Sailor Mars’ first thought when she returned to consciousness was that it was dark; an impenetrable pitch-blackness smothered her entire surroundings from view. At first she was afraid that something had struck her in the eyes and blinded her, but then the memory of what had befallen her returned. That was when the Fire Senshi’s body made its agony known. "Uhh... gods..." Sailor Mars gasped out in a raspy voice barely above a whisper. Her whole body had seemed to suddenly erupt with a deep seeded, throbbing pain. It hurt all over; it even hurt to breathe. The miko surmised, then, that she probably had cracked, or broken, some of her ribs if the sharp stabbing sensation that shot to her brain with every breath she took was any indication. This was not a welcome revelation for Sailor Mars. She prayed that if she had broken any ribs, they weren’t in danger of piercing something vital. Broken ribs were bad enough; she didn’t need a punctured lung, or a ruptured kidney, to add to her torture. Or to her grave situation. Carefully, Sailor Mars flexed the muscles in her legs, taking heed to remain more or less still. They ached, but since there was no piercing pain and she could wiggle her toes, she assumed that they weren’t broken. Mercifully, it seemed that the paralysis that had originated from the energy blast to her leg had worn off also. Mars then tried to move her arms, but winced and gritted her teeth at the immediate pain that flared up. The miko’s left wrist hurt pretty badly; she must have fractured it along with her ribs. Her situation couldn’t get much worse... but at least she was still alive. The seriously injured Sailor Mars lifted her good arm up and reached into the darkness in front of her to feel tentatively for anything. Her hand collided with something that felt rough beneath her fingertips... like the grain of wood... perhaps the checkout counter Jupiter had been behind. The Senshi of Fire continued to feel across the large, flat, slightly canted surface of the object in front of her face as she confirmed her suspicions; it seemed like Mars was trapped in a hollow created by the store collapsing. She imagined that there had to be tonnes of packed concrete and other rubble piled above her immediate 'shelter'. Now how was she supposed to get out of this? Sailor Mars’ friends had to have known what had happened; she could just wait patiently until someone came and rescued her from her tight state of affairs. However, that could take some time, especially if the would-be rescuers had to clear the ruins of the demolished building away first to reach her. Mars swallowed uneasily, her brow creasing deeply as she tried to mentally suppress the acute pain from her damaged ribs that were disturbed by the action. She wondered how much air was trapped with her in the small prison. There had to be at least several hours worth... more than enough for the wreckage overhead to be removed, right? Right? Sailor Mars swallowed again, despite the agony that accompanied the motion, and tried her best not to give in to the panic that was threatening to overwhelm her. Think, damn it, *think*, Mars mentally screamed at herself, her efforts to remain calm rapidly losing out in the face of the serious predicament she was in. There had to be a way out. Perhaps she could simply blast a path to freedom using her powers? No, that would dislodge all of the precariously arranged debris around the Fire Senshi and bring it crashing down upon her. It would spell certain death, as she would surely be crushed beneath its bone-breaking weight. Sailor Mars’ laboured breathing became quick and shallow, as the raven-haired girl became quite frantic now. The repeated unpleasant stabbing sensations that came from her side as a result of her short breaths were gradually being dulled by adrenaline that now pumped into her veins. She was using up valuable air time here; she had to think of something fast! Wait... her communicator! Mars could call Sailor Moon and the others. Maybe Mercury could pinpoint the miko’s location on her mini supercomputer and consequently find an alternative method for excavating the girl out of her little cavity and prevent it from becoming her tomb. Sailor Mars hurriedly fished out the wrist communicator she had stashed on the side of her waistband on her left hip. She tried to remember all the button locations on the round device. She didn’t dare try to use her powers to illuminate the area for fear of burning up all the oxygen... and not to mention burning up herself as well. One handed, the Senshi of Fire pressed several buttons on her watch communicator in a combination that she thought should activate it. Nothing happened. Mars quickly pressed some more buttons. Still nothing happened. She then finally resorted to mashing the entire keypad with her palm in frustration and rapidly rising fear. The communicator