Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Death and Rebirth ❯ Death and Rebirth 4 ( Chapter 4 )

Death and Rebirth

Chapter four:

"You tried so hard, and yet you failed. You just weren't strong enough to help them or yourself. All this time, thinking you're so strong. And now you see how weak you really are."

"This isn't fair. This shouldn't have happened, not to them!"

"Will you stand the pain? Will you risk damnation? One choice must be made, definite and final."

"You must choose." "Too must risk." "They must pay" "Choose." "Don't let us loose you." "Choose!"

"IE!" Hotaru woke up, covered in cold sweat. That nightmare she just had was so vivid. Shadows were all around her persecuting and demanding. And those voices, they were so filled with pain and they sounded so familiar. She felt a sense of loss when she heard them. The strangest part was that she didn't quite feel like herself in the dream. She glanced at her alarm clock, ten minutes for it to go off. {I might as well get up}. She did so and walked up to the window to open the curtains. The sky was still dark, she sighed. {Why do I get the feeling I should have stayed in bed?}

*****

Dark Feather tower:

Everything pointed out to a very pleasant day. The air was chilly, but the sky was clear. The sun shone down giving off a pleasant amount of warmth.

Allen sat at table, in the patio he had placed on the top of the building. Beside him was Kara. Both were out of their regular clothing and dressed in more formal attire. Kara had changed out of the leather jacket to a red business suit. Allen wore a black Italian suit.

Both of them were having breakfast and Kara was especially enjoying hers. Being insane and terrorizing people could get you down after a while.

"I'm curious Allen," Kara began as she finished her meal, "A few days ago you said that time was no longer a luxury for us. And here you are today, all relaxed as if everything was fine with the world."

"I really don't know about the world," Allen responded, "But in my personal life, everything is going my way. And to clear your doubts, Back then I wasn't in the best condition and had forgotten one of my father's teachings. 'When in a hurry, don't rush.'"

"That's something else I want to talk about," Kara said worriedly, "your condition. Right now you seem fine, but I've seen those coughing fits you have and they're becoming more frequent." She took his hand in hers, "If you're ill Allen you have to tell me."

Allen gave her a reassuring smile and tightened his own grip on hers.

The phone rang.

Allen and Kara dropped their heads in unison. Every time they began to share their feelings, something or someone interrupted. And this was Allen's private line, which meant this was important.

"Yes?"

"{Mr. Poe sir, it's Hawkins. I just wanted to inform you that the trackers won't be ready for two more days. And the progress with Christopher and Mr. Blaze is going on smoothly}."

"Very well, I'll expect a report from you later," Allen hung up.

Kara restarted conversation, "So, is everything ready for the party?"

"All set to celebrate 'Dark Feather's 10th anniversary. Are you looking forward to it?"

"Yes, I am," Kara said with a broad smile, "after all, it's going to be our first official date."

"Well you have to understand, psychotic assassins don't do well in social events." Allen pointed out, "I had to wait until you became a bit more controlled."

Kara's smile was replaced by a steely glare, "If you're insinuating that I'm going sane or soft, I'll carve out your heart with this butter knife." She gripped said item to prove her point.

Allen wasn't fazed, "But you are going soft. A few months ago you would have used the dessert spoon."

Kara giggled and got closer, "I guess love really does change a girl." They kissed again and this time with no interruptions.

*****

Seiryu High school:

Makoto walked down the aisles towards the home economics class. When the school year started, she got a job offer as an assistant for a cooking class. This was just perfect for her, she would work by doing her favorite activity, plus, she would be teaching other girls to enjoy it as well. But the best part came when she met the sensei, Andretti Shigeru. Twenty years old, mousy hair and half Italian. Their relationship started out as merely professional. But as time went by, they became gradually closer. Before either of them knew it, they were officially a couple. And just last month, Shigeru asked her to marry him. She immediately accepted. He's handsome, understanding, they have similar tastes and the best part, according to Minako and Usagi, he didn't remind her of her former sempai at all. Makoto laughed at herself. How could it possibly have taken her so long to get over him? Perhaps she just needed to find the right person. She looked up and saw Andre-chan, her pet name for Shigeru, waiting by the door.

Shigeru greeted Makoto with his usual charm, "Bongiorno mi bella donna."

Makoto answered with a loving smile. She didn't understand Italian at all, but she liked the way it sounded. "Ohayo gozamaisu Andre-chan." She approached and gave him a quick kiss. "What kind of cuisine are we teaching today, oriental?"

