Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing or Sailor Moon. I am also drinking heavily while typing this (for creative purposes).
Chapter 36
It was a familiar site, the group found themselves once again standing outside Mugen Academy, but this time, something seemed more ominous. It was colder, snowing, and the people surrounding them seemed to be somewhat oblivious to everything surrounding them.
"Wow, everyone here sure is studious aren't they?" asked Usagi.
Rei, being one not to shy away from an opportunity to embarrass Usagi took advantage, "Unlike someone we know."
This comment of course sent Usagi into another verbal tirade with Rei, which fell on deaf ears to the students still cramming for the upcoming exam to be taken at Mugen.
Heero meanwhile stood expressionless while inadvertently doing a very good job blending in with the students as he stared at the creepy building before him. His attention shifted to the student handbook that he clasped in his hand, which was also the sole reason of bringing the group back to the academy in the first place.
"Lulu Teluno, also known as Telulu of the Death Busters." Said Ami.
Heero stared at the student handbook that was brought before him. The cover had the insignia of Mugen on it, and the inside was the personal identification of one Lulu Teluno.
"Where did you get this?" asked Heero
"Usagi was ambushed by this person in a plant shop yesterday," answered Makoto, "The said woman was defeated by her own creation but this was dropped by her before she disappeared."
Minako spoke up, "This academy has an exam today so it would be the perfect opportunity to sneak into the exam site and gather some more information."
And so here they were, back to the original place of suspicion. Heero once again looked at the tall building. It seemed way too big for a simple academy and the building gave off an eerie feeling that just didn't sit right with him. Even the atmosphere around the building was bad. It was dark, cold and snowing.
"Hey Heero," said Minako, "if you stayed here, you could get into this school."
Makoto laughed in agreement, "Yeah it seems like you'd fit right in with the people."
Heero took that as a backhanded compliment. Yeah he may be smart enough to get in the school, but he didn't really want to be grouped with the other student hopefuls. True he might be quiet, cold, and a little…okay extremely antisocial. But at least, in his mind, he wasn't quite as disturbing as the students here. He actually saw a boy sweat while merely reading his book…in snowy weather.
Eventually the group made their way inside the halls of the schools. The insides were also full of students cramming for the tests. The design inside of the school was just as plain as the outside. No decorations, no paint, no color, it was nothing but stone and gray wall.
"This place sucks! If I knew that it was going to be this dull in here I would have stayed behind with Quatre!"
"Usagi," chided Rei, "did you really expect this place to be decorated with bunnies and little animals and bright colors?"
"No! But at the very least paint the wall something other than having it be out of stone!"
Heero spoke up, "Quatre is researching this place for us back at the apartment. If you were with him I have a feeling he wouldn't get anything done."
Although Heero meant that seriously and didn't mean for it to come out sounding like he was making fun of her, it sure came out that way. The other girls laughed while Usagi fumed.
"Excuse me," a voice called out, "are you Ami Mizuno?"
A girl with sky blue hair approached the group. She seemed to have an almost regal disposition to her going by the way she seemed to carry herself. Ami didn't know who she was and had no idea why anyone would address her since she wasn't really an acquaintance of anyone there.
"So you're the girl who always gets top marks across the nation."
"Um, and you are?" asked Ami.
"I am Yui Bidoh," the girl responded, "I am the one who scored a perfect score along with you."
Usagi jumped in although she had no business in the conversation, "Ah! You're the one who got a perfect score with Ami-chan!"
"Oh, who are you? Are you a friend of Miss Mizuno?"
Usagi laughed, "I really don't have a name worth remembering!"
"If you are one of Miss Mizuno's friends, you must be very studious."
The rest of the girls snickered. Even Heero thought that was a bit funny. Usagi turned and glared at them.
"So what are you best subjects?"
A flustered Usagi burned bright red, "Naps…and lunch."
"You're so witty."
Minako pushed Heero to the front of the group. She wanted to show off that their entire group wasn't quite as air headed as Usagi. Of course part of her wanted to show off that she hung out with not only one but two super-intelligent people. "This guy here would have scored perfect as well but he didn't take the exam!"
Heero didn't want to become part of the subject. He hates it when attention is focused on him but of course the girls do things their own way so what choice did he have? "Heero Yui." He really didn't want to talk to such a haughty girl.
"Hey!" exclaimed Usagi, "Heero your last name is the same as her first name!"
Heero looked at Yui and in return he received a devilish smirk. Something didn't sit right with him. She seemed very familiar however he couldn't quite put his finger on where he might have seen her. "Oh! Miss Mizuno," said Yui refocusing her attention on Ami, "this is the perfect opportunity! I want to show you something that will help with your studies." Yui forcefully grabbed Ami's hand and dragged her away from the rest of the group.
"I'm not spending my entire adolescence studying! There is more than that during these trying years!" said a miffed Usagi.
