Howdy y'all! Well... How's everyone on this Wednesday? Let's see here. A few of you got some guesses on what happened lol, some of you were right while others were wrong. But it's always fun to guess what happens right? Well anyways, thanks for all the great reviews, it's always nice to have emails to read, it makes me feels popular lol. You know something? I never thought this fic would actually become this long. But then again, if you compare this to my Final Fantasy fic, this is tiny lol.
Guess what y'all? I got to go to New York today for a field trip, we went and walked around a chapel and some sort of church/museum thingie. Although it was boring as hell, it DID get me out of school for the day heeheehee. I'm going back to New York this Friday for another field trip, we're going to Ellis Island. I seem to be going on a lot of field trips this year lol. Probably because I have the money for it and it gets me out of school 0) Well anyway, how about I get this shindig started!
Disclaimer- Oh Oh Oh it's Magic! You know!! Dun nuh nuh nuh nuhhhh nuh nuh... okay... so oh oh oh it's magic, you know, is the only part of the song that I know. Oh wait... wasn't I suppose to be doing something else?
A Past Better Left Forgotten
The earsplitting sound of the gun rang throughout the alley. Tenchi lays there, motionless. Azaka remains at his feet, the smirk across his face slowly disappearing as he stares down at the gun aimed up at him. Suddenly he begins coughing up blood. The gun in his hand falls from his grasp and clatters on the ground. Reaching down, he touches his side before looking down at his hand, now covered in blood, "H-how?"
Tenchi lowers the gun in his hand, the one he had tucked in his pants. Reaching into his pocket with his other hand, he pulls out the handgun's magazine, "I took it while trying to get the gun out of your hands." He replies, his voice void of emotion. He stands up, his movements watched by three set of eyes.
The smirk reappears on Azaka's face as he begins coughing up blood again. With his lung shot, he knows he's going to die, that he's going to drown in his own blood. "Smart kid.... Boss would be proud of you." Suddenly losing the strength to hold himself on his own feet, he falls forward.
Tenchi quickly catches him and places him on his back. Tenchi ignores Kiyone who's standing at his side, and Ryoko who's hovering above him. He gives all his attention to the dieing man on the ground. His face a mask of confusion, "You always said that your boss told you not to kill me, even when I cost you guys so much money. Why would your boss want me to be alive? Who is your boss?" Tenchi asks, hoping to finally get some answers.
Two streams of blood runs out of Azaka's mouth, one on each corner of his lips. Bloodied lips curl up into a half smile, as Azaka gives a choked chuckle, "Blood... runs thicker than anything Masaki." Tenchi gives him a look that clearly says he doesn't understand what Azaka is saying. "Did you know..." Azaka stops as a fit of coughs erupts from his chest, sputtering more blood out of his body. Gasping for breath, Azaka tries speaking again, "Did you know that your father.... he kept a journal." Tenchi slowly shakes his head. "The answers you seek... you'll find them in the journal."
"Where do I find the journal?" Tenchi asks immediately. If he can just figure out who's in control of everything, he can get answers. Answers to the questions on why Azaka's boss wants him alive, and why his family was killed for it.
"We gave it to a man..." Azaka slowly blinks his eyes, his breathing becoming more shallow. "A man named..." Tenchi waits patiently for a name to be mentioned. With his final breath, Azaka chokes out the man's name before dieing.
"Azaka?" Tenchi begins shaking Azaka's shoulders. As hard as he tried, he couldn't bring the man back to the land of the living. Lowering his head in shame, Tenchi thinks about what he's done. A gentle hand on his shoulder snaps him out of his thoughts. Glancing up to the police officer, he knows things will never be the same for him again.
"Tenchi..." Kiyone begins slowly, "Go home... I'll get this sorted out. Don't worry." She gives him a small smile, trying to give him some sort of comfort. Lowering his gaze to the ground, Tenchi walks away, passing by Ryoko, who's frozen to her spot. Only when his presence is gone does the guardian angel snap out of her trance and go after Tenchi, a terrified expression across her face.
