Koi Mizu



Chapter 3: Storm


In the dark reaches of space, a large and bulky ship increased it throttle, in hopes to catch a much smaller and agile ship that it was chasing. The pilot of the sturdy ship, Rhagenhiem, was Nagi the Bounty Hunter. Her quiet lingering around bars and scum holes paid off. She overheard a group of suspicious looking men whisper how their former colleague, Ryoko, had been seen at a few very pricey resorts. *So... Ryoko has finally come back to space* Nagi thought as she activated the tractor beam around the smaller ship. *Now all I need to do is figure out where she is...*

The sleeker ship, lacking raw engine power, was quickly pulled in. In the next moment, the ship powered down its engines, and a transmission came through to Nagi. It was a short and tubby man, with an equally short and a thick white beard. "It seems that your ship has bested mine in a suit of strength. I surrender and hope that you do not take my life from me." His voice was surprisingly calm.

"Don't worry old man, I just want information." Nagi replied.

"I am but merely a civil merchant. What tales could I possibly tell to satisfy someone of your nature?"

Nagi tried hard to keep herself from laughing. "You've been through this before haven't you? Everyone knows that merchants always have the best information in the galaxy since they travel it so frequently."

"I do not understand your logic, young one, I only have knowledge of the marketplace, nothing more." The old man kept a straight face the whole time.

"Hmp! Well, I guess we're going to have to do this the hard way..." Nagi's attention went to the control panel as she accessed the transporter system in her ship. In an instant Nagi was materialized inboard the merchant's ship. From her position directly behind the man on the bridge, she swooped down on him before he could utter a sound. His face was pushed against the console almost knocking him unconscious.

The man cried out. "Your strength surprises this old wanderer, young one."

"Now are you going to help me? Or do I have to get rough?" Nagi scowled.

"I will tell you what I know. But please do not bring harm to me if my knowledge does not meat your requirement."

"Have you heard or seen anything about the ship Yagami or Ryo-ohki?"

"I have never heard of such transports, now please, let this tired old man go."

"Not so fast. I'll admit, it took me quite a while to find your sorry ass, I'm not leaving until I'm positive. How about we check your computer logs and sensor readings shall we?" Nagi said delightfully.

One hand left her brace against the merchant to scan his console of past data. "Cease your actions now... I have been honest with you, there's no need for such measures."

"If I find out you've been lying to me, I'll destroy you ship and let you float with the debris." Nagi spat out sharply.

"Do please halt your actions young one." His voice then became very mused, as if he just remembered something. "There is a fair chance that I know the location of one particular craft."

Nagi looked back at the man intensely. "Which ship did you see, and where did you see it?"

"If I divulge my knowledge to you, will you promise to let me be?"

Nagi slammed him against the console again with a loud crash. "Does is look like I'm giving you a choice? Now TELL ME!"

"Alright, alright. I will tell you." He finally said in defeat. "A ship resembling a long red dragon was soaring among the stars of the Coralius sector not long ago."

"The Yagami!" Nagi quickly saw through the man's strange riddles.

"Now, young one, I have given you what you desired. Please release me." Nagi jumped up from her position loomed over the merchant and thought hard about this new information. *So, she's in the Yagami. That probably means Aeka and Sasami Jurai and those two GP cops are with her. I'm betting that *man* of hers is there too.*

She turned away from the old man to stand in the center of the bridge where she transported in. Just before she disappeared, she spoke to him. "Thanks, you seem to know quite a bit. Maybe I'll see you again sometime." She vanished before he could respond.

Back on her ship, Nagi pressed a few buttons on the ship's computer to release the smaller merchant craft. She watched as it quickly scuttled away into hyperspace. Nagi continued to turn over the same information in her mind; because Ryoko is traveling with them, they may try to help her if she gets into trouble. They all *think* that Ryoko really wants to be their friend while she really uses them behind their back. Ryoko alone is no problem, but the rest can be resourceful at times. Nagi needed to greatly consider how to trap her, without provoking the others, and the prefect place for Nagi to think hard is the sonic showers.

