Disclaimer: I don't own Smallville or Sailor Moon, and I am not affiliated with either.
Thanks again to the reviewers! Glad you are all enjoying the story. I hope I have again met with your favor.
Chapter 10
Lex walked into the caves, as he did often, to admire the intricate markings on the walls. They were fascinating to him, and the possibilities of their meaning amazed him to no end. He had yet to understand, though, why Clark was so involved with them. The girls that were staying at his mansion had visited the caves yesterday and come back looking incredibly frustrated, bruised, and most of all fatigued, and he wanted to know why. So here he was, standing around wondering what to look for. He was about to get his answer.
A red, a blue, and a yellow symbol began to glow on the cave wall and it began to spin in sections. Lex gazed at it, surprised. A section began to open and was bathed in yellow light. A shadowy figure stepped out and the light resided. The cave closed again.
She looked at him with glazed eyes. "Why are you here?"
"How did you do that? And why are you here?"
"Silence!" she commanded, and with a flick of her wrist she sent him flying into the wall. Carmen shot chains of energy which bonded to the wall, holding him in place.
"What the hell?" Lex groaned.
Carmen walked up to him and put her index finger under his chin, lifting it up.
"You will tell me why you are here. What do you hope to gain?"
"These caves are financed by me. I would think I have the right to come down here when I please."
"That's where you're wrong." Carmen said. "This cave belongs to someone much more powerful than you can ever imagine."
"Why don't you enlighten me then?" Lex shot sarcastically.
"Well, actually that has something to do with your friend Clark. Try asking him." She said with a mischievous gleam to her eye. "I know you want power. You have that hungry gleam in your eyes. Help me and I'll make sure that the power falls into your hands."
"Where did you get that delirious notion?"
"Where indeed." She said and shot a violet light at his chest.
Lex's body shook with convulsions, and eventually stopped, leaving him alive but in much pain. Everything was black. In his mind thoughts raced and garbled. Once again he wasn't in control; he didn't have the upper hand. Just like his relationship with his father, who was always trying to control him; always criticizing. His father had never shown him any acceptance or love, not even as a child. No, his father didn't love him, had never loved him. The only person who did - his mother – was taken from him, leaving him with this harsh reality. For a moment he wished that his mother had bestowed upon him the kindness she bore upon Julian – death. And Clark – Clark didn't even trust him enough to tell him his secret. Helen – the only woman he ever really loved - betrayed him. He remembered his bout of rebellion when all he wanted was his father's acceptance. Everything he was, he realized, was a joke. It was all a front. The Lex Luthor? Ha! What a concept! If only everyone knew! The pain and misery were too much for even Lex to handle and he drifted into the deep darkness of his mind.
Carmen watched as Lex wrestled with his inner self, and gave a little smile. If he wouldn't help her willingly before, he would definitely help her after this.
When he finally looked up his eyes showed no warmth, no friendliness, no kindness, and no pity. He was the same as before, but now he had successfully nullified himself of all emotions. He was a void, a simple shell of his former self. No one would ever hurt him again. He was a wall. He was Lex Luthor.
"So, about that little bit of help I asked for?" Carmen said with a smile.
"What about it?" he replied.
She winked and smiled.
"I don't have time for this."
"I already told you it'd benefit you."
"Well, you have my attention."
"I'd tell you everything about these caves. I'd take you inside. And you could gain more power from it."
"That's a joke. I'm the most powerful person in Smallville as it is. I have the most pull. The only reason most of the people in this town have jobs is because of me."
"That's what you think. You lack so much knowledge. I know of someone whose power dwarfs your own, and they are closer to you than you think."
Lex became angry at this. "Even if I remotely believed what you said, why would I want to help a low life like you?"
"Because you want the same thing I do. You want revenge on those who did you wrong."
Later that evening, Chloe was jarred out of her thoughts when her cell phone rang. She was at the Torch, working on a front page.
"Hello?" Chloe answered.
"Chloe, it's Lex. I need your help, now."
"Lex, what's wrong?"
"I can't tell you over the phone, but it's not good. I'm at the caves. Get here as soon as you can."
"S-sure." She mumbled, as the dial tone cut in and she flipped her cell phone shut. She picked up her bags and ran to her jeep, quickly dialing Clark. Much to her chagrin, she got no answer and left a message for him - "Clark. It's Chloe. Meet me at the caves."
