S.I.U. - The Sailor Investigation Unit
by DARK DAY FOR ANIME (Mark A Page)
Disclaimer - all characters pertaining to the series Bishoujo Senshi
Sailormoon are owned by Takeuchi Naoko, Bandai and Kodansya. All
other characters were thought up by me.
I hope I'm not sued for writing this. I'm not some ripoff merchant,
using other people's ideas for personal gain. I'm just a poor
little know-nothing fanboy. I leave the ripoffs to professionals
like Anya Romanov. ^_^
--------------------------------------------------------------------
LOG 1.32.22 (Dr Miriam Bartholemew)
"For the tape, the subject now in holding cell 32 is one Aino
Minako. She is roughly nineteen years old, and has recently
experienced a late becoming, subgroup Succubae Major. She has had
her first innoculation with starter Vasculin, and is currently
experiencing the typical early reactions to the medication,
including hypersensitivity to light, colour, sound and touch. We
are yet to determine whether there is an olfactory reaction. This
has been combined with a mild psychotic reaction that shall, with
further doses of the medication, hopefully lessen with time. As you
can see on the tape, she has been pawing the screen of the
television set we had placed in her cell. This behaviour has been
occuring for close to an hour, now, with no visible signs of
retreat. Until she withdraws from this state, it will be impossible
to start working with her. From what the Chief of Staff, Joachim
Schneider, has told me, her personality fits into the typical class
of a passive positive.... Her mental laziness, therefore, might
present a problem when it comes to the process of re-education."
----o
Kaji and Miki fell to the floor as the glass window, that
looked out onto the autopsy room, was shattered into a thousand
fragments, flying past and cutting them, eventually implanting their
glittering segments into the rear wall.
Miki let out a cry of panic as flames and sparks flew through
the now open space where the window used to be. Kaji tried to
shield Miki, but not before a large bolt of plasma-like energy
struck her in the chest. She screamed as she clawed at the molten
lump, slowly seeping into her.
Kaji looked on helplessly , reaching forward to grab the ball
as it faded away into nothingness, leaving an awful burn mark on the
front of Miki's uniform, the unpleasant smell of burnt fabric
hanging in the air.
Miki collapsed, unconcious, as Kaji tried to lift her up, her
limp hands hitting the floor with an audible thump. Kaji stared at
her. her eyes were still open, and she didn't seem to be breathing.
He swallowed and pulled open the top of her uniform, expecting to
see her skin hideously burnt. But there was nothing. She was
unmarked.
He stared at her bare skin for several moments,
disbelieveingly. Then he realised that, if anyone caught him doing
this, it might be rather misinterpreted....
Looking nervously around, he lifted her off the floor and
carried her towards the doorway. He could hear fire alarms sounding
throughout the building, and the sprinkling sound of the fire jets
within the autopsy room. They started to go off in the observation
room as smoke billowed through the shattered window. He cursed as
he proceeded to get drenched.
With difficulty, he managed to open the door, and held it with
his foot as he inched his way from the room, turning aside so Miki's
head wouldn't hit anything.
He looked down the corridor to see Kurabuto and the
pathologist, hacking and coughing on the floor, outside the doorway
to the autopsy room.
Footsteps caught his attention, and he turned the other way to
see people running towards the scene, some with their service
revolvers at the ready. He looked at the first couple to arrive,
helplessly, as if silently asking them to put the guns away.
He desperately needed a drink.
----o
Part Nineteen
Sweet Seduction
----o
Naoko was particularly amused by the way Sailormoon tried to
tiptoe past her.
She chanced a quick glance, and noticed that Usagi was now
starting to pace a little more rapidly towards the doorway at the
far end of the Sacred House's orchard. The door that would lead to
her death, if Naoko didn't do something about it.
She sighed. She liked the flesh of the girl.... So pale, yet
healthy. She liked the low cut around the collar. She could see...
hear... the sound of her blood, rushing through her throat. The
more Naoko thought about it, the more attractive the prospect of
saving Sailormoon became.
Saving for her own purposes, of course.
She just resisted the temptation to lick her lips a second
time and glanced back in the other direction. She could see
Lysithea Caprice, now making his way through the glazened gantry on
the second level of the orchard's overlook. She closed her eyes for
a second, and passed a mental note to the security system about his
presence.
Immediately, sirens began to howl through the orchard. Naoko
sighed.... They really had to curb this tendency to go off, half-
cocked.... She opened her eyes and saw Lysithea had near wet
himself. Well, good. She then turned back to Sailormoon, to see
the girl was desperately fighting the manual controls to open the
far door. Naoko took a breath, and stood....
----o
"An emergency?" Setsuna quizzed Carey as they stepped into
the office of the Chief of Operations. Carey shrugged and closed
her eyes for a moment.
"Ah. One of our people has spotted Lysithea. He is within
the refinery complex, heading towards administration."
"Here, in other words."
"Indeed." Carey opened her eyes. "He'll have to do better
than that, though, to get to me." She paused. "Oh, and your
"Princess....
