Blood Red Moon Resurrection Epilogue:
     The Eye of the Storm

     Disclaimers: All characters belong to their various
copyrights, with the exception of Reinhart Masaki and Rosa Masaki.
Those two are mine.  Beyond their usage in this story, I claim no
ownership, no rights of creation, no nothing.  Please don't sue me.
Comments, quips, insults, and death threats will only be accepted
at Platinum_Dragon@usinternet.com
     The Tenchi Muyo Characters in this series are based on the OVA
versions, but don't be surprised if there aren't one or two TV
references.  The characters Carrie Fernandez, Alucard, Death,
Dracula, Maria Renard and Lisa all belong to the Konami Castlevania
series.  This cross-over series is placed roughly 17 years in
Tenchi's world, 120 years in Alucard's world after the events in
Blood Red Moon.  Reinhart and Rosa Masaki, the children of Tenchi
and Ryoko, are now young teens.

     "To what profit is it to a man, if he gains the world and
loses his own soul?  Mathew 16:26 I believe." - Dracula, as he dies
at the end of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.

*****

     Reinhart squirmed somewhat under the unforgiving gaze of his
parents.  He had just barely gotten Carrie up the stairs when she
had fallen asleep again.  He knew that Death had said that she
would be weak for some time, still, it was a little startling
as she nodded off in the middle of asking him how they had gotten
there.  Carefully, he had carried her into his bed room, and placed
her on the mattress, pulling the covers up so that she wouldn't
take a chill.  Before leaving, he set out a shirt and pair of pants
on a chair; the shirt would probably hang past her knees, he was
sure, but it would do for the time being.
     Then, he had quietly closed the door, and turned to find his
father right behind him, having apparently already taken Rosa to
her room.  They had shared a long, wordless look, and then, slowly,
Tenchi had smiled at him, with a knowing expression.  Reinhart
blushed slightly, but smiled in return; it was nice to know that
at least one person stood with him.  They had moved back down the
stairs, and found Ryoko with her arms crossed beneath her breasts,
not best looking pleased.
     Now, they were sitting around the table, Tenchi and Ryoko on
one side, Reinhart and Alucard on the other.  They had just
finished telling them everything that had happened, save a couple
things; that Alucard was Dracula's son, for one, and Reinhart's...
evening with Carrie.  Sheann'a was lounging over by the couch,
chatting with Mayuka, Rosa, who had just come down the stairs,
and Tsunami; the goddess seemed to be quite interested in whatever
the sprite was saying.  Drathar, on the other hand, was keeping
a close eye out for Washu, who had already developed a healthy
interest in the little familiars.
     Reinhart frowned, and wondered why Rosa wasn't over with them,
explaining away what had happened while they were in Romania.
She was the talker, not him.  He still wasn't quite certain of what
to think of Carrie's return.  Thanks, obviously, he was more
thankful than for anything else in his life; yet, he wondered
why Death had done it.  The reason that the ancient specter had
stated should have been enough, yet for some reason it didn't quite
make sense to Reinhart.
     Sighing, he blinked as his mother asked him a question,
and realized that he hadn't been paying attention.
     "Huh?" Ryoko frowned, and repeated herself.
     "I said, just how close to Carrie are you, Reinhart?"
He blinked, and knew by the sudden gleam in her eye that he was
blushing somewhat.  Her frown slowly spread into a grin, as he
raced to find the right words, a task that was never very easy for
him.  Tenchi nudged her lightly in the ribs; she looked at him, and
he smiled, and shook his head slightly.  Ryoko sighed, and looked
skyward.  "Yeah, I know.  But can you blame me for wondering?"
She fixed him with a razor sharp stare, and Tenchi shrugged to him,
as if to say, 'I tried.'
     "I... We are very close, mother.  Very," he said, slowly.
The admission to her came out almost as if dragged, and he wondered
why.  With most anybody else, he was certain that he wouldn't
have had a second thought.  His mother, though...  For a moment,
he thought that she was going to press the point, and realized
that at the least, she suspected, but then, she slowly nodded,
and smiled.  Before any more could be said, Washu came out of her
lab - pausing to stare hard at Sheann'a and Drathar - and then came
over to them, with a slightly mischievous expression.  Reinhart
wondered what she was going to drop on them.
     "No ill effects to anybody that I can detect, although Rosa
and Carrie both should be in bed for a while," she said, looking
hard at Rosa, who shrugged, grinning.  Coughing, Washu continued,
"including our esteemed guests."  Alucard nodded to her coolly
as she grinned, that mischievousness suddenly more apparent than
