your fiancee was the one that put you into this situation."
"Huh???" Ranma asked unintelligebily.
"She malleted you. You were knocked out cold ... " the dragon replied patiently. "Now the Mentat has taken over."
"Taken over?"
"Taken over your body ... " the dragon replied clinging to its zen with fierce resolve. 'This guy is a real dolt!'
"Who has taken over my body?" Ranma asked again really testing the dragon's patience.
'I am one with zen. I feel nothing. No anger, no pain, no sorrow.' the dragon repeated the mantera faithfully in its heart.
"The Mentat Master of Assassins, Ranma Atane."
"He's called Ranma as well?" Ranma inquired.
"Yes ... she is ... and a thousand times more dangerous than you or Nabiki." the dragon sighed.
"What do you mean?"
"She is a master strategist for House Ordos. The Ordos are mercenary. They care for nothing save wealth and power. In the language of the Ordos, there are no words for the concepts of trust or honor. There are more than three hundred for the concept of profit ..." the dragon explained.
"Whoa ... " Ranma exclaimed as the dragon's words sunk into his mind.
"In her galaxy ... she would be nothing but a drop of coloured water in the ocean. But here on your world ... I shudder to think of what she would do to it ..." the dragon continued.
"What do you mean?" Ranma asked.
"How do you feel when you deal with Nabiki, Ranma?" the dragon asked.
"Errr ... " Ranma did not know how to answer that question.
"Is Nabiki someone you would like to live with for the rest of your life?"
"No! She takes all my money whenever she gets a hold of them." His answer came out almost immediately.
"Good! Now ... Ranma, answer this second question. Can you trust Nabiki that she is not planning anything behind your back?" the dragon asked again.
"No! She is always scheming and up to no good."
"Very good! Now, Ranma one last question, have you ever outmaneuvred Nabiki in an argument or in a battle of wits?"
Ranma combed through his hair a few times ... thinking hard.
"No ... right?" the dragon hinted.
Ranma reluctantly agreed.
"Nabiki seems to be always one step ahead of you everytime, right?"
Ranma merely nodded his head.
"Well ... Ranma Atane is worse. A lot worse. She is a human computer ... able to compute or work out probabilities that Nabiki could never hope to aspire to with that mind of hers. If Nabiki is a 2 on a scale of 1 to 20 ... then Ranma Atane is a full 20."
"That powerful?"
"Mentats were trained for their minds specifically. Able to compute and analyse all objectives simultaneously with precision ... like advanced computers. If you were to ever confront her or battle her ... Ranma beware ... she is not like any of your previous opponents. I know that you are feeling all grand and mighty from beating Saffron ... but that was because Saffron made a mistake due to his ego and pride. You would not be able to do the same thing with her. Ranma Atane does not make mistakes. Her icy homeworld of Drakonis IV does not tolerate failure. Her masters were ruthlessly efficient and cared only for results ... " the dragon warned.
"You're saying she's better than me ... is it? I don't believe in an opponent that can never be beaten ... " Ranma replied.
"I never said she was unbeatable. I am only saying that she does not have any weaknesses normally associated with those all around you. With Ryoga ... it was anger and bull-headedness. With Happosai, his lechery. With Cologne ... tradition and refusal to adapt to change. With Nabiki ... greed. With Herb, Tarou and Saffron, pride and ego. With Genma ... just about everything. Ranma Atane does not have any of those weaknesses. Furthermore ... she knows all your strengths and weaknesses. She has a photographic memory. She remembers everything she sees and experiences like a computer and can extrapolate on them in ways you have never imagined. She knows of your fears with the Neko-ken. Still ... she has been defeated ... and it was that failure that has drawn her ... here ... inexorably to your world."
"She's an alien?" Ranma asked.
"Yes ... " the dragon began to wonder at the IQ of the human in front of him. Did the mallet-wielding tomboy damaged his brain or something? If that were the case, his chances of defeating the Mentat Master of Assassins were next to nil.
"As I mentioned before ... what bits and pieces that I can gleaned from her mind revealed that her masters were at war with two other Houses. House Atreides and House Harkonnen. House Atreides was just like you ... honorable and trustworthy ... minus the stupidity and ego of course ..." the dragon quipped.
"Huh???" Ranma did not get the dragon's perceived insult to his character.
"House Atreides was honorable, trustworthy and just. House Harkonnen was just plain evil. Now in the War of Assassins ... House Atreides emerged the victor. They attacked her world and destroyed the infrastructure of the planet. This failure in preventing the fall of House Ordos rankles on her. She is a perfectionist ... after all. Like most of her people, she assumes that loyalty is inspired through fear and deception. She knows the Atreides concept of trust and honor but has trouble accepting how it can inspire loyalty ... that concept of trust and honor is alien to her culture. If you are to ever regain control of your body, you must defeat her here ... in the mind. And that is where the danger lies ... for the power of the mind is her greatest strength and asset," the dragon quickly added.