"I need a shower anyway... I actually touched that dirty old man." Nagi shuddered at the thought of the merchant. She promptly headed for her quarters to remove every last bit of dirt she may have collected.


- ------------------------------ -


Sasami's excited eyes raced across the travel brochure of Coralius 2. "Wow Tenchi! It says here that their beach waters here are crystal clear. That's amazing!"

"I can't wait to see it." Tenchi said while sitting in co-pilot seat of the Yagami. Kiyone was piloting, and Sasami was in between, spouting enough anticipation for the both of them.

Just then Ryoko materialized next to Tenchi. "That's not the only thing Sasami, the restaurants here are great. And they serve just about every food you can think of, even Earth's food."

Sasami looked back down at the brochure and flipped forward puzzling. "Wait a second Ryoko, how did you know that?"

"I've been here before, trust me when I say this is a great place to go."

"Oh really? When did you come here Ryoko?" Tenchi asked. Ryoko thought back to the time when everyone was together in the Yagami and they ran out of gas. It was up to her to go out in Ryo-Ohki and buy some food so nobody would starve. But instead of being responsible, she used the money to visit resorts, including this one. Sadly to say, it all ended with a bank robing and the Galaxy Police on their tail.

Out of embarrassment of her selfish actions, Ryoko brushed it aside. "I came here once before I met you on Earth."

"It's a good thing we have someone who has been to this place." Kiyone said. "Because the marketplace looks so big it would be very easy to get lost."

"Just make sure Mihoshi doesn't get separated from us and we'll be okay." Ryoko chuckled.

"Good idea." Kiyone replied, rolling her eyes. "I'm starting my decent, you and Sasami should strap yourselves in the back."

"Sure thing, C'mon Sasami, let's go see what your sister is doing." Ryoko said on her way out of the cockpit.

"Okay... WOW! They even have a roller coaster park here!" Sasami followed Ryoko out with her eyes still glued to the brochure.


- ---------------------- -


On the surface of the planet Coralius, Tenchi and the gang finally reached their hotel that they had reserved a room for. The hotel was a five-mile hike up hill through the city, past the gut-wrenching stench of the docks, past the shoulder to shoulder crowds, and past the circles and circles of complicated streets with similar names. Needless to say, when everyone reached the hotel counter, they were already for a vacation from their vacation.

Tenchi dropped his heavy bags from his stiff hands; he almost collapsed on the front desk. "May I help you sir?" The man at the counter said very properly.

"I have a reservation."

"Name?"

"Masaki." Tenchi replied and turned to everyone else loitering behind him. "Hey you guys, I couldn't get one big room like our last hotel, I had to split us up into three smaller rooms. So how are we going to divvy it up?"

"I'm with Tenchi, no doubt about that." Ryoko smiled widely and through her arms around him.

"I guess that puts me and Sasami in one room." Aeka said.

"Yeah! Me and Kiyone in the last room!" Mihoshi cheered.

"Oh great..." Kiyone groaned. "Hey Washu, what about you?"

"Hmmm... Which of the three rooms am I going to take?" the pintsize scientist wondered.

"Washu, don't you mean, 'Which of the two rooms?' Me and Tenchi are sharing a private room for our own purposes." Ryoko leaned over and kissed Tenchi lightly on the cheek. Tenchi's face went bright red as the obvious insinuation as to his and Ryoko's activities was laid before everyone.

"Ahem!" Aeka cleared her throat loudly. "So Washu, what are you going to decide?"

"Well... If I don't keep an eye on Kiyone, she might kill Mihoshi while no one is looking. I'm going with the Miho-Kiyo room."

"Your keys sir." The clerk said interrupting.

Tenchi took and pocketed the keys. "Okay, After that obstacle course getting up here, I think the first order of business is getting some sleep."

"AGREED!" Everyone said in unison.


