The door swung open wildly and crashed against the opposite wall. Minako swallowed a sob and shot up in her bed, startled by the intrusion as Mercury and Jupiter charged through the threshold with panicked expressions.
Mercury flipped the light switch on while Jupiter dashed to each of the four corners. A woman possessed, the Jovian stopped at the large window and drew aside the heavy curtains. The combined light of the Sun and the Earth spilled a golden blue glow across the room.
Minako blinked at the sudden brightness. She dabbed at her eyes with the long sleeves of her loose shirt and swung her feet over the edge of the bed. “Just what is going on here?”
Jupiter scowled and shook her head. Mercury drew a shaky breath. “Mars was here.”
Minako’s bare feet rushed across the floor. Frantic hands gripped Mercury’s shoulders. “Tell me she’s still here.” She demanded.
The Mercurian’s blue visor blinked out of existence. Even at such a close distance, even with her leader’s insistence, she couldn’t meet Minako’s gaze. “I’m… sorry, Minako-chan. She’s gone.”
She released the senshi of wisdom and rounded on Jupiter. “Tell me you can find her!” Minako shouted.
Hazel eyes softened and the Jovian’s jaw went slack. She placed a gentle hand on the Venusian’s shoulder. It was batted away viciously. “Ami-chan had figured out a way to track Mars through the signature of her senshi strength.” She said by way of apology. “The program alerted us that she was here. Now, it’s silent again.”
“She must have returned to Earth.” Mercury said.”She was here and gone so quickly. She must have had a reason.”
Minako sank to her knees. Jupiter’s transformation faded in a vibrant green glow. Makoto’s hands tightened and relaxed relentlessly. A bright glimmer caught her eye and the Jovian rushed to the window. Behind the curtains, she found a sword that was all too familiar.
The sound of metal scraping against stone drew the attention of both Mercury and Minako. Makoto held the hilt of Rei’s sword in one hand, the flat edge of its blade in another. Slowly, with a sad smile, she knelt next to her leader.
Minako swallowed the sob that threatened to start her tears anew. She drew a deep and calming breath and reached for the weapon, securing it in a mirror image of Makoto’s hold.
“Rei,” she whispered, clutching the sword to her chest, “you came back.”
Mars paced between the walls of her room in the Edo Castle. The heels of her pumps tore ragged holes in the fine carpet that covered the polished wood as she furiously turned her body time and again.
The woman in that bed, back on the Moon… why could she see her in this bed here on Earth, her naked body wrapped tightly around one that resembled her own? Why?
She was supposed to have killed that woman.
But she hadn’t.
She stopped pacing. Her hands flexed, relaxed, and tightened again. Perhaps she should seek out Endymion, that man who seemed to know her. Perhaps he could-
Mars crumpled to the floor, hitting it with her knees and rolling onto her side in a fetal position. The hazy, crimson veil that shrouded her vision flickered and faded to black. She felt icy fingers surround her soul and squeeze tightly. She stifled a cry until the pain receded an untold amount of time later.
When the blinding pain and burning nausea ceased, Mars stood back up on shaking legs and wiped a cold and clammy sweat from her brow. Her cloudy eyes narrowed, and with a newfound resolve, she left her room to resume her mission.
“You know? Michiru’s going to start asking questions if you keep monopolizing my time like this.”
Minako exhaled a puff of breath that scattered her golden bangs across her forehead. “Cut the crap, Haruka-san.”
The Uranian chuckled and leant her body against the courtyard’s pillar. A distant and ancient maple cast its dappled shadow over the wind’s avatar. “At least you’re in a better mood today. I take it you’re done pitying yourself and you’re ready to fight for what you’ve lost?”
Cerulean eyes glinted with something akin to mischievous resolve. Haruka’s words the night before had helped her greatly, and Mars’ appearance, though painfully brief and equally confusing, had pulled the Venusian out of her despair. Now, she wanted to spar, to work off that excess frustration, sharpen her skills, and prepare herself for what would come next, whatever that may be.
Minako cocked her weight onto her hip and sank into a defensive position. “Look, just shut up and fight me, alright?”
