THE URN OF THE AGES
Chapter 9: "Help From An Unexpected Source"
A Sailor Moon fanfic
By Bill K.
Sailor Moon struggled to get up from the sidewalk. She had to protect everyone: Her friends, the people of Asahikawa, the people of the world. That's why she had this terrible power that was so hard to control and so dangerous if fully unleashed. That's why Luna had come to her that day, scaring her out of ten years growth when the cat actually spoke, and bestowing upon her the mantle of Sailor Moon. Everyone was counting on her. She had to get up. She had to protect them.
"I can help you," came a voice. Sailor Moon stopped. Was it an actual sound she heard or one just in her head.
"W-Who?" she mumbled, looking around quizzically as Li Che Yang loomed over them and prepared to strike for the final time.
"Invoke me," the voice said.
"World Shaking!"
That wasn't her or the voice. That voice she knew. She also knew the familiar sound of geo-force bursting across the ground, disturbing the sound barrier and exploding into its target. Sailor Uranus was here, somehow. Hands closed around her upper arms and helped her up. Sailor Moon glanced over her shoulder and found Sailor Pluto behind her, the woman's normally fixed expression overcome with concern for her.
"Be careful, Uranus!" she heard Sailor Neptune shout. Twisting around, Sailor Moon saw Neptune off to one side, looking into her Deep Aqua Mirror as she directed the attack. "Be ready for a counterattack!"
"More arrogance," scowled Li Che Yang. "I grow weary of this constant interference. Have none of you the sense to know your betters?"
Warned by Neptune, Uranus easily evaded the blast of energy from the sorcerer's hand. Judging that World Shaking had no effect, Uranus summoned her Space Sword and maneuvered for an opening.
"Are you injured, My Princess?" Pluto asked with unconcealed concern. Sailor Moon shook her head unconvincingly.
"No," she wheezed. "Just - - have to protect everyone."
"Gather your strength," Pluto advised her. "We will guard you until then."
Pluto rose up to her full height. Yang saw her and turned his attention to her as Pluto brandished her staff with the Garnet Orb atop it. Immediately Uranus saw her opening.
"Space Sword Blaster!" Uranus shouted. Cutting energy arcs shot out from the blade and impacted the towering apparition. Yang grimaced and turned toward the annoyance. It was all Pluto needed.
"Dead Scream," she said softly, pointing the Garnet Orb at him. A sonic blast shot out from the orb, slamming into Yang with terrific force. Staggered by the blow, Yang turned back to Pluto.
"Space Sword Blaster!" Uranus shouted again. More energy arcs cut into the apparition's side, drawing another reaction from him. His hands shot out, one aimed at Uranus while the other pointed at Pluto.
"Submarine Reflection," Neptune said coldly. A crimson beam lanced out from the Deep Aqua Mirror, striking Li Che Yang in the back and actually burning through his silk robe. The sorcerer grunted loudly in pain. At that point, Pluto struck again.
Sailor Moon struggled to her feet, the Moon Tier dangling limply in her hands. Neptune shot her a momentarily glance to assess her condition, then continued to batter Yang with the beam from her mirror.
"Have to protect," Sailor Moon mumbled. She tried to raise the Moon Tier, but it was like lead in her hands. She looked around. Mars and Mercury were still down. Jupiter was sitting up and Venus was beginning to stir, but neither one could mount any sort of defense. "Need . . .everyone needs. . .you. . ."
Pluto turned at the sound of a small sigh and saw Sailor Moon slump to the pavement.
"I knew I should have gone with her," Mamoru mumbled.
Luna looked up from her computer and saw Mamoru fling open the apartment door and plunge out without bothering to close it.
"What happened?" asked Artemis, on the screen in a real-time conversation with the black cat.
"Oh dear," Luna swallowed. "Mamoru just bolted out of the apartment. It must mean things aren't going well."
"Given the satellite pictures I'm getting out of Asahikawa, not to mention the seismic activity," Artemis concurred, "you're probably right. And Mamoru is a pretty good barometer of that."
"What can we do? The beacons on the Outer Senshi already show that they're in the area. What other options do we have?"
"This is always the hardest part," Artemis grimaced. "Waiting and trusting in them to come back in one piece."
"Do you hope to protect your people?"
Sailor Moon looked around and saw nothing. Everywhere around her was a beige nothing. There was no ground and no sky, no horizon, no up or down, left or right, or anything. She was her only reference point. Confusion and panic began to take control of her.
"Do you hope to save everyone from him?"
Turning to the sound of the voice, Sailor Moon saw it. It was a giant dog, with a pointed snout and huge fangs poking out from under its lips. Red eyes burned down at her from its fur-covered skull. Its ears were up and at attention, and pointy ridges grew out from above its eyes. The body was thick with muscles. Its coat was brown and black, shaggy and unkempt. The beast reminded her of something, something she had fought before but couldn't recall. Danger and power radiated from its muscular body and menacing glare, but it was power that was muzzled and leashed. Sailor Moon didn't know how to react to it.
