Part 3: Divine Beauty
Disclaimer: Ack. See part 1. And don't forget Buddha loves you.
He knelt there and cradled the woman in his arms, letting her release her emotions. He could tell that her feelings were jumbled now, that she was feeling the paradoxical yet quite common emotion of both grief and joy. It was an emotion he knew well and an emotion that he shared with her at that moment. Her face was buried in his clothing; silently he looked at the top of her head, he felt the cold tears soak into his clothing and touch his skin, he listened to her sobbing, and desperately he searched for some sign, some slight resemblance to the Mihoshi he knew. But his search was fruitless, the woman he held in his arms was foreign to him, and the only bond he could feel between them was the shared feelings of sadness. Any connection ended there, they even were unhappy for different reasons. With as much care and gentleness he could muster he attempted to console the woman… Mihoshi. It was all pretense however. His touch was cold and distant, his words were empty.
The woman tilted her head back and her short sandy hair tumbled awkwardly over her face, held together in clumps by her tears. For the first time he saw her eyes up close and he shivered. There was the Mihoshi he was looking for. The unkempt hair, the distraught face, and especially her beautiful blue eyes, all betrayed a lost innocence, and it was that innocence, once buried deep within her, revealed for the first time in many years, that innocence was his Mihoshi.
He couldn't help but smile. His secret weapon: the smile that always perked Mihoshi up; every single time he found her unhappy he would use that smile, saved for only that occasion, and every time it worked.
But she merely sat there. She was finished crying. She looked at Tenchi's smile and simply stared. He failed to see any positive effect in her.
Tenchi quit smiling. Again the horrid realization hit him, the sheer unreality of it all: he was in a different time, in a different place, surrounded by people he thought he knew. With in exhausted sigh he acknowledged his failure and he slumped over as far as he could without completely falling over.
He found himself being pulled up by Mihoshi's surprisingly strong grip. He raised his head just in time to see Mihoshi walking away, flicking her wrist as an indication to follow. For a couple seconds he observed her as she walked. Her heels clicked and her body moved with military discipline and precision that contrasted strongly against the absent minded, ditzy skip he envisioned in his memories. Like before, he discarded his memories as false information, and he began the strenuous process of accepting the new Mihoshi before him.
The room was dark, cramped, and offered no aesthetic reprieves for anyone who dared to brave the uninviting dullness. It was quite the opposite of the type of room Tenchi thought a powerful woman like Mihoshi would get.
Along with the dour atmosphere Tenchi also noticed that lack of all the standard office items: no desk, no papers, no computer monitors. There was a single, solitary chair in the middle of the room that was overall unremarkable except for a small plug box near the headrest. Over the chair, barely illuminated by the light that spilled through the open door, he could make out a semi-sphere attached to the ceiling. He made a note to ask what it was for, as a possible conversational distraction in case things got too morbid.
Mihoshi politely let him in first. He stepped to the side to make space for her entrance. With her first step the room abruptly came to life in a manner similar to the archive room. Lights on the chair blinked to life, causing it to shine brilliantly like a Christmas tree. The semi sphere turned out to be a mass projector, spilling thin lines of green and red onto the walls, adding to the Christmas-like spirit. Gaily the colors green and red danced around the walls like static. Upon further inspection, Tenchi saw that the lines were actually script, and the dancing colors were just a result of the different scrolling rates. He was amazed, the words were extremely small, and he wondered how anyone could make good use of the writing. The door shut automatically and he gasped in wonder as he beheld the complexity of the once boring room. Words, charts, graphs, and pictures were on every square inch: on the floor, the shut door, that chair, and even on their bodies. He prompted a girlish giggle from Mihoshi as he squinted, trying to make out the characters on his hand.
"Wait one second please, Tenchi. I need to do this."
Another chair appeared from the floor, and immediately was attacked by the red and green emanating from the projector. Like in the archive room, the chair, with a life of it's own, pushed into Tenchi's lower legs and caused him to involuntarily sit down. Opposite him, Mihoshi sat down in the other chair, on her own, and settled comfortably in the ergonomic contours.
He struggled simply just to see her. Everything was covered in the script and she blended in perfectly with the chair and the background. He raised his hand to his own face, to reassure himself that he was really in this dream world, and he found it only because the script on his it happened to be closer than the script on the opposite wall. Again he looked up, and barely made out Mihoshi's face: the script did not go directly into her eyes and so the two dark ovals were very prominent among the glowing room. It all fascinated him…
Suddenly the text ceased its chaotic movement and aggregated into dense, neatly organized clusters on the left wall.
