Divinity: Fates and the Afterlife
Chapter Twenty Two
Things had been strange for the past few days at the hospital. Ami noticed Motoki was more occupied with many cases than usual. The E.R. had more movement than usual with too many people injured and too many people in some sort of crisis. But the strangest for Ami was that Mamoru was barely seen giving his rounds with patients in the hospital like he usually did and when she caught a glimpse of him walking around the hallways he always had a serious face or was in a hurry, leaving her without any chance to say hello.
Another break she thought as she made her way to the nurse's station on the fifth floor to take another case to assist, hopeful to see her friends, she asked one of the nurses for one of the schedule charts and sighed with slight disappointment when she saw there was no opening for her to assist any of them.
"Something troubling your mind?" The nurse asked Ami. The bluenette smiled at her and gave the chart back "No, I was just checking if I got to assist any of the doctors on this floor."
"Things have been pretty busy lately, don't you think?" Sukutchi Akita, a woman in his mid 30's asked the young doctor "But also, things have pretty tense—especially for Dr. Chiba." The comment caught Ami's attention and leaned forward on the large nurse's booth "What do you mean?"
The nurse took a deep breath and hesitated to continue, thinking if her telling the young doctor what was happening could bring her trouble. Ami tilted her head and shook it softly in reassurance, "Don't worry Sukutchi-san, I won't say anything."
Akita exhaled a puff of air in relief and leaned forward too and looked both sides to make sure nobody could overhear their conversation before continuing, "The board has been stepping on Chiba-san's heels since you know—the incident that happened days ago."
Ami widened her eyes "W-What?! W-Why!?"
The nurse shrugged her shoulders and gave Ami a worried look, "I don't know exactly but rumor has it that they are considering a case of bad praxis due to what happened with the patient—it was very disturbing, I saw it—the body."
Ami shook her head, still shocked "T-That's not possible, how could they think that of him?" The nurse pursed her lips and shook her head, joining the bluenette's train of confusion "That's the word around this floor. I can't believe it either," Ami asked for the chart again and gave it a quick glance, her blue eyes trying to find his name on some dotted line but it looked like he hadn't shown for work that day, "Do you know if he's here now?"
"In a meeting, actually," Akita answered softly, it was no secret for her that they had a close relationship, but unlike what many would suspect she was one of the few nurses if not the only one that knew she was best friends with him and his girlfriend. Ami sighed and looked down to see Motoki's name written under the now famous dotted line indicating that he was somewhere around, "Furuhata-san, where is he now?"
"Here," a soft, warm voice startled her and made her jolt in surprise, "Motoki-kun!" Motoki smiled at her and gave some papers to Akita to archive in the patient's chart and archive, "This patient will be released in a couple of hours—I just gave my approval."
The nurse nodded and turned to work on her computer, allowing the two of them to have a more private conversation. Ami looked at her friend with deep worry and shook her head, still wanting everything to be just a rumor, "Motoki, is it true? Mamoru is under investigation?"
Motoki blew his long, sandy blonde bangs and motioned Ami to follow him to a more secluded area "So, you heard," he frowned and looked back at the station, "Who told you? Ah, never mind—Sukutchi-san had to do with it—I see."
"Please don't tell her anything—I asked," Ami defended the nurse. Motoki sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose as he continued walking "Well, she is not wrong but, that is not the whole truth to this situation."
"Then, what is?" Ami frowned. Motoki waved his hand and motioned her to follow him to the cafeteria, "Have some time?" Ami nodded "Yes, of course."
He got a cup coffee for himself and Ami and sat on the farthest table around. He took a sip of his hot beverage and sighed heavily; it was very unusual to see the always cheerful and playful Motoki in full seriousness and showing genuine concern this time, for his best friend. "He is under investigation, yes." he started and took another sip of his coffee, "But due to the complexity of the case—not every day you get to see a man that just explodes from the inside out."
"But are they really judging him for bad praxis?" Ami looked at him worried, her fingers still curled around her warm cup of coffee, "You know he is far from being bad at his job."
"Very far," Motoki furrowed his brows as he swallowed another sip of his hot beverage, "He's good, very good, but the board wants to see beyond his impeccable reputation. They want proof of what he is alleging that happened—he will come out of this with success, don't worry." He sighed and looked down at his styrofoam cup for a minute, hesitant to even ask what he already knew, "Ami-chan, is this..." he paused and looked at her again "One of those cases..."
Ami widened her eyes and blinked, "W-What?"
"You know what I am talking about," he leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms "Remember I know who you are—or where, some years back."
Ami pressed her lips tight and exhaled softly with a shrug, "We are looking into it but we want to discard and prevent that possibility—at all costs."
"And what if it is related to something beyond of our control?" Motoki frowned. Ami looked at him with a serious face "Well, then we will have to do something about it." Somehow, the answer was something Motoki did not want to hear, not now and probably not ever, because he knew what it meant. Shaking his head, he sighed, "It is perfectly clear to me that you are not just normal people—I get it and I think it's awesome. Since you broke into the arcade and well, used it as a secret base I thought you were amazing for doing what you did. You started this whole thing from a very young age—you were 14 years old for goodness sake!"
Ami chuckled at the comment and nodded with amazement at the mention of their ages, accepting that they did start to live different lives at a very young age, "I know."
"I know Mamoru is involved too—I've seen things he does that a normal human being can't do and again, I think it's amazing." Motoki bit her lip "But he is my friend and since I met him back when he started dating Usagi-chan I knew he and I had a lot in common despite the age gap. He is special to me and I know that whatever happened that day and whatever is happening now is not his fault," he frowned slightly and shook his head, "This whole situation didn't happen just out of the blue, you know?"
Ami frowned "What do you mean?"
Motoki took another sip of his coffee and furrowed his brows "Somebody put a complaint on the case and pointed his finger at Mamoru."
Ami widened her eyes and pulled back on the table with shock written all over her face, "What?! Who could do such a thing?"
Motoki shrugged his shoulders "Got me. I haven't had a chance to speak to him yet—for the last few days, from the minute he gets here, he goes to have an audience with the medical board. By the time I end my shift, he either is gone or consulting a patient," he bit his lip "How is Usagi-chan?"
"She is—excited." Ami looked at him then sighed, "Frustrated, worried."
"Because the wedding is in a few days," Motoki said softly and clicked his tongue "I don't blame her. She must be worried sick about her fiancé's situation."
Ami chuckled softly, startling the man "What?" Ami looked at him "Do you really think he is going to tell her any of this on the eve of their wedding? Is Mamoru we are talking about here, the less he can worry her, the better for him."
Motoki widened his eyes, the way Ami had evolved these past few years still surprised him. It had been a long way since he met the studious, shy little girl to the young and beautiful brave doctor sitting in front of him. Her personality had become more confident, she was still a shy girl in many things but she could take any challenge put in front of her without any hesitation and excel at it. Maybe it had been the many battles they all faced during their younger years that made them mature to who are they now but he could see the slow progression in the bluenette's character and admired her. He was proud of all of them for who they have become and he was lucky to be their friend.
