Emerging From the Shell
by Butterfly Girl
With scores of help from Mason
Insert disclaimers from chapter one here
And before anyone asks, the only transformation described in this story is the Sonic Angel's, mainly because it's the first time this transformation's ever been used. The others are used in my fics leading up to this, so it is very repetious to repeat them every time. And I know I haven't written those fics yet, but I will, and don't want to spoil them TOO greatly here. Other than that, on with this chapter!
Batafurai
A loud burst of laughter sounded from the park, jerking us all to attention.
"I think THAT is our cue!" Kojiro said, immediately taking action. "You guys transform first, I'll transform last."
Taiga and Onbin held up their wands while Riki and I reached for our amulets (they look like harmless necklaces, so we wear them at all times) and Tarento brought forth the Symoconise Jewel.
"LITTLE MERCURY PLANET POWER!"
"LITTLE NEPTUNE PLANET POWER!"
"SYMOCONISE TRANSFORMATION POWER!"
"POWER OF EARTH-ACTIVATE!"
"POWER OF SKY-ACTIVATE!"
We five quickly transformed. Little Mercury also grabbed her computer, scanning anything she could. The Earth Ninja turned to her husband and nodded.
Kojiro nodded back, showing her he understood. "SONIC..." he held out his left hand, "ANGEL..." a ring appeared around his outstretched hand, "POWER!!!!" He ran the ring across the handle of his sword, causing a ring to form around his body. Quickly, the sign of each of the Senshi combined on his chest, followed by his arm armor appearing. He held his hands out to the side as his chest armor and his wings appeared, followed quickly by his leg armor. His hair became metalic silver with metalic gold bangs, and he posed.
Earth Ninja stood there, eyes as big as saucers. None of us had ever seen Kojiro's newest transformation before, as we were all dead when he used it last. But we had seen him as the Sonic Angel. "Whoa..."
Little Neptune rolled her eyes, acting like his transformation was nothing. I, however, was slightly dumbfounded. entrance!"
Symoconise Protector tapped me on the shoulder, getting my attention. "Um...don't you and Riki have a second transformation you should use now?"
I blinked, reality slapping me. "Oh yeah..."
Earth Ninja sighed, raising her right arm in unison with me. We then both yelled, "HIDDEN SENSHI POWER!" We were both transformed into our second forms, the Lion Senshi and the Butterfly Senshi.
"Let's go?" Sonic Angel said us. It took us a minute to realize it was him; his voice was much softer and gentler than it usually is. He then teleported us to the scene...a whole 20 feet away.
Max
I stumbled out of my ship, hoping I had made it. Judging by the scene, I had crashed on Earth.
"YOU CANNOT ESCAPE ME, MAX..." Traveler yelled to me, holding out one of his disgustingly bony hands.
"I can...AND I WILL!" I yelled, holding out my Spirit Reciever. It was my only option. "EXECUTE..."
"CRIMSON THUNDER!!!!" Traveler yelled, blasting my reciever to pieces and flinging both its shattered bits and myself into a tree.
Through my pain, I heard a gift from heaven.
"YO!"
"PICK ON SOMEONE YOUR OWN AGE!"
"ALTHOUGH YOUR AGE IS FROM THE STONE AGE!"
What was odd about those voices was that they sounded VERY familiar to me. Looking up, I saw 4 Senshi, a dude in a gold cape with a sword, and an Angel...a male one. The shortest Senshi caught my eye: dark brown hair streaked with blonde that went past her waist, dressed in blue and purple Judging by what I heard of the Little Senshi, I guessed that she was Sailor Little Neptune. But that wasn't what caught my attention; it was her eyes. They were brown, nothing unusual, but they were filled with so much fear, hatred, and sadness that it almost scared me. Whoever this little Senshi really was, she had seen a LOT more than she cared to remember, and was haunted by the memories of those events.
Apparently, Traveler saw the same thing I did in that Senshi. Turning to face her, he said, "LET ME GUESS, YOU ARE ONBIN."
The Senshi's eyes flashed with more fear, but it was gone as fast as it had came. Instead, they were filled with anger. "And your point is...what?"
