Chapter 2 Ryoko and Aeka "Absolutely not!!" Aeka screamed as she burst down the hall of the castle, away from the protesting meows of Ryo-Oki and the cries of her sister, Sasami. "About time that witch died anyway." "But Aeka!" Sasami yelled after her, "It would be the noble thing to do!" "Noble?! HA!! The noble thing would be to dismember her completely so no one could revive that witch!" "Aeka! You don't understand what she did for you!" Sasami protested. Ryo-Oki meowed in agreement. "For me?!!" Aeka laughed as she stormed away. "I understand what that woman did to me, sister! The way she taunted and stole and flirted with my one true love! Yes, Sasami! I understand what she did for me! She taught me that Ryoko is a dirty bitch of a -" Aeka gasped at herself. "Now look what she has me doing! Cursing!! ME!! A princess of the largest empire in the universe! CURSING!!!" "But Aeka!" Sasami ran after her sister. "She saved you!" "From what, Sasami?! Saved me from what?!" Aeka shouted, turning to meet her sister's pleading gaze. "Kagato." Aeka's furious expression faltered for a moment. "What are you talking about?" she asked, turning away. "She took Tenchi to you when you were Kagato's prisoner." "No she didn't," Aeka shook her head violently. "You must be mistaken." "No, my princess," a shaky voice came from the shadows of the hall. Both sisters turned their gaze to a dark figure standing a few meters away. Then, out of the darkness, Kamadaki strode towards his two masters. It was the human Kamadaki. His knees were shaking and his heart was beating extremely quickly. "Ryoko did that very thing," he said with a quiver in his voice. He was never good at confronting authority. "No! She wouldn't do that!" Aeka screamed. "I sincerely beg your majesty's pardon, but I do believe she sacrificed herself saving you." "What?!" Aeka nearly laughed. "Me?! Ryoko save me?!!" Now she did laugh, hysterically. It was a screechy laugh, high and maniacal, one which she had used when she had almost killed herself, Ryoko, and Tenchi, that first day on Earth. "Sorry to interrupt you, my liege, but she did," Kamadaki tentatively interrupted. "Would you like me to explain?" "There's nothing to explain! That tyrant would never sacrifice herself for me!!" Aeka screamed, and started to run off, before Kamadaki caught her by her arm. Both stood there in astonishment, Kamadaki looking down at his hand and Aeka looking in Kamadaki's eyes, searching for any mark of betrayal. She found none. He immediately let go, looking at Aeka in utter fear, uttering a small, timid apology. "I'm sorry, princess Aeka, but you are being ennoble." It was almost torture to speak that way to his master. Aeka stared at the guardian, the knight, the ancient warrior, one who had destroyed nation after nation, one who had personally protected the Jurain family for hundreds of years, one who was as old as the empire itself, who had given his life for the empire first when he had pledged loyalty to the emperor, again when he sealed himself in sleep to be awakened in times of trouble, and last when he had awakened, one who now looked apologetic and a trifle pathetic, not meeting his master's eyes. That was when Aeka realized that she was the one being a bitch, not Ryoko, for not listening to this warrior when he obviously was trying to tell her something. She knew that she should take to heart what he had to say and not toss it away. "I should be the one apologizing to you, Kamadaki. By all means speak. I will not interrupt." The knight's eyes lit up at once, his face joyful. He then turned automatically serious; this wasn't a time for joy. "Ryoko did indeed give me, Tenchi, and Azaka passage to the Jurain palace. When last I saw her, she had a terrible wound from battling Kagato the first time, unable to fight back, as ferocious as she could be, at the wound. She bled for two days straight, my princess. Magical wounds can not be closed as easily as regular wounds, your majesty, and Kagato had powerful magic. Nagi had also confronted us that day. Ryoko had tried to face her, but was easily taken down by the bounty hunter. Even Nagi, whom seemed to me as the most ruthless person I'd ever met, just judging by sheer presence, couldn't take Ryoko because of how pitiful she was. Ryoko was too badly injured to even move without bleeding, but she agreed to fight for your life." "Why?" Aeka asked in disbelief. "For Master Tenchi, I would suspect." "I knew it." "Be that as it may, my lord, she did save your life. I have never seen someone fight with the courage and compassion she did that day. She was like an army of fighters, battling, swerving the ship Ryo-Oki as if there was no pain at all." Ryo-Oki gave a meow of agreement at this. "Yes, my young cabbit. Once she even exited the ship to destroy the protective barrier of laser balls surrounding the planet. I don't know what happened then, but when she came out, the balls were destroyed and her wound had taken over her whole side. No one I have ever seen, myself and Azaka included, could have fought with such heart and compassion. And to see how she looked, bloody and on the verge of tears, which are not spilled easily by that girl you know, has haunted me til now. I have wondered these past days if that woman survived. Now that I hear that she is dead! Why that just eats me up inside, how such a brave woman could die in pure misery and loneliness as she did and not regret a second. I for one will not have it, your majesty. I will do everything in my power except outright betrayal of the government to see that she is dealt with in a just manner, given her life back as she so selflessly gave it, not only for you and Tenchi, but for the whole universe. That woman is a hero, Princess Aeka. Please treat a hero with compassion." "Here here!" another voice from the shadows called, this