Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ NEMESIS ❯ Chapter 1

NEMESIS
by Chris Vegvary

DAY 1

After careful consideration, Ukyo knew she had to get wet. The water was freezing, but after falling into that mud pit, she really wanted to get clean. Plus it was dark and she was anxious to get home. She had been walking through the woods when it happened. Running, actually. She thought she had heard someone following her and went to investigate. Before she could get to whatever it was that was following her, she started to get nervous for some reason. It was probably from the low, inhuman growling of her stalker. She could swear she heard it say her name. Ukyo's natural instincts kicked in and before she knew it, she was running for her life to get away from this otherworldly creature that she had actually not seen yet, but...she could sense that it was a powerfully evil being. Soon, she found herself face down in the mud, scrambling to get away. Looking behind her, she saw nothing and suddenly felt very foolish.

Ukyo: "Can't believe I freaked out like that...I'm such a dope! If Ranma was here right now, he'd laugh at me...oh well, time to get down to business."

She began to take off her shirt when she heard a twig snapping somewhere close by. She lowered her arms and looked around. Seeing nothing in the darkness, she stood up warily.

Ukyo: "Who's there?"

No answer. *Damn!* she thought. *I can't believe I didn't bring any of my spatulas.*

Ukyo: "Whoever you are, you should know that I'm a martial arts master. You've got three seconds to show yourself or leave while you still have a chance!"

She counted. One. No sounds of movement. Two. Still nothing. Three. The bushes off to her right shook slightly. Ukyo stared at them, something catching her eye. Though it was dark, she had incredible perception. *A tentacle?*

Ukyo: "Oh, shit."

No sooner had she said that then a giant, grotesque mutant jumped out of the bush, roaring. Ukyo couldn't move. It was so hideous! A stitched-up scar ran down the creature's right eye. It's skin was pale and brownish. Four tentacles squirmed around behind its back. In its left hand was a large gun, possibly a rocket launcher. It wore a black leather outfit that exposed huge muscles.

Ukyo screamed and turned to run but she slipped on wet leaves. She tried to get up only to be hit in the back of the head with the creature's enormous gun. The world went black and Ukyo felt the back of her skull shatter into a million pieces before she died.

Nemesis looked down at Ukyo's broken body and uttered one word in a deep, guttural voice.

Nemesis: "Ukyo..."

He turned around and walked back into the woods.

Nemesis: "Mousse..."

Minutes after Nemesis was gone, Ukyo's body began to twitch slightly. A moan escaped her lips and she pushed herself up, getting to her feet. One thought was on her mind...eat human flesh.

* * * * *

DAY 2

Ranma whistled as he walked to Ucchan's. Akane was cooking him some lunch again so he had to slip out when she wasn't looking. He approached the restaurant and went to open the door but found that it was locked.

Ranma: "Huh? That's weird...I thought she'd be open. Oh well. The Nekohanten it is, then."

* * * * *

The food was good. Ranma was done with his free meal from Shampoo and he never felt better.

Ranma: "Thanks for the food, Shampoo. I know you hate her, but have you seen Ukyo? She's closed today...and she's never closed this early."

Shampoo: "WHAT? Ranma go to Spatula Girl restaurant first? Never give you free ramen again!"

Ranma: "What? No, see...hey, I mean--"

Shampoo: "Ranma leave!"

She began throwing chopsticks at him. With her skill, those could hurt. Ranma knew that, so he ran for it. After he was gone, Shampoo sat down and sighed. Why did it seem like he was always either with Ukyo or Akane? How come not her? She'd be wondering about that for a while.

* * * * *

Mousse looked through his dresser drawer. He knew he had put his throwing knives somewhere in there. He reached in deeper and found one of them, pulling it out.

Mousse: "Ah. There's one. I'd kill Ranma with this if I knew it wouldn't upset Shampoo..."

He started digging around for the others when the entire right wall exploded, sending him into the opposite wall. He coughed and staggered to his feet, looking through the cloud of smoke. He could see nothing. *Ranma,* he thought while adjusting his glasses. He began to throw sharp objects all around the room from his robe.

Mousse: "Ranma, you coward! Too afraid to show yourself?"

Suddenly, Mousse was jerked off his feet by an enormous hand that was wrapped around his neck. He saw his attacker's face, that of Nemesis. Nemesis growled deeply and slowly pulled the glasses off Mousse's terrified face with his free hand. He looked at the spectacles and crushed them into dust. Mousse watched helplessly. Nemesis slammed Mousse up against his door, lifting him up higher. He drew his hand back and Mousse closed his eyes and...

* * * * *

Shampoo had been lost in thought of Ranma when she heard what sounded like an explosion coming from upstairs. She rolled her eyes and stood, going to see what stupid thing Mousse did now. As she approached the door, she heard scuffling and what sounded like growling. She slowly and cautiously reached for the knob. Before she could turn it, something slammed against the door hard. She drew her hand back slightly and suddenly a hole exploded in the door, spraying blood on her. Shampoo shrieked and fell to the floor. Nemesis looked through the hole in the door and spoke.

Nemesis: "Shampoo..."

He opened the door and Shampoo screamed at the sight of what it was carrying. Nemesis dragged Mousse's out body out of the room by his hand. There was a hole in his chest that was so big, she could see through to the other side. Something fell out of his robe and clattered on the floor. Shampoo immediately recognized it as one of Mousse's throwing knives and picked it up. By the time Nemesis looked down to see what it was, Shampoo was already springing into action. With a loud cry, she plunged the knife into his neck and turned and ran down the stairs, out of the restaurant, and leaving behind a roaring monster.

