I do not own Sailor Moon or Gundam Wing.

Erroneous Sands

Chapter Two : Simply Haunting

Rei awoke with a start, her eyes wide and darting about, violet globes trying to adjust to the darkness of the room. Blinking repeatedly she slowly sat up and looked around, still trying to remember exactly where she was. Giving her head a light slap she realized that she was in the only place she would be; her room. The dream she'd had was too real for her to completely forget, the emotions of the characters within were heart jerking and the way those people screamed seemed all too real… however it was already beginning to slip away. Putting a hand to her forehead she quickly pulled it away and grimaced at the salty liquid that stuck there. Sweat. How grotesque. Just as she had swung her legs over the side of her bed she heard a slight whimper to her right. She looked in the direction of the barely uttered sound where none other than her first and only friend lay sleeping, though sleeping is hardly what you would call it. There she lay tossing and turning in her bed, the occasional whimper uttered from her lips and the beaded sweat on her forehead was much more than Rei figured was on her own.

The young Princess of Mars picked up the bottom of her silky nightgown, hopped off of her high bed and tiptoed over to the small cot in the corner. This was hardly strange for her, it happened at least once a week and she seriously contemplated asking the girl what went on in her dream. However she knew that when her friend wanted to talk about it she would. Squeezing her eyes shut she placed a tentative hand on the girl's drenched forehead and concentrated. This was a power she had only recently, and accidentally, discovered. It was the first night that her friend had had the strange and haunting dreams. Rei had been worried about the girl but she hadn't gotten much sleep the night before so she found it best not to wake her. Instead she simply placed her hand her friend's forehead and willed her to stop struggling. And it worked. But what she hadn't expected the first time was the major headache that came as the aftermath of her actions. This time she was prepared.

When she finished, the brunette on the bed before her seemed to go limp as an imaginary weight was lifted off of her shoulders and the nightmare left her minds eye. Rei sighed as the headache hit her full on. With a wobbly step she tried to walk to the bathroom that was conjoined with her room. However this time the headache was much stronger than it usually was and Rei's body felt so weary that she fell to the ground, exhausted. Grabbing her head with anguished hands she tried to remove the headache from her own head, an action that she knew all too well was futile.

But in doing so images came to her. There was a big burly man, she couldn't see his face well, and there was a woman with long, wavy, golden hair that reached the small of her back. They were smiling happily with a child. The images then turned to a creature so disgusting Rei felt bile rise in the back of her throat. A black creature with wet, tar-like skin growled at her. Pungent, jagged teeth expanded numerously around its top and bottom jaw as it let out an ear splitting scream that would strike even the most jaded of souls. Strings of dark saliva stuck to its teeth as it opened its mouth wide and screamed again, the pitch just as horrifying as the last. Long fingers with caustic talons gripped a gorgeously jeweled sword, but which was encrusted with sordid, crimson blood. Large, twisted and glorious horns rose from head and its eyes glowed a repugnant red as they turned to meet Rei's mind eyes. It stared at her and spoke in an odd, yet entrancing, language. Its voice was deep and soothing, which was very odd for its grotesque manifestation.

"Rin al corr tale me," it said.The hisssent shivers up and down her spine as she found that her eyes were locked with its own. She couldn't turn away and it had begun to walk towards her. Rei knew for certain that this was no ordinary vision. This monster was real, it was hardly just a vision. And if it caught her inside of her minds eye she would never be able to return to the real world. In other words she would basically be a vegetable for the rest of her life until the creature decided to use her for its own purposes. It was odd, but very frightening how Rei found that she knew exactly what the creature was saying to her. She began trying to leave her minds eye but the creatures hold was too tight. She felt her body begin to relax as the creature screamed the exact words it had said before. Rei knew this wasn't the end, she was positive that somehow she would be out of this jam. And soon enough her body began to pull out, the creatures talon mere inches from her face.

"Wake UP!" the raven haired girl was literally slapped out of her visions by a cold hand. Giving a small utterance of her disproval she grabbed the side of her face where the harsh action had occurred and glared at the girl above her.

"Great Ares, Mako-chan, way to rip the skin right off of my cheek!" she growled as the brunette looked down at her sheepishly, placing a hand behind her head.