"Yes?" Setsuna raised an eyebrow.
"He has sent her into the holding pens. Our people are doing
their best to stop her getting herself killed."
"The holding pens? Not the..."
"Yes, that. And I wouldn't try to transport yourself there.
The defense systems go into blanket operation when there is an
alarm." Carey stepped over to her desk as Setsuna gave her a
dubious look.
"You're not lying to me, are you?"
"Oh Setsuna...." Carey turned and rolled her eyes. "Would I
lie to you?"
----o
Hotaru, Rei and the cats crept through Hikawa shrine's
residential quarters, looking from room to room. There certainly
didn't seem to be anyone around. As they reached the bedroom of
Rei's Grandfather, Hotaru paused in her precision slide along the
wall, looking back at her three compatriots, who were doing the
same.
"Do we really need to creep around like this?" She whispered.
Rei gave her an expression that could only be read one way. "Look,
it's silly. If there is someone in here, they would have sprung on
us by now, surely?"
"They are probably tormenting us.... They know who we are.
They know everything about us...."
"How? How do they know everything about us?" Luna rubbed up
against Rei's leg, making her jump.
"I.... I can't...." Rei looked at Luna, her lips quivering,
as if teetering on the edge of spilling everything.
Rei had been less than forthcoming with any information,
regarding just who it was that was after her, other than they were
involved with the Yakuza. Why a group like the Yakuza should put
fear into the heart of a Sailorsenshi with the power of fire, Hotaru
and the cats weren't quite sure. That Rei seemed to think that, by
simply fraternising with her, their lives were also in danger also
confounded them.
"Dammit, Mars.... I need something to go on. I can't just
creep around your house in the dark, in more ways than one." Hotaru
put a hand on Rei's shoulder. Rei turned and shrugged her off.
That seemed to end that little thread of conversation.
"Where are Kumada-san and Rei's Ojisan?" Artemis padded up
next to Hotaru. "Surely a group, like the Yakuza, would target the
senshi specifically, not their families?"
"Artemis, you have to be stupid if you think that they
wouldn't, at the very least, try to kidnap them, if only to use as a
bargaining chip against us." Luna chided him. Artemis shrugged
like only a cat could.
"Well, pardon me for being stupid...." He sniffed and peered
into the bedroom. "Looks clear to me. Can't see anyone." He
stepped into the room, tripping a wire.
He heard something rattling from above and looked up to see a
several large objects flying towards him. He let out a long screech
of fear....
----o
LOG 2.32.22 (Dr Miriam Bartholemew)
"The subject now appears to be retreating from the psychotic
fascination with the television set, and has sunk into a kind of
intellectual torpor. She is dazed and staring into space, but not
showing any signs of actually being concerned about her captivity.
Considering what she is, it might be a good idea to set up specific
magical defenses against any attacks she might attempt in an effort
to escape. This will also serve to lessen any personal injury she
might sustain in such an act."
----o
When Katarin pulled the car into the hospital's front
carpark, both he and Shimazaki stared, boggle-eyed, at the crowd
that was waiting for them at the entrance.
Katarin brought the car to a stop and Shimazaki opened his
door, peering out at the silent group.
"Uhhh... We'd like to speak with the General Manager of this
hospital...." The young police officer looked around, nervously, as
an elderly man, with balding grey hair, dressed in a dark grey suit,
stepped forward.
"I am the General Manager of this hospital. You are the two
police officers who have come to pick up Doctor Mizuno?"
Katarin got out of his side of the car and stepped around the
front. "Yes, we are here to pick her up. How did you...?"
"Doctor Mizuno has confessed to the theft of a large quantity
of pharmeceuticals from this establishment. We called the police
about this matter some twenty minutes ago." He gestured to Doctor
Mizuno, who was standing in the middle of the group. Some of the
other doctors and interns were trying to calm and console her,
whilst hospital security officers were keeping an eye on events.
Shimazaki turned to Katarin. "Ready to wear, wouldn't you
say?" Katarin gave him a pained expression.
In the front lobby, peering through the glass doors, two
figures looked at each other grimly. They left with haste.
----o
Usagi managed to wrench the large wheel-lock of the door
around to "open" and pulled it back. The door glided open, like a
large bank-vault, and all beyond was dark. No, that wasn't
necessarily true. There WERE dim lights within there.... Little
blue flames, several of them, running both sides of the corridor.
Usagi could hear a frothing and bubbling sound over the alarms
that were still sounding.... She shivered and peered behind her.
The girl was gone. Nowhere in sight. She looked all around
the vast orchard of flowers, but she was nowhere to be seen. Usagi
took a breath and stepped through the doorway.
Lights flickered on, stunning her for a second. She leaned
against the wall, holding her chest and breathing deeply. It was
just a sensor light, nothing else.
