A PIRATES LIFE FOR ME?...
Author: Daferge
Disclaimer: Tenchi Muyo! is copyright AIC/Pioneer Ltd.
All respective characters are property of their original owners. All original characters and ideas are property of the author.
Chapter 07...
Katsuhito ( Shinto priest and Crown prince of Jurai ) rested on the living room couch sipping tea as he watched the Imperial News reporter on the large TV screen... There'd been nothing new of interest reported, when a light on the top of the set began blinking... Pressing the 'comm' button ( carefully avoiding the large 'SELF DESTRUCT' button ) on his remote, the image changed to show --- princess Ayeka...
"Sister... You're looking -- better... "...
"As are you, brother... "
"To what do I owe this unexpected call?... News? "...
"No --- at least nothing we can put our fingers on... "
"OH... "...
Katsuhito waited for Ayeka to continue...
"Most, if not ALL, of our 'leads' have gotten us nowhere... Some just fade out, while other become 'dead ends'... In Ryoko's case a LOT of 'DEAD' ends... "...
Katsuhito hid a smile before replying...
"I can imagine... So you've come to this humble Shinto priest for a prayer?... "
The look on Ayeka's face clearly indicated she wasn't in the 'mood' for her brother's 'sense of humor'... But a hint of smile fickered in her eyes...
"HOWEVER, one name or title keeps surfacing... We've had people research the Jurai Imperial Records, the Space Academy Data base, even the GP Data files going all the way back to it creation... Nothing... "
"How may I be of service? "...
"All we have is the word --- 'Diablo'... "...
Katsuhito's lip twitched as he suppressed a smile...
"So, 'IT' returns... "
His eyes gaze at the floor...
"Yosho?... BROTHER?... This 'name' has meaning?... "...
His eyes returned to look into Ayeka's... A sigh escaped his lips...
"A name?... Perhaps... A title?.. Maybe... A'curse' most likely... "...
Ayeka stared at her brother... "Brother... "...
Taking a deep breath he continued...
"Through the ages of Jurai's assent to 'empire', there has been a whisper, a shadow, a 'figure', watching... It never 'appears', except when Jurai is in greatest danger... Even then it's just a 'hint', a 'feeling', nothing one could really SEE... "...
The princess's eyes were wide as she followed ever word...
"It was called 'Diablo' or 'El Diablo'... THE DEVIL, in an ancient long dead tongue... The terrains would call it 'the boogieman', a mythical creature used to scare little children to be good... Whatever... The name is not mentioned for good reason, like the 'boogieman', even the mention of 'Diablo' could endanger a sitting ruler... It is the most tightly kept secret of Jurai, next to the royal trees... Only a 'select few' knew about and pass the secret along... "
The princess was trembling... Her eyes had narrowed...
"It was the 'whisper' of that name that caused my early return to Jurai the day Ryoko attacked 700 years ago... I guess it's time I passed the secret on to a 'younger' generation... "...
After a few minutes of silence, Ayeka bowed her head to the screen...
"Thank you... Dear Yosho... Please --- take care... "...
The screen blinked and the news returned...
"That went better than I expected... " Yosho mumbled...
"Now we wait and watch... " Replied a figure standing in the doorway...
Turning to the figure, Yosho smiled... "You heard?... "...
"Yes... Now things should start to get really interesting... "...
Out of the shadows stepped the "Greatest Scientist in the Universe", Washu...
to be continued...