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Copyrights, notes, etc.

Copyrights: Tenchi Muyo and all characters involved are the property of AIC, Pioneer, etc. Some names 
borrowed from Master of Orion II. My characters are my characters, and no one else's. They're mine I tell 
you! Mine! All mine! >:D

This fanfic takes place right after my last one, as this is still setting the stage a little bit.

Anyway, here goes a case of Mountain Dew....

-Loknar of Orion, 3/30/01

Fanfic Began: 3/30/01, ended 4/8/01

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Tenchi Muyo! Episode 15: Settling in.

(Orion Chronicles, Chapter 2)

Joseph and Ken-Ohki got to the dinner table about the same time as everyone else.

Ryoko and Ayeka, still groggy from their earlier battle, lurched in, groaning.

Everyone else came in normally, and sat down.

Sasami had made a bigger dinner than normal, as there were two new people joining, as well as an 
exhausted princess, and a hungry space pirate.

"Food.....Sleep...." The two embattled women muttered.

It had been a more exhausting battle than it usually was for them.

"Thank you, Sasami." Joseph said, thanking her for the dinner.

Under the table, Ryo-Ohki and Ken-Ohki saw each other again.

"Mow?" Ryo-Ohki asked.

"Cao." Ken-Ohki responded.

They both nodded to each other, and waited until dinner was fully underway, to begin to ask for scraps.

"Is there some kind of Galaxial policework of some kind that would allow me to work, yet still be in this 
system?" Joseph asked.

"The Galaxy Police!" Mihoshi said, her mouth full of food.

"How would I join up?"

"You can come with me to work tomorrow. There's a recruiting station only a few parsecs from here." She 
answered, her mouth still full of food, small bits coming out when she said 'parsecs'.

"Allright." Joseph said, pretending not to notice the small bits of food that were splattered onto his face by 
Mihoshi. He quietly wiped them off.

"Were you a police officer in your universe, Joseph?" Sasami asked.

"I was captain of a squadron of troops, the Psi Zeta Squadron, of the Galaxial Marines. We were a very 
well-known and strong group of people, the diverse people of it easily working together, and were very 
closely-knit. We were assigned many different things, from policework, to riot control, to fighting in 
battles, to defending a starbase or planet, anything." Joseph said, proudly.

"What happened to them?"

"I...I'd rather not talk about it. Some other time, I'll tell you, or you can ask my father." Joseph said, quietly. 
What had happened to his squadron had really bothered Joseph, hurt him, and still deeply effected him. He 
turns his eyes to his plate, and picks lightly at the food, his appetite suddenly lost, as old demons resurfaced 
within him, and the horrors of the past picked at his soul with torturous strength.

Everyone was quiet after that, for awhile, until...

"I'm home!" A man said, walking in the door.

"Hi, Dad! We have two new visitors!" Tenchi told Noboyuki as he entered the doorway.

"Ooo? More girls?" He asked, an odd look in his eye.

"Nope. Loknar and Joseph."

Tenchi's dad lost that look in his eye, but he was still happy.

"Yes! Finally some chums around here!" Noboyuki exclaimed.

Kasuhito and Tenchi gave him an angry look.

"Besides you two, heh."

"Is he usually this weird?" Loknar whispered to Ryoko.

"If you count him being a huge Hentai Pervert with a room full of the stuff as weird, yes he is weird, 
usually." She told him, snickering a little bit. Loknar chuckled a little bit as well at this remark.

Noboyuki sat down, and began to eat almost as fast as Ryoko usually did.

He saw that Loknar was wearing a lab coat, after a few minutes.

"So, you're a genius too, huh?" He asked him.

"I am _the_ genius." Loknar responding, grinning proudly.

"I am _the_ genius, Mr. Loknar." Washuu told him.

"There isn't any proof to back that up, Ms. Washuu." Loknar responded.

"Of course there is, you nitwit." Washuu responded.

Loknar looked at Washuu for a moment. Even though the two of them were feuding, she looked quite 
attractive to him, and very intelligent as well, quite possibly an equal.

"She is a _very_ beautiful woman...I would gladly be her friend, even if it wasn't sexual in nature. But, she 
probably hates me. The good ones always get away, old man." He thought to himself.

Washuu looked at Loknar. He was quite attractive to her as well, looked quite intelligent, and cute.

"He is _really_ cute. It's not often that you see a cute male genius! Most of them are old bearded guys with 
perverted habits. But this guy, on the other hand, has everything. Why the heck am I even thinking about 
him this way? He probably hates me." She thought.

"Please, don't fight!" Sasami pleaded.

"Ahem....Well, uh....Grandpa, do you want to practice a little more tonight?" Tenchi asked nervously, 
almost certain that there would be a fight between the two geniuses.

"Yes." Kasuhito responded, sensing the same.

"I'll stay here. I've got to finish eating." Both Mihoshi and Noboyuki said at the same time, their mouths 
filled with food as they spoke.

"I'm going to the onsen." Ryoko, Ayeka, and Sasami both said at the same time, also trying to avoid the 
developing fight.

"I guess I'll go too." Joseph said, following them, and expecting the onsen to be the size of a bathroom.

When he stepped outside, however, he saw the huge, floating onsen in the sky, with trees and waterfalls 
within the domed bath.

"Holy Nixon...." Joseph said, gazing at it with awe.