"Nope. Today I'm planning to do my mamma's recipe for Spanish omelet" he winked "with a few variations of my own."

Makoto winced mentally. One minor defect that Shigeru had was that he was a bit too fond of garlic. He knew it bothered her a bit, and enjoyed teasing her about it.

"Just don't add too many variations. Okay Andre-chan," she begged.

Shigeru pulled her close "Then I guess we better get this done already." Saying that, he kissed her. Makoto returned the kiss passionately. For a minute they forgot where they were.

"It seems you'll be making a flambé today, hmm?"

"Nani?" Makoto and Shigeru broke away and saw one of their students standing there grinning. Makoto blushed a fierce red.

"Just go inside. And keep this to yourself. Capisce?" The girl did so, trying to keep a straight face. Shigeru rubbed his temple. "You know Mako-chan. Maybe the faculty is right, we should be a little less friendly with the students."

"Give them a break, we always wanted one," Makoto replied, "Besides, we deserved that." Her smile was then replaced by a worried look. "Andre-chan, you also have a class with 3-C, ne?"

"Yes I do, why?"

"There's a new student in that group, Navarro Carlos. It's probably nothing, but Hotaru-chan is worried about the way his classmates are treating him. Do you know if they are spreading any rumors about him or gossip?"

Shigeru furrowed his brow, "I believe Navarro-san was transferred just yesterday, ne?" Makoto nodded, "Then how could I know of any rumors if I don't work with 3-C until tomorrow?"

Makoto didn't mind that mistake though. "Well when you do have that class, try to find out what you can, okay?"

Shigeru gulped, Makoto had told him about the schemes she used to pull off with her friends when they were younger. Was she trying to relive the good old days? He shuddered at the thought.

Makoto gave him a peck on the cheek, "Come on now. We're the teachers and were late!"

Hotaru waited outside for her friends to pick her up, and it was just the perfect day for it. The sun shone brightly and the air was cool, definitely not the kind of weather to stay indoors. She went to her favorite tree and ate. Afterwards, she took out a sketchbook and practiced her drawing. She decided it this morning, today was just for herself. No bugs, no vigilantes, no sempai, just drawing. Some people had other plans for her however.

"Ohayo Hotaru-chan. How's your boyfriend?"

Hotaru looked up at her friend, "Reiko-san? What are you talking about?"

The redhead sat down, "You know. You left in such a hurry yesterday that all I could think was: these two are a hot item."

"We are not an item!" Hotaru retorted, "I took him to the hospital the night I found him. I only wanted to check if he was all right."

"That sounds reasonable, but it doesn't convince me. Interested or not, you must admit, Navarro-sempai is quite a dish."

Hotaru sighed, so much for time for herself. "Hai, I'll admit it. He is handsome."

"Hai. And just the personality I was hoping for."

"What do you mean?"

"I've been keeping track of him. Had to miss a few classes, but it was worth it. This morning he was sent out to stand in the hallway for bickering. When the sensei scolded him, he answered with some pretty nasty language." She sighed longingly, "Handsome, rebellious and foul-mouthed, just the guy for me."

Hotaru rolled her eyes, "Then why are you spending time talking to your friend, instead of going after him like you usually do?"

Reiko leaned back and shrugged, "Oh I will. I'll just let you go after him first since you're more likely to succeed."

"Nani?"

"Since school ended and during this whole while we were talking," Reiko pointed to a place behind her violet-eyed friend, "he's been checking you out."

Hotaru turned around as fast as she could. Yes indeed, Navarro-sempai was there. Quickly, he hid behind a wall, not quick enough to avoid brief eye contact. Slowly, Hotaru went back to her original position blushing horribly. Reiko smelled blood in the water and went for the kill.

"Carlos and Hotaru sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G, first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Hotaru pushing a baby carriage."

"Will you cut that out?" Hotaru's voice came out harsher than she expected. Reiko was surprised, she didn't think she had pushed her friend that far, but decided to stop. Hotaru was shocked from her behavior as well. She was going to apologize when they heard a garbage can crash into something.

"That came from-"

"Where Navarro-sempai is. Let's go!"

Carlos cursed himself again and again for being caught like that. Even with his speed he felt the girl look at him straight in the eye, even through his sunglasses. Why was he ogling her in the first place anyway? He knew there would be nothing more.

