Erik Tuttle
"Zero Signal" .2.

>>CHAPTER THREE<<    "Hello Ryoko!"


	I was submerged up to my waist, naked in the water, while my new friend, I 
guess I should call her that, scrubbed my back with the strange substance called 
soap, I sitting with my legs crossed, she on her knees behind me, 
wrapping her arms around my body. This made it incredibly difficult to 
breakaway, regardless of the fact that this woman, along with being very 
beautiful, possessed a strength that I truly believed was far greater than my 
own. Each time she touched me it became harder to hide my embarrassment. 
She was beautiful-incredibly so. I truly think that I fell in love with her 
after she spoke her first words to me. Her attitude was just so... fun. And 
different. Life, to her, seemed to be a big joke that she and everyone else 
around her seemed to play a role in. Nothing was truly serious to her; she took 
it with a grain of salt and cracked a smile. In all my days, I had never met 
anyone else like her. All of the other people that I had ever known had been so 
serious and so hard working. 
	"Maybe I am making assumptions to early," I thought silently to myself. 
"After all, I don't even know her name! That would probably be a good place for 
me to start."
	"So what's your name?" I asked the strange new woman that had just popped 
into my life.
	"Ryoko. That's my name."
	"Ryoko, eh."
	"Yeah," She moved her knees closer to my back and began to scrub my chest. 
	"It means devil caller."
	"Devil caller?"
	"Yes. I have the powers to summon evil spirits from just about anything 
around me. After these sprits are summoned I can also use these same powers to 
control them to do my bidding."
	"So you have the same power as my blue gem does?"
	"Yes."
	"Wow! That's incredible!" She brought the sponge across my chest and 
pulled herself in close. I felt something soft across my back and felt her 
tongue in close to my ear.
	"Is that all you ever talk about?"
	"Wha- what?"
	"About this power and that power and fighting and so fourth. I mean, yeah 
sure it is interesting and all, but...."
	"But what?"
	"I was thinking," she stopped the scrubbing. "That maybe we could talk 
about something else."
	I gulped, what was she trying to do to me! I knew she was a woman but did 
all women act like this? First, she wanted to bathe me, now she wanted to talk 
about.... "Jeez!" I thought, "I'm not that old, I shouldn't be thinking 
about these things!" When you take into consideration that Juraians lived for 
tens of thousands of years, I was still a mere child! Truly, I was less than an 
infant was, and this was just-!
	"Hey Ryoko!" I stood up and looked down at her. Immediately realizing my 
mistake, I crossed my arms before my groin and shrunk back down into the water, 
thoroughly embarrassed.
	She giggled. "My! What are you so exited about?"
My ears took time to decipher the question, and my face rearranged its 
Capillaries to resemble a beet. "Oh no," I said. Ryoko just laughed and laughed.
	"What? What's so funny?"
	"Oh nothing, nothing. Just you."
	"Thanks a lot."

	Life with Ryoko soon became a wonderful experience that I will always 
treasure. At first I was slightly unnerved when she said that she wanted to stay 
and live with me, but over time I warmed up to the idea. She would help 
me on occasion with chores around the house, but the task she was best at was 
brightening my day. Her constant humor always left the edges of my mouth on the 
upside and she was an insatiable flirt. 
	"Oh, Tenchi can I stay with you in your room tonight? Would you like to 
take a bath with me? Here let me get you out of those sweaty clothes," were some 
of her favorite lines, and along with walking around the hut naked and 
pretending that she wanted to kill me, I think I got the message pretty clearly. 
I let onto her affection a little, by returning her passes with a few of my own, 
but our relationship never went farther than two good friends enjoying life 
together, until that fateful day that I decided to take her out on an excursion 
with me. 
	