He caught up with them, running up the stairs to the entrance.

The men's bath was at about the same level as the women's, so he was able to see them, and they could see 
him.

By the time he had gotten to the men's bath, Ayeka and Sasami had their towels, and Ryoko was in her 
usual 'peach suit'.

He snuck a few glances at her and Ayeka, but scolded himself afterward. He wasn't a pervert...He shouldn't 
sneak looks at women like that.

"But she looks like a goddess....She is as lovely as Miranda was. Ayeka looks very beautiful as well..." 
Joseph thought to himself, a small trickle of blood coming out of his nose, and dropping into the bath that 
he stood next to. He covered his nose, and tried to stop any more blood from coming out. He hated it when 
it happened. Ever since he was a kid, almost every time he saw a beautiful woman in a swimsuit, or 
nothing, his nose would bleed.

"No one else has this problem.....Why should I?" Joseph thought, not knowing that Tenchi had the same 
problem.

He quickly undressed, and set his clothes by the men's bath, as he got in. The water was warm, and quite 
peaceful.

Ryoko watched Joseph get in.

"He's cute...Very cute. Pretty interesting in the nether regions as well." Ryoko thought to herself, grinning. 
"But why am I looking at him like that? Tenchi is the one for me, not him. And what's with that scar on his 
arm? Anyway, he's number two, under Tenchi."

Ayeka watched him as well.

"A very handsome young man....He seems very kind as well. Besides Tenchi, he is the most wonderful man 
in this house, from what I can tell." Ayeka thought, blushing slightly.

Sasami simply giggled, and smiled.

Joseph didn't hear them.

A moment later, the little trickle of blood from his nose went down a small waterfall, and entered the 
women's bath.

Ryoko grinned at this.

"Heh. He probably saw me. I wouldn't blame him. I'm the prettiest babe around here." He thought, 
chuckling slightly.

"He must have seen me, in all my beauty. Such a nice man." Ayeka thought, blushing again.

There were a few bottles of Sake near Joseph.

"Oh, what the heck. Alcohol doesn't do that much to me." Joseph said to himself, and poured himself a few 
cups. He drank them, without any sign of drunkenness.

"Let's watch this." Ryoko told Ayeka, for once not fighting.

Joseph downed more cups, and still more drunkenness.

He didn't see them looking at him, as he continued drinking more, going up to many times the normal 
amount that a person would need to get drunk.

As the two watched, they also gazed at his body a little bit, but mostly counting how many cups he had had. 
While all this was going on, Sasami was just relaxing in the water, and soon came out.

"Thirty!" Ryoko said, as Joseph finished the Sake nearby him. He wasn't drunk at all.

He had finished in the Onsen, and was about to get out, when he finally saw that they were watching him.

"Yah!" He said, slipping and falling back into the water, a small river of blood coming out of his nose.

Ryoko and Ayeka could only giggle as the small river of blood floated toward them.

Joseph quickly went back out, and was about to get his clothing on, when he literally bumped right into 
Mihoshi. She was wearing her swimsuit at the moment.

"Sorry about that." He told her, blushing, a little bit of blood coming out of his nose again.

He got his clothes on, and ran out, Mihoshi blushing a deep red as he did.

Joseph went back into his room, and tried to forget the incidents in the Onsen by organizing his new room. 
He had just finished putting the last book onto its' new shelf, when Sasami stopped by.

"Joseph, I have a question. I can't sleep. Do you have any storybooks?" She asked, seeing that he had a very 
large amount of books. Unlike Noboyuki's small library, there was little or no hentai in Joseph's.

"I have quite a few, but they're all in Orion. And of course you can't sleep; it's only 10:00." Joseph 
responded.

"Joseph, it is 1:43 AM." She told him, giggling slightly, and pointing at his clock.

He blushed.

"Could you read some to me?" Sasami asked.

"Sure." Joseph said, smiling, and taking a few books off the shelf, and following her into her room.

Ken-Ohki and Ryo-Ohki were on her bed, snuggling together.

"I see you have a little friend there." Joseph told Ken-Ohki, petting his head.

"Ci-ao ciaao!" Ken-Ohki responded, happily.

He petted both of them.

"Joseph's going to read us a bedtime story." Sasami told them.

The two cabbits quickly changed into their child forms, with cute little carrot pajamas.

Sasami got in her bed, and Joseph pulled up a chair, and began to read, easily translating from Orion. The 
story that he read her and the two cabbits was an interesting and very uplifting one. It was about a man and 
a woman who bickered between each other very much. The two had feelings for one another, but thought 
that the other hated them. One night, in their dreams, they saw an Angel that told them to admit to each 
other their true feelings. They did, and they quickly fell in love. The story itself sounded a lot like 
Shakespeare's comedy 'Much ado about nothing', even though the story was written thousands of years 
ago.

While Joseph read to her, outside the door, Tsunami appeared for a moment.

"Sasami is taking quite a liking to this man. He is very warm, and kind, and she can sense that he would 
help her at any time she needed it. I'm taking a liking to him as well..." Tsunami thought, smiling.

"...The End." Joseph said, closing the book. There were still thousands of stories left in the huge book that 
he read from to her.

"Wow! That was a wonderful story!" Sasami said, smiling. Ryo-Ohki and Ken-Ohki had changed back into 
their cabbit forms, and cuddled up together again, purring. "Who wrote that, though?"

