SLAM!
Nailah gasped as she felt the pain shooting through her spine. Vegeta was panting with frustration, his energy glowing around him with electrical spikes as he struggled to control his temper.
"I'm going to ask you one more time, nikojin, what did you do to Kakarot's brat?" He glared at her fiercely, walking steadily closer. Nailah struggled to her hands and knees, coughing up a solid amount of blood before turning to glare at the Saiyan Prince, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
"I've already told you, I didn't do anything." She hissed when he sent an energy ball towards her, striking her upper thigh harshly.
"VEGETA! That's enough!" Bulma shouted, standing at the side lines and struggling to stop the Scouts from getting into his training room. "You're going to kill her!"
"Not yet I'm not." He growled, continuing his advancement until he stood in front of her directly. The nikojin princess glared up at her interrogator, hissing as her fur spiked. She cried out as he gripped around her neck and lifted her off her feet, choking her gently.
"The sooner you tell me where the brat is, the sooner I'll stop. Though I have to admit," He smirked, "I am quite enjoying this."
"Vegeta! You're being cruel!" He heard Serena's voice cry over the speakers. "Stop this right now!"
"He-" Nailah gasped, scratching at Vegeta's hand weakly. "Nikiko took him." She rasped.
Vegeta growled in irritation and threw her roughly back to the ground. "We know that already. How did she get in?"
Nailah gasped, gently holding her neck as tears of pain threatened to escape her eyes.
It hurt to breathe.
"I- I was trying to see-"
Her voice was raspy and rough. It hurt to speak.
"See what?" growled Vegeta, growing tired of her behaviour.
"Her plan." She finally choked out. "Her lair. My people."
She coughed again, a small puddle of blood splattering from her mouth. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand once more, reserving what dignity she had left.
Vegeta seemed to raise his eyebrow at her. He looked up at a camera that was following him carefully in the corner and nodded once.
Immediately, the doors to the training room opened and in rushed Serena, Amy and the remainder of the Inner Scouts.
"Here, Dende gave me these." Rei poke gently and handed Nailah a senzu bean.
Nailah gratefully ate one and chewed carefully, feeling the juices spread around her mouth before she swallowed. Within seconds, she felt her bones correct themselves, her cuts seal and her bruises heal completely. "Thank you." She spoke gently, sitting up into a very low squat, looking almost ready to pounce.
"I'm sorry he put you through that." Serena spoke gently. "He took you in there before we even knew what had happened."
Nailah simply nodded, her sharp amber eyes on Vegeta once more.
He simply grunted, rolling his eyes and folding his arms over his chest. "You started talking, so I was lenient. Don't think I won't do it all again if you hold back."
Nailah sighed, looking down and nodding. "I was trying to scan Gohan's subconscious for any memories he may have locked away. I knew Nikiko would have used our magic to stop him from being able to reveal her plans. Which means I would be able to unlock it with my magic."
Amy nodded, recalling their negated attacks due to their shared crystal.
Nailah released an unsteady sigh, clearly somewhat emotional. Her voice seemed to continue in a monotonous tone, detached from her recent failure. "She had been waiting for me to try that. I wanted to know her weakness, and she found mine first. She used our connection to get past the barriers created by the silver crystal and disarmed me long enough to take Gohan once more."
Vegeta grunted, unimpressed but acknowledging her story as the truth.
"Did you manage to see anything before she arrived?" Lita pushed.
Nailah looked up at the powerful thunder goddess and visibly paled, her eyes wide.
"Yes." She whispered, her voice almost trembling with fear.
There was a moment of silence before Mina grew impatient, "Well?"
Nailah shook her head, looking down again as her eyes darkened. Her lips pursed as she visibly shuddered.
"Well, we need to get Gohan back and we need to stop Nikiko. Whatever it is that you saw, I'm sure we can handle it." Serena said with a determined smile and confidence.
The other scouts nodded in agreement while Vegeta rolled his eyes and walked away.
"We've almost finished the tracking device. We just need to test it with Trunks and see if we can locate Vegeta." Amy piped in brightly. "Once we know it works, we can test it with Gohan. I don't know if it'll be as effective if we're searching across the galaxy instead of across the planet, but it's a start."