"{I keep telling you. All your thoughts and emotions must be in place in order for them to work for you}." Guardian sat on Carlos shoulder. It tired him to see his ward progress so slowly, but was also fun to see him trip over his own clumsiness. Maybe he wasn't that old after all.

"You want me to say it, don't you? Okay, I feel something between that girl and I. Ever since that night when she took me to the hospital." He was silent for a while, "Do you think that while she held me at that alley, I unconsciously took something from her?"

"{Very doubtful. Your powers were not to manifest until much later. Nothing could have gone through between you}."

That wasn't entirely true, something did happen between them. Carlos remembered when he pulled himself out of the water. His lungs painfully receiving air after one year, his heart beating and pumping blood into empty veins. He felt cold and feeble like a newborn babe. He wandered aimlessly, his senses overflowing, plus other senses which mankind had long learned to neglect because of 'progress'. But once that girl took him into her arms and drew him to the warmth of her breast. He felt protected. He felt that nothing would bring him harm, not as long as she held him. He felt safe, he felt warm, he felt… Good, that simple word was the best way to describe that moment.

Suddenly, Carlos realized something. He didn't recall having that felling while he was alive. Even though he had partial amnesia, something that strong could not have been just forgotten. Maybe he never did have that feeling at all. {Dios. Did I really keep myself that isolated? Maybe I should-}.

The flapping of Guardian's wings brought him back to reality. Without a word he flew off. Then Carlos saw the reason. The other kid he had argued with this morning was coming towards him, in quite a foul mood.

"There you are," the kid started, "What's the big idea? Getting me out on the hall to balance a water-bucket over my head?"

"What are you bitching about?" Carlos retorted, "I got sent out too, right?"

"But I was never placed in that sort of situation before. Do you know how embarrassing that was?"

Carlos got up, "What do you want me to do? Apologize?" The kid nodded, "Well forget it. I never take back what I say. Especially when it's the truth." He started to walk away but the kid stopped him.

"You're not leaving. And look at me when I'm talking to you!"

"Don't touch the glasses," Carlos warned. He used his normal voice. He didn't want to scare him that much. Maybe that's why he paid no heed.

The kid took the glasses away and looked into Carlos' eyes. The instant he saw that blackness, he nearly fainted.

"Told you." Carlos grabbed the kid and shoved him away as far as he could, in human terms. He crashed right into a garbage bin.

"Navarro-san!" Carlos turned to the one who called his name. Great, it was his teacher. "Somehow I knew you'd get into more trouble."

"Hey, it's not my fault! He's the one who-"

"He did nothing! I saw you start the fight. Now come along."

Carlos grumbled and reluctantly followed. Maybe school wasn't such a hot idea after all.

"{I'll keep searching for our prey. Try not to get into more trouble warrior}."

Carlos grumbled louder, giving his teacher the wrong impression.

Hotaru and Reiko watched from afar. "I keep telling you," the latter said, "he gets better and better. So, are you going after him?"

"That's your style Reiko-san, not mine. If I ever was to do anything, I'll wait for the right time."

"Hotaru-chan!"

Hotaru turned, it was Minako, she and Ami were going to pick her and Makoto and take them to Hikawa for the meeting. "I've got to go Reiko-san, see you tomorrow."

"Bye-bye. And remember, some things have to be thought over, but sometimes," Reiko gave out a curious grin, "it's best to just act."

*****

As three inners and one outer headed towards the Hikawa temple, they reviewed what they knew about Karasu, even though they're knowledge on the subject was practically nil.

"Setsuna-mama promised to tell us what she knows about him." Hotaru leaned back and frowned. "She's been more elusive about this subject than any other she's had to reveal. If I didn't know better I'd say she's actually scared."

"Setsuna-san scared? No way," Minako quipped, "After all she must have seen, I don't think there's anything that can faze her. Trust me, she's okay."

"Mina-chan, are you sure you're okay?" Ami asked, concern in her tone, "I mean, you're acting too fancy-free after what you've been through."

Minako gave her a don't-worry-be-happy smile. "Don't worry Ami-chan. You know that it takes a lot to frighten Mina-P here. Especially more than a couple of devil angels."

"Minako! You and Saori were almost raped and murdered. Does it make sense that you should be so calm after that?"

Minako was taken a bit by surprise by Mako's outburst. She took a deep breath and started talking. "Look. I know that I should be a little...shaken up by all of this. But strangely enough, I don't feel scared at all." She spun her hands around her head gesturing. "It's almost as if something just took the fright away."

