Sailor Jupiter 15 - The Time After Innocence

[Daniel Jess Gibson]

Sailor Jupiter 15 - The Time After Innocence

Disclaimer - I do not own the characters of Ranma 1/2, NGE, Tenchi Muyo or BSSM, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi, Gainex, AIC Productions and Naoko Takeuchi, respectively.

. . . "This is my practice room," Kodachi said imperiously of the large room filled with gymnastic equipment, "It is here you will practice." She laughed, a chilling sound along with a storm of rose petals that heralded her transformation into her gymnast's leotard.

. . . "In order to prove I am worthy to be your instructor." Kodachi walked to a long cable hanging slack between two shoulder-high poles. Rather than hop up on the poles, she vaunted onto the loose rope itself and held herself upside-down, back straight, head down, without the rope swaying or pitching her off.

. . . She split her legs far apart, perpendicular to the rope. She brought them back together, then split them again, parallel to the slack line she held. Then she rolled into a cartwheel across the line to a standing posture on the far pole, then she effortlessly dropped to the ground. It was a breathtaking display, but the clear disdain she had for her `audience` spoiled her `performance` and showed clearly why, despite her superb technical skill, she never did well at tournaments.

. . . "Your garments are appropriate," Kodachi told Kiima, as she strode up to the bird-woman, "You should begin on the balance beam, unless you believe the slack line is not - beyond you." It was clearly meant as a challenge, and Kiima accepted it, leaping onto the pole. She spread her wings for balance, and tried to walk down the rope. Her wings were sluggish and clumsy, making the process difficult. She stumbled, fluttering desperately to keep her balance. She turned to glare at the gymnast who stood below, smirking at her. The ex-Phoenixi straightened up and continued, she would not give up, not to a landling.

. . . She turned to face Kasumi, "That long skirt is hardly appropriate for this circumstance," she told Kasumi.

. . . "It is necessary," Kasumi replied mildly.

. . . "I think not. A - "

. . . The wheelchair-bound girl had raised the skirt high enough to let the gymnast see her legs. Emaciated and spindly. Kodachi drew back with a hiss. Kasumi let the hem fall, concealing the sight.

. . . Kodachi tried to rally to reassert her authority and will, but could not. "My brother suggested we train your arms, so you might move in other than this chair." She nodded to a set of parallel bars. "We shall begin."
------------------------------

. . . Sasami looked at the fancy costume as she spun around. The long sleeves, ribbons and bows made it seem very impractical. It's very pretty, she thought happily, And a lot more demure than theirs! She laughed at the thought of all the ornaments. I bet I can assemble a weapon out of the various bits and pieces, the buttons, bows and buckles. Then she frowned as she considered big brother Jeff and his sense of humor, Or a toaster oven . . . or both - at the same time. Warms, broils, vaporizes, slices and dices, and it makes julienne fries, out of your opponents. She laughed at the thought, then tried to get more serious. She smiled at big brother Jeff and wondered about all that was in the manual. The `Cliff Notes` described dozens of powers.

. . . "Considering it's nearly-indestructible, you can also use it as a club," big brother Jeff explained of Sasami's large baton, "You can make it hundreds of times more massive at the moment of impact by saying 'Hurts Me More Than You Attack'. Frankly, I don't see why you can't just think the words, instead of saying them. After all, it will only respond to you anyway."

. . . 'Pretty Sammi' frowned at him and his very weird mix of insane humor and absolute rationality. "Maybe it was a - " She leaned close to him, as if whispering in his ear. Then stared at the two Senshi as she covered her mouth and giggled. Both Senshi instantly went beet-red from head to toe. Now to turn it on `Raccoon`, she thought and asked, "If I attach a bag, can I play it like a bagpipe?"

. . . "Of course, it even comes with a tam o'shanter and a skean dhu," he said with all seriousness.

. . . Sasami only rolled her eyes. "Do you have to have the last word?"

. . . While the silence dragged on, big brother Jeff and Ami both struggled desperately not to fill it.
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. . . Yosho, safely hidden deep within Katsuhito, watched the pair circle: the boy with a sword, the girl with the polearm of fire. Despite their ferocious expressions, they were having a marvelous time.

. . . "Don't drop your elbow," he told them. The pair circled, probing for weaknesses. He smiled as he idly wished he could convince Tenchi that the art was more than just swinging the blade. It's using the environment, including your opponents, he thought, It is also joy, action without conscious thought. A meditation in action.

. . . He thought as he listened to the lecture the fiery, redhead was giving young Tatewaki, Good advice, but the distractions and shocks are the only thing letting her keep matching him, he thought.

. . . "If your attractiveness is obvious, why force every woman to acknowledge it?" Asuka rushed in and knocked Kuno's sword out of the way and got the 'touch'.

. . . Tatewaki frowned, steeled himself and took the guard position. In their brief exchange, Asuka fought exclusively on the defense, yet denied him the point.

. . . "And why do you insist every woman display their love the same, with physical contact?" Asuka offered and struck.

. . . Not enough to sweep away his guard, Yosho thought, Yet.

. . . "If a girl cooks you a meal. Or feeds you when you're paralyzed -" Asuka drove the touch home, and continued, "Why isn't that good enough? And why do you have to smother the poor girl?" Asuka slapped Tatewaki, not hard but he noticed it.

. . . Good, don't injure him, Yosho thought, But enough to wake him up.

. . . "I read that letter you gave her -"

. . . "You could read it?"

. . . "I'm a college graduate, in Math and Physics," Asuka told him, "Yet I could read it. Why don't you stick with that approach?"

. . . Tatewaki lowered the sword and stared off into space, as if stunned by the enormity of the idea.

. . . "If you want to know the truth, the Senshi are going to need more warriors. They are going to need someone to stand toe-to-toe with the enemy, while they make their ranged attacks. Admittedly, they can be trained to fight hand-to-hand on their own, however, that will take time they don't have to spare."

. . . Kuno is lost in the images of herself as the valiant warrior who shall stand and defend Earth's defenders, or die, Katsuhito thought, as Yosho considered the Jurain legends about the Moon Kingdom versus the reality of the girls watching the drama unfold, I cannot see any similarity. Well-played Miss Langley, a well-planned and executed trap. Are you really prepared for what you might catch?

. . . "Why are you assisting my quest?" Tatewaki's reason had returned with a truckload of suspicions. Asuka whitened at his question and the directness of it.

. . . And Asuka has to answer that difficult question, Katsuhito thought, Now the game begins. No wonder she and her friend were able to lead Tenchi and his `harem` on such a dance. Yes, pout a bit, a little tear it shows sincerity. No! Don't try to hug her, well, that's taken care of.

. . . Asuka stood, the point of her sabre-halberd dimpling the skin of Tatewaki's thigh, his intended glomp neatly forestalled.

. . . "A long time ago, I was deeply in love, I thought he loved me." She withdrew the blade and held Kuno fixed with her gaze. The young man saw what was behind the stare, and lowered his arms. "He rejected and abandoned me, like I was useless trash. You, of course, don't know how that feels to happen to you, everybody loves you."

. . . Kuno wisely made no reply.

. . . "Someone came to my aid, someone who had no reason to care, rescued me. It is a debt I have tried to repay. That poem, it would take a great deal of brains to decipher it. You, me, and Ami are probably the only ones in 10 kilometers who could do it in our heads. So, the poem extols her physical beauty and the form engages her brain. Do you know how rare it is to find a man who can appreciate both?" She lowered her blade slightly when Kuno nodded. "Good. The point is, I don't want to see Ami hurt by both of you misunderstanding, so I'd clear up the obvious stumbling blocks and let you two worry about the details."

. . . "Thank you," Tatewaki said and bowed.

. . . Asuka grounded the haft of the weapon and willed it away. "I believe the match was six touches. I got them."

. . . "You cheated," Kuno said firmly, frowning at the loss.

. . . "And you profited from my cheating," Asuka replied smoothly, "I think you got the better of the bargain."
--------------------

. . . Kodachi watched the Tendo girl struggle across the parallel bars, sweat pouring down her face. It was not the ladylike or dignified. Kodachi approved. It is not as easy nor as clean and simple as so many wish it to be, Kodachi thought, One hand in front of the other. And to how many others have you shown this dogged, aggressive side of you? Or are you so afraid of it and fear that others will fear you if they see it in you?

. . . "Enough," Kodachi ordered, she walked up and grabbed the older girl's arm, "I said 'enough.' There is tomorrow, and if you are willing to continue working this hard, you are welcome to return."

