WAI!!! I finally got to finish C&C'ing this monster. :)
"Well, now that we've destroyed the evil undersea monster and
freed the
population of the planet that was held in thrall by it, what do
you want to
do?"
"Burn all of my clothing. I still smell like seafood. And if you
make even
one passing reference about the smell of parts of my anatomy in
relation to
that, I will have Azaka and Kamadaki
Kamidake (I think)
hold you in a forcefield from now
until the day you die."
"The thought never crossed my mind, Princess."
"But since you frequently speak without thinking, it could still
pass from
your lips."
Point to Aeka!
"Miya miya."
"No, Ryo-Ohki. I don't feel like eating any fried 'Dweller of the
Deep'.
Thank you anyway."
Heh.
A soft sigh of relief echoed throughout the ship. It had been easy
for
Ryo-Ohki to see which direction the conversation was taking, and
she didn't
like it one bit. By distracting Aeka, she had diverted the
potential
argument, as well as taking care of the subsequent damage that
would have
resulted to her interior. Even keeping themselves in check, Ryouko
and
Aeka's fights were still as discomforting as a bad case of carrot
induced
carrot-induced
heartburn.
LOL!!!
[snip]
"All right." Ryouko sent the signal. Just as she was certain the
ship was
about to jump, it took its hyperspace drive off-line and turned
towards
Ryo-Ohki. "Well I'll be.
"Well, I'll be.
It actually worked."
Aeka smirked in the way only those that had been treated as
royalty all of
their life could. "I told you so." The smirk stayed right where it
was as
the other ship approached.
The smirk irritated Ryouko enough that she considered making some
cutting
comment about Aeka's figure, but with some effort, she restrained
herself
and said, "Strange, they're not hailing us. And have you ever seen
a ship
design like that before? It looks like a large molehill. A really,
really,
omit last comma
large molehill."
"No, I have not."
not,"
Aeka said. "But there is no need to worry. They are
undoubtedly drawing closer so that they may bask in my august
personage."
*SNORT!*
The giant spaceship drew closer until it filled the main
viewscreen. Over
the Ryo-Ohki's loudspeaker,
suggest: Over Ryo-Ohki's loudspeaker,
a gravely voice said, "Repent your numerous
sins and prepare for death, royal scum."
Aeka paled as Ryouko said, "Hey, they seem to know you pretty
well. Are you
sure you've never met them before?"
The Yagdagron dreadnought targeted all of its weapons on Ryo-Ohki
and
opened fire.
*Reader falls out of his chair and clutches his sides, the laughter
painful.*
That opener is officially one of my favorite fanfic scenes of all
time. :)
Four figures, moving silently as ghosts, cut a trail through the
verdant
forest. The largest figure was in the lead, periodically squatting
down to
examine something on the ground. After a few moments of close
study, it
would begin moving stealthily again while the others followed
close behind.
The process was repeated like that for several hours before the
quartet at
last stopped, spotting the body of a woman that lay sprawled out
in the
middle of a small clearing. Three of the figures began to make a
circuit of
the area while the fourth remained where it was, staring at the
body. The
fallen woman's eyes stared glassily towards some point in the sky
above,
marking it as a corpse. As the remaining figure looked at the
center of the
clearing, it tried to make sense of something it felt in the air.
It had
just figured out what it was when the other three returned.
"The area's secure." Malgaunt holstered his sidearm as he examined
Stargrave closely. The man hadn't moved since he
he'd
spotted Ariana's body.
The words seemed to bring a return to Stargrave's awareness as he
moved
forward and kneeled by Ariana's side.
Suggest: The words seemed to return Stargrave to awareness as...
The wound she had suffered was
obviously fatal. He had seen people die before and in more
grotesque
manners -he had been the one responsible for them, occasionally-
but only
one other death had moved him like this before.
the "before" is superfluous. Suggest: ...one other death had moved
him like this.
[snip]
Malgaunt seemed to weigh Stargrave's words. "You're absolutely
certain?"
"Yes."
"But he can't possibly be here."
"I don't think he is," Stargrave said. "I think it's someone else.
Someone
like me, though don't ask me how he, or she, possibly,
no comma
came to be
here."
