-----
RAYANI: Wow, eight chapters already!
MAGARU: What's so amazing about that?
RAYANI: When we started, it was only supposed to be five chapters.
MAGARU: So?
RAYANI: It was supposed to end with Yume and Kagato blown up, but I guess
this is better.
MAGARU: ...Anyways, the disclaimer.
RAYANI: Tenchi and the others don't belong to us! Please don't sue, or
we'll have to attack the Supreme Court!
MAGARU: Attack the Supreme Court?
RAYANI: Well, I had to say something that made it sound like we're angry...
-----
Chapter Eight: Unexpected Allies
She was fading. He had never known anything to be so difficult to do; even trapping the professor seemed much easier. He had tried everything, but he had very limited success. If anything, it was just wearing himself and Jakato out. Jakato's patience actually reached the point to where he suggested asked for Tenchi's help. His father had shuddered at the thought and snapped irritably at him.
-----
Washu couldn't stop it, but she could slow it. It was very fortunate that Ryoko was not losing any energy from this. It seemed to be sustaining Tenchi and the others nicely. The only that worried Washu was the fact that Misaki was still unconscious even after seventy-two hours. She could not do anything to Misaki--any electrical shock or chemicals could result with a mass deterioration of vital tissues and organs.
-----
Yume cackled in malevolent triumph. Washu will appear soon, and then she will set her straight. After all, Hishima was on her side and he had improved considerably since his last battle with Prince Tenchi. There was no way that Hishima could fail now that the Prince of Jurai would be in no condition to fight, but even if he was, she had something in store for them. Bizen was doing fine; progress with the energy absorption device was more than satisfactory. Yume had no intention of killing all the Juraians; if she did, then her new empire would have nobody in it.
-----
Kagato could do no more. Magaru seemed safe for the moment, but she slept for many hours. He hardly paid attention to where he was steering his ship, and it was during one of these lapses from attention when he felt his ship grind into another.
-----
Washu was taking a nap when she felt Yagami get hit by another ship. Kiyone's voice blared on the intercom. "Everyone get up! It's Kagato!"
Oddly, the enemy they had momentarily forgotten about didn't invade Yagami. This time, it was their turn to invade.
"Ryoko found Kagato unconscious in the cockpit of his ship. Taking great care to bind him very tightly, Ryoko dragged him as she looked for the other searchers, making sure that she dragged him across the rough parts of the floor. She laughed as he slowly regained consciousness but blacked out again as he hit his head on a table leg.
Washu had found Magaru asleep in Jakato's bed, a cold sweat on her face. Jakato was being strangely cooperative and subdued. Kiyone tied them up without any trouble. After checking Magaru's pulse, Washu concluded that she was alive, obviously, and she was slowly losing energy. Jakato had offered to carry Magaru to Yagami, but Washu wouldn't allow it; she was still distrustful of him after the whole incident at the Masaki home. In the end, it was Rayani who carried Magaru over her shoulder as Kiyone marched Jakato off to Yagami.
"You guys go," Washu called to them. "I need to find Ryoko." Kiyone nodded and turned around, pushing Jakato over to the transfer tube.
Washu wandered about, taking her time and expecting Kagato to jump out of the shadows or something of that sort. She was about to head back when she heard a voice singing from a bit further ahead. Running forward, she turned at the band and skidded to a halt, not expecting what she saw. Washu sighed, watching in amusement as Ryoko walked cheerfully, dragging Kagato behind her. "Ryoko, how did you get him?" Washu asked, walking in step with her daughter. Ryoko laughed loudly, her laughs reverberating off the metal walls.
"He was unconscious when I found him, so all I had to do was tie him up with a rope I found!" Ryoko said, grinning with excitement. Washu increased her pace.
"Come on. Kiyone must be waiting."
-----
Washu immediately noticed that Magaru improved as she was brought onto Yagami. If Tenchi or anybody else disapproved of Kagato's presence, they didn't show it. Strangely, Rayani looked slightly uncomfortable and quiet after the search of Kagato's ship--something she rarely did. Magaru seemed contented enough when she was allowed to sit next to Jakato.
"So, explain your dream to me again, Sasami," Washu said, rather businesslike. Sasami was sitting sleepily between Kenny and Ayeka. Kenny was twirling the Light Hawk Sword in his hand; Tenchi had let him try to use it.
"Well, it was Tsunami and she said that we would get help," Sasami explained. Washu laughed.
