I do not own Sailor Moon--but this is my story! Enjoy & Please Review!
Falling Stars
Chapter 7
Usagi continued to scream, even knowing that it made both she and her wounded sister all the more vulnerable to attack. The intense crimson of the substance upon her hands made the young woman feel as if she had been branded--with sorrow, destruction, and more importantly: death. The blonde wiped a stream of tears from her eyes, ignoring the blood that was smeared across her hands and clothes--and now her cheek. "I have to get you out of here…Hinotama. You saved me even though I didn't deserve saving…" the young soldier rationalized, struggling to gain control of her senses. Usagi looped an arm around her sister's neck and the other behind the back of her knees, trying to lift and cradle her at once. "I can't carry you, if I do, I could injure you further. Hino, tell me this isn't the end!"
Usagi was becoming hysterical and afraid of hurting her sister, she rested Hinotama against the ground as her mind clouded over with frantic thoughts. 'I didn't know...Hinotama, I didn't know! It was a mistake...it was meant for me. I didn't deserve your sacrifice...now I am going to lose you too…and there is no help for this world.'
The blonde shuddered and lightly touched her fingertips to Hinotama's cheek, supressing sobs that were bubbling beneath the exterior. Usagi remained on her knees, her head hung solemnly as she shook with guilt. A fresh stream of tears found its way down Usagi's smooth complexion and onto Hinotama's muddied clothing. "Hino..." she wept, her voice strained. An unexpected clicking sound, however, echoed from the alley beside them and quickly tore Usagi from her mourning.
"Who's there?" she demanded upon reaching her feet, rounding about and wielding her handgun carefully. At that very moment, Usagi looked like a lost assassin--her golden hair waving wildly about and her eyes glittering dangerously as she fought to hold steady in her grip the shining ebony barrel. "Show yourself!" she cried once again, her stance faltering. Nausea and intense dizziness were blurring her senses until a sleek, elegant form glided out from the shadows.
"Come with me! Hinotama must be saved!" the form cried, the urgent voice distinctly feminine. Usagi's dark gaze fell upon the form, which happened to be a girl not much older than she. Her long, satiny-black hair was pulled up into a tight ponytail, the mane cascading down her back. The young woman's eyes were a bright, flashing lapis-lazuli beneath the cover of darkness that seemed to surround the very planet. "Hurry up, before they return!" she entreated of Usagi, brazenly approaching Hinotama. Without Usagi's consent, she lifted Hinotama carefully into her arms.
"I didn't mean to--I'm sorry..." Usagi babbled incoherently as the girl turned to face her, Hinotama in tow.
"Onegai! We don't have much time!" the young woman urged, her tone warning. Immediately, Usagi snapped out of her stupor and raced off into the unknown with the nocturnal savior--her unconscious sister along for the ride.
*~*~*
The immense, concrete room was dimly lit by several candles on the edge of the room, nearly burnt out by now. Despite its false security, the location presented refuge to many that were otherwise at a loss for protection. At least twenty people inhabited the room--their gender, age, and appearance ranging throughout a variety of spectrums. The larger portion were teenagers to young adults, in addition to the mothers, fathers, and solitary individuals that resided in such a place. Several beds lined the walls and sleeping mats scattered the floor, blankets in abundance.
It was a home.
Usagi had meanwhile come to such a refuge, not knowing what would become of she and her sister. She had been forced to place her trust entirely in a stranger--which at one time in her life, would not have been the trial it was mere moments before. She remained in the larger area, teary eyed with the other occupants, as a few forms worked feverishly over her sister in an adjacent room to save her life. "My sister." The words were as dull in tone as they were in content. Usagi felt as if the very life had been drained from her--as if the very world was weighing down on her and the impenetrable darkness was drawing its thick curtain around her and closing her off from anything else.
When she had first arrived, both she and the young woman--and Hinotama--burst through a large, metal door from the outside world onto a flat platform. The summit platform led down onto a winding, dimly-lit staircase and upon reaching the bottom, the trio entered an immense shelter area. Usagi at first figured it to be another simple dwelling like the one she and Hinotama shared, but it was proving to be far more. Time, however, no longer allowed for analysis as Usagi and the young woman rushed a fading Hinotama through a group of horrified and sorrowful onlookers into a large, surprisingly-modern medical facility at the end of a lamplit corridor. From that point on, Usagi could remember little, as she had been sent away--sobbing hysterically--as the strange individuals went to work on Hinotama.
"You are Usagi, are you not?" The concept of human interaction seemed foreign to Usagi now as she sat despondently in the metal chair outside the medical facilities. Weak with physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion,the blonde girl made no attempt to answer the imposing voice. "I said, are you Usagi?" the voice persisted, a bit more pressing this time. Finally, the odangoed young woman shifted her gaze to the speaker; it was the same black haired girl who had come to save Hinotama.
