Sailor Moon: Dark Stars
Chapter 9
The Vortex Ship:
"FOOL!" screamed out King Meerages as he shot out a powerful blast of dark purple energy at Pitkin. The smaller man let out a blood curdling scream as his body was flung across the gigantic Throne Room and slammed into the heavy metal wall.
Upon impact, Pitkin slowly slid down the wall, blood trickling out the side of his mouth. When he reached the floor, he painfully tried to get up, but barely made it. He looked up fearfully at King Meerages. His eyes were now blazing red, and his long platinum blonde hair was whipping about his face from a gust of wind that seemingly came from nowhere. He looked at Pitkin with contempt and disgust on his face.
"Why did you go behind my back and attack her? You nearly ruined my plans in getting what I want!" the big man yelled. He raised his arms above his large frame and prepared to fire again.
"W..Wait Master! Forgive me!" stammered out Pitkin weakly, desperate for his life. "I only thought I did what you wanted! To get rid of those...those...troublesome girls! If we did, we could rule this whole unive..."
"Do I have to remind you AGAIN, why those girls are alive?" interrupted King Meerages darkly, bringing his arms down. A look of puzzlement and confusion came over the small man's dark face. The King growled, then turned away from Pitkin in disgust. Slowly, he walked back up the little steps to his throne and stood in front of the glass casing that held the Black Star Crystal. Putting his hands to the sides of the casing, he peered into it, looking at the black pulsating crystal in an almost a loving way. His eyes turned red once more.
"This is the last and only time I will explain this, so you had better listen up. Those girls are the reincarnation of the Sirius Princess, and Lady Anja, the daughter of the Polaris Duke. They are the remnants of the Silver Millennium. I knew it the moment I felt their energy, their essence," The man's hands griped the sides of the casing harder. "And I knew it the moment I felt HER lips on mine." King Meerages closed his eyes for a moment as he remembered the erotic sensation of kissing the young dark skinned girl, and his loins tighten just slightly. A moment later, he snapped his eyes open again. He turned away from the crystal and looked towards Pitkin.
"If I am correct, then those two will have the Sirius Emerald Star Stone, and the Polaris Sapphire Star Stone." He frowned annoyingly. "If only those girls were in the Sirius System like they were supposed to when the Dark Kingdom attacked all those years ago. Those crystals would have been mine long ago. Next to Queen Serenity's, they are the most powerful in this galaxy. When I have them in my possession, I can then charge and power-up the Black Star Crystal. Then this planet...no, this entire universe will be mine for the taking!" King Meerages closed his hands in tight fists, dark purple energy crackling around them. "Revenge will be mine, for the humiliation the White Moon Queen put me through! No one seals me away for a thousand years and not pay for it!" The big man let out a deep dark laughter that echoed down the long corridors.
Pitkin softly cleared his throat. "Master, I believe there is something you should know. They are very formidable, and will not be easily defeated! Even when I strengthen Slithers, he was no match. See for yourself, if you don't believe me." King Meerages shot Pitkin an annoyed looked as the smaller bald-headed man painfully opened his hand, and the small silver orb appeared. The top of it opened up, and a holographic image appeared from it. It began to show images of the latest battle with Super Sailor Sirius and Sailor Polaris against Slithers. King Meerages looked on with a bored expression on his handsome face, until towards the end, when he saw the full power and strength of the Sirius Emerald Star Stone when it gathered all the emotional energy from Sirius, and knocked back the warrior. When the whole battle was played, ending with the defeat of Slithers, King Meerages gave Pitkin a hard, evil look.
"Make no mistake, I WILL get what I've come for, and no one will stop me. NO ONE!" the huge man shouted. "I will give you another chance to get that Star Stone. But know this; my patience is running out." He scowled at Pitkin. "Just to make sure this doesn't foul up again, and no more of my warriors are wasted, I will take this mission along with you. That way, it will be impossible to fail!" Once again, the man's eyes glowed red, anticipation making his greedy soul warm with excitement. The thought of holding the Sirius Princess in his arms excited him beyond anything else, and with that thought, the King laughed again, his evil voice booming through out the Throne Room, the halls and beyond.
Pitkin smiled evilly and straightened himself before his master. "Yes, impossible! I will go prepare at once, My Sovereign!" Pitkin bowed and was about to leave, but was stopped by Meerages's dark, voice.
"Remember, even though I will be there, this is your last chance. Fail me once again, and death will be too good a punishment!" said King Meerages, his ice blue eyes narrowing.
Pitkin gulped in fear, then disappeared in a burst of orange flame.
