"NO NEED FOR TENCHI: MINAGI'S ADVENTURE"
CHAPTER 2: TROUBLE SHARED
"Minagi!" Sasami dashed across the pier with her pigtails flying. Tears of joy in her eyes, she gave Minagi a surprisingly strong hug. "I'm so glad to see you!" Minagi smiled down at Sasami and realized how much she missed her and everyone else. It was like a missing piece of her life had returned. Her eyes glistened wetly as she realized she had friends and family who loved her and she loved back. Hugging Sasami fiercely, she found herself blinking rapidly to clear her eyesight.
"I'm glad to see you too, Sasami."
Looking up, she saw Tenchi grinning widely at her.
"Minagi! It's good to see you again, and thanks for not smashing into the house or anything! We've just finished rebuilding from Mihoshi's last visit."
Somehow, Mihoshi managed to look unabashed. Instead she seemed as happy as Sasami and was busy hopping up and down. "Minagi! How is everything?" It seemed her spirit was indomitable when it came to property damage.
"I'm fine, everyone, but I was wondering if Washu was around?"
With Sasami at her side, Minagi sauntered towards the Masaki house. She wondered where Ryoko and Ayeka were.
As if by cue, Washu, Ryoko and Ayeka came around the corner. Minagi's eyes widened at what she saw. She quickly looked at Tenchi, who looked as though he had been smacked square in the middle of his forehead with a hammer.
"Wha - what's going on here?" Tenchi stammered, his voice having the quality of someone who had just seen a universal constant crumbling before his eyes. A nervous twitch had started up in his right cheek and his arms had fallen limply to his sides.
Ryoko and Ayeka were laughing and talking sweetly together. In fact, they seemed downright pleasant to each other. Minagi's eyes narrowed when she noticed the strange collars around their necks and Washu's insane (it had to be) grin.
"Minagi, how nice of you to stop by and visit your mom! You couldn't have timed your visit better, as I have completed my solution to the second most destructive force in the Masaki household - Ryoko's and Ayeka's fights."
Incredibly, Mihoshi chirped, "But Washu, what is the most destructive force in the Masaki household?"
Everyone paused and took a good, long look at her. Even Ryoko and Ayeka paused in their newfound best girlfriend chatter. Washu muttered something about limits to even her genius. Shrugging helplessly, she merely said, "That's not important right now, Mihoshi."
Brightening back up, Washu waved enthusiastically. "I would like to proudly introduce my cleverest invention yet, the aggression nullifier! With this handy tool I can turn even these two into dearest friends!"
Ryoko and Ayeka paused in their chatter as they both saw Tenchi at the same time. Arm in arm they moved slowly towards him, odd smiles on both their faces and a gleam in their eyes. "Tenchi," they both crooned, "we were wondering if you would like to go out with us today?"
Tenchi's eyes grew even wider. His pupils dilated as if he was encountering a kind of sublime terror only a teenaged boy surrounded by beautiful alien women could suffer.
Minagi and Sasami exchanged glances and sighed. It was going to be another one of those days, apparently. Sasami blushed a bit as Tenchi uttered a terrified scream and bolted off towards the woods, Ryoko and Ayeka following. Mihoshi shouted after them and took off also.
"Would you like to have some tea, Minagi?"
Minagi was relieved to find that at least some things were still normal. "I'd love some tea," she replied. "Oh, Washu?"
"Yes, daughter of mine?"
Minagi still found it difficult to equate this young looking redhead with spiky hair as her mother, but then again nobody would have guessed her age to be roughly 20,000 years, either. Making matters worse, Washu was technically her grandmother and Ryoko her mother. However, Washu seemed all too eager to fill the role of a mother in Minagi's life, whereas Ryoko had other interests.
Eager to avoid the whole sticky mess, she held up the damaged security crystal from the library and started describing her problem. "I've stumbled onto something big, but I'm not sure what exactly is going on. I've got a security crystal I can't read and was wondering if -"
"A mystery? Gimme that!" Washu snatched the crystal out of Minagi's hand and dashed off to her lab. Apparently, mothering instincts took a distant second to challenges to her intellect.
