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+---- Thread: [RFC][SI][Multi-Xover]Being You is Suffering (/showthread.php?tid=8440)
- classicdrogn - 07-07-2014
Wow, you're lucky Clay hadn't managed to evolve any of those into Dodrios! Why do you not have a "store current weapon" or "swap equipment set" command for the C-pod, though? Much better than leaving your illegal chemical weapon launcher just lying around on the battlefield like that.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
- ECSNorway - 07-07-2014
Quote:Wow, you're lucky Clay hadn't managed to evolve any of those into Dodrios!
For a minute there I misread this, and was wondering what was so bad about evolving them into Doritos.
I mean, going from rabid bear-monsters to crunchy cheese-like corn chips? coolness.
--
Sucrose Octanitrate.
Proof positive that with sufficient motivation, you can make anything explode.
- robkelk - 07-08-2014
ECSNorway Wrote:Kill all you want, he'll make more.Quote:Wow, you're lucky Clay hadn't managed to evolve any of those into Dodrios!
For a minute there I misread this, and was wondering what was so bad about evolving them into Doritos.
I mean, going from rabid bear-monsters to crunchy cheese-like corn chips? coolness.
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."
- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012
- Black Aeronaut - 07-12-2014
Extra large update, too! And good news! We have a buffer again!
Once more, into the breach!
Ryoko delivered us precisely onto the platform. I'll have to
complement her sometime about it – from what little I know about
teleportation in this universe, that is no mean feat and Ryoko pulls
it off on a regular basis and with the ease of breathing.
The platform was a sort of temporary unit to contain Bizen until she
was brought back to Jyurai and placed back into the Royal Nursery.
Since Yume had committed Bizen's original partner to space, there was
no body to bury. Normal Jyurai custom was for the tree to be planted
as both a grave marker and a grave keeper. There was a somber
symbolism in that. Unless the current partner wills it, the tree
will be bonded with that person even in death. And as we know,
planting a tree cuts it off from Tsunami's power, thus it slowly
loses its sapience until it is simply a mundane, if beautiful tree.
But apparently, Bizen's previous partner wanted his tree to find
someone new...
...And that she had.
“Alright!” said Funaho briskly. “I know we're in a hurry, but
we have to do this right. For that, Ryoko, I'll need you to fetch
Ayeka for me – I need her as a second witness under the House of
Jyurai.”
Ryoko nodded. “Right, back in a second!” And she was gone just
like that.
“Good, now Yuki-chan? I'm sorry, but this ceremony is going to
hurt a bit. Bizen is going to need some blood to properly key her
Master Key to you, so I'll need to borrow one of Garrick's swords to
cut your hand. Do you understand?”
Yuki looked a little nervous at the prospect, but nodded regardless.
Ryoko then appeared with Ayeka, who then ran to Yuki and scooped her
up into a crushing hug.
“I am so sorry it has to be like this, Yuki-chan,” Ayeka said as
she cried softly. “The bonding ceremony is supposed to be a
beautiful thing. I never wanted what happened to me to happen to
anyone else.”
“Sister, Clay's coming,” I said, not unkindly, but urgently. “We
need shields!”
Ayeka set Yuki back down, kissing the top of her head before she
turned and nodded to me. She then turned to Funaho.
“I'll do this where I can watch the bonding. Please hurry, mother
– I don't know how long I can hold him off.”
Funaho nodded as Ayeka cast her arms out wide, summoning a myriad of
the little logs that were the physical manifestation of the power
shared between her and her tree, Ryuu-Oh-no-Ki. And the shield then
snapped into place.
“Son, I'll need you to use one of your swords and carefully cut her
hand. She'll be healed afterward, but don't make it too deep.”
I nodded as I drew First Cut. “Got it.”
“Now comes your part, Yuki. Listen to Bizen – she will tell you
exactly what you must say.”
Yuki nodded and looked to Bizen, a far away look suddenly coming
across her eyes.
“I, Yuki Mihara, just as the First Emperor did on the First Day,
hear your voice, Bizen of the Second Generation of Tsunami-no-Ki,
progenitor of all trees of Jyurai. I swear to care for you in all my
days, until I am no longer able to. In return, I accept your gifts
of power and long life. And now, I shall seal this pact with my own
life force. Accept this blood sacrifice, Bizen, and forever be at my
side.”
Funaho nodded to me and I knelt down by Yuki, taking her left hand
gently and pressing one of First Cut's cutting edges carefully into
her palm. Yuki winced and squelched a whimper. She didn't even look
at it, but instead went straight to Bizen's mighty trunk and pressed
her wounded hand against the bark.
The blood sank into the bark and something incredible happened. Thin
tendrils grew out of the trunk, wrapped themselves around her wrist
and formed themselves into a beautiful and intricately woven
bracelet, bound close around her wrist so it would not come off. A
jewel of amber formed within the bracelet, and the tendrils fell
away.
Then, on what seemed to be a final instruction from Bizen, Yuki went
to the pool that surrounded us and dipped her hands into the water,
cupping them and drinking deeply. As soon as she was finished, she
then winced in pain again, her face grimacing in agony.
“It's fine,” Funaho said as I went to Yuki's side. “It is the
Water of Life. Normally, it is a powerful healing agent that can
even bring a person back from death... but in the Bonding Ceremony,
it is what perfects the body so it may last for thousands of years.”
I nodded as I held Yuki's trembling little form close to me. Right
then, her body wasn't really changing much. Everything was staying
in the same place it had always been... the real changes, though,
were more profound and much deeper. Every cell in her body was
having its DNA rewritten, re-sequenced, and cleared of any and all
imperfections. She would never age beyond her twentieth year of
life. She would never suffer from any form of cancer or congenital
illness. The stemcells that she had remaining would function
perfectly for far longer than they had any right to – uncorrupted
by time and wear.
Clay wailed against Ayeka's shields, but by the Goddess she held him
at bay and with such a vicious look of determination and righteous
indignation. Even so, her shield was starting to visibly crack.
“Come on, tiny love,” I whispered to Yuki with gentle urgency.
“Snap out of it. We need your help.”
Suddenly, Yuki stopped trembling in my arms and stood up. She was a
bit wobbly and unsteady, but she wore her usual look of
determination.
Yuki Mihara was back in action and I knew that she would not be
stopped by ordinary force.
“No more running,” she whispered and walked to Ayeka's side. “No
more hiding,” she stated, her voice beginning to pick up. “I may
be small, but I will no longer be weak! I refuse! I will no longer
be the one that needs to be protected! Instead, I will be the
protector!”
Yuki the held out her left arm, hand balled in a defiant fist and the
gem on her Master Key sparkling.
“BIZEN!” she cried out ferocious triumph. “REQUEST PERMISSION
FROM KIRITO FOR OFFENSIVE USE OF LIGHTHAWK WINGS! WE SHALL MAKE THIS
MAN PAY FOR HOW HE HURT OUR BELOVED!”
