Disclaimer: I don't own anything here, save for the character of Serin.
Don't believe me? Look at my lifestyle.:P
Author's Notes: Well, even though he didn't leave a review(HINTHINT!), I have to give kudos to Deth Star Apocalypse for his help on my fic as well...the man is a VERY good sounding board, and without his help, it would have taken me even longer to get this update out. Check out his current fanfic, "A Watery Love" in the Secret of Mana section; DEFINITELY a good fic Just make sure you're nice to the guy by leaving a review too, okay?
Chapter Twelve
Naturally, everyone was cautious as they stepped out of the aircar that delivered the assault team to the NORAD ruins...moreso when they saw the remains of what had once been the excavation camp.
Mobile shelters were either scattered to the winds like tinker toys, or barely remained standing, resembling gutted, smoking hulks of debris. Knowing what their enemy was capable of, no one took too much time to look at any of the other forms that were scattered throughout the camp.
Fortunately, from what they were able to discern, the entrance seemed stable enough, and since Mercury had ascertained earlier that the reactors weren't nuclear, there was no danger of radiation.
With the briefest of pauses, Sephiroth stepped inside boldly, his Masamune sword resting casually over his shoulder, followed quickly by Saturn, and then the rest of the group.
The steep descent made for easy going, though the main challenge was keeping their balance. Serin was the worst off, as his armor kept throwing his balance off for one reason or another. Fortunately, he was able to get to the bottom in somewhat good shape.
Sephiroth surveyed the area quietly, his eyes peering around the deep hole. Strangely enough, the hole descended further, but with ledges that jutted out at key points in a spiral pattern, leading deeper into the depths of the planet. "Convenient," he muttered.
"What is?" Uranus asked quietly.
By way of answer, the swordsman gestured to the ledges, sure that she could see what he did. After a brief pause, she looked up at him with a sharp gaze, and asked, "Trap?"
In reply, he blinked, not having thought about that possibility. Closing his eyes briefly, he finally shook his head. "No," he said, opening his eyes. "But there is the chance that he will have left guards hiding on some of them. We'll have to be cautious." By an unspoken agreement, no one really cared to refer to their enemy by his name.
Uranus nodded and turned back to the others as Sephiroth jumped to the next one gracefully, landing on one knee as he scanned the ledge anew. Seeing nothing, he crossed it to the other side, and again hopped down, hearing light 'taps' behind him followed by a heavy 'thud', which brought a soft snort of laughter from the warrior. Hopping down to the next one, Sephiroth's neck hairs immediately stood on end. His eyes flicked over the area as he knelt, his body tensing for immediate movement. Nothing caught his eye, save for the four statues of demonic bird-like creatures...
Curiously, Sephiroth looked at the statues anew, a little amazed(and perturbed) at how life-like they were...almost as if...
Seemingly waiting for their cue, the statues suddenly crunched and began to move, dust and bits of stone falling from their bodies. Cursing suddenly, Sephiroth brought up his sword, and shouted back up, "Stand back! I got this one!"
Several taps(and another thud) answered him, leading him to believe that he wasn't being listened to. Venus' voice from behind him confirmed it: "Sorry, but we can't let you have all the glory, Sephiroth. You know what they say: 'All fun and no play makes for a dull person.' "
Sephiroth closed his eyes briefly, wondering how in the world the senshi of love could store so many proverbs so incorrectly. A hiss made him open his eyes again, and he adopted his traditional stance against the creatures as they turned baleful, crimson red eyes on the group.
Saturn scored first strike, shouting "Death Ribbon Revolution!" Seemingly hundreds of black ribbons raced forth, slicing into the stone skin of the gargoyles. Even though no blood was drawn, the shrieks of pain elicited from their mouths lent credence to the thought that they were hurting.
Uranus and Neptune combined their powers for a massive attack at that point, completely obliterating two of the creatures, and severely wounding the others. Serin rushed in then, bringing his sword down for a finishing strike, but his sword merely cause a loud 'CLANG!' on the beast's hide. Surprised, the paladin hopped back, confusion etched on his face.
Venus tried to capitalize on this moment as well, utilizing her Meteor Shower attack to strike both creatures at the same time. Her attack, however, had just as much effect as Serin's.
Sephiroth spoke up then, still in his stance. "Hold your fire...they're invulnerable right now. As soon as they start to move, hit them with everything you have, and don't miss."
