Chapter 9

Attacked

It took Rei a moment to pull herself out of her haze of passion, but in no time Rei and Minako were both looking at the other two Senshi and the Shitennou running towards them.

"What's wrong?" Rei asked Ami.

"Monsters in the market town. We just got a report of a creature much like the ones in legend, and similar to the ones now showing up on earth. It is feeding on the peoples life force we have to do something before someone dies." Rei nodded she knew the legends about the monsters called youma and the situation on earth with them having started to show up randomly. Quickly the Martian began to give orders as head officer for the Lunarian Imperial Army Rei lead the senshi and since they were on the moon it was left for the Shitennou to fall in line with her orders.

"Ami, Makoto I need you to come with me straight towards the Market. Its not far from here that worries me. Kunzite I need you and your generals to come from behind we will already be engaged when you show up. Hopefully we can take it by surprise with reinforcements." Kunzite nodded and Ami added.

"The queen, Endymion and Usagi are already secure." Rei nodded she knew Ami and Makoto would have made sure the Queen and Princess were safe before anything else.

"Ok everyone move out." Everyone started to move until Minako grabbed Rei's arm.

"What about me I wana help." Rei turned and said.

"I need you to go to our room. You'll be safe there." Minako shook her head.

"No I'm coming with you." Rei shook her head in the negative.

"No! you aren't trained for this, you don't have any military training Minako. You have to stay here." Minako began to object when Rei quieted her.

"I have to go now or people will die. Stay here, don't argue." With that Rei turned and began to run to catch up to the rest of the group who all began to run along with her. Minako stomped her foot and cried in frustration. Of course Rei would make her stay she didn't know that Minako had been secretly training with Kunzite. Rei thought the blond was still completely incompetent. "I don't care what she says I can help, I cant let her get hurt.' Minako thought as she ran towards her room. When the blond arrived she ran in and threw open a large old trunk digging to the bottom. A moment later Minako emerged with a glistening gold sword. It had been her Mothers back in her senshi days. Minako pulled the sword from its sheath and it glittered almost like golden diamonds. Slipping it back in its sheath Minako attached it to her hip and ran off in the direction of the Market as fast as she could go. She knew Rei and her friends were probably already battling the youma.

Minako arrived at the Market and in no time at all the blond realized something. Her friends were losing this battle. The head youma seemed to be able to summon minions that were powerful and keeping the senshi and Shitennou at bay. Rei was in direct battle with the head youma and Minako was terrified for her wife. Ami and Makoto were having a little trouble fighting their minions. Kunzite, Nephrite, Jadeite and Zoicite were barely holding their own. It was then that Minako noticed Zoicite and Jadeite were getting overwhelmed another minion youma appeared at Jadeites back hoping to catch him unawares. Minako sprinted into action pulling her sword she thrust it quickly into the youmas back, catching it unawares just before the creature slashed Jadeite from behind.

"Jadeite watch your back." Zoicite yelled as she noticed the youma minion then smiled as it fell revealing Minako standing with a blacked blood drenched glittering sword. Jadeite turned around quickly noticing the blond he smiled at her and yelled a thank you as he continued to fight a minion directly. Her friends continued to battle and Minako was just about to join Kunzite when she heard a chilling sound. Rei cried out in pain as the head youma sent a blast of dark energy at her. The ball of lightning energy crashed into Rei's side knocking her to the ground. Minako didn't even realize she was moving all she could think about was getting to Rei. She didn't think she would make it. The youma was standing directly above her wife hand of razor sharp talons raised to strike the final blow while the Martian Senshi was still dazed. Minako's heart almost stopped as she watched the youma's deadly arm descend. A millisecond, a millisecond slower and Minako wouldn't have made it. The blond lunged forward blocking the talon strike with her sword, holding the hand above her wife who turned her head at the sound of the block. Rei's eyes widened watching Minako and the youma struggle. A battle of strength with Minako pushing the sword up as the youma attempted to continue slashing down. Minako knew she was loosing this dangerous tug of war. The youma was just way more physically strong them Minako was. The youma's talons were just a hairs breath from Minako's face. The blond grunted in pain as they descended a little lower, slowly cutting into her cheek. She didn't know what to do the youma was going to win. Suddenly Minako loosened the grip of one of her hands on the sword allowing the youma to cut deeply down her jaw and a little into her neck as she pressed her hand as close to the youma as possible without actually touching it then Minako yelled.

