{Thank you for coming back for chapter two.  I really appreciate anyone who may 
actually be reading this.  Let's get straight to the story, right after the: 
(drumroll) Boring Disclaimer: I don't own most of these characters, AIC and 
Pioneer do.  I'm actually a multi-billionaire, so you might think that it's 
worth suing me, but I have great lawyers who will kick your ass if you  try.}


Tenchi Muyo!

War of Vengeance

Chapter Two- Sins of the Father


	"You were sired by the usurper?" asked a wide-eyed Ayeka.

	"Why do you insist on simplifying things so much, Princess?" questioned 
Dakanao.  The wind blew through his heavy green and black coat.

	"Dakanao," Katsuhito said evenly, "your father was an evil man who 
deserved his fate."

	"You would say that, wouldn't you, Yosho.  I ask you: What was it he did 
that was so evil?  He took what he could get.  When you and he were young, you 
acted the part of the coward, refusing to take advantage of the great Jurai 
power at your disposal.  Kagato was not so foolish. He used the power granted 
him for what it could do.  And for that, you banished him from Jurai.

	"He spent years after that building a powerful piracy operation from the 
ground up.  He and I controlled a criminal empire.  Then he returned to Jurai to 
take back the throne that was denied him.  So you, young prince," he sneered at 
Tenchi, "you killed him. After that, the Juraian officials tore apart our empire 
piece by piece, and I was left with nothing."

	Tenchi's eyes were downcast.  "I did not want to take a life," he said 
quietly.  "But the freedom of billions of people was at stake.  I have no 
regrets."

	"Your father stole the throne from its rightful inhabitants," stated 
Ayeka.  "We had no choice but to reclaim it."

	"Don't lie to me.  The only reason why you fought against Kagato was that 
he threatened your own personal power."

	"Kagato was interested in his own power.  The Jurai family ruled for the 
good of the people.  Kagato was evil.  Our family was good."

	"There is no such thing as good and evil, princess.  Life is completely 
without meaning.  There is no rhyme and reason to the universe and there is no 
greater power.  People do what they desire to do.  The only reason that anyone 
ever acts selflessly is to feel better about himself and win praise."

	"That's a lie!" snarled Ryoko.  "I've done evil things myself, and I gave 
it up once I realized how my actions affected others."

	"Is that so, Ryoko?  I thought the reason you divorced yourself from your 
criminal past was to get something else."  He grinned at Tenchi.  "Or, should I 
say, someone?"

	Ryoko stopped, terrified at the accusation.  Surely Tenchi was responsible 
for her reformation, but that was only because he had shown her that she was a 
better person when she led a good life.  Or was Dakanao right, and she had done 
all of this just out of a selfish desire for Tenchi's love?

	"Let's face it, cherry blossom.  If Tenchi ever chose someone else, you 
would return to your old ways in a heartbeat."

	"Enough talk!" growled Ryoko, shaking her head violently to clear away her 
doubts.  "If you want a fight, you've got one."

	"Good to know you're just as violent as ever," Dakanao chuckled.  He threw 
off his coat and revealed a light, pale battle suit.

	"Dakanao," Katsuhito said gravely, "it has been said that the sins of the 
father are visited on the son.  I would be willing to bet that your father made 
you what you are today.  For that reason alone, I will allow you one last chance 
to leave this planet forever."

	Dakanao laughed, jumped backwards and backflipped fifteen feet off the 
ground before landing deftly on top of the ship's ramp. "Come on, then."

	Ryoko pushed herself off of the ground and sailed towards Dakanao.  Before 
reaching him, she fired an energy blast from her right hand in his direction.  
She then teleported to his left side and threw a kick at his head.  Not missing 
a beat, Dakanao ducked under the kick and formed a blue energy sword in his left 
hand, with which he deflected the shot.  He then pivoted to his left and shot 
out his right hand. Grabbing Ryoko's tail, he yanked hard and ripped it off, 
along with the seat of her dress.

