NOTE: All characters original
to the Tenchi-Muyo! TV1 series portrayed in this story, as well
as all those from the Tenchi-Muyo! Ryo-Ohki OVA series, 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. Kyoto Minamoto, Muriyaki Kushiragi, Chisako,
Chi-Ohki, and all other related characters are the sole property
of the writers and appear through permission from the writers.
For C&C purposes, contact the writers at 
keiichi-dono@geocities.com or muriyaki@geocities.com.
Episode #21: No Need for Submarines! "Lunch is ready!" chirps
Mirei as she walks out of the kitchen with a large platter
piled high with sandwiches and drinks. "Oh, boy, lunch!" 
Nobuyuki and Kyo lunge towards Mirei, but are barely held back
by Momoko. "Just let her set the food down first," she reminds
them. "Otherwise, you'll spill it all over the floor and that
won't do you any good." "But we're so hungry, imoto-chan!"
whines Kyo. Momoko gives her brother the raspberry while tugging
down one eyelid. "Shut it, onii-chan. You two ate just a little
while ago!" "But we're still hungry!" whines Nobuyuki as he 
reaches vainly for the sandwiches. Mirei giggles and swings
the tray out of Nobuyuki's reach. "Wait till I've set them down,
grandpa!" "Come on, Mirei, let us eat!" Washu is little more 
patient than her husband. "I want more wine!" This comes from
Digital Washu, who is perhaps the first android to be diagnosed
as alcoholic. This is exhibited in the fact that she falls over
the banister while reaching for an imaginary glass of wine. 
Everyone cringes as they hear the crash. However, Digital Washu
bounces to her feet after a moment, none the worse for wear 
(although the same cannot be said of the giant hole in the 
living room floor). "That hurt me." "Where's Sasami?" asks Mirei
as she looks around the group. "Um…. I think she's still out in
saucer five, watching the fish swim pass the view port." This
comes from Tsunami as she bounces happily down the stairs and 
over to the table. "Should I go and get her?" asks Mirei, 
setting the tray down on the table and staring off past the 
group and out the back sliding glass doors. "Naw…. She told me 
she packed herself some lunch. So, don't worry about it." "Okay.
Lunch is served, everybody!" No sooner does Mirei say this then
she is trampled by the two men who rush at the food. "Owiee……"
moans Mirei as she lays on the floor dazed. "Mirei, are you 
okay?" Momoko helps her friend to her feet while a small crowd
of Ohkis gather around, mi-yaing in concern. "I thinks so…. my 
head hurts." "Mi-ya….." One of the tinier Ohkis climbs into 
Mirei's lap and nuzzles her. Mirei smiles and tickles the cabbit
under the chin. "You're a darling, Kaze-Ohki." "Good food!"
Nobuyuki and Kyo call out as they stuff their faces. * * * "I 
win again!" exclaims Ryoko as her tray fills with coins from the
slot machine. In the past two hours, she's won almost every game
at the casino and is now starting to draw menacing glances
from the staff working the floor. "Ryoko-chan…. perhaps you 
should stop playing…. I don't think you're making the casino's
owner very happy…." Ryoko turns to Kyoto, puppy-dog eyes 
brimming with tears. "Are you saying you want me to lose, 
Kyoto-chan?" she pleads up at her Kyoto. "No! That's not what
I said! What I said is…. Oh forget it….." With that, Ryoko turns
back to the machine and begins to feed coins into it once more.
Tenchi and his Kiyones have long since retired to their room,
after having seen one of the floor shows with the scantily-clad
dancers. Kyoto and Ryoko's conversation is cut short when they
see….. Katsuhito on stage…. dancing with the showgirls.
It's more than obvious that the old man is drunk and way out of
tune with the current century, for he keeps trying to dance the
"Hustle." "Do the Hustle!" slurs Katsuhito as he dances out of 
beat with the music. The dancing girls are too polite to say 
anything. Kyoto and Ryoko stare at the stage wide-eyed,
for a long moment. Finally, Kyoto asks timidly, "Where did he 
learn the Hustle?" "I think it was in the dance contest back in
one of those universes we traveled to fifteen years ago," 
suggests Ryoko. "The one where the young him was a male exotic
dancer, and he worked in a club owned by Ayeka?" "That's the 
one." "Oh dear. Let's get him off the stage before he does 
anything else to embarrass himself!" Katsuhito is about to take
off his jacket and throw it to the people in the audience
when he finds himself being carried off stage by two vaguely
familiar people. "Hey, the crowd loves me!" he slurs. "Sure they
do…." * * * The American admiral shifts uneasily under the gaze
of Emperor Kyoto. "T-to what do I owe the pleasure of this call,
your lordship?" "I have a small piece of information that might
gain you your next promotion," replies Emperor Kyoto coolly.
"Such as?" "There is a large enemy vessel submerged beneath
the Pacific Ocean. If you're interested, I'll be more than 
willing to allow you to destroy it." "The Pacific Ocean is a 
large body of water to search for one craft. Can you give us a 
more precise are to search in?" Emperor Kyoto turns to face off
screen for a second. A moment later, his image is replaced
with that of a short woman with hair the color of cotton-candy;
the bulk of her hair tucked under an officer's cap. She is clad
in an olive-drab uniform with a swastika-shaped medal pinned
on the left breast of her jacket. "I am Colonel Washu Hibiki.
