Chapter VI
Serenity entered the room wearing a pair of bright orange overall shorts with a big bow in back. Underneath it was a long sleeved shirt of a different orange. That same orange closely matched her slightly more yellow socks, which peaked out over her flat brown shoes. Her hair was done up in a messy bun on top of her head and she placed sunglasses over the bridge of her nose.
"Where are you going?" Jadeite asked as he saw Serenity head for the kitchen. He was working on one of his broadcasts and was in perfect line of sight of the stairs and kitchen. He wasn't working in his office today; he enjoyed the change of scene every once in a while.
Serenity looked adorable in her outfit and she sent a serene gaze across to him that rivaled her namesake. "I'm packing a lunch." She told him smugly and promptly ran into a clear shield. "Ah, no fair." She whined before concentrating and walking through it. "You let me off easy with that one."
Jadeite shrugged. "All a part of the game. Where's Darien taking you today?" He asked looking up over the wireless glasses perched on his nose to read the small script.
"He's not. Lita is taking me to a monster truck rally to see one of her friends during the short car races."
"A monster truck rally and car races all in one go? I'm so jealous." Surprisingly he was. Most of the time he'd much rather be wining and dining a beautiful woman, preferably Rei and he'd even done the Cruise line attack but a monster truck rally would be a change of pace that he would have enjoyed.
"Well if I like it, we can go some time soon." Serenity suggested.
"That would be great." Jadeite smiled at her before going back to his reading.
Serenity tilted her head and the bun sloshed to one side. "Never mind." She mumbled and vanished.
Jadeite followed suit not long after but instead he went to the base camp.
The Queen was on one of her power thrills and this time she was having her merriment by forcing all four of the generals to eat at the table with her. Jadeite sat down but he wasn't the last to join as Zoicite came stumbling in. "My apologizes, My Queen." He bowed low in apology. "I had spilt ice cream all over my new favorite uniform and I was unable to present my self accordingly."
"If I may offer my advice." Nephrite cut in smoothly. "Perhaps you shouldn't have Jadeite bring you such atrocious things."
"Shut up Nephrite." Zoicite snapped before settling down.
A few minutes had passed by without considerable cause for trouble until Zoicite spoke again. "Can I have the mustard Jadeite?"
"I'm not done with it." He squirted a little onto his hot dog before squirting some more on the other side. "Still not complete." He spread some in the middle then made sure the whole length of it was covered.
Zoicite grew annoyed and shot his hand out across the table to take it from Jadeite but it squeezed out all over the table. "This is all your fault."
"My fault, you brat, if you hadn't tried to take it from me then it would never have happened."
"If you weren't trying to rile me by taking your sweet time there would have been no need to try and take it."
"You should learn patience."
"If the two of you are quite done with your bickering like little children, Queen Beryl would like to say something." Nephrite cut in with the arrogant grace he always held.
"Thank you Nephrite, remind me to give you a reward for not stooping down to their level."
Kunzite heard the words being said but he knew that eloquent jibe towards the other two from Nephrite was his way of stooping down to their level. He had good reason to believe that the ice cream incident was entirely his fault as well.
"Being able to rid you of the senshi is reward enough my queen." Nephrite ducked his dark head of hair in respect.
"That is good to know but for the moment it is not my wish to rid us of those vermin. Not yet. I have a greater plan that they'll fit nicely into." Beryl's gangrene eyes flashed momentarily.
"My majesty." Nephrite bowed his head in submission.
"The energy we gained from the blue senshi has fruited us well in our collection. We'll use them to bring about their own destruction."
"How has Mercury's energy sustained us?" Zoicite's interest was peaked, he had never seen any of the mini skirt wearing women in real life, Beryl wouldn't allow more than two generals out at a time for any reason. Zoicite hadn't been too impressed by the senshi's efforts but if it somehow changed current living conditions- that was great.
"Her energy has given us the extra boost to make more powerful youma and to attack more frequently. Jadeite, I require you to keep draining energy from mass groups. Nephrite, you will attack the place we discussed last week, if that girl is there, don't directly attack her. When the senshi show up bring out another monster, one that s capable of draining energy from a scout."
Serenity leaned against the banister towards the racetrack where the cars were zooming by around the bend. She shouted so the girl next to her would hear. "So which one's your friend?"
"The one that's driving the turquoise one!" Lita shouted back.
"The one that's in the lead?" Serenity turned to face her.
Lita nodded with a huge smile. They returned to watching the race when the cars all safely crossed the finish line and turned off their engines Lita grasped Serenity's elbow. "Come Serena, I'll introduce you to them."
