---------------------------------------------------------------------

        Infinite Wills is based upon the OAV continuity of Tenchi Muyo! All
copyrighted characters mentioned within this work are the intellectual
property of AIC and Pioneer. Original characters are intellectual property
of Garasu; intentional use without permission is bad manners.

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                                        Infinite wills
                        Part 2: Realizations and Awakenings
                                        Author: Garasu

        "Ouch!"

        "Tenchi," Katsuhito Masaki sighed for what seemed like the
thousandth time that day. "How many times have I told you to pay attention?
Haven't you learned anything I've tried to teach you?"

        The elder Juraian knew that his grandson had the potential to become
a very good student, yet it seemed that more and more, the young boy
listened less. This had been happening more and more since he had let Ryoko
out of the cave, resulting in the arrival of five other women. It was very
easy to see why the boy was so distracted, though. It was hard to remain
indifferent when all of the girls currently living with the Masaki family
were very beautiful and in some way or another were competing for his
attention.

        Tenchi Masaki rubbed the spot where his grandfather's bokken had
him. This one was going to hurt for a while.

        "I'm sorry, grandfather," the boy answered, guiltily staring at the
ground. "I guess I've been a little distracted lately."

        "Mmm," was Katsuhito's only reply; at least the boy had enough sense
to admit his indiscretions, a large credit to his personality.

        "I've told you before, Tenchi," the old man continued. "Distractions
have no place here. You must be able to fully concentrate on the task before
you. You cannot do that with a mind full of the day's problems."

        "I know, Grandpa." Tenchi nodded. He knew that his grandfather was
right about the distractions. How else was he supposed to be able to learn
anything, if he could even get a few simple thoughts out of his mind. More
specifically, one single thought.

        Katsuhito sighed again and looked down.

        "I see we're going to have to simply find a way for you to forget
everything but the moment before you. Now, are you ready to go again?"

        Tenchi nodded and altered his stance so that he stood in a lose
defensive position.

        "Set!" Katsuhito yelled, and saluted the young boy across from him.

        "Hai!" Tenchi returned the salute and tightened his position. Ready
for his grandfather's attack.

        An attack that never came.

        Geeze, what is he doing? Tenchi asked himself. Roughly a minute had
gone by, yet his grandfather still stood there, perfectly echoing the stance
that Tenchi himself held. Does this mean he wants me to attack him? But he
never does that.

        Tenchi had always became nervous when his grandfather changed styles
during practices. It usually meant that the elder gentleman was trying to
introduce something new, which almost always meant a new set of bruises for
Tenchi.

        Finally after another minute of staring at each other, Tenchi grew
impatient. Lowering his guard to that of an offensive stance, he calmly drew
in a breath and rushed his grandfather. As he ran, Tenchi tried to
consciously remember what his grandfather had said earlier. The young man
cleared his mind of nothing but the target in front of him and attacked with
every move he had learned since beginning training.

        Each attack that Tenchi made was quickly and efficiently blocked by
his grandfather. In fact, the older man barely even moved his feet as the
wooden blade in his hands countered each move. Soon, it was Tenchi's turn to
go on the defensive as his grandfather made sudden lunge at a particularly
wide-open area of Tenchi's body.

        The boy's eyes widened as he wrenched himself out of the way just in
time to feel the air generated by the bokken passing by.

        That was too close, Tenchi thought as his Katsuhito simply altered
the bokken's position artistically and came around for another pass at the
dumbfounded boy.

        What is he doing!? Tenchi violently wrenched himself out of the way
of yet another potentially dangerous blow and tried to orient himself. His
grandfather's attacks were like nothing he had ever done before. They were
all designed to effectively immobilize the opponent, yet he was not pulling
them in the least.

        Great, now what? Grandpa's trying to kill me! Tenchi thought to
himself as he frantically dodged another swipe. His grandfather didn't stop
either. No sooner than one attack be dodged another would come in it's
stead, each the same as the last but aimed at a different vulnerability. It
immediately became evident to Tenchi that he had better start fighting back,
as this swipe and dodge approach would not be able to go on forever. But for
the life of him, Tenchi could not figure out how to counter such moves.

        Think, Tenchi, think! How in the world can you defend against these
attacks? Tenchi was becoming desperate as each of the swipes his grandfather
made became closer and closer. He valiantly tried not to think about the
bruise that would be left should he be hit, but it still occasionally ran
through his mind that it would definitely be big.

        Shut up! He told his mind violently, forcing all but the task at
hand off of his brain. As soon as that happened, though, the strangest
feeling came over him. Instead of the constant tightness of his muscles that
he had become accustomed to, he now felt everything relax threefold. What
was even more amazing was that his own bokken, lying forgotten in his right
hand, suddenly came up to meet the next attack his grandfather attempted.

        Tenchi stared at the crossed bokkens strangely. How in the world had
he done that? It wasn't like that feeling he had long ago when the
Tenchi-ken took over his mind to defend himself against Ryoko. He had not
felt like it was himself or even his own experience that was fighting then.
Now, however, the block took on a familiar tone, like something he had
learned before but had forgotten in his anxiety.

        It came as an even less surprise, but a surprise nonetheless, when
the next attack was blocked. It seemed to Tenchi that the counters he was
making were all familiar in some way, yet he could not remember exactly when
he had learned them. However, rather than try and forcefully remember where
he was pulling this knowledge from, Tenchi let them flow from his mind.
Blocking each gesture from his grandfather as they came.
        Soon, a pattern began to develop somewhere inside Tenchi's mind. The
attacks his grandfather was making, the counters he was returning all began
to meld themselves together to form a single entity within his brain. Whole
entire sets would call themselves forth when needed then recede once they
were used. Within moments, Tenchi was anticipating every move his
grandfather made and had a counter prepared before the attack came, all from
recognition of which various forms his opponent was using.

        Tenchi felt a sense of elation came over him as he blocked each
attack with greater efficiency. He was almost delirious when his counters
began to transform themselves into attacks, driving his grandfather on the
defensive. Slowly, the joy spread itself to other parts of his mind,
effecting the instinctual moves he was making. Almost as soon as it came on,
the feeling left him and Tenchi slowly watch with horror as his attacks
disintegrated before his very eyes.

