Author's Notes at Bottom - Enjoy!
@------
Flee to Destiny
Chapter 14 - Senshi in Wonderland
By: Bethany
Editor: Meara
Rated: PG
@------
As I stepped forward I told myself that I
was prepared for anything. If my hunch were right,
the black nothingness was merely an illusion to
keep me locked in the room. No amount of mental
preparation was sufficient enough to prepare me
for what awaited me when I stepped out of the room.
The door behind me and the room beyond it
disappeared the second my foot left the landing.
But the most astonishing thing was that I was
floating! No ground below my feet, yet I didn't
fall. I moved my arms like one would swim and
began moving forward. Without any light I had
nothing to guide me, and since super heroes don't
wear watches, I had no idea how long I floated
around, perhaps in circles.
Suddenly I found another door and not the
easy way, either. No, I smacked into it. "Ugh,
that'll leave a mark," I mumbled, more to hear
something besides my own breathing rather than
to talk to myself.
I finally found the door handle and turned
it. Beyond was a scene from many dreams... and just
as many nightmares. The door behind me slammed when
I entered, the sound echoing like a shot in the dark.
In front of me was a staircase, to the left a
sitting room that I would never forget if I lived to
be a million years old. The fine furniture and pastel
colors were suited to my mother's taste. "Her" room
had always been a place that was off limits to me and
Shingo due to our sloppy habits. We had always felt
more at relaxed in the den anyways, with its dark carpet
that that didn't stain easily and worn furniture that
we could flop down on. Even though, I couldn't help but
smile at the memory of my mother sitting in that room,
her needle point in hand.
My attention moved to the staircase. With tears
burning in my eyes, I forced myself up the stairs.
Memories that I had suppressed for months came back
as clearly as yesterday. Emotional wounds barely healed
were ripped open again, their stinging pain just as fresh
as it was the day I watched my parents lowered in twin
graves. Hanging on the second door to the left was a small
picture of a bunny with my name written out underneath.
From some part of me I didn't know existed, I found the
courage to turn the handle.
I fell back through time as the door opened. The
twin bed, the moon and stars bedspread, and all my stuffed
animals that I had to leave behind in the move - even the
pictures still lined my dresser. Why, it was as if I had
never left! I sat down on my bed, pulling one of the
stuffed animals in my lap. Everything was the same, so
much that I half expected my mother to come through the
door. Or Shingo... Shingo, could he be here?
Leaving my memories of being safe in my room behind,
I headed towards my parent's room. I expected to see their
bedroom just as it had been while I grew up. But when I
pushed the door open, the memories that haunted me every
other time I closed my eyes loomed in front of me again.
Two bodies slumped atop each other, lifeless across
the bed. On the wall above them, the wet blood still dripping,
were the words that had started me on this path. Had I come
all this way only to be right back at the beginning?
Tears fell down my face and a howl of terror echoed
in my ears, just like so long ago... "Shingo?" I screamed.
He was nowhere to be seen. Did I really hear him? Or was
it my memory playing tricks on me?
My eyes flashed over the blood-smeared words. 'You're
Next Little Princess.' The bodies on the bed, my parents.
"No...nooooo... This isn't happening! I buried my parents;
not here, not again!"
"Why, Usagi? Why did you let them kill us?"
I fell back, my head striking the opposite wall.
"Mama?" I whispered, crawling away from the doorway and
towards the stairs, blinded by tears and terror. "Daddy?"
"Why Usagi?"
"NO!" I covered my ears with my hands and squeezed my
eyes shut. Over and over I heard my mother calling, demanding
to know why I let them die. Hysterical, tears dripping off my
face as I gasped for breath, I crawled the rest of the distance
to the staircase. I looked back and seen the door to Shingo's
room open and I screamed, my hand sliding at the same time.
Before I could regain my balance, I slid down the stairs.
"Usagi! Usagi, answer me!"
"NO!" I screamed, flinging my arms and crying. My heart
was beating so fast I thought it might explode. The only
thing I could think was to get away; fast.
"Usagi, get a hold of yourself!" I was being shaken,
my heard snapped back and I opened my eyes, waiting to see
a Youma; something out of my worst nightmare. Instead I saw
Sailor Mars, her eyes worriedly watching me as I tried to
gather my senses.
"R..Rei-chan?" I looked up the staircase, but there
was nothing. Nothing chasing me; nothing but my own memories.
"Oh God, Rei-chan," I cried my relief, still shaking badly.
"My parents, I saw my Mom and Dad... dead. All of it, all
over again...."
"Shhh," Rei soothed me while I sobbed. "I saw that room,
Usagi. I wish you hadn't. I'm sorry."
"Who is doing this? Why?" I asked, getting louder as I
spoke until my voice took on the shrill edge of a mad person.
Somehow I knew that whoever was responsible for this mess could
hear my every word. "Haven't you done enough to me?!"
Silence was my only answer, but I didn't expect an
explanation. I doubt it would have been a sufficient one
anyway. I finally calmed myself down and stood up. Rei
rubbed my back as I sucked in my breath and wiped my face
free of lingering tears. "Go wash you face and then we'll
decide where to go from here," Rei suggested wisely.
I nodded and headed towards the bathroom. My reflection
in the mirror only proved that I looked as horrid as I felt.
My eyes were wild looking, puffy and blood shot. Dried
tearstains trailed down both my cheeks. I reached down and
turned the faucet on, but instead of water coming out, blood
gushed into the sink. I gasped and turned it off quickly,
running out of the room.
I found Rei in the kitchen. "Let's go," I commanded,
grasping her hand and pulling her towards the door.
"Matte*, Usagi! There's nothing out there!" Mars
argued. But trying to stop me was not an option, I was
too determined to escape this place. I wanted to find
Mamo-chan; I had never needed to feel his arms around
me as bad as I did at this moment.
Mars protested even after I explained that we weren't
jumping to our deaths. She looked even more worried when I
threw the front door open and she realized I wasn't kidding.
"If you're so determined to do this, at least let me
go first!" She stared me down for several minutes. I wanted
to get out of this place so bad that finally I nodded my
head, seeing no alternative. So much for showing her that
we wouldn't fall forever downwards. I supposed now she'd
learn on her own.
Holding her breath, Mars walked out the door. "Oh,
my God," she exclaimed when she didn't fall. I followed
quickly and shut the door behind me. But I didn't feel
any real relief until it disappeared. "Now what?" Mars
asked.
I reached out in the direction of her voice and
grabbed her arm. "Now we float around until we find another
door, and hope we find everyone else - and no more surprises."
"Not likely to be that easy," Mars retorted, following
my lead. I felt positive she was right.
