I apologize for this taking so long to write, but here it is...
"Wha... What did you say?" Ryoko's eyes widened.
"I always knew you were defective Ryoko but I thought your hearing was accurate." That dry, maniacal laugh accompanied his insult. "No matter, every machine needs adequate tuning once or twice every thousand years."
"Enough!" Tenchi yelled. "What did you do with him?"
"You must mean 'Hanshin'.
"Yes Hanshin!"
"My boy, there was not a him to do anything with."
"So it was you all along?" Ayeka asked.
Kagato laughed again. "I must confess I am loving the sudden interest you three are showing in me. To answer your question, yes and no princess. I really had no control of my actions, I was more like a passenger looking through his eyes, and quite frankly Ryoko I don't see what was so traumatic about it."
"Why?" Ryoko maintained her fierce battle face although her heart was breaking. "Why not just come down here and attack us like before. Why all this!?!?"
"You see Ryoko," Tokimi spoke up still standing on the lake's surface. "We needed to be sure that Tenchi had not been able to form a stronger bond with the Jurai power since Kagato last fought him."
"You mean you two are working together?"
"In a way, for mutual benefits." Kagato smiled.
"So it was you all along, you lied to me, even tricked me into loving you."
Kagato sighed like he was explaining something over again to a small child. "I already told you, I was just observing. It was all quite amusing if you ask me."
"You see, it would be impossible for Kagato to infiltrate your family with Washu and Yosho. They would have been able to see through any cosmetic changes that I made to his person." Tokimi looked over to Kagato.
"It would have been nothing for them to look into my mind the second I knocked on your door."
Tokimi continued. "So I created a conscious who would draw the most sympathy from each of you and temporarily used Kagato to carry it. Ryoko was a given of course. Her finding out that her tormenter was just as innocent as she was essential. Ayeka and Sasami were connected to him through their kingdom and royal blood. Tenchi as you no doubt know has a soft spot for tragic cases. Yosho cannot stand someone to have a divided heart. And Washu was easily enough convinced through her scientific research and experiments that 'Hanshin' was the real thing. Of course if any of you had detected Kagato's presence it would have been dismissed on the grounds that it was all my conditioning."
"So it was all a lie?" Ryoko asked, no louder than a whisper.
"Fabricated yes, the trip to Corgil, Shayla and Chris were maid up, as well as an additional seven-hundred thousand years of memories to convince him of who he was. But his entity had to be real to ensure no one would suspect anything."
"So in the end Hanshin was telling the truth. To him all of his memories actually happened?" Tenchi asked.
"So he was not a Jurain descendent?" Ayeka quickly followed.
Tokimi nodded. "Yes, to him it was all real, and he was of pure Jurain genetic makeup to ensure he would pass all of Washu's tests. But the real Hanshin of Jurai did in fact die while he was still an infant."
Tenchi spoke up. "Why are you doing this, was the part about the Jurai power being able to kill Tokimi a lie too?"
"No that was true, Tokimi knew of my fascination with the Light Hawk Wings and came to me with a partnership after Dr. Clay failed her."
"And that was?"
"Simple really, in exchange for removing the Jurai power from you. She would allow me to keep it."
"Are you crazy!" Tenchi turned to the goddess in the lake. "Don't you know the second he is in control of Jurai's power he will turn on you!"
"Kagato and I have an agreement. Besides, he could not harm me anyway, like you he is not of pure uncontaminated Jurain blood."
"Once I have the power of the Light Hawk I will be the single most powerful being in the universe. Tokimi will retreat back into her obscure darkness without fear of being killed. A happy ending for both of us." Kagato extended his arm from under his cloak and held it open to Tenchi. "So why don't you just hand over the Master Key like a good boy?"
Tenchi braced his feet apart and held the shimmering LightHawk blade before him.
"I had hoped that would be your answer." Kagato closed his hand into a fist and ignited his old green blade. "But I should warn you boy, last time you defeated nothing more than one of my shadows!"
"BASTARD!!!!" Tenchi yelled sweeping the blade behind him and charging at Kagato with his left arm out in front. A mixture of green and white sparks burst into the air as Kagato deflected his first two blows before returning with three of his own.
The tide quickly turned and Tenchi quickly found himself hurriedly backpedaling to find a good stance. Kagato rushed him and with three quick, short, strikes against the Light Hawk Sword saw an opening.
Kagato slashed upward only holding his sword with his left hand. Tenchi was caught off guard and soon found his arms up around his right shoulder leaving his chest open. Kagato smiled charging and energy blast in his free right hand and striking the young Jurain prince in the chest. Sending him skidding across the wet grass and into a tree at the base of the forest.
