The FFML Refugee List

--------------------------- ListBot Sponsor --------------------------
Start Your Own FREE Email List at http://www.listbot.com/links/joinlb
----------------------------------------------------------------------



And on to the next part at last:

	$Yeah, I'll second that.

	<snip>

A low growl issued from deep in Shampoo's throat. Her trainer's
relentless,
and brazen, criticism was irritating her again. It always did that. It
was
like he knew exactly the right buttons to push that would set her off,
and
he had a tendency to gleefully hit them all at the same time. The
problem
was further compounded by their current location. With the small room
they
had been assigned, there was no refuge from either the foul man or his
equally aggravating comments. "Maybe I should fight topless!"

"That's one way to get the crowd to back you."

	$Umm, I'm not sure, but I think they'd rather be in front.

Shampoo could barely restrain herself from hitting him. This was what
happened when one had to share their quarters with their
trainer/mentor/bane-to-their-existence. The only saving grace was that
the
room signified they had moved up in the world. Instead of the converted

	$Signified that they

	<snip>

A loud belch resounded through the room. "Whoa! That tasted a lot better
going down than it did coming back up."

His personality though, that went right to the top.

"You're a pig," Shampoo said acidly.

"Yah, all men are."

	$Not true!  I myself am an ass.

Shampoo was surprised with his agreement at the declaration. Most men
would
have protested it ardently, even if it was the truth.

"Of course, so are all of you women. Us guys are just more open about
it."

	<snip>

But with Jaddo it was very different. Her great-grandmother had enough
tact
to not make one feel too bad about losing an argument. Sometimes it felt
good to understand the older woman's point of view, which turned out to
make
more sense. When it came to Jaddo, he was the exact opposite and would
rub
one's nose in their error, making them feel like they had been stupid
for
even considering such notions. It was almost a reflex with him. Shampoo
knew
there were several instances where he could have softened the blow when
pointing out how wrong she was, but instead it was like he pulled out a
bag
of salt and rubbed it in the open wound he had made, laughing about it
the
entire time. It was small wonder that she had resisted on numerous
occasions
the urge to strangle the man in his sleep.

	$Hmm...  It was a small wonder that she frequently had to resist the
urge to strangle him in his sleep.

There was one characteristic about him she did like, one that most men
would
not have been able to claim, at least in her somewhat limited
experience; he
never expressed the least bit of sexual interest in her. It wasn't that
he
thought she was unattractive, he openly acknowledged that she was very
beautiful, but he treated it solely as a talent, no different from a
fighting skill. That a warrior should use her looks in actual combat was
an
odd concept to a woman raised among the Joketsuzoku. A warrior relied on
her
combat skills, not her appearance, at least in physical combat. In the
battlefield of the heart, it was an altogether different story. You used
any

	$heart it

resource at hand, looks first and foremost.

	<snip>

Jaddo was easily the man most disinterested in her looks that Shampoo
had
ever met.

	$Bit awkward that.  Maybe, Of all the men Shampoo had ever met, Jaddo
was easily the most disinterested in her looks.

 She would have sworn he was gay, had it not been for the comments
and burning stares he frequently gave other women he came across in the
various towns they passed through in their travels. There were many he
cast
very amorous looks to, and he was not very picky about their appearance.
Many of them Shampoo regarded as unattractive, and it was not based on
their
lack of fighting ability. About the only women he expressed no interest
in
were fighters, even the hardened type she thought he would like.

	$What about the chick from the village?  Or does he have to go for the
fighters in a village where everyone is a fighter?

 The only
explanation Shampoo could come up with was that over the years he had
become
unable to deal with female warriors in anything other than a
professional
sense. Or perhaps it was because such women knew how to beat the hell
out of
him when he said made some inevitably rude comment about them. At least
that
made sense to Shampoo. If there was some other reason he avoided such
women,
she was unable to figure it out. Still, the mutual lack of attraction
made
that aspect of their relationship easy to deal with.

