Someplace like home by Robert Hazelton

	Disclaimer: The characters within are used without permission for the sheer non profit

enjoyment of fans of the Tenchi Muyo! genre.  The author claims no ownership.

Episode 6: No need for Reminiscing 

            “The Soja?”  Ayeka looked at Tenchi then to Kiyone.  “What’s going on?”

            “I don’t think it’s the real Soja, Ayeka.”  Kiyone looked down at the scanners and nodded.  “I remember the signature from the Soja and these are much weaker.”

            “Nevertheless,”  Tenchi gestured at the screen.  “It’s firing on us!”  Ryo-Ohki quaked from a concussion and everyone scrambled to get a hold of something.

            “Mihoshi, fire at will!”  Kiyone called over her communicator while working feverishly at the control station she had posted herself at. 

            A variety of blasts struck the Soja, careening it so that it’s subsequent attacks flew harmlessly over Ryo-Ohki.  The tiny bubbles of fire quickly faded from the hull of the enemy vessel and the damage seemed to ‘heal’ almost instantaneously.

“I’m initiating an energy net, Mihoshi.”  Kiyone looked up at the screen.  “Prepare to stop firing on my mark.  Three… two… one…  Mark!”  She tapped a button and the firing stopped as a blue force field shot from Ryo-Ohki and surrounded the Soja. 

Blasts exploded from within the net but it wasn’t able to penetrate the field.  Kiyone looked at Tenchi.  “Tenchi, can you please monitor this station for me while I get back to our ship to call for some backup?  Watch the energy output from the Soja.  If it starts to increase, then turn up the fields power to compensate.  I don’t think we’ll have any problems holding whoever that is here.”

“No problem, Kiyone.”  Tenchi stood beside the console.  Ayeka looked over his shoulder and watched Kiyone depart. 

“What do you think is going on, Ayeka?”  Tenchi asked while intently staring at the meters.

“I’m not entirely certain, Tenchi.”  She sighed.  “I’m sure it has to do with Ryoko though.”

“That’s not very fair.”  He frowned. 

“I’m not being critical, I honestly believe that Ryoko’s problems and this are tied in together.  That thing out there… maybe it’s from her dream dimension.”

“You’re probably right.”  Tenchi thought a moment.  “What if her dimension is just getting more and more powerful?  What if parts of her dimension are breaking through the same barrier that the nightmare pierced the first time and are flooding into this world?”

“It could be a resurgence of everything we’ve ever faced.”  Ayeka grimaced.  “What would we have to do?”

“Somehow destroy the portal perhaps?”  Tenchi shrugged.  “The activities for dealing with these parallel dimensions is one hundred percent Washu’s department.”

Ayeka looked over at the still form of Ryoko.  “I wonder what she’s doing right now… in her dream realm.”

“I hope that she’s alright.”  Tenchi hazarded a quick glance at her before looking back at the meters and made a slight adjustment.

“Tenchi,” Kiyone’s voice crackled through a speaker over his head.  “We’ve got some backup coming to help contain whatever is in that Soja.  I’m going to replace the energy net with our own and then you guys get out of here.  Ryo-Ohki isn’t necessarily a ‘friendly’ vessel in the eyes of the GP.”

“Sounds good, Kiyone.”  Tenchi replied.  “We’ve got to get Ryoko back to Washu anyway.”

Ayeka walked over to Ryoko and scrutinized her for a few moments.  Her eyes widened and she clasped at Ryoko’s wrist with a frown.  “Tenchi, I think that you need to see this…”

*           *            *

            “Ryoko!”  The dwarf hurried after her and she sighed without turning.

            “Go away!”

            “You don’t understand!  You need my help.”

            “Now’s not the time for self reflection.”  Ryoko paused a moment to scan the hall before her.  The blackness ahead was brightening and she could see a beam of sunlight peaking through some broken mortar.  She stayed a feeling of excitement.  “I have to get back to Tenchi.”

            “What do you think is going on you idiot?”  He was jumping up and down, splashing in the water and she turned with a frown.  “Do you think that you can just ‘go back’ with a snap of your fingers?  You’re not that omnipotent.”

            “You realize that you were on my nerves a long time ago.  Just imagine where you’re at in regards to my temper now.”

            “Ryoko, this goes beyond you and your problems.  Existence is in danger as the dimension of your dream infringes on reality.”

            “Okay, assuming that I believe a word you’re saying, what do I do about it?”

