Tenchi Muyo: Ryoko's Precious Secret Chapter 2: No Secrets Ryoko held her son tight to her chest. She had to get away. The evil is now after her, and more importantly, it is after her child. Ryoko knew Ryshu is confused, but she had no choice. It is either stay and die, or run and live. Ryshu was quiet. He didn't say a word. The little cyan haired boy just held on tightly to the only world he knew, his mother. "Where do I go?" Ryoko said in worry. "I can't just fly off of this planet. Ryo-Ohki would only make a scene, and everyone will know that I am leaving." Ryoko sighed as she continued to fly her way out of the cave. "Ryoko!" Tenchi yelled. He was about to yell when he heard a rustle in some bushes in front of him. "Ryoko, is that you?" Tenchi asked in fear. If it is her, she might try to kill me like Ayeka said. But, I have to be strong. She needs me. He walked toward the bushes slowly. He could only hear himself breathe. It was dark, and he didn't even have a flashlight. "What am I doing? I can't just leap on her. I better just walk up there and take a peek. At least I know that this way I won't startle her." Tenchi said, but he was just about to put his hands on the bush when... "Aahahah!" Tenchi screamed. A cat jumped into his face. Tenchi lost his balance and fell down to the ground. He looked up and realized he was on his back. He also noticed a hissing sound. Tench slowly set up, and saw the black cat that jumped on him. It was now beside him standing in front of a smaller black cat. 'This must be the cat's kitten.' Tenchi thought to himself. The cat and her kitten took the advantage of Tenchi's thinking and ran off into the woods. Tenchi got back to his feet and continue his journey towards the cave. "I am almost there." Tenchi said. His started to walk faster and faster, until he was running to the cave entrance. Tenchi saw the entrance and knew there was no time to waste. (Somewhere in the woods.) "I see him. And I see the cave. " Washu said. Washu knew she disobeyed Tenchi's orders, but this was her daughter. She has never been there for Ryoko, especially when her daughter really needed her. 'I can't let fail her now. She needs me.' Washu thought to herself. Tenchi ran into the cave. It was dark, and he couldn't see. 'But that doesn't matter. I must get to Ryoko.' Tenchi thought. He ran only to see the cyan haired girl he was looking for was standing in front of him about ten feet away. "Stay back, Tenchi!" Ryoko yelled in the coldest voice she could form. 'I can't let him stop me. I am so close to getting us out of here. I must kill him, if we are going to get away. I know if I injure him, he still will not quit.' Ryoko thought as her child hid right behind her. "Tenchi, you leave me little choice." Ryoko said as she formed her beam sword. "Ryoko, I don't want to fight. I just want to help you. I know you are afraid, of whom and why, I am not sure. But, Ryoko please drop your weapon and talk with me." Tenchi said in a worried voice, but he also put all of his emotion into his words that he almost went to tears. "No! I can't. You know nothing about me. I lead you to think that, I was a happy person. This is the real me. Do you like what you see? Now, I am going to only say this once. Tenchi, I beg you turn around and go back the way you came never to look back. And one more thing, forget that you ever knew me. That is the only way you can help me." Ryoko replied in anger and frustration. Her kid was scared, and she couldn't comfort him for fear of Tenchi finding out her precious secret. She knew she had to act quick, but before she could even swing her sword it disappeared. She began to feel weak again. She couldn't believe it. The escape was finally over. She failed her son. Ryoko slowly fell down to her knees. "Run!" She yelled and fell unconscious. Tenchi watched as bruises appeared all over Ryoko's face and body. He also noticed she was bleeding badly all over her body as well. He watched as she fell to her knees and yell run. 'Run, from what?' Tenchi asked himself. Then it hit him. The cat and the kitten had done the same thing. She was telling whoever she was protecting to run. "Someone, help!" Tenchi screamed, but saw a red haired girl already looking at Ryoko's life signs. 