Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Tenchi Muyo characters or anything of that nature. Tenchi Muyo, all characters and names are the sole property of AIC and Pioneer. AD&D and Phyrexia are properties of TSR and Wizards of the Coast, respectively. I only claim ownership of the characters Kalog Planesmaster, the Beastmaster and the Nameless one. Please don't sue. I have no money whatsoever to protect myself with or to pay out. Anyway, on with the story...... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No need for New Realms : Ch.7 Phyrexian Butchery Ayeka could no longer speak in her well-mannered way, nor could she speak in any tone or sound that was pleasant to flesh ears. The Phyrexians were very thorough in their work. "So." she hissed. "You have come, as I expected you to.." With a fluidity that was disturbing, Ayeka began to walk over to the family that cared enough to come for her. But she had no loving thoughts in her mind, only the desire to assimilate and, if necessary, to kill. "Join me..Tenchi." She hissed, holding two of her razor-fingered hands out to him as she advanced. "Join me and let your power become one with Phyrexia's." "Ayeka, what are you saying?" He asked, disbelief and sadness tearing at him. "Isn't it obvious, Lord Tenchi?" She crooned, her metal teeth making a terrible screeching noise. "I am asking you to join your power with the glorious power of The Ineffable, and you can be the most powerful being in creation, save for the Ineffable himself." "Join me, Tenchi, and we share the love that only can be shared by true lovers, joined in the power of the Ineffable." "Like hell you'll take him!" Ryoko snarled, her energy sword blazing in it's bloody radiance. She pushed Tenchi behind her and assumed a fighting stance. "Oh, Ryoko." Ayeka laughed. " Can't you see? You can become so much more, if you join us. We could even share Tenchi......" "We were a family, Ayeka. Now, all you are is a puppet of evil. You don't know or appreciate what you once were, and YOU CAN'T HAVE TENCHI!" Ryoko screamed, hurling her sword at Ayeka. Ayeka nimbly dodged the destructive bolt. A Phyrexian creation, one of the ones that had been working on Ayeka, was not as fast or lucky. The bolt punched through the beast's chest and into the wall. It slumped to the stone floor, burning oil flowing out of the hole in it's chest. "Now, now." Ayeka taunted, "Is that any way to show gratitude to your guide to paradise?" "Paradise!? This is hell, Ayeka, and you'll never drag us down with you." Ryoko snapped, forming another sword. "In time, you will see the light, Ryoko, and wonder how you could have resisted it." "Yeah, right..." *Well, I guess some things never change.. * Washu thought bitterly to herself. She warily watched Ayeka, for she was an unknown factor now. She had seen her creations, Ryoko especially, turned against her, and she was no stranger to betrayal. But seeing a cherished family member so brutally changed and mutilated was hard on the mind, no matter how many times you experienced it. "Washuuuuu..?" Mihoshi whispered with a frightened edge to her voice. She had set her hand on Washu's shoulder to get her attention and the grip she was exerting was painful to the red-haired spellcaster, and she was forced to acknowledge the terrified young woman beside her. "What is it?" she asked, smacking Mihoshi's hand to make her let go. "There is something moving over there..." She was pointing into the darkness behind them, and she was starting to whine in her fright. Turning slightly, so not as to allow Ayeka out of her sight, Washu peered into the haunting darkness of the lab. Yes, something was moving, The heavy click of metal on stone was unmistakable, and something was blotting out parts of the light that glowed faintly from shelves. Something large. "Tenchi! Ryoko! There's something coming up behind us!" Washu's shout made them turn for a second, and Ayeka took the opportunity. Lunging with incredible speed, she struck at Ryoko with her two front legs and all of her arms. Noticing second before impact, Ryoko phased away from their deadly reach. The spear-like points of Ayeka's legs struck stone and sparked. Cursing, she drew herself back to wait for another opportunity. The thing in the darkness took the opportunity to strike as well. From the inky blackness came a mass of bladed tentacles that dripped with an oily substance, air hissing as their speed carried them towards their targets. Washu and Mihoshi leaped in separate directions as the tentacles struck, narrowly avoiding the destructive appendages. They bit cleanly into the stone and made deep gouges in the lab floor. "Sssso, it ssseemss that the future isss here." Ayeka