Reminders of the Past
A Tenchi Muyo and Invinsible Crossover
Chapter 4 - No Need for Painful Realizations
Mark Grayson looked at the woman that had addressed him earlier. The fact that someone knew what he was, or more or less basically was a bit of a shock. But then hearing that they were dead was even more of one. Maybe it shouldn't have been one. After all, if the Viltrumites in this universe were anything like the ones from his own universe then there was very little reason to believe that they were kind. Even his Dad was an example of how ruthless they could be. If everything hadn't aligned perfectly, if his dad hadn't come to embrace humanity, through caring for him and his mother, then he would be dead.
Still, the Viltrumites were some of the most powerful beings in the universe, or they were in his universe. He looked toward the teal headed Ryoko who was floating near Tenchi. She had said that she was treating it like a real fight, but he couldn't shake the idea that she had pulled her punches. Even doing that it had still hurt. The woman that addressed him earlier, apparently Tenchi's grandmother-in-law, was here to visit.
"So," Seto said as she stared at him, "Is your arrival truly a happy accident, or should the Jurian Empire prepare for war?"
Everyone simply stopped, and he blinked a couple of times before he looked at the plate, "I'm guessing that the Viltrumites didn't have a really great reputation here either, huh?"
She studied him for a moment before she relaxed a little, "No," she said simply, her voice not cold, but sounding tired, "They had an atrocious reputation. They were violent, warmongers, and determined to ensure that their empire was the only one left standing."
He shook his head, "I was raised as a human," he said, lifting his eyes to look into her own, "I fought against my dad, the very Viltrumite sent to infiltrate and prepare my Earth for an invasion. I didn't want to see my world, the world I loved, the people I had come to love, to be turned into little more than slaves."
She nodded, "I see," she relaxed a little further, "In truth, I had believed such might be the case. I was a girl, a very young girl, when I heard about them. I had even seen the results of their actions. They were beginning to be feared, and then suddenly they were gone. It was as if they simply never existed."
Neither of them could see Ryoko, or how she was reacting. The connections were being made, and it frightened her. The dream, the memory, it had been the Viltrumites. She had killed an entire planet of them. Granted, they were obviously dangerous, and from what Seto had just said they were obviously more than well equipped to wage wars. Their new guest admitted that his own father had intended on subjugating his Earth. But, surely there had been innocent people there.
She began to hug herself, the old conditioning coming out, a ghostly hand reaching through her mind and holding itself over her like a puppet master. She felt two arms, and the ghostly hand tried to stay, to remain in place, but the two arms were far stronger than the conditioning and memory. The warmth from the love she felt beat the ghostly image back, forcing it to retreat and leave her alone.
"It's okay," Tenchi said, his voice warm and caring, "We're all here."
She nodded, grateful that she didn't close off her emotions. Before, she would have grabbed the sake, and she would have willed her defenses down enough that she could get drunk. It wasn't like she would be unable to be ready for anything at a moment's notice. After all, she could metabolize alcohol in nanoseconds. The sake often quieted the conditioning, it silenced Kagato's commands, his painful lessons, and it kept him away.
It was self medicating, and she knew it. Tenchi was able to do the same. He was her rock, her steady ground, and his love for her chased Kagato away. She leaned against him, happy that she wasn't lost.
"Do you want to go for a walk?"
She nodded at the suggestion, and she walked out with Tenchi. The others watched, but she didn't care. She needed this. Together they walked out of the house, turned toward the steps leading up to the small temple, and began walking. As they neared the shrine where she had been imprisoned she stopped. She looked at the ancient cave, and she walked toward it.
"I didn't think that you'd want to see it again," he said, watching as she told the twisted iron gate, "I mean, you were trapped in there for a long time."
She shook her head, "I know, but if I hadn't been trapped then I wouldn't have met you. I wouldn't have watched you grow up, I wouldn't be here," she said, her voice full of wonder, "I have every reason to hate this cave, that tomb, but instead I'm thankful."
He neared her, his arms wrapping around her waist, "And I'm thankful that I disobeyed Grandpa about going in there."
She grinned, "You know, when I first woke up, I was so happy to finally get to touch you," she said, her entire body relaxed against his, "Tenchi, thank you for not thinking that I'm a monster anymore."
She felt his lips as they pressed against the back of her head through her hair, "I was a dumb kid Ryoko," he admitted, a little shame in his voice, "A dumb kid that was caught up in the stories about my legendary ancestor and the epic fight he had with the demon that rode a massive dragon to the Earth."
She smiled, "I suppose the locals did get creative with what they saw."
She enjoyed the closeness, loving the fact that he saw her as a person, a woman that was to be desired and someone worthy of being loved. Part of her wanted to be closer to him, to feel him, to take him, but at the same time she knew that it wasn't a great idea. There was a child to consider, and while she didn't give birth to her, Mayuka was every bit her daughter as she was Tenchi's. She certainly didn't want to have to answer any hard questions about what they were doing.