	"I forgot, it's a clip-on," Dakanao sneered.  "I hate fakers."  Ryoko 
quickly phased into her black and red battle suit and drew an energy sword of 
her own.

	Ayeka came soaring up the ramp flanked by Azaka and Kamidake.  Meanwhile, 
Tenchi and Katsuhito both ignited their energy swords and were preparing to 
charge their foe as soon as the ramp was clear. Mihoshi and Kiyone had pulled 
their blasters and were searching for a 
clean shot.

	The purple-headed princess reached the battle and, floating directly above 
the ramp, she and the guardians loosed a bolt of Jurai energy.  Dakanao leveled 
his right hand at Ayeka and formed an invisible shield against the energy flow 
while simultaneously parrying Ryoko's thrusts of her energy sword using the 
sword in his left hand.  The space pirate was swinging in all directions, and 
Dakanao was waiting for her to slip up.  When she swung at him from above, he 
blocked the strike while it was still over her head and, while still fending off 
Ayeka's energy beam, he kicked Ryoko in the abdomen with the heel of his left 
foot.  She doubled over and soared backwards through the air.

	"One clean shot is all it takes," he said cruelly.  He then powered down 
his sword to a small sliver of light and placed it in the path of the beam that 
Ayeka was still pouring energy into.  His sword quickly regained its full size.  
She stopped firing and developed a shocked expression.

	"That's right, princess.  Since my energy is of the same type as yours, it 
is possible for me to absorb it.  Although I doubt that you will be as lucky."  
He jumped from the ramp towards her and slashed from the top left.  Azaka flew 
in front and blocked the sword with an energy shield.

	"No harm must come to our princess!" shouted the log-like knight.

	"Those stupid talking trash cans!" shouted Dakanao, landing back on the 
ramp.  He pulled his right wrist to his mouth.  "Colonel, this is Captain 
Dakanao.  Fire one."  Before anyone could react, two of the Daemos's guns fired 
at the guardians, instantly incapacitating them.  Ayeka was thrown back and to 
her left by the blast and fell to the ground, dropping into a crouch.

	"Much better.  I always prefer an uncluttered battle," Dakanao commented 
as he deflected a series of blaster shots from the two police women.

	"Crap, out of ammo," muttered Kiyone.

	"What do we do, Kiyone?" wailed Mihoshi.

	Dakanao diverted his attention from the now harmless detectives to Tenchi, 
who was charging up the ramp at him.  Gripping his sword in his left hand, the 
pirate braced himself for the prince's assault.  Tenchi slashed upward at 
Dakanao.  He was blocked and his foe countered swiftly.  Dakanao then reached 
into  a pocket with his right hand and pulled out the hilt of a sword.  It was a 
Juraian key.  He ignited it and Tenchi was forced to switch to the defensive.  
He was just barely able to keep up with two dancing blades, and he knew that he 
could not last long against this more experienced warrior.  Fortunately, he had 
also noticed his grandfather, someone Dakanao had forgotten about.

	Katsuhito had slipped under the ramp while Tenchi distracted their enemy.  
As Dakanao pushed the battle down the ramp, pressing his advantage, Katsuhito 
leapt upward and sliced through the top of the ramp.  The two duelists fell to 
the ground, with Dakanao expending a small bit of energy to float down rather 
than fall.

	"Now that we're all on the same level, perhaps this fight will be a bit 
more fair," said Katsuhito.

	"Well, I could simply fly away," mused Dakanao.  "But midair swordfighting 
is dreadfully complicated."  {This guy can fly?} thought Tenchi as he resumed 
his attack.

	Ayeka was staying out of the way of the duel, realizing that the three 
warriors were locked in combat.  Her presence would be difficult to make known, 
and she was unsure whether her energy blasts would even be effective.  Mihoshi 
was sitting on the ground fiddling with her cube, while Kiyone was pacing, 
desperately trying to think of something they could do.