@------
"I feel something," Sailor Mars announced. I was
beginning to wonder if we would just float forever. It
felt like it had been hours since we fled from the house
I had grown up in. I tried not to think about what I had
seen. Even though I knew that it wasn't really my house,
or my parents, the memories were once again fresh in my
mind.
Mars opened the door and we stepped into a house
that neither of us recognized. It was a one-story house,
not very big, but it was cozy looking. The kitchen table
had a birthday cake sitting in the middle and decorations
hung from the rafters.
"I wonder where this is?" Mars whispered, more to
herself than to me.
I searched through the rest of the house. The master
bedroom contained a large sleigh bed with matching night
stands. A vanity table covered the length of one wall,
make up and creams scattered among it. At one end was a
picture of a young Mako-chan and two people I presumed to
be her parents. I walked out of that room and across the
hall to another.
There I found Mako-chan sitting on a bed, staring
out the window. The room looked remarkably like her room
in the apartment she now had. When she didn't take notice
of my presence, I gently reached out and touched her arm.
"Mako-chan?"
She jumped, proving my theory of her being so deeply
in thought she didn't realize I was standing before her.
"Usagi-chan?" she asked. She appeared confused for a minute
that I would be there, I obviously didn't fit in the memories
she was reliving. Suddenly she shook her head and smiled
weakly at me. "I'm sorry. How long have you been here?" When
I only stared at her, she stood up. "This was the house I
grew up in," she explained, holding her arms out. She continued
to talk, filling our silence with her memories. "I was having
a surprise party for my parent's anniversary..." she trailed
off, her voice cracking. "But they never came home." A tear
fell from her eye that she wiped at in vain.
"How did they die?" I whispered.
She again looked out the window, her hands bawling into
fists. "Their plane crashed on the way back from Rome, where
they went to celebrate their anniversary. I remember sitting,
waiting for their return. But instead I got a call from the
police..."
Having lost my parents also, I could relate to what
was going through her mind better than anyone, I suppose.
But the question I wanted the answer to was why? Why was
this happening? What kind of sick person would make us live
through the worst memories we had all over again? Of course,
I told myself. The kind of person who wants us dead so they
can take over Earth. I put my hand on Mako-chan's shoulder.
"I'm sorry."
She sucked her breath in and smiled at me weakly.
"Thanks, Usagi-chan." Wiping the tears off her face, she
started towards the door but stopped to take one last
longing look towards her parent's room before continuing
on. "Have you found anyone else?"
"Just Rei," I told her. We started to the kitchen
again when the front door opened and Ami and Minako came
in. "Ami-chan! Minako-chan!" I called.
Minako ran up, hugging me around the neck. She
beamed a huge smile at me and then hugged Mako-chan.
"I'm so glad we found you!" she gushed, hugging Mako-chan
again. "Is anyone else here?"
As if on cue, Rei came to the living room to see what
the commotion was. I couldn't help but laugh when Minako
threw herself into Rei's arms with a force that suggested
they hadn't seen each other in years rather than hours.
"Minako-chan no baka," Rei said, but it was obvious she was
happy to see her, also.
We sat down in the living room, all talking at once.
The moment of peace didn't come until Ami cleared her throat
and opened her computer. Silence rained down on the group of
us like a goddess had appeared. I waited anxiously for Ami
to say she had all the answers and we would find everyone
else and be on our way home. Unfortunately, the Genius Senshi
had limited information on our situation. "We've all fallen
into a scene from our memories; the worst ones, I'm afraid.
Everything I've tried to get readings on come back as made
of nothing more than air. It's like we are all in dreams or
illusions. The only useful thing I've managed to do is find
a way to get us from one of these doors to another in a matter
of minutes by taking the--"
Minako held her hand up, shaking her head. "Don't explain,
please. No offense, Ami-chan, but I don't understand any of the
words you use. You could be speaking German for all of it I get."
Ami stopped, almost looking upset, but then smiled.
"Then let's go, ne?"
Just as Ami said, once we stepped out the front door
of Mako-chan's house, she opened a door to another. This time,
however, instead of stepping into a house; we stepped out of
one. The clouds above us covered the Moon's rays, breaking
open and pouring rain down. In front of us was a road, just
on the edge of a cliff over looking the ocean.
Something sparked in my memory, but I couldn't put my
finger on it until we seen headlights coming down the hill.
I watched, terror stricken, as the vehicle lost control and
drove off the cliff.
I took off running, past the surprised Senshi and down
the steps leading to the road. I could hear my friends behind
me, calling my name and in front of me the sound of the car
hitting the water. I ran faster, fearing I would loose balance
and fall, but unable to slow down. "Mamo-chan!" I screamed to
the top of my lungs.
When I reached the road, I watched as the car bobbed in
the water and then began sinking. "MAMO-CHAN!" I heard a noise
behind me, and seen a shadow move near a tree. Unthinking of
anything else, I ran towards the movement.
Mamo-chan, still in his tuxedo but without the hat and
mask, was staring towards the cliff - obviously not even seeing
me. The rain had plastered his hair to his forehead and he was
soaked. "Mamo-chan!" I called his name, but to no avail. I began
crying and wrapped my arms around him. My heart broke to see my
tall, dashing Price this way. He was never supposed to have such
despair in his eyes; never. The blank look in his eyes reminded
me so much of when we thought Chibi-Usa was dead that I felt a
chill ran over my spine, sending shivers all over my body. I
pressed myself as close to him as I could, tightening my arms.
"Onegai, Mamo-chan. Answer me! Onegai!"
It seemed to take ages for him to blink. Suddenly I felt
his arms come around me, nearly crushing me against him. "Usako..?"
he croaked, his voice high pitched with emotion.
"Yes, Mamo-chan, yes," I replied, kissing his ice cold lips
over and over again. Tears began falling from his eyes, mixing
with the rain. Another car, identical with the first one, came
down the road and lost control, going off the cliff just as the
previous one had. Mamo-chan watched it and fell to his knees, my
body still crushed against him. His tears came harder. Out of the
corner of my eye I saw the Senshi watching - I shook my head to
keep them where they were.
"Shhh," I soothed, running my hands through his hair and
kissing away his tears while he held me like a drowning man would
cling to a life raft.
He finally seemed to come out of his grief, letting his grip
on me loosen. The rain continued to fall around us, but I paid it
little heed. "Mamo-chan?" I whispered, placing my lips on his
forehead.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled, his face still buried in my hair.
"It keeps happening over and over again... my parents..."
"I know baby, but this is not real. It's all an illusion.
I'm here now. We have to find Shingo and go home to our daughter."
