Hello again.  I'm sory this one took so long, but you know how it is on
Halloween weekend............ I only recovered from the hangover Tuesday. 



As you probably already know, these characters are owned by someone else.
That's why they can make money off them, and we can't.  If you do, you will
be forced to drink nothing but lite beer, for the rest of your natural life.

As always C$C is welcome, but I don't wory about little things like
spelling, and grammar, and neither should you.


Author's note to Timeline nit pickers:
        Ok, so I guess this takes place sometime after book 3 of the Serpant
War Saga, since Tomas has his sword back.  This may end up being
incompatable with the story by the time the fourth book comes out, since he
could loose the sword again, or die, you never know with Feist.  

Author's note to nit pickers in general:
        I have adopted the basic rule of Star Trek, which is that language
barriers can be ignored at will.  I don't intend to explain why the
Midkemian Dialect is the same as Japanese, just accept that I didn't realy
care to go into a lot of detail on the subject.  (Besides, I'm writing the
story in English)  


N-E-Way, on with the show!



No Need for Dragon Lords  (part 3)



Yosho sat alone, at his work table.  In his right hand, was held an old
traditional writing brush, which was carefuly marking letters onto a sheet
of paper.  When he finished the final stroke, he picked up the paper, and
read it outloud.

"A kind man, benifits himself
        But a cruel man brings trouble upon himself"

"One of my better ones."  He commented to himself.  He then laid the paper
gently on the tabel, and carried the brush over to the sink, to clean it.
Before he got there, a gentle knock came from the door.  

"Come in."  He said, turning to see who it was.  

The door slid open, and standing outside, was a short man in a simple black
robe.  Something thingled in the back of Yosho's mind, at seeing this man,
something farmiliar.  

"Can I help you, young man?"  Yosho asked.

"I certainly hope so."  The man said, pausing as if to think for a moment.
"Yosho, I believe, is your name.  Correct?"

With that, Yosho remembered everything.  This was the strange man who had
visited his shrine about fifty years ago.  He had seemed somewhat odd, at
the time, and his return now only underlined Yosho's curiosity, and caution
towards this man.

"Yes, that is correct."  He answered, placing his writing tools down near
the sink as he spoke.  "And, I believe your name would be, Pug?"

"You honor me sir."  Pug said.  

"Please then, come in and sit down."  Yosho gestured towards his small
sitting mat near the window.  "I haven't much here for refreshment, but I
can offer you some tea."

Pug smiled as he entered the office.  "That is most kind of you, but I am
not alone this time."  

Yosho looked, and could see the figure of a small older man in the doorway,
and behind the sliding doors, the silouette of a very large person, outlined
by the daylight.  "Your friends are welcome as well.  I have enough cups for
eveyone."

The old man stepped in, and Yosho was instantly struck with the thought that
this man held a look in his eyes, that betrayed many many years of wisdome.
He wore a simple blue robe, and sandals.  His eyes scanned the room in
wonder, taking in everything with open facination

Behind him, came the larger man, who's figure had been hidden behind the
screen before.  While Yosho had been slightly unsetteled by the first two,
this man's appearance was nothing short of frightening.  He was huge, well
over six feet tall, with wide shoulders, and powerfuly built features, and
his attire was definitely not of this world.  Yosho had studied quite a bit
of earth's history, having lived through 700 years of it, and no civilisaton
had ever made armor of tht type.  Nor any of Jurai's other colonies, that he
was aware of.

Pug introduced the two.  "This is Tomas, my oldest and dearest friend."  he
said indicating the huge, armored warrior.  Tomas  smiled and bowed
slightly, as pug had indicated was the custom

"And this is Nakor, perhapse the wisest man I know."  

Nakor bowed and smiled.  "It's an honor to meet you sir."  he said.  It was
obvious by the little man's face, that he was studying Yosho very intently.
This disturbed Yosho, for he felt as if Nakor could see right through him. 

"Please, you may all sit, while I prepare the tea."  Yosho said, as he put
the larger of his tea kettels on to boil.  While he never ate dinner at his
small appartment beside the shrine, not since his son in law's house had
been moved to the bottom of the hill, below the shrine, he still kept up the
small kitchenette for entertaining guests to the shrine, visiting priests
and people from the nearby town."

"So what, may I ask, brings you by this way again, Pug?"  He asked, coming
to sit with his three guests who had already done so.  "And may I say," He
added, "That you don't look a year older than before.  How do you stay so fit?"

Pug smiled at Yosho's polite, yet pointed question.  "The answer to your
first question, is a long one, and one I will save until the tea is ready.
As to your second question, it should be fairly obvious to you, that I, and
my companions, are not from around here."

Yosho nodded.  "That is fairly plain to see.  When I first met you, I felt
that you are not quite what you appear to be."

Nakor, who had been uncharacteristicly quiet, chose that moment to include
himself in the conversation.  "You, my friend, are also not what you appear
to be."  he said with a grin.

At this, Yosho paused for a minute.  Sighing slightly, he stood himself up,
just a little faster than a man of his apparent age should be able to.  "So
then, you can see through my illusion?"  he asked with a half smile.

