Lord of Darkness
Chapter Five
Rendez-vous
________________
Fifth part of Lord of Darkness.
I've actually decided to lay off this story for a while, but
due to popular request, I'm putting up another chapter, mostly
because of someone questioning my sanity. Rei gets re-instated into
this story, and she and General Jadeite are immediately at each
other's throats (big surprise *snicker*). For the usual
copyright notes, look at chapter four.
This is Chapter Five, and I might have made a few mistakes in
protraying Jadeite and Rei, but hey, like I said in "The
coming of Dawn", in my fanfiction world, what I say goes.
For the anime lovers, some things might be different, since
this is based on the manga, i.e. Like Rei's hatred and
mistrust toward men. Enough justifications for now.
Oh, and by the way, if anybody threatens me with death
or questions my sanity again, I'll be extra slow in posting
the next chapter. And all my other nice readers can focus
their stress and anger on that person.
________________
Lord of Darkness
Chapter Five
Rendez-vous
________________
Minako eagerly followed Jadeite down the many flights of
stairs. Last night had sapped most of her energy, and she was on
the verge of starvation. Five feet from the door of the dining room,
Minako ran into a very disgruntled Rei. With a happy cry, she launched
herself into the dark-haired girl's arms, hugging her fiercely. Rei
returned it half-heartedly; she was happy to see her friend, but wasn't
too much into showing her affection openly.
"Rei-chan! How are you?"
The dark-haired girl wrinkled her nose.
"I've felt worse." Rei said gently as Minako untangled herself,
but her voice immediately turned hard again as she caught a glimpse of
Jadeite.
"Who is that?"
Minako glanced at the blonde general behind her, and answered
simply
"Jadeite."
Rei's face became painfully sweet, her voice dripping with
poisoned honey.
"Oh, yes, how could I forget? The nice man on the stallion who
was kind enough to hit me on the head with the hilt of his sword."
Jadeite visibly flinched, but kept his expression neutral as
he waited for Minako to come to his defense, informing Rei that it was
because of him that she was still alive. She did not. He bowed, aware
that it was entirely up to him is whether he was going to end up as a
crispy general cornflake or not.
"I thank you for thinking of me as a nice man."
"Oh, you should be flattered. The only people nicer than you
are the Dark King and his First General, who were the gentlest creatures
I've ever had the pleasure to know, slaughtering people by the
thousands."
Minako watched them, struggling to hide the smile that wanted
to blossom on her face. She had often been on the receiving end of her
friend's sharp tone, and Rei had once admitted that she was rather
witty. Rei continued, ignoring that curious looks that were thrown
her way by passing servants.
"Actually, they're such compassionate and benevolent men that
I'd love to greet them with a sword at their necks, showing the same
sweet nature to those two as they have shown to others. You see, I only
greet my not-so-good friends with a hug."
Minako mentally shook her head in amazement at Rei's abundant
vocabulary, but refocused her attention to the verbal spar in time to
hear Jadeite utter one sentence that unleashed Rei's horrifying temper.
"So, Lady Rei, would I receive the same response if I allowed my
unworthy arms to wind themselves around your alabaster neck as Minako
has done?"
Rei growled low in her throat, but Minako stepped in front
of her before Rei could voice a comeback that would make Jadeite
throw caution and everything else requiring more brain cells in the wind
and become purely violent.
"That's enough, Rei-chan. I'll starve to death if we do not
hurry to the dining room. You wouldn't want to cause my premature
tragic end, right?"
Rei turned her deadly eyes onto Minako.
"That's a low blow, hime-chan*."
Minako smiled brilliantly.
"I knew I could count on you to save my life."
The two girls and Jadeite stepped into the dining room, and
waited with its other attendants for their First General to appear.
Ami, surprisingly enough, was seated on Zoicite's right, and appeared
to be eating with them, though she had not done so the previous evening.