Regardless of whether she got that permission or not, a trio of
massive Lighthawk Wings appeared, centered where Yuki had her fist
pointed, and enclosing Ayeka's shield. A split second later, the
wings spread out into full coverage and Ayeka dropped her own shield
and sagged to the deck, even as Clay raged impotently against Bizen's
Lighthawk Shield.
“Magnificent, Yuki!” sighed Ayeka as the strain left her body.
“Absolutely magnificent... though maybe I should start thinking of
you as my little sister as well – step-mother is sure to adopt you
as well.”
“I suppose I should,” Funaho said with a self-depreciating smile.
“At least, so long as you don't mind, Yuki-chan?”
Yuki didn't take her eyes off Clay for a moment, but smiled
regardless.
“No, not really... I was already preparing myself to think of you
as my mother-in-law... I'm glad though... My own parents can be so
distant, but you're so warm and gentle. Sometimes I just want a
hug.” Yuki then scowled up at Clay. And then she screamed with
all her repressed rage and fury – the shear vitriol carried by the
sound of her voice alone was cringe inducing, and all the more
shocking for her tiny and innocent appearance. “YOU HEAR THAT!?
YOU WANT TO TAKE THAT AWAY FROM ME!? JUST TRY IT AND I'LL DO
TEN-THOUSAND-TIMES WORST TO YOU!”
Oh wow. Yuki never talked about her home life. Now I knew why. It
was the classical absentee parent syndrome – a regular occurrence
in Japan. For sure, plenty of Japanese women were
stay-at-home-housewives... but many others worked part-time jobs in
restaurants or as office ladies once their children could take care
of themselves. And in Japan, that could be as young as five or six
years of age.
For at least six years or more, poor little Yuki Mihara had been
living a lonely life. For her, running into me must have been a
godsend, no matter the circumstances.
I went to Yuki and Ayeka, settled between them both, and wrapped an
arm around each other them, pulling them both close... my tiny little
fiance and my beloved sister.
“Death will be too good for you, you little wench!” snarled Clay.
“Your shield won't last forever!”
“It doesn't need to last forever,” I said with an evil smile.
“Just until help gets here. Isn't that right, Tsunami-sama?”
Clay's expression faltered and he looked around comically.
But there was no sign of Tsunami.
I quickly started to become worried. I could have sworn that there
was something in the air that reminded me of Tsunami. It was so
distinct – a sense of power in the air that made me feel hopeful
whenever I encountered it.
“Oh... I'm not
my sister, but I am impressed that you noticed me arriving, child.”
And
then her image appeared, standing high above everything as it was her
utter and divine right to do so. Coiffed in elaborate clothing of
burgundy and black and a gravity defying cape of white, the heavens
seemingly hidden within her skirt, the golden head dress perched on
her brow, overlaying her brown hair... But most of all, that sharp,
regal face, ornamented with grass-blade designs, and those imperious
black-within-indigo eyes.
I was expecting Tsunami.
Tokimi had arrived instead.
Clay actually blanched.
“So, this is
what you have been up to? Stealing this child from his home?
Warping his mind to rewrite his name? Thinking this would not go on
unnoticed!?”
“Hah! Even you must admit that he is everything you have been
building towards.”
“He may be
evidence that such beings exist, but he is still a child! A
neglected one, perhaps, but still a child.”
“As if you ever let that stop you!”
“He was beyond
our reach and he should have remained so! Your overreaching has left
me no choice – I shall deal with you myself as I should have
before!”
And then just like that... Clay was gone.
“What did you do with him?” I asked.
Tokimi
frowned. “Nothing. It was not him. He was never here.
This... was a feint.”
I blinked as the implications of that began to cycle through my head.
“Mother?”
“Yes, my son?”
“You know how I'm not usually phased by much? I am now officially
worried.”
“You're not alone in that regard, Garrick.”
Funaho and I were suddenly interrupted. “So, you are the one that
has Tsunami's attention.”
There in front of us was Tokimi at a human stature. This was not to
say, though, that she still wasn't imposing.
“I am,” I said as I stood up, and bowed to the youngest of the
Choushin. “Garrick Grimm, Mada-”
Tokimi silenced me with a gesture. “That is all, young one. My
curiosity, for now, is satisfied.” She then turned to leave, but
paused, looking over her shoulder. “Become strong, child. There
are many beings out there that would like to make a meal out of you.”
And with that, Tokimi vanished.
“Who... Who was that?” Ayeka asked somewhat nervously.
“Tsunami's angry little sister,” I replied. “the Third of the
Three Choushin.”
Ayeka gave me an astounded look. “And she just...”
I shrugged. “Clay was her servant. It only stands to reason that
she'd feel somewhat responsible I guess.”
I felt a hand on my shoulder. “We need to get you to Jyurai,”
Funaho said quietly.
I nodded and looked to Yuki, expecting to answer about a thousand
questions.
Instead, I found her to be slumped against my side, out like a light.
So, I picked her up, feeling a deep and profound love for the little
girl who had at last returned the favor I had done for her. That
felt like it had been years ago.
I walked over to Bizen, placing a hand over the trunk.
“You don't mind if I take her with me, do you, Bizen?”
There was a short moment of silence as the tree contemplated my
request, and then the beams of rainbow light shined down from her
leaves and I heard the tree's sweet, contralto voice in my head.
“When Tsunami
called for any volunteers... I did so without hesitation. I liked
her the first moment I saw her. So very strong of heart. So willing
to fight for what she loves. But despite that strength... Katherine
tells me you have realized that she has been alone until she met you.
Yes, she was indeed a little girl that was infatuated with a strong
male figure... but then she discovered that he was just like her –
alone despite not really being alone, warm despite the cold world you
bore through... she couldn't help herself. You were everything she
ever wanted.
“She fell
hopelessly in love with you.
“If you had
refused her flat-out... it probably would have killed this poor
child. Instead, you have wisely offered her familial companionship
and warmth until she is old enough to make a proper choice. When she
made a horrible mistake, you did not really punish her – instead
you brought home the consequences of her choice to her in realistic
terms, and she has learned more in this month than she has most of
her life.
“Because you
have been so good to her, she now loves you more than herself. I
know, this can be a very bad thing. But, in time, I will help her
with bringing her emotions to heal. For now, though... Take little
Yuki-chan with you – she needs you more than we need each other.
Besides... she and I are only a thought apart.”
I
looked up to the canopy and smiled as I pulled my hand back.
“Thank
you, Bizen.” I then turned and saw that everyone else had arrived.
Tenchi
and Ryoko were helping Ayeka up, pulling her into a hug. Funaho,
Mihoshi, Washu, and Goghei stood aside, watching the tableau with
smiles. Sasami, though, her hair still not put back up into
pigtails, came right up to me and wrapped her arms around my waist as
she buried her head in my side. Smiling down at her, I rubbed her
back.
“I'm
so happy for you two,” said the blue-haired princess softly.