Ideas were already forming in Stargrave's mind as to how to
possibly take
advantage of the new situation. What he needed was more
information.
Malgaunt's mind raced as well. "Be that as it may, I have some
ideas on how
to resolve the Mihoshi situation. Obviously, we need to change
tactics, and
I think I've come up with just the solution." Malgaunt smiled to
himself.
The plan had come to him in the moment right before he had drifted
off to
sleep the night before. It really was quite brilliant in its
simplicity. He
was certain it would work, even taking into account all of the
other plans
that had failed him of late.
"We're going to have to be careful," Stargrave warned. "That
stasis field
around the Shihana is far too easy to destroy. All it would take
is one
stray laser bolt and we're history."
"Good point," Malgaunt agreed. "I assure you, my plan involves
only the
minimal amount of force for maximum effect. Two shots should be
all we'll
need, even with this new knowledge you've uncovered. But first, I
want to
make sure there are only two of them and see if I can confirm the
identity
of the person traveling with Mihoshi. I don't think it will
matter, but I
want every variable accounted for."
"One way or another, I think it's going to end soon," Stargrave
said.
"One way or another," Funuyaki finally broke her silence as she
agreed with
a smile.
"We have to hurry!" Tenchi insisted as he and Mihoshi pulled the
anti-gravity sled. In the early hours of the morning they had set
out
quickly as
out *as* quickly as
[big snip]
"Greetings, First Class Detective Mihoshi. We've-" Malgaunt
stopped
abruptly as he stared at the sidearm now leveled at him. For one
brief
second he lost his composure. Then the moment passed and he
attempted to
regain control of the situation that he had somehow managed to
lose without
even realizing it. "See here, Detective. I know you've been
missing for a
while, but it hasn't been long enough that you should be unable to
recognize me."
Mihoshi kept her gun leveled at Malgaunt. "I do recognize you,
Sir. I'm
placing you under arrest for betraying the Galaxy Police,
conspiracy to
commit criminal acts, attempted murder, aiding and abetting known
felons,
and a whole bunch of other things when I find out what else you've
done.
Now put up your hands!"
Heh, never underestimate Kuramitsu Mihoshi. She'll get ya every
time. Cool. :)
Again
Again,
Malgaunt found himself completely at a loss. He had suffered
from
more surprises in the last five days than he had in the last five
years. It
defied possibility, yet not only had his perfect plan been ruined
within
the first few seconds he had executed it, but again he found
himself
confronted with a situation that he had completely failed to
anticipate.
The look of total conviction in Mihoshi's eyes was all that was
needed to
convince Malgaunt that she knew the truth and that no amount of
fast
talking was going to get him out of the predicament. There was
only one
thing left he needed to ask. "How did you know?"
Mihoshi's aim didn't waver. "The Katasan that tried to shoot me
confessed
right before she died. She told me everything about how you and
the others
betrayed us. I can't believe you'd work with criminals to try to
get you
hands on this." She titled
tilted
her head slightly towards the Shihana.
"What
you've done is unthinkable."
Racing at unbelievable speeds, Malgaunt's mind evaluated the
situation.
There had to be some way out. He just needed to keep Mihoshi
talking until
he could figure out how. "I think you're being a bit judgmental,
my dear."
He drew out the phrase slowly, trying buy as much time as he
could.
Malgaunt's eyes scanned over everything. He watched as Tenchi drew
closer
to Mihoshi, almost as though he would protect her from harm. That
subtle
action suddenly gave the marshal an idea on how to resolve the
whole
situation. He could not count on Stargrave being able to bail them
out;
there was too much of a chance of something going wrong and the
Shihana
being either destroyed or released. It was all going to come down
to
Funuyaki and her razor-sharp mind. If she was paying close
attention, and
anticipated what Malgaunt was going to do for her, they
there
was still
a chance
to get out of their predicament.
[snip]
"Why you," Onita started to growl until he found the barrel of the
pistol
swung in his direction for a moment before it was brought to bear
on
Malgaunt again. The message was clear to Onita: I'm fast enough to
shoot
you before you draw your gun, so don't even think about it. The
large man
remained where he was, but remained tense and ready, continuing
looking for
continually looking for
any possible openings he could exploit
The sudden turn of events confused Mihoshi for a moment; one of
the
criminals wasn't acting like a criminal anymore. Training began to
take
over once again when conscious thought failed. "You put down your
gun too,
Lieutenant! No one is allowed to have any guns but me and Tenchi.
