A moan. "Oh, my head…"
"Are you two okay?"
Green-brown eyes fluttered open as the woman who was born as Sekimi Nayamu (and would be better known to any tôshi by the battle name "Kenseki") found herself staring at a ceiling dotted with the normal type of florescent lighting one might find in a home. Feeling the soft cushion of a pillow behind her head, she breathed out before blinking as a woman's face hovered into her range of vision. "Are you okay, Nayamu-san?"
Kenseki blinked as she stared at that strange face, and then her eyes widened in confusion as a name came to her. "Miyake…?" she muttered aloud before a grunt escaped her as she moved to sit up. Looking around, she then blinked on finding herself in the living room of the Moroboshi home. She glanced to her right to see the unmoving form of her best friend there, her brown eyes fluttering as she struggled to come back to consciousness. "Kônami?"
A moan escaped Kônami Hakaru — Teikô — as she rose into a sitting position. "Oh, gods!" the blue-haired tôshi groaned. "I just had the weirdest dream, Sekimi!" She stared at her friend. "I saw the Emperor as a girl!"
"So did I," Kenseki admitted, and then she blinked as a chill came over her. "Wait a minute…!" she gasped before her face started to pale as her metasenses quickly locked in on a familiar presence from the direction of the kitchen.
Teikô also sensed that, and then both turned to see a woman with red-blonde hair and brown eyes standing at the entrance to the kitchen, a tray with hot cups of tea in hand as she gazed with concern at them. "Are you two alright?" Hiromi Moroboshi asked as she walked over to place the tea tray on the table beside her guests.
Both tôshi gaped at her, and then Teikô stammered, "M-m-My Emperor…?"
A nod. "Hai, it's me, Teikô."
Silence.
"HOW?!" both women shrieked.
Hiromi giggled. "Remember when I told you all that you were missing information when you selected Ataru Moroboshi as the host for my soul?"
"WHAT?!" Shinobu howled as she glared at the two tôshi. "YOU TRIED TO HAVE ATARU-KUN POSSESSED?! WHAT TYPE OF MONSTERS ARE YOU, ANYWAY?!"
"SHINOBU!" Hiromi yelled back, that making Shinobu balk as she felt herself at the receiving end of the reborn emperor's burning gaze. "YOU ARE A GUEST IN THIS HOUSE! AT LEAST HAVE THE DECENCY TO ACT LIKE ONE!"
Shinobu shrank on herself. "I'm sorry…!" she moaned.
"Accepted." Hiromi's eyes then glistened. "And what in the name of all the Fates in this universe are YOU TWO smirking at?" she then growled.
Teikô and Kenseki — who had both grinned on seeing Hiromi shout down the infamous Shinobu Miyake — both gasped as they felt their reborn emperor's glare rake over them, and then both instantly prostrated themselves to her. "WE'RE SORRY!"
Hiromi sighed. "Accepted. Now sit up! I don't talk to people's backs!"
Both tôshi bolted back to an alert position as Hiromi sat down at the table, placing the tea tray there and handing the cups to everyone. At that moment, a strange voice then echoed from the hallway leading to the stairs going to the upper floor, "Um, excuse me, but what the heck's with all the yelling down here?"
Everyone turned over, and then Shinobu gasped. "Momoe! What are you doing here?!"
Momoe Marubeya giggled as she relaxed herself against the frame of the doorway into the living room. The very giddy-looking woman was currently dressed only in her blouse; Shinobu could see the black hair framing her womanhood between the open flaps of her shirt. "Right now, living a dream, Shinobu-chan," she said with a titter to her voice. "Oh, to BELIEVE that for all this time, I allowed a hunk like Ataru Moroboshi to escape my grasp! And all to chase some rich idiot who wouldn't see honest attraction for him even if it smacked him right in his face!" A deep sigh. "Hey, Shinobu! I know how much you still pine for Ataru! Lucky thing Lum ordered a DOZEN android replicas of him!" She then turned just as the android that had been cleaning the kitchen came out to stand in the hallway, his presence making Teikô and Kenseki gape in shock. "Oh, here's one now!" She waved Shinobu to him. "C'mon, Shinobu! Dive in!"
"Momoe-chan…!"
Teikô and Kenseki both gasped on seeing a SECOND Ataru, now just dressed in a pair of boxers, come down to gently lean against his companion. "Momoe-chan, Onê-sama is currently entertaining guests," he said as he gently breathed into her ear, that making Momoe shudder with delight. "Let's go back upstairs and rejoin the others, shall we?"
