Subject: [FFML][fanfic][Tenchi Muyo]Mugen Tenchi Muyo! Episode #2
From: "Sir Joseph (Chi-Ohki) McKenzie" <webmaster@RC_Books.zzn.com>
Date: 4/8/1999, 2:11 PM
To: ffml@fanfic.com

NOTE: All characters original to the "Tenchi Muyo! TV1" series portrayed in this story are the sole property of AIC and
Pioneer Animation. Any appearance of them in actual life is purely coincidental. Tenchi Muyo! material and paraphernalia listed
within is Copyright Pioneer Animation 1997 (c). Kyoto Minamoto, Muriyaki Kushiragi, Chisako, Chi-Ohki, and all other
related characters are the sole property of R&C Books and appear through their permission.

 

 

 

 

 

                                         Episode 2:

                                No Need for Another Me!

 

 

 

 

 

Two weeks have passed since Kyoto's unwelcome arrival on Earth. To everyone�s surprise, things have been peaceful. He's
even been helping out with the chores and only making occasional passes at Ryoko. 

One evening, Kyoto is sweeping the hallway. He is about to turn the corner and go into the living room when he sees Kiyone
and Mihoshi go into the bathroom together. "..Maybe that's why Kiyone puts up with Mihoshi...." he muses. Attempting to
sneak a peek at them, he walks over to the bathroom door and tugs on the handle. The door slides open to reveal.... nothing.

"What in Hell...?!" Kyoto is dumbfounded until a stray thought hits him. "Hmm... Since Washu lives here...." Focusing his will,
he takes on the form of Sasami. S/he closes the door and then reopens it. Now inside the bathroom is a large hot spring or
resort style communal bath, complete with palm trees and a large, decorative fountain in the center. Lounging in the steaming
water are Mihoshi and Kiyone, their clothes neatly folded on a near-by bench. Mihoshi is the first to notice Sasami/Kyoto's
entrance. "Hi, Sasami!"

Kyoto opens his mouth to respond when he suddenly realizes that his voice would come out. So he settles for a smile and a
wave. S/he then takes off his/her clothing and lowers him/herself into the warm water. Mihoshi and Kiyone are relaxing, almost
asleep, that they do not notice Sasami/Kyoto's lustful eyes on them. They also do not notice how many times Sasami/Kyoto
smacks him/herself on the head in an attempt to sustain concentration. 

The door slides open again, and Ryoko walks in. Her robe can barely hold her in, and she discards it with a flourish. Kyoto's
eyes go wide open! However, it is at that moment that Ayeka and the real Sasami enter. There are a few minutes of confusion
as the ladies start to realize that there is one more Sasami than usual. However, it only takes a few minutes to decipher who the
fake Sasami is.

Tenchi is heading to the bathroom when the door is flung violently open and Kyoto dashes out holding a towel wrapped loosely
around his mid-section. The ladies, all wrapped in towels or robes quickly follow him, chasing after him swinging whatever
heavy objects they can find. Tenchi stands blinking for a minute as this strange procession rumbles past, then he yells, "Kiyone,
don't use the laser in the house!" She must not have heard him, for he sees several blue bolts slice through a window. 

Despite his pursuers' dogged persistence, Kyoto manages to escape. 

By now the girls are fully dried and dressed, but no less angry. Ayeka in particular is fuming. "I cannot stand that horrible,
horrible man! Always making a mess of things, always trying to see us naked, and always trying to touch us.... I cannot take it
anymore!" 

She takes a pad and pencil, and scribbles a terse phrase. She then hands the piece of paper to Kiyone. "Kiyone, could you
have Yagami send this out by microburst to the nearest Juraian outpost?" 

Kiyone looks over the contents of the paper. "Isn't this a little drastic?" The look on Ayeka's face gives her answer quite
clearly, and Kiyone sighs and leaves for her ship.