And he
doesn't have one, so that means it's just me." She would shoot
Funuyaki if
she made any sudden moves towards her or Tenchi, but some instinct
in
Mihoshi made her doubt that would happen. Still, it could be a
trap too.
Mihoshi remained uncertain of what to do.
"I can't do that at the moment," Funuyaki said as she kept the
pistol
pointed at the back of Malgaunt's head. All the man would need was
a split
second to draw his gun. She couldn't take her eyes off him for
more than
the length of a breath. "Stargrave, come on out! I know you're out
there,
and unarmed! Give up!"
"Sa'bre Stargrave's here?" Mihoshi looked around slightly while
keeping her
gun trained on Funuyaki.
Malgaunt started to turn around only to be ordered by Funuyaki to
keep his
eyes forward. It was a wise precaution on her part. If he couldn't
see her,
he couldn't know what she was doing. Still, there was a factor
that even
Funuyaki had failed to take into account. "You still haven't
answered my
question, Lieutenant."
Funuyaki was surprised to hear the tone of betrayal in Malgaunt's
voice.
How little he truly knew of her. "I'm taking you in."
Malgaunt scoffed at that. "After all that you've done? Don't be
naive. It
ill suits you There's no way they won't execute you."
Funuyaki surprised herself by laughing, a deep, rich laugh. She
wasn't sure
if it was at herself or Malgaunt. "Do you really think that makes
a damn
bit of difference to me anymore? You're so ridiculously stupid.
All caught
up in your belief that you know how everything works and how
everyone feels
that you think you're so fucking perfect that you can't tell when
things
are really falling apart all around you."
As miserable as Malgaunt had felt when the Shihana had repeatedly
escaped
him, as despondent as he had felt when the Yagdagron dreadnought
and the
Rack N'Ruin had been destroyed and they had been stranded on the
planet, as
wretched as everything had gotten and as disconsolate as he felt
when all
of his plans had fallen apart, nothing made him feel more
depressed than
Funuyaki's betrayal. The depths of it surprised him as much as
Ariana's
loss had affected Stargrave.
Anger trickled into Malgaunt's voice as he said.
said,
"Do you honestly
believe
I'd betray you? Is that what this is about? I meant what I said. I
wanted
you to be my prot�g�. My legacy. You could have ruled the Galaxy
[snip]
Stargrave gave her a smile. "Believe it or not, I rather thought
you'd try
something like this. I was suspicious when you refused Autolycus's
offer to
leave with him. Over the course of the last two days I became
increasingly
convinced you were up to something. Now I know for certain."
"I recognize you," Mihoshi said from her position next to the
Shihana.
"You're Sa'bre Stargrave, the fourth most wanted criminal in the
galaxy.
You're under arrest too. Everyone is under arrest. Lieutenant,
throw down
your gun or I might be forced to do something very not nice to
you."
:)
"I can't do that," Funuyaki insisted.
Stargrave gave a brief glance towards,
no comma
Mihoshi, then focused his
attention
upon Tenchi. Towards the younger boy, he gave a wider smile.
Tenchi wasn't
sure what to make of the gesture, for as Stargrave smiled, he felt
[snip]
"That's it! Throw down your weapon!" Mihoshi shouted as her finger
tightened on the trigger and she aimed her pistol at Funuyaki's
chest. Even
if the woman had been acting in self-defense, her holding a weapon
had
still helped contribute to the heightened tensions in the area.
And if
anyone even made one aggressive move towards Mihoshi, she was
going to
shoot.
No one did. The remaining trio of people openly paid little
attention
towards Mihoshi,
openly paid little attention *to* Mihoshi,
despite the fact she had a gun on all of them.
[snip]
Funuyaki continued firing at the rectangle, all the while knowing
it would
do no good. As when she had refused Autolycus's
Autolycus'
offer, she felt
relieved
and surprisingly calm, her conscience at ease as for the first
time in
years she knew she was doing the right thing, even if was going to
result
in her death.
