Bleed (Just to Know You're Alive)
Chapter 3
//anything between slashes are thoughts//
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"These are your...what?" Neff stared, dumbfounded, at the four holographic men before him.
"Shi-te-n-nou," Nephrite spelled out, waving his hands as though explaining to a small child. Then, as an afterthought, he added, "I take it you don't know any Japanese."
"Uh, domo arigato, Mr. Roboto?" Jed tried lamely, and he earned a groan from just about everyone.
"In your... crude language, it roughly means the Four Heavenly Kings. But that's neither here nor there." Zoisite replied, flicking his blonde ponytail.
"That sounds like something Tolkien would come up with."
"Here's an idea, Jed: how about you stop talking?" Zory said, throwing a glare in his direction. The last thing he wanted was to irritate the scary transparent guys.
"I'll second that," Zoisite muttered, which earned him a sharp glare from Jadeite.
"Hey, I won't have you talking to my apparent clone that way!" Jadeite snapped.
Jed beamed. "I like this guy already!"
"That's enough!" Malachi and Kunzite shouted at the same time. They stared at each other warily, not sure what to make of that. Mamoru tried his best not to laugh out loud.
Kunzite was the first to regain his composure. "You'll have to excuse my rude companions. They... don't get out much." At this he recieved a nasty glare from all three of them. "And if they'll kindly refrain from acting like complete idiots for at least thirty seconds, perhaps we'll be able to introduce ourselves. We are the Shitennou, kings of the four corners of heaven, and guardians of Prince Endymion of the Golden Kingdom."
"Have we met this Prince?" Zory asked, and when Mamoru coughed and looked at his shoes, it became pretty apparent that he had.
"My, but you're a sharp one," Zoisite said, sounding almost patronizing.
"Good job, Zoisite. You made it a whole five seconds."
Zoisite folded his arms, but said nothing. His look declared, "He knows I'm right."
"Anyway," Kunzite continued, sounding infinitely put-upon, "we've spent a great deal of the past two years living in small stones, after a very unfortunate encounter as The Bad Guys."
"Wait." Malachi sat up slowly, slinking toward the edge of his bed. "Mamoru has been giving us cryptic information about this whole 'they were bad guys, but really good guys' idea. If I'm going to swallow being your twin, or whatever it is I really am, I'd like the full story."
The Shitennou exchanged glances with each other, and then all focused on Kunzite.
A somber look crossed his face and for a moment it seemed as though the greenish tint had faded from his eyes. "You don't have to..." Mamoru started to say, but Kunzite cut him off with a single look.
"No, Prince. It should be me." He cast a shadowy glance at the three frat boys cowering in the corner. "Sit down. This'll take a while."
When everyone was seated--or rather, huddled--on the couch, he began.
"This story begins much further back than any of you could probably imagine." Kunzite seemed to hesitate, as though he was too afraid to continue. But he managed. "Thousands upon thousands of years ago, there was a time of peace. Monarchies ruled all of the planets of the Solar System, with smaller outposts on all of the moons. All, that is, save for Earth's Moon. This place was the center of our near-utopia."
Zoisite reached out briefly, but then pulled his hand away. No matter how badly he wanted to support his friend, this was something he had to share himself.
"This was all before a woman named Beryl began to wreck chaos on our planet, the Earth," he continued quietly. For some reason, all of the frat boys seemed to shudder unanimously at the mention of the name. Whether Kunzite noticed or cared, it was hard to tell.
"Backed by a horrible demon, she manipulated the people of Earth to do her bidding. We... we all fell under her spell." He paused, either in thought or sorrow, but quickly moved on again. "However, the Prince refused to follow her, believing that what she was doing was wrong, that there was no reason for the war she was starting. But despite his best efforts, she rallied her troops, and marched against the Moon."
Malachi hardly dared to breathe. The story was unfamiliar to him, yet it somehow stirred within him the darkest shadow of dread.
"That was the day that will haunt me the most, as long as I'm alive. Backed by Beryl's youma - monsters - we attacked the Moon palace, during a grand celebration. Most of the people attending were killed brutally, including the Sailor Senshi, by our own hands. In the end, Endymion died in a fight with Beryl, and the Moon Princess Serenity..."
Here, his voice stuck in his throat. "...killed herself out of grief," he finally finished.
This final statement was followed by a long stretch of silence, as the weight of his words slowly sank in. In the heaviness of it, Neff cleared his throat apologetically. "I'm sorry, the Moon Princess?"
Mamoru sighed and pulled out his wallet--which, thankfully, had not been burned to a crisp--and presented the small photo of himself and his Usako. It had been taken during a day in the park, when the last remaining August sunbeams trickled between the gently swaying trees, and the smell of the grass hung thick in the air. He remembered how Makoto had caught them with the camera, snuggled together on a bench, her odangoed head against his shoulder, his face turned just towards hers to say something. That was scarcely a few days before he left. It seemed so long ago now.
Being violently maimed and near death tends to put quite a few things in perspective.
"Your girlfriend?" Malachi said, leaning forward to better view the picture. Mamoru handed him the whole wallet, and all four of the frat boys silently appraised the photo.
"Fiancé," Mamoru corrected, although he himself still had a difficult time believing he'd really proposed to Usako. He had an even more difficult time believing she'd accepted his proposal, but she had.
Malachi considered the photograph for a few moments before passing it to Zory. He somehow found it difficult to reconcile Mamoru's description of an all-powerful super woman with the sweet young girl on the park bench. She looked about as capable of defeating evil creatures as a French poodle.
Kunzite allowed them a moment to look at the picture before continuing. "After the death of the Princess, her mother, Queen Serenity, used what was their last hope to save her kingdom. With the help of the gin--" he paused, reconsidered, "Silver Crystal, she sealed away Beryl's followers, and sent the spirits of the Prince and the Silver Millenium princesses to be reborn on Earth, some time in the distant future."
"Everything seemed mild-mannered and peaceful for more than a decade; nobody suspected there was a great evil force about to burst forth upon them. Just as the Prince and Princesses were sent ahead without memories, so were Beryl and her followers. Namely, us. We ended up at Point D - that's up in the North Pole - and after some unfortunate encounters with penguins, Beryl found Metallia and broke the Silver Crystal's seal on her. From that point on, our job was to basically help them take over the world."
Kunzite paused. He didn't think he could continue. It was bad enough thinking about how they betrayed their prince the first time, thousands of years ago, but jumping ahead to the present brought up many more uncomforatble memories that he had just assumed put aside.
This time, Zoisite did not hesistate putting his hand on his leader's shoulder. He knew the pain that Kunzite was feeling, and also that he had felt it twentyfold harder than any of the other Shitennou. Their time in the Dark Kingdom would always be shameful, no matter how many times Mamoru swore he'd forgiven them.
Despite the incredible turmoil he felt, Kunzite somehow steeled himself and continued. Zoisite's hand never left his shoulder. "Although they had no memory of one another, the Prince and Princess somehow rediscovered each other, and, with help from the Silver Millenium princesses, the sailor senshi, used their newfound powers to fight off the attacks. We were powerful, but--thankfully--they were moreso. One by one they... defeated us," he did not want to say killed, "and protected the Earth from our influence."
He took a breath to speak again, but was having trouble forming the words. There were a hundered memories that haunted him, but this one somehow eclipsed all the others. Nothing caused him greater pain than the knowledge of what he single-handedly did to his Prince. "It was just after the last of the Princess's guardians had appeared. I was... the last of us. My job was to capture the princess, but things took an unexpected turn."
Jadeite and Nephrite looked at Kunzite with sympathy, but could say nothing. Zoisite bit his lip, but his hand never moved. Mamoru tried to look neutral, but the memory was paining him just as much as it was paining Kunzite. Not for what Kunzite did to him - he'd forgiven his friend for that a thousand times over - but that it still wounded him so badly. He'd never be the man he once was until he could forgive himself for what'd he'd done, been forced to do.
"In the heat of battle, I charged up an attack so powerful, it would likely have killed her on impact. But the Prince... he saw it coming, and he..." Kunzite choked. He did not need to say it. They could see it written on his face. "The Princess was overcome by emotion, and the Silver Crystal appeared. That power had been within her all along. Its light filled all of Tokyo, as bright as the day. In that moment, the Prince and Princess regained their memories. As did I."
He took a deep breath, but seemed to find it a little easier now. "When the light faded, I was ordered to capture the Princess and the Silver Crystal. But the impact of the crystal's light filled me with conflicting emotions, and in the confusion I took the Prince instead."
"This was an unexpected surprise for Beryl, but she seemed to take it in stride." Kunzite's tone became sharp, bitter. "She made quick work of healing him, brainwashing him without any memory of serving anyone but herself."
Mamoru winced, gratefully distracted when Jed finally handed him his wallet back. He twirled it around in his fingers, trying to avoid thinking about his time in the Dark Kingdom about as much as the Shitennou were. Malachi was eyeing the both of them with concern, but stayed silent.
"While all this was happening, I began to understand some of the memories that had returned to me. Namely, that I had been serving the wrong master. Had I been thinking properly, I may have actually been able to help him. But under the circumstances, I could not escape that feeling of loyalty towards Beryl, even if it had been imposed on me by her powers. So rather than doing anything useful, I outright challenged what she was doing to the Prince. She immedately saw that I was wavering, and did such a stellar job of brainwashing me again that even now I have trouble remembering what happened next. What I do know is that I too was defeated not long afterward, and the Prince, the last of Beryl's slaves, moved in to take my place."
"The rest are just details," Kunzite muttered, massaging his brow in an attempt to keep his composure. "And I'm not quite sure of them all, at any rate."
"So somewhere between here and there, the Princess saved the Prince, defeated Beryl, and you got trapped in four small semi-precious stones?" Zory offered quietly. Kunzite nodded, and then seemed to droop. He was emotionally exhausted.
"That was a few years ago now," Nephrite said, stepping in to ease the pressure on his leader. "We've been with him ever since."
"It's not much of an existance, but anything beats the Dark Kingdom," added Zoisite. "And we help him, when we can."
"Kinda like guardian angels?" Zory asked, his fear of these phantoms long since evaporated.
Kunzite's mouth twitched in a bitter smile. "I wouldn't call us angels," he said thickly.
"I would," Mamoru muttered, absentmindedly watching his fingers turn the wallet over and over.
"The question now is," Malachi said, slowly getting up from the couch, "what's our relation to you?"
Carefully, he stood next to Kunzite, and then turned back toward his fellow frat boys. "Tell me that's not a painfully striking resemblence."
The three men on the couch blinked furiously, rubbed their eyes, and Neff even turned his head to the side to get a view from all possible angles.
"Identical," he finally decided, incredulous. "Absolutely identical."
"The rest of us, too," Malachi said, gesturing around at the other three Kings, and then back to the couch. "And there has to be some reason for it."
"I can't explain it," Kunzite said, trying to hide his own shock at how closely this human really did resemble him. Right down to the way he spoke, he was a carbon copy. Except for the fact that Malachi was alive, and he was currently not.
Mamoru was watching them as well. He could have told them--without the demonstration--how similar the two groups were. But even though he already knew this, it was still surreal to see doubles of his lifelong guardians.
"I don't mean to pry," Zoisite said subtly, "but how long have you guys been living in California?"
At this, the four men shifted uncomfortably. And mimicking their phantom counterparts perfectly, shifted their focus towards Malachi.
"Uh...By our best estimation, two years," he said, considering it. "Maybe less."
"You mean you don't know?" Jadeite asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, no." Malachi sighed. "I would say this sounds far-fetched, but after everything I just heard, your pink elephant Fluffy could walk in here and I'd be no less surprised."
"We have a pink elephant?" Nephrite whispered, and he was elbowed sharply by Zoisite. He would have been, if his elbow hadn't gone right through Nephrite, anyway.
"Cheater," Zoisite whispered back.
"We found ourselves in this frat house," Malachi said, "without any recollection of how we'd gotten here, or why. We were pretty sure we took classes here, but not which ones. We had no memory of anything that had happened to us much before that point, and we still don't."
"In a nutshell, we don't know who we are or why we're in California," Jed added quietly. "All of us have searched for an answer and come up empty. Someone's paying for our education, but no one can tell us who. We've got records-school, health-but we don't remember any of the things labeled on them. Hell, our birth certificates don't even have records of our last names!"
Mamoru could hardly believe what he was hearing. The story sounded surreally like his own. Granted, the time frame was entirely different-no one would send a six-year-old to a university-but he knew very well what it felt like to wake up one day not knowing who you are or where you've been for your entire life.
Zoisite raised a skeptical eyebrow. "So you just popped up here one day with no knowledge of who you are or how you got here? What did the rest of the frat house think of that?"
Neff shrugged. "They assumed we were all drunk and thought we'd fit in rather nicely."
Kunzite and Malachi both looked lost in thought. As soon as they noticed each other, however, both coughed awkwardly and looked away. "So what it looks like," Kunzite said, shaking himself, "is that something happened two years ago, right around the time the four of us were sealed away."
"Sounds like it," Malachi agreed. "But if I'm to understand correctly, most of this took place in Japan. So how did we end up on an entirely seperate continent?"
Nephrite coughed quietly, and everyone looked at him.
"I had a base around here somewhere," he said, looking sheepish. "Before there was a college on top of it, though. I don't know how that might help, but it would explain why you didn't end up somewhere in Canadaian wilderness, being chewed on by moose."
"As he knows from experience."
"Hey, that only happened once, thank you very much."
Malachi did not seem convinced. "Okay, but why North America at all? How many bases did you have?"
"In a word? A lot."
"We were stationed all over the world," Zoisite added, a little more helpfully. "Some of the major bases we had in our former lives, we used again in the Dark Kingdom. I held most of Europe and parts of Russia, Jadeite had China and Korea, Nephrite had North America and some of Central America, and Kunzite had the Middle Eastern area, North Africa, and a few spots in Australia. It wasn't until later that we sensed a strong power in Japan, and shifted our focus there. After that, many of our other bases shut down, in order to strengthen the attack on Japan."
"I had a few stations here in North America that I didn't have the heart to shut down. I was especially fond of the California one, and it was doing so well, I saw no reason to move my youma--er, monsters, out. Many of them were more loyal to me than they were to Beryl, and were more than happy to remain here against her wishes."
"By the way, 'a lot' is two words," Jed said, but was (more successfully this time) elbowed by Zory. "Ow!"
"Is it possible that this base might have some information about us?" Neff said, choosing to entirely ignore Jed and Zory, who had begun to, intentionally or not, mimic a catfight.
Nephrite considered it. "There's a good chance. I've forgotten a lot of the information I stockpiled for Beryl, both intentionally and otherwise. It wouldn't hurt to take a look there."
"That begs the question: where is it?"
There was a strange pause, and Nephrite looked around suspiciously.
"I, er, don't remember. Exactly."
Jadeite smacked his forehead. "Nephrite, has anyone ever told you that you're about as useful as a dried-up glue stick?"
"What, and you're any better? At least I know this area... sort of." They immediately began to bicker almost as viciously as the pair on the couch.
Mamoru slumped down heavily next to Malachi, who was sitting on the edge of his bed, watching the chaos. He gave Mamoru a look of concern. "You alright?" He asked softly, not wanting to alert the whole roomful of people, who would likely embarrass the Japanese man with their worry.
Mamoru nodded distantly. "I'm fine." Actually, he very much did not feel fine at the moment. He was exhausted, both physically and emotionally, and as much as he enjoyed the presence of the Shitennou, the effort of keeping them animated was putting a strain on his depleted resources.
This was not lost on Kunzite, who was a lot more helpful than a dried-up glue stick. "I hate to cut this short," he interrupted sharply, "but the Prince can't keep this up much longer. If we want to keep discussing this, we'll have to pull back into our stones."
"I think we've got a lot to digest for the time being," Malachi said, placing one hand on Mamoru's leg and patting it reassuringly. "Mamoru needs to take a break from straining himself, after nearly being killed three times recently."
Mamoru smiled wanly at him, grateful for the opportunity to take a break. Kunzite thoughtfully watched both of them for a moment before nodding. "You're right. It would be best to stop for now. Get some rest, Prince."
"And don't do anything Jadeite would do!" Zoisite chimed in, before dodging Jadeite's elbow.
With that, the Shitennou vanished from sight. Mamoru watched as the glow faded from the gemstones cupped in his hand. He felt utterly drained, in more ways than one, and would have loved nothing more than to curl up on Malachi's bed and fall asleep.
"Hey, you three. Beat it for a little while." Malachi's tone left no room for dissention, and with a quick grab of Jed and Zory's arms, Neff dragged them forcibly out of the room and shut the newly installed door with his foot.
Mamoru watched them leave, almost amused. "Does he do that a lot?"
"More than you know."
He turned to Mamoru again, and his concerned expression returned. It was not just the fact that he looked sickly pale, or that his eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep. Somehow, knowing what he did about what Mamoru had endured, even if it happened years ago, made him seem a lot more vulnerable than the man who had been glowing outside his window a few hours ago. "Are you sure you're alright? Because you look like you're going to fall asleep right where you're sitting."
Mamoru resisted the urge to say that he was fine, knowing that Malachi was long past believing him. "I'm just tired, is all. I've had a long day."
"Well you haven't fainted in, like, two hours. I'm impressed."
Mamoru gave Malachi a half-hearted punch to the arm, which was more like a feeble swat. "Don't put it past me."
"Look, you need to get some sleep. I'll make myself comfortable on the couch, and you take the be--"
"No." Mamoru shook his head. "You're the injured party, which I'm to blame for, and this is your room. Besides, I probably need to get back to what's left of my dorm, in case the police want my...um..."
"Statement?"
"Yeah. That."
Malachi shook his head. "The police can wait. You're barely getting by as it is. Even if you don't take the bed--"
"No. I... I shouldn't be staying here."
"And why not?"
Mamoru stared at the floor. "Because you've already been hurt once tonight because of me," he said quietly. "There will be more of those girls. And I don't know when they'll attack, but..."
Malachi placed a hand on his back. "Mamoru, I don't care about that. Maybe there's a reason I look so much like your former guardian. I want to help you, even if it means I'll get hurt in the process."
"You don't understand," he snapped. "I've already lost one set of Shitennou. I don't want to lose another."
"No, I think I understand perfectly well," Malachi snapped back, much to Mamoru's surprise. "It's very noble to be worried about us, and you have every reason to. But we're not going to die without a fight, and I wouldn't think you'd have any more of those tonight."
"I--"
"Stay here, or don't. It's your choice. But you're welcome in this house, if that's what you decide." Malachi got up from the bed slowly, and shuffled over to the lightswitch. Turning it off caused a small nightlight to go on in the outlet by his desk, and he shuffled over to the couch in the darkness.
Mamoru watched in silence as Malachi lay down on the couch and turned his back to him. He knew that he should be saying something profound right now, but his weariness pretty much obliterated any eloquence he may have otherwise had. After several minutes of listening to the white-haired man's rhythmic breathing, he rose to his feet, pulled the quilt off the bed, and draped it over Malachi's still frame. With a resigned sigh, he turned away, and softly crossed the room.
As his hand rested on the door knob, Malachi's voice stopped him. "I would, you know. I would protect you, just like they did."
"I know you would."
Mamoru exited the room quietly, feeling just the slightest bit guilty for not taking Malachi up on his offer. The loud, drunken party that had started early in the evening had already worn off, and as he maneuvered around the various bodies passed out on the rug, his thoughts continued to come back to the situation of the white-haired man and his friends.
They had no memories of anything. They had arrived at Stanford at the same time the Shitennou were sealed in their stones. The logical explaination appeared in Mamoru's mind, as the puzzle pieces slid together, but it wasn't particularly logical in normal terms.
"The bodies," he muttered, as the cold air of the outside blasted him in the face. "The physical bodies of the Shitennou. What happened to them?"
He knew that the corpses had been mutilated well beyond the point of looking like they had once been. Jadeite had been burnt to a crisp, Nephrite had been fried by lightning, Zoisite had been shredded, and Kunzite... well, with a simultaneous attack from four sailor senshi, there might not have been anything left. Still, he knew of two powers that had the ability to breathe life into a dead body--Metallia and the Ginzuishou. Neither seemed the least bit likely.
//Especially,// he thought, //if their spirits are already sealed away somewhere else.//
But then, hadn't Hotaru once told him about how she regained her powers around the time of Nehellenia's attack? How Saturn--nearly a full-grown teenager--had appeared in the little girl's mirror? Weren't they just like two separate beings then, speaking to one another as though they'd never met?
But then, Saturn knew of Hotaru's existance.
"So this plan isn't perfect yet," he muttered. "But it's a start."
Not long after, he collided into something with a lot of blonde hair.
"Mamoru!" She cried incredulously, her shimmering blue eyes filled to the brim with worry. "Thank goodness you're okay! I've been so worried!"
"Um... hi Lunette," he said awkwardly, politely trying to pull away his hand, which she had taken in both of her own and squeezed like a lifeline. "Why were you so worried?"