Mamo-chan sat up, bringing my hands to his lips and kissing
them. "Usako... you, Chibi-Usa and Shingo--you're all I have.
Don't ever leave me."
I put my hands on his face and brought him closer to me.
"Never. I promise." When our lips meet, I felt the true dept of
our love. I wasn't the only one who needed reassurance and comfort.
We were in this together, forever.
Mamo-chan stood up again, and then helped me up. He glanced
once more at the cliff as if doing so would forever suppress the
memories of the accident. "Let's go get Shingo back."
We started forward again, but suddenly Mamo-chan stopped.
I turned questionably, wondering what caught his attention. I
prayed another car wasn't coming down the hill, but I was
surprised to see Mamo-chan staring at me with an odd glint
in his eyes. "What?"
He caught my hands in his and met my eyes. "Tsukino Usagi,
I love you more than anything in the world." He started to say
something else, it seemed, but didn't.
I tilted my head and smiled. "I love you too, Mamo-chan."
He smiled back and we continued up the stairs.
@------
In a two story laboratory we found the Outer Senshi. The
place was wrecked, the ruins of an explosion that had killed
Professor Tome, Hotaru's natural father, still smoking.
"As Hotaru's God-Mother, I was given custody since she
had no other family. She was barely three when this happened,"
Michiru explained, her thin arms spread wide. I looked around
at the broken glass and busted furniture.
"What about her mother?" I whispered. Hotaru said nothing
while we spoke of her life, only sat closer to Haruka's side
and stared forward. The Senshi of Sky put one arm around the
ground girl protectively.
"She died giving birth to her," Michiru replied, dropping
her eyes and thus ending the conversation.
Setsuna watched my reaction carefully, as if waiting for
me to say something about three women raising a child. But I
would say nothing. Hotaru was a delightful young lady. It was
obvious she had grown up in a house full of love. That's all
that really mattered in my eyes.
"If we are all together then it's safe to presume the
next stop will lead us to the enemy, right?" Minako asked.
No one could agree nor disagree - it was too well known
that surprises were plentiful in our line of work.
The next door we went in proved to not be anything any
of us recognized. It was a cave, cut out of the side of a
mountain. The door we came out of disappeared, leaving with
no other option but to follow the tunnel.
At first I thought this would be your typical evil dark
tunnel that lead to the person behind it all deal. Was I ever
wrong!
After a few hundred yards we came into a room. And not
just any room, but an upside down room. There were chairs,
tables, even plants - but they were sitting on the ceiling.
In the middle of the floor was a ceiling fan, its blades
turning slowly.
"This is nuts!" Mars exclaimed, reaching up and pulling
a leaf off of one of the plants. Just then the fan stopped
and the lights flickered.
I moved closer to Mamo-chan. My nerves stayed on edge
as we waited to see what would happen next. We didn't have
to wait long.
The first thing to fall was the plant Mars had pulled
the leaf from. I thought that would be it, but suddenly one
of the coffee tables came crashing down. Sailor Mercury
dashed out of its path right before it splintered into
pieces where she had once stood.
One by one, barely a second's pause between, all the
furniture fell from the ceiling. Tuxedo Kamen pulled me and
Neptune out of the way of the love seat that crashed down
while the rest of the Senshi dodged tables, lamps and the
like. We ran towards the door, the sound of breaking glass
filling our ears.
"Where's Saturn?" Setsuna suddenly cried, her eyes
frantically searching the group.
The Solider of Uranus scanned the area, and not finding
her adoptive daughter, dashed back in the room before anyone
could say something.
Seconds slowed to minutes, the minutes feeling like
hours while we each tried to see past the smoke and into
the room. The sound of a large object, most likely the
sofa, falling greeted our eager ears. "Haruka!" Neptune
immediately screamed. "Hotaru!" I watched, hoping, praying;
but no one emerged from the room.
Mamo-chan wrapped his arms around me, burring my face
in his chest. But I couldn't cry, I was too angry at whoever
had done this.
Pluto, like Neptune, refused to move from the doorway.
Together they stared into the clearing air for a sign, a cry
- anything. The minutes continued to tick by ever so slow.
They were dead, I repeated over and over again in my mind.
And someone would pay for this.
Jupiter placed her hand on Neptune's shoulder, but the
older Senshi shook it off. "She'll come out," she whispered
in a horse voice, so different than the soft melody her words
usually created. "You don't know Haruka like I do, she'll come
out."
Just when I had given up all hope, the sound of someone
walking through the debris preceded Sailor Uranus coming out
of the room, Saturn in her arms. She was covered with dust
and piece of broken wood. I knew I had never been so happy
to see Haruka's face in my life. She placed Hotaru down and
Setsuna swept her up in a hug as Michiru hugged Haruka. I
had never seen the two publicly show affection, but the sight
only warmed my heart.
"You Senshi are smarter than I give you credit for," a
voice boomed through out the cave, echoing in the distance.
"But I doubt you're smart enough to defeat me."
I shook my head. I refused to lower myself and scream
the obscenities that were on the tip of my tongue. Time
would tell who won this war.
Determinedly we walked forward.
@------
The youmas came in floods. We fought off group after
group of them. The more we found, the stronger they became.
Why, we didn't find out until it was almost too late.
"They're absorbing the excess energy off our attacks.
By using our attacks on them, we are feeding more power into
the next group," Mercury explained breathlessly as we fought
off more Youma.
A blade from a razor handed Youma flew past my face,
the wind off it giving me chills. The longer we fought, the
slower all our reflexes became as we tired out. The time
between attacks were becoming few and far between. I wiped
the sweat from my forehead. "What do we do?"
For the first time since I've known her, the Senshi
of Mercury looked unsure about something she said. "I don't
know, Sailor Moon. If we don't use our attacks, I don't see
us having a fighting chance."
Her words hit me like lead weights. Beyond the fighting
Senshi I saw another group of Youma coming towards us. "Mercury,
what do you suggest we do? They get any stronger and I'm afraid
we don't have a fighting chance anyway."
Mercury looked like she was giving a death sentence when
she finally answered me: "Don't use our attacks."
The Outer Senshi didn't look like they would cooperate
with our plan at first. Mercury explained to them what she
had told me; still they looked unconvinced. "Look, we don't
have time to talk out the various permutations on this.
Saturn, Pluto - you can use the Glaive and Time Key as
weapons. Mars has her mystic wards, Venus has her chain**,
Uranus her sword - so we're not defenseless. We just can't
power up, unless we want them to power up also."
After a few more seconds of silence I didn't think
they would agree. Finally, Uranus nodded. "What about
Saturn, can she use her silence dome?"
