Sasami was running breathlessly through the woods with Ryo-ohki bounding after her.
"Ryoko-onechan! Ayeka-onesama!" she cried as she emerged from the woods and continued to run towards the house.
The clothes were hanging in neat rows on the clothesline, swaying in the gentle breeze, but Ayeka wasn't there. Ryoko was laying on the steps with the broom tucked under her arm. As Sasami got closer, she could see that Ryoko was sleeping.
"...mmmm...Tenchi, that's too rough..." she mumbled blissfully, pulling the broom closer to her. Ryo-ohki leaped forward and landed on her face, meowing loudly.
"...wha...Ryo-ohki? What's the matter?" Ryoko asked, sitting up and putting the broom down next to her. Sasami stopped in front of Ryoko, gasping franticly.
"Ryoko-onechan...we've got...big trouble!" she said between breathes.
"What's wrong, Sasami-chan?"
Sasami looked up and saw Tenchi and Ayeka standing behind the glass doors. Tenchi pulled them open and stepped outside. "Is something the matter? Where's Washu-chan?"
Mihoshi came walking slowly towards them from the couch. Her blonde hair was a bit matted and she stopped behind Ayeka, yawning and rubbing her eyes. "What's everybody doing here? Is it time for the carrot cake already?" she asked sleepily.
"Listen, everyone! This is really bad!" Sasami shouted. She was getting a bit hysterical now, and Tenchi had to gently place his hands on her shoulders before she finally calmed down.
"It's all right, Sasami-chan," he said kindly. "Just calm down and tell us what's happening."
Sasami hesitated for a moment, while everyone looked at her expectantly. Then, she quickly wiped her eyes with her sleeve and told them about Xuno's return.
Back in the woods, the ground was trembling and the dust was swirling as the brazen clashing of a blade reverberated against the hefty trees. In the center of the clearing, Xuno hovered, beaming with satisfaction, proudly holding the dark blade beside him. At the edge of the clearing, Washu stood, the last few photon rays of her force field flickering weakly around her.
"Your force field is strong, I'll give you that," Xuno said, slowly inching towards her. "But there's nothing in this universe that can hold out against my dark blade!"
Washu looked up at him. Her face was covered in sweat and bruises, and her spikey pink hair was singed at the tips. There were numerous tears on the sleeves of her vest, and her hands shook as she raised them to hold up the renmants of the force field.
"So, what are you going to do after you've taken over Jurai and the universe, huh? What's it all for? You're gonna get pretty bored if all you like to do is conquer..." she said, looking straight at him. But he just shrugged.
"Once I have control over everything in the universe, I don't need anything else!" he roared, raising his dark blade before him.
"That awful criminal Xuno is free...and he wants to use Sasami as a randsom to get control of Jurai?! I can't believe it!" Ayeka said in disbelief as she, Tenchi, Sasami, and Mihoshi ran down the path through the woods towards the clearing at the end. Ryoko soared above them with Ryo-ohki clinging to her shoulder.
"Xuno escaped! I have to tell the Galaxy Police right away!" Mihoshi announced as she began to fidget with the remote watch on her wrist.
The group paused when they got to the edge of the clearing. Xuno looked down at them and noticed Sasami hiding behind Ayeka.
"I knew you'd be back with reinforcements, ohime-chan," he said, grinning malevolently.
"You bastard!" Ryoko shouted, conjuring up a large sphere of photon energy in her hands and chucking it at Xuno. Xuno nonchalantly raised the blade in front of him. The energy hit, and immediately disintegrated against an invisible barrier around it.
"You're pretty strong..." Xuno said, eyeing Ryoko with slight caution. "But your attacks are useless against me!" He tightly griped both ends of the dark blade and held it horizontally in front of him. Five large beams of dark energy shot off from it and hit the ground directly at the edge of the clearing. Tenchi and the others shielded their eyes from the blinding dust that arose. Sasami squinted through the dust and noticed Washu on the other edge of the clearing. She was down on her hands and knees, gasping tiredly, the last few particles of her destroyed force field popping out around her.
