Private Bet #10: Chapter III: Opening Moves
by Shade

Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 and affiliates are the
property of Rumiko Takahashi, Rifts and
Phase World are owned by Palladium. Other
references belong to their respective owners.
~~~~~~~~~
Chapter 3a: The roll of the dice
~~~~~~~~~

Tsunami, Goddess of the Planet Jurai and the
most powerful battleship in her Universe rested
inside the safety of quantum space, hidden from
the prying eyes that coveted her. Her connection
with Princess Sasami provided the powerful entity
with all the outside information she needed without
the need to reveal her presence. Lately Tsunami's
thoughts had been troubled, there was discord
forming between her chosen champion and the current
ruler of Jurai. Although Tenchi bore no ill will toward
the Emporer, the same could not be said of Azusa.
Despite his wive's best efforts he seemed bound and
determined to make the Masaki boy's life a living hell.
Steps needed to be taken to put a stop to that.

This newest complication might make things even more difficult.
Now was the worst time for interdimensional meddling to occur.
But who was responsible for it? It was unlikely Tokemi would try such
a risky gambit, her sister preferred to use her pawns much more
calculatingly despite her role as a Goddess of Chaos. Washu could
possibly attempt to summon one of her old allies but so far it seemed
that the scientist remained unaware of her divine origin although she
too had selected her champion.

Champion...

Could this be...Tokemi's chosen one?!!

If so, then this situation was more serious then any of them
realized! While Tokemi would not waste such resources on
a paltry minion, her champion was an entirely different story!!

Tenchi wasn't ready yet. Even the formidable powers of
the others would not be enough, not against Tokemi's champion
if indeed as the Goddess feared it was. It made chillingly perfect sense
to dispatch both of their chosen before they could master their powers.
Something so logical that Tokemi would do it in a moment.

They would need help. A warning in Sasami's dreams should
be enough to alert the household while she arranged
a few things elsewhere.

Tsunami set her plan into action at once.

~~~~~~~~~
-A Familiar Face

In the vast emptiness of deep space Minagi's spaceship Hinase
patrolled in search of evildoers to steal from. Following in her
sister Ryoko's footsteps the cheerful swordswoman had chosen
the life of a space pirate, though she only only preyed on
bad people. Minagi was a good friend of the Masaki Household,
her physical features were identical to Ryoko except for two old
sword scars, one on each cheek given to her by her father Yakage.
But her personality was more like Mihoshi's, lighthearted and carefree.

A beeping from the main console caught her eye.

"Hmm?"

{We're near the Sol System!? I haven't
visited them for the longest time!}

"Hinase!"

"You called, Minagi?"

"Set course for Earth!"

"Yes ma'am!"

A faint reflection on the viewing screen
that might have been a beautiful woman with
turquoise hair smiled and vanished.

Phase one was complete. Now for phase two.

~~~~~~~~~
-Spay your Pets

Nagi was not happy.
And for once it wasn't Ryoko's fault.
Well actually in a way it was partially Ryoko's fault,
if only she didn't have that damn...

"Ciao!"

"For the last time NO!!!"

"Ciao!!"

"Absolutely not!! You don't know where she's been!
You'll probably catch a disease from that furball!"

"CIAO!!!"

"How about a carrot instead?"

"Ciao!! Ciao!!!"

"You're turning down a carrot!? Are you feeling alright?!"

"Ciao!! Ciiiaaaaooo!!!"

"Stop that!"

The ship's caterwauling continued unabated.
Nagi tried to harden her heart to Ken-ohki's
pleading, if she went to Earth she'd have to
go after Ryoko again. Not that she'd ever
admit it but in her hearts of hearts the bounty
hunter had developed a grudging respect for the
one person who had ever escaped her time after
time. An unoffical truce had finally developed
between them, As long as Ryoko didn't leave the
Sol System Nagi left her alone with that boy of hers.
Part of the reason behind that was the current
problem, their cabbit partners were in love with
each other. If either owner killed or seriously wounded
the other the consquences could be...bad. Best to
put as much space between herself and Ryoko as
possible to avoid any unnecessary temptation.

"Ciiiiiiiaaaaaaaoooooo!!!"

But she couldn't go like this. Day in and day out, the endless
begging and wailing...