When she arrived there was no sign of Lex; none at all, in fact. She was beginning to get suspicious. An icy hand grabbed her shoulder and turned her around.
"L-Lex!" Chloe gasped. "Are you alright? You sounded frantic on the phone."
He didn't answer.
"What? What's wrong with you?" she said as she swatted away his arm.
Before she could move any more, Lex grabbed her and injected a sedating liquid into her neck.
"Clark!" she managed to get out before she fainted.
The cave opened and Lex dragged Chloe inside.
Clark's head shot up from his telescope. Had he just heard someone calling out to him?
"Nah, it couldn't have been." He thought. "My hearing's not that good. It must've been in my head."
After a minute, it continued to echo through his brain, eating away at him. He just couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.
"Call me crazy..." he thought, as he walked into the kitchen. Then he noticed the blinking light of the message machine. The message came on and Chloe's voice began to talk. Come to think of it, the voice he had heard earlier sounded like Chloe calling out to him.
"Oh god!" he thought. "Chloe's in trouble. I better get to her...fast."
With that, he zoomed off the property, leaving behind him a trail of dust.
"Something's wrong." Rei observed when the girls were watching television in the den.
"What is it Rei?" Ami asked.
"It's Chloe. She's hurt."
"How can you be sure?" asked Haruka.
"I can't, but I'm hardly ever wrong."
"Isn't Lex supposed to be back?" asked Keiko.
Rei nodded. "We should head back to the caves. I'm getting a really ominous feeling."
"There's no reason for us all to go." said Minako.
"Hell if there isn't! We almost died the first time. Let's not underestimate them again!" Haruka berated.
"But are we ready?" Hotaru questioned.
"As ready as we'll ever be." Mako chimed in. "Come on, let's go, and call Mamoru to tell him to meet us there."
Clark rushed into the caves, looking around quickly. Chloe was nowhere to be seen. He called out her name but the only answer he received was an echo. A hand grabbed his shoulder and spun him around.
"Lex?" he said.
"Clark." Lex stated.
"Have you seen Chloe?"
"As a matter of fact, I have."
"Well? Where is she?"
Lex pointed to the cave wall.
"What? Is this some kind of joke?"
Clark then noticed the lead box in Lex's hands. His eyes went wide with fear. He looked at Lex's face to notice that this wasn't the same Lex he knew. He had the same air – the same coldness about him as Lionel, and that alone made Clark shiver.
Lex opened the box and Clark immediately dropped to the floor, writhing in pain.
"Aagh." He said.
Lex just smirked. "Got anything you want to share." he asked, "Kal-el?"
Clark swallowed. Lex just came closer and grabbed Clark's collar, dragging him toward the cave opening that began to slide open again.
Lex suddenly received a kick to the face and both the lead box and kryptonite went flying. Clark began to crawl away. When he looked up, Haruka had Lex's arms pinned behind him.
"Okay inners, you go inside the cave and look for Chloe! We'll stay outside and hold the fort down." Keiko said.
They nodded and headed inside.
Lex, being well trained with martial arts himself, managed to somehow break Haruka's grip and sling her into a wall. He ran for the kryptonite and was faced head on by Keiko, who stopped him for a brief millisecond before she too, was tossed aside. Michiru tended to Haruka, while Hotaru ran to the kryptonite. Lex headed for it too and immediately stopped when he realized he was about to be impaled on a glaive. He tried to move around it, but it moved with him. He became incredibly frustrated. Still holding the glaive, Hotaru picked up the crystalline rock and threw it to Michiru, who caught it and put in the lead box.
Somehow the cave seemed to come alive at that moment, and energy came at everyone with all its might. Usagi, obviously recovered from her last battle, walked out with her staff. A large light from her staff began to encircle the cave, while the senshi ran at her to try and find the red kryptonite that was infecting her. She quickly waved her hand at them and a wave of white light pushed them back.
Haruka shielded her face and managed to get to Usagi. "Odango, snap out of it!" she yelled. "We're your friends, and we care about you."
Michiru was shocked to see such an outburst from Haruka, who usually kept her emotions in check. Tears brimmed Hotaru's eyes, and she formed a barrier to hold off the wave of light.
Usagi touched Haruka and she turned to crystal. The walls of the cave also began to turn to crystal, touching anything in its path. Hotaru shrieked and tried to hold it off, to no avail. Michiru, became trapped in the corner and froze in a shocked position. Lex made an attempt to run outside, but was caught and crystallized. Only Clark and Keiko remained, and there seemed to be no way out. It was then Keiko realized what she would have to do. Using her bracelets, she shot out the discs of yellow light again. Usagi dodged them all but one, which went straight through her heart. The crystal wave stopped.
