Authors Note:
I do apologize for the typo in the last chapter. This chapter will be
titled "Between Heaven and Hell"; NEXT Chapter will be "Knives May Wound,
But Silence Cuts Deeper." Also, it said that the Trigun cast would take
care of 3 girls, it should be 2. Again, sorry for the typos, it shouldn't
cause many problems though.
Fiona X
Gunsmoke in the Moonlight
Chapter 3: Between Heaven and Hell.
Ami opened her eyes painfully. They felt heavy and weak, as did her body, like she was swimming in an enormous vat of ice water. Even her brain felt heavy.
"Where..Am...I?" She wondered groggily, waving her arms through the darkness around her. She was naked, and freezing, that's all she knew. Every time she tried to think, the pain in her ribs nearly doubled her over.
After a few moments of treading water in silence, the pain subsided, and her mind became more agile and clear. That is when one thought hit her so hard that her mind jumpstarted.
"Am I... Dead??" She whispered, her eyes growing wide at the thought. She had always believed that there was nothing after death, no afterlife, and no reincarnation. That is, before she became a senshi and all her knowledge of what was possible was thrown away. But now she wondered if she had been right, for this nothingness around her certainly felt like death.
As these thoughts raced through her head, she failed to notice a bright light breaking through the darkness behind her. Out of that light, a figure approached her clad only in a silvery blue aura. Suddenly aware of a presence behind her, Ami whirled about and found herself face to face...with herself.
"W..What?" Her mind screamed in confusion, and she lashed out in sudden animal fear.
In a hospital on Gunsmoke
" Doctor! The patient is reacting, I can't hold her down!" a frantic nurse cried from one of the few tiny rooms in the tiny hospital, desperately trying to hold their newest patient, a lovely blue haired Jane Doe, to the operating table.
"Quick, give her a sedative, she could die if she breaks open her wounds again!" The doctor barked, pulling off his bloodied gloves he had been wearing during the procedure in exchange for a fresher pair. He rushed to the nurse's side and forces Ami's writhing body down to the table while the nurse hurriedly prepared a syringe with the thick clear liquid that would hopefully calm her down. "Hurry up God Damnit! This girls a wild cat, I can't hold her for long"
The blue haired girl's body writhed on the table in apparent agony, her mouth opening in mute screams. She showed surprising strength for someone who had been nearly broken into thousands of pieces.
"What is this nurse? What brought this on, I thought you said she was stabilizing?" The doctor questioned the nurse, his normally calm face turning a ghastly shade of red.
"I..I dunno sir, she was fine for nearly 3 hours, and then suddenly she starts screaming" The nurse managed to stammer as she attempted to wrap Ami's thrashing arm in a plastic band.
And then, as suddenly as it came, the attack ceased, leaving the girl limp and the doctor and nurse exhausted. The agitated doctor turned to his nurse, who was cowering in the corner. "Go..." he started, and paused, looking at the effect his words had on the already pale woman. Sighing he pointed towards the waiting room, "... and get the women who brought her in, they might be able to answer some questions."
The nurse nodded mutely, but her faced relaxed into a look of relief as she jumped up and ran into the next room. The doctor turned to his troublesome patient. Staring down at her inert form, he shuddered "We haven't had this much trouble since Vash the Stampede rode through here.... How could such a little thing cause so much stir?" He wondered silently as he bent down and brushed the sweat soaked hair from her forehead in a fatherly way. Leaning close he whispered into her ear.
"Who are you?"
Inside Ami's mind.
The apparition cocked her head and laughed at Ami's question of who she was. The laugh sent shivers down Ami's spine, and almost made her start the flailing that she had just managed to cease. That laugh was hers.
"I am you Ami..." Was all it said.
"My ghost you mean..." Ami retorted, but her mind was screaming 'that face, that voice, that laugh, all mine, ALL MINE!'
Again the ghost laughed, this time placing her hand on Ami's shoulder. Her touch was surprisingly calming, nothing like the coldness that Ami expected from a phantom. The image smiled softly at Ami and after an eternity of silence, spoke.
"You know we do not believe in ghosts, it is illogical. There is nothing that supports such ludicrous theories, therefore I cannot possibly be your ghost."
