An Unnatural Thing

Chapter 4: They meet

"Hey Ryu! Glad you could make it buddy!" Ken Masters grinned widely as he clapped his friend on the shoulder. "How was the flight?"

"It was good." Ryu replied noncommittally, looking straight ahead as he continued to ponder the previous days events, duffle bag slung over his shoulder.

Ken noticed as he leaned forward slightly, gazing at Ryu's intent gaze. "Thinking about that chi?" He asked, all serious.

Ryu nodded, not saying a word. They worked their way past the crowds, avoiding some families with small children, and being avoided by pick-pockets. It was probably a plus in their book. Shops where bustling, filled with passengers moving to their connecting flights and grabbing something quickly before they boarded.

Finally Ryu commented, "I don't know what we can do Ken. It was…so strong."

Ken waved the comment off with his free hand. "Oh come on, we can take anything together. What's really getting you?"

"That chi…it touched me. Deep within."

Ken's face hardened. He knew exactly what his friend was talking about. The Dark Hadou. Ryu continued.

"I fear that if we find whatever it was that created that incredible chi that it will draw me in. That I will give into the Dark Hadou, possibly willingly."

"That's bogus and you know it. You swore you'd never use it again and you've managed to stick to that promise." Ken pointed out as they moved past a group of Japanese schoolgirls, all chattering wildly.

"I know, but what if I'm not able to?" Ryu replied as he glanced at his friend. Behind them they could hear one of the girls suddenly exclaim in an almost revered tone to her friends.

Ken shrugged. "We'll deal with it if we have to." He held out his fist, prompting Ryu to use one of his own to punch it lightly.

"Yea, we will." Ryu smiled slightly, cheered somewhat.

"Um…excuse me…" A young female voice interrupted from behind. They stopped and turned, partially wary, and partially curious.

Before them stood a young woman with long brown hair, wearing a light brown skirt, a long sleeved blouse and two light green beads in her hair. Her eyes were filled with curiosity, hooded awe, and hope. "Are…are you Ken Masters and Ryu?" Behind her were the rest of the group of girls, backpacks on their backs and all wearing slightly bemused, ironic, or wry expressions on their faces.

Ken smirked. For once he was named first before his better known compatriot. "Yea, I'm Ken Masters."

The woman's eyes brightened a bit as she turned to Ryu. "And you're Ryu?" It was more a statement than a question.

"Uh…yea, I am." Ryu felt a drop of sweat slide down the side of his head. He hoped beyond hope this wasn't going to be another fanatic fan desiring to be trained. One Sakura was more than enough, and he had a hard enough time dodging that girl as it was.

Her face broke out into a wide grin as her eyes flashed in total joy. "Oh my god it is you!! I thought it was you, but I had to be sure! It's both of you!!" She jumped up and down a couple times, unable to contain her excitement.

"Wow…I've never seen her like this." One of her friends commented in surprise.

"Indeed." A short blue-haired girl agreed, blinking.

Ryu and Ken could only watch, one wary and the other bemused as the girl would start and then stop a sentence, take a breath, and attempt again, only to loose her train of thought in a flurry of excitement. It was obvious she had many questions. Try as she might though, she couldn't get just one out; all of them attempted to escape her lips at the same time.

"How'd you…Why you…Can you show…Is there a tourn-...Always wanted to fight you." Lita finally managed to spit at least one complete sentence out, her eyes bright with challenge. Her friends were totally lost.

"Uh…Lita? Who are they?" Serena asked, scratching her head.

"Oh, sorry guys! This is Ken Masters and Ryu! They're famous street fighters, probably two of the best in the world!"

It dawned on them now why she was so flabbergasted. To her, they were in the presence of two celebrities.

Ken chuckled. "Well, I don't know about famous, but I'll take the compliment any time." He winked at Lita, who blushed furiously. Ryu just rolled his eyes.

"S-so, which of you two is the strongest?" Lita finally managed to ask, prompting the two friends to look at each other.

Before either could respond a gruff voice spoke up behind the duo. "Who're yer friends Lita?" Ken and Ryu turned to face them, with Ken instantly recognizing the owner of the voice.

"You?" Both Ken and Wolverine exclaimed lightly, a bit surprised to be running into each other yet again. Wolverine was especially annoyed; he should have sniffed the man out and recognized him long before he asked the question. He must have been more on edge than he thought.

