Disclaimer: Based on the series Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon. All characters copyrighted by Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, and Kodansha. The characters of Ranma ½ are the express property of the most benevolent queen of comedy, her Highness, the revered Rumiko Takahashi and Shogakukan. I am in no way claiming or even pretending to own these characters. The rest belong to me.

Foreword: This is an alternate timeline for Ranma ½, wherein Soun Tendo and Ukyou Kuonji accompanied the group to Jusendo. They all witness Ranma's battle with Saffron, along with the events that followed. The story has undergone quite a few changes since I first wrote it, so be sure to read it from the beginning. Enjoy!

Prologue

The Moon Kingdom:

Serenity sat on her throne atop a raised dais, a swaddled babe clutched in her arms. Deep in her noble heart, a war waged. Grief battled a cold righteous anger, both seeking to overthrow the other.

She would not break here.

This was a trial, and she needed to be cold and impartial, despite the man that now stood before her. She couldn't let her love for him taint justice.

Senshi Pluto stood to her monarch's right, her demeanor cold and subdued, at least on the surface. The cold fire of hatred that swelled in her stomach at the sight of the man made itself plain in her eyes. Ahbrim Ur nauseated her. His smug defiance made her want to beat the man to a bloody pulp. Unfortunately, Pluto knew that retribution wasn't hers to mete out. She looked down at her Queen and the child that rested in her arms.

It was the beginning of the end. Just as she had foreseen.

It was times like these that made guarding the time gate difficult. This one man had carelessly set in motion the destruction of all that she held dear. And there wasn't a damn thing that she could do about it.

The bastard.

I hate this job. Pluto sighed tiredly. A whimper from the child brought her attention back to Serenity. The Matriarch of the Moon Kingdom could have been an ice sculpture for all the emotion that crossed her face. Gods, how does she remain so calm!

Concern for her dear friend was written plainly on the face of the Senshi of Time. It was more emotion than any within the Queen's court had ever witnessed on the stoic woman's face.

"Well, Serenity?" A collective gasp rippled through the throne room. Senshi Uranus growled and began to step forward, only to have the younger and elder Neptune restrain her.

"Hold your tongue, traitor!" Fury laced Uranus' voice. The elder and younger Senshi of Neptune could barely restrain the enraged woman as she threw herself at the man.

Ahbrim Ur smiled haughtily at the young woman.

"Or what, child?" he cooed mockingly. "Your predecessor couldn't best me. In fact, I clearly remember her squealing like a stuck pig. I wonder what your last moments will sound like?" He tapped his finger thoughtfully against his lips. Uranus broke free from the combined strength of her friends and launched herself at the chained man before her. Her primal scream echoed throughout the court, as did the harsh blows that she rained down upon Ur.

"She…!" Her fist took the wind from his lungs.

"…Was…!" A kick shattered his nose, spraying her uniform with blood. The baby woke and began crying.

"…My…!" An open hand strike flew across his jaw.

"…MOTHER!"

Tears flowed from her eyes as she groined her tormentor. The man doubled over with a grunt and fell to his knees, clutching himself. Somewhere in the background, Pluto could be heard shouting along with others. Hands roughly separated Uranus from her quarry. She thrashed against them, using all of her strength. Couldn't they see that he had to pay?! She screamed at them, and almost broke free again, but new hands joined the struggle and Uranus was lifted from the ground.

"Remove her from the court!" Pluto called out, gesturing emphatically. The two Senshi of Neptune and the younger Senshi of Venus and Jupiter complied quickly, carrying Uranus from the chamber.

Silence descended as the enraged howls of Uranus echoed throughout the halls of the Crystal Palace. Ahbrim Ur recovered slowly, rising to his feet with little grace and a great deal of pain. No aid was offered to the man, not that he cared. These people were all hypocrites anyway.

"It seems that I have upset one of the watchdogs, Your Highness." His scornful tone mocked all present.

He sniffed in derision. The coppery taste of his own blood filled his mouth, but he smiled nonetheless. He looked up into the eyes of his former Queen and saw that Serenity's gaze had hardened. He shivered uncontrollably for an instant before regaining his composure. She looked stunning like this. Her eyes were cold and fierce, and her posture was strong and unrelenting.

Was it any wonder why he had fallen in love with her in the first place? She was every bit the queen that she claimed to be, but that was no excuse for her crimes. The self-righteous dominance that she hung over the people and the indifference to the lower classes were more than he could bear. She may have been beautiful, and he may have loved her more than life itself, but she was blind and deaf to the true needs of her people.

He spat blood on the floor, wishing that it could be at her feet. Maybe now her ears would hear and her eyes would see what he had been telling her all along. He chuckled to himself grimly. Silence languished throughout the hall as Serenity's gaze fell upon Ur like Heaven's judgment.

Probably not.

"Well, Wife?" Ahbrim asked impatiently. "I await your Divine judgment."

"That title is no longer yours to speak, betrayer!" The Elder Senshi of Venus made herself known from the left side of Serenity's throne. Her silky golden hair glistened in the lamp light of the court. She had loved him once, well before Serenity had caught his eye.