'What have I done?' Tenchi thinks to himself as he slowly makes his way back to his apartment. 'I killed a man.. Who's this boss?' Tenchi thoughts go back to what he was told just a few moments ago, 'Blood is thicker than anything... what does that mean? And did my father really keep a journal? Or was Azaka lying?' There's really only one way to find that out, he'll have to search for the man that Azaka claims has his father's journal.
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Although he thought he'd never be able to get any sleep, the night's event proved to exhaust Tenchi enough that it only took him a few minutes to fall asleep. Of course it could of been the long exhausting explanation he had to give Sasami that explained everything that was going on. After he reassured her that everything would be alright, she managed to get back to sleep on the couch.
Tenchi can't decide if it's the nightmare he's having, or the sound of crying, whichever it is, it woke him up from his slumber. Opening his eyes to the dark room, he makes out Ryoko's form hovering above him, her hands covering her face as her shoulders tremble. "Ryoko?" He calls out softly.
Ryoko seizes all movement, "Tenchi?" She gives a surprised reply.
"You're crying." He voice is low as the confusion sets in.
Ryoko gives a choked laugh at the comment, "Don't be silly Tenchi... The dead can't cry. They don't have tears." To prove her point, Ryoko removes her hands to show her face, void of any tears.
Tenchi's gaze remains locked on Ryoko's glimmering golden ones, "Ryoko..." Ryoko's bottom lip twitches a bit before she covers her face again as she begins crying again. Not knowing what else to do at the moment to help out the distressed ghost, Tenchi slowly reaches up; wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulls her down into an embrace. "What's wrong?" He asks quickly as he rubs her back, ignoring the fact at how bizarre it is that he's contacting a ghost.
Ryoko's hands clutch Tenchi's shirt, holding onto it for dear life, "I had... a nightmare." Ryoko shamefully admits.
Tenchi's brows raise up in surprise, "That must be some nightmare." He comments. Ryoko remains silent, her head resting on Tenchi's chest. "What was it about?" Tenchi finally asks, his curiousness getting the better of him.
"I.. don't want to think about it." Ryoko responds weakly. Tenchi slowly nods his head in understanding. Although she told him he didn't want to think about it, that only seemed to cause the opposite affect on her. Her mind wondered to her nightmare. No, not a nightmare... her memory. Specifically, the day she died.
In a large bedroom, decorated with the finest furniture that money can buy, lays a large bed. Black drapes surrounding the side as Ryoko remains seated on the bed, totally bare for the world. With her face in her hands, she lets the tears fall. Her body still feels soar from being forced onto, not one hour ago. The room reeks with the stench of sex. How many times has he forced himself on her? And how many times has she failed to stop him? She's lost count, all she knows is that she can still feel his grimy hands roaming her body, even after he left the room.
How can she go on living like this? There isn't any sort of happiness in this life, only misery. She's a slave in this world, owned by that wicked man Kagato. As hard as she tries, she can't ever seem to get away, she'll forever be over her head in debt. Money she can't ever pay back for her entire life. Countless times she's thought about suicide, taking a coward's way out, yet each time she's ready to go through with it, fear stops her. If she dies, there's no coming back, no second chances, no hope for happiness.
The tears stop flowing as Ryoko's face hardens into a scowl. It's time she goes through with her plan. Her way out, it's time for her revenge. For months she's been waiting for the perfect time to go through with it. The day has finally come. With most of the security out, she'll have a better chance to make it to 'his' office, and pay him back for everything he's done to her. A knock on the door informs her that her escorts to her next 'job' are here. Reaching down to the floor where her discarded clothing is, she picks it up and begins getting dressed.
Once fully clothed, Ryoko walks over to the door and opens it up, revealing two men, each with a gun at their hip. With her lips pressed in a thin line, she follows the two men down the hall to the elevator. From the seventh floor, they travel down to the first. Stepping out of the elevator, the men lead Ryoko towards the exit of the building. Ryoko trails a step behind, her eyes darting side to side at the other men in the building. Her eyes go to the sidearm resting at each of the men's sides. Her eyes narrow as she takes a quick step or two. Her hands reach out quickly to each of the guns and pulls them out of their holsters.