"Why haven't you done anything about escaping from here?" Ranma asked.
"Me? This is your body ... Not mine ... Besides I rather like the view from here ... ," the dragon replied.
"Really ... Xan Tien? Is that the real reason?" A female voice spoke from all around them.
"Mentat ... " the dragon hissed beneath its breath.
A beautiful woman had suddenly appeared in front of them.
"I was gone for just a few hours ... and what do I find? A dragon trying to poison the mind of a child against me. You disappoint me. I had expected better from you ... Xan Tien." The woman sighed.
Ranma looked at the woman before asking, "You're the Mentat?"
"Yes."
"Give control of my body back to me!" Ranma shouted.
"Control of your body??? Sure ... I need a break anyway," the woman agreed much to Ranma and the dragon's surprise. 'And to make sure that you don't try to poison the foolish little martial artist's mind any further than you have already done against me, Xan Tien. This smear campaign of yours has got to stop.'
"Oh before ... you do get control of the body back ... There are a few things you might like to know."
Ranma stopped as if contemplating the Mentat's words.
"What would that be?"
"Your cursed form has been locked."
"What???!!!! Why did you do it???" Ranma shouted at the woman.
"Two things. One ... your cursed form is a shapeshifter, able to take the form of any creature envisioned including humans and animals. It is also immune to a wide variety of poisons and gases. Two ... your uncursed form has one inevitability ... blindness. I calculate that your uncursed form would become permanently blind in fifteen years."
"Blind???!!! I don't believe it!"
"You have glaucoma, Ranma. And at such a young age. Go check up your genealogy with any medical doctor. Glaucoma is hereditary through your father's line. Regrettably, it is an incurable medical condition and you would not even have realised it until it was too late. The symptoms are your visual field would have decreased in size until you could only see what is directly in front of you. After that ... it dims and then you wouldn't be able to see anything all. An eye transplant wouldn't help because your optic nerve and retina cells have been damaged by the pressure of the fluids building in your eyes. It is not an infection. It is a genetic flaw in your DNA, Ranma. Don't feel too bad about it ... One out of every ten people on this world has that medical condition. Most don't realise it until it is too late. You are one of the lucky few in the sense that I discovered it before it was too late."
"How do you know all these things?" Ranma asked.
"I am a Mentat. It is my purpose to know everything there is to know ... Ranma," the woman smiled in a friendly manner.
"Then why don't you just genetically re-sequence Ranma's DNA?" the dragon challenged.
"It is more trouble than it is worth, dragon. One mistake and Ranma would be nothing more than a puddle of organic waste." the Mentat countered.
"I thought that the great Ranma Atane never makes any mistakes," the dragon scoffed.
"I'm not infallible ... O' Wise and Ancient One ... I am aware of the effects of what they called Murphy's Law on this world. Besides ... having the powers of a dragon mage is a rush," the Mentat replied acidly.
"Mentat, do you have to use the same name as me?" Ranma asked, interrupting the brewing argument between the dragon and the Mentat. "I can't keep calling you 'Mentat' all the time and calling you 'Ranma' when I'm also called Ranma feels rather ... strange."
"I agree. Having to refer to the two of you (annoying and upstart humans though this remained unspoken), with the same name is getting out of hand," the dragon gruffly added. 'Having a human called Ranma around with me is bad enough ... Two humans with the same name like that is going to start a global epidemic ... '
"Very well ... You can call me Roma Atane ... if you wished ..." the woman replied.
"Better ... " the dragon grumbled.
The Mentat merely smiled at the dragon's words.
******************** ****
"So ... Ranma. You're the best martial artist alive, right?" the dragon asked.
"That's right!" the pigtailed martial-artist declared.
"How would you like a little spar against me?" the dragon asked, its eyes glinting mischievously.
"No problem! I could take you on anyday and beat you flat!" the pigtailed martial artist declared.
"Is that so?" the dragon asked craftily.
"Yes ... "
********************* ***
**************** ********
anss123: This was great, especially considering I don't like the dune universe. But weren't the Ordors only part of the PC/Amiga/Sega game 'Dune II' and not the books? No matter, I'm looking forward to see how Ranma handles having people smarter than him/her in his/her head. One small, almost insignificant, nitpick was Akane being a bit to hammer happy. If I recall correctly Akane is quickest with the hammer when Ranma insults or embarrasses her. The second mallet scene might have worked better if 'mentat' had inherited some of Ranma's karma, and somehow ended up in a compromising position, e.g. Groping Nabiki, right before Akane entered.
117: Thank you. There has been many questions regarding the existence of House Ordos and their place in the Dune universe. The majority of readers and fans believe that House Ordos did not exist in the original timeline and was actually a creation of Westwood Studios. Only one writer has suggested that House Ordos really existed in the Dune Universe although I have yet to verify his claim.
goku_90504: Intresting fic but haveing her have the same first name is just to weird
117: To reduce confusion, I have changed her name to Roma Atane. I couldn't very well make out her name verbally. It sounded like 'Roma Atane' the first time but when I replayed the audio clip again it said 'Ranma Atane'. Just to be sure I played the same video clip a few times. Unfortunately it mentioned 'Ranma Atane' and 'Roma Atane' an equal number of times.