I'm head of Lord Kyoto's research and development department.
My instruments have detected a large concentration of ditridium
particles at coordinates seven-five-three-two,
mark one-one-niner. These particles are not naturally occurring
on your planet; my guess would be that they're leaking from the
enemy craft. However, they've spread over a forty-thousand
square kilometer area, so I cannot trace the exact origin point.
"I am sending a shipment of my new torpedoes down to your fleet.
These will be capable of piercing the enemy ship's armor. These
torpedoes should arrive within the next seven days." The 
American nods enthusiastically. "Yes! Yes, thank you, your 
excellency. This will help me very much, I'm sure." His face 
disappears from the screen. On the other end of the severed
link, Kyoto smirks. "Aho. Still, he will be useful…" * * * 
"Mmph…" There are few things in life, reflects Tenchi, as 
pleasant as waking up next to the woman you love. One of those
things is waking up between the two women you love. Indeed,
Tenchi has awakened to find himself sandwiched between both 
Kiyones. Both women are snuggled up to him and dozing 
contentedly, and neither of them is wearing a blessed thing.
For that matter, neither is Tenchi. Yoni, on his left side, 
awakens first. She smiles at her husband with a mixture of 
drowsiness and mischief. "Morning, Tenchi-yon." "Morning,
Yoni." Tenchi leans over and kisses her. "Hey, you're forgetting
someone, Daddy." Kiyone-yoni tugs on Tenchi. "Aren't you gonna
kiss me good morning?" Tenchi shifts over and kisses the 
original Kiyone. "Sorry, kimi. Let me make up for that…" There
is a knock at the door. Tenchi breaks off the kiss; his 
expression is an irked one. "Yes?" "Room service." The Kiyones
pull the sheets up around themselves. "We didn't order any!"
calls out Yoni. "Someone ordered it for you…" Tenchi sighs and
rises from the bed. "Just a sec." He pulls on the previous
evening's discarded clothes, and waits until his wives have done
likewise, and finally opens the door. Kyoto and Ryoko enter the
room, carrying an unconscious Katsuhito between them. The breath
escaping from his lips is tainted with the scent of alcohol,
and he is mumbling old disco songs in his sleep. "…what happened
to him?" Kyoto has the good grace to look sheepish. "He got 
drunk and was singing on stage." "And you brought him here 
because…?" Kyoto grins. "We had to put up with him all night
in our room! You think it's easy to get it on when there's
a drunk Shinto priest in the bed next to yours?!" "…" "On second
thought, don't answer that question." They carry Katsuhito
into the room proper and deposit him on the bed. "Now, come on 
and let's get breakfast. I would imagine after last night, you
three are starved." * * * "Your grandfather did what?!" Tenchi
winces slightly at his father’s shrill voice. "Quiet down, Dad.
Like I told you, he got drunk last night and was singing on 
stage." On the Chisako’s end of the line, Nobuyuki shook his 
head. "I thought he’d gotten past that…" "What do you mean, 
‘past that?’" Tenchi demands. "Tenchi… your grandfather
has something of a disco bug. While your mother was pregnant
with you, he would be playing eight-tracks into the wee hours
of the night up in his shrine office. To this day, I can never
listen to "The Hustle" without cringing." "That’s… more than I 
needed to know, Dad." "You asked, son." "I guess I did at that…
at least he didn’t have any leisure suits or go clubbing…
did he?" Silence at the other end, then finally: "Son, do you 
really want an answer?" "I guess not…" Katsuhito chooses that
moment to walk by, humming the theme from Shaft. "…" "Let me 
guess." Nobuyuki’s voice, dry. "The theme from Shaft?" "I 
think…" "…well, I’ll let you get going. You guys are leaving
soon?" "As soon as the girls finish eating. Anything else we 
need to pick up?" "I don’t think so… maybe some pickles and ice
cream if you get a chance." "Mitsuki can’t be that far along!"
"No, son… those are for Washu." "What?! Dad, you’re kidding…"
"Yeah. I am." "Grr… okay, see you in a few days…" * * * "Are you
sure you don’t know where Auntie Mihoshi is?" Mirei and Momoko
have learned the lessons of being irresistible well, thinks
Ayeka. She says, "I honestly don’t know!" Not specifically
anyway… Both of the younger girls slump their shoulders and walk
away. Ayeka shakes her head. Poor girls… oh, well. Mihoshi
will only have to be in cryo-freeze for a few more days… 
Unbeknownst to her, however, the two girls have decided to go 
looking for Mihoshi themselves… "Auntie Mihoshi? Auntie Mihoshi,
are you in here?" Mirei is in the lead, shining a flashlight,
while Momoko is right behind her, carrying a picnic basket.
"Mirei, are you sure she's in this forest?" asks Momoko. "We've
checked everywhere else on the ship!" Indeed, the two girls have
spent the last few days turning Chisako upside-down looking
for the missing member of their "family." The only place left
unchecked is the medium-sized grove of trees a few hundred
meters from the Masaki house. "If you say so…" And Mirei is 
right. In the center of that grove is… …a giant inverted thimble
on a cart, big enough for two adult humans. On the side facing
is a person-sized hatch, which is almost all clearsteel.
