Tenchi Muyo!: The Fusion
A fanfic by Chronos the Cat
The Okayama Prefecture, Japan.
Having finished his duties at the Masaki shrine, the young shrine-keeper, Tenchi Masaki, headed down the long stairway through the woods, to his father's house. As shrine keeper, Tenchi could have lived at the shrine, as his grandfather once had, but somehow, it just didn't seem right. In his mind, it was still his grandfather's shrine.
And yet, with every day that passed, he grew more tempted to move in up at the shrine. The surroundings up there were a refreshing change from the house, which was full of memories and little else…
"Myow!"
Tenchi stopped in his tracks and looked around. "Ryo-Ohki?" No, it couldn't be. Ryo-Ohki hadn't been seen since the final battle with Kagato. …It had to have been a cat. Yes, that must be it…
Tenchi continued to look around, uncertainly, but couldn't see any sign of the animal that had meowed. Trying to put it out of his mind, he started down the steps again.
But then, there was another meow, and something furry hurtled out of the bushes, hitting the side of his face and landing on his shoulder. Tenchi turned his head, and stared in astonishment. It really was Ryo-Ohki!
He began patting her, and asked cheerfully, "Ryo-Ohki, what are you doing here?"
"Myow!"
"It's good to see you too, Ryo-Ohki! But where's Ryoko? Didn't she come with you?"
Ryo-Ohki hung her head and gave a sorrowful meow.
"What's the matter, Ryo-Ohki?"
The cabbit hopped off his shoulder and scampered to stand in front of him. She gave a few more sad meows, then jumped into the air, transforming into her space ship form.
Hovering above the trees, she shone a light down on the stairs in front of Tenchi.
"You want me to teleport into you?"
"Myow." She confirmed.
Tenchi walked into the beam of light, and a moment later, appeared on the bridge of the ship.
"Alright. So, now what?"
Ryo-Ohki meowed, and one of the consoles lit up. Tenchi walked over to it, and a message began playing. Tenchi's heart nearly skipped a beat when he saw that it was from Ryoko.
She was wearing her battle suit, which was dirty and wet with sweat and blood. Her hair was even more messy than usual, and she clutched at a wound in her side, not quite managing to hide the pain she was in.
"Tenchi. If you're watching this, it means… I didn't make it. I… I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you…"
A tear welling up in his eye, Tenchi whispered, "…You were never any trouble, Ryoko…"
"—I had always hoped we'd be together one day, but now, I guess that isn't going to happen. …I hate to do this to you… maybe Ayeka's all right. If she is, then I hope you two are happy together…"
"Oh, Ryoko…"
On the screen, Ryoko cried out as a wave of pain shook her body. Propping herself on the edge of the control panel, she struggled to keep speaking. "I… want you to have… my gems. …To remember me by…" The gems on her wrists glowed for a moment, then detached from her, landing on the control panel and rolling down it to fall to the floor. Out of strength, Ryoko also fell to the floor, crying out in pain. The camera shifted angles to get a good look at her lying on the floor.
"Goodbye… Tenchi… …I… …love… …" Her voice trailed off, and Tenchi realized she was gone. His intuition was confirmed, as the anguished cry of Ryo-Ohki echoed through the bridge on the screen. The screen then went blank, taking the sound with it.
The present Ryo-Ohki gave a sad little meow, which served to break Tenchi out of the trance he had fallen into. His grief starting to come to the surface and fight with his shock for control, he fell to his knees.
"Ryoko…" He began to cry; a rain of tears followed by sobs. And then, giving in fully, he cried out, much as Ryo-Ohki had. "RYOKO!"
He then slumped forward, and said, in a whimper, "I… love you too…"
After a few minutes, Ryo-Ohki gave another quiet meow. Tenchi looked up, tears still streaming down his face, and saw that one of Ryo-Ohki's crystals was hovering nearby. It floated closer to him, then glowed, shining a beam of light onto the floor in front of him. The light flickered for a moment, and two gems appeared on the floor where the light shone. The light then shut off, and the crystal floated away.