"Washu-onechan!" Sasami cried, tearing away from behind Ayeka and rushing off towards Washu.
"Sasami, don't go out there!" Ayeka shouted, trying to spot her sister through the thick dust.
Sasami stopped at Washu's side and slowly knelt down next to her.
"Washu-onechan? Are you okay?" she asked worriedly.
Washu flinched as she shakily got to her feet. "Sasami-chan...don't stay out in the open...get back..."
Sasami backed away nervously. Suddenly, she heard Tenchi shout to her.
"Sasami-chan! Look out! Come over here!"
Sasami looked up. Ryoko was continuously shooting bursts of energy at Xuno, but he kept blocking them with his blade. He held it securely in front of him, and the five dark beams shot out from it once again. The first beam struck the ground barely three feet away from Sasami. The second, barely a foot and a half. The third headed right towards her.
"Sasami!" yelled Ayeka.
Sasami screamed and shielded her face with her arms. She heard a loud thump in front of her, but to her surprise, no blow came. She peeked out over her sleeve. Washu was couching down in front of her, clutching her left shoulder, which was bleeding badly.
"Washu-onechan..." Sasami wailed, but was too terrified to move.
"Washu-chan!" Tenchi shouted. He and the others streaked across the clearing towards the other side. Xuno ceased his attack and gazed down at them uncertainly. Washu tried to get up but she started to stumble. Ayeka and Mihoshi came up behind her and gently held her up. Sasami stared at them bewilderedly, tears forming in her deep-peach eyes.
"Washu-onechan...you protected me..." she said quietly. Washu tried to smile at her, but she winced at the pain in her shoulder.
"Oh, Washu-sama, you didn't have to do that," Ayeka said sorrowfully, trying not to let her voice tremble. "I should've done it...I'm Sasami's sister." She looked away shamefully. Ryo-ohki gave a distressful "Mrow."
"We're all like family to Sasami-chan...we all would've done the same thing..." Washu said. She tried to pull herself up but she faltered and Tenchi caught her before she fell.
"Washu-chan, try not to move..." he said.
Washu turned to Sasami and gave her a tired wink. "I just happened to be the one that was closest to her at the time, that's all."
Ryoko teleported down beside Tenchi. She looked down at Washu and sighed sadly. "Damn, he nailed her badly..." she said.
Washu made another attept to pull herself up, but the throbbing in her shoulder became unbearable. "...to think...a genius like me...could do something...so rash..." her voice trailed off, and Tenchi held her up carefully as she slipped into unconciousness. Before anyone could say anything more, Xuno suddenly teleported directly above them.
"I'd better be more careful where I aim," he said, a tone of twisted sarcasim in his voice. "I almost hit the precious little ohime-chan..." He gave Sasami a crooked smile. Then, he scoffed.
"Unbelievable!" he declared scornfully. "The greatest scientific genius in the universe would sacrifice herself to protect someone else?! Such selflessness is the pinnacle of foolishness!" Ryo-ohki arched her back and hissed. Ryoko looked up and glared daggers at him.
"Shut up!" she roared, shooting another photon blast at him. It hit the barrier around him again, and the particles bounced harmlessly away. Xuno laughed.
"Well, I seem to have worn out my welcome now. You've got me completely outnumbered." He held out the palm of his hand and an orb of green light began to flicker in it. He swiftly tossed the orb at Sasami. The minute it touched her, its sides quicky spread out and formed a large circular, translucent barrier that engulfed her. It carried her back up to Xuno's side.
"Sasami!" Ayeka cried, running after the spherical barrier. She stopped short, and spread out her arms. The minute she did, the small cylinders of wood from the sentient trees of Jurai gathered around Xuno. They generated an eletrical attack that struck him, but he seemed undisturbed by it.
