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Chapter 25 – A Challenge
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A red haired woman could be seen sneaking out of a makeshift camp, but as soon as she stepped outside, she felt as if she was being watched. She glared into the direction of the eyes that were observing her, "What are you doing hovering around there?"
A small blue haired woman stepped out into the light, "Are you going somewhere?"
Bixbite looked at the other woman for a moment, "I might be." She said dismissively.
"Do you have his permission?"
The red haired woman laughed at that question, "Did you have his permission to combine your forces with Heliodor?"
"Touché." The blue haired woman said softly. After a second of thought, she drew closer to the other woman, stepping even with her, "I'm just curious because you have never decided to take action on your own. What's brought this on?"
"What's with all the questions, Maxixe?" She countered, doing little to hide how agitated she was becoming.
She tapped her finger to her chin as she said, "As I said, I'm just curious. I mean, I don't imagine you are stupid enough to be staging an assault on the palace itself. Even you are not that crazy. So, I can only imagine that you are planning to use our portal to the past." She paused for a moment to stare a little more closely at the other woman. She was pleased to see that her theories were correct, thus far at least. "I must wonder why it is that you are choosing to go there now. You saw how Morganite returned and Goshenite was most displeased to have two of his most elite warriors return so badly beaten. What is it that you hope to accomplish?" Maxixe finally settled on saying.
Bixbite scoffed at that question, "I wouldn't expect someone like you that shies away from combat to understand. You walked away from all of that unshaved, but your forces were cut in half..."
"They are nothing more than fodder. We can always create more Shades." Maxixe said quickly, cutting her off, which again made the other woman scoff.
"While I don't disagree, I can also assume that you didn't get your own hands dirty and that is something I find disgusting." She spat at her in return.
"I simply cut my losses." The blue haired woman said with a shrug.
"Whatever." She mumbled and moved to leave, but was she was halted by the other woman refusing to move. She clenched her fists before holding her hand out to the side and summoning a flaming red lance to her hand, "Do you really intend to stand in my way?"
Maxixe smiled at the question and held her hands up in surrender, "Of course not sister. I simply ask that you answer my question before you depart. Why are you going there now?"
"I wish to challenge myself." Bixbite said simply.
The blue haired woman nodded after a moment, "I see." She said and stepped aside, giving her the room to leave. Bixbite dismissed her weapon and began walking away. Before she could get too far away, Maxixe called out to her, "You would do well to prepare for a fight to the death if your intention is to fight Mars."
"I always do." She said calmly before disappearing into the darkness.
"I don't think I ever asked, but how old are you exactly?" Rei found herself asking as they drew closer to the rest of the group. It was a question that she felt the need to ask given the girl telling her about her feelings for Hotaru. She was fine with her coming to the realization of her feelings, but she wasn't sure how she felt about them potentially beginning a relationship if she didn't know her daughter's age.
"Oh, I'm 900 Mama." The pink haired girl said casually.
Rei stopped in her tracks, "9-900?" She repeated back, nearly stumbling over the number.
Chibi-Usa stopped as well and looked at her future mother, "I know I don't look it…" She said quietly.
She certainly didn't. She looked to be closer to fourteen years old…maybe, but she did remember that she said she stopped aging some time ago. Rei quickly recovered though and took her hand, "I'm just surprised." She said lightly. They began to walk again as Rei said, "I guess that makes you older than me." She laughed lightly after that.
"You're still my Mama though." Chibi-Usa was quick to say.
Rei smiled through another laugh before saying, "Yes, yes I am." She still laughed a little afterwards, even as they had just about reached the rest of the group.
When Usagi saw the pair walking back over to them, she stood up again. As she walked to meet them, she put her hand on the younger girl's shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze before taking her hand away and continuing to meet her girlfriend and future daughter, "How did everything go?"
Rei put her hand on the shorter girl's back as she said, "She did outstanding." She smiled at her girlfriend before looking to the pink haired girl. She could see a small smile spread across her lips and if she wasn't mistaken even a faint blush.
Usagi smiled unreservedly as she moved forward and wrapped her arms around the other girl, "That's great. I'm proud of you."
She was quick to return the embrace, but it took her a moment to say anything. It was moments like this that she could almost fool herself into thinking that she was home again, but she always came back to reality. "Thank you…" She mumbled quietly, though she didn't think that she did much at all.
She pulled back a little to look into her eyes as she spoke, "Do you feel a little more empowered?"
She smiled and gave a quick nod of her head, "Yes." She said with more confidence because she didn't feel as though she was completely powerless and that was a good thing, she could not deny that.
"Oh, I should give you a stack of these to keep with you." Rei spoke up, drawing the two girls' attention to her, as she handed a small stack of ofudas to her future daughter, "I wouldn't want to forget these after the work we did." She added with a smile.
The pink haired girl took the talismans and held them against her chest, "Thank you."
Rei nodded, a smile still in place as she stepped closer to Usagi and placed her hand lightly on her girlfriends lower back, "I still hope you don't need to use them."
"I won't go looking for trouble, I promise." Chibi-Usa said lightly.
"I would hope not." Rei said, her voice far more serious than her future daughter's had been.
"I'll keep her out of trouble." Hotaru chimed in a moment later and stepped closer to the group.
Usagi looked over to the younger girl and smiled, "I'm glad that she has you to look out for her, Hotaru-chan."