	<snip>

But things were going too slowly. She wanted to go to the Arena, and she
wanted to be there yesterday. "Jaddo?" She always called him by his
proper
name, at least when she wasn't referring to him in terms that would make
even her occasionally foul-mouthed mother blush. It seemed the aborigine
disliked titles, at least ones attached to him. It was practically the
opposite of the village, where you called an elder an elder or were
whacked
in your head for the disrespect. But the one time she had tried to call
him

	$or had your head wacked for the disrespect.

teacher, he expressed his thoughts, in graphic detail, about being
called
anything but his proper name by her. It was ridiculous. Animals would
not do
the sort of things he implied, especially with people.

	$I dunno, there's a definte niche in the internet porn industry.

"What?" Jaddo gave her his full attention.

	<snip>

Shampoo decided to get the crowd, already hostile to the woman, more
into
it. She pranced slightly, while making sure not to leave herself
vulnerable
to an attack, for the audience's benefit. They responded, especially the
men, by cheering Shampoo on further. Small surprise considering she was
by
far the more attractive of the fighters. Truly, looks mattered to them
almost as much as skill. Deciding to excite them further, Shampoo
feinted an

	$Almost as much?  I doubt it.  More like far more.

attack that elicited another cheer, and subsequent boo when her opponent
backed away again.


	<snip>

He was little more than two sentences into the speech when Shampoo
ripped
the microphone out of his hand and began speaking into it. The public
announcement system was old and carried a bonded a bit of static to
every
word, but it still served well enough to carry the young Amazon's voice
over

	$old and added a bit of static to every word

the general din of conversation that inevitably erupted in-between the
matches.


	<snip>

Working up her courage, she shouted into the microphone, "And as a
reward,
should you win, not only will you claim victory over an undefeated
opponent,
but as per the laws of my people, the Joketsuzoku, I will become the
wife of
any man that can defeat me in one-on-one combat."

	$I don't like this.  Shampoo is specifically leaving the village to
participate in organized tournaments, and she's more than likely going
to lose at least a few times.  I'd figure the elders would arrange for a
special suspension of the normal rules, unless Shampoo wanted to marry
the poor shmuck.  Although, she might could turn that to an advantage if
she was going up against a guy that was already married and didn't want
to have to marry her.  And what if a woman beat her?  She'd have to kill
her, and I doubt the elders would want to endanger her chances of
winning citizenship by having her mixed up with the law.  I'm willing to
bet that the Empire frowns on murder.  Not suspending the regular Amazon
laws would seriously hurt the village's plans of having Shampoo become a
citizen, and any society that cannot adapt is going to die.  In this
case, I'd suggest having the elders say something like 'For this
mission, you are outside the boundaries of Amazon law while you fight
your matches.  Outside the arena, you still have to obey.  Try to bring
back a strong husband.  *wink*'  And for Shampoo's enticement to get the
men to fight, she could simply stretch a point and omit the full
explaination.  All she has to do is mention her laws, but not actually
admit that she didn't have to follow them at the time.  She's not
planning on losing, anyway.  Also, when word gets around in future
matches, it could really cause problems.  Unless you've got something
planned for this already, I'd suggest rethinking this.


The crowd went silent for a moment, processing the information they had
just
been given. Once it finally settled in, they reacted with a thunderous
roar
of approval that was deafening. Likewise, when Shampoo spared another
glance

	$Delete 'that was deafening'

to the fighters still in the warm up area, she saw that they too, after
a
moment of processing the new information, reacted in approval as they
raced
to see who would be the first to get to the entrance to the pit. The
final
things she did was force herself to look at Jaddo, who seemed even
angrier
than before. It was unfortunate that he was being so intractable, but he
was
too cautious. She needed nine victories to advance, and there wasn't a
single reason in the world why she could not get them tonight.

	$Heh.  She's so naive.

	<snip>

Now Shampoo started to fully understand the main drawback to her plan.
By
now most of the men she had fought in previous matches had heard of her
reputation and record and took her seriously, but with the announcement
that
if they could defeat her they could bed her, it appeared this lots'
higher
functions had disappeared as their testosterone took over. Her mother
had
always said that was what usually happened to men. Wave an attractive
woman
around them that carried the promise of pleasure, and their brains
relocated
to the object between their legs. It appeared her mother had been
absolutely
correct in her assessment of the members of the opposite gender.