"You think the pathetic power of the Jurai Royal Family can hurt me?!" he demanded. He swung the dark blade with massive force. The inertia of the swing knocked Ayeka off the ground, and she landed several feet away.
"One-sama!" Sasami cried, her voice muffled from inside the floating barrier.
Ayeka sat up, rubbing her sore leg. Ryoko flew down and helped pull her to her feet.
"Ayeka, you idiot, that won't work on him!" she chided. Ayeka stood up, but she quickly sunk back down, clutching her leg in pain.
"Oww...I think I sprained something..." she groaned. Ryoko held her up, but she began to move away when she saw Xuno advancing on them.
"Ryoko! Ayeka-san!" Tenchi shouted. He shoved Washu into Mihoshi's arms and ran off towards Ryoko and Ayeka, pulling his sword out from his robes. He held it out in front of him and the shining blue blade of light extended from its top. He leaped forward, raising the sword high above his head, and brought it down hard on the dark protective barrier around Xuno. After a few seconds of clashing, the barrier repelled the attack and Tenchi was thrown off. He landed hard on his side, his sword clattering down next to him.
"Tenchi!" Ryoko cried. She let go of Ayeka(who promptly fell down without the support) and teleported over to Tenchi.
"I'm all right," Tenchi said, hurriedly getting to his feet and grabbing up his sword.
"Tenchi-nichan..." Sasami moaned. Then she gasped as the green barrier around her began to ascend, carrying her higher into the sky. Xuno was moving up along with it.
"Well its been great sparring with all of you," he taunted, "but I've got bigger fish to fry." He rose up quickly now, with the circle-shaped barrier containing Sasami following along.
"You won't get away!" Ryoko fumed, flying after him. But before she could strike, both Xuno and Sasami had disappeard in a flash of dark, foreboding light.
The normally cheery and homely atmosphere of the Masaki house had vanished. After the group had clambered back inside the living room to take care of their wounds and figure out a rescue plan, an air of uneasiness seemed to linger in Sasami's absence.
"Ow! That's too tight, Ryoko-san!" Ayeka yelled.
"If you'd stop squirming it wouldn't hurt!" Ryoko shot back.
"You're just incompetent at things like this!" Ayeka retorted.
Ryoko had been trying to bandage up Ayeka's leg for the past ten minutes, but their constant bickering prevented her from making much progress. Ryo-ohki was sitting on the table amidst the first-aid kit and the bottles of iodine and rubbing alcohol, staring sadly out the glass doors. Tenchi and Mihoshi were crouching over Washu, who was laying on the couch. Tenchi was trying his best to patch up her shoulder with bandages and gauze pads, but he kept turning around every few minutes at the sound of Ryoko and Ayeka snapping at each other. Finally, he told them to cut it out.
"Don't you think we have enough troubles without fighting amongst ourselves?" he asked irritably. Ryoko and Ayeka stopped fighting and looked down guiltily.
"Is Washu-sama all right?" Ayeka asked, still staring at the floor.
"Her wound is pretty bad, but I think she'll be all right. The bleeding's finally stopped." Tenchi replied. After a few moments, he stood up and closed the first-aid kit. Ryoko and Ayeka looked up at him expectantly.
"So, what do we do now?" Ryoko asked.
"What do we do?!" Ayeka shouted. "We find that madman and rescue Sasami, that's what! He's probably heading to Jurai right now!"
"I know that," Ryoko said, glancing around the room. "But who's going to go? Washu can't, and with your leg like that Ayeka, you're pretty much useless..."
Ayeka scowled discreetly. Mihoshi took a step forward.
"I can go! Let me help rescue Sasami-chan," she pleaded. "She must be so scared!" But Ryoko shook her head.
"Sorry, Mihoshi," she said, "but unless you've got a whole fleet of Galaxy Police ships backing you up, that little laser gun of yours couldn't even scratch someone like Xuno."
