Trading Places Ami felt a sharp pain in her shoulder as she was jerked off the ground by the hand that had latched onto her arm like a vise-grip. She yelled out in surprise, panic, and pain, and was blinded by a bright flash of light. Then she felt her body fly through the air and felt her stomach start to do somersaults when she realized she wasn't going to hit the ground quite when she had expected. Instead of merely landing on the ground, she was falling. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness just enough for her to tell she had been thrown down a flight of wire steel stairs. She watched as the steps flew by underneath her, until her body hit a wall, then she fell on a landing, sending a loud clanging sound ringing through the room. Next, the momentum from her fall caused her to roll down the next flight of stairs, the sounds of vibrating metal and the sensation of pain every time her body came in contact with a step suddenly overriding all thought. Ami normally would have known that what she was about to do next was a bad idea, but the current situation unfolded so fast that she didn't have time to think. Acting on reflex and the desire to stop the pain and the world from spinning, she stretched out her left arm to try to stop her movement. As she rolled down to the next step, She heard a loud, wet, cracking sound and screamed out again as a new wave of pain in her arm ripped through her senses, suddenly making the rest of the impacts with the stairs unnoticeable by comparison. Then, just as suddenly as she had started, she came to a stop, lying on her side. After a few seconds, her first coherent thought was that she was on the ground, and that she hadn't realized it was possible to experience so much pain that one literally could not think. From start to finish, the fall had taken only a few seconds, but it had seemed to be an eternity to Ami. Still dazed, she reflexively moved her right hand to cover her upper left arm where it hurt. The moment she felt her fingers touch, she clenched her teeth together as hard as she could to suppress another yelp of pain. Judging from the level of discomfort, and the odd angle she now realized her left arm was twisted in, her left humerus had almost certainly been fractured in the fall. She didn't think it was a compound fracture, though, since the bone hadn't broken through the skin as far as she could tell. Regardless, it hurt like hell. She was just grateful that it wasn't her right arm. A voice from above her asked with some concern, "Are you all right?" As Ami looked around for the source of the voice, she realized that she was in perhaps the worst possible of situations. Now that the world had steadied itself, and she was becoming aware of her surroundings, she could tell she had left the subway station, and for that matter, her very version of reality. She was at the bottom of a large, dark room made primarily of steel. Various colors of utility and floor lights as well as computer monitors were the room's only supply of dim light. Pipes and catwalks ran seemingly in every direction. Most of the computers were connected by copper and plastic conduits. Wires crisscrossed the room, and vents hissed out various types of steam. Some of the steam crossed paths with red lights, causing the room to somewhat resemble a metallic version of hell. Despite that, the room was actually a little on the cooler side temperature-wise. She let her gaze follow the stairs back up the direction she had come from. At the top of the stairs was a platform with several work stations, high tech computers, and a ten foot tall frame structure with wires and indication lights all over it. Ami figured that was probably the portal generator, for lack of a better name for the strange device. Standing in front of the machine was the owner of the arm that had pulled her into this predicament. Dark Sailor Moon had a small duffel bag slung over her shoulder and was leaning over the railing, looking down at Ami. "I do apologize for the manner of your abduction. It was one of those now or never kind of things." She shrugged, then added, "Guess you could say, timing was everything." Then she vaulted over the side of the railing and landed in front of Ami, helping her to her feet. Once she was standing, Ami backed away, very slowly edging her way back toward the stairs, still nursing her left arm with her other hand. She was in no condition to fight, but maybe she could still make a run for it. Then just before she reached the stairs, she stopped. Even if she was able to beat Serena to the top of the stairs, there was no way she would figure out how to turn on the portal and get through it without the Scout stopping her. Instead of retreating, she did the only logical thing she could do in this situation. Trying to keep her voice neutral, she asked, hoping her voice didn't show how much pain she was really in, "Abduction? I thought you wanted us dead. What do you want?" Dark Moon stepped forward, saying calmly, "The same thing you want. A solution to this mess that doesn't involve having to murder people." When Ami didn't say anything to that, she continued. "I want you to spy on the Sekkou and report your findings to your friends on the other side. All you have to do is try to fit in and