Of This World And Yesterday
"Death is still part of the process...."
-David Brin, Earth
Chapter 26- Breathe
The air was cold, rushing through winds that swept through the lofty towers of the city. It chilled the two passengers on the back of a flying firecat, not exactly a typical sight to be seen in the late afternoon of what was not exactly a typical day. Sango had begun to shiver a few minutes into their journey, and Miroku didn't know what else to do for her so high up. He readjusted his grip on her, tightening a fist in Kirara's mane, and urged the youkai to hurry. It was strange riding lead. Usually he would sit behind Sango with his shakujyou around her waist, to keep a respectable distance from the taiji-ya's rather enticing backside. Now though, she was still ahead of him, but not riding, draped across Kirara's neck and braced up by his arm.
Her skin was growing whiter, pale, translucent, and he could see the weblike structures of the Mosaic Buster taking effect under her skin. Slowly, they were spreading, darkening into a netlike patchwork. If the conclusions that he, Shippou and Chibiusa had arrived at the previous afternoon were accurate, then the Mosaic was actually some kind of organic attack, based off the material the kugutsu was made of instead of what the real Viluy would have used- metal.
A heavier shiver wracked her body. It was cold that was making her worse- it had to be. He was cold as well. It made sense. She was just cold from the temperatures this high up, and of the swirling clouds above. She wasn't in shock. She couldn't go into shock. He wouldn't allow that.
Pain was blended with a sense of forbidding panic. Miroku hadn't escaped from the encounter unscathed either, and he had to focus his mind to keep it clear from a tunneling blackness. The point he chose to focus on was finding Hotaru's school, attempting to push aside the fog that was beginning to accumulate in the recesses of his thoughts. He remembered sitting wedged in the back of Haruka's sports car in the school's parking lot earlier in the day, while the blonde haired senshi had taken in a lunch to Hotaru, including a coded message about the current situation. If he had been there once, then he had to be able to find it again. The concept and possibility of Hotaru's having already left the place did not cross his mind. She was there. He needed her to be there, so she would have to be there. Instead of worrying and letting his mind wander, he latched onto that single purpose: find the school, find Hotaru. Find Hotaru, heal Sango. It was simple, really.
Kirara had an innate sense of direction, particularly when she needed it, as she did now. The buildings were no more confusing than naturally occurring mountains, and she tried to steer them around the skyscrapers, which eventually leveled off into more residential areas. Smells cascaded into each other in a melting mess, not allowing her to trace her way back that way, once she picked up on the general idea Miroku was trying to get across to her. They'd retraced their path from before the attack began, at least until the buildings blurred and began to look the same. Fortunately, more people were heading indoors due to the muggy weather, and her height in the air kept most people from noticing. Few looked up. Those who did blinked in surprise and confusion, mouths agape as they tried to discern what it was they just saw flying overhead.
A long, flat building eventually came into view, with green grass hemming the stone structure and trees swaying in the breeze. As Kirara lowered them, descending, a swirl of relief rippled through Miroku. That was it. The school. The same wide parking lot with yellow stripes to mark places to leave the car on the ground, with the flagpoles in the front...the place was empty of cars now, and the flags had been taken in, though no people were moving around the campus, the place still and silent. Skimming along the surface of the air, Miroku saw a blown out place in the back of the building, evidence of one of those strange bomb creatures or of some kind of battle. Images of himself running inside the school and shouting for Hotaru left, as he realized there had been a fight here. Kirara was already heading for the destroyed section of the building, heading lower as Miroku leaned forward to see what had happened.
Glass caught at the dimly provided light, fragmented edges glinting rather than shining among broken bricks, littering the ground at his feet. A large hole had been blown in the side of the building, leaving twisted bits of metal roof support beams jutting out at odd angles, like gnarled fingers. What had once been a schoolroom was decimated, and Miroku could make out what appeared to be tables blown back to the further wall, which managed to remain intact. The blast had been aimed outward then, this way, judging by the long stream of debris trailing out from the buildings' outer wall. Inside, a fluorescent ceiling lamp pulsed once, then flickered and died, sending sparks down to the ground where the glass had been shattered.
Within the torn archway, there was a little figure sitting beside one of the larger chunks of brick and cement, shoulders slumped where she knelt, hands in her lap and holding a small object. Her short, straight hair slanted against her chin, contrasting sharply to the whiteness of it, veiling her face from his view.
