You know by now it's a Sailor Moon fanfic. Just don't let it cloud your
judgement. Just because it's Sailor Moon doesn't mean it's not worthy of
your attention. This episode is not a climax episode. It's just with a
lot of movement and interesting plot developments, as the spiral towards
a hard battle gets tighter and steeper. Things do not look good... so
the Sailors are going to be digging deep to come up on top. That's next
episode.
Someone tell me that everyone's not just ignoring my fanfics. I never
got a peep for my last ones from this ML.
JB
"Dark Forces"
On a rocky landscape, the massive steel boot of a shining metallic robot
touched into the ground, stirring up rock dust where it scraped upon the
hard rock. The machine possessed a roughly humanoid structure, and was
carrying a black laser blaster in its right mechanical arm. It swivelled
slightly to the left, then turned its head to the right. Then a beam of
pale yellow light slammed into its blaster, blowing it apart. Then two
more shots took the right arm off and blasted it in the chest.
Apollo was running down a straight and uncomfortably narrow path,
blasting anything in his way with his own gold colored meson blaster. He
was using an amber visor that covered his eyes. He was in a yellow/white
battle suit, partially armored. Three robots began blasting at him. He
rolled to his left, and took a quick leap onto the low wall of natural
stone, bracing his left foot on it, and leaping into the air. A few
blasts of his cannon left the robots as piles of junk.
Turning a corner, a crimson blast knocked Apollo's blaster out of his
hands, shattering it. He dove forward into a roll, avoiding two more
blasts. Rocks flew against his back as more rock shattered. Turning,
Apollo saw a robot painted completely black, vaguely humanoid with an
arm cannon and a two-foot-long pincer on the other arm. The arm cannon
was the top priority. Apollo shot out his left arm, and a small bronze
knife shot through the air, embedding itself into the arm cannon,
jamming it and making any shots with it self-destructive. The robot
charged, and swung its mighty pinced. Apollo ducked and rolled out of
the way, then leapt up into a back flip that put some distance between
the two.
The pincer came across again, this time sideways. As the pincer crossed,
the robot prepared itself for another strike. But Apollo had rolled
under the pincer, to the side of the robot. The pincer acted as an
optical shield, and the robot had no way of knowing that Apollo was not
under it. The robot whirled around.
Apollo had his grey metallic laser pistol out. "Hasta la Vista." He
pulled the trigger. The laser hit into the robot's blackened head, and
the head exploded.
"Cut!" the director yelled.
The set crew moved into action. Two with large brooms began to sweep the
wreckage away. The director walked to Lance, who handed his "laser" to
one of the stage hands. The special effects personnel, veteran
technicians, used their remote control devices to control the remaining
robots and checked the set for safety reasons to insure that no
accidents would happen. The director, a small man with a black mustache
and sharp features, congradulated Lance on his preformance. He said,
"Lance, great work. You're beautiful. Great stunts." He turned to his
side, and yelled to the cameramen, "Hey, Joe, everything alright over
there?" Game Machine Joe, as he was known to friends, and others by
reputation, smiled and gave two thumbs up. Lance smiled, satisfied with
his work. He took off his visor, ran his hand through his dirty blonde
hair, which was still filled with the dust of the artificial rock and
poured crushed rock, and shook his head and his hair. He yelled, "MAKE
UP!" and went to sit down in his seat.
It was the last scene to be shot today.
---
Within the enclosed walls of the Cherry Hill Temple, the sacred flame
danced to and fro. Its heat radiated off the walls, drawing another drop
of sweat from Lita's forehead. She was concentrating as hard as she
could, but then her concentration broke. She opened her eyes, and her
former grimace vanished. This wasn't getting anywhere. She said, "I
still don't think this is going to work."
Rei was kneeling beside her, in the traditional garments of a priestess.
She replied, "You just need practice. I still think this'll help you get
over Joe, and help answer a few questions." This was her idea of
therapy. She had tried showing Lita how to call to the sacred flame
before, without much success. She said, "You have to relax to
concentrate. Relax, and let your thoughts flow to the fire, not the
other way around." Lita cleared her mind, closed her eyes, and tried
again.
