V .01

Neo Genus Jusenkyo

By Kevin D. Hammel

My attempt at a Ranma/EVA blend. Shaken, not stirred.

Episode 05 Matters of Honor. Of Course I'm a Boy, Really!

Ranma 1/2 is property of Rumiko Takahashi. Publishing Rights are held 
by  Viz in The US and Shogakukan in Japan. Neon Genesis Evangelion is  
property of Hideaki Anno. Video rights held by GAINAX in Japan and ADV 
Films in the US. My purpose is to honor these creators and their 
works. No infringement intended.

----

"I wonder why Ucchan, Dr. Kuonji, wanted us to stop by her place after 
school?"

"I'm sure I don't know! She's YOUR friend!" Akane said with a bit of 
disdain.

"Beats me." Nabiki threw in.

"perhaps she wants to cook us dinner. okonomiyaki is delicious, you 
know."

"Uh, yeah Kasumi, that must be it." Nabiki rolled her eyes. It was 
TOUGH to be nice to her big sister.

"we're there." Kasumi went up and knocked on the door, which soon 
opened.

"So glad you could come!" Ukyou motioned the four girls to enter her 
home. 

----

Ukyou had a guest, a tall woman with dark red hair. The hilt of a 
katana could be see protruding behind her shoulder. She was dressed in 
a beautiful kimono.

The woman looked at the four GIRLS who had come to visit Dr. Kuonji. 
Where was her son? She remembered Akane and Nabiki from the early days 
of LEAF Tokyo 2. Next, she noticed what must be a clone of Kasumi. So 
the fathers had hidden their guilt by creating a faux daughter, though 
there was no spark of life in the animated doll's inhuman red eyes...

The fourth girl was unknown to her, so she regarded her at some 
length, and noted the girl was doing the same to her. She was 
beautiful, with long red hair in a gathered in a braided ponytail. 
Though she was obviously the same age as the other girls, her figure 
was more pronounced. The woman could almost see herself in the child, 
much the same way she could with...

A word entered her mind, the word which had caused Genma to take her 
son from her. The key to first zoomorph and the artificial ones Leaf 
had constructed in Tokyo 2, discovered only after Kasumi had been 
lost... The woman spoke one word, the name of a place which now, it 
seemed, had claimed her son. "Jusenkyo".

The redhead had taken a hesitant few steps toward her, but stopped at 
the mention of Jusenkyo.

"I have a SON named Saotome Ranma..." The woman whispered.

The girl froze in her tracks. "My name is Ranma. Are you my mother?"

But Genma had promised...What had he done? Honor would be served. The 
woman swiftly drew her katana, only to see the girl quickly back-flip 
to the front door.

Was this her son? The woman cast an inquisitive glance at the Ukyou, 
who had invited her here.

Ukyou nodded affirmatively.

So THIS was the trouble her 'husband' had gotten her son 
into...Genma's head only THOUGHT it was still attached to his body!

The girl's smile was replaced by a look of terror. "Why? What have I 
done?"
 
Nabiki held the girl while Akane stood in front of her, her aura 
flaming.

The woman looked confused for a moment then sheathed her weapon, 
drawing a piece of paper from her kimono, which she handed to Ukyou. 
It was quite likely the child had no memory of the compact, or at 
least its gravity. Was this even a question of Ranma's honor OR was it 
of her husband's alone?

Ukyou read the contract, her face turning white. She walked gingerly 
over to Ranma and Nabiki, showing them the document.

Ranma read it, then buried her face in her hands for a few moments, 
seeking some composure. She looked up at the woman, stone faced. "I 
understand. At least I got to see you again, thank you for that, 
mother. I had hoped to start a new life with you, but it seems my life 
must end instead. Akane, you should read this."

Akane read the paper, which only seemed to stoke the fire of her 
battle-aura. It was a contract that assured Ranma would be raised to 
be a 'man among men' lest Genma and Ranma commit Seppuku. It was 
marked by Genma, with Ranma adding a handprint. "So, the handprint of 
a child on a piece of paper will cost him his life?"

Kasumi was the last to read the document. Her response was 
predictable. "oh my!"

The only sound in the room was the ticking of an antique analog clock. 
Finally, Nabiki broke the silence.

"Madam, Ranma was made female by his father's hand to pilot a living 
vehicle to help defend the earth from a horrible invasion."

"The zoomorphs?"

"Da..."

"I never knew they would come again..."

"They most certainly have. They nearly killed your...son yesterday. 
Could you defer the question of honor until the threat has been 
eliminated? We desperately need a pilot of Ranma's caliber. He is one 
of the finest."

Akane spoke next "Without Ranma by my side, I don't know if I could 
survive on the battlefield." Or off it, now, she added to herself.

"yes, ranma is a good pilot. you should be proud of her."