"Saturn! Sailor Saturn!" Clumsily, Miroku slid off of Kirara's back, trying not to drop Sango's limp weight. He straightened himself up, and began to make his way around the debris, glad of the thick soles of the modern shoes. Glass and sharp stones crunched underfoot, and he heard them. The threads of the Mosaic under Sango's skin were thickening, and the space between was turning from white to a sickly yellow color, tinged with purple. Dropping to his knees, he carefully laid her out between the two of them, tucking her close to avoid the scattered rubble, and hoping nothing sharp was below her while he supported her head.
Then he looked at the still form of Sailor Saturn, and saw the silent expression that graced her features. Empty eyes stared sightlessly at her hands, resting on the hem of her layered skirt, white gloves against deep purple cloth, cradling a broken wax figure, a little replica of a man with light grey hair, wearing a long white coat. A poppet, like the one Sango had destroyed of Viluy.
Before he could wonder why she held it so gently, a bit of motion on her wrist caught his eye, a little cloud of dust, which opened a pair of slanted vee shaped eyes, glowing scarlet and standing out against the little girl's gloves. Miroku didn't know what the thing was, but the visibility of the thing made him shudder, the dark nature of the thing repellent. It made a faint chittering sound, then moved, sliding from Saturn's wrist over onto Sango's side as though attracted there. Alarmed, he slapped it away, first noticing what it landed against.
An elaborate box had been abandoned not even an armslength from the Sailor Senshi, an intricate box of obsidian and gold, a black diamond crescent moon decorating the top. A crooked handle jutted out the side, a glassy black handle ready to be turned. Inside the beautiful, dark box was a single little figure, once defiant. Now it was warped, twisted, fallen. Color had been applied to the poppet, but now the brilliant purples and reds were melded together, bruised and mottled. Out of that box emanated such a subtle evil aura Miroku was barely able to notice it. But once his attention focused on the thing, he flinched away, drawing Sango along with him on impulse to escape it. It was only the sound of shifting rocks that stopped him, not wanting to drag her over anything and worsen any injuries.
The chittering noises were growing louder, and looking at Sailor Saturn again, he counted more of the dusty, scarlet eyed creatures settled on her; they hovered on her shoulders and on her lap. One clung to her hair while the one Miroku slapped away slithered back towards the girl.
Whatever the things were, they needed to be eliminated. Smacking one of them off her had done little good, as it was back and again and clinging to her wrist, watching Miroku with wary eyes. He began to search his pockets, trying to find anything of use. The black pants Mamoru had purchased for him a couple days ago were useful in the sense he could carry things in the pockets, though they got bunched up and rumpled. After a moment, he produced one, somewhat battered ofuda. Smoothing it between his fingers, he took a deep breath and tried to concentrate.
He placed it on her hands.
A charge sizzled the air, and he could smell the things as they disintegrated, making thin, reedy screeching noises as they turned to dust, putting off a sulfuric stench and a swirl of smoke.
"Saturn? Sailor Saturn?"
Nothing.
Miroku's lips drew thin as he considered the young senshi, who watched what she held with darkened eyes. He wished he knew what those things were, what they did, but there was no one to ask now. The poppet in the box remained; he grabbed it and snapped it in half, hoping that the destruction of the twisted figurine would have an effect.
She remained still.
"Saturn? Can you hear me?"
Silence.
Miroku grit his teeth, trying to think what else he could do. The box itself was all that remained of the negative force...alone, without those strange creatures, it was weaker. The poppet of Saturn was destroyed, and an ofuda lay on top of the one she cradled in her hands. Why would she stay in the silence of the spell? What kept her there? Could she even hear him when he called? She had to be all right....
"Saturn, I need your help." He lifted his eyes from Sango's slack face to look at the empty expression on the senshi's. For the last few days, he had heard about the senshi; from themselves, mostly, picking up on conversations and listening when they replied to his questions. He didn't know exactly what to make of some of the stories- they were beyond his experience, people living on the moon and on the wandering stars in the sky. But he could understand the closeness that a team could develop. Of something that transcended the boundaries of time, and of a reliance on each other, even if he didn't want to admit it. "Saturn, Sango was hurt the way Neptune was yesterday. Another kugutsu of Viluy appeared, and we fought her. She's not looking very well..." he mananged, surprised at how thick his voice sounded. He squeezed his eyes shut against the encroaching blackness in his vision, and tried to keep himself awake.
