AN: This is where the old material runs out, and the new material begins; there may be a few minor continuity/integration errors I missed, but I know I picked out the major ones. Bonus points if you notice the stylistic change to writing where it shifts.

((()))

Lieutenant Tasks sat astride the Dragon, looking out over the surrounding portion of the city while the Dragon slowly circled the perimeter of the base.

"I don't have a hundredth the manpower needed to secure just this ward, much less Tokyo as a whole," He said.

"You are thinking in terms of conventional warfare," The Dragon rumbled back, "I was taught specifically how to break the conventions of modern warfare, but I was not taught how to lead men. Will you learn to break conventions, or should I learn to lead?"

Tasks laughed, a sound of relief and bitterness both.

"I've always been one for thinking outside the box, and it's always gotten me in trouble," Tasks said, "But I'll be damned if I do anything less than the best I know how to save the people of this city from the monstrosities out there."

For several minutes, the only sounds were those of the Dragon's steady wing-beats; no traffic, no pedestrians, the streets were wholly abandoned, and the base was quiet enough not to be heard over the Dragon's wings at this altitude.

"What will you do?" The dragon asked eventually.

"First thing's first," Tasks said, "Information. I need intelligence on the enemy's capabilities, force disposition, numbers, and objectives. My staff is working on the first three, but I've no idea as to the fourth."

"You should speak to the Senshi," The Dragon rumbled, "They've been fighting these creatures for months."

Tasks nodded, taking one last look around the city from above the rooftops.

"If you'd take me to them then?" He asked, and the Dragon responded by angling down towards the base and falling into a shallow glide.

"I've dreamed of Dragons and magic for years," Tasks said quietly as they descended, "I never would have wanted to find out by something like this."

"I have been a Dragon for two years," The Dragon rumbled lowly, his voice barely carrying over the wind, "And a Mage for my entire life before that. I escaped captivity when I became a Dragon, but before then, I was held captive and trained to be an instrument of war. Power draws the ambitious and corrupt, it is simply how things are."

"It isn't right," Tasks replied.

"I didn't say it was," The Dragon said, "Just that it is. I don't like it either, but I can only do so much."

The rest of their descent passed in silence.

((()))

"Ey, Puuri," Larson shouted from the window, "'Nother batch of the crazy wenches comin' up the street."

"Ey Larson," Puuri shouted back, nodding in confirmation, "I'll send a few of the locals over with about a dozen bombs, ey?"

"Yah," Larson said, "I'm workin' on a pattern with the dustin's, anything can be art, ey?"

"Ey," Puuri responded.

((()))

"How is she doc?" Ranma asked nervously.

"She'll be fine," Saeko Mizuno calmly answered the anxious boy, looking him in the eye over the unconscious Tendo girl's body, "Aside from the obvious loss of her arm."

Ranma sighed in relief, and some of the tension seemed to flow out of his frame, until he looked up to see Saeko staring worriedly down at Akane's wounded body.

"If you're sure she's going to be fine," He snapped harshly, "Why you lookin' so worried?"

Saeko flinched slightly, then looked Ranma directly in the eye.

"She looks almost exactly like my daughter," Saeko said, "Who is fighting these monsters over in Minato ward."

Ranma looked away, flushing slightly in shame.

"Sorry," He mumbled, "I didn' know."

"It's okay," Saeko said, "You didn't know."

Ranma stared down at Akane, then at his hands, which were trembling slightly.

"I should have gotten Doc Tofu to teach me some healin'," He grumbled discontentedly.

"Ono Tofu?" Saeko asked, and Ranma looked up at her sharply.

"Yeah," He said, "What's it to you?"

"He's very well respected in the upper tiers of the Tokyo medical community," Saeko said, "He's one of the best at non-invasive treatments."

"Non-invasive?" Ranma asked.

"No surgery," Saeko said.

"Ah," Ranma replied, "He's pretty good with pressure points and ki an' all."

"It takes more than a few days to learn the kind of healing Ono Tofu employs," Saeko said, "It's obvious to me that you're one of the more powerful martial artists here-"

"The Best," Ranma reflexively interjected.

"But learning medicine takes more than seven years of study on a university level," Saeko continued, "How old are you?"

"Seventeen," Ranma replied.

"Which means you would have had to spend at the least, the next seven years almost entirely devoting your life to medical study," Saeko said, "And even then, you would still have to handle an internship."

"I could do that," Ranma said, stubbornly.

Saeko rolled her eyes.

"You're not even out of high school yet Ranma," She said, "You're really not old enough to know if you're ready to dedicate eight or more years of your life just to learning something that's not even a primary interest."

"I spent ten years on a training trip for Martial Arts," Ranma grumped, "I can handle seven years of college learnin' to fix people after I beat 'em up."

Saeko snorted, rolling her eyes as she stood and stretched.

"Right," She said, "I've heard many young men brag about what they can do. When I was a pre-med student, there were many cocky boys who would assure me they were going to be the best doctor around. Almost all of them flunked out. They were going to cure cancer, or AIDS, or Parkinsons, they all had great ambitions. I'm sure the martial artist equivalent is claiming to have defeated gods and demons."

And with that, she walked off. Ranma's first instinct was to go argue with her, but she moved to another injured student, and began looking the boy over. Ranma didn't want to interrupt her. Gritting his teeth in frustration, he hoped to the fence around the perimeter of the roof instead, and stared out over the grounds.

"I did kill a god though…" He grumbled.

((()))

Makoto was gasping for breath as she stood beside the waters of Tokyo Bay; something of an unfamiliar experience for her these days. She was in excellent physical shape, very few things could strain her to physical exhaustion, and her transformation to Sailor Jupiter on top of that gave her obscene endurance. Dragging seventy-three partially and fully unconscious people out of a sinking aircraft had been quite tiring, however, and dragging the rafts of survivors through the water while fighting off water-borne Yoma had not helped anything.

Beside her, Sailor Venus was collapsed on the ground, panting desperately.

"Now what?" She gasped breathlessly.

"Now we find the other Senshi," Jupiter said, "This seems to be going on all across the city."

((()))

"Sousuke…" Kaname said hesitantly, and the scarred boy looked up from where he had been cleaning his disassembled sidearm.

"Yes Miss Chidori?" He said calmly, his tone of voice no different than when he spoke to her every day in class.

"What's happening?" She asked, a note of fear running through her voice.

"At this moment," Sousuke replied, turning back to his work, "The city of Tokyo is under assault, portions or the entirety of every ward lying within a hemispherical barrier have been attacked by non-human creatures of unnatural physical ability. Light casualties have been sustained by Furinkan school's student and staff population, and the Tuatha De Danaan is sending reinforcements in strength to secure the school, and attempt to retake as much of Nerima Ward as possible. It is known that the JSDF has fortified the Imperial Palace, the USJF are holding the Hardy Barracks complex, and US and Japanese Naval assets are attempting to provide support within the city, including one Nimitz-class Aircraft carrier and its helicopter compliment. Several police precincts throughout Tokyo and JSDF facilities are holding out, but are too heavily besieged for sallying efforts."

