Chapter Twenty: Rescuing Aldebaran
~~Through The Mirror~~
Aldebaran was still hanging there, and Lord Columba was hanging in the shadows of the glass so that the girls wouldn't see him.
"Aren't you ashamed of yourself?" She finally managed to say after hearing the muffled sounds of her friends battling the soldiers.
"No, I can't say that I am." Lord Columba answered keeping his eyes outside.
"You should be." She retorted as she wiggled her wrists to see if she could lessen the pressure.
"Don't bother trying to escape."
"If you would look my way, you would notice I am not trying to escape, but just trying to ease the discomfort on my wrists." He turned his head and looked at her with a bewildered expression. "Yes, I did just say that. No, I do not care."
"I guess I shouldn't expect anything less than a princess from Aldebaran."
"I don't know what you even mean by that. And if you're suggesting that I am a spoiled brat who always got my way, you're dead wrong." She said annoyed as he was face to face with her.
"Actually, I meant stubborn." He commented. "You are from the Taurus constellation, aren't you? And aren't Taureans stubborn as all hell?"
"Among many other things, yes, if you must know." She answered and then looked past him to her friends. Lord Columba moved back into the shadows of the mirror. "I still don't get why you're hiding. It makes you look pathetic."
"Shut your mouth." He ordered as he watched the ending of the battle. "Damn, Caelum's soldiers were not victorious." Aldebaran let out a small chuckle as she listened to Omicron and Caelum.
"Now what are you going to do? Once they defeat him, they're going to come and try and get me and you."
~~Outside The Mirror~~
Caelum slowly stepped backwards in fear of the upcoming attacks by the girls.
"You girls can't be seriously thinking of attacking me now."
"And what if we are?" Omicron answered before anyone else could get a word in. "Nine against one, I think that's fair compared to what you have already unleashed on us." Omicron added with a stern expression as she glanced at her sai with a grin. She was flat out fed up with this battling nonsense that seemed to take forever.
"Whoa." Juno stated sensing Omicron's mood. "This can't be good."
"Whatever she does, back her up." Sailor Mini Moon ordered agreeing with Juno.
"Omicron, what are you doing?"
"Don't worry about me. We need to finish this dirt bag off and rescue Aldebaran." Omicron answered her friend with a sense of urgency.
"She's right, Polaris." Capella stated. "She's our friend. The reason why we were able to be awakened. She's like out big sister and we need to get her back."
"You girls are trifling with the wrong person." Caelum stated as he grabbed a sword that just appeared to his left.
"Where'd the heck did that come from?" Ceres asked in shock.
"How'd he get a weapon?" Polaris also questioned.
"Must have been Lord Columba." Sailor Mini Moon answered sadly.
"Ah, my master seems to think I can beat you." Caelum said with a grin and then looked at Omicron. "I'll battle you first."
"Fine," Omicron replied smiling herself. "But when you battle one of us, you battle all of us."
While he was getting ready to strike, all of the girls were arming themselves as well.
~~Inside The Mirror~~
"Damn." Lord Columba repeated.
"So you give him a sword?" Aldebaran questioned. "What good will that do against all of their attacks?"
"Nothing. I just thought he should have something that he can try to defend himself with." Aldebaran was shocked. "IF they make it past him and find the way through this mirror, your bonds will break." He said and then left the cell leaving Aldebaran hanging alone.
If she was in shock before with his statement, she was in even a bigger shock now.
"Please beat him." She said quietly as she watched her friends.
~~Outside The Mirror~~
The battle against Caelum was quick and easy, especially since the girls decided to gather around him in a circle and hit him all at once.
"NO! PLEASE NO!" He yelled before the girls unleashed their power. "LORD COLUMBA! WHY?" were his final words before disintegrating into the air.
Omicron turned around as she was on the side of the mirror that gained entry into the cell.
"Aldebaran." she said as she put her hand onto the glass. "What?" She asked, as her hand wouldn't go any further. She used to hand to hit the mirror in frustration, which then turned into her fists. "NO! This can't be!"
"Omicron!" Rigel said as she went to console her friend and have her relax. "It's okay. We'll get her out. Somehow." She added as Omicron started to cry.
"I…thought...we...could…just…walk…through." Omicron said through sobs.
The rest of the girls stood there and thought about it. Sailor Mini Moon pulled out the handheld computer and started to scan it.
"Anything helpful?" Pallas asked after a few minutes.
"Maybe." Sailor Mini Moon replied. "If my hunch is correct, we all need to break open this access together."
The girls nodded in agreement.
"Tell us what we need to do." Juno ordered of her leader.
"Put your hands anywhere on it. Then we all need to have our power flow through it."
"That easy?"
"I hope so, Polaris."
The girls put their hands near one another's on the glass and tried, without success.
"Guess not." Vesta stated and then looked at Omicron who looked like she was about to cry again. "We'll figure it out." She said reassuringly as she put her hand on Omicron's shoulder.
"What else?" Capella asked.
"We can try to find the actual cell area." Ceres stated.
"Or Lord Columba." Polaris suggested, which caused her to receive death stares from the girls. "What?"