A few days later, Kyoto is lounging on his space station's control deck. All of a sudden alarms start blaring and sensor screens
start popping into appearance. On the screen, a fleet of Jurai battleships have surrounded the space station. A second later on
another screen, the face of a Juraian admiral appears. "Kyoto Minamoto, by order of Princess Ayeka and the Galaxy Police,
you are here by placed under arrest, and you damn well already know the charges!" 

Kyoto merely smiles. "Come and get me!" 

The Juraian admiral's face turns red with anger. "All ships lock onto his position and fire! Maximum gun aperture!" The Juraian
dreadnoughts release a hail storm of bluish-white fire on the space station. Just about any other structure, natural or artificial,
would have wilted under such a furious broadside. 

However, Kyoto's space station isn't any other structure. And as always, Kyoto still has a few cards left to play.... 

On Earth, the Masaki house and everyone in it starts to vanish. They find themselves remanifesting aboard Kyoto's station. The
princesses instantaneously find themselves on the bridge next to Kyoto. Kyoto opens a channel to the flagship and enjoys the
startled expression on the Juraian admiral's face. "My dear Admiral, I would suggest you stop firing, lest you harm the
princesses. Or before I am forced to." He extracts his sword from its sheath and dances the sharp edge of the blade across
both of their throats. 

On the screen, the Admiral looks like he is about to wet his pants. "I-I-I-" 

His stuttering is drowned out when Sasami begins to cry. "Ayeka! I'm scared!" 

At that, Kyoto's lazy smile turns malicious. "Or maybe I won't kill them... They're both awfully pretty...." With that he rests his
hand on Ayeka's rump and squeezes. 

Ayeka jumps. 

"And I certainly can go for little girls. After all, they all become big girls eventually...." He squeezes Sasami's shoulders, bringing
more tears out of the girl's eyes. 

On the screen, the Admiral looks like he has wet his pants. "Alright! Alright!" he turns to his chief gunnery officer. "Have all
ships stand down from combat status. With- draw to extreme firing range." 

Kyoto smiles. "That's just what I was waiting to hear." 

He then spins his sword in the air above him and sends the blade slamming down into a fitting slot in the floor. The blade
instantly begins to glow a brilliant blue as the exterior of the station starts to sprout gun batteries. These gun batteries start to
spit out red and blue beams of death. 

Hundreds of ships are immediately caught off guard as this barrage begins to immolate their brethren. They don't, however,
remain speechless for very long as their gun ports start to return the favor. However, they find themselves shooting at empty
space. 

Kyoto's station has vanished. 

For whatever consolation it is, Kyoto's not exactly having a picnic, either. By now, Tenchi and company have made their way
up onto the bridge and are generally causing havoc. When they first appeared, Sasami ran to Tenchi and is now clinging to him
like a rock to the ground. Kiyone has her pistol out and is training it on Kyoto, keeping him still while Ayeka is kicking at him.
She is being held back by Ryoko who wants the first punch. Washu is looking around the bridge to see if she can find anything
of importance, Nobuyuki is looking around for the naked women, and Grandpa is merely looking around with a bored
expression. "Well, here we go again."

No one notices what Mihoshi is doing until they hear her voice squeal, "What's this do?" Everyone's heads flip around to see
Mihoshi tapping random keys on one of the translucent computers hovering above Kyoto's glowing sword. Kyoto's face
darkens with horror.

"What in the hell are you doing? Don't touch that!" He grabs her and pushes her away from the console. He scans the display
with growing dismay. "What did you do?!" 

Kiyone casts a glare at her partner, who seems to wilt under the harsh gaze. "This happens more than you might think." Anyone
else's speaking is canceled out by the sudden revving of the main engines. 

Washu rushes up to the main console and takes a long look at Mihoshi's handy work. "If anyone could do it..... She's
overloaded the main drive." All of a sudden the station's revving turns to a rumbling and starts shaking, throwing the people off
and around.

Washu scrambles back to the control board, this time taking more time to take a closer look at the display. Tenchi asks,
"Washu, what's going on?!" 

