[Ranma][FanFic] Ruler of the Raging Main Part 9
wild...@psn.net
It is the year 1670 AD. Ranma Saotome, his adopted sister Ukyo,
the Amazon Warrior Shampoo, and the Lady Akane of the House of Tendo
have been abducted by Portugeuse traders in the Orient. It is the hope
of First Mate Manuel Delgado that they fetch a high price as slaves
from the President of the Audencia de Panama, Don Juan Perez deGuzman,
who is rumored to have a fetish for Asian women.
While on its return voyage, the _Deguello_ is sunk in the Andaman
Sea by a sea monster known as Anfaulag. The monster craves the spirit
of Nerial, Queen of the Mermaids, which resides within the jewel of a
ring worn by the _Deguello's_ captain, Eduardo Cristobal. Cristobal
dies, but not before passing on the ring to the unwitting Ranma with
his final breath.
Ranma and Akane are swept under the waves by a sudden squall, and
are confronted by Neptune, God of the Seas. Neptune informs Ranma that
the ring he now possesses is a curse against all mariners for their
crimes against the mermaids. Ranma is given the choice of accepting the
ring with its powers and its curse, or surrendering it to Neptune, that
the god might at last keep it from the hands of men. Knowing that Akane
will drown without the magical aid of the ring, Ranma accepts it for
himself. The ring will grant him all of the powers of Neptune. It will
also kill him within a year and a day, if not sooner, as Anfaulag
tracks them to the island they are marooned upon. Only the intervention
of Neptune's court drives the sea monster away from its siege of the
island.
Ukyo and Shampoo wash up on an island in the wake of the squall.
They soon encounter a magnificent fleet of ships under the command of
the Golden Dragon of Myanmar, Prince Hsinbyushin of the Burmese Kingdom
of Mandalay. Ukyo is briefly made a prisoner of the prince before being
rescued by Shampoo, and together they escape in one of the prince's
boats.
Manuel Delgado and the panda-cursed form of Genma Saotome have
also survived the sinking of the _Deguello_, and in the company of
Jesuit priest Father deGama and the stout Seaman Estremoz, are rescued
by Prince Hsinbyushin's fleet. Delgado makes a deal with the prince,
exchanging his claim to Shampoo, Ukyo, and Akane for assistance in
capturing Ranma and the cursed ring he now bears.
-There are now 360 days left to Ranma Saotome-
________________________________________________________________________
J. Austin Wilde and Fission Park Press proudly present:
RULER OF THE RAGING MAIN
Part Nine: The Many Loves of Ranma
By J. Austin Wilde, K.B.C.S.
Super Critical Reactor Axe Man
Fission Park Press
wild...@psn.net
http://www.psn.net/~wildeman/
The characters and situations of Ranma 1/2
are the creation and property of Rumiko
Takahashi and Shogakukan/Kitty TV/VIZ
-----------------------------------------
| Previous installments are available |
| at the URL listed above, or by request. |
-----------------------------------------
________________________________________________________________________
"Yet each man kills the thing he loves, by each let this be heard,
Some do it with a bitter look, some with a flattering word,
The coward does it with a kiss, the brave man with a sword!"
-Oscar Wilde, "Ballad of Reading Gaol"
Chapter One
Captain Vasco Domingo Martin knocked politely on the door to
Prince Hsinbyushin's apartments in the aft portion of the ship. A
valet answered the door with a sleepy nod, allowing the red faced
Portugeuse man entry. The foyer smelled of incense and perfume,
causing him to frown. While he approved of Hsinbyushin spending most
of his time with his concubines for the free hand it allowed him in
running the affairs of the fleet, this was one time when he wanted
the boy's undivided attention.
Hsinbyushin was reclining on a pile of silk lined cushions.
He was dressed in deep red and saffron yellow robes and wore a large
sapphire on his brow. The young man gave Martin a sloe-eyed look of
amusement before calling for more wine.
Martin waited patiently while the valet poured a cup of strong
Calvados - imported at great personal expense from France. The apple
brandy added to the heady scent already lingering in the air. When
Hsinbyushin had sipped and given his approval to the valet, he looked
to Martin.
The red-faced captain knew this as his cue to speak.
"<The _Jade Tiger_ reports sighting a three masted vessel; square-
rigged on the forward two masts, and fore-and-aft rigged on the after,
bearing south by east about two days of good wind from of our position.
She is sailing north; likely making for the Ten Degree Channel.>"
Hsinbyushin's eyes flashed for a moment with excitement.
"<Dutch?>" he asked.
Martin nodded.
"<It appears so. It may even be the barque that Delgado claims
to have escaped in the Strait of Malacca.>"
Hsinbyushin took another sip from his cup.
"<Perhaps it is time to make our presence known,>" he said slowly.
Martin's face remained calm in spite of his frustration with the
prince.
"<I would recommend against it, Highness.>"
It was Hsinbyushin's turn to frown.
"<Explain,>" he demanded curtly.
Martin paused to collect himself before replying.
"<It was agreed that to wait until you had subjugated the Bengal
states would be best, Highness. That would give you the wealth
necessary to conquer Siam, and then you would have the strength and
the strategic territory required to successfully assert yourself in
Dutch affairs -particularly in the trade with Cathay and the Spice
Islands.>"
Hsinbyushin gave him a sour look of distaste.
"<It's six months, at the least, before we can even begin the
Bengal campaign.>"
Martin nodded slowly.
"<Yes, Highness. It will be at least six months before your
troops are sufficiently trained and equipped.>"
"<And what of the Dutch increasing their strength here?>"
Hsinbyushin asked petulantly. "<Will they outstrip my own power and
act before I am ready? I am aware of their new colony in Persia.>"
"<Not likely, Highness. The Dutch have their European affairs to
look to. They will not commit additional troops and warships to the
Orient unless provoked, and we will not provoke them until you are
ready to win a decisive victory and drive them out.>"
The Prince nodded slowly, his lessons from the writings of Master
Sun coming back to him. He gave Martin a probing look. There was more
than the simple delivery of news in his captain's presence.
"<What else brings you to my chambers, Captain?>"
Martin cleared his throat to speak.
"<I am concerned by your faith in the castaway, Delgado,>" he
broached.
Hsinbyushin smiled faintly. He had guessed as much.
"<You think I put too great a value on his counsel. That in so
doing, I belittle yours.>"
Martin flushed, his red face turning almost purple.
"<Highness, I fear that Delgado tells you only what you wish to
hear. Such counsel would of course seem fair, but this is the way of
the seducer.>"
Hsinbyushin took a thoughtful sip of his calvados.
"<Delgado offers nothing that I cannot take for myself,>" he said
dismissively. "<Fear not, Captain. He has no hold over me.>"
Martin seemed to take hope at this.