* * * * *

Shampoo went to the only place she could think of: the Tendo house. Where else could she go? Nowhere, of course. She ran up to the door and was about to knock when it flew open and hit her in the face, knocking her unconscious. P-chan shot out the door, Ranma chasing him.

Ranma: "I'll KILL you, Ryoga!"

After he said that, he realized that he hit something pretty hard with that door. He looked down to see a battered, bloody, unconscious Shampoo. He examined her.

Ranma: "Oh my God...Akane! Kasumi! Someone call 911!"

P-chan stopped dead in his tracks, turning around to see what was wrong. He ran back over to the two of them. Ranma picked him up.

Ranma: "Listen. Go get Akane, do you hear me? Get her down here right now!"

He set P-chan down inside and he took off up the stairs, squealing like mad, hoping to get someone's attention. Ranma scooped Shampoo up in his arms and carried her into the living room. He set her down on the couch as Akane entered with P-chan.

Akane: "What is it, P-chan?"

Ranma: "Akane! Call 911. Shampoo's been injured!"

* * * * *

Ryoga was now in his human form. The entire family and Genma sat in the living room, waiting. After the ambulance arrived, Shampoo regained consciousness. She was hysterical, screaming about monsters. The paramedics put her on a stretcher and wheeled her outside. She began to scream.

Shampoo: "Ranma! Don't leave me!

He turned to Akane.

Ranma: "Look, I'm gonna go with her. Meet me at the hospital, ok?"

Akane: "Ok."

Ranma ran to Shampoo's side and she quieted down some. He followed her to the ambulance, waited for the paramedics to load her, then got in himself. They closed the doors and got in and drove away.

* * * * *

By the time Akane arrived, Ranma was nearly asleep. He was sitting in a chair beside Shampoo's hospital bed. She was asleep. Akane took a seat next to Ranma. He looked worn out.

Akane: "How is she?"

Ranma: "She was going on about a monster killing Mousse and trying to kill her."

Akane: "Mousse? Is he?"

He sighed heavily and looked into Akane's eyes.

Ranma: "Don't know. They sent a cop over there and he found a lot of blood and the room was trashed, but...no body. Plus, all that blood on Shampoo...most of it wasn't hers. She says it's Mousse's."

Akane: "Do you think it's true? That she saw a monster?"

Ranma: "I don't know. Shampoo and Mousse are extremely good martial artists. Whatever did that to her and possibly killed Mousse...it's gotta be really powerful. I think...maybe it got Ukyo, too. Her restaurant wasn't open today and I looked for her everywhere. I couldn't find her."

Akane: "I just hope everything turns out alright."

* * * * *

DAY 3

Tatewaki Kuno actually found himself going out for a midnight stroll. He put on some clothes that he had never actually worn but was thinking about it. He put on bluejeans and a leather jacket. Kuno snuck out quietly, trying not to disturb his sister's sleep. On the way out, he grabbed his bokken just in case. He walked toward the park.

Kuno: "The stars are shining in my favor tonight. Perhaps I shall get lucky and run into my pig-tailed goddess."

He found a bench to sit on. All that walking wore him out. Just as he was relaxing, he saw someone staggering toward him. Whoever it was was moaning loudly. Kuno stood up and began to walk toward the person. When he got close enough to actually see who it was, what he saw sickened him. The man's intestines were hanging out of his stomach and his throat was ripped open. Kuno didn't know what to do until the zombie walked up and bit his arm. Kuno cried out and pushed the zombie away. He pulled out his bokken and swung it, the wooden blade striking the zombie's neck, slicing through it. It's head on the ground, the zombie walked toward him still, until it fell to the ground, twitching.

Kuno: "That...that was a...a zombie! But they don't exist..."

He turned around and started for home to look at the wound on his arm, but what he saw stopped him. Staggering toward him from halfway across the park were about fifteen zombies, all of them hungry looking. Kuno turned around and started running. So he would take the long way, it beats being eaten by monsters.

* * * * *

Shampoo lay awake in her hospital bed, staring at the clock. It was 1:30 AM and she couldn't get back to sleep. She kept having the same nightmare of Mousse being killed by that hideous mutant. Why was it after her? She didn't know. Once again, she closed her eyes when she heard something from the window.

Nemesis: "Shampoo..."

Immediately, Shampoo hit the call button for the nurse. She fearfully looked toward the window as she saw Nemesis raising the rocket launcher and aiming it right at her. She drew backwards in the bed, muttering in fear. Nemesis fired right as the nurse walked in. The window shattered and a rocket launched right into Shampoo's chest. Right before she died, Shampoo got a good look at her chest splitting open, shattering her ribcage. The nurse fainted and Nemesis left.

* * * * *

Ranma awoke to several different sounds. It was still too dark to tell what was happening as he looked out the window. He could hear people screaming, guns firing, bombs going off, and helicopters circling the city.

Ranma: "What the hell is going on out there this early?"

He looked at the clock. It was only 2:25 AM. He walked out into the hallway and noticed that Akane and Kasumi had come out of their rooms as well.

Ranma: "You guys heard it, too?"

Kasumi: "What's happening?"

Ranma: "I don't know, but I'm going out there to find out."

Akane: "No, don't!"

Ranma: "Why not?"

Akane: "They have guns out there, Ranma. What if you get shot?"

Ranma: "That's a risk I'm willing to take if it means I can sleep afterwards."

* * * * *

After getting dressed, Ranma quickly headed down the stairs and out the door. He hurried to where most of the noise was coming from, jumping from roof to roof. Finally, he landed on the last roof and looked down, treated to the sight of what looked like people eating one another. Ranma jumped down into a side alley and put his back against the wall, inching closer to the street. He risked a look around, seeing that it was, indeed, what he thought.

Ranma: "Zombies!"