Just as everyone was getting impatient, Kunzite threw open the door,
seemingly in an extremely touchy mood as he slammed the door behind
him, nearly breaking the door in half and sending it crashing down. A
black bruise decorated a side of his face. As Kunzite took his seat
on the right of the Dark King and her left, she noticed that the
servants kept away from him as far as possible, and grinned as the
male companions instantly started poking fun at him. Zoicite, sitting
the farthest from him, was the first one to open his mouth.
"Kunzite, did she finally slap you this time? I thought she
always kicked you!"
"Well, I landed wrong, hitting my cheek on one of the table's
legs."
Nephrite was next.
"Did you take the table's poor, guilty leg off?"
"Don't I always?"
Jadeite, who had an insanely happy smile on his face, decided
to test his commander's tolerance in the early morning hour.
"Tell me, Kunz, are you blind? You go running to Elizabeth while
this lovely creature was spending her night wet and alone?"
If looks could kill, he'd been doubly impaled on the spot, but
Minako and Kunzite were both to far to reach. Rei, however, took it upon
herself to defend her best friend's honor. She stood up, bowing respectfully
to Endymion.
"Prince Endymion, if I agree to accept your proposal as General
Topaz's second-in-command, Ruby, will you allow me to take Jadeite on a
little stroll with me, provided that I shall of course return his remains
to you?"
"My joint third General is expendable."
Rei bowed again, smirking.
"I thank you, my King."
Jadeite, meanwhile, had turned deathly pale. He seriously doubted
that Rei would kill him, but she might do unrepairable damage to his health,
and he had no desire to risk it.
"My Lord, it would be unfair for a General to fight with a Lady
less skilled in the arts of battle than himself."
Rei was about to retort that he had to no idea about how well her
skills were toned, when Minako decided to challenge him.
"I quite agree, General Jadeite. Then, would you be so kind to
have that little so-called 'fight' with me?"
Jadeite, who had not been present when the Princess had disarmed
their King, quickly agreed, and did not back down as Minako set down the
other rules.
"If you lose, you have to kneel before me in front of all the soldiers
whom I am to command and beg my forgiveness for your insulting words. If I lose,
I'll personally poison my Uncle, inherit the throne of the Eastern Kingdom, and
make you Ruler over it by abdicating my newly-required powers immediately."
Jadeite was already off in la-la land, envision himself as a powerful
king with Lady Rei as his queen, thus missing the smirking glances the two
women exchanged. Zoicite reverted back to their original topic.
"Kunzite, why do you keep these many mistresses, but never get
serious with any of them? Are you gay, and just keep sleeping with these
women to keep your true face hidden?"
He slung an arm around the blue-haired healer's waist, just to
demonstrate that he had gotten 'serious' with a woman, while Ami blushed
scarlet.
Kunzite frowned.
"What's with all those gay jokes about me? I've told you at least
a couple zillion times that I'm straight."
Endymion grinned, and Minako was struck by how young and innocent
he suddenly looked, but the Dark King's eyes remained slightly haunted.
Eyes that had seen too much, eyes that had grown up too fast.
"We know. You are as straight as the letter 'C'."
Kunzite shrugged, buttering up a roll and drenching his pancake
in syrup.
"If you perceive the letter as straight, suit yourself."
Makoto grinned, her smile a bit condensing.
"Of course it is. Just as the letter 'T' is all curves and legs, the
same as 'R'."
Nephrite and Jadeite simultaneously clapped their hands over their
mouths, knowing that any remark in the next five seconds would make
them as good as dead. The whole table knew whom Emerald meant by 'T' and 'R',
and Ami was the only one who was shocked to hear such a comment.
"Emerald! That was uncalled for!"
Emerald feigned an innocent look.
"Did I say legs? I meant edges!"
Rei's smile could make a roaring fire into a block of ice.
"Emerald, I've heard that you're the best archer in the kingdom. I'd
like to challenge that claim."
Emerald raised an eyebrow.
"Do you wish to have a contest?"
"Yes."
"That's fine with me. When and how?"
Rei's gaze became even colder, a feat that had seemed impossible a
moment ago.