"Sorry Rei-san it's just that your eyes were so dark and you were collapsed on the ground. I kept calling your name but you wouldn't get up, I was so worried I took to the last resort—"

"Yeah, of trying to bitch-slap me…" Rei cut her off as she stood up with the help of her friend. Giving her body a good stretch she realized that her horrific headache was completely gone. Placing a hand to her now reddened cheek she turned her furious violet eyes to the taller girl who had a deeply apologetic look in her frightened emerald eyes.

"Rei-san, I didn't mean it like that! I was just so worried about you!"

Rei dropped her hands to her sides and looked at Makoto with even eyes. Why was the girl so perky and worried? Rei knew she was just playing with her. She had never been so apologetic in her entire life. Giving Makoto a slight shove she glared at her again. "Drop the act oh perky one. I'm not buying it," she said as she began to walk to her bathroom to wash the grime from her face and redo her now jacked up pony tail.

"Mmkay," Makoto said as she shrugged and hopped back into her bed and pulled the covers over her head. "Just making sure you knew I was sorry," she mumbled. "G'night."

Rei cupped her hands and captured the crystal clear water that slowly poured from her silver faucet. Flinging the water onto her face she gave a relaxed sigh. Walking over to Makoto she pulled the covers back and flicked tiny water droplets onto the sleeping girls face.

"Hey!" Makoto cried as she sat straight up and glared at her friend, her emerald eyes dancing with a fire-like passion which Rei's glare returned with just as much fervor. "What'd you do that for? I was almost asleep," she frowned. Most of the time she fell asleep at the drop of a hat but recently it had oddly taken her several minutes, even hours, to fall asleep. Instead of giving an answer Rei abruptly tore all of the covers off of Makoto's bed and threw them to the ground.

She smirked as Makoto gaped at her. "Get up, the sun's rising," was all she said as she walked over to the curtains that shrouded her room in darkness and pulled them back to reveal the pink hue that cased the horizon. The comforting glow immediately put Makoto's nerves at ease. She was rarely awake for the sunrise but whenever she was the sight made her strangely comforted. The sunrise, the sunset, and Rei were the only constants in her life and they made her perpetually jovial.

Giving a blissful sigh she tumbled out of her bed and walked to Rei's glass doors which opened to reveal a long white porch. Taking a step onto the warm wood, imported from Earth, she smiled and inhaled the sweet smell of Casablanca lilies, the only flowers, and almost vegetation, that grew on Mars. Leaning over the railing she closed her eyes and grinned as a soft breeze shifted through her disheveled hair. For some reason this land always felt so… foreign to her. Every Martian was gorgeous with silky, dark hair that could only resemble midnight. Makoto did not look this way. Her wavy auburn hair was unnatural as well as her emerald green eyes.

"Hey Mako-chan, stop daydreaming and get dressed." Rei poked her head around the door to her balcony and frowned and her friend's forlorn expression. She realized that whenever Makoto would stare off into space her eyes would go blank and her eye brows would crease in sadness. Frowning, the princess took a step onto her porch and placed a hand on Makoto's shoulder, who was immediately roused from her gloomy appearance. "Is everything ok?"

Makoto blinked and turned to Rei with perplexed eyes. "Of course, why wouldn't it be?" Of course there were many reasons why she wouldn't be ok, but voicing them hardly plagued her thoughts.

Hiding her worry Rei merely rolled her eyes and proceeded into her bedroom where she headed straight to her closet. Placing a fingernail in her mouth she shifted through the many dresses that cluttered her large clothing storage. She had dresses of every color, though most were either a ruby red or a gorgeous, dark purple. Fingering through a few she eventually sighed and turned to Makoto who now stood behind her. "Which dress should I wear today?"

Placing one hand on her hip and one on her chin thoughtfully, Makoto stared at the closet wonderingly before she walked back over to her own bed. "Well," she said, "Today's the conference with the royalty of Mercury, right? You and the princess are supposed to have tea while your parents discuss what to do about the destroyed boundary rocks. I'd suggest something simple yet elegant." Rummaging within her trunk for her usual outfit, Makoto looked over her shoulder and expressed her opinion. "What about that one red dress with the V neckline surrounded by those little beads," she made gestures for emphases around her neck, "The one you wore on your first trip to the Moon."

