A Double Edged Sword Part 12
Blood and Water
by
Sailor Janus
Haruka awoke with a start. Groggily she reached up to rub her eyes and winced in pain. 'Did they have to make the bandages so tight?!'
"Hey, you're finally awake, " the aqua-haired girl in the bed next the blonde softly said.
"Michiru! You're alive!"
Giggling lightly, Michiru weakly nodded, "Yes, I am, thanks to your screaming. I still do not understand why that woman was trying to kill us. I can barely remember what she said. If only we could have transformed, we wouldn't be in this state."
"She was evil all right and she wants all of us dead," Haruka said with a sigh. "I wonder how the others are surviving? Damnit! I could kill her right now but I don't feel like having my guts empty out on the floor."
"Something will happen, Haruka. Don't worry. I am just glad that she didn't kill you. I hope the others are still alive. She sounded like she means business."
"Yeah, but as soon as I'm out of this hospital I'm gonna hunt her down and kill her even if I have to chase her down in a wheelchair!"
*~*~*~*
The water in the pool at the athletic club was calm and still as ice when Ryo Urawa walked through the heavy glass doors. He scanned the area in confusion and ran a hand through his brown hair. "Odd. I wonder where Ami is? She said to meet her here so we could go and study for that history test at the library afterwards," he said to himself as he inspected the pool area closer when suddenly, his eyes fell upon a rather large object floating in the pool.
"Wait....what is....oh no," he gasped when the realization that it was Ami who was floating face down in the pool, hit him hard. Without thinking, he raced towards the edge and dove in still wearing his school uniform. Quickly he grabbed a hold of the girl's waist and he swam to the nearest edge then carefully pulled her out of the water.
"Ami! Can you hear me?! AMI!" Ryo frantically shouted, as he climbed out of the pool. He shook her slightly then lightly slapped her face. Receiving no response he took a deep breath and then began CPR and artificial respiration.
"Come on, Ami! Don't give up on me! You can't!" he urged the girl while alternating breaths and chest compressions. "Please Ami, please, don't die on me. Don't die."
Finally, after what seemed like eternity, the blue-haired girl spat out a mouthful of water, before turning to her side, to regurgitate the rest that was still in her lungs.
"Ami! You're alive!" Ryo exclaimed as he helped the girl turn over and patted her back gently as she coughed up the rest of the water before saying a weak "Thank you."
"What happened?! I thought you were a strong swimmer," the boy softly said as he began to look very relieved. Ami was a little drawn back over the fact that he seemed really worried about her but she smiled.
"I really don't remember. I was under so much stress lately that I guess I blanked out," the girl lied as she looked down at the tiled floor. 'Thank goodness he was here or I would actually be dead right now.'
"You had me so scared! I thought I was too late and lost you," Ryo admitted as he looked back at the pool, not wanting to meet the girl's pretty blue eyes.
"Lo-lost me?" Ami stammered.
"Yeah, I guess you could say I really do like you. It's just hard to find a way to say it and I'm sorry that it took so long for me to admit it. I-I just really didn't know what to say. I'm sorry," the boy blushed as he finally looked at her face.
Ami looked a little surprised and blushed as well. "I like you too, Ryo." The two then meet with a small soft kiss then pulled away smiling.
*~*~*~*
"Setsuna?" Makoto called out as she entered the outers' mansion. "Where is she?"
Quietly she walked up the stairs to where Setsuna's perfectly decorated room was located and had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.
Just then, a girl room raced out of the room and broke through the window. "What the?!" Makoto said in shock when she finally realized that the dark haired girl came from Setsuna's room.
"Setsuna!" the brunette haired teen cried out as she threw open the door only to discover that the dark green-haired woman's wrists were slashed.
"No!" Rushing to the senshi of time's side, Makoto grabbed a sheet off the bed next to them and tore off several strips. Frantically, she applied the pieces of cloth to the wounds. "Setsuna, please hold on."
With lightening speed, the senshi of Jupiter grabbed the phone from the nightstand and dialed the emergency number.
It took only a matter of minutes before the ambulance finally arrived and took the two girls to the hospital.
