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Somewhere in the distance a bell rang. Call was over.
Ayeka was trying to make a pass at Tenchi. They were in the living room, studying. The others were not paying attention to what was going on in Ayeka's mind. Sasami was doing a sceince project with Washu's help. Kiyone and Mihoshi were quietly doing their math homework. Ryoko was updating her hisorty notes. Tenchi was reading his notes form his math class. His assignment was a difficult one. He wasn't going let anyone stand in his way of finishing out his work. Ayeka was sitting next to him on the sofa. She dropped her pen. She sighed in the most flitterest of sighs. She wanted to play the shy princess. Tenchi wasn't paying any attention to her. She picked up her pen from the sofa in a huff. Then, Ryoko asked innocently, "What time is it?"
"Ten till nine!" Tenchi slightly yawned.
That pushed Ayeka over the edge. How dare Ryoko flirt with Ayeka's true and only true love? She was about to punch Ryoko in the mouth, when she something caught her off guard. Both Sasami and Washu were putting a large wooden box on the coffee table. What was in the box? Tenchi asked the question as Washu stood off the side. Washu had a big grin on her face. She said with all showmanship that she could tell, "What is that you say. It's the greatest invention to come in eight hundred years."
"Uh?" Ryoko and Ayeka gasped.
Kiyone caught sight of the box. She dropped her book. Mihoshi caught a glimpse of Kiyone. Then, she saw it.
Sasami blushed as she said in a humble tone, "Oh, it's that great. It's a solar power radio!"
"With my help it's the greatest," Washu huffed and teased in annoying tone.
"Is it O.K.?" Tenchi asked.
"What is it?" Ayeka gasped. Her right eyebrow twitched.
"It's a solar powered radio!" Sasami smiled.
The others stared at the radio with chagrin. "Are you sure that thing works?" Kiyone asked.
"I'm going to try it out next week!" Sasami smiled again.
"I hope for your sake that it works!" Ayeka sighed. Then, she placed a hand under her chin.
"It will. I worked very hard on it!" Sasami said as she fixed the dials on the radio's face.
"Meow!" Ryo-oh-ki said. She was perched on Sasami's shoulder. She watched as the greatest mind in the universe was training a young mind in the art of creating.
Nick was trying to phone the police. He was on his last led for the case that he, Vashon and Tracy were working on. He sat in his Caddy in the parking lot across from Tim's dry cleaning. He had to finish the paper work on his own. The police officer was helpful. He told Nick about the last missing person. Things were going from bad to strange. Another melted body showed up. Just like a few weeks back. Nick, Tracy and Vachon were at a complete loss. Nick was talking on his cel-phone. The three were questioning, searching for answers. He thanked the officer.
Nick looked up from his note book to see Belldandy and Skuld standing on the corner. The two girls were shopping. They walked past the Caddy. Nick closed his note book. Then, he folded his cel-phone. He quickly shoved the two items into his briefcase. He was going to it call a night. He rolled down the car window. He stuck out his head out of the opened window. He said, "Hello. . .Miss Bell, Skuld!"
Skuld and Belldandy stopped in their tracks. They turned on their heels to face the Caddy. Belldandy said to Skuld, "Did someone call our name?"
Skuld saw Nick in the classic car. She said with a smile, "Hey is who I think it is?"
Belldandy remembered as she glanced at Nick, "That's Detective Nick Knight!"
Then, she smiled. Belldandy was always too happy to see someone she knew. She and Skuld walked over to the Caddy. Nick asked, "Belldandy, what brings you out on a night like this?"
"A shopping. I needed to get some house cleaning supplies!" Belldandy sighed knowing that a clean house was a happy house.
"What did Miss Skuld buy? Nick shifted his attention to the younger Goddess.
"A box of nut and bolts. Then, a box of washer!" Skuld said, hoping to cut the talk short. There was a robot with much needed repair work back home.
