Chapter 11 - The Reunion
Sollozzo watched from his six story balcony window as the sun slowly began to rise casting shadows onto the ruins of the World Trade Center. He gazed upon the site with cold eyes. He turned around, the soft morning light from the behind him, gazing upon his prize. Seated in two chairs inside the large apartment building were Sailor V and Sailor A. Both of them were tied to the chairs with specialized electrical wire. Two of Sollozzo's men pointed guns at them, another stood by the door, another to Sollozzo's left. The scouts had spent the last half hour trying to escape from the chairs, but whatever Sollozzo had tied them up with was too strong.
It happened so fast. Sailor V and A ran out of their apartment only to be ambushed by Sollozzo's men. They couldn't tell what knocked them out, but they awoke into the drug lord's building.
Sollozzo sat in a chair right across from the two of them. He pulled out a cigarette from his pack and, with his lighter already in his hand, lit it up and took a puff.
"You know," Sollozzo said with a didactic tone in his voice, "I don't think anybody can really ever know just how devastating 9/11 was, unless you lived in New York City." He chuckled slightly, "Especially you Japs."
A look of anger came over Mina's face as she stared angrily at the racist criminal.
Sollozzo shook his head, "Yeah you know what I'm talking about. The only other time we've really ever been attacked was Pearl Harbor." He raised his hands, "And who was that who attacked us?"
"The Germans?" The crony to Sollozzo's left asked enthusiastically.
Amy rolled her eyes. Sollozzo slowly turned around to stare at his inept colleague annoyed. The tattooed muscle-built henchman's face did not know what to do.
"Why don't you," Sollozzo stuttered trying to maintain his composure, "Why don't you go wait by the door." The guy hung his head and walked sadly over by the door. Sollozzo shook his head in annoyance. His attention turned back to his prisoners, "Did you ever see the Trade Center? I mean in person?"
Mina finally spoke up, "Yeah I did when I was little."
"Amazing things weren't they," Sollozzo smiled. Mina didn't, "Would have made a great climax for Sailor V's adventures in New York wouldn't it? A final battle on top of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center." He scratched the side of his face, "No you Japs can't possibly understand what it's like."
"Need I remind you," Amy spoke up angrily, "About Hiroshima?"
"Oh don't bring up that bullshit," Sollozzo took another puff of his cigarette.
"No," Amy interrupted, "August 6th 1945, the U.S. bombed Hiroshima. Over 100,000 people died, not to mention the 200,000 something casualties over the decades from radiation poisoning."
"I don't give a fuck," Sollozzo snorted.
"Well we do," Sailor Mercury said. "I watched the news cover the Trade Center attacks on that night, day for you, wishing I could do something."
"And where," Sollozzo said, "Was Sailor Moon?"
Mina rolled her eyes and sighed, "I keep telling you, I don't know-"
"Cut the crap Sailor V," Sollozzo got up. "Let me explain something to you. Whether through my doing, or by another, Sailor Moon will be killed. Nobody survives a bounty as big as this one. Now, you can co-operate with me, tell me where she is. I'll let the both of you go, I'll even give you both a share of the money. You'll be set for life." He crouched down to look into Mina's face, "Just tell me, who is she?"
Mina hesitated before slowly stating, "I… don't… know!"
Sollozzo brought his head down and sighed. He got up and grabbed what looked like a remote for something. He stood right over Sailor Mercury and stared into her eyes. Amy stared back. Sollozzo grinded his teeth and squeezed the remote. Invisible electric shocks buzzed through Amy's body. She screamed in horrific pain. Thrashing about in her chair. Unfortunately, it was bolted to the floor. Mina's eyes popped out of her glasses.
"Stop," Mina shouted struggling to escape. The other guard pointed his gun closer at her, "What are you doing?"
Sollozzo let go of the remote. Amy's screaming halted, but she still shivered in pain. The black-haired villain turned back to Sailor V, "This is specialized electrical rope. I'll spare the scientific mumbo-jumbo, but it sends shocks directly into Sailor A's nervous system." Amy tried to disconnect her mind from the pain. "Of course I know Sailor A can take the pain much more than a normal person, but no matter how strong she may be, after a couple minutes of this, her body's gonna fry and she'll be dead."
Mina now struggled harder to make it out of the chair. It was no use.
