Chapter Three
Well, so he was back among the living.
Seiryo Tennan gazed up at his father's imposing estate, a self-satisfied smile twitching at the corner of his mouth as he imagined the reception he was about to receive. Flags flew from the butresses, each depicting the same insignia that was emblazoned across the hilt of his expensive weaponry, and for a moment he just stood there, absorbing the atmosphere.
After ten years away, he was finally back home.
"Seiryo!"
An exclamation came from the front steps of the manor house and he turned, his smile widening as he registered the speaker.
"Suki!" He returned the greeting, holding out his arms and, with a shriek of joy the petite girl ran helter-skelter across the lush Jurai landscape, flinging herself into her older brother's arms.
"Seiryo, Mother told me you were coming home today!" She exclaimed, her eyes shining with excitement. "But I didn't really believe it. I've hardly seen you in so long, you know! You never write more than you need to, and I've missed you so much! It's been dull at home, with Mother always sick and Father...Father away as much as he is."
"You're a young lady." Seiryo held the girl at arm's length, running his gaze over her with a smile. "Seventeen summers, Suki-chan - too old to be racing around like that. What about your Tennan dignity? There will be noblemen lining up for miles to take you down the aisle, you know...you mustn't make them think you're a hooligan."
"Oh, nobody will be marrying me for a while to come." Suki's expression became shadowed for a moment, then she shrugged her shoulders. "It doesn't matter, Seiryo-oniichan. Not now you're home. And besides, Mother needs someone to help her. I mean, there's so much to do."
"What do you mean?" Seriyo frowned, glancing up at the house, then back at his young companion. "Explain yourself, Suki. When I went away you were a little girl with nannies and nursemaids trailing after your every move. Why would you ever have anything to do?"
"It's a long story, brother." Suki sighed, linking her arm in Seiryo's and leading him slowly towards the entrance of the house. "And I can't speak to you about it out here...so come inside. You must be tired, anyway. It's a long trip from Galaxy Police Headquarters."
"It is, but if something is wrong, it's your duty to tell me about it as soon as possible." Seiryo's brows drew together in a frown, as they mounted the white stone steps, entering the house proper. He paused as Suki skipped to shut the door behind them.
"Why are you doing that?" He asked her, confused. "What about the hall staff? And...Suki, where are the tapestries that hung here? The ones of Tsunami and the Tenju tree? Where have they gone?"
"As I said, it's a long story." Suki dusted her hands absently on her gown, shaking her head slowly. "Mother will be glad that you're home, though. She's been asking about you since the sun rose and I didn't know what time your ship would dock."
A cold chill touched Seiryo's heart at this, and he bit his lip, grabbing his sister by the shoulders and meeting her aqua eyes with teal ones of his own.
"Does Father have something to do with this?" He asked softly. Tears glittered in Suki's eyes and she nodded her head.
"Oh Seiryo, it's been so hard to keep it quiet." She whispered, her voice shaking as she leant up against her companion, comforted by his presence. "And I wanted to call you home sooner, but Mother wouldn't hear of it. Of course, with her health the way it is, she doesn't know the worst of it. But you know how Father is...how he likes to invest his money in business enterprises without fully researching them? Well, this time it went more wrong than it normally does. It wouldn't have mattered, Seiryo, but that's not all that's been going on. There was...well..."
She faltered, closing her eyes briefly.
"I don't suppose you need me to explain." She said at length.
Anger seared through Seiryo at the implication in her words and he resisted the urge to grip her more tightly.
"How much did he lose this time?" Somehow he managed to keep his tones level, mindful of his frail mother, probably sleeping above stairs.
Suki spread her hands helplessly.
"I don't know exactly." She admitted. "He won't let me near the finances - he says they're no place for a woman or a child and that I'm both. But bit by bit, tapestries and paintings and pieces of furniture have been disappearing. I know he's sold them to cover the debts, but I don't think it's even been enough. Last month he sacked the whole of our house staff - ostensibly because he suspected several of them had been thieving from the property, and he used the missing paintings as his evidence. But I know that it was just a ruse."
She sighed.
"I'm so glad you're home. He might listen to you." She said sadly. "You know how he is."
Seiryo stood silent for a moment, digesting all of this. Then, finally, he met his sister's gaze once more.
"Does he realise what he's put at stake?" He murmured. "My reputation. Your reputation. Both of our chances to hold high office at court. The Tennan family are one of Jurai's oldest and most well established families. True blood of this planet! Does he have any idea of the shame that he's going to bring down on all of our heads through his indiscreet behaviour?"
