Urusei Yatsura Fan Fiction ❯ The Senior Year ❯ Tales of the Daishi'cha: Truth and Consequences ( Chapter 74 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

"So far, looks good!"

"We can do it."

Yuu sips her cocoa as she watches the technicians swarm over the boom-
tube transmitter she had designed. It was a compact unit, large enough to
transport a maximum of 500 kilograms from Sagussa to Sen'sha Seven. The old
boom-tubes now in use, distant cousins to the models used on Spotak and the
Central Warp Chamber on Triton, had a larger capacity, but used so much power
that they were normally reserved for emergencies. Yuu, chief architect at the
Weapons Production Centre, was asked to contribute her knowledge of spacial
teleportation to the mass-transit boom-tube project now being built by teams
from the Fleet Defence Systems Engineering Unit, the WPC and the Airtram
Construction Unit. If it worked, it would be considered exportable to planets
inside the Barrier, enhancing trade and improving bilateral relations.

Beside her, Honoka runs through the copious notes she had taken of
the pre-trial checks. "Everything looks good, Chief."

"We're just missing our guinea pig," Yuu smiles, then tenses as a
familiar feeling washes over her. "Ah, there she is."

"Sorry I'm late!" Mio runs in, then buttons up her pressure suit.
"All set."

"Looks good," Yuu gazes hungrily at the green-haired Noukiite-born
fleet engineer articifer.

Mio flushes, adjusting her glasses, then stares intently at the
chestnut-haired Gomianite-born architect. <<You just can't wait to rip it off
me!>> she psi-flashes.

Yuu jerks, then feels calm from the other engineer. "Well..."

Mio leans up to her ear. "Yes, I will."

Yuu is frozen in place as Mio backs away, then slips a helmet over
her head, shocked that Mio would acquiesce so easily after such a short
courtship. Honoka waves a frantic hand over her boss' frozen face as Mio
finishes suiting up with the help of several technicians. By the time she
recovers, Mio is standing in the middle of the chamber, all set for her short
ride. "Ready, Mio?!" Saki calls over from the control panel.

"Ready," Mio then winks at Yuu. "See you soon...Yuuvayae."

The technicians smirk. "Alright, let's do it," Nozominotoki, in
charge of the project despite her being Intelligence instead of one of the
engineering trades, sighs. "Power up the system."

"Hai!" Saki flips controls.

Yuu calms herself as the boom-tube emitter...a circular chamber ten
feet wide and forty feel long...fills with torrents of energy. In front of
Mio, a warp appears, revealing the receiving terminal all the way on Sen'sha
Seven. "The gate's clear!" she calls over the intercom. "Waiting for the
bridge!"

"Power at eighty percent!" Saki calls out.

"No compromise in warp dynamics!" Miyukinosenchi adds.

"Power at ninety percent!"

"Warp tunnel now fully formed!" Manaminosenchi reports.

"Pathway clear!!" Shiorinotoki calls out.

"Go ahead, Mio!" Nozomi orders.

"*En!*" Mio sighs, then takes a step...

...before the whole works blows apart!! Everyone is flung back as
the whole chamber disintegrates, collapsing into a pile of wreckage on the
workshop floor. Smoke fills the workshop as Honoka runs to the ventilation
controls and the fire suppression system. Yuu coughs, then concentrates.
<<Mio?!! MIO?!?!>>

"Sen'sha Seven to Engineer Base Kyre'sha!" a voice calls over the
still-intact communication lines. "What happened?! We lost the signal!"

Yuu pales, freezing up, as Honoka races over. "We had an explosion
here!" she coughs. "Did Mio make it through?!"

A seemingly eternity later...

"Negative."

Yuu jolts, looking down, then her eyes stare at the shattered boom-
tube emitter. There is no sign of a body.

"MIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!"

* * *

Urusei Yatsura - Tales of the Daishi'cha: "Truth and Consequences"
by Fred Herriot
**** **** ****
Edited by E.B. Kushnir
**** **** ****
A story based on "Urusei Yatsura - The Senior Year," in turn based on "Urusei
Yatsura," created by Rumiko Takahashi
**** **** ****

WRITER'S NOTES:

1) This story is set a year after "Penpals," eight months before Robert
Geiger's side story "Final Hymn." Not only does this story serve as an
introduction to the Senchi ("Sentimental Graffiti") and Tokimemo ("Tokimeki
Memorial") Daishi'cha, not to mention a peek at Sagussa's justice system, it
also finally gives me the chance to bring together the two races which had the
most profound impact on Ataru's and Lum's life in TSY.

2) Sagussan law has a unique system when punishment is delivered.
Instead of having a judge decide punishment using legal guidelines set out in
statute, the judge would outline a range of punishments depending on the crime
committed using statute guidelines, then allow the accuser/victim/victim's
relatives to decide the punishment.

3) Sagussa has several awards presented to worthy citizens given certain
meritorious occasions. There is no special grading system in each order (this
prevents the usual superior/inferior feelings which result from such
stratification; the average British civic award has four separate grade
levels!). The Order of Anghya is presented to those who have enhanced the
Republic's social and cultural relations with other states.

**** **** ****

The Call...

Each of the 6000 people composing the SISF...Sagussan Internal
Security Force...dreaded being the one to receive the Call. But no matter how
they'd badly wish otherwise, the Call was a foregone conclusion. A planet of
2,000,000 people, well over ninety percent young children, spread over
500,000,000 square kilometres of land, was certainly not the place where major
crime would occur. Oh, sure, there were the infractions that demanded police
involvement. But these days, they normally circled around disagreements
between neighbours, the odd theft and drunken brawls in nightclubs. Even now,
a decade after Stage Two of the Grand Design began, no one could ever conceive
of something that would provoke what SISF members called "the Call."

The end of Sagussa's innocence.

Fortunately, Commissioner Aisur and Chief Munba, supported by
Interior Minister Marcia Gyatan, kept their constables at a high level of
personal training. Since the Galactic Barrier and isolation from the T'Kon
Concordat and the Sihac Empire shielded Sagussa from the encroachment of
organized crime, investigators could be dispatched to other worlds to learn
their methodology, understand the Entropic nature of humanity's hidden side
firsthand, gain experience before some tragedy happened on Sagussa...the
Call...that would catch them all mentally unprepared.

The police forces of worlds inside the Barrier, especially Earth,
Triton, Noukiios, Yehisril and Vos, welcomed visits by the eager learners
from afar. In these exchanges, the youngest police officer could teach a
Sagussan inspector things about street smarts, working a contact, gathering
evidence and public trust. That exchange was reciprocated, bringing seasoned
street cops to what one New York veteran called "the quietest beat in the
whole galaxy!"

That was now to forever change, always for the worse.

The Call was going out...

...and Sagussa would never be the same again.

* * *

"Hey, you up?"

A moan escapes the bed as Reinotoki smirks, brushing back her
ponytailed blonde hair. She probably drained the poor fellow now under her
sheets. However, it was time to go to work, so...

"GET UP, YOU!!!!!!"

Anthony Moulton, Texas Ranger, screams as Rei's shout sends him
careening out of bed. "Wha...owch!!!" he yelps on slamming face first into
the floor. "Geez, Rei...!"

"You up now, Tony?"

He moans, scratching himself as he grabs a towel, then drapes
himself. Foolish on a planet where nudity wasn't an issue, but he had his
quirks. Rei was still starkers, having just got out of the shower. "What
time is it?!" he looks at the clock.

"Third hour mark two," Rei reports. "In other words, time to go to
work."

"Geez, I don't think I could hack living on a world with a twenty-two
hour day," Tony muses as he accepts the cup of herbal tea, then admires the
lady who gave it to him. "How do you do it?"

"Part of our genetic programming," Rei smiles. "Our bodies can
adjust to different time frames depending on which planet we're on. Since
Earth and Sagussa have similar length days, it's not so hard. But try
Noukiios; they have a THIRTY hour day."

"Owch!!" Tony winces, then sips his tea as Rei draws out her
uniform. "You wanna know something, Rei?"

"What?"

"I will say this for your force; you have got to have the nicest
uniforms of any police force in the galaxy."

"Well, I did have a hand in the redesign when we switched to the new-
style jumpsuits," she muses, then dresses. Black short-sleeve
velcro-fastened shirt trimmed in blue piping. Blue tie with a coloured metal
clip denoting the specific force they worked (in Rei's case, silver for Force
One). Black form- fitting pants piped in blue. Blue buccaneer boots.
Finally, a black vest with the blue windrider, a detective's silver pip on
her shoulders.

Tony sighs, then rises to gently squeeze her shoulders. "Yeah, you
really look nice," he kisses her tapered Cha'than earlobes.

"Pity you have to go home soon," she gazes at him.

"You trying to convince me to stay?"

"I'd be tempted," Rei muses. "Not having a bondmate or childmate to
help care for my little ones has been a pain."

Tony sighs. "Well, I'm not sure I'd be willing to face what Toren
Smith went through with Noriko after her bondmate showed up."

"I'm glad you're honest," she kisses him...

...as the phone, an old fashioned audio-only unit, rings. Rei walks
over, then answers it. Tony sighs as he sits on the bed, then begins to
dress. *Yeah, this is a really quiet place,* the Dallas native muses to
himself. Crime was nearly non-existent on this place; the stuff Rei and her
friends dealt with would never raise an eyebrow in some places back home.

As he buttons his shirt, he glances at Rei...then tenses on seeing
her shudder, eyes widening as the details poured in. She then slowly replaces
the receiver, then hugs herself, staring at the phone in silent horror. "Hey,
you okay?" he walks to her.

She blinks, then gazes at him. "It's happened."

The Call.

Every police officer who came to Sagussa was told of this silent
dread haunting their sister and brother officers here. Tony blinks, then
sighs, experience kicking in. "Okay, what is it?"

"A *daishi'cha*...is dead."