"Loknar. He's a few million years old, so he's had a long time to develop his writing skills. He incorporated 
it into his comedy 'Much ado about Nothing' during the Renaissance, where he was known for awhile as 
William Shakespeare." Joseph responded.

"He _was_ Shakespeare?" Sasami asked, suprised.

"Yup. Many other people that influenced Earth's history in a good way as well." He said, smiling.

"Good night, Sasami."

He waved goodnight, and turned out the light.

He went downstairs, wondering if Washuu and Loknar had fought or not.

"One last cup'a sake." Loknar mumbled.

It seemed that Loknar and Washuu had a drinking contest instead.

"You're both at 75, keep going!" Noboyuki said, keeping count.

"I still bet fifty on Washuu." He told Mihoshi.

"I bet the same on Loknar, still." She replied.

"What if they both pass out at the same time?" Joseph asked them.

"I doubt it." Noboyuki responded.

Suddenly, the two geniuses both passed out on the table.

Joseph grinned.

"They'll wake up in an hour or two. Goodnight, guys." He said to them, and went back upstairs.

Sasami had fallen asleep by now, and the lights were out.

Ryoko's door was open slightly.

Joseph peeked inside. She was sleeping peacefully, as beautiful as ever. He smiled, but his expression 
changed, as he saw that she was in the exact same position as Miranda was, the last time he saw her, alive 
and happy. She was curled up under the covers, a smile on her face, as she held a pillow against her chest.

"Tenchi..." She whispered, and cuddled into it, in her sleep.

Memories flooded him, of the past that still haunted him. A blue tear silently went down his cheek, 
refracted into many colors by the small skylight above him. The starlight shined down on him, illuminating 
him, slightly. If anyone had saw him at the moment, they would see translucent, angel-like wings on his 
back, only visible in the starlight, and then disappearing after a few seconds.

Joseph went into his room, and shut the door. He sat on his bed, and the memory of the most horrible day 
of his life entered him once again, as it did sometimes, when loneliness overcame him. It seemed odd to 
him, that he was lonely when he was in a house filled with wonderful and diverse people. Near his bed was 
a small table, with some books stacked on it. He pulled out a scrapbook, filled with pictures and newspaper 
clippings. He flipped through it, until he got the headline for December 18, 2018. "The Coldest Day", the 
headline read, "The Darkest". There was a picture of former farmland, covered with corpses and blood.

Oh, how he remembered that day......He saw it happen.

He remembered waking up that day, alone. Miranda had gotten up early, to patrol the bunker in which they 
were stationed. As Galaxial Marines, it was their duty to keep watch, and Miranda followed that rule to the 
letter. He had gotten dressed in his uniform, and helped her keep watch. The rest of his squadron soon 
awoke, and they went over to them. It was a beautiful world on which they were; Beta Pictoris IV was a 
Terraformed paradise, with lush forests and rivers, beautiful cities, and fertile farmland. All that changed 
that day, at Noon. The Melkar Empire, a facist-monocratic cybernetic race and its' allies, made a suprise 
attack at the Alliance of Galactic Nations' colony in Beta Pictoris. That happened to be Beta Pictoris IV.

He saw the Melkar ships, streaking across the sky, like bullets breaking through a beautifully woven 
clothing, dropping paratroopers in the distance, who were automatically firing on civilians. The AGN's 
Galaxial Marines were caught unprepared for this attack. Joseph saw millions of men being slaughtered 
near the bunker, on the piece of farmland on which he was stationed.

As the AGN was composed of many species and races, he saw people of all kinds and creeds die for the 
banner of the Galaxians, the Melkars taking heavy losses as well. Rivers of blood and gore quickly filled 
the farmland, the sky itself turning a little reddish, absorbing some of the blood. Joseph, Miranda, and his 
squadron held the bunker very bravely, slaying many Melkars that attacked them. From watching from the 
bunker, Joseph saw so much horror of the battlefield, that violence could no longer make him flinch after 
that day. From the radio, Joseph could hear that the Melkars had ravaged most of the planet, slaughtering 
huge numbers of the populace. The fighting died down on the battlefield after awhile. Joseph and his allies 
breathed a sigh of relief - until the wall was knocked down.

An Antaran-Melkar Hybrid warlord named Koros, guarded by several Melkars, stepped into the bunker 
from the destroyed wall. The Antarans were an ancient enemy of the Orions, and they were all supposed to 
be long dead, as the Orions and Antarans supposedly existed in the distant past of Joseph's galaxy. Joseph's 
squadron shot at Koros, but he knocked all of them unconscious, except for Joseph and Miranda. 

Suddenly, the other Melkars bound Joseph to the wall. Koros then hurled Miranda against the wall, leaving 
her disabled because of the injury. Koros then raped, tortured, mutilated, and murdered her, right in front of 
Joseph, as well as doing many other atrocities to the near-dead woman. Koros soon left, but referred to 
something about his 'brother' enjoying this.

Joseph's allies woke up, and were disgusted by the sight. They unbound Joseph from the wall, and he was 
able to give Miranda one last kiss before she perished - That day would have been their wedding, had it not 
been for the tension before the war calling them to arms. Joseph cried that day, something that he rarely 
did.

