----

Copyrights, etc: Tenchi Muyo! and all corresponding characters are the properties of AIC and Pioneer. 
Joseph, Loknar, and Koros are mine. No one can steal them. If they do, they will face the wrath 
of.......something.

Notes, etc: This fanfic might have a bit of violence, as most of this chapter will be the attack on Koros. This 
fanfic also takes place directly after Snowflakes, (OAV 18, OC Chapter 5). I was able to borrow a Tenchi 
Muyo! RPG and resource book from a friend of mine, so I can accurately describe the attacks. The book 
has a lot of info, too.....Such as the existence of the Galactic Union, over which Jurai rules. Strange that 
they never mentioned that in the series.... BTW, there are still more chapters coming.....

Here goes an enormous amount of caffeine, sugar, energy, and mints.....

Loknar of Orion, 7/7/01

Fanfic Began: 7/7/01. Fanfic Finished: 7/17/01

----

Tenchi Muyo! Episode 19: The Blizzard of Ghosts

(Orion Chronicles, Chapter 6)

"This is for you, Miranda....." Joseph had whispered. In his mind, he thought that all that was heard was the 
rustling of the wind as the snow fell, and the transformation of Ryo-Ohki and Ken-Ohki into their 
shipforms. He thought that the only people that could hear those five words were himself, and the soul of 
Miranda.

"Joseph?" Ryoko asked, walking up to him, her voice quiet. "Who is Miranda?"

A chill came up Joseph's spine as a large amount of snow seemingly hit his back, yet when he turned, there 
was none. The cold came when Ryoko asked that simple question, one that he had not anticipated. He did 
not want Ryoko to know that he loved a woman that was exactly like her in many ways, both physically 
and mentally. He did not want her to know that Miranda had been killed by the brother of Kagato, the man 
who had enslaved Ryoko for centuries. He did not want her to know anything about her. All that Ryoko 
knew was that Joseph hated Koros for one reason, yet never disclosed it.

"I can't really explain at the moment, Ryoko." He replied, his lips barely moving. It was evident that he was 
hiding the truth from her.

"Tell me, please."

Joseph decided to give her a simple answer, one that would satisfy her curiosity, yet leave many details 
unknown. One day, he would explain to everyone what had happened to Miranda, but he could not on this 
day.

The snow seemed to drop from the sky like a barrage of blades, each individual snowflake like a small 
knife being jabbed into Joseph's soul. It had snowed like this the day Miranda was killed, but not the 
normal precipitation. Snow of the Crimson kind fell from the sky, harming troops as the highly 
concentrated, crystallized acid came in contact with their skin.

"She was someone that was very important to me, killed by the man that we will fight today." He told 
Ryoko, the color leaving his face.

Tenchi watched this from nearby. He knew that Joseph was in emotional pain, but he did not know how to 
help him, his brother. What Joseph suffered was something that Tenchi had not; the loss of a woman that he 
loved more dearly than the stars in the sky, or the fish in the sea.

Nearby, Washuu, Ayeka, and Loknar watched the newscast as it continued.

"Welcome back to GHK news. To update you on the present situation, the Juraian colony of Tsaniko has 
been successfully attacked and invaded by an unknown force. All attempts at communication and 
negotiation have failed, resulting in the deaths of several Galaxy Police officers. At this moment, two 
Galactic Union Cruisers are about to attack, hopefully liberating Tsaniko from the unknown force. GHK 
will provide you with live coverage of this." The newscaster spoke, the camera suddenly shifting to the 
floating dome colony. Two silvery ships flew towards the rapidly darkening dome, the faces of the men and 
women inside the ships very visible in the portal windows. As one ship began to prepare a plasma cannon, 
several fighters flew out of Tsaniko at an insane speed, hurling themselves at the ship, their small weapons 
firing like mad, looking like fireflies from far away.

"May day! May day!" The ship cried over the radio, right before the core exploded, sending shards of the 
ship everywhere, huge chunks and splash damage hitting the other ship, severely damaging it.

The Newscaster was incredibly suprised by this, expecting the enemy forces to be decimated by the ships.

"What in Tsunami? The GU cruisers have been either destroyed or disabled, and the enemy force seems to 
be intact! Something has gone awfully wrong!" She cried.

A large metal cylinder suddenly appeared within the domed colony. It was of a shiny black metal, yet 
reflecting only a small amount of light. It seemed to have a turnable base, as it began to slant, pointing 
towards the GHK News cameraship.

A beam of darkness emanated from the cylinder, the sides of the tube melting under the immense heat.

"Something is happen---------............." Spoke the terrified newscaster, right before the beam cut right 
through her ship, literally cooking it. The ship rocked in a huge explosion, dark plasma spewing from all 
corners of it, evaporating any living thing that remained inside.

Loknar gulped as he saw this.

"A Meddigo Demon........How did they get that? It's Antaran technology! All remaining caches of Antaran 
weapons were destroyed after the Galaxian Civil war!" He whispered.

Washuu sighed, putting her hand on her boyfriend's shoulder.

"Koros is the brother of Kagato. Anyone in his family is diabolical enough to resurrect damned weapons." 
She replied.

Tenchi listened to this as well, putting his hands over his eyes. He prayed that none of his friends, his 
family, would die in this. If even one of them died, his soul would be scarred, just like Joseph, leaving him 
a broken man, full of urges for revenge, withdrawness, and his own personal demons.

"Sasami, Dad, Grandpa.....Please stay here." He told them. Both Sasami and his father had no natural attack 
or much skill in weaponry. They would be defenseless if Koros caught them. Kasuhito, on the other hand, 
had decided to stay home the time Kagato attacked, so it would be likely that he would this time, as well.

The three nodded, Sasami hugging Tenchi tightly. She cried a little, her tears wetting his shirt a little.

"We'll be back, Sasami. Please don't worry." He said to her, whispering.

The stars of the young night shined directly behind Ryo-Ohki and Ken-Ohki, each of their spiky surfaces 
ending where a star was, creating an effect like a burst of starlight at each point. The ships themselves 
seemed to have an aura all their own, as they seemed to give off light themselves.

Mihoshi and Kiyone teleported into each ship, Mihoshi in Ryo-Ohki, Kiyone in Ken-Ohki.

"Cao." Ken-Ohki said solemnly, greeting Kiyone as she teleported into him.

"Hello, Ken-Ohki." She replied, her official first greeting to the ship.

Kiyone had known that some cabbits had interesting abilities, but changing into a spaceship? That was 
certainly unexpected. She had nearly fainted as she had saw them transform, going from cute little cabbits 
to huge, spiky metallic ships that seemed to pierce the sky.

"Ready, Mihoshi?" Kiyone asked over the radio.

"Yes." She responded. Mihoshi was completely serious now. As soon as she had seen that newscast, any 
sense of happiness left her, at least for a day or so. Many GP officers had been killed, probably people she 
had known. She could have been assigned to liberate Tsaniko with the others ships, and would have been 
dead by now. Thankfully, the GP knew that she was a high-profile officer, and spared her from the apparent 
suicide mission. However, she was now about to attack Tsaniko with Tenchi, Joseph, and the others, not 
knowing what would happen once they arrived.

"We should go now." Joseph told everyone on the ground. His face was expressionless, a look of neutrality 
the only sign of emotion. Joseph placed his old cap on his head, the standard Galaxian Marine issue, that he 
had worn during the Battle of the River of Blood.

"Are you sure about this, Lord Joseph?" Ayeka asked, quietly.

"I have no idea, Lady Ayeka. Whatever Koros has in store for us is unknown to me. Whatever happens will 
depend on us. An entire colony is at stake, and the GU and GP aren't up to it. It may just be us and him." 
Joseph responded, looking up at the two ships. He then turned his attention to Miri-Oh. The young tree 
seemed to continue to thrive during this storm, the leaves still as green as limes, and the bark as strong as 
steel. The tree itself seemed to convert the early soil surrounding it into Juraian soil, something very 
uncommon in Juraian trees. The Juraian soil allowed it to generate its' own power, also enhanced by the 
nearby Pylon that Joseph had built. For a moment, he thought he saw someone sitting by the tree. She 
looked very similar to Ryoko, except that her hair was a dark blue. Joseph blinked, and she was gone.

"Why am I haunted by visions of my lost Miranda....." He thought, cringing, another seemingly invisible 
drift of snow flying onto his back, and freezing his spine.

Everyone teleported up, half in each ship. Ryoko, Joseph, Tenchi, and Mihoshi were in Ryo-Ohki, while 
Kiyone, Loknar, Washuu, and Ayeka were in Ken-Ohki. As Joseph appeared on the bridge of Ryo-Ohki, he 
looked at the sky of the young night, the stars appearing one by one. He quietly said a prayer, asking that 
none of his friends be killed. He pointed out in his prayer that he would sacrifice his life for any one of 
them, or undergo the most excruciating torture. He just hoped that none of them would die.

Tsunami appeared for a moment, visible only to Ryo-Ohki, who knew not to make any sign of the 
Goddess's presence known. She placed her hand on Joseph's shoulder, a feeling of warmth suddenly 
entering him. As this happened, Joseph turned around suddenly. No one was there.

"What just happened?" Mihoshi asked Joseph, as she had seen him turn.

"I don't know. I'm probably imagining things." Joseph whispered, the warmness still in him.

"You will understand soon enough, brave Joseph....." Tsunami whispered, her words audible only to him.

"What? Who said that?" Joseph asked, looking around the room. No one answered.

"Now I'm hearing things....." He whispered.

"Allright. Preparing to go." Kiyone spoke, over the radio.

"Rogerrrrrrrrrrrrrr..........." Mihoshi replied, accidentally tripping on something, and pushing a control that 
turned on Ryo-Ohki's engines.

"Geez! Mihoshi!" Kiyone barked, following her.

Tenchi looked around the ship, and the viewscreen of Ken-Ohki. Both himself, Ryoko, and Ayeka had 
changed into their battlesuits. Joseph, however, had not changed into his, if he had one. He just sat on a 
chair, thinking, and staring at the stars, unmoving, expressionless, and depressed. Tenchi was about to go 
and talk to him, when Ryoko suddenly stopped him.