* * *

The Warp Research Laboratory, a facility shared by a half-dozen
engineering units, is as quiet as the proverbial tomb as Rei's hovercar races
across the sands. Constructed a hundred kilometres from Namu'sha Village, the
WRL was one of the few places where people weren't expected to live. Even
though Sagussa's engineers prided themselves on a "safety first" philosophy,
accidents can and did happen...and no *daishi'cha* would want those accidents
occurring near their own children.

Gazing at the giant structure, much larger than the Boeing plant in
Washington, Tony inwardly shudders. He had his experience with unexpected
deaths, none of them pretty. However, if it happened in this place, it could
be attributed to malfunctioning equipment. Certainly not pleasant, but in his
eyes not a crime. Was that the same here? "Rei?"

"Yeah?"

"What happens if someone dies on this planet?"

"You mean what would we'd like to happen?" Rei wonders. "If the
*mei'na* was transferred to someone prior to it happening, then all you have
to do is regenerate and then comes *satre'cha.* It's not considered real
'death' by Sagussan law. In fact, believe it or not, that happens a lot at
this place."

"So a person's...soul...has been lost in this case."

"Yes," Rei feels tears flow down her cheek.

"Friend of yours?"

"Acquaintance," Rei sighs. "You can't be a total stranger on this
planet, Tony. Computer, bring up file on *daishi'cha* One-Seven-Five-Oh-Six,
Fleet Engineer Articifer Mio, FDSEU."

Tony turns the dashboard-mounted computer screen as the articifer's
face and stats are run. Unbonded, one daughter of seven years now in second
year of general studies. Excellent work and fitness reports from her
supervisors. A quiet person, friendly with her neighbours and co-workers. No
civil disturbance record; much to everyone's surprise, she never drank.
Interested in space exploration; a request in the Central Engineering Office
for her to transfer to Defence Engineering for shipboard service had been in
her file. In other words, a normal Sagussan woman. "This her?"

"Yep," Rei slides the car into a parking slot.

They disembark, then make their way to the front gate. Tony sighs as
the receptionist waves them through; since *daishi'cha* on Sagussa wore one
form of uniform or another, Rei's status as a police officer gained her
instant respect. Once inside the giant hangar-like structure, he gapes at
the sheer amount of room, then scrambles to catch up to Rei, now making her
way to Laboratory Ten. He then notices the machinery was stopped; had
everyone stopped working when it happened?

Rei walks through the door, then stops, taking in the scene around
her. Lab Ten was a shambles now, though thankfully, there were no fires or
smoke. The injured were on stretchers now, nurses from the Namu'sha Hospital
already at work. No severe wounds, Rei was relieved to see, save for the
shock, even on those who didn't work here. Word spread fast. Taking a deep
breath, she looks around. "Who's in charge here?"

"Rei?!" Nozomi looks over. "What are you doing here?"

Rei flips on her personal belt-recorder as she approaches the
intelligence chief. "You know the rules, Nozomi. What happened?"

Nozomi shakes her head. "We're still trying to figure it out. We
were testing the new mass-transit boom-tube when it just blew up on us. Mio
was in the midst of being teleported to Sen'sha Seven. She was...caught in
the blast."

Rei turns, then sees the wreckage. "Alright, I want this area
cordoned off so I can get people here to do the examination," she orders.
"Nothing's to be touched until then."

"Can we get an engineering evaluation team here first?" Saki
wonders. "We can try to figure out what happened."

"I'll try to be quick, Saki. No promises."

Saki reluctantly nods. "Has anyone altered someone at the MOSS to do
a multi-dimension scan of the area between here and Sen'sha Seven?" Miyuki
asks.

"I made the call," Manami reports.

"Was Mio wearing protection?" Rei wonders.

Manami nods. "Standard safety suit with unconsciousness-
cryosuspension module. She should be okay if she wasn't dazed by the
transport; even if she was knocked out, she'd still be safe."

"Hardly call this a death," Tony muses.

"We consider it such when we can't sense someone even through the
Dreamscape, Lieutenant," Nozomi sighs, then looks at Rei. "Can I talk to you
for a moment?"

"What?" Rei walks over.

Nozomi drags the detective to a corner. "You mind telling me what
he's doing here?" she nods at the Texan.

"He's here on exchange and when things like this happen, he's
seconded to offer advice," Rei stares intently at her. "Relax, it's normal
for us, Nozomi."

"I don't want him poking around too much," Nozomi hisses.

"Why not?"

"He doesn't understand what we were doing here. None of us need him
to influence you too much. Let us try to find Mio, then if we...don't," she
shudders, "...we'll call you into it."

"I'm already involved," Rei warns her, then marches away.

Nozomi shakes her head. By then, Tony has wound his way around the
wrecked emitter, gloves on his hands as he begins the time-tested search for
evidence. As he rounds a corner, he stops on seeing Yuu kneeling by the
machine she designed, head buried in her hands as she rocks, her quiet sobs
muffled. "Hey, you okay?" he kneels beside the shivering architect.

Yuu looks up, her face stained with tears. "I...we...we were
going...going to bond tonight..." she mumbles.

Tony shudders. Tragedy destroying the ultimate happiness on this
world. "Rei!"

Rei walks over, then sighs. "Honoka, can you take Yuu back to her
home?" she stares at the architect clerk. "Then go look in on Mio's daughter.
I'll come over to tell her what happened."

"*En,*" Honoka nods, then helps Yuu stand.

Rei watches the sobbing Yuu go, then shakes her head. "What a mess!"
she hisses...

* * *

Tere'na City...

"Nothing?" Aisur sighs.

"We've done everything we could to help," Lum shakes her head.
"Multi-dimension scans of the whole system. No result. Rovers are out
investigating the nearby systems. Won't expect a report for sometime. We've
dispatched one of the science ships on the route of the boom-jump just in
case. Given the energy pumped into the emitter as was reported, I don't
expect Mio to have been sent farther than the heliopause, but we'll look at
all possibilities."

"Thanks, Lum," Aisur nods as he departs the head scientist's office,
then walks down to his own three doors down. Munba and Marcia await him.
"Nothing."

"Then we can assume she's gone," the police chief shudders.

"Hai," the commissioner nods, then picks up his phone.

Rei's face appears on the screen. "Yes, sir?"

"No joy, Detective," Aisur sighs.

"Damn," Rei shudders.

"What's your call?"

"I won't make it until I've done all the interviews. I've gone
through most of them already. At most...all we can see this as is a
very...tragic accident."

"Okay. Take your time and be thorough. Put Tony on."

"Yes, Commissioner?" the Texan appears.

"Tony, I want you to help Rei. You might find some of this
overwhelming, but these girls haven't had to deal with something this bad on
Sagussa. It's going to hurt them no matter what. Be supportive...but be
objective, too."

"Got it, Commissioner," he nods...

* * *

Namu'sha Village Police Station...

"Okay, tell me exactly what was supposed to have happened."

Rei was now in her office in the centre of the small village, staring
at the blueprints and piles of datapadds on a conference table brought in from
the WRL. Saki, as the senior surviving engineer, was walking her through it.
Tony remained to one side, jotting down notes and watching Rei. At the end,
Saki throws up her hands in frustration. "All of this was perfect, Rei!" she
shakes her head. "We tested it with normal transport test objects, then moved
to androids. Everything worked a hundred and ten percent every time."

"Today was the first live test, right?" Tony asks.

"*En,*" Saki nods.

"Was there anything different than the previous tests? Anything at
all you can think of?"

Saki considers the question, then shakes her head. "I can't think of
anything, Lieutenant."

"Wait a minute," Shiori cuts in.

"What?"

"Well, I don't know if this would be considered important, but Yuu
seemed really confident today," the Yehisrite-born engineer assistant muses.
"The previous tests went off so good that she was already saying something
about getting production started right away on the working units."

"Well, if you had really successful trial tests, confidence would be
expected," Tony hums.

"Yeah, I know. We were all pretty excited over this, too.
But...it's standard operating procedure that if someone is going to do a risky
task like this, *tre'cha* has to be done."

"Was it?" Rei tenses.

"No, it wasn't," Shiori shakes her head.

The detective sighs. "Why wasn't it?" Tony wonders.

"Well, when you deal with mind-transference, a nurse or one's
bondmate has to be involved," Shiori stares at the Texan. "We couldn't get a
nurse out here and Mio has no bondmate..."

"But she and Yuu were planning to bond," Tony hums.

"Yeah, tonight to be exact," Saki nods. "They were going to do it
once Mio came back from Sen'sha Seven."

Silence falls. Rei crosses her arms, then nods. "Okay, I think
that's enough for tonight. Thank you for coming."

The engineers nod, then file out of the office. Tony sighs, then
notices the tension in Rei's eyes. Walking around, he sits beside her. "You
okay?"

Rei bites her lip, then stares at him. "Negligent homicide."

Silence. "What?"

"Tony, the rules invoking *tre'cha* whenever anyone enters a
dangerous situation of any sort are set in stone," Rei gazes at him. "I
wouldn't even THINK of undergoing something like that unless I left something
of myself behind in case the worst happened to me. That...Lyna, I can't
believe this!!"

"Okay, walk me through this. If you're going to charge Yuu with
negligent homicide and the judge convicts her, how bad will she be punished?"

"Well, the judge will have to decide that; Mio's daughter is too
young to make a judgement on her own. And speaking of which, I better get
over to have a chat with her now..."

* * *

Namu'sha Village Hall...

"You're satisfied that this is what happened?"

Kaho sighs, staring at Rei as the two and Tony relax in the former's
chambers. Namu'sha had the reputation of being the most crime-free village
in all of Sagussa; the community spirit the village warden, Rurika, invoked
in her citizens promoted a "watch your neighbours" attitude with everyone
here. If someone was drunk, a passer-by would always escort her home. If
some child had borrowed something without asking permission, it was settled
between the parents. And if you wanted to get into a bar brawl, you had to
go to Kyre'sha City; Namu'sha had no tavern.

It also helped if you had a chief justice who wasn't afraid to slam
down hard whenever things got out of hand. The black-haired Yehisrite-born
Kaho could be utterly merciless if someone disturbed the peace in Namu'sha.
Rei had told Tony of the time when the chief clerk of the provincial school
board, Emiru, was found drunken in the village park by two Gomianite traders.
Naturally, both men had been quite aroused by the sensual Umanoshippo-born
clerk, then had their way with her after escorting her home.

