It should be noted, that this story is based on your basic "What if"
conversation.  A friend and I were discussing huge battles, and the topic of
Tenchi vs Tomas came up.  We both agreed that Tenchi would roast Tomas, if
he could tap into his full potential.  That however, is not what this story
is about.  

It should also be noted, that the timeline chosen for this story, is that of
the Tenchi OAV, and not the Tenchi Universe TV series.  Although I added
Kihone, because I think she is an awsome character, I think that the OAV
storyline is the better one, and I saw no problem with Kihone showing up
some time after eppisode 13, which is when this takes place.

As far as where in the timeline of Midkemia this takes place, I decided to
leave that ambiguous.  It's definitely some time after King's Bukaneer, but
since the Serpant War series isn't finished yet, I've decided to not pick a
specific time before, or after, the series.  Feist has no problem with
killing off one of his characters, just to foreward the plot, and I don't
want to risk saying that it takes place after the Serpant War, only to find
that Pug tragicly died to save the universe, or some other cruel plot twist.
Character's have a longer life expectancy on Babylon 5, than in his books.

So, now here is my first ever fanfic!  (part 1)

I hope you enjoy it!

(C&C welcome, please send them directly to me at: 
        jasonruff@mindspring.com  
Don't worry about grammar and seplling, I doesn't)





For all intents and purposes it was an ordinary looking sword.  

Oh, it had a lot of ornate decorations, and was expertlly crafted.  Two
beautiful gems were set on either side of the crospiece, and the pommel was
shaped like some sort of troll's head.  But there was more to it than that.
There were no imperfections, no flaws in it's craftsmanship what so ever.
The metal of the blade was an incredibl alloy.  Far to advanced for the
blade to be from Earth.  

And it gave off a very intense energy field, though it contained no
circitry, no signs of technology what so ever.  The field had every
indication of being generated by something "alive".  It was a perplexing
puzzle.  One worthy of the greatest scientific genuis in the galaxy.  

Washu sat in her reasearch lab, the sword laying out on a work tabel.  Above
it, several swing arms, and large sensor units passed over it, scanning
every detail of the blade, both it's matter and energy components.  Behind
her, a large fish like creature, with ten eyes, slowly swam by in a huge
glass tank.  It studdied passed without seeming to notice Washu, or what she
was doing.  

Washu continued to deeply scan the sword.  She had done so five times
already, and while she still hadn't found any answers, she was finding new,
questions each time she looked more cautiously.  

She had found the sword the day before.  Her lab's external sensosrs had
alerted her to a small opening in spacetime on the other side of the lake,
opposite from where the Masaki house sat.  Washu had gone imediately to
investigate, but had found only the blade, resting on the bank of the river.
Seeing it imediately as an object of power, she encased it in a protective
field, and floated it back to her lab, rather than risk touching it.

Since then, she had gotten very little sleep.  The one thing that could keep
her from getting any sleep at night, was a problem that she couldn't solve.
She had set her lab's sensors, to automaticaly scan for similar openings in
spacetime, and alert her to them.  So far however, there hadn't been any.

"You, my little sword, are quite a tough nut to crack."  Washu said to
herself, as she went over the data of her last scan.  "If I didn't know any
better, I'd say that you were posessed by some sort of spirit.  But your
energy paterns don't indicate any sort of inteligence.......  Wait a second."

Struck by a sudden burst of insite, Washu materalised a second type of
scanner over the sword, and began taking readings.  

The weapons nature was totaly new to her.  Tenchi's sword was quite a
powerful blade, but this was somethign entirely different.  Tenchi's sword,
was a device, a key, and a powersource for Jurian Technology, as well as
being a powerful weapon in it's own right, but it was a tool, something made
by people.  This sword was definitely not anything close to Tenchi's sword.
It showed no signs of the blade being forged, as if the metal itself had
been shaped into the blade.  It more resembled something created by
matter/energy conversion.  

Most of it's energy signatures seemed to be a part of the metal itself, but
not all.  Parts of the energy fields, seemed to be added onto the blade, and
it was these that Washu was scanning.  

"Ah HA!"  She exclaimed.  "This sword is showing temporal wave flux.  I've
no idea what kind, but it's definitely showing some kind of time link."
Washu began madly typing again.  "Perhapse it's....."

"Meeoooww!"

Looking down, Washu saw sitting at her feet, a small grey creature that
appeared to be a cross between a cat and a rabbit.  It was, in fact, much
much more.

