Chapter 5: Rest and Robots
Lord Yosho awoke early. He leisurely rose from his bed and stretched in the warm sunlight twinkling through the shade of his room.
"Another beautiful morning, and no sign of rain." He thought as he got dressed for the day ahead.
Yosho calmly strolled into the shrine office and over to a small table in front of an open window. He started the flame in an ancient burner and set a small ceramic kettle of water upon it in preparation for his morning tea. The old man gazed thoughtfully out the large window and something caught his eye. The teahouse. Something was not quite right about the teahouse. He squinted and leaned closer to the window. His keen eyes picked up the anomaly. The door to the old building, which he knew he had fastened shut long ago, was slightly ajar. Someone had to be inside. This piqued his curiosity Could it be his grandson and one of the girls on a midnight tryst? The old man smiled wryly and left the table on his way to get to the bottom of this conundrum.
The summer cicadas chirped madly on this July day and the morning coolness had begun to give way to the summer heat. Lord Yosho stealthily sauntered across the shrine courtyard to the tiny teahouse. Without a sound, he crept up to the tiny door and knelt to take a peak inside. His wrinkled hands slowly pushed the pocket door to the side and his right eye hovered in front of the opening.
Ayeka and Zephr.
The old man smiled as he looked upon his half-sister and the dark prince engulfed in a peaceful sleep as well as embraced in each other's arms. He slowly slid the door shut and retreated to the courtyard.
"Well, well, surprises do abound. This should prove to be a very interesting day." He strolled back to the shrine office to enjoy his tea and pondered if he should have invited the sleeping to his tea party.
***
"All right, Ryoko….we really have to get out of bed this time." Tenchi whined.
"But darling…." The pirate cooed. "We are not in bed."
"Ah, you know what I mean." Tenchi righted himself on the floor and gazed at the beautiful women before him. She lay in a pool of her pale blue hair, her body wrapped in his soft white bed sheet. He pulled the bedspread up and wrapped it around his lower body. "I think today I'll ask Grandpa if we can forgo the training….I want let the family know about the wedding…and…and I'd like to take you somewhere nice today seeing as we have never had an official date." He smiled and stood over her.
"Tenchi….I don't want to leave this room today." She pouted and grasped his ankle with her arms to keep him from walking away.
"Ryoko! C'mon….." He feigned a protest but was cut off by the sudden woosh, wooshing sound coming from outside. "What is that?" Ryoko released him and stood beside him, she was still strategically wrapped in his sheet.
"Let's see." She replied as they both walked to the door to his balcony and stepped outside.
Tenchi and Ryoko stood a gasp at the sight before them. In the middle of the yard little Washu stood with air traffic control lights as she motioned and guided a green US Army Apache helicopter. An enormous covered box dangled precariously from the cargo rope attached to the helicopter as the small scientist helped the pilot place the cargo safely on the ground. They released the rope and the chopper hovered to the right and slowly descended to the earth. A uniformed officer left the craft and sauntered over to Washu.
"Thank you for the quick delivery!" Washu yelled over the woosh of the propellers.
"Thank you for doing business with the United States government! Could you sign here?" The officer yelled back and offered Washu a clipboard. The red-haired child smiled and signed the paper attached to the clipboard and handed it back to the man.
"Here's the dough!" Washu handed the man a large blue computer printed check.
"Thank's again, M'am. Remember, this is of the utmost confidentiality." He saluted her.
"Right……right…..plausible deniability and all that jazz." She returned his salute. "Thanks again, soldier boy!" She winked as he turned and got back into the craft. The helicopter powered up again and began to ascend.
"Hey!" Tenchi screamed as the rising copter caused a torrential wind to beat down them. With a sudden wisp and whirl, he quickly found himself rather cold down south.
Ryoko giggled and pointed.
"Huh?" The boy winked in amazement then realized that the wind created by the exiting helicopter had ripped the bedspread from his waste and his only garment now wafted slowly and quietly down to the ground and landed peacefully on top of the large box the military had just delivered. Washu took notice.
"Top of the Morning to ya, Tenchi….I see!" She winked and strolled over to her box.
"Huh?" He blinked and stood in shock of his predicament.
"Ryoko! You lucky girl!" Washu giggled as she put a small device on a corner of the massive box.
"Ahhhhh!" Tenchi realized he was standing in all his glory in front of devious little Washu. He frantically tried to hide what was showing with his hands and he face turned beet red.
"You bet I'm lucky!" Ryoko wailed back and continued to laugh hysterically.
Washu continued to laugh merrily at Tenchi as she pushed a button on the device. The box levitated at her command. With a snap of her fingers, a black subspace portal opened before her. She exerted little effort as her small body managed to push the floating cargo into the portal. In a flash, they both disappeared.
"Ahhhh!" Overcome with embarrassment, Tenchi ran naked back into his room and searched for his shorts.
"Tenchi!" Ryoko followed him back inside. "Don't worry, it was only Washu."
"Ack! That's what I'm afraid of!" He started getting dressed.
"Aw, so we are really leaving the room today?" She pouted as the sheet wrapping her body cascaded to the floor. She looked up at the boy, who was bouncing on one leg, trying to put on a sock. Tenchi caught a glimpse of her beautiful form, lost his balance and fell on his face. She strolled over to him. "hmmmm?"
"Ryoko?" He gulped and rolled onto his back.
"Hmmmm?" She playfully ignored him and knelt to the floor.
"You…are…going…to…kill me." He whispered as the pirate unbuttoned his jeans.
"Tenchi….I didn't wait seven hundred years for nothing……"
***
Screech! Screech! Screech!
Dr. Clay awoke to the sound of some type of warning alarm. He pulled his massive self upright in bed as his senses returned to his sleepy form.
