Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ The Brooch ❯ Chapter 6

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

The Brooch
By Jason C. Ulloa


Chapter 6


Shishu Headquarters, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:18 A.M.


Yamada yawned as he stretched wearily. He had just relieved Sanzou from his watch and was settling in
for yet another long night of doing absolutely nothing. Same as before.

Lazily, he glanced over at the board. Chiba was still out on his patrol, though he was due to turn over
with Konno soon. Sanzou had just signed out, most likely heading for his bed. Kino was still in
convalescence, but according to what he had heard from Moriyasu-sensei, the kid was healing faster than
usual for some reason and would be released in three days; a week and a half sooner than originally
estimated.

A slow smirk crossed his face when he thought of what that kid would be put through as soon as he
returned to duty. It wasn't as if he hated the kid - he sure as hell didn't like him - but that bastard
always seemed to be showing off or something. It took him two years to earn his 5th class stripe and he
was so close to making 4th class after another two, whereas that kid practically gained a stripe each
year. Sure, he took unbelievably stupid risks out in the battlefield like charging into a group of
Youma sentries by himself, or willingly volunteering to act as a decoy in order to lead Youma into an
ambush, or even worse, all but refusing to use his rifle just to kill Youma with his sword.

That idiot. It's so much safer to take down sentries at a distance than to take unnecessary chances in
melee where you can easily get yourself killed. Even if the main reason why he was getting promoted so
fast was because of his staggeringly high body count and participations in successful prison raids and
rescues, there was no way he'd willingly risk himself like him.

Yamada snorted irritably. He really wished Chiba would lift that ban on reading anything while on
dispatch watch. It's not like there was anything to do anyway. At least, once the new recruits got
properly trained, they could start manning this watch instead of him. He was just about to stand up and
go grab a quick snack when a loud boom accompanied by a bright red flash caught his attention.

"Oh, shit...," he breathed as soon as he realized what it was.

Youma invasion.

Within seconds, he was on his feet and tearing down the hallway to the Comms room. The alarm had to be
sounded.

_________________________________________________________________


Silent Plains, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:18 A.M.


Konno tried once more to blink the sleep out of his eyes. He had tried to get as much sleep as he
could, but it hadn't been much. Still, he didn't want Ichigo to be stuck with taking care of both the
girls and Hiro's fever at the same time. Even though he had a duty to protect his family, he also had a
duty to be there for his family as well.

Even if he had to forgo a few hours of sleep to do so.

In the darkness, he gazed down at his wife's sleeping form. If he was tired, she was exhausted. Things
had been getting steadily worse since they started losing more and more Blades to the Youma. He had
been spending more time on duty and patrols and away from the family, leaving Ichigo to pick up his
slack.

Not that it was his fault, nor was it really Shishu's fault. They were between the proverbial rock and a
hard place, and it felt like they would get crushed at any moment. The Kami knows he had had his fair
share of almost getting killed. However, he was still alive and he was still able to spend time with
his family whenever he could.

He had already dressed quietly and was on his way out the door. He had twelve minutes to get to
headquarters to turnover with Chiba. More than enough time to get some hot tea or coffee. Coffee wasn't
as readily available as tea; the beans weren't really growing that well in Japanese soil. Although
some clever botanist decided to attempt cross-pollination between the two, it just barely managed to
make a tolerable substitute. To hear people who had actually had the real thing, he almost wished he
could try some right now. He could use a good kick in the ass to wake him up.

A muffled, yet loud explosion caught his attention as he was headed for the kitchen area. It almost
sounded like one of the light bulbs blew out again. That was the second one this week! He sighed as he
shook his head in exasperation. The quality of almost everything had been on the decline since they had
lost the main manufacturing facilities at the Meiji Jinja. It was fortunate that a secondary facility
was set up here during the Reoccupation or else they'd be living in the technological equivalent of the
Dark Ages.

He grumbled irritably under his breath as he reached into the cupboard that held his mug.

A loud wailing sound alternating between high and low pitches blared as he poured his hot tea. The
sound startled him, causing him to jump slightly and splash himself with the tea. He cursed painfully
as he set both mug and teapot down and ran in the direction of the wail. Apparently, that earlier sound
wasn't a lightbulb, after all.

Konno stumbled to a stop as he almost overshot the door to the Comms room. He stared for a moment
through the door at the blinking panel above the emergency communications radio before rushing forward
and grabbing the sound-powered phone handset and hitting the push-to-talk button. "Silent Plains,
online."

"Roger, Silent Plains," came the short reply from headquarters. All that was left was to wait for the
others to call in to headquarters. The message would be announced then.

"Sakura Hill, online." That was Sanzou's voice.

"Roger, Sakura Hill."

"Rose Garden, online." That was the nurse stationed at Chiba's living quarters.

"Roger, Rose Garden."

"Orphan's Quarters, online." Odd. That wasn't Kino on the other end. It sounded like an young woman.
It's probably the nurse stationed there.

"Roger, Orphan's Quarters. All stations, H.Q., audial and visual confirmation of Youma invasion flare
has been marked over Northwest Outer Grounds at 0018 this morning." There was a sharp gasp from one of
the other stations - possibly the nurse at Orphan's Quarters - but the announcement continued on
without a pause. "All available Shishu units are to advance to section 141 and await further orders
from the field commander. Station nurses are to report to their Mass Casualties stations. All stations
are to await alternate phone-talkers before going offline."

"Rose Garden, acknowledged."

"Sakura Hill, acknowledged."

"Silent Plains, acknowledged."

"Orphan's Quarters, acknowledged."

A tapping on his shoulder brought Konno's attention to the person standing behind him. Watanabe Hatori
was only a year away from being able to enlist in Shishu, but wanted to do his part to help protect his
family. So when he volunteered to take over for the previous phone-talker who had just enlisted a few
weeks ago, he agreed to it.

"H.Q., Silent Plains, request permission to go offline to change phone talkers."

"Silent Plains, H.Q., permission granted."

"Silent Plains, offline."

With a nod of thanks, Konno handed over the handset to Hatori and ran out of the room just as Hatori
reported in.

There was just enough time to give his family a quick hug and kiss goodbye before facing what could be
their last stand.

_________________________________________________________________


Outer Grounds, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:19 A.M.


"So, it's an invasion, is it?" Sailor Moon said as she glared in the direction of the last volley of
attacks. "Well, at least I don't have to go looking for a fight now."

"I'm happy for you," Mamoru replied sardonically as he quickly inspected his rifle for any jams or
similar malfunctions. There were none.

"Now, now," she replied with a slightly wicked smile. "No need to get so touchy, Mamoru-san. If you
want to get mad at someone, get mad at the invaders," she added, jerking a thumb toward the barrier,
which was rippling from yet another volley of energy bolts. She removed the tiara from her forehead
once again, willing it back into its white discus form.