"Anytime. But since you're an already established archer, I'll get
to go first. But since to shoot an arrow into a bull's eye only requires a
good aim, let's make something more complicated. Let's see how well you know
the human body! I'll use you as a target, and count how many arrows I need
before I punctuate your heart, then you can go."
"Uhm, I'd thought I'd be dead by then. No, change the rules. I'm not
suicidal, thank you very much."
"You're welcome. But I'd never thought that the famous General Emerald
would be afraid of death."
"There is a big difference between being afraid of dying and being
suicidal, Ruby."
"Please, call me Rei. Rubies are drenched in blood, unlike my hands,
which have never spilled blood."
Emerald raised an eyebrow.
"Really? I'd never have guessed."
"Wait, scratch that. I've never spilled innocent blood."
Emerald opened her mouth for another verbal jab, but the Dark King
held out a hand to stop the war between the two women.
"Topaz, Ruby, if you're finished with your meal, come to the
armory with me. The rest of you, enjoy your food."
Rei and Minako immediately stood up, pushing back their chairs and
following their new liege toward the dungeons. They stopped in front of a
black marble wall, and Endymion held out a hand. Gold sparks flared at the
tip of his second finger, and he began tracing a design on the wall at a
lightning pace. The design was finished within seconds, and Minako narrowed
her eyes at it. It looked a lot like a blue-print of a building, but something
about the way it was drawn made her uneasy. Rei, beside her, was also shifting.
Endymion, however, paid them no heed. He murmured a few words, and the wall
slid with a soft hissing sound away, leaving a black hole. Minako and
Rei exchanged a glance, but the Dark King walked swiftly in, undaunted. The
next moment he spoke softly, but it echoed around them, making both the
women jump.
"Light."
The door slid shut behind them with another soft hiss, and light
flared in the room, seemingly coming from nowhere. Minako held back a gasp
as countless weapons reflected the light.
"My personal armory. Each weapon is bound with powerful spells, and
since each of you know magic, you'll be able to use them. Hold out your hand,
and the weapons will chose you."
The girls did as they were told, each holding out their right hand,
palm up. Suddenly, a crystal sword glowed golden and a bow with a quiver of
arrows red. They disappeared the next second, appearing back in the girl's
hands. Golden light bloomed around Minako, and she was clothed in a General's
uniform much like the one the night before, her hair held in place with a
crystal clip, the rest cascading to her shoulders in a waterfall of curls.
Yellow eye-shadow danced above her sky-blue eyes, and crystal stud earrings
decorated her ears. A light glimmer of lipstick gave her a seductive appeal,
and a gold gauntlet was on her hand. The crystal sword had disappeared. Rei's
outfit was much like Minako's, but instead of long-sleeved shirt, hers was
sleeveless, decorated with red buttons. Her long dark hair was piled artfully
on top of her head, wound around with a silver circlet, catching the light.
Blood red eye-shadow gave her exotic yet dangerous look. Long star-shaped
earrings dangled from her earlobes, and her lips were bright red, though
it seemed natural on her. Her weapons also had disappeared. The two women
inspected themselves, and exchanged a glance, before turning simultaneously
toward Endymion. He was smiling is a truly pleased way.
"WhenEver you want to transform, use your mental energy to concentrate
on your weapons, and you will change. If you need to use them, again use your
mental energy. If you'd like to detransform, however, it's just the reversal
process."
Minako and Rei both bowed.
"Now, it's time to meet your soldiers."
Endymion proclaimed, as the sliding wall opened again, and Minako's
stomach did a cartwheel as she imagined the reaction of the men to have a
female general, and a mere girl at that.
*******************************************
*Hime-chan means Princess
Hey, I know this chapter was really, really short, but I wanted to
dedicate an entire chapter to the problems of a woman trying to establish her
authority over men. Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed this interlude. Leave me a
note, please, and tell me when you'd like Serenity to show up. I'm thinking
maybe somewhere around 8 or 9, maybe earlier if I get more requests. Thanks
to all the people who reviewed, and I've finally decided on the pairings.
