Tenchi Muyo!
______
Disclaimer: This episode of Tenchi Muyo! is
of my own creation. I do not own any portion of Tenchi
Muyo. "Tenchi Muyo!" and all related characters, names, etc. are
©1992-2003 AIC Inc. and Pioneer LDC. All rights reserved.
Note: This story line is a sequel to 'The Choices We Make' by C-kun. I
recommend reading it, it is pretty interesting.
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The Darkness Within
Chapter 7:
The Unveiling
______
Tenchi stands still, only wearing his black boxers,
watching the vastness of space move all around him. He is in Tokimi's grand bedroom looking out the south wall, which
has been removed, allowing him to watch everything outside.
He turns around to look at his bride. She is sleeping contently on the bed in
the middle of the room with a small smile on her face. Tenchi
smiles as well. 'I finally have someone to be with who will never leave me,' he
thinks to himself. 'I feel...happy that we are together. I am in love with her.
I am deeply in love with Tokimi, my beautiful wife.'
The former prince diverts his attention back to the space outside. 'I don't
know why I loved that demon,' he thinks to himself. 'That bitch Ayeka was right when she said that she'd leave me.' He
takes a few steps forward. "Soon Ryoko," he
mutters under his breath, "soon I will find you and I will do the one
thing that the army of Jurai, that old man, and that bitch never could do: destroy
you!"
He instantly relaxes when he feels a pair of slender arms creep under his and
wrap around his chest. His body shivers with excitement when he feels his
love's lips press against the back of his neck. "Good
morning my dear husband," Tokimi whispers into
his ear.
"Good morning to you too, my precious wife," he responds.
She releases her grasp and he turns around and they share a deep, passionate
kiss. He lets go and backs off a step, examining her. She is wearing a
magnificent blue and purple robe that matches her spectacular eyes. A strand of
her light brown hair has strayed onto her beautiful face. Tenchi
whisks it back and rubs her cheek with his thumb. "You are...the most
beautiful and amazing person I've ever met."
Her eyes shine brightly at his words. "I see you have noticed," she
replies playfully. Her Champion chuckles lightly and pulls her into a warm
embrace. An evil smile suddenly appears on her face as she raises her right
hand and snaps her fingers.
Sasami suddenly appears in front of them, still
trapped in her crystal prison. The red crystal shimmers for a moment and then
disappears, freeing the young princess. She falls onto her hands and knees. She
stands up, looking tired and worried. "W...why did you
free me?"
"You were getting relatively unexciting in there, either just
crying or sleeping all of the time," Tokimi
answers. "I assume that it would be a tad more entertaining if you could
walk around here, helpless to stop anything from happening!" She releases Tenchi and kneels in front of her. "Besides," she
whispers, "there is nothing you can do now to take Tenchi
away from me. Our love for one another is now absolute." She holds out her
left hand, showing her ring.
Sasami's mood suddenly changes, going from fright and
sadness to an emotion she has never truly felt, anger. In the blink of an eye,
she tackles Tokimi to the floor and places her hands
over the goddess' neck, trying to strangle her. "I hate you!" the
young princess shouts. "I hate you! Everything would be so much better
without you!"
She is suddenly lifted off of the goddess. Tenchi is
lifting her from the sash that is tied into a ribbon, which is holding her
kimono in place. He places her aside and gently picks up his bride. "Are
you alright?" he asks soothingly to her.
"I am fine," she reassures him. The goddess smiles lightly at her
sister's avatar. "That was quite amusing! I was accurate in my assumption!
It has already become more entertaining with you unconfined!"
______
Washu groggily opens her eyes. She slowly sits up
from her bed on Ryo-Ohki. "Uh...how long have I been out?" she
mutters to herself. The egocentric scientist walks up to a porthole and gazes
out at the stars. She suddenly frowns. "Wait a minute! I know this star
system! What are we doing here!?"
She runs as quickly as she can to the bridge. She gets there to see Ryoko sitting cross-legged on a cushion, contently piloting
her longtime friend. "Ryoko!"
Washu shouts.