"Mamoru-san, that barrier blocks the Dark Kingdom's dark magic, correct?" she inquired.

"That is its main purpose," he replied.

"Then, do you think it would block magic of a different type?" she supposed. "Like mine, for example?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. However, I'm not sure you should even try it. For all we know, it might
react to your magic by collapsing the entire barrier."

Sailor Moon closed her eyes for a moment, then shook her head gently. "No, that won't happen."

Mamoru gave her a perplexed stare. "How can you be sure?"

"I can feel it," she replied without opening her eyes. "The barrier's holy magic is similar to mine."
She opened her eyes and readied her attack. "I'm going to give it a try," she told him as she aimed for
the nearest Youma Mage. "Moon tiara action!"

The glowing discus flew through the air, passing harmlessly through the barrier as it hurtled toward
its target. Since the Mage was busy preparing to cast another energy bolt, it failed to notice the
attack until it beheaded him. The discus arced around and returned to Sailor Moon's waiting hand,
beheading another Mage on its return flight.

Mamoru stared in complete disbelief at the glowing disc in her hand for a moment before catching
himself. "I'm really impressed," he said finally. "Nobody's ever been able to take out more than one
Mage at a time, let alone doing it in one attack."

Sailor Moon tilted her head and smiled at him. "Well, now that the demonstration is over, should we
begin our attack?" Her smile faded away as quickly as it formed. "I have a feeling that they'll be able
to break through that barrier eventually if we let them."

"Sounds good to me," he replied as he raised his rifle and took aim at another Mage. "On three?"

She nodded. "On three."

"One. Two. Three!"

"Moon tiara action!" Sailor Moon shouted, accompanied by the sound of a rifle opening fire.

_________________________________________________________________


Orphan's Quarters, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:23 A.M.


Setsuna had just left the Comms room after handing the handset to Naru, when she came across Ryoku
coming down the hallway, half-dressed with bandages exposed over an open shirt. "Ryoku-san, I hope
you're not thinking of doing what I think you are," she said sternly as she stopped him.

"Where?" was all he asked.

"You're not going," she replied firmly.

"Where?"

"You are still injured, Ryoku-san," she retorted sternly. "If you go out now, you could get injured
even worse, or even die. Do you understand me?"

"Where?"

"Dammit, Ryoku-san! Don't you start getting all self-righteous on me!" she yelled angrily. "I am NOT
going to be the one to let you get yourself killed! Who do you think will be the one to tell everyone
here that you've died? I don't want to have to deal with all that! Do you hear me? You are NOT going!"

Ryoku's stare didn't change throughout her entire harangue. "Where?"

Setsuna reared back and slapped Ryoku across his face as hard as she could. His head was turned
slightly, but other than that, he hardly moved at all or even gave any indication that he was even hit.

"Don't you even care, Ryoku-san?" she asked quietly. "You may not think your life is that important,
but what about Makoto? How do you think she'll take it when she finally wakes up and learns that her
brother - the only family she has left - is dead? Do you really want to leave her all alone?"

They stared silently at each other for several moments before Ryoku finally spoke. "I know,
Setsuna-san. However, we don't have much of a choice anymore. The fight has been taken to us and there
is nowhere left to go. If we fail, Mako-chan won't have to worry about my being dead; she'll be dead,
too. We'll all be dead; dead or enslaved, which normally is almost just as bad, however there will be
no one left to rescue us. Shishu will live on elsewhere, but it will be dead in Japan.

"Call it self-righteous, call it noble, call it whatever. I don't care. There are people I have to
protect. I have a job to do. Let me go do it."

Setsuna frowned as she turned and started walking away. "Northwest Outer Grounds, section 141," she
said without looking back at him.

"If it makes you feel any better, I'm not going to be fighting in the front line tonight," he told her
retreating form.

This news caused her to stop in mid-step. "I thought you said-"

"Not every battle is fought and won at the front, Setsuna-san," he replied as he turned to leave. "I'm
going to section 141 to report to Chiba that I will be taking command of the last line of defense. I'm
going to have everyone gather at Sendai Hill. Please go on ahead and let Mizuno-hakase know."

Setsuna nodded, partly in relief. "I understand."

"And one more thing. Please take care of them for me."

She nodded again, knowing who he was talking about. "I will."

"Thank you," he said with a small smile as he left to prepare himself.

Setsuna quickly headed out the door and turned straight for the Hikawa Jinja proper. The field
physicians would be getting ready to be dispatched at a moment's notice. It was her job to help them
prepare.

_________________________________________________________________


Hikawa Jinja Proper, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:32 A.M.


Rei woke up to someone shaking her shoulder. She was about to reach up and smack whoever was keeping
her from a good night's sleep when she noticed who was shaking her. "Grandpa, what're you doing? Lemme
go back to sleep...."

"Rei! Wake up! It's an emergency!"

The urgency in Grandpa's voice was enough to dispel most of her sleepiness. "Huh? What's going on,
Grandpa?"

"We need everyone in the Sacred Fire room now!" he said as he turned to leave. "It's a Youma invasion!
You must get ready to help strengthen the barrier!"

"What?" she exclaimed as she jumped out of bed. "An invasion? NOW? That bastard!"

"Rei, please hurry!" he said as he left and closed the door behind him.

She quickly threw on her Shinto miko robes and ran for the Sacred Fire room as fast as her legs could
carry her. She hoped that everyone else was all right, although her thoughts and worries mainly dwelled
on a single person until she reached her position in front of the Sacred Flame.

"Please be all right, Ryo-kun...," she prayed as she cleared her mind and concentrated on the flame
before her.

_________________________________________________________________


Medical Building - Hikawa Jinja Proper, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:33 A.M.


Ami was busy preparing first aid bags and kits when Minako burst into the room. "Ami-chan!" she cried
out as she came to a stop before the mute girl. "I just got word from Midou-san! All the Blades are
gathering in section 141!"

The mute girl gasped. Section 141 wasn't very far from their position.

It was odd how the barrier wasn't in a perfect dome, like everyone assumed. From what she had heard
from Ryoku, and from other Blades as well, the barrier seemed to wax and wane randomly in a wrinkled,
dented, quasi-hemispherical shape. She supposed that the Dark Kingdom would try to attack in one of the
many dents in the barrier that was closest to the heart of the Hikawa Jinja. With the Blades gathering
in section 141, she could only assume that the actual invasion was either in block 12, which was north
of block 14 - which contained section 141 - or in block 13, which was west.

