Author's notes: Here it is, the final part. They've boarded the ship but will they succeed in rescuing Tenchi; and if so, how will they get out. Well anyway, see what happens as CV Tenchi Muyo concludes… P.S Please promise to read it to the end…you'll understand why I said this later on. Read to the end and you *will not* regret it. ^_^ CV Tenchi Muyo! As Mihoshi and her officers were on their way out of the large cargo bay, the others were figuring out a rescue plan. "Everyone happy with that?" Washu asked as the three of them had done enough planning. The other two hummed in an agreeing tone. "Well that's another plan brought to you by the greatest scientific genius in the…" Ayeka cut her off there. "Come on, do you really have to say that every time do something?" At this point, they quickly moved to the door, which opened automatically. Washu poked her head through the large doorway to check the corridors. "All-clear, let's go." She said, sounding a little cautious and they headed out and down the corridor. It was somewhat dark with strip lights along the corridor that periodically lit up with a bright red color. In sync with the lights, an alarm sound hummed in the background. Washu noticed a junction ahead so she looked around the corner. Suddenly seeing a group of officers enter view, she put her back to the wall and signaled the other two with her hand. The three watched as the officers ran past. Washu looked again and signaled the all clear but just as they started to move there was a sound of footsteps from behind. "Stay where you are!" A voice from behind called out. "Turn round…and keep your hands where I can see them." They turned to see half a dozen officers with energy compression rifles. Yosho then had a thoughtful look. "Hmmm, this is a pretty awkward situation." Washu pointlessly commented. **** At the Masaki residence, Ryoko was still in a weakened state and was sitting in the corner in silence. She was concentrating on Washu's thoughts and was observing everything that was happening over there. Looking over in curiosity, Aeryn seemed a little puzzled. "What's she doing over there?" She asked in a quiet voice. "She's mentally linked to Washu, someone who's trying to rescue Tenchi…she's actually her mother." "Oh really…who's the father?" Aeryn asked instinctively. Sasami thought for a second to figure out a way to explain. "Well you see…her father left when she was very young." Sasami lied, as it seemed more realistic than the truth and because of all the things she's had to take in, she merely acknowledged it without question. **** Two of the guards approached them and others were still holding up their rifles. "Come quietly and no-one will get hurt." Said one of the approaching officers then without warning, Ayeka put her hands forward and threw one of them back with an energy wave. Yosho kicked the rifle out of the other one's hand, caught it and whacked him with it. He then dropped the rifle, took his sword and ignited it. "Stay where you are!" One of the remaining officers said in a futile attempt to stop them. He made a few quick swings with the Tenchi-ken but the officers' were apparently unharmed…but then their rifles suddenly fell apart. They back stepped a few paces then simply turned and ran. "Okay, lets go!" Washu ordered, not wasting any time. She waved her hand to signal for them to follow. "Here we go…again." Ayeka commented. "Don't worry, we'll find Tenchi and be back before you know it." Yosho replied, reassuringly. She just sighed. "I hope so." With that said, they moved off with Washu. Part 4 – Cataclysm It had been 20 minutes of navigating through the ship and avoiding patrols with Mihoshi's help by creating distractions. "According to my calculations…" Washu suddenly started as they discretely walked down one of the many dark corridors. "Tenchi should be 2 levels down and…" briefly stopping to think then points in a direction. "…About fifty meters in that direction." She finished and started to lead them to the nearest elevator. They made it to the elevator and got to the appropriate level without resistance. The three noticed a large set of doors. "Hmmm, Tenchi must be beyond this large room." Washu commented. "Who wants to go first?" Yosho added. **** On to Tenchi where he was sitting, unconscious in a recovery pod imbedded in the wall. It was large and round with a glass outer casing. It appeared to be full of some kind of liquid but Tenchi had some form of breathing apparatus over his face. He then felt the power levels from his friends. Then in his barely conscious state, he started to think to himself. Then something just dawned on him. He cried out in his mind in a futile attempt to warn them. **** Washu entered a few commands into a panel beside the door. It opened and there were apparently dozens of officers standing behind numerous storage containers, waiting for them. All had their rifles fixed on them and one of the officers stepped forward stepped forward. "Give up now." He ordered. "Or what?" Washu added sarcastically. In response to this, he pointed his rifle and fired. It hit the little scientist throwing her into the back wall. Back onto Tenchi, he was somehow aware of what happened. " "Washu!!" Ayeka exclaimed in response and ran over to her. "Are you okay?" She asked. "Yeah, I'm fine…I think." Washu said in a weakened voice. Both Ayeka and Yosho shared a look of contempt. "I'll give you one more chance to give up or you two will be just like her." The