A/N: Alright, let's see what kind of damage I can inflict! Read on!
WARNING: I am writing this story for enjoyment and not for profit. I do however own the original characters in this story. Flaming will not be tolerated.
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Title: Not Set In Stone
Chapter Ten
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Senshi Saturn was a slightly different personality from Hotaru. The Senshi of Death and Rebirth was far more serious and down to business. There were hardly ever any smiles or giggles. Saturn rarely showed any expression besides pain or intense calm. Hotaru was generally cheerful and her face glowing with innocence.
Right now, both of them were supremely scared and confused.
"Princess?" Saturn whispered in her confusion while on the inside Hotaru was nearly crying with worry.
Venus and Pluto stayed close to the girl they thought of as their daughter, casting concerned glances between themselves.
They had transported to the small valley as a group. Nothing could be heard but wind as everyone stared in fear at the three bodies floating above them. Mars felt the start of a growl in her throat and her hand started to heat up with flames. Her amethyst eyes were narrowed as she looked upward.
Dradian only smiled down upon them with Nyda to his left. The dark hearted minion only grinned as she twisted her lavender hair between her fingers. His cape fluttered in the wind, the fabric gently brushing against the tanned skin of the body to his right.
Terressia's near thigh length hair was blowing in the light wind. The sun made nearly every silver strand stand out and shine. She stared straight ahead, not moving a muscle. A simple black toga was wrapped around her body, going half way down her thighs. Simple black, flat footed sandals covered her feet.
Mars felt her heart pound against her chest. Terri looked paler than normal.
"Senshi! The last few days have been very entertaining for me. You see, I've been watching you race about the city looking and searching for your dear Princess."
They flinched but remained silent. Endymion and Moon wanted to be the first to deal with him.
"Teres! Come back to us! Whatever he's done, you can break through!" Senshi Moon called out to her pleadingly reaching out with her inner light.
Dradian only chuckled in delight.
"Try as you might, Princess of the White Moon, but she cannot hear you."
Endymion growled, turning his full attention to his sister.
"Terressia! You can hear me, I know you can! I'm your brother, you know me!"
There was a strong sense of disappointment as Terri continued to float there without any sort of recognition.
Nyda cackled in her amusement as Dradian motioned at Terri to move forward.
Mars felt her stomach clench in hate as her friend did as was told.
"You think the call of family will bring her back to you? There is nothing left there to call for!" Dradian smirked as he watched the look of apprehension and confusion swipe across their faces.
"Tell them, tell them who you are." He commanded and Terri looked down at them with her glazed over eyes and started to speak.
"I am nothing."
"Terressia! Come back to us! Fight the hold he has on you!" Endymion was starting to shake and his girlfriend laid a calming hand on his arm.
"What have you done? This plan of yours will never work, we will get her back!" Moon yelled up to him, determination blazing in her blue eyes.
"If there was something of her to get back." Dradian said suddenly.
Mars thought she could feel her own shock bounce off the others and come back to her again.
"Wh-what does that mean?" Moon stuttered in her surprise.
"It means she's nothing but a body now. She's nothing but my beautiful little doll. Nothing will do everything I say."
Nyda giggled in delight and took out a small dagger. With an adoring glance to her master she handed the dagger over.
"You can not destroy a Senshi's soul! Teres would never allow it!
Dradian only grinned darkly and handed the dagger to his doll. She took it without hesitation.
The Senshi sucked in a collective breath.
"Cut off your hair."
Terri reached behind her neck without moving her head and collected her long hair in one hand. With the other she brought up the dagger and sliced cleanly through the dark tresses.
Saturn's audible cries caused Nyda to break out into laughter as Mars felt her heart break at the sight of brown hair falling strand by strand to the grass.
Terri handed the dagger back and continued to look dead ahead as her now chin length hair settled back into stillness.
"I have complete control! She does nothing without my command or suggestion. She is my doll and you can only guess what one mission I have given her."
Dradian motioned for Nyda to go and she did after giving the Senshi an overly amused stare. The silver haired man touched Terri's body on the shoulder and she turned her head to look at him.