"Hai…" she crooned in a near-delirium as she allowed him to tenderly scoop her into his arms and carry her back to Tariko's and Lum's bedroom.
The other android watched his brother carry up his lover, and then he stared in amusement at Hiromi. "Onê-sama, will you like some snacks made for your guests?"
"Something light, please," Hiromi said.
"Hai, right away."
He returned to the kitchen. Teikô and Kenseki blinked as they watched him go, and then they turned to stare in confusion at Hiromi. "My Emperor…!" the former gasped.
Hiromi sighed. "Girls, the mistake you made was that you didn't realise that Ataru Moroboshi had no past connection to anyone from the time of our first lives," she stated. "You assumed that just because Ataru summoned Nengmek'i-sama here to punish those who would continue to impose their wills on he and Lum that he, somehow, had to be the destined reborn version of myself, correct?" On seeing the two tôshi in front of her nod, Hiromi smiled. "Fortunately for you all, Ataru was more than willing to help you in your desire to restore me back to life. Which he did yesterday."
Teikô and Kenseki blinked. "How?!" both demanded.
"Zhòuquán-xiäng. Specifically, the Niángnìquán and the Shuiängshëngérnìquán."
Both tôshi gaped. "The Drowned Girl Spring?" Teikô asked.
"And the Drowned Twin Spring?" Kenseki demanded.
A nod. "Hai. Here's the story…"
Such took fifteen minutes to tell, that making both tôshi gape in stunned disbelief. At the end of it, Teikô pointed up. "You mean to say that Ataru loved Lum SO much that he WILLINGLY gave up his MANHOOD to turn himself into her perfect dream lover?!"
"And that when we placed your magatama onto his ear when we went on our first date with him and he later sensed your soul within it, he just turned around and allowed himself to be replicated twice so you could have your own body?!" Kenseki added.
A nod. "That's correct."
Both tôshi took a moment to consider that, and then they stared at each other for a moment before turning back to Hiromi. "My Emperor! Don't you realise that your whole LIFE is now TOTALLY dependent on the magic of those accursed springs?!" Teikô gasped, her hand clutching over her heart. "If warm water was…!"
"That's been taken into consideration."
Silence fell as both took that in. "How?!" Kenseki demanded.
"The power of a special magical device owned by the Musk near Zhòuquán-xiäng," Hiromi stated. "Onê-san's friend Ranma Saotome was exposed to it some months ago when the prince of that tribe came to this land looking for another device that would allow the power of the lock to be released. The ki fragments of the lock remained in Ranma-san's body even when she was allowed to return to 'normal.' The ki was replicated and inserted into Onê-san's body. And only Onê-san, Lum-san or I can undo it."
"Your life is still in danger!" Kenseki warned.
A shake of the head. "Calm yourself, Kenseki. A permanent block on any attempts at making me 'disappear' will be done sometime in the next few days. It's alright. I'm safe, I'm now a part of a warm and accepting family and I'm content with that."
Seeing that, Kenseki and Teikô exchanged a look, and then they relaxed themselves. "If this whole matter fulfils your desires, My Emperor, we can accept that," the latter then said as both bowed deeply to her. "Please forgive us."
A giggle then made both stare at Shinobu. Noting that Hiromi's guests were staring at her, she then smiled. "I was just thinking of this: Wouldn't it make more sense for both of you to address Hiromi as 'My Empress' instead of 'My Emperor?'"
Both tôshi gasped at this outsider's rudeness when it came to addressing their reborn leader, and then they tensed on hearing Hiromi clear her throat. "Enough, girls. Shinobu is my friend. She may speak to me as an equal." She then stared at Shinobu. "But PLEASE, Shinobu. Do be careful about their feelings. Understand that Kônami and Sekimi here have been quite isolated from other tôshi like Mimôko-san and her peers. Their determination to see me restored to life has driven them over many reincarnations in the last eighteen centuries. That they've succeeded in this time makes them very happy, but at the same time, also makes them concerned about my safety and security."
Shinobu tensed, and then she nodded. "Sorry about that."
"It's alright." Hiromi then perked as Ataru walked into the room with a tray of freshly-cut fruit. "Ah, here's something for us to eat! Arigatô."
"You need but ask, Onê-sama," the android said with a smile.
Shinobu giggled as Teikô and Kenseki exchanged a look.
On a train travelling down the Seibu Chichibu Line, having just left Seibu-Chichibu station for the trip to Agano station for a transfer to the Ikebukuro Line…
"Kyekkyek! Will you stop sniffing around like that?! It's embarrassing!"
