Howdy! Howdy! I have to warn you: this chapter is a wee bit longer than the last chapter. If you have reviewed in the past, thank you so much! I really do appreciate the feedback. If you read and have not yet reviewed, please take a moment to let me know what you think of this story. If you've come this far with it, I hope that means you like it!
Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon.
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In the last chapter, Endymion bought a horse, which he and Serenity rode until the princess of the Moon had to stop to—as my high school friend's mother used to say—take a tinkle. The princess discovered that they weren't alone in the woods.
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Light of Love: Red Moon
Chapter 17: Deadly Revelations
Endymion waited, somewhat impatiently, for Serenity to return. She certainly took her sweet time, he silently observed.
The prince fidgeted. He removed the glove from his hand and raked his black matted hair with his bare fingers.
His thoughts drifted to his exchange with Serenity just a few moments before. Endymion frowned as he considered his feelings toward the girl. Little girl, he silently chided himself. Why did he regard her so fondly? Why did he want to protect her?
The young man tilted his head back to stare at the bare tree boughs above. He observed how the branches radiated from the trunks to form skeletal webs with the neighboring trees. The grey light of the winter day was visible just beyond the matted spray. The prince narrowed his dark blue gaze to view the small patch of sky on the other side of the tree tops. He shook his head.
He wasn't quite sure of where they were going. In the village, his only intention had been to leave Alendoor. Now that he and Serenity had successfully accomplished that goal, Endymion had no idea of how to proceed.
The prince suddenly dropped his gaze and stared at his uncovered hand. He sighed. He pulled the glove back over his fingers. His face creased as he considered their predicament.
Of course, if Serenity wasn't traveling with him, Endymion would have behaved far more brashly and carelessly. Perhaps he would have stormed back to Jade Castle to face his Uncle Bartleby and King Nefar of the Sun. The prince knew that such a venture was dangerous and stupid, but if both his mother and father had fallen into his uncle's trap, then surely Endymion was the only one who could save them.
The prince sucked a deep breath of cold air and held it in his lungs. Perhaps a solo charge of Jade Castle was a foolhardy venture, he reasoned to himself. In the past, Endymion was not responsible for his actions, so he had never given a second thought to the danger or the consequences of what he did. Kunzite had been trying for years to instill the value of patience in the young prince.
Endymion coughed. He approached a medium-sized trunk and threw his back against it. The young man leaned into the hard surface. He stared down at his black leather boots. He dug his heels into the icy snow at the base of the tree. Moonshadow huffed impatiently from the tree she was leashed to. The prince squeezed his eyes shut.
He had agreed to help Serenity find her father, but Endymion seriously wondered if the young girl truly knew where the man was. The prince really didn't have time to be the girl's personal guide, anyway. On the other hand, Endymion felt totally responsible for Serenity's safety, especially now that the Solarians were pursuing both of them. Perhaps his best plan of action would be to return to his own castle. He could leave Serenity behind and then attend to dealing with his uncle. Of course, Endymion would have to tell Serenity that he was the Terran prince. He frowned over this prospect. He rather liked spending his company with a girl who had no idea of who he really was.
A rustling sound in the clump of bushes on his left interrupted Endymion's thoughts. His lids opened. He peered out of the left corner of his eye. He saw no one.
He frowned as he recalled Serenity's original exit from his sight; the Moon princess had wandered into the thicket of trees to his right, not to the cluster of bushes on his left.
Endymion placed his hands against the trunk on each of his sides and pushed himself into a standing position. His scrutinizing dark eyes scanned the brush. The prince placed his right hand over the hilt of his sword. He called for Serenity, just in case she had somehow managed to turn herself completely around.
"Usa?" he said casually.
The prince took one step forward, away from the tree. He heard an object whir above his head. The distinctive sound of an arrowhead slicing through the wood of the tree trunk behind him caused Endymion duck. The prince grunted as his nose smacked harshly into his left thigh. Under less hostile circumstances, the young man would have marveled at his own flexibility. Instead, Endymion hastily unsheathed his sword. He clumsily shimmied to his right while clutching his throbbing nose with his left hand.
A man chuckled in the near distance. The prince recognized that laugh. Endymion sneered, which made his nose hurt even more.
"Jedite?" he said, peering ahead. His words echoed inside the hand cupped in front of his face.
Two figures stepped out from behind a wide tree trunk located approximately ten yards from the prince. Endymion growled as his two guardians approached. He lowered his fingers from his swollen nose. He clenched his free hand in front of him and erupted into a rage.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he demanded.
Jedite grinned. He wanted to tell Endymion how funny he looked a few moments ago when he was dodging the arrow, but a cautionary nudge from Zoicite discouraged him from further upsetting the prince. Instead, the blonde guardian shouldered his bow and shrugged.
"Relax, Endy!" Jedite said casually. "I just wanted to get your attention."
"Get my attention?" echoed the prince. "How? By shooting me in the head?"
"Sorry about that," Zoicite piped in. "That was my fault. I suggested that we fire a warning shot, so as to not startle you..."
"So you entrust Jedite with a bow and arrow?" Endymion raged. He pointed angrily to the stuck tree.