"Them? There's more than one?" Serenity asked wide-eyed. "Jeez, you're popular."
Lita laughed and didn't say anything in response as she lead the way. They were able to pass all the security agents without hassle and made it to the pit stop where her friends were patiently waiting on repairs and refueling for the next race.
"Lita!" A driver in a tan suit with turquoise stripes down the sides greeted as he worked off his helmet. "Michelle, Lita's here."
An aquamarine haired woman straightened and turned towards the sound of his voice and brightened when she saw Lita. "Well hello Lita, it's so nice to see you." She said demurely and walked towards them forgetting what she had been working on. "This must be the friend you spoke of."
"Sure is, Serena I'd like you to meet Haruka and Michelle." They each nodded their heads respectively as they were introduced.
Haruka finally pried his helmet off and Serenity realized her mistake, as she gazed upon the woman, not the man. "Something the matter?" Haruka asked.
"Oh no." Serenity insisted. "I was just admiring the fact that a woman was driving the winning car. It gives hope to all the aspiring female motor-racers out there."
"Most people don't realize I'm a woman until I lay it out for them in plain facts."
Some of the men insist on seeing her topless before they believe. Michelle quipped.
"Some more than that but I'd rather just punch them and forget about it." Haruka grinned. "Now, would you like anything to drink? There's a cooler filled with anything you could think of next to the snack table." She nodded towards the garage that stored spare parts.
"A pink lemonade." Lita replied, she glanced at Serenity and changed her mind. "Better make that two."
Michelle looked like she was about to head off in that direction but Serenity cut her off. "I'll get it, it'll give the three of you a chance to catch up without the awkwardness of trying to inform me into the jokes." She didn't even wait for Michelle s agreement before she headed in to grab the drinks, one for everybody.
Michelle turned to Lita. "She seems nice."
"She is." Lita agreed adjusting her gray shorts so they hung further down over her thighs before switching the same methodical attention to her matching vest and black tank top underneath.
Haruka was watching her with suspicion. "What did you do?"
"Nothing." Lita replied too quickly and received Michelle's eyes narrowing as well. Lita slumped, bowing her head. "I didn't do anything. I didn't, I swear."
"Then why are you acting like it?" Haruka prodded.
"All right. She's Darien's girlfriend."
"That's nothing amazing. What does it matter?"
"He's finally got a girlfriend?" Michelle brightened. "And such a sweet young thing too. But I thought you said you've known her forever?"
"It seems like it. We were friends, we all were, the girls and I, friends with Serena and Darien respectively a few years before they even met. We tried to introduce them but they met by accident and they hit it off. "
"Why is that a problem?"
"Our lives. We never realized the risk that would be involved to somebody outside of us." Lita admitted.
"She got caught up in one of the attacks?" Michelle gasped and her attention shot to Serenity as she was handing a few drinks to the workers and chatting to them. "She seems relatively unscathed."
"She wasn't injured but we've come to realize the dangers that could befall somebody that is quite close to us."
"Honey." Michelle soothed. "We knew that danger could befall anyone when we agreed to this. We decided to take the bad with the good. A bond that would not break and unfortunately some people will die, it's war."
"Not yet they haven't."
"Why did you bring her?" Haruka had lost some of her good will towards the other girl as she listened.
"For a cover." Lita acknowledged. "There's a new general and we don't know what his motives are or what he does for attacks."
"What does Luna have to say?" Michelle asked.
Lita never got a chance to reply as Serenity returned and handed a drink to each of them. "That was one fantastic race you had Haruka. You've also got a stand up crew, each were bristling with knowledge and well guarding your secrets even though I didn't want to pry and find them out."
"I'm sure if you had asked they'd be gushing to tell you." Haruka bantered as she opened her coke. "That smile of yours is charming enough to coax an insane person into sanity and vice versa, I'm sure."
"Are you flirting with me?" Serenity raised an eyebrow.
"Does it bother you if a girl's flirting with you?" Haruka responded.
"No, flattered, but not available." Serenity teased.
"Then yes, I am flirting." Haruka winked. "But what harm is in it? I'm not available either."
"Will you tell me about your car? Is it a thirty-two or thirty-six rev motor?"
"Forty-one." Haruka countered. "First of it's kind on a race track."
"I knew it sounded too much like a kitten to be anything ordinary."
Their voices faded as they walked towards the car.
Michelle watched after them.
"Don't worry, you'll have Haruka back." Lita teased.