Tenchi picked up the gems and held them in his hand, looking at them. He then clenched his fingers around them, and held his fist up to his chest, as if in this way her could hug her one last time…
Finally, he sighed, and stood up. He just stood there, staring out through the transparent walls at the land and sky around, for several minutes. Then, composing himself as best he could, he told Ryo-Ohki. "I suppose we should tell the others."
"Meow," Ryo-Ohki agreed.
"Mihoshi and Kiyone should still be on Earth. Last I heard, they'd gotten an apartment in Tokyo. Do you know where that is?"
Ryo-Ohki meowed enthusiastically, and flew off to the city.
Nobuyuki stepped out of the kitchen and took a look outside. Still no sign of Tenchi. "He's late today. I hope he gets home soon, or I'll have to start eating without him!"
o-o-o
"Come on, Kiyone, pretty please?"
"No! We don't have the money to go to the Karaoke bar again tonight!"
"But, Kiyone!" Mihoshi whined.
Just then, there was a knock at the door. "Who could that be?" Kiyone wondered.
"I'll get it!" Mihoshi said cheerfully, rushing past Kiyone to get to the door.
"Tenchi! Ryo-Ohki! It's so good to see you!"
As Mihoshi gestured for them to come in, Kiyone said, "Well, this is surprise. How long has it been?"
"Too long," Tenchi replied, trying to manage a smile.
Kiyone noticed his failure at imitating cheerfulness, and also noted that Ryo-Ohki looked rather down herself.
"What is it?" Kiyone asked with concern.
Tenchi's face lost all traces of emotion. "It's Ryoko… She's dead."
"Oh… no…" Kiyone said quietly.
A second later, Mihoshi cried out, "WHAT?! No, she can't be dead!"
"I'm afraid so, Mihoshi."
Mihoshi fell to her knees and began wailing like a baby.
Kiyone stepped closer, and in as quiet a voice as could be heard over Mihoshi, said, "I'm sorry, Tenchi. I know she meant a lot to you."
"Thanks."
Meanwhile, Ryo-Ohki did her best to comfort Mihoshi.
o-o-o
When Mihoshi had calmed down, they all ate dinner together, and talked about how they should break the news to the others. Even though they could send a message by subspace, it seemed more appropriate to tell them in person. So, once they had finished cleaning up after the meal, Mihoshi and Kiyone packed some things, and they all headed to the Yagami. They then flew back to Tenchi's house, which they teleported into the cargo hold, as they had on their trip through space to clear their names when Kagato had usurped the throne of Jurai.
And without any further delay, they headed for Jurai.
Finishing his meal, Nobuyuki got up. "Where is that boy? His food's getting cold!" He stepped outside to see any sign of Tenchi—only to discover that the house now rested in a huge metal room, rather than by a lake in the mountains. "Huh?" Nobuyuki said in confusion.
o-o-o
Several days later, on the planet Jurai…
"Pardon me, Your Majesty."
Queen Ayeka turned to the retainer. "Yes?"
"The Galaxy Police ship Yagami is requesting permission to enter the system, my Queen."
Her stern expression lightened slightly. "Yagami? I see. Did they state the nature of their visit?"
"No, your majesty. They said they would explain when they arrived."
"Very well. Tell the Stellar Guard to escort them to Jurai, as guests."
"It shall be done." The retainer bowed, and left to relay the message.
Ayeka turned to the official she had been meeting with. "We shall have to finish this another time, Lord Obakon."
Lord Obakon looked offended, but said only, "As you wish, my Queen."
Ayeka nodded, and walked regally out of the throne room, followed closely by the Guardian logs, Azaka and Kamidake.
Ayeka had reached the landing pad before she remembered that there were others who would want to greet Mihoshi and Kiyone when they arrived. She summoned a retainer and told him to inform Princess Sasami and Miss Washu of the Yagami's impending arrival.
Minutes later, Sasami arrived, breathless, followed a short time later by Washu, who nonchalantly wandered over to the landing pad.
Within another five minutes, one of the Yagami's landing ships coasted to a stop upon the platform.
"Kiyone must have found a way to keep Mihoshi occupied, or there's no way that landing would have been that smooth," Washu commented.