"All right!!! You win! We'll go visit your girlfriend already!!
Just...Stop that racket!!!"

"CIAO!"

Tsunami nodded her head as she faded away from
the top of the rapidly departing vessel. Sometimes a
little push in the right direction was all that was needed.

Black Bishop takes White Rook.

~~~~~~~

Rei was not in a good mood. A visible dark aura of doom and
destruction seemed to hang over her bent head.

Nervously Makoto and Ami snuck occasional
worried glances at their friend. The recent nightly patrols
had been hard on all of them. For weeks they'd been
keeping an eye on the city, but aside from the rare mugger
or burgler their efforts had come up with zilch so far.
There hadn't even been any of the youma attacks that usually
preluded the entrance of a new supervillain. Tempers were
wearing thin from having to be at a constant state of readiness
even though they now only had two or three of the Senshi
patrolling a night, Inners and Outers included. But Setsuna
insisted that they keep on their guard, so they continued
remaining on alert despite their mounting doubts about the accuracy of
her warning. Surely if whatever it was was so dangerous they would
have seen some sign of it by now?

"Waaah! I can't believe it! I actually woke up on time today!"

A pair of familar blonde meatballs bobbed into view as Usagi joined
her friends with lunch in one hand and her schoolbag in the other.

The part time Shinto priestess merely growled in reply.

"What's with Rei?" Usagi asked, puzzled by this
odd behavior, normally her friend was more vocal then that.
She missed the frantic waving and desperate shaking of heads as
the others tried to warn her. Too late...

"I DIDN'T GET ANY SLEEP LAST NIGHT OKAY!!!"

Flames billowed forth from the Giant Demon Head Attack.

"WAAAAAHH!! She's scary!!!"

The others didn't think any less of their leader for her panicked
reaction to Rei's explosion. She DID look scary at the moment.
Besides if they made any noise she might notice *them* instead
of focusing on Usagi. Okay, so it wasn't a particularly noble
choice. But they still weren't about to try and interrupt her
unless their friend tried something drastic.

Rei Hino was normally a quiet, demure, peaceful maiden.
And anyone else that dared say otherwise quickly learned
the error of their ways. She didn't have a Black Belt in
Karate for nothing!

But the visions that sometimes came to her, the ones that had more
often then not had proven right and aided her and the other Senshi in
their battles against Evil had been particularly bad the past night after
she'd finished her patrol.

No sooner had she closed her eyes to get some rest then her mind was
bombarded with scattered random images that didn't make any
sense to her at all.The surreal vividness of the few psychic fragments
she'd received were so clear that even now she could remember
practically every detail of the visions...

~~~~~~~

The first dream had been the worst.

A Darkness where no light shown, cold as the grave
and worst of all, totally devoid of all existance. No surface met
her feet yet she did not fall. Too dark to see, too quiet to hear,
no substance to touch. It was like being dead except she knew
she was not for even death was this, this...Void...

Rei had screamed herself awake. It took her several minutes to calm
down enough to lie back down.

The second dream brought only more questions then it did answers.

Warmth, hidden from view yet comforting to the soul. A sense
of purpose that brightened her surroundings to reveal a shining white
crystal about the size of a human heart. Not the Silver Imperium
Crystal, it did not emit the same sense of power she associated with it,
this was different somehow. A strength that was both less and more ran
through the very core of the dazzling object that seemed to burn with a
pure inner flame of its own. But as she reached out to touch it...

Try as she might she could remember no further what had
happened until she awoke again.

The third vision had been frightening, fears long
lost in the rebirth of the Senshi had been revived.

Green fires of envy and jealousy reaching out to envelop and
consume the world and all within it. Among the faces of the
dead had been her own, while a horrifyingly familiar laugh had
roared triumphant...

But it was the last one that had haunted her thoughts till dawn
had banished the ghostly phantoms.

A sense of deep loss...Swirling drops of twilight upon the
clear canvas of the Heavens...Two stallions standing over a
Moonlit pond...One dark, the other as silver as the moon...
A single tear falling, the silver droplet bright as the full
moon as a burst of scarlet sprouted forth from one of the two...
As she met their gaze...Those eyes...she could not forget those
eyes...*his* eyes...

The same sequence had repeated over and over again throughout the
night and into the earliest hours of morning.