        The transition inside Tenchi's mind went very quickly from his point
of view. One moment he was attacking his grandfather, the next he was
defending, and finally he was staring at the point end pressed against his
throat. Tenchi closed his eyes slowly and willed his heart to slow down, it
gave him some small satisfaction that his grandfather was at least slightly
winded as he struggled to find out what exactly had happened.

        "What... what happened?" Tenchi asked shakily, once his heart had
slowed enough and his mind began working normally again.

        "You lost your concentration again." Katsuhito answered quietly.
"You allowed your emotions to effect what you were doing, and as soon as
that happened, you fell apart."

        "But I can't just let it all go grandfather! How am I supposed to be
able to fight if I have no reason to fight?" Tenchi was grasping at straws
with his reply. He was both scared and awed with the feeling that had
overtaken him just moments ago. But once again, it seemed to him like the
sword, something he could just do sometimes, but never control.

        "It takes time, Tenchi, do not worry." Katsuhito replied, as if he
was reading the younger boy's mind. "You did well for the first time. You
will learn to control it soon, and even begin to summon those instincts at
will if you just concentrate hard enough."

        Tenchi stared hard at the ground and nodded his head.

        "Hai, Sensei." He replied demurely.

Katsuhito smiled suddenly, and ruffled to boy's head in an uncharacteristic
gesture of affection.

        "Now Tenchi, you should go wash up for dinner. I'm sure none of our
guests would appreciate you sitting at the dinner table smelling like that."
The elder man joked, then turned around to walk back to the shrine, leaving
Tenchi all alone with his thoughts.

        His Grandfather's words instantly made Tenchi's thoughts return back
to what had been distracting him before. The fact that he now had five
distractingly pretty women living with him was something that haunted him
every waking moment, yet he still could not find a solution to the problem
that bothered him so much.

        Tenchi had always regarded himself as a bit dense when it came to
the opposite sex. He just could never tell when a girl was interested or
just being friendly, but that certainly was not the problem here. Tenchi
very plainly knew that at least Ryoko and Ayeka were not just being friendly
when it came to giving him attention, but he couldn't for the life of him
figure out what to do with that knowledge.

        Tenchi sighed as he walked into the storage closet with his bathing
materials. When it came to those two girls, he never knew what to do. He had
long ago determined that he liked both of them, quite a lot, really. But
they expected him to make a choice between the two of them. How in the world
could he make a decision like that? It would obviously hurt one deeply to
choose the other, yet there was no escape for him!

        By the time Tenchi let out a disgusted sound at his predicament, he
was shouldering the door to the floating onsen open and ignorantly walking
in. It always seemed that he could never win, ignore the problem and it got
worse, give it some attention and he ended up hurting somebody. Why couldn't
they just leave him alone for a change?

        Tenchi quietly slid into the warm waters of the bath and sighed. He
never really noticed how much he ached until now, his muscles complaining
with every effort he put them. Tenchi closed his eyes and tried to relax
resolutely ignoring a strange feeling in the back of his mind. Something
that screamed danger.

        That's silly, he told himself. What in the world could possibly be
threatening in here?

        "Umm, Tenchi?"

        Tenchi froze at those words. They were feminine, for certain.

        You're in big, big trouble, Tenchi.  His mind told him as he slowly
opened his eyes. Inwardly, he cursed his stupidity for not checking to see
if there was anyone inside when he came in. At the same moment, he regretted
even opening his eyes.

        Tenchi's eyes widened uncontrollably at the vision in front of him.
He could feel the blood beginning to rush from his head, as Tenchi could
definitely feel the light-headedness that came with the phenomenon, not to
mention a small trickle from his nose.

        Kiyone, her body wrapped in nothing but a small bathing towel stood
before him, perfectly still. The teal haired woman's lips were quirked into
a mysterious half smile at Tenchi's reaction. The fact that Kiyone was
sitting down facing him did not serve to make matters better, as from where
Tenchi was sitting he had an almost perfect view of her shapely chest.

        Tenchi slammed the breaks hard as his mind began to wander to other
realms. This was defiantly not a good situation, in his opinion.

        "Umm... excuse me please, Ms. Kiyone. I really didn't know you were
in here." Tenchi managed to stumble out as he cast his eyes downward.
Anything to get rid of the vision before him.

        "That's alright, really." Kiyone replied, smiling widely. It was
nice to know she could still cause a reaction in some people. "I'm used to
bathing with others so it really doesn't matter much to me."

        "I...I guess I'll leave you alone, now." Tenchi made to get up and
remove himself from the bath but found a quick hand restraining him.

        "You don't have to leave, Tenchi." Kiyone added seriously. "You
looked like you really needed this luxury today and I know you didn't mean
to come in here while I was here." Then she smiled again. "Besides, I'd
enjoy the company."

        Tenchi chuckled nervously and sat down, as far as comfortably
possible from the woman in front of him. All he needed was for Ryoko or
Ayeka to join him and he'd be in some serious trouble.

        "Thanks." He smiled. "You're right, I did need this today. My
Grandfather decided to really become serious about training today. Which
usually means more bruises for me."

        While Kiyone chuckled, Tenchi sunk low into the water until just his
face was visible above the water line and closed his eyes blissfully. It had
been a long time since he came back from practice as sore as he did today.
Privately, he wondered why the elder man chose this day of all days to
switch training tactics. It wasn't as if he and his Grandfather had been
training together for years before this, nor was it apparent that there
would be any time soon in which they wouldn't be.

        Kiyone for the most part remained silent, watching the young boy
surreptitiously. She had only just arrived a few days ago and still hadn't
quite gotten used to the living situation here. At first, it had been nice
to stay in the same room with Mihoshi. They had a lot of catching up to do,
after all. After the first day, however, she felt her old temper begin to
re-emerge after the fifth accident. Kiyone had forgotten how many minor
accidents could happen around the blonde detective on any given day.

        Still, Kiyone thought. It is nice to see her again; she was one of
my only friends after all. Even if it was a strange relationship straight
from the start.

        Then, there was the rest of the female population of the Masaki
household. Kiyone still did not know what to make of any of them. Sasami, of
course, was nothing but sweet and a good cook to boot. Her sister, Ayeka,
was for the most part friendly but would sometimes give her a funny look if
she talked to Tenchi for too long. Ryoko, was much the same way as Ayeka;
especially if it appeared that she was monopolizing Tenchi's attention.
Lastly, there was the diminutive Washu. A person Kiyone had barely seen
since the day she arrived. Though one of the few times was when Washu
insisted on giving her a full checkup, "for future reference."

