Ryo-ohki silently cruised through open space at a speed far exceeding that of the speed of light, causing space to ripple behind it in gravitational waves. Terran scientists would claim that such an achievement was completely impossible, that it would defy the very laws of physics that make up our universe, but they never *really* understood how things worked in the universe anyway. They still thought that their sun was a giant gaseous ball composed mostly of hydrogen after all. However, none of that really mattered because there were only two Terrans that were anywhere near the event and one was a farmer and the other a computer programmer. Tenchi, one of the Terrans, didn't even know they were breaking any of his home planet's laws, he'd just found out his grandfather was from another planet, and Adam, the other Terran, knew that such travel was considered impossible, but he'd just been pulled from his dimension and placed in one of his favorite anime shows, Tenchi Muyou!, and was ready to accept pretty much anything. He only wished his traveling companions were. "Okay," Ryouko said, giving Ryo-ohki final bits of information for her to follow the ion trail of Doctor Clay, the kidnapper of Washuu, whom she and her friends were currently chasing. "Ryo-ohki should be able to take it from here." She stood up from her chair before the dual crystalline controls of the ship and walked across the rather large yet furniture vacant bridge to where Tenchi, Adam, Aeka, and Sasami were standing. "Now somebody tell me what's going on! Who's Washuu?" "All right," Adam quickly said stepping back a bit to address the whole group. "I'm sure you all have a lot of questions, even I have them, so while we're waiting to catch up with Doctor Clay, I'll try bring some light on the situation. First of all, I have to explain a few things about myself." "Yes," Aeka looked up at Adam suddenly. "I was wondering how you knew about Lord Tenchi's descent from my brother Yousho when even he did not." "Well, that has to do with where I *really* come from," Adam explained. "First allow me to explain something. The universe we live in is infinite in every dreamable way, even to the point where it has an unlimited amount of layers or dimensions where every possible world that you can think of, exists somewhere layered on top of this universe. Now, as it is imaginable, there are universes where the beings can cross between these layers or dimensional boundaries into other universes and vice versa." "Sailor Pluto, a being who is capable of crossing between dimensions, found me and brought me to your dimension. Ryouko," Adam looked to the spiky haired woman currently clinging to one side of Tenchi. "When Zero first arrived in Tenchi's room, she called me a dimensional being, or words to that effect, because she detected that I did not belong in this dimension." "But," Ryouko said. "That doesn't explain why you know so much about us, you should know the least out of all of us but you seem to know the most." "Oh, but it does," Adam said with a smile on his face, obviously quite enjoying the conversation. "In my world, your dimension is a television show!" Ryouko, Aeka, and the rest simply looked at Adam blankly and then blinked in unison. "Oh, that explains it," Ryouko quipped and started walking back over to the controls. "Wait!" Adam pleaded. "Let me explain better! You see, I said that for every imaginable world, an identical one exists in some alternate universe. In my world, there is a television show that stars all of you in a world almost identical to this one. That's how I knew about your gems and Ryo-ohki," he turned to Tenchi. "It's how I knew about the GP fleet and Mihoshi, and all about you and your family." To Aeka. "It's how I knew Kagato's plan and Tenchi's relationship to you. Aeka, your brother is ALIVE, he lives on Earth in a shrine in Okayama." "Grandpa?" Tenchi muttered. "Yes!" exclaimed Adam. "For over seven hundred years! He sealed Ryouko in that shrine and stayed to guard her until the time was right to allow you, Tenchi, the man he wishes to take his place as Emperor of Jurai, to free her." "But why," Aeka interrupted. "would he not tell me, his own sister, or his father and the counsel, that he was alive and guarding this ... demon." She spat the last word out as if it was acid in her mouth. Ryouko snarled accordingly. "It's complicated, Princess Aeka. He felt that Azusa was embarrassed that his son was half-human, and he knew that the other royal families were prejudiced against him and others like him, so he fled. Ryouko's attack under Kagato's control was merely convenient. He was scared." "But... father doesn't feel that way and ... the other families would bow to father's will..." Aeka seemed almost on the verge of tears. "Please, Aeka, I don't assume to know completely what your brother's motives were for staying on Earth, or why he had the backing of Tsunami. All I know is that many events were orchestrated to occur so that in the end, Tenchi," Adam motioned to him as he spoke, "could be born in this era of both human and Juraian cultures. I can't imagine how important he'll be, my knowledge of this universe does not extent that far. Worse, the longer I exist here, the bigger changes I make in the timeline and the less accurate my prediction skills become. Even now, I never expected Doctor Clay to show up for another ten months, but here he is, working with the late Kagato." "My head hurts," Sasami summed up the events for the rest of the crew admirably. "I'm going to lie down." "That's a good idea, Sasami," Aeka said. "I'll wake you if anything important happens." The two walked over to one of the corners of the bridge. "Hmm," Adam said. "So what do you think Tenchi." "Uhh..." Tenchi put his hand behind his head. "Wow." "Good analogy. Ryouko?" "This is all very strange," said Ryouko. "But who is Washuu, and why are we chasing after her?" "Uhh..." Adam said nervously. "She's your mother, Ryouko." "WHAT?!" Adam felt the beads of sweat gather on the sides of his forehead. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Tempest Creations Presents... A Leigh Production In Association With Pioneer Entertainment And Masaki Kajishima FULL CIRCLE (THE OAV SERIES) Written And Adapted By Adam Leigh Based on the "Full Circle" TV Series by Adam Leigh and released by Starlight Productions PART TWO of FOUR ------------------------------------------------------------------ "I want some peanuts!" "There aren't any peanuts." "The service on the flight is terrible! I'm going to report you to your superiors, Octopus-head!" Doctor Clay furrowed his brow. For the twenty third time since he'd taken Washuu captive from Kagato's ship, he had to physically restrain himself from belting Washuu all the way to Lady Tokimi's ship. At first it wasn't so bad, a couple puns here a few rearranging of his words into sexual connotations there, then she started whining and Clay wanted to cry. He didn't spend all those years in the Science Academy for this... or rather, those rather abrupt years before he was kicked out by none other than this snot-nosed, hedgehog hared, sniveling, weaseling, undeveloped, childish— "When's the movie going to start?" "Arrgghhh!!!" Doctor Clay screamed, jumped to his seat, and lunged at the chair Washuu was being held in. He nearly throttled her before he realized that he was now twisting the neck of a nice miniature doll that sort of looked like Washuu but not enough to relieve his stress by ripping it apart. Immediately releasing the doll as if it carried the plague, he spun on one foot just in time to come face to face with Washuu, standing before him with some sort of an ornate staff. His eye twitched uncontrollably. "Tag!" she said bopping on the head causing the staff to explode into a cloud of confetti and sequins. "Your it, Octy!" Doctor Clay's hand snatched out with lightning quick speed just in time to catch the hand of the stone statue that was behind Washuu by accident. He growled in anger as Washuu smiled at him evilly. "You're very slow," she commented. "I don't have time for these games!" Clay screamed, causing