should have been working; Sailor Mars was sure she was hitting the right buttons. What the hell was the matter with the piece of junk?! Mars shook the watch communicator with her good hand fiercely, trying to make it work by sheer force of will coupled with violent motion. Suddenly, something landed lightly on her chest and the miko abruptly halted in her efforts. Putting the communicator down, she hoped that it wasn’t some big bug or a mouse... or something equally disgusting. Sailor Mars felt gingerly along her chest until she touched an object. The Fire Senshi picked it up and examined it carefully with her fingers, feeling its shape and texture. The object felt metallic, circular and slightly warped... as if it had been bent. Then dreaded realisation set into Mars’ mind; it was the front casing to her communicator. She guessed that she must have landed on it when she fell from the floor above. Sailor Mars’ wrist communicator, her only way of contacting help, was broken. It was useless. Mars threw the casing away to her right in disgust. The raven-haired girl heard it clatter along the floor and then hit something metal in the distance. Gods... There was no way out. It would have been better if Sailor Mars had been killed when the building caved in rather than suffering a slow, excruciating demise from suffocation or, perhaps, even from bleeding to death due to unknown internal injuries. Something wet trickled down the side of the Senshi of Fire’s head, maybe perspiration from her anxiety, maybe blood from an open laceration. Mars cynically believed the latter. Mars prayed that Sailor Moon had made it out all right, however. All she was going through right now would be worth it if her princess had survived. Sailor Mars imagined that the odango atama was probably angry with her for throwing her as if she were nothing more than a sack of potatoes. In reality though, Sailor Moon was the most precious soul on this Earth to the miko. The doomed raven-haired girl smirked a little as she visualised how her princesses’ fuming expression would look, taking solace in thinking of the one who held her heart in her final moments of life. However, her soothing thoughts were cut short as a sudden realisation came to her mind, shooing away the images of Sailor Moon. Her brow furrowed contemplatively. Sailor Mars picked up her broken communicator and threw it hard in the direction she had earlier hurled its casing. She was rewarded with the clink of metal striking metal far off to her right. It confirmed what she had feverishly hoped; miraculously, the space the Fire Senshi was trapped in was bigger that she had first believed. Perhaps there was some way that she could get herself to freedom and subsequently seek medical assistance, rather than waiting on someone else to come to her aid. Steeling herself for the task ahead, Sailor Mars carefully oriented her body so that she could use her legs to push herself along the floor on her back towards her discarded communicator, since the hollow was far too low for her to even crouch. She had to be careful not to disturb any debris, however, in case it caused the stacked rubble above to completely cave in on her. Mars then began the arduously long and painful task of pushing herself inch by inch along the floor on her back, mimicking a caterpillar in movement and speed. After what seemed like a lifetime of pushing, Sailor Mars reached a wall, for which she was very thankful and relieved. Mars’ senshi fuku was soaked through with sweat from the enormous amount of effort it took to get there, not to mention from the crippling amount of pain, too. The Fire Senshi imagined that her uniform was probably quite filthy, also, from squirming along the grime-covered floor. She must be quite a sight. Sailor Mars felt along the base of the wall with one hand until she touched something cold, hard, and metallic. Further feeling revealed the cold object to be part of what the miko surmised was a series of short metal bars running vertically up the wall. Mars pushed her right hand through the bars in an attempt to find out what was behind them. Her fingers were met with only air. Sailor Mars retracted her hand, then carefully felt along the edge of the wall she was laying next to, for the piece of junk that was her useless communicator. After a few moments of searching, the Senshi of Fire found the discarded device to the right of the series of bars on the floor, next to the wall. Sailor Mars retrieved her communicator and dropped it through the metal bars, listening intently. After about a second, there was a splash. She must have found a drain that led to the sewers beneath the building. Terrific. The only way out and it was through human waste. Mars was already pretty grubby however; she may as well complete the foul package with some raw sewage. Sailor Mars used her good hand and