Disclaimer: I still don't own Tenchi, but my therapist has helped me to see past that. Author's Note: See? I promised there was more. Now that I have delved into Ryoko and Hotsuma's relationship, I have to put them back into the Shin storyline. Otherwise, we I couldn't call it an AU Shin story. ;) ************************************************************** Hours later the supernova was in full swing, and they were forced to lower the dampers to block out the blinding light, which seemed to pour like mist though even the smallest opening. Ryoko lay cuddled against Hotsuma's chest, as she fiddled contentedly with his flowing hair. "You know what I'm thinking?" he asked calmly. "What?" she replied with a laugh, expecting this to lead to yet another seduction. "I was thinking that we could use a bigger place. Maybe it's time to start a gang together," Hotsuma yawned, pulling her against him. "Unless you think it's too soon for such a big commitment," he drawled raising his eyebrows and looking up at the ceiling. Ryoko laughed in surprise. "Hmm. You mean a base to call our own? Maybe with a white picket fence?" She wondered if he'd been on earth long enough to get the joke. The deep chuckle rumbling through his chest assured her that he had. "Something like that," he agreed easily. Ryoko seemed quite receptive to the idea, and it would create yet another tie that bound her to him. Everything was going exactly the way he'd wanted from the beginning. Ryoko was happy to stay with him. Yugi was free, and with the Masaki's split apart, the child was safe from the only group strong enough to return her to her prison. That left Hotsuma free to seek the path of blood and glory. He had the promise of excitement and challenge, and a partner who was capable of standing beside him. Life was pretty much perfect. "Okay, but I get to pick the neighborhood," Ryoko demanded with a toothy grin. She poked him in the ribs for emphasis. "Of course, Princess," he replied smoothly. He could see that triumphant gleam light up her bright features, and he fell upon her tickling her mercilessly. Days later, when the supernova had dissipated, they left behind the crest of the colorful firestorm, and its rapidly expanding, boiling gasses. In the place of the Olmeck's sun, a pulsar resonated its song of electromagnetic waves from the heart of the new nebula. The space pirates had researched many possible locations for their base, in the hours between trysts. Ryoko had even found enough time to finish learning the control systems for Gaiyan, and Hotsuma had programmed the ship to accept her orders as surely as it accepted his. They planned to shoot a straight path though some of the more densely populated systems on their way to investigate the base locations. Of course, the route freed them to knock over several nearby banks. Ryoko took the opportunity to fly, enjoying the freedom of it. After hitting the Federated Nobel Bank for the third time, she even got to pilot through a decent chase. Twenty-eight GXP ships came to the rescue of the now rather impoverished financial institution, and Ryoko howled gleefully as she slammed the right thrusters and spun to face them while Hotsuma fired the forward lasers. "All- right, kiddies," Ryoko yelled towards the view-screen, as two of the ships near the center were knocked out by their attack. "You obviously don't know how outmatched you are! Time for your lesson," she grinned wildly. She knew that her transmission was being picked up by the police ships. Robots and remote controls accounted for probably half the ships pursuing them, but the other half would be quite nervous right about now. As they should be. Ryoko hit the afterburners, rocketing them through the opening in the police ship's formation. The police ships, realizing that she was now headed the opposite direction, turned to follow and understood too late that their configuration was too tightly packed to allow for the movement. Several pairs of ships careened into their companion vessels, leaving them crippled and useless. "Ouch! If those weren't the robots, the GXP's standards have gone way down!" Ryoko laughed elatedly. Ryoko pushed Gaiyan's speed to the limit for traveling inside a solar system. One of the GXP Cruisers loomed in the rear projection screen, and Ryoko begrudgingly gave the pilot credit for having balls. She shot a look at the quiet blonde man at the console to her right. "Hotsuma, match our shield frequency to theirs and prepare to lock on their weapons and engines! Fire on my order!" she commanded. "I'm on it," he acknowledged with a nod. His fingers flew over the lighted touchpad, as he accessed the ship's shield controls and targeting mechanism. Two more ships