Through said hatch, both girls can a frozen Mihoshi. She is 
frozen in a happy pose, in the process of popping a chocolate
into her mouth. In spite of themselves, the girls giggle at the
sight. "This certainly explains why we've had so much food the
past few days," muses Momoko. "Yeah," agrees Mirei. "Grandma
Washu probably put her in there to keep her from eating all the
food. C'mon, let's get her out of there." "Hai, hai… just let me
get these chocks out from under the wheels…" Momoko removes
said chocks from said wheels. The Pacific chooses that very 
moment to shift a little, giving Chisako a little love tap. 
Naturally, for the ship's occupants, it ain't so little… In the
house, Washu is coming out of her lab when she hears a 
"Whaaaaa!" and sees Mirei and Momoko go running past her at 
record speed. (If they were going much faster, they would have
disproved Einstein ^^.) "Huh?" she wonders aloud, stroking
her chin in bemusedly. The answer comes a moment later when the
giant cryo-cart comes rolling through the house, barely missing
her--but rolling over her toes. "Whaaaaa!" she herself screams.
The Pacific shifts again. The cart rolls back through, once more
crushing Washu's feet underneath. Momoko and Mirei are hot on 
its trail. Washu stands immobile for a long moment, swaying
on her bruised toes, before stumbling back into the lab and 
locking the door. She remains in there for the rest of the day.
Meanwhile, the waves outside are beginning to subside, and that
cryo-cart's momentum is wearing down. It finally comes to a stop
by crashing into the lake just beyond the grove of trees. Momoko
and Mirei skid to a stop at the water's edge, horror on their
faces. The cryo-chamber sinks beneath the surface. A moment
later, a column of bubbles starts to rise from the water's
surface, and a dazed Mihoshi comes up, dog-paddling for shore.
(She doesn't have that far to go. ^^) "Oh, my! What happened?"
"Auntie Mihoshi!" The two girls run up and embrace the older
woman. "We've missed you!" "I've missed you too! Where've
I been?" The two girls laugh. "Silly Auntie Mihoshi! You've
been in cryo-stasis for almost a week!" "Oh." Mihoshi's stomach
suddenly rumbles. She giggles and blushes. "My stomach agrees!"
The two younger girls each take a hand. "We'll fix you something
to eat." "…so she's out now?" "Uh-huh!" Mirei sounds very proud
of herself. "Well, honey… that's good… I guess…" Tenchi inwardly
sighs. He hadn't wanted to put Mihoshi in cryo-stasis either,
but without Kiyone aboard to server as a brake, it was 
inevitable. "Just keep her from eating too much, okay?" "Okay!
Bye, Daddy! Give my love to the mommies!" "I will, sweet stuff.
G'night." Tenchi hits the PWR button on the cell phone-like
comlink and pockets it, sighing. "Something wrong, Tenchi-yon?"
inquires Yoni, snuggling up to him. (Kiyone-yoni is asleep on 
his other side; understandable, for their car is tooling down
Route 69 at about 3 A.M.) "Oh... they found Mihoshi's 
cryo-capsule and released her." "Oh, dear... well, we'll be home
soon, anyway. It won't be a problem." "Oh no, oh no, oh no…" 
Mitsuki holds her head in her hands. "She's awake…" Kamidake
rubs his wife's back. "It's okay, Tsuki-yoni. I'll protect
you…" Azaka shakes his head. "It's not herself she's worried
about, Kamidake. It's the food supply." "With good reason,"
Azaka's guardian namesake concurs. "Many were the times when she
came close to eating Lord Nobuyuki out of house and home." 
"Indeed she did. I remember him complaining about how much he 
was spending on food even when Lady Mihoshi and Lady Kiyone
were living in town," Kamidake's guardian counterpart echoes.
Mitsuki sighs. "There's only one thing we can do…" "Wake up, 
Uncle Nobuyuki!" Kyo gives Nobuyuki a sharp jab in the ribs.
The older man is swaying on his feet. "I wanna go back to bed!"
he whines, eyeing the microwave clock wearily. It reads 2:49 
A.M. "This was your idea!" Kyo hisses. "This is the only way to
make sure that Aunt Mihoshi doesn't eat all the food while we 
sleep!" He waves his bokken in a pathetic attempt at being 
threatening. "It wasn't my idea! It was Mitsuki's!" "Regardless,
you agreed to it." "They got me drunk!" "Even so…" "What I want
to know is why aren't the knights doing this, or the guardians?"
"They'll do it tomorrow night. Now--" Kyo pokes Nobuyuki in the
ribs with the bokken. "--stay awake!" "Okay, okay," grumbles
Nobuyuki, hefting his own weapon (a rarely-used five-iron.
He hasn’t had much time for playing golf lately ^^). Come 
morning, both men are slumped asleep on the floor, back to back.