When Emiru found herself pregnant with non-identical twins, she had
the men arrested and charged with rape. They pleaded their innocence, turning
the blame back on Emiru in what seemed a time-honoured tradition across the
galaxy. Of course, on a woman-dominated planet, such protests fell on deaf
ears. Sagussan law stated that if Emiru wasn't in a clear mind before sex, it
was rape. Kaho judged in Emiru's favour, then granted the clerk the right to
render a wide sort of punishments. Emiru picked forced vasectomy, then
expulsion from Sagussa.

Kaho sighs. "Well, it was going to happen sooner or later," she
muses aloud, then draws a datapadd and begins typing...

* * *

Namu'sha Apartments...

Chienosenchi knocks on the door to Yuu's apartment. Tonight was
supposed to be a pleasant evening for her next-door neighbour and her would-be
bondmate. Now unless someone found out what happened at the Warp Research
Laboratory, Mio's daughter Kie would become Sagussa's first orphan.

"Who is it?" a young voice calls from inside.

"Chie!"

The door opens to reveal the elder of Yuu's twin daughters, Margh.
"Hi, Auntie Chie," the eight year old bows her head as she comes in. "Mommy's
with Kie-chan."

Chie walks inside, then shudders on hearing Kie's moans. The poor
child was now in the architect's lap, wailing for her mother to come back.
Yuu was sobbing just as much, though she wasn't screaming for Mio's return.
The Ellsian-born terraforming chief shudders. "Hey, you okay?"

Yuu blinks, then gazes at her neighbour. "What do you think?"

Chie sighs, then walks over to draw them both into her arms. "There,
there, let it all out," she sighs. "It's okay to cry."

Yuu shudders, then fiercely grabs Chie as she and Kie weep anew. As
their sobs echo through the apartment, Chie's mind was already hard at work.
Even though Yuu was unbonded, her need for companionship was just as profound
as someone who'd lost her bondmate. Someone had to find a bondmate for this
woman when it came time for the healing bond. Chie was out; she was bonded
to the village quartermaster-general, Akira. But there was one other person
still available she knew of and respected: Reinotoki. When Yuu was asleep,
Chie would head over to the police station and begin making arrangements.

The doorbell. Chie blinks, then looks over as Margh's sister Varac
opens it. Rei steps inside. "Rei?!" she lets go of Yuu and stands. "What
are you doing here?!"

The detective shudders, closing her eyes as she braces herself for
what was about to happen. She had never done this before with a real person,
though she had a lot of time in the simulator. No substitute for real life.
Opening her eyes, she forces her face into an emotionless mask, far easier
than one would expect.

"*Daishi'cha* One-One-One-Nine-Eight?"

Yuu shudders, then stares quizzically at Rei, though a sharp chill
races up her spine as she comprehends that the detective had called her by
number instead of name. "*En?*"

"By order of the Chief Justice of Namu'sha...I hereby place you under
arrest. The charge...is the negligent homicide of *Daishi'cha*
One-Seven-Five- Oh-Six, Articifer Mio."

Yuu blinks. Chie's jaw drops, then fire flashes in her eyes as she
leaps between Rei and her target. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?!" she shrills.
"Have you no concept of...?!!"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!!!!!!" Rei barks. "Don't force me to arrest you for
obstructing justice, Chie!!"

Chie blinks, wide-eyed in disbelief as she falters back. The
shouting attracts outside attention as a small crowd gathers at the front
door. "What's going on here?!" Akira demands.

"This *kide'ne's* going to arrest Yuu!!" Chie announces.

Total silence, then everyone started shouting at once, many surging
in to gather around Rei in hopes of dissuading her away from this course. The
children gaze confusedly at the adults, then start crying anew. Sensing their
sadness, Yuu leans down to draw them into her arms, soothing them with words.
Rei shudders as the argument rolls around her, then reaches for her sidearm...

"PLEASE!!!!!!"

Silence falls as eyes turn on Yuu. The architect shudders as she
turns to her children. "Now, I want you to go to Auntie Emiru and stay with
her for a while, okay?" she instructs. "I've got to go somewhere for a while;
I don't know when I'll be back. Okay?"

"Wh-where are you going, Mommy?" Margh shudders.

Rei shudders. Oh, Lyna, what about the children? Kie's pain was the
most profound...and it wouldn't get better once she began to understand Yuu
was now the chief suspect in her mother's death. What about Margh and Varac?
Taking a deep breath, she sighs. "Can someone get Emiru here?"

"I'm right here," Emiru walks in.

Rei takes the clerk aside as Yuu turns back to her children. "Okay,
you stay with her. And watch out for Kie-chan, okay?"

"Mommy, where are you going?" Varac sobs.

"I have to go with Rei now," Yuu bites her lips. "Some people think
I did something really bad and they have to make sure of it."

"Mashi...?"

Yuu tenses, then stares tearfully at Kie. "*En?*"

"You didn't hurt Mommy, did you?"

Yuu shudders, then embraces the sobbing girl. "No, I didn't. I
didn't hurt her. I'd never hurt her..."

Everyone remains quiet as Yuu and Kie weep, then tense as Rei and
Emiru walk up. Yuu shudders, then guides the children to the clerk's side.
Once Emiru had shuffled them to the bedroom to get supplies, Yuu sighs, then
gazes at Rei. "I'm ready."

Rei nods...

* * *

Elsewhere...

"Where am I...?"

Mio shudders as wave after wave of intense pain washes through her
shattered body. What had happened? She and Yuu had tested the emergency
transport escape system a dozen times, ensuring that if ANYTHING had gone
wrong with the boom-tube, she would have been safely transported out of the
emitter before she was in any danger.

Now she was...where...?

Endless space stretched around her, tiny winking stars and the
spirals of distant galaxies as far as the eye could see. Mio's suit wasn't
physically compromised, but the on-board sensors had warned her that she had
been subjected to a terminal dose of gamma and proton radiation. Already, she
could feel her body slowly shut down, surrendering to the terrible damage her
internal organs took. What was worse, there was NO ONE around for her to pass
her *mei'na* onto before the *te'a* claimed her.

"So it ends...?" she whispers, closing her eyes, fighting back her
fear. Who would watch over Kie? Who would help Yuu recover? Why her? Why?
Why? Why...?

As the pain begins to overwhelm her senses, she doesn't feel an
energy field wrapping around her, drawing her into the spacious confines of a
hollow rock filled with water. A warmth then fills her as her mind drifts
past pain into that final stage before her soul would take flight. A warmth
like...the salty waters of the Sogh'haeng near the Forge in mid-summer?

What was going on...?

<<Do not be afraid.>>

Blackness...

* * *

It often amazes people how fast news can travel...

* * *

"Welcome to Webscape Three-D News," Kariyu gazes at her padd as she
faces the camera for the evening news broadcast, a grim slash for a mouth and
sullen eyes on her face in lieu of her normal warming smile and glittering
eyes. "All of Namu'sha, indeed all of Sagussa, is in shock tonight as the
unthinkable has occurred. A *daishi'cha* is dead. What is worse, another
*daishi'cha* has been accused of negligent homicide in the death of Fleet
Engineer Articifer Mio, presumed killed in a tragic explosion at the Warp
Research Laboratory during the test of a new boom-tube system..."

* * *

"The members of Sagussa's police force called it 'the Call,'" Milan
Domo faces the camera, having flown to Sagussa when the news was transmitted
to INN. "It symbolized the end of innocence for these industrious women
dedicated to the rebuilding of a planet. Now, one of them isdead. A fleet
engineer from Kyre'sha Province, Mio, is presumed dead after a tragic
explosion during a boom- tube emitter test. Even more shocking to all of
Sagussa is the fact that Mio's would-be bond-mate, Yuu, has been accused of
negligent homicide in Mio's death..."

* * *

"Sagussa is now gripped with horror and sorrow this evening as they
mourn the first fatality of the Grand Design," Brad Douser faces the SNN
cameras in Charleston. "A fleet architect from Kyre'sha Province, Mio, was
reportedly killed this morning during a test-run of a new boom-tube system at
the Warp Research Lab in Namu'sha Village, a thousand kilometres east of the
provincial capital. Reports also coming out of Sagussa state that another
*daishi'cha,* an architect in charge of that project, has been accused of
negligent homicide in relation to Mio's death..."

* * *

Then come the personal reflections...

* * *

"Darling, did you know her?"

"I...no, I never was with her when we were there...but I wish I did
now."

"Did you call Noa-chan and asked her what's going on?"

"I...no, we can't do that, Lum-chan. They've got to figure this out
on their own. That's the main reason we're living here instead of on Sagussa,
remember?"

"Un..."

* * *

"Mizuho-chan, it's Shinobu."

"Oh, Shinobu-chan, did you hear?!"

"I heard. Jesu Cristo, how is everyone?"

"We're...I don't know, Shinobu-chan! We...we knew something like
this was going to happen, but...oh, Lyna..."

"It's okay, Mizuho-chan. It's okay to mourn. I'll light a candle
for Mio-san."

"Arigato, Shinobu-chan. Er..."

"And one for Yuu-san, too."

"Arigato..."

* * *

"Well, that's one down...and 99,999 to go!!"

* * *

Tere'na City...

"So what do we know now?"

Aisur sighs, then faces Marcia in the minister's office at the Hall
of the Republic. With them is Munba and Asuka. "Yuu was formally charged
with negligent homicide last night," the police commissioner reports. "She
was taken into custody. Her children and Mio's daughter were placed under
the care of Chief Education Clerk Emiru for the time being. An investigation
team was sent to survey the wreckage. Engineers attached to the team
reported that all systems were checked and double-checked prior to the test.
No stress faults, no faulty power feeds, nothing was wrong. No signs of
sabotage. No one has an explanation of what happened...yet."

"Does Yuu have to be charged?" Asuka wonders.