some of his experiments in other areas of the Shunga to end prematurely due to unexplained rattling. "Why not, Octy?" Washuu inquired, folding her arms and raising her eyebrows. "By now you must have figured out that I'm here by choice, silly you couldn't hold me here alone. Buuuuuuut, I figured that if I escaped now, you'd just cause all sorts of trouble to those nice people who let me out and of course, my wonderful daughter, so I think I'll say here and find out what you want. If you're not going to do something to help pass the time, though, I might as well leave." "Urrohhh, Washuu!" Clay rumbled. "That vein popping out of your forehead can't be good. Maybe I should put my nurse's outfit on." "What will it take for you stop interrupting my work?!" Washuu smiled. "You'll have to give up this pathetic attempt to capture me." She let her smile fade. "But, since there's little chance of old Octopus-head admitting he failed, I'll settle for an explanation. We can start with, where are you taking me?" Doctor Clay mumbled something indeterminable before sitting down in a nearby chair. "I'm taking you to see Lady Tokimi." "Lady Tokimi," Washuu repeated, her face suddenly serious. "I see you've heard of her." "Nope!" said Washuu with a grin. "Who is she? A wittle wittle girlie your twying to sedwuce? Hmm, perhaps not, judging by that nervous clicking noise you're making. I've definitely never heard you use a title before... must be your honey." Doctor Clay stammered for a few seconds then slammed his fist into a nearby table, standing to put extra pressure into it. "Lady Tokimi is a goddess of infinite power!" "A goddess, eh?" Washuu continued. "'Angels and Ministers of Grace?'" "She told me to bring you to her." "Hmm, courting favor with a goddess? Doesn't sound like the Clay I remember..." "She promised me the ability to make my own Galaxy!" Clay announced. "Can you imagine, Washuu? My own galaxy to create and command, bound by my will, controlled by my law!" "Done?" Washuu asked, obviously bored. "Not yet," Clay said. "I don't know why she's interested in you or what relation you two have but I intend to find that out. I would prefer to find out now, instead of later, but either way I'll find out." "You'll have a hard time getting it from me, Octy, I can hardly remember what happened a thousand years ago, I certainly don't remember anyone named Tokimi. You'd have better luck talking to her." "So you say, but I don't believe you." Clay looked even eyed at Washuu. "But I have tests." "OOOOH!" Washuu exclaimed. "Tests!" Clay looked around for that doll again. -=- Setsuna opened her eyes suddenly. She hadn't remembered falling asleep or doing anything so strenuous as to require restoration. In fact, last she could remember, she wasn't even tired, just monitoring Adam from the Time Gate. "Pluto," came the voice from all around her. She looked around and realized for the first time that she was standing alone in total blackness. But she could *feel* the presence around her, almost overwhelming if she hadn't felt it before. "Tokimi," Pluto nearly sneered. "A simple invitation would suffice." "A meaningless formality," Tokimi replied as her head and shoulders faded into view far above Pluto. "One that would require a costly expenditure of energy." "Still finding it difficult moving between my world and yours? You should leave it up to the professionals, Plutos were born for it after all, you were... modified." "A verbal assault will solve nothing at this point." "Of course, what was it you pulled me across the multiverse to talk about?" Setsuna casually leaned on her Time Staff. "It concerns your avatar's involvement in my affairs," Tokimi said shortly. "Ah yes, too bad really, I don't think you'll believe me if I say it was an accident, will you?" "No." "Ah, well, that's the problem with nearly endless foresight." Pluto picked up her staff and moved it in a circle in front of herself creating an oval like window where a picture of Adam talking to Tenchi and Ryouko appeared. "If it was up to me, Tokimi, I would make a modest attempt to help you, but unfortunately I've entered him into a path that I cannot remove him from. You understand, of course, how you like it if someone asked you to remove D3 because of a minor interference?" "Different scenarios." "Of course," Setsuna said, banishing the oval from whence it came. "There's nothing for me to do, if you're so panicked though, I invite you to try to do something." "It will be considered," Tokimi said after a second. Pluto hardly had a second to reply before she felt a wave of vertigo and found herself no longer in Tokimi's presence. Alone by the Time Gate, Sailor Pluto pondered what to do next. -=- "We're coming up behind them," Ryouko announced to her traveling companions as they crowded around her and the control crystals. One of the large holographic displays changed to show a picture of the Shunga quickly moving though space towards some distant object too far away to determine. "Do they know that we're here?" Adam asked, a bead of sweat building on his nose. "I don't know," Ryouko admitted. "There aren't adequate sensors to tell if they've scanned us." "We can only assume, then," Adam summarized. "That if we can see them, they can see us." "What's the plan?" Tenchi asked. "The plan?" Adam stammered. "Uh, well, we board their ship anyway we can, then work our way towards what looks like the head, where Washuu should be located. I really don't know much about the Shunga except that unless you enter pretty close to the head, there is no way to get to the bridge." And, Adam thought, Clay is sitting somewhere up there with his hand on a button that can turn this whole sector into a black hole, but I best not mention that. "Rather rough plan," commented Ryouko. "I like it," she snarled bearing her fanged teeth. Adam saw Tenchi visibly shudder. "Okay then, lets get to it. Ryouko, get us on that ship!" The cyan hared demon leaped back into her chair by the controls and in some manner caused Ryo-ohki to suddenly increase in speed. Where as Adam had originally thought they'd catch up to them in a few minutes, they were now gaining such that they could catch up in a couple second. The ship suddenly started to shake violently. "What's going on?" Tenchi yelled out over the rumbling of the hull. "It's the Shunga's tail disturbance wave," Ryouko announced. "It's disrupting our course the closer we get." "Are we still gaining?" Adam yelled. "Barely, but from this angle we shouldn't be discovered, the gravitational waves disrupt almost all but sensors." "Which means we're blind too?" asked Adam. "Uhh, yeah, but that shouldn't be a problem," said Ryouko as the bridge shook violently again. "This is rough," Tenchi commented over the noise. Adam shook his head slowly as Ryouko confirmed what he was thinking. "That wasn't a gravitational wave," she said. "Something hit us." "Lord Tenchi!" Aeka hollered from the other end of the bridge. Tenchi, Adam and Ryouko looked over just in time to see the small object that Aeka was pointing at through the transparent hull of Ryo-ohki dive right towards them, letting loose a barrage of energy blasts. The ship pitched suddenly and everyone was thrown off their feet, impacting the hard yet almost completely transparent floor. Adam gasped as the wind was knocked out of him while Ryouko clung to her chair as she attempted to restore the proper gravity. "Take us out of the wave!" Tenchi yelled, holding tightly onto Aeka and Sasami who were having an awful time keeping themselves off the ground. Ryouko nodded and reached up to one of the crystal controls, tilting it slightly to one side causing a drastic change in Ryo-ohki's course, catapulting them out from behind the Shunga. Instantly, Ryouko was back in her seat, trying to pinpoint the attacker's location separate from the Shunga. Gasping, Adam crawled up behind her and watched the main display, his stomach still doing corkscrews inside of him. "Who's out there?" he asked. "It's..." Ryouko trailed off. "Here, let me show you." The main screen changed from what it was displaying to show a section of space just