            “The dimension is yours… you have to confront that which has taken shape and directs the rest.  The nightmare that you gave form to now fuels the rest as you give both shape with your subconscious mind.”  He ran his hands over his face and looked up at her, obviously frustrated.  “Remember that I told you that you don’t know yourself?  That you have no control over yourself?  I can’t believe I’m spelling this out to you but your dreams are yours to control—Even the nightmares.”

            “So you’re saying—“

            “That you’re passions are running wild without you controlling them.  Nightmares are no different than dreams, they just take on your anxieties and fears… your hatred and your guilt.  Unfortunately, in your case hatred and guilt were a part of your life for a very long time and have great power.  You’re a dangerous woman based not only on your skill but with how much control your passion has over those skills.  What you face is a creature born of every negativity welled up in you for the duration of time you’ve lived.”

            Ryoko took a deep breath and shook her head.  The thought was more than unpleasant and though she tried to fight the thought, it was like a bad dream.  Frowning at her own horrible pun, she looked at the dwarf and squinted irritably at him.  “So why didn’t you just say so earlier?  Why all the personal attack?”

            “To see if I was right about how volatile you are.  I was dead on.”

            “Great.”  She rolled her eyes and paced away.  “So what should I do?  Where am I now?  I presumed I was in the dimension of my dreams…”

            “You’re correct.  You passed out on the bridge of Ryo-Ohki but you were in and out of consciousness the whole time between arriving back to reality from the dream world.”

            “Because it’s drawing energy from my body to maintain it’s existence.”

            “Until it manages to completely take over the real world… Upon which time, all that was will cease to be.”

            Ryoko grinned suddenly and nodded.  “I think I know how to handle this.”

            “What’s that?”  The dwarf cocked his head curiously.

            “Nothing.”  She waved at him and lifted into the air to float toward the light.  “I’ve got to go… I’ve got a plan.  Thank you for the help despite being a total pain in the ass.”

            “Wait!”  The dwarf tried to keep up with her but had to stop.  “What’s the plan?”  He asked quietly, more to himself since she was long gone.  “I hope you know what you’re doing.”  He plopped down in the water and began to brood.

*           *            *

            “Tenchi!”  Washu’s voice broke through the speaker of Ryo-Ohki as they began their descent into Earth’s atmosphere.  “Can you hear me?”

            “Miss Washu, sure I can.  What’s up?”

            “Lots!  I’ve been trying to reach you for over an hour!”

            “We were being jammed by another ship.”  Ayeka responded.  “What’s wrong?”

            “I’ve got some desperate news about Ryoko’s nightmare creature.  It seems that her dream world is melding with our own.”

            “Oh my…”  Ayeka looked back at Ryoko.

            “Ryoko passed out while on the trip.”  Tenchi frowned.  “In fact, her life signs are extremely weak.”

            Washu drew a deep breath.  “Yeah, I figured as much.”

            “What is it, Washu?”  Ayeka asked.

            “Regardless of the fact that Ryoko’s dream world has taken physical form, she’s still tied to it.  As a result of that bond, I believe that it is still pulling energy from her to keep its form.”        

            “How do we stop it?”  Tenchi was getting frustrated.  “It’s going to kill her!”

            “We have to get to the heart of her dimension and put a stop to that which is clinging to Ryoko.”

            “But isn’t it that creature that Ryoko and Tenchi fought the night he crossed over into her dream?”  Ayeka asked.           

            “I believe so, yes.”

            “We couldn’t fight that, Washu!”  Tenchi frowned.  “We couldn’t hurt it!”

            “You didn’t get a lot of chance to try.  Ryoko got frightened and she fled.  Perhaps the lighthawk wings—“

            “How do we get there?”  Tenchi interrupted suddenly, a new determination in his voice.

            “I’m working on a portal now.  It should be ready by the time you get back.”

            “I’ll be ready.”  Tenchi turned away from the comm. and peered down at Ryoko.  Ayeka put her hand on his shoulder gently.

            “Do you want me to go with you?”  Her tone was hopeful but contained.

            “I think that I should go alone, Ayeka.”  He put his hand on hers.  “Remember that you… that you weren’t alive in that world.  I wish that you could come, but I think that this time it would be best if you stayed behind.”

            “Oh… okay, Tenchi.”  She looked down.  “I understand…”

            “Besides, I might need you to bring me back.”  He looked over his shoulder with a grin and she returned the smile weakly.  “Someone needs to keep Miss Washu in check.”