Rei wasn't sure if she was doing the right thing. Maybe she was pushing
too far. It wasn't something that was entirely safe. What she wanted to
do was to help Lita calm down, aquire some mental discipline. Somewhere
down the line, that would become important to her powers. She could lose
her temper, but she had to be able to focus her thoughts.
Aside from that, she thought that Lita might actually become good at
this. She fancied herself a good judge of character, and thought that
Lita had what it takes to reach beyond normal perceptions. Rei wasn't
sure just how far, but she was still learning herself. Rei needed the
distraction, though. Thinks were hectic lately, and she needed something
familiar, like this, so that she could relax, get her thoughts together.
---
Sitting crosslegged within a circle of black, among the shadows, an
obscure man waited as little balls of hot blue mystic flames ignited
around him. He took a deep breath. His fists, which lay to his sides,
tightened, and the flames grew stronger. His eyes snapped open.
---
Lita felt the flame burning, outside her, but also... within...
She felt drawn to it in her mind. She felt her thoughts wandering. She
did not want to lose focus, and she concentrated.
---
The Dark Senshi known as Zeus was a large, even huge, muscular man. He
had emerald eyes that revealed wisdom beyond his years, and a fierce
spirit. He also possessed mystic powers, and sought answers to questions
in the spirit world. A phantom wind blew his grey-greenish hair behind
him, and his massive brow grew tense. His pupils narrowed as he
concentrated in the increasing light. Then he closed his eyes, and
called out...
---
Lita felt herself floating in empty space. Then she felt herself drawn
far away...
Rei carefully watched Lita's face. Something wasn't quite right...
---
This was a strange place, a place mainly of darkness, of shadows, and
mists. Lita was standing, here, with her dress flowing in the phantom
wind. She was holding her hands together, in front of her, down low,
like a little girl in a strange place. Which was not an inaccurate
description. There seemed to be no center of gravity here. She was on
firm ground, but everything seemed... wispy...
Her eyes, though, were focused straight ahead. Across from her, about
ten feet away, was Zeus, standing there with his cape blowing, his green
eyes focused straight into hers. Lita was caught by his gaze. He was
such a hunk.... simply incredible. Zeus was certainly handsome enough.
Lita didn't really recognize him, though. She didn't know what to think.
She blushed.
Zeus muttered, "You are very beautiful..." Lita just stared into his
face. His cheekbones were captivating, his demeanor so... masculine.
Zeus took a step forward, towards her. Lita seemed under a spell. He
reached out, and gently grasped her left shoulder, and her right arm. He
drew her close, and she did not resist.
---
"Lita?" Rei asked, now very worried. She felt an evil presence. She had
to hurry...
---
Zeus was holding her close now. He could smell perfume. No, he just
imagined it. It was impossible for her to be wearing perfume. This was a
psychic projection...
He stared into her eyes, captivated. Lita's hands were on his chest, her
heart beating frantically, not saying a word... entranced...
---
Rei took out her anti-evil scroll and placed it on Lita's forehead.
"EVIL, BEGONE!!"
Lita collapsed as she let out all of her breath, knocked unconcious by
the force.
---
In another place, Lita and Zeus screamed, and Zeus' mind exploded in
pain.
---
Zeus yelled as the mystic fires blew out, and he threw up his hands to
his face in agony. He dropped to the floor, unconcious.
The door to the chamber opened soon after. Serenity was horrified.
---
"Lita?" Rei begged, "Lita? Can you hear me?"
Lita was twisting on the futon. She hadn't regained full conciousness,
but she would be okay... but she was giving Rei quiet a scare. Lita was
just very disoriented, and a big, strong, disoriented girl is tough to
help. Or to calm down.
Rei did manage to cover Lita with a blanket. Lita was starting to calm
down, and should be set to recover soon.
Just then, the door to the room slid open, and Serena, Amy, and Mina
came through, along with Luna and Artemis. Rei had called Amy to give
her a really short story of what happened. So, Luna asked for details,
saying, "What happened?" in a rather concerned voice. Serena seconded,
"How could something like this happen? What did you do, Rei?"
Rei looked down, and started looking away. This was going to come out
very badly. She said, "Well... I... um..."
"I put an anti-evil sign on her forehead."
Everyone gasped.
