Here's chapter 10! Now that all the soldiers are introduced (for now at least) get ready for plot and character focused episodes! And I promise none of them will be pointless filler... I hope you guys are liking Mako so far. I'm definitely doing something different with her, so please bear with me if you don't like how I'm writing her so far. Let me know what you think! ;)
P.S. I apologize if you've left a review and I haven't responded. I love responding to comments, but I can't do that with Guest reviews. If you wish to hear a reply from me, make sure you make an account before leaving a review.
Chapter 10: Blossoming Storm
It seemed like a normal day in Tokyo. People walking to and fro, cars lining the streets, and airplanes soaring overhead. However, at one construction site, where there would normally be people in hard hats and orange vests hard at work, there was absolute silence.
WHOOSH!
A ten-foot long, four-hundred pound i-beam suddenly shot out from over the edge of the top floor and streaked down to the ground. It staked itself into the dirt with a loud bang, sending dust flying into the air. Up on the top floor, the Sailor Soldiers, Moon, Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter, were facing off against the monster with a bulldog's head who walked on his knuckles.
"Your aim sucks, Mugg! Why don't you quit throwing things and fight for real?" Jupiter mocked.
Mugg snorted and laughed. "Because if I fought you with my hands, this would be over all to quickly!" The bulldog monster cracked his knuckles, with hands about the size of three bowling balls. He picked up two more i-beams and hurled them like spears at Moon and Mercury.
"MOON TIARA-"
Before Sailor Moon could use her attack, Jupiter jumped in and grabbed her and Mercury by their collars, yanking them out of the way. The i-beams impaled the concrete floor and stuck out like giant road spikes.
Jupiter dropped the two smaller soldiers and saluted. "No need to thank me!" She pranced back off into battle, leaving Mercury in awe and Moon in a pout.
The Soldier of Courage charged at Mugg, raising a fist. "Get ready for an uppercut, you ugly sucker!" She swung her fist upward and drove it into the base of Mugg's jaw, but all she succeeded in doing was knocking some spit out of the dog-monster's jowls.
"That tickles…" Mugg sneered. He then stood on his knuckles and kangaroo-kicked Jupiter in the gut. She went flying across the floor and slammed into an upright i-beam that would become the frame for a wall. Mugg smiled to himself in triumph, but his eyes suddenly went wide and let out an agonized howl. He looked behind him and saw that his stubby tail had been set on fire. He quickly slapped it out with his huge paws, then looked around for the culprit.
"FIRE SOUL!"
Mugg howled again as his rear was once again set ablaze, and this time he comically scooted on the floor to extinguish the flames. This time, he knew exactly who had attacked him. He turned to see Sailor Mars glaring at him, smoke still rising from her palm. "You're gonna get it, you bitch!" Mugg roared. He dashed towards the Soldier of Fire, galloping on his knuckles like a gorilla. He leapt into the air and raised both fists over his head, before swinging them down towards Mars. Thankfully, the raven-haired girl was able to jump out of the way as the bulldog's monstrous paws pulverized the concrete floor they stood on. Everyone felt the whole building shake, and for a brief moment they grew concerned that the whole thing was going to collapse.
"We've got to end this soon," Mars said to herself. As she looked over to Mugg, she noticed an exposed fuse box on one of the wall frames, and an idea occurred to her. She ran directly at Mugg and jumped into a flying kick. "Hey, Mugg! I've heard dogs noses are really sensitive!" With that said, she drove her high-heeled foot up one of the bulldog's nostrils, causing him to yelp in pain and clutch his big black nose. Mars landed nimbly on her feet and backed up, making sure he fuse box was right behind her.
Mugg removed his hand from his nose, which was now gushing blood. "Now… now you're through!" He picked up another i-beam and swung it like a baseball bat, trying to take Mars' head off. Once again, the Soldier of Passion kept out of the way, resulting in Mugg smashing the i-beam into the fuse box. The now shattered box shot sparks into the air, and Mugg felt a burning electric shock travel up his arms.
"Electricity…" Sailor Mercury said, observing the action. "Great thinking, Mars!" She turned to Sailor Jupiter, who was still recovering from Mugg's kick. "Jupiter! Use you're thunder attack on that i-beam he's holding!"
"Uh… aye-aye, captain!" Jupiter slurred, clearly still dazed.
Mugg raised the i-beam over his head like an axe, preparing to bring it down onto Sailor Mars. "You got lucky that time, girlie! Try and dodge this one!"
"SUPREME THUNDER!"
Sailor Jupiter sent a blast of lighting bolts flying at the i-beam Mugg was holding. The flurry of bolts latched onto the steel beam and traveled along it, eventually jumping onto Mugg's skin and spreading all over his body. The bulldog monster shrieked in agony as he was violently electrocuted. It was just like the fuse box, only a hundred times more powerful. After a moment of searing pain, Jupiter ceased her attack, leaving Mugg standing completely still, paralyzed except for a few muscle spasms.
"Well, Oxen… looks like… I lost our bet," Mugg grumbled. With that, he dropped the i-beam and proceeded to crumble into a pile of dust. Due to how high up they were, a light breeze traveled into the upper floor and picked up the dust pile, carrying the monster's remains off into the cerulean sky.
Makoto kicked down the doors to the Crown Arcade. Her blood was still pumping with excitement from the battle that had just occurred. The girls' sudden entrance caused a man to jump up from his seat and spill his coffee on a newspaper he was reading. "Uh… welcome to the Crown! How can I assist you?"
