Kunzite woke with a start. He blinked rapidly trying to clear his head and stared confusedly at the tree tops above him. There were a few blissful seconds of nothing, but then memory came pounding through his head like a herd of horses. He let out a roar of anguish and clasped his head in despair. He was a traitor! A traitor to his prince, the Shittenou, his wife…
He rolled over and repeatedly pounded his fists into the muddy ground, screaming, as if the sound alone would block out the images of what he had done. Nothing would ever be able to block out the memories of leading Beryl's army against the prince he had sworn to protect, of plunging a sword through his unsuspecting wife, or trying to kill…
Serenity! His head snapped and looked toward the tree where she had fallen. He quickly blinked the tears away so he could see better in the gloom of the trees. He hadn't even been aware that he had been crying.
There was a man standing over her, posed in some sort of fighting stance, with a fallen tree branch in his hand, which he clearly intended to use as a weapon. Although the stance looked quite intimidating, Kunzite could see fear in his eyes.
"Stay back! I'm a black belt in judo!"
Kunzite did not know what a 'black belt' or 'judo' was, but it didn't matter. He was far more powerful than any modern Terran. He stood to his full height and gave the man a stare which Jadeite had once told him made grown men quiver in their boots.
"Stand down. If I find that you have harmed the princess, your end will not come quickly."
The man was visibly shaking now, but he didn't back down. "N-n-no," he said shakily. "You can't fool me. You're one of those bastards with the monsters! You guys attacked my girlfriend a couple of weeks ago and Sailor Moon saved her. I won't let you hurt her."
Kunzite raised his eyebrows. This young man's paramour must have been a Rainbow Crystal carrier. No wonder he was so distrustful. Although this situation was a little annoying, Kunzite found it a welcome distraction. Focusing on getting Serenity to safety gave him a foothold in the reality of the here and now, so that he did not sink into the despairing guilt that simmered beneath the surface of his mind.
"If I had wanted to hurt her, would I not have already done so?" he questioned logically. He greatly admired this man's bravery and character. Though clearly frightened, he was still completely willing to sacrifice his safety for the princess.
Ever a tactician, an idea began slowly forming in Kunzite's mind. Completely willing to sacrifice himself…
Kunzite spoke again, but this time more soothingly, or at least as soothingly as he could come across. "Please. I only wish to seek a healer for her."
"A healer?" gasped the man, still staring at Kunzite suspiciously. "You mean, a doctor? I'm a med student. I checked her out. She's just exhausted. She'll be fine. She doesn't need you," he babbled, still shaking.
Kunzite exhaled deeply. He did not wish to harm the man, but he needed to get Serenity to safety. Beryl would soon realize that she no longer had a hold on him, and would no doubt send a youma to attempt to dispatch him while he was emotionally vulnerable.
"She is in danger here. I must take her to safety. If you do not move, I regret I will have to force you to do so."
The young man bit his lip worriedly. "Why are you trying to help her? I thought you worked for the monsters?"
Kunzite almost smiled at this assessment. Almost. "I have…defected. I work for her now."
His would-be attacker frowned, deep in thought, clearly trying to decide whether or not he could trust Sailor Moon's life to a possible enemy.
"Okay, yeah, okay," said the man, coming out of his fighting stance. "We can….I mean, I was heading to work, but I can call my sister to cover for me. And then, we can…we can take her to my apartment."
The man clearly looked reluctant to do this, and Kunzite didn't understand why they would lodge at his residence, when the city surely had a facility for caring for the wounded. The idea that had begun to form just as quickly began to die. Perhaps this young man was not up to the task Kunzite had in mind for him.
"I would rather if we took her to a wellness house," answered Kunzite stoically.
"'A wellness house?'" the man repeated. "You mean, a hospital? We can't take Sailor Moon to hospital. They'd probably take some blood test to figure out her identity and the media would expose her within minutes."
Kunzite's eyebrows rose. The healers in this time period could identify a person by their blood? And they would be so stupid as to expose their champion's identity so that the enemy could easily find her?
"Speaking of which, if anybody sees us walking through the city with Sailor Moon, the media will be all over us," he said, biting his lip again, still thinking.
