All your Tenchi Muyo are belong to AIC/Pioneer....
Seriously tho: Tenchi Muyo and its characters are the property of AIC and Pioneer. I am using them here without permission.
Hey, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!

ATTENTION: This is rated R!
This means that the story contains references to sex, and/or graphic violence and bad language. (Equivalent of "Lime")

Notes:
This story takes place in an altaverse to TM!Universe.
You will find that while this universe is based on the TM!Universe (aka first TV-series), it is radically different from anything you know. The characters are mostly themselves, but different relationships and youth may have changed them.


This is first part of the Another Altaverse Trilogy.
The title of the trilogy is humbly nominated to the "Worst Fanfic Title of the Year" award.

The chapter titles are based on a quote from Ian Flemming, which I unfortunately got wrong in my first version. It has been corrected now. (Thanks, Draculthemad!)


-

Another Altaverse Trilogy
Part: 1

Once is Happenstance

-

"Very good Masaki-san, now if you'd please dock at position C12."

The female voice was clear and pleasant with an undertone of command in it. The trained ear could also detect a trace of tiredness in the voice. Something saying "God, what did I do to deserve this?".

Tenchi adjusted the antigrav thrusters of the ship, and it slowly made it's way to the dock intended by the official. The AutoNav could easily dock the ship at the push of a button, but a pilot's license required the ability to dock without the aid of automated systems. This was why Tenchi was currently forced to manually oversee the ship on its approach to the Nuos Star port.

Out of the corner of his eyes, Tenchi examined the GP official monitoring the test. She had long teal hair, contrasting the red headband she wore nicely. Even if in standard issue GP uniform, it was obvious that her body was something other women would kill for.

While Tenchi did find her attractive, he had other things to worry about. First of all he was in a tricky part of his final pilot test. Secondly he could be honest with himself: she was older than him, and he would never work up the courage to even offer her a cup of coffee after the test.

Tenchi concentrated on the controls again, as the ship approached the designated dock.

---=-=---

An explosion rattled the station.

"Commander! We are under attack."

"Raise the shield immediately. Find out who is attacking us."

"The shield is inoperative. It was the first unit to suffer damage."

"I can detect the sub-space ripple from our attacker, but the WR-scanner is drawing a blank. Whoever it is, they are invisible to us."

Another explosion reverberates through the station. This time closer to the command center.

"The long range communications array has been damaged."

"Get a visual of the ship as soon as possible. Track the trajectory of the incoming shots if possible."

"The power has dropped to 85%"

"Visual contact established."

"On screen 3."

At the commanders orders, the large center screen flickered a moment. Then it changed to an external camera. On the screen an unreal crystalline construct hovered amidst the stars. It was close to pitch black, and visible only because of the light reflecting in the jagged crystals. It seemed to be perfectly still in the center of the display, but the moving stars in the background told of its great speed. Shortly after multicolored motes of light faded in around one of the crystal spikes. Gathering around it, they increased in density until a beam of light lashed out. At the same moment another part of the space station shattered and exploded.

The commander watched in eerie silence, his face pale from recognition of the ship.

"By Finagle....we're doomed."

---=-=---

The view from the stylish office was stunning. The entire back wall fashioned the 3rd planet of the Amneg system, floating in the velvet black space, stars glittering in the background.

From Tenchi's seat, the only obstruction of the view was the huge polished desk and fancy swivel-chair. The view, like the desk and chair, belonged to Onez Praw - the owner of Nuos General Technology and Shipping. A medium-sized company dealing with inter-system trade. He was also Tenchi's employer.

"Congratulations on the license and your new job. Why don't you take the rest of day off to celebrate with your friends, and I'll have a your first shipment ready for tomorrow."

"Hai, Praw-san. Thank you. I will."

Tenchi bowed gratefully and left the office. He was excited about the job, even if it was only transporting cargo. He was going to fly his own ship, and that was far more interesting than why.

In the corridor he met Amagasaki along with other of his friends.

"Hi Tenchi! I heard you got it. Congrats!"

"Thanks Amagasaki. It really wasn't that difficult. The official was very nice."

"Yeah, I saw her. I got stuck with a blonde. She was a total babe, but I thought she would never stop talking. That and she was probably worse at planetary landings than me.."

"Ouch. I can imagine."

"Oh well, we got down safely. And in her embarrassment she decided I could have a license anyway since I was 'such a nice boy'. Hay.. how about we grab a dinner at the 'Dragon'. I hear they got rigellian-style sushi."

Soon they moved down the corridor in the direction of the commercial section.