"Hey, where's Motoki?" Usagi asked, disappointed that her little boy crush was absent.
The man wiped his brow nervously. "Um… Mister Furuhata is still in the hospital due to an… incident. I will be working here part time until he recovers."
Usagi's eyes lit up. "Oh yeah! He's probably still hurt after we saved him from the monst-"
Rei quickly covered Usagi's mouth before she could finish her sentence. "How thick-headed are you?!" Rei hissed.
"Geez, sorry ReiRei…" Usagi pouted.
Usagi, Rei, and Ami found a table and casually sat down in their seats. Mako, however, slid the chair back with a sweep of her leg and plopped down in it, immediately putting her feet up on the table. "Well, after a fight like that, I'd say we are in need of a celebration!"
Ami quickly shushed the tall girl. "Makoto! We can't talk about that stuff in front of that guy," she whispered.
Rei thought for a moment, the called over to the part-timer at the counter. "Sir! Can we have four sodas please?"
"Uh… y-yes ma'am!" He fumbled into the see-through mini-fridge next to the register, but suddenly his anxiety grew on his face. "Shoot, we're out of soda! Um… excuse me while I go to the back room and get some more!" He dashed out of the room and through a heavy looking door that said 'Storage.'
"Now, we can talk to our hearts' content," Rei said.
"How did you know they would out of soda?" Ami asked.
Rei smirked at the nerdy girl. "I'm psychic, remember?" she teased.
Ami just looked confused. "Um…"
"Ha! Just kidding. I saw they were out when we walked past," Rei clarified.
Usagi's eye sparkled. "Wow, ReiRei made a joke? I guess I'm starting to grow on you, huh?"
Rei's own smile quickly dropped. "Or maybe, I thought of it myself and not everything is about you, Bun-Head."
Out of nowhere, Luna hopped up on the table with something shiny in her mouth. She set it down in the table and turned to the girls. "Thank you all for meeting here as I requested. I would like to properly welcome Makoto onto the team with a little gift." She nuzzled the device she had been carrying over to the brunette girl, which everyone could now see was a communicator with a green chain. "This is your own personal communicator. Use it to keep in contact with the other girls and call for them in case of emergencies."
Makoto took the device off the table and strapped it to her wrist. "Whoa, so pretty," she said with glimmering eyes. "It makes for a pretty good accessory as well," she said, flashing the communicator like a piece of jewelry.
"I didn't think you'd be into that kind of thing," Ami said shyly.
"Just because I'm a badass doesn't mean I can't be fashionable, Big Blue," Makoto said, winking at the blue haired girl.
"Excuse me, girls," the part-timer said, setting four orange soda cans down on the table. "I didn't know what kind you liked, so I just grabbed a bunch of orange creams."
Mako eagerly grabbed one of the cans. "Are you kidding? Orange cream is the best! Thanks, man!" The man blushed at Mako's remark and quickly hurried back over to his seat behind the front counter. Meanwhile, the four girls cracked open their sodas and were about to drink, but Mako suddenly stood up. "Before we drink, I'd like to make a little toast…" She raised her soda high above the table and placed one foot on her chair, posing like a hero standing on a hill. "To me! The most valuable player on this team!" With that, Mako sat back down and began chugging her soda.
Rei scowled at the girl's arrogance. "Some nerve…" she mumbled.
"C'mon ReiRei, don't be like this right now," Usagi gurgled, her mouth filled with soda. "Just relax a little and have fun!"
"How am I supposed to relax when she's trying to hog all the glory for our team effort?" Rei snapped. "I'm just as good a fighter as she is!"
Mako smirked at Rei. "True, we are the best fighters on the team, but you know what the difference between us is? You can punch a wall and put a hole in it. I can punch a wall and bring the whole house down," she said.
Rei met her arrogant grin with a stone-cold glare. "Well, if you're not careful, that house is going to come down on top of you."
Mako's smile began to fade. "Then I'll just have to make sure you're under that house with me."
"As if I'd be stupid enough to be near you with you're mindless style of fighting," Rei shot back.
"Oh, you're asking for it now, sister!" Mako's voice began to get intense. Her smile had all but vanished.
Rei took a step closer to Mako. "I'm begging for it! Now who's gonna give it to me?"
"Me! With both hands tied behind my back!" Mako leaned over the young martial artist, trying to use her height to intimidate her.
Not fazed in the slightest, Rei stood on her toes to meet the taller girl at eye-level. Electricity could be seen flying between the two as they snarled at each other like rabid animals. Finally, Usagi jumped in between them and pushed them apart.
"Please stop! You're both super duper strong! There's no need to fight over it!" Rei and Mako turned away from each other, huffing and crossing their arms. Usagi was left standing in the middle, pulling her old puppy-eyes trick. "C'mon you guys, friends shouldn't be fighting like this!"
"Friends?" Mako said, surprised. She then began chuckling to herself. "Okay, let me make something very clear to all of you: the knowledge that I have to practically share my life with you all from now on makes me feel physical pain." She turned to Usagi. "You, blondie, you're an idiot." She glanced down at Luna next. "Kitty, I don't know what's more annoying; the fact that you're always on my case or that fact that you're a talking cat." Finally, she turned to Rei and practically stabbed her with her gaze. "And you, Bruce Lee wannabe, you're not special. Stop acting like it. I don't understand how you're friends with anyone with how uptight you are. Loosen the hell up." With that, Mako turned on her heels and stormed out of the arcade. "Don't bother me ever again. I refuse to be on a team with people like you."