She stared into the long, wide corridor in disbelief. All the
way along, there were glass vats of a dark red-black liquid, thick
and viscous, bubbling away as they were heated by small bunsen
burners beneath. The fluid would froth up into small, transparent
pipes, which ran along the wall and through the wall at the far end.
There was another door at that end, far more traditional than this
one had been, though.
She stepped up to one of the vats and peered in at it. Twin
blades were mixing the liquid within, and she could see, coming from
secondary pipes, more of the liquid pouring into the vat. She put
her hand up to the side of the vat, tentatively. It wasn't anywhere
near as hot as she thought it was.
There was a strange smell in the air. She tried to put a name
to it.... She'd smelt it before. It wasn't a pleasant smell, by
any means, but it was mixed in with a sweeter scent, pleasant to the
nose. Rather like the bouquet of the flowers in the orchard.
A cold sensation ran through her when she realised what the
first smell was.... it was blood.... The vats contained a mixture
of blood and juice from the flowers, and they were being distilled,
for purposes unknown. This hallway was part of a giant
distillery.... For a blood liqueur....
There was a giggle behind her, and she spun around, to come
face to face with the girl who had been meditating within the
orchard. Usagi recognised her as one of the girls who had taken
Minako in the coffee shop....
"YOU!" Usagi threw herself aside, giving herself some room,
backing slowly along the corridor.
"Konbanwa." The girl bowed. "Welcome, Sailormoon, to the
Sacred House. How can I help you?"
"You took my friend! Give her back to me!" Usagi assumed a
fighting stance. Her determination was immediately broken by the
girl's total lack of concern.
"I'm afraid I can't comply to that request. I shall have to
ask my superiors about that. Would you like some refreshments in
the meantime?" Naoko looked aside at the vats. "I apologise for
the atmosphere in here. It is less than optimal. Would you like
to join me, back in the orchard, to a cup of tea?" Naoko smiled.
Usagi ran like heck. The girl's eyes had drilled their way
into her soul.... She was almost tempted to throw herself at the
girl's mercy, for the pure pleasure of giving in to what she wanted.
Deep down, Usagi had an inkling of what that might be.
She threw the next door open and charged through, running onto
a gantry that crossed over vast wells of the blood liqueur. She was
momentarily stunned by the strength of the aroma, but recovered and
continued on, passing through the following doorway.
Naoko stepped into the wellroom, shaking her head. Some
people just can't be told....
----o
Artemis lay dazed under a pile of metal pots. Hotaru and Rei
were on their knees, pulling the pots from his flattened form whilst
Luna stood some distance away, shaking her head.
"The idiot. He NEVER looks where he puts his paws. Honestly,
I ask you...."
"What the hell was that, anyway?" Hotaru looked at the
tripwire that crossed the doorway. Rei sighed.
"Ojichan likes his privacy in his room, so he planted that
trap to catch the unwary."
"Like Artemis." Luna snorted. "Really, Mars.... We must
have a talk about the behaviour of your family."
"Shutup you. It's bad enough hearing you lecture Usagi-chan
without getting the same treatment...." Rei looked as if she was
going to pitch one of the pots at Luna. The cat relented.
"I was only saying it in jest...."
"Oh YEAH? Well let me tell you this. If there is anybody in
this house, who are out to kill us, we've just given them the best
alert to our presence money can't buy."
"You still haven't told us why you think there will be someone
coming after you." Hotaru lifted Artemis from the mess and cuddled
the dazed kitty, whilst turning from Rei. "I know there are groups
after us, for one various reason or another.... But they want us
for an entirely different purpose. Not hatchet us on the spot. You
say Jupiter is dead? I say show me the proof."
Rei shook her head, sadly. "You just don't get it, do you?"
"Why should I?"
"You KNOW why they killed Makoto.... You KNOW what she has
been like these past few weeks. Argumentative and difficult. She
drew attention to herself, to people who DO want to kill us, and on
top of that...." Rei paused. Both Hotaru and Luna looked up at her
expression.... Like she had been caught out saying too much.
"...And on top of that?" Luna encouraged her. Rei didn't
fall for it, and turned away, holding her knees under her chin.
"She's a basket case." Hotaru whispered to Luna.
"She's not normally like this. Rei has never been reticent
or afraid of any of our enemies...." Luna shook her head.
"What the hell could have gotten to her?"
"She said she saw Makoto being attacked.... By someone."
Luna pondered. "And yet, even though she is a Sailorsenshi, she
didn't go to help...."
"If it had been anyone normal, Jupiter would have been able to
deal with her all by herself...."
"So either she is lying about Makoto, or...."
"Someone more powerful, or at least equally powered with less
scruples, attacked and disabled Makoto, and threatened Rei...."
"Are you finished talking about me behind my back?" Rei said,
without turning. Hotaru and Luna sweatdropped and peered back at
Rei.
"Well, if you're finished sulking." Luna huffed.
"I'm not sulking." Rei stood and stepped over the pots,
leaning softly against the doorway. She peered into the passage and
rubbed her forehead. "Look, I know you think my behaviour is
strange, but.... I can't tell you who killed Mako-chan, because....