Cyclops looked at his comrade. "You know him?"

"In a way. We ran into each other earlier while we were waiting." Logan didn't break eye contact with the man, still noticing the same confidence and strength as before. Ken smirked slightly in response.

"Yea, something like that." He chuckled. "Though I wasn't paying that close attention."

Rogue hummed appreciatively as she gazed at the two. "You sure know how to pick'em. Hiya…I'm Rogue." She walked forward as she greeted him, holding out a gloved hand.

"Ken Masters." He replied, gripping her hand in a strong sure grip, finding hers to be easily just as strong. "More to her than her hot looks that's for sure". He thought to himself.

"Ken Masters huh?" Wolverine commented, his respect for the man going up a notch. "You the street fighter?"

Ken was grinning now. "Yup. Didn't realize I was so well known." He scratched the back of his head, genuinely surprised. Ryu sighed, leaving the theatrics to his friend.

"Yea, I've heard of ya. You and your friend, Ryu." Wolverine's gaze moved to Ryu. Unlike Lita, he was positive that was who this man was.

Cyclops shrugged as he turned to Serena's group. "Well at least you weren't kept waiting." He smiled lightly as he walked up to them.

"Oh no, we were actually watching Lita fall for Ken here." Serena teased, while Lita blushed an incredibly deep crimson. Whether it was from rage or embaressment, it was hard to tell.

"…I was not falling for Ken!" She finally ground out.

Ken blinked in surprise. "Hey now, there was none of that going on here. Besides, I'm happily engaged."

"Really? Aww, too bad sugah. I was looking for someone in the market too." Rogue smirked, winking. Gambit just shook his head, knowing full well she was playing around. Her mutant ability to take a person's powers and memories at a mere touch kept nearly all beings at arms length, except for a handful, of which he was one of the lucky ones.

"Well…I hear my friend is AKGROOMPH!!" Ken choked out as Ryu promptly slung an arm around his shoulders and rather none-too-lightly squeezed. "Maybe some other time…we're kinda in a hurry." Ryu said apologetically, slowly starting to pull his friend aside. Lita gazed somewhat sadly; so many questions unanswered, and a wish unfulfilled. The others either just watched with a slight laugh or a raised eyebrow.

Before the two managed to get even a foot away, a loud crackle was heard above them. Energy roiled through the air as lightning struck at several objects, sending people ducking for cover. The only ones who didn't run were the Xmen, Scouts and two fighters, all gazing at the roof as the lightning started to converge at a single point.

"What's that?" Serena asked, as a small blue visor appeared over Ami's eyes, attempting to scan the anomaly.

"Spread out people, this could be part of what Logan warned us about." Cyclops said calmly, gazing upwards as he took up a ready stance. The Xmen spread out a bit, each taking up a ready stance. Ken and Ryu missed it, so engrossed they were at what they were looking at. The hair on the backs of their necks was on end at the amount of energy flowing through the air, and they unconsciously moved into ready stances as well, arms up and ready.

The Scouts had also spread out slightly, mostly to avoid the stray bolts of lightning that struck out, yet also unable to get fully ready. "Could this be an attack by the Negaverse?" Raye asked, feeling exposed as they were untransformed.

"I can't tell." Ami said, tapping some keys on her Mercury computer. "It's another dimension, but I can't tell much more than that. There's too much power and interference. Whatever it is, it's making a huge effort to get here."

The convergence started to grow as more and more lightning struck about with greater ferocity and frequency. The crackle and thunder of the lightning rolled throughout the airport, as a strong wind picked up, sending loose papers flying. The airport cops stayed a far distance from it, unable to force themselves to get any closer. A couple attempted to call to the group under the tear, but their voices were drowned out instantly. The hole suddenly grew large and stabilized somewhat, becoming an irregularly shaped opening with a purplish-yellow center flowing and rippling like water.

"Well…that doesn't seem to be that bad." Rogue said lightly, but she didn't relax.

"Keep on your toes, this could just be a start." Cyclops responded. "Jean, can you sense anything?"

Jean Gray's eyes were slightly squinted as she attempted to reach out with her mind, but it seemed as if the portal refused to allow any entry. "No…I can't seem to get anything. It's like a wall that I can't--wait! I do sense something now…something big is trying to get through!"

