And now Book I comes to an end. Laugh. Cry. Grab some kleenex. Enjoy
irony.
-->Luna
PS. Reply privately.
Tenchi-Muyo! (No Need For Tenchi!, This End Up) is (c) AIC * Pioneer LDC, Inc.
Aa! Megami-sama! (Oh My Goddess!) is (c) by Kousuke Fujishima, Kodansha, TBS
and KSS Films.
Aa! Megami-sama Muyo! (Ah! No Need For My Goddess!)
A Tenchi-Muyo! and Aa! Megami-sama! crossover fan fiction
By Luna Hinomura
http://fly.to/Luna's
Chapter 12: The Wings of the Light Hawk
When Tenchi appeared seemingly out of nowhere, Ayeka nearly fell over
from disbelief. She stared at the image in the viewing circle Little Washu
had created in Kagato's floor, trying to ignore her pounding heart. "It's
Tenchi! What is he doing here?! How is it that he could be alive?" In that
instant, she felt not only happiness for Tenchi, but also hope that Tsunami
could be alive as well.
"Yay! We're saved!" Mihoshi exclaimed.
A slight smile appeared on Washu's face. She leaned back against the
wall smugly. "My guess would be Lady Tokimi," she said. "It's too bad we
can't hear what they're saying unless they project their words psionically,
but we're lucky that he's here to turn the tide; I don't think there's any
way to get back to the real world from this plane of existence. It's kinda
like a mirror world."
Mihoshi blinked. "What? There's no way out?"
Washu shook her head in reply. "Nope. No way. Absolutely none."
"That's preposterous! There *must* be!" Ayeka declared. "How else are
we going to help Tenchi?"
"I don't think there *is* any way. There's nothing for us to do; he's on
his own now," Washu replied. "Well, maybe nothing except this..." Washu
pushed herself up from the wall and walked over to the viewing circle.
Pulling out a pair of white fans with red circles painted in the center of
the white, she took a deep breath. "Yeah! Come on! Gooooooo Tenchi!" she
cheered, ignoring Ayeka's abrupt facefault.
"Um, are you sure there's absolutely *no* way outta here? I don't get
it," Mihoshi whimpered. Beads of sweat appeared on both Ayeka's and Washu's
brows. "Wait, does that mean we're..."
"Mean that we're...?" Ayeka asked impatiently.
"Does this means that perhaps..." Mihoshi continued.
"Perhaps what?"
"I think it means that perhaps we're trapped on this side!" For a
moment, both Ayeka and Washu remained silent at Mihoshi's blatantly obvious
statement. A second later, something within Ayeka snapped, and she lashed
out at Mihoshi verbally.
"*Yes*, we are trapped in here! We are very, *very*, locked up!!" she
screamed in Mihoshi's face.
"Ohh..."
* * * * *
"Give it up, boy. You can't compete with me," Kagato said, throwing
Tenchi back for the umpteenth time. His white hair had come loose during the
fight, and now spilled wildly across his shoulders. "That Tokimi had better
come up with a better plan then this. The power of Jurai is mine. I'll let
you live just so you can see how easily Ryoko and I can destroy Earth."
"No, Kagato! Stop!" Ryoko pleaded, trying to crawl towards Kagato. "I'm
begging you, please don't hurt anyone else... I'll let you kill me, but
don't hurt Tenchi!" Her words did not move Kagato's stoic heart, and he
kicked at her to rid her of his person.
With the thought of rescuing Tsunami in his heart, Tenchi felt his
strength slowly ebbing. He ignored the pain and stood up again, with the
Tenchi-ken gripped tightly in his fist. Somehow, he knew it would be the
very last time he would be able to stand up after being knocked down by
Kagato.
"What a fool you are," Kagato quipped. "Don't you know when to give up?
Why don't you just watch?" He knocked Tenchi back with another blast, and
extracted the energy from Ryoko's gems again. This time, nobody could stop
him. Gradually, the energy reached a peak, and he used the Souja to fire it
all at the Earth below.