She no longer blushed every time she talked to him, Mamoru or to any of the doctors in the hospital. They had become very close friends as they shared similar situations during their day and whenever they had the chance, they would hang out in the cafeteria or during small breaks and clear their head from any bad day they might be having. Whenever she had a problem or a question, she would go to them for advice. It was no wonder to see her worried about Mamoru at times like these when he has been a mentor and role model to her for so many years now.
"Whatever it is Ami-chan, is going to be alright," Motoki said with a soft smile on his face. "I know they have been together for a long time, but don't worry, they are going to get through this." Ami returned the smile to her friend and nodded "I know," she looked down, "They have to be."
O—o—o—o—O
At the other side of the city, down at the researcher's office at one of the most prestigious museums in Tokyo, Mikael was looking into more information about what Akira had discovered underground. After the frightening apparition of the dark spirit, he has not been the same. His body has not been responding to his command, his conscious constantly went blank and unaware of what he did or say during those missing periods of time. His face showed a more serious sign of exhaustion, his eyes were red from the lack of sleep and he lost a considerable amount of weight.
He looked through the files of every research in the museum's archive and found nothing related to the investigation they were leading, ignoring completely that Akira asked Toshi and other archaeologists to take everything they have collected over the past few months and hide it away from Mikael and disappear for a while until the media would calm down.
The blonde Swedish man looked desperate to find something so he could be freed from the burning feeling he had inside his body. A member of the staff from the museum entered, oblivious to the situation being held inside the room and widened his eyes, recognizing the famous archaeologist. "You are..." he walked closer to the blonde man, who completely ignored the other man's presence "Ahlstran Mikael, isn't it?" he chuckled and walked over to him "Oh man, I have been following your work for years!" he smiled with admiration.
Mikael continued typing on the computer, ignoring the man completely. His lips mumbled several words, inaudible for the young archaeologist to understand. He stood to the monitor and looked at him with a frown, surprised to see him too concentrated and too weak to be even being standing up "Ahlstran-san?" he asked softly "Are you feeling well?"
Mikael continued typing, his voice coming more audible for the young man to hear but still what he was saying made any sense. "I will go—get help." The young man turned on his heel but was stopped by Mikael's strong grip on his wrist, making him turn with surprise in his face. "The records, where are they?!"
The young man looked at him surprised and shook his head "I-I don't know what you are talking about."
"The records! The papers! The pictures! WHERE ARE THEY?!" he looked down and started to feel the nauseous being inside of him slowly take over again. Closing his eyes, Mikael tightened his grip on the young man's hand "*Qui venturus est, et venit super eam nihil potestis facere."
*He's coming, he's coming and there is nothing you can do about it.
The young man stepped far away from Mikael, looking at him wide-eyed "W-What..." He clearly saw something was coming out of his body, like a dark shadow and soon surrounded the man mumbling the words in an ancient tongue. Mikael continued his mantra, part horrified and part possessed with joy and raised his head to look at the young man "**Insolentia mortalium, nihil est vos can operor illud per circuitum."
**Insolent mortals, there is nothing you can do about it.
The young archaeologist tried to escape, but his body froze at the image of the older man in front of him; his feet were slightly above the floor, he was levitating. His dark eyes looked at him and a crooked smile sent chills down his spine. Dark matter that looked like tar began pouring from the man's body, melting like a second skin into the floor and slowly moving towards the young man standing by the door, frozen in his own amusement and terror. He soon was drenched in the substance, slowly making its way into the young man's body making him scream in pain. Seconds after, he fell to the floor and opened his eyes and looked at Mikael, a creepy smirk marked his features as in responding to Mikael's chant.
The shadow dripping from Mikael's body soon regained his position inside the man's body and laughed throughout the man, "***Satis cito exercitus,"
***The army will be complete soon enough.
O—o—o—o—O
The constant sound of telephones ringing brought back Minako to her reality. After being with the girls and talking constantly about the strange but rather occasional events in the past few weeks kept her mind drifting away from work. She walked back to her cubicle and looked at a large stack of papers on her desk and sighed tiredly before giving them a quick glance. "Some people from another station came to drop this here." she heard Aiko, her co-worker say from her own desk, next to hers. Minako sighed again and combed her hair out of the way to continue reading "Yeah, but as always..." She pursed her lips and turned to the girl, "Saruto-san wants this revised and fixed by the end of the day."
Aiko widened her eyes as she pouted her bright red lips "There is no way you can finish that today,"
"Well," Minako bit her lower lip and leaned back in her chair, "I guess I will have to stay up until late today—again."
The young woman rolled her chair towards Minako's desk and looked down at the papers "What they're about?" Minako began separating the many stacks and sighed softly "The network is partnering with Hikoya Kenji and they are planning on doing some sort of special—you know, for rating purposes."
The young girl widened her eyes and looked at Minako with curiosity, "Hikoya Kenji? Isn't he like a Broadway guy?"
"He is also a producer and apparently has connections of much interest to Saruto-san." Minako looked at the girl and arched her brow, "So we will see this man very often here at the station."
"Well, good thing he is handsome," Aiko giggled and rolled back to her desk "I have seen him in several magazines promoting this blonde girl—god, she is everywhere."
Minako huffed and put another stack of papers away, "Tell me about it."
"Didn't you go to—"
"Yup." Minako cut through the girl's question, interrupting her and giving no further comments on the matter. Aiko knew about Minako's lately struggle to score a part in a play. It's been a while now since she has seen her perform at something; she agreed she had the talent to do so and it impressed her how nobody cast her lately. When she learned Minako tried for bigger leagues in acting like performing on Broadway shows she was amazed by her audacity and charm and for her first attempts she did get gigs to perform, small to medium parts. Mostly singing and dancing, and she could tell how she was made to shine in the show business.
She found irony in the situation, being Hikoya Kenji the producer of the moment and Minako working for him after being rejected for his now famous Broadway show. Everything the man touched turned to solid gold and success and when the blonde told her excitedly she was auditioning for a part in the play she was very sure she was going to get it and from there, her life would completely change. Minako had a good resume, she had the beauty, the attitude, she had the charm and the talent to be there, why she was rejected, she could not figure it out and why did she give up on trying, well that was another story.
"Is he going to produce a show or something?" she dared to ask, hoping the blonde's mood would not be tainted by her previous attempt to ask her a question. Minako nodded and turned to look at her "He's producing a documentary."
"A documentary?"
"Yes,"
"About?"
Minako raised her brows and widened her eyes "Um—about..." she sighed with both defeat and exhaustion, "I don't remember."
"Maybe it's about his years producing shows on Broadway or something to luster his ego."
The comment made Minako break her serious shell and break a laugh—the first in days. "That would be excellent but for what I see here it is about a couple of archaeologists. Ahh yes... I remember now. Apparently, one of them is friends or an acquaintance of Hikoya-san and Saruto-san wants to bring his project to the station." she looked down at the papers "It says right here that they want to do a primetime show because apparently, they discovered something."
