Amy's eyes slowly opened, her vision blurred. She felt extremely tired, and didn't know where she was. A cold chill gripped her, and she shivered violently, suddenly wide awake. She sat up, holding her aching head. She was feverish, and trembled, frightened. It was dark and a sickly looking moon hung in the eastern sky, but there were no stars. She was on the beach, with the murky pools of water on all sides. As she became more aware of her surroundings, she noticed an orange glow lighting the ground. Amy turned to see a fire behind her a few feet away. It was like a campfire, built carefully and made so it wouldn't spread too far. Amy scooted closer to the flames and warmed herself. She felt better, knowing that this fire was manmade, so someone must be taking care of her. But she was lonely; she missed her friends terribly.
Suddenly, she was hit by a realization. Her communicator! All the others had one, so Amy could use it to talk to them. Hopefully then they could find each other. Amy lifted her wrist and pushed the switch. "Sailor Scouts, come in! This is Amy. Can anyone hear me?" She released the button and was answered by a burst of static. Amy's hope died a quick death. The communicators must have been scrambled when we crossed dimensions, Amy thought miserably. I'm on my own, now. But then Amy remembered that someone else was here, maybe someone who could help her. She searched around the area, but couldn't find anyone nearby. All there was were rocks and scraggly trees.
Abruptly, Amy yawned, overcome with sleepiness. She curled up close to the fire and lied down, staring into the flames. Well, whoever was watching over her, they'd be around soon. Amy decided to wait around for them. It was wishful thinking, though, as in a few moments she was asleep.
A few minutes later, Cye returned with another bundle of dead sticks to keep the fire going. When night had fallen, the temperature had dropped quickly. It had been too cold to stay in the grove of rocks, so Cye had managed to scrape together enough wood to build a fire. He'd left the girl near the fire get more sticks and to scout out the area some more. He hadn't found much, though. He hadn't liked leaving the girl behind, weak as she was, but Cye had been reasonably confident that the fire would keep away wild animals. If there were any around, which he doubted.
Cye dumped the wood in a pile and took a few branches to the fire, tossing them in. The flames leapt up, consuming the wood. He sighed, shaking his head. The trees, although great for fires, were dried up and barren of leaves. He hadn't seen any birds or animals or even insects. What could have happened to this place to suck the life away? Cye wasn't sure he wanted to know.
He noticed the girl was now closer to the fire. She must have woken up, but was sound asleep now. Cye was relieved that she was getting better. Before night had fallen, she had gotten a bad fever, probably from being in the water and from her ordeal. He had been worried about her. He knelt beside her, placing his hand on her forehead to check on her temperature. Her fever had gone down, thankfully. He hoped that by morning that she'd be strong enough so that they could get out of here. Cye hoped his friends were all right. He also wanted to know about this girl and where she had come from. Her clothes reminded him of a school uniform, so he knew she wasn't from around here.
She suddenly stirred, and Cye quickly stood up. She yawned and turned over on her side, a wisp of her blue hair falling over her face. Cye waited tensely a moment, then when he heard her steady breathing, let out a sigh of relief. He was afraid she would wake up. He wasn't quite ready to talk to her yet and needed to figure out what to say. He never imagined he'd be in a situation like this. He was alone, with a girl, in the middle of nowhere. He'd never been comfortable around girls, except Mia, since she was just a friend. And to make matters worst, this girl was extremely pretty, which made Cye feel even more awkward.
The girl shivered as a cold wind picked up. She began coughing, her breathing becoming labored. Cye went to her, putting a hand on her head. Her coughs subsided, but her breaths were hoarse. Cye reasoned that the cold was making her sick again. He couldn't let her get any worse. With serious uneasiness, he laid down in front of her, not getting any closer than he felt was needed. He was able to shield her from the cold, though he was extremely uncomfortable about being this close to a girl. But he was weary from the long day, so he stayed where he was. As he dozed off, Cye had a feeling that he was going to have a lot of explaining to do in the morning.
The day was gray and cloudy as it always was when Amy woke up. She yawned pleasantly, feeling much better than she had the previous night. She stretched sleepily, not quite ready to get up, when her hand bumped into something. Amy's eyes flashed open to see a young man sleeping beside her. She froze, gaping at him in astonishment. She didn't dare make a sound. There is a guy sleeping next to me, she thought in shock.