- ----------------- -

The dock for the planet Coralius was not much to look at. It basically was a large field of concrete that spread hundreds of yards across. The field was a oversized circle on the outskirts of the city and around the port was almost jail like walls that cut off vision to the inside. The field was cover with thousands of small ships, large ships, and ship of any type you can think of. If someone wasn't careful, they could lose themselves in the many rows of crafts.

"Hey Dude! Check out that ship over there! That's a 4500 Thunderbird Pro with Photon flashers!" Said a rowdy kid, who was standing on a perch over the dock. The perch was in one of the many look out towers of the towering walls.

"Yeah man, you don't see ships like that very often, these tourists must be rich mother fuckers!" Said the other kid while passing a bottle of alcohol to him. "And check that out over there. That's a GP cruiser if I ever saw one."

"Shit man, your right! I didn't know those hippie goodie two shoe bastards took vacations."

Before the other kid could add his joke to the comment, an old rigid ship creaked its' way into the port. "What the hell is that thing?"

"Jeez, that piece of shit looks just about ready to fall apart."

"No kidding... the owner is probably some- HOLY CRAP CHECK IT OUT!" The second kid pointed out a woman who emerged from the ship; she was wearing a dark cloak and skin tight body armor.

"Whoa, check that woman out! Hot stuff."

"Hell yeah man! What I would love to do to her! OUCH!" They continued their mindless rants until one of them called out to her.

"Hey baby! Why don't you come up here and we'll show you around the city!"

Nagi glance up at the two boys who were hitting on her crudely. "*Men.*" She sighed in annoyance and quickly walked away, ignoring the two oglers.


Besides the sex deprived teenage boys; Nagi surveyed he dock for any activity. Her position on the ground cut off her view of most of the ships docked, so Nagi was forced trek across the port. *I bet those two boys had a good view...* Nagi considered finding a way to get up to their bluff over the dock, but she didn't want to give those guys the pleasure of her going up there.

While on foot, she grumbled in irritation from having to jump from city to city just looking for the Yagami. She was lucky enough to know that Ryoko was on vacation. Coralius 2 was known for its resorts so she didn't bother checking the other planets in the system, but finding out which city she was in was a pain. Almost the entire planet was covered with theme parks and luxurious hot spots; Ryoko could have been in anyone of them. No matter how tedious and slow the process was, Nagi still smiled coldly at the thrill of hunting Ryoko down.

Her thoughts were halted as the corner of her eye caught a flash of red glossy metal pass by. She stopped and looked up to check the ship. It was the Yagami. Nagi smiled at this small victory; it would only be a matter of time before it was all over... for good.

She arrived at the side of the Yagami, standing in front of the door. *Now to find out what hotel they are staying at.* She examined the keypad that locked the door. She glanced around carefully to see if she had any audience watching her, when everything seemed safe, Nagi reached inside of her cloak and pulled out a small box. She fit the item perfectly over the keypad and clicked the activation button on the side. After a few moments and a couple beeping sounds, the door whooshed open, inviting Nagi into the empty ship.

But *was* is empty? Nagi wasn't completely sure so she stepped light on her toes making no sounds at all. Nagi stalked her way through the corridors, heading to the bridge. Once she arrived there, she found the computer deactivated and the ship completely powered down except for the lights. Relieved that no one was around, she searched the cabin free from worry of getting caught. She checked the "glove compartments" of the pilot's chair, inside was a couple writing utensils, a Galaxy Police handbook, and a handful of other papers that were irrelevant to her. In the co-pilots seat she found a half-eaten cookie, a package of donuts, some Twinkies, and a fortune of potato chip wrappers. "Ugh! Who eats this junk?" Nagi looked up from the chairs and noticed a small folded piece of paper that was laid on the console. She picked it up and passively looked it over. On the front cover read the words "Coralius 2 Magic Tree Resort!" She quickly flipped through the brochure until, at the very end, she saw the posted room prices, contact numbers, and city location. It was as if a big red carpet was being laid before Nagi leading her right to Ryoko.

"Jackpot!"


- ----------------------- -

Tenchi fidgeted with the key to his room as his heavy bags strained in his arms. "Aww man... how does this thing work?"