"I," she began disoriented and blank, "Yes, I'm Usagi. Is my sister--is she all right?" Usagi awaited an answer from the young woman and straightened her posture within the chair, arching her back with a wince. She ran her hands through her golden hair, which by now had fallen out of its arrangement. The other girl meanwhile dragged a chair to their vicinity and sat down beside her, offering a slight smile.
"She suffered a critical wound, but we have the best working to save her. Hinotama is in good hands, Princess."
Usagi lifted her eyes. "How do you…"
"Listen to me, Usagi, your sister has fought long and hard to bring light and life back to this dead planet. We have been through what is seems like years, which in reality has only been months, of torment and suffering. Hinotama, our Princess, promised to battle for us and our universe. She was ready to die in the name of our people, and this disgusting place we call home. But she brought you here, Tsukino Usagi. Her other half, her celestial twin. We have new hope."
New hope...had they given up on Hinotama that easily? If she was their Princess and she had been fighting so fiercely for them, then how could they carry such an apathetic attitude? She was not her sister's replacement. After all, Usagi knew that she could never adequately replace her.
With a jolt of energy, Usagi turned her narrowed eyes upon the girl. "How can you say that?" she inquired venomously, standing. She motioned around the room angrily, but mournful tears poured from her expressive eyes. "You have women, young children, and even cowardice men hiding in fear of their lives in this God forsaken hell world! How can you have new hope when I will be the one responsible for the death of my own sister?" A hush fell over the room, deepening the already eerie silence. A shriek arose from a tiny baby on the other side of the room, and already Usagi regretted her outburst. The mother over yonder was trying desperately to calmly quiet her child, but Usagi's timely explosion had frightened the poor dear. Acting on reflex, the blonde stepped away from the black-haired savior and followed the cries, weaving her way through the clump of fearful people. The expressions upon their faces seemed to read that they were in total mortification of her--horrified. Had she always been so crass and spiteful? As she walked, their frightened and rueful gazes followed her. They were painful. It was hurtful to know that she was once again the source of pain within others. Then finally, Usagi came to the area from where the baby's cries originated, and she could now see the angelic child crying into her mother's shoulder.
"Usagi," the ebony-haired girl cried out from behind, "It is not your fault. It is Fate that has brought us here, and no matter what happens now; the Sun and the Moon will find a way to defeat this evil. Hinotama is like family to me…to all of us. And I know that when she made the promise to save us all--she meant to keep it." Noting the girl's statement, Usagi rested a hand on the baby's mother, and smiled sincerely. The woman's horrified expression softened, and the baby immediately ceased its crying. The woman's eyes were a soft gray, complemented by the rich, curly brown hair that rested around her shoulders. Even her infant daughter was graced with the same, quiet and compassionate features.
"May I?" Usagi inquired, opening her embrace. The mother locked eyes with Usagi, studying her almost for a moment before consenting. Usagi smiled at the little girl, taking her into her arms.
"I am sorry for my selfishness. My sister has lost everyone she has ever loved, and I sat by and complained about having my friends and family alive. I was wrong; and I took for granted what I have had. No matter how many battles I have fought, won, or lost; I never learned what it was to be empty…to be completely without hope. And now, I will do for Hinotama what she did for you…I will stop this nightmare…even if it means my demise." Another quiet settled over the room.
"Ever so dramatic, but that won't be necessary, Usa," a slightly hoarse, but chipper voice echoed from the center of the room. Hinotama smiled from the wheeled-cot the doctors had placed her on for recovery. Her side was bandaged well, and her face and back were cleaned and fresh. Not only that, but her eyes now held their familiar sparkle once again. "Because we will do it together." Usagi could only allow her eyes to well up with tears, and sob thankfully. Giving the child back to its mother, the blonde went to her sister and threw herself onto the floor, taking Hinotama's free hand into her own.
"Why did you save me? I was a liability and I could've gotten you killed," Usagi whispered seriously, her eyes focused solely on Hinotama. Her long blonde hair cascaded down her back in a golden waterfall, touching nearly the floor as she knelt. Her sister looked like an angel lying there, and even throughout the whole ordeal her eyes were still dazzling and fearless. They sat for a moment, silent and lost in thought--but both maintained an air of utter gratitude.