noted, preparing to strike at Tenchi. "What future?" Tenchi asked, holding his shield up and pointing the Tenchi-ken at Ayeka. Blue radiance shone from it's cold blade. "The future of our universssse, Lllord Tencsshi." she hissed. Her eyes lit up with a blood red light that illuminated the area around her. The glow fell onto the bewildered group and a more sinister figure. "What in hell is that? Washu gasped, terror clutching at her heart. The beast before them was truly worse than any nightmare she had ever conceived of. It was stood nearly eight feet tall, it's spines cutting into the ceiling, but they could see it was hunched over, due to lower ceiling space. It's legs and arms looked exactly the same: large, piston-like affairs with cables and corrupt muscle tissue threaded throughout and metal blades sticking out of the mess and at the feet/hands. But the terrifying feature of the creature was its incompleteness. Well, not exactly incompleteness, but the lack of form in many areas. Like where it's head should be was a mass of pulsing darkness, and several smaller masses were threaded throughout the beast, appearing and disappearing with the movement of the living metal skin. Raw terror seemed to ooze from the writhing body. "What ever it is, it's dead!" Ryoko phased behind it and drove her energy sword into the abominable mass. But instead of cutting through metal and flesh, it parted around her sword and lashed out with thread thin cables. Phasing again, Ryoko was barely able to dodge the attack. Ryoko phased in next to Tenchi, and Ayeka choose that moment to attack. Her razored metal claws slammed into Tenchi's shield, and the black plate shatted with an earsplitting pop. The force of the attack drove Tenchi backwards. Ryoko brought her sword down onto Ayeka's arms at the same instant she attacked Tenchi. In the middle of her lightning fast strike, she wasn't able to alter her direction in time and the glowing red blade sliced through her upper right arm and tore cables in the lower right one. Screeching in pain and anger, she drew back and hissed. Oil gushed heavily from the stump of Ayeka's arm and from the tear in the other one. Seeming to feel the pain also, the other beast formed a mouth of sorts where it's head should have been and screamed in such an awful manner as to force the gang to cover their ears, lest the ability to hear and retain sanity be lost. "YOU BITCH!" Ayeka screeched. "I'LL SHOW YOU!" The other beast lashed out with so many bladed tentacles that they blocked out the hallway. Washu and Mihoshi couldn't get out of the way fast enough and were seized by the wall of writhing death. Blades cut through cloth and leather, digging into flesh beneath. They screamed in pain. "Washu! Mihoshi!" Tenchi yelled in panic. "Look out Tenchi!" Tenchi brought up his sword in time to catch Ayeka's blow. Her claws sparked and crackled with energy as the mystical blade met them. Screeching again, Ayeka struck with her forelegs. Tenchi's armor rang with the impact, and his chest exploded in pain. He fell to the ground, stunned. "Tenchi!" Ryoko screamed, rushing to his side. He moaned, trying to shake the pain from his senses. The shock of impact had made him lose his orientation, and he couldn't tell which way was up. A wave of pain coursed through him as he tried to move, and he could feel something wet and sticky running down his front. With a gasp, he passed out. "Tenchi! Wake up!" Ryoko pleaded, tears forming. She shook Tenchi, but to no avail. Seconds later, the blue glow of the Tenchi-ken faded, and the weapon seemed like any other metal sword. Standing up slowly, Ryoko faced Ayeka. She had stopped her attack to savor the pain she had dished out, and she regarded Ryoko with a look of cruel enjoyment. To her right, Ryoko could see that Washu and Mihoshi were in bad shape. The beast held them in it's death grip, and she couldn't tell if they were alive or not. The blood and oil dripping from the tentacles didn't look good. "You ungrateful whore of machines!" Ryoko snarled, tears in her eyes. "How could you do this?!" "Quite easy, as you can see. Anything is possible, in Phyrexia's power, Ryoko.." Ayeka answered, seeming very pleased with herself. "You speak of power, Ayeka," Ryoko replied, pulling off her helmet and flinging it to the ground. Tears ran down her cheeks, but her eyes glowed with a deep red light that rivaled that of Ayeka's. "and you have much. But you would sacrifice those you love to have and keep it.." She looked at Tenchi's fallen form. There were cracks on the chestplate, and she couldn't tell if he was breathing. Blinking and shaking her head to clear them of tears, she looked back at Ayeka. "..and you will pay for this. You have