"Please," Sollozzo smiled, "Don't struggle. Just tell me who Sailor Moon is. If you don't tell me, then you have to watch your friend die."
"Don't tell him Sailor V," Amy squeaked out.
Sollozzo squeezed the remote again. Amy screamed in pain, "Shut the fuck up!" He said and released the remote.
Mina had finally figured out who this guy was. She stared at him, "You're from the Negaverse aren't you?"
The man turned around with a surprised look on his face. He eyes looked directly at the Sailor Scout as he stood before her. She in turn stared right back at him with a fire in her eyes.
"Over five long years," Sollozzo said deliberately, "I've watched all my partners, and my business with them, be twarted by you Sailor Scouts: Beryl, Rubeus, Tomoe, Nehelenia, Galaxia; I had business with them all."
"Why?" Mina asked.
"You want to sap someone's energy? Well nothing can drain a person like hard drugs, especially heroin. Long story short, I provided energy for these people, or aliens or… whatever. They gave me energy boosts, power, even gadgetry. That explosion from my cigarette you saw back in Tribeca? One of Tomoe's toys. Not to mention these high powered torture wires. I could outrun the police forever."
Mina's attention turned to Amy. She was very weak.
"As annoying as you were Sailor V," Sollozzo continued, "Sailor Moon managed to destroy everyone I was in business with." He stared directly at Sailor V. "I'm sick of it. I put out a contract on her head. There's a rumor going around Japan that this girl Usagi Tsukino is Sailor Moon, but once you and your friend started appearing in my neck of the woods, I knew Sailor Moon was close."
He turned his back to take another puff of his cigarette, "So let's try this again Sailor V, if that is who you really are." He turned around to stare at his enemy and took the cigarette out of his mouth. "Where is Sailor Moon?"
Sailor V's eyes vacillated.
The villain picked up the remote, "Either you tell me who she is, or your friend dies. What's it gonna be?"
Mina looked at her friend. Another shock from those wires could kill her. The blonde closed her eyes, nearly praying for a miracle. She opened her eyes back to Sollozzo and spoke:
"I'm Sailor Moon."
Sollozzo's dropped his hand and his jaw in hearing this news. He stared at the girl for several seconds.
"Sailor V!" Amy tried to shout out, "No!"
"I can't let you die," Mina said as a tear came down her eye.
"She's not Sailor Moon," Amy cried out weakly to Sollozzo.
"She's just being loyal to me," Sailor V said calmly. "I'm Sailor Moon. Doesn't it make sense, I'm blonde and she's blonde? Ever make that connection?"
Sollozzo burst out laughing. Mina closed her eyes realizing he had called her bluff. "C'mon Sailor V. Give me a little credit. I know you're not Sailor Moon." He went right up to her and ripped off her glasses. Mina's face was exposed. Sollozzo's smile faded away as he examined her face along with her red bow. "Wait a minute-" His eyes suddenly widened, "Sailor Venus?" Sollozzo turned around laughing, "Oh how did I not see that? Of course, Sailor V is Sailor Venus. My God, how stupid were your enemies?
"And if I'm not mistaken," Sollozzo moved towards Amy and pulled off her goggles and raised his hands. "Of course! Sailor Mercury! Who the hell else has blue hair?" He paced back and forth smiling at his men. "Well this actually works out great. If I can't take out Sailor Moon, I can take out her underboss and consigliere!" He raised his remote.
Amy and Mina looked at each other realizing this was the end.
"Unless," Sollozzo hesitated, "You tell me who Sailor Moon is?"
"MARS FIRE IGNITE!"
"JUPITER THUNDER CRASH!"
As two familiar voices came through the door, so did an explosion of fire and lightning. The two men guarding the door were blown to the ground. The two guards near Sailor Venus and Mercury were also knocked to their feet. The door completely incinerated. Sollozzo, facing the doorway covered his eyes, but the two Sailor Scouts, still tied, turned their heads in relief.
Sailor Mars appeared through the smoke first in her full red uniform. The tall Jupiter followed standing five feet parallel to Mars' left. Sollozzo's two remaining men got up and pointed their guns. A sparkling tiara appeared out of nowhere and knocked the guns right out of the men's hands. They recoiled in pain. The tiara rescinded back into the smokey doorway for a gloved hand to grab. The figure moved forward and revealed herself. Her blonde odango hair was all too familiar. She stood in front of Mars and Jupiter with a serious look on her face.