She could not erase the mistakes of the past, but
trying to
prevent Malgaunt and Stargrave from succeeding in their plan of
genocide
would balance things out a little, at least to her. And even
though she had
failed to stop them and would fall now, she had helped balance the
odds for
Mihoshi and her friend by reducing the number of opponents from
four to
two. She hoped for Mihoshi's sake it would be enough.
Even with certain death staring her in the face, and the sense of
peace
that permeated her being, Funuyaki refused to go down without a
fight. She
loosed three more blasts before the rectangle shot across her,
covering her
entire form. The awesome power of the light hawk wing instantly
consumed
her body as it touched it, not even leaving ashes behind. The
rectangle of
power disappeared no more than ten feet beyond where it had struck
Lieutenant Funuyaki. An instant later, it reappeared at
Stargrave's side.
After rejoining its twin companions, all three of the wings
disappeared.
The sheer brutality of Funuyaki's death snapped Mihoshi out of her
reverie.
"That's enough!" She was uncertain what to make of the situation.
She could
have sworn they had all been bad guys, according to Fera they
were, yet
Funuyaki had not acted like one at all. She had been as bold and
courageous
as any Galaxy Police officer Mihoshi had served with, even in the
face of
death.
But now there was something else to consider. Stargrave could
somehow wield
the light hawk wings. Again
Again,
Mihoshi was uncertain of what to do
next. There
was nothing she could to
she could *do* to
overpower them. And wasn't Tenchi
supposed to be
the only one that could use them?
Funuyaki's death served to snap Tenchi out of his own reverie as
well. He
felt power well up within him as he looked at Stargrave in shock.
"How is
it you can do that?"
Stargrave turned towards Tenchi. In theory, he should have at
least tried
to use the light hawk wings against the young boy right now. It
was
possible Tenchi would not have enough time to raise his own wings
to block
the blast, but Stargrave doubted that. He could feel barely
restrained
barely-restrained
power bubbling below the surface, waiting to lash out and strike
him down.
[snip]
It took Stargrave a moment to bring his emotions under control. At
last he
answered Tenchi. "I thought it would be obvious. Since it's quite
clear
you're not Yosho, and you're certainly not Azusa," he spat the
name out
contemptuously.
contemptuously,
"you must be a royal bastard, like myself."
"Bastard?" Tenchi asked, wondering why the man before him would
think
something as odd as that.
Stargrave looked at Tenchi in surprise. "You don't know you're
your
own
family
history? Don't you know who your father was? Hasn't the power of
the light
hawk wings cried out to you the obvious, that you are of the
direct
bloodline of the Emperor himself?"
"Of course I know that," Tenchi said.
Stargrave became anxious. "Then you understand what you are. And
since
you're like me, and have the same dark cloud of death hanging over
you
should the truth become known, you should join me. Join me and we
will
conquer those thrice damned
thrice-damned
Juraians and rule the remains of their
empire
together, as is our bloodright." Stargrave held out his hand and
waited for
Tenchi to accept.
"What are you talking about?!" Tenchi didn't like what the man
seemed to be
implying, but what he liked even less was that a part of him felt
some sort
of kinship with Sa'bre, and did want to accept the hand of the man
that had
just killed the woman. It was the power. It was affecting him
somehow.
Stargrave saw the repulsion on Tenchi's face and withdrew his
hand. "Allow
me to explain to you who I am. What I am. Why I'm doing this. Why
I have to
do this. Perhaps then you'll understand why you have to accept my
proposal.
"My name is Sa'bre Star..." he stopped abruptly, shook his head,
and gave a
half-hearted smile. "It has been so long since I've used my real
name I
almost forgot what it was. My name is Sa'bre Masamoto. Son of
Allegra
Masamoto and Azusa the First, Emperor of Jurai."
"You're lying," Tenchi said. Shortly after first meeting his
great-grandfather, Yosho had informed Tenchi of his own family
history.
There were no Allegras or Sa'bres in it, only the members Tenchi
had
already met. There was only one possibility left, and surely the
Emperor
would never have betrayed his great-grandmother or Misaki like
that. It had
to be a lie.