"I don't know," Mercury replied point blank. "Let's
not take the chance unless we have to."
While we were talking, the Youma had cornered us
against a wall. I wondered if they would attack us, or
if they were waiting for us to make the first move. When
we didn't start attacking them, they looked confused about
what to do next. I watched them out of the corner of my eye,
an idea coming to me that I prayed would work. "Don't move,"
I said to the Senshi slowly. I thought Mamo-chan would start
screaming when I started walking into the crowd of Youma, but
he refrained himself - barely. The different assortment of
Youma watched us curiously as we made our way towards the
other side of the room. To my delight, they made no movement
to stop us.
"They are programmed for self defense only. They don't
know what to do when we didn't attack," Mercury was explaining.
I couldn't quite figure out if she was saying this to someone
or to herself.
"That was... amazing," Venus exclaimed when we were safely
past the Youma. "How did you figure out they wouldn't attack?"
I shrugged. "It was just a hunch."
"Hey! They're getting away!" We heard this from one of the
idiots in the back. If it wasn't for the rise of voices at that
moment, followed by running, I might have found it funny.
"So, oh great leader, what now?" Mars asked, hands on her
hips.
I threw her a dirty look and glanced back at the crowd of
advancing Youma. "We do what any super hero would do - run!" And
with that I took off running, the rest of the Senshi following.
Even with the head start I had, Sailor Uranus and Neptune
soon passed me. "How can they run so fast?" Tuxedo Kamen mumbled
from beside me. I didn't answer him, beings I had no explanation.
They seemed a blur they went so fast.
Uranus suddenly stopped, Neptune following suit as if she
understood what the other was thinking. They pushed the door open,
Neptune running inside and Uranus directing us to follow. "Hurry!
In here!" We all followed, Uranus shutting the door behind us.
"That was close," Jupiter exclaimed. I turned to her, but
what I saw in the room stopped me in my tracks.
The back wall was lit up with torches, casting long dancing
lights around the stone walls. The room was bare except for one
stone bed. But what finally removed the shock from my body was
the person lying on that stone bed against the same wall. "Shingo!"
I started to run to him, but Tuxedo Kamen grabbed my arms.
"Wait, Sailor Moon," he commanded firmly. "It could be a trick."
I stopped, though it took all I had in me to do so. "But..."
I realized, however, that he was right. Hadn't I fell for this
once? I couldn't be so gullible again. "What do we do?"
Mercury stepped up to my other side, her visor over her
eyes and computer in hand. "He's the real Shingo," she reported
while she continued to scan and type. "But remember, he's had
evil fed into him and we don't know how it's changed him," she
advised.
Tuxedo Kamen nodded, but they just couldn't understand!
That was Shingo! I pulled my arms free from Mamo-chan and ran,
oblivious to the Senshi calling for me to stop, or Mamo-chan
chasing after me. I reached my younger brother, pulling him
into my arms. "Shingo, baby, answer me!" I called in his ear,
rocking him back and forth. His eyes opened, but gone were the
beautiful blue eyes so much like mine and our mother's. Instead
there was nothing but black, empty depts. As I stared at him,
his eyes flashed and I was thrown across the room in the same
instant.
For a second I blacked out from the impact. When I came
to, Mamo-chan was hovered over me. "Are you alright?" he asked
the second I reopened my eyes.
I nodded and stood up with his help. Across the room
Shingo was floating in the air. I couldn't believe what I
seen, it was worse than anything I could have dreamt up.
"That's not Shingo!" I accused Mercury, trying to find
somewhere to release my pain and anger built up inside me.
Mercury shook her head, showing me the small screen on
her computer that meant nothing to my untrained eyes. "It is
him. I warned you, they have fed this evil into him and now
it's been... activated, so to speak. Somewhere in that body,
is Shingo's soul."
"But... but what do we do?!" I cried. I felt like
pulling my hair out. To have found him, at last. And now,
this... "But Shingo is still alive, right?" I asked frantically,
practically pulling Mercury's arm out of socket.
When her eyes meet mine, what I seen there caused me to
let go of her and back up. Sadness, such sadness. Was it for me?
I bit my bottom lip. "We'll have to fight him, Sailor Moon."
No, I mouthed. I wanted to speak, to protest, but I
couldn't find my voice. I must have shook my head at her,
because she reached out her hand and touched mine; her
gloved hand felt scalding hot.
"Yes, Usagi-chan. We have to fight him. There is no
other way."
"I..I can't!" I stuttered, looking up at the little boy
floating in the air. Saturn and Pluto were keeping him held
back by threatening him with their powers, but he was advancing
quickly. I looked to Mercury, and back up to him again. I
couldn't. I knew I couldn't use my powers against him.
"Here Princess, Princess, Princess...." he taunted,
calling my title over and over again. "It's your turn to
die..." he said in a sing song voice.
I backed up, searching for a place to run. But there
was no where to run. If I wanted Shingo back, I would have
to use my powers against him... or for him. I brightened
with the realization. I could heal him! "Mercury!" I gasped,
running back over to her. "I can heal him, right? Then we
don't have to fight him."
"Not as he is now," she said, bursting my bubble with
her five small words. I felt panic growing larger in my mind.
"He's too strong. Just like one of the Youma we have been
fighting, we'll have to wear him down and let you try and
heal him then."
Sailor Pluto raised her Time Staff, preparing to chant
the words that would send a surge of power against Shingo.
Unthinking of what I was doing, I ran towards her, grabbing
the staff.
"NO! Don't!" I cried. Shingo blasted his own energy at
me, sending me flying against the wall. Pluto's eyes were
sad when she meet my gaze briefly.
"Dead Scream."
"NOO!"
--End Chapter 14.
* - Matte translates to "wait" or "hold on"
**- Venus wears her chain around her waist in the manga,
and then powers it up when she uses it by calling "Venus
Love-Me chain"
I've been working on this story a whole year this month,
can you believe it?? I can't. It don't seem that long. The
next chapter is the final chapter and the Epilogue. But,
never fear! This story is a series ^_^ (bet ya didn't know
that, now did you? ^_~) The next installment is called "No
Greater Love" and is a spin off of this story, a couple of
months down the road. This entire story will probably be about
three or four total books(stories) long, so I hope everyone
sticks around for the rest!
So, stayed tuned in next week for Chapter 15-Saving Shingo/Epilogue.
By the way, for those of you who haven't noticed - my email has
changed to Bethany212@comcast.net. I finally got rid of AOHELL
and currently enjoying a cable connection ^_^!! If you have my
stories on a web page, please make this change.