officer spoke up again. The two Jurians looked at each other as if to share the same thought. Ayeka ran off to the left, Yosho ran off to the right and both dodged a shower of energy pulses until reaching shelter in the form of storage containers. Yosho ran along the right-hand side, sliding from side to side, dodging energy blasts. He leg swept one of them of his feet and punches gun from another. Ayeka then powered up and charged straight at them. She deflected the shots and even caught a few and fired them back, knocking two of them down. Yosho kicked down the last one where he was before running behind a container, taking shelter from a shower of weapons fire. Ayeka used her energy field to force back the still numerous officers. Yosho approached a group of about five and systematically decked them using various punches and kicks. Finally, Ayeka decked one then blasted the last one from several feet away…then there was silence. After several seconds of silence, "We did it." Ayeka said to herself, almost in disbelief. "I guess you're right." Yosho added in response. Within the silence, footsteps were heard. "I don't think you should start to celebration quite yet." Sounded a sinister voice from behind. Tenchi was aware of this new development. He tried again but it was still pointless. He grimaced at the thought. They both slowly turn round to see none other than the evil coalition leader himself, Hadess. He towered above him at 6 and-a- half feet tall. "Well, well…you must be friends of that Jurian prince. Someone so weak doesn't have the right to be called a prince…" Cut off by Ayeka. "Hey shut up! I demand you tell me what you've done to Lord Tenchi right now." He just laughed to himself. "Oh, so he's a lord now." He remarks sarcastically. "Hey!" Ayeka yelled. She attempted to advance towards him but Yosho held her back by putting his hand in her shoulder. She turned to see Yosho shaking his head. **** Ryoko started to feel troubled when she sensed Hadess' energy level through Washu. Sasami noticed this. "Ryoko, what's going on…has something happened." She asked sounding concerned. "Quiet." Ryoko quickly responded in a harsh but lowered voice. Sasami stood up and headed for the door. After a few steps, she turned to Aeryn. "Coming?" Aeryn nodded and followed her. "I can show you around if you want." Sasami offered. "Yeah, I would like that." They both left the house, leaving Ryoko to observe what's going on at the Equinox. Though, since it's pretty far away, there's a small delay in receiving the information. Then since the signal isn't as strong, she needs to concentrate a lot more. **** There was still a tense stalemate between the two Jurians and the evil Goth. After several seconds of tense silence, Hadess spoke up. "Let's just cut to the chase here." Just wanting to get to the point. "You can have Tenchi back…but on one condition." "What's that?" Yosho asked, with obvious distrust in his voice. "To get Tenchi back, all you have to do is get past me." Making it sound simple but it's far from the truth and he knows it. "Just take your best shot." He added with a hint of sarcasm. The two looked at each other then they both charged at him. Yosho activated his sword and swung while Ayeka put everything she had into a volley of energy attacks. Hadess simply parried Yosho's attack causing him to stumble past. He then quickly blocked and deflected all the blasts with just his right hand. The ones that flew past exploded behind him and a few of the containers were blown apart. Ayeka and Yosho stopped in unison and both had a look of bewilderment. "But…how?" Ayeka hesitantly asked. "I was about to ask the same thing." Yosho added. Then in an act of desperation, Yosho charged at him again, throwing a volley of punches followed by a volley of kicks. All his attacks were blocked without any trouble. Hadess proceeded to knee him and put both fists together then pummels him into the ground. Before Ayeka could attack, Hadess himself was already about to. He fired a single powerful blast that exploded on impact that threw her back and she smashed into a wall a wall several meters away. She collapsed to the ground with a thud. Just after, Yosho was already making his way to his feet. "Things seem pretty bleak for you right now, don't they?" The evil leader asked with amusement in his voice. "She's not in a condition to fight right now…her over there (pointing to Washu) didn't even get to me without being eliminated. So there's only you left…not to mention that you're a lot weaker now…" cut off by Yosho. "That's what you think?" Yosho insisted and sounded fairly calm. "Well my opposition is on the brink of defeat and I haven't even warmed up yet." "If you really want a fight, lets go…I have a lot more fight in me than you think. Besides if you finish me off, there's still Tenchi for you to contend with." "Since it took you so long for to get here, you should know that Tenchi will finish recovering any minute now. So, I'm willing to fight you and that sorry excuse for a prince at the same time…that is if he even wants to. In our previous engagement, he had no…" cut off again. "You really do like the sound of your own voice don't you?" Yosho remarked aggressively. Hadess murmured to himself. "Why don't we just do away with the delays and get it over with right here. Then of course I fight better alone." Yosho stated boldly. "I don't understand…you've seen my power. So why do you want to fight me yourself." Hadess