He slapped his hand over his mouth and silently cursed as the zombies turned in his direction and began walking towards him. Ranma headed back down to the other end of the alley. There was a corner coming up where he could probably escape. He turned it and stopped short, nearly falling right into the hands of waiting zombies. He looked behind him to see more of them spilling around the corner. Ranma took a fighting position. Before any zombies got close enough to bite him, a grenade was thrown from behind the group of zombies in front of him. It landed in a zombie's hand. It looked at the grenade unintelligently and opened its mouth, groaning as it exploded. Ranma could hear machine guns firing from behind and in front of him. He did the only thing he could. He ducked down and put his back against the wall, trying to look as non-threatening as possible. Soon, all the zombies lay in a steaming mass of blood, guts, and other body parts. A bright light shone on Ranma's face, blinding him.

Ranma: "Hey, who are you?"

The light pulled out of his face and he could see five people on either side of him, carrying guns and wearing S.T.A.R.S. uniforms. One of them reached out and Ranma took his hand, pulling himself up.

Brad: "My name's Captain Brad Romine of the S.T.A.R.S new Delta unit."

Ranma: "What are you doing here?"

Another man answered his question.

Ron: "We're here to take care of your little problem."

Ranma: "I didn't even know we had a problem until tonight!"

Lisa: "Don't you read the papers, kid? The American ones say this has been going on here for two days. We had another incident like this back in the states."

Ranma: "There's nothing in the papers about zombies. Nothing like this has ever happened."

Cole: "Shit! You don't think they set us up, do you?"

Carl: "That would be a good guess. I'd say S.T.A.R.S. is now taking bribes from Umbrella."

Ranma: "Uh, how long have you guys been here?"

Brad: "Only about five minutes. The chopper just dropped us off."

Ranma: "I've been hearing gunfire for about ten minutes now. I don't think many people in this town own guns."

Lisa: "Umbrella must've already sent in mercenaries. They'll be looking for us."

Carl: "Wait a second. Some of this doesn't make sense to me...why would Umbrella bribe our guys to send us here just to be picked off by their mercenaries?"

Ron: "All this talk is well and good, but maybe we should get to some shelter before they find us or the zombies do."

Ranma: "I know a place we can go! Follow me."

He turned around and began going back through the alley. The others followed him. A moment after they circled the corner, a monstrous hand shot through the brick wall on the left of Ron. He tried to pull his shotgun but there wasn't enough time. The monster pulled Ron through the wall. The others tried to get through the hole but falling bricks prevented them from going in. They could see Ron and the monster-- called a "Hunter" by certain S.T.A.R.S members who had seen it and lived--circling each other around the room, the monster rearing its claws as Ron held his knife threateningly.

Brad: "Hold on, Ron!"

Just as the Hunter jumped at Ron, preparing to slash him to pieces, Brad pulled up his shotgun and fired at it, sending it to the floor. It twitched slightly and then didn't move. Ron turned to the opening and grinned.

Ron: "Thanks. I'm sure I couldn't have handled it--"

The creature jumped back onto its feet and shrieked loudly, causing Ron's grin to falter. Before he could turn around, his head was no longer attached to his shoulders, as the Hunter had taken it off in one fell swoop of its crazy sharp talons. All the S.T.A.R.S. members sprung into action, simultaneously firing their weapons at the creature.

Brad: "Shit. Ron..."

The S.T.A.R.S. members bowed their heads as Brad went inside the opening and kneeled down next to his fallen partner's body. He took Ron's shotgun and his baretta 9mm. Then he reached into Ron's waistpack and pulled out five clips and some shotgun shells. Reaching over, he withdrew Ron's combat knife from his hand. Brad walked back through the opening and handed the guns and knife to Ranma.

Brad: "Do you know how to use these?"

Ranma: "The knife, yeah. The guns, I never got a chance to learn."

Brad: "It's easy. Point at whatever you want to die and pull the trigger. Pump the shotgun to fire again. You got fifteen rounds in the baretta and five in the shotgun. When you run out of rounds for the 9mm, press this, pull the clip out, slap a fresh one in there. Got it?"

He demonstrated the whole process to Ranma.

Ranma: "Yeah, I think so. Come on, follow me."

* * * * *

As they headed towards the Tendo household, Ranma quickly got the hang of the guns by aiming at various zombies and blowing their heads into mush. When they got there, Ranma was surprised to see the front door wide open. He cautiously went inside and peered around, pointing the shotgun in front of him. The kitchen door suddenly swung open and scared everyone. The S.T.A.R.S. members and Ranma all pointed their guns at a man in an Umbrella uniform, who was currently holding a machine gun that was pointed in the air, as his arms currently were.

Ranma: "Who the fuck are you!"

Drake: "Don't shoot! I'm Drake Phillips, an agent of Umbrella's Biohazard Counter-Measure Force. Who are you?"

Ranma: "I live here! What've you done with the Tendos?"

Drake: "One of my team members is injured. We came here seeking shelter and this family welcomed us."

Everyone lowered their guns and Drake lowered his arms. Soun stepped out of the kitchen and pulled Ranma in a forceful hug, knocking the wind out of him. Tears of happiness sprayed out of Soun's eyes.

Soun: "Thank God you weren't killed out there, son! The Tendo and Saotome Schools of Martial Arts will one day be united!"

Ranma: "Mr. Tendo, this really isn't the time!"

He shoved Soun off of him and they all went into the kitchen to see Genma and the rest of the Tendos and four more people in Umbrella uniforms. One of them was on the floor being tended to by Kasumi. The other three turned to see who had come in. Their eyes bugged out and they pulled their weapons, which also happened to be large and powerful. One of the men was pointing a chaingun at them, another pointing a flamethrower, and the woman pointed two magnums at them. Ranma and the S.T.A.R.S. members immediately raised their shotguns and pointed them at the Umbrella team. Drake backed up against the wall. The team leader spoke.

