Chapter Three

So, another day on the planet Jurai.

Washu made her way thoughtfully along the white-stone corridors that led to the Palace Infirmary, rooted deep within the Royal Tree. The magic of this planet had always both attracted and repelled her, for it refused to bend to scientific will, and after her long imprisonment on the Earth, to walk the hallowed halls of the Tenju Tree-Palace was an honour she had scarcely imagined possible.

But then, everything had changed now.

A slight smile touched her face as she remembered the morning's communication. After so long estranged from the Science Academy, vilified and exiled, they wanted to welcome her back with open arms. Pride had almost made her refuse, but she knew that she missed the bustling intelligence and ongoing mystique that the Academy afforded her. It was the closest thing to a home she had ever had, and the considerable honour of their offer had, in the end, turned the scale in her favour.

"Jurai might be all right for would be Princes, but not for this scientific genius." She mused, crossing the open courtyard and taking the second passageway on the left. Since their arrival on Jurai, this trip had become second nature to her as she checked up on the progress of the planet's most high profile patient. Only too well she knew that Yosho's survival was the reason the Academy were once more calling – and even though Jurai physicians were supposedly among the best in the universe, she had no qualms about making sure his life was guaranteed.

"Washu-sensei." The nurse on duty bowed respectfully. "Lord Yosho is resting at present. Did you wish to visit with him?"

"Yes, please." Washu nodded her head, returning the bow solemnly. "If you don't mind."

"Then come this way." The nurse gestured, turning and leading the way along a new hall to the chamber where Yosho, Warrior Prince of Jurai was reposed in bed, surrounded by a bevy of pretty nurses. He was still weak, that much was clear, but from the sparkle in his dark eyes, Washu knew that all danger was at an end.

She offered him a wry smile, manoeuvring her small frame between the two nearest nurses and sitting herself down beside the bed.

"Well, and I suppose I don't have to ask how you are today, Yosho-dono." She said archly. Yosho started guiltily, then offered her a sheepish smile, raising a hand to dismiss the young women.

"Washu-san. So vigilant in your visits?"

"Naturally. I like to see my work prosper." Washu's eyes gleamed with amusement. "And obviously, you're doing just that. Tenchi will be glad. He was very worried about you, you know – he thinks a lot more about things than he should sometimes, that boy."

"He takes after his mother." Yosho said serenely. "And I suppose, after me, too."

"I see." Washu eyed him astutely, then, "Well, I can tell you're getting the best of care here. Are you sure that all those nurses aren't going to tire you out, though? They certainly seem to be full of energy."

"Well, I'm an old man now and I need special care." Yosho reflected absently. "Besides, it's always nice to have visitors."

He smiled.

"Washu-san, I believe I'm indebted to you for my life. I'm most grateful for all you've done."

"Well, I am a genius." Washu said composedly. "And a genius likes a challenge. Besides, even if you did leave me locked up in a cave for more than half a millennium, I guess I wasn't going to let your grandson take you home in a box. Not when he had his mind on so many other things, of course. He's got fighting spirit in him, that one. You know, I presume, that he saw to Kagato in the most decisive of fair fights."

"Yes." Yosho inclined his head slightly. "Tenchi has been to see me, albeit briefly, and besides, it's all anyone here can talk about. They say my grandson is going to be their King, Washu. Do you think it's true?"

"I think that Tenchi's the only one with the answer to that, though he'd do as well not to upset the Juraians." Washu said with a careless shrug. "Maybe. He seems to think it's his destiny or something…at least, that's the impression I got when he and Ryoko left Yagami and came to the palace in the first place."

"Ryoko." Yosho rubbed his chin. "Is she still with you all? I admit I haven't heard her name mentioned in the short few days since I began to recover."

"Ryoko is a space pirate, Yosho-dono." Washu shook her head. "They're seldom welcome on Jurai."

"Ah." Comprehension flickered in Yosho's eyes. "Well, then I understand. But it's a great pity. I seem to remember I owe her gratitude also – my recollection of the battle with Kagato is hazy, but I know she distracted his attention away from me. It's the last thing I remember before I lost consciousness completely…the next thing I knew, Kagato was gone, and I was giving Tenchi the sword. Did I imagine that, or did it happen that way?"

"We came onto the scene late, myself especially." Washu said with a shrug. "But from what Ayeka and Tenchi said, I think you're correct."

She smiled.

