Disclaimer
Tenchi and all associated characters are the property of AIC and Pioneer LDC. I don't own any rights to them. Any other characters are property of their respective copyright holders, not me.
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A Scientist's Tale
Chapter 6
Discovery
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It had been a week since I'd released the girl and we still hadn't come up with a name for her. She didn't seem to mind but I couldn't go through life calling my perfect daughter "hey you", now could I? Anyway, Kagato kept arguing that because she was essentially nothing more than an android, we didn't have to name her. She should be happy with her project number and nothing else. Yakage, however, agreed with me. Which earned him quite a few dirty looks from Kagato. Both of us agreed that we should find some element of her personality and name her after that, but she hadn't shown any exceptional abilities yet. Except a curiosity that appeared to know no bounds. Because of her 'programming' she picked up on the ability to read within a couple of days and I was finding it difficult to tear her away from the reader, even at mealtimes.
Yakage had taken it upon himself to teach her a few basic sword techniques. It was one of his areas of expertise and he said it would help her when she learned to form her plasma blade. But I insisted that they keep to wooden practice blades until her regeneration ability manifested itself. It was a good thing too, judging from the number of bruises she came out of each session with. Kagato showed no interest in helping her at all. Except for meals and a few other times, he was keeping pretty much to himself. Yakage said he was going over the project data looking for any flaws and ways to improve it. Maybe it was just me, but I was beginning to get a bit worried at his withdrawal from the rest of us.
About the eighth day after I'd released her and she still hadn't shown any sign of the extraordinary abilities I knew she possessed, I had a sudden inspiration. Dashing out of the lab where I'd been monitoring the progress of the second subject, I ran to my cabin and snatched up the three gems. Looking at them for a moment I thought it just might work and hurried to the room where she was practicing with, or more likely being beat up by, Yakage. Sure enough, when I entered the room I saw that he had her backed into a corner and was admonishing her to "try harder". She looked on the point of tears and if she could've, she would probably have gladly killed her teacher at that moment. I quickly called a stop to the session and summoned them both over to me.
"Look," I said to her. "I know you've read the data on yourself that I've allowed you access to. I know you know that you have special abilities. They should have started to appear by now but they haven't. Any ideas why?"
She shook her head and responded meekly, "No Doctor Washu." I'd asked her not to call me Mother in front of the others and she'd agreed. But she'd also started to call me 'mommy' in private as well, not that I really minded.
"I've tried to do some of the things," she continued. "Form energy balls, move through solid objects… But nothing seems to work."
"I know you have dear." I looked at the silent Yakage then back at her. "I wonder if the problem might not be a power and control issue. I wasn't going to do this until later, but… Hold out both your arms and close your eyes."
"Close my eyes? Do I have to?"
I smiled at her. "No, not really. But I have a surprise for you and surprises are best given that way." She closed her eyes and held out her arms. "Wrists up please," I requested and she obliged. I opened my hand to reveal the gems and Yakage's eyes widened in wonder, but he remained silent. I gently placed a gem on each of her wrists and she giggled at the chill feel of them on her sweaty skin.
"Can I open my eyes now?" she asked.
"Nope," I said. "Not yet." Then I continued mentally, I want you to form your thoughts like this. I showed her by inserting myself into her mind. You need an image of two items of power, one on each wrist. Got it? I felt her concentrate then I felt her agreement. Good. Now imagine absorbing that power into yourself. Try it please. She concentrated harder and I smiled as the two gems sank into her wrists, remaining half exposed. They glowed briefly and I heard her suck in her breath in a sharp hiss. The glow faded. I held up the third gem. Now, concentrate on a third source of power and bring it to you. The gem floated up and moved toward her neck where it merged with the receptor built into her throat. It too glowed briefly then faded, but remained visible as a dull red spot on her neck.
"I feel weird," she said as she opened her eyes. "What did you do to me?"
"I've given you a gift. These three gems have been with me since I was found, long ago. They contain tremendous power, power that I have been unable to tap into myself, for various reasons. But you were designed with these gems in mind. You can use their power." I paused and allowed her to examine my "gift" as they glittered under the bright light.
"They're very pretty," she said. "I can feel their power, but how do I use it?"
I had to make something up quickly. "The gem on your left wrist will allow you to use your abilities but only those that relate directly to your body, like forming plasma and phasing though things. The gem on the right will allow you to control things that you create that aren't directly a part of you, illusions for escape and evasion, shield walls that will remain standing for a short time after you leave. Things like this. The third gem will act as a storage battery for power." Actually, that's all any of the gems were as far as I could tell, storage devices of some sort. All of her control would be from her own mind and with her organic anti-matter power source she shouldn't have needed the gems at all. But if it helped move things along… And besides, she might actually need them as power regulators once she found her own power. That's what the receptors were designed for in the first place. My only fear now was that she would come to depend on the gems and totally ignore her own abilities. I'd have to make sure that didn't happen. Somehow.