*           *            *

            Back in Washu’s lab, Tenchi stood ready dressed in his battle suit and holding the master key as Washu performed a number of calculations.  Ayeka stood nearby quietly and aside from the whirring of machines and the digital bleeps of the computers, all was silent. 

            When the door flew open, it was as if someone threw a rock through the window of tension that had built up.  Sasami jogged in and grabbed Tenchi’s arm.  “Tenchi!  You can’t go alone!  I need to go with you!”

            “Sasami,” Tenchi turned and looked at her oddly.  “It’s going to be much too dangerous for you to—“

            “You don’t understand!  Tsunami wants me to go with you!”

            “Tsunami?”  Tenchi looked over at Ayeka who shrugged a response.

            “Yes, Tsunami.”  Yosho was standing at the door, his arms crossed.  “I’m afraid she’s right, Tenchi.  She needs to accompany you on this quest.”

            “But Grandpa, don’t you think that she’s a little young?”

            “She has the power of Tsunami with her as you well know.  That will be a valuable ally in this task.”

            Tenchi looked between Sasami and Ayeka again before shrugging.  “Alright, Sasami.  Looks like we’re together for this one.”

            “Yay!” She smiled at him.

            “Sasami,” Ayeka frowned.  “I… I don’t feel very comfortable about this.”

            “Don’t worry, Ayeka.”  She cast a knowing look at her sister.  “I have to do this.”

            “We’re all ready over here.”  Washu looked up from her computer and rubbed her chin.  “As soon as you’re ready, you can depart.”

            “I think we’re ready, Washu.”  Tenchi stepped to the center of the room and stood below the red gem stuck in the machine on the ceiling and Sasami followed, her shoulders set and expression firm. 

            “I’ll be monitoring you the entire time.”  Washu gestured to the master key.  “When you’re ready to come back, I’ll be able to pull you back using the gems on the hilt of key.  Got it?”

            “No problem, Miss Washu.”  Tenchi looked at Yosho and Ayeka.  “I’ll put an end to this.”

            “Of course you will.”  Yosho nodded.

            “Be careful… the both of you.”  Ayeka folded her hands behind her back and blinked away a worried tear.

            “We will.”  Sasami waved as a red glow encompassed the room, erasing their features and making crimson silhouettes of the two.  A high pitch sound erupted from the gem and reverberated off the walls, building in volume until it was almost unbearable.  The sound stopped so suddenly that for a moment it was hard to believe that it had even happened except for the absence of Tenchi and Sasami who had disappeared as the commotion ended. 

*           *            *

            “Washu!”  Kiyone’s voice crackled on a speaker overhead in the lab just after Tenchi and Sasami disappeared.

            “What’s up, Kiyone?  There’s a lot of interference.”  Washu tried to adjust the signal on the communication with a frown.

            “We have another problem.”

            Washu sighed.  “Let me have it.”

            “I don’t know if you’ve heard or not, but we encountered another Soja…conflict… Galaxy… vessels… Kagato escaped though so… do you think?”

            “Kiyone, I barely got half of that message.  Say again!”

            “Watch out… Kagato… Ryoko…”  The signal fell dead. 

            Ayeka exchanged a glance with Washu before turning to walk into the hall, head bowed.  Yosho watched her go then paced further into the lab.  “If Kagato is after Ryoko for one reason or another, he’ll be fairly disappointed to find that she’s in the place he just left.”

            “There are a hundred theories as to what sort of threat he’ll be.”  Washu rubbed her chin.  “Does he want revenge against Tenchi or all of us?  Or does he want Ryoko because he’s from her dreams?  I suppose we won’t know until we encounter him.”

            “Indeed.”  Yosho smiled knowingly.  “Any speculation would be purely academic at this stage.  We have one thing on our side: the Soja gems will not be real and therefore, his powers will be lessoned on this world until the dimension further develops.”

            “That explains how they were able to deal with the Soja at all.”  Washu pursed her lips.  “We have quite a lot on our side and yet, I get the feeling that several problems out of our past could come to haunt us.”

            “It is a risk of course.  Everyone has demons that they exercise in their dreams… now we know what a supposed demon does in hers.”  Yosho paced to the door.  “For now, our role is one of waiting.  Keep me informed of anything you find out.”

            Washu nodded and turned back to the controls with a sigh.  Patting her stomach, she hopped out of her chair to fetch some food… it was promising to be a long night.