Haruka smirked and pushed herself away from the pillar. The request was simple; the Venusian wanted this without powers, with no weapons. Minako wanted to brawl. She smiled a feral grin. “Don’t think I’ll go easy on you. You asked for it, Princess.”
The pet name was a ploy. Minako’s concentration wavered. Tears collected in the corner of her eyes and her defensive position slipped. It was just the opening the Uranian was looking for. She surged forward on quick feet and slammed her fist into the Venusian’s stomach with a vicious uppercut.
Minako stumbled backwards and coughed, her arms tight around her middle. She shifted her body to resume her defensive stance, her posture clipped and shaky.
“Come on!” Haruka taunted and walked a slow circle, remaining just out of Minako’s striking range. “I thought you wanted this!”
Minako watched the tall woman circle her from the corner of an eye. She straightened her posture as much as she could, given the blow she’d taken. “I do.”
“Then don’t let something so small affect you. If you want to save her, you have to be ready for anything.”
The Venusian trapped her lower lip with her teeth. She nodded, and threw herself at Haruka with a messy punch and a roundhouse kick. Haruka deflected the fist and caught the kick in midair, her fingers closing around Minako’s ankle before she used a foot to sweep across the leg the Venusian was depending on for balance. Minako hit the ground hard on her back, but unflinchingly, she rolled herself into a backwards somersault and regained her feet.
The two women circled each other slowly. Haruka launched an offensive, sending a quick barrage of short, powerful punches at Minako, who skirted backwards, parrying each quick blow. She managed to block the last and throw off the Uranian’s center of gravity just enough to get in a quick jab to the taller woman’s ribcage.
Haruka grunted and raised an eyebrow at the Venusian’s sortie, and then spun on the woman with the same attack, only faster. Minako had everything she could do to keep up with the fast jabs, having to throw her all into defense to avoid being clipped by the punches.
“You’re holding up well.” Haruka offered a cocky smirk and threw another punch that Minako barely blocked. Minako held Haruka’s fist, but only because the Uranian allowed for it.
Haruka smirked. “But though I hate to admit it, that damn Martian is faster than me when she wants to be. Could you stand up against her if she were really trying? Could you fight her?”
Minako frowned. A bead of sweat trickled down her forehead and stung her eye. Haruka snorted and shoved the other woman’s smaller body away forcibly.
She charged the unprepared the Venusian and her knuckles grazed the corner of Minako’s mouth, splitting her lip. Pushing Minako back, the Venusian frantically tried to meet her blows, but Haruka got in a sucker punch to Minako’s ribcage. Minako took several steps backwards in an attempt to regroup, but Haruka pursued relentlessly and caught her in the gut with a knee. A leg sweep sent Minako to the dusty cobblestones, sprawled on her side.
The coppery taste of blood filled her mouth and Minako pulled her body into a fetal position and waited for the final blow that she knew Haruka wouldn’t pull.
But it never came.
Instead, a frighteningly familiar voice sent a shiver down her spine.
“She’s mine!”
Minako’s blood ran cold. Was it really… she opened her eyes and scrambled to her feet.
“Rei…”
The Martian’s back was to her, her lower body planted firmly and her upper body twisted into a punch where it connected with Haruka’s middle. The Uranian gasped. Mars met her with an uppercut to the chin that had Haruka freefalling. The back of Haruka’s head hit the cobblestone ground and she went silent.
The crimson warrior pursued the downed Uranian. She placed a foot on Haruka’s stomach and reached for her sword to finish the job. Her fingers gripped at nothing. They flexed numbly. Her sword… she had lost it somewhere. She looked down at the wincing visage of the dusty haired woman.
’She is not the woman I was sent to kill.’
She turned her gaze over her shoulder. Another blonde stumbled towards her, stopping on shaky feet several paces away. It was the woman who had plagued the darkness that filled her mind.
’Minako.’ Mars knew her. Minako was suddenly enveloped in a surge of golden light. Mars knew her alter ego, too.
’Venus. My target. I… I protected my target.’