Then, in a manner similar to sand in an hourglass, strands of text left the wall, slipped by an area where Tenchi believed Mihoshi's face to be, and reorganized themselves on the opposite wall. Barely half a second passed until all text was on the other wall. Tenchi blinked in awe.
She read it. All of the script.
The text slowly faded into the wall as the normal lights were brought up. Tenchi felt a yearning soon afterwards: the bright colors aroused in him a festivity that would certainly be hard to get back.
Mihoshi was slumped over in her seat, eyes glazed over, pupils dilated and her mouth open in a dumbfounded expression that allowed spittle to seep down her chin.
"Mihoshi!!!" He couldn't stand seeing her like that.
With a couple blinks her eyes refocused and she got pulled back into reality.
"Sorry," she said quietly, dabbing her chin with her sleeve, " I have to do that a lot."
"What was that?!"
"Reports. Battlefield conditions. Red is something bad, green is something good."
"H-how did you do that?"
"How?" she answered with a devilish grin. "This is how." She reached behind her head and tugged on something concealed in her hair. She brought it into the light for Tenchi to see. It was a long, thin needle attached to the plug box on the chair.
Tenchi was befuddled. "Wha…"
She smiled again at Tenchi's confusion. "It hooks my brain up to a processor that allows me to think a little faster. Makes my brain bigger. You," she said with a laugh, "of all people know that I need a bigger brain!"
"But…"
"Yeah, I look kinda funny afterwards. I find it amusing. Don't you?"
He didn't know what to say.
She sighed. "This room is a little too dreary for us. Let's change the scenery a little bit."
At her command a transparent menu came up. "These are some places I've saved into the computer. Most people know one's environment affects how he thinks. GDF…Galaxy Defense Force advisors made sure I had a variety to choose from." She brought her hand down the list. Tenchi, out of pure curiosity, tried to make out what kind of places Mihoshi had on the list, but couldn't read anything because not only was he seeing it backwards, it was in her species' handwriting. Her hand quivered over one selection. It was quick, almost unnoticeable, but Tenchi caught it and decided to look at the list again to find out what was bothering her. Although it was mirror image, he recognized the hiragana and kanji characters.
Masaki Household. He wasn't the only one having a hard time discarding the past. Things were wonderful back then…
However, her hand continued on and pressed on another illegible choice.
After an unimpressive coruscation he found himself standing with Mihoshi on the balcony of an elegantly designed condo. All of a sudden, everything felt wonderful. They were high in the mountains, the sun was setting in the distance, and despite the high altitude a warm, moist, sea-like breeze enveloped them.
"My home." She said as she looked to the sun.
The fading light of the sun brought
out the rich blue of Mihoshi's eyes and the wind carefully, and almost
deliberately picked up her short silky hair and tossed it lazily about her
face, giving her a haphazard, natural look that pulled from Tenchi's hidden,
buried soul the love that he had for her. Sasami was definitely right: those things obtained easily are taken lightly. Long ago, these 6 women came to him, simply
as a result of his curiosity and mischievousness, and as he looked at
Mihoshi he reluctantly admitted to himself that he had taken them for
granted. His journey through time, as
the "savior" of the universe was alone, he had lost the girls, and with
this loss came the realization that he had hidden his true feelings for
them. Now, as he beheld the women he
knew, one by one, from a totally different perspective, he couldn't help but
let his emotions resurface. Minutes ago
he had shed his identity and with that, his feelings.. All it took was an encounter with Mihoshi
Kuramitsu, the beautiful star, to regain his love, and his drive, not to save
all time, but to save his loved ones. With the assistance of the artificial world she was in, Mihoshi had an
unreal, intangible, and almost divine beauty radiating from her. Involuntary he mouthed his thoughts, beautiful.
Mihoshi was too perceptive. She turned to Tenchi with her lips slightly open in an inquisitive look.
"You've changed." was all he could muster.