Kaname nodded her head slowly, taking in the information and sorting it out. It was hard for her to cope with; she had never seen anyone with a worse injury than a broken bone before, and now she had seen students her own age dead.

"How do you deal with it all?" She asked quietly.

"With what, miss Chidori?" Sousuke asked.

"All the death and destruction," She said, shivering.

"I am well adapted to war and the battlefield environment," Sousuke said, his voice still dead calm, which was beginning to unsettle Kaname, "This conflict varies from the life I am accustomed to only in that our opponents are not human, less intelligent, and easier to dispatch. Due to the divergence in our experience, I must apologize, but I cannot offer you any suitable advice for psychological adaptation to this situation."

Kaname felt a creeping chill work its way up her spine.

"Sousuke," She said, "When was the first time you fought in a war?"

"I believe I was three years old, but my memories of that age are not entirely clear."

No inflection. Just the completely steady and even tone of voice that he applied to everything else in his life.

Kaname trembled.

"How long did that war last?" She asked, her voice quavering.

"I believe the conflict extended for a total of seven years, though I only participated in four of them."

Sousuke began to reassemble his gun, his voice still completely level. Kaname had to sit down rather abruptly.

"What happened to you after the war?" Kaname asked.

"Mithril recruited me," Sousuke said, "After several elementary schools expelled me, I was routed through several positions as a guard for low-risk targets, or trainer for soldiers undergoing survival or desert warfare training. When Mithril began deploying Arm Slaves I was trained and certified in their use, and assigned to the Tuatha De Danaan. As a part of the Urzu team, I have participated in twenty-three different field operations, before the team was assigned to your guard detail."

It was too much for Kaname, she flopped limply to the floor, unable to emotionally handle what her body-guard was telling her about his life.

"Miss Chidori?" Sousuke asked, "Are you alright?"

Kaname didn't even try to form a response, just staring blankly into the sky as she tried to wrap her mind around the life Sousuke had apparently lived. A moment later, he moved into her field of vision, and gently took her head in his hands, orienting her face towards him.

"Miss Chidori," He said more firmly, "Are you alright?"

Kaname just stared blindly up at him, seeing him but unable to comprehend who and what he was.

"You appear to be in shock," Sousuke said calmly, and released his grip on her to stand, "Please remain here and do not attempt to move, I will secure medical attention for you."

He walked quickly, efficiently away from her, and a part of Kaname's mind noted that it was the exact same gait he always moved in, save it was swifter. Death, blood, and destruction ran rampant through the city around her, breaking into her sheltered world for the first time, and it had shaken Kaname to the core. It was terrifying, seeing how close death could be at any moment; it had started like just any other day…

And Sousuke had been living in a world like this, since he was three years old, for as long as far back in his life as he could remember…

"How can you live like that?" She quietly asked the now-empty portion of the roof around her.

Nobody answered, and by the time Sousuke returned with a nurse, silent tears were rolling down her face.

((()))

"So we've got nothing reliable past what we can see," Tasks said stonily to his staff.

"That's about it sir," Higgs said, "Local digital network has collapsed into chaos, and we're not able to transmit in or out of the barrier. We're in contact with the JSDF and the Navy, as well as Mithril's assets in the area, but they've only got LOS to work with themselves."

Tasks stared out at their sparse battle-map of the city, brow furrowed in concentration.

"What little we know says that the civilians are holing up in the larger structures," Tasks said, "But these 'Yoma' are more than capable of breaking any improvised barriers the civilians would be able to put up. Aside from this 'energy drain' we've observed, the only other plausible objective I can see is what the Senshi told me; they're looking for something."

"Sir?" Higgs said inquiringly.

"Some sort of magical artifact," Tasks said, "According to the Mercury girl, there are several intelligent commanders heading this assault, and they're intelligent enough to use the general chaos to cover their search."

"So we've got a strategic objective for the enemy," Higgs said, "What do we intend to do about it?"

"It's a search," Tasks said, "We're going to need to move into the city to protect the civilian population anyways, and because of the nature of supply logistics with the city cut off, we can't sit in one place either; we're going to have to migrate throughout the city to scavenge for food. We'll just have to search as we go, and attempt to find it before they do."

"You mean to leave the base?" Higgs said, surprise showing in his voice.

"We don't have much choice in the matter," Tasks replied, "There's too much city for us to cover in a reasonable amount of time with sorties or patrols when you account for our available manpower, and that's just recovering civilians, much less housing and feeding them as well as ourselves. Depending on the numbers of enemy deployment, ammunition will probably become a concern as well."

"So what do we do?" Higgs asked.

"We take the offensive," Tasks said simply.

((()))

"Where are you going, Ranma?" Nabiki asked warily, running to catch up with the younger boy.

"Out," Ranma said curtly, continuing around behind the structure on the roof that contained the stairs.

"Into the city?" Nabiki said disbelievingly.

"Yeah," Ranma said flatly, "Into the city."

"That's too stupid even for you, Ranma," Nabiki said, trying to taunt him.

"No," Ranma said, turning to face her, and Nabiki quailed at the anger in his eyes, "It isn't. Whatever started this mess is out there, an' I'm gonna go get rid of it. I already killed one of their 'generals,' and he was a wuss."

"But there could be much more-" Nabiki began, but Ranma cut her off with a commanding gesture.

"I've killed a god Nabs," Ranma said, "A god. You saw what happened to Akane. Whatever asshole did this, I'm going to make him wish he was never born."

Before Nabiki could try to form a counter-argument, or even decide if she wanted to, Ranma leapt lightly over the fence guarding the edge of the roof, keeping his leap low enough so that others wouldn't be able to see his departure, and ran off into the city as evening fell.

((()))

"Now what?" Minako asked, panting.

After a very tiring afternoon, they had reached the Hikawa shrine, the most likely place Makoto could think of to find the other Senshi, but the place was empty. Well, empty save the hundred and some plane survivors and Tokyo refugees they had escorted through the city.

"I have no idea," Makoto said, laying back in one of the patches of grass on the temple grass, feeling her muscles burn with fatigue.

"Fortunately, Kino-sn," A familiar voice said gently, "I do."

"Hino-san!" Makoto said, turning to see Rei's grandfather sitting beside her, "When did you get here?"

"Ah," Old man Hino said, "Who is to say that I have not been here all along, and you simply did not notice?"

Venus and Jupiter stared at the old man, not certain what they should say.

