PREY OF THE QUEEN SPIDER
Chapter 8: "Nest of Skulls"
A Sailor Moon fanfic
By Bill K.
"Haruka!" Sailor Neptune gasped as she knelt down next to the cadaverous, skin and bones husk that only moments before had been Sailor Uranus. She grasped the woman by the shoulders, gently because in Uranus' current state Neptune feared snapping her brittle bones. Uranus looked up at her from sunken eyes. There was still a light of life within her, but it was faint and fading fast. "Haruka, please!" she said, trying to mask her terror and failing. "Stay with us!"
Uranus tried to lift her hand to Neptune, but she was too weak. She tried to speak, but her tongue was black and shriveled and receding into her throat. All she could do was look up at Neptune.
"Pluto?" Neptune asked desperately, looking back at her fellow outer senshi for some sort of miracle.
"I am sorry, Neptune," Pluto replied sadly. "Though it is my ultimate destiny, I do not yet possess such powers. I can do nothing for her."
Neptune turned back to Uranus. She could see the fear her life-mate had in her eyes. Not fear of dying, but fear of being separated and alone. It was a fear she knew all too well. For a moment, she thought of Sailor Moon - - but no. It was too dangerous. They were the expendable ones. Sailor Moon couldn't take the risk.
Haruka would never forgive her.
"I'll find you," Neptune told Uranus. She felt hot tears burn down her cheeks and didn't care in the least. "Heaven or Hell, no matter where, I'll find you! If I have to storm the thickest gates, I'll get to you! I promise!" Uranus looked up at her and seemed to find some peace.
"Keep holding her," Neptune heard Sailor Moon say. "Your love is the only thing keeping her here. It's her lifeline. Don't let go."
She wouldn't.
"MY PRINCESS, NO!" Neptune heard Pluto hiss urgently. Her shoulders tightened.
"Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss," she heard Sailor Moon say, delicately, almost reverently. Part of Neptune cursed the foolish woman, while part of her rejoiced. All of her prayed that Sailor Moon's luck hadn't run out.
The healing waves of the Silver Crystal washed over her and suddenly Sailor Neptune felt at peace with the world. She was even somehow at peace with the thought of Uranus being moments away from death, for she knew that there was a heaven and that she and Haruka would spend eternity in it. She held onto Uranus, determined not to let Haruka slip away.
And the frail sack of bones in her hands responded to the energy of the Silver Crystal. Withered tissue grew back. Fragile, lifeless skin became soft and pink. The ragged breath rattling in damaged lungs became full and easy. A word passed Uranus' lips. It sounded like 'beautiful' and indeed it was. More tears began to stream down Neptune's cheeks, happy tears this time. And once again she didn't care who saw her.
Impulsively, something she never ever was, Neptune leaned down and pressed her lips to the lush, restored mouth of Sailor Uranus. She could sense Uranus was still confused by the effect of the crystal. Then she sensed who was kissing her and kissed back, causing Neptune's heart to skip wildly. Maybe, just maybe, Sailor Moon had managed to pull off another miracle. Just maybe she was going to have to start believing in her after all.
"My Princess!" Neptune heard Sailor Pluto gasp out. The alarm in Pluto's voice was
enough to tell her what she'd always previously believed - - that miracles came with a price.
- - - -
In his hotel room in Nagasaki, Mamoru opened his eyes. He was having that feeling again. Usagi was distressed. Not in mortal danger, that he knew. But she was distressed, and the amount of distress was greater than earlier. It was enough to wake him up. It was enough to gnaw at him like an aching tooth
His first impulse was to go to her. It went so far as to push him to the edge of the bed. Then his rational mind took control. He would never reach her in time. It brought back memories of his abortive attempt to attend Harvard in America. It reminded him of how he would be ripped from attending to a class by impressions of danger as Usagi grappled with her possessed friends. Of the helplessness he felt at knowing she needed him and he was too far away to help. That's what it was like now.
Clad only in his boxers, Mamoru got out of bed and shuffled toward the window. He
looked out over the night and the lights of Nagasaki. Somewhere, in this direction, miles away
from him, Usagi was hurting. And all he could do was stare and hope that she pulled through,
because he was too far away from her to go to her.
But didn't he have to try?
"Is this the way it's going to be for the rest of our lives?" he whispered. "What if this
happens while I'm with a patient who needs me, too? Someday I've got to trust her to be able to
triumph without me. She's already beaten so many powerful adversaries without my help - -
without anyone's help." He brooded some more. "But what if this is one of those times that she
does need me - - and I'm not there?"
"What's the matter, Chiba? Can't sleep?"
It was Matsuo Otoki, his room mate during this two week study group. Otoki was a brilliant mind who had the potential to be a first rate medical researcher, if in his own words he "ever stopped falling in love with every woman who looked twice at him". Their study packet had kept Otoki in their room for the first time since they arrived.
"Guess not," Mamoru replied and gazed again in the direction he knew Usagi was in.
"Don't blame you, I suppose. Today's stuff was pretty rough to look at. Radiation burns just get you where you live."
"No, it's not that. I'm worried about my wife."