“You
and me both, little sister.” I then turned to the others. “Let's
all get the hell out of here.”
Ayeka
and Sasami said their goodbyes to Goghei and Asahi, extracting a
promise to be notified when the wedding date was set. I myself went
and made sure to collect any toys I had left behind – in
particular, Sun Spark. Funaho comforted me in that this being a
Jyuraian territory that the Galaxy Alliance will remain ignorant of
Sun Spark's unusual properties... so long as I only ever use it in
similarly dire circumstances.
As
for the carcasses, Washu handled that. She was very curious to see
what sort of lingering compounds had been left behind from Sun
Spark's burning chemical death.
Before
we left, though, Hishima and Goghei had it out, and just as he had in
the original time-line for the manga, Hishima adapted to Goghei's
ultimate attack. I was there for it, but my heart wasn't really in
it... come to think of it, I don't think anyone really was. Even
Goghei himself seemed resigned to the inevitable and was merely going
through the motions. Not that Goghei didn't give it everything he
had. Hishima was still a bit put out, though.
We
were in no real rush as we left on Hinase.
It was Funaho's suggestion – we needed a couple of days to get our
heads back together and she needed a day or two to finalize the
arrangements for our being there as well as the ceremony. There was
also the matter of having Bizen and Katherine placed into proper
Jyuraian Central Units and then taking them to Ryuten to have the
exterior hulls fitted. I suggested that we summon up Ryu-Oh from
Washu's Lab and have that Central Unit fitted out as well. Funaho
and Ayeka both thought it was a splendid idea.
Yume
surprised us by joiing us on Hinase,
and again by ordering Hishima and Takashima to remain on their own
ship – if she had need of them, then she'd call on them.
For
my part, I simply loafed around. Heck, we all did to one extent or
another. Sure, we all helped Sasami make dinner, but it was a
low-key affair – home-style chicken and vegetable curry, better
than CoCo Ichibanya. Dear sweet Goddess help me, but I devoured two
heaping plates. Yuki, bless her little heart, ate nearly as much.
No one complained, though. We made sure to make more than enough,
because the only thing better than curry is curry that's been left to
sit a day or two in the refrigerator. In fact, it was the point
entirely so that Sasami wouldn't really have to cook much before
reaching Jyurai.
We
were all gonna smell like cumin by the time we got to Jyurai and
nobody gave a shit.
Our
torpor extended through the rest of the evening – the only real
exception being me making sure that Yuki stayed caught up on her home
work.
“Okay,”
said Yuki boredly as she shut a work book. “How much more?”
“That's
the last of it, tiny love.”
Yuki
then looked up at me with a serious gleam in her eyes. “Family
bath time.”
I
smiled and nodded my head. “Family bath time.”
(Due to a slightly NSFW situation...)
![[+]](/images/collapse_collapsed.png "[+]")
SpoilerYOW. I think I needed to open a window after that last bit...
- classicdrogn - 07-12-2014
bring her heart to heal -> heel, unless that's a particularly oddly phrased way of saying that he'll heal her heart. From the rest of the conversation, it sounds more like he already has, though.
joiing us on Hinase -> joining
I hadn't expected Yume to come on quite so strong as this - from her perspective, she's already set the hook as far as catching Garrick is concerned and just has to reel him in, you'd think she'd want to reduce the tension between herself and the other women involved rather than gloat in the faces, and presenting it like this to him is just about the worst possible way as well, playing up the mind-rapey aspects.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
- Black Aeronaut - 07-12-2014
Don't worry, she makes nice with the other girls in a little bit.
- Bluemage - 07-12-2014
All of a sudden, I feel sorry for Yume.
...well, maybe not so much, since she did go for Garrick, and we all know that he'll give in eventually. But that whole 'tricking the guy into marriage/sex' thing never works out well.
If I'd been in your situation there, Yume would die a virgin. Of old age, preferably.
My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.
I've been writing a bit.
- Black Aeronaut - 07-14-2014
Just a little taste of the shenanigans to come... and to remind everyone that Garrick is certainly not immune to the genre conventions of Tenchi Muyo...
“There he is!”
“HE'S SO COOL!”
“I WANNA HAVE HIS BABIES!”
“Whoah!” I said fervently and then took of at a dead sprint,
vaulting through an open window. I bounced through a series of
branches and found myself rolling out in a large open space.
“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?” bellowed a voice. I turned and
there was Emperor Azusa, standing before his throne in outrage.
“GRIMM!?”
“Ah!” I said in honest surprise and I bowed apologetically. “My abject
apologies, your Majesty...”
“He's in the throne room!” echoed a girl's voice from behind a
set of large doors. “Quickly! Get the logic probe!”
Comprehension dawned on the Emperor's face and he shot me a deeply
concerned look.
“Don't just stand there, boy!” he snapped. “There's a
servant's lift behind that root in the corner! Run!”
He didn't need to tell me twice!
- classicdrogn - 07-14-2014
Heh... nice reference there.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
- Black Aeronaut - 07-14-2014
Honestly, I didn't intend to replicate the scene from Tron that closely. I figured that the doors would be secured with some sort of high-tech locking device, and the term 'Logic Probe' popped in thanks to EPU's usage in Undocumented Features. (Slappy Squirrel as a crotchety, aged Salusian super-admin for the Wedge Defense Force? Fucking Brilliant!)
The rest of the scene just fell together after that. Pretty sure it was just my subconscious just throwing it at me from behind a curtain. :p
- ECSNorway - 07-14-2014
Yup. Even the Emperor understands the need to RUN IN TERROR.
--
Sucrose Octanitrate.
Proof positive that with sufficient motivation, you can make anything explode.
- Black Aeronaut - 07-15-2014
Heh-heh. Well, if you ever read the Shin Tenchi Muyo Light Novels, you'd know that Azusa was something of a protege for Seto - a Special Pet Project with the aim of reestablishing the Masaki Household amongst the rest of the Royal Houses of Jyurai. He is only too familiar with Seto's own personal brand of shenanigans. In fact, if I ever do an outside perspective, I'll have it so the Old Man himself suddenly breaks down into gales of laughter after Garrick makes his exit.
I'll be posting the rest tomorrow after a little more time doing some QA, but here's a small taste of what's coming up next... Figured that since you guys were so concerned about Yume...
When
I arrived back to Minagi's bedroom suite, it was to an incredibly odd
tableau.
Yume,
bound from her neck to ankles in seemingly endless coils of rope like
a damsel-in-distress from a cheesy Saturday morning cartoon. She
wore an expression of long-suffering patience.
Yuki
and Minagi were on either side of her, both wearing eminently
satisfied smiles.
“Okaaayyyyy,”
I drawled out. “I was expecting a lot, but this was not exactly
one of them.”
“How
so?” asked Minagi coyly.
“Everything
in here is still intact.” I replied, a touch dryly.
- ECSNorway - 07-15-2014
Are English translations of the novels available anywhere?
