SAILOR ECLIPSE
Chapter 2: "Ghost From The Past"
By Bill K.
"I don't want to go to school!" whined Minako. She walked with
Usagi, Ami and Makoto, her satchel dangling behind her back, held
aloft by two hands behind her head. "How long until this term is
over?"
"This is the first day!" gasped Ami.
"And your point is what?" Minako groused.
"The first day of our junior year," whispered Usagi, in awe.
She swallowed. "Do you realize less than two years from now we're
going to be out of school?"
"Yeah," sighed Minako, grinning.
"You're not nervous about it, are you?" Ami asked Usagi.
"Didn't you ask your father about going to art school? Or isn't he
OK with it?"
"Daddy? The minute it was out of my mouth he thought it was
the greatest idea ever!" Usagi blushed. "He's like that."
"So what's the problem?" Makoto asked.
"What if I'm not good enough? What if I don't even graduate?"
"Come on. You made it this far. Don't give in now."
"Yes, Usagi, you can do it," Ami added. "You just need to keep
working hard."
Usagi scowled. "There's always a catch."
"HEY, USAGI!"
Everyone grimaced as the shrill call split the courtyard of the
high school. The others turned and saw Umino and Naru approach,
while Usagi forced down her mortification.
"Did you hear the news?"
"No, but I'm sure I'm going to," Usagi muttered. "Hi, Naru!
What's shaking?"
"Just hanging with my little he-man," grinned Naru. Usagi's
stare went from her to Umino and back. She shook away the visions
she was getting.
"Umino, I believe congratulations are in order," Ami said. The
others looked at her while Naru smiled proudly. "Umino placed second
in our level," Ami explained.
"Behind you, of course," Umino replied and Ami looked away
modestly. "If I can keep this grade average up and ace the entrance
test, I could qualify for Tokyo University a year early."
"A year early?" gasped Makoto.
"Yeah," Umino replied happily. "I plan to major in the
accelerated computer science program."
"Wow, a year early," gasped Usagi. "You and Ami, I imagine."
"I already qualified. Last year, actually," she replied
reluctantly. That brought on the usual stares from her friends. "I
didn't want to spoil Umino's news."
"You've been accepted at Tokyo University? Well hey, maybe
we'll be classmates," he grinned.
"Actually, I've also qualified for Harvard, Oxford, Edinburgh,
The Sorbonne and Heidelburg. I just haven't decided which one to
attend."
Everyone just gaped.
"This is why I didn't want to say anything," Ami mumbled. "Um,
you had some news, Umino?"
"We saw Sailor V last night!" squealed Naru.
"Heck, I saw that movie," scoffed Minako. "They did a lousy
job on Sailor V. I don't think it really captured her greatness."
"Not the anime!" Naru scowled. "The real Sailor V! In
person!"
Everyone gaped at them.
"Isn't that great!" Umino marveled. "Nobody's seen Sailor V in
three years! A lot of people on the net thought she was dead!"
"You saw - - Sailor V?" Minako asked, her intense gaze
scrutinizing their every move. "You're sure?"
"Of course! I've downloaded hundreds of her pictures from the
net! I'd recognize her instantly!"
"Hundreds?" Naru asked.
"What was she doing?" Ami queried.
"Standing on the roof of the Crown Game Center!" Umino gasped,
almost hyperventilating. "She looked so heroic! Then she did a
forward flip off the building, hit the awning and bounced off it like
it was a trampoline! She hit the street running and took off down
the alley! Who else could do that besides Sailor V?"
"Uh, yeah," Makoto said, glancing at Minako. "Say, we better
get to class. Don't want to be late on our first day." She hustled
the others off.
"Hundreds, Umino?" Naru questioned.
"Aw come on, Naru!" Umino replied nervously.
"You didn't tell us you went out as Sailor V," Usagi said to
Minako as the quartet moved down the hall of the school building.
"I didn't," Minako said through clenched teeth. Her eyes
blazed fury.
"Then who was it?"
"Some sneaking little thief who STOLE MY ACT!" The four girls
noticed Minako's raised voice had attracted glances from other
students in the hall.
"Who do you think it could be?" Makoto asked.
"I don't know," Minako huffed. "Some otaku [intense fan],
maybe. They sell Sailor V costumes in costume shops. Anyone can get
one." Minako grimaced. "And I don't make a dime off of that,
either!"