Just a little longer. Just a little longer, and Saturn will wake up and fix things...then sleep. There's a clearer spot just inside, just beyond, where there's no rubble. He could sleep there, inside. Inside, safe inside with Sango. "She's not looking very well," he repeated, taking a steadying breath and continuing, "and I need your help. Please?"
The tips of Sailor Saturn's hair swayed in the breeze, caught by a breath of wind. And she remained silent.
It was then that he realized Sango had stopped shivering. He heard a faint intake of her breath, and then she lay still in his arms, skin a mottled yellow and lips tinged a pale blue.
Miroku lifted his head and looked at Sailor Saturn.
Then he backhanded her across the face.
She jerked to the side, waxen doll slipping from her fingertips as her cheek turned and her eyes closed. Faintly, faintly, with a distant voice, he heard her say: "Papa...."
He shut his eyes, feeling the sting in his hand from slapping her. It may have been the wrong thing to do, but he doubted she could hear him. Sango was so still, her weight so light...she wasn't supposed to look frail. This was a woman who hefted hiraikotsu, one of the heaviest, largest weapons he'd ever seen. She threw it with ease. Weak, thin, fragile. She lay in a deathly moment of translucent beauty, incredibly real. Frailty was for old women on their deathbed, women who were about to breathe their last...breath.
It was backwards.
All backwards.
What had she done?
Why?
He'd been told the senshi fought for love and justice. What kind of justice was this supposed to be? They were supposed to go back through the well...Pluto would wake up and restore the time warp. They'd go back through the well, defeat Naraku, and live on. Maybe not forever, but they'd live on. He had nothing. She still had Kohaku to live for. Sango had to go back. Why?
Miroku brought her up a bit more, lowered his head to hers, hoping to feel breath against his cheek, the way he had on the street where they fought. Her lips were cold.
He warmed them.
Then, abruptly, they were warm. Still, but warm. And that warmth was spreading. He could feel it too, pushing against the scrapes on his hands, pressing against the tears to the front of his shirt and his chest. A faint light was slipping its way over them, and turning his head, he saw the little pale figure of the soldier of death, kneeling beside them. Her eyes were still closed, her face drawn and blank, but she held her hands over Sango's chest. From where they lay, it was as though there was a drop in a pool of water, the ripples spreading evenly, growing wider and encompassing as they expanded in rings. The light they emanated reflected up into her face, and slowly, he watched color return there, and her eyes opened, glowing violet in the shine of her own power. They were immersed in Saturn's wave.
Life and death, existing in the small hands of one little girl.
Miroku had seen many strange things in his travels. But nothing quite like this.
A sharp intake of breath from Sango distracted him, and he watched as the lavender light washed away the yellow from her skin. It was porcelain and pale, but growing white and clean, the dark traceries fading into transparent nothingness.
"I lost my Papa when I was little."
Saturn still wasn't looking at him, but rather at her lap, as she slid her hands away from their healing. She looked tiny then, very young, too young to be fighting. For being so young, she had too much experience with death. He knew the feeling.
She continued, "It's hard to lose someone you love." Saturn turned a weak smile on him, forced, but not a false one. "I'm not afraid to die. It's not as scary as most people think. It can be a relief. But I don't think it was her time. Or mine. Or yours." The smile faded from her face, and she looked at the grey, cloudy sky. She touched her cheek with her fingers. "I should have been more careful. Gomen nasai, Miroku-sama."
The senshi of death and rebirth looked down at them as she stood up. Sango slept, but Miroku watched her with quiet eyes, understanding yet wary at once. The poppet of her father lay at her feet, and she glanced away from it, letting it stay still. A kugutsu. A trick. An illusion. Manipulated. It weighed on her, heavy as the cloudy sky above. It swirled darkly, and she could hear thunder in the distance, rumbling.
Had she saved one life, only to let it vanish again within the day? She held up her hands, wishing for once that the familiar, heavy weight of the Silence Glaive would come to them. Could another use it?
Mistress 9 had taken Chibiusa-chan's Silver Imperium Crystal, and swallowed it. Though unable to control its strength, the sheer power of the crystal had been enough to strengthen her. Remembering, she could still feel that clear energy flowing through her veins. Memories of being Mistress 9 were harsh, and she did not like to think of them.
Was it really just last night that Kagome had spoken to her? She spoke as though she knew. She was not Mistress 9. She wasn't inside her head any more. She didn't control her. Maybe she was still part of her somewhere. Part of who she was. But she was not her.