With a silken scream, Venus drew her blade from its sheath. She held it at the ready with a white knuckled grip.
“Could you fight her?”
Haruka’s words echoed in the golden warrior’s head. The smallest tremor she’d harbored faded and her sword stilled confidently. She could fight Rei. She would fight her, if that were what it took to save her from the darkness that so obviously controlled her.
“You’re here to fight me, aren’t you? Venus asked with a lilting voice.
The crimson warrior frowned. That woman’s half smile, the glint in those cerulean eyes. Mars could barely breathe.
“What are you waiting for!” Venus cried, “Come and get me, you barbarian!”
’Barbarian?’ A chill ran down the Martian’s spine.
’Minako. Minako. Minako!’ That name cycled endlessly through Mars’ head, but the golden warrior was charging her, her sword raised.
’Take the blow!’ Mars screamed the instruction at herself, knew it was right, but the dark presence in her mind wrapped its fingers around her tightly and at the last second, Mars twisted her body. Venus’ momentum propelled her forward, her blade pierced only the crimson skirt of Mars’s fuku and the Venusian stumbled over Haruka’s body and sprawled to the ground.
Ignoring the commands of the voice in her head, Mars took to her heels. Her raven hair streaming behind her, she leapt over the Palace wall, and for the second time, she abandoned her mission, and she ran.
Venus stumbled to her feet, but she knew she was already too late. She’d missed, and Rei had slipped through her fingers once again. Her shaky legs gave way and she collapsed to her knees at Haruka’s side.
The Uranian drew a shaky breath. She rested her hand on Venus’ thigh. “Next time.” She wheezed.
The golden warrior nodded distantly. “Next time, I won’t miss.”
“Venus!”
She didn’t have to turn to greet the tandem voices, she had already assumed that Jupiter and Mercury were on their way and within moments, they had rushed to her side.
“You’re too late.” Venus made a garbled sound that fell in somewhere between a laugh and a sob. “I just missed her.”
“This is your second return, Mars.”
The crimson warrior froze, but didn’t turn to grant the shittenou eye contact. The surprisingly soft touch of a man about her height rested a hand on her shoulder. She found Jadeite grinning at her. “Beryl would like to see you.”
Mars narrowed dangerous eyes and brushed the youngest of the shittenou off before marching to Queen Beryl’s throne room with wide, determined strides.
When Mars entered the darkened room, the doors shut solidly behind her and the Queen was waiting for her. Mars’ cloudy eyes lingered on Endymion’s form, sitting awkwardly in a seat next to her throne.
“Did you encounter battle with the senshi?”
Mars turned to the suspicious voice of Queen Beryl. The Earthling measured her with cold eyes. Her long fingernails gestured to the crimson warrior’s side.
“I see your sword is missing.”
Mars looked to her hip. It seemed naked without her blade. She’d tried to use it moments ago, hadn’t she? Through hazy memories, she could remember that she’d forgotten it… left it in the room of the woman she’d been sent to kill. The woman she’d failed to kill twice. The woman who seemed so achingly familiar.
“Perhaps you need some training? A warm up of sorts?” Beryl grinned darkly. “Killing those you used to know and love doesn’t come easily, not even with Metallia’s powers, does it?” She paused, considering. “At the very least, you’ll need a new weapon.”
“Endymion.” She barked, “Bring me the sword.”
Endymion regarded his former tactician wearily. Despite his better judgment, the exiled Prince rose and approached a table at the far side of the room. A sword of medium build lay on a dark cloth. It’s design was nondescript, but that it was forged of a black metal that seemed to shed a light darker than the void of space. Endymion reached out for the weapon, but before his fingers could curl around its hilt, he retracted his hand as if it had been burnt.
Beryl’s grating laughter filled the chamber. “No. You aren’t able to touch it, are you? You’re still pure and untainted, unlike this one here.” She pointed a thumb at Mars, but gazed at Endymion fondly before cutting her eyes to the crimson warrior. “You,” she ordered, “go. Take your sword.”