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St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic High School:
"On your mark, get set..." At the word "GO!", the coach for the girl's track team fired the starting gun, signaling for the girls to start running.
In a flash, Tanya ran ahead, her long slender legs pumping faster and faster on the ground. She easily passed one girl, then another, and another a second later as her long black hair streamed behind her in the late afternoon October air. In the bleachers and benches, many people were cheering on their favorite runners on the race tracks, jumping up and down and shouting with excitement. Anna nervously had her hands clasped before her, watching her cousin intensely as she passed another girl. "Come on Tanya, you can do it!" said Anna quietly, barely audible in the noisy crowd.
The finishing line came closer and closer, and with a burst of energy deep inside her, Tanya dashed forward and broke through the finishing line tape a full three seconds before the other runners. The crowd cheered loudly, and Anna let out a yell of victory.
Breathing hard, Tanya rested her hands on her knees, then wiped off the sweat on her forehead as she looked up and around. Anna ran up to her, picked Tanya up with her strong arms, and twirled her around, giggling all the while.
"You did it Ti! You were great!" laughed out Anna. Tanya could only giggle and hold on until her cousin finally let her go.
"Yeah, and now I'm dizzy to boot!" Tanya swayed a little as she felt the world spinning around her. Both girls then broke out laughing and hugged each other once more. The track coach quietly walked up to them, his face beaming with pride.
"Tanya! That was great work!" The tall man smiled approvingly. "I believe you even broke the school's old record. We would be honored to have you on our track team, if you like. See you tomorrow bright and early?"
"Really? Me, on the track team?" Amazement showed brightly on Tanya's face. She had always been good with running back home in her country and Japan, but she had never considered she would break any records or be on a real track team. Maybe she was better than she thought! But then her heart sank a little. But at this time...she just didn't know.
"Why not? With this, we'll have two official athletes in our family! Me in gymnastics, and you in running!" Anna said. When Tanya was about to protest, Anna pulled her into a mock head-lock and covered her mouth with her hand. All of Tanya's cries of protest were then muffled. "She'll be there Coach Hawkins!" Anna gave a nod of approval and winked.
The older man smiled and nodded, then walked off back to the running track. Anna finally let Tanya go, and the shorter girl shot her cousin a look of annoyance. "What? I couldn't let you pass up a chance like that! You should go for it!" said Anna, her green eyes flashing with mischief.
Tanya sighed and smiled slowly a moment later. "I guess you're right," She stretched her taunt muscles. "I'd better go change." She turned to go into the school's large gymnasium.
"Want me to wait for you, so we can go home together?" Anna asked, running a hand through her long dark brown hair to brush it back as a strand fell in her face.
"No, it's cool! You go on and I'll catch up with you later at home!" shouted Tanya behind her as she ran off to the girl's locker room.
"Okay then, see ya!" The taller girl waved back as she also turned and ran back to get her books.
------------------After changing from her P.E. uniform to the school's regular one, Tanya walked out the front entrance of her school, humming softly as she swung her book bag over one shoulder. After walking a few blocks, she turned the corner. Not noticing where or what she was doing, she walked right into a small mud puddle, tripped on a crack hidden beneath it, and fell most unlady-like in the muddy water front first, her book bag landing on top of her.
"ITAI! Oh man! I can't BELIEVE this!" Tanya shouted in frustration. She got up shakily and tried to squeeze the muddy water out of her uniform skirt and shirt, but only managed to get it dirtier. With a sigh, the dark-skinned girl gave up and continued walking down the block. Turning another corner, Tanya suddenly spotted the bus she was supposed to take speeding away. "HEY! WAIT! WAIT FOR MEEE!" screamed Tanya as she dashed madly for her bus.
The blue and white New York City bus paid no heed and continued to pull away, blowing exhaust behind it. Defeated, Tanya stopped running, coughing hard with her hand over her mouth as the bus roared away. Oh well, she thought, straightening up and sighing, Might as well take the train. Anna showed me yesterday, so I remember. Tanya then turned and continued down the block until she went into a small nearly deserted park. With her head down in deep thought, she didn't notice a tall figure suddenly appearing right in front of her, blocking her way. She walked right into the hard figure and fell on the ground with surprised yell and painful thud. Tanya sat on the ground, dazed for a moment, then looked up at the figure with an angry glare.
