PRETTY SOLDIER SAILOR MOON: FUTURE
Chapter 30: Strategy of the Syndicate
While the breakdown in Midori and Naja's conversation was occurring, Chibi-Usa glanced over just in time to see her friend rushing in a hurry past some surprised attendants. Naturally, she grew worried.
"What's the matter, Small Lady?" Setsuna asked. "Are you not feeling well?"
"Midori just took off," the young girl replied. "I saw her talking to that lady, but she suddenly became upset. I've never seen her look like that. I wonder what they were talking about."
The woman stared at Naja as she rested her hands over her necklace. That was when she noticed the golden glint shimmering beneath her fingers. Setsuna narrowed her eyes in suspicion, and then walked with a quick pace away from the dessert tables.
"Puu? Where are you going?" Chibi-Usa followed her. Setsuna didn't respond. She spent a few moments looking around the mansion until she found Michiru in the hallways just after Haruka was sent away.
"You don't look well. Where did Haruka go?" Setsuna asked.
"We had a little argument, and she went to cool her head off elsewhere. It's nothing to get worried about," Michiru replied.
Chibi-Usa curiously asked. "An argument about what?"
Michiru waved her finger and said with a grin, "That's for us adults to know."
"Geez, do you always have to be so coy with me? I'm not a baby, you know."
Setsuna waited for the two to finish joking with each other, then said, "Michiru, I believe one of Eris' subordinates has compromised this party. There was a woman in blue attempting to summon an Apple of Discord's power."
"Just as I thought. I felt that negative energy emanating from the dance hall as well. We should take action before-"
That was when several women's screams reverberated from the ball room to the hallways where the three females were. Michiru and Setsuna glanced at each other, not needing to say any words.
"Neptune Crystal Power, Make Up!"
"Pluto Crystal Power, Make Up!"
As the other two transformed into their Sailor Soldier identities, Chibi-Usa clutched her brooch, but paused for a second.
What is it? Something keeps nagging at the back of my mind, but I can't put it into words. As if I'm missing something that I easily overlooked…
Unfortunately, she knew that now was not the time for such distractions.
"Pink Moon Crystal Power, Make Up!"
Haruka collapsed onto the bed face-first and gasped. Sweat drenched every part of her body, nearly ruining her pristine suit. An intense pressure weighed her chest down, as if an elephant sat on her and threatened to crush her to death with hundreds of pounds of force. She kept trying to breathe, but air refused to enter her lungs.
Despite her agony, Haruka managed to think rationally enough to recall when this terrible sensation started. She was perfectly fine when she left the villa to go pick up Chibi-Usa and Midori. Then the flat tire happened, and that was when she suddenly became irritable, along with having her breathing problems while replacing the tire. For some reason, she kept mentally rewinding to the moment the tire went out. Why had it happened? She had driven that freeway numerous times without incident. Something she saw was out of place, and she kept analyzing that instant until the epiphany came to her.
There was some kind of blue spike on the road.
Haruka remembered it now. A spike of ice had spontaneously formed milliseconds before her Ferrari ran over it. To her, that meant only one thing; someone had done it on purpose. Why, though? Was the enemy preparing their attack on the party and needed to stall her for extra time?
No, that can't be it. Michiru would have noticed it in my absence…
There was another frightening possibility or two that bothered her. One idea was that Haruka was with Chibi-Usa, the bearer of half of the Silver Crystal. Perhaps the princess was their real target. That would have been the perfect time for her to be attacked. But Michiru never told her that anything happened to Chibi-Usa while she walked with Midori to the mansion. Arguing that Midori was the target would only result in the same argument. The overwhelmed woman didn't like the last possibility, but it was the only one that fit:
The enemy was trying to single out Haruka!
The negative emotions within her intensified, and she couldn't hold on to her sanity anymore. A sinister presence took command of her body, and she immediately felt physical relief once she stopped resisting. Whatever was controlling her forced her to take her transformation wand out of her pocket and hold it before her. Then she spoke in an empty tone that hardly belonged to her:
"Uranus… Crystal Power… Make… Up…"
A maid escorted Midori to a spare room, and she sat on the nearest chair. She spent the next few minutes catching her breath and trembling. The preposterousness of Naja's proposal had sickened Midori so much that she thought she was going to vomit. She had to keep her nerves together though so Chibi-Usa and the three Sailor Soldiers wouldn't notice anything wrong.
This is insane. This is just too insane! We know from past reconnaissance missions that Eris deliberately caused the war, and yet they side with her!? This can't be real! What am I supposed to do now? I can't continue my task if I have no one left to report to!
She clenched her teeth and shook her head fervently.
No, this isn't good. I need to calm down and think. It's obvious that I have to consider some alternatives now. I must think of something that will convince my comrades to give up their ways without revealing any of this to Chibi-Usa and the others. They already have enough to deal with. I don't want them to worry about me having to fight my friends, if that's what it ultimately comes down to.
Midori regained her composure and stood up.
Cobra was about to say that she 'had a plan' before I left her. Of course, her current strategy involves me joining the Animus Syndicate, and I refuse to do that. But what if I convinced her to alter that plan? What if I could-?
That was when she heard the screams of various partygoers and servants, along with hurried footsteps as they ran for their lives from some kind of threat. Midori knew what it was though.
"Damn it, Cobra… Don't be so hasty…"
She slipped her apatite ring on and chanted, "Arsenic Toxicum Power, Make Up."
Sailors Chibi-Moon, Neptune and Pluto rushed into the parlor to discover that the chandelier had been possessed by an Apple of Discord, turning it into a crystalline Erisian that latched its arms to the ceiling like an insect and bearing hundreds of jagged spikes on its back. Some of those spikes had already been fired upon the terrified guests as evidenced by broken furniture and injured people. The only person appearing unfazed by the carnage was Naja as she stood near the staircase and observed her minion's destruction. She had already changed out of her evening gown and back into her signature blue robes and black bodysuit. She glanced at the Sailor Soldiers and welcomed them with a wry smirk.
