Chapter Eleven
Present day...
Just as Ryuhi and Sephiroth attempted to step forward and save their friends, the column of light that engulfed them suddenly disappeared, revealing the trio, bewildered but unharmed. Breathing a sigh of relief, Ryuhi cautiously took another step forward and tapped Serin on the shoulder. This startled the swordsman, who jerked and took a defensive stance for a brief second before he registered that it was his comrade.
Relaxing his stance, Serin blew out a long breath. "Well, we got what we came for. So, let's get out for now."
Ryuhi raised his hand, and declared, "Wait a minute. I, for one, am not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell just happened with that beam of light. Otherwise..."
At that moment, the ground shook underneath them, forcing the entire party to their feet. After a brief respite, the ground resumed its trembling, as the party attempted, with some difficulty, to get to their feet. After a moment, they finally succeeded, and Urawa raised his staff above his head, shouting, "EXIT!" With a brief flash of light, and a tingle that ran through everyone's bodies, the party was instantaneously teleported outside the tower entrance.
Ryuhi was the first to notice that there was something wrong, which was punctuated with the city trembling again, slewing dangerously to one side before steadying. A few lightning bolts struck near their position, causing a rain of debris to descend upon the group. Thankfully, between Urawa and Sephiroth's defensive magic, none of the members were injured. A gust of wind then ripped off the roofs from every one of the buildings, threatening at the same time to force the entire party off their feet; this time, upwards.
"We have to get out of here," Sephiroth stated with his usual obvious logic. "Urawa, do the people here have an escape route?"
Urawa nodded. "Hopefully, everyone got to the teleporters at the first sign of trouble. In any case, we've got to get out of here ourselves." As if to punctuate his comment, the city tilted further before stopping again, which caused Sailor Jupiter to rise up into the air on the currents. Making sure he had a strong grip on a doorjamb, Serin reached out for her hand, managing to snatch it on the first try. With a bit of effort, the newly minted paladin managed to bring his companion back to earth, and steady her. The grateful look she gave him stretched longer than necessary, but was soon interrupted by Ryuhi. "Let's go! There's no telling when this place is going to follow Humpty-Dumpty's example!" Just before the group started out to the airship's position, a sudden shout from overhead caught their attention.
Up above, leaning out of the main hatch, was Princess Small Lady, waving her arms as she called out, "Hurry! Grab onto the rope ladder!"
Nobody wasted a second, but immediately began to board their transport. Just as Urawa was about to embark, a sudden wail from behind them caught his attention. Turning, he saw a young child stumbling along, wailing for her mommy. With a quick shout over his shoulder, the white wizard declared, "I'm going to help her! Go ahead and get out of here now!"
Before anyone could shout or even think of trying to stop or help, Urawa was off, scooping the child up and casting his Exit spell in one swift, fluid motion. Taking the wizard's words to heart, Ryuhi directed Cid to pilot the airship up and away from the city as it suddenly plummeted to the ground, creating a deafening crash, followed by a huge dust cloud. It was then, as the vehicle soared higher into the sky, that an amazing, and frightening, sight appeared.
Hovering over the ruined city of Skyhaven was a female figure surrounded by a tornado of wind. On her face was a visage of malicious glee as she amusedly watched the airship attempt to escape. Gesturing with one finger, a blast of wind sent the transport into a tailspin, which their pilot barely managed to win against in his battle to keep them airborne.
Serin unsheathed his new weapon and immediately headed for the ladder leading to the upper deck, only to be stopped short by a hand gripped around his wrist. Turning, he saw Kara holding fast, a look of confusion on her face.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Deciding to skip the more obvious question of how or why she was on their transport, Serin replied with a tightening of his face, and said, "To teach proper etiquette to that...thing. My first lesson is saying, 'I'm sorry.'"
Kara's eyes widened, but as she was about to say something else, Sephiroth stepped up and said, "I'm going, too."
Soon, Ryuhi nodded his agreement, and Jupiter and Endymion also demanded to join the upcoming battle. Debate was cut short by the buffeting winds created by the wind creature, so all five fighters quickly clambered up the ladder, leaving the young girl behind.
Blinking slowly, she whispered seemingly to herself, "Those who are brave...are always the first to die."
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Valvalis smirked as she saw the insignificant pests emerging from below the deck. Just as she'd expected, they had in fact survived. This made things even more fun for her. As long as she stayed out of the range of that sword, she had nothing to fear.