"If I gave you the address, could you…." he paused, and shook his head slightly. "I can't believe I'm suggesting this, but could you, uh…teleport…her to my apartment?"
Kunzite cocked at eyebrow at him. He had clearly misjudged him. This man was able to think clearly, even through a frightening and strange situation. Perhaps he would be able to fulfill the job.
"I will be able to do so. I thank you in advance for extending your hospitality."
Kunzite then inclined his head. "I am Lord Kunzite."
"Lord Kunzite," the young man repeated, letting out a whoosh of air. "Man, I am in way over my head."
He then took in a deep breath and looked up at Kunzite. "I'm Fuhurata Motoki."
He looked down at the bleeding and battered l girl in his arms, as he materialized in Motoki's residence. Poor, brave Serenity. She was never meant to be a warrior, and he vowed to personally punish whoever allowed her to take up such a mantle. Surely the Senshi knew better than to let their princess fight? As a crystal wielder, she had the power to defeat the Dark Kingdom. Allowing her to battle without her crystal in hand could easily lead to her death, and thus destroy any hope that Terra had of victory. Something was clearly amiss with this situation.
Although he did not approve of Serenity becoming a Senshi, he was quite proud her. She had thus far had been able to keep the Dark Kingdom at bay, and had now been able tear Beryl's hold away from both him and Zoicite in a single night. It was quite clever of her to feign incompetence earlier, he mused, still experiencing a dull ache from his groins. He had been completely convinced by her tears and had been utterly taken off guard by her attack. Jadeite and Nephrite had been quite correct in assessing her as a formidable opponent.
After laying Serenity gently on a sofa in the middle of the room, Kunzite had begun examining his surroundings, attempting to gather an impression of Motoki based on his residence. How a person kept their home in order could tell a lot about them.
The apartment was rather small, but seemed comfortable. The walls were painted a soft cream and powder blue carpeting ran across the floor. The large room in which Kunzite was standing appeared to be a parlor of some sort, with a sofa, some chairs, and a large black rectangular object toward which all the seats were facing. Kunzite scrutinized it carefully, but could find no reason why this plain object should capture so much attention.
To the back of the apartment was a pair of glass doors leading out into a balcony and next to them in a corner was an enclave clearly identifiable as a kitchen, despite the odd devices littering the counter. Kunzite momentarily regretted that he had not been as curious as Jadeite had been about the modern Terrans' tools. Jadeite had always been impressed with their ability to harness the earth's natural powers to their own advantage. Under the influence of the Dark Kingdom, Kunzite saw no reason to study the powers of a race that would soon be rendered subservient.
Jadeite. Kunzite squeezed his eyes shut at the painful image of his blood brother and the look of horror becoming permanently etched on his face as Queen Beryl rendered the most inhumane punishment Kunzite had ever witnessed. Eternal Sleep. The name was rather ironic, because it reflected the opposite of the punishment. Kunzite could not imagine the horrors that Jadeite must be enduring right now, unable to move, unable to lose consciousness, unable to die….his sanity may already be lost.
Kunzite barely registered the tears leaking out his eyes as he forcefully tore his mind away from this line of thought. He had a job to do now and he needed to be focused.
Kunzite turned toward the other side of the apartment and noticed a doorway leading to a hallway, down which he assumed the bed chamber must be located. Pictures lined the walls on either side of the doorway, all of which appeared to be painted by a master painter. On closer examination, he realized that these must be examples of a modern art form called "photography", in which Terrans use a device to capture the real image of people or objects. Nephrite had learned about this when it had been his turn to collect energy.
He again forced down the painful memories. He couldn't think about Nephrite either.
Motoki featured in many of the photographs, in which he appeared smiling with various people, whom he assumed to be family members. Suddenly, Kunzite gasped and grabbed one of the pictures off the wall.
Motoki was wearing some sort of uniform and holding a rolled up piece of paper. His eyes were bright and he was smiling widely. Standing next to him, wearing the same uniform and an identical piece of paper, was Endymion.
Kunzite stared at the picture in awe and gently ran his finger over the image of his Master. Emotion threatened to choke him as the raging guilt began licking his insides again.