Fortunately, only half a cabinetful of food is gone. *** "Any
signs on sonar yet?" The submarine fleet captain looks wearily
at his sonar tech. "Sorry, sir, the sonar is still silent,"
replies the tech, squirming uneasily under the gaze of his 
superior. This submarine, along with several others have been
searching a forty-thousand kilometer square area of the Pacific
Ocean for the past week with no avail. "Erg… I hope that the 
Emperor wasn’t doing this just to make me look foolish! If he 
was--" "Captain! We’ve got major response coming back at us from
the sonar!" "What?!" The captain dashes over to the sonar 
operator’s console. On the dimly lit green screen can be seen
a large artificial object. It is obviously a vessel of some 
sort, but it dwarfs even the largest carriers in the American
Navy. "Sir…" says the executive officer quietly, "…may I 
recommend that we retreat!?" "No! You damned fool! Remember
what the Emperor gave us, those torpedoes! With those he said
we would be able to defeat the enemy ship!" "Would those be the
torpedoes we forgot to load at port, Captain?" calls out the 
weapons officer. The Captain face-faults. *** "There she is, 
home sweet home," calls out Kyoto, gesturing at the 
holo-monitor. (Although such equipment is hardly standard
issue for a World War II U-Boat, Kyoto has a habit of upgrading
every antique war machine he can get his hands on with "modern"
equipment.) "Finally," sighs Tenchi. "I’ll be glad to sleep in 
my own bed again…" "You’d be glad to sleep with your little
girls anywhere," quips Kyoto, drawing a red face from Tenchi.
On either side of Tenchi, the Kiyones giggle. "Especially
in light of his… condition." Ryoko jerks a thumb back at 
Katsuhito, who is asleep, slumped in one of the duty station
chairs. Between snores he is mumbling the lyrics to "Disco 
Inferno." Kyoto rubs his forehead exasperatedly. "Can I please
kill him?! Can I? Can I?!" "No you can’t," insists Tenchi.
"We may need him later." "For what?! To sing karaoke?!"
"…Y-M-C-A!! IT’S FUN TO STAY AT THE Y-M-C-A!!!…" Ryoko gags the
older man. Kyoto is about to applaud his wife when a steady
ping-ping sound begins to fill the cramped cabin. "What the 
hell…" Tenchi places his eyes on the viewing goggles and peers
into the sonar scope. "Kyoto… you better take a look at this…
It appears that Chisako ain’t the only thing out there." Kyoto
hands the controls over to his wife and takes a look for 
himself. "Chikkusho… There’s at least a dozen attack subs on the
other side of Chisako." Ryoko is unworried. "So, what’s the 
problem? Chisako can outgun a hundred times that many and they
can’t have any weapons that can affect us--" She is cut short
when a school of large, red-nosed projectiles spew forth from
the tips of the submarines, impacting Chisako in various places.
The group grits their teeth as the mighty ship lurches under
the volley. Across the ship’s hull, lights are flickering
on and off. "Chikkusho! Chikkusho! Chikkusho!…" "Stop cursing,
and get us over there, Kyoto!" yells Ryoko. "I can’t understand
why they’re not firing back…" "Simple. Chisako’s weapon systems
are plasma based. In most environments, they function normally.
However, given the fact that we are under water, and the 
addition of the our need to conserve battery power to recreate
the anomaly, no, they can’t fire back." "Give us the short 
version!" snaps Tenchi. "The guns won’t work under water and 
we’re trying to conserve power! Condensed version: We’re 
fucked!" "Kyoto, don’t curse!" yells Ryoko. "Remember, this is a
PG rated fan fic!" "Oh, that’s right…" Kyoto turns in the 
reader’s direction. "Gomen nasai, minna san! Sometimes we get a 
little carried away, I promise we will restrain our language
for those of you under the age of eighteen--" "Can we get back
to the fucking story, now?" quips Ryoko. "Hypocrite…"
mutter Kyoto under his breath. Aloud, he says, "Maybe we should
apply for a PG-13 rating?" "After this chapter is over!" yells
Kiyone-yoni. "Back to the fic!" (Author's note: Yes, that sound
you just heard was the Fourth Wall breaking.) "Of course… We’re
screwed!" "This is not a time to talk about screwing…" moans
Ryoko, her face turning a light shade of red. "HOW FAR ARE WE 
AWAY FROM CHISAKO?!" bellows Tenchi, bringing the cast quickly
back into character. "Um… not more than 500 meters… we’ll be 
docking shortly…" *** "We’ve damaged over 35% of their exterior
hull," reports the executive officer. The Captain nods, 
satisfied. "Very good. It’s a lucky thing that we were able to 
get that cargo shipped out here with those torpedoes so 
quickly." The executive officer indicates several areas where
the enemy vessel’s hull is nearing the point of rupture. "Do you
have any preference, sir?" "Yes… in fact I do…" The Captain’s
finger lands on one of the support/access tubes that hold the 
smaller saucers to the main hub. "There. We rupture that and we
can flood that entire ship." *** "What the hell is happening?!"
yells Tenchi as he and the rest of the sub’s passengers
climb out of the airlock. "Those subs showed up and started
bombarding us!" replies Chi-Ohki, bouncing along side the group.
"Those are damned powerful fish they’re hitting us with! No way
this planet could have those already!" "I’ll give you one guess
where they came from," Yoni murmurs under her breath. Tenchi
nods briskly. "So, where is everyone?" "Everyone’s accounted
for and in the house except for…" Chi-Ohki’s voice trails off.
Tenchi is surprised to see the fat, raunchy Ohki looking…
…guilty? "Except for who?" "Except for… Mirei and Momoko…"
"Chikkusho!!" snaps Tenchi. "We’ve got to find them!" "The last
I saw them on internals was about hour ago, I think they were
heading for number five saucer…" "Girls--" Tenchi speaks to his
wives "—Get up to the command deck. Kyoto, we’ve got some kids
to rescue!" "Right!" agrees Kyoto. "Careful! Number five is 
taking on a lot a water!" advises Chi-Ohki. "I think the main
dome is shattered! You better get some emergency gear before--"
"No time!" The two worried fathers rush off to the rescue.