Joseph, on his bed, looked at the picture of Koros from the newspaper clipping. He had long, gray-teal hair, 
and wore glasses.....Joseph did not know it, but Koros looked almost exactly like the infamous Kagato.

He closed the book, and tried to sleep. His mind wandered, and his thoughts flew everywhere. When he 
was about to fall asleep, he heard footsteps outside. He peered out the window to see a woman with blue 
hair, in Ryoko's hairstyle, and wearing an AGN uniform walking outside.

"Miranda!" He whispered. Suddenly, the woman disappeared into some kind of mist.

His heart sank again. He soon fell asleep.

The sun slowly rose over the summer sky, with birds awakening from their small slumber with chirps, the 
sunlight pouring through the window, and the awakening of the people living inside the Masaki residence.

Ryoko awoke from a good night's rest very early in the morning. She yawned, and was about to head 
downstairs for breakfast, when an idea struck her.

"I wonder if Tenchi would mind being woken this early today..." She thought, then grinning, "He 
wouldn't."

She tip-toed back up the stairs, and peeked into Tenchi's room.

He was sleeping quite peacefully as she crept in. Slowly, but surely, she crept up to his bed, and sat on the 
side of it. She was going to try to kiss him to wake him up, but something startled her, and she fell on the 
bed, waking him up with a start.

"Which one of us one the contest....." Washuu mumbled from downstairs, obviously having a hangover. 
That was what startled Ryoko.

"Gyah! Ryoko, what are you doing?" Tenchi asked, suddenly sitting up.

"Just.....umm....Trying to say good morning, Tenchi..." She said, putting her arms around him.

"Hey! Get off!" Tenchi said loudly.

Upon hearing these words, Ayeka suddenly awoke from her sleep, and stormed in.

"Ryoko! What are you doing to Lord Tenchi?" She said angrily.

"Just giving him a kiss good morning, princess." Ryoko said, teasingly smiling.

"Get off of him this instant!" Ayeka yelled, running over, and trying to pry Ryoko's hands from Tenchi.

"Can everyone get off of me???" Tenchi asked, caught in the middle, as always.

"Why should I get off of him, Ayeka? And even if I did, do you think that he would even think of thanking 
an old bag like you for stopping me?" Ryoko asked.

"Your childish remarks will get you nowhere!" Ayeka responded, trying to pry him off harder.

All the noise woke Sasami up.

"Can everyone keep it down?" She called from her room.

There was no response, only more shouting.

She got out of bed, and went to Tenchi's room, followed by Ryo-Okhi and Ken-Ohki. She rolled her eyes 
and sighed, as she saw what was happening. Joseph soon woke up from the noise of the fight as well, and 
walked in there. He saw the sight, but had no expression on his face.

"Is this their normal morning routine?" He asked Sasami.

"Something like this." She said, Ryo-Ohki giving a sighing meow to back that up.

While all this was going on, Mihoshi slept like a rock, not even wincing because of the noise as she slept.

Joseph saw that this would go on for a few more minutes. He went downstairs, to see if his father was still 
passed out after that drinking contest with Washuu the previous night. He definitely was, and snoring 
quietly, an impatient Washuu poking at him, trying to get his attention.

"Hello? Mr. Loknar? Have the brain cells of your cerebellum died? Have your nerve connections 
malfunctioned? Hello? Hello?" She asked him, directly in his ear.

"You can't wake him up that way, after he had a lot to drink last night, Ms. Washuu." Joseph told her, as he 
came down the stairs.

"How then, Joseph?" She asked, thinking there was no possible way.

"When breakfast is up, he will smell it, and be as energetic as a rabbit in a hailstorm." Joseph responded.

Tenchi ran downstairs, as the sounds of a small battle ricocheted throughout the house.

"I'll make breakfast ready." Spoke Sasami, following him.

"Another battle, I see. What was it for this time?" Joseph asked Tenchi.

"Ryoko tried to wake me up by kissing me, she slipped, woke me up, Ayeka rushed in, and all hell broke 
use, as usual." He replied, sitting down at the table.

"I was also wondering, Tenchi; would I be allowed to construct a Psionic Energy Generator nearby the 
house?"

"What the heck is that?"

"It generates energy, based on the emotions that have at one time surrounded it. If I found a place where a 
lot of emotional energy had been released, and built one there, it could probably generate enough energy 
that you could stop paying the power bill."

"How would you build it, and what would you need to do that?" Washuu asked, having listened in on the 
conversation.

"I would just need to borrow some materials from my father. The actual Psionic coding to initiate it is 
something I can do myself, as I am a Psionic Mage - An acolyte of the telekinetic, spiritual, and mental 
arts. For example, watch my hand for a moment." Joseph said, a small orb of light appearing in his hands.

"Ryoko can do that easily, though, and I know she's not one of those people." Sasami said, beginning to 
cook breakfast.

"This is generated by pure Psionic, or mind energy. I can move it or mold it in any way I choose, without 
touching it." Joseph said, staring at the orb, and it quietly moved through the air, then split into two, then 
back to one again.

"They're also great weapons as well." The kitchen window suddenly opened, and the orb flew out the 
window, directed by Joseph to hit a patch of weeds on the ground. As it hit, the weeds literally exploded, 
and set on fire. However, rainwater collected on an abandoned bird's nest suddenly fell on the fire, putting 
it out.