        Tenchi, however, was even more a mystery to her than any other. He
was always very nice, polite and dignified to her. She still couldn't see,
however, just what was in the young man to make a princess and a pirate to
fall in love, another princess and a detective to have a crush, and a
scientist to make a special guinea pig.

        Kiyone sighed and once again looked across the pool towards the
young man. He was kind of cute, if you considered his age, but looks were
definitely not enough to cause five women to feel the way they do about this
boy. What was it about this young earthling, then, that made him so
endearing towards the residents that lived here?

        At that moment, a thought occurred to Kiyone. She was here with
Tenchi, alone and with no good reason why it shouldn't remain that way. Why
not then get to know him better? Curiosity was a natural trait to Kiyone,
especially when something seemed to disagree with its outward appearance and
Tenchi Masaki certainly appeared to be a dichotomy.

        "Tenchi? Can I ask you a few questions?" Kiyone asked of the soaking
young man. At first, it appeared as if he hadn't heard her. However, after a
few seconds, he rose to sitting position with a friendly, if reserved,
expression on his face.

        "Umm, sure. What can I do for you Ms. Kiyone?" he asked.

        Kiyone cringed slightly in distaste. "You can start by not calling
me 'Ms.', Tenchi. To you, I'm Kiyone, it's as simple as that." She smiled
warmly, trying to take any unintended sting from her words.

        Tenchi responded to her smile with a small blush.

        "Oh, uh, sorry about that." He said shyly.

        "It's no problem," Kiyone responded, then sat back against the wall
of the bathing pool.

        "Have you always lived here, at this shrine I mean?" Kiyone suddenly
asked, after several seconds of silence.

        "Huh?" Tenchi started, forgetting for a few moments that Kiyone
wanted to ask him a few questions. Once he remembered, however, the same
friendly smile returned to his face as he remembered the events that led his
entire house to be relocated to the foot of his Grandfather's shrine.

        "No, actually. This house used to be in the city. My father and I
lived there until about two summers ago."

        Kiyone blinked in confusion, trying to process what Tenchi had said.

        "You said your house used to be there to? So you moved it out here
on purpose?"

        To Kiyone, that sounded slightly silly. Tenchi still went to school
in the city that was nearest the shrine.  His father, as well, still worked
there, choosing only to spend the weekends actually living in the Masaki
home. The rest of the week was spent in a small apartment, closer to his
job.

        "Not quite." Tenchi answered cryptically. "We really didn't have a
choice in the matter."

        This statement further puzzled the teal haired woman. How could
anyone not have a say in the moving of an entire household? If she wasn't
mistaken, none of the women were here when they had moved out here so it
wasn't as if they had done it. Or had they?

        "Then how did your house end up here?" Kiyone asked, curious as a
cat. This story, for some reason, just kept getting more and more strange.

        Tenchi answered with just a simple word. A name, in fact, as if it
were the sum of any more elaborate explanation he could come up with.

        "Ryoko." He stated flatly. Though he knew it was not singly the
pirate's fault as it was the time that Ayeka first appeared. The demoness
had been the one that shrunk the house and brought it with her on her flight
to outer space. Tenchi had always found it ironically funny that each of the
girls, barring Kiyone, appeared at the same time as or immediately following
some form of destruction. That fact made the young man slightly nervous
about Kiyone's appearance, so far though, no destruction had followed the
former detectives arrival.

        "I see." Kiyone, responded, though not really understanding it. "Is
it okay if I ask you to tell me the story? It sounds rather interesting."

        "I guess not." Tenchi responded hesitantly. He still wasn't really
sure about Kiyone, or about how much he should tell her. She was a member of
the Galaxy Police after all, and he thought Mihoshi had submitted a report,
so Kiyone should know most of it up to Kagato, anyway.

        Maybe she just wants to hear it from me, Tenchi thought, privately
enjoying the concept of talking to Kiyone without having to worry about any
of the girls interfering. They sometimes had the habit of changing the story
to suit their own impressions.

        "Well, it all started the day I opened the cave and let Ryoko
out..." Tenchi began. In time, he related all of the events that led up to
the day Kiyone appeared. It was a rather lengthy story, but Kiyone was
simply fascinated by it. By the end, she even found herself vaguely seeing
what had Mihoshi, Ayeka, Ryoko, Sasami, and Washu so enamoured. Despite his
simple appearance, Tenchi was an amazing young man.

        "...then you appeared and well, I guess you know the rest." Tenchi
finished and took a deep breath. This was the first time he had ever related
the entire story to someone. Those whom he lived with, already knew most of
it, so all he had to do was fill in certain areas, and none of his friends
on earth would ever believe this story. Thinking about it, Tenchi rather
felt better about the whole ordeal now that he told someone, some parts had
been starting to bother him as of late.

        Kiyone sighed softly. It was really a strange tale, one that she
would have been hard pressed to believe had it not fit every detail so
perfectly. Not to mention Mihoshi's entrance was a classic landing from the
blonde police detective. Then something just occurred to Kiyone. Tenchi had
mentioned several times the affections lavished upon him by the others,
especially Ryoko and Ayeka. Yet he had never mentioned his own feelings on
the matter. In fact, he had been rather quiet about the whole subject matter
as a whole.

        One look towards the boy, however, decided Kiyone against asking
about that. It was quite easy to see he was of two very different minds
about the subject. Perhaps later, she could talk to him about it, but now
would not be the time. With that done, the teal haired women looked at her
hands and sighed disgustedly.

        Upon the disgusted noise Kiyone had made, Tenchi looked over towards
the newest resident and saw her staring at her hands with a very distasteful
look on her face.

        "What's the matter Kiyone?" He asked, wondering what could have the
placid woman's face so disgusted.

        Kiyone looked up from her hands, her facial expression changing to a
slightly guilty smile.

        "I guess we spent too much time in the hot water." She said simply
and held up her hands for the curious Tenchi to see.

        Tenchi scrutinized the creamy white hands that Kiyone held before
him and chuckled slightly. Her hands had been reduced to the texture of
raisins. A quick check of his own and Tenchi was bale to determine that
indeed his own skin had followed the path of Kiyone's and protested the
lengthy stay in the warm waters.

        "I guess we should be getting out, then." Tenchi replied, slightly
amused. "Dinner will be ready shortly anyway."