*** "…Come on! I know the perfect place to have lunch, Mirei!"
Momoko drags her friend/cousin behind her at break-neck
speed. "Slow down, Momoko! I might drop the food!" cautions
Mirei, who barely maintaining her grip on the picnic basket.
"Where are we going?" "Here!" Momoko stops almost without 
warning, and unceremoniously drops Mirei. Mirei grumbles and 
rises to her feet (somehow, the picnic basket has remained
intact), brushing off the dust. "Really, Moko-sha’ya—"
using the Juraian word for "beloved friend or cousin" "—I wish
you’d give me a little more…" Her rebuke falls away as she sees
where Momoko has led her. "Wow…" The two of them are on the 
topmost level of the number-five saucer. This level is a small
park-type arboretum, with grass, trees, and benches. The entire
complex is capped over by a clearsteel dome, and surrounded
by clearsteel walls; these features allow a beautiful view of 
the ocean around them. Since it’s midday, and they’re relatively
close to the surface, the sunlight is trickling down through
the water, turning it a lovely shade of teal. Swimming above
and around them are a hundred different types of fish, some 
solitary and other’s in groups. "The water’s the color of 
Mommy’s hair!" the second-newest Masaki daughter exclaims.
"Yeah, it does look like Auntie Kiyone’s hair," agrees Momoko.
"Now aren’t you glad that I brought you up here?" "Mm-hmm!"
acknowledges Mirei. She pulls the picnic blanket out from the 
basket and spreads it out with a flourish. Setting the basket
to one side, she is about to lie down and watch the fishies
swim overhead when Momoko tugs on her wrist. "What is it?" she
asks with some annoyance. "I was about to take a nap!" "Look!"
Momoko points out the wall at a small group of very large fish.
"It’s some whales!" "Where?!" Mirei pushes her face against
the glass, looking out into the teal water. "Where? Where?"
"Right there, silly." Momoko places her right finger on the 
glass, pointing at the small school gradually advancing towards
them. Mirei looks towards them smiling. A few seconds later,
her smile slips away. "Momoko… those aren’t whales…" "Then what
are they?" Momoko asks, pressing her own face against the glass.
"Those are submarines…" Momoko blinks, then her eyes grow wide
with fear. "Mirei… I think we should leave…" "Uh-huh…."
"…all ships report ready for second salvo, sir." The lead sub’s
captain laughs. "Very well. Fire!" As one, the fourteen attack
subs flush their forward tubes, sending several dozen 
photon-tipped torpedoes at the battered spacecraft. "Aagh!"
Mirei and Momoko are hurled to the ground as the second volley
of torpedoes slams into the saucer. The relatively unshielded
clearsteel dome is at once dotted with the spider webbing of 
cracks, and water starts pouring in from a thousand breaches.
Within moments, the two of them are drenched with the salt 
water… Tenchi and Kyoto nearly topple over as Chisako rocks to 
the latest volley of warheads. Kyoto recovers first. "That hit
too close." "You don't think they're firing at the…" Tenchi's
voice trails off. "I do think they’re firing there." We’d better
hurry…" With that, the two fathers resume their mad rush. "Ungh…
where am I…" Mirei slowly opens her eyes. "It’s so col—" Her 
eyes widen as she realizes that she’s under the water. She’s
upright in a minute, sucking in air and coughing the cold, salty
water out of her lungs. Her throat feels somewhat sore; she 
doesn’t dare think about what could have happened if she hadn’t
woken up. "Wh-what happened?" Mirei starts to stand but 
immediately falls back into the water. Pain is shooting up and
down her lower left leg; while the lights have been long since
died, she thinks that she can see blood pooling around her legs
in the knee-deep water. Grabbing a fallen stanchion, she begins
to slowly hoist herself up, ignoring the pain in her leg. 
Finally, she is on her feet (however unsteady), and she starts
to look around, straining her eyes in the darkness. 
"Moko-sha’ya? Where are you?" "Mirei…" comes a weak voice. 
"Momoko?!" Mirei starts to wade in the direction of her friend’s
voice. Each step is a dagger in her left leg, but she keeps 
moving. "Where are you?" "Over here…" After five agonizing
minutes, Mirei reaches her friend and looks down at her; Momoko
is sitting in the water (up to mid-chest) with her back against
a pile of what was the dome. "Ohh, there you are…" "Hi…" Momoko
smiles weakly. "Took you long enough…" Mirei’s eyes sweep over
her friend. At first glance, Momoko seems to be intact. That is,
if one discounts the thick beam sprawled across her lower legs,
just below her knees. "Oh no…" Mirei immediately drops to one 
knee and starts trying to lift the beam enough for Momoko to 
slip her legs out. If she can, she thinks. Blood is already
pooling around her… Momoko manages a laugh. "It’s okay, Mirei…
it’ll keep till Daddy or Uncle Tenchi ge—" She gasps. "Mirei,
look out!" Mirei looks up to see another beam, heavier than the
one trapping Momoko, falling toward her. She drops onto her 
belly, sinking below the waterline a moment before the large
piece of twisted metal hits her. She stays below the water as 
long as her lungs can stand it before returning to the surface…
…on her way back up, she sees what can only be the lower legs
from a fifteen-year-old girl sinking… When she breaks the 
surface, to her amazement Momoko is still alive, albeit with 
more blood pooling around her. "Mirei…" she gasps. "I can’t 
feel… my legs…" Mirei sighs. "I know…" "Ohmigod…" Kyoto stops
abruptly. Tenchi stops a meter ahead of him and turns back. 