	$Mom: Now Shampoo, the members of the opposite gender are frequently
smaller than you would think they would be, but never tell the man that.
Always tell him it's the biggest thing you've ever seen, and you'll be
able to lead him by the nose where ever you want him to go.


	<snip>

That wouldn't do. She needed one more victory for thirty-six. For a
moment,
Shampoo considered trying to urge one of the men forward by either
posing
for them or insulting their manhood, but then reconsidered. She was out
of
breath, and far more vulnerable to an attack than at the start of the
night,
than at any point in her career in the fighters' circuit so far.
Mistakes

	$breath and far...night, more so than at

could be made, especially if she underestimated the skills of any of the
men
beforehand. The last thing in the world she needed to do was find
herself
married before even getting out of the dog pits of her homeland.

Standing firm and making it appear as though she was just as ready as
she
had been for her first match, Shampoo looked to the group of fighters
and
asked, "No more?"

The remaining fighters either responded by shaking their heads or
walking
away. That settled things, and Shampoo felt as though a great burden had
been lifted from her shoulders. She gave a triumphant cry to the air,
which
was responded to by the loudest roar yet from the crowd. As Shampoo
exited
the pit and headed towards the dorms, she could hear the people speak in
awe
of the spectacle being unlike any other they had seen. The young girl
felt

	$Hmm...  speak in awed tones that the spectacle was unlike any other
they

her pride grow at the declaration, even if it had been a tiring affair.
They
would remember this night for a long time to come.


	<snip>

Shampoo was unaware of exactly what happened next. She certainly didn't
see
it, but rather felt it as a hand grabbed her by the bottom of her jaw
and a
foot lashed out at the back of her legs. The next thing she felt was a
sensation of flying in mid-air, though not for long as the hand on her
jaw
forced the back of her head to crash down hard on the tile that lined
the
floor of the dorms. It seemed the rest of her body had only just
followed
suit when she felt something grab the backs of her ankles and force them
over her head, pinning them with a heavy weight to the floor. Now she
was
practically bent into a ball, her head and shoulders trapped underneath
her
while her bottom had become the highest point of her body, sticking up
in
the air. Luckily she had been wearing pants instead of one of her
outfits
that ended just below her derriere, or else her panty-covered bottom
would
have been on display for the whole world to see.

	$What about her arms?  Those are pretty important too.

It took her a moment to realize that it was Jaddo who had put her down
and
pinned her in this humiliating position. From the feel of things, he was
now
sitting on the backs of her ankles, pinning them down and preventing her
from moving. Only the gods above knew what his hands were preparing to
do,
as she did not feel them anywhere on her person.

A panic unlike any other set in as Shampoo struggled in vain to remove
herself from the pinning predicament Jaddo had her placed her in. But
even
with her tremendous strength, there was no leverage to be had, and
Jaddo, in
spite of his age, was far too strong to overpower with the advantage in
position he had. That did not stop her from struggling as she wiggled
and
tried to break free, but Jaddo continued to hold her in place. Her heart
raced even faster as she realized that it was impossible to escape, no
matter how hard she tried. Even her arms were useless in the position
they
were in.

	$Ah, but what is that position?

 It was like being stuck in a spider's web, and no matter how hard
she struggled, all she managed to do was exhaust herself while not
coming
close to gaining her freedom.

Shampoo felt in icy hand clutch her heart as Jaddo said from his
position
above her, "Not a man in this place that can defeat you, eh?"

Slowly, the horror of what had just happened set in. He had defeated
her.
She might not have been prepared for the attack, but she had made a
direct
challenge to him by stating to his face that no man here could beat her.
She
had not been considering him when she uttered that statement, but the
truth
was it technically included him; there was not an elder alive that would
claim otherwise. Nor would they claim she was anything but beaten with
the
untenable position she was in. Her heart sank until it stopped somewhere
in
her the bottom of her gut.

	$Like I said earilier, you could still have the impact of the
situation, but avoid some of the complications of the ring if the elders
gave her the right instructions.