Blinking as she pretty much ignored Kuohu's moaned complaint, Kyekkyek paced up and down the car as it travelled southeast, parallel to National Highway 299 as it headed from Chichibu towards Metropolitan Tôkyô. She ignored the odd camera flash from passengers as she continued to walk and sniff around. Watching this, Kuohu tried not to scream at her adopted sister's antics. Beside her, Shiryû remained calm, though her grip on her sword was tensing. She could sense the younger Noukiite's agitation. "Kachnuk-dono, please be calm," she said. "Your sister senses something amiss and she simply desires to assure herself all is well."
Kuohu stared at the close-eyed tôshi for a moment, and then she relaxed herself. "Yeah, something smells really weird here," Kyekkyek muttered as she returned to join them, her eyes still darting everywhere. "I never thought I would smell that here."
"Smell what?" Kuohu demanded.
"A ch'uokyek."
Silence.
"What?" Kuohu said, and then she sighed. "Kyekkyek! You're probably…!"
"No, it's not Kumomi!" Kyekkyek stated. "And it's not Ranma or any of the others who've been touched or bonded to a ch'uokyek! It's someone new!"
Shiryû tensed. "Is is Gentoku-san you sense?"
A shake of the head. "No, Kumomi! The smell of a Terran ch'uokyek is different than a Noukiite ch'uokyek! And this is a Noukiite ch'uokyek I'm smelling! The strength of the bond between the ch'uokyek and the Terran it touched is as strong as Kyech smells to me!" Kyekkyek blinked, and then her eyes widened as something came to her. "You don't think Hucheng-ch'ekyunghechha may have touched someone else other than Ranma when she came here?!"
Silence fell as the other two warriors considered that. "Possibly," Kuohu breathed out. "She's the most insane of all the ch'uokyek. Even Kyech prefers not to have anything to do with her if she can avoid it. But if that's true…!"
"Excuse me, Kachnuk-dono."
All turned to see one of the conductors standing nearby. "Oh!" Kuohu gasped as she turned and bowed to him, fist-in-palm. "Is there something wrong, Lord Coach Guide?"
He tried not to blush on hearing that formal title applied to him. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but some of the passengers and I couldn't help but overhear what your adopted sister just discovered and what you were discussing with your guide here." He indicated Shiryû with a hand. "Is there some way we can assist you in locating this poor person?"
"Actually, there is," Kuohu stated. "Could you prevail on the Coach Master for this train to delay departure at each stop for thirty seconds so Kyekkyek can do a quick check at each turnpike gate to see if this person disembarked before we reach the end of the line at the Agano Turnpike Gate for the switch to the Ikebukuro Turnpike?"
He hummed. "Thirty seconds…?"
"Oh, don't worry about it, young man!" an elderly lady stated from nearby. "If the poor dear is so concerned about what their dragon was doing here, it's alright!"
Other passengers quickly called in their support. On seeing that, the conductor nodded. "I'll speak to the engineer right now, Kachnuk-dono."
"Our thanks to you, Lord Coach Guide," Kuohu said with a bow.
He couldn't fight down the blush as he headed forward…
Tomobiki…
"So these aliens could potentially threaten all on Earth if they disapprove of Lum's marriage to your sister and move to end it by killing her?" Kenseki asked.
"Hai," Hiromi said. She and her guests were currently relaxing in the living room enjoying tea and snacks. "We need this kept top secret until tomorrow at noon. That's when Kuohu-san's fiancée and her friends will arrive in force. They'll make the landings just as the official announcement is put out over the news. If it's done right, we can have them all rounded up in less than an hour."
"Let's hope that people won't panic," Shinobu stated. "If these Imperial Rangers are as tough and as nasty as you said they are, Hiromi…" She then shuddered. "And if they come down armed to the teeth and are ready for a fight…"
A chuckle. "Don't worry, Shinobu. Ni-san trains her troops very thoroughly when it comes to urban warfare. Besides, the Special Committee will be out in full force, along with the Self-Defence Forces and the National Police, to make sure no bystanders can be hurt or turned into hostages. It's been planned for at least two weeks."
A sigh. "I hope so."
"My Empress," Teikô then offered. "We can easily do a scan of all the target areas well before your friends arrive. If we discover anything that might cause problems, we can easily alert you immediately so your friends will not be hurt."
Hiromi took that in, and then she nodded. "Alright." She then hummed. "Actually, I have a better idea. Teikô, can you call over to Chôjô and ask her to come over here? Bring all the others as well. I would prefer to brief them directly on this."