Marcia glares at the judge advocate general. "Asuka, you wrote the
rules on what would happen, remember?" she holds up the hard copy of the
RSCA...Republic of Sagussa Code, Annotated...the set of criminal and civil
laws governing the administrating of the Fifth Republic. "The laws governing
the mental transference of one's *mei'na* in a hazardous situation are
strict, remember?"

"True, but the Code also states that negligent homicide could be a
hard thing to define depending on circumstance," Asuka muses. "Remember, Yuu
and Mio were lovers and were about to bond. If the test was successful, they
would've bonded in celebration. This was Yuu's pet project, remember? I
believe it isn't right to lay all the blame on Yuu's shoulders. If Mio wasn't
in love with Yuu, she would've probably been more careful, certainly demanding
a nurse be present in case something went wrong."

"Yes, love can make people blind to certain things," Marcia muses,
flipping the pages to the chapter in question. "But the law is the law in
this case. 'Whenever any situation presents itself which threatens the
physical or spiritual integrity of a citizen, resident or visitor of the
Fifth Republic, means will be provided to protect such person's physical or
mental self to prevent premature loss of life. If such means are not
employed and loss of life does occur, then those morally responsible for the
victim's well-being will be so charged with negligence causing death.'"

"Then why not charge Nozomi?" Asuka muses. "She was the one in
ultimate charge of the project. Some people would state that Yuu's being made
a scapegoat."

"Well, that's what Rei's investigation should prove one way or
another," Marcia muses. "In the meantime, have Kaho call me when she sets a
date and time for the preliminary review."

"Yes, Minister," Asuka rises, then walks out of the office,
proceeding to her own. Opening the door, she stops on seeing a small crowd
standing there. "What are you all doing here?"

"What does it look like?!" Benten snarls as she closes and locks the
door. "So what's going to happen?"

"Kaho's going to set the date for the prelims," Asuka relaxes. "Once
that occurs, Yuu'll have the chance to plead her case."

"And?!" Ten'nookaa wonders.

"And we just wait and see, Ten," Asuka shrugs. "We don't know all
the facts just yet. I don't want to speculate until they're all in."

"Whattayamean 'we just wait and see?!'" Benten snarls. "Dammit,
Asuka, this is YUU we're talking about here! Do you really want to see her
whole life ruined?!"

"No, I don't!" the judge advocate general glares at the defence
minister. "What is your problem, anyway?! May I remind you all that we all
agreed to those laws long ago!"

"Yes, we did all agree to those laws, but I don't think Yuu needs to
be treated so harshly," Oyuki muses. "Atop that, Kaho has earned quite the
reputation for coming down hard on any crime that occurs in Namu'sha. What's
to stop her from going all-out on Yuu?"

"She's got a point, Asuka," Lan hums. "From what I've seen and heard
from everyone working under me, Kaho likes being a judge TOO much. Don't you
think someone has to reign her back a bit?"

Asuka considers the point. "Well, this is the first serious crime
we've had to deal with," she muses. "There is the friendship factor to
consider, too. Kaho and Yuu live in the same village, are of the same clique;
they're practically neighbours..."

"So get someone in there who can judge this impartially," Benten
proposes. "Since it's the first homicide case, why don't you take a crack at
it yourself, Asuka? You can't be a decent JAG if you haven't sat in judgement
over at least one serious case!"

Asuka hums. "You have a point. Ryuunosuke, can I get a copy of all
the tapes?"

"I'll call the WRL and get them sent down," the engineer commander
nods, slipping on her glasses...

* * *

The Esanta'cha...

"Come in, ladies," Biiko smiles. "Have a seat."

"So what did you find?" Yuukiki wonders as the small group relaxes
around the architect-prime's coffee table.

"I reviewed all the plans," Biiko sips her tea. "Yuu really went all
out in designing safety features for the test module. Did you know she had an
emergency evacuation warning system built in so the test subject could be
beamed out in case something went wrong?"

"Why didn't it work?" Honey wonders.

"That's the mystery here," Biiko sighs. "Yuu and Mio actually tested
the escape system a dozen times before the boom-tube test. Worked every time
under all conceivable situations."

Silence falls. "So Yuu's innocent," Shinobi crosses her arms.

"I can't say that. That's for Kaho to judge," Biiko sighs.

The door opens to reveal Mari. "We have a problem."

"Being?" Biiko looks over.

"The monitor tapes were taken out of the WRL and shipped to Tere'na
City," the giant woman replies.

"On who's orders?!"

"Ryuunosuke's."

"Oh, terrific!"

"Wait a minute!!" Sylia snaps. "According to procedures, the first
person to see those tapes is the investigating detective!"

"Remember who we're talking about, Sylia," Yuukiki warns.

Everyone there sighs. Save for Mari and Biiko, everyone here was of
the "Post-Noa" generation, those with sequence numbers higher than 19282.
While no one was really sure where the break between the "Post-Noa" (some
would say "pro-Noa") and "Pre-Noa" (or "anti-Noa") groups should go, it was
clearly obvious as to who in the Inner Circle were on the *ashi'cha's* side
and who were on the side of Yuu...

...Sagussa's first Elder Mother.

"Yes, they would be inclined to do everything to help Yuu out,
wouldn't they?" Biiko rubs the bridge of her nose.

"So what do we do?" Shinobi wonders. "We can't let the others try to
run ripshod through the system. It'd destroy faith in our laws. Chaos could
result from that..."

"Agreed," Biiko stands. "Mari?"

"Yes?" Mari hums.

"Go to Reinotoki and tell her what's happened."

"*En.*"

* * *

Namu'sha Police Station...

"Hey, stranger, how are you?"

Yuu's eyes open, then she looks right to see Noa leaning at the
doorway to her cell. Unlike incarceration rooms elsewhere in the galaxy,
Sagussans made those under custody feel comfortable out of the belief that
the guilt alone would be punishment enough before trial. Besides, Yuu was
considered a "low flight" risk, so the forcefield at the doorway was not
visibly active. Not that it couldn't be flicked on if Yuu did consider
escaping; Rei had set the system to activate in case any sudden movement was
detected from the prisoner. Even better, the cell's power grid was on a
separate reactor feed, well hidden from the rest of the village's power grid
to prevent sabotage.

"What do you think?" she sighs, looking at the ceiling as Noa sits
beside her. "My life's over in more ways than I can count."

"Don't say that, Yuu..."

"What CAN I say?!" Yuu demands, eyes tearing anew as she turns away.
"Mio's gone! I don't care about what everyone else thinks, but how am I
supposed to live without her...?!"

Noa sighs, reaching over to gently squeeze Yuu's shoulder. "I know,
I know," she soothes. "I know you wouldn't've put Mio into that sort of
situation without being confident. But still..."

"Why didn't the escape transporter work...?"

Noa stops. "Escape transporter?"

Yuu sighs. "I had a warning device built into the system when I
realized that...I was getting somewhere with Mio-chan," she rolls back to gaze
on Noa. "We tested it with an emergency transport transponder relay several
times before I felt we were ready for the boom-tube trial. It should've
worked..."

"But it didn't," Noa stands. "Does Rei know?"

"She should know. If not, I'll tell her."

"Okay," Noa nods. "Look, you hang tight, hear? Because it is you
that's under the gun, some people might do things which could lead to trouble
down the line. I have to keep watch over them. I'll come by when things've
calmed down, okay?"

"Okay," Yuu nods. "Thanks, Noa."

"Anytime...*ashi'cha,*" Noa smiles as she walks out, turning towards
Rei's office.

The detective looks up from her padd as Noa steps inside. "Oh, Noa!
Did she say anything?"

"She mentioned an emergency transporter she had ready for Mio just in
case," Noa muses, knowing Rei was required to demand that since Sagussan
jurisprudence worked on the same precept as the American system concerning
anything the accused said after being taken into custody...and even the Elder
Mother herself could be held accountable if such information wasn't delivered
to the proper authorities. "She and Mio tested it several times before the
boom-tube trial. Yuu must've wanted to sub that system in lieu of doing
*tre'cha* before bonding with Mio. Did the engineers tell you?"

Rei hums, then walks to the table holding all the evidence she
acquired, scanning through all the blueprints. "I didn't see anything in
these plans, unless the suit Mio wore had a transponder built into it. I
better talk to Akira to see if Mio was issued one." She sighs, then looks at
Noa. "What do you think?"

"About what?"

"About Yuu. Do you think she...?"

"I personally don't want to say," Noa shakes her head. "Rei, when
you're in love, you tend to skip over things, do things that rebound on you
or the one you love in ways you don't want. I made that mistake when I
pushed Lum- chan into rejecting everyone in Tomobiki out of some belief that
they were unworthy of her. Yuu made a similar mistake, but it cost her much
more than separation. She didn't want to rush a bond with Mio, so she
devised something to get around the *tre'cha* question. Was it effective
enough to let her off the hook? Only Kaho can answer that question, but I
won't compromise the evidence until she sees it in her chambers."

Rei nods. In her case, the RSCA wasn't just her guide through this
tragedy, it was a writ delivered from Ram and Atar Themselves. Mio was the
victim. Justice demanded those which placed Mio into a fatal situation be
brought to task, forced to account for everything to ensure that if someone
did something...or didn't do something...which could've made Mio's death
happen would learn the lessons society demanded of them. Yuu was now at the
top of that list, but Rei wasn't afraid to go after the others involved in
this project if her investigation lead in that direction.

The door opens to reveal Tony Moulton, Mari following. "What
happened?" Rei wonders on seeing the grim look on the Texan's face.

"We got a problem," Tony sighs. "The monitor tape set up inside the
boom-tube's gone missing."

"What?!!" Rei snaps.

"I can tell you where it went," Mari cuts in.

Everyone gazes at the tall woman. "Let me guess," Noa crosses her
arms. "Ryuunosuke had it brought to Tere'na, right?"

"You got it."

"Oh, wonderful!!!" Rei snarls, sinking into her chair.

"Relax," Noa orders. "Call Aisur, tell him what happened, then get
the tape sent back."

