XI: No Need for a Road Trip!

In no time at all, the entire crew was busying themselves loading up supplies. It had been decided that Yagami would be the vessel used to uncover the mystery of Pandemonium, after much deliberation on Nagi and Ryoko's parts. Their two cabbits would most likely want to spend time with each other, and since the mechanical vessel would never tire out in the same way as the two organic ships, then it made sense to use it. Besides, it had more room to it, and the pilots of Yagami didn't have any plans of "catching up on old times".

It took Tenchi and all his lady-friends the better part of an hour to load everything up. Ayeka and Sasami had the most bags to pile up, whereas Nagi could carry everything she wanted in her arms. Ryoko had also brought every little thing she "needed", and after Mihoshi, Kiyone, and Washu loaded up, poor Tenchi hardly had any room to even move around, let alone the space to unload his baggage.

"How much stuff is in these bags, anyway?!" he questioned out loud. Nagi advised him that it was better to not know; Ryoko insisted that every last convenience was important (in her usual seductive voice, naturally). No matter whose opinion was best, the fact of the matter was that everyone seemed prepared for a very long and very exhausting road trip in space.

The purpose of such a journey was to dig up as much clues about Pandemonium as possible. Pandemonium was a terrifying white dragon whose power was so great that it did not even have to fight to conquer worlds. From what Washu could determine, Pandemonium was not only the cause of so many planets' downfalls, but it was also directly responsible for toppling the sisters' home world as well as Washu's, and it had even killed Ryoko and Nagi's parents. Such a creature could not be allowed to exist in the universe, so Ryoko and Nagi both brought it upon themselves to avenge their parents and eliminate such a threat.

But not even Washu knew where to find this beast. Her first guess would be to look around Tg, which was Nagi and Ryoko's home world, but then she theorized that, unless it was a wild cosmic twist of luck, Pandemonium would not have stayed on the world, and would probably be elsewhere, causing the chaos that was synonymous to his name. Tg would be a nice place to start looking, but unless there were some new clues there, or a survivor that could help them out, it would otherwise be a waste of time to visit the world.

And as much as Nagi and Ryoko wanted to see their home planet, it probably wouldn't be a good idea in the long run. The world had been devastated by war and discord, or so Washu learned, and would probably not be the beautiful metropolis that it had been in the past. Besides, there would probably be nobody there that would remember the Stohk name, and if there were, odds were that they were probably disloyal.

"But don't worry!" assured the scarlet-haired scientist. "We'll definitely go there someday!" For the time being, however, they had to hop around in search of clues. Nobody on Earth would know about Pandemoinum, so the trip had to start out in space, and since nobody knew just how long this would take, everyone was expected to pack up everything they thought necessary, and this was where they were right now.

…Well, they were there a few hours ago, but now, they were in space, just passing Neptune. The Yagami was brutally fast compared to an Earth-ship, and since it was GP standard issue, it could also hold its own against the more advanced vessels from Jurai, Morosia, the Prima worlds, and perhaps even Megalopolis (however unlikely). Therefore, it could easily skip over the entire Solar System in the time it took Mihoshi and Nagi to take separate showers.

Being stuck on a GP-issued ship with seven women would normally be the stuff that fantasies were made of. What man wouldn't give up a finger, or a limb, to be stuck in the middle of a cramped ship with seven beautiful ladies? Unfortunately, poor Tenchi had gotten so accustomed to living with these girls that he now felt even more beleaguered than before. He had enough problems with Ryoko and Ayeka already (no matter how friendly they were towards each other), and Washu and Mihoshi were always a handful. Sasami and Kiyone were perhaps the only ones Tenchi could really endure, and as for Nagi…… well, she mostly just goofed off with Ryoko.

Poor Tenchi rarely got any privacy now that half of Yagami was stuffed with belongings and the other half either had girls running around them or else were inaccessible. Perhaps the only place he really found himself isolated was the bathroom, but since there was only one bathroom and eight passengers, things usually got hairy anyway.