It'll be …
Serenity/Endymion and Setsuna/Demando. *claps hands and bows*
Chapter Five
Rendez-vous
________________
Fifth part of Lord of Darkness.
I've actually decided to lay off this story for a while, but
due to popular request, I'm putting up another chapter, mostly
because of someone questioning my sanity. Rei gets re-instated into
this story, and she and General Jadeite are immediately at each
other's throats (big surprise *snicker*). For the usual
copyright notes, look at chapter four.
This is Chapter Five, and I might have made a few mistakes in
protraying Jadeite and Rei, but hey, like I said in "The
coming of Dawn", in my fanfiction world, what I say goes.
For the anime lovers, some things might be different, since
this is based on the manga, i.e. Like Rei's hatred and
mistrust toward men. Enough justifications for now.
Oh, and by the way, if anybody threatens me with death
or questions my sanity again, I'll be extra slow in posting
the next chapter. And all my other nice readers can focus
their stress and anger on that person.
________________
Lord of Darkness
Chapter Five
Rendez-vous
________________
Minako eagerly followed Jadeite down the many flights of
stairs. Last night had sapped most of her energy, and she was on
the verge of starvation. Five feet from the door of the dining room,
Minako ran into a very disgruntled Rei. With a happy cry, she launched
herself into the dark-haired girl's arms, hugging her fiercely. Rei
returned it half-heartedly; she was happy to see her friend, but wasn't
too much into showing her affection openly.
"Rei-chan! How are you?"
The dark-haired girl wrinkled her nose.
"I've felt worse." Rei said gently as Minako untangled herself,
but her voice immediately turned hard again as she caught a glimpse of
Jadeite.
"Who is that?"
Minako glanced at the blonde general behind her, and answered
simply
"Jadeite."
Rei's face became painfully sweet, her voice dripping with
poisoned honey.
"Oh, yes, how could I forget? The nice man on the stallion who
was kind enough to hit me on the head with the hilt of his sword."
Jadeite visibly flinched, but kept his expression neutral as
he waited for Minako to come to his defense, informing Rei that it was
because of him that she was still alive. She did not. He bowed, aware
that it was entirely up to him is whether he was going to end up as a
crispy general cornflake or not.
"I thank you for thinking of me as a nice man."
"Oh, you should be flattered. The only people nicer than you
are the Dark King and his First General, who were the gentlest creatures
I've ever had the pleasure to know, slaughtering people by the
thousands."
Minako watched them, struggling to hide the smile that wanted
to blossom on her face. She had often been on the receiving end of her
friend's sharp tone, and Rei had once admitted that she was rather
witty. Rei continued, ignoring that curious looks that were thrown
her way by passing servants.
"Actually, they're such compassionate and benevolent men that
I'd love to greet them with a sword at their necks, showing the same
sweet nature to those two as they have shown to others. You see, I only
greet my not-so-good friends with a hug."
Minako mentally shook her head in amazement at Rei's abundant
vocabulary, but refocused her attention to the verbal spar in time to
hear Jadeite utter one sentence that unleashed Rei's horrifying temper.
"So, Lady Rei, would I receive the same response if I allowed my
unworthy arms to wind themselves around your alabaster neck as Minako
has done?"
Rei growled low in her throat, but Minako stepped in front
of her before Rei could voice a comeback that would make Jadeite
throw caution and everything else requiring more brain cells in the wind
and become purely violent.
"That's enough, Rei-chan. I'll starve to death if we do not
hurry to the dining room. You wouldn't want to cause my premature
tragic end, right?"
Rei turned her deadly eyes onto Minako.
"That's a low blow, hime-chan*."
Minako smiled brilliantly.
"I knew I could count on you to save my life."
The two girls and Jadeite stepped into the dining room, and
waited with its other attendants for their First General to appear.
Ami, surprisingly enough, was seated on Zoicite's right, and appeared
to be eating with them, though she had not done so the previous evening.
