Vacation Days - Chapter 1 By D.B. Sommer (sommer@3rdm.net) "Mihoshi, I've got good news for you." The delighted face of Lieutenant Shingo, Mihoshi's direct supervisor announced from the primary viewscreen of her ship. "You have some vacation time coming up. In fact, you have a lot of vacation time coming up. Six months. Isn't that wonderful?" Mihoshi, sitting cross-legged at her seat, clad in only a set of white shorts and a loose, sleeveless, blue top, stared in confusion at the screen. "I do?" "Of course," the bubbly delight radiating from the man would have alerted just about anyone else that something was not quite right with what was happening. Supervisors were never that happy with giving their subordinates vacation time. "You've been with the Galaxy Police for four years now, and you haven't taken a single day of leave, not even for illness." "That's because there are still lots of criminals out there to stop. It wouldn't seem right for me to take a vacation if my job wasn't finished," Mihoshi explained. Shingo was about to ask what she meant by that, then thought better of it, considering that the explanation would undoubtedly confuse things further. "Well, your vacation days are piling up, and some of the officers in accounting want you to use them so they don't throw off the pay schedule." Mihoshi considered that. "Does that mean I'll be pulled off duty from patrolling the Solar System?" There was a momentary blank stare upon Shingo's face. In a small voice he said, "Of course it does. You'll be on vacation. That means you won't be at work. We'll assign someone else to look over your sector while you kick back and relax somewhere in the universe far, far away from work." "I don't want to go." Shingo's face began to twitch slightly. "What do you mean 'you don't want to go'? We're talking about a six month paid vacation. Most agents don't get that much vacation time in a decade." "Then how did I get so much?" Even through the viewscreen, a slight sheen of sweat became visible as it broke out on the lieutenant's brow. "Ah, it's for the exemplary work you've done in the time you've been in the department. Look at how many cases and criminal organizations you've single-handedly brought down." Mihoshi brightened at the praise. "I have been sort of busy, haven't I?" "Yes, yes," Shingo cooed. "You're the most infamous...I mean famous, Galaxy Police Detective in our entire bureau. And like all such, ah, heroes, you've earned a break from the front lines. You wouldn't want to burn out any more than you have, I mean, you wouldn't want to burn out, would you?" "No," Mihoshi said slowly, wondering what he had meant when he had originally said she had been burned out. True, her performance ratings had been down the last year, even Kagato had heard about that, but she was not 'burned out.' It probably was just a mistake on the lieutenant's part. "But I still don't want to go," Mihoshi insisted. "Why in the name of Juraian Dutch Elm Disease not?" Mihoshi began to blush slightly. How could she tell the lieutenant that it was because if she had to take a vacation, she wouldn't get to be with Tenchi? She couldn't just come out and say it; people would talk. "Umm, I can't because of personal reasons. And it doesn't have anything to do with me not wanting to be apart from Tenchi." She let out a sigh of relief. The lieutenant wouldn't suspect a thing now. Shingo took a deep breath, trying to keep his face from twitching. "Look, this is a direct order. You have to go on vacation." "But-" "No buts!" The picture of the lieutenant's face ballooned to five times its original size as he moved right next to the imager and shouted. "Go! Get out of here! I don't want to see your face for another six months! Do you understand?! I don't want to hear the name 'Mihoshi Kuramitsu' uttered, read, translated, cried out in agony, or mentioned in any way! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?!!!" "Yes, sir," Mihoshi said from her position of cowering under the console. The lieutenant's face went back to normal. "Good. You're now on leave." The viewscreen winked out. Half a galaxy away, Shingo sighed, "It's done." And at Galaxy Police Headquarters, a resounding cheer of triumph rose up from a thousand different voices. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Vacation Days Chapter 1 A Tenchi Muyo! Fic This uses the OVA continuity. Any and all C+C craved for. You can contact me at sommer@3rdm.net Standard Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Tenchi Muyo! materials All of my stuff is now stored at: http://angcobra.jumpfun.com/dbsommer.html xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Had anyone been outside on the grounds of the Masaki 'Estate', they would have seen a depressed Mihoshi walking about aimlessly. It wasn't her usual full fledged waterworks depression, but an uncharacteristic somberness that would have even made Washuu say, "Hey, Bubblehead, what's wrong?" To which Mihoshi would have replied, "I don't want to go on vacation because I'll miss Tenchi." At that point, Washuu would have said something in that sweet, motherly voice she used on Ryouko. A phrase like, "get over it," or something similar. However, no one was around, so Mihoshi was left alone in her thoughts, which she did have, regardless of what some people thought. She had not been on a vacation for years, not since she lived with her parents, right before going through the Galaxy Police Training Academy five years ago. Where would she go? What should she do? "It's not fair," Mihoshi sniffled to herself. There was no way to get out of a direct order from her supervisor. She was being forced on vacation. She needed help. Asking Aeka or Ryouko's advice on the matter probably wouldn't be a good idea; they seemed to think that the less time she spent with Tenchi, the better. They'd just tell her to go to the outer rim or something. She didn't feel comfortable asking Yosho. Even Washuu didn't seem right. But there was one person Mihoshi could always turn to. It was time to call her mother. Her mother always gave good advice, and it had been months since Mihoshi had last spoken to her. Also, she was an expert on vacations, having organized and arranged trips for the family all of her life. She'd know what to do. Mihoshi entered the house and went to the newly reconstructed 'Washuu's Super Special Intergalactic Phone'. The one without the self-destruct switch, which Tenchi had insisted on, much to Washuu's annoyance. Picking up the receiver, Mihoshi dialed the fifteen digit number needed to get the Intergal Connector service so that she could reach her parent's star system. The phone rang only once before it was answered by a deep, husky, "Hello." Mihoshi's eyebrows furrowed slightly. Her mother's voice was usually high-pitched. "Mommy?" After a moment, the voice on the other end said, "Sure, I can be your Mommy. I just need a debit card number from you first. Universal Express, Stargazer's Trump, or any gold card will do." Mihoshi looked at the phone in confusion. That was a very strange request for her mother to make. "Would Royal Juraian Imperial Plus do?" "Of course," Mihoshi rattled off the number she had memorized from the one time she had seen Aeka's debit card. "Now then, what would you like your mommy to do to you?" the voice asked. Again her mother's voice, as well as speech pattern, was inconsistent with Mihoshi's memories, even if it had been a while since they had last spoken to one another. "I need advice." "Oh? Have you been a naughty girl?" "Ah, not really." Mihoshi felt a blush rise to her cheeks. Her mother did tend to ask about her social life frequently and wondered if Mihoshi had any romantic interests in her life since she was already twenty-three and hadn't found a decent lover yet. Her mother tended to be somewhat...sexually aggressive, and thought her daughter should be that way too. Actually, her mother's attitude towards that sort of thing was very reminiscent of Ryouko's, when it came right down to it. For that reason Mihoshi had felt reluctant to mention Tenchi to her. There was no telling what her mother might have come up with. "Are you sure you don't need a spanking?" the voice on the end of the line asked? "What?!" "I think you're calling me because you're a naughty girl," the voice continued in its husky tone. "I think what you need is a good spanking. And then I'll-" Mihoshi was only able to listen to two of the 'suggestions' before she held the receiver away from her ear. Aeka came walking by, then paused a moment to take in the unusual scene before her. "What's going on?" "It's for you." Mihoshi handed Aeka the receiver and ran off. There was no way that person on the other end could be her mother. Mihoshi only made it as far as the door to Washuu's lab before a piercing scream cried out, "NO! I MOST CERTAINLY WOULD NOT LIKE TO BE SMACKED AROUND LIKE THE BITCH THAT I AM!!!" which was followed by the sound of someone blasting Washuu's phone into two hundred thousand tiny pieces. For a moment, Mihoshi considered dropping by Washuu's lab, but then thought better of it. All too often it seemed Washuu's experiments backfired, and then she'd be in a foul mood all day and would take it out on the Galaxy Police officer, even though whatever Mihoshi did really was an accident. She was going to have to come up with another idea. Wandering around eventually took her outside once again. The day was still clear, so Mihoshi decided to walk around, hoping the fresh air might give her some insight on how to solve her dilemma. The carefully cultivated grounds of the temple area gave way to the carrot fields below the shrine. It was there Mihoshi came across Tenchi. He was wearing a pair of faded jeans and a gray short-sleeved shirt, and was working on a row of carrots with a hoe. Mihoshi could see a sheen of perspiration on his brow, the blue headband he wore failing to soak up the moisture. Ryo-Ohki stood several feet behind Tenchi, waiting anxiously for any carrots that might be thrown her way. Tenchi looked up from his work to see the newcomer approach. "Hi, Mihoshi." "Hello, Tenchi." Tenchi went back to using his hoe, missing the depressed tone in Mihoshi's voice. "What are you up to today?" "I have to go on vacation," Mihoshi sighed. Tenchi looked up from his work. "Vacation, huh? I sure wouldn't mind going on one myself." Mihoshi's head jerked slightly. Was that what she thought he had said? "You would?" "Yeah, I haven't been on one in a while." He rested his hands on the top of the hoe as he stared off at the horizon, his eyes taking on a distant glaze. "I always used to come here for my summer vacations and train with grandfather, only since the house got transported out here, I get to do it year round now. I don't think we can call it a vacation anymore." "I think you're right," Mihoshi said. There was an idea forming on the periphery of her mind, but it was still too far away to make out. Tenchi's gaze remained far off. "I remember there was one time me and Dad, four years or so ago, took a vacation to the beach. We were only there for a couple of days, but it was pretty fun. Well, except for Dad ogling and commenting on all of the girls in their bathing suits. That kind of put a damper on things." "So you like the beach?" The idea was continuing to draw closer. It was almost there. "Yeah." "The beaches on Aqua Regia are the best in the universe," Mihoshi said brightly. Her eyes took on a similar, distant gaze as Tenchi's. "Over ninety five percent of the surface of the planet is covered with water, and most of the landmasses are only small islands. The sand there is soft and smooth, like baby powder, and when it goes through your toes, it makes you want to laugh and play all day. My parents took me there when I was little, so I know." "It sounds neat," Tenchi said, now trying to imagine the scene Mihoshi was describing. Surprisingly, he found it very easy to picture in his mind, though Mihoshi's description was somewhat plain. "It is," Mihoshi assured him. "And the water there is crystal clear and you can see for hundreds of feet in it. The planet is full of billions of beautiful fishes. There's supposed to be more species there than anywhere else in the universe. And they have the best seafood in the galaxy there too." Tenchi mopped the sweat from his brow. "It sounds like paradise. I sure wouldn't mind seeing it." At last the idea came into focus for Mihoshi. "Tenchi?" "Yes?" "Would you like to go with me to Aqua Regia?" The offer caught Tenchi off guard. "You're asking me to go on a vacation with you?" Mihoshi went from staring at Tenchi to looking at the ground and kicking at tiny stones. "Well, you're not going anywhere on your summer break and you said you wanted to go to the beach since you like the beach and I'd like to go to the beach since I like the beach too-" "Sure." "-I thought it would be a really good idea since then we'd both be going to the beach- "Okay." "-and I don't want to have to go on vacation all alone because then I'd be lonely-" "Mihoshi, I said okay!" At last, the statement registered with Mihoshi. "You'd really like to go?" "Sure," Tenchi said, glad at last to get a word in edgewise. "I'll have to check with Dad and Grandpa first, but if it's okay with them, I'll go. It sounds like it would be a lot of fun." "All right. Let's go ask them." Mihoshi grabbed Tenchi's arm and, over his protests, proceeded to drag him all the way to the temple. A pair of chopsticks snapped. Yosho examined the broken pieces of wood in his hand, then memorized every detail of his meager belongings in the temple in which he sat. One never knew how much longer such things would last, especially with the company the family had been keeping of late. He began concentrating in earnest, until he came to a conclusion. "Ryouko," he said out loud. Exactly three seconds later, Mihoshi slid open the door to the temple and rushed inside with Tenchi still being dragged along by the arm. With a loud thump, she collapsed into a cross-legged position across the table before the older man. Tenchi fell on his side next to her. Yosho gave a sigh. "And here I had been sure it was Ryouko's turn." "What was that?" Tenchi and Mihoshi asked at the same time. "Nothing." Yosho gave a dismissive gesture with his hand. "What brings the two of you here? You both look like you have something you'd like to ask me." Actually, Mihoshi was literally bouncing up and down, while still in her sitting position, in nervous anticipation. Tenchi was more subdued, but did appear a little anxious. Tenchi's hand found its way to the back of his head. "Well, you see, Mihoshi sort of wanted to know if I wanted to go on a little trip with her. To a beach, and I thought it would be kind of fun, but that I ought to check with you and Dad first." "How very responsible of you, Tenchi," Yosho said in earnest. "Most young men of your age would jump at the opportunity to go off to a beach with a young woman such as our own Mihoshi." "Grandpa! It's not like that!" Tenchi protested as Mihoshi giggled while turning bright red. "Really, we're just going on vacation," Mihoshi insisted, though her giggling wouldn't stop. "Well, as long as she promises not to take advantage of you, I see no problem." "I'd never do that," Mihoshi said, while Tenchi took his turn to blush with embarrassment. He suddenly had a bad feeling about what was happening. Maybe going on a vacation with Mihoshi wasn't such a good idea. However, he couldn't just back out; Mihoshi would be crushed. Bucking up his courage, he pushed the doubts from his mind. It was only a little while later that the duo made their way to the main house without being accosted by anyone, or anything. "I hope things go better with Dad," Tenchi muttered to himself, still not quite over his grandfather's odd need to embarrass him. If it was Ryouko, okay, getting the promise might have been justified. But making Mihoshi promise that? Implying she'd try to do anything with him was about as likely as Ryo-Ohki becoming rabid. Just as Tenchi opened the door to the house, a small gray cabbit rushed between his legs and made a beeline for the woods. Naturally, she had a great