"Tenchi...We should leave Joseph around for now. He needs time to think." Ryoko whispered.

"But...."

She replied by putting a finger to his lips.

Meanwhile, in Ken-Ohki, Washuu walked out of a small room, back onto the bridge, and walking towards 
Loknar.

He sat in a corner with his face in his hands.

Washuu frowned, and sat down by him.

"You're worried, aren't you?" She asked.

"Very." Loknar spoke, his voice a little shaky. "If one of us, you or I, Tenchi, Ayeka, or anyone else 
died.....I...I...I would....."

She hugged him tightly.

"We will be fine, Tassi. You are an Oanai; an Archangel, and I am a Goddess. We can't die."

"They aren't. And we can still 'die' in a sense, just not permanently." He pointed to the others.

"We will do find, Tassi. I am sure they will be fine as well. We're in a tough group; they won't go down 
easy."

"I hope you are right, my love."

"I am."

There was silence for a moment, the geniuses looking into each other's eyes.

"I love you, Washuu."

"I love you too, Tassi."

They hugged for five minutes, just holding each other. Neither made a sound, the only feeling being the 
warmth of each other against their skin, and their love.

----

The Master of Death, Koros of Antares, watched the two ships as they flew through the empty void of 
space, seeking an enemy of undeniable evil. He grinned, sensing the pain in Joseph's heart, the poor man 
not knowing what he should do.

Koros laughed, quietly.

"I'll kill him first, then his brother." He thought, looking at both Joseph and Tenchi through a small 
viewscreen. "I shall make their deaths long and painful - They deserve it."

"You shall not harm Mr. Masaki." Tokimi said sternly, intercepting his thoughts.

He turned around, annoyed.

"Why in Antares's name can I not?"

"Do as I say, SERVANT." She rasped, incredibly angry about this.

This startled Koros. She hadn't said this to him before.

"I have not told you because you were specifically ordered by D3 to only to harm the others." She 
continued, sensing his thoughts.

"D3 never told me any orders of restriction."

"D3 shall be dealt with later. You shall follow my command."

"Yes, Madam Tokimi. I apologize for my incessant querying" He whispered, bowing to her.

She looked at the two Princes on the screen, Joseph and Tenchi.

"Soon....." She thought.

Koros got up from his position of bowing. He looked around the room, at all the bodies of the brave Juraian 
guards that lay strewn on the floor like giant macabre dolls. They didn't matter to him. The governor, his 
bodyguards, and anyone else of Juraian nobility in this colony was dead, or at least he hoped. They were all 
in the way of his plans. He wanted revenge on Tenchi and the others for killing his brother. He wanted to 
taunt Joseph about Miranda. He wanted his wishes fulfilled, no matter the cost to him or any one else.

He walked down the darken hallway, smoke still wafting from the extinguished lamps. Blood splattered the 
wall, some on the paintings of the past rulers of the colony.

He simply smiled at it all. Was he evil? By his definition, there was no such thing, only light and dark. He 
was of the dark, but was that not just the opposite of the light?

----

Ayeka sat on a chair in Ken-Ohki, preying quietly.

"None of this can be real." She thought. "I was at Tsaniko just a few years ago. The colony was thriving, 
the governor very kind and proper, and the people friendly. The Juraian military presence was strong there, 
even though it was an outskirt colony. How could they have been defeated so suddenly?"

Out of the corner of her eye, Ayeka saw a book on the floor. Joseph must have left it there...

She picked it up. It was a very old book, probably tens of millennia old. The cover was made of a brown, 
leathery material, with an Orion inscription in the middle. She opened it, revealing text in a Zeraian dialect. 
As Zeraian was an ancient language that was now presently dead on Jurai, she had learned of it in her 
schooling. She looked at a few passages of it, but one caught her eye:

"'Tis not unfathomable that the darkness would chase you. You are of the light, of the just and the strong-
minded. They are the kin of the underworld, those that strive to destroy it. You are the effigy of that light, 
brave one. Though the darkness shall haunt you 'til the end of time, be wary that any foe can be defeated, 
and you can thus continue your existence."

The book seemed to be an old Orion philosophy book. This was evident proof of Loknar's statement that 
Jurai was the sister planet of Orion, their histories changed by a single event that led to entirely different 
futures...

Ayeka walked over to Loknar and Washuu.

"Mister Loknar, what is the name of this book?" She asked him.

He turned to her, and looked at the cover.

"I've never seen this book before, Princess Ayeka." He responded, his voice weary.

"Would it be Joseph's then?"

"I do not know. As far as I know, he only has ancient texts that I once used......Unless, of course..."

"Unless what?"

Loknar shook his head, as if trying to get something out of his mind.

"Nothing, Lady Ayeka." He said abruptly.

The newscast, picked up by a new reporter, continued unabated. The battle still raged, the Galactic Union 
forces being annihilated by the invaders. Over the radio signals being broadcasted, the haunting last words 
of the GU forces echoed, sending chills down the spines of countless millions in the galaxy.

----

Koros approached Lady Tokimi once more.

"I know how to ensure that that boy, the Prince of Jurai, is not harmed, my Lady." Koros told her, quietly.

"Tell me, Koros." She replied, her lips barely moving, and her voice sounding like dead, dried bones 
creaking.

"My brother perfected a method which allows the transportation of individuals using dark matter. Using a 
high stream of anti-protons, a beam of dark light is formed. When specific coordinates are entered into 
small nanobots within the anti-protons, the light can transport an entity to the source of the light. If we were 
able to assemble an anti-proton stream here, we would be able to capture this Prince, once he arrives, 
without harming him."

Lady Tokimi nodded.

"Do as you like." She said quietly, a minuscule black tube appearing at a nearby window.

"Thank you, Lady Tokimi."

Koros shouted some orders at something in the darkness, in an Antaran dialect not used in millennia.

Small, greenish imp-like creatures rushed to his side, bringing with them rusted, but still strong steel.

As he barked his demands, they quickly set up a small cell in the corner of the huge room, right over the 
body of a dead Juraian officer. While he ordered them, Koros entered commands into the small tube, a test 
beam proving successful; a stream of energy erupted from the tube, going through the window. If someone 
looked through the beam, it produced pure darkness, all light in the area absorbed by it, like a black hole 
would.

----

On Ken-Ohki, Washuu looked at some pictures on the wall, taken thousands of years ago, if not longer. On 
a far corner of the wall, she saw a picture covered with dust, the layer about five centimeters thick. With 
her hand, she gently dusted it off, revealing the picture of a beautiful woman. She had long, orangey hair, 
and dark green eyes, similar to herself. Below it, written in Orion were the words "Kirema - Killed in 
Action."

She frowned, and gently removed the picture off the wall, looking at it once more. A thought struck her 
then, and her eyes grew wide for a moment. She walked over to Loknar, and sat down by him.

"I...Think I know this woman." Washuu said, whispering.

Loknar turned around, astonished.

"Impossible....She died when I wasn't even a hundred years old. You couldn't have known Kirema, my 
dear."

Washuu was silent for a moment.

"Who was she to you?" She asked.

Loknar blinked, his pupils the size of pinpoints for a moment.

"She was my first love. The both of us were part of the temporary United Orion army, whose primary 
mission during those times on Ancient Orion was to drive out the Antarans from our world. One day, she 
was killed in battle. I never saw it happen, but I know it did - I..." He trailed off for a moment. "I saw her 
body. Xyphys, the leader of the Antaran Hordes at the time, killed her personally.....I...."

He was suddenly cut off by Washuu.

"Do you know what the term Koraidan Re-Incarnation is?"

"I do....It is when a person dies, if their heart is pure, and they wait several millennia, they have the chance 
to merge with an Oanai or a......"

He stopped suddenly, very startled.

"Years before Kagato captured me, and before my son was born, her soul approached me. I saw the pain in 
her heart, her longing to be with you once more. She wanted to live, just to have a chance to possibly be 
with you. I doubted that it would ever be possible during that time, and I accepted, incorporating her into 
me. One of the reasons was because she was a far distant relative; the evidence proving that is that our eyes 
are relatively the same. Years later, I forgot her, and who Kirema had loved. I did not remember her until 
today.....I am sorry for not remembering, Tassi." She whispered.

He responded by simply hugging her, tears of many millennia quietly running down his cheeks. She held 
onto him, holding him, holding the man she loved, and the man that only a select few had in the past. She 
knew at that moment that he was all she needed in this world, that he was her guiding light, her angel, and 
her future husband.

"It is not your fault, my love. The dust of centuries covers memories in a layer of fog, cleared only be small 
clues...." Loknar whispered back, holding his cheek to hers.

They held each other for minutes, the others watching silently.

Soon, a small light was visible on the scanners of Ken-Ohki and Ryo-Ohki.

"The Juraian colony of Tsaniko is dead ahead!" Kiyone spoke, interrupting the silence.

Loknar nodded.

"Let's go."

----

Tenchi had transferred onto Ken-Ohki a few minutes before, so he heard what Loknar and Washuu said to 
each other. Only he watched in awe, the others too busy generating energy for the battle, or discussing 
plans.

"So that is what true love is...." Tenchi thought, listening to every word, every syllable that came out of the 
mouths of the Archangel and his Goddess.

"One day....." Tenchi thought, "........I will............No, that won't happen. If I fall in love with just one of the 
girls, the rest will either skin me alive, or make my life a living hell. I'm not even sure if they truly would 
love me, or if they even love me now? Ryoko and Ayeka just treat me like a pawn sometimes.....Yet, other 
times they do not. I do not understand women, and I doubt I ever will."

"Maybe if..." Tenchi spoke, then interrupted as something knocked Ken-Ohki.

A pack of the dark starfighters were suddenly on screen, readily approaching them, and firing projectiles.

"Damn!" Joseph muttered, watching this.

"They aren't getting us that easily....." Kiyone spoke, as Ken-Ohki fired beams at some of the fighters, 
damaging them.

"Caaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaao!" Ken-Ohki shouted, firing at them, while Ryo-Ohki did the same, taking small 
amounts of damage from the weapon fire.