"Here Tenchi, let me take that for you." Ryoko swooped up Tenchi's bags and phased through the door. Once second later the door opened up with Ryoko standing behind it.

"Thanks Ryoko, I don't know what I would have done without you." He smiled widely.

"Anything for you Tenchi." She smiled back and the two lovebirds exchanged a light kiss while walking into the room.

"Aww, I thought we ordered one king size bed, not two singles," Ryoko said disappointedly.

"It's not so bad Ryoko, we'll just push these two beds together." Tenchi replied reassuringly.

"That's a good idea Tenchi." Ryoko said walking over to the far side of the second bed. Tenchi positioned himself on the near side of the fist bed. And with one big shove, the beds were combined into one.

"We're lucky these things have wheels, or it may have been a little difficult." Tenchi observed.

Ryoko sat down on the enlarged bed and sighed heavily. "Oh boy am I tired. I think I'll just hit the sack." She sprawled herself lazily across the mattress.

"Good idea, even though it's the middle of the day, I'm ready to go to bed." Tenchi said while walking over to his and Ryoko's luggage. He unzipped them and tossed Ryoko her nightgown while he pulled out his bed time apparel.

Before long they were both dressed for sleep. Ryoko floated over to Tenchi's side of the bed and wrapped her arms around him. "Tenchi, I just want to say this has been the best vacation ever!"

"It's been great for me too Ryoko." He smiled and gave her a light kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too Tenchi." The exhausted couple sunk into bed and wrapped themselves up in the covers, and each other's arms.


- ------------------- -

In the Miho-Kiyo room, Kiyone sat in silence, sipping the tea she fixed for herself, while Mihoshi slept soundly in her bed. Just as She was getting board sitting alone, Washu entered the room.

"So how is Aeka and Sasami?" Kiyone asked.

"Oh, they're already asleep."

Kiyone glanced over to Mihoshi. "It seems that everyone fell asleep except us."

"Well, you know us two, I'm used to sleepless nights in the lab, and you have most will power I ever seen in anyone." Kiyone nodded and took a sip of her tea.

"Yeah, I'll need will power to keep myself from pushing Mihoshi off a cliff."

Washu let out a laugh, until she heard the seriousness in Kiyone's voice. She abruptly stopped and fell into an awkward silence eyeing Kiyone suspiciously.

"Anyway..." Kiyone went on. "I'm surprised at how down beat our vacation has been going."

"Yeah I know what you mean, two crown princesses, a prince and an EX-Space Pirate. I'm surprised the only publicity we saw was when Aeka was asked for an autograph on Sentinel 3."

"Yeah, but that ended up turning out pretty ugly. When the guy found out that Aeka and Sasami were on a vacation, he became really mad for some reason." Kiyone puzzled this.

Washu rolled her eyes. "Oh... THAT. I don't think I ever explained that part to you."

Kiyone brought the cup up again, but paused. "No, I don't think you did..."

"Most people in the galaxy are fearing that Aeka doesn't serve Jurai in a way the Princess *should* serve an Empire."

Kiyone set her tea down loudly. "That's bull shit. What about when she helped save Tenchi, twice! Don't they care about the prince?"

Washu signed. "Officially, no report to the public has been made about those incidents. They didn't really know what she was doing on Earth and that made a lot of people uneasy. On top of that, the Jurai Royal Counsel is beginning to loose faith on Princess Aeka's ability to lead. There was talk that they may even go as far as appointing a 'temporary' King."

Kiyone Gasped. "You mean, another rebellion!"

"Yes, that's exactly it."

Kiyone nervously picked up her tea again and took another sip. She actually was beginning to feel sorry for enjoying herself so much, when there is a possibility for another rebellions she didn't feel right just sitting by on some vacation.

"And what about you Kiyone?" Washu said breaking the silence. "How's the new Chief Marshal doing?"

"Uh, the new job is a dream. And since I'm the boss, I have to power to personally overlook any case I want. Like the time we had to fight Kain, and save Tenchi from Haruna's world."