"You must of thought that we fought the same too?" Kagato seemed to come alive as the excitement of battle ran through his veins. "Let's just say that I favor offence a little more than he did." He then took off his outer cape and stretched his arms. "I should of gotten rid of that sooner, much too cumbersome for fighting don't you think?"
"AAAAAAAA!" Tenchi yelled, erupting from the forest's edge. He arched high into the air leaving a trail of leaves and other underbrush behind him to float back to the ground.
The two were blurs now. Both just accordingly colored streaks in the sky traveling too fast for the untrained eye to see. Ayeka watched on, wanting to help Tenchi in any way she could, but they were both well beyond her abilities. Quite frankly she wondered if Ryoko even stood a chance. However the fight between Tenchi and Kagato was the last thing on Ryoko's mind.
*It... It was all a lie?* She thought to herself still standing in place. Everything, that night on Corgil, all the memories she was able to see, it was fabricated? It was Kagato all along; he was hidden behind Han, laughing at everything. She had been so happy, finally she was given answers, but they were all fake, parts of her past, all of his. *But he was real.* Kagato didn't have the patience to act like he did, he had to be real. He had to be, no lie could act like him, no lie could have held her like he did.
"LORD TENCHI!!!"
Ayeka's desperate scream snapped Ryoko back to reality.
Tenchi stood before Kagato, face distorted somewhere between pain and surprise. He took an unsure step back, pulling his body off of Kagato's energy sword.
"Stupid boy." Kagato hissed watching his handiwork in amusement.
The Light Hawk sword disappeared in his hand as he looked at his stomach, and the ungodly amount of red pouring from it. He brought his blood-covered hand to his face and looked at it briefly before slumping onto his knees.
"I'm... sorry..." He uttered before his eyes rolled back into his head and he landed face first on the ground.
"NO LORD TENCHI!!!!!" Ayeka yelled again ignoring Kagato and rushing to his side where the grass under him was slowly being submerged in a pool of red.
Kagato merely held an open hand in her direction and fired an energy ball just before she reached him. Azaka and Kamadake instantly put themselves between their princess and the blast, the following explosion shot them over the mountain as two charred pieces of wood, and the shock wave flung Ayeka helplessly to the ground.
"Such foolish behavior." He muttered walking to the falling prince. The white garb and Jurain markings on his face faded away as he neared, and his eyed lit up as he noticed the Master Key laying just next to one of his outstretched hands. "Now to finish this little endeavor." Kagato said flipping his sword around into a stabbing position. "With you blessing of course my lady." He said looking back over his shoulder.
"Do as you wish Kagato."
"Hn." He raised the blade up and plunged it towards his helpless opponent.
As his blade plunged down, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up, a feeling like static electricity coursing through his body. The feeling was gone in an instant however as Ryoko's energy blast blindsided him. The blast pushed him back, leaving two small trenches in the dirt where his feet tried for traction. Able to regain his senses he formed a shield that cut through the blast, sending it into the lake to explode.
"I was beginning to wonder where you were." Kagato smiled brushing some soot off of his shoulder. "It's not like you to hide from a fight."
Ryoko didn't respond, just looked at him with eyes eerily devoid of emotion.
"Nothing to say? No comment? Or has the sight of your beloved Tenchi laying there in a pool of his own blood got you speechless?"
Remaining silent she walked to stand in-between Kagato and the fallen Tenchi.
"Ah yes, I had forgotten. You love 'him' now don't you. It is really amazing how easily your heart can be persuaded."
Still, Ryoko remained silent as she raised her hand, igniting her crimson sword.
"Please," Kagato dismissed her actions. "You're not going to hurt me. You know Ryoko, I will need a slave again once I have the Jurai power, someone to handle those dirty little jobs that keep piling up."
"Never." She narrowed her eyes. "Mom made sure that would never happen again."
"Mom hmm? I see you and Washu must be getting closer. That is a shame, because she is about to lose another child!" With that said, Kagato charged.
"I know your there." Ryoko said as their swords crossed.
"What are you talking about?" Kagato broke their swords from a cross stance and flipped back.
"I can feel you." Ryoko stated solemnly holding her blade horizontal to deflect another swipe.
*It looks like her mind has finally broken down.* Kagato smiled inwardly. She was, however, putting up a much better fight than he expected. Perhaps the Tenchi boy had taken more out of him than he thought.
"I'm not running away, either you come back or I'm going to die." Kagato dismissed her gibberish as he spun to attack again. He shook his head trying to clear his vision that suddenly blurred.
"You told me that you weren't going to leave and I'm holding you to your word."
