Chapter 1

"Mihoshi!"

She ran headlong out of the front door almost slipping out of her sandals several times as she made the sprint out across the dock. How long had it been since she had seen her? At least a year. Sasami had been expecting her arrival, but still she couldn't help it if a few tears welled up at the sight of her old friend.

"Sasami, wow! You've grown so much!" She was right. Sasami was almost sixteen years old. She had a handful of months to go to her birthday, but she had matured enough to make any half minded male take a second look. Her features were growing steadily more striking and it was clear who she was slowly beginning to look like. Sasami no longer wore her hair in long pigtails but let it flow freely behind her. She was beautiful, and it took Mihoshi a few seconds to take it in.

"What's wrong?" Sasami said. Mihoshi had been staring at her for a while now.

"It's just…you've changed so much, Sasami, I can't believe it." With that, Mihoshi dropped her luggage and embraced the princess of Jurai. "Oh, Sasami, it's so good to see you."

"It's good to see you too," she said with tears of joy. "I can't believe you didn't crash your ship!" Mihoshi let out an awkward laugh. It was true. Somehow the scatterbrained detective had managed to land her ship without adding an extension to the lake.

"Ha ha…yeah, well, my superior's have been making me practice a lot since I almost took out headquarters last time I came in for a report."

"Well, come on, I'm sure Grandfather will be really happy to see you. He's inside with Ryoko." Sasami bent to help Mihoshi with her luggage.

"Ryoko's here too? This is quite a reunion," Mihoshi said although she didn't look as excited as she sounded.

"Yeah, she kind of just showed up. It's been really good to see her and Ryo-ohki." The two girls began heading towards the house. The setting sun cast a welcoming glow that Mihoshi hadn't seen in a long time. Earth's sunsets were unlike any other planet, full of a hue that seemed to stretch around everything and slow down time. There was nothing even close to it anywhere else in the galaxy. Mihoshi felt warmth return inside of her that space in all its emptiness had begun to take away. She paused a second before walking over the threshold to the house. She wanted to savor the moment.

"Just put your stuff in the room you usually sleep in. I've got to go and finish dinner," Sasami said. "I hope Ryo-ohki hasn't burned anything." Not much had changed. The house looked the same, but there was a slight emptiness to it all. There were no shouts, no ricochets or explosions, just a simple silence. Mihoshi stepped around the corner to her room. Ryoko appeared out of nowhere and almost made her jump out of her skin.

"Hey, Mihoshi. Don't look so excited to see me," Ryoko said with her familiar, half-sarcastic tone.

"Sorry, Ryoko. You startled me. How…how are you? You look well."

"I've been doing alright. Can't complain. I've been staying out of the Galaxy Police's hair; you should thank me."

"Yeah, your criminal record hasn't been activated since you attacked Jurai, but…"

"Come on," Ryoko interrupted. She glided over to Mihoshi and pulled one of the suitcases out of her hand and placed it on the bed. "We don't need to talk about that…" She floated up and perched herself on top of the dresser. "It is good to see you again, Mihoshi."

"I'm sorry Ryoko. You're right. It is good to see you." Although her tone wavered, Mihishi's smile showed her sincerity. They were two old friends that had certainly been through a lot together and could be allowed to enjoy a reunion.

"I'll bet they're working you pretty hard at Headquarters," Ryoko said. Her yellow eyes followed Mihoshi around the room as she unpacked what looked like enough luggage to clothe a small army.

"Yes, you're absolutely right! I've been working nonstop the last few months. Doing paper work, patrolling high-risk areas, tracking galaxy offenders. I can't believe my commander let me off for a whole week! But if he hadn't I don't think I could have lasted much longer."

"Sounds awful," Ryoko said, half meaning it. Sympathy wasn't one of her character traits.

"It is. Hey, that reminds me. Why did you come here anyway? Sasami didn't mention it when she talked to me a month ago." Ryoko slid off of the dresser that was rapidly filling with clothing and moved to whispering distance from Mihoshi.

"You know exactly why I'm here." Mihoshi brought her finger to her chin as she strained a bit too hard with thought.

"Well, Tenchi's not here, so that's not it. Is it because you're just lonely? I get lonely in space sometimes. I mean Yukinojo isn't exactly company all the time when he's pestering about the mission and protocol and procedure…"

"No, you blockhead, well not exactly. It's Sasami."

"Do you miss Sasami? Ow! That hurt!" Ryoko was forced to hit Mihoshi this time.

"Sasami is almost old enough, Mihoshi. Use your head. I came to make sure everything goes OK." Mihoshi stopped rubbing her head long enough for a sentient thought to make it out of her subconscious.