. . . "Thank you." The woman allowed Kodachi and Kiima to return her to her chair.

. . . "I also have a whirlpool bath, and some professional helpers," she told Kasumi, "Perhaps you would enjoy taking advantage of them."

. . . "Oh Kuno-san, I'm too tired for that," Kasumi suggested with total innocence.

. . . Kodachi looked at the rumpled girl with her sweat plastered hair, and realized the joke. Kodachi laughed, full and heartily.
------------------------------

. . . "This baton has an additional standard setting," Jeff told Sasami, she nodded as Jeff set the baton on her shoulder and bent the heart-shaped end up, making the entire silly-looking device look like a shoulder-fired rocket launcher.

. . . "It is a telescope?" Sasami asked as she saw the enlarged view in the screen surrounded by the heart.

. . . "Not specifically," Jeff joked, "Now, see the palm tree weather cock?"

. . . Sasami nodded.

. . . "Oh! A super accurate weapon for long-range!" Ami said enthusiastically.

. . . "Sort of," Jeff replied, smilingly rolling his eyes at Sasami, who giggled back.

. . . Sasami acquired the target. "Got it," she told Jeff and waited for his order to pull the trigger.

. . . "Listen carefully and do as I tell you. Concentrate on the smallest object you can, a virus or so, and concentrate on the colors of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet, and the shades between. Concentrate on them."

. . . "Okay . . . rainbows and a virus, not rainbow viruses?" she asked quizzically.

. . . "I don't think so," he replied, tousling her hair.

. . . She giggled, concentrated as ordered and fired, striking the weather cock squarely.
------------------------------

. . . The flash reached them first, striking the shield Jeff had raised and beating it nearly to the breaking point. The fierce wind did the job. Sasami was shaking like a leaf at the potential destruction she'd just unleashed. What the kind trickster had carefully placed in her hands.

. . . As the wind subsided, Ami protested, "Y-you can't give her that!"

. . . Sasami and Jeff exchanged glances while Ami and Makoto offered their protests, both impassioned and reasoned, both Senshi using both tactics, an eye opener for Sasami.

. . . Sasami gave Jeff a look, telling him she understood. 'Standard setting', she thought quietly, the part of her that was Tsunami added her own knowledge, Total matter-to-energy conversion, at a distance, with size and frequency distribution under the wielder's command. Every object in this universe as a bomb of whichever kind desired. From sterilizing by tiny flash of UV, to annihilating an entire star system by destroying the system's primary by making it a storm of radio waves.

. . . Sasami gave Jeff a grim nod. I'll keep the secret, against exactly the potential tyranny Ami is warning him about, she thought.

. . . "They could threaten Earth with annihilation! They wouldn't even have to send in their armada. They could dominate us from orbit!" Ami said in one breath, stunning even Makoto.

. . . "Sasami is sufficiently powerful that the power increase is nominal. The Jurains already have the power to do everything you've warned of. The defenses of Earth are as powerful now as they ever have been," Jeff said sharply, "There is nothing new to fear."

. . . Only something a thousand years lost, Sasami thought, Or they could have just dropped asteroids on the planet below. The Moon Kingdom held the ultimate high ground, and they wondered why they were resented?
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. . . Asuka had known that the Kuno family armory had several modern, functional replicas of ancient Japanese polearms. She bypassed these and selected a pair of blunted weapons from the training racks. After that wind, Asuka thought, I decided to move the `party` indoors.

. . . I wanted a Bohemian Ear-spooner, I guess a naginata is the best I can do, she thought sadly, wishing for a proper saber-halberd. "A polearm isn't a spear, and it isn't a sword," she told Hotaru as she handed the girl one of the long weapons, "It also isn't a club or quarterstaff, but it can approximate the function of all of those." Asuka took the classic pikeman's stance. "Fencing with these was considering as great an art in Japan as swordsmanship, in fact, the soldier spearman was better paid than the soldier swordsman. They probably also lived longer if they kept their wits."

. . . Asuka watched the girl adjust her grip, to accommodate the unfamiliar balance. "Too many people think the only purpose of a spear is to make sure the action takes place far enough out of reach that your foe can't hit you back," Asuka said as she adjusted the girl's grip and stance, "You also have to be able to handle someone getting in too close, as well as that most enemies have projectile weapons, so unless you're a hundred kilometers away, they can hit you."

. . . Hotaru laughed. "But I'll never use a spear."

. . . "Probably true, but you should see this bunch use their weapons," Asuka teased, "If any of them had a sword, you'd have to keep sewing their feet and toes back on."

. . . Hotaru laughed at that as the others grumbled.

. . . Asuka led the girl through the basic stances and started teaching her to transition smoothly between them.
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. . . Katsuhito had beckoned Tenchi away from Asuka teaching Hotaru how to use a polearm, and Tenchi had followed him outside.

. . . Once they were a short distance away from the others, hopefully out of earshot, Tenchi began, "There's . . . I'm ashamed," he said softly, "Hotaru's father . . . I didn't have a choice - I -" Tenchi stopped babbling, hung his head and focused. "Kagato was different, but Professor Tomoe was human, with a child . . . he wouldn't have a chance - against any of us. But I'm the one who killed him."

. . . Katsuhito sighed, remembering how Tenchi had reacted later to Kagato's death. You hid it from the girls, tried to hide it from me, but I know how it bothered you. "Would he have given you any choice? I know you, Tenchi." He wanted to reach out and comfort the boy, But the man needs to solve this on his own, only then can I help him solve his grief. "You are no callow youth. You wouldn't have taken a life unless another was in the balance. Looking back, I'm certain you can tell me a dozen ways you could have done things differently. In all honesty, at that time, in the moment you had to consider and act, would you really have saved both the Doctor and his victim as surely as you imagine?"

. . . Tenchi was about to protest he would, when he stared at his grandfather's stern expression. His certainty collapsed, he hung his head. "I - should have found a better way."

. . . "Yes, taken a dozen friends with you, expected danger beforehand and been prepared for it. That's next time, I was asking about this time. Whom were you prepared to sacrifice to save Professor Tomoe? Yourself? Understandable, but Ryoko? Kiyone? Young Tatewaki? All three -?"

. . . "NO! I -!" Tenchi shouted, his face filled with emotion, which subsided as if it drained through a hole, "I do not want any of them to be lost."

. . . "That wasn't an option given you at the time. When I fought Ryoko, I didn't spare her life out of a sense of love and honor. I did it because it was the only option open to me. If I had killed her, think about how much you would have lost. If she had killed me, think about how much more you would have lost."

. . . "Yes, grandfather."

. . . He laid his hand on the lad's shoulders. "It is appropriate to mourn, but do not let imaginings get in the way of facts. The professor could have surrendered at any time, and spared you all this ordeal."

. . . Tenchi nodded.

. . . You are not a bad person. You are a warrior, and death is part of that - our - calling, he wished he could make him believe. Instead, he watched Tenchi go, and considered which of the young warriors would be best to take him aside for a long talk.
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. . . And cooking lunch nearly devolved into open warfare. Makoto made the mistake of claiming to be the best cook. Kodachi objected, and even Sasami seemed miffed, Jeff thought as he stood guard over Langley making the lunch. Oddly, preventing Usagi from `helping` hadn't been a problem. I half-expect to see ninjas with bandoleers of seasonings dropping out of the sky. He shot at the hand approaching the soup with 'just a pinch of salt'. From that yelp, it had to be Makoto. "Sasami, I wouldn't give you an invisibility power that I couldn't defeat," he said sternly, "And take your cabbit with you. Ryo-Oh-Ki! You keep her under control, or I'll feed you so many carrots, the mere sight of one will make you violently ill." The cloud of dust and the speedlines were a nice touch.

. . . "Are you going to run out of bullets before we're done?" Hotaru asked as she helped Langley.

. . . "How many clips have you got?"

. . . "Two left," Jeff admitted. Only the Kuno's would have a kitchen with hidden passages and so many places of concealment. Holding this position is nearly impossible.

. . . "I'd switch over to throwing forks at them then," Asuka told him as she supervised Hotaru rolling the sushi, "I finally got him out of the kitchen, and I can work the kinks out of my cooking `muscles`, and this becomes something out of the First World War."

. . . "So when are you going to be Verdun over there? Somme time today?" Jeff said and watched Langley's shudder, "I just wish I understood why Makoto is taking this so personally."

. . . "Nobody wants to be last," Langley said cheerfully, "And that's what they're competing for." Langley drove a chef's knife down at a target Jeff couldn't see.