"What?"
'Salvation is soon. Take the opportunity.' This thought from the night before bounced around in his enormous head.
"Hmm, this must be it." He thought and got out of bed. He walked across the room to where he believed there was a subspace door. Like a television set, loosing and gaining a signal, Clay saw the hallway of the GP corridor and officers running like mad. This image flashed and fizzled and turned back to solid gray wall. He could hear the alarm clearly.
"All officers to alert! All Officers to alert!"
"How come they didn't detect it," a female yelled.
"Sensors didn't even find it," a male answered.
"Cadet! Get to your evacuation point, we have ten seconds until impact!"
"What about the prisoners?"
"Screw them, I'm getting out of here!"
Clay monitored the flickering subspace exit as the GP ran amuck in the hallway. He counted the seconds until ten.
Boom!
The subspace chamber felt the impact and the fat man was thrown to the ground. He gazed at the subspace doorway. This time, it wasn't opaque, but it became solid every two seconds….the gateway between his prison and the free world could be eclipsed. He readied his large form and counted. One. Two. The fat man ran through the gateway and landed in the smoke filled corridor.
"Alert! Alert! All officers to evacuation points."
"Hmmm." Clay pondered and decided what direction to run. The Galaxy Police were horribly predictable and he knew the layout of headquarters from memory. Hell, in his youth, he helped design the floor plans to be more efficient. So, he knew where he'd find a ship and his salvation. "That voice was right." He thought.
He turned a corner as officers ran past him ignoring that he was a fugitive in their own attempt to escape. Clay came upon a large hangar that kept shuttles for the GP fleet. He had to act fast as the officers were quickly filling the ships. The rotund scientist waddled to the closest ship and grabbed the young officer trying to enter the hatch. He pulled the young man back and out of the way as he entered the ship and closed the hatch. As the other cruisers and shuttled took off, as the GP headquarters fizzled and exploded, Dr. Clay's stolen vessel launched into space. Instinct and a perfect memory instructed the good Doctor where to go next. He programmed the shuttle for a direct course to a secret location-a place the GP didn't find. A long forgotten lab tucked away in the Sol System. He chuckled as the GP headquarters exploded behind him.
***
"Kiyone?" Mihoshi spoke through slurps as she sucked down cold soba noddles. Her mind was puzzled by a perplexing blinking light. She had watched the pretty red light beep merrily for ten minutes and now that she had awakened from its intoxicating spell she decided it was best to alert her partner. "Kiyone?"
"What Mihoshi? Can't you see I'm busy with this weekly report here?" The teal haired woman answered.
"Kiyone? What does this red blinky thing mean?" Slurp.
"Red?" She turned around to see the hailing light flashing. "Mihoshi, you knuckle head! That's the communication beacon. Someone's trying to hail us," she lunged forward and pressed the button. Immediately a beam of light shot upward and expanded into a holographic screen. The image their commander's angry face materialized in the screen.
"Detectives Kiyone, Mihoshi?"
"Yes Sir."
"Galaxy Police Headquarters twenty-one eleven has been destroyed by an errant asteroid."
"Oh my!" Mihoshi mumbled.
"Several inmates incarcerated in that location have escaped. We are trying to pinpoint their identities but have triangulated a few of their courses to the Sol System."
"Right! You want us to capture the fugitives!" The blond piped.
"Mihoshi! That's not what he said!"
"Detectives! You are under order to report any unusual sightings to HQ immediately and we will send back up. Do you understand?"
"Yes Sir!" Kiyone saluted and the screen went blank.
"Oh, Kiyone! What an opportunity to recapture those dangerous fugitives."
"Mihoshi! We were ordered to report any sightings, not intercept!
"Ok….then when can get the bad guys?"
"Mihoshi!" Kiyone slapped her head and then set a course back for the blue planet.
***
The warm sunlight trickled through the tears in the rice paper windows of the teahouse. The flowing clouds caused the light to ripple and waver upon the couple sleeping inside. The dark prince lay on his back with Princess Ayeka curled up in the crook of his arm, her head resting on his chest. He let out a sudden snore which stirred the princess from her sleep. Slowly, she opened her ruby eyes.
"What?" She shot up and backed away from Zephr. The memories of the night before hit her like a brick. "Oh, my." She spun around and crawled toward the small door. Ayeka looked briefly upon the sleeping prince. "My, he…he is handsome." She took a brief moment to spy upon him as he slept. His face was round and happy, just like Tenchi's kind face. However, a mop of unruly black hair adorned his crown and errant strands hung over his eyes. Zephr's skin was also fairer than Tenchi's, almost as perfect and ivory as her own. These features and the stunning violet color of his eyes were the only of his physical attributes that distinguished him from the Prince. Side by side, they stood in equal height and build to an extent that made her suddenly nervous. She sighed and tried to dismiss her passing thoughts of the dark prince as she left the building and scurried down the long stone stairway toward the Masaki home.
Zephr stirred in his sleep. Slowly, he opened his violet eyes and they focused on the shining light emanating from outside the teahouse. She was gone. He sat up and stretched in the sunlight. Somehow, it did not surprise him that Ayeka left, she was probably embarrassed by her vulnerability and midnight confessions. He would give her the time she needed before seeking her out to talk about this again. Zephr crawled around the stove toward the door. His right hand came in contact with a tattered scroll on the floor. Without thinking, he grasped the ancient parchment and tried to make out the faded characters written upon it: "Love vanquishes the boundaries built by the sword." He said out loud. "That is appropriate." He smiled and left the scroll on the floor and then exited the building.
"Did you sleep well?" A gruff older voice greeted him as he stood in the shrine courtyard. Lord Yosho, in his practice gear stood before him.