Minagi looked blankly after Washu. Was she actually cackling? Shaking her head, Minagi smiled and looked down at Sasami. "I guess it'll just be the two of us for tea, Sasami."
"That's okay. I want to hear about all the exciting things you've been doing!"
Minagi's smile faded as she thought of all the dead and murdered that had brought her here. Looking down at Sasami's smiling face and innocent eyes, she shuddered as images of eyeless corpses flashed across her mind. Patting Sasami's shoulder, she said nothing and merely hugged her again. There was some excitement a child didn't need to be exposed to.
Later in the evening
Washu's experiment on Ryoko and Ayeka failed when the girls had to decide which one of them was going to kiss Tenchi first. Luckily, the explosions when the collars burned out weren't enough to hurt anyone, but both Ryoko and Ayeka were sitting far apart and were alternating their glares between each other and Washu. Tenchi seemed to be the worse for wear, and Minagi was wondering if he might be suffering from some kind of post-traumatic stress syndrome or something. He kept nervously shifting his eyes between Ryoko and Ayeka as if he almost expected them both to pounce on him. Minagi giggled at the thought.
She turned her attention to the weird setup Washu had created in the Masaki living room. Washu had come out of her lab earlier with a pleased expression and an odd device hooked up to the security crystal. Oblivious to Ryoko's and Ayeka's glares, she whistled an odd tune as she hooked the whole setup to the TV.
Dinner was a chance to catch up on old times. Minagi hadn't seen everyone since the battle with the super-genius Yume and the second generation Jurai tree Bizen over six months back. As dinner progressed, Tenchi slowly warmed back up to his normal skittishness and was soon able to talk without flinching whenever he looked at either Ryoko or Ayeka.
"So, Minagi, what brings you back here to visit?" Ryoko waggled a chopstick in her direction. "Don't tell me you need some tips on how to be a proper pirate?"
Minagi smiled sweetly back at Ryoko, leaned back, and casually took a sip of sake before replying. "You know, I might need your help. I can't figure out how you were ever able to balance plundering freighters, drinking tequila, and getting foot massages from oiled hunks. Does it take years of practice, or am I missing something?"
Ryoko's face turned a funny shade of red and a nervous bead of sweat dropped off her forehead. Glancing over at Tenchi - whose startled expression had returned - Ryoko gave a sickly smile. "Er, ha-ha, that's funny. Whoever could have made up such a silly story? Really, Minagi, you're such a joker, ha-ha."
Minagi grinned, feeling a certain glee for teasing her `big sister/ mother/whatever'. "Oh, I don't know. I'm impressed that two well built young men oiled up and in loincloths are considered an `appetizer' for you. I never imagined following in your footsteps would lead to this!"
Ryoko's flush deepened even further. Ayeka was currently choking on something and Mihoshi was beating on her back. Washu had cradled her head in her hands and mournfully cried, "What is a mother to do? Really, Ryoko."
"What? Hey, I was younger and wilder back then. I'm much more sophisticated now, right, Tenchi?"
Tenchi had a slightly appalled look on his face. "Ryoko, you plunder planets but have a hankering for foot massages?"
Ryoko gave a small whimper and shrank down a bit as she realized that her colorful past was something Tenchi didn't really want to find out about. Suddenly, a wide grin split Tenchi's face and tears rolled down; the image of the dread space pirate Ryoko enjoying a foot massage was entirely too much for him. Before long, the entire table was laughing and even Ryoko was able to chuckle at her predicament.
Even the glower Ryoko tried to direct towards Minagi faded before her sunny smile. Ryoko realized that Minagi had stumbled onto a particularly embarrassing bit of her past, and it had proved too juicy to pass up.
/You better be careful, missy,/ Ryoko sent to Minagi. /Living up to my pirate standards isn't as easy as it looks./
Minagi grinned back. /Sorry about bringing that up, but how could I resist?/ She sobered up and spoke out loud. "There were times I wished you were with me, Ryoko. There's something going on and I think it's trouble, big trouble."