Luvs -n- Hugs,
Bethany
03-23-02
@------
Flee to Destiny
Chapter 14 - Senshi in Wonderland
By: Bethany
Editor: Meara
Rated: PG
@------
As I stepped forward I told myself that I
was prepared for anything. If my hunch were right,
the black nothingness was merely an illusion to
keep me locked in the room. No amount of mental
preparation was sufficient enough to prepare me
for what awaited me when I stepped out of the room.
The door behind me and the room beyond it
disappeared the second my foot left the landing.
But the most astonishing thing was that I was
floating! No ground below my feet, yet I didn't
fall. I moved my arms like one would swim and
began moving forward. Without any light I had
nothing to guide me, and since super heroes don't
wear watches, I had no idea how long I floated
around, perhaps in circles.
Suddenly I found another door and not the
easy way, either. No, I smacked into it. "Ugh,
that'll leave a mark," I mumbled, more to hear
something besides my own breathing rather than
to talk to myself.
I finally found the door handle and turned
it. Beyond was a scene from many dreams... and just
as many nightmares. The door behind me slammed when
I entered, the sound echoing like a shot in the dark.
In front of me was a staircase, to the left a
sitting room that I would never forget if I lived to
be a million years old. The fine furniture and pastel
colors were suited to my mother's taste. "Her" room
had always been a place that was off limits to me and
Shingo due to our sloppy habits. We had always felt
more at relaxed in the den anyways, with its dark carpet
that that didn't stain easily and worn furniture that
we could flop down on. Even though, I couldn't help but
smile at the memory of my mother sitting in that room,
her needle point in hand.
My attention moved to the staircase. With tears
burning in my eyes, I forced myself up the stairs.
Memories that I had suppressed for months came back
as clearly as yesterday. Emotional wounds barely healed
were ripped open again, their stinging pain just as fresh
as it was the day I watched my parents lowered in twin
graves. Hanging on the second door to the left was a small
picture of a bunny with my name written out underneath.
From some part of me I didn't know existed, I found the
courage to turn the handle.
I fell back through time as the door opened. The
twin bed, the moon and stars bedspread, and all my stuffed
animals that I had to leave behind in the move - even the
pictures still lined my dresser. Why, it was as if I had
never left! I sat down on my bed, pulling one of the
stuffed animals in my lap. Everything was the same, so
much that I half expected my mother to come through the
door. Or Shingo... Shingo, could he be here?
Leaving my memories of being safe in my room behind,
I headed towards my parent's room. I expected to see their
bedroom just as it had been while I grew up. But when I
pushed the door open, the memories that haunted me every
other time I closed my eyes loomed in front of me again.
Two bodies slumped atop each other, lifeless across
the bed. On the wall above them, the wet blood still dripping,
were the words that had started me on this path. Had I come
all this way only to be right back at the beginning?
Tears fell down my face and a howl of terror echoed
in my ears, just like so long ago... "Shingo?" I screamed.
He was nowhere to be seen. Did I really hear him? Or was
it my memory playing tricks on me?
My eyes flashed over the blood-smeared words. 'You're
Next Little Princess.' The bodies on the bed, my parents.
"No...nooooo... This isn't happening! I buried my parents;
not here, not again!"
"Why, Usagi? Why did you let them kill us?"
I fell back, my head striking the opposite wall.
"Mama?" I whispered, crawling away from the doorway and
towards the stairs, blinded by tears and terror. "Daddy?"
"Why Usagi?"
"NO!" I covered my ears with my hands and squeezed my
eyes shut. Over and over I heard my mother calling, demanding
to know why I let them die. Hysterical, tears dripping off my
face as I gasped for breath, I crawled the rest of the distance
to the staircase. I looked back and seen the door to Shingo's
room open and I screamed, my hand sliding at the same time.
Before I could regain my balance, I slid down the stairs.
"Usagi! Usagi, answer me!"
"NO!" I screamed, flinging my arms and crying. My heart
was beating so fast I thought it might explode. The only
thing I could think was to get away; fast.
"Usagi, get a hold of yourself!" I was being shaken,
my heard snapped back and I opened my eyes, waiting to see
a Youma; something out of my worst nightmare. Instead I saw
Sailor Mars, her eyes worriedly watching me as I tried to
gather my senses.
"R..Rei-chan?" I looked up the staircase, but there
was nothing. Nothing chasing me; nothing but my own memories.
"Oh God, Rei-chan," I cried my relief, still shaking badly.
"My parents, I saw my Mom and Dad... dead. All of it, all
over again...."
"Shhh," Rei soothed me while I sobbed. "I saw that room,
Usagi. I wish you hadn't. I'm sorry."
"Who is doing this? Why?" I asked, getting louder as I
spoke until my voice took on the shrill edge of a mad person.
Somehow I knew that whoever was responsible for this mess could
hear my every word. "Haven't you done enough to me?!"
Silence was my only answer, but I didn't expect an
explanation. I doubt it would have been a sufficient one
anyway. I finally calmed myself down and stood up. Rei
rubbed my back as I sucked in my breath and wiped my face
free of lingering tears. "Go wash you face and then we'll
decide where to go from here," Rei suggested wisely.
I nodded and headed towards the bathroom. My reflection
in the mirror only proved that I looked as horrid as I felt.
My eyes were wild looking, puffy and blood shot. Dried
tearstains trailed down both my cheeks. I reached down and
turned the faucet on, but instead of water coming out, blood
gushed into the sink. I gasped and turned it off quickly,
running out of the room.
I found Rei in the kitchen. "Let's go," I commanded,
grasping her hand and pulling her towards the door.
"Matte*, Usagi! There's nothing out there!" Mars
argued. But trying to stop me was not an option, I was
too determined to escape this place. I wanted to find
Mamo-chan; I had never needed to feel his arms around
me as bad as I did at this moment.
Mars protested even after I explained that we weren't
jumping to our deaths. She looked even more worried when I
threw the front door open and she realized I wasn't kidding.
"If you're so determined to do this, at least let me
go first!" She stared me down for several minutes. I wanted
to get out of this place so bad that finally I nodded my
head, seeing no alternative. So much for showing her that
we wouldn't fall forever downwards. I supposed now she'd
learn on her own.
Holding her breath, Mars walked out the door. "Oh,
my God," she exclaimed when she didn't fall. I followed
quickly and shut the door behind me. But I didn't feel
any real relief until it disappeared. "Now what?" Mars
asked.
I reached out in the direction of her voice and
grabbed her arm. "Now we float around until we find another
door, and hope we find everyone else - and no more surprises."
"Not likely to be that easy," Mars retorted, following
my lead. I felt positive she was right.