"Venus Love Me Chain!" a razor sharp chain lunged out of the blonds hand straight through the youma. The monster screamed in pain jerking back from the blond. Rei started to get up she knew Minako had hurt the youma badly and now was the time to get it. The Martian was just standing upright to perform an attack when the youma reached out grabbing the chain still through its own body and jerked Minako towards it. The blond doubled over in pain as she felt the youmas talons stab straight into her. Slicing through the side of her abdomen. She screamed the pain was so intense she had never felt anything like it before. Tears slipped from her eyes as her head raised looking for the final blow that would end her pain. It never came, instead she saw the youma scream in pain as it dissipated along to a previous yell of.

"Flame Sniper!" The youma minions disappeared once the youma was destroyed.

"Mina!" Rei yelled as she ran towards her now falling wife oblivious to the pain and bleeding of her own substantial injury. Minako's knees hit the ground, the blond gripped her side it hurt so much. Rei kneeled in front of her wife.

"Mina, Minako oh god." Rei said as she lifted Minako's face noticing the long cuts on her jaw and neck. Quickly Rei started to pick Minako up knowing she had to get to the infirmary fast. Minako was just bleeding to much. Rei screamed in pain as she attempted to lift her injured wife. Falling back to the ground Rei gripped her own side she was burnt and bleeding. The Martian was way to injured to carry someone.

It wasn't a moment before Rei realized she didn't need to worry as Kunzite came forward lifting Minako into his arms. Rei looked him in the eyes and said.

"Run…please she's bleeding to much." Kunzite nodded and despite his own injuries, which were much less than Rei and Minako's, sprinted towards the palace. Looking towards the ground Rei noticed the white rose that Minako had given her, the rose Rei had put behind Minako's ear. Rei grabbed the stem as Jadeite arrived to carry her. The blond general didn't care that his own arm was bleeding profusely or even listen to Rei's protests he just grabbed her and ran knowing that even though Rei wouldn't admit it she was hurt almost as bad as her wife. Makoto and Zoicite helped an injured Nephrite slowly towards the palace as Ami ran to catch up knowing her medical skills would be needed. All hoping their friends were ok. Ami caught up to Kunzite and Jadeite easily since she had minor injuries and wasn't carrying anybody. Entering the infirmary Ami instructed.

"Put Minako here. Rei here." Rei looked at Minako in the bed next to her, the blond was unconscious and very pale. Quickly Ami had Minako hooked up to all sorts of machines along with a new supply of blood. Another doctor began to do the same to Rei. The Martian wasn't even paying attention she was just watching Ami work on Minako. The strange doctor soon began to strip Rei of her clothing and Rei noticed. It hurt so much as he peeled the burnt shirt from her wound and began to clean and bandage it, but Rei's attention was soon back on her wife as a incessantly loud beeping began to emit from one of her machines.

"Shit" Ami yelled "She's coding" Tears slid from Rei's eyes as she watched. Rei's doctor ran towards a machine wheeling it over to her wife as Ami climbed onto Minako's bed straddling the blond she began to pump her arms down furiously against Minako's chest attempting to keep the blood flowing from Minako's heart. Rei reached over as far as she could without falling from her own bed and interlaced her fingers with her wife's. Tears were clouding her vision as she whispered to her unconscious wife.

"Please Mina, don't go." Ami moved from Minako's body as the other doctor readied the machine.

"Rei let go, he's going to try to start her heart again you cant be touching her." Rei let Minako's hand slip from her grip as the doctor placed paddles onto Minako gripping the disheveled white rose to her chest.

"Please" Rei whispered again. "Don't go were I cant follow you." Minako's body jolted against the electricity the machine thrust through her. The beeping continued.