Her admission brought the merriment to an abrupt halt. "I'm sorry, everyone, but I came back for an important reason. Someone has been killing off dealers in antiquities, and now he's disappeared. My only clues are that security crystal and a holographic projector he left behind. Washu, were you able to recover the contents of the security crystal?"
Washu nodded. "Perhaps you should fill us in on the whole story after dinner." She glanced meaningfully towards Sasami. "That way we can go over the - grimmer - parts of your story."
Had Washu already watched the events unfold on the library? Minagi looked closely at her but could detect nothing in her expression to say either way.
Dinner concluded on a quieter note, as if everyone could sense something unpleasant about to happen. Minagi berated herself for bringing it up right in the middle of dinner, but she hadn't realized how much this was starting to worry her. The look in August's eyes when he had warned her about the powers she was getting involved with was starting to worry her.
Sasami realized she wasn't going to hear what Minagi had to say later on and it obviously bothered her. It hurt Minagi to see Sasami feel so neglected, but she knew it was for the better. Kneeling down in front of her, she took Sasami's hands into hers and looked straight into her eyes. "Sasami, you have to believe me when I say this. You do not want to hear what we have to discuss, and you definitely don't want to see what's on the security crystal. Please, trust me on this."
Sasami bit her lip and tears trembled in her eyes. "It's alright. I've learned that it takes courage to wait. I just hate the helpless feeling I have when everyone I love keeps getting hurt. I don't want anyone to get hurt."
Tenchi came up behind Sasami and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Sasami, we're all proud of you. We have to do these things that may get us hurt. But it would kill me if that ever happened to you."
Ryoko called from the lounge area, "Tenchi, Minagi - Washu has the device almost ready."
"We've got to go, Sasami. Promise me you won't listen in."
"Okay, Tenchi." Sasami collected some plates and headed off to the kitchen.
Minagi rose and noticed Tenchi staring at the kitchen door. "Thanks for helping out," she said. Tenchi came out of his reverie and gave an absentminded smile at Minagi. Together they walked over to the lounge area.
Ryoko had kicked her feet up on the table; she wasted no time getting to business. "So what's up, Minagi? It had better be good after that foot massage stunt you pulled."
"Believe me, Ryoko, it is."
Minagi related the story, beginning with the first ambush. As her story continued she was interrupted by sharp questions from everyone. Her head hurt as she tried to recollect the tiniest detail of a conversation or scene from an attack. Finally, as she reached the description of her trek through the library, she noticed everyone's faces becoming very serious. Their expressions changed as she detailed the various horrors and damage done to ship and crew.
Tenchi seemed sick at the loss of life; there was a burning anger in his eyes. Ryoko had the look of a hardened professional, detaching herself from the horror. Mihoshi seemed the most upset; tears were welling up in her eyes. Ayeka looked upset also, but she sat stiff- backed, her fists clenched in anger. Washu seemed as detached as Ryoko, but her eyes were narrowed in concentration as she listened to every word Minagi said.
Finally, Minagi's story came to an end. "So the only pieces of evidence I have that might lead me to Avashar are that crystal and this holographic projector."
"Let's see the projection first, Minagi." Tenchi's voice was very serious. "I want to see the face of this butcher up close."
Minagi nodded, fired up the projector, and began playing the recording again. Ryoko raised an eyebrow at Avashar's mistake, identifying Minagi as herself, but said nothing. When the projector reached the part where Avashar generated his sword, Washu's hand snapped down and paused the projection.
"Hmm, so what do we have here?" She brought up her workstation and busily punched calculations in. "Looks like an awfully impressive sword."
The blade was pitch black. Lightning coursed along its edge; terrible glyphs and blood-red runes were engraved along its length. If one looked closely, one could almost make out screaming faces twisting within the blade's surface.
Minagi nodded. "I agree, Washu, but for some reason something seems, well, wrong with it."
"Well, Tenchi, it certainly looks like a powerful blade. Jealous?" Ryoko sat up and leaned across the table to get closer to the projection, eyes wide at the blade.