@------
"I feel something," Sailor Mars announced. I was
beginning to wonder if we would just float forever. It
felt like it had been hours since we fled from the house
I had grown up in. I tried not to think about what I had
seen. Even though I knew that it wasn't really my house,
or my parents, the memories were once again fresh in my
mind.
Mars opened the door and we stepped into a house
that neither of us recognized. It was a one-story house,
not very big, but it was cozy looking. The kitchen table
had a birthday cake sitting in the middle and decorations
hung from the rafters.
"I wonder where this is?" Mars whispered, more to
herself than to me.
I searched through the rest of the house. The master
bedroom contained a large sleigh bed with matching night
stands. A vanity table covered the length of one wall,
make up and creams scattered among it. At one end was a
picture of a young Mako-chan and two people I presumed to
be her parents. I walked out of that room and across the
hall to another.
There I found Mako-chan sitting on a bed, staring
out the window. The room looked remarkably like her room
in the apartment she now had. When she didn't take notice
of my presence, I gently reached out and touched her arm.
"Mako-chan?"
She jumped, proving my theory of her being so deeply
in thought she didn't realize I was standing before her.
"Usagi-chan?" she asked. She appeared confused for a minute
that I would be there, I obviously didn't fit in the memories
she was reliving. Suddenly she shook her head and smiled
weakly at me. "I'm sorry. How long have you been here?" When
I only stared at her, she stood up. "This was the house I
grew up in," she explained, holding her arms out. She continued
to talk, filling our silence with her memories. "I was having
a surprise party for my parent's anniversary..." she trailed
off, her voice cracking. "But they never came home." A tear
fell from her eye that she wiped at in vain.
"How did they die?" I whispered.
She again looked out the window, her hands bawling into
fists. "Their plane crashed on the way back from Rome, where
they went to celebrate their anniversary. I remember sitting,
waiting for their return. But instead I got a call from the
police..."
Having lost my parents also, I could relate to what
was going through her mind better than anyone, I suppose.
But the question I wanted the answer to was why? Why was
this happening? What kind of sick person would make us live
through the worst memories we had all over again? Of course,
I told myself. The kind of person who wants us dead so they
can take over Earth. I put my hand on Mako-chan's shoulder.
"I'm sorry."
She sucked her breath in and smiled at me weakly.
"Thanks, Usagi-chan." Wiping the tears off her face, she
started towards the door but stopped to take one last
longing look towards her parent's room before continuing
on. "Have you found anyone else?"
"Just Rei," I told her. We started to the kitchen
again when the front door opened and Ami and Minako came
in. "Ami-chan! Minako-chan!" I called.
Minako ran up, hugging me around the neck. She
beamed a huge smile at me and then hugged Mako-chan.
"I'm so glad we found you!" she gushed, hugging Mako-chan
again. "Is anyone else here?"
As if on cue, Rei came to the living room to see what
the commotion was. I couldn't help but laugh when Minako
threw herself into Rei's arms with a force that suggested
they hadn't seen each other in years rather than hours.
"Minako-chan no baka," Rei said, but it was obvious she was
happy to see her, also.
We sat down in the living room, all talking at once.
The moment of peace didn't come until Ami cleared her throat
and opened her computer. Silence rained down on the group of
us like a goddess had appeared. I waited anxiously for Ami
to say she had all the answers and we would find everyone
else and be on our way home. Unfortunately, the Genius Senshi
had limited information on our situation. "We've all fallen
into a scene from our memories; the worst ones, I'm afraid.
Everything I've tried to get readings on come back as made
of nothing more than air. It's like we are all in dreams or
illusions. The only useful thing I've managed to do is find
a way to get us from one of these doors to another in a matter
of minutes by taking the--"
Minako held her hand up, shaking her head. "Don't explain,
please. No offense, Ami-chan, but I don't understand any of the
words you use. You could be speaking German for all of it I get."
Ami stopped, almost looking upset, but then smiled.
"Then let's go, ne?"
Just as Ami said, once we stepped out the front door
of Mako-chan's house, she opened a door to another. This time,
however, instead of stepping into a house; we stepped out of
one. The clouds above us covered the Moon's rays, breaking
open and pouring rain down. In front of us was a road, just
on the edge of a cliff over looking the ocean.
Something sparked in my memory, but I couldn't put my
finger on it until we seen headlights coming down the hill.
I watched, terror stricken, as the vehicle lost control and
drove off the cliff.
I took off running, past the surprised Senshi and down
the steps leading to the road. I could hear my friends behind
me, calling my name and in front of me the sound of the car
hitting the water. I ran faster, fearing I would loose balance
and fall, but unable to slow down. "Mamo-chan!" I screamed to
the top of my lungs.
When I reached the road, I watched as the car bobbed in
the water and then began sinking. "MAMO-CHAN!" I heard a noise
behind me, and seen a shadow move near a tree. Unthinking of
anything else, I ran towards the movement.
Mamo-chan, still in his tuxedo but without the hat and
mask, was staring towards the cliff - obviously not even seeing
me. The rain had plastered his hair to his forehead and he was
soaked. "Mamo-chan!" I called his name, but to no avail. I began
crying and wrapped my arms around him. My heart broke to see my
tall, dashing Price this way. He was never supposed to have such
despair in his eyes; never. The blank look in his eyes reminded
me so much of when we thought Chibi-Usa was dead that I felt a
chill ran over my spine, sending shivers all over my body. I
pressed myself as close to him as I could, tightening my arms.
"Onegai, Mamo-chan. Answer me! Onegai!"
It seemed to take ages for him to blink. Suddenly I felt
his arms come around me, nearly crushing me against him. "Usako..?"
he croaked, his voice high pitched with emotion.
"Yes, Mamo-chan, yes," I replied, kissing his ice cold lips
over and over again. Tears began falling from his eyes, mixing
with the rain. Another car, identical with the first one, came
down the road and lost control, going off the cliff just as the
previous one had. Mamo-chan watched it and fell to his knees, my
body still crushed against him. His tears came harder. Out of the
corner of my eye I saw the Senshi watching - I shook my head to
keep them where they were.
"Shhh," I soothed, running my hands through his hair and
kissing away his tears while he held me like a drowning man would
cling to a life raft.
He finally seemed to come out of his grief, letting his grip
on me loosen. The rain continued to fall around us, but I paid it
little heed. "Mamo-chan?" I whispered, placing my lips on his
forehead.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled, his face still buried in my hair.
"It keeps happening over and over again... my parents..."
"I know baby, but this is not real. It's all an illusion.
I'm here now. We have to find Shingo and go home to our daughter."