"Just as I thought!" Pluto gasped. "That woman was one of the Camarilla!"
Chibi-Moon widened her eyes, figuring out where her strange uneasiness was coming from as she realized, That's the same lady who made Midori so upset!
"You two! It's coming this way!" Neptune warned them as she watched the Erisian face their direction. It shot some sharp crystals at them, but Pluto chanted, "Dead Scream," and retaliated with a magenta orb of energy. The two attacks collided and exploded, causing some glittering dust to rain upon them. Naja seemed unamused as she snapped her fingers, as if it were a silent command for the monster to continue fighting.
"This thing shouldn't be a problem for Small Lady and I," Pluto told Neptune. "We don't know if the Camarilla will retaliate with a pincer attack though, so-"
"I was thinking the same thing. I will confront her myself," her partner smiled lightly and ran toward Naja while spreading her arms above her head and summoning torrents of ocean water until they formed a large aqua-colored orb.
"Deep Submerge!" she called out and hurled her attack. The Camarilla lithely swung her arm in an arc, generating ice crystals that formed into a snake's head and fangs.
"Cobra's Bite!" she shouted, sending the snake forth to swallow the Deep Submerge attack. It exploded in a fantastic splash of ice-cold water, leaving the two warriors back at where they were. Unfortunately, Neptune's blind attack was what Naja anticipated, as her attention would be focused away from someone who could prepare a surprise counter.
"Space Turbulence!"
"What the-!?" Neptune gasped, but it was too late for her to dodge this assault. Numerous beams of fragmented lights pounded her flesh like hundreds of punches, causing her body to helplessly rock about before crashing backwards to the ground.
"Sailor Neptune!" Chibi-Moon shrieked. Pluto was busy spinning her staff in her hands to deflect several shards being shot at the duo. The young girl tried to run to her friend's side, but Neptune implored, "Don't come here! Stay by Pluto's side, no matter what!"
"What are you saying?"
"That attack… It could only have been done by…"
Sadly, her intuition was correct. Standing at the parlor entrance was a stoic and malevolent Sailor Uranus wielding the Space Sword. Her eyes lost their charismatic glow and had turned as dark as night. Chibi-Moon gasped in horror at how vicious her friend looked compared to earlier that evening. Uranus noticed the princess and immediately charged for her, intoning, "Give me the Silver Crystal!"
Chibi-Moon was paralyzed with terror. If her opponent was some monster or a demon, she would have no problem blasting them away with one of her attacks. But this was Sailor Uranus, one of her precious friends. How could she fight against someone she trusted and cared for so much? She didn't know what to do. Her failure to escape allowed Uranus to get in close and try to cleave her brooch off her bow.
Sailor Neptune wouldn't allow it. Unlike Chibi-Moon, she wouldn't get wrapped up in sentiment. She had a job to do, and she would do it without fail. She pushed Chibi-Moon aside and grabbed Uranus' wrist, using the momentum to toss her over her shoulder. Uranus immediately regained her bearings and landed feet-first, then slashed aimlessly. Neptune looked also bemused as she weaved, ducked, and dodged around gracefully.
Really, Haruka. This isn't like you at all. You would use your sword with such terrifying precision.
Neptune found a chance to kick her opponent's chin and send her flipping backwards. Uranus didn't look bothered even though some blood dripped off her face. She stood in front of Naja as if to protect her from Neptune.
"Do you like it?" Naja asked. "Sailor Uranus has tasted the sweet fruit of absolute power that Eris likewise enticed Sailor Upala with, and has become quite smitten with it. It is an absolutely dreadful nectar, capable of turning even the most pure-hearted soul into a contemptible witch. Those who reap the benefits of Eris' harvest will find it impossible to resist the temptation."
"Then you're saying that Eris somehow made her defect from us?"
The Camarilla giggled at this Earthling's impeccable ignorance. "If you want to put it like that, then go ahead and assume that."
"I sincerely doubt your twisted theory, agent of Animus," Neptune declared. "I know her more than anyone. Eris would learn right away that it would be a mistake to tempt Uranus. You had to have done something to make her like this."
"You're entitled to believe that as well, although it doesn't really matter what your opinion is. This is reality. Eris is far more frightening than your indolent queen, if not in raw power, then in seamlessly turning friends into enemies. Soon, Selene will have no one to rely on, just as Alkima's Sailor Soldiers had no one to turn to for help in their darkest hours. Eris will deliver her karmic punishment upon Selene, and the best part of it is that she has no one to blame for this but herself! Who was it that sent Eris to Alkima in the first place anyway!? That's right, your 'wonderful' queen did this to us! Eris is little more than a means for us to repay that sordid favor!"
Neptune really had no idea what Naja was trying to say. Was the Camarilla heckling about her hold over Uranus, or was she trying to warn Neptune about Eris' tyranny? Naja's hatred for Selene was undeniable, but did she also bear the same spite against Eris? Nothing was making any sense.
During this time, Uranus made the Space Sword glow with enough energy to tear the earth apart. Neptune summoned a Stradivarius violin and strummed an elegant tune while calling out, "Submarine Violon Tide!" The melody created a torrent of water that flowed like a miniature tsunami.
"Space Sword Blaster!" Uranus likewise shouted, swinging her sword in one clean downward motion to generate a streak of slicing energy. The two attacks struck each other, but like someone cutting their own reflection in the water, the sundering slice ripped through the tide without any effort and continued on its course toward a very shocked Neptune.