Washu turns back to him and says, "I don't know!" All of a sudden the station's shaking stops abruptly and without warning
every member of the group is overcome with the sensation of dislocation with their bodies. Tenchi thinks that he can see several
dozen alternate versions of himself float past his eyes. Without warning, the world suddenly snaps back into focus.

Floating in front of them except empty star studded space is a planet. The planet is turquoise and white, surrounded by two
delicate, almost imperceptible rings that intersect. Ayeka stands up. "Is that Jurai?" 

Before anyone can respond, however, the station is suddenly rocked again, threat screens start appearing once again and
Kyoto leaps to his command chair as he sees vicious-looking attack ships. 

"If they are from Jurai, they've certainly undergone an overhaul!" Before anyone else can speak, a large Juraian battleship
shows up looking much the same as a normal one, except being painted black and red, and having a skull engraved on the
bow. A moment later a communications screen materializes in the center of the bridge.

The image is of.... Ryoko, except dressed in Juraian clothing, much to the style Ayeka wears. This person says, "I am Princess
Ryoko of the planet Jurai." 

Ayeka's mouth drops open and she starts spouting, "What do you mean you're the princess, I am the princess!" The Princess
Ryoko's eyes fly wide open. "What?!... You're harboring the space criminal Ayeka and her daughter Sasami!" Ayeka's mouth
drops open a little farther this time as she and Sasami exchange confused glances. 

Kiyone steps forward. "This is Detective Sergeant Kiyone Makibi of the Galaxy Police. I demand to know what is going on
here!" 

All at once, Princess Ryoko's expression softens. "Ah, GP Director General Kiyone, I trust you and your husband are well.
She then sees Mihoshi. "Oh, President Mihoshi!" By now, the Princess Ryoko's expression has softened considerably. "I'm
sorry, I had no idea! I assumed that you were in cahoots with her, but now I see that you were returning her to Jurai for trial.
Very well, I shall meet you in the spaceport."

Kyoto's station orbits in a geosynch over Jurai, and a modified space yacht of his docks at the Jurai spaceport. Princess
Ryoko, with her consort the Lord Kyoto, is there to greet them with warmth and courtesy. 

Ryoko bows to Kiyone. "Director General Kiyone."

And then she bows to Tenchi. "And you Sir, how are you? Are your and Kiyone's children doing well?" 

Ryoko and Ayeka whip around to look at Kiyone, disbelief and anger in their expressions. She meets their gaze with a "don't
get mad at me for this, it's out of my control" look, the kind she typically has when dealing with Mihoshi. 

By now, Princess Ryoko has moved on to Mihoshi. "Ah, Madame President. So good to see you again. I do hope we'll be
able to discuss quantum theory again."

"Uhhhh�" Mihoshi looks completely lost.

Princess Kiyone then spots Washu. "Ah, Professor, I highly enjoyed your last lecture at the Academy. I'm so interested in the
idea of alternate universes." 

In retrospect, she would wonder why they all had rather dumbfounded expressions on their faces.

As they leave the space port, they pass an older beggar who happens to have what looks like a dark brown cabbit next to him.
The beggar looks up and asks, "Can anyone spare some change?" On impulse, Tenchi reaches into his pocket and pulls out a
two thousand Yen note from his pocket and places it in the beggar�s soiled hand. They walk past to a hover limo and get in.
Once they are gone, Kyoto and Ryoko reappear.

"What was that?!" asks Ryoko, feeling disconcerted at the thought of being a princess of Jurai and nauseated at the thought of
being married to Kyoto. 

"Whatever it is, I like it!" says Kyoto. "This is going to get weird. I don't know how to undo what Mihoshi has done, we'll need
Washu for that. In the meantime, we might as well lay low." 

Ryoko shoots a look at him. "Don't you dare think about that! Besides, how are we going to go around? Lay low? We look
just like the ruling couple of the planet." 

Kyoto smiles at that. "I can change my form at will, as for you, well, Muriyaki and her daughters can help."