A bow. "Your wish is my command, My Empress."
With that, she rose to head to the back door so she could get her cell phone out and make her call to Chôjô's base of operations close to the border with Nerima. Shinobu watched her go, and then she turned to see Kenseki staring at her tea cup. "Nayamu-san, would you like some more tea?" she then offered. "Ataru can make some more."
Kenseki tensed, and then she smiled. "Arigatô, Miyake-san. I'm alright."
Shinobu lightly smiled. "This isn't what you originally planned, is it?"
A sigh. "No. Not by far. I mean…" She paused as she struggled to find the right words to describe the storm of conflicting feelings boiling inside her. "For so long…so many lifetimes…my friends and I could only dream of some way to bring the Emperor back to life. At first it was to allow him to seize the throne and restore the rule of the Han over China. Then when our reincarnations drifted across China into Korea and eventually here to Japan, all we simply cared about was allowing him to live and making all the other tôshi bow to her again. That drove us right to yesterday when she fully awoke in Ataru's body and recognised us." Tears then filled her eyes. "And now to learn that she doesn't care to reclaim what is hers…"
"Sekimi, what IS mine, anyway?"
Kenseki jolted as she stared at Hiromi. "My Empress…!"
Hiromi chuckled as she stood up and walked to the windows to gaze on the late afternoon sky over Tomobiki just as Teikô returned to the room and took her seat between Kenseki and Shinobu. "Do you know how easily it was for the Flower Youth of Noukiios to accept what happened to them when they were reborn in this day and age, Sekimi?"
Kenseki blinked. "You mean your sister's friends…?"
"Are exactly like me," Hiromi finished. "Saved by means they don't understand, as much as I don't understand how my soul was saved in the magatama I wear. Then reborn in Avalonian bioroid bodies provided by a noble man named Ganzo dai-Louc, who only wanted to see trapped souls restored to life. All reborn at ten years of age, scattered across Noukiios and many colonies. Allowed to live their lives in peace and harmony, see how the ancient land that was darkened with the blood of millions three millennia ago, split into three rival empires — Eap'ye controlling the northern continent around Ryekkyuk; K'uongno in the west of the southern continent around modern-day Suchkyuk all the way down to Eukna in the south; Hichp'u in the east of the southern continent from Ukp'ak in the north all the way to Yekna in the south…" She then shrugged. "See that beautiful world whole and united — having been so for two millennia after Eap'ye became Ep'ye and united Noukiios at last under one government — had healed and become the centre of a vast interstellar empire with nearly limitless resources, a booming population and technology that would be seen as magic back in their day when travel between the continents had to happen via sail."
"It must have been quite the culture shock," Shinobu noted.
"It was, but for so many of them, it was the best thing to happen to them," Hiromi stated. "Take Kyech-san for example. In her first life, she served Kaep'-san until Kaep'-san became so dictatorial, Kyech-san felt she had no choice but to join a group of warriors to see her deposed. When Seup'it'-san assumed control of the northern continent and tried to reunite the planet, Kyech-san was declared an outlaw in punishment for what she had done to Kaep'-san by court rivals." A sigh. "For years, she and her band were on the run until Seup'it'-san hunted them down and captured them. Since she would not swear allegiance to the government in Ryekkyuk, she was executed, along with At'at'at'-san, who stayed at her side right to the end." She sipped her tea. "Then she is reborn and allowed to grow up as the only child of a barren couple from Ryekkyuk. She discovers the gift Nengmek'i-sama had given to her in her first life carried over to her new life. But thanks to the basic nature of her body, her overall power was increased to a near-infinite level and she soon realised that she could become a menace to all who know her. So she left Noukiios for Okusei to live in the wilderness there, where she would threaten no one."
"Ran described her with some pretty impressive nicknames yesterday," Shinobu stated. "I know 'She Who Speaks to Dragons.' But what do all the other ones mean?"
A chuckle. "The only other nickname Kyech-san likes, Shinobu, is 'Nature's Supreme Defender.'" Hiromi sipped her tea as she walked back to sit down at the table. "Ten years ago, Okusei was in the midst of a massive environmental cleanup as the governor — that was Kaep'-san, actually — moved to restore it to the pristine condition it was before the first Noukiite settlers came to live there five centuries ago. As the flora and fauna were restored, people began speaking of the 'red-haired animal-lover' they would see from time to time, saving innocent animals from natural disasters and the odd time that the remaining settlers went a little too far in intruding on the restored habitats." A giggle. "Kuohu-san and Kyekkyek-san could even tell you of a time when they encountered Kyech-san near Kyukuk, acting as a strange monster so she could get food from a village so a pack of wolves that were driven from their normal habitat would be saved from starvation."