******************** ****
Part 1:
In the canon timeline, a pigtailed martial artist with foot-in-the-mouth disease and an ego the size of a planet would fall into a seemingly harmless spring and emerged as a furious, petite red-headed beauty with the same foot-in-the-mouth disease and planet-sized ego.
In this timeline, however ... said pigtailed martial artist with foot-in-the-mouth disease and an ego the size of a planet would still fall into a spring ...
... though a different one with a slightly different outcome.
How different?
Well, dear readers ... let's find out.
******************** ****
Akane had slammed her mallet into her fiancee's head rather hard while he was in his cursed form yet again.
He had been a 'baka hentai' and thus needed her daily prescribed Mallet of Justice 'treatment'. She being the 'doctor' and her fiancee being the 'patient' of course.
The only difference being she had slammed her mallet downwards into his head instead of upwards into his jaw.
The fact that her fiancee would have never wanted, much less warranted such treatment from her never crossed her mind. With a loud "Umph!" the Golden Child of Nerima growled as she swung around on her heels before leaving the scene.
A few minutes later ...
A pair of eyes on the unconscious body opened and the beautiful woman got up from the ground. She looked around, drinking in the scenery, before looking at herself. Carefully, she studied her well-toned and sculpted body as if looking at it for the first time.
Shaking her head in wonderment, she sighed as if disappointed with her attire. Her hands reached out behind her head, taking hold of the braided pigtailed hair before untying it, letting it all fall out, to cascade gently down her shoulders.
How long has it been? she wondered. A day? A month? A year? A decade? A century? A millenia? And what place was this? Her mind wondered. "Ranma! Would you like some cookies?" a gentle voice called out. 'Ranma? Is that a name?' she wondered then remembered she had to answer or the caller might get worried and discover something that she didn't want the caller to find out.
Instinctively, the beautiful woman touched the strange tattoo on her forehead and she was able to reply in kind.
"Thank you. That would be nice."
She slowly got to her feet and walked into the house in style. As she stepped into the house, she saw one of the most beautiful, gentle and demure women she had ever seen. She must be one of the re-incarnated Angels of Biblical legend, she thought. She looked so naive and dumb that she would die an early death or worse on her homeworld of Drakonis IV.
"Ranma! I would like you to pose for me in this suit." a female voice spoke. The beautiful woman turned to look at the speaker.
"What do I get in return?" the woman asked instinctively.
The reply seemed to surprise the speaker for she went silent for a few moments as though barely able to believe what she just heard.
"Say that again!" she asked a bit more loudly.
"What do I get in return?" the woman repeated.
"Nothing! You will pose for me like you promise or you know what will happen ..." the teenaged girl warned.
For one moment there was silence before it was broken by the sound of laughter from the woman.
"What's so funny?" the teenaged girl asked, she asked maintaining her icy calm facade.
"Come back to me when you have a better offer," the woman spoke before heading for the tea room.
"Thank you, Kasumi," the woman spoke as the eldest Tendo sister headed for the kitchen.
The cookie was quite delicious. She began revising her estimates of the eldest Tendo sister a little. Her asset value had just gone up by 0.3%.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
There was the sound of two feet pounding on the ground getting closer and louder as they approached the room.
"RANMA NO BAKA!" screamed a short-haired teenaged girl in pure feminine rage as she caught sight of the object of her wrath.
Taking out the biggest mallet anyone had ever seen, she swung it down on her doomed fiance ... only to miss as the woman sidestepped her at the last second before slamming her into the wall with her hands around the neck and dress.
"RANMA! HOW DARE YOU HIT AKANE!" shouted an all-too-familiar voice at once.
"THAT'S RIGHT! APOLOGIZE TO YOUR FIANCEE AT ONCE!" echoed a second voice.
It was none other than the Dynamic Duo of Soun and Genma's Team Moron of Martial Artist Dads.
"Apologize? A good idea." The woman said much to the surprise of the onlookers for Ranma had never apologize to his fiancee or anyone for that matter in his entire life ... before.
"Akane, my dear fiancee .... " the woman spoke calmly as she bent down to the unconscious mallet-wielding girl. At these words ... a hush descended upon the gathered audience.
"He's never addressed Akane by the words 'my dear fiancee' before, Tendo'" a male voice spoke.
"I know, Saotome ..."
"I wish to apologize for hitting you when you attacked me ... " the woman paused briefly as Kasumi said, "Oh my ... isn't Akane sleeping?" the eldest Tendo sister pointed out.