The pirate jumps at her name and turns around to face her mother. "Yeah?"
"Where exactly are you piloting us? If I'm not mistaken, and I
rarely ever am, we are on our way to Jurai!"
Ryoko shrugs her shoulders. "So
what? I got a little bored. Do you know how long it's been since I've
fought with Ayeka?"
Washu slaps her forehead and drags her hand down her
face in frustration.
______
Mihoshi gently holds Tenchi's
old wedding ring in her hands, examining it closely. 'Why did Tenchi leave this?' she thinks to herself. 'Did he mean to
leave it?' She shakes her head lightly. "No, he wouldn't really mean
to!" she says determinedly while standing up.
"Is there something wrong Miss Mihoshi?" Yukinojo asks his pilot.
"Oh nothing Yukinojo," the blonde replies,
"I was just thinking out loud."
"Alright then. Please be careful. I do not want
anything happening to you like last time."
"Hey," Mihoshi starts, a dawning look
appearing on her face, "you should know what happened when I went to Tenchi's house didn't you? I mean, you should have recorded
everything that happened right?"
"Unfortunately, my memory banks draw up nothing for around that time. I am
unsure as to why. Nothing except direct orders from command base can delete any
part of my programming."
The GP officer frowns lightly. "Yeah, that is pretty strange." She
looks back down to the ring. 'The only way Tenchi
could've forgotten his ring like that is if he wasn't wearing it. Is something
bad happening with him and Ryoko? Now that I think
about it, he did mention something about problems back home. I hope everything
is okay.'
"Miss Mihoshi?"
"Uh...yes Yukinojo?" she responds
distractedly.
"Shall we continue our trip, or do you want to travel elsewhere?"
Mihoshi directs her attention back to the ring in her
hand. Her ship clears his 'throat', redirecting her attention back to the main
intelligence control unit. "Hmm? What? Oh! No,
let's just keep on out present course."
"Yes Ma'am!" the ship replies as it continues on its present course.
______
Mihoshi's partner, Kiyone,
walks silently through Galaxy Police Headquarters, holding several personal
files. She makes her way into the employee lounge and finds an empty table. She
places the files down, gets a cup of coffee, sits down at the table and starts
to look through the files.
"Hey Kiyone! What are
you doing?"
The GP officer jumps slightly at her name being called. She turns to see a
young black haired woman looking at her. "Hello Mireka,"
she responds. "I'm just looking through some files."
"Oh, anybody I know?"
"No, I don't think so. I don't even know them."
The young GP frowns at her friend. "Really? Then
why are you looking at them?"
Kiyone takes a sip of her coffee. "These are
people that my partner Mihoshi used to live with when
she was stationed as a resident officer in the Sol System. I'm just a little
curious as to why this odd assortment of people managed to live with each other
under one roof for so long."
Mireka looks up at the clock and curses lightly.
"Damn, my break's over! Well I gotta get back to
work. Good luck with your research Kiyone!"
"Yeah, thanks Mireka," the teal haired
woman replies to her young friend as she leaves the employee lounge. Kiyone directs her attention back to the files. She shifts
through them and pulls out a particular one labeled: 'Masaki, Tenchi.'
An odd smile spreads across her lips as she picks up a photo of the young man.
'He looks a little younger here,' she thinks to herself. 'And his hair is a bit
shorter, but he is still damn cute!'
______
Tenchi grabs his cloak and puts it on. He walks
hand-in-hand to his ship with Tokimi. They share a
brief, yet passionate kiss. "Go on and have some fun," she encourages
him. "They have scarcely done anything as of late and are growing rather
uninteresting. How about you give them a wicked surprise?"
The goddess' Champion looks at her seriously. "You are very devious,"
his face suddenly cracks into a large smile. "That's what I love about
you!" With another quick kiss, he is off and away.
Tokimi watches her husband's ship fly off for a few
moments. She then turns to look at Sasami, who is
standing nearby. The young princess trembles at the evil look now occupying the
goddess' face. "Now it is just you and me, my dear little sister. Since it
has been such an extensive time since we have last truly been alone together,
how about we have a little sibling bonding?"