"B..But.." Ami started, but the not-ghost silenced her by placing a white finger upon her lips.
"You are not dead, Ami dearest, only asleep." Said she.
"Then I will awake at home, and all this pain is but a bad dream?" Ami asked, her face brightening at the idea. But the ghost's face saddened at her joy and she stroked Ami's face maternally. Suddenly Ami understood.
"No..It's not that kind of dream at all is it? This all really happened. We really did lose our..." Ami started to talk herself through the confusion. Everything that seemed out of place clicked easily back in as the memories raced around in her head. She remembered entering the gate at the Halls of Time into a void that seemed eerier then normal (Which was hard to imagine, considering all the voids in the Halls of Time were eerie.) They were floating hand in hand as Usagi concentrated on the Silver Crystals power in order to create a link to her brothers. Ami couldn't recall the sensation that caused her to lose consciousness, but she remembered that it hurt terribly. Terrible enough to cause her to lose her grip on her leader. The thought hit her like a ton of bricks, and she blanched. "Our.. Princess?"
In her ponderings, she had failed to see her ghost disappear in another flash of light, leaving her at once alone and desolate with her new horror. But then, her mind was too far into the throes of disbelief to care.
'What have I done? I have lost her...'
'Usagi'
Back in the hospital.
"Not AGAIN!" Moaned the doctor, rushing to room 2B, where yet again, the blue haired girl was screaming. The nurses scattered out of his way as he ran in to sedate her. He forcibly held her arm straight so the nurse could administer the sedative. The long needle barely pierced her skin when her whole body arched off the table, her flailing arms sending the doctor and the nurse flying across the room. Her convulsions rocketed her to a sitting position and her eyes flew open, revealing frightened blue orbs.
"Hurry, get those girls who brought her in! Maybe they can help!" The doctor shouted, yet again sending the quivering nurse scrambling to the waiting room in the front.
"It's going to be ok miss.." He tried to console the sobbing girl, raising his hands in a peaceful gesture as he inched towards her, preparing to wrestle her again. Ami regarded him with wide wild eyes and she quit convulsing, leaving her breathless and exhausted, as if all the fight had gone out of her. Her body shuddered involuntarily and she clutched the blankets to her as if she was freezing. After a few agonizing minutes of silence, she finally spoke, her delicate voice barely above a whisper. The Doctor strained to hear, but he could only catch a few of her inane mumblings.
"Who... Who am I?"
2 Hours Later
Ami's eyes opened slowly, blinking against the light overhead. She could barely make out two figures looking down at her. After a second her eyes focused and she found herself looking up at two young women. The long haired one smiled broadly, her light blue eyes twinkling. "Gooooood aaaaafternoooon, goddess."
The dark haired girl glared at her friend "Don't call her that...." but she was cut off when Ami sat up, reeling momentarily. The woman grabbed her arm to steady her.
"G...Goddess?" Ami coughed, unable to make out what the woman meant. "W..What do you mean?"
"Well..." The taller woman started, but the brunette put her hand on her arm to stop her.
"What? What is it! TELL ME!" Ami cried, gripping the white cloth of the brunette's sleeve tightly. The woman's hard eyes softened at the terrified look in the girls eyes and sighed.
'Go ahead Millie... tell her." She said, nodding at the other woman. The woman called Millie smiled happily, like a child who had been given a huge bar of candy. Turning to Ami, she started reliving the story in vivid metaphors.
"Well... I was at work yesterday, digging another well for the town.... and...."
Flashback
Millie watched over her five workers with doglike perseverance. It was a hard job, being the Forman over 5 burly men who already resented her for being a woman. But the boss thought she could do the job, so he promoted her to the digging of another well in the Northern part of town. The current well was running low, and it was predicted to run out soon, if they didn't find another water source.
The boss was skeptical of the water douser that claimed a small patch of bare dirt and sand was another well site, and was even more disbelieving when Millie and her teamed worked for 5 days digging and still hadn't found even a single damp spot.
"OOOOOOKAY boys!" Millie cried, smiling happily and waving her men out of the growing hole. She had noticed the wind pick up, and the clouds that gathered ominously overhead, and thought it best that the men not be out in such threatening conditions. "It looks like another sand storm, so we better pick up and start again tomorrow!"