observe." Then as she pointed her thumb over her shoulder, indicating the portal, "I know Amy is safe with your friends. She should remain so at least for the three days or so that you'll be staying with us. Hopefully her experience on the other side of the rainbow will allow her to see my point." She dropped the bag she was carrying at Ami's feet and said in a commanding tone, "As I said before, timing is everything at the moment. Detransform and put this on." "I need more information than that," Ami said. "I don't even know what is going on. You can't expect me to --" Dark Moon interrupted Ami in mid sentence. "Let me put it another way." Her face suddenly turned expressionless, and then, almost as if Serena felt the need to remind Ami that she was the leader of the Sekkou even if they didn't actually listen to her, she stepped close to Ami and grabbed her left arm just below where Ami's right hand was clutching it in a vain attempt to make the pain stop. The blonde gave it a twist, then held it there while Ami yelled out in pain. While Ami kept yelling in pain, Serena continued. "I'm not asking. I'm telling. You'll get your explanations later." Then to emphasize her point, she put just a touch more pressure on Ami's arm at key words as she spoke. "You are my prisoner. Until I release you, you will report directly to me." With just a touch of anger she finished, "As far as you are concerned at the moment, I am your god." With one final push to Ami's arm, Dark Moon let go of Sailor Mercury's arm, causing the Senshi to fall to the ground in agony. Dark Sailor Moon said, "Do as I say, without question, and you will be treated well. Deviate from my requests, and you will suffer the consequences." Then, nearly pleading, she said, "I promise in the end we will both benefit from this." For the moment, Ami felt she had no options left to her if she wanted to survive. A bright blue ball of water formed around Ami, causing her uniform to dissolve into nothing. With a splash, the water disappeared, and her normal clothing she had been wearing appeared back on her in a sudden flash of light. As Ami got dressed, she couldn't help but wonder at how strange it was that Serena could go from being almost sympathetic to ruthless in less than a second and back again. Mood swings seemed to be typical of the Sekkou, though, so perhaps it shouldn't have surprised her as much as it did. For her part, Dark Moon had turned away to allow Ami some privacy. Serena ignored Ami's yelps of pain while she struggled with getting her shirt off and the clothing in the duffel bag on. After a few more moments of listening to fabric ruffling, Serena heard silence. She took the silence as a signal her captive had finished dressing and turned around to see Ami now wearing what passed for Amy's 'civilian' clothing. It was a solid black militaristic uniform with thin light blue trim, and knee high gloss black boots. Despite Ami's small size, it somehow gave her a rather intimidating look. "Now for the finishing touches." Serena said. She grabbed Ami's glasses and tossed them under a large piece of machinery. Then she unzipped a side compartment on the bag and pulled out a belt with a holster and a silver handgun and put it around Ami's waist. Next she pulled out a small black box from inside the bag. As she opened the box, she said, "I don't recommend that you transform while you are here, since if you use your limited powers, they will instantly give you away. Just in case though, I brought something along that will hide that nice bright white uniform of yours." She pulled out a hypodermic needle and put the tip of it inside a small vial containing a dark black chemical and continued. "This is my supply of . . . medication, prescribed by the queen herself so that I would fit in with my re engineered teammates. Amy makes it for me. It should last you about three days. After that, we will have to get Amy and you switched back to your proper places for my plan to have any hope of success." Not giving Ami a chance to react, Serena jabbed the needle deep into Ami's neck. Before Ami knew what was happening, she suddenly became dizzy, then felt the world start to fade away as she slowly slipped into unconsciousness. Serena ignored that, saying, "It's amazing. You look exactly like her. Well, enough playing around. Let's get you to the infirmary . . . 'Amy'. We will talk more after we get you fixed up." Dark Moon then dragged Ami out of the room, now ready to implement her plan. Meanwhile back in the subway, every single individual stared at the spot Ami had been just moments ago with looks of anger or horror on their faces. The sole exception was Sailor Pluto, who as usual was calm about such events. It was Amy that broke the stunned silence. She started whispering "Oh no, no, no, no," over and over again, then she started to raise her voice a bit as the full impact of the possible consequences came to her. As Dark Mercury continued to get louder, Makoto's mortified expression she had from seeing her one true love disappear from thin air, quickly turned to one of rage. Her voice shaking with anger, she said, "Oh, no is right, you little . . ." Makoto rolled over, then stood up, now with someone to focus her anger on. Without Ami there to hold her back, Makoto's wrath was