deal of white foam coming from her mouth, even going so far as to leave behind little splotches in the direction she had run from. "Tenchi, why are you covering your eyes and saying, 'I didn't see that,' over and over again?" Mihoshi asked. She didn't get an answer as Ryouko phased through the wall of the house and onto the porch. She floated in the air and scanned the area with her eyes. "You two see a little cabbit running around in a mad frenzy out here?" Tenchi murmured, "Nope," while keeping his hands over his eyes. Mihoshi said "Sure," and pointed in the direction Ryo-Ohki had taken. "Thanks," Ryouko said, then flew off at top speed in the direction Mihoshi had indicated. "Get back here, you little ingrate! With that special stuff Washuu made, we only need to brush your teeth once a year! It ain't that big of a deal! Do you want your teeth to fall out so you can't eat every carrot in sight!" Ryouko wielded her toothbrush like a sword as she flew off, her voice fading in the distance. "Heh. I never like to brush my teeth either. Let's go, Tenchi." Mihoshi grabbed Tenchi by the arm and led him into the house. Night had fallen as Tenchi lay back in his bed, staring at the ceiling and wondering exactly what he had managed to get himself into this time. Asking his father's permission had been an even worse experience than it had with his grandfather. Not only had he slapped Tenchi on the back and congratulated him on finally becoming a 'real man', but after Mihoshi had skipped out of the room, he had given Tenchi a little 'gift' to make sure nothing unplanned happened as a result of his trip. Tenchi held the gift above his head. He pulled one of the wrapped objects from out of the box. "And for what exactly does he think I'm going to need a box of condoms for?" It was at that moment hat Ryouko's face appeared from out of the headboard of Tenchi's bed. "Hi Tenchi," she greeted as the rest of her body followed. "I was about to go to sleep when I realized we hadn't had a chance to see each other all day. And I...YES! You've finally come to your senses and realized I'm the one for you! And you even brought protection. That's so sweet and thoughtful of you." In a flash the condom was ripped out of Tenchi's hand and ended up in Ryouko's. "No!" Tenchi shouted out. "It's not what you think." "Ohh, they're extra-large too. Looks like I'm in for a real treat tonight." "That isn't mine," Tenchi insisted, even if it was technically untrue. "Now, now," Ryouko's cat-like purr made Tenchi's response to cower under his sheets a little, the all too familiar role of being Ryouko's prey once again settling over him. She continued hovering over him, saying, "No need for shyness. I'll even put it on for you." She ripped the covers off Tenchi, peeling away the first barrier and allowing herself the opportunity to savor the sight: Tenchi in just the tight, black pants he always wore to bed. She licked her lips in anticipation of what was to come next. Tenchi hopped off the bed and began backing up towards the door. He hoped that by keeping eye contact with Ryouko, she wouldn't try to charge him. "Ryouko-" "Gimme the pants, big boy." Tenchi found his hopes dashed as she flew towards him. He tried turning around and making for the door only to have her tackle him from behind. He ended up on the floor, but didn't hit hard as he felt Ryouko pull him up slightly at the last second, keeping him from slamming into the wooden boards. He lay prone with his stomach on the floor as he felt Ryouko's weight settle high on the back of his legs, her superior strength easily pinning him to the ground. As he tried struggling in vain, he heard the sound of a wrapper being torn. "Time for Mr. Happy to put on his rubbers since he's going to get all wet real soon." Tenchi could feel the smile on Ryouko's face. He ceased his struggling and craned his neck as far back as he could. Only out of the corner of his eye was he able to see her. "Ryouko, knock it off." "But Tenchi," she whined as she ran her free hand along his backside. "You can't be having second thoughts." "Yes, I am," Tenchi insisted, glad that he had at last gotten through to her. "Fine," she said with a note of resignation in her voice. "We'll go without the condom." "THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEA-" And then the door to his room flew open, revealing a gateway to the deepest, darkest pit of perdition that no human being's mind could fathom for fear of having their souls sucked out of them and being driven insane. At least that was the reaction Tenchi had at seeing the look on Aeka's face. Aeka actually waited a full .4 seconds to take in the scene before actually leveling an accusing finger at Ryouko. "How dare you try to force yourself upon Lord Tenchi and work such evil deeds upon him!" "Hey now! Don't get jealous just because Tenchi cares enough about me to get the kind of protection a girl wants. It's even lubricated too." "Protection?" Aeka's anger was stifled for the briefest of moments as she looked at the object in Ryouko's hand. Once it was successfully identified, the anger returned, tripled "Then I was right! You are trying to rape him! I forbid a demon such as yourself from fornicating with my Lord Tenchi!" A ring of tiny logs appeared around Aeka. Ryouko got up and grabbed Tenchi by the back of his pants. As though he was a feather, Ryouko lifted him up and casually tossed him onto his bed. "Better stay out of this, Tenchi. Some gals just can't stand the idea they lost to the better woman." The jewel on her wrist began to glow in response to Aeka's increasing display of power. "Not in the room!" was the best Tenchi thought he could do as he saw the twin looks of anger each girl was directing to the other. Some nuclear explosives couldn't be defused; he had resigned himself to that fate long ago. He almost got his wish, as Aeka's first blast caught Ryouko in the chest and threw her outside. Aeka followed, screaming 'ladylike' obscenities at her opponent. Examining the damage, he thought he had gotten off lucky with only a twelve foot diameter hole in his wall. Sasami and Mihoshi appeared in the doorway to his room. Sasami was wearing a loose nightgown that was long enough to touch the floor. Mihoshi wore a partially buttoned men's shirt that was long enough to touch her bottom. At least Ryouko and Aeka weren't around to misinterpret her presence as well. "Were they giving you a late night going away party?" Mihoshi asked. "Sort of," Tenchi replied. All of a sudden, he was looking forward to getting away from it all. Although it might be best to have Ryouko and Aeka find out about his vacation after he had left, considering the effect his little retreat might have on them. Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Well, it's my first serious attempt at non-Ranma related material. Let me know what you think. Also special thanks to KaraOhki for looking over this part. Vacation Days Chapter 2 xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx I'll warn you this is a good bit more serious than the last chapter. All C+C appreciated. You can contact me at sommer@3rdm.net All of my works, including previous chapters of this, can be found at. http://angcobra.jumpfun.com/dbsommer.html The morning sun had broken the horizon not more than a half hour earlier as the handful of people gathered to see Tenchi and Mihoshi off. "It looks like only Grandpa, Dad, and Sasami are here to say goodbye." Thank god, Tenchi silently added. "Miya." "And you too, Ryo-Ohki," Tenchi apologized to the cabbit standing next to Sasami. A pang of guilt shot through him at the idea of being glad the other three girls weren't there, but in an unusual gesture, his common sense scolded him for being naïve enough to believe anything good would have come if they had been there to see him off. "Actually, I dropped by Washuu's lab and said good-bye already," Mihoshi said. "You did?" Tenchi had wondered why the redheaded scientist wasn't there. Aeka and Ryouko were probably exhausted from their late night carousing, but to his knowledge Washuu hadn't done anything that would have prevented her from being there. As if reading his mind, Mihoshi said, "She was sort of all tied up in one of her projects. She told me to say good-bye for her. At least I think that was what she was trying to tell me. She was mumbling a lot and was hard to understand." The image of Mihoshi entering the lab, touching a button, and having some machine whip out metal coils that bound and gagged the short scientist intruded itself upon Tenchi's mind. The whole scenario, as silly as it seemed, somehow fit perfectly with what Mihoshi had said. Nah. Too obvious. Washuu was probably just in the middle of an experiment and couldn't be interrupted. Sasami went up to Tenchi and gave him a hug. "I'm going to miss you, Tenchi." "I'll miss you too." He hugged her back. A "Miya" around Tenchi's ankles gained his attention. He picked up Ryo-Ohki and gave her a hug as well, then placed her on her usual perch on top of Sasami's head. "I'll only be gone a little while. Try to keep Aeka and Ryouko out of trouble." "Okay." Sasami's mood brightening considerably at her newfound responsibility. "You make sure to have fun on your vacation. Both of you." "We will," Mihoshi assured her. It was Yosho's turn to say his farewell. He placed a reassuring hand on Tenchi's shoulder, then bent down so that he could speak softly enough into Tenchi's ear without the others hearing. "Taking time out to review each of the girls alone, without the interference of the others, is a good idea. It'll give you a chance to see if any of them are suitable for you in a long term relationship." "Grandpa! That's not why I'm doing this!" Tenchi protested. "I just want a take a little vacation and get a break from this place!" "Of course you do," Yosho said while adjusting his glasses, making it clear by his tone of voice that he didn't believe a word of it. Nobuyuki snapped several photos of them as they waved good bye. Tenchi started to make his way up the landing ramp of Mihoshi's space cruiser, then took one last look around to make sure neither Ryouko or Aeka were charging it, hoping to prevent him from taking off. Remarkably, neither of the girls was in sight. It appeared a plan of his might actually work out for a change. Noticing Tenchi's apprehension, Yosho said, "Don't worry about the others. I'll see to it you have enough time to make good your escape." "I wish you wouldn't put it in those terms," Tenchi said, even if he did feel like he was making a break out of a prison camp. The three humans and cabbit waved as Tenchi and Mihoshi boarded the Yagami and took off. They continued watching until the ship reached the upper atmosphere and white glow of the engines faded out of sight. "Do you think they'll be okay?" Sasami asked. Yosho patted Sasami on the shoulder. "It's just Tenchi and Mihoshi up there this time. I'm sure that whatever happens to them, it won't be all that disastrous. Usually the really bad things happen only when everyone's together." "That's true," Sasami conceded. "When Aeka and Ryouko find out-" "-we'll have our hands full around here," Nobuyuki said, entering the conversation. "I have to go to work. Do you two think you can keep the house still standing when I get back? I'd appreciate it." "No problem," Yosho assured him. "I thought you gave Tenchi the Master Key," Sasami said. "Don't you worry," Yosho assured her. "I have other means at my disposal for diverting their attention." "Okay." As hard as she tried, Sasami could not quite convince herself things were going to go along as peacefully as Yosho was implying. "I have some experience with women," Yosho said confidently as he turned to go to the house. "I can handle the situation." "Where did he go?!" "Yes, Brother! You must tell us!" Yosho held up both hands up in an appeasing manner. Things were not quite going along the way he had wanted. Maybe giving Tenchi the Master Key wasn't such a good idea. It appeared he was going to need it far more than Tenchi would. It wasn't that much of a surprise. He had known the girls were going to be agitated; they both cared a great deal about Tenchi and were concerned that he had neglected to inform them of where he had gone. However, the concept of personal space still eluded them, and neither felt inclined to listen to Yosho's explanations for Tenchi's behavior. The best he thought he could hope for was mollification. So he gathered the girls together in the living room and brought Sasami along as a calming influence. At least he hoped she would be. "Now, now, girls. There's nothing to worry about. Tenchi's just going to be gone for a little while. He'll be back before you know it." "Whaddaya mean 'there's nothing to worry about'?! Tenchi's been kidnapped!" Ryouko shouted. "He has not been kidnapped," Sasami said as she sat in a nearby chair with Ryo-Ohki in her lap. "Of course he has," Aeka insisted. "There must be some sort of deviltry afoot. Had Lord Tenchi desired to go on a holiday with someone, he would have chosen me. As a member of the House of Jurai, we would have had access to the most luxurious of vacations spots in the galaxy. He would have been treated in a manner befitting of the nobility that he is. Then Lord Tenchi and I would have...would have..." Aeka began to turn bright red at the fantasy of the things Tenchi would do with her. A smack to the back of her head knocked the daydream off course and shifted Aeka back to reality. "Get real, Princess," Ryouko said. "Tenchi hates all of that uppity snob stuff. He would have gone with me. I know where all of the really fun places to hang out are and we'd have had a blast. Unlike you, I know how to have a good time." "How dare you imply Lord Tenchi would debase himself by going somewhere with a vile creature such as yourself!" "Oh yeah? Well he'd go out with me a hell of a lot sooner than he would with a stuck-up snob like you." "You flatter yourself. When one has a choice between a monster or a princess, who do you think would be chosen?" "Since Tenchi has good taste, I think the answer's obvious." "Indeed, it is," Aeka said, folding her arms under her breasts. "And it certainly would not be with a scatterbrain like Mihoshi." Ryouko nodded sagely. "Well, if you and I can agree on that, then it's got to be true." "Mihoshi didn't do anything to Tenchi," Sasami insisted as she finally got a word in during the break in the argument. "Don't be so certain," Aeka said. "I believe this is a carefully orchestrated plot on Mihoshi's part that somehow has been successfully implemented. Despite outward appearances, she is a Detective First Class among the ranks of the Galaxy Police. You don't achieve that by accident." The room began to darken as a host of clouds darkened the sun. A dog howled in the distance as the winds began to pick up and lightning flashed outside. With the mood properly set, Aeka eyes almost glowed in the darkness as she began her tale. "There is a sinister scheme afoot. I believe Mihoshi did something dire to influence Lord Tenchi's judgment, perhaps a drug or mechanical devise designed to affect his very thoughts. With that heinous deed accomplished, she then approached him when he was particularly susceptible to her suggestions. I'm certain Lord Tenchi tried with all of his might to resist, but he was a helpless thrall before her. After successfully bending his will to hers, she manipulated Ryouko and I into an exhaustive battle, guaranteeing our non-interference. And then, in the early hours of the morning, she ambushed Washuu, eliminating her as an obstruction as well." Ryouko held up a small, red-haired scientist that was bound and gagged with long metal coils. Washuu's face resembled the shade of her hair as she squirmed against her bonds, incoherent noises issuing from behind the gag. "We found her like this down in her lab a couple of hours ago." Ryouko shook Washuu around, thrusting her in Yosho, Sasami, and Ryo-Ohki's face. Curiously, that only served to increase Washuu's struggles. Aeka gave everyone an intense glare. The explanation was complete. At last, action could be taken. "As you can see, all of it is clear