The dark haired girl lowered her head as she felt warmth spread across her cheeks. While the future Princess huffed audibly, drawing attention back to her, "I don't look for trouble…"
"It does seem to follow you around though, Princess." Haruka stated, announcing her presence.
Chibi-Usa frowned at the statement. It wasn't her fault, well except for the times she put herself in situations she knew could potentially be dangerous. Those times were usually because someone she cared about was in danger and she couldn't really be faulted for wanting to protect them.
Michiru spoke up as she stepped even with her lover, "But that's why we are here to make sure nothing happens to you."
The pink haired girl looked like she was about to say something, but Usagi put hand on her shoulder, making her pause and look at her future mother, "Trouble does have a tendency to come to all of us unfortunately, but that's why having such incredible friends makes us so lucky." She said with a smile.
Chibi-Usa nodded her head in agreement, "You're right." She said and gave her mother her own smile before turning to Hotaru and catching her gaze, making her smile a little bit wider.
Rei had her own lopsided grin on her face before she gave a quick look around and saw how dark it was already starting to get, "I hate to say it, but we probably should be going."
"Already?" Chibi-Usa asked quickly.
"Yeah, I don't want Usagi's parents getting upset that I kept her out too late on a school night." The raven haired girl explained but still saw the other girl's expression falter. "Don't worry, we'll see you soon, right Usa?" She said looking at her girlfriend.
"Of course!" The blonde exclaimed happily and stepped closer to the shorter girl, giving her a hug. After a few moments she rushed over the Rei and gave her a hug now.
As Rei returned the embrace she leaned closer to her ear as she whispered, "Don't forget what I earlier, about Hotaru-chan." She could feel the shorter girl nod her head slightly, but remain silent otherwise. 'I guess that'll have to do for now…' She thought and let go of her future daughter.
The commotion of Sailor Mars' return had died down for the most part, due in part to the fact that very few knew the reason she had left in the first place. Sailor Ceres paced through the gardens, a place she knew her lady loved, though it did little to ease the worry in her heart. She was not among the privileged to know about the mission her Highness embarked on, that was reserved for the Inner guard and her Majesty, but she was aware of how important it appeared to be. If she needed to be told, they would tell her. She couldn't help feeling that it was her failure to keep Small Lady safe that was the reason for being excluded. She could not blame them if that was true either; she had failed them and her Lady. 'Some kind of guard I am…' She thought when a voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Sailor Ceres, I have a mission for you."
The pink haired Sailor Senshi turned around quickly and scanned the area for the owner of the voice that just spoke to her. Her eyes immediately fell on to an unfamiliar Sailor Senshi, "Who are you?"
The woman took a couple steps towards her, her boots clicking quite loudly against the stone in the otherwise quiet garden. She held a peculiar looking staff at her side and now that she stood closer, Ceres could see her hair held a greenish tint to it. "I am no enemy, but I am afraid that I do not have the time to explain things as well as I would like. Time is of the essence."
"What do you mean?" Sailor Ceres found herself asking.
A smile spread across the unknown Senshi's lips as she spoke again, "Please assemble the other Asteroid Senshi. I have the most important mission for the four of you." The woman said, avoiding the question all together.
As they walked away from the large residence of their friends, Rei felt Usagi tighten her hold on her arm. The dark haired girl smiled, she was happy to be able to be open about her relationship with her Princess in this life. She wanted her daughter to have the same thing. She didn't doubt the feelings she had for Hotaru; she saw little hints that made even more sense knowing what she knows now. She just wished that she could convince her daughter that telling Hotaru was worth it. She felt Usagi tug on her arm, so she looked over to the blonde questioningly.
"What's on your mind, Rei?" Usagi asked softly.
"Just thinking about something Chibi-Usa said." She said and paused for a moment, "She told me that she found her soulmate."
"Hotaru-chan." Usagi said simply.
Rei nodded her head, though it was really obvious. She knew how close Usagi and Mamoru's daughter was with Hotaru, though perhaps not as close as her daughter and Hotaru. She didn't know for sure, as she wasn't as in tune with the Chibi-Usa they knew before, but they may have been heading in that direction just the same. She very nearly laughed at the absurdity, but instead she shook her head slightly, "I can't help thinking that there is something to this whole destiny thing. As much as I hate to admit that…but really I just don't want her to make the mistakes that I did. I know it's different, but I know from experience that waiting to say how you're feeling isn't the best answer. Holding in such a strong emotion is difficult and painful."
Usagi nodded, she knew that Rei had a good understanding of their daughter's predicament, making her wish, not for the first time, that she would have seen Rei's love before everything that happened. It would have saved her a lot of pain. She was too wrapped up in a love that seemed inevitable with the Prince of Earth, Mamoru, that she couldn't see anything else. Thankfully Chibi-Usa doesn't have to see Hotaru in a relationship with someone else, someone that she'd have to compete with. In fact, it seemed that Hotaru held similar affections for her as well. She looked at Rei as she said, "Hotaru does feel something for her though too, I've seen it."
"I believe so too, but she believes that she is doing what is best for Hotaru." She said and sighed softly. "I think her whereabouts in the future being unknown is making this harder. She didn't come out and say that, but I'm sure that's something that is on her mind. I feel like she might be more likely to speak with you." Rei said softly, glancing to the side to see her girlfriend's reaction.