--
Sucrose Octanitrate.
Proof positive that with sufficient motivation, you can make anything explode.
- Black Aeronaut - 07-15-2014
Found some here: http://tenchiforum.com/v3.0/novelsmenu.html
Seems kinda rough - as usual, I don't believe the translator is a native English speaker, but you know how it is - we'll take what we can get.
- Black Aeronaut - 07-15-2014
Okay, this is about as polished as I can make it for now. There's a lot
of character building happening in this tidbit here. Washu puts her
foot down on Garrick, Garrick in turn has to put his foot down on Yume,
and Yume is forced to humble herself to get what she wants. Minagi goes
on the defensive on Garrick's behalf, and Yuki comes out of the closet.
If one were to ask Garrick about it, he'd just shrug and say it's been one of those kinds of months...
“I
was worried about this,” Washu sighed after I explained what had
happened in the bath. “I blame myself, really. There were a lot
of signs, but the clearest one of them all was the fact she bit you.
Honestly, I should have done something then.”
“You
can fix this, right?” I said. “I mean I can't be going around
wanting to screw her like an animal every time she shows up.”
“I
could fix it,” Washu admitted. “But really, at this point it's
for the best if you learn how to control it.”
I
blinked. “I can?”
Washu
nodded. “You're right about wanting to 'screw her like an animal'.
Because it's coming from the animalistic part of your brain – the
part that handles all your base desires and needs, including the
desire to have sex and reproduce. Keep that in mind and you should
have no problem in dealing with her.”
I
was a bit astounded that Washu was brushing this aside like that, but
I wasn't going to give up so readily.
“Okay,
yeah, animal side of my brain,” I said a bit sarcastically. “The
primitive part that's separate from the cerebrum. Got it. Still
doesn't help me if I'm in the middle of something and she comes on by
and I start thinking about pinning her to a wall and ripping her
clothes off.”
Washu
snorted. “Kinky, but it sounds nice in an immediate kind of way.
Really, Garrick, it is for the better. Besides, didn't you extoll
over her qualities at one point in time?”
“Aren't
you being something of an enabler here?”
Washu
gave me a sharp, calculating look. “Okay,” she said levelly. “I
will admit, I am kinda rooting for Yume here. But at the same time,
Garrick, just like you push Tenchi to be a leader, I'd like to push
you to fend for yourself without resorting to my help.”
I
fumed for a moment and Washu just kept staring me down. But then I
thought about it for a moment. Washu had been helping me with a lot
of things lately. Granted, it was mostly her own interest to see
what sort of plausible insanity I could cook up if she just turned me
loose on her stockpiles of advanced technology. But even so, a lot
of that was me coming up with inventive ways of working around the
power-gap between me and everyone else here, such as Sun Spark and
Raiden's Toothpick. Not to mention all the other times she's gone
out of her way to not only save my life, but also make sure that I
won't always need intensive medical care if I get 'roughed up' a bit.
“Alright,”
I said slowly, still a little peeved even though I had recognized
that I had developed a nasty sense of entitlement lately. “So I
have to deal with it then. How is this supposed to work between her
and I? I'm not just gonna be some sperm donor.”
“No,
that's not how she was raised,” said Washu. “Believe it or not,
while Yume may view her servants as mere tools, the man she chooses
as a mate is not someone she would trifle with – he's not just
going to be a sperm donor. Think about it, Garrick – intelligence
factors into her criteria, but that's nothing without someone willing
to pass on their knowledge. And besides, she already knows you'd be
a good father figure.”
“Yeah,
I get it...” I sighed as I quit pacing and plunked myself down into
a chair. “Do you think Yume was being serious when she said that
she wouldn't cause any trouble for the other girls?”
“She's
a schemer, not a liar,” Washu replied perfunctorily. “If she
says that she honestly wants to work with your other paramours, then
she will. Don't forget that she comes from a survival-driven people
that band together in packs. Strife in the pack is not a healthy
thing. If anything, she might be good for the makeup of your
household – she'll make sure that everyone toes the line.”
I
blinked at that. “So you're saying she'll be my enforcer? Weird.”
Washu
shrugged. “Not her style, really. She just won't tolerate having
to deal with anyone's crap. Anyhow, I know I said I shouldn't swoop
in to rescue you, but that doesn't mean I can't lend a hand. That
said...” Washu reached into her pocket and pulled out a pair of
innocuous looking pills. “Here, swallow these.” she said as she
handed them to me.
“What
are they?” I asked as I looked them over in my palm.
“They'll
suppress her pheromones' reaction with the receptors in your
olfactory nerves. But not completely. You'll still feel a moderate
physical attraction to her – just not an immediate desire to have
sex with her. And it's only good for forty-eight hours. Use that
time to keep her around and decide if you want her to be part of your
family or not.”
“Alright
then,” I grumbled as I popped the pills and swallowed. They had a
candy-like gel coat that made them easy to swallow. A spoon full of
sugar really does help the medicine go down.
“Good
on you,” cheered Washu, but then her expression sobered.
“Honestly, Garrick, I do hope that you two hit it off despite this
bad impression. Yume's actually a good friend of mine – we had a
lot of fun back in our Academy days even though we never really
collaborated much. It'll be nice if we can call each other family
someday.”
“Yeah,
well if we don't click, then we don't click. Otherwise, I'll just
take your word on good faith and give the pint-sized terror the
benefit of a doubt.”
When
I arrived back to Minagi's bedroom suite, it was to an incredibly odd
tableau.
Yume,
bound from her neck to ankles in seemingly endless coils of rope like
a damsel-in-distress from a cheesy Saturday morning cartoon. She
wore an expression of long-suffering patience.
Yuki
and Minagi were on either side of her, both wearing eminently
satisfied smiles.
“Okaaayyyyy,”
I drawled out. “I was expecting a lot, but this was not exactly
one of them.”
“How
so?” asked Minagi coyly.
“Everything
in here is still intact.”
Yuki
laughed and Minagi shook her head, but was smiling regardless.
“After
you left it was like Yume relaxed some,” said Yuki. “Of course,
Minagi and I were still kinda angry with her... we didn't even
realize she wasn't fighting back until we were half-way done tying
her up. She didn't even say anything to stop us. It was kinda
weird.”
“Did
you think I was lying before?” grumbled Yume, “I want to show
good faith on my part. I won't be the one to cause trouble... well,
at least no more than these two are willing to handle.”
I
crossed my arms and gave Yume my patented 'pull the other one' look.
“Cute,”
I said with sarcasm I only half-felt. Really, Yume was an adorable
little spitfire. The trouble was that there were times that she was
just so full of piss and vinegar... But that aside, Minagi and Yuki
were still steamed with Yume, and I wanted answers myself. “Yume,
what the hell happened earlier? I mean, besides the obvious. Why
did you come on to me in such a way that was gonna antagonize me and
my ladies?”
Yume
looked down in shame. “I... stopped taking my inhibitors.”