"They're all yours, do as you were told." Dradian faded away, leaving the nine Senshi and Endymion alone with Terri's body on the high, little valley.
Terri floated slowly down to the grass. Her glazed over navy eyes stared at them, rarely blinking. The second her feet touched the grass the Senshi started to call to her as one. Except for Mars and Saturn, each one begged her to recognize them. They loved and missed her. They had been searching for her for days.
Only Mars knew it was futile.
Terri only watched them in silence as her hands drew up long, sharp rocks from the dirt beneath her. She gripped each one and her body suddenly shifted into a fierce stance.
"Inners! The Princess!" Venus called out suddenly as her body instinctively flew in front of her blonde leader.
Moon only gasped as Endymion yanked her back into the protective square of energy created by her inner Senshi. Her blue eyes widened as her sister's body flew at them, fully prepared to strike.
Mars closed her eyes against the attack. Her ears picked up the loud cries of three of the outer Senshi surging forward to defend their group. Saturn found herself rooted in place, her fear of having to fight the woman she had grown to love so dearly keeping her still and shocked into silence.
Neptune had gracefully shot forward and reached Terri first. As the aqua haired Senshi went to punch her friend she left her face unblocked and unchecked. Terri swiftly did a back flip and her feet came upward to slam into Neptune's chin with a crack that sent the woman flying to the ground. Off to her right, Terri barely noticed in time that Uranus was swinging down on her with her golden sword. She did not cry out when the sword grazed her upper arm and caused a shallow cut.
The blonde Senshi kept on her and fiercely swung at her, improving her marksmen ship every time the blade came close to Terri's tanned skin.
"Terri! What are you doing?!" Uranus asked as her arm blocked another punch. Terri's eyes only stared and she disappeared as a hilt came too near her face.
"Wha-" Uranus looked around before yelled out in pain as one of the sharp stones Terri carried dug into her back deeply.
"My Master desires the Imperium Silver Crystal." Her mono toned voice spoke before she kicked Uranus in the wound she had created. Uranus screamed in pain and fell forward to the grass.
Terri turned towards her goal once again, focused only on getting to her target.
Venus was the only inner Senshi with her eyes wide open. Her love for Setsuna Meiou had been buried to keep from being a distraction. It took an amazing amount of control to not even subtly look at Pluto coming up behind Terri's body. Even one small gesture would let Terri know she was about to be attacked.
It was with great pain that Venus watched her lover bring her staff down upon Terri and strike her harshly on the side of the head. The move caught Terri completely off guard and sent her flying into a nearby tree.
"Pluto, I don't think the Princess wants Terri killed." Neptune said as she came up beside her teammate. Pluto only blushed as she landed.
"I didn't mean to strike her so hard."
Terri had yet to move from her crumpled state by the tree as not far away Uranus struggled to get up. The cut in her back was deep and wide due to the jagged stones Terri had used. Just breathing was difficult for her.
Neptune rushed over to help her. Though she was too worried over her love's wound to notice the movement under the ground.
Or that Terri had made it to a stand and was touching the tree.
Aqua eyes flew open in surprise as Uranus's body was suddenly rushed up into the air by dozens of thick tree roots. Uranus gasped as roots covered her body, swarming her torso and each limb with a strong grip. Terri started walking away from the tree just as Neptune growled in rage and rushed forward. A large Deep Submerge was being called into her hand and she released it uncaring of the damage it did.
The tree took the damage as Terri jumped over the attack and then transported behind the sea Senshi. Neptune swung around and her eyes widened in fear.
"Terri!" The last thing she saw was the many tiny, sharp stones hovering around Terri before they flew at her.
The overwhelming pain pulled her under as she was staked to the tree.
Terri raised up a much larger chunk of rock to finish her off with but dropped it as soon as she heard the familiar sound of energy rushing forth.
Endymion nearly cried as he watched his baby sister be swept up into Pluto's Dead Scream. It broke his heart as he watched the energy tear at her and still she didn't cry out. When it ended, Terri was in tatters. Her skin was bleeding in multiple places and her clothing was shredded. Her expression was the same.