asked, as he had no clue. "They two are unconscious so I feel I can now fight you in my true form." "What do you mean by that?" "Come now…you don't really believe that I'm really an old man do you." Yosho said, gaining a little confidence…but more to draw it out to give Tenchi time to finish recovering. "Okay, you have my attention…now let me see your true form so we can get this on the road." He commented so he can get to the fighting. Yosho closed his eyes and concentrated. An aura of light surrounded him and he started to transform. Once the light dissipated, Yosho was standing with his true form. "Well, since you aren't actually an old man like you appeared, this could actually present bit more of a challenge this time." "I agree." Yosho added with his obviously younger voice. "Well, I said a little more of a challenge…which according to your previous performance, doesn't really say much for you." "I know, why don't you put your money where your mouth is and just bring it…"Yosho remarked, starting to sound a little impatient. "And by the way, you said a 'bit' more of a challenge, not a 'little'." "Bold words for someone who should know that they have no chance in winning." Hadess returned. Yosho started thinking. "I'm ready when you are…" The Goth started. "Or if you've realized that there's no point…" Cut off again. "I'm ready…don't bother thinking you can make excuses to back down from a fight." Yosho commented with the intention to provoke him. "That does it, put up or shut up…no forget about that. How about I just destroy you." "We'll see about that." Replied Yosho. Tenchi suddenly felt a power increase. He suddenly remembered feeling that power before. It was when he was training with Yosho. They were sparring and when Tenchi went all out, he briefly noticed an energy spike from Yosho…this indicated an amount of hidden power. Yosho had powered up to his peak energy level and was as ready as he'll ever be. "Hmm, you're more powerful than I though…perhaps when I fight you this time, I might actually break a sweat." Hadess commented but it looked like Yosho had enough. "That does it, I can't stand your voice anymore." Yosho said, starting to sound annoyed. He then concentrated his energy and charged at him. He let out a cry and swung his fist, striking him square in the face, making him stumble back. Once he regained his bearings, Yosho quickly ignited his sword. He was immediately on the offensive again, swinging his sword and Hadess found himself slowly back stepping while blocking and dodging with difficulty. It looked like Yosho was gaining the upper hand but without warning the sword swung to the side. The Goth saw this and punched him to the ground using the defensive gap that opened up. "I didn't think you would make such a blatant mistake…I have to admit before that, you put up a pretty good fight. It's a pleasant change to fight someone who actually knows how. I'll let you get to your feet and even start off the fight again. That's if you're ready for round two." Hadess said. Yosho got to his feet, took off his glasses and threw them over to where Ayeka was laying. He then went back into a fighting stance. "Yeah, I'm ready for another round…lets do it." Responded Yosho eagerly. "Go ahead." Inviting Yosho to go first. "Alright then…" He responded and went on the attack. He swung the sword but it suddenly moved to avoid him and he just slid right past. Hadess then struck him from behind, causing him to fall to his knees. Yosho, thought with a feeling of realization. He deactivated the sword, threw it to the ground and was on his feet again. "Lets try that again, I promise it will last longer this time." Yosho added and got ready to continue. **** Aeryn and Sasami were walking and taking in the scenery. They took a walk because there was nothing else to do. "I'm just wondering, what exactly did you do with Tenchi when you were with him." Sasami asked. "Huh, emm." Not sure how to answer. "Don't worry, I'm just curious how you and Tenchi met and the things you did together." Sasami added with reassurance. "Okay…it all started when I was waiting for someone but he didn't show up. I first thought he was just running late so I waited a while longer. After two hours of desperately waiting, it was obvious that he wouldn't appear." "Aww, I'm sorry." Sasami added. "It's okay. Well anyway, I wondered around and saw Tenchi standing there lost and confused. I decided to help him out and since there was no longer anything for me to do. I spent the rest of the day showing him around." Aeryn explained. "There's more to it than you're letting on isn't there?" Sasami asked. "Emm, maybe we should go back to the house now." She said, attempting to change the subject. Sasami decided to let it pass and they both headed back. **** The two fighters were at it, fiercely exchanging blow after blow. Hadess managed to gain the upper hand and with two powerful blows, Yosho was down again. He then laughed to himself. "I have to admit…you're a lot more powerful than anyone else that I've fought for a while. But that doesn't change the fact I'm going to have to destroy you now." before he could continue, there was a beeping coming from the control panel. A red light was flashing then lit up blue and the beeping stopped. Thought Tenchi in sudden realization and removed his breathing apparatus. He put both hands on the glass and with a burst of energy; the casing was completely blown apart. He then slowly stepped out of what