"You're joking, right? Mamoru, your dorm burned down and you've been missing for hours! Of course I was worried!"
//You're worried about a complete stranger you've only known for twelve hours?// Mamoru considered saying this aloud, but considering recent events, he was in no position to throw stones.
"How bad is it over there?" he asked quietly. "Is the whole building lost?"
She waved a dismissive hand. "Your floor was pretty much trashed, but the ones below it weren't quite as bad. Don't worry, no one was injured," she added quickly, anticipating his next question. "But I saw your name on the list of missing people, and I..." For a moment, she seemed so much like Usagi that he expected her to start crying. Lunette, however, immediately perked up. "Well, I'm glad you're alright, anyway."
"Thank you," he said, and rather meant it. Maybe he wasn't giving this girl enough credit.
And maybe he wasn't paying enough attention to the burning that had risen in his chest as soon as he'd recognized the blonde.
"Mamoru-san!" The sharp cry drove him out of his reverie. "You're hurt!"
He looked down at himself; yes, indeed he was. He was still burned and charred, what from being more than mildly electrocuted, and his face was still sore and swollen from a five-story drop through a window.
"Well, that tends to happen to people who fall out of fiery buildings."
"You poor thing!" She gasped, clenching his hand even harder and dragging him in some important direction. "We need to get those burns taken care of! C'mon over to my place, and--"
"Er... no, I don't think that'll be necessary."
"What do you mean? Of course it is! Now, I may not be as good as you at bandaging a wound, but I do have plenty of supplies at home, and there's an extra bed, so--"
"No, really, I'm fine. Look, I already had a friend take care of it, see?" He showed her his bandaged upper arm, hoping that in the darkness she could not see the red patches where some of the blood had already soaked through.
"Oh." She seemed a little deflated after that. "Well... well at least come make use of that bed, okay?"
"That's very kind of you, but I have to go tell ... someone that I'm not missing," he tried lamely. "I wouldn't want people to send out a search party."
//And I already turned down one offer for sleep, and that was from a male. I can just see Rei's face when she finds out I was in a woman's dorm, in her bed...//
In the dark, Mamoru could not see the dangerous flash in Lunette's eyes. "At least let me come with you, then!"
The determined way in which she clamped onto his arm left him no room for argument. Besides, she seemed so attached to him, he could see no easy way of letting her down without bruising her fragile emotions. And she was so much like Usako...
The girl seemed quite pleased to have him back after her horrible ordeal of worrying about him, and cheerfully led him back towards what was left of his dorm. "I'm sure some police are still around, Mamoru-kun!"
"You keep changing the suffix on my name. Do you ever make up your mind?"
"I'll call you whatever you want me too, Mamoru-kun!" At this, she tightened her hold on his arm; an action that somehow pushed her body closer to his, so that he could feel the soft brush of cotton against his skin. Her hair brushed against his chest, emitting a strange, sweet smell that was not altogether unpleasant. It was not the sugary, delicate sweetness of his Usako. It was more exotic somehow, like a tangy piece of fruit. "What should it be? Mamoru-san? Mamoru-kun? Or even..." she added with an endearing giggle, "Mamochan?"
Mamoru's breath seized up as soon as the name left Lunette's lips. No, no one was allowed to call him that except his Usako. No one.
"I'd prefer Mamoru-kun, thank you," he snapped, harsher than he intended.
Lunette looked at him, wide-eyed. "I-I'm sorry, did I hit a nerve?" she stuttered. "Please don't be mad..."
"I'm not mad, I just..." he sighed. Maybe he was taking things a tad too seriously. "Are you studying Japanese?" He asked, trying to steer the conversation somewhere else.
"Yes!" She replied eagerly. "Maybe sometime you can help me study."
"Yeah, maybe," he said in a rather noncommital voice. "Well, 'chan' isn't all that appropriate in this situation anyway, being that I'm male. And I'm not sure, but I think I may be older than you."
"What year are you in, Mamoch--Mamoru-kun?"
"Second year."
Lunette giggled, and he could have sworn that she was blushing. "Oh, now I feel terribly embarassed! I'm only a freshman!"
//Not as embarassed as I am.//
Thankfully, he was saved from further embarassment as they arrived at the scene. In the dim glow of the streetlights, the upper floors of the building looked like a gutted carcass. It was nearly impossible to tell which of the black, mutilated windows had belonged to him. //Well, at least they won't be able to blame me for what happened.//
A few tired-looking policemen were still milling about, leaning on their cars, talking to people, and otherwise looking important.
"Excuse me," Mamoru called, hoping to flag down the attention of any one of them. "I'd like to, um, tell you that I'm not missing any longer!"
This only caused Lunette to giggle again.
"What?" What could possibly be making this girl laugh now?
"It's just... I dunno, such an untechnical thing for a doctor to say."
In the darkness, she could not see his slight flush of embarrassment. "Give me a break. This isn't my native language, you know."
//And I'm tired after blasting sparkly things at evil clones, thank you very much.//
She grinned sweetly. "Aww, don't be upset. I think it's cute!"
//Oh good. Now she thinks I'm cute. Shoot me for flirting without trying.//
"You know," Mamoru said, trying to pull his arm out of her grip, "it's very thoughtful of you to try and help me out. But you don't have to stay; I bet you've got some studying to do."
"Oh, I'll just explain it to my professors. They'll understand!" Undeterred, she snuggled in further. "I'd just hate it if you got hurt..."
"There's police all over here. How could I possibly get hurt?"
//By hanging out with a young, attractive female, that's how. Namely by a hoard of Sailor Senshi who would hitch the first plane over here so that they could personally skin me alive the moment they got word of it.//
"Hurt again," she amended. Even as he continued his attempt at pulling away, the blonde refused to let him go. Pull, cling. Pull, cling.
"Really," Mamoru said, strained. "I appreciate your concern, but--"
Lunette looked up at him, blue eyes watering in the dim light. "Mamoru-kun, please. I...I just want to help you."
Mamoru resisted the urge to groan. Every person he came in contact with tonight seemed determined to smother him with kindness. What was with this university? (Come to think of it, they all seemed to be flirting with him too, but that was beside the point.)
The point was that he was engaged to a perfectly amazing goddess, and had no room in his life to be dating other people. That said, he would need to figure out some tactful way to explain to this poor girl that while she indeed shared some of said goddess's qualities, she simply came into his life a few millenia too late and would regretfully have to look elsewhere for a soulmate.
"Look, Lunette, I..."
"Hey, are you by any chance Mamoru Chiba?" A portly policeman waddled up to him, his head craned backwards in order to look the much taller Mamoru in the eye.
//Saved by the policeman, Lunette.// "I am," he said. "And I'm not, uh, missing anymore."
"Good to hear." The policeman smiled amicably, pulling out a notepad to jot that down. "I see your girlfriend patched you up nicely, but we'd still like to check you out. Make sure you don't have any major injuries."
"She's not my--"
"Oh, he isn't--"
An uncomfortable silence followed, in which the policeman confusedly stared at both of them. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Uh... alrighty. Well Mr. Chiba, if you'd come this way please."
"No really, I'm--"
"Miss, I know how you feel, but I'm afraid you'll have to stay here."
"--really not feeling that great. Sorry Lunette, I guess we can meet up later." Mamoru somehow had a newfound appreciation for policemen.
No one noticed the dirty look Lunette shot at the policeman as she relinquished Mamoru's arm. She pulled a small piece of paper from her jacket and stuffed it in one of his back pants pockets.
"Call me, okay?" she said quietly, and then turned and walked away towards the womens' dorms.
The policeman chuckled. "Not your girlfriend, huh?"
Mamoru watched her leave. "Honestly, I can't quite tell."
----
It had been five hours, eleven minutes, and twenty four seconds, by Mamoru's estimation, since he had gone flying out a window. Since he had spilled most of his extremely long, legend-filled life to four previously unknown frat boys.
And since he'd had a change of underwear at his disposal.
Other than that minor inconvenience, he had been pronounced adequately healthy and allowed to leave of his own will. After thanking the kind policeman who had so wonderfully rescued him from the grip of cuteness, he merrily hobbled on his way.
It was well past midnight by now. Fortunately, some of the buildings were open all night. At the very least, he could get in out of the cold.
The cafeteria was nearly deserted as he shuffled inside, thankful for the warmth. He bought some black coffee from the nearest vending machine and sank down at a table, suddenly overwhelmed with weariness.
It was not only this Usako-lookalike that tired him. It was not only the Shitennou-lookalikes that bothered him. And it was not only the Senshi-lookalikes that bothered him.
It was the fact that there were so many damn lookalikes running aroudn that bothered him.
"I feel like I'm in a bad movie from the '50s," Mamoru muttered into his coffee. "Invasion of the Pod People. Just...just too weird."
He knew he would not get sleep tonight. He had too many things on his mind. He was still sore from no less than three battles - battles he never would have won a day ago.
For that matter, he could not even figure out HOW he had survived all those battles. Since when did he have golden Senshi-like attacks? What did he call that thing, Tuxedo Mirage? Where the heck did that come from, and why did it sound like the name of a harlequin romance novel?
Okay, well apparently someone forgot to tell him that oh, by the way, the Golden Crystal is awesome. If only he'd figured all this out a couple years ago, maybe that would have helped things a little.
But then, the Golden Crystal had only been unsealed after Nehellenia's attack, hadn't it? And barely a few weeks later, he had met an untimely death at the hands of Galaxia. The more he thought about it, the more Mamoru realized that other than that single battle, he'd had absolutely no opportunity to try the Golden Crystal out.
Until now, that is.
Now, he had more opportunities than he wanted. Sure, he could defend himself against these vigilante Senshi-clones. But did he want to? Hell, no. Fighting wasn't the way he liked to solve problems.
Of course, it was another thing if the other person started it.
"Why me?" Mamoru wondered quietly, resting his head on the table. "Why now? Why can't I ever have one life experience that isn't dictated by having a Sailor crystal?"
It had always been this way. First, he had been a prince. Then, he had been a masked thief, searching for his identity. Then he was a masked hero. Then he was brainwashed. Then he was, to put it mildly, roadkill. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Just thinking about his experiences over the past few years made him exhausted. He took another sip of his coffee, hoping it would help clear his head and dissipate his throbbing headache, but it tasted rather like watered-down hot sludge and did little to make him feel better.
He again dropped his head on the table and folded his arms around it, blocking out the glaring light of the cafeteria. "I hate my life," he muttered miserably. "If it weren't for Usa, none of this would be worth it."
Just then, his pants started ringing.
With a start, Mamoru fumbled around in his pocket for his phone. Finally being able to turn it on, he attempted to greet his caller with, "Hello, this is Mamoru."
What came out more resembled, "'lo. 'S Mam'ru."
"Mamoru-san? Is that you?"
"Uh, yes," he said, pretty sure that it was. Of course, he could have been a polkadotted goldfish by this point and would have been no more surprised. "This is?"
"It's Rei. Mamoru-san, you don't sound well. Have you been studying too hard?"
Rei? Why would Rei, of all people, be calling him? A sudden pang of dread washed over him. What if there was an attack? What if something happened to Usako? What if she's hurt? What if she needs him?
A million scenarios rushed through his mind in the span of about half a second, edging his voice with near-panic. "Rei-chan? What is it? Did something happen? Are there enemies--"
"Mamoru-san, calm down," she said in a commanding voice. "Usagi-chan's alright, she's just - wait, what was that about enemies?"
Mamoru nearly cursed himself for the slip. He did not want the other Senshi to know about the attacks, and he ESPECIALLY did not want Usako to know about the attacks. The moment she found out, she'd have a whole army of Sailor Senshi on the fastest plane to California, all gung-ho to rescue the useless Prince who needed his girlfriend to save him at every given moment. Besides, he did not want Usako to worry. Because worrying Usako was on his list of things that he would never, ever do.
"Oh, you know me. Paranoid and delusional," he remarked lamely. Trying to distract Rei from his comment, he proceeded with, "Usako is just 'what?'"
"She had to have emergency surgery, for...Mamoru-san? Are you breathing over there?"
"No," Mamoru squeeked. Surgery? What could have happened to cause Usako to need surgery? She was perfectly healthy! Sure, she ate too many sweets, but she wasn't overweight, and--
"It was just her appendix, Mamoru-san. I can hear you having a heart attack from over here, so you can relax and know that she's recovering just fine. She'll want to call you when she wakes up, and I just wanted to warn you, in case you were going to be in class. To suggest you put your phone on vibrate, so you don't disturb your professor."
Mamoru let out the air he was holding in. "Thank you. I don't think you have to worry much about that; I usually don't have it on ringer."
//Except after my dorm burns down and I've been attacked by clones.//
Rei was silent for a moment. "Mamoru-san, are you alright? You don't sound too good."
"I'm fine, Rei-chan. It's just late over here."
"Oh no, I didn't wake you up, did I? Or have you been studying all night?"
"Well you know me, the big academic."
"Just don't go making yourself sick, alright? Usagi-chan would be worried to no end."
//Like you need to tell me that.//
"I'm trying very hard to take care of myself, for Usako's sake. It's mostly working."
Rei's tone was dubious. "'Mostly?'"
Mamoru winced, but chuckled lightly. "As a future doctor, I can tell you that all-nighters don't tend to be healthy."
"I suppose not," she said, chuckling a little herself. "Don't worry about this too much, okay? Usagi-chan will be up in the next hour or two. She'll perk right up when you start cooing sweet nothings into her ear."
"Good to know."
"Okay, well I'd better stop wasting your minutes. I'll let Usagi-chan know that you'll be waiting for her call."
"Thank you. Oh, and Rei-chan--"
Rei paused. "Yes?"
"I... take care of her, alright?"
He could almost hear her smile at him. "I will, Mamoru-san. Take care."
"Bye." Mamoru hung up his phone, his stomach feeling like it had been turned to lead. Usako. His Usako. His poor, sweet, innocent, delicate Usako... trapped in a hospital without him.
This was turning out to be a very, very long day. Placing his phone back in his pocket, he rested his head on the table again. At the very least, he could try to rest his eyes. It would do him no good to drop off in class, especially if he would be awaiting a call from Usako. In his confusion, he might mistake his cellphone for something entirely inappropriate.
"...okay, if I'm thinking ecchi, I really do need to sleep," he muttered.
With everything that had happened to him, and all the pressing issues rolling about in his head, he thought it would be difficult to get to sleep. But the day's events had left him exhausted, and no sooner did Mamoru close his eyes than he drifted into a deep, unbroken sleep.
----
"...ru. Mamoru. Hey, wake up."
He opened his eyes, but immediately wished he hadn't, as all he was met with was a flood of painfully bright sunlight. Mamoru groaned elequently, trying to squeeze his eyelids shut against the light that seemed intent on shooting little daggers into his retina.
A hand was on his back, gently shaking him. He turned his head to look at whoever it was, wincing at the stiff pain in his neck.
"Malachi?" He was relatively confident that that was who he was speaking to, but it was hard to tell with his eyes closed.
"No, it's the Tooth Fairy. Don't tell me you spent the whole night asleep in here."
"Fine. I won't tell you."
Malachi sighed, disapproving. "So you turned down my offer of a bed so you could get a kink in your back at the cafeteria. It makes perfect sense."
"It makes perfect sense when you take into account that I've probably lost my mind." He sat up and rubbed at his eyes in an attempt to wake himself up, but only succeeded in making them look more red.
Malachi was watching him, the concerned expression never leaving his face. "You should have stayed."
"But I didn't. So there isn't much we can do about it now. Besides," he stopped rubbing his eyes and looked up at Malachi, "yours wasn't the only offer I turned down, so don't feel bad."
"Don't take offense to this, Mamoru," Malachi said, pulling up a hard plastic chair, "but who else could have offered you a room? You told me yourself that you didn't know many people on campus."
"I did?"
"You implied it."
"Well, one other person. She seems to have become very attached to me," Mamoru admitted. "Which I would normally appreciate, except that she's very zealous about it. I've barely even known her a day."
"Yes, that does seem a little odd," Malachi deadpanned.
"Oh, shut up. The Shitennou make our situation null and void."
"Do they, now?"
"Yes. ...I'm just not sure how." It was much too early in the morning for deep thought. Especially deep thought regarding clones of dead guardians.
"I'm not here just because of them," he said sharply, a dangerously icy edge in his voice.
Mamoru stared at him, stunned by the sudden change in Malachi's tone. "I know you're not," he said softly.
When Mamoru looked back down at the table, and his cup congealed pseudo-coffe, Malachi sighed. Why the hell had he said that? "Mamoru, that was terribly rude of me, and entirely uncalled for. I'm sorry."
"No, it's okay," Mamoru said, running a hand through his greasy, matted hair. "I just meant that, because of them, I feel like I've known you longer. I didn't mean that you were..."
"I know you didn't." Malachi paused, then looked at his watch. "Don't you have a class?"
"What time is it?"
"7:55."
"...fuck," Mamoru cursed conversationally. "Freud101 starts in five minutes. And I have neither books, nor notes, nor ... well, clean underwear."
Malachi visibly brightened, and opened his backpack. He produced a plastic grocery bag that looked nearly filled to capacity. "Got you covered there. I don't have any of the same books as you, of course, but I figured you'd be needing some pens and notepaper, and... other essentials."
For a moment, all Mamoru could do was stare blankly at him. "...you did that for me?" He croaked.
Malachi rolled his eyes and slid the bag across the table to him. "Dude, it's paper and boxers. It's not like I'm opening a vein for you here."
"Have I ever told you I loved you?"
"Not in this lifetime, no."
Mamoru paused mid-action, removing a notebook from the bag. "What was that?"
"Nothing." Malachi found it impossible to surpress a smirk, which caused Mamoru to return the favor.
"Don't start saying things like that, or eight very angry, scantily clad women will hop a plane and come looking for your head," he warned. As an afterthought, he added, "Or mine."
Malachi could hardly contain his laughter. "Those girls would suspect you of cheating on your girlfriend with another guy? No wonder you avoid friendships."
"I wouldn't put it past them." He glanced up at the clock. "Okay, now I really am going to be late. Thanks a ton, Malachi." He stiffly got to his feet and gathered up the bag of goodies Malachi had given him.
"Hey, no problem. See you later, Mamoru."
As Mamoru left the cafeteria, bag in hand, he wondered how he had ever survived so long without people like Malachi around.
//By being a cold, arrogant pain-in-the-ass to everyone I came across. That's how.//
He jogged quickly up a flight of stairs, then another and another, bag of supplies rustling loudly in the empty hallway. //Good thing those days are over.//
He arrived at his class only two minuts late; thankfully, it was in a giant lecture hall, and he managed to slip in an empty seat by the door. A woman with wavy teal hair turned around to give him a pointed glare. Mamoru raised an eyebrow - he hadn't made that much noise.
When she kept staring, he figured it had little to do with the fact that he had come in late.
The girl next to her--a perky little thing with short blonde hair--turned to follow her companion's gaze. When she spotted Mamoru she gave him an energetic wave, and was promptly smacked by the teal-haired one.
Oh shit, he thought despairingly. Why do they have to show up now? In class, of all times?
After a silent argument, in which the blonde rapidly flailed her arms around like a mad chicken and the teal-hair made ready to strangle her companion, both finally turned to face the professor again. Mamoru felt a small twinge of relief. At least they weren't going to attack him in class. Now, if he could just sneak out the door without their noticing...
Someone behind him cleared their throat. He glanced up at her--another woman, this one with long blonde hair. She arrogantly raised her eyebrows, as if to say "take one step towards that door and I'll rip off a few things that I'm sure you'll miss."
//Are all Senshi, evil clones or not, trained to use that look on me?// He slumped back into his chair. At the very least, he could try to get them outside before their likely impending battle injured any students.
The lecture went rather without incident, although the blonde and her companion appeared to keep trying to play tongue-hockey without anyone noticing. It didn't work, and finally the blonde behind him threw a shoe to quiet her friends down.
//...even Haruka-san and Michiru-san would take it someplace private. Like a bathroom.// Mamoru tried not to chuckle aloud. //Or the library.//
Despite the humerous interlude, the entire class was nerve-racking. Every little noise startled him, as he half-expected to be pummeled by a Crescent Beam from behind or a Deep Submerge from in front. Nothing so grand as a powerful attack could break the tension, however, and by the time the professor dismissed them, he was so preoccupied that he almost missed it. He quickly stuffed the unused notebook and pen back into the bag and made to run off.
Unfortunately, the blonde from the row behind him was already standing in his path. "Going somewhere?"
"...well, apparently not," he said, nervously noting that she was nearly eye to eye with him. //Minako can't be nearly that tall...//
Her red bow was almost comical, because the rest of her outfit (or what could have been described loosely as such) was comprised mostly of leather. A skull-and-crossbones tattoo was visible on her collarbone.
"Can I help you?" he continued, after a moment.
"Miniya." She didn't offer her hand in greeting; she just stared Mamoru down, a very suspicious gleam in her eye. "I have some business to discuss with you."
