Kento finally pulled away from Venus, breathing hard. "Uh, we really should get back to the others." He was still a bit apprehensive that someone would interrupt them.
Venus sighed dejectedly, crossing her arms. "Do we have to? I want to stay here with you," she said, blushing just a little.
Her words gave him a sudden rush of confidence. Chuckling, Kento reached out and folded his arms around her waist, pulling her close. Venus smiled contentedly as she leaned against Kento. She liked being held by him, and she hoped he wouldn't let go for awhile. Venus was glad their awkward stage had passed; this guy was quite a catch. Cute, funny, strong, a sweetheart, and, she thought with an inward giggle, a good kisser.
Wow, Kento thought, I've never met a girl like her before. She was beautiful, fun- loving, graceful, and kind. Her sailor scout name suddenly made perfect sense to him. After a minute, he released her and asked, "Does that help?"
"It should last me a while," Venus replied playfully. She stepped up next to him and took his hand. They entwined their fingers together and began walking back to the fortress. It was then they noticed Whiteblaze, sitting on his haunches in front of the entrance with an innocent expression.
"Whiteblaze?!" Kento exclaimed, becoming very miffed. "Have you been sitting there the whole time?" His response was a laughing kind of growl. Kento sighed in frustration as they went past the tiger, who stood up and followed. "I swear, someday I'm gonna neuter that cat."
Sage looked up as Kento and a now detransformed Mina finally joined them in the main hall of the fortress. His curiosity rose a notch as he noticed their faces were slightly red. And even more interesting, they appeared to be holding hands. And Whiteblaze actually had an amused twinkle in his tiger eyes as he followed them in. Sage wasn't one to usually jump to conclusions, but he had a fairly good idea of what Kento and Mina had been doing. Well, Sage thought, he finally found an interest other than food.
"What took you two?" Ryo asked.
Yuli studied their flushed cheeks as he inquired, "How come your faces are so red?"
The two teens quickly released each other's hand. "Uh, Whiteblaze scared us," Mina said hastily. Kento nodded in such an anxious manner that Sage almost burst out laughing. But he decided to spare Kento that embarrassment. For the moment, anyway.
"So what's up, Alosha? Why did you want to talk to us?" Lita asked. She and the others had detransformed back to their normal selves.
Alosha spoke seriously. "The time had come for us to launch our attack." Everyone was startled by this abrupt announcement. But it wasn't entirely unexpected.
"We've also decided that you and Yuli should stay here," Ryo added, looking at Mia. She was slightly dismayed for a moment, but she nodded in understanding. However, Yuli immediately protested.
"What?! Why? I want to come too!"
Reenie joined in the pleading. "Yeah, why not?"
Serena gently put her hand on Reenie's shoulder. "Because it's too dangerous for him and Mia. We can't guarantee their protection. This place is too unpredictable."
Luna and Artemis exchanged a few quiet words, then Luna stepped forward. "We'll stay with them," she declared.
"Are you sure?" Amy asked in surprise.
Artemis smiled a little. "We'd only get in your way anyhow. Don't worry about us."
Mia knelt down and petted the two cats on their heads. "Thank you," she said gratefully. But Yuli was still sulking unhappily at being left behind. He wanted to stay with his friend Reenie. He was afraid he might not see her again after this was over.
Reenie felt exactly the same way, and she made a sudden resolution. "I'm staying too," she said quietly.
"What?" Serena gasped.
Darien walked over and placed his hand on her head, his face concerned. "Reenie, are you sure?"
"Yeah." She went and stood next to Yuli. "I'm not leaving my friend alone. If this place gets attacked again, who's going to protect them?" She lowered her head and spoke in an almost frustrated manner. "I'm probably not going to be that much help anyway. I know that my powers aren't very good, and this bad guy sounds really tough. You'd be better off without me."
"Reenie....." Serena knelt down to the pink haired girl's eye level and shook her head. "You know that's not true. You're a part of our team, and you're so much stronger than you realize. Don't you remember when you helped me and the Sailor Scouts defeat the Doom Phantom? You have been given a tremendous responsibility, and you've beared it well. I think you're doing great." She glanced back at Yuli and nodded to him. "But if you want to stay, you can."