Mamo-chan sat up, bringing my hands to his lips and kissing
them. "Usako... you, Chibi-Usa and Shingo--you're all I have.
Don't ever leave me."
I put my hands on his face and brought him closer to me.
"Never. I promise." When our lips meet, I felt the true dept of
our love. I wasn't the only one who needed reassurance and comfort.
We were in this together, forever.
Mamo-chan stood up again, and then helped me up. He glanced
once more at the cliff as if doing so would forever suppress the
memories of the accident. "Let's go get Shingo back."
We started forward again, but suddenly Mamo-chan stopped.
I turned questionably, wondering what caught his attention. I
prayed another car wasn't coming down the hill, but I was
surprised to see Mamo-chan staring at me with an odd glint
in his eyes. "What?"
He caught my hands in his and met my eyes. "Tsukino Usagi,
I love you more than anything in the world." He started to say
something else, it seemed, but didn't.
I tilted my head and smiled. "I love you too, Mamo-chan."
He smiled back and we continued up the stairs.
@------
In a two story laboratory we found the Outer Senshi. The
place was wrecked, the ruins of an explosion that had killed
Professor Tome, Hotaru's natural father, still smoking.
"As Hotaru's God-Mother, I was given custody since she
had no other family. She was barely three when this happened,"
Michiru explained, her thin arms spread wide. I looked around
at the broken glass and busted furniture.
"What about her mother?" I whispered. Hotaru said nothing
while we spoke of her life, only sat closer to Haruka's side
and stared forward. The Senshi of Sky put one arm around the
ground girl protectively.
"She died giving birth to her," Michiru replied, dropping
her eyes and thus ending the conversation.
Setsuna watched my reaction carefully, as if waiting for
me to say something about three women raising a child. But I
would say nothing. Hotaru was a delightful young lady. It was
obvious she had grown up in a house full of love. That's all
that really mattered in my eyes.
"If we are all together then it's safe to presume the
next stop will lead us to the enemy, right?" Minako asked.
No one could agree nor disagree - it was too well known
that surprises were plentiful in our line of work.
The next door we went in proved to not be anything any
of us recognized. It was a cave, cut out of the side of a
mountain. The door we came out of disappeared, leaving with
no other option but to follow the tunnel.
At first I thought this would be your typical evil dark
tunnel that lead to the person behind it all deal. Was I ever
wrong!
After a few hundred yards we came into a room. And not
just any room, but an upside down room. There were chairs,
tables, even plants - but they were sitting on the ceiling.
In the middle of the floor was a ceiling fan, its blades
turning slowly.
"This is nuts!" Mars exclaimed, reaching up and pulling
a leaf off of one of the plants. Just then the fan stopped
and the lights flickered.
I moved closer to Mamo-chan. My nerves stayed on edge
as we waited to see what would happen next. We didn't have
to wait long.
The first thing to fall was the plant Mars had pulled
the leaf from. I thought that would be it, but suddenly one
of the coffee tables came crashing down. Sailor Mercury
dashed out of its path right before it splintered into
pieces where she had once stood.
One by one, barely a second's pause between, all the
furniture fell from the ceiling. Tuxedo Kamen pulled me and
Neptune out of the way of the love seat that crashed down
while the rest of the Senshi dodged tables, lamps and the
like. We ran towards the door, the sound of breaking glass
filling our ears.
"Where's Saturn?" Setsuna suddenly cried, her eyes
frantically searching the group.
The Solider of Uranus scanned the area, and not finding
her adoptive daughter, dashed back in the room before anyone
could say something.
Seconds slowed to minutes, the minutes feeling like
hours while we each tried to see past the smoke and into
the room. The sound of a large object, most likely the
sofa, falling greeted our eager ears. "Haruka!" Neptune
immediately screamed. "Hotaru!" I watched, hoping, praying;
but no one emerged from the room.
Mamo-chan wrapped his arms around me, burring my face
in his chest. But I couldn't cry, I was too angry at whoever
had done this.
Pluto, like Neptune, refused to move from the doorway.
Together they stared into the clearing air for a sign, a cry
- anything. The minutes continued to tick by ever so slow.
They were dead, I repeated over and over again in my mind.
And someone would pay for this.
Jupiter placed her hand on Neptune's shoulder, but the
older Senshi shook it off. "She'll come out," she whispered
in a horse voice, so different than the soft melody her words
usually created. "You don't know Haruka like I do, she'll come
out."
Just when I had given up all hope, the sound of someone
walking through the debris preceded Sailor Uranus coming out
of the room, Saturn in her arms. She was covered with dust
and piece of broken wood. I knew I had never been so happy
to see Haruka's face in my life. She placed Hotaru down and
Setsuna swept her up in a hug as Michiru hugged Haruka. I
had never seen the two publicly show affection, but the sight
only warmed my heart.
"You Senshi are smarter than I give you credit for," a
voice boomed through out the cave, echoing in the distance.
"But I doubt you're smart enough to defeat me."
I shook my head. I refused to lower myself and scream
the obscenities that were on the tip of my tongue. Time
would tell who won this war.
Determinedly we walked forward.
@------
The youmas came in floods. We fought off group after
group of them. The more we found, the stronger they became.
Why, we didn't find out until it was almost too late.
"They're absorbing the excess energy off our attacks.
By using our attacks on them, we are feeding more power into
the next group," Mercury explained breathlessly as we fought
off more Youma.
A blade from a razor handed Youma flew past my face,
the wind off it giving me chills. The longer we fought, the
slower all our reflexes became as we tired out. The time
between attacks were becoming few and far between. I wiped
the sweat from my forehead. "What do we do?"
For the first time since I've known her, the Senshi
of Mercury looked unsure about something she said. "I don't
know, Sailor Moon. If we don't use our attacks, I don't see
us having a fighting chance."
Her words hit me like lead weights. Beyond the fighting
Senshi I saw another group of Youma coming towards us. "Mercury,
what do you suggest we do? They get any stronger and I'm afraid
we don't have a fighting chance anyway."
Mercury looked like she was giving a death sentence when
she finally answered me: "Don't use our attacks."
The Outer Senshi didn't look like they would cooperate
with our plan at first. Mercury explained to them what she
had told me; still they looked unconvinced. "Look, we don't
have time to talk out the various permutations on this.
Saturn, Pluto - you can use the Glaive and Time Key as
weapons. Mars has her mystic wards, Venus has her chain**,
Uranus her sword - so we're not defenseless. We just can't
power up, unless we want them to power up also."
After a few more seconds of silence I didn't think
they would agree. Finally, Uranus nodded. "What about
Saturn, can she use her silence dome?"