"Or already has." Suki looked troubled, taking her brother and leading him through the house to the front salon, indicating for him to sit down on the expensive chaise and taking a seat opposite. "Seiryo, for the last three years he's been trying to marry me off to any rich suitor he can find - hoping that he can bring new money into the family without arousing suspicions. And several of them have been eligible matches. But I don't know how much has been discovered already. All I do know is that none of them accepted the terms of his suit. And well, Mother refuses to let me go. She says she needs someone to be with her - Father never is any more."
Seiryo looked grave.
"I see." He said, in low tones. "So he disgraces her in all of this as well?"
"He has done for a long time, Seiryo-oniichan." Suki buried her head in her hands. "If Jurai got to find out exactly what goes on behind closed doors here..."
She trailed off, sighing.
"But I'm burdening you with so much and you've come home after so long away. I'm sorry." She said, raising her head and facing him bravely. "I'm just so glad to see you. I know that now you're here, everything will be all right."
"Well, I've got a better head for figures and managing this place than Father ever had, which is why he sent me to the Galaxy Police in the first place." Seiryo said bitterly. "I got too close to some of his financial dealings, and he decided to send me to the end of the universe so I was out of his hair. But this is my inheritance and yours too, my sister. I won't see our noble line disgraced. Not after so many milennia of high standing on this planet."
"Will you come to Mother?" Suki asked hopefully. "Seeing you will make her happy, at the very least."
"Yes, I suppose I must." Seiryo nodded his head, getting to his feet. "Is she in her room?"
"These days she rarely leaves it." Suki looked troubled. "She's not well, Seiryo. I don't think she'll see too many more summers, if I'm truthful. The stress of all of this has been horrible on her health, and well, the nurses that cared for her round the clock have been dismissed too. She only has me, and I don't have medical training. I don't have any training, in fact."
She glanced at her hands.
"All I'm good for is to keep house and hope someone takes pity on me eventually." She added bitterly. "Because I have no skills of trade and the way our finances are going, I'm going to have to earn my living before too long."
"I forbid it." Seiryo's eyes narrowed. "Don't even think such things, Suki-chan. I promise, I won't let that happen to you. I will find a way to resolve this. Whatever it takes. I will bring the Tennan family back where they belong."
"I know you will." A faint smile touched Suki's lips. "That's why I'm so glad to see you, big brother."
"So tell me, what else has happened on this planet since I left to grace the Galaxy Police's elite training schemes?" Seiryo asked, as his sister led the way through the winding stairways the house boasted towards the wing that their mother called her own. "Of course, I know all about the business with the Prince Kagato. But other than that? I have been kept well away from Jurai, thanks to Father's meddling...I haven't been able to keep in touch with things as much as I liked. I heard that the Crown Princess finally took a husband, however."
His lip curled in distaste.
"And that it was Takeru Imada that she chose. How I do detest that man."
"It was all arranged by Lord Haru and the wedding was a beautiful occasion." Suki looked wistful. "I should like to have a wedding like that, you know, one day. Ayeka-denka is so very pretty, Seiryo. And Takeru was a very handsome groom. They are both very lucky."
"Luck has nothing to do with it." Seiryo shook his head, his eyes narrowing thoughtfully. "It's more to do with how deep pockets run and how well Takeru's cursed father bends Haru-dono's ear. That's all."
"Seiryo, it's been a long time since you and he were school-children together." Suki chided gently. "He's an older man now, and so are you. You are accomplished, well-travelled and the toast of the Galaxy Police Academy. I know that, because Mother had word from the Commander himself about your progress and your skill. Takeru has been nowhere and done nothing. You should be happy at least that you have accomplishments to your name. You're not just a trinket around a Princess's finger."
"True enough." Seiryo sent his companion an affectionate grin. "You always know how to soften the blow, don't you, Suki-chan? But you know as well as I do that I was meant to be Ayeka-denka's consort. Had Father not managed to put himself on the wrong side of Haru-dono and his family at the time, and had I not been sent away, I might be so now. And our financial troubles would not be anything at all - because I could provide for you and for Mother without anyone batting an eyelid."
"Father is proud. He would never have backed down." Suki said softly. "And besides, Seiryo-oniichan, would you really have liked all of that power?"
"Of course." Seiryo drew himself up to his full height. "What true nobleman of Jurai would not?"
"Then we are both to be disappointed in marriage." Suki said philosophically. "At least you have your Galaxy Police contacts and training, should you ever need them. It's more than I have. Speaking six languages and being able to draw, sew and play music isn't going to get me very far when the hammer does fall."
She paused as they reached a huge oaken door, putting a finger to her lips.
"But shh. Like I said, Mother doesn't know the half of this, and in her state of health, I would rather she didn't hear it."