"I suppose at some point she had to start repaying the debts she owes to all those planetary systems she pillaged over the years." She added flippantly, although there was a shadow in the depths of her eyes as she spoke. "Jurai must have come in for some of it, being as rich an Empire as they are. I guess she decided to redress a balance."

"Perhaps she did." Yosho agreed. "Ah well. I suppose great acts of courage are not done for gratitude. Wherever she is, what matters is the act itself and not the aftermath."

"You're starting to sound like one of your shrine scribblings." Washu warned, getting to her feet. "And since you clearly don't need my attentions today, I'll leave you to your cluster of very helpful young nurses. I'm sure that they'll keep you more than occupied until you recover full fitness."

"Indeed." Yosho's eyes twinkled. "And if you happen to see my grandson, tell him to keep heart. He is a strong young man but he must learn to use that strength wisely. I trust you to make sure he knows that."

"I think Lord Tenchi already knows the danger of too much power." Washu looked thoughtful. "But I'll tell him, Yosho-dono. After all, over the next few weeks he's going to have to make some very careful choices. He needs to know exactly what the future might hold before he does so."

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Night was drawing in.

In the timeless dark of space, Ryo Ohki let out a soft mew, melancholy settling across her senses as she drifted between meteor belts, aimlessly shifting from space lane to space lane as she drew further and further from Jurai. On all sides there was nothing but a black expanse, broken up by the odd distant star, but no planets loomed on the horizon and Ryo Ohki had long since given up trying to work out what path they were supposed to be following.

She mewed again, as a faint psychic impulse tickled at the back of her thoughts, a feeble attempt to give the ship further coordinates as they headed into yet another quadrant. The ship focused all of her energy on receiving the instructions, obediently resetting her course, but her heart was heavy inside of her.

Carefully, she dropped her crystals down to surround the pilot's chair, helplessness welling up inside of her. Ryoko's heart still beat inside of her body, but it had been some time since they had last had coherent conversation, and Ryo Ohki was closely linked enough with her companion to know that her mistress was growing weaker by the hour. She had long since given up her stance at the controls, her legs no longer able to bear her weight, and it had been all Ryo Ohki could manage to keep the pirate conscious through the last half a day.

The ship had done her best to conceal her own fear as best as she could, denying to herself the severity of Ryoko's wound until it had been impossible to do anything else. Without the pirate's strong hand at the controls and decisive navigation, the young spacecraft felt lost and stranded. Now she knew only too well what she had fought so hard to deny - that Ryoko was indeed dying, and that Kagato had been the one to instill the fatal blow.

Despite herself, rage surged through Ryo Ohki's senses at that recollection and she let out a combative yowl, glowing with hot red energy as she remembered the fight her mistress had so easily lost. She had not been there, though through her bond to Ryoko she knew every detail, and bitterly she regretted her absence. Even though she knew that she could not have done anything to change the outcome, she felt she had abandoned Ryoko when she had most been needed - and now Ryoko was going to abandon her, somewhere in the depths of space.

"Ryo Ohki?"

A feeble voice came from the chair, and Ryo Ohki brought her translucent crystals closer to the stricken pilot, reflecting her own image in the nearest one as she did so. She let out a miaow of concern, and Ryoko offered her a faint smile, meeting her gaze with unfocused golden eyes. A new stab of panic and regret flashed through Ryo Ohki's senses. Ryoko was fevered and in pain, her wound infected and her strength deteriorating. And yet, despite it all, she still struggled to guide her ship to safe space.

"You don't need to feel to blame, you know." Ryoko's voice was barely above a whisper. "None of it is your fault. You've never done anything to let me down."

Ryo Ohki let out a mournful whimper, bringing her crystal as close as she dared. Ryoko reached out her hand to touch it, but the gesture proved too much effort, and her arm dropped back down at her side, drawing a gasp of pain from her lips. Her eyes flickered shut, and for a moment, it seemed that her life signs had ceased completely. Panic seized Ryo Ohki's heart and she let up a frenzied cry, sending wave after wave of psychic impulse as she attempted to batter her way through Ryoko's defenses, desperate to find some sign of life within.

To begin with, there was nothing, and Ryo Ohki began to fear that she really was all alone.

Then, very feebly, she felt the prickle of Ryoko's mind against hers, and relief flooded through her.