"Didn't they do that already?" Aiko asked, confused. Minako looked at her and frowned, "What? What do you mean?"
"I heard it somewhere, that one of them exposed some contents of their research, it was a stir in the media—it's divided now, some think they're crazy and others want to believe what they claim. It only amplified their popularity and now everyone wants them on their shows."
"But, what did they release?"
"Something about an ancient tribe or something."
"A tribe? Where?"
"Apparently not too far from here—deep underground. That is all I heard but they are quite the buzz right now. No wonder why Saruto-san is using all of his charm cards to make him stay with us."
"I have never heard about anything like a tribe being buried under our feet," Minako mumbled and looked down at the papers in her hands, "It's not exactly under the city, but apparently is something big. It's been for a while now..."
The blonde frowned and pursed her lips, finding this new piece of information intriguing. She didn't know why exactly it was catching her attention or why it somehow ringed a bell in her mind but she was now interested to see how the situation would develop. As she revised more papers about the programming schedule she realized who was going to do the styling for the anchors and hosts of their upcoming shows. With a wide smile full of excitement, she reached for her phone and dialed the number printed in one of the sheets. "Yes, with Tsukino Usagi please—Art and Design Department." After a few more rings, a familiar voice finally answered her call "Tsukino Usagi—Design Department, how can I help you?"
Minako's smile widened "Am I talking to the best designer and Illustrator of Cult Magazine?" Usagi immediately recognized the voice and chuckled "That is so nice of you."
Minako smiled and curled her finger on the cord of her desk phone, a rather too old for Minako's taste but as long as it did the job, "I was looking through some of the reports here for the station and turns out your magazine is styling some of the hosts and guests from several shows on our station."
"Oh really? I didn't know—I wouldn't be surprised though, Maya has been up and about all of Japan by now," Usagi looked at her monitor as she continued editing some pictures for the monthly issue "Work has been crazy these days because of that."
"Yeah, about that, how are you?" Minako asked, using her professional connection to the magazine to have a little chat with her friend. "Oh, by the way, Mako-chan did a sample of what is going to be your cake for the wedding and it is going to be super delicious."
"W-What!? Why you didn't call me?!" Usagi widened her eyes "That is so not fair! Mako-chan told me she was going to—Oh..."
"Yeah, we called." Minako knew her blonde friend was looking through her missing calls and saw Makoto's number on her screen "I'm sorry—my head is everywhere. It has been a couple of crazy days."
"I bet," Minako smiled "Well, how about we go to lunch together, I can call the girls and see who's available to join us. What do you say? Soon enough you won't have much time for yourself—you are going to be busy being a wife."
Usagi smiled at the other end and lowered her gaze to see the screensaver on her phone. Her favorite picture of her and Mamoru smiling. She remembered the night they took that picture, it was a New Year's Eve party and they had gone out to celebrate it with all the girls and current dates, including Motoki and Reika. Their wedding had just passed a month before and it had been one of those random occasions when they all had a free schedule and took it as an opportunity and a perfect excuse to go out.
Motoki had become a very close friend of all of them and every time he knew there was going to be a gathering he was the first one to check his assistance. Usagi didn't remember the exact location of where the party was held but she did remember Minako getting the tickets from her current boyfriend who worked at the fancy hotel. The thought made Usagi smile as she remembered her failed attempts to get a good picture of all the gang but there was always something or someone ruining the frame. Midnight was getting close and she finally could get a decent group picture but by the time she wanted to take one with her boyfriend alone her battery had died. Mamoru took notice of her failed attempts and before she could rant about it took out his phone and snapped the selfie just when the clock marked 12 and everybody screamed happy new year. The picture was not their best, it was crooked and the lighting was odd because it was dark inside, Minako could be seen far behind them doing bunny ears or something but the background was slightly blurry than the couple in the front. There was something about that picture that made Usagi love it so much and it served as a constant reminder of how Mamoru always looked out for her and how he always tried to make her happy, even if it was with a selfie in a very crowded place.
Thinking about the origin of that picture struck her. He made her happy with everything she asked, in this case, it was her long-requested selfie. He made her happy by agreeing to go to a party she knew it was totally out of his comfort zone. The thought made her feel guilty; if he tried everything in his power to make her happy why would she blame him for whatever events are happening around them? After their talk in the kitchen, they both stayed in silence until it was time for him to drive her home. None of them had the words to explain their feelings, none of them had the energy. None of them wanted to realize their future was slightly changing and since that day, she has been trying to avoid him with made-up excuses involving the wedding making her feel terrible in the process. She didn't imagine her last days as a single woman would be this hectic and it was unfair to put all the blame on him.
"Usa-chan, you okay?" she heard Minako's voice at the other end of the line. Usagi bit her lower lip and smiled, "Ah, yes, sure but I also have an idea—I don't know how you are going to take it."
"Hmm... sounds intriguing, something only you could pull off," Minako leaned her head back, waiting for her friend's response. Usagi chuckled "I was thinking of taking Megumi-san shopping for a dress, for the wedding."
Minako widened her eyes and sat straight on her chair "Really?"
"She doesn't have anything to wear for that day and she is after all, related to Mamo-chan."
"But, what about Haruka-san or the other girls? If they find out you took her out of Mamoru's apartment, they are going to freak out—including him."
"Mamo-chan said it was okay—I guess," Usagi said, her tone of voice was indistinguishable but soon after continued, going back to her usual friendly tone. She was trying to avoid going down the road and tell her friend that she was also avoiding her fiancé. "I think it would be lovely to find her something appropriate for the occasion."
"You don't need to ask, I am there! Just let me know when," Minako raised her arm in triumph, surprising Aiko next to her. She heard Usagi's soft laughter at the other end "I was thinking this afternoon because tomorrow and the next couple of days I will be very busy with these pages Maya wants before the weekend. Not that she minds me working on a weekend but, you know—I kind of don't want to." she laughed again.
"You are alone, aren't you?" Minako arched her brow.
"Alone as a bug in the dark," Usagi chuckled. Minako smiled "Yes, otherwise you would be so serious and poised and..."
"—Shush!" Usagi exclaimed, then another chuckle came along "But I know what you mean."
"Ok, so—I will see you later today, how about at 6? We can go to the Azuba Mall... they opened this new little cute boutique, I am sure we can find something there."
"6 is fine but I have to go and pick Megumi at Mamo-chan's first—while he's still out. So, should I see you there?"
"Sure," Minako said softly, "I'll see you there then. Ok, bye." she smiled as she hung up her phone and turned to her coworker, who was looking at her with a puzzled stare "She's my best friend."
"Ah, that explains it all," Aiko said and continued typing on her computer. Minako turned to her own matters and continued looking at the mass of work on her desk and sighed happily, "She's my best friend."
O—o—o—o—O
"What you have shown is very impressive Chiba-san but still there are a few interrogations surrounding this matter." Saito Mizoguchi, the head of the medical board of the hospital said in a serious tone as he looked down at the medical records concerning the late patient's death.