        "Does Sasami always cook so wonderfully?" Kiyone asked as she
removed herself from the waters and headed for a covered changing area.

        "Every single time." Tenchi replied dead pan. Sasami was easily the
best cook he had ever had the privilege of knowing. The little girl was a
culinary master and was always determined to outdo herself at every meal. It
was any wonder why no one gained weight in the Masaki household.

        Just as the Kiyone was leaving, Tenchi smiled warmly at her.

        "Thanks for listening, Kiyone." He said simply as the teal tressed
woman exited and Tenchi took his turn in the changing room.

        Kiyone returned the smile and replied simply that it wasn't a
problem. Then she exited the bath, making her way to the house with a little
lighter step than she had entered, thinking the short walk over that maybe
it wouldn't be such a bad vacation after all.

*                                               *
*

        A painful scream echoed within the darkness, then died moments
later. Through the murky depths of the smoky nothingness a light emanated
from single point. The closer one got to the point, the light separated into
two distinct figures and a stream of power in between them. Closer still,
and the figure on the right was revealed to be a beautiful female with long
golden brown hair and a flowing white robe. Directly in front of her stood a
younger male, gritting his teeth in concentration, using everything within
his possession to hold the defensive stance he was crouched into.

        Urchoíd's muscle's screamed in agony as he held the stance,
determined to not let the power stream move him one more centimeter. Before
the young Cephean, three purplish-black wings of power rotated slowly,
keeping most of the energy from hitting his vulnerable body. Once making
contact with the wings, the power that Lady Tokimi was focusing in his
direction dissipated immediately only leaving the physical force of impact.
The force itself, however, was more than enough to harm anyone should they
get in the way.

        Seconds later, Tokimi switched tactics, immediately cutting the
thick stream. In its stead, she began sending small, deadly purple points of
light towards the Urchoíd. Each of these points was quickly and efficiently
cut off by the rotating shield before the young man. The defense from such
tactics having long since relegated to the subconscious mind.

        Lady Tokimi slowly allowed a proud smile to drift across her face.
Her chosen had come such a long way in the week that she had been training
him. He had already formed three Holy Wings, which was more than enough to
shield him from anything that could be fired at the boy. Urchoíd had
preformed everything that could possibly have been asked of him with
surprising speed. Not only was the Cephean, deadly, but he was cunning as
well, an excellent trait to have in Tokimi's opinion.

        Only one weakness could still be determined, as far as Tokimi was
concerned, and that was the boy still had not mastered material conversion.
In light of that fact, Urchoíd still had to rely upon the constructed light
sword when doing anything offensive. The Cepheans made superior weapons in
all respects, but they could never match the power output of a Light Hawk
Sword. Nor would Urchoíd be able to defend himself from the weapon until he
mastered the art himself.

        Tokimi sighed. It was such a pity, really. She had never been able
to figure out just what her sister had done to the Trees of Jurai in order
to give them the power of Light Hawk Wings. She had tried many times with
multiple failures to obtain such information, the latest being the renegade
scientist, Kagato.

        Kagato had been an easy target to manipulate because everything she
had needed had been right there from the start. The man was already power
mad and working frantically to obtain the Tsunami unit itself. He had even
managed to duplicate the power output of Washu's gems, no small feat in the
least. All it took was a slight will implanted into his mind and the
scientist formulated the plan of laying siege the very planet of Jurai
itself.

        There was one thing, however, that Tokimi despised about the
scientist. He had imprisoned her sister. Though she had not been able to
determine how he had done such a thing because of Washu's powers as a
goddess, but it was at the very least apparent that her pink haired sibling
did not bring them to bear against the man. Which only further confused
Tokimi.

        Once again, Lady Tokimi brought her concentration upon the boy in
front of her. It was almost time for Urchoíd to reach the next level of
development. He had been able to gain such wondrous control of the three
wings he already could call forth. His next and final form should be that of
the five wings and full material conversion. Slowly she gathered her power
for one mighty strike, one that should call forth the Cepehean's final and
most powerful form, one that would truly make him her Champion.

        Urchoíd watched his Lady and master carefully. He had caught the
moment hesitation after the point attack and knew what came next. Lady
Tokimi would repeatedly raise the intensity level of her power to try and
draw even more from him. So Far, after each time she had raised the
intensity, he had gained an additional Holy Wing. Though this time, Urchoíd
thought that he really wasn't ready for the power. Still, his lady had never
guessed wrong before so with this deep-rooted trust, he deepened his stance
against his protesting muscles and held on with every ounce of strength he
possessed.

        Moments later, the blast was unleashed and Urchoíd reeled from the
physical impact. It felt as if Tokimi was bringing to bear the entirety of
her power and focusing it on a single target: him. Still he held on and
gritted his teeth harder, making his lower jaw slip and bite into his
tongue. The taste of blood in Urchoíd's mouth was the added incentive to
make him hold on just a bit longer.

        Soon he could no longer hold in the scream of pain as he felt the
energy within him focus upon two points of his body and begin shifting
outward. Urchoíd could barely feel the raw power swim through his veins as
it traversed his body and finally stopped near the top of his thighs. There
the energy pushed itself outward through his skin. In seconds the sensation
had ended and the force upon Urchoíd's body all but stopped.

        Slowly, Urchoíd opened his eyes, and gazed upon the grimly smiling
image of his Lady. Looking down upon himself, he was shocked to discover
that he not only had three wings but five! They were arranged in an orchid
pattern about him and had stopped their rotation cold. The three full sized
wings that he had held previously were now arranged at his two shoulder
blades and head respectively. The two newer Holy Wings were roughly half the
size of the original three and guarded Urchoíd's legs, stretching diagonally
from his lower hip.

        Curiously, Urchoíd reached his hands forward and reverently touched
the wings before him. He was the first Cephean to produce any more than one
Holy wing, and he had now in his possession five. Slowly the knowledge of
what this could possibly do settled over the young Cephean. He could
conceivably walk into the very throne room itself and kill the king and
nobody would be able to stop him. He was now the most powerful being in the
known Galaxy, and that fact scared him for a second. The most powerful
tended to be the most sought after target. Urchoíd tended to like quiet
observation and strategy over brute strength.

