Chapter 8
Mina ran. She ran as fast as she could past maids and guards that called out in surprise as she nearly collided into all of them. Her feet padded softly against the carpeted floors of the palace as she tore through its many hallways blindly. Tears ran down her cheeks in thin streams and her sobs caused her breath to come in thin, ragged gasps.
Somehow she finally found her way outside and was greeted by the cool, gentle, night. She flew up the nearest street and accidentally plowed over a merchant heading home. He gave a great yell and waved angrily at her retreating back, but she barely heard him.
She finally stopped in an alley and sank to the ground. She covered her face with her hands as sobs wracked her body. They ended quickly and her cries turned into hitching breaths, and finally went down to quiet shakings. She looked up into the night sky and saw the Earth and Moon suspended above in a white, opaque, shield. She shivered. It was strange looking at her home like this. It suddenly struck her that Hitomi must have felt the same way years before.
A wicked snicker broke her out of her thoughts and she looked up. A large group of men, all bearing some nasty scar or detestable feature, were looking down at her with lust-filled eyes. She could smell the cheap alcohol even with the five-foot distance between them. She wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"Well, well, well... What have we got here?" The biggest one asked, licking his chapped lower lip. "What is a pretty girl like you doing out here at this hour? And all alone?" He grinned and his comrades snickered.
Mina glared at them through her cool blue eyes. "You picked the wrong night, buddy." She said dangerously, and rose to her feet. Her transformation wand was held tight in her fist. "Don't even try it. You'll be in a world of hurt if you do."
They all laughed uproariously. "From a little girl like you? Don't kid yourself! Now come here and we'll make it easy on you. We won't bite... much." He said, and they all laughed again.
"Come and get me yourself, coward." Mina answered through clenched teeth.
The grin vanished from the leader's face and he lunged at her with surprising speed. Mina leapt up, performed a graceful somersault in midair, and landed easily on her feet behind her attacker. She grinned and raised her wand as he whirled around, disbelief written all over his face.
"VENUS STAR POWER!" She called.
A burst of golden light issued from her wand and all her attackers stopped and gaped at her with open-mouthed amazement. Stars flashed over her as power engulfed her entire body. She opened her eyes as she finished her transformation with her famous pose. She grinned. She was Sailor Venus once again.
"Who is she?" One of the men asked with wonder.
Her smile widened. "Glad you asked pond scum! I'm Sailor Venus, and on behalf of the Planet of Love, I will punish you!" She cried, glaring at them all.
"Nice light show, really nice... but it won't help you." The lead guy said. "Come on boys." He motioned them forward.
As one came near, Sailor Venus delivered a fly kick to his head. The man cried out in pain as her foot made contact, and half a second later his body found the ground. The second attacker was stopped by a swift roundhouse kick that connected nicely with his ear. He too met the floor quickly. She smiled with triumph, but it vanished as she was suddenly struck violently from behind. Three men drove her slim body into the ground and she groaned as her elbow cracked against the hard cobblestone. Her funny bone went crazy and she had to bite her lip to keep from crying out. Someone was speaking into her ear and dimly her mind recognized the voice to be that of the leader.
"Well, I like to see you like it rough. What do you say, dearie? Give it up before you get really hurt." He laughed.
Sailor Venus cried out in anger and tried to move, but the weight on top of her was too great. She felt something hard pressing against her back and she groaned. Not like this, she thought desperately. Please, not like this...
"Big mistake." Came a voice from above.
Suddenly, the weight on top of her vanished and sounds of scuffling could be heard around her. She turned her head to see a figure deliver a sharp blow to the leaders face. He hit the ground with a heavy thud and didn't rise. The two others simply stared at their fallen comrade.
She was soon lifted from the street by strong hands and looked up only to meet the concerned eyes of the gorgeous Allen Schezar. She looked away and found some of the men were getting up blearily and looking at their new opponent. Their eyes soon recognized Allen and they all froze in terror.
"It's Allen Schezar!" One of them cried, and he turned tail and ran. The others remained where they were, but they too looked ready to bolt at any moment.
Allen stepped forward. "Who's going to decide to be brave, or should I say stupid?" He asked, drawing his sword. It gleamed beautifully in the moonlight. "I promise you all a fight if anyone tries to get close to this girl." He paused. "Now I'm being more than generous. I could have you all hanged for this, but because you are drunk, I will give you this one chance to leave Palace forever and never come back. If I ever see you in this city again, I will kill you on sight. It's your decision." He stated firmly, glaring at each and every one of them.