Mamoru hoped the business didn't involve a henshin wand.
He was about to say "what kind of business?" but his question turned to a yelp when he was grabbed from behind by a much shorter and significantly friendlier blonde. The fact that she did not seem intent on killing him just then was hardly a comfort, as her roaming hands appeared to be much more interested in something equally immoral.
"You're a lot cuter than I expected!" She chirped, apparently trying to get under his shirt.
"Do I know you?" He squeaked, tried to squirm out of her grasp, but it was like trying to disentangle oneself from a herd of starving leeches.
"I don't think so," she said thoughtfully, "but I'm sure you could get to know me real quick. My name's Hasana."
Before his shirt managed to come off, Hasana was smacked roughly on the back of her head.
"Ow," moaned Hasana, pulling her hands away from one awkwardly blushing Mamoru. "Mackenzie, you bitch, save that for the bedroom."
"Flirty little whore. Why do I put up with you?" The teal-haired woman picked up a guitar case - at least, he hoped there was a guitar in it, and not, say, explosives - and brushed a stray hair from her face.
"Because I give you what you want." Almost immediately, the little blonde's attention had been diverted, and she clung to Mackenzie's arm.
Her lover now firmly attached to her arm, Mackenzie relented a bit, and instead turned her wrath on Mamoru. "Think you can steal my girl just like that, do ya?"
"I... I..." Mamoru stuttered, trying to back away from the vicious-looking woman, whose clothes were torn and frayed, and looked as though they had not been washed in months.
"Typical male," growled Miniya from behind him. "Turn your back on them for two seconds, and already they're fondling some bimbo."
"You'd better watch your mouth, Miniya!" Mackenzie snarled, glaring past Mamoru at the much taller girl.
"That so, Mackenzie?" She said, roughly shoving Mamoru aside to tower over the teal-haired woman.
"Hey!" Hasana interjected, with a tone that said, "HELLO YOU ARE NOT PAYING ATTENTION TO ME."
"I hate to interrupt this rare moment of testosterone from the both of you, but we're supposed to be fighting him!"
When she pointed at Mamoru, he blanched.
"Nothing personal," she added sweetly.
"You could do that," he said warily. "Only..."
"What?" Mackenzie demanded, balling her fist irritably.
"Well, you ladies look like three powerful females. Well," he reconsidered, "two powerful females. I'd just like to know who will throw the first hit."
"What?" Miniya spat.
"Well it would have to be the strongest one, right? So which of you is it?"
"Me," both women said at once, then immediately turned to glare at each other. Mamoru resisted the urge to grin. He doubted he could get them at each other's throats enough to beat up one another instead of, say, himself, but maybe he could at least distract them long enough to lure them outside. He certainly did not want one of his classrooms to be destroyed.
Hasana pouted. "Guys! We're fighting him!"
"Excuse me?" Mackenzie ignored her lover-if she'd call her that-and brushed one of Miniya's shoulders with a grungy hand. "You might have the bondage gear, but I'm the one with muscle."
Miniya copied the gesture, but it was more of a forceful shove than a brush. "Oh, that's what we're calling the excess flab in your ass these days?"
"GUYS! Stop it! ...or save it for the bedroom!" Hasana flailed her arms around frantically, trying to get their attention. Slowly, oh ever so slowly, Mamoru began to inch toward the door that led to the hallway.
"You should be a little more careful, if you don't want that cute little tattoo of yours to be ripped off and shoved down your throat."
"How about you talk to me after you take a bath? Or is the dirt the only thing holding your fat ass off the floor?"
"Excuse me, I hate to interrupt," Hasana errupted, vying for attention, "but the freaking guy is getting away!"
All three turned to the door just in time to see it swing shut.
"Shit."
//Where to go, where to go?// Mamoru thought, quickly bursting through a group of students, looking frantically in all directions. He did the only thing he could: run straight ahead. //I've got to get outside, and fast, or there's going to be--//
"Crescent Beam!"
//--chaos. Too late.// He looked over his head as a lighting fixture was severed from its cord and smashed to the floor, nearly missing the feet (and heads) of some very lucky psychology undergrads. He turned the corner and went dashing down the flight of stairs. The doorway was in sight when he turned his head - something sounding very similar to "World Shaking!" could be heard in the hallway above him - and plowed right into two unsuspecting strangers.
"Mamoru?" Zory dropped his books from the collision, but made no move to pick them up. "Why the hurry?"
"Evil women," he panted, gesturing with his hand as if to explain. "Coming after me. Have to get out of the building. Mass carnage ensuing."
If anyone else had said this to Zory, he would likely accuse them of having one too many. But considering the bizarre circumstances of last night's events, he was inclined to think otherwise.
"Deep Submerge!" The aqua-colored ball soared past their heads and took out a row of lockers, hurling them onto the floor and nearly blocking the path to the door.
Mamoru was about to make an attempt at it anyway, when both Zory and Neff grabbed him and shoved him into the nearest utility closet, slamming the door mere seconds before a furious Mackenzie went charging past them.
"You there!" someone - he guessed Miniya - barked from outside the door. "Hey! Don't you run away from me!"
He sighed in relief; at least they'd managed to get away. But now he was trapped in the closet, where he would surely be found, and he would have no chance of getting out without getting maimed. As quietly as he could, he slumped down against a stack of brooms, leaning on an air vent.
This day was turning out to be about as much fun as yesterday. He could only run from the three clones for so long before he would have to fight them. It was not as though he could call for backup or anything.
And quite frankly, taking on three at once did not sound the least bit enjoyable. He seemed to have a difficult enough time with one.
He leaned the back of his head against the air vent, suddenly remembering how tired he was. The few hours of sleep he had caught in the cafeteria could hardly be called restful, especially under the circumstances. Being that he was a med student, as well as a former student of the Japanese school system, he was quite accustomed to getting by on very little sleep and scattered, less than healthy meals. But such a lifestyle hardly took into account fighting evil Sailor Senshi from hell with sparkly magic powers that make him faint. He knew that he probably could not keep up like this much longer, and that it was likely only sheer will that had kept him from passing out from exhaustion.
Of course, to keep him from passing out, his cellphone began to ring.
"Crap," he muttered, fumbling around in the dark closet in the hopes he could muffle it, or try to turn it off. Finally, he just pulled the thing out and answered.
"Hello?"
"MamochanwherehaveyoubeenI'vebeentryingtocallyouforhoursbutyouweren'tansweringand--"
"Usako, relax," he whispered hoarsely. "I was in class, and I didn't feel the phone ringing."
Mamoru swallowed hard at that realization. He had meant to put his phone in his pocket, but somehow it had ended up in the bag of supplies Malachi had given him. Only when he was planning to leave did he remember to take it out.
"Oh." Usagi audibly deflated. "I'm sorry, Mamochan, I should have guessed--"
"No, Usako, that's my fault."
"Mamochan, why are you whispering? You're not still in class, are you?"
"Uh, no, I'm in the library. How are you doing?"
At the question, he could almost hear the tears spring into her eyes. "Oh Mamochan it's so horrible and I hate it here and I don't like the food and I missed my favorite show and the nurses are so mean and I've got an IV in my arm and I hate this stupid gown and YOU'RE NOT HERE!"
Mamoru suddenly felt an incredible sense of guilt welling up in his throat. It was bad enough that he could not be there when his Usako needed him, but he could not even perform the simple task of answering a phone. The poor girl was upset enough without him throwing that extra worry on her shoulders.
Usagi sniffled quietly. "But I know you're working hard; Rei-chan told me you sounded like you'd been pulling all-nighters. So, I suppose you can be forgiven this once."
"You don't know how much I want to be there," he whispered. "I feel terrible enough being on an entirely seperate continent when you're well..."
"Mamochan, I can hear you starting to guilt from across the Pacific. I'm just happy to hear your voice."
"And I'm happy to hear yours. Is the hospital really that awful, Usako? You know Haruka-san would probably be willing to beat up anyone who's not treating you right."
Usagi giggled. "She already has."
Mamoru resisted the urge to laugh, pitying the poor soul who had to face the wrath of Haruka. "I'm sure that went over well."
"Oh, you should see them run now, Mamochan. They even give me extra pillows if I ask nicely."
"Are the other girls there? They're taking good care of you, aren't they?"
Usagi sighed. "Mamochan, they won't STOP taking care of me. It was hard enough getting them to give me a few moments to call you."
"And now they're probably pressed against the door, waiting for you to hang up," Mamoru guessed. By the way his Usako sighed, he assumed he'd guessed right. "You know they only hover because they care about you, Usako."
"I know, Mamochan, I know they do. I just wish they'd do it in a more discreet manner. Like, I don't know, not punching orderlies in the jaw and things."
"If you expect them not to do that, you're in with the wrong crowd."
Usagi giggled. "Ami-chan DOES pack a rather mean punch."
//More than you realize,// he thought, rubbing his jaw.
"How about the food?" Contrary to popular belief, Mamoru was well aware of Usagi's love affair with food, and was only marginally jealous. He did, however, sometimes wish she would look at him the way she looked at a stick of sesame seed dango.
"It's terrible, Mamochan! I think it must have been genetically engineered to be tasteless." She paused, then giggled again. "But Mako-chan has been sneaking in some of her cooking every time she visits. The nurses don't seem to mind, as long as I don't anything really unhealthy."
Suddenly, Mamoru heard a sharp pounding on the door, followed by a heated argument. He swallowed his response to his fiancé, and waited until the noise ceased.
"Mamochan? What's that noise?"
Mamoru held his breath, not daring to speak.
"Mamochan? ...Mamochan, where are you?"
But if he didn't say something soon, she'd get worried. Or worse, she'd get upset.
"Mamochan?" Her voice was getting shrill now. Darnit, she was worried. And if her voice got any louder, they'd hear her, even over that persistant banging.
"Mamochan, please answer me!"
"I'm here, Usako. I'm sorry, I think we've got a bad connection."
"Oh, fuck this!" Mackenzie shrilled from outside. "Deep Submerge!"
"Mamochan, what was that?" Usagi squeeked. Michiru was definitely not all the way over THERE; she was discreetly hiding out side the door of her room, trying to listen in on the conversation (not that she'd ever admit it).
"I'm gonna have to call you back, Usako," he said sharply as the door splintered inward with a loud crack.
"Mamochan, what's going on over there?!" Usagi was nearly shouting--no doubt alerting the hoard of girls pressed against her door.
"Uh, I think there's a convention in town, and cosplayers have just invaded the library." Mamoru winced, knowing that was probably the worst lie he had ever come up with in his entire life.
A disturbingly gleeful "World Shaking" smashed against the door, nearly shattering it and showering him in broken splinters.
"Pretty crappy hiding place, Prince," Hasana chirped, eyeing him through a gaping hole. She waved her Space Sword at him as though he was a naughty puppy.
"Mamochan--"
"Space Sword--"
"Submarine--"
"--Blaster!"
"--Reflection!"
"I love you, Usak--" Mamoru tried to cut the phonecall off, but a very bright beam of water and light blasted into his chest like a semi truck. With nowhere to go but backwards, he slammed right through the closet's wall and down, head over heels, into the airvent.
"Stupid," Miniya clucked, watching him disappear. No one was sure if she was referring to Mamoru, or her companions.
Mamoru tumbled down the airvent for what seemed like an absurdly long time, hitting every possible protrusion on the way down, before being dropped unceremoniously onto the painfully solid ground. He lay there groaning for a moment, too dizzy and sore to move. Finally, when he decided that he was not going to get any better, he opened his eyes.
The phone lay a few inches from his head. Although he couldn't see the screen, he already knew that it had cut out--otherwise he'd hear Usako screaming. He slowly sat up, gripping his pounding head. He must have hit it at some point. He picked up the phone, looked it over, and finding it not damaged, shoved it into his pocket.
"Well...now what?" he muttered, looking around. He most definitely was NOT in Kansas anymore.
In fact, if he hadn't known any better, he would have placed bets that he had fallen straight into the Dark Kingdom. With that entirely unpleasant thought in mind, he rummaged around in his pocket and picked out one green stone.
"Prince? What's going on?" The stone - Nephrite - sounded confused, dazed, as though he had also fallen through the proverbial rabbit hole.
"I think I may have found something of yours," Mamoru said, looking around anxiously.
They were in an unusually large circular cavern. The walls, floor, and shadowy ceiling were all of a hard, greyish stone. Even parts of the airvent he had just fallen through seemed to be coated in the strange mineral. Around the perimeter of the room, several arched doorways gaped at them. They seemed to lead off in different directions, though most were too dark to see beyond a few feet. The one that bothered him the most, however, was the one just to his left, from which a faint purplish light was glowing.
"This doesn't look like something that belongs in a university," he muttered uncomfortably.
"Oh, hey! I knew this was around here somewhere! And Zoisite said I wasn't useful..."
"So, this is your base." Mamoru realized how stupid it sounded aloud, but he felt he had to comment. Normally, he wasn't used to falling into the headquarters of old enem--frien--whatever. "What exactly went on down here?"
Nephrite cleared his throat; well, in essence, anyway. "Oh, you know. Typical evil villain things. Creating and taking care of youma, spying on the others, working on plans for Beryl. That kind of thing."
"Lovely. There uh... wouldn't be any youma here now, would there?" He shuddered at the thought of some creature flying out of one of the dark doorways, intent on mauling him.
"Naw, they were dependant on Metallia's power. Any youma still here after I left would have died when she was sealed away." After a moment he added, "So you can stop squeezing me so hard now."
Mamoru cleared his throat sheepishly. "Sorry."
"But," he added, "if everything that was here is now dead, am I likely to trip over a bunch of youma corpses?"
Nephrite was silent for a moment, and then finally said, "No. No, I think they would have all disappeared. Just, uh, watch your step."
Mamoru shuddered visibly at the idea. He stepped slowly, methodically toward the one doorway that was dimly lit.
He cautiously peered through it, but found only a long empty corridor that made a sharp turn at the end. The light seemed stronger over there. "Does this seem odd to you?"
"Yes," Nephrite answered slowly, uncertain. "I would have thought there wouldn't be anything left here now. But like I said before, I don't remember a whole lot about what was here. Who knows, it could just be an old computer monitor that never got shut off."
"For two years?"
Nephrite made the mineral equivalant of a shrug. "We were using the latest in Dark Kingdom technology."
"Oh. Windows?"
"Yup."
"What are the odds there's something terrifing and horrible at the end of the corridor?"
"Well, my dirty laundry might still be down here, but short of that..."
"That wasn't disturbing or anything." Mamoru started walking down the hallway, looking over his shoulder every other step. "How could you possibly need all these doors?"
"Well I was kind of in the process of taking over North America, Prince. One doesn't exactly work out of his basement on a project like this."
"Even after Beryl set her sights on Japan?"
"Hey, like I said before, I liked this place. I worked pretty hard to build it, and besides, over the years I had shifted all of the youma who were more loyal to me than they were to Beryl over to this base. You might say it was my 'plan B'. You know, in case Beryl didn't succeed, and all that."
Mamoru considered this a moment. "You rebelled against Beryl, but only for the sake of setting up your own plans of conquering the world? That's almost worse than following her wholeheartedly." Normally, Mamoru would never even consider saying something like this to one of his Shitennou, but he was increasingly becoming aware of Nephrite's laid-back attitude to the whole thing. While he knew very well that Nephrite regretted his time in the Dark Kingdom just as much as his comrades did, he seemed to have a somewhat easier time distancing himself from it, so that he talked about it just as he would discuss a movie he saw.
"Don't forget, my mind was rather warped by Beryl. We all had our forms of rebellion, Prince, even if they weren't always the healthiest. We never recognized it as such--I'm sure we would have stopped as soon as we did. But we all had our subconscious desires to rebel against her, even if we didn't notice. Like how Kunzite always left his jacket unbuttoned, especially in Beryl's presence. Or the fact that Jadeite always carried dirty magazines in his pocket, and read them on missions. And Zoisite... actually, he'd kill me if I told you, and I'd rather not be trampled by a piece of tanzanite."
By the time the idea of Jadeite reading Playboy had fully sunk in, Mamoru had come to the end of the corridor. To the left was a dead end, but to the right...
"Shit." Mamoru did not throw curse word around lightly, but this was definitely an appropriate time for it to come into use.
Before him, glowing bright and purple, was a seven foot tall statue of Beryl that seemed entirely carved out of crystal. Her arms were stretched out, palms facing the ceiling, with two orbs of energy pulsing between them. Her head was tilted back, apparently in mid-cackle. Her hair and dress were in the act of flowing in some requisite evil and ominous wind.
"Yeah, that rather sums it up," Nephrite said darkly.
"Nephrite, what is this thing and what is it for?"
"I'd forgotten all about it," he said thoughtfully. "We used it to store energy. Sort of like a giant battery, you might say. A lot of the energy would then be transferred over to Metallia, but naturally, we cheated and kept a lot for ourselves."
"Is that why it's still glowing?"
The green stone was silent for a moment, apparently in thought. "No," he said finally. "It wasn't meant to hold energy for long periods of time. Even if it were filled to capacity, any energy we had stored in there would have dissipated by now. It shouldn't be doing that."
"'It shouldn't be doing that.' Damn, Nephrite, that's reassuring." Mamoru felt nausea rise up in his stomach, and he decided it would be a terribly poor idea to throw up. Especially since he hadn't eaten in quite some time.
"Those evil Senshi must be using it. But how...Neph, Beryl never had any plans for making evil Senshi clones, did she?"
"Not that I was aware of," he said, with some trepidation. "I don't even think that was within Metallia's power. Taking over existing people is one thing, but making entirely new ones? I suppose, if she could make youma...But after all this time, they're just getting woken up? After you've essentially sealed off the greatest threat in the universe?"
"How'd you find out about THAT?"
"Prince, I sit in your pocket all day collecting lint. Occassionally I really DO hear stuff happening up there, and Chaos wasn't exactly small news. Besides..." his voice grew softer, "we all knew when that happened to you."
Mamoru did not need to ask what "that" was. He looked up at the Beryl statue, feeling a cold twist in his stomach. It was true, they HAD sealed Chaos away, just as they had sealed Metallia away. But amazingly enough, even after facing such powerful enemies as Pharoah 90 and Nehellenia, the Dark Kingdom still had that sort of effect on him. The fear, the darkness, the hopelessness that went with it was too deeply engrained in his mind.
He shivered, and decided he needed more than just Nephrite with him right now. He fumbled around in his pocket for a moment before his hand emerged with the other three stones. "What is it Prince?" Kunzite asked, his voice never failing to instill in Mamoru a sense of calm.
"Nephrite, that thing is still up and running? How could that be?" Zoisite asked, incredulous.
"Hey, this is news to me, too!"
"You know what this means," Jadeite cut in. Everyone was silent.
"I didn't mean I knew! I was hoping someone else was going to step in with an answer!"
Everyone groaned, and Mamoru shook his head. "Jadeite, cut the clowning."
"Sorry, Prince. But if this statue is still holding energy, someone must know it's here."
Nephrite sighed. "And even I couldn't recall where the base was, in exact terms. So some unfamiliar evil madman must know of it, and have a plan for it. Does that scare the piss out of anyone else?"
There was a collective silence as the impact of this statement sank in.
Mamoru deflatedly leaned against the nearest wall, looking much more pale than he had twenty minutes ago.
"Are you alright, Prince?" Kunzite asked, nudging against his palm.
"I'm fine, I just... I'm not feeling well, is all." Somehow, the idea that these Senshi clones were somehow related to the Dark Kingdom made everything seem much, much worse. It was one thing to think of them as random enemies with no real purpose and nothing to back them other than their immediate powers; it was quite another to know that they have ties to one of his most powerful, frightening enemies.
"Well, falling down an airvent tends to do that to a person," Jadeite quipped.
He was sharply bumped into by Zoisite. "Shut up."
"Is there any way to get out of here?" Mamoru seemed to be ignoring the both of them. Nephrite made some contemplative noises. Finally, he said, "You don't happen to have the ability to walk, non-corporeal-like, through walls, do you?"
"Gee, not last time I checked," Mamoru snapped.
"Well then, I'm afraid I can't help you there. This place doesn't really have any doors. You know, so some idiot can't come wandering down here and get himself eaten by youma."
"Well how the hell is that gonna help me? I can't sit around here for the rest of the semester, not if it's inhabited by evil clone women."
"Prince," Kunzite cut in, seeing that he was getting upset, "you do realize that you have powers like a Sailor Senshi. And they seem to be growing stronger lately."
"So?"
"So, who's to say you can't use teleportation? You've used it with the other Sailor Senshi quite a few times."
"As a group, yes. But none of us can do it on our own, Kunzite. And I'm certainly not powerful enough to try it alone."
"I mean," he added dryly, "unless I want to end up unconscious. That's probably not be the best condition to be in while you're in the heart of enemy territory."
"Prince, it's your only shot," Zoisite said. "Either that, or climbing up back up the airvent. Which, as you may recall, was quite a few feet off the ground."