        Idly, his finger accidentally pressed against the right shoulder
wing and Urchoíd jumped back from the shock. The two shoulder wings began
pressing in on him, transforming his arms as they went. Slowly they began to
cover his entire body, changing the simplicity of his practice clothing with
an elaborate fighting costume. When the two wings had completed their
journey, Urchoíd once again took a look at his appearance.

        Amazingly, his clothing had not changed much. The pants had been
changed, loosely fitting the forms of his wiry legs to the color of the
deepest ebony. Urchoíd's tunic was also changed, but not by much. Once again
they had been changed in color and fabric to a loosely fitting shirt of a
dark black with silver trim. The young Cephean immediately recognized the
cut of his new clothing as a practical version of the Space Fleets' formal
uniform.

        Slowly, Urchoíd's gaze shifted back to Lady Tokimi, who had been
standing in front of him the whole time. She gazed upon her Champion with a
proud smile across her face. It had been a long time since the last time
someone had worn the uniform of Tokimi's champion, not since the last cycle,
in fact as only one champion was ever allowed per cycle, as the rules
stated.

        "What am I?" Urchoíd whispered the question towards Tokimi, too
tired to even speak normally.

        "You, Urchoíd Dorchacht, are now truly my champion." Tokimi answered
back, pride and joy reflecting in her voice. Urchoíd could also swear that
just at the end he could even hear a bit of sadness in her voice, but could
wonder at it.

*                                               *
*

        "Wow! That was great Sasami!" Tenchi said as he laid down his
chopsticks. True to his statement to Kiyone, the little Princess had once
again cooked a wonderful meal for the entire Masaki clan. He often couldn't
figure out why she loved to do such a thing, as there was certainly enough
people in this household now that could cook quite passably. But Sasami had
always insisted that the kitchen was her domain, and one that she wanted and
loved to keep.

        "Thanks, Tenchi." Sasami blushed and looked down towards the floor.
She loved it when Tenchi complimented her efforts, and no matter how much he
did so, it never got old. Then, the little girl looked over towards the
newest member of the household, Kiyone.

        "What did you think of the meal, Kiyone? Was it okay?" Sasami asked,
wanting to get a feeling for the special foods that Kiyone liked. She had
been experimenting with many varieties since the police detective had
arrived, trying to find the right combination to please the elder woman's
palette.

        "It was wonderful Sasami." Kiyone smiled at the girl. It shouldn't
be possible for one so young to be able to cook so well; much less a
princess, but Sasami somehow managed to turn anything into a gourmet meal.
"It was spicy, just the way I like it." Kiyone added further, making the
blushing Sasami positively radiant with joy.

        "I'm glad you liked it." Sasami finally said and smiled shyly as the
rest of the family complimented her on the meal.

        Ayeka looked at her sister a few seconds longer than the usually
compliments called for, however. Lately it seemed as if there was something
wrong with the little girl. Sasami just wasn't quite as bubbly as she had
been when they had first arrived, and the quick glance told Ayeka that her
little sister was still feeling bad from this morning.

        Ayeka fully understood what her sister was going through. It had
been centuries since they had been under Juraian skies, and despite her
happiness at where she was, there was still an underlying current of
homesickness creeping upon the elder Juraian princess. Ayeka sighed; she
understood what Sasami was going through all to well. Looking at her little
sister once again, though, she swallowed the melancholy that threatened to
overwhelm her senses and determined to be brave for Sasami at least.

        Once the table was cleared, Ayeka found Sasami still seated at the
table, staring at nothing in particular. A worried Ryo-Ohki sat on the table
directly in front of the little girl. When Ayeka approached the half cat
half rabbit turned her head and regarded the elder Juraian. Apparently,
Sasami's unhappiness this morning had grown. Ayeka had never seen her little
sister in such a glum mood, especially following such glowing compliments on
her cooking.

        "Sasami?" Ayeka approached her little sister carefully.

        The younger princess looked up and regarded Ayeka with eyes that
nearly broke her sister's heart. Sasami's once vibrant pink eyes had turned
dull, and the smile that was always present showed no trace of its
existence. Immediately, Ayeka's eyes softened and she rushed towards her
little sister with her arms wide open.

        "I miss my mommy," Sasami, whispered softly into Ayeka's arms, the
second the young girl was safely in her older sisters arms.

        "I know, I do too, Sasami." Ayeka cooed softly, rocking back and
forth slightly, trying every trick she knew to calm her sister down. "Why
did you let it get this far? You should have something, I would have
listened."

        Sasami regarded her older sister thoughtfully, then laid her head
against Ayeka's chest.

        "I didn't want to spoil your fun. I know you love it here. I do as
well, it's the most fun I've had in my life. But I can't remember what it
was like on Jurai anymore. I don't remember what my room was like, or how
the city looked during Startika. I can't remember anything."

        Ayeka continued to hold the now silently crying Sasami and
considered what the little princess had just said. It was true; it had been
a very long time since both of them had been home. Here with Tenchi,
however, Ayeka could almost forget about going back and be happy about it.
Almost, but not quite.

        The elder princess sighed sadly. It was time to make a decision that
was long in the making. She always knew it would be inevitable, from the
moment she had first arrived on this planet, but that didn't make the
decision anymore difficult than it already was.

        At that moment, Tenchi walked into the room and saw Ayeka holding
Sasami.

        "Is everything okay?" he asked quietly, coming up next to the two
and sitting himself beside Ayeka. "Sasami seemed fine only a minute ago."
Tenchi allowed the worry to be heard plainly in his voice. Sasami was the
brightest of his extended family, to see her go through such a drastic
change in temperment was unnerving, to say the least.

        Watching Ayeka's face suddenly made Tenchi feel like something bad
was about to happen, something he wouldn't like. The purple haired princess
was stroking Sasami's water blue hair gently and looking far away into the
distance with a sad look in her eyes.

        Slowly, Ayeka looked over towards Tenchi and gazed at him. She
really tried to put everything she felt about the young earthling in that
single gaze, as she could never speak about her feelings. She also tried to
silently make him understand why she was making the choice she had to make.

        With the object of her affections blinking at her in confusion,
Ayeka slowly spoke. The Princess's voice rose just barely above a whisper as
she slowly said the words she'd never thought she'd hear herself say.

        "T-Tenchi...Sasami and I are going back home, to Jurai."

*                                               *
*

        Urchoíd looked up suddenly at the sounds of movement next to him,
but did not register if it was indeed another being or just a figment of his
imagination. He had been sitting in the small chamber that had been given to
him since he had arrived for almost two hours after the last session with
Lady Tokimi. Somehow, what his Goddess had said at the end trouble him
greatly.