"Usagi I like your resolve, but now we have to explore this building." Said Minako reminding Usagi of their original goal. The group split up, which was fine with Heero. He preferred to work alone anyway. Sneaking around with any of those girls would be like James Bond trying to sneak into a Russian compound while eating pop rocks and having frying pans tied to his feet.
Unbeknownst to Usagi and the others, two others had also infiltrated the academy.
"Do you feel that strange energy Michiru?"
"Yes," she replied while looking out of a window into the landscape of Tokyo being silently covered in snow, "it certainly is an ominous force."
"So we'll go down then and investigate THAT room in the basement this time?"
"Right, lets tear away this veil of mystery that surrounds this school."
Meanwhile Ami had been lead to a strange room and was being shown an incredible device by Yui. "This is?"
"A greenhouse model of the universe. I made it in science club. What you see now is the Tau Nebula."
'Tau Nebula?' Ami had never heard of such a place.
"This school is divided into five curriculums. They are science, entertainment, physical, business, and philosophy. Along with the regular instructors, superior students are also allowed to become lecturers. I am the lecturer of the science class"
"What? Students can teach classes?"
"Yes, anyone who is intelligent enough can become a lecturer, that is the good thing about this academy."
"But being intelligent doesn't automatically make you a good teacher." Ami protested.
"Oh?"
"To be a teacher, doesn't one have to understand the students who have poor grades as well?"
Yui laughed, "Miss Mizuno, you're pretty idealistic. Science is all about logic. Feelings don't have anything to do with it."
"Science needs the emotion of human hearts for it to work!"
"This doesn't sound like something the highest scoring student in the nation should say. But for now, the exams are about to start. Please feel free to look around Miss Mizuno." Yui left the room while chuckling to herself. A worried expression painted Ami's face as she watched Yui go.
Heero circumvented the halls of the academy looking for anything useful. Other than the students hurrying to the exam room, he really didn't see anything too out of the ordinary. "Hey did you hear?" said one prospect Heero walked passed, "The science club is experimenting with nano-machines!"
Heero immediately stopped. 'Nano-machines?'
"Really?" responded his friend.
"Yeah, it seems its one of the few places in the world that possesses the technology! I really want to work with them!"
It suddenly became clear to Heero why that girl was so familiar. She was the same one who killed the woman he was questioning and also the same one who nearly killed him. "Damn!" Heero cursed as he immediately started sprinting through the halls. "Ami is in danger!"
Michiru and Haruka looked anxiously at the door in front of them. Hesitantly they swallowed their fear and entered the room. Inside was a plan chamber where at the center was a raised platform surrounded by balloons and other stuffed animals. In the middle of the platform sat the figure of one Hotaru Tomoe.
"The Messiah of Silence!" exclaimed Michiru.
"She's been here all along!"
The duo rushed forward determining to finally end their mission.
"Wait!"
"Ami-chan?" Michiru asked after seeing the source of the voice.
"Don't hurt that girl! Hotaru is just being used by the death busters!"
"That type of idealism will get us all killed!" replied a defiant Haruka. Ami took no chances with the two and quickly ran to position herself between Hotaru and the ones that had come to kill her.
Haruka was starting to get angry, "Get out of the way!" Ami had no intention of doing so. At the entrance to the chamber, another person appeared. It was none other than Yui Bidoh.
"What are you doing here?" Yui asked, "This place is off limits." Yui looked at each of the three girls and grinned evilly, "Haruka Tenoh, Michiru Kaioh, Mizuno Ami. You three are acting suspicious."
Yui quickly tore off her high school uniform to show to the three her true identity-Viluy of the Death Busters. Haruka and Michiru quickly turned to run at Hotaru but was quickly stopped by a blast from Viluy's mosaic buster.
"Run!" Haruka screamed at Ami as she was paralyzed on the ground.
"I can' leave you here!"
Viluy laughed, "That kind of idealistic thinking will get you killed!" She proceeded to fire another blast of a mosaic buster at Ami who dove out of the way. The wayward blast popped some of the balloons near Hotaru.
Ami quickly used the missed shot to turn into Sailor Mercury. Viluy had a look of genuine surprise on her face as she witnessed the transformation directly in front of her.
"What? Ami Mizuno is a Sailor Senshi!?"
"Guarded by the planet of water Mercury, I am Sailor Mercury!"
"Shut up! I am not going to allow you to interfere! Die with these two!"
Another mosaic buster was shot at Ami who countered the blast with her own Shine Aqua Illusion. All the nano-machines were frozen solid and fell to the ground. Ami smiled triumphantly.
"Don't get so cocky!" declared Viluy who pushed a button on her wrist bracer. The nano-machines that were frozen quickly broke out of the ice and every single one of them darted onto Sailor Mercury's body.
"Does that hurt?" Viluy asked while Sailor Mercury screamed in pain, "Right now my nano-machines and digging into your body and biting away at it trying to break your body down at the molecular level. Soon there will be nothing left of you but your pure heart!"