He would have to find his Master to let him render punishment. No doubt Endymion would execute him for his betrayal, but he fully deserved it and would welcome it. He would only regret that he could not serve and train his prince once again.
He suddenly noticed that although Endymion was smiling like Motoki in the picture, the smile did not entirely meet his eyes.
"Why are you sad, Master?" Kunzite whispered to the photo.
"Um….what are you doing with that picture?" sounded from behind his back.
Kunzite turned around to find Motoki staring at him oddly.
He pointed to Endymion. "This is my Master," he stated simply, assuming that these types of hierarchies still existed in modern Terra.
Apparently, they did not. "Oh. Okay," Motoki fidgeted nervously and his eyes refused to focus on Kunzite. "I…um….I didn't know Mamoru was…into….that sort of thing."
"'That sort of thing?,'" Kunzite repeated, confused. He did not understand Motoki's discomfort. "He is the prince under which I serve." Kunzite clarified.
Motoki finally looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you have the right person? That's Mamoru. He's not a prince."
"I assure you that he is. What is your relationship to…Mamoru," questioned Kunzite, trying out the name.
"We've been best friends since high school. That's us, at our high school graduation. Why?"
The idea which had previously been forming in his mind became further entrenched. His Master considered Motoki trustworthy enough to be his best friend. This must be some sort of coveted title.
"You must take me to him," Kunzite stated firmly. He would suggest his plan to his Master before he was executed.
"Uh, does Mamoru even know who you are?" Motoki questioned, still looking doubtful. "I mean, he's never mentioned anything about you or even being a prince. What exactly is he the prince of anyway?"
"He knows me very well. I served under him during the Golden Kingdom. He is the prince of this planet, of course."
Motoki stared. "Mamoru…is the prince of the planet!? That doesn't make any sense! No one even knows who he is and there isn't even a unified world government."
"There used to be during the Golden Kingdom. I do believe that our kingdom existed too far back for anyone to remember it."
"Wait. 'Too far back?'" Motoki repeated, thoroughly bewildered.
"Yes. The Golden Kingdom of Terra was destroyed many eons ago. The prince was sent to the future to be reincarnated."
Motoki stared at Kunzite, dumbfounded.
Kunzite stared back. "You do not believe me?"
"It's a little hard to swallow something like that. Mamoru….a reincarnated prince? It's just…unreal."
"I assure you that it is real and it is imperative that I contact him immediately. Can you take me to him?"
"We could give him a call….see if he remembers any of what you're saying…" Motoki trailed off, trying to imagine Mamoru's reaction to being called by a man who referred to him as "Master".
He picked up his phone, dialed the number and then handed the phone to Kunzite. Kunzite stared at it confusedly.
"Um, you can use this to talk to him. You know what a phone is, don't you?" Motoki asked, looking at Kunzite strangely.
"No, but I surmise it is a communication device. Quite ingenious." Kunzite commented, putting the phone to his head.
"Oh, man," muttered Motoki , "This is crazy. I have an unconscious superhero on my couch and a bad-guy-turned-good-guy calling my best friend, who is supposedly a reincarnated prince and ruler of the planet. I haven't even had breakfast yet."
Kunzite turned to him, the phone still pressed against his ear. "What does your breakfast have to do with the situation at hand?"
"Uh…never mind. Is he answering?"
"No, I do not hear any-", suddenly Kunzite sucked in a breath. He could hear his Master's voice.
You've reached Chiba Mamoru. Please leave your name and number and I'll return your call as soon as possible
"If I've reached you, why can't I converse with you now?" Kunzite questioned, genuinely confused by this greeting.
"WATCH OUT!" Motoki screamed, shoving Kunzite towards to floor, just as the sliding glass doors in the back of the apartment exploded inward.
Kunzite's warrior instincts kicked in a he swiftly rolled over, pulled out his sword, and immediately donned a fighting stance.
"Youma," he spat out in disgust at the creature that had just burst through the glass.
It looked like a houseplant gone horribly wrong.
Long brown roots seemed to functioned as the feet of the creature as it advanced across the carpet. Its main body, which only seemed to be three feet tall at most, consisted of a slimy green trunk, with large pink pods glued to it. There was no head; the top of the "torso" simply opened up to a large gaping maw, with yellowed, razor sharp teeth lining the opening.
