"Local authorities have just called in the latest victim of the mysterious anemia attacker. Number six in the steadily rising crime spree is Mina _, a college student on vacation back home here in Tokyo. Wandering around in the park late tonight, Mina was attacked near the fountain you see behind me, and the culprit made off into the night before police could catch him. Multiple witnesses say the man dressed all in black and called itself 'the Phantom'. There were others around Mina when she was attacked, all friends of hers. A couple of them were injured in the attack and are currently being treated at Tokyo Hospital-"


The media reporters were told to wait outside Mina's room while her friends were with her. Darien was outside giving the police more details about what he had seen while being discreet about why he and a bunch of college girls were laundering around the park in the middle of the night. He not only volunteered to explain everything, but Darien knew he was the only one who could talk at the moment. The scouts were all in disarray over what happened.

Rei had received bad scorch marks on her chest and stomach, the doctors who tended to her said it looked as if someone had taken a red hot poker and ran it across her skin. Rei had trouble breathing because of the wounds, and Serenity had suffered similar burns but for some reason they were nowhere near as bad as Rei's.

Lita had been worse off. When the Phantom had thrown her into the fountain she landed in a bad way and broke her left arm in two places. Her arm was in a sling and she had a small bandage across her cheek from a minor laceration she received in the throw.

However, the real story was Mina. She was barely conscious after having her blood sucked out of her body. There were no openings to see how it had been done, but she was pale and had not spoken a word since the attack. Bruises were up and down both her arms which the police said had been signs of a struggle. She lay in the hospital bed, resting quietly while Ami and Serena sat in chairs next to her bed.

Ami was busy with her palmtop, but even with three of her friends terribly hurt before her, Serena felt the worst. She had seen her friends get attacked and she wasn't able to help them. Because of her powerlessness, Rei and Lita were hurt and Mina was in a hospital bed. None of this was helping her mind at all.

The door opened and Darien stepped inside, "News reporters are all outside. Best to avoid going out there." He looked over the room, and all he saw were grim faces. "How's Mina doing?"

Ami lowered her palmtop and closed it, "This is more than a simple blood loss. Mina's energy has been taken as well. This thing...this Phantom, wanted to drain her entirely. It would have killed her too, had we not tried to intervene."

Lita sat stood next to the door, "But it didn't make a difference. That thing caught us with our guard down, and Mina got the worst of it."

"Still, least we have some clue as to what we are dealing with now. It's some sort of demon from the looks of it," Rei said, putting her shirt back on her body gingerly. The cloth touching her burns made it hard to not cry out in pain.

"A demon with an ego. 'I am the Phantom...' sounds like a corny line from a horror film," Lita said sarcastically.

Ami put her hand to her chin, "So, what's the plan? I mean, we're now down three scouts. I don't know if we'll be able to take him with us not at our full strength."

Rei shook her head, "You better not have counted me in that calculation."

"Of course I did, Rei, you're not at one hundred percent," Ami said. She knew Rei wasn't as badly hurt as Lita or Mina, but it would still be a problem for Rei to even stand with what injuries she had sustained. "Like it or not but you can't fight in your condition."

Rei wouldn't back down, "Well excuse me! I represent the planet of fire, these burns aren't a problem!"

Darien poked her in the side with one of her fingers, and Rei dropped to her knees in pain.

"That was nothing more than a tap and you're already crying. Take Ami's advice and rest."

Rei growled, but accepted what was fact. She couldn't try to fight with her injuries. She was benched, and no matter how much she hated it she had to accept it.

"So then, that leaves myself, Ami, and Serena to fight the Phantom. But, after we put up resistance, he might not be willing to show himself now that we are after him," Darien said, taking a seat next to Serena and putting an arm around her shoulders.

"No. He's not afraid of us. I saw it in his eyes, the way he looked at us, he was mocking us," Serena said in a low tone. Her words rang true, and though she had only caught a glimpse of the Phantom's face, it had terrified her down to her bones.

Everyone remained silent for quite awhile after that. That's because this was one of the rare times that Serena had uttered her fears and they couldn't convince her to not be scared, mainly because they were scared too.


A/N: Well, that was dour wasn't it? The scouts are pretty beat up following the attack by the Phantom and now they have to figure out how to fight this enemy. What will happen next? Find out when the next chapter is out on September 12th!