Cye stirred and woke up. Yawning, he rubbed his eyes and propped himself up on his elbow. Then he noticed Amy was awake and staring at him. Cye's heart leapt into his throat as he jumped to his feet, his face turning red. "Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to....." Cye stammered, trying to explain.
Amy also turned red as she stood up. "No, of course not! I mean I was waiting and I fell asleep..."
"You see, you were sick and it was cold last night...."
"So of course you...."
"Yes, naturally...."
They both stopped, then Amy giggled, realizing how ridiculous they sounded. "You were the one who saved me in the water, weren't you?"
Cye nodded self-consciously. "Yeah, that was me."
Amy smiled. "Thank you for saving my life." She was over her previous surprise. In fact, she was already warming up to him. He had a charming English accent that she found rather endearing. And with his light reddish-brown hair and innocent blue eyes, Amy saw he was very handsome. She suddenly realized she was staring at him, and looked away, embarrassed. "Um, I'm Amy," she said shyly, extending her hand.
Cye took it, relieved that she wasn't angry at him. "My name's Cye." He was glad he didn't have to explain anymore. "Are you feeling all right?"
"Yes, I'm much better now. I guess I have you to thank for that too."
Cye shook his head. "You don't have to thank me. It was my pleasure. But tell me, what are you doing here?"
Amy frowned. "Well, it's a long story."
Cye looked at her kindly. "I don't really have any place to be right now."
Amy hesitated. She wasn't sure if she should tell him anything. Then she met his eyes, and all her doubts vanished. She didn't know why, but something about this Cye made her trust him, even though she had only known him a few minutes. "All right, it's like this..........
Amy was amazed. After she had told him her story, Cye had told her what had happened to him. The circumstances of how they had both gotten here were the same. "What do you think it means?" Cye asked.
"Obviously, we were all brought here by the same force. And for the same reason." Her brain was already working out a plan. "We've got to go find our friends. Then maybe we can figure out why we were brought here."
"Sounds like a good idea," Cye agreed, "but how will we find them?"
Amy pulled out her computer. "With this." She flipped it open and began scanning the area.
"What's that?" Cye asked in surprise.
Amy was typing on her device with rapid speed. She was glad that it still worked after the communicators had been fried. "It's my data computer," she explained while she worked. "I can use it to scan the landscape and get an idea of the territory. Then it can make us a map and locate our friends. My friends have a specific pattern on my computer, but I'm afraid yours will be harder to find. But I'm sure I can find everyone."
Cye watched, impressed. She's as smart as Rowen, he thought.
Amy's computer beeped. "Got it!" she said triumphantly. "Look, here's a general map of the whole place. And these," she said, pointing to five colored dots on the screen, "are where my friends are. And here's where we are," she said, pointing to a blue dot. "That blinking light next to me is you. Any person that is unknown to my computer will appear like that. Anything else will appear as a square."
"That's funny," Cye commented, "each of your friends seem to have someone with them."
Amy frowned. "You're right." She stared at the screen thoughtfully. "How many of your friends are here?"
Cye blinked, confused. "Well, I guess there's about eight of us."
"Do you think that maybe each of my friends could be paired up with one of yours like we are?"
"I hope so. That would make finding them easier."
"Well, everyone seems to be in that direction." Amy put away her computer. "And Lita is the closest, so if we head this way, I'm sure we'll find her."
"All right, let's go," Cye said.
Amy and Cye had been hiking through this beach of ponds for a good while, but they hadn't noticed. Cye found Amy to be a delightful person to talk to. He gradually forgot his nervousness and they chatted nonstop the whole way. They both learned about each other, with both of them leaving out certain details in their stories. Amy had asked about Cye's body armor, but he simply said it was a uniform he had to wear, though he wasn't sure she bought that excuse. She hadn't, but Amy sensed that he'd didn't want to talk about it and was willing to let it slide for the moment. Besides, she was having too much fun talking to him. Cye was about to tell her about the time Kento locked himself in the linen closet when Amy suddenly stopped in her tracks. "What's wrong?" Cye asked.