Pug and Tomas both looked at Nakor, who looked back and shruged.  "You both
may be powerful, but I have experience in these things."  Then to Yosho he
added.  "I just know what to look for.  I understand how tricks work."

Yosho nodded, and with a broef blur of motion, his form changed to that of a
young man, no more than twenty.  "I would appriciate it, if you didn't speak
of this, to my family."  He said.  The tea kettel had begun to boil, and he
turned to remove it from the stove.  "No one here knows what I realy look
like.  Though I have lived on this planet for seven hundred years, I am also
'not from around here', as you said."

As Yosho poured the tea into an air press thermos to keep it warm, Pug
spoke.  "While I didn't see through your illusion, I could feel the power
you radiated.  You must be something of a legand on a planet such as this."

Yosho chuckled at this, as he poured each person a cup of tea, first tapping
the hot water from the thermos into a small teapot, through a screen holding
the green tea leaves out of the water, then pouring the teainto each
individual cup.  "You don't know quite how correct you are.  When I came to
this planet, I was chasing a very powerful, and very dangerous adversary.
We fought across the countryside, and when I finaly defeated her, and sealed
her in a cave nearby, I decided to stay and help the people rebuild that
which I had played a part in destroying."  Finishing serving everyone,
including himself, he settled back down, and continued his tale between sips
of tea.

"Rather than appear as the Godlike figure for which they took me durring the
battle, I played the part of a wandering traveler, and joined the comunity.
This shrine was build to comemorate the great battle that had take place,
and ironicaly, I became it's priest.  I have since played the part of my own
children for many generations of this land's people."

"So then, what world are you from?"  Nakor asked, after taking a rather loud
sip of tea, finishing his cup.  "Do all of your people posess the same sort
of powere you do."

Yosho picked up the small teapot, and filled Nakor's cup again.  "I am from
the Planet Jurai.  Jurai is the oldest, and most powerful house in the
galaxy, having great influence in the galactic government, and holding many
many solar systems among it's colonies, including this one.  The all members
of the family of Jurai, have within them the same power I do, to some degree
or another.  My grandson, Tenchi, has incredible power, though he is only
just begining to understand it himself."

"Your grandaughter is also very powerful, especialy for someone of her
apparent age."  Pug commented

"Grandaughter?"  Yosho said questioningly.  "Oh, you mean Sasami.  Actualy
she is my half sister, but yes, she is quite powerful, though for very
different reasons than Tenchi."  then he lowered his vioce to a more serious
tone.  "But you still haven't answered my first question.  With what do you
think I can help you?"

At this, Pug looked to Tomas, who had been keeping to himself throughout the
conversation.  Tomas sat, with his helm by his side.  Though the plate's and
chain of the armor looked restrictive, he sat cross legged with apparent
ease.  Noticing Pug's cue, he set down his cup and began to speak.

"We are looking fore something."  He said, "A sword of great power."

Tomas noticed a subtle change in Yosho's composure at this, but continued.
"Many Many thousands of years ago, a race know as the Valheru ruled our
homeworld, and traveled throughout the universe as an unchecked power of
godlike potential, and godlike cruelty.  I was one of them.........



        *       *       *



Washu removed her goggels.  

Laying in the center of the tabel, was the sword.  Next to it, an empty
round container.  While it had once held water, that had been turned to
vapor almost instantly during the procdure, by the sheer amounts of energy
released.

Outside the isolation chamber, the lights of the lab were dim.  Most of the
Lab's power, had been drained to power the force fields, that contained the
violent energy releases of the reaction.  Washu sat at the control panel,
typing furiously on the keyboard, as she read the data scrolling up her screen

It had worked.  The Mass was now assimilated with the sword, and she could
begin deeloping the new creation into whatever she chose, within certain
limits of it's capacity.  The Sword was now clay to be molded, and with the
combined energies of the sword, and the Mass, there were infinite
posibilities for her.    

This was the dangerous part, the most critical juncture, where many of her
decisions would be irreversable.  She had thought about making the sword
into a weapon similar to Tenchi's.  An energy blade, that could also act as
a key, and a powersource to a ship.  But she had promised the Royal House of
Jurai, that she would not make any more ships, and Ryo-ohki's key, was one
of Ryoko's gems.  

(What I realy need) she thought, (is a model to work from).  While

There were, of course, only two models available for her work.  She had only
done this two, well actualy three times before, but the third one had been
destroyed.  She didn't want to make a copy of  either Ryoko or  Ryo-ohki,
but having an example to work form would help her avoid much of the risk
involved in the process.  
It was unlikely that Ryoko would be willing to spare the time to sit still
in a chair for a few days, so that left little Ryo-ohki.  

There wouldn't be too much trouble involved in getting the little cabbit to
help out.  Between playing on Ryo-ohki's love of attention, and offering a
bribe of carrots, she would be more than happy to spend a few hours a day
sitting in a scaning booth.

Washu got up to go and find the little cabbit, double checking the isolation
chamber safties as she went.  Normaly, she would have just used her link
with the creature, to call it to the lab, but she wanted a chance to stretch
her legs a little, and besides, Tenchi would be getting home from school soon.





                                Tetsuo Ruxpin

                                     ><>


All praise "Bob", shrot term savior of the world!