Something was wrong. Kagato had never felt this fatigued during a battle with someone of her low power level. It was like something was draining him.
"Now get your ASS back here!" Ryoko swung with her left fist and miraculously connected with Kagato's jaw, causing him to stumble back a few steps and onto his knees.
Kagato looked at her through hair that was matted to his forehead as she charged. His eyes burned, breath was ragged, and his stomach felt like it was twisting itself in two. He moved his free hand to wipe the hair from his eyes but could only watch as it slammed into the ground in defiance. Trying to stand was met with the same results; all he was able to do was blink as Ryoko stopped before him. "What are you doing to me!" He tried to curse at her, but no words came out. Then his eyes started to close, and he could do nothing but watch the blackness invade.
Ryoko watched the man hunched over on the ground. His eyes would flash green, and then back to yellow, his hair to black and back to white. She stood there, her energy sword bobbing in the air as she caught her breath. The power stopped swirling around him, and his hair stayed black.
He cautiously rose to his feet, taking in the destruction around him. *Was Kagato telling the truth?* His mind was racing, who was he really, had anything actually ever happened to him, or was it all just lies up to this point, was he even alive now?
"Han?" Ryoko asked, raising her sword to strike incase it was still Kagato.
"What's happening?" He looked at her, and she knew it wasn't Kagato.
She grabbed his robes and stared face to face. "What's going on, are you real, who are you?!?!" She asked in a panic, watching his eyes nervously dart back and forth.
"Ryoko..." He said blinking a couple of times to calm down. "I don't know what going on, or what of my life has been real but the time I spent here was." He lowered his head down until their foreheads touched. "Last night was." Ryoko just kept looking at him, trying to look past the face he put on. "Go get Ayeka."
Ryoko nodded and ran to where Ayeka was slowly crawling to her feet, as Hanshin knelt down to the fallen prince.
"Come on Ayeka." Ryoko held her arm as she got off the ground.
"Where is he?" She asked looking around.
"I don't know, I think he's gone."
Hanshin looked up from Tenchi as Ayeka and Ryoko walked back up.
"Hanshin?" Ayeka asked.
"You need to get him to Washu." Han helped Tenchi's limp body up. "You two must hurry, he does not have much time left." Ayeka knelt down and lifted Tenchi up with one of his arms over her shoulder.
"Go on Princess, I'll make sure you get Tenchi to safety." Ryoko said, she may not be able to do anything to Tokimi, but she could be sure Ryo-ohki made it out okay.
Han looked back at her. "I meant you too Ryoko."
"No way!" Ryoko yelled back closing her fist in the air, symbolizing that her mind was made up. "You didn't leave me and I'm not about to abandon you."
"Ryoko please."
"Hu?" She asked. Then it hit her. No one that stayed was going to survive. "No, if it is going to be like that we all need to go. We can fight her later, Washu can think of something."
"Ryoko, I love you." He walked over and wrapped his arms around her.
"I love you too." She said as her face softened a bit, and she gently held him back
Han pushed away to arms length and smiled gently looking into her eyes. "Ayeka, you promised me." He said looking at the princess.
Ayeka nodded and turned to Ryoko. Ryoko just looked at her a moment trying to figure out what was going on, but before she could hundreds of tiny logs appeared around her.
"What are you doing?!?!" She asked in a panic as Han stepped back as she struggled to free herself from Ayeka's containment shield.
"I am sorry Ryoko. I made him a promise."
"Ayeka please!!! Please let me go!!!"
"I am sorry Ryoko. I hope you will forgive me someday."
No sooner than the words escaped her mouth Ryo-ohki burst through the clouds.
"Ayeka! Don't do this!!!" Ryoko screamed again looking down to where Han stood. Tears fell from her face as she watched him get smaller as Washu's transport beam took them up to the ship. Her own screams drowned out Ayeka's apologies as they were beamed inside Ryo-ohki.
"Goodbye Ryoko." Hanshin said to himself watching Ryo-ohki howl and fly up through the clouds. He turned back to Tokimi with a smile on his face.
"What exactly do you think you can do to me."
"You made me the first son of Jurai." Hanshin knelt down and picked up the blood stained Master Key from the ground where Tenchi fell, and closed his eyes.
A blinding white light appeared and swept over him, changing his dark robes to the white ones adapted to the Light Hawk. The formal Jurain headband he was now wearing glowed as three energy blades appeared before him. Reaching out, he grasped one blade turning it into the Light Hawk Sword.
"And as the first son of Jurai, the Jurai power is completely at my disposal."
Tokimi gasped and Hanshin relished in her look of utter horror "Kagato you cannot..."
