Chapter 7: A Challenge

Koaru leapt through the air, rushing towards a dark red glow on the roof of a skyscraper. Leaping into the side of the building, he planted his foot against the surface and leapt up, soaring up the side of the tower, heading for the top. Reaching up, he grabbed the edge of the roof and yanked himself over the side, landing on the roof in a crouch. His white jacket whipped out behind him as a blast of air ran into him; instinctivley he held Kameharu out to the side, channeling energy into the blade.

The source of the light had come into view at last; a man in dark armor with burning red eyes floated in the air in the center of the tower. A second blast of air rocketed from the man, causing Koaru to slide back towards the edge slightly. Tearing his eyes away from the man, he saw a new sight; one that froze his core like ice. Sailor Moon lay on the ground before this man, unmoving. Sailors Mercury and Jupiter were frozen in a redish crystal-like cross, both with their heads hanging forward, neither one moving. Sailor Venus was slumped over against Jupiter's cross, a dark red mixing into her golden hair. Sailor Mars sat in front of him, her body quivering as she slowly backed away, her eyes wide in terror. Beside Sailor Moon stood Tuxedo Mask, leaning heavily on his cane, half of his mask sliced off, a long red line on his face that was flowing freely down to his clothes. And directly between himself and the man stood Sailors Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and Tenshi, each one kneeling over, seemingly exhausted.

Koaru stood and charged, his giant blade trailing through the air behind him as he leapt over Tenshi and the others, nearing the red eyed man. Without warning Kameharu yanked him straight down, smashing into the roof and embedding itself in the concrete surface. Cursing, Koaru tugged at the sword, but couldn't budge it. Abandoning the sword, he turned his eyes back to the man as the light surrounding him intensified. Shielding his eyes, he felt the rooftop crumble beneath his feet, free falling through the air as he heard Raye and Michelle scream. The energy in front of him burst into a blaze of red, and Koaru found himself fall into darkness, feeling and hearing nothing but silence.

Koaru jerked awake, covered in sweat, his heart pounding in his chest. Closing his eyes again and running his left hand over his face, he sighed deeply, attempting to calm himself. He heard a slight moan, followed by a shifting motion beside him. Opening his eyes and looking to his right, he saw Lita fast asleep, her arm over his chest and his arm around her shoulders, his hand resting on her upper back. Realization slammed into Koaru as he remember what had happened the previous evening, along with the fact that they two of them were both completely naked. Sighing, he lay back and gently pulled Lita closer, turning his head enough to face her and softly kissing her forehead, causing her to shift slightly, her hand on his chest closing into a gentle fist. Moving his left hand overtop of hers and slipping his fingers between hers, he gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

Slowly Lita's eyes opened, locking onto Koaru's. Rolling over onto her back and pulling the blankets over her chest, smiling sleepily at the Guardian.

"Everything alright?" she asked as she sat up slightly and brushed Koaru's hair out of his eyes. Koaru nodded, brushing his hand against her cheek before leaning forward and softly kissing her.

"Nothing serious," he said as he pulled away, stroking her hair. Lita smiled and turned away from Koaru, getting out of the bed and pulling on her house robe.

"I'm going to go make something to eat." she said as she left the room, and Koaru smiled. Looking around, he spotted a second house robe and slipped out of the bed, grabbing it and following Lita into the kitchen.

Tenshi and Amy watched as Serena spoke to Mina on the phone, both them feeling nervous as they watched the girl's expression grow more and more shocked as her cheeks slowly burned red.

"Umm...alright, thanks Mina." Serena said as she hung up the phone and turned to face Darien as he sat up from her bed.

"Everything alright Serena?" he asked as he got up and walked over to her, setting his hands on her shoulders.

"Umm, we know where Koaru is," she said slowly, her face turning redder, "but...it's not exactly...umm..." she trailed off, and Amy felt her heart skip a beat.

"Is he alright?" she asked, rubbing up against Tenshi for support. Serena looked to Darien and leaned up, whispering into his ear. Tenshi felt baffled as Darien's face turned as red as Serena's.

"Seriously, where the hell is he?" he asked, and Serena blurted out the answer.

"He spent the night with Lita!" she said, burning blood red. Amy and Tenshi looked confused.

"That's a big deal why?" Tenshi asked, and Darien cleared his throat.

"She means that he...well...spent the night with her...in the same bed."

Amy's face flared pure red, her eyes wide in shock before she went limp and passed out. Tenshi caught her and held her, shaking her slightly.

"Amy? Amy! Wake up! What's wrong?"

"Wow," Luna said, sweat dropping as she watched the events unfold. "I thought Serena would be the one to pass out."

Koaru stood in the kitchen with Lita, standing at the stove as he fried up some vegetables in a pan while Lita pulled extra leftovers from the fridge and warmed up the rice from the night before.

"How are things going over there, Koaru?" she asked as she carried over some meat and set it beside him. Pulling the frying pan off of the burner, he turned and embraced Lita, picking her up as he kissed her.

"The food is almost ready," he said as he set her down and turned back to the stove, tossing the meat into the frying pan and placing it back on the burner. Lita turned her head as the phone suddenly rang. Walking over and picking it up, she answered before turning back to Koaru, looking worried.

"It's for you," she said, covering the mouth piece with her hand. "It's Tenshi."

"Huh?" Koaru asked as he walked over and took the phone from her. "Hello?"

"You son of a bitch!" Tenshi's voice came over the line, causing Koaru to jump slightly. "Your actions have put Amy into shock! She passed out and isn't waking up!"

Koaru sighed, smiling slightly. "Look pal, whatever I do is my own damn buisness. And you're over reacting to this whole thing, she'll be fine in a few hours."

"Stop acting like this is nothing! You and I are throwing down! Tonight at the harbor, be there!"

Koaru tried not to laugh as Tenshi hung up, feeling that the man was way too serious about nothing. Hanging up Lita's phone, he walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"No need to worry," he said as he walked back to the stove. "Just Tenshi wanting to get his ass kicked."

"What's going on?" Lita asked, still feeling nervous. Koaru sighed.

"I think someone walked in and saw us, and now Tenshi is freaking out about it."

Lita felt her face burn pure red, wondering how she would explain this to everyone.

Tenshi hung up the phone, trying not to laugh. Serena stared at him, shocked.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I have always wanted to get mad over something small like this!" he laughed as he stood and walked over to Serena's bed where Amy lay, still out cold. "She will be fine, right?" he asked nervously.

"Yeah, she should be fine in about an hour or so," Darien said as he replaced a cold cloth on her forehead. Looking back over to Tenshi as he walked to the door, he spoke. "What are you going to do now?"

"Test him," Tenshi said, smiling as he took the gem out of his pocket and examined it. "Test him and see how weak he actually is."

"Tenshi," Serena said, turning and facing the Knight. "Please don't hurt him too badly."

Tenshi tightened his fist before bowing his head.

"Very well," he said as he turned and left the room. As he walked down the hallway, he relaxed his fist and sighed. "Sorry, your Highness," he whispered, pausing at the foot of the stairs, "but like I told Amy, whether he lives or dies is not up to me. It's up to him."