Mihoshi jumped at the thought. It was new to her. "You know," she said, once again resuming her place against the balustrade, "you are so right. I've changed. Physically, yes." She ran picked up a lock of her hair, brought if before her eyes, then carelessly flicked it away. "I had to shave my head for the implant surgery. Never cut it since but it's never regained the grandeur it used to have." Delicately she ran her fingers across the fair skin of her arm. "As a commander of GDF, I don't see the sun anymore. Sure I see stars, I see them from space. But I don't feel them, like I did the Earth's sun.
She looked up with her eyes narrowed in grief. "You know how many people have died under my command Tenchi? Over twenty two billion, three thousand five hundred and sixty three. I have that many names and faces permanently etched into my memory. Long ago, I received my title change, from detective to cadet. I was placed in a unit. I was shipped off to battles. I cried when my Lieutenant told me when my partner Michel died today, or my comrade Mariko was caught in a blast. And I remembered all of them. Then, I was promoted to Lieutenant myself. Not because I was good at what I did. Only because all the Lieutenants in my unit were killed. I still got reports that Ishido died instantly from an energy discharge, or that Isolde was missing, but only this time, I was responsible. I remembered them all. And all I could do for them was cry. Then I got promoted again. That time I got lists, lists that had dozens of names, killed or missing, and although it became harder, I remembered all their faces. And I cried for each one of them. I got promoted again, and again, and again, lists of the dead became books, books became sets. And I remembered them all. I was so helpless, so I cried. For all my life I've had luck relentlessly pursue me to the ends of the universe. When I was Detective Mihoshi I silently cherished my luck, and with it I cheated death several times. But during the war, I hated it. I wanted to die." She paused.
"After the Second Battle of the Earth, the Supreme Commander was killed, and I took his place. At that promotion, twenty two billion, three thousand, five hundred and sixty three men and woman had died under my command. I can name you all of them. Later that day, I received my first casualty report. A number. It was a number. As I went through the detailed lists, in a desperate attempt to remember all the names, I came across one that changed me forever. Missing in action. Kiyone Makibi. I stopped counting that day Tenchi! I stopped crying! Damnit Tenchi, yes, I've changed!"
Mihoshi collapsed on the floor and began to weep. She sought no comfort from Tenchi. She even turned away, and dragged herself feebly to the other side of the balcony, in shame.
She shed tears of loneliness.
Life renewed by the strength of the woman before him, Tenchi knelt before Mihoshi, pulled her around, and let her cry on his shoulder as he gave sincere words of comfort. But he did not cry.
"So, are you going to claim the throne?"
The simple question startled him. "Wh-what?"
They were in her cramped office again. Mihoshi sat before him, emotionally drained and in no mood for fantasy worlds. He had explained his presence and Washu's plan to pass the time. Abruptly she had regained her composure and assaulted him with the shocking question.
"What were you planning on doing?" She asked skeptically.
"I-I don't… I don't know."
"You should reclaim the throne." Mihoshi said, leaning back into her chair. "Envision the situation, Tenchi. A young mysterious vagabond appears out of the blue, claiming to be heir to the throne. After marriage with the reigning Empress, the Jurian army pummels Tokimi's to near death. But he dies. However… years later the Emperor returns, the Phoenix rising from the ashes, and bids his army to resume the fight. Can you imagine how high morale will be? If you take the throne? It could give us the edge we need to get out of this standstill."
"Will it?" Tenchi responded, baring what he thought was the truth, looking straight into Mihoshi's eyes. "I am not Emperor Tenchi, Mihoshi. I'm a confused boy sent with a mission but not an objective."
"I am giving you you're objective." She said, almost shouting. Frustrated, she leaned forward and pounded her fist on the armrest. "It will work, Tenchi, you need to become Emperor!" Never before had Tenchi seen Mihoshi so decisive.
"I have to think about it… I have to do what my gut tells me to do."
Defeated, Mihoshi sagged back into the chair, and sighed, "Do you think you're gut will reroute the course of history?"
"What I need to do will come to me. It always does."
As if on cue, the intercom on the chair beeped.
"Yes?" Mihoshi said as she pressed a button. Her tone was different. It was concealing.
"Sorry to interrupt, Commander. Do you have a guest with you?"
"Yes." She shot a nervous glance at Tenchi.
"Lady Sasami sends her most sincere apologies, but she must see your guest, immediately."
Without wavering at all, Mihoshi responded. "The Lady's will is my command."
"Very well Commander. A detachment will be sent to escort the boy to the Empress." Another beep ended the conversation.
She looked up, her face beaming with renewed strength and resolve, and she said, "Go Tenchi. Of all the girls, Sasami needs you the most."
