Selenity owns Fire Blossom, Annabellina, and Frank. Nyneve owns Saxen Maverick and Moksha. All other characters belong to the people who owned them.

Chapter 1:

Meeting. Washu. Tsunami.

Effie sat in the Mars spaceport's café, her nose buried deep within Annabellina's pages. A half-eaten éclair sat on the paper plate in front of her, and steam rose out of the gray plastic mug of cocoa in her free hand. No one was really sure how long she'd been sitting there, but since she wasn't bothering anyone, and she was a paying customer, nobody had bothered to tell her to "move along". However, Effie had been at sitting in the corner booth for a few hours now, not quite ready to try and hitch a ride to…well, wherever she felt like going.

Outside the windows of the café, people of all races made their way up and down the concourses to and from their shuttles. Some were businesspeople on their way to meetings across the galaxy, others were families bound to vacation spots like Titan, Hanuman, and L-328, and still others were aimless travelers not unlike the hitchhiker in the café. And hidden amongst the crowds outside, Maverick and Moksha walked steadily towards that same café. After turning in the bounty from the casino, they had collected their $5,000 check, cashed it, and bought shuttle tickets for Mars, where they could start looking for a new target.

And so it was that the bounty hunter entered the same café as the hitchhiker. Driven perhaps by some unseen force, Maverick glanced to the corner booth at the same time Effie looked up from the book. Their eyes locked for a moment, then both looked away. Maverick sat down at the counter, Moksha at her feet. But the wolf was still looking at the brunette in the booth.

"What can I get you?" the scaly teenaged waitress asked as she sauntered up to the counter.

"Chai, please," Maverick answered. "And if you're serving lunch, I'd like to see a menu as well."

"Certainly," the waitress replied. A holographic screen popped up in front of the hunter and she skimmed it nonchalantly, finally ordering a cup of soup for herself and a bread roll for Moksha. When the waitress returned with the food, Maverick set the plate down in front of the wolf, who ate it gratefully. Meanwhile, she glanced back again at the girl in the corner booth. Pretty enough, and about the same age she had been when she left home. Probably a college student waiting for a flight home, or back to school. And was it just her, or were the girl's eyes actually sparkling with gold?

Effie watched as the woman and her dog ordered and ate with curious eyes. She was perhaps a year or two older than herself, but it was obvious she had been through some difficult things by the eye patch and ugly scar marring her otherwise calm face. The most interesting part was the rifle on her back. However, her intuition told her that she wasn't dangerous. Not too dangerous, anyways.

Suddenly, Effie realized that the red dog that had come in with the woman had wandered over to her booth. It sat back on its haunches and stared at her with curious eyes.

She smiled. "Well hi there. What are you doing over here?" she asked, putting her hand out to pet the dog's head. It smiled at her and licked her palm. She giggled and scratched its ears. "You're pretty friendly. What's your name?"

"His name is Moksha," a low voice answered.

Effie looked up into the face of the one-eyed woman. "Moksha huh? That's a cool name. Is he yours?"

She frowned and shook her head. "He's my partner…but I don't own him. It's very difficult to tame a wolf."

"Well, yeah. That's what I meant. Of course, you can't own another life form, can you? That's like slavery. But he's really a wolf? Cool…" Effie replied.

"Yes…yes he is," the woman paused. "May I sit down?"

"Sure," she answered as the woman sat across from her.

"What's your name?" the one eyes woman asked, removing her hat to reveal maroon hair bound away from her face in a French braid.

"Fire Blossom," she took a sip of cocoa. "You can call me Effie though."

"Fire Blossom? What origin is that?"

"Earth," Effie answered. "My birth name's Kathy, but Fire Blossom just fits better."

"I see…" the woman reached over and scratched Moksha's head. "I'm Saxen Maverick. Gaganite."

"Cool. Always wanted to go to Gagan. Can I call you Saxie?" Effie asked.

Maverick blinked. "…No."

"How 'bout Sax?"

"No."

"Ricky?"

"Ricky?" Maverick cocked her head. "Where did you get that?"

Effie shrugged. "From the "Rick" part of Maverick."

"You can call me Saxen or you can call me Maverick. That's it," Maverick said irritably.

"Grouchy, aren't you?" Effie sighed. "Oh well…" She took another bite of éclair.

Maverick glanced at Moksha. Maybe it would be better just to leave now and not involve herself with this "Fire Blossom" any more. But somehow, she was not quite ready to go just yet.

"Anyways, where are you headed?" Maverick asked.

"Dunno. Anywhere," Effie answered. "You?"