. . . "I may just run out of cutlery as well."

. . . "I told you to set a decoy and let them `adapt and improve` it, then make them eat their own handiwork."

. . . "I just can't do that to someone. I look so awful in mourning clothes and a mass funeral is just too depressing."

. . . Jeff nodded, shooting a bottle of wasabi out of the air.

. . . "They are persistent," Hotaru commented as she cut the roll into bite-sized pieces.

. . . "I think that was Sasami," Jeff said, "Carrot-stuffed cabbit when I catch you!" he bellowed and in quieter tones, "Perhaps you'd better speed things up a bit."

. . . "Genius cannot be rushed," Langley countered, then hurriedly threw two mixing bowls, and followed up with a snapshot with a salt shaker, "But it can be encouraged."
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. . . Tatewaki Kuno was having the time of his life. He had found a `foe` if not worthy of his attention and skills, then a severe challenge to them. He was not limited on what stroke he was using, only his target was limited.

. . . 'Raccoon' has explained about 'counting coup', merely touching with the blade, he thought, Likewise Asuka-kun brought up the European Code Duello, where only certain points could be struck. He wore a pair of targets, on his front and back, like a pectoral. Each of his foes wore but one.

. . . He danced out of the reach of each of the twin blades. He yanked his foot out of reach of Raccoon's down stroke while he ducked Asuka's high slash. "Honorless cheater!" he proclaimed with little heat. Of course they cheat, he thought as he beat back Asuka's flank attack, all three of them grinning.

. . . I am too well trained to leave a target, he thought, They know and can use it against me as they feint to disrupt a stance or attack.

. . . He barely turned Raccoon's attack. It's like facing a single foe, they act as one. I must cover the entire arc, and they can act with unspoken coordination, giving me no clues.

. . . He parried Raccoon's strike to his back target, and rolled, straight into Asuka-kun's strike . . . leaving red chalk on his chest target, another added to the several markings already there. More than on Asuka-kun's or Raccoon's, less than their combined total, but not significantly so, he thought with only minor irritation.

. . . He couldn't keep from grinning as they `played`. Ami-chan and Makoto shout encouragements to each side, more a pleasant distraction than a help. But they can learn that this can be made play, he thought, Oh ho! Kuno smiled. That is the game within a game, a minor humiliation to achieve a greater victory. Ha! Ha! Wheels within wheels. You shall not find Kuno Tatewaki lacking!
--------------------

. . . They said their goodbyes to Kodachi and Kasumi as they headed for the train. "Okayama isn't that far," Sasami told Kasumi.

. . . "But I've never been there. It is supposed to be very beautiful country," Kasumi replied, accepting the hug from both Hotaru and Sasami.

. . . "That woman selling chopsticks?" Minako asked, "Why are they special?"

. . . "Our octopus here is justifiably world-famous," Tatewaki explained as he bought a pair for each of `his` guests, "But the normal Tomobiki octopus is trouble, so the maidens of the Ru shrine developed those special chopsticks based on the skewers they use in their hair."

. . . Each of the girls were examining the intricately carved wood, far too pretty and decorative to be used for eating.

. . . "So with the sharp points, you can pick things up or skewer them," Kuno finished.

. . . "Ah ha!" Minako said, "So these are the famous Ru Miko Tako Hashi!"
--------------------

. . . As her friends carried a bound and gagged Minako onto the train, Jeff corralled Tenchi. "Someone is going to have to tell her," Jeff said, glancing back to the girl braiding Minako's hair, "Now I'll do it, if you want. But I think you should and offer your explanations and apologies."

. . . Tenchi shifted nervously as the doors closed behind him and the train started. It seemed an ill-omen for him. "I don't want to seem like I am avoiding my responsibilities, but . . . " he glanced around at everyone else who had remained in a festive mood.

. . . "Then I'll take care of it. The longer we draw this out, the harder it will be to explain."

. . . "But I'll . . . I thank you," Tenchi said, bowed.

. . . "Understand the difference between what you must do and what you can do. I lured my old friend atop many tons of explosives, and set it off. The alternative was a continuing murder spree that would have killed far more than the dozens who'd been slain. I didn't want to do it, but I had to do it. As important as my friend's life and happiness was to me, it wasn't worth all that blood. She could have surrendered to authorities and probably gotten probation or a suspended sentence. She would not have been executed or imprisoned, but she refused, so I killed her. I still have to deal with that, and pay for it every time I remember the good times we had together. You aren't a killer, like I am, or you would have found another way. One that would spare your friends, yet horrify the person you are even more."

. . . "If one was available," Tenchi said morosely.

. . . "A killer, a murderer like me would have ascertained what he was, what he was doing, and blown his brains out from half a mile away with a target rifle. I'd like to think I'd have shown enough class to wait until his daughter wouldn't see it all, but if the need was grave . . . " Jeff shrugged. "Good, you're appalled, that's the proper, decent - human - reaction. So you've just proven you aren't some mad-dog killer. You killed, it's a terrible thing, and in your line of work, it will happen again. Far worse to stand by and do nothing, while a friend or an innocent dies. When you could have intervened."

. . . "I understand," Tenchi said nervously, edging away from Jeff.

. . . "Always willing to help you humans see things in a clearer darkness."
--------------------

. . . Kiima shooed Ami and Asuka out of the compartment. I want to see what kind of sparks come from this, she thought as she pushed Mamoru into the compartment with Tatewaki. The Neriman nodded politely to `Tuxedo unmasked` and returned to staring out the window at the darkening sky and the scenery.

. . . Kiima sat Mamoru down opposite Kuno. Kiima sat beside Kuno and stretched out her legs across the aisle, blocking the pair in. Mamoru likewise stared out the window, ignoring everyone around him.

. . . Suddenly, the door burst open, a gray-bearded tenor warbled "You've got to know when to hold'em, know - URK!" He fell to the floor with two roses and a half-dozen feathers piercing his chest.

. . . "Well thrown," Tatewaki said as he folded his arms back into his shirt, cradling his sword. Mamoru frowned in response and returned to staring out the window.

. . . "The silence will last until we get no more Nerima interruptions," Kiima told them, "Then you two are going to talk." From the expression on their reflections in the glass, neither men looked happy at the prospect.
--------------------

. . . Asuka snorted in amusement at the silliness of the current youth. "Why the rush? You've got a few more years to be kids. Why charge into the silliest times of your life?"

. . . Rei frowned at Asuka as she finished her rounds, the other girls reluctantly adding what little they had squirreled away, hidden from all others, to Rei's bag.

. . . "You aren't doing it to get boyfriends, you're just competing with each other," Asuka said in disgust, "You already scared off Tenchi and Katsuhito. Ryoko left in disgust, Sasami and Raccoon are staying to be polite."

. . . The clatter and rattle of cosmetics on the table in front of Jeff was Rei's only answer to Asuka. "You said you know make-up," the miko challenged.

. . . "I said I was a make-up artist for the Harvard theater group for several years," Raccoon replied coldly, "I do not merely 'know make-up', I am an expert, superbly and exquisitely trained by experts. Far more than any of you."

. . . "Prove it," Rei contended.

. . . Raccoon smiled to Asuka. "What would be more embarrassing, making her seem the clown, or just making her look like one?"

. . . "Seeming," Asuka said, "With that pile of useless, mismatched junk, you've got your work cut out for you." She pushed Rei into the seat where Jeff could work on her.

. . . "True, but Genius can be encouraged."

. . . While the other girls closed in to watch, Rei looked particularly nervous.
--------------------

. . . "She loves you," Tate said as the train crossed the border of Nerima proper, "Never doubt that." He paused to allow response, but Mamoru continued to stare out the window, seeing nothing in his reflection or the scenery. "She is young and inexperienced. Had she had more art, she might have chosen a different course. Instead, her attempt was to try the strongest argument she knew, that of destiny."

. . . "The destiny is a crock," Mamoru said, "Just because she has been told we are trapped together . . . I don't have to accept it."

. . . "Then perhaps you should ignore the excuse of destiny, and look to your own heart. Perhaps then it would not appear you are trapped, but see it as a welcome opportunity. Accept what is, and ignore what others claim 'must be'!" Kuno grinned briefly. "I have become an expert in that."

. . . "Do you know how insane that sounds?"

. . . "You ask me about insanity and its manifestations?" Tate asked with mirth.

. . . Mamoru opened his mouth, stared at Kuno who leaned forward and eagerly awaited an answer. Mamoru's mouth shut with a snap.

