A/N: WOOOOT! Chapter fourteen! Super excited to be posting this one. As you can see, this chapter also features the artist in the title. Mainly because there is another chapter by the same name that will be coming up, but it is based off of a different song with the same title. So, sit back and enjoy this ride.
WARNING: This chapter contains Dark themes, violence, adult language, and other stuff. It's rated M for a reason folks, but this one is still fairly tame. I seriously will be livid if someone complains of the graphic nature by this chapter.
With love,
Korrupted.
Thanks to: All of my readers. You reading, favorite-ing, following, and reviewing is what keeps this thing going. All y'all are awesome. And possibly need some therapy. But then again, who doesn't?
Special thanks to: Bry, who is the world's best beta. I lovel you with extra lovels for letting me prod you at all hours to double check my work.
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN SAILOR MOON. Just I am fan-girling over the reboot next month. Who's with me on that?!
Makoto felt like the breath had been knocked out of her when the other Makoto singled out the warriors of flame and ice as her first targets. "Iie... You.. You leave them alone." She demanded breathlessly, removing her hand from the surface of the glass as Dark Makoto laughed insanely.
The unhinged woman opted to taunt the helpless warrior, giggling wildly as she folded her arms under her chest. "Hmmmm, which one first... I think I'll kill pretty little Ami-chan first, nice and quick. She's far too weak and her poor mind just would be able to stand torture, after all. I'll try to make it as painless as possible for you, Mako."
*Thudthudthudthud*
Makoto felt her heart pounding fiercely in her chest, taking a step away as her fists clenched and unclenched, rage coursing through her. "Iie... You keep away from them..." She hissed angrily, her emerald hues flashing in fury. The warrior wasn't trying to control her hate and rage, her body almost humming as the powerful emotion kept building inside of her.
Dark Makoto laughed, her grin impossibly wide with mirth. "Hai~! And as for Rei..." The name was spat out like venom. "I will make it slow. She will be begging for death long before I even consider granting it to her."
Makoto felt something inside of her snap, her right fist rearing back as she screeched in pure rage. "IIE!" And shot her balled fist forwards with every ounce of strength in her body towards the barrier that separated then, uncaring about whatever pain she might feel as a result.
However, it hit the glass and the mirror exploded outwards, Dark Makoto shielding her face with her arms from the sharp fragments of reflective glass. After the tinkling of mirror pieces hitting the tile had come to a stop, the slightly cut woman lowered her arms to look at the only piece of mirror that had remained in the frame to see the girl snarling and panting. With a contemptuous huff, she grinned, speaking in an amused voice. "That temper is really wasted on you, Mako. Don't go anywhere. I'll be back soon." And stalked off.
After being left alone, Makoto realized that the blinding agony of breaking the glass never came, studying the result of her outburst of anger. Her hand was fine, the fragments everywhere in the bathroom, and only one chunk left in the frame. Her pure anger had allowed her to smash through the barrier of her prison. However, the warrior of protection couldn't dwell that fact as her friends were counting on her. She turned and quickly began ducking into portals, trying to locate Rei before Dark Makoto could; she could feel a swell of power as the other version transformed into Dark Jupiter, a wave of insanity flooding her for a moment before vanishing. The rush of unstable thoughts had left her winded, a very tiny part of her almost feeling hopeless, that she was just human and she too needed someone to fight for her. Not with her, but for her.
The brunette shook her head to clear her thoughts, taking a deep breath in through her nose before keeping on with her task. Everyone's lives depended on her being strong, and she couldn't live with herself if she failed them.
Rei was pacing in her bedroom, mentally drained from calling everyone to explain that Makoto was still in there, though unable to control the body. Demios and Phobos had been cryptic with their assistance, the miko wanting nothing more that to throttle the fiery birds from their lack of clarity. Out of the corner of her eye, the raven haired priestess could have sworn that she had seen something move in her mirror, turning to face the item in question curiously. She took a few hesitant steps closer, her violet eyes growing wide in shock as the faint image of Makoto seemed to fade into view, the tall warrior yelling at her soundlessly through the glass that separated them, Rei's own reflection stil on the surface. "Makoto! Mako-chan, what's happening?!" She yelled, trying to somehow claw her way through the glass to get to her.