Ami sighed. "All right Mina-chan. But if something wrong happens. Please talk to us about it." Minako nodded. "And by the way. That's 'Hell's angels' not devil."

Minako face-faulted and the rest laughed.

As usual Carlos walked back home, Guardian sitting on his shoulder. In his jacket was a note to his parents, one that read about his nasty behavior. He snorted, {how am supposed to make papá read this. Voodoo?}

"{What troubles you warrior?}"

"The fact that you can't track down Chris and the rest. It's been over a day. How much longer will I be able to wait?" Carlos was sincerely desperate. He came back from the dead to fulfill a mission. Who knows what would happen if he failed.

Guardian did his best to calm down his ward, "{If you mean how much time we can stay, the answer is: indefinite. You will stay in this realm until what is wrong is set right}."

"So I just kill those four other jerks and I can go back to my family? Sounds too easy."

"{I said when wrong is set right, not when your thirst for vengeance is quenched}."

Carlos was about to ask what the hell that meant when he came to a stop. "Did you hear that?"

"{Rather ask if I felt that and I'll answer yes}." Guardian responded as he flew up to a lamppost.

Carlos took a different route every time he went back to the nest. On this occasion, he passed in front of an old warehouse. That's where he heard a low moan and Guardian sensed someone in distress.

Carlos passed his hand over his face and let Karasu's appear. "Go over to that window Guardian. Let's check out what's inside." The bird did so and what Karasu saw through crow-vision appalled him. Several people were in there, wrapped in some sort of cocoons. He waited for no explanation and started to work his way in.

"{Wait Warrior. The workings here are not human. Who knows what you might face?}"

"And who knows what they have faced," Karasu answered as he twisted the lock off the door, "I'm going in."

Guardian could just sit by the window to observe and wait. If his suspicions were correct, he might have to break that 'no interference' rule.

Karasu approached the captives carefully. They weren't in cocoons as he originally thought, just bound by a sort of metallic ribbon. The captives were: three children, two teenage girls, an elderly couple and a young woman, dead. By the gaunt expression on the faces of some, they probably had been here for days without being fed. The woman must have passed away from starvation. {Who or what can do something like this? When I find that hijo de perra, he'll answer to me}. He grabbed a ribbon in order to snap it. He was shocked and blown away by 500 volts! "Ay buey! What the hell was that?" He took a few deep breaths to regain composure. {Security system, better look for a fuse box}. A sound was heard at each side of the room. Karasu pulled out his guns. "Who's there?" Out of the shadows and from opposing sides, came the most sinister creatures Karasu ever saw. Male and female. Most of their bodies were completely human; the head however, was that of a shrew. They were dressed only with loincloths. Last detail: the male was copper red and the female steel blue.

"Nice costumes," Karasu chided as he cocked the guns, "but I got dibs on scary appearance." He fired at both simultaneously. The bullets just ricocheted of their bodies. Before Karasu could react, each shrew raised its hand. The guns flew out of his hands! {Magnets!} "So what, I don't need guns to beat you guys." He charged towards the red one and let out a barrage of punches. When he was done, it seemed the one who took the most damage had been Karasu. His knuckles were bleeding while the shrew didn't bear a mark. {These guys are made out of metal!} "YAA!" He was suddenly showered by something from behind. The blue female had magnetized some ball bearings that were in a crate and threw them at Karasu. "You'll pay for that you-wha?" The moment Karasu turned, the male grabbed him and held him overhead. Next, he tossed him over to the female. As she picked Karasu up, he drew out a third gun, of stronger caliber. He fired, pointblank, straight into her chest. Maybe the blow didn't hurt her, but she did cringe in pain. He turned to check on the male, he was also lurching. {Órale, I only have to beat one of them}. He was going to fire again when the gun was yanked out of his hand. Giving Karasu no time to react, the female threw herself over Karasu, pinning him down. She held him with one hand and cocked the other for a punch.

"I'm going to be sore in the morning," Karasu whimpered.

"Damn it! What's wrong with this thing?" The radio had been playing one of Minako's favorite singles from the 'Three lights'. Just when the song had gotten to the best part, the melody was replaced by static.

"The station probably went off air for a while," Hotaru said over the blonde's shoulder, "that sort of thing happens sometimes."

Suddenly the ground started to shake. Makoto had to struggle with the wheel in order not to lose control. Haruka would've been proud of those moves. The brunette looked back, "What was that? An earthquake?"

