A/N: Okay, I'm really really sorry that it's been over a year since my last update! You wouldn't believe how mad my life has been lately.. Just to give a brief overview of my 2016.. I lost my job, got a new job - but it was a temporary position for 6 months, my parents and little sister moved to a different country during the summer. My elder sister and little brother and I helped them move and stayed there for 6 weeks over the summer, but then came back to our home alone.. My sister got engaged and my cousin got married. I got a new job in research, I've had to look into/fill out a bunch of PhD applications; I moved house, my housemate left, so I had to find a new housemate, or I would've had to move again. I just found a new housemate last week and now I'm going through a maybe-breakup but maybe not kindof thing with my boyfriend.. So yeah, very difficult year..
But, I don't know if it's my recent re-watching of Escaflowne, or what, but I had a bout of inspiration for this chapter and its battle scene. It's quite gory and much darker than what I'm used to writing, as well as being darker than the previous chapters.. I hope you like it! Please review and let me know if you think I should maybe change the rating to M because of this..! See you next update, and hopefully it won't be so long this time! ~nofreakingway
She screamed.
SLASH.
She cried.
SLASH.
There was a menacing cackle. A pull of energy. More screaming. Her tears mixed with the blood and dirt that stained her porcelain face.
Amy screamed as she felt her muscles contract with pain. Her body resisted the onslaught of torture, while her mind cried with the burden of it, begging for its end. Her shoulder burned and bled, where Nailah had shot an energy beam through her, as though she were made of butter.
Her thigh burned, where Nailah had laughed and cut her, using the poisonous dark energy.
She had cuts across her face, obscuring the vision of her left eye.
Nailah had laughed as she shot another deathly beam towards Amy, this time aiming for her arm.
Desperate to avoid more of the onslaught, she dived, crying out as her hand was still caught in the blast. She landed on the rough terrain, thoroughly bruising and grazing her side.
Amy opened her eyes hesitantly. Knowing what awaited. She could feel it. Or, rather, she couldn't.
She stared, terror stricken at her shaking right hand, drenched with her own blood. She stared at what was left; the spaces where her missing her index and middle finger once were, as well as half of her ring finger.
"Oops! Looks like I missed!" cackled Nailah, summoning another ball of energy that she bouncing her hands happily.
"Careful, sister." Hissed Nikiko, her eyes narrowing. She could feel the energy overpowering Nailah, and knew that it was only a matter of time.
Dark eyes that had once matched her own turned towards her and glared furiously. "You dare to stop my fun now?! You, who summoned me from my sanctuary and forced me to use this beautiful energy for my own selfish purposes!?" she spat, firing the ball of fire towards her sister in a fit of fury.
Nikiko deflected it easily, hearing Amy scream in pain again as the ball of energy unintentionally hit her side, cutting her open and burning her. Nailah cackled at the result, her tail flicking left and right gracefully in glee.
"I would be wary, sister." Nikiko hissed, her tail curled between her legs. Her ears flicked left and right as she listened carefully.
He would hide his ki. She would have no prior notice of his presence if she didn't listen out carefully.
"Of what?" Nailah cackled arrogantly, turning smoothly towards Amy once more. She smiled darkly. "I'm just having a bit of fun." She whispered, the menacing darkness of her voice, the evil flames burning in her eyes. Amy felt fear strike through to her heart as she watched Nailah summon, yet, another ball of energy to attack her with.
She knew she was going to die. Amy couldn't hold in her terrified scream as she prayed for help.
A burst of blue light escaped her body in the rush of power she unintentionally called from Mercury. It was a desperate plea, and her planet responded to her cries, calling out to its sovereign and aiding her in her time of need.
"What?!" Nailah hissed, her teeth clenching as she stared. "Oh, no you don't!" she cried furiously, summoning a large ball of dark energy and firing freely at Amy.
She flinched, awaiting the feeling of the impact, the pain and the silence of death that surely awaited her from such an attack. She knew Nailah had just been toying with her earlier. She had been torturing her for her own pleasure.