The Queen of the Moon Kingdom raised her hand to forestall any more exhibitions of retribution. The child in her arms had quieted, and once again fell into a troubled sleep. Ur yearned to know the child's sex, but it had been a closely held secret. It was to be one of her final blows to him, he supposed, for abandoning them. He would never know if his child was a son or daughter; she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing his progeny.

Serenity rose from her throne and gently handed the child off to her advisor Luna, the Mercurian cat in human form. She descended halfway down the dais before she stopped and looked down at her former husband.

"Before I sentence you, Ahbrim, I would ask you one question." His slight nod was the only sign that he had heard her at all. "Nine months ago you abandoned my bed for that of our enemy. Our child grew within my womb as you dallied with Onyx and her darkness. You shamed us, you abandoned us…" Her voice was measured and calm.

The Great Void was warmer than her tone.

"I would know why."

Ahbrim Ur laughed. It was a cynical laugh that resounded in the hearts of those attending the trial. His rich baritone voice echoed hauntingly off the walls, chilling Serenity. The man she had once dared to love was dead.

And in his place there stood a monster.

"Dearest Serenity! Your pride is boundless! You think that this was about you? About our little family?" His laughter barked loudly, causing the baby to wake again. Luna did her best to pacify the newborn's tears. She threw a dark look at Ur and silently wished that she could rip out the traitor's throat.

"If not that, then pray, tell me what. Enlighten us all…" her arms swept wide to encompass those gathered in the hall, "…as to your reasons for sleeping with the Darkness, for killing a defender of the light, and destroying an entire nation!"

His gaze hardened as he met hers. They had entertained this discussion before; many times, in fact. She knew what he fought for.

"You know damn well why! The hypocrisy of the Moon Kingdom knows no bounds! You…" His gaze swept the gathered nobles and dignitaries viciously, and he spat on the floor again. "…dance at your petty balls, and lavish yourselves with finery to the point of excess! You gorge yourselves while other nations starve!"

His tirade completed its circuit, coming to rest again on his ex-wife.

"The Moon Kingdom is a coterie made up of spoiled children, playing at a dream at the cost of others." His battered face was flushed and his eyes were filled with contempt.

Queen Serenity bowed her head, not in shame, but in tired resignation. She had heard his appeals on a number of occasions, and had honestly tried to follow his council. But she knew that in his eyes she had never tried hard enough.

He would never understand that she wasn't willing to force her kingdom's aid on a nation or another kingdom that flat-out refused it in the first place. His heart had been closed to her since Atlantis sank beneath the waves.

He still placed the blame at her feet for his nation's demise. He couldn't see that pride and politics had doomed her attempts to save Atlantis from the beginning. Just as, even now, his pride had doomed her efforts to save him.

She gazed down at him lovingly, one last time assuming the role of his wife. The look that he returned was cold and emotionless. She offered him her forgiveness, and he spurned her attempt. She could feel the mantle of her office settle on her shoulders once more. The title of Monarch replaced the title of Wife. When she spoke, her power and authority spoke with her. Magic amplified her voice and sealed Ahbrim Ur's fate.

"Ahbrim Ur, Son of fair Atlantis. Your acts of treason against the throne of this kingdom are presented before you. How will you plead?" her voice was measured and clear.

"Guilty, and unrepentant!" Ur shouted, in a vain attempt to steal some of his former Queen's majesty. He could do little else, cut off as he was from the power of the Earth and from his magic.

"Then you leave us no choice but to seal upon you your punishment. For your crimes against the planet Uranus and its champion, and for the atrocities that you have visited on the nations of bright Terra, we sentence you to exile. We strike your name from all records and strip you of all that you were. We bind you, son of perdition, to the darkness that you serve. Think well on your folly for the rest of eternity."

Silver flames licked the Queen's body as she presented the Ginzuishou before her. Those bright flames shot out from the crystal, engulfing Ahbrim in a silvery white light.

"You have made me a martyr!" he cried out, despite the pain that rent his soul. "I will be avenged, Serenity, and you will see our child suffer for your pride!"

Ahbrim Ur fought the changes that were overtaking his body, an empty struggle that in the end proved as empty as his threats. He could feel his limbs harden and thicken painfully, as flesh and blood changed to lustrous silver. He felt the magic climbing up from his lower extremities, but refused to show his fear. He spat once more at her feet, before the magic began to drive the air from his lungs.

"You… will… never… know… pea…." The threat died as his lungs solidified and the magic worked its justice.

Serenity, Queen of the fabled Moon Kingdom, fell gracelessly to the stairs. Tears coursed down her cheeks as she looked down at what had once been her one true love. Hundreds of beautiful memories flooded her mind; times of hope and warmth, and times of passion and tenderness.

All lost because of pride.

In her anguish she rent her dress and keened to the Heavens. Her mourning carried into the hearts of her subjects, and Senshi Pluto watched with a deep sense of emptiness as the Moon Kingdom began its inevitable march toward destruction.

To be continued.

Webmaster: Larry F
Last revision: May 21, 2007