Author's Note: This is honestly the third time I've tried to write this chapter. I forgot one thing. Aren't I writing this no matter how it turns out? I really can't give up. I know I wanted this chapter to be fantastic but right now it's a miracle I've managed to make it to chapter six. Bare with me, I'll get this one out to you even if it kills me.

Disclaimer: I disclaim creativity because it's just not happening tonight.

Chapter 6: No Sweet without Sweat

I spent most of the day questioning whether or not I should make a phone call to Rei during the evening of not. It wasn't as though I didn't want to talk to her; hearing her voice had become a reminder that I belonged somewhere. I didn't want to seem gloomy on the phone. I avoided looking at the telephone all together. Instead, I watched the clock as the second hand ticked slowly around and around. She would be angry if I didn't call because it would worry her or slightly irritated if I did. Never afraid of a slightly irritated Rei, I picked up the phone and dialled the shrine number. Then I waited for the grumble that would be her greeting, put on a cheerful smile as though she could see it and said enthusiastically, "Good Morning, Sunshine!"

"Didn't you say something about me and not losing sleep over you?" She cleared her throat part way through the sentence.

"Mm. I changed my mind."

"You do that, don't you?"

"Often." I laughed softly. "I assume you didn't get the notice?"

"Yuurichiro must have forgotten the mail again. Will you be having fun tonight?"

"I'll be righting wrongs and triumphing over evil." I felt as though I half-smiled and half-frowned.

"You can be so melodramatic sometimes."

"I know…"

I was still very uneasy about involving Morgan and the others in the whole messy situation. When I had received the call that we were meeting at Forest Park, my nervousness was still twisting knots into my muscles. Morgan assured me one more time that they would be fine and with that I hung up and left the house to meet them. There was a gentle breeze that night but it didn't take Haruka and Michiru to sense a storm coming. I enjoyed the gentleness of the weather as I walked and when I located Vanessa and Morgan at the edge of the park, I joined them.

"Where's Steven?" I asked.

"I'm here." His voice rang but soon turned into an unpleasant scratchy noise.

"In walkie-talkie format." Morgan pointed to the little black box attached at Vanessa's hip. She handed the device to me and I studied it a little before pressing the button on it's side.

"You're stuck with patrol duty, are you?" I waited for the reply.

"I was never that good a fighter."

"Just be careful. If you find something, make sure you're a safe distance away before making any call." He confirmed my order and I looked to the others. While pulling out my henshin pen and using it as a pointer, I gave them both strict orders to stay out of sight unless they think they are absolutely needed. They weren't too happy about it but I convinced them that it would be too hard to protect them if they were drawn into a fight from the beginning. They would be seen as a weakness that would most definitely be exploited. I felt odd about transforming in front of them so I turned my back to do so. Once my transformation was complete, I summoned my chain and tied it around my waist. We began a deliberately slow patrol of the park which sprouted some inevitable conversation.

"You said before that there is a bright light here. A girl?" Morgan was always so curious.

"There is." I replied.

"Like a beacon?"

"She can be."

"If she knows she brings evil here, why does she stay?" I thought about it for a moment.

"This world would draw evil anyway. Like I said, it's full of life energy and darkness always wants it so that it may become something other than darkness."

"Isn't it entitled to that right?"

"It is. Only when it wants to be healed into something good will she heal it and spend every ounce of herself to do so." I sighed.

"It sounds like you don't understand."

"That's because I don't. No one can. It is stupid to say she's perfect because she is so flawed… but she's brilliantly foolish. If I only say that she is a giving person, it's not enough to describe why she does what she does. She has no reason other than that she believes everyone deserves a chance." I watched the dim light of the moon as it tried to shine through the clouds that blocked it.

"Are you all like that?" Vanessa allowed her own curiosity to shine through her shy exterior for once. And because it was her, I couldn't help but try and give her a sincere answer.

"I think that we try our best to understand that unconditional love is a force she believes in very strongly. In the end, we're all so different but we all love her and look up to her in our own way."

"You're starting to sound a little jealous." Vanessa replied. "Why?"