"We can't defeat him without Aldebaran." Juno answered and then looked to Sailor Mini Moon. "Can we?"
"No, I think you are right." Sailor Mini Moon said, agreeing with Juno. They needed Sailor Aldebaran.
~~Inside The Mirror~~
"OMICRON! Aldebaran yelled as Omicron started to run towards the mirror. Or thought she did. Then she realized that Omicron looked like she was really good at miming. "Why can't they get in? They defeated Caelum." Aldebaran thought out loud, then Lord Columba's words repeated in her head. "If they make it past him and find the way through this mirror, your bonds will break." She hung her head low. "No. No. No. How are they supposed to get through the mirror? If their power isn't enough, then what is?" She kept thinking out loud. "Then there was the fact that he stressed 'if' when he spoke."
"You know, talking to yourself shows how insane you've become."
Startled, Aldebaran looked up. Lord Columba was back, much to her dismay.
"I thought you weren't coming back."
"I decided to. They couldn't get in, I see."
"Obviously, or else I would be on the ground with them."
"You can drop the attitude, princess. I only came here to see their progress."
"How come they can't hear me? Is it the glass?"
"Yes."
"So I can hear them battling, but they can't hear me?
"Funny how it's designed, isn't it? I don't know why that is."
"I have a feeling I do."
"Oh, really?"
"Yes. You thought they'd lose. You want me to hear their cries of pain and anguish and suffering, knowing I couldn't do a damn thing to help them being strung up here like a piece of artwork."
"Interesting. You do know why I had it created like that."
"Can't you just let them in? Let them get me out?"
"Sorry. No can do."
"You are such a jerk." She blurted out. Normally she was well mannered and her use of slang was withheld, but not this time.
"Think what you want of me, I do not care." He replied with a smile and then left again.
Aldebaran turned her attention to the girls outside. They were clearly arguing over something. She wished she could hear more than muffled voices.
~~Outside the Mirror~~
"What do you suggest we do then, Juno?
"I am not sure. I don't understand this at all."
"Are we supposed to prove something in order to open this barrier?" Rigel asked as she put her hand on the frame of the mirror.
"Prove something?"
"Yeah, like if one of us dies just to get her out. Or something like that." Rigel answered. The girls were appalled, and their expressions proved it.
"Don't even talk like that!" Sailor Mini Moon said disgusted. "We are NOT going to sacrifice one of us to save her. She would not want that."
The girls stood there miffed by the whole thing. They had no idea how to break the glass barrier.
"Then maybe we should find Lord Columba." Sailor Mini Moon finally said half defeated from racking her brain on ideas on how to get Aldebaran out.
One by one the girls followed Sailor Mini Moon, whose face was focused on the handheld computer. Omicron was last. She stood there staring at Aldebaran through the glass and said sorry with tears forming. Aldebaran understood and nodded back, also holding back tears.
As Omicron started to walk away, a strange sensation was happening to Aldebaran's chains. They were slowly disappearing and all of a sudden, Aldebaran fell to the floor.
"Ouch!" She said after she realized what just happened. "That hurt." She said as she slowly got up. She started towards the mirror and she rubbed her wrists. "OMICRON!" She yelled stopping all of her friends in their tracks.
Omicron's eyes got wide and she turned around.
"ALDEBARAN!" She yelled as she made her way back.
The reunion was quick and simple. Fast hugs and Polaris and Juno helping Aldebaran walk with them.
"Where are you going?"
"Now we need to find Lord Columba."
"Sailor Mini Moon, in all reality, just stay here. He'll show up."
"Why do you think that?"
"Because if he wasn't in the shadows again while I was in that cell, I know he'll make his way back to check in on your progress. If I am not hanging on that wall, he can assume you were successful on breaking me out."
"Care to enlighten us more?" Vesta asked curious.
"While you were battling those soldiers he was watching. He gave Caelum that sword and then left not wanting to see you defeat Caelum. He came back to check to see if you got me out, which at that point you didn't."
"And you think he'll check again?"
"Sure. This place is lonely now for him. No soldiers to boss around. No friends from his past life to keep him company." Aldebaran answered. "As far as he goes, I think he does want to be healed. He just doesn't want to admit it."
"Would this have anything to do with what Wezn told you?" Omicron inquired as she hugged her comrade.
"A little." Aldebaran admitted.
A/N: So here ends the series of chapters I was able to "bang" out within days of each other. Now I have a slight/severe case of writer's block. I have been sitting on writing chapter twenty-one for a few weeks now.
Last time I wrote, I said I made it over the 550 mark. I am now over the 660 mark. Maybe it has something to due with me posting and tagging on tumblr. I don't know, but I am loving this! Now if only I can make that view count my follower count on here and tumblr...
Convergence-Eternal: I was almost brought to tears by your last review - either by crying or laughing, but I needed both apparently. I need to actually go an edit my profile, I think. Maybe I'll do that later. I am in so many fandoms at this point, either I am full-in or partially in where I am just introducing myself to the series. And I still love your reviews. Always will I believe. Have a great one! Can't wait to read your review on this chapter. =)