Everything finally clicked for me. Onbin was that girl back on Earth(2). That little teensy girl that hated any guy she ever met, the one that earned the nickname "Man Slayer" due to her hostility to all males. And the most beautiful girl I had ever seen in my life! I had liked her—a LOT—back there, but it stayed my secrect. I was always afraid of her acutally hurting me (that girl is stronger than she looks, she took on Shuzika once, and was that EVER an interesting fight...), so I kept it to myself. How Onbin got off of Earth(2) and, nevertheless, became a member of one of the most sucessful team of Sailor Senshi this universe has ever seen was beyond me.
My mind racing, I had to formulate a plan. Traveler said he was searching for someone with a great fear. And since he's from a planet full of nightmares, it was no surprise he wanted Onbin's fear to carry out his plans. If I was gonna transform into Knighttron, I better find a way to restore my Spirit Receiver, and fast!
Traveler smirked. "I'VE BEEN SEARCHING FOR YOU. THERE IS NO FEAR IN THE UNIVERSE LIKE THE ONE YOU HOLD INSIDE YOUR SHELL..."
The one Senshi, in purple, lavender, and marroon, with giant butterfly wings, immediately took a defence position, appearing ready to defend Onbin if the need arrised. Judging by her hair color, fuku colors, the wings, and how she was ready to defend Onbin, I guessed she was Batafurai and knew she was the Butterfly Senshi. Hm...then that will make gold dude Tarento, as he's sticking close to Batafurai...and the green hair's just screaming Riki...and the one in the blue and lime green bears a resemblence to Taiga! Boy, how many of those girls are here? By the colors of their fukus, I guessed Taiga was Little Mercury, Riki the Lion Senshi, and Tarento Symconise Protector.
"What fear?" Onbin asked, like she was in denial.
"THE FEAR OF MEN, ONBIN. I FEED ON FEAR, AND I SHALL HAVE YOUR FEAR TO KEEP ME ALIVE!!! NIGHTMARE SYNDROME!" As an attack flew toward Onbin, the Angel blocked it.
"That's enough, Traveler," he said, his voice calm and assuring despite the anger in his eyes.
"SO, YOU'RE THE SONIC ANGEL. HOW PATHETIC!"
The girl I assumed was Riki crossed her arms. "NOW you're just pushing your luck..."
Ignoring her teammate, Onbin shot out, "Like I said, WHAT FEAR?"
Batafurai immediately slapped her forehead, looking like she was 3 steps from slapping Onbin as well. I could of sworn I saw her mutter, "Little Neptune, you're a true baka..." and Tarento start chuckling. What got me was that Tarento was a good 10 feet from her, and she definitely didn't say it loud enough for him to hear. Unless he could read her mind, there was no way he could have heard that!
Taiga looked up from her computer (that little thing proved to me she was Little Mercury, as it had a L and the sign of Mercury on the front). "Who ARE you anyway?"
"I AM KNOWN AS THE TRAVELER. I TRAVEL TO MANY GALAXIES AND PLANETS TO FEED ON THE FEARS OF PEOPLE. I HAVE BEEN SEARCHING FOR ONBIN FOR A LONG TIME...EVER SINCE A MAN NAMED KOJIRO MUSASHI REMINDED HER OF THE PAST WITH HER 'FATHER' ON EARTH(2). THE FEAR SHE KEPT INSIDE BROUGHT ME HERE BEFORE, AND NOW HER THINKING ABOUT HER FEAR HAS BROUGHT ME BACK."
Onbin
I turned, memories slowly filling my mind. "It...was...YOU?" I shot at the Sonic Angel.
Max
At her comment, I nearly lost it. KOJIRO is the Angel??? Boy, talk about irronic!
The branches of the tree above me started rustling. I looked up and saw a guy balancing upon the branch above me. He was wearing a grey tuxedo with matching top hat and cape. The cape was lined in sky blue and he had a mask of matching color that covered his eyes. He must have noticed me, as he jumped down and didn't land on my head. "You okay, man? From what I saw, you got hit pretty darn hard by that Traveler guy..."
His voice was WAY too familiar for his own good. "I'm okay, and who are you?" I asked, to be polite. What I was really worried about was Onbin.
Taiga
"Fear?" Little Neptune laughed. "Try HATRED, ya FOOL!"