"Ah," Hino said, smiling gently at the young women, "I may not have the magic that my daughter and her friends share, but there is a reason this shrine still stands within Tokyo, and that the Hino family have maintained it for centuries."

((()))

. Night fell over Tokyo oddly; the barrier over the city both blocking out the light of the stars and moon, as well as the fading light of the sun, but providing its own pale luminescence. To most of the inhabitants of the city, it was a strange, fearful time, while they hid out in their residences, police stations, hospitals, and other natural gathering places during times of crisis. For the Dark Generals, it was a terrifying time, as of the two thousand some Youma they had sent into the city, they had scarcely more than three hundred remaining.

On the other hand, they had harvested massive quantities of energy, and awakening more Youma of the Dark Kingdom was now eminently possible, but they needed to compile their information on the new ways the humans fought them, enemy force deployments, and make plans. All of this while they were down another General to unknown forces in the Nerima district, and under pressure from their more than slightly insane Queen to find the Silver Imperium Crystal as swiftly as possible. To make matters worse, though they did not know it, the only member of the Shittenou who was reasonably informed of the capabilities of modern humans, had been sealed away by their queen in a fit of pique. It was a tense night for the commanders of the Dark Kingdom.

For the servicemen of the Japanese Military and Police, it was a tense night, watch rotations being carefully maintained, lines of communication between various locations that had held out being solidified, chains of command being clarified, intelligence being pooled. Plans were made for attempting to locate and retrieve groups of survivors, and the Emperor ordered the distribution of emergency supplies that were held under the palace.

On the surface of Tokyo Bay, the George Washington's crew tallied their resources, continued to try to restore contact with the outside world, and refitted their helicopters for urban warfare. Their commander was busy being briefed via teleconference by a shockingly young submarine captain from Mithril, an organization he honestly had never thought he would need to associate with.

The assorted members of Mithril, both those on the De Danaan, and those deployed in Nerima, were every bit as busy as their Captain, trying to translate the thick brief on the probable abilities and weaknesses of the alien force in the city that their Captain had compiled for them, and prepare to combat said force. For many of them, it was their first time seeing just how brilliant their young captain was, and many began to realize why the naturally shy sixteen year old girl was commanding the most advanced military submarine in the world, which, coincidentally, she had pesonally designed.

The US Army and Air Force personnel in the Hardy Barracks carefully watched their perimeter, rested, and prepared for operations at dawn. Throughout the city, scattered other pockets of US Servicemen who had been off base when the attack came attempted to organize defenses for various apartment and commercial buildings they found themselves in, but were frustrated by both the lack of available weaponry, and the far less militant mindset of the Japanese civilians they wished to protect.

The Billy Goats Gruff laughed, drank lightly, slept on rotation, and shared hunting and fishing stories (complete with large, descriptive gestures) with the utterly bewildered Japanese civilians (most of whom had only a marginal grasp of English) under their protection. They also completed the construction of their first three Zip guns built in Japan.

In Nerima, many slept fearfully, or not at all, but what few Youma remained in the Ward were being swiftly and brutally hunted down by a roving aqua-transsexual martial artist who was rapidly developing a 'nose' for the inverted Ki energy that powered the Youma. By sunrise, the last half-dozen survivors would have fled the ward.

Finally, in Minato, Ami, Rei, Usagi, and Shingo slept in a quiet corner of the base, on bedrolls provided by the US Army, huddled up against the torso of the sleeping Dragon. Usagi was clutching one of the Dragon's forefingers in her sleep, trembling with the occasional nightmare. Rei's sleep was similarly troubled, worries for her grandfather plaguing her subconscious, though she did not show as obvious signs of distress. Shingo was still simply unconscious, and Ami slept the deep, mindless sleep of the utterly exhausted. The Dragon's sleep held dreams spawned of painful memories, but memories it had long since become accustomed to, if not quite made peace with.

A very different dawn would rise in Tokyo.

((()))

"The Seven clan champions?" Nephrite asked.

"Yes," Zoicite said, "The Queen has divined that within the Heart-Crystals of each Champion resides a Rainbow jewel, a fragment of the Mabroshi no Ginzuisho. We are to collect them all."

"Well," Nephrite said, then paused a moment to think, "Well, at least we have a place to start."

"Indeed," Zoicite said, "We must begin divinations to locate these spirits at once."

((()))

"Go," Tasks said, and three fire teams sprinted out of the base, rushing to the ground floor of the nearest structure to the North.

Eighty seconds later, they sounded the all clear, and a second trio of teams rushed off of the base to the building's counterpart directly east of it. Ninety three seconds after the team left for the building, the all clear was sounded again, and men began moving out in force. Tasks was not surprised; the 'Youma' had displayed a level of intelligence that couldn't even be fully qualified as bestial; ambush tactics were clearly beyond them. He knew, however, that if his plan for survival in the city did work, it would only be a matter of time before he drew the attention of one of the 'Generals' behind the slavering mob of beasts, and that could make things dicey.

One hundred and fifty feet above him, the Dragon flew on overwatch, keeping a sharp eye on the city streets, looking both for Youma and signs of survivors. On his back, Mars shared his vigilance, while Mercury held a still-only-partially-aware Moon around the waist with one arm, while her other held the Mercury Computer, which was engaged in constant scans of the city.

((()))

"Report, Sergeant Major," Captain Testarossa said in a gentle, but firm, tone.

"Yes Ma'am," Sergeant Major Mao replied, "We have approximately two dozen wounded minors, and an estimated sixty dead from the student population, but we have had survivors from attacks throughout the district trickling into the school grounds all night. Our stockpile of supplies should be sufficient for those already on hand, but if the pattern continues, we will need more medical supplies, and someone to relieve our medical staff."

"I'm co-ordinating with the crew of the George Washington," Tessa said, "They'll be sending two doctors and support staff, and we'll be evacuating the severe but stable cases to the G.W. Our own surgical suite is more well-equipped, so we'll be handling the desperation cases. How are you for ammunition?"

"It never hurts to have more," Mao said, "But I doubt we'll need it. The Martial Artists around her are frankly supernatural. I've been watching them throw energy blasts at Yoma off and on all night. According to one of the local students, the best of their number, who she says killed a god, went out hunting last night after his fiancé had her arm chopped off. A lot of the survivors who made it to the school grounds said they were directed here by him. Or her."

"Her?" Tessa asked.

"According to my local informant," Mao said, "He has some sort of curse that turns him into a girl when he gets wet. Turns back with hot water. I wasn't sure whether to believe her or not, until Sousuke reported that he had seen the transformation himself. And if Mister Serious himself says it's so…"

"It is so," Tessa said, nodding thoughtfully, "Speaking of Sergeant Sagura, how are things with our primary client?"