The group stared at him warily, and then one by one turned and headed the same way as the first. Allen grinned and sheathed his sword. He turned and started towards Mina, or should he say, Sailor Venus. Her alter ego was just as beautiful as she was, even if her outfit was quite scandalous. The short skirt appeared to lengthen her already long legs, and the bodice of the suit hugged her breasts and accentuated her hips perfectly. Her gorgeous blonde mane was tousled and her cheeks were rosy from her exertions. She was breathtaking. He averted his eyes, realizing he had been staring.
"Are you all right?" He asked.
"I'm fine, thanks to you." Sailor Venus said shyly. "I'm not really used to being rescued. How did you get here?"
"I followed you... I was worried because you were so upset. You don't know Astoria very well, I was afraid you would get lost." Allen explained, and stopped at her grateful smile.
She's so beautiful, he thought to himself.
Mina was lost in his soft blue eyes. His smile was gentle, his manner noble and wise. Yet there was something about him... She knew he had the love of many women... but did he return the emotion to any of them?
Suddenly, a movement caught her eyes, just behind Allen. A figure was on his feet, and a silver blade glittered in the dim light from its hand. He was coming at Allen fast... and he was aiming right for his heart!
"Allen, no!" She screamed and raised her hands. "VENUS CRESCENT BEAM SMASH!" She cried, and released her bright beam of energy.
It struck the man squarely in the chest and he managed a quick grunt before he crumpled to the ground. Allen stared at her with wonder and at his fallen attacker with surprise. Then his eyes went back to Sailor Venus. She raced to his side.
"Are you all right, Allen?" She asked, frantically searching his body for wounds. He stopped her and took her hands.
"I-I'm fine... You're amazing." He sputtered.
It was all he could say to her... and she blushed and looked away in response. She powered down quickly and turned an even deeper shade of red as she noticed that he still held her hands between his own. He blinked as he realized she was just Mina once again.
"We should go." She said quietly.
He nodded and dropped her hands. "Come, this way. Hitomi must be worried sick about you." Allen said, and proceeded to lead her back to the palace.
Mina ran. She ran as fast as she could past maids and guards that called out in surprise as she nearly collided into all of them. Her feet padded softly against the carpeted floors of the palace as she tore through its many hallways blindly. Tears ran down her cheeks in thin streams and her sobs caused her breath to come in thin, ragged gasps.
Somehow she finally found her way outside and was greeted by the cool, gentle, night. She flew up the nearest street and accidentally plowed over a merchant heading home. He gave a great yell and waved angrily at her retreating back, but she barely heard him.
She finally stopped in an alley and sank to the ground. She covered her face with her hands as sobs wracked her body. They ended quickly and her cries turned into hitching breaths, and finally went down to quiet shakings. She looked up into the night sky and saw the Earth and Moon suspended above in a white, opaque, shield. She shivered. It was strange looking at her home like this. It suddenly struck her that Hitomi must have felt the same way years before.
A wicked snicker broke her out of her thoughts and she looked up. A large group of men, all bearing some nasty scar or detestable feature, were looking down at her with lust-filled eyes. She could smell the cheap alcohol even with the five-foot distance between them. She wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"Well, well, well... What have we got here?" The biggest one asked, licking his chapped lower lip. "What is a pretty girl like you doing out here at this hour? And all alone?" He grinned and his comrades snickered.
Mina glared at them through her cool blue eyes. "You picked the wrong night, buddy." She said dangerously, and rose to her feet. Her transformation wand was held tight in her fist. "Don't even try it. You'll be in a world of hurt if you do."
They all laughed uproariously. "From a little girl like you? Don't kid yourself! Now come here and we'll make it easy on you. We won't bite... much." He said, and they all laughed again.
"Come and get me yourself, coward." Mina answered through clenched teeth.
The grin vanished from the leader's face and he lunged at her with surprising speed. Mina leapt up, performed a graceful somersault in midair, and landed easily on her feet behind her attacker. She grinned and raised her wand as he whirled around, disbelief written all over his face.
"VENUS STAR POWER!" She called.
A burst of golden light issued from her wand and all her attackers stopped and gaped at her with open-mouthed amazement. Stars flashed over her as power engulfed her entire body. She opened her eyes as she finished her transformation with her famous pose. She grinned. She was Sailor Venus once again.