. . . "You sought to ask 'How would you know?' In a non-confrontational mode. I take no offense." Tate leaned back and stared at the ceiling. "She is young, and fully of passion and foolish - or perhaps - outdated notions of love. You are cold and calculating, submerging your passions in logic and the vagaries of this century. How do I know this?" Kuno stared at Mamoru intently as he asked then answered his question, "Because my dear Ami is like you. Terrified of the fires that burn within her, attempting to drown all those uncontrolled passions in logic and rationality, finding them lessened but not extinguished. So she fears and hides them and herself, behind books and math and scholastics. As if they would keep her, or perhaps another, from being consumed by what for all her studies and intelligence, remains beyond her ken."

. . . Tate stared at Mamoru. "I stand with my heart. Seeing great things others do not, feeling great winds and waves that others do not, believing things - that others do not. And not logic, not culture and not threats or fears make these things only I experience any less real. Telling me I am insane, because I say the world is one thing, when you insist it is another, does not eliminate my world. It merely makes you comfortable having safely dismissed that you see bits of it as well."

. . . "So you chase around like a nut?" Mamoru accused, "And a laughing stock."

. . . Tate's expression darkened and Kiima prepared to intervene. Tate's expression suddenly softened and he smiled, as if remembering a pleasant memory. "One strikes most unfairly, when one strikes a vein of unwanted truth within oneself. When a man has been starving with a gnawing, ravenous hunger impossible to understand or abate, it is not uncommon for him to run like a rabid bear, from one promise of surcease to another, from one moment of comfort or pleasure to another, not noticing, and honestly, not caring who or what is trampled in the course. To seek something, anything to attenuate his pain and emptiness. Or to make it seem to have gone away. After a time, the madness of the pain, and the insanity of the pursuit become blurred, and in my case, nearly interchangeable. Worse, I had not the tools to examine the source and fount of it. Had I done so, I might have been less . . . random in my quest for an ending to it. Logic is a poor analgesic, coldness worsens being alone in the night when all doubts and fears mass in the darkness."

. . . Kuno drew his sword. Mamoru drew back, but Kuno merely turned it to catch the light as he stared at it, the edge, then the flat. He lowered the blade, not pointing at or threatening anyone with it. "To hold the safety, not merely of yourself or your family, but of all of humanity . . . our past, our future . . . " he resheathed the blade as his voice trailed off. The gaze he fixed on Mamoru was sharper than any blade. "It is a terrifying prospect, is it not?"

. . . Mamoru grimaced at that, trying to break free of Kuno's gaze. He managed when Kuno smiled.

. . . "Yet I failed, all of my devotion to the blade, all my vaunted skill, and at the most critical moment in all my life, it was not enough." His gaze locked onto an increasingly uncomfortable Mamoru. "Then one I was certain was my nemesis, saw me through, not merely to survival, but to victory. With such a battle -" Kuno blushed. "And what came after . . . I have not lost my passion. I have gained a place. I now know who I am and what I must do. Such self-knowledge brings a peace I have never known. With it, came a situation that demanded no less than my all. A high price for the cessation of my madness, but I am now its master, rather than its victim. I may not find peace and rest this side of the grave, but the madness now lies outside me, rather than inside. And the glimpsed of peace and joy I do see are a balm rather than a goad. If one seeks after the Enlightenment of the Buddha, one cannot make the journey and expect the - Serenity - of the Buddha, at any point except at the end of the journey." Kuno stood. "There are others who see things, if not more clearly, then with a greatly differing confusion. Their insights on life and love may be of some use."

. . . "There is also the girl," Kuno continued, "Put aside all talk of 'Destiny, and 'What Must Be' and speak of what your souls thirst for. If it is DESTINY," he thundered. "Then it will act in your despite, it needs no help from you. If it is not, than build something more solid. Or step away, and accept the consequences." Kuno bowed. "I take my leave."

. . . Kuno stepped over Kiima's legs and out of the compartment.

. . . Mamoru stared at Kiima, then at his reflection in the window. "I don't know what is more frightening. That I sat here, and got a lecture on life and love from Kuno Tatewaki . . . or that I understood it."

. . . "Or that it was good advice?" Kiima teased, and laughed at the man's blush.
--------------------

. . . Kuno walked into the main compartment. The girls had congregated together, as he had expected. Their spirited giggling he hadn't expected, nor the devious shaman wearing such a look of intense concentration. Like a college professor delivering a lecture on a favorite subject, Kuno thought.

. . . He was utterly stunned, when Ami-chan stood up and turned around, to the admiration of the other girls. Kuno himself was thunderstruck. I had thought her pretty before . . . now she is radiantly beautiful, he thought as he withdrew, leaving the girls to their moment of joy and remembering Asuka-kun's dire warning about smothering the girl. She is still shy, and frightened of her feelings, he silently reminded himself.

. . . "Me next, me next!" Several of the girls demanded.

. . . Kuno realized that several of the girls had been made up as skillfully as his dear Ami-chan. The shaman did this? Kuno wondered, as he returned to the compartment, Perhaps he is as much an attention seeker as Saotome. Yet he only desires the attention to be ephemeral. There and gone. He considered the pensive looks and heartfelt talk taking place in the compartment between Kiima and Mamoru. He needs that far more than I need the seat, Kuno thought as he continued into the space between the cars so he could analyze and consider where he had been, and metaphysically, where he was going.
--------------------

. . . They set Hotaru in front of Raccoon, and he took a look at the assembled cosmetics and selected a few. "You don't put it on with a trowel, unless you're being paid to play a clown," he paused to let Hotaru giggle at that, "In that case, you are going for a different effect." He worked carefully. "Normally I wouldn't condone a girl so young wearing make-up, so I'm going to a theatrical look. How'd you like to be dark and mysterious?"

. . . "Sure," Hotaru said with a smile.

. . . Raccoon worked his magic with the powders and creams, and stepped away. The other girls gasped at the change. Hotaru peered into the mirror as if into a window on another world, rather than a simple reflection.

. . . Hotaru touched the mirror, then fearfully sat back. She glanced at Raccoon. "Take it off, please."

. . . "Of course." Raccoon carefully removed all traces of his work. "All back to normal," he said with a smile as he held up the mirror.

. . . She laughed nervously, and took Sasami's hand as the other girl stood next to her. "I didn't want to be scary."

. . . "Of course. All I'm showing you all, is what you can be if you wish."

. . . Asuka smiled at the two little girls happily hugging Raccoon. Where are Tenchi and his group? she wondered, then got up to find them.

. . . "Should we come with?" Hotaru asked, Sasami in tow.

. . . Asuka considered, No, better you get to know the people who may have to take care of you. "I just need to look at the stars," she told Hotaru truthfully, "I'm just a little bit homesick." Not a lie, but not the whole truth either, Asuka thought as she watched the girls return to the others, And what would you do if you knew the truth, about her and yourself?

. . . Asuka headed along the car. She spotted Ryoko looking on worriedly as Tenchi wept silently. So that explains a lot, Asuka realized as all the clues come clear, I thought the cop did it. Now how do we deal with that reality, 'I'm sorry, one of our friends killed your father because he was a danger to the universe.' I can imagine how that would play out, Asuka returned to a midway point between the two groups, and stared down the length of the car to Kuno standing between the cars, Okay, so what do we do? she wanted to ask him.
--------------------

. . . The walk to the Masaki compound hadn't resolved the question of Hotaru. Not for Tenchi, and not for the others. How long can this keep going? he wondered sadly.

. . . "Ayeka?!" Tenchi called as he spotted the woman standing between her two guardians. He and Sasami raced forward. The others continued at their pace, while Katsuhito and Ryoko held back. Why would they -? he wondered.

. . . "Good morning, Lord Tenchi," Ayeka said brittlely, bowing first to him, then to Sasami, "Sasami, our mother is waiting for you."

. . . Sasami rolled her eyes but headed into the compound.

. . . "I'm glad to see you, were you able to get your ship repaired?" Tenchi asked.

. . . Ayeka winced slightly. "Yes, they will be repairing Ryu-Oh as soon as we return to Jurai."

. . . "That's great! I know how much you missed it," Tenchi said, "I bet you enjoyed seeing your mother again after all this time." He smiled. "When I lost my mother . . . I still miss her."

. . . "Lady Achika was an extraordinary woman," Ayeka said guardedly. She hadn't raised her eyes, except briefly.

. . . "Ayeka, what's wrong?"

. . . "When I said 'we', I meant myself, Sasami, and Yosho."