came up to flank the first, and he narrowed his eyes as he adjusted his calculations accordingly. In the next instant, she ordered Gaiyan to perform a backward spin over the top of the cruiser, which would take them inside the larger ship's shields. "Fire!" she yelled, and Hotsuma deployed Gaiyan's main gun in two bursts. The first burst targeted the powerful laser cannons mounted on the top of the ship's wings, rather than it's top forward guns. The blast created two large fireballs that shot out to either side of the center ship and hit the inner wings of its flanking ships. The second burst struck the rear engines causing the large ship to lurch violently as its forward propulsion came to a sudden stop, and it spun sickly under the force of its own momentum. It sideswiped its entourage causing a series of small explosions, as the three ships drifted helplessly. Ryoko flew away on a path perpendicular to the drifting police ships. Two more cruisers were closing in on her from the right. "These boys just never learn," she snickered. Ryoko and Hotsuma were both in high spirits by the time they reached their destination. "Section zero point two. It's perfect," Ryoko thought as they reached a desolate cave-ridden planet with a fiery sky. The colors reminded her of the blazing skies which she had watched with Hotsuma and the colors of the nebula which had been created afterwards. "This is the place," she announced planting her hands upon her hips. "So how do you like it, lover?" she queried. Hotsuma had quickly grown accustomed to her new private nickname for him. And he would be the first to admit, that now when he called her 'partner' it had a new undercurrent. He too saw the sky's resemblance to their supernova, and even the desolate planet's surface reminded him of their little adventure on Olmeck. Besides that the location was perfect--in a desolate belt of waste planets, but easily near several of the richest sectors in the galaxy. Of course the base would be subterranean to shield it from easy detection. Hotsuma smiled coldly as he scanned a large nearby cavern system. He found drinkable water, and more than sufficient space to house a large band of thieves. "It's perfect," he purred. Hotsuma pulled out a heavy black case full of equipment. He began unpacking and assembling an unfamiliar portable control. He unfurled a nest of long power and data transfer cords, which he had Ryoko plug into a series of concealed ports on Gaiyan's exterior. Meanwhile he connected the console to an extra synthesizing generator. By using the information stored inside Gaiyan's memory banks, he could quickly transform energy and raw materials from the planet into the essentials for the hideout. "As soon as we're up and running here, I'll contact Zeltris and instruct him to start using his connections to find possible recruits for us," he told Ryoko, as he hammered off a new series of keystrokes, and began filling the main bedroom with furniture for them. It was like watching Washu at work in her lab under the stairs. He moved quickly, efficiently, and assuredly as he entered line after line of keystrokes. Ryoko wished that Washu was there with them; crazy things were happening to her one after another, but she didn't have any of her friends there to confide in. Sure she was creating a new home for herself, but so far she only had one person to share it with. And since he was the biggest change in her life right now, she couldn't very well surprise him with the news of her "new partner". She wanted desperately to tell someone who'd be surprised. Well, even if she couldn't have her friends with her, she could have something to remind her of what it meant to have people to call family. Ryoko floated cross-legged in the air, drifting directly in front of the distracted blonde pirate. "Hey, lover," Ryoko cooed. "Do you think you could make a special room for me to relax in?" she asked sweetly. She tried her best innocent look. "Just tell me what you need in it," he responded without looking up. Ryoko wasn't sure if she was pleased at his willingness to give her whatever she wanted, or miffed at the fact that he hadn't even broken away from typing long enough to look at her. She let go of the thought as she began rattling off exact specifications for the room. She floated back and forth as though pacing as she spoke, and at the end of her list she looked up to meet Hotsuma staring at her with a strange expression. "Well, you certainly know what you want, Princess," he said, glancing at the sky briefly before locking his gaze with hers. "I didn't expect you to be quite so detailed," he admitted. He turned away from the machine, crossed his arms over his chest, and studied her