They sped forward, their weapons blazing, destroying most of the fighters. As they increased their speed, 
Tsaniko seemed closer, the floating dome soon visible. The wreckage of the GU ships orbited the colony, 
the concentric ring of metal acting like a macabre makeshift graveyard for those recently killed in the 
conflict.

A large, metal cylinder was soon visible on a platform nearby the colony.

"What the heck is that?" Mihoshi asked.

"The Meddigo Demon.....They must have moved it." Washuu told her, scanning it.

More fighters were released from Tsaniko, and shot at them like bullets encased in blood. Above the 
Meddigo Demon sat a huge crimson star, the stars nearby it becoming redder by the second.

Ryo-Ohki and Ken-Ohki shot down most of them, while others circled around them, still firing.

".....Uh.......Why are you guys attacking us?" Mihoshi asked the fighters over the radio. As she was at the 
controls of Ryo-Ohki, she was able to manually fire. She wasn't even looking, but shot down several 
fighters; while when she looked, she missed them.

There was no response over the radio.

"How rude." Mihoshi grumbled, sighing, and looking at her blaster, then taking out another fighter.

Loknar raised an eyebrow.

"....Mihoshi, how are you doing that?"

"Doing what?" She asked, then looking at the viewscreen, and missing one.

"Nothing, nevermind. Do what you are doing....."

Loknar wondered how Mihoshi was accomplishing this deed. Was it some stroke of luck, or some 
relationship with a divine being? Was this purposeful or accidental?

He looked Washuu in the eyes, the question apparent on his face.

She responded with a shrug, as she too had no idea how Mihoshi was doing that.

A sensor on Washuu's computer went off.

"They're about to fire the Meddigo Demon!" She yelled, the two cabbit-ships then narrowly missing a beam 
from it.

"That was too close. Allright, everybody, we need to find an airlock on the dome, and dock." She 
continued, giving Kiyone and Mihoshi the coordinates for the nearest one.

Avoiding more fighters, the ship flew to the other side of the colony, out of range of the Meddigo Demon. 
From that area, not much of the inside colony could be seen, only the thick, outer layer, as that side covered 
the clear dome for defensive purposes.


"We have to make sure that the citizens here are allright...." Ayeka whispered, determined to save her 
people.

A few docking bays were soon in view, but they were locked tightly.

"How the hell are we going to get in there?" Ryoko asked, taking over for Mihoshi.

"Blast 'em." Kiyone replied, shooting a large hole in one of them with a blast from Ken-Ohki.

The two forcefully docked with the colony.

"Allright, everyone, Koros probably has this place heavily guarded. Stay alert. I have no idea what he may 
throw at us." Joseph spoke, transforming into his own battle uniform. It was very similar to Tenchi's, except 
it was a dark blue, and there was an emblem of Orion, a circle within a circle within a cirle, over his heart. 
In his eyes, his energy seemed to be concentrated, ready to leap out and destroy the enemy.

From a compartment on the wall of Ken-Ohki, he took the Sword of Light, the Orionken, in hand, while 
Tenchi held the Tenchiken.

Kiyone quietly pressed the airlock button, only to be met with silence.

Everyone exited the two ships, not to be greeted by enemy forces, but by seemingly nothing.

"Ken-Ohki, Ryo-Ohki, will you be allright for awhile?" Loknar asked the two cabbit-ships.

They responded with an affirmative.

"Good. Let's move." He replied.

The group quietly walked down the hall, Ayeka grimacing as she saw the Juraian and Galactic Union flags 
torn and stained with blood. As they left the airlock hallway, they reached a large steel door.

"I bet they're in here." Ryoko whispered, then knocking the door over with an energy blast.

Opening the door revealed the massive inner courtyard of the colony. Huge, dense forests covered the area, 
a few temples and buildings scattered around by a small concrete road. On a large hill in the center, there 
was a palace, which once was made of marble and shined, but now was dull and dark. There was very little 
lighting in the area, as Koros's forces had knocked out most of the power. Several GU and Juraian troops 
lied either dead or injured on the ground.

As she saw this, Ayeka gasped in both horror, and in rage.

"The b@stard...." Joseph whispered, knowing that Koros was directly responsible for this.

"Kiyone......What is this place?" Mihoshi asked her partner.

"The Juraian colony of Tsaniko, Mihoshi."

"What the heck happened to it?"

"I don't know."

In the distance, Ayeka saw an old Juraian temple. It was made of the wood of the Udacki Giant tree species 
that was native to Jurai. It was circular in shape, probably made from a section of a tree itself. But 
something was wrong; it was rotting. When Udacki wood was used in Juraian buildings, especially in 
temples, it never rotted. Something must be very wrong inside.

Ayeka ran towards it.

"Hey Ayeka! Wait up!" Tenchi called, following her.

"Tenchi..." Ryoko said, following him.

The three entered the temple. Many of the shrines were desecrated, statues broken, religious and secular 
artifacts destroyed, and murals and the beautiful stained glass long gone. Parts of the stained glass, 
containing pictures of ancient Juraian leaders and priests, were scattered all over the floor.

Ayeka put a hand to her mouth as she saw something scrawled into the wall, her face turning pale.

"This is for my brother, Miss Ayeka. I know he had a fun time with you a few centuries back." The carving 
said, in Juraian.

Ryoko saw it too, and shook her head.

"Why is he doing this?" Ayeka cried, angrily.

Tenchi quieted her, as Ryoko put her ear to the wall. The sound of metal clanking against metal could be 
heard outside.

Joseph sniffed the air. Paryoih, a fuel used for Melkar foot soldier-mechas, was in the air.

"How the hell did they get here?" Joseph whispered to Mihoshi.

"How did what get here?"

"Melkar troops."

Just then, several humanoid figures could be seen coming down the hill. They were metallic, with strong 
armor, which dully shined in the pale light. They didn't seem to have any weapons.

Joseph glared at them.

A bolt of fire suddenly struck nearby them, then more, a barrage soon forming.

"Damn you!" Joseph yelled, several orbs of Psionic energy being hurled at them. It knocked some of them 
back, but they still kept coming.

Ryoko, Ayeka, and Tenchi rushed out of the temple to see the incoming Melkars.

"What in the hell are those things?" Ryoko asked, firing at a few of them.

"Melkars. Medium infantry." Joseph replied, as a Melkar rushed toward them, its' flame-thrower aimed 
right at them. Long, metallic tentacles draped from the back of its' head, while a skull-like helmet glared at 
them through small crevices of darkness. Its' body was covered with armor, making it look much like the 
knights of medieval Europe. Several insignias dotted its' arms, as well as a number of small compartments, 
each holding a tool. Inside, a small, organic Melkar sat, controlling the mechanization while in an artificial 
environment.

"Time to die!" Ryoko yelled at it, an energy blade forming in her hands, as she decapitated it, the metal 
head clanking to the ground.

Ayeka didn't say a word to the robotic soldiers. She simply powered up her energy fist attack, and knocked 
some of them into oblivion, as she hurtled toward them, and a forcefield around her, her fist acting like a 
small comet.

Mihoshi stood nearby the temple, watching the battle, and looking at her gun.

"Mihoshi! Fire at those things!" Kiyone yelled, as she fired at some of them, knocking them off balance.

"What?" Asked Mihoshi, still looking at her gun. Kiyone's voice had startled her enough that her gun fired, 
hitting a Melkar right between the eyes, the organic Melkar inside frying because of it.

The Melkars fired back, with plasma rifles, flame-throwers, and energy cannons.

One of the blasts hit Ayeka, knocking her down.

Joseph screamed in rage, slashing a Melkar nearly in half with his sword, before going to Ayeka's side.

"I'll be allright, Lord Joseph." Ayeka told him, getting up.

He smiled, but then rushed back to the battle.

It continued for a few more minutes, until the last few Melkars nearby remained.

Joseph watched Ryoko tear open a Melkar's robotic head with her bare hands.

"Miranda used to do that...." Joseph thought, distracted for a second.

While he was distracted, the tongue of one of the Melkar flame-throwers hit him, singing him.

"Piece of metallic crap." Joseph rasped, putting an orb of energy right in its' face.

As that was happening, Ryoko was suddenly shot at by one of the last Melkars standing.

"Ryoko!" Tenchi cried, running over to her, only to be knocked off his balance by a shot landing right 
nearby him.

"Tenchi!" She called, getting up, and trying to run.

Loknar ran over, and tried to help Tenchi up.

Out of the shadows, a beam of darkness hit Tenchi and Loknar.

"What in blazes...." Loknar said, suddenly disappearing along with Tenchi.

----

They opened their eyes in a pitch black room, a dark flame lighting the area beside them.

Out of the void of the room, a figure approached them. It wore a long cloak, and had dark yellow eyes, long 
green hair, and small glasses.

"Greetings, Prince Tenchi, Mr. Loknar." It spoke.

"Kagato..." Tenchi whispered.

"No, I am not Kagato, you ignorant boy. I am Koros, Lord of Antares. Kagato was my brother, murdered 
by you and your little friends." Koros replied. His voice was slightly similar to Kagato's. Koros's voice was 
much deeper, echoing more, with a small bit of mechanocity to it.

Tenchi realized that Koros was the figure that continuously haunted him in those re-occurring night terrors. 
The voice, the hair, the glasses, the shape, even the crimson medallion that was around his neck. Koros was 
the one who had caused him wake up in the middle of the night, screaming in terror, fearing for his very 
sanity.

"We've met before, Tenchi......How did you sleep last night?" Koros beamed, grinning evilly.

"Leave the boy alone, damn you!" Loknar rasped.

"I plan to. He isn't to be touched. You, your son and his friends, however, will be."

Loknar went up to the bars, so Tenchi couldn't hear what he was about to say.

"I am an Oanai. I can't be killed in the way you know." Loknar whispered, angrily.

"Yes, not in that way, but you can be left in a coma for a decade or two. You can also still be tortured. You 
know, your son's little harlot really did badly while I 'purified' her."

Loknar spit in his face.

Koros grimaced, and wiped it off.

"You aren't even supposed to be in this cell. All She wanted was the boy here."