The scouts cheered and pulled Nailah to her feet, following Amy out of the room as they went to witness the obvious success of the genius machine.
Nailah observed the scouts with knowing eyes; wary of their haste and overly-positive attitude. It made her more apprehensive than before she had tried to see into Gohan's mind.
There was no way these young girls would survive this battle, even with the power of the silver crystal. They had no business going to Nikota.
Tonight.
She would leave tonight.
And she would need to face Nikiko alone.
Nailah observed curiously as Trunks seemed to charge up his energy on a pedestal supporting this strange contraption that Zoicite had developed with the Mercurian princess.
"Ok Trunks, this may sting a bit. But we need a strong reading." Amy warned, as she readied herself by the control panel. The pillars either side of the pedestal began to glow gradually.
"Alright Trunks, I need you to start charging up your energy." Zoicite commanded, checking the equipment once more.
The young Saiyan nodded and closed his eyes. A white aura of energy began to surround him as he increased his power level.
"That's great!" Amy shouted as her pillars either side of Trunks seemed to absorb his energy. "Keep going!"
Trunks began to start crying out with the effort he was putting in to charging his energy. His face began to release a fierce expression of anger, rivalling that of his fathers'. The very ground beneath their feet was beginning to shake.
Alarms were beginning to sound from around the house, but Amy continued to push Trunks for energy. And soon enough, she sent a shockwave signal using his powers into the system and out to the Lunar computer.
"That's it!" she cried, when she received a positive response signal, locating Vegeta's position in the world. He was on the move in what appeared to be a full circle around the Earth. Assuming he was due to return to Capsule Corporation very soon, Amy didn't feel the need to contact him regarding the experiment.
"Trunks!" Bulma cried, rushing over to catch her son as he collapsed from the pedestal. Zoicite and Amy also rushed over, offering help.
"I'm ok." He groaned, small beads of sweat visible on his forehand as he panted for breath. "Just tired."
Amy exchanged a look of clear concern with Zoicite; this was something they had expected. The amount of energy required to send a constant signal to the Lunar computer and track Vegeta was quite high. The search level had been done assuming the scan would need to be performed across the galaxy.
Trunks was stronger than Goten, they all knew this. If the amount of energy required to scan the galaxy had worn out Trunks... Amy feared for the affect it may have on poor little Goten.
Her resolve was strengthened, however, when she thought about Gohan. This was the only way that they could guarantee his location, without wasting time travelling to Nikota. The likelihood of a trap was so great, it was almost stupid to go there without a plan and a few certainties.
Almost.
"We'll take a break for now and reset the machine, then we'll get Goten." Zoicite announced.
The group seemed to accept this order and Bulma ordered her robot maids to bring refreshments for her guests, leading them to the indoor garden.
With everyone distracted, this was her chance. Nailah allowed herself to be separated from the group. She needed enough space to summon her energy without being interrupted, and there was only one room that she could think of that would allow that kind of control.
She typed in the code to the training room and stepped inside.
Double checking that she had packed a handful of senzu beans, she swallowed and balled her hands into fists. Refusing to accept her shaking. Was she really scared?
With a deep, calming breath, she readiest herself. She couldn't be scared. She had to face it. Now was the time. She knew now what she should have done long ago.
She shouldn't have come to seek help from Son Gohan, or even the Silver Crystal.
It was all her fault.
But she would correct that now. So, with her jaw determined and set, she began to clear her mind. She called to her inner strength and urged her energy to grow, feeling the warmth of it spreading all over her body. Her tail twitched with the spike of power surging through it.
She had to control it. Focus it. This was going to take a dangerous level of dark energy and would poison everyone if she lost her focus.
Her body began to glow, surrounded by a dark aura of power littered with lightening. Nailah felt herself floating, steadying herself as her energy began to shake her very surroundings.
BANG! BANG!
They were trying to get in. She needed more energy. They couldn't interrupt.
Forcing her concentrating onto her power, she willed herself to reach higher energy levels. She hated using this power. She could feel it poisoning her system. She could feel the darkness entering her heart and mind.