"Shh!" Ami hissed, glancing around nervously.
"Well when I find her, I'm going to make her the sorriest
little otaku in Japan. Nobody steals my act."
"Now Minako, don't do anything drastic," Usagi warned.
"What do you consider drastic?"
"Need some help?" Makoto asked.
Minako considered it. "If you want to tag along, feel free. I
don't need help running down some dippy little otaku, though."
"Actually, I was hoping to get her autograph," smirked Makoto.
Usagi broke out laughing while Ami struggled to smother her laugh.
Not amused, Minako only glared at her friend.
* * * *
Usagi noticed it first, when the teacher walked into the room.
She stared for a few moments, then looked over to Minako. Minako was
still doing a slow burn over the Sailor V impostor and hadn't
noticed, so Usagi shifted her gaze and caught Makoto's attention.
"He's gorgeous!" she mouthed silently, the overhead lights
sparkling in her big blue eyes.
Indeed, the man who entered was gorgeous. Thick black hair
combed insolently to one side; penetrating hazel eyes under
expressive brows; possessing a firm, strong jawline, boyish dimples
and a soft, sensitive mouth, he was teenage fan-magazine handsome.
He was also tall and lithe, his suit hanging perfectly on him and
suggesting a sturdy frame beneath. Yet there was a calm wisdom about
him that a young girl searching for gentle guidance could depend on.
"I think I'm in love," Makoto mouthed back and giggled.
"Attention, class," he said, with a baritone voice covered in
velvet, "let's begin. I am Komatsu-sensei and it will be my job to
give you more of the lessons you'll need to enter adulthood in
society." He flashed the class a grin and Usagi felt her pulse jump.
"No doubt, some of you will need more lessons than others." Some
chuckles drifted through the class and more than one student glanced
back at Usagi. "If you try your best to succeed, I'll try my best to
help you."
The teacher began to call the roll, noting where each student
was as he called them. Usagi glanced back at Makoto and her friend
mimicked fanning herself to lower her temperature. The pantomime
almost made Usagi burst out laughing and she covered her mouth.
"Mizuno Ami," Mr. Komatsu called.
When Ami didn't answer, Usagi twisted around and glanced back
at her. To her utter amazement, Ami was staring dreamily at the
teacher, as if in a trance. Her eyelids drooped and her mouth was
spread in a wide smile as she leaned on her elbows.
"Mizuno Ami?" the teacher called again.
"Ami!" hissed Makoto.
"Hmm?" Ami said, lurching back to reality. "Oh! That's me.
I'm here. I mean, of course I'm here. I wouldn't be able to answer,
otherwise. That is, I mean . . ." and she looked up to see Mr.
Komatsu smiling charitably at her. Instantly Ami flushed beet red
and her eyes sought her lap. "I'll just stop talking now."
"Glad to have you back, Mizuno-chan," he grinned, then went on
to the next name. Ami began mentally calculating the energy transfer
required to disappear completely. Usagi gaped at her, mouth open,
until she heard her own name.
"So, Ami," Makoto purred as the four friends sat down to lunch
later that day, "Komatsu-sensei's pretty impressive, huh?"
"He, um, I'd say he has a very," Ami said uncomfortably,
"unique teaching style."
"I'll say!" Usagi gurgled, her mouth full of food. "I think I
learned more this morning than I did in the last five years!" Her
eyes narrowed and she grew a cheshire smile. "But I think Ami was
impressed by more than his teaching style."
"Don't make it sound so tawdry," Ami bristled.
"C'mon, Ames. He was gorgeous! It's not a crime to admit it,"
Makoto said. She nudged Minako, who still seemed preoccupied.
"Right, Blondie?"
"Yeah, real hunk-meister," Minako replied distantly.
"OK, I admit it," Ami said, flushing slightly. "He was . . .
amazingly beautiful." She sighed. "He has certain qualities not
unlike Narcissus, one could almost say."
"I don't know him," frowned Usagi, rice on her lower lip.
"What channel's he on?"
"Narcissus, huh? You are impressed!" Makoto grinned. Ami
looked down shyly and Makoto patted her shoulder. "I guess this
means you're finally over Taiki?"