"I bet some people got annoyed," Teikô mused.
"Oh, they did, but Kaep'-san smoothed it over and allowed Kyech-san to go her own way after she made reparations to the villagers," Hiromi said, and then she sipped her tea. "When the news got to At'at'at-san — she was living in Uohek at the time, I believe — she immediately made her way to Okusei to reunite with Kyech-san and she managed to persuade her to start up a career as a free warrior since it was at that time that the bandit and highwaymen problem was starting to get very out of hand."
Shinobu hummed. "Does Kyech-san kill them?"
A nod. "Most times. But please understand that she does have an Imperial warrant that allows her to do that under circumstances when it simply is not convenient to get them to the nearest magistrate for a proper trial and execution." Hiromi shrugged. "In a way, the back country of the colonies of the Outmarches is like the old American west, Shinobu. Places where bastions of civilisation are few and far between."
"So she's like what they said on the television. A type of policewoman, right?"
A nod. "Hai. Besides, consider this: bandits in the Outmarches most often simply attack stay villagers or travellers, strip them of all their wealth and kill them, leaving their bodies out in the open to become food for the carrion-eaters." Hiromi smiled. "Kyech-san may seem remote and somewhat rude and abrupt, but she has a very overwhelming sense of right and wrong. Many like her do, Shinobu. They are all very good people there. And Kyech-san was there for Onê-san and Lum-san when…"
The front door then opened. "Tadaima!" Ataru's voice called out.
"Sorry to intrude on you," came the voice of Shimei Ryomô.
"Okaeri nasai!" Hiromi called back as the two walked in. "How was the movie?"
Shimei smirked. "They STILL got too many things wrong…eh?!"
She stopped as her eyes focused on Teikô and Kenseki as both stared in return at her. Beside her, her android date could only wince. "Oh, dear…!"
Agano Station…
"So this person definitely transferred onto the Ikebukuro train?"
"Hai," Kyekkyek said with a nod as she boarded the train that would soon leave the station for the long winding trip to the northwest side of downtown Tôkyô, though she and Kuohu had been planning to get off at Tomobiki-chûô so they could return to the Moroboshi house. "Kuohu, are we going to pause at every station here, too?"
Kuohu sighed. "Well, we could ask…"
"There's no need to worry about that, Kachnuk-dono."
Both Noukiites and Shiryû turned as the conductor for their train to Agano came up to her, accompanied by a co-worker. "What is the problem, Lord Coach Guide?"
He waved to his co-worker. "Ladies, this is the driver of the next train to Ikebukuro. I've already told him of what you had sensed. He's agreed to allow the trip you take to go with the prolonged stops so that Kingch'eng-dono can continue her investigation."
"Are you sure we shouldn't call the police about this?" the train engineer asked.
Kuohu shook her head. "I hesitate on getting the local constabulary involved until I fully understand the nature of what we've discovered, Coach Master," she stated. "Let us make sure this person can be handled before calling in on outside assistance."
Both men nodded. "All aboard, then!" the engineer stated as he waved them aboard.
The three women smiled as they got onto the train…
Tomobiki…
"These are two of your court eunuchs?"
Shimei stared at Hiromi, a mixture of anger and amusement on her face. Seeing the casual friendliness the tôshi from Nan'yô was showing their host, Kenseki and Teikô both trembled. "Ryomô! How DARE you speak so casually to the Empress?!" the former snarled as both fought down the urge to lunge over the table and throttle her.
"That's ENOUGH!"
Both women jolted on hearing Hiromi's stern voice, and then they bowed their heads before turning to stare pleadingly at her. "My Empress…!" Teikô moaned.
Hiromi sighed. "Forgive them, Mimôko-san," she said as she looked at Shimei. "They're devotion to me hasn't really caught up with the times as you can see."
"So I noticed," Shimei mused as her own Ataru came into the living room, a tea tray in hand. "Arigatô," she said as she took the cup in hand and sipped from it.
"Ataru, will you need to recharge soon?" Hiromi asked.
He shook his head. "Not yet, Onê-sama. But probably within a couple hours." He then gazed fondly at Shimei. "Mimôko here has said the date is still not finished."