"She's asleep," Mao said, "She went into shock some time last night, and didn't come out of it before she woke up. I'm honestly surprised we haven't had to deal with more of that amongst the students."

A few moments of silence passed.

"Hopefully you won't have to deal with any more of it," Tessa said, "I want you to secure as much of the ward as you can, and arm trustworthy civilians. Nerima is one of the few areas in Tokyo with relevant food production, and we're going to need that if this lasts very long. Once the rest of our forces are in position, we'll begin patrols into the other wards to look for survivors."

"Yes Ma'am," Mao said, "I'm on it."

"Stay safe, Sergeant Major," Tessa said, and cut the comm line.

((()))

It was well past dawn when Ranma returned to Furinkan. Soun Tendo and Genma Saotome were following on his left flank, Shampoo and Cologne on his left, and he was carrying Kasumi, as amongst them all, only the eldest Tendo daughter was not capable of the traditional martial artist's primary mode of transit in a city.

Ranma was carrying Kasumi because he was the only one capable of carrying her without any substantial impediment to his roof-hopping ability, other than his father, and pandas didn't have the best grip. The group touched down on the school grounds, which was still littered with bodies and Yoma ash, then leapt up to the roof of the school, landing near a weary Ukyo, who immediately approached to speak with them.

"Where've you been, Ranchan?" She said, concern clear in her voice, "I've been worried."

"Hunting," Ranma said flatly, as he gently set Kasumi down, "I think I got the rest that were in Furinkan-cho, and most the rest of Nerima."

Ukyo nodded silently, like the rest of those at Furinkan, far more subdued than normal.

"Thanks Ranchan," She said, "We've had a lot of survivors come in, and only a few stragglers from the monsters."

"Anybody else get injured?" Ranma hesitantly asked.

"No," Ukyo said, shaking her head, "But that Chidori girl and a few others have gone into shock. Doc Mizuno said they should be fine though."

Ranma nodded slowly, folding himself down to sit cross-legged on the roof.

"Monster-womans attack Nekohanten too," Shampoo said, "We kill."

Ukyo nodded, and opened her mouth to speak, but then closed it when one of the Mithril personnel approached.

"Ranma Saotome, right?" She said, and Ranma nodded.

"I'm Sergeant Major Melissa Mao, with Mithril," She said, "And I'm told you're the best around here."

"'Cept maybe for the ol' Ghoul here," Ranma said, shrugging towards Cologne, who was watching silently from her usual perch atop her short staff.

Mao glanced at Cologne, and then did a double-take as she realized just what she was seeing.

"Excuse me," She said cautiously, "I don't believe I've made your acquaintance."

"I am Khu-lon, Elder of the Joketsuzoku tribe in China," 'Cologne' said gravely, "And my skills are indeed comparable to those of Son-in-Law, I know more tricks, but he has the vitality of youth within him yet. Also, he has slain a god."

"So I've heard," Mao said wryly, "Why do you call him son-in-law?"

"A great many young women vie for the hand of Ranma Saotome," Cologne said, "But by the laws of my people, due to Ranma's actions while in our village, Ranma and my great-granddaughter are already wed."

Mao looked askance at Shampoo who nodded with a perky smile, and then Ranma, who looked distinctly uncomfortable.

"That's not important now he grumbled, "Waddaya want anyways, Mao?"

"We're looking for a more secure base of operations," Melissa said, staring at Cologne for a long moment, before turning to face Ranma, "Some place we can land cargo choppers, and fortify reasonably well against attack. We'll also need someone to secure it until our own troops are landed, so our air assets don't get attacked."

"Uh," Ranma said, scratching the back of his head, "The Ice Rink is the biggest place I can think'v 'round Furinkan-cho. The parking lot's probably big enough for choppers, but I'm not sure how good it is for holing up in."

"Is it a performance rink, or a practice rink?" Mao asked.

"Huh?" Ranma asked supidly, not understanding.

"Is it set up like a stadium," Melissa said, resisting the urge to roll her eyes, "With grandstands and a judges box and such?"

"Performance then," Ranma said decisively, "Me'n Akane got into a Martial Arts Ice Skating competition with th' Golden Pair in there a couple years ago, and there was a huge crowd."

"Large corridors leading too and from the rink itself, and locker rooms?" Mao asked.

"Yep," Ranma said with a nod, "That kinda place."

"Right," Mao said, "It should do. The plan is for most of the fighters to get some sleep during the morning, then head to our new site once we've rested up. Can I count on you to help us out?"

"'Course you can," Ranma said nodding, "I ain't good with big plans, but someone needs stop these bastards, and I mean to help."

((()))

Grandpa Hino suddenly sat up, and stared into the night sky.

"Jupiter, Venus," He said sharply, "Something powerful and evil approaches."

The two girls, who had been sleeping exhaustedly in a futon set up in the sacred fire room for their use, groggily woke up.

"Hurry girls," Hino said, summoning his limited ki reserves and charging a sealing fuda.

Responding to the urgency in Hino's voice, Makoto rolled out of the futon, and to her feet, transforming into Sailor Jupiter as she went. She didn't even notice that she hadn't used a henshin rod or a command phrase to initiate the transformation. Minako was a little slower, having already been worn out by an international flight across half the globe before the previous day's events had transpired, and was just finishing her transformation as their adversary entered the room.

The shoji panel separating the fire room from the rest of the shrine slid open, and an excessively effeminate man wearing a strange uniform stepped in. As he entered, an until-then invisible barrier became visible, and shattered in a crackle of discharging energies, causing him to smirk.

"Oh?" He said, "Is that why you were so hard to locate? A Ki barrier? Not bad, for one who is still sealed."

"What are you?" Hino demanded, channeling as much of his Ki into his fuda as he could.

"I am Nephrite," The man said, dipping into a shallow mocking bow, "General of the Dark Kingdom. Don't you remember me, Jiji?"

"I am quite certain I would remember if I had such nefarious offspring as you," Hino said, and hurled his fuda at Nephrite.

The Dark General laughed, and raised a shield with an idle gesture, which absorbed first the Fuda, and then Jupiter and Venus's attacks without visibly straining.

"Oh, how the might have fallen," He said, "All of you, so pitiful compared to what you once were. You though," He retrieved a strange gem-like object and pointed it at Hino, "I can restore to what you once were, and hopefully you will take care of these so-called 'Senshi' before they become a genuine nuisance."

A coruscating ray of energy leapt from the gem Nephrite held to Hino, smashing through the barrier he attempted to raise with ease, and smashing him to the ground with equal ease.

Roaring with anger, Jupiter lunged for Nephrite, slamming a thunder-charged kick into Nephrite's shield, and pushing him back out of the room.