'Washu, it had to be. He knew she would disobey him, but she had a right to be here after all it was her daughter. "Washu, I am not mad for you disobeying my orders, just give Ryoko help. I have to go get something. I will be right back. Don't worry about me. And tell the others not to worry; that I have found the person she is protecting. Go!" He said. Washu got to her feet and summoned her keyboard and began typing. A black portal appeared and Washu picked up her daughter. "Tenchi, before I go grab this out of my pocket. It will open this portal to my lab. Just push the green button. Is that understood?" Washu instructed. "Yes." Tenchi said as he grabbed the device. Washu and Ryoko disappeared into the black void. Tenchi waited for it to close and continued deeper into the cave. (In Washu's lab) The void opened and Washu carried Ryoko to a table in the center of her lab. She laid Ryoko on the table gently. Washu sighed in relief. It just wasn't easy for a girl her size to carry someone much taller and heavier than her. "I better hook up my life support systems. Hold on Ryoko. Mommy is here." Washu spoke as tear fell down her cheek. Washu tried to wipe them off. "Look Ryoko. You finally did it. You made the greatest scientific genius cry." Washu mumbled and lost herself in her tears, as she took off Ryoko's robe and covered her naked body with a sheet. Then, she connected her life support and healing machines to Ryoko. Washu finally finished the connections and summoned her keyboard . She began typing at a rapid rate. She stopped and looked at Ryoko, while a similar black void as the one they walked through to get to the lab, appeared beneath Ryoko. A mattress floated out of the void. Washu typed again on her keyboard and the void closed. Washu started reading the data on her machines. "Damn!" She cried. "Ryoko, you silly girl, you have been split into two forms since the day began. You used so much of your energy that you began to use your life force. There better be a good reason for doing a dumb thing like that, because mommy can't restore the life energy. You won't be able to heal these wounds." Washu spoke in tears again hoping that Ryoko can at least hear her. She wanted to go tell the others, but she couldn't leave Ryoko's side. She had to make sure Ryoko's life signs are stable. She began to clean and bandage all of Ryoko's wounds. Then, I thought occurred to her. It might not help Ryoko, but it will get her friends here. "Ryo-Ohki!" Washu called trying to hide back her tears. The little cabbit ran into the lab. She jumped into Washu's arms not noticing her injured master on the table. "Go get all the others down here fast. Will you do that for mommy?" Washu pleaded more than asked. "Miya!" Replied the little cabbit as ran out the lab door. A few minutes later, Washu heard a bunch of footsteps in her lab. She looked behind her to see Ryo-Ohki leading Ayeka, Sasami, and Lord Katshito to where Washu stood. "Where is Mihoshi?" Asked the little red haired scientist. "She called and said she would not be here for another month. Her mother is sick, and for the time it will take her mother to heal and get back here will be about a month." Lord Katshito replied. "No! What happened to her. I will have to train Tenchi much harder, if he is going to protect these girls." Katshito shouted in rage. He just couldn't stand a lady being hurt because it was so dishonorable to hurt a lady. "There is nothing Tenchi can do. These wounds are missing lystane." Washu claimed. "Miss Washu, where is Tenchi?" Ayeka asked. "And what is lystane?" Ayeka asked as her anger was replaced with confusion. "Tenchi is getting the person Ryoko is protecting. He will be back shortly. And, Lystane is a chemical in Ryoko's body. This chemical is formed from the masses. It allows Ryoko to heal herself. But, somehow Ryoko didn't use lystane to heal these wounds because they reappeared. She probably bandaged them and let them heal at their own time. Lystane can also make the masses forget a wound because if the masses remembered the wound, one thought could make them appear. If the life energy is too weak to heal, then Ryoko will not be able to heal the wounds that appear." Washu sighed as she finished her lecture and waited for the next question. "Does she use this lystane to heal the wounds that reappear?" Ayeka asked. "Yes, but once the masses are not used to heal a wound once, they will remember it for the rest of Ryoko's life." Do you all understand?" Washu replied as she made her point. Do you know how or why she got these wounds?" Asked Sasami who can't just stand not letting the fiend who did this go unpunished. "Yes, I do." Replied the little scientist. "It was Kagato. The wounds are old enough to be around during that time period. I don't know if it was his training or not. He needed Ryoko to carry out his plan, so he wouldn't hurt for the hell of it." Washu spoke again as anger for the black robed man flowed through her veins. "Why didn't she use the lystane to heal herself?" Asked Lord Katshito. "I don't