"Ie," Ami replied, "It's a-"

A twelve-foot tall, four-armed, black metallic armadillo, burst out from under the street. The shrews Karasu was fighting at the warehouse were the armadillo's spawn. All three were connected, and when Karasu damaged the female, her creator felt the pain also. This is what caused him to come out into the open. From its mouth dropped a young man wrapped in a black ribbon. The armadillo shook its head and looked at the four girls. A fanged sneer was drawn on its snout. It wasn't planning to take such fine young specimens to its lair tonight. It wasn't expecting the following either.

"Mercury crisis power,"

"Jupiter crisis power,"

"Venus crisis power,"

"Saturn crisis power,"

"MAKE UP!"

"Shabon spray!" With the armadillo disoriented, the senshi hurried to its released prey. According to Mercury's visor he was okay physically, just unconscious. "Jupiter, get him to a safe place. We don't want him caught up in the middle of this."

"Hai." Jupiter tried to pick him up and was shocked as a result. If her powers weren't of an electrical nature, she would have hurt a lot. "I can't pick him up. There's a sort of barrier surrounding him."

"Then let me try. Venus love link chain." Very carefully, the chain entwined the young man and picked him up. "I'll get him to safety, you guys take care of rat-boy over there."

The other three senshi nodded and redirected their attention to the armadillo, which was now coming out of the mist. It scanned each of its adversaries to figure out who posed the biggest threat. Jupiter solved its doubts.

"Supreme thunder!" The attack hit the armadillo square in the chest, but it just crackled along its metallic skin. "Damn! Mercury, what are we up against?"

Sailor Mercury analyzed through her visor. "Its skin is metal and it has a large reserve of magnetic energy," her eyes went wide, "And it's increasing exponentially!" Indeed, the armadillo had all four arms stretched out in front of him, energy crackling between its hands.

Sailor Venus rejoined her teammates. "I got the guy to a safe place. How are we doing here?" The armadillo spread out its arms, sending out a magnetic wave towards the senshi. It slammed into them with tremendous force, sending them flying away and crashing into a wall. Venus raised her head groggily, "That bad, huh?"

Saturn got to her feet and stepped towards the armadillo, it approached her. "Okay, let's see how you like being blasted." She raised her weapon, "Silence glaive-" but just as she was going to strike the ground, it didn't budge, "Nani?"

Mercury realized what was going on, "Saturn, release the glaive!"

Instead, Saturn tightened her grip on the weapon, "YIEEH!" The armadillo flung the glaive away and the silent senshi along with it.

"Saturn!" Venus called out, "It's metallic, ne? Let's call Mars then, maybe she can melt it down."

"I'm afraid we can't reach her or the others," Mercury answered.

"What are you talking about?"

"Remember the radio? That thing's magnetic field interferes with transmissions. We won't be able to send out or receive any messages."

"In other words…" Venus asked pitifully.

"We're on our own."

Jupiter saw the armadillo start to levitate a number of cars and other large objects. "That is just great."

In the meantime, Karasu was having a terrible time dealing with the shrews. One of them would beat him up for a while and then throw him over to its partner. Also, they threw every object they could at him. Tools, appliances, scrap, everything metallic, all brought out from boxes that lay around in the warehouse. Every cut or broken bone was almost immediately healed. Of course, this meant that if the shrews were planning to beat him to death, this was going to be an all-nighter.

The red male held him in a full nelson for a while then tossed him away. {Great, Karasu thought, guess it's the lady's turn}. The blue female took a few steps forward and stopped; she looked around for something to throw and decided on a set on cogs. That's when Karasu realized that neither of them had moved more than a few feet from their original position. {They have to keep a distance from each other!} The female began her attack and Karasu was quick to block it. That pause in battle allowed him to recover some of his strength.

"Guardian, are you watching this?"

"{It is my job, is it not?}"

"No jokes! I need something I can use as an anchor."

Guardian looked around for something of the sort, "{To your left. About twenty feet}."