"Oh?" He said, "That-"

Jupiter didn't give him a chance to monologue, slamming another kick into his shield, then another, and another pressing him relentlessly. Venus moved up to support, slashing at the edges of Nephrite's shield with her chain, harrying him further, but not enough to prevent a counter-attack. Jupiter and Venus' attacks lacked power to penetrate Nephrite's shield; Nephrite's attack was an order of magnitude more powerful, and neither of the Senshi were shielded. Nephrite, however, made one very critical mistake, he targeted Jupiter.

Amongst all of the Inner Senshi, Rei and Makoto alone possessed any form of martial training, and Rei's experienced was limited to sport archery. Makoto, on the other hand, was both a trained martial artist, and a street-brawler. Nephrite's charged, targeted, and launched energy attack might as well have given Jupiter a week's advance notice of it arrival, for all the chance it had of hitting her. Not only did Nephrite miss, splitting his attention caused his shield to weaken, and Makoto, smelling opportunity and instinctively taking it, countered with an energy attack of her own, simultaneous to slipping inside of Nephrite's guard and delivering a powerful left jab.

"Jupiter Thunder!" She screamed, her spell leaping from her fist to slam into Nephrite's shield, nearly shattering it.

Her follow-up fist, did shatter it, and her fist slammed into Nephrite's chest, magically enhanced strength sending the Dark General flying, only his supernatural constitution saving him from having Jupiter's fist punch directly through his chest. Meanwhile, Nephrite's Dark Energy blast smashed through the shrine's walls, tearing a gaping hole in the structure and arcing off into the night before eventually burning itself out against the dome that encircled Tokyo.

Nephrite crashed into one of of the Shrine's walls, rebound nearly causing him to fall flat on his face, but Jupiter was already on him again, smashing a fist into his face and breaking his nose, driving her knee into his gut, her elbow into the back of his head when he curled up under her knee, then another fist to his face, before spinning into a kick that took him in the hip and knocked him away from her again.

She immediately rushed him, but he raised a shield again before she could reach him, and her attacks were stymied again.

"I see," He said, wiping blood off of his face and sneering at Jupiter, "Not only your power, but your sense of honor has fled you. If you will fight like a beast, I will leave you to fit with one."

He raised one hand, and Jupiter hurled herself to the side, but instead of another energy blast leaving his hand, a single chromatic gem zipped out of the fire room into his hand. With a bloody smirk, Nephrite teleported out.

"Wow," Venus said from behind Jupiter, staring at the taller Senshi in near-awe, "You were amazing!"

"No, I wasn't," Makoto said impatiently, glaring at where the Dark General had disappeared from, "I don't even rate a brown belt in any martial art, I'm just a skilled street brawler. I wasn't amazing, Nephrite was pathetic. He fought more like a fop with magic than a real soldier. I really wish I had tried to fight Jadeite from up close too, I don't think he would have done any better."

For a moment, Venus cheerful demeanor cracked, and she appeared deeply pained. Makoto opened her mouth to ask what was wrong, but was interrupted by a growl from the fire room.

"Jiji..." A disturbing voice rasped, and both of the Senshi turned to see a swollen, grotesque caricature of Rei's grandfather leering at them as it tore of the remnants of the old man's priestly robes.

"Some days," Minako said sadly, "It just doesn't pay to let out the bed."

((()))

"Still nothing, Tasks-sama," Ami said softly into the short-range radio the Americans had given her.

"Thank you, Miss Mizuno," Tasks replied in English, as while he understood Japanese quite readily, he had a rather thick accent while speaking it, "We will be changing course to the west about a kilometer down the road."

"Un," Ami said, then 'hung up,' and turned her attention to the Dragon she was riding on.

"Did hear that?" She asked carefully in English.

"Yes," The Dragon said, already adjusting his flight path to compensate.

Silence passed on the Dragon for some time, save for the sound of the Dragon's wingbeats, and Mercury working on her magitek computer with one hand while carefully holding onto Usagi with the other.

"Ah, Ami," Rei eventually said, interrupting the girl's thoughts.

"Yes, Rei?" Ami asked, glancing over her shoulder at the fire-priestess.

"Could you ask Dragon-san a question for me?"

"Certainly, Rei," Ami said, "What is it?"

"Well, yesterday," Rei said, "Do you remember how he attempted to breath fire yesterday, and his fire ran short?"

Ami nodded.

"Can you ask him if he knows why?" Rei saked.

Ami nodded again, and turned her attention forward again.

"Dragon-san," She asked carefully, "Yesterday, you breath, ah, breathed fire, but it was... short? Ran out? Why?"

"My body can only store so much fuel for my breath weapons at a time," The Dragon said, "The flame weapon is a flammable chemical mixture that ignites on contact with air, the frost breath a chemical compound that, as best I can tell, has a sharply endothermic reaction, rapidly sapping heat from the surroundings. The flare effect I don't really know how works, but requires I pass a great deal of air in order to use. The electrical weapon I think develops charge gradually by absorbing static electricity from the environment around me, but is the least useful, as it always seeks the swiftest route to ground, so I more or less need to touch something in order for it to work. It also always fully discharges though, and takes a great deal of time to recharge, unless I chew on power cables."

Ami blinked when he finally stopped speaking, surprised at the sudden dump of information, as it was quite possibly more words than he had spoken in her presence altogether prior to that question. That realization sparked another, and she realized that on the whole, the Dragon was not very talkative; he had never spoken to himself while in the Hikawa shrine's basement, she was certain that Rei would have recognized English, even if she had a very shaky grasp of it herself.

"What did he say?" Rei asked.

"Ano," Ami said, "His body can only so much material for his breath weapons at a time, and he ran out of fuel for his fire-breath."

"Oh," Rei said, seeming somewhat relieved, "I suppose that makes sense."

Usagi shifted in Ami's grip, the first unguided movement the blond had made that day, immediately taking Ami's attention.

"Usagi-chan?" Ami asked softly, gently shifting the girl in her magically-enhanced grip so that she could face the girl directly, "Can you hear me?"

Usagi nodded, sadly then gently pulled herself free from Ami's grip, before climbing along the Dragon's back to wrap a surprised Rei in a hug.

"I'm sorry, Rei-chan," Usagi murmured sadly.

"Er," Rei said, awkwardly hugging the girl back, "What are you sorry for?"

But Usagi would not say.

((()))

"That looks an awful lot like a Dragon, doesn't it?" Puuri said.

"Oh, I dunno," Larson said, "It could be a flying rabbit."

Puuri, and every other member of the Billy Goats Gruff, gave Larson a look. He shrugged, then looked back to the Dragon.

"Looks like it's carrying a few cute girls, eh?" He said, "What say we go introduce ourselves?"