know why." Washu said in a cold, but dreary voice. She began to finally release all of her emotions. "She is going to die, and I can't save her. I am the greatest scientific genius in the universe and I can't...save...my..." Everyone tried to comfort the crying Washu except Sasami who was trying to keep Ryo-Ohki from jumping on to Ryoko. "Let it all out, Washu. You will fell better." Katshito spoke in a soft, but comforting voice. "We will save Ryoko together." Ayeka spoke as an idea began to formulate in her head.. "Washu, what about Ryoko's gems can she use them to heal?" Washu tried to quit crying so she can speak and held her emotions in. "I am afraid she can't Ayeka because Ryoko did a very foolish thing. She used all the gems energy and her own life force." "Why?" Asked the puzzled Jurian Princess. "Ever since Ryoko saw Tenchi she split herself into two forms. The form we knew as Ryoko was her wild side. She put all of her bad qualities into that form, while the other stayed to guard whatever she was protecting. Over that amount of time, Ryoko lost power in her gems, and began to use her life energy. She is drained of all energy." Washu paused to let it sink into everyone's head what is going on. "Ryoko will die within six hours. That is all the energy she has left." "Can't you recharge the power in the gems?" Asked Sasami who was crying too after finally calming down a worried Ryo-Ohki. "Yes, I could and I am trying. But, I am afraid by the time they are charged it will be too late." Replied the depressed scientist. (Back in the cave.) "This is the main chamber." Tenchi said to himself. He looked around, after hearing a child crying to see that in the center of the room was a pallet and a small dark figure in the shadows was hiding in it. Tenchi walked over as the features resembled a cyan haired boy. "Mommy! Is that you?" The little boy cried. Tenchi stopped where he stood. 'That boy thought I was his mother, which means Ryoko is a mother.' Tenchi thought. "And we never knew." He spoke to himself. "NO!" Cried the little boy. "You are not my mommy. You are the bad force that is after us stay back." The boy warned in fear of the battle he couldn't win. "Your mother is safe. Come with me and I will take you to her." Tenchi spoke in a reassuring voice. "Mommy said to trust no one." Said the shivering little boy. Tenchi sat down on his knees. "You have to trust me. How about you ask me a question only that a friend of your mommy's will know." "Ok. What is mommy's favorite two people in the entire universe." Said the nervous little boy. Tenchi thought to himself. 'Let me see. Ryoko would not tell her son she liked me because he is too young to understand, so it has to be Washu and her son.' Tenchi knew it was a long shot. She never seemed to like Washu being her mother, but there is so much that Ryoko didn't tell him already that it had to be Washu. After all, she didn't tell him she was in danger, or about her son. "I will have to say she lover you and her mother. Is that not correct?" Tenchi asked trying not to show that it was more of a guess than an answer. "Mommy might have told you, but the bad force can read minds." Replied the scared little boy. "My name is Tenchi." Tenchi hoped that revealing his name might do something after all. Then, he had an idea. "Here is a picture of me and your mommy." The little one watched as Tenchi pulled out the photograph. He looked at it. Ryoko was smiling with her arms around Tenchi. "Are you my daddy?" Asked the little boy as he was starting to calm down. Tenchi figured this would be the perfect opportunity to get the boy to come to him. He felt bad lying to the kid, and came to the next best thing. "No. I am a friend. We are very close." Tenchi said trying to show the boy his friendly smile. "But, I guess you can call me daddy if it makes you happy." "Ok." Said the confused little cyan haired boy. " I would love to be called your father." Tenchi said trying to make the boy comfortable even though he found himself really wanting to have a family all of the sudden. Tenchi opened his arms to show the boy he cared. "Da...Da...Daddy!" Cried Ryoko's son as he ran into Tenchi's open arms. Tenchi wrapped his arms around the boy and gave him a hug. "It will be okay. We will go see your mommy together." Replied Tenchi as he grabbed the device, Washu gave him, with his right hand while still hugging the boy with his left. He pushed the green button and watched as a black void opened in the cave. He picked up the child and held him with both arms. "Lets go see mommy." Tenchi said as he walked through the void. "Mommy!" The little boy cheered. The void