Makoto could sense the building attack from the body of Dark Jupiter that had to be near, shouting for the other girl to run, transform, duck, but it seemed that the miko couldn't hear a word of it. It was overwhelming, the power that was being collected in what she knew was the form of electric green edged black energy. Rei wouldn't survive that kind of attack. Once again, the senshi of protection delved into her rage, her fury that the darkness within her was daring to threaten someone she cared about, someone she was still trying to fight the feeling of love for. Her emerald eyes shone in a blazing fire of her rage, her fists clutched together as she lifted them over her right shoulder while widening her stance for added force. "GET DOWN!" She roared, swinging the fists at the glass with all the anger and force she could.
"GET DOWN!"
Rei heard the command clearly as if the woman she love had yelled it directly into her ear, the shrine maiden instantly dropping to the tatami mats the moment her mind fully processed the order. Seconds later, the glass seemed to explode from her mirror, followed by her window as glass fragments rained down onto her to leave small cuts and thin lines of blood here and there on her fair skin. Above her, she could hear and feel the crackle of electricity, not needing to look up to know that a bolt of lightning had passed over her. Violet eyes remained closed until she heard a chair shatter, her eyes darting up cautiously once the hail of shards ended to see another chair launch out her now broken window as if hurled by an unseen force. For the briefest of moments, Rei saw the spectral figure of Makoto reaching for the cast iron teapot as her next projectile, the powerful fighter's face etched in anger before she vanished from sight. "Mako..." The young woman breathed, hearing a loud bellow of pain as the pot was hurled out the window and struck the target.
"MAKO! Stop fighting me! It's for your own good that I kill her! She betrayed you! She'll do it again and again until one of you is DEAD!" She clearly could tell that the voice belonged to Dark Jupiter, Rei knowing that Makoto may soon run out of ammunition or energy.
And yet, the knowledge that a small, evil, unstable part of the brunette soldier truly did believe that Rei would only betray and leave her was like a blade in her heart. She would never dare to betray her! And yet, the shrine maiden had to escape before the other woman forced her way past the flying obstacles, crawling to the door as she heard a yelp of shock from outside. Dark Jupiter seemed to have been caught off guard by something, giving Rei the chance to scurry into the main shrine for safety, speaking loudly, "Mars power, make-up!"
Her miko clothing was replaced by the crisp white fuku, red pumps, bib, and skirt, and purple bows, Sailor Mars darting out quickly to see the Sailor Uranus standing a good distance from Dark Jupiter, the butch woman looking like the poster child for conflicted as she kept herself planted within the insane senshi's sight. "Kitten...? Mako, can you hear me?" Uranus questioned in an uncertain voice, her deep blue eyes betraying her worry.
Sailor Venus raced up with Artemis in hot pursuit, her eyes wide in shock. "I saw Mako-chan in my mirror, and I knew something was wrong!" Zoisite skid to a halt next to her, holding his curved blade warily as he watched the brunette snarl at the open air in front of her, snapping her teeth at nothing like a rabid dog while the other senshi and shitennou arrived.
Dark Jupiter was watching Makoto furiously, enraged that the girl had forced her way into the physical world and was now fighting against her, a grin that was as cold as it was unstable moving slowly across her lips as she held her naginata in front of her body defensively. She was tuning the world out to try and fend off the other her, giggling from time to time between the growls. "See? See?! They want to kill us! They only will keep betraying us over and over again until they kill us. You sacrificed yourself to save your princess and what did they do?! They LEFT us there to SUFFER. Heeheeheheh... We have to kill them first. We do! Even your precious Ami-chan and Rei-chan are ready to end us!" The deranged warrior babbled to the spectral form of the fighter, her emerald hues shifting around but always settling back to where the girl only she could see was standing.
Makoto was standing before Dark Jupiter, still clad in that same gi that she had been wearing when she had surrendered to the evil psyche, her hands raised in a fighting stance. Her gaze was filled with that intoxicating rage that threatened to pull her under it's influence and sweep her away into the unstoppable power of insanity, but she was taking slow, steady breaths to keep that shred of rational thinking that would anchor her mind in sanity. Her teeth were bared in clear fury, mind squared off against body as Makoto spoke, her voice laced with anger. "Iie. They are not here to kill us out of spite. They are here to stop us. Even if they are forced to kill us. However, I am going to level that playing field now!"