. . . "You're going for a visit home, that's great."

. . . "No," Ayeka said, tearing up, "I mean we are returning to Jurai . . . forever. The quarantine will be reinstated." Ayeka turned away, so he couldn't see her cry. "Oh, Lord Tenchi! Something terrible has befallen your world, but there's nothing father will allow us to do to intercede!" Ayeka fell to her knees. "Please forgive us. Please forgive us."

. . . "What happened!? What are you talking about?" Tenchi looked back at the rest of the group. Asuka, Jeffrey, Tatewaki and Kiima were starting forward, each one ready for a fight. He felt a bit relieved about that. Whatever it is, I know we can defeat it! Tenchi thought.

. . . "Problems?" Asuka asked seriously.

. . . "She says that something terrible has happened, and she can't help."

. . . Tatewaki laid a hand on his sword. "If a foe must be faced -"

. . . "Or slain," Jeffery added, his hard expression mirroring Tatewaki's.

. . . "- we shall do so. With such brave souls at our sides, there is naught that could overcome us." Tatewaki glanced at Jeffrey. "Even death is not beyond our righteous retaliation."

. . . Tenchi took Ayeka's hand and helped her up. "See?" he assured her, "We can handle it. Now what is this terrible thing?"

. . . "It is already here." A tall, older man with a gray streaked beard approached. His clothing looked like a more ornate version of Tenchi's own battle costume. His expression was hard and unforgiving. "As if after two thousand years any of us would forget."

. . . Tenchi tensed, saw the others were searching for this new threat, and like him, not seeing it. Where is it? he thought desperately, scanning the surroundings, If we can come to grips with it, Tatewaki's right, we can destroy it!

. . . "So Yosho, you and Ryoko bring them to me. I accept your apology. Guards!" More of the Guardians and dozens of uniformed troops formed out of nothing around the girls and other humans.
--------------------

. . . "The Jurain king, I presume," Raccoon said and tipped his hat, "I take it Serenity and her bodyguard are the 'terrible thing' that's happened to our planet."

. . . Gently, Asuka silently warned, You and kings are not a good combination.

. . . "Yes," the king replied imperiously. His eyes widened suddenly as he saw -

. . . Hotaru! Asuka thought as she traced the King's terrified gaze back to its target. Verdammt! Raccoon's already moving! she thought as Raccoon ran towards Hotaru.

. . . Above them, not one, but four huge starships appeared.

. . . "SCATTER!" Asuka shouted, already the guards and wooden machines were withdrawing. Hotaru looked around in terror as Raccoon raced towards her, once he reached her he wrapped himself around her an instant before the broadside.

. . . Senshi, guard and others scattering in all directions threw themselves to the ground at the sound and glare. Asuka remained on her feet, watching the flare brighten beyond even her ability to look at it.

. . . Jurain firepower against Raccoon's AT field, she thought as she moved to help him, In an EVA -! The fire stopped. Asuka still couldn't look at the glowing spot of ground, the light had dazzled her, but her peripheral vision caught movement. "Makoto! Stop!" she commanded, calling on the part of her she so despised, to give an added force to her words and presence. The crawlingly alien and inhuman thoughts and feelings filled her heart and mind. She felt the filth running through her, and for an instant wanted to tear her own skin off to let it out. Almost immediately it blanked out the feelings of loss and sorrow that had threatened to overwhelm her. Only the sensation of taint remained. Coward, she chided herself, Tell everyone of the others to face their feelings, yet hide from yours and drown them like newborn kittens when they become troublesome. She knew she was the only one to have kept her feet, now she used that fact ruthlessly. "You'd be committing suicide to no good end. There comes a time when surrender is the only viable option." She could barely see the Senshi relaxing, although her vision had not fully returned, other senses she'd always avoided, filled in the picture.

. . . "Arrest them!" the king ordered as he climbed to his feet.

. . . "We haven't done anything!" Rei protested, but allowed the guards to segregate them from the Jurains, Ryoko, Kiyone and Tenchi. Asuka, Tatewaki and Kiima willingly joined the Senshi. Asuka stared the Senshi into submission.

. . . Shock will soon take the place of confusion and rage, Asuka thought, There's an outside chance we might survive this. Or they will destroy all the `tainted` humans.

. . . "For this action," the king said, raising his hand in a regal gesture, "You, Yosho receive my full forgiveness. You, Ryoko, receive full pardon from the Jurain people for your crimes."

. . . Both couldn't tear their eyes away from the still-glowing hole where Jurain `justice` had been so swiftly meted out.

. . . Asuka looked at the terrified Senshi, gestured for them to remain calm as she and they were divested of their Henshin rods or anything else that would have been used as a weapon. Tate-chan reluctantly handed over his blade, after glancing at Asuka for confirmation that it was the right course.

. . . Asuka scanned the skies, looking for where the four ships had vanished to so completely. By stealth or distance, I do not know, Asuka thought as she went with the Senshi. Ami was practically glued to Tatewaki. Kiima had embraced Makoto with her wings, nearly carrying the girl. Mamoru hand his hand on Usagi's shoulder and the girl was either bearing up or too stunned to break down and cry or bury her face in his chest.

. . . And what do I feel? Asuka asked herself and found only emptiness within herself, I cannot `blame` that I have others to keep alive. I feel nothing. As if he were only a lost handful of change. Not my friend through so many painful battles, not the one whom I could trust and who would trust me. Have I fallen so far, that even such a wound no longer draws blood? You feared the Senshi, little king? Perhaps you should have looked more closely. I know one who will not be restrained by worry for others. Perhaps that is it, I know any rage or revenge I could hope for would pale before what I know will be delivered.

. . . She again looked around at the worried, terrified and shattered expression surrounding her, all looking to her for hope and salvation. And what do we do? she asked herself, The great and brilliant Asuka Soryu Langley, who walked into this trap with eyes wide open. If he couldn't hold off that blast, what chance do any of us have? What answers can I give?

. . . She spotted Tenchi trying to follow them, and that he was intercepted by the guards. When he tried to force his way to Ayeka or his grandfather, he was likewise repulsed.

. . . Sorry kiddo, no place for you to go, Asuka thought, wondering at the utter emotional emptiness that allowed her such logic and clarity. "You aren't one of `us`, you aren't one of `them`," she told him, "Welcome to the aftermath of apocalypse. You survived."
--------------------

. . . "Yosho, you will return to Jurai with us," his father told him as they walked past the house that had been his home, towards the starship and the role that would soon become his prison, "This is not a request."

. . . "What about Tenchi?" Ryoko asked, disturbed by the scene she'd just witnessed.

. . . "He is Terran, he will remain. You are free to go where you wish," the king told her, clearly dismissing her and anyone not of the immediate royal family from his thoughts.

. . . "I want to stay," Sasami said firmly as she paused at the ship's entrance.

. . . "This is not open for discussion. No Jurain noble will be hostage to . . . them." He gestured and the guards stiffened. Unwilling to simply shove her inside, but knowing those were their orders.

. . . Sasami fell quiet as she walked aboard, looking guiltily at Ryoko, then at Ayeka who looked like she'd rather be eating ground glass than what she had done and was doing.

. . . She probably didn't realize what was happening until it was far too late, Sasami realized as they walked the corridors, Now she has to live with what she has done. Innocent blood, the blood her friends on her hands, and she'll only receive praise for it. After all, they were only Terrans. Now she'll realize why Yosho left. I realized it early. I'd hoped she'd never find out.

. . . Sasami looked at her mother, who was preparing her usual greeting. Sasami's hand closed on the Henshin in her pocket. She steeled herself and glared at the blubbering woman, then turned on her heel and marched away. None of them have the faintest idea what they've just done, she thought, And none of them care.

. . . "Not so wisely played, little lady," Lady Seto said as she stepped from an adjoining corridor.

. . . "Milady," Sasami said as she bowed to her grandmother, it struck her that she might be facing the one person in the whole court who would understand, "If we are going to act as if we did nothing wrong here, we must get off this planet, and back to Jurai," Sasami fearfully told her, "There is a power here -"

. . . "They are currently confined, their powers neutralized," Seto soothed.

. . . "No, Milady, a greater power. One even Tsunami would be hard pressed to deal with, and even all our ships and guards could not prevent it from striking at us. At our selves, or our worlds. I do not know how it will react to what father did," Sasami saw that her words and tone had unnerved the 'Devil Princess of Jurai.' "I have a plan that may buy mercy for our people, but many of us are doomed."
--------------------

. . . "I don't remember," Artemis replied to Asuka's questioning, the mooncat's voice oddly distorted by the barriers separating them. Luna nodded in agreement.