Serena asked, "HOW COULD YOU?!" Rei snapped back, "I had to do it," with
a tone that made Serena take a step back. She was really hostile, Serena
thought. Majorly hostile. Must feel really bad about it... Rei
explained. "You know how I was trying to teach Lita fire reading,
right?" Mina and Amy nodded. Artemis didn't get it. Why? he thought. Rei
continued, "An evil presence reached out to her, and pulled her in. Lita
couldn't fight it. I had to do something to free her, and I did what I
had to. She'll be fine," she said as Lita was groaning and twitching
again, "she's just disoriented. An hour or two and she'll be okay, but I
_HAD TO DO IT_. Now," she said, with a tone of finality in her voice,
"got it?" The others nodded, except for Serena. Serena said, "Wow, I had
no idea," with a voice of true understanding. Rei's face melted, and she
said, "Okay, watch over her for a while. I'm going to take a walk
outside."
---
Joe was finished his work for the day. Now he was at the hospital,
waiting for Jane to come out. He was going to drive her home today. She
came out, and looked very nice in white. She was wearing a rather tight
slip, cut not too far above the knees, with white panty hose that made
her legs look angelic. The rest of her, with the little white hat on
top, was just plain figure. Joe figured a lot of the old men in the
hospital wanted her to take their temperature. He felt lucky. Besides,
since she helped him out when he was in the hospital here, he owed her
one. And he knew the feeling of having a beautiful girl help you out
when you're down.
Almost made him feel sorry about Lita.
Almost.
She jumped into his arms and they kissed. Boy, that got his heart
beating. He said, "Come on, baby. Let's go." He walked her to the car.
---
Later, they were driving to a neighboring district. Jane lived off the
beaten path. While Joe was paying attention to the road, Jane pulled out
a white pen. The head of the pen had a little pink light. Or so it
seemed. She pointed the "light" at Joe, and it lit up as she pressed a
button. The pen began recording information as it scanned Joe. Then she
put the pen back into her purse, without any obvious satisfaction or
disappointment. She was good at this, and she wasn't going to give
herself away.
She did relax, though. This part of her mission was done. Two more parts
to go.
---
Joe kissed Jane goodbye, smudging his own lips with her lipstick. Then,
he left. Jane turned and stepped into the apartment building, and then
went up into her apartment.
As she closed the door to her private room, she was now in her regular
clothing. She was in her mask and ninja suit, her lipstick wiped off,
her eyes narrowed. The room was dark except for the pale candles that
burned brightly within. This room was private for a very simple reason.
It was not time yet, though. She would wait until nightfall.
The moon would be full. She needed to take advantage of the opportunity
to summon a special demon tonight. This might actually be enjoyable.
---
The sun was setting now, barely visible among the tall buildings of
Tokyo, setting to the west. The ocean was beautiful at this time, with
the rays of the yellow and red sun bouncing off it, while the shadows of
clouds made the water seem a very deep, alluring color. Ships were
visible on the horizon, but they were small indeed compared to the
vastness of the water. A chilling breeze blew inland from the water.
A young, dark-haired man, adorned with a leather jacket and black
sunglasses, was walking here, near the coastline. The rest of his garb
was rather ordinary today. Flashiness was not always to be advertised.
He was just out for a walk, just to clear his head.
His name was Alex. He didn't come from the city. He came from a smaller
town, and moved here a few years ago, finished school, and got a job as
an apprentice mechanic. He worked part time. He liked his work. He was
very good with machines, but had other concerns now. He lived on the
other side of the city, but he was one of the few people who would walk
around at times like this, alone, and had the right to be completely
unafraid. Even in Tokyo, it wasn't a good idea to pass through the more
unsavory districts alone. It was asking for trouble. And that's exactly
what he did.
He was in this area for other reasons, though. One of them was his
developing relationship with Mina. He didn't know exactly why he was in
this particular place, though. Sometimes he just wandered off. It was
like that since he was a little kid.
Then he heard something in the breeze. Funny, he didn't see anyone
around, but someone was close by. He looked at a bench nearby, a scenic
seat facing the seashore. He walked closer, and saw that there was a
girl there, bent over. A girl who was apparently crying, and had been
doing so for a long time.
Alex got closer. He walked around the corner of the bench and sat down.
The girl noticed, and she started to get up saying, "Sorry, I don't mean
to bother you. I should be going..." He grasped her arm, gently, and
said, "No, you don't have to. I'm Alex. I don't mind."