"Ryo Ohki, don't." This time the words came through their telepathic bond, as Ryoko struggled to maintain any kind of contact. "Don't fight it. Let me go. It hurts too much."

Ryo Ohki emitted a miaow of protest, bombarding the pirate's senses once more, and Ryoko sighed. Her golden eyes fluttered open, and Ryo Ohki could feel her companion gathering together the last shreds of her strength, in order to make herself understood.

"It doesn't matter if you have enough fight for both of us." She said softly. "Please, Ryo Ohki. I can't go through this any more. If I'm going to die, at least let me do it peacefully. This isn't doing either of us any good. It just isn't. And I can't...I just can't..."

Ryo Ohki pushed her mind against Ryoko's, finding that her usual defences were completely down. In an instant she knew what she should do, and she burrowed into Ryoko's memories, dragging up the image of a man's face and forcing it across her companion's senses. The pirate frowned.

"Ryo Ohki! That's a low blow!"

Ryo Ohki mewed her defiance, pushing the image through the telepathic connection again and again. Ryoko screwed up her eyes, turning her head away.

"Stop it." She whispered. "Emperors of Jurai can't be with space pirates. I already told you that. He...he made his choice. I did my best for him, Ryo Ohki. You know that I did. Now will you let me go? Please? If you care about me at all, can't you just step back and leave me be?"

There was no sound from the ship, as she drew together her thoughts to send another sharp nudge across the pirate's consciousness. Ryoko sighed heavily.

"You're afraid to be alone, is that it?" She asked softly. "Well, it's all right, you know. I'm the thing that's between you and Ken Ohki and we both know it. If I wasn't around any more, you could go to Nagi and join up with him, now couldn't you? See? It's not so bad as you think. It's not like you'd be all on your own, would it? He'd be a fool to turn down a cabbit like you, and I know Nagi would...would be fair to you. She's always fair...even if it seems insane."

Indignation welled up in the ship's heart, her emotion bouncing off Ryoko's weakened mental state like rain on a window. An enraged yowl echoed out around the deck area, loud enough to be heard across space, and Ryoko closed her eyes, shaking her head.

"You can't do anything to help me." She said quietly. "Ryo Ohki. I won't ask you again. I'm in pain. You know that. This injury...it's going to take my life. Can you accept that? Please?"

Ryo Ohki let out a mournful mew, hovering her crystals once more around her mistress. A wave of sadness washed over her, seeping through her thoughts into the pirate's. A feeble spark of guilt came in response, as Ryoko drew her tired brows together into an expression of regret.

"I'm sorry I made you feel that way." she said softly. "I really am. I didn't realise I was so important to you, I guess. More important than Ken Ohki, huh? And I haven't treated you very well, not really. I've put you through a lot, chasing after Tenchi. I guess I've let you down a whole lot, haven't I? And yet you're still the one who's with me now. I'm sorry, Ryo Ohki. I guess I'm not good at thinking about things like that."

Ryo Ohki mewed again, poking at her mistress with another telepathic nudge. Ryoko sighed.

"No." She whispered, and the ship could sense her companion's thought processes weakening once more as fever and blackness sought to claim them. "I can't keep this up. I'm sorry, Ryo Ohki. I guess none of us are immortal."

With that her eyes flickered shut once more and, try as she might, Ryo Ohki could not raise a response. Only the pirate's rapid, shallow breathing gave the ship any comfort that her companion still lived, but hoplessness washed over her nonetheless. What could she do? She was only a young ship, after all, complete in her memories but lacking in the navigational skill and expertise that her predecessors had possessed. Ryo Ohkis before her might have known how best to act, but Ryo Ohki only had her devotion to her mistress as a weapon to wield against death.

And then, as she drifted between two marker points plotting out the start of new territory, something flickered in the depths of her brain. A faint idea, sparked by Ryoko's own words began to build into a plan of action and, as she focused her mind on it, new hope flooded through her as she spread her sensors out into the galaxy, testing the atmosphere around her for any traces of a familiar vapour trail.

It was a long shot, she knew that, but maybe there was someone she could go to to get her mistress help.

She only hoped that she could find them in time.

--------------------------

Tenchi gazed up at the Jurai skyline, absently counting the number of distant stars he could see from the balcony of the State Room. Only an hour earlier, he and Ayeka had been entertaining some of the most powerful nobility on the planet, as plans for the rebuilding of Jurai's future got themselves underway. The pressure had been intense, he acknowledged, for one who knew as little about this world as he did, and even spending the previous evening in the Palace Library had done little to prepare him for the detail or pedantry of some of their demands.