"Do you think she was talking about these three?" Washu asked. She was about to continue when Magaru interrupted.
"I had a dream like that, too!" she exclaimed. Magaru turned red and dropped her head politely in apology for interrupting. Washu shrugged.
"We need all the help we can get. Yume is serious about this," Washu said worriedly. She stifled a smile as Kagato groaned and woke up.
"What--what am I doing here?" Kagato murmured, shaking his head groggily. His bonds fell away as he produced his green sword behind his back. Ryoko was about to pull a mallet out when Washu held up a warning hand and smirked at Kagato. He gave her an irritated glare and returned the smirk.
"Just cooperate, all right?" Washu said, giving Kagato a piercing stare. He sniffed indifferently.
"Why, may I ask, professor?" Washu laughed as she crossed her arms.
"You wouldn't want to see poor Jakato unhappy if Magaru died, would you?" the genius laughed. Kagato hesitated for a moment, and Tenchi could have sworn that his eyes darted over towards his son, who was snoring softly with his head on Magaru's shoulder.
"Fine. Leave me out of your troubles, then," Kagato said, stalking away towards the far end of the room, his robe swishing. Rayani, who was over there looking out the window, sighed and flew away, her eyes flat and dull.
"What do you think is wrong with her?" Ryoko whispered to Tenchi. Tenchi blinked and glanced at Rayani, who was now sitting on Kiyone's bed and twirling her tail idly.
"Why do you ask?" Tenchi inquired, smiling. Ryoko asked.
"She hasn't smiled or said anything for a few hours already." The prince shrugged and leaned on Ryoko warily. She smiled and shuddered in quiet joy.
Kenny still wasn't able to produce the sword. He had shaken it, hit it, looked inside, but it didn't seem to be working. Sasami giggled as Ayeka pulled the sword from Kenny's grasp. "Kenny, it's dangerous to do that!" Ayeka scolded, lightly hitting Kenny on the hand. He gave her a sheepish smile and took the sword back.
Kiyone appeared at the door, her face shrouded in shadow. She whispered something to Washu, who began typing madly on her computer. Funaho, who was taking care of the comatose Misaki, managed to walk over to Washu. "What is wrong?" she asked, staggering slightly. To her immense surprise, Washu was grinning.
"Kiyone spotted Bizen and Yume. I checked the energy drain, and I was able to center in on some machine she has embedded into Bizen," Washu explained. Funaho gave her a perplexed look.
"Why are you smiling?"
"Because her machine is reaching critical limit. It's going to be overloaded soon," Washu laughed. Funaho looked extremely worried.
"If it overloads, the Juraian energy will explode. It's compressed, correct?" Funaho asked. Washu shook a finger at her, laughing.
"You've got the greatest genius on your side! I can properly release the energy, but we'll heave to get Yume out of the way." Washu's expression changed considerably from amusement to concern. "She'll want a battle." Both turned when they heard a grunt from behind them. Tenchi had gotten up, smiling.
"I will fight," Tenchi said, wincing. "I feel useless sitting down."
"You'll need all the help you can get," Rayani called suddenly. "I'll help, and I'm sure the rest of our friends will, too." Tenchi smiled as Ryoko agreed.
"You got it! Tenchi, you can't do this alone!" Ryoko said firmly, jabbing her fist in the air. Tenchi smiled gratefully; he knew he couldn't argue them out of it. Ayeka stood up slowly, putting a pained smile on her face.
"We will all help you, Lord Tenchi," Ayeka said, flopping back down on the sofa. Ryoko was about to sit down also when Rayani walked up to her. Ryoko gave her a suspicious look.
"What?" she said, narrowing her eyes. Rayani laughed and pulled Ryoko towards the door.
"I'm going to teach you something that might be useful. Go to the cargo bay- -I need to ask Washu something," Rayani said cheerfully, nudging Ryoko out the door. Ryoko was about to protest when she caught Washu's eye. The genius nodded and smiled, so Ryoko sighed and teleported to the cargo bay as Rayani whispered something to Washu.
-----
Rayani grinned as a cylindrical pillar of metal fell from a hole that appeared in the ceiling of the cargo bay. Ryoko crossed her arms and eyed her suspiciously. "What's that?" Ryoko asked slowly, giving the pillar a doubtful look. Rayani laughed, but it sounded like a forced laugh.