"Uh?" Nick was a little baffled by Skuld's practical answer. "Are you making something for shop class?"
"Yea. A robot for school!" Skuld lit up like a candle.
"Oh. I never knew that you like building robots," Nick said. He was surprised by Skuld's answer. She was a bit of a mind. "What does your robot do?"
"My robot can work under water!"
"You have been working on that since last year?" Belldandy inquired her little sister.
"I had a few bugs to workout on the motor!" Skuld sighed as she closed her eyes.
Belldandy giggle a little. Nick asked the two Goddesses if they would like a ride home. Belldandy said yes. It gave Nick a chance to clear his mind out. He felt like was he was running in a maze. The little act of kindness was going to relieve that feeling. Skuld never got to ride in a Caddy before. She would be the envy of the girls at her school.
The two Goddesses got into the car. Nick rolled up the window. Then, he started the car.
Skuld rode shotgun. She begged Belldandy to ride up front. Belldandy was just happy to see her little sister excited about riding in such a car. Nick was thinking of other things. He had to come with a salutation to the case of the nuked bodies. There had to be a clue to it. "Do you like being here?" Belldandy asked.
"It's different. I can walk all over downtown without a huge crowd in the way," Nick said, a little homesick for Canada.
"I miss my favorite ice cream store," Skuld sighed. She placed her hands on the dashboard.
"We have ice cream, here!" Belldandy grinned. She liked going to the Ice Cream parlor.
"Yea, it's the not the same!" Skuld sighed.
"Do you like school?" Nick asked Skuld.
"Yea. I like riding on the bus!" she turned to look out the car window.
"She is doing good in her classes including math!" Belldandy added.
"How about you?" Nick glanced over to Belldandy for a second.
"I'm enjoying myself. It's not like school at all," Belldandy blushed.
Skuld saw a couple of strange looking people standing on the corner of Cleveland Street and North Union. They stood around, waiting for someone. Skuld felt a cold present about them. They wore gray coveralls and black bowler hats.
In a couple of seconds later the Caddy was pulling up in the drive of the Goddesses' home. Belldandy thanked Nick. Skuld asked Nick if she could take another ride soon. He said, "Soon. After you do all of your homework."
"Oh, wow!" she squealed before opening the car door. She bolted out the car. Belldandy thanked Nick for the ride home. Then, Skuld turned to shout, "THANKS MISTER KNIGHT FOR THE RIDE!"
Then she spun around towards the house. She ran to the back door. She waited for Belldandy to get out of the car.
Keiichi stood in the back doorway. He wondered who's car was in the driveway. He asked Skuld, "Who drove you home?"
"Mister Knight!" Skuld said. She was still standing, waiting for her big sister.
"Oh, what did you bring?" Keiichi asked, cocking his head to one side.
"Bolts for my robot!" Skuld squeaked cheerily.
"Here we got for another Banpei-san, eh?" Keiichi teased.
"You think?" Skuld piped with her eyes full of curiosity.
"You built them. I don't remember a time that you didn't!"
"Oh, yea!" she was excited that she got to ride in a Caddy. She was going to phone Sasami.
At the Senshi house, Rio was working very hard on her story. She was trying to see a way out for one of her characters from an awfully dangerous predicament. She was happy when she wrote her stories. Rio was her own person. She had a desk and chair set up in the basement. She had stacks of paper on one corner of the desk. In the middle of the desk was a cup of pens and other writing items. Her CD player was on her lap. She listened to a hard rock CD. Rio reached up to pause her player. There was a break in her work. She rubbed her face with both hands.
Upstairs, the Inners were busy studying their history homework. Reenie and Hotura were learning their times tables with some help for Setsuna. Michiru and Haruka were finishing up their English homework. There was a knock the front door. Serena and Rei looked up from their work. "I wonder who be out at this hour?" Serena asked.
"I'm getting the door," Rei stood up.
"o. , make it quick. We have to go over the science notes. We have a few tests coming up," Ami said.