off to port of Ryo-ohki where the attacker had stopped momentarily to watch it's prey tumble wildly into space. The single image display on it's head showed a wicked looking 'V' that made Adam only a little bit nervous. "Zero," mumbled Adam. The agile robot zipped off of the view of the main display and it returned to showing tactical information of the area around them. As the red dot that indicated Zero shot towards Ryo-ohki (a blue one) another red dot appeared next to the large green ship that represented the Shunga. "What's that?" Adam said, pointing. "Some ship just launched from the Shunga," Ryouko said pulling on the crystals causing the ship to pitch away from Zero's attack. "It looks like their heading towards that large debris field." "No!" Adam yelled suddenly. "It's Doctor Clay and Washuu! They're heading towards where Lady Tokimi resides in this dimension." "Who?" Ryouko asked just before one of Zero's shots struck one of the lower angles of the ship causing it to tumble slightly before Ryouko could regain control. "It's not important now, we have to intercept them!" "Not a big chance of that happening," Ryouko said. "They're almost there." "Arrgh!" Adam growled and stormed away from Ryouko as best he could with the deck moving as much as it was. "Where are you going?" Ryouko threw over her shoulder. Adam landed over by Tenchi and placed a hand on his back. "I have an idea," he yelled out. -=- "Rather desolate place," Washuu commented while she and Doctor Clay traveled along a thin beam of yellow light on a ring that seemed to pull down towards the beam no matter where on it you stood. The two stood a couple steps away waiting patiently for the ring to reach it's destination through the destruction filled debris field that Lady Tokimi was supposedly located. "Lady Tokimi doesn't like being disturbed with unimportant business," Doctor Clay said. "Hardly anyone would look for her here and thus she can conduct her business with peace." "What business would that be?" ensued Washuu. "No business of ours," Clay snapped. Washuu 'Hmph!'ed and ran a hand through her fiery hair. The small ring followed a river of sorts that seemed to dump just into empty space, being renewed by some unknown process. The canal in which the river was flowing turned and the ring followed suit, turning the corner and showing the source of the river. A large tree, much bigger than the Souja and Shunga combined, towered above the canal which lead to it's base where the exposed roots silently hung. Tilted slightly from seemed like 'down' judging from how the water was falling and the general trend of the canal, the tree seemed to be slightly swaying in cosmic winds. Flourishing, in the dead of space. "The residence of Lady Tokimi's avatar and servant, D3," Clay said with a tinge of awe. "Fitting it shall be the last I see before becoming a god." Washuu raised an eyebrow in jest then shook her head and looked back up at the tree. The water, and the canal, seemed to be coming out of a moderate sized hole in the base of the tree, but it was pitch black inside so she couldn't see what was ahead. The ring lurched once and jumped from the beam of light it had been following to make a more direct route to the hole in the tree. At first it seemed like a short distance, but as they traveled farther and farther from the original bend in the canal, Washuu realized the scope of what was around her. The tree could be as big as a planet. Before she could make any other deductions, the darkness engulfed her and the tree, originally thought to be stagnant, closed up the hole behind them. Washuu glanced around causally, looking for any source of light in which to see, until she felt the ring that she and the Doctor were traveling on, come to an abrupt stop. "This way," Clay's voice resounded from Washuu's right and the sounds of footsteps ensued. Shrugging, although no one could see her do so, she stepped forward and was only slightly surprised when she found a solid platform in front of her. As she picked up her foot from the ring to take another step forward, she felt surge of energies around her and the lights came on inside the ancient tree. She and Doctor Clay were standing in the center of a large, what looked like marble, platform, surrounded by distant walls of root and branch, woven together in an intricate pattern. Other, strangely positioned, platforms were also inside the 'room,' supported by thin columns that extended above and below, beyond the realms of human, or Washuu's for that matter, sight. The only other distinguishing feature of the area was an oval shaped ruby, hanging motionless in the air a good twenty meters above the platform Washuu was standing on. "D3," Clay summed up his resolve to speak in a clear and demanding voice. "I have brought Washuu." "I can see that." Washuu was slightly disturbed but the voice was not entirely unexpected. It was a low, rumbling voice, like the deep roar of a waterfall but softer. Estimating the acoustics of the place, she determined it must have come from the ruby, although given the powers that Clay said Tokimi possessed, it could have come from anywhere. "According to my deal with Tokimi, I want my compensation." Clay seemed unfazed, but Washuu doubted the tough act. The gem glowed for a second, then the image of a face with the ruby embedded in the forehead appeared. The specter was huge, from nose to brow going from the platform to far above the gem. "I have no authorization over any such deal," the voice, D3, replied. "Take up your commerce with Lady Tokimi herself." "I shall," Clay immediately responded. The image closed it's eyes and vanished. Instantly, the room was darkened, leaving only a spotlight projecting down on the platform, illuminating the two guests. A trail of dull blue light streaked up from below, striking the base of Washuu and Clay's platform, then shattering, forming the silhouettes of eight people equidistant around the platform leaving space for one more. The head and shoulders of Lady Tokimi faded into view in the extra space. She was much larger than the other silhouettes, and her hair and the ends of her shoulders seemed to trail away behind her, waving in some unfelt breeze before conjoining at some indeterminable distance behind her. Her eyes were black but surrounded completely by dark blue and seemed to stare off blindly into the inky blackness. When she spoke, her mouth did not move, she simply willed her voice into existence. "Thank you, Doctor Clay," Lady Tokimi said. Her voice was soft, and whimsical and seemed to play into the soul. "You may leave now." "Whaa?" Clay stuttered. "What about what you promised me?" "There is no time for that now," said the floating being. "You have other business to attend to that is going to consume your time for many of your years. I must speak with Lady Washuu before were are disturbed." "What about my galaxy?" Clay yelled back, his professional posture faltering. "We had a deal!" "And as little you value the deals with your machines, as little this deal means to me." Lady Tokimi looked straight down at Clay. "There is balance in this universe, I make sure of it." Doctor Clay stood there, staring back up at goddess before him and sputtered. Tokimi returned to her original position and addressed Washuu. "My lady," she began. -=- "Come'on!" Adam yelled. "Push the envelope!" Over the rumbling Ryo-ohki was making from traveling at such speeds, Adam heard a distant 'Myaaa' and a text window came up in front of Adam's face, sitting at the crystalline controls. Adam sighed while reading the window. "I don't care if you don't know what 'Push the envelope' means, just go faster." Another query. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry, you're going the fast you can. I just don't want to get there too late, I don't know what's going to happen next, these events never enfolded where I came from." Pushing one of the spherical control balls forward, Ryo-ohki dipped slightly and maneuvered past a rather large piece of debris as the ship barreled towards the large tree at the center of the wreckage. Adam had to quickly learn the controls and he had to admit they were the most complicated things he'd ever flown. Sure, the design looked familiar, he'd seen it a few movies like 'Flight of the Navigator' but watching someone control a theoretical ship on TV and actually doing it were two different things. "Myaaa!" Ryo-ohki echoed through the mostly empty bridge. "Yes, I hope the others are okay too," Adam replied to the text message. "Tenchi's a powerhouse though, I'm not sure what he can't do. They'll be—" Another holographic window opened and cut Adam off. It showed a rough schematic of the tree and clearly pointed out, with large red letters and accurate pointers that there wasn't a clear way into the structure. Adam, of course, suggested a rather forward method of entering. "This is gonna be rough," Adam muttered. "I hope the others are okay." -=- Zero kicked herself free from the grapple she was in with Ryouko letting loose a handful of energy bolts at the cyan hared demon. One of them struck her in the chest while she dodged the others heading back towards Zero to get in close again. In the corner of her sensor, Zero saw Ryouko's ship, Ryo-ohki, flying away towards where the Doctor was going to be. Internally she fumed, she couldn't get away from Ryouko long enough to pursue them. Although she was stronger than the obviously imperfect creation, the woman continued to come after taking hit after hit. Incredibly endurance, Zero commented to herself after striking Ryouko down with another energy bolt and watching her shake it off and come barreling back at her. This time she came up low and grabbed Zero's base, flipping her over (as much as one could do that in a place with no gravity) and landing a square punch in her back. Zero felt the damage indicator like pain, but managed to grab onto Ryouko's leg before getting thrown into space by the force of the impact. Swinging around, Zero pushed her hand deep into Ryouko's gut and fired, causing the woman to scream in pain before being shot a good distance away. Her chest smoldered and she gripped it defensively, but she looked back up at Zero with an almost insane expression. "Give it up," Zero commanded, somehow making her voice be heard in space. "Your power is no match for mine even though I'm not operating at full capacity." "Never!" Ryouko snarled. "You'll not get past me or anywhere near my Tenchi." "Improbable. It is inevitable that you will lose this fight and then I will go after the rest of my targets as designated by Doctor Clay. By surrendering yourself now, you save yourself the pain of a long destruction. The preservation of life is only a tertiary objective of mine." "If that is how it must be, then I welcome it. But I don't think you've thought of everything." "I don't think so? What could I have missed?" Zero asked. The giant green beam of energy that nearly engulfed her was quite an effective answer. As she was propelled off like a comet, Ryouko looked over to see the looming, sinister, and now captured, Souja. The main gun charged for a second shot as Zero corrected her spin and started gunning back. Just as she reached within firing distance of Ryouko, Zero was hit again, this time by both the amber colored beam shot by Ryouko and the green pulse of energy fired by the Souja. Her sensors went crazy and damage meters registered throughout her body. Instinctively, Zero calculated her odds given the new enemy threat. As she watched the percent slowly decrease, she decided to engage her full ability and pointed herself towards Ryouko one last time. -=- "Nothing good for you is going to come of this," Washuu insisted. "Be quiet, Washuu," Clay said, pushing his device further into her neck. He looked up, rather sheepishly, at the deity floating above him and only slightly wondered if he'd made a miscalculation. Threatening a goddess wasn't exactly recommended, but he was a scientific genus after all, she must have recognized that. "Release her now, Doctor Clay," Tokimi said for the first time since Clay tried to assert his presence. "I do not wish to uproot a previously loyal subject." "Loyalty?" Clay scoffed. "What do you know of it! You betrayed me, we had a deal! I bring you Washuu and..." He didn't get to finish his sentence before he was almost literally uprooted and thrown across the podium on which he and Washuu stood. The large chamber shook as spots of light broke through the almost perpetual darkness, disturbing the eight shadows as they were momentarily broken by the beams of light. Finally the shroud of darkness was shattered and exploded inwards before a large, sleek, grey spike of metal shot out of the now exposed wall to project parallel to the platform. Clay, barely able to get to his feet before the spike came, leaped to the side nearly falling off the platform. Tokimi, still visible, was unfazed, and Washuu stood still as the spike came inches from her face. The rumbling stopped and the platform slightly tilted before everything was silent. Washuu chose this moment to blink while Clay pulled himself, quite pathetically, back up. "What's going on?" Clay grunted as he rolled onto his back. The spike of metal seemed to shimmer for a second as if the entire object was about to faze completely out of reality before reasserting itself and expelling a single figure who, ungracefully, landed on the platform next to Washuu. She looked down with an amused look on her face as the figure rubbed his back and straightened himself. "Miss me?" Adam said with a slightly pained look on his face. "This has got to be the hardest place to get into, though I assume it was meant to be that way." "YOU!" Clay growled as he looked up. "Hey Octopus-head!" Adam said cheerily before looking up and noticing the straight faced goddess above him. "Oh, dear." "Adam," Tokimi said with almost glacial slowness. "Your presence is surprisingly unexpected. I knew that Pluto's meddling would ruin my plans." "Well, that's nice," said Adam as confidant as one could considering the power of the person he was talking to. "I don't know what you were planning to do to Miss Washuu here, but she's coming with me. So just back off." Adam grit his teeth. What in gods name am I doing, he thought, speaking to a goddess like that? "You are trapped, Adam," said Tokimi, as she watched Adam back up towards the metal spike. "Pluto has placed your life in gambit quite recklessly. I can help you though, I can return you to your life if you leave Lady Washuu with me." Adam's head brushed up against the side of the spike causing the metal to ripple slightly. "That's a grand offer and all," he said. "But I kind of like it here, much more entertaining than what I left behind. So you'll understand if I respectfully decl...gaaahhh!" Lady Tokimi's eyes suddenly squinted and Adam screamed out in pain, clutching his head and gritting his teeth. Throwing his head around he started screaming out unintelligible words between gasps for breath and exclamations of profanity. Washuu's eyes looked quickly between Adam and Tokimi, who seemed to be concentrating, then dove at Adam towards the spike which promptly engulfed them. After the metal finished rippling after they entered, it glowed momentarily and withdrew from the large chamber into space, the hole that it left quickly filling in with sap and bark. Clay grunted as he stood up and looked to Tokimi. "Interesting," she said, then vanished, her image being replaced by D3. "My lady!" Clay yelled. "Lady Tokimi has withdrawn," D3 spoke. "Shall I go after them?" Clay asked. "Do what you wish, the Lady no longer wishes to see you." Clay stood, open mouthed, as D3 faded away and Clay was left alone in the chamber of platforms. After a few seconds he reached into his pocket, produced a small device that looked like a remote control, then vanished himself. -=- Washuu closed her eyes as she leapt into Adam, forcing him into the large metal spike that she assumed was from Ryo-ohki. After the brief wave of vertigo after being absorbed by the metal, she opened her eyes to find herself lying on the bridge of Ryo- ohki with Adam breathing heavily beside her. "Ryo-ohki!" Washuu yelled out towards the