"Understood." Seiryo said grimly. "It's all right, Suki-chan. If you don't mind, I'd like a moment or two alone with my mother."
"Of course." Suki bowed her head. "I'll go make some tea, for when you come down."
Seiryo watched her leave, noting as he did so that the gown she wore had the starts of a frayed hem, and anger coursed through him once more. He clenched his fists, taking a deep breath to calm himself down.
"It wouldn't do to appear that way in front of Mother, although I swear that I'm going to get the truth from Father or he'll be the worst for it." He muttered. "I will not have my family so disgraced...not in front of the whole court of Jurai and especially not in front of Takeru and his insufferable claim to the Jurai throne!"
He took another deep breath, then pushed open the door, stepping into the bed-chamber.
It was brightly lit, with fresh flowers adorning every surface, and as he crossed the soft floor, he heard a faint voice call his name. Turning, a gentle smile touched his lips as he recognised the frail form in the bed, pale and feeble but still able to hold out her arms to him as he approached her. He hurried to take her hands in his, squeezing them tightly as he sat down at the bedside.
"Okaa-san." He murmured. "It is good to see you again."
"My son." Tears glistened in Kaede Tennan's soft teal eyes. "Oh, look at you. Seiryo-chan, what a man you have become."
"Oh, Mother." Seiryo shook his head, amusement in his eyes. "Did you ever have any doubt I'd be anything else?"
"No, never." Kaede raised delicate white fingers to touch his cheek. "But I am glad to see you. I have been waiting for you for so long, you know. I was so afraid I wouldn't see you again."
"Mother, I would always have come back."
"I know that, but whether you would have been in time..." Kaede sighed. "I'm weaker, Seiryo, and I don't know how much time I have left. But seeing you gives me new strength. Perhaps there is life in me yet."
"By Tsunami's grace." Seiryo agreed gravely. Kaede looked surprised.
"I've never heard you invoke the Goddess's name before, Seiryo." She said softly. "I thought you had no faith in such things?"
"I don't." Seiryo shook his head. "But I know you do, and I know when to humour my mother."
Kaede laughed.
"You do make me feel better." She murmured. "Have you spoken to your father yet, Seiryo-chan?"
"No." Seiryo fought to keep the rising anger out of his voice, turning to glance out across the room. "No, Suki let me in. Father is away from home, so she told me."
"Yes...he is often that, these days. More and more of late." Kaede's smile faded, and her expression became troubled. "Suki doesn't tell me everything, but I have eyes and ears and I know Seiji better than anyone. There is much wrong, Seiryo...and it troubles me."
"You have nothing to trouble yourself about, Okaa-chan." Seiryo told her quietly. "Not now I'm home. I'll bring together all the loose ends and everything will be fine. I promise."
"I have great faith in you." Kaede nodded her head slightly. "And I know you will take care of Suki, also, if ever the need arises. Yes, Seiryo. I'm glad to have you finally back on Jurai."
"It's strange to be back." Seiryo mused. "Suki is such a lady now - not the little girl of seven that I remember, with her hair in two thick plaits. She has become so pretty...I'm amazed nobody has secured her hand yet. They must all be mad."
Kaede did not reply, and Seiryo frowned.
"Something else I need to know?"
"Your Father's business has hindered your sister's progress in society." Kaede said at length. "He has made many bad choices recently. The other day I overheard him arguing with someone - a business acquaintance or something, I think, but it kept me from my sleep. I know that so long as this continues, it can't be long before our family resources are exhausted and our good name is destroyed. It worries me a lot, Seiryo...to leave you and Suki in the middle of such a mess, and Suki being so young yet. You at least can take care of yourself."
"And if Father continues to make bad choices, the situation will only become worse, is that what you're saying?" Seiryo's eyes narrowed. Kaede's expression became thoughtful.
"You are still as smart as ever you were." She murmured. "I would not discuss this before Suki, because she would not understand. But I will speak plainly to you, my son. After all, this house and all of its problems will be yours to resolve, whatever happens."
"Then speak your mind." Seiryo said softly. "I'm listening."
"I am a dying woman, we both know that. Every summer I see is a victory, but it cannot go on forever." Kaede said matter-of-factly. "It has been five years or more since your father shared my bed or even came to see me on a regular basis. We are strangers - ships in the night - and it pains me. But the destruction of our family pains me more. He was your Grandfather's only son, and when I married him, I believed I was marrying a man in the same mould - but that was not the case. You, my boy, are far more like your Grandfather than your father ever has been. You are determined, decisive...and I believe ruthless, if something you care about is at stake."
Seiryo's brows knitted together.
"Go on." He said quietly. "What would you have me do?"