"You've gotta admit," Jedite said, approaching his handiwork, "I am getting better with a bow."
Endymion scowled at the man. Jedite grinned smugly. The blonde guardian lovingly petted the red and green feathers on the butt end of his stuck arrow. The prince muttered beneath his breath.
Zoicite, eager to change the subject, cleared his throat. "We've been worried about you," he stated.
Endymion shifted his attention away from Jedite. He sheathed his sword. The red-headed guardian observed the prince's shoulders relax a little.
"How did you find me?" Endymion questioned.
"It's our job," Jedite sarcastically muttered.
The prince turned to give a snappy retort, but Zoicite spoke first.
"Nephrite sent us out to search for you," the guardian explained. "Helios thought you were in trouble two nights ago—during those explosions or whatever they were—and Kunzite dispatched Nephrite to Jade Castle to check on you. Of course, you were gone by that time."
"And where is my mother?"
"She's fine," Jedite assured. "Kunzite decided that travel to the Puissant Territory was not advisable, considering the vibes Helios felt from those blasts."
"So, do you mind telling us what happened?" Zoicite asked.
Endymion took in a deep breath. He quickly explained, to the best of his recollection, his experience on the night of the explosions, the encounter with the Solarian soldiers, of waking up the next morning in the cave, and his exchange with Beryl.
"I don't trust her," he confessed.
Both of the guardians nodded quietly. They turned to each other, exchanged a look, and again shifted their attention to the Terran prince.
"So, what's the deal with the kid?" demanded Jedite.
"What kid?" Endymion said. His twilight eyes widened as he thought of Serenity. "Oh, you mean Usa."
"Usa?" parroted Zoicite.
"Yeah, um," Endymion snapped his fingers while he attempted to recollect her real name. "Usagi! Ah, Tsukino Usagi. That's her full name."
Zoicite crossed his arms over his chest. He raised his left eyebrow and muttered with a hint of amusement, "Apparently."
Jedite laughed. "Wow, we lose you for two days and already you have a girlfriend."
Endymion's normally even complexion turned ruddy.
"She's not my girlfriend!" the prince's voice cracked. "She's just a little kid! She was lost in the woods. I couldn't exactly leave her there, now could I?"
"But what does she want?" Zoicite pointedly demanded.
"Nothing," Endymion explained. "Look, she's from the north. The same village as Kunzite, probably. Her father came to the territory on business and she followed after him. I figured that it would be better for me to travel with someone else, since the Solarians are looking for someone traveling alone. But now I'm afraid that I've put Usa in danger, too."
"Usa?" Jedite said mockingly.
Endymion ignored the blonde. Instead, he told Jedite and Zoicite about the previous night and the attack by the Solarian woman. He neglected to mention the strange voice that awakened him or the strange crescent shape that had formed on Serenity's forehead.
Jedite sucked in a breath and whistled.
"Attacked by a woman?" the blonde said. "I don't know if that would be so bad."
"It was very bad, trust me," Endymion assured. "She was extremely powerful. She used some sort of magical attacks. Honestly, I don't know how I was able to fend them all off."
Zoicite frowned. "Are you certain that the girl..."
"Usa!" Jedite merrily piped. He adjusted the quiver of arrows on his back.
"Usa," Zoicite corrected himself while casting a sideways glare at the blonde, "That she isn't in cahoots with the Solarian? I mean, it's a pretty interesting coincidence that she showed up right after you escaped from the cave."
Endymion shook his head furiously. "She has no idea about any of that. She doesn't even know that I'm a prince. Oh, which reminds me," he leaned forward and lowered his tone. "When Usa gets back here, call me Mamoru. She doesn't know my real name."
Jedite clicked his tongue on the top of his mouth. "I don't know, Endy, er, Mamoru," he muttered mockingly, "Do you think a relationship can last when it's founded on deceit?"
The prince's twilight eyes flashed dangerously. His cheeks crimsoned.
"What about the incident at the Stuffed Pig?" Zoicite quickly asked.
Endymion's eyebrows lifted with surprise. He recalled his encounter the surly drunken man.
"You heard about that?" the Terran prince said. Both of his guardians nodded knowingly.
"We were there, actually," Jedite confessed. "In the corner. Nephrite was supposed to meet us."
Endymion's entire face flushed. He was embarrassed by how rashly he behaved. Kunzite would surely hear of the altercation; his mentor would not approve of the prince's quick temper, even if Endymion's intention was honorable.
"You behaved with much dignity," Zoicite reassured the prince. "That oaf was out of line, and you were defending the girl."
"Thanks, Zoicite," responded Endymion. The prince made eye contact and smiled gratefully at his red-headed guardian.
"Of course, you did call a lot of attention to yourself by drawing your sword," Jedite pointedly added. Zoicite poked him in the ribs to shut him up. "Ow!" the blonde guardian squealed. "Well he did!"
Endymion nodded soberly. "I know I did."
The prince suddenly fell to one knee. A jolt of stinging energy slammed into Endymion's heart; his chest felt tight and weighted. His stomach clenched painfully. He steeled himself against the sensation. Endymion stared at the white slate of snow beneath him; his mind was hazy from the pain.