evidence pointing to some insidious scheme that the devious Mihoshi has devised to steal Lord Tenchi away. There is no telling what evils she intends to perpetrate on his noble f...Ryo-Ohki! Stop rolling on the ground and laughing this instant! Ryouko and I are being quite serious!" "Miya miya miya." Ryouko shook Washuu angrily at Ryo-Ohki. "Whaddaya mean using 'insidious plan' and 'Mihoshi' in the same sentence is an oxymoron? It's the truth, I'm telling you." Sadly, Sasami shook her head. "I think Mihoshi asked Tenchi to go along on a trip with her because she was already going on one. He said yes because he wanted to go on a vacation. You two fought because you always do. Mihoshi accidentally messed up Washuu's experiment, just like she always does, and Tenchi wanted to leave early before you guys woke up so you wouldn't try doing what you're doing right now and keep him from going on his vacation. I think you two cooked up this paranoid conspiracy theory because you're jealous that you didn't think to ask Tenchi on a vacation first." Both of the girls stared in surprise at Sasami's accusation. The surprise lasted all of five seconds before Ryouko broke down and began crying. "It's not fair that Mihoshi gets to spend time with Tenchi. It should be me that gets him." She wiped her tears, then blew her nose on the back of Washuu's uniform. Aeka followed. "It should be myself that travels with Lord Tenchi. After all we've been through together, we deserve the quality time alone." "I don't think it would be a good idea to bother Tenchi on this trip," Sasami warned. "If he really wanted you guys to tag along, he would have said something." "Nonsense, he'll be happy to see us," Aeka insisted. "Yeah. We'll keep him out of trouble like we always do," Ryouko joined in. "So tell us where they went, pretty please." Sasami gave an exasperated sigh that implied a tiredness beyond her years. If her sister and Ryouko remained at home, they would drive her crazy within a day. "He said that he and Mihoshi were going to a beach." "Which one?" Aeka asked. "He didn't say." "What?!" Ryouko snapped. "You have to know. Was it on Earth, or some other planet?" "I don't know," Sasami insisted. Ryouko and Aeka gave each other a helpless look. "Perhaps we should ask Miss Washuu for assistance," Aeka suggested. Ryouko held Washuu up for a closer examination. Both she and Aeka could not help noticing the murderous glare the diminutive scientist was shooting at them. "Then again, perhaps not." Ryouko laughed nervously as she gently set Washuu down on a chair. "Why don't we take off now and decide on the way?" Aeka turned to Sasami, giving her the sweetest look that she could. "Could you do us a small favor? Don't release Miss Washuu until long after Ryouko and I have departed." Neither Aeka nor Ryouko waited for the reply. Both of them took off running, Ryouko grabbing Ryo-Ohki as she shot past. It was turning into a really bad day for Ryouko and Aeka. Milky Way Galaxy Sector 25W.773.2FX Class 4 Nebula: Arecheox Often referred to as 'Hell's Gate,' the class 4 nebula, Arecheox, has been listed as one of the most hazardous areas of space, being rated just below a black hole in destructive capability. It was something of an aberration, as the red hued nebula had constant, savage solar storms tear through the it's entirety, making it one of the most perilous environments ever discovered. It was said that even a top of the line Juraian battleship would last no more than fifteen minutes in the sector. Once inside the area, sensors were of minimal use and even the most powerful of shields would buckle in short order under the fury of the storms. No one ever willingly traveled there; even the outer fringes of the Hell's Gate were too furious to withstand. For all intents and purposes, it was a vast cosmic wasteland. There were rumors, of course, that there were constant, stable pockets within Hell's Gate that one could hide out and reside in, but most discounted such tales as mindless talk. No one would ever consider wasting the time to try and find such things. The only people that sometimes went into the area were those that were completely lost, and criminals that would try to run through the fringes of the nebula to avoid the pursuit of people that were chasing them. But the few that were bold (or stupid) enough to try the run never survived the experience, though there always remained the rumor of at least one smuggler who had found a safe pocket and gotten back out alive, avoiding the police that were pursuing him. No one was ever able remember his name, however. Most dismissed such stories as old wives' tales, like the 'Sargasso of Space' legend in which there was a graveyard of derelict ships that sat in the middle of nowhere, waiting for other spacecraft to stumble upon it. Once there, the ships that found it would be trapped as well, adding to the number of crafts in graveyard. No one asked the obvious question that if all of the newer ships ended up trapped with the others, how did word of it get out. Hell's Gate safe havens were the same way: a silly story. But as with many stories, there sometimes is a grain of truth in them. And such was the case with Hell's Gate. The Galaxy Police were pursuing a felon, Yurishori Omuri, who had killed two people in the course of his robbery. The criminal became desperate enough to flee into Hell's Gate to elude his pursuers, as some desperate criminals tried to do, even though no one ever emerged from the nebula. The two Galaxy Police spaceships that had been chasing him waited the required three hours to make sure Omuri hadn't just skirted the nebula, and left, reporting him missing and presumed dead. Much to their surprise, a week later Omuri was brought in on a raid by planetary police several systems away. The Galaxy Police took jurisdiction over the mysteriously alive prisoner and transferred him to their custody. After an interrogation, Omuri revealed that when he made a run for it, and through blind luck, he had stumbled onto a pocket of space in the middle of the nebula that was completely unaffected by the forces around it. In return for having his sentence reduced to life imprisonment instead of disintegration, he gave the Galaxy Police the data necessary to locate the safe pocket inside Hell's Gate. The path was erratic, and rocked by powerful, though not fatal, storms, which would have hid the pathway to any who were not specifically looking for it. Somehow, it remained where it was, allowing one a harrowing, but ultimately safe, access to the haven inside. Examining it would earn the safe pocket the name of, 'The Anomaly'. It was a small sphere of space, about fifty kilometers long and a hundred wide, that was calm. Completely calm. None of the storms pierced the sphere in the slightest, something forcing them to remain outside, almost as though there was a glass wall separating one from the other. The nebula outside the sphere could be seen, but that was it. It was dead space. There was no natural phenomenon that could explain how the Anomaly existed, but it was still there. Most speculated that some higher power, greater even than the royal family of Jurai, must have created it, but for what purpose, no one knew. The High Command of the Galaxy Police, in compliance with the Juraian Security Directorate, kept the information concerning the Anomaly secret until the matter could be properly investigated. Deciding that no others similar pockets could be found, and hoping that the Anomaly was truly unique, both organizations kept its location a secret. Its complete isolation, its size, the fact that it was surrounded on all sides by highly destructive energies, and that there was only one safe way to approach the Anomaly without being destroyed, made it the perfect location for a project that the leaders of the Empire had been trying to implement for years. And thus Tartarus was born. Like a giant bird of prey, silhouetted against a sunset, Tartarus stood out in the vast field of red that made up the nebula called Hell's Gate. Tartarus was a space station, constructed in secret using the Emperor's personal funds, and designed in appearance to resemble a smaller version of Galaxy Police headquarters, although it was only three kilometers long and four kilometers wide. It bristled with weapons and heavy shielding, able to take on any four space cruisers at once and defeat them. And with the narrow corridor in which the Anomaly could be entered, no more than one large ship could come at them at any one time. The station was manned by a dozen scientists, thirty elite members of the Galaxy Police and twenty members of the Jurai Security Directorate. For all intents and purposes, Tartarus was impregnable. Due to the secrecy of the project, all of the members on board, save the scientists and four ranking officers, two of the Galaxy Police and two of the Jurai Security Directorate, volunteered for mind wiping of all information about Tartarus and the secrets contained within once their tour of duty was over. Considering what was contained at the facility, no one doubted the necessity of the procedure. There were only a handful of people, not counting the personnel assigned to the station, that knew of Tartarus's existence: the four highest ranking officers in the Galaxy Police, eight members of the Jurai Security Directorate, twelve members of the Imperial Science division, the Emperor, and his Inner Council of ten. No one else was allowed to even remember the facility, under penalty of either mindwipe or execution. Major Hiroyoshi Matsuda, the current commander at Tartarus, gazed out the viewscreen of the command bridge of the space station and cursed. It wasn't at the turbulent (and oh so aptly named) nebula around him, but rather what had just come out of Hell's Gate and into the Anomaly. It was a visitor that Matsuda knew all too well, the man having visited on far too many occasions and wearing out his welcome. Matsuda felt a headache coming on, for things had been going so smoothly too. There were only two weeks left in his six month tour, and this had to happen. Some people had nothing but bad luck The sleek, jet black, Taromaki Crescent Wing with the Galaxy Police insignia was easy to identify. Only the trio of highest ranking officers in charge of the Galaxy Police used the expensive craft, and of those three vehicles, only one of the was painted black. Once the recognition code sent out from the Marshal's ship was decrypted and analyzed as being valid, the major deactivated the defense system's targeting computers from continuing to track the ship. His next move was to go to the communications console and thumb the button accessing the public announcement system. "Attention all personnel. Marshall Alexi Malgaunt will be arriving at Tartarus in a few minutes, most likely for another surprise inspection. I want all hands at their stations and looking sharp, or you'll answer to me as well as the Marshal." Turning off the system, Major Matsuda left the bridge, saluting the others as he left. He knew the surprise inspections were necessary. Work at Tartarus was boring and monotonous, the two most dangerous enemies to maintaining a high level of discipline and readiness. Matsuda took his duties seriously and had drilled his crew regularly, ensuring they were in top condition and prepared for any emergency. But that wouldn't matter to 'Ballbreaker' Malgaunt. "There's always a flaw," was the marshal's motto. He could find and point out the imperfections in Heaven, given a chance. Somehow, in some way, he would find fault with Matsuda's performance and rub his face in it. Probably Malgaunt enjoyed doing it. That was the only reason Matsuda could come up with for the Marshal's frequent visits. Frequent meaning about once a month instead of the pattern of twice every six months that had been used before this last tour of duty. In the early days of the station, any one of the three Marshals might have come to inspect the facility, but in the last two years that 'privilege' had entirely fallen into the hands of Malgaunt. Even with his scathing reviews, he had kept his visits to only twice every half year, but things had changed of late and in the last six months he had visited four times, and now a fifth. And never for any reason for anything other than an inspection. The marshal hated Matsuda. That had to be the reason. Walking at a brisk pace while enroute to the docking bay, Matsuda made certain that he was not sweating; he refused to allow Malgaunt to see the least bit of discomfort on his features. If there was nothing else, he would deny Malgaunt that satisfaction. Arriving at the door to the docking bay, Matsuda was relieved to see Saito and Klancy as the guards assigned to the post. They were solid officers, and their appearance was immaculate. Malgaunt would have to find fault elsewhere. The sound of the Crescent Wing's clamps locking onto one of the three entry ports on Tartarus signaled that the ship had connected safely. Everything went smoothly as a light next to the docking bay's sensors indicated three humanoid lifeforms had exited their ship and were now on Tartarus. Matsuda glanced at the readouts in the wall as the sensors in passageway leading from the bay to the station's interior began scanning the occupants. The process always took a while as security was paramount a the installation. Retinal, epidermal, voice, heat signature, and internal body scans, as well as an additional entry code, were all needed for the Marshal and his two aides to pass through the bay and into the main section of the station. Failure at any level of the identification procedure would result in over a dozen laser, ion, and particle beam blasters, that lined the corridor to target on the various individuals. Any perceived hostile action would result in the weapons opening fire. During every inspection, the major sometimes had an idle fantasy where the weapons would misfire, just once, upon Malgaunt. It would mean an even greater inconvenience on Matsuda's part in explaining what happened, but there would be many officers in the Galaxy Police that would have cheered anyway. That was the sort of devotion Malgaunt inspired in most people. The fantasy came and went, leaving Matsuda to concentrate on the matter at hand. Internal sensors scanned all three occupants waiting to enter and gave the major the results. The system verified that the trio were Marshal Alexi Malgaunt and Lieutenants Arisa Funuyaki and Masa Onita. The other officers' names were familiar to Matsuda; they were the same duo that Malgaunt had brought with him on the last two visits. It was not a surprise since anyone accepting the mission knew in advance they would be mindwiped afterwards. There were few people that enjoyed having two days worth of memories erased, so officers accepting the missions were usually hard to find. Most likely, both officers were trying to get ahead and hoped that by accepting the mission Malgaunt would give them a good review. Matsuda hated kiss asses. The scans confirmed that the only weapons the trio bore were standard issue officer's sidearms. After that inspection was confirmed, Matsuda hit a button and the door opened. The three officers stepped through the doorway, Malgaunt leading the way. Matsuda noted that nothing about the man had changed. Even under the formal black uniform of the marshal, one could tell the man inside was thin. Sharp angular features defined his clean shaven face, making him seem younger than his forty-five years of age. His oily black hair reached his shoulders, though was immaculately groomed and did not detract a bit from his professional appearance. The one feature about him that caught everyone's attention was the piercing gaze that was reputed to make even the Emperor flinch. When the Ballbreaker looked at you, he could see right through you, at least that was what was said by those that fell under his gaze. Certainly there seemed to be some truth to it, considering throughout the man's career he had one of the highest arrest rates ever in the history to the Galaxy Police. That, combined with a sharp mind and a knack for politics was what had