The unstable eyes of the evil senshi darkened substantially as the other girl lunged, her left hand sweeping back as black lightning edged in electric green crackled along her form and began to also collect in her hand. "Dark," The attack was building, almost sucking away light from around the cruel soldier as if to accentuate her fall from the side of good. "Lightning!" She shouted menacingly, throwing her hand forwards to toss the attack like a baseball at the specter, cackling like a hyena in sadistic glee.
Makoto bellowed angrily as she caught the attack and hurled it into the concrete below, diving into the body as the two minds waged war for control. Limbs jerked as the weapon dropped to the broken ground, clattering noisily as her body swayed with the force of the internal struggle. Green eyes were wide and unfocused, odd gurgling sounds escaping her throat as Dark Jupiter twitched and staggered about. The black lightning that danced across her skin now had a few bolts of that pure blue tinted white among them, all eyes on the soldier of Jupiter before she gasped loudly.
Kunzite held his sword aloft as trembling hands extended out in a non-threatening gesture, the warrior's green hues full of panicked need. "Please! Please, you have to stop me! She'll kill you all! Rei-chan! Ami-chan! Haruka-san! Please! She's insane!" They heard her beg, the voice unmistakably Makoto's as tears trailed from her eyes. Her form was shaking harshly, as if each second of being in control was a battle.
Sailor Neptune spoke for her speechless lover, replying swiftly, "Mako, we will subdue her, you know that. You will be fine." The grimace of pain that caused the powerful brunette's features to scrunch up did not go unmissed. "We will help you!"
The warrior of courage was fighting so hard to keep talking, Dark Jupiter struggling to take over again just as fiercely. "IIE! Michiru... You must kill me! Please, please, don't let me kill you all!" She was sobbing silently, her face a bit splotchy from her tears. "I have killed three people already, don't let me kill any of you next... I couldn't bear it..."
Sailor Moon could feel her heart breaking as she watched the young soldier beg them to kill her, the girl she had befriended three years ago pleading with them to stop her from harming them. She could clearly recall when Makoto had beaten up those three punks in front of her, the tall girl a pariah to most of the students due to her brash attitude and boyish air. And yet, she was kind, gentle, but firm if needed. Trying to always be the one in front of the group to defend them all from harm and attack those who threatened them. The first to be injured, and almost always the most battered. But Sailor Moon felt as though this was the one time that she had failed the courageous senshi. Makoto had been the one who had needed to be saved for once, and the blonde princess had let her down so horribly that now they all were paying the price of her failure; forced to choose between killing their friend or dying at her hands. "M-mako-chan... I... Gome-"
She was cut off by a hollow chuckle escaping the Jupiter senshi. "Iie. No more apologies, Sailor Moon. I chose to stay behind that night. I chose to sacrifice myself to save you. I would make the same choice over and over again, Princess." She grunted in pain as her body jerked, the struggle for control starting anew. "KILL ME! Please, just kill me!" She shouted, the sound wrought with pain.
Sailor Mercury was sobbing, unsure of how she would go about killing the girl she loved, seeing her expression of doubt and reluctance mirrored in the faces of the others. None of them could think of an attack, as if they all were trapped in a surreal dream and this all had to be a trick. However, black lightning gathered around her before lashing out at the struggling senshi of storms, a strangled screech of pain tearing from her throat as she jerked violently, slumping to her hands and knees before a tiny chuckle started up. The soft sound was slowly growing in intensity, building until the sounds of insane laughter seemed to envelope them all.
Dark Jupiter was jerking a bit from the lightning that had thrown Makoto back out of control, her head lolling on her neck like a puppet the had a string or two severed, her twitching hand grasping her weapon. "Ohhhhh Mako. You shouldn't have tried to do that. Silly, silly girl. Now I'll torture them all~!" She taunted in a sing-song voice, laughing riotously as she twirled the weapon in her hands idly.
The evil entity could sense the girl stirring within her mind, the warrior feeling weak and helpless as she recovered from the blast. Makoto couldn't help the sensation of being the one who needed to be saved this time, and Dark Jupiter noted that despite her pleas the girl didn't want to die. However, the dark version wasn't about to test that theory, dashing at the other senshi to attack them full-out, growling and laughing all the while as her blades swung at them viciously.