	One person whom everyone seemed to have forgotten about was Ryoko.  And 
that was just the way she wanted it.  Floating far above the duel, the demonness 
was powering up a huge energy blast.  {Just hold him in one place for a few more 
seconds}, she thought.

	The duel seemed to be an even match.  Dakanao parried all of Katsuhito's 
blows with his left hand and Tenchi's with his right. While it was difficult for 
him to attack either enemy without turning his back on the other, he was 
occasionally able to thrust at one of his rivals, preventing them from taking a 
clear advantage.  In reality, though, Dakanao felt almost bored at this point.  
He had yet to reach the limits of his power and was worried that the battle 
would end too easily.  Still, something was bothering him...

	He sensed the energy buildup above him a second before it was fired.  
{Ryoko.}  As the next pair of slashes came, he jumped slightly off the ground.  
He blocked both blows in midair, causing himself to fly backwards an instant 
before Ryoko's blast hit the spot where he had just been standing.

	The shock wave from the unexpected explosion sent Tenchi and Katsuhito 
backwards.  A small crater, about five feet deep and the same across, was dug 
into the ground.  Dakanao raised his right hand and fired a pair of energy balls 
at his still dazed opponents.  He scored direct hits against both Tenchi and 
Katsuhito, throwing them to the ground and scorching their flesh.  Turning his 
head upwards, he shot into the air towards Ryoko.

	Dakanao careened full speed at her.  Ryoko teleported away just before 
they collided.  He stopped in midair and turned downward to block her sword 
strike as she rematerialized.

	The entire group was staring upward at the duel between the pirates with 
bated breath.  Ryoko continued to disappear and reappear, swinging from every 
conceivable angle, but Dakanao was always able to react in time.  She was 
praying that he would make a mistake soon, but he was observing her movements 
closely and noticing a pattern.

	As she disappeared from above him, he swung his right fist into the space 
to his left.  As expected, Ryoko appeared in that space.  His fist met the side 
of her chin, and she felt a crack form in her jaw.  Not wasting a moment, he 
rushed forward, swooping under her and grabbing her arms from the back, pinning 
them behind her. She tried to teleport away, but since he was in contact with 
her, he teleported as well.

	"Nice try, but I'm afraid it simply will not work."  He pulled her arms 
across each other behind her back, nearly yanking them out of their sockets.  
Ryoko was using all of her considerable strength to resist, but she could tell 
that she wouldn't hold out for long.  "I'm going to enjoy ripping you apart, you 
little whore."  He twisted her arms inward, causing her to cry out in pain.


	Kiyone scanned the sky, watching Ryoko and Dakanao zoom around almost too 
fast to see.  She gritted her teeth and stomped her foot on the ground.  
"Dammit!"  It always seemed to happen this way.  Whenever there was a big fight, 
everyone else was so far beyond she and Mihoshi that there was never anything 
they could do to make a dent.

	She looked down at her partner, who was sitting on the ground typing 
commands into her control cube.

	"Mihoshi, put your toys away and help me here."

	"Sheesh, Kiyone, what is it?"  Kiyone was about to answer when she heard a 
pair of beeps from the cube, followed by a disembodied feminine voice.

	"Welcome to Daemos main computer interface," it said with machine-like 
precision.  "How may I assist you?"

	"Give me that cube!" shouted Kiyone, tearing it out of her bewildered 
partner's hands.  She looked at the hologram above the cube, stunned.  Mihoshi 
had somehow managed to hack into the Daemos's control system.  The teal-haired 
detective smiled.  Kiyone had always thought of her partner as the embodiment of 
dumb luck.  Every so often, that girl did something right.

	Kiyone glanced up and saw that Dakanao had pinned Ryoko.  Grimacing, she 
looked over the display.  It consisted of five yellow squares with words written 
in the center of each.  Kiyone pressed the option for weapons.  A new menu 
opened and she selected lasers.  From the list of lasers she chose "port one."  
The hologram turned into a targeting screen that showed the field they were 
standing on.  She turned the viewfinder upwards and saw Ryoko and Dakanao from 
below and behind.  This was going to be one hell of a shot.  If she was off by a 
hair, she could incinerate Ryoko.  Biting her lip, she lined up the crosshairs 
with Dakanao.