Zoicite and Jedite rushed to help their prince. The two guardians exchanged a concerned look with each other over Endymion's stooped form. Prior to the eclipse, the prince had never been prone to illness or fits; now, these spells occurred on a regular basis. Both Jedite and Zoicite were worried.
"What is it, Endy?" Zoicite asked. The red-head placed his right hand on Endymion's left shoulder. The prince trembled. "Are you in pain?"
"How can we help?" Jedite inquired.
Endymion clenched his teeth. His breathing was heavy and loud. The prince suspected that the sudden rush of feeling was caused—somehow—by Serenity. The pain was unbelievably intense, but Endymion's awareness of its origin made it tolerable. Endymion closed his eyes and concentrated on the pain. He harnessed the sensation and used it to link him to Serenity. He gasped. The princess needed him. She was in danger.
Serenity screamed. Endymion's midnight eyes snapped open. He sucked in a chilled breath of air and licked his chafed lips. Serenity's cry pained Endymion more than anything he had ever encountered. His head felt as though it would implode. The prince pitched forward. Agony racked his body. The sensation was so crippling that he wanted to curl into a ball in the snow. Instead, he gritted his teeth and staggered to his feet. The prince looked over his right shoulder, to the gap in the woods that Serenity had disappeared through only a little while before.
"What was that?" Zoicite muttered out loud. Both he and Jedite twisted their heads and stared suspiciously at the surrounding wood.
"Usa's in danger," Endymion muttered. He took a step forward. The prince channeled his own energy—his second pair of eyes—into locating Serenity. When he sensed her location, Endymion frowned. She had wandered a lot further than she should have, much further than he had advised. His worry for her briefly shifted into irritation. Endymion refocused his attention. When she was safe, Serenity would hear an earful from him. In the meantime, the prince would use his link with Serenity's fear to find her.
Endymion unsheathed his sword and strode forward. He didn't ask his two companions to come with him. Jedite and Zoicite were already following behind.
He silently began to rehearse everything he would say to her for wandering so far into the woods. Hadn't he told her not to go too far away? Hadn't he instructed her not to take too long?
A foul odor distracted the prince and his two guardians. The three men stopped. Endymion leaned forward and gagged. Jedite groaned; he blonde muffled his face with his right sleeve. Zoicite held his breath while he extracted a white handkerchief from the breast pocket of his shirt. He covered his nose and mouth with it.
"Rotting bodies," the red-headed man announced.
The Terran prince covered his own face with his left hand and righted his posture. He, Jedite and Zoicite walked forward, even though they were effectively entering the area of the forest which was most infected with the putrid stench. Endymion silently wondered why Serenity would have gone this direction, with such a foul smell lingering in the air. His thoughts wandered to Zoicite's comment about bodies. The prince frowned. Corpses would not rot during the dead cold of winter; the bodies would freeze, he reasoned.
A strange, guttural noise erupted from the tree cluster directly in front of trio. Endymion and his two guardians paused in stride. They exchanged confused glances with each other before stepping forward.
A figure dropped from above and landed in front of them. Jedite, Zoicite, and Endymion instinctively jumped back.
"What the...?" Jedite trailed off.
A tall, naked man coated with reddish-colored dried mud stood before them. His mangled black hair fell down to his waist. He waved a crudely hewn wooden spear in front of the prince and his guardians. The mud man's head bobbed back and forth as he inspected the three surprised Terrans. He paced and waved his spear menacingly in front of him. He paused in front of Zoicite, opened his mouth, and revealed two rows of sharp, jagged teeth. He hissed.
The entire wood around Endymion, Zoicite and Jedite hissed. The prince twisted his head—casually, to avoid unwanted attention from the mud man—to look around. With horror, Endymion observed that they were surrounded on all sides by other mud-covered men. Jedite elbowed the prince in the ribs and motioned for the prince to look up. Endymion's expression turned grim. More mud men blanketed the tree trunks and dangled from the bows directly above them. They were trapped.
"Well, rotting was right," Jedite whispered, "But, unfortunately, not corpses."
"Great observation," Endymion muttered. "What should we do? Do you think they're hostile?"
"Uh, I think that would be a yes," Zoicite dryly observed. "Normally, you don't surround people on all sides to ask them over for dinner."
The man in front of the prince and his guardians seemed annoyed by their candid conversation. He waved his spear in front of the trio. He hissed and grunted loudly. Endymion assumed that the strange noises were some sort of a language. The other mud people also shouted and hissed.
Endymion rolled his eyes as he regarded their predicament. He had more important things to attend to at the present moment. The prince clamped his eyes shut and focused on Serenity. He breathed a sigh of relief when he located her presence.
"Usa's just beyond that bank of trees there," he told Jedite and Zoicite. He nodded his head to the area of forest slightly to their left. The area was blocked by five mud men.
"Oh that's just great," Jedite muttered. He rolled his eyes as he added, "Thank goodness she's okay. Let's just ignore the fact that we are completely surrounded!"
Jedite's raised tone upset the mud men. The one standing in front of the prince and his guardians waved his stick above his head before pointing it directly at the blonde man's face. The mud man said something in his language. His orange eyes widened and he bared his teeth. Rusted-colored drool leaked from the corner of his mouth. Jedite frowned and held his breath in.