"Sounds great." Washu then stood up and stretched with a great big yawn. "Well, I think I'll go to bed anyway. I could stay up but then I wouldn't be able to keep up with everyone else."

"Good idea. I'm going to bed too." Kiyone said hoping she could get her mind off of things and begin to enjoy herself again.


- ---------------------------------- -



Ryoko, who was snug in her bed, gradually blinked awaked. She let out a quiet yawn and turned on her side. The room was very dark since they had slept into the night. Tenchi lay next to her; his expression was almost comatose. Feeling much more rested than before, Ryoko decided to lay awake in bed, the way she used to do when she first landed on Earth. Ryoko signed contently as she listened to Tenchi breathing. But another sound soon interrupted the peace.

"Glrmlglrmlgrl" Ryoko's stomach waned with hunger.

*Oh man! I need something to eat* Ryoko quietly phased through the covers and immediately dressed herself in something casual; a red tank top and jean shorts. She exited the room and drifted down the hallways looking for the hotel snack bar.

Upon reaching the end of the hall Ryoko looked around for anyway to get to the first floor. "Boy do they make these buildings complicated." Ryoko then snapped her fingers in realization. "I'll just teleport to the first floor, how easy!" Ryoko abruptly disappeared.

In the center of the main lobby, which was a large wide-open space, Ryoko materialized. Because of the later hour, the crowd that was once there had greatly diminished, and her strange and sudden appearance drew some attention. "Don't mind me... just passing through." Ryoko nervously jetted towards the food bar that was attached to the main hall like a strip mall store.

Once there, Ryoko took a long glance at the over extended menu. "Jeez, they sure do have a lot, maybe too much." Too much choice made it a little more difficult for her. When she decided on one thing, she quickly debated otherwise because she didn't want to miss out on the other meals. "Okay Ryoko, you can only get one..." Fed up with herself on her lack of making a reasonable choice, Ryoko she chose one dish arbitrarily.

She finally approached the counter and placed her order. "One chicken tender meal."

The burly man at the counter punched in keys on his register machine nodding. "One chicken tender meal, gotchya... I would be careful if I was you, miss. This Earth stuff can really stick to your ribs."

Ryoko laughed lightly. "I'll keep it in mind."

Ryoko turned around a leaned against the counter as she waited for her order. It was now that she realized that there were places to sit down and eat to the side of the snack bar that she couldn't see before. The chairs where completely empty except for a single person.

Ryoko froze.

The figure rose to her feat and practically glided across the floor. Once she was standing 5 feet from Ryoko, she lifted her hood to reveal her short, silver hair, and piercing red eyes.

"Well well well Ryoko. Looks like we meet again." Nagi said in a unsettling calm voice.

"Why can't you just leave me alone?" Ryoko gritted through her teeth.

"Don't be so thick headed Ryoko, you and I have something to settle. No matter how long you avoid me, I'll always be here." A grin began to form on Nagi's face.

"Why can't you just go on with life, Nagi? I've forgotten about everything, why can't you?"

"Because you're the only one who has challenged my strength. You intrigue me, Ryoko, and I want to beat to prove that I am the strongest." Nagi's smile faded. "But I'm not sure about that anymore... Looks to me like you've been slacking. You might not be a challenge at all."

"Then end this! There's no point in going on."

"So... You do not accept my challenge?"

"I do not accept." There was a long pause as Nagi stared coldly at the defiant Ryoko.

The silence was broken when the man at the counter walked up again with two bags in hand. "Here's your food miss. Do you want me to bill this to your room?"

More silence.

"Hey miss... MISS! Do you want me to bill this to your room? Just tell me the room number."

"She's staying in room 1421... on the fifteenth floor." Ryoko gasped sharply. Nagi continued. "Her friends are in rooms 1420 and 1422. Isn't that right Ryoko?"

"How did you..."

"...Know where you were?" Nagi finished. "You'd be surprised how weak minded males can be when it comes to a simple money bribe." Nagi gestured to the man at the check in counter. "He has all his guests on one big data base. Since you seem so unwilling to fight, I can only hope that nothing bad happens to them..." Nagi's thin smile darkened.