Instead, she witnessed the dark energy being absorbed by the blue waters of Mercury. She felt the power flowing through her, masking her wounds and sealing their open sores. The dull throb of pain remained. Her fingers were still missing. She could still see a gaping hole through her thigh. And yet, no blood flowed.
Amy felt the calming energy of her crystal, soothing her heart and calling out to her. Restoring her faith in herself and her Scouts. She called out to them with her spirit.
My friends. I'm here.
Sailor Mercury gasped as she felt the constrictions of darkness begin to take hold. Nailah had summoned more energy and was attacking Mercury with an onslaught of power. An intense beam of dark energy surrounded her in a sphere of fire.
Her power wouldn't last. She was struggling. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't resist much longer. But she knew, she had to preserver. If she let the power win, it would envelope her and destroy her.
Nailah cackled humourlessly; viciously as she, too, realised what a position Sailor Mercury was now in.
She couldn't hold out forever. And when she finally gave way, Nailah would destroy her.
"This is the end of you, Sailor Mercury!" she laughed, summoning a surge of intense power and channelling it into her beam of energy.
Sailor Mercury screamed as she called to her crystal, to the power of planet Mercury to aid her against Nailah for just a moment longer. Her body burned with the energy in her heart. Burned with the power rushing to her. She wasn't strong enough. This wasn't her eternal form. She can't take its ultimate power.
And, suddenly, the beam of dark energy ceased.
Nailah stood there, gasping desperately for air. Her chest heaved, but it only served to pull blood into her lungs. She looked down, shaking and disbelieving as she stared at the blood-dripping arm protruding from her chest.
"That's enough." Gohan hissed darkly from behind Nailah.
"SISTER!" Nikiko screamed in pain, grasping at her chest as though she could feel the life of her sister slipping from within her own soul.
Gohan withdrew his arm and flicked it to the side, shaking off a minute amount of blood carelessly.
"You were a waste." He growled, watching as Nailah fell to her knees and collapsed. Small gasps of desperate pleas could still be heard, silently escaping her mouth as she clung to life.
Gohan knew, she wouldn't last more than a few moments. He had crushed her spine, pierced her lungs and torn through her ribs. Her heart pumped blood into broken arteries, and soon, would have no blood left.
"S-sister..." Nailah's voice stuttered quietly with her last breath.
Nikiko fell to her knees, her jaw hanging and her eyes wide as she stared at her unmoving double. A flash of their past, their last happy moments together in their childhood, running through the palace gardens together, laughing together, before either of them had been selected for the rite of succession.
"Sister..." she whispered, her eyes welling with unshed tears of a broken heart.
Gohan rolled his eyes, scrunching his nose in disgust at the perfectly wasted soul at his feet. She had such promise, but she let herself be overtaken. She hardly held up to the reputation of her people. As the rightful heir, surely her will was supposed to have been strongest against the poisonous energy of their crystal?
What a waste.
"G- Gohan?" a weak voice whispered.
The silver-haired Saiyan turned towards the one who had cried his name, his deep red eyes meeting with bright cerulean. They softened for a moment, flashing from red to black.
Amy smiled weakly before the brightness of her eyes faded entirely, a single, final tear rolled down her cheek as he body fell limp.
Goodbye...
Gohan's eyes flashed black once more, his heart and head desperately aching. He grabbed at his chest, gasping and forcing away the pain.
No!
This body was his!
The darkness was his to control!
It had succumbed to his will!
The white Saiyan could not take it back now!
He forced control and gasped, desperately regulating his breathing. Just as he felt the control return, there was a bright flash of hot white light, forcing Gohan and Nikiko to shield their eyes from the source.
"AMY!" someone screamed, and Gohan's intense gaze sharpened.
"YOU!" spat Nikiko, recovering from the arrival of the Sailor Scouts. Her dark eyes flashed with fury as she watched the one in green dive towards the unmoving and mutilated corpse of Sailor Mercury. She watched as she shook her, slapped her, desperately called out to her and summon her back from the depths of darkness.