        Champion? What does she mean by that? He thought to himself,
curiously. Urchoíd already knew that the Lady had special plans for him, but
as of yet she had been reticent in telling him anything.

        What would be required of me? Will I be able to complete here tasks?
Over and over again the circle of doubt began to creep up on the young
Cephean.  Urchoíd knew his fighting abilities were unmatched among his age,
he knew he had been trained by the best and brightest teachers that lived,
but would it all be enough, and what was Lady Tokimi's designs for him
anyway?

        "Something troubling you, perhaps?" A voice sounded from right next
to Urchoíd, making the young man jump back. He had no reason to worry,
however, because a split second later his ears recognized the tone of the
old High Priest, Sagart.

        Sagart chuckled dryly at the young man's initial reaction. He had
been told once that he had had the unnerving habit of appearing as if from
nowhere. It seemed, to his kind elderly eyes, that he hadn't lost his touch.

        "I have not seen you for several days, my young friend. I thought
that something might be troubling you." Sagart explained, smiling the
genuine friendly smile that always seemed to put anyone at ease. "Would you
care to take a walk?"

        Urchoíd nodded silently, and followed the elder man out the door.
Over the past two weeks he had been here, the young man had grown accustomed
to Sagart appearing at the oddest of times. Generally, the old priest would
ask a few questions, invite him to one of the many gardens of the temple, or
simply walk with the younger man. Sagart, in fact, had become almost a
grandfather to Urchoíd; the old priest was always around to lend an ear or
to just talk about nothing.

        Silently the two walked for a distance, Urchoíd unsure about how to
start the conversation, and Sagart patiently waiting for the boy to begin.
Finally, after several more minutes of silent walking, the young Cephean
just blurted out what the trouble was.

        "What does the Lady mean by Champion? What am I expected to do?" he
asked quickly, making sure to keep his eyes glued to the ground, lest he
show disrespect towards the High Priest.

        Sagart chuckled again.

        "So, I assume you have reached the pinnacle of your power, then?" he
asked questioningly. He already knew the answer of course, because Lady
Tokimi would never reveal that bit of information if he hadn't.

        "Have I?" Urchoíd asked.

        Sagart sighed. Lady Tokimi really needed to work on explaining
things. The Goddess often ended up getting too caught up in the moment,
leaving major chunks of information out. This had caused several other High
Priests to have breakdowns when certain events had happened and they had not
been prepared for it.

        "I think you should sit, down, young one. We have much to discuss."
Sagart indicated the bench that the pair had stopped in front of. The
surroundings were almost mythological to Urchoíd as he sat upon the padded
bench. The Garden in which he and Sagart were now sitting in was lush and
green, a direct opposite of the drab brown interior of the temple. Somehow,
a beam of brilliant sunlight shown down from somewhere above and illuminated
the medium sized room pleasantly, but there was no sky as far as Urchoíd
could see. Off in the distance, towards the opposite end of the garden, the
young man could even hear a small waterfall cheerfully gurgling, feeding the
little stream that ran right in front of the bench.

        "Tell, me Urchoíd, exactly how much has our Lady told you?" Sagart
began quietly, looking directly at the young man beside him.

        "I am her champion," Urchoíd answered back. He understood as much,
at least, to regurgitate the information back to others, however confusing
it was. When his Lady first asked him to become her student, he had not
thought much of what exactly it entailed. Now, knowing that he was Her
champion somehow added more responsibility to the position. It also gave the
distinct impression of being religious in nature. Urchoíd wasn't entirely
sure he was right for a religious war, if indeed that's what she meant by
it.

        "Does she mean that I will spread our faith in Her throughout the
stars, Father?" Urchoíd asked, voicing at least one of his concerns.

        Sagart shook his head. "No, young one. There is so much that you do
not currently understand. I will try my best to explain the way things are
in the universe, but somethingd you will have to learn yourself, sadly."

        Father Sagart took a deep raspy breath and began a story that was
known to him his entire life. Not to mention one, as the High Priest of all
Cepheus, that he had a responsibility to tell.

        "Millions of years ago, there was The One. He began the Universe as
we know, gave it life from the void that was before. He created the galaxies
and the stars themselves. Once the laws were set down, He created three
daughters. These three children of The One are rulers over all in their
respective dimensions. After the creation of His daughters The One simply
disappeared, left the universe to it's own devices and the will of his
children."

        "But who are these children? Are one of them Lady Tokimi?" Urchoíd
interrupted, the impetuousness of his youthful seventeen years beginning to
show through.

        "Hush, child. I am getting to that." Sagart chided gently then
continued with his story.

        "Now, as you asked, yes Lady Tokimi is the one of His Daughters. She
rules over the higher dimensions of reality. Her domain is that which is
beyond our thinking. It is said she can even control time itself, though I
have yet to see if this rumor is true or not." Sagart sighed. There were
many things in which his Lady had not shown him yet. He was reaching the end
of his lifetime as well. Soon he would know nothing but darkness until the
next High Priest was chosen.

        The other two daughters, father. What of them?" Urchoíd brought
Sagart back to the present with his breathless question. Sagart chuckled at
the youth beside him; it was really quite strange to see the aloof and
confident Urchoíd Dorchacht acting his age.

        "The other two are Ladies Washu and Tsunami." Sagart answered after
a brief pause. He had once met lady Tsunami, long ago. She had been quite
beautiful in her physical form with a gentleness that seemed to be absent
from his own Goddess.

        "Lady Tsunami is in charge of the physical world as you and I know
it. Her domain is this very third dimension." Sagart continued, trying to
push the thoughts of his last encounter with Tsunami out of his mind. "She,
like Tokimi has a people in which she has invested interest in. They are
known as the Jurai, and live many, many light years from this planet. In
fact, most people do not even know they exist."

        "The third daughter is a bridge between the dimensions. She lives
within the physical, but can perceive the higher dimensions of time. She has
taken no vested interest in a single race, but rather acts as a mediary
between several different dimensional beings."

        Urchoíd sat silent for several moments, trying to process the
information that the High Priest just told him.

        Three Goddesses of equal power and strength? Urchoíd thought
wondrously. But what has this got to do with my being a champion for Lady
Tokimi's cause?

        As if reading his mind, Sagart continued his story once again.