"<Do you mean then to return to Syriam and end this mad quest?>"
"<No,>" Hsinbyushin said in a firm but quiet voice. "<If Delgado
is telling the truth, then we shall find the women. If by three days
we have found no sign of them, we shall know that his words were
false, and he shall be punished in a fitting manner.>"
"<But the delay, Highness,>" Martin spluttered. "<And the risk
of confrontation with the Dutch...>"
"<The delay is nothing,>" Hsinbyushin countered. "<The hunt was
to take at least that long - correct? As for the Dutch, our ships are
swifter; we can avoid them if necessary.>"
He set the cup down on a tray produced by the valet the moment it
appeared that the prince was finished with it.
"<Any further news to report?>" he asked Martin.
Martin grit his teeth and bowed his head.
"<No, Highness.>"
"<Then that will be all.>"
"<Yes, Highness.>"
When Martin had left the chamber, Manuel Delgado appeared from a
vestibule. He sipped at a cup of wine and brushed his hands along the
fine garments the prince had given him.
"<Well, your Highness?>" he asked at length.
"<It is as you said,>" Hsinbyushin noted dryly.
"<Don't think poorly of him for his prejudices,>" Delgado returned.
Hsinbyushin snorted, and his sienna eyes flashed in the lamp light.
"<My words to Martin stand, Delgado. If we have no sign of the
women at the end of three days, your end will be most unpleasant.>"
Delgado smiled, much to the youthful prince's surprise.
"<I have no fear of failing you, Highness.>"
* * *
"You there, devilspawn, eat something," Father deGama said to
Genma Saotome. "I have questions for you, and they will not be served
if you mark your return to hell with starvation."
Genma reached slowly for a husk of bread and began to eat. He was
hungry, famished even, but his empty stomach rebelled at too much food
too soon.
"Why should I answer the questions of a barbarian -and a Jesuit,
whose kind were cast out by Tokugawa?" Genma countered.
The Jesuit frowned. The Shogun's expulsion of the Jesuits at the
beginning of the century was still an open wound among his order. With
the removal of the priests came the end of Portugeuse dominion in
Japan - a double blow to a man like deGama.
"Watch thy tongue, demon. Now tell me, by what black art did you
come by your beast form?"
Genma decided to ignore the gaijin. He had more important things
to think about, like finding a way back to Japan. It didn't seem likely
that the prince would ever sail there, and certainly not for the sole
purpose of returning a down on his luck ronin. His options seemed to be
limited to two choices: he would have to do something to get within the
prince's good graces - or steal something valuable and make a break for
it at the first opportunity.
Delgado was busy with his own schemes, that was true, but Genma
wasn't sure if he should stand too close to the man - he was making
enemies, at least with the prince's second in command, Martin. That
path might prove more perilous than it was worth. The only value that
might be had in staying close to Delgado was the man's belief that
Ranma was still alive. If he really could find the boy, then it would
be worth it. They could find their way back to Japan together!
"<Answer me, demon!>" deGama demanded in Latin when Genma did
not respond.
Genma rolled over onto his hammock without looking at the Jesuit,
and went to sleep. His decisions were better after a bit of sleep. The
smelly priest would just have to wait until he was rested.
"<He's no demon, Father,>" Estremoz said from the corner of the
small compartment.
"<And you would know, wouldn't you, Estremoz?>" deGama retorted.
"<If he were a demon, then they are made of frailer stuff than we
are led to believe. His life was as close to ending as ours before we
came to be in this place.>"
Chapter Two
"You're holding it all wrong again," Ranma corrected Akane. She
stood clutching a curved branch of wood that approximated a katana. It
had been a busy morning of food gathering, and now Ranma was keeping
his promise of training her in the way of the sword.
Akane looked down at her hands, giving Ranma the opening he needed.
His stick came down on her wrists with a *swat* -just enough to sting.
She yelped in pain and dropped the stick. Her eyes burned with
anger and humiliation as she regarded the smug looking Ranma.
"What was that for?" she demanded.
"You left yourself wide open," he shot back.
"But you cheated!"
"Yeah," Ranma said with a smirk, "and you'd be missing both hands
and bleeding to death right now. You tell me what's worse."
She screwed her face up into a scowl.
"How is *this* supposed to teach me anything!?" she demanded, still
rubbing at her wrists.
"How do you think *I* learned to duel," Ranma retorted. "Pop used
to beat me silly with a *bokken,* not some puny stick - and he never
pulled his strokes like I do with you. You've had it easy compared to
me."
"It sounds to me like you took one too many knocks on the head,"
Akane muttered angrily to herself. She looked hard at him, holding her
battered wrists up for him to see what he had done. "Now that my arms
are all bruised, how am I supposed to grip the sword?"
"If you're gonna cry about it, then maybe we should stop," he
said sourly. He had a feeling this was going to be a waste of time.
"Who's crying!" Akane shouted. She picked up the stick, mindful to
keep her eyes on Ranma the whole time. Her eyes continued to burn,
though not with mindless rage as before. "Don't hold back on me this
time, Ranma."
Ranma gave her a half smile.
"That's the spirit. Now come at me."
She advanced slowly on him, mindful of the foot sweep he had used
on her in earlier matches. Her eyes remained fixed on his 'sword,'
watching the flex of his forearm muscles to predict what he might do.
He lunged, drawing Akane's 'sword' away for just an instant before
she realized it was a feint and brought it back to parry the actual
strike. A brief smile creased Ranma's face as he drew back rather than
press home the attack.
"Not bad," he admitted. "It's amazing what you can do when you
keep that unfeminine temper of yours under control."
She grimaced, biting back a curse at his remark. He was just
baiting her into losing control over herself, and she would not permit
that to happen.
She waited calmly, finding her center at last.
Ranma watched her for a moment over the curve of his 'sword.' His
eyes seemed to drift down to her wrists again. A frown flitted across
his face, and he seemed to loosen up a bit.
"What did I tell you about those hands, Akane?"
Her eyes once again fell to her hands. Ranma lunged.
"Ha!" Akane cried, lashing out with a vicious stroke aimed level
with Ranma's nose. Ranma ducked under it and thrust with his 'sword'
to disembowel her, but Akane spun to her left and brought her own 'blade'
down to drive Ranma's stroke into the sand. "Thought you'd fool me with
the same trick twice, didn't you?" she cried throughout.
Rather than finesse his way out from under her blade, he brought
his weight to bear, checking her soundly in the shoulder and driving
her to the ground. Her feet became tangled with his, and he found
himself toppling over her.
They landed mere inches from each other's faces. Ranma found
himself spellbound for a moment as he looked into her soft and
trembling brown eyes.
**It can't be... She really IS cute,** he thought suddenly, and
found his face slowly dipping towards hers.
