Title: The Survivors’ Despair           Author: Triny Crush

    Tenchi ran into his house as fast as he could, to try to escape the
swarms of
reporters. He’d been answering their questions all day with the same
cheesy
and now
painful smile on his face. And although fame had given him a lot including
money, a nice
big house for him and Ryoko to live in, and a chance to get his story to the
world... It
made him miss the life he’d had. The life he’d had with a group of girls
who
changed him
in every single way. The life that got slaughtered and contorted six years
ago....
    “Getting a little sick of the spot light?” came a sweet voice from
the
kitchen.
Tenchi, though he’d been smiling for hours today, couldn’t help but grin
as
he closed the
door quickly.
    Outside he could still hear news reporters and cameras snapping like
crazy and he
knew that if he’d spent another minute out there with the press that
things
would have
gotten crazy. He was glad to be in his house. It was the only place he could
get some
peace any more!
“Very funny.” he said as he slipped his shoes off and headed into the
kitchen. Ryoko, his
fiance’e was standing there next to the stove wearing the apron that
they’d
gotten last
month, making some tea.
“Maybe you should take a rest Tenchi. You do seem more stressed out than
usual.”
Tenchi wanted to laugh but his face was sore. Instead he let out a little
giggle.
“It’s not stress that’s bugging me. It’s those reporters. They just
don’t
seem to go away
some times.” He walked up behind Ryoko and wrapped his arms around her
waist.

“I know what you mean. I got interviewed three times yesterday. They keep
asking me the
same questions too; ‘What’s it like to be married to a war hero?’”
she
finished imitating a
reporter with a deep voice. Tenchi snickered.
“I wouldn’t call myself a war hero.” Ryoko laughed in his embrace.
“Me neither, but why’s that Tenchi?”
“It just sounds kind of weird. I guess I’m not used to all of this
yet.”
With that Tenchi
gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and walked out of the kitchen. He was
tired and he was
stressed out. Ryoko had read him like a book.
“I’m gonna go take a rest.” he hollared with out turning around.
Tenchi
climbed the stairs
to his bed room and paused in front of the door, then sighed.
“They’re calling me a war hero now,” he began to no one in perticular.
“
Why?! I didn’t do
anything! I didn’t save the world from any one! I didn’t stop...
Dante...
All I did was
survive! If any one should be called a war hero, it should be THEM. Ayeka,
Kiyone,
Mihoshi, Sasami, and Washu... They’re the ones who did everything! Ryoko
and
I just
happened to be gone... And no one but us seem to understand! No one seems to
understand it at all... The only way that everyone could get the whole story
would be if I
went into the lab and....” Tenchi paused and suddenly got a wild glint in
his
eye. Foreign
panic and nervousness shot through out his body and unwillingly he took a
few
steps away
from his bedroom door.
    “The lab” was a huge room on the third floor with every single old
photograph,
story, novel, diary, computer file, article of clothing, or possession
belonging to either
Sasami, Ayeka, Kiyone, Washu, or Mihoshi. It was like a personal memorial
that Ryoko
and Tenchi had made together right when they’d bought this house, and when
ever he
thought about it it gave him chills. The lab was the first thing they did
back on Earth, aside
from writing what happened into a book. That book was what made him so
famous,
though it wasn’t the best.
    Tenchi took a deep breath and nodded to himself. “Everyone can’t go
on
thinking
that I’m some big hero when really, I’m not. They need to know what
happened.
” he said
aloud.
“Wasn’t that what that stupid book accomplished?” came a voice from
the
stairs. Tenchi
flinched and glanced toward the voice. Ryoko stood on the top step, a glass
of tea in hand.
“I ... uh.. thought I should bring it to you. But, I did think you’d
rest in
bed.” she mumbled
with only half interest in the words she was saying.
“Oh. Um, thanks.” Tenchi said. The panic and nervousness faded for the
most
part. Ryoko
walked over to him and handed him the tea.
“Ryoko, everyone knows what happened... because of the book... But...”
he
began.
“But?”
“But they just don’t seem to understand all of it.” Ryoko’s tail
swayed
back and forth a
little bit, and she bit her lip,
“What do you mean?” Tenchi took a sip of tea and leaned against the bed
room
door.
“I just mean that I think we’ve gotta do something else... I mean, it
doesn’
t really seem
right to me, for us to take all of this praise and credit for things we
didn’
t really do....”
Ryoko’s stomache started to feel uneasy. She knew that the reporters and
news
people had
been bugging him, but she didn’t think that it was this big of a deal to
him.
If they were
really making her Tenchi feel guilty then she had a trick or two up her
sleeve that she
could use to scare them away. (Think about it, she can summon demons here!)
“Ryoko I think I’m going to go look around in the lab... Do you want to
come
with me?”
Ryoko hesitated.
“I’ll come later...” she said in a quiet voice.
                    ~~~~~~~~~

    Tenchi stared around the room and he felt the memories come crawling
back,
dragging emotions not far behind. The walls were literally plastered with
photographs.
Tons of pictures of the life that Tenchi missed so much. Pictures of Sasami
and Ryo-Ohki,
of Mihoshi and Kiyone in their space police uniforms. Pictures of Ayeka
looking elegent,
and of Washu looking unique, typing on her computer, while sitting on a
floating pillow...
The memories came so fast it was like a rush. Like despair’s rush...
    Kiyone’s gun lay on a stool filled with Sasami’s old clothes. The
two
loyal log-
like gaurdians whom protected Ayeka till the end now stood un-moving,
un-active. They
stood there in the corner, dead... But mostly, the room was full of
Washu’s
old laboratory
equipment.
    Tenchi walked up to one of the computers and began hacking into a
collection of
files that were about the only things that could bring tears to his eyes
anymore. He looked
for about three hours at hyperlinks until he came to the one he’d been
searching for. The
intervies.... Before opening it, Tenchi glanced around the room briefly,
taking an extra
second or two to gaze upon each image he had of his old friends..
“So many memories...”  He said before hitting the load button...