"Uh….well, the storm…." He stumbled.
"Ha! No need for explanations," he smiled and tossed the shirtless boy a wooden practice bokken. "It seems my own grandson is not going to show up for his practice today…do you care to fill in for him?"
"Well, I guess I could." He answered, suddenly nervous as the old man seemed to be up to no good.
"Perfect. You will find a clean shirt in the shrine. Follow that path next to the office to the training ground. I will be waiting," he winked and slowly walked toward the path.
"Somehow….I'm not sure about this old man…." Zephr thought as he went to get the garment.
***
Ayeka panted as she ran all the way down the stone steps from the mountain shrine to the house in the valley. She ran past Azaka and Kamidake, her log shaped guardians keeping their ever present vigil as the Masaki gates. She ran so fast, she didn't hear their cheery "Good Morning Princess," as she passed. Ayeka flew into the side door and was about to pass the kitchen entry when she realized she had been caught.
"Well, well, well." The sinister voice cackled. "Seems like I wasn't the only one that got lucky last night." Ryoko stood behind the kitchen counter ladling food and leftovers onto a tray.
"How vulgar to say such a thing!" Ayeka shot back. She took notice of the Pirate's attire which consisted entirely of Tenchi's red tee shirt.
"Well, just where did you sleep last night then…and how did your nightgown get so damp and dirty?" She grinned. "Where's that dark prince you've been nursing so vigilantly?"
"Ryoko! You know absolutely nothing!" Ayeka's faced turned beet red.
"Don't act so proper. I know you have the same desires I do. I also know that you like him or you wouldn't be so embarrassed." She plopped a bowl of cold noodles onto the tray.
"You don't know anything about me, pirate." Ayeka turned to leave but was caught off guard by Ryoko's reply.
"I know that you are falling for him…."
"What….What did you say?"
"You heard me."
"How can you possibly know how I feel?"
"It's obvious," she smiled and leaned over the counter. "You are acting just the way you once did…with…Tenchi." Ryoko drug out his name, each syllable dropping from her tongue like sweet drops of honey.
"You…you…BAKA!" Aeyka snarled. "And just what do you think you are doing eating all of that food? Sasami will be up shortly and make us breakfast."
"Oh, this?" She hoisted the tray on her shoulder. "I'm not hungry, but Tenchi needs it to get his strength back up." She chuckled and waltzed past the Princess who fumed with anger.
"Oh." Ayeka answered and then she noticed it. She noticed the tiny diamond ring adorning Ryoko's left ring finger. An engagement ring. "Ryoko?"
"Hmmm?" The cyan-haired beauty stopped and turned.
"Is that….."
"Oh…," Ryoko paused knowing that she could have a lot of fun rubbing this in Ayeka's face, but for some reason, she ultimately decided to play her answer down. "Yes. It is."
"Ryoko…I, I, don't believe I would every say this to you, but…I am truly happy for you, for you both." She averted her eyes.
"Do you really mean it?" Ryoko's eyes pleaded with the Princess.
"Yes. I do." She opened her eyes as she and the Pirate regarded each other in a moment of silence.
"I am glad. Not for myself. Pah! I don't care," She waved her free hand expressively and pretended she did not to care. "…but for Tenchi, he would be devastated if you….if you were…."
"Hurt?" Ayeka cut her off.
"Yeah." Ryoko turned again to leave but was surprised to feel a cold hand on her shoulder, stopping her.
"It does hurt, Ryoko. But it is getting better, every day. But….as hard as it is for me to accept this some days….he loves you."
Hearing someone other than Tenchi utter those words hit Ryoko like a stone. She stopped with her back to Ayeka. Slowly and deliberately, she removed the tray from her shoulders and used her powers to levitate it beside her as she turned to face her foe. What happened next took them both by surprise. Ryoko took Ayeka in an honest embrace.
"Huh?" Ayeka was shocked. Ryoko only touched her in attempts to ring her neck. What was she doing?
"Thank you, Ayeka." Was all the pirate uttered, then turned her mouth to the Princess's ear and whispered: "Don't let Zephr slip away from you." She withdrew and put the tray back on her shoulders.
"I'll think about that, Ryoko." Ayeka smiled, truly touched by the hug. Somewhere, deep within her that wall of hatred for her rival fell to the pit of her soul in crumbles. The sadness at losing Tenchi suddenly didn't seem so bad, now that it appeared she had gained a friend in the process. She sighed as she watched the girl slowly levitated up the stairs.
"Oh, and I need you to help me plan the wedding." Ryoko half uttered, half whispered as she left the Princess's sight.
"Plan the wedding?" Ayeke's eyes grew bigger and she clasped her hands together with joy. She was in her element. Shopping, buying, and planning anything dealing with weddings was her specialty and now besides the thrill of what lay ahead with her and the dark Prince she also had double duty as of all things, a wedding planner.
***
Dr. Clay found his hidden subspace lab floating within a ring of the planet Saturn, just where he left it the last time he was through this back water system.
"The last time I was here?" He thought. "Hmmmm, why can't I remember what I was doing here? I can recall that blasted Washu ruining my experiments, as usual, but just what was I working on at the time?" He scratched the back of his head. "I remember working on Zero….Zero? What the hell happened to my robot Zero? Why can't I remember?" He guided the stolen cruiser to the docking port of the lab and made contact. "I know that I was incarcerated for stealing artifacts and assault on a member of the royal family, I remember that, but just what the heck was I doing with Washu? This is inconceivable that I don't remember." He pressed the hatch lock and the cruiser and the station were joined. "Perhaps Zero is on the station and my back up files will give me an answer….I've spent too long in that GP hell." He smirked and got out of the command chair and walked through the portal to his lab.