was left of the recovery pod. "Hey, I don't know why but I feel a lot stronger than I used to be." He said to himself with enthusiasm but his expression quickly turned serious. "Any last requests?" Hadess asked with slight amusement. Yosho powered up again. "It's not over yet!" He yelled and charged at him again. Just before he got to him, there was a bright flash and a deafening explosion. There was a massive hole in the wall and a dense cloud of smoke and debris. They both stared intently as the smoke slowly cleared. It eventually cleared to reveal Tenchi. Hadess saw him and laughed to himself. "I'm sorry but you're going to have to wait your turn." He said and aimed his left hand at Tenchi. Suddenly an energy field surrounded the prince. Tenchi tried to get out but it was futile. "Once I'm finished with him, it will be your turn." Then without warning, Yosho used this to attack from behind. Hadess then turned and both started to throw punches at high speed. He managed to gain the upper hand again when he managed to kick Yosho back a few meters. With the extra breathing room, he powered up an energy attack and fired with both hands. Yosho just barely jumped out of the way and the blast exploded violently behind him. He attempted to go on the offensive again but Hadess then started firing numerous blasts. Yosho quickly dodged them but one hit…then another. Tenchi could only grimace at this. The onslaught continued and when Yosho was hit for a third time, he collapsed to the ground and reverted back to his 'old' form again. "No!" Tenchi yelled as his grandfather slowly collapsed and fell to the ground. Hadess walked up to Yosho and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him to his knees. "Well I guess your time is over." He said sadistically and threw him back to the ground with a loud thud. "I can only hope that he will provide more of a challenge after what we did." "What do you mean by 'what you did'?" Tenchi asked. "You somehow have the ability to generate light hawk wings without the help of Tsunami…it appeared to be surprisingly difficult to access that ability for some reason. Because of this, we have used certain things to bring it closer to the surface so to speak" Hadess explained. Tenchi thought aloud. "Back to the matter at hand…" the Goth started. "Back to the point where I kill you." His voice quickly turning aggressive and Tenchi started to scan the room. His eyes first went onto Washu, who was lying against the back wall. He thought to himself and his eyes continued to scan the room and then finally, saw Ayeka. He started, beginning to feel a mixture of strong emotions. Feeling desperate. His eyes then went back to Yosho and all sound seemed like it was muted and distant as Hadess aimed his hand and fired. It was like all his emotions and senses over powered him and suddenly nothing. **** Tenchi suddenly came to in his bedroom. He couldn't help but feel completely relieved that it appeared to have just been a dream. All those thoughts came over him again echoing through his mind. "I can make a change…this has given me an appreciation for this household again. But what about Aeryn…was she just a figment of my imagine?" He asked to himself. "He started to feel at peace again and went downstairs. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he noticed Ayeka standing there. The images and the feelings came over him again then he just went up and put his arms around her. She was initially surprised but accepted as it was and returned the hug. He released her then put his hands on her shoulders at arm length. Ayeka still had a vague look of confusion on her face. "Emm, what's this about?" Ayeka hesitantly asked. "I just want to properly get to know you…because after all this time I still haven't." Tenchi said simply. Ryoko approached from the right and Tenchi put his hands back down. For some reason, he didn't feel that inevitable sense of doom that comes in a situation like this. "Hey Tenchi, I see you're finally up." Ryoko commented. "Yeah…" Was all Tenchi could say. He then found him self overpowered with an image. All he heard was his own loud heartbeat and saw the horrifying scene of Hadess firing an energy blast at his Grandfather. "Tenchi…" He heard in the distance…then the calling became closer. Ryoko placed her hand on his shoulder and was startled to find himself back in the house again. "Tenchi, are you okay?" Ryoko asked with a sound of concern. "Oh, it's just that I had a pretty unpleasant dream and I don't seem to have gotten over it yet." Tenchi tried to explain. "What was it about?" Ryoko added. "It all started when I went away somewhere but I was captured. You all came to save me things got pretty bad." "So what happened?" Ryoko insisted. "Why do you want to know?" "I don't know…I just want to hear it, that's all." She said. "Okay then…I saw you were all hurt but I was powerless to do anything…it was all the work of someone called Hadess." Washu emerged from her lab. "Oh, hey little Washu." He said as soon as he noticed the little scientist. Unlike the first two girls, she seemed to have a dark look in her face. The worst thing was that it appeared to be aimed at Tenchi himself. On top of that, the light from outside diminished and a rumble of thunder was heard in the distance. For some reason, everything started feeling dark and eerie and when the emotions seemed to just drain from Ryoko and Ayeka…not to mention the color from their face, Tenchi started to feel