By the time Rei had to get ready for school she was a wreck, the drain
on her internal strength and sheer physical exhaustion leaving her with a
serious case of industrial strength Crankiness.

~~~~~~~~~~

"GET BACK HERE MEATBALL HEAD!!!"

"No way! Baggy Eyes are contagious!! Bieee!!!"

The Japanese Red Eye was presented. (1)

"Grrrrr!!!"

A chase ensued between the two.

With large sweatdrops behind their heads the other three
girls watched as their dear (but rather embarrassing at
times like this) friends vanished in a trail of dust.

Ami turned toward Minako and Makoto hesitatingly.

"Ah...Should we try and stop them?"

"Are you out of your mind!?"

They looked at her as if she'd grown a third eye and
said they should join a convent of nuns. Not even Makoto,
the strongest out of all the Senshi got in the Hino girl's
way when she was in one of her *moods*.

"I guess that was a silly question."

White Queen moves to block Black Pawn.

~~~~~~~~~
-Masaki Household

"Minagi!!"

A delighted Sasami enveloped the cyan-haired space pirate
with a enthusiastic hug.

"You're just in time for breakfast!"

"That's great! Your meals are the best in the Universe, Sasami!"

"Ah, Welcome back Minagi."

From the open door in the stairway a familar crab haired
figure stepped out.

"Miss Washu!"

"Ahem...that's Little Washu."

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!"

The loud male scream coming from upstairs indicated that
Tenchi was now up, the explosion that came a split second later
also meant that Aykea was now awake and not pleased to see how
Lord Tenchi had been roused from his slumber.

The rest of the household was already digging in, they were
getting used to it by now. Mihoshi waved hello to Minagi before
getting another helping of pickles. Kiyone blinked and sweatdropped,
just what she needed to deal with, another Ryoko. Noboyuki smiled
as he saw that another one of the pretty space ladies had returned,
maybe his son would finally choose one of them! An unlikely event
but still, he kept hoping anyway. Washu sat herself down and dug into
Sasami's heavenly cooking, she amused herself by calculating the exact
moment when things should reach critical mass.

Right about...now.

"Yaaaahh!!!" The heir apparent to the royal
house of Jurai came flying down to make a spectacular
crash landing at the base of the stairway followed by a
few stray chips of wood that had once been the
door to his room.

{I am such a Genius!}

"Good morning Tenchi! Breakfast is ready!"

"Morning Sasami." Tenchi pried himself out of the floor
and and then did a quick double take as he saw Ryoko
smiling in front of him.

Wait a second.

"Oh! Minagi! You startled me for a second, I
thought you were..."

Shouting from above interrupted him.

"Now you royal pain in the butt, prepare to pay!!!"

"Begone Demon Woman!"

Energy fire and electrical forcefields clashed and
resulted in yet another devaluation of property values.

Tenchi winced. Bad enough that they were fighting yet again,
but why did they have to do it in the house?!

"Nice to see you again Tenchi. I just popped by for
a little visit. Is that all right?"

"Sure, feel free to stay as long as you like."

At least Minagi didn't blow the house up...at least not since
that time she'd tried to kill Ryoko and Tenchi. But almost
everyone tried that at least once so he didn't hold it against
her.

{Mmmm...the grilled fish seems especially tasty this morning.}

Tenchi realized that he was starving, being the unintended
victim of multiple acts of random violence was hungry work.
He'd have to eat fast if he wanted to get to school on time.

"That's the spirit my boy! You can never have too many
pretty ladies around, why when I was your age..."

"Dad!!"

"Mihoshi, can you take me to the market to pick up some
chicken for tonight's dinner?"

"Sure!" The eternally cheerful detective giggled,
of all the adults there only she and Noboyuki had
a driver's license. Since the architect had to work that
left Mihoshi in charge of ground transportation.

A fact that gave her partner Kiyone the chills every
time she thought about it. It flew in the face of all
reason that the ditz of all people had managed to acquire
the one thing that she'd failed to pass the exam for.

"I think I'll go with you."

{Just in case.}

"Yay!"