Ami glanced up at her friend and grinned. "Taiki who?" she
said. Makoto and Usagi chuckled.
"Hey, Minako," Usagi ventured. "If you're not going to eat
your lunch, can I have it?"
"Hmm?" Minako said. Suddenly she realized twenty minutes had
passed and she hadn't taken a bite. Her mouth twisted into a scowl.
"I am so going to get that otaku," she muttered as she wolfed down
the meal.
The rest of the day passed, far too slowly for Minako and far
too quickly for Usagi and Ami. After school the quartet retrieved
their outside shoes and headed for home.
"Well, I'm off otaku-hunting," Minako announced.
"You're not going to have dinner first?" Makoto asked.
"No time, Watson! The trail grows cold!" She looked at
Makoto. "You coming?"
"I've got to drop something at home first. I'll catch up with
you."
Minako nodded and moved off.
"How about you, Usagi?" Makoto asked.
"I can't! I've got to get my homework done!" Usagi noticed
Makoto's wide-eyed stare. "I don't want to disappoint
Komatsu-sensei! Hey Ami, you want to study together?"
"Hmm? Oh," Ami said, shaking herself. "I'll . . . I've got to
do something. I'll see you tomorrow." And Ami hurried off.
Usagi shrugged. "I guess that just leaves Rei."
"Don't tell her about Komatsu-sensei," grinned Makoto. "She'll
be pumping you for details all night."
Usagi giggled, then waved and headed off to pick Rei up at her
school. Makoto turned and headed for her apartment. As she walked,
she leisurely swung her satchel and thought about the day. Ami's
reaction had been a surprise, no matter how hot Komatsu-sensei
looked.
Then again, maybe it wasn't. For a girl who "never had time
for love", Ami certainly had bounced from crush to crush over the
three years Makoto had known her. First there was her almost
puppy-love relationship with Ryo. Then there was her very short,
VERY SECRET crush on Mamoru. Makoto had only figured it out by
noticing the way she looked at him and when she confronted her
friend, Ami swore her to secrecy for fear of hurting Usagi. Then
there was the very brief infatuation with "Mercurious", followed by
her unrequited longing for Taiki of the Three Lights. And now
Komatsu-sensei - - Makoto hoped this one wouldn't end as badly as the
others had.
As she passed an alley, a movement caught Makoto's eye. She
stopped and looked - - and saw a masked woman with long blonde hair.
"That's her!" Makoto thought.
As if she read Makoto's thoughts, the woman dressed in Sailor
V's red mask and blue skirt and her blue and white vest pivoted left
and took off running. Makoto sprinted down the alley, her henshin
stick out.
"Jupiter Crystal Power Make Up!" she called out.
Transforming on the run, Sailor Jupiter reached the
intersection of the two alleys in moments. Her head popped into the
open for just a moment, then pulled back in case she drew fire from
the fleeing woman. When no fire came, Jupiter thrust out into the
open.
"Crescent Beam!" hit her ears a moment before the beam struck
her hip high. Jupiter folded awkwardly and skidded along the
pavement several feet. Once she came to a stop, Jupiter looked up,
since the beam came from above, and saw the Sailor V impostor
crouched in a windowsill three stories up.
At least she thought it was an impostor. "Sailor V" grinned at
her and gave her a silent salute - - just the kind of cocky move
Minako would make. And she had used crescent beam.
"Jupiter!" she groaned out, her hip throbbing painfully, "Oak
Evolution!"
Electrical bursts exploded around the window, right where
Sailor V had been. She was no longer there. Pushing off the sill
with her legs, she executed a perfect back flip, tucked into a roll
as she hit the ground and rolled up to her feet, springing to a stop.
It was a breath-taking feat of acrobatic athleticism and Jupiter lay
amazed for a single beat.
It was a beat too long. Though Jupiter managed to roll away
from another crescent beam, it grazed her already throbbing left
side. She landed hard, feeling the pavement bite into her knees.
Between the pain and the exertion, Jupiter didn't feel she was up to
launching another Oak Evolution. One of her simpler attacks would
have to suffice. Seeing her opponent was about to launch another
crescent beam, Jupiter gathered in her strength and shot forward,
lunging at the woman.