((()))

Grotesque, enlarged fists lashed out, lean but well muscled arms deflected, and chains strove to entangle. Thunder lashed out, shattering shoji panels, wooden joists, cratering the floor, and even injuring warped yoma flesh; on the whole, however, the shrine took far more damage than the transformed Hino that usually managed it.

Venus was torn between determination, relief, and terror. She had only just met Jupiter, and the girl was already in terrible danger; she had support for the first time, and was determined not to loose her, but relief at not fighting alone was followed by the fear of losing someone.

Jupiter was exhilarated. She had grown up rough and tumble, fighting had been a matter of survival for her, but between her size and natural temperament, she had come to love it. Now, she fought a foe that not only was stronger and tougher than her, but she fought for a greater reason than simple survival; to protect others, and maybe even to protect grandpa Hino. Certainly she had fought alongside the other Senshi before, but such battles had always been stand-off affairs, flinging spells and dodging Yoma's attacks.

This, fist against fist, speed against speed, skill against skill, was real. Sure, she took a few knocks, and from the 'Jiji' beast, they were hard knocks, but that was just how she knew she was alive.

She drove Jiji back into the temple's fire room; he smashed her into one of the walls. He charged across the room to try and body-slam her; she ducked beneath his grip and turned his momentum into a throw, slamming him into a wall. Venus slashed him with a chain, but the Yoma ignored her, and lurched at Jupiter again. He attacked with a flurry of jabs, she faded back, then retaliated with a snap-kick to his chin. He shrugged off the blow and kicked her, knocking her across the room into the sacred fire.

Jupiter bit back a scream as the fire seared her back through her fuku, quickly rolling back out of the fire and to her feet to face the Yoma again. Jiji leered at her, sneering as he approached, then abruptly stopped.

For the first time since the melee began, the two had been clearly separated for more than a second, and Venus took advantage of the opportunity to thoroughly entangle the Yoma in her chains, stopping Jiji dead in his tracks.

"Let's see how you like it," Jupiter snarled, leaping over the fire to grab the entangled Yoma, and drag him to the fire himself.

She kicked the warped creature into the fire, and watched as its flesh began to sizzle; but rather than burn, it shifted, changed, and contracted wherever it came into contact with the fire. As the Yoma began to scream, Jupiter and Venus both realized that the creature was being purified, and both immediately grabbed onto the chance to return the man to his natural form, pinning him to the fire.

The tattered remnants of old man Hino's robes burned away to ash, the screams of the Yoma terrified the refugees in the courtyard, but the two Senshi grimly held the warped man to the fire, until he was purified.

((()))

Mithril was, without question, the most well-funded Private Military Contractor in the world. This was in part because they had been formed at the behest of NATO and the UN to be an internationally impartial factor in dealing with Black Technology, the Whispered, and once it was discovered, Amalgam. The terms of their creation and legal status gave them access to war material that other nations normally would not have permitted, and their officers and senior enlisted were elite volunteers from every major military in the world, giving them equipment and personnel that was almost impossible to match for any other PMC.

The other, perhaps even larger part, was Teletha 'Tessa' Testarossa. She had joined Mithril at age eight, and had been managing their finances ever since. As one of a handful of stable and fully-active Whispered in the world, playing the world stock and financial markets was less a matter of risk for her, and more a game that she was almost incapable of losing. While she was not the smartest living human, her intellect was literally so far beyond that of a normal human, that attempting unguarded telepathic contact with her could drive a man insane. By the age of eleven, she had designed the Tuatha De Danaan, which when its construction was completed three years later, became the most advanced naval vessel in existence.

She was literally the most brilliant person in the employ of any military organization on earth, and the only person currently remotely capable of matching wits with her in the entirety of Tokyo was in a different ward, riding a Dragon. Kaname Chidori would most likely be a mental match for Tessa, if her sanity survived her full awakening as a Whispered, but it was extremely unlikely for that to happen quickly enough to matter to the conflict in Tokyo.

None of this, however, changed the fact that she was all of fifteen years old, had the complexion and with her silver hair and eyes possessed the features of a finely crafted doll, and the mannerisms and voice of a child half her age. The distortion of radio contact had robbed her voice of its more overwhelmingly child-like tones, but in person, she sounded like she could be anywhere from four to eight years old. If it were not for her body's healthy development into womanhood, many Japanese would have simply taken her for a tall American child who was eight years old, rather than a short, fully grown young woman.

Unsurprisingly, Tessa had become accustomed to dealing with military men who were unable to take her seriously, or became unreasonably protective of her. Military women could be even worse, on rare occasion becoming extremely maternal around her, though most were more ready to treat her with respect. When she came to Nerima, she had expected things to be quite similar, particularly in regard to the rough martial artists who populated, and now garrisoned, the district.

So it came as a complete surprise to her, when their leaders, Ranma Saotome and Khu Lon of the Jokusetzoku, both took her deadly serious from the moment she set foot on the ground.

"Thank you, Mister Saotome, Elder Khu Lon," Tessa said in her soft, cute voice, as she entered the Ice Rink that had become Mithril's de-facto base in Nerima, "For helping secure this site, and Nerima Ward in general."

"You're welcome, Captain Testarossa," Khu Lon said, nodding up at the vastly younger woman, "What are your plans from here?"

"Consolidation and conquest," Testarossa said, gesturing for the other two to follow her to where her command staff were setting up a CIC, "Finish cleaning out Nerima, and then begin sending expeditions into other wards to search for survivors. The Americans in Minato have moved from the Hardy Barracks, and are moving through the city, collecting other survivors as they go, while their naval assets are running search and rescue operations with their helicopters. The JSDF has small presences throughout the city, but their only substantial stronghold as of this morning, was the Imperial Palace, though the Emperor has ordered patrols sent out to escort pockets of survivors to secured territory.

"Essentially every Koban and Chuzaisho has been overrun, surviving police officers fleeing to the larger stations. The Tokyou Metropolitan Police Office in Kasumigaseki and the local Riot Police compounds are the only police strongholds capable of projecting power though, and the Riot Police's lack of heavy arms has hampered them considerably. Our assets, as well as what the JASDF has within the city, our primarily occupied with arming the Riot Police, as we cannot afford to allow our enemies to concentrate their forces any more than they already have begun to."

"I take it, Captain," Khu Lon said, "That the other wards have not fared so well as Nerima."

"They have not," Testarossa said as they entered the CIC, firmly shaking her head as she did so, "The small caliber revolvers that the Prefectural and Tokyo Metropolitan Police are generally equipped with have proven completely ineffective against the extra-dimensional entities that have been attacking. The JSDF and USJF have largely crushed any opposition they have encountered, but there are more than thirteen million civilians in the city, and if you discount US and Mithril ship crews, less than ten thousand soldiers. The martial artists here in Nerima have had more impact than either the USJF or the JSDF separately, and possibly combined."