After a moment or two, the door slid open. Mihoshi rushed out, smiling and crying at the same time. "Oh, I missed you all so much!"
She greeted the Queen with a quick, "Hi, Ayeka!", which caused the nearby royal guards to sweat a little bit at her lack of proper respect.
Mihoshi then gave both Sasami and Washu big hugs.
Kiyone was the next out, and while Mihoshi greeted Sasami and Washu, she gave Ayeka a proper greeting. "Thank you for allowing us to come, Your Majesty."
"No need to be so formal, Kiyone. We're all friends here."
Kiyone smiled and nodded. "Good to see you again, Ayeka."
"And the same to you."
Just then, Ayeka and Sasami noticed who else had stepped out of the ship. Ryo-Ohki and… Tenchi…
Ayeka's eyes widened, and she said quietly, "Lord… Tenchi…"
Sasami grinned widely, and rushed to them shouting, "Tenchi! Ryo-Ohki!"
Ryo-Ohki met her half way, meowing in joy. Sasami hugged her, carrying her with her as she continued on to Tenchi and gave him an overjoyed hug.
"Hello, Sasami," Tenchi said with a smile. He then looked up at Ayeka, and they just smiled at each other.
Sasami finally let Tenchi go, and they walked back to the others, the joy of seeing their friends again allowing Mihoshi, Kiyone, Tenchi, and Ryo-Ohki to temporarily forget their sorrow.
Finally, Nobuyuki stepped out of the ship. "Hello everyone! Nice to see you all again! ...Uh, girls?" Nobuyuki sighed in disappointment, realizing that nobody had even noticed him.
As the excitement of the reunion began to die down a little, Ayeka spoke up. "Why don't you all come with me to the Royal apartments? We can have some privacy there, and you can tell us what brings you here."
o-o-o
"Ryoko's dead?!" Sasami, Ayeka, and Washu said in disbelief.
"I'm sorry, it's true." Tenchi said sadly.
Ayeka started to say something, then thought better of it.
"But, how? She was so strong!" Sasami protested.
"I know, but she was really badly injured in her battle with Kagato. Apparently more than any of us realized."
"Are… Are you sure?" Washu asked.
Tenchi nodded. "She was in Ryo-Ohki at the time. Ryo-Ohki recorded it, and showed me the tape."
Washu blinked. "Tape? Tenchi, Ryo-Ohki doesn't use such primitive—"
"Recording. Whatever." Tenchi reached into his pocket and pulled out something. "She also left me… these." He opened his hand to reveal Ryoko's gems.
Washu breathed in sharply, and Ayeka gasped.
"Ryoko's gems…" Washu said, her voice filled with regret.
Tenchi sighed, and moved to put the gems away again.
"Wait, Tenchi, can I see those for a moment?" Washu asked.
"Um, sure." Tenchi handed her the gems.
Washu looked at the gems for a moment, sorrow and awe mixed in her expression. Then, assuming a determined look, she whipped out her clear green alien "laptop" and typed away on it. A glass cylinder with strange devices on both ends appeared, and Washu placed the gems in it. She typed some more things into her laptop, and waves of light coursed through the cylinder.
When it had finished, she scrolled through the information being displayed on her laptop, her expression becoming more hopeful as she went, until she finally turned to the others with a relieved grin on her face. "She's alive!"
"What?!" Tenchi said in disbelief.
Ryo-Ohki meowed in protest.
"I believe you Ryo-Ohki. I know you saw Ryoko die. But, that isn't the entire story. You see, these gems have always held a portion of her life-force; and although Ryoko's biological body may have ceased to function…" She held up the gems, joy and awe evident in her face, "—her spirit lives on, in the gems!"
Everyone stared at her, and the gems, hope and disbelief fighting wildly in their hearts and minds.
Finally, Sasami spoke. "So… you can bring her back?"
Washu nodded. "Yes, definitely."
Sasami, Ryo-Ohki, and Mihoshi gave a cheer at this news, and Tenchi gave a relieved sigh.