Clay was ever so proud of his accomplishments, even if no one recognized him for the genius he believed himself to be. This laboratory, or the model for this laboratory was one of them. A tiny docking station was the only thing once could see on the outside. It was so tiny that it would go undetected from all GP sensors. However, it held the doorway to a vast subspace network of rooms at his disposal. As he stepped into the first level of the lab, the lights automatically came on to reveal a cavernous room littered with consoles, lights, and gadgets.
"Ah….this is how I remembered it!" He strolled over to a floating chair and sat, his girth forcing it down a few inches. He snapped his fingers and a computer screen opened before his eyes. "Computer, tell me…where is Zero?"
"Define parameters."
"Ok, please locate the Zero Unit."
"Zero unit is not in subspace lab forty-five.
"Is Zero in any of my other labs?" He was getting frustrated.
"Negative."
"OK, let's try this again. Scan this system for the Zero Unit."
"Complying…." The screen before him flashed with a computer generated mock up of the Sol system. The planets whirled by one by one until it stopped at the third planet from the sun, Earth. "Portions of the Zero Unit's matrix program can be detected on Earth, but the unit is not whole. It is malfunctioning."
"Malfunctioning?" Explain the nature of the malfunction."
"I cannot comply, not enough information."
"I see. Well, then, bring me up Zero's operating system and schematics." Clay sighed at the thought of having to traipse down on that ass backward world and search for his stupid robot. He had the plans and the materials handy, building a new assistant would be easier than finding the broken one. He smiled as his mind absorbed the plans and charts flashing before him. It would actually be relaxing to rebuild Zero and the thought of making improvements on that model made him ecstatic.
***
"Tenchi?" Ryoko walked through his door instead of opening it. Inside, the Prince of Jurai lay in a heap of blankets on the bed in exhaustion. "I've got nourishment!"
"Great….I'm starved!" He eyes the food as she placed the tray in front of him. "I hope…Sasami….doesn't get mad….I couldn't wait until breakfast." He gasped in between bites.
"Oh, I'm sure she won't mind…after we announce the engagement." She smiled. "Anyway, you don't have anything to do to day but stay here with me."
"Right." He chomped on a carrot stick. "Wait!" He gulped. "I forgot morning practice….er, I forgot to ask Granpa if I could skip morning practice. What time is it?"
"About eight."
"Great, I'm late, he's going to make it hard on me." He shoveled some food down his mouth and leapt naked out of bed.
"Tenchi, but you said we'd spend today together?"
"We will, but I have to ask him first. He may not let me out of it now that I'm late." He hastily put on his practice clothes. "I'll try to be back in an hour, if he won't let me out of this, we'll just have to start our day later."
"Well, if you must….are you sure you are up to sparring with him…..after sparring with me?" She smiled.
"Uh….well….we'll see." He stammered and ran for the door. "I'll get back as soon as I can. Oh, and Ryoko?"
"Yes?"
"I love you." Tenchi left her line of sight.
Ryoko sank back in the covers, covers still warm from his body heat. She plopped her back on his pillow and brought the tray up to her lap and she began to shovel food into her mouth even though she was not hungry.
Tenchi ran as fast as he could up the steep stone steps leading to the shrine. He veered off of the steps and followed a well worn path to his left that led to the practice grounds.
"Hay yah!"
Clap. Clap.
The sounds of two opponents engaged in battle met his ears as he approached the clearing. Tenchi was surprised to see his grandfather and Zephr sparring, their wooden practice swords clapping as they made contact. He watched in awe as Zephr kept his ground against Master Yosho.
"You have something on your mind!"
"No, I'm fine." Zephr answered.
"You are distracted…it is keeping you from advancing correctly." Yosho spun around and whacked the dark prince on the back of the head.
"Well, maybe some things are distracting me…." He rubbed the knot Yosho caused.
Snap.
Both warriors turned to the source of the sound, Tenchi stepping on twigs as he entered the practice area.
"Grandpa?
"Well, there's my very late opponent." He smiled and held his chin. "Tenchi! This boy was not late for his practice. What is your excuse?"
"Uh, grandpa?" Tenchi was uneasy. "I, I have some exciting news."
"Well?"
"Um, well…."
"When's the date?"
"Huh?"
"When's the wedding date?"
"We haven't chosen, yet." Tenchi was taken aback by his Grandfather's ability to
always figure these things out. He imagined he should be used to it by now.
"Congratulations, Tenchi." Zephr smiled and pat him on the back. "That is wonderful news!"
"Yes, it is wonderful news indeed, but it is not polite to miss your current engagements…."
"Well, that's, that's why I'm here, to ask if I can skip training today….to take Ryoko to town." He pleaded.
"I don't know. Zephr! Do you think I should be lax on my tardy grandson?"
"Well, uh….I."
"Please grandpa?"
"Well, I have an idea." He strolled over to Tenchi and handed him the bokken. "How about you and Zephr fight each other again….and the winner gets the day with Ryoko.
"But, that's not fair." Tenchi protested.
"Life is not fair." Yosho smiled. "Besides, it is early, if you start now, you'll have plenty of time to waste later."
"I'm game…" Zephr grinned. He had not spent any time with the pirate and really didn't care to. He'd rather check on Ayeka, but he also had a need to impress Yosho for some reason as well.
"Oh, boy." Tenchi groaned and faced his once foe for a second time.
*********
Author's notes:
This story is so much fun to write! I've got so many neat things planned and it is driving me crazy getting all the pieces in place for what I really want to get out. I hope you can stay with me, I promise not to disappoint. And just what is Washu doing? There will be wedding(s). There will be death and sadness. There will be resolution. Piqued your curiosity? Stay tuned………
Lord Yosho awoke early. He leisurely rose from his bed and stretched in the warm sunlight twinkling through the shade of his room.