Ignoring the eldest Tendo sister's interruption, the woman continuing "And I wish to apologize once more for what I am going to do to you in the coming future should you ever try to attack me again. I also wish to apologize for putting your dearest family in pain amplifiers before making sure they die in extreme pain should they ever come to your defense. Farewell ... my dearest fiancee ..." The last words were spoken gently and sweetly thus making it all the more chilling with what she did next.
Ranma bent down and kissed her on the lips, before getting straight back up to her feet and leaving the room while everyone was still in too much of a shock to stop her.
A few minutes later ...
"H-h-h-he k-k-k-k-kissed A-A-Akane ... " a voice finally broke the silence in the room.
"W-W-When h-h-he w-w-was a-a-a g-g-girl .... " a second voice stammered.
"He's gone insane!"
"We got to stop him! The Tendo-Saotome pact is in jeopardy."
"Are you a fool, Saotome? He threatened to kill us!"
"The boy appears to have finally snapped!"
"This does not bode well!"
"Silence, everyone!" a voice shouted. It was Nabiki.
"It's clear that Ranma is not himself. Until we know what is going on, none of you are to try anything!"
The two fathers would have challenged the order but seeing that it was from the middle Tendo sister who could make their lives a living hell, they did not do so.
"Hello, Yuki. This is Nabiki. I have something for you to do ... "
Outside Nerima Ward ...
A woman in silk pants and shirt had entered one of the shops to look at the wares. Her eyes moved quickly from one attire to another.
"Would you like try an outfit?" a female voice asked disturbing the woman's silent observation.
"I would like outfits 6-3-20-6," the woman replied.
"That would come up to 30 000 yen," the salesgirl rang up on the register.
The woman took out the money from her purse and paid the salesgirl before collecting her purchases and leaving the clothing store. The woman had not gone far when she felt something ... odd ... like someone was following her. Without slowing down or looking back, she walked straight on towards the crowd in front.
To disappear into it without a trace. A teenaged girl hurried up into the crowd looking frantically around but there was not sign of the target.
There was a tap on her shoulder and she spun around in shock.
"Why are you following me? Speak ... " the pitch of the voice changed as it echoed through the girl's head.
"It was Nabiki. She sent me to follow you," the girl replied.
"Are you alone?" the woman asked again.
"No. There are two others in the area."
"Are you carrying any listening, recording or communication devices of any sort?"
"Yes."
"Give them to me."
The girl hesitated slightly before giving her all the communication devices. The woman examined them briefly before returning them back to the girl.
"You won't remember having this conversation with me or anything to do with me. The only thing you will know is that Ranma has gone to Hokkaido for a training trip."
The woman spun the girl around by the shoulders and when the girl looked back, she was gone.
Suddenly ... there was a beeping tone on her cellphone.
"Akiko ... where are you? Have you found Ranma?"
"He's headed for Hokkaido ...." the girl replied.
Elsewhere ...
The woman who was being pursued by multiple search parties stepped up and looked at the open window of the ladies' restroom. Suddenly, her form shrunk, shifting to that of a swallow before leaping up and taking off into the sky.
******************** ****
My name is Ranma Atane, Mentat Master of Assassins, Second-In-Command of House Ordos and chief advisor to the Executrix, one of three contenders to the Golden Lion Throne. I am also the sole survivor on Drakonis IV after our remaining forces were eliminated by House Atreides and their Fremen allies.
The Great Hall of the Executrix is in ruins. Taking one last look at it, I study it carefully before making my way to an escape ship which is a secret known only to me.
So far so good ... The passageway to the hidden hangar appears to be largely deserted and spared of damage from the recent fighting between our remaining forces and those of House Atreides.
As the large Guild Heighliner leaves Drakonis IV with frigates full of Atreides troops and war machines, which I know are now leaving for Geidi Prime, I step into the cockpit of the ship and start its engines.
The control mechanism, computers and machinery slowly hum to life. The engines have started. As the large vessel leaves orbit, I activate the ship's sensors. Everything within a hundred light years become visible. I tap on a hidden panel. The large gate covering the entrance of the underground hangar begins to move. I tap another key.
The entire corridor behind the large solid metal gate lights up. I push in the remaining key and the small ship lifts up courtesy of the same contra-gravity engines used by our laser tanks on Arrakkis. I punch in a code and the small ship moves forward gathering speed as it finally reaches the edge of the ramp.
There is a WHOOSH sound and I head for night skies to my new destiny.
As the ship flew through the darkness of deep space, I pondered my options carefully. There was little doubt as to who was going to win the War of Assassins. Barring a miracle which I seriously doubt, House Harkonnen was also doomed. House Atreides had already captured Arrakis and with it, control of the Spice.
He who controls Arrakis, controls the Spice.
He who controls the Spice, controls the Universe.
The Spice extends life.
The Bene Gesserit sisterhood who use it acquire a form of prescience.
It also helps the Guild Navigators to fly their ships over great distances through the spacetime continuum.
