[Scene: Utter darkness.]
[Zoi is dizzy and confused. He can't see. He can barely think. All he knows is that his face has been mashed into mossy bark. He tries to lift his head, but he can't move at all. He can't breathe. He can't get any air through his nose, and his mouth is filled with hot blood and he's choking on jagged bits of gravel. He spits out a mouthful and it takes him a while to realize that the gravel is probably his teeth. He runs his tongue across the top of his gums and there are just geysers of blood where his teeth used to be.]
[Not only are his teeth gone, he's certain he's broken every bone in his body. He's being crushed by something heavy. He hears something snarling at him.]
[Then a wave of euphoria washes over him as his bones start to knit and the bits of his skull snap back together like a jigsaw puzzle. He can feel himself healing. The stinging cuts close and the cartilage in his nose is straightening itself. Even his teeth are growing back to their former shape, fillings and all.]
[Zoi is not sure how much of his survival is due to his Shitennou nature and how much of it is due to healing, regeneration, and self-preservation spells Beryl, Kunzite–and even Nephrite– cast upon him, but this supports a theory of his: As a Shitennou he can no longer die of natural causes. He can only die of supernatural causes. ]
Mamoru: ZOI!
[He turns his head with great difficult and sees his bike on top of him, the wheels still whirling around. He then looks up and sees Mamoru running down the hill toward him, a look of abject terror on his face. Mamoru rushes over and lifts the bike off of Zoi.]
Zoi: [dazed but euphoric from the endorphins] Wow.
Mamoru: ZOI! ZOI, ARE YOU ALIVE?
Zoi: I'm great! Let's do it again!
[The bike is no longer on top of Zoi and he rolls over to breathe. There are chunks of bloody plastic and Styrofoam near his head. In his dazed state, it takes him a moment to realize that's all that's left of his helmet. ]
Mamoru: DON'T MOVE! YOU MIGHT HAVE A BROKEN SPINE!
Zoi: [smiles up at him] Oh, nonsense. I'm fine.
Mamoru: No! You are in shock!
Zoi: I'm ok. Really. I just fell off the bike. Stop worrying.
Mamoru: Um, Zoi? You're soaking in a pool of your own blood.
[Zoi sits up and sees a outline of himself in the bloody soil. Zoi feels his face, and his hand comes away sopping wet and dark red. He know how this must look to Mamoru, and feels terrible about that.]
Zoi: Oh, I'm sorry, Mamoru.
Mamoru: Why are you apologizing for bleeding?
Zoi: It's just a scalp wound. Those tend to bleed a lot. [Rises to his feet] See, I'm fine.
Mamoru: Don't move! I'm going to call 911 to have you airlifted to the hospital!
Zoi: I don't need to go the hospital. I fell and torn my scalp on a twig, but I'm fine. Really! See?
[He holds his arms out at his sides and twirls around, then touches the tip of his nose with a fingertip on each hand, one at a time]
[Mamoru considers]
Mamoru: Lift your shirt up.
Zoi: What?
Mamoru: I want to make sure you didn't rupture your spleen.
[Zoi raises his shirt to show he has no signs of internal bleeding]
Zoi: Happy now?
Mamoru: [begrudgingly] Here, take this.
[Mamoru pulls off his own t-shirt, already spotted with blood, wads it up and hands it to Zoi]
[Zoi is staring at Mamoru's athletic build like a deer in the headlight.]
Mamoru: Press the hem against the cut until the bleeding stops.
[The bleeding stopped a long time ago, but there is no easy way to explain that to Mamoru, so Zoi wads up the shirt and presses it to his forehead and continues to stare at Mamoru.]
Mamoru: What?
Zoi: Nothing. I hadn't realized it before, but you're sort of hot.
Mamoru: You hit your head pretty hard. Didn't you?
Zoi: I'm serious.
Mamoru: Then thanks, sort of.
Zoi: You're sort of welcome.
Mamoru: Ok, let's go.
[Mamoru grabs Zoi's bike and hauls it up the hill, keeping an eye on Zoi. Zoi looks back and sees the pool of Shitennou blood is already starting to evaporate into a shower of sparkles. Zoi faces forward so Mamoru won't look back to see what he's looking at.]
[Eventually they reach the road where Mamoru has parked the van.]
Mamoru: Ok, let's get you in the van.
Zoi: I'm honestly fine. Don't get worked up, it's just a little blood.
[Zoi gets into the passenger side.]
[Mamoru gets in the driver's side and looks him over]
Mamoru: Just a lot of blood.
[Zoi looks in the mirror and gasps. His hair is so saturated with blood he can't see what color it is.]
Mamoru: I'm taking you to the ER, whether you want to go there or not.
Zoi: Now think about this for a second. If you drag me kicking and screaming into the ER, looking like this, my dad is definitely going to hear about it. And he will probably shoot first and ask questions later.
Mamoru: Zoi, I think you need stitches. I'm not going to let you bleed to death.
Zoi: I won't. Trust me, I'm an easy bleeder. It's not as dire as it looks…[Holds up the shirt and touches the top of his head.] See. It stopped already.
[For a moment Mamoru seems unconvinced. Then he sighs.]
Mamoru: Ok, if you insist. But I'm not taking you home to your father looking like an extra in a zombie film. We're going to have to stop at my place to get you cleaned up and dispose of the evidence.