Akane looked up into Ranma's warm blue-grey eyes and felt a surge
of heat wash through her body from her toes to her head, leaving her
with a furious blush and an uncharacteristic shortness of breath. He
had managed to catch himself enough to keep most of his weight off of
her, but his proximity was every bit as electric as the brush of his
pigtail against her burning cheek. She could smell his musky scent as
it mingled with the salty breeze from the crashing surf close by.
Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she could feel it pulsing
in her ears. He seemed so fragile, so vulnerable, that she wanted to
throw her arms around him and hold him close. As she realized these
unlooked for feelings, she began to panic at her heart's sudden betrayal
of her resolve.
She tried to tell herself that she didn't like Ranma, that she
was only doing all of this to relieve the boredom of being stuck on an
island in the middle of nowhere and months from home. He was a jerk; a
smug, cocky, insensitive jerk who was always insulting her, who was
always making her feel inferior, and she was a fool to feel sorry for
him for having lost his mother.
But his lips were so close to hers, and if he was to kiss her right
then and there, she might be able to forgive him for being who he was...
"Shampoo, you idiot! Watch what you're doing!"
"Shampoo know what she doing, stupid spatula girl!"
"And quit calling me that!"
The sound of Ukyo and Shampoo's voices broke the spell over Ranma,
and he bolted upright to find them. He saw some sort of boat slide side-
ways in the surf, pitching both Shampoo and Ukyo out onto the sand.
The water rolled over them, and the purple-haired Amazon immediately
disappeared from sight. When the wave receded, there was a pile of
wet clothes and an equally wet purple cat in her place.
"Yeah, you know exactly what you're doing, huh, Shampoo," a soaked
Ukyo said bitterly to the cat.
"Ucchan!" Ranma cried to her, not quite believing his eyes.
Ukyo turned away from the surf wild-eyed with joy.
"Ranchan!"
Ranma and Ukyo ran laughing towards each other. They met at the
line of damp sand that marked high tide, Ranma catching his adopted
sister in his arms and twirling her around in circles before bringing
her close in a fierce embrace.
"Ucchan! How did you...?" he started to ask.
"I was going to ask the same thing of you," she replied, her lips
brushing against the corner of his mouth and bringing forth a blazing
heat in his cheeks. "I almost thought you'd drowned in the storm."
"No way," Ranma replied, still blushing at his adopted sister's
show of affection. "It'd take more than a storm to finish me off."
"I know," she replied. "And I knew we'd find you sooner or later.
Shampoo and I have been searching these islands for days looking for
you."
Shampoo, still wet, but her spirits soaring at the sight and sound
of Ranma, began brushing her face against his leg as she purred sweetly.
Ranma looked down uneasily at the cat.
"Um, Shampoo, there's a hot springs not far from here. I'm sure
Akane wouldn't mind showing you."
He looked to where he had left Akane, but she was gone.
"Akane's alive too?" Ukyo asked, looking in the direction of
Ranma's gaze. "Where is she?"
"I dunno," he replied. "She was just here a second ago."
"That idiot!" Akane cried as tears streamed freely down her face.
The trees screened her flight from the beach, and her eyes from seeing
any more of Ranma and Ukyo's reunion. "Stupid, stupid idiot! I hate
him!"
She dashed through tangles of vines and leafy trees, past
screeching monkeys and chirping birds, still sobbing and hating herself
for feeling anything for Ranma. At last she reached their camp and threw
herself down on the nest of soft mossy leaves Ranma had helped to gather
for her. She could still see his gorgeous blue-grey eyes in her mind,
and the scent of him still lingered on her tattered kimono.
"How could I have been so stupid?" she sobbed to herself. "Just
because he took the ring for me doesn't mean that he cares!"
But that wasn't true, and she knew it. He had jumped after her
in the storm when the only sane thing to do would have been letting
her go. He had taken the ring for her sake - forfeiting his life for
hers. When the sea monster came for them, he had carried her to the
safety of the top of the hill. He *had* to care -even just a little!
Still, it was foolish of her to think that she would ever come
before Ukyo. If her heart ached now, it was her own fault for thinking
there might have been more between herself and Ranma than there really
was. She caught herself up in her arms and willed herself not to cry,
at last staunching the flow of tears from her eyes. She told herself
that she wouldn't waste another drop on Ranma Saotome.
Chapter Three
"Shampoo, cut it out!" Ranma cried uneasily. Shampoo, still in
cat form, followed him and Ukyo up the hill to the source of the hot
spring. The trouble lay in her brushing against him with every chance
she got.
"Shampoo!" Ukyo chorused. "Ranchan doesn't like cats! Can't you
understand that?" She thought about Genma's attempt to train Ranma in
something called the Cat Fist when she and Ranma were little. It
brought a cold chill down her spine as she thought about what might
have become of Ranma if she hadn't intervened. Even years later, Ranma
was still nervous around cats.
Shampoo's fur bristled. She meow'ed angrily at Ukyo before
falling in step with Ranma again.
"The spring is over there," Ranma pointed. Steam wafted up from
the source. Shampoo dove for the small pond of slightly cooler water
downstream.
The cat disappeared under the water with a splash. When Shampoo
burst from the water in all her naked glory, Ranma turned crimson and
spun around so as not to look.
"Is okay, Ranma," she said to him huskily. "Shampoo no mind if
Ranma look."
"But *I* do," Ukyo countered.
"Shampoo no ask Ukyo," the Amazon said with a sly smile. "Water
is very nice," she went on. "Ranma come join Shampoo?"
"Uh, m-maybe some other time," Ranma managed, earning a sharp look
from Ukyo.
"I'll set your clothes over here," Ukyo said to the Amazon, placing
the sun dried garments of Hsinbyushin's concubines on a smooth boulder
close by. "Meet us back in camp whenever you're ready."
Shampoo narrowed her eyes at Ukyo as she took Ranma's hand to lead
him back to the camp.
**You haven't won him yet, Ukyo,** she thought darkly.
"What's with the clothes?" Ranma asked Ukyo as they started towards
camp.
"What, you mean this?" Ukyo replied, holding out the fabric of
her concubines' robes. "It was something we just happened to come by
in our search for you."
"Huh?"
Ukyo decided to fill him in on their encounter with Prince
Hsinbyushin.
"Do you think he's still looking for you?" Ranma asked when she
had finished.
"I don't know," she admitted.
"Well, at least we have a boat now," Ranma observed. "We should be
able to reach the mainland with it and make our way back to Japan from
there."
**Always the optimist,** Ukyo noted with a smile.
"I suppose so," she said. She gave Ranma's hand a squeeze. "I'm so
glad we found you."
"Me too," he said quietly.
Without another word, Ukyo stopped and hugged him tightly.