Usagi, Rei, and Luna watched her go, making no attempt to stop her or bring her back. Eventually, Luna spoke up. "She… she'll come around…"
"For once, I actually hope you're wrong Luna," Rei said abruptly. "Kami-sama, to think that she's a Sailor Soldier…"
Usagi slammed her hands onto the table. "Stop it, Rei!" she cried. "Mako is our friend now! You can't be mean to her like you are to me!"
"How can you say that after how she just treated us?" Rei said, legitimately surprised. "I say good riddance to her."
"She didn't say anything about me," Ami said shyly.
Usagi and Rei looked at her, as if they had forgotten she was there. "Probably because she had something deeply insulting to say to you. Be thankful she left before she got the chance," Rei said.
"Calm down, Rei," Luna consoled. "I'm sure Makoto didn't mean what she said."
Ami stared down at her lap, anxiously twiddling her thumbs. "She didn't say anything about me…" she quietly said to herself.
Deep within the confines of the Dark Kingdom, a man with reddish-brown hair stood in front of a full-body mirror. His upper body was unclothed, exposing his rather muscular torso and arms. He held his left arm in the air, and with his right arm he touched a rather nasty looking scar just below his rib cage. He applied light pressure to the scar, causing him to wince slightly. The pain caused him to flash back to several days ago when the wretched Sailor Soldiers inflicted this wound upon him.
"Admiring yourself, love?" Zoisite said from behind him. The blonde man stepped up to his lover and wrapped his arms around his torso. "I guess I would if I had your body…" he flirted.
"Really Zoisite… you should wait until night for this kind of behavior," Nephrite said, smiling.
"I can't help myself," the shorter man purred, lightly stroking the taller man's ripped stomach.
Nephrite blushed and quickly placed an hand over his scar. "How can you hold me when I still have this shameful mark on my body?"
"I don't mind it. Scars are welcome on the path to our goal after all," Zoisite said soothingly. He moved a hand up to the one covering Nephrite's scar and squeezed it. Unfortunately, this only added additional pressure to the wound, causing Nephrite to grunt. "Oh Nephite! I'm sorry!" Zoisite apologized, quickly backing away. "I-I wasn't aware that it was still sore…"
"That's it!" Nephrite snapped. "I refuse to become weak because of one injury!" He stomped over to his wardrobe and threw it open, pulling out his scarlet armor and cape.
Zoisite looked concerned. "Wait… where are you going?"
The brunette man buckled on his breastplate and adjusted it. "I'm going to find that wench, Sailor Mercury! She's the one who outsmarted us in our last battle. It's her fault I've been out of commission for nearly a week now!" He attached his cape to his shoulder pads and swished it out behind himself. "She'll pay for what she did and she'll pay in blood!"
"No Nephrite!" Zoisite cried, running up to his lover and grabbing his arm. "If the Queen finds out you fought without permission, she might… s-she might…" His voice trembled at the end.
Nephrite sighed. He lifted the blonde man's chin with two fingers and gave him a quick kiss. "I promise nothing like that will happen. I will be gone and back before she can even notice." He smiled down to Zoisite, who looked down and nodded. Nephrite let go of the shorter man and walked over to the bedroom door.
"Be careful!" Zoisite said quickly.
Nephrite chuckled. His lover was adorable when he was concerned. "Of course, dear." He shut the door behind him and began making his way down the hall. "I won't turn into a weakling like you did, Kunzite…" he muttered to himself as he walked into the shadowy depths of the narrow hallway.
Ami stood outside a two-story tall apartment building. After Makoto left the arcade, something compelled her to follow the beautiful girl. She kept her distance so she wouldn't be noticed, and now she had ended up in a dirty neighborhood and in front of a really run-down looking apartment building. There appeared to be eight apartments in total, with four doors on each floor. Ami's eyes settled on the second door on top. That was the one she saw Makoto walk in to.
Ami sighed to herself and began making her way up to Makoto's room. As she climbed the rusty stairs she nearly squashed several dead bugs beneath her feet and almost ran her hand through a spiderweb on the railing. How could anyone live in a place like this? More importantly, how could Makoto's parents afford school if they were living here? The blue-haired girl brought her questions to a halt as she now found herself standing in front of a large white door with rust outlining the whole thing. Taking another deep breath, she raised her hand and lightly knocked three times.
Nothing happened. She knocked three more times, this time a little harder. Still, nothing. Ami was getting a little impatient now. Makoto just walked in, so there was no way she was already asleep or anything. Ami knocked again, this time borderline pounding on the door. Finally, a voice came from the other side. "Piss off, Taki! I told you I'm out of coffee grounds!"
"Um… Makoto! It's me, Ami!" she called.
She heard a few heavy, dragging footsteps, followed by three or four locks unlocking, and finally the door creaked open. Ami now found herself looking up at the giant brunette girl she had come here to see. "Oh, it is you. What do you want?"
Ami found herself at a loss for words. She had come here with questions, but all she managed to get out was "Um… well, I… uh…"
"What, you like what you see?" Mako said, playfully placing a hand on her hip and cocking it out.