"I concur, something with great power is trying to push its way through." Ami agreed, the readings on her computer threatening to destroy it, so powerful the energy was that it detected.

"You ready buddy?" Ken asked, standing in a ready stance.

"I'm ready for anything." Ryu replied, in a side-horse stance.

Suddenly a loud crack was heard, followed by a flicker of psuedomotion to the hard marble floor before the group. The portal suddenly collapsed with a snap, gone as if it had never appeared.

That was past their concern though. All eyes were locked on the sudden appearance of a large yellow glowing group before them, a strong warble filling the air before slowly fading with the light.

"We-we made it…" A young woman commented wearily before suddenly dropping to the floor, clutching her body as if in great pain. A short man in red and gray sweats also dropped, clutching himself as well. "G-Goku…r-remind me not to refer you to an airline for trans-dimensional travel." He managed to grunt out.

"Krillin! Videl!" The man in the center exclaimed, bending down towards them, as did all but one of them. A short man with a pronounced widow's peak gazed at the Xmen, Scouts and two fighters with a hard eye, ignoring his two fallen comrades.

"Who are they?" Mina asked, shivering slightly from under his gaze.

Wolverine sniffed and growled slightly. "I dunno, but they smell like trouble to me." His claws extended instantly with a shinnk!

"Hold it! Let's not jump to conclusions yet." Cyclops commanded, his hand near his ruby glasses, ready to pull them off in an instant if need.

"Just so long as they don't jump first." Gambit replied, his staff in hand and ready.

"Jean?" The leader of the Xmen turned to his wife, who nodded and looked at the short man, trying to read his mind.

The man just continued to glare, almost with contempt. "How pathetic. That fool Kakarot couldn't possible have used them to focus on. They don't have hardly any power to speak of." Jean read, to which she couldn't help but prove him slightly wrong.

"Don't be so sure about that." She sent, getting an instant reaction. He looked somewhat surprised, and then glared once again.

"Begone woman!" Was the last thing she heard before his mind seemed to forcibly close, kicking her back out.

The Xmen all tensed up as Jean rocked backwards slightly, mostly in surprise. She wasn't expecting the strength of his will to be so great. "You ok?" Scott asked in concern.

"I'm ok, just taken off guard." She shook her head before locking her gaze on the group again, this time as one of the others stood up. It was a young man in a dark blue gi, with a red sash around his waist, looking back at them quizzically.

Ryu and Ken were both gazing in shock. "Can you feel it?" Ken asked, eyes wide.

"Yea…they're putting out enough chi to drown us!" Ryu exclaimed, still maintaining a ready stance. "I've never felt anything like it…not even from Akuma or Bison."

The short man looked over sharply at the two fighters. "So it appears there are some trained fighters in this dimension. Weak, but trained at least." Ken growled, angry at being called weak, but he held back.

Now the man in the center stood up, his black hair wild and in large shocks pointing in all directions, wearing an orange gi with a symbol on the front and back. He looked at the group, eyes wide in innocence before he smiled and made a small wave. "Hi!"

"Just stay right where you are Bub." Wolverine growled, his claws slightly raised as he locked eyes.

"Uh…sure. Sorry about our entrance." The man chuckled slightly in embarrassment, scratching the back of his head. "We didn't have much control over that."

"I see. Who are you then?" Cyclops asked, hand still near his glasses. He wasn't taking any chances.

"My name's Goku. We're here to help!" He smiled a large, innocent grin that instantly set them at ease, though they didn't relax their postures.

"Oh yea? Who says we need it?" Wolverine retorted.

The short man snorted. "We don't have time for this Kakarot. Let us find this problem and destroy it now while we have the element of surprise."

"Can you feel the location of whatever it is? I can't, and if I could we would have been there already." Goku pointed out. "Besides, we did make a bit of a mess, we should at least clean things up"

"Normally I'd agree Dad, but we really should do all we can to stop whatever it is as soon as possible." Now the young man spoke for the first time, sending a worried glance to his downed friends.

Cyclops stood up slowly, relaxing. "Let's ease it up a bit, we might need some extra help after all." He said to his team.

The Scouts had relaxed as well by now, except for one. Ami was in a near dead fright, her face as pale as her blouse as the readings continued to update on the newcomers.

"What? What is it Ami?" Serena asked, a bit worried for her friend.