"It's just us now, Ranchan," she whispered. "Genma is lost at sea.
It's just you and me from now on."
Ranma tensed in her embrace at the mention of his father's death.
"Ukyo..."
"I just wish that he had told you about the arrangement he made
for us," she went on. "That you didn't have to overhear it from me."
He had forgotten about it until now.
**I'm supposed to marry Ukyo,** he thought to himself. **Pop's
gone, and now I'm the only one left to carry on the Saotome name.**
He looked down to Ukyo, whose head rested against his chest, her eyes
closed. **With Ukyo...**
"What is it?" she whispered to him, eyes still closed, her arms
still encircling him.
"What?"
"You're so tense, Ranchan. Like you're upset about something. What
is it?"
His eyes fell upon his hand. The Tears of the Siren sparkled coldly
in the sunlight, reminding him of his life on borrowed time. There would
be no carrying on the Saotome name. Not with Ukyo or anyone else.
"There's something I have to tell you," he said slowly.
Ukyo parted from him, still holding his hands as she regarded him
worriedly.
"What is it, Ranchan?"
His stony expression made her cringe.
"Don't tell me," she breathed. "You and Akane are..."
"No!" he cried, more forcefully than he had intended. "It's not
like that. Not really, I mean."
"Then what is it?" she cried.
He held up his hand.
"Do you recognize this?" he asked her.
Ukyo looked at the ring, her eyes flashing with surprise and fright.
"That's Cristobal's ring!" she cried. "You still have it?"
"I can't get rid of it," Ranma told her. "Remember the storm, when
Akane was swept underwater -and I jumped after her?"
She nodded slowly.
"Well, the thing is, we both drowned," Ranma continued. "Our lungs
were full of water, but we were still alive. The ring kept us alive at
the bottom of the sea."
"You mean it's magical?"
"Worse. It's a curse."
Ukyo frowned at this. "I don't understand."
"This ring was created by a *god,* Ucchan. Inside the gem is the
spirit of a mermaid queen - and she hates all men. Whoever wears the
ring has all of the powers of the god, but the ring will also kill the
wearer within a year and a day. Neptune wanted to take the ring back;
I guess he was sorry he ever made it. I had a chance to give the ring
back to Neptune, but instead I took it for myself."
Ukyo blinked in surprise. It never occured to her that Ranma was
telling her anything other than the truth.
"You knew it was cursed to kill you, and yet you took it?"
"I didn't have a choice," he replied. "If I didn't take the ring,
Akane was gonna die."
"So you did it for Akane?"
Ranma nodded slowly.
"And now you're going to die within a year because of it," she
said softly. **Because of HER...**
He nodded again.
"Why?" her voice cracked as she said it. "What makes her life more
important than yours?"
Ranma had no answer for her.
"Isn't there *some* way to get rid of the ring?" Ukyo asked,
desperation in her voice.
Ranma nodded slowly.
"Then why haven't you?"
"It's not that simple," he replied. "The only ways for the ring
to come from my finger are for me to give the ring to someone, or for
me to die."
"Then give me the ring, Ranchan. I'll throw it into the sea, and
this Neptune or whoever can have it."
"I can't do that," he said with a grimace.
Ukyo's fists clenched.
"Why the hell not?!" she demanded.
"First off, I can't actually remove the ring myself. I have to let
someone else take it. That someone has to be a man."
"Nonsense," she spat. She reached for his hand, and was knocked
flat on the ground as a surge of power rushed painfully through her.
"Ucchan!" Ranma cried, at her side in an instant.
"I'm okay," she said groggily as she tried to sit up. "I should
have known better. Delgado tried to make me take it from Cristobal
once, and I got the same treatment."
He helped her to her feet.
"There's more," Ranma said evenly. "I promised Neptune that he
would get the ring from me at the end of the year and a day."
Ukyo winced as if she had been jolted again. "Do I even want to
know WHY you did something as stupid as that?"
"You don't understand," Ranma tried to explain. "This thing has
been ruining peoples' lives for thousands of years."
"So you're going to let it ruin our lives too?"
"It's Nerial," he shot back angrily. "The bitch deserves to go
back to Neptune! She's the reason this thing is such a curse!"
"Who?" Ukyo asked.
Ranma however, clutched his head and screamed.
~I will NOT go back to Ulmo of the Waters,~ the Mermaid Queen
insisted. ~Your end will come sooner than you think if you attempt to
make it so!~
"Ranchan...?"
Ranma opened his eyes. Ukyo was there, hunched over him with an
expression of concern on her face. The briny smell of the sea hung in
an intense pall around them.
"What was that all about?" she asked.
"That," Ranma began, "Was the mermaid queen."
Chapter Four
The campfire burned cheerfully as Ranma and the girls sat around
it roasting fish that Ranma had managed to catch that afternoon. Ukyo
sat to his right, while Shampoo had managed to snuggle up on his left.
The two traded dirty looks while Akane kept to herself on the opposite
side of the fire. Ranma of course was oblivious to all of this.
Occasionally his eyes would fall upon Akane, but the moment it
appeared that she might look his way, he turned away. Something was
wrong with her, but he didn't have a clue as to what it might be. Ukyo
continued her story about the escape from Prince Hsinbyushin, with
Shampoo frequently interrupting to put in her version of events.
"It no happen like that," she insisted.
"Wait your turn," Ukyo shot back.
Shampoo stuck her tongue out in rebuttal.
"So," Ranma broached. "I figure we spend a day or two gathering
food and water, and then we can take the boat you girls grabbed and
leave the island."
**I just hope Anfaulag isn't out there waiting for us...** He
hadn't sensed anything amiss, and no matter what Nerial might think of
him, she wasn't going to keep him in the dark about the return of the
sea monster. Her own fate depended on staying as far from it as
possible.
"You know where to go?" Shampoo asked.
"East," Ranma replied matter-of-factly.
"Then what?" Ukyo pressed, wanting to go home as much as any of
them, but skeptical of Ranma's ability to navigate.
"Then I lead us home," he replied.
"Ranchan, we were at sea for months. How can you possibly know
the way back to Japan?"
Ranma looked down to the ring.
"I can find the way with this. Might as well put it to some good."
Shampoo blinked at the shimmering gem set within the golden ring.
"Where Ranma get ring?"
"It's a long story, Shampoo."
"And it's a long trip to make in such a little boat," Ukyo said.
"Are you sure that's such a good idea?"
Ranma shrugged.
"We can always try for the mainland and then walk from there to
Shanghai. We could take a ship from Shanghai to Japan."
"That could take a year or more!" Ukyo protested. "You'd be dead
before you ever reached Japan."
"What you talking about, Ukyo?" Shampoo demanded.
"Ukyo's just exaggerating," Ranma said before Ukyo could reply.