Nephrite blocked the downswing that had been ready to cleave him in two, jumping aside to dodge the upswing of the other blade only to have her boot connect with his head. He staggered about as a bolt of black lightning flashed out to knock him back, groaning as he twitched. However, he could sense the hesitation in the tall warrior's motions, the fact that she didn't run him through with her cruel naginata a testament to the other Makoto trying to save her friends. Hazily, Nephrite watched as she hit Neptune with the flat of one of the blades hard across her face, sending the aqua haired woman sprawling to lay several yards away. "MICHIRU!" Uranus screamed, rushing at Dark Jupiter to launch a barrage of punches at the brunette, her face twisted in fury as the green eyes gauged her attacks.
The strike to her gut caused the butch blonde to double over, the charged bolt of lightning that followed sent her flying into a tree to slide to the ground unconscious. Sailor Venus, Zoisite, Kunzite, and Jadeite all rushed at the snarling warrior, but the Jupiter soldier had been waiting for them. "JUPITER OAK EVOLUTION!" She shouted, sakura petals swirling about her form to flash out at them, each pink blossom laced with the black lightning, watching as they were all taken down with ease. Her sights leveled on Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen, whipping more of the petals at them to send them careening into trees. "FIRE SOUL!"
Dark Jupiter had to dodge to the side as the jet of flames struck where she had been standing, the brunette's features a dark scowl of insane hatred as she looked at the soldier of passion. "I knew you would betray us. I knew it. She kept herself so guarded, but she was letting you in." The words were growled out dangerously, the raven haired woman stiffening. Could she kill this woman like she had been begged? Sailor Mars wasn't sure, but before she could say a word, Dark Jupiter spun around to grab Mercury as she charged at her and toss the bluenette into her, the both of them knocked to the ground.
Sailor Mars slowly extracted herself from the senshi of wisdom, standing up as she realized that they were in the fight of their lives. The evil senshi grinned at the two women standing and watching her, Mars whispering to herself, "We're not ready to die." As she watched Dark Jupiter hoist her pole-arm and aim one of the blades directly into the sky, a look of unstable triumph on her face.
"JUPITER..."
Makoto felt her breath catch as she recalled the same building attack from the dream that had nearly ended her life. She began to draw in every ounce of courage and strength that she kept within her, knowing exactly what she had to do.
"...BLACK..."
The skies were turning an eerie black-ish green, the senshi of courage knowing that as much as she wanted someone to save her, she had to dig deep into herself and find the guardian that had been hidden away from all of her traumas, unleashing the power that was buried inside of her heart.
"STO-" "IIE!"
Makoto released a shock-wave of power directly into the earth below her body, the concrete exploding upwards and forcing Dark Jupiter to halt the attack, the power fading as she used her arms to shield her face from the debris. The brunette took advantage of the distraction and forced herself back into control of the body, both hands gripping the metallic staff part of her weapon, tears running down her grimy cheeks. She knew this was the end for her, that to end this she had to die. But Makoto was oddly okay with that. Her eyes focused on Sailor Mercury and she felt a hollow pang of sadness that she would be leaving the gentle bluenette, but when her gaze turned to Mars, Makoto's heart broke. She would never have a chance to tell her how much she cared for her, to figure out if she would be willing to truly fall in love with the miko. Dark Jupiter took full advantage of her regret, hissing in her mind to her, "What are you doing? You're just going to die now?"
A sorrowful smile cross Jupiter's lips, speaking her answer aloud, her emerald hues sliding shut. "I am ready to die to protect them. If the body dies, then so do the both of us." Her grip tightened on the cruel looking double bladed naginata, both the metal bracers touching it. "Supreme Thunder!" She shouted, hearing a distant rumble in the skies.
Sailor Jupiter shook with the effort of remaining in control of the body, sweat trailing down her skin. She refused to open her eyes and take a final look at Rei; if she did, she might lose her resolve. The sound of thunder grew louder before she could sense the lightning flash from the heavens towards her, Makoto thinking sadly, 'Gomenasai, Rei-chan. I never got to tell you that I love you...'