Thomas: "Drake, what the FUCK are you doing over there? They're with S.T.A.R.S.!"

Drake: "I didn't know, sir! The lights were off in the other room!"

Brad: "Listen up, you Umbrella shitheads. I don't know what you're doing here and I don't care. Don't get in our way of saving the civilians."

Thomas: "Ironically, that's why we're here. We were also told to execute you on sight."

Lisa: "That's bullshit!"

Cole: "Why would they tell you to do that?"

Thomas: "It might have something to do with the fact that you are wanted for treason, the five of you...where is your other teammate? The fat one?"

Carl: "He's dead, asshole, just like you if you don't drop those guns!"

The woman holding the magnums spoke.

Allison: "I don't think you get it, pal. YOU'RE the ones who'll be losing the guns."

Brad: "Treason? That's all they could come up with? It's a lie and you know it."

The other man holding the flamethrower spoke next.

Alex: "Either way, it looks like we're not getting out of here anytime soon, considering our communications are out so we might as well just tolerate each other until this is over."

Brad: "I'm for it. Are you?"

His question was directed at Thomas. Thomas hesitated for a moment, then lowered his weapon, causing everyone to lower their weapons.

Thomas: "Yes...for now."

He and the other Umbrella members returned their attention to their wounded teammate on the floor. Alex kneeled down next to the man, Eddie, and began inspecting the various wounds. Akane went over to Ranma and they began to whisper to each other. Ryoga stepped closer to them and listened.

Akane: "Are you ok?"

Ranma: "I'm fine. Is everyone ok?"

Akane: "Except for the man on the floor, yeah. I was worried..."

Ranma: "About me?"

Akane: "Look, don't read anything into it. What's going on out there?"

Ranma: "You're not going to believe this...zombies are overrunning the city. Looks like we're in the middle of a mass conspiracy between these two groups here."

Ryoga stepped up to Ranma.

Ryoga: "Zombies? They don't exist."

Ranma: "Yeah? Try telling that to the people out there whose flesh they're ripping off. They're not the only things out there, though. There are creatures...mutants. I've seen what they can do to someone, it's not pretty."

Ryoga: "Well then, we have to get the hell out of here."

Ranma: "To where, Ryoga? Nowhere in this city is safe anymore."

Ryoga: "Look, we can't just stand around and wait to be ripped apart by flesh-eating mutants, can we?"

The kitchen door burst open again and three zombies spilled onto the floor, all of them moaning loudly. Everyone shot out of their seats and pulled up their weapons. The zombies stood up and stared ravenously at Ranma, Akane, and Ryoga. The three recognized the zombies as Mousse, Ukyo, and Shampoo. Ranma suddenly felt cold and sick at the sight of his undead friends, inhumanly ugly and covered in gore, the sight of their splattered open wounds and the smell of it was enough to make everyone sick. Thomas opened fire on the zombies, the bullets tearing away their flesh and shattering the bone beneath. A bullet smashed into Mousse's skull, blowing off a large chunk of his face and brain. He fell to the ground and didn't get up. Allison fired her magnums at Shampoo and Ukyo's heads, blowing them off completely. As soon as the threat was over, everyone calmed down a little.

Brad: "Ok, it looks like this place isn't safe anymore. We've gotta find someplace else to tough this out."

Ranma: "There's a hospital north of here. We could hide out there for a while."

Nemesis: "Ryoga..."

They all stayed silent as they heard the deep growl of Nemesis coming from right above them. They stared at the ceiling as it started creaking slightly. Suddenly, it exploded, sending most of them to the floor. When the dust cleared, they saw Nemesis standing in the middle of the room. He threw his head back and roared. Ryoga couldn't move. He'd been almost paralyzed since he heard it say his name.

Nemesis: "Ryoga..."

He stared at Ryoga and began walking towards him.

Ryoga: "Shit! Someone! Do something!"

Carl took action, rolling over on the floor and aiming his shotgun at Nemesis' back. He pulled the trigger and stood up, firing again. Nemesis roared again and spun around, his giant fist slamming into Carl's midsection, sending him flying into the wall. Ranma shot up next to Nemesis and pumped the shotgun. Before he pulled the trigger, Nemesis slapped the shotgun out of his hands and backhanded Ranma into the floor. He turned his attention once again to Ryoga, who was scared witless.

Ryoga: "Help! HELP!"

Nemesis grabbed Ryoga by the neck with one hand and with his other hand, grabbed Ryoga by the waist. He lifted Ryoga up over his head and as everyone watched in stupefied horror, lifted his knee and swiftly brought Ryoga's back down on it. The force was so powerful that Ryoga actually split in half.

Akane: "Oh my God!"

Nemesis released Ryoga's dead body.

Brad: "Come on, let's get the fuck out of here!"

Everyone rushed through the kitchen door and the back door until the only ones left in the room were Nemesis, Carl, and Eddie. Carl slowly began to rise, groaning from the pain in his back and head. He looked around and realized that Nemesis was staring right at him. Eddie whimpered fearfully from the floor, his eyes wide as he watched Nemesis. Nemesis walked toward Carl. Eddie tried to move away but his wounds were too painful. He screamed as Nemesis' giant foot came down on his head, crushing it. Carl grabbed the flamethrower that was carelessly left behind and sprayed the flames at Nemesis, igniting his entire body. Still, Nemesis continued toward him. His hand opened up and out shot a large purple tentacle which he shoved into Carl's stomach. He spit out blood as he was lifted off his feet and flung through a wall. He landed outside in the koi pond, face down. Nemesis grunted and fell to his knees, then the floor.