. . . Asuka hung her head and counted to twenty to avoid trying to simply walk through the 'detention screens', and carrying out what she feared would soon happen anyway. "You're whole 'I have imperfect memories' bit is very cute and dramatic, but right now, the only weapons I have are persuasion and intelligence. If you deny me the latter, you are also denying me the former, and assuring yourself a trip to the gallows. Don't assume that there will be a hearing and formal charges - " Asuka felt her voice catch. She let the feeling of helplessness and fury wash over her, Odd to feel glad that I can finally feel something over my friend's murder. Not that it helps me or him . . . or Hotaru. "These people hate you and they gunned down Hotaru on sight and she wasn't even a Senshi." Yet, Asuka didn't add. "Unless you've been doing some recruiting in your spare time. No? Then don't expect any more mercy than she received."

. . . Asuka looked around, waited for any response. The two mooncats just looked at each other miserably. The Senshi had succumbed to the shock Asuka had been expecting. They looked from Asuka to the nearest mooncat, to Asuka, all without hope or ideas of their own. Okay, you don't remember anything directly, she thought, Time to probe deeper. "You have to have something. If not an official history of the cause of this antipathy between your two peoples, then some doggerel verse, some nursery rhyme. 'Ring Around the Rosie' commemorates the events of the Black Death of 1347, that's only a generation or two for your people, where as it is dozens for humans. So don't tell me you don't remember. There isn't going to be a last minute rescue. Our only rescuers are on their side, and probably under guard - or they are dead, and thus even less likely and able to effect a rescue. They are going to keep us in these cages until they are ready to dispose of us."

. . . "How right you are," a voice told them. A short, balding man carrying what looked like a pooper scooper walked into the detention area, accompanied by the two guards who'd been placed in charge of them.

. . . "Since you're gonna . . . you know. Could you come back in like half an hour?" one of the guards leered at Rei, "It would be a shame to let them got to waste, and it's not like there'd be any evidence."

. . . The balding man smirked and handed the guard a pad computer. "There would be witnesses, and paragraph three specifically prohibits that," the man said, much to the guard's disappointment. He positioned the device in front of the floor-level `slot` in the field in the field where the food trays had been slid through.

. . . Makoto raised her head from where she'd practically collapsed and remained since she'd been put in the cell alone, separated even from Kiima. The Senshi's red eyes showed she'd been crying, and her empty expression showed she'd offer little resistance to whatever happened to her next.

. . . The man shoved the device into the slot. "Considering who those orders come from, I'm not eager to disobey." He stepped on the device, triggering it. First, Makoto's clothes, skin and hair vanished, within instants her muscles, organs, and finally her bones followed into oblivion. She never screamed, and her expression had been one of astonishment. The others gasped at the callous and casual execution, finally pulling themselves out of the despair that had gripped them.

. . . "I hear you. They're cute, but not that cute," the guard said as his partner rolled his eyes and the man pulled the device free.

. . . "You rotten bastard! We never did anything to you!" Rei shouted at the man as he fitted the device to her cell. She backed as far away from the device as possible and called down curses on the man's head. Her disappearance was as sudden as Makoto's had been.

. . . "Asuka! Do something!" Ami shouted.

. . . "I don't want to die! We haven't done anything!?" Minako pleaded as the men walked up to her cell.

. . . "You know nothing," the bald man said as he fitted the device to her cell.

. . . "What am I supposed to do?" Asuka shouted back, "I can't get out! If I could, don't you think I would have?!"

. . . Minako covered the device with her hands, yet she and her cat vanished as the others had. Skin, flesh, then bone. As quick as the process was, Minako's final expression made it clear it hadn't been painless.

. . . "No last request?" Asuka asked as she leaned closed to the walls which had nearly shocked her unconscious several times already.

. . . The man glanced at the tablet computer he carried. "You don't deserve one," the executioner walked past Asuka's cell to Ami, "She doesn't get one."

. . . "Villain! Cur! You would not be so brave if we met on the field of honor!" Tatewaki shouted as he ignored the shocks and he pressed against the `walls` of his cell. Even the blistering of his skin would not make him relent. "I will kill you!" The field still held him back.

. . . "When your people get into space."

. . . "Tate-chan! Don't throw your life away for me!" Ami plead with him, "If I really mean something to you, live for me, for us! Beryl still threatens Earth."

. . . Tatewaki stepped back from the field and lowered his hands and head. "I shall, Ami-chan," Tatewaki vowed, accepting the inevitable.

. . . "As will I!" Kiima vowed, "For Makoto, if for no other reason."

. . . The Senshi stood bravely, accepting her fate. A moment later, Ami was gone, erased by the machine. Asuka watched as Usagi dropped her cat and stood up straight, looking almost like the queen she had been and might be again. "Just tell me why," she said, no tears streaming down her face. She simply wanted to know why they were being killed.

. . . "It's just the right thing to do," came the answer as Usagi and her advisor vanished.

. . . The man collected the device. Presumably shutting it off, before walking back down the cell block.

. . . "Am I not worthy of death?!" Mamoru demanded, "Assassin, are you not to kill me too?"

. . . "Got no orders," the man walked away with his disintegrator. The guards followed him, little bits of gossip wafting after them until they were at the barrier separating the cells from the rest of the ship.

. . . Asuka slumped to the floor, her legs simply refusing to support her. She couldn't cry or scream, she felt as pitiful and empty as she had on discovering her mother's corpse and that damned doll her mother thought was her. All my powers, and the terrible price I paid for them . . . and what could I do? I can't manipulate anything outside this cell, no matter how hard I try, she thought as her forehead touched the floor, The Senshi gone, then, what? Beryl's invasion, then the Jurain's, then what? So much for Sasami's promise. If that's her people's way, I want nothing to do with them. I don't want to die. I don't want to die here, alone. I want to go home! I want to -! But I can't, not one bit of it! I'm here, and when the next set of orders comes through . . . I'm dead too, Asuka let herself weep for the first time in a long time.

[Jadedmagus]

Wow, that was a depressing end to the chapter. Rather heavily foreshadowed now that I think about it, but quite depressing.

Personally I wonder where Jeff is. Yes I know that he was "disintergrated", but between the Great old ones he has eaten and El-Narueen's (I know I got that wrong) curse, I can't imagine them actually killing him. Or rather I think it likely that he teleported away at the last instant saving hotaru. Or he sucessfully spliced some of the "can't stay dead" into Hotaru already, so it is more of a how long till they come back.

Anyway I'm out of time, keep up the good work!

[PCHeintz72]

This has been an interesting addition. Though quite a bit darker than I was expecting, I did believe something was going to occur between the groups eventually, just not in this manner.

The taking out of Jeff seemes a bit too easy, while the others would believe it out of hand, Asuka accepting it as shown seemed a bit too fast.

Look forward to more.

[Daniel Jess Gibson]

Thank you both for commenting.

Wow, that was a depressing end to the chapter. Rather heavily foreshadowed now that I think about it, but quite depressing.

As J. Michael Strazinski said, 'Millions of people are going to die, no billions of people are going to die, stay tuned after the commercial.' I'm glad the ending didn't come out of left field.

It was depressing, but hopefully, things will get better for some of them.

Personally I wonder where Jeff is. Yes I know that he was "disintergrated", but between the Great old ones he has eaten and El-Narueen's (I know I got that wrong) curse, I can't imagine them actually killing him. Or rather I think it likely that he teleported away at the last instant saving hotaru. Or he sucessfully spliced some of the "can't stay dead" into Hotaru already, so it is more of a how long till they come back.

El Nureenen. Yes, they could kill him, he just won't stay dead, unless they have special equipment. Say, has anyone seen Washu around? As Granny Weatherwax told the Elf Queen in Lords and Ladies, 'That which can't die, can't live.'

As for him teleporting away, if that is what happened, that only saved him and Hotaru, what if anything saved the others? Splicing in some Great Old One essence leaves the same problem, only Hotaru and Pretty Sammi survived. Or Tsunami is left with the difficult situation of resurrecting sworn enemies of her chosen people.

By the way, Tsunami can't resurrect Jeff or Asuka (nor can Washu), she's only an 11 dimensional creature, like all Great Old Ones, they are 13 1/2 dimensional creatures.

Anyway I'm out of time, keep up the good work!

Thank you, I shall.