Minako saw Ami's apprehension and nodded. "Yeah, I know. Scary to think that they're so close to us.
Section 141's about half a kilometer away!" Ami shook her head and held out both hands in front of her,
then extended the distance between them. "What? Farther than that?" She nodded. "All right, but still!
That's not very far from us, you know? What if they break through? They could make it here in no time
flat! Doesn't that worry you?"

Ami smiled faintly and shook her head as she went back to preparing first aid kits. Minako stared at
her friend for a moment before grabbing an armful of first aid kits and taking them over to where a
huge pile had been made at the center of the room. Other groups of nurses and nurses-in-training, like
herself, were also busy preparing first aid kits and bags. If the Dark Kingdom broke through their
barrier, the Blades wouldn't be the only ones who would need these first aid kits.

After they finished, Ami gestured for Minako to follow her as she left the room. As she glanced behind
her, she saw everyone else leaving the room, probably to head to their Mass Casualty stations. Come to
think of it, she was never told where her station was. Maybe Ami knew and she was taking her there.
She opened her mouth to ask her where they were going, but stopped. Ami didn't have her 'voice' with
her at the moment and she was taking her there anyway. No sense in asking if she couldn't answer.

"The infirmary?" Minako asked and followed as Ami went into the building. As the mute girl lead her
down the main hallway, she noted that many of the rooms were unoccupied. One of the main reasons was
probably because the rooms were mostly made to care for wounded Blades, so the sick and slightly
injured were usually better off in their own rooms under the care of their resident nurse.

After passing a couple more hallways, Ami turned toward the recovery ward. After passing a few doors,
she came to stop in front of the only occupied room that she had seen thus far. The sign on the door
was very worn, indicating how long the patient had occupied the room.

Kino Makoto, 6th class Blade
Admitted: May 8, 1989, 7:44 P.M.

Ryoku had often told her about his sister, especially about how he expected her to wake up any day
soon. Both Ami and Rei had known Makoto when she was awake and had told her a few stories about her. To
be completely honest, she thought of Makoto as a bit of a tomboy, trying to act like one of the guys
and prove that she was just as good as any of them, or even better. To some girls, she was a bit of a
hero, being the very first girl to be recognized as a Shishu Blade. Not that there were lines of girls
wanting to enlist as a Blade, but it was good to know that they had the option now.

"Ami-chan, what are we doing here?" Minako asked as she watched the blue-haired girl drag a chair over
to the bed and sit down. She opened up the drawer on the end table next to the bed and took out a pad
and pencil.

'We're nurses-in-training, Minako-chan,' Ami wrote down. 'Right now, we're not yet qualified to act as
field nurses, so we'd just end up getting in the way. We've already finished the prep work, so all we
can do now is take shelter.

'I promised Ryo-kun that I'd watch over Mako-chan during times like these,' she continued to explain.
'He says it helps him not to have so many things to worry about when he's in the middle of a battle.
The less he has to worry about, the better.

'Besides, I don't think you two have properly met yet,' she added with a wry grin.

Minako laughed as she read the last part. "No, I don't think we have," she said as she dragged a second
chair next to Ami's and sat down.

It was strange; all the time that she had been here, been a nurse-in-training, all the time that she
spent getting to know Ryoku... and yet, not once had she ever paid his sister a visit. Not that there
was much that Makoto could offer in conversation, but at least she could've stopped in to say hi. Why
hadn't she?

She reached out and placed a gentle hand on Makoto's motionless one. "I don't think we've met." The
reason behind it could wait. "My name's Aino Minako." In the meantime, she owed it to Makoto, and to
Ryoku, to make up for lost time, starting now. "Nice to finally meet you, Mako-chan."

Perhaps, in the process, she could find out why she had waited so long.

_________________________________________________________________


Lower Grounds - Sendai Hill, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:57 A.M.


Atsuko stood at the foot of the long, stone staircase that lead to the Hikawa Jinja, waiting. Her field
physicians and field nurses were arranged in teams - one doctor and two or three nurses - awaiting
orders to dispatch. Surrounding the numerous teams, a line of defenders stood, armed with whatever
swords, guns, or whatnot they could wield effectively against the Youma invaders. Men, women, fathers,
mothers, even some of the elderly were out in the ranks, preferring to die in defense of their homes,
rather than be slaughtered helplessly. Some of the defenders out there she knew personally.

Over there. Arai Maruo, whose youngest son she had personally delivered not half a year ago. The man
had two more children, another boy and a girl - the girl was the eldest by one year - all of whom had
already taken refuge in the jinja above with their mother. He had a bright yellow scarf tied high on
his upper right arm that almost seemed to shine in the moonlight. That scarf belonged to his wife,
Noriko. He had a grim cast to his eyes as he nervously fingered the scarf on his arm while tightly
clenching the haft of the small hand scythe in his other hand.

Further down the line. The two newlyweds, Andrew Kinsey and his wife, Hua Li. Both were only children
and both had lost a lot of family over the years; Hua Li lost her mother and both of her elder brothers
when her family fled her home country of China when she was just five years old, while Andrew lost his
father, and both elder siblings - sister and brother - during the Fall of the Meiji Jinja. Andrew was
born at the Meiji Jinja, while Hua Li reached the refuge just a few months shy of her sixth year. The
two had spent a lot of time together, him teaching her Japanese and a little bit of English learned
from his American parents, while she taught him Mandarin Chinese. From what she had heard from some of
her friends, the two had became inseparable after a few weeks. So, when Hua Li finally turned sixteen,
it was no surprise that Andrew had popped the question. There were even a few comments saying that
since Andrew was eighteen already, he didn't have to worry about his mother's tendencies to try to
enforce whatever remaining American ideas and concepts that she had left from her parents on him, i.e.
eighteen as a marriageable age, vice the commonly accepted sixteen years of age. Both had been married
for only a couple of months, and even now, they stood quietly together, each of them holding a polished
short sword that had obviously not seen any use as of yet. Undoubtedly, those weapons had been either
taken from the Foundry or from Shishu's weapon store, which should've been opened up in this state of
emergency.

At the other end of the line, a group of children huddled together, some shivering in fear, while
others glared at the border with a hint of almost enraged eagerness in their eyes, and others looking
back and forth, desperate for someone - anyone - to tell them what to do, or that everything would be
all right. Their weapons varied from knives, to swords, to spears, and even an old rifle or two that
looked more like a relic of the second World War.

Atsuko snorted disdainfully. She had heard from her father about that war; the final war where man
fought against man. Compared to now, even that great war could hardly be counted as a "world" war; not
like now, where all of mankind was engaged in a true World War. But this time, the enemy was the other-
worldly Dark Kingdom, who fought using supernatural powers and creatures called Youma. Countries no
longer existed, and there was only one race that mattered: the human race.