Usagi turned her head to the side curiously, "I would have thought that she'd rather talk to you, honestly. She does seem to like you more…"
Rei stopped and tugged on the other girl's arm a little, pulling her to her, "You know that's not true." She said quickly, staring intently into the blonde's cerulean eyes. She sighed and looked down afterwards, "I think that I might dote on her a good amount in the future, actually I'm fairly certain that is the case, not that it's a bad thing." She said smiling at the end as she looked back up. "I just know that I'd never want her to feel as if she's anything but the most important person to me; along with you of course." She didn't want to say anything more than that, but she was pretty Usagi understood what she left unsaid.
Usagi let go of the other girl's hand and reached to brush her fingers against her cheek, "I'm positive that she knows that." Rei closed her eyes for a moment, let herself soak in her girlfriend's words, not opening them until she spoke again. "You could never treat her any less than that. I know that, Rei."
She smiled at her girlfriend's words. Realistically she knew there was no chance that she would ever say or do anything that would make her daughter question how much she was loved. She just didn't have the best examples to learn from, as her parents in her previous life weren't the best model for loving parents and in this life, only her mother was the kind of parent she would ever wish to be like and she's been gone for more of her life than she was alive for. It's been so long that her memories of her were slowly getting less and less clear, except for how her health got worse and worse over time. Those memories always seemed to be crystal clear.
"Rei?" Usagi asked softly, before gently wiping away the tears that had fallen. Rei found herself blinking away the remaining tears that had yet to fall.
"Sorry." Rei mumbled quietly.
Usagi frowned slightly at her girlfriend, "You do that too often." She said, her voice barely above a whisper, even as she continued to brush her fingers across her cheek.
"What?" Rei asked curiously.
"Apologize for crying." Usagi stated as her hand stopped any further movement.
"I'm so…" She stopped herself before she could utter an apology for apologizing, as odd as that sounded. She took a deep breath before saying, "I've just been thinking about some things that I haven't thought about in a while."
A small smile spread across Usagi's lips as she said, "You know that you don't have to deal with any of that on your own though."
Rei smiled as well before turning her head in the direction of her girlfriend's hand and pressed a kiss to her palm, "Thank you." She said and a short pause before continuing, "I'm not trying to keep anything from you…just maybe we can talk about this when it's not so late and I'm not trying to make sure you get home at a respectable time." Perhaps it was simply a way of delaying the inevitable, though when she saw Usagi's smile wan, she was quick to add, "This weekend. We'll have the time then, I promise." She knew that talking about her mother would difficult, but she did want Usagi to hear about her from her own mouth.
Usagi sighed, but couldn't deny her girlfriend's reasoning, "Okay, but only because you promised." She said softly and let a small smile spread across her lips once more.
Rei took her hand from her cheek and kissed the top of it, "Thank you for being understanding."
With a nod, Usagi interlaced their fingers before beginning to slowly walk again. She wouldn't press her on that subject anymore tonight, but another question did cross her mind, "Why do you think she'd prefer to talk to me?" Usagi asked after a few seconds of walking.
"I have an unfair advantage over her and she knows it." Rei said lightly, causing Usagi to give her a curious look again.
"What?"
Rei laughed and tapped her forehead, "Psychic."
"Right..." She said with a nod, that fact did slip her mind sometimes. A thought struck her a moment later though, "Do you read my mind?"
"No, I wouldn't do that without your knowledge." Rei said quickly, which received a nod in return. She didn't say anything for a few seconds, until they reached the block where Usagi lived and smiled, "Besides, I don't need to read your mind, I usually have a pretty good idea what you're thinking most of the time." She said and leaned her head down slightly and kissed her girlfriend on her cheek.
Usagi smiled at what she said, because there were moments when she just understood her. She didn't need any explanation. She looked forward as she began to say, "I would have said that you're bluffing, but I think I understand what you mean." She paused for a second as she tried to explain exactly what she meant by that statement, "Maybe not necessarily what you are thinking, more what you are feeling…I guess." She finished with her head tilted up to meet Rei's eyes, hoping that she understood what she meant or if perhaps she wasn't making any sense.
Rei nodded, "I think I do understand. In fact, I think that's why you are perfect for me." She finished with a smile before leaning over and kissing her cheek.
Usagi tugged on her girlfriend's hand and pulled her closer, "I'd say it's more than that to be honest." She practically whispered, laughing lightly at the end.
The raven haired girl laughed a little as well, "I guess that is true." She still wasn't the biggest fan of words like fate and destiny, as they were associated with her and Mamoru for so long, but she was feeling little better about them every day she spent with Usagi. She felt a pair of lips press to her cheek, making her look at her girlfriend, "What?"
"Just because, I love you." The blonde stated simply, smiling brightly at her.
Rei grinned happily as she said, "I love you too." She looked up and realized that they were nearly in front of the other girl's house, which was when she remembered something, "Oh there's something I should tell you. I know we talked about you staying over this weekend, so I just wanted you to know that Jii-chan is going to be out of town this weekend. It might be a good idea to probably keep that fact from your parents when you ask about staying over. I don't think they'll agree if they know that."
"So, it would just be the two of us together all weekend then?" Usagi asked, seemingly double checking that she heard her right.