Nodding, several of the senshi prepared some of their weaker attacks, figuring that would be all that was needed to finish them, while Serin prepared to strike with his weapon. Sure enough, after some time the gargoyles began to move as their eyes again glowed crimson.
"NOW!" Sephiroth commanded, dashing forward. Serin was only a step behind him, and ironically, the two of them converged their strikes on the same creature, neatly bisecting it. The senshi, on the other hand, fired their attacks at the other gargoyle, who died with as much fuss as its brethren had.
Serin looked back at the creature he had dual-killed with his companion, and grinned over at Sephiroth. "X-Strike," he joked.
The latter rolled his eyes as a grin appeared on his own face before walking back to rejoin their comrades. Saturn met him halfway, and asked curiously, "How did you know about these creatures, Seph?"
Sephiroth shrugged. "For lack of a better explanation, I'd have to say lucky guess...though we all know that's not it." Sighing, he added, "We've still got a ways to go. Let's hurry on. Hopefully, we won't get bogged down with anymore fights."
Jupiter muttered softly, "I wouldn't bet on it..."
------------------------------------------------------------------
No one was surprised at how much they got bogged down with fights...it seemed that every few steps, another monster stepped out to challenge them...though some of the monsters weren't hiding in ambush, instead blundering out and surprising the senshi and their allies as much as themselves.
For the most part, everyone took Sephiroth's advice seriously, although there was a scare when Serin got stabbed in the gut by a mole-like critter with a lantern and some monkish robes. The creature soon gained the ability to turn on a light bulb by clenching it in its teeth, though it was too dead to appreciate the ability Jupiter gave it. Fortunately, Saturn managed to heal the wound, despite how severe it was.
After a significant amount of travel time, the group reached a fork in the road, and paused to consider their options, as well as take a much- needed rest.
Sephiroth seemed to be the only one who wasn't tired, and he spent his time glancing at each path, rubbing his chin in thought. Before long, Saturn came up to him, reaching up to lay a hand on his shoulder. "Seph...sit, alright? You've been pushing yourself a lot, and you won't be any good if you keel over from exhaustion later."
The swordsman glanced back at his fiancee, and shrugged. "I suppose you're right," he replied simply, and followed her back to where the rest where cooling their heels. Conversation slowly died as he approached, but he didn't mind...if he DID have a link with their enemy, it was best not to let him know about their plans unless they absolutely had to.
The silence dragged on for some time, everyone looking uncomfortably at each other. Finally, Venus shook her head, sighed, and spoke up: "You know what I think we should do when we get back? We should take another day off from our duties! We can con Serenity into throwing another festival, make it citywide this time, and then we can all join in the fun."
Taking the cue, Jupiter grinned. "Sounds nice...just as long as we keep Sephiroth and Serin from competing against each other," she teased her husband.
Both mentioned blushed lightly at that while the senshi enjoyed a short laugh. Once the laughter died down, Sephiroth nodded with a slight smile. "I think that would be good, too...the queen seemed to really enjoy having her birthday off. And truth be told, it was nice for me to not have to worry about anything all day as well."
Everyone nodded silently in agreement there. The pause stretched for a few moments before Sephiroth finally stood, grunting softly as his legs protested. "I think we've rested about as much as we can afford, though...we should get going."
The others slowly stood as well, some protesting about the soreness of their legs more than others. "So...which way do we go?" Uranus asked.
"Left," the warrior answered with only a slight hesitation. "And don't ask me why, it's just...something..." his voice trailed off as he gazed at the path in question.
The senshi of silence took his hand, smiling when he looked at her. "It's okay, Seph. I trust you. Just remember that, alright?"
"...So...left it is, then?" Serin asked, making the decision official. Seeing no arguments being raised, the group turned as one and headed down the left path
------------------------------------------------------------
The left path led them first through a watery area, almost like a marsh, with plant-like tendrils dipping into the water nearly everywhere. The terrain itself was difficult to navigate, but several times the group was forced to battle on the precarious platforms and ledges. Everyone found themselves dropping into the water at one point or another, but quick reactions prevented anyone from being put in severe danger.
Upon entering the next 'room', the entire group stopped in wonder, several loosing gasps. Though it was little more than a simple, hollowed out cave, at the very center of the floor was a glowing green orb of some substance that shimmered beautifully. The moss that covered the ceiling only added to the effect, providing a type of tranquil effect similar to the 20th century fountains that were all the rage.