hurt those I love, and I don't care if you are family. You.will.PAY!" With the last word of her oath uttered, a change swept over Ryoko. Her gems blazed with white light and a violent wind sprang from the floor, enshrouding her in it's fury. Ryoko threw her head back and screamed in anger. The joints of her armor became suffused with white light from her gems, and in seconds she was a glowing aura. "What'sss happening?" Ayeka screeched, covering her eyes. "My vengeance, you bitch." The tone of the voice chilled Ayeka to her corrupted core. But she couldn't see anything in the blinding radiance, and so was unable to protect herself from the blow that fell upon her. It came so fast and hard that she didn't even know she had been hit. Pain, unlike any she had ever felt, tore into her middle, and spread throughout her body. Her blood felt like it was on fire, and her metal skin felt like a mass of coals on her body. Screeches of unearthly timbre erupted from her throat. The other beast, which had been similarly incapacitated by the radiance, screamed as well. Mihoshi and Washu, their flesh cut up by the beast's grip, fell to the ground. Ayeka tried to fight back, but the energy seemed to come from everywhere. Then, in an instant, she was flying backwards, unable to do anything. She smashed into a wall and fell to the ground, lying on the cold stone in a daze. She couldn't feel her legs, and pain was running through her like a raging river. Looking down at herself, she gasped hoarsely as she saw why. Her legs had been separated from her at the waist. Over where she had been standing, they collapsed to the ground with a crash as the spasm that held them there gave out. *No. thisss..can't..be..happening.* she thought. *I am.Phy.rexian and.I.am perfec.. * The screams of the beast cut into her thoughts like a knife. She could sense its pain, as it was torn into. The blazing aura was too powerful for it, and wherever it came near, it reduced the beast to it's base components. Her own pain was doubled as she felt it's flesh and metal cleaved. Convulsing in pain, she knew she had to sever the link with it or die. Painfully, she cut the bond and began to crawl away from the carnage. She had learned through the minds of her rebuilders that there was a door nearby... Deprived of it's control, the beast flailed wildly about. Pure energy ripped through it, and the shape-shifting masses that made up its power were destroyed as they overloaded with power. Minutes later, it collapsed to the stone floor, a mass of twitching cable and pulped flesh. The fight over, Ryoko sank to her knees, choking back tears of anguish. The light that had enveloped her faded to a soft glow, enough to light the immediate area. Looking over at Tenchi's prone form, she could feel the tears welling up again. She phased over to him, still kneeling. "Oh Tenchi.." She moaned as she removed his helmet and lifted his head into her lap. Tears streamed down as she caressed the lifeless face of her love. Beside him, the Tenchi-ken was dark, it's hilt a dull grey instead of it's normal beige. Dropping her head she let the tears flow. The glistening drops fell onto Tenchi's shattered chestplate. Borne of sadness and love, the tears held residual traces of her awesome power in them. As they fell onto the metal, they flowed through the cracks and trickled into Tenchi's wounds. As they met the corrupted slashes, they began to glow brighter. The blood that Tenchi and Ryoko had shared earlier began to perform it's regenerative capabilities. Flesh began to knit beneath broken metal, and Tenchi began to show signs of life. "Ry.oko?" At the sound of the faint question, Ryoko lifted her head. Tenchi's eyes were slightly opened and his gaze was fixed on her. Over come with joy, she lifted him slightly and embraced him, her tears of sadness now tears of happiness. "Oh, Tenchi! You're alive." she sobbed. Weakly lifting his arm up, Tenchi returned the embrace. "Yes, it seems that I am, Ryoko.." "I was so worried, so scared that..." "It's alright, I'm back." He reassured her. "What happened? Where is Ayeka?" "We don't need to worry about her now. I took care of her." "Does it have anything to do with that glow around you and your appearance?" he asked with a weak grin. "My, appearance?" In the heat of battle and the wave of emotion, Ryoko had been unaware of any changes. Looking down, she noticed the difference in her appearance. The black armor now was a shade of glimmering pearl, and her gems glowed with a soft red light. Red triangles, similar to the ones on her other battle uniform, ran down her front, and one arm was the same red. "I..I..didn't notice this before. I wonder where it came from..?" her voice trailed off