	<snip>

Seeing the confusion on his 'wife's face, Jaddo gave another exasperated
sigh and said, "I've got no seeds to plant the furrow with. All goes
back to
a nasty injury I took to the balls towards the end of my career. The
blow
was delivered by a woman, by the way."

	$Later, when Shampoo thought about it, it made sense.  He had probably
managed to seriously piss her off with another one of his comments, and
the twins had paid the price.

The way he said the last was like it was an accusation directed to
Shampoo.
"I still don't get it."

"Didn't you learn basic biology?!" Jaddo snapped.

"Yes."

"Then you know all about where kids come from. Sperm mixes with the egg
in
the woman and she gets knocked up. Then there's nine months of weight
gain
and a perceived license to bitch constantly until out pops the kid, and
then
the woman still acts as bitchy as when she was pregnant."

It was getting extremely difficult for Shampoo to resist bludgeoning her
new
husband to death.

Jaddo stated proudly, "Well, in my case, I don't have the little
swimmers
running around in my spooge, so I can't knock up anyone no matter how
hard I

	$Think splooge would be better.

try. Not that I have any desire to take care of some whining brat until
it
turns into a teenager and then I have to kill it before it runs amok, or
worse, turns out like you."

	<snip>


He tipped his hat to her. "Yah, damn straight I am. And since we ain't
married, you don't have the right to bitch at me for having a good ole'
time
all night long."

	$Jaddo: Yah, I'm gong to have a good time _all_ _night_ _long_,
hehehehe.

The smirk he wore irritated Shampoo to no end. There were many men who
would
have been proud to have her as their wife. That she had so many people
willing to fight her earlier had proven that. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to a whorehouse. It's where they sell whores.

	$Damn, he found a place where they sell them?  Most places I know they
only rent them by the hour.  Heh, I keep waiting to see one where they
offer lease with opition to buy.

 Want me to bring
one back for you?"


	<snip>

Shampoo was just about to go back to sleep when she detected a second
sound
come from another area in the room. She was about to rise when a body
fell
hard directly upon her. The unexpected impact knocked the wind out of
her,
and by the time she recovered, a beefy hand was clamped over her mouth
and a
cold line of steel find itself pressed against her throat.

	$steel was pressed


"Not a sound, bitch," a deep voice quietly hissed.

The edge of the knife pressed ever so slightly into Shampoo's flesh. She
felt a faint moistness form under the cold touch and caress her skin; a
clear indication the knife wielder meant business. In response to the
threat
Shampoo went limp, though her mind raced along as quickly as her pulse
as
she tried to figure out exactly what was going on.

The knife wielder spoke again, and this time Shampoo recognized the
voice as
belonging to the first person to answer her challenge: Kwon Ching. "Get
a
light going and close the door behind you."

	$And get in line.

For the first time Shampoo became aware of the presence of others in the
room. Her eyes traveled from Kwon, who was almost comical in appearance
with
the way his broken nose was bandaged up, to scan the room. She looked as
best she could with her head being held motionless. To the left of Kwon
was
another of the men that had challenged her and lost. She thought his
name
was Yun, who she had disliked the most. He had not said a word during
their
entire fight, but he did not have to; his eyes had spoken volumes for
what
ran through his thoughts. They were doing the same now, as he pulled the
covers from her and allowed his eyes to rove over her form. In spite of
the
clothing she wore, she felt naked under the lustful gaze. Much to
Shampoo's

	$Suggest 'his lustful gaze.'

relief, he and his stare moved out of her direct line of sight as his
form
became hidden behind Kwon's impressive bulk.

A third man was just visible out of the corner of her vision. He stood
off
to the side, away from the others and appeared slightly unsure of what
to
do. She was fairly certain he was another of the men that had challenged
her. Wai, or something.

	$Wai!

The fourth she spotted next to the lightswitch near the door. He was the
youngest of the quartet, no more than a couple of years older than
Shampoo.
Hung, if she recalled correctly in her panicked state. He was the one
that
had managed to hit her in the eye and caused it to blacken. Unlike the
others, he appeared afraid, as though he would bolt at any second. Even
from
her prone position, Shampoo could see his hand trembling visible on the
doorknob as he drew it close.