The Martian obediently approached the table but stared at the dark weapon for some time. Part of her understood she didn’t want to touch the sword; the part of her that rebelled, screamed, and cried out in frustration. But she was powerless to the force that controlled her, and finally, her white-gloved hand reached out and gripped its hilt. She winced. It tingled. It burned. It muted what little of her true self she could still hear and it turned her crimson view of the world infinitely darker.
Her cloudy, amethyst eyes turned a solid, glossy black.
“Now,” Beryl commanded, “attack Endymion.”
“Rei-san…”
The whispered name reached only her ears and Mars narrowed her eyes as she looked at the familiar man. She didn’t want to do this, did she? But then the sword was moving of its own accord, and she seemed to be bound to its will, along for the ride as she thrust at Endymion. Endymion managed to feint to the left and the sword skirted off his shoulder armor with a metal clang.
“Draw your sword, you fool.” Beryl hissed to Endymion. “Give us all a good show.”
Endymion held his ground, refusing both the order he had been given from Beryl and the dangerous glare he found in Mars’ glassy, black eyes. The small seed of hope he’d felt for Rei withered, but he refused to give up entirely.
That was when the crimson warrior charged again, swinging the dark sword in a wild arc high above her head.
Endymion unsheathed his sword and their blades met above their bodies.
It took a white knuckled, two handed grip for him to retain enough strength to hold his sword against Mars’. He could feel his energy being sucked into the void of the dark weapon. His hands burned, his body tingled. He couldn’t imagine how painful it must have been for Mars to wield it.
Mars grinned. She pushed her weight against her sword and Endymion stumbled backwards. She surged forward and parried a weak attack while countering with a kick to the man’s stomach. Endymion grunted and leant forward, but gritted his teeth and met the Martian’s next blow.
She was waiting for this, however, and a well-placed knee to the groin had Endymion doubling over in pain.
As he fell backwards, his hand brushed hers. Mars followed him to the ground. Instead of skewering him with the sword, as the weapon so desperately wanted her to do, she shoved the blade into the flagstone floor and pinned Endymion to the ground with a knee to the chest in a submissive hold.
Beryl stepped forward, the echo of her heels breaking through the fog in the crimson warrior’s head. “That’s enough, Mars. You’ve made your point.” She grinned. “Now, return to the Moon and complete your mission.”
Mars rose to her feet. She pulled her sword from the stone. It slid through the rock like butter. She sheathed it easily and wide strides separated her from Beryl’s throne room quickly.
It was only after she’d left the Palace proper that she relaxed the muscles of her left hand. Unconscious fingers smoothed the wrinkles of the folded paper Endymion had pressed into her palm as he had fallen. Without a single, backwards glance, she stepped onto the access point and was teleported back to the Moon.
Long silver hair streaming behind her, Queen Serenity rushed down a set of marble stairs.
“Old friend,” she enveloped Sailor Pluto in a warm embrace, “I’m sorry I couldn’t meet with you right away.”
“Your kingdom is on the verge of war, your highness. I would not expect you to be able to meet each newcomer with open arms.”
The Queen sucked her teeth in a very unladylike manner and released the other woman reluctantly. “You’re hardly a newcomer, and don’t think you can get away with using formalities just because I haven’t seen you in decades, Setsuna.”
The stoic woman’s cheeks colored slightly at the gentle reprimand. A deep green glow enveloped the senshi of the time gates, and with an expression of a scolded child, Pluto’s civilian identity stood in the senshi’s wake. “My apologies, Serenity.”
The two women shared a brief respite that withered on worried glances.
“As glad as I am to see you, I can’t imagine that your arrival at a time like this bodes well for my kingdom.”
Setsuna shook her head. She paused and measured the weight of each word carefully. “Metallia, the evil that was born from the Sun, was not supposed to be awakened for many centuries. The peoples of this age are not prepared to deal with such a threat.”
“Are you saying that our position is hopeless?”
“I’m saying you’re fighting a losing battle.” Setsuna said firmly.
“Then there’s no hope.”
