Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Sailor Star or Sailor Wind ❯ Chapter Seven ( Chapter 7 )

"Could all passengers for flight 708 to New York please make their way to the boarding entrance. The plane will depart in twenty minutes".

Usagi glanced at her ticket. Yes, this was her flight. She picked up her bag and entered the jostling crowd of people. All holiday makers. She looked at their faces, all smiling, happy, excited. She wished she could feel the same. But all she could feel was a dead numbness, and apprehension of what she would find when she finally reached America. Around her, people were saying good-bye to their families. She had no one. She hadn't told anyone of her leave, scared that she wouldn't want to get on the plane and leave all her friends behind if they had been there to see her off. Gritting her teeth, she walked on board.

Hours later the plane touched down, and Usagi was jolted out of a fitful sleep. What had she been dreaming about? She remembered a large chasm, punctuated throughout with glittering green lights, like snake eyes. All around had been figures in strange attire, all with a twisted snake emblem emblazed on their backs. At the far end there had been a huge marble throne, but its sitter had been in shadow, except for the straggled ends of smoky green locks of hair, that curled around the bottom of the chair. The there had been a scuffle in the corner. Three prisoners were being brought in, each with long hair drawn back into a ponytail. The black haired prisoner had tried to break away, but was swiftly halted when a thong of sharp leather whips was brought down on his back. The snapping sound echoed throughout the whole of the cave. At the sight of this, Usagi had opened her mouth to scream, but had been struck down, and at that moment she had woken up…

She stopped and looked around. She had absentmindedly made her way to the front of the airport, where all the hustle and bustle made her very appreciative of the English reference books Ami had left her before she had gone to England to study.

"Excuse me?" she said, in halting English. "Could you tell me where I could catch a taxi?". She was pointed towards the taxi stand where she waited patiently. Eventually a car pulled up, and she jumped in. Handing the piece of paper with Mamoru's address on to the driver, she then settled back for the drive. To her surprise, the doors locked automatically.

A while later they were still driving. Factories, warehouses and wastelands were flying past the window. `Strange' she thought. `I don't remember Mamo-chan saying he lived in industrial area'. The car slowed to a stop behind an empty, decaying block of flats. Usagi sat up. "Why have we stopped?" she asked. From under his mat of hair, the driver's eyes glinted dangerously at her. Beginning to panic, Usagi fumbled with the locks, but quickly drew her hand back. Blood spattered onto her clothes, as she looked in surprise at her fingers, then at the steely shine of the locks: sharp as knives. She started to scrabble frantically at the doors, then, using her initiative, threw her whole weight against the window. It shattered, and broken glass caught in her hair and cut her face. She climbed through the gap, the remaining pieces of window snagging at her skirt and leaving great gashes in her legs. But she had not taken more than a few steps when she was confronted by the driver, who took her roughly by the shoulders and soon had her restrained on the ground. Usagi began to scream, but a strong hand clamped her mouth. She noticed a twisted snake tattoo on his forearm, but her attention to detail became less as her eyes filled with tears, and was left helpless as he tore at her clothes and roamed her body. As her attacker's search became more intricate she began to twist and writhe, but was quickly subdued by a punch in the stomach. She squeezed her eyes closed as a wave of pain washed over her, her vision becoming vague as the pain increased to the point where she could take it no more, and blacked out.

When Usagi awoke, the first thing she saw was a clear night sky, sprinkled with stars, twinkling, as if mocking her. Slowly she moved herself to a sitting position. The car was gone, but around her lay shards broken of glass, glowing red in places where the blood was deep. Excruciating pain shot through her, and when she stood up more blood poured from her. Gathering her ripped and tattered clothes, she stumbled towards the road. For the rest of that night she walked, no clue as to where she was going, and not really caring, but just letting her feet guide her. Shortly before sunrise her legs gave way, and she collapsed at the side of the road. As the sun came up she was bathed in a pool of light, her blood glowing a vibrant crimson as it spread around her again.