The prince, completely focused on saving Serenity, stepped forward.
The mud man shifted his attention away from Jedite and trained the tip of his spear to the Terran prince's chest. Endymion's gaze fell from Serenity's distant location to the poorly crafted weapon now aimed at his heart. He lifted his head and focused his attention to the mud man's face. He stared his opponent's bright orange eyes; the prince's deep blue gaze tightened with anger as he noted their unusual color. Endymion felt the concern he had for Serenity's safety drain from his limbs and transition into rage. He allowed the negative emotion to flow freely through his body. A low growl escaped from Endymion's throat.
The mud man's orange eyes widened with surprise. A moment later, his expression shifted. His eyebrows knitted together and he also began to growl. The surrounding mud men began to growl and stomp their bare feet in the snow.
"Uh, that may not be a good idea," Jedite whispered to Endymion. "It looks like you made them angry."
The prince shifted the sword in his hand. He swiped the weapon through the space between himself and the mud man, which sliced his opponent's wooden spear into two pieces. He stepped forward and knocked the man to the ground.
"These monsters are Solarians!" Endymion raged. He stuck the tip of his blade into the man's torso. The sword easily sliced the skin and sunk into the Solarian's chest cavity. Rather than being a solid mass, the mud man's body was soft and gooey. Endymion grunted with disgust as he extracted his blade. A gush of putrid red slime slicked the metal.
A collective howl echoed in the forest from the remaining mud men. The shrill noise scratched the ears of the prince and his guardians. The mud people, dangling in the trees above, dropped from their perches and stormed the trio.
"This is just great!" Jedite moaned. He removed the bow from his shoulder and used the end of it to jab one attacker in the stomach. The guardian unsheathed his sword with his right hand and stabbed the mud man through the chest with his sword; the puncture exploded as he extracted his blade, showering both himself and Zoicite, who happened to be standing beside him, with red slime.
"Messy!" observed Zoicite. He swiped the muck from his face before slicing another mud man through. The red-head knocked another adversary to the ground and stuck him with his sword; sticky red fluids spewed from each slain mud man. Over his shoulder, Zoicite noticed Endymion tear a path through the Solarians.
"Endy, where the hell are you off to?"
"You'd better not leave us here!" Jedite growled. By this time, his face and front were soaked with the blood of his victims. He made a clean swipe through two mud men at once. Each time, he muttered under his breath about how foul these particular enemies were.
"I'm going after Usa," Endymion shouted. He wove his way through the trees and bushes. He panted heavily as he knocked the Solarians out of his way. The carnage he left in the wake of his path left the prince unfazed. His only focus was to save Serenity.
He finally reached the clearing where the princess stood. A pair of mud men held Serenity by her arms; they appeared to be dragging her away. The princess struggled against the pair. Her hood had fallen to her shoulders. Her blonde hair had loosened from its braid. She shook her head furiously as she attempted to pull away from her captors. Endymion was relieved to see that she was alive and unharmed.
Serenity, suddenly aware of Endymion's presence, stopped her struggling. She twisted her head over her shoulder to look at him.
The two Solarian mud men had not yet noticed Endymion's arrival in the clearing. One of Serenity's captors, annoyed with the princess' resistance, turned and sharply slapped the Lunarian across the face. The girl staggered back with surprise and fell into the other mud man, who simply shoved Serenity forward.
Endymion felt the pure rage course through his veins while he witnessed the assault on Serenity. The prince bounded across the clearing, his sword aloft. He unleashed his fury on the two surprised Solarians. His blade sailed through the air and found its mark in gut of the mud man who had struck the princess. The prince twisted the blade as he pulled it from the Solarian's torso. He then turned his attention to Serenity's other captor. The remaining mud man released his hold on the princess' arm. He growled and lunged, unarmed, toward the prince. Endymion smirked with amusement. He happily obliged the Solarian's obvious desire for death and plunged his sword into the mud man's chest. His opponent sunk to the ground at Endymion's feet. The red gooey blood oozed in a pool around his body.
The prince lowered his sword and twisted his head to face Serenity. Locks of his dark hair had fallen into his face. His right cheek was splattered with blood. Endymion's breathing was heavy from his recent exertion. He gulped the cold air and attempted to compose himself. The prince's insides quaked from excitement and adrenaline. His midnight eyes—the same eyes that had been nearly black with rage moments before—softened and widened with concern when he looked at Serenity. The princess was trembling. Her left cheek—the one that had been struck—was swollen. A tiny drip of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
Endymion wanted to embrace her, bury his face in the top of her head, and assure her that he would keep her safe. He licked his lips and smiled weakly. The prince extended his left hand and stepped toward her. Serenity staggered back. The girl's bright eyes were trained on the two bodies of the mud people he had slain. A tear slipped down her right cheek.
Serenity's look of horror made the prince aware of the ferocity of his actions. The prince lowered his arm and stared at the bloodstained snow between them. The two mud men were sprawled on the ground like a pair of broken dolls. The second Solarian man's eyes were still open; the lifeless orange orbs stared vacantly at the princess.
Endymion's shoulders sagged. He looked down at his left palm; he still held his sword in his right hand. The prince shook his head and sighed with defeat. He was embarrassed by the carnage he had created.