*~*~*~*
'Almost done,' Hotaru thought with a sigh when abruptly she was torn from her thoughts as her communicator beeped. "Not again," she said to herself as she picked up the small electronic device, listening intently as Makoto explained what happened to Setsuna on the communicator.
"I Guess I should take a bus over there," the dark-violet haired girl softly said as she looked longingly at her backpack. 'Tomorrow is not soon enough.'
*~*~*~*
Minako was finally signing her release papers when her communicator began beeping. "Heh heh, it's my pager. My friends are probably worried about me! I'll be back in a minute," the girl smiled as she backed away to a corner of the room and then listened to Makoto's news on senshi of time's attack. "No," the blonde breathed as she sunk to the ground. "Well, I guess I'll be stuck here longer than I thought. Please be okay, Setsuna," Minako whispered when a thought struck her. 'Wait, this killer can't seem to pull off the actually murder, they just come so close and stop. If we are such a threat to them then why don't they finish the job?'
"Minako," Usagi called out as she walked over to her friend and hugged her. The doctors were still having a difficult time making the moon princess eat due to her paranoia because of her attack. Fortunately Mamoru did manage to get her to eat something, so slowly Usagi was recovering.
"Usagi! I'm so glad to see you. Are you okay?" the senshi of love urgently asked the golden blonde haired girl who nodded. The cheerful smile on Minako's face faded as she said, "Setsuna was attacked."
"I know. We need to find whatever it is that is doing this, before things get even worse."
"Hey," Makoto yelled out as she raced towards her friends. The color of girl's face was very flushed as if she had ran to hospital, but the two girl's knew it was just her fury raging. "Am I glad to see you two! I think we need a meeting as soon as Setsuna is healed."
"How is she?" Usagi asked as she looked in her friend's emerald green eyes.
"She has lost some blood, but the odd thing is that the knife didn't cut anything vital! It seems to have just grazed the surface of her wrists missing her veins."
"What?!" both girls chorus as Rei and Ami walked into the waiting room.
"What's wrong?! She didn't die, did she?!" the blue-haired girl nervously said. Ami was still quite shaken by her near drowning and tried intensely to keep her emotions under control.
"No, the killer was sloppy or didn't have it in her heart to kill Setsuna or something. The knife sliced her skin but it did not cut any veins!" Makoto exclaimed.
"Hmm, think she's just trying to torment us or something?" Rei thought about her question for a moment then shook her head. "No that can't be it. She seems to be intent on killing us but can't pull it off all the way for some reason."
"There you are! I was wondering where you went," Mamoru said as he smiled at Usagi who was in a fluffy pink bathrobe with pink bunny pajama's underneath. "Shouldn't you still be in bed?" he asked as he handed her a bag of homemade food.
"Setsuna was attacked. They slashed her wrists," Rei calmly explained.
Mamoru's blue eyes widened with horror. "What?! Is she okay?!"
"Yes, they missed every vital vein and nerve. It was only a surface wound," Ami said and then looked at the ground. "Much like my near drowning."
"They tried to drown you?! Why didn't you tell us?!" Makoto asked the girl who was staring at her shoes. The tall brunette slowly curled her hand into a fist and clenched it tightly, wishing there was something for her to punch.
"It happened less than an hour ago. Lucky for me, Ryo saved me."
"We're so glad you are okay!" Usagi exclaimed as she pulled a sandwich out of the bag that her boyfriend gave her. She carefully inspected it and after deciding it was safe, took a bite.
Just then Hotaru walked into the room. Her face was very solemn, expressing her lack of desire to be there. When she saw the others talking, she faked a smile and walked up to the crowd.
"Hotaru! There you are! We've been wondering where you went," Makoto said when she saw the girl walk into the room. "Good news! The killer was sloppy and didn't cut anything important! Setsuna's gonna be okay!"
"Really? That's great! What about everyone else? Sorry, I haven't been here that much. It's just …. hard."
"We understand, Hotaru," Ami smiled reassuringly. "Usagi and Minako as you can see, are better now. And Michiru and Haruka survived their second attack. They're fairly weak, but they'll be okay."
"I'm glad." the violet-eyed girl smiled but deep down she still felt sad.
*~*~*~*
'Strange. How did I get here?!' Deidera thought as she glanced around her unfamiliar surroundings. She was in some strange park with a small pond in the center. The teen's back was leaning against a cherry blossom tree.
Absent-mindedly she reached up to push a strand of hair that was in her face, when she suddenly yelped in pain. Glancing down at her hand she noticed there was a piece of glass embedded in it.
Gritting her teeth, she carefully pulled it out and watched as the blood slowly gushed from the wound.
We all bleed red. Not yellow, not purple, not blue. Red. I know the color well. Thick, crimson, and slick. I know I shall see more of it, before the end of my days. Whether it be painted on my hands, or gushing out of my chest, smeared on my face, or soaked through my clothes, I will meet it again. The color plagues me. Dark red is everywhere I look. Mocking me, patronizing me. Whispering to me my fate, but that book has not been written yet. I will be the one to decide where the story ends at, not a script telling me what to say and do. Blood may be thicker than water, but I can stop it from flooding the streets.
The burgundy-haired girl glanced up with determination in her jade green eyes. "I may not understand what is happening, but I will stop it. This shall not continue on. I will put an end to it," she whispered as she stared at the sky.
*~*~*~*
A few hours later, the senshi and Mamoru found themselves in Haruka and Michiru's hospital room. Setsuna was there as well. Her wrists were bandaged, but luckily the cuts were not deep. Makoto was leaning against the wall, as Mamoru sat on one of the chairs with Usagi, who was still munching away on her lunching, perched on his lap. Setsuna settled for one of the other chairs as Minako and Ami sat at the foot of Haruka and Michiru's beds. Rei was decided to stand as Hotaru placed herself on the floor, further away from the group.
"I have a startling revelation for all of you," Setsuna said as she looked at each of her friends. "The killer has revealed her name."
"What is it?" Usagi asked in between bites of an apple.
"Kalika. It comes from Kali Ma, which means 'She who destroys."
"How fitting," Rei dryly muttered. "And it is us she wants to destroy."
"She doesn't want to destroy us though, she told me it was her duty," Ami pointed out as she explained her near drowning.
"So did you and Ryo kiss?" Minako smirked as the senshi of Mercury blushed.
"Um, that's not important!"
"Sure," Minako giggled, tossing her long hair off her shoulder. "I bet you did."
"Uh, can we stay on the subject, please?" Haruka asked looking rather annoyed.
"Wait! What did the girl look like?" Minako asked as she realized that she might have been a victim as well.
"She had long dark hair with dark red streaks, about Michelle's height, slender, wearing a long black coat and black pants with a red top and black boots. She also had glowing golden eyes," Setsuna described as the others looked wide-eyed at he senshi of time.
"That was the nurse that locked me in the morgue! I'm not crazy!" Minako exclaimed.
"Yep, she was the one that kicked us out of Haruka and Michiru's room as well," Rei reminded them.
"This still does not explain anything though. We still don't know whom we are dealing with. She could be using the name of Kalika as a secret identity," the blonde racecar driver brought up throwing her hands in the air.
"Great. So I guess we should keep an eye out for anyone or anything that looks suspicious," Makoto sighed as she crossed her arms.
"I have a feeling that we won't know who or what we are dealing with, until the last possible minute," Hotaru softly said looking at the tiled floor.
The others nodded as they looked grimly at each other. Hopefully, the assassin would continue to do their dituies only halfway.
*~*~*~*
Rei found herself walking into a strangely lit room bathed in red lighting. There was something particularly eerie about this room. "It was not me," a voice softly said from behind the dark haired girl.
Quickly, Rei spun around and discovered what appeared to be a girl with the sad tragedy mask on. The senshi of fire could not really see who the mysterious girl was, only that green glowed through the eyes of the white mask as her dark curls blew in the breeze.
"Then who was it?" Rei said as she stared at the girl who then focused on the ground.
"You can't stop her alone. Only silver and gold can bring to an end to the horror that you have been facing. Please, before it's too late." Suddenly the girl cried out in pain as a ripping sound filled the air. The masked girl fell to the ground as another figure appeared where she once stood.
"It is too late! You cannot stop my Dark Lord," a woman with the grinning tragedy sneered. Her masked oddly looked more sinister than it normally did.
Gold glowed through the eyes of the masked woman as long straight hair blew in the breeze.
Suddenly, a knife appeared in the woman's hand and she threw it at Rei who screamed in terror.
*~*~*~*
Rei suddenly awoke drenched in sweat. "Was that a vision?"
Glancing around her surroundings, the raven-haired girl discovered that she was facing the fire in her grandfather's shrine. 'I must have fallen asleep trying to do a fire reading when that dream came to me, but could it actually explain what we are dealing with?' Raye thought as she looked intensely at the fire.
"Trying to discover my secrets are you?" a woman's voice sneered from behind the girl.
Whipping her head around she found a tall woman with black hair streaked with red and wearing a long black coat pointing a gun straight at Rei.
"Yes, but it would be much easier if you told us who you work for. You had already stated that this was your duty, but I do not understand why," the dark haired girl calmly said as she took out her henshin wand to transform. Unfortunately, before Rei could even say one word, the wand was shot out of her hand.
"Ah ah ah ah. This would be no fun if you were to transform on me now would it?" Kalika smiled innocently before bursting into a fit of giggles. "Now really, why do you want to know? You won't be alive much longer anyway."
Rei watched the insane woman carefully. 'She actually enjoys this?! What kind of psychopath are we dealing with?' Swallowing thickly, the girl suddenly felt very nervous. 'She seems to be sloppy and can't finish what she starts, or is she actually leading us on, trying to torture us into wondering who is going to die next?'
The senshi of fire suddenly gasped when she realized that this was the same woman from her dream. The evil one who told her it was too late. "If she is the evil one then who was the girl-"
"Talking to yourself? Well, you better say goodbye because I'm afraid that will be your last conversation," Kalika snidely remarked as she aimed the pistol at Rei. The teen tried to dive for cover, but wasn't fast enough as the sound of the gun being fired rang in her ears followed an intense pain echoing through her body. She heavily fell to the ground like a dead duck during hunting season.
"Too bad. We could have had such fun," the woman pouted as she turned around and left the shrine as Rei was lying in a pool of her own blood.
*~*~*~*
Hotaru glanced around her darkly lit room as she clung on to her backpack. "Well, this it," she softly murmured as she left the room and rushed quickly past her father's room. The violet-haired girl tried to block out the sound of his painful wheezing and hacking coughs. Her father's labored breathing still rang in her ears long after she had shut the door to the house and locked it behind her.
Taking a deep breath, Hotaru found herself leaning against the door as tears flooded her eyes. 'Too much, there is too much pain here. In this town. In this world.'
Feeling a little more collected she looked up at the sky as she wiped her tears out of her violet eyes and then sought out to flee the world that didn't hold any joy or happiness to her. Escape.
*~*~*~*
"Okay, water is set at a boil, and the veggies are already cut. All I need to do is cook the rice and vegetables after I finish up the shrimp and then I'll only have dessert left to finish," Makoto said to herself as she checked to make sure the pot of boiling water didn't run over.
There were so many things on the girl's mind that it felt great to just forget about everything and concentrate on her first love, cooking.
"Oh look, the little tough girl can cook," a dark haired woman sarcastically said, startling the brunette who spun around in surprise..
"How did you get in here?!" Makoto demanded when suddenly Kalika slammed her over the head with a small hammer, knocking the other girl unconscious as she slumped against the sink.
"Oh dear me! Now you can't finish cooking dinner! Here let me turn things up for you," The woman then threw a rag on the burner, which quickly caught on fire. "Well, look at that, I started a fire! I guess I better leave so I don't get in trouble. Hope you like it hot," the woman whispered as she fled the apartment as Makoto remained on the floor while her beautiful apartment began filling up with smoke.