	"So what exactly are we going to do again?" Ryoko questioned me as I 
filled a leather backpack with various pieces of gear I had selected.
	"We're going to go on an excursion," I told her. "A trip where we go out 
into the woods, spend a night or two, and just relax. It's a time to take your 
mind off of everything. To just kick back and do nothing."
	"Well what's so exiting about that?"
	"Nothing! That's the whole point! For me it's a wonderful opportunity to 
get away from my chores, but I guess for you it would just be another day."
	"Hey I do work around here."
	"That's right I guess you do. Anyway I'm going to go out on this excursion 
and you are welcome to come along with me if you choose."
	Ryoko grabbed my head and turned me around. Looking into my eyes she 
smiled and said. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."
	"Oh good I'm glad that you've decided to come with me, now would you mind 
letting me go?"
	"Oh no Tenchi I'm not done with you yet!" She bent down and put her lips 
to mine in a warm sweet kiss that widened my eyes.
	"Hey Ryoko!" I said breaking the kiss.
	She giggled. "Now just let me go and get my things!"

	Out in the wilderness, the scenery was busting with life. Birds chirped, 
rabbits frolicked, plants danced in the gentle breeze, and foxes scampered about 
as Ryoko and I made our way through a dense green wonderland. We hiked along an 
old trampled deer trail that grandfather and I had taken many a time to reach a 
special spot we had first found when I was a young child. It was a large green 
covered outcropping that sloped up to an overview of the forest on the other 
side of the cliff, and down to the forest we would 
emerge from. Light passed from one side of the thick canopy to the other, 
scattering specks across the earthen landscape. I led the way along this maze of 
freshness, trampling new growth on the trail, and clearing a more 
suitable path for my companion.
	"Tenchi are we there yet?" Ryoko sighed growing bored of the walk.
	"Ryoko I told you we'll be there soon. Please try to relax and enjoy the 
view." Sometimes she was just too strange for me. Here smack dab in the center 
of all these wonderful sights, and she was complaining about the trip. "She'll 
probably thank me later," I told myself as I smashed a thistle underfoot. "Watch 
out for that thistle," I called out behind me. After I had taken a few more 
steps forward I heard a slight tearing noise and Ryoko cursed.
	"Damn thing!" She said. I looked back and saw that she had caught the 
skirt of her long dress on the thorn I had warned her about a moment ago.
	"Now I just told you to watch out for that."
	"Well I guess I was just to busy enjoying the view." She had me there, and 
I knew it.
	"Come on, we're almost there!" I jumped with excitement and darted off 
down the trail.
	"Hey Tenchi wait up!" called a joyous Ryoko.

	The spot grandpa and I had found was still the same as I remembered it. 
Over the outcropping one could still see the sparkling Blue Ocean and forests 
below. One could still enjoy the dense woods behind, and the clear skies all 
around. This was it, heaven. I beamed. "It's been awhile since I was last here," 
I told Ryoko as she came out of the woods behind me.
	"So this is it, eh?"
	"This is it," I echoed.
	"What now?"
	"First we'll set up camp and then I can show you how to fish."
	"Fish?"
	"Yes it's a type of meat that you've had many times before back at the 
hut. This time I'll show you how to catch and cook it for yourself."
	"What's the fun in that?"
	"Ryoko!" 
	