The creature turned, and appeared to fix its gaze on Kunzite, although no eyes of any kind were discernible. Suddenly, the large pink pods burst open, giving the impression that flowers had suddenly sprang up over the youma's body. From their center, long green vines sprouted and began flying through the apartment, headed for Kunzite.
Motoki, without thinking, had dove into his kitchen for cover. He positioned himself behind the bar area, so that the youma couldn't "see" him.
He heard a loud swishing type sound, followed by an inhuman gargling noise emitted by the creature. He guessed that Kunzite must be cutting the vines with his sword.
Motoki stared down at his trembling hands in disbelief. He was breathing deeply, trying to steady himself, but couldn't seem to do so. He was paralyzed with fright. For some reason, standing up against Kunzite and the man who had tried to attack Reika did not seem comparable to standing up against some sort of alien monster. He had to pull himself together. He couldn't just leave Kunzite and Sailor Moon…
Sailor Moon! She was passed out on his couch, in between Kunzite and the plant creature. Panic quickly began replacing fear. Motoki chanced a peek over the countertop and started at what he saw.
The plant monster was almost directly under the counter and had about ten vines whipping around Kunzite. Kunzite was slicing his sword through the air, as he attempted to move closer to the youma, but every time he cut a vine, it quickly regenerated.
Many more vines had wrapped themselves around Sailor Moon's booted feet and were slowly dragging her over the couch and towards the youma's large, snapping mouth.
Sailor Moon was going to die, while he sat shaking in his kitchen like a coward.
Motoki hardened his resolve. He owed Sailor Moon for saving Reika's life and if a young girl could garner enough willpower to face monsters like this, then he could too.
He quickly ducked back down behind the counter to formulate a plan. He needed a weapon. Butcher knives? No, they were on the other side of the kitchen, and even if they weren't, butcher knives would hardly do any more damage than Kunzite's sword. Broom? Mop? No, same problem.
Think, Motoki! You're in medical school! You can figure this out!
He mentally began going over the inventory in his kitchen cabinets: plates, cups, glasses, silverware, kitchen cleaners, boxed food….
Wait. The floor and oven cleaners were in the cabinet directly to his left and the creature was right below the bar area behind this back. Motoki quickly came to a decision. He ripped open the door of the cabinet and yanked out a bucket and all cleaners he had.
If this doesn't work, I don't know what will, Motoki thought grimly.
Kunzite was fading fast. Every time he hacked a vine, it immediately regenerated. His only hope was to inch forward in the few seconds he had before the vines regrew and get close enough to strike the torso. The enclosed space of the apartment was making this feat extremely difficult and made a tactical retreat impossible, especially considering he couldn't hold Serenity and fight at the same time.
Kunzite gritted his teeth and tried to ignore the sweat dripping into his eyes, as he continued swinging the sword with his tiring muscles, drained of energy from the Moon Wand. Why wasn't Motoki helping? Had he been injured? Panic began rising through him when the monster wrapped its vines around Serenity's legs. He would never be able to face Endymion if he let Serenity die like this.
Serenity began rising over the edge of the couch as the youma reeled her like a fish toward its gaping mouth.
NO! Motoki, where are you!?
No sooner had he thought this when Motoki suddenly appeared on the other side of the bar and promptly dumped a bucket a fluid directly into the youma's mouth.
The reaction was instantaneous. The vines attacking Kunzite and holding Sailor Moon immediately started flailing through the air as the creature screamed in agony. Steam began rising from its mouth as it stomped the ground like a child having a temper tantrum. Kunzite seized the opportunity and leapt across the room, his sword held high and ready to strike. Somehow aware of Kunzite's intent, the plant creature turned towards him and violently expelled the contents of its stomach directly into his face.
Kunzite shouted and dropped his sword as the caustic chemicals burned his eyes. He wiped furiously at his face in an attempt to alleviate the burning enough to see. Suddenly a vine wrapped around his neck and pulled him forcefully to the floor. He could smell the putrid breath of the plant monster as his head was forced towards the opening. A shout from the kitchen indicated that Motoki had been similarly captured.