Ryoko thought everything over quickly. She could try and fight Nagi but she'll most likely lose. And if she tried to run, Tenchi and the others were sleeping, and they wouldn't know what hit them. *Damned if you do and damned it you don't...*

Ryoko was finally beginning to lose her nerve, she felt more and more trapped. "You... you... BITCH!"

Nagi laughed loudly. "So, I'm finally able to get a reaction out of you. I'm glad you're taking me seriously."

"Holding hostages? Threatening innocent people? What are you doing Nagi? Since when did you play so dirty?"

"Fight fire with fire RYOKO!" Nagi shot back

"I'm not like that anymore! I don't want to fight or steal. I just want to live my life out."

"Oh I see. Little Miss Ryoko got her quirks from being a pirate, now she got board with it and wants to go home. Didn't you think you would be held responsible for what you did?"

"I..."

"It's much too late to turn back now! Face me Ryoko, or your friends suffer." Nagi lowered herself into a fighting stance, ready to pounce.

"Whoa whoa!" The concession owner interrupted again. "If you ladies have something to settle, could ya please do it somewhere else?"

Nagi just ignored him as her heart beat faster and faster. This was it; there's no way Ryoko can escape now. Pure adrenaline pumped through her faster than lightspeed. She was only moments away from making the finishing blow... This thought almost made her tremble.

But instead of Ryoko making a stance of her own, she slowly turned to the counter, and picked up her food.

"What are you doing?" Nagi said sharply.

"Can I at least have my food? I already paid for it." Ryoko's casual movements put Nagi slightly more at ease. She released her fighting stance and stood before Ryoko again.

But just then, Nagi caught a sly grin come from Ryoko, and half a second later she shouted, "Hey Nagi, CATCH!" Ryoko whipped the bag swiftly at her. Nagi instinctively knocked it away, but when she looked where she used to be, Ryoko was gone.

*From behind!*

Nagi's faster reflexes allowed her to sidestepped Ryoko's jab with her newly drawn energy sword. She pulled out a small energy dagger of her own and parried Ryoko's blade. They settled back into a stand still as they stared each other down. "Very tricky Ryoko... but your going to have to do better than that!"

"I'm just getting started!" She dashed at Nagi again. This time, just before they met, Ryoko vanished again. After a quick scan in all directions, Nagi couldn't find Ryoko anywhere.

"Hiding Ryoko?!" Nagi shouted, making sure that she was heard. "That won't help your friends!" Ryoko reappeared in front of her across the main floor, beckoning Nagi with her defensive stance. Nagi charged at her like a bull and their blades clashed like lightning. Nagi made advancing swings on Ryoko pushing her further back. Ryoko's defensive swings seemed to keep up with Nagi, but just as she had cornered herself into a wall, Ryoko changed directions. This time she was backing into the doors of the Hotel.

*She's trying to lead me out of the building*

When Ryoko was finally pushed back to the doors, their blades locked in a tight face-off.

"You surprise me Ryoko," Nagi said between their crossed weapons.

"Yeah? And how's that?" Ryoko replied through her clamped teeth.

"You have more fight in you than I thought, this might actually be fun." Just as she said this Nagi pulled out a second dagger that she had concealed in her cloak. She took a quick swipe at Ryoko who was still concentrating on pushing Nagi back. The blade cut deeply into the side of her right shoulder.

"AAAHH!" Ryoko screamed out in pain and staggered backwards.

"Maybe I spoke too soon." Her hand shot out and grabbed Ryoko's throat. "Come, let's go outside, I want everyone to see this." Nagi threw Ryoko out the doors and she stumbled clumsily just to stay on her feet.

Nagi followed her through the door and saw Ryoko barely standing and clutching her shoulder in pain. "This isn't over yet Nagi!" She raised her sword and charged at Nagi, meeting in battle once again. The sight of them drew some onlookers, most tried to ignore what was happening, while one or two people actually fled the block in fear of getting involved.