Sa'bre's
Sa'bre
gave a chuckle. "You'd be amazed at how many people come
up to me
and say I have a strong resemblance to the Emperor, and they don't
even
have the faintest idea of exactly why that is."
Tenchi looked deep into his eyes and at once understood. They were
his
great-grandfather's eyes looking at him.
His grandfather's eyes.
Tenchi's eyes.
All of them the same.
Sensing Tenchi now understood and accepted the truth, Sa'bre
continued.
"Only two people, a being named Autolycus and Marshal Malgaunt
here, know
the truth of my ancestry. And now you'll know the truth too.
truth, too.
[snip]
"Except for me," Sa'bre clarified. "Afterwards, my mother was
supposed to
go in for the standard test, but somehow she was overlooked. Most
likely it
was because there was a change in the head of the Royal Physicians
and
there was some clerical error. It was fortunate, for after a
couple of
months, my mother discovered she was pregnant, and there was only
one man
the father could possibly be. Rather than allow me to be killed
killed,
which would
have allowed her to lead a normal life, she immediately left her
employ and
moved off planet, getting as far away from the Empire as she
could. She
changed her name and managed to forge a false background. She
settled on a
desolate rock located near the outer rim called Karastaed.
Population: two
thousand people without hope. The whole planet was nothing but
concentrated
squalor. The majority of people that were there were descendants
of a
failed attempted to terraform the planet. It wasn't even part of
the Empire
because no one wanted the useless thing with its useless people.
It was as
far out of the way as one could get, which was what my mother was
looking
for.
"We lived in abject poverty our entire lives. Mother felt we had
to, lest
someone discover that she carried a royal bastard and had me
killed. It was
a realistic possibility. The Juraian Security Directorate is as
horribly
efficient as they're rumored to be, you know. So she kept as low a
profile
as she could while living in constant fear of being discovered.
But never
once was she sorry she had me, and she made certain I knew that
and told me
everything about my history. I might not have owned more than one
pair of
shoes with the soles nearly eaten away at any time, but I did have
an
abundance of love from her. I was happy. I think it is the richest
of
ironies that the son of the most powerful and richest man in the
galaxy was
living on one of the poorest planets in existence. But my heritage
meant
nothing to me because the empire was nothing more than a series of
tales I
heard others talk about. Karastaed was my reality and all I had
known my
entire life. It's hard to miss something you've never had before.
"The sad thing is, I probably could have lived my entire life like
that,
content with my mother and her love, but as with all good things
it came to
an end far too soon. I had just turned nineteen when she became
seriously
ill. It was a common disease, one that was easily cured on any
planet
actually within the Empire, but because we lived so far from the
other
systems there wasn't any available on the entire planet.
systems there wasn't any *cure* available on the entire planet.
(Parses incompletely without the noun present.)
By the
time some
of the medicine reached us, it was over. She died in agony and
[snip}
Memories flashed back to Tenchi's duel with Kagato, save that this
situation seemed almost... civil. As though there was anything
civil
concerning two people that were about to kill each other. "It
will. Swords
then?"
"Agreed," Sa'bre said. "What is your name, might I ask?"
"Tenchi." He answered.
"Tenchi," he answered.
"A strong name."
Oddly, in spite of the man Sa'bre was, Tenchi trusted him and knew
there
would be no betrayal. He moved to the edge of the clearing,
standing just
as far apart from Sa'bre as he had from Kagato. Once again, he
found
himself engaging in something he didn't want to do it,
omit "it"
but as before
before,
it was
a necessary thing. There was no way to safely take out Sa'bre
without
killing him, and the Shihana could never be allowed to fall into
his hands.
It would mean the deaths of billions across the galaxy. Even
though they
had talked for less than five minutes, he knew Sa'bre well enough
to
understand the man would do exactly what he claimed. It was a
choice, an
ugly and repulsive one, but one Tenchi still had to make.
Malgaunt stood off to the side with his hands still raised,
watching in a
fascination that he would have denied having.
Suggest: *with* a fascination...