in bewilderment. Tenchi suddenly seemed to remember something, and sat up with a start. "Ryoko! What about Mihoshi and Washu?" "Damn, I forgot about them!" Standing up quickly, she rushed over to the fallen forms. Both seemed to be unconscious, and they looked pretty bad. They were pretty diced up by the razors of the Phyrexian beast, and Ryoko didn't like the look of the injuries. Tenchi came up beside her, still weak from his injuries and looked down at his fallen family. He was almost overcome with grief. The injuries seemed to great for anyone to survive, even the great Washu. "Washu..Mihoshi.." He fought back the tears that threatened to overcome him. The sight was too horrible. To see torn and mangled bodies is bad enough, but when the bodies are those of people you love, it can reduce even the strongest man to a shadow of his former self. "Wh-wh-oooo is...there?" Tenchi and Ryoko looked down in disbelief. Despite her extensive injuries, Washu still seemed to be alive. But it was hard to tell how long she would last. "Washu! It's us! Tenchi and Ryoko!" Tenchi dropped to his knees to get closer to the injured wizard. "Di..iid you wiin?" she wheezed. "For now, Little Washu." He answered. "Iss ( cough) she.dead?" she asked, laboriously drawing a breath. Tenchi looked at Ryoko. She slowly shook her head. "I see..." Washu was silent for several seconds. Tenchi feared the worst, until she spoke again, in her halting gasps. "Te.nchi. do you..h.h.have my spell..b.oo..ok?" "No, but.." "Shhh. It should b.b.be closssse by.." her body spasmed as she was seized by a coughing fit that lasted for several minutes. Her color (what little remained) drained completely away. "F..f..find..d it..and cast.the.spells.you..ff..f.f..find.d on p-p-pages 1674 and 1345, in th..that order.." "Why, little Washu, what are they for?" "You'll find out..t Ten..chi." She smiled weakly. "But it looksss. like you..and Ryoko will.have to.(cough)..handle thissss on your own." Tenchi was about to ask Washu if there was anything he could do for her, but at that moment the red-haired spell caster shuddered and went limp in his arms. "Washu..." "Come on Tenchi. Let's find that spell book. Washu had a reason to tell us about those spells, and we better use them." "Right." The two black armored warriors dug and sifted through reeking flesh-metal and piles of oily cable for the tome they needed. It was only after several minutes of digging and crawling through the slimy mess that they found their quarry. The book was oil-stained and the cover was diced up, but it looked mostly intact. Without preamble, Ryoko began to page through the book as soon as she extracted it from the stinking mess that had once been a nightmare of nightmares. Pages flew by in a blur until she came to the first of the spells Washu had indicated. Ryoko read quickly, and then stood up. Without turning, Ryoko gave Tenchi some quick instructions. "Tenchi, you have to stand back and be quiet. This spell will require all of my concentration and as much room as I can have. "Of course." Tenchi replied, backing away. As soon as he started backing up, Ryoko began to chant the words to the spell. All around her, small glowing sparks of violet began to form. They began to whirl around her in a frenzied motion as she got deeper into the spell, and in a flash were gone. But the spell was only beginning. The mutilated bodies of Mihoshi and Washu began to glow with a grey, pulsing light. As Tenchi watched, cuts sealed and their torn, stained skin became whole and pure again. All their injuries seemed to vanish in the magical light, and even their possessions became whole and unbroken once more. The grey glow became brighter for several minutes and them abruptly died out. Washu and Mihoshi were now whole again, but the spark of life was absent from their features. It was silent for a few more minutes as Ryoko began to page through the spell book again, this time flipping the pages backward until she found the other indicated spell. Again, with no warning to Tenchi, she began to speak the rhythmic words of the spell, this time moving her right arm in time with the chanting. The effect of the spell was much more spectacular than the previous one. Tongues of crystalline fire sprang up from the floor and around the bodies of the GP officer and the scientist, consuming the foul mess that had brought their current plight on. As the flames fed on the oily Phyrexian tissue, they became larger and soon filled the corridor with their hypnotic patterns. Then, with a light crackling sound and a flash of white light, the flames froze in place. The crystal structure left behind completely sealed the corridor and within it's protective embrace lay the renewed bodies of Mihoshi and Washu. Far down the corridor, Ayeka was dragging herself slowly and painfully away from the battleground. She had found the doorway that her implanted memory had shown her, but she couldn't reach the opening mechanism. She was trapped. * Fear not, my daughter. You shall have your chance to redeem yourself.. * Ayeka didn't know where the voice came from, or who it belonged to, but it brought her a strange sense of reassurance. * Who is it that addresses me? * she thought/said in reply. * I am the Ineffable, your god, daughter. * The voice told her. * I have seen what has happened, and I will aid you.