Star Trek: The Return of Ranma Saotome (By DS Wynne)



***



Part 4: "Cascade Effect, Act 2"



"…And I would like to consider Yeoman Ryouga Habiki for placement into

Engineering," said Captain Jean-Luc Picard. "Any objections, Number One?"



Riker was silent for a moment.



"Will?"



"Oh, sorry, sir. Just considering my options."



"Well, you do seem to have quite an interesting situation."



"Indeed," replied Riker knowingly.



"How’s the Counselor taking all this?"



"It is something she is getting used to, though it hasn’t been easy."



"And why should it?" replied a man, who appeared out of thin air. "Your

puny little lives would be so dull if it was."



"Q!" exclaimed Picard. "What are you here for?"



"Just passing through. Trust me."



"That will be the day," said Riker.



"Riker, you wound me."



"Just state your purpose and be gone."



"I simply wanted to see if what I heard is true. Very interesting

situation you have here."



"Well, I’m glad you are enjoying yourself," replied Riker.



"And it will get even more interesting in the days ahead."



"You know something we should know?" asked Picard.



"Yeah, sure."



"And I take it you won’t tell us, will you?" asked Riker.



"No. But trust me, you’ll find out REAL soon."



With that, Q disappeared.



"Hopefully, the other ‘shoe’ won’t drop TOO hard," said Picard.



"Yeah, hopefully."



***



"So, how’s Will doing, Deanna?"



"Will seems to be taking things okay, Beverly."



On occasion, Counselor Troi and Dr. Crusher would spend time in the

gardens as a means of finding peace and quiet. Or if the two friends

needs a heart-to-heart conversation.



"Yeah, I guess if you’ve seen one mental cohabitation, you’ve seen them

all."



"Beverly, don’t say such a thing. Even in jest."



"Sorry. But I suppose it has put a damper on your quality time."



"It certainly has. Just when I’m about to look into Commander Riker’s

eyes, I can’t help but see a teenaged boy. From what I can tell, Ranma

is a bit shy around girls."



"Well, I’m sure he’ll get over it, especially after the wedding."



"Deanna!"



"I’m just kidding. I’m sure you two will work something out."



"I hope you’re right.



***



Unknown to the crew, a Kuei-jin named "Nodoka" stowed away on one of the

incoming cargo containers. When she felt that she was alone, Nodoka

crawled out of her hiding space. She looked around her scenery to get a

feel of her new environment. Unfortunately for an unsuspecting

crewmember, Nodoka hasn’t eaten in a while…



Midshipmen Heather Winters, assured that the cargo wouldn’t take long to

register, insured the Quarter Master that she didn’t need help. So,

Winters went on to inspect the cargo alone.



CRASH!



"What was that?" Winters said quietly. She went to the source of the

noise, but found nothing within the area.



Suddenly…



"What the-?"



Nodoka, who was crawling above her prey on the ceiling, dropped down

from behind, and grabbed the girl. Trapped in Nodoka’s vice-like grip,

Winters struggled helplessly. Nodoka, now sporting fangs, bit down hard

on the girl’s neck. Then, she began to feed…



One of the key things that separate ordinary vampires from their Eastern

counterparts, is the ability to create new blood-based disciplines. In

other words, Kuei-jin have the uncanny ability to adapt and evolved, a

trait that Nodoka found very useful in her quest for vengeance.



"Winters, there you are," said Hana Kuonji. As the Ship’s Quarter

Master, Hana was in charge of supplies, so checking up on Winters was

within her purview. "Have you gotten this cargo registered?"



"…"



"Hana?"



"…Yes. Here is the data pad," Hana replied, as she handed the list to

Hana. Hana briefly went over the list before nodding her approval.



"Very good. Report to Fieldman to see about installing those instrument

upgrades in Astrometrics with Engineering."



"…Very well."



"Are you feeling well? Do you need to see to go to Sick Bay?"



"…No. I am just tired. May I take the rest of the day off?"



"I’m sure that it won’t be a problem. I’ll assign Cruthers to help

Fieldman. But I do expect double-duty from you tomorrow, okay?"



"…Certainly."



As soon as Hana left, Winters’ face shifted into Nodoka’s. Nodoka then

turned towards the same cargo container she just looked into. She peeked

inside to see the now dead Heather Winters.



"I’m sorry for this, but satisfaction must be fulfilled."



With nothing further, Nodoka sealed the cargo bin. She then stepped to a

transporter panel, and beamed the entire bin out into space. While

Kuei-jin primarily feed on chi through the blood, Nodoka could absorb

the essence of her victims. In this particular case, Nodoka can assume

Winters’ form, and can tap into her memories.



"How many more, Genma, must die before you face retribution?"



***



"Saotome."



"Hibiki."



Genko Saotome and Ryouga Hibiki have known each other for a long time,

and still have disliked each other. Usually, they avoided each other.

However, when Genko, through her former student Pert, had learned of

Ryouga’s presence aboard the Enterprise, Genko decided to have a little

"chat" with "The Eternally Lost Boy".



"I heard a rumor that your son is alive."



Within a blink of an eye, Genko pinned Ryouga against the bulkhead.



"Stay away from Ranma, Ryouga, or deal with ME. Understood?"



"Crystal. Of course, you can’t be everywhere, can you?"