She shrugged again. "Wherever I end up."

"I guess that makes us kind of alike then," Effie commented, then grinned. "Even down to the trenchcoats, huh?" She pointed at Maverick's brown, then her own tie-died. Different in color and material, but similar in design.

"I suppose…" Maverick was unconvinced.

Effie rolled her eyes. "Man, you do need to lighten up Sax. Is this just a bad day for you, or are you always as fun as a funeral?"

"Sorry, but being frivolous can get you killed in my business," she responded.

"Business being…?"

"Bounty hunting."

"Oh," she should've guessed. Only a bounty hunter would travel with someone like Moksha and carry a gun on her back (which made her wonder about the tightness of security in the spaceport). "Well, I guess that clears up the aimless traveling part."

"For me, at least," Maverick agreed. "You on the other hand…well, I'd be surprised if you were a hunter as well."

"No way," Effie laughed. "You're not getting me out there gunning down murderers and rapists. I've got better things to do. Read, travel, become one with the universe…good wholesome pastimes like that." She laughed again.

Maverick raised an eyebrow. "Interesting…so how do you get around?"

"Hitchin'" she answered. In the back of Effie's mind, she was wondering why she was being so open and easygoing with Maverick. Granted, she wasn't nearly as stuffy as the bounty hunter, but she was usually more content to beat around the bush and annoy people who asked too many questions.

Maverick was thinking along the same lines. Unless it was necessary, she avoided talking with civilians at all costs. So why was she sitting in a booth in a café with this Effie lady chatting like a schoolgirl? She had never even gone to school! And she was certainly never as garrulous as this usually. It was making her nervous. Time to get out.

"Well, it certainly was a pleasure talking to you," Maverick said finally, standing up and holding out a gloved hand to Effie. "But I've got a shuttle to catch and—"

"Hold it right there!" a loud voice called out.

Effie and Maverick looked at each other, then around. Surprisingly, no one else seemed to hear the call. Then suddenly, the space around them began to waver and fade. Slowly, the booth, the café, even the entire spaceport vanished, and now the two girls and the wolf were standing in the middle of a strange laboratory. They stood in a small circle of light about twelve feet in diameter, with darkness surrounding them.

"What in the thousand hells?" Maverick murmured.

"Whoa…did you do that?" Effie looked at her. The hunter shook her head.

"Of course not. I did!" the voice replied.

On impulse, Maverick drew her revolvers at the exact moment flames flared up in Effie's hands. The two blinked and stared at each other, amazed at their simultaneous response.

"Wow…I did make a good choice in picking you two, didn't I? You guys did that at the exact same time! Amazing!"

A short woman with long spiky red hair and bright green eyes stepped into the light. She was dressed in a tan shirt, brown pants, and a dark purple robe. Her mouth was stretched into a Cheshire Cat grin as she looked from Effie to Maverick.

The bounty hunter narrowed her eyes. "Who are you?"

She looked shocked. "Why, I am Washu! Goddess of Jurai, Greatest Scientific Genius in the Universe, and just about the cutest redhead you'll ever meet!" Her eyes sparkled. "And if you call me 'Lil Washu, I'll be extra nice to you!"

"Uh…okay, 'Lil Washu. So you mind telling us where we are and what we're doing here?" Effie asked, looking around at the computers, tanks, and other foreign objects that were now visible in the dimness. She absentmindedly motioned to Frank, who rose up a few inches so that she could stow Annabellina inside while she stared around (the entire thing managed to shock Maverick a bit, who made a note to herself to later ask Effie about both the backpack and the fire that had come out of her hands before).

"My lab, obviously. If you're wondering how you got here, I just pulled you into this dimension so that we wouldn't have to disturb the rest of the people in the restaurant. But don't worry, nobody noticed," Washu turned around and put her hands behind her head. "And what you're doing here…" she glanced back and winked. "Is preparing to go on an ultra-super top-secret mission for me! Now, if you'd be so kind as to walk this way…"

"Hold it. I'm not going anywhere until I know for sure what this "mission" is," Maverick said stubbornly.

Washu sighed, rolled her eyes, and looked at Effie. "I think she's more stuffy and suspicious than we thought."

The hitchhiker giggled. "Yeah, probably."

Maverick's face reddened ever so slightly. "I just don't trust you, that's all."

"Well of course you don't! You're the smart one!"

"Hey!" Effie snapped.

Washu patted her shoulder good-naturedly. "I'm just kidding. Kidding!"

