** Disclaimer- The characters used in this prologue are all Pioneer and AIC’s except for Matthias. He is mine. All rights of Tenchi Muyo TV etc. belong to those companies.** ** I am not receiving any money for this fan fiction. This is written purely for enjoyment of me as well as my readers.** ** This fanfic is based on the Tenchi Muyo TV series. It takes place after Episode 26, No Need For A Conclusion. While this is not my favorite series, (I love Tenchi OAV the best) this has been the first fan fiction I have written and released. C&C welcome at Ledzepfan111@hotmail.com. Enjoy. A Crown of Lies: Prologue- The Carnivals Gone Her heart was pounding out of her chest. She had been so sure that the others would have come back to earth, ruining her time with Tenchi, but the whole day had passed and no one had returned. As they walked down the path coated in cherry blossoms, she could almost hear the violent hiss of air impacting against the hull of a Jurian Royal transport. As they walked to the house, holding each other tightly, she had expected to see a familiar red ship sinking into the murky depths of the lake. As she walked past the broom closet with Tenchi, she could have sworn that it was glowing, but the opened door held only the image of a broom and a coat. There were no princesses, no Galaxy Police officers, and not a greatest genius in the universe anywhere near the Masaki household. Her ‘family’ was not complete. All the Masaki men had been excited to have her in their lives again. She blushed at the thought of who had been surprisingly happy to see her. She had flown into Tenchi’s arms and embraced him with a loving hug. Her day had been made when he embraced her back. The happy smile on his face and the feeling of him holding her waist as they walked home had left her wondering if she was dreaming. But she wasn’t dreaming. This was real. She had come back to Tenchi and he was happy to see her. She knew that one-day, everyone would be back together. The carnival would return. She just had to wait. Though she hoped she got to accomplish her single goal before her friends returned. Her dream was to have Tenchi’s love, but she had decided to set a more realistic goal. She had vowed on her deathbed that if she ever got a last chance to confront him, she would tell him what he meant to her. With that last vow, she had closed her heavy eyelids, and let the darkness overtake her soul. The shock that coursed through her body when she opened her eyes and stared upon a crystal with Ryo-ohki’s happy cabbit face caused her to shake rather violently. She stopped herself and immediately reached to her side expecting to find a blood covered wound; she found nothing. No blood. No puss covered holes. There was nothing out of the ordinary. Her wound had completely healed, leaving no reminders of her life threatening injuries. She had reasoned that Tenchi had killed Kagato and therefore dispelled the dark Juria energy in her body, allowing her healing abilities to kick in. She had quickly bathed, setting a course for earth. The memory of Tenchi going after Aeka almost caused her to break down and cry yet she repelled the tears. She wouldn’t accept defeat until she knew for certain that he had chosen the princess. Her heart told her that Tenchi had defeated Kagato. But what did he do after? Did he stay on Juria to rule with Aeka, taking up the position that was rightfully his? Or did he return to his home? Her plan was simple. She would continue on her present course to Earth. If Tenchi wasn’t there, she would accept defeat and not stand in the way of his happiness. But if he was there… She would confess her true feelings to him. She wouldn’t even demand a choice. She would stay with him as long as he wanted her to, but she would make sure he knew how much she loved him before he made a choice. If he already had, she would bow out and die like she was supposed to. The hope that Tenchi was on earth gave her strength as the pirate ship Ryo-ohki sailed through the sea of stars to the place they belonged. Their home. Ryoko felt sick to her stomach, as she sat in the pilot’s chair, waiting nervously for the scan of earth to finish. She nibbled on one of her nails as Ryo-ohki meowed letting the pirate know the search was done. “Okay, tell me Ryo-ohki,” Ryoko squeaked. Her voice had tensed in response to her worry and she was breathing very fast, gasping for air at the end of her sentence. Her heart skipped a beat and began to slow down. A cool relaxed feeling swept over her making each breathe taste sweet. A natural high of relief swept over her with the results of the scan. Tenchi wasn’t on Juria ruling. He was at home, staring sadly at the place where he had found her spaceship crashing. The fact that he had not married Aeka and claimed the throne put a smile her on her face. That he was staring wistfully at a place she considered special for the both of them made her absolutely ecstatic. She had gotten to Tenchi faster than she had moved in her entire life, but strung out their meeting, deciding to have a little fun with him. Now she was lying in her room with her hands clenched over her beating heart. Noboyuki was downstairs singing very poorly but happily while he cooked some fish. He wasn’t the world’s best cook, but he could certainly do it better than anyone that currently occupied the house. This was it. She had already asked Tenchi if would go stargazing with her and he had happily agreed. She would tell him