"Oh, you mean…Tsunami. I almost completely forgot. Hey! That's why she looks so different. She's almost old enough to completely fuse."

"Shh, not so loud. I'm sure Sasami's pretty sensitive about it. She's a lot more reserved than she used to be."

"Have you talked to Tenchi's honorable grandfather about it yet?"

"No, not yet. I just got here last night and he's been at the shrine all this time. I wish I could talk to Washu, but the closet still doesn't work and she's blocking my mind as well. She's been holed up in her lab for years now. Tenchi hasn't even seen her."

"How strange. Do you know why?"

"Hey Mihoshi, Ryoko," Sasami yelled from the kitchen. "Dinner's ready!"

"Coming!" said Ryoko. "Remember, Mihoshi, try not to mention Tsunami to her."

"Right, I won't."

XXX

In all the years that the Misaki family had owned the land in the mountains, the shrine had not changed. Not even since Katsuhito's mother, Funaho, had worked and played here as a child. Katsuhito always thought that time moved more slowly up here away from the house. It was as though the gods had placed a shield around the buildings and courtyard isolating it from the rest of the universe. It was here his thoughts had free range to mull around the many lines of poetry composed by Zen masters of the ancient past.

Yet, so much had changed around the shrine. So much had happened. He had witnessed his grandson grow into a man and face great adversity. He had watched as an unnamable power awoke inside of Tenchi. He had been there at the shrine when Ayeka's reborn ship, Ryuoh, had taken Tenchi away to Jurai to assume his place on the throne. Ayeka was his queen by title, but Katsuhito knew that Tenchi would never choose between the girls that had been such a great part of his life. He loved Ayeka, but it was a love he shared with Ryoko, Sasami, Ryo-ohki, Washu, and Mihoshi as well.

Katsuhito could not help but smile at this. How had his awkward and arguably useless grandson ended up in the middle of six beautiful girls? He slowly closed the book of Buddhist poetry and began to shut the shrine down for the evening. The sun was quickly setting, and soon it would be dark enough to make the stairs down to the house a treacherous endeavor. He felt the warmth of the red sun hit his back as he turned to close the door to the shrine office. It sent a slight chill running down the length of his body and reminded him why he had decided to remain on earth.

He was looking forward to seeing Ryoko and Mihoshi again, although he hadn't necessarily been very close to either of them. Katsuhito had left that up to Tenchi. Sasami, however, was an entirely different matter. He had grown quite close to the young Jurai princess. It touched his heart that she had decided to remain on Earth because she was afraid he would grow lonely when everyone left, but he knew that wasn't the real reason Sasami hadn't gone to Jurai with her sister. She was scarred. She knew that there was something inside of her that she didn't understand, and she was afraid of it. Ayeka wouldn't be much help to her. She was too caught up in the time consuming affair of being the queen of Jurai. Tenchi was probably another reason she remained on Earth. Although Sasami would never admit it, her feelings for Tenchi had grown quite strong over the years, and if she were to watch him with play consort with Ayeka day in and day out, it wouldn't be long before her heart was broken.

Katsuhito was glad Ryoko had come. He was beginning to feel as old as his appearance made him look with the gems so far away. It wasn't until his mother had visited that he realized his life had been sustained by his ship, Funaho, only because the gems were feeding it power. As soon as Ryo-ohki had touched down, a familiar strength welled up in him again. But that wasn't the only reason. Sasami had been showing an unusual amount of power that could only be attributed to approaching time of fusion with the goddess Tsunami. Ryoko was knowledgeable of this kind of power and would be able to offer her a perspective that Katsuhito could not.

Sasami's changing behavior was unnerving, but it had its positives. She had actually begun training with Katsuhito as Tenchi had done when he was Sasami's age, and believe it or not, she was actually a bit more proficient than Tenchi. Her progress was slow since she was only able to practice on the weekends, and Katsuhito chose not to push her as hard as his grandson, but it certainly was nice to swing a sword again. Sometimes his hands ached for the practice boken if only to prove he wasn't as old as he looked.

Sasami had been attending a high school in the surrounding area, but Katsuhito thought of it only as something for her to do. Her education as a young child on Jurai was enough to cover the high school curriculum several times over, but it wasn't always exciting at the shrine and he had hoped Sasami would make several friends. But as far as he could tell, she had none. It wasn't like her to be so introverted. It had only been in the past several years that she had begun to become this way. This was a constant source of worry for Katsuhito, and this was why he was glad that Sasami finally had a few friends show up even if they were both from outer space.