House Ordos is well-known for its use of forbidden technologies. One of which is sitting aboard this ship. And which I am about to use. During the Great Spice Wars, House Ordos fearing a breakdown in the flow of Spice had authorised a secret experiment to work on a way in which to enable ships to travel great distances without the Spice Melange. This tiny ship is the final culmination of all that we could come up with .... The most advanced technology that House Ordos has ever produced.
A hyperspace drive or hyperdrive completely equipped with hyperspace sensors. Yet ... hyperspace technology is still highly experimental and ... delicate at this stage.
I am taking a big risk by activating the hyperdrive ....
MENTAT PROJECTION ...
22% chance that the ship would be vaporised ...
26% chance that the drive would not work as desired ...
32% chance that there would be a malfunction and I would wind up ...
20% chance that everything would work as predicted ...
I would go with the odds for now ...
My fingers move to key in my last authorisation code and everything fades away around me.
********************* ***
Three weeks later ...
My ship is running low on food and supplies. I am fortunate. The sensors on my ship have picked up signals from another world. After deciphering the signals, I realise that it is not any world that I am familiar with. I land the ship and conceal it in a cave.
What place is this? A place with so many springs? Fumbles
I lose my balance and fall into one of the springs below.
There is only I thing going through my mind as I fall towards the spring. s#@!
******************** ****
One hundred years later ...
A familiar scene of a pigtailed martial arts teenager with his beer-bellied and bald-headed Dad in white gi that captivated anime fans all over the world and the focus of countless fanfics was taking place.
"Son! This is it! The Valley of Sorrows! The Ultimate Training Ground! Come up here if you dare!" the bald-headed martial artist announced as he leaped to the top of a bamboo stilt sticking out of the water.
The Jusenkyo Guide who had just run out of the hut ... saw what had happened and shouted out loudly.
"No! This place is cursed! Leave quickly!"
"I don't know ... Pops! There's something strange about this place!" the martial artist teenager in the attire we are so familiar with replied a little uncertainly upon hearing the Jusenkyo Guide's words.
"Are you saying that ... you are afraid?" the bald-headed martial artist mocked.
"Like a little girl?" he drove the barb in deeper.
"And that I would have to get a skirt soon for my ex-son?" and with those words, the final nail in the coffin for what was about to take place.
"That's it, Pops! Your fat ass is mine!" the pigtailed replied before leaping towards the top of another bamboo stilt.
"NO! YOU MUST NOT ..." the Jusenkyo Guide shouted as loudly as he could ...
"Bring it on ... little girl ..." came the bald-headed martial artist's mocking reply.
And with those words ... battle was joined.
A couple of minutes later ...
The first to fall into the Cursed Springs was of course, the overweight martial artist.
"Mr. Customer ... you fell into Spring of Drowned Panda ..." he spoke when a much larger and more powerful animal exited the pond to hit the teenaged martial artist who was too stunned to move ...
"Excuse me ... this not Spring of Drowned Panda (in which the panda assaociation gave a sigh of relief ^_^) ... this spring of Drowned Snorlax! Very tragic tale of Snorlax who drowned in this Spring ...," only to stop when he heard another splash.
"Mr. Customer ... you fell into ... "
The Jusenkyo Guide fell silent as he tried to figure out what the spring was as words failed him.
"I don't know." He finally admitted his ignorance.
"Nobody has ever fallen into this spring before." He continued.
A head rose out of the water choking slightly in the water as clothes were thrown out of the pool.
The Jusenkyo Guide remained calm being used to such incidents but the huge, massive Snorlax was not.
It appeared to be in a state of sleep ... its massive bulk covering more than a couple of Springs.
"We really have to get new clothes! My clothes are way too small and tight," the figure replied, getting out of the water quickly ... in a rather topless state ... and a rather high-pitched voice.
The Jusenkyo Guide looked away, out of a sheer sense of modesty.
"Nani?" the figure muttered, sensing that something was wrong for the first time. Looking downwards, said figure noticed something different for the first time.
"Ano ... " A pair of 'something' rather large at chest level obstructed the view to the waist and silk pants below.
Without feeling for the missing part, said figure realised what was wrong immediately.
"Obaa-san ..." the figure spoke softly, causing the temperature to drop by a few degrees. The Snorlax began to shiver but not from cold.
Eyes narrowed, fists clenched, the figure leaped at the Snorlax who disappeared leaving the figure on the ground in the dust.
The figure got up from the ground slowly, grumbling.
"D*! Height's changed. Weight's changed. Balance's changed. Everything has changed."
"Mr. Customer ... " The figure turned towards the Guide.
"Change is only temporary. Hot water changed back. Come with me." The Guide implored.
A few minutes later ...
"Cold water changed back to cursed form. No known cure," the Jusenkyo Guide explained.
"What do the other springs have?" the female voice asked.
"Big customer fell into Spring of Drowned Snorlax. There are also other springs such as Spring of Drowned Falcon, Spring of Drowned Dog, Spring of Drowned Pig, Spring of Drowned Girl, Spring of ... " the Guide went on.