Because the ultimate result could be messier than things as they
already exist."
Before Luna or Hotaru could ask anything further, Rei turned
to them and beckoned.
"The coast is clear. Come on.... It's better if we keep
moving. We don't want to get caught in here." She stepped out into
the corridor. Hotaru sighed and stood, holding Artemis in her arms,
and both she and Luna followed.
----o
LOG 3.32.22 (Dr Miriam Bartholemew)
"Subject has progressed further and is now pacing about her
cell, looking for an exit. At least, this is what her actions
appear to represent. She doesn't have a sense of urgency about her
and it is possible this might be another response to the psychosis.
She has still not said anything since the early questioning, when
there was still an element of lucidity to her mental processes."
----o
Kaji watched as Miki was layed out on the bunk within the
medical room by two members of the police Dispatch Staff. The
Police MO shook her head as she pulled aside the burnt uniform
jacket, to get her stethoscope to the young woman's chest as the
Dispatchers left the room, running the gauntlet of the voyeuristic
lurkers.
"With the material singed like this, I'm stunned she didn't
receive, at the very least, second degree burns...." Kaji turned to
Kurabuto and the pathologist, both of whom were sitting in chairs,
shaking, but otherwise unharmed.
"You say the heart crystal did this?" Kaji scratched his
head. "The bloody thing went off with the force of a bomb!"
"For all intents and purposes, maybe that was what it had
become." The pathologist shook his head.
"Next time, we make it a rule.... When we perform an autopsy
on a Sailorsenshi, leave the heart crystal IN." Kurabuto took a sip
of water from the plastic cup he held with quivering hands.
"That doesn't necessarily mean the thing won't go bang anyway.
For all intents and purposes, a dead Sailorsenshi could be a corpse
bomb...." The pathologist shook his head.
"Then I suggest we keep as many of the little bitches alive as
possible, don't you think?" Kurabuto sighed and rubbed his face
with his hand. "How am I going to explain to the Metro Chief that
an officer on hold for disciplinary measures was injured by an
exploding heart crystal? The girl had no place being there...."
"Pardon me sir, but would you mind stoppping feeling sorry for
yourself and start thinking of Miki's condition?" Kaji huffed.
"The forensics people will go over the autopsy theatre with a fine
toothed comb, if they find anything, they'll tell us...." He turned
back to the MO, who put her stethoscope down and looked up.
"There are some irregular noises coming from her chest. A
kind of gurgling sound. However, it appeared to be declining, even
as I listened.... Other than that, her heartbeat and breathing
appear normal. Did she sustain any head injury?"
"I did my best to stop that." Kaji sniffed and wiped his
nose. "I can assure you, I have no idea what is going on inside her
head for her to be unconcious like this...."
----o
The last few moments of slumber started to ebb from Miki's
mind as she turned in her bed. Not a large bed, by any means, but
it was warm and comfortable, and she didn't feel like moving from
it, anytime soon.
Still, there was so much to accomplish today.
That was when she noticed things weren't quite right. What
did she have to accomplish today? Go to her classes? She didn't
have to go to any classes. She had a job. She was a dispatch
officer for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, with an Associate Diploma
to prove her university education.
She sat bolt upright and stared around the room. This wasn't
her room. It wasn't her bed, either. She turned to the nearby
window and looked out. That wasn't the view from her bedroom
window.
She swung her legs over the side of the bed, out from under
the covers, and stood, not quite knowing what to do next. She'd
never seen this place before....
----o
LOG 4.32.22 (Dr Miriam Bartholemew)
"The subject has most definitely come to in the last minute or
so. She is pacing around, agitatedly and is thumping her fists
against the walls. On occasion, she is looking up at the high
observation window. I think she might try an escape attempt through
there. A diagnostic test of her power band has been categorised
now, and the defences are operational. Wait a minute.... She
appears to be pulling out something.... Definitely a magical pulse
beginning to occur.... Yes, the subject has now taken out a
transformation pen. She has shouted something.... Like 'Venus
planet power.... make up' I think.... There is now a major magic
pulse signal coming from Cell 32.... Almost off the scale....
Typical for a subject that has two combined energy wavelengths.
There is now a change in her physical appearance. Indeed, to my
eyes she does not appear to be the same person. Her clothes have
changed, as well.... You wouldn't want to walk down a dark street
in that kind of gear, I'm sure.... Um... Now she's whipping out a
kind of chain, throwing it up towards the latch in the observation
window. Yes.... It has taken hold. She has now leapt from the
floor and is swinging, bouncing from one wall to the other....
She's grabbed the latch...."
"Subject is now lying across the bed within the cell. She
appears unharmed by her fall from the window, however she is
unconcious and will probably require some medical attention. At
least this proves the effectiveness of the defense systems that have
been activated...."