The meeting concerning the strange cause of death of the patient from E.R. had been dragged on for hours. Mamoru exposed all of the medical explanations and detailed exactly how and when each happened. Even to him, it was still a mystery; after taking many samples he sent them to the laboratory, studied the results himself and still there was nothing that made sense which only complicated matters worse because now the board was taking a different approach at the situation.
"This will remain under evaluation. For a man to die under these conditions is still unbelievable and neither the press nor people must know this happened in our facilities." Dr. Osuna, one of the members of the board suggested. The man was a good doctor, an old doctor with old ways and since the moment Mamoru was accepted to be part of the staff of the hospital he had found his methods too progressive for him, despite being the most modern and updated approach to treatment. He always kept him under the microscope, meaning he had people working as his ears and eyes, inspecting every step the dark-haired man did or said inside the hospital.
"This is no joke, a man died of causes that could be preventable." He continued, giving Mamoru a stern face. Mamoru looked at him the same way, trying his best to remain as calm as possible. People were questioning his integrity and knowledge as a doctor. All his efforts and sleepless nights were being put under judgment by a man that was never fully satisfied with him being a resident at the hospital—his turf. "I understand your point, Dr. Osuna, but the facts are there. The patient entered E.R. already in trauma, all this happened after I arrived and during assistance. Sugar levels were high, the pressure was low. His heart was not responding—"
"Still, you could have saved the man!" Osuna raised his voice "Your methods are not very close to what medicine should be."
Mamoru frowned "My methods?"
"You have been defending yourself but we still haven't seen a clear panoramic of what happened to this patient. Why it died the way it died." Osuna sighed and looked down at the papers in his hands and shook his head, "That is why you have to keep a close eye on young doctors, they graduate and they already think they have all the experience. If Satomura-san hadn't informed me about this, we would be in great trouble right now—the media would be all over us."
Mamoru felt offended by the man's words. It was as if he was on a mission to put him on the spot and throw him out of the team and the hospital for good. He frowned at the mention of Satomura Akashi, why would he speak badly of him behind his back when he was there present assisting him in the case and was a witness of the events that unfolded. He nodded and lowered his gaze, "I see." he muttered dryly while closing his laptop and putting it inside its briefcase, "You insist saying I did not perform a complete checkup of the state of the patient—but the thing is, I already showed proof of it. You have proof of every single thing I checked and did in your hands, why my integrity as a physician is being questioned... that is something I cannot accept."
"I am asking for a more extended, in-depth report about what happened!" Osuna raised his voice.
"Alright, then—If I am not capable of describing the situation myself perhaps you could explain the board this better than I can and find something I might have missed: Dr. Osuna, what is your prognosis when a 58-year-old male with no available records presents enters the E.R. in an unresponsive state. His white cells were low and with no heart condition registered before, the electro was in normal parameters but had sustained ventricular tachycardia, no brain trauma but there were clogs in his cerebellum, no diabetes but his Glucose was at 1500 Lactic acidosis, gap metabolic acidosis, amylase 1500, potassium level of 1.1, phosphorus level 1, upper GI bleed, severe hypotension, dilated common bile duct, severe protein malnutrition, acute hypoxemic respiratory failure and lack of safe IV access." Mamoru stood up, his blue eyes fixed in the older man's ones "Doing an investigation about this is one thing, and I accept it—another very different is to question my knowledge and experience as a trained doctor. Every sample result is in front of you. Every test taken—everything."
Osuna looked at Mamoru with his jaw clenched, he caught him off guard. It's been a long time since he assisted E.R. or an emergency case and his specialization was not the same as Mamoru's. He remained silent and looked down at the file open with everything the young doctor just explained, pursing his lips he sighed heavily and turned to the other members of the board "Do you have anything to add?" Mizoguchi looked at Osuna then at Mamoru and frowned, shaking his head "We will take a closer look at this and continue this matter tomorrow." He stood up and bowed his head, before exiting the conference room, not long after the rest of the members of the board followed and left the room as well, leaving Osuna and Mamoru alone.
The old man pointed his finger at him and frowned "Do not try to act like a smart ass, boy, or you will get trapped in your own web." Mamoru looked at him and responded with a deeper frown "Are you threatening me?"
Osuna shook his head and dismissed his comment with his hand, "I told you. Just because you graduated from the best Medical School or went abroad does not make you a great doctor. I will get to the bottom of this, I do believe this is bad praxis—and you will have to face the consequences. This is not your first strike."
Mamoru narrowed his eyes, "My first strike? What do you mean?"
Osuna shook his head and walked out of the private conference room, leaving Mamoru angry and confused all at the same time. All the respect he had for the older doctor was slowly vanishing, thinking of him more as an obstacle for future generations of doctors in this hospital. His mind went back to his previous words and narrowed his eyes with deception, "Satomura..." he muttered angrily.
O—o—O
Motoki was walking down the hall of the fifth floor doing his final round for the day when he saw Mamoru walking in his direction carrying a binder with papers in one hand and his laptop bag on his other shoulder. His face was serious and unapproachable, it only meant that things were more complicated than he imagined. "Mamoru." He called out to him, without a hint of his usual playful tone. Mamoru stopped and turned to look at him but remained silent, "What happened?" The blonde frowned with concern.
Mamoru shook his head and sighed heavily, letting his friend know he was not willing to talk about the matter in hospital grounds, at this point he did not want to risk any chances he had left to remain as part of the medical staff in the hospital. Motoki understood his silence and signed his check out card and took off his white coat "I'll walk with you."
Both men walked to the elevator in silence and they did not say a word until they both reached for their cars, that happened to be one parked next to the other. "Mamoru, what—"
"They do not believe anything I proved to them," Mamoru cut him bluntly, Motoki widened his eyes "W-What?!"
Mamoru pressed the alarm button on his car keys to open his trunk and began to put his things inside, then slammed it close with anger and leaned on it for a minute and sighed. After another minute he walked to his door "Get in the car—I don't trust anyone in this place right now."
Motoki frowned and sat on the passenger's seat and closed the door. Mamoru rested his hands on the wheel and sighed, shaking his head in frustration "Osuna is behind it," he muttered, still with his eyes fixed in the distance, "He questioned every proof, every sample, every test, my integrity—everything."
"Why?" Motoki's frown deepened "What's wrong with that man?" Mamoru shrugged his shoulders dismissively, "I don't know, but he ended up threatening me."
"What?!"
Mamoru finally turned to look at his friend, "At some point of the meeting, he put my reputation to be questioned by the other members of the board. He said it wasn't my first strike and that just because I graduated from Med School it didn't mean I could call myself a doctor—asshole."
"What the fuck?" Motoki frowned and shook his head with disbelief. Hearing curse words coming out of their mouths was something very strange to witness. It was a thing they learned it only helped when they needed to vent their frustration and made it a tradition. When alone, they would banter all the words they were aware could not spill out while surrounded by the girls, as a matter of respect. "Strike? What is this, fucking baseball or something?"