Serin pursed his lips as he eyed the distance between his party and the creature. Thanks to the fight being in midair, any melee attacks were nullified. Glancing over at the others, he saw comprehending looks on all of them, save for Ryuhi, who was grinning as he cracked his knuckles. But before he could ask what the martial artist was smiling about, the creature laughed in a high feminine voice.
"What fools! To think that you could get away from the wrath and power of Valvalis, the Fiend of the Air! You humans will be swept away by my strength, save for those who submit to Neo-Queen Serenity now!"
Serin gritted his teeth and was about to make a properly sarcastic reply, but out of the corner of his eye he saw a blue blur arrow away from the group, and make a beeline toward the fiend, striking her square in the face. Several more quick blows were felt and heard by the audience as well as the victim, and even Sephiroth winced in sympathy as one particularly vicious punch finished off Ryuhi's attack. Floating in midair a mere five feet from the dazed fiend's face, Ryuhi laughed, and shouted, "And just in case you didn't understand that, maybe you understand this!" punctuating his statement with a double universal gesture.
Valvalis recovered just in time to see the insolent attacker mock her, and with a mere gesture of her own, she surrounded him with a tornado, spinning him around for a loop briefly before dissipating with no ill effects apparently cast on the warrior. Glancing at himself briefly, Ryuhi noted with some shock that he suddenly felt weaker, and it was taking all of his concentration to stay afloat.
Valvalis chuckled, and with a simple gust of wind, sent the young pup crashing into the ground far below. His comrades raced to the edge of the airship's deck in time to see their friend vanish against the expanse of ground. Expectantly, they waited for Ryuhi to fly up and reappear, but several moments passed, and nothing happened. With a growl, Serin whipped his sword out in front of him, and focused his power into it, making it shine even brighter than it had before. With a vicious swing, he shouted, "Lunar Beam!", releasing the energy in a powerful wave that smashed into Valvalis, who was too mesmerized by the sight to even attempt to block or dodge. Staggering back, the Air Fiend gritted her teeth in rage, and pointed with one finger, sending several bolts of lightning crashing into the deck and those on it. Endymion managed to stumble to his feet, and flung several roses at their opponent, but the fiend merely laughed and scattered them with another gust of wind.
This prompted Jupiter to immediately follow up the king's attack with one of her own, and fired off a Sparkling Wide Pressure attack, which caught her target in the shoulder, prompting a scream of pain and outrage from Valvalis. Sephiroth managed to grab her attention at that point, though he used an explosion of fire to further injure her, instead of his usual lightning magic.
Growling with frustration, Valvalis sent another funnel of wind at the party, this time targeting Endymion. The king, weak as he was, immediately collapsed as the attack drained what strength he had left. Horrified, Serin again used his sword beam to strike at the fiend again, though this time it was only marginally successful, as Valvalis managed to dodge the brunt of the attack. Chuckling with sadistic glee, the fiend spoke again: "Well, I think I've hit upon the perfect method for getting rid of you now. Hope you don't feel too disappointed."
Before she could cast another attack, however, an olive-skinned, horned demon charged through the fiend, leaving behind a literal flash fire in his wake. When the fire itself disappeared, Serin, Sephiroth and Jupiter noted that Valvalis seemed to be severely weakened by the attack. Turning to Sephiroth, Jupiter asked, "Did you do that?"
Stunned, Sephiroth could only shake his head. It was then that a voice from behind caught their attention.
"That's my handiwork."
The trio turned to see Kara standing at the door, her green robes and white-green hair fluttering in the wind. She smirked as she added, "I hope this isn't a private dance."
After absorbing the comment, the party chuckled, and Serin nodded. "We could use all the help we can get with her. Feel free to cut in."
Kara curtsied, and took up a position behind the others, readying another magic spell as Jupiter fired one more Sparkling Wide Pressure, and Sephiroth used his fire attack again. Valvalis, who was getting weakened and desperate, used her lightning attack again, severely injuring everyone save for Kara, who managed to concentrate on her spell, and let loose a blast that coalesced into a figure on horseback who calmly floated in between the two sides, a large glowing red lance in one hand. Pulling on the reins to his stead, the figure managed to lean back, and throw his weapon high into the sky, all without falling off. As he did so, a circular ray of light shone on Valvalis, who was beside herself with confusion, despite her injuries, all the more so when the figure disappeared, horse and all. It was then that a whistling sound could be heard, and the lance plunged through the fiend's body, effectively pinning her to the ground below. A moment passed, but suddenly a scream of pure rage sounded throughout the air, and blasts of lightning rained down from the sky. Despite the airship's best attempts, and Cid's superior piloting, several bolts struck the engine section, causing it to explode.