Just before the Life-force Energy reached the earth, a shield appeared
around it, absorbing the Energy entirely. "You see?" Kagato said. "It's
just as I thought -- Lady Tokimi is protecting the Earth. But you..." He
turned to Tenchi and smirked. "Lady Tokimi's power cannot reach here, inside
the Souja. You will die."
When one looks death in the face, they can usually overcome it and return
with more vigor and courage than they ever believed possible. Such was the
case with Tenchi. With Kagato's hand, rapidly being charged with Life-force
Energy pointed directly at his face, he could only sigh and say a silent
apology in his heart. And parts of his life flashed in his mind's eye.
His mother, Achika...
His father, Nobuyuki...
The Goddess, Tsunami...
Sasami... Washu... Ayeka... Ryoko... Mihoshi... Kiyone...
Not to mention Lady Tokimi. She was the person whom he'd had the most
meaningful conversation with before his death. And she had given him
powerful advice before sending him off to do battle with Kagato. If only he
could remember her advice...
"Don't worry; I can do it, Lady Tokimi. I can defeat Kagato, because
I have the Tenchi-ken."
"You cannot and must not rely completely on that sword, Tenchi. It
holds power, but it is merely an inanimate object; it cannot defeat Kagato
alone, and neither can you. It is linked to the Jurai System, but on the
Souja, you will be cut off completely from it. Look deep within yourself,
Tenchi... You have the blood of a Goddess within you. Learn to harness the
power it represents. I am sorry I can only witness your battle from my
vantage point here on Jurai."
With renewed determination, Tenchi pushed himself up once more, meeting
Kagato's blast of Life-force Energy head-on. Seeing this, Ryoko bit her lip,
ignoring the pain from her sharp fangs cutting into her skin. Blood dripped
down from the minor wound and down her chin, mingling with the salty tears
from her eyes. <Killed, yet again...> She was unable to move; she couldn't
turn her head away, even though she knew she wouldn't be able to bear seeing
Tenchi's limp carcass. Thankfully, the blast had enveloped Tenchi completely
in clouds of thick, gray smoke. Kagato urned to her once more.
"Come, Ryoko, I'll kill you now, as you asked," he said, before something
in the corner of his eyes caught his attention.
Tenchi was still there. His own Life-force energy now surrounded him,
and he had erected his own shield. The Tenchi-ken was still clenched in his
hand. Kagato couldn't move, shocked beyond words. "Impossible! The link to
Lady Tokimi should have been cut off completely by Souja!"
With a sigh of relief, Tenchi looked down at the Tenchi-ken in his hands,
and threw it off to the side. "I have been relying too much on this sword.
I will defeat you with my *own* power this time!"
"So! It's *you*! You're the one doing this!!" Kagato yelled, recklessly
throwing another blast of Life-force Energy at him. Once again, Tenchi
emerged unscathed. However, this time, he was surrounded by...
* * * * *
"The Light Hawk Wings!" Ayeka and Washu exclaimed simultaneously. "I
can't believe it!" Ayeka declared.
"What are the Light Hawk Wings?" Mihoshi asked.
"The Wings of the Light Hawk are what we used to protect Ryo-ohki and
Yagami against Kagato before. They comprise Jurai's most powerful shield,
but can be used a weapon as well. You see? It has three blades, and the
three Goddesses of Jurai must be together in order to form each blade," Washu
explained.
"What I want to know is how is Tenchi able to use them," Ayeka commented.
"Well, it looks as if the fight is not over yet. Let's cheer for Tenchi!"
With a smile, she held up one of Washu's fans.
"It looks as if the real fight's just about to begin," Washu agreed.