"Mizuno-hakase," Ryoku said as he walked up to her with a nod.

"You're looking much better, Ryo-kun," she replied solemnly. "How are your injuries?"

"They're not bothering me," he replied as he glanced around at the people gathered. With a few quick
gestures of his hands, he quickly directed the handful of Recruit Blades that he brought with him to
separate and support the groups of defenders he assigned them to. "How is the evacuation going?"

"Smoothly, so far. I've gotten word that about two-thirds of the Lower Grounds have already gathered
here. Everyone who is unable to take part in the defense of Sendai Hill has already taken shelter in
the Hikawa Jinja Proper."

"Good," he said with an absent nod. "What would you estimate to be our defense strength?"

Atsuko took a sweeping glance around her. "From what I can see, if the rest of the Lower Grounds
separates in the same proportion as it has already, I can estimate that we'll have close to two
hundred."

Another nod. "I've ordered the weapons store to be opened. Two of our Recruit Blades are standing by to
issue out rifles and clips. We need to organize everyone into groups and have them go one by one to get
the rifles as expediently as possible. I can organize the first group and take them to headquarters
right now. I need you to get the rest of them organized and send them to me one at a time."

"I understand," she replied as she turned toward the first group. Without a word, Ryoku turned and
jogged toward the second group. As she was explaining what needed to be done with the Recruit Blade
with the first group, she could see Ryoku leading the other group in a quick jog toward Shishu
headquarters.

She hoped that they could get everyone ready in time.

_________________________________________________________________


Outer Grounds, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:58 A.M.


Mamoru had left several minutes ago to gather his men, promising that he would return with
reinforcements, but she didn't want to wait that long. There was this overwhelming desire to go out
through the barrier and simply destroy her enemies. She knew it was mostly due to the wrath of Usagi's
anger transferring over from her subconscious and into her own subconscious, but its origin was of
little consequence.

Besides, she had a score to settle with the Dark Kingdom as well. Destroying one's home, life, and love
was certainly something that she wouldn't forgive or forget anytime soon.

The bursts of negative energy were still hammering away at the barrier, causing ripple after ripple to
shake the barrier. As the blasts grew in number and frequency, the wavering of the barrier intensified.
There was one point where the barrier almost seemed to tear at one point, but it disappeared just as
quickly as it appeared, causing her to doubt its existence.

After the pair had killed about five or six Mages, the Hunter and sentry Youma had formed a couple of
ranks in front of the remaining Mages, protecting them from any further attack. She had managed to take
down quite a few Hunters and one pass of her tiara could mow down six or seven sentries with careful
aim, but the damage just wasn't being done fast enough. For every Hunter she took down, another took
its place. The same with the sentries. It was too dark to make certain of the enemies' numbers, even
with the poor lighting the few nightlamps gave. It was just too far away for them to be of any use.
Charging past the barrier was insane, suicidal, and not even an option. Not if she wanted to live.
There was little choice, other than to continue as she was, sniping from within the barrier, taking out
whatever she could.

Where the hell was Mamoru and his reinforcements, anyway?

_________________________________________________________________


Outer Grounds, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 12:58 A.M.


"You've gotta be shittin' me."

Mamoru frowned almost imperceptibly at Yamada's outburst, but considering what he had just told
everyone, he let it slide. "This is hardly the time for it," he replied stonily. "No, what I have told
you is quite true. I've witnessed her power myself."

"Okay, killing Youma's all right and everything, but a fucking magic FRISBEE?"

"Tiara."

"Shut up, Konno. Frisbee, tiara, same difference! I mean, it's just so... stupid! Some teenage girl
tossing around a magic frisbee that kills Youma?"

"Shut up, Yamada," Sanzou muttered as he grimaced slightly, then turned to Mamoru. "It's not that I
don't believe you, Chiba, but... it IS kinda hard to swallow, you know?"

"If I hadn't seen it, I would be inclined to agree," Mamoru replied. "Still, what matters is that, as
silly as it sounds," he said, glancing at Yamada, who merely shrugged, "it is effective. The five dead
Mages on the other side of the border is proof enough of that.

"At any rate, when we get there, we're going to fan out and snipe at them from a distance until either
they're dead, they retreat, or - Kami-sama forbid - the barrier comes down. Should the worst happen and
the barrier does come down...."

"We give 'em hell 'til the end," Yamada said grimly. "I know what I signed up for, Chiba. We all do."

Mamoru nodded silently. "I expect our friend to be providing us with whatever assistance she can. Be
sure to back her up if necessary.

"Let's move."

_________________________________________________________________


Outer Grounds, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 1:01 A.M.


Sailor Moon grimaced as she watched the barrier ripple erratically and prayed that it continued to hold.
Each new volley of attacks that the Mages were throwing against the barrier were steadily growing closer
together. The tighter the attack grew, the greater the impact against the barrier grew. It had just
taken a huge pounding from a volley of ten or so blasts at once within a tight five foot radius. From
the look of it, one more blast like that would tear open a hole big enough for a small cluster of Youma
to get through.

The Mages were learning.

This was not good.

Behind her, she could faintly see Mamoru and his Blades rushing toward her. She could make out about ten
or so bodies fanning out and taking cover behind large chunks of rubble and ruined buildings. From the
looks of things, they were getting into position to cover as much ground as possible, should the enemy
break through the barrier, taking down as much of the enemy as possible from a distance before engaging.
Smart.

Those occasional tactics lessons she had talked Jovan into giving her were starting to pay off. And he
thought she'd never have any use for them! Sure, she had only talked him into teaching her tactics
because she was bored that day and sure, she only kept it up because Jovan's tactics lessons were much
more interesting than the cut and dry academics that she had to go through daily with Meria, but those
lessons of his were certainly making themselves useful in a way none of them had ever expected.

She'd have to thank him later... if Ryoku remembered that particular memory, that is.

Following their example, she retreated back a few meters toward where an especially large hunk of
twisted, rusty metal with wheels was sticking out of the entrance to a building. Since the vehicle - she
assumed it was such - was lying on its side, it provided adequate cover without being obstructive. Once
in place, she continued her attack, continuously flinging her empowered tiara at swarms of Youma as soon
as it returned to her hand. Behind her, a hailstorm of gunfire rocketed past, striking down sentries and
Hunters alike. However, the damage wasn't being done fast enough as more Youma kept sliding in to take
the place of the fallen.

A large flash of a sickly pale green light illuminated the night for a split second as the Mages made
their last attempt at breaking the barrier. A solid boom shook loose rubble from buildings and knocked
everyone off balance from the force of the impact combined with the wild wavering of the barrier. A
group of Youma rushed forward and pushed against the barrier, causing it to bend even further until a
large tear could be seen rushing upward at an alarming rate.