before.  "Yup, all seven are just fine!"  As one, Tenchi, Ryoko,
Reinhart and Rosa all blinked and looked at each other.  Ryoko
slowly raised an eyebrow at him, and Reinhart swallow.  That
couldn't possibly have happened... could it?
     "I only counted six out of the portal, mom...  What do you
mean, seven?  Are you certain that your scanners are working?"
Washu smirked, and looked at Reinhart.
     "Do you mean to say you think that the universe's greatest
scientist would ever let her scanners fall out of calibration?
There were seven distinct life forms to come through the portal."
Reinhart thought a moment, about Carrie's resurrection,
about the smaller orb that had split off disappeared into her
stomach.  He glanced up, feeling the blood drain slightly from his
face as he saw Carrie come slowly down the steps, looking about
herself in curiosity.  He noticed, suddenly, that he had been
right; the shirt hung to just below her knees.  She leaned heavily
on her staff, but she looked much better than she had a few hours
before.  Washu grinned a little bit wider, looking at them.
     "Tenchi, you do still have the cribs in storage, right?"
she asked him, in a whisper that could have been heard halfway
to Tokyo.  Reinhart swallowed, as every last set of eyes save
Alucard's swung to him in surprise.  Carrie herself held a shocked
expression; it was clear that she understood what Washu meant.
Beside him, Alucard slowly stood, and looked at his familiars.
Reinhart wasn't certain, but he could have sworn that the slightest
smile tugged at the corners of the dhampeal's mouth.
     "I believe that now would be a good time to explore our new
surroundings, Sheann'a, Drathar," he said quietly.  They nodded,
and Alucard excused himself from the living room.  The door slid
open, and then closed, and Reinhart found himself wishing that he
could go with him.  For a moment, everybody was silent, and then
Rosa slowly stood, and spoke.
     "I think, everybody, that this is their business, and that you
shouldn't have done that, grandma."  She walked over to Reinhart,
and grinned, putting a hand on his shoulder.  "That having been
said, bro, congratulations, 'Daddy,'" she said, smiling.  Washu
shrugged sheepishly in apology, as Carrie came over slowly, staring
at Reinhart.  Shock, surprise, amazement, wonder; they all rolled
behind her eyes, yet she stayed composed.  He stood, and gave her
an arm to lean on, which she gladly took.
     "How can you be certain of that?" she asked Washu, confused.
Washu grinned.
     "Well, as you came through the portal, some of the machines
that I have set up in there sent out an energy wave, which
reads..." she trailed off, as Carrie stared at her in complete
incomprehension.  Washu sighed.  "Think of it as a sort of magic,"
she said, almost pouting that she hadn't been understood when she
tried to explain it scientifically.  Now Carrie smiled, and nodded.
     "Oh, you're a sorceress, then."  Washu blinked, and appeared
to be about to launch into a long speech about who she was, but
before she could, Reinhart chuckled and quickly drew her attention
away.  Washu all but deflated, just on the point of starting
her tirade, and frowned at him.
     "Kind of...  I'll try to explain later."  She looked at him,
and smiled.  Reinhart looked around.  Mayuka was grinning slightly;
Rosa, next to them, put a hand on both of their shoulders.
Tsunami's eyes were sparkling with barely contained laughter,
and Washu, who for once actually looked sorry for her mischief,
stood with her arms to her sides, smirking slightly.  His mother
looked like she didn't know whether to be shocked, proud, angry
or joyful.
     Slowly, Tenchi stood, his expression unreadable.  He looked
at Reinhart, and then at Carrie, and then at everybody else around
them, deeply in thought.
     "Well...  If there is a child on the way, then we have a lot
of work to get done, don't we?"  Rosa, Mayuka and Tsunami laughed
in delight, as Ryoko moved around the table, her expression
settling on joy and pride, and hugged Carrie.  Releasing the
embrace just slightly, she looked her in the eyes.
     "There has always been a place waiting for you," she said
softly  Carrie looked at her in surprise, and then slowly smiled.
     "Thank you, Ryoko...  Or should I maybe say, Mother?"  Ryoko
laughed, as Reinhart blinked at Carrie.  She smiled, and then
turned to him, hugging him closely.  "And thank you, Reinhart...
For making me feel welcome."  Reinhart decided suddenly that he
didn't care if the entire family was watching; he leaned down and
kissed her, and then picked her up laughing.
     "A father...  I guess dad is going to start getting his
revenge for raising Rosa and I."  Tenchi laughed at that, as
Reinhart carefully set her down.  She leaned against him, giggling
quietly, partly in disbelief.  Reinhart looked around at his family
again, and, swallowing, bent to one knee before her.
     "Carrie... will you marry me?"