As Tenchi tried finding time for himself, all the other girls usually hung around in the main lounge room. Kiyone and Washu took turns piloting the vessel, so their appearance in the room was never guaranteed, but everyone else was there all the time. The girls usually engaged in rather loud and confusing conversations, most of them focusing around the latest gossip or some romantic interest. Nagi was perhaps one of the more sane people on board, so her stories mostly revolved around her escapades "in the old days".

"I look back on those days with mixed feelings," she would usually begin. "There were plenty of 'good old days' to brag about, but for the most part, the life of a bounty hunter was a lonely one. I mean, I had Ken-ohki and all, but…… for the longest time, I would always have a hole in my heart. Something was missing from my life, and no matter how thrilling or exciting the hunt became, I would always end up going home with a burden on my shoulders."

"Do you think you were lonely because of Ryoko?" asked Sasami. Nagi pursed her lips in thought.

"Now there's a thought. You know, I guess you're right, kid. I mean, back then, I hated Ryoko passionately, but… it's funny… I never really felt bad or alone when I was with her. Even during those times that we fought to the death, I would always have a good sensation deep down inside of me--like I only really felt alive whenever I was around her."

"I felt the same way," noted Ryoko with a shake of her head. "My life as a wandering space pirate might've been fun, but I was always by myself. I guess I got so pathetic that I actually looked forward to running into somebody: GP, bounty hunters, the Jurai royal navy, it didn't matter. Whenever I was close to somebody, anybody, I always felt more alive, more like myself…" She then smiled and turned towards Ayeka.

"The princess and I were mortal enemies," she stated, as if that wasn't obvious already. "But even then, in a sadistic, masochistic sort of way, I kinda liked it whenever we ran into each other. Oh, don't get me wrong, I hated her guts back then--but you know what they say! 'Sometimes your enemy can be your greatest lover', or whatever."

"Greatest what?!" shouted Ayeka angrily. Ryoko chuckled out loud.

"I didn't mean it like that, highness! I just meant… uh, you know… 'keep your friends close and your enemies closer'!" Ayeka pursed her lips and gave her friend an icy but emotionless glare.

"Ryoko… …Ah, never mind… It's useless talking to you."

"Admit it, you liked being around me too, back in the day," sang the woman slyly. Ayeka's face turned red and she snorted a little.

"Hmph! I absolutely detested you in those days! I lived solely to see you brought to justice! I would not have brought myself to be within ten systems in your vicinity if I could help it!"

"And yet you were insanely jealous of what I had," sighed Ryoko dreamily. Ayeka sighed and shook her head wearily.

"…Oh, Ryoko… you can be such a bother sometimes…" The former space pirate laughed out loud, slamming her fist on the floor several times in an uncontrolled riot. Ayeka gave her friend a civil smirk, shook her head, and gazed at Nagi.

"Are you sure you're related to her?" she asked.

"Perfectly sure," replied the former huntress. "Ryoko might be a pain in the neck sometimes, but it's as plain as day that we have the same bloodline. C'mon, give the girl a break, princess. You know you love her to pieces."

"Well of course!!" countered Ayeka. "But you know that even soulmates must grow annoyed with each other from time to time!" Nagi shrugged and gave her rolling sister a few gentle kicks.

"…Hey, Ryoko? It wasn't that funny."

"Sorry," chortled the ex-pirate, who was laughing so hard that she had been crying. "It's just that… just that… hahaha… just that, Ayeka can be so cute when she's annoyed!!" The wild woman continued laughing for some time, but she finally calmed down just long enough to give her former enemy a warm smile. Ayeka, who never could stay mad at the woman for long, especially when she had that look on her face, shook her head and brought Ryoko into her embrace.

"Moron, moron, moron," muttered Ayeka, giving her friend a love-tap on the head with each word. Ryoko giggled.

"I love you too, you crazy princess." She grinned, and apologized for being a pain, and Ayeka forgave her, and another explosion sent black clouds of smoke into the room. Apparently, Washu was onto something.

"…What is she doing in there?!" barked Nagi, waving the smog away as she coughed. Mihoshi hacked out the answer.