But she urged the purity of her heart to control it, to will it into a small controllable source.
BANG!
"NAILAH!"
She was gone.
The Scouts stood staring at the doorway of the training room.
"Wh- what happened?" gasped Rei.
"Where did they go?" Lita cried.
Serena fell to her knees, her lip quivering. "AMY!" she cried, slamming her fists on the ground.
Nailah collapsed to her knees, gasping and holding her throat. Struggling to breathe as she fought the darkness.
She knew she'd made it.
The gravity of her world was lighter. Her movement was easier.
But the soft dirt and grass that normally surrounded her world was lost. Nikota appeared to be a barren wasteland.
"Here. Eat this." A familiar voice spoke gently, pressing a small soft item into Nailah's mouth.
Her eyes widened as she quickly turned and gazed into the eyes of Sailor Mercury. She bit the senzu bean and swallowed the juices happily, feeling her strength returning, despite the black vines of poison that stretched clearly across her pale skin.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed, her amber eyes darkening furiously.
Sailor Mercury tapped her earring and her Mercurian goggles appeared across her eyes. She stood up gently and began to scan her surroundings while rapidly typing on her compact computer.
"I was the first one to get into the training room and must have been caught in the blast of your teleportation." She responded coolly, circling herself to get a thorough scan. "I assume this is Nikota?"
"You shouldn't have followed me here." Nailah spoke softly, in an almost threatening tone. "There was a reason I wanted to leave the rest of you behind."
"You don't need to fight this battle alone." Sailor Mercury smile gently, her eyes finally returning to the small princess.
She looked so frail and broken. Her small frame and blackened veins only adding to her weak state. The dark circles under her eyes reflected the many sleepless nights she may have had; plagued with nightmares of what her world had become. The burden she bore on her shoulders was a heavy one that she held herself responsible for.
But she didn't need to face this alone. And if this was a chance for Amy to bring Gohan back to Earth, then she was going to take the bull by the horns.
Suddenly, her goggles began to flash with rapid activity. "Get ready. There's something coming." She warned, steadying herself into a fighting stance.
Her eyes widened as she realised she no longer had Zoicite to battle with her. If these were youma approaching, and anything like the ones on Earth, her attacks would be useless.
Sailor Mercury frowned at herself and focused her mind. She needed to believe in herself and be strong. A quick glance at Nailah had her worried though.
The Nikoten princess hadn't moved. She was gripping the ground; her entire body tense. She stared ahead, eyes wide and a dark amber shade. Her fur was even stood on end.
"You can't fight them." She whispered, her hands appeared to shake as she rose to her feet.
"What're you talking about?" Sailor Mercury responded, eyes darting around as a gust of wind passed her. A loud echo of a cackle surrounded the pair.
"It's useless." Nailah continued, no longer whispering. Her voice seemed to almost accept defeat. "I know this power. My attacks won't have any effect on them."
More cackles seemed to join the first, and the gusts of wind became more frequent. Sailor Mercury soon realised that this was, in fact, the creatures they were battling. They were flying past the pair. Mocking them with their speed.
She was not going to just let them get away with this by acting like a sitting duck.
"MERCURY BUBBLES BLAST!" Sailor Mercury cried, surrounding the pair with a thick fog. "Come on!" She shouted, grabbing Nailah's arm and pulling her up to her feet. She began running in a steady forwards direction, quickly darting behind a ruined building in the distance.
The creatures that had surrounded them screamed in horror as they lost their prey.
"They'll find us soon enough." Nailah whispered, quietly catching her breath.
"Well, we'll just have to be prepared for them when they do." Panted Sailor Mercury, quickly pulling out her computer once more and scanning the space. "I've made a digital map of the area, but I don't have a read on Gohan's power yet so I don't know which way we should go. Zoi will hopefully carry on with the experiment and the data should be on the Lunar computer soon. So as soon as it's there, I can access it and we can meet the others."
Nailah hissed, and turned to face Sailor Mercury with a dark expression.
"Is that all you think about? I'm not here to save Gohan. I'm here to stop Nikiko and to save my planet. If I can stop her, I can save everyone." She spat, furious with the Scout.