* Ayeka felt a change coming over her battered body. It was as if ice crawled through her blood, but it felt good. Her damaged members and skin began to regrow and evolve, surpassing their former abilities. Claws lengthened and toughened, becoming as large as scimitars. Her cable-like skin hardened into metal plates and her legs formed out of razor sharp supports in the walls. Able to move freely again, Ayeka thought/said her thanks to the Ineffable and smiled cruelly. With her physical enhancements came some other enhancements. And new capabilities for her to use, and her enhanced mental vision showed her just what she wanted... Ayeka's laughter echoed down the tunnels before her as she opened the door. Her next strike would be the last thing Ryoko would remember. ever. ______________________________________________________________________________________ "There." Ryoko whispered. "It's done. No beast will desecrate them now." Ryoko set the spell book into a rift in the crystal and then began to walk back to Tenchi. Unnoticed by either of them, the crystal sealed around the oily tome, preserving it with it's owner. "Come on," she growled. "We're going to make that bitch pay for this.." "What about the spell book?" Tenchi asked as Ryoko recovered her helmet. "Wouldn't you be able to use it against our opponents?" As she reset her helmet, Ryoko replied, "I could, but I am not as used to spell casting as Washu was. I am more a fighter, and I'll do better without having to flip through a book." "Oh..." Tenchi picked up the Tenchi-ken and his helmet. He couldn't do anything about his shield or his chestplate, but he would have to make do. "Now, where did that snot of a machine get to?" Ryoko asked herself, looking around the corridor where they had been fighting. There wasn't much to go on. Oil and twisted metal was strewn all over the place. The only true evidence of Ayeka's presence that she could make out was the collapsed spider-like assembly of her legs, but that didn't really help. "I don't think we can find anything here." Tenchi said quietly, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Lets leave.." "Right." Going back the way they came was out of the question. The preservative crystals blocked the way. So the only way to go was further down the corridor, and hope that there was no new monstrosities in that direction. "Keep an eye out for any sort of door or exit that Ayeka could have taken. She couldn't have gotten far." "I think we may be on the right trail." Tenchi said, looking down at his feet. "What makes you say that?" Ryoko asked, stopping. "Look." he said, pointing. Ryoko looked. There was a thin track of a golden oily substance leading off into the darkness of the corridor. All around the trail were the deep scratches of sharp metal in the dense stone. Ryoko's helmet concealed the evil smile that played across her features, but Tenchi had an inkling what she was thinking. The blood that she had shared with him gave him a limited ability to sense her emotion, and what he was feeling was utterly disquieting. Without saying anything, Ryoko began walking again, faster this time, following the trail of oil into the deepening darkness. Tenchi hurried to keep up with her. Abruptly, the corridor ended. The lab area branched off to the left and the right, but in front of them was a large black door. The oil trail ended at the door, but the fresh, oily slime that covered the door opening mechanism showed that Ayeka had been here. "You can run, Ayeka..." The door exploded from it's mountings as Ryoko fired a power bolt into it. Stone and metal showered around them, rebounding off their armor. As the door was destroyed, a deep orange glow erupted from beyond it. The light bathed everything in a pulsing glow, it's source far down another hallway. Accompanying the light was a dry, hot breeze and a low, rhythmic throbbing. Like a great heart was beating somewhere. "But you can't hide." Ryoko finished, stepping over the blasted threshold. Tenchi followed, his features showing his determination behind the helmet. Ayeka may be his