"You're too late!" she spat, smirking viciously as she freely let her tears fall. Her eyes shot towards her sister, and she felt a pain in her chest. This was their fault. It was all their fault!
Sailor Moon and the remainder of the Scouts stared, heartbroken, at their mutilated partner. No Scout could utter a word. Could comprehend even, for a moment, that they were too late. That they couldn't save their partner, their friend.
Their tears fell freely, as their hearts broke, one by one.
"You'll pay for this!" cried Jadeite, his heart burning with pain.
He had felt it.
Felt her pain, felt her acceptance, felt her fate as she had faded.
How could he have explained to the Scouts when they had been in the lab, that his grim and broken spirit was due to the ancient connection he shared with their friend? With his ancient lover? She was broken and dying, and he couldn't do anything to save her.
And now, she was lost. His heart felt empty. His soul was broken.
"Get rid of them!" Nikiko cried, calling her powers and snapping the attention of the Scouts back to her.
A furious dark blaze of energy surrounded her as she called to the powers of her crystal. The crystal that now acknowledged her as its true owner.
With her sister gone, the energy was no longer split. No longer at risk of being negated. It was all hers, and she embraced it. She called to the crystal and sent a beam of dark energy into the air, summoning a furious army of youma to battle the scouts as her heart mourned for her sister.
"Sailor Moon," a small Scout in purple cried, grasping a large scythe-like weapon and sharpening her dark gaze, "you must concentrate your energy. We need to protect the Inner Scouts. Now is not the time to mourn."
Sailor Moon stared gravely at the small purple Scout before nodded, "Right." She muttered, getting to her feet and summoning her heart moon sceptre. With a nod to one another, the Outer Scouts followed suit and summoned their respective weapons.
"Tuxedo Mask, we need you to protect the Inner Scouts!" Sailor Pluto called, while quickly drawing energy into her garnet rod. "Pluto Chronos Typhoon!" she cried at a heard of youma that had gathered and cackled, diving to attack her.
Her blast obliterated them within moments, sending their particles into the depths of lost time.
"We'll protect you, my Lord!" Kunzite called, gaining a chorus of attention and affirmation from the Shittenou guard. They had followed the Scouts and aided the inter-galactic travel with their own elemental energy; bound to their duty to protect their charge; their Prince; their friend.
With a nod, Tuxedo Mask summoned his golden crystal, immediately transforming into Prince Endymion. His control over the crystal always increased in this more powerful state. The Inner Scouts nodded to one another, desperately trying to halt their tears as they each took a step around their Prince.
He stepped closer to the fallen body of their comrade and raised the golden crystal above his head, calling to it with his heart and praying to its power. He called unto the will of the Earth and its soul, channelling the energy of the planet and its inhabitants through the power of his crystal, and created a dome of protective energy around the Scouts.
For a moment, his heart ached to protect Sailor Moon, but he knew better than to let his focus waver. He had to trust the Outer Scouts. Believe in Sailor Moon and have faith in her abilities. He needed to do the job he had been assigned to do, which was to protect the Inner Scouts until they could aid the battle.
He created a dome of protective energy around them, while the Shittenou took their battle positions outside of the dome. Summoning their elemental powers and channelling them through their swords, they began to destroy the youma as they attacked, one by one.
They're weaker. The Prince noticed. It must take more energy to summon so many, so she can't make them as continuously powerful as the others. He felt his confidence and faith in their battle increase, and he concentrated on channelling his new found resolution into his crystal.
Mars, Venus and Jupiter formed a triangle around their Prince and called to their planets, their tiaras glowing in energy and they sent forward power to their Princess. Knowing that, while they were protected by their Prince, they could aid their Princess and empower her even further.