Reenie's eyes shimmered with grateful and joyful tears. It meant so much to her to hear those words from Serena. She threw herself at the blond teen, wrapping her short arms around Serena's waist. "Thank you," she said, crying a little.
After getting over her surprise, Serena hugged her future daughter. Darien smiled as he watched. It was a rare thing that the two of them should be getting along. Well, will wonders never cease, he thought.
Reenie pulled away and ran to Yuli happily. "I get to stay!" The boy was obviously thrilled that his friend wasn't leaving him behind.
"Okay, then it's settled. Mia, Yuli, Luna, Artemis, and Reenie will stay here. The rest of us will go and destroy this evil. Then we'll be back." Ryo turned to Alosha and asked, "Do you know the way?"
Alosha nodded. "Of course. I can track its energy easily, though it can't find me that way. The trip should only take a few days coming and going."
"All right, then let's head out!" Kento said enthusiastically.
"Yeah!" The other Ronins echoed. The girls looked at them with amused expressions.
"Well, I suppose it's now or never," Serena said. Her friends all nodded. Darien placed his hands on Serena's shoulders and smiled down at her confidently. Everyone was ready.
"Goodbye!" Yuli called.
"Don't fall down, Serena!" Reenie added.
"Be careful!" Luna yelled.
"Come back soon!" Artemis chimed in.
Mia simply stood, watching the teens leave. She hoped everything would turn out all right. She wished there was some way she could help, but she knew it was best that she and Yuli stayed here. The Ronins knew what they were doing. Good luck, you guys......
As they disappeared from view, Yuli lowered his waving hand and sighed. "Do you think they'll be okay, Mia?"
Mia met Yuli's eyes and smiled. "Yes. They've come up against the worst and always came out all right. I believe that they can do it."
Yuli was relieved at her answer. "Me too."
"Man, I can't wait to do some pummeling!" Kento cracked his knuckles eagerly, making Sage wince at the popping noises. The group was walking away from the fortress down a sloped hill, and soon they would be entering the deep woods.
"Geez, Kento. How can you do that to yourself?" Sage asked as he ran a hand through his hair.
"Yeah," Rowen added. "You'll give yourself arthritis that way."
Kento glanced at Rowen, slightly annoyed. "Thank you, Mr. Brainiac, but I don't think I'll be getting that anytime soon. Any other advice you'd like to dispense?"
Rowen kept a straight face as he spoke. "Well, while we're on the subject, you shouldn't eat so much, you need a haircut in the worst way, your study skills leave much to be desired, your handwriting is atrocious, and let's not forget about that kitchen incident....." Then he was cut off as Kento put him in a headlock. Rowen began to struggle in a panic as he saw Kento ball his hand up. "Ack! Guys, help!" he called to the others pleadingly.
Cye, Sage, Ryo, and Darien looked at each other. The girls were just laughing out loud, so they weren't going to be any help. Even Alosha was giggling. "Fraid not, bud," Ryo replied with a chuckle.
"You got yourself into that," Sage answered with a small smirk.
"Have fun, Kento, but make sure you keep him alive," Cye warned jokingly.
"I'd help, but I don't think this is any of my business," Darien said apologetically.
Rowen's eyes widened in horror as Kento grinned devilishly. He raised his fist, and then proceeded to give the archer one of the worst noogies he'd ever experienced. Rowen kicked and thrashed, all the while screaming, "OW!! Quit it! Quit it! You traitors! I'll get you for this Kento!" This was accompanied by a string of curses and derogatory remarks.
Kento seemed to be intent on giving Rowen a good sized bald spot on his scalp. But fortunately, Kento released him before doing any permanent damage. Rowen carefully touched his head to see if he still even had hair left. "Dork," he grumbled.
"Hey, you earned it," Kento replied, shrugging.
Everyone laughed at that as they entered the forest, not knowing that they were being watched again. Raye had a particular chill run up her backbone, but she didn't think of it at the time. One other person who felt that foreboding sensation was Sage, but he couldn't pinpoint it. He simply thought it was because of all the evil vibes that were in this world, and shrugged it off.