This has been an interesting addition. Though quite a bit darker than I was expecting, I did believe something was going to occur between the groups eventually, just not in this manner.

There will be more interaction, just not on the king's terms. Plus, someone is going to be very upset about what happened, and the Jurain royal family won't like the outcome.

The taking out of Jeff seemes a bit too easy, while the others would believe it out of hand, Asuka accepting it as shown seemed a bit too fast.

Asuka's pretty stunned by the suddenness and the brutality of it, also only a short time has passed. They arrived after an evening/night train ride and it's only a few hours later when the Senshi are disintegrated. So she hasn't had time to thoroughly analyze the events, and she's had other calls on her time and brain power. As I mentioned, there's also Washu, and that's a fate worse than being disintegrated.

As much as Asuka might seem a 'Shoot first, interrogate by Ouija board later' person, she tries to be lot more reasonable than that. As well as the fact she has the others in her care and most of her thinking was going to keeping them alive. When they were summarily destroyed, she broke down and wasn't doing much thinking.

She also doesn't know how powerful Tsunami is in relation to a minor Great Old One like Jeff. They might have a way of killing one permanently similar to the EVA/pilot combination.

Look forward to more.

There is more. Not the least of which is the Scholarly Dragon's revenge, and well as the meaning of Sasami's dreams, a few dark secrets about Washu, and of course Beryl in the wings.

Were Beryl and her generals the Titans (or Apsu, Mommu, and Tiamat) and Serenity and the Senshi the Olympians (or Ea, Anu and Enlil)?

Or darker, were Beryl and company the Primordial gods (Uranus, Gaea, Nyx), Serenity and her Senshi the Titans, and Usagi and her Senshi the Olympians. But that would
make P90 Typhon and . . . now I'm confusing myself.

[Jadedmagus]

She also doesn't know how powerful Tsunami is in relation to a minor Great Old One like Jeff. They might have a way of killing one permanently similar to the EVA/pilot combination.

Pure speculation, since this is past where SSM currently is, but in a straight fight I'm pretty sure Tsunami would wipe the floor with Jeff. They might destroy the planet they fought over, but I don't think Jeff could win it. However I stress 'straight' fight and that is something Jeff and Asuka are quite good at avoiding with so called goddesses/Avatars/demons provided there is any room for maneuvering. Some examples would the Crawling Chaos, and Bellandy. An example of the opposite would be Saffron. The first came to provoke and was deflected, the second is a target of opportunity for Jeff (though the others close ranks on her given the way she disturbs Rei), and the third attacked repeatedly until there was no real recourse. Because I definitely agree with Jeff, you don't agree to serve to someone who just destroyed all you hold dear, you destroy them or die trying (a gross simplification, and circumstances may exist that render that choice unwise).

As for him teleporting away, if that is what happened, that only saved him and Hotaru, what if anything saved the others? Splicing in some Great Old One essence leaves the same problem, only Hotaru and Pretty Sammi survived. Or Tsunami is left with the difficult situation of resurrecting sworn enemies of her chosen people.

Well I'm pretty sure they didn't kill Sasami, as that would be kind of stupid for them. As for a possible ways of saving the senshi:

1: Jeff doesn't even try to block/blocks only long enough that the energy blinds all sensors and senses then immediately teleports out of harms way.

1a: Jeff doesn't block or teleport, because he has already upgraded Hotaru, so he takes some measure to expedite his own reanimation.

2: Jeff begins gathering whatever he needs to bring the senshi back

I was going to lay out a convoluted plan for infiltrating the Juraian fleet, impersonating the executioner and teleporting them to safety instead of killing them, but it certainly didn't look like a teleport, and he probably would have made a clean sweep, why risk being discovered prematurely?

Yeah, now that I really think about it, they aren't being 'saved' because if Jeff rezz's them poor Rei will spend the rest of her (unnatural) life trying to purify herself, never mind what other mental trauma the rest will pick up from the experience.

Bah, all this speculation is just getting me more interested, when I'm just going to have to be patient and wait for the next update.

[Daniel Jess Gibson]



She also doesn't know how powerful Tsunami is in relation to a minor Great Old One like Jeff. They might have a way of killing one permanently similar to the EVA/pilot combination.

Pure speculation, since this is past where SSM currently is, but in a straight fight I'm pretty sure Tsunami would wipe the floor with Jeff.

I think you have a clear understanding of the situation, considering she and the other three created the universe he's in, as well as several other parallel ones, he's completely outclassed (unless she's as ditzy as in the Pretty Sammi shows, then she wouldn't have a prayer.

They might destroy the planet they fought over, but I don't think Jeff could win it. However I stress 'straight' fight and that is something Jeff and Asuka are quite good at avoiding with so called goddesses/Avatars/demons provided there is any room for maneuvering. Some examples would the Crawling Chaos, and Bellandy. An example of the opposite would be Saffron. The first came to provoke and was deflected, the second is a target of opportunity for Jeff (though the others close ranks on her given the
way she disturbs Rei), and the third attacked repeatedly until there was no real recourse. Because I definitely agree with Jeff, you don't agree to serve to someone who just destroyed all you hold dear, you destroy them or die trying (a gross simplification, and circumstances may exist that render that choice unwise).

You're quite correct, there are many places for Jeff to hide that Tsunami couldn't reach. He wouldn't be stupid enough to stand toe-to-toe against her. Although if she caught him at a vulnerable moment, she could capture and bind him fairly easily.

As for him teleporting away, if that is what happened, that only saved him and Hotaru, what if anything saved the others? Splicing in some Great Old One essence leaves the same problem, only Hotaru and Pretty Sammi survived. Or Tsunami is left with the difficult situation of resurrecting sworn enemies of her chosen people.

Well I'm pretty sure they didn't kill Sasami, as that would be kind of stupid for them. As for a possible ways of saving the senshi:

They didn't kill Sasami, just locked her up under guard. That does beg the question, would Pretty Sammi be recognized as Princess Sasami? Then what would the guard's reactions be to a Senshi kidnaping the Princess.

1: Jeff doesn't even try to block/blocks only long enough that the energy blinds all sensors and senses then immediately teleports out of harms way.

Reasonable, assuming nothing other than ships' weapons are being used. Like I mentioned, if Washu or Tsunami get into the game, it complicates things.

1a: Jeff doesn't block or teleport, because he has already upgraded Hotaru, so he takes some measure to expedite his own reanimation.

On the contrary, he'd want to hold it off for an hour or so, to prevent them simply blasting them again. But otherwise workable.

2: Jeff begins gathering whatever he needs to bring the senshi back

If he knows they were killed. A lot of Jurai tech is at the 'indistinguishable from magic' level. Spying on them might be difficult.

I was going to lay out a convoluted plan for infiltrating the Juraian fleet, impersonating the executioner and teleporting them to safety instead of killing them, but it certainly didn't look like a teleport, and he probably would have made a clean sweep, why risk being discovered prematurely?

That would require some means of getting all the appropriate codes, uniforms and passwords, or bluffing your way past them. Ayeka, Yosho/Katsuhito and Sasami are all under heavy guard, and the latter two have completely out-of-date knowledge. Ayeka's not willing to help, so she's out.

The disintegrator is probably not kept with the kitchen supplies, nor are the pad computers. Let alone knowing which form to use. Believe me, people who work with something regularly tend to be able to easily recognize it. While the Han let's sneak into the detention block! might have worked in canon Sailor Moon, it didn't work too well in Tenchi.

Yeah, now that I really think about it, they aren't being 'saved' because if Jeff rezz's them poor Rei will spend the rest of her (unnatural) life trying to purify herself, never mind what other mental trauma the rest will pick up from the experience.

There's also the possibility that they'd resist resurrection in order to reincarnate. Which means no additional Senshi for another 15 years (pregnancy and growing up).

I hope Hotaru and Sasami are up to the job.

Bah, all this speculation is just getting me more interested, when I'm just going to have to be patient and wait for the next update.

Did I mention I'm going on a six-month fungus gathering expedition to the Amazon, with no computers?

[PCHeintz72]

I think you have a clear understanding of the situation, considering she and the other three created the universe he's in, as well as several other parallel ones, he's completely outclassed (unless she's as ditzy as in the Pretty Sammi shows, then she wouldn't have a prayer.

I'm uncertain I agree or not. The issue is that both Tsunami and Washu for various reasons both are limited in power due to their own restrictions.

Did I mention I'm going on a six-month fungus gathering expedition to the Amazon, with no computers?

Gosh... I hope that was a joke, as I was hoping for not only more of this, but more of PokeWalk, as it was left at an important point. Bummer.