She was not Mistress 9.
She was Sailor Saturn.
Tomoe Hotaru.
Chibiusa-chan was out there somewhere, fighting. So were Haruka-papa, Michiru-mama and onee-san. Setsuna-mama was at home, and needed her. Ami, Rei, Minako, Makoto. The Prince. The Princess.
She had a family to protect.
"Miroku-sama...Sango-san will be all right, but she needs rest. There's something important I have to get back."
Miroku was drawing Sango up as he stood, looking towards the inside of the destroyed classroom. "We'll be here." Half turning, he glanced backward to see Kirara sitting on her haunches, head bowed. She was close, observing out of large red eyes. He sighed heavily as he sank down just inside the archway Saturn had blown out. "Take Kirara. I don't think we're going anywhere for awhile. She'll be faster."
Saturn looked at the firecat, who stood up and cautiously padded her way forward a bit, allowing the senshi to pet her on the forehead. "Will you let me ride?"
A purr was her reply.
"Arigatou, Kirara."
They climbed into the air quickly, though Sailor Saturn cast a lingering glance on the people she left behind. Curled up in the lea of the wall, Miroku had braced himself, wrapping an arm around Sango and keeping her pillowed against him. Then, as they gained in height, the two vanished from her view.
She had friends to protect, as well.
Then she breathed: "Farewell, Papa."
They emerged into a field of stars.
In the dimness of the grey world, the crystals of pure souls shone like a thousand points of light, defined by the velvet darkness they lay against. Chaos had swept an arm through the street, sending cars skittering around the road in a ring, leaving the peaceful hovering of Hoste crystals floating above their owners, who lay in their cars or lay draped on the ground. Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Mercury crested a hill, finding the glittering land below, beautiful and yet terrible. It was quiet where the destruction lay, still and silent. Though at the same time, there was a woman standing amid the field of stars, idly holding one in her hand as though considering it.
She wore a black dress, hemmed in blue. A staff was lightly held in her hand, the tip twined with a black star. Her hair, also blue, was bound up on the side of her head, held in a bun with a braid down over her shoulder. Light from the Hoste she held cast hollowly into her eyes, and she glanced sideways at the two approaching senshi with a tiny, patient smile. She had all the time in the world, no worries, no cares. Around her lay a shield of souls, things the senshi did not dare to destroy. To attack her would be to attack the people that lay around her, killing them by killing their spirits. It was a safe way of fighting, for her. She did not care about those around her, how many died. There was still only one of her sisters left, made plain by the sky above. Most likely Mimete, running away, flying ahead of the senshi as she was ordered to do. A distraction was all they were, a stalling tactic. She was there to keep two of the senshi away from the fight for as long as possible.
If she killed them, so much the better.
If she did not, then the pure Hoste around her still lay in wait for further plans.
If she died, then it was little loss. She wasn't real anyway. How much was an unreal person worth, in the end? Being strong amounted to little, when there was nothing left. She was expendable. That was why she was born. She was born to die. Was it not always so?
"I've been waiting for you, Sailor Senshi," the woman said, releasing the Hoste and allowing it to flutter back into the rest of the crowd. She faced them, and watched the expressions on their faces. The one she recognized as Jupiter looked angry as she saw the chaos, settling in to fight and lifting her fists. The Mercury one was wide eyed, looking at the collection of stars she had amassed around her. Slowly, the shock faded into a calculating expression, and the attention of both senshi was focused on her at last.
It was time to begin.
Jupiter motioned first, stepping forward aggressively and waving a hand, encompassing the unconscious people and their vehicles that circled them. "How dare you attack these people, stealing their souls? With the blessings of the planet of protection and thunder, Jupiter, Sailor Jupiter!"
"And with the blessings of the planet of water and wisdom, Mercury, Sailor Mercury...."
"We will never forgive you!"
The woman lifted her eyebrows, placing a hand to her cheek as though in amused consideration. Mercury and Jupiter recognized her, the appearance the kugutsu wore fitting the pattern. Of the Witches 5, this was the last and final one.
Cyprine.
And if Cyprine, then Pucherol.