"HEY! Why don't you watch where your going, BUDDY!" yelled out Tanya angrily. She was about to shout some more at whoever it was that was blocking her way, when she looked up and was suddenly struck silent. Standing before her was the same handsome man from a days before. Suddenly, memories about her near fatal accident flashed in distorted scenes in her mind. She remembered going with Anna downtown, then her hat flying away..then this strange man, but...nothing else. Tanya gasped in surprise as the images ended, then quickly got up and grabbed her book bag, a blush spreading across her dark features. "Oh my GOD! I am so sorry!" she said in a rush, straightening out her hair and trying to dust off her dirty uniform. "I didn't mean to bump into you like that!"
"That is quite all right, my dear." the tall man smiled seductively. As he looked deeply into Tanya's eyes, she stared back, confused as to where she saw them before. It seemed, they were so familiar, since before those few days ago. Like they were from...another liftime. They were ice blue, and cold, like he would never care about anything, or anyone. Almost instinctively, Tanya step back slightly from the sheer hardness of those eyes.
Vaguely, she wondered if he had anything to do with what happened that day, when she was almost struck down by a truck, and she shivered unconsciously. No, it couldn't be! she thought to herself, and almost laughed at herself for such a thought. The thick French accent the man was using suddenly made her remember his name. "Oh! You're that foreign guy, Javier from Europe, right?" asked Tanya. At the mention of the word "foreign", Tanya winced, and almost smacked herself in the head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make it sound like that." She suddenly felt very embarrassed. She was as much a foreigner as he was!
"No, that is quite fine, mon cherie." chuckled the man. He smiled that ravishing smile once more, reached for Tanya's free hand, and lightly kissed the back of it. "I am very charmed to meet you again. Tell me, do you live around here?" With a graceful move, he stepped closer to Tanya, towering over her.
"Ahhh... no, I...I..live downtown more, actually." She swallowed nervously, almost unable to speak. Tanya trembled slightly at the look Javier was giving her. It was suddenly making her so nervous, her knees felt like they were made of rubber. It was almost like he was undressing her with his eyes. Tanya blushed once again at that thought, and carefully pulled her hand away from the man's grasp. "Umm, I'm sorry, I really need to go. It's late, and my family might worry..." Tanya said softly, looking around at the few remaining people passing on the street a little ways off, and at the sun just beginning to set. Suddenly, the small city park felt much smaller and very deserted in the presence of this man.
"No, please don't go yet." said the tall man, taking Tanya's hand once again. To the girl's amazement, his eyes harden even more. "Come with me on a little walk, it will only be for a minute." He smiled once again and looked deeper into Tanya's hazel brown eyes.
"I...don't know. I really shouldn't..." Tanya said uncertainly, taking a step back. Her heart suddenly began to pound harder in her chest with fear. Something told her she desperately needed to get away, but she couldn't tear her eyes from his.
Suddenly, the man's faced twisted in rage, and he grabbed on to Tanya's arms with both hands. "Hey! Stop it! What are you doing? LET ME GO!" shouted out Tanya in fright. She struggled hard to get free, but her small frame was unable to fight against the raw solid strength of the stranger as she fought with desperation. Her book bag fell in a crumpled heap besides her.
"I said you are coming with ME!" A fierce expression replaced the serene one the man had just moments ago. Tanya looked up with frightened eyes as he released one of her arms and waved a hand in front of her face. Black mist swirled out of his hand, and soon covered her small body. Immediately, Tanya moaned and went limp in the man's arms as her energy slowly began to leave her body.
"Yes! Soon, the Sirius Emerald and the Polaris Sapphire Star Stones will be mine, as well as the whole universe!" said the disguised man, greed dripping from his voice. He smiled softly, and gently passed his large hand through the black mist and traced the face of the unconscious girl in his arms. "So beautiful. From the first moment I saw you, I've wanted you..." The man gently caressed his hand along Tanya's dark brown cheek. He leaned his face closer, hoping to taste her delicious lips once more.
"YAMATTE! LET HER GO, NOW!" screamed out a young voice. Sailor Polaris jumped down out of a nearby tree, and as the man looked up in surprise, landed a drop kick on his head. Javier grunted in pain and let Tanya go as he fell hard to the ground. Nearly drained of her life force, Tanya fell in a heap as the black mist dissipated from around her. Sailor Polaris quickly ran over and gathered Tanya in her arms. She effortlessly jumped away, clearing about five feet across the park, and gently sat Tanya up against a nearby tree.
"Tanya, can you hear me? Please, wake up!" Sailor Polaris said desperately. Fear clutched at Sailor Polaris's heart as the thought of losing Tanya entered her mind. No, I can't lose her, not like I lost mom! PLEASE! the senshi thought to herself as she gently shook the smaller dark-skinned girl. But Tanya continued to stay still, her face pale and breathing becoming more and more shallow.
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To be continued.
