Chapter 7

Rei's POV.

Flying.

I am flying.

Across the pits of fire that consume those who are in a constant state of sleep.

I approach the fire, greeting it like an old friend. Softly I brush my hands across the flames, watching them as they lick at my palms. The heat caresses my skin with affection and I smile.

I feel at home here. This alien fire pit.

The craggy rocks surrounding the fire looks like it was made from the very heat that permeated through the air. There are few areas where there is still earth that look like zigzagging stepping stones.

The fire begins to get hotter. It seems to be getting angry for some odd reason. I don't know the exact purpose, but I find myself starting to soar higher, away from the licking flames. I sense a warning that comes within them. As if to tell me to stop flying away, and start toward the heart of the pit.

I trust the fire, however, I cannot attain the position to push myself toward the bottom. Something is in the way. Or is it my conscious?

My eyes opened to little light in the dank darkness. The smell of wet and earth filled my nose as I breathed in and out to calm the rising nervousness in my body. "Where am I?" I asked, looking around with a frown. I noticed I was in some kind of dungeon. Spattered in mud, the walls were awful gray. Looking down at the soft earth, I noticed shackles on my wrists holding me to the floor. I tried to get up, but my legs failed me as they too were held down by iron manacles. A whimper came from my left and as I turned, I saw blue hair shuffle as Ami rose into a sitting position.

"Ami?"
"Rei?" her voice sounded hoarse. How long were we here? And how did we get here?

"Where are we?" Ami voiced my next question. "Why are we here?"

"I don't know." I said, biting the inside of my cheek in thought. "I have no idea why we're here."

A clang of a door opening greeted us and when bright light littered the room, I closed my eyes against the pain.

"So, you're finally awake." His voice was grainy, and soft speaking. It sent shivers down my back. Pale blue eyes met mine as he bent down close to us. He was normal looking, with short blonde hair, but his eyes which at first glance looked customary were not as there were no pupils. He wore a dark tunic and trousers that clung to his athletic body.

"Why are we down here? Is this some kind of sick joke?" I coughed as I said this, bile was starting to rise from the nausea that raged through my body.

"Why, no." He looked genuinely perplexed at what I said. "If it were a sick joke, you wouldn't be here…"

"What?"

"Who are you?" Ami asked before I could lay into him.

"I am Itzal of the Plutonian Tribe." He looked at us with interest before adding, "And you are Mizuno Ami of the Mercurian Tribe, and you are Hino Rei of the Marian Tribe. You are the Royals, are you not? We've also Aino Minako and Kino Makoto as well."

"How—Plutonian Tribe?-"

"What do you want with us if we were?" I asked in anger, "And why do you have us all captured?"

"Captured? Well, no this isn't captured." Itzal looked quite disturbed by the prospect of my accusation. Well, it really wasn't an accusation because we literally were chained. "Oh, you mean because you're tied down."

"What do you think, you idiot." I spat at him. Was he really so foolish to think we were tied down for our own good?

"No need to insult me. I didn't do anything." Itzal put his hands up in front of him in a peace gesture.

I blinked, not able to say anything to that statement. I spluttered a little in indignation. "At least take us out of these shackles!"
Itzal looked disturbed by the anger that was radiating from me and inched away, standing back up. "I would but I have no key."

"Could you at least answer our question?" Ami asked, "About why we're here."

"Oh, that's simple. You're all here because you're on trial and you were found guilty and are all sentenced to die." Itzal said, his face full of amusement…

Usagi's POV.

I dislike this. I really really dislike this. This feeling of dread, and pent up nervousness I've been feeling for the past weeks since arriving here. The way today went was not how I thought it would go when I woke up this morning. All I ever wanted was a peaceful experience with college. I wanted to make new friends, celebrate the memories to come with my old ones, and finish college so I could be with my love forever. But, as the rising panic began to make my heart beat even faster as I ran, I felt outwardly calm. Usually I'd be freaking out by now, and have to stop to catch my breath.

But I kept pushing myself. I couldn't stop.

Something was really wrong.

I rounded the corner and ran into a group of what looked like ordinary men dressed in all black from head to toe. At first I tried to pass them, but each time I would go one way, they would follow in my footsteps. They were much more agile than a regular human. As I looked at them more through the glare of the sun, I realized that they were more than just human. They were some kind of youkai that were slightly bent at an odd angle. Their walk was slow, but with the ability to most probably catch me if need be.

I couldn't believe this. Was this the feeling I was getting? This possible new threat and enemy? I took off at a run, years of experience flooded my senses. Years of training and misfires of trying to contain the enemy, the frustration building up from the last few weeks, I welcomed the threat without hesitation. A part of my mind was surprised by my odd thoughts and quick movements. I had to laugh at the fact that I sounded so much like Mako-chan.

I felt the kick before I knew what happened. My knee joined the abdomen of one, knocking him clean off his feet.

I back flipped away from them as I accessed the others. "Crap." I groaned as the one I just hit sprang up as if not even hurt. "Ugh…really!" I took my pendent out and called in the name of the moon my titular name of the hero I had been destined to become. How corny to think that….after four years, you'd think I'd get tired of calling out the same tiring thing such as "I'll punish you in the name of the moon." Eh…

I was kicked against the wall by another. My back hurt upon the impact and a metallic taste entered my mouth. Luna's words hit me: Don't let the enemy get you in a corner.

She would be so proud that I actually didn't listen to her advice in time – and here I was stuck in a corner – literally.

I waited for the Rose to appear since I was trapped – but as they advanced, my hope for saving was declining rapidly. I took my panic and used it to force a punch at the on the coming youkai. I hit his face, and he fell back easily. Feeling a little more confident, I began to fight back. Little by little, I regained ground where I no longer was cornered. I felt for the first time I could defeat these without any outside help.

That was before the big explosion….

Note: Hiii! Surprise to all my readers, I got a new chapter within two weeks instead of two months! I feel so accomplished. I really, really want to thank all those who are constantly reviewing or favoring or following this story! I hope you've enjoyed this chapter. This was actually a fun one to write, though it took me longer because I had to sit down a while to think about what direction I want to take this story. It was at first an experiment to see how I could handle Usagi's personality, since she had always to me seemed a bit dense. Not downing on her, or anything. She truly is a good character, with lots of flaws and irritation. I thought if I could get into her head, it would be a piece of cake for my next project I have in mind (nothing to do with fanfic though :)) So far, it's been a slow, painful process but I think I'm getting the hang of it. The story is starting to pick up from here on out. I have no idea exactly where I'm going with this, but I have a general idea. Any input of yours would be very well appreciated too on where you'd like to see this story take!

Much love and appreciation,

Sifirela