"Whatever," Effie rolled her eyes. "But Sax has a point. You'd better give us a better explanation of what's going on here."

"Fine," the redhead huffed. "We'll just waste more time, but if you want the long version, that's what you'll get. Just because I like Moksha."

Maverick blinked. "How…how do you know his name?"

"I know all of your names. I've been watching you three ever since you were born. Saxen Maverick, the Gaganite bounty hunter. And Kathy, aka Fire Blossom, aka, Effie, the Earthian hitchhiker. But getting back to the reason you're all here…"

Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light. A wall shot up, ensconcing the three females in a circular room. The wall began to glow, and the image of a forest and a large temple became visible.

"As I said before, I am a Goddess of Jurai. As a member of the Holy Trinity, my domain is the Past, Life, and Neutrality of Energy," Washu said. "The other two members are my sisters Tokimi who controls the Present, the Heavens, and the Negativity of Energy, and Tsunami, who controls the Future, the Sea, and Positive Energy. The three of us support the power of Jurai and guard its people. When we don't have anything better to do, that is," Washu smiled.

"And because we frequently do have other things to do, we made a covenant with the Royal House of Jurai that we would send Nine Sacred Ones to govern and protect the people before the end of the ninth age. If this covenant was not met, our power would break and the people would be free to destroy themselves in the panic of chaos and anarchy. This happened about fifteen thousand years ago.

"The problem is, we've been putting off finding the Nine Sacred Ones. And since we haven't brought them to Jurai to dedicate their souls, they just keep dying in their mortal bodies and being reborn in new ones. And in about four months, the ninth age will end. That's why we need you two. That's right! You guys are have been chosen from all the life forms in the universe to be our Champions and find the Nine Sacred Ones!"

"Like hell we are," Maverick snapped.

Effie cocked her head. "Are you serious Wash—er, 'Lil Washu?"

"Of course I'm serious!" Washu replied. "Why else would I have bothered bringing you here?"

"I'm not sure, but it was a waste of your time. I have more important things to do than go on a wild goose chase for a religion that I don't even practice. My soul already belongs to Vyasa, so I can't help you anyways," the hunter continued.

"Like you're so pious," the goddess rolled her eyes. "And anyways, I think I can make your efforts very rewarding."

"There is nothing you can offer me—"

"Not even Vittorio?"

Maverick froze. Effie glanced at her. "Vittorio? Who's Vittorio?"

However, they both ignored her. Maverick stared hard at Washu. "How do you know about Vittorio?"

"I told you. I've been watching all three of you ever since you were born," she answered.

"…You know where he is?"

"Who is he?" Effie pressed, but still went unanswered.

"I know everything," Washu answered simply. "Do this one little thing for me, and I'll tell you where your brother is. I'll even provide the transportation if you want."

Maverick thought hard. Vittorio… The image of a little boy screaming filled her mind, but she shook it away. "All right, I'll do it."

"I knew you would," Washu laughed, then looked at Effie. "And for your reward…um…well…"

"It's okay. You don't need to reward me with anything," Effie answered. "I don't have anything better to do anyways, and who knows? This could be fun. I'd be glad to help you find the Nine Sacred Ones."

"Still, I'd feel bad if you weren't getting something…well, tell you what. Once your mission is completed, you can pick your own reward, okay? Anything you want, and it's yours. Deal?" the goddess asked.

"Okay, sure," Effie shrugged. No use looking a gift horse in the mouth, right?

"What exactly is this little project going to entail anyways?" Maverick asked Washu.

"Nothing much. I'll tell you where to go, what the person looks like, where to find them, etc. All you've got to do is find them, kill them, and bring them to Jurai when you've got all Nine. And it's not like you're alone. You've got Moksha, Frank, Annabellina, and of course those people you pick up to help you get the next people—"

"Wait wait wait…back up a second," Effie asked. "Kill?"

"Of course! How else would they assume their divinity? And besides, if their friends and family think they're dead, it'll be easier to get them away without being missed. And they'll revive a couple days later, fit as a fiddle."

"But didn't you say that when they died before all that happened was that they were reincarnated into a new body?" Maverick recalled.

"Yeah, but this is different. Because you three are being sent to kill them. The Nine will recognize the power of the Holy Trinity on you, and they'll just stay in their bodies," Washu explained.

But Effie was unconvinced. "I don't know…I'm not too cool with this whole "killing" thing…I mean, they're innocent people right?"

"Then you can leave that to Moksha and myself," Maverick said grimly, showing Effie a revolver.