Slowly and reluctant Tenchi lifted himself from the seat. "When should I come again?"
She waited until he reached the door. "Don't worry about seeing me again. In times like these, our next encounter is inevitable."
Tenchi smiled, and Mihoshi smiled back. He left her wondering if he would really ever see her again.
The symphony of the escort's footsteps relentlessly echoed back and forth in the massive hallway. Only Tenchi's staggered, uneven steps shattered the perfect synchronization.
Time was beginning to take its toll. His legs felt like they were full of lead, and his eyelids were heavy. It had been… how long? How long ago since had woken up in Washu's lab? He brushed the useless thought aside. All that mattered was he was very, very tired, and he needed some sleep. After all, how could he bear the fate of the universe and not get tired?
Despite his weariness, the two massive oak doors that appeared out of the mist like titanic wraiths did not fail to impress him. As they neared the doors, he squinted in an effort to find the top of the gateway, but they seemed to reach into infinity. He was even more amazed when the seemingly immobile doors swiftly swung open to accept him, nearly knocking over with a gigantic front of air. Clumsily he caught his robe and turned back around.
He was awestruck by the scene before him. Magnificent banners of brilliant colors dominated the room, assaulting the eyes of anyone who looked with the sheer grandeur and power that was Jurai. Wherever there wasn't a banner, there was a sculpture, thousands of sculptures, all telling stories of past battles won, enemies conquered long ago, and the tradition of strength that soared through the generations of the Royal Family. The strength lived to that day, tangibly represented by the countless Royal Guard that lined the walls, and by those unseen that Tenchi knew where hiding among the innumerable ornaments. Their robes cascaded together in waves as a mighty and immortal current of air swept through the hall, reminding all who entered of the eternal circulation of Jurai energy from the Royal Family to it's people. The end of the throne room was marked by a massive artificial hill, shaded and protected by Jurain trees. And there, between the two thrones on the hill, simply standing, but standing with enough grace and divine radiance as to inspire a man as downtrodden as Tenchi, was Sasami.
"Sasami…" he whispered.
"Tenchi…" she silently cried back.
Vigorously he marched the remaining distance and up the hill with the escort. Totally composed under the façade of royal etiquette, Sasami merely nodded an acknowledgement to her new guest. After reflecting for a moment, she spoke.
"Thank you. You may resume your posts. I will take the boy with me to the Tsunami's chamber."
Hesitant to defy orders, but concerned for his liege lady's well being, the captain of the guard protested. "Lady Sasami, I feel I cannot allow you to be alone with this…" He looked to Tenchi and blinked upon seeing the boy's face for the first time. The boy bore a resemblance to…to… no, it couldn't be!
"Believe me when I say this boy is no threat." Sasami said, pulling the captain out of his daze.
His mind racing with thoughts, the captain bowed in obedience and left with his men.
Again, Sasami stood there and gazed into nothingness, eyes narrowed into concentration. Tenchi shuddered as he felt the stares of the Royal Guard. They weren't looking directly at him, but he could feel himself being monitored by them, each and every one of them. Sasami broke the tense silence by saying to Tenchi, "Follow me." Following the rules of courtesy etched into his mind, he walked a couple paces behind the Empress, keeping his back straight, his chest out, and his chin upward in open defiance to the relentless stares of the invisible men and women dotted throughout the palace walls.
With a mute flash, he found himself in Tsunami's chamber, greeted with the sight of dozens of Jurain trees, around him, under him, above him, their incomprehensible rustles drifted lazily through the air, between him and Sasami as she continued forward, tall and regal. No longer under the watchful eyes of protocol, she silently beckoned him to her side. Together they walked wordlessly through the magnificent gardens of Jurai, keeping the moment.
Gently her voice broke through the whistling of the trees, " The archive master told me of an eccentric and remarkably powerful young boy wandering aimlessly through the palace."
Again there was a calm, silent pause. Their footsteps were silent, only the trees spoke.
"Then the throne room suddenly filled with an urgent energy as reports came through the network that an eccentric and remarkably powerful young soldier challenged the Captain of the Guard to a dual."
Failing to feel the right words, Tenchi continued walking, looking at the living tan of the walkway before him.
"Finally, things calmed down when the Supreme Commander of the Galaxy Defense Force resolved the situation and gave a name to the odd intruder. Strangely enough his name was the same as the late Emperor. My husband."