Black Knight takes White Bishop.

~~~~~~~

Ranma Saotome awoke at the crack of dawn.

A glance to his right revealed that Genma
would probably be sleeping for a while. The
old man looked rather charred, apparently
instead of doing the smart thing and letting go after
the mazor had zapped him the first time Pops had
instead tried to smash the lock open.

Unfortunately the case's built in defenses
had reacted a bit more severely to that...

Well...Genma was still breathing so it looked like no
permanent damage had been done. The scorch marks would fade
away eventually and it wasn't like he needed all that smelly fur
anyway.

{At least I'll have some privacy this morning.}

Ranma mused as he quietly slipped out of the guest room
and headed to the Dojo to unpack and train without interruption.

He had a feeling that he was going to need every minute of it.

~~~~~~~~~

Retina and DNA scans passed.

With a small hiss of escaping air the pressure seals opened.

His time in space had taught him to appreciate the
advantages of high tech, especially while traveling.
When it came to keeping his personal belongings in one
piece through even the roughest of conditions Advanced
Micro-tech was the only way to go. This particular model
of luggage was from Bushido Industries and cost a small
fortune with the advanced security upgrades package.

Credits well spent since the cargo inside was
priceless by any standards.

[It's about time you got me out of that stuffy case!]

"Sorry!"

With the greatest of care Ranma removed Ishtar from
the fine white silk that covered the shining instrument of
Light. As always the sheer unearthly beauty of the
Greatest Rune Weapon's lines took his breath away,
the Spulgorth were sadistic alien bastards but he had to
admit that their preference in fine craftsmanship was
unmatched. Only the foulest beings could take such a
work of art and pervert it into such a damnable prison
for a living soul.

He made a few practice swings, Ishtar seemed to fit
his hand as if she were made for him. The only time Ranma
had felt something similar to this sense of rightness was when
he summoned his Cosmic Weapon. It was a mystery that he'd
just accepted as being real enough. Besides, what did he have
to complain about?

[Yes!]

Pure unadultrated sensation filled the
trapped psyche with sweet bliss.

Physical contact took the psychic bond between
weapon and wielder to a whole new level.

While they could communicate with each other
up to three miles apart, aside from advice and information
there was not much else that Ishtar could do when she was
seperated from him.

But once Ranma had her in hand the two became as one.
As long as he held Ishtar the Goddess's formidable
defenses protected him and gave him access to some
badly needed special abilities that helped balance out the
Cosmoknight's formidable fighting strength. In a sense
Ishtar became a second set of eyes and ears that watched
Ranma's back. She felt what he felt, knew what he knew,
and in return for this gift the imprisoned soul was able
to get a taste, no matter how brief, of feeling.

There was no greater reward for one doomed to
exist in a eternal limbo.

When she had existed free of the captivity that now chained her the
dusky divinity had been a patron of nature and healing, under her
tutelage Ranma had discovered a new joy in creating life instead of
destroying it. Though her powers were bound within the cursed core
of the metal and crystal cage that held her entrapped like a fly in
amber, he could still carry on her work and did so willingly.

Though Ranma didn't use use her as often
as she wanted him to, the weapon didn't begrudge
him for it.

She knew and understood his reasons, Rune Weapons
were the most coveted magical artifacts in existance.
Wars had been fought and Empires crumbled over the
possession of these legendary indestructible tools of
power. Probably the one thing that was most responsible
for the weapons' notoriety was the whispered ability of the
most powerful and corrupt blades. Soul Drinking, the weapon
literally tearing out the helpless spirit of the victim and
devouring it, destroying them forever. The slightest scratch
from such a Rune Weapon could prove lethal, all that was needed
was a single drop of blood to be spilt and it would all be over.

Fortunately that was not one of Ishtar's properties, such an
abomination was completely against her nature. That hadn't
stopped the fools from across the Megaverse who'd tried to steal
her from Ranma though. But once bonded, only death could
severe the link forged between them. No one else could use her,
not even those pure of heart, Ishtar was his alone. And woe to
the one who tried to seperate the two!

"How do you feel?"

[Heavenly.]

She gave a warm mental purr of contentment.

[By the way...why the sudden change? Not that I'm complaining
mind you...but I thought the reason you kept me in there with the rest
of your gear was to keep the presence of so much supernatural energy to a
minimum?]

"Well, I sure as heck don't want Pops to finding you and
if those presences you detected are unfriendly it would be better
to have you close by. Especially if they're Psychic, I hate getting
hit by Bio Manipulation. It's a real pain, no pun intended."