---=-=---

Down somewhere in the corridors of the station the sounds of a fire fight echoed through the halls. The action was brief, and a few screams later everything fell silent.

"Commander. Ertsnatz' group is not responding to any calls."

Sweat was evident on the commanders face. That was the last of their 3 combat groups, all gone in the space of a few minutes. There was no way anything could have encountered them all now without intentionally hunting them down.

"Seal the bridge."

The heavy steel doors shut with a hydraulic hiss. Shortly after they were hit from the other side. The metal buckled, and melted where it was hit.

"Blast doors! Close the blast doors now!"

The bulky durabyllium alloy doors closed, blocking the view of the collapsing steel doors.

Everything was silent. The commander could hear the hasty breathing of his crew members as they gazed at the only thing between them and oblivion. The blast doors gave no sign of being attacked.

Then in an impossible moment the crew watched in disbelief as their predator walked literally through the door.

---=-=---

"Good morning Tenchi-san. I heard you got your license, congratulations!"

"Thanks Mirei-san. Has the shipping papers arrived yet?"

"Yes, they are on your desk. Praw-san requested that you be given an easy first flight, so it seems you are going to the western arm."

"That was nice of him. I better go see the details."

Tenchi made his way to his desk, and studied his assignment. Apparently he would be flying superconductors for a private project in the backwaters of the western spiral arm of the galaxy. Fairly simple indeed. The cargo was in no way delicate or expensive, the traffic on the route should be light, and the low density of stars should help navigation considerably.

He signed the papers and made his way to the docking bays owned by the company. He was fortunate enough to be flying a ship of the exact type he had taken his license in, so he expected a minimum of problems.

---=-=---

"I don't need any problems from you now."

The captain gulped as he looked into the feline golden eyes staring at him with open hostility.

"Just tell me. Where. Is. My. Chocolate."

The control room was a battlefield. Everything not melted or exploded had scorch marks. The ozone was thick in the air, and the buzzing of destroyed circuitry was the only sound.

He felt a slight tingling under his skin where she had pointed the firepike. He knew it was the stabilizing field that would channel the plasma blast from the weapon as soon as it was fully formed.

"I-It wi-will arrive s-soon."

---=-=---

Tenchi cast a glance at the HyperNav. He would arrive soon.

So far the trip had been easy enough. He had of course been nervous about his first flight, but he had been able to enjoy it so far. He almost found that the remaining 10 minutes to the Akodon space station were too short time.

A warning light lit up on his screen.

"Warp space turbulence? Out here? Someone must really have been burning fuel here."

He strapped himself to the chair, and soon after the ship began shaking. The shaking got worse as he approached his exit point, and he could feel the tremor dampeners working on overtime to compensate. Two minutes from his destination the turbulence stopped abruptly, and the warning lights died down.

The schematics of the ship showed no damage, and Tenchi made his way down to the cargo bay to check on the shipment.

"Good thing I am transporting superconductors. The ship would shake apart before they could be damaged."

Opening the door to the cargo bay, Tenchi surveyed the damage. A single crate had gotten loose during the shake. The control panel on the crate had been destroyed from a collision, and had somehow opened the crate.

"Nani..."

The contents of the crate was scattered throughout the room, and it certainly was not superconductors. Tenchi picked up a one of the damaged cardboard boxes from the floor and studied the writing. It was in a language he never thought he would see again.

On the lid of the box the contents was described in Earth-english.

"Chocolate...?"

---=-=---

"Maybe that would teach them not to steal an honest pirates chocolate."

Ryoko walked towards the remains of the control center in an irritated mood.

"Seriously. Here I have honestly smuggled that out of the quarantine zone myself. I let it out of my sight for one day and some dirt brain steals it. What has the universe come to..."

Checking with Ryo-ohki she got confirmation. A single transport ship was about to drop hyperspace, just like the commander had said. Soon she would have her smuggled goods back.

She arrived at the control room and glanced inside. It was close to obliterated, but at least the life-support was still working.

"Hmm..this is no good. This will only scare him away. Unless..."

Ryoko got a mischievous glint in the eye as she smiled. This would be fun. At last some entertainment. With an ounce of willpower she changed her clothes and waited.

---=-=---

Tenchi waited a short while in the cargo area, contemplating his next move. He had obviously been used to transport illegal goods. Since the crates were registered as superconductors, the company would probably be as surprised as himself.

*I will have to contact GP once I drop warp, but what about the station. Someone there must know what is in the crates...*

His thoughts were interrupted by the ship announcing that it would return to real space in ten seconds. Tenchi hurried to the bridge, and arrived just as real space interposed itself over the warp glow in the view port.