Sailor Mars was staring on in horror at the tall girl, watching the lightning gather above her as the brunette remained in place, resigned to death. She could hear the other senshi and shitennou stirring, only to gasp at the sight that lay before them, their groggy minds slow to process the truth. And yet, the psychic found herself remembering the incredibly convoluted and cryptic words that her advisers had spoken to her at that moment; 'You must purify the place that birthed the insane courage.' What did that even mean? Her mind was reeling as the powerful girl called out her most trademark attack, the metal weapon turning her into a living lightning rod with no intention of releasing the electricity like she normally did. And then she noticed it; the origin of the green edged black lightning was Sailor Jupiter's abdomen. 'The place that birthed insane courage...' The location of where the tainted energy had been forced back into her months ago during the battle with the insane youma.
Sailor Mars watched the dark skies churn, brilliantly bright white lightning with hints of light blue crackled to life in the storm clouds, and she knew that she had one shot at this. If she was wrong, or if she failed, she would undoubtedly die. But if there was a chance to save Makoto, the miko was more than willing to risk it. As the bolt of lightning came crashing down from the heavens, Sailor Mars began to race full-tilt for the senshi of protection, ignoring the screams and demands of the others around her. All she could think about was getting Makoto out of the path of the lightning, lunging at her when she was only a yard away. "MAKO!" The warrior of flame cried out as she tackled the other woman around her waist and knocked her backwards, the bolt of energy striking the broken concrete and missing them both.
Mars sat up, straddling the amazonian and looking into her dazed green eyes, feeling how hard she was shaking below her. Makoto was scared and judging by the twitching corners of her mouth, still fighting to stay in control. She only had one shot at this, bracing her hands on the senshi of lightning's stomach over her black and gold fuku, whispering to her, "Shhh, it's okay, Mako-chan. I swear, I'm going to save you. Do you trust me?"
Sailor Jupiter jerked slightly from the internal battle, though nodded her head as she opened her mouth to speak to the raven haired miko. "R-rei... I... Gomenasai.. I sh-should have told yuh-you sooner that I-" The priestess once again shushed her, instead replying to her, "I know. I know." And planted a chaste kiss on her forehead, right above the tiara.
Once she pulled away, Sailor Mars took a deep breath, ignoring the pain from the weakened black lightning striking her palms as she spoke. "Youma Taisan!"
The flames pulsed out from her palms, striking the girl on her stomach at point-blank range, silently crying as Sailor Jupiter's face screwed up in horrible pain, hissing through clenched teeth until the sensation proved to be too much for her. She screeched in agony as the purifying fire coursed over her body, feeling the dark energy being burned away from within her until it was merely a speck of bitterness that simply was a part of her. The black of her fuku seemed to float away like ash to reveal the clean and pure white, the gold and torn materials vanishing into smoke, her black combat boots burning away back into the green ankle boots, and then returned to her civilian attire as she passed out. Finally, the guardian of fire scrambled off of the unconscious young woman, shaking in horror at the large amounts of heavy burns that covered the brunette through her slightly charred and smoldering gi, her violet hues wide in terror as she called out in panic, "Usagi! Usagi, please heal her!"
Sailor Moon seemed to snap back to reality from her horrified haze, rushing over and looking over the damage. Makoto was so badly injured, and part of her wanted to simply use the crystal, but instead summoned her harp, strumming several soothing cords over the girl. Slowly, the skin lost it's angry red tone as burns healed, injured organs were repaired, and the scent of charred flesh vanished from the air. However, a small patch of burn scars refused to leave the spot where the soldier of passion had placed her hands, marking the toned, sun kissed abdominal area permanently. The miko scooped up the young woman and ran for the hospital, still afraid for the girl. She had to ensure that she was safe now. She had to be certain that she had saved her.
*beep* *beep* *beep*
Makoto groaned at the strange beeping sound, trying to figure out why her whole body ached and why her alarm sounded so strange. What had happened? The smell of bleach, alcohol swaps, and far too much sterilization forced the girl to open her eyes and take in her surroundings. The hospital. She was back at the hospital. A weight on her left hand caused her bleary eyes to look for the source, finding Rei sleeping with her head on the side of the bed, holding her hand. The sight of the napping shrine maiden brought waves of memories crashing down onto the senshi of thunder, the images of her struggle against Dark Jupiter, her choice to sacrifice herself to save the others, Rei saving her by burning out the darkness. Makoto released a small hiss of pain as she sat up slightly, the origin her stomach as she moved the blankets and her gown to see burn scars on the skin, the size about seven inches wide and four inches high from where the girl had placed her hands. "Mako...?" A sleepy voice inquired, lazily blinking amethyst meeting clear emerald as the fighter replaced the blanket. "Hey. How are you feeling?"
