Chapter Three
Tenchi suppressed a yawn as he sat through the umpteenth course of yet another state dinner. He glanced over at his wife; Ayeka, who somehow loved these things, was bantering with one of the noblemen of their court. Tenchi squeezed his eyes shut for a moment and tried to subtly adjust his seat. His buttocks were killing him. How long had this thing lasted, anyway?
"Lord Emperor."
Recognizing the voice, Tenchi thankfully turned to face his chief of guard. "What is it, Keyzu?"
The tall man leaned down to better conceal what he wished to share. "I have received a report from the throne room sentries. The Tenchi-ken is acting … strangely."
"That's odd. I haven't felt anything." Not surprisingly, following the battle with Kagato, Tenchi had become strongly attuned to the ancient sword. "Let me check." Holding out his hands, the young man called to his weapon. As it always did now, the sword appeared momentarily, safely nestled over his palms.
"Ahhh!" The second it came to rest, Tenchi doubled over in his seat. Something was wrong with the Tenchi-ken! No. Not wrong. Just… different.
Eventually, he came to notice the hands gripping him, the voices calling his name and title. Grasping control of himself, he straightened. "I'm all right. It's okay."
"Tenchi, what happened?" Ayeka knelt by his chair. Her royal tiara had been knocked askew in her hurry to his side. "Why did you call the Tenchi-ken?"
Wordlessly, he held the heirloom out to her, so that she could see for herself what had occurred. The two red gems that had previously rested in its hilt were gone. "For some reason, I couldn't feel anything happening until I summoned it to me."
At his words, the murmuring and muttering in the hall intensified.
"My lord," Tenchi clenched his teeth at the voice. He looked across the table to one of the many Councilmen he considered enemies. Baron Forin Hineto seemed to consider his ruler a lesser life form, and the two found themselves at constant odds during Council sessions. The Baron thrived in finding new ways to belittle Tenchi's humble origins. "Does this mean you have lost your rapport with the sword?"
He glared at the man. "Of course not. As soon as I called it, the link returned to normal. Something happened to conceal the removal of Ryoko's gems."
"The space pirate? When ever did they belong to that monster? You should know well-"
"Yosho stole them from her in order to lessen her power enough to imprison her in the cave on Terra. Not even she knew where they'd come from, but they are rightfully hers." Tenchi knew he was only setting himself up. His friendship with the demoness was a deep source of upset among these people who remembered so well what she had done to their homes. "In any case, that's not the issue right now. We need to find out-"
"Do not worry."
The bell-like voice drew all eyes to the center of the hall. There, where nothing had been a moment before, floated Tsunami. As flawlessly beautiful as Tenchi remembered, she glowed with the power of her love for everything living. At the sight of their goddess, many people dropped to their knees. Tenchi, however, rose to his feet.
"Tsunami, do you know where the gems have gone?"
The deity smiled, and it was as if she had bestowed a priceless gift on all who saw. "It was I who removed the gems, for they are needed elsewhere at this time. It will not be long before they return to their rightful owner to do with as she pleases."
"Do you mean Ryoko? She's alive?"
Tsunami shook her head gently. "I cannot tell you anything of the demoness. All you need to know at present is that the gems are beyond your reach, as well as the reach of those who wish to use them for ill." Her inner radiance dimmed for a moment. "I must return now. It strains me to be here without the help and body of Sasami. Be well, my avatar. Be ever vigilant." With that, the goddess disappeared as suddenly as she had appeared, and pandemonium returned to the room.
Tenchi and Ayeka ignored the chaos around them to stare at each other, puzzled and worried by Tsunami's message.
* * *
The morning after Ryoko's miraculous appearance, Sasami threw back the sheets and ran to take a quick bath. While the water was heating, she accessed the palace's higher risk security levels to print out floor plans for Ryoko. "Well," she looked down at Ryo-okhi, who had accompanied her into the bathing room, "I wonder how everyone's going to react at your being here." Things were happening so fast. Ryoko's return, the troubles she could feel surrounding Tenchi … and Tsunami. The princess's body had finally begun to develop, leaving the child she had existed as for so long, and she could sense that her assimilation with the goddess was not far off.
It frightens me. Will I still be here? Or will Tsunami take over my body, leaving nothing for me? I know I won't die; that's impossible for Tsunami. But… I just don't know. Maybe I should go talk to Washu. There must be some sort of tests she can run, something she can tell me.
It didn't take long to dry off and dress, and Sasami soon entered the royal family's private dining room, Ryo-okhi resuming her old spot on the girl's head. Here, there were never any of the annoying lords or advisers. If she were lucky, Tenchi and her sister would be still here, lingering over their breakfast before the first meeting of the day.
She was right. The two looked up from whatever they were discussing as she walked in. As expected, their greetings turned to silent shock when they saw her new companion.
"Ryo-okhi?" Tenchi shoved his chair back and stood at the sight of the cabbit. "What's she doing here?"
Sasami took a deep breath and told him the story she had prepared. "I don't know. She was there when I woke up this morning. But… she was by herself." She waited as the implications of that occurred to the couple. Both paled.