one much older sounding. The voice was choked and filled with pride. "Well done, my boy." "Thank you, Azaka." The old warrior stepped out of the shadows, clapping his hands and smiling at his younger counter-part. "Very well done. You should listen to him, Aeka. He has become very wise in his old age." Aeka bowed to the two warriors. "I suppose I have no choice. I, as the princess of Jurai, must by all means do the noble thing. But I can not promise that the council will agree with you, as I do." "What do you mean, the council, Aeka?" Sasami asked. "You overestimate my power, Sasami. An order of this magnitude must be passed before the council. Only one other person was deemed to have been fit for another chance, that being Yosho over seven hundred years ago. The council has always been very strict in using this way of curing the terminal disease of death. I alone can not make this happen, it must be unanimous in the council, all fifteen of them. No law is as strict. I will try, but I can promise nothing. We shall pray, however." "Yes," Azaka said, putting an arm around Kamadaki's shoulder. "We shall." Kamadaki, Sasami, and Ryo-Oki all nodded in agreement. Lastly, so did Aeka. Aeka looked down the row of council members, studying each face closely, reading his or her expressions. She had known these people all her life, and had respected them to the highest extent. These were the most powerful men and women in the Jurain empire, and they were deemed the fairest people in the whole universe. Then the votes were counted. It was a score of fourteen to one: no. "What do you mean, no?!!!" Aeka screamed. "No, your majesty. Ryoko is a space pirate and a tyrant," council member Hasamato, council vice-president under Aeka, said. "She saved my LIFE!!" "The decisions of the council can not be persuaded by one particular life, princess. Even yours. You must understand the greater cause. What do you think would happen if just anyone got hold of the information that we have this kind of power in our midst? What do you think would happen to your sister, if thieves, like Ryoko I might add, knew of this? The power would be stolen. Where would we be then? Where would your sister, Sasami, be?" "This does not have to be common knowledge! This woman, be what she is, sacrificed herself for, not only me, but for the well-being of all Jurai! Where would you be, Hasamato, if Kagato had won and Tenchi had never stopped him?! Dead, I would suppose. Beheaded for tyranny against the emperor. He would have found your little rebellion in the course sector fifty-three, and would have had you killed." Months ago, Hasamato and a few others saw what was happening to the empire, its nobility shattered and corruption spreading. He and those others left the council, sneaking away in the night, and had started a rebellion squad in the far reaches of the empire. They had specialized in small infantry scandals like barrier breaks and sabotaging of carrier vessels. They were a squad unified solely on their hate for Kagato, the fake Yosho. They had been all but wiped out before Aeka had taken back over and sent a squad to retrieve them after the war was over. "Ryoko saved your life, Hasamato!" Aeka yelled across the table, no longer shrieking but in a lower voice which demanded resolution. "She saved us all! You, Minsato," Aeka pointed across the table towards an old man with a gray beard, his uniform neatly pressed. "You were on trial for treason during the overthrow, were you not?" The old man averted his eyes, looking down towards the floor. "Please sir. Correct me if I'm wrong. I was told you were on trial, facing death after Kagato brought back the death penalty, correct?" The old man nodded sheepishly. "As I thought. And you, Kinato!" she pointed towards a small man sitting on the other side of Hamasato. "You were banished from the empire altogether, am I right?" The small man nodded, his light blue hair waving up and down. "In fact most of you were facing death or banishment before this woman saved all your lives! And yet your rules prohibit us from saving her? Why?! This does not have to be broadcast. Once awakened, Ryoko will be tried as a pirate. But we owe her this much: to give her a fair trial, to let justice serve for this..." Aeka winced as she said this next word, "heroin. We, as people of noble birth, noble heritage, noble blood, noble spirit, and most of all noble actions, must now, more than ever, do something truly noble for our savior: Ryoko." Silence wafted through the air. After a large silence, Hasamato stood, standing to look at Aeka. "I vote that this meeting will be adjourned til tomorrow when a final vote will pass for the life of Ryoko. We will meet later for our decision. Do I hear a second." Kinato second. The vote, unanimous, ended their meeting til the next day. As Aeka walked from the council room, alongside the other council members, none of the other members speaking, all carrying a heavy weight on their shoulders, she came upon her sister in the hall. "Aeka!" Sasami yelled, running up to her sister. "How'd it go? Why do you look so troubled? What did they say?" "They've all got a terrible decision to make, Sasami. It shall be done tomorrow." Aeka let out a long sigh before putting a hand on her sister's shoulder. "In the meantime, there's something I desperately need to tell you. Something that happened a long time ago, when you were but an infant." They walked slowly towards Sasami's bedroom. "Something that happened when the wise magician of our empire was killed. Something that gave you more power than the emperor himself." "What are you talking about, Aeka?!" Sasami asked, confused, her full attention focused on her sister's words. "Well," Aeka said, "it started seven days before you were born, when mother and father were still alive. Over seven-hundred years ago."