Shimei blushed. "Oh, my! That's nice to hear," Hiromi said with a giggle as she politely covered her mouth. "Well, maybe we should recharge you a little early. Girls, let's go downstairs," she said as she stood up.
Everyone rose to follow Hiromi and the android Shimei had gone on a date with to the basement. On entering the storage room where the androids were normally kept, Ataru immediately got onto his diagnostic bed, face-down. Hiromi moved to plug in the memory-transference cables into his ear canals. Once that was done, she reached under him at the waist to unbuckle his pants and pull them down. Shinobu found herself blushing on seeing that well-formed butt, now just covered in a pair of boxers. She then blinked on seeing that Shimei was also blushing. With a smile, she gently grasped the tôshi's hand as Hiromi reached under the table to pull out a thick cable with a long metal insert rod. "You like him, don't you?"
Shimei gazed on her, and then she smirked. "As do you."
A nod. "Hai."
"Well, at least there're enough to go around," the tôshi then mused. "Maybe we should prevail on Lum to invite her friend Chara down here so we can thank her properly."
Shinobu stared at her. "You're bi?!"
"You'll find that most tôshi are bi to one extent or another," Shimei reported. "Remember, most of us were men in our first lives. And Fate didn't seem to care if we were reborn as men or women in the succeeding generations." She nodded to Teikô and Kenseki, both of whom were holding hands as they watched Hiromi prepare the power cable. "I'll lay a strong bet that Teikô and Kenseki here have a relationship with each other as well as with the other Ten Attendants. And Hiromi as well."
The other tôshi jolted on hearing that, and then their cheeks reddened as they sensed Shinobu looking their way. Finally, Kenseki smiled. "She's right, Miyake-san. Even before we woke up to our past selves' memories, Kônami and I were very close. Becoming Kenseki and Teikô just made us all the closer to each other. Right, Anata?"
"We'll always be together through thick and thin," Teikô said as she leaned over.
They shared a warm kiss. "Oh, my!" Shinobu said. "I'd almost swear you both went to the Lillian Academy over in Musashino, if not one of the schools on Astraea Hill!"
Hiromi hummed. "No, I doubt Lillian, Miator, Spica or Lulim would be able to tolerate full-blooded tôshi as their students." She then gazed on Ataru. "Ready?"
"Hai," he said with a nod. "Mimôko?"
"What is it?" Shimei asked as she gazed into his face.
"I'll dream of you."
She blushed. "I think I'll do the same with you," she admitted before watching as Hiromi shifted his boxers aside to reveal his buttocks. "How long?"
"A couple of hours," she said as she poised the power cable into position.
As the others watched, she gently pushed the charge rod past his opening into the depths of the rectum. An audible chick! echoed from inside his body as his eyes suddenly glowed. "Power cable connected to primary energy grid," he announced in a still-human voice. "Primary systems deactivating. Transfer of power commencing."
With that, his body went limp as his head rested on the pillow there, the gentle rise and fall of his chest stopping as he became very still. Watching this, Shimei tried not to shudder as she took in the sight of the man she had spent the last several hours with deactivated like a marionette with his strings cut, the blatant truth of his artificial nature now apparent for all to see. Taking a deep breath, she leaned down to gently kiss his cheek. "You are still human to me, Ataru," she whispered.
Hiromi smiled. "Don't worry about it, Mimôko-san. We still have another one without a 'date' up in the kitchen if you want to have him for a while."
Shimei perked. "Won't he get jealous?" she asked as she pointed to 'her' Ataru.
A chuckled. "Mimôko, we're not programmed to be jealous."
Everyone turned to see the Ataru that had been in the kitchen standing there, now accompanied by a wide-eyed Chôjô. On seeing the beautiful blonde, Hiromi smiled. "Konnichi wa, Chôjô. I trust all the others are with you now?"
Chôjô's pale blue eyes locked on Hiromi's ear for a moment, and then those eyes rolled into her head as she dropped in a dead faint into Ataru's arms. As everyone saw that, people began to chuckle. "Chôjô-san seemed to take that very well," Shinobu mused.
"Yeah! Just like we did," Teikô muttered as she scratched the top of her head.
On the Seibu Ikebukuro line, approaching Kiyose Station…
"Oh, Nê-chan! I can feel her! I can feel her now!"
