Chapter Three

The lab was quiet, as Washu settled herself back down in front of her computer monitors, keying in a quick sequence of commands as she ran her gaze swiftly over the screens before her. She frowned, tapping her fingers idly against the keyboard as she waited for the computer to process her requests. It had been a long night, she mused...and yet she knew she could not sleep just yet.

"Washu-san?"

Yume's voice from the doorway made her turn, and she offered her protegee a faint smile, beckoning for the droid to join her. Yume did so, coming to stand behind Washu's chair as she evaluated the data on the computer screen. Then,

"So you are still interested in this exploding planet, then?"

"Yes." Washu nodded, swivelling her chair so she faced her companion fully. "I learnt that things like that can have knock on effects. Look at Kihaku's explosion - that released the demon Yugi from her prison. I want to know what's behind this, so that if something is going on, we can be well prepared."

"I suppose that makes sense." Yume perched on the edge of the unit. "But you're tired, Washu-san. You need to take some rest, you know. Why don't you let me proceed with this? You can always come back to it, when you're refreshed."

"No, I don't think I would sleep too well knowing this was an unanswered question." Washu shook her head. "Planets don't generally explode on their own, not as a rule. Something must have caused it. I want to know what...and if it's a threat to anyone else."

"Washu." Yume sighed, then, "All right. Then at least let me help you."

"You know your help is always welcome." Washu nodded, as a space map flashed up on the screen. "There. That's what we're taking about."

She clicked to zoom in on a particular section of space, revealing a solar system of seven planets as she did so. "The fourth planet from this sun is a planet called Heiwa. Or at least, it was a planet called Heiwa. Late last night, it imploded, seemingly without warning or reason. Patrols have been sent there to investigate, but it seems they've so far found nothing. I checked the police scanners, but they don't know what caused it either."

"Heiwa?" Yume's eyes flickered with recognition. "That was the name of the planet that exploded?"

"Yes." Washu eyed her keenly. "Do you know something I don't?"

"Planetary system #65-445, orbiting body 04, correct?"

"Yes, if you want to put it that way." Washu nodded. "What about it, Yume? It's obviously somewhere you're familiar with. Something from your past as Zero, perhaps?"

"No, not really. I don't believe I ever went there." Yume shook her head. "But I do know the name and the code ident of the planet in question, Washu. It's in my data-banks. It was the planet from which Dr Clay originated. That's all."

"It was, huh?" Washu frowned. "I didn't know that. I never really bothered to find out what world spawned him, to be truthful. You're sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Yume confirmed. "#65-445, 04. Planet Heiwa."

Washu sighed.

"Well, if I didn't know that Clay was very, very dead, I would be making him prime suspect number one in the explosion of his homeworld." She said with a sigh. "But he is past all plotting, so I suppose it's probably a coincidence. Some coincidence, mind you. It seems strange that this would happen, and in such a way."

"It would take a lot of force to destroy a planet." Yume reflected. "Who has that kind of technology?"

"Me." Washu said sheepishly.

"Other than you."

"I don't know. I'm not familiar with any of the latest developments at the Academy...and besides, such weaponry contravenes a lot of space laws."

"Maybe it was just a natural implosion. Perhaps due to extreme volcanic activity." Yume suggested. Washu shook her head.

"That's the thing that bothered me." She admitted. "Seismic activity can make a world volatile and unstable, but Heiwa doesn't seem to have been that kind of planet. In fact, even though the landscape was mountainous, I can't find anything in any records which suggests Heiwa even had volcanoes. It was a notoriously stable ecosystem. That's what makes the whole business confusing."

"I see." Yume bit her lip. "So that's why you were so short with Tenchi-kun this morning."

"I wasn't short with him." Washu frowned. "I just told him to stop assuming, that's all. He doesn't understand as much as he thinks he does."

"I suppose that's true." Yume reflected, getting to her feet and moving across to a further screen. Her fingers glittered and glowed, and as she ran them over the scanner, Washu was aware of the computer accepting her finger print. "But then if you don't explain things, it must be difficult for him to understand. That's basic logic."

"I wish you wouldn't mimic my finger print scan without my say so." Washu said frankly. "And as for not telling Tenchi anything, are you taking sides now? Do you think I've been a big bad mother, who's concealing secrets from my daughter?"

"I have no idea." Yume obediently withdrew her hand from the control panel, folding her arms. "That is beyond my comprehension...I cannot read your mind. But I can read the emotions Tenchi and Ryoko have. And I think that it is unreasonable to expect them to understand your point of view if you refuse to explain it to them. That's all."

"Well, perhaps you're right." Washu sighed, shrugging her shoulders. "But after so much time, I don't even know what good it will do. I don't want to go back to that time, Yume. My memories...well, let's just say I don't bother with them so very often. I was confined and sent here a prisoner...long years of being trapped in darkness can affect you in many, many ways. So some things are better left alone. And Tenchi has an unwavering faith in people, that much is for sure. But he doesn't see that not everyone sees the world like he does. And not every family is the same way. We don't all come from loving and supportive family backgrounds. I'm not that kind of mother, and I think Ryoko understands that more than Tenchi does. He's going to cause the problem, not solve it, if he persists in trying to make Ryoko think like an Earthling."