Katsuhito almost tripped as his foot hit the flat ground at the foot of the stairs that led down from the shrine. He had been so preoccupied with his thoughts that he had lost focus and had reached the bottom a bit sooner than expected. He could already smell aromas from Sasami's gourmet cooking rising from the house. A slow rumble in his stomach reminded him how hungry he actually was. If no one brought him any food in the shrine when he stayed for several days, sometimes he would go without it.

"Grandfather!" Sasami exclaimed when Katsuhito walked in the door. She got up and gave him a tight hug, her usual greeting when he showed up after several days in the mountains. However this time Ryo-ohki was perched atop her head making her look several years younger. It was strange seeing the cabbit there without the two pigtails that she usually sat between.

"Now, now, no need to get up," he said with a smile. She seemed so innocent sometimes. "I see we have guests."

"Yes, Tenchi's Honorable Grandfather," said Mihoshi. "Thank you for letting me stay here. I am in your debt." Ryoko gave him a half nod with a mouthful of rice.

"Ryoko!" Sasami said, "I told you not to start yet."

"Sorry, I was just so hungry."

"It's OK," said Katsuhito, "I can understand. Sasami is a wonderful cook. Well, don't let me keep you waiting any longer."

It wasn't long before the conversation was like the way it used to be during dinner at the Misaki residence. Katsuhito saw a smile on Sasami's face that he hadn't seen in quite a while as she caught up with Mihoshi's detective duties and Ryoko and Ryo-oki's space travels. Perhaps everything was going to be alright after all.

XXX

"Aproaching colonized planet 0315, Earth." The computer terminal snapped the boy out of a daze making him bump his knee against the underside of the consol.

"Ow, dammit! I wish you wouldn't do that." He rubbed it to try and push the pain out. If he was honest with himself, though, the physical pain was a nice break from his emotional torment. "Can I breathe on it?"

"Yes sir. Oxygen density is at 19. Other gasses include nitrogen, hydrogen, trace amounts of fluorine…"

"OK, OK, I got it. Bring it up on the screen." A blue sphere halfway covered with white clouds appeared three feet in front of the cockpit. It was a quiet planet. The computer identified several satellites, but there were almost no military ones. This planet had not tasted the chaos that the cosmos can wreak upon galaxies. He had thought that his home planet was the same way—untouchable by the galaxies that moved around it. But he was wrong. Unconsciously, he clutched the crystal shard that hung around his neck. "That'll be a fine place to die."

"I'm sorry sir?"

"Don't worry about it. Have you found a suitable entry point?"

"There are no landing beacons on this planet. I have detected a region whose native language is very similar to Galactic 8."

"That's a Jurai language. Who colonized this planet?"

"I am afraid that information is classified, and a hack of the International Library is impossible in this region of space. In other words, there is no way to know for sure if the House of Jurai holds a lease on this planet, although the legislative protection surrounding it is suspicious." He had no intention of getting involved with the House of Jurai, but he didn't have much of a choice. His ship was running low on fuel, and there was no way he would be able to make it to another colonized planet. He knew if he landed, there would be no way he would be able to take off. This planet wouldn't have the resources to refuel his ship for the next 500 years. But he didn't care. He had lost everything, and loosing his ability to pilot the stars was nothing compared to all his heart and soul had gone through. He noticed that he was still clutching his necklace.

"Computer, direct our course to land 2,000 meters offshore of the suspected area. I don't won't a tussle with galactic, but at least I be able to communicate."

"Affirmative. Estimated time of arrival in twenty six minutes."

"Take us down slow, computer. You were hit pretty hard last time and I'm afraid some of your calculations might be off."

"Yes, sir."

There was something he was tempted to do. Lying beneath the sword hanging on the wall was his mask. This was not his father's; it was his. He had carved it with his own two hands. He knew if he put it on and looked at the planet he would see things he did not want to see. Reminders of duties he had long forsaken.

"I'll find out soon enough."

XXX

It felt good to back on earth. Ryoko hadn't been on the planet in over five years. She had spent her time wandering among the stars seeing things again without the hate of Kagato in her. She had stayed away from Jurai for the most part. Her feelings for Tenchi hadn't changed, but somehow every time she visited the royal star system, it brought more pain than love. It was hard seeing Tenchi with Ayeka, even if their marriage was only a formal one to give Tenchi credit to inherit the throne. He had changed. The light that was once in his eyes was fading under the yoke of responsibility. Ayeka had changed too. She no longer responded to Ryoko's taunts but hid herself under a mask of assumed royalty. Ryoko had confidence that Tenchi would one day assume the throne of Jurai, but that was certainly taking its toll. It was lonely in space. Ryo-ohki was good company most of the time, but her thoughts often wandered back to Earth and dwelt upon the times that she had spent there.