Hearing her sister's delighted moan, Suikô Kajin could only smile as she drew Reishi Kakyô closer to her. "I can feel her, too, Imôto-chan," she whispered as her eyes narrowed, her ki senses reaching out to register what was there with her reborn brother-in-law. "Looks like all the court attendants are there. So's Mimôko Sebone. And a whole slew of local girls." A hum. "Odd. I thought very few people in that town would like anything related to Ataru Moroboshi…"
Reishi looked up at her sister. "Nê-chan, do you think Anata would still have the ability to change back into a man?" she wondered.
A shrug. "Hard to say, Mioko. But we'll find out soon enough."
Hearing that, the blue-haired reborn empress consort smiled as she leaned her head against her sister's shoulder as the train pulled into the station…
Back at the Moroboshi home, after a chorus of fainting spells from seven other women and some quick explanations…
"So you are satisfied with this situation, My Empress?"
Hiromi nodded. "More than satisfied, Chôjô. Believe me when I say this: Onê-san and Lum-san mean you no harm. Since they're more than cognisant of what happens when a soul is resurrected in a new body thanks to their past encounters with the Flower Youth on Noukiios and her colonies, they were more than willing to help me have my own life as well as accept me as part of their overall family. So please, relax."
Hearing that proclamation, the others of the Ten Attendants just let in on what had happened at the Moroboshi home since they last saw Ataru relaxed. "Well, that's good," Sôsetsu mused as she tucked her legs into her arms, and then she nodded her thanks as Ataru handed her a cup of tea. "But what happens to us now?"
"My Empress, forgive me for being so bold, but you did imply to us yesterday — when we were together at Kenseki's and Teikô's apartment — that you did have plans for all of us, including all the tôshi of the Seven Schools," Kakin stated before she bowed her head. "May this unworthy one ask you what those plans ultimately are?"
"Atsuko!" the grey-eyed Chôchû gasped as she spun on her friend, the brown ponytail sticking out from her right temple whipping around as she looked over, nearly hitting Fûsho in the face. "You're being TOO forward…!"
"That's enough, Chûko."
Eyes locked on Hiromi. "My Empress…!" Chôchû gasped.
Hiromi smiled as she beckoned Kakin over. "Come here, Atsuko."
Kakin rose, walking over to sit beside her reborn emperor. Hiromi smirked as she moved to shift Kakin into her lap, drawing her arms close around the other woman's waist. Kakin's cheeks instantly flamed as her body shuddered at such close contact with the woman she had strove over fifteen lifetimes to see reborn, and then she relaxed as Hiromi allowed her to rest her head on her shoulder. Taking a chance to look at the other Attendants, both Shinobu and Shimei were quick to note the looks of envy on their faces. There was no jealousy, they quickly realised. Just a look that showed that they gladly would desire they could be in Kakin's place right now, mixed with delight that their beloved friend and sister was currently IN that place at this time.
Hiromi then stared at Shinobu. "Remember when I told you earlier that the Niphentaxians have a very dirty little secret that needs to be revealed?"
Shinobu nodded. "What secret is that, Hiromi?"
"They're a slave society," Hiromi replied. "One requirement for any interplanetary government to enter the Galactic Federation is this: there can be no form of chattel slavery or other forms of involuntary (save for judicial) servitude practiced among the natives of a particular planet. The Niphentaxians found a bioroid factory on one of the planets in their domain many decades ago. And since that time, they've used it to create perfect women that could serve as domestics, hazardous environment workers, other menial jobs…" Her face turned into a scowl. "But most of all…"
"Sex-slaves."
Eyes locked on Shimei. "Exactly," Hiromi stated as she turned back to her friend. "Matter of fact, Shinobu, you've seen four of them earlier today."
Shinobu blinked, and then her eyes widened. "You mean…!"
A nod. "Hai. Ganzo dai-Louc was a Niphentaxian. A Niphentaxian ABOLITIONIST, in fact! He preached for a long time to free the Avalonians — that's the name of the bioroids as a whole — from slavery and allow them to create their own society. Eventually, the government got so mad at what he preached, they put a bounty on his head and forced him to flee his homeworld. To them, he was their version of John Brown." A smirk. "But not before he secured a whole production line of bioroids which were later moulded into replacement bodies for Kyech-san and all the other Flower Youth of Noukiios."
"And are they actually people?" Teikô asked.
Another nod. "As living as anyone born of a mother's womb, Kônami." Hiromi then sighed. "When the Most Venerable Ganzo passed away several years ago, the leaders of the Flower Youth — Kaep'-san on Okusei, Ch'esyuk-san on Tengsei, Seup'it'-san on Kaisei and Hep'p'yech-san on Kesei — made this vow: they will do anything they could to locate this factory and liberate it from the Niphentaxians, as well as free any Avalonians alive today." She closed her eyes. "When they became friends with Kyech-san and the others, Onê-san and Lum-san vowed to help in whatever way they could. After all, given the power of the Church of Lum, Lum-san sees the 'stealing' of the Avalonians and the exposure of their existences as a way of striking a very terrible blow against Ôgi. And since Onê-san frowns very much on the idea…!"