"This is a mixture of dense metal alloys, many of which that don't exist on Earth. This is very dense," explained Rayani. Ryoko gave her a look that plainly said, 'Why would I care about it?' Giggling and stepping away, Rayani pointed at the pillar. "I want you to completely destroy it."
"Are you kidding me? You dragged me down here to destroy a pillar?" Ryoko snorted in contempt. Rayani did not answer and continued smiling. "Fine. This'll be a piece of cake." Ryoko grinned and walked up the towering pillar, throwing a punch at it. She yelped in pain as she pulled her fist away, finding that she hadn't even made a dent. Ryoko shot an irritated glance at her friend; Rayani hadn't even moved a muscle.
Rayani had trouble hiding her amusement when Ryoko began throwing balls of energy at the sturdy pillar. Ryoko's efforts were useless; the pillar remained unblemished. "I told you it was high density," Rayani sighed as Ryoko stood back to rest. Ryoko stared at her scornfully.
"Can you break it, then?" Ryoko snapped irritably. Rayani nodded.
"Yes, but that's not why I made you come here. I'm going to teach you to utilize your power so you get more out of less." Ryoko cocked her head in confusion. Rayani was speaking like Washu--quite different from her laconic way of talking. Ryoko nodded reluctantly since she knew it would be useless to resist now. Rayani smiled and held her hands out, much like Tenchi does when he creates the Light Hawk Wings, except that her wrists were touching.
"First," Rayani continued, "I want you to do this." Ryoko nodded and imitated the position. Rayani nodded in approval. "Right. Now, concentrate on the power from your gems and the extra energy in your body." Ryoko grunted in compliance and closed her eyes. She began glowing red as she opened her eyes. Rayani grinned. "Good. Okay, face the pillar and pretend that it's Kagato." She noted the look on Ryoko's face. "Come on, just do what I say. Okay, gather up all that energy and direct it towards your hands and release it in one big beam. I don't mean just let it go--force it out through your hands." Ryoko nodded, yelling as a red beam of energy exploded from her hands and crashed into the pillar, completely eradicating it and sending shards of metal flying in every direction.
Rayani clapped, impressed, as Ryoko bent over, panting. "Wow! You really did well for your first time, Ryoko! It took me 300 years to get that one right!" Rayani cheered, helping Ryoko straighten up. The space pirate grinned triumphantly, putting her hands on her hips.
"Well, it was easy. Oh," Ryoko added, cocking her head. "Why did you have me pretend that it was Kagato?" Rayani shrugged as she watched Ryoko struggle to control her breathing.
"Sometimes anger lets you put more force into it, so I assumed that you hated Kagato enough to want to blast him to bits." Rayani grinned. "Why don't we practice on the real Kagato, huh?" Ryoko shook her head.
"That's a waste of energy for Tenchi and the others," Ryoko said, teleporting away. Rayani laughed softly, making her way back to Kiyone's quarters.
Kagato was becoming aggravated by the incessant cheeriness of the others. What irritated him more was the fact that his son was being very friendly. He struggled to control his anger, though it was very difficult, owing to the fact that he knew they were mocking him. Kagato was about to start issuing demands when Rayani appeared above him, covering his eyes. "Guess who!" Kagato wrenched her hands away and tried slamming her to the floor, but Rayani landed on her feet. She shook her head. "Still angry?"
"If I were you, I would stop smirking," Kagato said calmly, glaring at her in suppressed anger. Rayani's smile grew wider.
"If I were you, I'd loosen up," Rayani chuckled, pulling out a small flask of sake and dropping it into Kagato's lap.
Everybody burst out laughing as they heard Kagato's strangled voice get muffled when Rayani began forcing the contents of the flask down his throat. "I bet 1,000 yen that Kagato only makes it through two bottles," Ryoko wagered, grinning. Ayeka laughed airily.
"You're on!" Ayeka growled suddenly, slamming her hand down on the table.
Half an hour later, Rayani joined the group, grinning mischievously. "How many did you get into him?" Ryoko asked impatiently. Rayani held up but one bottle.
"Only one," she said dejectedly. Ryoko stared in disbelief at the snoring Kagato in the corner.
"But--half an hour!" Ryoko sputtered. Rayani shrugged and laughed as Ayeka began berating Ryoko for her money.