"Do you wish to defeat the human sorcerer?" the Tiangu demanded, though its mouth never once moved.
"Y-Yes," Sailor Moon stammered out.
"Then invoke me!" the Tiangu declared.
"W-What are you?" Sailor Moon asked. "Where is this place? Where are my friends?" She turned frantically. "My friends! I have to protect them!"
"You cannot," the Tiangu stated. Sailor Moon turned back and stared at it, horrified. "You do not yet possess the knowledge. The power resides within you. I see it. I feel it. I thought the accursed Li Che Yang was the most powerful human I had ever encountered. But you possess power beyond what even he has mastered."
Its eyes narrowed.
"But you are still a pup," the Tiangu continued. "You do not possess the ability to bring it forth. You have not yet matured enough to bring it forth. As such, you would perish at his hand and he would be free to reign over all."
"Then teach me," Sailor Moon requested. "Show me how so I can save everyone."
The Tiangu's mouth pulled back almost in a smirk. "I am no teacher, and it is not something that can be taught. You must mature. Only then will your power blossom. No, you have only one hope of defeating Li Che Yang. Invoke me."
"You can stop him?"
"I have in the past," the Tiangu nodded. "Every time some fool human has fulfilled the conditions of the spell and invoked Li Che Yang, I have returned and trapped him again in The Urn Of The Ages. It is my revenge upon him for killing me, and for mutilating my corpse to use my skull as The Urn. I have committed the rest of my eternity to defeating him and returning him to his prison in The Urn out of vengeance. Invoke me. Give me the satisfaction of avenging myself upon him again. Only you have the spiritual power to sunder the fetters and muzzle he has placed upon me. I forego any and all demands of payment. His cries of agony when he is once again defeated will be satisfaction enough for me."
Sailor Moon stood indecisively. She didn't want to contribute to this vicious circle of greed and retribution, but her friends and the people she swore to protect needed help - - more help than she could give.
"How do I do it?" she asked. "How do I invoke you?"
"Touch my forehead," the Tiangu said, then pulled its mouth back with vicious humor. "I vow I will not bite you."
Innocently Sailor Moon reached out and placed her left hand on the creature's forehead, for she was still holding the Moon Tier in her right.
"Now invoke me," it said.
"I invoke you?" Sailor Moon said tentatively.
And she was back on the sidewalk in Asahikawa. Sailor Moon looked up and for a moment saw a blue-white light streak across her field of vision and strike Jupiter. Then she focused on what was happening.
Uranus was dangling ten feet in the air, grasping at an invisible force that held her by the neck. She was to Li Che Yang's right, while Pluto was directly ahead of him and Neptune to his left. They were also dangling from invisible forces clamped around their throats.
"That's more like it," Yang said confidently. "You have all assumed your rightful places in the order of things. Now I may enjoy you. Struggle to escape me and let me laugh because I know you have no hope of it. If you give me enough amusement, I shall recreate you after you are dead and we can continue this ballet. Dance for me. Dance for my amusement."
Sailor Moon tried to get up, but she was still too weak. The entire episode with the beastly dog must have been a hallucination. She had to get up to save them. But as she tried to rise, Sailor Moon's head began to swim again. Doggedly her hand struggled up and tried to grip her tiara. She had to do something.
Then from out of the heavens, as if the gods themselves were striking him down, came a bolt of lighting. It struck Li Che Yang square on and the sorcerer seized up in agony. The Outer Senshi all fell back to Earth, landing in heaps at his feet. When the lightning bolt was spent, Yang staggered back and tried to regroup.
"J-Jupiter?" Sailor Moon mumbled. She twister her head around. There was Sailor Jupiter, standing tall and erect, her hands cupped at her sides. Her brown hair flowed along the disturbed air currents. Her head was flung back and her eyes were closed in calm serenity. From the sidewalk, Sailor Venus looked up at her friend, awestruck.
"You!" roared Li Che Yang, his robes still smoking from being struck again. "I had you imprisoned! There was no way you could have escaped!"
"You thought me dead, too, once," replied Sailor Jupiter, but it wasn't Sailor Jupiter's voice. Sailor Moon recognized the voice as that of the beastly dog she'd seen in her vision and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. "But I made a vow to rise up and beat you back down, to avenge myself against you for my defeat and my death. And I am here, Li Che Yang. Your time is once again over in this place."