"This is the forest that my brother and I wandered through until we found Arten's fortress," Alosha said as a warning. "There are many dangers, so we should all be on our guard."
The Sailor Scouts and Ronins took that into account, and kept throwing wary glances around the dark spaces between the trees. Strange, echoing wails and cries broke the quiet as they walked. This trip didn't seem like such a simple task now.......
"Do you understand your mission?"
"Of course," the being said, his voice having a low, rasping quality. He bowed his head in respect. "You want me to seize control of one of Alosha's allies, and use that vessel to destroy them all." He paused and looked at Trem questioningly. "But which one should I possess?"
Trem smiled coldly as he opened the viewing window. The surface rippled slightly before clearing to reveal one of the young teens. "When the time comes, take that one," Trem commanded, pointing at the unsuspecting person.
The demon focused in on that fighter, an evil glint flashing in his eyes. "As you wish," he said. "I shall await your orders." With that, he walked off and disappeared in a swirl of fog. Trem didn't bother watching him go. He simply lifted his hand, making the window close-up on the teen he had chosen. How ironic, he thought. Their own friend will be their undoing......
Dusk had fallen, and everyone was now resting for the night, though it was doubtful anyone was going to get to sleep. A camp fire burned comfortingly as the teens sat around it. Serena shivered, looking around fearfully. It seemed as though all her worst nightmares had come out to plague her. Every shadow seemed to be a monster laying in wait. Every noise was some ghoul or goblin. Serena clutched Darien's wrist and he put an arm around her shoulder, pulling her close so she would feel safer. She huddled against his chest and trembled. Darien had a mild sense of comfort that Reenie had decided to stay at the fortress. She would have been frightened for sure.
Raye slipped away from the girls and sat next to Ryo. He was startled at first, then smiled as she put a finger to her lips in a gesture of silence. He understood. She suddenly gasped in fright as a loud screech pierced the air. Ryo looked at her reassuringly as she met his eyes apprehensively. He took her hand and gave it a light squeeze, and she felt better.
Do you really think we're safe here? Rowen was asking this in concern to Alosha. He wasn't exactly at ease in this place.
I do not think the evil being can find us here. This area is very remote.
I hope so.
Amy kept an eye on her computer, monitoring for dangers. It was picking up many blips in the area, but none of them were coming close enough for concern. Cye was watching too, but he was paying attention to something else. He looked at the concentration etched in her expression, and he sensed that affection once again. Cye didn't want to say that it was love, that assumption was too premature for him to be thinking about. After all, he had only just met her. But, still, this feeling was awfully close to it. Amy, he thought, you are so special to me. Do you know that? No, of course, not. How could she? He hadn't gotten the courage to admit it to her, yet.
Cye. Why can't I just tell you how I feel? Amy stared at her computer screen, her face reflecting sadness and frustration. What was it going to take to get her to talk to him about this? She turned her head and unsuspectingly met Cye's eyes briefly before his widened in embarrassment. He quickly set his sights elsewhere, flushing fiercely.
Stupid, stupid, stupid! Cye mentally kicked himself for being so dumb. You just had to be staring like that, didn't you?
Was he staring at me? Amy was almost hopeful for an instant, but it faded after a second. Don't be silly, Amy, her mind told her. It was probably just a coincidence. Maybe it wasn't, though.......
"Those two...." Mina sighed, shaking her head. She and Kento sat off to the right of Amy and Cye, studying their situation. "Why don't they just talk to each other and be done with it?"
"Because as long as I've known Cye," Kento said, "he's been as timid as a mouse around people. Girls included."
"So is Amy." Mina suddenly smiled craftily as a thought came to her. "What if we gave them a little.......encouragement?"
Kento chuckled, having a pretty good idea of what she was up to. "You're too devious for your own good."
"Trust me. If there's one thing I know about, it's playing matchmaker." Mina frowned thoughtfully. "But I think I'll need Raye in on this."
"Sage might want to help too." Mina and Kento exchanged sly grins. This was going to be fun.