"Yeah, I'll do it now...but Noa, Ryuunosuke does have a lot of pull,"
Rei warns.

Noa stares at her. "Detective, what's more important at this
juncture: politics or justice?"

"Justice."

"Then do your job."

* * *

Tere'na City...

"Ryuunosuke!!"

The engineer commander jolts, staring quizzically at Aisur, who had
just stormed into her office. Her secretary shrugs apologetically, then
withdraws. "What is it?"

"Where's the tape?"

"What tape?"

"You know which tape I'm talking about!" Aisur growls. "The one that
recorded what the camera monitoring the interior of the boom-tube saw. Where
is it?"

"It's with my staff now," Ryuunosuke glares at him. "You'll get it
when we're done with it."

"I want it now," Aisur snaps. "That is evidence and Rei needs it to
carry out her investigation."

"Excuse me, but when there is an accident in one of MY labs, an
engineer evaluation team has to see ALL the evidence first-hand!" Ryuunosuke
growls. "Wait your turn, for Lyna's sake!! Aisur, we ALL want to find out
what happened to Mio! She was one of my people; so's Yuu!! I take ultimate
responsibility for ALL those who work in Engineering! If you want a copy,
I'll get one sent to you as soon as I can!!"

Aisur groans, then blinks as Marcia marches in. "Are you withholding
evidence from one of my investigators, Ryuunosuke?!" the interior minister
crosses her arms.

"No, I need that evidence as much as Aisur does!"

"Your machines can wait!" Marcia snarls, glaring into the engineer
commander's eyes. "Someone just died, remember?! On this planet, Internal
Security automatically takes the lead of any investigation whenever ANYONE
dies!!"

"And what makes you think one of Aisur's people can do as good a job
trying to understand what happened to Mio as one of mine?!" Ryuunosuke
counters. "Rei was never trained in understanding engineering accidents,
remember! Don't worry; I'll let you in on whatever we found! I want the
facts of this as much as you do, Marcia, but we've got to wait!!"

"What's going on here?!!"

Heads spin around to see Madoka and Sakura standing at the doorway.
"I'm trying to get Ryuunosuke to turn over the tape from inside the boom-tube
that killed Mio, Madame Prime Councillor," Aisur sighs. "She won't turn it
over because she wants her people to look over it first. Damn it all,
someone's dead..."

"I'm quite well aware of that fact, Aisur," Sakura cuts in.
"Ryuunosuke, who are you asking to look over that tape?"

"I'm having Lan and Nagisa look it over."

"Not Biiko?" Sakura blinks surprisedly.

"No. I don't trust her and she doesn't understand warp dynamics.
Her specialty's construction design."

"But she's also got the sharpest analytical mind of anyone on your
staff," Sakura counters. "Madoka, ask Lum if she can get Ifurita or one of
her girls to team up with Biiko...and BOTH will work with Rei to investigate
this."

"Right away," Madoka nods, then heads out.

Sakura stares at Aisur. "Is that alright with you?"

"Fine with me."

"Ryuunosuke?"

"I've got problems with that."

"Why?"

"Biiko's never liked Yuu, remember?"

"True, but Lan and Nagisa like Yuu a little too much for a lot of
people's comfort. So do you."

Ryuunosuke bristles. "Are you accusing me...?!"

"I'm stating a simple fact, not accusing you of anything," Sakura
sighs. "Ryuu, I would've wanted Yuu to be *ashi'cha,* too. I think most of
us who were brought here before Noa would've wanted that. We're all hurting
because of this...but I think both Noa AND Yuu would say this. Right now,
there's a little girl in Namu'sha who will NEVER see her mother again. And
there're two other girls who will have to face their classmates sooner or
later...and as we all know, children can come to some harsh conclusions on
their own right when they hear bad news. Do you think Yuu's daughters can
handle their classmates calling their mother a murderer?"

Silence falls. "Alright, I'll bring Biiko onto the team...but I want
Nagisa to be on it, too," Ryuunosuke sighs.

"Why your bondmate?" Aisur wonders.

"Like I said, I don't trust Biiko," Ryuunosuke glares at her. "Yes,
I wanted Yuu as *ashi'cha.* Yes, I'd like to help Yuu get this off her head
in any way I can. She's my friend, for cryin' out loud! I do trust Nagisa
ESPECIALLY because she's my bondmate and she's ALSO the best when it comes to
warp dynamics. You want the best before you bring evidence before the judge,
remember?"

Aisur sighs. The close-knit nature and the ingrained social
regimentation of the *daishi'cha* were both now working against the running
of a smooth investigation. The RSCA clearly outlined the SISF's
responsibility when it came to the death of a Sagussan citizen or a visiting
alien. But there was another set of laws, the Engineering
Regulations...Ryuunosuke's personal Bible...which ordained that whenever an
accident occurred in an engineering lab, they had to take charge to prevent
it from happening again. And with Sciences being dragged into it since it
was as yet-to-be-explained phenomena, you then had to worry about the
Procedures on Scientific Investigation! Tony Moulton had told him a nasty
word in English which described this mess beautifully. Clusterfuck.

"Then the investigation team will be Biiko, Nagisa and whoever comes
from Ifurita's group," Sakura sighs. "Under Rei's charge. They'll convene in
Namu'sha as soon as possible."

Ryuunosuke, Marcia and Aisur nod. The prime councillor turns to
leave, then stares at the interior minister. "Oh, Marcia, see to it that Kaho
is the ONLY judge that presides over this."

"Yes, ma'am," Marcia nods...

* * *

Namu'sha Police Station...

"So I get to shepherd all of you with me, right?"

"The Prime Councillor...not to mention the Engineer Commander and all
of us...wants as fair an evaluation as possible, especially Yuu's and Kie-
chan's," Nagisa sighs as she, Biiko and Afura walk into Rei's office.

Nearby, Tony watches them relax around Rei's desk, keeping close
attention to their body language. When Aisur inform Rei of what had been
decided in Tere'na City, he had also been told about everyone's personal
history concerning the suspect. Much to his surprise, a fair trial was
possible, which was worlds different from the harsh infighting he was used to
between the Texas Rangers, the alphabet soup of federal agencies and the local
police whenever jurisdictional lines were crossed back home in Dallas.

The Fleet Engineering Chief was Sagussa's top expert on warp
dynamics...how normal space, hyperspace and transwarp space interacted with
each other and how that interaction could be used by people to bridge the
distance between different planets. Nagisa and Yuu had theorized a lot about
how boom-tubes and spacial warps could be put to use. Though they were too
late to contribute to the presentation of the Central Warp Chamber to the
Tritonians (the equipment was Fourth Republic vintage), they did augment the
design enough to "seed" the information secretly to the Spotakites many years
later when it was discovered that local space around Spotak was too unstable
to withstand the typical harsh development of normal hyperluminal drive
systems. Personally, being bonded to the Engineer Commander would mean
Ryuunosuke would still keep a sharp eye on everything here (an understandable
sentiment on Ryuunosuke's part since both the victim and the accused were
part of her staff), but Nagisa could work with Biiko, something Ryuunosuke
couldn't admit; Biiko and her boss were hardly on speaking terms.

The Architect-prime was Sagussa's sharpest analytical mind bar none.
Everyone turned to Biiko whenever something didn't make sense and they needed
a fresh perspective on things. That was the reason she and her four senior
architects lived isolated on the Esanta'cha near where Ataru and Lum
Moroboshi's future home was located. Biiko had NO use whatsoever for the
politics which was part of daily activities at the Engineering Ministry. The
only real mark against her, if at that, was her habit of using the Vosian
stimulant White Noise to increase her mental awareness. To Vosians, White
Noise was potentially lethal. To Sagussans, whose minds were bombarded with
the *te'a's* power constantly, White Noise just made their senses sharper.
This reflected the habits of Biiko's personal hero, Sherlock Holmes, himself
addicted to opium and morphine to help him through boring periods. While
stimulants of this nature made Tony wince, it wasn't illegal here.
Personally, Biiko was bonded to Eiko, a First Fleet shipmistress, and Shiko,
a child services director, both who wouldn't be too concerned.

The representative from Science currently served as the Chief of Air
and Space Studies at the Te'a Studies Group, headquartered in an isolated
mountain near Tere'na-korgh. Afura could at best be described as a mix of
sorceress, spiritual mystic and astrologer with a healthy dose of scientific
background training thrown in for good measure. Part of her training, Aisur
had mentioned, included the proper use of the few remaining *haijo-ju*
prototypes that were hidden from the opposing sides in the Clone Rights War,
then buried near the Forge for the *daishi'cha* to use. It was possible, so
Tony had heard, for Afura to warp time and space to go back and prevent Mio's
death...but doing so also threatened the very fabric of space-time, not to
mention unleashing some potentially awful time paradoxes, something no one
outside Ifurita's group could really try to understand. Because of that,
Afura was forced to adhere to a harsher form of logic than even Biiko. But
she was also the mother of six and enjoyed a healthy personal relationship
with her coworkers (who were also her bondmates), so she couldn't really be
described as a cold fish.

"Well, shall we begin?" Rei sighs. "Science-Thoughtmistress, can you
provide some sort of clue from the *te'a's* perspective? Was there
some...disturbance the day Mio disappeared?"

Afura shakes her head. "No, Detective, not that I sensed. As soon
as the news reached us, I asked Ifurita, Miz and Shayla to probe the *te'a*
Itself to see if Mio...had left us. We couldn't detect her. This could mean
one of two things...actually, it does point in one very specific direction.
Wherever Mio is, she is still within this realm of existence."

"She's alive?" Tony wonders.

"As far as we could sense, Lieutenant," Afura nods. "However, we
can't explain exactly what happened to her. Understanding the *te'a* is a
tedious business at best. Serious research into this only began during
Gisan'cha and was limited to the creation of a weapon powered by the
*te'a*...the *haijo-ju.* After the Clone Rights War, limited research
continued, but ended when the last of the Fourth Republic disappeared and
wasn't restarted until our group was formed. This I can say, however.
Whatever did happen to Mio was a natural event; Fate WANTED it to happen."