"Again" Ami said. The doctor charged the paddles and emitted the shock again. After a moment the continuous beep of the machine slowed to a much more steady beat indicating Minako's heart beating on its own. Ami immediately continued to work on Minako's wounds. The bluenette practically performed surgery on Minako right there. Rei was amazed at Ami's skill and soon Minako and Rei were both all patched up and bandaged then moved to the intensive care unit of the infirmary. All of their friends came to visit even though Minako had yet to wake up. It turned out Ami, Makoto and Zoicite had only bumps, bruises and cuts to deal with. Nephrite had a broken leg and stab wound to the shoulder. Jadeites arm was cut badly but Ami was able to keep it operational and Kunzite had a concussion along with a few nasty cuts but other then that Rei and Minako were the only ones seriously injured in the battle, all the victims regained their life energy once the youma was defeated.

Rei awoke in the middle of the night, the raven couldn't sleep. Getting up slowly so as not to aggravate her wound the Martian stood going to the other side of her bed she leaned against it pushing as hard as she could. The bed creaked across the floor until it came into contact with the one next to it. Once the bed was moved to her satisfaction Rei placed the beaten up white rose onto Minako's bed side and slowly got back into the bed scooting over as far as she could the raven haired Princess slipped her arm around Minako's waist, being careful not to injure her wife further, she placed her forehead up against Minako's shoulder.

"Please wake up Mina. Please…I…I just I need you here annoying me. Please wake up." Rei pleaded.

Rei sat in Minako's room watching her wife sleep. Well it wasn't sleep really sleep was something you awoke from. Minako had yet to wake up even three days later. Ami walked into the room and immediately noticed Rei still there.

"Why is she healing so slow Ami? I'm almost totally healed but she looks like she was just injured yesterday?" Rei said suddenly as if she knew Ami was there. Ami sighed she would never get used to Martians ability to practically see the future.

"I had to do surgery on her I would imagine that slows down the healing, plus she lost so much blood that we had to give her some, of course it wasn't senshi blood its not like we have a lot of that to spare so its diluted her senshi powers a little. She is healing at a more normal humanoid rate as opposed to our accelerated senshi rate." Rei turned to look at the blue haired doctor.

"Will she be that way forever?"

"No, just for a while. Then her powers will once again flow through her veins fully and the accelerated healing will return." Rei nodded.

"When will she wake up?" Ami sighed.

"I don't know she was hurt very bad had she not been a senshi she would be dead right now I guarantee it." Rei laughed sadly.

"Its sad isn't it, she's been in that situation once before. If she wasn't a senshi she would be dead. I just wish she would wake up." Rei whispered as she took Minako's hand gently.

"Rei you need some rest, your still healing too and you haven't slept in days." Ami said.

"I wana stay here." Rei said tiredly. Ami shook her head.

"No Rei I am putting my foot down. Go to your room, take a shower, get a few hours of sleep and something to eat then you can come back. But until you do that I'm banning you from Minako's room."

"Ami…" Rei began to contest.

"Don't make me get Makoto. You might be able to take me but you most defiantly cant take us both most especially with your injury." Rei glared at the Mercurian. Then stood and headed towards her room in a huff. Ami sighed she knew Rei just wanted to be there when her wife woke up, but Ami wasn't going to let Rei kill herself because she was worried. Ami knew Minako was a fighter and fully believed the blond was going to wake up. The Mercurian just wanted to make sure Rei was healthy when the blond finally decided to awake.

Rei stormed toward her room on the way she asked a servant if they could bring her a meal to her room. The servant happily agreed and went in search of some food for the Martian. When Rei reached her room she slammed the door, quickly jumping into the shower hoping she could get this resting out of the way quickly so Ami would let her back in Minako's room. The Martian Princess smiled as she exited her bathroom and noticed a tray of food on the coffee table. Rei hastily slipped on one of Minako's useless night dresses and sat to eat her meal, gulping the food down quickly without even really tasting it. Once the food had disappeared Rei slipped into bed hoping a few hours of sleep would get Ami off of her back and Rei back at Minako's side.