"I… (cough, cough) don't think… (cough, cough) that we should… (COUGH, cough!!)…… know!"

"Idiot," hissed Ryoko, fanning the smoke away. "If she keeps this up, then we'll all die of smoke inhalation!" The girls continued to cough and wave the black air away, until finally things cleared up, and a charred Washu emerged from her lab with an amazed look on her face. She stood still for a brief moment, her entire body dark from smoke, and waited for the inquisitive faces to mentally ask her what she had been doing. She didn't have to wait very long.

"Hehehe… Science can be so cruel sometimes!"

By the time the girls had settled down long enough to classify as being civil, it was already pretty late in the day. Sasami made dinner as usual, but what surprised everyone was how well Nagi could cook as well. Apparently, all those years of living alone had forced her to make all her meals herself. Nagi was very critical of her meals, thus everything she made was compatible to her very picky tastes. She gave Sasami a run for her money, and everybody complimented her.

After dinner, most everybody settled down from their activities, which finally left Tenchi to be at peace. Ayeka and Nagi began to spend some private time together, since up until then, they really hadn't had much in the ways of communication, and Ryoko flew towards the cockpit. There, she found Kiyone enjoying a very rare moment of peace and quiet (since Mihoshi had been wisely placed "somewhere" in Washu's lab), and sat down in the copilot's chair to have a chat with the officer.

"Hey, Ryoko," smiled the woman. "What brings you up here? I don't see you having the desire to speak with me very much." Ryoko dismissed her words with a silent, lazy wave of her hand, and slouched so much that her back was now where her bottom should've been.

"…Hey, Kiyone, I got a question for you."

"Hm?" The GP's face was indication enough that Ryoko should continue.

"I've always wondered about something," said the former outlaw. "How come you never tried to put me under arrest? I mean, there was that one time, but after that… you sorta just gave up on it. So why did you just suddenly quit?" Kiyone, who had been taken completely by surprise, could only stutter in a foolish attempt to answer the question.

"I, uh… uh… well, uh, what do you mean?"

"I mean, why didn't you ever try and arrest me? I mean, I can understand why you're not booking me now, but…" Trailing off, Ryoko gave the officer a lazy look, whereas Kiyone still couldn't think of an answer. Yes, Ryoko was right: there had been more than enough windows of opportunity for her to make a bust, and yet Kiyone only seemed to take advantage of this one or two times, at the most. It seemed that after she settled into her apartment with Mihoshi, all desire to bust Ryoko had left her.

Kiyone was obviously more skilled at her line of duty than Mihoshi, and even though she had been dealing with the galaxy's most infamous criminal, she probably could've arrested her if she really wanted to. Mihoshi would be more of a hindrance than a help, but her clumsiness and her dumb luck just might've tipped the scales even more. So why hadn't she ever gone through the trouble of putting Ryoko behind bars? Kiyone thought about it for a good while, then finally sighed out her answer.

"I don't know, Ryoko. To be honest, I really don't know."

"Do you not have a reason, or--"

"I told you, I don't know," sighed the officer wearily. "I guess I might've been too busy, or else too ashamed to make any reports to Headquarters. But what does it matter now? You've been pardoned by Ayeka and now I hear you're a member of the nobility. Oh well, eh? I guess you'll always be known as 'the one that got away'." Kiyone smiled dryly, though she was 180 degrees away from being amused. Ryoko fidgeted in her chair until she was sitting in it properly again, then gave the officer her full attention.

"…Was it maybe because… you loved me?"

"WHAT?!?! Ryoko, what are you saying?! I'm not that kind of girl!!!!!"

"No-no-no-no-no!" rattled the ex-pirate. "I meant… did you spare me because you cared about me?" Kiyone's angry face didn't diminish in the least.

"Now where in the worlds would you have gotten an idea like that??"

"Washu," snorted Ryoko, and Kiyone's anger turned into surprise with blinding speed.

"What?!" she blurted. "Washu?!?!"

"She was mumbling something about how everyone loved me, and wanted me to change, and wanted to see 'the good in me' come out, and how they were sick of me'n Ayeka fighting…… You know, crap like that." A pause.