Kunzite desperately pawed the floor trying to find his dropped sword without the benefit of eyesight, but the creature had pulled him too far away to reach it. He then started clawing at the vine choking his neck; the youma didn't seem to notice and wrapped more vines around his torso, pinning his arms to his chest.
He could feel his head being bent forward and could then feel hot, steaming breath blowing across his head. It was then that he was certain he was going to die. He was only thankful that in this timeline, he had died fighting for his liege lady and not as a part of Beryl's army.
"MOON TIARA MAGIC!"
He barely registered the words before the youma let out one last terrifying shriek, the vines loosened their hold, and the entire body disintegrated into dust.
Kunzite began coughing violently as he felt Motoki lifting him to his feet and leading him toward the kitchen.
"You have to rinse your eyes out before there's permanent damage," he heard Motoki say urgently. "Here's the sink."
Kunzite gratefully splashed water into his stinging eyes, still coughing. Once he felt the pain reside, he leaned up from the sink to survey the apartment, although his vision was still a little blurry. Much of the furniture had been upturned and many of the shelves had been ripped from the wall. Glass covered most of the carpet, which had also been contaminated by the fluid the creature had expelled and slimy trails indicating where it had walked. The ceiling had also suffered with many slash marks where Kunzite had raked it with his sword.
It was a pity about Motoki's residence. At least the three of them were still alive.
Serenity! She had been the one to save them from the youma. Kunzite rounded the corner of the bar, to see Motoki gently supporting an extremely weak looking Sailor Moon, as he tried to pick small pieces of glass from her hair.
She looked blearily up at Kunzite when she saw him.
"Sorry," she mumbled. "I should have woken up sooner…." she trailed off as her head fell back against Motoki's shoulder.
"'Sorry?'" he repeated. Why was she sorry? She had destroyed the youma.
"She feels guilty she didn't stop it sooner," Motoki explained at Kunzite's questioning look.
Kunzite frowned. That was an odd reaction. Did it matter when she stopped it as long as she stopped it? Furthermore, she was clearly not in the best of health at the moment. Waking up a little later was understandable.
"She also recognized me," Motoki went on, looking concerned. "She even asked if we were at the arcade. That's where I work."
"I would not doubt that she would know you. She is Mamoru's paramour."
Motoki snorted. "Mamoru doesn't have a girlfriend. He's never been open enough to have a committed relationship."
Kunzite narrowed his eyes. "Their souls are knitted together. He would have some sort of attraction to her. It is not possible that you do not know her."
Motoki thought hard for a minute, ignoring the slight guilt he felt at trying to figure out Sailor Moon's civilian identity.
"The only female Mamoru pays any kind of attention to is Usagi." Suddenly, Motoki laughed.
"Usagi?" he kept chuckling, "No way Usagi is Sailor Moon. Usagi's rather clumsy and not a very bright student. She couldn't possibly…."
Motoki stopped his explanation, because a sword was suddenly pressed up against his throat. He looked up to see Kunzite staring down at him murderously.
"If this Usagi is truly the princess, then I suggest you never speak ill of her again, kōhai,"
Motoki gulped. If Mamoru was a prince, it would make sense that his girlfriend was a princess. "Usagi's like my younger sister. I wasn't trying to be mean, I was just...wait," Motoki trailed off. "'Kōhai?'" he repeated.
Kunzite removed his sword. "The prince needs four protectors and one of our members has passed on. You have proven yourself worthy to take up his mantle. I intend to train you to be a member of the Shitennou."
Motoki 's mouth dropped open. Train him? To be a warrior dedicated to serving Mamoru? He somehow felt that this would put a slight damper on his dream to be surgeon.
"I'm honored, but…" Motoki stopped at Kunzite's glare. "I mean, I'm honored to…uh…take the position."
Kunzite was still glaring, a bit expectantly. "Um…senpai?" Motoki finished the title as a question, not expecting Kunzite to want to be called that. However, Kunzite just nodded, seemingly satisfied.
No way. He was going to have a serious talk with Mamoru about this. And hell would freeze over before he started referring to his best friend as "Master".