Motionless, the airship hung in midair for a few brief seconds, then began arrowing down to earth, picking up speed with every second. As Serin and his friends attempted to get in crash positions as best they could, the airship finally reached the end of its journey and with a long, bone- jarring screech of broken metal, punctuated by the snaps of sparking electronics and the occasional crunch of crushed machinery, the transport came to a halt.
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It was a long time before anyone felt like moving, and even then, most wished they hadn't. Groaning, a good share of the crew stumbled out of the lower areas, with some supporting their companions outside, then heading back in to get the other injured. Princess Small Lady came out in the middle of the bustle, and Jupiter ran up to hug her in relief. It was then that the princess noticed her father lying unconscious where Sephiroth had cushioned him, and she immediately ran over to check on him. Cid was one of the last out, and he shook his head, saying something in his unique language. Sephiroth appeared to ask a query, and got another shake of the head in response. Turning to his friends with a sour expression, the swordsman stated, "Our mechanic-pilot tells me that the airship is finished. It would take him a year to replace the engine, and that's not all that needs to be done before this will fly again."
Serin blinked in shock, and looked down at his sword. 'Have we come this far, only to be stopped just short of our goal?'
Just as he was about to vocalize his concerns, a flash of light heralded the arrival of Urawa and several Skyhaven citizens. The citizens quickly spread out to administer first- aid to the injured, though Urawa headed towards Endymion with a look of shock and concern on his face. Leaning down, he checked the king's pulse, blew out a sigh of relief, and then closed his eyes, focusing his power, which formed a glowing aura around his hand. With a flexing of his hand, several spots of colored light swirled around the injured king, restoring the shine and color to his skin. Urawa then leaned back, as Endymion stirred and slowly sat up, his daughter squealing in delight at her father's recovery. Leaping forward, she hugged him as he grunted in surprise, and glanced around.
"What happened?"
Sephiroth stated rather bluntly, "You were caught in one of Valvalis' stronger attacks, which instantly drained you of your energy." Blinking, he looked over at Serin sharply. "Ryuhi. He's still down! We have to see what we can do for him!"
Fortunately, the airship's wreckage wasn't too far from the warrior's landing site, and so Urawa, Serin, and Sephiroth were able to quickly reach their comrade. A preliminary check of Ryuhi's vitals confirmed Serin's worst fears...the martial artist was dead. Sephiroth slowly turned away at the bad news, his knuckles turning white where he gripped his sword. Urawa, however, stepped forward and knelt at Ryuhi's side, closing his eyes. After a brief moment, they snapped open, and he strained his muscles, growling with the effort. A bright aura of white began covering his body as he screamed in pain upon the aura sliding through his arms and into his comrade's body. The tableau was held for a few brief moments until the young wizard fell back, unconscious. The two swordsmen looked at each in confusion for a few minutes before Ryuhi began stirring slightly. This grabbed their attention, and prompted them to return to everyone else with their two unconscious friends.
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Meanwhile...
Neo-Queen Serenity slumped back in her throne in defeat as she viewed the results of Valvalis' attack. Not only had she failed to stop them from acquiring the paladin of legend, but now they had killed yet another of her strongest warriors. That left her with one fiend, and though he was the strongest of them all, the queen had her doubts as to whether even he would be able to handle them. Added to that was the undeniable fact that they would most likely be on their way back to Crystal Tokyo to confront her. The very idea was laughable, and yet, if the legends were true...
Pursing her lips, Serenity suddenly jerked as her holoprojector fizzled into life, and Zemus' image appeared. Though he normally always scowled, his face seemed even angrier this time.
"Serenity...you have been lacking in your daily updates. Is there something wrong?"
The queen swallowed as she knelt before her master, and stated, "Yes, master. It seems...that one of the senshi escaped soon after I dispatched your special forces to capture them."
Zemus growled deep in his throat at this revelation, but nodded for his subordinate to continue.
"Furthermore...my general, Sephiroth has sided with said senshi, Jupiter, along with the king, several hundred civilians, a martial artist, and two magic users, as well as...a...a paladin." Reflexively, she cringed, expecting an outburst of expression.
She was not disappointed.
"NO! It can't be! I won't allow it! How? How did this happen?!?"