"You're telling me whosoever fell into one of these springs would take the form of whatever creature drowned there?"
The Jusenkyo Guide nodded his head.
"Could you show me a map of all these springs?" the female voice asked.
The Jusenkyo Guide pulled out his map from one of the draws and the figure studied it intently.
"Interesting ... " female voice muttered. "And the curses merge instead of supplanting the previous curse?" she asked as she returned the map back to the Guide.
The Jusenkyo Guide nodded his head in reply.
A black-haired woman with a body to die for, stepped out of the hut and looked towards the springs once again.
"What is Miss Customer doing?" the Guide asked as the woman.
"Nothing much ... " she replied as she walked towards the springs heading for one particular spring ....
"Miss ... dangerous ... Please leave the area immediately!" the Jusenkyo Guide shouted, fear entering his voice.
Said person ignored the cries and finally stopped at one of the springs that lay at the center of all the springs.
She hesitated for a moment before jumping in.
********************* ***
I remember .... now ...
My mind blanked out after leaping into what I believed to be the oldest and most powerful spring in Jusenkyo ...
The Spring of Drowned Dragon Mage ...
I was wrong ...
The Spring of Drowned Dragon Mage was so powerful that it overwhelmed my senses and blew my mind.
I was out for a long time ...
Until the battle with the Phoenix God ...
When Ranma Saotome dug deep into his reserves to alter total defeat into total victory ...
Since that battle at Jusendo ...
I had awakened ...
Once again ...
But I was still not strong enough to seize control of the body from Ranma Saotome ...
His will is strong ...
and difficult to overcome ...
Even for a Mentat ...
I am not ashamed to admit that fact ...
But Akane ... I thank you for this ...
Your blow to your fiancee's head had finally weakened his grip on the vessel that we share ...
Unknown to him ...
But known to me ...
For that ... I will grant you one boon ...
Your death will be a quick one ...
********************* ***
The sentry guards were pleased to see a woman walking up to the rocky tunnel they guarded.
"It's a woman!" the first guard cried out with excitement.
"Yeah ... with big breasts!"
The woman came towards them with the grace of a panther and spoke...
"I would like to meet your Prince Herb."
Half an hour later ...
"You wish to use the locking ladle on yourself, Ranma?" the Musk Prince inquired the woman in front of him.
"I wish to be a woman, way in, way out," came the reply.
"If you desire to do so, far be it from me to deny you your heart's desire. But pray tell me, why the change of heart, Ranma Saotome?" the Musk Prince asked again as he sipped the tea from his teacup.
"I wish to embrace my destiny. A true warrior must not fight their own fate. It is the duty of all living creatures to play the roles in life that their Creator has pre-ordained. ..." the woman replied.
"And this is the face of a person who embraces her destiny." the woman replied as she gestured.
"So be it ... Lint. Bring the Locking Ladle."
The woman smiled in gratitude.
Turning his eyes back to his guest, he asked, "Who are you?"
"Ranma Saotome."
"Lying to your benefactor is not a sign of goodwill."
"There is no fooling you, is there?" the woman asked rhetorically as she unbraided her hair that was tied up into a pigtail.
Prince Herb had dropped the bombshell literally.
"The Ranma I know would never have given up his manhood for anything. And he would have been more uncouth and uncivillised, unlike you. And you still haven't answered my question," the Musk Prince stated.
"You are brighter than the others. I am Ranma alright. Though not the same Ranma you know. I am Ranma Atane, Mentat Master of Assassins, second-in-command of House Ordos, chief advisor to the Executrix and master of Drakonis IV."
******************** ****
Somewhere ...
"Somebody ... Anybody ... HELP ME!" a voice screamed through the ether.
I have got to get out of here! And warn the others! The tiny consciousness of Ranma continued to ram itself against the prison only to find himself unable to break out.
"You're wasting your time ... " a voice spoke.
Ranma turned around towards the owner of the voice to see a large dragon gazing at him.
"There is no barrier. It's just physical space that has been warped inwards. Things come in but they cannot get out."
"Who are you?" Ranma asked.
"I am Xan Tien, a Chiang-ku Dragon. I have been here since the day you fell into the Cursed Springs."
******************* *****
"So what can you tell me about this place ...?"
"It is a creation of the mind."
"A creation of the mind?" Ranma asked again.
"Yes ... a creation of the mind," the dragon added, its voice deep and strong.
"Then if it is a creation of the mind ... how come I can't get out ... its my mind right ... so this place should conform to my desires ...?"
"Good ... you learn fast," the dragon commented. "I was beginning to wonder how long you were going to take to figure out that brute force was not going to work here ...."
"So why am I here?"
"Well ... to cut a long story short ... your fiancee was the one that put you into this situation."
"Huh???" Ranma asked unintelligebily.
"She malleted you. You were knocked out cold ... " the dragon replied patiently. "Now the Mentat has taken over."
"Taken over?"
