CHAPTER TWENTYONE

Tuxedo Mask tensed at those words. He didn't know what she meant by her true from but he had a really bad feeling about it.

Sasha smiled at him coldly her grey eyes alive with malice. "Your about to see what few have witnessed. And all those who have seen me in my true form aren't alive to tell what they've seen."

Great he grumbled to himself. He was barely keeping up with her as it was and now she was going to upgrade. He didn't have a choice. If he was going to stand a chance of beating her and helping Serena he had to attack her now before she changed. Moving quickly so as to catch her off guard he jumped straight in the air. While she was left wondering at his sudden movement he took out a dozen or so roses and threw them at the ground around her feet. Completely surrounding her. The roses then exploded all at once expensing waves of energy that hit her from all sides.

He was about to follow up that attack by another one while she was still off balanced and dazed but a feeling of dread swept over him breaking his concentration. He dropped down onto a nearby fire escape and clutched his head. Serena? Something was terribly wrong with Serena. He could still feel her fear and it left a bitter taste in his mouth. But their was something else wrong. Something that he didn't' understand. But he felt that something might actually be wrong with her. He could feel it through their connection. It was an unfamiliar feeling and he didn't understand what it meant. The only thing that he could come up with was that something was seriously wrong with Serena. That in fact she wasn't Serena. Or at least not the Serena he knew. Which didn't make sense. What was going on with her? He had to get out of here and find out.

The sound of Sasha's warlike scream had him looking down. While he had been preoccupied with trying to figure out what the sensations he was receiving from Serena meant Sasha had recovered from his attack and now looked like she was out for blood.

He grasp and hung onto the fire escape for dear life as the ground beneath them started to shake. But she stood their seemingly unaffected by the shaking of the ground. That's when he realized that she was causing it. But his greatest surprise came when he noticed her eyes. Instead of the cold grey he was use to they were now a fiery red.

……..

"That's it Serena" Damien stated with satisfaction "just give into your primal instincts. Than with your reflexes and enhanced senses you'll be the perfect warrior."

"Why are you doing this to me?" She cried as she fought to drown the dark urges swelling up inside her "I thought you wanted me because of my pure life force?"

"I admit by polluting your body with my essence you wont taste as sweet as you did before. But I'm willing to settle for a slightly less than perfect meal if the appetizer is satisfying enough." he caressed her cheek with the back of his hand almost lovingly. "And our battle will be all that I've longed for. But first you need my help in bringing you to your full potential. As it is now your not much of a challenge. And I wouldn't want you to meet your end too quickly. After all I've waited centuries for one like your self. A warrior whose pure life force is as bright as mine is dark. And once you achieve everything that I've set out for you to do than that's when things will start to get interesting."

"I wont allow you to do this to me" she cried just as the Crystal flared to life engulfing them both with it's light and power.

He grimaced. The light was a nuisance but not a real threat. He smiled down at her "that crystal of yours cant destroy me my lovely. I'm beyond it's power" his smile turned to a frown when she failed to respond and the Crystal continued to glow. His hold on her became brutal and his expression fierce when he realized what she was doing.

"No" he shouted angrily. She was using the power of the Crystal to fight off the effects of his power. He reached out to grab the locket thinking to tear it off her chest and it burned him. Cursing he rolled off her clutching his injured hand. The Crystal couldn't destroy him but he couldn't destroy it either it seemed. He got up off the bed and started pacing like a caged animal while she continued to lay their in a self induced trance. Than inspiration struck. He knew what could bring her out of that trance. But he had to move quickly before the Crystal removed all traces of his essence from inside her.

Sailormoon just laid back and allowed the crystal to do it's work. She could feel it's healing power filling her erasing all traces of negativity. The dark urges were fading but were not completely gone when something started to penetrate through her daze. It was the sound of screaming. Somebody was in terrible pain. She tried to ignore it but the anguished cries pulled at her. Plus something about the sounds were familiar.

Mercury. Venus. her heart cried as she recognized the tortured cries of her friends. She came out of her trance all her senses on high alert. Nothing on her mind but finding them and finding them quickly.

Damien still disguised as Darien watched as the cries of her friends reach her and felt the presence of his energy in her body growing strong again. He smiled as the crystal went silent and the light faded. He crept up behind her on the bed he placed his hands on her shoulders and leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Listen to them Serena. Listen to their cries. While you stay here and fight me their out there somewhere in the mist dying. Their life forces are being ripped from their bodies. You remember how it felt to have the mist feed on you don't you? The pain you felt is nothing compared to what your friends are now going through. So are you going to continue you to fight me? Or will you except my help and save your friends before it's too late?"

Serena let the tears fall as she gave herself over to him and lost herself.

……….

"I can feel her closing in on us" Mars said breathlessly She could feel the negative vibrations in the air. Before she couldn't sense Sasha but her rage was so fierce and she was emitting so much negative energy that she could sense her easily now. She and Jupiter had been running for miles and they were getting close to where Mercury and Venus were battling but Sasha was gaining up on them fast.

"Keep going." Jupiter gasped fighting the urge to look back. She knew that she wouldn't see anything she trusted Mars instincts and Mars would know if Sasha was that close. "Don't worry about the one following us right now. Just remember we have another one to face once we reach the others.

Mars nodded and kept running. She couldn't believe their were three Sasha's. She had no idea how they were going to defeat three of them but then again I guess they have a choice it was their them or us. She just hoped that Mercury and Venus were alright. She did like what the Sasha she had been fighting had implied.

Jupiter looked over at Mars and noticed she was still favoring her left arm. "Are you sure your ok to fight."

"Yes" Mars replied "theirs no way I'm leaving all of you to fight that witch by yourselves. Besides if were going to follow Sailormoon's plan your going to need me to do it."

"I just hope Sailormoon's already there otherwise me might be in serious trouble" Jupiter shouted over her shoulder as she sped past Mars.

Mars grinned and sped up as well until they were once again neck and neck. "Well we better start thinking of something in case she's not."

Jupiter frowned. She hadn't felt right about her and Sailormoon splitting up from the get go. But if Darien is in much trouble as Mars was she knew that Sailormoon had made the right decision. None of us should face Sasha alone. She was too strong. She just hoped that they were both alright. And if they weren't already with Venus and Mercury she hoped they were on their way. Because they sure couldn't do this without them "They should be right around this corner" Jupiter cried

Once the turned the corner they both stopped dead in their tracks. At first they both thought it was a dark storm cloud but they dismissed that idea immediately giving the fact that it wasn't in the sky.

"What is it?" Jupiter cried

"I don't know" Mars replied "It appears to be a dark thick mist."

Jupiter sucked in a sharp breath and started for the mist.

"No wait" Mars cried grabbing Jupiter by the arm "I'm sensing a great evil coming from over there. I don't know why but something inside of me is screaming at me not to get to close. It's a very strong warning and I think we should listen to it." Mars looked at the dark mist with stern concentration. "That mist isn't all that it appears to be."

Jupiter stopped to look at the dark mist with dawning horror. She turned to Mars and said desperately. "But what if Sailor Venus and Mercury are in their?"

Mars shook her head and said sadly tears swelling "Than I don't know if their still alive."