"Ryoko, there's nothing wrong with my blade." Tenchi was also staring at the blade with a confused look on his face.
"I'm sure there isn't, Tenchi. Maybe I can help you hone -" Ryoko, not missing a beat, had begun to take the conversation somewhere else entirely.
Ayeka delivered a sharp smack to Ryoko's posterior. "That's enough, Ryoko! What if that sword is as powerful as it looks?"
Ryoko was about to start into Ayeka when something else caught everyone's attention: Washu was laughing. Laughing hard. Tears were pouring down her face. Minagi wondered if Washu had finally snapped; after all, it was really only a matter of time. From the nervous look on everyone else's faces, the same thought was running through their heads.
"Oh, this is too rich! Bwwhuuahaha!" Washu was actually having difficulty breathing; she had fallen off her cushion and was kicking her feet in the air. Finally her laughing attack passed and, still chucking, she sat up.
"Whew, that was precious. Now watch closely, everyone."
She began punching a key repeatedly on the holographic projector. Minagi's eyes widened a bit as with Washu's first keystroke the tiny little screaming faces disappeared from within the blade; with the second, the glyphs and runes shimmered and faded from view; the third, the coursing lightning. The fourth keystroke turned the shimmering black blade into a rather ordinary sword, plain steel with a faint blue glow about it.
"You were right, Minagi. Avashar simply used digital enhancements available on any holographic projector to make his sword," she cleared her throat awkwardly, "appear a little more impressive than before."
Minagi was puzzled. "Why would anybody do that?"
Ryoko leaned over and replied in a stage whisper, "It's kind of a male thing, Minagi. Guys and their swords and all that."
Minagi felt her cheeks warm as Ayeka and Washu both hung their heads in despair. Tenchi and Mihoshi both had blank looks on their faces, but Tenchi seemed to have a slowly dawning realization of what Ryoko was talking about.
Minagi desperately tried to change the subject. "How about the security tape, Washu?"
Ryoko's grin indicated that she knew she had scored one. /And that's just the beginning of my payback./
Minagi refused to answer, but her silence only made Ryoko's grin widen.
Washu made a few tiny adjustments to the device hooked up to the security crystal and started the recording. Ryoko dropped right back to business mode. The room's lights dimmed until the only source of illumination was the TV screen.
Washu talked idly as she made one final adjustment. "I've started it just before the entire event occurred. That was about one hour before you arrived, Minagi."
The screen jumped and then refocused. Minagi recognized the main corridor leading to the vault. A robed figure, its features hidden from the camera, walked amidst a group of expensively dressed traders, modest librarians, and several guards. An animated conversation was going on around the robed figure.
"Is there any sound?"
"Not yet, there are sections where damage to the crystal prevents any sound playback." Washu kept fiddling with dials and punching codes into her keyboard. "Expect some skipping from time to time."
Finally the group reached the main vault. More guards were evident here, and they carefully scanned all the members of the group before opening the vault door. Minagi's heart began to race as her instincts cried that the moment of the library's disaster was drawing near.
As the group filed in through the vault door, the robed figure moved to stand confidently in the center of the chamber. They were still entering the chamber when total chaos exploded.
Screams tore through the Masaki living room, startling everyone. Mihoshi screamed and jumped behind the couch. Ayeka and Ryoko grabbed hold of Tenchi. Even Washu looked surprised. Minagi realized that her heart was pounding in her chest; she had half-risen out of the couch.
It was the screams that did it. These were screams of absolute terror and pain, horrible, soul-wrenching pain as a terrible wave of energy streaked forth from the robed figure, lashing out at books, librarians, guards, everything. Even as they watched, the books shimmered and vanished from sight. Everything else in the chamber disappeared, obliterated by the power emanating from the entity.
The screams died off, but a terrible keening noise was building up as the aura around the robed figure continued to build. Everyone gasped as the robes split apart and something - else - was left standing there. Minagi's breath caught. It wasn't Avashar, but it was humanlike. He floated in midair, arms outstretched and face tilted upwards, his body glowing with a pure white light. His clothing was of the purest white and his face was perfection itself.