"..."

Tenchi watched the view port slack-jawed. Every immediate plan he had was pushed aside by the sight on his main screen.

The station of the screen had a fuzzy appearance, due to the cloud debris around it. It was littered with burnt and melted holes, and many places parts had been blown off. An entire section was severed from the rest and slowly drifting away.

Tenchi had never seen space combat himself, and this wreckage was so real compared to those shown in the newscasts. The eerie silence was getting to him, and he initiated a scan while trying to regain his composure.

A soft 'ping' announced the completion of the scan.

"Hmm..Life-support and artificial gravity are still working. The main section is still habitable. But there is only one life sign. I wonder what could have done this."

Remembering the standard procedure in cases like this, Tenchi sent a message to the GP and attempted to contact the station. It was soon obvious that every means of communicating from the station had been destroyed.

"Since it is habitable and seems stable, I better find out what the life sign is. Somebody might need help."

Tenchi maneuvered his ship closer, and docked close to the control room. He was nervous, a bit scared, and the ghost like silence of the station was getting to him. He made his way to the control room half-running, looking over his shoulder at times. Even though he knew that there was only one life sign, he didn't feel very safe.

The steel door to the bridge had almost been destroyed by something. Tenchi didn't know much about all the exotic weapon types in circulation, but he guessed that it was some sort of plasma weapon. Through the holes in the steel doors, Tenchi could see the more durable blast doors, which seemed in better shape. The surface was mostly intact, and there was no breaches.

Tenchi looked at the door control panel, and was surprised to find that the door was unlocked. Hiding himself from view, Tenchi pressed the open button.

With a creaking sound the blast doors moved aside, and Tenchi peeked around the corner to see what was in the control room.

"..."

For the second time that day Tenchi lost control of his jaw. The insides of the control room seemed worse off than the rest of the station. Almost every metal surface seemed slightly melted, and no control panels were visible.

Then Tenchi spotted the figure curled up at the far wall. Convinced that it was no threat, he collected himself and entered the room.

Getting closer he could make out more details. The figure was apparently female. Her uniform hung in tatters, exposing her soft flesh in places. Her cyan hair was a mess underneath the black commander's cap, but she didn't appear to be wounded anywhere.

When he got close enough she turned around to look at him, and then launched herself at him. For a millisecond Tenchi berated himself for letting his guard down. It was a trap and now he had fallen for it. However instead of attacking him, she embraced him and buried her head in his shoulder.

"Please help me! I am so scared.."

Her voice sounded shaky and desperate, and Tenchi brought up his own arms to hug and comfort her. Apparently this was a survivor after all.

---=-=---

Ten minutes later she seemed to have calmed down somewhat. He had moved them to his ship, and was now slowly getting her story.

"Then suddenly they were there... two warships with the space pirate skull-and-crossbones painting on their hulls....they attacked...killed everyone..."

"Sshhh..it's all right now..they are gone already, and the GP will soon arrive...you are safe now."

Tenchi was still comforting her in his arms, as the traumatic experience still seemed to affect her a bit.

"You don't have to say anymore. I understand. Why don't you take a hot shower and get into some new clothes, while I confirm the call with the GP. You'll feel better afterwards."

Ryoko reluctantly agreed and slowly but gracefully moved towards the small living quarters of the ship. As Tenchi watched her go, he noticed that the tears in her otherwise sexless uniform had made it quite revealing. It was no longer able to conceal her magnificent body, and Tenchi blushed slightly at the sight.

Making his way to the bridge he cleared his head of some naughty thoughts of how she could repay him for the 'rescue'.

"Baka..I am getting as hentai as my father...seriously..."

Sitting down at the communications panel he hoped to get some distraction from the sight of her imprinted in his minds eye.

---=-=---

Ryoko sighed to herself in the hot shower. She had planned to knock him out and steal his cargo at the first opportunity, but something held her back.

*Still blocking all transmissions, Ryo-Ohki?*

She mentally checked with her partner. The reply in her mind was prompt.

*Miyaa*

*Good. We don't want the Geepees here yet.*

*Miya?*

*I dunno..It's just different this time.*

*Miyaaa*

*Yeah...I guess he is just genuinely nice.*

*Miya*

*And cute too.*

She made up her mind. The plan would only be altered slightly, and she would get what she originally came for anyway. Besides, she always did what she wanted.

With a touch command she stopped her shower. The automated program proceeded to dry her, but halfway through the process she stopped it. With a bit of concentration she materialized an old-fashioned towel, and wrapped it about her slightly damp body. She made sure to show plenty cleavage and adjusted the length to barely below her hips.