The boy in question stretched the cricks out of his back, yawning. He glanced at Lita and smiled slightly at her anxious expression as she sat near a tree. Making his way around the underbrush and trees until her back was to him, he reached out and gently brushed his fingertips against her neck. Surprised, she whirled to face him, then calmed down when she realized it was just Sage. "You shouldn't sneak up on people like that!" she scolded quietly.
"I didn't mean to scare you," he said in an apology. Sage settled himself behind her and began to rub the stiffness out of her shoulders.
"What are you doing?" she asked wearily, though she didn't really mind. They hadn't talked together since that little incident during the Ronins spar, mostly because of her. She had been happy that he had opened up to her before. Lita had actually thought that maybe Sage and her could have had something......something special. Ha, what a joke. She didn't know why she let herself get her hopes up like that. No relationship had ever worked for her. Lita wasn't sure what it was. If it was her or just bad luck. Either way, she had sort of been avoiding Sage. She was afraid, afraid he might really like her, that he might want a relationship. Lita couldn't do it, because she had the terrible feeling that somehow in the end, she would be left heartbroken. She didn't want to go through it again, because she wasn't sure she could take it.
He tsked at her as he kneaded her sore muscles. "You're all tense!" he exclaimed teasingly. "You need to relax, Lita. It's not healthy to worry so much. Besides, you're cuter when you smile."
That annoying pest called blush spread through her cheeks once more. She still hadn't quite gotten use to that flirting side of him. But that comment, as nice as it was, made her heart wrench inside of her chest. She swallowed hard, and spoke in a harsh tone that she hadn't meant to use. "Stop it."
Sage froze for a moment as if he had been slapped, then backed off a few inches. His face was confused and hurt for a moment before hardening to hide his bruised feelings. "If you say so," he said, a familiar coolness entering his voice that Lita didn't like it. Her emotions were just in such conflict right now, and he was a main part of it. He got up and began to walk away, but it was more than she could bear.
"Wait!" she cried out, unable to stop herself.
He turned back to Lita, his eyes steady and piercing. "What?" he asked.
"I'm....I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that. I just.....I mean..." Lita couldn't figure out how to finish and finally gave up, lowering her head and sighing in defeat. "Forget it." She stared at the ground, waiting to hear him leave. She didn't want him to go, yet at the same time she felt the need to keep him away. He stood there, probably debating whether or not he should go. Then, to her immense relief and dismay, he returned to her side and knelt next to her. Although she couldn't see it, his expression had softened and was concerned. "Lita, are you all right?"
Lita squeezed her eyes shut, tears trickling out. Her body trembled as she sniffed quietly. Sage was a bit alarmed at her obvious distress. He put a hand on her shoulder, trying to console her in some way. She recoiled at his touch, which worried him even more. "Lita, tell me what's wrong."
"No! I can't!" she sobbed out, abruptly shoving him away. Her sorrow got the better of her strength and she sent Sage flat on his back. Lita jumped up and ran out sight, not knowing where she was going. She just needed to get away from there.
"Lita!" Sage shouted her name, getting to his knees. He wasn't injured, though her push had surprised him. Something must be very wrong.
"What happened?" Rowen inquired, coming over.
"Where is she going?" Serena searched the darkness worriedly for her friend. The others were bewildered by what had just happened.
"I'm going after her," Sage said. He dashed off in the same direction.
Alosha yelled out after him. "Wait! It's dangerous!" But Sage didn't stop, nor did he listen.
"Geez, what's going on?" Kento asked incredulously.
Ryo worriedly looked at the others. "I don't know, but let's go after them! Whiteblaze, stay with Alosha." The tiger nodded his head, growling softly.
As everyone took off, Rowen sent a mental message to Alosha. Will you be all right?
Yes. Go take care of your friend....
Hmmm... Interesting, Trem thought. This opportunity was too good to pass up in his opinion. "Soku?"
"Yes, master?" A deathly pale woman in a white kimono appeared before him.
"You are aware that those children you failed to kill before are coming here with their friends, aren't you?"
