NOTE:  This is an alternate dimension fic.  That
means the characters met differently, or didn't
meet at all, or are totally different beings
than they were in their respective series ^_^;;
Any questions, just e-mail me and I'll answer
them.

frozen_angel18@hotmail.com

Disclaimer:
I do not own any of these Tenchi Muyo! characters,
they are copyrighted by AIC and Pioneer.  This fic
is for entertainment value only, not for profit.
So please don't sue me, I'm broke.

Demon of Dreams
By, Heather B. Kytes

<Prologue>

Thunder rumbled in the distance beyond forests
thick with trees.  The ominous sound seemed to
emanate from every corner of the cold, quiet Jurain
world as night settled over the land like a blanket
of stars made hazy by puffy black clouds.
        Mihoshi tilted her head up, her wide, innocent
blue eyes blinking at the dark sky above.  Her mouth
opened and noises of awe escaped her throat as rain
began falling in dreary drizzles.
        "Oh, crap," Kiyone said, rolling her eyes as
she hurried through the thick forest with Mihoshi
dragging behind her at what seemed like a snail's
pace.  "I thought the rain wouldn't come till
tomorrow night.  Mihoshi, hurry the hell up!"
        "This is so exciting," Mihoshi bubbled, ignoring
Kiyone's orders, as usual, and carrying on at her slow
speed.  "I love it when it storms."
        "Yeah, storms are great, but not when I'm caught
in them," Kiyone muttered, putting a hand over her
head in a futile attempt to block herself from the rain
that was steadily growing heavily.  "The way it looks,
we'll be trapped inside the damn cave until the storm is
over."
        "We'll be together, Kiyone!" Mihoshi exclaimed
happily.
        "That's exactly what I'm afraid of," Kiyone said.
She shook the water off her flashlight and shone it on
the path below their feet.  "I think we're almost there,
thank God."
        "What are we doing again?" Mihoshi asked,
cheerfully ignorant.
        Kiyone sighed, though she'd been expecting such a
question.  "I'll tell you when we get to the cave.  Just
keep moving."
        The drizzle became a downpour.  Kiyone grabbed
Mihoshi's sleeve and tugged her along the path, careful
not to slip in the mud puddles forming beneath their
feet.  The beam from the flashlight wavered and shook as
the two fifteen-year-old girls ran.
        "There it is!" Kiyone cried joyously as soon as
the black mouth of the cave buried deep in the cliff
wall appeared in front of them.  She dove into the
covered area, Mihoshi tumbling in after her.
        "That was fun," Mihoshi said, sitting and smiling
at Kiyone.
        Kiyone squeezed the water from her teal hair and
black clothes.  "This is the ancient shrine, right?"
she said worriedly.  She didn't know if there were
other caves around this area or not, and in this kind
of weather, it had been impossible to read the map her
boss had provided.  She shined her flashlight on
the walls, looking for the telltale markings of
holy Jurai.
        There it was.  The two trees connected at the
roots.  Painted near the entrance.  Kiyone sighed with
relief.  "Okay, Mihoshi, let's get to work."
        "What are we doing?" Mihoshi asked.
        "We have to find the secret room of this shrine
where the Gems are.  We're here to get the Gems of Shadow
and Light for the boss.  Remember?"
        "Oh yeah.  Okay, let's find the room," Mihoshi said.
        Kiyone took the right wall, and Mihoshi went to the
left.  "Tell me if you find a fork in the cave so you
don't get lost," Kiyone called out as Mihoshi faded into
the darkness where Kiyone's flashlight beam couldn't
reach.  Mihoshi had lost her flashlight early in the
journey, which had started the previous day.  The Black
Forest of Jurai was called Black for a reason, and so
Kiyone had expected a day or two of navigating through
the forest to get to the cliffs.
        After ten minutes of running her hands over the
right wall in search of a switch or strange crack where
a door might be, Kiyone felt her enthusiasm start to
wane.  Just hearing the tumultuous rain outside made her
yearn for her warm bed at home.  She wondered briefly
why she had turned to the life of a criminal, then the
reason came back to hit her full force.
        *Money*
        That was all it was.  She wanted to be rich, and
this seemed like the way to go.
        Hell, if she pulled this off, she'd never have to
go to school again.  She could fly to some exotic planet
and live a life of luxury.  That was the goal.
        Granted she could find the secret door!
        "I've got it!" Mihoshi exclaimed.
        Kiyone rolled her eyes.  "Yeah, right," she
muttered.  She made her way to where Mihoshi was.
"What is it?" she asked, sighing in a bored manner.
        "Is this it?" Mihoshi asked.  Kiyone watched in
mute wonder as a section of the cave wall disappeared
into itself, forming a small entrance into another room.
        "I can't believe--you got it!" Kiyone exclaimed.
She smiled at the beaming blonde.  "Great job.  Now