"Nailah, what we're here for doesn't mean anything if we can't get away from these youma." Sailor Mercury countered, keeping a level head as always.
"We can't get away from them. My attacks will do no good. They're powered by my crystal." Nailah admitted, her voice still laced with fury.
"Then can't you use your crystal to direct them away? Or withdraw their power?" Sailor Mercury pleaded as her goggles showed the activity nearing their location once more. The cackling that had surrounded them earlier was returning, growing louder with each passing moment.
Nailah's eyes widened as she considered this possibility. Use the crystal even more? Could she take that risk? Did she have the control? She still needed more time to recover from the power surge she had needed to reach Nikota in the first place; her skin was shining with the reminder of the consequences of her power.
"We're surrounded!" Sailor Mercury gasped, as more active points appeared on her scanner and was growing closer to them. Her energy attacks were just as useless as Nailah's attacks. If her power was going to be negated, then Mercury's planet power would be absorbed.
Sailor Mercury gasped and readied herself for impact when she felt a gust of wind pass her and something knocked her back. She cried out in the pain as she hit the building wall at full force, bruising several parts of her body, though she thanked her superhuman healing helped prevent major broken bones from attacks such as this.
The cackling surrounding the pair was overwhelmingly loud.
Sailor Mercury head a cry as something must have struck Nailah just as hard. She forced herself up. She had to fight. She had to protect them.
However, just as she began to summon her power, she was knocked back by a force of power similar to what she felt when Gohan had powered up his ki. It was an energy wave.
Crawling up to her hands and knees, Sailor Mercury looked up and her eyes widened. There, floating above her, was Nailah. Surrounded by a flaming black aura of power. Her eyes had blackened with the energy that was visibly flowing through her veins.
The dark Nikoten princess turned her gaze to the surrounded creatures, which now seemed to unsure of their next move. They recognised her power, but knew it wasn't their master.
One brave youma attempted to attack the princess, but disintegrated as it reached within 5 feet of her. Another cried out in fury and attempted to attack with a partner, both of whom appear to burst into flames and disappear in the wind. Nailah turned to cast her gaze across all of the surrounding youma and, in turn, each was destroyed, leaving nothing behind.
Sailor Mercury simply seemed to stare on in shock, unsure of how to react to this power that emanated from the princess.
The smarter of the surviving youma seemed to scatter as they realised their fate, only to disintegrate in the distance with horrific cries of pain echoing in their surroundings.
Nailah then turned her gaze to Sailor Mercury, who froze in terror.
What happened?
Nailah raised a hand and pointed at the Mercurian princess. "Go back to Earth, and don't come back." She warned, before rising into the air and flying off in an unknown direction.
Sailor Mercury was left staring off after the Nikoten princess, lost for words. She got to her feet and attempted to limp back to where she and Nailah had come from. Regularly checking her Mercurian compact for any word from the Scouts or any trace of Gohan.
Nothing.
There was so much plaguing her mind... She was struggling to process her thoughts. How long had she even been on this planet? It hadn't felt like very long. Or perhaps time was different here? Had the Scouts managed to find her? Had they located Gohan?
She had been so distracted, in fact, that she hadn't noticed as a large ball of dark energy was flying towards her at high speeds until it was too late. She was absorbed in what appeared to be a familiar dome of dark energy, which was now forcing her into some underground passage.
Try as she might, she couldn't escape. Her attacks had no effect on the energy that encased her, and any physical attacks simply sent shockwaves of energy through her system; forcing her back once more.
The dome seemed to only disappear when she was in a large dark room, with dim lightening provided by the torches surrounding her.
"Well, it took her long enough to join me, didn't it?" smirked a very satisfied creature, sat on a large silver throne. "Though, I don't see why she didn't just let me destroy you. I suppose she has a soft spot for you and wants to make you suffer." She gleefully cackled. Her tail twitched as she purred happily, holding hands with her partner.
Sailor Mercury glared fiercely at the figure of Nikiko, who now appeared to be holding hands with a creature just like herself. Her tail twitched as she stared on fiercely. An aura of dark energy surrounded her black eyes. The true ruler of this cursed planet; Nailah.