"I don't need reminding."
"At least give it a try," said Jadeite. "The worst that could happen is it won't work."
Mamoru sighed, defeated. "Alright. But no making fun of me if I can't do it. We can't all make convenient little portals, you know."
"We promise," Zoisite said, elbowing--or rather, knocking against--Jadeite.
With some amount of trepidation, Mamoru transformed.
"One problem," he said. "Where am I going? I can't go back to the closet; if anything, they're still there. I have no dorm to go back to, and if I teleport to the frat house, they'll find me and start destroying it again."
"You could always try the men's bathroom?" Jadeite suggested.
Kunzite chuckled. "Look at that. Jadeite said something useful."
"Hey, I have my moments!"
"Fine, but I'd better not end up in a urinal or something."
"Prince, if you stand around debating with us any longer, they're gonna show up here anyway," Zoisite said, slightly amused.
"Alright, alright." He closed his eyes, and gold light began to glow around him, easily outshining the giant Beryl statue. He concentrated all his strength on trying to teleport--not so much to the boy's bathroom, maybe, as anywhere not here.
He closed his eyes, in an attempt to preserve them lest he end up somewher awkward - say, the girls' locker rooms. The floor rumbled, the ceiling shook, and with a valiant cry of, "AIIIIGHH!" Mamoru disappeared without a trace.
In the room's one dark corner, a voice could be heard chuckling. "Ah, Mamoru. You think you've got it figured out, do you? You think it is merely as simple as the Dark Kingdom? You have a long way to go, then, until you find the true answer."
Mamoru was in a tree. A very high, very unclimbable tree. In fact, he could pretty well see nearly the entire campus from his lofty position.
"Maybe next time you should think harder about where you're trying to go," Zoisite said, as delicately as he could.
"Thanks, Zoisite, that's the most helpful tip I've gotten all day," Mamoru snapped, clinging to the nearest stable-looking branch.
Kunzite chuckled softly. "It wasn't bad for a first try, Prince. Zoisite's first time landed him in the refrigerator."
"...and how did that work?"
"I'd rather not talk about it," Zoisite grumbled.
Mamoru settled on to the tree branch, and surveyed his surroundings. There was not an evil Senshi to be seen, fortunately; just students milling about, wondering why a strange man in a tuxedo was perched up there.
"So how exactly am I supposed to be getting down from here?"
"Well, I don't think a fall from this height would kill you. At least, not in your henshined form," Nephrite offered helpfully.
"That's easy for you to say. You're a rock. All you'd do is bounce."
"You seem to be developing all sorts of new powers here," said Jadeite. "You could, uh... try hovering?"
"Hey, while I'm at it, how about I sprout wings and fly back to Japan?"
"Well it certainly wouldn't hurt."
Mamoru was about to snap something in reply, when his phone rang.
"Oh, for..." Mamoru tucked the four stones in one pocket, while pulling out his phone form the other. "Hello?"
"What the hell is wrong with you, Mamoru?"
"Gee, Haruka-san, it's a pleasure to hear from you, too." Mamoru was most definitely not in the mood for a lecture, and he made sure his caller knew it.
Haruka paused for a moment, obviously not expecting the normally mild-tempered prince to be in a bad mood. This hardly seemed to hinder her own temper, however, as she recovered almost immediately. "You'd better have a darn good explanation, Chiba. Usagi's been almost frantic with tears for the past hour, and I'd like to know why."
Mamoru's whole body went numb. "Usa? Is she okay?" He squeaked.
"Not after what you did to her, whatever it was. All I could get out of her is that something's wrong with her Mamochan, and there was someone who sounds like Michiru with him. Is there a girl there with you, Chiba?"
Suddenly there was a sickening crack from the branch he had been holding onto to keep himself steady. "Haruka-san, can I call you back?"
"No!" she shouted. "No, you cannot 'call me back!' I want an explaination for what just happened, Chiba, and if it's not good--"
Whatever Haruka said next was completely drowned out when the branch Mamoru had come to sit upon broke, sending ample amounts of foliage crashing to the ground along with him. He groaned quietly, letting go of the phone as spasms of pain went up and down his back. That was probably not the best place to land on.
"...Mamoru?" Haruka asked, after a moment. "What's going on over there?"
He muttered something choice under his breath, picking the cellphone back up slowly. "Oh, you know. Same ol', same ol'; falling out of trees, that kind of thing."
Not particularly caring whether any students saw him or not, he quickly reverted back to his Azabu t-shirt. At least if he passed out right now, it would make for some much less awkward explanations.
"'Falling out of trees,'" Haruka repeated sarcastically. "You're getting awfully suspicious as of late, Chiba. I'm this close to flying over there and beating your ass."
"Thank you, Haruka-san," he drawled. "That's quite encouraging."
"Answers. Now. Or I buy a plane ticket."
"Well, where should I begin? In no less than 24 hours, I have nearly been frozen to death, had my dorm set aflame and die in my sleep of burns and smoke inhalation, locked in a utility closet, blown out of said closet and down an airvent, and teleported myself into a tree only to fall out of it."
Mamoru paused, and then added, "Does that satisfy you, Tenoh?"
He made sure to emphasis how unamused he was by her threatening behavior - frankly, he was getting enough threats as it was - by emphasizing heavily on her last name. //I don't want to be so rude, but she hardly bothered to give me the benefit of the doubt!//
"...Can I ask what they put in the water over there, Mamoru? Because that was the lamest story I've ever come across."
Mamoru was about ready to break something.
"Now can I have the real story, or are you going to tell me that you've been attacked by leprechauns next?"
"I'm not having this conversation right now, Haruka-san. Goodbye." Mamoru quickly hung up, before he could say something he'd regret.
He remained laying on the ground, waiting for the pain to subside in his back. A few moments passed before a shadow passed over his face. "See? Told you he'd get out of there alive."
"That doesn't look like the picture of 'alive' to me, Zory."
"Whatever I am, I'm not going to stay this way very long," Mamoru muttered, sitting up with some help from Neff. "I just hung up on one of the most powerful of my fiancés short-skirted Senshi. No doubt she's already planning my demise."
Zory raised a delicate eyebrow. "Isn't it a bad thing when a woman's lover and her friends have friction?"
"You're telling me." Mamoru rolled his eyes. "They're so gung-ho about protecting her from anything, it even means protecting her from possibly the one person she loves most. My life is wonderful."
"Can I ask what you're doing laying in a pile of greenery?" Neff asked, pulling a leafy stick out of Mamoru's hair.
"Bad teleportation experience," he muttered, not particularly wanting to relay the embarrassing story.
"Well, the good news is that your psycho female friends haven't killed anyone yet today," Zory said, rescuing him. "The bad is that they've pretty well trashed the Humanities building."
Mamoru groaned. "At the rate they're going, they'll destroy the whole campus before the week is out."
"If they could just destroy my Intro to Volcanic Theory class, I'd be one happy camper." Neff smirked. "Think you could let them loose in the Physical Sciences building?"
"Not funny," Mamoru groused.
"Sorry." Neff continued to pull twigs out of his friend's hair.
"I don't know what depresses me more: the fact that clones of the Senshi are going to kill me, or the REAL Senshi are going to kill me."
"Hey, look on the bright side," Zory chirped. "The real Senshi are on the other side of the world. Theoretically, you've got a good running chance."
"Thanks, that makes me feel a whole lot better."
"Hey, maybe if you put them in a ring together they'll take each other out. Like on Celebrity Death Match."
Zory slapped his forehead. "Neff, I can't believe you just used a claymation MTV show as an analogy to real life."
"Don't tell me you didn't enjoy Cher versus Sarah Michelle Gellar."
"I'm ignoring you."
Mamoru smiled weakly. "You two never cease to--"
"Deep Submerge!"
The ball of water slammed harshly into Mamoru's back, ripping him forcefully away from his two companions. He fell hard on the ground, hearing his face crunch as it hit the pavement.
"Mamoru!" Zory ran to his side, while Neff turned angrily around to face the attackers.
Mackenzie smirked at him. "What do you think you're going to do, son? Throw those twigs at me?"
Neff growled viciously before running forward and planting a fist in Mackenzie's jaw. Her head snapped sharply backwards, but when she tilted it forward again, she was grinning dangerously. "My turn." She punched him square in the chest, her senshi strength sending him flying into the treetrunk behind him, where he slid to the ground, groaning.
Mamoru clutched the side of his face, feeling like it had been ripped off with a cheesegrater. Zory was trying to pull him off the ground, but he was having a hard time staying upright, and the smaller man was unable to support his full weight. Just as he was slipping from Zory's grip, he felt a pair of strong arms wrap around him and pull him to his feet. "Zory, what's going on?" Malachi asked urgently, holding a dazed Mamoru.
"What's it look like? Psycho clone's trying to kill him, that's what's going on."
With an infinitely weary sigh, Mamoru transformed back into Tuxedo Kamen. "Might as well live in this thing," he muttered, before pulling away from Malachi's grip. Taking out his cane, Mamoru lunged and swung it like a baseball bat. He clocked Mackenzie squarely on the ear and, her center of balance thrown, she tumbled to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
"Mamoru, watch out!"
He turned around to face Malachi's voice. "What?"
"Venus Love-me Chain!"
Before he could blink, a very hot chain of hearts had wrapped tightly around his throat. Miniya smirked, and tugged sharply on it in multiple directions. Mamoru was jerked harshly back and forth, until his captor cracked the chain like a whip. For the second time, Mamoru's face was intimate with the pavement, and this time, it was nose first.
He struggled on the ground, the chain strangling him and the blood gushing from his nose choking what breath he had left. His feet kicked desperately, trying to get beneath him, but Miniya only pulled tighter, keeping him from finding a foothold.
Malachi and Jed rushed over and tried to pry the chain off his neck. "Oh no you don't," Miniya chided, and energy charged from her hands down the gold metal, where it zapped everyone touching it. Malachi and Jed leapt back. Mamoru would have screamed if he could.
Instead, he settled for gritting his teeth and attempting to power up. As he began to glow, Miniya's smirk only got wider - this last-ditch effort would do him no good. To prove her point, she pulled on the chain roughly, dragging Mamoru's face further along the blood-smeared concrete. This didn't stop Mamoru, and finally he elbowed himself up to face the blonde. His nose began to repair itself, and he grinned.
"I think it's only fair that we level the playing field, don't you?" He swung his neck around sharply, in a manner that normally would have caused him no end of whiplash. Miniya squacked as the chain was wrenched out of her grip, and she was flung unceremoniously in a nearby bush.
Malachi raised an eyebrow as the black-haired prince easily broke the chain off his neck. "That's a pretty nice trick."
Mamoru held off answering when he heard Zory's muffled scream. He whipped around to face Mackenzie, who had her arm around his neck. Zory hung limply from her arm, already looking like he would soon pass out from lack of oxygen. "Whaddya know, Prince," she laughed, "looks like you've found yourself some friends. What would you do if I broke his neck right now?" She tightened her hold, and he began to make choking sounds.
Mamoru let out a feral snarl. "I'd vaporize you."
Mackenzie snorted harshly. "I'll run that risk."
Her arm tightened around Zory's small neck, almost to the point of closing off his windpipe all together. Gasping like a fish out of water, he desperately tried to breathe, but to no avail. His face purpled from lack of oxygen.
"Come on, Prince. He's running out of time. But if you attack me, I might use him as a human shield." She smirked, using her free hand to brush an errant strand of teal hair from her face. "Your call."
Mamoru did not even hesitate. "Tuxedo Mirage!" The stream of gold light slammed into Mackenzie before she could consider pushing Zory into its path. The blonde man dropped to the ground, gasping for breath, as Mackenzie stumbled back. Jed and Neff rushed to help him, but Malachi stayed by Mamoru.
Mackenzie stood shakily, clutching the shoulder that had taken the greatest impact. "Not... too bad, Prince. Let's try this one, shall we? Submarine Violon Tide!"
"Get behind me!" Mamoru grabbed Malachi's arm and pulled him behind his back, just as the tsunami came crashing down upon them. At first they were lost beneath the wall of water that crashed wildly around them, but as Mamoru thrust out a glowing hand, the waters parted at his fingertips, rushing past them on either side. Malachi huddled close behind him, wrapping an arm around his waist to keep from being swept away.
Mackenzie growled. He was not supposed to do that!
"Space Turbulence!"
Mamoru held his arms out, grunting as the explosion of energy and bright light plowed into him. His feet skidded backwards, and Malachi gulped nervously. But they held their ground, and eventually the force stopped.
As the attack faded away, the light surrounding Mamoru began to dwindle and his knees gave out. Before he could fall, Malachi grabbed him and held him up. "Don't you dare give up yet!" He growled in his ear.
"Aww, aren't you two so cute together!" Hasana shouted cheerfully, running up beside Mackenzie and pinching her rear end.
"Save it for later," Mackenzie snapped, giving the smaller blonde a half-hearted shove. Seeing his window of opportunity, Mamoru was thankful he had someone to keep him from falling over.
"Tuxedo Mirage!"
The force of the blast nearly shook Malachi from his protective hold on his companion, but he quickly steadied himself. //It's like feedback from a gun,// he thought idly. //Except guns don't shoot golden beams in the real world.//
//...usually,// he ammended.
"Mackenzie!" Hasana squealed as her lover was enveloped in gold light.
"Ha... Hasana!" She whispered, then was gone.
Hasana's scream was ear-shattering. "You'll pay!" She sobbed. "You will! I promise!" And, with bitter tears pouring down her face, the blonde vanished.
His strength spent, Mamoru slumped in the white-haired man's arms. "Thanks," he muttered, knowing he could not have gotten through that on his own.
Just then he heard a deep, feminine chuckle. Miniya stood several meters away, her freakish sailor fuku mildly torn from her close encounter with the bushes.
"Can't say I mind seeing that bitch get vaporized," she mused. "So I'll leave you be for now, Prince. But I'll leave you boys with a little present. Venus Power! Love Crescent Shower!"
She too vanished, just as heavy drops of rain began to descend on the group.
Of course, this was not normal rain. This was very hot, very painful rain of pure light energy. The five men screamed as it poured down, searing any exposed skin it came in contact with.
"Get under the trees!" Malachi shouted, gritting his teeth together as he helped Mamoru under the nearby cover. It didn't help much; the trees were being singed beyond recognition, and it only served as minimal cover.
Finally, after a few more agonizing moments, the "rain" dissipated.
"Ow," Jed whined. "That stuff hurts! And it stinks, too!" Indeed, even as he was speaking a heavy sulfuric fog had begun to rise from the wet, deadened grass, and drifted around the men.
Mamoru weakly leaned on Malachi's shoulder, trying his best to stand on his own and not doing a great job of it. "We should get out of here before other people start showing up," Malachi said, tightening his grip around Mamoru.
As he spoke, Neff slowly turned to face them. Right away, Malachi noticed the strange dark look in his eyes, but he thought little of it. Mamoru, however, was beginning to sense that something was not right. "This is all his fault," Neff said, glancing accusingly at Mamoru.
Malachi stared at him. He would not have expected something like this from Neff, not after all they'd talked about last night. "What are you talking about?"
"None of this would have happened if it weren't for him," he growled.
"Man, I didn't ask you to stick around and get beaten up," Mamoru snapped, his last nerve being worn. "You and Zory could have run. They obviously don't want a couple of useless humans."
"Hey, who are you calling useless?" Jed said, getting to his feet.
Mamoru rolled his eyes. "So when was the last time you turned a person into air molecules?"
"Oh, so that's what defines usefulness around here?" Neff shouted, and promptly punched the black-haired prince in the stomach. Mamoru dropped to his knees, gasping for breath. "I'd say that was pretty damn useful."
Malachi shoved Neff away from him. "The hell is your problem, Neff?"
"There you go again, protecting your little buddy," Jed snapped. "If you're so fond of him, why don't you two move in together?"
"Well, unlike you, Malachi seems to have a certain amount of compassion for people," Zory interjected. "Can't we cut the man a little slack? He did save me from suffocating."
"But if he hadn't bothered us at all, you wouldn't have been in that headlock," Neff growled. "Period."
"Well then," Zory snapped, "if you think it's such a problem, go get in your fucking time machine and fix it!"
"Maybe if he hadn't bothered we'd be rid of your ignorance," Neff snarled, standing imposingly over Zory.
"Well maybe it should've been you in there. Then you wouldn't have to deal with idiots like us anymore, would you?"
The dull crack that followed rang through the foggy air, and everyone watched in stunned silence as Zory dropped to the ground, his right eye and cheek already swelling up. Neff stared at his own fist as if it were an alien thing that had acted on its own.
Suddenly something hit him like a freight train, and he tumbled onto the ground, Malachi on top of him. "Don't you ever do that again," he growled, his tone dangerously cold.
"Malachi--"
Before his response even left his mouth, Malachi grabbed the brunette's shoulders and slammed him roughly on the pavement. "Do you understand me? Don't you ever DARE hit Zory in my presence again!"
Mamoru was afraid to move. His heart screamed at him to go and help Zory up, but his mind replied, "Are you freaking kamikaze, Mamoru? Jed will take a swing at you!"
It didn't help that, for the second time, he thought he was going to throw up. It really was his fault. It was his fault they were getting injured, getting angry and throwing punches. If he had just left them alone...
"Get off of him, Malachi," Jed snapped. "Zory deserved what he got and you know it!"
Dammit, he could vaporize enemies in seconds, he could heal gaping wounds, so why couldn't he fix this?
"Want me to hit you too, Jed?"
Why was he weak at the times when he was most needed?
"You can bloody well be my guest."
This wasn't right, they shouldn't be doing this, they were supposed to be friends, why were they fighting?
"Please, stop..." Mamoru whispered, suddenly feeling tears well up in his eyes.
Malachi had already gotten to his feet, a punch ready. But the sound of Mamoru's voice made him stop cold. That same, unexplainable feeling in him stirred; the one he always got when this strange, tuxedo-wearing man was emotionally distressed.
Jed, however, didn't seem to notice. Taking his opening, he swung and decked Malachi right across the jaw. Malachi's ears rung like overzealous churchbells and he stumbled, stars of pain exploding in front of his eyes.
"I SAID STOP IT."
Even as he shouted, he felt it. The Golden Crystal. It bloomed in front of his chest, its golden crystalline petals sending out their healing light. The oppressive sulfuric fog vanished, too frail to stand up against the warm glow that washed over everything, healing the injured trees and restoring the dead grass. Mamoru knelt on the ground, tears of gold sliding down his cheeks, his eyes filled with compassion for his friends.
And then, a funny thing happened. The four men began to glow golden, as well. Zory's eye and Malachi's jaw healed almost instantly, and they all looked around in utter confusion at the sheer brightness of everything.
From one of Mamoru's pockets, a small weight lifted. Four semiprecious stones disappeared from there, and then reappeared in front of the chest of each befuddled man.
"Don't fight," he said, looking up at them with the tears pouring down his face. The sound echoed all over the place, and even though it had only been a whisper, he could not have yelled it louder. "You're long past fighting like this. Please, I...I don't know how else I can ask you..."
Four ghostly beings materialized with the stones, which no longer glowed from their foreheads, but were instead held out in offering from each man's hand.
"I don't know if you could... if you could ever accept this," The Prince of Earth continued, "It's not an easy gift to bear..."
Malachi stared at the man in front of him. The man who bore the weight of centuries in his deep green eyes. Centuries of guilt and of pain, of weary suffering. But when he glanced at Mamoru, he knew he already had his answer. He looked at his friends. They, too, had made their decision.
Together, they each reached out and accepted their stones.
It was probably impossible for the lights around them to be any brighter, but as soon as the stones met their hands, it was almost as though a supernova had exploded. Nothing could be seen except a brilliant, shimmering whiteness.
They were not prepared for all the memories to come at once. The stones has been the key to unlock the part of themselves, their pasts, that they had never been able to find before. It came to them like a freight train. Hundreds upon thousands of years - the Golden Kingdom, D-Point, the Dark Kingdom, Tokyo - had all involved them. It was an intense mixture of euphoria and depression all at the same time, memories of different eras all mixing willy-nilly with no concept of chronology.
One after another, images flashed through their minds until they thought they might explode from the sheer volume of it all. But just as it felt as though it would consume them, the memories slowed to a trickle, then faded altogether, leaving only blissful stillness, and the feeling that a broken puzzle had just been completed.
When the glorious light finally faded, there were no longer four college students standing there, but four warriors, clad in dazzling white uniforms, their armour glistening in the sun, their dark brown capes flourishing in the wind.
Mamoru watched them appear, feeling that a piece of his life that had been missing for so long was finally back in place. As the Golden Crystal folded back into his chest, he gave them a deep, grateful smile. "Thank you," he whispered, and then fainted.
-----
...so we got a little carried away. *coughs* Yes.
Cliffhangers! Yes, we know you hate us. Yes, we know we're evil.
Will Chapter 4 be this long? Be careful what you wish for. It'll probably be longer.