*           *            *

            Red… all around like a crimson lens placed over the eyes, the world swam in blood.  He could make out details through the haze for a moment: Ayeka’s worried expression, Yosho watching curiously, Washu working the controls to send them through the dimension… but they all faded… turning from blur to silhouettes before finally blending in completely with the surrounding spectrum.

            A sense of vertigo fell over his senses and worked its way down to his stomach to become nausea.  Was he floating?  Falling?  Standing still?  He couldn’t tell.  His hand was still on Sasami’s shoulder but beyond that tactile affirmation of reality, he was in limbo. 

            And then it all ended as abruptly as it began.  Sunlight attacked his eyes and he started to fall to the ground.  He put his hands out and went into a reactionary shoulder roll coming up to a crouching position as Sasami sprawled beside him on her stomach.

            “Are you alright?”  He asked quickly, putting his hand on her back gently.

            “Yeah,” She said with a moan.  “Just lost my breath for a second.”

            He nodded and surveyed the area for any landmarks.  “I think we’re near the house.”

            “Really?”  She pushed herself up and brushed off dirt that attached itself to her shirt.  “How far?”

            “Not very… Maybe a half mile at the most.”  He rubbed his chin.  “The real question is where is the nightmare centered?”

            “We should think of the place that Ryoko would least likely want to go—“

            “The cave!”  Tenchi cried.  “It has to be where it is.”

            “Ho there!”  Both turned to look up as Ryoko came flying down and landed in front of them.  “Tenchi?  Are you… are you the—“

            “Yeah, Ryoko.  Sasami and I came through to take care of the nightmare.”

            “So you know that the worlds are merging?”

            “Washu figured it out.  The Soja appeared in our universe… That was what Kiyone and Mihoshi were after.”

            Ryoko sighed.  “This really is getting out of hand.”

            “Are you okay?”  He put his hand on her shoulder.  “Your body is back home… and it’s not doing very well.”

            “I feel fine but… well, I can feel the drain that this world has on me physically but it’s not painful or even tiring—it actually manifests as a sense of urgency.  Like I have to do something.”

            “We’ve figured it out.”  Sasami cried.  “We have to destroy the creature that’s keeping all this alive… the creature that’s using your physical energy to merge the two worlds.”

            “I was en route to accomplish a similar goal.”  She smirked.  “But I’ve brought some help.”

            “What do you mean?”  Tenchi asked.

            “Well, I figured that since this was my dream, I could maybe work with it a bit… get creative.”  She looked up at the sky and motioned for something to come down.  “So I went and found some help.”

            Tenchi did a double take as another Ryoko landed gracefully on the ground beside him, smiling as she clasped her hands behind her back.  “Huh?”  He looked between them both.  “I don’t get it…”

            “In the real world, I merged with Zero Ryoko… but here things are a bit different.”

            “I can see that…”  Tenchi motioned for the real Ryoko to step aside with him and he lowered his voice to whisper.  “Are you sure that this is safe?  I mean, Zero Ryoko turned out all right in the end but—“

            “Relax Tenchi.”  She gave him a sly look.  “This is my world after all and with each passing moment I gain more control.”

            He nodded and looked back at Zero Ryoko who was chatting with Sasami.  “Do you know where we’re going?” 

            She paled slightly and nodded.  “The cave.”

            “Well, at least I was right.”  He clasped her shoulder.  “We’ll face this together, the four of us.  You’re not alone…”

            She put her hand on his and squeezed it.  “Thanks.  But we have to hurry.”

            “Right.”  Tenchi turned back to Sasami and Zero.  “Ready?”

            A synchronized nod.

            “Let’s get to it then.”

            “Not quite so fast… boy.”  A familiar voice froze him in his tracks and his fists involuntarily balled as a figure winked into existence near the tree line they would have to pass through to get to the cave.

            “Kagato,” Tenchi sneered.

            “It’s so nice to see you again, really it is.  I suppose you thought that our last encounter would be the last we’d have.”  Kagato shrugged.  “Of course, I can see how an insignificant Juraian might bask in his own opulent arrogance.”

            “We don’t have time for this,” Ryoko formed her sword and aimed it at Kagato’s throat.  “Move aside, Kagato.  You’re not even real.”