Serenity swallowed again, reminding herself that her master could do nothing to her at the moment...at least, she hoped that was the case. "Apparently, Sailor Jupiter was tipped off as to the existence of the paladin by one of their cat advisors. Though two of my...I mean your, fiends were able to attack them before they could find the final location of the paladin, neither Milon nor Cagnazzo were successful in neutralizing them. And once they were joined by the paladin, even Valvalis was powerless against their combined strength."
Zemus slammed his fist against an unseen surface, his features tightening in anger. "Then you're on your own." And with that, the image fizzled out and vanished.
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At the same time, a much different conversation was taking place, in two entirely different locations.
'Hello, Saturn-chan.'
Hotaru instantly jerked awake, glancing around the cell for anyone who might have entered, but saw only her companions, who were all asleep for the moment. She frowned in confusion, but jerked in surprise again as she heard the voice once more.
'Don't act so surprised. You should know that I have a bit of telepathic ability, after we were...linked.'
Hotaru blinked, then whispered, "Sephiroth?"
'Unless someone else has telepathic abilities, I'd say that's a pretty safe guess. How are you doing, Saturn-chan?"
"Okay, I guess..."
'Sh, keep it down. Better yet, keep it mental, so we don't have to worry about anyone eavesdropping.'
Hotaru frowned in confusion for a moment, then tried thinking, 'Okay.'
'There, now, that's not so hard, is it?' Sephiroth replied with a mental laugh.
'I've done harder things. So, what's going on?'
The equivalent of a mental sigh came through before Sephiroth updated Hotaru on everything that had occurred since his departure: namely, the attack of Milon, the rescue of King Endymion and Princess Small Lady from Cagnazzo, finding Urawa, and his startling revelation that Serin was indeed the Paladin of legend.
'I must admit that when you and your advisors were discussing the possibility earlier, I was skeptical, especially considering that he didn't seem to have any real special powers. But when I saw the proof with my own eyes, well...'
Hotaru smirked, and replied, 'Well, that'll teach you to doubt us, then.'
Sephiroth laughed, and answered, 'Touché.' A moment passed, during which the young senshi braced herself for bad news. 'Unfortunately, none of this does us a lick of good unless we can straighten Serenity out, and to do that, we need transportation to Crystal Tokyo.'
'What about that airship you guys stole?'
'It'll take our mechanic about a year plus to repair it, since when Valvalis died, she cast a barrage of lightning bolts that took out the engine and several other critical components.'
Hotaru lowered her head, and asked, 'Then...what will you do now?'
'...All we can do now is pray...for a miracle...'
Hotaru then nodded, and spoke, 'Sephiroth...'
'Yeah?'
'When we...were linked...I saw that you...had feelings for me.'
Silence pervaded her mind for a moment, and so Hotaru forged on with the rest of her question.
'I...I'm not sure how I feel about that, but...why me? I never thought of myself as...'
'Sh, I won't have any of that, Saturn-chan.'
With a giggle, she corrected him, 'Call me Hotaru.'
'Okay, Hotaru-chan. In any event...sighthe whole thing really started out, I think, as a crush. I did, and still do, see you as very attractive.' At that, Hotaru blushed as Sephiroth continued, 'I didn't really think we had much in common until we became linked. After...after I saw what you had gone through...I realized that we have more in common than either of us realized. You see...I lost my mother shortly after I was born, too.'
Hotaru blinked, and said, 'Oh god, Seph, I'm sorry...'
'SighIt's okay, Hotaru-chan. I've long since learned to live with the pain. What I hadn't been able to live with, however, is my father's attitude.'
Hotaru frowned at that. 'What do you mean?'
'After mother died...he simply didn't care. All he cared about was research, and furthering his career in science. And...I was part of some of those experiments.'
Hotaru gasped in shock, her eyes brimming with tears as she recalled some of the experiments that she had been subjected to when her father had still been under the influence of Mistress 9.
'Sephiroth...I...I'm so sorry...I just...I didn't know...'
Sephiroth gave the impression of a mental smile, and said, 'Don't worry about it. I just told you so you would know...it's...kind of nice to know that at least someone else can relate. At least I'll have someone to talk to, if I ever get...'
'Suicidal or depressed?'
'...Yeah. And...I would really enjoy helping you...and having you help me.'
Both companions were silent for a long time, before Hotaru finally spoke again: 'Sephiroth? I...can't imagine...being there for anyone else... '
'Thanks...Hotaru.'