Turning to her closet Rei pulled out said dress. Holding it out, she tilted her head to the side and eventually brought it up to her body. Gripping the wispy fabric lightly in her fingers she walked over to her mirror and smiled. "Sounds good enough for me," she shrugged as she walked back over to her closet after throwing the dress onto her bed. Kneeling down she rummaged through her some hundred pairs of shoes only to come out with a simple pair of red pumps, her favorite. She smirked as she stood and tossed her shoes beside her dress. "Now what jewelry should I wear?"

Sighing, Makoto pulled her clothing out of her trunk and tossed them onto her bed before giving Rei a firm look. "Why are you asking me? You know perfectly well what you're going to wear. And don't be so rough with your clothes, those things are expensive." She began to remove her night clothes as Rei giggled.

"Yes, and I always know exactly what you are going to say. You always pick whatever's perfect and proper for the occasion, never the daring blood red dress with the excruciatingly low neck line and the slit up to the thigh. And never the shimmering green dress that pools at the feet yet completely reveals the entire back. Or even the midnight blue dress that enhances the breasts and hugs your body tight to show off every curve of a gorgeous woman's body. Oh no, you say 'that red one you wore on your first trip to the moon with the little thingies around the neck."

Rei ducked as one of her own shoes was chucked at her. Straightening up she turned and glared. Of course Makoto would never have done something like that in front of any other person on the planet for she knew she would be banned almost instantaneously. However when the two were just alone all stature was set aside and they were both simply fifteen year old best friends. But throwing shoes went a little far. Throwing expensive shoes almost crossed the line. Pointing a finger at her best friend Rei frowned. "Watch it buddy," she said menacingly.

Makoto looked at her innocently. "But Princess Rei, whatever have I done wrong?" she gave two short blinks for emphasis only to break her serious gaze as the shoe was chucked right back at her. Giggling she placed the item back on the bed next to its twin and returned to clothing herself. "Anyway, those dresses are hardly proper for a simple tea sitting with Princess Mercury. And you know I only suggest dresses I can pull off myself."

Rei rolled her eyes and grunted. She'd never admit it but a part of her was jealous of Makoto's body. The slightly younger girl had serious curves and long legs, for she was a few inches taller than the Martian princess. It's not that Rei wasn't satisfied with her own curves, oh no she loved her body. However it would always be nice to have a little more, you know, fill out some more obvious places. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts she walked over to her bed and removed her outfit for the morning off of its hanger. Shrugging on her dress Rei pulled her long raven locks over her shoulder and took large, decorative earrings from a small jewelry box on her nightstand.

However as Rei closed her jewelry box everything in her room seemed to shift and an abrupt dizziness erupted within her head. Gripping her night stand she shut her eyes tightly and grasped her head in pain. Taking in a shaky breath, Rei looked out to the sunrise and up and the vast space above her very own desert planet, her home. Her eyebrows lifted to reveal an agonizing look of sadness as tears bubbled within her throat. Her vision of the grotesque creature was shoved back into her head as its haunting yet spellbinding words echoed within her mind.

Your reign shall fall.

Whew, well there's another chapter out! And thank you so much to my two and only reviewers. Your kind words make me happy

Elapse: Haha, yes, fear not my friend! This story is mostly centered on Rei. Usagi shows up but her role is far less important than the Princess of Mars. Thank you so much for your review!

Deaths.Bloody.Rose: Wow, your praise completely made my day! I am proud of this story . I also liked the scenes between the King and Queen XD I'm quite a sucker for cuteness. I feel honored that you took a break from your vacation to read my little work of art, it is hardly worth all of your comments but I welcome them, they make me happy. And oh dear me, you must have read me wrong. I'm hardly a major rabbit fan. I can't even read most of the stories out there about her, they're full of betrayal and her looks are changed around quite a bit! But I don't hate Usagi, I like all characters from Sailor Moon. And as I told Elapse, you have nothing to worry about, this is a Rei centered story. However, about the pairings, I think I've already decided who's with whom. But I'm not going to tell you who because that would ruin it all . But here's a hint: I wouldn't be so worried about it if I were you. You could just persuade me into a certain pairing… hehehe. Until next time!

EternalHime