"She has something I want." The confession was a disagreeable taste in my mouth and it probably wouldn't just go away after brushing a few times. I felt brainless for putting up with that line of conversation in the first place. I feel horrible for ever remembering I felt that way. Thinking about it reminded me that, in the end, I could never compare to Usagi-chan. I wasn't nearly as innocent or selfless. I could try my hardest to be that clumsy and succeed in being that way but my acting is only acting. Rei certainly couldn't possibly see past anyone but Usagi-chan anyway. After some time, I had obviously wandered into a world of my own because it was an apology that brought me back to the conversation. But before I could utter a reply, there were bestial shouts approaching from behind. We turned to find that three were advancing rapidly towards us.

I charged my crescent beam quickly and deliberately; my frustrations shaped an anger in me that overwhelmed my senses. I ordered the others not to look at the light and to take hiding. After they had done so, I sent a cannon of multiple beams. A shower of crescent moon rays that burnt and damaged my foes. An arm was lost for the blue scaled creature in the middle. Its blood sprayed black while it screamed in agony. By then the others had finally reached me and tried to surrounded me. Their painful screeches felt paralyzing so I half-hazardly whipped my chain towards them and they faltered in their spell while avoiding it. I breathed heavily already but took my chance to flip away from them while I had them distracted.

My chain suddenly went rigid in my hands as they began to attempt an attack again. I took a run towards the despicable creature to my left and levered myself over him. I twisted on my descent and used the chain as a blade to cut the demon into two. I felt the other draw near from behind me so I swung myself around, blade in tow. The chain flexed and found the monster's slim ankle and dropped the beast to the floor. I flung myself over it once again but made a rush for the one-armed monster I had left behind. It had just began to lift itself from the ground but was met with swift decapitation as I made passed it. I slowed to stop and turned from the corpse.

The third regarded me wide-eyed, both fear and anger highlighting the hideous features of it's face. It exhaled flames and snarled while it more carefully came closer. It grew blades for arms and grew larger in size. If it meant to intimidate me, I was hardly frightened. I swung my chain with little interest in it's display of power and it seemed rather insulted. It jabbed at me with a blade and swung with its other blade-arm. I sidestepped and ducked the attacks but was met with a weak and rushed blast of fire. My right side and arm took damage as I instinctively covered my face. While I shook off the pain from the blast, the demon sucked in a deep breath which was meant to be a final blow. I placed a single kiss to my palm, rushed forward and smacked it against the slimy skin of its forehead. The love and beauty shock worked it's intended magic. The explosion of fire and energy was large in the field and I barely missed being taken by it as well.

"Venus!" The two girls took the quiet as a cue to appear from their hiding spots. They instantly ran to my side while I rested on a knee and wiped some of the blood from my face. "Are you tired?" They asked.

"I think I've been through worse."

"Let's go… it doesn't look like either halves of that body can be interrogated." Morgan helped me to my feet. I felt bad for not leaving any of them alive long enough to talk. Safety had to come first.

"Today is judgement day for the one called 'Venus'." Morgan jumped. Vanessa looked as though she would be sick to her stomach. It was a disgusting sight. Disgusting that a half of any dead creature could actually speak. It went on unaffected, sputtering blood while it delivered it's message. "Our Goddess says that she watched you die. She...has seen your fate with her own eyes." The half twisted and writhed, saying all it could before dying. "Go to her."

The walkie-talkie bleeped and there was a pause before Steven began to speak in a hurried and breathless voice. "Broad…ter" Vanessa grabbed the gadget and asked for him to repeat himself. "Broadgate Center! The mall, Venus! I saw them and I ran like you said!" I asked him if he was harmed. He said they hadn't seen him and that he ran as far as he could before getting back to us. I watched as storm clouds collected above the city and felt the few drops of rain before the real storm. I rubbed my eyes and tried to think clearly about all the things I had just heard. I tried to peace puzzles together. Judgement? I would die? I shook the thoughts and turned to leave.

"Venus! Stop! Wait! Weren't you listening to a single thing that he said! Minako!" Morgan grabbed my arm but I shook her off and turned to face her.

"I heard him," I started calmly. "But there is only one person I trust the future to. Lamia is not that person." I smirked confidently and hoped my certainty would calm them enough to allow me to finish the job quickly.

"Then let's go." Morgan interjected.