* * * * *

Kuno opened his sister's door and turned on the light, only to see zombies all over the room and a huge bloodstain on Kodachi's bed. He could not see her body anywhere.

Kuno: "Foul creatures from Hell! You have taken my sister!"

He began slicing off their heads with his bokken until every last zombie lay decapitated on the floor.

Kuno: "I am not safe here...I will seek shelter at the hospital."

He left the room and took off toward the hospital.

* * * * *

Soon, Ranma and everyone else met at the hospital. They went inside to take a rest, noticing no one else was there.

Brad: "Ok, let's take a head count."

He counted everyone in the group.

Brad: "We're missing Carl and your injured Umbrella teammate."

Drake: "Did you grab Eddie, Captain, or did we just leave him there to die?"

Thomas: "His wounds were severe. He would've been dead in an hour anyway. At least this way, we didn't waste any bullets."

Lisa: "Boy, I can just feel compassion emanating from you."

Thomas: "What do you care? He was our teammate, not yours."

Cole: "Let's calm down for a minute. Why isn't there anyone here?"

His question was answered as a severed head was thrown at him from behind the counter. He caught it and screamed, falling backwards onto the floor. There were footsteps coming from there and soon, a creature came into view. Another Hunter. It shrieked and leapt at them, raising its sharp claws. Drake fired his machine gun at the Hunter and kept firing until it was on the floor, not moving. Cole stood up, shaken.

Cole: "I hate this job."

Alex: "Come on, let's split up."

Thomas: "Right. The Umbrella team will follow me and the rest of you can do whatever the hell you want."

He and the three members of Umbrella went to an elevator and got on it. After they were gone, the group split up again. The S.T.A.R.S. members and Genma, Soun, and Nabiki went one way while Ranma, Akane, and Kasumi went into the stairwell. Once they were in there, Ranma turned to Akane and handed her the baretta. She looked at it, then at him. He nodded and she slowly took it from him.

Ranma: "Do you know how to use it?"

Akane: "No..."

Ranma: "It's easy. Point at whatever you want to die and pull the trigger. You've got fifteen rounds in here. When you run out of rounds for it, press this, pull the clip out, slap a fresh one in there. Got it?"

He demonstrated the whole process to Akane.

Akane: "Yeah, it doesn't look that hard."

She tried to manage a smile. He smiled back and looked at Kasumi, handing her Ron's combat knife.

Ranma: "Hold onto this. If something attacks you, you stab it, understand? Don't stop until it's dead."

She nodded and held it up firmly. They headed up the stairwell.

* * * * *

The Umbrella team got off the elevator in the parking lot. Thomas stepped out first, then Allison, then Alex, and last was Drake. Thomas walked a few feet, then stopped.

Alex: "What is it, Captain?"

Thomas grinned and whispered as he pulled out his baretta, making sure they couldn't see it.

Thomas: "Oh, nothing..."

He spun around and fired, hitting Alex in the chest. Allison's expression went from normal to shocked as Thomas pointed the gun at her head and fired. Lastly, he fired at Drake but Drake ducked into the elevator and put his back to the side wall. A moment later, he risked jumping out and he fired the machine gun, hitting Thomas in several places. Thomas cried out in pain and dropped the 9mm. He fell to the floor and spit out blood. Drake walked up to him with a menacing look on his face.

Drake: "You son of a bitch! You fucking killed them!"

Thomas: "It was part of the mission, Drake! Don't be a fool. If you let me live, I won't kill you, I swear. Please..."

Drake pointed the gun at him and was about to fire when a Hunter shrieked from somewhere in front of him. He backed into the elevator and pressed a button. The doors closed. Thomas looked fearfully in the direction of the Hunter's footsteps. He tried to crawl over to the magnums that Allison had dropped. He grabbed one of them and turned over just as the Hunter reached him. It slashed at his chest, leaving four deep cuts that reached his waist. Thomas screamed and put the gun in the creature's open mouth, pulling the trigger. The back of the Hunter's head exploded and it fell backwards onto the floor. Thomas gritted his teeth and spat blood. He reached into his utility belt and pulled out a syringe and a tube filled with a purple fluid. The tube was marked in small letters: TYRANT VIRUS Type-X. It seemed that his mission wasn't going to be completed if he died, so he got took the liquid into the syringe and injected it into his chest. He screamed for a long time as the virus flowed through his veins. Soon, his entire body went limp and his eyes stared at nothing. Suddenly, his head jerked from side to side and he screamed again as his arms grew in length. His muscles expanded and his skin turned a grayish color. He stood up and raised his arms, as if stretching. His uniform tore and was shredded. His nails became extended and razor-sharp. He curled into a ball until the pain stopped. Slowly, Thomas rose up and roared inhumanly.

* * * * *

Drake caught up with the S.T.A.R.S. members and told them what happened.

Brad: "Shit. I knew that guy was gonna fuck us from the beginning."

Cole: "What the hell is that?"

They looked down the hallway and saw a human form. It was too dark to tell if it was a zombie or not.

Brad: "Hey! Start talking or I'm gonna start shooting!"

Kuno: "Hold fire! I am not an enemy."

Brad: "Alright, get over here."

He came down the hall and recognized Genma and Soun.

Kuno: "You are the father of Ranma Saotome, correct?"

Genma: "Yes...Kuno, right?"

Kuno: "Correct. I think something's coming."

The floor broke right underneath Cole and an enormous clawed hand grabbed his ankle, pulling him down to the floor below. Cole cried out and hit the floor, pieces of the ceiling landing on him. The others huddled around the hole.

Brad: "Cole!"

Cole spat out dust and saw his attacker. It was a giant mutant, the Tyrant. The Tyrant picked him up by the neck and slammed his head full force into Cole's face, smashing bone and driving it up into his brain. When the others realized he was dead, they took off the way they came.