A offhand thought though, if he *did* die here, it would explain his presence in the PokeGirl World, though it would create issues with his own mangled memories of where he last was and the passing of powers.

[Ptn]

I think you have a clear understanding of the situation, considering she and the other three created the universe he's in, as well as several other parallel ones, he's completely outclassed (unless she's as ditzy as in the Pretty Sammi shows, then she wouldn't have a prayer.
[...]
You're quite correct, there are many places for Jeff to hide that Tsunami couldn't reach. He wouldn't be stupid enough to stand toe-to-toe against her. Although if she caught him at a vulnerable moment, she could capture and bind him fairly easily.

But he isn't in a war with Tsunami, she came to an understanding with the Scholarly Dragon regarding them.

What the Jurai did was in no way according to her wishes, she didn't have the time to inform them that their actions were so much not a clever idea. Jeff and Asuka likely even know this, deep down, given Sasami's actions and attitudes.

Still, they are in effect her people and her responsibility. If Tsunami offers what compensation they would feel is appropriate in exchange for keeping the resulting warfare limited?

[Daniel Jess Gibson]

I think you have a clear understanding of the situation, considering she and the other three created the universe he's in, as well as several other parallel ones, he's completely outclassed (unless she's as ditzy as in the Pretty Sammi shows, then she wouldn't have a prayer.

I'm uncertain I agree or not. The issue is that both Tsunami and Washu for various reasons both are limited in power due to their own restrictions.

As long as he remains in the universe they created, his powers are more limited than theirs. Part of the Great Old Ones/Outer God/Elder God's power comes from access to the half-dimensions, which don't occur in Washu/Tsunami/Tokemi space. Half dimensions are vectors ----> while normal dimensions are linear <----->. Time is effectively a half dimension, in that we can't travel backwards in time as we can travel backwards in space.

Did I mention I'm going on a six-month fungus gathering expedition to the Amazon, with no computers?

Gosh... I hope that was a joke, as I was hoping for not only more of this, but more of PokeWalk, as it was left at an important point. Bummer.

Yes, I was joking. PokeWalk ran into a problem (a much cleaner and more CCS-esque end to Baba Yaga) so I needed to rearrange a few scenes, which turned into a major project to get it back on track, Anchorage will have to wait a bit. I hate it when my characters rebel.

A offhand thought though, if he *did* die here, it would explain his presence in the PokeGirl World, though it would create issues with his own mangled memories of where he last was and the passing of powers.

PokeWalk takes place after the battle against Nyarlathotep, so it occurs well after the Nerima incident.

[Daniel Jess Gibson]

Thank you for commenting. Please be careful of nested quotes {quote}{quote}{/quote}{/quote}, they'll get your message removed.

I think you have a clear understanding of the situation, considering she and the other three created the universe he's in, as well as several other parallel ones, he's completely outclassed (unless she's as ditzy as in the Pretty Sammi shows, then she wouldn't have a prayer.
[...]
You're quite correct, there are many places for Jeff to hide that Tsunami couldn't reach. He wouldn't be stupid enough to stand toe-to-toe against her. Although if she caught him at a vulnerable moment, she could capture and bind him fairly easily.

But he isn't in a war with Tsunami, she came to an understanding with the Scholarly Dragon regarding them.

Tsunami came to an understanding about Asuka and Jeff, not necessarily the Senshi.

What the Jurai did was in no way according to her wishes, she didn't have the time to inform them their this of action was so much not a clever idea. Jeff and Asuka likely even known this, deep down, given Sasami's actions and attitudes.

True, but it also points to a much deeper problem in the monarchy. That problem isn't something that Sasami can fix with a wave of her hand.

Still, they are in effect her people and her responsibility. If Tsunami offers what compensation they would feel is appropriate in exchange for keeping the resulting warfare limited?

The Scholarly Dragon is very much a believer in Total War, finding the enemy and destroying them as completely as possible. The idea of `civilizing` war he doesn't agree with, if you want to avoid it, you avoid it completely, you don't try to domesticate an atrocity. Although a limited total war is an oxymoron, I think an appropriate balance will be struck.

[J. St.C. Patrick]

Interesting chapter.
nicely handled Auska at the end.

Here are a few things I noted:

Sasami looked at the fancy costume as she spun around. The long sleeves, ribbons and bows made it seem very impractical. It's very pretty, she thought happily, And a lot more demure than theirs! She laughed at the thought of all the ointments. I bet I can assemble a weapon out of the various bits and pieces, the buttons, bows and buckles.

While ointments might salve a few problems, perhaps ornaments was the word you intended there.

. . . "I also have a whirlpool bath, and some professional helpers," she told Kasumi, "Perhaps you would enjoy taking advantage of them."

. . . "Oh Kuno-san, I'm too tired for that," Kasumi suggested with total innocence.

Well played Kasumi.

"I finally got him out of the kitchen, and I can work the kinks out of my cooking `muscles`, and this becomes something out of the First World War."

. . . "So when are you going to be Verdun over there? Somme time today?" Jeff said and watched Langley's shudder,

- Mons, with puns like that she might kick him in the Arras. ( I'd say she might Ypres the floor with him, but she'd have to pronounce it the way the First World War vets did.)

"Genius cannot be rushed," Langley countered, then hurriedly threw two mixing bowels, and followed up with a snapshot with a salt shaker, "But it can be encouraged."

Hagis seems out of place here.

. . . "Ah ha!" Minako said, "So these are the famous Ru Miko Tako Hashi!"

Bravo.

[Daniel Jess Gibson]



Interesting chapter.
nicely handled Auska at the end.

Thank you, but while paragraph three said no handling the Senshi, common sense says no handling Asuka, unless she invites it.

Here are a few things I noted:

Ah this is going to be a music themed post.

Sasami looked at the fancy costume as she spun around. The long sleeves, ribbons and bows made it seem very impractical. It's very pretty, she thought happily, And a lot more demure than theirs! She laughed at the thought of all the ointments. I bet I can assemble a weapon out of the various bits and pieces, the buttons, bows and buckles.

While ointments might salve a few problems, perhaps ornaments was the word you intended there.

Actually it was orchestra, but ornaments does make more sense.

. . . "I also have a whirlpool bath, and some professional helpers," she told Kasumi, "Perhaps you would enjoy taking advantage of them."

. . . "Oh Kuno-san, I'm too tired for that," Kasumi suggested with total innocence.

Well played Kasumi.

Yes, she doesn't want to fiddle around.

"I finally got him out of the kitchen, and I can work the kinks out of my cooking `muscles`, and this becomes something out of the First World War."

. . . "So when are you going to be Verdun over there? Somme time today?" Jeff said and watched Langley's shudder,

- Mons, with puns like that she might kick him in the Arras.

No, no more digimon. Are you saying he'd be facing his Waterloo?

( I'd say she might Ypres the floor with him, but she'd have to pronounce it the way the First World War vets did.)

It's not like I've heard it pronounced. That one will stop this post from being workplace safe.

"Genius cannot be rushed," Langley countered, then hurriedly threw two mixing bowels, and followed up with a snapshot with a salt shaker, "But it can be encouraged."

Hagis seems out of place here.

At least Bonnie Sammi could play the appropriate accompaniment. She'd be the belle of the bowel.

. . . "Ah ha!" Minako said, "So these are the famous Ru Miko Tako Hashi!"

Bravo.

I'm glad someone wasn't distracted by the joy and pathos of the chapter to see the truly awful puns. No haggis jokes are being accepted at this point. Where's the [sarcasm][/sarcasm] tag?

[Jadedmagus]

Gosh... I hope that was a joke, as I was hoping for not only more of this, but more of PokeWalk, as it was left at an important point. Bummer.

A offhand thought though, if he *did* die here, it would explain his presence in the PokeGirl World, though it would create issues with his own mangled memories of where he last was and the passing of powers.

PokeWalk? Another in progress side story to SSM? I'd love to know where I could read this.

[Daniel Jess Gibson]

Gosh... I hope that was a joke, as I was hoping for not only more of this, but more of PokeWalk, as it was left at an important point. Bummer.

A offhand thought though, if he *did* die here, it would explain his presence in the PokeGirl World, though it would create issues with his own mangled memories of where he last was and the passing of powers.

PokeWalk? Another in progress side story to SSM? I'd love to know where I could read this.

There's problem with that, the stories are definitely not work place safe.

[Hazard]

If I remember the rules right, as long as you clearly lable a link as not work safe, you may post it.