"No. You've done more than you have to. I want you to both go home. Please, I promise I will be alright." They both dropped their gazes to the floor and nodded solemnly. I knew they would follow me no matter what. It wasn't part of Morgan's qualities to just give up because her life might be in danger. Just like it wasn't part of my qualities to give up because some witch decides I may die. I told them both to cheer up and that I would call them when it was over. I turned away and headed straight for Broadgate Center.

Clichéd as it was, lightning was striking and thunder was rolling. The moon's light was covered completely and I squinted at the building that was to be my supposed grave. I stood at the bottom of the steps that led to the front door and peered from bottom to top, side to side. I didn't want to trigger any alarms and accidentally involve any law enforcement. I climbed the steps and leapt to the top of the two story structure. Its roofing was mainly comprised of windowpanes. Each store on the second floor had one window; largely just for looks. Judging by the open window at the other side of the roof, I was obviously expected. It was clearly impossible for them not to sense me. So I took the only opening and dropped down into a small woman's clothing store, next to a manikin that pretty much scared the hell out of me.

I pressed on towards the front of the store which was conveniently left open just for me I suppose. Into the mall, I found a set of stairs that left me at the first floor. I felt drawn towards the center and it was likely because my pray would be found there. I found remnants of plant life, only half-alive, that seemed to be trying to creep away from the heart of the mall. I paused next to a wilting plant and touched it's lifeless, weak leaves. They were all dying.

As I continued, I found myself in the food court. Some chairs were still stacked on tables while the majority were scattered about. The presence in here caused burning pains in my chest. My feet pulled me forward so that I could see across the court more clearly. Passed the tables was a empty space usually used for entertainment. In that space my pray floated, limp in what seemed an invisible throne. Her head lay lazily to one side and her eyes glowed a strange green. Her skin was pale and her hair cloaked her shameless nakedness. She did not shift or change position ever but her two black-scaled manticore snarled loudly at her side. She laughed without a change in expression, a cold and heartless laugh that seemed to command her dogs to attack.

As was a pattern with all her creatures, they headed straight for me. I began to run through the large expanse of tables and chairs. It slowed them down well enough but I knew I couldn't keep running from them. Lamia seemed amused and the image of her laughing at my expense frustrated me. I conjured my chain and whipped it towards the ceiling. It wrapped neatly around a beam and I leapt high and began to climb. The hungry and furious beasts both bounded for me while I climbed and I narrowly avoided having my feet chewed off. Instead, they had run into each other quite hard and it caused somewhat of a disagreement between the two. They began to fight with each other. I sent a number of beams down towards them while they were distracted. One was pierced through it's ankle and the shock gave the other just enough time to sink its deadly sharp teeth through a scaley neck and ravage it's opponent. I didn't wait for it to finish it's meal. I flung myself towards the second floor landing and used the height to my advantage. I aimed carefully for a light fixture and let another beam loosen the heavy machinery from the ceiling. It fell and landed on the monster's head with a disturbing cracking noise I was sure was it's skull being crushed.

I jumped over the banister and landed on a table below. I had not been careful enough because at that instant, the first of the dogs I had thought was dead pounced and held me strongly against the ground. It's claws dug into my side and tried to tear through the flesh. I reacted quickly enough to avoid further injury. "Love and beauty shock!" A weak and whimpered attack. It was all I had in me and it had done the job against the already weakened creature. I laid on my side and took in as much air as I can. I was feeling so many things. It was sad that 'defeated' was among those feelings. Not dead, but defeated. Death was an entirely different feeling. Finding that I wasn't dead, I began to crawl towards the clear area of the court.

"Did you come for judgment?" Lamia's voice was soft and sultry but not comforting. Though she spoke, her lips never moved. I didn't answer such a silly question. I didn't need to waist the breath. I pushed myself into a sitting position against a wall while considering all my options. The future was indeed bleak. "No. You're quite right. You don't need to speak." Her lips turned to a smile and slowly let herself down to the floor and neared me. She crouched above me, her smile never wavering. Lamia slapped me with a force I didn't expect so that I thought I saw stars. But then she ran her the back of her hand gently against my jaw, turning my face back towards hers.

"That was for my lovely manticore. I loved them very much." Her touch was soothing and revolting. "…But I love you too." Her hand trailed down my neck and rested on my chest. "This poor, poor soul. You've blackened it quite enough, haven't you?" I cringed and I cried and I nodded. Sobbing like a helpless baby. "Won't you give it to me?" I only nodded again. She placed a kiss against my throat and a kiss against my lips while she began pushing her hand into my heart. She hummed lightly looking for whatever it is she thought was inside of me while I screamed. The minutes passed and she was clearly becoming frustrated.