pulled on the metal grill that blocked her escape route, testing to see how secure it was. It wouldn’t budge an inch. The Fire Senshi swallowed her frustration and controlled her returning panic, then gingerly reoriented her body so that she could use her legs to kick the grill out. Summoning all of the strength her banged up body still possessed, Mars kicked furiously at the grill with both feet repeatedly, the dull beat of metallic thuds resonating within the small hollow. ‘Open’, was the raven-haired girl’s fevered mantra. Sailor Mars let out a cry of rage and frustration all rolled into one, and then kicked the drain grill for all she was worth. She felt it finally loosen a little. Letting out another cry, she kicked the metal grill decisively once again for a final time, sending it flying outwards and down towards the murky water below. Mars breathed a shuddering sigh of relief and relaxed back against the floor, being careful not to aggravate her hurting ribs. She could finally get out of here. While Mars lay on her back exhausted and revelling in the knowledge that she had unearthed a viable way out of her tight spot, a disturbing groan emanated from the tonnes of debris stacked above her. The Fire Senshi then realised that she didn’t have the time to rest. Acting quickly, despite her fatigue and constant torture from multiple injuries, Mars hurriedly squeezed through the drain opening and fell face first into the sewer water a couple of metres below. Mars raised her face out of the rancid liquid, spluttering and gritting her teeth in pain. Just then, the debris forming the sanctuary she had dwelt in only seconds before, shifted and crumbled in on itself with a loud crash. A shower of masonry was sent through the grate-free hole to splash into the water around her. "That... was far... too close," panted Sailor Mars as she looked up at the plume of dust drifting through the narrow gap that remained uncovered at the top of the drain hole. She then winced as she discovered talking and borken ribs didn’t mix. Thankfully, the part of the sewer the miko now occupied was large enough for her to stand upright in.... albeit with great discomfort due to her wounds. She didn’t want to think about what was actually *in* the ankle-deep water she was currently standing in. Sailor Mars hoped it was just rainwater that ran in from drains. It was still pitch black around the Senshi of Fire, but at least she could now safely use her powers for a light source. Or so she first thought. Didn’t sewers have methane gas in them or something? Wasn’t that explosive? But wouldn’t Mars smell methane? Except she, unfortunately, had no idea what methane smelt like. She supposed it must stink something horrible. The miko knew she should have payed more attention in chemistry class! But who would have thought the things her teachers at school--and not to mention Ami--constantly harped on at her about could actually serve a purpose in the real word? It was simply unimaginable. With that last thought, Sailor Mars began her gruelling and dark trek towards the nearest manhole. ****** Trudging through what the gods’ only knew, while sharp stabbing pains originating from badly damaged ribs harried her progress with every laboured breath, it took Sailor Mars over an hour to find a manhole; an hour of pure pain. Climbing up the service ladder to the street with a fractured wrist had not been a pleasant experience either. Once the Fire Senshi finally made it out to the surface, she was just about ready to collapse. She wanted to sleep for a week right then and there, not caring where she was. But knowing that she needed medical attention as soon as possible, Mars instead struggled into a nearby alley and detransformed. Unfortunately, and much to the girl’s weary irritation, all of the grime from her little ‘adventure’ transferred to her street clothes. Great. Just great. Probably the first thing the examining physician would do at the hospital, would be to order her a bath... stat. Rei leaned lightly against the alley wall so as not to disturb her ribs--though they still hurt like fury no matter what she did--taking a short respite to prepare herself for another pain-laden journey. She had to get to a hospital for treatment fast; it hurt even when she blinked. Rei took one more difficult breath, then set off once again in a staggered gait; this time for the nearest hospital. ****** It took everything Rei had left to make it to a hospital. Not wanting to have to explain where she had gotten her injuries from, or who she was for that matter, Rei had feigned temporary amnesia from a head wound she had sustained. It wasn’t difficult; when the Fire Senshi had saw herself in a mirror she had realised she could say she had received just about any injury. Once Rei's body and long raven hair had been cleansed from the dirt and sewer water that had