Present day...
Just as Ryuhi and Sephiroth attempted to step forward and save their friends, the column of light that engulfed them suddenly disappeared, revealing the trio, bewildered but unharmed. Breathing a sigh of relief, Ryuhi cautiously took another step forward and tapped Serin on the shoulder. This startled the swordsman, who jerked and took a defensive stance for a brief second before he registered that it was his comrade.
Relaxing his stance, Serin blew out a long breath. "Well, we got what we came for. So, let's get out for now."
Ryuhi raised his hand, and declared, "Wait a minute. I, for one, am not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell just happened with that beam of light. Otherwise..."
At that moment, the ground shook underneath them, forcing the entire party to their feet. After a brief respite, the ground resumed its trembling, as the party attempted, with some difficulty, to get to their feet. After a moment, they finally succeeded, and Urawa raised his staff above his head, shouting, "EXIT!" With a brief flash of light, and a tingle that ran through everyone's bodies, the party was instantaneously teleported outside the tower entrance.
Ryuhi was the first to notice that there was something wrong, which was punctuated with the city trembling again, slewing dangerously to one side before steadying. A few lightning bolts struck near their position, causing a rain of debris to descend upon the group. Thankfully, between Urawa and Sephiroth's defensive magic, none of the members were injured. A gust of wind then ripped off the roofs from every one of the buildings, threatening at the same time to force the entire party off their feet; this time, upwards.
"We have to get out of here," Sephiroth stated with his usual obvious logic. "Urawa, do the people here have an escape route?"
Urawa nodded. "Hopefully, everyone got to the teleporters at the first sign of trouble. In any case, we've got to get out of here ourselves." As if to punctuate his comment, the city tilted further before stopping again, which caused Sailor Jupiter to rise up into the air on the currents. Making sure he had a strong grip on a doorjamb, Serin reached out for her hand, managing to snatch it on the first try. With a bit of effort, the newly minted paladin managed to bring his companion back to earth, and steady her. The grateful look she gave him stretched longer than necessary, but was soon interrupted by Ryuhi. "Let's go! There's no telling when this place is going to follow Humpty-Dumpty's example!" Just before the group started out to the airship's position, a sudden shout from overhead caught their attention.
Up above, leaning out of the main hatch, was Princess Small Lady, waving her arms as she called out, "Hurry! Grab onto the rope ladder!"
Nobody wasted a second, but immediately began to board their transport. Just as Urawa was about to embark, a sudden wail from behind them caught his attention. Turning, he saw a young child stumbling along, wailing for her mommy. With a quick shout over his shoulder, the white wizard declared, "I'm going to help her! Go ahead and get out of here now!"
Before anyone could shout or even think of trying to stop or help, Urawa was off, scooping the child up and casting his Exit spell in one swift, fluid motion. Taking the wizard's words to heart, Ryuhi directed Cid to pilot the airship up and away from the city as it suddenly plummeted to the ground, creating a deafening crash, followed by a huge dust cloud. It was then, as the vehicle soared higher into the sky, that an amazing, and frightening, sight appeared.
Hovering over the ruined city of Skyhaven was a female figure surrounded by a tornado of wind. On her face was a visage of malicious glee as she amusedly watched the airship attempt to escape. Gesturing with one finger, a blast of wind sent the transport into a tailspin, which their pilot barely managed to win against in his battle to keep them airborne.
Serin unsheathed his new weapon and immediately headed for the ladder leading to the upper deck, only to be stopped short by a hand gripped around his wrist. Turning, he saw Kara holding fast, a look of confusion on her face.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Deciding to skip the more obvious question of how or why she was on their transport, Serin replied with a tightening of his face, and said, "To teach proper etiquette to that...thing. My first lesson is saying, 'I'm sorry.'"
Kara's eyes widened, but as she was about to say something else, Sephiroth stepped up and said, "I'm going, too."
Soon, Ryuhi nodded his agreement, and Jupiter and Endymion also demanded to join the upcoming battle. Debate was cut short by the buffeting winds created by the wind creature, so all five fighters quickly clambered up the ladder, leaving the young girl behind.
Blinking slowly, she whispered seemingly to herself, "Those who are brave...are always the first to die."
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Valvalis smirked as she saw the insignificant pests emerging from below the deck. Just as she'd expected, they had in fact survived. This made things even more fun for her. As long as she stayed out of the range of that sword, she had nothing to fear.