Having completely lost her edge, Ryoko's fighting ability was lower than it's ever been. Her movements were sloppy as she bared with the pain of her wound, and she could barely keep up with Nagi, who didn't look challenged by the bout.

*Damnit! This isn't working!*

Just as Nagi made another slash, Ryoko phased out again, and then reappeared on the next city block. From there she started running from Nagi.

Nagi dashed after her. "So, she's run out of options..." Deciding to head in for the kill instead of threatening Ryoko's friends, Nagi picked up her pace as Ryoko rounded a blind corner.

While Ryoko could easily phase through the few bystanders still on the street so late at night, Nagi had to shove her way past them. "GET OUT OF MY WAY!! OUT OF THE WAY OR I'LL CUT YOU DOWN!" Nagi yelled at the top of her lungs. The people quickly scattered in fear and a path to Ryoko was laid right before her. She sprinted at her top speed until the distance between them began to close. As the chase barreled on, they passed almost 14 city blocks, all of which was slanted downhill.

*We're almost to the port...*

As they drew nearer and nearer to the industrial spaceport, the people seen became few and far between. Ryoko rounded the last corner and finally reached the gates that were closed and locked for the night. She effortlessly phased through. Feeling that Nagi had been cut off she stopped to catch her breath. Ryoko looked back and saw Nagi standing on the other side of the fence.

"That's a pretty clever trick Ryoko. You came all this way just because you knew that the only way in is through here."

Still exhausted, Ryoko said, "I'm glad *gasp* that you like it."

A notoriously wide smile spread itself across Nagi's face. "Well then Ryoko, why don't you finish your plan. Get in the Yagami and fly back to the hotel to get your friends."

"I guess you have me all figured out. But even if you did, you still didn't get me. Good bye Nagi." Ryoko turned away and started to walk towards the Yagami. As she continued to walk, Ryoko waited for a reply from Nagi. She expected some sort of insult or empty threat from her. But surprisingly, none came. Ryoko looked back again, but Nagi wasn't there. Being slightly worried by this, she tried to pick up her pace. But she couldn't effectively jog due to her blood loss. Going deeper into the maze of ships, and further away from the lights that lined the perimeter of the port, Ryoko could barely see where she was going. On top of that, the whole place was abandoned, giving it a creepy atmosphere.

"Ryoko..." quiet voice penetrated the silence like a shout.

Ryoko whirled around; her eyes searched the darkness intensely. "How did you get in here?" She shouted back.

"Just a neat little trick a couple of boys showed me a while ago." Nagi said, but her location was still unknown in the darkness. "Did you know there is an old fire escape that leads up to a bluff inside the port walls?" Nagi chuckled.

"...Damnit, WHERE ARE YOU?" She looked around again, still too dark to see anything.

"I'm right behind you." Her voice came again, this time it was much closer. Ryoko bared the pain and started to run the best she could around the ships trying to lose her. She finally pressed her back against a small sleek ship and crouched down. She tried to stay as low and quiet as possible.

*She's hunting me.* A quick shot of fear flew through her. *Where is she? Is she close? Oh god what if she finds me?*

"Hiding won't help you Ryoko."

Ryoko struggled to her feet again and ran to a different ship three rows over. *Did I lose her?* Then Ryoko heard a noise through the darkness. It was the faint tapping sound of Nagi's footsteps. *Damnit! She's coming!* Ryoko picked herself up again and dashed away to another random ship. This time, she completely ducked under it and sat, listening for Nagi.

The footsteps still came. Ryoko only sank lower behind the ship she was hiding under. *Maybe... if I just stay here... she won't find me.* Ryoko tried to convince herself. But as each footstep sounded, Ryoko couldn't help but to shiver in fear. *She's coming! She's coming! What am I supposed to do?* Finally her footsteps drew in so close that Ryoko could feel her just outside. And then they stopped.

*Oh god! She found me* She pulled her legs and laid in the fetal position under the ship. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she whimpered helplessly. "Tenchi... Help me...I'm scared."