silently for a moment. "Does that mean you can't do it?" she asked, trying to hide how crestfallen she felt at the prospect. "No...." he replied slowly, "I can do it." He could see the enthusiastic glow immediately lighting her up again. He looked back down at the keyboard and returned to rapidly punching keys. "I just wasn't expecting you to have it worked out so explicitly." "You're the best, partner!" Ryoko exclaimed. She sidled up to him and drew her index finger along his cheekbone as she spoke, punctuating the sentence with a quick tap on the tip of his nose. She beamed at him for a moment, before heading into the caves happily humming to herself. Hotsuma stared blankly at the screen after she'd departed. The description she'd given had been far too specific. Not just the furniture and positions, but exact in the proportions to an eerie degree. She wasn't just creating a place to relax. She was recreating a Japanese living room, and Hotsuma only knew of one Japanese living room she would be so conversant with. He quickly pushed down the thought, just in case Ryoko suddenly teleported back out beside him, but the emotion that came with it refused to let go of him. He entered in all of Ryoko's specifications, silently cursing himself as he did it. Couches, tables, walls and more swirled into existence in one of the more isolated rooms of the cavern system. If Ryoko wanted somewhere to get away, the location would serve well. Reluctantly, Hotsuma added the keystrokes for a surveillance camera hidden along the front wall of the cavern. Something was gnawing at him, telling him that this was one room in which he didn't want to follow Ryoko's actions. He finished the final data input and began to repack the equipment just before Ryoko came back out looking for him. "It's perfect!" she announced happily. "This base is going to suit us like a dream." She floated in the air alongside him and grinned playfully. It might not be like the house she had grown so fond of, but with the addition of her special room, it was easily the next best thing. "Do you want to take a short break and have a little sake with me after we get the computer set up?" she offered impishly. She ran her fingers through one of the long sections of hair that framed his face. "After all, we do need to find some way of making this place feel like home, and I did have one or two thoughts about the matter...." She let her voice trail off. "I.... uh...." Hotsuma began reluctantly. "I have to contact Zeltris after we get the computer up," he hurriedly replied as he packed the large black metal case back in one of Gaiyan's holds. He avoided Ryoko's gaze as he spoke, but he could feel her eyes watching him. "Okay, after you contact the perv," Ryoko agreed shrewdly. "Then we can plan our next job together while we kick back," she continued enticingly. She stood behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist as she rested her cheek against his back. She could hear his heart beat begin to race slightly. "And I was thinking that Gaiyan must have some great images of the supernova from his sensors. There may even be some good shots of us, so we could give my locket its first update after we've settled in." Something about those words eased Hotsuma's feelings, and he relaxed into her. "Sounds good, partner," he purred without missing a beat. He turned to face Ryoko and wrapped his arms loosely about her waist. "Did you check out our room while you were inside?" he teased. "That would be the one with the really big bed, right?" Ryoko replied feigning confusion. He nodded sagely, "Yes, that would be it. Come on, let's finish the rest of this quickly, so I can show you around." He promised her, as he placed a soft kiss on her forehead. After hiding Gaiyan in a makeshift hangar in the largest cavern, the pair set about making quick work of the computer connections. Hotsuma transmitted a brief message to Zeltris, offering him a comfortable commission in exchange for sending them new recruits. He included a date and set of coordinates for the hopefuls to meet him and Ryoko. Then he followed Ryoko down to her private retreat, quietly readying himself for his first view of the Masaki living room. He had a few ideas of ways to make the room more bearable for him. Meanwhile, on Kittros IV Zeltris was having a problem with a pair of unwanted visitors. "So what d'ya think this button does?" asked a bubbly voice, and Zeltris cringed in fear as those long fingers slid across a robotic welder's control panel. Her bumbling explorations had already created enough devastation to cost him a fortune, and the blonde demon still seemed intent on persecuting him. "N-No! No! No! Please, don't touch anything else," pleaded