"Alright, that's your view," Rei nods. "Chief, how about you?" she
then looks at Nagisa.

"I've looked at that tape at least six times," the fleet engineer
shakes her head. "It was a first-class recording, by the way, using the
latest production micro-laser UHD CDs. That's ultra-high density," she looks
at Tony. "Roughly six sextillion bytes could be stored on something you
Terrans would normally use for just over 600 megabytes."

"How much is a sextillion?" Tony wonders.

"Ten to the twenty-first power."

"Whoa!!" the Texan whistles.

"Can I see the recording?" Biiko wonders.

"Sure," Nagisa pulls out the CD from her carry-all.

Biiko draws out a highly complex recorder, then plugs it into the
computer terminal. Taking the CD, she loads it into the machine, then turns
everything on. "This is your normal video CD player here," Nagisa explains
for Tony's benefit. "It has multi-use capabilities for computer and 3D
holovideo use. It's also compatible with T'Kon and Nagussan systems, but the
CDs we use are just too jammed with information for it to be read from
anything you use on Earth."

"Well, all that info should give someone a clue as to what happened,"
Tony sighs. "That's what an investigation is, ladies, no matter what type you
run. In Rei's and my case, you make a theory. We believe that Yuu did
something which may have led to Mio's disappearing on us...after what the
Science-Thoughtmistress just said, I don't think using the word 'death' is
prudent. To prove or disprove it, we need information. Find the information,
then string it together, then make your conclusions. Every police officer
learns this right from basic training on."

"Well, let's see what strings we can pull out of this," Biiko hums,
then draws an extra cable. Attaching one lead into the jack on the CD
player, she then attaches the other end to a cyber-lead located behind the
lower end of her right earlobe.

"When did you get this?!" Nagisa wonders. Cyber-augmentation was
still frowned on in many Sagussan circles.

"I find it works better for me," Biiko sighs, then pulls a small vial
of white fluid from her carry-all. She then takes off her left wrist
bracelet, revealing another add-on to her body: a pharmaceutical injector
port located right below the curve of her left thumb. The others shudder as
Biiko inserts the White Noise into the port, then twists it to open the vial
and send the fluid right into her bloodstream.

"I really wish you wouldn't do that," Nagisa shudders. "You don't
know what that stuff'll do to your mind over time, you know."

"A risk worth taking," Biiko begins deep breathing. "To paraphrase
the good Mr. Holmes, my mind loathes the very concepts of stagnation and
boredom. If I don't have a problem I have to deal with...and if concerns over
children and bondmates aren't pressing...then what do I do to occupy my mind?
Besides, this isn't pure White Noise. It's diluted to a quarter its normal
strength. Rest is just harmless saline solution. Now..."

She closes her eyes as she touches the play button. The screen comes
on line as an image of the interior of the boom-tube appears. Mio is in the
chamber, suited up and ready. "Freeze image," Rei orders the computer, then
points. "Look."

"Emergency transport transponder," Nagisa nods on seeing the small
device on Mio's left arm. "Smart girl, Yuu-chan."

"Play," Afura nods.

Light fills the chamber as a mist flows around Mio.

Mio: "The gate's clear! Waiting for the bridge!"

Saki: "Power at eighty percent!"

Miyuki: "No compromise in warp dynamics!"

Saki: "Power at ninety percent!"

Manami: "Warp tunnel now fully formed!"

Shiori: "Pathway clear!!"

Nozomi: "Go ahead, Mio!"

Mio: "*En!*"

"Stop!!!"

Biiko smiles understandingly as Afura points at the screen.
"Transporter carrier wave," the scientist notes the sparkling effect
descending on Mio just as power feeds on both walls rupture, the fluids
within igniting on contact with open air.

"I'll be damned!" Nagisa beams, then sighs. "So what happened next?
Biiko, how slow can this thing go?"

"One/512th of a tenth-second," Biiko programs it.

"Play," Afura orders.

The screen then moves unbelievably slow as the jets of burning fluids
rush out. Compression waves then start to shatter the chamber itself as the
transporter effect fully encompasses Mio. But before her body begins to fade
out as her molecules are reduced to quantum levels for transport, the space
warp then widens, revealing not the receiving terminal on Sen'sha Seven...but
deep space! Then, the transporter field shorts out as Mio is yanked out of
the chamber into the warp. Milliseconds later, the chamber flies apart, the
transmission stopping.

"Stop play," Rei orders.

The screen goes blank. "So it worked," Tony shakes his head. "To an
extent."

"The question we now have is this," Biiko unplugs herself from the CD
player. "What happened to Mio...?"

* * *

"Yuu?"

The architect opens her eyes to see Rei standing at the doorway to
her cell. "What is it, Rei?"

"Well, I've got some news. Whether it's good or bad depends on how
you...and the judge...interpret it," the detective switches off the forcefield
controls, then beckons the architect out.

Yuu follows her down the hallway to the detective's office, where
Tony, Biiko, Nagisa and Afura await. Seeing the arsenal of knowledge deployed
to investigate her case, the accused shudders. "I'm not sure whether to be
flattered or scared that all three of you're here to find out what happened."

"Hey, what about me?" Tony wonders.

"You, too, Lieutenant," Yuu smirks.

Everyone laughs as Biiko rolls a chair around for Yuu. "I hope you
don't mind watching this, but it's best for you to understand what exactly
happened to Mio."

"Bad?" Yuu shudders.

"We're not sure," Biiko hits the play button. "This is 1/512th of a
tenth-second speed, by the way."

Yuu watches as the scene within the boom-tube emitter replays. Her
eyes widen on seeing the transporter effect moving to shield her lover, then
her jaw drops on seeing the mysterious space-warp, then she lowers her head as
Mio disappears. "Roughly half a tenth-second in real-time," Biiko sighs, then
gazes at her. "If she suffered, it would've been really brief."

"I'm guilty."

Everyone blinks. "What was that?!" Nagisa wonders.

"I killed her...!" Yuu shudders, hugging herself as shamed tears flow
down her cheeks. "Oh, Lyna, what have I done?!"

"Yuu..." Rei frowns.

A pained sob escapes the architect as she buries her face into her
hands. "I killed her...!!"

* * *

"Yuu...?"

Mio blinks, gazing into the vast night over this world of endless
seas. The sun had set over this place, the bright star denoting the only
other planet in this system rising over the horizon. Overhead, the spirals
of distant galaxies and nearer stellar clusters float lazily about.
Shuddering, the engineer hugs herself, glad at least that the seas of this
world were constantly warmed by underwater thermal vents and close proximity
to its primary, which kept the air to a tolerable fifteen degrees Centigrade
on average at nighttime. Her pressure suit was blasted by proton and gamma
radiation after her coming to this place; she sent it...and what was left of
her old self inside...drifting into the sun to prevent the radioactive poison
from spreading through the seas of this world, much less harming its
remarkable residents.

Lyna's Soul, to come HERE of all places! Of all the planets which
could've been explored in all of existence, she had come to the one still
quite unreachable world Sagussa knew of. Oh, it was possible to visit this
place...if you could persuade Ifurita and her friends to loan you a *haijo-
ju*...and bend a few dozen laws of realspace and transwarp space along the
way, something the scientists of the Te'a Studies Group would really prefer
not to do. Or it was possible if you were immortal and could spend fifteen
billion years coming here if you travelled at Warp One...

Or if you were a Nendo-kata.

Mio shudders as she feels a rush in her eyes, sensing the strange
warmth that came with the curious luminescence which appeared whenever a
Nendo- kata's powers became overt. Looking at herself in a nearby pond, she
trembles on seeing that fuzzy burgundy glow. The colour of Nendo-kata blood,
Nokoko Moroboshi had confirmed when Kariyu had done a candid interview with
the Oshika School matriarch a few months ago for the Webscape News. Now she
was Sagussan AND Nendo-kata. Bound both to the Grand Design planned ten
thousand years ago to rebuild a shattered world...and the Great School that
first vowed to defend the Unity of all sentient beings ninety thousand years
before that!

"Am I...still me?" she wonders.

<<Of course.>>

Mio smiles, then turn as the deep pool bubbles, revealing the
presence of the one of the School of Sages, the quasi-official leadership of
this world. "I wish I could really believe that, Elder Mother," Mio sighs.
"The Wanderer who sacrificed herself for me was...lost in the merger. I know
of your race and your beliefs, but that's second-hand information from the
sister of our race's first father and her friends."

<<Unfortunately so,>> the sage muses. <<It is sad indeed. A
Wanderer's most vital purpose was to relay the information of her lost
sisters to the Great School so their story can continue, even only in memory.
But when the warp brought you here, the damage her mind took from the blast
of radiation from that warp directly affected her memory, wiping out so much.
It was fortunate that she kept enough of her cognizance to help you, or else
we would mourn both your passing into the Cosmic Chain of Life.>>

Mio shudders. "How did it happen?" she hugs herself. "Lyna's
Blessed Soul, how can I go back to Sagussa with this over my head?"

<<Why blame yourself?>>

"Because if that test hadn't occurred, I'd be back home bonding with
Yuu-chan and that Wanderer would still be alive, her memories intact," Mio
tries to dam her tears.

<<Sometimes, Fate permits things to happen which no one likes. We
Nendo-kata and you Sagussans are warriors on Unity's side. You seek to
restore the life and health of your world, to continue your Great School's
eternal story after the horror you call the Clone Rights War nearly cast it
all into the Cosmic Chain of Life. We seek to preserve and protect those who
cannot defend themselves from disUnity, as you do in your own way concerning
the Great School that adopted the Oshika and Sailor Twin Schools.>>

<<And we've known all along such battles will draw a hefty price from
us. You've fundamentally understood that since the beginning of your Grand
Design, nearly experienced it when you lost track of your sister Mie Seikou,
then experienced it again when your Gatherer and your First Father's daughter
Koishii vanished some years ago. Don't blame yourself, Mio. You only inflict
pain which does no one any good, least of all yourself. What's done is done.
What you have to do now is go back to Sagussa and form your bond with Yuu.>>

"Yuu...!!" Mio shudders, gazing at the black night overhead, then
smiles. "Yeah, I have to go..."