allowed Malgaunt to rise like a comet through the ranks until he was third in command of the entire Galaxy Police, though most agreed that was far as he would rise. Both the Grand and First Marshals were still in the prime of their age, and both were secure in their positions. That suited Matsuda just fine. The idea of Malgaunt running everything would have made even the major consider an early retirement. The other famous characteristic about Malgaunt that had earned him a reputation, especially in his early days, was one not physically noticeable. His reflexes were reputed to be lighting quick, which was combined with him being a crack shot. It was said that in his early days, he had been on an undercover assignment where his cover had been blown. Armed with only a sidearm concealed under his jacket, he found himself surrounded by five gunmen with their weapons drawn, prepared to fire upon him. The story said that he made a surprised eye glance over the shoulder of one of the assailants, distracting several of the gunmen for a split second. He then drew his gun and began firing. The fifth attacker was dead before the first hit the ground. Only one of the gunmen got off a shot, one that was reputed to have glanced the back of the neck of the Marshal. Rumors said that he still carried the scar to the present day, as a reminder of what it meant to be too slow. Matsuda believed the first part of the story; Malgaunt still radiated danger, despite not being involved in a field operation in over fifteen years. As to the scar, Malgaunt usually wore high collared outfits. That, combined with the long hair, made it impossible for him to tell if it was true, and Matsuda was not about to ask the Marshal himself. The Major went from examining Malgaunt to the two aides he had brought with him. On Malgaunt's left stood Lieutenant Funuyaki. Like her commander, she wore the matching black uniform of an inspector, though under her outfit one could easily determine that she was a curvaceous woman in obvious superior physical shape. She had raven black hair, though it lacked the oily gleam the Marshal's had. The hair was currently tucked under her hat so that only the smallest portion of it could be seen. Her face was the intense mask of professionalism that one needed to maintain continuously before Malgaunt. Funuyaki was every inch an officer. Onita, though also immaculate, differed from Funuyaki. He was a taller man, very large and had obviously spent a great deal of time in the gym working out. His outfit was the same style as Funuyaki's and just as immaculate, and his face bore the same look of intensity as his partner's. It was in the eyes that he differed so greatly from both the marshal and other lieutenant. There was a faint gleam in them which Matsuda could not identify and made him uneasy. It was like Onita was anxious for something, perhaps an end to his mission with Malgaunt, if he was a normal officer. Whatever the mysterious look was, it was not a concern of Matsuda at the moment. All of his attention had to be riveted on his superior officer, who was even now looking at the chronometer on his wrist. "I want to run through a full defensive simulation this time, Major Matsuda. And you're already running twenty seconds late," Malgaunt warned in a voice that was sharp and commanded everyone's full attention. A crisp salute, along with a "Sir!" was Matsuda's outward response as he spun on his heel and quickly hurried towards the bridge. He didn't bother to look behind him, knowing that the three inspectors would be following in his wake, trailed by Saito and Klancy, once they locked down the docking bay behind them. Matsuda cursed his luck. Obviously he had shown too much efficiency in the past, so now the Marshal was turning up the pressure. No matter how efficient he was, Malgaunt was going to find something wrong with his performance. It was only a matter of how many things there would be at the end of the review. Matsuda swore he would make it as difficult as possible for his superior. The party entered the command bridge. Matsuda was relieved to see everyone was at their assigned posts. Two soldiers were standing at the ready next to the door, and the communications and science division officers were at their proper stations. Everyone was in a state of readiness. Funuyaki and Onita each went to the opposite sides to one of the door guards, well out of everyone's way. Saito and Klancy came through right after them, taking positions across the room where they would have a clear line of sight of everything on the bridge. Everyone was right where they needed to be. Oh yes, Malgaunt was going to have a hard time of it on this occasion. Matsuda went to the main computer and entered the seven digit code that activated access to the full weapons systems control. Once the panel to the control opened up (without a bit of mechanical hesitation, he noted) he allowed the sensor to determine his identity and then inserted his personal control key. With a turn of the switch, the control board lit up. Everything, from shields to the anti-missile defenses to the self-destruct system was under Matsuda's complete control. The status board gave a loud "Breep", the self diagnostic's program indicating everything was functioning normally. Malgaunt's finger tapped his wrist chronometer. "Right on time. You made up that twenty seconds you were running behind. The system is running normally and the station is under your complete control. You have my congratulations." Despite being in the service for fifteen years, Major Matsuda was in shock. He had never heard of Malgaunt congratulating anyone, save at official public service functions. Instincts took over as he saluted and said, "Thank you, sir!" "And thank you, Major. Your professionalism makes everything easier." Matsuda stared at the Marshal in confusion. "Easier, sir?" "Yes," Malgaunt answered. Major Hiroyoshi Matsuda's own reaction time was quite impressive. He had just enough time to think, as he found Malgaunt's gun moved from the man's holster to his face in the blink of an eye, that the stories did not do the Marshal justice. Malgaunt was even faster than they said. Then the laser fired, and Matsuda never had another thought again. Lieutenant Arisa Funuyaki was in motion the instant she became aware that her superior had drawn his sidearm. She had heard he was fast, but even she couldn't believe what she saw before her eyes. Even a cybernetically enhanced assassin specifically boosted for speed could not have been quicker. In spite of being surprised, her own intensive training took over as she drew her sidearm and spun, aiming for the right door guard's face. She saw his eyes bulge as she pressed the trigger and sent a red shot through the man's head. As she turned to acquire her second target, she saw that her partner, Onita, was in the process of dispatching the other guard at the door. They had known in advance the numbers and positions of the personnel in the room. The plan had been for Malgaunt to eliminate Matsuda first, then move on to the man at communications and then the science division officer. Funuyaki and Saito were to take the door guards, and then the other two guards across the room, each one aiming for the officer on their side. Funuyaki was just drawing a bead on her target, noting the woman was only now reacting by bringing up her rifle, when a laser sliced through her chest, quickly followed by another one to the head. As Funuyaki's eyes darted across the room, making certain there were no other targets, she saw that it had been Malgaunt who had taken out her secondary target. Smoking bodies with holes in them sat at the communications and science consoles. Onita had done his work in shooting his second target before the guard had a chance to get a shot off with his rifle. It was over in less than three seconds after it had started. Funuyaki was already heading towards the communication's console as Malgaunt reexamined the defense control. Onita took the time to shoot his secondary target's prone body two more times, then went to the other bodies in the room to make certain no one was still alive. A quick examination told Funuyaki what she already knew. "She didn't get off a message, sir." "Excellent," Malgaunt said as he looked at his watch. "Onita, please hurry and lock the door to the room. We wouldn't want any unwanted visitors, now would we?" "No, sir." Onita moved quickly to the door and did as he was instructed. Once the primary doors were electronically sealed, Malgaunt touched another button and an interior set of blast doors irised into position in front of the primary ones. The blast doors were a foot thick and composed of specially treated osmium alloys. It would take someone with the right equipment at least fifteen minutes to burn through them. Malgaunt's hands began playing over the command console as he began talking. "I gave Matsuda an extra entire minute and a half. His efficiency makes our job much easier. We now have complete control over the majority of this stations defenses." He moved to a set of green switches. "First we'll disarm the destruct control in the science labs. We don't want them destroying the prize we've fought so hard to gain." "What exactly is the prize, sir?" Funuyaki asked. "All in good time, lieutenant." Malgaunt said in a voice that betrayed only the slightest hint of anticipation. He looked at his watch, then gazed at the viewscreen that dominated the far side of the bridge. "We must time this carefully. If Major Matsuda trained his men well, and I know he did, two of the exterior gun stations are manned. Once they see that the automatic tracking system is off-line, they'll arm the manual overrides. That means they'll have the ability to fire upon our guests once they arrive, unless I time this just...right." Malgaunt tore his gaze from the chronometer and punched several buttons in quick succession. "The shields and automatic firing controls are now deactivated. Those manning the weapons are probably now engaging the manual overrides." He stared at the viewscreen. A smile broke out across his face. "But it's too late." Funuyaki followed his gaze and looked outside. From the safe passage into the Anomaly, a ship erupted through the field of red and into view. It was long and cylindrical in shape, reminding Funuyaki of a Juraian ship. Four small sets of wings on the sides, as well as a large set of external engines at the rear of the ship, ruined the image. She estimated the craft at about fifty meters, only about three times larger than the Crescent Wing that Funuyaki arrived in. As it approached at a dangerously fast speed, Funuyaki could see that the sides of the craft appeared to be black wood with the symbol of three stars prominent near the bow. If the wood was real, and not simply painted that meant it was a corrupted Juraian ship. That was what triggered her memory. There was only one ship like that and bore a trinity star symbol. "That's the Rack n'Ruin," Funuyaki said under her breath. Onita recognized the ship as well, and who it belonged to. "Sa'bre Stargrave," he said in just as much awe. "He's the fourth most wanted criminal in the galaxy." Onita's utterance snapped Funuyaki back to reality. "The ship's coming in too fast. She'll crash into the station!" In anticipation, Funuyaki, began to brace herself for the impact. Malgaunt remained where he was, a smile across his face. "Hardly. I know her pilot. Believe me when I say you have nothing to worry about." The Rack n'Ruin continued approaching Tartarus at a speed almost ten times faster than the maximum safety standards. It had closed to half the distance to the station when one of the exterior guns fired upon it. The craft banked left, the lasers missing by a wide margin. The second shot was even further off as the craft got in under the line of fire of the guns and came closer to the station. When it was within a half kilometer of Tartarus, jets erupted across the surface of the vessel, changing its direction so that it was now approaching the station sideways. The ship shook violently as the laws of dynamics tried to tear it apart. It was a race against time as the Rack n'Ruin neared the docking bays, slowing down at a rapid, though perhaps insufficient pace. Funuyaki winced as she watched the scene from the outer monitor located next to the docking bay. At the Rack n'Ruin's rate of speed, she was certain it was going to slam into the side of Tartarus. Time seemed to stand still as an additional set of jets erupted from the exterior of the smuggler's ship, slowing it down enough that it at last came to a halt, leaving only two meters of space between it and the hull of the station. On the bridge of Tartarus, Funuyaki and Onita breathed a sigh of relief. Malgaunt allowed himself a bigger smile. "Now I'll deactivate the weapon systems in the corridor of the docking bay." Malgaunt pushed another button. "They'll still have to blast their way through the doors, but they know how many there are and what they are composed of. They'll already have the necessary equipment to tear right through them." As if in response to his statement, an explosion came from the direction of the docking bay. Malgaunt stared smugly at his subordinates. "It is possible that one of the sergeants on duty has divined what is transpiring and gathered some men together to try to repel the boarders. It's possible that he might even send a squad up here to see what has happened. However, it won't be enough. I've gone over every aspect of this plan for the last several months, taking into account every possible factor and contingency. What obscure chance the personnel on this station had of stopping us ended the moment we took command of this bridge and the Rack n'Ruin docked. Now it is only a matter of time." Funuyaki and Onita looked at each other. After a moment, Onita relaxed and smiled. Funuyaki wasn't surprised by that. Onita was a little too trusting of Malgaunt for her taste. Perhaps it wasn't surprising though. Malgaunt could inspire trust in people when he really tried, especially with those that were not all that stable to begin with. Onita fit that bill quite nicely, unfortunately. As to the lieutenant herself, Malgaunt's confidence failed to overwhelm her. It had been in her experience that there was no such thing as the 'perfect plan.' Life was full of too many random variables for them all to be accounted for. Even when a plan was designed to be flexible, it still wasn't perfect. Anything could happen. Those that thought otherwise tended to freeze up when a situation fell apart around them. Sounds coming from the direction of the sealed doorway caught Funuyaki's attention. She went to the external monitors and looked outside the room, Onita joining her at her side. The image showed several Galaxy Police officers moving around outside, trying to use the keypad to the door. "We've got company," she warned Malgaunt, who seemed content to remain where he was next to the command console. "It doesn't matter," he assured her. "Stargrave has already boarded the station and will be heading this way. They don't have enough time to cut through the door before he gets here." Funuyaki kept her attention riveted to the monitor. It took them several minutes, but she watched as her fellow Galaxy Police officers had gotten some cutting tools and were preparing to cut through the door. They were just about to begin when they came under fire from a position further up the hall. With no real cover outside the doors, the action turned out to be brief as the crew was cut down in a matter of seconds. Several men and women came into range of the camera. The appeared to be a ragtag assortment with no two members dressed remotely alike. They bore a wide variety of weapons, from laser pulse rifles to a strange metal sphere that dangled from a chain that one of the women was holding. After determining that all of the crew outside the doors was dead, the motley band of newcomers parted to allow a man to step forward before the doors. He was a tall, over six feet in height and with long black hair that cascaded down his back, stopping just above his rear end. He had