She clenched her fist in anger as she nodded. Her earlier clash with those two had made her look like a fool. What she wouldn't give for another chance to destroy them. "Yes. I'm sorry that I failed you."
"Never mind that. What's past is past," Trem said curtly. He gestured to the viewing screen, which was focused on a brown-haired teen who was running. She stumbled as she raced through the trees, her face tear-streaked. "If you want to earn my respect again, you should destroy that girl now. She is separated from her friends and is vulnerable."
Soku narrowed her frosty eyes at the person in the window. She would have preferred for it to be that boy Cye, or better yet, that blue haired brat Mercury. But she would have to be content with this weakling. "As you command. I shall not fail," she said, bowing low before a cold mist surrounded her and she vanished.
Trem smiled faintly as he spoke indirectly to Soku, now that she was gone. "We will see....."
Branches scratched Lita's face as she sprinted from the others, from Sage, from her misery. Her lungs began to burn, but she didn't care. Her breaths came out in short, ragged gasps, accompanied by sobs that she could barely contain. She suddenly tripped over an upturned tree root and crashed to the ground. Lita slowly got to her knees, but she didn't have the energy to get up. Frankly, she felt worn out. Sage, she thought, I don't want to push you away. Please forgive me. More tears were threatening to spill over, but she bit her lip in an effort to hold them in. No, I won't cry.
She sniffed, wiping at the tears that had escaped. Sighing heavily, she stood and took a deep breath to calm herself. Lita was too stubborn to be sad anymore, and she refused to let something like this get to her. She decided to go back to the others, though she still had no idea how she was going to explain running off like that to them, especially to Sage. She was worried about that, but then something was also bugging her. Lita realized that she wasn't sure where she was.
Great, this is just perfect, she thought sourly. She wrapped her arms around herself and shivered abruptly, feeling chilly. It had gotten very cold in the last few minutes. That by itself didn't concern her; it was the snow that began drifting down that got her attention. Also, she suddenly sensed a strange aura in the air. The bad vibes were so prevalent here that she could have reached out and touched them. Man, do I have bad timing. Lita was no dummy, and her transformation pen was already her hand. "Jupiter Star Power!"
Sailor Jupiter shouted out to the presence she knew was there. "Come on! Where are you?" She got her answer as a pale, white-skinned woman appeared in front of her. She laughed demonically before speaking.
"I didn't think you'd ever realize I was here. I've had to wait for quite a while." She looked at Jupiter frigidly, but the girl didn't even flinch.
Sailor Jupiter narrowed her eyes in irritation. "You must be another one of those cronies for that evil being. I'm really not in the mood for this. Why don't you just take a hike?"
"Such insolence," Soku replied in a mocking tone. "You should be taught a lesson."
"Yeah? Just try it!" Jupiter shot back.
"Very well." Several lethal-looking spears of ice materialized in the air and streaked at her in a rapid fire manner. Jupiter dodged each one swiftly, then charged at Soku. Her punches were quick and on the mark, but this demon was fast. The woman suddenly held out her hand and an icy blast of wind rammed into Jupiter's chest, forcefully knocking her into a tree. The sailor scout fell to her hands and knees, wincing.
Get up, her mind screamed at her. You idiot, you're gonna get killed if you don't move! Jupiter looked up to see more jagged icicles launched at her. She realized in horror that there was no time to get out of the way.
"Look out!" Someone came out of nowhere and deliberately threw himself into Jupiter. The person wrapped his arms around her as they hit the ground, taking the brunt of the fall. The ice blades sliced through the tree and sent it crashing to the ground. Her rescuer shielded her with his own body from the shower of bark and debris. Jupiter had to close her eyes as a cloud of dirt swept over them. When the dust cleared, the person on top of her spoke rather sarcastically. "Well, fancy meeting you here."
Jupiter's eyes shot open as the person lifted the front of himself up off of her. He shook the grime out of his golden blond hair, that telltale lock of it masking one of his indigo eyes. "Sage...."
"Are you okay?" he asked worriedly.
She was about to answer when her eyes widened. "Move!" She shoved him to the side and rolled out of the way. Four icicles were embedded into the earth where they had been.