<<Then, may I show you the way...as well as...>>

Mio gasps as the waters erupt, a lithe form bursting free of her own
birthing hatch. As soon as the waters calm, Mio finds herself staring
at...herself! "Why?!"

"I hope you don't mind," the Crossed Over sage smiles. "But I myself
am an orphan of sorts; we're all that way in the School of Sages. Bards
aren't the only ones who lose schoolmates whenever disUnity befalls us.
Besides, after learning of your Great School, we of the School of Sages...ALL
of us in the Great School...decided it was time for such like-minded
people...to draw closer ties."

Mio blinks, then grins. "I always wanted a sister. Now I get one
who's also an ambassador from the one world we've all dreamt of visiting. I
must be doing something right." She hums. "Besides, other than Yuu, there is
one more single girl in Namu'sha: Rei."

"You once desired her, didn't you?"

"*En,* I did. But Rei's pretty much wed to her job. Besides, I'd
think a Nendo-kata'd be perfect to be her bondmate, so in a sense of the term,
'I' get her as much as I get Yuu."

"Let's just hope they understand that, too!"

Both laugh...

* * *

Namu'sha Police Station...

"How is she?"

Noa gazes sadly at the sedated Yuu as the nurse leaves. "She took it
badly," Rei shakes her head. "If you want my opinion, she really wasn't at
fault for Mio vanishing like that."

"I'd think not, either, but now it's in Kaho's hands," Noa sighs,
then gazes at the detective. "Rei, if Kaho asks, I'll be offering myself as
Yuu's aide tomorrow."

Rei nods understandingly. Since Sagussa had no lawyers (an oversight
of sorts, though few minded it since the *daishi'cha* had gained a profound
distaste for legal wordplay and double-talk from their intense observations
of other worlds), a good friend could offer themselves as a legal assistant
in times like this. It was just as well since the prosecutor in this case
(due to the small amount of legal adults in Namu'sha) would be the warden
herself...and in a courtroom, Rurika was as vicious in the attack as Kaho was
in delivering punishment. "I think everyone'd like that, Noa."

"Well, then I better turn in. Good night, Rei."

"Good night, *ashi'cha,*" Rei bows as Noa steps out.

The detective then blinks as Chie walks in. "Rei, can I talk to you
for a moment?"

"What about?"

Chie sighs. "Look, I want to apologize for my outburst when you came
to take Yuu away," she gazes at the detective. "I know you were doing your
job and all that, but...after Mio died, I was actually hoping that you'd..."

"Become her *marei'cha?*" Rei blinks, then smiles. "I'm very
flattered, Chie."

"So what's going to happen?"

Rei sighs. "Well, since we can't verify what really happened to Mio,
I'll try to ask for a stay of proceedings, possibly dropping the charges and
letting her go until we get more evidence. Afura's gone back to Tere'na to
get Ifurita's help in trying to trace where that space-warp went to. Nowhere
within the range of a rover unit, which means that wherever she's gone off
to, it's VERY far away."

"Time's of the essence, huh?" Chie sighs. "But still, Yuu'll be
living under a cloud until we get some answers..."

"I know," Rei nods. "But in my eyes, the real victim in this mess is
Kie-chan. I remember something an FBI inspector told me when I visited
Washington one time. He said that when you deal with something that harms
kids in any way, think of this: 'they're all OUR kids.' That's something
I've never forgotten."

"Yeah, but Kie-chan'll trust Yuu more than anyone else. We can't
spoil that by making Yuu look like she killed Mio."

"I know," Rei nods. "Right now, all we can do is wait."

* * *

Next day...

"Ready?"

Yuu shudders as she gazes at Rei. She was now in her dress uniform.
After breakfast and meeting with Noa, she had been escorted back home to get
changed and ready. "Yeah, I'm ready."

"Okay," Rei nods, then smiles. "Oh, by the way, we got a surprise
for you."

"What...?"

"MOMMA!!!!!!"

Yuu gasps as Margh and Varac race in, nearly bowling her over with
their hugs. "Hi, sweeties, how are you?!!" she kisses them.

"It's okay, Momma!!" Margh smiles. "Auntie Chie told us what
happened to Mashi!"

"They're going to find her, are they, Auntie Noa?!" Varac looks
hopefully at Noa.

"We hope so," Noa sighs. "But right now, we need you two to do
something for us. Can you do it?"

"Uh-huh!" the twins nod.

"Good. Now, Kie-chan's gonna be there, too. Remember, she really
misses her mommy very much, so you'll have to make her happy and make her
believe it'll be okay. Understood?"

"*En!!*" the twins nod again.

"Okay," Noa nods. "I think we're ready, Detective."

"*En,*" Rei taps her wrist-comm. "Detective Reinotoki to Namu'sha
Village Transporter Centre. Beam party of five to Village Hall, foyer beside
Courtroom."

"Acknowledged," the transporter technician replies.

Beams seize them and deposit them inside the glass-enclosed village
hall in the centre of Namu'sha. Fountains are laid out all over the main
foyer, which branched out into all the side foyers, allowing visitors to the
village hall a place to rest and relax; this was as much a social gathering
place as the village market across the street. Already, several people have
gathered nearby, many turning to gaze quizzically at the party that just
arrived. Yuu ducks their questioning stares, turning her gaze to the floor so
as to not sense any hidden accusations. She then feels Noa's hand on her arm,
then gazes at the Elder Mother and smiles.

Rei faces the computer controls beside the doorway; the courtroom was
in truth a converted holosuite. "Computer, reconfigure chambers to healing
circle format. Authorization Reinotoki-Quebec-One-One-Eight."

"*Authorization acknowledged. Configuration made. You and your
party may enter, Detective Reinotoki.*"

The doors open, revealing a small circle of chairs surrounded by
trees, the bright sun pouring in from outside through a skylight (that was
real). Yuu smiles as she walks in, then makes her way to the defendant's
chair. Sagussan courtrooms could be configured in one of two ways. In
serious cases (rape, intentioned murder and treason for example), the format
would be similar to the way most Terran courtrooms are constructed: the
judge in a raised platform over the debating area, prosecution to the right,
defence to the left, a jury area to the far right and room for spectators.

But in those cases where the accused could also be seen as a victim
or when the crime was minor, the healing circle format was used. Here, the
accused sat right across from the judge, gazing at her at eye level.
Prosecution would sit to the right, barred from contact with the accused by
the arresting officer. The aide would sit to the accused's left. Family
members would be permitted to the left of the aide. There was only one row
of seats around the circle, thus reducing the number of spectators to just
the credible witnesses needed to resolve the case.

As Yuu takes her place, the side doors to the left open to reveal
Rurika. With her is Kie, who breaks away and runs into Yuu's arms. "Mashi!!"
she sobs.

"How are you?!" Yuu gazes at the weeping girl.

"I'm okay!" Kie hugs her, then smiles before fresh sobs nearly steal
her voice. "I k-know you are innocent, Mashi! I k-know you c-couldn't do i-
it...!"

Yuu beams, then gazes at Rurika. The Tengu-born warden (unlike
others, she didn't wear her hair in the traditional wing hairstyle) remains
impassive, not meeting the architect's look. Yuu then guides Kie to sit
beside Margh and Varac. At that moment, the side doors to the right open.
"*All rise for Magistrate Kaho, chief justice of Namu'sha Village,*" the
computer announces.

Everyone stands as Kaho steps in, resplendent in her lawyer's robes,
then relaxes in her chair. "Be seated, please," she sighs.

Everyone sits down as the door opens, the group of witnesses for this
case...Nozomi, the engineers assigned to the boom-tube project, Tony, Biiko,
Nagisa and Afura...walking inside. As they sit down, Kaho draws out a padd,
then types. "Very well, then. Case Ten-Two-eleven-A, the People of Sagussa
versus *daishi'cha* One-one-one-nine-eight, Yuu. Warden Rurika, please read
the charges."

"Yes, Your Honour," Rurika rises. "Your Honour, the People so charge
that the defendant did commit an act of negligence causing death in the person
of *daishi'cha* One-seven-five-oh-six, Mio, by not aiding in the transference
of her *mei'na* to a place of safety prior to the testing of a spacial boom-
tube transport unit in the early forenoon of Year Ten, Day Two-oh-nine." She
then sighs. "Seeing as to the circumstances concerning the relationship
between the defendant and the victim, plus considering the age of the
defendant's children and the victim's daughter, the People request minimum
punishment if the defendant is found guilty."

"So noted," Kaho nods. "Elder Mother Noa, do you stand as the
defendant's aide in these proceedings?"

"I do, Your Honour," Noa nods.

"And the defendant's plea?"

Noa and Yuu exchange looks. "The defendant would like to withhold
plea for the time being, Your Honour," the former then gazes at the judge.

"May the court ask why?"

"Your Honour, had things not gone so tragically two days ago, my
friend and the victim would've been bonded, a goal they've been pursuing for
some time," Noa sighs. "My friend...given evidence the Architect-prime, the
Fleet Engineering Chief and Science-Thoughtmistress Afura will present...now
blames herself for Mio's disappearance. I refuse to say Mio has died; you
understand as the evidence is given. But while I wouldn't rate her unfit for
trial, she is understandably...out of sorts because of what's happened."

"Very well, then," Kaho sighs. "The accused's desire not to enter a
plea at this time is so noted. May we have the first witness, Warden?"

"*En,*" Rurika rises. "The People calls *daishi'cha* Eighteen-
twenty, Nozominotoki..."

* * *

Tere'na-korgh...

Shayla gazes at the stir of clouds floating around the great dome of
the Forge, standing now at its apex ten kilometres over Lyna's grave. The
view from here was spectacular, both of the sky overhead and the surrounding
countryside. The Chief of Earth and Soil Studies holds her personal
*haijo-ju* staff, the creation of a seldom-known Fourth Republic Head
Scientist before the age of Lyna and Horan, close to her breast. With it,
she could hear the very heartbeat of her world, feel the pulse of life as
water...Miz' specific domain...streamed into the soil to reawaken the long
dormant nutrients that would begin rebuilding the proper chain of life, then
merging with those elements transplanted from the Fourth Republic and other
worlds to make Sagussa bloom.

