Blood Red Moon Eternity
     Chapter 4: The Theory of Chaos

Disclaimers: All characters belong to their various 
Copyrights; Reinhart, Rosa, Cain, and Elayne belong to me.  
Alucard, Carrie, Sheann'a, Drathar, and Dracula belong to Konami.
Tenchi, Ryoko, Ayeka, Mihoshi, Tsunami, Sasami, Yosho, Nobuyuki,
Washu, Mayuka, Ryo-Ohki, and Nobuyuki all belong to Pioneer/AIC.
Beyond my characters, I claim no rights to any of the characters,
beyond their use in this story. Comments, quips, insults, and death
threats will only be accepted at Platinum_Dragon@usinternet.com
     Blood Red Moon: Eternity is set one year after the events
in Blood Red Moon: Resurrection.  Reinhart and Carrie have been 
married, and their daughter Elayne has been born.  Alucard and his
familiars have built a small cabin near the rest of the clan.  
Blood Red Moon: Eternity is the last in a three series story arc.

    "Here we belong, fighting to survive in the war with the darkest 
power!" - Queen, Princes of the Universe 

*****

     A half hour later, they sat around the table inside the 
Masaki residence.  Reinhart held Carrie tightly in his arms.  She 
had her face buried in his chest; it had taken him a while, but he 
had finally gotten her calmed down, though he was hardly calm 
himself.  Tenchi and Ryoko were sitting across from him; next to 
him sat Alucard.  Reinhart had an eerie flashback to one year 
before, when they had all sat just like this, except that Carrie 
had sleeping in what had been his room.
     But a year before, the rest of the family hadn't been crowded 
around them, and a year ago, Ayeka and his daughter hadn't been 
kidnapped by a madman.  Now, they were there to make plans.  
Tenchi's expression was grim, as he, Alucard, and Rosa told them 
everything that they could remember about Cain.
     "It seemed as though he didn't recognize any of us but 
Alucard, and that only barely."  To his side, Tsunami frowned.
     "Tokimi... has the ability to rebuild a man's body after it 
has died, though the mind is not whole...  It still remembers, but 
can not bring those memories to bear."  Rosa looked at her.
     "So what you are saying is that that really was Cain - just 
that he's lost his memory?"  Tsunami nodded.
     "After a fashion.  With someone such as Cain, though, I 
question if those memories will stay locked away for long.  As you 
said, he recognized Alucard, even if only partly, and most would 
not be able to do even that."
     "But why did she send him to kidnap Ayeka and Elayne?  That 
doesn't make any sense... Wouldn't she have been wiser not to 
reveal that she had him until later?" asked Ryoko.  Tsunami 
frowned.
     "Tokimi is a master of strategies.  I do not believe that she 
intended Elayne to be taken - only Ayeka.  She considers this to be 
a game; much like chess - Cain is her pawn, and she has used him to 
take our Queen, both figuratively and literally.  I fear that her 
next target will be the King," she said, looking at Tenchi.  He 
nodded.
     "Cain did say that he wanted to return her to us, but 
couldn't chance opening the field around Ayeka...  We will have to 
go after him, and get them back before he reaches Tokimi.  Ryoko, 
can Ryo-Ohki catch up with them?" Ryoko opened her mouth to 
answer, but Funaho cleared her throat.
     "I'm afraid that it is not quite so simple as that, Tenchi...  
We face two difficulties with Ayeka kidnapped.  The greater is 
that without her, the alliance that she has forged to fight Tokimi 
may well fall apart."  Tenchi frowned, looking thoughtful.  To 
Reinhart's surprise, Alucard cleared his throat, and spoke.
     "Is it not possible for someone to take her place until she 
is found?"  Funaho blinked, and looked to Tenchi.  Slowly, he 
nodded.
     "It has to be done, doesn't it...  Would they accept my claim 
for the time being, Funaho, Misaki?"  The two former queens looked 
at each other.  Slowly, they nodded.
     "They should...  I must speak with Sagami.  If we can gain 
his support, we would gain well over three quarters of the council, 
and that is enough to raise you to Emperor."  Tenchi nodded, though 
he was frowning.  Reinhart couldn't blame him.  His father had 
avoided the throne as hard as he could, turning it down twice before.
     "Well, hopefully that's solved.  But if I'm doing that, 
then who will go after Ayeka and Elayne?"  Alucard looked at him.
     "I will.  Cain is my responsibility; I did not complete my 
duty the last time, and it is because of that failing that they 
were taken," he said, in a tone that brooked no argument.  Carrie 
raised her head from his chest, her eyes hard, and he nodded.
     "We're going to go with you, Alucard."  The dhampeal nodded.
     "I had expected no less."  Rosa nodded.
     "If you're going, Reinhart, then I'm coming too.  Somebody has 
to keep you out of trouble.  Besides, Ryo-Ohki will have to take 
us, and you never could pilot her."  The cabbit miyaed loudly from 
Tsunami's head.  Misaki frowned.
     "We... must discuss the other problem that faces us with 