everything under the starry sky. ‘I might not get another chance, ‘ she reasoned as she floated off of her futon. She teleported downstairs and took her place next to Tenchi, who didn’t seem to mind her closeness at all. The usual blush that would creep onto his face when she sat close to him was lost as he greeted her. She began to feel at home as they began to eat with Tenchi’s grandfather and father. Ryoko smiled and took it all as a good omen, before stuffing her mouth full of food. Dinner flew by and was soon over. Katsuhito announced to the group that, “An old man needs his rest,” and headed up to the shrine. Noboyuki, happy at having Ryoko back in their lives cleared the table, rejecting offers from both Ryoko and Tenchi. Tenchi turned to her and smiled. “So are you ready to go?” he asked while standing up. She didn’t reply but gave him a feral smile, hiding her nervousness, and promptly tackled him. Before they hit the ground, they shimmered out of existence leaving Noboyuki with a proud grin. She lay down on her back staring up at the sky, and the stars that now covered it. The young man named Tenchi Masaki grinned at the pirate as he laid down himself. The silence became a little uncomfortable as they stared at the sky, lost in their thoughts. The moon was hidden, making the night perfect for watching the dark sky speckled with white dots. Ryoko took a deep breath and prepared herself for the most important conversation that she thought she would ever have. She sat up and stared down at the black haired youth. “Tenchi…” she began. Tenchi was immediately yanked out of his thoughts and turned his head towards the cyan haired beauty. “What Ryoko?” he asked as she trailed off and didn’t pick her sentence back up. He quirked and eyebrow and sat up, sliding up the roof so that he was sitting next to her. It was obviously a hard thing for her to say and he sensed that she needed support in order to continue. Without realizing it, he had protectively wrapped his arm around her. Her nervousness was permeating his skin and soaking into his heart causing his pulse to pick up speed. ‘Ryoko, remember your promise. You may never get another chance ever. He needs to know this,’ she told herself, but it did not help her courage at all. ‘Imagine me! Me! The dreaded space pirate Ryoko afraid of telling some lowly little boy that I love him.’ ‘He isn’t a lowly boy, and you are afraid to tell because you do love him,’ another part of her answered back. She sighed knowing that arguing internally was doing nothing to resolve her conflict. She felt his arm squeeze her, beckoning her on, reassuring her that everything was all right. ‘Well here goes nothing…’ “Tenchi. I… I… I…” she said shyly. Her breaths were short and raspy. He squeezed her again. ‘Do it NOW!’ her mind cried out. “I… I… I love you,” she said hesitantly, her voice pleading for acceptance. Everything in her mind fit together. The gears started churning and everything she had wanted but could not say before became possible to tell. This ice was broken and all her thoughts were free to tell the man next to her. “I know I’ve said it a lot before, and the way I acted probably made you think it wasn’t true, but it is. From the moment I saw your warm brown eyes, I had a feeling I had never had before. It made my heartbeat faster whenever you were in the same room as me. At first, I thought it was just a crush, but the longer I thought about it, the more it made sense. It wasn’t a crush. You had taken my meager life away and given me the life that I was supposed to lead. Tenchi… you are my life. I love you so much it hurts. You probably think I’m strong. An arrogant pirate, capable of doing anything alone.” She gave a sarcastic laugh to emphasize her point. “But I’m not Tenchi. I never had any love in my life, and it made me a harsh woman. You changed that in me. I don’t mean to put you on the spot but this is something I’ve gad to say for a long time. I made a vow to myself as Ryo-ohki and I sailed away from Juria. You knew that I was injured, but nobody but Nagi knew how serious it was. When I made that vow, I was on my deathbed. When my eyes closed and I murmured your name, I thought I had done it for the last time, however I promised myself that if I did pull through, I would confront you and tell you what you mean to me. Tenchi, when you choose, I want you to know that even if it isn’t me, I will be happy for you. I might not show it. In fact I probably won’t, but I love you enough to let you go. I only want for you to be happy. Even if I can’t bring you that happiness, I want you to be happy.” Her voice cracked as she finished and she forced on her mask of false happiness while drying the tears in her eyes. “Well I guess I better be going insi-“ She was cut off as a soft pair of lips pressed against hers. Her eyes immediately shot open in surprise. Tenchi lost control of himself. His instincts kicked in as he heard her confession and the only thing that mattered to him was keeping her there with him. He felt the pain he had caused all the girls by trying spare them of it. Out of all of them however, the one he had hurt most of all was sitting right next to him. The dimension tuner experience flew back into his mind. She had given up her perfect world for him and he had pushed her away. She wished for his love and he called her selfish. She did everything she could think of to earn his love but he never showed her any more affection than that of a