"And to answer your other inquiry, when you and Tenchi summoned Lady Tokimi,
Kagato shot at you, right? Lady Tokimi must have protected Tenchi, and in
the instant when the shot broke through, the power of the Light Hawk Wings
supposedly dissipated. But what if the power went into Tenchi? Or, if in
that instant, the power flooded over him, and he was able to recognize the
pattern in summoning the Wings... Well, who knows? I'd need to do a few
tests on him, or talk to Lady Tokimi to figure it out."
"You can do that later," Ayeka replied, watching the view screen.
A green mark of three triangles appeared on Tenchi's forehead, and the
three blades glowed in response. He pushed his arms out in front of him, and
two of the blades traveled over him, transforming his previous battle uniform
to one even more elegant. Triangular black battle markings that resembled
Ayeka's appeared across his cheeks.
"The material conversion of energy and light into mass! The power within
Tenchi is *very* strong!" Ayeka exclaimed.
"Yeah, look at all the cool stuff he can do!" Mihoshi echoed.
Ayeka and Washu sighed. "What'd you expect her to say?" Washu asked.
"You know what? I think the reason why Tenchi's so strong is because *I'm*
his Great-grandmother!" She broke off into wild laughter. Ayeka sighed and
looked back at the view screen.
Tenchi reached his hand out and grabbed the remaining blade at the base.
As soon as he touched it, the light transformed into a tangible sword, and
Kagato ignited his own in response. He launched at Tenchi violently, intent
upon destroying him. In turn, Tenchi launched at Kagato at the same time.
An instant later, it seemed like nothing had happened.
"<<Well done, Tokimi,>>" Kagato said, both aloud and psionically. A
diagonal slash appeared, cut from his left shoulder down to his right hip.
"<<You've won. So, Tenchi... I can see now; you're my Great-grandson. I
was blind.>>" As his body disintegrated, both upwards and downwards from the
slash, he closed his eyes.
"<<Goodbye, my Funaho.>>" he said; his very last words before he
disappeared completely.
An instant later, Washu, Ayeka, and Mihoshi appeared in the real world as
the mirror world collapsed on itself. Washu sank to her knees, tears
streaming from her eyes.
"Goodbye... Isamu..." she said.
"'Funaho'? 'Isamu'? Does that mean--" Tenchi started.
"Yes. Kagato was your Great-grandfather, Tenchi," Ayeka said.
<Holy crap,> Tenchi thought, shocked. "But how did you know? How come
*I* didn't know? And..."--he paused for a moment--"How come Grandpa doesn't
look a thing like him?"
Washu sighed. "I disguised myself as a mortal, but Kagato did, too."
Tenchi punched the wall in disgust; he was mad at both myself and Washu,
and the entire planet for that matter. "You mean to tell me that I just
killed my Great-grandfather?!"
"Yes, but only in death was he finally kind. You saw how he was before.
And remember; your Great-grandfather killed you, too," Ayeka said, before a
jolt shook them off their feet.
"Uh-oh... Now that Kagato's gone, the Souja is collapsing! Everyone,
back to Yagami!" Washu ordered. She sounded almost grateful for the
interruption.
* * * * *
As I felt the transportation spell taking effect, I envisioned Tsunami
running towards me with her arms outstretched. For some reason, the spell
felt slightly different, but I ignored it and reached my arms towards her.
Now that Kagato was dead, I knew she would be coming back.
Moments later, we appeared on Yagami. Everything was different. Ayeka,
Mihoshi, and Ryoko were no longer wearing their battle uniforms (and neither
was I), but Washu had apparently disappeared, and a black-haired woman
wearing elegant robes was there instead.
"Ah. Uh-oh," she said, looking at herself.
"What do you mean, 'uh-oh'? Who are you?" I asked. She looked very
familiar, and she had a green circle in the middle of her forehead. Her
brown eyes looked very kind, as did her face, but the expression on her face
was one of utter confusion.
"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you," she replied. "Can I have a
mirror?"
"Who *are* you?" Kiyone demanded.
"It's simple, really. I'm Funaho."
