PROLOUGE…

Blackness.  It was a void deeper and darker than any that conventional space
and time could provide.

This however, was not conventional space and time.

A figure appeared in the void.  A woman clad in flowing robes and marked with
green stripes on her face.  Behind her, the shadows of others could be seen.

Suddenly, the space before the woman lit up, revealing the images of what
looked like a family.  The images of five women and three men appeared.  All
were smiling and seemingly happy.  The woman before the image frowned.

"Come forth, Ronoken."  The woman called out to the blackness.

The image of the happy family vanished as a being appeared where the vision
once stood.  He was garbed completely in black robes.  His pale skin resembled
chalk and his eyes were as red as blood.  "You called, Lady Tokimi?"

Tokimi looked to her servant.  "I have a task for you.  This task is very
important to me, so of course it will mean your life if you fail."

"I never fail, my Lady."  The man said as he bowed low.

"A strong boast, Ronoken.  Let us see if you can back your claims."

The man bowed lower.  "Tell me what it is you wish of me, and it shall be
done."

Tokimi smiled.  Ronoken's cocky and brazen attitude would have cost anyone
else his or her life.  However Tokimi knew of Ronoken's abilities and that he
was not prone to empty claims.  He was good at his job, otherwise he'd be dead
or lobotomized by now.

"I want you to travel to Earth.  There you will find my sisters and the ones
they live with."

"You want I should kill them, my Lady?"

Tokimi frowned.  "Don't be foolish!  Their combined strength would be more
than enough to destroy you if you tried anything as brazen as that!  No, your
task will be to fetch me an avatar."

Ronoken looked up.  "An avatar, my Lady?"

"Yes.  The Masaki household is held together by love and trust.  Your job will
be to recruit one of them for me.  I don't care which one.  Once I have one
under my control, it will set off a chain reaction of hate and mistrust that
will bring their entire world crashing down.  Eventually they will go their
separate ways, leaving the universe unguarded!"

"I understand, my Lady.  But how shall I mask my presence from them?  Powers
or not, Washu's technology is advanced enough to detect me before I get within
a thousand miles of the Masaki shrine."

"Not to worry.  My powers shall mask you.  Go now, I shall be watching."  With
that, Tokimi vanished without a trace, as did the shadows behind her.

Ronoken rose, and with a wave of his hand changed his black robes to a black
Armani.  "This will be too easy.  My Lady shall be pleased, so swears
Ronoken!"

***

BGlanders presents…

The Devil and Mr. Masaki

Chapter 1:

The Man in Black

***

All was quiet in the Masaki household.  The clock on the microwave shined a
ghostly yellow 1:30 into the blackness of the kitchen.  Upstairs, the girls
slept on their futons, dreaming away in their quiet little beds.  Tenchi slept
in his room as the gentle summer breezes crept in through his window.  All was
quiet in the house, and all was dark and peaceful.

All that is, except for the pale glow coming from the family room.

Nobuyuki sat in front of the TV staring but not really staring at the images
before him.  The TV showed the image of a young couple's wedding on a bright
summer day.  Many cherry faces were there, but they paled compared to the
bride and groom's smiles.  The camera then zoomed in on the young bride's
face.  A young, smiling angel filled the television's screen, her long black
hair almost touching the carpet of green grass at her feet.  Nobuyuki looked
on as a tear formed in his eye.  "Achika.."

Suddenly Nobuyuki heard a creak coming from behind the couch.  He wiped his
tear away and turned to find Washu standing behind him.  "Oh, good evening,
Little Washu.  I'm sorry if the television woke you, I should probably shut it
down and get to bed myself."  As he started to rise, Washu put her hand out
and motioned for him to stop.  "That's all right, Nobuyuki, I shouldn't have
snuck up on you."  Nobuyuki shut the TV off and stood.  "Say, since we're both
up, do you want to have some tea?  I think Sasami left some in the fridge."

Washu and Nobuyuki sat in the kitchen, sipping tea and enjoying the warm
summer air wafting through the open front door.  "Ah, its so peaceful out here
this time of night.  It's kind of hard to believe that this place is a regular
battlefield during the day."  Washu nodded in agreement and sipped her tea.
"Yes, when the girl's are asleep it's rather peaceful around here."  Nobuyuki
sighed.  "Yeah, almost too peaceful."  Washu looked to Nobuyuki with a
concerned look in her eyes.  Nobuyuki took her hand and smiled.

"Oh, I know what you're thinking.  It's just that these summer nights remind
me of her so very much.  We used to go out to the lake, sit on the grass and
dream about the rest of our lives.  We'd stay out for hours just staring up at
the moon and the stars…  I remember those nights so clearly, it's like they
only happened yesterday.  I know she died a long time ago and yes I've moved
on, but on nights like these, I find myself missing her more than ever."