Karasu looked over to where Guardian had pointed out and saw a metal pole. Now, how was he going to get it? In a split second, he grabbed one of the cogs and threw it at the male with all of his might. As he expected, the magnetism added extra momentum. The projectile struck the male, effectively blinding him; the female reacted in the same fashion. Not wasting a moment, Karasu sprinted and grabbed the pole, next he charged towards the male. The red shrew recovered his sight and tried to control the pole, but it was too late. With all the strength he could muster, Karasu thrust the pole through the shrew's chest and into the floor, completely immobilizing him. He then turned his attention to the female, who was contorting with pain. He ran towards her and pulled on her arms, but he was too tired and slow, the female pulled back. What followed was a deadly tug-of-war. Karasu was weakened by all the attack he received and although the female was also in bad shape, she was in better condition.

Karasu felt himself moving forward against his will, he had to get these two closer. His strength was draining fast and his dark stare had no effect on these creatures. Then his eyes lit up, he stopped pulling and pushed with all his might. Taken by surprise by the sudden change in balance, the blue female fell backwards and rolled over. As soon as Karasu's back was against the floor, he planted his feet on the female's stomach and pushed again.

"Damn it all!" The female shrew landed just a few feet away from him, much closer than he expected to throw her. She got up and made a motion towards Karasu, but couldn't move. Instead, she started to slide back, flaying her arms wildly. Karasu looked at the male who was also beginning to move. "Sí! It worked." Karasu had figured out earlier that each shrew had an opposite charge, and if they got close together…

Slowly at first, then picking up speed, the shrews crashed into each other. Electricity surged around them as they floated in mid air. After a moment they fell and their colors faded, turning into a dull gray. Karasu took a deep breath; finally, he'd won.

"Jupiter oak revolution!" The razor sharp leaves scarred the metallic skin, but did little damage to the four-armed beast. So far the senshi had done a good job surviving. The armadillo was too slow to strike them and its aim was even poorer. "Mercury, can't that calculator of yours come up with anything useful?"

Mercury pressed the buttons on her computer frantically, "It's risky but there's a chance that electricity is its weak spot."

"Nani?" Venus went wide-eyed, "Mercury, magnets and electricity are related. Even I know that."

"Hai, but it's possible that we can overcharge it. The problem is, that armor absorbs the energy. We have to break through it."

"And the only one who could do that is Saturn," Jupiter observed, "Where is she?"

The sound of battle brought Saturn back to the waking world. Slowly she opened her eyes and tried to recognize her surroundings. From the look of thing, it seemed she landed on a rooftop. She tried getting up, every muscle in her body screamed in protest. She kept still and let the pain subside. She listened again; apparently she didn't land far from where the other senshi were fighting. She could rejoin them in no time. She listened with more attention, there was a second battle going on, right underneath her! She got up, slowly this time, and walked towards the skylight. She halted in surprise when a bright flash came out of there. Once recovered she looked inside, "Ie! I've got to stop him!"

"Shine aqua illusion!" The armadillo became frozen, but it would break out soon. It started to throw items at itself. "He's going to break free at any second. We gotta go find Saturn."

Venus decided to take charge, "Okay. I'm the fastest, I'll go. Will you two be alright by yourselves?"

"Hai, just-wait a minute!" Mercury couldn't believe the figures her visor showed. The armadillo's power levels were increasing at an alarming rate. Its spawn, the shrews, obtained their power by draining it from their creator. When Karasu destroyed the shrews, the armadillo could use all the power for himself.

With a frightening roar, the beast broke free from the ice. The senshi looked at each other. They had two choices, an all out attack or a tactical retreat. And a defender of justice is not allowed to run. Each inner prepared her strongest blow.

The armadillo placed all four hands on the ground. Just as the senshi were about to unleash their power, their arms dropped violently. Suddenly their bodies felt incredibly heavy.

"Nani? What's going on?"

"Enhanced gravity," Venus answered, "Moon told me once that Rubeus used it against her." The weight upon her increased and she fell to her knees. "I never thought it would feel like this."

The gravity increased again. Now, only Jupiter was able to stay on her feet. "Sp-sparkling…wuh…wiide…" She too fell. "G-guess we use the emergency plan," Jupiter chuckled sarcastically, "wait around for a miracle."

Karasu flexed his arms. He felt good as new, wonderful thing regeneration. Now he had to get those people out of here. As he walked to them, something caught his attention. He picked up the item, it was a black katana. He always liked swords, and this one looked top quality. {Cool, I always wanted one of these}. Placing the sheath on his back, he approached one of the children and raised the weapon. He brought it down with full force; it bounced into a sort of barrier.

"Qué? They got a force field now?"

"That would be me." Karasu turned and found Sailor Saturn in an imposing pose. "I don't know what your game is baka. But I won't let you harm these people."