Chapter 3
//anything between slashes are thoughts//
------
"These are your...what?" Neff stared, dumbfounded, at the four holographic men before him.
"Shi-te-n-nou," Nephrite spelled out, waving his hands as though explaining to a small child. Then, as an afterthought, he added, "I take it you don't know any Japanese."
"Uh, domo arigato, Mr. Roboto?" Jed tried lamely, and he earned a groan from just about everyone.
"In your... crude language, it roughly means the Four Heavenly Kings. But that's neither here nor there." Zoisite replied, flicking his blonde ponytail.
"That sounds like something Tolkien would come up with."
"Here's an idea, Jed: how about you stop talking?" Zory said, throwing a glare in his direction. The last thing he wanted was to irritate the scary transparent guys.
"I'll second that," Zoisite muttered, which earned him a sharp glare from Jadeite.
"Hey, I won't have you talking to my apparent clone that way!" Jadeite snapped.
Jed beamed. "I like this guy already!"
"That's enough!" Malachi and Kunzite shouted at the same time. They stared at each other warily, not sure what to make of that. Mamoru tried his best not to laugh out loud.
Kunzite was the first to regain his composure. "You'll have to excuse my rude companions. They... don't get out much." At this he recieved a nasty glare from all three of them. "And if they'll kindly refrain from acting like complete idiots for at least thirty seconds, perhaps we'll be able to introduce ourselves. We are the Shitennou, kings of the four corners of heaven, and guardians of Prince Endymion of the Golden Kingdom."
"Have we met this Prince?" Zory asked, and when Mamoru coughed and looked at his shoes, it became pretty apparent that he had.
"My, but you're a sharp one," Zoisite said, sounding almost patronizing.
"Good job, Zoisite. You made it a whole five seconds."
Zoisite folded his arms, but said nothing. His look declared, "He knows I'm right."
"Anyway," Kunzite continued, sounding infinitely put-upon, "we've spent a great deal of the past two years living in small stones, after a very unfortunate encounter as The Bad Guys."
"Wait." Malachi sat up slowly, slinking toward the edge of his bed. "Mamoru has been giving us cryptic information about this whole 'they were bad guys, but really good guys' idea. If I'm going to swallow being your twin, or whatever it is I really am, I'd like the full story."
The Shitennou exchanged glances with each other, and then all focused on Kunzite.
A somber look crossed his face and for a moment it seemed as though the greenish tint had faded from his eyes. "You don't have to..." Mamoru started to say, but Kunzite cut him off with a single look.
"No, Prince. It should be me." He cast a shadowy glance at the three frat boys cowering in the corner. "Sit down. This'll take a while."
When everyone was seated--or rather, huddled--on the couch, he began.
"This story begins much further back than any of you could probably imagine." Kunzite seemed to hesitate, as though he was too afraid to continue. But he managed. "Thousands upon thousands of years ago, there was a time of peace. Monarchies ruled all of the planets of the Solar System, with smaller outposts on all of the moons. All, that is, save for Earth's Moon. This place was the center of our near-utopia."
Zoisite reached out briefly, but then pulled his hand away. No matter how badly he wanted to support his friend, this was something he had to share himself.
"This was all before a woman named Beryl began to wreck chaos on our planet, the Earth," he continued quietly. For some reason, all of the frat boys seemed to shudder unanimously at the mention of the name. Whether Kunzite noticed or cared, it was hard to tell.
"Backed by a horrible demon, she manipulated the people of Earth to do her bidding. We... we all fell under her spell." He paused, either in thought or sorrow, but quickly moved on again. "However, the Prince refused to follow her, believing that what she was doing was wrong, that there was no reason for the war she was starting. But despite his best efforts, she rallied her troops, and marched against the Moon."
Malachi hardly dared to breathe. The story was unfamiliar to him, yet it somehow stirred within him the darkest shadow of dread.
"That was the day that will haunt me the most, as long as I'm alive. Backed by Beryl's youma - monsters - we attacked the Moon palace, during a grand celebration. Most of the people attending were killed brutally, including the Sailor Senshi, by our own hands. In the end, Endymion died in a fight with Beryl, and the Moon Princess Serenity..."
Here, his voice stuck in his throat. "...killed herself out of grief," he finally finished.
This final statement was followed by a long stretch of silence, as the weight of his words slowly sank in. In the heaviness of it, Neff cleared his throat apologetically. "I'm sorry, the Moon Princess?"
Mamoru sighed and pulled out his wallet--which, thankfully, had not been burned to a crisp--and presented the small photo of himself and his Usako. It had been taken during a day in the park, when the last remaining August sunbeams trickled between the gently swaying trees, and the smell of the grass hung thick in the air. He remembered how Makoto had caught them with the camera, snuggled together on a bench, her odangoed head against his shoulder, his face turned just towards hers to say something. That was scarcely a few days before he left. It seemed so long ago now.
Being violently maimed and near death tends to put quite a few things in perspective.
"Your girlfriend?" Malachi said, leaning forward to better view the picture. Mamoru handed him the whole wallet, and all four of the frat boys silently appraised the photo.
"Fiancé," Mamoru corrected, although he himself still had a difficult time believing he'd really proposed to Usako. He had an even more difficult time believing she'd accepted his proposal, but she had.
Malachi considered the photograph for a few moments before passing it to Zory. He somehow found it difficult to reconcile Mamoru's description of an all-powerful super woman with the sweet young girl on the park bench. She looked about as capable of defeating evil creatures as a French poodle.
Kunzite allowed them a moment to look at the picture before continuing. "After the death of the Princess, her mother, Queen Serenity, used what was their last hope to save her kingdom. With the help of the gin--" he paused, reconsidered, "Silver Crystal, she sealed away Beryl's followers, and sent the spirits of the Prince and the Silver Millenium princesses to be reborn on Earth, some time in the distant future."
"Everything seemed mild-mannered and peaceful for more than a decade; nobody suspected there was a great evil force about to burst forth upon them. Just as the Prince and Princesses were sent ahead without memories, so were Beryl and her followers. Namely, us. We ended up at Point D - that's up in the North Pole - and after some unfortunate encounters with penguins, Beryl found Metallia and broke the Silver Crystal's seal on her. From that point on, our job was to basically help them take over the world."
Kunzite paused. He didn't think he could continue. It was bad enough thinking about how they betrayed their prince the first time, thousands of years ago, but jumping ahead to the present brought up many more uncomforatble memories that he had just assumed put aside.
This time, Zoisite did not hesistate putting his hand on his leader's shoulder. He knew the pain that Kunzite was feeling, and also that he had felt it twentyfold harder than any of the other Shitennou. Their time in the Dark Kingdom would always be shameful, no matter how many times Mamoru swore he'd forgiven them.
Despite the incredible turmoil he felt, Kunzite somehow steeled himself and continued. Zoisite's hand never left his shoulder. "Although they had no memory of one another, the Prince and Princess somehow rediscovered each other, and, with help from the Silver Millenium princesses, the sailor senshi, used their newfound powers to fight off the attacks. We were powerful, but--thankfully--they were moreso. One by one they... defeated us," he did not want to say killed, "and protected the Earth from our influence."
He took a breath to speak again, but was having trouble forming the words. There were a hundered memories that haunted him, but this one somehow eclipsed all the others. Nothing caused him greater pain than the knowledge of what he single-handedly did to his Prince. "It was just after the last of the Princess's guardians had appeared. I was... the last of us. My job was to capture the princess, but things took an unexpected turn."
Jadeite and Nephrite looked at Kunzite with sympathy, but could say nothing. Zoisite bit his lip, but his hand never moved. Mamoru tried to look neutral, but the memory was paining him just as much as it was paining Kunzite. Not for what Kunzite did to him - he'd forgiven his friend for that a thousand times over - but that it still wounded him so badly. He'd never be the man he once was until he could forgive himself for what'd he'd done, been forced to do.
"In the heat of battle, I charged up an attack so powerful, it would likely have killed her on impact. But the Prince... he saw it coming, and he..." Kunzite choked. He did not need to say it. They could see it written on his face. "The Princess was overcome by emotion, and the Silver Crystal appeared. That power had been within her all along. Its light filled all of Tokyo, as bright as the day. In that moment, the Prince and Princess regained their memories. As did I."
He took a deep breath, but seemed to find it a little easier now. "When the light faded, I was ordered to capture the Princess and the Silver Crystal. But the impact of the crystal's light filled me with conflicting emotions, and in the confusion I took the Prince instead."
"This was an unexpected surprise for Beryl, but she seemed to take it in stride." Kunzite's tone became sharp, bitter. "She made quick work of healing him, brainwashing him without any memory of serving anyone but herself."
Mamoru winced, gratefully distracted when Jed finally handed him his wallet back. He twirled it around in his fingers, trying to avoid thinking about his time in the Dark Kingdom about as much as the Shitennou were. Malachi was eyeing the both of them with concern, but stayed silent.
"While all this was happening, I began to understand some of the memories that had returned to me. Namely, that I had been serving the wrong master. Had I been thinking properly, I may have actually been able to help him. But under the circumstances, I could not escape that feeling of loyalty towards Beryl, even if it had been imposed on me by her powers. So rather than doing anything useful, I outright challenged what she was doing to the Prince. She immedately saw that I was wavering, and did such a stellar job of brainwashing me again that even now I have trouble remembering what happened next. What I do know is that I too was defeated not long afterward, and the Prince, the last of Beryl's slaves, moved in to take my place."
"The rest are just details," Kunzite muttered, massaging his brow in an attempt to keep his composure. "And I'm not quite sure of them all, at any rate."
"So somewhere between here and there, the Princess saved the Prince, defeated Beryl, and you got trapped in four small semi-precious stones?" Zory offered quietly. Kunzite nodded, and then seemed to droop. He was emotionally exhausted.
"That was a few years ago now," Nephrite said, stepping in to ease the pressure on his leader. "We've been with him ever since."
"It's not much of an existance, but anything beats the Dark Kingdom," added Zoisite. "And we help him, when we can."
"Kinda like guardian angels?" Zory asked, his fear of these phantoms long since evaporated.
Kunzite's mouth twitched in a bitter smile. "I wouldn't call us angels," he said thickly.
"I would," Mamoru muttered, absentmindedly watching his fingers turn the wallet over and over.
"The question now is," Malachi said, slowly getting up from the couch, "what's our relation to you?"
Carefully, he stood next to Kunzite, and then turned back toward his fellow frat boys. "Tell me that's not a painfully striking resemblence."
The three men on the couch blinked furiously, rubbed their eyes, and Neff even turned his head to the side to get a view from all possible angles.
"Identical," he finally decided, incredulous. "Absolutely identical."
"The rest of us, too," Malachi said, gesturing around at the other three Kings, and then back to the couch. "And there has to be some reason for it."
"I can't explain it," Kunzite said, trying to hide his own shock at how closely this human really did resemble him. Right down to the way he spoke, he was a carbon copy. Except for the fact that Malachi was alive, and he was currently not.
Mamoru was watching them as well. He could have told them--without the demonstration--how similar the two groups were. But even though he already knew this, it was still surreal to see doubles of his lifelong guardians.
"I don't mean to pry," Zoisite said subtly, "but how long have you guys been living in California?"
At this, the four men shifted uncomfortably. And mimicking their phantom counterparts perfectly, shifted their focus towards Malachi.
"Uh...By our best estimation, two years," he said, considering it. "Maybe less."
"You mean you don't know?" Jadeite asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, no." Malachi sighed. "I would say this sounds far-fetched, but after everything I just heard, your pink elephant Fluffy could walk in here and I'd be no less surprised."
"We have a pink elephant?" Nephrite whispered, and he was elbowed sharply by Zoisite. He would have been, if his elbow hadn't gone right through Nephrite, anyway.
"Cheater," Zoisite whispered back.
"We found ourselves in this frat house," Malachi said, "without any recollection of how we'd gotten here, or why. We were pretty sure we took classes here, but not which ones. We had no memory of anything that had happened to us much before that point, and we still don't."
"In a nutshell, we don't know who we are or why we're in California," Jed added quietly. "All of us have searched for an answer and come up empty. Someone's paying for our education, but no one can tell us who. We've got records-school, health-but we don't remember any of the things labeled on them. Hell, our birth certificates don't even have records of our last names!"
Mamoru could hardly believe what he was hearing. The story sounded surreally like his own. Granted, the time frame was entirely different-no one would send a six-year-old to a university-but he knew very well what it felt like to wake up one day not knowing who you are or where you've been for your entire life.
Zoisite raised a skeptical eyebrow. "So you just popped up here one day with no knowledge of who you are or how you got here? What did the rest of the frat house think of that?"
Neff shrugged. "They assumed we were all drunk and thought we'd fit in rather nicely."
Kunzite and Malachi both looked lost in thought. As soon as they noticed each other, however, both coughed awkwardly and looked away. "So what it looks like," Kunzite said, shaking himself, "is that something happened two years ago, right around the time the four of us were sealed away."
"Sounds like it," Malachi agreed. "But if I'm to understand correctly, most of this took place in Japan. So how did we end up on an entirely seperate continent?"
Nephrite coughed quietly, and everyone looked at him.
"I had a base around here somewhere," he said, looking sheepish. "Before there was a college on top of it, though. I don't know how that might help, but it would explain why you didn't end up somewhere in Canadaian wilderness, being chewed on by moose."
"As he knows from experience."
"Hey, that only happened once, thank you very much."
Malachi did not seem convinced. "Okay, but why North America at all? How many bases did you have?"
"In a word? A lot."
"We were stationed all over the world," Zoisite added, a little more helpfully. "Some of the major bases we had in our former lives, we used again in the Dark Kingdom. I held most of Europe and parts of Russia, Jadeite had China and Korea, Nephrite had North America and some of Central America, and Kunzite had the Middle Eastern area, North Africa, and a few spots in Australia. It wasn't until later that we sensed a strong power in Japan, and shifted our focus there. After that, many of our other bases shut down, in order to strengthen the attack on Japan."
"I had a few stations here in North America that I didn't have the heart to shut down. I was especially fond of the California one, and it was doing so well, I saw no reason to move my youma--er, monsters, out. Many of them were more loyal to me than they were to Beryl, and were more than happy to remain here against her wishes."
"By the way, 'a lot' is two words," Jed said, but was (more successfully this time) elbowed by Zory. "Ow!"
"Is it possible that this base might have some information about us?" Neff said, choosing to entirely ignore Jed and Zory, who had begun to, intentionally or not, mimic a catfight.
Nephrite considered it. "There's a good chance. I've forgotten a lot of the information I stockpiled for Beryl, both intentionally and otherwise. It wouldn't hurt to take a look there."
"That begs the question: where is it?"
There was a strange pause, and Nephrite looked around suspiciously.
"I, er, don't remember. Exactly."
Jadeite smacked his forehead. "Nephrite, has anyone ever told you that you're about as useful as a dried-up glue stick?"
"What, and you're any better? At least I know this area... sort of." They immediately began to bicker almost as viciously as the pair on the couch.
Mamoru slumped down heavily next to Malachi, who was sitting on the edge of his bed, watching the chaos. He gave Mamoru a look of concern. "You alright?" He asked softly, not wanting to alert the whole roomful of people, who would likely embarrass the Japanese man with their worry.
Mamoru nodded distantly. "I'm fine." Actually, he very much did not feel fine at the moment. He was exhausted, both physically and emotionally, and as much as he enjoyed the presence of the Shitennou, the effort of keeping them animated was putting a strain on his depleted resources.
This was not lost on Kunzite, who was a lot more helpful than a dried-up glue stick. "I hate to cut this short," he interrupted sharply, "but the Prince can't keep this up much longer. If we want to keep discussing this, we'll have to pull back into our stones."
"I think we've got a lot to digest for the time being," Malachi said, placing one hand on Mamoru's leg and patting it reassuringly. "Mamoru needs to take a break from straining himself, after nearly being killed three times recently."
Mamoru smiled wanly at him, grateful for the opportunity to take a break. Kunzite thoughtfully watched both of them for a moment before nodding. "You're right. It would be best to stop for now. Get some rest, Prince."
"And don't do anything Jadeite would do!" Zoisite chimed in, before dodging Jadeite's elbow.
With that, the Shitennou vanished from sight. Mamoru watched as the glow faded from the gemstones cupped in his hand. He felt utterly drained, in more ways than one, and would have loved nothing more than to curl up on Malachi's bed and fall asleep.
"Hey, you three. Beat it for a little while." Malachi's tone left no room for dissention, and with a quick grab of Jed and Zory's arms, Neff dragged them forcibly out of the room and shut the newly installed door with his foot.
Mamoru watched them leave, almost amused. "Does he do that a lot?"
"More than you know."
He turned to Mamoru again, and his concerned expression returned. It was not just the fact that he looked sickly pale, or that his eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep. Somehow, knowing what he did about what Mamoru had endured, even if it happened years ago, made him seem a lot more vulnerable than the man who had been glowing outside his window a few hours ago. "Are you sure you're alright? Because you look like you're going to fall asleep right where you're sitting."
Mamoru resisted the urge to say that he was fine, knowing that Malachi was long past believing him. "I'm just tired, is all. I've had a long day."
"Well you haven't fainted in, like, two hours. I'm impressed."
Mamoru gave Malachi a half-hearted punch to the arm, which was more like a feeble swat. "Don't put it past me."
"Look, you need to get some sleep. I'll make myself comfortable on the couch, and you take the be--"
"No." Mamoru shook his head. "You're the injured party, which I'm to blame for, and this is your room. Besides, I probably need to get back to what's left of my dorm, in case the police want my...um..."
"Statement?"
"Yeah. That."
Malachi shook his head. "The police can wait. You're barely getting by as it is. Even if you don't take the bed--"
"No. I... I shouldn't be staying here."
"And why not?"
Mamoru stared at the floor. "Because you've already been hurt once tonight because of me," he said quietly. "There will be more of those girls. And I don't know when they'll attack, but..."
Malachi placed a hand on his back. "Mamoru, I don't care about that. Maybe there's a reason I look so much like your former guardian. I want to help you, even if it means I'll get hurt in the process."
"You don't understand," he snapped. "I've already lost one set of Shitennou. I don't want to lose another."
"No, I think I understand perfectly well," Malachi snapped back, much to Mamoru's surprise. "It's very noble to be worried about us, and you have every reason to. But we're not going to die without a fight, and I wouldn't think you'd have any more of those tonight."
"I--"
"Stay here, or don't. It's your choice. But you're welcome in this house, if that's what you decide." Malachi got up from the bed slowly, and shuffled over to the lightswitch. Turning it off caused a small nightlight to go on in the outlet by his desk, and he shuffled over to the couch in the darkness.
Mamoru watched in silence as Malachi lay down on the couch and turned his back to him. He knew that he should be saying something profound right now, but his weariness pretty much obliterated any eloquence he may have otherwise had. After several minutes of listening to the white-haired man's rhythmic breathing, he rose to his feet, pulled the quilt off the bed, and draped it over Malachi's still frame. With a resigned sigh, he turned away, and softly crossed the room.
As his hand rested on the door knob, Malachi's voice stopped him. "I would, you know. I would protect you, just like they did."
"I know you would."
Mamoru exited the room quietly, feeling just the slightest bit guilty for not taking Malachi up on his offer. The loud, drunken party that had started early in the evening had already worn off, and as he maneuvered around the various bodies passed out on the rug, his thoughts continued to come back to the situation of the white-haired man and his friends.
They had no memories of anything. They had arrived at Stanford at the same time the Shitennou were sealed in their stones. The logical explaination appeared in Mamoru's mind, as the puzzle pieces slid together, but it wasn't particularly logical in normal terms.
"The bodies," he muttered, as the cold air of the outside blasted him in the face. "The physical bodies of the Shitennou. What happened to them?"
He knew that the corpses had been mutilated well beyond the point of looking like they had once been. Jadeite had been burnt to a crisp, Nephrite had been fried by lightning, Zoisite had been shredded, and Kunzite... well, with a simultaneous attack from four sailor senshi, there might not have been anything left. Still, he knew of two powers that had the ability to breathe life into a dead body--Metallia and the Ginzuishou. Neither seemed the least bit likely.
//Especially,// he thought, //if their spirits are already sealed away somewhere else.//
But then, hadn't Hotaru once told him about how she regained her powers around the time of Nehellenia's attack? How Saturn--nearly a full-grown teenager--had appeared in the little girl's mirror? Weren't they just like two separate beings then, speaking to one another as though they'd never met?
But then, Saturn knew of Hotaru's existance.
"So this plan isn't perfect yet," he muttered. "But it's a start."
Not long after, he collided into something with a lot of blonde hair.
"Mamoru!" She cried incredulously, her shimmering blue eyes filled to the brim with worry. "Thank goodness you're okay! I've been so worried!"
"Um... hi Lunette," he said awkwardly, politely trying to pull away his hand, which she had taken in both of her own and squeezed like a lifeline. "Why were you so worried?"