"But then, this is what I'm supposed to be dealing with." He said darkly. "Grandpa did say...this was my destiny. So I suppose, it really is. Though it's a bit unfair, considering that he skipped out on it all and left me to deal with the burden. I'm not ready for any of this. I swear, if it wasn't for Ayeka being on hand through all of this, I'd have probably caused a war by now. They're so set on routine, ritual and deference. I'm sure I've offended a lot of people just by being born on the Earth."

"Lord Tenchi?"

A soft voice startled him from his musing, and he turned, offering his companion a smile.

"Kiyone, you don't have to be so formal with me." He said frankly. "In fact, I'd rather you weren't. Just because I'm dressed up like this and because everyone else in the palace seems to be fighting for the right to lick my boots doesn't mean that I want you to do the same."

"You have a lot to see to at the moment." Kiyone observed, coming to the balcony to join him. "I'm glad that it hasn't changed you too much, though, Tenchi. It's a lot to take in all at once, I suppose."

"I think it's been a bit like that for all of us." Tenchi reflected. "What brings you here, anyway? Last I heard Sasami had you and Mihoshi playing treasure hunt around the palace...were you looking for me?"

"Yes." Kiyone nodded her head. "Ayeka asked me to come and find you - dinner is about to begin and she couldn't get away to come herself. Everyone seems to be so busy, and well, I don't feel I can refuse her when she's being the Princess, if you know what I mean. So here I am."

She shrugged.

"Noone will miss me if I don't get back in time for the start, but they will miss you."

"Yes, I suppose they will." Tenchi sighed heavily. "All right. In truth, I hadn't realised how much time had passed. I was just taking a time out, that's all. A moment to stop and look at the stars without worrying about how anyone is judging me. I'm a poor shadow next to Ayeka, she knows so much and nothing seems to phase her. Without her I'd be lost...but I don't know. I feel like I'm letting her, Grandpa and everyone else down."

"Well, I'm a long way out of the social loop, but I doubt Ayeka feels that way." Kiyone assured him as they left the state chamber, heading down the corridors to the big banquet hall the palace boasted. "I didn't take you as the type to sit and stare at stars, though, Tenchi. I was under the impression that you didn't find space all that relaxing."

"No, but I didn't know what I was talking about." Tenchi said ruefully. "Give me an expanse of stars any day to learning all the different customs and rituals each noble house of Jurai expects."

Kiyone laughed.

"I'm sure it's not so bad as that." She assured him. "Really, everyone seems to be talking about you with the utmost respect. Remember, you did defeat Kagato singlehandedly. That's stood you in good stead. The rest can be learnt and I'm sure they know that you're not going to be ready for the throne immediately. They'll give you time to adjust."

"I hope they will." Tenchi acknowledged. "Otherwise...well, I shouldn't be boring you with all of this. You probably have your own problems, settling up with Headquarters and all that."

"Not really." Kiyone shook her head. "Actually, Mihoshi and I seem to be in line for promotion when we finally get back there. We've been given some days grace because noone there wants to offend you or Ayeka by dragging us away at short notice. But that's the impression we've been given. And...so long as I write our report and Mihoshi keeps her mouth shut about Ryoko - we should be fine."

"Ryoko?" Tenchi looked surprised. "What about Ryoko?"

"What about her?" Kiyone raised an eyebrow. "Consorting with the universe's most wanted whilst on patrol in the Solar System?"

"Oh. I see your point." Tenchi pursed his lips. "But surely they know you know her? I mean, Ryoko was mentioned on the Galactic News Channel a whole lot in association with Ayeka and the supposed coup."

"Jurai are doing their best to sit on it and I'm not giving Headquarters the chance to dwell on it any either." Kiyone admitted. Tenchi looked thoughtful.

"I see."

"Don't look at me that way." Kiyone sighed, running hands through thick dark hair. "Honestly, Tenchi, she's my friend and I feel a little like I'm betraying her by doing it this way. But I have to. She knows it as well as I do. In the message she sent us, she pretty much told me as much. So I have to cover her tracks as well as my own. Besides, it gives her a chance to disappear back into space legend. If she has no visible ties to us, then maybe she's safer herself. I don't know. In truth I don't want to think about it too much. It's a conflict of interest and either way it isn't going to be resolved."

