Chapter Four

The Attack

The sound of gunfire split the dark silence of night. Rhoda sat up immediately. It was about midnight. "The fortnight…" Rhoda whispered. She jumped out of her bed and put on her velvet black cloak. Rontu lay crouched by the door, growling. The shouts of angry men and the sound of guns filled the air. Gunfire was never heard on Vandaxa, for they had no use for guns.

Rhoda ran to her window. She saw a sea of torches below. The guards on duty had no way to defend themselves. There was a blast from a gun, and one of the guards fell to the ground, dead. Rhoda clapped her hand over her mouth to silence her scream.

Suddenly, someone began firing at her window. Her covered her head with her arms and ducked. Broken glass flew into the air. When the firing ceased for a brief moment, Rhoda ran to her door, threw it open, and ran out with Rontu by her side.

As they rounded a corner, Rhoda heard footsteps and dove behind a column. A strange man passed, holding a gun. Rhoda was close enough to him that she could even see the details of his face. She recognized him as a Neptonian.

Neptonians were a race from Neptune. They loved war and bloodshed more than anything else, and would kill anything that got in their way. It was no surprise to Rhoda that this race was attacking them.

This man was young, only about Rhoda's age. He had short brown hair and bluish-green skin. Rontu's claws clicked on the marble floor. The man stopped walking and turned around. Rhoda held her breath. The man headed their way, though he had not seen them. He stood right next to Rhoda. Rontu snarled and sunk his teeth deep into the man's leg. The man screamed. He looked straight into Rhoda's eyes. She formed her hand into a fist and landed a blow in the man's face.

He fell to the floor. "Ow…" Rhoda murmured, rubbing her hand. Rontu snorted. "I am not a wimp!" Rhoda snapped. Rontu rolled his amber eyes. Rhoda sighed. "Come on," she said, "Let's find Fiore."

Rhoda and Rontu crept along the dark halls, not making a sound. Rhoda had found a gun and a knife on the man, so she could defend herself. It was dark and quiet.

Suddenly, someone grabbed her from behind and pulled her around a corner. Rhoda tried to scream, but the figure put his hand over her mouth. "Shhh," he whispered into her ear, "Rhoda, it's me."

Rhoda found herself looking up into Nuka's green eyes. Her anger flared up and she pulled herself away from him. "Don't touch me!" Rhoda snapped. Nuka blinked. "I was just trying to help you, Rhoda."

Rontu stood between Nuka and Rhoda, teeth bared. "Stay away from me, Nuka," Rhoda hissed, "You're lucky I didn't tell Fiore who had tempted me in the hedge maze."

Nuka blinked again and took her hand in his. "Rhoda…"

Rhoda flashed a glare at him and pointed the gun at his face. "Let-me-go…" she growled. Nuka dropped her hand. "Oh, you want to shoot me? Shoot me," Nuka said. Rhoda lowered the gun. "I'll leave that to Fiore," she replied.

Nuka hissed and slipped away.

Rontu growled. "I know, boy," Rhoda said, "I don't trust him either. I never did."

Rhoda and Rontu crept through the halls. They had managed to slip passed two enemy scouts and find Bianca. Rontu was overjoyed to see her unharmed.

Rhoda peered around a corner into the Great Hall. The golden hall was crawling with enemy guards. Rontu and Bianca knelt at her feet, ready to pounce. "There's too many," Rhoda said.

There has to be another way to do this. She thought.

Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Rhoda whirled around and looked into Fiore's gentle blue eyes. "Fiore…"

"Shhh," he said, putting his finger to his lips. Fiore took her hand. "Follow me."

He led her along another hallway, away from the Great Hall. Sky-Dancer trotted along at Fiore's heels. It was dark, so dark that Rhoda could just make out Fiore's outline in the darkness.

He started to take her down an extremely dark hallway, when both Rhoda and Rontu froze. It was pitch-black in that hallway. A deep growl rumbled in Rontu's throat. The hair on his back stood straight up. Rhoda shivered. "What is it?" Fiore asked. "Something's down there, Fiore," Rhoda whispered, "I feel like I'm walking into a trap."

Fiore gazed down the empty blackness. There came a high-pitched shriek. Rhoda covered her ears. A creature about the size and stature of a cougar exploded from the darkness, running toward Fiore and Rhoda. "Manticore!" Rhoda exclaimed. She remembered reading about this creature. It fed on anything larger than a wolf. That included her and Fiore. Rhoda knew to beware of the tail, for it held millions of poisonous quills that could be shot like arrows. They were supposed to exist only in legend.

A sword materialized in Fiore's hand. Rhoda drew her own. Bianca bolted at the Manticore, nearly getting hit by its tail. The creature lunged at Fiore, knocking him to the ground. As it raised its paw to strike him, Rhoda plunged her sword into the creature's thigh. It roared in pain and turned on her. Fiore noticed a discarded quill lying nearby. It was still pumping poison. He picked it up and looked over at Rhoda. She was on the ground, trying in vain to thrust her sword through its heart.

Fiore threw the quill at the Manticore. It pierced the monster through the lung. The Manticore roared again, rose off of Rhoda, staggered around a bit, then fell to the ground and lay still.

Fiore helped Rhoda to her feet. "Are you alright?" he asked. "Yes," Rhoda replied. Bianca and Rontu, who had preferred to stay out of this fight, came trotting over. "Come on," said Fiore, "I know the way out."

He took her out a servant's passage. On reaching the castle courtyard, Rhoda stopped. "Fiore, what about your parents?" she asked. Fiore's eyes grew sad. "They're dead, Rhoda…" he replied, his voice breaking.

"What? How?"

"An enemy scout killed them right before my eyes."

He led her along. When they reached the edge of the forest, Fiore sat down on an old tree stump to rest. Rhoda sat next to him on the ground, the wolves lying at her feet. "What's going on, Fiore?" she asked.

Rhoda put her hand on his. "You can tell me what's troubling you."

Fiore didn't answer. "I'm sorry about your parents, Fiore," Rhoda said, putting her hand on his shoulder. Fiore smiled slightly and took her hand. "Thank for trying to comfort me, Rhoda," he said, "But it's all too painful. The only other time I remember feeling this much pain was when…"

He stopped. "When what, Fiore?" Rhoda asked.

The call of a bird and the flapping of wings filled the air. Rhoda and Fiore looked up. Rontu and Sky-Dancer barked happily. Zoë flew down and perched on Fiore's shoulder. "Where have you been, girl?" Fiore asked, stroking the fiery red feathers on her back. Zoë dropped something in his hand. It was a beautiful ruby necklace. "This belonged to my mother…" Fiore said. Zoë hopped to the ground and began foraging for insects. Rhoda stood. "We better get a move on," she said. Fiore looked up at her. "But where?" he asked. "Anywhere away from here," Rhoda replied.

Hmm. When did he feel great pain? If you've seen the Sailor Moon R movie, then you would know the answer.