"Who is 'She'?" Loknar asked.

"She, as in the Lady Tokimi." Spoke a voice, the disembodied head of D3, Tokimi's servant, appearing 
nearby.

----

"Tenchi? Tenchi!" Ryoko called. "Where are you?"

"Koros brought Tassi and Tenchi to his lair using one of Kagato's damned inventions. They're holding them 
captive." Washuu said quietly, her eyes shut.

"NO ONE HOLDS MY TASSI CAPTIVE!" She suddenly shouts, her gun from before turning into a 
different one. It was essentially a rail-machine-gun, with double barrels of rotating charges. The whole 
thing was made of a sleek metal, and there was the emblem of the old Orion military on the side. She aimed 
it at the last few Melkars. The barrels began to turn round and round, a humming sound coming from it. 
Seconds later, beams of light shot out of it; as it hit the Melkars, they were literally cut to pieces, shards of 
metal flying everywhere, as she mowed the remaining ones down.

She stood there, breathing hard, as the last pieces of metal fell from the sky, and hit the ground, smoking.

Everyone was wide-eyed after seeing this. None of them knew that Washuu could be that powerful a 
warrioress. She had helped in the earlier battle, doing the same as Loknar, but usually staying out of the 
battle. This was the complete opposite.

".....M-Miss.........Miss Washuu?" Ayeka asked, quietly.

"Yes, Miss Ayeka?" Washuu asked, not looking at her.

Ayeka gulped. Maybe Miss Washuu had finally lost her sanity, all those days of being cooped up in the lab 
finally getting to her.

"W...What was that?"

Washuu turned around.

"Don't worry about it. Tassi lent it to me a few weeks ago." She replied. "I probably won't do that again for 
awhile. I rarely get that angry, you know."

Ayeka breathed a sigh of relief. She thankfully had not lost her mind after all.

Ryoko looked to the governor's palace, now Koros's lair, far in the distance.

"Let's go save Tenchi." She spoke, then turning to Ayeka, "Coming, Ayeka?"

"I am, Ryoko. Let me just get us some assistance."

Azaka and Kamidake appeared nearby.

"Greetings, Princess Ayeka." The two wooden bodyguards said, bowing slightly.

"Greetings Azaka, Kamidake. We will require your assistance in rescuing Lord Tenchi from the brother of 
Kagato. Is that understood?" She asked them.

"Yes ma'am." Replied the two guardians, following her as she walked down the road, in back of Ryoko, 
while Joseph, Washuu, Kiyone, and Mihoshi followed them.

They walked for awhile, until Joseph suddenly heard something. It sounded like shuffling, or movement, 
coming from a small underground storage facility.

Suspecting that it was more Melkar troops, Joseph gripped his sword, ready to use it whenever needed. He 
walked to the door of the facility, looking much like the doors of a storm shelter.

Suddenly, he swung the doors open, revealing a large amount of people. Both parties were startled, staring 
at each other in silence for awhile.

"Princess Ayeka!" One of the people cried, the others greeting her as well.

"How did you get here? Thank you for rescuing us! They've killed all the guards! They desecrated the 
temples!" Were just a few of the words uttered by the restless crowd.

"Hey, hey, hey! Quiet down! There are Melkars still around here, you know." Joseph said, stepping in front 
of them.

"Who the heck are you?"

"He is Lord Joseph." Ayeka responded. "Please treat him with the same respect as you would me, as he 
does possess Royal Blood."

"Miss Ayeka, all of that does not matter at the moment. We have to rescue both Tenchi and my father, plus 
defeat Koros." Joseph told her.

She nodded.

"Everyone, you'll be safe here! I'm one of the greatest geniuses in the Multiverse." Washuu told the crowd, 
her computer appearing, then typing in some commands. Defensive turrets bearing the logo of a swallow 
holding a crab appeared nearby them. "These turrets will knock out anyone that tries to attack you, okay?

"Who the heck are you again?" One of the people asked.

Washuu sweatdropped, startling to growl.

"It doesn't matter. Let's go."

Kiyone shut the door, much the chagrin of the people inside.

"Hey! Don't close that thing!"

"If it's shut, and you are quiet, there will be less of a chance that the Melkars will spot you!" She replied.

"But why the hell should we trust you? Yeah!" Some of the voices in the facility answered.

"Follow her advice, my noble subjects." Ayeka told them, her words instantly hushing the crowd. "Where 
did Mihoshi go?"

The group realized that Mihoshi was still walking the whole time.

"Mihoshi!" Kiyone yelled.

"Huh?" The bubble-headed detective was about fifty yards away from them.

"Oh, nevermind. Just wait for us, allright?"

"Okay."

A moment later, the group was on its' way once more.

----

Loknar grinned at D3.

"Tokimi, eh? Let me have a chat with the old witch." He laughed.

"Do NOT call Lady Tokimi that." D3 rasped.

"I can call her whatever I need to." He then looked at D3, and grinned. "By the way, can you tell me where 
the man behind the curtain is?"

Tenchi couldn't help but snicker at that joke, as he had seen a dubbed version of the Wizard of Oz, while 
D3 just viewed the remark as strange.

"Quiet, Prince." D3 said, sternly, shutting Tenchi up. "You want to speak with Lady Tokimi? She agrees to 
that."

There was a sudden popping sound. Loknar appeared near Tokimi's throne, the Foddess siting on it.

She looked at him, her face devoid of any emotion whatsoever.

"What is it you want, Oanai Loknar?"

"You say it like it's such an insult..." Loknar grinned.

"Please, there is no mirth here. Tell me what it is you want."

"I want to know what in Heaven's name you are doing with Tenchi and the others."

She looked at him for a moment, a faint smile somehow creeping onto her face.

"You seriously want to know?"

"Yes."

She looks off into the distance, into the stars.

"This is all but a stepping stone for them. Compared to what the future will bring, this is just light training."

Loknar blinks.

"Impossible. The future cannot be written, it is decided by every individual in the Multiverse."

"It can be predicted, however. Your son, his brother, the princesses, and all the others will all be needed in 
the future."

"Then why is Tenchi in a cage, and why are all the others out fighting Melkars?"

"At this point in his life, Lord Tenchi needs to let his powers mature more. The others will be fine."

"You're talking in circles."

"I am not, Oanai-Loknar."

"Stop calling me that. Call me Tassi if you have to. Just....Don't say Oanai before my name. And why the 
hell is Koros here?"

"He is the motivation for them to respond."

Something suddenly hits Loknar, and his face grows full of rage.

"You mean this whole thing is just a damned test?" He rasps.

Tokimi nods.

"Hundreds of innocent people have died because of this!"

She doesn't respond.

"Then it is true. Those of the Shadow are as bad as those of the Dark!"

"In some cases, yes." She replies.

"I'm out of here. You were once wise and kind, Tokimi. You lost all that. You're just a rotten old witch."

He leaves through the door, re-appearing in the cage.

"What did she say?" Tenchi asked him.

"Huh? Nothing, Tenchi. Don't worry about it. She's just a bloody old windbag who lost her mind." Loknar 
told him.

By now, Koros had gone to his throne, to deal with other matters.

"Tell me, how far are they from the palace?" Koros asked a woman who stood nearby him, in the uniform 
of one of the human deserters. She had long, dark brown hair, and piercing green eyes.

"Not that far. They should be here within an hour." She replied, smiling.

"Good. You are doing a superlative job as the new leader of the Antaran-Terran division, Miss Resyuki. I 
may invite you into my quarters sometime soon...."

She blushed.

"Anyway, sir, we shall send out some more forces to attack."

"Fine. Give me an update soon."

Koros then went into a darkened hallway, disappearing.

----

"Uh.....Miss Washuu, where are Tassi and Tenchi?" Mihoshi asked, in her usual bubbleheaded tone.

">_<.......I already explained it to you, Mihoshi, you just don't listen." Washuu replied, half-mumbling it.

"But....."

As Washuu and Mihoshi talked, Kiyone walked by Joseph.

She greatly admired him. He had saved her from injury a few times during that battle, but she saved him a 
few times as well. Unlike most men that she had known, Joseph was wonderful both on the inside and 
outside. He obviously cared about his friends, this group, and even Mihoshi. She knew he would do 
anything to defend them, and probably her, even though he just met her today.

On one of the trees nearby, a branch suddenly fell, as if chopped off by an invisible ax.

"Joseph...."

"Yes, Kiyone?" He smiled at her. Even in these dark times, he smiled at her, warmly.

She blushed.

"Oh, nothing...."

"C'mon, tell me...."

"It was nothing. Just thought I had seen something. Part of a branch fell off, but I can't see it anymore." She 
replied.

Another branch fell off. This time, Joseph saw it.

"Something's up." Joseph whispered, his sword re-igniting.

Huge metallic heads suddenly jumped from the trees, rapidly firing beams at them.

"What the hell are these things?" Kiyone asked, shooting one down.

"One of Kagato's stupid inventions, that Koros must be using. These things should be easy to kill, like they 
were last time." Washuu replied.

A large group of the mechanical heads suddenly closed in on Ayeka.

"Princess Ayeka!" Azaka and Kamidake called, trying to shoot some of them down.

"I'll be fine." Ayeka replied, thousands of small logs suddenly appearing around her. She unleashed some 
of the energy that she had generated on the ship earlier, in a huge blast. Each log emitted huge amounts of 
pure energy, causing some of the heads to implode at that moment. As it was a large group, she used a lot 
of power on them.

She stood there, breathing heavily, the aftershock of the release of so much energy hitting her like a brick.

Meanwhile, Kiyone was shooting them down left and right, even though a few hit her.

Washuu, with her powerful weapon, knocked a few of them down as well, though covering Mihoshi most 
of the time, who ran around trying to get at them.

While they were destroying those heads, much more powerful versions flew out of the palace. Unlike their 
purple counterparts, these were a blood red, with gleaming eyes, and huge steel fangs, dripping with acid.

"What the hell....?" Joseph wondered out loud, as one flew toward him, with the speed of a maniac. It's 
teeth seemed ready to bite into his skin, the acid would then pour out and infect the wound.

