Chapter Three
Autumn Rain
The rain beat heavily on the city of Tokyo. Dark clouds blanketed the sky on that Saturday morning. It was a cold and sad day throughout the city. Only a straggler or two would venture out onto the streets. Ami Mizuno stared out the window as the raindrops trickled down the glass. Her warm breath fogged the glass, and she glanced over the reflection of her face.
"Are you alright, Ami?"
The blue haired girl turned away from the window and looked across the table of the library. She faintly smiled to the boy across the table. "I'm fine." She looked back to her textbook. "Mitochondria?"
The boy thought for a moment. "The powerhouse of the cell."
"Yes, that's right." Ami didn't look up from her textbook and sighed deeply. She only glanced back to the window.
The boy saw something was wrong, but he didn't say anything. He looked back down to his textbook and glanced over the pages. Ami looked back over at the boy as he scanned the words on the page. He was a cute boy—sandy brown hair and light blue eyes. They had known each other for about a year now, and they both were studying to go to medical school. They seemed so perfect for each other except the fact that he never had asked her out on an official date yet. It was always an invitation to study or he'd happen to drop by wherever she was at; never a formal invitation. She pressed her fist into her cheek and stared at the boy. She figured he'd ask her to be his girlfriend any day now. Everyone thought they made the perfect couple: they both loved to read and study, were extremely intelligent, and both wanted to be a doctor when they finished school. She sighed again. Yes, it seemed so perfect.
Shoji flipped through the pages. "So do you think you're ready for the test?"
Ami kept pondering.
"Ami?"
Ami shook her head out of her daze. "Yes, I think so."
Shoji closed his book. "Do you want to move onto Chemistry?"
Ami closed her Biology book. "Yes, I think that's a good idea." She reached over into her school bag and grabbed her Chemistry book then glanced back over at Shoji.
Raye paced up and down the deck of the Cherry Hill Temple. Occasionally she would stretch out her hand and reach into the rain. She would gently let the raindrops roll around her palm as she caught them. She looked up into the dark skies and sighed. "Trouble is brewing, but what is it?" She thought to herself. She pulled her hand back to her side and watched her breath as she exhaled. She continued down the deck to the fire room. Perhaps the fire would give her some answers. She walked up to the door then paused before sliding it open. She pressed her ear against the door and listened. Someone else was in the fire room. Recognizing the voice, she opened the door slowly and peered into the room. Kyoji was kneeled in front of the fire with his eyes closed. He chanted faintly, almost too quietly for Raye to hear. Astonished, she opened the door a little bit more to hear. She stood there for a few minutes completely confused that Kyoji would be chanting in front of the fire. "Who is this guy?" She pondered to herself. "I don't like this one bit." Kyoji stopped chanting and sat silently with his eyes closed for a few moments. Raye stared harder into the dark room trying to see into the fire.
"Is there anything I can help you with, Raye-san?" Kyoji faintly spoke without opening his eyes.
Raye quickly jerked her head back and shut the door. She stormed down the deck back to her bedroom in anger. "How dare he!" She fumed to herself. "I can't believe him!" She stopped in front of her bedroom door and looked back down the deck towards the fire room. "I wonder what he's doing." She pondered for a moment. "He must have just been praying. There's no way he…" She shook her head. "Yes, just praying." She opened the door to her bedroom and stepped in.
Leta walked down the streets of Tokyo while holding an umbrella over her head to keep dry. She stopped at a newspaper stall and picked up today's issue of the Japan Times. Suddenly lightening flashed in the grey sky. She looked over in the direction of the flashing light. The thunder shook the ground.
"That was a close one!" The newspaper salesman said.
Leta looked back at the man. "Yeah, it was." She glanced back at the grey sky. Lightning struck again and again repeatedly. It was strange to see so much lightening. Leta dismissed her thoughts and headed back to her apartment as fast as she could. As she hurried down the street, a gust of wind came up and flipped her umbrella inside out. Frustrated, she tossed the umbrella in the nearest alley and used her newspaper to cover her. She started running down the street towards her apartment. As she was running, she passed two blonde girls huddling under an umbrella.