* * * * *

Ranma fired his shotgun at the last Hunter. The stairwell had been full of them and they were running low on ammo. When they reached the top floor, Ranma opened the door and was greeted to the sight of four zombies piling through the door. One of them grabbed his arm and bit it, causing Ranma to cry out. Kasumi drove the knife into the side of the zombie's skull, killing it. Akane fired her last two rounds at two of the zombies' heads. The last one lurched at Ranma. He quickly executed a high-kick into the zombie's face and his foot smashed through its face with a *squelch* sound. He pulled his foot out and allowed the zombie to drop to the ground. They entered the door and looked around for more enemies. There was no one. They continued down the hallway until they reached a hospital bedroom. Opening the door, Ranma found himself staring into the barrel of a shotgun. The gun pulled out of his face and Ranma relaxed, realizing that it was just the other S.T.A.R.S. members.

Ranma: "Hey, where's Cole?"

Brad: "He's dead. There's something else here...it's big...and nasty."

Drake: "Where should we go next?"

Lisa: "There's nothing else here...we should go to the park. If we're out in the open, it'll be easier to see the enemy before they attack."

Ranma: "What about the rest of the Umbrella team?"

Drake: "The captain killed them. He tried to get me, but I shot him. I left him for the Hunters."

Brad: "Alright, let's go through the parking lot. We can get ammo from the bodies."

* * * * *

They took the elevator down to the parking garage. Once the door was open, Drake, Brad, and Lisa immediately went to the bodies and took the ammo. Drake looked around.

Drake: "Thomas is gone."

Ranma walked around, looking for his body. His foot kicked something that clinked like glass. He looked down and saw a small tube and a syringe. He bent down and picked up the tube, reading the small print on the glass casing.

Ranma: "Guys, you better take a look at this."

Brad, Lisa, and Drake walked over to where Ranma was standing. He handed the tube to Brad, who read it and passed it to the next person. Ranma examined the floor again and something nearby caught his eye. He walked over to a little brown waistpack and picked it up. Unzipping the bag, he dumped the contents into his hand. Four sheets of paper fell out. The first one was titled "The NEMESIS Project". It was a report that was two pages long. He called everyone over and read aloud the paper:

*The NEMESIS Project*

*This is a top-secret document only to be observed by Thomas Rea and other supervisors. These are the details of The NEMESIS Project, in which you will be told what to do.*

*NEMESIS is the newest activated bioweapon. His mission is to seek out and destroy the following people in any order:

Mousse
Ukyo Kuonji
Ranma Saotome
Ryoga Hibiki
Shampoo
Tatewaki Kuno
Akane Tendo

The purpose of disposing these "threats" is unknown currently but we are being paid a lot of money to do this job. While NEMESIS does his job, your job is to terminate the following people for their knowledge of the existence of the latest T-Virus Type X:

Allison Nichols
Alex Troy
Eddie Anderson
Drake Phillips

Once NEMESIS has completed his mission, you are expected to fire a tranquilizer dart filled with the T-Virus Type X or "X-Virus" into his heart. The virus will neutralize the creature long enough for his capture. The virus will constantly regenerate broken or torn tissue, muscles, and bones for NEMESIS, making his following missions as good as complete. In addition to eliminating the Umbrella team, the S.T.A.R.S. members are also to be eliminated on sight. They've sent in the only people we're having trouble controlling. They are as follows:

Brad Romine
Ron Bellows
Carl Smith
Cole Simmons
Lisa Johnson

We're counting on you to complete this mission. If you don't...there will be consequences.*

Akane: "Why us? Who would want us dead?"

Ranma: "I don't know, but it looks like I'm next on the list. There's more."

He read the other sheet aloud.

*Instructions for use of the X-VIRUS*

*Step 1:
Inject X-Virus into syringe

Step 2:
Load syringe into shotgun

Step 3:
Aim at NEMESIS' chest

Step 4:
Fire gun

If you fail to stop NEMESIS, escape immediately to the factory on the west side of town. Soon after we establish radio contact, a chopper will be waiting for you outside the contaminated zone (the town) sometime within the next few hours. If we do not receive transmission from you by 0500 hours, we will proceed with Operation: Cleanse by Fire.*

Drake: "I understand now...I shot Thomas, so he must've injected himself with the X-Virus to regenerate his muscles. That monster that killed Cole must've been him."

Lisa: "And with constant regeneration of bone and tissue damage..."

Brad: "He'll be unstoppable."

Ranma read aloud the last page:

*Operation: Cleanse by Fire*

*If we have not received radio contact with you by 0500 hours, we will assume that you are dead and your mission is incomplete, thus causing us to suffer the loss of a great new bioweapon. All evidence pointing to Umbrella will be destroyed via a missile will be launched into the center of the city, eliminating any evidence there is, was, and ever will be that Umbrella created these creatures.*

Kuno: "I think the best course of action would be to get to the radio before 5:00. Who has the time?"

Brad looked at his watch.

Brad: "It's ten after four. How long will it take us to reach the west side of town?"

Akane: "It shouldn't take long, maybe twenty minutes."

Brad: "Ok, we don't have time, so let's go--"

The slamming of a door cut him off. Everyone looked behind them at the door they had come through. Nemesis stood there growling, his flesh burned and his leather clothing gone except for his pants. Tentacles squirmed from behind his back. He roared and charged at the group. He swung a massive fist at Ranma but he ducked it.

Lisa: "Run for it!"

Everyone ran to the other end of the parking lot. Brad shot open the locked door. Once everyone but Ranma was through the door, Brad looked back to see where he was. He was fending off Nemesis so they could escape.