"They certainly don't mess around," Sage commented as he stood. Jupiter then noticed a bead of blood running down the side of his face from a cut in his cheek. It didn't seem to concern him in the least. His body armor was already on him, and he clasped his wrist with his hand to add to it. "Armor of Halo, Tao Chi!" He grabbed his blade from the air as it appeared.
"Well, another boy with fancy armor," Soku said as Sage gripped the handle of his sword. She raised her hand to attack, when an arrow suddenly struck the ground near her feet. She backed up in surprise as the four other Ronins and Sailor Scouts ran up.
"Nice shooting, Rowen," Ryo said as he pulled his swords out.
"Thanks." Rowen had another arrow strung and aimed at the woman. "Everything okay, Sage?"
Sage nodded, not letting Soku out of his sight. "So far."
Sailor Moon went to Jupiter. "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine," she replied, getting to her feet.
Cye lowered his trident, gasping in astonishment as he recognized the demon. "You again! I don't believe this!"
Soku sneered. "This is perfect. Now I can kill you two, as well as your friends. You children may call me Soku."
Venus pointed at the woman. "Friend of yours?"
"You could say that," Cye acknowledged.
Mercury nodded in agreement. "Cye and I had the unfortunate experience of fighting her before. I guess he was right when he said we hadn't beaten her yet."
"Then let's finish the job!" Kento declared. He raised his staff and spun it in a fast circle. "Iron Rock Crusher!" An energy ball ripped through the earth straight toward Soku. She smiled coldly before leaping into the air above the attack and floating there. Kento's power bolted under the demon and mowed down several trees in its path. Everyone scattered as the trees crashed to the ground around them. Dust was thrown up into the teens' faces.
"Are you trying to kill us?" Rowen exclaimed angrily, coughing.
Kento had a slightly embarrassed expression. "Sorry." Then he yelped in surprise as a blast of frosty wind narrowly missed him. It enveloped one of the remaining trees that was still standing and the entire thing was immediately covered by a thick sheet of ice.
"Watch out! She's not messing around!" Cye yelled, grabbing Mercury and jerking her out of the way of another gust.
"Thank you," she said gratefully, activating her visor. Her brow furrowed as she watched Soku attack the Scouts and Ronins. Sailor Moon flung her shining tiara discus, but it was knocked away. When Tuxedo Mask tried to strike at the woman with his cane, she flew to the right. Not good, Mercury thought. "I'm not picking up any discernable weaknesses."
Jupiter stepped up, looking furious. "Then let's improvise! Jupiter Thunder Dragon!" She crossed her arms in front of her and launched an immense lightning bolt at Soku. The Ronins, who hadn't seen this attack yet, were amazed to see the electricity form into the shape of a dragon. It roared thunderously as it raced toward its target. But Soku zipped out of the way and sent her freezing attack at Jupiter.
Mars rushed up and shoved Jupiter out of its path, then leapt away also. While Sage and Ryo attempted to do some damage, Mars spoke to Jupiter. "Be careful! You're not fighting smart. Use your head!"
"Shut up!" Jupiter snapped sharply. This was her way to work out her stress, and no one was getting in her way. "I'm gonna kill that witch!" She and Mars quickly dodged another blast. Then Jupiter suddenly heard Soku scream, "Now you will die!" Jupiter whirled around to see an icy wind coming straight at her. She instinctively threw her arms up to shield herself.
"Jupiter!" Sage was suddenly in front of her from out of nowhere. He quickly had his arms around Jupiter to protect her.
"No!" she cried out as the wind rammed into his back. But all his efforts were wasted as the frost quickly spread over both of them, encasing them in an icy shell.
"Sage!" Kento, Cye, Ryo, and Rowen yelled in unison.
"Jupiter!" the remaining Scouts echoed. Their teammates were trapped, possibly dying! Soku merely laughed insanely. That's two down, she thought. The rest will follow as well.......
Hi, hi! Been awhile, eh? Dumb school got in the way of my writing. But now I have time to get some work done. See ya next time!
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