Among Friends, Part 11
Found Yet Lost
By Taerir
AN: This is the last part of this fanfic I wrote, so there probably won't be more, as I decided not to continue it.
All Sailor Moon references are the property of their respective owners. Any concepts, characters, world names, plotlines, and so on not found in the Sailormoon television series or manga are the property of the author, Taerir, copyright 1999. No duplication is permitted without written permission from the author.
"Mamoru, my dear!" Nami called, aiming her voice toward the ornate doors separating her lair from the various personal chambers on the other side. She examined her fingernails, newly polished black. "I have a mission for you, if you'd be so kind."
"Anything, my love," Mamoru responded, bowing as he entered. "What is it you wish me to do?"
Nami smiled coldly. "I'd like you to figure out how to destroy the senshi. Concentrate on the senshi of the Gates, first. The others mean little to me."
Mamoru's face reflected the eager, malicious intent in Nami's own eyes. "Then destroy them I will. Would you like to be there to watch their demise?"
Nami laughed and brushed her lips against his.
"It's kind of you to ask," she said, smiling. "But I will be watching all you do, from a distance. You need not worry about me. Besides, it will take you time to observe them and develop a strategy, don't you think?"
"I would have thought you'd want them gone as soon as possible, my lady."
Nami narrowed her eyes, thinking. "I do. But there are unawakened Gate senshi in addition to the three active ones. I would rather that the unawakened ones remain that way."
Mamoru smiled again in understanding. "I shall do as you say, then." Using the abilities Nami had granted him, he teleported out of Nami's lair.
The day after Mamoru's missed dinner with Usagi, yet another afternoon had arrived, and Nuru was once again undergoing what she liked to call "the walk of doom" to the museum. She could have been early if she'd walked more quickly, but today she didn't care. There was no point in being on time to a place she hated anyway.
Besides, there were more important things to think about. By now, Usagi had spread news to everyone she even remotely knew, informing them that anyone who found Mamoru was to send him reporting directly to her. But Nuru was certain that everyone knew Usagi was simply trying to distract herself from the fact that something was seriously wrong. People didn't just suddenly disappear for days at a time.
To Nuru's surprise when she looked up once again, though, her eyes immediately rested on a young man who looked exactly like Mamoru. Unlike the others passing by, he was in heavy armor complete with a dark cape.
It had to be Mamoru. Unfortunately, it seemed as if the poor boy was not in his right mind.
I guess I won't be going to the museum today, Nuru thought. Dr. Miyori will just have to deal with it.
Making sure not to stare too closely at Mamoru, Nuru slipped to a nearby pay phone. Since she wasn't sure exactly who to call, she first reached Asami to get Usagi's phone number. Nuru extended a call to a very confused Usagi, and then tried Elina's number. The girl wasn't at home, so Nuru shrugged and hung up.
By this time, Nuru was sure that Mamoru had noticed her. Very deliberately, she began walking down the street once again. Mamoru followed, as Nuru had expected.
She nearly let out a yelp as a hand grabbed her and pulled her into an alley. Sailormoon, Taerir Guardian, and Arianrhod Knight stood before her. Nuru glared at Asami, who had pulled her in.
"Warnings are always good, you know," Nuru snapped. "If he didn't know something was up before, he sure does now."
"I didn't want to risk our enemy overhearing mindspeech," Taerir explained. "Whoever it is, they're more important than Mamoru." Glancing around her, the Guardian continued. "Usagi's friends are hiding nearby, ready to transform. Make sure Mamoru sees you run away, and transform and come back if you want. He at least won't know for certain that you're a senshi, that way."
Nuru nodded and left the alley.
Mamoru watched the girl he'd been following run away and chuckled. He'd known she was somehow connected to his mission when she'd kept glancing at him. When she'd been pulled into the alley, he'd known for certain.
Are your friends in that alley as stupid as you? he wondered silently, smiling coldly. It was just too bad that all the other people on the street had begun to instinctively steer away from him. Ah well; there will always be time to kill civilians later.
"Everyone back there can come out now," Mamoru called aloud. "You've made it fairly obvious that you're there, don't you think? It will be best for us all if I just kill you now."
At the suggestion, three people emerged and Mamoru grinned. This would be interesting. One of the three was a young man, dressed in armor similar to Mamoru's own, aside from the color. A second figure, a red-haired girl, resembled what Nami had described as a Guardian. Mamoru guessed that the young man was connected to her, since they both wore the same colors. That would make them the Guardian of Taerir and her Knight, if Nami's information was correct.