"N-No! Why would you even-" Ami stopped herself before she went on a rant. "I just wanted to ask you something." The shorter girl nervously folded her hands and assumed and almost reverent position. "Earlier, when you insulted everyone, you didn't say anything about me."
"Do you want me to insult you or something?" Mako asked abruptly.
Ami lowered her head even more. "No! I just… want to know what you think of me…" she said, her voice trailing off.
Mako raised an eyebrow. "What? Speak up."
"I want to know what you think of me!" Ami blurted out. She quickly slapped a hand over her mouth, aware of how loud she was. Her face turned a bright shade of red as well.
"Geez, keep it down. My neighbor Taki's probably in the middle of his afternoon nap." Mako paused for a moment, looking away from Ami, as if thinking to herself. "You're the only one I can tolerate. Everyone else is annoying, but at least you're quiet. And you're pretty smart."
"Really?!" Ami said, beaming a little. She hadn't expected a compliment.
"But!" Mako said, holding up a finger. "That's not enough to make me want to stay on the team. Fighting monsters was fun for awhile, but if I have to do it with that cat bossing me around and that black-haired girl constantly up my ass, then no dice." She paused again. "Also, getting kicked by that big dog monster kinda reminded me that I can die, and if there's one thing I'll never do, it's die for the sake of others. My life comes first and foremost."
"Oh… I see," Ami said shyly. "Sorry, but I was really looking forward to having you around. We could use someone as strong and brave as you on the team."
Mako's eyes shot open and she blushed, but she quickly turned away so Ami wouldn't see it. "Uh… thanks. But I'm still not coming back."
"Right," Ami sighed. "I'll leave alone now. Apologies for bothering you," she said, bowing to the tall girl.
"Don't mention it. Like I said, you're the only one I can tolerate." Mako began to head back into her apartment. "I'll probably see you around, since we go to the same school and all. Anyway, later Big Blue!"
Ami perked up suddenly. "Uh… I wish you wouldn't-" Before she could finish, Mako closed the door and cut her off. "...call me that name…" The nerdy girl was left standing out there, saddened that she couldn't get Mako to come back. At least she had accomplished what she went there to do. She didn't like Mako making fun of her friends, but knowing she didn't think of her the same way put some ease into her heart.
"Hey Makoto! You got any coffee grounds?!" a voice came from the next apartment down.
"Piss off, Taki!" Mako shouted back.
Ami chuckled. Makoto sure did have some fire in her. Too bad she and Rei didn't get along. The blue-haired girl headed back down the steps to ground level and began walking home, hoping to get out of this disgusting neighborhood as soon as possible.
"NOOOOO!" Usagi cried, tears fountaining from her eyes.
"What? What is it Usagi?" Luna responded.
"Oh Luna, it's awful!" Usagi sobbed heavily, then suddenly held up a Sailor V manga to the black cat's face. "Sailor V just found out that Ace is actually Danburite, and now they're gonna have to fight each other! How can they possibly love each other now?! WAAAAAAHHH!"
Luna's face drooped. "I thought somebody had died or something…"
"Well it feels like someone just died to me!" Usagi whined, tears still flowing down her face like rivers.
Luna rolled on Usagi's bed, staring up at the ceiling. She kept quiet for a moment, thinking to herself. "Hey, Usagi?" she asked
Usagi sniffed and wiped away her tears before responding. "Y-Yeah?"
"My memory of the Moon Kingdom isn't perfectly clear, but as far as I can recall, none of the Soldiers ever acted like Makoto does," Luna said.
Usagi looked curiously at her feline friend. "What do you mean?"
Luna rolled back over. "In order to be a Sailor Soldier, one needs to be pure of heart, and from what I've seen, Makoto is the furthest thing from that." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "I think her transformation might have been a mistake."
Usagi's eyes shot open. She slammed her book shut and grabbed Luna by her torso, lifting her up and pressing her forehead to her own. "How dare you! Mako may not be the nicest person, but she's totally pure of heart!"
"She insulted all of you and then ditched the team!" Luna retorted. "How can you call that pure?"
"She was just mad because Rei was being a big meanie again! And I'll admit that I'm not the sharpest bulb on the branch." She lowered her voice for her next comment. "And you are pretty annoying sometimes…"
Luna's eyes widened. "What?! I am not annoying! I'm doing my job to keep you girls in line! And as far as I'm concerned, Makoto has no place in that line!"
"That's it!" Usagi snapped. She brought Luna over to her window and opened it. "You're a bad kitty, so you're sleeping outside tonight!" She proceeded to set Luna on the roof outside her window and slam it shut.
"Usagi! Let me back in!" Luna screeched, furiously clawing at the window.
"If you scratch those windows, I can make it two nights!" the blonde girl said. "Now, when you're ready to apologize for saying that about Makoto, you can come back in." With that, Usagi shut her blinds, obscuring the dejected cat from her view.
"Usagi, you open this window right now! You have no right to treat me like this!" Suddenly, there was a rumble of thunder and a crash of lightning, causing the hair on Luna's back to stand up. Within seconds, it was pouring rain. Luna felt as if she was going to die. "P-Please let me back in, Usagi! I really hate storms!" Getting no response from the girl, the black cat decided it was hopeless. She hugged herself as close to the window as possible, trying to avoid the rain. "Wasn't there a storm just a few nights ago…"
The sky lit up as another lightning bolt danced across the sky before crashing down to the earth. The resulting sound resonated throughout the city like a bomb going off. Atop a local building, Nephrite stood stoutly in the torrential downpour, his cape billowing out behind him. He brushed his already soaked brown locks out of his face and smiled to himself.