effectively unleashed. Sailor Jupiter raced over to Amy so quickly that even Haruka was impressed by her speed. Before any of her friends could react, Makoto had her hands clutching Amy's throat. If Amy's hands hadn't been tied and fastened to the handrail, Makoto would have lifted the woman off the ground by her neck. Makoto held her face inches from Amy's as she growled, "You better have a way to get her back or I'll tear you to --" She stopped speaking for a moment when she realized that Amy was still repeating "no" over and over again. The Sekkou didn't appear to realize Makoto was even there. Feeling frustration at the current situation, and her desire to get revenge for what the Sekkou had done to Ami several weeks ago boil to the surface, Makoto sent one of her fists crashing against the side of Dark Mercury's head in an attempt to get Amy to snap out of her shock. "Knock it off, damn it!" Makoto yelled. Before Makoto could throw another punch, all of the remaining Senshi were pulling her away. Makoto started to protest and struggle. She stopped struggling and allowed her friends to drag her away when she realized her attack had had the desired result. Dark Mercury seemed to ignore the pain she had to feel from the blow and screamed out to no one in particular, "That bitch! She's going to ruin everything!" Amy stomped her foot in frustration then said angrily, "What the hell is she thinking?" Haruka walked Makoto toward a bench farther away to try to cool her down, while the others returned to try to talk to Amy now that she had come back to what little since she had. Rei said, "Worried Amy is going to single handedly ruin all your plans for world domination huh?" Then, not trying to hide her sarcasm, she added, "Aw, that would be terrible." Sure that Ami's double wouldn't bother to answer, Rei finished with mock sympathy, "Wanna talk about it?" Amy looked back at Rei with a confused expression and said, "Worried about . . . oh . . . I'm sorry. I'm not talking about your egg headed, four eyed, tasteless friend. Most likely, she will either get herself killed, or find her way back here on her own. Makes no difference to me at the moment really." Glaring at Usagi she said, "It's you I'm worried about, you blithering idiot." Thoroughly irritated for being insulted Usagi said, "I'm not a bitch or an idiot, you . . . you . . . you bitch! And Ami won't get killed, she's too smart!" Minako leaned toward Usagi and whispered while patting her friend's shoulder, "Oh, good comeback." Rolling her eyes, Ami replied, "I'm not talking about you either. I'm talking about Serena. You're merely a convenient focal point for me to vent my frustration, you pea brained moron." Looking Usagi up and down for a moment, she amended, "Now that I think about it, the two of you do share a lot of qualities. So maybe in an indirect way I was calling you a bitch." She gave a small calculated shrug and batted her eyes innocently. Hotaru leaned on her staff and said quietly to herself as she listened to Sailor Moon and Dark Mercury go back and forth insulting each other, "Why is it, no matter how powerful, omnipotent, terrifying, arrogant, and sure of victory the villains are, they always resort to childish petty name calling?" Setsuna had finally grown tired of the childish show being played in front of her. She jabbed the end of her staff on the solid ground, making a loud repetitive pounding sound as the noise echoed throughout the station and shouted, "ENOUGH!" Once the two bickering women fell silent, she said calmly, "The important thing at this exact moment isn't name calling, fighting, gathering information to use against each other, or even rescuing Ami." Pointing her staff at their captive, she said, "It's what to do with you. After we solve that we can focus on other issues." "Oh, you've got a much bigger problem than that," Amy said with a wicked smile. "You see, I've managed to get my hands untied." Laughing, she lunged for the nearest Senshi, Usagi. As she did so, she untransformed, now wearing a black militaristic uniform with blue trim, and a belt with a holster for a small gun. Her gun, however, was not in the holster since the barrel was now pressed tightly against Usagi's right temple. All of the Senshi, including Haruka and Makoto, both of whom saw Amy's sudden burst of movement, rushed to form a circle around Amy and Usagi. "Drop it," Michiru said, trying to remain calm. "There are eight of us and one of you. Even with your ability to fly, you can't escape or hope to win in a fight and you know it, plus you have nowhere to go." Amy narrowed her eyes as she studied Michiru for a moment. Then there was a high pitched squeal and a light clicking sound as she activated the gun. "This is a DLT-15 class 5 laser pulse military grade pistol. It leaves a really big exit wound. Can't win? All I have to do is pull the trigger and I promise you, I win. As for where to go, I have an IQ of 300, so it's a good bet I can think of something, if I haven't already. Now all of you step away nice and slow, or your pretty princess gets a hole the size of a --" Amy suddenly yelled out in pain as a red object flying at a high speed glanced off her hand holding the weapon, leaving a deep cut. The surprise from the pain caused her to drop her weapon and