Her eyes took in the beauty as she walked the familiar stairs up to the Masaki shrine. Mihoshi had said that Sasami was up here somewhere practicing with Katsuhito. Ryoko could hardly believe that the young Sasami she knew was training in the ancient art form of the knights of Jurai. We've all changed so much, Ryoko thought, even Mihoshi. The galaxy police officer actually did her job well almost eliminating the blunders she normally fell into. Mihoshi said she had to make a routine communication with headquarters, and Ryoko was happy to make the walk up to the shrine alone.

She heard the faint clack, clack of the wooden boken up ahead. Katsuhito had mentioned that Sasami was becoming proficient in her training. Ryoko hoped she would have the chance to see for herself how good the Jurai princess had become. Through the trees she could see Katsuhito leaning on his practice sword watching as his new apprenticed practiced. It was a drill Ryoko had seen Tenchi do many times. A small wooden log hung suspended from a rope tied to an overhanging tree branch. Smaller logs were wedged into the ground and the trainee had to hop from one to another and knock the hanging target as many times as possible. It was a drill that focused on improving both the accuracy of the trainee as well as their footwork. Tenchi had come home limping from this drill many times. However, Sasami hadn't fallen once, it seemed.

"Well, I'll be damned." She was certainly fast. Her feet barely touched the ground as she skipped from one foot hold to another sending the target log flying every time there was a resounding clack. She sat on the rock she used to sit on when she watched Tenchi practice. The nostalgia of the moment almost overwhelmed her. Eight long years, she thought. Too long.

"That's enough, Sasami," Katsuhito said. The princess stepped down from the sticks embedded in the earth and wiped her forehead with her sleeves. She was even wearing the traditional training gi. Her hair was pulled back behind her in a loose bun that made her look several years older than she really was. Ryoko still couldn't believe that she was holding the practice sword, much less training with it. "Let's try a light spar for a while, and we'll call it a day."

"Hey Ryoko," Sasami said catching her breath. "So what do you think?" Ryoko stood from the rock and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"You're pretty good princess." Ryoko walked over to where the practice swords lay and felt its weight in her right hand. A bit heavier than her beam sword, but she gave it a slice through the air and liked the way the weight felt in her palm. "Do you mind if I step in, sensei?" Katsuhito gave an sly sort of smile.

"Go right ahead, but don't blame me if you get hurt."

"We'll see about that. Don't hold back, Sasami. I want to see if you're as good as everyone says you are."

"Don't hold back either, Ryoko." With that, Sasami ran forward full tilt and met Ryoko's boken before she had time to dodge. Sasami gave a quick pull on her boken and trapped Ryoko's in her down cut. With a flick of her wrist, the young girl sent a slashing stroke at Ryoko who barely had enough time to dodge. The boken swished through the space pirate's hair.

"That was fast," Ryoko said under her breath. She barely had time to speak when Sasami's boken began raining down on her in a series of blows. Ryoko blocked the attacks and was surprised to feel that her hands were starting to smart from the barrage. She took several steps back to give her a break to attack.

"Stay on your feet Sasami," Katsuhito said. "Don't let her take the offensive." Ryoko put all she had in her next strike and felt her boken splinter a bit as Sasami blocked it and rolled underneath Ryoko's attack. She then sent her sword straight up towards Ryoko's chin who moved back in enough time to evade the attack.

"I don't think I ever taught her that," whispered Katsuhito. Ryoko found herself panting from the attack. How could this young girl be so fast? She was rapidly gaining ground on Ryoko who was obviously out of practice having spent her last eight years wandering around space. Clack, clack! Ryoko was loosing ground. It wouldn't be long before the young girl would have an opening that Ryoko wouldn't be able to dodge. But there was something behind those blows that seemed inhuman. Sasami spun around and met Ryoko's boken full on. It was then Ryoko saw something she hadn't noticed before. There was a slight glow coming off of her forehead where her Jurai royal mark stood. The two triangles that were normally so close together now had spread apart into two dots that shimmered with a delicate brilliance.

"Gotchya!" Sasami yelled as she sent her boken in for the killing blow. Suddenly a great rush of energy whirled out of Ryoko's other hand a red beam of light sliced Sasami's boken in two. The severed end came to a crash at their feet.

"Hey! You cheated!" Sasami said with a smile on her face. Ryoko opened her hand and her beam sword dissipated into thin air.