[I'm hurt, here I thought you just missed little ol' me.]

"Well...that too. But I can't just carry an ancient glowing
rune-covered weapon around in plain sight, you'll have to
stay in the sub-dimensional pocket."

[Hmph!]

{Look, I'm sorry. It's the best I can do right now
until I can think of something better.}

[You owe me another one Saotome.]

*Sigh*

{Add it to my tab.}

[Don't worry...I will.]

Uh oh. That did not bode well for him.

He concentrated for a moment, a brief distortion
shivered through the air and soon Ranma's hands
were empty once more.

{Now for the rest of the stuff}

A small branch with five buds that
radiated vitality was the next thing
he pulled out.

It never hurt to be prepared.

~~~~~~~
-A Little Later

A fortune in gems lay in front of him.

During his last stop to Phase World Ranma had
purchased a quantity of flawless diamonds, emeralds,
sapphires, rubies, and other precious gems. Since
Universal Credits had no value back home he'd needed
something that he could trade for local money, it
helped that the stuff was practically dirt cheap in
an age where rare precious metals and gemstones had
either become common or were easily synthesized.
Even Ranma was unaware of the true value of his
stash, the pile of glittering stones that had
been lying within the Bag of Holding were valuable
enough to make Saotome one of the richest men on the
planet. And it was only one of *several* bags that he'd
managed to pack within his suitcase. He made a mental
note to see a jeweler and get some of the smaller
gems appraised.

{I think this is going to come in handy soon enough.}

Pocketing a few of the priceless jewels Ranma continued to
rummage through several years worth of accumulated stuff,
both magical and not. By the time Kasumi awoke and started
to get the kitchen ready for breakfast his luggage was secured
once more and the young martial artist had begun his morning
katas.

~~~~~~~~~~

It was a quiet morning, the previous night's rain left few traces
in the bright light of the new day. A light mist shrouded the Nermia
neighborhood and had draped the Tendo's yard with a covering of dew,
the diamond drops sparkling as the warm rays of the sun struck them.

It was this serene scene that the eldest daughter of the household enjoyed
as she prepared her family's morning meal. Kasumi had learned to find and
enjoy the simple pleasures of life, they were all that she had now.

The notes of the local avians sounded sweetly as the rice cooked,
vegetables were chopped, and leftovers warmed up. (2)

Looking out toward the Dojo as she fixed a steaming pot of green tea,
Kasumi noticed that the door was ajar. Everything was fine here so she
could afford a few minutes away to see what was going on. Perhaps
Ranma or his father had got up early to practice.

She couldn't resist checking the guest room on her way out.

A snoring well done Genma was its only occupant.

That meant...

~~~~~~~
-Tendo Dojo

Front Kick.
Turn.
Open Tiger Palm Strike.
Step Forward.
Block.
Snap Kick.
Step Back.
High Punch.

A light sheen of sweat developed on his naked chest as Ranma put
his body through a workout that made Marine boot camp seem like
a Hawaiian Vacation. He pressed his physical limits to their max
in a graceful dance of strikes and parries that started with basic
Kempo before flowing through dozens of other martial arts forms.
Somehow the diverse moves that came faster and faster until his arms
and legs started to blur had been woven together into a unique harmony
that was as beautiful as it was effective. A slight change in stance to
gain a better base to strike from, the adjustment of an attack by a few
centimeters, signs so subtle only a master would be able to
spot the small characteristics that identified the Anything Goes Style.

Relentlessly he continued to test himself, even though
the strain of keeping up such a grueling pace had now
reached a point as to daunt even the healthiest human
Ranma's breathing still remained smooth and even.

One of the few useful things he'd learned from Genma during
their training trip was that you couldn't slack off if you were a
true Martial Artist. It was an all or nothing proposition. For
over an hour his kata went on, blows that could crush a tank like
tinfoil hissed through the air and exotic styles long lost to this
world were performed with a grandmaster's ability.

He could have spent days within the informal kata if he'd
been of a mind to, losing himself within the harmony of
the Art. His Forge blessed body ached all over, but it
was a good pain. The fire in his muscles made him feel alive,
a natural rush that cleansed the mind and body. The previous
night's rest could last him for weeks, even months before he'd
need to sleep again. But the sun was already making its climb
into the sky. Tempted as he might be to go back to training,
Ranma had more pressing concerns at the moment.

{I wonder what's for breakfast?}

Ever since his transformation Ranma had been keeping
up his illusion of mortality. He ate, he slept and he trained.
Never did he allow himself to forget what it meant to be human.
As long as Ranma remembered to live, his power wouldn't corrupt
him as it had so many others before.

Few beings had ever seen his true form and lived to tell about it, Ranma
had only summoned his armor in the past for real emergencies. Even then
he made sure that nothing ever linked him to the mysterious Knight that
showed up every now and then. Evil-doers who had discovered the truth
usually did so with their dying breath.The number of people that were aware
of his deception could be counted on two hands with fingers to spare. Even
most of the other Knights didn't know that he was really one of them, especially
given his penchant for relying on magic. As a rule CosmoKnights usually
tended to rely chiefly on their natural powers, magic was usually avoided
by them like the plague because it was one of their few vulnerabilities.
As Ranma could have pointed out though, he was still alive and lots of other
CosmoKnights weren't.

A small gasp from the entrance of the Dojo caught his attention as
the half naked young man started to wipe off the sweat from
this morning's training.

"Oh my!"

