Blood ran from her abdomen. The armor had stopped the claws from snapping her in half, but the wounds were still deep. Three slashes lacerated her stomach.

Ami shook her head, "she needs immediate care. If we stop the bleeding now she might survive for two days, three if she's strong."

"Don't just stand there! Do something!" Minako yelled, then gasped for breath and fell against Makoto.

Ami nodded shortly and knelt beside Rei's limp body. She took off her jacket and carefully ripped it.

"I have no disinfectant, no coagulant, these wounds…"

"I'll make a poultice." Makoto set Minako down and went in search of moss and some other things.

"Luna," Minako said quietly, conserving her air, "How far are we from the end of the course?"

"It's still seven days from here."

"She'll never make it," Minako didn't qualify this statement; she just dug her fingernails into her palm.

"Well, um, there is, oh dear…"

"What is it?"

"We had an emergency transporter, in case of a situation like this."

"Had? Where is it?"

"It's with our luggage, um, the dragon still has it."

"It's only two days back."

"But there's a dragon at the end of it!"

"We won't survive seven days."

"Rei wont."

"We wont! I'm not just going to give up on anyone in my team!"

"You're risking everyone for one!"

"I won't let her die."

"Just because you have feelings for-"

Minako lashed out at the cat, "Don't you understand! This isn't a little game, a little training routine anymore. Someone has to make a decision, and this is the only one I can make. Maybe you hate her enough to let her die, but I can't make that decision."

"Who made you the leader?"

"I won't let you be anymore."

Minako got shakily to her feet.

"We're starting back to where we landed, as soon as you've got her patched up enough to travel."

Ami glanced up, "she's not walking anywhere."

Makoto came out of the forest with a pile of weeds. "I'll carry her. Wake Serena up, she's going to have to walk."

They didn't stop that night, just for a moment where Ami checked on Rei and changed the bandages for ones made out of Minako's shirt. Then they set off again. Serena was complaining, but Makoto looked at her, and said, "be quiet. Or you'll attract nocturnal predators, and they'll carry you off and eat you before you'll be able to scream."

Serena shut up after that, and they walked silently through the night.

Dawn had just broken when they reached the cave above the river. They climbed in and Minako let them sleep for a few hours, but she didn't sleep. In her head she worked out a plan for defeating the dragon. She shook her head a few times as impossible plans crossed her mind. Finally a plausible one came to her. It was too dangerous, but it was the only one she had. Then she slept.

It was early afternoon when they all awoke, except for Rei, but she wasn't really asleep, Ami found, she was still just unconscious. The rest of them gathered in a small circle near the front of the cave. Serena clenched her little boomerang with white knuckles. Ami hadn't opened her computer since the fight. Makoto looked the most together of them all. She was more accustomed to subsisting on little sleep. Minako looked at her, and thought of her plan and wished that there was another way, wished that there was some way she could be certain of the outcome, not risk all their lives on fleet feet and a shoddy piece of technology.

"This is may plan," she said, finding a stick to draw in the dirt with, it wasn't a real plan unless you had a diagram scratched into the earth. "It's most likely that the dragon brought our luggage back to its cave. We need to locate the cave, and if the dragon is there we need to lure it away."

She tried not to meet Makoto's eyes, but when she hesitantly glanced up Makoto was looking straight at her. "I'll lure it away, then double back, using the river. You have to get in that cave and find it. If I'm coming back with a dragon on my tail, you have better be ready to activate instantly."

"Yes,"

"And if the dragon cones back without me, you have to go."

"Makoto."

"I'll be fine. Don't give up on me. But first you have to get Rei off this stinking planet. I know you'll come back for me."

Minako nodded shortly. No one else had a plan. If they all died it would be her fault. But this was all she could do.

Makoto was the only one of them now conscious with real tracking skills. Minako felt helpless again, and eyed her rapier with distrust. Leaving Ami, Rei, Luna, and Serena in the forest, they crept up to the cave entrance.

"It's in there," whispered Makoto. Minako nodded, trying not to cry. She didn't want to cry now. She didn't want to be weak. But Makoto glanced at her, and gave a brisk nod, and smiled. "Here goes nothing."

She stepped out in front of the cave. "Hey Dragon! It's dinner time!"

Minako winced at the snuffling inside that turned into a roar. Makoto turned and sprinted off into the forest as the dragon humped past Minako. Then Mina ran back towards the rest of her team.

She and Ami, carrying Rei between them, maneuvered through the trees and into the cave. Serena followed, clinging to the cat and the boomerang. The cat leapt out of Serena's arms, when they reached the inner chamber, and started pawing through the mounds of junk. Ami and Minako set Rei down. Ami helped Luna; Minako climbed up to the top of the junk heap and looked down. It was shaped like a nest; in the center were four large eggs, and two large crates.

"Up here!" she hissed. Ami climbed up, and Luna bounded up and they peered over the side.

"No wonder it was so angry," said Ami in awe.

"Our boxes!" Luna exclaimed, and ran down the inside of the nest. "Dammit! They're nailed together, I can't get them apart!"

"I could blast them," said Ami.

"We don't want to damage the transporter."

Minako ran back towards Rei and Serena who was staring paranoically at the cave entrance. She knelt by Rei's side and looked at her, not moving for a moment. She reached toward her face, but shook herself, and unsheathed Rei's knife. Then she ran over to the boxes. Using Rei's heavy hunting knife they levered the boxes open and extracted the transporter. They gathered by Rei and Serena, and Ami began programming the transporter.

It was done. Everything was ready. They waited, hoping.

Then they heard galumphing. It was the dragon, the dragon was coming back.

Makoto sped into the cave, her feet a blur, "let's get going!" she yelled, and dove toward the group. Ami was hitting the last few buttons and the dragon galloped into the cave and roared at these intruders. Serena hurled her boomerang at it, and the last they saw was it bounce off the dragon's nose as everything disappeared from view.

The marble entryway of the palace formed around them. They were back in the moon kingdom, finally. But the guards didn't see returning princesses but a bedraggled mess.

"Hey! Invaders!" They started towards the group of girls.

Minako drew her rapier and pointed it at the head guard's throat, drawing herself up proudly.

"I am Minako, Princess of Venus, Goddess of Love. And I demand Aid!"

The guards stumbled back, unsure of their position. The door of the palace opened, and a figure in white and one in black stepped out.

"Call the healers to this place immediately," said Queen Serenity, and she began to descend the stairs, Setsuna behind her.

"Mama!" Serena cried out, and ran towards her. She wobbled, and fell into her mother's arms.

Serenity looked over the group: Minako tense and panting, rapier still on guard, Makoto unable to stand in the presence of the Queen, Rei, wrapped in bloody cloth and limp on the ground, Ami though seeming unperturbed, sweating and in shirtsleeves, the fingers that held the transporter shaking. Then she looked at Luna.

"I think we are going to have a talk," she said, and turned away. The healers had arrived and were quickly taking charge of the situation.