control crystals. "Get us out of here!" A resounding, "Myaa" was heard and the ship ripped itself from the great tree and shot off, away from the debris. "Uurrhh," said Adam as he sat up and put a hand to his sweat covered forehead. "Are you okay?" Washuu said softly. "What did she do to you?" Adam looked slowly to Washuu and breathed out slowly. "It felt like she was massaging my brain with a iron rake. Like every synapse in my head decided to fire at once." He paused dramatically. "Then, afterwards, I saw... something else." He looked away, then back. "But you, are you okay? I got there a little late, I hope Tokimi didn't do anything bad to you." "I don't think that was her intention," Washuu said. "But thank you for coming for me." "It was the least I could do," Adam said. "You don't deserve to be Clay's or anyone's captive. I know you don't know me, but I know a whole lot about you, and you're the most fascinating person I know. It wouldn't be right to be here without Washuu, the greatest scientific mind in the galaxy." He smiled as he said that last part. "Well," Washuu said, standing. "It's good to know my reputation precedes me, even after several thousand years of imprisonment." "Heh," Adam laughed. "Well, I happen to know a bit more than the average person around here." He stood and moved over to the control seat and looked at the tactical monitor. The Shunga was unmoving, sitting at the end of the canal leading from that giant tree, while the Souja was heading slowly towards it. Two smaller dots indicated the positions of Ryouko and Zero, apparently still locked in combat. Their locations were so close, they almost seemed to be merged as one. Setting a course to intercept the Souja, he opened a communications link to the rather large ship. "Souja, this is Adam on Ryo-ohki," said Adam. "What's your status?" The larger monitor changed from showing the direct view of space to show Aeka's head. She looked worried and kept looking off to the side of the screen. "Adam! Did you get Miss Washuu?" "Yeah, she's right here," Adam replied. "What's going on, are Ryouko and Zero still fighting?" "We think so," Aeka said rather nervously. "It's hard to tell." "What do you mean?" Adam asked. "Umm... Here, look." The screen blurred for a second then another image of space appeared, not the original one, but a sent one from the Souja. In the center two small bodies were struggling with each other, but it was too small to tell it apart. "Increase magnification," Adam said. The screen flash and the two in the center got a little bigger. It flashed again and Adam got a good idea as to why they were confused. It flashed a final time, at maximum magnification, and Adam was certain of what he saw. Ryouko and Zero were fighting still, that wasn't in dispute, but Zero had managed to get enough information to change her shape into Ryouko. Instead of Ryouko and Zero fighting, it now looked like Ryouko was fighting herself, her twin. "This will complicate things," Adam sighed. "Ryouko," Washuu softly said. The main screen changed to show Aeka' head again. "We don't risk taking a shot at them since we can't be sure which one is Zero, and we're pretty sure we'd hit both of them anyway." "Okay," Adam said, shifting in his chair. "Here's what we're going to do, lemme talk to Tenchi." Aeka stepped away for a second and the monitor showed only the inside of the Souja, then Tenchi stepped into view. "What is it, Adam?" he asked. "Do you know what's going to happen?" "Sort of," replied Adam. "Originally, they never fought, but I know how she was defeated in the end. Listen," Adam leaned closer to the screen out of habit more than to be heard better. "Zero has copied Ryouko EXACTLY, from every hair to her deepest thoughts and feelings. She even tried to copy her gem, but thankfully, they can't be copied. This is her weakness because she's probably only scanned the surface thoughts of the copy she's made in order to mimic Ryouko's attacks and augment them, she doesn't know that Ryouko is very dominated by her emotions. If you can get her to become enthusiastic about something, she'll probably forget about the fight." "I don't understand, how do I do that?" Tenchi asked. "Tenchi, she..." Adam trailed off. Loves you? Who was he to tell him that? Isn't at least half the charm of their relationship the fact that they simply wont tell each other flat out? If so, who was he to meddle? Adam froze, for the first time he realized exactly what his presence was doing to these people. By giving them all the answers, he hasn't given them the chance to learn for themselves, where all the future answers lay. They all have a long and difficult future ahead of them, what if their ability to survive it comes from these difficult first few months? Washuu put a hand on his shoulder, pulling him only slightly from his reverie. Looking up at her, she looked rather contentedly back at him, and he realized his err, their personal life wasn't his business. -=- "I only had a few seconds," Tokimi said to D3 while watching the events unfold just outside the tree they normally resided in. "But I think I've made the necessary changes in his mind." "You altered Pluto's avatar?" D3 asked. "Only slightly. I've given him the chance to reflect, and he's come to the conclusion I expected him to. Hopefully this understanding will keep him from blindly ruining anything in his travels to other places." "Other places, Lady Tokimi?" "Yes. He will not remain here for long. I found that out as well as something interesting while I was trying to enter his brain." "Which is?" "Normality." "I don't understand, My Lady," D3 asked, confused. "He is not outstanding in any way, the perfect example of a simple man. He was chosen to be put on this path because of convenience, it could have been anyone." "Then why does this intrigue you?" "Because he has already reached beyond that limit, and this is only the first stop in his travels." "I see," D3 said slowly. "Perhaps you see yourself in him." "Perhaps." -=- Zero and Ryouko continued to struggle. They had moved beyond blasts of energy and were now simply duking it out, with their fists. One would land a punch to the gut of the other while the other would swing and hit the other across the face. It was rather barbaric, but this way the odds were nearly even. Ryouko didn't want to get in a firefight with Zero because she couldn't stand up to Zero's blasts as well as Zero could stand up to hers, and Zero didn't want to get into a firefight because as soon as she would get any distance away from Ryouko, the Souja would fire and that was too great a pain to risk suffering again. Thus, they continued to bat away at each other, slowly wearing each other down. They could see the fatigue building in each other's faces, rather well, actually, since they were both looking at the same face, both wished for some intervention before they collapsed. Fortunately for Zero, her wish was granted sooner. Without either one noticing it, the Shunga had fired off a thin ray of energy that strategically picked off Ryouko, tossing her smoldering body away. Unfortunately for Zero, that opened up the way for the Souja's fire, which came mere seconds after Ryouko was gone. -=- "Gaah!" Adam yelled. "You just hit Ryouko!" "No," Tenchi reassured. "We hit Zero." "How can you be so sure?" "Her wrist," Tenchi said determinedly. "She was missing the gem in her wrist." "Clever..." Adam said before the Shunga shook violently, disturbing the picture of Adam's head. He got a determined look on his face and looked away from the screen. Tenchi moved over to Aeka and Sasami, who were looking into a glowing green ball that was currently showing a tactical display of the area. "It's the Shunga!" Tenchi heard Adam's slightly modulated voice say from the monitor. "Dammit! Clay must have gotten back to his ship while we were worrying about the fight." The sound of Ryo-ohki being hit was heard over the monitor. "Why won't he give up!" "With a strategic hit," Aeka said looking at the tactical display intently. "We should be able to cripple his ship. Right..." she pointed at the globe. "Here." "Uhh, turn