"Yeah, I know. But I couldn't just let you beat me. Now how would that look?" Sasami laughed and gave a small bow ending the sparring match. They were both breathing hard. Though it had looked like a one sided battle, Sasami couldn't help but wonder if Ryoko had held back.

"You might have won, Sasami, but you weren't using your speed to your full advantage. Don't forget that you're a much smaller target than Ryoko."

"I don't know, Grandfather," Ryoko said taking a seat on her rock. "She seemed to be moving pretty fast to me." Sasami began to pick up the practice swords as she usually did after her lesson was over.

"Sasami, why don't you take those back to the shrine? I want to have a word with Ryoko." Sasami gave another short bow and walked around the corner to the shrine courtyard. Katsuhito stood in silence for a few moments to make sure she had moved out of ear shot.

"That gem in your wrist is fake, isn't it, Ryoko." Katsuhito leaned back against a tree and let his words sink in. Ryoko's eyes widened in surprise, but it only took a moment to recollect herself.

"You're still pretty sharp, old man. Yeah, it's a fake one. The gem that I usually wear is with Ryo-ohki. I guess I just didn't feel like I needed it too much anymore, and wearing it all the time sometimes makes it hard to control my…feelings."

"For Tenchi?"

"Watch it, Grandpa!" Ryoko balled her hand into a fist, but it had no effect on Katsuhito. He wore his wry smile as always. Ryoko let her temper fade out of her as she sat back down on the rock. "It's Tsunami, isn't it? Sasami couldn't have done that on her own."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. It's nice that she wants to keep her grandfather company by training with me, but I am worried. She's getting stronger."

"It's not that big of a deal," Ryoko said waving her hand through the air. "You knew this day would come. She even knew it. Sasami's had to deal with the reality of fusing with Tsunami most of her life." Katsuhito moved away from the tree and began to pace around the practice clearing.

"That's not what's bothering me. Sasami shouldn't have to go through this alone. I have been trying to reach my grandson, and I was lucky I was able to get a hold of you. If Funaho and Ryo-ohki hadn't been in such close contact all of these years I never would have found you. And I am afraid that Tenchi has become too busy to remember Sasami when she needs him most. There are times I wonder if she shares the same feelings for my grandson that you do." He didn't have to wonder. Ryoko knew it was true, but she didn't feel the same bitterness that she felt towards Ayeka for liking Tenchi. She almost pitied Sasami. Alone: they had all been so alone through all these years.

"You need to talk with her Ryoko, and it isn't necessarily wise to be out of contact with your only gem. Sasami is sure to draw some attention in these next few months."

"Don't worry, I'll talk to her," Ryoko said. She got up and started walking out of the clearing. She clenched her fist again and felt the feeble pulse of energy flow out of the fake gem. Katsuhito might be right.

XXX

"Dammit! You're coming in way too fast!" A series of alarms erupted across the screen of the helm aboard the mysterious spacecraft that was now plunging through Earth's atmosphere at supersonic speeds. "I new your terminals got a bit foggy in our last jam. If only those torpedoes hadn't targeted your main processor." The boy was referring to a slight brush with space pirates in a star system about 500 light years away.

"This does not compute. I don't see any interference in my systems. It is your piloting that has caused this error."

"I haven't even touched the controls! Stupid hunk of sheet metal…"

"There is no sheet metal in my design schematics."

"You sure about that?" He slumped back into the bucket seat in the middle of the bridge, rubbing his forehead as he slid further down. "Crap, it's just simple planetary landing. Everything just keeps getting complicated." He lifted his head from his hands, and looked directly into the computer terminal that showed his all too speedy decent into the surrounding oceans of the target. "Computer, give me manual control. I won't be able to change our course, but at least I can lessen the damage on impact. Your processors aren't going to help any further."

"Affirmative." Two handles slid out from underneath the terminal and toward the boy. He slipped his hands into them and felt the braces tighten around his wrists as control of the ship was left to him. A series of braces also moved around his hips and legs. They were used to supplement his piloting and would be necessary in a precision move like this. Normally there was an eye piece that the pilot of this class of ship wore, but it was designed to help with high speed maneuvers and would only get in the way.

"Here goes nothing." He pulled back with both of his hands as hard as he could. The braces made a slight shink sound at the pressure he applied. Outside the ship, a series of flanges extended from the rear of the ship to move perpendicular with the hull. The boy watched on the screen as red, hot air rushed by them leaving a piercing brilliance. The ship was pretty incredible, and he was grateful that his father had left it to him. The flanges made it one of most maneuverable ships in the galaxy. If a capable pilot was at the helm, the ship was almost impossible to hit. Hey never understood why a personality type interface had been programmed into it. The computer's personality programs always just got in the way.