        As each sister is a Goddess, they control power beyond imagination.
However, quantitatively speaking, each Goddess can form and control Ten Holy
Wings. But because they are not considered a part of this dimension, it is
impossible for these wings to have any effect unless they take physical
form. This is where the champions come in."

        Urchoíd leaned in closer to the old man and listened intently. This
was something that he did not want to miss.

        "You see, each Goddess can have a portion of their power incarnated
within the physical universe. This power is often controlled by a single
person whom the Goddess feels best serves their purpose. These persons or
"champions" as they have begun to be known as, can control approximately
half of their Patron's power. In our terms, five Holy Wings are theirs to
control."

        Urchoíd sat back against the comfortable backrest and considered
what he had just been told. He controlled the most power within the entire
world, yet he still had no idea what he was supposed to do with it. Was he
supposed to conquer in Her name? Ws he supposed to fight these other
champions or was he supposed to join with them?

        "Father," the young man began nervously, somehow always feeling like
a silly schoolboy who asks too many questions in front of the wizened old
man. "What am I supposed to do with this power that She gave me?" he asked.

        Sagart considered the young man carefully before answering; he
wasn't quite ready for the full story. Besides, that was one in which only
the Lady herself could fully explain.

        "That, young Urchoíd, is a longer story for another time. For now,
do as you're bid. Lady Tokimi's will is above all else in our lives."

        "Yes, Father, I understand." Urchoíd bowed respectfully, suddenly
back to the young adult version of his personality. "Thank you for talking
with me, as I know how busy your schedule must be." With a final bow at the
end of his statement, Urchoíd turned on his heels and began to walk back to
his room, a head full of even more things to think about.

        Sagart chuckled and watched the retreating back of the young man
carefully.

        "Do you think he will be alright?" A feminine voice rang from the
air around the old priest only seconds before the image of Lady Tokimi
appeared before him.

        Long used to the Lady's habits, Sagart didn't even bat an eyelash as
he replied.

"I think he will be more than okay, Lady. He will be ready soon, I think. Do
you still wish to do this?" Sagart turned to the woman who had been in his
life since the moment the last Priest died. She had become such a part of
him that it broke his old heart to know that soon he would never again feel
the warmth in his heart that she gave him.

        Lady Tokimi sighed sadly, and closed her eyes.

        "It must be so, my faithful friend. That is the way of the Cycle in
which He set before us. It must be done." With that, Lady Tokimi
disappeared, presumably back to her own dimension. It cost her greatly in
strength to appear in her ethereal form as a part of the physical dimension.

        High Priest Sagart once again returned to the padded bench and sat
down. There was much to think about these days, and much to consider of the
future. Silently he sighed, and sent a quick expression of his love and
devotion for his Lady before standing up once again and walking towards his
chambers. There will be long and painful times ahead of them if everything
goes like it was supposed to.

*                                               *
*

        "What do you mean, 'Going back to Jurai,'" Tenchi asked, greatly
alarmed. It just did not make sense that the Princess wished to return home,
and Tenchi, for as much as he tried, could not understand what Ayeka was
saying.

        Was she not happy here? The young man asked himself frantically as
Ayeka again tried to explain why she was leaving. I didn't think she was,
but then she never really did show her feelings too well.

        "Please try to understand Tenchi, we're not doing this because we
are unhappy here. Sasami and I have been away from home for far too long; we
need to go back. I hope you can understand this." Ayeka pleaded, almost to
the point of tears, as she was trying to explain the situation to her
beloved.

        Tenchi sighed, and nodded his head dumbly. Ayeka was going home. He
may never see her or Sasami around ever again, or if he was really lucky, he
might be able to see them once every blue moon. A princess just didn't have
time to visit a backwater farmer, no matter how he was connected to the
Royal family.

        "Will you ever be coming back?" Tenchi asked slowly, hoping beyond
hope that the answer was yes. It just wouldn't be the same without the two
princesses here.

        "Yes, I will be returning, Tenchi." Ayeka smiled. It strengthened
her resolve greatly knowing that she would, at least, be returning. Though
her father may try and forbid it, she knew that he would eventually allow
it. Emperor Asuza loved his children too greatly to make them unhappy from
an action he did.

        "When?" Was Tenchi's next question. He couldn't quite figure out why
it was bothering so much that the Princesses were leaving, but it did and
greatly so. However, at the opposite end of the stick he understood how both
Sasami and Ayeka felt. He, too, would have been very homesick had the
situation been reversed.

        Ayeka considered the question for a few moments before answering. It
wouldn't do to give an incorrect time, but she did not even know how long it
would be.

        "I do not know, Tenchi," Ayeka answered truthfully. "Long enough, I
suppose so that Sasami and I feel that we have done our duty to the people
of Jurai. It has been over seven hundred years since they last saw us, after
all."

        Tenchi smiled gratefully. It gave him a much better feeling that he
at least knew Ayeka and Sasami would be returning.

        At that moment, Sasami ran up to him and gave him the best hug she
could, considering her height.

        "Don't worry, Tenchi," she told him quietly. "We will be back before
you even notice we're gone." Then the little Princess smiled with mischief,
the evidence of her earlier tears not quite gone completely. "Try not to let
Ryoko cook while I'm gone, okay Tenchi? I don't want anybody to get sick."

        Tenchi laughed and hugged Sasami back.

        "I will try not to, Sasami. We will miss both of you very much." He
said, after straightening up.

        Ayeka smiled at the comment.

        "You sound as if we're leaving immediately, Tenchi." She said
through her smile. "In truth we will not be leaving until I can at least get
a hold of Mother and wait for an escort. You forget, since Ryu-oh is still
growing, we have no way of going home without Jurai's assistance."

        Tenchi stopped and considered that for a second. He had forgotten
all about that!

        "When will you tell the others?"

        "We'll do that tomorrow, at breakfast." Ayeka responded.

        "Okay," Tenchi sighed. It was still going to be lonely without the
princesses here. But he still had a few days at least, and they will be
coming back. So he put on his best polite smile and wished Ayeka and Sasami
goodnight, then returned to his own room.

        Once he was ready for bed, Tenchi silently slid under the covers of
his blanket and stared at the ceiling. Sleep seemed to avoid the young
earthling, though, as he thought about all that had happened today, and what
it meant. First, the weird instance at this mornings practice with his
Grandfather, then his discussion with Kiyone, and now finally, Ayeka and
Sasami deciding to return to Jurai.