Tenchi and Sasami stared at the dead, burnt weeds in awe. Washuu was a little suprised, but not that 
suprised, as it looked as if she had seen such things before.

"Wow." Was all Tenchi could say.

"Well, if it can generate power for us, can he set it up, Tenchi?" Sasami asked.

"I guess it is allright."

"Thank you, Tenchi." Joseph answered, bowing.

Ryoko and Ayeka came downstairs, still arguing.

"Quiet, you prissy little fool." Ryoko said to Ayeka.

"Why should I? I am the crown Princess of Jurai, and you have no right to speak to me like that!" She 
responded, curtly.

While this was going on, Mihoshi was coming down the stairs, not watching where she was going, as usual. 
She suddenly tripped.

"Aah!" She said, as she fell onto Ryoko and Ayeka, sending the three of them down to the floor.

"Ow. Get off me, Mihoshi!" Ryoko mumbled.

"You should be more careful next time, Mihoshi! I don't like being slammed into the floor, especially next 
to a monster." Ayeka said as well.

"Look who's talking, Ms. Frankenstien!" Ryoko retorted.

Ryoko and Ayeka got up, growling at each other. Mihoshi still lay on the floor, blushing, and embarrassed.

"Here you go." Joseph said, helping her up. This only made Mihoshi blush even more.

"Thank you..." She said, blushing.

"No problem, Mihoshi." Joseph said, sitting down.

She looked at him for awhile.

"He is quite cute..." She thought to herself, smiling, "...I wonder if....we're having peppers with breakfast." 
As usual, her attention span was quite short. Many thoughts flew through the young detective's mind, each 
being displayed to her in her counciousness for a brief moment, then pushed away by the next, who in turn 
knocked it aside. But the thought of Joseph kept reoccurring. She couldn't tell if she just had a crush on 
him, or if he just liked him. Mihoshi wondered what Kiyone would think of all of this....

Kasuhito and Noboyuki soon came in as well, followed by the two Ohki's. The two cabbits sat together by 
the table, nuzzling each other. It had been a very long time since either cabbit had seen another of its' 
species, and the two seemed to be a perfect match. Ken-Ohki now had a cabbit-friend, and so did Ryo-
Ohki. Finally someone that each could be with, to share carrots, to cuddle with, and someone to help plan 
raids on the cupboard with. Ken-Ohki gently licked Ryo-Ohki's ears, while the female cabbit purred 
happily. They had met only the day before, yet it seemed that the two had known each other for years.

"Breakfast is almost rea-" Sasami said, interrupted by a suddenly awakened Loknar. The scent of the 
delicious meal had reached his nose, and his mind informed him to wake up, and he promptly did so. He 
had a slight headache from the night before, but he didn't seem to mind that much.

"Oh? How soon, Miss Sasami?" Loknar asked.

"About a few minutes, Tassi." Sasami responded. Loknar was slightly startled by the shortening of his first 
name, which he rarely used, usually being preferred to be called by his last name.

"Sasami, could you please call me..." Loknar said, suddenly cut off by Washuu.

"Tassi! Please continue calling him Tassi!" Washuu said, grinning.

"Miss Washuu, I preferred to be called Loknar. If you would be so kind as to call me -"

"Hehe. Tassi." Washuu laughed.

"Miss Washuu....Please don't." Loknar whispered, a little loudly.

"But father, it doesn't really matter what they call you." Joseph said, grinning.

"Your son has the idea! I will call you either name." Washuu said, with a mischievous smile on her face.

Loknar muttered something to himself, and waited for the food to be served. Very soon, it was.

Mihoshi shoveled her food down very quickly, as was the norm for her.

"Could I have seconds, please?" She asked everyone, who besides Ryoko, had barely touched their food.

"Sure!" Sasami said, smiling, and handing her another plate, promptly gulping it in a few bites.

"Mihoshi, you are eating awfully fast today..." Tenchi commented.

"Yeah, I know. I gotta get to the Galaxy Police Outpost real soon, 'cause there's a meeting or something 
that I have to attend...Oh, you said you wanted to come, Joseph?" She said, finishing off her food.

"I guess so. If they are interesting in recruiting, I will join up as soon as I can." Joseph responded.

There is soon some odd beeping coming from outside.

"Mihoshi. Mihoshi, are you ready to go?" Some robotic being, attached to a small ship, said.

"Coming, Yukonojo!" She replied, leaving the table.

"I was able to get her ship out of the lake again, and repair most of the damage done by her bad navigating 
skills." Washuu told Joseph. He nodded, and followed Mihoshi outside.

"Goodbye Joseph! Goodbye Mihoshi! When will you be back?" Sasami asked, calling out the door.

"Probably by dinnertime." Mihoshi said, not watching where she was going. She tripped on the small ship's 
ramp, and accidentally pushed some button, hurling both herself and Joseph into the ship as the ramp 
suddenly closed.

"Is she usually like this?" Joseph asked Yukonojo, quietly.

"Very much. Who are you, sir?"

"Joseph Anonymous. I'm hoping to be recruited into the Galaxy Police, and serve in this area."

"Whatever you do, do not become Mihoshi's partner! If you do, it will haunt for the rest of your life that 
you did.....You don't want to know what happened to her former partner, Kiyone."

"What happened to her?"

"You don't want to know. I've known Mihoshi for years...She is a walking bomb. Because of her, I spend 
most of my days in the lake by this house."