"Afraid she's playing around on you?" Otoki asked. Mamoru turned and gave him an unamused look. "Sorry. Didn't know it was THAT kind of marriage. How long you been together?"
"Ten months," Mamoru replied.
"And she can't bear to be separated from you? Or you can't bear to be separated from her?"
"It's more than that," Mamoru scowled. "I'm - - just - - something tells me that she's in trouble."
"Call her," Otoki recommended, but Mamoru seemed reluctant. "Call her. She won't mind if you wake her up. Just tell her you were worried about her. Girls get off on stuff like that. You can set your mind at ease and score points, too. Go ahead, man. You've got to get some sleep. Otherwise you'll be worthless at tomorrow's demonstration."
"Maybe I am reading too much into it," Mamoru said. "Maybe she just stubbed her toe."
He sat down and dialed the apartment. Unlike the last time he called, the phone was answered on the first ring.
"Usagi, is that you?" he heard Luna ask desperately. That made his concern rise.
"No, Luna," he said. "Is Usagi gone?"
"Oh, Mamoru. Forgive me. I've just been hoping Usagi was calling in. You're not getting danger premonitions, are you?"
"Not quite," he said softly, "but she's hurting. What's happened, Luna? Where is she?"
"Of course, you should know," Luna replied. "She is in capable hands, Mamoru. The
outer senshi are with her. I suppose, though, I should start at the beginning"
- - - -
Though she was still a little dizzy from her ordeal, Sailor Uranus forced herself up to a sitting position. Her condition was forced to the back of her mind the moment she and Neptune heard Pluto cry out Sailor Moon's name in alarm. They both knew the condition Uranus had been in. They both knew the feeling one got from bathing in the radiant energy of the Silver Crystal.
And they both knew the toll resurrecting even the nearly dead took on Sailor Moon.
Neptune was already moving toward Pluto. Uranus could see Sailor Moon unconscious, prone on the ground, her head cradled in Pluto's lap. The sandy blonde cursed herself silently. This was all her fault. If she hadn't been so cocky in the fight with the spiders, the Kumo-Onna wouldn't have gotten the drop on her. Sailor Moon should have let her die. It would have been justice for her stupid over-confidence. Now the Princess was injured, possibly critically, all because the woman had once again let sentiment overrule common sense. Once more she foolishly led with her heart and not her head.
"Should have let me die," Uranus muttered. She ascended to wobbly legs and staggered over to the fallen Sailor Moon.
"How is she, Pluto?" Neptune asked.
Pluto's long, tapered fingers felt along Sailor Moon's neck. "Her pulse is strong, if rapid."
"She's whimpering," Uranus noted anxiously. "Like she's in pain."
"Yes," Pluto said, caressing the forehead of Her Princess. "Her effort to heal you took much. She pushed herself too far and I fear collapsed from the strain." Pluto's eyes seemed to take on a maternal fondness. "But from the sound of her whimpers and the feel of her skin and her pulse, I judge that she has not harmed herself permanently." Pluto swallowed. "Fortunately for us all."
"Should have let me die," Uranus scowled. "She takes too many stupid risks."
"You're sure she'll be all right?" Neptune asked.
"As sure as I can be," Pluto responded. "I possess little more medical training than you do. My fields of study are botany and astronomy, after all." Pluto looked up at Neptune with a critical eye. "Would you cede the mission in favor of tending to her? Condemn Makoto to her fate?"
"Her safety is our primary responsibility," Neptune reminded Pluto. "I would hate to sacrifice Makoto, but if it comes down to a choice between them . . ."
"No," Sailor Moon's feeble voice interrupted.
They all looked down at her. She was still breathing heavily, as if she couldn't take in enough air. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes closed. But she was conscious.
"My Princess, conserve your strength," Pluto warned.
"Please," Sailor Moon whispered. "Please find Mako-chan. I'll be all right. I'm - - just being lazy old Usagi. Don't mind me."
"You're sure you'll be all right?" Uranus asked. "You wouldn't lie to us, would you?"
"Maybe," Sailor Moon said and the corners of her mouth turned up. Uranus grinned, too. "Please find her. Please?"
"All right," Neptune told her. "We'll continue on. Pluto will stay here and look after you."
Neptune rose to her feet. She turned to Uranus.
"Are you strong enough to travel?" she asked.
"And ready to rip that Kumo-onna a new one," Uranus replied sternly. "I pay my debts."
Neptune nodded. "Pluto? Will you be all right here?"
"Nothing and no one shall do harm to My Princess," Pluto said resolutely. Neptune nodded.
And she and Uranus were off into the gloom.
"Please let them all be all right," Pluto heard Sailor Moon whisper. She caressed the
woman's forehead once more.
- - - -
High atop Tokyo Tower, a white cat was hastily attaching electrical leads to the transmitter. He was precariously balanced on a strut, working with high voltage equipment that was currently transmitting. The cat knew one wrong move and he'd be deep fried. But there was something important at stake, so Artemis dismissed the danger and went on, protected only by a pair of rubber mitts over his paws and tinted goggles to illuminate the night. Feeling the electromagnetic aura of the transmitter along his uncovered fur, the cat cautiously strung the wiring.