"Oh." Kiyone calmly gazed at the controls in front of her, the teal-green eyes of hers becoming glassy and hazed. She continued to stare and think, even as she resumed speaking in a hushed voice. "…I guess I considered you a friend of mine," she continued. "I mean, back then. Now, it's official, but in the old days… well, I guess I didn't see you as the criminal type. I mean, yeah, you did a lot of questionable things, but most of them were just annoying--nothing really threatening or dangerous.

"…I… I suppose I did like you, in the sense that if you got hurt, I'd be concerned… though obviously not on the same level as Mihoshi or Sasami, or Tenchi. Maybe…… well, maybe you're right. Maybe I did care for you, and maybe I did want to see the good in you come out. I know I was definitely growing sick of you and Ayeka fighting, and I didn't even live with you guys." Kiyone finally turned her face to check Ryoko's reaction, and smiled as she saw the other woman attentively listening. The slightest whisper of a smile was on Ryoko's face.

"…Okay, I see now," she muttered. "Right, thanks. I was just curious, y'know."

"Why did you ask me that?"

"Like I said, I was curious," sighed the ex-pirate. Ryoko stood to stretch herself out, and took in a very deep, cleansing breath before placing her hand on Kiyone's shoulder. "Officer Kiyone," she said, "I have a favor for you."

"What is it?"

"Take me home," replied the other woman, her eyes glowing gently. "Please, Officer, take me to my home planet, please. I, I know that I'm not gonna like what I see, but please… I need to be there. I… I've never even had a home until I met up with Tenchi, and even then, I always felt like I belonged somewhere else. Oh, I loved it there, in that crazy house, but…… something deep inside me told me that, no matter how much I loved it there, I really did belong somewhere else, though I never figured out where. Now… now I know, though. I know where my home is, Officer, and… I know who my family was, and I know who I am, and……… I… I actually have a place to belong to now. So please, Kiyone… please take me home."

"I second the notion!" called a voice from behind them. Both women turned around to see Nagi standing there, wearing a pretty but plain white sleeveless T-shirt with white boxers. A person would balk if they were told that at one point, this lady was a threat, and if any of Nagi's previous bounties had seen her now, they wouldn't have recognized her at all. As it stood, Ryoko and Kiyone both smiled at her.

"Wow, you look cute, sis!" sang Ryoko. Nagi chuckled lightly.

"Thanks. But this isn't about me. Officer Kiyone, I'm gonna have to agree with my sister here. I've spent all of my life wandering from place to place, without a family and without a home, and now that I know that I have both, I need to be there--I need to be there with my people, and what's left of my past… Please, Officer, take us home!" Both sisters looked at the policewoman with big, begging eyes, and no matter how tough Kiyone was, she couldn't say no to those looks.

"I understand," she said gently. "Although Miss Washu won't like it, I think you're right. We do need to go to Tg--if not just for you two, but we might also find a few clues there as well. And there might even be a few people loyal to your family left over, who might be able to help us. All right, I'll take you there, and the only thing you'll owe me is a thanks."

"Thanks, Kiyone," smiled Ryoko, giving the officer a hug. Nagi smiled and thanked her as well, and even though expressing feelings and emotions was still difficult for her, she gave the officer a hug as well.

"Right," huffed Kiyone. "Now, get back to the others and tell them where we're going. Oh, and tell that creep Washu that if she doesn't like it, she can take one up the tailpipe." Ryoko and Nagi both giggled, something they both rarely did, and went off to spread the word. Secretly, Kiyone hoped that Washu would go against the new arrangement. She had wanted to see the woman's reaction to what the two sisters would inevitably tell her.

Two entire days passed since Kiyone steered Yagami towards the Minida system (where Tg was located), and in that time, plans were being drawn up for what would happen once the ship touched down. To the surprise of the twins, Washu was not only in support of their decision but had almost went up to the cockpit to tell Kiyone herself. Luckily, or not, Ryoko had spared her the journey, so now it was full speed ahead towards Tg! But Washu knew that the girls' homecoming would be anything but peaceful, so the gang had to draw up a few plans.