"Oh, shit!" she could hear someone exclaim amid the guttural snarls and roaring of the Youma. She
couldn't help but nod in agreement as she readied another attack.

Her sentiments exactly.

_________________________________________________________________


Hikawa Jinja Proper, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 1:04 A.M.


Rei sweated as she strained to keep her focus. Each time the Mages threw their attack against the
barrier, everyone felt the impact. A few older priests had already passed out from the constant assault
against their combined focus; the strain proving too much for them. A group of nurses were standing
watch on one side of the room, waiting to take anyone who passed out to another group of physicians who
were on standby in another room nearby.

She reeled as another blow, even stronger than the previous one, struck hard against her senses. She
almost felt herself fly backward from the force of this attack, but remained firmly in place. She
redoubled her focus, knowing that if something wasn't done soon, the barrier would soon rip open. They
had to outlast the attack. Failure to do so would kill them, just as surely as it had during the Fall of
the Meiji Jinja.

Another hard blow slammed into her, this one hard enough to send her reeling for a few seconds.

"It's tearing!" someone bellowed painfully on the other side of the room.

Rei winced as she felt something fray in her mind. With a quiet grunt, she forced herself to ignore the
sharp pain in her head as she focused her will toward suppressing the tear with everyone else. However,
the force behind the tearing was too powerful for their combined effort. The tear continued to widen,
causing four or five novice priests and priestesses to scream or faint from the pain.

"Damn...," Rei panted as she felt the focus of the group shift from suppressing the tear to simply
maintaining the rest of the barrier. She knew that the barrier had to stay up above all, even if a small
part was now ruined, but the very fact that they couldn't prevent the tear rankled immensely. With a
grimace, she followed suit. Better a small leak than losing the whole thing.

She said a small prayer for the Blades out there. They were going to need it.

_________________________________________________________________


Outer Grounds, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 1:05 A.M.


Sailor Moon fell back amidst the rain of covering fire when the Youma horde started flooding in through
the breach. As she retreated, she flung her tiara over and over again, mowing down a handful of Youma at
each pass. The blasts of negative energy continued to rain against the barrier, though the aim was to
maintain the rift, rather than create one.

"Everyone, prepare to fall back to the edge of the Lower Grounds, section 144!" she could just barely
hear Mamoru bellow over the cacophony of roars, screams, and explosions. "We must try to keep them out
of blocks 23 and 32, and especially out of quadrant 4! Kino should be finished arranging our auxiliary
units by now."

She continued to hit and run, taking care to try for the Mages whenever she could get a shot. Since the
enemy was concentrating on getting through the barrier, they weren't bothering to protect the Mages
anymore. She had managed to take out two more before taking off; the Blades managed to kill three.

Some of the faster Youma sentries had managed to catch up with them, despite the fact that they were
taking down groups of Youma at a time with concentrated fire. One of the Recruit Blades panicked and
swung at a sentry with the butt of hit rifle, knocking the Youma toward her, which she then elegantly
dispatched with a spinning jump kick that took off its head. A few of the other Recruit Blades had slung
their rifles over their shoulders and drawn their swords, hacking away at any other Youma that drew too
close. She had had to backhand and kick away quite a few herself during their withdrawal, but it was
getting harder to avoid the Youma as they drew closer to the border between the Outer and Lower Grounds.
There were more buildings left in ruins around that border, so they had to dodge around huge chunks of
steel, granite and asphalt left as a natural barricade in situations such as what they were facing.

However, in the scenarios where the ruins were used as such, there were additional Shishu forces waiting
to ambush the Youma that were chasing the decoy units. Right now, there were no decoy units. There was
no ambush. They were all that was there.

Them, and about a couple hundred Youma.

"Blades, Close Formation!" Mamoru bellowed as he pointed toward a huge, toppled building ahead of them.
The building had crumbled at one edge of its foundation, causing it to tip over at an angle, rather than
fall straight down. Combined with the row of broken buildings on the other side, it served to herd any
groups wanting to pass through into a tight squeeze.

Good thing they were small enough to fit through with no problems.

"Anyone remember to bring any explosives, or were we too busy running around in a blind panic?" Mamoru
asked sardonically as they ran through the opening.

"I've got a few grenades," Konno replied, pointing to his belt.

"Type?"

"One frag, one incendiary, three regular explosive."

"Anyone else?"

Mass shaking of heads.

"Not much, but it'll help a little. What's the delay on the incendiary?"

Konno unclipped the grenade and brought it close to his face. "It's hard to make out with so little
light," he said as he tried to read it. "I'm guessing it says fifteen seconds."

"Right. Everyone, stop and hold positions at the other end! When I give the word, Konno will light it
and we'll haul ass to the Lower/Outer border. We'll make our stand there."

"Roger!" the other Blades shouted as they came to a stop at the other side of the opening, turned and
opened fire on the advancing Youma.

"Will this really slow them down?" Sailor Moon asked Mamoru as she flung her tiara toward a small
cluster of Hunter Youma, slicing two in half.

"The fire won't hold them back for more than a few seconds," he replied while shooting a sentry right
between the eyes. "Once the fire's lit, though, that's when Konno will toss the frag grenade. Usually,
those things have a good twenty to thirty seconds on them. Enough time for us to either toss them a good
distance, or drop them and get the hell out of the way. The frag grenade should slow them down enough to
buy us a nice lead while they have to struggle to climb over a pile of Youma pincushions.

"The three remaining grenades are for our Mage friends, should they finally get through the barrier.
Once the Mages get through, then we know that the entire horde's inside."

"Chiba, they're almost here!" Sanzou shouted urgently.

"Konno, light it and let's go!" he ordered as he turned and started running. The rest of the Blades and
Sailor Moon followed as Konno tossed the explosive into the middle of the opening, then took off running.

"Ten seconds!" he shouted while running at top speed. "Nine! Eight! Seven! Six!"

"Get the frag grenade ready!" Mamoru ordered.

"Two!" he shouted as he unclipped the grenade. "One!"

A loud explosion rattled the decrepit husks of the surrounding buildings as a ball of flame burst to
life like a star being born. The sphere of flame grew large enough to engulf the entire opening and a
good few meters in burning fire before starting to die down.

"Throw the grenade and let's move!" Mamoru bellowed as the first Youma emerged from the dwindling
inferno.

"We've got twenty seconds!" Konno yelled after pulling the pin and throwing the grenade. As the group
fled toward the Lower/Outer Grounds border, the grenade sailed through the air landing near the mouth of
the opening. As more of the Youma emerged through the opening, the grenade exploded, showering the area
with a burst of shrapnel that took down most of the front line of Youma.