"Hang on a minute." Tenchi frowned. "The message? Ryoko sent you a message? After she left Yagami with me?"

"After she left you on Jurai." Kiyone nodded her head. "She sent us a recorded video message telling us that you'd got there safely and that there'd be a beacon from Jurai when it was safe for us to dock. Providing you won your fight, which we all believed you would. Or hoped. Or both. God knows what would have happened if you hadn't won, so I'm glad your grandfather and Washu were right about you and your Jurai power."

"A recorded message?" Tenchi looked confused. "Not a live feed?"

"Nope." Kiyone shook her head. "Why?"

"Isn't that a bit strange? I don't think I've ever known her to do that before."

"Well, maybe." Kiyone sighed. "But it's what she did. I guess she had her reasons. Tenchi, I'm not sure that talking about her is a good idea, not here in the palace. Someone might hear and misconstrue."

Tenchi shot the officer a quizzical glance, taking in the troubled expression on her face.

"You and Ayeka speak from the same script, though with different motivation." He mused. "Am I the only one who's worried about her?"

"No, you're not." Kiyone met his brown eyes with gentle blue ones of her own. "But listen to me. Ryoko made the choice not to come back to Yagami after she dropped you on Jurai. She knew that if she did, she'd probably be arrested. She chose not to take the risk."

"I suppose she did." Tenchi agreed. "But it still bothers me that she's not been in touch since."

"Well, I suppose she's had other things on her mind."

"Maybe." Tenchi sighed. "Kiyone...do you still have the message? Or did you wipe it already, since you're heading back to HQ soon?"

"I still have it. I haven't erased any of Yagami's history yet." Kiyone shook her head. "I must, of course, but I haven't had a chance. Why?"

"I was wondering...would you mind if I saw it?"

"Her message?"

"Yes."

"I guess it wouldn't hurt." Kiyone pursed her lips. "But it's not really all that long. She did have a message for you - about your destiny or something, come to think of it. Maybe you should see it, before I wipe it and every other trace of her and Ryo Ohki from Yagami's databanks. I mean, she'd probably have wanted that. Sure, Tenchi. No problem. But do it soon, all right? Mihoshi might think this is a holiday but I'm telling you, for me it's far from it."

"You work too hard." Tenchi told her playfully. "Thank you, Kiyone. It means a lot. And I'll go as soon as I can get away from all the pomp and celebration. I swear, just thinking about it is giving me a headache. I never knew there was so much involved in being titled."

"Guess we all have our path to follow." Kiyone said reflectively, as they reached the ornate oaken door that led into the banquet hall, offering a bow to the guard on duty. He returned it with one of his own, then swept low before Tenchi, holding up his hands in a gesture of peace.

"Tenchi-sama, the Lady Ayeka has been expecting you."

"Thank you. I'm here now. I just got carried away with reviewing some of this afternoon's business." Tenchi offered the man a smile, and the guard bowed a second time, pushing open the door. A hush descended on the gathered nobility as Tenchi made his way slowly and self-consciously towards the head table at the top of the room, taking the steps up to the dais carefully, as if afraid he might trip on his robes. All around him, nobles and councillors got to their feet, bowing their heads in deference to their Emperor elect, and he blushed red, wishing himself a mile away as he finally mounted the last row of steps.

He raised his gaze, meeting Ayeka's questioning glance with a rueful one of his own as he took his seat at her right side.

"You took your time." She murmured.

"I got a little lost." Tenchi responded quietly. "Trying to make sense of this afternoon. That's all."

"I see." Ayeka's expression became one of amusement. "Well, you're here now and no harm done. I suppose it doesn't hurt for the future Emperor to make an entrance."

"Everyone was staring at me."

"Yes. You need to get used to that." Ayeka nodded her head, as the low buzz of chatter resumed around the hall. "Going red isn't very imperial."

"Well, I guess I still have a lot to learn about being imperial." Tenchi replied with a sigh. "Sorry I kept you waiting, Ayeka. I didn't mean to."

"As I said, no harm done." Ayeka shrugged. "We'll just have to try and find a way to get you to absorb Jurai's culture more quickly, so it doesn't leave you so dazed after a session dealing with the upper classes, won't we?"

"That would be good." Tenchi acknowledged sheepishly. "I think, in that particular subject, I need all the help I can get."