the ship," Tenchi said before looking back to the monitor with Adam's head on it. "We're going to try to disable his ship." "What about Ryouko?" Sasami asked. "She looks hurt." Tenchi frowned and opened his mouth, trying to figure out what to say. "Don't worry about it," Adam said. "We'll go get her, you keep the Shunga busy." "Right!" Tenchi said, relieved. The monitor blinked away and he moved back to the globe, watching as Ryo-ohki moved off towards the smaller form of Ryouko. A blink of light appeared between them and the Shunga and Tenchi looked up to Aeka. "How much longer until we can fire? Ryo-ohki is under under fire." "Just a few more seconds, Lord Tenchi," Aeka said, operating the clumsy controls, trying to position the ship just right. -=- Ryo-ohki shook again and threw Adam from his chair onto the deck again, sliding to the opposite end. He looked up in time to catch Washuu from slamming right into him. "We can't take too many more hits like that," he said to the red-haired girl in his arms. "She'll hold," Washuu assured. "I did create her." "Somehow that's not as relieving as I'm sure you intended it to be," said Adam with a grin. He put Washuu down and climbed back up to his seat. "We're coming up on Ryouko, she looks bad." "She'll be all right as well," said Washuu. "She's a strong one, she is my daughter after all." "I know," Adam said softly. Ryo-ohki slowed down as she approached the floating form of Ryouko. A bit a blood trickled out of her chest and was in a thin thread, floating away from her. As the invisible repulsor waves that Ryo-ohki generated got near, the red streak broke away and drifted into the great void, meanwhile, one of the greyish spikes that projected from the center of Ryo-ohki moved down and quietly, gently, swallowed her up. Adam turned from the display as Ryouko appeared in the center of the bridge, lying face down on the deck. Washuu moved to her immediately, turning her over and looking over her wounds, while Adam slowly walked over. "How is she?" Adam asked after almost an eternity of silence. "She's asleep," said Washuu quietly, then in her normal tone of voice. "Regeneration cycle. When she's hurt she shuts down and self-repairs. I ... I don't like to think of her that way though, she's my daughter, not just some creation. Kagato couldn't see things that way, that's why he tried to use her the way he did. You can call anyone a machine, really. Just highly complex biological machines with several objectives that are interchanged at will." "Justification," said Adam with a nod. "It's easier to abuse someone when you reduce them to simple terms. I understand, how you feel though. I've always considered Ryouko to be more or less a human just as I am, of course, when you look at her, it's hard to think she's anything else." He shrugged and looked down to see Washuu looking back up at him with a smile on her face. They stared at each other for a few seconds before Ryouko started stirring in Washuu's arms and she turned to look at her. "She's waking up," said Washuu. "That was quick," Adam commented. "I would have thought she would be out for days." "Uhhnn, I heal quick," Ryouko muttered, rubbing her eyes. She opened them to see Washuu staring down at her happily. "Who are you?" "My name is Washuu," she replied softly. "I'm glad to see you've done all right in my absence." She looked away quite suddenly and Adam could have sworn he saw tears in her eyes but he dismissed it since it would have been totally out of character. "I'm sorry you had to fight with that woman out there, I never meant to put my daughter in such jeopardy." She looked back and smiled. "So you're my mother?" Ryouko said. She looked quizzically at Washuu. "But you're so young!" Adam had to stifle a laugh, but it was short lived when the ship suddenly shook again. He spun around on his foot and looked in horror as he saw the Shunga, badly damaged and spewing out all sorts of debris, coming right at them. In the distance, behind the goddess shaped ship, he could see the Souja, also badly damaged but unmoving. "Damn that Clay!" Adam yelled. Grabbing the controls, he pitched the ship to the side and started heading away from the approaching ship at a ninety degree angle. "I can't believe he outgunned the Souja!" "Without Kagato," Washuu said walking up behind Adam, "the ship's power is severely decreased. He was maintaining many of the higher functions himself." "You've got to be kidding," Adam said in disbelief. The ship shook again before anyone could answer. "That's it! This has got to stop!" He jumped up from his chair and walked over to Ryouko, who was now standing in the middle of the deck, stretching out her back. "You want me to go over there and rough things up?" she asked. "No," Adam said, reaching into his pocket. "I'm going to do this myself." He pulled out a small round, reddish object that Ryouko immediately recognized. "When I fought with Kagato, this made me strong, I hope it decides to do the same again." "You're going to fight him?" Ryouko asked. "With just a gem as your defense?" "Clay is not a fighter," Adam said. "If I can get to him, I can stop him. I'm just not sure I can get to him without some help, so I asked Tenchi for a gem." The marble sized jewel glinted in the starlight in affirmation. "You'll probably need more help than that to get to Clay," Washuu said, crossing her arms. Adam turned to face her and she stared back at him. "I've been on his ship for the last few days, I can guide you to the bridge." Adam looked down and walked over to her slowly, only looking up at the last moment. "You can't come with me," said Adam. "I don't want to risk you getting captured again or hurt in any way. Let me take the risks, I have a feeling that I was meant to." "You won't make it to him by yourself, even with all the gems. You need me with you to succeed." She smiled. "Besides, it's not as though you can stop me!" Adam sighed and turned back to Ryouko. "Okay, we're going after Clay, you take Ryo-ohki and head over to the Souja, see if you can find everyone else. Make sure they're okay for me. And .. if we don't meet again, I'm glad to have been able to know you, you've made a difference in my life." Adam held out his lanky hand. Ryouko tilted her head then reached out and strongly shook Adam's hand. "Good luck," she said after a second. "Myaa!" came a voice from all around the bridge. "Yes, you too, Ryo-ohki," Adam said with a smile. "Thanks for helping me, you're a great ship." "Myaa!" "Ready?" Washuu asked, moving close to Adam. He nodded and held the gem in his hand. It started glowing dimly as small specks of a reddish light began swirling around Adam and Washuu before converging into a thin red line around them. "Oh!" Adam said suddenly. "I'll be sure to get this back to yo—" He was gone. -=- "Give it up, Doctor Clay!" came the voice from across the room. The Doctor turned from his control panel slowly to look over to where the voice was coming from. Standing, about four meters behind him, stood an exceptionally tall male with short brown hair and wearing jeans, a white T-shirt, and a grey vest, and an exceptionally small girl with long spiky red hair, wearing the outfit of a member of the Science Academy. Of course he knew these two, he had just left their presence a few minutes ago. They caused the destruction of his world. "You want *me* to give it up?" Doctor Clay said. "I think *you* should give it up." He raised his arm and pointed a gun at the two of them. "You take even one step towards me and I'll fire, and THIS time no amount of thawing will return you to health." "What do you hope to accomplish, Clay?" Adam asked. "Those people out there," he motioned out one of the windows. "They have done nothing to you, why not let them go? And Washuu and myself, what could you possibly want with us now?" "A lot," Clay said, then yelled, "Zero!" "Yes, Doctor?" came a voice that sounded almost identical to Ryouko's but Adam and Washuu knew better. They looked behind themselves to see Zero holding a gun similar to Doctor Clay's. Hers was obviously pointed towards Adam. "The young man here is