Of course she could simply refer those questions to Ayeka, Nokie, or Mihoshi… Okay, Mihoshi wouldn't be the best choice. In truth Washu would most likely be the best choice, and even then she had to wonder how she would do it. Would she be clinical about it, or would she actually treat Mayuka like a child. She shivered, Washu accepted Mayuka as a granddaughter, and she would be gentle with how she answered. She would also later chastise her for shrugging off her responsibilities.
"Have you gone back in since?" she asked, taking her mind from the more lewd places she tended to go, "I mean, it's just a cave now."
She heard a small laugh, "Actually, yeah." he admitted, his voice sounding thoughtful, "After, well, after Yuzuha."
She considered her for a moment. Yuzuha couldn't help what she was. The personification of darkness, and someone that was incredibly lonely. She'd created Mayuka using a strand of Tenchi's hair mixed with her own. The result had been a child that was full of life and love, that desperately wanted to connect with her father. Despite what she claimed, Yuzuha wanted nothing more than to be loved, and she couldn't have that.
She couldn't because as the darkness it was in her nature to snuff out the light. Yet, somehow Mayuka was full of light. She considered the girl that was her daughter in every way that mattered to her, and then she looked at the cave. She wasn't lying when she said that she was actually thankful. She didn't move away from him, but she indicated that she wanted to move forward. He followed and she touched the old iron gate.
With a slight flick of her wrist the gate ripped away from the rock wall of the cave. There really wasn't a reason to keep it locked away any longer. She looked at the dark mouth of the cave, an orange orb of light appeared in her hand, and she let it float forward. The inside of the cave lit up, and she looked at it. Seven hundred years ago, or rather a little over seven hundred years ago, the cave had been used to seal her away. The tomb below was nothing more than an extravagant containment unit, and it had kept what limited powers she had without her gems drained.
Tenchi had turned it off when he removed the sword. It allowed her to move, to feel, to be able to do more than just watch from an astral projection. She saw the massive hole in the back, her getting the first taste of her powers back and blasting away six feet of solid rock. It shouldn't have been hard. In truth it really should have been the easiest thing in the world to do, but instead she found herself so drained that blowing the hole had actually zapped more of her strength. It took her getting outside and feeling the energy of this world to transform her in any meaningful way.
Part of her wasn't sure. She wanted to face the cave, and in a way she wanted to personally thank it. Because she was able to watch the world through her astral form it really gave her a chance to escape everything that had been done to her. Seeing Tenchi multiple times in his life had done something else. She saw compassion, child-like wonder, and finally a young man that showed genuine kindness to those around him.
It had captured her heart, and it made her want to be near him. Together they stepped past the opening, and once inside she didn't feel the draining sensation of her power leaving her. The tomb, the containment unit, was silent. She breathed a small sigh of relief. Part of her had worried that Yosho kept it going. That he ultimately wouldn't trust her, and that he would ensure she would be able to be trapped again. It wasn't like she gave him much of a choice to begin with, but then it hadn't really been her acting.
She was a puppet at the time, and since that point she has lost her strings and gained herself in the process.
"Are you sure this doesn't bother you?"
She smiled, and then nodded realizing that he couldn't see her face, "It doesn't," she confirmed, "It's just an old cave, with a grand history."
She turned toward him, "Tenchi," she said softly, her hand stroking his cheek," Do you think that Mayuka would like a little brother or sister?"
He looked at her, "I suppose, but I mean I don't think that anyone is…" he stopped as he saw the smile, "What aren't you telling me?"
She leaned forward, "That, unlike that prank I played with Ryo-Ohki's egg, something has happened."
He looked at her, his eyes wide in surprise, "Wait, are you, do you mean, we're… Ryoko, are you pregnant? How would you even know? I mean when did it happen, I know how, but when?"
She kissed him, her lips silencing him, "Washu checked, and you know that she's never wrong," she said after she broke the kiss, "There was a fluctuation in my powers, and she picked up on it. Right now it's little more than a fertilized ova, the beginnings of cell division happening, but in a few months we'll likely hear a heartbeat."
She smiled, the expression was one of happiness, and he hugged her, feeling her return the hug. After a moment she pulled back, "I'm worried though."
"Why?" he asked, realizing what it was, but hoping that he was wrong, "I think that you'll be a great mom."
She gave a small smile, "That makes one of us," she said as she touched her stomach, "What if I get this wrong? What if I revert back to what Kagato did to me?" she asked, her voice a little tight, "I mean, I don't want to hurt our child, and what if it happens? What happens if she's crying and my first reaction is to trap her in a dark place by herself, chaining her to the floor, making her face down, and hope that energy whips aren't brought out and used again."
She felt his touch, gentle, as always, as it moved from her side up to her shoulder, and finally to her face. He cupped her cheek, much like she done for him, and she leaned into the touch. She felt his lips, using her own tactic against her, and kissed her. He broke the kiss after a moment and he studied her, "You wouldn't," he said, his voice sounded sure, "I know that you wouldn't."