The woman looked at her son's face, knowing Ranma would accept 
whatever judgement she pronounced. She was impressed. "I will defer 
judgement until the threat is dealt with. I will say that I am 
unconcerned about Ranma's gender, only hi...her conduct." She had 
little doubt what her decision would be. Genma on the other hand...

The stony visage Ranma displayed was cracked by a smile. She ran to 
her mother and embraced her. "Thanks, mom!" she said, but could speak 
no more, as both the girl and woman shed tears of joy at their 
reunion.

At last the woman broke the embrace, and went to Ukyou's guest room, 
returning with a cloth-wrapped bundle. She offered it to Ranma. "I 
brought these for my son, would you like to take them, my child?"

Ranma accepted the bundle, and unwrapped it to find a katana and a 
bokken. "You can call me son, here, mom, just be careful outside. I 
remember you trained me when I was a child, will you train me again, 
mother?"

"Of course, my child, of course." She smiled at her daughter, then 
looked up at the three Tendovski daughters "I believe I never 
introduced myself." She bowed. "I am Saotome Nodoka, Ranma's mother. I 
know we're not related by blood, but if any of you need a mother's 
advice on anything, don't hesitate to ask...Your mother Keiko was my 
dearest friend, and I want to make sure her children are looked 
after."

"I am Tendovski Akane, and I thank you for the offer. I think all of 
us have missed having a mother around."

"I'm Nabiki. Thanks for the offer." And I'll direct all my questions 
about knives to you, she added to herself with a slight grin.

"i'm kasumi, mrs. saotome. thank you, you are very kind." Kasumi 
offered a shy smile. "did you know the original kasumi, mrs. saotome?"

Perhaps she had underestimated the...Kasumi. "Yes, dear. Would you 
like to know about her and your mother?"

She was answered by a chorus of hai's and da's.

----

"Excuse me, there's something I forgot." Ranma walked over to Ukyou 
and whispered to her. The two friends went into the kitchen.

The people left behind didn't know what to do, so they waited a few 
minutes, after which Ranma and Ukyou returned. Ranma was wearing a 
pink bathrobe, because his uniform wouldn't fit him right now.

Nodoka got up and ran to embrace her son. "Thank you, Ranma, thank 
you, Ukyou. Its wonderful to see my son after 8 years!"

Ranma and his mother embraced again, then the two sat down next to 
each other. Nabiki and Akane smiled. Kasumi was surprised, but tried 
to smile, too.

"Now that that interruption's over..." She cast a smile Ranma's way, 
which was returned. "I guess I'll start at the beginning. I met 
Ranma's father in College. Genma, Soun, Keiko, and myself were all 
Physical Education majors, and Martial Artists. The two men and my 
friend Keiko studied Kempo, while I studied Kendo. Both Keiko and I 
fell in love with one of those men. If only we'd known...That's why 
they say hindsight's 20-20.

"Shortly after graduation, Genma and I were married, as were Keiko and 
Soun. We rented a house near the university where my husband and the 
Tendovskis attended grad school. I worked to keep our heads above 
water, and it was tough, let me tell you. Then there was the day our 
lives, and the world, changed forever."

"The Second Impact?" Ranma asked his mother.

"Yes. I think both families began that night. Who knew there would 
even be a TOMORROW, let alone a world a year away? Seven months later, 
the Tendovski triplets were born, by induced labor and two months 
later, you were. After your birth, the fathers made their pledge for 
the union of the two families." Nodoka's gaze fell on Akane and 
Nabiki. "Do you two remember Kasumi?"

"Only a little. She was always a little taller than us, and her hair 
was brown, like Nabiki's, though she wore it longer, and in a pony 
tail. That's about it." Akane answered.

"I don't remember anything different from that about my sister." 
Nabiki stated.

"She was a wonderful child. What happened to her drove a wedge between 
myself and the others. To think that they would even try to hide what 
happened all this time..." Nodoka struggled for composure.

"what happened, mrs. saotome? what happened to the original kasumi?"

"Back then, there were two experimental units, 0 and 1, and an early 
production prototype, Unit 2. They did some simple tests with Kasumi 
and each of the units. When they succeeded with the two experimental 
units, there were some UN brass at the test with Unit 2. Things seemed 
to go well for a few seconds, then they lost contact with Kasumi. They 
removed the plug, but it was clear she was unconscious. The 
embarrassed research team hauled her off."

"was she alright?" Kasumi asked.

"No...she was dead. They managed to cover it up, putting her in 
'isolation' while she 'recovered'. The fathers wanted to use Akane, 
who had the second highest rating, for another test, but Keiko 
insisted it be her who next entered the unit, but only after a 
thorough investigation and Autopsy on Kasumi's body."

Akane could only imagine what would have happened to her... "So, 
that's why Kasumi was sent away for years. I only remember seeing a 
picture of her two years ago. I was told her hair color changed 
because of the treatments they performed to save her life."