She could accelerate the process herself, but the logic she and her
bondmates adhered to stopped her before going too far. To rush the natural
development of Creation would only bring a storm of Entropy elsewhere...and
the Sagussans had long learned by now the concept of cause and effect. She
was a spiritual guardian of sorts to her fellow *daishi'cha,* as true to her
personal faith, her view on Eternity and her part in it, as those like Catty
who looked on Lyna as a spiritual guide.

It angered Shayla at times when priests of established faiths
elsewhere...the *daimon'cha's* former spiritual advisor Chie Budou being one
such person...scoffed the supposedly lack of faith among Sagussans. Yes,
there were a number of times when the *daishi'cha* demonstrated
overconfidence when dealing with others, but the real faith Sagussans had in
the *te'a* and their strict adherence in not transmitting their beliefs to
others, preserving their spiritual integrity and thus not provoking Entropy's
wrath, was always there.

Now, if only Kaho would ease off on Yuu, Shayla muses as she mind-
links with Afura and eavesdrops into the proceedings all the way in Namu'sha.
The poor woman was suffering enough. To put the onus of guilt on an event no
one had any control over was really dumb. Kie and Yuu's twins needed the
comfort of a mother at this time in their lives. While minimum punishment for
negligent homicide...a permanent reprimand and reassignment to a "safer" area
of work, which for Yuu would mean the end of her career as an architect and
engineer...was mild, the stigma of being seen as "guilty" in Mio's "death"
would last the rest of her life. It would be passed onto her children,
reinforced by other children, then spread out like a virus to haunt them, too.

She then tenses as the *te'a* patterns shift radically deep within
the Sogh'haeng. Looking west, she focuses her attention on a spot some
kilometres off-shore, then concentrates. <<Miz!!>>

<<I felt it!>> the lavender-haired Vosian-born Miz replies as she
appears beside Shayla. "What is it?!"

"What say we find out?!" the crimson-haired Yehisrite-born scientist
muses.

Both levitate from the dome, their *haijo-ju* glowing as they soar
over the Forge, then past the shoreline. "There!" Miz points down, then spins
her staff. "I'll get it into the open."

A bolt of energy punches into the water as the waves part, creating a
funnel of water all the way to the sandy bottom a half-kilometre down. In
that open space, a space-warp has formed. "Where're they from?!" Shayla
wonders.

"Can't tell from up here!" Miz hums, then blinks. "Wait!!"

The warp collapses, revealing a telekinetic ball encasing two women,
both with green hair. Shayla gapes as the ball rises, easily escaping Miz's
energy field, then floats up to their eye level. On seeing one face, Miz and
Shayla gasp. "MIO?!?!?!"

"Hi, everyone!" Mio smiles, her eyes glowing. "Um, would it be too
much trouble to borrow some clothes? It's chilly today."

The two scientists blink, then laugh...

* * *

Namu'sha Village Hall...

"Your Honour, may I interrupt these proceedings?!"

"Is there a problem, Thoughtmistress?" Kaho blinks.

"Well, not a problem per se, but something that will have great
relevance to this case," Afura stands, then lifting her *haijo-ju,*
concentrates.

A flash of energy teleports in Shayla, Miz and two other women, both
now in relaxed jumpsuits. Everyone spins around as one of them slips on her
glasses. "Hi, everyone!" Mio sighs. "Sorry I vanished like that. Honey, you
wouldn't BELIEVE the day I had today!" she slumps over to gently embrace Yuu.

Yuu stammers, unable to say anything as her eyes joyously tear.
"Momma!!!" Kie screams as she races over to embrace Mio.

"Hi, sweetie!!!" Mio smiles as she picks her daughter up, then gazes
into her eyes. "Did you miss me?!!"

"Uh-huh!" Kie sniffs, then wails as she holds Mio tight.

Mio sighs, then kisses her daughter's forehead. Rurika rises, then
stares at Kaho. "Your Honour, in light of what just happened, the People
request the case against Yuu be dropped at once."

"So ordered," Kaho nods. "Court adjourned!"

Everyone howls with delight as they rush over to join Mio. "Mio,
what happened to you?!!" Noa demands. "Lyna's Soul, we thought you were
gone!!"

"I nearly was," Mio admits, then looks behind her at the other woman,
still shrouded in shadows. "Ashoi'cha?"

"'Ashoi'cha?!'" Kie blinks. "Momma, you don't have a sister!"

"Now I do, little one," Mio smiles as the other emerges into light.
"Elder Mother, I have the privilege to present my adopted sister, *daishi'cha*
Es-One-seven-five-oh-six, Kisaragi...a sister of the School of Sages and now
the ambassador of the Great School of the Nendo-kata to the Fifth Republic of
Sagussa."

Total silence. Kisaragi nods. "A pleasure, everyone. The Mother
Ocean's blessings on you all."

Everyone exchanges looks, then Noa walks up to gently grasp
Kisaragi's hands. "Welcome to Sagussa, Elder Mother Kisaragi. May our
relations always be peaceful."

"So they shall always be, Elder Mother Noa," Kisaragi nods, then
gazes at her sister. "Oshoi'cha, aren't you going to do something about Yuu-
chan?"

Mio blinks, then gazes once more at Yuu. The latter stands there,
biting her lips as the information overload finally washes out of her.
Walking over, she fiercely embraces Mio, kissing her cheeks. "Do
vanan'cha...marei'cha- Mio."

"Hey, let's bond first before we say that!" Mio grins, returning her
kiss.

Everyone laughs...

* * *

A day later...

"Welcome to Sagussa, Elder Mother...and thank you for bringing our
lost sister home," Sakura gently grasps Kisaragi's hand as the cameras roll.
"I trust you're settling in well."

"I'm quite fine, thank you," Kisaragi sighs. "My, the way you're all
treating me, it's as if I just became the matriarch of this whole planet."

"Well, not that far, but one has to admit, the presence of any Nendo-
kata...especially a sage like yourself...would be a welcome addition to our
society."

"A pity we can't reciprocate, but the School of Sages has decreed
that we'd never permit outsiders to despoil any part of our planet," Kisaragi
sighs.

"Well, your affairs are your own business," Sakura nods as everyone
relaxes around the Inner Circle's table, the crowd of reporters remaining
quiet at the back of the room. "In the meantime, Articifer Mio, please step
forward."

"*En,*" Mio rises.

Sakura produces a beautiful black ribbon lined in gold, the medal
attached to it displaying a woman holding a globe etched with the image of the
galaxy in one hand, the branch of peace in another. "By your making initial
contact with the Nendo-kata homeworld, by your example demonstrating our good
will to the Great School and aiding in the establishment of limited relations
with them, it is my honour and pleasure to bestow on you the Order of Anghya,
in hopes that you will inspire us all to go forth and build bridges between
races instead of destroying them."

Mio bows as the ribbon is slipped over her head amid the storm of
cheers, then she proceeds back to her seat. <<I did nothing to earn this!>>
she sighs.

<<Be at peace, sister,>> Kisaragi sighs. <<Sakura's right, you know.
You did inspire us to become your friends. Isn't that worth something?>>

<<Of course,>> Mio nods, gently grasping Yuu's hand as Sakura
welcomes the reporters' questions. <<I got my bondmate back and I got a
sister, too. Like I said, I must be doing something right.>>

Kisaragi laughs...

* * *

Oshika...

"So there's now a Nendo-kata living on Sagussa," Shinobu hums as she,
Lum and Ataru enjoy some tea after watching SNN News, which updated them on
events in Tere'na City. "I wonder how long it'll be before a whole school
decides to migrate there."

"Probably not for some time," Ataru hums. "After all, very little
can threaten Sagussa directly that'd require a Nendo-kata's touch. Atop that,
people'd have to get used to the idea of dealing directly with people who can
mate via parthenogenesis. You know the problems Mie-chan and Makoto-chan've
had with Kum-chan and Unmyou-chan."

"That's true," Lum nods...

* * *

Onishuto...

"Can the Nendo-kata be defeated, Mistress?"

"Of course they can! They have no technology, nothing to defend
themselves with! It doesn't matter if a dozen of their schools moved to that
planet of bimbos! They'll all die just the same!!"

Insane laughter echoes through the Skelad mansion...

* * *

Namu'sha Village...

"So, you enjoyed yourself?" Rei wonders.

"Yeah, I did," Tony nods, slipping on his cowboy hat as he affixes
the silver star of the Texas Rangers on his shirt. "Glad the whole thing with
Yuu turned out the way it did. You ask me, I think you girls aren't ready yet
to deal with serious crime."

"We'll have to deal with it when it comes," Rei sighs. "No matter
what, this thing shook up a lot of people. It did us all a lot of good in the
end, but Lyna, we can afford to do without it."

"Now you know what we all go through back home," Tony hums, then tips
his hat to her. "Take care now, Detective."

"You, too, Lieutenant," Rei salutes.

With that, he heads for the hoverlimo awaiting to take him to
Kyre'sha City for the flight back home via Tere'na City and New York, his
dufflebag slung over his back. As it drives off, Rei sighs, then steps back
inside. "Well, another quiet day."

"Excuse me?"

Rei turns, then braces herself. "Oh, Madame Ambassador, what brings
you around here?" she salutes.

"Please, Rei, there's no need for such formalities between us,"
Kisaragi smiles, now dressed in a fetching opaque gown that discreetly showed
off all her assets. "But I was wondering if you were off-duty soon?"

"Well, Kiyone and Mihoshi should be here sometime soon," Rei smiles.
"Why?"

The Nendo-kata-turned-Noukiite-Sagussan then seductively smiles.
"Well, you see, my sister and her bondmate informed me there was a lonely
woman looking for some love and companionship," she smiles. "So, Rei-chan,
any takers?"

Rei sweats...

*** The End ***