scared and confused. "What's going on?" "You know what's going on…don't act like you don't know." Washu responded in a dark voice. Tenchi suddenly gasped in realization with a brief flash of those unpleasant images again. "You, you mean…" Tenchi desperately tried. "You abandoned us…" Ayeka cut him off. "We depended on you but you just abandoned us there." "Huh, what do you mean?!" Sounding confused. "Yeah, why did you do it?!" Ryoko added. Tenchi started to back off away from them. "You could have helped us but you just stood there and did nothing." "I hope you're happy!" Exclaimed…someone. Because of the confusion, Tenchi just didn't know. A much louder burst of thunder sounded and seemed to shake the whole building. "We needed you!" The verbal attacks continued. "You abandoned us!" "But I didn't mean to." Tenchi pleaded in a desperate attempt to end this…but they didn't even notice him trying to speak and continued. The shouting and accusations started to get louder and louder. He put his hands over his ears to try to shut it out. It didn't make a difference with the same things echoing through his mind and he grimaced intently. "No!!!" He screamed out as he became overwhelmed with fear and helplessness, but over it, he heard another voice that sounded like his own. After hearing that, his fear turned into a form of desperate determination and anger. The voices became loud again and he growled to himself then he raised his head again. "Enough!!" He cried out at the top of his voice and looked to find himself on the Equinox again. "I won't let you…get away with this!" Tenchi shouted out and his voice was distorted with rage and growled in anger. "I can't...let this happen!" Hadess turned in surprise at the massive energy spike. There was electrical energy arcing all around the room. An aura of light surrounded him and it just got brighter and brighter. Soon Hadess couldn't look at him. The light practically engulfed the room then dimmed down again…then it was gone. Hadess and Yosho looked over at Tenchi where they saw him with a red aura around him as well as the light hawk wings. Hadess was shocked and surprised at this. "So they must be the legendary light hawk wings." He said slowly and hesitantly. Tenchi slowly moved his hand forward until it was less than an inch from the energy field. He concentrated for a few seconds and the field just collapsed. He then walked over to Yosho and helped him up. "Grandpa, I need you to do something for me." Tenchi said seriously. "What is it?" "I need you to get the other two to safety…when the fighting begins, I want you all to be away from here so at least I know you won't get hurt." He explained. "But what about…" cut off. "Just do it." Tenchi returned. Yosho slowly went over to Ayeka but feeling impatient, Hadess aimed his hand at him and was about to fire. Tenchi saw this and suddenly phased in front of him with his arms stretched out to the sides. "But…how?" Hadess asked in surprise at his speed. "I will not allow you to hurt them…they will leave and you *will* let them." Tenchi demanded. "Fine, have it your way…they can go." Responded the Goth with irritation in his voice. Hadess and Tenchi watched in unison as Yosho helped up Ayeka and Washu and lead them outside. The large door opened and when they left and the door closed again, the two fighters immediate turned to face each other. "Okay, now that they're gone, let's say we get started." Hadess said calmly. "Fine by me." Tenchi replied in more or less the same tone. **** The other three were hastily making their way down the poorly lit corridor and Ayeka suddenly stopped. The other two stopped and turned round. "Why have you stopped?" Yosho asked. "I just want to know why we're leaving instead of staying back there and helping Tenchi." She pointed out. "To be honest, it just looks like we would get in the way. It's like they're in a league of their own so our intervention would barely make a difference…even in the best case scenario." He explained and the princess appeared to be thinking about it. At first, she didn't want to accept it but a moment later she sighed and conceded. "I guess you're right…I mean I couldn't even get my hands on him let alone make any real difference." She admitted and continued moving along with the others. There was a tense standoff between the two fighters as they both waited for the other to make the first move. "How about this…" Hadess started, indicating a way out of this. "I'm listening." Tenchi said simply. "How about I count to three and when I say 'go' we both attack." He suggested. "That sounds reasonable." Tenchi replied, sounding perfectly calm. "One." Tenchi placed his hands forward. "Two". The wings passed through him, becoming part of him. "Three." He clenched his hands into fists, put his arms down and received a massive surge of energy. His clothes shimmered like in a strong wind. "Go…" They both charged in as fast as they could, swung their right fists, which collided, releasing a tremendous amount of energy. It went onto heavy-handed punched and blocks then Hadess managed to gain the upper hand. He then swung his fist that struck Tenchi with incredible force and knocked him flying back, smashing into a large crate. "Damn, he's too good…there's just no margin for error around this guy." Tenchi thought aloud. He got up and went on the offensive again. **** The two girls and Yosho were quickly making their way down the corridor, trying to find a means of escape. They