quite a powerhouse," said Clay. "Make sure he doesn't go anywhere." "Of course, Doctor." Zero floated over behind Adam and, holding the gun to his neck, 'encouraged' him to sit on a chair she brought over. When he was seated, a green ooze jumped up from under the chair and covered him in the viscous substance leaving only his head exposed. "Of course I have a reason for wanting you two," Clay continued his previous argument. "After copying your darling creation," he sneered at Washuu. "Zero attained all of her knowledge including the almost endless power available from the gems, and," he turned to Adam. "Your seemingly unbelievable ability to travel between dimensions. Such are tools that I can easily exploit to serve me." "Forget it, Clay," said Adam from the chair. "Even I don't know how I managed to come to this world, and even if I did, you would have a hard time getting the information from me." "Ho oh," Doctor Clay scoffed. "You haven't even thought about it yet, surely if you put some... *harder* thought into it you could think of something. If not, I can always just copy your brain and read the information, although, after all the pain you've given me I think I'd rather do both." "You'll have to," Adam snapped. "You have anything to add, my dear?" Clay said as he turned to face Washuu, or rather, where she originally stood. In her place was a rather cute looking doll with several stitch marks where the head had to be reattached. Boiling with anger, Clay aimed at the stuffed create and blew it away with a beam of green energy. "WASHUU!" he screamed, slowly scanning the room. "Lose something, Doctor?" Adam said. Clay jabbed his gun into his neck. "Rather touchy, aren't we?" "I'll blow his head off," Clay announced. "Come out here now, Washuu." He looked around nervously, occasionally glancing back at Adam. "Zero, find her!" "Might have a bit of a problem with that one," quipped Adam. "Shut up," Clay said, nudging the gun in a little farther. "Zero! Zero! Where are you?" He looked around again. Something danced at the edge of his vision. "There!" He pulled the gun from Adam's throat and swung it around to fire. The shot arced and impacted on a shelf of test tubes and random kipple. He scowled and looked around, holding his gun in front of him and practically spinning on one foot. Eventually, his arm absent-mindedly struck something large and covered in a white cloth. He was surprised the thing was there, and even more surprised when it grabbed his arm and pulled the gun from him. "It's over, Clay," Adam said, holding the gun in his hand. "We're going to take a trip to the Galaxy Police and discuss stealing their flagship with them." "How did you..." started Clay. "Bio-pneumonic gel," Washuu said, stepping up behind Adam, casually placing a tied up Zero next to the chair. "Very unstable when subjected to low level energy waves. Stuff practically flaked away!" "Arrr," growled the Doctor. "I won't be beaten this way! You're right, it is over." He stepped back suddenly and kicked Adam in the shins causing him to buckle over then barreled into him, knocking him into Washuu causing both of them to fall to the ground in a pile. Grabbing Zero, he dashed out of the bridge stopping only momentarily to push in the head of one of the statues on the way out. Adam rolled off of Washuu and crouched in defensive position. "I've never met a more wily man," he commented. At that time the lights decided to turn red and a loud voice echoed through the ship. "SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE ACTIVATED. THIS ACTION CANNOT BE ABORTED. GRAVITY WELL GENERATION IN PROGRESS, WHITE HOLE INVERSION IN FIVE MINUTES." "Shit," cussed Adam. "I forgot about that stupid thing." "This whole area is going to be turned into a black hole," Washuu said, moving over to one of the consoles. The sound of metal grating against metal was heard somewhere off in the ship and a blue screen of text appeared on one of the consoles. "Clay just jettisoned the escape pod, that bastard is going to get away." "Where is Ryo-ohki?" asked Adam. "Can she intercept him?" "Probably," Washuu said solemnly. "But I'm not worried about that." "What then, what's wrong?" "Adam," she looked up to him. "There isn't any more escape pods. I can detach the bridge from the rest of the ship but the propulsion systems aren't adequate to get us away from the blast. We're not going to make it." "How about the others?" Adam said after a few moments of thought. "They're a good distance away, they should be able to make it." "Then," Adam nodded, "see if you can contact them using whatever communications system this thing has. We might as well tell them to run." "Are you sure?" asked Washuu. "No," said Adam with a nervous chuckle. "But... we've been consigned to be at ground zero during this thing, and I want to make sure that someone remembers me here. I made such a little impact in my previous life, I want to be known for something here." "Okay." -=- "I wonder what's going on," Tenchi asked nervously as he watched the Shunga in the main viewing window. "It's been too long, we should go after them." "No," Ryouko said. "He said he was going to do it himself and I trust he'll do it right." "You do?" said Tenchi. "Yes." "Myaa!" Ryo-ohki called out again and Ryouko looked at the main monitor which had a small message blinking on it that said 'INCOMING MESSAGE.' It blinked a few more times before the screen went black and was replaced with Adam and Washuu's solemn looking faces. "Adam! Miss Washuu!" Tenchi said. "Hello everyone," Adam said, obviously trying hard to smile but failing. "I'm glad to see you are all alright, I was worried after Clay put those holes into the Souja." "They were drifting," Ryouko supplied. "Low on air, but I got there before anyone passed out." "Good job, my daughter," Washuu said. She smiled warmly though her saddened eyes. "There is one more task you need to do." "What's that?" "Get out of here," Adam completed. "Turn Ryo-ohki around and flee from the Shunga as fast as you can." "Why?" Aeka said, standing up and walking towards the monitor. "Doctor Clay has initiated a self-destruct sequence," Washuu explained. "It will turn this ship and everything within the X radius into a black hole, a gravity well from which there is no escape. If you go now, you should be able to survive it." "What about you two?" Tenchi asked. Adam looked to Washuu and she looked back. In a microsecond, their eyes passed over each others and each knew how the other felt. "We're going to stay here," Adam finally said. "Doctor Clay has taken the last of the escape pods and you have no time to come rescue us. But, we are stalling. Quick, Ryouko, tell Ryo-ohki to go, now, before it is too late!" Ryouko nodded and moved over to the crystal controls, tipping them slightly to the side. The ship lurched momentarily before the natural inertial dampeners kicked in. "It is done," she said. The two images smiled. "Thank you," Adam said. "I knew, even standing on the bridge of Ryo-ohki, that I wasn't going to be returning. I didn't want to tell you then, you might have done something... revolutionary, but now, I hope you understand." "Something you saw on television?" Aeka asked. "No," replied Adam. "Something Lady Tokimi showed me in our momentary contact. She scanned my mind, but I also caught a glimpse of hers, and for a fraction of a second, I knew exactly my fate in this world. It was quite ... humbling." "Is this, goodbye?" asked Sasami. "Perhaps," said Adam, then added. "But perhaps, there are more things in heaven and earth than were dreamt of in my philosophy. We may meet again." "Until next time," Tenchi said. "Until next time," echoed Adam. "Goodbye, mother," Ryouko said caringly. "Goodbye, my daughter," replied Washuu. "Be strong." Ryouko nodded and painfully turned away. "Ryouko," Adam quickly added. "Doctor Clay is going to be heading your way shortly after the blast. Capture him, but, be kind. Turn him in to the Galaxy Police and let them deal with his crimes. You are not to act as the jury of his fate." "I understand." "Two minutes until destruction..." a faint voice echoed