“I fear… not without Saturn’s intervention. And even then…”
“Even then, all will be lost.” Tears collected in the corners of Queen Serenity’s crystal blue eyes. “Say it isn’t so, Setsuna.”
The green haired woman tore her gaze from her Queen and wandered on idle legs until she came to gaze out an arched window. “I could tell you anything you wanted to hear, Serenity, and it would all be lies.” Her cold gaze lingered beyond the rise of the mountain range of Montes Haemus to the north. “The future has gone dark. I can’t distinguish one possible future from the next.”
The Plutonian looked up from the warm touch on her shoulder. The Queen had banished her tears and a brave smile tugged at her lips. “If the future is not written in stone, then all hope is not lost.”
“That is a dangerously optimistic outlook.”
“But I do believe you’ve used both those words to describe me in the past, have you not, Setsuna?”
The timid blush returned to the Plutonian’s cheeks. “A long time ago, yes.” She straightened her form. “But now there are others; new loves, that wage new battles that they were never meant for.”
“You refer to Rei joining Metallia’s cause? Surely that was not supposed to happen.”
“None of this was supposed to happen, Serenity. The time stream has been turned upside down by Metallia. And it’s not Rei I’m worried about.” Setsuna drew a deep breath. “I feel her powers are strong enough to deal with the threat inside her in her own way. It’s Minako who is my concern. That girl leads with her heart. I’m afraid she’ll lead all the girls into trouble if she’s not careful.”
The Queen of the Moon Kingdom only laughed quietly.
Setsuna frowned. “My Queen?”
“It’s the one thing my daughter and Minako share most in common. They both lead with their hearts. I don’t see this as a bad thing. I think it makes Serenity a better Princess, as it makes Minako a stronger leader.”
The senshi of time looked to Queen Serenity with uncertain, garnet eyes.
“You’ll see. It’ll be the wealth of Minako’s love that will save Rei. They may be new loves, but I don’t think either of them are unprepared for the trials that await them.”
Setsuna couldn’t help but arch an eyebrow. “You seem so certain of this. Perhaps you can see into the future better than I can of late?”
Serenity smiled sweetly. “Hardly. Call it a woman’s intuition, if you will. I just…”
Setsuna forged forward when the Queen’s gentle smile faded. “Serenity?”
“I’m not worried about the others, but… I just hope my daughter will be so lucky when it comes to Endymion.”
Minako tossed violently in her sleep – the fitful, tense sleep of the over exhausted and stressed.
Mars approached from the window cautiously. Certainly, she considered, this time the woman, knowing she was being hunted, would have guards posted against the threat. She gazed at the form on the bed, clothed in a simple, golden nightgown, her body barely covered by a thin sheet she’d tossed off long ago.
’I’m not a threat to her.’
At her mind’s defiance, Mars’ fingers gripped around the hilt of the dark sword at her hip. She crept into the room and paused at the Venusian’s bedside silently. Even through her crimson haze, she couldn’t help but notice as a single tear slid down the gentle swell of one of Minako’s reddened cheeks.
The Venusian turned toward her, unseeing and in the throes of a nightmare. A fine sheen of sweat covered her body. Her brow furrowed and she whimpered.
“Rei…”
Mars’ sword slipped from her fingers. It clattered loudly on the floor at her feet and she leaned forward, grabbing her head with both hands.
It was enough to wake the fitful woman, and though Minako was unsurprised to find Mars at her side, she knew this wasn’t the time to rejoice. It was all too obvious that her lover was still fighting for control over the darkness that had claimed her.
It was now or never.
Minako rolled off the bed. Landing half in the Martian’s lap, she threw her arms around the woman she’d missed so much. She shuddered despite herself. ‘She’s so cold.’ But the feel of Mars’ frigid skin was nothing compared to the emotions that rolled off the crimson warrior’s body, the emotions that Minako siphoned unwittingly, bordering on frantic and desperate as Mars fought for control against the darkness that commanded her.
“Tell me you’re fighting it, Rei. Tell me you can defeat this!” Mars’ body shook violently in Minako’s arms. “I promised to fight you, but I don’t want to if I don’t have to!”