"Moon Gorgeous Meditation!" Sailor Moon cried, feeling the rush of familiar energy being shared through her bond with her Scouts. Her heart ached. It cried and was torn at the emptiness left behind from Mercury. But she need to protect her loves ones. She needed to bring her body back and honour her in the truest way.
And she still needed to save Gohan.
"SAILOR MOON, LOOK OUT!" Neptune cried, obstructed by her own battle and unable to reach her Princess in time.
Sailor Moon had just a moment to glance back before she was knocked to the side ferociously by Nikiko.
"YOU!" Nikiko screamed, slashing at Sailor Moon, making her scream in pain, "I WILL END YOU!" she hissed, her eyes menacing and craving blood. Desperate for justice and revenge.
"SAILOR MOON!" Uranus cried, charging forward with the speed of the wind and summoning the power of her crystal. "GET AWAY FROM HER!" she cried, tackling Nikiko off the body of her Princess and slicing her with her space sword. "SPACE SWORD BLASTER!" she summoned the power of Uranus, channelled it cleanly through her sword and hit her target smoothly.
Nikiko hissed, feeling the burning in her side as the attack cut her open.
She licked her lips, shakily getting to her feet as her left arm and the left side of her chest bled freely. "Is that all you got?" she spat, widening her eyes and grinning manically. She stumbled forwards, summoning energy into her still functioning right arm as she licked away the blood around her mouth.
Sailor Uranus gritted her teeth, her grip tightening on her space sword as she faced Nikiko. The nikojin had clearly gone mad! Her thirst for blood was consuming her.
"MINE!" cried an unfamiliar voice before Sailor Uranus was thrown unceremoniously to the side with a shout of pain, a youma on top of her.
"URANUS!" Neptune cried, summoning her planetary power. "SUBMARINE REFLECTION!"
Immediately, the youma on and near Sailor Uranus evaporated into nothing, leaving the Outer Scout panting on the floor. She jumped to her feet, recovering quickly from the surprise and called out a thanks to her partner.
"Let's see you take on this!" cackled Nikiko, pummelling Sailor Uranus with an onslaught of energy beams.
Uranus cried out as the attacks began, feeling their dark energy singeing and burning through her. She summoned the energy of her space sword to form a shield of some sort, but knew that they simply reduced the power of her attacks. Her crystal was nowhere near strong enough to take on so much from such a dark source.
I need more power!
Uranus felt her body burn as she called out to her planet, urging more energy to surge through her. Perhaps, with her earlier training, she could tolerate much more than she allowed herself to?
"Silence Glaive Surprise!" a usually sweet voice cried menacingly, startling the nikojin in the midst of her attack.
She was knocked to the side once more, again burned by the attack of such a powerful planetary crystal, but not entirely defeated so easily.
"We need to combine our forces!" Sailor Pluto cried, leaping to the aid of Sailor Saturn as she was quickly overwhelmed by the never-ending onslaught of youma.
"We need to find a way to destroy that opening!" Neptune countered, pointing up to the gaping hole of dark energy. The generator and source of their youma enemy. "Then we can take on Nikiko and Gohan."
Sailor Moon eyed her protectors; her mentors; her friends. Her heart ached as she glanced back to her lover as he protected the others. She had been running ragged to keep youma from nearing them for too long, aiding the Shittenou in their endeavours to protect the others. Endymion protected them beautifully, guarded them strongly, and held out powerfully against any that tried to absorb his energy. He shared his power with his Shittenou, she could sense it. But she could also sense the others.
Her Scouts, all of them, were weakening. How long could they keep up this battle? At this pace? She needed to protect them. To save them.
"Leave that to me!" Sailor Moon cried, and leapt into the sky before she could doubt her decision. "Cosmic Moon Power!" she cried, summoning an intense power from her crystal and sending a blast of pure energy through her sceptre.