-----
"Here they come, the fools," Yume said to Hishima, putting the finishing touches on the last bio-machine of her enormous bio-engineered army. "They've got some unexpected allies, I'll bet, but we've got our Shima army, right Hishima?" Hishima nodded obediently. Yume put her hands on her hips as she straightened up. "We'll probably end up with you defeating the prince, so I guess the army won't be necessary." Her eyes glinted feverishly. "But, you never know..."
-----
Chapter Eight: Unexpected Allies
She was fading. He had never known anything to be so difficult to do; even trapping the professor seemed much easier. He had tried everything, but he had very limited success. If anything, it was just wearing himself and Jakato out. Jakato's patience actually reached the point to where he suggested asked for Tenchi's help. His father had shuddered at the thought and snapped irritably at him.
-----
Washu couldn't stop it, but she could slow it. It was very fortunate that Ryoko was not losing any energy from this. It seemed to be sustaining Tenchi and the others nicely. The only that worried Washu was the fact that Misaki was still unconscious even after seventy-two hours. She could not do anything to Misaki--any electrical shock or chemicals could result with a mass deterioration of vital tissues and organs.
-----
Yume cackled in malevolent triumph. Washu will appear soon, and then she will set her straight. After all, Hishima was on her side and he had improved considerably since his last battle with Prince Tenchi. There was no way that Hishima could fail now that the Prince of Jurai would be in no condition to fight, but even if he was, she had something in store for them. Bizen was doing fine; progress with the energy absorption device was more than satisfactory. Yume had no intention of killing all the Juraians; if she did, then her new empire would have nobody in it.
-----
Kagato could do no more. Magaru seemed safe for the moment, but she slept for many hours. He hardly paid attention to where he was steering his ship, and it was during one of these lapses from attention when he felt his ship grind into another.
-----
Washu was taking a nap when she felt Yagami get hit by another ship. Kiyone's voice blared on the intercom. "Everyone get up! It's Kagato!"
Oddly, the enemy they had momentarily forgotten about didn't invade Yagami. This time, it was their turn to invade.
"Ryoko found Kagato unconscious in the cockpit of his ship. Taking great care to bind him very tightly, Ryoko dragged him as she looked for the other searchers, making sure that she dragged him across the rough parts of the floor. She laughed as he slowly regained consciousness but blacked out again as he hit his head on a table leg.
Washu had found Magaru asleep in Jakato's bed, a cold sweat on her face. Jakato was being strangely cooperative and subdued. Kiyone tied them up without any trouble. After checking Magaru's pulse, Washu concluded that she was alive, obviously, and she was slowly losing energy. Jakato had offered to carry Magaru to Yagami, but Washu wouldn't allow it; she was still distrustful of him after the whole incident at the Masaki home. In the end, it was Rayani who carried Magaru over her shoulder as Kiyone marched Jakato off to Yagami.
"You guys go," Washu called to them. "I need to find Ryoko." Kiyone nodded and turned around, pushing Jakato over to the transfer tube.
Washu wandered about, taking her time and expecting Kagato to jump out of the shadows or something of that sort. She was about to head back when she heard a voice singing from a bit further ahead. Running forward, she turned at the band and skidded to a halt, not expecting what she saw. Washu sighed, watching in amusement as Ryoko walked cheerfully, dragging Kagato behind her. "Ryoko, how did you get him?" Washu asked, walking in step with her daughter. Ryoko laughed loudly, her laughs reverberating off the metal walls.
"He was unconscious when I found him, so all I had to do was tie him up with a rope I found!" Ryoko said, grinning with excitement. Washu increased her pace.
"Come on. Kiyone must be waiting."
-----
Washu immediately noticed that Magaru improved as she was brought onto Yagami. If Tenchi or anybody else disapproved of Kagato's presence, they didn't show it. Strangely, Rayani looked slightly uncomfortable and quiet after the search of Kagato's ship--something she rarely did. Magaru seemed contented enough when she was allowed to sit next to Jakato.
"So, explain your dream to me again, Sasami," Washu said, rather businesslike. Sasami was sitting sleepily between Kenny and Ayeka. Kenny was twirling the Light Hawk Sword in his hand; Tenchi had let him try to use it.
"Well, it was Tsunami and she said that we would get help," Sasami explained. Washu laughed.
"Do you think she was talking about these three?" Washu asked. She was about to continue when Magaru interrupted.
"I had a dream like that, too!" she exclaimed. Magaru turned red and dropped her head politely in apology for interrupting. Washu shrugged.