            Kagato shook his head.  “You understand nothing, Ryoko.”  He paced, his gaze rising to the sky.  “You think you know where you are, that you have power over that which you created but such a complex act as genesis is as beyond you as intelligent thought.  Therefore, while the capacity to manifest this brilliant place, and consequently my resurrection, existed within you, anything beyond that has been luck and accidents.”

            “Shut up Kagato!”  Sasami yelled.  “You hold no power here!”

            “Little one—“

            “We won’t be delayed by the ravings of an ego maniac!”  Sasami’s small body seemed to glow as she yelled, her eyes closing as she lifted off the ground to hover five feet high.  Kagato watched curiously, his own sword forming as he casually brought his hand around in front of him.  He cast a quick glance to Tenchi.

            “This won’t be the last time we meet here, boy.”  Kagato watched Sasami as his form faded to nothing.

            “That’s wonderful.”  Tenchi rolled his eyes.  “Now we’ve got Kagato roaming around too.  I wonder if this can get any worse?”

            “Sure it can.”  Ryoko looked at Sasami who was slowly floating back down to the ground.  “What did you do, Sasami?”

            “Some of Tsunami’s power manifested in me… I was going to attack Kagato if he didn’t leave.”

            “Wow, way to go.”  Ryoko looked around.  “But we need to be on the look out.  He’s a sneaky bastard and sadly, he’s just as powerful here as he was in our own universe.”

            “I don’t really think we need to worry about him.”  Zero smiled.  “Considering the four of us should be more than a match for him.”

            “Nevertheless, let’s get moving and handle this as quickly as possible.”  Ryoko took the lead and plunged into the woods, hovering just a foot off the ground and watching the tree line attentively.  Tenchi followed with Sasami trailing and Zero taking up the back.

            Ryoko paused a moment with a frown.  Something on the breeze…?  A sound as if someone moving in the trees… a rustle of leaves and a glint of metal from the sun—Her eyes widened and she managed to throw herself on Tenchi  just as a blast erupted from the left of the path and shattered the trunk of a tree where they were walking.  “Down!  It’s the Galaxy Police!”  She screamed.

            “What?”  Sasami yelled back as she took cover.  “But why?”

            “One of the less dangerous, more annoying nightmares that I have had in the past.”  She grunted, trying to see where their attackers were taking cover. 

            “Surrender Ryoko!”  A rough voice cried from the bushes.  “There will be no more warnings.”

            “Go away!”  She cried back.  “We don’t have time for you.”

            “You’ve been warned!”  Another blast exploded from the trees and slammed into the ground, showering dirt over them. 

            “That’s it.”  She launched herself into the air and teleported with Zero mimicking her motion almost perfectly.  Tenchi tried to say something but was too late.

            She appeared high above the tree line and squinted through the leaves and finally caught site of the three people hiding in the brush some thirty yards from the path with a rifle and two pistols.  With a grin, she teleported again, appearing directly behind them with her sword out.  The rifle fired again before she cut it in half and kicked one of the men in the head, hurling him against a tree and into unconsciousness.

            The one holding the rifle turned quickly and fell back over his cover and tried to draw his pistol but she threw an energy blast in his direction and connected with the ground he was about to land on tossing him several feet from the concussion.  The third had his weapon out as she turned to him and he aimed at her head.

            “Freeze!”  He cried in despair, sweat pouring from his forehead and the barrel of the weapon quivering from his nerves.

            She smiled at him.  “But… which of us should freeze?”  She motioned to her left and Zero appeared.  He aimed his weapon at the newcomer. 

            “What the hell?”  He bit his lip.  “Both of you freeze!”

            “But one of us can’t be real…”  Zero grinned.

            “She’s right.”  Ryoko shrugged.  “I guess I’ll just fade out of existence…”

            With that she teleported above him and he panicked, looking around frantically and nearly screaming when he looked up and was staring directly into her eyes.  “Surprise!”  She said, grabbing him by the shoulders and lifting him off the ground.

            He cried out in terror and dropped his gun to grab onto her hands, assuring his safety in his own mind.  She carried him up to a tall tree and dropped him on the branch, hovering away from him a few feet and folding her arms over her chest.  “Now you be a good boy and wait for your friends to regain consciousness.  I don’t have time for you right now.”  She turned to leave and he cried out for her.

            “Wait!  You can’t leave me here!”

            “I already have.”  She said as she winked out and reappeared by Tenchi and Sasami.  “Okay, two problems down…”

            “A billion to go?”  Tenchi finished for her sarcastically as they started down the path again, their wariness increased.