"Th-their power…it's off the scale!" Ami whispered, almost afraid to say it aloud. "I can't detect an end to it! They could destroy the whole world without a problem!"

"Oh come on, they don't seem that bad…" Serena scoffed before looking them over again…and rapidly changing her mind when she saw the look on the short man's, Vegeta, face. "Well, maybe one of them…but the others seem ok don't they?"

"They're kinda cute too." Mina giggled, her eyes looking over the young man, and greatly appreciating the fair amount of chest being shown through his open gi.

"Can't you stop looking for a boyfriend for a minute?" Raye hissed, although she had to admit that she couldn't stop looking either.

"You were looking too." Mina smirked, having seen the Scout of Fire's eyes roam as well.

Raye's face blushed furiously now. "I was not!" She retorted, barely above a whisper.

"They look like fighters to me." Lita commented, noticing their smooth motions.

A third being slowly rose up from huddling over the two on the floor, causing the scouts to gasp and Ken and Ryu's hearts to freeze for a moment. This one was definitely green, with two antenna extending from his forehead. If there was ever a candidate for the UFO alien, he was probably the top candidate.

"An alien!?!?" Ken exclaimed, more in surprise than anything.

The green man knitted his brows together in annoyance. "I'm a Namek, for your information." He retorted. "I am Dende, Guardian of the Earth in our dimension."

"You're not doing too good a job of guardin now are you mon ami?" Gambit commented, keeping a close eye on them. The Xmen weren't new to aliens. Some of their best allies were aliens in fact.

"I believe I am…" Dende turned towards the Xman, narrowing his gaze a moment before smiling a bit. "…Remy LeBeu."

Now the Xmen were once again on edge. Xavier had planted strong mental defenses in them to keep out mental probes and suggestions…and this man had just plucked a name from one of their minds like it was nothing. He continued.

"I'm sorry for entering your mind uninvited, but I had to see what I could do here. I won't do that again." Dende bowed slightly in apology, and the Xmen relaxed again, though not as much as they did previously.

"Hey Dad, let's get Krillin and Videl out of here. We can discuss this later someplace more private." The young man pointed out as a crowd started to gather.

"Yea, let's get out of here." Goku agreed as he picked up the man in red and gray sweats. "Hang in there Krillin, you'll be alright." He looked at the Xmen and Scouts.

"You guys wouldn't know a good place to go for a bit? We can explain everything there."

Cyclops barely looked to Jean, who sent a mental shrug in return. She didn't sense any deception, but she didn't trust them either, yet. "We know of a place. You'll have to follow us to get there."

"Wait…you sensed that dark chi from your own dimension?" Ryu suddenly asked, greatly intrigued.

"Yeah, that's right. We're here to stop it, if we can." Goku nodded, his face serious.

"Then we'll have to come along, because we were going to look into that as well." Ken replied, also serious.

Cyclops had a sinking feeling in his gut. This whole retrieval had gone down the tank in a hurry. Now instead of picking up the Sailor Scouts, now they had eight more people, six of which weren't even from their world! He sighed slightly before nodding. "Very well, guess you two can come along."

"Whew…we're one big ol party now." Rogue commented, very curious about the newcomers. As were the rest of them.

Before they could do anything several Airport security guards rushed up, leveling weapons at everyone. "Noone move! You're all under arrest!" A corpulent man declared self-righteously, hands on his hips in an attempt to look important.

"What for?!?" Rogue exclaimed, incredulous.

"Uh…did we do something wrong Dad?" The young man asked Goku, who looked blank, propping up the young woman on his shoulder.

"I don't know Gohan." Goku scratched his head, genuinely confused. Nothing was destroyed, and no one was hurt, so why would they be under arrest? Maybe it was the vast amount of paper still floating about. It was the only reasonable conclusion he could come up with.

"For defamation of airport property, and for illegal entry into the country." The man, a Lieutenant, replied as if it was obvious to everyone.

They looked around, not sure what the man was talking about. "With all due respect officer, I don't see any defamation on anything. And these girls are legal, they have their passports." Cyclops commented as the Scouts all held up passports in a flash.

"Not you…you people are free to go, it's them that are breaking the law. Now please move along while we take care of things." The man waved the Scouts, Ryu and Ken, and the Xmen away while looking at the Z Fighters. "Now come along quietly, this doesn't have to be a big scene." The look on the mans' face suggested that he wouldn't mind for it to be a scene in the slightest.