"Oh..." Mihoshi said sadly. Ryoko turned to Tenchi.
"I guess it's just you and me, Tenchi," she said.
"Guess so..." Tenchi replied. He started walking towards her, but he stopped suddenly, clutching his right arm, his face twisted in pain.
"Tenchi-sama, what's wrong? Are you hurt?" Ayeka asked franticaly. She desperatley pulled herself up from the chair she was sitting in, supporting her weight by leaning on its side. Tenchi loosed his grip on his arm for a second, and a trickle of blood began to flow down.
"Tenchi, what happened to you?" Ryoko asked, grabbing some stray bandages that were skewered on the table and wrapping them around his arm.
"It must've been when Xuno's barrier knocked me down...I'm sorry I didn't say anything about it..." Tenchi said, looking down ashamedly. "I knew you guys wouldn't want me to go if you knew I was hurt, but I didn't want to sit here and do nothing when Sasami-chan is in danger."
"Oh, you're such a sweetheart, Tenchi!" Ryoko squealed, giving him a playful noogie on the head. Then she turned serious. "But there's no way you can take a chance swinging a sword at that jerk with your arm like that. Guess it's all up to me." She started to fly towards the glass doors. Ryo-ohki meowed determindly and hopped after her.
"But, Ryoko," Tenchi called after her, "you're going to fight him all by yourself? Your attacks didn't do anything against him before..."
Ryoko turned around and gave him a devilish smile.
"That was before I knew he had hurt my Tenchi! Now I've really gotta let him have it! And besides..." She looked around the room. "I can't let all the trouble he's caused everyone go unpunished. And if Sasami's not around, how are we ever gonna get our well-deserved carrot cake?" She gave Ayeka and Mihoshi a reassuring wink. They looked up at her and smiled weakly.
"Well, let's go Ryo-ohki," Ryoko said, flying out the glass doors and onto the porch with Ryo-ohki behind her. When they were outside, she picked up the little cabbit and tossed her high into the sky. While suspended in the air, Ryo-ohki gave a strong "Mrrroww!" and her atoms quickly transfigured and spread until she was now in the form of a saucer-shaped spaceship that had four black spires jutting out from the sides of its circular central control unit. Ryoko teleported up to the control unit and placed her hands firmly on the navigating gears.
"Ok, Ryo-ohki, start heading to Jurai as quickly as you can. We'll be sure to catch up to that bastard along the way!"
Ryo-ohki's sharp "Merow!" resonated throughout the spaceship as it lifted higher and higher into the now paling blue sky. Tenchi watched through the glass doors as the spaceship soared away and out of sight.
"Be careful, Ryoko."
Sasami stared despairingly out the translucent green barrier that surrounded her. The barrier was hovering some twenty feet off the ground at the far end of Xuno's salvaged single-unit spaceship, Akumu. Xuno stood at the other end, gazing through the enormous window that encompassed the right wall of the ship. After a few moments, he turned and started to pace around the ship until he stopped in front of the floating barrier. He glanced up and met eyes with Sasami. She quickly looked away.
"Aren't you excited to be heading home to Jurai, ohime-chan?" he asked slyly. "Lucky for us I was able to find what remained of my old spaceship and put it back together. Even if its functions are kind of archaic, it's fairly fast. Now we should be nearing Jurai very soon."
Sasami continued to keep her head turned and not respond. Xuno smirked and went back to looking out the window. His eyes shimmered with imminent glee as he watched the passing stars and planets.
"Soon, I'll rule all of this..." he murmured to himself. Sasami sat with her face buried in her knees, trying to hold back the sobs that were rising in her chest. Suddenly, the faint sound of a spaceship's thrust reached her ears. She looked up and out the window. Sure enough, a small dark spaceship was edging closer, barely visible against the blackness of the space around it. Xuno had noticed it too, and he looked thwarted for a moment. But he quickly regained his composure.
