Unpleasant Surprises
        The Dark Lord Saga, Chapter Five
                 by Rick Federle
                         
     
          As she awoke, Sailor Venus heard the sound of her love
     signing softly.  The words were barely above a whisper, just loud
     enough for her to hear, and she could feel the vibrations through his
     chest where her head rested.  In the song was a note of sadness, as
     if something irreplaceable had been lost and could never be again.
          As he sang, his right hand stroked the hair on the back of
     her head with a soothing steadiness.  His other arm held her close
     against him, as close of an embrace as she could remember.  She
     left her eyes closed, remaining still so as not to disturb him in any
     way as he sang.
          She felt his sadness, his longing for other times, of what
     should have been but never could be.  As the song ended, she felt
     his love for her once again across the link they shared and the
     gentle presence of his lips pressed against the top of her head in a
     love filled kiss.
          She gave him a reassuring squeeze as he realized that she
     was awake.  "I don't recognize that song."  She said quietly,
     without either opening her eyes or moving her head.
          "It's a Guardsman's last song."  He whispered to her,
     removing his lips only fractionally from the top of her head.  "The
     song sung when one of us is laid to rest."  He told her as he sat up,
     still cradling her against him.  "But they'll be no one to sing it for
     me when my time comes."
          She felt a rush of concern as she sensed his hopelessness
     return.  As she sat up he took his arms from around her, folding his
     hands in his lap, seeming to draw back into himself.  She raised her
     head to look at him, but his eyes remained downcast.  She put a
     finger under his chin and raised his face to look into his eyes. 
     "Nothing's going to happen to you."  She promised him.  "I'll be
     there with you."
          As he pulled his head back away from her hand, she sensed
     him agonizing over something.  He squeezed his eyes closed and his
     shoulders slumped as he lowered his head again.  She felt a wave of
     love and pain from him as he spoke again.  "You shouldn't go with
     me."  He said, his voice barely a whisper.  "If something happens to
     you . . . "
          "Nothing's going to happen to me."  She interrupted,
     feeling a surge of anger from herself and a rush of shame from him.
          He looked up at her, his eyes finally meeting hers.  He
     reached across the distance to her, pressing his right forefinger
     against her lips to still her.  "If you go with me, I could lose you
     forever."  He continued quietly, as if she hadn't spoken.  "As long
     as I know that you are safe, only if I know that you are safe, can I
     defeat the Dark Lord."
          He lowered his hand back into his lap, resting it over the
     other.  "You once promised me that everything would work out.  I
     promise you that.  And that I'll come back to you."
          She stared wordlessly at him for a moment, sharing his love
     and concern.  She was concerned about him, that she couldn't be
     there to make sure that he'd be okay.  She knew that he was
     concerned about her and that if something happened to her that he
     wouldn't be able to do what he must.
          She wanted to argue with him about it, to raise her voice at
     him and be upset with him over it.  But in the end, she knew that he
     was right. This could be the most difficult fight of his life and there
     wasn't anything that she could do to help him with it.  All she could
     do was be supportive of him and to show her love for him.
          Because in the end, he would have to stand alone.
          She let all the excess emotions flow from her and let her
     love and support for him fill her, letting it flow across the link to
     him.  "Do what you must, my heart;" she finally said.  "And I will
     be waiting for you when you return."
          She leaned forward and put her arms around him, hugging
     him tightly as she pressed her face against his chest.  He hugged her
     tightly in return, his face buried in her hair.  "I promise when I get
     back I'll take some time off and spend it with you."  He whispered
     into her hair.
          She squeezed him tighter in acknowledgment then let go of
     him.  "You'd better go now or I'll not want to let you go."  She
     told him as she pulled away from him and her eyes met his.
          She rose to her feet, taking his right hand in her left as he
     stood up with her.  Without another sound, they walked together
     outside and they paused there to share a short kiss.  She silently
     watched him walk off into the horizon, headed in the direction that
     they'd been told the Dark Lord laired.
          When he was gone from her sight, she went back inside, to
     the room they'd spent the night.  She sat on the bed, the pillow he'd
     used in the circle of her arms with her face resting against it.
          The scent of him still lingered in the fabric and as she sat
     there, her mind began to wander aimless in circles, each circle
     leading back to the man that shared her life.
          She reflected on how their relationship had grown since
     he'd returned.  She'd woken up in his arms, expecting to find death,
     but instead to find that love had returned to her.  That he had
     returned to her like he'd promised her so long ago.
          It had been like the end of a nightmare, waking up to find
     that all the pain and agony had been only a dream and that now
     everything was as it should be.
          He'd held her close, cradling her against himself like she
     was the most precious thing that ever was, and when she'd kissed
     him she'd been unable to contain her happiness.  The love that
     she'd thought lost forever was hers to share once again.
          In that moment, she'd wanted nothing other that to feel his
     arms around her, to hold him close, to be with him forever.
          That first evening together they'd been content to simply
     talk, to re-learn of the other.  To see how little the other had
     changed.
          Their first night together, feeling of contentment, the glow
     of warmth that she'd felt simply from being with him again.  That
     next day, she'd learned of his pain.  And it had become her own to
     share.  Even then he'd started becoming part of her once again, the
     beginning of a bond that would tie them together in a way that no
     one else ever could.
          The days spent together, the constant flirting, always
     hovering on the edge of physical intimacy.  The nights that they'd
     shared as he'd fought against the torture that the Negaverse had
     inflicted upon him.  She'd shared herself with him and he'd given
     himself fully to her in return.
          He'd denied her nothing, not even himself, nor would he
     ever.  He'd give her anything, do anything for her.  She'd become
     his heart and he'd become hers.
          She'd become his love, his joy, the center of all that he'd
     cared about.  They'd become like two suns, each orbiting around
     the other.  The existence of one centered around the other, each
     drawn irresistibly and held to the other in an unbreakable bond.
          Love had brought them together and made them one.
          As her mind returned to the present, she breathed through
     the pillow to inhale his scent again, but time had removed it from
     the fabric.  She glanced up in time to see the doorway open and a
     surge of hope at his return faded as she caught sight of Jupiter
     standing uncertainly on the other side of the doorway.
          "Queen Anna has invited us for dinner and Serenity wants
     everyone to come," Sailor Jupiter told her hesitantly.
          "All right." Venus agreed quietly.  She kissed the pillow
     softly, then gently returned it to the place where it had been.  She
     rose to her feet and walked across the room to the doorway.
          Jupiter made room for her in the hallway and then fell into
     step with her, leading her toward where Serenity and the others
     waited for them. The two curtsied minutely at the doorway before
     crossing the room to take their seats.
     