behind Adam and Washuu. It seemed to pierce through them as it was spoken, causing them to flinch instinctively. "Enjoy your world," Adam concluded. "It is as intricate as it is expansive, so don't lose sight of your goals. Good luck." "Goodbye," the crew on the Ryo-ohki whispered. Moments later, the monitor went blank again. Aeka, unable to handle it anymore, turned and cried into Tenchi's chest who stroked her hair caringly. Ryouko simply stared off into space. A single tear forming at the corner of her eye. -=- "That's it," Adam said softly, holding Washuu in his arms as they sit in the corner of the bridge of the Shunga, klaxons blaring all over. "Just have to wait it out now." "I think," Washuu said, repositioning herself to look up to see Adam's face. "You could explain a few things to me in these final moments." "What is left to be said that can be told in such short a time?" "That whole 'Heaven and Earth' bit." "Oh." Adam cleared his throat and looked straight ahead at some object that only he could see. "You see, I used to be a writer back home, back in my own universe in Jersey. I was an explorer of possibilities and extraordinary feats. In a way, I knew that this world was out there, I just didn't have any proof. When I woke up on Tenchi's fields oh so many months ago, I realized just how many possibilities there actually were and how important the individual really is. "So I came to wonder, what else is possible? The answer? Everything. So I have -- and before it would pain me to say this but I believe it with all my heart now -- faith that perhaps this is not my final chance, but merely my first one." He looked down at Washuu. "Is that crazy?" "No," she said softly, resting her head on his chest. "But it sounds it." They chuckled for a few short seconds before Adam stopped abruptly and reached into his pocket, producing a small marble- like gem. "Heh," he said. "I almost forgot I had this." He played with the sphere in his hand. "What are you going to do with it?" Washuu asked. "I think I'll let it decide," he said. "It probably has the power to save us, but I know not how to access it." "Oh," replied Washuu. "Washuu-chan?" "Hmm?" "There is no one I'd rather die beside, than you," said Adam. "Seems awkward at a time like this, but, well, I just wanted you to know." "Thank you," said Washuu softly. "I wish I had more time to know you as well as you say you know me, but from what I've seen, I'm glad I got as much time as I did." Adam held up his hand and Washuu held it. Then everything went white. -=- Everyone stood on the bridge of Ryo-ohki, watching the large monitor, as the ever growing distant image of the Shunga evaporated into a flash of light. There was no sound, none could be heard in space this time, there was only the blink and it was gone. It was done and over so quickly, they almost couldn't believe it, but Ryouko knew, her gem glowed at the same time as the explosion, as if giving it it's last regards, before dying down and informing Ryouko that it's companion was gone. It had been rough from the start for her, her mother, her friend, kidnapping, death, a fight with her doppleganger. She'd stayed firm through it all, but now, with the realization that things were unreversible, she decided now was the time to be sad. Thankfully, Tenchi was there, and he was ready to give her compassion for her loss, he was always there like that, he just seemed to know when people were hurt. Sasami didn't quite know what to think. Half of her was sad to have seen people die, especially those that had risked their life to save her and the Earth, while the other half of her was filled with the overwhelming guilt, of not acting to save a sibling. She didn't understand why she felt these two ways, and Tsunami had suddenly decided to grow quiet in her mind, so her other self couldn't console her. So she stood. Some time later, Aeka came and hugged her, and carried her off somewhere to sleep, since she figured that the poor girl was tired. She also wanted to think a bit, having had her life twisted around so much in the past few days. People entering into her life and leaving within hours, it was slightly nerve wracking. Her mind drifted over thoughts of her brother, ALIVE, on earth, no less. She needed to see him, maybe he could help her sort out her feelings. He knew what it was like to have conflicting emotions, after all. -=- Normally, such a tale would end here. The destruction of the protagonist and the resolution of the primary goals, often deems the end of a story. But, as Tokimi had predicted, this was not the end of Adam's journey, far from it, it was merely the beginning. But already, Adam had begun to change the ways he had been locked into for so long. "Why do you think you were chosen?" a voice asked in the grand abyss of time and space. "Me?" answered the somewhat whimsical thoughts of Adam. "I don't know, probably because it was easiest. I mean, I not all that important to anyone and it's not as through anyone would miss me if I were gone, so I guess, it was just convenient." "Do you think it was a wise choice?" "I dunno, maybe, maybe not. I'm not very heroic..." <> a distant voice that sounded like Adam's echoed in the abyss. "...and, I don't have that romantic flair that most heroes have..." <> "...of course, important people need to have friends, and I'm not too good at making them, I mean, back home people would take one look at me and turn away, repulsed..." <> came a different yet similarly distant voice, it sounded like Doctor Clay's. <> <> came a reply from a voice that sounded like Washuu's. <> "...I'm not talented in any way either, just clumsy." <> a voice like Kagato's said. <> <> the echo that sounded like Adam said. <> "But..." "But what?" asked the voice. "Maybe I just haven't been given the proper chance to prove myself. Everyone's always saying they see potential in me, I just thought that they were just being kind. Perhaps I haven't been looking hard enough up until now." <> "Huh?" Adam thought, alarmed at the slightly louder voice. "Paris?" "That is the lesson," returned the overwhelming voice from the abyss. "Time to go now." "Go?" asked Adam. "Yes. Your real journey is about to begin." "Of course," Adam said. "I'm ready." "Then go." And Adam's spirit was gone, as well as the voice and the black abyss in which they talked. None of it existed unless he was there, after all. But it would be a long time before he would learn that. TO BE CONTINUED... ------------------------------------------------------------------ About the Author: Adam Christopher Leigh, 'Gimp' to his friends, was born in Smithtown, NY on June 9th, 1998 to two loving parents. Throughout his life he has been blessed with good luck and prosperous health, but, on the average, he has always felt empty inside, as if the greater challenges in life had been spared of him. His life changed incredibly in June of 1996 when he took on the persona of "Tempest-" and began writing fan fiction based upon popular Anime, most notably, 'Sailor Moon.' Since then, he has felt content with his life, but still yearns for the adventure. He has written several serial adventures including, 'Adventures of Darien', his first, 'Full Circle TV Series,' and 'A World Without A Future,' the latter a project he hopes will be his zenith. Other works by Adam are available at his homepage (http://dogbert.simplenet.com/) which is under constant construction due to his fickle over how the page should look. He currently resides in New Jersey. Disclaimer: "Tenchi Muyou!" was created by Masaki Kajishima and Ryoe Tsukimura and is owned by the Pioneer Entertainment corporation. "Sailor Moon" was created by Naoko Takeuchi and is owned and distributed by DiC and Mixx Entertainment in North America. Although the previous story incorporates characters and ideas in the above motion pictures, this work is copyright 1998 by Adam Christopher Leigh and Tempest Creations. All rights are reserved. This work is non-profit, and should not be sold or traded for any value. Adam Christopher Leigh Omicron@sprynet.com "I am most pointedly NOT dead!" --Zoner, 'Hopelessly Lost'