The brunette granted her a small smile, her expression gentle. "Like I got hit by a fucking bus. But she's gone. It's over. Arigatou Kami-sama... It's finally over." Makoto breathed, relaxing a bit. No more whispers in her mind of murder and revenge, no more insane laughter to taunt her, no more demands of needing to protect her from the world. Just her own thoughts and her own mind.
Saeko Mizuno entered and pouted in irritation, her blue eyes locked with a now sheepish Makoto's. "Mako-chan, I swear to every single Kami that you are banned from being injured." The doctor informed her charge, taking note of the embarrassed grin that spread across her lips. "However, you are fine. You only have some burn scars on your stomach, but that's all. How are you feeling?" The warrior laughed softly, repeating the answer she had given Rei before hearing the elder bluenette chuckle. "Well, glad to hear you still have your sense of humor. Would you like to see the others?"
Green eyes flicked over to violet, then back to cerulean. "In ten minutes. I need to speak with Rei alone." The fighter responded, watching the woman smile and exit before she turned her attention to the girl that still held her hand. Silence seemed to stretch on forever between them before she finally whispered, "Why didn't you kill me? Rei, I could have killed you."
The miko drew in a sharp breath, her lips pressed into a thin line. "Because I couldn't... I couldn't handle knowing you were dead. I love you." Her eyes shone with unshed tears, clearly still upset. "It's bad enough that I scarred you, but to kill you? I just can't. I had to save you."
The tall girl softened her gaze, mulling over her own feelings for the raven haired woman. Did she have feelings for Rei? Most certainly. Was she in love with her? Makoto was hesitant to use that word, knowing how powerful it was and how she had already proved that she was a danger to everything she cared about. Was this just her feeling as if she owed the miko for saving her? That was unclear. Already, Makoto had almost told her that she loved her, but now that she was alive and once again blissfully alone in her mind she had to be sure. How could she hurt Rei with misplaced affections? "Rei-chan? I want to be honest with you. I think I love you, but a part of me is afraid to say that I do only to be wrong and hurt you." A finger pressed against her lips to silence her, Makoto blushing slightly at the gesture.
Rei was smiling sadly at her, clearly at war with her own desires. "Shhh. Rest. Recover. I would love to date you, but only if you are ready."
The green eyed woman smiled with gratitude. "Three days. Please, just give me three days." A timid nod in replay was all she was granted before the door burst open, the other senshi storming in, swiftly followed by the shitennou. They would have to finish this talk after everything died down, the miko removing her finger.
"Eh, Mako-chan! Next time you should pull your punches a bit more." Haruka teased, her lover swatting her shoulder. "Haruka, leave the poor girl alone. We both know she was doing all she could." Michiru scolded.
She had been right; Makoto had been fighting as hard as she could just to change her grip, or stance to make killing blows non-lethal. Just causing the flat of the blade to strike Michiru had been almost impossible. At least they were all safe now. Ami took note of how Rei was holding Makoto's hand, her heart sinking at the fact that the tall brunette wasn't even trying to remove her hand. It seemed that Makoto had made her choice, but the bluenette wouldn't give up so easily, her azure eyes turning to glance at her hands as they remained folded in her lap. Maybe, just maybe, the tomboy would decide that Rei wasn't right for her and choose the senshi of wisdom instead.
Nephrite could almost read the bluenette's thoughts from her small fidgets, closing his eyes in defeat slowly. He was doomed to forever love a woman who essentially never knew he loved her. It was painful, but as long as he had breath in his body, the general would forever wait for Ami and care for her any ways she needed. He didn't care if his efforts paid off or not, just that he could always be anything she needed him to be.
A/N: Nephrite needs an award for Friend-zoning. Don't forget to review, favorite, follow, rage, sob, over-turn heavy tables, or whatever you do after reading this. The next chapter is already underway, but I am going to be finishing up the coat for my cosplay first. Mainly since that is the final piece to create and then I am done. Super excited for Otakon! See y'all!