"That's right." Rei answered with a nod. She looked to the side to see Usagi deep in thought. She expected her to be more excited at the prospect, but she found unease creeping into her mind, "That's okay, right? I didn't know he was going to be gone. It was a last minute thing, I didn't…"
"No, I wasn't thinking that at all, Rei." Usagi said quickly, cutting off the other girl. "I'm kind of happy to be able to spend time together with no chance of being interrupted. It'll be nice." She added before Rei could say anything else. She more than happy to be honest, she just couldn't help thinking about what they could do without worry of the other girl's grandfather seeing or hearing them. It made her even more determined to convince her parents to allow her to stay over at the shrine.
"What's with that look?" Rei asked, cocking her head to the side slightly.
"What? A girl can't be happy at the thought of a weekend alone with her girlfriend?" The blonde asked, a pout already beginning to form on her lips.
Rei laughed as she spoke, "No, not at all my Princess."
Usagi glared her hardest, though despite her best efforts it was hardly intimidating, "Then you should let your girlfriend have her fantasies."
"Fantasies? What type of fantasies?" Rei asked, not being able to stop herself. She could immediately see the effect of her question, as Usagi's face was rapidly turning red.
The blonde caught her girlfriend grinning at her, so she huffed loudly and turned away from her, "Why should I tell, if you're only going to tease me?"
Her smile didn't waver as she said, "It's alright you don't have to say. I'm sure I can exceed what it was anyway." She came to a stop as she finished, causing Usagi to do the same. The blonde looked at the raven haired girl and was about to speak when Rei stuck her tongue out. A moment later, she was being tugged lightly down the stone path leading to her home.
Usagi looked around dejectedly. She hadn't even realized that they'd already reached the end of their walk; she was also a little peeved that Rei had effectively won their non-argument argument. They stopped as they reached the front door. She felt Rei give her hand a squeeze, drawing her eyes up to her face.
"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" The raven hair said softly.
Usagi nodded before saying, "Yeah…"
Rei frowned slightly at her girlfriend's expression, "You're not upset are you?" She asked as she rubbed her thumb over the top of the other girl's hand.
"No…" The blonde mumbled softly and doing a poor job of being very convincing.
Something that Rei always loved about Usagi was her honesty, which consequently made her a terrible liar. She brought her free hand to her girlfriend's chin and tilted her head upwards slightly before leaning in and kissing her briefly. She smiled at the small smile Usagi gave her afterwards, "You know that I'm an expert when it comes to arguing with you, Usa." She said lightly and paused for a second before adding, "But I promise to give you one in the future." She said and brought her hand to her lips and kissed the top of it when she saw movement through the window of the house. She lowered their hands, but didn't let go as she whispered, "I think we are going to have company in a second."
Usagi looked over her shoulder as she heard the door being unlocked. She sighed softly before turning back to Rei, "I'll meet you at the shrine tomorrow."
"Are you sure? You don't want me to meet you here?" She asked quickly.
"It'll be fine." She said confidently as she felt Rei loosen her hold on her hand while the door creaked open behind her. Before could even take a step away, she spoke once more, "Rei?"
"Yeah?"
Usagi didn't say anything, instead she stepped closer to her kissed her girlfriend solidly on her lips as the door finally opened fully. Both girls stepped back at the clearing of a throat from someone within the house. Rei looked passed the other girl to see her girlfriend's mother. She could feel her cheeks warming immediately, so she turned her focus back to the blonde in front of her, "Good night, Usagi."
"Good night, Rei." Usagi said cheerfully and with a beaming smile.
The raven haired girl stepped down from the porch before stopping for a moment and hastily saying good night to Usagi's mother as well and receiving one in return. As she walked away, she had the distinct that Usagi did that on purpose to get her flustered. She couldn't help thinking that maybe she didn't really win then, but she shook her head at that thought because it really didn't matter either way.
"You did pretty amazing today." Hotaru said softly as they reached her room.
Chibi-Usa could feel her cheeks warm at the other girl's words, which caused her look down, "Thank you, but I really didn't do much. I only did what Mama told me to do."
"I don't think you give yourself enough credit." The dark haired girl said with a smile and opened the door in front of her, "I know I could not have mastered what Rei-san was showing you." She added as she walked inside.
The pink haired girl didn't say anything as she followed the other girl inside. She really didn't think that she did much today, it wouldn't be until she is forced to use an ofuda against an actual enemy that she would be able to be sure that she had really learned anything; not that she was eager to test that out though. She walked over to the bed in the room and sat on the edge, not really paying attention that she left the other girl in the middle of the room, as she was stuck in her own head.
Hotaru watched the time traveler for several seconds; she looked more downcast than she would have expected the other girl to be after everything today. She walked over to the other girl and touched her forearm as she reached her bed in order to her to get her attention, "You told me the other day that I need to let go of the guilt that I've been holding on to and I promise to continue working on that, but I would like to ask for something in return."
Chibi-Usa looked curiously at the other girl as she asked, "What is that?"
Hotaru smiled slightly and moved to sit down beside the other girl. She reached over and took her hands before speaking again, "I think I can say with some certainty that you could use a boost to your confidence, so I would like to be your cheerleader in that."
Chibi-Usa frowned a bit and tilted her head to the left slightly, "Cheer…leader?"
'Of course she wouldn't know what a cheerleader is…' Hotaru thought to herself, before giving a simplified explanation, "Umm, it's like a person that cheers for someone else to succeed." She didn't really need know about the skimpy outfits they traditionally wore, she told herself.