At best, the gang could expect the entire planet to welcome the long-lost ladies into its embrace, where they would be whisked to what remained of their family estate and treated like royalty, or whatever the ruined planet could provide. Ryoko and Nagi would "reclaim their birthright", and would then be surrounded by a host of loyal family employees, each of whom would have some clue as to where Pandemonium was.

"We might as well throw in a husband for you two," added Washu as she looked over the plans, "because that scenario is about as unlikely as they come."

"I've gotta agree," mumbled Ryoko. "It'd be nice if all that happened, but even I know better than that. So, what's the worst-case scenario?"

"Basically the opposite of what you just saw," pointed the scientist. "The entire planet hates you, your estate is in ruins and your family fortune is gone, and there's not a soul left that's loyal to the family name. Of course, this is also very improbable, since I'm sure that there's bound to be somebody there that'll help us." Ryoko and Nagi slowly shook their heads as they gazed at the plans, and both girls let out a sigh.

"Well, no matter what we do, we're going to have to be on our guard," said Tenchi. "My best guess is that we'll be facing a scenario that's a combination of both extreme possibilities. I'm sure that there'll be people that can help us, and probably enough financial aid as well, but I wouldn't expect to land inside the Promised Land."

"A wise idea," agreed Washu. "It's better to be prepared for a little bit of both. Sasami, Mihoshi, I think you two should stay here and guard the ship with Kiyone. I don't mean to sound nasty, but this really doesn't involve any of you. In fact, not even Ayeka or Tenchi should be here, but I guess I can understand their reasons."

"But--"

"I would also feel safer if you stayed here," agreed Ayeka calmly. Her hands gently held her sister's, and the elder woman pleaded as gently as she knew how. "Please, Sasami… I don't want to see you get hurt. And besides, there might be several…… disagreeable people in this world, and they may want to steal this ship while we're away. If you and the officers stay here, then I'll know that Yagami will be safe."

"But--"

"Don't worry, I'll have Azaka and Kamidake look after you as well." At the mention of their names, the wooden guardians hovered forward and both chanted their honor and devotion to Sasami and Yagami. Ayeka thanked her guardians, and Sasami reluctantly agreed to stay behind. Tenchi would most definitely have to protect the girls once they were outside, no matter how good the scenario became. Even in the best-case situation, it was better to be safe.

After drawing out the rest of the plans, the small group of girls and one young man took a deep breather and sat down to relax. Their rest was brutally interrupted by Kiyone's shouting voice, but it was a forgivable offence since the only thing she was shouting was, "Hey, everybody! We're coming up on Tg! We're here!"

The assortment of girls, cabbits, and guardians scrambled towards the cockpit to see this foreign planet, and as they all crowded inside, a silent curtain of amazement fell upon their faces. Before them, still a few light-seconds away, was a planet not too unlike Earth. It was a spherical mass of swirling blue and white colors, with but a touch of brown, green, and even red to it. It had a single moon that appeared to be habitable, and a beautiful vertical ring circling around it. There were other neighboring planets scattered around, but it was obvious that this one was the big boss.

"…Home," whispered Ryoko hauntingly. Her hand touched the see-through Lexan glass shield of Yagami, and pretended to caress the distant world. "…That's our home…" Somebody suddenly squeezed her free hand, and she smiled as she saw that it had been her sister.

"Welcome home, sis," she smiled. Ryoko warmly returned the gesture, and soon her other hand was being held as well.

"Welcome home, Ryoko," smiled Tenchi. She blushed as his fingers rubbed up against hers.

"Please," she whispered, "call me Christina."

Next chapter: Well, the gang has finally made it! What sorts of surprises await Ryoko, Nagi, and the rest of the gang? Will they be greeted warmly, or will they be despised? Does anybody have any information about Pandemonium, and can our heroes stand up to such a monster? Will any of these questions actually be answered?? Find out next time in "No Need for a Prophecy!" It's unquestionably revealing!