let go of Sailor Moon. Sailor Moon backed away and joined the circle her friends had formed around Amy. Amy applied pressure to the wound on her hand to try to stop the bleeding and looked down to see a beautiful red rose had hit the pavement hard enough to puncture the concrete. She turned around and saw Mamoru dressed as Tuxedo Mask standing calmly, and in Amy's opinion somewhat arrogantly, on the steps leading up to street level. Finally admitting defeat, Ami kicked her gun toward Makoto, then turned to Setsuna and said, sounding both frustrated and somehow amused, "All right, fine. What do you do with me?" Sailor Pluto said, "The only thing we can. Ami has a life to live, a job to hold down, appointments to keep, taxes to pay, that kind of thing. Since she isn't here, someone will have to do those things for her until she returns, and you are the best candidate for that responsibility. You might happen to relearn a thing or two about friendship while you do that, and if so, so much the better." Mamoru walked down the stairs and said to Setsuna, "You came to that conclusion rather quickly. Are you sure that is wise? She may very well learn things she could use to defeat all of us once she is able to get back to her friends, and we don't have any way of insuring that she won't run off on us. To say nothing about convincing her to help us get Ami back here." Setsuna said calmly, "Ami will find her own way back. As for her running off, it's like Michiru said, she has nowhere to go." Minako stepped forward and said, her voice full of accusation as pieces came together in her mind, "I don't believe it. You lied to us." It took everyone a moment to realize Minako wasn't talking to Dark Mercury. All of the Senshi and even Amy watched Sailor Pluto waiting for an explanation. When Setsuna remained silent, Minako said angrily, "You told us this entire encounter with the Sekkou was not supposed to happen which implies the very future was in danger. From what you just said, you already know Ami will get back to us just fine." Keeping her face expressionless and her eyes locked on Amy, Setsuna said calmly, "You're overanalyzing." This time, Makoto spoke. "Is she?" She stood in front of the Senshi of time and said, "Tell me, Setsuna. Tell me to my face you didn't know Ami was going to get caught by them. That you didn't know they would torture her. Heck, try telling me with a straight face that you didn't know Ami and I would need help from all of you to get our relationship started. I suppose I should at least feel reassured now that I know Ami will be all right. But it makes one wonder, what else haven't you told us?" Setsuna looked as if she were looking through Makoto to the wall behind her. "We have had this conversation already, Makoto. I'm not omnipotent. I don't know word for word, detail by detail, what is going to happen in the future, just an outline you might say. It's my job to make sure the future unfolds as it is supposed to." A voice behind Makoto asked, "Dose that include telling Serena the exact moment a portal will open and when Ami would be at just the right place to be pulled through it against her will? Or leaving a sheet of paper with the mathematical equation on it that inspired me to build a worm hole generator capable of reaching this reality?" Makoto stepped aside and looked back at Amy as the smaller woman completed her questions. When Setsuna again refused to speak, Amy said, "You set this whole thing up. I hate to admit it but, Makoto asks a very good question. What are you playing at?" Setsuna's reply was to give Amy a mysterious smile and walk past her toward the stairs. When she said nothing, Rei yelled, "Isn't there anything you can tell us at all? Or do you just live for playing games with our fate?" Setsuna had reached the stairs and had walked up a few steps by the time Rei spoke to her. She stopped a moment, looked over her shoulder and said, "You want to know your future?" Then she turned away and started walking up the stairs, saying, "You will find out soon enough." ---------- At first, she was aware of nothing but darkness and blessed silence. Then, Ami could hear the sounds of her friends talking, almost as if they were in the distance. Their voices echoed in her skull almost as if their words were a dream. The strange thing was, she couldn't quite understand them because of the splitting headache she had at that moment. Slowly, the darkness turned to a bright blur as she opened her eyes. As they began to focus as best they could without her glasses, a familiar pair of concerned green eyes came into view. "She's coming around." Despite the fact that the tall woman was speaking quietly, her voice roared in Ami's ears like a jackhammer. Ami brought up her hand and put it on her forehead, trying to ward off the pain. As she shifted in bed, she was vaguely aware of the cast and sling her left arm was wrapped in. "What did I miss?" She groaned groggily, in an attempt to get a feel for the current situation. The last thing she remembered was she had been scanning Amy for information and then the strange sensation of falling and . . . Minako's face came into view and asked, "How is she doing, Lita?" "Lita?" Ami said, sitting up, startled for a moment, before the rest of her memory came back to her. The