"You're joking, right? Mamoru, your dorm burned down and you've been missing for hours! Of course I was worried!"
//You're worried about a complete stranger you've only known for twelve hours?// Mamoru considered saying this aloud, but considering recent events, he was in no position to throw stones.
"How bad is it over there?" he asked quietly. "Is the whole building lost?"
She waved a dismissive hand. "Your floor was pretty much trashed, but the ones below it weren't quite as bad. Don't worry, no one was injured," she added quickly, anticipating his next question. "But I saw your name on the list of missing people, and I..." For a moment, she seemed so much like Usagi that he expected her to start crying. Lunette, however, immediately perked up. "Well, I'm glad you're alright, anyway."
"Thank you," he said, and rather meant it. Maybe he wasn't giving this girl enough credit.
And maybe he wasn't paying enough attention to the burning that had risen in his chest as soon as he'd recognized the blonde.
"Mamoru-san!" The sharp cry drove him out of his reverie. "You're hurt!"
He looked down at himself; yes, indeed he was. He was still burned and charred, what from being more than mildly electrocuted, and his face was still sore and swollen from a five-story drop through a window.
"Well, that tends to happen to people who fall out of fiery buildings."
"You poor thing!" She gasped, clenching his hand even harder and dragging him in some important direction. "We need to get those burns taken care of! C'mon over to my place, and--"
"Er... no, I don't think that'll be necessary."
"What do you mean? Of course it is! Now, I may not be as good as you at bandaging a wound, but I do have plenty of supplies at home, and there's an extra bed, so--"
"No, really, I'm fine. Look, I already had a friend take care of it, see?" He showed her his bandaged upper arm, hoping that in the darkness she could not see the red patches where some of the blood had already soaked through.
"Oh." She seemed a little deflated after that. "Well... well at least come make use of that bed, okay?"
"That's very kind of you, but I have to go tell ... someone that I'm not missing," he tried lamely. "I wouldn't want people to send out a search party."
//And I already turned down one offer for sleep, and that was from a male. I can just see Rei's face when she finds out I was in a woman's dorm, in her bed...//
In the dark, Mamoru could not see the dangerous flash in Lunette's eyes. "At least let me come with you, then!"
The determined way in which she clamped onto his arm left him no room for argument. Besides, she seemed so attached to him, he could see no easy way of letting her down without bruising her fragile emotions. And she was so much like Usako...
The girl seemed quite pleased to have him back after her horrible ordeal of worrying about him, and cheerfully led him back towards what was left of his dorm. "I'm sure some police are still around, Mamoru-kun!"
"You keep changing the suffix on my name. Do you ever make up your mind?"
"I'll call you whatever you want me too, Mamoru-kun!" At this, she tightened her hold on his arm; an action that somehow pushed her body closer to his, so that he could feel the soft brush of cotton against his skin. Her hair brushed against his chest, emitting a strange, sweet smell that was not altogether unpleasant. It was not the sugary, delicate sweetness of his Usako. It was more exotic somehow, like a tangy piece of fruit. "What should it be? Mamoru-san? Mamoru-kun? Or even..." she added with an endearing giggle, "Mamochan?"
Mamoru's breath seized up as soon as the name left Lunette's lips. No, no one was allowed to call him that except his Usako. No one.
"I'd prefer Mamoru-kun, thank you," he snapped, harsher than he intended.
Lunette looked at him, wide-eyed. "I-I'm sorry, did I hit a nerve?" she stuttered. "Please don't be mad..."
"I'm not mad, I just..." he sighed. Maybe he was taking things a tad too seriously. "Are you studying Japanese?" He asked, trying to steer the conversation somewhere else.
"Yes!" She replied eagerly. "Maybe sometime you can help me study."
"Yeah, maybe," he said in a rather noncommital voice. "Well, 'chan' isn't all that appropriate in this situation anyway, being that I'm male. And I'm not sure, but I think I may be older than you."
"What year are you in, Mamoch--Mamoru-kun?"
"Second year."
Lunette giggled, and he could have sworn that she was blushing. "Oh, now I feel terribly embarassed! I'm only a freshman!"
//Not as embarassed as I am.//
Thankfully, he was saved from further embarassment as they arrived at the scene. In the dim glow of the streetlights, the upper floors of the building looked like a gutted carcass. It was nearly impossible to tell which of the black, mutilated windows had belonged to him. //Well, at least they won't be able to blame me for what happened.//
A few tired-looking policemen were still milling about, leaning on their cars, talking to people, and otherwise looking important.
"Excuse me," Mamoru called, hoping to flag down the attention of any one of them. "I'd like to, um, tell you that I'm not missing any longer!"
This only caused Lunette to giggle again.
"What?" What could possibly be making this girl laugh now?
"It's just... I dunno, such an untechnical thing for a doctor to say."
In the darkness, she could not see his slight flush of embarrassment. "Give me a break. This isn't my native language, you know."
//And I'm tired after blasting sparkly things at evil clones, thank you very much.//
She grinned sweetly. "Aww, don't be upset. I think it's cute!"
//Oh good. Now she thinks I'm cute. Shoot me for flirting without trying.//
"You know," Mamoru said, trying to pull his arm out of her grip, "it's very thoughtful of you to try and help me out. But you don't have to stay; I bet you've got some studying to do."
"Oh, I'll just explain it to my professors. They'll understand!" Undeterred, she snuggled in further. "I'd just hate it if you got hurt..."
"There's police all over here. How could I possibly get hurt?"
//By hanging out with a young, attractive female, that's how. Namely by a hoard of Sailor Senshi who would hitch the first plane over here so that they could personally skin me alive the moment they got word of it.//
"Hurt again," she amended. Even as he continued his attempt at pulling away, the blonde refused to let him go. Pull, cling. Pull, cling.
"Really," Mamoru said, strained. "I appreciate your concern, but--"
Lunette looked up at him, blue eyes watering in the dim light. "Mamoru-kun, please. I...I just want to help you."
Mamoru resisted the urge to groan. Every person he came in contact with tonight seemed determined to smother him with kindness. What was with this university? (Come to think of it, they all seemed to be flirting with him too, but that was beside the point.)
The point was that he was engaged to a perfectly amazing goddess, and had no room in his life to be dating other people. That said, he would need to figure out some tactful way to explain to this poor girl that while she indeed shared some of said goddess's qualities, she simply came into his life a few millenia too late and would regretfully have to look elsewhere for a soulmate.
"Look, Lunette, I..."
"Hey, are you by any chance Mamoru Chiba?" A portly policeman waddled up to him, his head craned backwards in order to look the much taller Mamoru in the eye.
//Saved by the policeman, Lunette.// "I am," he said. "And I'm not, uh, missing anymore."
"Good to hear." The policeman smiled amicably, pulling out a notepad to jot that down. "I see your girlfriend patched you up nicely, but we'd still like to check you out. Make sure you don't have any major injuries."
"She's not my--"
"Oh, he isn't--"
An uncomfortable silence followed, in which the policeman confusedly stared at both of them. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Uh... alrighty. Well Mr. Chiba, if you'd come this way please."
"No really, I'm--"
"Miss, I know how you feel, but I'm afraid you'll have to stay here."
"--really not feeling that great. Sorry Lunette, I guess we can meet up later." Mamoru somehow had a newfound appreciation for policemen.
No one noticed the dirty look Lunette shot at the policeman as she relinquished Mamoru's arm. She pulled a small piece of paper from her jacket and stuffed it in one of his back pants pockets.
"Call me, okay?" she said quietly, and then turned and walked away towards the womens' dorms.
The policeman chuckled. "Not your girlfriend, huh?"
Mamoru watched her leave. "Honestly, I can't quite tell."
----
It had been five hours, eleven minutes, and twenty four seconds, by Mamoru's estimation, since he had gone flying out a window. Since he had spilled most of his extremely long, legend-filled life to four previously unknown frat boys.
And since he'd had a change of underwear at his disposal.
Other than that minor inconvenience, he had been pronounced adequately healthy and allowed to leave of his own will. After thanking the kind policeman who had so wonderfully rescued him from the grip of cuteness, he merrily hobbled on his way.
It was well past midnight by now. Fortunately, some of the buildings were open all night. At the very least, he could get in out of the cold.
The cafeteria was nearly deserted as he shuffled inside, thankful for the warmth. He bought some black coffee from the nearest vending machine and sank down at a table, suddenly overwhelmed with weariness.
It was not only this Usako-lookalike that tired him. It was not only the Shitennou-lookalikes that bothered him. And it was not only the Senshi-lookalikes that bothered him.
It was the fact that there were so many damn lookalikes running aroudn that bothered him.
"I feel like I'm in a bad movie from the '50s," Mamoru muttered into his coffee. "Invasion of the Pod People. Just...just too weird."
He knew he would not get sleep tonight. He had too many things on his mind. He was still sore from no less than three battles - battles he never would have won a day ago.
For that matter, he could not even figure out HOW he had survived all those battles. Since when did he have golden Senshi-like attacks? What did he call that thing, Tuxedo Mirage? Where the heck did that come from, and why did it sound like the name of a harlequin romance novel?
Okay, well apparently someone forgot to tell him that oh, by the way, the Golden Crystal is awesome. If only he'd figured all this out a couple years ago, maybe that would have helped things a little.
But then, the Golden Crystal had only been unsealed after Nehellenia's attack, hadn't it? And barely a few weeks later, he had met an untimely death at the hands of Galaxia. The more he thought about it, the more Mamoru realized that other than that single battle, he'd had absolutely no opportunity to try the Golden Crystal out.
Until now, that is.
Now, he had more opportunities than he wanted. Sure, he could defend himself against these vigilante Senshi-clones. But did he want to? Hell, no. Fighting wasn't the way he liked to solve problems.
Of course, it was another thing if the other person started it.
"Why me?" Mamoru wondered quietly, resting his head on the table. "Why now? Why can't I ever have one life experience that isn't dictated by having a Sailor crystal?"
It had always been this way. First, he had been a prince. Then, he had been a masked thief, searching for his identity. Then he was a masked hero. Then he was brainwashed. Then he was, to put it mildly, roadkill. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Just thinking about his experiences over the past few years made him exhausted. He took another sip of his coffee, hoping it would help clear his head and dissipate his throbbing headache, but it tasted rather like watered-down hot sludge and did little to make him feel better.
He again dropped his head on the table and folded his arms around it, blocking out the glaring light of the cafeteria. "I hate my life," he muttered miserably. "If it weren't for Usa, none of this would be worth it."
Just then, his pants started ringing.
With a start, Mamoru fumbled around in his pocket for his phone. Finally being able to turn it on, he attempted to greet his caller with, "Hello, this is Mamoru."
What came out more resembled, "'lo. 'S Mam'ru."
"Mamoru-san? Is that you?"
"Uh, yes," he said, pretty sure that it was. Of course, he could have been a polkadotted goldfish by this point and would have been no more surprised. "This is?"
"It's Rei. Mamoru-san, you don't sound well. Have you been studying too hard?"
Rei? Why would Rei, of all people, be calling him? A sudden pang of dread washed over him. What if there was an attack? What if something happened to Usako? What if she's hurt? What if she needs him?
A million scenarios rushed through his mind in the span of about half a second, edging his voice with near-panic. "Rei-chan? What is it? Did something happen? Are there enemies--"
"Mamoru-san, calm down," she said in a commanding voice. "Usagi-chan's alright, she's just - wait, what was that about enemies?"
Mamoru nearly cursed himself for the slip. He did not want the other Senshi to know about the attacks, and he ESPECIALLY did not want Usako to know about the attacks. The moment she found out, she'd have a whole army of Sailor Senshi on the fastest plane to California, all gung-ho to rescue the useless Prince who needed his girlfriend to save him at every given moment. Besides, he did not want Usako to worry. Because worrying Usako was on his list of things that he would never, ever do.
"Oh, you know me. Paranoid and delusional," he remarked lamely. Trying to distract Rei from his comment, he proceeded with, "Usako is just 'what?'"
"She had to have emergency surgery, for...Mamoru-san? Are you breathing over there?"
"No," Mamoru squeeked. Surgery? What could have happened to cause Usako to need surgery? She was perfectly healthy! Sure, she ate too many sweets, but she wasn't overweight, and--
"It was just her appendix, Mamoru-san. I can hear you having a heart attack from over here, so you can relax and know that she's recovering just fine. She'll want to call you when she wakes up, and I just wanted to warn you, in case you were going to be in class. To suggest you put your phone on vibrate, so you don't disturb your professor."
Mamoru let out the air he was holding in. "Thank you. I don't think you have to worry much about that; I usually don't have it on ringer."
//Except after my dorm burns down and I've been attacked by clones.//
Rei was silent for a moment. "Mamoru-san, are you alright? You don't sound too good."
"I'm fine, Rei-chan. It's just late over here."
"Oh no, I didn't wake you up, did I? Or have you been studying all night?"
"Well you know me, the big academic."
"Just don't go making yourself sick, alright? Usagi-chan would be worried to no end."
//Like you need to tell me that.//
"I'm trying very hard to take care of myself, for Usako's sake. It's mostly working."
Rei's tone was dubious. "'Mostly?'"
Mamoru winced, but chuckled lightly. "As a future doctor, I can tell you that all-nighters don't tend to be healthy."
"I suppose not," she said, chuckling a little herself. "Don't worry about this too much, okay? Usagi-chan will be up in the next hour or two. She'll perk right up when you start cooing sweet nothings into her ear."
"Good to know."
"Okay, well I'd better stop wasting your minutes. I'll let Usagi-chan know that you'll be waiting for her call."
"Thank you. Oh, and Rei-chan--"
Rei paused. "Yes?"
"I... take care of her, alright?"
He could almost hear her smile at him. "I will, Mamoru-san. Take care."
"Bye." Mamoru hung up his phone, his stomach feeling like it had been turned to lead. Usako. His Usako. His poor, sweet, innocent, delicate Usako... trapped in a hospital without him.
This was turning out to be a very, very long day. Placing his phone back in his pocket, he rested his head on the table again. At the very least, he could try to rest his eyes. It would do him no good to drop off in class, especially if he would be awaiting a call from Usako. In his confusion, he might mistake his cellphone for something entirely inappropriate.
"...okay, if I'm thinking ecchi, I really do need to sleep," he muttered.
With everything that had happened to him, and all the pressing issues rolling about in his head, he thought it would be difficult to get to sleep. But the day's events had left him exhausted, and no sooner did Mamoru close his eyes than he drifted into a deep, unbroken sleep.
----
"...ru. Mamoru. Hey, wake up."
He opened his eyes, but immediately wished he hadn't, as all he was met with was a flood of painfully bright sunlight. Mamoru groaned elequently, trying to squeeze his eyelids shut against the light that seemed intent on shooting little daggers into his retina.
A hand was on his back, gently shaking him. He turned his head to look at whoever it was, wincing at the stiff pain in his neck.
"Malachi?" He was relatively confident that that was who he was speaking to, but it was hard to tell with his eyes closed.
"No, it's the Tooth Fairy. Don't tell me you spent the whole night asleep in here."
"Fine. I won't tell you."
Malachi sighed, disapproving. "So you turned down my offer of a bed so you could get a kink in your back at the cafeteria. It makes perfect sense."
"It makes perfect sense when you take into account that I've probably lost my mind." He sat up and rubbed at his eyes in an attempt to wake himself up, but only succeeded in making them look more red.
Malachi was watching him, the concerned expression never leaving his face. "You should have stayed."
"But I didn't. So there isn't much we can do about it now. Besides," he stopped rubbing his eyes and looked up at Malachi, "yours wasn't the only offer I turned down, so don't feel bad."
"Don't take offense to this, Mamoru," Malachi said, pulling up a hard plastic chair, "but who else could have offered you a room? You told me yourself that you didn't know many people on campus."
"I did?"
"You implied it."
"Well, one other person. She seems to have become very attached to me," Mamoru admitted. "Which I would normally appreciate, except that she's very zealous about it. I've barely even known her a day."
"Yes, that does seem a little odd," Malachi deadpanned.
"Oh, shut up. The Shitennou make our situation null and void."
"Do they, now?"
"Yes. ...I'm just not sure how." It was much too early in the morning for deep thought. Especially deep thought regarding clones of dead guardians.
"I'm not here just because of them," he said sharply, a dangerously icy edge in his voice.
Mamoru stared at him, stunned by the sudden change in Malachi's tone. "I know you're not," he said softly.
When Mamoru looked back down at the table, and his cup congealed pseudo-coffe, Malachi sighed. Why the hell had he said that? "Mamoru, that was terribly rude of me, and entirely uncalled for. I'm sorry."
"No, it's okay," Mamoru said, running a hand through his greasy, matted hair. "I just meant that, because of them, I feel like I've known you longer. I didn't mean that you were..."
"I know you didn't." Malachi paused, then looked at his watch. "Don't you have a class?"
"What time is it?"
"7:55."
"...fuck," Mamoru cursed conversationally. "Freud101 starts in five minutes. And I have neither books, nor notes, nor ... well, clean underwear."
Malachi visibly brightened, and opened his backpack. He produced a plastic grocery bag that looked nearly filled to capacity. "Got you covered there. I don't have any of the same books as you, of course, but I figured you'd be needing some pens and notepaper, and... other essentials."
For a moment, all Mamoru could do was stare blankly at him. "...you did that for me?" He croaked.
Malachi rolled his eyes and slid the bag across the table to him. "Dude, it's paper and boxers. It's not like I'm opening a vein for you here."
"Have I ever told you I loved you?"
"Not in this lifetime, no."
Mamoru paused mid-action, removing a notebook from the bag. "What was that?"
"Nothing." Malachi found it impossible to surpress a smirk, which caused Mamoru to return the favor.
"Don't start saying things like that, or eight very angry, scantily clad women will hop a plane and come looking for your head," he warned. As an afterthought, he added, "Or mine."
Malachi could hardly contain his laughter. "Those girls would suspect you of cheating on your girlfriend with another guy? No wonder you avoid friendships."
"I wouldn't put it past them." He glanced up at the clock. "Okay, now I really am going to be late. Thanks a ton, Malachi." He stiffly got to his feet and gathered up the bag of goodies Malachi had given him.
"Hey, no problem. See you later, Mamoru."
As Mamoru left the cafeteria, bag in hand, he wondered how he had ever survived so long without people like Malachi around.
//By being a cold, arrogant pain-in-the-ass to everyone I came across. That's how.//
He jogged quickly up a flight of stairs, then another and another, bag of supplies rustling loudly in the empty hallway. //Good thing those days are over.//
He arrived at his class only two minuts late; thankfully, it was in a giant lecture hall, and he managed to slip in an empty seat by the door. A woman with wavy teal hair turned around to give him a pointed glare. Mamoru raised an eyebrow - he hadn't made that much noise.
When she kept staring, he figured it had little to do with the fact that he had come in late.
The girl next to her--a perky little thing with short blonde hair--turned to follow her companion's gaze. When she spotted Mamoru she gave him an energetic wave, and was promptly smacked by the teal-haired one.
Oh shit, he thought despairingly. Why do they have to show up now? In class, of all times?
After a silent argument, in which the blonde rapidly flailed her arms around like a mad chicken and the teal-hair made ready to strangle her companion, both finally turned to face the professor again. Mamoru felt a small twinge of relief. At least they weren't going to attack him in class. Now, if he could just sneak out the door without their noticing...
Someone behind him cleared their throat. He glanced up at her--another woman, this one with long blonde hair. She arrogantly raised her eyebrows, as if to say "take one step towards that door and I'll rip off a few things that I'm sure you'll miss."
//Are all Senshi, evil clones or not, trained to use that look on me?// He slumped back into his chair. At the very least, he could try to get them outside before their likely impending battle injured any students.
The lecture went rather without incident, although the blonde and her companion appeared to keep trying to play tongue-hockey without anyone noticing. It didn't work, and finally the blonde behind him threw a shoe to quiet her friends down.
//...even Haruka-san and Michiru-san would take it someplace private. Like a bathroom.// Mamoru tried not to chuckle aloud. //Or the library.//
Despite the humerous interlude, the entire class was nerve-racking. Every little noise startled him, as he half-expected to be pummeled by a Crescent Beam from behind or a Deep Submerge from in front. Nothing so grand as a powerful attack could break the tension, however, and by the time the professor dismissed them, he was so preoccupied that he almost missed it. He quickly stuffed the unused notebook and pen back into the bag and made to run off.
Unfortunately, the blonde from the row behind him was already standing in his path. "Going somewhere?"
"...well, apparently not," he said, nervously noting that she was nearly eye to eye with him. //Minako can't be nearly that tall...//
Her red bow was almost comical, because the rest of her outfit (or what could have been described loosely as such) was comprised mostly of leather. A skull-and-crossbones tattoo was visible on her collarbone.
"Can I help you?" he continued, after a moment.
"Miniya." She didn't offer her hand in greeting; she just stared Mamoru down, a very suspicious gleam in her eye. "I have some business to discuss with you."