"Oh hello there Ryo-Ohki."  Washu said smiling.  "What brings you here,
little one?"  Leaning over, she picked up the little cabbit, letting her
computer dematerialise.  

The cabbit rubbed it's head under chin and made soft purring noises.  Then
it looked up and meowed again, this time with a somewhat questioning note.  

"What's the matter Ryo-Ohki?  Is everybody else too buisy to play with you?"

"Mee-ow!"

"Well, I've finaly made some progress on my research, and I guess I need a
break anyway."  She stood up from the work tabel, and with a wave of her
hand, placed a protective field over the sword.  "Let's go and see if we can
find you something to eat."  

With Ryo-Ohki cradeled in her arms, Washu left her research chamber, sealing
the door behind her.  Moments after she had gone, the control board for her
lab's external sensors lit up.  A small beep inticating that another hole in
spacetime had opened nearby..........



        *       *       *


Three men stepped out of a rock facing and into a small cave.  One was a
short, thin man in his thirtys.  He wore a plain black robe, and a neatly
trimmed beard.  The other was a huge, powerfuly built man.  He wore golden
armor, full plate and chain, with a dragon helm, and a white tabard.  In one
hand was held a huge golden sword, and in the other, a large round shield,
also of gold.  His features were not quite human, his eyes were slightly
largeish, and beneath his helm, his ears had slight points.  Both men were
poised, ready for battle.

The third man however, was very diferent.  He was even shorter than the
first.  He was much older than both of them.  He wore only a simple blue
robe, and his head was bald.  Over his shoulder, was slung an old cloth
sack.  He looked about the cave with open curiosity, instead of the cautious
poise of his two younger companions.

"An interesting place, Pug."  The older man said to the first one.  "And you
say you've been here before?"

"Yes, I have, about 50 years ago, by their calendar."  The man called Pug
replied.  "I just happened upon a listing for it, in Macross's notes.  He
had only discovered it recently himself.  He said that there was a distinct
lack of magic use on this world, but that the inhabitants made up for it, by
developing great technologies and sciences."

The three looked around the small cave.  At one end, they could see sunlight
pouring in form outside.  An old looking iron gate stood open near it's
mouth.  At the other end, hung several ceremonial decorations of some sort.
On a pedistol sat a small wodden box, shaped somewhat like a house.  A small
wooden door was open  on the front, making it obvious that the box was
empty.  In the middle of the floor, sat a largish rock.  It as egg shaped,
about two feet high, and had some sort of writing on it's face.  A long
lethar strap of some kind, was tied around it several times.

The large man stepped over to the marked stone.  Leaning over, he studied
it's features for a moment.  "Well, I don't know much about this world."  He
said, "But this stone holds traces of power."

Pug stepped over and joined him, examining the rock.  "That is odd, Tomas."

"It's odd that a rock eminates power, on a world that's supposed to be
devoid of such energys?"  The older man asked

"Not devoid of power Nakor, just lacking anyone with the ability to use it"
Pug answered, still examining the rock.  "What's odd, is that it's not
eminating more power.  When last I was here, this rock sealed a cavern
behind that wall.  Some kind of being of great power was imprisoned there."
Standing up and walking over to a small wooden box he added.  "Inside this
box, was some sort of energy key, that provided power to the imprisonment
spell.  I didn't open the box, because I didn't want to accidentaly set off
any magical traps that may have protected the key."

Nakor smiled.  "There is no magic."

Pug laughed.  "True, my friend.  But what do you make of all this?"

Nakor walked over to the rock.  He sat down with it between his legs, and
closely examined it.  Running his fingers along the surface, he carefuly
inspected the writing.  Then, Cautiously he unwraped the leather strap.  The
rock slid apart into two halves, once he had unwraped the chord.
"Interesting."  was all he said.

Suddenly, there was a deep grinding sound, and the rock wall Pug had
indicated as being the door to the magical prison, split down the middle,
and slowly slid apart.  Beyond, was a long dark cavern, sloping downword
into the earth.

Tomas already has his sword poised for combat.  Pug also was a little shaken
by the sudden noise.  Nakor smiled sheepishly.  "Sorry" he said.

Pug leaned over Nakor, who was still sittin with the two halves of the
stone.  "This is not a good sign."

Nakor only nodded.  Tomas raised one eyebrow, indicating that he didn't
understand quite what Pug was talking about.

"It's what caused the seal to be broken."  Pug explained.  "That stone was
the focal poiont of the cave being sealed.  One of the first rules of magic,
that I learned form Kulligan, was that some spells need a focal point."