"We need all the help we can get. Yume is serious about this," Washu said worriedly. She stifled a smile as Kagato groaned and woke up.
"What--what am I doing here?" Kagato murmured, shaking his head groggily. His bonds fell away as he produced his green sword behind his back. Ryoko was about to pull a mallet out when Washu held up a warning hand and smirked at Kagato. He gave her an irritated glare and returned the smirk.
"Just cooperate, all right?" Washu said, giving Kagato a piercing stare. He sniffed indifferently.
"Why, may I ask, professor?" Washu laughed as she crossed her arms.
"You wouldn't want to see poor Jakato unhappy if Magaru died, would you?" the genius laughed. Kagato hesitated for a moment, and Tenchi could have sworn that his eyes darted over towards his son, who was snoring softly with his head on Magaru's shoulder.
"Fine. Leave me out of your troubles, then," Kagato said, stalking away towards the far end of the room, his robe swishing. Rayani, who was over there looking out the window, sighed and flew away, her eyes flat and dull.
"What do you think is wrong with her?" Ryoko whispered to Tenchi. Tenchi blinked and glanced at Rayani, who was now sitting on Kiyone's bed and twirling her tail idly.
"Why do you ask?" Tenchi inquired, smiling. Ryoko asked.
"She hasn't smiled or said anything for a few hours already." The prince shrugged and leaned on Ryoko warily. She smiled and shuddered in quiet joy.
Kenny still wasn't able to produce the sword. He had shaken it, hit it, looked inside, but it didn't seem to be working. Sasami giggled as Ayeka pulled the sword from Kenny's grasp. "Kenny, it's dangerous to do that!" Ayeka scolded, lightly hitting Kenny on the hand. He gave her a sheepish smile and took the sword back.
Kiyone appeared at the door, her face shrouded in shadow. She whispered something to Washu, who began typing madly on her computer. Funaho, who was taking care of the comatose Misaki, managed to walk over to Washu. "What is wrong?" she asked, staggering slightly. To her immense surprise, Washu was grinning.
"Kiyone spotted Bizen and Yume. I checked the energy drain, and I was able to center in on some machine she has embedded into Bizen," Washu explained. Funaho gave her a perplexed look.
"Why are you smiling?"
"Because her machine is reaching critical limit. It's going to be overloaded soon," Washu laughed. Funaho looked extremely worried.
"If it overloads, the Juraian energy will explode. It's compressed, correct?" Funaho asked. Washu shook a finger at her, laughing.
"You've got the greatest genius on your side! I can properly release the energy, but we'll heave to get Yume out of the way." Washu's expression changed considerably from amusement to concern. "She'll want a battle." Both turned when they heard a grunt from behind them. Tenchi had gotten up, smiling.
"I will fight," Tenchi said, wincing. "I feel useless sitting down."
"You'll need all the help you can get," Rayani called suddenly. "I'll help, and I'm sure the rest of our friends will, too." Tenchi smiled as Ryoko agreed.
"You got it! Tenchi, you can't do this alone!" Ryoko said firmly, jabbing her fist in the air. Tenchi smiled gratefully; he knew he couldn't argue them out of it. Ayeka stood up slowly, putting a pained smile on her face.
"We will all help you, Lord Tenchi," Ayeka said, flopping back down on the sofa. Ryoko was about to sit down also when Rayani walked up to her. Ryoko gave her a suspicious look.
"What?" she said, narrowing her eyes. Rayani laughed and pulled Ryoko towards the door.
"I'm going to teach you something that might be useful. Go to the cargo bay- -I need to ask Washu something," Rayani said cheerfully, nudging Ryoko out the door. Ryoko was about to protest when she caught Washu's eye. The genius nodded and smiled, so Ryoko sighed and teleported to the cargo bay as Rayani whispered something to Washu.
-----
Rayani grinned as a cylindrical pillar of metal fell from a hole that appeared in the ceiling of the cargo bay. Ryoko crossed her arms and eyed her suspiciously. "What's that?" Ryoko asked slowly, giving the pillar a doubtful look. Rayani laughed, but it sounded like a forced laugh.
"This is a mixture of dense metal alloys, many of which that don't exist on Earth. This is very dense," explained Rayani. Ryoko gave her a look that plainly said, 'Why would I care about it?' Giggling and stepping away, Rayani pointed at the pillar. "I want you to completely destroy it."