	$closed.

Despite the orders to the others, Kwon kept his eyes riveted on Shampoo,
holding tight to both her mouth and his knife, not allowing it to waver
in
the least. Up close, she could smell the foul odor of some cheap liquor
decorating his breath. It was a hundred times worse than even Jaddo
could
smell on the biggest of his all-night benders.

	$Yeah, but that was because Jaddo tended to drink his rather than wear
it.

 "You're going to get it now,
you little bitch. You're going to get exactly what's coming to you."


	<snip>

Despite the drinks he had consumed, Kwon kept his attention riveted
solely
on his prey. It was not the first time some little bitch had denied him
his
due, and he had to take it from them, but most of the teases were
compliant

	$due and he


	<snip>

And then he felt something clamp around his wrist, the one with the
knife,
holding it in a grip as powerful as any vice. Before Kwon could voice a
protest, his wrist was driven backward towards him, and the knife buried
itself to the hilt in his chest, right below the collarbone.

	$towards him, burying the knife in his chest so deeply the hilt rested
against his collarbone.

And suddenly it was Kwon Ching whose life was in danger.

The distraction, though only for the briefest of moments, was all the
opening Shampoo needed. The Dragon Rage was set loose upon the world.
Her
body, which had already been cascaded with a volatile mix of adrenaline,
endorphins, and a host of other chemicals, and was prepared to react. In
the
blink of an eye, Kwon's hand was in an unbreakable grip of Shampoo's
own.
Effortlessly, she drove the blade home into Kwon himself, taking him out
of
the fight.

	$Ah, but she just did that.  Unless you mean she did it again.  That
needs reworking.

	<snip>


Hung turned and ran, cutting through the halls to the nearest exit to
the
dorm. He didn't bother looking back, for all that would do was throw off
his
rhythm.

	$Good call.  You're already going as fast as you can go, so nothing
back there can make you go any faster.  And strange objects frequently
jump out in front of you when you're not looking.

	It's sort of too bad for him that she's a girl.  No man can run naked
for very long, much less do it very fast.

	<snip>

He was almost halfway there when the burning in the muscles of his legs
slowed him down further. It felt like someone had stuck hot coals under
his
skin and directly to his hamstrings and calves as the burning became
worse
with each step he took. No longer was he able to run effectively, no
matter
how much his spirit wanted to. His body was reaching its physical limit,
and
perhaps even beyond. Each footfall sounded like a cannon shot as his
feet
slammed to the soft earth below his feet. He had to concentrate and
focus,

	$soft earth.

forcing his legs one in front of another as his lungs began gasping

	$forcing himself to put one leg in front of the other as his

increasingly harder, trying to take in and covert more oxygen for their
use.

	<snip>

 -And then the world really was spinning as a heavy weight crashed into
his
back and into the grove. He fell to the ground, sliding a considerable
distance down the hill that had been hidden on the other side of the
trees.
Hung's skin on his knees and legs tore off in large patches as he fell
across several rocks that stuck out of the ground he on the hill he was
rolling down. Then the bottom came, and the most he managed to do was
roll

	$ground.  Delete the rest.

with the impact so that he was lying on his back instead of stomach. But
it
was so hard to even think, let alone regain his footing and try to run
again. He doubted he could, with the raging torrent of pain that was
coming
from both of his lower limbs, only some of it from the shredding of
flesh on
stone. He could barely breathe with the red hot pokers of pain that were
stabbing through the delicate tissue in the walls of his lungs.

And then what little breath had remained in his lungs was knocked out as
Shampoo fell hard across his chest. She maintained a sitting position on
his
upper body, pinning him helplessly to the ground.

	$Look on the bright side.  At least he's got a beautiful young woman
pressing her naked crotch into his chest.

 Her hands snaked around
his throat, preventing even the slightest intake to regain his breath.
Instead, Hung flailed weakly, helplessly against her hands as they
constricted  ever so slowly around his windpipe, threatening to break
both

	$Extra space between 'consticted' and 'ever'

it and his neck.