Just as everyone was getting impatient, Kunzite threw open the door,
seemingly in an extremely touchy mood as he slammed the door behind
him, nearly breaking the door in half and sending it crashing down. A
black bruise decorated a side of his face. As Kunzite took his seat
on the right of the Dark King and her left, she noticed that the
servants kept away from him as far as possible, and grinned as the
male companions instantly started poking fun at him. Zoicite, sitting
the farthest from him, was the first one to open his mouth.
"Kunzite, did she finally slap you this time? I thought she
always kicked you!"
"Well, I landed wrong, hitting my cheek on one of the table's
legs."
Nephrite was next.
"Did you take the table's poor, guilty leg off?"
"Don't I always?"
Jadeite, who had an insanely happy smile on his face, decided
to test his commander's tolerance in the early morning hour.
"Tell me, Kunz, are you blind? You go running to Elizabeth while
this lovely creature was spending her night wet and alone?"
If looks could kill, he'd been doubly impaled on the spot, but
Minako and Kunzite were both to far to reach. Rei, however, took it upon
herself to defend her best friend's honor. She stood up, bowing respectfully
to Endymion.
"Prince Endymion, if I agree to accept your proposal as General
Topaz's second-in-command, Ruby, will you allow me to take Jadeite on a
little stroll with me, provided that I shall of course return his remains
to you?"
"My joint third General is expendable."
Rei bowed again, smirking.
"I thank you, my King."
Jadeite, meanwhile, had turned deathly pale. He seriously doubted
that Rei would kill him, but she might do unrepairable damage to his health,
and he had no desire to risk it.
"My Lord, it would be unfair for a General to fight with a Lady
less skilled in the arts of battle than himself."
Rei was about to retort that he had to no idea about how well her
skills were toned, when Minako decided to challenge him.
"I quite agree, General Jadeite. Then, would you be so kind to
have that little so-called 'fight' with me?"
Jadeite, who had not been present when the Princess had disarmed
their King, quickly agreed, and did not back down as Minako set down the
other rules.
"If you lose, you have to kneel before me in front of all the soldiers
whom I am to command and beg my forgiveness for your insulting words. If I lose,
I'll personally poison my Uncle, inherit the throne of the Eastern Kingdom, and
make you Ruler over it by abdicating my newly-required powers immediately."
Jadeite was already off in la-la land, envision himself as a powerful
king with Lady Rei as his queen, thus missing the smirking glances the two
women exchanged. Zoicite reverted back to their original topic.
"Kunzite, why do you keep these many mistresses, but never get
serious with any of them? Are you gay, and just keep sleeping with these
women to keep your true face hidden?"
He slung an arm around the blue-haired healer's waist, just to
demonstrate that he had gotten 'serious' with a woman, while Ami blushed
scarlet.
Kunzite frowned.
"What's with all those gay jokes about me? I've told you at least
a couple zillion times that I'm straight."
Endymion grinned, and Minako was struck by how young and innocent
he suddenly looked, but the Dark King's eyes remained slightly haunted.
Eyes that had seen too much, eyes that had grown up too fast.
"We know. You are as straight as the letter 'C'."
Kunzite shrugged, buttering up a roll and drenching his pancake
in syrup.
"If you perceive the letter as straight, suit yourself."
Makoto grinned, her smile a bit condensing.
"Of course it is. Just as the letter 'T' is all curves and legs, the
same as 'R'."
Nephrite and Jadeite simultaneously clapped their hands over their
mouths, knowing that any remark in the next five seconds would make
them as good as dead. The whole table knew whom Emerald meant by 'T' and 'R',
and Ami was the only one who was shocked to hear such a comment.
"Emerald! That was uncalled for!"
Emerald feigned an innocent look.
"Did I say legs? I meant edges!"
Rei's smile could make a roaring fire into a block of ice.
"Emerald, I've heard that you're the best archer in the kingdom. I'd
like to challenge that claim."
Emerald raised an eyebrow.
"Do you wish to have a contest?"
"Yes."
"That's fine with me. When and how?"
Rei's gaze became even colder, a feat that had seemed impossible a
moment ago.