"Let's go!" Mihoshi said, about to take the controls, sitting down at the console, Joseph sitting in a chair 
nearby.

"Mihoshi, please be careful." Yukonojo said.

"I will, you silly robot." She replied, and the ship suddenly flew up into the sky at a tremendous speed. 
Joseph was at the window while this happened, and he saw the house suddenly shrink, and the nearby 
mountains become small sandhills, and soon the clouds as little strips of whiteness. The ride was shaky, 
however, as Mihoshi was controlling it. It jostled Joseph enough to knock him out of the seat.

"Mihoshi, can I navigate and control the ship, please? That way we won't crash." Yukonojo asked.

"Don't worry, I can handle it!"

"You always do...That's why I would like to control it, so you don't handle it."

"I'll be fine, Yukonojo."

They sped off towards the nearby Proclyon system. Joseph rapidly saw the Earth disappear into a greenish 
speck, and the infinite blackness of space surrounded them, filled with stars. Joseph had seen this kind of 
thing many times before, so he was a little bored with it. He took out a book, and quietly read, the time 
passing quickly, and trying to ignore the frequent turbulence. They soon reached the Proclyon system, a 
medium-sized starbase in view. It orbited an earthlike planet, with a few moons, the small gleaming silver 
light of cities on both the planet and the moons. The starbase was rod-shaped, with several metallic rings 
surrounding it, serving as repair and landing bays.

They soon began to land, a beacon and the clearance from the control tower nearby allowing them to. The 
airlock dome over their landing spot closed, allowing them to get out of the ship, and breathe freely.

"Yay! We're here!" Mihoshi said, smiling. Yukonojo didn't seem to be so happy, though, as he had a frown 
on his robotic face, probably from all the problems Mihoshi caused with the controls on the way.

Joseph and Mihoshi exited the ship, the ramp not throwing them this time. Nearby them stood a senior 
officer, with short greenish hair, and green eyes. He smiled at the people exiting the ship, and greeted them.

"Greetings, Detective Mihoshi. I see you got our message." He told her.

"Yup, we did, sir! I also have a friend that wants to recruit, named Joseph. He's definitely not from around 
here, but he's had a lot of military and police experience, and wants to sign up." She replied.

Joseph shook the man's hand.

"Come with me, and I'll take you to the recruitment office for examination. Detective Mihoshi, please go to 
office #5382, on the fifth floor. I'll be with you later." The officer said.

"Umm....Okay!" Mihoshi said, leisurely walking into an elevator.

The officer led Joseph to some kind of training room.

"Let's see what experience you have, greenhorn. Climb that obstacle course." The officer told him, after 
handing him a Cadet-In-Training uniform, which he quickly put on. Nearby where they were standing was 
a huge obstacle course, with ropes, climbing, fire hazards, water hazards, swinging chains, dodging, and a 
huge track.

Joseph nodded, and immediately began to go through it. He easily swung on the ropes, dodged or jumped 
over the hazards, ran the track filled with traps, and slipped by some of the robotic mechanisms designed to 
make the trap longer. This was incredibly easy for Joseph. He had been in real combat many times, so 
things like these seemed old hat to him, not even providing a measly challenge.

The officer was stunned. Joseph had finished the course substantially quicker than the best athletes in the 
force, with barely a scrape on him. He had thought that Joseph would take very long to finish the course, 
and that he had served as a mechanic of some kind in the military. He didn't know who Joseph really was.

"....The next test is the target range." The officer said, inputting some commands on a computer to make the 
target difficulty much harder than usual. Joseph may be good with running and dodging, but he doubted 
that Joseph was a good marksman.

Joseph nodded, and went up to the range, picking up a small pistol and ammunition from a table nearby. 
The robotic opponents immediately began to fire at him. Joseph jumped, and rolled to the ground, firing at 
them, his shots getting the robots in the head or stomach, and knocking them out. Other robots popped out 
of nowhere and fired with heavier weaponry. Joseph still prevailed, his shots usually hitting them. He was 
very good at this.

The officer was stunned again.

"What position did you have in that army, son?" He asked Joseph.

"Captain, sir. I wasn't just a marine in that army - My squadron and I were frequently assigned to 
policework, so I have a real lot of experience. " He responded.

"Could I see your ID for that?"

Joseph nodded, and pulled out a small black card, where there was a small red button. A small hologram of 
a badge appeared, the emblem of the Alliance of Galactic Nations's Galaxian Marines on the golden object, 
with the ID of Captain Joseph X. Anonymous, of the Psi Zeta squadron appeared. Below were several 
badges of honor, including some purple hearts, medals of valor, policework, medals of bravery, and one 
displaying that he was a veteran of the Battle of the River of Blood.

"Golly.......You're from that other universe that Jurai is planning to contact soon?"

"What?"

"Juraian scientists recently detected multiversal radio signals from a universe in which an Alliance of 
Galactic Nations existed. They plan to contact that universe soon. By the way, how'd you get here then? 
Multiversal Transport isn't for commercial use right now, and the prototypes barely work."

"My ship fell into a random portal."

The officer nodded.

"Anyway, there are a few more tests..."

For the next few hours, Joseph completed many tests, usually passing them. A few were hard for him, and 
they took much longer than the others to do.

By 1:00, he had finished the second-to-last test.