"I don't know," Mercury replied point blank. "Let's
not take the chance unless we have to."
While we were talking, the Youma had cornered us
against a wall. I wondered if they would attack us, or
if they were waiting for us to make the first move. When
we didn't start attacking them, they looked confused about
what to do next. I watched them out of the corner of my eye,
an idea coming to me that I prayed would work. "Don't move,"
I said to the Senshi slowly. I thought Mamo-chan would start
screaming when I started walking into the crowd of Youma, but
he refrained himself - barely. The different assortment of
Youma watched us curiously as we made our way towards the
other side of the room. To my delight, they made no movement
to stop us.
"They are programmed for self defense only. They don't
know what to do when we didn't attack," Mercury was explaining.
I couldn't quite figure out if she was saying this to someone
or to herself.
"That was... amazing," Venus exclaimed when we were safely
past the Youma. "How did you figure out they wouldn't attack?"
I shrugged. "It was just a hunch."
"Hey! They're getting away!" We heard this from one of the
idiots in the back. If it wasn't for the rise of voices at that
moment, followed by running, I might have found it funny.
"So, oh great leader, what now?" Mars asked, hands on her
hips.
I threw her a dirty look and glanced back at the crowd of
advancing Youma. "We do what any super hero would do - run!" And
with that I took off running, the rest of the Senshi following.
Even with the head start I had, Sailor Uranus and Neptune
soon passed me. "How can they run so fast?" Tuxedo Kamen mumbled
from beside me. I didn't answer him, beings I had no explanation.
They seemed a blur they went so fast.
Uranus suddenly stopped, Neptune following suit as if she
understood what the other was thinking. They pushed the door open,
Neptune running inside and Uranus directing us to follow. "Hurry!
In here!" We all followed, Uranus shutting the door behind us.
"That was close," Jupiter exclaimed. I turned to her, but
what I saw in the room stopped me in my tracks.
The back wall was lit up with torches, casting long dancing
lights around the stone walls. The room was bare except for one
stone bed. But what finally removed the shock from my body was
the person lying on that stone bed against the same wall. "Shingo!"
I started to run to him, but Tuxedo Kamen grabbed my arms.
"Wait, Sailor Moon," he commanded firmly. "It could be a trick."
I stopped, though it took all I had in me to do so. "But..."
I realized, however, that he was right. Hadn't I fell for this
once? I couldn't be so gullible again. "What do we do?"
Mercury stepped up to my other side, her visor over her
eyes and computer in hand. "He's the real Shingo," she reported
while she continued to scan and type. "But remember, he's had
evil fed into him and we don't know how it's changed him," she
advised.
Tuxedo Kamen nodded, but they just couldn't understand!
That was Shingo! I pulled my arms free from Mamo-chan and ran,
oblivious to the Senshi calling for me to stop, or Mamo-chan
chasing after me. I reached my younger brother, pulling him
into my arms. "Shingo, baby, answer me!" I called in his ear,
rocking him back and forth. His eyes opened, but gone were the
beautiful blue eyes so much like mine and our mother's. Instead
there was nothing but black, empty depts. As I stared at him,
his eyes flashed and I was thrown across the room in the same
instant.
For a second I blacked out from the impact. When I came
to, Mamo-chan was hovered over me. "Are you alright?" he asked
the second I reopened my eyes.
I nodded and stood up with his help. Across the room
Shingo was floating in the air. I couldn't believe what I
seen, it was worse than anything I could have dreamt up.
"That's not Shingo!" I accused Mercury, trying to find
somewhere to release my pain and anger built up inside me.
Mercury shook her head, showing me the small screen on
her computer that meant nothing to my untrained eyes. "It is
him. I warned you, they have fed this evil into him and now
it's been... activated, so to speak. Somewhere in that body,
is Shingo's soul."
"But... but what do we do?!" I cried. I felt like
pulling my hair out. To have found him, at last. And now,
this... "But Shingo is still alive, right?" I asked frantically,
practically pulling Mercury's arm out of socket.
When her eyes meet mine, what I seen there caused me to
let go of her and back up. Sadness, such sadness. Was it for me?
I bit my bottom lip. "We'll have to fight him, Sailor Moon."
No, I mouthed. I wanted to speak, to protest, but I
couldn't find my voice. I must have shook my head at her,
because she reached out her hand and touched mine; her
gloved hand felt scalding hot.
"Yes, Usagi-chan. We have to fight him. There is no
other way."
"I..I can't!" I stuttered, looking up at the little boy
floating in the air. Saturn and Pluto were keeping him held
back by threatening him with their powers, but he was advancing
quickly. I looked to Mercury, and back up to him again. I
couldn't. I knew I couldn't use my powers against him.
"Here Princess, Princess, Princess...." he taunted,
calling my title over and over again. "It's your turn to
die..." he said in a sing song voice.
I backed up, searching for a place to run. But there
was no where to run. If I wanted Shingo back, I would have
to use my powers against him... or for him. I brightened
with the realization. I could heal him! "Mercury!" I gasped,
running back over to her. "I can heal him, right? Then we
don't have to fight him."
"Not as he is now," she said, bursting my bubble with
her five small words. I felt panic growing larger in my mind.
"He's too strong. Just like one of the Youma we have been
fighting, we'll have to wear him down and let you try and
heal him then."
Sailor Pluto raised her Time Staff, preparing to chant
the words that would send a surge of power against Shingo.
Unthinking of what I was doing, I ran towards her, grabbing
the staff.
"NO! Don't!" I cried. Shingo blasted his own energy at
me, sending me flying against the wall. Pluto's eyes were
sad when she meet my gaze briefly.
"Dead Scream."
"NOO!"
--End Chapter 14.
* - Matte translates to "wait" or "hold on"
**- Venus wears her chain around her waist in the manga,
and then powers it up when she uses it by calling "Venus
Love-Me chain"
I've been working on this story a whole year this month,
can you believe it?? I can't. It don't seem that long. The
next chapter is the final chapter and the Epilogue. But,
never fear! This story is a series ^_^ (bet ya didn't know
that, now did you? ^_~) The next installment is called "No
Greater Love" and is a spin off of this story, a couple of
months down the road. This entire story will probably be about
three or four total books(stories) long, so I hope everyone
sticks around for the rest!
So, stayed tuned in next week for Chapter 15-Saving Shingo/Epilogue.
By the way, for those of you who haven't noticed - my email has
changed to Bethany212@comcast.net. I finally got rid of AOHELL
and currently enjoying a cable connection ^_^!! If you have my
stories on a web page, please make this change.
Luvs -n- Hugs,
Bethany
03-23-02