Serin pursed his lips as he eyed the distance between his party and the creature. Thanks to the fight being in midair, any melee attacks were nullified. Glancing over at the others, he saw comprehending looks on all of them, save for Ryuhi, who was grinning as he cracked his knuckles. But before he could ask what the martial artist was smiling about, the creature laughed in a high feminine voice.
"What fools! To think that you could get away from the wrath and power of Valvalis, the Fiend of the Air! You humans will be swept away by my strength, save for those who submit to Neo-Queen Serenity now!"
Serin gritted his teeth and was about to make a properly sarcastic reply, but out of the corner of his eye he saw a blue blur arrow away from the group, and make a beeline toward the fiend, striking her square in the face. Several more quick blows were felt and heard by the audience as well as the victim, and even Sephiroth winced in sympathy as one particularly vicious punch finished off Ryuhi's attack. Floating in midair a mere five feet from the dazed fiend's face, Ryuhi laughed, and shouted, "And just in case you didn't understand that, maybe you understand this!" punctuating his statement with a double universal gesture.
Valvalis recovered just in time to see the insolent attacker mock her, and with a mere gesture of her own, she surrounded him with a tornado, spinning him around for a loop briefly before dissipating with no ill effects apparently cast on the warrior. Glancing at himself briefly, Ryuhi noted with some shock that he suddenly felt weaker, and it was taking all of his concentration to stay afloat.
Valvalis chuckled, and with a simple gust of wind, sent the young pup crashing into the ground far below. His comrades raced to the edge of the airship's deck in time to see their friend vanish against the expanse of ground. Expectantly, they waited for Ryuhi to fly up and reappear, but several moments passed, and nothing happened. With a growl, Serin whipped his sword out in front of him, and focused his power into it, making it shine even brighter than it had before. With a vicious swing, he shouted, "Lunar Beam!", releasing the energy in a powerful wave that smashed into Valvalis, who was too mesmerized by the sight to even attempt to block or dodge. Staggering back, the Air Fiend gritted her teeth in rage, and pointed with one finger, sending several bolts of lightning crashing into the deck and those on it. Endymion managed to stumble to his feet, and flung several roses at their opponent, but the fiend merely laughed and scattered them with another gust of wind.
This prompted Jupiter to immediately follow up the king's attack with one of her own, and fired off a Sparkling Wide Pressure attack, which caught her target in the shoulder, prompting a scream of pain and outrage from Valvalis. Sephiroth managed to grab her attention at that point, though he used an explosion of fire to further injure her, instead of his usual lightning magic.
Growling with frustration, Valvalis sent another funnel of wind at the party, this time targeting Endymion. The king, weak as he was, immediately collapsed as the attack drained what strength he had left. Horrified, Serin again used his sword beam to strike at the fiend again, though this time it was only marginally successful, as Valvalis managed to dodge the brunt of the attack. Chuckling with sadistic glee, the fiend spoke again: "Well, I think I've hit upon the perfect method for getting rid of you now. Hope you don't feel too disappointed."
Before she could cast another attack, however, an olive-skinned, horned demon charged through the fiend, leaving behind a literal flash fire in his wake. When the fire itself disappeared, Serin, Sephiroth and Jupiter noted that Valvalis seemed to be severely weakened by the attack. Turning to Sephiroth, Jupiter asked, "Did you do that?"
Stunned, Sephiroth could only shake his head. It was then that a voice from behind caught their attention.
"That's my handiwork."
The trio turned to see Kara standing at the door, her green robes and white-green hair fluttering in the wind. She smirked as she added, "I hope this isn't a private dance."
After absorbing the comment, the party chuckled, and Serin nodded. "We could use all the help we can get with her. Feel free to cut in."
Kara curtsied, and took up a position behind the others, readying another magic spell as Jupiter fired one more Sparkling Wide Pressure, and Sephiroth used his fire attack again. Valvalis, who was getting weakened and desperate, used her lightning attack again, severely injuring everyone save for Kara, who managed to concentrate on her spell, and let loose a blast that coalesced into a figure on horseback who calmly floated in between the two sides, a large glowing red lance in one hand. Pulling on the reins to his stead, the figure managed to lean back, and throw his weapon high into the sky, all without falling off. As he did so, a circular ray of light shone on Valvalis, who was beside herself with confusion, despite her injuries, all the more so when the figure disappeared, horse and all. It was then that a whistling sound could be heard, and the lance plunged through the fiend's body, effectively pinning her to the ground below. A moment passed, but suddenly a scream of pure rage sounded throughout the air, and blasts of lightning rained down from the sky. Despite the airship's best attempts, and Cid's superior piloting, several bolts struck the engine section, causing it to explode.