"...What the hell is this?" Uranus asked, breaking the awed silence. Everyone spread out, but slowly, for fear of shattering the peaceful atmosphere.
Sephiroth hesitantly approached the orb, kneeling next to it as he stared. His expression was blank for a moment, until several moments later, he blinked and nodded. Standing again, he gestured to it. "That...is part of the Lifestream of this planet."
Neptune gazed curiously at him. "Lifestream?" she asked quietly.
"Yeah...the planet's blood or power, for lack of a better term. This is what keeps a planet together and, to a degree, alive," he explained.
"It's beautiful," Saturn whispered, getting several murmurs of agreement from her friends.
"This is what my...our enemy is planning to absorb. If he absorbs the Lifestream, he'll be unstoppable...not to mention that the planet will crack apart and die, along with everything on it," the swordsman added.
"That won't happen," Jupiter firmly stated. "He's going down before it gets to that point."
"But if this is the case...why did he steal the Ginzuishou?" Venus queried.
"...I think because it will speed up the process. The Ginzuishou amplifies powers, among other things...if he uses it, he can suck up the Lifestream energy in a matter of days, rather than months," Sephiroth hypothesized.
The grim news settled in at that point, bringing fresh looks of determination to everyone's faces. "Then we'd better hurry before that happens...we can't have that much further to go, at least..."
"Right. Let's kick some butt, everyone! Semper fry!" Venus said.
"..." was the only response that answered her.
---------------------------------------------------
Thankfully, the group wasn't that far from their goal. After navigating some more ledges(and having a serious scare when a monk robed creature almost fatally stabbed Serin and Neptune), they finally reached what was obviously a straight drop to the core, emphasized not only by it's size, but also the fact that the Lifestream was so plentiful down there, one could almost swim in it. Sephiroth seemed to be reacting as well, alternately shaking his head and massaging his temples, as they prepared for the final descent.
Uranus, in an uncharacteristic thought, almost suggested he stay behind, but then thought better. 'He's almost as stubborn as me, after all,' she thought with a smirk.
After checking everyone out(and applying healing magic from Saturn, Serin, or Sephiroth where needed), the group paused and looked at each other once more. With a mutual nod, they jumped down.
Author's Notes: Well, even though he didn't leave a review(HINTHINT!), I have to give kudos to Deth Star Apocalypse for his help on my fic as well...the man is a VERY good sounding board, and without his help, it would have taken me even longer to get this update out. Check out his current fanfic, "A Watery Love" in the Secret of Mana section; DEFINITELY a good fic Just make sure you're nice to the guy by leaving a review too, okay?
Chapter Twelve
Naturally, everyone was cautious as they stepped out of the aircar that delivered the assault team to the NORAD ruins...moreso when they saw the remains of what had once been the excavation camp.
Mobile shelters were either scattered to the winds like tinker toys, or barely remained standing, resembling gutted, smoking hulks of debris. Knowing what their enemy was capable of, no one took too much time to look at any of the other forms that were scattered throughout the camp.
Fortunately, from what they were able to discern, the entrance seemed stable enough, and since Mercury had ascertained earlier that the reactors weren't nuclear, there was no danger of radiation.
With the briefest of pauses, Sephiroth stepped inside boldly, his Masamune sword resting casually over his shoulder, followed quickly by Saturn, and then the rest of the group.
The steep descent made for easy going, though the main challenge was keeping their balance. Serin was the worst off, as his armor kept throwing his balance off for one reason or another. Fortunately, he was able to get to the bottom in somewhat good shape.
Sephiroth surveyed the area quietly, his eyes peering around the deep hole. Strangely enough, the hole descended further, but with ledges that jutted out at key points in a spiral pattern, leading deeper into the depths of the planet. "Convenient," he muttered.
"What is?" Uranus asked quietly.
By way of answer, the swordsman gestured to the ledges, sure that she could see what he did. After a brief pause, she looked up at him with a sharp gaze, and asked, "Trap?"
In reply, he blinked, not having thought about that possibility. Closing his eyes briefly, he finally shook his head. "No," he said, opening his eyes. "But there is the chance that he will have left guards hiding on some of them. We'll have to be cautious." By an unspoken agreement, no one really cared to refer to their enemy by his name.
