Tenchi Muyo Fan Fiction ❯ Okayama Summer ❯ Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Gohan's eyes snapped open. Everything was pitch black. For a terrifying moment he thought he'd gone blind. Then, in the darkness, a red light blinked. He sighed, and another horrifying realization hit him, and this time it wasn't false-

He had no idea who he was.

He knew his name, of course - Gohan. That was obvious. But everything else, like how he got in this dark place, where he was, what had happened before this was totally gone.

"Someone will tell me," he mumbled out loud. At least he still knew how to speak. That was good. He began to sit up, but hit his head on a sort of hard something - he was in some sort of tube. He lifted it off easily, and jumped out. Wondering where everyone was, and if there was anyone at all, he wandered straight into a huge metal thing.

The sound was enormous, and he jumped back, assuming a fighting position automatically. Only silence followed, and the boy relaxed. His troubled mind then returned to the subject of his memory - what had happened? Why was his name the only thing he could remember? He dropped to the ground, and stared off into the darkness. "What is this place?" he asked. He didn't expect an answer, but a sound followed- "Miya! Miya!" It sounded like a cat meowing.

"A cat?" Gohan's eyes were beginning to adjust. He could just make out the form of a small animal sitting in front of him. He smiled slightly, and held out his hands to the small creature. "Don't be afraid of me. I'm probably even worse off than you are."

The cat willingly jumped into Gohan's arms, and Gohan realized that it was more like a rabbit than a cat in anatomy- although it kept meowing. He shook his head. "I think I'm going crazy. Although, I could be crazy, anyway. How am I supposed to know?"

The little animal, whatever it was, tugged on Gohan's tattered clothing, and meowed. He glanced curiously at it. "What's the matter, um..." he scratched his head. "What should I call you, anyway?"

"MIYA!" it said loudly. Gohan chuckled. "Okay, Miya. Well, Miya, what is it?"

Miya jumped out of his arms, and Gohan gasped. "Hey! Where are you going? I have no idea where I am!" He jumped up and followed Miya through the dark.

"Miya!" Gohan nearly tripped over the small creature, and almost fell flat on his face. Miya laughed: a nasally, yet pleasant sound, and pushed at a door. It opened, and Gohan grinned, and let Miya climb up on his shoulder. "Thanks! I would have been stuck in there forever if it weren't for you! I wonder if there's anyone else..." He stepped cautiously through the door, and was greeted by a sight that wasn't odd, but unexpected- The ordinary sitting room of a Japanese home.

Miya bounded onto the ground, and then again onto the couch, where Gohan now realized someone was sleeping on. It was a young woman, with spiky hair and a rather contented smile on her face. "She must be having a nice dream," he whispered to Miya, who nodded vigorously. "We won't disturb her, then," he said, curling up in a chair to wait. "When she wakes up, we'll ask her how I got here, right?" Miya nodded, and, to his amazement, suddenly turned into a little girl. It- or, "she", for that matter- climbed onto his lap and meowed happily. He laughed. "You're really weird, you know that? A cat and a rabbit and a little kid all in one!"

Miya nodded, and held out a handful of what looked like powder. Gohan looked questioningly at it, then felt his eyes beginning to lower. Miya smiled. Washu had given her this powder, and it made people go to sleep. She needed this boy to go to sleep so she could tell Ryoko. Within a minute, he had fallen to its effects. Miya nodded at its efficiency, and went to wake Ryoko.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Ryoko felt something heavy land on her stomach, and she sat up, fully awake. "RYO-OH-KI!" She raged at the humanoid cabbit. "What the hell was that for?"

"Miya." Ryo-oh-ki pointed at the boy, asleep. Ryoko's eyes bugged out of her head. "Ryo-oh-ki. Who is that?"

Ryo-oh-ki shrugged. "Miya miya. Miya, miyamiya!"

Ryoko frowned. "You don't know. But Washu had him... where?"

"Miyamiya, miya miyamiya."

"In a big tube. Asleep... did you say with 'dead'?" She stared at Ryo-oh-ki.

Ryo-oh-ki nodded. "Miyamiya."

"That's what Washu said. All right." She floated off of the couch, then decided that she shouldn't freak out the boy too much. After dropping to the ground, she reached over and shook him slightly. "Hey. Wake up."

He obviously hadn't been asleep long, as his eyes opened almost immediately. "Who are you?" He asked faintly. Ryoko tensed. Something isn't right... this isn't just a normal boy...

"I should be asking you that question," Ryoko snapped. "Who are you, what are you doing here, and how do you know Washu?"