He gave her a stern look. "Right, Ucchan?"
Ukyo read the look in his eyes and understood what he was getting
at. She wasn't to discuss the ring with Shampoo. That was fine with
her.
"Right," she said. "Forget I mentioned it."
Shampoo narrowed her eyes. Something was up, and she was determined
to figure out what it was. But not now. There was plenty of time for
that later.
Ranma yawned and stretched.
"What a day," he said. "I'm gonna go take a walk, and then turn
in for the night. We're gonna be pretty busy tomorrow."
"Need some company?" Ukyo and Shampoo chorused, then turned and
stared daggers at each other.
Ranma shook his head.
"That's okay, I need a little time by myself to think."
**And to use the ring to find the closest route to the mainland.**
"Ranma sure?" Shampoo asked sweetly. "You not even notice Shampoo
there."
**Like hell,** Ukyo thought with a grimace.
"I'm sure, Shampoo," Ranma said. He rose to his feet. "I won't be
long."
They watched him leave the camp. When he was out of sight and the
sound of his footfalls had receded into the trees, Shampoo and Ukyo
took long measured looks at each other. Akane was the only one who
didn't seem interested in Ranma's departure.
"I guess I'm pretty tired too," Ukyo said with a yawn that looked
more for show than any real fatigue.
"Shampoo also sleepy," the Amazon said, looking directly at Ukyo
with a mischievious glint that said that she saw through the girl's
transparent charade.
"What about you, Akane?" Ukyo managed under the glare of Shampoo.
Akane looked up from her bruised wrists.
"I guess so," she sighed.
She was the first to get up and retire to her sleeping nest under
the shelter of the lean-to she and Ranma had made together. Shampoo and
Ukyo watched her every step of the way before returning their attention
to each other.
"I guess I'll be going to sleep now," Ukyo said.
"Pleasant dreams," Shampoo returned.
Both of them stood there, waiting for the other to make a move.
"I sure am tired," Ukyo said a little louder than necessary.
"Shampoo also tired," the Amazon agreed in a similar tone of voice.
Niether of them moved.
"Are you going to sleep or aren't you?!" Akane yelled from the
lean-to.
Ukyo and Shampoo hastily made for their respective sleeping nests,
eyes on each other the entire way.
Akane shook her head and snuggled down into the soft leaves and
grass - and tried not to think about that stupid insensitive clod of
an honorless ronin vagabond, Ranma Saotome. It wasn't working, and the
sight of Shampoo and Ukyo's obvious intentions of sneaking off and
finding Ranma while the other was asleep wasn't helping.
She just wondered how long they would wait before slinking away.
* * *
Ranma walked to the top of the hill. He needed to feel the sea
breeze on his face and have the vast sky above him if he was going to
put himself in the proper frame of mind to do what he needed to do.
He certainly didn't look forward to it.
He knelt down in the grass and closed his eyes. His heartbeat
began to slow as he sank into a meditative state. His mind opened as
Nerial had taught him to do, and he pushed against the membrane of
awareness, expanding outward from the island. The ring began throbbing
against his finger.
He had to find the closest land. This time he wasn't going to
get carried away and push his mind farther than he could handle. It
was harder to look out across the open air, he suddenly realized, than
to reach out through the sea, but his concerns were among the world of
air breathers.
Once again the very *size* of the world staggered him, and he
knew that he was stretching himself across only a tiny part of the
great whole. In control of himself this time, he knew better than to
try and reach Japan. An unnamed finger of land came into view, beyond
stretched the vast continent that some called Asia.
~What do you really hope to achieve?~ Nerial asked suddenly.
**Who asked you?** Ranma groused, his awareness shrinking back
to his immediate surroundings. Weariness washed over him then, and he
nearly fainted. He could feel his strength ebbing into the gem of the
ring.
~Do you think you can lead your friends home?~ she asked.
Ranma tried to catch his breath as he lay on the dew wet grass.
**Would you rather we just stay here and wait for Anfaulag to come
back and try his luck again?**
~If you had done as I suggested, we would not have to concern
ourselves with that pitiful creature ever again.~
**You suggested, huh? More like demanded. I said I wasn't going
to be your tool, and I meant it.**
~Sweet Ranma,~ the mermaid queen said mockingly. ~You do yourself
a disservice by opposing me.~
**Oh yeah? How's that?**
~If you will not serve me, there are others who will. You give me
no choice but to replace you at the swiftest.~
Ranma managed a laugh.
**Lotsa luck. In case you haven't figured it out, there aren't
any other men around. And you need a *man* to wear this ring.**
~We shall see, sweet Ranma. We shall see.~
Nerial left him.
He exhaled slowly, feeling weak and lightheaded. Something as easy
as this shouldn't have taken so much out him - at least that was his
opinion on the matter.
"Ranma..."
He looked up, seeing spots before his eyes.
"What wrong?" a concerned voice asked him.
He blinked and realized that Shampoo sat before him, eyeing him
worriedly.
"Shampoo?"
"You no look so good," she said, reaching out with a hand to touch
his face. "You so cold."
"I'm all right."
"Is okay," she said, brushing his cheek. "You stay there. Rest."
"No," Ranma said gruffly. "I said I'm all right."
"Shampoo know better."
She continued brushing his cheek, which made him nervous and oddly
thrilled at the same time. The last time she had been so affectionate,
he was certain that it was some sort of plot of hers to get him to drop
his guard so she could kill him - until she had kissed him passionately
instead. He had been a girl at the time, but now he was a man and didn't
have the excuse he had offered when he escaped her embrace.
"Really, Sha-Shampoo, I'm f-fine," he quavered, trying to sit up.
His nervousness was starting to overcome his excitement. He was certain
that she didn't have murder on her mind this time, but the alternative
was suddenly no less threatening.
"Why Ranma so nervous?" she asked softly. Her long fall of purple
hair teased his bare chest as she leaned a little closer to him.
"Shampoo no longer try to kill Ranma. You not know this, but I worry
for you when you disappear in storm."
"B-But..." he stammered as he squirmed beneath Shampoo's smoldering
gaze. "What about the K-Kiss of Death? Not that I mind not being attacked
all the t-time, but..."
Her violet eyes glittered in the starlight as she gave him an
indulgent smile.
"Kiss of Death not apply to Ranma. It only apply to outsider women."
Her hand slipped gently off his cheek to caress his chest. "Ranma is
really all man."
He swallowed hard at her touch and broke out into a cold sweat.
"Th-This is a b-bad idea, Shampoo," he retorted weakly, unsure as
to what her idea truly was, but certain that it was a bad one.
"Shampoo not know what Ranma talking about," she returned. "Shampoo
only want to make Ranma happy."
She leaned down and kissed him, hard. When he did not immediately
resist, she let herself down upon him, pressing her chest against his.