She took a moment to understand her meaning, she didn't wish to misinterpret what she was saying, but soon enough she was nodding, "I see, thank you. I'd be happy to have you be my cheerleader." She said with a smile.
Hotaru squeezed her hands slightly before saying, "I'm happy to help however I can."
Chibi-Usa stared the other girl as a smile spread across her lips and she couldn't help thinking that she really didn't do anything to deserve that bright smile to be directed at her, but she still wished to see it directed at her. She didn't want to do something foolish, so she let her eyes drop to their linked hands. She felt Hotaru loosen her hold, perhaps thinking that was what she desired because of her fixed gaze, but it was quite the opposite. She craved physical contact with her, she understood that clearly now and holding hands was a perfectly acceptable practice among friends, wasn't it? She quickly linked their fingers again, not allowing her to move away. After a few seconds, she squeezed the other girl's hand before speaking, "I didn't say it before, but I'm glad that you convinced me to remain here. While I truly miss my home, I am glad that I came here because I got to meet you." She said, looking up as she finished. She smiled with all the emotions she couldn't express verbally yet to the other girl.
The dark haired girl stared at the future Princess. She was happy to hear the future Princess say that, perhaps happier than she could properly express. It didn't matter what fate had in store for her, she felt the same. She was about to say as much when she felt another squeeze of her hands before the pink haired girl spoke again.
"Our meeting was destiny. I believe that with all of my heart and now that I know you, I will find you in the future, I promise." Chibi-Usa said, with as much confidence as she could because she truly meant it. It wasn't until she saw how the other girl's expression changed that she began to get concerned. She looked to be on the verge of crying so she quickly added, "Oh Gods, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up what the future. I'm so sorry." She released the other girl's hand then placed them in her lap. 'The last thing I wished to do was upset her…'
"No, it's not that." Hotaru said quickly and reached up to wipe away the wetness from her cheeks. It wasn't like she knew her thoughts when she returned her Heart Crystal to Mamoru and Usagi's daughter. She took a deep breath and blinked away any lingering tears before focusing on the girl beside her, she had her head down. "Hey…you don't have anything to apologize for."
Pink hair swung back and forth as she shook her head, "I always say something foolish…"
"You didn't say anything foolish. You spoke from your heart and that could never be foolish." Hotaru said honestly.
"But I upset you." Chibi-Usa said, finally looking up to meet the other girl's eyes.
Hotaru shook her head before saying, "That doesn't mean that there was anything foolish about what you said. I…I was just reminded about something."
"The other girl you knew from the future?" Chibi-Usa asked quietly.
She was a little surprised that she guessed what she was referring to so quickly, but given the emotions she's shown when it comes to her, perhaps it wasn't such a reach. "Yes. I'm sure any reminders of her will be difficult for me, but I can deal with that."
"I'm sorry." Chibi-Usa said and once again found herself looking away again.
"I don't want you to apologize. Your existence isn't anything to apologize for." Hotaru said before taking the other girl's hands, drawing her gaze back to her face. "You said that you were glad to have come to the past because you got to meet me, but it's really me who is grateful for this opportunity. I was so afraid that I'd never see you again. I know you aren't her exactly, but you are in all the ways that are important."
Chibi-Usa opened her mouth to speak, but shut it a moment later, instead choosing to nod. She still didn't trust herself to say something that she would later regret, especially if she spoke without thinking first. She was happy to hear the other girl say that she was glad to meet her as well, despite knowing that she would never be the girl she knew before. She didn't want her silence to make things awkward though, so she decided to ask something that she'd been thinking about, "May I hug you?"
Hotaru smiled slightly at the question before saying, "Of course."
The pink haired girl was the one to let go of her hands before shifting a little closer and wrapped her arms around the darker haired girl's upper body, tucking her head into her shoulder. Hotaru returned the embrace and found herself smiling a little wider. She would relish these moments because the future Princess' future was set and she was determined to keep it that way, while hers was far less certain.
Rei walked the same path she always took, so she was glad to not spot any suspicious cars following her. She didn't know what to expect. Would her warning be heeded? Thankfully it seemed that she successfully scared off that man at least, he struck her as cowardly anyway. There was always the possibility that her father would just have someone else do his dirty work, so she wasn't about to let her guard down. Everything was normal at least until she reached the street the Jinja.
She stopped and looked around for a moment. There was a dark energy nearby, but they did well to hide themselves. She closed her eyes as she tried to get a better feel for where the source was. She cursed under breath, 'Where the Hell are you?' She thought as she opened her eyes once more. It was weird because it felt as if she was surrounded, but there only seemed to be one source of energy, not multiple. She slowly reached for her transformation rod in her pocket but as soon as she did, her instincts told her that she needed to move and fast.
Rei quickly dove forward, narrowly avoiding a red pole type weapon being thrown where she stood before. She rolled into a crouch and stared at the weapon embedded in the ground, but it didn't stay there long as it disappeared a moment later. She stood up slowly and looked around. Whoever it was that she felt, they were closer than she would have guessed, but the dark energy that they radiated was unmistakable. Before she could pinpoint their exact location a voice spoke, giving it away.
"I would have been annoyed if after all my searching you were just a regular mortal."