"I don't know anyone named Washu," the boy whispered. "I have no idea who I am, or how I got here. I just woke up in this really dark room, and I'd still be in there if it weren't for her." He pointed at Ryo-oh-ki.

Ryoko glared at him. "You don't remember anything, huh?"

"Except my name."

"Which is?"

"Gohan. No surname, not that I can remember."

Ryoko twisted her and into a fist. There was something about this boy that just felt... dangerous. Like he could do some serious damage. She didn't trust him... "Listen, Gohan. I won't lie to you. I may be a space pirate, but I don't lie. I don't trust you at all. But, I'm going to give you a chance. I'll bring Washu here, and see what she says."

"Thank you," Gohan whispered, and slowly got out of the chair, only to see her shake her head. "No. You stay here. I'll go get her." The space pirate walked across the room and ducked into the broom closet. Gohan stared for a minute, then shrugged and turned his attention back to Ryo-oh-ki. "So. What is your name, really?"

When the cabbit only answered with a string of "miya"s, he sighed, and sat down in the chair again. "This is impossible. I wonder why you can't speak people-language?"

"Her name is Ryo-oh-ki," a voice said quietly. Gohan looked up, startled, and saw a young girl approaching him, an odd smile on her face. "And she doesn't speak Japanese because I didn't create her that way."

"You must be Washu," Gohan said slowly. He stared at the ground, then asked quietly, "Do you know how I got here?"

Washu took a deep breath. "It's a long story. Sit down, and I'll tell you..."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sasami curled up into a tight ball under the covers, breathing hard and shaking with fever. Her sickness had gone into remission for the last two days, but it had suddenly resurfaced just an hour ago. A sharp pain erupted in her chest, and she cried out. Everything was silent for a moment, and then there was the sound of voices from downstairs. Sasami twisted her head to the right, to see if she had awakened her sister. Ayeka still slept peacefully, mumbling incoherently under her breath. The small princess coughed, then slowly pulled herself out of the mattress she slept on and wandered out the door, only about half-conscious. This is getting serious. I need some medicine from Washu soon!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Washu finished her story, and looked at Gohan for feedback. The young boy was twisting his hands in his lap, seemingly on the verge of tears. "So... you don't know who I am?" he whispered.

Washu bit her lip. There was something about this boy... he was so different from Tenchi, but in other ways exactly the same. "I'm so sorry, Gohan. I... wish I could help,"

"You did!" He exclaimed, looking up. "At least I know how I got here." He grinned. "So... that place is your lab, huh?"

Washu laughed. "You're lucky Ryo-oh-ki found you in there, or you'd still be wandering around in the dark!"

There was a sound from the top of the stairs, like someone coughing. Washu frowned. "Hello?"

"Washu," A weak voice whispered, and a young girl slowly descended the stairs, coughing and stumbling. Washu ran over to her. "Sasami! Are you all right?"

"Washu, I got so sick again..." Sasami said weakly. "And, I just felt this tight pain in my chest... so, I came to see if you could do something about it-" she broke off when she saw Gohan, peering over the couch at her. "He- he's awake!"

Gohan smiled slightly. "Are you Sasami?"

She couldn't speak; she just nodded faintly.

"Nice to meet you, then. Sasami." The boy glanced at Washu. "Washu told me about you."

Sasami nodded again, feeling extremely stupid. Ryo-oh-ki miya'd, and jumped onto Sasami's shoulder. The girl stroked the cabbit's head absently, then stumbled as another wave of dizziness fell over her. Washu grabbed her as she began to fall. "You should spend the night in my lab, Sasami." She glanced up at Gohan. "Gohan. You can stay there too, for now. Until you meet Tenchi and the others tomorrow."

Gohan laughed quietly. "How many people live here, anyway?"

Washu thought for a moment. "Hmm... there's Tenchi, Ryoko, Ayeka, Sasami, Mihoshi, and me. Then Noboyuki and Katsuhito... and Ryo-oh-ki. Nine."

Gohan looked troubled. "Sure there'll be enough room for me?"

Sasami smiled weakly. "I don't know how, but there's always room for another person here. I think Tenchi'll just be glad you're not a girl."

"Ah," Gohan nodded, and followed the two girls into Washu's lab. Ryoko, forgotten in the shadows, floated back over to the couch and sat down, staring at where her feet should be in the darkness. "They don't see it," she whispered. "But I do. And I don't trust him." Tears threatened to overtake her, and she knew she needed to see Tenchi. She slowly floated up the staircase and passed through Tenchi's door, before settling down in a chair to await his awakening.