"Qué? No, you got it all wrong, I-"

"Quiet!" Saturn's voice demanded respect and fear, "I won't listen to your excuses. Even if you seemed to help Mina-san."

Karasu's gaze darkened, he gripped the katana and took a battle stance. "How about moving over there? You don't want these people hurt, do you?" Saturn nodded and they both inched their way to a clear part of the warehouse; which was wider now after the fight with the shrews.

"{Warrior, what are you doing? You're no match for Lady Saturn! Flee!}"

"Cállate! La chamaca here is going to get a lesson in manners."

"La chamaca," Saturn retorted, "will give you the lesson. And who are you talking to anyway?"

"That is none of your business. Now get ready!" he gripped the katana with both hands and readied a battle stance.

Saturn followed suit. "My guardian is the planet of silence, Saturn. I am the senshi of death and rebirth, Sailor Saturn!"

"Death and rebirth?" Karasu took a good look at his opponent. Pale skin, deceptively fragile build and eyes as cold as ice. Only hers shone violet and his were black and opaque. "So, the senshi have an undead among them. That makes the fight more even."

"Nani?"

"Enough talk, fight!" Karasu charged, katana up front. He was so fast Saturn was barely able to block. Both of them pushed against the other, trying to get the upper hand. Saturn ducked and swiped Karasu with a low kick. Not expecting that move, he fell like a ton of bricks. He saw Saturn bring the weapon down, right at his chest! Reacting just as quickly, he blocked it with his sword. Saturn was truly surprised. The Silence glaive was supposed to cut through anything. What kind of a sword was that? Seeing an opening, Karasu drove a kick into Saturn's side. Saturn wobbled from the pain and Karasu rolled away from her. They stood face to face, measuring each other's strength. Both charged at the same time, engaging in a fencing match.

Guardian witnessed everything from overhead. He could not believe what he saw. He expected the warrior to end up chopped in half. Instead, he was fighting head to head with one of the deadliest senshi. Maybe lady Saturn was in a weakened condition. No, she was near to full power. Was the warrior just as strong as Lady Saturn? If that was true, then it could only mean…

Saturn smashed Karasu's face with the glaive's handle. Karasu spun with the blow and elbowed Saturn in the gut. He set some distance among them as she gasped for air.

Saturn wiped the blood of her mouth and gave Karasu a satisfied smile. In the lapse of one minute, they had exchanged a good number of blows, cuts and bruises. Saturn smiled because she was actually enjoying herself. "You are a very though fighter, for a demon-kabuki."

"You're not too shabby yourself," the undead warrior replied, "for a purple eyed witch."

Saturn gritted her teeth, "Don't call me that. I hate that!"

Karasu sneered and made his most annoying Rob Schneider impression, "Witchmeister, witchie-boo, triple w, wicked witch of the west-"

"Silence glaive surprise!" The following blast was so big it blocked Saturn's line of vision. Once the dust settled, there was no trace of Karasu. But she knew he was still there somewhere. She started to look around. "Come on out. Unless you're too scared," she taunted. She heard a nail drop and snapped, breathing heavily, she saw no one there. {Calm down Saturn, he's just playing with your mind}.

Karasu smiled as he watched from the shadows. He had succeeded in angering, thus obfuscating her. All he had to do now was get her to where he wanted.

Slowly, Saturn was led via shadows and noises. This little 'cat and mouse' game was getting to her nerves. "I'm getting tired of this. Either you come out or I'll shred the floor until I find you."

"Why shred the floor when I'm on the ceiling?"

Saturn looked up and found her adversary. Karasu jumped down holding a rope. The other end was on the floor, forming a loop, around Saturn's feet. Her back hit the floor when she was pulled upwards, causing her to drop her glaive. In a second she was hanging upside down and helpless.

Karasu walked towards her and examined his handiwork. Saturn blushed furiously, from her defeat, from the humiliating position she was in and from what her dropped fuku was now revealing.

"I must confess. You have one of the cutest butts I have seen," he spanked her with the flat of his katana, "Maybe you should lose the skirt altogether." Saturn growled in response. Karasu just shrugged and went back to the victims.

"Matte! What are you doing?"

Karasu raised his katana, "Just going to finish what you interrupted." Saturn struggled helplessly against her bonds. But even if she had gotten free, it would be too late. She watched helplessly as he hacked, sliced, cleaved and…set each one of them on the ground carefully. She then recognized the bonds holding those people.