	I had made the time to clear some ground for our bedrolls and create a 
fire pit before Ryoko begged me to take her fishing. "Why are you so eager to go 
all of a sudden?" I asked as she jumped up and down, clutching my arm.
	"Because I'm bored and I wanna spend time with you!"
	"At least she's a little more interested in going fishing now," I spoke to 
my mind as I took the two fishing polls from my bag. We arrived at the small 
stream near our campsite after a five-minute walk and took places on the 
sand bar next to each other.
	"Okay," I said, taking up one of the fishing poles in my hand, "first you 
need a hook to tie onto the string at the end of your pole." I took a hook from 
a small bag at my side. Ryoko watched with rapt attention while I looped the 
hook onto the end of the fishing line and tied it off. "Now that we've got a 
hook on our line, the second thing we need is some bait." I reached into my bag 
again and brought out a hollow tube made of wood, sealed by two cork stoppers on 
the end. Pulling a cork from the tube, I tipped the tube a bit and a squishy 
black worm fell into my open palm.
	"What is that?" Ryoko asked me a bit disgusted.
	"This is a worm that we will use as bait to catch our fish," I told her.
	"So a fish eats that and then I eat the fish?"
	"That's how it works princess!"
	"Seems a little gross to me."
	"Well you're just going to have to get used to it," I let my lips form a 
smile. "Here, why don't you bait this hook for me, please?"
	"I don't really know how."
	"Then I'll show you how." Moving close to her, I brought the pole and worm 
with me and handed them to her. "Take the hook in one hand and the worm in the 
other," I said crouching down behind her. Placing her hands in mine I 
guided the two fishing ingredients up in front of her face. "You could just take 
the worm and stab it onto the hook but then we wouldn't get a good hold of the 
bait on the hook and the fish could easily steal it from us, so here's what we 
are going to do. Start with the midsection of the worm and 
lightly touch it to your hook." I moved her worm hand over to her hook hand and 
began the motion.
	"This is going to make me sick."
	"Don't worry, you'll get used to it in time. Okay now we're in the proper 
bating position so you're going to take your worm and slide him down the hook a 
little ways so the hook goes up and into him instead of out and through. Got 
it?"
	"I think so. Here let me try." I let go of her hands and watched her work 
over her shoulder. So far the worm was getting off pretty easy, it kept sliding 
in and out of Ryoko's grasp as it writhed in a slimy dance. Ryoko 
continued to try and impale her victim but it just did no good. The harder she 
tried the easier the worm broke free. Finally it looked as if she had the worm 
pretty good when it slipped once again but this time Ryoko's thumb flew out and 
stuck itself on the hook instead of the worm. "OW!" She cried and dropped the 
hook and bait. 
	"Ryoko!" My hands flew down to hers. "Are you hurt? Here let me take a 
look." She pulled her hands away from me and grabbed onto the end of the hook 
with her free hand. "No don't! It has a barb!" But she went ahead anyway. First 
there was a ripping sound then another call of pain then a jet of blood. "Oh 
Ryoko," I said concerned. "Now you've hurt yourself!" She just turned to smiling 
and extended her finger for me to see. There was a deep red hole in the center 
of the thumb but as I watched it began to close like a set of sliding double 
doors. I gasped. "Wow! Ryoko that's amazing!"
	She laughed and gave me a hug. "You didn't really think that I would do 
something that stupid now, did you Tenchi dear?"
	"Well," I hugged her back glad to see that she was okay, "you could have 
fooled me."
	Ryoko broke our embrace and gave me a peck on the cheek. "Now how about we 
finish with this hook and catch some fish!" She said to me. I couldn't have 
possibly thought of a better idea.