END OF PART 19
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Next Chapter - "In Memory Alone"
DDFA ayanami@internode.on.net
Version 1.0 - 9th May 1998
by DARK DAY FOR ANIME (Mark A Page)
Disclaimer - all characters pertaining to the series Bishoujo Senshi
Sailormoon are owned by Takeuchi Naoko, Bandai and Kodansya. All
other characters were thought up by me.
I hope I'm not sued for writing this. I'm not some ripoff merchant,
using other people's ideas for personal gain. I'm just a poor
little know-nothing fanboy. I leave the ripoffs to professionals
like Anya Romanov. ^_^
--------------------------------------------------------------------
LOG 1.32.22 (Dr Miriam Bartholemew)
"For the tape, the subject now in holding cell 32 is one Aino
Minako. She is roughly nineteen years old, and has recently
experienced a late becoming, subgroup Succubae Major. She has had
her first innoculation with starter Vasculin, and is currently
experiencing the typical early reactions to the medication,
including hypersensitivity to light, colour, sound and touch. We
are yet to determine whether there is an olfactory reaction. This
has been combined with a mild psychotic reaction that shall, with
further doses of the medication, hopefully lessen with time. As you
can see on the tape, she has been pawing the screen of the
television set we had placed in her cell. This behaviour has been
occuring for close to an hour, now, with no visible signs of
retreat. Until she withdraws from this state, it will be impossible
to start working with her. From what the Chief of Staff, Joachim
Schneider, has told me, her personality fits into the typical class
of a passive positive.... Her mental laziness, therefore, might
present a problem when it comes to the process of re-education."
----o
Kaji and Miki fell to the floor as the glass window, that
looked out onto the autopsy room, was shattered into a thousand
fragments, flying past and cutting them, eventually implanting their
glittering segments into the rear wall.
Miki let out a cry of panic as flames and sparks flew through
the now open space where the window used to be. Kaji tried to
shield Miki, but not before a large bolt of plasma-like energy
struck her in the chest. She screamed as she clawed at the molten
lump, slowly seeping into her.
Kaji looked on helplessly , reaching forward to grab the ball
as it faded away into nothingness, leaving an awful burn mark on the
front of Miki's uniform, the unpleasant smell of burnt fabric
hanging in the air.
Miki collapsed, unconcious, as Kaji tried to lift her up, her
limp hands hitting the floor with an audible thump. Kaji stared at
her. her eyes were still open, and she didn't seem to be breathing.
He swallowed and pulled open the top of her uniform, expecting to
see her skin hideously burnt. But there was nothing. She was
unmarked.
He stared at her bare skin for several moments,
disbelieveingly. Then he realised that, if anyone caught him doing
this, it might be rather misinterpreted....
Looking nervously around, he lifted her off the floor and
carried her towards the doorway. He could hear fire alarms sounding
throughout the building, and the sprinkling sound of the fire jets
within the autopsy room. They started to go off in the observation
room as smoke billowed through the shattered window. He cursed as
he proceeded to get drenched.
With difficulty, he managed to open the door, and held it with
his foot as he inched his way from the room, turning aside so Miki's
head wouldn't hit anything.
He looked down the corridor to see Kurabuto and the
pathologist, hacking and coughing on the floor, outside the doorway
to the autopsy room.
Footsteps caught his attention, and he turned the other way to
see people running towards the scene, some with their service
revolvers at the ready. He looked at the first couple to arrive,
helplessly, as if silently asking them to put the guns away.
He desperately needed a drink.
----o
Part Nineteen
Sweet Seduction
----o
Naoko was particularly amused by the way Sailormoon tried to
tiptoe past her.
She chanced a quick glance, and noticed that Usagi was now
starting to pace a little more rapidly towards the doorway at the
far end of the Sacred House's orchard. The door that would lead to
her death, if Naoko didn't do something about it.
She sighed. She liked the flesh of the girl.... So pale, yet
healthy. She liked the low cut around the collar. She could see...
hear... the sound of her blood, rushing through her throat. The
more Naoko thought about it, the more attractive the prospect of
saving Sailormoon became.
Saving for her own purposes, of course.
She just resisted the temptation to lick her lips a second
time and glanced back in the other direction. She could see
Lysithea Caprice, now making his way through the glazened gantry on
the second level of the orchard's overlook. She closed her eyes for
a second, and passed a mental note to the security system about his
presence.
Immediately, sirens began to howl through the orchard. Naoko
sighed.... They really had to curb this tendency to go off, half-
cocked.... She opened her eyes and saw Lysithea had near wet
himself. Well, good. She then turned back to Sailormoon, to see
the girl was desperately fighting the manual controls to open the
far door. Naoko took a breath, and stood....
----o
"An emergency?" Setsuna quizzed Carey as they stepped into
the office of the Chief of Operations. Carey shrugged and closed
her eyes for a moment.
"Ah. One of our people has spotted Lysithea. He is within
the refinery complex, heading towards administration."
"Here, in other words."
"Indeed." Carey opened her eyes. "He'll have to do better
than that, though, to get to me." She paused. "Oh, and your
"Princess....