It was an old ship that had been passed down through his family for many years as well as the knowledge to fly it. The hand and body motions used in the braces were almost like a dance that one had to do in order to control it. It was a beautiful thing that his father had always respected, but he never had really gotten into.

"Damn, were moving way too fast." He glanced over at the stress readings of the flanges he was currently using to brake the ship with. They were within acceptable limits, but he needed something more. It wasn't going to be enough to slow them enough for impact with the sea. "Prepare thrusters two through four, computer."

"I'm sorry sir, but I was under the impression we were slowing down."

"Don't back talk me, just do it!" he yelled. Gritting his teeth, he threw the weight of his arms in a half circle. Half of the flanges around the ship folded back into the ship's hull, and he felt the ship lurch wildly as the nose ripped around to face back out into the stars. He shoved the braces back into their original braked position and screamed out "NOW!" to the computer. His back was thrown into the back of the bucket seat with the force from the main thrusters. His hands moved rapidly back in forth in the braces trying to steady the ship as the burn continued. "One…two….three," he counted watching his speed decreasing on the terminal screen. "Seven…eight…enough! Disengage boosters, computer!" The thrusters went silent, but the alarms will still screaming at him. He whirled his arms again and the ship did an about face and pointed directly at the sea.

"Brace for impact, sir." He closed his eyes, the last picture in his head the shot of the sea extending out to all horizons. The ship crashed into the water with a force that he thought would tear him in two. All of the visual screens went blank with static. The belts tied to his chest dug deep into his skin, straining to hold his body to the seat. Then, as quickly as it all had started, it was over. The screens came back on and showed a group of far off orca floating through the water as if nothing had happened. The boy slumped back into the captain's seat and wiped sweat off of his brow.

"Good grief. That was a bit much." He unsnapped the seatbelts and pulled himself out of the bucket seat. His legs were a bit shaky, and he almost fell as he tried to stand on them. "Computer, what's the damage report?"

"Extent of damage is minor. A successful landing, although unfortunately we are over four hundred kilometers off from our original point of landing."

"Four hundred kilometers? There's no way!"

"Check for yourself, sir." The viewing screen zoomed out and showed his ship, a tiny dot in the middle of nowhere, compared to the mainland that had been their original target. The line between the two points read 425.23 km.

"You've got to be kidding! I can't believe this. Now I'm going to have to fly all the way to the mainland."

"So much for relying on their marine transportation, as originally planned."

"So much for relying on any transportation at all," he said under his breath.

"You know that I heard that." He shrugged and began pacing around the bridge trying to come up with a plausible solution.

"OK, there's no way I'm risking flying you over some backwater island in the middle of the most remote corner of the galaxy. The locals would flip."

"There is evidence that they have aircraft, I detected several during our decent. Therefore, it would be possible fort you to take the emergency skiff to reach the mainland without arousing too much suspicion."

"The skiff? But it isn't designed for atmospheric conditions."

"I could bring it up to specifications."

"Normally I would trust you, but I doubt your abilities at the moment computer. That landing was way off, you can't deny that."

"True, I am detecting a slight amount of corrosive data in my navigational computers, but this shouldn't have a negative effect on my maintanence and technological capabilities. And also, I don't believe you have a choice, sir." He stopped pacing and let a sigh escape through his lips. It was write, he didn't have a choice. His supplies were way to low to even think about remaining on the ship for an extended period of time. Now that he thought about it, he realized that with his ship's navigational computer down, he was grounded. There was no way off of this rock unless by some struck of divine luck there turned up a mechanic on Earth that new how to repair a Class F Quantum Computer.

"All right, go ahead," he said. He noticed that his fist was clenched. He didn't remember tightening it or getting overly angry, although he always hated being helpless. Perhaps that was it. It been a long time since that fated day he inherited his father's ship and sword, and that whole time from then to now he had been the same way—helpless.

"I will have the skiff ready by 0900." He nodded once and made his way to the doorway that led from the bridge to the innards of the ship. Guess I'll start packing, he thought.

XXX

Sasami

The young princess tossed and turned in her sleep. Dreams filtered in and out of her restless sleep. Visions dark and ominous haunted her. It was a void that had taken her mind night after night.

"Tsu…nami…" she whispered in the dark. Her sheets were twisted around her as she lay sweating on the mattress. A form began to appear in the darkness of her dreams. It was as if he was stepping through a pool of water that engulfed everything. Her eyes caught the sting of salt in the dream, salt that mingled with water all around her.