"My name is HANSHIN!!!!" He yelled flying into the air in a white aura, swinging the blade over his head. Tokimi ran, pure and simple, narrowly escaping the tip of his sword that dug into the lake. She flew out across the water at an incredible speed, she needed to get out of here, if he was truly in full control of the Jurai Power one touch would mean the end. Her speed was mind boggling, soon you could see nothing of the lake she was once standing on. She started to ascend, to go back into space but stopped in an instant.
"How?" He was there blocking her path! How could he have moved that fast? It was impossible.
Hanshin smiled floating in front of her. "I got a little help from your friends on Jurai." His eyes narrowed as the symbol of the Light Hawk burned on his forehead.
"Hanshin, your memories are not real. I never used you as my slave, if anything I am the one who has given you life."
"If that's true, you did a real good job. Because right now my memories are all I have to go on."
"You know what will happen if you follow this through. You know about the laws of energy, if we touch you will just as dead as I."
"Begging?"
"You want to see her again don't you? I know more than anyone the feelings you have for her." The Goddess held her arms out from her sides. "Let me be, you will never see or hear from me again. You have the Jurai power now, and you can stop me with minimal effort anytime you wish."
"All I can remember other than the hell you put me through is my time here. Ryoko, Tenchi, Ayeka, Sasami, Yosho, all of then treated me like a human, not some damn tool. And then you come here, and try to kill them all so you can never die, don't you realize that none of them would of ever known the Jurai power could hurt you!?!?"
Tokimi lowered her head. "Kagato insisted that this was the only way. He was the only one powerful enough to help that understood the power of the Light Hawk. His greed kept him pushing forward, I knew he had no regard for anyone's well being other than his own, but I aided him anyway."
"And so now you want me to forgive you because you didn't pull the trigger. Because it was all Kagato's fault?"
"You have beaten me, and you can destroy me a thousand years from now just as easily as you could today. But you deserve a life, one with her."
The silence was defining around them.
"Go before I change my mind." Hanshin said lowering his sword.
Tokimi nodded and slowly ascended past Hanshin and towards space, while he let his sword dissolve. Tokimi was right, Kagato was the one who had attacked them, and he knew better than anyone knew what that man was capable of. He could stop Tokimi at any time now, why didn't he deserve a life?
Tokimi threw her robes back and unleashed a blast of energy that seemed to emanate from her entire aura. Kagato, or rather Hanshin, was in control of the Jurai power, but Tokimi had massive amounts of her energy at her disposal. She just hoped that this blast would be enough to kill him, and still leave her with enough to survive.
Hanshin turned to see a blinding black light speeding towards him. "You fool!" He yelled throwing his arms across his face and forming a shield. The blast hit him hard, everywhere it touched his body it felt like burning needles were being driven into his skin.
Tokimi watched as he was engulfed, and smiled to herself when the beam passed and there was no opponent left. *So, in the end the one with the most power did prevail.* She thought. In this way things worked out much better for her. The Master Key was gone so she didn't have to worry about the Jurain's anymore, and Kagato was destroyed. *He would have been such a nuisance to deal with.* Just before she began to fly into space, something on her robe caught her eye.
She looked down at the discolored spot, no bigger than an acorn on the fabric just above her left breast. Her fingers toughed the spot, and came away red and tacky. "Blood?" She stated absentmindedly before another drop fell in the same place, causing her to look up. "You!"
Smoke lofted off his charred clothing as he breathed heavily, one arm across his midsection. The white robes of the Light Hawk were now a torn, battle worn and gray. But the symbol on his forehead burned brighter than ever. A small stream of blood oozed from behind his hand, flowing down to his elbow, and dripping off.
"You!" She screamed again. "How did you..." Tokimi didn't finish her sentence. Hanshin moved his right arm out to his side, closing his fist around a white ball of energy forming a new Light Hawk sword. He closed his eyes and charged.
His senses were guiding him now, allowing his last precious thoughts to be free. As he prepared to strike, glowing blade swinging high over his head, he muttered one word to himself: "Ryoko...".
~~~:*:~~~
Ryoko grabbed Washu by the throat and pinned her to the wall of Ryo-ohki. "Send me back now!" She yelled.
Washu looked at her daughter. It was an empty threat, her hand was soft, she was just begging for help. Washu started to reply when the ship's alarm went off. "I'm sorry, it's too late."
Ryoko looked out the window. A huge pillar of white light was shooting up from the Earth's surface and out into space. She let her mother go, falling to her knees while watching the beautiful sight. For reasons unknown to her she didn't cry, she just said a single word: "Han...".
... Well, please tell me what you think. There is another chapter, actually it's probably just going to be a short epilogue that I should have out soon, no longer than a week.