"What is it?" ‘M-moko-chan…" Kyoto falls to his knees. "Tenchi,
she’s hurt… they’re both hurt…" Tenchi pulls Kyoto to his feet.
"Then we’d better get to them quickly." "Ungh..." Under normal
circumstances, Mirei would be hard put to carry Momoko; while
she is god-only-knows how much older chronologically
than her de facto cousin, Momoko is physically several years
older than she, and with the requisite advantages in weight
and size. Under circumstances like these... "M-mirei..."
Momoko moans, sounding more like a sleepy little girl not 
wanting to admit her exhaustion than a young lady who was slowly
bleeding to death. "...I’m so tired..." Mirei sighs, not 
trusting herself to give a clearer response. Privately,
she is glad that her friend is not more coherent. At least now,
she doesn’t have to contend with requests for painkillers,
or, even worse, crying out for her parents. Mirei would only be
able to hold out a little while from succumbing to that urge if
Momoko started. Carrying Momoko was bad enough. Carrying a 
bloody Momoko was worse. Carrying a bloody Momoko who was sans
legs below the knee and losing blood at a horrifying rate 
through freezing, chest-deep salt water was the worst of all.
Not being unblemished herself, Mirei is quickly learning the 
accuracy of the old saying "rubbing salt in the wound." Each 
step is torture, and the cold water is slowly but surely numbing
her. But she keeps moving in the direction of an open hatch,
one of the last that hasn’t been overrun by the torrents of 
water pouring in through the cracks in the superstructure.
She doesn’t even want to think about how she’s going to 
negotiate the small hill of debris she must climb to get through
that hatch, let alone to safety. Gotta keep moving... no 
choice... "They’re down there." Kyoto points down the long 
connecting tube that binds number-five saucer to Chisako’s
hub. To both men’s surprise, the long structure is more bent 
then snapped; there is less leakage than they had feared. At the
very end of the passage is a wide hatch frozen three-quarters
of the way open. "All right, so now what?" asks Tenchi. "This."
Kyoto directs his next comment at the ship’s computer. "Chisako,
I need two hundred fifty meters of high-tensile rope, five 
magnetic carabiners, two hover-gurneys, and two class-four
first-aid kits, on the double." The requested equipment suddenly
appears on the floor beside them. Tenchi grabs one of the 
carabiners and slaps it against the wall, then slips one end of
the rope through, securing it tightly. After satisfying
himself of its secureness to the wall, he nods. "This end’s good
to go. We might want to set another one up about halfway down,
and one more right at the door." Kyoto nods and grabs one of the
gurneys. "Let’s go." The blood is now flowing freely from 
Mirei's fingers. Of course, climbing a mountain of wreckage
full of sharp metal edges will do that… Attempting to climb this
pile of wreckage would still be a challenge if she wasn't 
carrying Momoko on her back and supporting her with one arm; 
now, the process is even more painstaking. At least Momoko's
asleep. Poor girl; I wonder if she's quite realized what's 
happened to her yet; lord knows I don't have the gall to tell
her this. I guess I'm lucky, at least I still have my legs… 
Sighing, she starts to resume her climb when she sees a figure
blocking some of the light from the doorway. Her heart filling
with hope, she calls out, "Daddy?" A warm flood of relief hits
her as Tenchi calls back, "Yeah, Rei-cha'ya, it's me. Hang on 
there, sweetheart; we'll be right down…" And so he is a moment
later, rappelling down the mountain of debris. In one hand he 
holds the guideline for a hover-gurney. After kissing and 
hugging his own daughter, the Juraian emperor turns his 
attention to his de facto niece--and winces. "My god…" He gently
pulls her off of Mirei's back and lays her on the gurney, 
strapping her in tightly. "Will she be okay, Daddy?" asks Mirei,
now hanging on to her father's back. "Yeah, I think she will 
be." Tenchi squeezes Mirei’s hand. "Sorry we’re so late." 
"Better late than never." Mirei sighs and snuggles into her 
father’s back. "You got them?" calls out Kyoto, waving 
frantically. In one hand he holds a remote for the hover-gurney.
"Yeah," Tenchi calls back. "We’re coming up now..." Kiyone-yoni
nods and turns to Ryoko and Yoni. "They’ve got the girls, and 
they’re on their way back up." Ryoko sighs in relief. "Thank
God." She hesitates. "They... they’re all right... aren’t they?"
"Mirei is just a little cut up. Momoko..." The relief in Ryoko’s
eyes is replaced by worry. "Momoko...?" Kiyone-yoni closes her
eyes. "She lost both legs below the knee." "Oh my god..." gasps
Yoni. "My little Momoko..."Ryoko starts to lose her balance.
Kiyone-yoni steps forward and catches her. "It’s okay, Ryoko.
They’re rushing her to sick bay right now. She’ll be fine."