However, Joseph prevented it by stepping a few feet out of the way, the robot crashing into the ground 
instead, the acid released onto itself as it crashed, destroying its' own internal circuitry.

"He never learns that speed always leads to death." Joseph thought, referring to Koros, in more ways than 
one.

Ryoko followed one who was heading toward Washuu, slicing off the upper portion of it as it reached her.

"Thanks, Ryoko."

"No problem, Washuu."

"It's MOM, Ryoko!"

"Forget about that for right now, allright?" Ryoko barked, turning towards another group of the advanced 
versions of the giant robotic heads. "Tenchi's been captured, your loverboy abducted, and a whole colony 
under siege! This is no time for jokes, MOM!"


As they battled, the palace got closer and closer, the details of it now clearly visible. The stone walkway 
was covered with debris, part of the palace's east wing demolished, remnants of stone towers spread about 
the ground like toys.

As Ayeka battled Koros's machinations, she noticed a figure lying on the ground. She cringed as she 
realized that it was the governor of Tsaniko lying belly-up on the stone path, dead of an apparent stabbing 
to the heart.

She ran over to him, shaking the body, in the slim hope that he would awaken from his eternal slumber. 
"Governor! Governor Rikra!"

As was expected, there was no response from the dead man, only another amount of blood spilling onto the 
ground. His blond hair was matted with blood and dirt, his green eyes still open, facing upward, towards 
the sky. As Ayeka was distracted by this, one of the robotic heads nearly fired a beam directly at her, 
stopped only by the keen eye of Kiyone, who shot it before the beam could be released. Ayeka never saw 
that.

Soon, most of the head robots were destroyed.

The palace was right in front of them, looming like a giant fortress above them.

Ayeka glared at it.

"Come. Let's go inside. There is a death that needs to be avenged." She spoke, walking in, the others 
following.

----

"How are we going to get out of here? The place is guarded more than anything I've seen before!" Tenchi 
muttered, sitting down in a corner of the small cell, Loknar sitting near the bars, seemingly working on 
something. Loknar didn't respond to his question.

"Mr. Loknar?" Tenchi asked. "What are you doing?"

"Fiddling with these bars, hoping to find a weak one. They seem to be made of Crononium, a very strong 
metal. Crononium is very rare, so copper is sometimes used to help spread out the strength, even though its' 
as bendable as a noodle. Hopefully, I can locate a bar that is mostly copper." He replied, trying to pull one 
bar in the easterly direction.

He continued working at it for five minutes, pulling with all his might. Suddenly, one gave, sending him 
against the wall, with the bar.

"Ouch." He muttered, getting up, and pulling at the other. "Come over here, and help me, okay? There's got 
to be other weak bars here..."

"Uh.....Couldn't you use your computer?" Tenchi asked, getting up.

"The pseduospace nearby here is jammed, so I am unable to access it to transport materials into the cell."

Another bar gave way.

"Well, allright then...."

Tenchi helped pull, and pretty soon a few more bars flew off, knocking the both of them into the wall.

He then looked around the area.

"Why didn't any guards stop us....And why the heck aren't there even any nearby?"

"I don't have the slightest." Loknar replied, checking out the area.

Just in case, Tenchi took out the Tenchiken.

Loknar frowned.

"Couldn't you have used that to break the bars?"

Tenchi grinned, nervously.

"Heh....Sorry."

"It's fine. Now, let's get going. We have a colony to save." Loknar responded, taking out a long sword, 
made of a shining green metal.

"What sword is that?" Tenchi asked, having not seen it before.

"The standard weapon of a Galaxian soldier in the early days of the AGN. An Apollo-Delta sword, long 
length, model 86A, manufactured in the good ol' UF of MW."

"What does that stand for?"

"The United Federation of Mrrshan Worlds."

Just then, he heard footsteps.

"What the-"

"Keep quiet! It could be Koros." He whispered to Tenchi.

Each at one side of the hallway, they watched.

Three small imp-creatures walked by, jabbering at each other in their odd language.

One of them saw Loknar, and pulled out a dagger.

Before it was about to strike, Tenchi impaled it on his sword, but was very suprised that he did, allowing 
another to try and slash at him, only to trip Tenchi. As he tripped, he fell right on the beast, its' own dagger 
digging into its' side. The last one ran at him, only to be knocked off the ground when Tenchi sat up, 
Loknar punching it square in the chest.

"Thank you." Loknar said to Tenchi, bowing.

"Don't mention it. Let's keep walking." He replied, as they carefully made their way down the long, 
winding corridors.

----

Commander Resyuki of the Human Deserters watched from her vantage point on a ledge in the main hall of 
the palace, surrounded by her troops. Even though she had recently been promoted to that position, due to 
the death of Christopher Stygian, she was very experienced, with a firm grasp on her troops, and her mind.

"They should be in here soon." She told her sub-ordinates.

Ayeka and the others walked in, unaware of the ambush before them.

Joseph walked by Ayeka, near the front. He stopped suddenly.

"What is it, Lord Joseph?" The Princess asked him.

"Roses. Dead Roses. She is here." He replied.

"Who is 'She'?"

"It's Resyuki. Her perfume is always the same." Joseph answered, igniting the Sword of Light once more. 
The others followed suit by reloading or turning back on their weapons or powers.

"Who is Resyuki?" Mihoshi asked, reloading her gun anyhow.

"Second in command of the damned human deserters." Joseph replied. "They murdered people who were 
very close to me."

"Who?"

"My squadron. They were the only true family I had at the time, besides Ken-Ohki and my father. The 
damned fools killed my squadron in the cold of blood, with me as the only survivor." Joseph said quietly, 
instantly wiping any mirth from the room.

"These are humans, right Joseph?" Ayeka asked.

"Yes. No matter how much I want to maim them, we must try not to kill them. If we kill Koros, the Galaxy 
Police can rap up what is left." He said quietly. "Let's continue."

They walked down the long hall, as silent as possible, as not to draw attention.

Resyuki heard the click of weapons reloading, and the safety being turned off.

"Damn. They knew we were here somehow." She whispered.

"Maybe it was because of your awful-smelling perfume, Commander?" A cadet mouthed off. She replied to 
that by knocking him off the ledge, to his death. As he hit the floor with a sickening splat, Ryoko's energy 
blasts knocked down the door of the outer hallway, suprising the troops inside. The troops held weapons 
ranging from machine guns, to rifles, to shotguns.

"Go to hell, you SOBs!" Ryoko yelled, hurling small energy swords at some of the troops, knocking them 
out. Joseph initiated a Psionic storm, hurling some of them to the wall.

Mihoshi, now knowing what the Deserters did to Joseph, fired with insane accuracy, hitting them exactly 
where they needed to be hit.

Kiyone was astonished by this. Never before had Mihoshi acted with such skill.....

"She must like Joseph, a LOT. In all the years that I have known her, this amount of dedication and skill 
she is showing.....I must be dreaming." Kiyone thought, firing at other troops.

While all this happened, Resyuki watched, grasping her weapon tightly.

One of the shogun shots hit Ryoko in the shoulder, seemingly knocking it off of her. She winced as the 
bone seemed to fly out of its' socket, blood flying everywhere.

"Ryoko!" Joseph yelled worriedly, not used to her regenerative properties.

Ryoko simply grinned, the shoulderblade reforming after a few seconds.

Joseph shook his head, as if to hurl the incident from his memory.

He returned to the task at hand, harming the troops as little as possible, while still making them unable to 
fight.

"I remember you, you wimpy b@stard! You cried like a freakin' baby when we killed your squadron!" One 
of the troops laughed.

Joseph literally roared, and slashed a deep cut into him, knocking the soldier over, causing medium injury. 
Joseph was flooded with rage. If anyone ever insulted his martyred squadron, they would be injured like 
that too, if not worse.

Very soon, most of the troops lay injured on the ground. Only Resyuki remained. She grinned, suddenly, as 
if something was about to happen.

"What the..." Washuu said, right before she and all the others, except for Joseph, were suddenly stuck to the 
wall, and restrained there, as if by magnetism.

"Resyuki.....You harlot! Leave them out of this!" Joseph yelled at her. Resyuki teleported to the ground, 
without a word.

"You haven't changed much, you foolish boy." She said, smirking, her dark brown hair waving a little, as if 
under a slight breeze.

"Let us out of here, you succubus!" Ayeka screamed.

"Shut up, princess." Resyuki responded, turning back to Joseph.

"So you want a battle?" He rasps.

An orb of pure, Psionic energy appears in his hands, glowing like a maddened star. He hurls it at her, but 
she dodges, and it only shakes her a little.

She replies with Stygian's scythe appearing in her hands, still stained with blood.

Joseph glares at her, fighting himself mentally over whether to use the Lighthawk wings or not. On one 
hand, he could defeat her easily, but still use up a large amount of his energy. If he didn't, he could be 
injured here....

She slashes at him, the crimson blade dripping with the red liquid, made up of the screams of many 
innocents.

She barely misses his side, as he steps out of the way.

"Beat the crap out of her, Joseph!" Ryoko yelled, offering support.

"Shut up!" Replied Resyuki.

Joseph took this moment of distraction to generate energy for a powerful Psionic attack, one which he had 
not used for awhile. He took a small flashlight out of his pocket, and shined it into a small orb of Psionic 
energy. As the orb grew, so did the light inside. When the orb was five feet high, he suddenly shrunk it, but 
the light stayed the same. Resyuki was too distracted at the moment arguing with Ryoko to notice. The 
light had now been very much compressed, as the orb was now an inch high.

With great strain, he hurled it at her, straight in the back. It knocked her over, the light surging into her like 
electricity. She groaned in pain.

"Idiot." She said as she got up, slashing at his side with the scythe, forming a small wound. Joseph winced, 
and tried to not notice it.

He picked up one of the injured guard's handguns. He took the cartridge, and charged it with energy, until 
the bullets glowed red. He took the holster as well, and put it around his waist. This took only seconds, as 
proper Galaxian Marine training had valued practice over perfection, and had paid off in a very positive 
way.

While he was doing this, Resyuki planned to herself. If she slashed him in the leg, he would be knocked off 
guard, so the final slash could be made....Or, she could use her acid blade attack....