world spun about crazily, and if it hadn't been for a pair of strong hands grabbing onto her, Ami would have fallen out of the bed she had been neatly placed in. Once Lita was sure Ami had her balance, she pushed Ami's shoulders back gently but firmly and said, "Maybe you should lie down a few more minutes?" Ami looked around and saw that it was just the three of them, in a room with several beds in it, probably the infirmary. She felt nervous about being this close to the two Sekkou knowing she had no one to turn to for help. The memory of her conversation with Serena slowly came back to her and she allowed Lita to push her back on the bed. For some reason it took her a bit more concentration to make herself stay calm than she thought it should. Quite a bit more. She could still feel the echo of fear gripping her heart from the moment she first realized Lita wasn't Makoto. As she thought about her current situation, there was also a strangely powerful feeling of rage when she thought about how Serena had gotten her into this mess. As she continued to think more about things, she found it odd that every passing thought seemed to have a fairly powerful emotion to it. Perhaps she wasn't fully conscious yet? She closed her eyes again, trying to rest for a moment. Too many thoughts were rushing through her brain too quickly and it was difficult to concentrate. Just when she was almost calm, the last part of her memory from before she went unconscious came back to her. Her eyes snapped open and she said, startled, "It must be the -- " She cut herself off and finished the thought in her head. 'It must be the injection.' She gritted her teeth tightly together for a moment and smacked her fist down on the mattress as hard as she could, moments away from having a temper tantrum. She felt infuriated at being drugged by Serena. She had been embarrassed about having trouble keeping her emotions in check lately, but that had been different. By comparison, this was maddening. It felt like every passing feeling was multiplied by ten. If this was how the Sekkou felt every moment of their lives, it was no wonder they were so violent and moody. Lita gently put her hand over Ami's clenched fist and said, "Just relax for a moment. You're still disoriented." Ami closed her eyes again, trying to regain control over her emotions. It seemed the harder she tried the more difficult it was. She felt scared, angry, and confused all at the same time. The blurred vision didn't help to improve her mood much either. Ami's face must have betrayed how she felt, because Minako leaned over the foot of the bed to look at Ami and asked in a voice almost like that of a police officer asking a criminal a question, "Amy, Think! What happened to you? Why didn't you retreat when I gave the order?" She thought about Amy being trapped under the steel beam, and Makoto trying to convince her to leave the trapped Sekkou to die. At the time she felt sympathetic to her enemy, but now she wished she had done as her girlfriend had suggested. Then the thought about how she had been viciously thrown down a flight of stairs by Dark Moon, all in the name of the crazed blonde's plan (which she still didn't fully understand) entered her mind. Perhaps a lie with a version of the truth thrown in would be the most believable? She had to fight her lips from forming a smile for a moment as several ideas on how to turn her answer into a way to get revenge on Dark Moon entered her mind. The idea was tempting, but she kept herself from doing that only because Serena's 'captivity' of her would help her to get answers the Senshi desperately needed. At the same time, it bothered her that Dark Moon felt whatever information Ami found out would somehow benefit the Sekkou as well. She had a distant feeling of guilt when the thought entered her mind that she shouldn't be thinking that way to begin with. Revenge was wrong . . . wasn't it? She suddenly wasn't so sure. She finally decided on a modified version of the truth. "The ceiling above me collapsed and I was trapped under a support beam. Two of the Senshi came up to me and argued about whether to help me, or let me die, and they decided to leave me to my fate. Once they left, I was able to free myself and activate my portal. After that, I don't remember what happened. I don't even remember getting through the portal. Must have been smoke inhalation." Lita gently stroked Ami's cheek and said, "Serena found you on the floor just outside the R.C.C. You must have gotten yourself that far after getting back." Then with more concern than Ami would have ever guessed possible for Dark Jupiter she said, "You scared the hell out of me. The next time I tell you to stay close to me, do it." Ami cringed inwardly when Lita leaned down. She was just about to kiss Ami when Serena's voice said from across the room, "Satisfied now, Mina?" As Lita jerked her head away to glare at Usagi's double, Ami looked over to see Dark Sailor Moon standing in the door way with a look that said, 'I told you so' plastered on her face. "You really should place a little more faith in my honesty." Mina folded her arms. If looks could kill, the look Mina was giving Serena would have turned her into a little puddle of slimy goo. "Faith? In you? Since when are you deserving of such honor?" Ray appeared over Serena's shoulder in the doorway and pushed her out of the way, interrupting what seemed to be an old argument. When she spoke, she sounded nervous. "I hate to interrupt, but the queen is still waiting for our report on our mission." Looking at Ami, she said, "Can you stand?" 