Mihoshi still had
her gun
leveled at him, but much of her attention was riveted to the duel
about to
take place. The marshal thought he could draw his sidearm and
shoot her
before she could fire back, but he did not do it. Under the
circumstances,
[snip]
Mihoshi was at a loss for what to do as well. She knew she should
have kept
her full attention on Malgaunt, but she was worried about Tenchi
and
allowed her concentration to drift towards him. It reminded her
all too
much of Tenchi's battle with Kagato, and like then, Mihoshi was
forced to
sit on the sidelines and just watch. She wanted to help, but there
was
nothing she could do when dealing with someone of Sa'bre's power.
All that
was left was pray.
All that was left was *to* pray.
Sa'bre felt there was no need to waste any more time. He had a
galaxy to
conquer. He willed his pent up
pent-up
power to surge from him, and again three
wings of the light hawk appeared before of him. A resonance echoed
within
[snip]
been taken from him. No later than yesterday, Sa'bre would have
been
pleased to slowly torture anyone who dared to stand between him
and his
goals. But now that there was a face to his enemy, and worse,
Tenchi was
family. Sa'bre felt a sense of loss more than anything else.
In the moment of calm before the duo closed again, Sa'bre
considered that
his newfound sorrow might have had to do with some deep seated
deep-seated
need to be
accept by a member of his family. In the past, he would have
[snip]
Sa'bre looked at Tenchi, and for one brief instant, understood
exactly what
his grandnephew was. A soft smile parted Sa'bre's lips. "So you
were
willing to die for your cause. How noble. Maybe it's better this
way, and
perhaps the emperor will yet be forced to pay for the wrongs he's
done."
Hmmm... Did Sa'bre realize at that last moment that Tenchi is
Tsunami's Champion or something of the like? Interesting.
[snip]
That ended any thoughts of trying to risk a shot at Mihoshi. He
could see
the tension in her trigger finger. There was no way he could get a
shot off
without her firing into the stasis field. Likewise, there was no
way she
could risk a shot at Malgaunt without him shooting Tenchi. A
classic
Juraian Standoff.
Badges?! We don't need no stinking badges!! :)
"Let's make a deal." Malgaunt spoke in smooth tones and tried
using all of
the charisma he could. He needed to get her to trust him, even if
only a
little bit. "I'll let you and Tenchi go. You let me have the
Shihana. Then
we all get what we want."
"I'd never let you have this plant, no matter what."
Malgaunt had known the answer even before she gave it. Seeing the
look of
total conviction in her eyes was unnecessary, but he had needed to
make the
gesture. A pity she had to be here now. Once he took over the
Galaxy
Police, he would need people as devoted to their duty as she was.
"I'll
kill the boy."
Mihoshi shook her head again. "Tenchi would never forgive me if I
traded
his life for someone else's, especially the billions you'll kill
with
this."
"And I can't leave here without it."
it,"
Malgaunt said smoothly. "It
appears we
have a problem. But I can offer an alternative."
Everything that Mihoshi had been trained for made her want to
refuse to
listen to him. Allowing him to have the Shihana was unacceptable
at any
level, but he'd kill Tenchi if the situation didn't change. She
couldn't
just let Tenchi die, not if there was some way out. He meant too
much to
her. "What is it?".
No period at the end.
"You want Tenchi and the Shihana. I just want the Shihana. I think
Sa'bre
and Tenchi had the right idea. Let's have a contest. A life and
death one,
since our lives are completely dependent upon the outcome of the
contest.
Winner take all."
"You mean another duel, don't you?" The galaxy police officer
within her
cringed at the words. Bargaining left too much power in the hands
of the
criminal, but again she could not let Tenchi die.
Good. The little interjections of standard police procedure really
dresses up the prose.
"Yes."
"Yes,"
Malgaunt hissed. "Simple but effective. There will be a
clear cut
winner and a clear cut loser. Only one walks away with the prize.
What do
you say?"
"I can't." Mihoshi could hear the own longing in her voice.
Mihoshi could hear the longing in her own voice.
Malgaunt shifted his grip in Tenchi. He had to take a desperate
chance;
the boy was getting heavy and he could feel Mihoshi on the verge
of
acceptoing.
accepting.
She had to accept or it was all over. "Then the boy
dies here
and now and I'll take my chances with just you." He moved his gun
hand ever
so slightly, hoping it appeared threatening.
"Wait!" Mihoshi cried out. "Deal. But you have to lower your gun
first."