He didn't try to formulate a response. One wasn't necessary.
"Tenchi. Earth and sky. It's amazing what can be found in the tiny strip of atmosphere. Between the earth and sky. Isn't it?"
"Yes." He breathed.
"It's been a long time Tenchi."
Rapidly, Tenchi asked, "What's going on Sasami?"
"Tokimi. She wants universal power. And to do so, she must absorb her sisters' power." Her explanation was short, simple, and quite unbelievable to Tenchi. "And, as you can probably guess, Washu is one. I am the other."
"Why all the killing?" the phrase escaped through his clenched teeth. Again the answer was short.
"I am Jurai. In order to absorb my full potential, she must destroy all Royal Family members. In doing so, their power returns to me. Until then, destruction reigns."
He stopped and looked with his weeping eyes into hers, and with great difficultly, asked, "Why Ayeka?"
Through her delicate, expressionless lips she explained again. "A Royal Family tradition. The first princess is the bearer of the essence. The first princess alone knows how to summon the human essence of the trees. Without them, we are almost powerless against Tokimi's onslaught."
His face twisted into fury. "Ayeka had to die because of a God damn
tradition?"
It was then he noticed the solitary tear flowing down Sasami's cheek, its gleaming moist trail the only indicator of her sadness. Like before, the situation made words unnecessary. Tenchi's pain spoke for itself, and Sasami's divine beauty answered back. Their eyes connected that day, across the two feet of heavy Jurain air, and with that they touched souls, and were moved to embrace in a kiss, a slow, affectionate kiss through which they delved deeper into each other. Each closed their eyes to suppress the tears and the sadness, to cherish the moment in blissful oblivion, and to share only their love with the contact of their lips. And to the boy, who had been violently shoved unwillingly into a situation where he would watch his loved ones suffer and die, and to the woman, the girl at heart, who had accepted the mantle of Empress, and the love of a man who was bound to die, the passionate embrace was paradise. The held each other for what was an eternity in an unreal silence.
Silence…
Silence?
The abnormal silence hit them both at the same time. Reluctantly Sasami pulled away from the kiss. He felt her small hands tense nervously on his back. Protectively he embraced her tighter. Hurriedly, Sasami whispered, "Tenchi, I love you!" in his ear, and pulled away. Eagerly he tried to answer her, to assure her that he, too, truly loved her, but the words stopped in his mouth as he surveyed the seen behind her. The trees stood ghostly still, their vibrant colors gone, only to be replaced by dull, discouraging shades of black and white. It was like a still photo, the only thing he saw moving were Sasami's lips, quivering out of excitement or fear, and one, single, solitary branch jutting over the walkway from below, still retaining it's color and rustling in the wind, obviously one of royal tree Tsunami's appendages.
Seconds later, he heard the slow, deliberate, harmonic voice ring from some distance behind him. "Am I interrupting?"
The sarcastic undertone jolted the hairs on the back of his neck to an erect position, his jaw bit down violently, his vision glazed over blood red, falling down to completely animalistic instincts for he knew who the voice belonged to even before he turned around.
Tokimi.
He spun around uncontrollably to face her, falling to his knees but not really caring; he stared at her cool purple eyes with his, glaring and even bulging from insanity. His heart began to beat erratically and he felt his breathing stop. His entire body devolved into one, single, action: kill.
KILL.
The four Light Hawk Wings jumped easily from his body and sailed with him in formation as he leapt in for the kill, completely ignoring, not even hearing Sasami shrieking his name. The deadly pentagon bore down in a blurred flash towards Tokimi's throat. Right before he connected he saw the edge of Tokimi's pursed lips twist into a skeptical smirk.
Her hand flew like lightning from under her ceremonious garbs without so much as a rustle, and easily glided through Tenchi's outstretched arms and latched onto his neck.
His momentum was almost unstoppable but Tokimi's grip was overwhelming. The connection of the unstoppable force and the immovable object climaxed in a forte, sickening crack the reverberated through the hallways, proclaiming Tokimi's victory.
"Four wings?" Tokimi asked, still with a sadistic grin on her face. "Is that all? Hah, you were much more powerful when I last saw you."