an average build, neither excessively muscled like Onita, nor wiry, like Malgaunt. His features were bold, making Funuyaki note that he one of the more handsome men she had seen in some time. There was also something familiar about his features, though when she tried placing a name with his face she came up with nothing. The man held himself well, radiating an aura of confidence that could be felt even through the camera. His outfit consisted of a formal looking purple tunic and azure pants that fit loosely upon him. Slung across his back was a purple cloak with a white fur trim. The only visible weapon he wore was an expensive snub-nosed laser blaster in a hip holster. As Funuyaki completed her appraisal of his outfit, she realized why he looked familiar. The outfit was reminiscent of the style worn by the Juraian royalty. That, combined with the man's own features, gave him a striking resemblance to the Emperor himself. A younger, leaner, clean shaven version anyway. It was a look undoubtedly cultivated by the man. The man stared up at the camera. Funuyaki could almost have sworn he was somehow able to see her through the camera just as she could see him. He cocked his head slightly as the corridor audio links allowed the trio behind the layers of osmium alloy to hear the man say, "Honey, I'm home." Malgaunt smiled then looked down at his watch. "Right on time." He retracted both sets of doors. Funuyaki tensed as the leader of the assorted band entered the bridge, approached the marshal, and shook the his hand. "Malgaunt." "Sa'bre," Malgaunt acknowledged. "It's about time you showed up. I see Velocity got you here with her usual style. Do you enjoy taking your life into your hands like that every time you fly?" "I wouldn't complain too much. She's your ticket off this station too," Sa'bre warned. Funuyaki looked over the rather infamous figure of Sa'bre Stargrave over. She was a little surprised. She had pictured one of the most wanted criminals in the galaxy as being bit more unkempt. He appeared very calm and regal, at least on the outside. Instincts took over as her senses went into their inspector mode, taking in every nuance and detail of the captain and his crew. Ten years of undercover work had her mind working on automatic as she categorized what type of criminals the crew of the Rack n'Ruin were. Even if after today she was not going to be a member of the Galaxy Police ever again. Further thoughts on her situation were interrupted as Malgaunt began talking to Sa'bre again. "Is everything on schedule?" Just as Stargave was about to reply, his head jerked slightly and he brought his hand to his ear. From where Funuyaki stood, she could make out a tiny audio receiver nestled in his outer ear. "Everyone has been accounted for except for one slight problem. It appears a number of your men have barricaded themselves in the barracks and refuse to come out." Stargrave said. "They've even welded the doors shut and have somehow electrified the floor. I've lost four men trying to take it. Any suggestions?" Malgaunt thought about it for a moment. "The barracks are located about as far away from the labs as possible and there are only those two doorways leading from the crew's quarters. Just leave a unit of men there to keep the crew penned in. Also have your men watch the ventilation shafts at junctions eight and nine. The crew might try to travel through them and flank you. That should take care of the problem long enough for us to finish what we came here to do." A tall woman, lean like Malgaunt and with a cruel smile, made her way to Sa'bre's side. Stargrave spoke up. "You haven't been properly introduced," he said to Malgaunt. "This is my first mate, Arianna Taguyu." Arianna directed a look towards Malgaunt. "Are you sure its wise to leave them there? They might cause us trouble." "They might be smart, but the only things they could do to effectively hamper us would take more time than they have," Malgaunt assured her as he set up a remote control unit to the main computer. He ran a quick diagnostic on it. Once he was convinced it functioned properly, he pulled out his laser pistol and fired upon both the command and the communication consoles." He looked them over, and assured himself they were no longer in working order. After that he held the remote high enough that everyone could see. "This is the only means of controlling this station. Now, we'd best get underway to the labs. Time may be on our side, but we still have a rendezvous to keep and we'd better not miss it." Malgaunt headed for the door. At Stargrave's gesture, his crew fell into place. Several of his people took the lead, keeping their rifles at the ready as they headed towards the laboratory on Tartarus. As the group made their way through the station, Malgaunt began speaking again. "Sa'bre, I'd like to introduce my two aides to you. There are Lieutenants Funuyaki and Onita. Without their help, even I would have been hard pressed to accomplish my mission." Sa'bre gave a slight nod to each of them. "So, what did it take for two dedicated defenders of justice, such as yourselves, to turn against their former employers in such grand fashion?" Onita was caught off guard by the question and had no idea of how to reply. Funuyaki snapped, "It's none of your damn business!" Arianna and the rest of Stargrave's troops tensed up. A gesture from their captain, and the group relaxed slightly, returning their attention to possible attacks from outside the party once again. "No need to get defensive. I was just curious because in my line of work, one frequently has to bribe Galaxy Police officers to get anything done. Think of it as a hobby of mine, if you will." "I think it would be better if we waited until after we finished the task at hand before we try questioning personal motivations," Malgaunt said, trying to defuse the potentially explosive situation. Sa'bre responded by giving Malgaunt a sharp look. "If I'm going to work with people willing to stab their supposed comrades-in-arms in the back, I want to know what their price is just in case someone starts trying to offer them a better deal." "You're a murderous smuggler that deals with the scum of the galaxy every day of your life," Malgaunt pointed out in a calm voice, stating it as fact rather than opinion. "But those are criminals. I expect it from them." Stargrave kept his steely gaze on the two lieutenants. "When a couple of Galaxy Police officers turn on their own kind, I want to know why." The tension in the group built even as they moved onward, though if Malgaunt noticed he gave no indication of it. "For now, let's just say they're visionaries, like myself." "I'd prefer something a little less ambiguous." At last, Malgaunt began to show signs of irritation. "Then let's try this. I picked them myself for this mission and you know my motivations for doing this. Do you believe I would have brought them along if I didn't have complete trust in them and their abilities?" Sa'bre gave a Malgaunt a wide smile and seemed to bow even as the group moved continuously onward. "Of course not. I have complete faith in you and you abilities. My apologies." That seemed to unofficially signal an end to the discussion as the group continued on their way in silence. They traveled onward until they came upon a section of the station where biohazard warnings were displayed everywhere. Funuyaki tensed up slightly. When Malgaunt had all but forced her to join him on this hijacking, he had only told her that the object was something valuable and located in a secret Galaxy Police station, remaining deliberately vague about exactly what it was they were taking. Supposedly, it was for Funuyaki and Onita's own protection; the less they knew about the plan the better. But there was something about Malgaunt's evasiveness that tripped off her detective skills. She had been fairly certain there was some other reason as well. At the time, Malgaunt had also implied that they would receive some sort of assistance from outside the Galaxy Police. Never had any mention been made of working with a criminal as ruthless as Sa'ber Stargrave. Over twenty thousand deaths, including more than fifty Galaxy Police personnel, could be directly attributed to him and his organization. And those were only counting the crimes the police were aware of. Now more than ever Funuyaki was convinced the whole operation was for something much greater than money. Of course, once she had gunned down one of her fellow (or perhaps that was former, now) Galaxy Police officers, it had become far too late for her to ever back out, no matter what future recriminations she might have. As that thought went through her mind, the group arrived at a huge set of sealed osmium alloy doors. In addition to that, there was an active energy field surrounding it, making penetrating them nearly impossible. Unless of course someone had the entry codes. Malgaunt walked up to the control panel's retinal scanner. Once his identity was confirmed, the pad's numerical control was activated for his exclusive use. His first action was to deactivate the energy field. After that he turned his attention to Sa'bre. "Inside there will be about a dozen scientists. They'll be armed with nothing more powerful than standard issue laser pistols. However, all of them have been trained in their use." "Well we've got these," one of Sa'bre's men brandished a wicked-looking modified laser rifle before him. Malgaunt shot the man a disdainful glare before returning his attention to Stargrave. "I recommend throwing in a couple of stun grenades the moment the doors are opened. They won't have any defense against that sort of attack and it'll make them easier to shoot. Also," he said louder so everyone could hear. "Any stray shots might damage the systems that control our prize. I don't know about you, but I have no desire to handle it directly." Stargrave nodded his head in obvious agreement. "Do what the marshal suggests. I want precision firing in there. Anyone shoots the wrong target and they answer to me." Sa'bre turned back to Malgaunt as his men prepared themselves for the upcoming attack. "Do you think they'll try to destroy what we're after rather than letting us get a hold of it? Surely they were told to do anything rather than to let it fall into anyone else's hands." Malgaunt removed his hat and threw it to the ground. He shook his head, as though free of some burden. "They would if they had the opportunity, however I disarmed the detonators from the bridge controls and they don't have any manual overrides down here. They don't even have the equipment necessary to cut through the shielding surrounding the prize in less than an hour. That stuff is so thick you don't even have to worry about one of your men accidentally hitting it with a sonic grenade. Once we kill everyone in that room, we've won." At her position to the left of them, Funuyaki overhead the conversation. She could not help noticing that as different in physical appearance as the two men were, they still possessed identical hungry gleams in their eyes. Marshal Alexi Malgaunt and Sa'bre Stargrave were alike in all the ways that mattered. The crew had prepared themselves. Two men were at the front of the group, stun grenades at the ready, as the rest prepared to storm into the lab after the grenades went off. Funuyaki allowed the group to maneuver in front of her, hanging back towards the rear. She had no desire to kill anyone else today. The one man she had already shot was bothering her far more than she had originally thought it would. It wasn't the first time she had killed someone. It wasn't even the first time she had shot someone that didn't deserve it, but still the action seemed to trouble her, and she was not able to as casually dismiss it as she thought she should. With disgust, she saw that Onita had moved to the front of the pack, all too eager to add to his body count today. She went from simply disliking the violent thug to loathing him. She had always detestd being saddled with the man when he was chosen as her partner by Malgaunt almost six months ago. Working with him had only proven that he was violent, had a short temper, and frequently displayed poor skills when dealing with criminals. It was a surprise to her that someone like that could still have remained in the service for as long as Onita had, let alone risen to the rank of lieutenant. She was almost certain that Malgaunt must have had something to do with the man's undeserving promotion, probably so that he could be on this mission. Even now, after she had essentially quit the Galaxy Police, she was still saddled with the man. Perhaps it was the universe's way of getting back at her for all of the terrible things she had done. Once everyone was in position, Sa'bre gave a signal. Malgaunt entered the override code on the doors and the attack began. Funuyaki waited outside with several of the others as the majority of the group went charging in. It wasn't until the sounds of fighting stopped and someone yelled, "Clear!" that she and the others entered the labs, at last having access to the much sought after prize, whatever it was. The chamber itself was quite huge. It was the largest room on the station, outside of the one that housed the fusion reactor that powered the station. A host of complicated machines that Funuyaki failed to identify were strewn throughout the chamber, though most of them seemed centered upon a metal column in the center of the room. Her eyes took an inventory of everything in the room, trying to figure out what the precious cargo that they had gone to all of this trouble for was. There was one thing she picked up on rather quickly that made her feel even more uneasy than before. All of the dead scientists were wearing full environmental biohazard suits. Something was horribly wrong with the entire situation. Malgaunt went up to one of the control boards and began punching in several codes. After several moments, he said two phrases at the panel. "Identification code Choate ZXX4GY6V. Code name: Apocalypse." A loud thrumming sound began to fill the air. Slowly, the metal column that was in the center of the room began to retract. All eyes were riveted to it as a clear cylinder was revealed to have been concealed within the metal column. A light coating of frost could be seen on the inside as the metal column continued moving downward, until at last an object, nestled at the bottom of the container, could clearly be seen. At his console, Malgaunt loudly announced, "Ladies and Gentlemen. Allow me to introduce you to the greatest killer the universe has ever known." The object was a flower, no bigger than a foot in height. The stem and leaves were brown, though vibrant, and the flower itself was a silky yellow in appearance with azure petals surrounding the middle. Looking at it, one would never have suspected it of having gotten around to killing almost half a trillion sentient beings. Funuyaki stared at it in disbelief; an apocalyptic legend that had been reborn before her eyes. The words for it were on most of the others in the lips, but Funuyaki was the only one that gave voice to it. "Shihana." xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Yes. The Tenchi cast are going to reappear next chapter, so don't worry about the focus changing too much. We just needed to be introduced to the villains of the series. Special thanks to Kara-Ohki for looking over this and for Lara Bartram for giving me the name of the 'Death Flower' Also thanks to Slashley, JJ Corley, Burnett/Edwards, and Angcobra for their input Vacation Days Chapter 3 A Tenchi Muyo! Fic This uses the OVA continuity. Any and all C+C craved for. You can contact me at sommer@3rdm.net Standard Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Tenchi Muyo! materials All of my stuff is now stored at: http://angcobra.jumpfun.com/dbsommer.html xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx A drowsiness stole over Tenchi as the soft vibrations from Yokonojo's engines began lulling him to sleep. It was an unusual sensation for him. Generally, whenever he went into space, there was some matter of importance on hand that prevented