Looking herself over in the mirror, she adjusted her hair and winked at her mirror image.

"You are one naughty demon..."

---=-=---

Tenchi was a bit frustrated with communications. In all the practice and exercises, the uplink had worked flawlessly. Now on his first real flight and first real emergency, he couldn't even contact the GP.

Deciding that there was nothing to do about it, he sent out another distress signal for the ruined station and went back to his quarters. As he passed the bathroom he heard the automatic shower shift to drying mode.

*I guess she will be out of there soon.*

Tenchi smiled to himself as he remembered her looks. Then sighed as he realized that it was probably just another nice... gorgeous girl he would never even work up the courage to ask out on a date.

Tenchi had just made it inside his personal quarters when a melodic voice behind him chimed: "Tenchiii..",

He turned around and all conscious thought fled him. Three meters behind him, in the doorway, stood Ryoko. The towel she wore hardly covered her nipples, and seemed so short that exposing anymore would move directly to NC-17. The towel was slightly damp and clung to her curvaceous body leaving nothing to the imagination. Her sleek skin was also damp and glistening from the fine sheen of moisture. Her wild cyan hair was ruffled and moist, making her look like a wet swimsuit model. Her bangs were resting on the ample platform of her breasts.

Tenchi's mouth opened slightly as if to say something, but no sound came as the melted jell-o that was his brain refused to come up with a comment.

The steamy gaze in her golden feline orbs held Tenchi rooted to the spot as she approached in a most alluring walk. The sway in her hips would almost but not quite move the towel enough to reveal her natural hair color, and the light bounce in her full breasts almost had Tenchi's eyes bobbing up and down in rhythmical fashion.

Ryoko stopped very close to Tenchi, putting one hand on his shoulder and gently tracing the outline of his jaw with the other.

"I want to thank you Tenchi. For rescuing me. For comforting me."

"..."

Tenchi's mind was in overdrive as it tried to accommodate for this new situation and find a proper response.

"Please. Let me be with you. Tenchiii."

"Um..I wouldn't want t-to take advan"

Tenchi's half-witted protest was cut off as Ryoko leaned in and kissed him. She took advantage of his open mouth and french-kissed him for half a minute, pressing her body close against his.

As she broke the kiss but not the embrace, Tenchi murmured softly.

"When you put it that way..."

They kissed again and Tenchi was loosing himself in a haze of passion like Ryoko. They joined on the bed, in an unreal fantasy. In some surreal moments they were complete, caught up in the act which by far superseded mere physical actions.

Then it was over, and Tenchi relaxed with a strange satisfied feeling of fulfillment. They lay there side by side in his bed, enjoying the warmth of each others bodies. No words were spoken, and none were necessary. Tenchi lost track of time, and soon after fell asleep in her embrace.

---=-=---

Ryoko was feeling a little odd as Ryo-ohki drifted away from the transporter. She couldn't quite place the feeling. Was it loneliness?

*No, it couldn't be*

Ryoko tried to convince herself.

*That is impossible. I have been 3000 years with just Ryo-ohki for company.*

It was sure not guilt. She had never felt guilt about anything, so why should doing 'it' with a man and making off with his cargo once he is asleep be any different?

Something deep inside her insisted that it had been more than sex. It had been making love. However she conveniently ignored this. After all she didn't fall in love. Especially not with a Terran in two hours. Even if he was unselfish, caring, honest..and maybe a bit cute...

"Ryo-ohki. Set for the third Engoloc moon.

---=-=---

Tenchi woke up with feeling something missing. He realized that he was the only person in the bed, and for once that was not what he had expected. Unable to see her in the room panicked him for a short while, but he calmed himself.

*Baka. She has a right to be up before you, you know.*

Looking at the partly torn clothing, he couldn't help but sighing at the fond memories of their encounter. He dressed in a new set of clothes while trying to sort out the whole thing mentally.

*There could be a thousand reasons why she is up before me. She is probably just elsewhere on the ship.*

However Tenchi couldn't help a sneaking feeling of dread. What if she was not on the ship? He berated himself. She had every right to do what she wanted, even leave. She had said that it was just thanks for rescuing her, had she not?

Tenchi stopped in his tracks. Why was it that it meant so much to him?

*Could it be I have.. feelings for her?*

He made it to the cockpit and was mildly disappointed not to find her there either. A few key presses initiated a scan of the ship and station. Tenchi looked at the results and deflated with a sigh. Only one life sign; himself. His mystery girl was gone, like a dream when you wake up in the morning.