I hope, she thinks. "That’s right," echoes Yoni, who has taken
over supporting Ryoko by now. "Now, let’s concentrate on getting
some weapons going, or at least some shields. Ryoko looks blank
for a moment, then her face clears. "Right!" She moves over to 
one of the consoles and starts running a diagnostics routine.
The two Kiyones share a concerned look, then turn to their own
work. "You got her here just in time," Washu admonishes
as she manipulates her holo-laptop. Anti-grav impellers lower
an unconscious, hospital gown-clad Momoko into an aquarium-like
vat of regeneration fluid. While she’ll be lying in it (and 
thus, the fluid level will higher than her mouth or nose), the
fluid is oxygen-rich; she can breathe it as easily as if it were
air. "But she’ll be okay?" asks Kyoto, very much the worried
father. "Didn’t I say you got her here in time?" Washu waves
an airy hand. "Relax. I’ve never lost a patient." Kyoto raises
an eyebrow. "Since when were you a practicing doctor?" "Since
I got picked up that degree on a bet about fifty years after
you got run off Kotami." Washu turns her attention to Mirei.
"How’re you doing, dear?" Mirei smiles up at her adopted 
grandmother. Since her injuries are not as severe as Momoko’s,
she just took a quick soak in a bathtub-sized regen vat. Now,
she’s sitting in a chair, petting one of several Ohkis that have
gathered around her. "I’m fine, Grandma." She looks over at her
father. "Daddy, is it okay if I stay in here with Momoko?"
Tenchi pats her shoulder. "Sure thing, Rei-cha’ya. We’re gonna
go up to the command deck, so just stick around here, okay?"
"Okay!" As the two men leave the room, they see Mirei getting
up and carrying an Ohki over to look at Momoko. Once outside
the sickbay, Tenchi leans against the wall and sighs. "God, that
was close..." "No kidding," agrees Kyoto. As they had been 
carrying their daughters across the connecting tube back to the
hub, the subs had started concentrating torpedo fire on the 
tube. Weakened as it already was, it had started shattering
immediately. They had literally been one step ahead of the 
shattering structure and the subsequent flood of water. It had
been a miracle that they’d managed to get back into the hub and
close off the wrecked tube before all of Chisako was swamped.
"I tell ya one thing," continues Kyoto. "I’m never telling
Moko-chan just what we had to do to get them out." "Nor I and 
Rei-cha’ya." The only good thing about that fiasco had been that
both girls were unconscious. "You need to what?!" The two Washus
wince at Tenchi’s outburst, and then the real one clears her 
throat. "We have the nuke now, but we need to cut main power
for ten minutes so we can…" Her voice trails off. "So that you
can…" Tenchi motions impatiently. Washu starts to explain when
Kyoto quips, "What, cabbit got your tongue?" A moment later,
he is rubbing his forehead. "What was that for?!" "For 
interrupting us! Listen. We need to cut main power for ten 
minutes so that we can safely detonate the nuke inside a 
magnetic bottle in the drive core so as to reignite the 
time-space anomaly inside the fold drive." Blank stares meet 
her. "So we can get the stupid reactor and fold drive working
again!" Digital Washu screams. "I think you mean temporal
dr—ouch!" Kyoto rubs his forehead. "What this time?" "Don’t
correct us while we’re lecturing," chides the real Washu. 
"That’s all well and good," interjects Kiyone-yoni, "but what
about the subs outside? If they see the power go out…" "…nothing
will change," muses Yoni. "If they see all the lights go out,
they might think that we’re dead and leave us alone." "Or they
might not," Ryoko counters. "Does it matter whether the power’s
on or not anyway?" Katsuhito, now sober, puts in. "We can’t 
defend ourselves as matters stand right now." "Exactly,"
Washu says triumphantly. "So, with your permission…" Kyoto 
sighs. "Go ahead…" "Sir, something’s happening on the enemy 
ship." The lead sub’s captain turns to look at his sonar 
officer. "What is it?" "Sir, most of the enemy’s heat signatures
have just died." "Really? Let me see that." The captain 
shoulders the younger man out of the way and checks the display
himself. "You’re right." "Sir, the Missouri and the Annapolis
report confirmation," calls out the communications officer.
"They’re saying that all the lights have gone out." "Hmm…" The
captain strokes his chin. "I wonder what this could mean…" "Sir,
I recommend that we continue bombardment," the XO insists.
"It could be a trap." The captain, however, is one of those men
who believes he knows best in all things. "Normally I would 
agree, XO, but not this time. If they could retaliate, they 
would have done so by now. I would have." The executive officer
bites his tongue. What you know could be written on a pinhead…
sir. "At any rate, we’ll wait ten minutes before we make our 
next move." "And that next move will be…" presses the XO. 
"Salvage, of course. Think what the devices in that wreck could
do for the Navy…" The XO turns away, disgusted by the medals
he sees in his superior’s eyes. "Ease it in… take it slowly…
slowly… I said slow!… that’s it…" "Shut up!" Digital Washu 
snaps, wiping the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand.
"I can’t concentrate with you yammering like that!" She 
carefully manipulates the remote control for the small robot
that is arming the bomb inside the magnetic bottle. Once the 
bomb is armed, the little automaton scurries away, as if sensing
just how much damage the larger object will do. "Is it clear?"
hisses the real Washu. "Yes, it’s clear." Digital Washu picks
up the detonator. "Check the bottle one more time." The real 
Washu checks the strength of the electromagnetic shield encasing
the nuke, then nods. "We’re ready." "Everything’s hooked up 
here," Kyoto’s voice reports from the comlink on the console.