 

Meanwhile, at the Palace of Jurai, Tenchi and company find themselves the welcome guests of a large and ornate banquet.
Many a toast is made for his and Kiyone's continued health and happiness. Many a question is asked of President Mihoshi,
how she plans to solve the galactic debt, what's her policy on intergalactic communications and other topics of high political
importance. Fortunately, she has the presence of mind to repeatedly say, "No comment." 

Several professor types try to attach themselves to Washu, although for discussions of scientific importance or just a simple "big
bang", one's not sure. 

(Meanwhile, Ayeka, her daughter Sasami, and her husband Nobuyuki are languishing in jail or what passes for jail on Jurai.
In actuality, the holding facility is really quite nice. About the equivalent of a Holiday Inn on Earth, except you can't go down to
the lobby or to the restaurant. Naturally, Ayeka finds it beneath her.)

Meanwhile, back at the banquet hall a hush falls over the crowd, for the Empress of Jurai has entered. People start to bow or
curtsy, as the case may be. 

Tenchi and Kiyone's mouths drop open as the Empress comes up to them. Ryoko, of course, is oblivious to this. "Director
General Kiyone and her husband Tenchi, I'd like you to meet my mother, Nagi, the Empress of Jurai." 

Somehow, Tenchi and Kiyone manage to keep from making fools of themselves, but as soon as Nagi, the Empress, has
moved past and Ryoko and Kyoto have had their attention moved, Kiyone whispers to Tenchi, "That's it! This has definitely
got to be an alternate universe! There's no way in hell a bounty hunter like Nagi could be a Empress in our universe!" 

Tenchi shrugs, "With all the stuff that happens to us, this does not surprise me much." He smiles wryly at Kiyone, and her
cheeks flush slightly as she returns the smile. 

Just then Mihoshi leans over to Kiyone. "Kiyone, what's a tax deficit?"

With all the dignitaries and such at this banquet, no one notices three strikingly beautiful young women walking through the door
accompanied by two floating logs- Azaka and Kamidake. One is Muriyaki Kushiragi, who we already know. The second has
soft, blue hair falling down her back and gathered in a loose ponytail-Ryoko totally made over. The third bears a striking
resemblance to what Sasami might look like when she's twenty only with long, forest green hair done up in a simple ponytail
running down her back to her posterior. This is Kyoto's female form of the day. 

By now, Tenchi and Kiyone are starting to enjoy themselves as best they can in such an odd setting. The two of them have
managed to pry half of a rack of ribs away from Mihoshi, who has naturally disposed of the other half by herself. Kiyone is
about to bite into her portion when she suddenly feels someone pinching her butt. She jumps five feet out of her chair and lands
on her feet--to find half the room staring at her. Forcing herself to giggle, she says, "Honey, not in public!" This manages to save
her some face, although this noticeably embarrasses Tenchi. 

Once Kiyone has sat back down, Tenchi leans over to her and says, "Uh, Kiyone, that wasn't me!" He keeps himself from
commenting about how tempted he was, and Kiyone hides her disappointment that is wasn't him.

"He's right, it was me," says a familiar voice.

Kiyone whips around to her right to see a beautiful young lady who looks like a grown-up Sasami, save for the hair color. She
starts to sputter uncontrollably when the young lady slides a folded note over to her. The note reads: "It's me." At the bottom is
scribbled: "P.S. Hey, what's wrong with a friendly squeeze?" That leaves absolutely no question as to who this person's true
identity is! Kiyone's mouth drops open. 

Tenchi is about to ask "What's wrong?" when his own arm is tugged on. He turns to see..... "Ryoko?!" 

Meanwhile, this universe's Kyoto, who is known to have a roving eye (If not necessarily roving hands) has just settled his sights
on the gorgeous new arrival sitting next to Kiyone. Kiyone catches sight of this. "Oh, my Lord.... " 

Tenchi follows her gaze and sees the reason for her discomfort. "Um, Kyoto, I think you'd better leave..."

The female Kyoto looks at Tenchi with a quizzical expression, but then feels someone's eyes on his/her back and is shocked to
see that.... "Oh, my god, I want me!" 