"Serina? Mina?"
The two blonde Sailors turned around at the sound of Leta's voice and welcomed their friend under the umbrella.
"Come on! Let's go to my place." Leta said.
"That's where we were heading! This rain is terrible," Mina said.
The raven haired Miko slept hard as the rain pounded on the roof. She fell asleep after lunch and rest a couple of hours into the late afternoon. Her head sunk deeper into her pillows. Her lips started faintly mumbling something as her hand gently raised off the bed. Her eyes squinted tightly as she called out louder. "Wait, wait…"
The garden was hazy and foggy. She could barely see through the mist as she cautiously ran. Looking up, she saw the earth high in the sky and only a few stars. She kept running as fast as she could, occasionally slipping on the dew or tripping over a stature. "Wait! Wait! Please!"
After running through the hedge maze, she came to a clearing in the middle of the garden. Raye glanced around only hearing the sound of water trickling from a large fountain in the center. Some of the fog cleared, letting her see a dark figure standing by the fountain. "Please, tell me who you are." She stepped forward walking over to the fountain. The dream was so hazy and the scenery so foggy that all she could see was the dark figure advancing towards her. She shuttered from the chill of the fog, but was soon wrapped in the arms of the dark figure. She glanced up only to see a chin and nose, but she soon closed her eyes as the dark figure kissed her. After the kiss, she rested her head against the dark figure's chest.
She didn't know why, but she blurted out a strange phrase. Not one she used very often. "I love you." She didn't know why she said and did these things in the dreams. It was like she had control, but she didn't all at the same time. Why in the world did she trust this stranger? She didn't know, but for the few seconds in her dreams, it felt so good.
Lighting struck again. It was so close that the foundations of the Cherry Hill Temple shook violently. Raye jumped up from her bed fully awake. As her heart pounded, she looked around the dark bedroom then looked to the clock. It was almost four in the afternoon. She crawled out of bed and stepped outside unto the deck. It was still raining heavily and the skies were darker. She sat down on the deck and dangled her feet over the edge. Leaning her head against one of the support beams, tears started to leak from her eyes. The tears rolled down her face along with the spattering raindrops. She closed her eyes as the tears flowed freely down her face. She decided that she didn't want to sit and just cry. She got up and walked out into the courtyard. She walked around aimlessly in the rain feeling so cold and numb inside.
Lightning flashed again. Another thunderous roar echoed through the temple and shook the buildings. Another flash and another flash lit the sky. Raye looked forward. "What in the world?"
"More tea?" Leta offered to her guests.
Serina nodded while chewing on a cookie. She lifted her tea cup as Leta poured more tea into the cup. Mina shook her head and leaned back into the couch. After she finished pouring, Leta sat down on the couch next to Mina and took a sip of her own tea.
"So have you seen the new Starfighter Galaxy 2000 movie?" Mina asked to Leta.
Leta swallowed her tea while shaking her head. "No, but I heard it was really good."
"You guys wanna go tomorrow?" Serina asked. "Darien has to work, so it would be a great time just to hang out with the girls."
"How come you only have time for us when Darien is busy?" Mina asked, grabbing another cookie.
"Oh, whatever, Mina! You'd do the same thing if you had a boyfriend!" Leta said.
Mina shrugged her shoulders. "That's beside the point!"
Leta started to take another drink, but she dropped the cup suddenly at the sound of loud thunder. Mina jumped immediately to her feet while Serina grabbed her head in pain.
"Something's wrong!" Mina exclaimed.
Serina squinted her eyes in deep pain. "It's Raye! She's in trouble! We have to go now!"
Raye looked forward. Every fiber in her being tingled with fear and alarm. She was extremely sensitive to sensing the presence of evil, but this time, her senses screamed at her. She glanced back behind her. She no longer kept her Sailor transformation stick in her clothing; it had been buried in a box deep in the closet for almost three years now. She looked forward again.