"I," she said, "Am Sailor Moon!"
Her arm flew into the air as she did her usual gestures, "And I say on behalf of the moon," She brought her hands to her fighting stance, "I will right wrongs and triumph over evil."
"And that means you!" Sailor Mars interrupted pointing at Sollozzo.
Serena turned back to Raye with an annoyed look on her face, "Mars, you're not supposed to say that, only I am!"
Sailor Mars rolled her eyes, "All right fine."
Sailor Moon turned back to the criminal, "In the name of the Moon, I shall punish you!"
Sailor Mars butted back in, "Why do keep changing the oath? Sometimes you say 'I shall punish you' and then other times you do the 'Right wrongs and triumph over evil' thing. Can you just pick an oath and stick with it?"
Sailor Moon turned to Raye and growled at her, "Why do you always have to argue with me Mars? I'm the one saying the oath, I think I'll decide what words I wanna say."
"Uh," Lita interrupted with an innocent look on her face, "Guys?"
"Well excuse me Ms. Inconsistency!" Mars struck back.
Mina rolled her eyes in response to this scene she'd seen way too many times. Amy was too weak to even care. Sollozzo was confused. He looked over to Venus, still tied to her chair:
"Do they always fight like this?" He asked her.
Mina looked at him unsure of how to respond. Finally she looked at the two still arguing and shouted, "WILL YOU TWO STOP FUCKING ARGUING AND HELP US?!"
Raye and Serena turned their attention back to Mina. "Sorry," Sailor Moon said, "She started it."
"I did not," Mars said, "You did!"
"No you did," Serena turned back to her arguing.
Sollozzo's ears were starting to hurt from the sound of these two ditzy girls arguing. He picked up his remote and squeezed it with all his might. Sailor Venus and Sailor Mercury began to scream in agonizing pain as electric shocks entered their nervous system. Sailor Moon and Mars turned back towards them in fear. Jupiter, however was ready for action.
"Jupiter Thunder Crash!" The tall brunette sounded off as a nasty zap of electricity hit Sollozzo knocking him to the ground.
The painful shocks ceased as Mina and Amy recoiled in pain. Amy looked like she was about to pass out. Sailor Moon and Mars rushed over. Mars burned the wires off of Mina's body and put held her hand to pull her up.
"Thanks," Mina said.
"You hurt?" Raye asked concerned.
"I'm okay," Mina said holding her sore chest, "But I don't know about Mercury."
Sailor Moon untied Mercury only to have her fall directly into her arms. "Mercury!" Sailor Moon shouted, "Are you okay?"
Mercury was shaking and struggling to breathe, "So much pain!" She managed to squeeze out of her mouth.
"You'll be okay," Sailor Moon told her friend as she laid her down by Sollozzo's nearby couch. Mercury stared back up at her lover. Her beautiful blonde hair, her blue eyes, her innocent look of concern were enough to make the pain go away. Amy rubbed her white gloved hand across Serena's face. The blonde in turn held held her lover's hand.
"You came to save us?" Mercury whispered.
"Of course," Sailor Moon chuckled, "Sailor Moon will never turn her back on her friends," she quoted the theme song.
Mercury laughed, "I'll never leave your side again."
Sollozzo himself began to get up, but not before Jupiter zapped him again with painful electricity. Sollozzo was a tough guy, but Jupiter's thunder certainly slowed him down. Sailor V took out another pen and placed it high in the air, "Venus Power, Make-up!" She quickly transformed from Sailor V to the orange suited Sailor Venus.
"My how the tables have turned Sollozzo!" Venus said as she kicked him in the chest. He recoiled in pain, "That's for kneeing me in my boobs!"
Two of Sollozzo's men were knocked out cold, the other two sat on the ground hoping the scouts wouldn't hurt them.
"This is the guy," Sailor Venus said to Mars and Jupiter standing tall, "Who put out the contract on Sailor Moon!"
Mars looked down at the black-haired man. She wanted to burn him in flames. Sailor Moon beat her to the punch and stood before the criminal, "You asshole!" She shouted, "You almost broke up the Sailor Scouts, you know that?"
Sollozzo smiled as he got up on all fours, "Excellent!"
"Well your plan didn't work Salazar!" Sailor Moon teased him.