"I was beginning to wonder if any of you would come this way," Cyprine began with a bored tone, pressing the back of her hand to her mouth to stifle a half hearted yawn. "I noticed that most of my dear sisters were getting killed off by your friends, but I was left here so long, I didn't think you'd gotten the hint. Karasu-sama would be so hurt if no one showed up at school. She left you senshi all kinds of signs." A hand was waved airily upward, in vague reference to the unwinding clouds above. "And all I get are Jupiter and Mercury. I'd been hoping for Saturn, or at least Uranus and Neptune, considering Pluto's..." she let a drop of amusement color her voice, "...ineptitude."
"So sorry to disappoint you," Jupiter ground out, poising herself to fight. Seeing who she and Mercury had discovered worried her. Of the Witches, this one was the last and the strongest. She hadn't introduced herself yet, in the time honored tradition, which meant she was playing with them still. She wanted to wipe the self-satisfied smirk off the Witches' face, kill her, and get on with things. They were only a couple blocks from Mugen's remains, and they'd be needed. This early in the game, the Witch was ready, and would dodge just about any blast, considering they were standing directly in front of her. It'd be a miss, until she got a clear shot.
She prepared for her attack, only to hear Mercury suddenly gasp and whirl to the side as she shouted, flinging an arm out as they called out simultaneously:
"Supreme Thunder!"
"Shabon Spray!"
As expected, Cyprene leapt lithely upward, lazily avoiding the crackling stream of electricity, which skimmed along the air, impacting into a swirling, dense fog that swept around them, forming an arena that covered the unconscious. The artic winds that carried along the thick mist caught at the floating, crystalized Hoste, swirling it up and away from the battle area and safely out of the blast range of Jupiter's electricity bolt.
Jupiter realized her mistake as she and Mercury automatically jumped to the sides as the retaliating volley was fired off.
"Ribbon Buster!"
Cyprine's attack blazed outward, striking the spot they had leapt from, the ground exploding under the force of it. Having fought together for so long, they were able to guess one another's actions, and take a basic battle stance. Mercury landed on her feet, skidding to a stop just before the swirling barrier she created around them. She could feel the cold of it, and though the cover wasn't particularly strong, it was tall and dense, enough to keep the Hoste out of the way of the battle, and the people covered and hidden from view. The light they gave off was swallowed in the cool grey mist, fading away and leaving a small world for them to fight in.
The sound of Cyprine's landing was barely audible in the muffling density of the air, humid and thick, though becoming crisp and cold within the circle Mercury had created. A fine line of foggy breath trickled from Cyprine's lips, and she smiled, looking between the two senshi, who had positioned themselves on either side of her. With a single opponent, they had her surrounded. The Witch lifted her empty hand to the air.
The uplifted fingers took on a warped, distorted form, merging with each other and flowing upward, waterfalling down in darkening shades of brown, a fetal figure taking shape as she spoke. It solidified, a pair of feet, legs, a torso and then shoulders, mimicking the original as its shape became distinct. A replica of the first, but mirrored, slowly beginning to color. The skin became light while the dress became black, tipped with red. When the second's eyes opened, they were crimson to contrast to the first's cerulean.
Two seperate entities, though connected through their linked hands, fingers twined, keeping them as one. An imitation of the real Witch, a kugutsu's perfect mockery of the real thing, looking the same, sounding the same, acting the same...but not the same.
"Hm, a barrier field to protect the Hoste? I suppose that would be important to you. But I'm afraid Karasu-sama wants some of them floating around. Though really, it's really not fair for the two of you to surround me like that," said Cyprine as she turned to face Jupiter. "I, Cyprine...."
And the words were continued, echoing and layered, as though two spoke through one person: "And I, Pucherol....at Level 999 Death Busters, will defeat you."
They faced each senshi in turn, hands linked.
Mercury braced herself, watching the formation of the second half of the twin Witch. They'd already identified the fake Viluy's Mosaic Buster as an imitation attack, some kind of seeds replacing the metallic original. Appearance was not reality for these puppets. Their purpose was to decieve, to trick the eyes and make their enemies remember the previous battle with the real ones. None of the battles with the Witches were easy, though Cyprine and Pucherol relied more on stealth and deception to fight. Last time, they were not alone. All the senshi were there, save for Saturn who had not yet awakened. It was then that Sailor Moon achieved her first Super level, powering up.
This time, there was no Sailor Moon. No Holy Grail to drink from, no power for her to call upon. But she was stronger now than when she last helped to fight with the Witches 5. There had to be a way for Jupiter and herself to take them alone, strongest Witches or not.