I glanced over at Yakage, who'd remained silent through the whole exchange. He had a frown on his face but it was more one of not understanding than of disapproval. Not that it mattered to me in the least. I turned back to the girl. "I want you to try something for me. Hold out your hand and concentrate on gathering power in it."
"Like this?" She closed her eyes and her brows knit in concentration. There was a sharp snap like an electric discharge then a small glow began to form in her palm. She gasped and opened her eyes. The glow faded. "I felt something. I did it, didn't I?" she asked, examining her palm for any sign of scorch marks.
I was grinning like a fool. This was going to work! "You sure did. A little anyway. It's a good start, now, why don't you run along and practice for a bit? I need to talk to Yakage here anyway."
She smiled at me and bounced off down the corridor toward her room. I turned to Yakage.
"What just happened here Professor?" he asked.
"A breakthrough," I replied. "But let's not tell Kaggy about it just yet. I want it to be a surprise for him too."
"But the cameras…" he started to say.
"Are disabled in this part of the ship," I finished. "I took them offline when you started your training and only I know the codes to reactivate them. Just as a precaution you understand."
He nodded gravely. "Yes. I think I'm beginning to. We need to talk more on this later, right now I want to take a shower and get cleaned up."
I teasingly held my nose and waved him away. "Yep, that'd better be first on your list. Come to my room later and we'll continue our talk." He bowed formally to me then left.
*****
It wasn't too long before Yakage was knocking excitedly on my cabin door. "Washu! Professor Washu! You have to see this!"
I yanked the door open and he stumbled in, off balance from the knock I interrupted. I helped him up from his prone position on my floor. "Ok, ok. Calm down Yakage. What's happened? What do I need to see?"
"The subject Washu! She's back in the practice room and… Come on! You've got to see this!"
"We'll watch from here." I turned to my computer console and entered the code to reactivate the cameras in the practice room, keying them to my display only. What I saw astounded me. There was my daughter, zipping around the room, fully-formed energy sword in hand, dodging the attacks of some type of creature I'd never seen before. I quickly reached for the intruder warning but Yakage stopped me with a hand on my arm. "Watch," he said.
The creature had finally backed her into a corner and she was forced to attack instead of defend. With a move that I recognized as one Yakage had taught her, she dispatched the critter with a single blow. The beast evaporated into nothingness. She stood the breathing heavily for a moment, then moved to the center of the room. I could see her eyes close in concentration and wisps of plasma began to swirl around her. They came together and solidified into another being similar to the earlier one. She stepped back in a guard position and the dance started all over again.
"That's remarkable," I exclaimed, unable to tear my eyes from the screen. "She's combined powers, plasma control and telekinesis. And the energy blade, I didn't expect her to form one, let alone master it, so soon."
Yakage chuckled. "Oh, she's far from mastering it. More cut and slash than anything else, but she shows raw ability." His eyes followed her movements and those of her creation. "Ryoko," he said in a low voice. "That's what we should call her. Ryoko."
"Ryoko?" I responded. "That's Juraian for 'Devil Summoner' or something, isn't it?"
"Yes," he replied. "It's also a name, but given it's meaning it's not used very often."
"Ryoko," I said again, tasting it on my tongue. "Ryoko. I like it, Ryoko it is." I turned off the screen and rekeyed the security codes just as she finished off her latest opponent. "Come on, let's go give her the good news."
*****
To say that Ryoko was thrilled with her name would be an understatement. She was positively bouncing off the walls with joy. It was like she finally had an identity, a personality. Kagato, when she introduced herself to him at dinner, was a bit less thrilled. After the meal Yakage took Ryoko off to the practice room for a short session and Kagato pulled me aside as I tossed the dirty dinner utensils into the recycler.
"Just what do you think you're doing? What purpose did giving it a name serve?" he hissed at me.
I yanked my arm from his grasp and pushed him away, shaking with anger. "Who do you think you are boy?" I asked in my most scathing tone. "As far a I can recall, I'm the senior here and this is still my project. You'd better adjust that attitude or you'll find yourself back at the Academy cleaning test tubes for the next 50 years."
He backed away from me, his own anger flaring from his eyes. "We shall see Professor, we shall see." He whirled and stalked out of the room. I decided not to mention the confrontation to Yakage, I didn't want him to get into a fight with Kagato; I was finding it harder and harder to trust my erstwhile assistant. I finished cleaning up then went to check on Yakage and Ryoko.