"When it's going o end?" Serena sighed, letting her pen drop from her left hand. It clicked to the table.
"At least ten . . .we have to get up early. So, we can study more," Ami, said in a matter a fact tone.
"Oh, nuts!" Mina sighed in a dramatic tone. She ran a hand through her hair.
"Why can't Rio study with us?" Ami asked. "I would like to help her out!"
"She has to finish her homework for her journalism class," said a voice.
The girls watched as Luna and Artemis walked to the living room from the dining room. "Luna?" Ami asked. "How do you know she studying at all?"
"I watched her. She's a hard worker," the little black cat walked up to the coffee table.
"She likes to work alone," Airtimes added.
"Most of the time?" Lita asked.
"Not always. She's shy about her work," Luna said.
"Oh, hi Alex . . .Vachon. What do you want?" Serena asked after she saw them coming up to the coffee table. Serena look through her notebook.
"Have you or the other girls received any letters or phone in the last three days?" Alex said in regard.
"I'm not sure. . .you can check out our stuff!" Serena said a little surprised. "Why do you ask?"
"There were five of a disturbing nature sent to Tenchi's house, Keiichi's house, my house and Jamie's house. There was an E-mail which was posted an hour ago on Allen's account!"
"What kind of stuff is it?" Rei asked after she showed the two vampires in.
Alex reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a letter. He handed it to Rei. She took it carefully. She unfolded it and began to read.
The girls looked up to two guests. They greeted Vachon and Alex. "Hey, girls!" Vachon said his usual carefree face now replaced with a concerned look. He never witnessed this kind of out break of threatening mail in his long life.
Alex was curt when he said, "Hello. . . Have you had a good day at school?"
He sounded more like Lacriox than himself.
"Yea," Lita said as she turned to glance at Alex.
There was uneasy fear, which began to crawl into the living room. Rei walked around the living room. There was a pile of mail on the phone stand. She began to push the letter with a free hand. She checked to see if her grandfather wrote to her. There was no letter. She scoped up the pile. She walked back to Alex. He was handed the pile.
Vachon asked, "Do you all have each an e-mail account?"
"Yea," the girls said in unison.
"We would like to check the last two weeks of each account," he said.
"Sure," Lita said.
"Fine," Rei agreed.
"What's it all about?" Ami asked.
"The police were called in this possible threat ring. It would be radical," Alex stated in a serious voice.
"Racial? Why?" Mina asked. She didn't like idea of anyone picking on because of race.
"We are not sure, yet. The local police to help out have called us. They went to Tracy and Nick on this job because they had more hours of training with threats and domestic outbreaks," Alex said.
"Where is your computer?" Vachon asked Serena.
"In the computer room. It's near the bedrooms. I'll take you there!" Serena said as she stood up.
"We should start looking at Ami's e-mail first. Then, we go down the list," Alex said as he recalled a mental list of names he and Vachon had.
The rest of the girls looked at Ami. Could she be a target of a threatening letter? She was bright and was easily chosen for such an evil deed.
"O.K.I have to boot up the computer," Ami rose up from her pillow near the coffee table.
"Where are Rio and the others?" Alex asked.
"Rio is down stairs. Hotura and Reenie are learning math with Setsuna. Chibi-chibi is asleep. Haruka and Michiru are in their room studying, English!" Ami said.
Rio was still working on her story, when she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Rio stopped her writing. She had to take a break. She placed her pen down on her desk. She turned in her chair to see Alex, Rei, Lita and Reenie coming down the stairs. She said, "What does bring my Alex out on a night like this?" she asked.
"There is threatening mail going around!" Alex said a little grim faced.
"You wot?" Rio gasped. She noticed the concerned look in Alex's brown eyes. "Mate. . .are ya pulling me leg?"
"No, we have already checked just about everyone. . .including this house!"
"Let's check it out!" Alex said.
"O.K." Rio stood up from the desk. "Let me switch off the radio!"