Mamoru managed to chuckle for the first time since all this started, he felt an eternity has passed and at this point, he couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. "I know." he shook his head, "But the thing is, he is observing. He has people watching our every move—my moves."
"What do you mean?"
"This all happened because somebody put a complaint about my tactics in handling this matter." Mamoru frowned. Motoki scratched the back of his head, more confused than five minutes ago "I heard about that—but I thought there were just rumors."
"So, the hospital already knows what's happening?" Mamoru rolled his eyes with annoyance, "Great."
"Do you know who was it? Who complained?"
"Satomura Akashi." Mamoru said dryly, surprising Motoki "Ami-chan's not so secret admirer?" The blonde widened his eyes, "That guy?!"
"Exactly, that guy." Mamoru pointed his finger at Motoki, emphasizing his frustration "But what surprises me the most is that he was there. He was there way before I was called to examine the patient. I was called to deal and take control of the situation because he panicked and didn't know what to do with the man..."
"So, you think this guy did something and then blamed it on you?"
Mamoru sighed and tilted his head back on his seat "I don't know anymore Motoki, I'm drained—I'm angry," he closed his eyes "These things will continue for I don't know how much longer. In the meantime, I must remain calm and keep doing my job—if I still have one, that is."
"Yes you do but they are on a mission here," Motoki widened his eyes, "Yes, yes they are," Mamoru nodded and opened his eyes, the exhaustion was clear on his handsome face. "I don't care what that brat thinks about me or what Osuna thinks about me, Motoki. What bothers me is how eager they were to question my integrity as a doctor and put it for their amusing. They are basically saying that I did not care for the man and just did random things and waited for him to die."
"I know, but you know that is not true." Motoki patted his friend's shoulder in support, "I heard about Osuna being old fashioned when it came to his approach to medicine but to be acting this way—it is beyond me." he sighed heavily, "So, what next?" Mamoru raised his brow and turned to look at Motoki, "What next? Well, I have to continue proving my innocence."
"I am very surprised Mizoguchi-san didn't say anything to defend you. He's the one that brought you to this hospital in the first place—he recommended you!"
Mamoru sighed and shrugged his shoulder, "He trusts the man. It's the most logical thing—they're friends, like you and me." Motoki crossed his arms in front of his chest "Well yeah, they're buddies but one thing is their friendship and the other is act like professionals."
"Something is not right, I can feel it," Mamoru frowned and shook his head "I didn't do anything out of what I should have done."
"I know Mamoru, I know." Motoki sighed heavily "This completely sucks. I am going to talk to Ami about this." Mamoru raised a brow and looked at his friend "Why would you do that?"
"I knew he was going to bring us trouble," Motoki cursed under his breath "Goddammit, I just knew it!"
"Those are childish games, you really don't think that is the reason why he put a complaint on me?" Mamoru frowned and widened his eyes, "Or do you?"
"At this point, Mamoru, who knows... you said so yourself, if you have the hunch so do I," The blonde sighed "You are going home I suppose." Mamoru leaned his head back again and bit his lower lip. Going home was not exactly what he really wanted to do, he hasn't seen Usagi in days or spoken to her other than a few texts here and there but Megumi was alone, and he had to go back to her. "Yes... I have some... things to do."
"Are you going to tell Usagi-chan about this?" Motoki tilted his head to the side and saw his friend shake his head in denial "I don't see the point in telling her this with the wedding coming so close. She has her mind occupied with work, the girls and other things... telling her this will worry her—I don't want that. I already did when I told her about the man died the other day."
"You always so considerate," Motoki mumbled with sarcasm and arched his brow "She will eventually find out, she can read you like an open book—you still can't manage to accept it."
Mamoru pursed his lips, "I know she does, but..." he sighed tiredly, "I-I don't know what the hell I am doing... I just..." He shook his head, he felt too confused to even come up with a good excuse for his actions.
"If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask. I'm here to help." Motoki smiled at his friend, Mamoru appreciated the gesture. He appreciated the man's friendship despite being a couple of years older than he was. Their friendship began after he found out Sailor Moon was no other than the bubbly and all so lovely Tsukino Usagi, the rest of the truth was pure intuition. Being the only guy in the group, he later learned they had a lot of things in common besides their interest in medicine and being close friends with the girls. One day they started to hang out on their own and when they least expected it they were already best friends and Mamoru was his best man at his wedding and now Motoki was going to be his on his wedding day. Mamoru smiled and nodded at his friend "Thank you."
"Hey, what are bros for?" Motoki raised his hands, trying to lighten the mood "I have to go and get ready though, I thought I could just go home and chill but Reika has a cocktail party with some members of the museum where she works, apparently a very skilled archaeologist has made some discovery and they're giving a speech or something like that—I really didn't understand much but, she was excited."
Mamoru chuckled tiredly and shook his head, "Well, it's part of the charm of being married."
Motoki's face darkened "Yeah, yeah you keep telling yourself that, but when you least expect it you will be attending fashion runways with Usagi-chan." Mamoru widened his eyes giving Motoki the sign that he touched a soft spot, knowing his friend disliked those types of social gatherings "Ha—I'm telling you." Motoki laughed and opened the door of Mamoru's car and stepped out "I'll let you know how it went."
Mamoru smiled "Yeah, you do that..." he shrugged his shoulders and widened his eyes with fake enthusiasm "I can't wait to know how many cosmopolitans you had to survive the night!"
Motoki laughed heartedly, "Douche."
Mamoru laughed and waited for his friend to close the door before turning the engine on and leave the building. Motoki was right, it did not matter how much he tried to hide things to protect Usagi, she would always find out. She knew him too damn well. His mind then went from Usagi to drift to other things as he waited for the green light to continue.
After what happened when he told her about the incident in the hospital she had been distant and he had to comply no matter how much he wished to see her. He understood her because he felt the same way, he too was angry but perhaps for different reasons. As he continued to drive, he wondered how different his life might be from his previous one, had he changed that much? He wondered. Megumi's comments left him asking himself which version was the best of him, Endymion or Mamoru or if in the end, one shone more than the other. After the battle with Galaxia ended, he never thought himself as a man with an alter ego, not even when he used to be Tuxedo Kamen but somehow, he saw Megumi's longing to see something else in him; the way she spoke to him, the way she addressed to him, it was as if she was expecting more of him and he did not know what it was, he didn't know how to deliver what she was expecting. He felt like if he was letting her down or that she was mistaken him for somebody else. She always spoke as if she was referring to another person, sure, some classic traits of him were still there but it was like she was disappointed—of him.