Before the men can react, she raises each of the guns to the men's heads and pulls the triggers. Blood splatters through the back of their heads before they drop to the ground dead. Men in the lobby of the building react quickly, but Ryoko reacts quicker. Aiming one of the guns to the closest man, while the other gun is aimed at another, she begins firing away. Dropping body after body. Before she can kill the last man however, the alarm in the building goes off to warn others. A moment after the alarm goes off, Ryoko kills the ninth and last man in the lobby.
Thinking quickly, Ryoko shoots the various cameras hanging in the lobby before running over to each body to salvage ammo from each one. With her pockets filled with magazines, she quickly runs back towards the elevators and presses the button. She bangs one of the handles of the guns at the button when she realizes the elevators aren't working. Evidently, the alarm turns off the elevators in the building as well. She'll have to take the long way up to the top floor.
She just makes out the sound of footsteps over the alarm coming from the stairs. Pressing her back against the wall, she aims one of her guns at the stairs and waits for the person to appear. The man steps off the staircase, Ryoko immediately fires, killing the man. Running down the hall she glances up the staircase to see if anyone else is coming down. Seeing that it's clear, she begins heading her way up the long staircase. 'I'm coming Kagato.' She thinks to herself with a smirk across her face.
Gunfire interrupts Ryoko's thoughts. She quickly jumps against the wall, away from the railing as bullets soar down towards her from above. She can hear men make their way down the staircase as others continue to shoot. 'Damnit!' She curses. Glancing around her surroundings, she sees a door to the forth floor. Pointing the gun at the door, she blows apart the lock and kicks the door open. Her eyes dart around the empty office floor. Running across the room she quickly dives behind a desk just as the door bursts open with a half dozen men.
Ryoko stands up from her hiding spot, both of her guns aimed at two people. Without hesitation, Ryoko fires, dropping the two men instantly. The remaining four take cover behind the many desks in the room. Ryoko glances up at the lights as an idea forms in her head. Aiming her gun at the lights, she begins shooting the lights out one by one. Darkening the whole area. The beams from the men's flashlights shine over Ryoko's hiding spot. Keeping low to the ground, she crawls over to another desk, creeping closer to one men, following the light from the man's flashlight.
Ryoko stops and sits behind a desk as the man walks passed her on the other side of the desk. As he walks pass, she stands up having no problem with shooting a man in the back. The remaining flashlights are directed towards her, followed by a stream of bullets. Ryoko jumps to the other side of the desk and quickly crawls away as the remaining three men run across the room. From her spot, Ryoko can hear the men share a few 'Where'd she go' and other words. She can't help but smirk triumphantly.
Taking a chance, she peeks out from behind the filing cabinet and briefly studies the men's possessions. Giving a nod to herself, she decides to take care of them while they're together. Standing up, she quickly pulls the triggers to her guns. Two men drop, while one remains standing. Before she even realizes she's run out of bullets, scorching pain travels through her left shoulder, causing her to drop the gun in her left hand and dash across the room as more bullets fly from the remaining man. Finding cover behind another desk, touches her shoulder with her good arm, wincing in pain. 'Damn that hurts.'
She clumsily manages to put in a new magazine to her remaining gun. She cautiously peeks out from behind the desk, cursing when she sees that the last man turned off his flashlight so she can't see him. Which means he can be anywhere in the room at the moment. Glancing at her wounded shoulder again, she puts her gun down and rips the sleeve on her left arm, using it as a self bandage to slow down the bleeding. Once she finishes she picks her gun up again.
Ryoko hears the faint sound of what sounds like a needle hitting the desk, a second later something round bounces off of the desk she's hiding behind and hits the wall in front of her. Ryoko's eyes widen as she recognizes it, even in the darkness. Diving towards it, she grabs the grenade and chucks it back across the room. Halfway there, the grenade blows up, shaking the entire building, and obliterating everything in its range.
Ryoko holds her breath and listens for the faint sound of the pin being pulled again. 'There!' Standing up quickly, following the sound, she raises the gun in her right hand and fires. The man lets out a surprised shout, which is followed by a curse as he drops the grenade. The fist sized bomb blows up, muffling out the man's scream of pain before he dies.