~~~~~~~~~
-A whole Universe away

"CAPTAIN!!!"

"Uh?"

Lt. Commander Justie Tylor of the CAF Space Force
was jolted awoke from his nice nap and great dream.
In it he'd been having a great time at the beach with Emi,
Yumi and Azalyn-chan. That reminded him, one of these days
he'd have to show the Empress how much fun the sand and surf were.

Speaking of which, he STILL hadn't found out about those
Raalgon hotsprings yet! Maybe the next time Dom captured him
he could find out. It was a shame that the others couldn't join
in until they came to *rescue* him from the enemy.

Even though both governments were now members of the Consortium
of Civilized Worlds (CCW) they had never actually signed a peace
treaty and were technically still at war with each other, although by
CCW law they couldn't actually engage in hostilities. So every couple
of weeks when Azalyn, Holy Empress of the Raalgon wanted to see her
pet Paco-Paco, Dom or his subordinate Shia Has (depending on which
one of them was unlucky enough to get the short straw that week) went
out to *capture* Tylor and bring him back. He came with them willingly
enough most of the time, but then the women on board the Soyokaze
would get jealous and so the crew had to go and get him back from
the Melva, the Raalgon Mothership.

But at least the eighteen year old monarch was only one person.
The legion of WAIT (Women After Irresponsible Tylor) numbered in
the hundreds of millions. Discovering the planet Victoria's Secret
had been a big mistake, the Captain volunteering to lead the
investigation expedition had been an even worse one.

But at the moment none of that was Tylor's concern, his
indifference to even the most grave crisis was already legendary
throughout the known Universe.

"CAPTAIN!!!"

"What is it Mr. Yamamoto?"

First officer of the infamous destroyer, Lt. Yamamoto was a
man who routinely gave himself an ulcer trying to make up
his mind. Usually a by the book officer, Yamamoto possessed
an irresponsible streak that rivaled his superior's though
he usually covered it up quite well with layers and layers
of regulations.

"We have detected a group of unidentified ships closing fast!"

"Oh? That's probably just Azalyn-chan coming to pick
me up again."

"Captain! They don't match any Raalgon signature! In fact their profiles
are more like the space pirates we were sent to apprehend!!"

Lt. Yuriko Star, the efficient intelligence officer of the Soyokaze
and perhaps the most responsible person on board (which wasn't really
saying all that much) shot an exasperated look at the man that she
both loved and wanted to strangle whenever he behaved irresponsibly.
In a way she envied her counterpart aboard the Untamed Stallion,
at least Ranma behaved sensibly some of the time. Of all the men in
all the planets in all the galaxies in all the Universe she had to fall
for the most Irresponsible Man Alive. Granite had nothing on Tylor.

"Oh, I guess that means we better do something then."

*CRASH*

The entire bridge picked themselves up from their
collective facefault. Sometimes they thought that
the Captain was actually more sensible then he
was letting on and then he'd go and do something
like this. Either he was a tactical genius or the
luckiest idiot in the Universe. The popular money was
riding on the latter, although after awhile several
people were now coming to suspect the former.