However, that small victory was short-lived as a huge blast of negative energy blew a huge chunk of the
top of the fallen building off, widening the narrow opening considerably.

The Mages were inside the barrier.

"Oh, fuck," Mamoru heard one of the Recruit Blades mutter as he ran beside him. That pretty much summed
up their situation quite nicely.

_________________________________________________________________


Lower Grounds - Sendai Hill, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 1:41 A.M.


Ryoku gazed up and down the rows of defenders gathered. Seven units. Approximately two hundred people.
All waiting on his command.

He suppressed a shiver at the thought. Only a few days ago, he was worried about the training of a group
of Recruit Blades. That was the most he had ever thought he would have to command; the command of the
Shishu installation at Hikawa Jinja being a distant, very unlikely possibility.

He was not ready for this.

His hands clenched tightly as he tried to calm himself. Worrying about it now wasn't going to help,
anyway.

There was something his father had told him before he became a Blade. There were things in life that you
just can't prepare for. When things like that happen, the only thing you can do is move forward and do
what you can do.

"Everyone is ready, Ryo-kun," Atsuko said, walking up to him. "We're waiting on your orders."

He nodded as he took a deep breath and slowly released it. It was time.

Ryoku turned and deliberately ascended the stone steps leading to the Hikawa Jinja, stopping somewhere
near the middle, and turned back toward all assembled. "Everyone, listen," he announced loud enough for
everyone to hear, and waited until he had everyone's attention.

"I know most of you remember what happened years ago at the Meiji Jinja. Many of you lost family and
friends. I have, too, so I know what some of you may be thinking.

"Well, stop. This is not an opportunity for revenge. This is not even about killing as many Youma as
possible. I guarantee you that no matter how many Youma are here right now, Jadeite most assuredly has
more.

"This is a battle for survival. We Blades are not here to kill Youma, but to ensure that humanity
survives. That is why I am here. To ensure your survival. Don't expect me to lead you into a glorious
battle to defeat the Dark Kingdom, because I won't. The battle we are fighting is to protect the lives
of those who cannot fight." He dramatically swept an arm back toward the jinja behind him. "Your loved
ones, your families, your children; this battle is to protect their lives. For as long as the blood
flows through my veins, no Youma will ever set foot upon Sendai Hill!" he finished as he drew his sword
and brandished it in front of him amidst the roaring crowd.

"That was a most stirring speech, Ryo-kun," Atsuko said as Ryoku came back down the steps while
sheathing his sword.

"I feel like a hypocrite, saying things like that," he sighed wanly.

"Because you want to fight in a glorious battle to defeat the Dark Kingdom?" she asked with a wry smirk.

"More or less," he shrugged sheepishly. "I'm just as guilty as they are, I suppose." His expression
turned serious once again. "However, I will not allow them to throw away their lives for revenge. They
still have things to live for. If they want to die fighting Youma, they can join Shishu. I'm sure Sanzou
would love to beat the desire for vengeance out of them."

"Speaking from experience, Ryo-kun?" she asked with an amused smile.

He merely shrugged as he turned toward the assembled masses once again. "Units 5 through 7 are to take
up positions guarding the entrance to the Hikawa Jinja Proper," he commanded. "Units 1 through 4 are to
approach the Lower/Outer Grounds border. The Blades will eventually fall back to that point. When that
happens, we will provide support by cover fire and auxiliary ground forces.

"Mizuno-hakase, I will leave command of the remaining forces with you," he said as he turned toward her.
"Please take good care of everyone for me."

"Roger," she replied with a quick salute.

Ryoku smiled faintly as he saluted back. "Thank you." As he dropped his salute, he turned back toward
the gathered masses and drew his sword. "Everyone, move out!"

_________________________________________________________________


Lower/Outer Grounds Border, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 2:02 A.M.


"They're catching up!" Sailor Moon shouted at the Blades as she continued to bring up the rear. With
each fling of her Moon Tiara Action attack, more Youma fell in thin swaths, only to be quickly replaced.
She hoped that they would reach the border soon. She was getting very tired very quickly.

"Konno, as soon as we hit the border, get all three of your grenades ready," Mamoru ordered. "As soon as
you see the Mages, let 'em have it with all three. Hopefully, they're not that far behind."

"Hopefully?" one of the Recruits gasped raggedly.

"If they're not, we'll have to fight who knows how many sentries and Hunters until they do come," Sanzou
replied as he gunned down another sentry. "As it is, we're running pretty low on ammo. I'm down to my
last two clips."

"It's not gonna matter soon," Yamada said as he took out a sentry as well. "I, for one, am gonna make
damn sure I unload everything I got before taking on any of those fuckers toe to toe. I've got no
intentions of dying any time soon."

"Yamada, must you keep swearing in front of a lady?" Sanzou admonished jokingly, jerking a thumb toward
Sailor Moon.

"Oh, don't mind me," she replied with a wave of her hand. "I've heard worse." 'Not to mention that I've
said worse, myself.'

It was easier to tell the difference between the Lower Grounds and the Outer Grounds, due to the fact
that the old ruined buildings stopped a short distance from it. As the barrier grew in size, the border
moved as well, in order to accommodate the number of people living in the newly enlarged shelter. As
such, when the border moved, all of the ruined buildings within the border were demolished and used for
whatever building materials they could either salvage or recycle while the land underneath underwent
aration.

Also, once past the border, it was easier to see the lights around the living quarters.

"Hey, over there!" one of the younger Recruits shouted as he pointed toward the direction of Sendai
Hill. As everyone looked in the indicated direction, they spotted four groups of people waiting for
them with a familiar figure standing between the four groups with sword in hand. Without a word, the
figure raised the sword straight into the air and waited.

"It's Kino! He's brought reinforcements!" Konno shouted in relief.

Mamoru breathed a quick sigh of relief at the sight. He nodded, understanding the tactic that Ryoku
wanted him to perform. It was one of his own from when he had first taken over as commander of Hikawa
Jinja's Shishu forces.

"Blades, Split Formation!" he bellowed as he made a quick forty-five degree turn to the right and
continued running. He took a quick glance behind him to check on the others. Sanzou, Konno and half of
the Recruits broke left while the other half of the Recruits, Yamada and Sailor Moon all broke right
with him. Sailor Moon was lagging behind slightly, probably because she didn't know the command he
issued before and just followed whoever was closest.

Once the two halves of Mamoru's forces were out of the way, Ryoku swung his arm forward, signaling his
forces to open fire. With over ten times as many rifles as before, row after row of Youma began to drop,
slowing the enemy advance considerably. Seeing this, some of the defenders began to cheer excitedly.