The men crawled out and moaned. Moral was down, no matter how much Millie tried to lighten things up, buying them rounds of beer and letting have longer smoke breaks. They got little money, worked long days in the hot sun, and still hadn't struck water. Not to mention they resented being bossed around by a female who acted half her age. But they had to obey.
One big black guy, named Carters, climbed out last, and most grudgingly, brushing Millie's offered hand with a flick of his wrist. He was the most vocal of the workers and never ceased to ridicule Millie behind her back. No sooner had he climbed out from the hole, did he saunter over to his coworkers and start grumbling,
"Damn woman.... bossing us around like we are God damn children." He growled, eliciting several nods and grunts of agreement from his fellow men. " I bet we never find water.... fucking bad luck, women..."
No sooner had he said it when the sky exploded with a fury, sending brilliant burst of light in all directions. The people standing around in the square, enthralled by the flashing lights, screamed and threw themselves to the ground. One burst of light, blue in hue, buried itself in the middle of the north square. The citizens cried and waved their arms aimlessly through the dust that ensued the crash, unable to see their own hands in the chaos.
But their cried turned to laughs as the dust was tampered down, by something they had never felt before. Rain. It was a true storm, one they had heard of in legends. Where water fell from the sky in heavy drops and children tramped around in the ankle deep puddles. Their dwindling hopes soared at the thought of green grass and shading tress nurtured by this phenomenon from a god they had thought died.
But like all good things on Gunsmoke, this too soon stopped. And the villagers saw another phenomenon, the well was shooting the water high into the now cloudless sky. In the midst of the spouting water, the figure of a woman floated. Slowly the wondrous downpour ceased, and only the girl remained as the puddles were greedily drunk in by the dry earth and the mist dissipated by the harsh wind. She was truly a sight. Her skin was icy pale, not wind or sunburned. Her hair was the oddest shade of blue, unnatural as many of the villagers gossiped. It was decided she was an Goddess, sent to Gunsmoke to deliver her chosen people by bringing water, that now filled the well nearly to the brim.
The people gathered around, Even Carters, although he was obviously pissed that he was proven wrong on many counts. Finally, after a while of flabbergasted staring and unspoken whispers, a man stepped forth and extended his arm, prodding her gently in the arm.
No sooner had the man touched her then did a ripping sound send the gatherers several steps back. They screamed in horror as her body shredded into countless lacerations, some so deep they could see the stark whiteness of her bones against the spewing crimson. Several women, as well as the unfortunate man who touched her, fainted soundly, nearly trampled by the onslaught of frightened onlookers trying to tear themselves away.
End of Flashback
"It's amazing you're alive!" Millie exclaimed, her blue eyes tearing up at the memory. "We rushed you here as soon as possible, and the Doc managed to fix you up...."
"The whole town is talking about you two.." Meryl stated matter-of-factly, "in fact there hasn't been this much buzz since Vash showed up last ye...."
"We two?" Ami interrupted, raising her eyebrows at Meryl's words.
"Oh yes.... right after you were fixed up, another girl was brought in, with wounds just like yours. A blond girl.... she's right behind this curtain..." Millie said pointing to the curtained bed next to Ami.
Ami feebly raised her head and followed Millie's outstretched arm. She could see the faint outline of a woman lying in a bed. Her breath was barely visible, accentuated only by the slight rise and fall of the silhouetted chest. Ami suddenly had a vision of a golden haired woman who looked at her pleadingly, as if in need.
Usagi....
"Who or what is a Usagi?" A male voice startled Ami out of her vision, and she whirled around to see who had spoken to her.
Did he read my mind? She thought wildly, her head spinning momentarily from the sudden movement. Her eyes focused on her inquisitor and she saw a tall dark man in the corner, wearing a white smock that barely reached his knees, she assumed it was a hospital gown. Next to him was a bag of clothing that seemed, by all appearances, to either have a confusing color scheme or were splattered in blood. He lifted an unlit cigarette to his lips, and began to light it, but stopped when Millie sent him a look.
"I'll repeat, Who or What is a Usagi? You and that other chick have been yelling that name off and on for the past hour." He said, his voice rising slightly in annoyance.