The Terran prince coughed and cleared his throat. He sheepishly lifted his gaze to observe Serenity.
"Are you okay?" he finally asked her.
Serenity flinched slightly upon hearing his voice. More tears escaped from her eyes. She swiped them with the back of her left hand and nodded firmly. Her focus did not break from the crumpled bodies of her slain captors.
"Endy! Where the hell are you?"
Endymion glanced over his shoulder when heard Jedite's voice. He had completely forgotten about abandoning Zoicite and Jedite to save the princess. As usual, he had behaved reckless and foolishly.
The princess' blue eyes shot up to look at the woods behind the Terran prince. Unlike Endymion, Serenity did not recognize the voice. She took another step away from the bodies and the prince.
Endymion, eager to escape the uncomfortable silence in the clearing, shifted on his foot and turned his back on the princess. He squeezed his eyes shut and paused. The prince silently reprimanded himself for being so willing to abandon the girl. What had he expected? That she would be pleased at his ability to slaughter his enemies?
The prince exhaled loudly and twisted to face her again. Instead of looking at Serenity, Endymion found himself staring at the two fallen mud people between them. He had killed them for her sake, he thought sullenly to himself. He wondered if Serenity would forgive him. The prince clenched his left hand into a tight fist at his side. Why should he give a damn about what she thought of him?
"Endy!" cried Zoicite. Endymion looked over his shoulder. He saw movement in the trees beyond the clearing. Jedite and Zoicite needed his help. The prince twisted his head and stared at Serenity. The color had drained from her tearstained cheeks. The princess hugged herself and still gazed, wide-eyed, at the pair of bodies between them. She was in shock.
Endymion sighed with defeat. He tucked the loose hair behind his ear. The prince rubbed his eyes with the back of his left hand. He quickly surveyed the clearing.
"Uh," he began. His mouth had become dry. He cleared his throat. "I need to go and help my friends."
Serenity finally rested her eyes on Endymion's face. His statement did not make complete sense to her, but Serenity could not think of why he shouldn't go and help his friends. A part of her wanted him to stay with her, but another part of her was relieved to see him leave. Her eyes glazed over with tears that threatened to fall. The princess silently nodded.
Endymion raked his free hand through his hair. He nodded as well, even though he didn't really know why he felt compelled to. The prince took in a deep breath. He hated to leave Serenity at such an awkward time.
"Stay here, okay?" he instructed her. "I'll come back for you when it's safe."
Serenity nodded her head once. Endymion pivoted and turned his back to her. The princess watched as he faded from her sight. Serenity was suddenly aware of noise in the forest just beyond the clearing. The princess stared for a long time, straining to hear the noise of the battle. She heard Endymion's voice, along with a couple of others, shouting and laughing. Serenity shook her head with disbelief. It couldn't be laughter. He couldn't be joyous at such a horrid time.
A strange, guttural hissing noise at her feet snapped Serenity's attention to her immediate surroundings. The princess jumped in surprise. Her blue gaze fell to the two bodies of the men Endymion had slain. The one who had slapped her—the first one Endymion stabbed—twitched. The Solarian unfurled himself from his fetal position and splayed out on his back. He was drenched in his own blood. The princess averted her eyes and grimaced in disgust.
"Help, please," he hissed at her.
Serenity jumped again. Her stomach clenched. Her vision focused on the mud man's body. The blood spurt from his stomach wound and splattered against the skin of his torso and legs. The liquid moistened the dried mud on his body. The man's arm moved. He placed his hand over the wound to stop the blood flow.
The princess wiped the tears that now fell freely down her cheeks.
"Help," the mud man hissed. His voice was shallow, like his breathing. His lids slid open. His orange eyes shifted to stare at the princess.
Awareness washed over Serenity. The man's appearance suddenly made sense to her. The orange eyes and mud-covered body were the signature physical traits of one group people: the Solarian cavern dwellers. Serenity had read about these subterranean tribes in one of her books about the Sun. She remembered staring at the sketches of cavern dwellers in her texts; the images had given her nightmares for weeks. Their appearance was not her only reason for fearing these Solarians; according to Serenity's books, cavern people were blood thirsty warriors who routinely ate the flesh of their victims.
"These creatures are the most basic type of barbarian," Sailor Mercury had explained to her. "If evil truly exists, it's dwelling in the caves of the sun with these people."
Sailor Mercury assured Serenity that she would most likely never see, much less need to communicate, with these Solarian tribes.
"You should probably learn their language, just in case," Sailor Mercury announced one day. Serenity wanted to protest. Why should she waste her time learning to converse with cavern dwellers? When would she ever need such a skill?
"It's not like I'm going to be wandering around in the Solarian caves some day, asking them for directions!" Serenity had complained to Rei and Makoto one day after her studies.
"Yeah, they'd eat you before you could get a grunt or hiss out," Makoto agreed, pleased. She rather enjoyed poking fun at the cavern dweller's strange syntax—especially when there was very little chance of encountering one in real life.
"Finish me," the man said.
Serenity—both shocked and surprised that she had remembered any of the cavern dweller's language—stared at the man's stomach wound. She couldn't believe he was still alive.