	"We can't just sit here, Washu!" shouted Sasami, who was pacing nervously 
around the dimly lit lab.  "We have to do something!"

	"Easy, kiddo," the short scientist said calmly.  "The last thing we should 
do is panic."  She looked at the collection of displays in front of her and her 
eyes lingered on the one showing the Galaxy Policewomen.

	"What on Earth are you up to?" wondered Washu aloud.  Kiyone was holding 
the cube tightly and appeared to be intently focused on something.

	Washu's musings were cut short by a loud beeping from one of the 
holographic monitors.  Slapping a button on her computer to turn off the alarm, 
she looked at the infrared readouts.  She had programmed the computer to warn 
her if the Daemos activated any of its weapons.  The IR reading now clearly 
showed the port bow laser heating up.  She was about to warn Ryoko when she 
thought of something very strange.

	"Why are they only using that laser?"  It didn't make any sense that that 
was all of the ship's considerable firepower they would take advantage of.  Then 
she noticed where the laser was aiming and she became thoroughly confused.

	"They're trying to shoot down Ryoko?!" she wailed in her most nasal voice.  
"Dakanao is in complete control, and from that angle they have a better chance 
of hitting him than her."  She glanced at all her monitors, noticed the picture 
of Kiyone again... and suddenly all of the pieces fell into place.

	"Ah..." nodded Washu thoughtfully.  "Very clever, Detective Makibi."  It 
was a good plan, but not without its risks.  She'd have to have precise aim, and 
if the target moved an inch, then the whole effort would be worse than useless.  
Washu called Ryoko to warn her.

	"Ryoko, whatever you do, don't you or Dakanao move an inch."


	Ryoko winced and bit back a yelp as Dakanao pulled her left arm another 
inch.  It felt as though her arms were about to be ripped out.  She could also 
still feel the pain searing through her jaw.

	{What was I thinking, trying to fight him alone?} she berated herself.  
{If only someone else could get up here.  Or maybe... if we could get down 
there?}  She smiled at the idea, and was only angry that she hadn't thought of 
it sooner.  All she had to do was teleport to the ground and then Tenchi and the 
others could join in the fight.  Closing her eyes, she prepared to phase out...

	"Ryoko, whatever you do, don't you or Dakanao move an inch."  Ryoko's eyes 
shot open and her body went rigid upon hearing the voice.  She didn't know what 
to expect, but she knew better than to question her at a time like this.

	Dakanao grunted in frustration.  "You're making this much more difficult 
than it has to be, my dear."  As he said this, Kiyone pressed the fire button on 
the cube.  A beam of green light lanced out from the laser battery and connected 
squarely with Dakanao's back.  Caught completely off guard, the ray tore through 
the villain's flesh before he had a chance to defend himself.  He was protected 
by a moderate energy shield that was constantly in place, but it was not nearly 
enough to protect fully against weaponry designed to battle capital starships.

	Ryoko felt the blistering heat coming from behind her.  The force of the 
shot ripped through both pirates.  As soon as Dakanao's grip slackened, Ryoko 
teleported down to the ground.

	"Ryoko!" Tenchi shouted, rushing over to her.  "Are you all right?" he 
asked, touching her shoulders to check for injury.  She felt herself blush at 
the contact.

	"I've had worse," she said, resuming her tough girl persona.  She rotated 
her shoulders and neck, trying to work out the throbbing pains.  "Let's keep our 
eye on the ball, Tenchi."

	They looked up and saw Dakanao floating to the ground, panting heavily.  
"You little bitch," he said, aiming a withering gaze at Kiyone.  He was turned 
away from Tenchi, Ryoko, and Katsuhito.  The back of his suit had been 
incinerated and there was a large black hole in his back.  Tenchi noticed that 
the scorched flesh already appeared to be healing.