Motionless, the airship hung in midair for a few brief seconds, then began arrowing down to earth, picking up speed with every second. As Serin and his friends attempted to get in crash positions as best they could, the airship finally reached the end of its journey and with a long, bone- jarring screech of broken metal, punctuated by the snaps of sparking electronics and the occasional crunch of crushed machinery, the transport came to a halt.
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It was a long time before anyone felt like moving, and even then, most wished they hadn't. Groaning, a good share of the crew stumbled out of the lower areas, with some supporting their companions outside, then heading back in to get the other injured. Princess Small Lady came out in the middle of the bustle, and Jupiter ran up to hug her in relief. It was then that the princess noticed her father lying unconscious where Sephiroth had cushioned him, and she immediately ran over to check on him. Cid was one of the last out, and he shook his head, saying something in his unique language. Sephiroth appeared to ask a query, and got another shake of the head in response. Turning to his friends with a sour expression, the swordsman stated, "Our mechanic-pilot tells me that the airship is finished. It would take him a year to replace the engine, and that's not all that needs to be done before this will fly again."
Serin blinked in shock, and looked down at his sword. 'Have we come this far, only to be stopped just short of our goal?'
Just as he was about to vocalize his concerns, a flash of light heralded the arrival of Urawa and several Skyhaven citizens. The citizens quickly spread out to administer first- aid to the injured, though Urawa headed towards Endymion with a look of shock and concern on his face. Leaning down, he checked the king's pulse, blew out a sigh of relief, and then closed his eyes, focusing his power, which formed a glowing aura around his hand. With a flexing of his hand, several spots of colored light swirled around the injured king, restoring the shine and color to his skin. Urawa then leaned back, as Endymion stirred and slowly sat up, his daughter squealing in delight at her father's recovery. Leaping forward, she hugged him as he grunted in surprise, and glanced around.
"What happened?"
Sephiroth stated rather bluntly, "You were caught in one of Valvalis' stronger attacks, which instantly drained you of your energy." Blinking, he looked over at Serin sharply. "Ryuhi. He's still down! We have to see what we can do for him!"
Fortunately, the airship's wreckage wasn't too far from the warrior's landing site, and so Urawa, Serin, and Sephiroth were able to quickly reach their comrade. A preliminary check of Ryuhi's vitals confirmed Serin's worst fears...the martial artist was dead. Sephiroth slowly turned away at the bad news, his knuckles turning white where he gripped his sword. Urawa, however, stepped forward and knelt at Ryuhi's side, closing his eyes. After a brief moment, they snapped open, and he strained his muscles, growling with the effort. A bright aura of white began covering his body as he screamed in pain upon the aura sliding through his arms and into his comrade's body. The tableau was held for a few brief moments until the young wizard fell back, unconscious. The two swordsmen looked at each in confusion for a few minutes before Ryuhi began stirring slightly. This grabbed their attention, and prompted them to return to everyone else with their two unconscious friends.
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Meanwhile...
Neo-Queen Serenity slumped back in her throne in defeat as she viewed the results of Valvalis' attack. Not only had she failed to stop them from acquiring the paladin of legend, but now they had killed yet another of her strongest warriors. That left her with one fiend, and though he was the strongest of them all, the queen had her doubts as to whether even he would be able to handle them. Added to that was the undeniable fact that they would most likely be on their way back to Crystal Tokyo to confront her. The very idea was laughable, and yet, if the legends were true...
Pursing her lips, Serenity suddenly jerked as her holoprojector fizzled into life, and Zemus' image appeared. Though he normally always scowled, his face seemed even angrier this time.
"Serenity...you have been lacking in your daily updates. Is there something wrong?"
The queen swallowed as she knelt before her master, and stated, "Yes, master. It seems...that one of the senshi escaped soon after I dispatched your special forces to capture them."
Zemus growled deep in his throat at this revelation, but nodded for his subordinate to continue.
"Furthermore...my general, Sephiroth has sided with said senshi, Jupiter, along with the king, several hundred civilians, a martial artist, and two magic users, as well as...a...a paladin." Reflexively, she cringed, expecting an outburst of expression.
She was not disappointed.
"NO! It can't be! I won't allow it! How? How did this happen?!?"