Still berserk, Tenchi tried to kick the smiling woman square in the face, but after failing to make any part of his body below the unbearable pain in his neck respond, all will power left him. No longer able to voluntary control his lungs, he allowed a low, labored wheeze to escape through his lips. Not even able to speak, he directed all his rage toward Tokimi with a vicious glare. In response, he heard Tokimi snicker and Sasami cry out his name painfully.
She savored the moment during that second, but when she felt she had enough she concluded the deadly seizure by channeling her divine power in the arm she held him with. After a brief and strangely noiseless flash, she sent Tenchi's limp, lifeless body soaring through the air in Tsunami's chamber atop a wave of pure energy. As he tumbled helplessly over the still trees he saw Sasami looking at him, her eyes widened in frustration, her mouth opened in a plea he did not hear, and her arm feebly outstretched to him. He saw her arm disappear into a flash that rivaled Tokimi's, and regained his sight to see her Light Hawk Wings glide towards his falling body. Time inched slowly along.
He couldn't feel is body fall into her open Light Hawk Wings, but he could see it. And he couldn't feel himself float to Tsunami, but he saw the whole thing. As the Wings placed him carefully on one of the monstrous branches of the tree, he saw Sasami gently scold him, like she did so long ago in the woman's baths of his great-aunt's onsen. "Tenchi, stay out of this."
Before the horror of paralysis could set it, delicate streams of light came forth from the higher branches of the tree and sluggishly rained down upon his body. Slowly he could feel his body get renewed by the life giving light. As soon as his strength was almost fully renewed, he completely overlooked Sasami's warning and tried to bolt once again to Tokimi, but staggered as he felt Tsunami's invisible arms enclose him and pull him back to the branch. He had become an unwilling spectator.
From his location, he could see Sasami gracefully glide to a position a couple feet in front of Tokimi, and despite the great distance he could clearly hear the women speak.
"Hello, sister," Sasami said with a dull, unemotional expression.
"Hello, sister," Tokimi answered, shedding her sarcastic attitude upon feeling her sister's seriousness.
Then they simply stared at each other in a withdrawn, tense silence. Urging things forward, a light wind came forth from Tsunami and rustled the women's robes.
He almost didn't see it. A silent, almost invisible blue wave of energy traversed the distance between the two women, coming from Sasami, causing Tokimi to merely stumble back a second but buying enough time for Sasami to engulf herself in light, changing, in a manner eerily reminiscent of Ayeka, into her combat gear. Tokimi was already charging at full throttle upon the completion of Sasami's transformation, her left arm bearing a massive amber sword and chambered for a savage outward swing towards Sasami's torso, almost the exact same spot he had seen his own sword enter Ayeka's side. He tried to shout but accidentally swallowed the words before it reached his lips, and he tried to leap into the fray but failed to overcome Tsunami's ever-tightening grip. No! he shouted mentally to himself, Don't let it happen again! He continued to struggle .To his relief, Sasami phased out, the blade swished through the air where she once stood, and she reappeared further along the walkway. In ethereal brilliance the 10 Light Hawk Wings leapt from her body. One she kept in her hand, the other 9 hastily constructed themselves into a grid in the space between the two women.
Tokimi pulled back from her swing, shoved her sword into the wooden ground, leaned on it, and asked, with a raised eyebrow, "Really, Tsunami, we've played this game before. Do you really think you can handle another run?"
Sasami answered only with her heavy, deliberate breathing.
"Very well." With a staccato clip Tokimi's decorative outer garments fell to the floor. The metallic ornaments thudded on the floor, marking the beginning of Tokimi's charge. She slid forward into the air into the gaping jaws of Sasami's Wings, blurring into a bullet whose tip was the threatening end of her sword. It was an impressive show, but Tenchi saw the ruse.
However, Sasami did not.
The first two wings snapped shut on the almost invisible wisp of Tokimi, causing it to disappear like the apparition that it was. Time flew by at incredible rates, and all Tenchi could gather in the precious split seconds was a muffled yell that he knew wouldn't be heard. The real Tokimi phased in victoriously inches above and behind Sasami and her defense matrix, her amber sword already halfway through a violent swing directed toward Sasami's exposed head.
This time Tenchi's shout got through and touched Sasami's ears, causing her to reflexively leap to the ground and pull in her Wings. Again, Tokimi's sword grazed the air where Sasami's body was only moments earlier. With professional swiftness, Tokimi recovered from her miss and continued her descent, beginning a violent counter-swing aimed directly at the now-prostrate Sasami.