went round a corner but several officers were at the end of the corridor. The officers fired as soon as they emerged and the three of them quickly took the shelter of the corner. There were several shots that hit the walls near where the three were standing. The shots were still heard but none were aimed in their direction. Washu looked round the corner and saw the officers pointing and firing at another direction. She watched, as they were systematically shot by someone else. Moments later, other people emerged from the other end of the corridor and Washu aimed her right hand forward. She was about to blast them but noticed that Mihoshi was with them. "Hey Mihoshi!" Washu called out as she walked towards her, the other two following behind. **** Tenchi managed to distance himself from his adversary. He leaped at him and using both hands, he forcefully pushed him, causing him to fly back and crash into the wall then to the ground. The Goth got up and calmly walked up to Tenchi. "Okay, time for round two." Hadess said and backed off to an appropriate starting position. He jumped towards Tenchi and swung his foot but he managed to block it. Tenchi countered with a punch but Hadess managed to parry him, making him slide past. They both faced each other then locked their arms into grapple hold. It was a deadlock as both fighters struggled to gain the upper hand. For some reason Hadess started to laugh to himself. "What's so amusing?" Tenchi asked, with tension in his voice. "I'm just impressed with your powers…I really look forward to unlocking that secret. If I managed to add this power to my own, can you imagine how powerful I would become?" That thought went through Tenchi's mind and he was put off slightly because of it. It also caused him to loose his guard and Hadess got the upper hand. He kicked Tenchi back and slid a few meters along the ground. **** Yosho, Ayeka and Washu along with Mihoshi and her crew were running in the direction of the main shuttle bay. Mihoshi and her four remaining crewmembers stopped and the other three stopped to find out why. "Why are you stopping?" Washu asked. Mihoshi got ready to explain. "Well, once they know where you are, they'll send who knows how many people down here…so we decided to hold them off." She said. "Hmm, that's uncharacteristically brave of you." Washu commented. "But what about you?" Ayeka asked. "Forget about us, just worry about getting to safety." Mihoshi added with reassurance. After hesitation, the three continued as the others took positions and got ready. **** Both were still at it, repeatedly giving and receiving strikes with fists and feet. A loud explosion was heard nearby and the room shook from it. This distracted Tenchi for a moment and Hadess took the opportunity. With one powerful strike, the Jurian prince was brought to the ground with a crash. "When you keep lowering your guard like that, it makes the fight too easy." Hadess pointed out. "Or maybe that's all you got." He started laughing. Tenchi growled to himself and got himself up. He powered up again but Hadess wasn't paying attention. Then without warning, Tenchi charged and threw his fist. The Goth was caught completely off guard and Tenchi's attack struck him square in the face. This was followed by a swift kick across his chest causing Hadess to nearly loose his balance. Tenchi then back-flipped to get some breathing room. He charged up and cried out as he fired an energy blast. It exploded and caused him to collapse. Tenchi just stood there, watching and was completely out of breath. After a few seconds of silence, a thought occurred to him. "Oh yeah, I think I've done it." He thought aloud then realized something else. "I better get out of here before this place blows." **** Ayeka, Yosho and Washu entered the shuttle bay and an alarm sounded. Washu checked a panel on the wall. "There we go, security have been alerted to our presence here…it won't be long before a swarm of them get here." She said and started running towards one of the shuttlecrafts that were there, the other two followed. When they got to it, Washu found a control panel near the shuttle and activated it. "What are you doing?" Yosho asked. "I'm trying to access the transporter system. If I access that system, I should be able transport us aboard." She explained and continued working but without warning Ryo-ohki climbed out of her hiding place in Washu's shirt then ran for the door. "What the…" Washu let out. "Ryo-ohki, where are you going?" Ayeka tried and the cabbit just miya'd before she disappeared past the door. Washu realized something "Damn, I think she's after Tenchi." **** Tenchi heard the alarm sound and decided to check a control panel that he noticed. He noticed a visual layout of the ship. There was a red flashing dot indicating a location somewhere near the back of the ship. He was then on his way to that location. Hadess lay there lifeless as Tenchi left but after the doors opened then closed, his eyes shot open again. Tenchi looked from side to side and when he saw it was clear, started on his way to find the others. He then heard a crashing sound in the wall of the room he was in. The same crashing sound was heard again. "What the hell?" Tenchi let out then suddenly, his former nemesis smashed through the wall, grabbed him and rammed him against the other wall. Before the prince could even hit the ground, the Goth grabbed him again and threw him along the corridor. Tenchi hit the landed with a