"You have affection for Ryoko." Yume objected. "I know you better than that."

"Yes, I do. Of course I do." Washu nodded. "But the past isn't important. What happened then...is not important. If Ryoko and I have any bond now, it is in the present and it should stay there. Not in days long since gone."

"Do you remember when Ryoko was born?"

"Imprisonment makes you forget many things, Yume-chan." Washu shrugged. "And we have many more important things to work out than suitable dates to call in Ryoko's horoscope. If you don't mind, I'd rather focus on Heiwa for the time being."

"I'm sorry." Yume looked abashed, and Washu offered her a smile.

"Your ambush technique was very human." She said with a shake of her head. "You're getting far, far better at refining your thoughts and impulses, you know."

"I know." Yume smiled. "And I take pride in it...living here has taught me a lot. But there is a difference too between Ryoko and I, in this respect. I am a project - an experiment who continues to progress and develop all the time. I am not human...not truly alive. Ryoko is a living being. She is not a project. She is a person. However sophisticated I become, it is not the same thing."

"You think I hurt Ryoko's feelings, too?" Washu looked startled. Yume nodded slowly.

"Tenchi-kun thinks so, and I believe he knows a different Ryoko than the one you do." She agreed. "In this regard, I believe he is right. Even with your Kii sight, I don't believe you have as close a connection with Ryoko as he does. It's almost telepathic, on occasion - I am not sure quite how to properly explain it."

"Perhaps." Washu acknowledged. "But it's done now, and I won't dwell on it. Ryoko is a big girl, after all. If she is upset, she'll get over it. She's taken worse blows before and lived - I really doubt it matters to her as much as all that."

She gestured towards the screen.

"Meantime, I'm wondering if this needs further investigation. I'm almost tempted to take a trip."

"Then perhaps you should not have upset Ryoko, if you want to use Ryo Ohki." Yume said astutely. Washu laughed.

"Perhaps not." She acknowledged. Yume shrugged.

"If it helps, I can go for you." She offered. "I can fly there and back in a day or perhaps a little more."

"You said you haven't been to Heiwa before, right?" Washu frowned. Yume nodded.

"That's true, but I'm sure I can find my way."

"No...it's too dangerous. If something is volatile in that sector, you could be taken unawares." Washu shook her head. "Thank you for the offer, but I'd rather not put you in harm's way if I can help it. I'll just find some kind of official scanner to hack into, once the Galaxy Military begin their formal investigations."

"You're worried that something might befall me?" Yume looked startled. "Really?"

"Yume, give me some credit." Washu said dryly. "Just because I might not have all of Ryoko's details ready to spill at a moment's notice doesn't mean I have no regard for the people around me. And I have sent far too many people into dangerous situations in recent history. So no, you'll stay here, if you don't mind. At least until I know better what exactly it is that's going on out there. Okay?"

"Okay." Yume agreed cautiously. "But if you do decide to investigate, Washu, I am at your disposal."

"I know that." Washu smiled. "But I'm not really looking to dispose of you any time soon."

She stretched, stifling a yawn.

"Perhaps I will try and get some sleep." She admitted, looking sheepish. "Will you tell me, if anything important comes up on the scanners?"

"Yes, of course." Yume nodded. "Sweet dreams, Washu. If anything happens, you'll be the first to know."

-------------

So, this was the place.

The man walked slowly through the dusty, abandoned streets of the city, stifling a shiver as a brisk wind whipped and whirled around him, sending scraps of torn paper and old food wrappings rustling across the road. He paused to pick up a sheet from a newspaper, grimacing as he read the date across the top. It had been many years since this world had last been inhabited, he knew that, and yet the signs that creatures had once lived here were everywhere. In some houses, the lights had been left on until they burnt out completely, and as he peered in through the occasional window, he saw tables laid out for evening meals.

The population had left in something of a hurry.

"Nuclear storm." He murmured, gazing up at the heavy fog cloud that even now clung lovingly to the upper echelons of the planet's atmosphere, tinging the clouds a strange yellowish grey. "Everyone was evacuated. I remember hearing about it on the news at the time, when I was just a boy. A perfect place to have a secret base, and a hidden workshop...a laboratory beyond a laboratory. Noone would think of looking in a place such as this. The world is dead, the air is poison to anyone who can't breathe in space. It's a very clever ruse indeed. But then, I suppose I am dealing with some element of genius. That should be a given."

He smiled bitterly, reaching in his pocket for the small black box and pressing a couple of buttons on the surface. A screen glittered and spread out before him, and he focused on the blue and white of the digital map, taking careful note of where he was. A yellow dot flashed at the furthermost point of the street, and he nodded in satisfaction, dispersing his map and sliding the device back into his pocket. It would come in useful again, he was sure of that. And thanks to the intensity of his training, he knew how to use it.