Tenchi held his breath as he helplessly anticipated the outcome of Tokimi's attack. Sasami once more impressed Tenchi with her combative skill as she thrust herself into a roll that brought into a more easily defendable but still vulnerable position; with only milliseconds to spare one of her Wings materialized in her hand barring Tokimi's thrust.
It was a scene of beauty as the two women gazed into each other's eyes with a serenity that contrasted sharply against the pure chaos that emanated from the contact of their swords. The paradoxical view assaulted Tenchi visually and audibly; the grinding of pure energy crashed through the hallways always reminding him that the two delicate women before him her engaged in a tremendous battle that ultimately amounted to the ageless clash of good against evil.
For an what seemed an eternity Sasami laid unmoving on the ground, both her hands holding the Wing an arm's length against Tokimi's sword, who was also almost immobile as she hung in the air over Sasami, slowly grinding closer and closer to her with the power of her weight. He cursed Tsunami for rendering him so useless. Tokimi was obviously gaining the upper hand, relentlessly pressing closer and closer to Sasami with a look of evil satisfaction of her face. Using her fading reservoir of energy, Sasami unleashed the potential within her, violently flinging her sister off of her with the combined, Jurain power of the 10 Wings. As she attempted a standing position, she once again set up nine of the Wings in a grid between her and Tokimi.
But the clash had taxed her too much. She remained on the ground trembling on her hands and knees, gasping for air with a pained look that stirred Tenchi to try again in vain to pull free from Tsunami. Why is she doing this? He yelled, mentally at Tsunami. He knew that simply keeping him where he was was also draining energy from the suffering woman before him. As he watched the flickering Wings hover uncertainly in the air, the last defense, the urge to help her grew and he squirmed insatiably in Tsunami's invisible grips. Deep inside, however, he knew that whatever help he could add was next to nothing against Tokimi's seemingly endless power.
Tokimi grinned sadistically as she watched her sister dangle precariously on the brink of exhaustion. "This is how it always ends, sister." She shouted over the inconstant buzzing of the fading Wings. " Things would be so much easier of you simply let me do it. But no, with the pride of Jurai nailed to your chest, and the measly power of Jurai within you, you simply must fight with me. And this is how it ends. Always." The statement seemed to be directed more to Tenchi than to Sasami.
Abruptly Tokimi leapt from her position, with murderous viciousness slashed the dying embers of the nearest Wing into nothingness, and with practiced, methodical precision continued on to the next. Sasami had pulled herself into a kneeling position and used her hands to guide the Wings with as much simplicity as one would play a video game, but every time Tokimi destroyed a Wing she doubled over in pain, destroying any doubts that she was, in fact, responsible for the brilliant spectacle. And that she was suffering with every blow. Indirectly, Tenchi also felt her pain, and slowly he reverted back to animalistic rage as he watched Tokimi beat her own sister into oblivion as if it were an every day happening.
Gracefully Tokimi destroyed the last Wing, did away with her sword because she no longer needed it, and landed in front of Sasami, who had fallen back on the floor almost totally unconscious. "Pathetic." She glanced over at Tenchi, and hesitated for a moment, for as she attacked her sister, he had pulled harder and harder against Tsunami's grip and now was in a standing position on the branch, leaning against, Tsunami's invisible arms, writhing in uncontrolled rage. Quickly she tossed the thought of him being a threat aside, and moved on to more important manners. With a malevolent gentleness she picked up Sasami's body, tossed it into the air, and grabbed it by the neck as it descended. As she struggled against Tokimi's grip, Sasami still persisted and used her last ounce of energy to hold her chin high in defiance. In the distance, Tenchi pulled farther and farther away from Tsunami's trunk.
Careful not to be heard by Tenchi, Tokimi said quietly and deliberately, "I've killed many in the past week. Perhaps I have destroyed all you relatives. Perhaps I will absorb your power today. If so, your suffering will end. Wouldn't you like that, sister?"
Sasami silently looked into her sister's eyes.
"Well then," Tokimi said angrily, disgusted by her Sasami's invincible courage "Let's find out the hard way!" She closed her eyes in concentration, and her hand began to flow into Sasami's neck. Tenchi mindlessly continued further and further along the branch, lengthening his distance from Tsunami.
A massive, unchecked explosion filled the room, heralding Tokimi's failure.