him from doing anything other than concentrating on whatever danger had presented itself. From Kagato to Dr. Clay, always there had been some situation that cried out, 'If you get caught napping, Tenchi, some outer space bad guy is going to blow you into your molecular components and then see if you're going to get that book report in on time.' One would have thought he would develop a phobia about space travel with that sort of thing happening to him so often. However, this time was going to be different; he could feel it in his bones. All he was doing was traveling to another planet to enjoy a quiet seaside vacation. Like going to Okinawa, except for the three-headed aliens that would be there too. True, Ryoko and Aeka could still catch up and cause some sort of problem that would end up giving him a headache, but at least for now, all was at peace and he could relax and enjoy the ride. Perhaps he could even fall asleep, just like Mihoshi was doing. She looked so peaceful, dozing at the control console, a tiny line of drool pooling beneath her... Mihoshi was asleep at the controls? "Wake up, Mihoshi." Tenchi shook her by the shoulder, eliciting a groan from the girl as her eyes opened by only the tiniest fraction. "Whaa?" was the most coherent thought she could muster after having been awakened so. Hoping she would be awake enough to understand the question, he asked, "Who's flying the ship?" "Autopilot." Mihoshi waved towards the far side of the console and began snoring again. Tenchi looked at the strewn mess of garbage that sat on top of the console. He removed used napkins, empty coffee cups, candy bar wrappers, and even a pair of thin red silk panties (while somehow keeping the image of Mihoshi in them out of his head) around so that he could actually look at the ship's board. It was easy to locate the autopilot control. It was the one with the flashing 'System Malfunction' light right above it. Again Tenchi shook Mihoshi, getting the same results. "There's a light that says the system's malfunctioning." "That's because it broke down a couple of days ago and I didn't get a chance to fix it," she explained sleepily. "So in other words, we're flying aimlessly though space." "Yep." Mihoshi thought about that for a minute. "Oops." She sat up, blushing slightly at the error, and grabbed the controls. After a few moments of Tenchi scowling at her, she tried reassuring him by saying, "Well, we really weren't in any danger. One thing you have to remember is that matter is actually the exception in deep space. Most of the universe is nothing more than vast emptiness, and the odds of traveling in one direction, like we're doing, and running into something are very poor. I'd say it would only be about-" "One hundred percent!" Tenchi shouted as he pointed at the viewscreen. Mihoshi let out an exasperated sigh. "No. That's not it at all. Didn't you hear what I was saying? Matter is the exception, not the rule. It would be AHH!" Mihoshi at last looked to the viewscreen Tenchi was pointing at. Where there should have been the vast emptiness of space, there was, instead, the picture of large moon taking up the entire screen and growing bigger by the second. Impact craters from thousands of asteroid impacts dotted its surface and at the rate the ship was speeding towards it, one more was about to be added. Mihoshi continued to scream as she jerked hard on the controls and increased the thrust of the engines, powering out of the moon's gravity at the last second. Even with the evasive maneuver, the ship skimmed the surface of the terrestrial satellite at no more than fifty feet above it. It was only as the image of the moon drifted off in the distance that Mihoshi let out a sigh of relief. "Wow! There's nothing like a near-death collision to get the blood flowing, is there, Tenchi?" Upside down in his seat, feet sticking up in the air, Tenchi could only moan in agreement and began to question his judgment in agreeing to traveling with Mihoshi after all. "You do realize they could be anywhere in the universe?" Ryoko said as she guided Ryo-Ohki into deep space. Their search of the majority of Earth's beaches had turned up nothing. It was not as though they had to actually search each individual on the various beaches, that would have taken them years, rather, they searched for the much more obvious sign that would be easy to spot in the air: Mihoshi's crashed spaceship. "I doubt Mihoshi is particularly imaginative," Aeka said, her voice trying to project confidence while her true feelings of concern were obvious with the wringing she was doing with her hands. "They probably went someplace well known, like YuriKei 4, or Aqua Regia." Ryoko placed her hand to her chin in thought. "Maybe not." "What do you mean?" "Well," Ryoko said slowly, "if you or me had a shot at spending some time with Tenchi alone, would we go somewhere it was crowded, or would we take him to a nice secluded spot where we'd have a little privacy so we could get him to know him more intimately?" Aeka blushed slightly at the idea of her and Tenchi being alone on a beach, opening their hearts to one another without anyone, especially Ryoko, Washuu, Sasami, or (that insufferable conniver) Mihoshi, interrupting them. Ryoko watched the blush rise to Aeka's cheeks. "Now do you get it?" "But where would we start?" Aeka asked, more intent than ever to find Tenchi in order to protect him from Mihoshi and not from any plots she had developed on her own. Really. "We'll hit some of the more secluded spots near the Earth's sector and work our way out from there. If that doesn't pan out, we'll try some of the more popular resorts like you thought at first." Ryoko began going over Ryo-Ohki's impressive collection of star charts. Aeka looked out into space again. She fell to one knee, envisioning Tenchi's face in the star field. "Fear not, Lord Tenchi. I swear by the royal blood that runs through my veins that I will protect you from whatever trouble Mihoshi will get you in. If I should fail, may I die in the most horrible and painful way possible, for my love is so great I could never live without you." A well thrown metal skillet connected with the back of Aeka's head. "Knock it off with all that melodramatic crap!" Ryoko warned. "If it gets any worse, I'm going to barf." Aeka's face began twitching. "How dare you assault my august personage when I am aiding you in our mutual quest for Tenchi! If Ryu-oh was still functional, I would have left you behind and gone to rescue Tenchi myself. It's not as though you could handle matters this important on your own." Ryoko's face began twitching in response. "Look, you. We haven't been searching for Tenchi for even a day and you're already asking to get spaced. So you'd better accept that fact that I'm going to be leader of this expedition, or you'll find yourself dropped off on some backwater world where there won't be nothing but trees to talk to, and I don't mean the Juraian kind. Got it, Princess?" Aeka began glowing brightly. "Oh, I 'get it' all right. Allow me to show you the manner of my acquiescence to these asinine demands." They say in space, no one can hear you scream. However, space-traveling cabbits have mastered the technique of 'Miya'ing quite audibly in protest to fights that go on in the bowels of their starships forms, as Ryo-Ohki was currently doing as the first day of the 'Aeka and Ryoko Save Tenchi From Mihoshi' expedition began. Tenchi was surprised to discover that he had calmed down fairly quickly from what was yet another near-death experience for him. The calming had happened so fast, that he began to wonder if he had simply become used to the whole thing. A year ago, nearly getting run over by a car had been enough to unnerve him for nearly a week. Now, almost slamming into a small planetoid at several hundred thousand miles per hour was only worth fretting about for five minutes. He was either becoming more courageous or more stupid. His stomach grumbled in agreement, though for which idea he wasn't certain. "I'm sort of hungry," he told Mihoshi. "Sure. I can get some food for..." Tenchi looked at her curiously, wondering why she had trailed off like that. Mihoshi stood straight up and gave a little squeal of terror. "What is it?" Tenchi asked in concern. Mihoshi said, "There were a couple or prisoners on the ship. I haven't had a chance to take them to the nearest Galaxy Police headquarters yet, on account of how low my batteries were. And then, while I had to wait a long time for the batteries to charge up, I got the call from my superiors that ordered me to go on vacation." "You mean-" Tenchi began. "-I completely forgot they were here and didn't feed them. Do you think you could go down to the cells and check on them? I'm afraid they'd be angry at me for not feeding them, and I hate it when people shout at me for something like that." Not that they weren't already angry with her for arresting them, Tenchi thought. Still, he supposed she was concerned because their anger would be justified this time. Somehow, looking into her pleading eyes, he knew he would not be able to refuse the request. "Where are the prisoners located?" Tenchi asked. "Thank you, Tenchi! You're a life saver." She beamed a smile at him. "You go down the main corridor fifty feet. Then you take a left and go past three doors and then you take a right. And then you go past a couple more doors, but stop before you get to the infirmary. And then you're there." The door to the bridge automatically opened as Tenchi started to leave the room. He was in the middle of the doorway when Mihoshi said, "Wait! It's go down the main corridor sixty feet, then take a right, then go past two doors and take the right. And then you stop before you get to the armory. And then you're there." Tenchi memorized the directions again. Just as he turned to go, Mihoshi again stopped him. "Wait. That's to the power reactor. Let me think about this." She placed her hand to her chin in thought. Just as Tenchi was about to ask her again, she spoke. "I've definitely got it this time. Here's what you do. You go out into the hall and look to your right., you should see a map of the ship on the wall a few meters away. The corridor across from that is the one you want to take. Just go along it until you come to some stairs and..." As Mihoshi droned on, Tenchi walked over to the map and studied it. Yelling, "I think I've got it!" he made a beeline to the location marked 'Brig'. As Tenchi walked down the corridors, following a path of signs that said, 'Follow the white arrows to the prisoner cells,' he began to wonder if Mihoshi was getting worse over time. Sometimes she was okay, but forgetting about her prisoners really was unforgivable. The one thing she had always seemed to do was take her job seriously, but it seemed to him this was a too major of a mistake on her part. At last he arrived at the cells on board the ship. Looking into an empty one, he noticed that the beds within were quite nice, with padded white mattresses and frilly comforters on them. There even appeared to be a small voice-activated radio stationed on the outside of the cell, just beyond the forcefields that kept the prisoners confined to their cells. He supposed it made sense, since Mihoshi had told him that when on long range patrols, it could take up to a week for a ship to make it back to an inhabited world where a prisoner could be dropped off at a branch of the Galaxy Police for processing. It was nice to see that the Galaxy Police at least tried to make the prisoners feel comfortable. He examined each cell, trying to find the prisoners, but ended up rewarded with nothing. It wasn't until he got to the eighth cell in the corridor that he noticed it was occupied with what was presumably Mihoshi's prisoners. Or at least what was left of them. For as Tenchi looked in, he was able to clearly see that only occupants were two complete skeletons laid out on their beds, looking for all of the world like some kind of Halloween decoration. Tenchi backed out of sight of the cell and caught his breath. It was some kind of mistake. Even Mihoshi could not have forgotten someone for the amount of time it would have taken for them to end up in that state. The real prisoners were probably in a cell farther down, he assured himself, and went to make sure. Unfortunately, such was not the case. All of the other ones were vacant. That meant the one with the skeletons had to be it. Tenchi afforded one more look into the cell, assuring himself it wasn't an optical illusion. The skeletons were still there. This time Tenchi backed out of the cell block altogether and into the corridor beyond. Could Mihoshi have been wrong about having prisoners at all, having dropped them off and forgetting altogether about it? That didn't seem likely either. She had been certain they were still on the ship. With a hesitant hand, he activated one of the communicators in the wall. "Mihoshi?" "Yes?" The sound of munching could be heard over the reply that came crackling over the unit. "There's a little problem with the prisoners." "Are they being loud and unruly? If they are, just ask them nicely to please keep it down. And if that doesn't work, start to explain to them Lord Fillybuster the Gregarious's theories on how the universe actually revolves on Urianan Banana peels and is held together with duct tape. Usually I don't get more than two minutes into the first part of the theory when they get all quiet and apologize for causing a problem. Personally, I don't think much of the theory myself, but it does seem to be a useful tool in calming prisoners down." Tenchi felt the sweatdrop form behind his head. "Ah, no. They aren't being unruly at all. In fact, I'd say they're the quietest people I've seen in a real long time." He chided himself for his cowardice in trying to dodge the issue. He forced himself to say, "I don't know how to tell you this, so I'm just going to come out and say it. I'm afraid they're dead." "Oh. Okay. As long as they aren't giving you a hard...WHAT?!" Tenchi listened to the sobbing on the other end as Mihoshi blubbered out, "That can't be. I've never had a prisoner die on me before. My record is flawless in that respect. Sure, sometimes they complain about me mentally torturing them, but everyone knows I would never do that sort of thing to anyone. It's just talk." "Well, it's true. I guess you'd better come down and check it yourself." Tenchi's heart felt as though it had sunk to his stomach. Things just didn't make sense. In less than a minute Mihoshi had joined Tenchi, bawling her eyes out and sobbing about how she was now guilty of murder and was going to have to arrest herself. The crying girl entered the cell block with Tenchi, allowing him to lead her to the room with the bodies. Tenchi watched Mihoshi carefully, gauging her reaction as she laid eyes upon the remains for the first time. He hoped she wouldn't try to do anything rash. She took one good look through her tears, then stopped crying. A look of confusion passed over her features. "Umm, Tenchi. The prisoners look perfectly fine to me." "What are you talking about?!" he nearly shouted. "They're nothing but skeletons!" "Hey, you're not so fat yourself, jerk!" Tenchi recoiled in horror as one of the skeletons sat up and spoke. A moment later, its companion followed the example. Together they headed towards the forcefield to the cell, stopping right in front of it mere inches away from Tenchi. His reaction was automatic as he jumped back and hid behind Mihoshi, who remained where she was as though two skeletons coming towards her was the most normal thing in the world. Mihoshi looked over her shoulder to stare at Tenchi in confusion. "Ah, Tenchi. They're Kallista Flockhartens. They all look like skeletons. Their skin and internal organs are transparent. Although if you look real close under the light, you can just make out a blue outline that surrounds their bodies. That's all you can see of their skin. Also, there is just the faintest red glow in front of their eyes. That's their optical nerves. So you see, these two are perfectly normal." Forcing himself to stare closely at the two animated sets of