She wanted to ask why, but he looked at her, and with the orange light illuminating the cave she could see his certainty, "You wouldn't because you know what it was like. The one thing that you might do is let them get away with anything."
She giggled, "Maybe," she admitted, "Imagine, a mini me running around, doing whatever she wanted, and getting into trouble."
She sniffed, "But then I suppose you'd be the one to make sure that she behaves."
He grinned, "Me, Ayeka, Noike, Mihoshi, Dad, and Grandpa. Well maybe not Grandpa and Mihoshi."
She smiled, "Mihoshi would keep her from getting in trouble, and Yosho would talk her way out of it," she replied as she leaned forward and took him into an embrace, "Ayeka would try to make her all prim and proper."
He laughed, the idea of Ayeka trying to teach a little Ryoko table manners, how to properly eat, what to do, how to appear, struck him as funny. He nearly said something when both of them heard a crackling sound. It didn't come from the cave itself, but rather it came from outside. Both of them walked out and looked at the sky which had gotten darker. An overcast covered the sky, huge black clouds rolled in, and both of them watched as golden lightning arched across the sky.
A hole formed in the center of the overcast, giving the sight of a blue sky for a moment. Then the entire overcast gathered into a single point. That point grew dense, becoming a dark marble floating in the sky. It seemed to float for a moment, and everyone heard the same vicious voice echoing in their heads.
"JURAI!" a guttural howl echoed inside of their heads, "JURAI!"
The marble shot down, just beyond the mountain, deep into what was to be a small community, and Tenchi's eyes widened. There were people there, hundreds of people, men and women, all of them picking out where their houses would be. The blast erupted around them, echoing in the distance, and they could only watch as a large cloud of dirt, dust, and debris flew into the air and spread out.
Ryoko stood there, the kind of destruction they just witnessed was the kind that she would do for Kagato, but whatever it was that had done it managed to concentrate it into a single place. It wasn't widespread, and it didn't simply spread out everywhere. A wicked laughter erupted through their heads, that laughter seemed to be coming in from all directions at once. It dug around in their minds like cock roaches digging into the walls of a cheap motel.
"COME FIND ME JURAI!"
The laughter died down, and Tenchi looked in the direction. There were innocent people, all of which had been blissfully ignorant of everything that had happened. They likely were simply doing their best, and then suddenly all of it was gone. The Master Key was on him, and he looked in the direction. He began to run, only to feel Ryoko's hand on his arm. She refused to let go, and he looked at her.
"Don't," she said softly, "Tenchi, it's a baiting tactic."
He looked at her, and then looked back at where it had struck, "But, there's innocent…"
She hugged him, "He wants you, or likely any Juraian, to come looking for him. I feel for them, I do, but they're likely already dead."
She didn't want to let him go, because she knew what was going to happen. Whatever it was that had come wanted them. It wanted Tenchi, Yosho, Seto, Ayeka, Sasami, and Mayuka. She could only tell that it was angry, that it wanted them to come looking, and if that was the case then it meant that whatever it was that had come was strong enough to not be worried. If it wasn't worried then that meant that it believed it was more than powerful enough to deal with them.
Why it was angry was confusing, to say the least, but she didn't want to let him go. She didn't want to let him run and face whatever it was that had come. Part of her wanted to call Ryo-Ohki, all of them board her, and leave the planet. But she knew that they couldn't. This was Tenchi's homeworld, this was his home, and whatever it was that had come wouldn't stop coming.
"Let's go meet with the others."
He seemed satisfied with that, and she grabbed his waist. In an instant she was in the air, flying them toward their home, and they landed. Everyone was outside, but of them all it was Seto who looked the most angry. She had already opened a channel with the local chapter of the Galaxy Police, and that meant it was something big.
"How did he get out?!" she demanded, her voice lined with a sharp edge, "How did he escape?!"
The patrol officer on the other side looked shaken. Ryoko had an eye for those that were new at their jobs, and this poor office likely hadn't been working for more than a few months, at best, and she looked almost ready to cry.
"Princess, I'm sorry, but we… I… I don't know how he got loose. We are mobilizing as we speak, but he already destroyed his containment unit. He took sixteen prison ships out at the same time. We lost over a thousand officers."
Seto growled, "Kain is one of the oldest enemies of the Juraian Empire," she said as she shook, "He is literally made of black antimatter, and lives to destroy all life. We trapped him, and if he is out, and on this planet, he will destroy it!"
The girl could no longer contain herself and began to cry openly. Seto growled and closed the communication, "We need to come up with a plan, and quickly. The last time that Kain was captured it took the previous Emperor using all of his life force to wound him enough to trap him."
She looked toward those in attendance, "I do not expect anyone here to do the same. Since that time we have made more advancements in weaponry, and I am certain that we have something that should take the wind out of his sails."