She turned to face him.
It was a black-haired girl, with rather traditional garments. Not a
common sight. The top part of her robe was white, while the long skirt
was red. She looked like... hey, "You wouldn't be Rei, would you?" The
girl looked at him, surprised. She nodded, speechless. He said, "I'm
Mina's friend." She looked down, then nodded. She started to get up, "I
really should be going..." but Alex said, "You should stay. You can tell
me what's wrong. Don't go," he said.
Rei didn't go.
Rei looked like she was out of tears. She wiped her face anyway. She
said, ".... okay. I'll tell you... a friend of mine got hurt. It's
really my fault, and..." then she broke up in sobs. Alex gave her a hug.
He let her cry on his shoulder. He felt a bit awkward doing this, but
knew that's what she needed and didn't hesitate. She did need it. She
cried on his shoulder indeed...
She needed to get this off her chest. "You must know I'm at the Cherry
Hill Temple." She was more relaxed now, and wasn't on his shoulder. No,
she was sitting down, looking down. He sat back and let her tell the
story. She said, "I wanted to teach my friend Lita fire reading. But
something went terribly wrong. Something - someone - was out there, and
pulled at her. She was in danger. I used my power to free her, but it
drove her nuts for hours. But I should have know. I should have been
more careful..." Alex said, "Calm down." She was getting hysterical.
"Relax, it's okay." She continued with a sniffle, " It should have been
me. There's evil people out there, so many things going on... and I
can't stop it."
Alex asked, not wanting to pry, but, "Evil people?"
She said, "I... was in contact with someone during a fire reading once.
Not long ago. I should have known... he was really tall. I don't know
anything about him."
She said, "He had green eyes..."
Alex gasped! It couldn't be... what could her connection possibly be to
this? He wouldn't be coming around for a while yet. This girl must have
powerful spiritual abilities. Zeus was busted up really badly - and
although he might be strong in body, this hit his mind. He wasn't weak
in mind, either. Alex shuddered to think what would have happened if it
had been him.
He smiled. Probably not much. He was too stubborn.
He said to Rei, "You were trying to help her, right?" Rei said, "Of
course." Alex said, "Then why are you sorry? You saved her from
disaster, right?" Now his words were forced. "You did what you had to
do, and to help out a friend, a close friend. You did nothing wrong."
Rei said, "I still shouldn't have let her do it..." Alex said, "You
didn't know. You did your best." Rei said, "It wasn't enough..." Alex
said, "Look. Have faith in yourself. You deserve it. I mean it." She
locked her gaze with his. She knew that he was telling the truth: he
meant it.
She smiled. "Thanks, I needed that."
Alex said, "I'll walk you back to the Temple. I want to hook up with
Mina, anyway."
As the two began walking, Alex felt a strange sensation. He didn't know
what it was. Rei felt something, too. They looked at each other,
confused. They both shook it off and said to themselves, it was nothing.
---
The sun finished setting. It was time.
Darkness filled the chamber. Bishoujo Mask was kneeling before the
circle of power that acted as a gate to the Underworld. She began
chanting in strange tongues. She reached deep within her own black
spirit to call out firmly to summon an appropriate demon to this night
of the full moon.
Then she heard... the howl...
---
Rei doubled over in pain. Alex asked, "What?" She said, "I feel...
something coming... something terribly evil... no, I have to stop it..."
No, Alex thought, she couldn't. He reached for her shoulder with his
right hand. Now he wore the ring, with the symbol of Mars. The ring
glowed. He had to do this while she was still in a weakened state, so
she wouldn't suspect him. He had to do it. She was a real threat.
Rei's energy flowed through his hand into his ring, and Rei's eyes
crossed. She collapsed.
Next Episode: Bishoujo Mask summons a demon by moonlight. Jupiter is not
quite 100% yet and they're shocked when Alex brings Rei in, collapsed.
Soon enough the Sailor Scouts discover that a demon is going around
pulling the very souls of innocent people from their bodies, to
strenghen the Dark Crystal. They must stop the demon. It will not be an
easy fight, though... it's going to be hard all the way. The lives of
innocent people hang in the balance. Will Sailor Moon carry the day? Or
will the Dark Senshi get away with it? The demon must be stopped!
Hino Rei