                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    Ryoko knocked on the lab door for a third time. She had the worst
annoyed
look
ever known to life itself. He could at least respond. She set the tray of
dinner she’d made
for him down on the ground and teleported into the room.
“Tenchi?” she called. He was at Washu’s old desk, his head resting on
his
folded up arms.
She floated over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. Her golden eyes
flickered with
interest as she spied what he’d been doing. He’d been writing away at
what
appeared to be
an other book. So far it was only a mere stack of twenty or thirty pages...
    Suddenly a light caught her eye and she turned to look at it. Washu’s
last computer
was on and an image of Sasami was on the screen. It looked like a video of
some sort.
Ryoko waited in silence as a creepy chill creeped up her back.
“Sasami...”

        Washu’s Files: Loading... Data for Interview #1 completed:
subject:
Sasami

    I still don’t understand why you want me to explain how life is going
for
all of us,
Washu. It’s not like there’ll be anyone left to hear this anyways! (two
minute silence) Yes
I understand...
    It’s been three years since Dante and Taylor’s attack. Tenchi’s
house
has long
since been destroyed, so Washu and I’ve been staying in her third
laboratory
for shelter.
She had a second one, but Dante found that one. Back then we had Kiyone with
us still.
But she stayed in the lab and fought him while Washu and I ran. We weren’t
sure if she
ever... survived... But we do know that Dante lived, through the fight that
is...
    Washu doesn’t want me saying where exactly this lab is. I think
she’s
scared that
Dante will find these files and learn all about our hiding places. But I
don’
t know for sure.
I also don’t know why Washu is making me do this interview! Especially if
she’
s planning
on not showing anyone. It just seems kind of pointless to me, that’s all.
    Let’s see... I remember that all the chaos started in the winter.
Ryoko
and Tenchi
were away. I think my sister said something about her stealing him all for
herself. I think
they went some where in space but I’m not sure. They took Ryo-Ohki as a
ship
so that’s
good. I’m glad Ryo-Ohki isn’t here to meet Dante or Taylor.... (Brief
Silence) ... I am not
getting off the topic Washu! Geez!
    Anyways, Mihoshi and Kiyone were staying over. They were on a vacation I
think
because they slept in late and Kiyone didn’t seem as stressed out as
usual. I
had to cook a
lot for Mihoshi. Hehe, she ate so much back then. But um... It was just a
normal winter
day when it happened... (Error in Interview... Transmision failure... Losing
deflection
cloaking unit.... )
<INCOMPLETE>

    Ryoko winced, she didn’t even realize that her dangerous eyes were
beginning to
sting. She picked Tenchi up as gently as she could and began to hover
towards
the door. In
the back round she could hear the same interview repeating itself. Tenchi,
or
perhaps even
Washu, must have set it this way...
    Just as Ryoko was about to go through the door, she glanced at an old
picture of
Ayeka. Her eyes softened and she couldn’t help but smile.
“It’s funny what a rival can mean to you in the future...” she thought
to
herself before
leaving the room. Tenchi could finish this new book later... For now, Ryoko
wanted to
make sure that he didn’t force himself to get stuck in the past. She
didn’t
want him
spending the rest of his time with her, living and re-living the despairing
past. It’s funny in
a way. She’d finally gotten to be with him. Tenchi Masaki and the
legendary
space pirate,
Ryoko, together, finally... And yet in a way he wasn’t with her...
“Tenchi, wake up. The reporters out side are driving me crazy, and if you
don’
t do
something about them, then you can bet your damn ass off that I’ll go out
there and let a
little ball of energy blast them out of the yard.” she said in the best
annoyed voice she
could conjure up, given the situation.
    Tenchi’s dark eyes snapped open and he looked up at her.
“Ryoko? Why aren’t I in the...”
“Tenchi, reporters, me, pissed off, now!” Tenchi yawned as she set him
down
and then
rubbed his eyes saying,  “I’ll go take care of them.”
    As he started walking down the hall Ryoko dropped the “normal” act
and
sighed
deeply. That room, those haunting faces, were the only things now, besides
the wonderful
Tenchi Masaki, that could bring the greatest space pirate to tears. And
those
tears that that
room caused, weren’t known by Tenchi. So in a way, she wasn’t totally
with
him either....
    There has to be a way to change what happened. There just has to! And
god
damn
it, she would find a way to do it! While Tenchi was busy with his truthful
little book he
was working on, Ryoko had her own plans. Plans to change the past and plans
to patch up
their mixed up present. She’d find a way....

To be continued.....