"It's not that." Michelle murmured. "It's her, something about her, I can't put my finger on it. I'm almost jealous of Haruka for all the attention she's getting."
"Oh, Usagi would have included you but she probably sensed that she cut off our conversation earlier and is allowing us to complete it."
"I'm not interested in it so much any longer."
Lita watched as Michelle followed the angel and Haruka to the car before she too followed. With Serenity like this it was hard to concentrate on something or anything that wasn't happy and good.
Serenity cheered Haruka on as she finished the final lap in the race. They were among the people to throw confetti and shouts as the race ended and a picture flashed as the winning car crossed the line. Haruka's crew, Michelle, Lita and with a grueling push Serenity, came out of the pit and stood with Haruka on the winner's podium for pictures. Serenity received a picture and she would frame it when she got home. This was a memorable day and Serenity was having a blast.
It wasn't until midway through the monster car races when people were changing cheers for whoever was winning or loosing, depending on each individual person, that a blast unplanned came raining upon the spectators.
People screamed in fear and even grown men in biking outfits cowered away from the site. Spawning from the liquefied metals was a woman's upper half made entirely out of titanium. She grew outwards and past the navel the materials started to change black. Her hands and legs were tires. Her body arched forward and the tires spun in one position before rearing off down the track. It plowed over a gaggle of teenage boys and started to suck their energy. As it did so it sent wheels towards the garages and replaced them once they unattached from her limbs.
Lita turned to Haruka and Michelle. "Take Serena and get somewhere safe. I need to go call for help." Lita pushed them off in the safest direction.
"I'll join you." Michelle spoke up and when Haruka stopped to argue Michelle pointed out a very important fact. "It'll even the playing grounds. You and Lita are the strongest two, you protect Serena, Lita and I will be fine. Now go."
Haruka dragged Serena away even though she was trying to fight it. They headed into the concessions stand. Behind the safety of bulletproof glass and metal walls Serenity turned on Haruka. "Please, she needs help, she can't fight on her own."
"You know?" Haruka asked extremely surprised.
"Do you?" Serenity countered. "You're not one of them."
"That's where you're wrong." Haruka dragged Serenity behind the wall so they couldn't be seen. "I am as is Michelle and that s why I'm staying here, in case something happens where you need protection.
"I'll be fine, you need to help them. It's only going to get worse." Serenity held Haruka's hand. "Look at me. I don't know what Lita told you about me, but Tuxedo Kamen's not here to protect me personally, so he can't whisk me away and confirm all of the enemy's half formed ideas. I'll be fine back here, go help them before they get hurt, I couldn't live with myself if they got hurt because of me."
"You're brave, but I promised I'd stay." Haruka was going to say more but her attention was caught by the cars now surrounding the two senshi and without even realizing they were as they fought the car frame woman.
"Save them, they need it more. Serenity pushed and Haruka fell under her unknown spell and did as she was told. She transformed and by the time she got to the first car about to attack the spell wore off and she didn't even think twice about it.
Serenity breathed a sigh of relief and was about to find someplace where she could transport herself to safety when a car came crashing through the door and aimed directly towards her. It was the turquoise one that Haruka had driven earlier. Serena was backed into the glass wall with nowhere to run as it revved up and tried to drive through her as it hit and sent her flying through the window. It was out shortly after and she barely had enough time to get up and start running before it was upon her again.
The hood banged loudly up and down as the jaws of the machine opened wide to eat her. A cord flew out of its confines and wrapped by one of the lights as if licking its lips. Somehow it managed to catch her and have her half in and half out of the hood looking up at the upper shell's inside as it swung down to latch shut.
Everything happened so fast that one minute she was facing certain doom and the next it stopped inches away from her body and was trying to grind itself close when at the very next moment she was out from between the metal teeth and was in a pair of strong arms and heard the lid snap shut, saved not a moment too soon.
She looked up to her savior and was puzzled to see Sailor Venus cart her away from danger. Serenity glanced over Venus's shoulder to see Sailor Mars send an enchanted spell at the car and it stopped moving, one of the tires popping off and crumpling as the air whizzed out of it and disintegrated.
"Thank you." Serenity breathed out a sigh of relief.
Venus nodded curtly and whispered. "We'll discuss this later. We need you to stop by at the temple tomorrow." She deposited Serenity without another word on the VIP floor and went back to join the fight. Serenity sat down miserably to watch the fight. She'd be safe up here and to try and run like the ones still streaming out below would only be worthless. The senshi were saving other victims and placing them near the top like her but nobody was placed in the same box as her as the others started piling up. One injured person was put with her and Serenity started to check his injuries.