Several very sharp blades appeared in her hands, and she hurled a few of them at Joseph. One or hit the 
wall, breaking, acid then spilling out of them. To her, it seemed the perfect attack; if the blades were 
stopped, the acid would continue.

One hit Joseph by his feet, and it broke, the acid spilling onto his shoes. He shook it off, groaning a little, 
and charged at her with the Sword of Light. She didn't see that coming, but in natural response, she jumped 
back a few feet, Joseph slashing her in the shoulder, not his main target.

"I'm going to kill you, you son of a b|tch, and if I don't, Lord Koros will!" Resyuki groaned. She used 
Koros's name selectively, as she knew that even the thought of him distracted Joseph with memories. She 
then threw two blades at Joseph, one missing, the other hitting part of his side.

Joseph winced, the pain like fire on him, burning into his soul...As the pain overcame him, his rage grew. 
Energies of rage flowed through his body, and into his hands. Channeling the emotion into an orb of 
Psionic energy, he made an orb of Psionic Rage, glowing a dark red, like a red dwarf star. Its' surface, 
unlike the pure orb's usual uniformness, and pure-white color, this orb was full of spikes, liquid sections, 
and small protrusions. The orb itself was about a foot in diameter, but like all other orbs, seemed 
weightless.

He hurled it at her, his arm aching under the pain from before.

It hit her in the stomach, knocking her into the wall.

She shook it off, ignoring the searing pain, and tried one final slash at him with her scythe. He stopped her 
with another orb, knocking her mid-air. Effectively, she was hit like a baseball, straight up into the air, and 
then straight down to the ground. She was still breathing, but Joseph had won the battle.

Everyone else was suddenly released from their invisible bindings, and rushed to the injured Joseph's side.

"I'll be allright..." He said, trying to get up, only to fall and cause more injury. "...Damn..."

"Let me heal you..." Washuu told him, turning on her computer. Using it, and selecting from a few menus, 
she took out some advanced medicinal instruments, and began to work on his injuries. "Your father's 
computer is set at a different pseduospace frequency than mine, so he wouldn't be able to access his 
computer. Hold still while I use this....The frequencies are different, as they can be used in different places. 
Mine can be used here while the pseduospace shield that Koros is using is inactive towards my frequency. 
However, if he used another one, then he may have been able to counteract mine, and we'd be in a lot of 
trouble."

As Washuu talked, Joseph winced as devices were inserted into his wounds, now beginning to heal. One f 
the instruments Washuu used was a small metal tube, with a large red button on it. When she pushed it, a 
stream of green particles flew out of a small hole, directly towards his injuries. As they came in contact 
with it, the injury began to heal.

"What is that stuff?" Joseph asked, after she finished.

"A nanobot stream."

"How did you get a-"

He was suddenly interrupted by Mihoshi.

"What's a nanobot?"

Washuu frowned. She knew Mihoshi wanted another dumbed-down definition, which she probably would 
not understand anyhow.

"A bunch of tiny robots that heal people." Washuu told her, as she continued to work on Joseph's wounds.

"How small are they?"

"One micron each."

"But what is a micron, Washuu?"

"Mihoshi, I do not have time for this!"

"What are you doing then?"

"Healing Joseph."

"I thought the robots were healing Joseph..."

"Mihoshi, please be quiet."

"But..."

"Please. I'm almost done healing him."

Very soon, she was.

Joseph tried to walk, but wobbled a little bit.

"It'll take a few minutes, but you'll be fine. The muscles just have to adapt to the new cells added by the 
nanobots."

He then fell, but Ryoko helped him up, smiling.

"You did a damned good job out there, Joseph. Hell, even I couldn't have pulled out that red energy ball 
thing." She complimented him.

"Thank you, Ryoko. You probably would have done better than me out there, though." He said, blushing a 
little. He smiled at her as well, a very warm and comforting smile, much like Tenchi's smile. Again, he 
thought about her. Ryoko was essentially Miranda, except for the identity and hair color, and a small voice 
change. The body, most of the mind, most of the ideals, and probably most of the soul was the same as 
Miranda's. His train of thought once again thought about Koros.

"We have to defeat Koros." Joseph said, quietly, now standing up.

"We also have to rescue Tenchi and your father." Ryoko added.

Joseph nodded, and started to walk towards the door, the others following him, Mihoshi walking by his 
side.

"Joseph, are we gonna be able to stop Koros?" She asked, in a very small voice.

"I hope so, Mihoshi. I hope we can." He replied, as they began to walk through another hallway.

----

Tenchi and Loknar made their way down the labyrinth of halls, knocking out guards every now and then, 
with very little problems. They seemed to have been walking through those halls for hours, their legs now 
exhausted, and their minds weary.

"We need to stop after this next hall." Tenchi told Loknar, half-mumbling.

Loknar nodded, quietly walking down the hall.

Nearby them, two Melkar guards stood watch, muttering something in their language.

Suddenly, Loknar jabbed one of them in the head with his sword, directly turning off its' operating system, 
while leaving the organic Melkar inside unharmed.

The other turned around, and fired at them with its' flame-thrower, in the vain hopes of scaring them off.

Instead, Tenchi slashed its' stomach, splitting the robotic body, with only minor injuries to the real Melkar. 
The two halves fell to the floor.

They began to walk down the next hallway, slowly.

"I hope we can get to Koros soon.....Defeating all these guards is so boring..............YAAAAAAAH!" 
Tenchi whispered, then suddenly startled by what seemed to be a huge Melkar grinning at them. It seemed 
to be twenty-five feet tall, with long, sharp claws, made of titanium. Blood lined the blades, and the ruins of 
fallen soldiers sat at its' feet. It held a huge blade, acid foaming from a small hole at the top.

Tenchi stepped back, scared for his life, while Loknar didn't even pay any attention to it.

"Snap out of it. It's just a painting of Koros's Melkar form, before he fully changed himself into an Antaran. 
They must have shipped it here a few hours ago." He told him, pulling Tenchi back.

Tenchi sighed with relief, but stopped when he saw the remnants of an old cathedral-like organ. It was very 
rusty, parts peeling off by themselves. Many of the tubes were missing, and the keyboard was made up of 
only a few white and black keys.

Tenchi literally jumped out of his skin when it began to play by itself. The tune was hauntingly familiar, 
bringing back bad memories. As it played, it began to repair itself, in a few minutes back to the way it was 
when it was on the Soja.

Loknar watched, not with fear, but astonishment.

"Very interesting on how he rigged it to repair itself. As soon as certain people enter, it plays, causing 
systematic contrological changes in the metabolic function, resulting in..."

"You're talking like Washuu...." Tenchi groaned.

"What do you expect? She and I have the same IQ, and I am her boyfriend." Loknar replied, smiling.

Loknar's smile left him completely as he looked to his right, where a massive platform sat. In the middle 
was Koros, grinning.

"I'm so glad that you could make it, Mr. Loknar." The Lord of Antares beamed, grinning, his medallion 
shimmering like blood.

----

Back at the Masaki house, Sasami cried silently on her futon, Ryo-Ohki and Ken-Ohki not there to comfort 
her, the both of them helping the rest of the group in the battle. Sasami didn't know what was going to 
happen to her friends, her family; those that she cared about more than anything in the universe, those that 
she would do anything for, those that she would give her life for. If they died, she would be scarred forever, 
lonely forever....Except for...

"Sasami?" A voice asked.

...Her....
Tsunami!" Sasami cried, burying herself into Tsunami, and weeped on her.

"It's allright, Sasami." The goddess replied, now in a corporeal form.

"If any one of them died......I don't know what I'd do..." Sasami continued, "They are the only family I 
have! They can't die!"

She continued weeping, the goddess trying to comfort her by gently running her fingers through her hair.

"None of them will die, Sasami, I promise you. I can say, however, that some will be injured either 
emotionally or physically when they return, and will need your support." She whispered.

"But what if they don't die in the battle, but die later on?"

"Please, Sasami. Trust what I am saying. I love them just as much as you do, and I could not lose a single 
one without feeling empty inside. Though the darkness may threaten, it cannot fully act against the light. 
Remember that."

Sasami continued crying for awhile, hugging the goddess tightly.

Tsunami frowned as this went on. It killed her inside to see Sasami this upset, this worried, this depressed.

A disturbing thought crept into Sasami's mind.

"But what about Ryo-Ohki's baby? She is pregnant - If she gets hurt in the battle, will it die?" She asked, 
quietly.

"The baby is still the size of a cell, Sasami, and it is heavily protected within her. Offspring of the species 
of cabbit that Loknar and Washuu created takes a few years to fully develop. The egg that Ryo-Ohki 
hatched from took about three years to fully mature." Tsunami explained. "The baby will be fine. I will not 
allow anything to happen to happen to it, Ryo-Ohki, or Ken-Ohki."

Sasami breathed a sigh of relief, her tears beginning to dry. Very soon, she dozed off in Tsunami's arms.

Tsunami smiled, and gently placed her on the bed, and putting the covers over her.

"I will keep my promise, Sasami." Tsunami whispered, disappearing.

----

Joseph and the others silently passed through the hallway. It was much darker than the other ones, with no 
torches in sight. Occasionally, one of them would step on something that made a squishy sound. It was best 
not to think about it.

Mihoshi stood close to Joseph, not exactly scared, but wanting mutual protection in case of attack.

Ayeka walked by Ryoko, glancing at her occasionally. They knew that like always, there could be no 
fighting during battles. Their fighting was mirthful and just a joke, while fighting a real enemy meant life 
or death.

Kiyone and Washuu walked by Joseph as well, but more up front, making sure that nothing would suddenly 
attack the group.

They couldn't exactly see it, but twenty feet from them, a steel door existed. It was very old and rusty, a 
backup entryway never used since the construction of Tsaniko, a few hundred years ago.

Joseph sensed the door there, his mental abilities allowing him to detect where solid matter was, even in the 
dark, by the reflection of Psionic waves.

"I do not know if I want to go inside this thing." Kiyone whispered, a certain feeling of emotional darkness 
and depression pervading the room.