bones, Tenchi could see that Mihoshi was correct and that both things were present on the prisoners. He blushed in embarrassment. "Tenchi, you're so silly," Mihoshi giggled. "You were just trying to scare me, weren't you?" "Sort of," Tenchi said, placing a hand behind his head in further embarrassment. Mihoshi got both of the Flockhartens their food. Tenchi was relieved to see that the invisibility effect extended to what they ate, grateful he didn't have to go through watching their digestive tracts in action. As Mihoshi and Tenchi left the cells behind, she began to voice some concerns. "I have something of a problem here. Headquarters specifically said they didn't want to hear my name at all. If I take the prisoners in, then they'll hear my name and I'll get into trouble. Of course, I don't think we can take them on vacation with us either. I don't know what to do," she wailed. "I don't think your headquarters would mind if you're dropping off prisoners you already had in your custody before you went on vacation. I'm pretty sure they meant not to make any arrests after you went on it," Tenchi said. Mihoshi shook her head. "Nonono. You don't understand. My orders were very specific and my superiors will be really angry if I don't obey them. I have to come up with something. Maybe if I ask Yukinojo himself." With a course of action decided, Mihoshi set off back to the bridge and reactivated the artificial intelligence that served as her only companion on long range flights. Once activated, Yukinojo lowered his primary communications unit; basically a mechanical head that lowered from the ceiling that allowed Mihoshi to talk to him face-to-face. "Good morning, Yukinojo," Mihoshi greeted happily. "My chronometer indicates it's six P.M. Juraian Standard Time. That would place it as early evening." "You know what I meant," Mihoshi said. "I have a problem." "I see," the mechanical head answered almost drolly, if one could attribute a droll tone in the unit's mechanical voice. "It's only been one standard day since you were ordered on vacation and I had a chance to shut down. And here I was hoping to get about six months rest from our usual bouts of chaos. That was why I wanted most of my higher functions turned off." "Sorry about this," Mihoshi said, looking a little embarrassed. Yukinojo continued without pause. "You do know that the last time we were at headquarters the main computer diagnosed me with burnt out logistics and worn out acceptors. You know, the important things I need to interact with intelligent beings in a logical manner. It's supposed to take a minimum of fifteen years for that sort of problem to creep up in my series of AI. It's only taken four years of being under your command for me to start to having massive break-downs of this sort. It's all highly traumatizing for me." "Well, we are pretty busy and have had a high case load. That's probably why you're having breakdowns in your higher functions," Mihoshi offered. "Or it could be you are lazy, slovenly, conduct business in an offhand and consistently illogical manner, cause massive amounts of damage to the ship in senseless accidents that could easily be avoided, have no sense of discipline..." Yukinojo trailed off as Mihoshi's eyes began to tear. Every time he tried to seriously berate her for her attitude, she'd began to cry, and then his empathy programs would creep and he'd have to... "I'm sorry, Mihoshi. Our record of arrests is outstanding. We've single-handedly brought down entire criminal organizations, like Keyser Soze's outfit. We always score high marks in concluding our cases in timely fashion, and not once have we ever had to be disciplined for any violations of prisoners' rights. And," Yukinojo almost hated himself for this part, mostly because it was true, "I like working with you because you show such heartfelt enthusiasm for getting the job done and at least try to uphold the spirit of the Galaxy Police." Even if she did also screw up things a lot of the time, drive him to distraction, and made him want to lobotomize himself on more than one occasion. "Thanks." Mihoshi's attitude brightened considerably. "Now, I'm sorry for interrupting your rest, but I have a little problem." She outlined the dilemma of the prisoners. Yukinojo said, "We're going to have to drop them off and take our chances that headquarters will let this slide." Logically they should not have had a problem with the situation, but Mihoshi's superiors had been enthusiastic about not having any contact whatsoever with her for six months. It was possible some problem could creep up, even if it was through some misunderstanding about when the prisoners had really been apprehended. He was still reviewing the possibilities when he picked up a communication. "Mihoshi. I have a distress signal from a Galaxy Police prisoner transport in our sector. They say there was an attempted breakout by some of the prisoners, but the situation is now under control. However, their long-range communications have been damaged and they can only contact others with their short-range communications systems." There could be no doubt about their course of action. It was a common fact that any space faring vessel receiving a distress call was obligated to respond. Mihoshi set a course for the source of the signal. It only took them ten minutes to reach the coordinates. Yukinojo's sensors matched the ship's configuration to the transponder signal it gave off. The ships linked with one another without difficulty, and Tenchi and Mihoshi both went over to the transport to look over the situation. The transport's captain, Terrace Azsore, was waiting for them as they arrived. He and Mihoshi saluted one another and began to talk. "We were bringing in some Class C criminals from some of the outer territories when they attempted a prison break. We got them under control quick enough, except for one guy that managed to overload our sensor array and blow apart some of the main engine controls. We've managed to repair most of the damage. The main engines are still off-line, but my engineer assures me he can have them fixed within the hour," Azsore explained. "Our main problem is that out CGG-60B long-range antenna was severely damaged. Our backup was destroyed as well." "Without it, you can't communicate outside a single star system," Mihoshi finished. "You see the problem," Azsore said. "As a ship belonging to the Galaxy Police, we are required to maintain a constant link with headquarters in case of emergencies. We still have a long way to go to get to the penal colony on Trakton-Gallows and a lot of that is in deep space. This system isn't exactly one of the most advanced, and any side journeys for replacement parts are going to take a heck of a long time. But if you could loan us your spare antenna-" "You'd be able to head towards Trakton-Gallows right away," Mihoshi said brightly. "Sure, I'd be happy to loan you my back up." "Thanks," the captain said as he called his communications officer over his comlink and informed him that they were going to get their hands on the necessary part. As the transfer was taking place, an idea suddenly occurred to Tenchi. "Mihoshi. Will this ship be heading to Galaxy Police Headquarters?" Mihoshi nodded her head. "After it drops off its prisoners, yes." "Is it possible for them to take your prisoners to headquarters for you?" "Sure. Prisoner transfers happen all the time if one ship is heading towards police headquarters and the other still needs to continue its tour of duty," Mihoshi said happily, and continued to watch the men transfer her reserve antenna to their ship. After a few moments of inaction on Mihoshi's part, Tenchi said slowly, "Why don't you ask the captain to take the prisoners off your hands and then you won't have to worry about them any more?" It took a moment for the idea to sink in. "What a great idea. Thanks, Tenchi. You sure are smart sometimes." "Thanks," Tenchi said uncomfortably at the praise. She just had to be so damn sincere that it was hard not to feel a little unworthy of it. The captain was only too happy to return a favor to Mihoshi. She transferred all of the necessary paperwork for processing, and the Flockharteans were given their own cell on the transport, seemingly delighted at being removed from Mihoshi's care. Without direct contact with headquarters, Mihoshi thought it would be unlikely there would be any reprimands from her superiors when she returned. Once the transfer was complete and the transport's engines were repaired, both ships departed and resumed their destinations. Yukinojo had not made it more than three parsecs before he realized something and gained Mihoshi's attention. "Mihoshi, I've been going over the inventories from the last time we were resupplied at headquarters and I seem to have discovered some discrepancies." Mihoshi stared at him in confusion. "I didn't order any discrepancies." Tenchi was amazed to discover that Galaxy Police ship artificial intelligences were sophisticated enough to sweatdrop. "Mihoshi, I'm not implying you ordered them. I'm saying there are some on the inventory lists." "And I'm telling you there can't be any on the list because I didn't order any!" Mihoshi insisted. "What in the name of a five-headed stellar Tarblist beast are you talking about?!" Yukinojo shouted. "I could ask you the same question!" Mihoshi shot back just as fiercely. Tenchi backed away as Yukinojo's voice took on a more icy tone. "I'm telling you there are some discrepancies on the list. You know discrepancies. Something that is at variance with something else." Mihoshi's eyes took on a knowing light. "Ohh. Why didn't you say so? I thought you meant there were discrepancies, those fancy little chocolate and whip cream pastries they make on Altair 7. You know, the kind that just melts in your mouth when you eat them. They taste so yummy I could eat them all day." Mihoshi licked her lips as she remembered the last time she had tasted the chocolate confections. "What are you talking about?!" Yukinojo shouted. "There is no such thing as a chocolate pastry on Altair 7 called-" One of his internal computers sent some information to his advanced intelligence circuits. "Well I'll be. There really is a pastry called a discrepancy on Altair 7. Imagine that." "See." Mihoshi crossed her arms under her ample bosom and stared smugly at the mechanical head. "You have to be more clear if you want to be understood. Ambiguity just breeds confusion, you know." "That is true," Yukinojo sighed, then decided to get the conversation back on its proper course. "Anyway, there are some variances," he emphasized that word, after making certain there wasn't some kind of outer rim world back bacon with the same name. "On the lists. For instance, it says here that you ordered seventy VX-100 Hammerhead missiles. Now I'm certain what you meant to say was that you ordered seventy VX-1000 Hammerhead missiles. Correct?" "Let me see. I have the carbon copies of the inventory lists somewhere around here." Even in that day and age, they still forced people to fill out handwritten forms in triplicate, even for the requisition of a paper clip. Mihoshi began going through the mess on the floor of the bridge. It took her a couple of minutes to find the crumpled up copy, and then another minute for her to make out the writing, which had a series of coffee stains all over it that reminded her of some contemporary artwork she had seen while on Earth. "Nope. I ordered the VX-100 missiles." "Mihoshi!" Yukinojo shouted. "How could you have made a mistake like that?! No one has even manufactured VX-100 missiles in over a hundred years, let alone used them! They are slow, present large target profiles thanks to their heavy ray shielding, and their homing sensors are at least two generations behind the VX-1000 series. They're all but useless. I can't believe they even keep them stocked back at headquarters." "I guess that was why the quartermaster gave me such a funny look when I ordered them," Mihoshi said meekly. "Thanks goodness we're going on vacation," Yukinojo muttered. Going into combat with such dated weaponry was a sure way to end up dead in a firefight. "Just remember the instant we report back to duty that we get the correct missiles." "Sure thing," Mihoshi said, brightening considerably since her mistake hadn't cost her anything. Tenchi had listened to the exchange and, as much as he liked Mihoshi, was suddenly glad he was not her direct superior. The girl was a handful simply as a friend. "How much longer until we get to Aqua Regia?" "With that delay we had with the prison transport, another day and a half." Mihoshi considered that. She really wanted to get to the planet and relax with Tenchi. "I got an idea. We can cut out at least half a day if we take a short cut." "Mihoshi," Yukinojo warned, "stay on the plotted course." Mihoshi waved dismissively at the mechanical head and began plotting a new course. "Don't be silly. I've taken short cuts lots of times." "And usually you get us lost," Yukinojo pointed out. "And then we have to contact headquarters in the hopes that they can figure out where we are and how to get back on track to where we're going." "Not all the time," Mihoshi said. "It happens often enough," Yukinojo countered in a desperate move that he knew would do no good; Mihoshi had already made up her mind. "I don't think a short cut is such a good idea," Tenchi said, coming to the same conclusion Yukinojo had, knowing all the while it wasn't going to work as well. Mihoshi continued laying in the new course. "Oh, you guys. Risk is a part of life." "Not on vacation it's not supposed to be," Tenchi said, feeling his heart sink into the pit of his stomach for the third time today. Again Yukinojo spoke. "Mihoshi, I'm begging you, don't take us off course." "You're such a worrywart. What could possibly go wrong?" Mihoshi said as she finished entering the new course and hit a button. Tenchi felt the urge to cry as the ship entered hyperspace. Milky Way Galaxy Sector 25W.773.2FX Class 4 Nebula: Arecheox The space station Tartarus Funuyaki stood there in silence, watching as Stargrave's crew began to remove the metal ball in which the Shihana bloom resided. Supposedly, they were in no real danger. The deadly substance was sealed by three different layers of protection. The first layer was an outer casing composed of adamantine, which was thick enough to withstand anything up to an orbital reentry and remain intact. Inside that was a secondary shell of polynison with a high grade refractory coating. It was a relatively new invention, a clear substance that could disperse nearly all forms of energy and was reputed to be as hard as adamantine. The final defense was a statis field unit that was within the polynison, which rendered the bloom inert. Unlike the others, it would be easy to destroy or deactivate. It was simply there to help transport the bloom from its container to any others and prevent everyone from dying. Each layer required a different method of deactivation. The adamantine had a concealed panel that could be accessed easily enough, but to open the shell itself required a twenty-five digit code entered into the keypad. Due to the refractory coating on the polynison, a sonic pulse on a specific wavelength would open it. The stasis fields had no failsafes and could be deactivated with a touch. The idea was that if anyone could get past the first two defenses, the third would be meaningless anyway. Malgaunt was only sharing the code and the sonic frequency with Stargrave. The two seemed to share a private joke about the latter key, assuring Funuyaki that they were the only ones in the quadrant that could possibly open it. Once Stargrave left Malgaunt's side, Funuyaki moved closer, taking up a position opposite from Onita's as the man remained close to the marshal's side. "That can't really be Shihana. Every trace of it was destroyed. All of it." "Yeah," Onita added. Funuyaki wondered if the man was going to say more than that, but gave a derisive snort when that was all the commentary he had. Malgaunt seemed to swell up as he gave a smug look to his aides. "Would you like me to tell you a little story