Shampoo was still in the midst of the Dragon Rage as she straddled her
opponent and slowly squeezed the life out of him. She was enraged that
he
had tried to escape her divine retribution for the heinous acts he and
his
associates had committed. The others had all paid for their actions, but
this one had been cowardly and tried to flee instead of turning to face
his
inevitable fate. He had made her expend a great deal of energy in
running
him down. He would pay for that offense as well. He would pay for it in
the
slow delivery of pain instead of quick before the end.

	$instead of a quick end.


	<snip>

But wasn't it Hung's final protestation that had allowed Shampoo the
opportunity to free herself? Would she have been able to do what she had
to
Kwon if he had not been distracted for that split second? It was so hard
to
think. What should she do? Kill or not kill the animal? Which was the
proper
choice?

	$To kill or not to kill, that is indeed the question.  Bah, what the
hell.  Kill him.  There's always more.

xxxxxxxxxx

Jaddo was looking over the grounds around the dorm with a careful eye.
It
was times like this he damned that he had never learned proper tracking
skills from his father. That old bastard, when he was still alive, had
been
able to track an ant ten miles through pitch blackness in a drunken
stupor
if he had so chosen, but not Jaddo. No sir, he couldn't track a marching
band through five miles of flat, pristine snow without a map and a
guide.
All he knew how to do was fight until he was crippled and screw up young
girls' lives when they needed him the most.

Jaddo was still trying to find some clue as to which direction Shampoo
had
run when she slowly came into view from a cluster of trees that weren't
that
far away. She was walking dejectedly, but appeared physically unharmed
save
for a small red stain on her neck. Other wounds though, ones that didn't
leave their mark on the outside and that were more difficult to heal,
that
would be another story.

	$So we're not going to get into them here, this being a story of her
fights in the tournaments.

He walked towards her, uncertain of exactly what to say in this sort of
situation. As he drew closer, he noted that the pants she wore were not
a
pair that she owned.

	$Shampoo: Finders keepers.  It's not like he needed them any more.


	<snip>

So that was the way it was going to be. Jaddo thought he might have
understood. "It didn't take much to figure out what happened, not with
the
scene I found. I got here about the same time as the authorities. You
did
good work on them assholes. Docs said broken pelvis and internal
bleeding on
one, probably lose at least his spleen, and he'll walk worse than me
when he
gets back to his feet, if he ever does. Same as that guy with the knife
in
his chest. Broke his spine good. No chance he'll ever have another
sensation
from below his waist. A case of justice there. Fractured skull on the
last
one. Docs are fairly certain they can keep him alive, meaning he'll be a
vegetable the rest of his life. Real fine work."

	$Judging by the amount of effort you devoted to describing him and his
actions, I think Wai was already a vegetable.  Hell, you might as well
refer to him as 'the third guy' and be done with it.

	<snip>

He did the only thing he could think of: tell her the truth. He stroked
her
hair with his hand, and said in the softest voice he could muster, "I
won't
hurt you, Shan Pu. I'm not like those men. You know that. I'd give my
life
for you if I had to. I swear it. You'll never have to fear me. Never. So
you
just let it out. Let it all out, and I promise I'll be there for you as
long
as you need me, no matter what. No matter what."

And Shampoo cried even harder and held ever tighter, and Jaddo remained
where he was, holding her the entire time, a single tear glistening in
his
eye as well.

It was the first one he had shed in over twenty years.

	$Aww, how sweet.  The old bastard has a heart of gold after all.  And I
bet Shampoo realizes it after this.


	Well, that was certianly interesting.  Looking forward to the next
chapter.


	And I C&C on!  I'm going to get through this backlog if it kills
someone.


-Ragun


______________________________________________________________________
To unsubscribe, write to FFMLRefuge-unsubscribe@listbot.com
-
.---              Patch Monkey's FFML                ---.
| Administrators - owner-ffml@patchmonkey.net  |
| Unsubscribing - majordomo@patchmonkey.net  |
| Put 'unsubscribe ffml' in the body of your e-mail. |
-------- http://www.patchmonkey.net ----------