	By the stream, Ryoko and I lay next to one another with our hands behind 
our heads and one of our legs crossed over the other. I taught her to look for 
images in the clouds as they passed by overhead, and we watched them as they 
floated by on their way. Jurai was lovely, this spring with her green forests 
and clear skies. On her soft earth, Ryoko and I rested, passing the time with 
our poles resting out over the water.
	"I have to say that I am really glad that you came here Ryoko."
	"I am, too." Her voice was mellow and at ease.
	"It's just so funny that you got here! Of all the wonderful luck!"
	"Tenchi, I have to thank you," she said as she watched the white gashes 
spread float by in the azul sky. "I need to thank you for saving me."
	"Saving you from what?" I looked over at her from my resting position.
	"For saving me from my home the dimension that I came from. It was an 
awful place."
	"I'm sorry," I turned my head back heavenward. "What was it like? Don't 
answer if you don't want to. I'm just wondering. Didn't you have a family or 
anything?"
	"Family? Yes, I had a family, but not the type you might think of when you 
say 'family.' I was born from the union between my mother and father and that's 
about as far as my family goes. My home was a barren place. A universe like your 
own but nearly everything was dead. I traveled the stars when I got older but 
everyplace I went was no better than my home world. Nothing there ever shined or 
glowed as it does here. No one ever sparkled like you do."
	"Oh, I'm sorry," I said, regretting ever asking the question.
	"What about you?" She asked me. "When you brought me here it seemed that 
you lived alone up in the woods. Did you ever have a family?"
	"At one time, but I was to young to remember them. All of my memories 
involve my grandpa and me. Mother and Father are just shadows in the back of my 
mind. I know that they had to have existed at one time, long ago, yet there is 
no memory inside of me dealing with them."
	"You said you had a grandpa. What happened to him?"
	I closed my eyes and opened them again remembering the strong old man who 
had been my grandfather. "He was killed four years ago by an enemy samurai. 
Since then, I have been alone, preparing for my destiny until you came to 
stay. I miss him very much; he was a wonderful man. Strict at times, but very 
loving. It was he who first brought me here and taught the art of fishing to me. 
After his death I was very lonely, but then you made an appearance and I don't 
feel so alone anymore."
	"Tenchi I know what you feel-the pain, the loss, the loneliness, the hurt. 
I am no stranger to these types of pain we all experience. But what is this 
destiny you have told me of? What does it mean? Do you yourself even know?"
	"How it will play out is still beyond me, but my grandfather told me on 
his deathbed of an evil woman called Nagi. This Nagi is the same warrior who 
slew my grandfather four years ago. She intends to steal the Jurai people's 
power from them by introducing to them a world of many technological 
conveniences. It will take many years for this plan to play out, but when it 
does my people will forget their magical powers and connection with the land. 
Large areas of development will cover our home world and place our 
people on the road to ruin. This will only happen, though, if Nagi is allowed to 
make it so. With his last few drops of life, grandpa asked me to take his sword 
and defeat Nagi before it grows to late. That is why I fight and train in mock 
battles. Soon the time will come and I will be forced to face this Nagi to 
protect all of Jurai. When this time comes I need to be ready and face Nagi with 
a pure heart, confidence, and time-tested skill. I will face her and attempt to 
destroy her or be destroyed myself in the effort."
	Ryoko lay silent for a few minutes and then I thought that I heard her 
sobbing. I turned over to her and saw a stray tear fall down her cheek. 
	"Ryoko what's wrong?" I asked. "Please tell me."
	"It's just so terrible, this duty that has fallen to you. I worry for you 
and your life. It is so unfair that this Nagi woman must be so evil and try to 
butcher this wonderful place. I came from a devastated world and I know 
what it is like. I would die if anything happened like that here. Men will 
always be, though-some good and some bad. Tenchi, you are a good man, and if 
anyone must fight to protect your world, then I rejoice in seeing that it is 
you who should be the one charged with that duty. I just worry about something 
happening to you because you are so good and so pure."
	"Ryoko," I crawled over to lay beside her and take her into my arms. "It 
will be alright. This time that I speak of is far off in the future. Please 
don't worry about it now."
	"Tenchi," Ryoko's gold eyes built bridges connecting the both of us. "I 
have only recently learned this word and what I believe it to mean, so please 
don't laugh or feel insulted if I use it wrong."
	"Go ahead."
	"Tenchi I love you. I want you to be safe and happy. I want to keep you 
safe and happy forever. You have shown me what life can be like; life at it's 
best. Thank you, Tenchi. I love you." She wrapped her arms around me and buried 
her head in my shoulder.
	"Ryoko, you are beautiful, you are young and hopeful. It makes me glad 
that I could show you all of these things that you have lived so long without. 
Other than my grandfather, you are the only other person I have ever loved 
or will love. You are the one, Ryoko. My only one. I love you," the words seemed 
to linger in the tense air that pulled at my skin. She lifted her head off of my 
shoulder and looked me in the eye once more. I gathered her up into my arms and 
leaned forward. When our lips touched she gasped for breath while I moved in to 
complete the kiss. Our display lingered for a moment, then trailed off as we 
parted, leaving two happy feelings floating in each other's embrace.


>>CHAPTER FOUR<<<    "That kind of love"


	Walking back to the campsite, I wrapped my left arm around Ryoko's 
shoulders, and in my right hand carried the four fish we had caught on a 
stringer. My wonderful demon-girl put her right arm across my shoulders and the 
two of us smiled. 
	"I've never felt anything like this before!" My internal voice was 
smothered in joy. "What a great feeling! How could I be so lucky to have such a 
great girl show up at my door?" Ryoko turned her head to a side to look at me. I 
beamed and gave he a kiss on the lips. "We're almost back to our camp now," I 
said, but first we need to make one more stop along the way."