Executing a forward flip that would shame an Olympic gymnast,
"Sailor V" somersaulted over the charging Jupiter. But Jupiter had
anticipated just such a move. As she hit the ground, she rolled
around to face her foe while her tiara sprouted its lightning rod.
"Supreme Thunder!" Jupiter roared.
Raw lightning lanced down from the heavens, striking the small
lightning rod. Jupiter felt the powerful force fill her body with
energy. When she took in as much as she could, the senshi expelled
it at her foe in a tremendous bolt that lanced forward. But no
sooner had "Sailor V" landed from her forward flip, then she threw
herself backwards. The woman somersaulted effortlessly over the
bolt, landing with the grace of a ballerina a safe distance away as
the lightning bolt kicked up chunks of paving bricks in the alley.
Then in a single fluid motion, the blonde woman whirled and
flung something at Jupiter, roaring "Crescent Boomerang!" as she did.
A blurry shape grazed Jupiter's forehead as she flinched away.
Instantly her hand shot up to her forehead. Though there was a
sensitive patch from where the object had grazed her, there was no
blood thankfully. On the ground before her was her tiara, the
lightning rod extension bent and useless. It had landed there after
her opponent had knocked it from her head and its placement on the
ground in front of her seemed designed to taunt her. Jupiter looked
up at "Sailor V" and saw her clutching a crescent moon-shaped object
in her left hand. The woman smiled confidently at her, her eyes
obscured by the reflective lenses in her mask.
"Who are you?" demanded Jupiter.
"Sailor V" remained silent, but clicked her heels together,
spread her arms and bowed theatrically, further taunting Jupiter with
her superiority. It was the last straw. Gritting her teeth, Jupiter
shoved to her feet and lunged at the woman.
"Sailor V Kick!" rang through the alley as the woman's foot
shot out, impacting Jupiter's jaw with the speed of a cobra and the
force of a baseball bat. Jupiter spun around and fell in a heap on
the alley. Struggling to retain consciousness, Jupiter could see the
woman's blue shoes standing before her and knew she was at her mercy.
A last effort to rise failed and as she plummeted into the dark grip
of her injuries, Jupiter couldn't help wondering what had happened to
make Minako like this.
Continued in part 3
Chapter 2: "Ghost From The Past"
By Bill K.
"I don't want to go to school!" whined Minako. She walked with
Usagi, Ami and Makoto, her satchel dangling behind her back, held
aloft by two hands behind her head. "How long until this term is
over?"
"This is the first day!" gasped Ami.
"And your point is what?" Minako groused.
"The first day of our junior year," whispered Usagi, in awe.
She swallowed. "Do you realize less than two years from now we're
going to be out of school?"
"Yeah," sighed Minako, grinning.
"You're not nervous about it, are you?" Ami asked Usagi.
"Didn't you ask your father about going to art school? Or isn't he
OK with it?"
"Daddy? The minute it was out of my mouth he thought it was
the greatest idea ever!" Usagi blushed. "He's like that."
"So what's the problem?" Makoto asked.
"What if I'm not good enough? What if I don't even graduate?"
"Come on. You made it this far. Don't give in now."
"Yes, Usagi, you can do it," Ami added. "You just need to keep
working hard."
Usagi scowled. "There's always a catch."
"HEY, USAGI!"
Everyone grimaced as the shrill call split the courtyard of the
high school. The others turned and saw Umino and Naru approach,
while Usagi forced down her mortification.
"Did you hear the news?"
"No, but I'm sure I'm going to," Usagi muttered. "Hi, Naru!
What's shaking?"
"Just hanging with my little he-man," grinned Naru. Usagi's
stare went from her to Umino and back. She shook away the visions
she was getting.
"Umino, I believe congratulations are in order," Ami said. The
others looked at her while Naru smiled proudly. "Umino placed second
in our level," Ami explained.
"Behind you, of course," Umino replied and Ami looked away
modestly. "If I can keep this grade average up and ace the entrance
test, I could qualify for Tokyo University a year early."
"A year early?" gasped Makoto.
"Yeah," Umino replied happily. "I plan to major in the
accelerated computer science program."
"Wow, a year early," gasped Usagi. "You and Ami, I imagine."
"I already qualified. Last year, actually," she replied
reluctantly. That brought on the usual stares from her friends. "I
didn't want to spoil Umino's news."