"I can most certainly try. Besides, I don’t think you want to be

court-martialed before Starfleet Command, right?"



"Ah, yes. I heard about Commander Riker’s ‘predicament’. Of course, no

one, not even the innocent, is safe from harm during times of war."



"Is there something wrong, Sensei?"



Turning her head, Genko could see her other student Hana, who was

apparently heading back to Ten-Forward.



"It’s nothing. Isn’t it, Yeoman?"



"No, I was just having a chat with the Ensign, here."



Genko lowered Ryouga down. With a smirk, Ryouga straighten out his

uniform, and turned to leave.



"We’ll continue this later."



After Ryouga leaves the corridor, Hana turned to see a teary Genko.



"Sensei?"



"I’m fine, dear. Anyway, how’s the new job?"



Oh, it’s going fine. By the way, I need to talk to you about something."



"Go ahead."



"Do you know who Ranma Saotome is?"



Later…



Genko was getting worried. First, there was Ranma’s "return". Then,

Ryouga found out. Next, both Hana and Pert are getting suspicious as to

who Ranma is. Finally, there is Nodoka, who could be anywhere. If she

was going to fulfill her old promise, she’s going to move fast.



Using an unsecured communication station in the Medical Lab, Genko

reconfigured the com-links to create a secured channel. After pressing a

series of codes, Genko made contact with her contact.



"Troi residence. May I help you?"



"Hello, Mr. Hom. May I speak to Mrs. Troi, please?"



***



As the day went, Picard received notice from Starfleet HQ that they were

to take on visiting Klingons as part of the military exchange program.

As much as Picard did not want to entertain guests, he couldn’t just say

"no" to Starfleet Command.



"Nervous, commander?"



"No way, sir," replied Riker. For some reason, he's been feeling rather

anxious about meeting the Klingons.



"You're okay, Will?" ask Troi, who felt conflicted emotions from her

"imzadi".



"Sure I am, though I am curious as to why the Klingons insisted on

assign two of their own to our ship."



"Well, these two are a special case. Their father was a Federation

Ambassador from Earth, and their mother was a Klingon princess."



"I'm surprised that such a union took place."



"Well, Counselor, it did help that Ambassador Kuno was a Kendo champion

and master practitioner, though his wife felt that she would be head of

her clan and House by marrying a non-Klingon, who, by the way, is of the

royal line in Japan himself."



"Sir, the delegation is ready," said the transporter chief.



"Good. Energize."



Three figures appeared, one was recognizable to the crew.



"Ambassador Worf, greetings," said Picard, as he extended his hand for a

handshake.



"Hello, Captain," said the former Starfleet officer. "It's good to see

you again."



"I'm sure."



"At any rate, I would like to introduce-"



"No need, knave," said the young Klingon male that stood by Worf. "I,

Tatewaki the X, the Red Storm of the Klingon homeworld NEED no

introduction."



"Brother, dear, please behave," said Kodaki, the young Klingon female

that stood on Worf's other side. "We are guest here, and I, for one,

seek to immerse myself in Earthly delights."



Riker could have sworn that the female's comments were aimed directly at

him. Unfortunately, Deanna did pick up on.



'Will,' chided Deanna telepathically. 'Please behave yourself.'



'But I didn't do anything!' Riker responded.



"As long as you two are in MY custody, you will act as reasonably," said

Worf to his charges.



"Feh!" said Tatewaki.



"Why, of course, Ambassador," said Kodaki slyly.



"Well, on behalf of the Federation, we welcome you to the Enterprise,"

said Picard.



"It is an honor to bestow our greatness to thy ship and crew, Captain,"

said Takewaki. "And who is this lovely creature?"



"This is Counselor Deanna Troi," Riker said, as he stepped forward to

intercept Tatewaki. For some reason, he didn't want this man to make

moves on his "imzadi". "I'm sure she will help you with any…mental

deficiencies that you may suffer from."



"And who might YOU be?"



"Commander Riker, Ship's First Officer."



"Commander," said Kodaki, who didn't want her brother to ruin her

chances at happiness, as she wrapped her arm around Riker's. "Will you

personally show me around? I am familiar with most ship designs, except

for this one. I don't want to risk getting lost."



"And I will show you around as well," said Deanna, as she wrapped her

arm around Tatewaki's. For some reason, she was getting jealous at the

attention Kodaki was showering on Riker.



"The honor will be mine," replied the half-Klingon.



'Deanna…'



'Don't start, Will,'



Later…



"Ah, Miss Saotome," said Laxwanna Troi, who had took her young son to

school. "I see that life is treating you fine, dear."



"I am honored you feel that way," replied Genko on a secured line. "I

have news regarding our families' agreement."



"Don't tell me. You're pregnant, right? So who's the father?"



"I'm not pregnant."



"Then what? Besides, didn't you fulfill this agreement already?"



"The Saotome line died years ago when I got my curse. I am always

destined to produce daughters."



"That, dear, is surprisingly sexist."



"Never mind that! But, there may be a way to continue the Saotome line

and unite our families."



"Oh, really?"



After Genko told Laxwanna her news, the Troi matriarch did something

that she hasn't done in a while.



She was speechless.



"So, are you coming to Earth soon?"



"Why, Genko, I wouldn't be Laxwanna Troi if I didn't care for my

daughter's welfare!"



Tbc.