Sasami, don't refuse me.

The boy drew closer. He was holding his side and blood slowly dripped from an open wound that he clutched beneath his clothes.

"Tsunami…please." She felt helpless. The water surged around him mixing with his blood and pain. "Help him," she gasped pulling the sheets in a spiral around her. Ryo-ohki, who lay sleeping beside her, jumped awake. The cabbit looked around and spotted Sasami almost gasping for breath. Her eyes were shut tight, and the insignia on her forehead glowed with a subtle brilliance that filled the room with an almost ominous light. Ryo-ohki sensed someone else in the room, a powerful presence that made her stay still in awe.

The boy in the dream hunched over, and though Sasami could not hear it, she felt the boy groan in pain. She tried to reach out but only caught darkness with her hand.

"Tsunami!" Sasami shouted rocketing out of the dream. The images faded in her mind and sat up to Ryo-ohki hissing at her side. The cabbit collected herself and hopped into Sasami's lap, purring gently. Her hand slowly moved to her forehead, and she felt a faint heat coming off of it.

"It's OK, Ryo-ohki, it was just a dream." The cabbit was still shaking slightly in Sasami's hands. "What's gotten you so startled? I'll be alright." Ryo-ohki pawed at her nightgown a few times before finally settling into Sasami's lap. She heard faint footsteps at her bedroom door.

"Sasami?" came a muffled voice from the other side. It was Mihoshi, and there was more than a trace of concern in her voice. "Are you OK? Can I come in?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Sasami said faking a smile as the door slid open. Mihoshi wore an old pair of Tenchi's pajamas that were a little too big for her. Sasami let a slight laugh out seeing the Galaxy Police officer try to hold up her pants while walking across the bedroom floor.

"I thought I heard you shout something." Mihoshi knelt beside the cot and gave Ryo-ohki a pat on the head.

"It was just a bad dream," Sasami said. "Lucky for me, Ryo-ohki was here to help." The cabbit let out a small meow and snuggled deeper into Sasami's nightgown. "I'm sorry I waked you."

"Don't worry about it. It's almost morning anyway."

"Really? What time is it?'

"Almost half past six." Sasami starred into the darkness for a few minutes, put Ryo-ohki on the end of the cot, and stood up. The sun was barely beginning to cast its light off the edge of the horizon.

"Are you going to go back to sleep?" Mihoshi said still kneeling.

"I don't think I can," Sasami said pulling out a shirt and jeans from her drawer. Mihoshi caught a look of exhaustion on Sasami's face and wondered how much sleep the girl had been getting. Every time Mihoshi had waken up, Sasami was already in the kitchen making breakfast, even on mornings she had to wake up early to report to headquarters. I wonder if this is what Ryoko was talking about with Tsunami, Mihoshi thought. The poor girl.

"You should go back to sleep, Mihoshi. Don't worry, I'll be alright," Sasami said pulling her shirt over her head. "I need to start making breakfast anyway."

"Sasami, it's six thirty in the morning. Katsuhito and Ryoko won't be up for another two hours at least. Ryoko will probably sleep until noon again." Sasami didn't listen and was already out of the bedroom door. "Sasami!"

The princess walked quietly down the stairs and moved toward the kitchen. Mihoshi fumbled down the stairs behind her almost tripping several times. Sasami pulled a teapot out of the cupboard and quietly filled it with water. Her motions were almost robotic. She ground some tea leaves and began packing a filter with them. Mihoshi stood silently at the doorway holding her pajama's up around her waist.

"If you go change, I'll have the tea ready by the time your done," Sasami said. Mihoshi didn't argue and turned around to head back upstairs. Several minutes passed, and Sasami began pulling fresh vegetables out of the pantry for breakfast. She stopped and starred blankly down at the counter.

"Mihoshi's right…the others won't be awake for a while longer," she whispered to herself. She stopped pulling out ingredients and looked out the window. Sasami barely noticed Ryo-ohki hop up onto her shoulder and nuzzle her neck. It wasn't until the whistle on the tea pot shot out steam with a high pitched screech that she snapped from her trance. She quickly pulled the pot off the stove eye to silence it before it woke up the whole house. Ryo-ohki could hardly keep her eyes open and kept shifting from one side of her shoulder to another.

"It's OK, go back to sleep, little Ryo-ohki," Sasami said placing the half-awake cabbit on a cushion by the breakfast table. Mihoshi stumbled around the corner and let out an oversized yawn.

"I can make some coffee too, Mihoshi," Sasami said pouring the hot water through the tea filter.