But then, Washu's grin faded, and she stared at the gems intently. "There's only one problem."
"A problem?" Tenchi asked.
"Yeah. The gems weren't meant to hold onto life force indefinitely. Separate from a living body, they begin to loose strength. And they have been separate from Ryoko for almost six months. If they aren't given a new infusion of life-energy soon, Ryoko's spirit will be lost entirely, and it will be impossible to restore her."
"Can't you bring her back before that happens?" Tenchi wondered.
"'Fraid not. These things take time."
Mihoshi asked, "So why not just give her some more of that life-energy stuff? Then you'll have plenty more time, right?"
Washu shook her head. "It's not that simple. The only way to replenish the gems' life-energy is to bond them to a compatible living body—temporarily, of course."
"Bond…" Ayeka began.
"—the gems?" Tenchi finished.
"That's right."
"And that would entail…?" Ayeka prompted.
"Oh, nothing much. Just a simple operation to graft the gems onto the host body's wrists. The gems will then form a symbiotic relationship with the host organism, storing the host's excess life-force, while giving the host the powers and spirit of Ryoko in return."
"…Ryoko's spirit?"
"Yes, of course. Whomever the gems are bonded to shall have to share their body with Ryoko's mind until I can recreate Ryoko's original body."
Everyone stared at her.
"What?" Washu said, looking from face to face in bewilderment.
o-o-o
Nobuyuki stepped out of his room's private bath, toweling off. "I could get used to this!" he said to himself, as he pulled on the elegant yet divinely comfortable robes the servants had provided for him. They had also brought in his breakfast while he bathed, so now he sat down and dug in.
When he was done, he headed over to the royal garden, where Tenchi and the girls had talked the previous night. Much to his surprise, no one was there. "I wonder where they could have gone off to?"
o-o-o
"You wanted to see us, Miss Washu?"
"That's Little Washu, and yes. Come up here."
Tenchi and the girls walked up the steps to the platform that served as the control center of Washu's lab. Washu swiveled her chair back to the central of the three huge display screens on one side of the platform. She typed a few things on the controls, and a map of Jurai appeared.
"As you know, only certain individuals are compatible with Ryoko's gems," she said, looking in the directions of her guests.
"Yes, you explained that last night," Ayeka commented.
Washu gave her an annoyed look, then turned back to the screen. She adjusted the settings, and hundreds of red dots appeared on the screen. "What you see here are all the individuals on Jurai who are powerful enough to survive the bonding process."
Mihoshi exclaimed, "Pretty!"
Ayeka added, "But why did you only search Jurai?"
"I didn't. I searched the entire galaxy. But most of the signatures I detected were either non-humanoid or on the other side of the Galaxy. The few compatible signatures I did detect in our sector of the galaxy came from the Galaxy Police Maximum Security facility, so I don't think we'd find anyone suitable there…"
"Are you sure? Ryoko was a space pirate, after all."
"True, but would you want to give some other pirate Ryoko's powers to play with?"
"Oh. That's a good point…"
Kiyone spoke up now. "Still, there's quite a few on the screen. There ought to be someone suitable out of all those, right?"
"Well… All these people would be able to support Ryoko for a few hours… maybe a day… But that wouldn't be long enough. There are only a handful that could support her long enough for me to recreate her body." She adjusted the settings again, and almost all of the dots disappeared. Only four remained, all gathered in one spot- the palace.
Tenchi and the girls all looked at each other.
"That's right. This handful. You, you, and you," she said, pointing to Tenchi, Ayeka, and Sasami, "and me."
o-o-o
"Tenchi? Ayeka? Sasami? Where could they all be?" Nobuyuki wondered, his search of the girls' rooms fruitless.
o-o-o
"I wanna bond with Ryoko!"
"Absolutely not, Sasami! I forbid it!"
"But Ayeka…"
"I will not have my little sister's body and mind fouled by that woman's soul—even if she is reformed."
"Aww…"
Ayeka turned to Washu. "You're Ryoko's mother. Why don't you bond with her?"