"Her vow became your vow," Chôjô finished for her reborn emperor.
"Hai."
The Attendants then smiled. "Then your vow is our vow, My Empress," Chôjô declared for them all. "We will help our noble sisters from Noukiios in this great crusade…"
She then gasped as a sudden surge of ki flowed past her, that also making the other Attendants and Shimei tense. "What is it…?" Hiromi asked before she tensed herself as a familiar feeling flooded her mind. "What is THAT…?"
"I recognise one of them," Shimei snarled.
Eyes locked on the tôshi from Nan'yô. "Who is it, Ryomô?" Sôsetsu demanded.
"Suikô Kajin."
Silence fell as the others took that in, and then Shinobu stared at Shimei. "Who is this person, Mimôko-san?" she asked. "You sound like you don't like her."
"I don't. No tôshi, regardless of school, likes her," Shimei said as she stood.
"How did he survive?!" Kakin demanded as she shifted herself off Hiromi, placing herself in a protective position close to her. "And who's the other one…"
"Enough."
Eyes locked on their host. "Hiromi, what's wrong?!" Shinobu demanded on seeing the tears in the other woman's eyes, streaks of wetness flowing down her cheeks.
Sighing, Hiromi stood and headed for the door. She stopped as she stood beside Shinobu, and then she knelt down to tenderly kiss the other girl's cheek. "Fate is too cruel, it seems, dear Shinobu. For you and for me," she admitted before straightening herself and heading out the front door, it closing behind her.
Silence fell as Shinobu took that in, and then she looked around at the tôshi seated and standing around her. "What did she mean?!" she demanded. "Someone! Please tell me what she meant!" she gasped as she stood up. "What's going on here?!"
A hand landed on her shoulder. "It's alright, Shinobu," Shimei stated. "Don't panic."
"But…!"
"Could it be?" Kakin then asked as she gazed on her friends.
"It happened to us," Chôjô then stated. "Of COURSE it would happen to her!"
"WHO?!" Shinobu demanded.
"Hiromi's wife in her first life. The Empress Língsï."
Shinobu blinked, and then she turned to stare wide-eyed at Shimei…
"Konnichi wa. It's been a very long time."
Suikô and Reishi gasped on hearing that voice, and then they stopped before they turned around to see someone step out of a side street not so far from the Moroboshi home. They blinked as they tried to recognise who had just come to speak to them, and then their jaws dropped. "Damn!" Suikô breathed out. "I felt that you were a girl now, Hiromi, but I never thought you were such a damned looker, too!"
Hiromi blinked, her cheeks reddening. "Thank Zhòuquán-xiäng for this," she said as she waved to herself, and then she gasped as a blue-haired blur of passion slammed into her at the speed of a freight train. "HEY!" she yelped before her lips were swamped by Reishi's. "Dear, I…!" she gasped before a moan escaped her.
Suikô chuckled as her sister continued to suck out the breath of her reborn brother-in-law, and then she tensed on sensing a familiar ki presence. "Oh, hell…!"
"AH! THERE! SHE'S THE ONE!"
"KYEKKYEK!"
Hiromi and Reishi broke apart as all three turned to gaze down the street at three other women standing five metres away, one in very fashionable Terran clothes and the other two in Noukiite clothing. The red-haired one of them was pointing directly at Suikô. "She's the one! I'm sure of it, Kuohu!" Kyekkyek bellowed out.
Kuohu moaned. "Kyekkyek…!"
Hiromi blinked. "Um, Kyekkyek-san, what are you talking about?"
"I think I know what she's implying, Hiromi."
Hiromi stared at Suikô in confusion as the latter slipped off her hat and then reached up to undo the black bodysuit top, allowing it to fall away…
…and reveal, atop the sports bra she wore underneath her tunic, the intricate black tattoos on her back parallel to her spine and wound around her arms.
As Hiromi's jaw dropped in surprise, Shiryû's eyebrows arched in disbelief and Kuohu gaped in shock, Suikô then chuckled as her eyes began to glow. "You just wouldn't believe the type of friend I made five years ago, everyone…!"
The onlookers took that in, and then…
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(Posted Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:31)
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