Ayeka's kidnapping... a problem that you will face once you have 
found her.  She has entered her chi'partain cycle...  I am afraid 
that it will put Elayne in still greater danger than she already is 
if she and Ayeka are kept together."  Tsunami drew a sharp intake 
of breath at Misaki's words, and turned to face her.
     "She has begun the cycle?  That should not be possible!  She 
is long past the age for it, and I instructed the trees never to 
initiate it in her!"  Misaki shook her head.
     "None the less, it has begun...  We only realized it this 
morning, when she arrived at the shrine and I saw the 
shai'vernath."  Carrie looked at her.
     "Wait, I don't understand.  What is this... chi'partain 
cycle, and why would Elayne be in danger from Ayeka because of it?"  
Misaki looked at Tsunami, clearly seeking guidance; the goddess 
nodded after a moment, and Misaki took a deep breath.
     "Chi'partain...  It is the cycle that all Juraian females go 
through, usually within a five year span of her hundredth year.  
The cycle itself is triggered by the Great Trees.  It is a marking 
of their coming of age; the maturing from a girl to a woman."
     "Ok... that doesn't sound so bad, Misaki.  It sounds like how 
some cultures used to mark their boys becoming warriors," said 
Mayuka.  Misaki shook her head.
     "It is hardly a peaceful change.  Chi'partain begins with the 
appearance of the shai'vernath; it is a marking that appears on the 
neck and back.  That is the signal that chi'partain has begun; the 
shai'vernath disappear after an hour or so.  Next comes shai'danak, 
the Cleansing Pain.  She begins to experience terrible pain.  It... 
fills the body, overflows it.  This serves two purposes.  The weak 
do not survive shai'danak; and it purifies those that survive of 
their childhood sins.  Shai'danak lasts one day, sometimes, though 
very rarely, two.  Afterwards, she will return to normal for a 
short time, usually no more than a few hours, save for one key 
difference.  Until chi'partain ends, she can no longer touch the 
Jurai power. 
     "After the rest period ends, shai'mattak begins.  One by one, 
she will lose control of her emotions.  They begin to run wild with 
her, especially about things that she feels strongly about.  It is 
in shai'mattak that the first danger to your daughter lies, for as 
she loses control of herself, she may lash out... with deadly force 
at anything that disturbs her."  Carrie gasped, as she began to 
understand.  Misaki sighed, and continued.
     "The third part, shai'natoth, is the greatest danger, not 
only to Elayne, but to Ayeka, and anybody that she can reach.  A 
great fury begins to build within the woman, a fury which will grow 
to encompass all else.  When it reaches its highest point..."  
Tenchi cleared his throat, and Reinhart suddenly noticed that his 
father's face was extremely pale.
     "It will break free, and she'll attack even those closest to 
her in the bloodlust that follows," he said in a hoarse voice.  
Misaki looked at Tenchi in surprise as he spoke.
     "The bloodlust is known only to the Juraian people, Tenchi.  
How did you know?"  Tenchi closed his eyes, and shook his head.  
Ryoko put a hand on his arm, and he touched it lightly.
     "I... experienced something much like it myself, once.  A 
long time ago."  She nodded slowly.
     "The reason that chi'partain is so important is because after 
shai'natoth, the woman is bound to a mate that she has chosen.  In 
Ayeka's case, that would have been Yosho.  However, that was over 
seven hundred years ago.  She was away from Jurai at the time it 
normally would have begun; in fact, she was gone for so long that 
we thought it never would, and so let it pass."  Reinhart frowned.
     "What triggered it?" he asked.
     "We think that it might have been triggered by the Great 
Trees during her raising to Empress.  They may have sensed that she 
had not yet completed her cycle.  But after, she left Jurai again, 
which slowed it.  Once triggered, chi'partain may take an hour or a 
decade to begin.  For Ayeka, it has only now begun in earnest."  
Carrie looked at her.
     "How long do we have, until shai'natoth?"  Misaki looked away 
from her.
     "At... most, you will have five days, before the fury begins 
to build.  More than likely, you will have no more than three.  
Once shai'natoth begins... there is no way to tell how long until 
the bloodlust will take her.  Perhaps a little longer than for most 
with Ayeka; she has the strength to resist it for a greater time 
than the average Juraian."  Reinhart stood, bringing Carrie up with 
him, and Alucard and Rosa joined them.
     "We don't have any time to waste, then.  We can take 
everybody else to the fleet, and then we'll go on with Ryo-Ohki," 
he said.  Washu cleared her throat.
     "Actually, I think that I have a little something that we can 
use to reach the fleet in, so that you can get moving a bit faster.  
If everybody would follow me?"  They all looked at each other, and 
then followed as she led the way into her lab.