Looking over the rest of the scan data, Tenchi found something else missing.

*The cargo. All the illegal chocolate is..gone..like..*

Tenchi slapped himself on the forehead.

*Baka! You meet the girl of your dreams and jump in bed with her after two hours. Way to go, Romeo - Some relationship. No wonder she takes off with your cargo.*

A beeping noise from the communications console indicated a ship hailing him. A quick glance at the short range display confirmed that two GP patrollers had dropped warp close to him. With a sigh he routed communications to main screen and answered the hail.

"This is the Galaxy Police Patrol Cruiser Yagami responding to a distress signal from General Purpose Transporter Mule-72, please confirm your identity."

Tenchi's eyes bulged a bit as he recognized the detective. The red headband was a dead giveaway. She was the GP official from his flight license test.

"This is General Purpose Transporter Mule-72 confirming... Detective Makibi, isn't it?"

The woman on the big screen hid her surprise well, and after a few seconds the light of recognition shone in her eyes.

"Yes it is, Masaki-san. Mind if we board to go through this?"

"No. Go right ahead."

---=-=---

".. after which she went to sleep. When I woke up about half an hour ago, there was no sign of her or my cargo."

Tenchi finished his slightly edited explanation of what had happened. He was not fond of lying to the police, but he couldn't talk about what she had been doing to get him so tired. He didn't feel it had any relevance to the case anyway.

"Did you at any time detect other ships in the area?"

"No. The computer would have alerted me. You can check the log if you like."

"Ok. Could you describe the woman you mentioned?"

Tenchi blushed slightly as he recalled her every detail in the nude. Composing himself he started the description.

"She had cyan hair. I think about shoulder length. Light complexion. Golden eyes. About my height. Athletic build."

Tenchi was interrupted by Kiyone. She had brought her GP-issued holopen up and recalled a picture.

"Did she look like this?"

Tenchi gaped. It was a very matching photo, and there was no doubt that his mystery girl was the one in the photo. Only in the photo she had a huge malevolent smile, and the right third of her face was painted black like some sort of war paint.

Kiyone answered his unspoken question.

"That is the space pirate Ryoko. You really didn't recognize her when you first met her?"

"No. I just got my license so I don't know about every space pirate out there."

Tenchi answered with a shrug.

"True. I didn't expect you to know every space pirate."

Tenchi was slightly relived that he wasn't expected to know about Ryoko.

"Only Ryoko isn't every space pirate. She is the most wanted space pirate. In the universe!"

He almost fell over at this. It seemed so unreal. The nice girl he had comforted and laid with was the most wanted space pirate in the known universe. Some part of him was also relived.

*So that was why she stole my cargo and fled. That is what space pirates do. It wasn't just because of me.*

A small ray of hope entered him.

*Maybe she still likes me..just a bit.*

However depression soon claimed him again. How exactly do one go about meeting the most wanted space pirate in the universe again? Could she really like him the way he liked.. loved?.. her? His thoughts were interrupted by Kiyone again.

"Well, I guess that concludes the investigation. Look at it this way; if you had to be plundered by pirates, Ryoko is probably the best thing that could happen to you."

"Eh..why?"

"Because it will have no influence on your job. Being plundered by Ryoko is just as improbable as getting hit by a stray meteor. And she is just as unstoppable. You can never be held responsible for an encounter with her. Had it been any other pirate your company might have questioned your actions in the episode."

"So..are you going to capture her?"

The otherwise neutral and calculating face of Kiyone broke. She tried to control herself, but shortly after she burst out laughing.

"Ahahaha..yes..haha..in my dreams most likely..hehe..capture Ryoko..*snicker* that was a good one."

Tenchi looked confuse and slightly offended. Kiyone gathered herself and apologized.

"Sorry, but you really haven't heard much about Ryoko, have you?"

He shook his head.

"Well, she has been known to us for the greater part of 3000 years. She has been top listed for 2500 of those. If we could catch her, we would have done so by now. We still have a special unit dedicated to arrest her, but nobody expects them to succeed, probably not even themselves. The rest of the universe seem content to regard her as some kind of force of nature."

Tenchi stood speechless, trying to unite this new picture of Ryoko with the girl he had made love to not ten hours prior. No matter how much he tried he couldn't think of them as the same person.






Not much in the way of notes here.
As you may have noticed, this is the first part of three, all about this special version of the TM!Universe continuity. The second part will introduce more of the regular characters and start detailing their background.

Please feed the author. Comments/Reviews/Advice/Praise/Criticism will do.

-(j@todain.net)