"Another beautiful morning, and no sign of rain." He thought as he got dressed for the day ahead.
Yosho calmly strolled into the shrine office and over to a small table in front of an open window. He started the flame in an ancient burner and set a small ceramic kettle of water upon it in preparation for his morning tea. The old man gazed thoughtfully out the large window and something caught his eye. The teahouse. Something was not quite right about the teahouse. He squinted and leaned closer to the window. His keen eyes picked up the anomaly. The door to the old building, which he knew he had fastened shut long ago, was slightly ajar. Someone had to be inside. This piqued his curiosity Could it be his grandson and one of the girls on a midnight tryst? The old man smiled wryly and left the table on his way to get to the bottom of this conundrum.
The summer cicadas chirped madly on this July day and the morning coolness had begun to give way to the summer heat. Lord Yosho stealthily sauntered across the shrine courtyard to the tiny teahouse. Without a sound, he crept up to the tiny door and knelt to take a peak inside. His wrinkled hands slowly pushed the pocket door to the side and his right eye hovered in front of the opening.
Ayeka and Zephr.
The old man smiled as he looked upon his half-sister and the dark prince engulfed in a peaceful sleep as well as embraced in each other's arms. He slowly slid the door shut and retreated to the courtyard.
"Well, well, surprises do abound. This should prove to be a very interesting day." He strolled back to the shrine office to enjoy his tea and pondered if he should have invited the sleeping to his tea party.
***
"All right, Ryoko….we really have to get out of bed this time." Tenchi whined.
"But darling…." The pirate cooed. "We are not in bed."
"Ah, you know what I mean." Tenchi righted himself on the floor and gazed at the beautiful women before him. She lay in a pool of her pale blue hair, her body wrapped in his soft white bed sheet. He pulled the bedspread up and wrapped it around his lower body. "I think today I'll ask Grandpa if we can forgo the training….I want let the family know about the wedding…and…and I'd like to take you somewhere nice today seeing as we have never had an official date." He smiled and stood over her.
"Tenchi….I don't want to leave this room today." She pouted and grasped his ankle with her arms to keep him from walking away.
"Ryoko! C'mon….." He feigned a protest but was cut off by the sudden woosh, wooshing sound coming from outside. "What is that?" Ryoko released him and stood beside him, she was still strategically wrapped in his sheet.
"Let's see." She replied as they both walked to the door to his balcony and stepped outside.
Tenchi and Ryoko stood a gasp at the sight before them. In the middle of the yard little Washu stood with air traffic control lights as she motioned and guided a green US Army Apache helicopter. An enormous covered box dangled precariously from the cargo rope attached to the helicopter as the small scientist helped the pilot place the cargo safely on the ground. They released the rope and the chopper hovered to the right and slowly descended to the earth. A uniformed officer left the craft and sauntered over to Washu.
"Thank you for the quick delivery!" Washu yelled over the woosh of the propellers.
"Thank you for doing business with the United States government! Could you sign here?" The officer yelled back and offered Washu a clipboard. The red-haired child smiled and signed the paper attached to the clipboard and handed it back to the man.
"Here's the dough!" Washu handed the man a large blue computer printed check.
"Thank's again, M'am. Remember, this is of the utmost confidentiality." He saluted her.
"Right……right…..plausible deniability and all that jazz." She returned his salute. "Thanks again, soldier boy!" She winked as he turned and got back into the craft. The helicopter powered up again and began to ascend.
"Hey!" Tenchi screamed as the rising copter caused a torrential wind to beat down them. With a sudden wisp and whirl, he quickly found himself rather cold down south.
Ryoko giggled and pointed.
"Huh?" The boy winked in amazement then realized that the wind created by the exiting helicopter had ripped the bedspread from his waste and his only garment now wafted slowly and quietly down to the ground and landed peacefully on top of the large box the military had just delivered. Washu took notice.
"Top of the Morning to ya, Tenchi….I see!" She winked and strolled over to her box.
"Huh?" He blinked and stood in shock of his predicament.
"Ryoko! You lucky girl!" Washu giggled as she put a small device on a corner of the massive box.
"Ahhhhh!" Tenchi realized he was standing in all his glory in front of devious little Washu. He frantically tried to hide what was showing with his hands and he face turned beet red.
"You bet I'm lucky!" Ryoko wailed back and continued to laugh hysterically.
Washu continued to laugh merrily at Tenchi as she pushed a button on the device. The box levitated at her command. With a snap of her fingers, a black subspace portal opened before her. She exerted little effort as her small body managed to push the floating cargo into the portal. In a flash, they both disappeared.
"Ahhhh!" Overcome with embarrassment, Tenchi ran naked back into his room and searched for his shorts.
"Tenchi!" Ryoko followed him back inside. "Don't worry, it was only Washu."
"Ack! That's what I'm afraid of!" He started getting dressed.
"Aw, so we are really leaving the room today?" She pouted as the sheet wrapping her body cascaded to the floor. She looked up at the boy, who was bouncing on one leg, trying to put on a sock. Tenchi caught a glimpse of her beautiful form, lost his balance and fell on his face. She strolled over to him. "hmmmm?"
"Ryoko?" He gulped and rolled onto his back.
"Hmmmm?" She playfully ignored him and knelt to the floor.
"You…are…going…to…kill me." He whispered as the pirate unbuttoned his jeans.
"Tenchi….I didn't wait seven hundred years for nothing……"
***
Screech! Screech! Screech!
Dr. Clay awoke to the sound of some type of warning alarm. He pulled his massive self upright in bed as his senses returned to his sleepy form.