______
On planet Jurai, Princess Ayeka is sitting on the edge of her bed. Everything that
has recently happened to both her and her family are
pouring through her mind. Silent tears run down her face as her mind rests on
the two men she loves. "Davis...Tenchi,"
she weakly mutters. "Why must every man that I love be taken from
me?"
Her bedroom door starts to open and the princess quickly gets to her feet,
wiping away the tears. Her mother, Misaki, enters,
looking very somber.
"Mother?" Ayeka
asks. "What are you doing in my room?" Her eyes suddenly go wide.
"Oh please do not tell me that something bad has happened again!?"
"Oh no Ayeka," The empress assures her
daughter, "I...I just wanted to have a little mother/daughter talk with
you. Is that alright with you?"
"Oh yes, of course Mother," the crown princess replies. The two women
sit down on the bed.
Misaki suddenly bursts into tears. "Oh I miss my
little Sasami so much! Why does this have to happen
to our family? I want my precious daughter back!"
Ayeka is taken back by her mother's sudden outburst.
She's used to her mother being very emotional, but she usually is either very
cheery or extremely defensive of her children. She has never seen her mother
sad and upset before. The princess puts a comforting arm around her mother's
shoulder. "Please do not cry Mother. These are very trying times for us
all. We should try to hold ourselves together, hold a presentable face for the
people of Jurai."
The empress sniffs lightly and wipes her tears away. She stands up, giving her
daughter a look of admiration. "I have forgotten how much you have grown Ayeka. You will make a fine empress someday. Thank you for
the little chat. I have some business to attend to now, but I will be back a
little later, alright?" The princess nods slightly. Misaki
smiles and turns and leaves Ayeka alone again in her
room.
The princess sighs deeply as she lies down on her bed. She suddenly starts to
chuckle to herself. "I just told Mother to stay strong and hold herself
together when I was just crying myself. Oh dear, what am I going to do?"
______
Deep in space, The Vengeance glides carefully past
several Jurai patrol ships. On board, Tenchi is sitting cross-legged in the command chair. His
eyes are closed in concentration and five black triangles are glowing brightly
on his forehead. His ship passes the Jurai ships
unnoticed.
When he is a safe distance away, he relaxes and opens his eyes. "That went
rather well, though it will be a lot easier once I get my Master Key back! How
dare that old bastard take it from me!"
______
The Ryo-Ohki is just finishing it's landing in the Jurai Royal landing docks. After it lands, it transforms
back into the furry cabbit, who jumps onto her
mistress' shoulder. Washu and Ryoko
are instantly greeted by Yosho and Funaho. "It is very nice to see you again," Funaho starts, "but I thought that you said that you were
going to lay low for a while."
"We were," The little genius begins, looking crossly at Ryoko, "but my daughter decided to stop by for a
visit."
The pirate crosses her arms defensively. "Well I couldn't help it. It gets
really boring out there, what with only mom to entertain me with all her
scientific mumbo jumbo." She stops for a moment to dodge a giant statue
that appeared out of nowhere that was about to fall on her head. "I needed
someone normal to talk to. By the way," she adds while looking around the
landing docks, "where's everybody else?"
"Well," Yosho starts while scratching his
chin, "Father is having a meeting with the council right now. The Startica Festival is only a week away and they are making
the final preparations. Lady Misaki is training a new
bodyguard, I believe that he will spend the rest of
the day in the hospital recovering." They all chuckle at Yosho's little joke.
"Okay, so what about Ayeka?" Ryoko asks while putting her hands on her hips.
"I do believe she is in her room resting," Funaho
responds.
The pirate floats up in the air a few feet. Ryo-Ohki meows loudly and jumps off
of her shoulder. "Well then, that's where I'll be if anybody wants
me." Without another word, Ryoko
teleports away.
Funaho watches Ryoko leave
thoughtfully. "Well at least her spirits are high."
"You wish," Washu mutters sadly.
"She's just hiding how she really feels."
"Whatever do you mean Little Washu?"
"Lets take a walk, we have a lot to talk about.