*****

     As Alucard followed the rest of them into Washu's lab, 
Sheann'a flew over to him and landed on his shoulder, panting in 
exhaustion.  He had sent her to check on his mother's sword as soon 
as Cain had disappeared, fearing the worst; now, as he looked at 
her, he knew what her words would be even before she spoke.  She 
caught her breath, and began to speak.
     "I looked right where you told me.  I found the tree, but the 
sword is gone.  I even saw the hole where it had been."  Washu was 
leading them into the depths of her lab.  They moved almost 
silently down a long hallway.  Alucard slowed, so that while 
Reinhart, who was in front of him, was still in sight, he was too 
far away to properly hear their conversation.  When Alucard had 
recognized Cain, he had been almost too shocked to move, but his 
son's reappearance was not what troubled him, not entirely.
     Ayeka had wanted to speak to him, of some unforeseen 
circumstance, as she had said.  What had she wanted to talk to him 
about?  She had seemed almost afraid of what he might answer, 
though even had he not had a debt to her, he would have told her 
yes.  This chi'partain...  He was certain that it had something to 
do with it.  A favor to ask...  For a moment, he wondered just what 
the favor would have been.  He looked up in surprise as Tsunami 
dropped back beside him.  The goddess studied him for a moment, 
with an unreadable expression, and then raised a hand, palm up.  A 
sphere of light appeared over it, and when it had faded, a 
crystalline flask had appeared.
     "You mean truly to go after Ayeka, Alucard?  Forgive my 
boldness, but I must ask for what reason.  I know that you said it 
was because of Cain, yet...  I sense that is not all."  Alucard 
frowned at her, but her words struck a chord.  With Cain in the 
mix, there was no question; he was bound by honor to stop him.  Yet 
he realized that he would have gone after her just the same had it 
been somebody he'd never before met.  Slowly, he spoke.
     "I go because I owe her a debt, and because I think, were our 
places reversed, she would come for me.  I can not ignore that 
fact."  Tsunami looked at him thoughtfully.
     "Is this why, sister?" she said very softly, too softly to be 
heard by normal ears.  She raised the flask to him.  "This is the 
Juraian Water of Life.  When you find her, she must drink it, or 
else chi'partain will not end."  She handed it to him, and he 
inspected the crystalline flask, and the liquid inside it.  He 
blinked suddenly, as he recognized the fluid.
     "But this is-"
     "No!" she said firmly, cutting him off.  "That flask is for 
no eyes but your own, Sheann'a's, and Ayeka's, and that many only 
because I can not hide our conversation from Sheann'a's eyes without 
expending enough power to be noticed by the others.  As it is, I am 
having troubles maintaining a shield between us and Drathar without 
him noticing."  He slowly nodded, as he realized that Drathar, who 
was floating alongside them, didn't even seem to realize that she 
was there.
     "Very well, M'Lady.  I shall hold this in close confidence."  
She nodded, her eyes thankful.
     "I ask you this not as Tsunami, but as Ayeka's sister, 
Sasami.  Bring her back safely.  Please..."  He nodded.  Placing 
his hand on the sword pommel, he bowed his head to her.
     "I swear, by the honor of my blade and family; I will bring 
her back safely, or die in the attempt.  Bound by blood and steel, 
my oath is now my soul."  Sheann'a blinked, and looked at him in 
shock.  There were no oaths older, or more binding, than the one he 
had just given her.  Tsunami stared at him as well, but slowly, she 
nodded.
     "Thank you, Alucard...  My sister..."  She began to say, 
but then stopped as the line came to a halt.
     "We're here!" called Washu.  Alucard looked ahead, and 
stopped in his tracks, staring before them in sheer disbelief.
     "Well?  What do you think?" asked the scientist, sweeping her 
arm up and out.  Before them was a titanic beast.  Its skin was 
white.  Great, powerful looking wings spread about from the center 
of its body, one filling the space above their heads.  A long, 
serpentine neck connected the head to the body; the head and mouth 
itself was long, and angular.  One huge jade eye stared at them.  
The beast had a long tail, and two powerful looking hind legs. Its 
fore legs were somewhat smaller, four fingered appendages tipped 
with huge, wicked looking claws.  One word stood out in his mind to 
sum up what he saw before him.
     Dragon.
     Abruptly, Alucard realized that the beast wasn't alive, but 
rather made of metal, and that it was farther away from them than 
he had thought.  That settled uneasily in his mind - if it looked 
as big as this at a distance, how big was it up close?  A great 
metal beast, larger than anything he had ever seen before.  This 
was what Washu had wanted to show them?
     "When Mihoshi and Ayeka sent me the scans they had taken of 
Tokimi's ship, I thought maybe we might want be on equal grounds 
with her.  Meet the Shukuen!"  Washu summoned her keyboard, and 
typed in a short sequence of keys.  The huge green 'eye' began to 
glow, and a quiet rumbling filled the room.
     "This... This is what you were going to show us, Washu?" 
asked Tenchi.  Washu nodded.
     "Yup! Think that it'll do?"  He nodded slowly.
     "I... think that will probably work," he said slowly.  He 
walked forward, up to the railing.  "The Shukuen...  An apt name, 
Washu.  But what destiny will she take us to, I wonder."  Tenchi 
turned back toward Reinhart, Carrie, Rosa and himself.  "It will 
probably take a couple of days for us to get the fleet moving, and 
then we'll follow.  Right now, we have an advantage over Tokimi, 
because I doubt that she'll expect us to move so quickly.  Cain 
must be going to Jurai; that's where Tokimi's base in this universe 
is."  Ryo-Ohki hopped over to them, and miyaed loudly.  Alucard 
looked down at the tiny creature, and tried to imagine how she was 
going to take them through space.  Yet one thing he had learned 
since coming here was that nothing - absolutely nothing - was 
exactly as it met the eye.
     "Yes, Ryo-Ohki, I'm sure that they've probably repaired 
Jurai's defenses after seven hundred years.  Be careful!" said 
Ryoko.  
     "Miya!"  They turned to go, Ryo-Ohki leaping up to Rosa's 
shoulder, but Washu called to them.
     "Hey, almost forgot!"  She typed on her keyboard for a 
moment, and a hole appeared in front of Alucard.  Out of it floated 
his new shield, with a small book tucked into the arm straps.  He 
pulled it out, and looked at it in curiosity.  "Hope you don't 
mind, but I tossed in a few optional extras for you!  Just look in 
the book!"  Alucard sighed, and thanked her, tucking the book into 
his sword belt.  Strapping the shield to his arm, he smiled 
slightly at the familiar weight.
     "We'll signal as soon as we get them back, father."
     "Good luck."