"Wha... What did you say?" Ryoko's eyes widened.
"I always knew you were defective Ryoko but I thought your hearing was accurate." That dry, maniacal laugh accompanied his insult. "No matter, every machine needs adequate tuning once or twice every thousand years."
"Enough!" Tenchi yelled. "What did you do with him?"
"You must mean 'Hanshin'.
"Yes Hanshin!"
"My boy, there was not a him to do anything with."
"So it was you all along?" Ayeka asked.
Kagato laughed again. "I must confess I am loving the sudden interest you three are showing in me. To answer your question, yes and no princess. I really had no control of my actions, I was more like a passenger looking through his eyes, and quite frankly Ryoko I don't see what was so traumatic about it."
"Why?" Ryoko maintained her fierce battle face although her heart was breaking. "Why not just come down here and attack us like before. Why all this!?!?"
"You see Ryoko," Tokimi spoke up still standing on the lake's surface. "We needed to be sure that Tenchi had not been able to form a stronger bond with the Jurai power since Kagato last fought him."
"You mean you two are working together?"
"In a way, for mutual benefits." Kagato smiled.
"So it was you all along, you lied to me, even tricked me into loving you."
Kagato sighed like he was explaining something over again to a small child. "I already told you, I was just observing. It was all quite amusing if you ask me."
"You see, it would be impossible for Kagato to infiltrate your family with Washu and Yosho. They would have been able to see through any cosmetic changes that I made to his person." Tokimi looked over to Kagato.
"It would have been nothing for them to look into my mind the second I knocked on your door."
Tokimi continued. "So I created a conscious who would draw the most sympathy from each of you and temporarily used Kagato to carry it. Ryoko was a given of course. Her finding out that her tormenter was just as innocent as she was essential. Ayeka and Sasami were connected to him through their kingdom and royal blood. Tenchi as you no doubt know has a soft spot for tragic cases. Yosho cannot stand someone to have a divided heart. And Washu was easily enough convinced through her scientific research and experiments that 'Hanshin' was the real thing. Of course if any of you had detected Kagato's presence it would have been dismissed on the grounds that it was all my conditioning."
"So it was all a lie?" Ryoko asked, no louder than a whisper.
"Fabricated yes, the trip to Corgil, Shayla and Chris were maid up, as well as an additional seven-hundred thousand years of memories to convince him of who he was. But his entity had to be real to ensure no one would suspect anything."
"So in the end Hanshin was telling the truth. To him all of his memories actually happened?" Tenchi asked.
"So he was not a Jurain descendent?" Ayeka quickly followed.
Tokimi nodded. "Yes, to him it was all real, and he was of pure Jurain genetic makeup to ensure he would pass all of Washu's tests. But the real Hanshin of Jurai did in fact die while he was still an infant."
Tenchi spoke up. "Why are you doing this, was the part about the Jurai power being able to kill Tokimi a lie too?"
"No that was true, Tokimi knew of my fascination with the Light Hawk Wings and came to me with a partnership after Dr. Clay failed her."
"And that was?"
"Simple really, in exchange for removing the Jurai power from you. She would allow me to keep it."
"Are you crazy!" Tenchi turned to the goddess in the lake. "Don't you know the second he is in control of Jurai's power he will turn on you!"
"Kagato and I have an agreement. Besides, he could not harm me anyway, like you he is not of pure uncontaminated Jurain blood."
"Once I have the power of the Light Hawk I will be the single most powerful being in the universe. Tokimi will retreat back into her obscure darkness without fear of being killed. A happy ending for both of us." Kagato extended his arm from under his cloak and held it open to Tenchi. "So why don't you just hand over the Master Key like a good boy?"
Tenchi braced his feet apart and held the shimmering LightHawk blade before him.
"I had hoped that would be your answer." Kagato closed his hand into a fist and ignited his old green blade. "But I should warn you boy, last time you defeated nothing more than one of my shadows!"
"BASTARD!!!!" Tenchi yelled sweeping the blade behind him and charging at Kagato with his left arm out in front. A mixture of green and white sparks burst into the air as Kagato deflected his first two blows before returning with three of his own.
The tide quickly turned and Tenchi quickly found himself hurriedly backpedaling to find a good stance. Kagato rushed him and with three quick, short, strikes against the Light Hawk Sword saw an opening.
Kagato slashed upward only holding his sword with his left hand. Tenchi was caught off guard and soon found his arms up around his right shoulder leaving his chest open. Kagato smiled charging and energy blast in his free right hand and striking the young Jurain prince in the chest. Sending him skidding across the wet grass and into a tree at the base of the forest.