          The room was open with only a round banquet style table
     with eight chairs about it.   Several doorways led from the room,
     including the one that the two had just entered from.  A number of
     servants stood attentively nearby and two hovered next to a pair of
     unoccupied chairs, apparently intended for the remaining two
     members of Serenity's party.
          As they sat, a butler pushed in their chairs for them then
     disappeared from their sight.  "Forgive me, Majesty."  Jupiter said
     somewhat formally to Queen Anna as she settled herself.  "I had
     some trouble finding our Venus."
          "Where was she?"  Anna asked curiously as the meal was
     served.
          "Hiding in her room."  Jupiter explained.
          Venus absently frowned down at the meal, but wasn't
     hungry enough to bother.  "Is your meal not to your liking?"  Anna
     asked after a while.
          Venus gave her a wane smile.  "I'm not really hungry,
     Majesty."  She apologized.
          "I'm sure that your husband will return shortly."  Anna
     reassured her.  A twinkle appeared in the Siriusian queen's eyes.  "I
     was in love once, I know the feeling."
          A commotion appeared at the doorway, drawing everyone's
     attention toward it.  A pair of Dark Champions roughly shoved the
     servants and guards out of the way, headed for the table where the
     group sat.
          "What is the meaning of this intrusion?"  Anna demanded as
     the two Dark Champions stalked up to the table.
          One of the Dark Champions produced a cloth covered
     object, which it tossed into the middle of the table.  Venus suddenly
     had a sickening feeling in her stomach.  "The blade of the Warrior
     of Light."
     