"The perfect atmosphere for destruction…" he sneered.
The brunette man looked around the city below him. Traffic was already backed up due to people refusing to drive fast on slippery wet roads. People were either casually strolling along with umbrellas, or scrambling to get out of the rain if they didn't have one. He would have to aim carefully as to cause enough damage to get the Soldiers' attention (preferably Mercury's) but to not take any lives. Doing so would cause Queen Metalia to punish him for destroying more potential human energy. Focusing on a target area, he raised his right arm up to his left shoulder.
"BLOSSOM BOMBARDMENT!"
As he called out his attack, he swung his arm out in front of his body, scattering several glowing black rose petals across the open air. As the petals fluttered down to the ground, they exploded in midair, evaporating thousands of surrounding raindrops. The people below were thrown into an instant panic. They didn't know where the explosion had come from, but since it was an explosion they decided it would be best to seek shelter or get out of the area. Some even abandoned their cars and ran for the nearest building.
Nephrite watched the chaos with a genuine smile on his face. "That should bring the Soldiers running. But just to make sure..."
"BLOSSOM BOMBARDMENT!"
Ami walked under a light blue umbrella with a wave pattern on it. The rain beating down on top of it sounded like machine gun fire. The blue-haired girl had not expected it to rain on her way home, nor had she expected that she and Makoto lived so far apart. Then again, they were practically on opposite sides of Tokyo. Fortunately, she always carried a trusty umbrella in her backpack in case something like this happened. Unfortunately, it seemed like Mother Nature just couldn't leave well enough alone. A huge gust of wind came out of nowhere and took Ami's umbrella with it. She jumped into the air to try and grab it, but it was already long gone.
"Why does my element have to be so cruel?" Ami sighed. She quickly took off into the rain, deciding to sprint the rest of the way home despite not exactly being a runner.
KABOOM!
As she crossed a busy street, there was a huge explosion down the road that erupted in midair. Ami's head snapped in the direction of the floating fireball, expecting to see a helicopter or a plane that had crashed into a building. Instead, she saw nothing.
"What was that? Explosions don't just happen for no reason," the nerdy girl thought. "Unless…" As she looked closer at where the explosion, she saw dozens of black rose petals hovering between the surrounding buildings, followed by another explosion. "Black roses… Nephrite!" she said, the realization hitting her like one of the explosions. Ami quickly ran into a nearby alleyway, to avoid any observers, and pulled her Transformation Pen out of her backpack.
"MERCURY POWER! MAKE UP!"
A bright blue light flashed from within the dark alley, and once it faded, Sailor Mercury was now standing where Ami Mizuno had once been. The Soldier of Water brought her communicator up to her wrist. "Usagi! Rei! Makoto! We've got a situation downtown. Nephrite is back and he's causing a lot of damage! Mark my position and meet me as soon as you can!"
"Rodger dodger! On my way now!" Usagi said from the other line.
"I hear you loud and clear, Ami!" Rei responded as well.
Usagi suddenly came back on. "Wait! It's storming! I don't wanna go out there!"
"Usagi, people could be dying!" Rei shouted. "Meet us there or I'll come to your house and drag you out!"
"Reiiii! Why are you so mean to me?!" Usagi cried before finally hanging up.
Ami giggled. Those two couldn't help bickering even when people were in danger. Her carefree expression was replaced with a sad one when she realized Makoto hadn't answered, but Ami had no doubt she was on her way as well. Surely, once she knew that people could be dying, she would come running to the rescue. She was a Sailor Soldier after all.
Nephrite stared down at the chaotic citizens of Tokyo, only now the smile he once had was long gone. His patience was waning. "Perhaps Melalia won't notice if I take a few lives…" He raised his arm once again, ready to throw down more explosion rose petals.
"HOLD IT, NEPHRITE!"
The Knight of Black Roses stopped his arm and looked behind him. Through the blinding downpour of rain, he saw a small girl in a blue sailor uniform standing before him. His smile returned, only this time it was more of a delighted, devilish grin.
"I am the pretty soldier who fights for love and for wisdom! I am Sailor Mercury! In the name of Mercury, YOU SHALL REPENT!"
"You showed up just in time," Nephrite huffed. "I was just about to turn this display into a massacre."
Mercury thought to herself: "I won't be able to beat him on my own. I'll have to stall until the others get here."
"MERCURY AQUA MIST!"
The mist surrounded Nephrite, bringing his range of vision down to zero. "Ha! This trick again? I thought you would have improved your skills by now." As he was finishing his sentence, he felt his body begin to stiffen. As he looked down at himself, he realized that his body was completely soaked from the rain, and the mist was now causing all of that moisture to freeze, encasing his body in ice. "D-Dammit! It appears I shouldn't underestimate you…"
"ROSE COCOON!"
Mercury stood back, hoping her plan had worked. The freezing cold temperature of the mist should cause his wet body to freeze. That would give the others enough time to get here and time for her to figure out a plan. However, as she tried to come up with something, she saw the mist begin to disperse, and a huge, man-sized, unblossomed rose standing where Nephrite used to be. Once the mist was completely gone, the rose split apart, and Nephrite stepped out from the cluster of petals.