"Do you have any experience with Psionics, Joseph?" The officer asked.

"I'm a Psionic Mage, sir."

The officer pointed to a seemingly empty room.

"Then your last test is in there."

Joseph walked inside. He was exhausted, and had spent most of his energy on the other tests, and that left 
little for his Psionic powers. This test would be very difficult, he thought.

Out of nowhere, a group of robotic warriors appeared, and began to attack him. Joseph had no weapons, 
and he was only supposed to use Psionics. In Joseph's hands, an orb of Psionic energy appeared, the small 
white globe looking like a small star. He hurled it at one of the robots, which caused severe damage to it, 
taking off one of its' legs, and breaking its' stomach open - These robots were very tough to harm. He 
persisted, throwing another orb at it, this time killing that robot. Another ran towards him. Around Joseph, 
a cloud of energy began to generate, and surrounded him, quickly. Inside, small sparks could be seen, as 
huge amounts of his energy were being concentrated. The cloud suddenly broke apart, huge streaks of 
lightning-like energy flying out of Joseph, hitting the robots, destroying a portion of them. Joseph began to 
get real tired by now, but he knew the test was almost over. One of the robots had been holding a knife, but 
Joseph knew that he couldn't harm the robots with it. He got an idea, however. He picked it up, and 
squeezed it, transferring part of his energy into it. The knife began to glow, and he hurled it at one of the 
robots, who was hit in the stomach with the knife. The robot fell, the energy breaking up its' circuits. Joseph 
picked up the knife, and finished the last ones. Exhausted, he staggered out of the room.

The officer had watched the whole thing.

"You don't even need to enroll in the academy to join - You have all the credentials already, kid. Take this 
with you, and go to the main office." He said, handing Joseph an official recommendation. Joseph nodded, 
and went into the elevator, which took him to the central area of the starbase. It was a huge, open area, with 
shops and restaurants on the ground floor rotunda, and offices above them. It was filled with people of all 
species, officers and non-officers alike. One of the offices on the second floor had the words 'Main Office 
for Personnel Affairs'. He went into the office. It looked pretty normal, but was very large, with couches 
and plants in the waiting room, filled with young recruits, and a lot of secretaries and specialists. Toward 
the end of the office was the woman who looked to be in charge. Joseph sat down for awhile, and she soon 
called his name.

"Ma'am?" Joseph asked, going up to her.

"You just joined up? Let me see your recommendation, sir."

He handed it to her.

She placed it in a scanner-like machine, which examined it. Suddenly, a Galaxy Police ID Card flew into 
his hands, with his data on it, his specialization being 'Psionics and hand-to-hand Combat'.

"Welcome aboard, Special Agent Joseph." She said, shaking his hand. He smiled, and she handed him his 
official uniform.

"In the room next door is where you shall receive all of your equipment. Ask the clerk there to get you 
package 523453A-9B." She told him.

He went into that room, which was filled to the brim with both people and weaponry. Pistols, armor, 
weapons, spy equipment, and even daggers lined the walls. Joseph had to wait in a huge line to even get to 
the clerk.

"Sir, may I please have package 523453A-9B?" Joseph asked, when finally getting up to the clerk. He 
showed him his ID.

The clerk nodded, and brought a large box from under the table to him.

"Your first assignment is in the box as well, kid." The clerk told him.

Joseph then took the box, and went into the first floor rotunda, and sat down at a empty table. He placed the 
box on the table, and opened it. It was filled with pistols, supplies, devices, and small computers.

One of the devices lit up as he opened the box. He picked it up, and a message came on the screen - his first 
assignment: Watch for criminals in the general area of the Sol system.

"So much for a real first mission." Joseph thought, frowning.

Suddenly, there was a commotion nearby. He turned around, to see a certain blonde-haired officer being 
chased by a matience robot.

"Wahh! It's trying to kill me!" Mihoshi yelled, then tripped on a conveniently placed soda can. The robot 
still sped toward her. She then hurled the soda can at it, and it instantly deactivated. She sighed a relief, 
then saw Joseph.

"Hi! So you're a Galaxy Police Officer now?" She asked him.

Joseph simply showed her his ID. She smiled.

"You know, we probably should get back to the house. It's almost five o'clock, and will take us about an 
hour or so to get home on my ship, and that is only because Washuu did something to it to make it faster." 
She told him.

"We probably should." Joseph said.

They walked back to the landing bays. Yukonojo politely opened the door for them. As they got on, 
Yukonojo moved his long, robotic head over to Joseph.

"I can see from your uniform that you now part of the Galaxy Police. I have only one piece of advice for 
you, and you've already heard it before - Whatever you do, do not be Mihoshi's partner - She will drive you 
mad. She has almost done that to me, and I'm a robot!" He told him, quietly.

Joseph sighed.

"She can't be that bad. She's a bit clumsy, but she's a very nice girl, and I bet a spectacular officer, and I 
don't think she could cause any major problems." Joseph responded.

Yukonojo rolled his artificial, metallic eyes.

"When you ask me why I didn't tell you about what she can do earlier, know that I told you today." He 
replied.

"Mihoshi, could I take the controls?" Joseph asked, as he sat down by her.

"Sure!" She said.

The airlock dome opened, and they took off. This return trip was much more peaceful than the previous 
one, with almost no turbulence, and still going quite fast.