        Ayeka will be gone. Tenchi through silently. Though it troubled the
young man greatly that the princess was leaving, he couldn't identify why.
Certainly he knew this day had to come sometime. The Princesses had a duty
to their planet and could not be expected to stay on some out of the way
planet indefinitely.

        Still, Tenchi continued on his thread, I had admittedly gotten used
to her being around. I wonder what it will be like without her?

        That thought made Tenchi start. What would it be like with Ayeka not
around? Well for one thing, She and Ryoko wouldn't be fighting so much,
which was a good thing. Tenchi smiled suddenly. As strange as it sounded, he
had even grown used to quarreling pair it was definitely going to be a
little bit quieter.

        Tenchi also knew for certain that it would be different without
Sasami as well. The little princess had taken over every aspect of the
kitchen and fixed all of the family meals. She had gotten really good at it
as well, as the meals had slowly been growing in quality over the last year
to one of a chef. Sasami genuinely enjoyed the cooking, he knew, as she
would almost never let any one else in the family attempt it, though she
would often take helpers of one of the older women.

        Tenchi sighed, and closed his eyes, trying to force the
inevitability of the situation out of his mind. Either way, the decision was
made and there was nothing he could do to stop it, even if wanted to. Ayeka
and Sasami deserved to go back home whenever they wanted, especially missing
it as much as they did. Though as Tenchi's mind slowly drifted into sleep,
he couldn't help but wonder at one last thing: the suddenness of it all. Why
did it have the feeling of being prearranged?

        Though before he could think about it any further, his mind began to
wander the paths of his dreams, forgetting about the thought within the
pleasures of a bathing suit clad Ayeka, Kiyone, Mihoshi, and Ryoko giving
him a massage.

*                                               *
*

        The morning began slowly for Tenchi as he began to drag himself out
of his nice warm bed. It had been a very interesting night, and the young
man was very reluctant to leave the images that had paraded through his mind
throughout his restful sleep. Then the full impact of what the morning
heralded, brought Tenchi fully awake.

        Today Ayeka and Sasami would be leaving. It had been several days
after Ayeka had made her announcement at the breakfast table, and now it was
time for them to leave. The Juraian escort would be arriving shortly to
accompany the Princesses back home, though the two girls would not be riding
personally with the royal escort.

        That brought Tenchi to the next surprise that had happened within
the last few days. Kiyone had volunteered to bring them to Jurai herself in
her own ship, the Yagami. This sort of caught everyone off guard, as Kiyone
had been expected to stay at least a few weeks, though Mihoshi took it the
hardest. She had been really looking forward to all the things that the pair
could do.

        Tenchi sighed; it was really a shame that Kiyone was leaving, too.
He genuinely liked the teal haired woman, as she was quite easy to talk to.
In fact, after their initial meeting in the bath, he and Kiyone had met each
other often by accident and spent a few minutes chatting.

        Kiyone, however, also promised that she would return, but as she had
explained when she volunteered, she needed to feel needed again. There was
also the fact that the Yagami was just about the safest vessel that Ayeka
and Sasami could be on besides a royal spaceship tree.

        A familiar deep rumble began to stir up the birds and shake the
trees as two ships appeared in the sky beside the now visible Yagami. The
entire family had turned out to wish the Princess well including Ryoko, who
made no effort to hide her excitement that the Ayeka was leaving.

        The demoness had been waiting for this day since for a very long
time. The day that Ayeka would be gone and she could finally have Tenchi all
to herself.

        Or at least, she thought taking a look at the remaining women with a
slight smile, mostly to myself.

        Ryoko knew that neither Washu nor Mihoshi was likely to put up as
much of a fight as Ayeka did when she got a little close to Tenchi. If given
enough time, and without the added interruption from Ayeka, the space pirate
was sure that Tenchi would eventually come around to her affections. After
all, she did love him, didn't she? It was only fair that if someone loved
another that they should show it as much as possible and have that love
returned.

        Ryoko spared a glance at the departing princess one more time to see
the princess's eyes staring directly at her. The demoness threw a cocky grin
at the look Ayeka gave her, but then frowned moment later. Despite that fact
that she was overjoyed that Ayeka was leaving, she couldn't help but wonder
why. The look that Ayeka threw her way definitely warned her to keep her
hands of Tenchi while she was gone.

        Ryoko sighed; it was a severe oversight on the part of herself to
discount the princess. She knew that the purple haired woman cared for
Tenchi just as much as she did. Which made her leaving all the more
stranger. Sure, Sasami was homesick and even Ayeka to some extent, but until
a few days ago Ryoko had never seen Sasami express nothing but happiness at
the current living situation.

        Why then, would she suddenly start showing it now?  Ryoko wondered.
The little princess was by no stretch of the imagination secretive. In fact,
Sasami tended to show her emotions even more than any other person in the
household, despite the one incident involving Tsunami. So while Ayeka said
her goodbye to everyone that was present, and Kiyone made her rounds as
well, Ryoko thought about the matter.

        Something just didn't add up somewhere. But as far as she could
tell, Ryoko could not detect any other presence or force. If she couldn't
detect it, then certainly her mother could; so far the diminutive figure of
Washu had been silent. Eventually, however, Ryoko gave up trying to figure
the princess out. It was much more fun to enjoy the fact that she would be
able to finally get some good quality time with Tenchi.



With all the hugs and waves taken care of, Tenchi and the others watched
silently as Ayeka and Sasami entered the Yagami then watched the port
closed. Only moments later, the engines came to life and the huge ship began
to lift off the ground slowly then execute a turn to insinuate itself
between the escorts. Seconds later, the three ships were gone, leaving
Tenchi to stare up at the sky for a few moments and wonder when he would see
the trio again.

Finally, after a few eternal minutes, the young man sighed and began to
return to the house. Trying to not think about the fact that one room was
now empty and he didn't know when it would be occupied again.

Come back soon, Tenchi aimed his thoughts to the now departed spaceship then
disappeared inside the house.

END

        Author's endnotes: Well, here's the second part of my latest fic,
Infinite Wills. I hope you enjoyed this part as much as possible, though I
still am kind of shaky about the ending of it. Either way, that's what final
drafts are for, right? Please let me know how you like this installment via
e-mail at garasu@omicronceti.com.