"Incoming!" someone shouted, prompting Mamoru to look up in time to see a huge ball of dark green
energy descending from the heavens down toward the middle of the front line of the defenders.

"Kino! Incoming! Get out of there, now!" he yelled, gesturing wildly with his arms toward the giant
sphere of death looming overhead.

_________________________________________________________________


Hikawa Jinja Proper, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 2:07 A.M.


The strain against the barrier had ceased a short time ago, however, that was no reason to relax their
focus. Not until they were given the 'all clear' sign from one of the Shishu Blades would they relax
from their heightened alert status.

A freezing chill stabbed Rei in the spine, causing her back to arch and her eyes to fly open at the
sensation. She took in a sharp, almost painful breath as she tried to regain her senses, but at the
moment, her own physical condition was the last thing on her mind.

If she did nothing, he would die. If she tried to save him, he would live but someone else would die in
his place. She didn't know how she knew, nor did she know the exact conditions, but she knew it for the
absolute truth. Her choice would affect who would die.

No matter what happened, someone would die. It was inevitable.

Rei stood up and ran for the door. It hurt, but her mind was made up. He had to live.

She had to go kill someone.

_________________________________________________________________


Lower/Outer Grounds Border, Hikawa Jinja, Tokyo, Japan.
August 6, 1992. 2:07 A.M.


Ryoku looked up in time to realize that there wasn't enough time to get himself, or everyone with him,
out of the way. His eyes widened in fear for a moment as he witnessed death coming for him, but he
quickly shook it off.

"Everyone, scatter!" he shouted as he pointed his sword toward the sphere. "Escape while you can!"

"Moon tiara action!"

The giant sphere of negative energy exploded as the glowing discus collided with it. Ryoku looked back
in the direction the attack came from and saw Sailor Moon with her hand extended, reaching out to catch
her tiara once again.

"Thank you, Sailor Moon," Ryoku said as he saluted with his sword. "I can only hope to return the favor
one day."

"I'll be sure to hold you to that, Ryoku!" she replied as she pointed at him and winked.

By now, the Youma horde had advanced to the point where using blades would be more effective than using
rifles. There was still no visible sign of the Mages, however, that apparently didn't keep them from
attacking. Fortunately, Sailor Moon's power seemed to be able to cancel their negative energy attacks,
so the threat wasn't as dooming as it normally would. Still, any number of Mages was nothing to ignore.

"Konno, can you see any sign of the Mages?" Mamoru inquired.

"I can barely make out the glow of their attacks, but it'll be a while before they get into my range,"
Konno reported.

"Chiba, I can still regroup the defenders and have them fall back for support," Ryoku offered.

"No, that won't be necessary," Mamoru replied, shaking his head. "We're a good distance from Sendai
Hill, so we'll try to hold them off here. If necessary, we can fall back to where the backup units can
reinforce us."

"Right," he nodded.

"By the way, good job, Ryoku," Mamoru added with a wan grin. "I knew you had it in you to take command
when the time came."

"Mamoru, if you and Sanzou die and leave me in charge, I swear I'll not only kill you both, I'll mangle
your corpses and piss on your graves, you damn bastard," he growled. "I'm still not ready."

"I wasn't ready, either," he replied as he dropped his rifle and drew his sword. "Get ready. Here they
come."

Ryoku simply let his rifle drop from his shoulder. "The least they could've done was let me use my rifle
for once."

"Kino Ryoku using a rifle?" Mamoru chuckled. "That'll never happen."

"Oh, shut up," he retorted as the two charged forward and engaged in combat.

_________________________________________________________________


Sailor Moon planted an elbow firmly into the face of one of the sentries as her leg took off the head of
a second sentry next to it. She landed while performing a forward roll to avoid the blade of the Sword
Hunter that was heading for her neck, then leapt while executing an uppercut that knocked a Claw Hunter
into a pair of Hunters that were about to gang up on one of the defenders. The young man nodded
gratefully before running off to join a small cluster of defenders that were having trouble with a
Projectile Hunter. A quick stomp to the neck finished off the Claw Hunter and one of the other Hunters,
while a glowing discus to the gut finished the third.

"Dammit, I lost Mamoru-san and Ryoku," she grumbled as she scanned the battlefield.

She had been keeping up fine until those stupid Mages had started throwing those energy spheres again.
Three smaller ones instead of one giant one. She had managed to tag two of the three. The third one
landed amidst a cluster of defenders and Youma, killing indiscriminately.

Well, she supposed that the Youma died from the blast, rather than the energy itself, but either way,
dead was dead. At least, now she knew how many Mages were left.

Another round of energy spheres were coming their way, so she quickly readied her attack again. This
time, she would get all three.

"Moon tiara action!" she cried, flinging her tiara in an arc that took out two of the three spheres
before returning to her hand. A second throw took out the last one.

"I did it!" she said, sighing in relief. Those spheres looked pretty close this time....

"Chiba! They're in range!" she heard Konno shout over the din of the battle. "I'm throwing them now!"

She wildly glanced around, searching for where the grenades were. A quick gleam overhead caught her eye,
pointing out the path of one of the grenades. "There!" she shouted as she finally spotted the trio of
Mages. A large explosion emphasized her discovery, followed by a second, and a third. Pausing long
enough to kill a pair of sentries and take down a trio of Projectile Hunters with her Moon Tiara Action
attack, she watched as the glow from the explosion faded away, revealing three glowing spheres
surrounding the Mages.

"Energy shields," she surmised. "Well, they can't hold them up forever." Just as she spoke, the trio
dropped their shields and started gathering energy for another attack. "Gotcha," she smirked as she
readied her attack again. "Moon tiara action!"

The glowing discus hurtled through the air, slicing through sentry and Hunter alike until it reached the
Mage trio, where it lopped off the heads of two of them before returning to its mistress.

"Damn, I missed one!" she growled as she reached out to retrieve her tiara.

"Look out!" Mamoru shouted as he dove forward and tackled her to the ground, taking a slash to the back
in the process.

"You all right, Sailor Moon?" Ryoku asked as he beheaded the Sword Hunter and turned to face the Axe
Hunter that accompanied it.

"Yeah, thanks you two," she said as she got to her feet. "Are you all right, Mamoru-san?" she asked as
she helped his to his feet, as well.

"I've had worse," he replied reassuringly as he knelt to pick up his sword.

"Yeah, when you fell down the stairs at Rose Garden last year," Ryoku quipped cheekily as he rammed his
sword into the Axe Hunter's gut, then slashed upward while removing his sword.

"Do you always have to have the last word, Ryoku?" he sighed, shaking his head wearily.

"Keeps you from getting a swelled head, O Glorious Leader," Ryoku smirked.