	Faster than anyone could see, Dakanao raised his hand at Kiyone and fired 
a small blast.  Before she even had a chance to react, the cube in her hands 
exploded.  He then kicked off the ground and zoomed over to Kiyone.  Dodging 
Ayeka, he extended his fist and slammed it into Kiyone's gut.  She folded like a 
jack knife and writhed on the ground.

	"You'll pay for that, detective," he said, bending to the ground and 
slapping her across the face.

	"Stop it!" shouted Mihoshi, firing her blaster with the extra power pack 
that she had just found.  Dakanao raised his hand and deflected the shots 
easily.

	"How nice.  The friends who stay together, are slain together."  He 
delivered a roundhouse kick to the side of her face, dropping her to the ground.  
"I'm tired of dealing with you two," he said, firing a powerful blast at the 
grounded detectives.  It hit with devastating force.  The two fell unconscious 
immediately.  "Let's finish this."  He shot off a killing blast. As it left his 
hand, a group of power logs appeared and formed a force field that caught the 
energy.

	Dakanao looked up and saw Ayeka, her circlet glowing, standing behind him.  
He also noticed Ryoko, Tenchi, and Katsuhito standing at different points around 
him.

	"Why don't you try taking on someone who can fight back?"  Tenchi said, 
snarling at his enemy.

	Dakanao jumped into the air and flew up above them.  Ryoko was about 
follow, but Tenchi grabbed her arm to hold her down and she thought better.

	Tenchi and Katsuhito raised their swords.  Dakanao fired a series of 
energy blasts, but they were easily blocked by the energy swords.  He had to 
duck to avoid one shot that was returned to him, and a couple of deflected 
blasts hit his ship.

	As this went on, Ryoko received a message from Washu.  "Ayeka," Ryoko 
said, "Washu's analyzed this guy's energy absorption ability, and she says it 
only works if he knows exactly how much energy to expect.  As long as you use 
only short blasts and not energy waves, he can't do anything about it."  She 
nodded and smiled.

	Seeing that his new tactic wasn't working, Dakanao flew back to the ground 
and aimed for Ryoko's back.  However, she teleported out of the way and 
reappeared above him.  He stopped, landing on the ground, once again surrounded.  
Tenchi and Katsuhito were at his front flanks while Ayeka was behind him, and 
Ryoko floated right above.

	Frowning, he ignited his key in his right hand and formed an energy sword 
in his left.  He didn't like these odds.  He might be fast enough to beat them 
all, but he couldn't be sure of the outcome, especially with the injuries he had 
received.  However, maybe he had a chance to even things up.

	"I'm through toying with you.  I think I'll show you what I'm really 
capable of.  Look's like it's time for round two," he said loudly into the air.  
The others attacked rapidly.


	"Roger that," said a gray-haired man on the bridge of the Daemos to 
himself.  He was a middle-aged person called Colonel Gortav. He was second on 
the ship only to Dakanao and, although no one would say so, everyone knew that 
he was more knowledgeable about ship combat tactics than even Dakanao himself.

	Gortav turned away from the window at the front of the ship and looked 
around the bridge. It consisted of a walkway down the center, on which he was 
standing.  On either side of the walkway were pits extending several hundred 
feet down the length of the bridge containing numerous computer terminals and 
chairs with various creatures sitting in them.  Each separate section of the pit 
had officers standing above on the walkway, overlooking operations.  It was 
quite a sight to see hundreds of creatures belonging to numerous different 
species from all over the galaxy working together.

	"Gunners!" he called down into the pit.  "Captain Dakanao has signaled 
that we are to fire on his enemies.  Use only lasers, as any explosives are not 
accurate enough to ensure that damage will be done only to the bogies.  Fire at 
will."  Because the lasers were installed as a pair of rows along the ship, just 
like the pillars that supported it, only two gunners were in position to fire on 
the melee.  One was a furry rodent about three and a half feet tall.  The other 
was a toad-like creature of human size.  The exact same thought was running 
through both of their heads: {I smell a big promotion on the way.}


	Washu watched the monitor closely.  The battle seemed to be going well.  
Every second, Dakanao had to block two swings from Tenchi and Katsuhito, an 
energy blast from Ayeka, and a blast or sword strike from Ryoko.  The red-head 
was amazed that he was able to keep up with so many attacks.