"That would be great," Mihoshi mumbled. She half walked, half crawled over to a seat at the table and plopped into the chair. The smell of coffee filled the kitchen as Sasami ground up the beans. She packed the filter as tight as she could in order to make it strong enough to wake up Mihoshi, although she knew it would take more than coffee to pull the Galaxy Police officer out of her trance.

"I'm really sorry I woke you up," Sasami said placing a mug in front of Mihoshi. The smell of the coffee gave Mihoshi just enough energy for her to pull her head off of the table and reach out for the steaming liquid. She took a long sip, ignoring the burning sensation it made on its way down her throat. Life began to creep back into the corners of her brain.

"Don't worry about it," Mihoshi said behind her mug. It was almost half gone already and Sasami got up to get some more. She poured the coffee into the mug and sent a cloud of steam rising into the air.

"Do you want to come out on the porch? The sun will be rising soon, and the lake always gives off mist in the morning this time of year." Sasami made the finishing touches to her mug of tea and began moving towards the front door.

"Sure," Mihoshi said with a smile, but it took her a few seconds to puller herself out of the chair. They moved out of the kitchen and across the living room still filled with darkness from an ending night. Sasami pulled the door open and almost gasped as the early morning chill filled her lungs. The cold prickled her skin and sent vigor through her body. Even Mihoshi's eyes seemed to brighten up when she walked outside.

"Wow," Mihoshi whispered, "it's beautiful." There was a milky mist rising off the top of the lake. The sunlight coming over the horizon lit the glass surface of the water just enough to give it contrast to the moisture rising in rivulets into the air above it. The two girls made their way over to the porch swing Noboyuki had installed several years ago. It faced out into the meadow that surrounded the lake, and Sasami had spent countless mornings out here clutching a mug of tea waiting for the sun to rise. They sat in silence for a long while, holding their mugs and letting the steam rise out of them to warm their faces. Every once and while Mihoshi would take an awkward sip trying not to burn her tongue too badly, but Sasami sat motionless, her tea still filled to the brim.

"Sasami, your tea will grow cold," Mihoshi said.

"Oh…right." Sasami brought the cup to her lips but suddenly stopped, her eyes focusing in on something in the horizon. "What is that?" Sasami said pointing out at what had caught her eye. Mihoshi followed her gaze and saw what looked like a pair of headlights streaming across the morning horizon. It was some sort of plane, but it was too far away to tell. However, it didn't move like a plane at all. Its motion was jagged and abrupt, almost bouncing through the air like a frantic firefly. They heard a faint wine that sounded like a sputtering engine giving the ship random bursts of power.

"Is that one of Earth's spaceships?" Mihoshi said, her eyes fixed on the pair of lights darting in and out of the air.

"I don't think so. It kind of looks like a plane…" Sasami replied. She squinted her eyes but couldn't make out the contour of the object. It was moving around too rapidly. "It looks out of control." The ship careened dangerously close to the side of one of the mountains but veered around it at the last moment. It suddenly turned and the headlights fell across the porch temporarily blinding both of the girls. A surge of pain suddenly hit Sasami in the forehead making her send out an ear piercing scream. She hunched over and grabbed her forehead. The mug fell out of her lap and shattered sending hot water splattering across the porch. Mihoshi stood up and grabbed a hold of Sasami's arms trying to puller her hands away from her forehead.

"Sasami!" she shouted. The princess collapsed into Mihoshi's arms. Sasami's hands dropped away from her forehead and the insignia glowed with a light blue hue that Mihoshi had never seen before. "What in the world…" Mihoshi said. She touched the glowing light, but quickly pulled her hand away at the sudden explosion of heat that her fingertips felt.

"Mihoshi, what's going on?!" Ryoko said ripping the front door open.

"I…I don't know. She just yelled and then collapsed." Mihoshi said. By the time her hand had pulled away from Sasami's forehead, the light had faded. Beads of sweat began to appear, and Ryoko placed the back of her hand against them.

"She's burning up. Bring her inside and lay her on the couch. I'll wake up Katsuhito," Ryoko said moving quickly. Mihoshi picked up the princess and was startled at how light she felt. She ran inside and placed her on the couch. Sasami was panting lightly and her sweating was growing worse.

"Hang in there, Sasami. Your Grandfather will know what to do," Mihoshi said while she mopped the young girl's brow.

In all of the commotion, neither Mihoshi nor Ryoko noticed the slight rumble that shook the house and rattled the windows.

Well, that's it for Chapter 1. Sorry if there are a lot of grammatical errors, I will make it a priority to proofread next time I write. Tune in next time for the continuation (but not conclusion) of A Demon and a Goddess!