	"What in the world are those things, Tenchi? They look like hard clumps of 
dirt!"
	I reached into the earth and uprooted another tuber, which I dropped into 
the sack on my belt. "These are roots Ryoko. My grandfather always called them 
the dulce root. You take them out of the ground first then I'll scrub the dirt 
off of the outside. Once that is done you can put them in the fire and cook 
them. The inside of the root is soft and sweet. They'll taste wonderful trust 
me."
	Slowly, the afternoon gave way to the night where Ryoko and I sat cuddled 
around a fire. The blaze provided a marvelous light, but its heating properties 
were not required. Warm was the night air, so warm that neither 
Ryoko nor I needed to bother with a jacket. Our dulce roots rested in the fire, 
warming for a time until they were ready to be eaten. The small fish we had 
caught at the stream had already been consumed, along with some berries and 
greens I had found in the woods on our way home. Looking at Ryoko, I marveled at 
how the light reflected in her eyes as she watched the fire. The shadows of the 
light played tricks with her features, casting a darker haze and drawing the 
borders of her face. The fire's light disappeared from her eyes as she turned to 
look at me beside her.
	"Today was remarkable Tenchi, thank you," her voice was soft and happy.
	"You're welcome Ryoko. I need to thank you as well for you made my day 
complete."
	"I'm glad. So glad."
	A crack from the fire's coals shook me from our conversation and I turned 
to look back at it. "Ah our desert is ready!" I said and carefully reached into 
the flames. Out of the fire came my hand holding one of the sweet roots, 
which I waved in front of Ryoko. "Now these are very hot so you have to be 
careful okay?"
	"Okay," she took the root from my hand and smiled. "Oh it is hot," she 
said.
	"I warned you!" I took the second tuber from the fire and kept it for 
myself. Tossing it into the air I caught my dessert as it flew back down from 
the sky and into my awaiting hand. "You might want to let it cool a bit 
before you try to eat it," I cautioned Ryoko. Moving my vision to her I giggled 
as she juggled a piece of the warm root inside her mouth. To late for a warning 
I guess.
	"Ah! Eeh! Oh! That IS hot!"
	"Ryoko you don't listen to a thing I say do you?"
	She swallowed the warm bit of pulp in her mouth and looked at me. "Of 
course I do Tenchi! Didn't I hear you say earlier that you loved me?"
	"Of course you did."
	"Good I'm glad I didn't miss that!" She kissed my cheek and moved back to 
the warm morsel in her hands. "These are wonderful Tenchi! Very sweet and 
delicious!"
	"I told you that you'd like them!" We two finished our meals and sat back 
to watch the stars for a while. I closed my eyes for what only seemed like a 
moment but when I reopened them the fire pit was devoid of flame and the only 
light that shown came from the moon and the stars in the sky. When I leaned my 
head over to catch a glimpse of Ryoko beside me. A warm pair of golden eyes that 
glittered in the moonlight greeted me.
	"You sleep so peacefully," my love told me as she watched my face.
	"Well I suppose that's a good thing?" I asked.
	"Very," she answered.
	"Ryoko we should probably go to our sleeping mats now they will be more 
comfortable than this hard ground."
	"Good idea." Ryoko stood up on her feet and lead the way over to the tree 
that sheltered our bedrolls below it. She jumped, straightened herself, and then 
floated like a feather gently down to rest on top of her mat. "Don't 
really need the covers tonight do we?"
	"No it is very warm." I rested my body on my spot beside hers. "Goodnight 
Ryoko," I sighed. "Sleep well."
	"I will," she paused for a few moments. "Tenchi," she spoke now beside me 
on my  mat.
	"Yes Ryoko what is it?"
	"Tenchi I want to share your mat with you."
	"Well that's okay I guess. Here just pull yours closer and we can make a 
double." Ryoko moved her roll closer until it met with mine. After that she made 
a move and I found her sitting on top of me straddling my chest. 
	"Ryoko." I began.
	"Tenchi darling I love you so much and I want to be with you tonight. I 
want to share more than just a stop to sleep. I want to share everything." My 
ears could hardly translate what she had said. I was mystified, confused, 
clueless, and excited.
	"Ryoko are you trying to say that-" my words were halted by her sensual 
kiss that penetrated my lips and moved farther. Returning her desire my arms 
moved to circle her waist and pull her closer. When the kiss was through she 
sat up on me and moved her hands behind her back to manipulate the clasp that 
held her dress closed. Jerkishly her hands parted the clasp behind her neck and 
the top of the dress flew open showing the beginning lines of her 
tender breasts. Switching hand position to the front of her garment Ryoko 
finished releasing all of the hooks on her top and let it fall down to her side. 
I watched in awe as the moon bathed her body in a star-touched wash of white 
light. Ryoko bent forward and kissed my mouth again and I felt her 
softness meet my own chest.
	"Tenchi," she moaned softly in my ear. "Come with me now. Show me what it 
is like to be loved. I want to feel it with you." The world around us went on as 
our lives stood still for those precious hours. The love we made was 
incredible and sweet until it finally ended. As Ryoko collapsed onto my chest 
for the last time that night the two of us gently drifted off and into sleep 
with the rising of the morning sun.
	