"You must of thought that we fought the same too?" Kagato seemed to come alive as the excitement of battle ran through his veins. "Let's just say that I favor offence a little more than he did." He then took off his outer cape and stretched his arms. "I should of gotten rid of that sooner, much too cumbersome for fighting don't you think?"
"AAAAAAAA!" Tenchi yelled, erupting from the forest's edge. He arched high into the air leaving a trail of leaves and other underbrush behind him to float back to the ground.
The two were blurs now. Both just accordingly colored streaks in the sky traveling too fast for the untrained eye to see. Ayeka watched on, wanting to help Tenchi in any way she could, but they were both well beyond her abilities. Quite frankly she wondered if Ryoko even stood a chance. However the fight between Tenchi and Kagato was the last thing on Ryoko's mind.
*It... It was all a lie?* She thought to herself still standing in place. Everything, that night on Corgil, all the memories she was able to see, it was fabricated? It was Kagato all along; he was hidden behind Han, laughing at everything. She had been so happy, finally she was given answers, but they were all fake, parts of her past, all of his. *But he was real.* Kagato didn't have the patience to act like he did, he had to be real. He had to be, no lie could act like him, no lie could have held her like he did.
"LORD TENCHI!!!"
Ayeka's desperate scream snapped Ryoko back to reality.
Tenchi stood before Kagato, face distorted somewhere between pain and surprise. He took an unsure step back, pulling his body off of Kagato's energy sword.
"Stupid boy." Kagato hissed watching his handiwork in amusement.
The Light Hawk sword disappeared in his hand as he looked at his stomach, and the ungodly amount of red pouring from it. He brought his blood-covered hand to his face and looked at it briefly before slumping onto his knees.
"I'm... sorry..." He uttered before his eyes rolled back into his head and he landed face first on the ground.
"NO LORD TENCHI!!!!!" Ayeka yelled again ignoring Kagato and rushing to his side where the grass under him was slowly being submerged in a pool of red.
Kagato merely held an open hand in her direction and fired an energy ball just before she reached him. Azaka and Kamadake instantly put themselves between their princess and the blast, the following explosion shot them over the mountain as two charred pieces of wood, and the shock wave flung Ayeka helplessly to the ground.
"Such foolish behavior." He muttered walking to the falling prince. The white garb and Jurain markings on his face faded away as he neared, and his eyed lit up as he noticed the Master Key laying just next to one of his outstretched hands. "Now to finish this little endeavor." Kagato said flipping his sword around into a stabbing position. "With you blessing of course my lady." He said looking back over his shoulder.
"Do as you wish Kagato."
"Hn." He raised the blade up and plunged it towards his helpless opponent.
As his blade plunged down, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up, a feeling like static electricity coursing through his body. The feeling was gone in an instant however as Ryoko's energy blast blindsided him. The blast pushed him back, leaving two small trenches in the dirt where his feet tried for traction. Able to regain his senses he formed a shield that cut through the blast, sending it into the lake to explode.
"I was beginning to wonder where you were." Kagato smiled brushing some soot off of his shoulder. "It's not like you to hide from a fight."
Ryoko didn't respond, just looked at him with eyes eerily devoid of emotion.
"Nothing to say? No comment? Or has the sight of your beloved Tenchi laying there in a pool of his own blood got you speechless?"
Remaining silent she walked to stand in-between Kagato and the fallen Tenchi.
"Ah yes, I had forgotten. You love 'him' now don't you. It is really amazing how easily your heart can be persuaded."
Still, Ryoko remained silent as she raised her hand, igniting her crimson sword.
"Please," Kagato dismissed her actions. "You're not going to hurt me. You know Ryoko, I will need a slave again once I have the Jurai power, someone to handle those dirty little jobs that keep piling up."
"Never." She narrowed her eyes. "Mom made sure that would never happen again."
"Mom hmm? I see you and Washu must be getting closer. That is a shame, because she is about to lose another child!" With that said, Kagato charged.
"I know your there." Ryoko said as their swords crossed.
"What are you talking about?" Kagato broke their swords from a cross stance and flipped back.
"I can feel you." Ryoko stated solemnly holding her blade horizontal to deflect another swipe.
*It looks like her mind has finally broken down.* Kagato smiled inwardly. She was, however, putting up a much better fight than he expected. Perhaps the Tenchi boy had taken more out of him than he thought.
"I'm not running away, either you come back or I'm going to die." Kagato dismissed her gibberish as he spun to attack again. He shook his head trying to clear his vision that suddenly blurred.
"You told me that you weren't going to leave and I'm holding you to your word."
Something was wrong. Kagato had never felt this fatigued during a battle with someone of her low power level. It was like something was draining him.