In Tokyo, as in the entire country, programming had been interrupted by news coverage of the battle in Asahikawa. Prime Minister Hino had even addressed the country live, assuring them that self-defense forces were en route to the city and that everything was under control. It was something a country still nervous from events of eleven short months ago needed to hear, even if they weren't certain they could believe him. What reassured them more than Prime Minister Hino's words was the live pictures being broadcast of the Sailor Senshi in pitched battle with this towering ancient Chinese wizard.
"Isn't the news done yet?" Akiko asked peevishly. Sanjuro Ikegami turned and found his daughter standing in the doorway to the room. "I wanted to watch Soul Eater."
"Are you done with your homework?" Sanjuro asked, searching for a means to get her out of the room and away from the television without actually letting her know he was trying to get her out of the room.
"Yes," Akiko sighed impatiently. Then her eyes widened to twice their size. "IS THAT MOM ON TV?"
Unbidden, she ran into the room and planted herself in front of the television. Akiko sat in wondrous awe as the television showed Sailor Jupiter hitting the towering sorcerer with a massive lightning bolt. Given what he'd seen earlier, Sanjuro was uneasy about letting Akiko watch. Silently he was thankful Ichiro wasn't here.
"Wow!" exclaimed the young girl. "Mom is such a bad ass!"
"Where did you pick that up from?" Sanjuro asked.
"Aunt Minako," Akiko reported, her eyes glued to the action.
Leaning forward, Sanjuro caught his daughter under the arms and hoisted her into his lap - - not an easy trick, as she was nine now and not small. Akiko's eyes refused to leave the television the entire time.
"I don't think it would be a good idea for you to use that term anymore," Sanjuro suggested, "especially around your mother."
"I suppose it's not something 'a lady would do'," grumbled the girl. Jupiter struck Li Che Yang with another bolt and Akiko pumped her fist. "YEAH, HIT HIM AGAIN, MOM!"
"Akiko," Sanjuro began. "This has been a pretty rough fight for your mom and the other Senshi. This guy, whoever he is, has, well, been a pretty tough customer."
"It's OK, Dad," Akiko said, glancing back at him. "Mom and the Senshi will win. They always win. You just got to believe."
Sanjuro swallowed as his daughter returned her attention to the television.
"Yeah," he croaked out. "I guess I do."
Venus had made her way over to the others. After checking Sailor Moon, she went over to Mercury and Mars. Mars was awake, but still down. Mercury was on her knees, checking Mars' pulse.
"What's the word?" Venus asked. "You two gonna be up in time to make the curtain call?"
"I can't imagine how Jupiter is generating that much power," Mercury responded.
"I know," Venus smirked. "I FINALLY generate my max attack and she has to go and top me. Some people just hate getting upstaged, I guess."
"She's possessed," Mars whispered. But Sailor Moon heard it and turned in horror to them. "I can sense it. She's radiating demon energy. I think it's a Tiangu."
"Yeah, I kind of got that drift," Venus sobered. "Sounds like this boy has a grudge against The Wiz. Much as I hate Tiangus, this boy is doing some serious butt-kicking. Maybe we should just let him do his work and then extract him from Jupiter."
Reeling and enraged, Li Che Yang summoned his supernatural energy and flung it at Jupiter. Jupiter merely raised her hands to two-thirds above her head. Her palms began to spark. The energy struck an electrical field. Energy sizzled and spat as the two incompatible forms reacted to momentarily sharing the same space. Yang's attack, though, did not penetrate the electrical field. Finally it spent itself and died away.
Once more Jupiter flung her head back, returning her hands to her sides. There was an ominous rumble to the clouds above. Then another lightning bolt struck. But taking a leaf from his opponent, Li Che Yang formed a protective shield around himself. The lightning sizzled around the shield, unable to reach its target.
"Assuming he doesn't burn her out first," Mercury voiced her concern. Everyone looked at her. "I'm monitoring her vital signs with my visor. Heart rate, respiration and body temperature are all dangerously elevated. And she's channeling more electricity than she's ever been capable of. There's no possible way her body can stand up to such prolonged levels of use. Every moment that being occupies her body, the greater the risk of it doing permanent damage to it - - possibly even killing her."
Hearing that, Sailor Moon tried to get up. However, her legs gave out underneath her and she flopped back down onto the sidewalk. Venus was by her side in an instant.
"Hey, not so fast!" Venus cautioned. "You took a bigger hit than any of us! Don't try to get back into the game until you've got your legs under you!"
"But you heard Mercury!" Sailor Moon exclaimed. "We have to help Jupiter!"
"We've got nothing to help her with, Sailor Moon," Venus told her. "Except for Mercury, we've shot all of our bullets. We're going to have to leave it in the hands of Jupiter and that Tiangu inside of her."
Sailor Moon looked fearfully at Venus, then shifted her gaze to Sailor Jupiter. There had to be something she could do. Even if it meant her life, she couldn't allow Sailor Jupiter to fall this night.
Continued in Chapter 10