Serenity swallowed again, reminding herself that her master could do nothing to her at the moment...at least, she hoped that was the case. "Apparently, Sailor Jupiter was tipped off as to the existence of the paladin by one of their cat advisors. Though two of my...I mean your, fiends were able to attack them before they could find the final location of the paladin, neither Milon nor Cagnazzo were successful in neutralizing them. And once they were joined by the paladin, even Valvalis was powerless against their combined strength."
Zemus slammed his fist against an unseen surface, his features tightening in anger. "Then you're on your own." And with that, the image fizzled out and vanished.
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At the same time, a much different conversation was taking place, in two entirely different locations.
'Hello, Saturn-chan.'
Hotaru instantly jerked awake, glancing around the cell for anyone who might have entered, but saw only her companions, who were all asleep for the moment. She frowned in confusion, but jerked in surprise again as she heard the voice once more.
'Don't act so surprised. You should know that I have a bit of telepathic ability, after we were...linked.'
Hotaru blinked, then whispered, "Sephiroth?"
'Unless someone else has telepathic abilities, I'd say that's a pretty safe guess. How are you doing, Saturn-chan?"
"Okay, I guess..."
'Sh, keep it down. Better yet, keep it mental, so we don't have to worry about anyone eavesdropping.'
Hotaru frowned in confusion for a moment, then tried thinking, 'Okay.'
'There, now, that's not so hard, is it?' Sephiroth replied with a mental laugh.
'I've done harder things. So, what's going on?'
The equivalent of a mental sigh came through before Sephiroth updated Hotaru on everything that had occurred since his departure: namely, the attack of Milon, the rescue of King Endymion and Princess Small Lady from Cagnazzo, finding Urawa, and his startling revelation that Serin was indeed the Paladin of legend.
'I must admit that when you and your advisors were discussing the possibility earlier, I was skeptical, especially considering that he didn't seem to have any real special powers. But when I saw the proof with my own eyes, well...'
Hotaru smirked, and replied, 'Well, that'll teach you to doubt us, then.'
Sephiroth laughed, and answered, 'Touché.' A moment passed, during which the young senshi braced herself for bad news. 'Unfortunately, none of this does us a lick of good unless we can straighten Serenity out, and to do that, we need transportation to Crystal Tokyo.'
'What about that airship you guys stole?'
'It'll take our mechanic about a year plus to repair it, since when Valvalis died, she cast a barrage of lightning bolts that took out the engine and several other critical components.'
Hotaru lowered her head, and asked, 'Then...what will you do now?'
'...All we can do now is pray...for a miracle...'
Hotaru then nodded, and spoke, 'Sephiroth...'
'Yeah?'
'When we...were linked...I saw that you...had feelings for me.'
Silence pervaded her mind for a moment, and so Hotaru forged on with the rest of her question.
'I...I'm not sure how I feel about that, but...why me? I never thought of myself as...'
'Sh, I won't have any of that, Saturn-chan.'
With a giggle, she corrected him, 'Call me Hotaru.'
'Okay, Hotaru-chan. In any event...sighthe whole thing really started out, I think, as a crush. I did, and still do, see you as very attractive.' At that, Hotaru blushed as Sephiroth continued, 'I didn't really think we had much in common until we became linked. After...after I saw what you had gone through...I realized that we have more in common than either of us realized. You see...I lost my mother shortly after I was born, too.'
Hotaru blinked, and said, 'Oh god, Seph, I'm sorry...'
'SighIt's okay, Hotaru-chan. I've long since learned to live with the pain. What I hadn't been able to live with, however, is my father's attitude.'
Hotaru frowned at that. 'What do you mean?'
'After mother died...he simply didn't care. All he cared about was research, and furthering his career in science. And...I was part of some of those experiments.'
Hotaru gasped in shock, her eyes brimming with tears as she recalled some of the experiments that she had been subjected to when her father had still been under the influence of Mistress 9.
'Sephiroth...I...I'm so sorry...I just...I didn't know...'
Sephiroth gave the impression of a mental smile, and said, 'Don't worry about it. I just told you so you would know...it's...kind of nice to know that at least someone else can relate. At least I'll have someone to talk to, if I ever get...'
'Suicidal or depressed?'
'...Yeah. And...I would really enjoy helping you...and having you help me.'
Both companions were silent for a long time, before Hotaru finally spoke again: 'Sephiroth? I...can't imagine...being there for anyone else... '
'Thanks...Hotaru.'