Brad: "Ranma! Come on!"

Ranma: "Just go! Get Akane out of here while I distract him!"

Brad felt helpless. He looked at Ranma and nodded, turning around and catching up with the others. Akane quickly approached him.

Akane: "Where's Ranma?"

Brad: "He's holding off Nemesis. We gotta get out of here!"

Akane: "No, I won't leave him!"

Brad: "Akane, you have to! Come on!"

She tried to run past him, but he got a good hold on her. She could've gotten out of it, but she couldn't put her heart into it. She knew they had to leave, but she felt so shitty about leaving Ranma to fight Nemesis by himself. She let Brad drag her out of the garage.

* * * * *

Ranma jumped up as Nemesis struck. He put his left foot on Nemesis' shoulder and swung his right foot around, connecting it solidly with Nemesis' head. Nemesis groaned and fell onto his knees. Ranma took this opportunity to run back through the door he had come and saw a door. He turned the knob but it wouldn't budge. He looked back towards the door and saw that Nemesis was on his feet again and through the opening.

Ranma: "SHIT!"

He pushed himself back against the wall and kicked the door hard, causing it to swing open. He ran inside and noticed it was a utility room. Before he could move any farther, he felt a giant hand on his shoulder and he cried out as Nemesis picked him up and threw him right into a sink. The impact caused the porcelain to shatter and the pipes broke, spraying cold water all over Ranma and triggering his transformation. Ranma felt a sharp pain in her left arm. It might be broken. She felt Nemesis pick her up again and she stared him in the eye, waiting for the final blow.

Nemesis: "Ranma..."

For a minute, Ranma thought the creature was playing with her. Then she realized what was going on. Nemesis threw her off to one side and left the room.

Nemesis: "Ranma..."

Ranma stared incredibly and thought about what just happened.

Ranma: "He couldn't tell it was me."

She looked around the room and saw what she was looking for. A tea kettle full of hot water sat on the table. She grabbed it and poured it over her head, changing back into a boy. He ran out the door and into the parking lot. He saw Nemesis walking to the other end. He looked down at the floor and saw a manhole. He picked up the cover with some effort and threw it like a frisbee at Nemesis. The manhole cover slammed into his back, causing him to roar in pain. Nemesis turned around and rushed at Ranma. Thinking quick, Ranma jumped into the manhole, followed by Nemesis. Ranma ran as fast as he could through the sewer, towards the west side of town, as far as he could tell.

* * * * *

Finally, Brad and the others reached the factory with five minutes to spare. They split up, looking for the radio. After two minutes, Drake found the radio and a wounded man. He called the others into the room. Everyone piled in and Drake picked up the microphone, speaking into it while Brad and Lisa picked up the wounded man.

Drake: "Hello? This is Drake Phillips, from the Umbrella Biohazard Counter-Measure Force. Do you read me, over?"

Brad: "Who are you?"

Taylor: "My name's Taylor...zombies...they attacked me..."

There were zombie bites all over his right arm and torso. Suddenly, a voice crackled out of the speaker.

Voice: "Drake? What the hell are you doing over there? Where's Thomas?"

Drake: "He's become the Tyrant, sir. He injected himself with the X-Virus."

* * * * *

At Umbrella HQ, Lieutenant Beckett stared at Commander Porter.

Beckett: "He knows about the X-Virus."

Porter: "Then we have to proceed with Operation: Cleanse by Fire. You know what to do."

Beckett: "Yes, sir."

Beckett started turning radio dials back and forth while speaking into the microphone.

* * * * *

They listened as the sound of crackling and broken sentences.

Beckett: "...can't receive......transmissions.....going...wait for....ther......structions.

Drake: "You're breaking up, sir, over."

Beckett: "..stay...ere.......are.........."

The only thing they could hear now was crackling and static. Drake looked at Brad.

Drake: "I think they just went ahead with Operation: Cleanse by Fire."

Brad: "Then we have to get the hell out of the city."

He looked at the radio and noticed a beeping sound coming from somewhere. He left the man to Kuno and Lisa and went to the source of the sound. He found a portable missile radar. He read the screen and turned to the others.

Brad: "We've got fifteen minutes before the missile comes."

* * * * *

Ranma felt his heart racing, but he couldn't stop now. He kept racing towards the end of the tunnel. He could see the opening of the drainage pipe. Risking a look over his shoulder, he saw that Nemesis was quite a ways back, but still chasing him. Ranma was coming up on the end of the tunnel and saw a switch on the wall. He stopped briefly and read it. It said:

*Toxic Chemical Release Valve*

He looked back and saw Nemesis gaining through the pipe. He put one hand on the switch and looked up at the ceiling. A little ways in Nemesis' direction was the pipe that released the chemicals. Ranma waited for Nemesis to run right under it and he pulled the lever, releasing the toxic waste on top of Nemesis. Nemesis roared deafeningly, his skin melting. He rolled into a ball of smoking flesh. His tentacles were twitching, but they made no attempt to attack Ranma. The mass of burned flesh slid into the water and ran down the pipe, passing Ranma, and falling into a ditch full of toxic water below. Ranma watched it and suddenly felt triumphant. He jumped out of the pipe and over the ditch, landing in a field next to the factory. He ran as hard as he could towards the entrance, hoping his friends hadn't left yet.

* * * * *

They scrambled towards the main room, Kuno, Taylor, and Lisa running as quick as they could, when Brad ran right into Ranma. The two fell down and quickly jumped back up. Akane hugged Ranma tightly.

Akane: "I thought you were dead..."

Ranma: "You're hugging me...you must've been really worried."

Akane: "Look, I told you before, don't read anything into it. I'm just glad you're not dead."

Lisa: "What happened to Nemesis?"