She needed to buy Jupiter enough time to get them both at once. Her Oak Evolution would be able to strike many places at once, but in order for them to be hit, both sets of eyes needed to be focused away from the taller senshi. A distraction? Fogging the area again would do little good. They'd hear her calling out her attack and move before anything could hit. Something more permanent, then. With only two of them, it made it harder to go unseen. There had to be something she could do to freeze both at once....
Pucherol's red eyes met Mercury's blue.
Then she took a deep breath and charged.
To say that Jupiter was shocked to see the usually reserved senshi of water running recklessly in before her would have been an understatement. Mercury had her hands up, and a funnel of water was coalescing around her extended wrists, enlarging as she stepped forward. Jupiter's scream of warning was drowned out by Mercury's call of, "Shine Aqua Illusion!"
"Ribbon Buster!"
A red column of light impacted the torrent of water, colliding against it and swirling for a moment before overpowering it and flushing it crimson, splitting the blue in half and hitting Mercury, who had her hands up in front of her, braced for the impact of Pucherol's blast. It struck, and Mercury gasped as she fell, flung from her feet, tumbling, enveloped by the thick fog she had created a few moments ago.
"Looks like your friend is a bit foolish," Cyprine allowed as Pucherol turned aside to watch Jupiter recover, face sliding from alarm to fury. The ponytailed senshi wondered what Mercury was up to, but wasn't about to stand around thinking about it. As Cyprine finished her gloating, she charged.
The twins didn't expect the remaining senshi to run straight at them, fists upraised, crackles of electricty forming globes around them. Caught off guard, they took a half step backward, bringing their linked hands forward to take joint aim at the running figure. At point blank range, they prepared to fire.
Only to have their quarry vanish from view.
"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"
Cyprine screamed as she doubled over, Sailor Jupiter crouched against the ground and slamming her fist upward into the Witch's exposed stomach. A burst of electricity exploded from her hand, reducing the first half of the kugutsu to a tangle of falling roots and earth as she pushed through, still running.
Spinning around, a triumphant smile was forming on Jupiter's face. A disjointed Pucherol was still holding half of her sister's shorn limb, snarled, tangled vines threading their way out of the end of it. Jupiter expected the second half of the kugutsu to fall with the first. The poppet inside Cyprine was destroyed.
But Pucherol still stood.
A look of fury formed on her face, a snarl as she whipped around to see Sailor Jupiter's eyes widen, registering shock as she realized the other was not gone, but already of the offensive. The broken body was growing again, reforming the way Pucherol had originally taken shape, flowing up out of the living, fully established half, writhing and twisting as Pucherol took breath to retaliate on behalf of her twin.
"Mercury...Aqua Rhapsody!"
A part formed in the swirling veil of mist, and from it came an icy stream of water, cascading across the air and striking a stunned and gasping Pucherol from the side, the torrent drowing, freezing, and reducing the remaining half to a twisted sculpture of crystaline ice.
Jupiter slowly stood, lowering her fists and easing herself a bit, coming to terms with the fact the battle was over. Glancing in the direction the Rhapsody came from, she watched Mercury step through the wraithlike mists, her winged harp in hand as her fog began to dissapate behind her, revealing the slowly swirling crystalized Hoste. With a tired smile, Mercury hefted her weapon, then sent it back to subspace. "Gomen ne, Jupiter. I didn't mean to surprise you."
"I couldn't believe you just ran in like that," the senshi of lightning chuckled nervously, switching her gaze from Mercury to the frozen Pucherol. "The poppet inside...it moved when Pucherol formed?"
"That would be my guess...I was wondering if it would. I would have attacked earlier, but I wasn't expecting you to try to fight her hand to hand."
Disconcerted, Jupiter took a couple steps back from the frozen figure, eyeing it suspiciously and cocking her head to the side as she considered the twisted forms within the ice. Then a determined look settled on her face, and she took firm aim. "Jupiter Oak Evolution!"
A swirl of bioelectric leaves stormed out from her hands, slicing through the kugutsu and shattering it, solid chunks of ice and dirt crashing to the ground in clumps. Jupiter wrinkled her nose in distate, closing her eyes and tentatively avoiding looking at the mess. It was nauseating, and she reminded herself that the figure was not real, and just a puppet. With a deep breath, she looked back, spotting out the snapped, twin figurine of Cyprine and Pucherol. With a heel, she crushed it.