Washu smiled at the architect.  "You loved her a lot, didn't you?"  Nobuyuki
smiled and nodded.  "She was my life, my entire world.  Then Tenchi was born
and my world suddenly became so much bigger and brighter.  We had so many
plans, so many dreams…"

Nobuyuki wiped away a tear and sipped his tea.  "Sasami does make some good
tea."  Washu wasn't thrown by the obvious attempt to change the subject.
"Nobuyuki, listen to me.  Your world is still here.  You've got Tenchi and now
a house full of people who depend on you and love you.  We're all family now
and nothing can change that.  Do you think that we all haven't lost someone we
love?  A husband?  A lover?  A child?"  Washu's voice began to crack as she
forced the tears back into her skull.  "When we can take our losses and move
forward, when we can look to tomorrow and find a reason to wake up in the
morning, then we know that we're not alone.  We know that the reason we want
to live is because we still have people here that we care about."

Nobuyuki smiled and looked down at his tea, then into Washu's eyes.  "Thank
you, Little Washu.  I needed that more than you know."  He stood, put his cup
in the sink and started to leave.  At the door, he stopped and turned to
Washu.  "If you ever feel like talking.."  Washu smiled.  "You'll be the first
person I look for."  Nobuyuki returned the smile and headed for his room.  As
soon as he was gone, Washu put her head in her hands and sobbed until she ran
out of tears.

***

It was a beautiful morning as the sun shone on the Masaki fields.  In the
middle of the fields stood Tenchi, doing his daily chores of mending and
tending the family garden.  It was a hot, sticky, muggy and all around
miserable job, but Tenchi didn't really mind.  He had always figured his
chores in the fields were either to focus his mind and body and master
patience or some sick practical joke by his Grandfather.  He had always tried
to tell himself that it was the former and nothing more, but on days like this
Tenchi began to question the latter.

"Need a break?"  A voice asked from behind.  Tenchi whirled around, his hoe in
a defensive position in front of him.   Before him stood a pale man dressed in
a black business suit holding a cup of clear, inviting liquid.  Tenchi's eyes
turned to the icy cool glass of water the stranger now held out.  "Here, have
some.  You look like you could use it."  Tenchi eyed the stranger for a
moment, then shook his head.  "No thanks, I've got some water right here."  He
tapped the hot, tiny flask that lay beside the bucket of sticky weeds he had
been pulling for the past two hours.

"Ah, I see.  Well then take a break anyway."  The pale man then drank up every
last icy cool drop of fluid as Tenchi's mouth started to water.  "Uh, say, who
are you?  Are you here to see Grandpa?"  Tenchi lowered his hoe but still
clutched it, just in case.  "In time, my boy, in time.  Right now I'm here to
see you."

"Me?  What do you need to see me for?"  The man before Tenchi sat down on the
dirt and set his glass to the side.  "Because I've watched you Tenchi.  I
watched when your mother died. I watched when they put your grandmother in the
ground.  I watched as you were denied a normal life by forces out of your
control.  I've watched all this and so much more.  I've seen all the torment
you've had to go through, and now I'm here to give you a reward, my little
crown prince of Jurai."

Tenchi staggered at the man's words.  He fell to the ground, catching himself
on his hoe.  "How.. how did you know all that?"  The man smiled.  "I'm sorry,
where are my manners?  My name is Mr. Monis.  I'm very pleased to meet you Mr.
Masaki."  The man in black extended his right hand.  Tenchi, still in a
partial daze, shook it.

"Now that we're intimate friends, let's get down to brass tacks, as it were."
Mr. Monis cracked his knuckles.  "Tenchi, I'm here to offer you something very
special.  I'm here to offer you a wish.  Any wish you can possibly think of I
can supply with a snap of my fingers.  I give you this only because I know
what you've gone through and that even you deserve some ray of happiness in
your life."

Tenchi sat back and thought about it.  A wish?  Any wish?  What does one wish
for?  In all of reality, what could one really wish for?  A million things
raced through Tenchi's mind.  Through them all, one word raced to the top.

Mother.

The image of the Lady Achika appeared in his mind.  Her smiling face and shiny
eyes became as clear as crystal.  He could still hear her voice, feel her
touch against his skin…

"Tenchi."  A voice cut through the illusion.  Tenchi suddenly snapped awake.
He hadn't just thought about his mother, he had actually seen her before him.
Now all he saw was Mr. Monis sitting inches away from his face.  "I can bring
her back to you, and all you have to do is say yes.  Say yes, Tenchi, and all
your wildest dreams will come true."  Tenchi started to open his mouth.  His
lips started to form the word 'yes'.

Then he stopped.

Tenchi suddenly remembered a practice session with his grandfather many years
ago…

***

"Tenchi, keep your eyes focused on me!  How do you expect to survive if you
can't even watch who you're sparring with?"

Tenchi was rubbing his head from where Grandpa's practice sword had hit him.
Yosho stood with his arms crossed waiting for his grandson to recover from his
well-placed blow.  Tenchi then threw his sword on the ground and sat pouting.