"In a matter of speaking, that's correct." Ukyou interjected. She 
proceeded to tell Nodoka the story of Kasumi2.

"so why was kasumi all right in the first two tests, then died in the 
third?"

"The first two tests were...faked. When they ACTUALLY tried to let her 
synchronize, she died. She was only a child." Nodoka could not hold 
back her tears any longer. Ranma tried to comfort his mother.

"oh my!" Kasumi said. A flow of tears began down her face. She slowly 
walked over to Nodoka and looked in her eyes. "thank you for telling 
me, mrs. saotome. i am very sorry the original kasumi died trying to 
synchronize with unit 2." The clone looked down, turned, and walked 
slowly back, sitting down looking at Nodoka again.

Nodoka looked at the clone, saw TEARS in her eyes, and smiled. Perhaps 
Kasumi did live on in this new 'Kasumi'.

"thank you, mrs. saotome." Kasumi said with a small smile.

"You're welcome." The pain she had felt was gone, now. Kasumi had 
died, yet lived on. Nodoka was ready to continue. "They were at a 
loss, they couldn't figure out the key factor to allow 
synchronization. It was discovered by accident. They accidentally 
dumped hot water to one of the vats containing a proto-JAVA, and 
noticed the cells re-arranged themselves. Repeated testing showed that 
the cells had a different configuration if cold or hot water was 
applied."

"So that's how they found out a Jusenkyo curse was required to 
synchronize with a JAVA?" Ranma asked.

"Yes. That is when it was decided to move Leaf from Tokyo 2 to 
Joketsuzoku 2, as the Jusenkyo Protectorate was administered from 
there."

"So that's why my pop left..."

"And why mom and dad sent us to St. Petersburg 4." Nabiki added

"It was decided things would be too dangerous there for young 
children, so I agreed to keep you safe. A year later, your father came 
for you, leaving me with a worthless piece of paper." Nodoka was near 
tears again, but Ranma's comforting presence headed them off.

"He sent me to private school until I was 12, mom, THEN he brought me 
to Joketsuzoku 3, by way of the Jusenkyo Protectorate..."

"So, you've lived as a girl for two YEARS?"

"Yes, mother." Ranma looked her in the eyes. "Why? First, the Amazons 
of Joketsuzoku 3 require the pilots of the JAVA units to be female, as 
their troops have been for centuries. Second, as I am head the 
household where father and Dr. Tendovski live, I must be female. 
Third, after revealing my curse to the Elders of the tribe, I was 
accepted as a member. I am proud of that, mother. Proud to carry on a 
tradition centuries old, to share the burden of defending my homeland 
with my sisters. When I did that, this place became my home."

"As it became mine, when I joined." Ukyou added.

"I see." Nodoka saw that the LETTER of the agreement had been 
completely violated, but her child had obviously chosen the honorable 
path throughout. She was proud of her Ranma. She now saw the agreement 
for what it was, a tool to pry Ranma loose from her protection, 
nothing more. Genma clearly had no honor.

Akane and Nabiki realized who the new member of the tribe hinted at 
when they spoke with Cologne was. They were impressed.

Ranma got up. "I guess I should change back."

"Thank you. It meant a lot to spend some time with my son again."

"You're welcome." Ranma said with a broad grin, then went to change.

Nodoka looked at Nabiki and Akane. "How do you feel about the 
engagement? You heard what Ranma said..."

Akane responded. "It's not a problem. We have the opposite curse Ranma 
has, we become BOYS with cold water. I used to hate my curse, but I 
think it will provide Ranma and myself a chance to have real 
relationship."

"Uh, don't forget, I'm engaged to Ranma too!" Nabiki interjected.

Nodoka was beginning to realize the father's terrible plan for their 
children, they were now perfect for the environment they were destined 
to live in. She wondered if Genma planned to violate the agreement 
even as he signed it? Probably not, but he clearly paid it no heed 
anymore.

Ranma returned, wearing the uniform she had earlier. She sat down next 
to her mother, exchanging a smile with her.

Alarms went off. As always, the zoomorphs paid no heed to the affairs 
of humans...Or perhaps they DID pay heed, and chose the worst possible 
times for their attacks.

"We need to go, mom. The zoomorphs are attacking."

"Be careful, Ranma." She gave her daughter a quick kiss on the 
forehead.

"Sure mom, no problem."

There was a lot of her father in the child but that, in this case, 
wasn't a bad thing. Dr. Kuonji and the four girls hurried out of the 
apartment. Nodoka pondered the fate of herself, her child, and the 
world as she watched them run off. Genma's fate was sealed.

----

Next on Neo Genus Jusenkyo...
Episode 06 Akane Loves Her New Friend! Does Ranma Like the New Pilot?

 (END)

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