Mamoru hoped the business didn't involve a henshin wand.
He was about to say "what kind of business?" but his question turned to a yelp when he was grabbed from behind by a much shorter and significantly friendlier blonde. The fact that she did not seem intent on killing him just then was hardly a comfort, as her roaming hands appeared to be much more interested in something equally immoral.
"You're a lot cuter than I expected!" She chirped, apparently trying to get under his shirt.
"Do I know you?" He squeaked, tried to squirm out of her grasp, but it was like trying to disentangle oneself from a herd of starving leeches.
"I don't think so," she said thoughtfully, "but I'm sure you could get to know me real quick. My name's Hasana."
Before his shirt managed to come off, Hasana was smacked roughly on the back of her head.
"Ow," moaned Hasana, pulling her hands away from one awkwardly blushing Mamoru. "Mackenzie, you bitch, save that for the bedroom."
"Flirty little whore. Why do I put up with you?" The teal-haired woman picked up a guitar case - at least, he hoped there was a guitar in it, and not, say, explosives - and brushed a stray hair from her face.
"Because I give you what you want." Almost immediately, the little blonde's attention had been diverted, and she clung to Mackenzie's arm.
Her lover now firmly attached to her arm, Mackenzie relented a bit, and instead turned her wrath on Mamoru. "Think you can steal my girl just like that, do ya?"
"I... I..." Mamoru stuttered, trying to back away from the vicious-looking woman, whose clothes were torn and frayed, and looked as though they had not been washed in months.
"Typical male," growled Miniya from behind him. "Turn your back on them for two seconds, and already they're fondling some bimbo."
"You'd better watch your mouth, Miniya!" Mackenzie snarled, glaring past Mamoru at the much taller girl.
"That so, Mackenzie?" She said, roughly shoving Mamoru aside to tower over the teal-haired woman.
"Hey!" Hasana interjected, with a tone that said, "HELLO YOU ARE NOT PAYING ATTENTION TO ME."
"I hate to interrupt this rare moment of testosterone from the both of you, but we're supposed to be fighting him!"
When she pointed at Mamoru, he blanched.
"Nothing personal," she added sweetly.
"You could do that," he said warily. "Only..."
"What?" Mackenzie demanded, balling her fist irritably.
"Well, you ladies look like three powerful females. Well," he reconsidered, "two powerful females. I'd just like to know who will throw the first hit."
"What?" Miniya spat.
"Well it would have to be the strongest one, right? So which of you is it?"
"Me," both women said at once, then immediately turned to glare at each other. Mamoru resisted the urge to grin. He doubted he could get them at each other's throats enough to beat up one another instead of, say, himself, but maybe he could at least distract them long enough to lure them outside. He certainly did not want one of his classrooms to be destroyed.
Hasana pouted. "Guys! We're fighting him!"
"Excuse me?" Mackenzie ignored her lover-if she'd call her that-and brushed one of Miniya's shoulders with a grungy hand. "You might have the bondage gear, but I'm the one with muscle."
Miniya copied the gesture, but it was more of a forceful shove than a brush. "Oh, that's what we're calling the excess flab in your ass these days?"
"GUYS! Stop it! ...or save it for the bedroom!" Hasana flailed her arms around frantically, trying to get their attention. Slowly, oh ever so slowly, Mamoru began to inch toward the door that led to the hallway.
"You should be a little more careful, if you don't want that cute little tattoo of yours to be ripped off and shoved down your throat."
"How about you talk to me after you take a bath? Or is the dirt the only thing holding your fat ass off the floor?"
"Excuse me, I hate to interrupt," Hasana errupted, vying for attention, "but the freaking guy is getting away!"
All three turned to the door just in time to see it swing shut.
"Shit."
//Where to go, where to go?// Mamoru thought, quickly bursting through a group of students, looking frantically in all directions. He did the only thing he could: run straight ahead. //I've got to get outside, and fast, or there's going to be--//
"Crescent Beam!"
//--chaos. Too late.// He looked over his head as a lighting fixture was severed from its cord and smashed to the floor, nearly missing the feet (and heads) of some very lucky psychology undergrads. He turned the corner and went dashing down the flight of stairs. The doorway was in sight when he turned his head - something sounding very similar to "World Shaking!" could be heard in the hallway above him - and plowed right into two unsuspecting strangers.
"Mamoru?" Zory dropped his books from the collision, but made no move to pick them up. "Why the hurry?"
"Evil women," he panted, gesturing with his hand as if to explain. "Coming after me. Have to get out of the building. Mass carnage ensuing."
If anyone else had said this to Zory, he would likely accuse them of having one too many. But considering the bizarre circumstances of last night's events, he was inclined to think otherwise.
"Deep Submerge!" The aqua-colored ball soared past their heads and took out a row of lockers, hurling them onto the floor and nearly blocking the path to the door.
Mamoru was about to make an attempt at it anyway, when both Zory and Neff grabbed him and shoved him into the nearest utility closet, slamming the door mere seconds before a furious Mackenzie went charging past them.
"You there!" someone - he guessed Miniya - barked from outside the door. "Hey! Don't you run away from me!"
He sighed in relief; at least they'd managed to get away. But now he was trapped in the closet, where he would surely be found, and he would have no chance of getting out without getting maimed. As quietly as he could, he slumped down against a stack of brooms, leaning on an air vent.
This day was turning out to be about as much fun as yesterday. He could only run from the three clones for so long before he would have to fight them. It was not as though he could call for backup or anything.
And quite frankly, taking on three at once did not sound the least bit enjoyable. He seemed to have a difficult enough time with one.
He leaned the back of his head against the air vent, suddenly remembering how tired he was. The few hours of sleep he had caught in the cafeteria could hardly be called restful, especially under the circumstances. Being that he was a med student, as well as a former student of the Japanese school system, he was quite accustomed to getting by on very little sleep and scattered, less than healthy meals. But such a lifestyle hardly took into account fighting evil Sailor Senshi from hell with sparkly magic powers that make him faint. He knew that he probably could not keep up like this much longer, and that it was likely only sheer will that had kept him from passing out from exhaustion.
Of course, to keep him from passing out, his cellphone began to ring.
"Crap," he muttered, fumbling around in the dark closet in the hopes he could muffle it, or try to turn it off. Finally, he just pulled the thing out and answered.
"Hello?"
"MamochanwherehaveyoubeenI'vebeentryingtocallyouforhoursbutyouweren'tansweringand--"
"Usako, relax," he whispered hoarsely. "I was in class, and I didn't feel the phone ringing."
Mamoru swallowed hard at that realization. He had meant to put his phone in his pocket, but somehow it had ended up in the bag of supplies Malachi had given him. Only when he was planning to leave did he remember to take it out.
"Oh." Usagi audibly deflated. "I'm sorry, Mamochan, I should have guessed--"
"No, Usako, that's my fault."
"Mamochan, why are you whispering? You're not still in class, are you?"
"Uh, no, I'm in the library. How are you doing?"
At the question, he could almost hear the tears spring into her eyes. "Oh Mamochan it's so horrible and I hate it here and I don't like the food and I missed my favorite show and the nurses are so mean and I've got an IV in my arm and I hate this stupid gown and YOU'RE NOT HERE!"
Mamoru suddenly felt an incredible sense of guilt welling up in his throat. It was bad enough that he could not be there when his Usako needed him, but he could not even perform the simple task of answering a phone. The poor girl was upset enough without him throwing that extra worry on her shoulders.
Usagi sniffled quietly. "But I know you're working hard; Rei-chan told me you sounded like you'd been pulling all-nighters. So, I suppose you can be forgiven this once."
"You don't know how much I want to be there," he whispered. "I feel terrible enough being on an entirely seperate continent when you're well..."
"Mamochan, I can hear you starting to guilt from across the Pacific. I'm just happy to hear your voice."
"And I'm happy to hear yours. Is the hospital really that awful, Usako? You know Haruka-san would probably be willing to beat up anyone who's not treating you right."
Usagi giggled. "She already has."
Mamoru resisted the urge to laugh, pitying the poor soul who had to face the wrath of Haruka. "I'm sure that went over well."
"Oh, you should see them run now, Mamochan. They even give me extra pillows if I ask nicely."
"Are the other girls there? They're taking good care of you, aren't they?"
Usagi sighed. "Mamochan, they won't STOP taking care of me. It was hard enough getting them to give me a few moments to call you."
"And now they're probably pressed against the door, waiting for you to hang up," Mamoru guessed. By the way his Usako sighed, he assumed he'd guessed right. "You know they only hover because they care about you, Usako."
"I know, Mamochan, I know they do. I just wish they'd do it in a more discreet manner. Like, I don't know, not punching orderlies in the jaw and things."
"If you expect them not to do that, you're in with the wrong crowd."
Usagi giggled. "Ami-chan DOES pack a rather mean punch."
//More than you realize,// he thought, rubbing his jaw.
"How about the food?" Contrary to popular belief, Mamoru was well aware of Usagi's love affair with food, and was only marginally jealous. He did, however, sometimes wish she would look at him the way she looked at a stick of sesame seed dango.
"It's terrible, Mamochan! I think it must have been genetically engineered to be tasteless." She paused, then giggled again. "But Mako-chan has been sneaking in some of her cooking every time she visits. The nurses don't seem to mind, as long as I don't anything really unhealthy."
Suddenly, Mamoru heard a sharp pounding on the door, followed by a heated argument. He swallowed his response to his fiancé, and waited until the noise ceased.
"Mamochan? What's that noise?"
Mamoru held his breath, not daring to speak.
"Mamochan? ...Mamochan, where are you?"
But if he didn't say something soon, she'd get worried. Or worse, she'd get upset.
"Mamochan?" Her voice was getting shrill now. Darnit, she was worried. And if her voice got any louder, they'd hear her, even over that persistant banging.
"Mamochan, please answer me!"
"I'm here, Usako. I'm sorry, I think we've got a bad connection."
"Oh, fuck this!" Mackenzie shrilled from outside. "Deep Submerge!"
"Mamochan, what was that?" Usagi squeeked. Michiru was definitely not all the way over THERE; she was discreetly hiding out side the door of her room, trying to listen in on the conversation (not that she'd ever admit it).
"I'm gonna have to call you back, Usako," he said sharply as the door splintered inward with a loud crack.
"Mamochan, what's going on over there?!" Usagi was nearly shouting--no doubt alerting the hoard of girls pressed against her door.
"Uh, I think there's a convention in town, and cosplayers have just invaded the library." Mamoru winced, knowing that was probably the worst lie he had ever come up with in his entire life.
A disturbingly gleeful "World Shaking" smashed against the door, nearly shattering it and showering him in broken splinters.
"Pretty crappy hiding place, Prince," Hasana chirped, eyeing him through a gaping hole. She waved her Space Sword at him as though he was a naughty puppy.
"Mamochan--"
"Space Sword--"
"Submarine--"
"--Blaster!"
"--Reflection!"
"I love you, Usak--" Mamoru tried to cut the phonecall off, but a very bright beam of water and light blasted into his chest like a semi truck. With nowhere to go but backwards, he slammed right through the closet's wall and down, head over heels, into the airvent.
"Stupid," Miniya clucked, watching him disappear. No one was sure if she was referring to Mamoru, or her companions.
Mamoru tumbled down the airvent for what seemed like an absurdly long time, hitting every possible protrusion on the way down, before being dropped unceremoniously onto the painfully solid ground. He lay there groaning for a moment, too dizzy and sore to move. Finally, when he decided that he was not going to get any better, he opened his eyes.
The phone lay a few inches from his head. Although he couldn't see the screen, he already knew that it had cut out--otherwise he'd hear Usako screaming. He slowly sat up, gripping his pounding head. He must have hit it at some point. He picked up the phone, looked it over, and finding it not damaged, shoved it into his pocket.
"Well...now what?" he muttered, looking around. He most definitely was NOT in Kansas anymore.
In fact, if he hadn't known any better, he would have placed bets that he had fallen straight into the Dark Kingdom. With that entirely unpleasant thought in mind, he rummaged around in his pocket and picked out one green stone.
"Prince? What's going on?" The stone - Nephrite - sounded confused, dazed, as though he had also fallen through the proverbial rabbit hole.
"I think I may have found something of yours," Mamoru said, looking around anxiously.
They were in an unusually large circular cavern. The walls, floor, and shadowy ceiling were all of a hard, greyish stone. Even parts of the airvent he had just fallen through seemed to be coated in the strange mineral. Around the perimeter of the room, several arched doorways gaped at them. They seemed to lead off in different directions, though most were too dark to see beyond a few feet. The one that bothered him the most, however, was the one just to his left, from which a faint purplish light was glowing.
"This doesn't look like something that belongs in a university," he muttered uncomfortably.
"Oh, hey! I knew this was around here somewhere! And Zoisite said I wasn't useful..."
"So, this is your base." Mamoru realized how stupid it sounded aloud, but he felt he had to comment. Normally, he wasn't used to falling into the headquarters of old enem--frien--whatever. "What exactly went on down here?"
Nephrite cleared his throat; well, in essence, anyway. "Oh, you know. Typical evil villain things. Creating and taking care of youma, spying on the others, working on plans for Beryl. That kind of thing."
"Lovely. There uh... wouldn't be any youma here now, would there?" He shuddered at the thought of some creature flying out of one of the dark doorways, intent on mauling him.
"Naw, they were dependant on Metallia's power. Any youma still here after I left would have died when she was sealed away." After a moment he added, "So you can stop squeezing me so hard now."
Mamoru cleared his throat sheepishly. "Sorry."
"But," he added, "if everything that was here is now dead, am I likely to trip over a bunch of youma corpses?"
Nephrite was silent for a moment, and then finally said, "No. No, I think they would have all disappeared. Just, uh, watch your step."
Mamoru shuddered visibly at the idea. He stepped slowly, methodically toward the one doorway that was dimly lit.
He cautiously peered through it, but found only a long empty corridor that made a sharp turn at the end. The light seemed stronger over there. "Does this seem odd to you?"
"Yes," Nephrite answered slowly, uncertain. "I would have thought there wouldn't be anything left here now. But like I said before, I don't remember a whole lot about what was here. Who knows, it could just be an old computer monitor that never got shut off."
"For two years?"
Nephrite made the mineral equivalant of a shrug. "We were using the latest in Dark Kingdom technology."
"Oh. Windows?"
"Yup."
"What are the odds there's something terrifing and horrible at the end of the corridor?"
"Well, my dirty laundry might still be down here, but short of that..."
"That wasn't disturbing or anything." Mamoru started walking down the hallway, looking over his shoulder every other step. "How could you possibly need all these doors?"
"Well I was kind of in the process of taking over North America, Prince. One doesn't exactly work out of his basement on a project like this."
"Even after Beryl set her sights on Japan?"
"Hey, like I said before, I liked this place. I worked pretty hard to build it, and besides, over the years I had shifted all of the youma who were more loyal to me than they were to Beryl over to this base. You might say it was my 'plan B'. You know, in case Beryl didn't succeed, and all that."
Mamoru considered this a moment. "You rebelled against Beryl, but only for the sake of setting up your own plans of conquering the world? That's almost worse than following her wholeheartedly." Normally, Mamoru would never even consider saying something like this to one of his Shitennou, but he was increasingly becoming aware of Nephrite's laid-back attitude to the whole thing. While he knew very well that Nephrite regretted his time in the Dark Kingdom just as much as his comrades did, he seemed to have a somewhat easier time distancing himself from it, so that he talked about it just as he would discuss a movie he saw.
"Don't forget, my mind was rather warped by Beryl. We all had our forms of rebellion, Prince, even if they weren't always the healthiest. We never recognized it as such--I'm sure we would have stopped as soon as we did. But we all had our subconscious desires to rebel against her, even if we didn't notice. Like how Kunzite always left his jacket unbuttoned, especially in Beryl's presence. Or the fact that Jadeite always carried dirty magazines in his pocket, and read them on missions. And Zoisite... actually, he'd kill me if I told you, and I'd rather not be trampled by a piece of tanzanite."
By the time the idea of Jadeite reading Playboy had fully sunk in, Mamoru had come to the end of the corridor. To the left was a dead end, but to the right...
"Shit." Mamoru did not throw curse word around lightly, but this was definitely an appropriate time for it to come into use.
Before him, glowing bright and purple, was a seven foot tall statue of Beryl that seemed entirely carved out of crystal. Her arms were stretched out, palms facing the ceiling, with two orbs of energy pulsing between them. Her head was tilted back, apparently in mid-cackle. Her hair and dress were in the act of flowing in some requisite evil and ominous wind.
"Yeah, that rather sums it up," Nephrite said darkly.
"Nephrite, what is this thing and what is it for?"
"I'd forgotten all about it," he said thoughtfully. "We used it to store energy. Sort of like a giant battery, you might say. A lot of the energy would then be transferred over to Metallia, but naturally, we cheated and kept a lot for ourselves."
"Is that why it's still glowing?"
The green stone was silent for a moment, apparently in thought. "No," he said finally. "It wasn't meant to hold energy for long periods of time. Even if it were filled to capacity, any energy we had stored in there would have dissipated by now. It shouldn't be doing that."
"'It shouldn't be doing that.' Damn, Nephrite, that's reassuring." Mamoru felt nausea rise up in his stomach, and he decided it would be a terribly poor idea to throw up. Especially since he hadn't eaten in quite some time.
"Those evil Senshi must be using it. But how...Neph, Beryl never had any plans for making evil Senshi clones, did she?"
"Not that I was aware of," he said, with some trepidation. "I don't even think that was within Metallia's power. Taking over existing people is one thing, but making entirely new ones? I suppose, if she could make youma...But after all this time, they're just getting woken up? After you've essentially sealed off the greatest threat in the universe?"
"How'd you find out about THAT?"
"Prince, I sit in your pocket all day collecting lint. Occassionally I really DO hear stuff happening up there, and Chaos wasn't exactly small news. Besides..." his voice grew softer, "we all knew when that happened to you."
Mamoru did not need to ask what "that" was. He looked up at the Beryl statue, feeling a cold twist in his stomach. It was true, they HAD sealed Chaos away, just as they had sealed Metallia away. But amazingly enough, even after facing such powerful enemies as Pharoah 90 and Nehellenia, the Dark Kingdom still had that sort of effect on him. The fear, the darkness, the hopelessness that went with it was too deeply engrained in his mind.
He shivered, and decided he needed more than just Nephrite with him right now. He fumbled around in his pocket for a moment before his hand emerged with the other three stones. "What is it Prince?" Kunzite asked, his voice never failing to instill in Mamoru a sense of calm.
"Nephrite, that thing is still up and running? How could that be?" Zoisite asked, incredulous.
"Hey, this is news to me, too!"
"You know what this means," Jadeite cut in. Everyone was silent.
"I didn't mean I knew! I was hoping someone else was going to step in with an answer!"
Everyone groaned, and Mamoru shook his head. "Jadeite, cut the clowning."
"Sorry, Prince. But if this statue is still holding energy, someone must know it's here."
Nephrite sighed. "And even I couldn't recall where the base was, in exact terms. So some unfamiliar evil madman must know of it, and have a plan for it. Does that scare the piss out of anyone else?"
There was a collective silence as the impact of this statement sank in.
Mamoru deflatedly leaned against the nearest wall, looking much more pale than he had twenty minutes ago.
"Are you alright, Prince?" Kunzite asked, nudging against his palm.
"I'm fine, I just... I'm not feeling well, is all." Somehow, the idea that these Senshi clones were somehow related to the Dark Kingdom made everything seem much, much worse. It was one thing to think of them as random enemies with no real purpose and nothing to back them other than their immediate powers; it was quite another to know that they have ties to one of his most powerful, frightening enemies.
"Well, falling down an airvent tends to do that to a person," Jadeite quipped.
He was sharply bumped into by Zoisite. "Shut up."
"Is there any way to get out of here?" Mamoru seemed to be ignoring the both of them. Nephrite made some contemplative noises. Finally, he said, "You don't happen to have the ability to walk, non-corporeal-like, through walls, do you?"
"Gee, not last time I checked," Mamoru snapped.
"Well then, I'm afraid I can't help you there. This place doesn't really have any doors. You know, so some idiot can't come wandering down here and get himself eaten by youma."
"Well how the hell is that gonna help me? I can't sit around here for the rest of the semester, not if it's inhabited by evil clone women."
"Prince," Kunzite cut in, seeing that he was getting upset, "you do realize that you have powers like a Sailor Senshi. And they seem to be growing stronger lately."
"So?"
"So, who's to say you can't use teleportation? You've used it with the other Sailor Senshi quite a few times."
"As a group, yes. But none of us can do it on our own, Kunzite. And I'm certainly not powerful enough to try it alone."
"I mean," he added dryly, "unless I want to end up unconscious. That's probably not be the best condition to be in while you're in the heart of enemy territory."
"Prince, it's your only shot," Zoisite said. "Either that, or climbing up back up the airvent. Which, as you may recall, was quite a few feet off the ground."