"This is kind of nasty," Jupiter remarked as she backed away, turning aside her eyes and looking at the sparkling shine of the Hoste instead. It was a far more beautiful sight. "We should get going again."
Mercury, though, had paused, moving through the final tendrils of her mist and cupping one of the crystals lightly in a hand. "She's still after Hoste. Don't you think that's strange?"
"Why would it be?"
Biting her lip, Mercury thought about that for a moment. It didn't settle right with her, and though she wanted to be away from Cyprine and Pucherol's shattered remains as much as Jupiter did, the nagging feeling wasn't leaving her alone. Thus far, everything Karasu had done had a double purpose. Her plans were neatly excuted and logical, with minimal waste, and Mercury could follow a logical process. The first attack seemed random at first, though if she was keeping an eye on both groups, what better way than to move them together? If they fought, then it was her advantange, creating strife between those who had managed to become friends and allies. If they had not, then they were easy to observe.
The appearance of the first kugutsu, Eudial, at the arcade was likely a test to see what the newer arrivals could do. If Eudial took one or more of them out, so much the better. If not, then the test was complete and plans for later would have a more solid basis. The use of Viluy was evidence of that- Sango and Miroku's hands had been tied with her Mosaic Buster attack. If not for Uranus and Neptune's arrival, one or both could have been killed. Even the deception of where her hideaway was had been tricky, and they'd been fortunate Kagome had guessed her way through it. There were times she likened their movements to a chess board; sometimes the sacrifice of a pawn, knight or bishop was needed to protect the king. The losses of the kugutsu were bad, but not enough to lose the game.
The destruction of the wellhouse not only cut off Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku and Shippou from going home to the past, but cut morale on both sides, moving the Higurashi's to another location and seperating Kagome from her family.
What rankled most was the same thing that bothered Kagome; when the events of the attack at the school were covered, Karasu had not gone straight for the Shikon no Tama and Kagome. She had also wasted time trying to collect Hoste. If Karasu was not wasteful unless need be, then why wander the halls? Why have Cyprine collect Hoste? Were there other kugutsu out there, attempting the same thing? Only a few minutes ago, the Witch stated that Karasu-sama wanted some of the Hoste to be floating around.
Why was Hoste still important to her?
Was she trying to summon something? Though she claimed to be a Death Buster, she had not stepped forward to help Pharoah 90 or Mistress 9 when they fought them originally. The most logical conclusions to that were Karasu either didn't care what happened to them, or hated them. Likely both.
What was the nature of Hoste? The energy of them was being collected to summon Pharoah 90 from Tau Ceti. Pharaoh 90 was a creature of pure destruction, gaining power from the collected Hoste. If there was no Pharaoh 90 to summon, though the energy was still useful, then where had Karasu turned their usefullness to? Was she also trying to destroy their world? Somehow, that didn't seem to fit her style. The fact she had not completely destroyed the Higurashi Jinja had seemed out of character for her at the time. But, if somewhere in Karasu's mind, she actually respected the jinja as a holy place, she had targeted only the part that was a threat to her.
Then was her objective narrower? So far, only Inuyasha, Kagome, Pluto and Weaver had even seen their enemy, much less heard what she was after. Prior experience with enemies gave that as a warning. Usually their plan would be revealed to someone, so that the senshi knew what they were fighting and why. Had Karasu attempted contact with anyone today? If so, then had she spoken of what her plans were?
Perhaps the objective was not to destroy the world, but only something that lay on it. Her youkai-daimon hybrids would be loyal to her as their creator. The kugutsu were merely imitations of those they fought before. If Karasu herself was, in effect, a youkai-daimon hybrid...with the lack of youkai in this era, was she attempting to create a world for herself?
Mercury's sapphire eyes reflected the glitter of the Hoste in her hand.
Pure, clean energy. Used to pull Pharaoh 90 through a portal to this dimension.
If the energy was released here on Earth, by some kind of destructive force, then how much of a gestalt would the released Hoste provide?
"Jupiter...when Kagome's school was attacked, she told us that Karasu said something about her being irrelevant somehow. She also wasted a lot of time just collecting Hoste as well. There's a great deal of power inside a person's soul. If these crystals were shattered, the people would die, but the energy of their passing would also..." Mercury shook her head, trying to think of how to explain it, "...the energy of their death would also be released somehow. If she was trying to destroy...they could be a way of amplifying whatever it is she's using to..." she bit her lip. It would take an enormous ammount of destructive force to begin with, in order to reach anywhere a kugutsu had attacked and left Hoste behind, not unlike a mine field. "It sounds a bit inelegant, but they could be a way of amplifying whatever it is she's using to blow them up."