*****

     Alucard slowly moved through the forest, automatically
making note of various landmarks and taking in his surroundings,
making a mental map of the area.  Given a few weeks, he would know
the exact location of every tree, stone, half-buried rock in the
area.  He had already found a small clearing that he thought would
do well for a small cabin.
     Though it held a beauty different from that of his homeland,
there was a peacefulness here that was comforting to him.  He
already felt more at ease here than he had at almost any other
place in his entire, long life.  Sheann'a was sitting on his
shoulder as usual, and Drathar walked just off to the side.
     Such unusual circumstances to bring them all here.  It had
been clear, once Death had resurrected Carrie, that Reinhart
would not be able to get them both away from there, nor that he
would leave either of them there if he couldn't.  It had occurred
to him that he truly didn't have anything left, but also that he
could not simply go back to sleep.  His mind had still been
slightly reeling from his father's redemption.  So, he had decided
to go with them.  It was the honorable thing to do.
     Here, he realized, he started with a clean slate of sorts.
Apparently, there had never been any vampires in this world, beyond
myths and legends of one Vlad Tepes, from more than a thousand
years before.  The thought brought the hint of a smile to his face;
perhaps things would not be as different as he had thought.
     He became aware of another blood scent nearby.  Pausing,
he inhaled deeply, taking in the scent.  It smelled... high.  Set
apart, and yet at the same time together.  There was a pureness
to it that reminded him slightly of his mother.  Alucard wrinkled
his nose.  There was also a hint of nobility.  He had developed
a healthy distaste for nobility at a young age, though he himself
was a noble.  He didn't like the idea of lording over others simply
because of what blood flowed in their veins.
     He began moving again, not wanting his watcher to realize
that he knew, mentally running through the small group that they
had met as they came through the portal.  There had been too many
there to define individual scents, but he was certain that he could
match the scent to the person.  All of the males he immediately
ignored; this was a feminine scent.  It wasn't Carrie's; in any
event, she would likely still be back at the house with Reinhart
and the others.  It didn't match Ryoko.  There was a strength
to this blood, but one hidden under velvet, and Ryoko's strength
was hidden by nothing.
     It came close to the tall, freckled woman with the pink eyes;
he wondered for a moment if all people in this world had such
unusually colored eyes and hair.  If he had to guess, he would say
that this scent was a close relative's to her's, yet she seemed
too high for even this scent to belong to her.  He was certain
that it was neither Reinhart and Rosa's older or younger sister.
That younger sister was entirely too interested in his familiars;
her eyes held a light beyond her years.
     Which left only the purple haired one with the reddish pink
eyes.  He compared that scent to her.  The way that she held
herself; straight back, eyes forward, chin tilted slightly up spoke
of a royal upbringing, as did the way she held her composure
like a shield about her.  Though she seemed the most unlikely
member of the group, she most definitely belonged there, with the
others.  He had noticed her watching him when she thought that he
could not see until she had left, a curious light in her eyes.
     "This place is charged with holy energy," said Sheann'a
suddenly, startling him from his thoughts.  He nodded, having
noticed it almost as soon as he had left the house.  He thought
that Maria would have liked it.  The blood scent came closer;
looking around, he was fairly certain that she was not far behind
him.  Clearing his throat, he spoke aloud.
     "You may as well come out.  I do not take well to being spied
on."  He turned as the bushes rustled behind time, raising an
eyebrow.  She was much closer than he had thought, just close
enough to touch him.  There were not many that could get that close
without him realizing it.  The young lady stepped out, her
expression carefully composed, though her eyes spoke of surprise
at being caught.  He studied her for a moment circumspectly.
     She wasn't tall, although she wasn't really short, either.
Her hair was pulled into a tight braid as thick as his forearm,
and was decorated with a long, winding golden ribbon that was woven
right into it.  She wore a simple seeming robe; the edges were
lined in red, and the rest was white, save for an embroidered
tree that flourished upon her breast, likely her house sigil.  At
her waist was a wide belt of crimson, which was tied into a
complicated knot.  She held her hands folded at her waist, and
looked at him calmly.
     Sheann'a hopped off his should, and flew around, looking
to see if anybody else was there, while Drathar planted his
pitchfork into the ground and leaned against it.  Mentally sighing,
he spoke.
     "May I help you with something, M'Lady?"  She blinked in
surprise, and then nodded.
     "You are a vampire, are you not?"  Alucard, caught completely
off guard, knew that his expression betrayed the surprise he felt
at her bold statement.  Just behind her, Sheann'a was looking
at her with a considering expression.  Schooling his expression
back to blankness, he nodded.
     "My father was Dracula, my mother, Lisa, a human.  I am only