	"His speed is uncanny.  I didn't even think it was possible to move that 
fast," she said in awe.  "I wonder if he's using some sort of amphetamines, or 
perhaps his body has been cybernetically enhanced?  Either that, or he's just 
incredibly well trained."  She grinned.  "I hope I get a chance to do an 
autopsy."

	Washu was interrupted by another loud beeping.  Turning off the alarm, she 
saw that both of the Daemos's front lasers were heating up.

	"This one's for real," muttered the tiny genius.  "They're both aiming at 
our side.  I wonder if I can stop them from firing." She typed a few keys and a 
screen appeared above a control panel.  It was blank except for a vertical line 
down the center and a repeating wave pattern that was moving left across the 
screen.

	"Got it.  Not a problem for someone like me.  Oh, but it needs a manual 
operator, and I still have other things I need to attend to.  Sasami!" she 
called out.  "Come here.  I've got something for you to do."  The little 
princess rushed over, eager to do anything she could to help.

	"What is it, Washu?" she asked quickly.  Washu gestured at the wave graph.

	"This is a simple cosine wave defined by the expression 'y equals cosine 
of pi x', where x is in seconds.  The ship is using this pattern of radio waves 
to communicate between the bridge and their weapons.  What I need you to do is 
to fire a series of negative cosine waves.  If timed properly, the destructive 
interference they create should disable the communications with the firing 
mechanisms."

	"Huh?"

	"Oh, right.  Layman.  The upshot of it is: Every time you see the peak of 
one of these waves cross the line in the middle, press that yellow button, and 
they won't be able to fire their lasers."

	"Gotcha."  Sasami watched the display closely.  As a peak crossed the 
axis, Sasami pressed the button.  On Washu's own display, a second wave appeared 
with a low point to match the first wave's high point and continued opposite the 
first wave.  Sasami repeated the process as another peak passed every two 
seconds.
"Washu, I just thought of something," said Ryoko quietly, but loud enough for 
Washu to hear.  "Do we have to worry about Daemos's lasers?"

	"Don't worry, Ryoko.  They tried to use them, but I've got the situation 
completely under control."

	"Good to know."

	"Well, it wasn't any trouble for the greatest scientific genius in the 
universe!"

	"Yeah, yeah.  Don't get carried away."

	"You're the best, Washu!" shouted Washu doll A.

	"You can do anything, Washu!" piped in B.

	"Washu, the greatest scientist in the universe!" they both cheered.  
Smiling, Washu turned back to the battle monitors.  Nothing was going to happen 
today without her knowing about it ahead of time. It paid to be brilliant.


	Dakanao's blades swirled through the air, blocking blows and blasts.  He 
saw the world in slow motion and moved to stop attacks before they were even 
launched.  Here was something his father had never appreciated.  Kagato took 
great pleasure in standing like a statue and allowing attacks to reflect 
harmlessly off of him.  While that was good for an occasional display of fear, 
it was dangerous in a pitched battle.  A true warrior took note of every threat, 
determined which ones were worth acknowledging, and acted appropriately.

	Another important aspect of a warrior, he reminded himself, was to know 
your enemies.  Dakanao knew what these four were capable of.  What's more, at 
this point it was obvious that they would beat him if he didn't get some 
assistance.  Why weren't those guns firing?


	"What in the galaxy is going on down there?" blared Colonel Gortav into 
the barely controlled chaos of the bridge pits.

	"The firing mechanism isn't responding, sir!" stated the rodent gunner, 
searching through his computer readouts for an explanation.

	"What do you mean, not responding?"

	"I'm not sure, but I think the radio transmitter is being jammed.  I'm 
betting that Science Academy woman is responsible."