"What?"
'Salvation is soon. Take the opportunity.' This thought from the night before bounced around in his enormous head.
"Hmm, this must be it." He thought and got out of bed. He walked across the room to where he believed there was a subspace door. Like a television set, loosing and gaining a signal, Clay saw the hallway of the GP corridor and officers running like mad. This image flashed and fizzled and turned back to solid gray wall. He could hear the alarm clearly.
"All officers to alert! All Officers to alert!"
"How come they didn't detect it," a female yelled.
"Sensors didn't even find it," a male answered.
"Cadet! Get to your evacuation point, we have ten seconds until impact!"
"What about the prisoners?"
"Screw them, I'm getting out of here!"
Clay monitored the flickering subspace exit as the GP ran amuck in the hallway. He counted the seconds until ten.
Boom!
The subspace chamber felt the impact and the fat man was thrown to the ground. He gazed at the subspace doorway. This time, it wasn't opaque, but it became solid every two seconds….the gateway between his prison and the free world could be eclipsed. He readied his large form and counted. One. Two. The fat man ran through the gateway and landed in the smoke filled corridor.
"Alert! Alert! All officers to evacuation points."
"Hmmm." Clay pondered and decided what direction to run. The Galaxy Police were horribly predictable and he knew the layout of headquarters from memory. Hell, in his youth, he helped design the floor plans to be more efficient. So, he knew where he'd find a ship and his salvation. "That voice was right." He thought.
He turned a corner as officers ran past him ignoring that he was a fugitive in their own attempt to escape. Clay came upon a large hangar that kept shuttles for the GP fleet. He had to act fast as the officers were quickly filling the ships. The rotund scientist waddled to the closest ship and grabbed the young officer trying to enter the hatch. He pulled the young man back and out of the way as he entered the ship and closed the hatch. As the other cruisers and shuttled took off, as the GP headquarters fizzled and exploded, Dr. Clay's stolen vessel launched into space. Instinct and a perfect memory instructed the good Doctor where to go next. He programmed the shuttle for a direct course to a secret location-a place the GP didn't find. A long forgotten lab tucked away in the Sol System. He chuckled as the GP headquarters exploded behind him.
***
"Kiyone?" Mihoshi spoke through slurps as she sucked down cold soba noddles. Her mind was puzzled by a perplexing blinking light. She had watched the pretty red light beep merrily for ten minutes and now that she had awakened from its intoxicating spell she decided it was best to alert her partner. "Kiyone?"
"What Mihoshi? Can't you see I'm busy with this weekly report here?" The teal haired woman answered.
"Kiyone? What does this red blinky thing mean?" Slurp.
"Red?" She turned around to see the hailing light flashing. "Mihoshi, you knuckle head! That's the communication beacon. Someone's trying to hail us," she lunged forward and pressed the button. Immediately a beam of light shot upward and expanded into a holographic screen. The image their commander's angry face materialized in the screen.
"Detectives Kiyone, Mihoshi?"
"Yes Sir."
"Galaxy Police Headquarters twenty-one eleven has been destroyed by an errant asteroid."
"Oh my!" Mihoshi mumbled.
"Several inmates incarcerated in that location have escaped. We are trying to pinpoint their identities but have triangulated a few of their courses to the Sol System."
"Right! You want us to capture the fugitives!" The blond piped.
"Mihoshi! That's not what he said!"
"Detectives! You are under order to report any unusual sightings to HQ immediately and we will send back up. Do you understand?"
"Yes Sir!" Kiyone saluted and the screen went blank.
"Oh, Kiyone! What an opportunity to recapture those dangerous fugitives."
"Mihoshi! We were ordered to report any sightings, not intercept!
"Ok….then when can get the bad guys?"
"Mihoshi!" Kiyone slapped her head and then set a course back for the blue planet.
***
The warm sunlight trickled through the tears in the rice paper windows of the teahouse. The flowing clouds caused the light to ripple and waver upon the couple sleeping inside. The dark prince lay on his back with Princess Ayeka curled up in the crook of his arm, her head resting on his chest. He let out a sudden snore which stirred the princess from her sleep. Slowly, she opened her ruby eyes.
"What?" She shot up and backed away from Zephr. The memories of the night before hit her like a brick. "Oh, my." She spun around and crawled toward the small door. Ayeka looked briefly upon the sleeping prince. "My, he…he is handsome." She took a brief moment to spy upon him as he slept. His face was round and happy, just like Tenchi's kind face. However, a mop of unruly black hair adorned his crown and errant strands hung over his eyes. Zephr's skin was also fairer than Tenchi's, almost as perfect and ivory as her own. These features and the stunning violet color of his eyes were the only of his physical attributes that distinguished him from the Prince. Side by side, they stood in equal height and build to an extent that made her suddenly nervous. She sighed and tried to dismiss her passing thoughts of the dark prince as she left the building and scurried down the long stone stairway toward the Masaki home.
Zephr stirred in his sleep. Slowly, he opened his violet eyes and they focused on the shining light emanating from outside the teahouse. She was gone. He sat up and stretched in the sunlight. Somehow, it did not surprise him that Ayeka left, she was probably embarrassed by her vulnerability and midnight confessions. He would give her the time she needed before seeking her out to talk about this again. Zephr crawled around the stove toward the door. His right hand came in contact with a tattered scroll on the floor. Without thinking, he grasped the ancient parchment and tried to make out the faded characters written upon it: "Love vanquishes the boundaries built by the sword." He said out loud. "That is appropriate." He smiled and left the scroll on the floor and then exited the building.
"Did you sleep well?" A gruff older voice greeted him as he stood in the shrine courtyard. Lord Yosho, in his practice gear stood before him.