half vampire, though I retain the full abilities and most of the
curse."  Now it was her turn to stare in surprise at his frankness,
and quickly school herself back to serenity, nodding slowly.
     "I ask only because once your kind were highly respected
and trusted on my world, Jurai.  Unfortunately, the last
disappeared nearly ten thousand years ago."  He raised an eyebrow.
A world on which vampires were respected, not feared.  Another
time, he might have been intrigued, now, he was somewhat
suspicious.  None the less, he kept his tone mild and respectful.
     "Perhaps some day I shall visit there," he said evenly.  She
smiled slightly and nodded.
     "Allow me to assure you as the Empress, you would be welcome
at any time.  For the aide you have given my niece and nephew,
I will swear it."  He had to fight hard to keep his face from
showing his shock as she named herself Empress; this young slip of
a girl?  Behind her, Sheann'a mirrored his astonishment,
staring at the young lady.  Slowly, he nodded slightly, and allowed
the barest ghost of a smile touch his lips.
     "You do me too much honor, your highness.  I did as I did
because to do any other would have dishonored them, and myself."
Sheann'a frowned at him, and shook her head, but the young lady
smiled.
     "Please, you must call me Ayeka; more than enough honorifics
in Court."  He nodded again, slowly.
     "As you wish, M... Ayeka."  She smiled again, and looked like
she was about to say something more when suddenly a strange
creature pounced on her from above.  It looked like a too-large
rabbit at first glance; as she gasped in surprise and grabbed
the furry creature, he realized that its face was that of a cat's,
and that there was some sort of stone embedded in its head.
     "Miya!  Miya mi miya!"  Ayeka blinked and set the anime down,
obviously knowing it.
     "What is it, Ryo-Ohki?  You know that I can not understand
what you are saying in that form."  He blinked in surprise as the
creature glowed for a moment, and changed into a tall, willowy
fur-covered woman.  He hastily averted his eyes as he realized
that the fur was her only covering.
     "House!  Miya! Tenchi say come!" She blinked, as the strange
girl glowed briefly again, and changed back into her original
form, flashing away in the direction that they had come from.
Ayeka started to move in that direction; Alucard looked at her for
a moment, frowning.
     "There is a quicker way, M'Lady," he said.  She looked back
as he changed into his huge wolf form, and blinked in surprise
as he trotted over to her.
     "You want me to ride you back?"  He looked at her, nodding;
Sheann'a caught his eye with an amused expression.  Ayeka gasped.
"Oh, but that wouldn't be proper!"  He stared at her flatly, and
she sighed.
     "Oh bother, I suppose even I can not be proper at all times."
Tentatively, she placed a hand on the long hair of his neck, and
then swung a leg over, pressing herself flat against his back.  He
caught Sheann'a's eye again; she looked like she was about to
explode in laughter.  He would have to have a word with her later.
     As soon as she was securely on, he dashed off.  She was a bit
heavier than he had guessed; still, more than light enough to carry
for the short distance they had to go.  He heard her laughing
as he flew over the landscape, his memory warning him where the low
hanging trees had been, and the rocks he might trip over.  Not far
behind, he sensed his familiars.
     They broke into the clearing where the Masaki residence
rested, and Alucard noted that everybody was outside, and seemingly
in a good mood.  Rosa pointed, as she saw Ayeka and himself.
He slowed to a trot as he neared them, and then stopped entirely
just before them, waiting patiently as Ayeka climbed off.  He
noticed Ryoko hide a grin, as he changed back into human form.
     Two women he hadn't seen before had joined the group; one, a
tall, dignified woman with long dark brown hair.  The other was a
shorter one with cyan hair that beamed at Ayeka with motherly
pride.  He nodded to both of them, as the more dignified one
blinked in surprise.
     "A vampire?  I did not know that your kind still survived."
The other one stared
     "A vampire, sister?  Are you certain?  And my little girl was
riding him?"  He blinked as she turned a weighing stare on him.
Alucard's shoulders itched as he saw he measure him down to the
last hair in her eyes.  He noticed Ayeka's eye twitch, as she
introduced them.
     "My mother, Misaki, and Yosho's mother, Funaho.  Mother,
Funaho, allow me to introduce Alucard, son of Dracula and Lisa."
He blinked again as all eyes save Reinhart, Rosa, Carrie, and
Tenchi's swung to him in surprise.  After a moment of silence,
Tenchi cleared his throat, drawing the attention away from him, for
which Alucard was thankful.  Grinning, Tenchi spoke up.
     "Now that everybody is here, it seems that we can share some
good news.  For those of you that don't know, this is Alucard;
he helped Reinhart and Rosa a good deal," he said, smiling.
Alucard nodded quietly, and Tenchi turned to Reinhart and Carrie.
"And this is Carrie, who helped not only Ryoko and I, but Reinhart
and Rosa.  And now for the good news.  She and Reinhart are getting
married, and Carrie is pregnant."  Alucard smiled slightly as
everybody else applauded.  His familiars joined him; Sheann'a
landed on his shoulder, looking at him.
     "I thought that you said you didn't like being around others."
He looked at her, and laughed suddenly.
     "Maybe I decided to listen to my conscious." She blinked,
and then laughed.