"Well… that's just the problem. We may be a little bit too compatible… Our minds and powers already have a lot in common… if I took too long to finish her body, our minds and souls would start to merge, and it might become impossible to separate us again…"
"I see…" Ayeka couldn't come up with a good response to this.
Tenchi stepped forward resolutely. "I'll do it. I'm the most powerful, I'm different enough from Ryoko that we won't merge, and I'm sure she wouldn't reject me."
Ayeka's eyes widened. "Tenchi, no! It's bad enough we're trying to resurrect that woman, but to do so in your body…! I will not permit it! I will not allow her to be closer to you than I am!"
"Ayeka…!" Tenchi protested.
"Unless… unless this is your way of say you really do like her more than me…" Ayeka sounded on the verge of tears.
"No, of course not! But we can't just let her die!"
Ayeka looked at him for a while, then sighed. "I suppose not. She may have been obnoxious and vulgar, not to mention a wanted criminal, but she wasn't so bad as to deserve death…"
Everyone started to smile in relief at this admission.
"But I still won't let you bond with her, Lord Tenchi!"
"What?" Mihoshi, Kiyone, and Sasami said in disbelief.
After a brief, shocked pause, Tenchi said, "But, Ayeka…"
Washu spoke up, a smile on her face. "Well, I guess that just leaves us only on candidate!"
Ayeka looked around at the others. "Why are you all staring at me?"
o-o-o
"Nope, they're not in here, either," Nobuyuki said, scratching his head, and looking around the throne room.
Just then, a guard stepped in. "Hey, what are you doing in here? Only authorized personnel are allowed in here without an appointment."
"Er, what am I doing? Just leaving!" Nobuyuki said, and ran out a side door.
"Hey, come back here!"
o-o-o
"M-me?"
Sasami giggled. "Well, you won't let anyone else do it!"
Ayeka glanced around at the others, the sweat-drop on her forehead growing rather large. "But—I… we... hate each other! It couldn't possibly work!"
Mihoshi smiled. "Oh, come on, you don't really hate her, you're just saying that."
Kiyone added in, "She's right. The entire time I was with you two, you didn't try to kill each other once. Sure, you tried to help me bring her to justice at first, and you and her fought a lot, but you never really hurt each other—and I know you could have if you'd wanted to."
Ayeka's face began to turn red, and holding up her hands and giving a nervous grimace, she said, "That's preposterous! A crown Princess of Jurai and a Space Pirate; friends?! Impossible! We were sworn rivals!"
"Yes, rivals," Washu cut in. "Rivals for Tenchi's affections. Not enemies. That's why this might actually work—you two both have such an overwhelming love for Tenchi, all your differences may hardly even matter!"
"But…" Not able to come up with a good argument to this, Ayeka said slowly, "I suppose…" Suddenly, her demeanor turned to haughty and defiant, and she folded her arms and said, "But, still, I refuse! Ryoko will have to find some other body to inhabit!"
His voice kind and patient, yet concerned, Tenchi said to her, "But, Ayeka, there isn't anybody else. It has to be me, you, or Sasami. We're the only ones who can keep Ryoko alive."
Ayeka looked into his eyes, her own eyes troubled. "I…"
Tenchi put his arm on her shoulder. "It has to be one of us three. You're just going to have to let me or Sasami do it."
"Tenchi…" She stared into his eyes a moment longer, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath. For several endless moments, she stood there, while the others looked on in silence. Then, finally, she let out a sigh, and opened her eyes. She gave Tenchi a look that said, "You win," and turned to Washu. "Very well, Washu. Since it means so much to all of you, I won't stand in the way of your reviving your daughter."
Tenchi let out a sigh of relief, and Mihoshi, Sasami, and Ryo-Ohki cheered with joy.
Washu raised an eyebrow skeptically. "So, are you going to let Tenchi or Sasami do it? …Unless of course this time you really are volunteering…"
Tenchi and the other girls waited with baited breath…
Finally, Ayeka answered.
o-o-o
"Stop! You're under arrest for trespassing!" the guard shouted as he, along with three of his buddies, chased Nobuyuki down the halls of the Palace.
Nobuyuki cried out in fear, "Somebody help me!"