Ranma's entire body tensed as her lips pressed against his, and
then tensed even further as Shampoo's warm body fell upon him. Every
nerve in his body seemed to be on fire, and he lay there in panic, his
paralyzed body betraying his mind's urgent desire to flee.
Shampoo broke the kiss with a heavy-lidded look of desire.
"That much better than Kiss of Death," she purred huskily, still
keeping her weight upon him and smiling inwardly as she felt a certain
portion of his anatomy responding. "This time you relax."
"Sha-Shampoo..." he tried to protest, but his resolve was crumbling.
She kissed him again, and this time he didn't put up much resistance.
Which isn't to say that he was an active participant, but Shampoo knew
by the feel of his swelling manhood that she was making good progress.
"It much much better if you kiss back," she told him when she broke
the second kiss. She looked into his trembling, half-panicked eyes and
sighed forlornly. "Shampoo love you, Ranma. Why you not see this?
Shampoo make you happy for rest of life, if only you love Shampoo back."
**Shampoo loves me...?** he thought in panic.
Shampoo was about to try her luck a third time when she heard the
rustle of footsteps coming up the hill. Her eyes narrowed at the
realization that it was Ukyo, and then a wicked grin crossed her lips.
**Wait until she sees this!**
She made her move to kiss Ranma again, but the sound of Ukyo's
voice calling out his name had him bolting upright to collide head on
with her loud enough for an audible *smack* to ring in her ears.
"What the hell's going on here?" Ukyo demanded.
"N-Nothing!" Ranma chirped near terror, oblivious to his sudden
crushing headache.
"Then why does 'nothing' involve Shampoo?" she pressed.
The purple-haired Amazon was still reeling from the impact. She
managed to cast Ukyo an angry look before blurting out, "You *so*
tired, remember, stupid spatula girl! Why you come up here where you
no wanted!?"
"From what I can see, it looks like I'm *needed* up here! Right,
Ranchan?"
Ranma remembered his headache and groaned in misery.
"RIGHT, Ranchan!?" Ukyo repeated angrily. If only she hadn't gotten
lost in the dark she could have reached him first!
Ranma looked first at Ukyo, who was about to explode, then at
Shampoo, who was grinning very smugly at Ukyo. He decided that he didn't
need this, and he certainly hadn't asked for it. Had he?
"I'll be seeing you both later," he replied, and bounded down the
hill without a second thought. He knew running away was only prolonging
a showdown with Ukyo, but he needed a little time to figure out what
the hell had just happened between him and Shampoo.
"Ranchan!"
"Ranma!"
Ukyo turned back to Shampoo and favored her with her angriest glare.
"Just what do you think you're up to, Shampoo..." she menaced.
Shampoo returned her angry look with a smug grin. Despite Ukyo's
rotten timing and Ranma's cold feet, she was starting to realize that
the evening had not been a total loss.
"Shampoo not know what spatula girl talking about."
Ukyo's green eyes flashed like lightning.
"Like hell. Stay away from him, ya hussy!"
"Spatula girl no have say over who Ranma kiss," she retorted.
Ukyo's jaw dropped.
"He k-kissed you?!"
Shampoo merely smiled in return, soaking up every bit of Ukyo's
dismay.
"Liar," Ukyo finally spat. It had to be. There was nothing between
Ranma and Shampoo. Nothing!
Shampoo continued to smile.
"Oooohhh," Ukyo hissed. **Ranma has some EXPLAINING to do!**
She didn't give the Amazon another glance before running down the
hill in search of Ranma.
* * *
Ranma Saotome knew only one thing in that moment: that he had to
put as much distance between himself and Ukyo and Shampoo as possible
before the inevitible happened and they came looking for him again.
**What the hell is wrong with me? I should have done SOMETHING
instead of just lying there.**
He made a sharp turn into the jungle, desiring to take a long loop
around until he reached the camp.
**What the hell is going on?**
Shampoo had said that she loved him. This from the girl who had
spent the better part of six months trying to kill him. Relentlessly.
This same girl who had kissed him not once, but counting their encounter
aboard the _Deguello,_ *three* times. Even Ukyo had never kissed him
before. Not like that anyway...
**I don't need this!** he thought angrily. **Just who does she
think she is pulling something as underhanded as... as...** He couldn't
bring himself to even think it.
The Tears of the Siren that lay upon his finger was a death
sentence. He knew that. He accepted it with the serenity, or at least
dignity, that samurai were supposed to have. Samurai other than his
worthless father, that is. There would be no happiness with Shampoo,
or Ucchan, or even... Even *Akane.* He wasn't going to cry about it,
that was just how it was going to be.
**Stupid Shampoo! She doesn't even realize what's going on!**
The next thing he knew, he was in great pain, and lying with his
face pressed into the loamy ground. A warm and vaguely familiar body
lay beneath him.
When he managed to pull himself up, Akane was there glaring at him.
The monkeys began chittering around them with the excitement of the
collision giving way to a more novel diversion.
"Watch where you're going, idiot!" she cried.
Ranma realized that he had obviously run right over her in the
darkness.
"You okay?" he asked.
"What would *you* care?" she asked bitterly.
Ranma was not expecting that kind of response from her.
"Hey, I was just concerned that you were hurt. Is that okay with
you?"
Akane turned away.
"Just go away, Ranma. I don't need your concern."
"Sorry I asked."
Akane stood shakily, clearly hurting more than she was letting on.
Ranma stood and tried to steady her.
"Can I help you?"
She pushed him away.
"And I don't need your help either!"
Ranma shook his head and shrugged.
"Fine. I won't help you. Sorry I bothered."
Akane started to limp away.
"So what are you doing out here?" Ranma found himself asking.
She stopped and turned slowly to face him.
"I just wanted to be alone," she said. He couldn't see her face
with her back to the thin sliver of moon that hung in the sky. "Why
don't you go find Ukyo or Shampoo and just leave me alone?"
"Hey, I'm trying to get away from them," he shot back.
Akane cocked her head at this.
"Why would you want to do that?"
"I wanted a little time alone too you know," he replied.
"Then don't let me keep you. Good night."
She started hobbling away.
"Akane."
"What?" she asked without pausing.
"Good night." There was warmth in his voice, and she drew herself
up a little higher with it.
Ranma watched her go.
**Girls!** he thought darkly. **Nothing but trouble, every single
one of them! How'd I end up in the middle of THIS nightmare?**
Chapter Five
Captain Johann Laarman of the Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie
(United East India Company) watched the men strike the windlass,
sending the iron anchor to the bottom. His pilot kept a close eye on
the ship until they were well set on the bottom, then gave the order
to furl the sails. Even as the last of the canvas was reefed to the
booms, a boat handling party was hauling a skiff over the side. The
sun had just risen in the sky, and soon the tide would be coming in.