"Good… and here we go." Digital Washu gives the detonator
a firm quarter-turn. And then there is light. "We have power!"
Kiyone-yoni yells triumphantly. All over the ship, lights and 
terminals are shining and brimming with life again. "Weapons
hot," Yoni reports. "Any time…" "Now would be just fine, love,"
Tenchi assures her. "Glad to hear it." Yoni’s eyes dance across
the row of green-lit commit touchpads, each with a red 
triggerpad underneath. "Now what should I start with…?" "Ten 
minutes are up." The sub captain rubs his hands together 
excitedly. "Call in the salvage ships, and have them hold at—"
"Sir, they have power back!" "What?!!?" The captain whirls on 
his sonar officer. "What did you say?!" "All their heat sources
just lit up again, and stronger than before!" The sonar officer
looks again at his board, and blanches. "C-captain…" "What is it
now?!" The officer points a shaky finger at his radar screen.
On it, a large flurry of small, fast objects are rushing at 
their sub. "We have incoming…" The captain has just enough time
to wet himself before the volley of antimatter-tipped
torpedoes turn his sub and crew into free particles. "Five enemy
subs taken out," Yoni reports crisply. "The rest... are just 
sitting there." Tenchi nods in approval. "Nice work, Yoni. Now,
why don't you introduce the survivors to laser and plasma fire?"
"Hai!" Yoni's fingers dance across the fire-control board, 
triggering the Chisako's extensive gun batteries. The blue-white
beams cut effortlessly through the water and through the 
American subs. What few remain immediately heel around and limp
away, at what speed their tortured screws can provide. "Okay,
try it now," comes Kyoto's voice over the radio. "All right,"
Washu replies. The past week has been spent repairing the damage
that the American torpedoes had caused. The connecting spar had
been rebuilt, but it was a jury-rig job at best; nothing short
of a full-bore refit at a spacedock would really fix the damage.
"I'll start the rotation sequence as soon as everyone is 
inside." After a few minutes, Kyoto passes that confirmation
along, and Washu activates the sequence. The saucers move slowly
at first, the depth of the water and their relative inactivity
over the past weeks having made the mammoth gears slightly
unresponsive. Soon, however, they are spinning at a nominal
velocity, and the antigrav system reads within acceptable
limits. "We ready to go?" asks Tenchi. "Yes, Tenchi, we most 
certainly are." Kyoto takes his place at the helm and takes hold
of the yoke, pulling back. Chisako quickly rises from the 
ocean's depths, making for space. This does not go unnoticed
by anyone's radar, but after the incident with the American
sub fleet, and after several subsequent expeditions were beaten
back in short order, no one is feeling lucky enough to mess with
the extraterrestrial behemoth. Soon: "Geosych achieved,"
reports Chisako's flight AI. "Ready for interstellar transit.
Course heading, and preferred mode of FTL travel?" "Spacefold,"
replies Kyoto. "Course heading one-one-ni--" "Warning! Warning!
Large warships in close proximity on intercept course!" the AI 
suddenly shrieks. "First on course approximately one hundred
eighty degrees astern, the second on course approximately
one hundred eighty degrees ahead. Recommend full alert status,
recommend all batteries and all shields to full power." "Red 
alert!" Kyoto calls out. "All hands to battle stations!"
All around him, everyone on the bridge rushes to their assigned
stations. "Chisako, give me a visual!" Akiko and Tomoko appear
on the holoscreen. "Oh shit!" Ryoko yells. "Them again?" 
Kiyone-yoni yelps. "No time to argue! Shields to full, guns to 
full, prep the fold drive!" In his throne on Akiko's command
deck, the evil Kyoto smiles as he sips a snifter of his current
favorite drink: chilled espresso with warmed Nekojin blood mixed
in. "Heh. I see we made it just in time." The evil Washu steps
up beside him; since it's battle, the positions normally 
occupied by his chained slave girls are unfilled. "Shall we open
up with the main batteries, my lord?" "No, not today." Kyoto's
evil smile grows at he contemplates what to do with his enemies.
"I know. Wouldn't this be a perfect opportunity to test out that
new weapon of yours, the one you say you've improved on since
your Fourth Reich days?" "Ahh!" Washu's eyes light up. 
"Excellent idea, my lord!" "Warning! Warning! Sensors indicate
a dimensional weapons release! Sensors indicate--" "Is he 
crazy?!" yells Tenchi. "To use dimensional weapons this close
to a planet..." "Remember who our opponent is," reminds Kyoto.
"Chisako, move us out of the blast trajecto--" "Warning!
Warning! Sensors indicate a second dimensional weapons 
discharge!" "That one came from the one behind us!" shouts 
Kiyone-yoni from a sensor station. "Oh shit... Chisako, is the
fold drive ready?" "The drive itself is fully operational,
but the navicomp module has not been properly recalibrated,
nor a set of coordinates input..." "No time! Initiate fold now!"
There is a slight pause, then, "Master Kyoto, may I remind you
of the problems we've had with making uncalibrated folds in 
the--" "Later, Chisako! Fold now!!!!!!!!" "...yes, sir." And 
Chisako folds, at the very moment that the dimensional
blasts hit her shields. THE END
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