Home. She was definitely home. Mars snapped and her cloudy eyes cleared. “You have to fight me, Minako! Call the others. Together, you can defeat me. Do it now before I can’t stop myself!” Her hand reached for the floor, searching blindly with splayed fingers. “The sword… it-”
“Sword? Rei, what sword?” Minako drew herself back, looking to Mars with pleading eyes. She gasped when she heard the eerie scrape of metal on stone and saw Mars’ fingers tighten around a black sword that was not her own. The crimson warrior shoved Minako away violently and the Venusian slid across the floor and scrambled to her feet.
Her breath caught in her throat when Mars’ cloudy eyes turned the darkest shade of black. For a brief moment, Minako wavered between fear and despair, but then she straightened herself and nodded sharply. The golden light of her senshi strength enveloped her, and Venus stood tall with a sharp determination.
“Arm yourself, Venus.” Mars hissed.
Venus’ fingers closed around the hilt of her sword. She unclasped it from her waist and it fell to the floor with a loud clatter. “No,” she growled, “it’s your sword I want.”
Glassy, black eyes narrowed and Mars threw herself at the Venusian. The dark sword came frighteningly close, slicing through a lock of Venus’ hair, but the golden warrior figured that it was more than just her skill that had gotten her within arm’s range of Mars without getting struck down by the deadly weapon.
’She doesn’t want to be doing this.’
Mars raised the sword once more and Venus lunged in, skirting behind the crimson warrior and throwing her arms around her, pressing her chest to the other woman’s back with only one intent; to siphon the darkness that Rei fought…
And to help her defeat it.
Venus’ appreciation of Mars’ spiritual strength amazed her, for under the influence of the dark sword, the evil that rolled off of Mars’ body and into Venus’ was the most debilitating feeling the golden warrior had ever experienced. Mars protested Venus’ hold only halfheartedly, throwing her body weakly from side to side, and Venus buried her head in Mars’ neck, tightening her grip around Mars’ middle as she concentrated on the darkness she siphoned.
’Is this… Metallia?’
It was raw. And mean. And cold. And hateful. It was worse than fear, and it was overpowering. But if she looked hard enough, held on long enough… there. It was not unlike what she imagined that Rei saw when she used her psychic abilities; floating in that terrifying darkness was the very essence of the woman she loved. The flickering crimson aura was warm and strong, determined and fierce, and though she was fighting hard against Metallia’s sway, she was utterly exhausted.
’Rei… you’re all right. Tell me what to do. I need your help.’
But Mars couldn’t respond. All her energy was being spent to block the worst of Metallia’s influence, the depths of which Minako couldn’t sense. She could show Venus how to help her in only one way. Slowly, Mars lifted shaky hands. Her grip on the sword’s hilt shifted, and she held the blade in reverse, its point aiming for herself.
Venus frowned. She’d hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but somehow, she had known. Her hands found Mars’, and rested on top of them, both sets of hands gripping the sword’s hilt. Venus shut her eyes, and she concentrated.
It was then, through the hazy fog that dulled her senses, that Mars felt a new energy. It was a supportive push, a gentle reassurance. Venus wasn’t only siphoning from her, she was siphoning to her, aiding her aura with her own in her fight against Metallia. The Venusian’s strength was welcome, and stronger than Mars had ever imagined it could be.
“Are you sure?” Venus asked gently, tightening her fingers around Mars’.
The Martian could barely nod. She pressed the tip of the dark weapon to her abdomen.
‘Foolish child!’
Threatened,Metallia lashed out, her voice echoing in the minds of both women, and for one, heart-stopping moment, both Mars and Venus thought they’d lose control completely and stumble into the dark madness that laced that evil voice.
Metallia growled. ‘I would give you so much power! And yet you still chose to defy my will!’
Mars made one, last stand, her mental voice sounding weak even within the confines of her own mind. ‘No amount of power will ever equal what she can give me, what she’s already given me.’
Venus was equally strong. ‘Get out of her head, Metallia. She doesn’t belong to you. She’ll never belong to you.’