The red, white, and blue flag with the black VOC-cypher that repre-
sented the company as a sovereign power fluttered in the morning
breeze.
"Be quick about it!" the Master at Arms admonished the shore
party. "You're here to fetch fresh water, not skylark while the rest
of us sit out here and play with ourselves! This ain't shore leave,
mind you well!"
One of the sharpshooters detailed to the shore party brandished
his French made musket.
"What if we spot a monkey or two on the way?" he asked the stout
Master at Arms. "Can we shoot 'em? The good Lord knows we could use
some fresh meat for supper!"
His words were met with immediate approval from the rest of the
crew present.
"I said be quick about it," the Master at Arms replied. "If you
can do all that and still bag a monkey or two on the way, than who am
I to stop you?"
The sharpshooter thumped the side of the skiff with his hand.
"You heard the man, let's shove off!"
Laarman watched the skiff sink below the gunwale as the handling
party lowered it from the davits. He turned back to the green hilltop
and looked through his spyglass again. He had an uneasy feeling about
these waters, as if he were being watched.
* * *
Ranma watched the ship from the vantage of the tall cyprus tree
where he had spent the rest of the night. The ship's aft most mast,
the mizzen, looked like fresh cut timber in stark contrast to the
well weathered main and foremasts. There was no doubt about it, the
ship that lay just beyond the breakers was the same barque they had
battled in the Strait of Malacca almost two months before.
Shampoo joined him a moment later, nearly startling him out of the
tree.
"What Ranma think?" she asked him, pointing out to the sea.
He noted how her hand came to rest on his own and thought uneasily
about the previous night. "That's the ship we fought awhile back," he
managed, politely lifting his hand free under the pretext of shading
his eyes from the sun.
"They sending boat to beach," she observed, trying not to sound
hurt by the gesture.
"Yeah," he grunted slowly. **Now what is Shampoo up to?** Her
reckless confession of love for him seemed like another lifetime ago
compared to the subdued Shampoo that occupied the tree with him. Was
she just playing with him? "The question is do we show ourselves and
make some kind of deal with them, or do we hide and take our chances
in our own boat later."
"Shampoo have faith in Ranma, but no look forward to long trip
in tiny boat."
Ranma nodded slowly. He wasn't terribly fond of the idea either,
but it had seemed like their only option at the time.
"I just don't know if we can trust any of these barbarians. We
might end up becoming prisoners again."
"We pay for journey," she said evenly. "Like panda father."
"With what?" Ranma asked, face darkening at the mention of Genma's
betrayal. Just when he put it out of his mind, someone would remind him.
Shampoo gave him an unnerving feline grin.
"When we escape from Hsinbyushin, Ukyo have gold and jewels as
gifts. We use those."
"You're kidding!" Ranma cried, his eyes brightening instantly.
"How come you didn't say anything about it before?"
"There no reason," Shampoo replied, happy to see Ranma's reaction
to her news. "Gold and jewels not help us survive on island."
"Yeah, but it might just get us off this rock."
He looked out at the small boat that approached through the gentle
breakers.
"We still have to be careful though. How much gold does Ukyo have?"
"Plenty," Shampoo replied, unsure if any of it would be enough,
but not wanting to bring Ranma down again.
Ranma nodded his head slowly, a gleam in his eye. There might yet
be hope for them to return to Japan before his time ran out. The ring
glinted coldly on his finger, but he paid it no mind. Nerial was going
to lose, he'd see to that.
It occured to him that going aboard the ship would be giving her
the very men she needed to make good on her threats to destroy him, but
that couldn't be helped. Anyone who tried to make a play for the ring
was going to find out the hard way what a mistake that was. It would
all come down to what he thought of the ship's captain. The kind of man
he was would determine how easy or difficult the journey would be.
Shampoo's warm kiss upon his cheek surprised him. When he finally
shook off his petrification and turned to face her, she was climbing
nimbly down the tree to tell the others about their plan. He let out a
confused sigh and tried not to think about how cute she was now that
she wasn't trying to kill him.
* * *
"<Ho, what's this?>" Laarman said as the skiff paddled out to his
ship. If his eyes weren't mistaken, there were four strangers aboard -
and three of them were women.
"<What on earth have those devils found?>" he remarked to himself.
Then to his Master at Arms, "<Have a few of the men stand to with
muskets when the skiff is hauled in.>"
The skiff pulled up close, drawing the attention of the crew
as they spied the three women. Laarman noted that they were all Oriental,
as was the young man. Ropes were thrown down, and the crew of the boat
made them fast for hauling them aboard.
"<Shooting a few monekys is one matter,>" Laarman called down to
his Third Officer, Teunis van Driel. "<I never authorized such as this.>"
"<Wait and see, Captain,>" the young man returned. "<These four have
begged passage aboard our vessel.>"
"<Nonsense!>" Laarman bellowed. "<I don't take slant-eyed beggars!>"
"<No beggars these, Captain,>" Van Driel replied coolly. "<They can
pay handsomely for their passage!>" He held something up in his fist that
sparkled in the morning light.
Laarman saw the glitter of gold and the deep red glow of rubies.
His crew fell silent at the sight, leaving only the creak of the davits
as the skiff waited to be hauled aboard. He looked down at the young
Oriental man, and saw him nod slowly, as if to say there was more he
could offer.
"<Haul them in,>" Laarman ordered, and the crew cheered.
The skiff was brought inboard, and the four castaways escorted
before Laarman. He noted in their faces as much apprehension as
gratitude. Perhaps they had good reason to be afraid, but Laarman was
not the kind of man who robbed or cheated his passengers, nor would he
permit such from his men. A bargain struck was a bargain honored.
"<They speak Japanese,>" Van Driel reported, handing the golden belt
to his captain.
"<Japanese? Then they are quite a long way from their home. How did
they get here?>"
"<They would not say exactly, although they claim to have survived
a shipwreck caused by a sea monster.>"
Laarman nodded slowly. He had seen ships sunk by sea monsters
before, though he never had the misfortune of having it happen to him.
His feeling of unease now became justified. If a sea monster still
prowled these waters, then weighing anchor and getting underway became
even more urgent.
"<They wish passage eh?>" he muttered. "<Passage to where?>"
"<My command of the language is not great, Captain, but I believe
they wish to return to Japan.>"
"<And they wish to offer this as payment?>"
"<Yes, Captain.>"
Laarman examined the jeweled belt and smiled. It was worth at least
three thousand Spanish silver reales, and probably much more if he was
shrewd. He looked straight at Ranma as he spoke, holding the belt before
him.
"For this, passage indeed I will grant," he told him in slow but
acceptable Japanese. "You may sleep where you can find comfort, for I
have no spare hammocks to offer. Victuals will be the same as for the
crew. You will also be expected to work, unless of course you have more
to offer."