"My Master desires the Imperium Silver Crystal." She stated again and then disappeared into the ground.
"Pluto!" Moon called out as soon as she saw the opening in the ground behind the keeper of time.
Pluto's focus was elsewhere as she watched for Terri's body and she started to turn too late. Luke warm hands grabbed at her forearms and neck. Concern leaked through Pluto's thoughts as her head bristled with pain from Terri's butting into her own.
"Tell him you won't get it." Pluto whispered to her friend. Terri only answered in silence and deep down, Pluto came to the realization there may be no getting Terri back.
There may be only one way to stop her.
Endymion started to yell and curse as he watched Pluto draw up all her energy. He felt his girlfriend pull at him and explain he couldn't get out of the energy field. The prince simply had to trust in Pluto.
Deep down Serenity knew Pluto could not stop Terri.
Pluto finally let loose with one last roar of rage as the energy engulfed them both. Terri's cold hands gripped her tighter and her body arched against her. Pluto could not tell otherwise if she was affected until the attack ended.
"My Master desires the Imperium Silver Crystal." A tired voice spoke behind her. Pluto felt tears prick her eyes as she knew she had failed.
Venus finally lost her composure as she watched thick tree roots drill through her lover's shoulders and Setsuna crying out in pain before passing out. Her energy spent, the woman hung there in her jeans and shirt while more tree roots attacked her body. Her arms and legs were cut as the tree dug into her randomly.
When she was finished, Terri slipped to the ground sluggishly though still standing. Her toga was little more than a scrap of cloth now, her sandals completely missing. Short brown hair swung with sweat and dirt as she moved forward unable to stop her mission to get the crystal.
The other's moved in closer to their leader since the shield had been broken. Venus stood weeping, her glowing chain held taught between her hands.
And just as Mars thought she was going to have to strike her crush's body down, Terri looked to the sky and vanished.
There was no hesitation as each one of the unharmed Senshi reverted back to their normal forms. Mina ran over to her girlfriend. Darien and Serena ran over to Michiru. They stared at her in sadness, conversing on to how most gently let her down. Ami and Mako very carefully lifted Haruka into their arms as the roots had disappeared back into the tree. They transported back to the mansion followed closely by Darien and Serena with Michiru. Mina whimpered to herself as she lifted Setsuna's longer frame into her arms lovingly and faded away.
Rei only stared. The high little valley that had once been undisturbed by anything but animals was suddenly torn up and humming with left over magic.
It was ironic that it had been Terri's creation abilities to cause the damage.
Rei's heart was starting to ache more the longer she stood there. Her large amethyst eyes swung over to spot Hotaru still in the spot she had been since the beginning. The sadness in her dark purple eyes was nearly enough to break Rei.
"Hotaru?" She called to the younger girl. When Hotaru didn't respond she walked over to her, wrapping her arms around her still form.
"She's not in there, Rei." Hotaru finally said after a few minutes. Rei only held her closer.
"She is Hotaru. Don't give up yet." Rei stared into the purple that rivaled her own when Hotaru twisted around in her arms.
"Are you ready to go?" She asked quietly, placing a kiss to Hotaru's head. The smaller girl nodded and allowed Rei to scoop her up into her arms.
"Rei." Hotaru said suddenly.
"Yeah?"
"You're going to get her back." Hotaru said it quickly with such firmness that Rei only stared back as she transported them back to the mansion.
No more was said between them as Rei tucked Hotaru in for the night. Not that it was necessary for a twelve year old but Rei felt with her two normal guardians so preoccupied, the girl needed extra attention. Hotaru's eyes followed her every move and Rei tried not to show that the intensity unnerved her.
What could Hotaru suddenly know and understand that she was banking everything on Rei? Did it have something to do with what Terri had said to her in her vision?
With one last look to Hotaru, Rei shut the door.
Could she get Terri back?
I don't know but, Ares I'm going to try.
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A/N: Sorry it's been a little longer than normal. Time just got away from me. Anywhatsit, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review!
BR