Broken
Blood ran freely over the ground, forming a pool that floated eerily on the pale surface of the moon. Scarlet drifted above the thin moon atmosphere, hanging in space, suspended by nothing.
Lying on the ground, a single figure knelt, tears streaming down her cheeks, droplets dripping off of the bridge of her nose. Blood peppered her cheeks, but she did nothing to brush it aside or to clean herself. Rather, she simply knelt, blood steadily gushing over her gloved hands, as she stared into the lifeless eyes of the Princess of the planet Mercury.
It wasn't possible. It had just been so sudden. There had been a flash of light, and there, wielding a grand sword, was the General Zoicite. Mercury had tried to defend her. She had spread a thick mist. It hadn't helped. The sword had still found its mark, embedding itself straight through her chest cavity. She had watched her guardian, her comrade, her friend, fall to the ground, dead.
Had it not been for the other Princesses, Zoicite would have ended her life as well. Thankfully, he had been warded off, leaving them to attack the foreign forces of the Moon.
As the broken Princess sobbed over her comrade, she watched as the other three rushed off into the fray, clouds of flames, gigantic bolts of lightning, and jets of energy soared straight through enemy lines.
She wished she could help. She wished she could something, anything, to save them. She was so powerless, so very useless. She lacked any sort of ability, anything she could do to help them. She would just get in their way, or worse, distract them long enough for an enemy to kill her.
"Princess Serenity!"
The Princess didn't respond to the sound of her own name at first. She was too busy stroking Mercury's cold, lifeless cheek. It was only when a firm hand grabbed her by her forearm did her gaze jerk upward to gaze into the Earth Prince's eyes, Endymion.
"Endymion?"
The Prince of Earth. How she had longed to be his, in his arms, in his embrace. But the Earthling's own jealousy, spewed on by that damn Beryl, had ended up ruining it all for them! Ruining everything! Now everything was horrid, foul, putrid, and, above all, pointless.
"We have to move, Serenity!" Endymion dragged the Princess to her feet.
She knew Endymion was right. Standing still was all but pointless, but so was resisting. She couldn't do anything more than get in the way, and here her lover wished for her to be safe. She understand the importance of it all, and knew, despite the chains of sorrow binding her to the floor, she had to obey, to concede to Endymion's will.
She rose to her feet, staring into Endymion's placid eyes. Even with the carnage littering the cratered surface, he was beautiful. Perfection embodied, a beautiful face, and lushious eyes, eyes that could see deep into her heart and know what to say and how to say it.
"My God…Mercury…" Prince Endymion went down on a single knee, and brushed the fallen Princess's bangs from her face, "Damn them…"
"She tried to save me…" Serenity mumbled, tears still flowing down her cheeks.
"Yes, I know," Endymion mumbled, "My soldiers aren't themselves. Something is wrong! It's that witch, Beryl! She's been rallying support on Earth, manipulating my people!"
"I know," Serenity mumbled, weakly. She didn't really feel like talking all too much.
"The only way to stop them is to cut them all down."
Endymion rushed off into the fray, shouting at Serenity to follow. Serenity sprinted after him. If it meant leaving behind Mercury, not to see her dead corpse, so cold and vacant where life used to be, then so be it. So be it that she didn't have to watch her comrades hurt and fight.
So long as she didn't need to see them die in front of her eyes again.
The soldiers rushed at Endymion, at which he sprung to life. He rushed into the fray, his sword a mere comet in the darkness of war. With a single swing, three soldiers were cut down, blood streaming from their chests. A soldier charged him, at which he slammed his heel into the trooper's forehead, breaking his skull on contact.
Endymion's sword glinted off the Earthlight as he cleaved straight through his own men. His expression was like that of a demon, full of vehemence. A soldier stabbed at him with his spear, only for him to dance out of the way. The spear plunged straight through one of the soldier's comrades, but before the soldier react, Endymion had severed his arms before chopping off his head.
Serenity could only stare at the brutality as soldier after soldier was cut down, their blood levitating in the weak gravity of the moon. Was this the only way? Was the only way to stop the violence was to commit acts of violence? Fatalities? She could only stare as appendages flew into the sky, some flying so far into space that they remained in orbit, even going as far as to simply drift into space.
"Endymion!"
The Princess turned over her shoulder, only to see the Devil herself. Beryl stood, garbed in armor, staring in horror as Endymion cleaved an entire soldier in half as three of them plunged their swords into his left shoulder blade. As though in retaliation, Endymion cut the soldiers in two.
"Endymion, what are you doing!?"
Endymion turned to face her, blood streaming down from his forehead as he slew another soldier, flesh flying into the air as Endymion gasped for air, glaring straight into Beryl's eyes.
Beryl's expression was hurt, almost fragile, a hint of rejection in her eyes. It was ironic; Serenity had expected her expression to be hard, impenetrable, even violent. And yet she looked just as broken as Serenity. What did she regret? Did she regret hurting her people? Did she regret having Endymion against her? Or was there something more?
Beryl glanced over her shoulder, her eyes locking with Serenity's. Her eyes were filled with malice, her irises wavering in their sockets. As her lips quivered into a snarl, she extended her hand, sparks of black energy radiating from the balls of her fingers.
Endymion turned in horror just as a gigantic sphere of energy exploded from the palm of Beryl's hand. Serenity's eyes widened. Was this it? Was this the final act upon her stage of life?
When Serenity was knocked off her feet and onto her rear end, she knew before she saw the Princess of Mars's body crumble to the ground that someone had taken the blow for her. Someone innocent who didn't deserve death.
Serenity watched as a bolt of electricity surged into Beryl's shoulder, only for her to respond by firing a blast of black energy straight into the Princess of Jupiter's skull, tearing it apart.
Venus, Serenity's guardian, rushed toward Beryl. Serenity wanted to scream out to her. She was going to die, just like the others. No, Venus deserved to live! She wanted to die, she, the Princess of the Moon, wanted to die, just so that everyone else would live.
But, perhaps selfishly, she wanted to escape this Hell.
The sound of a man screaming broke her thoughts. Very slowly, Serenity and Beryl glanced over their shoulders at the bloody army. Spears were being plunged into the Prince Endymion's body. Blood spurted into the air as Endymion's own general, Kunzite, stabbed straight into Endymion's heart!
Beryl's mouth was agape as she stammered, trying to sound the order to halt the attack. However, her words were cut short as Venus plunged her great blade straight through Beryl's heart! Beryl gasped for air, only vomiting blood over Venus's mane of blonde hair. Venus tore the blade straight from her bosom. Beryl to collapse to the ground, whispering curses beyond comprehension.
Serenity couldn't avert her gaze as her Prince's bloody body was ripped to shreds before her. It couldn't be. He whose eyes could gaze into her heart, he who had been her lover, her soul confident, he who had been her guardian, could not be dead!
Her mind was numb. Even as her guardian Venus was blown into the air by Kunzite's curse, thrown out of the moon's gravity and into space, all she noticed was her blade as it embedded itself in the stone to her side. If this reality was all just a dream, all just a horrid nightmare, then it was better to simply escape.
She tore the bloodstained blade from the stone, and placed it over her heart. "I'm sorry, mother," she cried, weakly, before plunging the blade straight through her heart.
Silence.