"WHAT?!" we all exclaimed at once.
"I think I need to talk to Lady Tokimi," she said. "This is what I
looked like when I disguised myself as a mortal. That's why your Grandfather
does not resemble me as the red-haired Goddess."
"All right, but how come you've changed back into Funaho? And where's
Tsunami?" I asked. I turned my face up towards the ceiling. "Lady Tokimi!
You said that if Kagato died, Tsunami would return! Where is she?! Why did
you tell me to kill my Great-grandfather if it's all going to add up to
nothing?! It's all one big nothing!! If she can't come back, then... If
she's dead... I'll just... I wouldn't...be able to take it... I'd
just...die..." After my sobbing outburst, I sagged down on the floor of
Yagami, still overcome with shock. Ryoko pressed her hand on my shoulder,
trying to reassure me. Ayeka looked worried, too.
<<It seems I have misjudged,>> replied Lady Tokimi. <<Tsunami has not
reappeared. There must be some aspect that I have not taken into
consideration.>>
"<<Lady Tokimi, why have I reverted into Funaho?>>" Funaho asked.
<<It is because we have lost Tsunami. For all practical purposes, the
Jurai System is down. It will be unable to function until Tsunami is
restored to life, or until we find a replacement. I myself favor the former
above the latter.>> Lady Tokimi sounded tired and depressed, but not as
tired and depressed as I was.
"<<As do I,>>" Funaho replied.
<<Return to your home, Tenchi. It is all you *can* do for now. Forgive
me for any pain it might have caused. We will find her; I guarantee it. A
few tests, perhaps, Sister Washu. Or shall I call you Funaho now?>>
"<<I'd prefer 'Funaho' if I'm in this body,>>" she replied, signaling
Kiyone to direct Yagami back to Earth.
"Oh, that's right, I forgot," I said softly, reaching into the pockets of
my shirt. "Lady Tokimi told me to give this to you." I pulled out an egg,
and handed it to Ryoko. I pulled out a new crown, and handed it to Ayeka.
"Right before Kagato killed Ryo-ohki and me, Lady Tokimi was able to protect
us. Your sister laid another egg. Unfortunately, she hadn't thought of
protecting Tsunami."
Ryoko looked at me with both sadness and happiness in her eyes. She
looked like she couldn't decide whether she cared too much, too little, or
was just plain worried about me. Ayeka took the crown in her gentle hands
the same manner. I just looked out the window of Yagami, out at the stars.
Once again, I had a vision of Tsunami trying to run towards me, but the image
disappeared before she even came close.
End of Chapter 12
Epilogue
I went about my daily chores apathetically, not paying attention while I
did each job, and probably doing a lousy one at that. The others had given
me some slack now that they saw how much I'd been suffering since the Kagato
incident. They didn't even let me decorate our annual Christmas tree. I
wish I could have celebrated Christmas with Tsunami.
"Lord Tenchi, why don't you go upstairs and rest?" Ayeka suggested.
"Please... You look very tired."
Nodding with the same apathy, I plodded upstairs, ignoring the looks of
sympathy the others sent in my direction. Nothing felt right anymore. I
fell face down on my bed, burying my tear-streaked face in my pillow.
Willing myself to stop crying, I flipped on my back and stared at the
ceiling. I sighed. Everything was much too quiet. With Tsunami gone, no
one seemed happy anymore, least of all me. I pressed a random button on my
CD player without even looking, not caring what played, though I expected to
hear Megumi's voice again.
I sat up quickly when the CD began to play and a woman began to sing.
The CD may have sounded familiar, but I knew it was one that I hadn't placed
into my stereo for quite some time, since I couldn't even remember which CD
it was. One of the others might have come into my room before to listen to
CDs, but I doubted it. Reaching over, I hit the eject button to examine it.
Hmm... Chisa Yokoyama. Interesting.
I miss Tsunami.
End of Book I