Ranma smiled in relief, and bowed formally, followed by Akane and
Ukyo. Shampoo gave him a respectful nod.
"Thank you, honorable lord," he replied. It wasn't often that such
humble talk spilled from his lips, and the words came thick with disuse.
Laarman held up a hand to still any further expression of gratitude.
They might not feel the same way after he told them the ship's itinerary.
"The winds do not favor a voyage to Japan," he began. "We could not
attempt such a journey for six months or more. Instead we sail for
Africa. We will put you off at Cape Town, where we have a colony. There
you will have to wait until another ship headed for the Orient arrives,
and from there bargain for passage to Japan with that ship's master."
Ranma's face grew taut even as Akane's eyes fell to the deck in
hopelessness. Ukyo nibbled on her lip as Shampoo closed her eyes.
Laarman waved his hands towards the island.
"If you do not find my terms acceptable, you may also return to the
island and wait for a ship there. This island is known to my company for
its spring, and ships will stop here for fresh water."
"You say that it is six months before you get winds that will take
us to Japan," Ranma replied, not liking the sound of this 'Africa'
- wherever it was.
"At least six months," Laarman confirmed. "There is food and game
here. You may do well to wait." As much as he coveted the golden belt,
he owed them an honest evaluation of their options.
Ranma looked to Ukyo and the others. None of them seemed to have
much to say.
He knew that if they spent six months on the island they would go
crazy -if not kill each other, in the case of Ukyo and Shampoo. Would
months spent on a ship going the wrong way be any different? The island
offered security from Anfaulag, and wasn't going to sink in a storm.
The ship promised nothing other than a long trip and many chances for
Nerial to get her revenge.
The *whooosh* of a rocket volley arcing overhead broke his train of
thought.
"<Ship abaft to starboard!>" a lookout screamed a little too late.
A second rocket volley screamed overhead. One of the rockets exploded
in the rigging, setting the reefed sails to smoldering.
Ranma and the others spun around to see a large and sleek Chinese
junk, rigged fore and aft with scarlet sails, slipping round the island
behind them. A golden dragon upon the red silk shone in the sun as a
third volley of exploding rockets showered them with a hot rain of fire.
"Aiyaaa!" Shampoo cried in dismay. "It one of Hsinbyushin's!"
"How'd they find us?" Ukyo protested.
"<Weigh anchor!>" Laarman bellowed to his crew. "<Put out those
fires, and be quick about it! Make the cannon ready in all respects!>"
He turned to Ranma and the girls as the crew leaped to follow
their orders.
"There's no time to put you off," he said tersely. "Unless you
want to swim for the shore, you're coming with us."
Ranma knew that even if this Hsinbyushin character wasn't looking
for Ukyo and Shampoo, swimming to shore wasn't an option. Akane couldn't
swim.
He grit his teeth. "We understand," he answered for all of them.
Laarman shielded his face from a shower of golden sparks. The cries
of men echoed around them as the rigging was doused with seawater and
the capstan creaked with effort to haul the anchor off the bottom.
"Then get below before you roast up here!"
Ranma shook his head. "We'll fight. It's our lives too."
"We'd be fools to offer battle like this!" Laarman shot back. He
had never faced Chinese rockets before, and their effect had him
slightly unnerved. "We'll make a run for it first, and fight if we have
to."
"<Captain!>" a lookout cried. "<Two more ships closing from aft,
hull up and bearing full sail!>"
"<We can't fight three ships at once,>" Laarman groaned. The barque
did not have a dedicated gun deck, and with the showers of sparks from
the rockets, handling powder for their exposed cannons was practically
suicidal. "<You there! Smartly now! Faster, or we're all dead!>"
"<Highness!>" Martin protested over the roar of another rocket
volley. He had just come on deck with the sounding of the ship's gong.
"<What is the meaning of this?>"
Prince Hsinbyushin disregarded Martin's impudence in favor of a
haughty laugh.
"<It is fate, Captain Martin. The Dutch ship sits before us at
anchor, helpless before our rockets! The gods smile upon us, and we
must not disappoint them by squandering this opportunity.>"
Martin saw that it was true -for the moment. As they closed the
range for a surely fatal barrage of incidiery rockets and what few
cannon they carried on board, he could see the Dutch barque weighing
anchor and unfurling her sails. He also saw Delgado and his pitiful
band of castaways - including the sorcerous panda bear turned man -
standing at the Prince's side.
"<If we don't destroy them, then all our plans are for naught!>"
he exclaimed. **Damn this fool boy for his impetuousness, and damn that
Loyalist cur, Delgado, for putting him up to it! I sense his hand in
this!**
Delgado turned as if Martin's thoughts were plain for all to hear,
and smiled grandly.
"<It is as you have said,>" he whispered to Martin. "<This prince
is our best hope of driving the Dutch out of the east indies. See how
eagerly he attacks?>"
Martin bit back the taste of bile.
"<You're a fool, Delgado. This one careless act will cost us
everything!>" he hissed in reply.
Delgado ignored him and turned back to the prince. "<You'll have
to take that ship intact, Highness,>" he cautioned. "<Your women are
no longer on the island, but on board.>"
Hsinbyushin's face went agog as if he had been struck.
"<You are certain of this?>"
Delgado wasn't exactly sure why he knew, for there was no vision
from his nymph this time, but he was absolutely certain that it was
true. "<It is so, Highness.>"
"<Hold your fire!>" the Prince directed his artillerists. "<Signal
the fleet: We shall board and sieze their ship! Make ready to attack - I
shall lead you over personally!>"
"<Highness!>" Martin cried in disbelief. Even Delgado was taken
aback by Hsinbyushin's declaration.
Hsinbyushin's men roared approval. Several valets appeared and
began to strap fine lacquered armor upon him. A golden helmet crowned
with a fierce dragon was placed upon his head as his flagship bore down
on the Dutch barque.
END OF PART NINE
Author's Notes:
1. The Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, or United East India Comapny,
was founded in 1602 and remained until 1845, when it was dissolved and
its assets nationalized as the result of massive internal corruption
and insolvancy as well as British conquest of many of their colonies.
The organization was a merchant collective in the Netherlands with state
sponsorship and a charter granting the company the right to raise troops,
build warships, establish colonies and trading posts, and enter into
treaties as if it were a sovereign state of its own. Today this company
is known in history books as the Dutch East India Company.
2. Part Ten will begin just as soon as I get over the chicken pox enough
to want to type again. (I'm starting to develop little red spots even as
I type this, and the prognosis is not good considering that the family
disease vector, Rachel, is just getting over said pox.) Ah, the joys of
fatherhood...
Free The Nukes!