Very soon, they reached a glowing blue-green orb, with clouds, the shining silver of cities, continents, and 
forests. It was a very beautiful sight. Joseph gently pulled the ship in for re-entry. Very soon, small 
sandhills became mountains, and a tiny brown and blue speck became a house and a small lake.

Next to the lake, Joseph landed, the ship not damaged at all.

Tenchi looked outside, the others doing the same.

"Either someone else is flying that ship, or Mihoshi learned how to fly." Washuu said.

The ship's ramp opened, and Mihoshi came out first, Joseph following, with his package of nessicary 
supplies.

The others came outside to greet them. They all applauded Joseph when he came out, wearing his new 
uniform, for his new job.

"You were able to join that quickly?" Ayeka asked him.

"I had most of the required credentials already, as I essentially was the equivalent of a Galaxy Police 
Officer in my universe. I also did quite well on most of the physical tests as well." Joseph explained.

"What happened while we were gone?" Mihoshi asked.

"The usual. Ryoko and Ayeka fought, I cooked lunch. Tassi and Washuu are still fighting about who the 
greatest genius." Sasami answered.

"Please, Sasami, avoid calling me Tassi." Loknar her.

"There's nothing wrong with it, and it is a cute name!" Sasami told him.

"Well...If you want to." He replied, then suddenly grinned. "I would also like to be called The Greatest 
Genius of All Time!"

"Knock it off. I'm the greatest genius, and the cutest!" Washuu said to him.

"You have no proof, Ms. Washuu."

"Neither do you, Mr. Loknar."

Sasami sighed.

"Dinner's ready, by the way." Sasami told everyone. Everyone must have been quite hungry, as they ran 
into the kitchen, nearly tripping Sasami as they did. Joseph helped her up, as he hadn't ran in with everyone 
else.

"Thank you, Joseph." She said, smiling at him. He did the same.

"You're welcome."

They then went inside, to dinner, which had already started by the time they got there. Dinner was 
uneventful, with Ryoko and Ayeka in a minor fight over Tenchi, Washuu and Loknar bickering a little, and 
Mihoshi, Ryoko, and Noboyuki stuffing food down their throats like mad. After dinner, Ryoko and Ayeka 
went straight to the TV. A new soap opera was on, one rumored to be quite juicy. Their eyes were glued to 
the set, and there was no fighting between them.

Joseph sat on the stairs, a pencil and notebook in hand. He looked at Ryoko, admiring her. She was 
stretched out on the couch, quite happy, and still ravishingly beautiful. Joseph began to write....

I sit from this high stoop, watching a beautiful maiden rest

Her beautiful hair is cyan, of the summer sky

Her eyes shine as golden as the sunset, filled with love and hope

Her expression is one of contentment, a happy smile on her face

Her voice to me is like the sweetest music, embedding itself into me

Her wonderful soul I can see just by being near her, one of warmth and kindness

Her voluptuous body could drive a man mad, putting poor Helen to shame

The name of this goddess is Ryoko, a name which I shall not forget

He then closed the notebook, and went upstairs, as it was getting dark. He went into his room. Ken-Ohki sat 
on his bed. He pet the cabbit for awhile, who happily purred while he did, and then read for awhile, 
entranced by the novel that he was reading, and lost track of time. Soon, it was the middle of the night. 
There was a knock at the door.

"Joseph, could you read me another story tonight?" Sasami asked. Joseph peered up from his book.

"Sure. Let me get the book from before." He said, getting off the bed, and pulling the storybook off the 
shelf. He followed Sasami into her room, Ken-Ohki behind them.

Ryo-Ohki sat on the bed, in her child form, smiling as Ken-Ohki came in. She meowed a greeting at him.

"Ciao!" He answered, changing into his child form as well. He climbed up the bed, and went over to her, 
snuggling into her, and purring. She purred as well.

"They're so cute..." Sasami whispering, going up and hugging them.

Joseph scritched their ears a little, and sat down on a chair near the bed.

Sasami and the Ohkis waited for Joseph to begin to read. The story that Joseph read that night was a fairy-
tale-like romance, which was appropriate for Sasami and the cabbits to hear.

"When I grow up, will I find a man like the brave night in the story? One that will fall in love with me?" 
Sasami asked Joseph, as he finished.

"I am sure that you will find many men like that, Sasami. You are a wonderful, pretty girl, and it doesn't 
take that much to realize that. Heck, you might even meet him in the next few years." Joseph told her.

"Thank you, Joseph." She said, hugging him gently. He then got up, and turned off the lights.

"Good night, Sasami."

"Goodnight, Joseph."

He went back into his room, and soon fell asleep.

Sasami soon fell asleep as well, both of the cabbits cuddled up next to her.

After she fell asleep, Tsunami appeared next to her.

"Sweet Sasami....One of those noble knights is closer than you think." She whispered happily.

----

Somewhere, outside of normal space and time....

"He reports that he shall enter their dimension very soon, my queen." D3 said to the Goddess Tokimi.

"What does he plan to do?" She asked him, an expressionless look on her face.

"He shall attack that Juraian heir and his friends - Including the ones that recently arrived."

"Good. We must make sure that he does not kill all of them - He is just the prelude of things to come. Both 
the Juraian and the young visitor know him, and hate him, and shall now fear him."

In the sky, a blood red star glowed for a second, then returned to normal.

He was coming.