"Taken over your body ... " the dragon replied clinging to its zen with fierce resolve. 'This guy is a real dolt!'
"Who has taken over my body?" Ranma asked again really testing the dragon's patience.
'I am one with zen. I feel nothing. No anger, no pain, no sorrow.' the dragon repeated the mantera faithfully in its heart.
"The Mentat Master of Assassins, Ranma Atane."
"He's called Ranma as well?" Ranma inquired.
"Yes ... she is ... and a thousand times more dangerous than you or Nabiki." the dragon sighed.
"What do you mean?"
"She is a master strategist for House Ordos. The Ordos are mercenary. They care for nothing save wealth and power. In the language of the Ordos, there are no words for the concepts of trust or honor. There are more than three hundred for the concept of profit ..." the dragon explained.
"Whoa ... " Ranma exclaimed as the dragon's words sunk into his mind.
"In her galaxy ... she would be nothing but a drop of coloured water in the ocean. But here on your world ... I shudder to think of what she would do to it ..." the dragon continued.
"What do you mean?" Ranma asked.
"How do you feel when you deal with Nabiki, Ranma?" the dragon asked.
"Errr ... " Ranma did not know how to answer that question.
"Is Nabiki someone you would like to live with for the rest of your life?"
"No! She takes all my money whenever she gets a hold of them." His answer came out almost immediately.
"Good! Now ... Ranma, answer this second question. Can you trust Nabiki that she is not planning anything behind your back?" the dragon asked again.
"No! She is always scheming and up to no good."
"Very good! Now, Ranma one last question, have you ever outmaneuvred Nabiki in an argument or in a battle of wits?"
Ranma combed through his hair a few times ... thinking hard.
"No ... right?" the dragon hinted.
Ranma reluctantly agreed.
"Nabiki seems to be always one step ahead of you everytime, right?"
Ranma merely nodded his head.
"Well ... Ranma Atane is worse. A lot worse. She is a human computer ... able to compute or work out probabilities that Nabiki could never hope to aspire to with that mind of hers. If Nabiki is a 2 on a scale of 1 to 20 ... then Ranma Atane is a full 20."
"That powerful?"
"Mentats were trained for their minds specifically. Able to compute and analyse all objectives simultaneously with precision ... like advanced computers. If you were to ever confront her or battle her ... Ranma beware ... she is not like any of your previous opponents. I know that you are feeling all grand and mighty from beating Saffron ... but that was because Saffron made a mistake due to his ego and pride. You would not be able to do the same thing with her. Ranma Atane does not make mistakes. Her icy homeworld of Drakonis IV does not tolerate failure. Her masters were ruthlessly efficient and cared only for results ... " the dragon warned.
"You're saying she's better than me ... is it? I don't believe in an opponent that can never be beaten ... " Ranma replied.
"I never said she was unbeatable. I am only saying that she does not have any weaknesses normally associated with those all around you. With Ryoga ... it was anger and bull-headedness. With Happosai, his lechery. With Cologne ... tradition and refusal to adapt to change. With Nabiki ... greed. With Herb, Tarou and Saffron, pride and ego. With Genma ... just about everything. Ranma Atane does not have any of those weaknesses. Furthermore ... she knows all your strengths and weaknesses. She has a photographic memory. She remembers everything she sees and experiences like a computer and can extrapolate on them in ways you have never imagined. She knows of your fears with the Neko-ken. Still ... she has been defeated ... and it was that failure that has drawn her ... here ... inexorably to your world."
"She's an alien?" Ranma asked.
"Yes ... " the dragon began to wonder at the IQ of the human in front of him. Did the mallet-wielding tomboy damaged his brain or something? If that were the case, his chances of defeating the Mentat Master of Assassins were next to nil.
"As I mentioned before ... what bits and pieces that I can gleaned from her mind revealed that her masters were at war with two other Houses. House Atreides and House Harkonnen. House Atreides was just like you ... honorable and trustworthy ... minus the stupidity and ego of course ..." the dragon quipped.
"Huh???" Ranma did not get the dragon's perceived insult to his character.
"House Atreides was honorable, trustworthy and just. House Harkonnen was just plain evil. Now in the War of Assassins ... House Atreides emerged the victor. They attacked her world and destroyed the infrastructure of the planet. This failure in preventing the fall of House Ordos rankles on her. She is a perfectionist ... after all. Like most of her people, she assumes that loyalty is inspired through fear and deception. She knows the Atreides concept of trust and honor but has trouble accepting how it can inspire loyalty ... that concept of trust and honor is alien to her culture. If you are to ever regain control of your body, you must defeat her here ... in the mind. And that is where the danger lies ... for the power of the mind is her greatest strength and asset," the dragon quickly added.
"Why haven't you done anything about escaping from here?" Ranma asked.
"Me? This is your body ... Not mine ... Besides I rather like the view from here ... ," the dragon replied.
"Really ... Xan Tien? Is that the real reason?" A female voice spoke from all around them.