Viluy was so enamored in her apparent victory that she didn't even realize the figure behind her quickly running as fast as he could until he planted his foot right into the small of her back.
"AAAHH!" Viluy cried out in pain. Her body tumbled across the ground and finally stopped against a wall which gave her opportunity to see her assailant.
"You!"
"I knew that I had recognized you before. It seems this time we can finally finish what we started."
"Heero!" exclaimed Ami.
"Michiru!" Haruka called out after seeing that Heero's kick seemed to have broken their paralysis. The two quickly used that opportunity to transform into their respective alter egos.
"You too!?"
Uranus and Neptune didn't even give her time to realize her situation.
"World Shaking!"
"Deep Submerge!"
Both attacks landed on their target. Viluy screamed in as the energy blasts overwhelmed her. Heero approached the Death Buster as she was trying to recover.
"I hope you realize your situation. You are hopelessly outnumbered." Indeed he was right. For behind Heero, the other four inner senshi were standing in the entranceway. Viluy had no other choice now to turn this into a hostage situation.
"Don't move!" she yelled as she refocused her attention on Sailor Mercury. "If you move, her entire body will be consumed before your very eyes!"
Sailor Mercury screamed once more as the nano-machines had apparently began to eat away at her body again.
"Now get into one group!" ordered Viluy.
"Now Uranus!" yelled Neptune as they quickly turned towards Hotaru. Just as they were about to use their respective attacks their bodies became paralysed again.
"Did you forget you fools? My blaster hit you both! The machines are still within you as well!" Viluy smiled and addressed the rest of the group, "Now get into a small group, I won't say that again."
The girls and Heero slowly made their way into the middle of the chamber and gathered close together. Heero cursed at the fact that he didn't bring his firearm with him due to the fact that there was an exam here. He didn't expect to engage anyone.
"What do we do!?" asked a fretting Sailor Venus.
"Usagi," said Heero.
"Hmm?"
"That bracer on her left arm. That controls the nano-machines. I need you to hit it with your attack."
"Okay but how?"
"I'll act as live bait."
"Ehh?"
"I'm going to act like I'm going to attack Hotaru. She'll have no choice but to try and stop me. When she extends her arm to fire, that is when you will need to attack too."
Sailor Jupiter disagreed, "Heero that's dangerous! You could get killed."
"I know. So realize this. I am entrusting my life in your hands. I have faith that you can do this."
The other Sailor Senshi were all shocked. The Heero they knew would never put his life in someone else's hands. Sailor Moon felt a knew sense of determination within her.
"I got it. I'll act on your move."
"Get ready then."
Heero darted away from the group and made a dead sprint towards Hotaru. He pulled a small knife out of his pocket to make himself look more threatening.
"You! What do you think you're doing!?" shouted Viluy as she extended her arm to fire her mosaic buster.
"Now Sailor Moon!"
"Rainbow Moon Heart Ache!" Sailor Moon called out. Her attack hit right on target but didn't seem to do any visible damage to the bracer.
"Enough!" snarled Viluy, "I have had enough of all of you! Everyone here will die!" Viluy pointed her bracer at Sailor Moon and fired. This time however, instead of the blast jetting towards Sailor Moon, it swirled around Viluy.
"What's going on! Nano-robots you're attacking the wrong target!"
Viluy cried out in agony as her own robots began to dissolve her body. Viluy's body contorted and twisted ash she attempted to fight off her own creations. The others could only look on in silence.
"It's because you created such cold machines." Ami said sadly.
Viluy's body soon faded away into nothing leaving behind nothing but her bracer. Ami slowly walked over and picked it up, "Poor girl."
The ground began to shake and the room started to tremble.
"What's going on?" Sailor Mars frantically asked.
"Sailor Senshi." Said a sinister voice.
The group looked at Hotaru who had an evil grin on her face.
"The battle has just begun!" A large portal materialized behind Hotaru and her chair floated up into the air. A vile laugh echoed throughout the chamber as she disappeared through the vortex.
"Hotaru!" Sailor Moon yelled.
"Ami," said Haruka, "we could have finished this whole thing but you stopped us."
Ami cast her eyes downward.
"But," continued Michiru, "it was because of your idealism that our lives were saved so for today, we thank you."
"Yeah!" exclaimed Ami.
Heero walked over to Ami and put his hand on her shoulder.
"I'm glad your alright." Said Heero which caused Ami to slightly blush, "But next time when you're investigating a place that might be the headquarters of your enemy, don't go running off with those who dwell in there by yourself."
The others laughed and Ami blushed more, "R-right."
TBC
Don't get a job. Stay in college as long as you can. That's all I can say.
Bad thing about taking too long to update, fans of your story become disinterested or forget about it.
Good thing about taking too long to update, you get people who have never seen your story before. So for those of you who may have just marathoned all 37 chapters, thank you and for the love of God, rest your eyes.