stubbornly clung to it, she had let the doctors patch her up. As it turned out, Rei had fractured her wrist, cracked two ribs, and suffered numerous scrapes and bruises. All in all she had actually gotten off quite lucky, considering. The miko then rested her drained form for a while before discharging herself from the hospital--which basically consisted of her walking boldly out of the front doors--despite the doctors’ protestations. Rei had been gone for far too long as it was; Usagi and her friends were probably worried sick. Rei looked at the time displayed on the building of a bank as she walked down the street away from the hospital; it was twenty past five in the morning. It appeared that her ordeal had taken all night. She wondered how she was going to explain to her Grandpa and Yuuichirou why her left arm was in a cast resting in a sling and her ribs were all bandaged and taped up from just going out to the movies with her friends. The Fire Senshi cringed as a sharp spasm of pain suddenly wracked her body, causing her to jerk. It was going to take some time to recover from these wounds. She wondered when the hurting would start to lessen. Rei sighed and began to make her way back to the scene of the fight. Her friends were probably all trying to dig her out at this very moment. She bet that they would be very surprised when she just showed up out of the blue as if nothing had happened. The raven-haired girl smirked at the thought, then continued to amuse herself with what she imagined her friends’ faces would look like when they saw her walking towards them. However, when Rei arrived at the ruins of the clothing store, it seemed that the local authorities had taken over the area. Several people had also gathered outside a police barricade that had been set up around the demolished clothing store to gawk at what had happened. Rei wondered why they weren’t in bed at this hour like normal people. The Senshi of Fire scanned the crowd for Usagi and her friends. She quickly spotted them grouped all together near the edge of the barricade, looking on gravely while firemen carefully cleared the wreckage, evidently searching for someone or something. Rei grinned as she observed the other Inner Senshis’ worried expressions, the raven-haired girl taking a perverse pleasure in watching them anxiously wait for her to be dug out. Rei wondered how concerned Usagi was. Maybe her princess would be so relieved to see her, that she might even receive a kiss; just a small one... a peck on the cheek perhaps... but the gesture would be enough to light the miko’s heart with joy and keep her in a constant happy mood for days. Bolstered by that thought, Rei made her way towards her fellow Sailors. She supposed they had suffered enough by now. It was time for the Fire Senshi’s miraculous return. Then she stopped abruptly. There was Usagi... but with *him*. The blonde clung to Mamoru like her life depended upon it, and he held her just as close. The girl appeared to be on the verge of tears while the man seemed equally sombre. Who was Rei kidding? Nothing had changed. A kiss from Usagi? She should be so lucky. Seeing Usagi and Mamoru together was an instant reminder of how the Fire Senshi would always be alone. Her princess would never love her the way she loved the prince. The refreshed realisation hurt Rei even more than the grievous wounds she had sustained earlier. It would be better if Rei just left once and for all. Usagi probably thought she was dead by now anyway. The miko didn’t even get along with the blonde; they argued and bickered incessantly about the most mundane things, all of the time. Rei simply couldn’t endure the pain anymore. Seeing her true love every day, and not able to *be* with the girl, was like some horrible nightmare you never woke up from; a malicious torture devised by the most evil of beings. How could fate be so cruel? Rei masochistically continued to look at Usagi and Mamoru as they cuddled close to one another. It was their destiny for them to be together and rule Crystal Tokyo side by side in the future as King and Queen. Who was she to question it? Yes, it was better this way. Rei Hino died here today. She died protecting her princess... the true love of her immortal life and her *only* love of her immortal life.... Rei swallowed the lump in her throat and wiped away the gathering tears from her dull lavender eyes that blurred the painful view of the destined lovers. Slowly, she turned around and walked away, leaving behind Usagi and her friends... and the life that had caused her so much pain. ****** To be continued.... Author’s ramblings: So the second chapter is done. I know, I know, it’s kind of like Sailor V there... *sigh* Oh well... As before, I hope my grammar was all right and that the story is actually half-decent. fuku = clothes
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