Rio, Alex and Ami were in the computer room. They were checking Rio's e-mail. There was the usual mail, a quick love note form Dusty, three pieces of junk mail and a letter from her Uncle Anthony. Then, a piece of mail Alex's eyes. He asked Rio, "What's this?"
"I don't know. Let me click on and found out!" Rio said as she moved the mouse. The curser moved to the light blue letters on her latest e-mail.
After a minute of reading, Rio realized what the letter. It was a piece of a game she and other people were playing on line. Alex didn't know that Rio loved to play games. He asked in amazement, "How ling have you been playing this game?"
"Six week!" Rio sighed. "I'm just a page in this game. It's been slow."
"A page. Like knights and ladies in waiting?" Ami asked. She was curious.
"Yea, I love the middle ages. I'm a member in the Elf-Lore group."
"Elf-lore group!" Alex and Ami asked in unison.
"Elf-lore is the only American comic book that I read."
"What else do you scribe to?" Alex was trying to see what else Rio had up sleeve.
"Nothing else. You know. . .I work for both of my uncles. Between that. . .church, school, reading and writing. Hey. . .I can't spread myself so thin."
"So, there is no other leads beside we what have," Alex appeared a little discouraged.
"I'm sorry, mate, you can check my other account," Rio said, tying to sound a little comforting.
"I thought you have just had one," Alex questioned her. He was a little puzzled about Rio's personality.
She told Alex that she used her second account for a dump file. Rio typed up into her second account. There was outside of the reams of junk mail, no leads. Alex thanked Rio. Then, he asked for Serena and Setsuna.
Ami was relieved to see Rio didn't get any hate mail.
Alex and Vachon were looking over the list of people who were still possible victims. It was a small group, but that couldn't have been that hard to find anything. Vachon drove his bike to the high school. Alex rode along. The bike stopped front of the Caddy. Nick had stopped in front of the high school. He rolled down his Caddy was window. He asked, "Did you find anything?"
"No," Vachon said, after he undid the visor to his helmet. Alex shook his head. He had the same with his visor.
"Most of the houses we checked into. . .only threatened once," Nick said.
"Whoever they are, they must have a clean network!" Alex stated in an upset tone. "Not a trace of anything!"
"Tomorrow is another day!" Vachon declared in a resolute tone of voice.
Tenchi was waiting for Keiichi to pick him up. He had leave for an early morning class. The daylight was coming. He stood on the concert. The weather was less cold. Spring was trying to break through. Rio was walking home from her paper route. He saw her as she Rio walked up on the street. He said in a loud voice, "Rio-Chan!"
"Hey, Ten!" Rio said as she instantly spun around. She wanted to know how was calling out her name. Then, she walked on her way up the street.
A couple of minutes later, Tenchi checked his watch. It was still early. A figure was walking up the street. It looked like a young girl about Tenchi's age. She was dressed in a gray car coat. She stood the corner for a minute. Then, she crossed the street.
Tenchi rolled his neck to relax himself. Out of the corner of his eye, Tenchi saw the girl walking towards him.
They bumped into each other. Tenchi turned to apologize. He glanced at the girl. The girl turned to say something. He was awestruck by the girl. It like seeing a girl ghost from the past which Tenchi had a forgotten dream. He stared at the girl. The girl said, "Sorry!"
Tenchi recovered his senses in a flash. "No, I'm sorry. I was the one!"
"That's O.K. I have to run!" the girl said.
There was a distant sound. It was in Tenchi's ears now. It brought him back to earth. "What?" he gapped. The girl transfixed Tenchi. Who was that girl? He starred at her for a minute or two.
"Tenchi? Are you there?" a voice asked.
Tenchi jumped a little. He scanned quickly the landscape. Keiichi was sitting on his motorbike. Keiichi stood on front of Tenchi. "What's wrong with you?" Keiichi asked. He was surprised to see Tenchi a little spaced out.