'Queen? What queen?' Ami thought to herself. "It's just my arm," she said as she got off the bed. She was thankful to whatever god had given the Senshi their rapid healing powers, because the cast and sling were already starting to get on her nerves. There was no way she would be able to stand being in that thing as long as a normal person would have to endure it. She followed the others out, being careful to let at least one of the Sekkou lead the way since she had absolutely no idea where they were going other than to see this queen. They walked through several small hallways until they came to a large corridor, with the only door being a huge one at the end of it. The rest of the Sekkou were waiting impatiently. Once they reached the door and the other Sekkou, Ami expected someone to open it, but no one did. After a few more moments, Ami realized they were waiting to be let in. The nervousness of the others seemed to be contagious because Ami was starting to feel that way too. The thought that something could make the twisted Sekkou nervous disturbed her. The only movement from any of them was Mina pacing anxiously. Finally Amara said, "Why don't we just go in and get this over with?" Mina stopped pacing and said, "Oh sure, that's easy for you to say. You're not the one who gets to tell her we screwed up." The only two who didn't look nervous were Dark Pluto and Saturn. They almost seemed to find the reactions of the others amusing. Hotaru said excitedly, "I'd be happy to inform her." Lita looked at her in disbelief. "What are you so worked up about? You failed just as badly as we did! What makes you think she will be any happier with your performance?" Hotaru smiled and said sweetly, "We weren't in charge of it. We were more like casual observers. Why, with the plan you all came up with, it was almost as if . . ." She let her voice trail off as she thought about her next words for a moment. Then she said, switching her tone to a taunt as she looked over at Dark Moon, "You didn't have your hearts in it." Before Serena could say anything, the door opened slowly and quietly by itself. A woman's voice called out to them from the darkness of the room, "To be back this soon must mean one of two things. Total victory, or dismal failure. I am interested to hear which it is." The Sekkou straightened up and walked in as if they had all the confidence in the world. Ami followed their lead as her nervousness quickly gave way to curiosity to see who it was that commanded them. Ami found the room to be excessively big, and poorly lit. The only light was from somewhere high above the ceiling in the center of the room, illuminating a small area of the floor. She was sure the owner of the voice was somewhere in the shadows. The nine warriors stood in a straight line next to each other just at the edge of the light, looking forward into the darkness. After a few more moments, a woman walked out of the shadows. She looked to be about seven feet tall, with a slim figure, long red hair, and she wore a tight purple gown. Ami had never seen the woman before as far as she could remember. The woman gave off such an aura of power that Ami had no doubt this woman was the queen the Sekkou kept referring to. She walked casually up and down the line of her henchmen, looking into the eyes of each every time she passed them, as if searching their souls. Every time she made eye contact with Ami, she became concerned that this woman might know she didn't actually belong here. About the third or fourth time the woman walked down the line, she said, "It must be total failure you have come to inform me of. No gloating? No stories of victory and conquest? No charts and graphs to show me how close you were to success or what you need to win next time?" Sweeping her hands outward she said, indicating what she felt was the biggest clue, "No bodies?" She stopped in front of Ami and said, clearly meaning it to sound like an insult, "Perhaps it was a lack of intelligence?" Ami could feel her heart race in fear when she realized the woman wanted her to answer. She looked up at the woman and said, unable to hide her anxiety, "Your . . . your majesty, the task you have given us is difficult. It may take quite some time for resu--" Ami didn't need the woman to say anything to know she wanted her to be quiet. The look this queen was giving her said it all. "More time? Results?" The tall woman snapped angrily. "I have given you plenty of things. I gave you equipment to build your precious Project Rainbow. I gave you time to learn how to use it. I gave you time to gather intelligence on your enemies. I gave you the warriors you requested, time to train them, and then time to formulate a plan. And what have you given me in return? Nothing." "Queen Beryl, this despicable display of failure wasn't Amy's fault," Trista said from farther down the line. As Queen Beryl walked to her loyal servant, Ami's mind began to race. Despite how long the fight in her version of