The discharge sent Sasami into near-death; Tsunami's grip on Tenchi snapped like a rubber band and even assisted Tenchi as he bolted at unbearable speeds with his 4 wings towards Tokimi, who was still recovering from the blast.
Without thinking, he gathered his Wings as one and slashed at Tokimi's face.
The woman's pained scream echoed through the chamber; it was a scream of someone who had never felt pain before. Infuriated, she reflexively blasted Tenchi with full power, sending him careening back to Tsunami. Tenchi's limp, unconscious body thudded dully against the wood. Still motivated by anger, she attempted a leap towards the tree, fully intending to utterly destroy the boy, but was stopped upon seeing Sasami grinning despite her condition.
Instinctively she reached her hand to Sasami's source of gratification: her face was bleeding. Childishly she directed her anger at Sasami's satisfaction; all their lives she had been the domineering sister, the one who had almost completely convinced her siblings, Tsunami and Washu, that she was completely invincible. And now, Sasami was watching in content as she bled. Sasami watched Tokimi's blood seep from a cut on her face, and was revitalized by knowing that Tokimi, was not invincible. Her lover, Tenchi had just proved that. Tokimi thundered over to Sasami's body, bent over, and attempted to crush Sasami's confidence by saying, " I will find your blood relatives. I will kill them." She glanced over to Tenchi's body. "That boy does not matter. He comes from another dimension. He is another one of Washu's futile backup plans. I will find the Jurai Royal Blood of this dimension, and I will slay them all." Anticlimactically she disappeared. The entire chamber regained its vivid color and its life. And Sasami was still smiling.
Once again the tree healed Tenchi, and once again the tree held Tenchi' to it's body. The wind blew and rustled the leaves of the other trees, totally oblivious to what had just happened. The artificial light was dimming, keeping time with the ending day outside.
He knew it was useless to try to escape from the tree, in fact it would even tire Sasami even more, so he sat on the tree and breathed deep, slow breaths of satisfaction and exhaustion as Sasami slowly and laboriously limped towards him. The dimming light outlined the soft features of Sasami's body. She had changed much too. She had matured, and just as Tsunami had looked on the day they discovered Sasami's identity, she was very beautiful.
He said nothing as she stripped herself of her clothes, and as she joined him on the branch of Tsunami. As she approached he could see the innumerable cuts and bruises that defaced her divinely pleasant body. He said nothing as she curled herself into Tenchi's lap and pulled his hand against the soft, delicate skin of her chest. The streams of light came forth from the tree and began to renew her body.
Quietly, he asked the question that needed to be asked. "Sasami, who's still alive in our family?"
Her hands pressed his tightly into her bosom. She slowly, tiredly whispered through quivering lips, "Tenchi, the most important people in the universe are your grandfather… and our son."
END PART 3
After being exposed to two extremely strong women, and after experience one of their struggles first hand, Tenchi wonders if he's actually up to the job.
Barely Breathing
Performed by Duncan Sheik
I know what you're doing, I see it all to
clear
I only taste the saline when I kiss away your tears
You really had me going, wishing on a star
But the black holes that surround you are heavier by far
I believed in your confusion, you
were so completely torn
Well it must have been that yesterday was the day that I was born
There's not much to examine, there's nothing left to hide
You really can't be serious if you have to ask me why
I say good-bye...
'Cause I am barely breathing
And I can't find the air
I don't know who I'm kidding
Imagining you care
And I could stand here waiting
A fool for another day
But I don't suppose it's worth the price, worth the price
The price that I would pay
Everyone keeps asking, what's it all about?
I used to be so certain and I can't figure out
What is this attraction? I only feel the pain
There's nothing left to reason and only you to blame Will it ever change?
'Cause I am barely breathing
And I can't find the air
I don't know who I'm kidding
Imagining you care
And I could stand here waiting
A fool for another day
But I don't suppose it's worth the price, worth the price
The price that I would pay
But I'm thinking it over anyway...
I've come to find
I may never know
Your changing mind
Is it friend or foe?
I rise above
Or sink below
With every time
You come and go
Please don't come and go
'Cause I am barely breathing
And I can't find the air
I don't know who I'm kidding
Imagining you care
And I could stand here waiting
A fool for another day
But I don't suppose it's worth the price, worth the price
The price that I would pay
But I'm thinking it over anyway...
I'm looking for a place you guys can download it online.