"Pained?" Serenity asked. She swallowed and cleared her throat. "Uh, how can I help you?"
The cavern dweller gasped for breath. His face contorted.
"Please finish me," he whispered. "I want to die."
Serenity shook her head. "I can't. I'm sorry." She picked up the front of her skirt and proceeded to walk around the man's body. His breathing had become heavy and labored again, like he was trying to fight against his own death. Serenity clamped her eyes tighter. She didn't want to hear this man draw his last breath. She wanted to be as far from this place as possible.
She stifled a sob. More tears streaked the princess' cheeks. Serenity rubbed her nose.
"Please," the man quietly hissed behind her.
The princess stared forward. Ahead of her, just beyond this clearing, was Endymion. She heard his voice. Serenity wanted to run to the prince, mostly to escape the dying man. She took three steps forward. She then paused.
He had told her to remain here. A part of Serenity wanted to follow his instructions. She wanted to win his favor.
"Finish it," whimpered the man.
Serenity turned around and looked at the cavern dweller's bloody body. Why did he plead with her? Why wasn't he dead yet? He had lost so much blood; the snow surrounding his fallen form was saturated from it.
She wanted to flee from here. She no longer cared to seek out Endymion. She needed to place distance between herself and this horrid scene.
A cry escaped from Serenity's throat. The princess reached into the collar of her blouse and extracted her moon pendant. Through the sheet of tears clouding her sight, she eyed the silver crescent. She gripped the pendant in her right hand. Serenity swallowed hard and clamped her lids shut. The princess focused her power on the slip of silver cradled in her palm. She felt the familiar burn of her moon symbol reemerging on her forehead. The power of the pendant pulsed through her.
The princess swallowed. She opened her eyes. In a moment, this planet would be a distant image in her mind.
Out of the corner of her eye, Serenity saw the wounded cavern dweller raise his arm. The princess averted her gaze. She didn't want her last vision on this planet to be of the two bloodied Solarians. She couldn't believe that she once thought she would find her cousin on this treacherous planet.
"Lunarian...like...Linnaus," the man hissed at her.
A chill sang through Serenity's body. Her eyes focused on the cavern dweller. She loosened her grip on the pendant. She allowed the crescent charm to fall out of her palm. The silver trinket dangled from the chain still clasped around her neck.
The princess rushed to the mud man's side. She knelt beside him. Anger and fear, mixed with hope and relief, churned her insides.
"What did you say?" the princess demanded. "What of Linnaus?"
The man opened his mouth to speak, but the sound gurgled and stuck in back of his throat. His orange eyes widened as his stomach tightened and his torso jerked up. Serenity glanced at his stomach wound. The blood no longer flowed freely. The man had finally succumbed to death.
"No! No!" the princess screamed. She grasped the man by the shoulders and shook him violently. "Tell me about Linnaus!"
Her fingernails dug deep into the cavern dweller's skin. Her body sunk to the bloodied ground beneath her. She stared at the cavern dweller's vacant dead eyes and wide gaped mouth. She sobbed.
"Please, don't die yet." She pleaded. Her eyes dropped to the pool of blood where she sat. Her shoulders sagged. Serenity sighed in defeat.
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The strangest sensation overcame Endymion. His joints felt like melting butter. His muscles relaxed; his sword dropped to his side. His head felt light, as if it were being cleared of all thought. He swayed on his feet.
"Endy?" Jedite said. He dropped his sword and bow to catch the prince's collapsing frame. "Whoa, uh, Zoicite, something's wrong with the prince!"
Just moments before, the prince was completely fine. Endymion and Jedite were in one corner of the forest, while Zoicite was on the opposite end, finishing off the final few mud men.
"I'll be right...ugh...there!" Zoicite shouted. He extracted the blade of his sword from the last of the mud men. He jogged over to Jedite and Endymion. The blonde sunk to the ground under the prince's weight. Zoicite helped lay Endymion on the snow. Jedite removed the quiver of arrows from his back and knelt next to the prince.
"What do you think is wrong with him?" Jedite whispered.
Zoicite stared at Endymion's waxy pallor and shrugged. The red head shook his head and muttered, "No idea."
The prince stared up at the tree boughs above him. He blinked his eyes. The conversation between Zoicite and Jedite sounded muffled in his ears. His mind felt like it was floating away from him.
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A gurgling sound at the back of the mud man's throat drew the princess' attention back to the cavern dweller. The Solarian clamped his eyes shut and exhaled loudly. Serenity shook the man.
"Please don't die," she said again. She tightened her fingers around his shoulders. She didn't know what had revived him, but she was afraid to release him, lest he succumb to the pain and fade again.
The man didn't seem to be suffering like before, however. He opened his eyes and stared at her.
"What do you want?" he demanded. His voice was clear of the uneven breathing patterns from earlier.
Serenity smiled in relief. He was regaining his strength.
"You said the name Linnaus," she said. She added hopefully, "Do you know where he is?"
The man snorted.
"You mean that scum Lunarian traitor?"
Serenity loosened her grip on the cavern dweller's shoulders. Anger burrowed in her stomach. How dare this barbarian speak of her cousin in such a way!