"Yes?" Setsuna raised an eyebrow.
"He has sent her into the holding pens. Our people are doing
their best to stop her getting herself killed."
"The holding pens? Not the..."
"Yes, that. And I wouldn't try to transport yourself there.
The defense systems go into blanket operation when there is an
alarm." Carey stepped over to her desk as Setsuna gave her a
dubious look.
"You're not lying to me, are you?"
"Oh Setsuna...." Carey turned and rolled her eyes. "Would I
lie to you?"
----o
Hotaru, Rei and the cats crept through Hikawa shrine's
residential quarters, looking from room to room. There certainly
didn't seem to be anyone around. As they reached the bedroom of
Rei's Grandfather, Hotaru paused in her precision slide along the
wall, looking back at her three compatriots, who were doing the
same.
"Do we really need to creep around like this?" She whispered.
Rei gave her an expression that could only be read one way. "Look,
it's silly. If there is someone in here, they would have sprung on
us by now, surely?"
"They are probably tormenting us.... They know who we are.
They know everything about us...."
"How? How do they know everything about us?" Luna rubbed up
against Rei's leg, making her jump.
"I.... I can't...." Rei looked at Luna, her lips quivering,
as if teetering on the edge of spilling everything.
Rei had been less than forthcoming with any information,
regarding just who it was that was after her, other than they were
involved with the Yakuza. Why a group like the Yakuza should put
fear into the heart of a Sailorsenshi with the power of fire, Hotaru
and the cats weren't quite sure. That Rei seemed to think that, by
simply fraternising with her, their lives were also in danger also
confounded them.
"Dammit, Mars.... I need something to go on. I can't just
creep around your house in the dark, in more ways than one." Hotaru
put a hand on Rei's shoulder. Rei turned and shrugged her off.
That seemed to end that little thread of conversation.
"Where are Kumada-san and Rei's Ojisan?" Artemis padded up
next to Hotaru. "Surely a group, like the Yakuza, would target the
senshi specifically, not their families?"
"Artemis, you have to be stupid if you think that they
wouldn't, at the very least, try to kidnap them, if only to use as a
bargaining chip against us." Luna chided him. Artemis shrugged
like only a cat could.
"Well, pardon me for being stupid...." He sniffed and peered
into the bedroom. "Looks clear to me. Can't see anyone." He
stepped into the room, tripping a wire.
He heard something rattling from above and looked up to see a
several large objects flying towards him. He let out a long screech
of fear....
----o
LOG 2.32.22 (Dr Miriam Bartholemew)
"The subject now appears to be retreating from the psychotic
fascination with the television set, and has sunk into a kind of
intellectual torpor. She is dazed and staring into space, but not
showing any signs of actually being concerned about her captivity.
Considering what she is, it might be a good idea to set up specific
magical defenses against any attacks she might attempt in an effort
to escape. This will also serve to lessen any personal injury she
might sustain in such an act."
----o
When Katarin pulled the car into the hospital's front
carpark, both he and Shimazaki stared, boggle-eyed, at the crowd
that was waiting for them at the entrance.
Katarin brought the car to a stop and Shimazaki opened his
door, peering out at the silent group.
"Uhhh... We'd like to speak with the General Manager of this
hospital...." The young police officer looked around, nervously, as
an elderly man, with balding grey hair, dressed in a dark grey suit,
stepped forward.
"I am the General Manager of this hospital. You are the two
police officers who have come to pick up Doctor Mizuno?"
Katarin got out of his side of the car and stepped around the
front. "Yes, we are here to pick her up. How did you...?"
"Doctor Mizuno has confessed to the theft of a large quantity
of pharmeceuticals from this establishment. We called the police
about this matter some twenty minutes ago." He gestured to Doctor
Mizuno, who was standing in the middle of the group. Some of the
other doctors and interns were trying to calm and console her,
whilst hospital security officers were keeping an eye on events.
Shimazaki turned to Katarin. "Ready to wear, wouldn't you
say?" Katarin gave him a pained expression.
In the front lobby, peering through the glass doors, two
figures looked at each other grimly. They left with haste.
----o
Usagi managed to wrench the large wheel-lock of the door
around to "open" and pulled it back. The door glided open, like a
large bank-vault, and all beyond was dark. No, that wasn't
necessarily true. There WERE dim lights within there.... Little
blue flames, several of them, running both sides of the corridor.
Usagi could hear a frothing and bubbling sound over the alarms
that were still sounding.... She shivered and peered behind her.
The girl was gone. Nowhere in sight. She looked all around
the vast orchard of flowers, but she was nowhere to be seen. Usagi
took a breath and stepped through the doorway.
Lights flickered on, stunning her for a second. She leaned
against the wall, holding her chest and breathing deeply. It was
just a sensor light, nothing else.
She stared into the long, wide corridor in disbelief. All the
way along, there were glass vats of a dark red-black liquid, thick
and viscous, bubbling away as they were heated by small bunsen
burners beneath. The fluid would froth up into small, transparent
pipes, which ran along the wall and through the wall at the far end.