"It's not here." Her voice, filled with disappointment, was like poison. Her hands gripped my neck and tightened. "Where is it! Tell me where it is!" I tried to tense my neck muscles to keep her from choking me to death but she was too strong and I was too tired. I watched my right hand lay limply at my side… concentrating until my chain appeared. Lamia, frustrated and busy with squeezing the life from me, didn't notice until I wrapped it around her own neck and pulled tightly. And tighter still. I returned the choke until she let me loose and began to panic. She tried desperately to loosen the chain but I held on tightly. When she fell back, I followed and straddled her. I began to shake her body violently, repeating, 'die, die, die!' like the unholy mantra that it was. She dug her nails into my shoulders, whispering last spells of her own. But I didn't care, not even when I felt a piercing pain manifest and begin to throb in my lower back. With her last bit of incredible strength, she pulled me down to her and whispered into my ear some words that had made me regret not dying. I wish I could say that what was done was done but nothing was done. It was really just beginning.

I jolted and screamed when I felt a hand on my shoulder. When I saw that it was Morgan, allowed myself to fall back to the ground out of exhaustion. She caught me and signalled Vanessa over to help. "Are you alright? Do you need to go to a hospital?" I shook my head.

"No hospitals."

"Alright. Steven is getting his car but we have to get out of here before the cops come. That was a pretty impressive display of lights for a second there."

"Cameras…" I panted.

"Don't worry. They're taken care of." Vanessa assured me.

They led me out of the mall to an alley where we waited in the dark for several minutes until Steven showed up with his car. When we arrived at Morgan's apartment, she offered me her guest bedroom so that I could rest.

"It won't be necessary." I answered while Vanessa helped me to clean and dress my wounds.

"What are you talking about? You can barely stand!" Morgan predictably was not going to comply that easily.

"Hell is about to break loose. I need to get home as soon as possible. I need a plane ticket. I need to get home. I don't have much time."

"This is crazy." She stood and paced back and forth in the room. "I can't let you do that."

"Morgan, she can rest on the plane." Vanessa took my hand and spoke in my defence. "She really needs our help right now."

It took a little longer to convince Morgan to give me the help that I needed. I asked Steven to reserve the earliest flight possible while Vanessa and I continued to cover up as many injuries as possible. My flight was booked for seven that morning. Three hours. Morgan helped me back down to Steven's car and they saw me to the door of my house. When they were sure I was able to walk on my own, I said goodbye to them.

"It was good to see you again, Minako." Morgan hugged me firmly.

"We'll see each other again. I promise. You still owe me a match."

"I'll be ready for you then. Goodbye."

I watched her walk away and into the front passenger seat of Steven's car. I waved to Vanessa in the back seat who smiled and mouthed another 'goodbye.' A wink from Steven and they were off. I opened the door to my house and immediately walked to my bedroom to pack a bag of clothes.

"I hope you planned to leave a note on the refrigerator at least."

I dropped the pair of socks I had been holding into the bag and slowly turned to my dad. I know nothing I was about to say could make any sense. And I felt horrible for hurting my own father this badly. "There are things I have to do at home that I can't tell you about." He sighed heavily and slumped against the doorframe. He gave me a slight nod and a shrug. "I'm sorry. I wanted to stay but… things happened here and--."

"You don't have to explain, Minako. I understand." He walked in to my room and hugged me closely. "Just don't forget about me, alright?"

"I can't forget about you." He wiped a few tears from my cheeks and offered me a ride to the airport, which I appreciatively accepted. We were off the moment I finished packing. It hurt to see him stand by and watch me as I was herded through security with the other passengers. With a sigh, I waved goodbye to him before walking out of his life again because of duty.

End Note: That one took a lot out of me but it was a week overdue. Thanks for being patient. If you're wondering: it's not over yet. But I'm thinking of starting where I left off in a second story.

Manticore: A mythological creature that was said to have the face of a man, the body of a lion and the tail of a scorpion. I've seen a lot of illustrations of these creatures so the ones in this story are rather personalized.