"What are your orders Captain?"

Lt. Katori was the only known Buddhist Monk navigator
in the Consortium Armed Forces (CAF). His dazzling
head of blonde hair was actually a wig, though even a close
inspection could fail to spot the difference. Undisputedly one of
the best capital ship pilots living, the handsome officer seemed out
of place on the rather rambunctious ship. Without his skills however
the Soyokaze would have been scrapped long ago.

"Hmmm..."

The twenty two old Captain looked
like he was thinking seriously.

By now though every one of the officers on board
knew that appearences could be deceiving, especially
in Tylor's case.

"Let's talk to them! Lt. Kim, open a channel."

"Of course, what else could we expect from you Captain."

A runway fashion model in her off hours, the young
and beautiful brown haired communications officer
possessed a tongue sharp enough to geld even the
most officious superior. Naturally she often directed
her scathing comments toward Tylor's relaxed attitude,
though every now and then the part of her that really
liked him slipped past the mask of professionalism.

"Standard hailing frequency ready."

"Yoo hoo! This is Captain Justie Ueki Tylor, Age 22. Please
identify yourselves since you're approaching the Soyokaze and
we don't know who you are. It's common courtesy after all."

"Uh...captain..."

The crew had much faith in Tylor, but once again that loyalty
was being put to the test. Sure the Captain was able to get
them out of the messes that the Soyokaze encountered but he
was usually the reason that they got into them in the first place!

Nervously everyone (with the exception of Tylor) looked toward
the bridge's display to see the unidentified ships' response.

~~~~~~~~

Aboard their ships the Scourges of the
Spaceways (a fancy way of saying they're
scumsucking pirates) were breaking out
in a full blown panic attack.

THE Tylor was facing them!!!

The most feared man in all of space, hailed as the greatest military
mind in the Three Galaxies (3), had obviously been sent here by the
CAF to utterly destroy the pirate problem that the CCW had been
having in this sector. So now their problem was trying to decide what
they were going to do about it.

The majority wanted to surrender immediately before
they were brutally slaughtered by the Tylor.
Several wanted to just run away and never come back,
the only problem with that was he'd probably kill them if they
did. And a very small group actually wanted to try
attacking the Soyokaze.

Of course that resulted in quite an argument.

"We must attack!!! If we destroy the Tylor we will become famous!!"

"You FOOLS! The Soyokaze's marksmanship
is unequalled!! They have a PERFECT to-hit ratio!"

That was common knowledge. What *wasn't*
well known was *why* its record was so
flawless, the reason that the destroyer
had never missed was because it had never
fired a shot at the enemy since Tylor
became captain!

Captain Tylor's opponents were their own worst enemies.
He didn't have to attack them, they did all the work for him.
Once again this point was demonstrated.

"We should run!"

"We should give up!"

"We should kill him! He's only one man with one small
ship! If we stick together we can destroy the Soyokaze!"

"Are you out of your MIND?! I don't want the Raalgon Empire
after my head!! Not to mention W.A.I.T., do you know what those
Amazons do to people that get on their bad side?!"

"Bah, Stay here then you cowards! We'll do it if you're too
afraid to!"

"No! Stop them!! If they anger the Tylor we're all dead meat!!!"

~~~~~~

The astonished observers on the bridge had a front
row seat to the ensuing havoc that broke out.

A fraction of the pirates broke from the rest to attack and
were promptly fired upon by their comrades. The fight that broke
out between the two factions soon ended with most of the ships on
BOTH sides either destroyed or badly damaged.

Kim was the first one to relay the good news.

"Captain, they say that they are the Space Pirates
in this sector! And they want to surrender!!"

"Captain you're a genius!"

First Officer Yamamoto had never doubted him for a minute,
never mind the fact that he'd been about to declare Tylor unfit
for command a minute ago in this situation.

"What'd I do?"

Captain Tylor looked puzzled before deciding to just
smile and go along with it.

White Queen takes Black Knight.

*$*$*$*$*$*

(1) Pulling down the lower eyelid and sticking out the tongue,
a commonly used insult in Anime.

(2) It's a Miracle!

(3) Scary thought isn't it.