let's get inside and get those gems!"
        The two girls entered the adjoining room quickly.
Kiyone shone her flashlight over the walls expectantly,
only to find nothing but smooth, uncarved stone
surrounding them.
        "Dammit, it's a fake," Kiyone said, hitting her
leg in frustration.  "Of course the ancients weren't
stupid.  There must be a dozen such decoy rooms.
There's no way we'll find the gems like this."
        Mihoshi looked at Kiyone with tear-filled eyes.
"We can't go back to the boss without the gems.  He'll
kill us."
        "I know."  Kiyone knelt down, pressing her hand
to her forehead.  "Think, think," she muttered, closing
her eyes tightly.  "I know there's something I'm
forgetting.  In the legends the boss had us read and
memorize.  What was it--?"
        Then it hit her.  The King had said, "And the
demons shall rest here, in this ancient cave, in the
place most light, for the light shall forever trap them
in their dark prison, along with these two jewels of
magic . . ."  So all they had to do was look for the
light.
        "Come on, Mihoshi.  Let's look for the area of
the cave with the most light.  I think we'll find the
correct secret room there."  Kiyone switched off her
flashlight so that they could find the spot of light.
        The search took hours, and the storm outside
only got worse, not better.  But finally, when Kiyone
was beginning to feel like passing out and dying on
the ground would be better than trying to get the gems,
a spot of light appeared in front of them.
        "That must be it," Kiyone said, a smile breaking
over her lips.  She felt all sweaty and dirty, but if
they found the gems, it would all be worth it.
        "Where's the light coming from?" Mihoshi wondered
aloud, grasping the back of Kiyone's shirt as if for
dear life.
        "Who cares?"  Kiyone smoothed her hands over the
wall.  "Help me find a switch or something."
        Before Mihoshi could act, Kiyone's hand brushed
over an odd bump in the rock, and the wall to their
left creaked open in a cloud of dust.
        Kiyone jumped back to avoid inhaling the gray
mist.  Once the air cleared, she clicked her flashlight
on and hurried through the doorway and into the new
room.
        Glittering on the far wall were two gems, one
black and one white.  The rock wall was painted with
holy Jurai symbols of trees, ending in a swirl around
each gem with old writing inscribed in between the
gems.
        "Maybe this isn't such a good idea," Mihoshi
whimpered, cowering behind Kiyone.  "What if the demons
come out after we take the gems?"
        "Demons aren't real, Mihoshi.  Besides, it's
been centuries since they were imprisoned here.
They're long dead."  Kiyone shook Mihoshi off her back
and walked forward.  "Let's hurry and get the gems
before we're found out.  I've heard stories that the
Jurain government occasionally moniters these shrines."
        Kiyone removed the small metal prying device out
of her backpack and held it under the edge of the
quarter-sized black gem.  She applied pressure, steadily
increasing it until she felt the gem start to budge.
A smirk danced on her lips as the gem popped out of the
wall into her hands.
        "Those ancients' magic is no match for modern day
technology," she bragged, placing the gem carefully in
the satchel tied at her waist.  "Get the other,
Mihoshi.  Quickly."
        In the flickering light, Kiyone saw Mihoshi's
hands trembling as she pried the gem out of the wall
and handed it to Kiyone, who placed it with the other.
        "All right.  Let's go," Kiyone said, feeling as
if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
        Then the weight came back ten-fold.
        "Wha--?" Kiyone mumbled as the paralyzing
sensation crept throughout her body.  She tried to
turn her head to look at Mihoshi but was unable.
        "Kiyone!" Mihoshi yelled from somewhere close
by.  "I can't move!"
        Kiyone felt it then.  A presence of something
that could only be described as pure evil.  Total
dark.  "The demons," she whispered, not believing her
own words, but finding no other explanation.  "We've
released the demons."
        Terror filled her.  She struggled with all her
strength to move, to cry out, and ended up with a
pathetic yelp.  "Someone, help."
        A flash of light filled the room, so bright
Kiyone had to close her eyes.  When the light behind
her eyelids faded, she opened her eyes to see the
noble King Azusa standing in the doorway, his purple
eyes flaming like flares at Kiyone and Mihoshi.
        "You have no idea what you've done."  His voice
was colder than winter in the Arctic.  "No idea."
        Kiyone couldn't find the words to reply.  The
paralysis left her suddenly, and she felt herself
fall to the floor.  Unable to break her fall, she
landed hard, hitting her head on the cold stone
below.  Before she blocked out, her eyes focused on
the still figure of Mihoshi to her right, and she
realized with horror,
        *She's not breathing!*