thud and slid along the ground. "Surely you didn't think you could defeat me with a pathetic cheap-shot like that did you." Hadess said angrily. "Oh man, I put practically everything I had into that attack." Tenchi thought aloud as he struggled to get up and his nemesis walked over to him. "Well, it was fun but I'm going to have to finish you off now." Hadess commented as he towered over the defenseless prince. He pulled his fist back, powered up and launched it at Tenchi. But just before it reached him, he glowed and disappeared with a flash so the Goth's fist merely passed through thin air and smashed into the ground. He growled to himself in fury. "Where did he go?" He asked to himself angrily. "I've got other things to worry about anyway. I can deal with him anytime…just not now." He reasoned. **** Security forces were almost at the shuttle bay and Mihoshi along with her remaining crew heard them coming. They readied them selves as they were about to come swarming through any second. "Okay here they come…you all know what to do." Mihoshi told the others. Washu was still working on the control panel. Then finally, she succeeded. "I got it." She said as she got it to work and entered a few more commands and the three of them were transported aboard. Washu went straight for the navigation controls and activated the launch sequence. The main doors opened and the shuttle started to move. **** Hadess found a control panel in the corridor and accessed it. It indicated an unauthorized shuttle launch. "Computer, initiate a site-to-site transport." The Goth said and entered the coordinates of the bridge. He was transported straight to the bridge, which was deserted and he went to the weapons console. The shuttlecraft cleared the bay then turned to the direction of earth and started to accelerate. Hadess saw it on the targeting scanners and activated the energy weapons. Washu saw this and looked distressed. "What is it?" Yosho asked. "They're charging weapons…that ship is going to fire any time now. There is just no way we can survive in a fire fight against…that." She explained with a sense of hopelessness. The Equinox fired a few initial shots, a few hit but a most o them missed. The room shook with each impact and Washu looked at the screen. "I've been trying to avoid these shots but we cannot survive another attack like that." The Goth stood there looking at the viewscreen with a sadistic grin on his face. He armed the torpedoes, locked into the ship and fired. Three torpedoes were fired and they were heading straight for the defenseless shuttle. Washu looked at this in shock. "Oh no! Three torpedoes were fired and there's no way I can avoid them!" She said in desperation. She watched her screen, as three red dots rapidly got closer to a green one. "For all it's worth, we better brace for impact…huh?" Washu let out as she saw Yosho then Ayeka disappear in a flash. "What the…" This was all she could say before she disappeared as well. The first torpedo hit, knocking the shuttle out of control. The second tore right through the ship and the third completely blew the ship apart. Hadess looked at this and laughed to himself in triumph. "Well, well, looks like I've won." He said but a computer voice sounded. "Warning, internal sensors have detected an instability in one of the plasma manifolds." The computer voice announced. He turned to the console behind him. "Lets see if I can stabilize it. Doesn't look like I can." He commented to himself. "According to the rate of deterioration, the manifold will become unstable in approximately two hours." The computer said. "What will happen then?" He asked. "The manifold will explode causing massive damage throughout the ship." He went back to the weapons console where he noticed another ship. It was the Ryo-ohki. The cabbit ship sped away from the dreadnought, as she was about to jump to hyperspace. On board, Washu materialized and noticed Yosho, Ayeka, none other than Tenchi himself. She looked at this in surprise. Ayeka has put her arms around him in relief that they finally got him back, not to mention the fact he was still alive. Tenchi proudly sat himself in the command chair and looked towards the viewscreen. "Set a course for earth and engage hyperspace…now." Tenchi ordered and the cabbit ship then jumped to hyperspace. "Hmm, they think they can get away do they." Hadess thought aloud. "Is the slipstream drive still online?" He asked. "Affirmative." The computer responded and he walked over to the helm and laid in a pursuit course. The Equinox moved off and jumped to hyperspace as well. **** About one hour and fifty minutes later, Ryo-ohki jumped from hyperspace with Earth in clear view. Everyone took a step forward as the planet entered view. It just felt good for everyone that they were finally back home. A beeping sound started and Washu took a look. "Wait a second, something else is coming out of hyperspace." Washu said with suspicion in her voice. Suddenly, the huge warship jumped from hyperspace almost right on top of them. "Oh my god!" Washu let out in terror when she saw it. Hadess looked upon the cabbit ship with an almost psychotic laugh and ran over to the weapons console. The ship started firing as Ryo- ohki started towards Earth. The computer voice onboard the equinox sounded again. "The manifold will become unstable in less than two minutes…" This was all Hadess heard before he ran for the lift "Oh, time to go." He said to himself as he entered the