Except for his eyes. Minagi couldn't explain it, but there was a hardness there, an indifference to life. It was like looking into the eyes of a dead thing. The entity relaxed for a second, and then a terrible burst of energy exploded from him, tearing outwards. The entire screen jiggled and faded out for a moment.
Washu rapidly typed some additional commands into her workstation and the image came back. She rapidly scrolled to an external view. Everyone gasped; the shockwave had traveled outwards into space, shattering the ships orbiting the library. Only one ship remained untouched, a ship that hadn't been there when Minagi arrived. It was a small ship, about the size of Avashar's, but its hull was sleeker and of the purest white, marred by only a few smooth nodules.
Washu turned back to the vault cameras but the entity had already gone. Skipping through different camera views, it was apparent that the library power systems were failing and the artificial gravity was already knocked out. Not every chamber was exposed to the vacuum, as blast doors automatically shut after the explosion, but every camera she turned to displayed the same grim result: everyone on board had been killed by the shockwave.
She refocused on the vault, sighed, and then turned to Minagi. "I think you were very lucky to be late to this particular meeting."
"Do you know who or what that was?" Minagi was surprised at how calm she sounded.
"No, but I can tell you that he is very powerful. Worse yet, he took those books for some unknown reason. Given what that August character told you, I shudder to think what purpose they will serve."
Tenchi nudged Ryoko and Ayeka off him. "Washu, where is that power coming from?"
"Judging from what August told Minagi, that entity may very well have tapped into higher dimensions for his power."
Ayeka straightened up and asked worriedly, "But Washu, what would a creature do with power like that?"
"I don't know, Miss Ayeka. I don't know, and that is what has me worried." Her frown was replaced by a bright smile. "But on the bright side, a dimensional power like that should be sooo easy for someone like me to find!" Without any further ado, she jumped up and scampered to her laboratory.
Ryoko leaned back and kicked her feet up again. She turned to gaze at Tenchi for a moment, then back to the empty chamber. She seemed worried.
Mihoshi had her GP cube out and had already changed into her uniform. "Uh, guys? I'm going to get Yukinojo ready for flight. I'm going to have to warn the Galaxy Police about this." Twisting the cube a few more times, she disappeared in a flash of light. Minagi thought she heard a distant splash a second later.
Ayeka lightly touched Tenchi's hand. "Tenchi, I'm going to check on Sasami. I have a sinking sensation we're going to be leaving all too soon."
"That's a good idea, Ayeka. I should see her also." Tenchi got up and followed after her. He glanced worriedly at Ryoko for a second, but seeing no impending eruption, sighed in relief and left the room.
Ryoko didn't even bat an eyelash, just sat and stared at the recording. Without looking at Minagi she started talking. "We're going to have to be careful, Minagi. Anyone who can obliterate ships like that is no pushover. When we fight this creature, we will have to hit him at the same time, hard and fast, nothing fancy. I don't know if anyone can go toe to toe with this bastard."
Minagi nodded. "You're worried about Tenchi trying something heroic?"
Ryoko shrugged. "I'm worried about everyone. Just don't tell anyone else that." She shot a sharp glance at Minagi.
Minagi smiled. "I'm worried about them, too. Shall we talk to Sasami?"
"Yeah, I'd - hey, what's that?"
Minagi turned back to the screen. A lone figure had drifted into the vault and was looking around. Minagi recognized him instantly. "It's Avashar, but what is he doing?"
He floated into the center of the chamber, right where the entity had been. Seconds later he began to float upwards. Extending his arms outward and tilting his head backwards, he exactly mimicked the entity's pose. He floated like that for a few more seconds before settling back down.
"What's he doing?" Ryoko whispered.
"I don't know. Wait, the sound's working again."
Avashar had brought out the holographic projector, and after mounting it to the floor, began recording his message.
"Space pirate Ryoko, I don't know why a cutie like you is chasing after me like this."
Minagi frowned; that wasn't the way she remembered it. The recording continued.
"I'm flattered, but I'm busy right now. No, no, this won't work." He stopped the recording and started pacing back and forth in the chamber.