"I...I don't know, who... I think it's a who, who Usagi is. " Ami said quietly, remembering the sad face in her vision, "But feel as if she is in need...."
In the Middle of Nowhere
The cave, hidden for centuries from the vicious winds and burning heat of the desert, was very wet. The animals that lived there, if you could call the furless, eyeless slug-like beings that crept along the cave walls animals, liked it there. So the sudden intrusion of a being like they never seen (well, never heard really, they were utterly blind) left them quite a bit out of sorts. Its appearance was followed by burning light that shriveled their bodies and dried up their life giving puddles. Their primitive minds equated it with death, and they avoided it as such, leaving it to rest in the circle of light created by its descent.
It lay there, unmoving, not even a breath escaped its body. It seemed dead to them, its body so still, with its long tentacle like appendages intruding en mass from its head floating like a pale halo in the pool it landed in. They sniffed it, wondering if it was good to eat. But a soft burst of air from its lips sent the beings scrambling in terror, it was still very much alive. Although no one knew how long. The only measure of life, excluding the rare and unpredictable breaths, was the soft silver aura that surrounded it, illuminating the cave as that burning ball of flame laid to rest outside. It grew paler every few hours, and the beings waited.
Soon they thought amongst themselves, it would disappear, and they would feast.
Back at the hospital, 5 hours later
Ami sat up in her hospital bed, wide awake although everyone, including the night nurse, had left an hour earlier. She couldn't asleep, not with that nagging vision of that mysterious girl haunting her every dream. She couldn't shake the dreary feeling that she was in trouble, and expecting Ami to save her.
"Alright girl," Ami spoke out of no where, breaking the monotonous silence so suddenly that she jumped at the sound of her own voice. But the comfort of a human voice calmed her, despite the fact it was her own, and she said it again, louder and stronger this time. "Alright girl, let's try to figure this out, who am I? Where am I? And what the hell have I done up to this point?"
She pondered silently for a moment, trying to answer her own questions.
My Name is Ami.... I think. At least it feels like it should be. I don't know why though. Nor do I know my last name.... or how old I am.... or where I come from. I am on Gunsmoke, but I don't know where or what it is. I feel like I am a stranger here, like I have never been here before... but I don't know where I was before. In fact, other then my name...... I have no idea who I am!
This last rambling thought made Ami's head spin, so she allowed her weak body to fall back into the soft pillows. Her body screamed for her to sleep, but that damn vision kept popping up every time her lids drooped. She couldn't sleep, not until she knew what it was all about.
Then she recalled something that woman Millie said:
' Right after you were fixed up, another girl was brought in, with wounds just like yours. A blond girl.... she's right behind this curtain...'
"Maybe, just maybe, she is the answer" Ami muttered to herself, slowly swinging her legs over the aluminum rails of the bed. She whimpered in agony as the torn balls of her feet hit the cold floor. She dropped back down on the bed and laid there for a moment, recovering from the sudden pain.
I can't stop now, she said to herself, I must know who she is...
Forcing herself to a standing position once more, Ami winced against the sharp pain running up her legs, and managed to take a few steps. She fell as soon as she let go of the railings, and grabbed the only thing in her reach, the curtain separating her and her goal. The curtain slid easily along its track, dragging Ami reluctantly with it. It propelled its unfortunate traveler into the bed on the other side.
Ami found herself staring into the face of a woman with golden blond hair. Her hair, which looked as though it was once full and soft, hung limply around the girl's face, evidence of a tattered red bow still clinging to a chunk in back.
I..don't think she is the one... even though she has blond hair, Ami thought silently as she inspected the girl in front of her.
Her theory was proven shortly, when the girls eyes opened suddenly, revealing a deep cornflower blue that was more peevish then sad. She cocked her blond brows sarcastically and looked up at Ami. After a moment of quiet contemplation on both their parts, the blond spoke.
"Umm.... I'm Minako..... Who the hell are you?"
End Chapter 3
Sorry about the confusion with this chapter. Next chapter will have Knives and Hotaru in it.