However, s/he waves back and smiles. 

Mihoshi suddenly reappears, holding a thick envelope in her hand. "Kiyone, look! Someone just gave me some money for
saying that nuclear power isn't outdated! And he said that if I said so to the media, he'd give me some hefty 'campaign
contributions'! Isn't that great?!" 

Kiyone buries her face in her hands, and Tenchi signals for a stiff drink. "Um, on second thought, check, please." 

 

Fortunately, the evening does wind down. Everyone retires, either to their assigned rooms in the palace or to their own homes.
Kiyone and Tenchi go to their own chambers, ignoring angry glares from Ryoko. 

Washu and Muriyaki return to the station to effect repair work. The female Kyoto is in the bar, taking as many free drinks as he
can. This Kyoto is so drunk that s/he doesn't notice the male Kyoto coming up behind him/her. The female Kyoto is very
startled when the male Kyoto grabs him/her by the shoulders. 

"How would you like to see the royal scepter?" The male Kyoto's left hand travels down the female Kyoto's neck. 

He is equally drunk, and does not notice that he has his left hand on a man's chest until a deep voice says, "No sir, I would not
like to see the royal scepter." The male Kyoto realizes what he has done and starts backing away out the door. 

The formerly female Kyoto releases a sigh of relief, a new sense of clarity rushing through his head. That was a close call, he
thinks. I was almost.... by me! 

"Kyoto..." 

He spins around to see the princess Ryoko wobbling towards him. She is obviously inebriated. "Honey, let's go to bed..." She
collapses onto his shoulders, her arms draped loosely around his neck. Suddenly he realizes that he has her right where he
wants her. There'll never be a better time.... He scoops her up in his arms and carries her to the bedroom.

 

Meanwhile, in their bedroom, Tenchi and Kiyone are still deliberating over who gets the bed. Overcome with exhaustion, the
two of them finally collapse onto the bed. "Talk about your strange situations," mutters Tenchi. "Yeah, I know," echoes Kiyone.
"Who would have thought there would be...." She leans over to look in his eyes and-and-"....a universe where we-" She shakes
her head sharply. "It's so impossible...." 

Tenchi leans in closer to her. "What's so impossible?"

"This...." She hands him a framed picture sitting on the nightstand. The two of them, in wedding garb, looking happy and
carefree, as if time would always be so kind...."Don't you see it?! Don't you....." Inexplicably, the career Galaxy Police officer,
the best of the best, the one who never let anything--or anyone--through to her, starts to cry. Almost as if by instinct, Tenchi
wraps his arms around her and holds her close, her sobs shaking their bodies and tears soaking his shirt. Slowly the sobs
subside and she looks up, letting Tenchi wipe the tears from her eyes. "Sorry."

Kiyone looks up into Tenchi's face and sees--can it?--he--he--

"It's all right. Don't worry." He smiles down at her, and she suddenly starts to feel lightheaded. 

Instinctively she curls up against him. "Tenchi, I....you don't have to, but could you just....hold me for a little while?"

He enfolds her in his arms again. "As long as you want, Kiyone. As long as you want."

 

* * *

 

"...It's another Tequila Sunrise... And this old world still looks the same... Another frame...." Washu can hear Kyoto before she
can see him. Although he doesn't have a bad singing voice, the slurring of the words implies that he is not entirely sober. She
stands up to greet him. "I'm not sure Don Henley would approve, Kyoto." Kyoto is obviously drunk and he spins around to slur
at Washu, "And who do you think gave him the words to this song?!" He then collapses face first on the floor. 