Amy glanced over her shoulder, full of uneasiness. "I have this feeling like something is watching us."
Cye looked around for anything unusual, but couldn't find anything. He did, however, sense bad vibes coming from somewhere. He turned toward a pool near them. The surface began to ripple. Cye motioned to Amy. "Get behind me," he said, standing ready. The water began to be thrashed about, bubbles rising and bursting as they reached the top. The whole pond looked like it was boiling.
Amy watched from behind Cye, debating what to do. Should she transform and fight? She wasn't sure it was a good idea to do that in front of Cye, even if she did trust him. But there was no where she could hide to transform. And even if there was, how would she be able to explain to Cye where she had come from? Amy then saw a dark shadow coming up from the depths of the pool. "Cye, look!" He saw it. They both backed up carefully.
It blasted out of the pond without warning, spraying water in all directions. Amy and Cye braced themselves and were drenched from head to toe before they could get out of the way. Cye coughed, then looked up in time to see several tentacles coming right at them. He shoved Amy out of the way, but wasn't able to avoid being grabbed by them. The tentacles pinned his arms to his sides and began dragging him toward the water. Cye saw an ugly, slimy brown creature come out of the pond, the tentacles coming from out of a hole in its mouth. That thing was trying to eat him, Cye realized. He needed his arms free so he could summon his armor. He resisted against his restraints, but his feet slipped out from under him. He crashed on the sand and was sliding backwards. More tentacles shot from the pool and rushed toward Amy. "Amy, get out of the way!" Cye shouted.
Amy sat up from where she had landed, shaking the sand from her hair. She suddenly heard Cye yell at her, and looked up. The tentacles were almost upon her when she threw herself out of the way. One caught her by the leg, and she fell on her back as it began pulling her in. Amy saw Cye was being hauled toward something's mouth. She brought her other foot down on the tentacle as hard as she could, hearing a screech from the creature as it let her go. It didn't send anything else after her, for it already had a substantial meal for itself. Amy leapt up, racing to Cye. "Hang on!"
"No! Stay back!"
Cye's words caused her to skid to a halt. She couldn't believe that he didn't want her to help. "But..."
Cye made an effort to dig his feet into the sand, giving himself some traction. He managed to get back on his knees, pushing himself forward. The creature tightened its grip on him. Cye winced, looking desperately at Amy. "Just go! You don't need me! You can find your friends without my help!" He knew there was no hope for him, but he would go down fighting. He was sad, feeling that he had let down his friends and Amy. He smiled weakly at her. "It was great to know you, Amy," he said, hint of sorrow entering his voice.
Amy's eyes filled with tears, her heart breaking inside of her. Her friends meant everything to her. Cye was a friend, and maybe something more than she would admit. Amy refused to lose him now. She clenched her hands into fists, trembling with anger. "No," she said, her voice full of raw emotion. "I can't..." The sign of Mercury blazed on her forehead, shining brightly. "I won't let you die!" Her power stick materialized in hand and she thrust it into the air, shouting her transformation phrase. "Mercury Star Power!"
Cye stopped struggling as he watched her in amazement. The monster also stopped what it was doing, it's attention on Amy. Her body turned a shimmering blue, the symbol on her stick spinning. Her clothes vanished as streams of water burst out of her pen and formed her outfit. A blast of light blinded Cye, and when he was able to look again, a new person was in Amy's place. No, it was Amy, Cye realized, but she was different.
Amy stood in her blue Sailor Scout fuku, complete with a tiara that had a blue stone fixed in the center. Energy surged through her as she challenged the lake being. "I am Sailor Mercury, the Sailor Scout of water and ice!" Her eyes narrowed in determination as she spoke. "And in the name of Mercury, I will punish you!" Mercury placed her hands in front of her and formed a freezing sphere of fog. "Mercury Ice Bubbles!" She released the sphere and it hovered in front of her as she crossed her arms and raised them. "Freeze!" She sliced her hands through the sphere, breaking it into millions of icy bubbles. They flew at the creature, rushing past Cye. He felt a cold air as they raced by.