"I really should screw that down," Artemis thought when the leads were connected, "but there's no way I'm getting a metal screwdriver close to a hot transmitter. That's pressing my luck too far."
Leaping with his own innate agility down from the strut to the platform below, Artemis plugged in the leads to the specially rigged Senshi Communicator. Not knowing if his attempt would work and for how long if it did, Artemis set his signal and engaged it.
"This is Artemis calling either Sailor Moon, Uranus, Neptune or Pluto. Please respond," he said into the communicator, glancing around to see if guards were approaching. "Please respond. This is Artemis calling either Sailor Moon, Uranus, Neptune or Pluto."
"Sailor Pluto here," he heard Pluto respond - - barely. "Your signal is very faint. Can you boost your signal?"
"It's as high as it's going to go and you don't want to know how I did it," Artemis told her. "I don't know how much signal I have left. Status report?"
"Sailor Jupiter is captive of a race of giant spiders led by a mythical Kumo-onna," Pluto reported. "Uranus and Neptune go now to rescue her. I am tending to Sailor Moon."
"Is she hurt?"
"Just over-extended. She will recover with rest."
"Do you need assistance?" Artemis asked. He waited, but there was no response. "Pluto? Pluto, are you there?"
His eyes shifted to the skies. A cloud pattern over the city was shifting and the moon was now visible.
"Signal's probably dissipated," he concluded.
Then he spotted one of his wires was loose from its connection.
"Or it could be that," he scowled. The cat jerked on the wires and they fell to him. "No way am I going to have a chance at stringing that up again. At least they're still alive and on mission."
The cat rolled up his equipment and began to scurry off.
"A Kumo-onna? What in the world is that? Guess I've got some research to do. I better send what I do know to Luna and . . ."
The cat paused. He grimaced at the memory of their fight. He'd been right to be angry at both her insinuations and her haughty tone, but that didn't seem as important now.
"She's probably still mad," he thought. "I'll send the message in text form. It won't give her the chance to - - well, it won't give her the chance to get mad all over."
Whizzing past a surprised security guard, Artemis headed for the stairwell.
- - - -
Racing through the dark, dense woodland, Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune headed for the last known position of the Kumo-onna. Neptune followed Uranus, keeping her eye on the blue skirt and bow bobbing before her. Uranus was easily the faster of the two, so it made sense to follow her.
"You're sure we aren't running right into another one of those webs?" Neptune posed in a cautionary manner.
"The wind is my guide," Uranus responded. "It wouldn't lie to me."
"It's nice to have allies," Neptune added.
"Wish it wasn't so damn dark!"
"I know. I can't even see enough to use the Mirror." Then she smiled. "Still, there are worse ways of being guided than watching your cute butt wiggle."
"Watch it, lady. I've got a girl friend," Uranus cracked back. "I wonder how Sailor Moon is doing?"
"She'll do a lot better when we bring Makoto back," Neptune said. "What do you suppose this Kumo-onna is after?"
"A hot meal?"
"No, there's more to it. Why attack you with that poison vapor? The way you shriveled up, there wouldn't be anything left to eat. If we're being lured in to trap and eat us, it seems like a pointless attack."
"Maybe it's trying to protect something. Maybe we just got too close. Maybe Makoto just got too close, too."
"And she's dead?" Neptune asked. Uranus didn't respond. "That's not a possibility Sailor Moon is going to be able to handle."
"Then it's better we're the ones handling it," Uranus said through tight, thinned lips. Suddenly she cocked her head. "The wind says we're close."
The pair came to a stop. Advancing forward cautiously, Uranus and Neptune scanned the inky black of night for any clue to friend or foe who might be lurking. The trees were black shadows with deep, dark highlights of green where some faint shaft of light struck them.
"Careful, Neptune," Uranus whispered as she scanned the area with her eyes. "We've got company."
"Do you know how many?" Neptune asked.
"No. More than one. Less than a dozen. Can't be more sure than that."
Onward they inched, every step guarded and ready for an attack from any side. Uranus remembered being taken by surprise by the Kumo-onna and vowed not to be taken in again. As they moved forward, more moonlight began to filter in. There was an area ahead where the trees were less dense and some light filtered through. Uranus and Neptune advanced closer.
As they neared the clearing, they could see faint outlines of huge webs strung in the trees. Hanging from the webs were cocoons. There were nearly a dozen, all shaped like oblong eggs and dangling lifelessly from a strand of the web. There were no sign of spiders, though, but the wind told Uranus they were there and Neptune trusted Uranus enough to believe.
They both saw it simultaneously. Strewn over the ground under the webs from broken cocoons were skeletal remains. Some of the bones and skulls were animal remains.
Some were human.
A movement caught Neptune's eye. She grasped Uranus and directed her gaze.
"There," Neptune said, pointing to a cocoon on a far web. It was human-shaped, unlike the others, almost like a mummified human. And it was moving. Neptune allowed herself a moment's trepidation. Was that Makoto?
"Neptune," Uranus hissed urgently. "They're attacking."
Continued in Chapter 9