"Tenchi, why have you dropped your sword?  Do you think practice is over?"
Tenchi didn't answer, he just kept boring his eyes into the ground with a
scowl on his face.

Yosho sighed and set his own sword on the ground.  He walked over to Tenchi
and sat by his side.  "It's about mother, isn't it?"

Tenchi just continued to stare straight ahead.  Yosho knew instantly that
Achika's death was still gnawing on Tenchi's soul even after two years, he
still didn't understand why his mom had gone away and never came back.  Yosho
put his arm around Tenchi's shoulder.

"Tenchi," Yosho's voice was now soft and soothing.  "I know that your mother
died very suddenly and that it hurt you very much.  It hurt your father and I
as well, but she's gone now and all the tears we shed won't bring her back."

Tenchi pounded his tiny fist into the dirt.  "It's not fair!  She wasn't
supposed to die!  She was always supposed to be around forever!"  Tenchi was
now sobbing and shaking.  "If she really loved us, she wouldn't have died in
the first place!"

Yosho hugged his grandson tight and rocked him back and forth.  "Now Tenchi,
sometimes things like this happen.  No one knows why they do, and no one
thinks they're fair, but they do happen.  We can cry and pout about it for the
rest of our lives, or we can draw strength from it and try to move on."

"How am I supposed to do that?  And why?  Why does it have to be like that?
It's just not fair!"

"Shh, Tenchi.  You're right.  It's not fair and it's not easy.  It's probably
the most horrible thing a child can go through in life.  I'm sorry that you
had to loose her, and I miss her every day, but your mother didn't choose to
go.  She was very ill, Tenchi.  She loved you very much and would have done
everything in her power to stay with you, but her body was just too weak to
hold all the love she had inside of her.  Tenchi she loved you more than life
itself and would have done everything she could have to make you happy."

Tenchi's sobbing had slowed and now he was mostly sniffling and leaning
against Yosho for support.  Yosho continued to cradle his grandson.
"Grandpa?"

"Yes Tenchi?"

"Where do you think mom is right now?"

"I think she's watching over us right now."

Tenchi's eyes brightened.  "You do?"

Yosho smiled and nodded.  "Yep.  In fact, I know she is.  And I know she
wouldn't want you to be sad about her passing.  I know that she would want you
to move on with your life and get the most out of it."

"But grandpa, I don't want to forget mom…"

"Tenchi," Yosho smiled again at his only grandchild, "Moving past someone's
death doesn't mean you forget about them, it simply means you still try to
enjoy life, because that's what the departed would want most from us."

Tenchi smiled then and hugged Yosho.  "Thanks grandpa."  Yosho grinned and
hugged his grandson back.  "Any time Tenchi.  Now let's head back to the house
and get some lunch."

"But what about practice?"

Yosho picked his grandson up and but him on his shoulders.  "I think we've
learned enough for one day.  Come on, let's get something to eat, I'm
starving!"

***

"I'm sorry, Mr. Monis, but what I want you just can't give me.  I've learned
to accept my mother's passing and to get on with my life.  I still miss her,
but I'm not about to change my whole world for a wish."

Monis lost his smile as what Tenchi said sunk in.  "You don't have to wish for
you mother.  Why, you could wish for just about anything…"

"No!"  Tenchi leapt to his feet.  "Grandfather taught me that everything comes
at a price!  What you have to give is a fantasy, an illusion that I don't
want!  Get away from me demon!"

Mr. Monis stood, brushing the dirt from his black Armani.  "Very well, Mr.
Masaki.  I'm sorry to have disturbed your little weeding job.  I'll be going
now.  You just stay here in your field of dirt and tend your little carrots.
I could've given you the world today, Tenchi Masaki.  All you had to do was
say 'yes'."

In a flash of light and a whirlwind of sound, Mr. Monis vanished as suddenly
as he had appeared, leaving Tenchi standing in the dirt, shaking and sobbing
in fury and despair.

"It's not fair, it's not…"

With that, Tenchi dropped to his knees and passed out.

***

The man in black floated in orbit as a voice called to him from across the
void, tossing all known physics about sound in a vacuum right down the shoot.

"Ronoken, you have failed me."

"Nay, my Lady," the man in black said, "That was merely a warm-up.  I figured
if I could push him that close to the edge, the others should fall like a
house of cards.  Have faith in me, my Lady.  I shall not fail you."

"See that you don't, Ronoken, or I shall disperse your atoms to the four
winds."  With that, the presence vanished from the man in black's mind.

"As you wish, my Lady," He mumbled as he turned his attention to his next
target in the Masaki household.

***

Yowza!  I'm doing another series!  This is a slightly revised and re-posted
edition of chapter 1 before I put out chapter 2.  Now that Gentle Sound of
Thunder is DONE, I can focus on this little diddy.  Thanks all…

Tenchi and Co belong to AiC and Pioneer

The Man in Black really belongs to Johnny Cash, but I'm using it for my own
screwed up characters, so just deal with it.  ^_^