The monster was blasted by a barrage of bubbles. They burst on impact, releasing a freezing fog. The creature let out a scream of agony as it was covered by ice. The whole lake froze over, sealing the creature away. It's tentacles, not hit by the frost, fell away from Cye. Cye was surprised when he found he could move. He shoved the dead tentacles off of himself, staring at Amy. Sailor Mercury sighed in relief and walked over to Cye. "Are you all right?" she asked, concerned.
Cye finally found his voice, and looked at her uncertainly. "Amy? Is.... Is that you?"
Mercury blinked, surprised. "What? Of course it's me! Who else would I be?" Then she realized that he was referring to her transformation. He must be angry with me for not telling him, she thought. She turned away, feeling guilty. "I'm still the Amy you know, but what I didn't tell you that I am also Sailor Mercury. My friends and I are all Sailor Scouts and protectors of our world. I didn't mean to lie to you." She lowered her head. "I'm sorry," she whispered. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Cye with a gentle smile on his face.
"Amy, I mean Sailor Mercury, you have nothing to be sorry for." He spoke in a comforting tone. "What you just did was incredible. I owe you my life. Thank you." He watched as a joyful expression light up on Mercury's face, her blue eyes sparkling. She has such a beautiful soul, Cye thought affectionately. Her kindness and caring nature made Mercury seem positively radiant to him.
"Let's just call it even, okay?" she asked and then smiled at Cye. "And it's okay to just call me Amy, even if I am transformed."
"You're going to stay Sailor Mercury?"
Mercury nodded. "I think that would be best for the time being. If we are attacked again, I'll be able to fight them off. Now," she said as she touched her earring and activated her computer visor, "Lita is this way. We should get going." The visor appeared in front of her eyes. She looked at the coordinates on the screen and headed in the direction they had been going. Cye stared after her in amazement, then hurried to catch up. This girl is just full of surprises, he thought, shaking his head.
"Look over there!" Mercury exclaimed, pointing. They could finally see the tops of trees in the distance. A forest loomed in the horizon, with huge skeleton trees that blocked out the light and left nothing but darkness in the interior of the woods. "Lita must be in there."
Cye was slightly skeptical. "Are you sure?"
"Well, that's what my computer says. We may as well check it out."
"I suppose," Cye agreed. He was going to be glad to be out of this place. But something in the corner of his mind was telling him it was too easy. After being attacked before, Cye expected that this place was guarded was some reason. But so far nothing else had happened. I don't like this, he thought nervously.
Mercury glanced at Cye. "Hey, what's wrong? You look worried."
"Huh? Oh, nothing. I was just thinking." Cye didn't see a reason to tell Mercury and worry her. She had enough to think about already.
Mercury crossed her arms and shivered. "Is it just me, or is getting chilly out here?" For the past few minutes, she'd noticed that temperature had begun to drop, seeing as how she was in a skirt and all. She hadn't paid attention to it, but now she was starting to get numb.
Cye, being in body armor, was protected more from the cold and hadn't noticed it. But when Mercury commented about it, he went to answer and realized he could see his breath. "Something's not right here. I don't think getting out of here is going to be as easy as we thought."
Mercury got his drift and got out her computer. She scanned the area, then when her computer beeped, said, "I'm reading a strong power surge straight ahead. It could be another monster." The computer beeped again, and Mercury's face became worried. "And it's coming this way."
Cye exhaled warily. He never liked to fight, even if he was good at it. "I guess it couldn't wait for us."
The air was becoming bitterly cold. Mercury was amazed when she saw snow flakes falling around her. The wind picked up, and she winced as the stinging snow was blown against them. Cye saw Mercury's discomfort, and made a quick decision before he could think twice about it. "I, uh, hope you won't consider me too forward about this." Before she had a chance to react, he went to Mercury and put his arms around her, trying to keep her warm. She was so startled by this so she made no move to pull away. She looked into Cye's face, and realized he was blushing. Of course, for someone who was so cold, her cheeks were pretty red too. Suddenly she felt very warm.
"Um, forward? No, of course not," she managed to stammer out. She forgot all about the cold, the monster, in fact about everything except Cye. Being held by him just felt, well, right somehow. Oh, wow, she thought, her heart racing. Cye's voice suddenly snapped her back into reality.