Venus steadied Mars’ grip. But in doing so, she also shifted the Martian’s aim away from her abdomen and further towards her hip, farther away from anything vital. She wouldn’t risk Rei’s life, not even over Metallia. It would be enough. It had to be enough, for Venus refused to accept the alternative.
Mars squinted her eyes shut and bit down on her lip, and Venus helped her drive the blade home. The dark sword pierced the left side of Mars’ hip, burying its black point deep into flesh and muscle.
Metallia’s tortured scream filled their ears, filled their minds. Mars fell to her knees and Venus dropped to catch her, collecting her under the arms and pulling her back to her chest to ease Mars to the floor softly. The scream in their heads slowly faded into an empty silence and the dark sword that protruded from Mars’ hip shattered and turned to dust.
They’d driven away the darkness, and beyond that, they’d wounded her, wounded Metallia.
With a shaky breath, the woman in Venus’ arms was enveloped in a crimson glow. When it was just Rei in her embrace, tears began to roll freely down Venus’ cheeks, even as she pressed a gloved hand to Rei’s wound to staunch the bleeding.
“Rei,” Venus whispered, tightening an arm around her lover, burying her face in her neck as she repeated that name over and over, “Rei, Rei, Rei!”
Deep in the space between consciousness and unconsciousness, all the exhausted Martian could do was weakly squeeze the Venusian’s hand on her hip to reassure her that she would be all right.
The door to Minako’s room swung open and Venus was vaguely aware of a commotion that could only be all of the senshi rushing into her room. She looked up at them with tearstained, bloodshot eyes and swallowed a relieved sob that felt so much better than the anguished ones she’d swallowed for far too long.
“She’s back,” Venus gasped, “Rei’s come home.”
Preview: Chapter 16: Worthless Human
Serenity was happy that Rei and Minako had been reunited. She was. But she couldn’t curb the sadness that chipped away at her heart, at her very soul.
They had been reunited while she had not yet heard any news from Endymion.
Her fingers bypassed the smooth plastic of the communicator Endymion had given her and clutched the finely folded note instead.
Fingering the note, she walked the perimeter of her room and double checked that her doors were securely closed. Content that Sailor Pluto was standing guard outside the antechamber to her bedroom without feeling the need to keep a visual check on her, Serenity climbed onto the windowsill next to her bed.
With shaking hands, she unfolded the note. Unsure fingers tore a corner, and with her frantic grip, she nearly ripped through one of the creases. As soon as enough of the page came into view, she began to read.
Serenity, please do not worry. I have not switched sides. Beryl is reluctant to brainwash me, and I hope that with that advantage, I may be able to prevent war from breaking out between Earth and the Moon. I don’t know how, yet, but I will try my hardest. And I promise to return to your arms a better man and the rightful ruler of my peoples.
I love you.
-Endymion.
After she’d read it, Serenity read it again. The Earth made its trek across the horizon and her actions began to compromise the integrity of the note. She soon found that it didn’t matter, that by the time her tears had drowned the ink and her shaking hands had torn the paper, she’d already had the passage firmly committed to memory.
It was a knock on her door that finally tore her eyes from the remains of the note.
“My Princess, breakfast has come and gone. It is nearly time for lunch and you have not yet left your quarters.”
Serenity shifted on the windowsill. Her rear end had long since gone numb, and her bloodshot eyes were dry and tired. “Thank you, Sailor Pluto, but I do not wish to eat at the moment.”
“Then I wish to inform you that I am due to meet with the rest of the senshi shortly, and to remind you that you have an audience with your mother at twelve hundred hours.”
“Thank you, Sailor Pluto. I will not forget.”
The guardian of the time gate went silent. Serenity listened carefully until she could hear the senshi’s quiet footfalls as she departed.
Slowly, she stood, her legs tingling and her head swimming for spending the greater part of the day in a single pose. She reached into her dress and examined Endymion’s communicator, contemplating it thoughtfully for several moments.
Finally, her fingers flew across the keypad for a brief moment. In the communicator’s blue screen, one line was displayed:
-Endymion, I’m coming for you.-
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