“Inhibitors?”
I asked. “What do they inhibit?”
“Hormones,
mostly,” Yume said. “You remember what I said about how this all
works? Part of the reason for that is that it saves our ova cells
for when they'll be most useful. You see... my kind's reproductive
system is among the most efficient in the world. We only ever
ovulate after
intercourse, so there is a far greater chance that every one of our
ova will be put to use – it is a rare thing for a female of my kind
to reach menopause.
“To
make sure that we are doing our part, we have a hormone that builds
up in our system over time that drives us to seek out our mate. It's
how we know we're ready – when the desire to find an acceptable
male becomes overwhelming. The act of mating will purge the hormone
from our systems, but it will slowly build up once more, ensuring
that we keep having babies to maintain our population.
“I
am over five-thousand years old and as you know I have yet to take a
mate. When I stopped taking my inhibitors this morning, I didn't
think it would hit me so hard. I only really realized what had
happened after you left, so I took a half-dose of my inhibitors right
away... and then Minagi and Yuki cornered me. The rest you know
about now.”
Well,
that was food for thought.
“So,”
I said thoughtfully, “you just had some kind of insatiable mating
urge overwhelm you, but you're feeling better now.” I gave Yume an
appraising look. “Okay. I think I can accept that... but there's
something that's still bothering me. I'm still wondering exactly why
you suddenly chose me. There has got to be more to this than me just
coming in and derailing things. I get the idea that I may represent
some prime candidate in the primeval sense, but what more is there?
Why me?”
Yume
sighed. “Lady Funaho kept records of you. She noticed that I was
fixated on you, so she let me see some of them... Her recorded
observations about you, the letters that Princess Sasami wrote, and
even some video recordings. You are not just smart. You're
alpha-male material. Not simply because you like to establish
yourself as a leader, but also because you will work with others to
make them better – like how you keep pushing your younger brother
to be a leader himself and how you whipped Yuki into shape.
“The
strongest packs aren't the ones with males and females that seek to
utterly dominate their underlings. In those packs, where the leaders
destroy any that may pose a threat to their position and status, they
only destroy that which would make their pack strong. Such packs are
short-lived and are, in turn, destroyed by stronger packs that foster
leadership in the lower ranks. If this means a young pup will take
the place of an honored leader, then it is not only deemed
acceptable, but the new leader will be groomed by the elder to take
their place.
“So
you see, my interest in you is not simply some perception of status.
Among my people, a good leader amongst the males is also a good
father – someone that teaches the pups, raises and protects them
with care. The Pack is Family, and Family is everything. Do you
think I would want anything less for my children?”
I
gave Yume a hard look. “No, you wouldn't. But what of the male in
question? How he feels about you and your actions towards him?”
“Do
you not want something similar?” asked Yume in return, her look
just as hard as mine. “Look around you! You already have the
beginnings of an excellent pack! You have two highly valuable
females. Minagi is a proven warrior. Yuki, on the other hand, is
too young to mate. However, she is turning into an excellent female
in her own right! Do you think I didn't see how she willingly
underwent her transformation? She did it not only for herself, but
for you! If this is the pack that you are building, then I want in.”
Yume then bowed her head, seemingly in shame. “And I am willing
to humble myself if that is what it takes... I only want the absolute
best for my children.”
Children.
Is that all she really wanted? But the problem there is that from
her perspective, a mate is part-and-parcel with children. I could
honestly appreciate and even honor that, but I still had concerns.
Katherine, any
chance that you can see what her pheromones are doing to me?
Unh!
Replied my tree cheerfully. They're definitely trying to
do a number on you. Washu-chan's remedy is working, though –
nowhere near as many are activating the receptors in your olfactory.
I think those mating hormones of hers are tied to her pheromone
production. If you do make pictures of spring with her, then it will
taper off – she won't produce as many pheromones and you'll be a
little more desensitized.
Who's side are
you on!? I thought back at my
tree in bewilderment as she giggled at my expense. As
attractive as that sounds to my baser self, not right now. I want to
get to really get to know Yume before I decide whether or not to make
her mine... Ugh, no, I mean to accept her...
Really,
it kinda hurt my ego to have that thought. There really is a part of
my mind that wants me to dominate and rule over any and all women
that come my way. Fortunately, it's tempered by my compassion for
their feelings, so at its worst this part of my mind is reduced to
wanting them to submit of their own free will instead of raping
everything in sight.
Katherine,
on the other hand, simply giggled again.
It's okay,
Gar-kun. I know it's kinda tough when your mind is all fuzzy from
Yume-chan's smell. You just wanna gobble them all up for yourself,
don't you?
I rolled my eyes and thought back, You know you aren't helping
much, right?
Katherine giggled once more. In the end, I'm really just another
one of your girls. We just relate on a different level... but on
that level, I'm more than happy to have Gar-kun gobble me up, too!
Om-nom-nom-nom!
I had to keep myself from laughing at that last bit.
So, my women wanted me to 'gobble them up' as Katherine put it. That
may be what the natural man does, but it's not what I am supposed to
do. Granted, I did this with Minagi – she practically threw
herself at me and I obliged her, giving each other comfort in our
sharing of our bodies and hearts.
But now, things between Minagi and I were deeper. She was ready to
start a family, and that meant I had to be a lot more selective in
who I shared my body with, let alone become apart of the family. Add
Yuki into the mix as well...
...Well, if you look deeply enough into historical and religious
texts where good and righteous men had more than one wife, you would
find that he simply didn't make any decisions on the spur of the
moment. He first had to hear what all of his wives' thoughts on a
given matter, and then weigh their opinions with great care before
deciding on a path.
In all reality, this is only common sense no matter how you slice it.
You can't run roughshod over anyone in your family. Everyone's
feelings need to be taken into consideration. Even if you can't
please everyone at once, what is important is that you took the time
to hear them out and gave it an honest try. (In my opinion, this
would be especially true of the children – they're the ones who are
impacted the most by a patriarch's decisions!)
“Minagi?”
I asked.
“I
don't like what she did,” Minagi said thoughtfully, mulling the
situation over in her head. “She's subverted your feelings. That
is not right, even if it is how her people do things.” She then
gave Yume a harsh look. “You should have tried to win his heart
before doing that to him.”
Yume
flinched at Minagi's rebuttal, but said nothing. Her only response
was to lower her head even further.
I
sighed and then looked to Yuki. “What do you think, tiny love?”
Yuki,
for her part, hummed thoughtfully, and suddenly reached out, lifting
Yume's face to her own, and stared deeply into Yume's eyes. Yume
started at the sudden intrusion of personal space, but relaxed
somewhat when she saw that no attack was forthcoming.
“You
don't like being alone, do you?” asked Yuki suddenly, surprising
all of us at once.
“How
can you tell?” Yume
replied sullenly.
“Because
your eyes are just like how mine used to be. I was alone, too...
until Garrick saved my life. Minagi used to be lonely, too. Even
Garrick... I think his loneliness was the worst.”