There was another door at that end, far more traditional than this
one had been, though.
She stepped up to one of the vats and peered in at it. Twin
blades were mixing the liquid within, and she could see, coming from
secondary pipes, more of the liquid pouring into the vat. She put
her hand up to the side of the vat, tentatively. It wasn't anywhere
near as hot as she thought it was.
There was a strange smell in the air. She tried to put a name
to it.... She'd smelt it before. It wasn't a pleasant smell, by
any means, but it was mixed in with a sweeter scent, pleasant to the
nose. Rather like the bouquet of the flowers in the orchard.
A cold sensation ran through her when she realised what the
first smell was.... it was blood.... The vats contained a mixture
of blood and juice from the flowers, and they were being distilled,
for purposes unknown. This hallway was part of a giant
distillery.... For a blood liqueur....
There was a giggle behind her, and she spun around, to come
face to face with the girl who had been meditating within the
orchard. Usagi recognised her as one of the girls who had taken
Minako in the coffee shop....
"YOU!" Usagi threw herself aside, giving herself some room,
backing slowly along the corridor.
"Konbanwa." The girl bowed. "Welcome, Sailormoon, to the
Sacred House. How can I help you?"
"You took my friend! Give her back to me!" Usagi assumed a
fighting stance. Her determination was immediately broken by the
girl's total lack of concern.
"I'm afraid I can't comply to that request. I shall have to
ask my superiors about that. Would you like some refreshments in
the meantime?" Naoko looked aside at the vats. "I apologise for
the atmosphere in here. It is less than optimal. Would you like
to join me, back in the orchard, to a cup of tea?" Naoko smiled.
Usagi ran like heck. The girl's eyes had drilled their way
into her soul.... She was almost tempted to throw herself at the
girl's mercy, for the pure pleasure of giving in to what she wanted.
Deep down, Usagi had an inkling of what that might be.
She threw the next door open and charged through, running onto
a gantry that crossed over vast wells of the blood liqueur. She was
momentarily stunned by the strength of the aroma, but recovered and
continued on, passing through the following doorway.
Naoko stepped into the wellroom, shaking her head. Some
people just can't be told....
----o
Artemis lay dazed under a pile of metal pots. Hotaru and Rei
were on their knees, pulling the pots from his flattened form whilst
Luna stood some distance away, shaking her head.
"The idiot. He NEVER looks where he puts his paws. Honestly,
I ask you...."
"What the hell was that, anyway?" Hotaru looked at the
tripwire that crossed the doorway. Rei sighed.
"Ojichan likes his privacy in his room, so he planted that
trap to catch the unwary."
"Like Artemis." Luna snorted. "Really, Mars.... We must
have a talk about the behaviour of your family."
"Shutup you. It's bad enough hearing you lecture Usagi-chan
without getting the same treatment...." Rei looked as if she was
going to pitch one of the pots at Luna. The cat relented.
"I was only saying it in jest...."
"Oh YEAH? Well let me tell you this. If there is anybody in
this house, who are out to kill us, we've just given them the best
alert to our presence money can't buy."
"You still haven't told us why you think there will be someone
coming after you." Hotaru lifted Artemis from the mess and cuddled
the dazed kitty, whilst turning from Rei. "I know there are groups
after us, for one various reason or another.... But they want us
for an entirely different purpose. Not hatchet us on the spot. You
say Jupiter is dead? I say show me the proof."
Rei shook her head, sadly. "You just don't get it, do you?"
"Why should I?"
"You KNOW why they killed Makoto.... You KNOW what she has
been like these past few weeks. Argumentative and difficult. She
drew attention to herself, to people who DO want to kill us, and on
top of that...." Rei paused. Both Hotaru and Luna looked up at her
expression.... Like she had been caught out saying too much.
"...And on top of that?" Luna encouraged her. Rei didn't
fall for it, and turned away, holding her knees under her chin.
"She's a basket case." Hotaru whispered to Luna.
"She's not normally like this. Rei has never been reticent
or afraid of any of our enemies...." Luna shook her head.
"What the hell could have gotten to her?"
"She said she saw Makoto being attacked.... By someone."
Luna pondered. "And yet, even though she is a Sailorsenshi, she
didn't go to help...."
"If it had been anyone normal, Jupiter would have been able to
deal with her all by herself...."
"So either she is lying about Makoto, or...."
"Someone more powerful, or at least equally powered with less
scruples, attacked and disabled Makoto, and threatened Rei...."
"Are you finished talking about me behind my back?" Rei said,
without turning. Hotaru and Luna sweatdropped and peered back at
Rei.
"Well, if you're finished sulking." Luna huffed.
"I'm not sulking." Rei stood and stepped over the pots,
leaning softly against the doorway. She peered into the passage and
rubbed her forehead. "Look, I know you think my behaviour is
strange, but.... I can't tell you who killed Mako-chan, because....