Chapter 4: Knives may wound, but Silence cuts deeper
What will Ami and Minako do when the only link to their past disappears through a mysterious doorway out of nowhere? And what about those other streaks of light? Also, Knives goes to find out who did some involuntary plowing of his garden, and finds a dark stranger instead. But just how deep does that darkness go? Find out in the next installment of Gunsmoke in the Moonlight
Fiona X
Gunsmoke in the Moonlight
Chapter 3: Between Heaven and Hell.
Ami opened her eyes painfully. They felt heavy and weak, as did her body, like she was swimming in an enormous vat of ice water. Even her brain felt heavy.
"Where..Am...I?" She wondered groggily, waving her arms through the darkness around her. She was naked, and freezing, that's all she knew. Every time she tried to think, the pain in her ribs nearly doubled her over.
After a few moments of treading water in silence, the pain subsided, and her mind became more agile and clear. That is when one thought hit her so hard that her mind jumpstarted.
"Am I... Dead??" She whispered, her eyes growing wide at the thought. She had always believed that there was nothing after death, no afterlife, and no reincarnation. That is, before she became a senshi and all her knowledge of what was possible was thrown away. But now she wondered if she had been right, for this nothingness around her certainly felt like death.
As these thoughts raced through her head, she failed to notice a bright light breaking through the darkness behind her. Out of that light, a figure approached her clad only in a silvery blue aura. Suddenly aware of a presence behind her, Ami whirled about and found herself face to face...with herself.
"W..What?" Her mind screamed in confusion, and she lashed out in sudden animal fear.
In a hospital on Gunsmoke
" Doctor! The patient is reacting, I can't hold her down!" a frantic nurse cried from one of the few tiny rooms in the tiny hospital, desperately trying to hold their newest patient, a lovely blue haired Jane Doe, to the operating table.
"Quick, give her a sedative, she could die if she breaks open her wounds again!" The doctor barked, pulling off his bloodied gloves he had been wearing during the procedure in exchange for a fresher pair. He rushed to the nurse's side and forces Ami's writhing body down to the table while the nurse hurriedly prepared a syringe with the thick clear liquid that would hopefully calm her down. "Hurry up God Damnit! This girls a wild cat, I can't hold her for long"
The blue haired girl's body writhed on the table in apparent agony, her mouth opening in mute screams. She showed surprising strength for someone who had been nearly broken into thousands of pieces.
"What is this nurse? What brought this on, I thought you said she was stabilizing?" The doctor questioned the nurse, his normally calm face turning a ghastly shade of red.
"I..I dunno sir, she was fine for nearly 3 hours, and then suddenly she starts screaming" The nurse managed to stammer as she attempted to wrap Ami's thrashing arm in a plastic band.
And then, as suddenly as it came, the attack ceased, leaving the girl limp and the doctor and nurse exhausted. The agitated doctor turned to his nurse, who was cowering in the corner. "Go..." he started, and paused, looking at the effect his words had on the already pale woman. Sighing he pointed towards the waiting room, "... and get the women who brought her in, they might be able to answer some questions."
The nurse nodded mutely, but her faced relaxed into a look of relief as she jumped up and ran into the next room. The doctor turned to his troublesome patient. Staring down at her inert form, he shuddered "We haven't had this much trouble since Vash the Stampede rode through here.... How could such a little thing cause so much stir?" He wondered silently as he bent down and brushed the sweat soaked hair from her forehead in a fatherly way. Leaning close he whispered into her ear.
"Who are you?"
Inside Ami's mind.
The apparition cocked her head and laughed at Ami's question of who she was. The laugh sent shivers down Ami's spine, and almost made her start the flailing that she had just managed to cease. That laugh was hers.
"I am you Ami..." Was all it said.
"My ghost you mean..." Ami retorted, but her mind was screaming 'that face, that voice, that laugh, all mine, ALL MINE!'
Again the ghost laughed, this time placing her hand on Ami's shoulder. Her touch was surprisingly calming, nothing like the coldness that Ami expected from a phantom. The image smiled softly at Ami and after an eternity of silence, spoke.
"You know we do not believe in ghosts, it is illogical. There is nothing that supports such ludicrous theories, therefore I cannot possibly be your ghost."
"B..But.." Ami started, but the not-ghost silenced her by placing a white finger upon her lips.
"You are not dead, Ami dearest, only asleep." Said she.
