Lita kneeled, and quickly tore Serena away from Rei. Serena struggled, but Lita embraced her in loving, but firm arms. Darian, and Amy touched Rei's slender neck in search of a heartbeat, or a pulse. "Amy," Darian said gravely, "Rei hardly has a heartbeat, its very weak....and her skin is so cold." "She hardly has a pulse, Darian," Amy replied worriedly, "we need to get her into the stasis tube quickly!" Darian quickly took the almost lifeless of the fire senshi in his arms, and rushed down the hall with her to the mini-lab, with Amy in tow behind him. Meanwhile, Serena cried deeply, heavy sobs wracking her now weak frame, as Lita comforted, and held her. "What happened, Serena?" Lita asked the girl gently, as she cupped the blond girl's face with one hand, making her look up. "Mina.....attacked me....." Serena managed to say amid heavy sniffles, and sobs. "Because she caught you with Rei?" Lita asked quietly. "Yes....." Serena replied. "What did you do to Mina?" Lita asked her blond princess, as she kissed the girl's forhead tenderly. "I.....I...." "Please, Serena.....tell me what you did to Mina.? "No...."Serena replied amid her hiccups, "I sent her away to the same awful place that other monster came from." "Alright," Lita replied, as she took Serena into her arms once more, and continued to cuddle her, and rock her back, and forth. Three, dark, sad days passed with Rei in a life-sustaining tub, filled with an embrionic-like fluid that maintained her just barely alive. From two computers extended cords that were attached to the tube that contained Rei, feeding it enough electric current to keep Rei's heart beating, her blood flowing, and her brain barely alive. But still, Rei was on the very verge of.... "Dying," Amy was saying quietly to a tearful Serena, who had refused to leave the tube that contained Rei's body, "Serena....Rei is dying....." "Can't you, and Darian do SOMETHING, Amy?" Serena cried, almost hugging the tube that contained Rei's dormant body. "Serena...." Amy paused, as she took the blond girl's hands in her own, "there might be on last way to save Rei from death, but it has to be done NOW. Rei only has one hour left before her brain shuts down completely, then it will be too late to save her. She will be gone forever." "What, Amy.....WHAT? Tell me what? I'll do ANYTHING to save Rei." "You have to bring Mina back, Serena." "NO!" Serena shouted angrily, "NEVER!" "Serena....listen to me....when you sent Mina away, you robbed Rei of her LIFESOURCE. Mina, and Rei are a single entity; they can't exist seperated from each other. You have to bring Mina back." "Its NOT FAIR, Amy. Its not fair." "Don't you love Rei enough to save her, even if it means giving her back to Mina, Serena?" "I love Rei more than anything in the world, Amy....but...." "Bunny," Darian was quickly at Serena's side. Darian took the fragile girl in his arms, "Bunny, I know that you love Rei....I do too....so please.....don't let her die. Give her back to Mina." "Darian....I can't live without Rei.....what will I do?" "We'll help you, Bunny," Darian said lovingly, soothingly, "you will never be alone....you have us." "Always!" Lita said firmly, "we love you, Serena." "Yes," Amy exclaimed, "we will never leave you." "Alright,"Serena said slowly, "I'll bring Mina back." Fifteen minutes later, Darian had taken Rei out of her stasis tube, and had reverently laid her down on a small table, where she lay, motionless, wrapped in a white sheet to hide the nudity of her beautiful body. Now, Lita, Amy, and Darian, waited quietly for Serena to say goodbye to her gorgeous fire senshi. Serena said nothing, as she leaned down to kiss Rei's cold lips. Serena wasn't crying now, for if she did, she would bleed through her eyes. Yet, a deep sense of peace had begun to take hold of her tender heart, because she knew that her beloved Rei would live again, even if it was to be in someone else's arms. But Serena loved Rei so much, she didn't care if the beautiful brunette was no longer with her, but with Mina; all that mattered to Serena was that Rei wouldn't die. Serena stepped back, and raised her hand. The beautiful girl concentrated, and her fingers began to glow. The powerful moonprincess let go of a pure beam of energy that immediately opened a chasm in space. Suddenly, moans, and growls issued from the swirling, dark void, then a figure passed through it; the huge, many tentacled, grayish, floating monster that used to be the beautiful, blond Mina had come through the newly opened portal. None of the friends dared to move, as they stared in disbelief at what their companion, Mina, had become. The grayish monster growled slightly as it floated close to the table where Rei lay in lifeless state. When the monster saw Rei, it began to tremble, and somehow make sounds that seemed to be crying. Eagerly, yet gently, the monster enveloped the lifeless girl on the table in it's tentacles. Serena cried out angrily, but Darian held her fast in his arms, as she buried her face in his chest, and cried like a baby. Mina had been crying for what seemed like an eternity, as she floated endlessly in the barren, silent world that was to be her home forever. Now, she had no tears left, but she simply wanted to die; not because of this prison that she was trapped in, but because Rei wasn't with her. Mina hated Serena intensely for keeping Rei from her. But now, even the hatred was slowly seeping out of Mina, because she was tired, and had no use for it in such a place as she was. When the light suddenly flashed before her, Mina's heart leapt with joy, becuase she knew it was the portal opening for her to go back home. Mina thought that perhaps it was Rei, or Amy, or even Darian or Lita calling her back. But Mina knew that none of her friends had such tremendous power; only Serena could open, and close the portal. It was Serena calling her, but Mina didn't care why, because she just wanted to go home to Rei. Mina had entered the swirling chasm before her, only to emerge once more inside the lab. Mina was surprised to see her friends waiting for her; Lita, Amy, Darian, with Serena in his arms. Then, Mina