friend. Katsuhito had had Tenchi begin meditation after their return to earth in order for Tenchi to find more about himself. Tenchi had tried to search his soul to find himself. “Meditation is the pathway to our hearts. Through it, we can learn who we truly are,” his grandfather had told him. But Tenchi had not been able to find himself. There was a wall that Tenchi could not seem to get beyond. Try as he might, it did not waiver. It did not crumble, leaving Tenchi without the explanation that he wanted. As she tore her heart out and offered it to him, the wall shuddered. He pried at it as she continued her confession. As her voice cracked, the wall tumbled down and everything became clear to him. Tenchi grabbed her head and was kissing her before either of them knew it. Her heart threatened to surge out of her chest as she closed her eyes savoring the moment. She lost any grip of rational thought and lost herself in the moment. Slowly, after what seemed to be an eternity, they pulled back. She wore a look of bewilderment as well as a scarlet blush. He smiled back at her as his face turned even redder than hers. . “I… love… you too Ryoko,” he said nervously. His body language and uncertainty begged her to respond with another confession of her own. She pulled her hand down from her lips and looked upon the young man with a stunned expression. To say she surprised would be a comical understatement. “You love me?” she squeaked, her voice wavering along with her body. She was sitting up, but the weakness she suddenly felt threatened to leave her on her back. As her upper body collapsed, she felt herself being pulled towards something. She looked at the strong arms that now held her and decided she could die happy. When his lips met hers again, she wondered if she wasn’t already. His blush was disappearing yet his smile was bigger. “I love you Ryoko. You, and only you. I finally realized that after-” For the second time in that night, a sentence was cut off by a kiss. She opened her mouth increasing its passion, and surprisingly, he did the same. When his tongue entered her mouth, she was sure she had died and gone to heaven. They simultaneously broke the kiss and looked at each other with a smile. “Tenchi Masaki. Do you have any idea how long I have waited to hear that?’” she asked from her comfortable haven in his lap. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before, but I didn’t realize it until right now,” he said. She smiled happily and was about to respond when a drop of moisture hit her cheek. “I’m so sorry Ryoko. I’m so sorry. I can’t live without you. Ever since we separated on Juria, you haven’t left my mind. No matter what I do, I can’t shake you out of it. And I’m happy that I can’t.” It wasn’t until now that she noticed the tears running down his face. She floated out of his embrace and sat next to him looking into his warm brown eyes. “Tenchi, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” she asked, hoping that she could do something to help him. She placed her hands on both his shoulders, coercing him into her embrace. Without a second thought he dove into her chest, sobbing on one of her breasts. She rubbed his back and muttered comforting words to him, all the while confused about his actions. ‘He doesn’t regret what we just did does he?’ she pondered. She listened to his sobs as he hugged her tightly, never wanting to let go. “You almost died,” he cried out. He pulled out her arms and stared at her through cloudy vision. “You almost died because of me. You almost left me because of my stupid actions. How can you forgive me?” The pain present on his face stung her heart. “Oh Tenchi, I will always forgive you. You did what you had to and you had to go face Kagato.” She smiled warmly at him. “You think you almost killed me? Tenchi, you saved me. If you hadn’t killed Kagato, my healing abilities would have never kicked in and I would have died. And then I wouldn’t be here, would I? Now come on. If you think you can get away from kissing me again that easily, you have another thing coming to you.” He wiped his tears one of his sleeves as the pirate suddenly tackled him onto his back, in the process, almost throwing them both off the roof. She lowered her head to meet his and proved that he indeed could not get away from kissing her. Not that he wanted to get away at all. ________ Kiyone Makibi took another sip of tea and spat it out again. “My god Mitsuki! You’ve even taken a class on making tea and you still can’t do it right!” “Sorry Serge,” the red headed woman said while glaring at the teal tressed GP reading a newspaper. Kiyone flung the paper down and almost caught Mitsuki glaring at her. Luckily for the red haired woman, she successfully changed her facial features before her superior caught the look she had been giving. “Get out of my office!” Kiyone yelled at the obnoxious GP. Mitsuki threw a folder on Kiyone’s desk and stormed out of Kiyone’s office. Mihoshi Kuramitsu giggled at Mitsuki’s antics, and Kiyone found herself joining Mihoshi in laughter. Calming herself, Kiyone picked up the folder and pressed a button on it that projected a holographic image of a document. She scanned the lines reading out loud to give her partner a little gist of what was happening. Though with Mihoshi, odds were that she didn’t even realize that Kiyone was reading something. “Kiyone… Mihoshi… clear out office… report to academy at 0700 hours… one year… teaching program…” Kiyone threw the folder