"Then I will awake at home, and all this pain is but a bad dream?" Ami asked, her face brightening at the idea. But the ghost's face saddened at her joy and she stroked Ami's face maternally. Suddenly Ami understood.
"No..It's not that kind of dream at all is it? This all really happened. We really did lose our..." Ami started to talk herself through the confusion. Everything that seemed out of place clicked easily back in as the memories raced around in her head. She remembered entering the gate at the Halls of Time into a void that seemed eerier then normal (Which was hard to imagine, considering all the voids in the Halls of Time were eerie.) They were floating hand in hand as Usagi concentrated on the Silver Crystals power in order to create a link to her brothers. Ami couldn't recall the sensation that caused her to lose consciousness, but she remembered that it hurt terribly. Terrible enough to cause her to lose her grip on her leader. The thought hit her like a ton of bricks, and she blanched. "Our.. Princess?"
In her ponderings, she had failed to see her ghost disappear in another flash of light, leaving her at once alone and desolate with her new horror. But then, her mind was too far into the throes of disbelief to care.
'What have I done? I have lost her...'
'Usagi'
Back in the hospital.
"Not AGAIN!" Moaned the doctor, rushing to room 2B, where yet again, the blue haired girl was screaming. The nurses scattered out of his way as he ran in to sedate her. He forcibly held her arm straight so the nurse could administer the sedative. The long needle barely pierced her skin when her whole body arched off the table, her flailing arms sending the doctor and the nurse flying across the room. Her convulsions rocketed her to a sitting position and her eyes flew open, revealing frightened blue orbs.
"Hurry, get those girls who brought her in! Maybe they can help!" The doctor shouted, yet again sending the quivering nurse scrambling to the waiting room in the front.
"It's going to be ok miss.." He tried to console the sobbing girl, raising his hands in a peaceful gesture as he inched towards her, preparing to wrestle her again. Ami regarded him with wide wild eyes and she quit convulsing, leaving her breathless and exhausted, as if all the fight had gone out of her. Her body shuddered involuntarily and she clutched the blankets to her as if she was freezing. After a few agonizing minutes of silence, she finally spoke, her delicate voice barely above a whisper. The Doctor strained to hear, but he could only catch a few of her inane mumblings.
"Who... Who am I?"
2 Hours Later
Ami's eyes opened slowly, blinking against the light overhead. She could barely make out two figures looking down at her. After a second her eyes focused and she found herself looking up at two young women. The long haired one smiled broadly, her light blue eyes twinkling. "Gooooood aaaaafternoooon, goddess."
The dark haired girl glared at her friend "Don't call her that...." but she was cut off when Ami sat up, reeling momentarily. The woman grabbed her arm to steady her.
"G...Goddess?" Ami coughed, unable to make out what the woman meant. "W..What do you mean?"
"Well..." The taller woman started, but the brunette put her hand on her arm to stop her.
"What? What is it! TELL ME!" Ami cried, gripping the white cloth of the brunette's sleeve tightly. The woman's hard eyes softened at the terrified look in the girls eyes and sighed.
'Go ahead Millie... tell her." She said, nodding at the other woman. The woman called Millie smiled happily, like a child who had been given a huge bar of candy. Turning to Ami, she started reliving the story in vivid metaphors.
"Well... I was at work yesterday, digging another well for the town.... and...."
Flashback
Millie watched over her five workers with doglike perseverance. It was a hard job, being the Forman over 5 burly men who already resented her for being a woman. But the boss thought she could do the job, so he promoted her to the digging of another well in the Northern part of town. The current well was running low, and it was predicted to run out soon, if they didn't find another water source.
The boss was skeptical of the water douser that claimed a small patch of bare dirt and sand was another well site, and was even more disbelieving when Millie and her teamed worked for 5 days digging and still hadn't found even a single damp spot.
"OOOOOOKAY boys!" Millie cried, smiling happily and waving her men out of the growing hole. She had noticed the wind pick up, and the clouds that gathered ominously overhead, and thought it best that the men not be out in such threatening conditions. "It looks like another sand storm, so we better pick up and start again tomorrow!"