There was evident tension between them, he knew that no matter how polite he was with her, he was not who she expected to see and what frustrated him the most was how she spoke of his life and he could not know what she was talking about. He hated being clueless when she spoke about his parents, his godparents, and the many people that once surrounded him and not having a single mnemonic trace of them. Without a recollection of their faces, the sound of their voice—nothing. After the crystal revealed that part of him that was hidden, there was still too much from the fact that he was once the Terran Prince. He then wondered again, if he was supposed to protect the Golden Crystal, how come the crystal never regained those memories from that part of his life? The more he thought about it, the more questions came to the surface and it was killing him. Megumi was a missing link to his past and he could not figure out anything about it, it was locked somewhere far away from him and in the end, it only brought more questions than actual answers.
An eerie feeling curled up on his chest, followed by a strong sting that almost made him lose control of the vehicle and decided to park somewhere to grab some air. He flinched once more in pain and heard the voice—that voice. "Wake up..." Mamoru widened his eyes and gasped for more air.
"They're coming—you have to wake up."
"W-Who's coming?" He asked and another strong sting struck his heart. He felt like if somebody was stabbing him with a hot blade through his chest, making it impossible to move and to breathe, he closed his eyes and growled in pain "Who's coming!? Who are you!?" he raised his voice, then the same vision came.
A woman standing near a tree in flames, tears streaming down her face as she extended her hand out to him, "You have to wake up—it's time, wake up Endymion... wake up!"
Mamoru snapped his eyes wide open, "Megumi," he muttered with horror in his voice and turned the engine on again and drove to his apartment as fast as he could. He finally entered his building and parked his car in his usual spot and ran to the staircase that would eventually lead him to the lobby and the elevator. Minutes that felt like hours, he was finally inside and letting Megumi know he was home. He turned to the kitchen and saw the food he left her that morning was half eaten on the counter.
There was something in the air, something that lingered that made Mamoru feel uneasy. It was a dense energy he could not describe but it made him feel sick—disgusted.
He looked around the apartment and noticed the curtains were slightly closed, "Megumi?" he called again, this time louder for her to hear and found it strange that the girl hadn't gone to greet him at the entrance like she had been doing for the past few days. He walked down the hall and checked if she was in her room but found it empty and the green dress she wore when Usagi did the makeover on her was on the bed. Worry started to curl up his spine as he quickly went to look for her in his room and both bathrooms. "No..." he cursed under his breath, grabbed his keys again and ran out the door.
Several blocks away, Megumi sat on a bench deep in the park and watched the children at the playground. Back to her normal clothes, she looked down at her hands with teary eyes and tightened her grip on the clothed object in her arms.
Megumi was having breakfast at the kitchen counter in silence. Every morning before leaving for work Mamoru would leave her something made so she would not have to struggle to find a way how to use the stove and have another accident like the one she had with the vacuum cleaner. Yes—he found out about that later that day.
As she munched and swallowed each bite with content, she looked down at one of the magazines Usagi had left for her to read while she spent some time alone. After several failed attempts in trying to teach her how to turn the t.v. on or turn on some music, the blonde decided to leave at least something that would keep her entertained until one of them got off work and went back to the apartment. Her small delicate hands turned each page as she slowly continued enjoying her breakfast and wondered how much fashion had changed over the past century. As she looked at the many short and strange runway dresses she wondered how awkward that would feel once on.
It was then when she felt a chill bristling her tiny hairs at the back of her neck and stopped. She turned to look around and found the place empty, she turned to the living room and closed the curtains as if preventing anyone from seeing her there and hugged herself, knowing the sensation in her body; knowing what it meant.
In an attempt to make herself feel protected, Megumi ran straight to Mamoru's room and locked herself in and cuddled on what she guessed was his side of the bed and began to sob. Even though these past few days had been silent and peaceful, there was a feeling deep in her chest that let her know the battle was far from being over and that the shadows were still out there looking for her. Maybe they had found her early on, but it was time to start the hunt for her head once again. She closed her eyes and sobbed louder, begging in silence for her Prince to appear and help her, begging for somebody to hear her lament and feel her pain. She could not take it any longer, feeling closer to death and farther away from any resolution with the mission she agreed to fulfill. It was then when the words from the Lord of War echoed in her mind.
"You are the only one who can save him now."
In between sobs, she looked up "What did you mean!? How can I save somebody that has changed so much, how can I save somebody that does not even remember who he is!? How can I save that memory!? I cannot do this alone anymore!" She heard a loud rumble outside, meaning only one thing. They were close. Frantic, she got up and ran out the room again, she could not stay any longer putting his Prince and the Princess in obvious danger anymore. She had come to a resolution, if he was indeed Endymion and wanted to live a different life, it was his choice. It was his life, and as his longtime friend, she had to respect that and move on to look for the rightful owner of the object in her possession.
She turned wide-eyed when unintelligible whispering began to fill her head—the man with black eyes. She turned her heel and ran back to her room and looked for her precious object and hugged it close to her chest, and closed her eyes chanting a small prayer to keep herself safe. She felt observed, she knew there was something there lurking where her eyes could not reach its presence, she heard them speak, chanting malicious thing, mocking of her will to protect the unprotectable. They had found her, she thought "No..." she whispered and shook her head between sobs "No..."
They had come for her before she could even leave without being unnoticed. The hunt had begun, once again. She quickly stood up and grabbed her torn dress again and left her new favorite one on the bed, wrapped her precious object close to her chest again and ran from the apartment, without looking back.
There she was again, lost and trapped in a world that felt alien to her. She cursed herself for being this coward, she was supposed not to run away again and there she was, running away. They asked her not to leave, they asked her to trust them, all of them including the Prince and Princess and there she was, trying to solve things by herself again.
Where would she run off to now? She thought, looking down at the clothed object she frowned, anger finally coming through her fragile body like fire blazing through everything in its way "Why can't you take me where I am supposed to go!?" she looked at it with despair and began cursing her luck. Tears began to burn in her eyes again as she tried for the sacred object to react like it always did when she was in danger "Why can't you listen!?" she looked at it, angry and oblivious to all the strange glances from the people passing by.
"Take me out of here!" Megumi raised her voice and started to pound at the object on her lap, "Why can't you listen! Why can't you listen to my prayers again! Have you abandoned me as well!?"
"My, my—you poor thing." A male voice startled her, making her glance up and gasp in horror and surprise.
O—o—O
Mamoru had run around the blocks of his building, had gone in and out of stores, restaurants, and boutiques and there was still no sight of Megumi. Frantic to find her, he searched for his phone and sent an urgent message to all of the girls so they could be alert in case she is close around. Haruka being the first to read while being at the workshop getting a car fixed widened her eyes and asked for the keys of one of the cars and sped on to look out for the girl.
Minako was the second one to read the message, she was finishing some things from work when her phone gave the alert. She widened her eyes, recognizing its tune, one they all had in common to recognize it in case of an emergency. Taking her phone, she surfed through the screen and widened her eyes when she read Mamoru's short but precise message with his exact location attached.
"They're here, Megumi ran away."
She frantically grabbed her purse and stormed off the office without telling anybody, it was until she reached for the elevator when Aiko saw her walking with hurry "Minako-san?"
Minako waved her hand apologetically "I'm sorry, I have to go—it's an emergency."