The third figure was another girl, a blonde this time, with the most ridiculous hairstyle Mamoru had ever seen. This girl donned a sailor fuku and looked, for some reason, very hesitant to fight. Figuring she must be a weakling, Mamoru instantly categorized her as unimportant.
"So do you all generally fight, or are you just going to stand there?" he questioned, crossing his arms.
"Why are you doing this, Mamoru?" the redhead demanded. "We're your friends, so who has you under their control?"
Mamoru shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't seen any of you before in my life. So unless you'd all like to give up your power over the Gates without resistance, I have nothing to say to you." Without another word, he charged forward to attack Taerir Guardian. She met him blow-by-blow, surprisingly enough. He hadn't expected a female to fight well enough to hold him off. Soon enough, though, their swords had crossed, and neither opponent could overcome the other.
Arianrhod Knight was coming forward to aid his partner, and Mamoru narrowed his eyes. He would just have to take them both on at once.
"Isis Wind Storm!"
The forces of wind took Mamoru by surprise, pushing him off-balance. As he ran to put space between himself and all of his opponents, he glared in the direction of the attack. A new senshi had arrived, this time dressed in a green and blue sailor fuku.
"You little brat," Mamoru snarled, and turned on her instead. Despite the rebellious glare in the black-haired senshi's eyes, the girl backed away slightly. Mamoru grinned and advanced.
"Mamo-chan, stop!" came the yell from the blonde senshi he had ignored.
Shrugging off his current senshi, Mamoru took four swift steps toward the blonde. Grabbing the girl's arm, he looked her in the eye.
"I don't need you," he told her coldly. "You're obviously not one of them." He observed the moon resting on the girl's forehead. "Eternal or not, Sailor Moon is not a Gate Senshi."
With that, he roughly threw Sailor Moon to the ground. When he turned, he found that four more senshi had joined the fight and stood glaring at him in disgust.
"I don't care who you are," Sailor Jupiter announced. "Hurt our friend, and we'll all hurt you worse."
Mamoru rolled his eyes. "Fine. I'm not afraid of you, but this place is beginning to get a little crowded." He swept his gaze across the group, making eye contact with each senshi, Guardian, and Knight. "I'll be back. And when I return, I won't be so easy on you." Still fuming, he disappeared.
"Not again…" Sailor Moon whispered, once the one she loved had gone. Tears glistened in her eyes, and she was obviously struggling not to erupt into tears. Her friends exchanged worried glances, unused to seeing Usagi in a state where she worked to control herself.
The inner senshi moved to stand beside their friend. Each of them half-feared that the girl's hysterics would manifest at any moment, but those tears never came. Taerir knew that the girl must have been in shock as well.
"I'm… going home," Sailor Moon announced abruptly. She turned and left, returning to civilian form as she walked.
"I think someone should go with her," Sailor Venus said quietly.
Taerir nodded. "You're her best friends. She's probably more likely to accept seeing you. The rest of us will be fine."
Without further encouragement, the four inner senshi left after promising to meet later. The Gate Senshi went their separate ways as well, all too tired and confused to talk.
When Mamoru returned to Nami's lair, he found his mistress lounging in her seat. She had obviously expected his return, judging by the complete lack of surprise in her expression even as she raised her eyebrows.
"So, my devoted warrior has returned," she purred. "What have you discovered for me?"
Mamoru thought for a moment. "They seem to enjoy inviting their friends along. I only counted three warriors related to the Gates there, and about five who were not. But the senshi of the Ilia Gate was not present." He frowned. "Several of them knew my name, but I'm sure I've never seen any of them in person before. And there was one non-Gate senshi, Sailor Moon, who seemed excessively unhappy. She kept staring at me, as if I were someone else."
"Never mind her," Nami told him, her tone authoritative. "Go on with the report. What did you think of them?"
"I don't see that there will be much of a problem destroying some of them, if I can get them alone," he continued, leaning back. "They all seemed very hesitant to hurt me. I expected them to be... stronger and more fierce, somehow." He grimaced. "But there were too many of them, so I decided that this time, it was best to leave.
Nami nodded, smiling. "That was a wise decision, my dear. I'm sure you'll have better luck next time." She stretched and smiled, the expression vaguely suggestive. "But you've earned your rest. Why don't you get out of that armor?"
"I think I will," Mamoru agreed. He rose and took Nami's hand, lifting it to his lips. "But not in front of a lady."
Nami feigned a dramatic sigh, and Mamoru laughed.
"Goodnight, my love," he told her, kissing her hand one more time. He took his leave of Nami and disappeared into his chambers once again.