Because the ultimate result could be messier than things as they
already exist."
Before Luna or Hotaru could ask anything further, Rei turned
to them and beckoned.
"The coast is clear. Come on.... It's better if we keep
moving. We don't want to get caught in here." She stepped out into
the corridor. Hotaru sighed and stood, holding Artemis in her arms,
and both she and Luna followed.
----o
LOG 3.32.22 (Dr Miriam Bartholemew)
"Subject has progressed further and is now pacing about her
cell, looking for an exit. At least, this is what her actions
appear to represent. She doesn't have a sense of urgency about her
and it is possible this might be another response to the psychosis.
She has still not said anything since the early questioning, when
there was still an element of lucidity to her mental processes."
----o
Kaji watched as Miki was layed out on the bunk within the
medical room by two members of the police Dispatch Staff. The
Police MO shook her head as she pulled aside the burnt uniform
jacket, to get her stethoscope to the young woman's chest as the
Dispatchers left the room, running the gauntlet of the voyeuristic
lurkers.
"With the material singed like this, I'm stunned she didn't
receive, at the very least, second degree burns...." Kaji turned to
Kurabuto and the pathologist, both of whom were sitting in chairs,
shaking, but otherwise unharmed.
"You say the heart crystal did this?" Kaji scratched his
head. "The bloody thing went off with the force of a bomb!"
"For all intents and purposes, maybe that was what it had
become." The pathologist shook his head.
"Next time, we make it a rule.... When we perform an autopsy
on a Sailorsenshi, leave the heart crystal IN." Kurabuto took a sip
of water from the plastic cup he held with quivering hands.
"That doesn't necessarily mean the thing won't go bang anyway.
For all intents and purposes, a dead Sailorsenshi could be a corpse
bomb...." The pathologist shook his head.
"Then I suggest we keep as many of the little bitches alive as
possible, don't you think?" Kurabuto sighed and rubbed his face
with his hand. "How am I going to explain to the Metro Chief that
an officer on hold for disciplinary measures was injured by an
exploding heart crystal? The girl had no place being there...."
"Pardon me sir, but would you mind stoppping feeling sorry for
yourself and start thinking of Miki's condition?" Kaji huffed.
"The forensics people will go over the autopsy theatre with a fine
toothed comb, if they find anything, they'll tell us...." He turned
back to the MO, who put her stethoscope down and looked up.
"There are some irregular noises coming from her chest. A
kind of gurgling sound. However, it appeared to be declining, even
as I listened.... Other than that, her heartbeat and breathing
appear normal. Did she sustain any head injury?"
"I did my best to stop that." Kaji sniffed and wiped his
nose. "I can assure you, I have no idea what is going on inside her
head for her to be unconcious like this...."
----o
The last few moments of slumber started to ebb from Miki's
mind as she turned in her bed. Not a large bed, by any means, but
it was warm and comfortable, and she didn't feel like moving from
it, anytime soon.
Still, there was so much to accomplish today.
That was when she noticed things weren't quite right. What
did she have to accomplish today? Go to her classes? She didn't
have to go to any classes. She had a job. She was a dispatch
officer for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, with an Associate Diploma
to prove her university education.
She sat bolt upright and stared around the room. This wasn't
her room. It wasn't her bed, either. She turned to the nearby
window and looked out. That wasn't the view from her bedroom
window.
She swung her legs over the side of the bed, out from under
the covers, and stood, not quite knowing what to do next. She'd
never seen this place before....
----o
LOG 4.32.22 (Dr Miriam Bartholemew)
"The subject has most definitely come to in the last minute or
so. She is pacing around, agitatedly and is thumping her fists
against the walls. On occasion, she is looking up at the high
observation window. I think she might try an escape attempt through
there. A diagnostic test of her power band has been categorised
now, and the defences are operational. Wait a minute.... She
appears to be pulling out something.... Definitely a magical pulse
beginning to occur.... Yes, the subject has now taken out a
transformation pen. She has shouted something.... Like 'Venus
planet power.... make up' I think.... There is now a major magic
pulse signal coming from Cell 32.... Almost off the scale....
Typical for a subject that has two combined energy wavelengths.
There is now a change in her physical appearance. Indeed, to my
eyes she does not appear to be the same person. Her clothes have
changed, as well.... You wouldn't want to walk down a dark street
in that kind of gear, I'm sure.... Um... Now she's whipping out a
kind of chain, throwing it up towards the latch in the observation
window. Yes.... It has taken hold. She has now leapt from the
floor and is swinging, bouncing from one wall to the other....
She's grabbed the latch...."
"Subject is now lying across the bed within the cell. She
appears unharmed by her fall from the window, however she is
unconcious and will probably require some medical attention. At
least this proves the effectiveness of the defense systems that have
been activated...."
END OF PART 19
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Next Chapter - "In Memory Alone"
DDFA ayanami@internode.on.net
Version 1.0 - 9th May 1998