Chapter 22: The Price of Victory

"Ow...my head." Sailor Moon moaned as she got to her feet and looked around.

"Is everyone alright?" She asked, looking at the fallen group. "Define alright." Sailor Jupiter said as she got to her feet as well. "We're breathing are we not?" Koaru said as he raised to one knee. "Uh oh," Sailor Mars said, "Koaru, you better come here." Koaru came and saw that Sailor Mercury was knocked out cold, and a small trickle of blood was seeping from her head. "That's it," Koaru said, "girls, go ahead. I'll be there in a moment."

Back in the castle, King Soul was in very bad mood. His army had been destroyed, the Queen had escaped, and the Scouts were still alive. "Don't you children ever die?" he shouted as the Scouts re-entered the room. "No." Sailor Venus said with a grin. "Let's test that theory, shall we?" King Soul roared as he sent a gigantic sphere of black energy at the Scouts. The sphere was two yards from the Scouts when it suddenly split in half and vanished. "WHAT?" King Soul roared, "that's impossible!"

The Sailor Scouts opened their eyes, wondering why they hadn't been blasted back out of the room, only to see Shadow Mercury standing in front of them, crescent blade drawn. "Mind if I cut in?" he joked as he watched King Soul's face turn red. "This one is for Amy," he said, moving his sword to point behind him. "Tell me if this hurts, Soul. Crescent Wave!" The attack sent a wave of crescent shaped energy blades flying at King Soul, who was extremely shocked at the power Koaru possessed. All of the blades hit their mark, leaving King Soul tattered and bloody.

"My turn," King Soul said, raising his own sword and striking into the ground. "Try to survive my, Black Quake Strike!", but instead of sending the attack at Shadow Mercury, he directed it at the Sailor Scouts. "Oh shit!" Sailor Mars yelled as the floor beneath her feet shook, then exploded, sending her and the rest of the Scouts soaring across the room. "SHIT!" Shadow Mercury yelled as he started to run to the fallen Scouts, but was slammed into the opposite wall by one of King Souls energy beams. "That hurt," Shadow Mercury groaned as he got to his feet, only to feel cold steel tear open his back. He cried in pain as collapsed back to the floor as King Soul raised his sword over Koaru's head. "Good-bye," King Soul said, raising the blade higher and thrust down at Koaru's head, where it stopped a mere two inches from his skull. "What the..." Koaru wondered as he looked up at King Soul, only too see him encased in a block of ice.

two minutes earlier:

Sailor Mercury opened her eyes and found herself lying face down outside the palace. She struggled into a sitting position and coughed, felt something enter her mouth, and spit. Blood. She then heard a cry of pain and quickly got to her feet and ran back into the palace. What she saw was something she would never forget. There was blood every where, both red and green, and bodies, parts of bodies, and the insides of bodies all over the floor. There was also the surviving soldiers, all who were exsosted beyond conciseness, the other Scouts, all out cold and covered in their own blood, and there was Shadow Mercury, his back sliced open, lying at King Soul's feet. Then King Soul raised his sword over his head and struck down, and Sailor Mercury ran at him and cried, "Shine Aqua Illusion!" When she looked again, she saw that she had imprisoned King Soul in a block of ice.

Shadow Mercury looked past the ice cube and, saw to his relief, that Sailor Mercury was all right, and that it was her who had saved his life. "Damn, good to see you girl." he managed to say as he tried to get up. Amy rushed over to him and helped him up. "I see that you gave him the cold shoulder." Shadow Mercury said as she helped him up. "The others took one of King Soul's attacks head on, so I think they will be out for a little longer." "That's what you think." Koaru and Amy turned to see the Scout's up and ready for more. "Nice ice sculpting," Sailor Jupiter said, looking at King Soul's frozen form, "you really outdid yourself this time, Koaru." "It wasn't me," he replied, "it was Amy." "Shit," Nicholas said, "remind me not to piss her off anymore." They all turned around when they heard the ice shatter. "I...have had...enough...OF YOU PESTS!" King Soul slashed his sword at the group and cried, "BLACK MOON STRIKE!" A whip of black energy lashed across the Scouts, Koaru and Nicholas, sending them all into the wall.

"Ouch!" Sailor Moon cried as she got up, "I've had enough of you Soul." Saying this, she

pulled out the Impearium Silver Crystal! "MOON...COSMIC...POW-" "Not so fast!" King

Soul said as he blasted Sailor Moon with another black energy beam. Serena screamed as she was blasted back into the wall. "Say goodbye, Princess!" said King Soul as he blasted two beams at Sailor Moon. "That much energy will kill her!" Sailor Mars gasped. "NO!" Nicholas yelled as he jumped in the path of the lethal beams.

"NICK!" Darien cried from across the room as he watched helplessly as the beams struck his brother. "That's one down," King Soul laughed as Nicholas' body dropped to the ground, "now to finish you, Princess!" King Soul then raised his hands, aiming them at Serena, "Now, good-by-AAAHHHHHH!" "Shut-up and die, you damn bastard." Shadow Mercury had thrust his katanas through King Soul's knees and into the floor, pinning him in place. "Serena, he's all yours." Sailor Moon wiped the tears from her eyes and raised the crystal. "Right," she said as the crystal began to glow pure white. Sailor Moon closed her eyes, "Moon...Cosmic...Power!" The crystal exploded with white energy, sending it all at King Soul. "I'll be back," King Soul vowed as the energy dissolved him, "I'll return...and destroy...you...all..." King Soul's crown clattered to the floor.

"That took way too long." Mina said as they all sighed in relief. Nicholas was on the floor, and Darien was kneeling next to him. "Bro...I'm sorry." Darien said. "There's...nothing...to be s..sorry...about..." Nicholas replied. "You and s..s..Serena will make a gr..great...couple...little...bro..." Darien's eyes widened. "You knew?" Nicholas smiled. "It was..easy to...figure out with...h..how willing...y...y...you were to save her..." Serena blinked back tears and Darien closed his eyes. "Life...long...Darien..." With these words, Prince Titan Nicholas passed away, leaving his friends an everlasting memory of him.