Kaede met his gaze with opaque teal eyes.
"Resolve the problem." She said simply. "And if reasoning does not work...well, then you must find another, more permanent solution. Before Seiji destroys this family once and for all!"
-----------------
The Science Academy was alive with people as Dr Clay drew his spaceship into one of the many docking bays, pausing for a moment to check his calculations, then ensuring that the craft's ident was scrambled beyond recognition. He sat back from his console with a sigh, rubbing his temples as he ran over in his mind his conversation with the Lady Tokimi.
"I don't know how we're supposed to find out any more than we already have done, Zero, but what the Lady wants, the Lady must have." he said aloud, and from a dark corner of the ship, the vessel's only other occupant raised her head, meeting his gaze with soulless blue eyes.
"Have we reached our destination, Dr Clay?" She asked, her voice flat and emotionless as she got to her feet, moving slowly to join him. "Processing coordinates - I believe we are at the Science Academy."
"We are." Clay nodded his head, pausing to scrutinise his companion carefully. "And you have already adopted your disguise. That's good work, Zero. It will save us time, and time isn't something we have very much of. The Lady Tokimi is not a patient woman, and I don't want to keep her waiting."
"I understand, Dr Clay." Zero nodded her head, standing erect before him as he moved to adjust her hair, squinting as he straightened her uniform. "I know what my mission entails."
"Tell me your name." Clay stood back, eying her expectantly.
"I am Dr Manami Kurashida." Zero altered the inflection of her voice, casting the scientist a slight, painstakingly perfected smile. "I am an expert in the field of magicology, with special interest in the history and magic of the planet Jurai. I have been on a long sojourn in Deep Space, studying many sites for evidence about Tsunami-kami-sama and the Light Hawk Wings. I was once a colleague of Kichi Itokawa and worked in the department of Professor Washu Hakubi. Now I have returned to the Science Academy to collate my papers and to search the Database for any further information I may have overlooked."
"Good girl." Clay let out a low chuckle. "You know, you are without a doubt one of my most successful creations. You could be Manami herself, if I didn't know that you were not."
"Manami Kurashida is dead." Zero spoke flatly, turning blank eyes on her companion. "Therefore that is not logical, Dr Clay."
"True." Clay's expression became thoughtful. "But she has been away from the Academy for a long time, and you do look exactly like her. It's a pity she didn't give up more information about her files willingly. Lady Tokimi was very angry with her - but she calmed down when I told her I had another solution."
He patted the droid on the shoulder.
"Retrieve every file authored by Manami Kurashida on the subject of the Light Hawk Wings." He said softly. "Your duplication is exact, so you have the correct DNA, thumbprint and retina scan to access everything you should need to."
He rummaged in his pocket, pulling out a Science Academy hall pass.
"And this." He added, holding it out. "Kurashida-san's pass. It took time to get the blood off of it, so don't lose it."
"I do not lose things." Zero took it, slipping it automatically into the belt of her uniform. "I will do as you say, Dr Clay."
"See that you do." Clay pursed his lips. "Because this is only a pit stop. We still have to find a way to discover more about this Masaki boy...and if we're going to find out about the fight with Kagato, I'm going to have to find a way to get through Jurai's defences as well."
"Yes, Doctor." Zero nodded her head. "I understand. I will not waste time - be assured that I will return momentarily."
With that she blurred out of view, and as Clay moved to the perspex of his craft, he could make out her form among the busy students, academics and researchers, blending into the background as if she had always been there. A slow smile touched his lips, and he clenched his fists in triumph.
"When we couldn't break Kurashida-san down on the subject of the Light Hawk Wings and the work Washu Hakubi did in that area, I was afraid we'd hit another wall." He said softly. "Scientists are so unwilling to discuss their experiments, and more reluctant to betray fellow colleagues in the process. But even when I was an Academy member, I remember Manami working on a paper about the Light Hawk Wings and matter transformation. It's a hazy memory, but something to be going on with. After all, Tokimi-sama has forbidden me to touch Washu yet...much as I am longing to get my claws into her and interrogate her about all manner of things. Rifling through her files is never easy at the best of times, and I don't want to make her suspicious. But noone will miss another lone wolf scientist, missing for centuries in Deep Space anyway. Zero will access everything belonging to her, and then with any luck I'll know what we're dealing with a little better by the time we bring the Earth into the equation."
His eyes narrowed.
"After all, Washu's presence there seems to be more than occasional." He muttered. "And I'd rather know as much as possible before I end up in another battle of wits with that woman. Whatever Tokimi-sama's reasons for preserving her so far, I have my own scores to settle with Professor Washu Hakubi."