"Usagi, you are my sister, you are my worldly half. Do you think I'd give you up too?" Hinotama shook her head. "I am tired of losing everyone I love, and I refuse to let those monsters take the ones I have left. And really, Usagi-chan! You would have done the same for me." A smile crossed their faces simultaneously. Usagi nodded knowingly, realizing she too would give up her life for her family and friends. "Sis, I would like you to meet a close friend and fellow fighter of mine. This, Usa," the brunette said motioning to the familiar dark-haired young woman who was now sitting opposite Usagi, "is Myou."
Usagi looked at the girl and smiled. "Myou, thank you for saving my sister."
"Princess, it was my honor. Hinotama has been my friend since we were children, almost like we're family. We would do anything for each other. She saved me once long ago, and I was repaying the favor," she replied, friendly.
Hinotama quickly caught Myou's attention by attempting to sit up, her eyes carrying the familiar glint of one who is intent upon accomplishing set goals. Myou knew the look all too well. "Myou, we need to get a patrol party together. Usagi still needs training…she still needs to tap into her gift--
"Whoa, hold on there, Hino-sama. You're staying here. I refuse to let you out of this place looking like this. You're an absolute mess-and a piece of work to boot. You know that Usagi will be in good hands with us and her gift will kick in on its own time. You learned that yourself, Hinotama."
"Don't be stubborn!" the bed-ridden young woman replied, her tone playful.
"Me? Stop acting like Hikari! She would have beaten you up if you tried to slip out of this place!"
"Hikari?" Usagi interrupted, her voice soft. "How do you know about her?" She noticed that when Myou raised the subject, Hinotama had not become saddened as she had before.
Myou turned her brilliant lapis lazuli eyes upon Usagi. "Usagi-san, Hikari was my sister." The blonde nodded quietly in response, unwilling to offer anything more. She couldn't help but feel a little left out, and yet, she felt a pang of anger towards herself. Usagi could no longer afford to be so self-absorbed. Meanwhile, Myou's maternal instincts and hovering continued over their bedridden friend. "Now, the two of you must rest." Myou accepted their submission and helped them settle into the more comfortable quarters of the shelter.
*~*~*
It was silent now, approximately 12:30 in the morning-or what was considered to be. The sky was an intense black, and the grimy, brown clouds turned the world into a miserable desert of shadows. Myou quietly slipped out of the shelter through the immense metal door, content with the knowledge that everyone else was asleep and that she would not be discovered. Her jet-black hair was pulled into a tight ponytail, and her lapis lazuli eyes guided her through the darkness. She had a distinct knowledge of where she was going and why. She had work to do and a master to serve.
Myou's long overcoat flapped on the stale air as she arrived at her destination far from the safe house, deep within the central parts of what remained of the metropolis city. The door was rusted steel and tall, almost a story and a half. It was locked, but nevertheless she raised a hand and knocked.
"Open up will you?" she hissed impatiently, her bright eyes narrowing. Almost at her command, the door swung open and Myou was sucked in with the draft. "That's better," she murmured as the wind almost pushed her along to her point of focus. The whispers of lost souls tickled her ears and the stale air licked at her, unforgiving. A startling hush fell over the world, and at once Myou knew she had arrived. The room was pitch black, and nothing remained but a voice.
"Daughter of Darkness, have you successfully completed your objectives?" a mechanical, yet oddly feminine voice rang out.
"Grand Master of the Zodiac, my objectives are in the process of completion," Myou replied head bowed, her overcoat dropping to the floor to reveal a long, form-fitting black dress. As if by command, a golden light fell over the room, mainly falling upon two distinct figures. Myou was kneeling on the left, her head bowed, and the other light fell upon a gruesome looking monstrosity, wielding a silver staff.
"Myou, your services are no longer needed," the voice rang out, apathetic. "You've served your purpose." The being flicked their wrist and at once the mission-driven Myou became completely disoriented. She dropped to her knees wordlessly; eyes blank as her attire melted back to that of what she wore earlier. A flood of memories ran back to her, ripping through her skull as the prior presence of blackness living within her faded. It was like another person inhabited the shell of her body.
Myou leaned forwards on the palms of her hands, still on her knees as she became fully aware of her surroundings. "What…what am I doing here? Where am I?" she trailed off in confusion. Finally her gaze widened in realization, and met the other form in horror.
"I couldn't possibly allow you to survive, knowing the identities and whereabouts of the Dark Ones could I, Myou-chan?" the form giggled strangely, using the denotation of friendship as form of mockery.
Myou's lapis lazuli eyes became saucer-like with rage and she shot to her feet, fists balled. Her beautiful black hair fell around her shoulders, mirroring the darkness around she and the monstrosity. "They will destroy you! All of you disgusting creatures!" Myou's last words echoed on the sour air as the overlord flicked its wrist, and the girl--now enveloped in darkness--was no more than a pile of dust.
Revised as of 3/2/2002.