Ranma nodded sharply at her words.

"Monsters are running scared," He growled.

"Yes," Tessa said, "But there are still better than ten million residents within the city unaccounted for, and we don't know what these 'Youma' do with those they've captured. Further-"

Testarossa cut off as an enlisted man carrying in a jug of ice water somehow managed to trip over his own feet, and spill half the pitcher onto Ranma, who promptly shrank into a generously-proportioned red-head.

"Ignore it," Ranma said sharply, clearly not speaking just to Testarossa, "Happens all the damn time, and won't slow me down."

Testarossa blinked, shook her head, then gestured for her men to continue onward before doing so herself.

"Furthermore," She said, "The Youma appear to have been heavily reinforced during the night;" She turned to address Ranma directly, "I understand that you have defeated one of their leaders?"

Ranma nodded grimly as she finished adjusting her clothing to her new form.

"Well, we've had contact with the 'Senshi' from Juuban," Testarossa said, "Most of them have joined up with the Americans, and apparently they've been covertly fighting this 'Dark Kingdom' covertly for some time, and had some intel for us."

Tessa paused to look around, then gestured for them to follow her to a map table, where a Lieutenant was in the process of marking where the barrier fell about Tokyo.

"Apparently," Tessa said, the Lieutenant moving aside as he heard his CO's soft voice approaching, "The Dark Kingdom are searching for an excessively powerful artifact, called the 'Mabroshi no Ginzuisho,' or Silver Imperium Crystal, a magical device capable of literally reshaping the entire earth if its user can master it. Considering their search patterns before this escalation, the creation of the dome itself, and their utter lack of activity outside of it, we can safely assume that they either know it is within Tokyo, or have discarded the search for an alternate objective."

"Which do you think it is?" Khu Lon asked curiously.

"They're either searching for it, searching for something else, or intent upon the conquest and possibly destruction of Tokyo. I also think it matters little which they are intending, as whatever their cause, our purpose changes little. Protect Tokyo's residents, discover how they are bringing in reinforcements and stop them, kill or capture their leaders, and bring down the dome."

"I'm volunteerin' for 'killin' or capturin' their leaders,'" Ranma said roughly.

"Good," Tessa said, "Because that's exactly what I was about to ask you to do. You're mobile, powerful, and don't know how to work with a conventional military formation, so independent search and rescue or search and destroy is what you're best for. Considering just how powerful you are, and that we know you can take on 'Dark Generals' with at a minimum a reasonable chance of success, search and destroy suits."

"I'm the best," Ranma said with some heat, "I've got more'n a 'reasonable chance,' I don't lose. Ever."

Tessa nodded, carefully meeting the Saotome's gaze as she spoke.

"Good," She said, "If you could pick some of your friends to go with you, in case you have to carry civilians with you, then see one of my supply officers about radios and other equipment before you head out, I would appreciate it."

Ranma nodded sharply, then turned and left the CIC, muttering about hot water under her breath.

"You managed son-in-law's ego and anger very well," Khu Lon said once Ranma had left, "He's become rather averse to taking direction from girls his age, or close to it."

"And you and he both did not suffer from the usual shock of meeting me in person," Tessa said as she turned to look at the Matriarch, "There is clearly a great deal of history here."

"More than you'd think," Khu Lon said gravely, "But it is not germane to matters at hand. Do you know anything of the Joketsuzoku tribe?"

Testarossa shook her head.

"I will give you the brief in short then," Khu Lon said, "I am roughly three hundred years old, and between my endurance, Ki mastery, and overall martial prowess, nothing short of strategic bombardment from a conventional military is capable of injuring, much less killing, me. If I could be in thirty places at once, this conflict would end within the day."

"That is quite the claim," Tessa observed calmly.

"It is," Khu Lon said, nodding, "I tell you these things so that you understand that when I say Son-in-law is even more dangerous than I, you know that I am neither merely bragging, nor inflating my estimation of his skill. Due to the vagaries of our skills and experience, I could defeat Son-in-law, but I have been specializing in fighting highly skilled individual warriors many times his life span, and lack his youthful vitality. You have no need to fear for his safety in the city, unless our foes possess enemies far more formidable than these 'dark generals.' Similarly, any stronghold where I am present, victory is all but guaranteed."

"I'll take that into consideration as I formulate deployment plans," Tessa said, nodding.

((()))

"Lieutenant Tasks," Ami said as the Dragon carefully touched down on the street outside of a ravaged appliance store, "We've found another group of survivors."

"Affirmative," Tasks replied over the radio, "How far out?"

"Six hundred and thirty meters on highway, also two hundred meters east. We land to make contact."

"Please be careful," Tasks said, some stress in his voice, "I would much prefer that you stay airborne."

"Don't worry, Tasks-san," Ami said her smile audible over the radio, "Dragon with us."

She cut the line as she dismounted, and thus missed hearing Tasks grumble to himself about children putting themselves in hazardous situations.

"Hello!" Ami called out in Japanese, as Rei helped Usagi down off of the Dragon behind her, and the three Senshi began to approach the appliance store with the Dragon following close behind.

They had received no response by the time they reached the smashed storefront, so Ami tried calling out again, first in Japanese, then in English. After again receiving no response, Ami decided to check with the Mercury computer again, and found that yes, there were still dozens of humans alive within the store, and no Yoma.

"Ano," She called out in Japanese, "We know you're in there, why won't you answer me?"

She started to move forward, but the Dragon gently held her back with a large paw.

"If they're not responding yet," He rumbled, "They're probably hostile."

"Ano," Ami said, switching back to English, "Why do you say that?"

"This is an excellent ambush site," The Dragon said, then gestured with his tail towards where several piles of dust littered the sales floor, and damaged appliances, "And they've conducted several here before."

Ami blinked, looking more carefully at the damaged rows of appliances, and realized that the Dragon was right, she simply hadn't paid attention to the Yoma dust in the general mess before.

"How did you notice that?" She asked curiously.

"I was trained to recognize ambush sites," The Dragon said, "We should leave this to Tasks men, it is probably my presence that has them on guard."

"What's he saying?" Rei asked in Japanese as she carefully handled Usagi, who seemed to at least be aware of the world around her again.

"That the people here are laying an ambush," Ami said, "And we should leave making contact to Tasks-san's soldiers."

"He's probably right," Rei said, "The Lieutenant would rather we be in the air again anyways."

"I agree with him," The Dragon said, "Having Moon out like this isn't safe."

Ami reluctantly nodded, and they re-mounted the Dragon, then returned to the sky, and aerial reconnaissance.

((()))

"The girls didn't seem dangerous."

"No, but better safe than sorry, and we'll see if there really are soldiers moving through the area soon enough."