"What did you do?" Clark yelled.
"I-I had to do it. I took her star seed." Keiko stammered.
They watched as the small seed appeared. It glowed and immediately turned into the crystal. Holding out her hand, Keiko caused the crystal to fly to her as Clark watched with surprise. Usagi's locket opened, the star seed separated from the crystal, and the crystal went back inside the locket. Clark and Keiko were shocked at what they saw. Red veins climbed up into the crystal itself. Usagi was affected more than they thought. Keiko looked forlornly at the star seed in her hand. She didn't know what to do next. Of course, she didn't have to.
Usagi's body immediately floated outside and began to encase itself in crystal. A cold wind chilled Clark and Keiko as they ran outside over the once fatal crystalline floor. When the casing had finished, a tower stood about thirty stories high and Usagi couldn't be seen anymore. Red veins engulfed the tower and they began to slowly spread downward from the peak.
"We've got to go inside!" Clark exclaimed. "But how? I get near that stuff and I'm just as bad as her."
"We have to try." Keiko replied.
And so, they ran toward the tower and were sent flying backwards by an invisible force field. Both sat up with disgust at how difficult this was going to be.
Meanwhile, the inner senshi inside the caves had reached a dead end. The Kiwatche caves were full of many twists and turns and they figured that somehow they had made a wrong move along the way.
"Now what are we going to do?" Mina said.
"Blast a way through!" Mako suggested.
The three girls sighed. Rei hit the wall with frustration, and a tiny octagonal piece with strange writing popped out.
"Huh? What's this?" Rei asked as she picked it up.
"It looks like an activation key of some sort. These letters don't look like anything I've ever seen...on the planet Earth that is." Ami concluded.
"Do you mean that you've seen these characters...somewhere else?" Mina inquired.
"In my memories from the Silver Millennium, I saw writing like this in one of the rooms in the palace. It must've been the same room Chloe was telling us about. I used to know how to read it. I may still be able to." Ami admitted. "Perhaps it'll give us a clue."
"Wow, I didn't know that!" Mina exclaimed.
"Yes, well, interpretation and study of languages was something I enjoyed in my leisurely time then." Ami said. Then she gazed down at the piece of metal that Rei handed her. Her memory was still a bit rusty but she could translate enough to understand. "It has instructions. It says to find the resting place and everything will become clear. Only those chosen may enter."
"The resting place?" Rei inquired.
"Hey I found something!" Mako exclaimed as she dusted off a part of the wall to the side. "Here's an opening. It's in the exact shape of the key. Should we try it?"
Ami walked over and lay the key inside. Immediately the wall began to glow and many characters showed up in white, spinning in three layers. Ami looked back and forth confusedly.
"Destiny...key...life...chosen...crusade..." Ami read from different parts of the lettering. "It makes no sense! It's moving too fast!"
"Since this was essentially made to guide Clark, then maybe each symbol chosen should describe him." Rei suggested.
Ami looked down. She chose the symbol for survive, since that's exactly what Clark did when he came here. It glowed yellow. She then chose the symbol for guardian, since that's essentially what he meant to the town. It glowed red. Last she chose the symbol for family. It glowed blue and a great white light shot out of the wall, forcing them all backwards. The walls then slowly began to move apart, bit by bit, until a small single person pathway was visible.
"I guess that Rei's hunch was right." Mako observed.
They began to continue down the path when they heard a voice.
"Wait." They heard. "What you are about to face is treacherous, and will be almost unbearable."
"Who are you?" Rei asked.
"I am Jor-el, both Kal-el and Serenity's father. I reside in here. But now another inhabitant has taken over. She has kidnapped Chloe, whom I assume you are here to rescue. You may need my help."
He appeared next to the inner senshi. "You are very intelligent to have been able to open that lock. Take my power with you as aide. You will need it to battle the evil locked up in the core."
Each girl felt a charge of electricity run through them, and as quickly as it was there, it was gone. Then Jor-el's image disappeared, and they were left again to the cold, dark cave.
"If what he says is true, shouldn't we get the outers to help?" Mina asked.
"If what he says is true, we don't have time." Rei asked. "Let's go."
With that, each senshi ran along the tiny pathway, disappearing into the darkness.