about Shihana and the plant before us? I think you'll find it most intriguing." There was little Funuyaki wanted more to do in the universe than wipe the smirk off her superior's face. But she wasn't so foolish as to allow her emotions to carry her away, no matter how great her satisfaction would temporarily be. "Please." A soft chuckle slipped from Malgaunt as he began his tale. "Allow me to go over what you were taught when you were younger, because there's no telling how accurate the information you received really is. Those that rule often filter what information they want to be learned among the general populace. It makes the masses so much easier to control if their knowledge is deliberately tinged with the just right amount of propaganda. I should know. As a marshal of the Galaxy Police, I've been using such tactics for years. "Slightly over one thousand years ago, a sizable empire by the name of the Whipreck came into contact with the Jurai. Each side decided that the galaxy wasn't large enough for both to exist, so war was quickly declared. The Jurai had the advantage in resources, technology, and tactics. It was only a matter of a year before the Whipreck began losing badly, so they turned to the one area of war in which they exceeded the Jurai: biological weapons. "Desperate times breed desperate measures. To that end, one of their scientists made a breakthrough the universe would later curse as 'Shihana.' It really was a remarkable piece of work, and I can only guess at the genius of the individual that primarily designed it. His knowledge far outstripped anything even the ministry of science could come up with, even to this day. "The plant itself wasn't the problem, by the way. It was the spores it created. The spores were microscopic in size, about the size of most standard viruses, which was what its genetic pattern was partially based upon. The little thing really is quite deliciously simple. Once the plant was exposed to an ecosystem, no matter how big or how small, it would release the spores. Once released, the spores would attach themselves to every lifeform they encountered, no matter how large or small, and drain it of its life energy at an unbelievable rate. It would drain a standard human-sized lifeform within four minutes. It would then use the energy it absorbed to replicate itself at a rate faster than anything ever encountered. The new spores would then repeat the cycle until every living thing on the entire planet was drained, and I mean everything, including plant life and microscopic creatures. "Apparently, the spores, through some unknown means, transferred at least part of the drained energy to the mother plant, for once the spores ran out of things to feed, they died off and the mother plant would follow. Don't let that fool you. Destroying the mother plant after it had released its spores was no defense; they functioned independently of the plant and would continue on their merry path of genocide. "The spores were designed to propel themselves at an incredible rate of speed, being able to travel through air, liquids, even the soil of a planet itself. About the only thing they could not survive in was a vacuum, making them completely terrestrial bound. They also could not penetrate any air-tight enclosures, so there were defenses against them. However, if even one so much as made contact with an organism, it was over. The only limitation they had was that without some life form to draw energy from, they would die within forty eight hours of their last feeding. The main plant from which they had spawned would die about two hours after the last spore. Also, they could not be transported more than a million miles from the host plant, or they would die rather than replicate or drain. Yet another fail-safe placed upon this biological weapon. "It really is a fascinating method of control. Given this almost self-destructive capability, it would make it almost impossible for Shihana to be used against the Whipreck, just as the plant's designers had planned. "The actual creation of the plant was a carefully guarded secret. Likewise, once it was created, it had to be contained properly and put into stasis, lest the plant blossomed and required a constant, controlled string of lifeforms to sustain it until it could be delivered to its destination before it died. "Once the Whipreck were confident Shihana was effective, and that it couldn't be used against them, they unleashed it upon their enemies. Upon completion of the original batch of plants, the Whipreck went to work. Fifty-three worlds were infected by the plant. The only place they failed to get one onto was the Jurai throneworld. Everywhere else they released it, it was a success. The effect was devastating, despite the fact the Whipreck left some tactically important worlds unaffected, hoping to bend them to their own empire's will after they took over. Most worlds tended to succumb to the plant within three days of its initial release, less if the planet was small. "Shihana was completely effective, razing every world it came into contact with. Hundreds of billions died within that first week it was released upon the largely unsuspecting galaxy. No lifeform was spared as entire planets became lifeless rocks floating in space. Years later, others would remark grimly that the universe had become a quieter place thanks to the Whipreck. Few sentient races truly suffered genocide, almost every race had numbers that were off planet at the time, but many of them were pushed to the brink of extinction. Even centuries later, all of them are but former shadows of what they once were, their planets taken from them and essentially lost forever. "The Jurai Empire was predictably thrown into disarray by the massive attack. The Whipreck coordinated the release with their fleet, making huge leaps and gains in the war. Right now we would probably be a part of the Whipreck Empire had not fortune smiled on the Jurai in the form of Whipreck rebels. There were many of them, including high-standing members of the government and the military, that were so disgusted with their own empire's actions that they chose to betray their leaders rather than allow the Whipreck Empire to go unpunished. They gave the Jurai information on what had ravished their worlds and where the only facilities for Shihana were stored on the homeworld. They then aided a quickly assembled Jurai fleet, one that was basically sent on a suicide mission, to the Whipreck Empire's homeworld and used inside information that would enable them to at least make it to the planet alive. "The Jurai fleet was slaughtered to the ship, but not before they destroyed all the facilities that contained the information about Shihana and all of the specialized equipment needed to produce the plant, as well as the remaining existing batch of it. They also managed to assault the capital of the empire and killed the Emperor and the majority of the ruling body. "Now it was the Whipreck's turn to reel from their losses as the Jurai launched a merciless counterattack upon the Whipreck. Within a month the war was over, every part of the Whipreck Empire had been defeated. As punishment for their actions, the Emperor decided to be merciful and simply exiled the master race of the Whipreck from their homeworld and this part of the galaxy, forcing them to go beyond the outer rim forever. As for those that had created Shihana, everyone that was the least bit involved in the project was executed. The only information that the Jurai were able to salvage were pictures of the flower itself and what it was capable of doing. It was made a part of every Imperial planet's learning curriculum as to what the flower looked like and what it was capable of doing, so that everyone knows the evils that can be inflicted upon the universe." "If what you say is true, then how can that exist?" Funuyaki said, pointing to the gunmetal-gray orb that the plant was now encased. Onita simply looked at the orb, then back at Malgaunt. The marshal's grin grew wider. He loved having information others lacked. Seeing open looks of disbelief on their faces when confronted with the seemingly impossible always amused him. And then, as calm as deep space, he would explain to them in an obvious fashion how wrong they were and why. Almost inevitably their looks would change from disbelief to resentment directed towards him for knowing so much more than they. That look was one of the reasons he had enjoyed arresting criminals so much. He loved deceiving them into believing they would get away with their crime, then would show them the evidence that would put them away. As much as those scum hated being caught, they loathed him just as much for being so superior to them in every way. And as much as he liked Funuyaki, it was time to remind her of that fact. "You forget, the Whipreck failed to get one of the flowers through to the Jurai homeworld itself. During the initial attack, they did attempt to release one there, but what ended up happening was that our very own Galaxy Police managed to intercept the flower before it got to planetary orbit. Not only that, the self-destruct circuit on the smuggler's ship failed, and we managed to capture the plant intact, while it was still in its stasis field. Of course, at the time we had no idea of what we had obtained. It was assumed to be some kind of new plant that could produce a drug. It wasn't until after the war that we discovered what we had on our hands. Although once it was certain, it became a matter for the Jurai Security Directorate. "Why didn't they just destroy the damn thing instead of playing around with it?" Funuyaki asked as she watched Stargrave's crew continue to prepare the Shihana for transport. "Because what was once created can be created again." Malgaunt sounded as though he was repeating some ancient proverb. For a moment there he had thought Funuyaki would figure the reason out on her own -she was quite smart- but it appeared that she was not going to guess. "The Empire wanted a cure to the plant, and it was willing to commit whatever resources were necessary to achieve that goal. Rather than alert the general population that this instrument of planetary destruction still existed, they suppressed all knowledge of its existence, save for a handful of people that would be involved directly in the project; the Emperor and some of his most trusted aides, members of the Imperial Academy Science Division, high ranking officers in the Galaxy Police, and the highest levels of the Jurai Security Directorate. "After what happened with the Shihana the first time it was released upon the universe, there was no way the remaining plant was ever going to be allowed near a populated system. A secret base was set up on a remote asteroid in the Cygni Quadrant, and it remained there for a number of decades. However, it was nearly destroyed in a freak accident and the base had to be abandoned. From there it was moved frequently from desolate place to desolate place, never remaining in one spot too long for fear someone would learn of its location and try to steal it. As inconvenient as it was, it was the only way those in charge felt safe. "And then they discovered the Anomaly. Its unique location made it an ideal place to research the cure. Given the multiple layers of protection and secrecy surrounding the base, the only way it could ever be stolen-" "-was with a high-ranking inside man," Funuyaki finished for him. "Just so," Malgaunt said smugly. "But if there's only this one-" Funuyaki started. "Well, yes and no," Malgaunt said. "Yes, there is only this one, but over the years, as the scientists tried to create a cure, and failed, I might add, they did learn how to create more of the plants. I think they were reconstructing it in their minds as a better method of coming up with a cure. In any case, even with what they discovered, they couldn't make a new one from scratch, but they could make others using an already existing plant. And it just so happens I retrieved that information on this little disk." Malgaunt held a three inch gold disk for all to see. He then pocketed it and went back to smiling. "She's ready for transport," one of Stargrave's men said as he triple checked the seals on the prize. Sa'bre Stargrave gave the order for the crew to move it out to the Rack n' Ruin. From there they were to load it onto the special containment cylinder that had been added to the bottom of the ship specifically for the mission. Stargrave explained that there was no way he was going to travel with the Shihana having any direct access to the ship. The tube might have been vulnerable, but in Stargrave's opinion it was worth the risk. Sa'bre's men handled the container with great care, not caring that they could not crack the casing on it even if they tried. The transport from the labs to the ship went by without a problem, though at one point Stargrave stopped to listen to a report from some of his men in the ship. After it was finished, he informed Malgaunt that he had been correct about the crew of Tartarus trying to use the ventilation ducts to effect an escape. Stargrave's men shot several of them that had made the attempt, driving the others back to the barracks. Malgaunt assured him they would not have time to try anything else as the group continued to the docking bay. Upon arriving there, the adamantine ball was loaded into the long silver cylinder that was affixed to the bottom of the vessel. It was only twenty feet long and ten feet wide, but it was made with two feet of pure durasteel, and was fused to the hull of the vessel. Stargrave was convinced nothing short of the ship's destruction would dislodge the container from his vessel. After it was loaded and the final preparations for lift off were made, Sa'bre recalled his men from Tartarus. As the last members of the crew boarded, leaving only Stargrave and the trio of traitorous Galaxy Police officers, Malgaunt pulled out the control pad that was still slaved to the station's controls. Funuyaki watched with close interest. "What are you doing now?" Malgaunt finished punching in a sequence on his pad. "Oh, I'm just sending a distress call to headquarters." "What?!" Funuyaki and Onita shouted as one. Malgaunt's face nearly ached with all of the smiling he had done in the last few hours. Those that had spent long amounts of time with him knew that he almost never smiled, yet today had proven a most joyous time for him. "It seems there's been a malfunction in the ship's directional engines. They've misfired, sending Tartarus on a course that takes it out of the Anomaly and into Hell's Gate itself." He punched in another set of commands, and the station began to move. "How unfortunate that the shields are also down, meaning the station won't last fifteen minutes in the nebula." Malgaunt turned to head up the ramp to the Rack n'Ruin. "We'd best be off, people, unless you'd like to get a closer look at one of the most destructive forces in the universe." Funuyaki turned her gaze back at the station. "Do we really have to kill all of them?" Stargrave gave her a false smile and turned back to Malgaunt, a look of pure amusement upon his face. "Yes, really, killing all of your men like that is a pretty terrible thing. How can you live with yourself?" Malgaunt's face turned a bit more serious as the smile disappeared. "They never appreciated me. I tried to make them into the best and most efficient force in the galaxy. I was stern only because it furthered my causes, and thus the causes of the Galaxy Police. Yet in return they refused to appreciate my abilities, never mind the fact I was clearly superior to them. If they had followed me rather than standing in my way, allowed me to lead the Galaxy Police as was my right, I would have taken them to levels they never would have dreamt of. But instead they allowed those two fools in front of me to lead, them and their pitiful ideals that did nothing but hold us back. They refused my rightful place as the one in charge and behind my back referred to me derisively as 'Ballbreaker.' They don't really deserve my talents." "So you're going to kill all of them?" Stargrave's face r