surrounded them then closed. (Washu's lab) The void opened and Tenchi walked through. Everyone in the lab stared at Tenchi and the person in his arms. "Tenchi, Who is that with you?" Washu asked as she walked closer. "This is Ryoko's son. He is the one she was protecting. Why don't you tell us your name?" Tenchi asked. "My name is Ryshu." Replied the scared little boy. Ayeka was angry for Tenchi holding the old space pirate's child, but could only be happy by looking at him. He was so cute. "I am Princess Ayeka, the first crowned princess of Planet Jurai." She could only introduce herself, but at least she tried to welcome the new member of the family. "And I am Sasami, Ayeka's sister." Sasami said as she bowed. The little boy looked comfortable, but he looked at Washu uncomfortable. "Who are you?" He asked in curiosity. "I am your grandmother and your mom's mother. My name is Washu." She replied with a smile. She could give the scientific part of her introduction, but this was not the time. The boy looked at Tenchi, and then back to everyone else. "Hi!" That is all he could say; he didn't know them that well. "Get away from him!" Shouted a familiar female voice. "He is my son and we have to leave." Everyone turned around to see Ryoko sitting up with the a sheet wrapped around her body. Her left hand was ready to shoot an energy blast at them. "Mommy!" Said the cheerful little boy. He jumped out of Tenchi's arms and ran to his mother's. Ryoko held him tightly to her. "So, you all know. I should have never come here. You..." She pointed at Tenchi, "had to explore the cave. Now it knows where Ryshu and I are." Tears flowed down Ryoko's cheek as she was laying back down. She was too weak to sit up. "Mommy!" Cried the now worried little boy as his mother loosened her hug on him. "Ryoko, let us help. You are too ill to run away. And we don't want to see you go. Besides, how is this little one going to live, if he is running away all the time. "Very well." She said weakly. "Ryshu be brave. Mommy will always be with you. Go over there with your grandma. Mommy needs to speak with the nice people." Ryoko said in tears, but trying not to let her son know. Ryshu walked to where Washu was standing. Washu took his hand and led him away from the group. "Ayeka." Ryoko called. "Yes." She replied trying not to cry. "You are of the royal family of Jurai. Please take care of my son. He will be safer under your custody." Ayeka was about to say something, but Ryoko interrupted. "I know we didn't get along, but forgive me and please, I beg of you take care of Ryshu." "Tell my mother that she did not fail, and that I lover her. As for you three..." She pointed at Tenchi, Katshito, and Sasami. "Sasami, help your sister raise my little Ryshu. Sasami nodded in understanding and said, "Ryoko don't leave us." "I really don't have a choice this time, Sasami." Replied the dying cyan haired woman. "Tenchi and Lord Katshito live your lives to the fullest and forget that you knew me. That goes for all of you." She said in a stern voice. "It is for the good of my son." She began to go blind and the images of her friends faded. "Tenchi!" She called. "I am right here, Ryoko." He said as walked over to hold he limp hand. "You can help Ayeka and Sasami raise him, it might be better that way. That is..." She gasped and began to cough violently. "Ryoko!" he screamed while trying to comfort her. She finally relaxed and spoke again. "If you want to go. Either way, he must at least be with Ayeka. She took a deep breath and spoke again. Tell mom to go with Ayeka. And my final message goes to Ryshu. Tell him that his mother loves him very much and that I will always be with him." Her eyes finally closed as she went into a deep sleep. "No!" Tenchi screamed. "Don't leave us, Ryoko." He held his emotions with all his might as he spoke, "don't leave me." With that thought he let his emotions pour out of him and cried. He wrapped his arms around her and fell to his knees. Ayeka took Sasami by the shoulder as the little girl also began to cry, and lead her and Ryo-Ohki outside of the lab. "Come, you two." She said while trying not to burst also. "We will leave them alone." She looked behind her at Ryoko. "I promise Ryoko. I will raise and protect Ryshu as if he was my own." She opened the lab door and let Sasami and Ryo-Ohki walk through first. Then, followed behind them and closed the door leaving the sleeping Ryoko with Tenchi. Thunder clashed and it began to rain. For even the world cried for the soon death of the loved one in the Masaki house. The End What do you think? Don't worry, this is not the end. I have Chapter 3 on the way. Enjoy.