Seriously, Little Neptune, bless her soul, needs to watch her mouth. This guy is after her, and she cocks attitude at him! What is she, nuts?
"I ALSO FORCE PEOPLE TO SEE THEIR WORST FEARS!" Traveler said, obviously up to something we wouldn't like. "NIGHTMARE COLLAR!" he screamed. A black collar, bearing two hideous eyes, flew towards Little Neptune.
"NO!" Butterfly Senshi yelled, diving in front of the collar. It merely attached itself to her neck as she rolled out of her dive into a kneeling position.
"BATAFURAI!" we all yelled. I recognized two voices, from behind me, that weren't from the group of Senshi I had come with. I turned around to see Shuzika, fully transformed as Tuxedo Pluto, beside Max. WAIT A SEC! MAX...WHAT'S HE DOING HERE? I had gotten a glimpse of the victim when we first got to the scene, but I hadn't recognized him as Max.
Max was Shuzika's best friend from Earth(2), close friends with my "sister," Keleika (she and I aren't really related, but we were on Earth(2)...long story you don't want to hear). He had stuck near our group, except when Onbin was near. Then he'd take off running like someone lit his shirt on fire. Batafurai and Annai swore he liked Onbin, but I wasn't quite as sure as them. Either way, it was obvious that Shuzika was as confused as myself, and definitely recognized Max.
"ANGEL SPEAR!!!" Angel yelled, trying to hit Traveler. He disappeared before the attack hit, though.
"What the freak is THIS?" I heard Butterfly screech, trying to pry the collar off her neck. Protector quickly moved to her side, trying to find a clasp or latch or something to get it off. I turned back to Shuzika, shooting him a look that begged for his help.
Tuxedo said to Max, "Listen, for the sake of my friends there, I need you to tell me what you know about the Traveler."
"There will be time to talk later, he's about to make Batafurai see her worst fear!" I heard him exclaim.
I quickly turned back to the battle, scanning with my visor and computer for any hint of where Traveler was. In my rush, I saw that Butterfly was still standing and still frantically trying to free herself from the collar. I finally pinpointed his location, but it was too late.
"COLLAR, ACTIVATE!" he yelled as he reappeared. The collar flashed, then Butterfly fell. Protector caught her before she hit the ground, kneeling down and closing his eyes. I could tell, by his expression, that he was reading her thoughts, trying to see if she was okay. He then looked up to me.
"...What scares me is I knew that was her fear...Taiga-chan...I can't get a word in to her, and she's panicking."
THAT is never good. I returned to scanning for info. Maybe I can find a way to free her...
Max
Tuxedo, even after he saw Batafurai get trapped in her nightmare, kept his mind on one thing. "How...do you...ah nevermind I know." He took of his mask, showing his real identity: Shuzika, my best friend from Earth(2). "Before you ask for too many details, I'm Meioh Shuzika now, son of King Mukeila and Queen Setsuna of Pluto, second heir to the throne at Pluto."
"I know you're Shuzika," I said, turning back to the battle at the sound of Onbin screaming Batafurai's, name and repairing my device at the same time.
If I had ANY doubt that Onbin was capable of beating someone (mainly, me) if she got mad, her reaction to Batafurai's situation killed it and put it in its grave. Seriously, that girl was ticked beyound belief. "NOW it's on, Traveler. No one messes with MY friends...and lives to tell about it!" The necklace around her neck, bearing a pendant shaped like a shark, began to glow a deep blue. She began to float, head tilted back, ankles crossed, and hands framing the growing ball of energy. Her entire body then began to glow as she raised the ball, encasing her planetary symbol, over her head. Suddenly, she jerked her head front, glaring. She thrust the energy forward, screaming, "NEPTUNE SHARK TSUNAMI!" Sure enough, a wave of tsunamic proportions, bearing the illusion of an actual shark, flew from her and plowed into Traveler. She actually knocked him back a few feet! What got me was that the only think that was soaked from her wave was Traveler. "Now, someone attack him while he's distracted!"
Unsheathing his sword, the Angel commanded, "Tarento, take Batafurai to safety, we will hold off Traveler." Tarento nodded, carefully scooping up Batafurai and running off a ways. "ANGEL'S JUSTICE!" Kojiro yelled, firing a beam at Traveler.