Uranus nodded and turned back to the others as Sephiroth jumped to the next one gracefully, landing on one knee as he scanned the ledge anew. Seeing nothing, he crossed it to the other side, and again hopped down, hearing light 'taps' behind him followed by a heavy 'thud', which brought a soft snort of laughter from the warrior. Hopping down to the next one, Sephiroth's neck hairs immediately stood on end. His eyes flicked over the area as he knelt, his body tensing for immediate movement. Nothing caught his eye, save for the four statues of demonic bird-like creatures...
Curiously, Sephiroth looked at the statues anew, a little amazed(and perturbed) at how life-like they were...almost as if...
Seemingly waiting for their cue, the statues suddenly crunched and began to move, dust and bits of stone falling from their bodies. Cursing suddenly, Sephiroth brought up his sword, and shouted back up, "Stand back! I got this one!"
Several taps(and another thud) answered him, leading him to believe that he wasn't being listened to. Venus' voice from behind him confirmed it: "Sorry, but we can't let you have all the glory, Sephiroth. You know what they say: 'All fun and no play makes for a dull person.' "
Sephiroth closed his eyes briefly, wondering how in the world the senshi of love could store so many proverbs so incorrectly. A hiss made him open his eyes again, and he adopted his traditional stance against the creatures as they turned baleful, crimson red eyes on the group.
Saturn scored first strike, shouting "Death Ribbon Revolution!" Seemingly hundreds of black ribbons raced forth, slicing into the stone skin of the gargoyles. Even though no blood was drawn, the shrieks of pain elicited from their mouths lent credence to the thought that they were hurting.
Uranus and Neptune combined their powers for a massive attack at that point, completely obliterating two of the creatures, and severely wounding the others. Serin rushed in then, bringing his sword down for a finishing strike, but his sword merely cause a loud 'CLANG!' on the beast's hide. Surprised, the paladin hopped back, confusion etched on his face.
Venus tried to capitalize on this moment as well, utilizing her Meteor Shower attack to strike both creatures at the same time. Her attack, however, had just as much effect as Serin's.
Sephiroth spoke up then, still in his stance. "Hold your fire...they're invulnerable right now. As soon as they start to move, hit them with everything you have, and don't miss."
Nodding, several of the senshi prepared some of their weaker attacks, figuring that would be all that was needed to finish them, while Serin prepared to strike with his weapon. Sure enough, after some time the gargoyles began to move as their eyes again glowed crimson.
"NOW!" Sephiroth commanded, dashing forward. Serin was only a step behind him, and ironically, the two of them converged their strikes on the same creature, neatly bisecting it. The senshi, on the other hand, fired their attacks at the other gargoyle, who died with as much fuss as its brethren had.
Serin looked back at the creature he had dual-killed with his companion, and grinned over at Sephiroth. "X-Strike," he joked.
The latter rolled his eyes as a grin appeared on his own face before walking back to rejoin their comrades. Saturn met him halfway, and asked curiously, "How did you know about these creatures, Seph?"
Sephiroth shrugged. "For lack of a better explanation, I'd have to say lucky guess...though we all know that's not it." Sighing, he added, "We've still got a ways to go. Let's hurry on. Hopefully, we won't get bogged down with anymore fights."
Jupiter muttered softly, "I wouldn't bet on it..."
------------------------------------------------------------------
No one was surprised at how much they got bogged down with fights...it seemed that every few steps, another monster stepped out to challenge them...though some of the monsters weren't hiding in ambush, instead blundering out and surprising the senshi and their allies as much as themselves.
For the most part, everyone took Sephiroth's advice seriously, although there was a scare when Serin got stabbed in the gut by a mole-like critter with a lantern and some monkish robes. The creature soon gained the ability to turn on a light bulb by clenching it in its teeth, though it was too dead to appreciate the ability Jupiter gave it. Fortunately, Saturn managed to heal the wound, despite how severe it was.
After a significant amount of travel time, the group reached a fork in the road, and paused to consider their options, as well as take a much- needed rest.
Sephiroth seemed to be the only one who wasn't tired, and he spent his time glancing at each path, rubbing his chin in thought. Before long, Saturn came up to him, reaching up to lay a hand on his shoulder. "Seph...sit, alright? You've been pushing yourself a lot, and you won't be any good if you keel over from exhaustion later."
The swordsman glanced back at his fiancee, and shrugged. "I suppose you're right," he replied simply, and followed her back to where the rest where cooling their heels. Conversation slowly died as he approached, but he didn't mind...if he DID have a link with their enemy, it was best not to let him know about their plans unless they absolutely had to.