"What do you mean by calling him a traitor?" she demanded. She struggled to keep her tone even.
"He defiled my great queen with his moon ways," the Solarian explained. He began to sit up.
Serenity sat quietly, a frozen statue in the cavern dweller's shadow. She wasn't exactly sure of what the mud man spoke of, but the tone of his voice scared her. She feared his answers to her questions. She swallowed. She turned her eyes to peer at him.
"What happened to Linnaus?" she calmly questioned.
"What happens to traitors, Lunarian?" the cavern dweller spat. "The king killed him."
Serenity flinched at his tone. She released her grip on his shoulders.
Awareness swept over her. Linnaus had been assassinated. Her beloved cousin was dead. That was why he had never returned to the Moon.
----- -----
"Usa," Endymion whispered. His mind was filled with Serenity. She was distraught; he could feel her sadness.
Jedite and Zoicite stared at their prince. Endymion blinked his eyes and inhaled. He lifted his right hand to his face and rubbed his brow. His entire body ached. Thankfully, he could feel the ache, unlike before. He tried to sit up.
"Whoa there!" muttered Jedite, leaning forward to help. The blonde guardian held Endymion's arm. The prince smiled gratefully. His strength seemed to be returning slowly.
"Are you injured?" Zoicite demanded. Having already scanned Endymion's body for puncture or stab wounds moments earlier, the red-head had concluded that the prince's most recent "spell" was caused by some sort of head trauma.
Endymion shook his head. He leaned forward and placed his elbows on the tops of his knees. The prince rubbed his temples with his fingers. His head throbbed. His vision faltered. He blinked.
"It's Usa," he whispered. His link with her felt even stronger than before. Endymion clamped his eyes closed. He could see her in his mind. She sat in the clearing. She was not alone; a mud man towered over her.
The prince moved to stand. Still weakened, Endymion's attempt at movement was graceless and clumsy. The prince's legs buckled underneath him. Jedite and Zoicite helped him back into a seated position in the snow. Frustrated at his immobility, Endymion cursed beneath his breath.
"I have to help Usa!" he shouted at his guardians desperately. "She's in trouble."
The prince again attempted to stand. Zoicite and Jedite each took a hold of Endymion's arms and held him down.
"Let go of me!" Endymion growled. He was very weak, but he still struggled to release himself from his guardians.
"You aren't in any condition to go anywhere," Jedite observed.
"I have to go to her," the prince persisted.
Zoicite sighed. "I'll go," the guardian announced. He eyed Endymion critically. "But you stay here. You're too weak to fight."
The prince rolled his midnight eyes and reluctantly nodded. He relaxed his body. Zoicite smiled. He released his grip on the prince and reached for Jedite's discarded bow and quiver of arrows. He sprinted through the woods. Endymion watched until his guardian's figure disappeared from his sight.
---- ----
Linnaus is dead. He was murdered.
The words rattled in Serenity's head. Her chest tightened painfully as grief threatened to immobilize her body. Tears glazed her eyes; she blinked them back. She licked her dry lips. The princess opened her mouth. Initially, no noise would come out.
"Where is his..." she choked as she tried to form the words, "What did they do with his body?"
The cavern dweller snickered. He rose to his feet. He leaned forward to survey the gash in his stomach. The man touched the open sore. Despite having a gaping wound in his abdomen, he was completely recovered from his injury. He focused his attention to the Lunar girl still seated on the ground. A glint of amusement sparkled in his eye while he observed her. The bottom of her skirt was drenched from his blood.
"Tossed it," he announced casually. He walked over to retrieve his discarded spear. Dismissively, he added, "It's somewhere around here, actually, on the Earth."
Serenity clamped her eyes shut. Hot tears streamed down her face. She started to sob. She couldn't bear to hear any more.
The cavern dweller stepped behind the princess. He held the spear over his head. He was about to plunge the tip of his weapon between Serenity's shoulder blades when he noticed a bit of movement on the edge of the clearing. His orange eyes rested on the red-headed Terran with a bow and arrow. The Solarian bared his teeth and hissed loudly at the man.
"I'll kill the Lunarian," he said.
Serenity's eyes snapped open. She looked over her shoulder and stared at the murderous cavern dweller. She scrambled back on her hands and feet. The mud man shifted his attention to the princess. He stepped closer to her. His next statement was directed at Serenity.
"I will rip out your heart and give it to my great queen," he declared. "Metallia is hungry after her long journey to the Earth."
The princess' blue eyes widened with horror. She should have been more appalled with what the Solarian intended to do with her heart, but Serenity's shock was focused on his last statement. Historically, cavern dwellers did not align themselves with the other tribes on the Sun, least of all the royals. The princess could not fathom how Metallia had become their queen, much less why she would be on the Earth.
"Queen Metallia is here," Serenity whispered. She stared at the dirty bare feet of the cavern dweller.
The Solarian smiled. He glanced across the clearing at the Terran man. The bow held by the red-head had sagged; its arrow was aimed at the ground in front of him. The Terran seemed distracted by the cavern dweller's conversation with the Lunarian. The mud man twirled the spear casually in front of him. "It's too bad you will miss Metallia's attack on your planet, Lunarian," he said arrogantly. "Once she obtains the mystical stone, no one will stand in her way."