"You've been accepted at Tokyo University? Well hey, maybe
we'll be classmates," he grinned.
"Actually, I've also qualified for Harvard, Oxford, Edinburgh,
The Sorbonne and Heidelburg. I just haven't decided which one to
attend."
Everyone just gaped.
"This is why I didn't want to say anything," Ami mumbled. "Um,
you had some news, Umino?"
"We saw Sailor V last night!" squealed Naru.
"Heck, I saw that movie," scoffed Minako. "They did a lousy
job on Sailor V. I don't think it really captured her greatness."
"Not the anime!" Naru scowled. "The real Sailor V! In
person!"
Everyone gaped at them.
"Isn't that great!" Umino marveled. "Nobody's seen Sailor V in
three years! A lot of people on the net thought she was dead!"
"You saw - - Sailor V?" Minako asked, her intense gaze
scrutinizing their every move. "You're sure?"
"Of course! I've downloaded hundreds of her pictures from the
net! I'd recognize her instantly!"
"Hundreds?" Naru asked.
"What was she doing?" Ami queried.
"Standing on the roof of the Crown Game Center!" Umino gasped,
almost hyperventilating. "She looked so heroic! Then she did a
forward flip off the building, hit the awning and bounced off it like
it was a trampoline! She hit the street running and took off down
the alley! Who else could do that besides Sailor V?"
"Uh, yeah," Makoto said, glancing at Minako. "Say, we better
get to class. Don't want to be late on our first day." She hustled
the others off.
"Hundreds, Umino?" Naru questioned.
"Aw come on, Naru!" Umino replied nervously.
"You didn't tell us you went out as Sailor V," Usagi said to
Minako as the quartet moved down the hall of the school building.
"I didn't," Minako said through clenched teeth. Her eyes
blazed fury.
"Then who was it?"
"Some sneaking little thief who STOLE MY ACT!" The four girls
noticed Minako's raised voice had attracted glances from other
students in the hall.
"Who do you think it could be?" Makoto asked.
"I don't know," Minako huffed. "Some otaku [intense fan],
maybe. They sell Sailor V costumes in costume shops. Anyone can get
one." Minako grimaced. "And I don't make a dime off of that,
either!"
"Shh!" Ami hissed, glancing around nervously.
"Well when I find her, I'm going to make her the sorriest
little otaku in Japan. Nobody steals my act."
"Now Minako, don't do anything drastic," Usagi warned.
"What do you consider drastic?"
"Need some help?" Makoto asked.
Minako considered it. "If you want to tag along, feel free. I
don't need help running down some dippy little otaku, though."
"Actually, I was hoping to get her autograph," smirked Makoto.
Usagi broke out laughing while Ami struggled to smother her laugh.
Not amused, Minako only glared at her friend.
* * * *
Usagi noticed it first, when the teacher walked into the room.
She stared for a few moments, then looked over to Minako. Minako was
still doing a slow burn over the Sailor V impostor and hadn't
noticed, so Usagi shifted her gaze and caught Makoto's attention.
"He's gorgeous!" she mouthed silently, the overhead lights
sparkling in her big blue eyes.
Indeed, the man who entered was gorgeous. Thick black hair
combed insolently to one side; penetrating hazel eyes under
expressive brows; possessing a firm, strong jawline, boyish dimples
and a soft, sensitive mouth, he was teenage fan-magazine handsome.
He was also tall and lithe, his suit hanging perfectly on him and
suggesting a sturdy frame beneath. Yet there was a calm wisdom about
him that a young girl searching for gentle guidance could depend on.
"I think I'm in love," Makoto mouthed back and giggled.
"Attention, class," he said, with a baritone voice covered in
velvet, "let's begin. I am Komatsu-sensei and it will be my job to
give you more of the lessons you'll need to enter adulthood in
society." He flashed the class a grin and Usagi felt her pulse jump.
"No doubt, some of you will need more lessons than others." Some
chuckles drifted through the class and more than one student glanced
back at Usagi. "If you try your best to succeed, I'll try my best to
help you."
The teacher began to call the roll, noting where each student
was as he called them. Usagi glanced back at Makoto and her friend
mimicked fanning herself to lower her temperature. The pantomime
almost made Usagi burst out laughing and she covered her mouth.