"Sollozzo," He corrected her.
"Whatever!" Serena turned back to Mina. "Sailor V, you're a policewoman now, you wanna take him to jail?"
Venus smiled, "With pleasure Sailor Moon."
"Wait," Sollozzo said as he got up and took another puff of his cigarette, "You might wanna take a look out that window before you do anything."
"You really think," Jupiter interrupted, "We're dumb enough to fall for that?"
The criminal simply walked towards the window. The scouts moved in on him, thinking he might try to escape. Sollozzo didn't escape, he simply opened the window and was greeted by sounds of yelling and possible rioting. He stared at the scouts smiling.
"What's going on?" Sailor Mars asked.
Sailor Mercury managed to push herself up from the couch.
"What's going on," Sollozzo responded, "Is that every bounty-hunter, hitman, junkie, and low-life is here to assassinate Sailor Moon! "
The scouts all looked at each other worried.
"I knew you couldn't resist to save your friends," The drug-dealer continued smiling, "So I invited every criminal I know in this city to take you out Sailor Moon."
"You're insane!" Raye growled at him.
Sailor Venus inched her way towards the window. Sollozzo got out of the way and gestured for her to take a look:
Hundreds, maybe thousands of men staring up at her screaming bloody murder. Her eyes could not believe it. Suddenly a gunshot made Mina scream and fall to the floor.
"Venus!" Sailor Moon cried. All of them made their way closer to the window to pick up Mina.
"It's okay," Venus said getting up and moving back slightly, "He didn't hit me."
Sollozzo moved back to the window and shouted at the crowd, "Hey I'm still up here, hold your fire!" He back up to look at the scouts and shook his head. This time, he was facing the window while addressing the scouts, "Sorry, it's hard to find good help these days." He stared at the tattooed henchman to his left, still on his knees not doing anything.
"Sailor Moon!" Luna ran right into the room calling for her princess. Sollozzo looked down to see the talking cat. She paid no attention to him and stood right before the Odango-head, "We've got to get you out of here now! We can hop the roofs-"
"Oh sorry kitty," Sollozzo took his cigarette into his hand, "Sailor Moon's not going anywhere." Sollozzo backed up and flicked his cigarette in their direction.
"The cigarette!" Mina shouted as the cancer stick hung in mid-air, "Get it!"
The white gloved hand of Sailor Mercury intercepted the stick. She stood there holding it with with a look of terror in her eyes, "Incredible," she said as the cigarette dampened right into her water-powered hands, "Millions of metric-tons of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere every day in New York City from Cars, Buses, industrial buildings, and yet cigarettes are still the leading cause of lung cancer."
Sailor Moon stood there trying to grasp what Amy said. The bluenette now threw the water soaked cigarette onto the ground. Nothing happened. Sollozzo simply reached into his pocket. Suddenly a blast surrounding the scouts and Luna knocked them all into the wall shattering right through the window. The five of them fell toward the ground. Sailor Venus acted quickly.
"Venus Love Chain!" Her chain grasped a hold outside the building wall just before she reached the ground. She swung like Tarzan to catch Raye. The two landed safely. Amy fell into Mina's arms. Raye caught Serena and held her with both arms. They all broke Lita's fall. The Sailor Scouts were all piled on top of each other, thankfully only dusted from the explosion.
"Lita," Raye murmured with the brunette lying on top of her, "Could you please get your butt off of my head!"
"Would you get your head off of my boobs!" Serena said.
They all crawled off of each other. Lita was the first to get up from the hard ground, shaking herself off. Raye stood up and pulled up Serena. Mina and Amy both got up together. The five of them stood on the dirty sidewalk apathetically until they all turned away from the building to see a mob of criminals looking directly at them. Some eyes filled with murder, others filled with rape.
Serena was frightened by this and held onto Amy pressing her chest against hers. Raye and Mina stood trying to protect one another.
"Listen up!" Sollozzo's voice came through. All of the scouts looked up, just catching a glimpse of the criminal leaning out the broken window. "That meatball-headed blonde is Sailor Moon. Whosoever takes out Sailor Moon gets to collect one billion dollars! I'll also be giving out prizes to anyone who kills one of her bodyguards. Kill them all!"
A loud roar erupted from the crowd as the men charged at the scouts.
"Oh shit!" Mina screamed!