((()))

The Hino patriarch, who told no one his name, snapped to consciousness, and rolled to his feet nearly as quickly. He found himself standing beside a futon in the shrine's sacred fire room, almost dangerously close to the fire. The room itself had been heavily damaged, holes smashed into the floor all about it, and several into one of the interior walls.

One of the Senshi was also sleeping, wrapped in a blanket and propped up against the wall beside the door. Judging by size and hair color, it was Jupiter. She was rather jarring to look at, on the whole, only fourteen years old, but already massively larger and physically developed than almost any Japanese woman, yet still possessing the features of one only halfway out of childhood. This time, however, as he looked at the unconscious girl, he was treated to hazy memories of a brutal fist-fight with her, in which she rather soundly beat him.

That was when he realized he was naked. He was not a man overly obsessed with modesty, but he knew that it would be bad for an elderly man, particularly one of his noted appreciation for the female form, to be found alone and naked with such an attractive young woman.

Unfortunately, all he was able to find of his priestly robes was scraps and ash, so he was forced to improvise with the blanket someone had covered him with, then make an expedition to his living quarters for a replacement. On his way to his room, and back once he had secured clothing, he found that many of the refugees had camped out within the shrine, and glanced outside to see many more outside, Venus amongst them.

The status of the Shrine and its current inhabitants ascertained as best he could at the moment, he quickly returned to the fire room, cleared away the futon, and set himself down to meditate.

If he had been just ten years younger, the sublime ease with which he came into tune with the sacred fire would have shocked him out of the calm necessary to meditate. His mind touched the fire as though it were all but a part of him, and through it his awareness grew to encompass the entirety of the Temple and its grounds. He immediately made contact with the Temple's wards, and found that while damaged, they were still intact.

Considering that the wards had stood for more than a century, drawing upon the natural energies of the Temple and its residents to charge themselves, that said chilling things about the power of the man who had broken through them. Nearly as shocking was how quickly the wards were regaining strength, something that Hino was quickly able to connect to the presence of Jupiter within the fire room, and Venus beyond.

Jupiter radiated a crackling energy with an intensity beyond anything Hino had ever seen, the taste and feel of electricity bound up in her form, radiating into and charging the wards, alongside something more subtle that he could not clearly perceive through her intense corona of power. Venus was like a star of molten steel, radiating intense light, attendant heat, with molten steel constantly threatening to erupt from within her.

There were also four creatures that were clearly not entirely human; two that Hino recognized as the Crows that were guardian spirits for his grand-daughter, the other two being some form of cat spirit he did not recognize. As they lacked the tainted edge of the invading creatures, and possessed little power of their own beside, Hino paid them little attention for the time being.

Carefully, Hino reached out with his mind and began to deliberately weave the two senshi's power into the wards.

((()))

Ranma, utterly silent and invisible to the naked eye, stalked forward across the street, long shadows from the evening sun half-faded under the light of the dome above. His prey was utterly oblivious as he approached, one unnamed Yoma sniffing about for the scent of a living human amongst many.

Oblivious, at least, until he clasped a hand over its mouth, then drove his fist through its chest. The Yoma disintegrated into dust, and Ranma silently crept forward to the next Yoma in the pack of a half dozen, mentally adding another to his kill count.

Trailing along a quarter-kilometer behind, Shampoo and Ukyo watched him work.

((()))

The second night was a good night for the Dark Generals, but a bad night for the Yoma. By the end of the night, the two surviving generals had secured six of the seven fragments of the Mabroshi no Ginzuisho, but even with steady reinforcements flowing into the city from the Dark Kingdom, the Yoma presence was steadily decreasing.

The Yoma that the Dark Generals were feeding into the city were intended as nothing more than cannon fodder, and thus those of barely more than animalistic intelligence had been chosen for the task. They were naturally drawn towards the more intense sources of life energy, which invariably meant either large accumulations of people, or those of fiercer spirit and more capable of resisting them.

Enclaves of survivors either were wiped out, evacuated, or merged. Swarms of Yoma either dragged drained humans back to the Dark Kingdom for further draining, or were slain when they bit off more than they could chew. The generals cared little; their own lives were dependent upon the recovery of the Ginzuisho, and they cared little for their subordinates, aside from the creature's usefulness.

It was a rough night for the USJF forces, who had moved out of Minato word into Shibuya, as they continued to move through the night. They allowed the civilians they were escorting to sleep in two hour shifts as they leapfrogged from building to building, but only a tithe of the soldiers were permitted to sleep, as it was determined safer to sleep by day, than by night. They had far less night-vision and thermal gear than they would have liked, but fortunately, the Yoma seemed incapable of stealth.

In the Itabashi, Kita, and Toshima districts, Yoma fell like wheat before the Scythe of Ranma Saotome's anger. As Happosai was not within Tokyo, he, his father, and Cologne were the only Ki adepts present capable of masking their Ki from detection, an advantage Ranma used ruthlessly to ambush every pack of Yoma he came upon. By the end of the night, he, and his allies cleaning up after him, had slain every Yoma in the northwestern corner of the city.

The Senshi, perhaps alone amongst the city's defenders, rested well. Rei had been worried for her grandfather, but had sharply felt his presence from the Hikawa shrine in the late afternoon, and its intensity strengthened, rather than lessened, with time, giving her the peace of mind to sleep. Usagi slept the sleep of the emotionally exhausted, her tears over her mother and the other deaths she had seen spent for the time being. Old man Hino was able to convince Jupiter and Venus that between his wards, and the refugees at the shrine, they could be woken in time to fight, and they both slept.

Ami Mizuno didn't sleep quite so well, but then staying up into all hours of the night to study was normal for her, even if she was unaccustomed to having a Dragon reading over her shoulder, slurping on a severed, but still live, power line. It was mildly distracting, but she considered slight distraction more then a fair trade for being able to lean against the Dragon's chest as she read. It helped her a great deal to know someone was there with her, someone who would fight to protect her. Eventually, she was able to sleep, despite the niggling sensation that she was missing something.

Despite being in the safest section of the city, the night was perhaps the hardest for Teletha Testarossa, and Kaname Chidori. For Kaname, it was the struggle to deal with not only the realization that the peaceful world she lived in was incredibly fragile, but also that the boy she had so easily judged quite possibly understood the world far better than she did. For Tessa, it was the burden of knowing she was the only command officer truly equipped to deal with the situation, and that thousands would die, no matter what she did. Desperate to save as many as she could, her powerful mind absorbed every shred of information about the enemy her staff was able to collect throughout the night.

Outside of the barrier, Chiba Mamoru stood and wondered why he felt an obsessive need to attempt to cross it, and relief teams and forces continued to gather.

((()))

AN: Working on other things now; may be a while before this sees another update. This is harder to continue than I'd thought.