It was a youma. Its body was mostly black with pieces of scrap metal sticking out of it and eyes with an evil red glow stared the raven-haired girl down. Long blades pierced from out the black skin of the hands of this beast. It was hideous and almost horrifying to look at.
Raye glanced back to her room again. She had to get her transformation stick. Keeping her eyes on the Youma, she slowly took one step backward with her right foot then suddenly started to turn around to make a dash for it.
Raye screamed. Before she could even turn around, one of the blades ran through her shoulder. It was the most terrible pain she had ever experienced, but yet at the same time, she didn't understand what had happened. Her mind was still thinking she was turning to run, but her body was collapsing from the pain. After a split second, she glanced up to see the devilish Youma holding the blade into her. The Youma pulled its arm back, and the blade came out of Raye. Her body started to sink to the ground, but before it did, the Youma's kneed Raye in the stomach.
Her upper body flew forward as the knee flew into her stomach. She completely lost her breath for a second and only regained it from the blood that she had to cough up. As she stood doubled over in pain, the fists of the Youma slammed into her back. It felt as if every bone in her spine cracked and rearranged. She fell to the ground with a loud moan and collapsed at the Youma's feet. Within only a minute's time, Raye was completely defeated and almost dead.
The Youma bent over and grabbed a handful of Raye's hair. The Youma lifted Raye up off the ground; she screamed in pain as blood and tears streamed heavily down her face. "You will die!" The Youma spoke with a rough and sinister voice.
"Then…then…j…ju…just kill me," Raye managed to utter.
"That would be too easy, and not very fun."
"PUT HER DOWN!"
The Youma turned around still holding Raye by the hair. He looked across the courtyard to see four girls standing in a line with their hands on their hips and angry faces.
"I SAID 'PUT HER DOWN', YOUMA!" The leader of the Sailor Scouts screamed, facing turning red with anger.
The Youma laughed. It was a hollow metal laugh that made one's nerves freeze in horror and fear. The Youma flung Raye by the hair towards the Sailor Scouts. Raye only flew a few feet then hit the ground hard. Her body rolled a couple of times then landed on her side facing the Sailor Scouts.
Enraged, Sailor Jupiter saw Raye's bloody face and called upon one of her attacks. "SURPREME THUNDER!" The attack was one of the most powerful Sailor Jupiter had every called upon. So much rage and passion fueled this attack, and it was aimed straight at the dark Youma.
Still laughing, the Youma waited patiently for the energy attack to reach him. Once it was near, the Youma punched the ball of energy and sent it flying back towards Sailor Jupiter. The massive energy ball flew straight into Sailor Jupiter, and it exploded in her face, throwing her back against a tree. Her head flew back violently and smacked into the tree. Once the energy ball dissipated, Sailor Jupiter's body slid down the tree and fell to the ground.
Sailor Jupiter opened her eyes. Tears of pain blurred her vision. Her neck froze. She couldn't move it nor could she get up from the ground at that moment. Dizzy and disoriented, she fell over and passed out.
"Sailor Scouts, three team formation, now!" Sailor Moon exclaimed as she stepped forward. Sailor Venus and Sailor Mercury nodded and stood behind Sailor Moon making a "V" formation.
"And I'll join you!" Tuxedo Mask came up behind the Sailor Scouts from running up the stairs of Cherry Hill Temple.
"Glad you're here, Tuxedo Mask," Sailor Moon said. "We need to punish this Youma!"
"Right!" Tuxedo Mask nodded.
"IN THE NAME OF THE MOON!" Sailor Moon started running forward to lead the attack. Tuxedo Mask followed directly behind Sailor Moon while Sailor Venus and Sailor Mercury were at the sides of the formation.
"MOON…SPIRIAL…HEART…" Sailor Moon started to scream out her attack while still running. Suddenly, Sailor Venus and Sailor Mercury stopped and started forming their attacks.
"SHINING AQUA REFLECTION!"
"VENUS METEOR SHOWER!"