"That was quite the strategy you had. I guess they don't call you the Soldier of Wisdom for nothing," he chuckled.
"Well, there goes Plan A…" Mercury said to herself.
Nephrite pulled out one of his spear-like black roses the threw it at Mercury. She was able to get out of the way, but the rose's thorns ended up clipping her blue skirt. The Dark Knight gave her no time to breathe, pulling out two more roses and hurling them directly at her head.
"I need a new strategy and fast!" Mercury thought, panicked. She thought back her previous plan of letting the mist freeze the water on Nephrite's body, then felt the raindrops hitting her own body. Finally, a new idea hit her. "Time to go on the offensive!"
"MERCURY AQUA MIST!"
This time, she summoned the mist directly above her, letting thousands of raindrops fall into it. As the rain entered the mist, it instantly froze into tiny, bullet-like balls of ice. The raindrops fell into the mist by the hundreds, creating almost an army of these little ice balls.
"What the hell are you doing?" Nephrite demanded.
Mercury just smirked. She threw her hands down, aiming them at Nephrite. Suddenly, the mist cloud unleashed a storm of ice balls at the Knight of Black Roses. The ice struck against his armor, shattering in an instant, but still pushing the knight back several feet. He grit his teeth and tried to push back, but the relentless onslaught of ice pellets was like a hail storm sped up to the speed of sound. Not only that, but the ongoing rain acted as an endless supply of ammunition for Mercury's attack. To the knight's horror, he could feel the ice bullets begin to dent his armor. At this point, he had had enough.
"BLOSSOM BOMBARDMENT!"
Nephrite released another flurry of black rose petals. They collided with the ice storm and exploded, intercepting the blue-haired soldier's attack. Thinking quickly, he pulled out another sharp rose and threw it at his adversary. The rose struck Mercury's wrist, slicing deep into the skin and causing her to halt her attack so she could clutch her now stinging wrist.
"An admirable attempt at an attack, Sailor Mercury!" He pulled out another rose and prepared to throw it. "But you're still just a weak little girl…"
"MOON TIARA BOOMERANG!"
A brilliant golden disk flew in from seemingly out of thin air and knocked the rose out of Nephrite's hand. "What the-"
"FIRE SOUL!"
In a similar fashion, a raging fireball of fury appeared from behind Nephrite and nearly incinerated him, but he was able jump out of the way in time. The fireball struck the roof and set it ablaze, but the falling rain quickly put it out.
"Who's there?!" Nephrite barked. As he looked around he saw a pair of shadows on either side of the roof. A bolt of lighting flew across the sky, lighting up the roof and revealing who had just arrived.
"I am the pretty soldier who fights for love and for justice! I am Sailor Moon! And now, in the name of the moon, I'LL PUNISH YOU!"
"I am the pretty soldier who fights for love and for passion! I am Sailor Mars! In the name of Mars, I'LL CHASTISE YOU!"
"Sailor Moon! Mars! You came!" Mercury cried with joy, still holding onto her bleeding wrist. She took one last look around the roof, hoping to see Jupiter there as well, but unfortunately, no Soldier of Courage was anywhere in sight. "She's just… running late…" she told herself.
"Sailor Mars?" Nephrite asked. "I don't believe we've met before…"
"I don't care who you are, especially after what you said to Mercury!" Mars shouted. "I'll show you how weak girls really are!" She raised one of her long, slender legs, as if winding up a kick. "With my high heels, I'll punish you!"
The Soldier of Fire charged at Nephrite, appearing to go for a headlong attack, but at the last second, she slid to the ground and swept her leg under Nephite's feet, knocking him off balance. Mars quickly flipped back onto her own feet and spun around, swinging a knife-hand at the Dark Knight's throat. He was able to catch the girl's hand however, laughing with pride. Not letting up, Mars pressed her hand to the man's breastplate.
"FIRE SOUL!"
A burst of flames erupted from the raven-haired girl palm and scorched Nephrite's armor. The force of the attack knocked the two fighters away from each other.
"Sailor Moon! Finish him with your Twilight Flash attack!" Mars called.
The blonde soldier moved her hand up to her tiara, but quickly realized that the moon was blocked by the rain clouds. "I can't! I need the moon to be out to use that attack!"
"You girls really are foolish!" Nephrite pulled out another rose and whipped it at Sailor Moon. The rose flew at her with incredible speed, but luckily Mercury leapt in front of Usagi at the last second.
"MERCURY AQUA MIST!"
The Soldier of Wisdom threw up another chilling mist. Nephrite's rose flew into it, but it quickly lost all forward momentum and harmlessly floated to the ground like feather.
"Thanks, Mercury!" Moon said.
"Anytime," she responded. "Hey, at least you don't have to pull a rose out of my arm this time."
Sailor Moon giggled a little, remembering what happened the last time Ami put herself between her and one of Nephrite's roses. Mars joined the two behind the protective wall of mist.
"Mercury, any thoughts? How do we take this guy down?" Mars asked desperately.
The blue-haired soldier sadly shook her head. "I've scanned him once before, but he doesn't seem to have any anatomical weaknesses."
"Oh well," Mars sulked. "I guess we'll just have to hit him with everything we've got."
"Yeah, let's combine all our attacks and hit him with everything we've got!" Usagi said boldly.
Mars raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that what I just said?"
