PART 9: Fall of a Demon, Rise of a Star
She couldn't move, every muscle in her body seemed to be immobilized almost frozen stiff. She couldn't talk, couldn't call out her sister's name. The world around her had become dark and cold, she felt confined and it was starting to panic her…
Tessha was confused mostly. The last thing she recalled was been whisked away by the monster that posed as her friend Shuichi. She remembered that he had sprained her wrist and just now the pain was starting to seep back into her consciousness. Where was she? It really was cold, not just her mind playing tricks on her, and she could have sworn she heard the creature's voice laughing in her ear.
"Don't even think that you can escape, human. Even if your friends show up, their days are numbered. You'll die along with them. A shame really, for a human you're pretty cute," the Demon Lord laughed. Tessha was finally able to open her eyes, though her vision was blurry at first. As her eyes began to adjust, she saw that she was laying face-down on ice-covered rocks. Her face was numb and she began shivering. She clenched her teeth as she tried to move her wrist. The cold had numbed the pain only slightly, but she was unable to move it much. She looked up at the orange-haired demon and tried to sit up on her knees, trying to ignore the fact that her entire body was aching.
"Why are you doing this? What could you possibly see in this place? And what have you done to my sister?," the athlete demanded. The demon smirked and sat down on a nearby rock.
"First of all, I'm impressed that you are able to talk let alone sit up. My numbing spells are usually unbreakable. That meddlesome she-witch must have put some kind of enchantment on you. No matter, as soon as she gets here we'll have some real fun." The demon opened his hand and conjured flames out of mid-air, which he tossed up and down in the air. Tessha seemed mesmerized by this, watching as the demon played with it as if it were a baseball. He seemed almost bored.
"You really killed Yamato-kun? Why? He's the nicest guy I ever met. What did he ever do to you…?" Tessha gasped as the demon used his free hand to magically levitate her in the air, floating her toward him and holding her in mid-air just inches from his face.
"You humans, so weak…so sentimental. Yes, I killed him, just for the sheer joy of it. But don't worry you'll be joining your dear boyfriend shortly. From the looks of things, your friends have another fourty-five minutes to reach me. Should prove interesting…seeing as we are several hundred billions light-years away from that miserable little planet you call home…"
"WHAT?!" The demon smiled at the look of surprise on the girl's face.
"This is my home world, a planet with four suns yet remains frigid. This planet is full of wonderful mysterious things…"
"…B-Billions of light years…," Tessha was trying to wrap her brain around it; she had never really paid much attention in science class, but she understood that a mere light-year away was a long distance. Trying to figure out billions of light years away was just too much for her to comprehend. Were they even in the Milky Way galaxy anymore? Smiling, the demon released her and stood up again. He had sensed an in-coming energy signal that had now just stopped right outside the entranceway to his little cave.
"Demon, I'm only going to warn you once…if you do not release that girl, it will only cause you pain," the bright silver light took the form of Sirius's transparent image and it stepped through the threshold.
"You?! I thought I killed you!"
"In body, yes…But not in spirit. You thought that if you disposed of me that it would prevent Sailor Sirius from being reborn. Sorry to disappoint you."
"Take another step and I'll slit the girl's throat!," the Demon Lord growled. He reached forward to grab Tessha, but roared angrily as his arm erupted in sparks when he got too close. Tessha stepped back and turned to look at the expanding light. Sirius smiled.
"It is time, Sailor Sirius…my other half. We've been reunited. Fuse with me so we may return to one once more…" Tessha felt her body grow warm as she was engulfed by the light. An 'S' symbol appeared on her forehead and her transformation wand materialized in front of her; bright glowing silver topped with a golden star and two encircling rings. Tessha gripped it tightly and she felt a warm tingling traveling through her.
"Go ahead and become another one of those fools, it won't make any difference!" Inside the glowing ball, Tessha opened her eyes to face the fox spirit's glowing form.
"It's time for you to join your sister, Sailor Sirius, as a proud member of the Moon Kingdom. Together, you must defeat the Demon Lord. Take the wand, you know what to do…"
At that instant, Yomi materialized at the entrance. She looked on to see the glowing light disappear and be replaced with her sister. The Mystic smiled and gripped her staff.