Rei turned towards where the voice came from, already reaching into her pocket for her transformation rod again. "Who are you?" She asked quickly as took hold of object she was seeking.
"A reasonable question." The noticeably feminine voice answered back.
A moment later a woman leapt down from what had to have been the nearby tree, she landed in crouch and the first thing that Rei noticed about her was flaming red hair that was pulled back in a high ponytail. As she rose to her feet, Rei could hear the distinct groan of leather armor, making her grip the rod in her hand a little tighter, "So, are you going to answer my question?"
The corner of her lips gave a small twitch upward before she spoke, "Of course your Majesty, I am called Bixbite."
Rei's eyes narrowed at what she referred to her as, 'If she is calling me that, she must be from the future.' There was nothing to make her a target, not directly at least. They've sought out her daughter for reasons she didn't know, but she was nowhere. 'This woman was looking for me…that makes her different than the others they previously encountered…' Rei kept a calm expression as she asked, "What do you want?"
"I would very much like to kill you, if possible." The redhead said with a smile as she held her hand off to the side. Within seconds that same red weapon, which she could see clearly now was a lance, quickly formed in her hand. Rei didn't wait for her to make the first move again as she wasn't sure that she'd be able to successfully dodge any attack at this close range. She didn't even remove her crystal rod from her pocket as she called out her phrase to transform.
"Mars Crystal Power, Make up!"
As the light of her transformation faded, Mars saw the tip of the woman's weapon being thrust toward her face. She quickly ducked and swept her leg out at the other woman's legs, but she jumped over the counter. She spun her lance a moment later before stabbing it at Mars as she was still crouched down. Mars dove to her left, again narrowly avoided being pierced. As soon as she was out of immediate danger, she performed a backflip, to give herself a little distance from the woman.
Mars stared at her opponent as she pulled her weapon out of the ground, "Not even going give me a chance to warmup then?"
"That was a warmup. And you're still alive, so be glad for that." Bixbite said and spun her red lance in her hand once again.
"I'm going to assume if I ask you to get rid of that weapon that you won't?" Mars asked, all the while watching her cautiously.
The red haired woman laughed at the suggestion, while Mars had the thought to separate her from the object, but then she recalled how the weapon acted when she was first attacked with it. 'She probably has control over it even when she isn't in possession of it.' She thought begrudgingly. Before she could come up with a real strategy, she saw the woman charging her again. She cursed under her breath and stepped back before summoning flames to her hands and forming a circle of fire in the air.
"Burning Mandala!"
Mars pointed her hand at the other woman, making several smaller rings of fire shoot out of larger one she'd just made. She watched as the woman darted from left to right, even when one of her attacks looked to ready to hit its mark, she swung her weapon at it and knocked it to the side where it hit the ground harmlessly.
'I guess that's not strong enough.' She thought with a sigh before she again found herself needing to dodge the red lance. Even as she weaved around each attempted strike, she got the distinct impression that this woman was toying with her-almost like she was holding back. It made no sense if her intention was to kill her, pulling punches wasn't how to go about that. At the next stab of her weapon, Mars reached up and quickly grabbed the pole of the weapon, just below the sharpened tip, "Enough." Mars tightened her grip when she felt the other woman try to pull it out of her grasp. With a glare Mars added, "What do you hope to achieve?"
The only answer she received was an arrogant smirk, 'Fine.' She thought before pushing the weapon back, away from herself and leaping into the air. As she gained momentum, she performed a backflip and summoned her flaming bow to her hands as was still in midair.
"Mars Flame Sniper!"
She quickly pulled back the string and let loose an arrow even before her feet touched back to the ground. 'That'll hit the mark.' She thought to herself as she watched the fiery arrow sail towards its target, but the redhead didn't seem very worried because as soon as the arrow was close enough, she simply twirled her weapon in her hand and a high rate of speed, deflecting the attack into the sky.
"This isn't the power you used to overmatch Morganite!" Bixbite called out in anger.
Mars stared at her for a couple seconds before asking, "So are you here for revenge or something?" As soon as she finished her question, the redhead practically doubled over in laughter. Mars frowned at her reaction, not expecting that at all.
"Revenge is the last thing on my mind." She said when her laughter died down. She cracked her neck to the side and said, "Let's make this a little more interesting…" The red haired woman said before pointing her weapon towards the sky, "Kōjin's Fire."
As the words left her mouth, an energy swirled around the weapon's tip before gaining a more definite form. A ball took shape for moment until she pierced it, making it explode in a bright red light, forcing Mars to shield her eyes for a moment. When she recovered she saw that the woman had her weapon again pointed at her. She smirked and an instant later, Mars saw a flash of something, but before she could react she felt something strike her in the chest. Mars was pushed back and felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her. She touched her chest and hissed in pain, making her look down. She could see a small, maybe quarter-sized dark mark on her skin a little above her bow.
She saw that same flash that she saw before and before she react, she again felt a pain in her shoulder making her groan in pain. She didn't need to look see any evidence of an attack this time, instead she glared at her attacker, but she only smirked, while continuing to hold her weapon, almost as one would hold a rifle. 'That's what it is then…' She thought and quickly leaned forward, touching the ground even as saw another flash of red.
"Fire Wall!"