Nephrite impatiently watched Mercury's mist begin to dissipate. "Cowardly soldiers! Come out and face me, or I'll destroy this entire building!"
Suddenly, a mighty gust of wind completely blew the mist away, revealing all three soldier standing proudly, their attacks ready in their hands. Moon held her tiara, Mercury prepared her water spirals, and Mars ignited a fireball.
"MOON TIARA BOOMERANG!"
"MERCURY AQUA MIST!"
"FIRE SOUL!"
The three heroines threw their attacks at Nephrite. As the tiara spun, it swept up the mist and the fireball, creating a giant spinning disk of blue fire that sailed towards Nephrite with greater speed than one of his roses. Before he could conjure up another rose, the disk slammed into his body right between his stomach and chest.
"Alright! We got him!" Usagi cheered.
Mercury and Mars were about to join in the celebration, but their excitement disappeared when they heard Nephrite laughing. "I told you… you're just weak girls!" The Knight of Black Roses was holding the destructive elemental disk in his hands as if it were as deadly as a piece of paper, then proceeded to toss it aside with no effort whatsoever. "Last time, you caught me off guard with your combined attack. But now that I know what you're capable of, I can see you for what you really are!"
"BLOSSOM BOMBARDMENT!"
This time, Nephrite used both hands for his attack, sending twice as many rose petals at the Sailor Soldiers. The resulting explosion sent the three girls flying into the air and screaming in agony. The combination of the burn from the explosion with the sting of the sharp petals created an unbearable pain that nearly sent the three into shock.
Makoto sat in a beat up leather chair, which was covered in patches. It may not have been a comfortable seat, but it had to be better than whatever he girls were going through. She had her communicator turned on, and had been listening to the entire battle. Up until the last few minutes, she felt no need to step in. After all, why should she? However poor her life may be, it was certainly better than risking her life for other people. Why should she help people after what this world had done to her?
Then she heard Ami's agonized scream. It was raw, screeching, and sent a chill down Makoto's spine. The amount of pain she must have felt to scream like that could only mean she had just suffered a fatal attack. Even though she had no intention to be a Sailor Soldier, Ami was the only one who had seemed like a decent person to her, and that was saying a lot given the past few years of her life.
Makoto stood up in her chair and grabbed her Transformation Pen off the counter. Her mind was made up. Tonight, she would fight to save Ami, and her alone.
Sailor Moon, Mercury and Mars all lay on the roof, battered and bloodied. Their Sailor uniforms were torn and their bodies were in excruciating pain. Nephrite stood over them with a smile, holding a rose in his hand.
"Damn you…" Mars growled. She struggled to her feet, barely managed to stay balanced.
"What was it you said to me, Sailor Mars? You will punish me with your high heels?" He took a whiff of the black rose in his hand. Suddenly, he threw the rose at Sailor Mars, and it shattered one of the heels of her shoes, causing her to drop back to the ground. Nephrite laughed at her humiliation. "Now that I've had my fun, I think it's time I dealt with all of you once and for all." He summoned another rose and took aim at Sailor Mercury. "Starting with you, Mercury! This is for scarring my perfect body!" Nephrite threw the rose at the downed Mercury, aiming for her head.
"NO!" Sailor Moon screamed.
It looked as if this was going to be the end for Sailor Mercury, but at the last second the rose was knocked aside and embedded into the ground.
Nephrite snarled. "Who are you?"
"Tuxedo Mask!" Moon cried happily.
The man in a dashing black penguin suit and a long black cape stood heroically in front of Sailor Mercury, having deflected Nephrite's rose with his cane. "You're not going to take anyone's life today, Nephrite!" he declared.
"We'll see about that!" Nephrite whipped out six more roses, holding them between each of his fingers in either hand, and then threw them all at Tuxedo Mask. However, the dark-haired man simply raised his cane and, wielding it like a sword, swiftly knocked away each of the roses one by one.
"Sailor Moon, get out of here. I'll deal with him myself," Tuxedo Mask said.
"What?! You can't beat him all by yourself!" Moon cried in panic.
"Maybe, but the rest of you are too hurt to fight him anymore. The least I can do is buy you some time. Go, now!" he ordered.
Sailor Moon pushed herself to her hands and knees and looked pleadingly at Tuxedo Mask. "I won't let you fight him alone! You might get hurt! Or worse… you could be…" She couldn't finish that last part.
"I advise against placing too much stock in your escape…" Nephrite raised and hand a conjured another cluster of black rose petals. "But if you like, I can help give you a head start by blowing you all off this roof!"
"BLOSSOM BOMBARD-"
BAM!
Nephrite's attack was cut off by Jupiter rushing in and smashing her fist into the Dark Knight's face, causing blood to spurt from his bottom lip. The impact disoriented the man and caused the glowing petals in his hand to vanish as quickly as they appeared.
"Jupiter…" Ami said weakly. "You're here…"
Nephrite struggled to stay afoot, wiping the blood from his mouth. "Another one? And who are you supposed to be?"
"I am the pretty soldier who fights for love and for courage! I am Sailor Jupiter! In the name of Jupiter, I'LL STRIKE YOU DOWN!"
Nephrite chuckled. "You soldiers keep boosting your ranks, yet you're still as weak as ever." He gestured over to the three injured girls. "Look at your friends! I withstood their strongest attack and took the out in one fell swoop! Yet you call yourselves warriors…"
"I think you forgot that you're saying all this about the girl who just pummeled you," Jupiter scoffed.