	Dawn came with the cawing of a crow and my eyes opened to see the first 
kiss of the morning sun. There was no dew and the air was still a pleasant warm 
tempter. It will probably be a hot one today, I told myself. Good time to go 
swimming. My mind wandered for a bit as I closed my eyes and looked back on the 
events of yesterday. We started by hiking, then making camp and going fishing, 
then we found those sweet potatoes and then... a smile escaped my lips as I 
remembered what had taken place at the end of the night. 	"That was perfect 
just so perfect," I repeated in my head over and over again. "Wait a minute! 
Where is Ryoko?" I opened my eyes and saw that she was not on top of me as I had 
last remembered. Where had she gone? At first I swept the ground panicked that 
something had happened to her but then I stopped. Ryoko was sitting at the fire 
pit tending to a spit hung above a newly born flame.
	"Good morning Tenchi love," she said to me with a smile and a twist of the 
spit. "I got up early and got us some more fish for breakfast. Will that be 
alright?"
	"Ryoko, you caught the fish?" I was genuinely surprised.
	"Well they didn't just jump into my arms."
	"I'm impressed."
	She blushed and turned back to her spit. "You might want to put some 
clothes on though before you come over to eat." I looked down at myself and 
panicked at my total lack of clothing. "You don't have to though if you don't 
want to," Ryoko teased again. "I don't mind."
	"I figured as much," was my reply. After dressing I got up and strode over 
to the fire and sat down next to my beautiful girl.
	"Want something to eat?" she asked.
	"Please I'm starved!" She lifted the spit pole from the fire and slid one 
of the fish off.
	"Be careful it's hot," she warned and then gave a wink.
	"Thanks." The fish was good (even if it was halfway cooked). Not bad for 
someone who's never cooked a meal for herself, let alone anyone else in her 
lifetime. "This is good Ryoko."
	She blushed again and took the last fish for herself.
	
	Our second day of the excursion lingered on and on like the perfect lazy 
Sunday. After breakfast we made love again, then took off for a nearby river to 
go and swim. When we arrived we decided to swim in the nude which, of course, 
led to more love play and by the end of the day the two of us were quite 
exhausted. The sleeping mats below the old tree felt good to rest on. I had done 
the afternoon meal again; it had consisted of wild vegetables, berries, and 
nuts, all toasted and wrapped in a bark skin. Ryoko had done a good job taking 
care of the evening meal, though. I was treated to numerous small fish wraps, 
more sweet potatoes, and even some wild honey. As the two of us placed our heads 
down on our large two-person bedroll(s), we kissed and let the joy in our hearts 
dance upon our faces.
	"Today was another excellent experience for me," Ryoko said while she 
cuddled up close to my warm body.
	"Yes it really was a great day indeed, but tomorrow we have to head back 
for home."
	"As long as you go with me and stay with me forever then it will be fine."
	"We'll never part Ryoko. You and I were drawn together by fate and it will 
take more power than any force can muster to ever break us apart." Ryoko hummed 
and clutched my chest a little tighter. I sunk down and into her open warm 
embrace and then fell asleep as the fire near us blew, flicked, and went dead 
for the night.