saw Rei, lying lifelessly on a nearby table. Rei was covered in a white sheet, and she looked like a corpse. Mina was crying now, sobs making her tremble, her cries no longer human, yet still heart wrenching. Mina lovingly reached out with what she had; once human arms, now tentacles. Gently, Mina gathered her beautiful senshi doll into herself, and held her close. At the precise moment that Mina took Rei into her tentacles, a great light flashed, engulfing her, and Rei completely. Amy, Lita, Darian, and Serena were blinded by the sudden light's intensity, and quickly covered their eyes. When the foursome looked again, the monstrous shape was gone, only to be replaced by a very human, very beautiful Mina once more, as she now kneeled on the floor with Rei in her arms. If Mina noticed that she was human once more, it didn't seem to matter to her. All that the blond senshi of love cared about was her beautiful, raven-haired senshi of fire, as she leaned down, and kissed her lover fully on the lips, "Rei....please wake up.....I need you.....I love you.....I can't live without you.....Rei.....please come back to me." As if by some unexplained miracle, the stunningly beautiful, sleeping goddess of fire suddenly stirred, and moaned softly. Rei's dark lashes fluttered, her heavy lids slowly lifted, revealing her cerulean eyes once more, that tiredly gazed upward to see the love of her life, "Mina...." the girl's voice was like the softest silken whisper, as it caressed her blond lover's smiling features, "Mina." Mina's response was her sudden cry of joy, and the numerous, loving kisses her full pink lips planted all over Rei's pale face. Finally, the golden senshi of love, kissed her fire goddess passionately on the lips once more. After what seemed to be an eternity of the two girls kissing, Darian interrupted them by clearing his throat, "it is so good to have you two back!" "No," Mina replied gravely, as she cuddled Rei tightly against her, "we can't stay here.....this isn't our world anymore." "Are you kidding?"Darian asked, shocked at Mina's words. "She's right, Darian,"Amy replied, "when you read the computer readouts on Mina, and Rei, you'll see that she is right. Mina, and Rei are no longer human; not even remotely. The two of them won't be able to abide our atmosphere for long. They have to go back soon." "So...this is goodbye,"Lita said suddenly, as she stepped forward, got on her knees before Mina, and Rei, and hugged them both at the same time, and began to cry, "I'm going to miss you both." Mina was so shocked at Lita's behavior, that she started crying like a baby, "I thought you wouldn't want to touch me after seeing what kind of monster I had become, Lita." "I'll always love you no matter how awful either you or Rei get, Mina," Lita said amid laughter, and tears. "Gee, thanks, Lita," Rei said, as she began to giggle. Suddenly, to everyone's surprise, Amy started wailing like a baby, as she too lunged forward, got on her knees, and hugged the surprised group, "I DON'T WANT YOU TO GOOOOOOO......I'LL NEVER SEE YOU AGAIN!" "Oh, brother!" Darian exclaimed, as he rolled his eyes, "aaaawwwww.....what the heck!" Darian followed suit, as he too, kneeled beside the girls, and kissed each one of them on the cheek, and then enveloped them in his long, muscular arms. "Time's up," Serena said coldly, as she stood alone, arrogant, queenlike, a few feet from the crying, emotional pile her friends had become, "I can't keep the portal open for much longer." Last minute hugs, and kisses were exchanged, as the group seperated into two; Darian with his arms around Lita, and Amy, then Mina, who helped Rei get up off the floor, to stand upon weak, uncertain legs. Mina led Rei, her precious lover towards the dark, swirling void that was the portal to what was now their world. Mina held a still weak Rei in her arms, as she turned, and looked at her friends one last time, "goodbye guys, thanks, Serena," then Mina smiled. Serena smiled back at Mina, and nodded. Once more, Mina's beautiful shape seemed to blur, then vanish, until she became a grayish, tentacled monster once more. The monster seemed to purr softly, as it lovingly cradled a still human Rei in its tentacles. Rei was smiling, as her small, pale hand caressed what could be called the monster's countenance. Then, the monster that was once Mina, with Rei in its arms, floated up through the dark portal, vanishing forever amid the swirling waves of energy. Serena waved her hand slowly, and closed the swirling, dark portal, making it forever. Now it was as if it had never existed. "Well, that went well," Darian said as he kissed Serena on the cheek, "I have to go, hun. I have to finish a thesis. See you later, Bunny." "Oh, I have to go meet Ken for dinner," Lita exclaimed, "I think I'm already late!" "Share a cab with me?" Darian asked Lita as he offered her his arm, and bowed mockingly to her. "Oh, my beating heart be still!" Lita dawled flirtateously, as she took his arm, and both of them walked away laughing. When Darian, and Lita left, Serena quickly lost her cold, proud composure, and began to bawl like a tiny baby. Amy, always loving, and supportive, ran to her princess's side, kneeled, and took the grieving girl in her arms. "Oh....Amy....she's gone now.....really gone.....forever.....I'll never see her again." "Serena," Amy whispered gently, "everything will be fine soon. I promise." Without saying a word, Serena embraced Amy, and kissed her fully, passionately on the lips. A bewildered Amy waited for her princess to gently end the kiss. "Serena?" Amy was shocked as she backed away from Serena. "I know that you are in love with me, Amy," Serena said softly, "and I wish that I could feel the same way about you. I just wanted you to know that I do love you.....but not in the same way, and that I am so glad to haveyou with me." "I understand, Serena," Amy replied as she took Serena into her arms, "and I meant what I said, my princess; don't worry, everything will be alright soon." Neither girl said another word, but simply continued to hold each other.
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