"Your strength doesn't excuse how pathetic your comrades are," Nephrite sneered. "Sailor Mars is reckless, Sailor Moon is a fool, and Sailor Mercury is the weakest opponent I've ever had the displeasure of encountering. Her presence is a detriment to all of you! You should be thanking me for trying to destroy her!"
Jupiter clenched her fist. "So what if she's weak? Does that give you any right to make her a target?" she said quietly, despite the apparent rage in her voice. "All you tough guys think the world belongs to you. Well, I'm about to show you what real strength feels like…" The Soldier of Thunder crossed her arms over her chest and closed her eyes.
"Jupiter, my guardian planet, bring forth the storm, summon the clouds, and bring down the thunder!"
Directly above Jupiter, the dark clouds began to flash as bolts of lighting darted through them. Her tiara's antennae extended upward, and the lightning flashes became more condensed above her. Suddenly, a gigantic, monstrous bolt came crashing down from the clouds and struck the antennae, sending electricity dancing across Jupiter's body and coursing through her veins.
"You bitch… prepare to die!" Nephrite roared. He pulled another black rose out and wound up his arm.
Seeing what Nephrite was doing, Tuxedo Mask quickly threw his cane like a tomahawk and knocked the rose out of Nephrite's hand. "Jupiter! Finish him!" the tuxedo-clad man called out.
"SUPREME THUNDER!"
The immense amount of lighting gathered around Jupiter charged her attack up ten fold, and when she finally fired it all at Nephrite, it was like a tidal wave of electricity was now barreling towards him. He was unable to get out of the way as the electricity engulfed him, only his body wasn't as resistant to it at Jupiter's. The subsequent electrocution caused Nephrite to scream like a wild animal being tortured as his skin and internal organs were cooked. The knight felt as if he was being torn apart. In one last desperate attempt to escape, he reached out in front of himself and generated whatever magic he could muster through his pain. He opened a dimensional door and leapt through it, narrowly avoiding complete disintegration.
Jupiter panted heavily. Her attack had exhausted her, but it had gotten the job done. However, with no body or pile of ashes in sight, she knew Nephrite was still alive. "Running away… who's weak now, you bastard?" She looked over to her friends, seeing Tuxedo Mask already trending to Moon and Mars. Jupiter rushed over to Mercury, hoping she wasn't as hurt as she sounded over the communicator.
Zoisite sat on the edge of his bed, nervously twirling his long blonde hair. Nephrite had been gone for a long time. Someone of his strength should be able to take on the Sailor Soldiers by himself…
Suddenly, the door to the bedroom burst open and Nephrite stumbled in. His clothes were scorched, his armor was broken and melted in some areas, and his skin was covered in smoking burnt patches.
"Nephrite!" Zoisite screamed, running to his lover's aide. He dropped to his knees, hands hovering over the man as if afraid to touch him. "I'm going to go get help!" He was about to run out, but Nephrite grabbed his hand.
"No! S-Stay… don't…. tell anyone. Metalia will… finish me…" he said with little strength in his voice.
Zoisite began to tear up at the sight of his lover in so much pain, yet so unwilling to get help. He cradled the brunette's head in his arms, stroking his hair and trying desperately to comfort him. "Oh darling, who did this to you? Was it Sailor Mercury again?"
"No… it was… another," Nephrite stammered. "S-Sailor… Jupiter…"
That name echoed in Zoisite's mind, triggering all sorts of enraged thoughts in his subconscious. A new Sailor Soldier had come on the scene, and had already done this to his beloved Nephrite. "Sailor Jupiter… I swear on my life, you will suffer for doing this to my Nephrite!" he declared, already thinking of numerous violent and brutal ways to kill the Soldier of Courage.
Ami winced as Mako applied the wet handkerchief to her scratched up skin. The pressure on her injuries stung, but was followed by the soothing feeling of the cool moisture.
"Are you sure you don't want me to take you to the hospital?" Mako asked. "That tuxedo guy took Usagi and Rei there."
"Their injured were a lot worse than mine," Ami said. "I'm sure if I just let these scab over and wear some long clothes tomorrow, nobody will notice."
Mako smiled a little. "You know, you're a lot tougher than you look."
"Oh, please," Ami said putting herself down. "I'm not tough at all. Not like you, anyway."
"No, seriously. Don't listen to what that bastard said to you. You may not be as strong as me, but you sure can take a beating." Mako stopped for a moment. "Still, I don't like seeing you get hurt like this, so I'm gonna stick around from now on."
Ami's face lit up. "W-What do you mean?"
"I mean I'm staying on the team, but only to protect you," Mako said firmly. "Not because you're weak, but because you could use someone to watch your back. We all could. We are superheroes now, and superheroes always have sidekicks, don't they?"
Ami giggled. "Yeah… they do." She blushed a little before smiling up at the taller girl. "Thank you, Mako. I'm glad you're staying with us."
"No problem, Big Blue!" Mako said, grinning.
Ami cringed a little at her demeaning nickname, but she was too happy that Mako was here to stay, so she let it slide. Once her wounds were treated, Mako offered to walk her home, and she happily obliged. As the two went on their way, the shorter girl clung to Mako's arm. She claimed it was because her wounds made it difficult to walk, but in reality she loved the feel of the taller girl's fit arms.
~A Suivre~