Glancing over to the entrance to the staircase for a moment, then realizing that there's still men on it waiting for her. She decides to find another way. Walking across the room to the window, her gaze falls on the lift that the people washing windows outside the building use. A grin plays across her face as she shoots out the window and jumps out onto the lift. Tucking the gun in her pants, she uses the her good hand to pull the rope to raise the cart higher. 'And people call me stupid, I'm outsmarting all of them!'
Making it to a few floors from the top, she shoots out the window and jumps back in. She finds her way back to the staircase and continues her way up. She stops at the top floor to catch her breath. She slowly enters the last floor. The room she steps into is merely a waiting room to enter Kagato's office. Large wooden doors block her path. Cautiously, she reaches out to the handle with her left hand, ignoring her shoulder's cry of protest.
She slowly opens the door, it creaks on the hinges. Stepping into the room, she stares at the man standing in front of the window behind his desk, his back turned to her. She aims her gun at him, "Kagato!" She hisses out venomously.
Kagato slowly turns around, his expression stone cold, seemingly unafraid with a gun pointed at him. "Ah, Ryoko. Took you longer to reach here than I thought." Slowly a cruel smirk plays across his lips, "Why rebel against me all of a sudden? You never complained about it before."
A shudder of disgust runs throughout her body at the comment. Ryoko shakes her head, "Shut up you bastard! You'll pay for everything you've done to me!" She yells as her brilliant golden orbs narrow into a glare. She crosses the distance between them quickly, keeping her gun aimed at his head. She stops in front of his desk, her hand trembling as she prepares to pull the trigger.
Kagato notices her hesitation and smirks, "What's wrong Ryoko? Here I am, wide open for the kill. Why are you hesitating?" He asks amusedly.
"I'm not hesitating! I'm savoring the moment of your upcoming death, caused by my own hand." The door to the room opens, Ryoko quickly turns around and shoots the man entering the room. However, before she can turn back around, an arm wraps around her neck, and a hand grabs her right arm as she's pulled up and onto the desk. She struggles to break free from Kagato's grasp, she fires a couple of random shots up at the ceiling.
Kagato pins her arms down on the desk and smirks wickedly above her. Keeping her right arm pinned to the desk, he reaches down to his boot where he has a knife tucked away and raises it. He thrusts the knife down. In a desperate attempt to save herself, Ryoko does the only thing she can think of. Kick him where it hurts the most, hard. Kagato grunts and jumps back, freeing Ryoko from his grasp. Ryoko jumps off the desk and lands in front of him. Quickly she raises the gun. Kagato knocks her hand to the side, causing the shot to only hit him in the shoulder.
Wincing in pain, Kagato reaches out and grabs Ryoko by the collar of the her shirt. "Goodbye Ryoko." He says before spinning them around and throwing her through the large window. As she breaks through the window, she raises the gun in her hand and aims it at Kagato. If she's going down, he's going with her. The surprised look on his face was worth it as she fires shot after shot at him. She sees him collapse to the floor just before he's no longer in her line of sight. A moment later... her world disappears.
Ryoko lifts her head up from Tenchi's chest to look at his face. His relaxed face and shallow breath inform her that he's fallen asleep. She lays her head back down on his chest as her grasp on his shirt tightens. Her whole world just seemed to collapse around her again. The moment that dieing man uttered his last breath, she knew something about her situation wasn't right. A familiar fear creeps up her spine, but this time, it's not for herself, but for Tenchi as well. The man who's has Tenchi's father's journal, the name Azaka choked out before he died. IS a name she'll never forget for all of eternity.
Kagato...
(Gasp) What's this!? Kagato's alive!? But how!? Isn't it impossible? Ryoko killed him yes? And she's been in heaven for centuries, yes? Aah... something's off here.. what could it be? What's wrong with this situation? Will Ryoko find out the truth? Will Tenchi find out his truth? Some many questions, yet no answers... heeheehee, and I'm leaving y'all hanging again! Damn... I'm such a jackass, ain't I? Well review y'all and tell me your thoughts! TTNC!