Ryoko walked up to the door, and pushed, the ancient lock breaking. There was a creaking sound as the 
door opened, centuries of dust falling to the floor, and dim light entering the former eternally dark room, 
breaking the void. She pushed more, the whole hallway now illuminated, and revealing three figures 
outside. Tenchi and Loknar stood at one side of the room, just entering.

In the center stood....

"Hello, Joseph." Koros said, grinning.

The hairs on the back of Joseph's neck stiffened. This was it. This was the duel that he had both dreaded 
and wished for the past half decade, since the death of Miranda Kerrigan at the hands of Koros, Lord of 
Antares, the Master of Death.

The beam of the Orionken automatically was created, the blue stream thick and dark.

"So, you do want to die today?" Koros asked, reflecting his brother's sick humor towards those he deemed 
unsuitable to live.

"I'm going to send you to hell!" Joseph rasped. Ryoko, Tenchi, and Ayeka stood alongside him, ready to 
attack. Mihoshi and Kiyone stood beside them.

"Well, you're going to have to take your little friend, and the harem that you two own with me." Koros 
replied, forming his energy sword.

An orb of Psionic Rage appeared in Joseph's hands, concentrating it carefully and quickly. He hurled it at 
Koros, missing him.

Ryoko launched her attack, releasing several beams at once at the Antaran. A few hit him, but he knew that 
they were coming; they simply passed through him.

"Hey! Brother of ignoramus inferior!" Washuu called, getting his attention, while she held that rail-machine 
gun from before, "No one captures my Tassi! If you do, you get this!"

She fired a huge amount of rounds at him, a few injuring his sides. He winced, green blood flowing from it, 
but quickly repaired it.

In response, he teleported behind Washuu, and almost hit her backside with his sword, but Loknar quickly 
knocked Washuu out of the way, getting hit slightly in his side.

This got the red-haired genius angrier than before.

"AND NO ONE HURTS HIM EITHER!" She yelled, shooting at Koros again, most of the bullets missing, 
as he had switched to his incorporeal form.

While this happened, Ayeka prepared an attack, but Koros saw it. He laughed quietly, a black metal box 
then appearing in his hands. He pointed it at her, and opened of its' sides, several acid-filled knives flying 
out. Azaka and Kamidake luckily appeared before her, and took much of the damage.

"To hell with you two." Koros muttered, pointing his arm at the wall, Azaka and Kamidake knocking into 
it, leaving them temporarily unoperational while they repaired themselves.

He walked up to Ayeka, smiling just like Kagato would.

"You know, Miss Ayeka, when I merged with my brother, I inherited his memories and thoughts. I saw 
what he did to you, and I enjoyed it. I want to do that with you too, sometime in the very near future." He 
whispered.

Ayeka began to sweat, the fears of repeating her past terror multiplying by the second.

"He loved every bit of it. This time, I will keep you afterwards..." Koros spoke, right before the Tenchiken 
slammed into the back of his neck, causing him some pain.

"Get the hell away from her!" Tenchi yelled, pointing the Tenchiken at him, his hand shaking slightly.

"Oh, and how did you enjoy the wonderful dreams I prepared for you, Tenchi?" Koros asked, approaching 
him.

Ryoko thought he was distracted at the moment, and his back turned, so she tried to slash him with her 
energy sword, but he easily caught it, then turning around and slapping her across the face, hurling her into 
the wall.

Joseph glared at Koros, his rage intensifying. For a moment, his Lighthawk wings appeared, but he shook 
them off, wary to expend that much energy at the moment. He saw a steel box lying on the ground, 
probably used in the past for storage. Telekinetically, he brought it to him, charging it with energy, then 
hurling it at Koros, who knocked it off before it hit him.

"Foolish boy." Koros whispered, hurling it back at Joseph, knocking him back. The energy did not harm 
Joseph, as it originated from him, and therefore was re-incorporated back into his energy supply.

"Hey jerk!" Kiyone called, shooting him in the left arm, literally chopping it off.

Koros cringed, as the arm slowly regenerated, but the pain still prevalent.

"B|tch." Koros rasped, a rain of red particles suddenly raining down on her. Each one felt like a burning 
needle when it hit her, and she screamed. Joseph knocked her out of the way before many could fall on her.

"Saving your little harlot, eh? I'll ravage her like I did your last!" Koros spoke, trying to slash at Joseph 
with his energy blade.

"Enough is enough!" Mihoshi said, pointing her hand at Koros, an ice-emitting gas flying out of a 
compartment in her suit, hitting his arms, and freezing them.

"Damn you!" Koros yelled, trying to break free. Loknar used this time wisely, holding one of his old 
inventions, something much like an electronic sledgehammer. He bore it down Koros's back, the demon 
enraged by the large, painful bruises now forming. The ice melted from his hands, and he tried to strike 
Loknar, but he was somehow fifty feet away from him, grinning and doing a gesture with his arms and face 
that would have been considered offensive on Orion and Jurai. However, Koros had no idea what the 
gesture meant, so he ignored it.

Ryoko was then trying to get up as Koros approached her, distracting the others by firing repeated blasts of 
a greenish energy at them.

"My brother created you well....Ryoko." Koros said quietly, grinning, then taking a small , metallic rock out 
of his pocket. It was covered with controls for some reason, and Ryoko seemed to recognize this. "He used 
this to control you in some cases when he was not directly available - You do remember, don't you? You 
were so obedient...."

Ryoko winced at the thought of it.

"He did not! Washuu created me!" She replied, backing up. "She is my mother, damn you!"

Ryoko slammed a sphere of energy directly into his chest, knocking him back.

Bleeding a little, but repairing himself, Koros hurled the acidic blades at her, some cutting into her skin. 
She screamed as this happened, and tried to pull them out.

There was suddenly a pain below Koros's chest; an accurately placed shot that hurt him where the most 
pain could be caused. He turned around, glaring at Mihoshi, her gun still smoking, and her face still glaring, 
very rare for her.

He replied by simply hurling Mihoshi at Ayeka, knocking both of them down.

That caused Tenchi's cool to quit. While Joseph prepared another attack, Tenchi formed his three 
Lighthawk wings, three Lighthawk orbs accompanying them. Tenchi had not generated his own Lighthawk 
orbs before - He would have to ask Loknar and Washuu about them later. As the wings passed through him 
and they reformed, his battle costume changed to its more powerful form, the Tenchiken transforming itself 
into an extension of the wings.

With Koros distracted, Tenchi jumped at him, slicing through his neck.

"That should be it..." Tenchi thought.

However, Koros grinned, throughout the pain.

"I knew this would happen, boy." Koros spoke, an enormous amount of energy suddenly surging into him, 
and his body re-forming.

Everyone was astonished by this, their jaws dropping open.

"You may have killed my brother that way, but you shall not murder me." Koros rasped, standing tall.

Loknar and Washuu examined the sudden energy surge.

"Where the hell is he getting it from?" Washuu whispered to Loknar.

"From Tokimi."

"How do you know?"

"I'll explain later, but I do know that she is transporting it to him when he gets severely damaged like that."

----

While all this occurred, a figure awoke on the floor of the Tsaniko main hall.

"I must help the Master." She thought, picking up her blood-stained gun, and crawling towards the sound of 
the fight.

----

Tenchi gulped, loudly.

This couldn't be happening to him. The Lighthawk sword should have killed Koros like that! This must be 
a dream. Yes, just a very scary dream. He then saw some of the blood on the ground. This wasn't a dream; 
this was real. There had to be a way to stop Koros.....

Ayeka helped Mihoshi up, and initiated her energy fist attack, as she literally flew off the ground, her fist in 
front of her, a forcefield of energy enveloping it. He hit him directly in the back, but he only winced. The 
energy had some sort of anesthetic effect for him.

He threw her up in the air, and tried to slash at her, but Ryoko flew over and broke his energy sword before 
he could.

"Enough with you." Koros spoke, kicking her in the stomach, very hard. She fell to the ground, injured, but 
soon got back up.

Joseph just stood, gathering energy, hoping to save enough to release a huge attack. He was sweating 
profusely, his mind working as fast as it could to generate the needed Psionic strength.

Koros stood oblivious as Mihoshi and Kiyone silently ran at him, then firing their plasma pistols at once, 
the bullets hitting him in the back.

As they were about to run away, he picked them up, and tossed them to another area of the room, as if they 
were made of nothing, causing some small scrapes and aches.

Tenchi thought to himself. If Koros suddenly gained energy when he was seriously injured, maybe if he 
was damaged only minimally, he could be taken down with a huge group attack, annihilating him. Tenchi 
decided to take a gamble.

He watched for one more minute, as Ayeka and Ryoko hurled themselves at Koros, the demon simply 
responding with a slash of his blade.

Tenchi closed his eyes, his Lighthawk wings and orbs forming once more, the sword re-generating. This 
time, he used less power, but concentrated it, adding a small amount more.

Koros was distracted at the moment, so Tenchi took this to his advantage.

He grasped the sword tightly, his life and those of many others on the line.

He swung it at Koros, right in the arm, a direct hit.

The pain surged up Koros's upper left limb, parts of him separating.

Instinctively, Koros swung back at Tenchi. Out of a sheath, he pulled out a long, easy-destructible blade, 
filled with acid. He swung back at Tenchi's legs, the blade automatically breaking as it caused a wound, the 
now-free acid making the wound evermore painful.

Tenchi screamed louder than he had in his life, the pain nearly causing him to lose counciousness; it had 
almost reached the bone. The scream sent chills down the spine of every being in the colony, echoing for 
more than ten seconds.

A voice entered the mind of Koros.

"You were instructed not to harm that prince. You have failed, Koros. You shall not receive any more 
energy from me. You have lost this battle decisively, Koros, but you may still win the coming war." The 
voice of Tokimi spoke, his incoming energy supply abruptly cut off.

"I don't care, Tokimi. You may go hire a rock for all I care. I am not your slave; I am Koros of Antares, 
Master of Death, Lord of Antares!" Koros replied, his hubris painfully evident.

Tenchi's cries of pain were answered by Ryoko and Ayeka, who looked in shock and screamed as well.