Malgaunt shook his head. "Walk out from behind the Shihana, and
I'll
released my hold on the boy. Then we'll put our guns away."
This time Mihoshi answered with only a nod of her head. Slowly she
walked
away from the stasis sphere and the plant inside, keeping her gun
trained
on it at all times. Once she was a good ten feet away from it, and
in a
direct line with Malgaunt, she told him to release Tenchi.
Malgaunt did so, letting the younger boy's form crash limply into
the
ground. He walked several paces away from Tenchi, ensuring that
even if the
boy awakened, he wouldn't try to throw Malgaunt off by grabbing
his leg at
inopportune
at *an* inopportune
time and distracting him. "We holster our guns at the
same time
as well."
[snip]
"It's not fair," Malgaunt's voice was weak as he lost all
sensation in his
body, his laser pistol falling out of his hand as he hit facefirst
into the
ground. It shouldn't have been this way. He was a genius. He had a
foolproof plan. He wasn't supposed to lose. He was supposed to end
up the
winner, like he always did. No one was supposed to be able to stop
him,
least of all some burned out first class detective.
Suggest: ...burned-out, Detective First Class.
He deserved a
better
fate than to be ruined and die at the hands of someone like that.
Malgaunt couldn't stand it. It was all so unfair, and even worse,
unnecessary. All of the pain, suffering, misery, and death could
have been
avoided, if only the fools had given him the promotion he had
deserved.
The fifth breath he exhaled into the ground was the last.
Mihoshi lowered her own gun once she saw Malgaunt breathe his
last. She had
felt bad about cheating, but given a choice between keeping her
word and
risking him getting his hands on the Shihana, as well as keeping
Tenchi
alive... well that was no choice at all.
Mihoshi knew she had almost no chance of beating him, even if he
had not
been going to cheat. She had remembered all of the stories told of
the
Marshal's lightning-quick reflexes, and although her own were
considered
very fast by most... well, it was a good thing she had decided to
draw the
instant he started to say two instead of when he finished saying
it.
Otherwise he would have shot her well before she had a chance to
shoot him,
and then the galaxy would have been at his mercy. As it was,
though...
She looked down at the small, nickel-sized, blackened hole in her
uniform,
located about an inch to the left of her sternum. That was the
nice things
about lasers. They cauterized the wound they made, and there was
only a
minimal amount of bleeding, if any. That meant she wouldn't have
to worry
about getting rid of the blood stains when she clea-
"NOOO!" Tenchi cried out as Mihoshi's eyes closed and she fell
limply to
the ground.
Heh. Another fine mess you've gotten me into! :P
Very nice, DB, but I have a couple of thoughts.
The work you did with Funuyaki's and Stargrave's stories was
important in that it made the villains, with the exception of
Malgaunt and, to a lesser degree, Onita, sympathetic. The only
unfortunate thing is that you waited until near the end before doing
so. In future, you might want to consider letting bits of the
villains' past leak out as you go along, and then glue all the
pieces together at the end. It's far more satisfying to be worrying
about the fates of both the heroes *and* the bad guys. :)
Second thought. Tenchi has one hell of an ace up his sleeve relative
to Azusa. You might want to give some thought as to how he's going
to handle his next meeting with great grandpa, if you're planning to
go that far with the story. Methinks Azusa won't want Funaho and
Misaki to know that the former galaxy's fourth most wanted was his
own illegitimate son and was capable of wielding the Wings of the
Light Hawk, which Azusa himself can't do. Interesting that a mating
with a commoner produced such a person - that doesn't bode well for
the future of the monarchy in and of itself. It would also raise the
ugly question of whether or not more such persons are roaming the
galaxy, having slipped through the pregnancy-test net. No, Azusa
would rather keep that info to himself, I'm thinking, which brings
me back to my initial point. What is Tenchi going to do with that
information?
Of course, Tenchi could just tell Funaho and Misaki and let Azusa
take his lumps. Poor Emperor. You've forever lost the respect of
your great-grandson.
Very nice, DB. Look forward to the next.
Ja!
Dave
************************************
D.F. Roeder
Fanfiction - http://www.flash.net/~dfroeder/index.html