*****

     Tokimi scowled, as she saw the extent of the damage to her
ship.  The right flank had been nearly obliterated; the front and
left had both taken heavy damage.  To top off matters, the repair
system had been completely destroyed.  Though the outer shell of
the ship was made to be a secondary armor for the real ship, with
this much damage, it would be too much of a hindrance to carry.
Sighing, she jettisoned the outer shell, and watched as it impacted
the fourth moon of Jurai.  It was a dead moon, and good thing,
for as the shell slammed into it, the moon was pulverized.
     The core of the ship was smaller by far, though still bigger
than any other ship in her armada.  The lines were rounded, and it
resembled nothing so much as a huge dolphin, slowly swimming
through the sea of space.  Turning away from that council, she
frowned, as D3 phased in before her.  He blinked in surprise
as he saw her in physical form.  It had been a pleasant surprise
to find a Juraian still on the planet that was suitable for melding
with; she had done so, and now for the first time in several
eternities, she had a flesh and blood body.  Recovering quickly,
he began his report.
     "The fleet has been decimated.  70% of our starfighter
resources were destroyed, and half of our capital ships, with the
bigger numbers among our star carriers and heavy cruisers.  Of the
ships that we have left, 80% have taken serious damage.  Estimated
repair time to bring them back up to full effectiveness
is roughly a year."  Tokimi scowled, but nodded.  Here, her Sisters
held much greater sway, and she would need all of her forces to
take this universe.
     "Take what cruisers we have left, and begin to fortify Jurai.
Tsunami will not remain idle while I am weakened.  Also, send four
destroyers to begin recruiting replacements, and getting supplies."
He nodded.
     "What is D10's status?"  D3 sighed.
     "He failed in his mission.  Just as he was about to claim the
energy source, it was eliminated by a being from that dimension."
Tokimi scowled again, and he hurried on.  "But he did manage to
claim one thing."  There was a shimmer, and a robed man appeared.
A foot and a half long piece of metal stood out from his chest,
yet he appeared to be calmly sleeping.  She nearly gasped as she
recognized the metal, and very carefully withdrew it.
     "What is this?"
     "D10 reported this as the being that destroyed the power
source.  He thought that he could be useful."  Tokimi nodded,
and looked at the metal carefully.
     "Strange...  Sa-rokan is very rare, yet this seems to only be
a part of something bigger."  She looked at the man.  "Very well.
Repair the damage to his body, and then bring him to me when he has
reawoken."  D3 nodded, and disappeared with the man.  She examined
the metal, albeit very carefully.  Sa-rokan had been created in the
chaos before the multiverse existed, the same chaos that she and
her sisters came from.  It was the only metal that could deal a
fatal blow to one such as herself.
     "Interesting, Sisters...  End game, indeed."

*****

     Ok, ladies and gentlemen.  For those of you that have stuck
around this long, thank you for reading this.  Special thanks go to
Veggitto, of #TenchiFF on Dalnet IRC, and K'Thardin, the immortal
fanfic reviewer/destroyer.
     Yes, there will be a third series, but it will not be for a
little while.  Two, maybe three months.  The BRM story arc has
taken more than enough of my time!  In the meantime, enjoy the slow
boil wondering just what I'm going to do with them.
     Thank you again.
---
The Platinum Dragon
"The rising sun will eventually set,
  a newborn's life will fade.
  From sun to moon, moon to sun,
  Give peaceful rest to the living dead." - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of
Time
http://dragonsanime.dreamhost.com - Dragon's Masaki Shrine of Tenchi Muyo
Proud Member of the Ryoko Forever Fan Club