You too Yosho," she adds as the former Shinto
priest begins to walk away. He nods and the three people and the little cabbit leave the landing docks and head towards the Royal Garden.
______
"Hey."
Ayeka shrieks and jumps out of her bed, clutching her
heart and breathing deeply. She looks up towards the sound of the voice to see Ryoko floating several feet over her bed. She is wearing
her old blue and gold striped dress. Her hands are on her hips and she is
smiling at her old friend/rival.
"Ryoko!" the princess shouts, "why did
you do that? Why did you not use the door like a normal person?"
The pirate floats down and lands on the bed. "Now princess, you know
better than anyone that I'm anything but normal!" Her face cracks into a
huge smile.
Ayeka smiles identically and the two hug like
friends. "Oh I am so glad that you are alright Ryoko.
When Miss Washu sent us that message...I was so
worried. This Z character, how are we going to stop him?"
The princess pulls away and looks at Ryoko. She is
shocked to see the pirate is crying. "Ryoko? What is the matter?"
Ryoko sniffs a couple of times before answering.
"He...he was going to kill me. There was nothing I could do. He was so
strong, I...I couldn't fight him, not really."
"Yes, unfortunately he is very powerful. When he released his Lighthawk Wings...I do not think I have been more terrified
in my life." She shudders involuntarily.
Ryoko turns around and walks towards the eastern
window. She walks out onto the balcony, which has a spectacular view of the Jurai Royal Garden. Ayeka
follows and gazes out onto the grounds. Ryoko
suddenly starts shaking and begins to cry again. "He...he's gone."
"What? Who?"
"Tenchi," she weakly mutters.
Ayeka's eyes go wide. "What? No! He cannot
be!"
"I...I think he is. Just before that guy Z tried to kill me. He...he said
that I should be glad because I was going to join my husband." She
collapses in Ayeka's arms and cries uncontrollably.
The princess quickly joins her friend and they both cry in each other's arms
for several minutes. "Oh why did it have to be him?" Ayeka sobs. "Why Tenchi?"
______
"Oh dear," Funaho mutters as Washu finishes her explanation. She places a hand over her
heart and allows a stray tear to escape her. "I was always so fond of
him." Yosho looks to the ground, not saying a
single word to show his deep sorrow at having lost his grandson.
"Yeah," Washu sniffs, "he was
something else. I'm glad that Ryoko decided to come
here. If there is anyone who she can really talk to about Tenchi,
it is Ayeka. Those two loved him so much."
"I will have to speak to Azusa and Misaki. We will create a memorial to honor Tenchi's memory. I really would have enjoyed seeing him as
emperor. The people would have loved him and...and oh
I just cannot believe that he is gone!"
She sits down on a nearby stone bench and sobs lightly. Washu
sits down next to her and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I know
what you mean."
______
The Champion of Tokimi yawns widely. "I am so
bored." He presses a few buttons and several screens pop up. He smiles
contentedly to himself. "Good. I'm almost there." He presses a few
more buttons and the engines roar to life. "I'm tired of playing around.
The real game is about to begin very soon!"
He looks longingly at his wedding ring. "I miss her so much already."
He smiles slightly. "I'll see her again soon enough. I wonder what she's
up to right now," he finishes while scratching his chin thoughtfully.
______
Sasami flies into a large pillar. She screams out in
pain. Her body falls in a heap on the ground. Tokimi
slowly walks up, smiling evilly at her. "Oh come now, I was hoping that
you would have put up a much better fight than this. What happened to all that
spunk you expressed earlier?"
"I...I do not want to fight you," she gasps between breaths. The
young princess stands up, wincing in pain as she does so. "What I did
earlier was a mistake. I apologize for my actions."
The goddess is stunned for a few moments. "You apologize? What are you
attempting to do here? Being all noble will not prolong your life in the
least."
The princess readjusts her kimono and stands proudly. "I am a princess of
the planet Jurai. I am also assimilated to a goddess.
As such, I should hold a presentable face both to my friends and enemies. I
will not stoop down to your level."