Minagi and Ryoko looked at each other. "Cutie, huh?" Ryoko said, arching an eyebrow and making Minagi's cheeks flush.
They both flinched when they heard a throat clear behind them. Ayeka stood there with Tenchi, both of them smiling at Minagi's discomfort.
Avashar was now trying another recording, which failed as miserably as the first. Between corny poses, bad grammar, and retakes, it took five more tries before he got it right. By that time Tenchi, Ayeka, Ryoko and Minagi were staring in amazement at the screen.
"Is this guy for real?" Ryoko asked, scratching her head.
"You've got me, Ryoko." Ayeka seemed just as puzzled, and for a time they dropped their usual routine of sniping at each other.
Avashar had finished the recording and was making the enhancements to his sword in the projection. While he worked, he continued to talk to himself. "Now that's a kick-ass sword. One look at this baby and Ryoko's going to choose a career path in basket weaving. Damn, I'm clever." With that said, Avashar gestured briefly and a portal opened up before him. Whistling an off-key tune, he strolled through. It closed behind him.
Ryoko looked at Minagi. "Basket weaving? If you don't get to him first, I'm going to kick his ass all the way to the edge of the Galaxy."
"You know, Ryoko, that fellow might have a better understanding of your skills than you realize." Ayeka giggled at Ryoko's expression, apparently unable to resist such an opening.
"Listen princess, I'll be more than happy -"
"That's enough, both of you." Tenchi rolled his eyes and pulled himself up. "I'm going to try and get some sleep. Who knows how soon we're going to be needed."
"Good idea Tenchi, I've got the perfect thing to help make you sleepy."
Minagi groaned as Ayeka tackled Ryoko and the two of them went crashing to the floor. Tenchi didn't even look back at them; he merely sighed and started up the steps to his room.
Minagi turned back to the screen and scratched her head. "I'm a cutie, huh?" she thought. This was getting weirder by the minute.
Breakfast was a restrained affair. Tenchi's grandfather had returned from visiting family and Tenchi was filling him in on what was going on. Neither Washu nor Mihoshi were present, and Tenchi shuddered to think what mischief Mihoshi was getting herself into. It didn't matter as long as she didn't try landing on the house again.
Minagi groaned with pleasure; Sasami's breakfasts were astounding. Sasami didn't seem to be her usual cheerful self, but worrying that everyone might be facing a powerful entity would do that. Minagi leaned over and patted Sasami's hand gently.
"Sasami, I keep thinking I should take you along with me when I'm out pirating. Your cooking is simply incredible and I could use a good cook."
"Do you really think I could come along?" Sasami's face lit up at the thought of adventure and excitement in deep space - and cooking.
Minagi groaned silently to herself. She could see Ayeka and Tenchi both looking at her as if she had grown horns on her head. This wasn't the reaction she was hoping for. "What I meant is, well, um, you see..."
Ayeka stopped frowning and smiled at Sasami. "What Minagi meant was that she misses your company, Sasami, not that she wants to drag you halfway across the galaxy on a cooking tour. What would Ryo-Ohki do without you?"
Sasami thought about that, then turned back towards Minagi and said very seriously, "I wish I could go with you, Minagi, but I have to take care of everyone here. And how can I leave Ryo-Ohki alone?"
Minagi sighed with relief and shot a grateful glance at Ayeka. Ayeka giggled and dove back into her breakfast. Ryoko had hardly even registered the little crisis, so deeply enamoured was she with her breakfast. She had just wolfed down a large mouthful when Washu burst in with a triumphant cry.
"I've found it!"
Ryoko immediately started gagging on her food. Tenchi's grandfather glanced sideways at Ryoko, sighed, and gave her a hearty slap on the back. Ryoko hacked, coughed and finally swallowed. Her face turned beet red when she realized that everyone was staring at her.
"What?"