"Uh….well, the storm…." He stumbled.
"Ha! No need for explanations," he smiled and tossed the shirtless boy a wooden practice bokken. "It seems my own grandson is not going to show up for his practice today…do you care to fill in for him?"
"Well, I guess I could." He answered, suddenly nervous as the old man seemed to be up to no good.
"Perfect. You will find a clean shirt in the shrine. Follow that path next to the office to the training ground. I will be waiting," he winked and slowly walked toward the path.
"Somehow….I'm not sure about this old man…." Zephr thought as he went to get the garment.
***
Ayeka panted as she ran all the way down the stone steps from the mountain shrine to the house in the valley. She ran past Azaka and Kamidake, her log shaped guardians keeping their ever present vigil as the Masaki gates. She ran so fast, she didn't hear their cheery "Good Morning Princess," as she passed. Ayeka flew into the side door and was about to pass the kitchen entry when she realized she had been caught.
"Well, well, well." The sinister voice cackled. "Seems like I wasn't the only one that got lucky last night." Ryoko stood behind the kitchen counter ladling food and leftovers onto a tray.
"How vulgar to say such a thing!" Ayeka shot back. She took notice of the Pirate's attire which consisted entirely of Tenchi's red tee shirt.
"Well, just where did you sleep last night then…and how did your nightgown get so damp and dirty?" She grinned. "Where's that dark prince you've been nursing so vigilantly?"
"Ryoko! You know absolutely nothing!" Ayeka's faced turned beet red.
"Don't act so proper. I know you have the same desires I do. I also know that you like him or you wouldn't be so embarrassed." She plopped a bowl of cold noodles onto the tray.
"You don't know anything about me, pirate." Ayeka turned to leave but was caught off guard by Ryoko's reply.
"I know that you are falling for him…."
"What….What did you say?"
"You heard me."
"How can you possibly know how I feel?"
"It's obvious," she smiled and leaned over the counter. "You are acting just the way you once did…with…Tenchi." Ryoko drug out his name, each syllable dropping from her tongue like sweet drops of honey.
"You…you…BAKA!" Aeyka snarled. "And just what do you think you are doing eating all of that food? Sasami will be up shortly and make us breakfast."
"Oh, this?" She hoisted the tray on her shoulder. "I'm not hungry, but Tenchi needs it to get his strength back up." She chuckled and waltzed past the Princess who fumed with anger.
"Oh." Ayeka answered and then she noticed it. She noticed the tiny diamond ring adorning Ryoko's left ring finger. An engagement ring. "Ryoko?"
"Hmmm?" The cyan-haired beauty stopped and turned.
"Is that….."
"Oh…," Ryoko paused knowing that she could have a lot of fun rubbing this in Ayeka's face, but for some reason, she ultimately decided to play her answer down. "Yes. It is."
"Ryoko…I, I, don't believe I would every say this to you, but…I am truly happy for you, for you both." She averted her eyes.
"Do you really mean it?" Ryoko's eyes pleaded with the Princess.
"Yes. I do." She opened her eyes as she and the Pirate regarded each other in a moment of silence.
"I am glad. Not for myself. Pah! I don't care," She waved her free hand expressively and pretended she did not to care. "…but for Tenchi, he would be devastated if you….if you were…."
"Hurt?" Ayeka cut her off.
"Yeah." Ryoko turned again to leave but was surprised to feel a cold hand on her shoulder, stopping her.
"It does hurt, Ryoko. But it is getting better, every day. But….as hard as it is for me to accept this some days….he loves you."
Hearing someone other than Tenchi utter those words hit Ryoko like a stone. She stopped with her back to Ayeka. Slowly and deliberately, she removed the tray from her shoulders and used her powers to levitate it beside her as she turned to face her foe. What happened next took them both by surprise. Ryoko took Ayeka in an honest embrace.
"Huh?" Ayeka was shocked. Ryoko only touched her in attempts to ring her neck. What was she doing?
"Thank you, Ayeka." Was all the pirate uttered, then turned her mouth to the Princess's ear and whispered: "Don't let Zephr slip away from you." She withdrew and put the tray back on her shoulders.
"I'll think about that, Ryoko." Ayeka smiled, truly touched by the hug. Somewhere, deep within her that wall of hatred for her rival fell to the pit of her soul in crumbles. The sadness at losing Tenchi suddenly didn't seem so bad, now that it appeared she had gained a friend in the process. She sighed as she watched the girl slowly levitated up the stairs.
"Oh, and I need you to help me plan the wedding." Ryoko half uttered, half whispered as she left the Princess's sight.
"Plan the wedding?" Ayeke's eyes grew bigger and she clasped her hands together with joy. She was in her element. Shopping, buying, and planning anything dealing with weddings was her specialty and now besides the thrill of what lay ahead with her and the dark Prince she also had double duty as of all things, a wedding planner.
***
Dr. Clay found his hidden subspace lab floating within a ring of the planet Saturn, just where he left it the last time he was through this back water system.
"The last time I was here?" He thought. "Hmmmm, why can't I remember what I was doing here? I can recall that blasted Washu ruining my experiments, as usual, but just what was I working on at the time?" He scratched the back of his head. "I remember working on Zero….Zero? What the hell happened to my robot Zero? Why can't I remember?" He guided the stolen cruiser to the docking port of the lab and made contact. "I know that I was incarcerated for stealing artifacts and assault on a member of the royal family, I remember that, but just what the heck was I doing with Washu? This is inconceivable that I don't remember." He pressed the hatch lock and the cruiser and the station were joined. "Perhaps Zero is on the station and my back up files will give me an answer….I've spent too long in that GP hell." He smirked and got out of the command chair and walked through the portal to his lab.