Almost immediately a wall of fire surrounded her and even through the roar of fire she could hear projectiles hit it, but they didn't penetrate her defense at least. She grimaced as she stood up, 'They are like little bullets almost.' Mars thought and rubbed her shoulder gingerly. After a few seconds, she no longer heard anything hitting the fiery barrier separating them as she likely realized that none of her attacks were penetrating her defense.
"You intend to hide from me like a coward?!"
Mars scoffed at the suggestion, "Hardly." She said under her breath before dispelling the fire. "If you really came to me seeking a fight, put that stick down and fight me properly."
Bixbite stared at Mars for a few seconds before her weapon disappeared from her hand, "Fight me as you did Morganite."
Mars glared her, hearing her demand, but still nodded her head slightly. She had no intention of using that power, unless it was absolutely necessary as she hadn't even done a test to determine if the ofuda would be effective, but she couldn't remain defensive this entire fight. That was a sure fire way to run out of energy and that would likely cost her, her life. She rolled her shoulder for a moment before entering her fighting stance, "Let's see what you've got."
The red head quickly pointed her hand at her and moments later a flash of red followed immediately by a wave of fire. Mars' eyes widened as she saw the fire rapidly flying towards her and quickly brought her hands together in an attempt to counter to attack.
"Fire Soul!"
Her own fire sailed at the oncoming attack, but even as it struck the attack, it had no effect, the fire kept coming. She quickly put her arms up as a last ditch defense. As soon as the attack struck her she could feel the force of it pushing her back even as she tried to hold her ground. She could feel the heat and despite her efforts, she was finally thrown back, her gloved hands singed black. She righted herself before colliding with the ground, landing in a crouch.
"So you use fire attacks too." Mars said as she stood up fully, dusting herself off a little. She could honestly say that she felt as though she could do nothing but stay on the defensive. She wasn't used to being in this position and she didn't like how limited she was. Her options were pretty small though and she wasn't sure that she was prepared to test using that energy; she was hoping for a more controlled environment. That really meant that her best option was to call the others for help at this point. She summoned her communicator to her hand and quickly turned the device on, intending to send a distress signal to everyone, as that would be quickest, but she saw a flash of red before a searing pain in her forearm forced her to drop the circular device.
She looked down and saw a large cut that stretched most of her forearm. She quickly tried to stem the blood flow with her other hand, wincing as she applied pressure. 'I didn't even see her move…' She thought as she was forced to realize something else, 'This might not be someone I should try to fight on my own…' Mars thought and pulled her hand away from the cut on her forearm. She grimaced before she looked over to her communicator on the ground; it was unlikely that she would be given the opportunity to get the device, let alone use it. But there was something else that she could try…the only question was if she could hold her concentration long enough while fighting this woman. Still, she needed to try; Usagi was the only one she could hope to reach. She hadn't tried this in this lifetime, not consciously at least.
"You won't be contacting anyone else." Bixbite stated as she stepped over the circular device lying on the ground, kicking it in the opposite direction of Mars.
Mars gritted her teeth as she heard the metal device skid down the street, "Fine." She said simply and reentered her fighting stance. 'The only way she'll be forced to give me time is if I attack her first.' She thought and charged her opponent. Even as she ran at the other woman, she mentally sought out Usagi…
"Usagi…Usagi…I really hope you can hear me. My communicator is out of my reach and I could use some back up. I'm close to the jinja, find me. Please…"
As soon as she finished that thought, she was forced to bring her hand up to block the woman's weapon as she saw her swinging it down. She hissed in pain as the pole connected with her previously injured forearm. Before Mars could make another move, she was kicked soundly in the chest, forcing her to let go of the woman's weapon and knocking her back several feet.
"Show me the power you used to defeat Morganite. That is the reason I came here, so show me!" Bixbite yelled and thrust her weapon forward.
Mars sidestepped the attack and grabbed the pole before she could fully retract it. She held on tightly in an effort to keep her close as she performed a roundhouse kick, but the red haired woman simply raised her free hand and block the attempted strike. Bixbite pointed her free hand and Mars' chest and in an instant she was struck by a burst of fire, once again throwing her back. She was less prepared for this attack, as it sent her to the ground roughly, knocking the wind out of her.
She held her chest as she coughed while forcing herself to stand again. She could feel half of the bow on her chest was missing and glanced down to see the singed end of it was all that remained. 'I guess trying to stop her from using that weapon hasn't worked out too well.' She thought to herself.
"Why do you refuse to show me your power?" The redhead asked as she looked down at the solider of flames with spite. She balled her free hand into a fist as she began to speak again, "Am I unworthy? Or do you really think you can defeat me at this level?" She began to pace for a moment before she came to a stop and glared at Mars, "Allow me to get serious then."
Mars' eyes widened as she felt the woman's aura. She had thought this woman was holding back and now she knew that was undoubtedly the case. She was barely able to keep up with her before; what would she be able to do now? She clearly wasn't going to be given much time to think about that as the woman was charging her. Mars quickly entered a defensive stance as the red head leapt into the air and swung down her weapon. Mars raised her arms above her head and blocked the blow, but that left the rest of her body open, which was simply like an invitation to the other woman.