By the time I arrived at the practice room I had calmed down enough to actually enjoy watching the two spar. Yakage spotted me standing in the doorway and called a halt to the current exercise. He motioned me over.
"Washu, watch what Ryoko's learned to do." He nodded to her and she floated up off the floor until there were several feet of empty air under her. "Of course, I told her she couldn't do that in our practice sessions, but now I have to revise the tactics I've been teaching her as a result of this new ability."
I watched as she did a somersault in mid-air the floated back down to the floor. Or rather, into the floor. My mouth fell open with astonishment and I pointed at where her feet were supposed to be. Yakage's eyes followed my finger and he sat down hard. Ryoko looked at both of us, a confused expression on her face.
"What's wrong?" she asked. Then she too looked down. "AH! My feet, they're gone! But that's odd, I can still feel them…" She floated up a bit and her feet reappeared. "Oops. I guess they're still there after all. What's going on? Why did that happen?"
"Molecular phasing," I explained. "It's one of your inherent abilities, like forming an energy sword and flying." But you were supposed to gradually gain these things. It seems that giving you the gems has forced them on you all at once." I walked over to her and pulled her down. This time her feet didn't go through the floor. "Have you tried teleporting yet?" I asked.
She thought for a moment. "Um, nope. I don't think so anyway. How does it work?"
I didn't have a good answer for that and told her so. "How about telekinesis?" I wondered.
She looked at me blankly.
"Moving things with your mind," I said.
"Ah!" she smiled at me. "Yeah, I can do that."
"Show me," I requested.
Ryoko looked around he room and her eyes fell on the rack of practice swords against the wall. With a sly grin she glanced at Yakage and two of the bokken moved into the air and took up guard positions in front him. His own sword came up in defense. One of the swords attempted to sneak around behind him but he moved like lightning and suddenly both practice blades fell to the ground in several pieces.
He grounded his blade and smiled at Ryoko. "I can see I'm going to have to do quite a bit of revision in my tactics. I may finally have an opponent that can keep me on my toes."
A polite clapping came from the doorway. I whirled and saw Kagato standing there, watching everything closely. He sauntered into the room, eyeing Ryoko appreciatively, then spoke to me. "Washu, I came to apologize for my earlier actions. I don't know what got into me, but I'm over it now."
I looked at him as one would a snake, but bobbed my head in acceptance. Kagato turned back to examining Ryoko. He walked around her as one would a piece of machinery that one was considering purchasing.
"It seems that Ryoko here is progressing faster than planned. We may be farther ahead of schedule than I thought." He patted her on top of the head and started for the door. Just before leaving, he turned back. "Once again Washu, I'm very sorry." He went out and the door closed behind him.
"What was that all about?" Yakage asked. "What was he apologizing for?"
"Don't worry about it," I told him. "He said something earlier that I took exception to and I chewed him out about it."
"Mommy?" Ryoko said, moving to stand close to me. "That man scares me. A lot. I don't like him."
Yakage laughed. "Mommy? She calls you mommy?"
"Yeah, what about it?" I fumed.
"Ah, nothing. And Ryoko?" She looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Don't worry about Kagato, you're much more powerful than he is. When I get a bit more training into you I'd pit you against anyone, even a Goddess."
"Tsunami," I whispered the name of the Juraian deity. A part of my mind twinged for no apparent reason.
"Yes," agreed Yakage. "Maybe even her."
*****
Now I'd like to say that I woke up the next morning refreshed and with a bright outlook on life. But if I did I'd be lying. Instead I was bleary-eyed and depressed. Kagato's actions the day before had me worried, he was up to something but I couldn't figure out what it was. I got up from the bed where I has tossed and turned all night, assumed my adult form and stepped into the shower. No sooner had I got the water adjusted to my liking when the intercom started buzzing. Swearing profusely, I left the shower and slapped the intercom button. "Yeah, what is it?" I growled. The screen lit up and Yakage's face appeared. His eyes widened as he cast an appreciative glance at me. I'd totally forgotten to wrap a towel around myself and I was still an adult! I quickly grabbed a robe and switched back to my child-like self. I could read the disappointment on his face. "Pervert," I muttered as I twisted the robe's belt. "Now, what's so damned important that you had to call me in the shower?"
He cleared his throat then explained. "Professor Washu, the second subject is almost ready to emerge. The egg is bouncing and making strange noises."
"Ah. And is it going to hatch right this minute?"
He frowned. "No, I think sometime in the next couple of hours though."