"Another bomb?" Jupiter asked, trying to think of things that could blow away large portions of a city. "If we caught Cyprine here, then who knows where she was earlier? And if she was here, then there may be other kugutsu wandering around doing the same thing. A bomb could blow stuff up over a big area, but she'd need...an atomic bomb or something." That concept sent a horrific shiver down Jupiter's spine, and she glanced at the unravelling clouds in the heavens above. "Hoste may be strong, but it's not an explosive. It might help her, but it's not going to be enough to take out Tokyo."
"Actually, when Kagome said Karasu stated she disliked using bombs, for some reason I believed it. She's fought mostly from afar, but each time she's sent a kugutsu, it's been either to test or to avoid being detected. She may not have even sent out those two kugutsu if Sango and Miroku had never arrived in this era. Her attacking now would be even more out of the blue, catching us completely unprepared." Mercury released the Hoste in her hand, and the crystal floated idly on the air, slowly winding its way towards an older man who had collapsed just outside his car.
He was grizzled grey, half hidden behind his car door, with an arm stretched out across the concrete. Mercury turned away from him to look at Jupiter with an even, pained gaze. Then, slowly, she turned away and spoke as she began to walk back in the direction they had come, footfalls heavy as she picked up speed, a puzzled Jupiter falling into step beside her as they ran back. She didn't know why they were returning, the battle was the other way, but she wasn't doubting Mercury's judgement, not yet. As their pace became a full race, Mercury looked beside her and said, "She'd need something powerful...but she'd want to do it herself. This is her personal triumph, if she's successful."
"Yeah, but what other than a bomb can blow up a city, let her still be there using it, and not actually kill her in the process? She'd need something magical for that, and the only thing I know of that has that kind of destructive power is...." Jupiter suddenly blanched white, as she caught onto Mercury's train of thought. "Mercury...you can't be serious...she couldn't use...that...that's impossible!"
So startled at the concept, Jupiter halted in her run, causing Mercury to slow and turn back to see her disbelieving, shocked expression. "She wouldn't even have to be able to control it, Jupiter. Mistress 9 couldn't control Chibimoon's Silver Crystal, and yet the raw energy of it alone gave her incredible power. If she were to combine the destructive force of the Silence Glaive with her own youki, compound that by the Hoste left by humans around the city...and then, to finish things, get Kagome and her Shikon no Tama within the blast radius, imagine the damage it would cause. Remember what Kagome told us about it when we first met. It gives power to youkai."
Jupiter's eyes blinked rapidly as she tried to assimilate the depth and detail of that plan. Every little motion they had made over the last five days had been either planned for them or manuvered around. But it was purely impossible! Saturn would never, ever allow her Glaive to fall into someone...anyone...else's hands.
Then she remembered the mournful looks on Hotaru's face these last couple days. They weren't solid, without form or substance, floating away as soon as someone spoke to her, cheering her. A reemergence of the Death Busters would weigh on the girl's mind enough...if there was some other part of the plan they were missing...it would likely have to do with Hotaru. Something to put her off balance, to make taking the Glaive easier. It would have to subvert Saturn's perceptions, a slow, subtle influence, something undetectable.
Poppets.
Voodoo?
Stick the pin in the poppet, and see the person respond, not knowing what was wrong. Nothing was touching them, nothing connecting to them. And yet they were influenced.
"Oh gods, Saturn...." Jupiter breathed, and she and Mercury again broke into a run.
Cleared up the events from chapter 24. Sango and Miroku are okay, and Saturn's snapped out of it. Mercury's figured things out.
For this chapter, I listened to 'Tragedy of the Female Fighter' from the Vampire Miyu OST, and the second Inuyasha OST.
The end is near. Hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Til next storytime.
~Queen
Coming up next, in Chapter 27: Revelations-
The two purple clad figures on top of the tall tower tightened their single-handed grips on the intricate shaft of the naginata, Dreamweaver's resting just slightly on top of Saturn's as they lifted the gleaming end upward as one. Two powers, stemming from the same source. Twin and yet different, pale lavender lined with deep violet. It was wordless, and silently the blade was raised.
It pierced the heaven, and from it came the mist.