Her hands burned and blistered at the close range of the blast. The sceptre radiated heat and power, unaccustomed to such intense energy being forced through it. She was not prepared for the strength it would take to channel it and control it, but she desperately focused and concentrated her will. With her friends in mind, her lover in her heart and her will to protect them, her eyes flashed with determination. She cried out, willing the energy of the Silver Crystal through her soul and through her sceptre, destroying the black hole of youma with a deep flash and white light.
Sailor Moon landed on her feet, shaking weakly before collapsing to the floor. She panted, sweat and dirt coated her body as she tried to regain her strength. Her hands ached, her heart raced and her mind felt overwhelmed with power.
Desperately trying to control her emotions, she reached out her soul to find her partner. The one who would steady her in all her times of terror and trouble. Immediately, he answered her call with his spirit, and she felt her heart beginning to calm. Endymion's energy enveloped her with a warm comfort, calming her and taming her racing nerves.
She managed to open her eyes weakly, immediately searching out the deep stormy blue that would always bring her comfort. He met her gaze and smiled, nodding slightly as she returned it.
"Yes! Well done Sailor Moon!" Saturn cheered, assisting her fellow Outer Scouts as she destroyed the last of the remaining youma.
"NO!" Nikiko cried, her blood soaked and broken body stood shakily as she gaped at Sailor Moon. "How- How could you! You won't get away with this!" she cried, her face contorted into one of furious rage, charging forward with a dome of powerful black energy surrounding her.
"SAILOR MOON!" her Inner Scouts cried, charging forwards to defend her, now that the youma were no longer involved. They had been itching to assist in the battle, to protect their Princess, and could finally do their duty.
Nikiko charged through them, revelling in their painful screams as her energy cut their limbs from their bodies. She charged forward with a manic laugh, her eyes connecting with the terrified gaze of Sailor Moon. This will be her last!
Suddenly, she was blocked by a shield of armour. Nikiko stuttered in her movement for only a moment, but the moment was all he needed.
Prince Endymion drew his hands together in front of him and summoned a powerful blast of pure energy from his crystal. No longer did he have to hide behind his Shittenou, and he watched as they immediately ran towards the now dismembered Inner Scouts, using their magic to heal them best they could.
The pure energy of his crystal, heightened by the need to protect Sailor Moon, the need to protect his love, Serenity, erupted from his palms. Just as the energy of the Silver Crystal had burned Sailor Moon, the purity of this force burned against his palms. He could already feel blisters forming under the force of the blast.
Nikiko screamed in pain and terror as her body was ripped and tattered by the front-on assault of such pure energy. Her body rejected it. Her crystal rejected it. It forced energy through Nikiko's already broken body to repel the purity of the force.
"NO!" she screamed, desperate to contain the darkness of her crystal. She could still survive this. She could still win! But the crystal was not to be controlled. It consumed her, burned her and destroyed her. With the remains of her being, it had desperately tried to consume the source of its attack. Had tried to absorb the energy of the golden crystal, only to be obliterated upon contact.
Slowly, as her cries faded into nothing but whimpers, Endymion withdrew his hands and ceased his assault. Sailor Moon stood shakily behind him, and peaked at what was left of Nikiko. She felt her stomach lurch at the burned and mangled remains of the powerful nikojin.
Tears threatened and her heart ached.
She had hoped...
She turned away, swallowing hard and holding in the whimpers of her pain. Knowing that there was truly no other way, she had to accept this.
Not everyone could be saved.
"Are you alright?" Endymion asked gently, turning to Sailor Moon and placing caring hands on her shoulders. He ignored the pain that shot through his palms on the contact, knowing that she needed his physical comfort. He could feel her pain, her heartache. Knowing that he had been the cause of it hurt him even more.
She looked up at him, her eyes shining with unshed tears. Taking a deep, steadying breath, she opened her mouth to speak-
She froze.
Her eyes widened.
Clap.
Clap.
Clap.
There was a deep chuckle, echoing in the empty space.
"Well, that was quite a show."
Her eyes shot up to the source of the voice, wide in fear.
"Are you ready for round 2?" smirked the silver-haired, red-eyed Saiyan.