The men crawled out and moaned. Moral was down, no matter how much Millie tried to lighten things up, buying them rounds of beer and letting have longer smoke breaks. They got little money, worked long days in the hot sun, and still hadn't struck water. Not to mention they resented being bossed around by a female who acted half her age. But they had to obey.
One big black guy, named Carters, climbed out last, and most grudgingly, brushing Millie's offered hand with a flick of his wrist. He was the most vocal of the workers and never ceased to ridicule Millie behind her back. No sooner had he climbed out from the hole, did he saunter over to his coworkers and start grumbling,
"Damn woman.... bossing us around like we are God damn children." He growled, eliciting several nods and grunts of agreement from his fellow men. " I bet we never find water.... fucking bad luck, women..."
No sooner had he said it when the sky exploded with a fury, sending brilliant burst of light in all directions. The people standing around in the square, enthralled by the flashing lights, screamed and threw themselves to the ground. One burst of light, blue in hue, buried itself in the middle of the north square. The citizens cried and waved their arms aimlessly through the dust that ensued the crash, unable to see their own hands in the chaos.
But their cried turned to laughs as the dust was tampered down, by something they had never felt before. Rain. It was a true storm, one they had heard of in legends. Where water fell from the sky in heavy drops and children tramped around in the ankle deep puddles. Their dwindling hopes soared at the thought of green grass and shading tress nurtured by this phenomenon from a god they had thought died.
But like all good things on Gunsmoke, this too soon stopped. And the villagers saw another phenomenon, the well was shooting the water high into the now cloudless sky. In the midst of the spouting water, the figure of a woman floated. Slowly the wondrous downpour ceased, and only the girl remained as the puddles were greedily drunk in by the dry earth and the mist dissipated by the harsh wind. She was truly a sight. Her skin was icy pale, not wind or sunburned. Her hair was the oddest shade of blue, unnatural as many of the villagers gossiped. It was decided she was an Goddess, sent to Gunsmoke to deliver her chosen people by bringing water, that now filled the well nearly to the brim.
The people gathered around, Even Carters, although he was obviously pissed that he was proven wrong on many counts. Finally, after a while of flabbergasted staring and unspoken whispers, a man stepped forth and extended his arm, prodding her gently in the arm.
No sooner had the man touched her then did a ripping sound send the gatherers several steps back. They screamed in horror as her body shredded into countless lacerations, some so deep they could see the stark whiteness of her bones against the spewing crimson. Several women, as well as the unfortunate man who touched her, fainted soundly, nearly trampled by the onslaught of frightened onlookers trying to tear themselves away.
End of Flashback
"It's amazing you're alive!" Millie exclaimed, her blue eyes tearing up at the memory. "We rushed you here as soon as possible, and the Doc managed to fix you up...."
"The whole town is talking about you two.." Meryl stated matter-of-factly, "in fact there hasn't been this much buzz since Vash showed up last ye...."
"We two?" Ami interrupted, raising her eyebrows at Meryl's words.
"Oh yes.... right after you were fixed up, another girl was brought in, with wounds just like yours. A blond girl.... she's right behind this curtain..." Millie said pointing to the curtained bed next to Ami.
Ami feebly raised her head and followed Millie's outstretched arm. She could see the faint outline of a woman lying in a bed. Her breath was barely visible, accentuated only by the slight rise and fall of the silhouetted chest. Ami suddenly had a vision of a golden haired woman who looked at her pleadingly, as if in need.
Usagi....
"Who or what is a Usagi?" A male voice startled Ami out of her vision, and she whirled around to see who had spoken to her.
Did he read my mind? She thought wildly, her head spinning momentarily from the sudden movement. Her eyes focused on her inquisitor and she saw a tall dark man in the corner, wearing a white smock that barely reached his knees, she assumed it was a hospital gown. Next to him was a bag of clothing that seemed, by all appearances, to either have a confusing color scheme or were splattered in blood. He lifted an unlit cigarette to his lips, and began to light it, but stopped when Millie sent him a look.
"I'll repeat, Who or What is a Usagi? You and that other chick have been yelling that name off and on for the past hour." He said, his voice rising slightly in annoyance.
"I...I don't know, who... I think it's a who, who Usagi is. " Ami said quietly, remembering the sad face in her vision, "But feel as if she is in need...."