Ranma: "I killed the fucker."

Genma: "We have to leave the city, boy."

Ranma: "What happened?"

Kuno: "They've launched the missile."

Ranma: "Alright, I know where--"

There was a loud cracking sound from the wall to the right. They stared at it as the crack in the wall grew larger, until it was standing out from the rest of the wall. With each slam, the group drew back slightly. Finally the wall shattered and a giant steaming ball of flesh and tentacles rolled onto the floor. It began spraying purple and white fluid out of various wounds. It began to twitch and move. The fleshy ball split open, spraying the fluid everywhere. A giant creature began to crawl out of it. Its body was twice the size of Nemesis as it stood up on hind legs. Its neck opened up and a large, beastly head uglier than Nemesis poked out. The beast's giant mouth opened and it roared at them as it fell onto both its front and hind legs, stalking toward them.

Ranma: "Oh my God."

The beast roared again and raised its massive claws, striking Taylor in the shoulder. He screamed as Nemesis' claws ripped his body in half, right down the middle. Kuno and Lisa dropped him and backed away in disgust. The beast turned its attention to Kuno and it walked in his direction, growling his name. Kuno backed into the wall and pulled his bokken, charging the beast with it. He swung it as hard as he could, but it broke. The beast stared at him expectantly.

Kuno: "Your turn."

Nemesis roared again and jumped up on its hind legs, a moment later bringing its mouth down on top of Kuno's head. Ranma could hear Kuno's muffled screams from inside the beast's mouth as it's long, jagged teeth ripped through his neck, tearing Kuno's head off. His body hit the floor, convulsing violently. The best turned toward Ranma and Akane, preparing to pounce at them when, suddenly, the Tyrant dropped on top of Nemesis from the ceiling. Nemesis fought with all its might as the Tyrant relentlessly slashed it to pieces, stopping Nemesis once and for all. Drake noted how different the Tyrant looked from the last time he saw it. It had gotten a lot bigger and more powerful. What was most noticeable was that it had grown four extra arms which were huge and muscular. The Tyrant's face had changed from that of looking something like Thomas to that of an alien. Its eyes were large and glowing red and its mouth was impossibly big and full of spiked teeth. It turned to face what was left of the group and uttered something in a guttural voice.

Tyrant: "I'll kill you myself."

Planning to smash Brad into dust, it rushed at him. Brad saw it coming and ducked out of the way, causing the Tyrant to slam into the wall face first, knocking it to the floor. The group took what was left of their ammo and loaded the shotguns quickly. When Tyrant stood up again, they opened fire.

* * * * *

After all their ammo was depleted on the Tyrant, they went outside. Brad read the radar screen again.

Brad: "We're not going to make it. We've got less than five minutes."

Ranma: "So, I guess this is it, then...what a way to go."

Akane: "At least we're going out knowing we saved the world, right?"

In the distance, Drake could hear a buzzing sound. He looked out into the sky. It was still a little too dark to see where the sound was coming from, but he thought he knew what it was.

Drake: "Listen, everyone! A chopper!"

They began to listen. Sure enough, a chopper came into view and set down in the field next to the factory. The group ran for the chopper. As they ran, they heard what sounded like an explosion coming from the factory. Ranma looked back and saw that the Tyrant had broken through the wall. It ran after them. Ranma yelled to the rest of the group.

Ranma: "SHIT! KEEP GOING! DON'T STOP!"

The Tyrant was gaining on them. As soon as they reached the helicopter, they all jumped in.

Ranma: "The Tyrant's coming!"

He looked back into the field and saw the Tyrant, one giant clawed hand raised as it rushed toward the helicopter. The pilot turned around and handed a large gun to Ranma. Ranma immediately took position and aimed at the Tyrant through the scope of the rocket launcher. He fired one at the Tyrant, watching as it blew a hole right into its ribcage. Unfortunately, that didn't stop it. Ranma scowled and fired again and again. When the fourth rocket hit, the Tyrant exploded into pieces. Ranma set the rocket launcher down and the pilot lifted the chopper into the air, flying away. Brad leaned forward and spoke to the pilot.

Brad: "Thanks...who are you?"

Chris: "Chris Redfield of the S.T.A.R.S. Alpha Team. You're with the Delta Team, right?"

Brad: "Uh, yeah. Yeah, name's Brad Romine. How did you know...?"

Chris: "Where to find you? I tapped into Umbrella's communications. Lucky for you that I ran across your message in time."

Lisa looked out the window. The sun was coming up and she could see the missile approaching the town at a rapid speed.

Lisa: "It's here!"

They watched as the missile passed by the chopper and landed in the center of Nerima, erasing the entire city of the face of the Earth.

Ranma: "No more Nerima..."

For a moment, everyone remained silent. Ranma turned and faced Akane.

Ranma: "Akane?"

She looked at him. He leaned in close and kissed her. She didn't hesitate to kiss back. Once it was over, they opened their eyes.

Ranma: "Don't read anything into that."

She slapped him playfully on the shoulder and they smiled.

Lisa: "So now what?"

Brad: "Now we bring down Umbrella."

The chopper flew off into the morning sky, no one really caring where they were going. Their homes were gone, their friends were gone...nothing would be the same for any of them again.

THE END

-------------------------------------------------------------------- ---
Author's Notes: This has to be the longest fanfic I've ever written. I had fun with this one really. The whole time, I was thinking, "Now what would happen if this were Resident Evil?" There'd be conspiracies and monsters everywhere, that's what would happen. So I mixed the idea of Nemesis versus Ranma versus the Tyrant. All in all, I'm happy with the end result. So happy, I might add, that there may be a sequel sometime in the future. That's it for now, kids.

ranma_male@yahoo.com
----------------------------------------- ------------------------------