"But will there be anything left here for me to find?" He wondered aloud, as he finally stood before his destination, gazing up at the ruins of an old feudal castle, crumbling and rotting at the foundations. Brushing his hand over the remaining stone columns, the flagstones shimmered and parted, revealing a staircase leading down towards the planet's core, and slowly he descended, flickering light from his fingers as he went deeper and deeper into the darkness. The further he travelled, the more narrow and claustrophobic the tunnel became, and he bit his lip, forcing the thoughts out of his mind. This was a different quest, he reminded himself. He wasn't a prisoner, not now. It had been a long time since he had been poked and prodded, but the memories still unsettled him.

"Memories I didn't need to return." He muttered darkly, placing his hands gently against the steel panels that blocked his path. A buzz of energy flooded through him, and with a loud clatter, the doors flew backwards off their hinges, creating a huge cloud of dust as he did so.

"Well." The man murmured. "So here we are. After so long, we're here again, Zakari."

As the dust cleared, he gazed around himself, taking in his surroundings with a mixture of apprehension and relief. The lab had not changed much, he realised. In the furthest corner, the big computer system stood dormant, cloaked in a grey layer of neglect, and spiders of various sizes and species had begun to congregate around the edges of the walls. To one side, engraved steel panels marked containment chambers and as rage flooded through him, he flung his arm in their direction, watching with little satisfaction as, one by one, the doors imploded inwards, causing the entire structure to collapse into a heap of steel rubble.

He drew a deep breath into his lungs, calming himself as memories threatened to overwhelm him once more.

"I mustn't." He muttered, closing his eyes as the energy surged within him. "I mustn't remember...that's not why I'm here."

With some difficulty he turned on his heel, approaching the mainframe computer and running his fingers carefully over the keypad. The machine did not seem damaged, he mused, and as he reached in his pocket for his black device, he placed it firmly against the machine's main data drive, pressing buttons as the screen whirred and flickered into life.

"Well, this really was a useful discovery." He murmured. "Who would have thought that technology built by the same hands that kept me a prisoner here would now help me to take my revenge? I will fix this - I will put everything how it should be. And you...you're going to help me!"

He hesitated for a moment, then he slowly keyed a sequence of letters and numbers into the computer.

"Tell me what I want to know, computer." He said quietly. "Tell me who I really am, and whatever else you know."

The computer whirred and clicked as it obeyed his request, and at length a file appeared on the screen before him. He bit his lip, eying the long string of digits with an angry heart.

"Just a number." He murmured. "I suppose that fits. I suppose I always knew that I was nothing more than another experiment. That's not what's important here. Zakari died when Heiwa exploded, after all...that life is gone and over. If this is my true self, then this is my true name. And I will remember that, now I know what it is I must do."

He skimmed through the file information, his brows drawing together as he read further and further through the report.

"Unstable." He whispered. "Yes, and that's no surprise to me, either. There had to be a reason why you evicted me into the cold to die like you did. Even being here, locked up in one of your cages for the first four years of my life was preferable to being thrown out to starve in a world I didn't even understand. If not for my family..."

He hesitated, tears touching his eyes as he remembered the faces of the space gypsy family who had taken him in without asking questions or making judgements about his unusual appearance. Then he shook his head.

"Gone. Over. Finished. Dead." He said blackly, light flickering around his body as he spoke each word. "I must forget. I must eliminate that part of my thoughts. I have only one focus now...and I must not let my mind deviate from that path. I haven't much time - this report confirms the thing I already feared was true. But if I truly am a wasted lab experiment - and if I truly am as unstable and as doomed as the report says, I won't go down without a fight. I'll take you with me, for deciding you can play God. I will stop you - I will stop all of this."

He closed the file, flicking slowly through the rest of the computer's contents. Most of the files were of no interest to him, but as he reached a final folder, he frowned, pursing his lips as he opened the documents before him.

"Ryoko." He murmured. "There was another one? One like me? In space? Another experiment? How far did this business go?"

He skipped forward, hunting for more information, but the file was blank beyond the summary, with no attached image or genetic data, and he frowned, shaking his head in frustration.

"Erased!" He exclaimed. "Or never here at all? Why is it whenever I get a clue or a lead, there's always something in my way to fox me?"

His eyes narrowed, as his gaze was caught by another heading.

"Professor Washu Hakubi." He murmured softly. "Well, there is always another avenue of investigation, isn't there? Let me see. What can you tell me, computer?"

The computer whirred and clicked again, loading a final document, and the man stepped back, meeting the gaze of the woman whose face stared out at him from the screen. A slow smile touched his lips and he nodded, touching her image on the cheek and sending a faint ripple of energy through the hard glass divide. The computer image flickered, but it did not disappear completely, and the man let out a cold, humourless chuckle.

"Well, Professor. It seems we have business." He murmured. "If you truly are what everyone has said you are, then I will not rest until I find you. I will know everything, and then I will know how to take my revenge...I will know how to prevent these mistakes from ever being made. Reveal your secrets to me, computer...I will know everything that you can tell me about Washu Hakubi and the Science Academy."