"Looks like someone's come to rescue you, ohime-chan. I figured it would've happened sooner or later," he said, his hand poised tentatively above his sword sheath.
Sasami watched as the spaceship came closer and closer. Finally, the gleaming central control unit and familiar "Merow!" sparked her hopefulness.
"Ryo-chan..." she said, smiling for the first time since she had left Earth. Xuno glared as Ryo-ohki stopped directly in front of the large window. Ryoko came streaking out of the control unit and through the giant window towards Sasami, her photon sword in hand.
"Ryoko-onechan!" Sasami cried joyfully, standing up and pressing her hands against the inside of the barrier. Ryoko gave her a brash smile and brought her sword down hard on the top of the barrier. Numerous cracks spread out along its sides until its entire top half broke off. Ryoko quickly lifted Sasami out of the broken barrier and carried her back towards Ryo-ohki. She stopped suddenly as Xuno teleported right before her, his loathsome dark blade clutched firmly in his hands.
"Take the little ohime-chan back to Earth, and I'll just go capture her again," he said. "She won't truely be freed until you kill me."
"Is that so?" Ryoko said smugly. She descended down to the floor and placed Sasami next to her. She held out her bright, vermillion photon sword in front of her. "...then that makes it simpler!"
"Fine, I have time for a good fight before this ship reaches Jurai," Xuno proclaimed, moving closer to her. Ryoko looked up to Ryo-ohki, who was hovering patiently by the window.
"Ryo-ohki, come in here!" she called. The spaceship began to writhe and shrink until it had materialized back into the form of a cabbit. Ryo-ohki drifted through the window and landed right in Sasami's arms.
"Ryo-chan!" Sasami exclaimed happily, hugging Ryo-ohki close to her.
Ryoko slowly began to ascend in the air until she was level with Xuno. He smiled contently, the blazing dark blade in his hands shimmering with evilness. Ryoko quickly turned to Ryo-ohki, who was sitting alertly in Sasami's arms.
"Ryo-ohki, keep an eye on Sasami while I get this guy out of our way for good!" she said. "Sasami, you'd better take cover."
Ryo-ohki jumped down from Sasami's arms and lead her over behind a pile of disengaged spaceship parts in the corner of the ship. Sasami crouched down behind the pile. She looked up worriedly at Ryoko.
"Ryoko-onechan, be careful," she said.
"Always, Sasami," Ryoko replied. Then she turned back to Xuno, who was steadily raising his dark blade. He narrowed his eyes at her.
"What makes you think you can beat me now when you could barely hit me before?" he demanded.
"A bastard like you wouldn't understand even if I told you..." Ryoko replied. Then, she pointed her sword out in front of her and began to charge towards him shouting, "...which is why I'm gonna show you!"
Xuno gave a blasé smile and quickly teleported as Ryoko's sword barely nicked his arm. She turned around and began to scan the ship for any sign of him.
"Where are you, you coward?!" she demanded.
"Ryoko-onechan! Behind you!" Sasami shouted. Ryoko looked behind her and saw that Xuno was coming speedily towards her, his dark blade held straight before him. Ryoko quickly spun around and blocked it with her sword. The tumultuous clashing of the two powerful weapons made the small spaceship shake.
"Your attacks are useless!" Xuno hollered over the deafening clanging. "Can't you understand that?!" He raised the blade high above his head and brought it down fast in one massive swoop. The extreme pressure that flew out from the swing pushed Ryoko hard against the left wall of the ship.
"Ryoko-onechan!" Sasami cried. Ryo-ohki meowed alarmingly. Ryoko pulled herself out of the small crater that had formed in the wall, and shakily flew back towards Xuno. He smiled shrewdly.
"You've got an admirable persistance," he said with false cordiality, "but there's no endurance strong enough to hold out against my power!" And with that, he charged forward like a deranged armored bull, his blade pointing the way, and his eyes shining victoriously.