Clay was ever so proud of his accomplishments, even if no one recognized him for the genius he believed himself to be. This laboratory, or the model for this laboratory was one of them. A tiny docking station was the only thing once could see on the outside. It was so tiny that it would go undetected from all GP sensors. However, it held the doorway to a vast subspace network of rooms at his disposal. As he stepped into the first level of the lab, the lights automatically came on to reveal a cavernous room littered with consoles, lights, and gadgets.
"Ah….this is how I remembered it!" He strolled over to a floating chair and sat, his girth forcing it down a few inches. He snapped his fingers and a computer screen opened before his eyes. "Computer, tell me…where is Zero?"
"Define parameters."
"Ok, please locate the Zero Unit."
"Zero unit is not in subspace lab forty-five.
"Is Zero in any of my other labs?" He was getting frustrated.
"Negative."
"OK, let's try this again. Scan this system for the Zero Unit."
"Complying…." The screen before him flashed with a computer generated mock up of the Sol system. The planets whirled by one by one until it stopped at the third planet from the sun, Earth. "Portions of the Zero Unit's matrix program can be detected on Earth, but the unit is not whole. It is malfunctioning."
"Malfunctioning?" Explain the nature of the malfunction."
"I cannot comply, not enough information."
"I see. Well, then, bring me up Zero's operating system and schematics." Clay sighed at the thought of having to traipse down on that ass backward world and search for his stupid robot. He had the plans and the materials handy, building a new assistant would be easier than finding the broken one. He smiled as his mind absorbed the plans and charts flashing before him. It would actually be relaxing to rebuild Zero and the thought of making improvements on that model made him ecstatic.
***
"Tenchi?" Ryoko walked through his door instead of opening it. Inside, the Prince of Jurai lay in a heap of blankets on the bed in exhaustion. "I've got nourishment!"
"Great….I'm starved!" He eyes the food as she placed the tray in front of him. "I hope…Sasami….doesn't get mad….I couldn't wait until breakfast." He gasped in between bites.
"Oh, I'm sure she won't mind…after we announce the engagement." She smiled. "Anyway, you don't have anything to do to day but stay here with me."
"Right." He chomped on a carrot stick. "Wait!" He gulped. "I forgot morning practice….er, I forgot to ask Granpa if I could skip morning practice. What time is it?"
"About eight."
"Great, I'm late, he's going to make it hard on me." He shoveled some food down his mouth and leapt naked out of bed.
"Tenchi, but you said we'd spend today together?"
"We will, but I have to ask him first. He may not let me out of it now that I'm late." He hastily put on his practice clothes. "I'll try to be back in an hour, if he won't let me out of this, we'll just have to start our day later."
"Well, if you must….are you sure you are up to sparring with him…..after sparring with me?" She smiled.
"Uh….well….we'll see." He stammered and ran for the door. "I'll get back as soon as I can. Oh, and Ryoko?"
"Yes?"
"I love you." Tenchi left her line of sight.
Ryoko sank back in the covers, covers still warm from his body heat. She plopped her back on his pillow and brought the tray up to her lap and she began to shovel food into her mouth even though she was not hungry.
Tenchi ran as fast as he could up the steep stone steps leading to the shrine. He veered off of the steps and followed a well worn path to his left that led to the practice grounds.
"Hay yah!"
Clap. Clap.
The sounds of two opponents engaged in battle met his ears as he approached the clearing. Tenchi was surprised to see his grandfather and Zephr sparring, their wooden practice swords clapping as they made contact. He watched in awe as Zephr kept his ground against Master Yosho.
"You have something on your mind!"
"No, I'm fine." Zephr answered.
"You are distracted…it is keeping you from advancing correctly." Yosho spun around and whacked the dark prince on the back of the head.
"Well, maybe some things are distracting me…." He rubbed the knot Yosho caused.
Snap.
Both warriors turned to the source of the sound, Tenchi stepping on twigs as he entered the practice area.
"Grandpa?
"Well, there's my very late opponent." He smiled and held his chin. "Tenchi! This boy was not late for his practice. What is your excuse?"
"Uh, grandpa?" Tenchi was uneasy. "I, I have some exciting news."
"Well?"
"Um, well…."
"When's the date?"
"Huh?"
"When's the wedding date?"
"We haven't chosen, yet." Tenchi was taken aback by his Grandfather's ability to
always figure these things out. He imagined he should be used to it by now.
"Congratulations, Tenchi." Zephr smiled and pat him on the back. "That is wonderful news!"
"Yes, it is wonderful news indeed, but it is not polite to miss your current engagements…."
"Well, that's, that's why I'm here, to ask if I can skip training today….to take Ryoko to town." He pleaded.
"I don't know. Zephr! Do you think I should be lax on my tardy grandson?"
"Well, uh….I."
"Please grandpa?"
"Well, I have an idea." He strolled over to Tenchi and handed him the bokken. "How about you and Zephr fight each other again….and the winner gets the day with Ryoko.
"But, that's not fair." Tenchi protested.
"Life is not fair." Yosho smiled. "Besides, it is early, if you start now, you'll have plenty of time to waste later."
"I'm game…" Zephr grinned. He had not spent any time with the pirate and really didn't care to. He'd rather check on Ayeka, but he also had a need to impress Yosho for some reason as well.
"Oh, boy." Tenchi groaned and faced his once foe for a second time.
*********
Author's notes:
This story is so much fun to write! I've got so many neat things planned and it is driving me crazy getting all the pieces in place for what I really want to get out. I hope you can stay with me, I promise not to disappoint. And just what is Washu doing? There will be wedding(s). There will be death and sadness. There will be resolution. Piqued your curiosity? Stay tuned………