Tokimi suddenly slashes Sasami
across the cheek with her nails, giving her four deep cuts. The princess falls
to the ground, clutching her face as the blood begins to leak from the cuts.
She gasps when a strong, yet feminine hand grasps her throat and she is lifted
up from the ground. Her feet are dangling several inches from the floor.
"How dare you?" Tokimi hisses dangerously.
"How dare you insult me? It seems that you need to be taught the value of
manners and respect," and with that, her grip on the princess's throat
tightens.
Sasami gives out a small whimper just before she
looses consciousness.
______
The Vengeance crashes through Jurai's defensive
barriers with amazing speed. It is being fired upon by ships and defensive
posts alike, but with no effect. The blasts bounce off of the ship's shield
like they are nothing.
The cruiser flies through all its opposition as it heads towards its final
destination, the Jurai Royal Palace.
The entire accountable Royal Family, plus Ryoko, Washu and Ryo-Ohki run outside just in time to see the
cruiser land right in front of the palace. There is a brilliant flash, and Tenchi appears, in his Z disguise.
Emperor Azusa steps forward. "What do you want here!? Have
you not done enough to me and my family!?"
Z chuckles lightly. "My my my..."
he starts in his raspy voice, "you have quite a temper there Azusa. I only came here to
get something I left behind."
"Oh really!" the emperor spits out, "and what is that!?"
The Champion of Tokimi raises his right arm and
concentrates. Yosho gasps as he feels the Tenchi-ken in his pocket begin to move. It suddenly tears
through his clothes and flies towards Z. He grabs it and holds it out in front
of him. The glowing blue blade ignites, causing everyone watching to gasp in
surprise.
Z pulls the blue blade closely to his unseen face, examining it. "Blue was
never my color," he states just as the Master Key begins to transform. The
light brown hilt warps, becoming dark brown. The purple area where the blade
comes from dulls into a light gray color. The blade flickers a few times and
changes so it is now deep black. "Ah, that's much better," he
proclaims.
"Y...you," Funaho
stammers, unable to control her shock and fear, "how did you do that?
Only members of the Jurai Royal Family can wield the
Master Key."
Z begins to laugh, first a low chuckle, and it starts to increase until he laughing maniacally. After several moments, his laughter
dies down and he stares at the group of people in front of him. "I guess I
have kept all of you in the dark about my identity haven't I?" The blade
dissipates and he pockets it. He sighs deeply. "I guess those that killed
me do deserve to know at least who I am."
"Killed you?" Ryoko asks. "What the
hell are you talking about?"
Tenchi ignores his former wife. "Though I do
doubt that any of you will enjoy the knowledge of my true identity, Sasami definitely did not."
Misaki suddenly steps forward. "Where is
she?" the empress demands. "Where have you taken my daughter?"
"She is safe...for now," he replies.
Misaki looses control and rushes for Z in a harsh
battle cry. She attacks him with a flurry of punches and kicks. She proves that
she isn't the head of the Royal Bodyguard for nothing. Even Tenchi
is having a difficult time blocking the blur of attacks directed towards him.
After a few moments, he notices a small opening in between her attacks and
decides to take advantage.
Just after she comes in with a right jab, she follows with a left kick, leaving
her right side momentarily open.
She attacks and Z ducks and gives her a sharp punch in her side. Misaki yelps and Tenchi advances
his counter attack by following with a leg sweep. The empress gasps as she
begins to fall. To try to regain herself before she
hits the ground, she reaches out, trying to grab anything that will stop her
descent.
Unfortunately for Tenchi, the first thing she grabs
is his cloak. It tears and gets ripped off of him as Misaki
falls down.
Everyone in front of him gasps as the last remnants of his black cloak fall
off, finally revealing who he really is to his family.
Ryoko takes a few feeble steps forward. "Tenchi?"
To be continued...
______
Author's notes: Ah, I love these
suspenseful endings, don't you? You don't? Well too bad! I like them, because
they make you crave for more! Ahahahahahahahahaha! I need blood.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one. -- lighthawkdemon
Questions or comments? E-mail me at: lighthawkdemon@yahoo.com