The cavern dweller stopped toying with his spear and grasped the center of the wooden shaft in his right hand. He again trained the tip of his weapon at Serenity. This time, she saw its point; it was aimed at her chest. The princess reached for her crescent pendant. She wrapped fingers around the slip of silver. She snapped her eyes shut. She didn't know if the pendant could transport her before the Solarian stabbed her.
"Now, Zoicite!" Endymion shouted desperately. The prince, with the assistance of Jedite, had hobbled to the edge of the clearing. The pair arrived just in time to see the mud man poise the spear above his head.
The red-headed guardian, suddenly snapping to attention, raised the bow and drew back the arrow. He quickly took aim and released the string. The arrow sailed across the space and stabbed the cavern dweller squarely in the chest. The mud man was thrown back from the force of the arrow; he dropped his spear. It clattered on the cold ground.
Serenity, having heard Endymion's voice, released her grip on her moon pendant. She watched with horror as the cavern man in front of her died—for a second, final time. She stared incredulously at the Solarian's body. The princess gulped the air. Her skin tingled.
"Usa!" Endymion shouted.
Serenity looked over her shoulder and spotted the young man on the clearing with another blonde-headed man. The prince broke away from Jedite and began to stagger to the spot where Serenity sat. The princess smiled weakly and moved her right hand to rub her forehead. Her fingers traced over the familiar moon symbol between her eyebrows. The princess' eyes widened with surprise. She twisted to face away from Endymion. She squeezed her lids shut and quickly mumbled the chants to visibly erase the crescent symbol from her forehead. Fortunately, the mark disappeared just before Endymion faced her.
The prince knelt in the snow in front of Serenity and grasped her hands in his. He looked directly into her frightened blue eyes. The princess stared at him intently. Blood covered half of his face. Before, Serenity was shocked by the destruction Endymion seemed so willing to wield. While she gazed into his dark midnight eyes, the princess again recognized his humanity. He was not a cold-blooded killer like the cavern dwellers or King Nefar.
A cold sensation crept into Serenity's skin as she thought of the Solarian King. Nefar had murdered her cousin. The thought chilled Serenity to the bone. The princess trembled.
Endymion, through his link with Serenity, sensed the girl's sorrow. His heart ached to witness her sadness. He couldn't believe that the princess could show compassion for such a pathetic group of murder-hungry mud men. The Terran prince squeezed Serenity's hands reassuringly. Endymion channeled a bit of his restored energy through his hands and into hers. The princess tensed slightly as she felt Endymion's power tingle in her fingertips. She relaxed and allowed the wave of warmth to flow through her.
Not knowing what to say under the circumstances, Endymion said what he felt in his heart. He should have said it earlier, before traipsing from the clearing to help Jedite and Zoicite. He shut his eyes and exhaled.
"I'm very sorry Usa."
Serenity's blue eyes widened. Her upper lip trembled. The princess let out a sob and sprung into Endymion's arms. She slipped her hands around his torso. She clutched Endymion tightly; he was her anchor. Serenity sniffled into his chest before erupting into another episode of sobs. She cried over Linnaus' death, King Nefar's attack on the Moon Castle, and the dastardly cavern dweller that had almost killed her. She cried because she was scared, truly scared, of this strange planet.
Endymion, at first petrified by Serenity's actions, sat still and patted her on the back. He felt all of her emotion—the sensation terrified him. He had never encountered a girl like Serenity. She carried such strength, and yet, as evident from most recent events, she was also extremely vulnerable.
The prince, suddenly filled with an emotion he did not care to acknowledge, tightened his grip around Serenity. He rested his chin on the top of her head. He rocked her very gently and attempted to quell her sobs.
----- ----
Jedite and Zoicite remained on the edge of the clearing and witnessed their prince comfort the girl. Jedite grinned.
"Well," he stated, rubbing away some of the dried blood from his right cheek, "She sure is cute. Young, but cute. In a cute kiddy way."
Zoicite watched Endymion and Serenity. He focused his attention on the princess. He glared at her with contempt. He snorted at Jedite's comment.
"She's a spy," he declared. "I saw her, with that...thing...talking to that mud monster."
Jedite raised his eyebrows with surprise. He shrugged and said, "But, that creature was about to kill her. If you had waited even a moment longer, he would have succeeded."
The red-head shook his head. "It was all a show. For my benefit. Oh, don't give me that look Jedite! She's a Solarian."
The blonde frowned. "She doesn't look like one."
"Well she is."
"But she's blonde..."
Zoicite wanted to punch something. His face flushed with rage.
"Listen to me, Jedite. She was talking to it. In that language."
"You mean, the grunting and hissing?"
Zoicite nodded. "Who else, other than another Solarian, would know their language?"
Jedite stared down at the snow-covered ground. He hated to admit it, but Zoicite had a point.
"What should we do?" he pondered. "The prince seems pretty attached to her."
Zoicite shrugged. He crossed his hands over his chest. He peered at Serenity. His brown eyes slanted as he watched her. He despised her. "Well, we wait for the right moment, when the prince isn't around, and kill her."
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End of Chapter 17
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Hollie