	"Is there some way you can fire manually?"

	"No, sir.  Unless we can get through the jamming, there's no way to fire 
the weapons."

	"Well then, you'd better find a way to get through the jamming, hadn't 
you!" he bellowed. "Communications!  Get over here!"

	"Yes sir!" snapped a human male on the walkway who had the rank of 
lieutenant, jumping forward and saluting.

	"Can you find a way to break through this jamming?"

	"That depends on how it is being performed," he answered, shrugging.

	"Then find out!"

	"Yes, sir!  Ensign!" he shouted into the pit at a tan feline.  "Give me 
your best estimate as to how this jamming is being performed."

	The ensign turned her head over her left shoulder.  It would have been far 
too awkward to have tried to stand at attention in the crowded pit.  "It seems 
that all this is is a simple radio wave that is the negative of our own wave 
being used to interfere with our signal.  This would be simple to stop by 
destroying the transmitter they are using, but we have been unable to locate it.  
It is possible that the waves are being relayed through our own systems.  We've 
been trying to cut off external access to the communications systems, but it is 
near impossible to completely prevent it without shutting down the systems 
altogether, although we have been able to prevent access to the control 
computer, negating the threat of a repeat of the earlier fiasco."

	"I see," said the communications officer.  "Tell me, ensign, are these 
waves being fired by a computer?"

	"Highly unlikely.  Our waves have a period of exactly two seconds.  Yet 
the jamming waves, while they all have the same period, start at times several 
milliseconds before or after our own waves' starting points.  This is probably 
attributable to human error.  Not enough to give us an opening, but too 
imprecise to be computerized."

	"Interesting.  Have you considered how it is that they are able to predict 
what wavelength our transmissions use?  After all, if the jamming waves didn't 
use the exact same wavelength, then the entire effort would be futile."

	The ensign's eyes widened.  "You're right.  They can't know for sure.  
They must simply be assuming that each wave will be the same as the one before 
it."

	The lieutenant turned to Gortav.  "I believe you have your answer, 
Colonel.  Have the intracommunications crew raise frequencies by, say, 4/3.  The 
wavelength will thus be multiplied by the reciprocal, giving the gunners a 
window of..."  He quickly did the math in his head.  "1.5 seconds."

	"Good job, Lieutenant.  Everyone be quiet!" roared Gortav.  The chatter on 
the bridge died instantly.

	"Intracommunications crew: On my mark increase frequencies by one hundred 
thirty-three and a third percent!  Gunners: On my mark you will have exactly one 
and a half seconds to fire.  Make them count."

	"Sir!" they responded.

	"Ready... Mark!"


	Tenchi smiled as he pulled back from his last attack.  An attack, he 
noted, that had come within inches of hitting.  Dakanao was slowing down.  
{We're going to win this,} Tenchi thought hopefully.  Pretty soon, Dakanao would 
be too worn out to keep fighting.  When that happened, it would be over.  They 
just had to keep it up a little longer.

	His reverie was ended abruptly as all hell broke loose.  Daemos's lasers 
fired on him and Ryoko.  Tenchi was protected from serious damage by a force 
field generated by his sword and Ryoko was protected by her own force field, not 
to mention the fact that they were moving targets, so direct hits were not 
scored.  Nevertheless, the force of the shot sent them flying.  Katsuhito was 
also thrown back by the unexpected blast, but Ayeka was unaffected as her force 
field was already up.  Grinning, Dakanao lunged at her and slammed the hilt of 
his sword into her abdomen.  She crumpled, falling unconscious, and he caught 
her midfall.  Picking her up, he threw her over his shoulder.

	"Is anyone here getting a sense of deja vu?" he asked as he leapt into the 
air and flew to the top of the ship.  "Tell me, Prince Yosho, is this what you 
meant about the sins of the father?" he called down, laughing.  "I'll be waiting 
for you."  He turned and reentered the ship through a hatch that took him 
directly to the bridge.