"Mizuno Ami," Mr. Komatsu called.
When Ami didn't answer, Usagi twisted around and glanced back
at her. To her utter amazement, Ami was staring dreamily at the
teacher, as if in a trance. Her eyelids drooped and her mouth was
spread in a wide smile as she leaned on her elbows.
"Mizuno Ami?" the teacher called again.
"Ami!" hissed Makoto.
"Hmm?" Ami said, lurching back to reality. "Oh! That's me.
I'm here. I mean, of course I'm here. I wouldn't be able to answer,
otherwise. That is, I mean . . ." and she looked up to see Mr.
Komatsu smiling charitably at her. Instantly Ami flushed beet red
and her eyes sought her lap. "I'll just stop talking now."
"Glad to have you back, Mizuno-chan," he grinned, then went on
to the next name. Ami began mentally calculating the energy transfer
required to disappear completely. Usagi gaped at her, mouth open,
until she heard her own name.
"So, Ami," Makoto purred as the four friends sat down to lunch
later that day, "Komatsu-sensei's pretty impressive, huh?"
"He, um, I'd say he has a very," Ami said uncomfortably,
"unique teaching style."
"I'll say!" Usagi gurgled, her mouth full of food. "I think I
learned more this morning than I did in the last five years!" Her
eyes narrowed and she grew a cheshire smile. "But I think Ami was
impressed by more than his teaching style."
"Don't make it sound so tawdry," Ami bristled.
"C'mon, Ames. He was gorgeous! It's not a crime to admit it,"
Makoto said. She nudged Minako, who still seemed preoccupied.
"Right, Blondie?"
"Yeah, real hunk-meister," Minako replied distantly.
"OK, I admit it," Ami said, flushing slightly. "He was . . .
amazingly beautiful." She sighed. "He has certain qualities not
unlike Narcissus, one could almost say."
"I don't know him," frowned Usagi, rice on her lower lip.
"What channel's he on?"
"Narcissus, huh? You are impressed!" Makoto grinned. Ami
looked down shyly and Makoto patted her shoulder. "I guess this
means you're finally over Taiki?"
Ami glanced up at her friend and grinned. "Taiki who?" she
said. Makoto and Usagi chuckled.
"Hey, Minako," Usagi ventured. "If you're not going to eat
your lunch, can I have it?"
"Hmm?" Minako said. Suddenly she realized twenty minutes had
passed and she hadn't taken a bite. Her mouth twisted into a scowl.
"I am so going to get that otaku," she muttered as she wolfed down
the meal.
The rest of the day passed, far too slowly for Minako and far
too quickly for Usagi and Ami. After school the quartet retrieved
their outside shoes and headed for home.
"Well, I'm off otaku-hunting," Minako announced.
"You're not going to have dinner first?" Makoto asked.
"No time, Watson! The trail grows cold!" She looked at
Makoto. "You coming?"
"I've got to drop something at home first. I'll catch up with
you."
Minako nodded and moved off.
"How about you, Usagi?" Makoto asked.
"I can't! I've got to get my homework done!" Usagi noticed
Makoto's wide-eyed stare. "I don't want to disappoint
Komatsu-sensei! Hey Ami, you want to study together?"
"Hmm? Oh," Ami said, shaking herself. "I'll . . . I've got to
do something. I'll see you tomorrow." And Ami hurried off.
Usagi shrugged. "I guess that just leaves Rei."
"Don't tell her about Komatsu-sensei," grinned Makoto. "She'll
be pumping you for details all night."
Usagi giggled, then waved and headed off to pick Rei up at her
school. Makoto turned and headed for her apartment. As she walked,
she leisurely swung her satchel and thought about the day. Ami's
reaction had been a surprise, no matter how hot Komatsu-sensei
looked.
Then again, maybe it wasn't. For a girl who "never had time
for love", Ami certainly had bounced from crush to crush over the
three years Makoto had known her. First there was her almost
puppy-love relationship with Ryo. Then there was her very short,
VERY SECRET crush on Mamoru. Makoto had only figured it out by
noticing the way she looked at him and when she confronted her
friend, Ami swore her to secrecy for fear of hurting Usagi. Then
there was the very brief infatuation with "Mercurious", followed by
her unrequited longing for Taiki of the Three Lights. And now
Komatsu-sensei - - Makoto hoped this one wouldn't end as badly as the
others had.