I
went over and gently nudged Yuki aside, then hunkered down and looked
into Yume's eyes myself. Yuki was right – there was a lot of hurt
hidden in those angry looking eyes, and only the least of it was
fresh from the last few days.
Was
that what this all boiled down to? It would make sense, especially
if Yume really did come from a pack-based society. Being alone all
that time, no one to support her, with only herself fending for
herself... it was a miracle she was as sane as she was.
I
felt a wave of pity for the pint-sized genius, so I looked to Minagi
once more.
“Well,
what do you think?”
Minagi sighed and I could tell that she was honestly struggling with
this. Of course she hated what Yume did to me, but having dealt with
the pain of solitude herself she could also somewhat understand why
Yume would suddenly become so desperate.
Minagi finally gave Yume a sharp look. “Alright... You came from a
place where women are in charge? It's different now. He's the one
in charge. Not you. Not me. Not Yuki-chan. And when he finds a
woman of the Jyurai family to marry, not even she is gonna be in
charge. Garrick is very kind and very lenient... and I can tell he
wants to give you a chance. I don't know for sure if this is your
bite messing with his head, but if you hurt him at all... I'll
destroy you.”
I placed a gentle hand on Minagi's shoulder and I felt the tension
slowly begin to bleed out of her.
“I
submit,” Yume said in a small, almost broken voice. And really, I
could tell that Yume was broken up inside. She wanted this – she
wanted it so desperately that she was willing to swallow every bit of
her broken pride, choking down every jagged shard of it, just so she
can have what was most important to her: a family and the chance to
bring about the next generation.
Feeling
that it was the right thing to do, I knelt down in front of Yume,
gently put my face to hers, giving her a soft nuzzle, and inhaled
deeply. Her soft musk
filled my nose and I immediately felt a deep-seated desire to hold
her close. Yume pressed herself against me as I inhaled. She almost
seemed to purr.
So, this is what
it feels like to have your animal-brain mess with you,
I thought to myself. It's not unpleasant... but I can see
how it can get out of control. I
sighed as I pulled away from Yume. Yume herself was blushing as she
looked downwards shyly.
“Well,” I said at something of a loss for what else to say.
“Since you girls have given your probationary approval, then we
should get started.” And with that, I carefully swept Yume off her
feet in a bridal carry and took her over to the bed. There, I sat
her down and began to work at the knot in her back.
Soon enough, the coils all fell away. Yume was left bare of anything
except panties and a chest wrap.
“There, that looks better,” I said.
Yuki giggled while Yume scowled. “What's so funny?” she asked.
Rather than say it, Yuki lifted her pajama-top, revealing her own
chest wrap.
“We never really thought about it because we were too quick getting
dressed again.”
“Well, I don't know about you guys,” Minagi interrupted with a
smirk, “ but I think we should keep the ropes and tie her to the
bed.”
Yume said nothing. She only blushed. She wasn't the only one.
“Well, let's get under the covers,” I said. Yume was about to
ask, so I preempted her. “With all of us under the covers it gets
awful warm, so we adjust the environmental controls to mimic
conditions I'm more familiar with: the desert at night. That means
that it gets cold and dry in here at night, so it's best if we all
cuddle together.”
And just like that a cool breeze passed through the room, making Yume
shudder.
I got in first, followed by Yume. Yuki, surprisingly, snuggled up to
Yume.
“What are you doing?” asked Yume suspiciously.
“You don't have any night clothes with you,” said Yuki, playing
it straight. “You'll need someone on your other side to help keep
you warm. Besides, you're Sasami-chan's size. When we spend nights
together, we like to snuggle like this because we're like sisters.
Also, if you want Gar-kun so badly, then you have to get me, too.
We're a set, after all.”
“I appreciate the thought,” grumbled Yume, “but maybe I should
just borrow a set of sleeping clothes.”
“Nope,” stated Yuki, and before Yume could say any more on the
matter, she tangled Yume's legs with her own. Yume gave Yuki a
startled look, only for Yuki to give her a peck on the lips. With
Yume utterly stunned, Yuki smiled coyly at the pint-sized
supergenius. “I like how you feel... it's a little like Gar-kun...
so solid, but so soft and warm.”
Yume turned her head to give me a shocked look and I had to suppress
a laugh.
“Yuki, tiny love? Do you like Yume?”
Yuki talked through a yawn. “Unh... she may not be like Minagi-nee
yet... I guess that is part of why I like her.”
“So you are attracted to girls as well?”
Yuki was quiet for a moment. “You won't be angry?”
“Of course not, tiny love. I just want you to be happy and honest
with yourself and us.”
“Honestly?”
“Honestly.”
“Well... I used to like only other girls. It always felt safer
because my father told me how nasty and mean other boys could be.
But I learned that there is one man I really like.” Yuki lifted
her head up and gave me a sleepy looking, beatific smile. “I love
my Gar-kun... and I hope that Gar-kun and my sister-wives will love
me just as much.” And with that, Yuki flopped back down into her
spot and snuggled a little closer to Yume, who continued to give me a
surprised look.
I simply shrugged. “I had wondered about it myself, but I never
knew for sure until now. So, now that we're all comfortable...
Yume... I want to know all about you. Tell me about where you came
from and how you got here.”
From there, we spent a good deal of the night talking quietly
together.
Yume had come from a very hard world – it was covered with
temperate conifer rainforests and had huge predators like massive
feathered theropods. There were smaller varieties, too. Some
deadlier and more intelligent than others. Some of the smallest ones
her people had been able to domesticate, much like how wild horses
and wolves had been.
Prey animals consisted of massive, wooly sauropods – dangerous to
hunt, not only due to their size and lethality, but also because the
predators were opportunists and had no issue with poaching another
kill.
Yume's people were descended from a race of raccoon-like mammals.
Omnivorous, dextrous, intelligent, and adaptive, they thrived in the
kingdom of giants and began to make tools, agriculture, and a
pack-based matriarchal society.
At some point, pirates had arrived on her world and enslaved a good
number of her people, forcibly uplifting them so they could better
make food and mine for raw materials. Eventually, the Galaxy
Alliance caught on to what was happening and annihilated the pirates
– no quarter was given to the slavers. But for Yume's people,
there was no real going back. While they had their freedom, they
also knew very well about the existence of other worlds with other
people and the technology they possessed.
However, while her people welcomed their freedom, they stoutly
refused space-faring technology. They only took what they felt was
needed for their survival, such as advanced medical technologies,
food preservation technology, and weaponry to defend themselves and
hunt with.
It was at this time that Yume had been born. Yume herself had been
an up-and-comer during this golden age of her people. Intelligent
and cunning before her time, she was going to be the next matriarch
of her pack... until when she was the equivalent twenty Earth-years
of age, she went with a trade caravan to the Galaxy Police Outpost to
trade their goods with the Outsiders for the very first time.