"We've got company." His eyes hardened and Mercury followed his gaze. Through the snow flurry, it was hard see. She could barely make a figure walking toward them. Abruptly, the snow suddenly stopped, leaving a good couple of inches behind. Mercury gasped when she got a good look at the person, while Cye only stared. A ghastly white woman stood before them. She appeared young and very beautiful, draped in a billowing white kimono. She had a gentle expression, but Mercury could see an evil glint in her icy eyes. Cye, though slightly bewitched by her beauty, was not fooled by her act either. He stepped in front of Mercury, standing as her shield.
"Welcome." Her soft voice made Mercury tremble, while it seemed to echo inside Cye's mind. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the sound. "You are trespassers here at the Springs of Yukona. I'm afraid I cannot let you leave." A cold smile brushed her lips. "You shall both die."
Mercury bravely moved forward. "First, tell us, are you the reason this place is a wasteland?"
The woman regarded Mercury with scorn. "You will not live long enough to find out." She raised her hand and sent a blast of icy wind at Mercury, knocking her backwards.
"Amy!" Cye ran to her and helped her up. "Are you all right?"
Mercury sat up with some difficulty, nodding. "She's just playing with us. She's not going to kill us just yet." She looked at the woman defiantly. "She's got another agenda in mind."
The woman lowered her hand, sneering at the two. "Very perceptive, girl. You're not so stupid after all." She let out a chilly laugh, making Mercury's and Cye's skin crawl. "You may not have known this, but I have been watching you two since you got here. Truthfully, I could have killed you both earlier, but I was curious to see if you would make it here." She gave Mercury a frigid gaze. "And to my surprise, I found this girl to have powers much like my own. I would like to see which of us would triumph in a battle. If you win," the woman gestured to the woods behind her, "you are free to go on your way. If not, well, I'm sure you can guess."
Mercury narrowed her eyes in contempt. "Some choice! But I guess I'll have to. All right, I accept your challenge!" Mercury started to go forward when a hand caught her wrist. She whirled around to see Cye with a tight grip on her arm. "What are you doing? I have to fight! I have no choice!"
"No." Cye's words were firm as he glared at the woman. "You have done enough for the both of us. It's my turn to fight."
"You're crazy! You'll be killed!" Mercury pleaded with him. "It's my job to use my powers to protect you and my friends. I can't let you sacrifice yourself!"
Cye took a hold of her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "I'll be fine. I've been in grimmer situations than this." He smiled his familiar gentle smile. "Please trust me on this, okay?"
Mercury stared into his eyes, and saw a spark she hadn't seen before. A strength, a power she had overlooked. Something inside him that he had hidden from her. It frightened her a little, but it also filled her with awe and she believed Cye's words. She relented, nodding her head. "All right, I won't stop you." As Cye turned and headed toward the woman, she whispered, "Be careful."
The woman laughed mockingly as Cye approached. "So, the young boy wants to fight. Are you trying to be the hero and save the world from evil? It makes no difference if you fight. I'll just kill her after I make her watch your demise."
Cye had a determined look on his face as he spoke. "I hate to break it to you, but I've beaten things worse than you." His spirit began to affect the water around him, the ponds turning into raging whirlpools. The woman noticed the change, losing her confident manner. Cye smiled cunningly. "You already know of my friend's power over ice, but I don't think you've seen my abilities." He clasped his wrist and blue energy surged around his hands like electricity. "Armor of Torrent!" He focused his strength and called upon his armor. "Tao Shin!"
The blue energy burst into small points of light that swirled around Cye and created his armor. He raised his hand as the rest of the energy became his helmet. He placed it on his head and reached out his other hand to grab his trident as it appeared. He pointed it at the woman. "Now we'll see who's going to perish in this fight."
Mercury, finally seeing his real power, was amazed and impressed. She was no longer frightened. "You can do it, Cye!" she cheered enthusiastically.
Cye looked back at her in surprise, then smiled broadly. "Thanks. This should be a piece of cake!"
The woman was angered by his defiance. "You little fool! Even with that armor, you will suffer the most painful end possible." Several jagged icicles appeared around her. She lifted her hand, shooting them at Cye. "Die, boy!"