"Thank the Gods, you're alright. Now stand aside," Yomi replied. But her younger sister raised her arm.
"…SIRIUS MYSTICAL POWER, MAKE-UP!!"
Seconds later the rest of the Sailor Senshi appeared, just in time to witness Tessha transform into the newest member of their team. The girl stood confidently, adorned in her brilliant silver, gold and black uniform. And slung over her back was a giant mystical fan.
"So this is where the spirit lead us to. Sailor Sirius, manipulator of the Solar Winds. It's no wonder the Demon Lord tried to kill Sirius – with she and Io together they are a formidable force. But still…" Setsuna glanced at the transformed version of Yomi. For being under the influence of her Dark Powers, the mystic was having amazing control. But she wondered how long it was going to last. They'd all better be extremely careful. If Yomi lost control, she could end up destroying everything.
Tessha opened her eyes until they were narrow slits and she glared at the Demon Lord, who was slowly backing away against a far wall. She lifted her giant mystic fan and opened it, which caused a slight breeze to envelope her body. The other Senshi took up positions around behind her.
"Demon, you tried to destroy me, take me away from my friends and my sister…You forced Yomi to take on the form she is right now. Your time of wreaking havoc across the galaxy ends right here…,' Tessha's giant fan opened fully now and the wind created a barrier around all the Senshi and giving them a slight power boost, '…Senshi of the Solar Winds will slice you down with the Majestic Fan…Sailor Sirius!" The Demon Lord growled and shot energy blasts at the group. But with a powerful swing and beautiful grace, his attack was rendered harmless as it collided with the powerful air currents. Yomi took the distraction and dashed forward before any of the others could react.
"Yomi, stop! You don't have to do this alone!," Usagi called out, but the mystic had already brought her mighty staff up as high as it would go. Charges of red and black lightening formed at it's tip, preparing for a powerful discharge of energy.
"Your reign ends here, Demon…! VOLCANIC THUNDER!!!!" The Demon Lord put up a defensive shield just as the blast began to bare down on him. The attack began to push him back. Setsuna turned to the other scouts.
"Now is our chance! We have to strike together with everything we have. Now…DEAD SCREAM!" The others soon fell in line, firing off their most powerful attacks. Usagi prepared to follow her friends with the final blow. But before she could utter a word, the cave around them began to break apart and fall on top of them.
"YOU WILL NEVER DEFEAT ME!! NEVER!!!!" The ground under their feet rumbled and vibrated, and the air was filled with powerful electrical currents that made their hair stand on end.
"His power is steadily increasing! And…,'Ami looked down at her mini computer as the readings went haywire, '…he's growing!" She had to stain her voice over all the noise in order to be heard. The rest of the scouts braced themselves as the Demon Lord towered over them, palms outstretched as he charged for another attack. Yomi gripped her staff and fully spread her Death Wings – she herself sending powerful shockwaves out in all directions. There was no way she was going to let things end this way, not again. If it meant that she would have to drag him into the depth of the Underworld, then so be it. She suddenly felt a sharp tug on her back and she staggered backward. Tessha had a firm grip on one of her wings and was trying to pull her sister back.
"No, Yomi! That much power could destroy us all! I won't let you kill yourself either. If we're going to beat this monster, we'll do it together!," Tessha unfurled her mystic fan once more, the edges glowing an almost blinding golden yellow. Yomi hesitated, then smiled at her sister – so young, but far braver than she had ever known her. The girl was making a fine warrior. Her staff began to glow a matching shade of gold and the Death Black wings, a major source of the mystic's power, glowed as well. The dark power of the most destructive force in the known universe reverted to Pure Energy, an energy that the Queen of the Moon Kingdom could be fueled from. Usagi's uniform disappeared, replaced with the royal garb of Neo Queen Serenity, as well as the Eternal Wings.
"…Please…Please give us all the power we need to defeat this monster. And please help us restore all the innocent lives that were lost today,", