Mercury
led them to an alleyway in the business district of Tokyo.
"There!"
she pointed towards the end of the alley. A door stood embedded in the wall, and the cement around it was covered
with black scorch marks.
"That's
the entrance to the Negaverse?" Sailor Moon reiterated.
"Yes,
the energy readings match the ones from Mercite," Mercury answered as she
punched the keyboard on her portable computer.
"All
right, guys, stay alert…let's go." Sailor Moon opened the door and led the
group of warriors inside. The door
closed behind them, and the teenagers found themselves in a long, black tunnel.
"I'm
sensing powerful evil forces all around us," Mars warned them.
"Mercury,
can you locate Mini-Moon?" Sailor Moon asked. Sailor Mercury punched in her commands and scanned for Reine's
energy. Each sailor scout emitted a
specific energy type regardless if they were transformed or not.
"I
can only tell you that's she's somewhere ahead of us. There's too much negative energy swirling around; I can't scan
passed it."
"Don't
worry about it, at least we know her general direction."
"Well…well…well…Sailor
Moon…"
"That
voice!" Sailor Moon growled and looked up. A transparent image appeared above her, and her teeth clenched so hard
you could hear them grind.
"Beryl!"
everyone gasped.
"So,
Sailor Moon, I see that you're back in action…" Her eyes then trained on Tuxedo
Mask. "…Hello, my Darien, did you miss
me? I must admit…you were quite
excellent…now I know why 'little miss moon brat' wanted you so much."
Darien
felt like he was going to be sick. He
nearly hurled as he remembered that horrid night. The queen of the Negaverse had taken Serena's form, and he'd made
love to her without even thinking. Damn
it, he should've known better! A light
bulb suddenly went off in his mind, and a cruel smile spread across his face.
"That
reminds me Beryl, I have some news for you. You may think that you were good, but trust me… you're no comparison to
Serena. She's the best there is, and
you don't tread water against her perfection."
Sailor
Moon blushed slightly, and a smirk almost appeared on her face. Everyone else was snickering as the dark
queen seethed with rage.
"I
was planning on keeping you around, Prince Darien, but just for that, you'll
burn with your princess," the queen roared.
"Where's
Reine?" Sailor Moon demanded.
"Why
she's my guest, Sailor Moon; after all, I couldn't invite you without her here
first?"
"Tell
me where she is?" A sadistic smile
spread across Beryl's face.
"Your
daughter, why she's in my throne room 'entertaining my minions' or is it…they're
entertaining her!"
"You
didn't!" Sailor Mars gasped, knowing what Beryl was referring to. She prayed that Reine hadn't been violated
like she almost was. She knew the
terror and fear that came along with it, and the feeling of utter helplessness
almost destroyed her.
"Mars,
what is it?" Sailor Jupiter asked.
"I
know what she means…she means that Reine's been…been…" she couldn't get the
words out, but Sailor Moon didn't need to hear them.
"Oh
come…come…Mars…I'm not that tacky. No,
if I was going to do that to such a pretty, young girl, I'd make her mother
watch!" she cackled.
Tuxedo
Mask was ready to explode, but the deep, blue eyes of his princess held him
back. He saw something different in
them; there was a fire burning in them that he'd never seen before.
"Beryl,
I swear…if you touch one hair on my daughter's head, I promise that I'll send
you back to the Negaverse in pieces!" Sailor Moon hissed. The dark queen laughed once again.
"Well
then, little miss prissy, shall we see if you can even make it to my throne
room…we'll be waiting…" Her maniacal laughter faded off with her image, and
Sailor Moon clenched her fists.
"Damn
her!" Jupiter growled.
"At
least we know that Reine is okay," Venus stated, trying to think of something
good.
"Yes…but
for how long?" Mercury retorted. Sailor
Moon shook her head.
"That
sleaze queen won't touch her; she wouldn't waste an opportunity to torture me
like that. She just wants to aggravate
and throw me off-guard." The blonde closed her eyes, and her palms opened as
she calmed down her emotions.
"Guys,
we need to keep our cool; Beryl wants us on edge. I know that I'm the last person who should be saying this, but we
can't act foolishly. Reine's been here
long enough; I want her back and that's exactly what I'm going to get!"
The
determination in her voice made everyone smile at her. She wasn't talking like a teenager or a
blonde airhead.
"You
sound like an angry mother," Mars quipped. Sailor Moon turned towards her, and her eyes told the story.
"I'm
well beyond angry…now let's go."
The
group finally reached the end of the tunnel, however, the next section was
split into five tunnels.
"Which
way do we take?" Venus inquired. Mercury ran a scan on the area, but it came up blank.
"I
can't tell which passage leads to Beryl's throne room."
"I
guess we'll each take a separate passage," Jupiter stated.
"Agreed. Darien and I will take the center tunnel;
Mercury and Greg take the right; Jupiter and Ken take the far right; Mars and
Chad take the left; and Venus and Glen take the far left, okay?" Sailor Moon
directed. The scouts and their
companions nodded in unison.
"Good
luck, everyone, don't go dying on me now."
"Don't
worry, Sailor Moon, we'll be fine," Ken stated.
"That's
right, we're together and nothing can stop us when we're together," Jupiter
added firmly.
"See
you guys on the other side," Venus stated as she and Glen headed down their
passage.
"Let's
go kick some Negabutt!" Jupiter shouted as she and Ken headed down their
tunnel.
"Take
care everyone, we'll see you soon," Amy sighed as Greg followed after her.
"See
ya later, meatball-head," Rei laughed as she and Chad took off down their
passage. Sailor Moon gazed at Tuxedo
Mask.
"Shall
we?" he quipped.
"Yes,
it's time to finish this once and for all!" she said firmly. They clasped hands and raced into the
darkness, determined to find their daughter and rescue her once again.
Author's Notes: Get ready to rumble! The battle begins next chapter…stay tuned!!!