Mihoshi and Kiyone turned their heads away. The wound was very grotesque, and looked almost incurable.

Loknar and Washuu, having seen wounds just as bad, pulled him to the corner, and got back to work on 
repairing his nearly-severed limbs. He continued to scream throughout it.

Joseph finally thought he had generated enough energy, all the while having defended Mihoshi and Kiyone 
while he was doing that. He felt very guilty that he didn't attack Koros as frequently as the others did, 
although his attacks were powerful. He would try to ease the guilt with what he was about to do.

Clasping his sword, he ran at Koros, only to be stopped by someone holding him back - Koros himself.

"Going somewhere, Joseph? I need your strength." Koros spoke, Joseph's mind suddenly on fire.

He tried to restrain himself from screaming as some of his energy was injected into Koros, the Master of 
Death only getting stronger.

Koros was only stopped when a beam hit him in the face, knocking him out of the way.

Joseph got up, but he thought that most of his energy was gone.

Koros glared at Ryoko.

"You again! I will murder you where you stand!" He rasped.

Koros was preparing a very powerful attack, huge amounts of the strange black fire appearing in his hands, 
concentrating into a sword of black metal, that seemed to be aflame.

Joseph knew this was the time to act. He promised himself that he would either succeed, or die trying to 
save the people that he loved.

Three Lighthawk wings appeared around Joseph, as well as three Lighthawk orbs. All of them glowed with 
amazing intensity, evidence that not all of his energy had been taken. His more advanced battle costume 
appeared as well, similar to Tenchi's, except that he donned a long blue robe, Orion and Juraian emblems 
and designs on parts of it, made of silver. On his back, but unviewable to others except for Ayeka and 
Mihoshi, were two large, transparent angel-like wings.

Out of the corner of his eye, in the shadow, there stood a woman. She was much like Ryoko, except her 
hair was a very dark blue, and she was in the clothing of a Galaxian Marine.....Miranda.....Or at least part of 
her.

Joseph tried to ignore the specter, as his Sword of Light transmuted itself into a mobile Lighthawk wing, 
its' handle shaped by a Lighthawk orb.

Nearby, Tenchi propped himself up against a wall. His legs were healed, but it would take weeks for his 
body to fully regain use of them. 

His Lighthawk wings and orbs formed as well, and in unison with Joseph, they ran at Koros, about to maim 
Ryoko with an insanely powerful attack, their wings and orbs following them, and the two brothers took 
one swing.

For a brief moment, the room was filled with light. Joseph concentrated all of his power, in the hopes of 
completely destroying all of Koros's energy. In the brief milliseconds in which this happened, Joseph 
prevented Tenchi from using as much energy as he was to defeat Kagato. Joseph knew what might happen 
if he used this much energy, and he did not want Tenchi to have to deal with it too.

Then there was silence.

Koros fell to the ground, a grin on his face, and his black fire evaporating.

"I cannot die. You shall see more of me...." Were the last words of Koros, his body then disintegrating.

Tenchi lay on the ground, and sat up.

"Joseph!" He yelled, pointing to the man lying on the floor, breathing gently, a huge amount of his energy 
expended.

Everyone ran over, very quickly.

"Joseph! Wake up!" Mihoshi said, touching his face.

"I'll be okay...." Joseph mumbles, trying to get up, but he didn't have the energy to, instead falling back to 
the floor.

"Certified doctors coming through!" Washuu spoke, Loknar following her. They quickly did a scan of 
Joseph. From their faces, the news was promising.

"All of his injuries are curable, and can be easily fixed. HOWEVER, he has used a huge amount of his 
Psionic energy, even going into debt, if that is even possible. When we get back home, he will be in and out 
of counciousness for a few weeks to a month, but most of the time unconscious." Loknar said quietly, 
everyone then half-smiling, knowing that he was allright, but would not be able to be back to normal for a 
time.

Joseph looked at the ceiling, a little bit of blood over his eyes. There were second degree burns in his left 
leg and his right arm, the result of coming in contact with the dark fire.

"Am I dead?" He thought, barely able to keep his eyes open. The pain cracked and pealed, some irradiated 
drops of paint hitting his forehead.

"You are not dead, and you shall not die in the way that a man would normally die, Prince Joseph." Spoke a 
voice, very quiet and soft.

"I'm not a damned prince. I'm just a stubborn soldier with friends. Who are you?" Joseph asked it.

"I am Tsunami, Goddess of Jurai." She replied, her form visible over him, smiling. "You did not suffer 
these injuries, or fight this battle in vain. By doing this, you have ensured the future of the millions that 
would have died in the future under Koros's sword."

Joseph looked at Tsunami. Her appearance was very familiar to him....It reminded him of two people that 
he knew...The first was Miranda, before the Battle of the River of Blood, having changed her hairstyle right 
before it, ending up with the version that looked like Ryoko. Her hair color was the same as it would be 
during the battle, and her voice....Somewhat similar to Miranda's as well. The other person she resembled 
was....Sasami.

"This is insane." Joseph said to Tsunami, as the others put him and Tenchi into wheelchairs, which had 
been provided by Washuu and Loknar, via their computers.

Joseph looked around; none of them seemed to even hear Tsunami.

"It is not insane, Joseph. You did very well out there, and I commend you on that. You will do quite well in 
the future, especially as an Oanai..." She replied.

"I'm not an Oanai...." Joseph grumbled.

Mihoshi helped place him into one of the chairs, and listened to what he was saying.

"He must be dreaming." She thought, "Either that or he is talking to himself..."

She then suddenly noticed that his wings were gone.

"Uh...What happened to Joseph's wings?" Mihoshi asked.

"I have no idea, Mihoshi." Ayeka replied, looking at Joseph as well.

"What the heck are you two babbling about?" Ryoko asked, as only Mihoshi and Ayeka had seen the wings 
on his back.

"Yes, what ARE you talking about, Mihoshi?" Kiyone asked, partially not wanting to know.

Tenchi just sat in the chair, rubbing his legs, as they felt odd after the quick and efficient surgery performed 
by Drs. Washuu and Loknar.

Loknar and Washuu looked at each other and smiled. They knew what they were talking about.

"I'm glad you're allright, my lovely." Loknar whispered, hugging his girlfriend, then kissing her on the 
cheek.

"I feel the same way, Tassi." Washuu replied, kissing back.

"There is one more task you must complete here, Joseph. There will be more pain, but it will not take long. 
I am sorry." Tsunami whispered to Joseph, disappearing.

He turned to the left, the specter of Miranda having disappeared too.

Out of nowhere, there were the sounds of gunshots, and a sudden pain in his side and right leg.

Resyuki laughed, a trail of blood behind her. She shot twice more, both in Tenchi's barely-sealed up wound.

He screamed in pain once more, the sound echoing.

Joseph clenched his fists, and tried to ignore it, but he too cried out in pain, even though he could barely 
open his mouth.

"This is for the martyred Psi Zeta..." A female voice spoke, referring to Joseph's deceased squadron.

One more gunshot was heard, the bullet hitting Resyuki in the abdomen, driving her back to 
unconsciousness.

Smoke gently wafted from an earthly pistol that Mihoshi held, glaring at now-unconscious leader of the 
human deserters.

"Heal her so she doesn't die, then seal her somewhere, so she can't get out." Mihoshi spoke, in an odd, 
orderly tone.

"....Mihoshi..." Kiyone spoke, astonished.

Mihoshi didn't seem to listen. They did just as Mihoshi ordered, Washuu administering a healing kit, 
Ryoko and Ayeka then sealing her to the wall.

While they did that, Loknar healed Tenchi and Joseph. He healed Tenchi first, as his pain and injury were 
more severe, Washuu then healing Joseph as he finished Tenchi.

Ryoko turned to Mihoshi.

"What the hell was that?" She asked.

"What was what?" Mihoshi asked, back to her normal self. However, the pistol was gone.

"You spoke very seriously, and you were very accurate in your shot..." Kiyone replied.

"Aw, thank you Kiyone!" Mihoshi said, hugging Kiyone, thinking she was just complementing her.

As they soon left, Loknar noticed a medallion on the floor.

"When we get back to Ryo-Ohki and Ken-Ohki, we will have to destroy this." Loknar spoke, showing the 
medallion. "There is a strange force in here, and I don't want to let it out."

He held it just by the chain, as the medallion itself was giving off a large amount of heat.

The group walked down the hallways, Joseph and Tenchi in wheelchairs, everyone else healed. They 
walked past the ruins of Tsaniko City, their citizens investigating the damage. They were too busy to notice 
those who had saved their city.

They got back to their ships, without a word.

"Cao???" Ken-Ohki asked, wondering about the condition of Joseph.

"He'll be fine, but he will need a few weeks of bedrest." Washuu replied.

"Myaah?" Ryo-Ohki wondered, thinking about Tenchi.

"I'll be fine, Ryo-Ohki, I just need to use this wheelchair for awhile." He told her.

"Mya? Cao?" The two ships asked, wanting to know what happened.

"We'll tell you when we get back home." Ryoko replied.

Joseph, Washuu, Tenchi, and Loknar went in Ken-Ohki, the others in Ryo-Ohki. The two geniuses set up 
some equipment inside Ken-Ohki, using him as a makeshift hospital, until they could return to the lab.

They slowly undocked with Tsaniko, everyone breathing a sigh of relief as they did.

"One last thing..." Loknar said to those with him on Ken-Ohki, also visible via viewscreen to those on Ryo-
Ohki. "Tenchi, wake Joseph up. He needs to see this."

Tenchi did just that, Joseph barely able to stay awake.

He watched silently, as Loknar loaded the medallion into a small metal container, then placing a powerful 
Psionic lock on it, making it essentially impossible for normal entities to open. He then put it in a small 
hole, the box then launched from Ken-Ohki.

The package flew into deep space, where it would stay..........hopefully.

Everyone cheered, Ryoko giving the box the finger as it flew on its' journey.

Joseph closed his eyes after that, smiling.

They won.

Koros was dead.

They were going home.

Joseph looked at the faces of his friends, and smiled. They smiled back, warmly.