I glared at his image. "Then you won't mind if I finish my shower first?"
He nodded meekly.
"Heh. I thought not. And don't get any ideas just because I let you see me naked. I'm much, much too old for you." I clicked off the intercom unit then stuck my tongue out at the blank screen. "Even if you are a good-looking young man," I mumbled as I discarded my robe and went back into the shower. This time I kept my child form.
After grabbing a quick bite to eat and a cup of tea, I gathered up Ryoko and joined Yakage and Kagato in the small lab. Keeping as much distance between myself and Kagato as I could, I eyed the egg as it wobbled back and forth on the stand.
"What is it?" asked Ryoko, her nose pressed against the protective glass.
"It's for you." I slid the glass open. "Go ahead, pick it up. It won't bite, I promise."
She eyed the egg warily as she reached into the container and poked it with her finger. When it didn't react she started to caress it. "It's so warm, and smooth." She giggled as it moved under her touch.
"Pick it up, hold it," I said again. She tentatively lifted it from its place in the chamber. And almost dropped it as it twitched. Yakage started, as if he was going to make a diving catch, but Ryoko managed to keep a hold of it. Kagato looked on with amused indifference.
"Now what?" Ryoko asked, holding the egg tight against her breast.
"Come with me." I motioned for her to follow me out of the lab. I led her down the passage to a room that we had specially prepared just for this moment. Entering, I had her sit on a cushion and shooed my two assistants out of the room. Turning back to Ryoko I said, "Now you wait. Talk to it, handle it. It shouldn't be long now." I joined my assistants outside and softly closed the door behind me. Yakage turned on the monitor to watch.
I was right; it wasn't long before cracks began to appear in the shell and a small wisp of vapor escaped. Ryoko kept whispering encouraging words as the cracks got wider. An ear emerged followed by a twitching nose. Two eyes opened, golden eyes like Ryoko's. Must have something to do with the Mass genetics, I thought. There were even a few cyan wisps inside the creature's ears.
Ryoko was helping the creature break free by pulling pieces of shell away from its body. When it was totally free of its shell, she cuddled it close, making soft cooing noises. The creature itself was purring loudly. The girl looked deep into its eyes, so similar to her own, then up at the hidden camera, which apparently wasn't so well hidden after all. "She says her name is Ryo-ohki! She can talk to me in my head, just like you can Washu!"
Kagato turned and walked off, a look of disgust painting his face.
*****
To be continued
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Author's Notes
What can I say? One or two chapters left in this story I guess. I've already got three pages at the very end done; I just need to fill in the gap.
Next chapter: Kagato looses it for good and what happened to Yakage?
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Review Responses
Dennisud – Ah, there's nothing to dread here. I don't do dark fics; they don't fit my personality. (I don't do lemons for an entirely different reason…)
Vsdefender – You think I'm getting smoother? Is it just this story or does "In a Family Way" seem that way to?
Ministry Agent – I hate to say this, but I'm making it all up. The manga introduces Yakage and Minagi but doesn't go into any big backstory on them. I've read your stories too (including your "Complete Guide to America – I didn't know whether to be insulted or to laugh so I chose the later, but your North American geography needs a bit of work…) and I must say that you are one of the better authors out there. The detail you go into is amazing.
Alighthawk – A grandiose event? You were expecting a brass band? Rides and concessions? I maybe could have put a little more ceremony into it but as I wrote I was getting the distinct feeling that Ryoko wanted out NOW!
Tail-luver – Ok, enough Star Wars. If you want more, read the chapter in "Ladies Night Out" where they visit the cantina on Tattooine. (BTW, as I wrote these responses I got an e-mail from LucasFilm stating that Attack of the Clones will be out on DVD and VHS in November.)
Meekachu – I have to give credit where it's due. This story was partially inspired by that discussion you and I had on Ryoko's origins. The one about whether she was ever actually a child or not.
Thundergod – Yep, he's changing. But why?
Smack54 – Ryoko's getting more screen time now, but she's still very immature. Even compared to what she was in the OAV.
Taxzombie – Ryoko's reaction to wearing clothing for the first time struck me as natural due to her propensity for showing off her body in the OAV.
Wharpt – Well, we know what's going to happen. Oh, you mean in the story! Here it is.
Jyl – Thanks. I'm a bit disappointed that you stopped your Hart story. I was enjoying it and wanted to see where it was going next.
Priest – Thanks. I don't know how you've missed it 'til now. Want to be added to my notification list? E-mail me if you do, I only add readers to it if they specifically request it. I don't want to be accused of sending unsolicited e-mail (spam).
*****
BobR
08/02/2002