 

* * * *

 

The hours pass slowly for Tenchi, as he still holds Kiyone close. At the moment, she is dozing quietly, and he regards her with
quiet affection. He sighs. "Kiyone? Kiyone, you awake?" He listens for a few minutes with no response. "I....I....oh, hell, I can't
even say this when you're asleep. Do you know how wonderful you look when your asleep?" He sighs again. "You look so
peaceful, a peace I rarely see when you're awake and dealing with Mihoshi. How many times I've seen you on the verge of
tears and wanted to....hold you, I guess, just do something to bring back your beautiful smile...." Unbeknownst to Tenchi,
Kiyone quietly awakens, but hearing his words, decides to feign sleep. "I'm not quite sure when your smile started meaning the
world to me. Maybe it was the night of the carnival, you looked so cute in that outfit, and the smile on your face when you gave
Sasami the cotton candy....I guess what I....oh, hell, Kiyone, I think I've fallen in love with you." He sighs yet again, as he gently
strokes the back of her neck. "Now if only I could find a way to tell you this when you're awake." He closes his eyes and
settles his head on the pillow. He feel shifting around on top of him but figure she's just moving in her sleep. 

"I love you too, Tenchi."

He suddenly sits up to find Kiyone, already sitting up, looking at him and smiling

shyly. "Did you just....." He prays that he wasn't just dreaming that.

"Oh Tenchi....." She scoots over next to him and lays her head on his shoulder. "I did say that I love you, Tenchi. I heard
everything." She shifts around again, snuggling up to him. "My Tenchi....I do love you...."

Tenchi's eyes go wide. He'd never thought that....but now.... "I'm sorry, I should have--" She cuts him off with a kiss. "Tenchi,
it's alright." She links her arms around his neck, kisses him again. "It'll be alright from now on....."

 

Morning breaks on Jurai with the same insensitivity that it does on Earth. However, the gentle sunlight shining through the
window in Tenchi and Kiyone's bedroom is a far sight softer. Tenchi is sacked out in one of the chamber's recliners, while
Kiyone is stretched out on the bed. Kiyone is the first to awaken, and her features soften with an affectionate smile as she
watches Tenchi snoring away in the chair. 

She remembers being snuggled up to him as the talked earnestly and affectionately into the night. 

And she remembers the confessions: she had kept her feelings hidden, for she had felt that, with all the girls vying for his
attention, he wouldn�t even look her way. For his part, Tenchi had kept his mouth shut, afraid that he might force her to choose
between him or her career--and that her career would win. 

At the moment, however, she feels as giddy as a schoolgirl, and she�d follow him to the ends of the cosmos and back, and she
senses that the feeling is mutual. She is about to arise from the bed and wake him up when Mihoshi bursts through the door. 

"Ki-yo-ne! It's time to get up!! You too, Tenchi!" 

Tenchi jumps out of his chair, whips out his light-sword, and is about to light it up when he sees that it is only Mihoshi who's
burst through the door. "Mihoshi, what is it?!" 

Mihoshi has a great big grin on her face. "It's breakfast!" 

Kiyone looks like she is about to kill her partner, but Tenchi pushes Mihoshi out the door. "We'll be down in a minute,
Mihoshi!"

Once Mihoshi is gone, Tenchi steps over to the bed and helps Kiyone to her feet. She looks down at her rumpled clothing and
makes a face. "I must be a mess." 

Tenchi shakes his head and smiles. "You look wonderful." 

She blushes slightly. "This may get a little complicated .... although mostly for you...." 

Tenchi takes her hands in his. "I think you�re worth it." 

Her heart melting, she shifts into his arms. After a few minutes of bliss, they kiss briefly and head out the door, hand in hand. 

 

Unbeknownst to them, Mihoshi had not closed the door all the way on her way out. She had peeked in to watch Tenchi and
Kiyone, and she smiles as she sees the two of them kiss. "Good for you, Kiyone," she whispers. "I knew it�all you had to do
was tell him�"

She straightens up as they come out of the room, her smile resetting to its default mindlessly cheerful. "Come on! We've got to
hurry!"

Kiyone smiles indulgently at her partner. "Calm down, Mihoshi."

"Yeah," agrees Tenchi, his eyes seeking out Kiyone's. "We've got plenty of time�"

Their eyes meet, and they smile slowly at the same time. Mihoshi ends up having to push them into the elevator.