"Enough chat, you two," Sailor Moon interjected as she came back with her tiara in hand. "There's one
more Mage, and I'm taking it down."

"We'll watch your back," Ryoku told her.

"Thanks. Moon tiara action!" she shouted as the tiara once again became a glowing discus as she flung it
through the air before her. Just as before, the glowing disc tore through any Youma that entered its path
until it reached the Mage. The Mage tried to form a shield in order to block the attack, but the tiara
tore through the half-formed shield and smashed through the Youma's chest.

"That's the last Mage," she said, smugly satisfied as she caught her tiara on its return trip. "All
that's left is clean-up."

"Easy for you to say," Ryoku replied as he dodged an attack from a Whip Hunter as he slashed through a
Youma sentry.

"Oh, don't complain, Ryoku," Sailor Moon chided as she flung her attack at the Whip Hunter. "The worst
part is over."

_________________________________________________________________


Rei stopped only long enough to catch her breath. She was close to the battle now. A stray Youma sentry
had tried to attack her earlier, but a quick ofuda to the head froze it in its tracks. Other than that,
she had been lucky enough not to attract any attention from the Youma.

It was stupid of her to be out here. Foolish and stupid. At any moment, a Youma could come out of
nowhere and kill her.

But despite all that, she still knew she had to be here. There was no way that she would let someone she
cared for die when she could do something about it. She could feel time slipping away from her. She knew
that if she didn't reach him soon, he would certainly die.

Even if she did make it, someone would have to die in his place. Her actions would choose who it would
be.

It hurt like hell, but that was the way it had to be. Maybe, if she was lucky, the kami would forgive
her one day.

She took another deep breath and started scanning the battlefield. There had to be a sign of his
whereabouts. On instinct, she closed her eyes and concentrated. There. A slight pulling on her mind,
urging her to go that way.

She opened her eyes and ran. Time was running out.

Rei took off running as fast as her legs could carry her, dodging past sentries, Hunters, Blades and
defenders alike, jumping over bloody human corpses without even giving them a second glance, all while
keeping her gaze firm on her path. Once she crested the low hill before her, she spotted Ryoku, along
with Mamoru and a strangely dressed girl that looked oddly familiar to her for some unknown reason. All
three were engaged in battle with different Hunter Youma; Ryoku with an Axe Hunter, Mamoru with a Whip
Hunter, and the girl with a Claw Hunter.

The cold sensation of impending doom returned as she spotted a Sword Hunter that was advancing toward
Ryoku's unprotected back. Since everyone was busy with their own battles, no one had noticed the
approaching Hunter yet. If they didn't hurry, the Sword Hunter would surely....

Ryoku ducked under the Axe Hunter's swing and lunged forward, driving his sword deep into the Youma's
gut up to the hilt. Once certain that the Hunter was dead, he lifted up a foot to push the dead Youma
off his blade, still unaware of the approaching Sword Hunter.

"Ryo-kun! Behind you!" Rei heard herself scream.

The scream caused the three to glance in her direction momentarily before finally noticing the Sword
Hunter. Ryoku kicked off of his other foot as he threw himself to the side while still trying to remove
his sword from the dead Hunter. Mamoru tried to run to his friend's aid, but the Whip Hunter was proving
to be very obstinate and refused to die. The girl jumped and kicked the Claw Hunter in the chest hard
enough to knock it away, then flung what looked like a glowing frisbee at the Sword Hunter while
shouting, "Moon tiara action!" The disc slammed into the Sword Hunter and burst through its back,
killing it. The disc then made a wide arc in midair, then lopped off the head of the Whip Hunter that
was giving Mamoru so much trouble.

Rei stared in shock as she watched the disc return to the girl's hand. What kind of power was that? Was
she some kind of strange miko or something? In a way, she was slightly envious; her power could only
immobilize Youma, not kill them.

The three stared at her in surprise, obviously wondering how or why she was there, rather than at the
Hikawa Jinja, where she was supposed to be. There was something especially unnerving about the girl's
stare; like she was staring at someone whom she had never expected to be there. However, despite the
unease their stares were bringing her, there was still this sense of doom that wouldn't go away. She had
managed to stop Ryoku from being killed, so perhaps now someone else was in danger of getting killed?
But who?

The girl breathed one word. "Mauri?"

Ryoku was about to open his mouth and ask Rei what she was doing there when she noticed the Claw Hunter
that the girl had kicked away had just returned. It was headed straight for the girl, who was still
watching her, along with Ryoku and Mamoru.

"Behind you!" she shouted, pointing at the Claw Hunter. A pang of fear clutched at her chest. Was it
her? Was that girl going to die now, because of her? For some reason, Ryoku's and Mamoru's reactions
weren't going as fast as she wanted them to go. If they didn't hurry, that girl was going to die!

Before she knew it, she had taken off, running toward the girl even as Ryoku and Mamoru did the same.
The girl still seemed to be in some sort of shock and hadn't even noticed them running to her, let alone
the Hunter that was about to impale her with its claws.

'No!' her mind screamed desperately. 'Please don't let me be too late!'

She almost breathed a sigh of relief as Ryoku dived forward and pushed the girl out of the way, but it
was then that she spotted the Projectile Hunter that was aiming its crossbow-like appendage at the pair.
Without hesitation, she leapt forward and shoved the pair out of the way just as the arrow was fired.

She gasped as she felt the bolt impact in the left side of her lower back; the force of the collision
causing her to spin in the air. As her body was facing the sky, she saw the Claw Hunter rearing back to
strike her. She watched the Hunter strike in what almost seemed like slow-motion; the claws coming
straight down toward what would've been her lower spine if she hadn't been spinning in the air. Instead,
the claws ripped deep through her right side.

Rei hit the ground, motionless.

"No...," Ryoku murmured in shock as Mamoru ruthlessly dismembered the Claw Hunter. "Rei... no...." He
quickly scrambled to her side and grabbed her hand.

No pulse.

"REI!"


=================================================================


Author's Note: My most evil cliffhanger yet! Mwahahahaha!!! Oh my god, I killed Rei! I'm a bastard! Plot
twist! Plot twist! Oh, you hate me now! XD Yes, I know what you're thinking. If Rei's dead, who's going
to become Sailor Mars? Well, all I have to say is wait for the next chapter. I assure you that you won't
be disappointed with what is coming next. The battle for the Hikawa Jinja comes to a close in the next
chapter as well as dealing with the aftermath.


Disclaimer: All original materials belong to their respective owners. Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko
Takeuchi and a bunch of big companies. No copyright infringement is intended.

Questions? Comments? Anything?
Email: jasonulloa (at) hotmail (dot) com

Copyright© 2004, 2007 Jason C. Ulloa
All Rights Reserved.