back on her desk with disgust. “What’s the matter Kiyone?” the bubble headed blond asked her partner. Kiyone sighed in grief at her partner’s question. “Mihoshi. We’ve been assigned to teach at the Police academy in a one year special teaching program.” A headache was growing in her head as she rubbed her temples. When her partner burst out into tears, she vowed that next time she signed the contract for a promotion, she would read the fine print. ________ Washu leaned back on her chair. Those fools thought that they could make her president and kick her out of the Universal Science Academy within a month. Well, they had messed with the wrong genius. “You go Washu,” Washu-bot A cheered. “Yeah, you’re the best. No one can kick the greatest genius universe out of any old science academy and get away with it,” Washu-bot B cheered. “Washu’s the best!” they cheered in unison as they scurried back into her hair. Washu cackled evilly as she pressed a button. She wept dramatically and brought a tissue to her eyes. “Goodbye my iddy, bitty, widdle virus. Mommy wuvs you,” she cried. She waved good- bye, as the words, ‘message sent’ appeared on her monitor. She chuckled to herself a little as she thought of what it would do to the academy. ‘Lets see if they question whom the greatest scientific genius in the universe is when they have it flashing on their computers for the next five-hundred years,’ she thought happily. She threw back her head and cackled madly. As her laughter subsided, she hopped off her floating pillow and began to walk towards a more natural area in her laboratory. She found that she worked best when surrounded by waterfalls and luscious plants. She plopped down on a couch and stared at the falling water. The stream propelled itself over the cliff at alarmingly fast speeds. Propelled. Self-propulsion. Propulsion… She jumped out of her seat and summoned her astral computer. “I’ve got it!” she stated triumphantly as she began typing wildly. Time did not even seem to pass as she worked. She pried her eyes off the monitor for a second and swallowed a capsule providing all the materials her body would need for the next two years. With a final glance at the waterfall, she immersed herself in science, living in total bliss of the outside world. ________ Aeka grabbed the two bags she had packed and carefully stepped out of her room. She had already paid off the captain to the cargo ship she would be boarding and now all she had to do was get there. She gave laid a note down on her bed that was addressed to Sasami and crept down the hallway. She made an effort to stay in the shadows as much as possible hoping for increased stealth. ‘Almost there’ she thought hopefully. She rounded another corner and found it devoid of life just as she had hoped. She walked halfway down the corridor and knocked on the wall. The hollow wall shimmered out of view, leaving an opening in its place. She beckoned the lights on with her tiara, and the dark opening in the wall was illuminated. It revealed a long corridor that was in desperate need of attention. The only sign that human hands had touched it were the lights that hung from the dirt ceiling. She chuckled a little and began her procession down the dirt corridor. She doubted that her father knew even half the secret passages in the palace. Discovering the secrets of her home had been one of her favorite pastimes as a child. She would wander throughout the palace looking for any places that would feed her hunger. She had been very fruitful in her expeditions. Sasami had done much of the same things when she was younger. Aeka sighed wistfully at the thought of her sister. Sasami would be heartbroken that Aeka was leaving, but Aeka knew that she had to see Tenchi. Her father was not helping in that matter at all. Soon after Tenchi had left Juria, it had been discovered that the old emperor and his two wives were alive. The leaders of the coup d’etat had taken them as a threat to the revolution and imprisoned them along with the other heirs to the throne. Afterwards, they had been found in subspace and it had been decided that they would be restored as the rulers of Juria. Aeka had been thrilled with the developments. She loved her parents, and now they were alive and back with her. They had also taken her responsibilities of ruling Juria, which she reasoned, allowed her time for an extended vacation. She had been crushed when her father had rejected her wishes to return to Earth. Despite her pleas, Azusa refused to budge. The emperor’s stubbornness forced her to the circumstances she was now taking. She wouldn’t have usually resorted to running away, but her need to return to her family on earth demanded it. She took a step into the light and looked upon the forest she was now standing in. She moved carefully out of the tree, that’s branches concealed the passage, and knocked on the wall next to the opening. The opening in which she had come from became a solid wall again. Aeka smiled as she walked on in her civilian attire. Her regal kimonos were safely stored in her bags, for she did not wish to bring unneeded attention to herself. She walked out of the trees and headed towards a transport platform on the other side of the royal park she was in. “What’cha doin’ there princess,” a mischievous, male voice asked from above her. She immediately looked skyward and was greeted by the image of a young man. He had straight red hair that was pulled back into a ponytail that extended to the middle of his shoulder blades. His gaze was warm, yet full of energy and his sharp brown eyes seemed to hold a fire inside of them. Her heartbeat quickened as she saw the young man sitting on a tree branch a little ahead of her; either from his looks or the possibility of being caught. She was almost positive it was the latter, though he was not hard on the eyes at all. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw what he was wearing. The staff he held in his hands, and the robes he wore. The worst type of person she could have run into, save her father, had found her. A Jurian Knight. “You wouldn’t be planning on running away would you? Because if you were, I have strict orders to make sure you don’t. But then again, what would a beautiful woman like you want to run away for?” He asked in a tone that totally lacked respect. ‘Did he just call me beautiful?’ she questioned incredulously. “So you aren’t are you? I mean Azusa might be pretty ticked if you were running away and I had to apprehend you,” he said very nonchalantly. Not like a knight at all. ‘He knows,’ she thought. ‘Father knows of my plans.’ She shook her head and muttered no very weakly and completely unconvincingly. He leapt off the limb and landed on the ground. “Thought so,” he muttered sarcastically. She must have had a very scared look on her face or he was very good at picking up on others feelings. “You don’t have to worry princess. Your father doesn’t know of you plans. Only I do. Allow me introduce myself,” he said compassionately. He took a long, extenuated bow that reinforced the impression of having a big ego. “My name is Matthias, second sword of the Royal Guard. And now, I have been dubbed your personal guard.” He stated proudly. Her eyes nearly bugged out of her head. “Second Sword of the Royal Guard! How old are you?” “Nineteen. I’m a fast learner” he replied proudly. “Nineteen and a second sword. That’s amazing,” she said in astonishment. He looked at the fingernails on his right hand, breathed on them and rubbed them on his robe. He raised them up to his eyes again and puffed his chest out. “Well I’m pretty amazing. You’ll find that out pretty soon though, because as it is, your stuck with me until further notice.” Aeka groaned at meeting another person with an ego the size of the universe. She very quickly decided against having Washu and Matthias in the same room at same time, in fear of drowning the other people in their enormous self adornment. “now lets get you back to your room,” he said as he approached her. Feeling lost and lonely she closed her mind of from the rest of the world and allowed the young knight to escort her to her room in total silence. She collapsed on her bed and accepted defeat. ________ Sasami returned to her room with disappointment, although hers did not even compare to her sisters. Sasami had been overjoyed minutes ago, but now a sinking feeling in her chest had taken it’s spot. When Kamidake had brought the letter that Aeka had left,she was naturally curious. When she found out that Aeka was running away to Earth, Sasami had been ecstatic. She had run like a bat out of hell to her sister’s room, followed closely by both the logs and knights Azaka and Kamidake. Yet, she had found Aeka in her room crying. This had torn at the little princesses heart, and she had immediately known the problem. Aeka had been caught when she attempted running away. Aeka who had noticed Sasami’s entrance into her dormitory had politely asked to be left alone. Sasami had wanted to stay and comfort her big sister. To tell her that everything would be all right and they would get back to Earth soon, but over her own wishes came her sister’s plea. Not wanting to further aggravate the problem, Sasami had told Aeka that she loved her and had retired to her own room. Azaka kindly asked for a lesson on playing video games but Sasami just didn’t feel like it right now. She sighed and politely told him she was too tired. The knight… her friend had understood and accepted it. Friend… It was true that both the logs and knights Azaka and Kamidake were her friends. Aeka was her sister and her friend. So were her mothers and her father. But beyond that, she had no real friends on Juria. But she had other friends. Tenchi, Washu, Kiyone, Mihoshi, Noboyuki, Katsuhito, Nagi, and Ryoko… Ryoko. The name echoed of the sides of her brain. She had known of the space pirate’s injuries. She had been the only one besides Washu and Nagi. She sighed and jumped onto her bed back first. She rolled over and clutched a pillow up to her head using it to wipe away her tears. ‘Ryoko’s alive,’ the princess thought with a hopeful smile. ‘Anybody else would have died but Ryoko is too strong. Plus she still needs to hear Tenchi’s decision,’ She thought, her hope growing. ‘Yeah right. Tenchi make a decision? He’ll probably never decide. And Ryoko will ask for him to do something with her.’ She managed a hearty chuckle and let the weariness go unrestrained. ‘And Aeka will get mad and fight with her. Washu will make a new invention and Mihoshi will make a mess of it. And then Kiyone will yell at her. Will be a family again. The carnival will be back… I just know it.’ With a final yawn she let herself slip into the first happy sleep she had had since Tenchi had returned to Earth. Author’s Notes: Not much to say. Hope you enjoy this fic. Please send C&C to Ledzepfan111@hotmail.com. Remember that comments are important to authors. -Ledzepfan