"Now get your ASS back here!" Ryoko swung with her left fist and miraculously connected with Kagato's jaw, causing him to stumble back a few steps and onto his knees.
Kagato looked at her through hair that was matted to his forehead as she charged. His eyes burned, breath was ragged, and his stomach felt like it was twisting itself in two. He moved his free hand to wipe the hair from his eyes but could only watch as it slammed into the ground in defiance. Trying to stand was met with the same results; all he was able to do was blink as Ryoko stopped before him. "What are you doing to me!" He tried to curse at her, but no words came out. Then his eyes started to close, and he could do nothing but watch the blackness invade.
Ryoko watched the man hunched over on the ground. His eyes would flash green, and then back to yellow, his hair to black and back to white. She stood there, her energy sword bobbing in the air as she caught her breath. The power stopped swirling around him, and his hair stayed black.
He cautiously rose to his feet, taking in the destruction around him. *Was Kagato telling the truth?* His mind was racing, who was he really, had anything actually ever happened to him, or was it all just lies up to this point, was he even alive now?
"Han?" Ryoko asked, raising her sword to strike incase it was still Kagato.
"What's happening?" He looked at her, and she knew it wasn't Kagato.
She grabbed his robes and stared face to face. "What's going on, are you real, who are you?!?!" She asked in a panic, watching his eyes nervously dart back and forth.
"Ryoko..." He said blinking a couple of times to calm down. "I don't know what going on, or what of my life has been real but the time I spent here was." He lowered his head down until their foreheads touched. "Last night was." Ryoko just kept looking at him, trying to look past the face he put on. "Go get Ayeka."
Ryoko nodded and ran to where Ayeka was slowly crawling to her feet, as Hanshin knelt down to the fallen prince.
"Come on Ayeka." Ryoko held her arm as she got off the ground.
"Where is he?" She asked looking around.
"I don't know, I think he's gone."
Hanshin looked up from Tenchi as Ayeka and Ryoko walked back up.
"Hanshin?" Ayeka asked.
"You need to get him to Washu." Han helped Tenchi's limp body up. "You two must hurry, he does not have much time left." Ayeka knelt down and lifted Tenchi up with one of his arms over her shoulder.
"Go on Princess, I'll make sure you get Tenchi to safety." Ryoko said, she may not be able to do anything to Tokimi, but she could be sure Ryo-ohki made it out okay.
Han looked back at her. "I meant you too Ryoko."
"No way!" Ryoko yelled back closing her fist in the air, symbolizing that her mind was made up. "You didn't leave me and I'm not about to abandon you."
"Ryoko please."
"Hu?" She asked. Then it hit her. No one that stayed was going to survive. "No, if it is going to be like that we all need to go. We can fight her later, Washu can think of something."
"Ryoko, I love you." He walked over and wrapped his arms around her.
"I love you too." She said as her face softened a bit, and she gently held him back
Han pushed away to arms length and smiled gently looking into her eyes. "Ayeka, you promised me." He said looking at the princess.
Ayeka nodded and turned to Ryoko. Ryoko just looked at her a moment trying to figure out what was going on, but before she could hundreds of tiny logs appeared around her.
"What are you doing?!?!" She asked in a panic as Han stepped back as she struggled to free herself from Ayeka's containment shield.
"I am sorry Ryoko. I made him a promise."
"Ayeka please!!! Please let me go!!!"
"I am sorry Ryoko. I hope you will forgive me someday."
No sooner than the words escaped her mouth Ryo-ohki burst through the clouds.
"Ayeka! Don't do this!!!" Ryoko screamed again looking down to where Han stood. Tears fell from her face as she watched him get smaller as Washu's transport beam took them up to the ship. Her own screams drowned out Ayeka's apologies as they were beamed inside Ryo-ohki.
"Goodbye Ryoko." Hanshin said to himself watching Ryo-ohki howl and fly up through the clouds. He turned back to Tokimi with a smile on his face.
"What exactly do you think you can do to me."
"You made me the first son of Jurai." Hanshin knelt down and picked up the blood stained Master Key from the ground where Tenchi fell, and closed his eyes.
A blinding white light appeared and swept over him, changing his dark robes to the white ones adapted to the Light Hawk. The formal Jurain headband he was now wearing glowed as three energy blades appeared before him. Reaching out, he grasped one blade turning it into the Light Hawk Sword.
"And as the first son of Jurai, the Jurai power is completely at my disposal."
Tokimi gasped and Hanshin relished in her look of utter horror "Kagato you cannot..."