"Are you kidding me? You dragged me down here to destroy a pillar?" Ryoko snorted in contempt. Rayani did not answer and continued smiling. "Fine. This'll be a piece of cake." Ryoko grinned and walked up the towering pillar, throwing a punch at it. She yelped in pain as she pulled her fist away, finding that she hadn't even made a dent. Ryoko shot an irritated glance at her friend; Rayani hadn't even moved a muscle.
Rayani had trouble hiding her amusement when Ryoko began throwing balls of energy at the sturdy pillar. Ryoko's efforts were useless; the pillar remained unblemished. "I told you it was high density," Rayani sighed as Ryoko stood back to rest. Ryoko stared at her scornfully.
"Can you break it, then?" Ryoko snapped irritably. Rayani nodded.
"Yes, but that's not why I made you come here. I'm going to teach you to utilize your power so you get more out of less." Ryoko cocked her head in confusion. Rayani was speaking like Washu--quite different from her laconic way of talking. Ryoko nodded reluctantly since she knew it would be useless to resist now. Rayani smiled and held her hands out, much like Tenchi does when he creates the Light Hawk Wings, except that her wrists were touching.
"First," Rayani continued, "I want you to do this." Ryoko nodded and imitated the position. Rayani nodded in approval. "Right. Now, concentrate on the power from your gems and the extra energy in your body." Ryoko grunted in compliance and closed her eyes. She began glowing red as she opened her eyes. Rayani grinned. "Good. Okay, face the pillar and pretend that it's Kagato." She noted the look on Ryoko's face. "Come on, just do what I say. Okay, gather up all that energy and direct it towards your hands and release it in one big beam. I don't mean just let it go--force it out through your hands." Ryoko nodded, yelling as a red beam of energy exploded from her hands and crashed into the pillar, completely eradicating it and sending shards of metal flying in every direction.
Rayani clapped, impressed, as Ryoko bent over, panting. "Wow! You really did well for your first time, Ryoko! It took me 300 years to get that one right!" Rayani cheered, helping Ryoko straighten up. The space pirate grinned triumphantly, putting her hands on her hips.
"Well, it was easy. Oh," Ryoko added, cocking her head. "Why did you have me pretend that it was Kagato?" Rayani shrugged as she watched Ryoko struggle to control her breathing.
"Sometimes anger lets you put more force into it, so I assumed that you hated Kagato enough to want to blast him to bits." Rayani grinned. "Why don't we practice on the real Kagato, huh?" Ryoko shook her head.
"That's a waste of energy for Tenchi and the others," Ryoko said, teleporting away. Rayani laughed softly, making her way back to Kiyone's quarters.
Kagato was becoming aggravated by the incessant cheeriness of the others. What irritated him more was the fact that his son was being very friendly. He struggled to control his anger, though it was very difficult, owing to the fact that he knew they were mocking him. Kagato was about to start issuing demands when Rayani appeared above him, covering his eyes. "Guess who!" Kagato wrenched her hands away and tried slamming her to the floor, but Rayani landed on her feet. She shook her head. "Still angry?"
"If I were you, I would stop smirking," Kagato said calmly, glaring at her in suppressed anger. Rayani's smile grew wider.
"If I were you, I'd loosen up," Rayani chuckled, pulling out a small flask of sake and dropping it into Kagato's lap.
Everybody burst out laughing as they heard Kagato's strangled voice get muffled when Rayani began forcing the contents of the flask down his throat. "I bet 1,000 yen that Kagato only makes it through two bottles," Ryoko wagered, grinning. Ayeka laughed airily.
"You're on!" Ayeka growled suddenly, slamming her hand down on the table.
Half an hour later, Rayani joined the group, grinning mischievously. "How many did you get into him?" Ryoko asked impatiently. Rayani held up but one bottle.
"Only one," she said dejectedly. Ryoko stared in disbelief at the snoring Kagato in the corner.
"But--half an hour!" Ryoko sputtered. Rayani shrugged and laughed as Ayeka began berating Ryoko for her money.
-----
"Here they come, the fools," Yume said to Hishima, putting the finishing touches on the last bio-machine of her enormous bio-engineered army. "They've got some unexpected allies, I'll bet, but we've got our Shima army, right Hishima?" Hishima nodded obediently. Yume put her hands on her hips as she straightened up. "We'll probably end up with you defeating the prince, so I guess the army won't be necessary." Her eyes glinted feverishly. "But, you never know..."