"It doesn't matter who actually does the killing. But you are going to have to learn to work as a team. Pacifist or not Fire Blossom, you'll have to be there when something happens to Saxen. And if she doesn't want to hurt innocent people, Saxen, you'll have to protect her."

"No offense to you," Maverick looked at Effie. "But I have…difficulties, working in teams. I'm sure you're a nice enough person, but we barely know each other. How can we be expected to look after each other if we have no idea what each other is like?"

"I can protect myself," Effie snapped. "I can kill anyone just as easily as you can. I just won't like it. And if we're traveling together across the galaxy, I'm sure we'll end up getting to know each other, whether you like it or not."

"I see…" Washu was quiet for a moment, then suddenly the walls went down and a microphone appeared in the goddess's hand. Smiling, she started talking in a game show host voice. "And now, ladies and wolves, just to thank you for playing our game, we'd like to give you a consolation prize!"

She waved her hand to a darker part of the lab that suddenly illuminated, revealing a large silver space cruiser that made both Effie and Maverick's jaws drop and eyes widen.

"Wow…cool!" Effie cried happily.

"Amazing…I've never seen anything like it…" Maverick murmured.

"You've just won a brand new one-of-a-kind spacecraft by Washu!" she continued in the game show host voice. "The Tsunami is capable of traveling at 100,000,000,000 miles a week, is armed with six energy cannons and Jurai-powered shields, easily sleeps up to fifteen, has a hangar area for up to five mecha, can be easily piloted by one person, and comes with a century's supply of food!"

"Really 'Lil Washu? The Tsunami is ours?" Effie grinned, running to the ship to look at it while Frank hovered behind her.

"Well, it's on loan. After all, you're going to have to go to a lot of different planets to find the Nine Sacred Ones. And because you can never rely on commercial shuttles, I figure you'd be able to work most efficiently with this baby," Washu smiled, glad to see the excitement visible on the girl's face, and even more glad to see that she had actually managed to drag impression out of Maverick.

"It's astounding, Washu," the bounty hunter admitted as she slowly approached the craft. "I've never seen anything like it. Not even Gagan has ships like this…are you sure we're qualified to pilot it?"

"Are you kidding? A child could pilot this thing!" she grinned at the wolf. "Don't worry, you should have no problems—"

"Uh…'Lil Washu?" Effie called from the opposite side of the ship. "How do you get in this thing?"

Maverick and Washu looked at each other and sighed.

"On second thought, I think you'd better handle the piloting," Washu said.

"My thoughts exactly," the hunter agreed.

The goddess brought up a holo-laptop and typed on it. Seconds later the hatch to the craft opened and they went inside. Wandering down the main corridor to the bridge, the women marveled at the sheer amount of space inside, and wondered if Washu had built another dimension into it.

"Of course," Washu replied, then winked. "And I've built in a few luxuries for you. Once you're on your way, I suggest stopping into the women's bath. Assuming you like hot springs, of course. And there are several different cabins, all more than enough to accommodate your needs…"

"Wow…this is the coolest!" Effie rejoiced.

"Yes…very cool…" Maverick agreed.

Effie stopped and stared at her. "What'd you say?"

She cocked her head. "Um…"very cool"?"

"You say "cool"?"

"Yes…"

"Huh," Effie shrugged. There was awkward silence, and the two started laughing. However, Washu's businesslike mood had returned.

"Now anyways you guys, you seriously need to get going. You've got four months to find the Nine Sacred Ones and get back to Jurai. You sure you can handle it?"

"If we can't, why did you choose us?" Effie asked.

"Point taken," Washu replied, then patted both women and Moksha on the head. "Good luck you three. I'll contact you in a couple of days on where you should be headed. Until then, try not to kill each other, okay?"

"We'll try," Maverick answered seriously, taking the pilot's seat while Effie sat back in front of a large blank computer screen, Frank at her feet.

"This thing got an in-flight movie?"

"A few. Once you're back in your dimension, take a look," Washu answered, then exited the ship. A few seconds later, her face appeared on the computer screen. "I'll be sending you to the open flight zone just outside the Mars spaceport. Countdown T-minus ten seconds…nine…eight…seven…"

"Shields engaged…" Maverick murmured as she immediately began preparing for the shift. Effie watched in surprise at the bounty hunter's adeptness at handling the ship. No doubt she had done this a few times before.

"Six…five…four…"

"Boosters set…"

"Three…two…one…"

"Pressure parameters set…"

"Shift commenced!"

"All systems go!"

Effie watched out the large bridge window as Washu and her lab melted away and were replaced with the black, starry expanse of space.