"Mentat ... " the dragon hissed beneath its breath.
A beautiful woman had suddenly appeared in front of them.
"I was gone for just a few hours ... and what do I find? A dragon trying to poison the mind of a child against me. You disappoint me. I had expected better from you ... Xan Tien." The woman sighed.
Ranma looked at the woman before asking, "You're the Mentat?"
"Yes."
"Give control of my body back to me!" Ranma shouted.
"Control of your body??? Sure ... I need a break anyway," the woman agreed much to Ranma and the dragon's surprise. 'And to make sure that you don't try to poison the foolish little martial artist's mind any further than you have already done against me, Xan Tien. This smear campaign of yours has got to stop.'
"Oh before ... you do get control of the body back ... There are a few things you might like to know."
Ranma stopped as if contemplating the Mentat's words.
"What would that be?"
"Your cursed form has been locked."
"What???!!!! Why did you do it???" Ranma shouted at the woman.
"Two things. One ... your cursed form is a shapeshifter, able to take the form of any creature envisioned including humans and animals. It is also immune to a wide variety of poisons and gases. Two ... your uncursed form has one inevitability ... blindness. I calculate that your uncursed form would become permanently blind in fifteen years."
"Blind???!!! I don't believe it!"
"You have glaucoma, Ranma. And at such a young age. Go check up your genealogy with any medical doctor. Glaucoma is hereditary through your father's line. Regrettably, it is an incurable medical condition and you would not even have realised it until it was too late. The symptoms are your visual field would have decreased in size until you could only see what is directly in front of you. After that ... it dims and then you wouldn't be able to see anything all. An eye transplant wouldn't help because your optic nerve and retina cells have been damaged by the pressure of the fluids building in your eyes. It is not an infection. It is a genetic flaw in your DNA, Ranma. Don't feel too bad about it ... One out of every ten people on this world has that medical condition. Most don't realise it until it is too late. You are one of the lucky few in the sense that I discovered it before it was too late."
"How do you know all these things?" Ranma asked.
"I am a Mentat. It is my purpose to know everything there is to know ... Ranma," the woman smiled in a friendly manner.
"Then why don't you just genetically re-sequence Ranma's DNA?" the dragon challenged.
"It is more trouble than it is worth, dragon. One mistake and Ranma would be nothing more than a puddle of organic waste." the Mentat countered.
"I thought that the great Ranma Atane never makes any mistakes," the dragon scoffed.
"I'm not infallible ... O' Wise and Ancient One ... I am aware of the effects of what they called Murphy's Law on this world. Besides ... having the powers of a dragon mage is a rush," the Mentat replied acidly.
"Mentat, do you have to use the same name as me?" Ranma asked, interrupting the brewing argument between the dragon and the Mentat. "I can't keep calling you 'Mentat' all the time and calling you 'Ranma' when I'm also called Ranma feels rather ... strange."
"I agree. Having to refer to the two of you (annoying and upstart humans though this remained unspoken), with the same name is getting out of hand," the dragon gruffly added. 'Having a human called Ranma around with me is bad enough ... Two humans with the same name like that is going to start a global epidemic ... '
"Very well ... You can call me Roma Atane ... if you wished ..." the woman replied.
"Better ... " the dragon grumbled.
The Mentat merely smiled at the dragon's words.
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"So ... Ranma. You're the best martial artist alive, right?" the dragon asked.
"That's right!" the pigtailed martial-artist declared.
"How would you like a little spar against me?" the dragon asked, its eyes glinting mischievously.
"No problem! I could take you on anyday and beat you flat!" the pigtailed martial artist declared.
"Is that so?" the dragon asked craftily.
"Yes ... "
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anss123: This was great, especially considering I don't like the dune universe. But weren't the Ordors only part of the PC/Amiga/Sega game 'Dune II' and not the books? No matter, I'm looking forward to see how Ranma handles having people smarter than him/her in his/her head. One small, almost insignificant, nitpick was Akane being a bit to hammer happy. If I recall correctly Akane is quickest with the hammer when Ranma insults or embarrasses her. The second mallet scene might have worked better if 'mentat' had inherited some of Ranma's karma, and somehow ended up in a compromising position, e.g. Groping Nabiki, right before Akane entered.
117: Thank you. There has been many questions regarding the existence of House Ordos and their place in the Dune universe. The majority of readers and fans believe that House Ordos did not exist in the original timeline and was actually a creation of Westwood Studios. Only one writer has suggested that House Ordos really existed in the Dune Universe although I have yet to verify his claim.
goku_90504: Intresting fic but haveing her have the same first name is just to weird
117: To reduce confusion, I have changed her name to Roma Atane. I couldn't very well make out her name verbally. It sounded like 'Roma Atane' the first time but when I replayed the audio clip again it said 'Ranma Atane'. Just to be sure I played the same video clip a few times. Unfortunately it mentioned 'Ranma Atane' and 'Roma Atane' an equal number of times.
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