"Anytime. But since you're an already established archer, I'll get
to go first. But since to shoot an arrow into a bull's eye only requires a
good aim, let's make something more complicated. Let's see how well you know
the human body! I'll use you as a target, and count how many arrows I need
before I punctuate your heart, then you can go."
"Uhm, I'd thought I'd be dead by then. No, change the rules. I'm not
suicidal, thank you very much."
"You're welcome. But I'd never thought that the famous General Emerald
would be afraid of death."
"There is a big difference between being afraid of dying and being
suicidal, Ruby."
"Please, call me Rei. Rubies are drenched in blood, unlike my hands,
which have never spilled blood."
Emerald raised an eyebrow.
"Really? I'd never have guessed."
"Wait, scratch that. I've never spilled innocent blood."
Emerald opened her mouth for another verbal jab, but the Dark King
held out a hand to stop the war between the two women.
"Topaz, Ruby, if you're finished with your meal, come to the
armory with me. The rest of you, enjoy your food."
Rei and Minako immediately stood up, pushing back their chairs and
following their new liege toward the dungeons. They stopped in front of a
black marble wall, and Endymion held out a hand. Gold sparks flared at the
tip of his second finger, and he began tracing a design on the wall at a
lightning pace. The design was finished within seconds, and Minako narrowed
her eyes at it. It looked a lot like a blue-print of a building, but something
about the way it was drawn made her uneasy. Rei, beside her, was also shifting.
Endymion, however, paid them no heed. He murmured a few words, and the wall
slid with a soft hissing sound away, leaving a black hole. Minako and
Rei exchanged a glance, but the Dark King walked swiftly in, undaunted. The
next moment he spoke softly, but it echoed around them, making both the
women jump.
"Light."
The door slid shut behind them with another soft hiss, and light
flared in the room, seemingly coming from nowhere. Minako held back a gasp
as countless weapons reflected the light.
"My personal armory. Each weapon is bound with powerful spells, and
since each of you know magic, you'll be able to use them. Hold out your hand,
and the weapons will chose you."
The girls did as they were told, each holding out their right hand,
palm up. Suddenly, a crystal sword glowed golden and a bow with a quiver of
arrows red. They disappeared the next second, appearing back in the girl's
hands. Golden light bloomed around Minako, and she was clothed in a General's
uniform much like the one the night before, her hair held in place with a
crystal clip, the rest cascading to her shoulders in a waterfall of curls.
Yellow eye-shadow danced above her sky-blue eyes, and crystal stud earrings
decorated her ears. A light glimmer of lipstick gave her a seductive appeal,
and a gold gauntlet was on her hand. The crystal sword had disappeared. Rei's
outfit was much like Minako's, but instead of long-sleeved shirt, hers was
sleeveless, decorated with red buttons. Her long dark hair was piled artfully
on top of her head, wound around with a silver circlet, catching the light.
Blood red eye-shadow gave her exotic yet dangerous look. Long star-shaped
earrings dangled from her earlobes, and her lips were bright red, though
it seemed natural on her. Her weapons also had disappeared. The two women
inspected themselves, and exchanged a glance, before turning simultaneously
toward Endymion. He was smiling is a truly pleased way.
"WhenEver you want to transform, use your mental energy to concentrate
on your weapons, and you will change. If you need to use them, again use your
mental energy. If you'd like to detransform, however, it's just the reversal
process."
Minako and Rei both bowed.
"Now, it's time to meet your soldiers."
Endymion proclaimed, as the sliding wall opened again, and Minako's
stomach did a cartwheel as she imagined the reaction of the men to have a
female general, and a mere girl at that.
*******************************************
*Hime-chan means Princess
Hey, I know this chapter was really, really short, but I wanted to
dedicate an entire chapter to the problems of a woman trying to establish her
authority over men. Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed this interlude. Leave me a
note, please, and tell me when you'd like Serenity to show up. I'm thinking
maybe somewhere around 8 or 9, maybe earlier if I get more requests. Thanks
to all the people who reviewed, and I've finally decided on the pairings.
It'll be …
Serenity/Endymion and Setsuna/Demando. *claps hands and bows*