Bixbite quickly kicked Mars in the midsection and sent her backwards. The senshi of flames dropped to a knee and gasped for breath, but it seemed unlike before, she wasn't going to be given the time to recover as she saw the woman lunging at her with her lance in hand. Mars raised her arm to deflect it away from her body when it disappeared from left hand, only to reappear in her right hand almost instantly. Before Mars could even generate any defense, she felt the tip pierce her left shoulder, sending her to the ground with the other woman on top of her. Mars screamed as she felt the woman push her weapon in deeper, even as she grabbed at it with her other arm. She was effectively pinned to the ground, as the redhead was crouched over her with a firm grip on her weapon.
"Pitiful." She said and twisted her weapon slightly, making Mars' hand drop from where it was holding the lance from going any further into her shoulder and bit her lip to stop another scream from passing her lips. With her unoccupied hand, she reach out and wrapped her fingers around Mars' throat, "I came all this way for nothing." She sneered and tightened her fingers.
Mars gasped for breath and frantically tried to pull her hand away from her throat. Bixbite made and annoyed noise before pushing her lance harder into the senshi. Mars tried to cry out as the woman pushed it deeper into her shoulder, but it came out as more of a feeble whimper. The redhead did seem to take that as Mars wishing to speak though.
"Did you have some last words then, your Majesty?" Bixbite asked before loosening her grip.
Mars took a deep breath as she was finally given some access to air again, but before she said anything, she held her hand out to the side and summoned a paper to it. She coughed a couple times before she could get any words out, but even before she did, she made sure to glare at the woman holding her down, "Th-This isn't how I would have liked to try this for the first time, but…" She mid-sentence as she felt four new presences appear seemingly out of nowhere and while they felt strong, she didn't recognize them immediately, so she was pretty sure they weren't her friends.
Bixbite looked at her strangely, at least until she heard something cutting through the wind and growing closer to her. She looked over her shoulder and down the street, when a bright white arrow appeared to be sailing right for her. She made a disapproving noise before angrily pulling her weapon out of Mars' shoulder, making the fire senshi groan in pain. She quickly twirled her lance in her hand and deflected the white arrow into the sky. She continued to stare in the direction the attack came from for a moment before saying, "So, you brats are here too?"
As soon as she finished her question, four balls on energy flew at the red head. Each ball was a different color, blue, red, green, and pink. Bixbite cussed under her breath and quickly moved to dodge the attacks, forcing her to create some distance between her and Mars. The senshi of fire kept one eye on her red haired attacker, but she also tried to figure out who just showed up. She didn't have to wait long as suddenly, four Sailor Senshi made their presences known, walking up to the battlefield together. "We were sent to locate our Princess, but it seems we found you first. Seeing that you are here, that just means we need to eliminate you first because you are a threat to our Princess."
The red haired woman laughed at the pink haired girl, "I don't give a damn about her. I'm here to fight her." She said pointed at Mars.
The pink haired Sailor Senshi glanced in Mars' direction for a moment, just as she was making it to her feet again. The pink haired senshi placed her hand over her bow, or more than likely her heart before saying, "You'll have to forgive us for not bowing your Highness, but it would not be wise to give this woman an opening."
Mars held her hand over her injured shoulder and stared at the four unfamiliar Senshi, though not entirely unfamiliar girls. 'Amazoness Quartet…?' Mars took a couple steps towards them, "I don't understand…"
"Please forgive me, we were told you wouldn't really know us in this time." The pink haired one began to explain, but paused for a moment, giving one of the other girls an opportunity to speak.
"We are charged with guarding your daughter, Small Lady." The one with red hair said, speaking for the first time.
"We should probably wait for proper introductions though." The girl with green hair said this time.
"Yep! We can't let our Princess' Mama get hurt, Palla!" The blue haired girl exclaimed.
"Her Highness, Palla." The pink haired girl corrected gently.
The blue haired girl blushed noticeably at being admonished, but still looked at Mars as she said, "I'm sorry, your Highness. Palla…" She bowed her head as she whispered her last word.
Mars opened her mouth to speak, but her attacker choose that moment to make herself known again, "As entertaining as all this is, may we continue?"
The pink haired senshi ignored the other woman for a moment and addressed Mars again, "If you'll allow it, we would be honored to lend you our strength in this fight."
While she still didn't fully know what to make of these 4 four girls, former enemies really, the girl's offer of assistance felt sincere and it was honestly much needed, so she would be foolish to refuse the help-at least until friends arrived. "Sure." She said simply. She could tell that these girls did possess some strength and if they were who they said they were, there was a good shot that things may have turned in her favor.
This time the pink haired girl did bow, "Thank you, your Highness." She said quickly and looked at the three senshi around her before nodding her head at each girl. A moment later, Mars found herself flanked by two senshi on her left side and two on her right side. "Quartet, our honor as Sailor Senshi is on the line, so let's end this threat here."
End ch25
So, I'm back with another installment. I am sorry about the delay, I've just been dealing with some things in my personal life, but I'm glad to be back with another chapter.
There were a number of things that happened in this chapter that I've been waiting to get to. Of course one of those things being someone's return, though it was brief in this chapter LOL. I kind of gave Chibi-Usa Hotaru's line about their meeting being destined LOL, I couldn't help myself there. They continue to be very fun to write. If it wasn't clear enough after the last battle, the Sailor Senshi are currently a bit outmatched, but I have a plan around that ;) It's been a while since I had Rei lose handedly, so that was kind of fun to write.
If you have time, I'd appreciate any and all comments!
Lastly, thank you again to doggysmoo for beta-ing this :D