	Ryoko jumped off the ground and started to fly towards the ship.  Tenchi 
leapt into the air and grabbed her, pulling them to the ground.

	"Let me go, Tenchi!" she shouted, struggling.

	"Ryoko.  Do not go getting yourself killed," he commanded evenly.  She 
thought about arguing, but decided against it and nodded, relaxing.  He released 
her.

	"So, now what?"


	Washu watched in horror as Dakanao absconded with Ayeka.  "What the hell 
happened over there!" wailed the brainy redhead.

	"I don't know, Washu!" yelled Sasami, nearly in tears.  "I did just what 
you told me.  The waves started moving really fast, but I pushed the button at 
every high point."  Washu looked at the wave display, horrified.  The waves had 
indeed sped up.  They were one step ahead of her.  "Crap!  What was I thinking!  
Don't worry, Sasami, it wasn't your fault.  Keep it up."  Washu looked at her 
monitors again, not sure what she could do.

	"Washu, we need Ryo-ohki now!  Where is she?"

	"Negative, Ryoko.  Ryo-ohki is in here, and she's staying here.  You can't 
charge blindly into this one.  You'd be in pieces before you left the ground."

	She then heard a blaring klaxon from her weaponry alarm and jumped.  That 
was much more severe than the earlier warning beeps.  She glanced at the monitor 
and grimaced.  The situation had just gone from bad to worse.

	"Ryoko, get your asses in here now!"


	Dakanao stepped through the hatch and was greeted with a round of cheers 
and applause.

	"Well done, Captain!" said Colonel Gortav, saluting.

	"Thank you, Colonel.  Prepare to depart for the predetermined fallback 
point.  I also want a full report on the ship and its readiness.  I noticed that 
we've been having some weapons malfunctions."

	Gortav gulped visibly.  "Yes, sir."

	"Captain!" a weapons operator shouted urgently.  "I noticed that only the 
laser systems have been disrupted.  Missiles are still operational.  Should we-"

	"Yes!" he screamed.  "Yes!  All gunners- obliterate them!"  Dakanao 
watched as a group of missiles sailed at the party.  They scurried away as the 
missiles impacted with the ground and sent out huge explosions.  Azaka and 
Kamidake lifted off the ground, but they were still in the position of lying 
down, despite being in the air, and did not appear to be moving of their own 
power.  Another salvo was fired.  Ryoko flew over to the unconscious detectives, 
grabbed them, and teleported, while the others ran for the front door of the 
house.

	"Target the house!" ordered Dakanao.  More missiles sailed away, exploding 
on the Masaki house until there was nothing left but rubble.  Another cheer went 
up in the bridge.

	"How many do you think made it into the subspace lab, Captain?" asked 
Gortav quietly.

	Dakanao smiled.  "All of them."

	"All of them?  Sir, you can't be sure of that.  One or two might have-"

	"They all made it, Colonel," he stated simply.  "I know these people, and 
none of them are that easy to kill.  Besides, it would be far too anticlimactic 
for them to die at this stage of the game."

	He cleared his throat and raised his hand to get the attention of the 
bridge.  They quieted down quickly.  "Ladies and gentlemen, you have done well.  
We are about to depart.  However, I must warn you that this battle is not over.  
Remain on code yellow until given different orders.  They will be following us."

	He turned to Gortav.  "The ship is at your command, Colonel.  I must find 
a room for our guest."  He chuckled and departed from the bridge.

	Ayeka was alive but taken by the enemy.


{Well, doesn't that just suck?  Just when it looks like the good guys are 
winning, the villain escapes with a hostage.  Will our heroes be able to defeat 
Dakanao in time?  Be back here for Chapter Three: "The Sword of Damocles."  By 
the way, if you read this, tell me so at dukesr1@winthrop.edu  If you have any 
comments, please attatch those as well.  I appreciate criticisms as much as I do 
praise.  I'll even take angry flame mail (You suck!  I hate you! Go to hell!).  
'Til next time:}
 
		Jurgan