Chapter 9 - First Time
In her mind it had taken Princess Akahoshi some time to realize what had happened to her.
But now she knew that her powers had been blocked, but she had no idea how it had happened.
As she now awoke from unconsciousness the man called Jack and the red-haired woman whose names she did not remember were looking down on her.
She sat up trying not to look back at them.
"Hey", he addressed her, but she simply ignored him. He then turned to the other woman asking, "She's okay, ain't she?"
She nodded, "Just fine. I don't see any need to keep her here."
He turned back to Akahoshi, "You can go, heard that?"
She merely turned around to sit on the bed's edge and got up on her own rejecting the hand he was offering her.
As she passed him he handed her pants and a shirt saying, "At least you should change clothes."
The princess took the clothes and shot him an angry glare for his disrespectful behavior, but he did not seem to get the message as he raised his hands defensively and turned away stating, "Okay, I won't look..."
After Akahoshi had dressed herself the woman led her into another room of infirmary where the guardians had gathered, they had all re-transformed into their human forms.
As the princess entered everybody present turned around at once staring at her. She came to a stop in front of Pluto who had been talking to the other woman called Sam.
"Akahoshi", the senshi eyed her closely and the princess could judge from her looks and her tone that something was wrong.
Akahoshi pondered how she should react, as suddenly she remembered a glimpse of what had happened before she had awoken in infirmary:
"I'm sorry if I hurt you", she replied in a quiet but emotionless way.
"Don't feel sorry for me", Pluto returned directing her gaze toward the bed in the center of the room, a pale and battered Sailor Saturn was lying on it.
The sight made more memories return to Akahoshi's mind: "I...have done that", she murmured in realization. After a moment she approached the bed to get a closer look, taking in the full capability of her destructive powers.
Shaking she took Saturn's pale hand and suddenly a strong vision of the past struck her mind:
xx Vision xx
"Akahoshi, no!" she heard their screams closing from behind, but she did not mind. She tightened the grip she had of Sailor Saturn's body trying to drain power from her.
"Let me go", the senshi winded under her arms.
"I'm not thinking of it", the franticness of her own voice chilled Akahoshi.
"Then you're not leaving me another chance."
Before Akahoshi could defend herself Saturn's death scream sent her reeling backwards, only seconds later she crashed to the ground, feeling how the attack paralyzed her powers...
xx End vision xx
Akahoshi gasped for air trembling backwards threatening to collapse to the floor.
"Princess..." Haruka wrapped her arm around Akahoshi's waist to support her, "Are you all right?"
After a moment of bewilderment she nodded and moved away from the bed. As Haruka had helped her to sit down the princess started sobbing.
What had she done to Saturn? And why had she done it again? What had been wrong with her all the time? Anger bubbled up inside her, but it was not accompanied by the usual heat wave.
Saturn had made all these troubles go away paying a high price for her audacious intervention. And how had she thanked her?
"I ... I could've killed her."
"But you didn't", Michiru knelt down by her side.
"And her sacrifice was not useless", Haruka added resting a hand on Akahoshi's shoulder, "Or are you still feeling overwhelmed by cravings for blood revenge?"
"No", she could feel hot tears streaming down her cheeks.
"See?" Michiru embraced her taking out a handkerchief to dry Akahoshi's wet face.
Now Setsuna moved over as well and it was obvious that she was still more than sad because of her best friend's condition. Slowly the princess approached her taking her hands,
"I wished I could undo all this", she sighed gravely.
"But you can't", Setsuna hugged her carefully, "none of us can." This statement grieved the confused princess even more.
That moment Jack entered the room seeing Akahoshi cry. He closed her cautiously putting his fingertips on her shoulder, "Akahoshi?"
She started away from him at once, "How dare you?" she snubbed, "I am the Myoujou no himesama, you have no right to touch me."
She pushed away running out of the room.
"What was that for?" he frowned looking after her for a long moment.
"She is confused", Haruka stated, "leave her some time to gather herself."
xxxxx
At the same time somebody else decided that the moment to act had come; scouts had just reported that someone seemed to have accomplished what he had never been capable of, awaking an extraordinarily precious pearl from her slumber.
He sent out his scouts to locate her, so that he could finally make her his own. He could no longer wait to possess her.
xxxxx
So, now Akahoshi falls into a deeeep emotional hole. Let's hope she'll get over it before the situation gets precarious again (this will be some time next chapter, or in the chapter after it, let's see...).
Another notice: I'm planning to put the story into the Stargate SG-1 section from next chapter...