great-aunt, but what she had done was inexcusable, and she would pay. But to kill her would be releasing her from the hell that she existed in, and Tenchi knew that doing so would be helping her as well as avenging. The passageway wasn't the longest one they had gone through, but it was pretty long. They covered nearly a mile before they reached the end of the corridor. As they got closer to the end, the hot wind became stronger and the throbbing grew stronger. Only the pulsing orange glow remained constant. They exited the passageway, and stepped into an artificial hellscape, with only a ten foot wide ledge between them and a massive drop. The massive chamber was a great cylinder, easily half a mile in diameter. In front of them, dominating their view, were a set of gigantic bladed screws that lifted molten rock into a great gap in the ceiling, which was high above their heads. Below them, at least two or three miles down, there was a great glowing mass of liquid rock. All about them, the wind that had blasted them in the corridor rose up with tremendous force as the magma below superheated the air. It's roar nearly drowned out the throbbing that they had been hearing since entering the hall, but now it was felt more than heard. They stared at the titan scene, awestruck. The reverie was shattered by a lightning quick tentacle, which struck at Ryoko. She noticed it seconds before impact and blocked with he shield. The black appendage rebounded off the tough metal and fell back into the chasm it had come from. Ryoko formed her energy sword, looking around for the next strike. Tenchi pulled out the Tenchi-ken, but the cold blue glow didn't course through the metal. Try as he might, he couldn't get it to activate. For all intents and purposes, the Tenchi-ken was dead. The next strike came from above. Four tentacles dropped from a single point, all aiming for Ryoko. She phased away as they struck, cracking the stone ledge. Ryoko phased in next to the source of the tentacles and struck. There was a flash of darkness and the tentacles dissolved. A black cylinder, cloven in two by Ryoko's sword, fell to the ledge and bounced into the chasm. "SSSSoooo. We meet again, Ryokoooo." The hissing speech startled both of them. Looking around, they tried to see it's source. Ayeka did not disappoint. Her black metal spider legs carried her up from over the edge of the ledge. Her metal teeth glinted evilly in the orange light. Ryoko dropped to the ledge, between Ayeka and Tenchi. "I see you survived, bitch.." Ryoko snarled, leveling her weapon at Ayeka. "Thhhat I did." she replied, drooling a clear substance from her lips. It fell to the stone and began to hiss and steam. "We'll have to change that.." Ryoko said, smiling behind her helmet. "Yes, we do, only you'll be the one who won't survive.." Ayeka replied. Black cylinders formed all around them. Then, all at once, black tentacles shot out from them, reaching for Ryoko and Tenchi. With a defiant battle cry, Ryoko attacked the corrupted power logs. Tenchi leaped back into the hall to avoid their deadly embrace. They struck where he had been standing, and a massive chunk of the ledge collapsed, falling into open space. Ryoko struck at the logs, slashing them in two and letting them fall away. More formed as she tore into them, and soon she was surrounded by them. Laughing in triumph, Ayeka unleashed a thick mass of tentacles, all aimed at Ryoko. In their flight, they grew spear points and claws that dripped poison. Ryoko narrowly avoided the attack. As she phased away, they tentacles ripped her shield away and smashed it into a glittering rain of metal. Laughing in triumph, Ayeka didn't notice Ryoko phasing in behind her. With an armored boot, she kicked Ayeka hard in the head. Ayeka's head snapped forward and she stumbled dangerously near the edge. As she recovered from the blow, she whipped her claws around to strike at Ryoko. The claws sparked against a metal blade. Tenchi blocked the blow from hitting Ryoko, who was recovering from the kick she had delivered. Snarling, Ayeka struck with her other claws. The armor on Tenchi's arm popped like glass, and blood streamed through the cracks. Ayeka's cold eyes locked onto his determined ones. Looking into them, Tenchi realized with sickening finality that Ayeka was lost. Ryoko struck with her energy sword. The red blade punched through Ayeka's shoulder, striking deep into her. Howling in pain, she recoiled from the two warriors. "Oh no..not again, Ryokooooo.." Ayeka hiss, holding her shoulder with one arm. "You won't win that easily." All around them, the ledge began to warp and twist. Rough stone lashed out, forming into thick, ropy tentacles tipped with jagged points. Tenchi