Luckily he would live and she applied first aid onto some of his more dominant wounds. She covered him with a blanket and under the cover of the blanket she healed his biggest wound without anybody's knowledge. When she finished she was a little less luminescent than she was previously and sat back to watch over him as he regained consciousness.
He kept fluttering in and out of awareness and by the time the senshi finished the battle and took off he was finally awake and moving around. "I suspect that we can leave now." Serenity mentioned casually as she watched the crowds dismount from their safety cabins and Lita came looking for her.
"Thank you for watching over me and fixing my wounds." He had yet to notice that there was a bloody gash in his clothing but not even a scar on his skin under the slash. If he did he'd probably shrug it off as to somebody else's blood.
"I don't have a perfect answer to that but no thanks are necessary for I did what came naturally."
The two of them walked down the steps and split off. He went somewhere and Serenity joined her friend.
"You! Lita grated. "You put yourself in danger and Haruka! I'll deal with her in the morning!"
Serenity was surprised to see Lita so angry. "Lita, please, it wasn't Haruka's fault." Although Serenity knew Lita wouldn't believe that unless she let her secret go, but it wasn't just her secret so she let it slide and dealt with Lita's anger.
"I told her to protect you without transforming and what did she do? She became Sailor Uranus and joined in our battle."
"You would have gotten hurt if she didn't join you." Serenity chided softly.
"And YOU almost died because of her not being with YOU!" Lita was really livid and Serenity had never seen her like this that it almost was scary.
"I wouldn't have died." Serenity hastened to say. "Besides, they didn't attack me outright, I was just an innocent bystander."
"You wouldn't have died?" Lita had a bark in her laugh. "Did you know that if any car's hood slammed down like it was going to it would cut anybody in half? I'd like to see you live from that one."
"The other senshi saved me." Serenity knew she had been outmaneuvered in this conversation because she couldn't add what else she knew.
"Just in time, which was what we were trying to avoid. Now the enemy is going to think you know who we are and that you're something important, which you are but they don't need to know that!"
"I don't know." Serenity said under her breath. "We'll see won't we."
"Did Mina tell you about tomorrow?"
"She did."
"Finally something went right, I could have sworn she would have ditzed out and forgotten." Lita was being a tad harsh and Serenity stuck up for her friend.
"Mina's not a ditz, she gets excited sometimes but she doesn't forget important things."
"I know, Mina's, well, you'll find out what exactly Mina's position is very shortly." Lita sighed. "We have decided to let you in on a few choice bits of information because it seems that you will need to know them."
"Not until tomorrow right?"
"Unfortunately no, first you must pass Luna's inspection."
"The fluffy hairball that importunes constantly?" Serenity decided it was when Lita didn't reply but continued walking towards Haruka and Michelle.
"You." Lita growled as she stopped next to them. "I'm bound to say something I will regret, you're just lucky she's not the one or else you'd be outcast for not doing your job."
We'll talk later. Haruka replied cheerfully and walked over to Serenity and sobered. "I apologize."
"Oh don't worry about it, I forced your hand." Serenity smiled reassuringly. "I'm just glad to meet the two of you, although with Lita's huff I don't think I'll be seeing you like this for a long time."
"We'll see." Haruka agreed and on an impulse hugged Serenity. "You-" Haruka shook her head. "Forget it, I'd never be able to say what I mean."
"I understand." Serenity moved onto Michelle leaving with the touch of her hand on Haruka's arm. "Hey, don't let Haruka beat herself too badly for what transpired, Lita's looking to do it anyways."
Michelle laughed, Lita had just said goodbye to her like she usually did but this time was glaring at Haruka and sending death threats. "Oh, she'll cool down soon, it isn't like Haruka almost killed you herself."
"Not this go around." Lita muttered and Serenity was hit by something akin to déjà vu.
"By the time we get home, I doubt she'll even remember." And if she did, Serenity would take away some of that spite. "I can't wait to see what you are amazing at, drop me a line sometime about an art gallery opening up that's displaying your work and I'll keep an eye open for any home concerts you'll be playing.
"Sounds good." Michelle agreed and they hugged their goodbyes. As Lita and Serenity left they waved to Michelle and Haruka and they waved back. When they left Michelle turned to Haruka. "There's something special about that girl."
"You don't think?" Haruka asked her love.
"That she could be?" Michelle followed her thought path.
"Nah, we don't even know if she truly exists." Haruka decided. "But if she did…"