lift and the doors closed behind him. "Huh? Why did they stop firing?" Washu asked herself. "Ryo- ohki, all stop." She added because Ryo-ohki was pushing herself in order to keep moving but it didn't appear to be necessary at that point. So they were at a standstill, not far from the Equinox. "Yeah, I would like to know what's going on there myself." Tenchi added. Washu scanned the ship using one of the crystals as an interface. She noticed there wasn't anyone on the bridge. "We could check the bridge and see what's going on there. I don't detect anyone there and it looks safe to transport." Washu suggested and Yosho stepped forward. "Okay then, me and Tenchi will go over." Yosho added. **** The two appeared on the Equinox Bridge and they both looked around. "Tenchi, I need to say something. It's the reason I suggested for us to go" Yosho started. "What is it?" Tenchi responded. "I know you saw me in my younger form." "Now that you mention it, yeah I noticed." Tenchi commented. "I need you to promise something for me." Yosho said. "The others don't know about this and I need you not to tell them." "Fine, I won't tell." Tenchi answered. "Promise?" He insisted. "Yes I promise…you can trust me." With that over, they continued searching the room. Yosho went to the back where he saw a display of the unstable manifold. "Warning, the plasma manifold will become unstable in 25 seconds." The computer said. Tenchi quickly found the communications console and looked at the controls. He eventually figured out what to press and opened a channel to Ryo-ohki. "Washu get us outta here, this place is gonna blow!" Tenchi called out with urgency in his voice. They were both promptly transported back and the cabbit ship was again speeding towards earth…or more to the point, away from the Equinox. Then as the ship hastily retreated, there was an explosion onboard the dreadnought. This explosion caused a large shockwave that went straight for them. Everyone desperately tried to secure themselves against something before the wave hit. The ship started to shake violently then everything seemed to blank out. **** Tenchi awoke to find himself lying in the field. "Huh, was that all a dream or something?" The thought aloud before he realized the pain he was in. "Nope, I don't think so." He then saw the other three as well as Ryo-ohki lying there, just coming to. "I guess Ryo-ohki must have transported us to the surface in the last second." Tenchi guessed. Feeling slightly disoriented and hurting from all the fighting, they all made their way towards the house. Sasami and Aeryn were in the sitting room and Ryoko was in Washu's lab asleep because of her weakened state. The two girls heard the others outside and headed for the door. "Hey, you're back!" Sasami said, as she was pleased to see them and put her arms around her sister. Ryoko was woken by what was going on outside the lab. She got up and went out. She saw the others and finally noticed Tenchi. Mentally, she was overwhelmed with relief that he was back but since she was still groggy, she just smiled. "Welcome back Tenchi." She said and hugged him. He was in fact happy to see her again so he returned the hug. "I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused during the past few days…" He cut her off. "Don't worry about it…I'm just happy to be home." Tenchi said simply. It just seemed so good to be home, everything to be back to normal again…not to mention that Ryoko and Ayeka were peaceful again. Although hurting from the fight, he believed that it was one of those happy days to remember. Not the 'fighting for their lives' part but the part when everyone in the household was happy at the same time. This was a big thing because basically, it doesn't really happen very often. Though this was interrupted when a dark feeling came over him. Ryoko noticed this and let go. "What is it Tenchi?" She asked. "He's still out there." "What are you talking about?" She insisted. "I sensed him…he's still alive." Tenchi continued. "But the ship was destroyed. You saw it yourself." Washu added but it wasn't enough to convince him. "It was damaged, not destroyed. I think he survived and that means," he hesitated for a moment. "Means what?" Ryoko added. "It means he'll be back some day…and we won't have a chance!" "But don't you have you have your light hawk wings back?" Yosho cut in. "You don't understand. He was still stronger than me…a lot stronger. Not only that, I don't think he was even using his full power," Tenchi explained. The house was completely silent while everyone was trying to comprehend this. Ryo-ohki took Aeryn back to New York, Ryoko made a full recovery and Washu started on some new inventions. The thing that happened with Washu is still a mystery and no one knows what happened to Mihoshi and her crew. The Alliance dispatched a few ships to deal with the wreckage. As a show of good will, the Jurians provided resources to help them rebuild their fleet. Author's Notes: Well, that was the pilot episode of my fiction series...I hope you read the series as I continue to write it. Expect the first episodes fairly soon… Just as an additional note: I'm pretty sure that a lot of the people who read this have assumed that Aeryn will get Tenchi in the future…and may even be put off reading further simply for that reason. In light of this I should make it official right now that she doesn't get him…though she does make the occasional 'guest appearance' over the course of the series.