*****

     Cain set the shuttle controls to automatic, and then stood, 
walking into the back of the small ship.  There, the Empress and 
the child were locked into a moderately sized chamber.  To his 
surprise, he found her curled into a fetal ball, sobbing loudly.  
The baby had been set on the ground; she looked up at him 
curiously, and giggled.  Ayeka slowly looked up from her corner, 
her expression an odd mixture of anger, fear, and mostly pain.
     "P-please... Mo... move her a-away f-from me...  Please..." 
she sobbed through her tears.  He wondered if she had been injured 
in some matter, and almost opened the field to check on her.  Just 
in time, he remembered Tokimi telling him not to take any chances, 
as the Empress was very, very intelligent.
     "I am sorry...  But Tokimi would not be happy if I did and 
you tried to escape.  May I ask you something?  Do you know who I 
was?"  She scowled at him for a moment, before abruptly screaming 
in pain.  He blinked in surprise.  "Are you injured?  I can at 
least set one of the robots to tend your wound."
     "N-no, you f-fool!  Y-you could not... could not underst... 
stand.  Pl... Please, I beg... I beg of y-you, s-separate Elayne 
fr... from me before it... it is too late."  She screamed again, 
and curled back into a tight fetal ball, muffling the sound of the 
scream against her knees.  Cain frowned, and briefly considered the 
child.  He had not wanted to bring her along, but hadn't had the 
chance to remove her from the Empress's force prison, as the group 
had advanced on him.  He looked back at the Empress; she certainly 
seemed unable to move.
     Frowning again, he briefly touched the control next to him, 
and the field flickered off.  He quickly bent to pick the child - 
Elayne, the Empress had named her - and then stood again, turning 
it back on.  He looked back at Ayeka; she hadn't even moved.  Cain 
looked down at the squirming child in his hands; she stared back up 
at him with her big golden eyes.  Turning, he carried her back up 
to the cockpit.
     "Computer, please give me some information about babies."  
After a moment's pause, he added a second command.  "And please 
synthesize some milk for her; I believe that she may be hungry."
     "Do you require anything else, Cain?"
     "That will do for now... No, I take it back, monitor Ayeka's 
condition, and tell me if she worsens."  A moment later, a screen 
appeared before him, on which text began to slowly scroll by, and a 
bottle filled with milk appeared in his hand.  Sighing, he scrolled 
down to the section on feeding, and began to read.  The child 
giggled contently.

---
The Platinum Dragon
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  A newborn's life will fade.
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  give peacefull rest to the living dead." - Zelda64
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