Cye quickly spun his trident in front of him, deflecting the icicles away. He then charged at the woman, attempting to stab her with his weapon. She flew up into the air as he jabbed at her. He succeeded in slashing her arm. She gasped in surprise and pain, staring at her wound with fury in her eyes. No blood came out, but it was a good sized gash.
"Enough of this child's play!" The woman floated in the air and raised both her arms, calling forth an immense blizzard. She laughed manically as Mercury and Cye struggled to brace themselves against the storm. Ice began to form on Mercury's legs. She fell to her knees, feeling so cold she could barely move. She became aware of someone pulling her to her feet. Cye held her up and shouted over the wind, frost coating his armor. "Any ideas?"
Mercury shook the ice off herself and stepped forward. "Just one. If we both have ice powers, then let's fight fire with fire." She had a hard time finding the woman through the snow, but would take her chances. Mercury brought her arms up to her chest as snowflakes began circling around her. "Shine Aqua," Mercury cried out as she directed her attack, "Illusion!" She launched a stream of freezing water at the demon. The woman screamed as she was hit, her body becoming covered in ice. Mercury continued her assault as long as she maintain it. The woman totally froze over, her shrieks cut off abruptly. The water stream shut off and Mercury collapsed to her knees again, exhausted.
Cye quickly aimed his trident at the woman, who was now an icy statue. Water gathered at the tip of his weapon from nowhere, forming a sphere. "Super Wave Smasher!" He thrust his trident forward, blasting the water at the woman. The attack hammered against the demon like a rain of bullets. The statue was ripped apart and crumbled to the ground. "What?" Cye stopped his onslaught and rushed over the to the pile of ice fragments. He poked at the rubble with his trident, shifting through it. "Blast it!" he swore under his breath.
Mercury, getting her strength back, got to her feet. "What's wrong?" she asked, coming over to the rubble.
Cye didn't respond. He closed his eyes, and suddenly his armor vanished. He sighed, and then turned to Mercury. "She's gone. There's nothing here but the ice that was covering her. She must have escaped somehow."
Mercury searched around anxiously. "But is she still here?"
Cye shook his head. "No, she's vanished. Chickened out, so to speak. I'm not sensing any bad vibes here anymore."
Mercury sighed in relief. "Then I guess we won, right?"
"Not really. That thing could attack us again." Cye glanced at her, almost ashamed with himself. "So, now you know my secret too. What do you think?" He was surprised when Mercury chuckled lightly.
"I sort of suspected as much. Your uniform story wasn't that convincing. But I think I understand why you didn't tell me. It was probably for the same reason I didn't tell you." She smiled reassuringly at him. "Don't worry, I'm not upset. I think it's great that you have such a gift."
Cye was very grateful for her understanding. But we still had to contend with the snow demon, he thought grimly. Then suddenly he noticed a blade of grass at his feet. He gasped in astonishment, which drew Mercury's attention. As they watched, more grass popped out of the sand until the ground was layered with grass. The scraggly trees sprouted leaves, becoming fuller and healthier. The gray clouds disappeared, revealing a blue sky. The ponds' mucky water became sparkling clear. The once desolate place was now teeming with life.
Mercury looked about in wonder. "Oh Cye, look at this place. It's beautiful!" She laughed happily as she saw a bird come out of the sky and perch on one of the trees. "We must have broken the spell on this place when we defeated that demon."
Cye was amazed at the change in this place. "Yeah, I guess she is gone for good." He took a deep breath, smiling contentedly. Then he turned to Mercury and asked, "Shall we go?"
Mercury nodded in agreement. "All right." They walked off into the dark woods, disappearing into the darkness. They had won here, but what they didn't know is that they had only won a small scuffle. The real battle was yet to be determined.
Hi again! I don't know if you noticed, but Cye is my favorite Ronin Warrior. He's so cute and sweet! As for Amy, she's not my fav Sailor Moon character, but none of them are really. I think they're all pretty cool.
Oh, here's something interesting. That ice demon in this chapter is actually a version of a Japanese legend I read about. This snow demon lived up on this mountain and she killed lots of people. Pretty mean, huh?
I have never written so much in my life. Usually when I write a story for fun, it's
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