the little greenish man. He looked imploringly, from the walking tornado to the woman who controlled her. "I'll fix anything you want, just please call her off!" He jumped as he heard the sound of a welding torch arcing to life, and closed his beady eyes. As if on cue, a thundering crash nearly deafened him as the welder cut through the nose of the cargo ship he was outfitting. He was going to be financially ruined! The worst would be what his seven ex-wives did once the alimony stopped flowing. He cupped his groin protectively and prayed. "She's really amazing to watch in action, isn't she?" asked the teal-haired keeper of the air-headed menace. "I know one scientist who would vouch that Mihoshi is the ultimate weapon of destruction. Of course, I already knew that." Kiyone continued calmly as Mihoshi proceeded to hit every button on the console in a futile attempt to shut down the welder. The welder headed across the metal floor to cut the supports off a shiny, new hydraulic lift. She was privately relieved that Yagami was parked in a separate hangar. "What do I have to do before you'll call her off?" wailed the desperate black marketeer. He'd just gotten that lift to replace the one Ryoko had blown up on him the previous week. In desperation, Zeltris stretched his arms out protectively and threw his body in front of it. "Please!" The robot stopped as Kiyone pulled the power cord. She stood in front of Zeltris waving the plug at him. "I'm just interested in a little information," she told him, as she wrapped an arm around the shoulders of her bouncy partner. "Good job, Mihoshi," she congratulated. "Uh.... Sure.... I.... um.... I guess," Mihoshi replied absently. "You know this is almost as exciting as going to Washu's!" Her eyes took on a wistful, misty glow, and Zeltris involuntarily took several steps back in fear. "What do you need to know about?" he asked cautiously as he adjusted his orange and purple jumper. He hoped fervently that it would be something easy, but he reckoned that the two extortionists before him wouldn't have bothered to make such a show of force if it were. Before anyone could break the silence, the main computer beeped to announce an incoming recording. Mihoshi lit up and did a little dance in place. "Oh, Kiyone! There's an incoming message! I wonder what it is? I love getting messages," she sighed. "It reminds me of when we were on Earth, and we used to get all kinds of neat mail. I used love the ones with all the stickers for magazines! I wonder if I ever won that million dollars...." Mihoshi blathered cheerfully. Kiyone took the child-like blonde by the hand to insure that she didn't touch anything on the computer. "Maybe you should take that call," she suggested to Zeltris, as her partner continued to babble about their days on Earth. Kiyone heard the words "Space Police Policeman" and groaned audibly. At least she'd finally gotten that promotion she'd always dreamed of, even if she was still forever tied to her luck-vampire partner. Afraid that he might not have a computer left to take the message later, Zeltris did as instructed. He hit the yellow button to receive and a large recording of Hotsuma was projected on the wall-sized screen above him. "Zeltris, the new heat shield performs beautifully, indeed as good as your word. As I said before, we wish to employ you and your many talents again. So I am offering you a little business proposition." The pirate smiled coldly. "Ryoko and I are looking for new associates to work under our command. I'm sure you know the type--tough, follows orders to the letter, not bright enough to work on their own. I'm sending you a location and time for all candidates to meet with us. Just spread the information in the right circles and I'm willing to give you ten percent of each pirate's share in the loot. Think of it as a finder's fee." Zeltris brightened as he watched the message play. He sighed in relief. However crazy and dangerous those two pirates were, they were also very lucrative business. He was saved! Saved from the jaws of financial destitution. Saved from the vengeance of his multitude of ex-wives. Kiyone perked up at the mention of Ryoko's name. She'd been hoping to gather some information on her former roommate here, but she'd never dreamed of learning anything this valuable. Once she brought in Ryoko, she was assured of a promotion straight to HQ. "The coordinates," she said evenly. Zeltris looked up at her like a rabbit seeing a semi-trailer from an altogether too personal view. "Give me the coordinates and my friend and I will go." She gestured as though she were about to release Mihoshi again, and the little man jumped visibly. "I'm doomed," Zeltris groaned miserably.