Once Yume saw how the Outsiders traveled to the stars and learned
just an inkling of what was out there, she rebelled.
“The old fools!” Yume murmured tearfully. “They are so blind!
They are so stubborn to refuse the gift of traveling the Galaxy! We
could be a great people... Instead, we scrabble in the dirt and mud
and prey on stupid beasts.”
Yume was quick to take action. Stealing away in the middle of the
night, she left her pack and her home behind. All it took was a
single general intelligence examination administrated at the GP
Outpost. She blew the curve away and the next day was granted a
full-ride scholarship to the Galaxy Science Academy.
Once there, Yume continued her streak, blazing a trail through her
coursework like woman possessed. But at some point in time, Yume's
interest was caught by a fellow student at the academy. He had been
every bit as brilliant as she was, and because of this she desired
him as a mate. But when Yume had given him her bite, the man had
reacted far more poorly than I had – he had nearly killed Yume.
Heartbroken, a more wise and cynical Yume went out, graduated, and
stayed on to continue her research and learning.
And then she met Washu.
“That was a trip,” Yume said ruefully. “I'm pretty sure you've
seen her when you think she's in high-gear, but that's nothing. I've
seen THE Washu Hakubi as a full-blown nut-case. Trust me, handsome.
She's mellowed out over the millennia.”
There were anecdotes and stories about what kind of nonsense these
two got up to, especially where getting one over Dr. Clay was
concerned – those stories were especially outlandish to the point
of being noodle-incidents. And then, of course, there was the whole
“Washu's Pore” incident. The two, along with Kagato and Yakage,
became living legends on the campus.
Eventually, Yume's admiration of Washu overcame her and she had asked
if Washu would provide Yume with an ovum, and waxed on about how
incredible a child made with their genes would become a tour de
force in the science community... especially if Washu helped her
to raise the child.
Washu, while taken aback, was honestly flattered, but politely
declined. After she had lost her first child to the political
machinations of the Kuramitsu family, she had no inclinations to try
again with anyone, be they male, female or otherwise.
Soon enough, Washu was made the head of the Science Academy and she
and Yume had gone out to celebrate.
The rest, as they say, was history.
She then heard Minagi's tale – admittedly shorter since she had
come into being only shortly after Washu and Yume went their separate
ways.
Then came my even shorter story.
And then we told her what we knew about Yuki (because she was already
sound asleep and thoroughly wrapped around Yume).
“... That blows,” Yume said at last as she smoothed back Yuki's
hair to get a better look at her sleeping face. “I can't believe
they'd take their own daughter for granted like that. Had she been
born in my pack she would have never been neglected. Hell, she'd
probably have been one of my contenders for the Matriarch's spot.”
Yume then looked at me. “And you, handsome... oh, the elders would
have loved you. Intelligent and pragmatic almost to the point of
ruthlessness, yet loving and doting... They would say that you were
a gift of the gods and I don't think they would have been too far off
the mark. Too bad you couldn't have been born on my world, but then
I might have never left.
“And you, Minagi... I'm sorry about what happened before with your
father's sword. I had no idea what it really meant to him...”
“We all have regrets, Yume,” said Minagi with a sigh. “All we
can do is make a better tomorrow.”
“Yeah,” I said sleepily. “How about we all start by catching
at least a few REMs? It's getting early.”
“Best idea I've heard all night,” said Yume.
“Agreed!” replied Minagi.
As we all settled in to sleep, Yume's hand reached my face and turned
it to to hers. All at once, she kissed me hungrily, her sharp teeth
softly nipping at my lips.
“Hmmm...” sighed Yume. “Not bad. I hope this is indicative of
what intimacy with you will be like.”
“Sweet Tsunami, you have no idea!” came Minagi's voice.
I laughed softly at that. “Get some sleep, crazy eyes.”
Yume scoffed. “Same to you, handsome.
Theerrrre ya go. So, how terrible is it?
- classicdrogn - 07-15-2014
I'm a little "eh" on the patriarchal tone, but it's not squicky-strong and a valid lifestyle choice as long as everyone involved is okay with it. I think the worst is that they're probably going to wake up to the sudden gap where Garr gets yanked out of the universe, honestly.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
- robkelk - 07-15-2014
First, the typo: "become apart of the family" should be "become a part of the family", unless she's being shown the door.
Second, Minagi's kinky...
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."
- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012
- Black Aeronaut - 07-15-2014
*Shrugs* Patriarchy is what I was raised with. Like Garrick said, though, it's no excuse to run roughshod over anyone in your family simply because you're the patriarch. We actually have a term for it in the LDS Church: Unrighteous Dominion. It's a pretty serious offense and men can be stripped of their priesthood for it.
As for Minagi... Well, I feel it's kinda expected... I mean her mother is Washu... and damn, if you've ever seen the uncut TM!OVAs you'd know for a fact Washu is kinky as all hell! She really did try to get a semen sample from Tenchi and even offered to use her mouth! The only thing that kept her from doing it was Mihoshi showing up at just the right moment. (Honestly, I think Washu is the biggest pervert in the Masaki household - even more so than Noboyuki. She just does a better job at keeping it in check, what with her 20,000 years of life experience.)
Yeesh! These segments that I wrote are bigger than I thought! I'm gonna run out of buffer fast... Right now, I'm being held up on polishing everything else up and writing up The Big Chase. (Imagine Tenshi's escapades running from the girls in War on Geminar, only bouncing through a tree that's five-miles tall instead of a sprawling campus...)
- Bob Schroeck - 07-16-2014
Quote:because my father told me how nasty and mean other boys could be.I'd drop the "other" in this, because it's got no proper antecedent, and it implies that her father knew about Garrick in advance in order to exclude him from the nasty and mean boys.
There was something else, but I can't remember or find it now.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
- classicdrogn - 07-16-2014
Like I said, valid lifestyle choice. I very strongly believe that the affairs of a household are only the business of the people involved as long as it's all consensual, certain standards are involved on "who is eligible to choose to participate," and no one is getting hurt, or at least not beyond what they enjoy in certain cases.
RE Bob's comment, I'd read that as "males other than himself" but yeah, probably better to just drop the "other."
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
- Black Aeronaut - 07-19-2014
Hey guys. Just chiming in to let you know the next bit is gonna be delayed. With a combination of San Japan and one-or-two other conventions in town right now, I'm getting hammered at work. But rest assured, I will get back to this soon, and with a vengeance.
- classicdrogn - 07-19-2014
No worries, you gotta do what you gotta do.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows
- robkelk - 07-20-2014
What CD said. Keeping yourself alive, sane, and happy is more important than keeping the rest of us entertained.
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."
- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012
- Black Aeronaut - 07-22-2014
CD - just noticed that new addition to your sig.
While we're waiting, here's some bits and pieces I have sitting in the compost bin.
This first one is a meeting between Tsunami and Tokimi... and Tokimi is somewhat taken aback.
Here is the one
I told you of, sister.