To our horror, he caught it and destroyed it in one swift movement. "NIGHTMARE COLLAR!" He launched two collars this time, hitting both Onbin and Tarento. Tarento immediately put down Batafurai, trying to remove his collar and obviously scared.
I stood up, nodding to Shuzika. He immediately jumped back up into the tree, eyes shining like he was creating a plan. "STOP IT, TRAVELER!" I yelled, holding out my repaired Spirit Receiver.
Taiga
"Dear God..." I muttered, watching both Little Neptune and Protector get hit. I then turned to Kojiro and asked, "What can we do?"
"STOP IT, TRAVELER!" was heard. We turned and saw Max holding out a device. Tuxedo then dove out of the tree, landing in front of me, holding his sword out.
"Anything happens to you and Keleika will have my head..." he muttered to me. I giggled at his loyality to his girlfriend, mainly cause it was stupidly cute.
"EXECUTE...SPIRIT ARMOR...TRANSFORMATION!" Max yelled, glowing red. "CHANGE TO..." He transformed into a knight-like figure, wearing red armor and a white cape. "KNIGHTTRON!"
Lion nearly cheered in relief, seeing we had 2 more people to fight where the other three had/were (going to) fall(en). She then smirked, charging up her attack. "AURORA REVOLUTION!" she yelled, attacking Traveler merely to distract him.
"Let's get him, Shuzika," Knighttron said to Tuxedo. Before Tuxedo could agree, Traveler activated the collars, Little Neptune and Protector immediately dropping.
I was steamed, and Tuxedo obviously was, too. "You bet, Max..."
"TRY ME!" Traveler yelled.
"GOLDEN ROPE!" Angel called out, using his one attack to tie up Traveler.
"WHAT???" he screamed in disbelief.
"HAI!" Lion cheered.
I took this moment as my cue. I turned off my visor, hid my computer, then yelled, "MERCURY GLACIER FREEZE!" I hit Traveler with an icy blast, causing him to scream in pain.
"Your turn, Shuzika!" Angel yelled.
Tuxedo nodded, raising his sword. Wind swirled around him and it, kicking up dust and leaves. "PLUTO...WINDS!" he yelled, releasing a burst of energy within the wind.
"ANGEL SPEAR!" the Angel yelled, hitting this time.
"CRIMSON LANCE!" Knighttron called out, stabbing Traveler.
Lion stepped up then. "LION BLAZER!"
Somehow, Traveler finally broke free of the ropes. "YOU WILL PAY!!!! NIGHTMARE COLLAR!" He launched a collar at Riki...
But it never hit her.
I missed this part of the battle, but I did hear Knighttron scream, "NO, RIKI!" I turned to see him de-transform as the collar hit him.
Riki
If I thought things were bad before, I was wrong.
Horribly, horribly wrong.
I was standing there, shocked senseless that this dude—one I barely knew—saved me, when things got ugly...very ugly...
"COLLAR ACTIVATE!" Traveler yelled. But instead of making Max see his worst nightmare, it de-transformed him, then transformed him into what nightmares are made of. His normally brown hair (with blonde spikes) became jet black, and his eyes crimson. They held more evil than I care to mention.
Max (if you could still CALL him Max...) let loose an evil laugh, one that could curdle one's blood. "Thank you
"What in the world??" Kojiro asked, obviously as dumbfounded as I was. Taiga about fainted, and Shuzika looked like he was going to have some sort of fit.
Kojiro...hate to admit it, but this seriously freaking me out... I mentally said to Kojiro, hoping he'd have some words of reassurance.
You and me both, hon.
Boy, did THAT hope get dashed quick...
"And now to reveal myself. I am Maxwell Spencer, now known as Dark Max. I am from a different galaxy, and I am after Onbin."
"To feed on her fear?" Kojiro asked.
"SO MAX CAN ABSORB THOSE FEARS, AND GROW STRONGER! I AM A REPRODUCTION OF THE FEARS HE HAS ABSORBED."
"And now I finally have been awakened, after these many years. And my weaker half thought that Spirit Armor could save him. WRONG!"
Taiga immediately pushed the emergency button on her computer. Frankly, I didn't blame her.
This was NOT gonna be pretty...