"Kyoto!! Wake up!" Having tried everything else (that she dares to), Washu throws a bucket of cold water into Kyoto's face.
However, he still continues to sing old Eagles songs off key. Horribly off key! 

"Uhhhhhhhhhh..." Finally Kyoto's eyes start to slowly open. "Little Washu?....God, I had a weird dream las'night....I dreamed
that I was comin' on......to me!

Y' got anythin' for a hangover?" Too late does he realize just what he asked and just who.

"Uh, on second thought...."

Before he can withdraw his request, he finds himself bound and fastened to one of Washu's patented research devices. His
body is literally covered with hundreds of sensors and probes. "Washu, is all this really necessary?!" 

Washu giggles as she hunches over her translucent computer. "No." She giggles again. "I just want to see if you've let yourself
go downhill through the years." She giggles yet again. "Aside from a bit of a pot-belly, you're not doing badly." 

Kyoto groans. "Does this experiment entail any other embarrassments?" 

Washu giggles yet again and then turns to stare at him with a devilish smile. 

Kyoto recognizes the look on her face and sends up a desperate prayer to whatever gods there may be. "Anyway, how are the
repairs on the fold drive going?"

Drawn back to her original priority, Washu strikes a thoughtful pose. "Slowly. The damage isn't irreparable, but it's extensive.
And even when we get it fixed, there's no telling if we'll be able to get back to our dimension. Mihoshi gave that engine a
thorough going over. Whatever she touches...."

Kyoto thinks for a minute. "Any parts need replacing?"

Washu snorts. "Any?! Try at least half ! Where in hell did you get this thing? I've worked with a lot of FTL drives in my time,
and this is nothing like I've ever seen."

Kyoto wiggles a bit. "Lemme out this thing, and I'll tell you."

Washu's face darkens a bit. "Only if you promise never to call me 'Little Washu' ever again." 

Kyoto nods, and Washu taps a couple of keys. Her creation starts to fold in on itself, freeing him. Once he has made sure that
he is not missing anything (For one never knows when dealing with one of Washu's devices), he settles himself into a
comfortable chair and gestures for Washu to do likewise. 

"I found this station in the old mothball yards off Anopon Prime. I remember it just like it was yesterday......" 

"No!" Washu throws another glass of cold water in his face. "Don't you dare go into a flashback on me!" 

"Alright, alright! Don't wet your pants! Or mine for that matter. Anyway, I discovered it drifting powerless in the shadow of that
planet's moon. I bought it from the yard boss for 63,000 yen and the trade in of my old cargo liner. This, my dear Little
Washu, was where I first met Muriyaki. But that has nothing to do with it. Anyway, at that time the station was still manually
operated. So, being the genius that I am, I redesigned the station's control mechanism so that my sword must be inserted in
order to operate any of the functions. When I did this I discovered the fold mechanism buried deep within the station's systems.
How it operates or for that matter what makes it operate has left me dumbfounded. All I know is how to operate it. Nothing
more, nothing less." 

The tool in Washu's right hand is slowly starting to bend as the pressure she is exerting on it increases. "I thought I told you
never to call me Little Washu!!!" The anger fades away when she remembers what else Kyoto has told her. "You know
nothing about it?!" 

Kyoto shrugs. "I've told you all I know. The only thing I can think of to do is to travel to Anopon Prime and try to find this
dimension's analogue of this station. You and I could take Ryo-"

"Hold it!" snaps Washu. "What makes you think that I'll go anywhere alone with you?"

"Well, we really don't have much choice, now do we?" Kyoto shoots back. "B'sides, we can take Muriyaki if you-:"

"I'll take Ryo-ohki alone, thank you very much," Washu returns, "Just to be on the safe side. Now Ryo-ohki's fast, but it'll take
us a while to get out there and back-figure maybe two weeks-"

"Remember that we need to break Ayeka, Sasami, and Nobuyuki outta jail, and our people on-surface will need to get outta
there in a hurry," points out Kyoto. "If you could maybe work some 


----From the desk of Joe (Chi-Ohki) McKenzie
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