"Their warriors, you said?" Makoto Kino repeated, a eager light appearing in the brown haired amazon's eyes.
"You don't have to be quite so enthusiastic," Ami Mizuno murmured, the blue haired professor taking a graceful drink of her tea.
"It's part of her nature, Mizuno-sensei," Setsuna smiled, her glossy black mane flowing like a cloak around her, "and we may need that quality soon enough."
"What are they capable of?" Usagi Tsukino asked, all business. She almost resembled a samurai of old, kneeling there on the floor with her twin ponytails dangling.
"They're strong," Setsuna said, "but more importantly they use guile as well. Underestimating them could easily be your downfall."
Minako Aino nodded slightly, the gorgeous blonde standing slightly apart from the others. "That fits with what Artemis tells me."
Luna agreed, the little black cat looking rather irritably towards the white cat nearby Minako. "I didn't expect them to send out the warriors so soon," she noted, "we must be worrying them."
"Or my mother wants us dealt with as quickly as possible," Usagi offered darkly.
Rei Hino shivered slightly, the black haired miko frowning. "What an odd sensation," she murmured to herself softly.
Setsuna heard it, however and looked to Rei intently, "How so?"
"A chill," Rei admitted, "almost as if we were being watched..."
"From what direction?" Setsuna dropped her voice.
"Outside, in the woods," Rei answered.
"Everyone, keep talking normally." Usagi commanded. "Minako," she kept her voice barely above a whisper, unheard beneath the others talk, "you're the best at being sneaky, take Luna and Artemis and go scout around. Send one of the cats back if you find anything."
"Right," Minako turned, a wave of golden hair flowing around her then was simply gone. Luna and Artemis slipped outside without a whisper of sound, disappearing into the shadows.
"Ami, do you have your weapons with you?" Usagi asked as Makoto and Rei talked on.
"Two freeze bombs and my pistol," Ami smiled slightly.
"Makoto, ready?" Usagi asked as Rei and Ami took up the loud conversation.
"Always," Makoto grinned, "I even brought my studded gloves."
"My bow is in the other room," Rei murmured as Ami and Makoto chatted, "and who knows, maybe grandpa will want to pitch in, too."
"Let's hold him in reserve," Setsuna answered wryly, "besides, I have a certain ace in the hole I ca call on." With that she drew a curved blade from her clothes, chanting softly over it.
"Should be interesting," Usagi noted as the blade glowed a sullen red.
Luna slipped inside a few moments later, the little black cat moving almost utterly silent. "Five of them," she reported softly, "using a scrying pool to spy on us. They're nearby in the forest, and it seems they don't know we're on to them."
"I've let my two allies know about the situation," Setsuna said as she carefully slid the blade away, "they're on the way." She made a face, "I had hoped to hold them in reserve, but this is too good of a chance to pass up."
"So what do we do now?" Makoto whispered eagerly.
Usagi reached down to hold her sword, her eyes closing a moment. "We attack and draw them out," she said crisply, "long enough for Setsuna's allies to arrive." She tensed her muscles, taking a centering breath then cried, "NOW!"
Outside the five figures were gathered around the broken piece of birdbath, watching the conversation that was going on curiously. The blue haired Chimera shook her head, "I wish we could hear what they were all saying."
Manticore narrowed her eyes, her rose tinted skin darkening slightly, "And where did the other blonde go, once she went outside?"
"Wait!" Hydra exclaimed as the women bolted from the room, the green skinned woman pulling back to look around wildly.
Usagi and the others raced towards them from the shrine, four young ladies, a cat and Setsuna racing forward to battle. "We've got to..." Gryphon said before the brown skinned woman's voice was choked off, a chain slipped almost silently around her neck.
Sailor V yanked up to pull the woman off balance as the other were disoriented a moment by the sudden attack. "Damn she's strong," Sailor V hissed, struggling to keep the chain around her throat.
Basilisk's orange hair flowed wildly as she glared, "We've got to rescue Gryphon!"
"She's on her own!" Manticore answered as she leapt to dodge Artemis' throwing blades, the white haired boy grinning ferally as he raced forward, then Luna swept in, the black haired girl tossing out her own shuriken.
Rei sent out her arrows as fast as she could draw them, forcing the Oni warriors back even as she landed two shafts into the bound Gryphon. The brown skinned figure struggled a moment, fighting the magics then burst into flames, rapidly consumed by the power. "Scratch one!" Rei called.
Ami took the two round modules and pressed down, tossing them right at the visibly stunned Basilisk. They exploded, liquid pouring out to engulf the orange skinned woman in cold, sealing her in ice. Still she struggled beneath the layers of dense cold, cracking the ice and Ami drew her freeze gun, firing to try and keep her sealed.
CRACK! Basilisk shattered her icy prison, panting as she stood there, shivering slightly. "I'll bleed you dry," she hissed as she advanced towards Ami, "suck the marrow from your bones..."
So distracted by her rage, Basilisk was completely surprised by Setsuna. Without a word the woman drew her crescent blade across her throat, a hiss of steel sending the unearthly monster falling to the ground. Setsuna held a hand over the body, chanting softly as purple tendrils of light danced up into her grip.
Manticore barely had the chance to summon her own sword as Usagi attacked, the little blondes blade nearly invisible with the speed of her attacks. Fighting for her life Manticore realized they had badly underestimated these children, a move that might cost them their lives.
Hydra parried Makoto's first blow, the second punch rocking her backwards as she felt her lip split. "Nice," she lapped up her own blood as the green haired woman returned the favor.
"Not bad," Makoto acknowledged as a punch glanced off her brow, drawing blood. She was grinning as they traded blows, circling each other as they sought any moment of weakness.
Chimera ducked behind another tree, panting as the blue haired woman dodged another flight of arrows. She saw what Setsuna was doing and felt her blood chill, recognizing the enchantment. "We've got to get out of here, now!" she cried.
"Too late," Setsuna smiled bleakly. She raised the sphere of purple energy as she cried out the final invocation, "DEAD SCREAM!"
Chimera didn't even have the chance to scream as the power wiped her from existence, leaving nothing but ashes swirling to the ground. Manticore broke away from Usagi as she shouted to Hydra, "We must report to the queen what has happened."
"Not likely," the cool voice said. Before anyone could answer a bolt of lightning descended from the cloudless sky, striking down to where Makoto and Hydra battled, the blast utterly destroying the Oni warrior.
"Damn it Haruka, the mortal!" Michiru scolded, racing along with Ami to where Makoto had been thrown by the powerful blast.
"All of you will pay for this," Manticore took advantage of the confusion to use her blade and cut into the air itself, disappearing into the rip which began to close behind her. Before it could fade away Setsuna was there, thrusting her dagger into the rift and holding it open.
"I'm all right," Makoto waved them off as she rose shakily to her feet. She tossed a glare to Haruka, "And why did you have to interfere in my fight?"
"Yup, she's normal," Ami kept a gentle hand on her arm.
Usagi looked at the rift, then at Setsuna. "That leads into the Oni's realm?" she asked.
"Yes," Setsuna said grimly, "possibly right to the queen."
"Then we're going in."
To be continued...