"I don't need reminding."
"At least give it a try," said Jadeite. "The worst that could happen is it won't work."
Mamoru sighed, defeated. "Alright. But no making fun of me if I can't do it. We can't all make convenient little portals, you know."
"We promise," Zoisite said, elbowing--or rather, knocking against--Jadeite.
With some amount of trepidation, Mamoru transformed.
"One problem," he said. "Where am I going? I can't go back to the closet; if anything, they're still there. I have no dorm to go back to, and if I teleport to the frat house, they'll find me and start destroying it again."
"You could always try the men's bathroom?" Jadeite suggested.
Kunzite chuckled. "Look at that. Jadeite said something useful."
"Hey, I have my moments!"
"Fine, but I'd better not end up in a urinal or something."
"Prince, if you stand around debating with us any longer, they're gonna show up here anyway," Zoisite said, slightly amused.
"Alright, alright." He closed his eyes, and gold light began to glow around him, easily outshining the giant Beryl statue. He concentrated all his strength on trying to teleport--not so much to the boy's bathroom, maybe, as anywhere not here.
He closed his eyes, in an attempt to preserve them lest he end up somewher awkward - say, the girls' locker rooms. The floor rumbled, the ceiling shook, and with a valiant cry of, "AIIIIGHH!" Mamoru disappeared without a trace.
In the room's one dark corner, a voice could be heard chuckling. "Ah, Mamoru. You think you've got it figured out, do you? You think it is merely as simple as the Dark Kingdom? You have a long way to go, then, until you find the true answer."
Mamoru was in a tree. A very high, very unclimbable tree. In fact, he could pretty well see nearly the entire campus from his lofty position.
"Maybe next time you should think harder about where you're trying to go," Zoisite said, as delicately as he could.
"Thanks, Zoisite, that's the most helpful tip I've gotten all day," Mamoru snapped, clinging to the nearest stable-looking branch.
Kunzite chuckled softly. "It wasn't bad for a first try, Prince. Zoisite's first time landed him in the refrigerator."
"...and how did that work?"
"I'd rather not talk about it," Zoisite grumbled.
Mamoru settled on to the tree branch, and surveyed his surroundings. There was not an evil Senshi to be seen, fortunately; just students milling about, wondering why a strange man in a tuxedo was perched up there.
"So how exactly am I supposed to be getting down from here?"
"Well, I don't think a fall from this height would kill you. At least, not in your henshined form," Nephrite offered helpfully.
"That's easy for you to say. You're a rock. All you'd do is bounce."
"You seem to be developing all sorts of new powers here," said Jadeite. "You could, uh... try hovering?"
"Hey, while I'm at it, how about I sprout wings and fly back to Japan?"
"Well it certainly wouldn't hurt."
Mamoru was about to snap something in reply, when his phone rang.
"Oh, for..." Mamoru tucked the four stones in one pocket, while pulling out his phone form the other. "Hello?"
"What the hell is wrong with you, Mamoru?"
"Gee, Haruka-san, it's a pleasure to hear from you, too." Mamoru was most definitely not in the mood for a lecture, and he made sure his caller knew it.
Haruka paused for a moment, obviously not expecting the normally mild-tempered prince to be in a bad mood. This hardly seemed to hinder her own temper, however, as she recovered almost immediately. "You'd better have a darn good explanation, Chiba. Usagi's been almost frantic with tears for the past hour, and I'd like to know why."
Mamoru's whole body went numb. "Usa? Is she okay?" He squeaked.
"Not after what you did to her, whatever it was. All I could get out of her is that something's wrong with her Mamochan, and there was someone who sounds like Michiru with him. Is there a girl there with you, Chiba?"
Suddenly there was a sickening crack from the branch he had been holding onto to keep himself steady. "Haruka-san, can I call you back?"
"No!" she shouted. "No, you cannot 'call me back!' I want an explaination for what just happened, Chiba, and if it's not good--"
Whatever Haruka said next was completely drowned out when the branch Mamoru had come to sit upon broke, sending ample amounts of foliage crashing to the ground along with him. He groaned quietly, letting go of the phone as spasms of pain went up and down his back. That was probably not the best place to land on.
"...Mamoru?" Haruka asked, after a moment. "What's going on over there?"
He muttered something choice under his breath, picking the cellphone back up slowly. "Oh, you know. Same ol', same ol'; falling out of trees, that kind of thing."
Not particularly caring whether any students saw him or not, he quickly reverted back to his Azabu t-shirt. At least if he passed out right now, it would make for some much less awkward explanations.
"'Falling out of trees,'" Haruka repeated sarcastically. "You're getting awfully suspicious as of late, Chiba. I'm this close to flying over there and beating your ass."
"Thank you, Haruka-san," he drawled. "That's quite encouraging."
"Answers. Now. Or I buy a plane ticket."
"Well, where should I begin? In no less than 24 hours, I have nearly been frozen to death, had my dorm set aflame and die in my sleep of burns and smoke inhalation, locked in a utility closet, blown out of said closet and down an airvent, and teleported myself into a tree only to fall out of it."
Mamoru paused, and then added, "Does that satisfy you, Tenoh?"
He made sure to emphasis how unamused he was by her threatening behavior - frankly, he was getting enough threats as it was - by emphasizing heavily on her last name. //I don't want to be so rude, but she hardly bothered to give me the benefit of the doubt!//
"...Can I ask what they put in the water over there, Mamoru? Because that was the lamest story I've ever come across."
Mamoru was about ready to break something.
"Now can I have the real story, or are you going to tell me that you've been attacked by leprechauns next?"
"I'm not having this conversation right now, Haruka-san. Goodbye." Mamoru quickly hung up, before he could say something he'd regret.
He remained laying on the ground, waiting for the pain to subside in his back. A few moments passed before a shadow passed over his face. "See? Told you he'd get out of there alive."
"That doesn't look like the picture of 'alive' to me, Zory."
"Whatever I am, I'm not going to stay this way very long," Mamoru muttered, sitting up with some help from Neff. "I just hung up on one of the most powerful of my fiancés short-skirted Senshi. No doubt she's already planning my demise."
Zory raised a delicate eyebrow. "Isn't it a bad thing when a woman's lover and her friends have friction?"
"You're telling me." Mamoru rolled his eyes. "They're so gung-ho about protecting her from anything, it even means protecting her from possibly the one person she loves most. My life is wonderful."
"Can I ask what you're doing laying in a pile of greenery?" Neff asked, pulling a leafy stick out of Mamoru's hair.
"Bad teleportation experience," he muttered, not particularly wanting to relay the embarrassing story.
"Well, the good news is that your psycho female friends haven't killed anyone yet today," Zory said, rescuing him. "The bad is that they've pretty well trashed the Humanities building."
Mamoru groaned. "At the rate they're going, they'll destroy the whole campus before the week is out."
"If they could just destroy my Intro to Volcanic Theory class, I'd be one happy camper." Neff smirked. "Think you could let them loose in the Physical Sciences building?"
"Not funny," Mamoru groused.
"Sorry." Neff continued to pull twigs out of his friend's hair.
"I don't know what depresses me more: the fact that clones of the Senshi are going to kill me, or the REAL Senshi are going to kill me."
"Hey, look on the bright side," Zory chirped. "The real Senshi are on the other side of the world. Theoretically, you've got a good running chance."
"Thanks, that makes me feel a whole lot better."
"Hey, maybe if you put them in a ring together they'll take each other out. Like on Celebrity Death Match."
Zory slapped his forehead. "Neff, I can't believe you just used a claymation MTV show as an analogy to real life."
"Don't tell me you didn't enjoy Cher versus Sarah Michelle Gellar."
"I'm ignoring you."
Mamoru smiled weakly. "You two never cease to--"
"Deep Submerge!"
The ball of water slammed harshly into Mamoru's back, ripping him forcefully away from his two companions. He fell hard on the ground, hearing his face crunch as it hit the pavement.
"Mamoru!" Zory ran to his side, while Neff turned angrily around to face the attackers.
Mackenzie smirked at him. "What do you think you're going to do, son? Throw those twigs at me?"
Neff growled viciously before running forward and planting a fist in Mackenzie's jaw. Her head snapped sharply backwards, but when she tilted it forward again, she was grinning dangerously. "My turn." She punched him square in the chest, her senshi strength sending him flying into the treetrunk behind him, where he slid to the ground, groaning.
Mamoru clutched the side of his face, feeling like it had been ripped off with a cheesegrater. Zory was trying to pull him off the ground, but he was having a hard time staying upright, and the smaller man was unable to support his full weight. Just as he was slipping from Zory's grip, he felt a pair of strong arms wrap around him and pull him to his feet. "Zory, what's going on?" Malachi asked urgently, holding a dazed Mamoru.
"What's it look like? Psycho clone's trying to kill him, that's what's going on."
With an infinitely weary sigh, Mamoru transformed back into Tuxedo Kamen. "Might as well live in this thing," he muttered, before pulling away from Malachi's grip. Taking out his cane, Mamoru lunged and swung it like a baseball bat. He clocked Mackenzie squarely on the ear and, her center of balance thrown, she tumbled to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
"Mamoru, watch out!"
He turned around to face Malachi's voice. "What?"
"Venus Love-me Chain!"
Before he could blink, a very hot chain of hearts had wrapped tightly around his throat. Miniya smirked, and tugged sharply on it in multiple directions. Mamoru was jerked harshly back and forth, until his captor cracked the chain like a whip. For the second time, Mamoru's face was intimate with the pavement, and this time, it was nose first.
He struggled on the ground, the chain strangling him and the blood gushing from his nose choking what breath he had left. His feet kicked desperately, trying to get beneath him, but Miniya only pulled tighter, keeping him from finding a foothold.
Malachi and Jed rushed over and tried to pry the chain off his neck. "Oh no you don't," Miniya chided, and energy charged from her hands down the gold metal, where it zapped everyone touching it. Malachi and Jed leapt back. Mamoru would have screamed if he could.
Instead, he settled for gritting his teeth and attempting to power up. As he began to glow, Miniya's smirk only got wider - this last-ditch effort would do him no good. To prove her point, she pulled on the chain roughly, dragging Mamoru's face further along the blood-smeared concrete. This didn't stop Mamoru, and finally he elbowed himself up to face the blonde. His nose began to repair itself, and he grinned.
"I think it's only fair that we level the playing field, don't you?" He swung his neck around sharply, in a manner that normally would have caused him no end of whiplash. Miniya squacked as the chain was wrenched out of her grip, and she was flung unceremoniously in a nearby bush.
Malachi raised an eyebrow as the black-haired prince easily broke the chain off his neck. "That's a pretty nice trick."
Mamoru held off answering when he heard Zory's muffled scream. He whipped around to face Mackenzie, who had her arm around his neck. Zory hung limply from her arm, already looking like he would soon pass out from lack of oxygen. "Whaddya know, Prince," she laughed, "looks like you've found yourself some friends. What would you do if I broke his neck right now?" She tightened her hold, and he began to make choking sounds.
Mamoru let out a feral snarl. "I'd vaporize you."
Mackenzie snorted harshly. "I'll run that risk."
Her arm tightened around Zory's small neck, almost to the point of closing off his windpipe all together. Gasping like a fish out of water, he desperately tried to breathe, but to no avail. His face purpled from lack of oxygen.
"Come on, Prince. He's running out of time. But if you attack me, I might use him as a human shield." She smirked, using her free hand to brush an errant strand of teal hair from her face. "Your call."
Mamoru did not even hesitate. "Tuxedo Mirage!" The stream of gold light slammed into Mackenzie before she could consider pushing Zory into its path. The blonde man dropped to the ground, gasping for breath, as Mackenzie stumbled back. Jed and Neff rushed to help him, but Malachi stayed by Mamoru.
Mackenzie stood shakily, clutching the shoulder that had taken the greatest impact. "Not... too bad, Prince. Let's try this one, shall we? Submarine Violon Tide!"
"Get behind me!" Mamoru grabbed Malachi's arm and pulled him behind his back, just as the tsunami came crashing down upon them. At first they were lost beneath the wall of water that crashed wildly around them, but as Mamoru thrust out a glowing hand, the waters parted at his fingertips, rushing past them on either side. Malachi huddled close behind him, wrapping an arm around his waist to keep from being swept away.
Mackenzie growled. He was not supposed to do that!
"Space Turbulence!"
Mamoru held his arms out, grunting as the explosion of energy and bright light plowed into him. His feet skidded backwards, and Malachi gulped nervously. But they held their ground, and eventually the force stopped.
As the attack faded away, the light surrounding Mamoru began to dwindle and his knees gave out. Before he could fall, Malachi grabbed him and held him up. "Don't you dare give up yet!" He growled in his ear.
"Aww, aren't you two so cute together!" Hasana shouted cheerfully, running up beside Mackenzie and pinching her rear end.
"Save it for later," Mackenzie snapped, giving the smaller blonde a half-hearted shove. Seeing his window of opportunity, Mamoru was thankful he had someone to keep him from falling over.
"Tuxedo Mirage!"
The force of the blast nearly shook Malachi from his protective hold on his companion, but he quickly steadied himself. //It's like feedback from a gun,// he thought idly. //Except guns don't shoot golden beams in the real world.//
//...usually,// he ammended.
"Mackenzie!" Hasana squealed as her lover was enveloped in gold light.
"Ha... Hasana!" She whispered, then was gone.
Hasana's scream was ear-shattering. "You'll pay!" She sobbed. "You will! I promise!" And, with bitter tears pouring down her face, the blonde vanished.
His strength spent, Mamoru slumped in the white-haired man's arms. "Thanks," he muttered, knowing he could not have gotten through that on his own.
Just then he heard a deep, feminine chuckle. Miniya stood several meters away, her freakish sailor fuku mildly torn from her close encounter with the bushes.
"Can't say I mind seeing that bitch get vaporized," she mused. "So I'll leave you be for now, Prince. But I'll leave you boys with a little present. Venus Power! Love Crescent Shower!"
She too vanished, just as heavy drops of rain began to descend on the group.
Of course, this was not normal rain. This was very hot, very painful rain of pure light energy. The five men screamed as it poured down, searing any exposed skin it came in contact with.
"Get under the trees!" Malachi shouted, gritting his teeth together as he helped Mamoru under the nearby cover. It didn't help much; the trees were being singed beyond recognition, and it only served as minimal cover.
Finally, after a few more agonizing moments, the "rain" dissipated.
"Ow," Jed whined. "That stuff hurts! And it stinks, too!" Indeed, even as he was speaking a heavy sulfuric fog had begun to rise from the wet, deadened grass, and drifted around the men.
Mamoru weakly leaned on Malachi's shoulder, trying his best to stand on his own and not doing a great job of it. "We should get out of here before other people start showing up," Malachi said, tightening his grip around Mamoru.
As he spoke, Neff slowly turned to face them. Right away, Malachi noticed the strange dark look in his eyes, but he thought little of it. Mamoru, however, was beginning to sense that something was not right. "This is all his fault," Neff said, glancing accusingly at Mamoru.
Malachi stared at him. He would not have expected something like this from Neff, not after all they'd talked about last night. "What are you talking about?"
"None of this would have happened if it weren't for him," he growled.
"Man, I didn't ask you to stick around and get beaten up," Mamoru snapped, his last nerve being worn. "You and Zory could have run. They obviously don't want a couple of useless humans."
"Hey, who are you calling useless?" Jed said, getting to his feet.
Mamoru rolled his eyes. "So when was the last time you turned a person into air molecules?"
"Oh, so that's what defines usefulness around here?" Neff shouted, and promptly punched the black-haired prince in the stomach. Mamoru dropped to his knees, gasping for breath. "I'd say that was pretty damn useful."
Malachi shoved Neff away from him. "The hell is your problem, Neff?"
"There you go again, protecting your little buddy," Jed snapped. "If you're so fond of him, why don't you two move in together?"
"Well, unlike you, Malachi seems to have a certain amount of compassion for people," Zory interjected. "Can't we cut the man a little slack? He did save me from suffocating."
"But if he hadn't bothered us at all, you wouldn't have been in that headlock," Neff growled. "Period."
"Well then," Zory snapped, "if you think it's such a problem, go get in your fucking time machine and fix it!"
"Maybe if he hadn't bothered we'd be rid of your ignorance," Neff snarled, standing imposingly over Zory.
"Well maybe it should've been you in there. Then you wouldn't have to deal with idiots like us anymore, would you?"
The dull crack that followed rang through the foggy air, and everyone watched in stunned silence as Zory dropped to the ground, his right eye and cheek already swelling up. Neff stared at his own fist as if it were an alien thing that had acted on its own.
Suddenly something hit him like a freight train, and he tumbled onto the ground, Malachi on top of him. "Don't you ever do that again," he growled, his tone dangerously cold.
"Malachi--"
Before his response even left his mouth, Malachi grabbed the brunette's shoulders and slammed him roughly on the pavement. "Do you understand me? Don't you ever DARE hit Zory in my presence again!"
Mamoru was afraid to move. His heart screamed at him to go and help Zory up, but his mind replied, "Are you freaking kamikaze, Mamoru? Jed will take a swing at you!"
It didn't help that, for the second time, he thought he was going to throw up. It really was his fault. It was his fault they were getting injured, getting angry and throwing punches. If he had just left them alone...
"Get off of him, Malachi," Jed snapped. "Zory deserved what he got and you know it!"
Dammit, he could vaporize enemies in seconds, he could heal gaping wounds, so why couldn't he fix this?
"Want me to hit you too, Jed?"
Why was he weak at the times when he was most needed?
"You can bloody well be my guest."
This wasn't right, they shouldn't be doing this, they were supposed to be friends, why were they fighting?
"Please, stop..." Mamoru whispered, suddenly feeling tears well up in his eyes.
Malachi had already gotten to his feet, a punch ready. But the sound of Mamoru's voice made him stop cold. That same, unexplainable feeling in him stirred; the one he always got when this strange, tuxedo-wearing man was emotionally distressed.
Jed, however, didn't seem to notice. Taking his opening, he swung and decked Malachi right across the jaw. Malachi's ears rung like overzealous churchbells and he stumbled, stars of pain exploding in front of his eyes.
"I SAID STOP IT."
Even as he shouted, he felt it. The Golden Crystal. It bloomed in front of his chest, its golden crystalline petals sending out their healing light. The oppressive sulfuric fog vanished, too frail to stand up against the warm glow that washed over everything, healing the injured trees and restoring the dead grass. Mamoru knelt on the ground, tears of gold sliding down his cheeks, his eyes filled with compassion for his friends.
And then, a funny thing happened. The four men began to glow golden, as well. Zory's eye and Malachi's jaw healed almost instantly, and they all looked around in utter confusion at the sheer brightness of everything.
From one of Mamoru's pockets, a small weight lifted. Four semiprecious stones disappeared from there, and then reappeared in front of the chest of each befuddled man.
"Don't fight," he said, looking up at them with the tears pouring down his face. The sound echoed all over the place, and even though it had only been a whisper, he could not have yelled it louder. "You're long past fighting like this. Please, I...I don't know how else I can ask you..."
Four ghostly beings materialized with the stones, which no longer glowed from their foreheads, but were instead held out in offering from each man's hand.
"I don't know if you could... if you could ever accept this," The Prince of Earth continued, "It's not an easy gift to bear..."
Malachi stared at the man in front of him. The man who bore the weight of centuries in his deep green eyes. Centuries of guilt and of pain, of weary suffering. But when he glanced at Mamoru, he knew he already had his answer. He looked at his friends. They, too, had made their decision.
Together, they each reached out and accepted their stones.
It was probably impossible for the lights around them to be any brighter, but as soon as the stones met their hands, it was almost as though a supernova had exploded. Nothing could be seen except a brilliant, shimmering whiteness.
They were not prepared for all the memories to come at once. The stones has been the key to unlock the part of themselves, their pasts, that they had never been able to find before. It came to them like a freight train. Hundreds upon thousands of years - the Golden Kingdom, D-Point, the Dark Kingdom, Tokyo - had all involved them. It was an intense mixture of euphoria and depression all at the same time, memories of different eras all mixing willy-nilly with no concept of chronology.
One after another, images flashed through their minds until they thought they might explode from the sheer volume of it all. But just as it felt as though it would consume them, the memories slowed to a trickle, then faded altogether, leaving only blissful stillness, and the feeling that a broken puzzle had just been completed.
When the glorious light finally faded, there were no longer four college students standing there, but four warriors, clad in dazzling white uniforms, their armour glistening in the sun, their dark brown capes flourishing in the wind.
Mamoru watched them appear, feeling that a piece of his life that had been missing for so long was finally back in place. As the Golden Crystal folded back into his chest, he gave them a deep, grateful smile. "Thank you," he whispered, and then fainted.
-----
...so we got a little carried away. *coughs* Yes.
Cliffhangers! Yes, we know you hate us. Yes, we know we're evil.
Will Chapter 4 be this long? Be careful what you wish for. It'll probably be longer.