"It was also the first rule you broke."  Nakor added with a grin.

"True, but none the less, what is disturbing, is that this magical prison,
was broken because it's focal point was cut in half."  Pug ran his hand over
the  flat surface of one of the halves.  "Whatever cut this stone, did so
with increble precision, this feels almost like glass."

Realisation passed over Tomas's face.  "The sword!"  he said at last.

"Yes."  Said Nakor.  "It seems that not only has someone already found the
sword, but they used it to free whatever was imprisoned here as well."

Tomas wrinlked his brow in concern.  "What are the inhabitants of this world
like Pug?"

"Actualy," Answered Pug "They are quite human.  Very diverse in their
societys.  This reagon is populated with people very similar in custom to
the Tsurani."

Tomas shook his head.  "Then it's too short a time for the sword to have
truly posessed any human holding it.  The Pantathian's sent it away only
about a day or two ago."  He stepped over to the opening in the rock face.
Looking in, he saw that the passage sloped sharply down.  

Nakor stood up and brushed off his backside.  "Though we probably won't find
anything, we should go in and look around."  He stepped over to the cavern
entrance and peered down the sharp slope.  "If this was opened by the sword,
and you are right, that the sword couldn't have posessed it's holder yet,
then it means the person holding the sword, released the prisoner of their
own free will."

This time Pug shook his head.  "Perhapse, but there are too many if's.  We
don't even know if the sword is in this region of the planet."

"What made you decide to start looking here?"  Nakor asked

"Several things.  First, this is where the Hall of Worlds opens into, on
this world.  Second, I've been here before, so I know a bit about my
surroundings.  Third, this place does eminate quite a bit of power.  Weather
or not that has something to do with the Hall of Worlds opening here is
something for speculation.  

Mostly, however, on a nearby hill, is a small shrine.  I visited it the last
time I visited this world.  The young priest who lived there, eminated far
more power than he would have you believe.  He was a mysterious, but
friendly man.  I thought, that perhapse we could enlist his aid should we
find the need."

Tomas looked at Pug.  "Would this priest still be alive after 50 years?"

"Probably." Pug replied.  "He was very young, and he was quite powerful.  He
was however, somehow connected to the key that was in that box.  I believe
he was the one who made the prison."

Pug thought back to the time he met the priest.  Pug had seen the shrine up
at the top of the hill, and had elected to climb the stairs himself, rather
than risk beeing seen flying, or teleporting up.  It had been a good choice,
for the young priest had been cleaning the walkways outside the shrine, and
Pug would have definitely been noticed materialising out of nowhere at the
top of the steps.  

Pug had been quite tired from the climb, having fallen a little out of
shape, since he lacked the need to walk any great distance.  The Priest had
seen this, and graciously hosted Pug to a simple, yet tasteful meal.  The
preist lived in a nearby office, but confessed to the need for a larger
home, as that he was getting married soon.  

They had talked for quite some time, the priest; Yosho had been his name,
giving Pug a very informitave lesson in the history of this world.
Apparently, there had been a very recent war, and it had ended when the
opposing country had developed a weapon that could incinerate an entire city
in a flash.  They had used the device on two small cities, as a warning, and
Yosho's people had surrendered.  Pug knew that the scars of that war would
probably last a long time.  

Over the course of the evening, the two had reached an unspoken
understanding.  Pug's questions about things that were probably common
knowlege, showed him to be some kind of visitor to this place, but his
questions about the prison, and it's connection to the shrine, had shown him
to also know a great deal about Yosho's nature.  So the two simply accepted
that the other had secrets, and chose not to speak of them.  

Now, Pug hoped that the priest was still alive, and that he would be willing
to help them find what they were looking for.  

Thoughts of what they were looking for, reminded Pug of the importance of
their mission.  If they didn't find the sword soon, it was very likely, that
a very  dangerous being, of incredible power, would be set loose in the
universe.  A small world like this, with little or no magic, would be at
it's complete mercy.  For, whoever first used the sword, would become a
Valheru.  


                                Tetsuo Ruxpin

                                     ><>


Characters from Tenchi Muyo belong to someone else, as do the characters
from the Riftwar/Serpantwar books.  Person's using them for profit, other
than their respective owners, will be condemned to eternal suffering in the
bowels of hell, or else have to listen to Lynn Minmei's singing for all
eternity.  


And may "Bob" haved mercy on your soul!