"Who is she?" One of the men asked with wonder.
Her smile widened. "Glad you asked pond scum! I'm Sailor Venus, and on behalf of the Planet of Love, I will punish you!" She cried, glaring at them all.
"Nice light show, really nice... but it won't help you." The lead guy said. "Come on boys." He motioned them forward.
As one came near, Sailor Venus delivered a fly kick to his head. The man cried out in pain as her foot made contact, and half a second later his body found the ground. The second attacker was stopped by a swift roundhouse kick that connected nicely with his ear. He too met the floor quickly. She smiled with triumph, but it vanished as she was suddenly struck violently from behind. Three men drove her slim body into the ground and she groaned as her elbow cracked against the hard cobblestone. Her funny bone went crazy and she had to bite her lip to keep from crying out. Someone was speaking into her ear and dimly her mind recognized the voice to be that of the leader.
"Well, I like to see you like it rough. What do you say, dearie? Give it up before you get really hurt." He laughed.
Sailor Venus cried out in anger and tried to move, but the weight on top of her was too great. She felt something hard pressing against her back and she groaned. Not like this, she thought desperately. Please, not like this...
"Big mistake." Came a voice from above.
Suddenly, the weight on top of her vanished and sounds of scuffling could be heard around her. She turned her head to see a figure deliver a sharp blow to the leaders face. He hit the ground with a heavy thud and didn't rise. The two others simply stared at their fallen comrade.
She was soon lifted from the street by strong hands and looked up only to meet the concerned eyes of the gorgeous Allen Schezar. She looked away and found some of the men were getting up blearily and looking at their new opponent. Their eyes soon recognized Allen and they all froze in terror.
"It's Allen Schezar!" One of them cried, and he turned tail and ran. The others remained where they were, but they too looked ready to bolt at any moment.
Allen stepped forward. "Who's going to decide to be brave, or should I say stupid?" He asked, drawing his sword. It gleamed beautifully in the moonlight. "I promise you all a fight if anyone tries to get close to this girl." He paused. "Now I'm being more than generous. I could have you all hanged for this, but because you are drunk, I will give you this one chance to leave Palace forever and never come back. If I ever see you in this city again, I will kill you on sight. It's your decision." He stated firmly, glaring at each and every one of them.
The group stared at him warily, and then one by one turned and headed the same way as the first. Allen grinned and sheathed his sword. He turned and started towards Mina, or should he say, Sailor Venus. Her alter ego was just as beautiful as she was, even if her outfit was quite scandalous. The short skirt appeared to lengthen her already long legs, and the bodice of the suit hugged her breasts and accentuated her hips perfectly. Her gorgeous blonde mane was tousled and her cheeks were rosy from her exertions. She was breathtaking. He averted his eyes, realizing he had been staring.
"Are you all right?" He asked.
"I'm fine, thanks to you." Sailor Venus said shyly. "I'm not really used to being rescued. How did you get here?"
"I followed you... I was worried because you were so upset. You don't know Astoria very well, I was afraid you would get lost." Allen explained, and stopped at her grateful smile.
She's so beautiful, he thought to himself.
Mina was lost in his soft blue eyes. His smile was gentle, his manner noble and wise. Yet there was something about him... She knew he had the love of many women... but did he return the emotion to any of them?
Suddenly, a movement caught her eyes, just behind Allen. A figure was on his feet, and a silver blade glittered in the dim light from its hand. He was coming at Allen fast... and he was aiming right for his heart!
"Allen, no!" She screamed and raised her hands. "VENUS CRESCENT BEAM SMASH!" She cried, and released her bright beam of energy.
It struck the man squarely in the chest and he managed a quick grunt before he crumpled to the ground. Allen stared at her with wonder and at his fallen attacker with surprise. Then his eyes went back to Sailor Venus. She raced to his side.
"Are you all right, Allen?" She asked, frantically searching his body for wounds. He stopped her and took her hands.
"I-I'm fine... You're amazing." He sputtered.
It was all he could say to her... and she blushed and looked away in response. She powered down quickly and turned an even deeper shade of red as she noticed that he still held her hands between his own. He blinked as he realized she was just Mina once again.
"We should go." She said quietly.
He nodded and dropped her hands. "Come, this way. Hitomi must be worried sick about you." Allen said, and proceeded to lead her back to the palace.