As Sailor Mercury and Sailor Venus shot off their energy attacks, they curved the trajectory of the attacks so the energy would hit the Youma on both sides. Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon were still charging toward the Youma. Tuxedo Mask leapt up in the air and threw three roses at the Youma. The tips of the roses stuck into the rough black skin of the Youma.
"…ATTACK!" Sailor Moon finished screaming.
While the Youma was distracted with the rose attack, three energy attacks hit simultaneously. Sailor Venus' came in on the left, Sailor Mercury's hit on the right, and Sailor Moon's came from the front. The three great attacks exploded together leaving huge clouds of smoke and dust. The Sailors stood in silence for a moment but breathed a wonderful sigh of relief. That is, until they heard the hollow cackling of the Youma again.
The smoke and dust cleared, leaving an unaffected creature standing before them. Sailor Moon looked up in terror as the creature towered before her.
"What…what…are you?" Sailor Moon trembled.
"Your worst nightmare!" The Youma slashed his blade at Sailor Moon and caught her in the arm. The wound was deep and instantly started to gush blood. In her defense, Tuxedo Mask leapt forward and slammed down his cane on the Youma. The cane cracked when hitting the hard metal body of the Youma. The Youma slammed his fist into Tuxedo Mask's head, and the caped warrior flew off to the side like a rag doll. Suddenly, Sailor Mercury and Venus were flying through the air, each with a leg extended to kick. The Youma grabbed a hold of each leg and threw them off to the sides. They both hit the ground hard but quickly scrambled to their feet only to be met by a ball of dark energy.
The dark energy hit the two Sailors then surrounded them in a bubble. The dark bubble grew bigger and bigger and then engulfed the wounded Tuxedo Mask. Soon, it captured Sailor Moon too. The Youma stood laughing, and when she thought the Youma was distracted, Sailor Jupiter came running up with one last attack. She was swatted off by the strong arm of the Youma, and she flew straight into the dark bubble. Only a wounded and bleeding, Raye Hino, lay stranded on the ground.
"WHAT DO YOU WANT WITH HER?" screamed Sailor Moon, tears gushing out her eyes. "SHE'S INNOCENT!"
The Youma slowly turned its head towards the dark bubble. "She is anything but innocent! She must be destroyed!" The Youma turned away from the Sailor Scouts and started walking towards the lifeless body. The Youma stopped once it stood in front of Raye. It raised its right arm high, ready to swing down the blade on Raye's body.
"PLEASE! DON'T! AHHHHH! PLEASE!" Sailor Moon screamed and moaned with the others screaming similar things behind her.
The Youma's arm swung down. Everyone shut his or her eyes, but opened them quickly at the sound of twanging metal. The Sailor Scouts looked at the Youma to see a broken blade on the Youma's arm, and the broken piece lying on the ground. They then looked past the Youma and Raye's body and gasped.
"WHO ARE YOU?" The Youma growled loudly.
"What does it matter? Do you need my name where I'm going to send you?"
Tuxedo Mask stepped forward and blinked. "Am I just seeing things or does that guy look like me?"
The Sailors eyes were stunned. There was another Tuxedo Mask! This one was a little different, but it looked almost exactly like Tuxedo Mask. This one didn't have a hat or a cape, but otherwise, it was the same outfit.
"Look!" Sailor Venus exclaimed. "He has a sword!"
"Not just a sword! A katana!" Sailor Mercury added.
Standing before the Youma was a warrior dressed in a Tuxedo just like Tuxedo Mask. Again, there was no hat or cape, but the Tuxedo was the same. Instead of a cane as a weapon, this warrior wielded a katana. While Sailor Jupiter glanced around the ground, she saw a throwing star lying close to the broken blade of the Youma.
"He must have used that throwing star to break the Youma's blade!" Sailor Jupiter pointed to the star.
The Youma raised his right arm and looked at the broken blade. "No matter! I'll just use a jagged broken blade on her body! It will only cause her more pain!"
"I don't have time for this, Youma!" The Tuxedo warrior exclaimed.