As she passed an alley, a movement caught Makoto's eye. She
stopped and looked - - and saw a masked woman with long blonde hair.
"That's her!" Makoto thought.
As if she read Makoto's thoughts, the woman dressed in Sailor
V's red mask and blue skirt and her blue and white vest pivoted left
and took off running. Makoto sprinted down the alley, her henshin
stick out.
"Jupiter Crystal Power Make Up!" she called out.
Transforming on the run, Sailor Jupiter reached the
intersection of the two alleys in moments. Her head popped into the
open for just a moment, then pulled back in case she drew fire from
the fleeing woman. When no fire came, Jupiter thrust out into the
open.
"Crescent Beam!" hit her ears a moment before the beam struck
her hip high. Jupiter folded awkwardly and skidded along the
pavement several feet. Once she came to a stop, Jupiter looked up,
since the beam came from above, and saw the Sailor V impostor
crouched in a windowsill three stories up.
At least she thought it was an impostor. "Sailor V" grinned at
her and gave her a silent salute - - just the kind of cocky move
Minako would make. And she had used crescent beam.
"Jupiter!" she groaned out, her hip throbbing painfully, "Oak
Evolution!"
Electrical bursts exploded around the window, right where
Sailor V had been. She was no longer there. Pushing off the sill
with her legs, she executed a perfect back flip, tucked into a roll
as she hit the ground and rolled up to her feet, springing to a stop.
It was a breath-taking feat of acrobatic athleticism and Jupiter lay
amazed for a single beat.
It was a beat too long. Though Jupiter managed to roll away
from another crescent beam, it grazed her already throbbing left
side. She landed hard, feeling the pavement bite into her knees.
Between the pain and the exertion, Jupiter didn't feel she was up to
launching another Oak Evolution. One of her simpler attacks would
have to suffice. Seeing her opponent was about to launch another
crescent beam, Jupiter gathered in her strength and shot forward,
lunging at the woman.
Executing a forward flip that would shame an Olympic gymnast,
"Sailor V" somersaulted over the charging Jupiter. But Jupiter had
anticipated just such a move. As she hit the ground, she rolled
around to face her foe while her tiara sprouted its lightning rod.
"Supreme Thunder!" Jupiter roared.
Raw lightning lanced down from the heavens, striking the small
lightning rod. Jupiter felt the powerful force fill her body with
energy. When she took in as much as she could, the senshi expelled
it at her foe in a tremendous bolt that lanced forward. But no
sooner had "Sailor V" landed from her forward flip, then she threw
herself backwards. The woman somersaulted effortlessly over the
bolt, landing with the grace of a ballerina a safe distance away as
the lightning bolt kicked up chunks of paving bricks in the alley.
Then in a single fluid motion, the blonde woman whirled and
flung something at Jupiter, roaring "Crescent Boomerang!" as she did.
A blurry shape grazed Jupiter's forehead as she flinched away.
Instantly her hand shot up to her forehead. Though there was a
sensitive patch from where the object had grazed her, there was no
blood thankfully. On the ground before her was her tiara, the
lightning rod extension bent and useless. It had landed there after
her opponent had knocked it from her head and its placement on the
ground in front of her seemed designed to taunt her. Jupiter looked
up at "Sailor V" and saw her clutching a crescent moon-shaped object
in her left hand. The woman smiled confidently at her, her eyes
obscured by the reflective lenses in her mask.
"Who are you?" demanded Jupiter.
"Sailor V" remained silent, but clicked her heels together,
spread her arms and bowed theatrically, further taunting Jupiter with
her superiority. It was the last straw. Gritting her teeth, Jupiter
shoved to her feet and lunged at the woman.
"Sailor V Kick!" rang through the alley as the woman's foot
shot out, impacting Jupiter's jaw with the speed of a cobra and the
force of a baseball bat. Jupiter spun around and fell in a heap on
the alley. Struggling to retain consciousness, Jupiter could see the
woman's blue shoes standing before her and knew she was at her mercy.
A last effort to rise failed and as she plummeted into the dark grip
of her injuries, Jupiter couldn't help wondering what had happened to
make Minako like this.
Continued in part 3