In the Middle of Nowhere
The cave, hidden for centuries from the vicious winds and burning heat of the desert, was very wet. The animals that lived there, if you could call the furless, eyeless slug-like beings that crept along the cave walls animals, liked it there. So the sudden intrusion of a being like they never seen (well, never heard really, they were utterly blind) left them quite a bit out of sorts. Its appearance was followed by burning light that shriveled their bodies and dried up their life giving puddles. Their primitive minds equated it with death, and they avoided it as such, leaving it to rest in the circle of light created by its descent.
It lay there, unmoving, not even a breath escaped its body. It seemed dead to them, its body so still, with its long tentacle like appendages intruding en mass from its head floating like a pale halo in the pool it landed in. They sniffed it, wondering if it was good to eat. But a soft burst of air from its lips sent the beings scrambling in terror, it was still very much alive. Although no one knew how long. The only measure of life, excluding the rare and unpredictable breaths, was the soft silver aura that surrounded it, illuminating the cave as that burning ball of flame laid to rest outside. It grew paler every few hours, and the beings waited.
Soon they thought amongst themselves, it would disappear, and they would feast.
Back at the hospital, 5 hours later
Ami sat up in her hospital bed, wide awake although everyone, including the night nurse, had left an hour earlier. She couldn't asleep, not with that nagging vision of that mysterious girl haunting her every dream. She couldn't shake the dreary feeling that she was in trouble, and expecting Ami to save her.
"Alright girl," Ami spoke out of no where, breaking the monotonous silence so suddenly that she jumped at the sound of her own voice. But the comfort of a human voice calmed her, despite the fact it was her own, and she said it again, louder and stronger this time. "Alright girl, let's try to figure this out, who am I? Where am I? And what the hell have I done up to this point?"
She pondered silently for a moment, trying to answer her own questions.
My Name is Ami.... I think. At least it feels like it should be. I don't know why though. Nor do I know my last name.... or how old I am.... or where I come from. I am on Gunsmoke, but I don't know where or what it is. I feel like I am a stranger here, like I have never been here before... but I don't know where I was before. In fact, other then my name...... I have no idea who I am!
This last rambling thought made Ami's head spin, so she allowed her weak body to fall back into the soft pillows. Her body screamed for her to sleep, but that damn vision kept popping up every time her lids drooped. She couldn't sleep, not until she knew what it was all about.
Then she recalled something that woman Millie said:
' Right after you were fixed up, another girl was brought in, with wounds just like yours. A blond girl.... she's right behind this curtain...'
"Maybe, just maybe, she is the answer" Ami muttered to herself, slowly swinging her legs over the aluminum rails of the bed. She whimpered in agony as the torn balls of her feet hit the cold floor. She dropped back down on the bed and laid there for a moment, recovering from the sudden pain.
I can't stop now, she said to herself, I must know who she is...
Forcing herself to a standing position once more, Ami winced against the sharp pain running up her legs, and managed to take a few steps. She fell as soon as she let go of the railings, and grabbed the only thing in her reach, the curtain separating her and her goal. The curtain slid easily along its track, dragging Ami reluctantly with it. It propelled its unfortunate traveler into the bed on the other side.
Ami found herself staring into the face of a woman with golden blond hair. Her hair, which looked as though it was once full and soft, hung limply around the girl's face, evidence of a tattered red bow still clinging to a chunk in back.
I..don't think she is the one... even though she has blond hair, Ami thought silently as she inspected the girl in front of her.
Her theory was proven shortly, when the girls eyes opened suddenly, revealing a deep cornflower blue that was more peevish then sad. She cocked her blond brows sarcastically and looked up at Ami. After a moment of quiet contemplation on both their parts, the blond spoke.
"Umm.... I'm Minako..... Who the hell are you?"
End Chapter 3
Sorry about the confusion with this chapter. Next chapter will have Knives and Hotaru in it.
Chapter 4: Knives may wound, but Silence cuts deeper
What will Ami and Minako do when the only link to their past disappears through a mysterious doorway out of nowhere? And what about those other streaks of light? Also, Knives goes to find out who did some involuntary plowing of his garden, and finds a dark stranger instead. But just how deep does that darkness go? Find out in the next installment of Gunsmoke in the Moonlight