Before the Sailor's could blink, the katana of the Tuxedo warrior was pierced through the Youma. Soon, in a black mist, the Youma disappeared completely out of sighed, and all that was left was the Tuxedo warrior standing with his sword. The dark bubble soon disappeared and the Sailors ran over to Raye's body.
Sailor Moon cradled Raye into her arms. Raye faintly opened her eyes to see the Sailor Scouts hovering over her. Blood still poured out of the corners of her mouth and more started to flow as she coughed. Raye's eyes started to roll backwards.
"SHE'S DYING!" Sailor Moon started to freak out. She looked around at her friends frantically then caught the face of the mysterious warrior standing a few feet away. She stared straight at him, not knowing if he was friend or foe. "CAN YOU HELP HER?" She asked, frantically. "CAN YOU HELP HER, PLEASE!"
The mysterious warrior started moving towards the group. The other Sailors, and especially Tuxedo Mask, were extremely skeptical, but Sailor Moon didn't care that moment. They studied the warrior's face and body once he came closer. His identity was concealed by a mask just like Tuxedo Mask's, but his hair was blonde and wild, his body was fit and strong, and most noticeably of all, there was a crescent moon symbol on his forehead just like Serina's. Sailor Moon gaped at the symbol on the stranger's head as he approached.
"Please, stand back for a moment." The mysterious warrior kneeled down next to Raye and took her body out of Sailor Moon's arms and into his. He placed his hand over Raye's stomach and closed his eyes. Soon, the crescent symbol on his forehead started to glow. A white shimmer of light started to hover over Raye's body. The wound through Raye's shoulder started to close up, but it stopped and closed no more. After a few moments, the mysterious warrior took his hand off Raye's stomach and his symbol stopped glowing.
The Sailors looked frantic. "What's wrong? Can't you heal her?" Sailor Moon burst into tears. "What's wrong?"
"Need more contact," The mysterious warrior said, not making much sense to the Sailors. With Raye's body cradled into his arms, he tilted her head up and leaned down over her. He pressed his lips into hers and kissed her. Shocked, the Sailors watched as the warrior's symbol started to glow again and more shimmering light engulfed around Raye's body. Soon, the wounds started to close up completely, the blood dried up and disappeared, and after a few moments, a full restored body started to move. The body's arms gently slid up and wrapped around the mystery warrior's neck, and after a few moments she fluttered her eyes open to see herself kissing a complete stranger. The Tuxedo warrior pulled back and looked into Raye's face while she gazed into his for a moment. He then pulled her off his lap and set her to the ground. He stood up, and once he did, the other Sailors started tackling Raye with hugs.
While the Sailors rejoiced, the mysterious warrior slipped away and started walking away. While her friends were hugging her, Raye kept her eyes on the mysterious tuxedoed warrior.
"Wait a minute!" Sailor Jupiter cried out as she noticed the warrior trying to leave. "Who are you?"
The warrior turned around. "It doesn't matter."
Sailor Moon stepped forward. "You saved us! You saved our friend's life! Won't you tell us anything?"
"I will be here when you need me. That is all you need to know."
"How do we know we can trust you?" Tuxedo Mask blurted out, very suspicious about this warrior.
The warrior turned around again and started walking off.
"Wait!" Raye called out from the ground where she sat.
The warrior stopped and turned his head back just enough to catch a glimpse of Raye.
"Please, tell us your name."
The warrior stood still for a moment. "Tuxedo Samurai."
Raye stood up from off the ground. "Thank you for saving my life, Tuxedo Samurai."
The warrior, known as Tuxedo Samurai, gently nodded his head then continued to walk forward and eventually out of sight.
The Sailors stood still for a moment as they watched the mystery warrior leave, disappearing into the mist of pouring rain.
Sailor Mercury placed her hand on Raye's arm and started to tug her. "Come on, we better get you out of the rain."
Raye started off into the distance where Tuxedo Samurai disappeared but started to walk off with her friends. She looked forward towards her room, but kept looking back to where the masked man disappeared into the autumn rain.