"My name is HANSHIN!!!!" He yelled flying into the air in a white aura, swinging the blade over his head. Tokimi ran, pure and simple, narrowly escaping the tip of his sword that dug into the lake. She flew out across the water at an incredible speed, she needed to get out of here, if he was truly in full control of the Jurai Power one touch would mean the end. Her speed was mind boggling, soon you could see nothing of the lake she was once standing on. She started to ascend, to go back into space but stopped in an instant.
"How?" He was there blocking her path! How could he have moved that fast? It was impossible.
Hanshin smiled floating in front of her. "I got a little help from your friends on Jurai." His eyes narrowed as the symbol of the Light Hawk burned on his forehead.
"Hanshin, your memories are not real. I never used you as my slave, if anything I am the one who has given you life."
"If that's true, you did a real good job. Because right now my memories are all I have to go on."
"You know what will happen if you follow this through. You know about the laws of energy, if we touch you will just as dead as I."
"Begging?"
"You want to see her again don't you? I know more than anyone the feelings you have for her." The Goddess held her arms out from her sides. "Let me be, you will never see or hear from me again. You have the Jurai power now, and you can stop me with minimal effort anytime you wish."
"All I can remember other than the hell you put me through is my time here. Ryoko, Tenchi, Ayeka, Sasami, Yosho, all of then treated me like a human, not some damn tool. And then you come here, and try to kill them all so you can never die, don't you realize that none of them would of ever known the Jurai power could hurt you!?!?"
Tokimi lowered her head. "Kagato insisted that this was the only way. He was the only one powerful enough to help that understood the power of the Light Hawk. His greed kept him pushing forward, I knew he had no regard for anyone's well being other than his own, but I aided him anyway."
"And so now you want me to forgive you because you didn't pull the trigger. Because it was all Kagato's fault?"
"You have beaten me, and you can destroy me a thousand years from now just as easily as you could today. But you deserve a life, one with her."
The silence was defining around them.
"Go before I change my mind." Hanshin said lowering his sword.
Tokimi nodded and slowly ascended past Hanshin and towards space, while he let his sword dissolve. Tokimi was right, Kagato was the one who had attacked them, and he knew better than anyone knew what that man was capable of. He could stop Tokimi at any time now, why didn't he deserve a life?
Tokimi threw her robes back and unleashed a blast of energy that seemed to emanate from her entire aura. Kagato, or rather Hanshin, was in control of the Jurai power, but Tokimi had massive amounts of her energy at her disposal. She just hoped that this blast would be enough to kill him, and still leave her with enough to survive.
Hanshin turned to see a blinding black light speeding towards him. "You fool!" He yelled throwing his arms across his face and forming a shield. The blast hit him hard, everywhere it touched his body it felt like burning needles were being driven into his skin.
Tokimi watched as he was engulfed, and smiled to herself when the beam passed and there was no opponent left. *So, in the end the one with the most power did prevail.* She thought. In this way things worked out much better for her. The Master Key was gone so she didn't have to worry about the Jurain's anymore, and Kagato was destroyed. *He would have been such a nuisance to deal with.* Just before she began to fly into space, something on her robe caught her eye.
She looked down at the discolored spot, no bigger than an acorn on the fabric just above her left breast. Her fingers toughed the spot, and came away red and tacky. "Blood?" She stated absentmindedly before another drop fell in the same place, causing her to look up. "You!"
Smoke lofted off his charred clothing as he breathed heavily, one arm across his midsection. The white robes of the Light Hawk were now a torn, battle worn and gray. But the symbol on his forehead burned brighter than ever. A small stream of blood oozed from behind his hand, flowing down to his elbow, and dripping off.
"You!" She screamed again. "How did you..." Tokimi didn't finish her sentence. Hanshin moved his right arm out to his side, closing his fist around a white ball of energy forming a new Light Hawk sword. He closed his eyes and charged.
His senses were guiding him now, allowing his last precious thoughts to be free. As he prepared to strike, glowing blade swinging high over his head, he muttered one word to himself: "Ryoko...".
~~~:*:~~~
Ryoko grabbed Washu by the throat and pinned her to the wall of Ryo-ohki. "Send me back now!" She yelled.
Washu looked at her daughter. It was an empty threat, her hand was soft, she was just begging for help. Washu started to reply when the ship's alarm went off. "I'm sorry, it's too late."
Ryoko looked out the window. A huge pillar of white light was shooting up from the Earth's surface and out into space. She let her mother go, falling to her knees while watching the beautiful sight. For reasons unknown to her she didn't cry, she just said a single word: "Han...".
... Well, please tell me what you think. There is another chapter, actually it's probably just going to be a short epilogue that I should have out soon, no longer than a week.