"That man of yours can't help now Ryoko." Nagi said quietly and coldly. She bent down and reached under the ship for Ryoko. Once grabbing a strong hold of her arm, Nagi pulled with all her might, dragging Ryoko across the jagged concrete ground. Her legs and back now had large bloody scrapes from this.

Nagi picked her up onto her feet and slammed her hard against the ship. A second later, Nagi pulled out a high power flashlight a shined a bright light into Ryoko's eyes, blinding her from everything around her. In this new light, Nagi realized something interesting.

"Are you crying Ryoko?" She was amazed at the sight.

Ryoko didn't even hear what she said, she was in too much pain. "Why are you doing this to me?" She said weakly.

"I already told you why and I'm not going to explain it again. It all ends now Ryoko. I am going to kill you." Nagi reached inside her cloak and pulled out her energy dagger. She brought it up to Ryoko's throat... but then she hesitated. *This is it Nagi... it's finally over.* She thought to herself. *After all we've been through together, it's finally over...*

Ryoko's eyes were fixed on Nagi. There was nothing left for her to do, so she just stood in pain as her killer came down on her. But then Nagi's eyes found hers, and they stared at each other.

She was completely locked by Ryoko's eyes. Why couldn't she look away? Her golden yellow eyes froze Nagi like a hundred-year-old statue. Images came rushing to her of her child-hood nightmare. She couldn't concentrate on Ryoko anymore, Nagi could only think of the memory. "Why is this happening to me?" She gasped. Nagi staggered back almost dropping her dagger.

Ryoko looked on completely puzzled. "What are you talking about?

"NO! I DON'T WANT TO REMEMBER ANYMORE!" She screamed. Nagi clamped her head with her hands and panted deeply. No matter how hard she tried to shove those memories away, they kept on invading. "Mom... Dad... you tried to protect me." A shivered covered Nagi's body as physical pain engulfed it. *It was all HIS fault! HE killed you just because someone PAYED him to do it*! Nagi flinched at the sudden realization. *Am I doing the same thing to Ryoko?*

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I DON'T WANT TO REMEMBER ANYMORE!" Nagi armed her dagger again and made a deadly swipe at Ryoko. After her tensed arm relaxed and she looked to see where she had attack, Nagi pulled the blade out of the ship's hull, not Ryoko.

"I missed?"

Nagi's eye's locked with Ryoko's again and she made another dive. *CLANG* Her blade knocked roughly with the steel ship. "Damnit!"

Never once glancing away from Ryoko, Nagi made a series of blows, all aimed for Ryoko, who was petrified with fear and confusion.

"WHY" *CLANG*

"CAN'T" *CLANG*

"I" *CLANG*

"KILL" *CLANG*

"YOU?" *CLANG*

Nagi turned away and fell to her knees, and Ryoko started to breathe again. Nagi's flashlight laid on the ground where she dropped it. It showered rays over her like a stage light. The darkness around her threatened to consume the light along with her. She was alone in her light, being judged, sitting nakedly confused and scared of her own actions, and the consequences.

"Nagi." Ryoko finally said, breaking the long silence.

"... Just leave me alone."

Ryoko slid down the side of the ship until she lay on the ground. "I can't... I'm too weak to move."

Nagi didn't even respond, she just sat in silence. *Why couldn't I do it? Have I really become so weak?* Only questions entered her mind. Does this mean that she won't ever kill Ryoko? Is the hunt over? What will she do now? That's right! Her whole life has been based on chasing Ryoko. If it's over now, what is she going to do? Nagi glanced over to Ryoko who was laying in the darkness. She wasn't moving.

"Damnit!" Nagi quickly jumped to her feet and over to Ryoko. She checked her pulse and to see if she was breathing. Both of these were good. "She passed out."

*Now what do I do? ...I'm so helpless*. Looking down and Ryoko's still body and noticing her blood flow from her shoulder wound, Nagi sighed heavily. She stood up, retrieved her flashlight, and picked up Ryoko over her shoulder. With a slow, yet steady pace, Nagi carried Ryoko to her ship.