"Don't worry about Miss Piggy over there," Washu said, ignoring Ryoko's strangled cry. "I've located the position and heading of that entity. It took me most of the night before I realized that he was much weaker than when we first saw him on the library. While it's dangerous to make an assumption on so little hard data, my research on dimensional energy has indicated that a higher dimensional being cannot employ its full strength in lower dimensions. To impose a physical body in this dimension requires a tremendous loss of raw power.
"Instead, I believe the entity is using the lore of higher dimensions from our dimension so it can better access the raw energies from its own dimension. When it doesn't need to access those energies, it limits its usage to the lowest possible levels."
Minagi's head wobbled. Pressing one hand to her head, she raised the other to get Washu's attention. "Washu, could you perhaps paraphrase that for us?" She noticed nods from around the table.
Washu gritted her teeth and organized her thoughts. "It's simple. Usually a higher dimensional being can only enter this dimension by shedding a tremendous amount of its power. This entity no longer faces those restrictions, but can only maintain those higher levels of power for a limited period of time before it loses control of all the energy it is channeling."
Tenchi nodded, grasping the concept. "Washu, how powerful can that creature be when it's accessing all its power?"
"If it had enough time to fully power up, godlike. The end result for our galaxy could be very bad, very bad indeed. But it may be hesitant to do so until it's ready to complete whatever task it has set out to accomplish."
"What goal is that?" Ayeka was already seeing the possible impact such an entity could have on the entire galaxy's balance of power.
"I don't know, Ayeka. But I do know it hasn't accomplished its goals yet."
"Why do you say that?" Ayeka's food sat forgotten, and she kept absently tapping her finger against her juice glass.
"Simple, really; I haven't registered any other bursts of powerful dimensional energy. And the Galaxy still exists. Also, that ship is moving directly towards the Solar System and, I would guess, the Earth."
"What!" Tenchi stood bolt upright. "Washu, why didn't you tell us earlier?"
Washu smiled sweetly at Tenchi. "Ryoko interrupted me with all her choking."
"Hey, why are you putting the blame on me?" Ryoko's expression was one of hurt innocence.
Tenchi closed his eyes and mentally started counting to ten. Sometimes Washu's take on the universe was a little too casual for his liking. This was one of those times. "Little Washu, could you tell us how long we have before that entity reaches the Earth?" He was amazed at how calm he sounded.
"Enough time, but we'll have to hurry." Around the table, everyone nodded in quick agreement, their faces serious.
Minagi blinked in surprise. It amazed her how quickly everyone could change gears. "Washu, do you have an idea for stopping this entity?"
"Since it's not ravaging across the Galaxy, my guess is that it's loath to use its power needlessly. If we hit it hard and fast it may not have the time to access all its power before it's too late."
"Are you saying we have to kill it, Washu?" Tenchi's voice was very quiet.
Minagi blinked in surprise when Tenchi's innocent question brought tears to her eyes. Here was a boy, no, a young man, who could probably vanquish any foe he faced and yet he didn't want to kill. She glanced at Ryoko and then Ayeka, and she saw the pride in both their faces for him. He would do what had to be done but would never take joy in the loss of life.
Washu smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Tenchi, but to have an unchecked power like this in the galaxy scares me like nothing ever has before. Very few higher dimensional beings care about life in this dimension, and worse yet, probably don't even recognize anything here as `life'." Her eyes hardened as if she was rehashing an old argument that still hadn't ended.
Katsuhito rose and gestured for Tenchi to follow him. Together they walked to the end of the pier to talk, leaving everyone else to confer amongst themselves.
Ryoko teleported over by the window and looked after Tenchi worriedly. Ayeka got up and moved next to Ryoko. Her cultured voice was soft. "I hate seeing what this does to Tenchi."
Ryoko didn't even twitch. "Me too, princess. Me too."
Together they stood for a moment, watching Tenchi and his grandfather, before splitting up and going their separate ways.
Minagi looked up from helping Sasami clear the table and saw the glitter of tears on both their cheeks before they passed from view. She heard a snuffle next to her and saw Sasami rubbing her eyes hurriedly.
Sasami looked up at Minagi and asked in a small voice, "Why does Tenchi have to do such terrible things? He's so nice and kind, it's not fair."