The silence dragged on for some time, everyone looking uncomfortably at each other. Finally, Venus shook her head, sighed, and spoke up: "You know what I think we should do when we get back? We should take another day off from our duties! We can con Serenity into throwing another festival, make it citywide this time, and then we can all join in the fun."
Taking the cue, Jupiter grinned. "Sounds nice...just as long as we keep Sephiroth and Serin from competing against each other," she teased her husband.
Both mentioned blushed lightly at that while the senshi enjoyed a short laugh. Once the laughter died down, Sephiroth nodded with a slight smile. "I think that would be good, too...the queen seemed to really enjoy having her birthday off. And truth be told, it was nice for me to not have to worry about anything all day as well."
Everyone nodded silently in agreement there. The pause stretched for a few moments before Sephiroth finally stood, grunting softly as his legs protested. "I think we've rested about as much as we can afford, though...we should get going."
The others slowly stood as well, some protesting about the soreness of their legs more than others. "So...which way do we go?" Uranus asked.
"Left," the warrior answered with only a slight hesitation. "And don't ask me why, it's just...something..." his voice trailed off as he gazed at the path in question.
The senshi of silence took his hand, smiling when he looked at her. "It's okay, Seph. I trust you. Just remember that, alright?"
"...So...left it is, then?" Serin asked, making the decision official. Seeing no arguments being raised, the group turned as one and headed down the left path
------------------------------------------------------------
The left path led them first through a watery area, almost like a marsh, with plant-like tendrils dipping into the water nearly everywhere. The terrain itself was difficult to navigate, but several times the group was forced to battle on the precarious platforms and ledges. Everyone found themselves dropping into the water at one point or another, but quick reactions prevented anyone from being put in severe danger.
Upon entering the next 'room', the entire group stopped in wonder, several loosing gasps. Though it was little more than a simple, hollowed out cave, at the very center of the floor was a glowing green orb of some substance that shimmered beautifully. The moss that covered the ceiling only added to the effect, providing a type of tranquil effect similar to the 20th century fountains that were all the rage.
"...What the hell is this?" Uranus asked, breaking the awed silence. Everyone spread out, but slowly, for fear of shattering the peaceful atmosphere.
Sephiroth hesitantly approached the orb, kneeling next to it as he stared. His expression was blank for a moment, until several moments later, he blinked and nodded. Standing again, he gestured to it. "That...is part of the Lifestream of this planet."
Neptune gazed curiously at him. "Lifestream?" she asked quietly.
"Yeah...the planet's blood or power, for lack of a better term. This is what keeps a planet together and, to a degree, alive," he explained.
"It's beautiful," Saturn whispered, getting several murmurs of agreement from her friends.
"This is what my...our enemy is planning to absorb. If he absorbs the Lifestream, he'll be unstoppable...not to mention that the planet will crack apart and die, along with everything on it," the swordsman added.
"That won't happen," Jupiter firmly stated. "He's going down before it gets to that point."
"But if this is the case...why did he steal the Ginzuishou?" Venus queried.
"...I think because it will speed up the process. The Ginzuishou amplifies powers, among other things...if he uses it, he can suck up the Lifestream energy in a matter of days, rather than months," Sephiroth hypothesized.
The grim news settled in at that point, bringing fresh looks of determination to everyone's faces. "Then we'd better hurry before that happens...we can't have that much further to go, at least..."
"Right. Let's kick some butt, everyone! Semper fry!" Venus said.
"..." was the only response that answered her.
---------------------------------------------------
Thankfully, the group wasn't that far from their goal. After navigating some more ledges(and having a serious scare when a monk robed creature almost fatally stabbed Serin and Neptune), they finally reached what was obviously a straight drop to the core, emphasized not only by it's size, but also the fact that the Lifestream was so plentiful down there, one could almost swim in it. Sephiroth seemed to be reacting as well, alternately shaking his head and massaging his temples, as they prepared for the final descent.
Uranus, in an uncharacteristic thought, almost suggested he stay behind, but then thought better. 'He's almost as stubborn as me, after all,' she thought with a smirk.
After checking everyone out(and applying healing magic from Saturn, Serin, or Sephiroth where needed), the group paused and looked at each other once more. With a mutual nod, they jumped down.