"We don't have time for this nonsense." Vegeta growled out, arms crossed and eyes glaring at the officer, who audibly gulped.

"Yea, you're right Vegeta. Sorry sir, but we can't stay…we'll have to take care of that later ok?" Goku said honestly.

The man's face flushed beet red. "You will take care of it now! Men, cuff them." A handful of officers lowered their weapons, walking forward with handcuffs ready. A crowd had gathered around them, some curious, others barely hiding anger, though for what reason it was yet to be known.

"What should we do?" Lita asked in a low voice.

"What do you think? Let's get out of here." Serena responded, moving away from the group.

"Are we going to let them do this?" Jean whispered to Scott.

"I don't like it anymore than you do, but we're not here for them. We've got to find this problem quickly before it's too late." Cyclops replied, jawline stiff. He didn't like it in the least.

"You offered for them to join us though.." Jean pointed out, yet still following as they moved away.

"I know. We can't help them though if we get into a fight. We'll talk to the Professor and we can bail them out afterwards."

"Ryu…what do you think?" Ken asked, not moving.

"I-I don't know what to think Ken." Ryu said honestly.

"We should be going man…this isn't our fight." The blonde haired fighter mentioned, slowly starting to move, Ryu begrudgingly following.

Before any of them could get very far, Vegeta's gravely voice could be heard clearly, focusing everyone's attention back on them.

"Enough of this! This planet is on the verge of being destroyed and they want to play games?!? Step aside human or I'll vaporize you where you stand!" Vegeta suited action to words, holding up a hand palm out towards the nearest officer, who froze in place.

The others in the group just sighed slightly. "This isn't helping Vegeta." Gohan said, yet also eyeing the nearest officer to him, who had also stopped.

"What are you waiting for!?! Arrest them now!" The Lieutenant yelled, pointing a finger at the Z Fighters.

"Let's get out of here before someone gets hurt." Goku said, body bent down low, eyes wary and watching the nearest officer.

"Fine." Vegeta said simply as he lifted up off the floor, prompting gasps from the crowd around them.

"What are they? They're muties! Mutants! No way! Bet they're in with Magneto! They don't look like mutants…maybe that green one." Several cries where heard as the other Z Fighters floated up, Krillin and Videl propped up on shoulders.

"I wonder where the exit is." Goku looked around, trying to find an obvious exit point.

"Get down here now mutants!" The Lieutenant was screaming now, partly in shock, partly in rage. "Get down here or we'll open fire!"

Vegeta glowered at him from above. "This planet would be greatly improved if we just eliminated that filth."

"Yea…I don't know why he's so mad." Goku commented, still looking about for the elusive exit.

"That's it! OPEN FIRE!" The Lieutenant pulled his pistol and started to aim when his weapon suddenly fell to pieces before his eyes.

"That's enough out of you Bub." Wolverine snarled, claws extended, just waiting for the man to make a wrong move. "I don't know who they are, but you're annoying the hell out of me."

The other officers pointed their weapons at him, prompting the Lieutenant to turn white as a sheet. "No! Put them down! Don't shoot!"

"That's more like it…thought you could be reasonable." Wolverine stood up, claw retracting. "You should try it more often." He headed towards the exits, where the others had already reached, with the crowd parting for him begrudgingly.

Above, Vegeta smiled appreciatively. "Weak, but I like his style."

"Hey Dad, it looks like the exit is that way." Gohan pointed towards the rest of the group and headed towards them, Videl still on his shoulder and trying to fly a little herself. The others followed in quick succession, leaving the yelling crowds and angered security cops behind, to land near the doors with the Xmen and the rest.

"I wish we could fly…" Serena sighed, watching them land.

"Your head is already in the clouds enough as it is." Raye said wryly, prompting an ugly glare from their leader.

They all filed out through the doors into the bright sunshine, working past people coming in to get on a flight, climbing aboard a bus and heading for the terminal the Xmen had boarded outside of Ft. Lewis.

To Be Continued...

Sorry for the incredible delay folks. Life just like to throw curves at ya, and it hit me with several doosies. Nonetheless, I'm still alive and kicking and I'll keep moving...no matter how long it takes. Until next time...

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RBLM1A2Tanker