Is he now?
Remarkable that D3 never mentioned him.
Washu didn't
detect his arrival, either. She only noticed when his vehicle bumped
against the house.
Fascinating.
The skill it takes to transport someone without making a single
ripple... But that aside, I still don't understand why you feel I
must look at him.
His soul,
sister. Look at it carefully.
Oh? What is
so... oh... oh my... I've never...
You see now?
This is the proof we've been looking for! And someone threw it right
under our noses!
But he isn't a
Choushin! How does this prove anything.
Don't you
understand? He is an infant still!
You mean...
Yes. He is not
a choushin... yet. But he will be when he matures.
Does Washu know
yet?
No. His power
is so weak, it is barely even a spark.
And what of this
Tenchi of yours?
We're still
trying to determine what he is. But no matter how you look at it,
Tenchi far outshines him. It is no wonder Washu has not noticed.
How long until
he matures, though?
I do not know,
Sister. If what was taught by his faith is true, then it would be a
very long time, even by my children's standards.
Can we
accelerate his maturation?
I wouldn't try
it – it's too dangerous, and he is the only of his kind we have
ever come across. Besides... he has already been hurt so horribly.
Very well then.
We will do this your way. Strange, is it not? I have Z. Washu has
Tenchi. And now you have this poor, lost child.
In a way, Tenchi
is mine as well. But I see your point. Washu takes a more active
role with him anyhow. And while Sasami loves Tenchi... Garrick is
the one who is more fragile despite his fortitude. He was so
terrifyingly apt to describe himself as a candle flickering in the
breeze. So very brief. So very brilliant.
Do you have
feelings for this child?
As a mother,
yes. You did not see him the first days after he arrived. It would
have broken your heart, Sister. He honestly felt he had nothing
left... and the saddest part about that is that it was true...
I see... I must
go now. There are other aspects of this matter that must be
investigated. It would have had to have been someone very powerful
indeed to have brought this child to us... and I don't think they
have our best interests in mind.
Of course. And
Sister... keep Z away from him, please... Tenchi is one matter... but
Garrick... I have no idea what he will do... Even a candle can give
you a horrible burn if you are careless.
I'm actually considering whether or not I should include this bit somewhere in the story.
This next one is a bit from early on. Everyone is sitting down after dinner and, now that they have a genuine American in their midst, they are discussing what the American Mentality really is and what makes it tick. Of course, WWII comes up in the discussion... And Yosho speaks as though he was there when it happened...
“There are some
of us Americans that think that what we did to the cities of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki was unforgivable.”
“Huh?” said
Mihoshi. “What happened?”
“They were
destroyed,” said Yosho, “with the first nuclear weapons that had
been developed on this world.” The others went silent. “I
remember that time well. The Americans, embittered by the attacks on
their bases in the Pacific had been waging a long and bloody
campaign, pushing the Imperial Navy and Army all the way back to
Japan. When they finally took the island of Okinawa, it was as
though a switch had been flipped. The people... resorted to cowardly
methods to fight the Americans. They did unspeakable things. Things
I will not dirty your ears with.
“The Americans
knew that it would be the death of their spirits if they continued to
press on like this, so they took their newest and most terrible
weapon... and as we warned them before launching our first attacks,
they warned us before launching their final blows.
“The Generals and
Admirals all scoffed. They thought it was all a fiction. But then
Hiroshima was destroyed. To this day, you can still see the carbon
shadows of the people on the walls that were closest to the bomb when
it detonated. They were the lucky ones – they died before they
could feel any pain. Others took minutes to die of grisly deaths.
Others had even more horrific deaths from severe radiation burns.
All they could do was shamble like living corpses, looking in vain
for help that they were all beyond. And millions more died in the
following years from leukemia and cancer.
“The Generals and Admirals that had scoffed at the Americans'
capability did the foolish thing and dared them once more to attack.
They honestly thought the Americans had expended their supply of
nuclear bombs. The city of Nagasaki and all her people paid dearly
for their arrogance."
It just didn't feel right to have that in the story, that and it was starting to smack of 'MURICA! F*** YEAH!
Lastly, here's a bit of discussion between Garrick and Ayeka when his ribs had been crushed by Mihoshi. It was meant to outline more clearly why Garrick was embittered about not being able to go back. Sasami's look is telling here.
“I must admit that I am a bit curious now, brother. You see, Yosho
has mentioned that your upbringing had strong emphasis on marriage
and family. I wish to know what your thoughts on the matter... used
to be.”
Well... A
marriage in my upbringing differs from others... others would have a
set contract time. That way if the couple felt they had differences
they couldn't work out, they could just finish out the term of the
contract and go their own ways – no harm, no foul. Most others
contract for 'til death do us part. However, that simply is not
enough for my people, who believed that families should live together
for eternity, even after death. To support that, our marriage
contracts extend beyond the grave and into paradise.
“Oh my...” said Ayeka as she hid her mouth with her hand. “I...
can't even imagine...”
I looked down to Sasami and found her staring back up at me. And
without words – using only those soulful fuchsia eyes of hers, she
told me that yes indeed she could imagine... both being with and
without.
It is a
wonderful thing, I typed out.
Being able to meet the ancestors that you've only been able
to read about. Being able to meet the descendents you weren't there
for when they entered the world.
Ayeka sighed. “We Juraians, once we are bonded to a tree, are so
long lived. Hundreds of years can pass and it would only be a small
fraction of our life span. But even we die of old age at some point
in time. I cannot even imagine... eternity!”
I
put a gentle hand on her shoulder and then typed, Just wait
until you've lived a few hundred years. By then, people that you
knew once before will be gone from your life... and you will wish
that you could see them again. That... was the reassurance that I
had from the covenants that have been stolen from me. Once I had
come to understand them, I knew that no matter how many of my family
passed on... I would see them again.
I didn't keep it because I felt that it was a bit too redundant. We all know how that can begin to feel like in a story. :p
Work is still progressing, if only because it's a coping mechanism for me. I'm still sitting on some stuff and I'll probably post it on Thursday or Friday.
- Bluemage - 07-22-2014
Glad to hear you're keeping sane. Well, sane-ish. ^^
I like the first snip, but honestly? I don't think it really has a place in the story. In your *canon*, yes; I think it's something that should've happened. But in the story? I feel like it foreshadows the whole 'embryonic being of power' aspect of things too strongly and too soon.
Not that I wouldn't mind a slight bit more foreshadowing of that, but this doesn't feel like the right way to do it.
The second snip... the part you posted really doesn't feel like AFY! to me. That particular bit is more like NUKES BAD!, with a side of Imperial Japan, *^&% No!. I can only assume that it's taken out of a greater AFY! context.
The third bit... dropping that was a wise decision. Perhaps it's just a personal soft spot, but something about how Garrick brought up his religious beliefs and everybody else took them at face value reminded me of Skysaber.
I did NOT like having to type that. Not one bit.
My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.
I've been writing a bit.