Minagi wiped a tear from Sasami's cheek. "I think it's because sometimes good people have to do bad things, Sasami. It doesn't make it any easier on them, and it's hardly ever fair."
Sasami buried her head in Minagi's side, sobbed a terrible hurt cry, and hugged her tightly. Minagi tensed awkwardly, stacked plates in each of her hands. Washu quietly took the plates from her hands and took them to the kitchen with nary a word. Breathing quiet thanks to Washu, Minagi reached down and hugged Sasami tightly. Sometimes the world made children grow up faster than they should, but she didn't want to see that happen to Sasami.
Finally the time came for everyone to depart. They gathered on the beach by the lake, Ryo-Ohki and Hinase already floating above. Ryoko, Ayeka, and Tenchi would go on Ryo-Ohki while Minagi and Washu would take the Hinase, Washu having explained that she wanted to see how her other daughter was doing. Mihoshi was nowhere to be seen, but the common consensus was that she had probably already boarded the enemy ship and blasted half of it to pieces - by accident, of course.
Sasami and Katsuhito stood nearby. Sasami seemed better now, and she hugged everyone fiercely before they left, eliciting promises to come back safe and sound.
Seconds later, Ryo-Ohki and Hinase were carving incandescent arcs through the late morning sky. Sasami and Katsuhito watched until the faintest twinkle of the ships had disappeared before walking back to the house.
Aboard the Hinase, Minagi looked over at Washu, who was sitting on her cushion and typing away on her workstation. Intensely focused on whatever she was doing, her hands flashed over the keyboard at lighting speed.
Minagi shrugged and turned toward the main screen. "Hinase?"
[Yes, Minagi?]
"How long before we reach our target?"
[We will intercept the ship on the far side of Jupiter in the next ten minutes.]
"Thank you."
Hinase's small globe and main unit crystals hovered by her. [Uh, Minagi?]
Minagi smiled at them. They worried so much sometimes. "Don't worry, I've got all my friends - and family - here with me. We'll be fine."
"Family," she thought. "I have family." Thinking about Ryoko and Washu, she silently amended that to `dysfunctional' family, but family nevertheless.
Washu glanced up and smiled at Minagi's admission. It was nice to have the feeling of family again. Turning back to her work, she frowned; for some reason, she couldn't pinpoint Mihoshi's location. Where had that girl gotten herself to this time?
Minutes later, Ryo-Ohki and Hinase were pacing the entity's ship. No fire greeted their approach as the ship slowed to a crawl around Jupiter. High above the swirling gases, the ship's white surface shimmered from the reflected light of the gas giant. Its size was about a third of the Hinase and its shape was like that of an elongated teardrop. Several smooth nodules raised up from the hull but did not detract from its liquid sleekness.
Washu stared silently in dismay. "Everyone, listen carefully." Her voice was level and her tone deadly serious. "I'm getting readings of an obscenely massive power within that ship. It hasn't been activated yet, but I fear for all our safety if it fully activates."
Ryoko's face appeared on the communications screen. "Hey, Minagi, you ready?"
"That's right, Ryoko. I'll teleport over with Washu."
"I'll grab Tenchi and the princess. Remember what we talked about earlier."
Minagi nodded and cut the transmission. She smiled at Washu and held out her hand. "Shall we?"
"Alright everyone, lets go!" Grabbing a hold of Tenchi and Ayeka, Ryoko prepared herself for the teleport. Then nothing happened.
Ayeka looked at her. "Is there a problem?"
"Hang on, let me try again." There was a momentary pause, then nothing. Ryoko snarled in frustration. "Damn, I can't teleport into that ship!" Turning, she brought up communications with the Hinase. "Minagi, Washu, are you there?" She radiated hard professionalism, but a hint of concern laced her voice.
Hinase's crystal appeared onscreen. "No, Lady Ryoko, they teleported out." It began to blink in worry. "May I ask why you're not there with them?"
"How should I know? I'm not the genius around here." Ryoko's eyes were troubled. "I do know that if we don't get inside that ship soon, Washu and Minagi may be in real trouble."
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