"Do you-" Tenchi swallowed. "Do you know if anything happened?"
Sasami removed Ryo-okhi and shook her head. "I never could understand her. Ryoko was the only one who could do that…"
Ayeka jumped to her feet, gracefully, of course. "Besides Miss Washu!"
"Of course!" Tenchi crossed to the vid panel and quickly contacted the scientist.
When she finally appeared on the screen, Washu looked very unhappy at the disturbance. "This better be important, Tenchi, unless you're finally going to give me those samples-"
"Uh, maybe later. Washu, Ryo-okhi showed up in Sasami's room this morning. Have you heard from Ryoko?"
A strange look passed over the small woman's face. "No. I haven't … heard from her. Look, I'm kind of busy right now. I'll get back to you, okay?" And the screen went blank.
The three humans looked at each other in confusion.
* * *
Invisible, Ryoko hovered outside the palace. A knight walked by, and she contemplated the amusement of throwing something at him, just to see him jump. No, better not risk it. I'm not precisely sure how Tsunami's hiding me. Well, better go see if Sasami's got those floor plans yet.
Taking a last breath of the perfumed air, she slipped through the wall and floated down the hallways. As she whisked between rooms and walls, she rubbed the two gems that now resided in her wrists. She would need to find someplace to train with them; there was so much she hadn't been able to do for so long, and she would need practice.
Sasami's room was the next she popped into. A thick file lay upon the table. Ah. Perfect. She reached for them-
"I thought I might find you here."
Ryoko whirled around to see her mother standing in the doorway.
"Washu! How-"
"You were a bit upset last night. Your control slipped, and I felt you through our bond."
Shit. Ryoko thought wildly for a way out.
"You've got some explaining to do, young lady. I think you'd better come with me." Washu pressed a small control, and one of her infamous time/space portals opened up behind her. "We'll talk in my lab."
"Washu, who have you told?" Knowing the futility of escape, the demoness followed her mother into her huge laboratory.
"Oh, don't worry. No one knows. So, going to tell me what's going on?" The red head was leading Ryoko into a section of the lab she had never known existed.
"Would it shock you if I said I was on a mission from God?"
"Don't annoy me, little girl." She pushed open a door and flicked a switch, then stepped away so that Ryoko could enter. The sight of the room made Ryoko gasp. It was enormous, and decorated completely in more shades of rose and garnet then the pirate knew even existed, with touches of black, gold and cyan here and there. Bookshelves lined one wall entirely. Another wall showed a continuous fall of shooting stars. Yet another wall held the requisite machines for anywhere Washu lived. The room was filled with objects of mystery and beauty that Ryoko longed to explore.
"This … this is amazing. What is it?" She floated herself slowly around the room, trying to take it all in at once.
Washu settled herself in a chair the same shade as her cushion to watch her daughter's explorations. "This is where you spent the first few years of your life, Ryoko."
The demoness turned to stare. "Here?"
The older woman pointed over to a corner; there, a complex creation of test tubes and tanks stood in stately splendor. "That is the machine I devised to create you, using my own genetic matter and that of the Masu. I could have brought you into being as a fully developed organism, but I instead gave you a childhood. You were born, though not an infant, but as a small child, one that I delighted in raising and loving."
"Washu…" Ryoko trailed off, unsure of how to respond to what she was hearing. Although upon discovery the genius had identified herself as Ryoko's mother, she had no memories of such. The first thing she could remember was opening her eyes to-
"Kagato was my assistant. He helped to create you, but always saw you as a simple lab rat, not a living, loving sentient being. He used some of my own weapons to entrap me, and then went after you. I can only believe he wiped all of your earlier memories to make it easier to control you." Washu looked away. "To my shame, I was caught totally by surprise, and could do nothing to help either of us. The only link I had to the outside world was our bond. It tore me apart to see what he did to you, then to watch you waste away in that horrible cave. When Mihoshi managed to finally free me, I was afraid, after such a passive existence, to allow my love for you to show. Instead, I admit to making life difficult for you. It hurt that you remembered nothing of me, and I dealt with it badly.
Tears fought their way to Ryoko's eyes. "I just don't remember," she whispered. "I can't remember."
Washu pointed to a chair across from her own, one upholstered in black, gold, and ruby suede. "That was always your chair. We would sit here, together, and study some project, or read aloud to each other, or simply talk about our days." The corners of her lips turned up. "You were such a holy terror. The Academy couldn't decide whether to adore you or fear whatever mischief you'd find next."
"Washu." Taking a chance, Ryoko floated to the chair and sat. It fit her perfectly. "I'm here totally by chance. Tsunami, er, Sasami told me that Tenchi was in danger. I agreed to stay here as an invisible guard. Only you, Sasami, Tsunami, and Ryo-okhi know I'm here. I need that it be kept that way." Her mother nodded silently. "Tsunami gave me…" Unable to say it, she held out her wrists. The gems twinkled brightly in the soft light of the room. "Could I … could I stay here? With you? We could … talk." She didn't know what compelled her to add that last bit, but knew only that it was right.
Tears glistened in Washu's eyes. She nodded again before straightening from the chair. "Let me show you your old room."
* * *