fell away from Ayeka as the floor sank beneath him. Ryoko phased away from the dangerous rock projections. Ayeka shook with laughter as the wall around them began a similar transformation. Ryoko phased in and out rapidly, hacking and slashing at any tentacle that came within reach. Stones separated from their anchor points and fell stiffly to their destruction far below. But she was becoming rapidly outnumbered, and soon her speed wouldn't matter, since the tentacles were all over the place. "Tenchi!" She shouted, trying to locate him amongst the shifting masses. She hacked away another tentacle that was striking at her, and then she saw him. He was locked in vicious combat with Ayeka, and she clearly had the advantage. "I'm coming Tenchi!" she called, plowing through the thick forest of stony death. The two combatants were engaged in a deadly struggle in an ever shifting environment, but it was shifting according to Ayeka's whims. Tenchi was forced from his unsteady positions to even worse ones. And still Ayeka's black talons came at him, striking with maddening speed. Black steel met grey steel in showers of sparks. Swinging his sword in an overhand strike, Tenchi tried to end the fight right there, before it got any worse than it was. But Ayeka had other plans. Tenchi's blow was halted mere inches from Ayeka's cruel face by her talons. They locked on his wrist with crushing strength, lifting him from his feet. "Now, Lord Tenchiiiiiii.." she hissed, "we may leave this place for the glories of Phyrexia." Snapping her other arms outward, she produced a pair of three-foot long metal rods from hollows in her upper arms. Chuckling to herself, she fitted the two together and flung them into the hardening mass of rock tentacles. The six foot rod was seized by stony appendages and held in position as the magics within it activated. The black rod glowed a deep red and spat lightning in a circle around it. The lightning swirled faster and faster by the second, and soon a dark mist began to form in the space inside the rims. The stench of oil and metal came to Tenchi's nose as the mist became more substantial. "It is almost ready." Ayeka hissed, "and when it is, I can show you the power you have resisted and will soon embraccccee.." "Never!" Tenchi spat. "I would rather be cast into that flaming pit down there than become like you have.." "You'll change your mind ssssoon enough.." She replied. "Ahh, it is ready." Holding Tenchi firmly with two of her claws, Ayeka scuttled down the stony bridges that would carry her to the portal, which now looked like a pond of muted greys and blacks. Tenchi saw it draw near, and he despaired. "Almost there, Tenchiiiii." she crooned in her hateful metal voice. "And then you c-c-c-c.." Ayeka's gloating prophecy was halted in midword by a gurgle of acid bile running through her teeth. Her muscles started to quiver, and with agonizing slowness, she looked down, drooling as she did. The armor on her abdomen was glowing red at the center. Oil gushed from a hole in her back and front, steaming from the proximity of the weapon that had pierced her. Ryoko's weapon. "I told you once before, Ayeka.." Ryoko said in a low voice, filled with anger. "..that you couldn't have him." Pulling the weapon back a bit, Ryoko continued. "And I will show you what happens to those who try to hurt my Tenchi." Desperate, Ayeka slashed at Ryoko with her two free arms, but to no avail. Ryoko was too close, and in perfect position. With just a powerful shove, Ryoko drove the weapon down hard. The searing energy blade cut through Phyrexian artiface, spilling Ayeka's life-oil out faster than before. With a strangled cry, Ayeka toppled. However, since she was on a slope, she began to slide. Right towards the portal, with Tenchi still in her lethal grasp. "Tenchi!" Ryoko gasped, teleporting to him, attempting to free him from the grip that still held him. Despite her injuries, Ayeka still had one strong grip. With little time left, Ryoko raised her sword to slash through the offending limbs. "n-n-nooo..you.don't..: Ayeka gasped, striking out with what strength remained. Her leg snapped out, slamming into Ryoko's midsection and knocking the wind out of her. At that moment, they slid through the shimmering portal, and they fell into darkness..... Far removed from this scene, in the space between planes, Kalog Planesmaster and his mate, the Beastmaster noted how events transpired. No words were needed between them, for they were one being, and they each knew what came next. Rising from their dark thrones, they left the floating island in the Void, and proceeded with their plans. And Tokimi was left with the enigmatic and powerful planesmaster known as the Nameless One..