"You, you were only going to free them."

"Don't worry about it. I'm used to having people wrongfully accusing me."

Saturn's eyes went down, or up, in shame. She'd let her battle lust overcome her good judgement. "Gomen, I should have-Hey! Where are you going?"

"To get help for these people," Karasu answered. "Don't worry, I'm sure they'll get you down," he added with a smirk.

"Matte, my friends are fighting the daimon who captured these people. You've got to let me get to them!"

Karasu stared at her for a moment then raised his head, "Guardian, go search." He stood motionless for a while. Saturn grew desperate seeing him like that. "I see them," he said, "and they seem to be losing." He ran for the exit.

"Hey! You're not just gonna leave me here are you?"

"Sorry, can't waste time."

"But you can't…" Karasu was already gone. Saturn struggled against her bond for a while before she finally gave up. She let out a breath of exasperation. "Karasu no shi? Che! Karasu no baka is more like it."

The armadillo beast was dumbfounded. It had already increased the gravity pull twenty fold and still, those humans were alive.

Despite the painful pressure, Mercury saw something on her visor that managed to make her smile slightly. The armadillo couldn't move while its gravity attack was activated and its energies were starting to fade. Eventually, it would have not choice but to release them, unless she and her friends were crushed first. The fight had turned into a match to see who could outlast the other.

Venus moaned in pain, "Guys, I can't hold out much longer."

"Don't give up yet Venus," Mercury called out, "One more minute and were free."

"Or senshi-crepes," Jupiter said. She gathered her strength and tried to get up, she only managed to raise her head. As she opened her eyes she saw a dark blur head for the beast. "Nani? What's that?"

Karasu leapt from out of nowhere, landed on the armadillo's head and thrust his sword straight into its crown. The beast roared in agony. The senshi almost flew off the ground at the sudden release. Jupiter looked up at Karasu. He sent her back a glance and jumped off, leaving the sword in place. Jupiter understood.

"Supreme thunder!" The katana caught the electricity and sent it straight into the beast's skull. It shook and shrieked as its brain got fried. Finally it stopped moving and fell to its knees, dead. Karasu jumped up again to retrieve his katana. All three senshi stared at him. Standing tall over the fallen beast, weapon in hand and the crow, with still open wings, on his shoulder. All of this, plus the dusk acting as a background, made a very impressive sight.

"You'll find your friend in a warehouse yonder," he pointed the direction with the katana, "there are also some people who need medical attention." That said, he dropped behind the smoking carcass.

Jupiter ran after him. "Hold it! Is Saturn all right? What happened to her?" she vaulted over the carcass, "Answer…me?" She looked around, but Karasu had vanished into thin air. "Look at that. And I thought Saturn had been seeing things."

*****

Somewhere in time, sometime in space:

Sailor Pluto turned away from the stream of time disappointed. Usually, when the need for information arose, she would find what she was searching for with just a glance. Now, she could not find anything. She was expecting this to happen though. There were some things that she just couldn't know.

She stepped out of her realm and into her room. She glimpsed at the clock on her drawer and remembered the meeting at the Hikawa temple. Better make haste; tardiness would put a severe mark on the senshi of time's reputation.

*****

Whirlpool Compound:

Poe examined the scene before him carefully. Blaze was still where Hawkins had left him. He was almost motionless, but if you looked closely, you would notice the slight tics he displayed every once in a while. Also, Blaze's fingers were gripping the arms of the chair so tightly, his fingernails were bleeding. One was even bent out of place.

Blaze's health didn't matter to Poe; he had more important subjects in mind. A monitor to his right displayed: energy charged, 97.85%. But he didn't need to look at it to know how much power was in the redhead's body, he could tell by just looking.

Poe tapped his foot impatiently. {Any moment soon, now!} He placed his hands together; index and pinky finger extended and chanted something in a cryptic language. There was a pentagram pattern on the floor around the chair that Blaze hadn't noticed. The lines and runes began to glow a light blue. Bluish smoke started to rise and surround Blaze. Poe finished the chant and took a deep breath, that spell had been a bit more tiring that he expected. "A few years ago I could cast that enchantment a hundred times without breaking a sweat. I must be getting old," he shrugged and approached Blaze's still form. "Heh, no matter. Before you realize it, you and that impertinent Chris, will have more power than you ever dreamed," he put his mouth closer to Blaze's ear and chuckled evilly, "and then, I will own you two."