reality had gone with Beryl, the only Senshi to ever actually see her face to face was Usagi. Some things started to make sense, but she was already starting to form questions in her mind she wanted to ask Dark Moon as soon as the two of them were alone. "You see, your highness," Trista began the moment Beryl looked at her, "Amy's plan was working just fine. There were a few minor setbacks, but we were able to compensate." The tall dark green haired woman looked down the line of Sekkou to see Mina still staring forward and said, "That is, until Dark Sailor Venus gave us the order to retreat because of a few more unforeseen events." She smiled and finished, "Your highness, if she had asked for my advice, or, had I been in charge, I would have simply suggested we wait for them to leave the building. No your highness, it wasn't bad planning. Merely incompetent leadership, that led to our failure." Mina didn't wait for Beryl to address her. She stepped out of the formation and looked at Trista, with fury blazing in her eyes. "I made a decision that saved our hides! The element of surprise had been lost, and they were able to counter attack every attempt we made to neutralize one of them. Plus we were blinded and being suffocated by smoke! I had no choice but to make a decision!" Ami watched Beryl as best she could without her glasses, as Beryl slowly walked toward Mina, her feet making a loud tapping sound whenever they lightly touched the ground. Mina stammered, "Your . . . your excellency, It was the only thing we could do! We needed to fall back and try again later! We had no choice!" As Beryl continued to walk down to Mina, much like a predator stalking its prey, she tried to plea for forgiveness one last time. "We had no . . ." Mina finally stopped begging, realizing she wasn't going to convince Beryl who was to blame for the failure. She glared at Beryl defiantly, thinking to herself that she would face whatever punishment the queen handed out with whatever dignity she could muster. Beryl stopped several feet away from Mina. Without a word, the Ginzuishou materialized in her hand. It took Ami a moment to realize what it was because everything was so fuzzy. Once she noticed, she was shocked to see Beryl had it, instead of Dark Moon. Beryl raised the wand and pointed it at Mina saying, "You know the price of failure." Before the last word had completely left her lips, Beryl sent a wave of energy at Mina. The Sekkou of hate was enveloped in a bright flash of light, which seemed to seep into her skin, then nothing. Mina stood there sweating a bit, clearly agitated, but appeared fine. At first Ami didn't understand what was so traumatizing about it. Then, as Mina screamed out, her skin began to slowly blister, and her hair began to fall out. She fell to her keens shrieking in terror and pain, as her skin started to dissolve. It took Ami a moment to realize that all of Mina's flesh was actually melting. Steam rose from her as she continued to scream and twitch long after it should have been possible to do so. Ami could see muscle, bone, and after a short while, some of her internal organs, before they too started to dissolve into a gel. Mina finally stopped moving about the time her eyes turned to soft gelatinous masses. In the end, all that remained was a charred skeleton in the middle of a dark colored liquid that couldn't really be called blood at this point. Ami was both mortified and thrilled to see one of her foes taken out in such a way. She didn't realize how out of character her thoughts where for her, until her mind said quietly in her skull, 'One down, eight more to go!' Then she thought to herself, 'What am I thinking!? That woman just died! And if you're not careful, you could be next! . . . I can't wait for these drugs to wear off. I hate feeling this way.' Then, from what little remained of Mina, the light reemerged and formed into a tiny spark, the size of a pebble. It floated toward Beryl almost as if carried on a breeze. Beryl held out her hand and grabbed it in her fist for a moment, a little bit of light coming from between her fingers as she did so. To the others she said, "That is the price of failure." Opening her hand again, she let the small starlike speck go back to it's body. As she did so, she said bitterly, "If I didn't need you to defeat the Senshi, I would absorb your soul and use it to make a wonderful yoma. But alas, I can't dispose of you yet." She raised the Ginzuishou, sending a soft ray of light at Mina's charred corpse and watched as Mina's body pulled itself together again. Apparently, the process was rather uncomfortable, because as Mina's body started to reanimate, it was clear she was still very much in pain. It looked as if she was experiencing the exact same thing she had gone through, only in reverse. Finally, Mina, her eyes wide in terror, lay on the floor once again, terrified, but intact and alive. "Now, get up." Beryl said coldly. Then to all of them she said, "I am a generous ruler, therefore I will give you more time to plan your next attack. Now, get out of my sight before I decide I have no further use for you." Ami and Lita helped Mina to her feet, then all of the Sekkou and Ami scrambled for the door as fast as they could.
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