"W-What?!" Aiko widened her eyes.
"I can't explain! I'm sorry." she entered the elevator, leaving a very worried and troubled Aiko at the end of the hall. With trembling hands, she searched for Rei's number and dialed, as soon as she responded she heard the priestess say "He sensed her aura near Ajiro Playground in Azabu—he's on his way."
Minako nodded, "I'm on my way too." As soon as she hung up, her phone rang "Usagi-chan..." she said softly, but with an obvious emergency in her voice.
O—o—O
Makoto was doing some special requests made by the chef when she heard her phone ringing, and just like Minako, she reacted to its urgency and importance. As she managed through her flaming pan due to the brandy she just poured in, she asked to one of the other assistant cooks to cover for her as she went to look at her phone. Haruto, obviously noticed and frowned at her sudden outburst, "Kino-san, where the hell are you going?!"
Makoto ignored the chef's cursing and widened her eyes when she saw the message and Minako's missing call and then proceeded to read Mamoru's message. "Oh damn..." she breathed and walked out of the kitchen, taking her apron off in the process. Haruto followed her, this time catching everyone's attention in the kitchen "What the hell do you think you are doing?!"
"I have an emergency—I need to leave," Makoto said, desperately.
Masao saw Makoto's desperate stare, he knew she was put under too much stress lately these past few days that made him wonder if she really was having an affair with the chef like Suzuki told everybody, being one of the reasons why everyone was giving her a hard time at the restaurant. There was something in the way she was talking to him, her eyes were almost glossy, revealing the fright of what could cause her sudden departure.
"I don't care if the Emperor himself dies at this moment and turns out to be your long-lost father, we have a busy room right now and I need those dishes made! NOW!" Haruto looked at her with anger, Makoto only shook her head trying to excuse the occasion, "It won't happen again Haruto-san, I promise—but I need to leave, right now—I need to—"
"If you dare to cross through those doors, you will no longer be welcome at this or any restaurant, do you hear me!?"
"Please—it's a family emergency—I have to—"
"I can take over her station, Haruto-san."
Makoto widened her eyes and turn to see Masao standing at the door drying his hands with a towel "I have already finished with my orders, I can take care of hers for today."
Haruto frowned and turned to Makoto "Whatever it is—it better does not repeat itself again. Otherwise, consider yourself out of the gastronomical world."
Makoto stayed silent with wide eyes and turned to Masao who was still at the door, looking at her. Haruto cursed under his breath and walked back to the kitchen leaving both chefs alone "T-Thank you..." Masao nodded and gave her a small smile, like a truce to settle the awkwardness between them, "It's okay. Whatever it is, I hope it can be solved." Makoto sighed softly and turned to grab her purse and looked at him "Me too." with that, she walked out the door without looking back.
At the other side of town, Ami was looking through some records to study a patient's case when she felt her phone vibrate. Since she was alone, she took a moment to look at it and widened her eyes when she read the message; the same desperation began to grow as she looked for an excuse to leave the hospital.
O—o—O
Rei was coming close to the park when she felt a strong energy surrounding the area "This must be it," she looked around and entered the park widening her eyes in shock at the scenery in front of her.
All the people inside were on the ground, gasping she continued walking to the furthest part of the park when she found Megumi talking to someone. Frowning, the priestess ran towards her catching her attention "Megumi-san..." she called out to her softly but with authority to let the other person know she wasn't alone, Megumi widened her eyes in surprise but stayed silent with horror evident on her face.
"I see—you have made friends," The man turned to Rei and widened his eyes in shock. Rei frowned and shook her head, "Don't you dare to hurt her," she said in a warning tone.
Athamas' eyes could not hide his surprise. The woman in front of him, she looked like her but it couldn't be—he thought. "What are you doing here... How..." he said, part surprised, part demandant and narrowed his eyes when he remembered the night of the fall of the kingdom he once claimed as his "I see... the daughter of the God of War has survived after all... Interesting."
Rei frowned, "You are the one after Megumi-san then,"
Athamas arched his brow "As demandant as always—Mars."
Rei widened her eyes, surprised that this man knew her secret identity "W-What?"
Megumi turned to Rei and shook her head "Please... run away... Priestess, please run away..."
"Yes, you run away—if you do not want your head cut off—this time, Daddy will not come to your rescue." Athamas threatened the fire senshi, his hand rested on the hilt of his sword. Rei narrowed her amethyst eyes "Megumi-san—step back."
"But—"
"Step back!" Rei did not turn to look at her and she did not give too much an opening to start a discussion with her so she had no other choice but obey the Priestess. Athamas arched his brow, "You are meddling in my business."
Rei glared at him, her gaze was cold and piercing as daggers of ice. She did not need much to show her disgust towards the man in front of him "Whoever you are, you leave the girl alone."
Athamas chuckled "My, my..." he raised his hand to attack her. Rei felt an urge to call to her inner power, it was like if her inner fire was taking over her, calling her, claiming its rightful place in her life. Was this what she had been missing? She turned to the girl who was still standing a few feet away from her holding the clothed object close to her chest.
"Hand me that sword!" Athamas growled at the girl, extending his hand "If you do not want your friend die before your eyes—like everyone who has tried to help you in the past..."
Megumi widened her teary eyes, Rei frowned and closed her eyes, not thinking her decision any further. The man apparently already knew she was a Senshi, and there was no time to lose. She opened her eyes and raised her hand with her transformation pen and for the first time in years, she shouted the words she thought would never have to say again:
"Mars Crystal Power—Make Up!"
A strong, yet familiar energy began engulfing her. An intense rush of fire surrounded her, quickly changing her appearance to one of a soldier. Her sailor fuku appeared in between the flames as the symbol of her planet shone in her forehead with an intensity, not even Athamas could ignore, confirming what he was told and dared not to believe.
Soon the flames yield to her, her uniform was different now from what he remembered in the past. Her long white boots contrasted the intensity of her three-layered skirt. There was no question about it, she had grown stronger and she was closer to honor her father's intimidating lineage. Her amethyst eyes darkened and pointed her gloved finger at him "I won't say it again, step away from her!"
Athamas growled deeply and snapped his fingers to summon the shadow nesting inside the people scattered around the park "I never had the patience to deal with you... you were always a nuisance."
Mars frowned "What?" she looked around and saw the dark matter dripping from the bodies "Tar...?" she muttered and frowned when she recognized the sulfuric smell—it was the same from her many reading in the fire when the shadow appeared and threatened her.
Athamas jumped high and stood in one of the light poles, looking down at the fire senshi "I do not know how did you manage to survive—but I will make sure this is the last time I will see your face."
Sailor Mars looked at the distorted shadows coming close to attack her, and brought her fingers close "Pyou,"
"Tou,"
"Sha,"
"Kai,"
"Jin,"
"Retsu,"
"Zai,"
"Zen,"
She drew out a talisman and traced a ring of fire in the air before shouting "Akuryo Taisan!"
This was probably one of the few times Athamas saw one of the senshi release their power, secretly admitting that in fact, at least this one was obvious she had the blood of the daughter of the God of War. Narrowing his eyes, he saw the blasts of fire engulfing the shadows. Megumi widened her eyes with surprise to see the amount of power the Priestess carried within her, hopeful to think that maybe, after all, this man could be beaten.
Haruka arrived with Michiru at the park, Setsuna was already there studying the situation from afar. Minutes later, Makoto, Minako, and Ami arrived. Setsuna closed her eyes and smiled sadly for a minute "It is time for us to reclaim our power and rise again as Senshi," she turned to Minako "And you as the Princess' guardian."
Minako felt a pinch in her chest as she looked at Setsuna because she knew exactly what she meant. All girls tried to follow their path as normal people, have normal lives but the truth was that beyond that, they served a cause and they were warriors of the universe, bond to protect the carrier of the sacred Silver Crystal—their Princess.
Bound to their fate, Minako nodded claimed her post as leader of the Inner Senshi again and raised her hand holding her pen in the air. "Venus Crystal Power—Make Up!" Ami and Makoto followed
"Mercury Crystal Power—Make Up!"
"Jupiter Crystal Power—Make Up!"
Haruka smiled at Michiru and kissed her hand "I guess they miss us too much, and we cannot let them have all the fun, don't you think so?" Michiru smiled "My, you look enthusiastic." Haruka chuckled, "When it comes to fighting alongside you—it's always exciting." she raised her hand
"Uranus Crystal Power—Make Up!"
"Neptune Crystal Power—Make Up!"
Setsuna smiled sadly and summoned her garnet rod, knowing this was the start of a new battle, a new era. "Pluto Crystal Power—Make Up!"
Each girl was surrounded by their given, stronger power once again transforming them into the soldiers they were always meant to be. Each and one of them realizing they had more to just one simple life; they had a destiny. They were the chosen ones by the heavenly gods and planets.
Mars widened her eyes when she realized there was much more needed to control the tar pouring from the bodies. Now taking shape of long distorted figures "Dammit..." she cursed under her breath as she summoned her power again, "Burning—Mandala!" her sacred fire passed through the shadows coming closer to her, Mars turned to Megumi who was still curled up behind a tree, frozen in her own fear. "Megumi! Get out of their way!"
"Venus Crescent Boomerang!"
A golden light pierced through the shadows, destroying the closest to Mars and Megumi. Mars turned to see Venus and the rest of the girls standing next to her "Venus..." Venus shrugged her shoulders and gave her friend and comrade a soft smile, "Like you said—it's a calling."
Mars frowned "Well—you took an awful lot of time to get here!" she sighed with relief, "But I am glad you are alright."
Athamas face darkened, it was not only the soldier of fire who managed to survive but all of the Inner Senshi as well and now they were accompanied by three more, three he had never seen before. Uranus rested a hand on her waist and looked at the man upon the light pole and pointed a finger at him, "So you are the one who has been causing havoc around—interesting."
Venus looked up and frowned "What the hell are those?"
Athamas growled angrily, "All of you survived—"
"There is no time to figure out who the hell you are..." Jupiter said bluntly and brought her hands together "Jupiter my guardian plant, bring forth the clouds, summon a storm, and bring down the thunder!" Her tiara began to crack and shine with thunder as she gathered the energy from the clouds in the sky "Supreme Thunder!" lighting began engulfing the shadows but no matter how much energy they threw into them, every time they were destroyed, they came back multiplied. Jupiter widened her eyes with horror, "It's not working..." she muttered.
Mercury summoned her power and extended her hands "Shine Snow Illusion!"
The tar-like substance slowed and so did the creatures, "It will not give us much time!" Mercury turned to Venus, Uranus smirked and cracked her fists, "I'll handle this once and for all..." she extended her hand up in the air to summon her power "World—" she leaned down and blasted her energy at the ground "—Shaking!"
The tar shadows disintegrated, surprising Athamas "It doesn't matter how much you try to show me your powers—" he raised his hand again and summoned ordered the shadows to rise again "A whole army is under my command; your power does not match mine!" Uranus narrowed her eyes "What do you want in this place!?"
Athamas looked at the soldier of the skies and growled, "I do not have to explain myself to you..." he raised his hand again, summoning more dark power and raising more shadows to attack "I want them eliminated!"
Megumi widened her eyes and ran from her previous spot, catching the General's attention "You—" he jumped from his post towards her "Give me the—"
"Tuxedo La Smoking Bomber!"
An intense blast of energy burned between the girl and the general giving the girl the opportunity to run away as it burned the shadows crowding her path. Athamas looked at his hand and up at the next opponent, his green eyes widened in shock "W-What..." Tuxedo Kamen looked at him with daring eyes "Don't you dare to lay a finger on that girl..."
Athamas recognized the voice, his blood froze in his veins surprised to see the man before him "You..." He growled with anger; Megumi turned and widened her eyes in surprise, joining the General in his disbelief. She recognized that attire, it was the same he wore the night they arrived at the Moon and when he went in search for the Lunar Princess. She saw the locket he used to wear all the time with his uniform and her eyes began to tear with deep emotion "Prince..." she whispered, still in shock to see him there.
The general looked at the man in front of him with hatred, his jaw clenched and began to lose his cool and stoic demeanor, "How the hell did you survive?!" Tuxedo Kamen frowned and took position to attack him again "What the hell are you talking about?"
Athamas jumped from his spot on the light pole and narrowed his eyes, "So you have been hiding here all this time, like the rat you are." He turned over his shoulder and raised his hand again "I will make sure they are entertained so we can have our moment—alone."
The shadows multiplied again, Venus frowned and twirled her chain again, slicing them but no matter how much they attack their power kept growing and it was starting to get out of their control "We have to suppress this! Whatever they are cannot leave the perimeter!"
Neptune summoned her mirror and widened her eyes in horror "They cannot be defeated—they are made of a strong energy—Deep Reflection!"
Uranus widened her eyes "What?!"
"He is too strong..." Neptune turned to Uranus "And it's innocent people being possessed. If we kill these things, we will kill all these people."
"So what then!?" Makoto turned frantic as she kicked and sent another creature away with a blast of electric energy, "We are supposed to let them multiply!?" she widened her eyes when noticed at her Senshi comrade standing next to her "Innocent people..." she muttered with a deeper meaning to her soft voice, hurt was written all over her beautiful face. Sailor Moon tilted her head and looked at her with a sad smile, "I guess I will not be able to eat that delicious cake, after all." she raised her hand and summoned her lunar rod "Silver Moon..." she looked up at her silver scepter shining proudly with the sacred light of her crystal, "...Therapy Kiss!"
Athamas froze in place, he heard it—that voice. He recognized that voice; slowly, he turned to look over his shoulder and saw a woman with pale blonde hair summoning an intense amount of power. He recognized that figure, the posture and the light coming from her. His green eyes widened in shock as he remembered the once Lunar Princess grab a sword and stab herself in the heart, "No..."
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