          The ringing of the blade striking the table broke the sudden
     stillness left by the appearance of the Dark Champions, sending the
     Sailor Scouts, Serenity, and Endymion to their feet.  Queen Anna
     likewise rose to her feet.  She looked over at them with narrowed
     eyes as they prepared to defend themselves.
          Sailor Venus glanced around in confusion as her friends
     passed out and collapsed to the ground.  Anna's lips pursed in a
     smile at the sound of bodies striking the floor.  "You should have
     eaten with your friends.  Things would have been so much more
     pleasant for you if you had."
          "What have you done to them?"  Venus demanded,
     suddenly confused and very angry at the sudden turn of events.
          "I've just knocked them out."  Anna told her.  "They're not
     dead, yet."
          "Then it's you who is the Dark Lord."
          "Oh, yes."  Anna agreed pleasantly.  "And with your
     husband's death, the universe is mine."  Anna gave her a sinister
     smile.  "And so are you."
          "You witch!  I'll kill you!"  Venus screamed.  She didn't
     know how she got ahold of the blade that had been resting on the
     table a heartbeat before, but she raised it to shoulder height as she
     flung herself at the Siriusian queen with the intent to cut her to
     ribbons.
          Anna thrust her right palm at the enraged Sailor Scout,
     sending a spray of black energy into her chest.  Sailor Venus flew
     across the room and into the far wall.  The blade was flung from her
     hand as she slammed into the wall with enough force to shatter a
     normal human's spine.
          But Sailor Venus wasn't a normal human and she struggled
     back to her feet, rising unsteadily to confront the Dark Lord, her
     heart burning for revenge.  She paused long enough to wipe away
     the blood forming at the corner of her mouth.  "Venus Love and
     Beauty SHOCK!"  The last word came out a scream and the golden
     heart she released was brighter than normal, powered by her anger
     and pain.
          The Dark Lord made a downward cutting motion with her
     hand and the golden heart shattered, neatly cut in two.  The two
     halves dissolved as they fell toward the floor, but yet never reached
     it.  "She's not to be harmed."  Queen Anna commanded as several
     of her guards appeared out of the shadows.  "Yet."
          Sailor Venus turned back and forth as the guards began to
     encircle her and as she launched herself toward one of them, she felt
     something hard slam into the back of her head, sending her spiraling
     down into darkness.
     
                      * * *
                         
          Sailor Venus forced her eyes open and after a couple of
     seconds, they focused in the near darkness of the room.  She forced
     herself to sit up, wincing at the pain in the back of her head.  She
     reached back and gingerly touched the sensitive spot at the base of
     her skull to find a small lump had formed there.
          She winced again, pulling her hand away, and turned her
     attention to the room around her.  She was sitting on a stone slab,
     which seemed to be the only feature of the room except for the
     darkly glowing force field about six or so feet from the slab all
     around her.  The force field provided the only lighting for the room
     and that was barely adequate to see her hand in front of her face.
          She stopped to take an inventory and found that she was
     still powered up and moment determined that they'd taken nothing
     from her.  Nothing but the man she loved and the friends she cared
     about.
          She forced herself to concentrate on trying to get out of the
     cell that the Dark Lord had imprisoned her in and got up so she
     could walk to the force field that kept her penned up.  She reached
     out toward the field with her right hand, but paused as the field
     began to crackle and hiss as her hand neared it.  After a short
     hesitation, she decided that it wouldn't be a good idea to try to
     touch the field.
          "So the little princess is awake."  A mocking voice said.
          Sailor Venus turned around to find the Dark Lord standing
     on the opposite side of the cell on the other side of the force field. 
     "What do you want?"  Venus demanded.
          "I wanted to see how badly hurt you were."  Anna
     remarked.  "I've never seen anyone able to stand up to me like
     that."
          "When I get out of here . . . " Venus began.
          "You won't get out of here," the Dark Lord interrupted her. 
     "And neither will your friends.  But even if you could, it will be too
     late to save your husband."  Anna stepped back from the force
     field, disappearing from Venus' sight, but left the sound of her
     mocking laughter behind.
          "William."  Venus whispered, curling herself up on the slab
     and resting her forehead against her knees.  She began to sob
     uncontrollably as the realization sank in that she'd never see the
     man she loved again.
     
                      * * *
                         
          "Hey, Venus."  A familiar voice reached her ears.  She
     ignored it, wanting to be left alone.  "Come on, Venus."  The voice
     repeated.  "We've got to get out of here."  She realized as the
     speaker continued that it was Jupiter calling to her and not Anna to
     torment her again.
          "What?"  Venus looked up toward where the voice had
     come from.  Tuxedo Mask and the other Scouts stood nearby, and
     there was no force field visible.
          "Let's go."  Sailor Mars called to her urgently.  "Before the
     guards wake back up."
          Venus shook her head.  "Just leave me alone."  She
     whispered, resting her head back against her knees.
          "We're going to find out exactly what's going on around
     here."  Sailor Moon told her.
          "We've been tricked."  Venus told her without looking up. 
     "Anna's the Dark Lord."  She continued.  "And William's,
     William's . . . gone."  Her voice broke on the last word.
          Venus looked up as a gentle hand came to rest on her
     shoulder.  She looked into Sailor Moon's eyes, seeing the concern
     and compassion there.
          "Then she's going to pay for betraying us."  Sailor Moon
     said determinedly.  "And for betraying your love."
          "Right."  Venus agreed softly as Sailor Moon squeezed her
     shoulder.  "She's not going to get away with it."
          "Let's go, Venus."  Sailor Moon urged her and the two
     moved to join the others
          Sailor Venus ignored the various looks she got from the
     others.  "Let's go find her and kick her butt."
          "Before she finds us."  Mercury agreed.
          "Too late," came Anna's voice from the darkness in front of
     them.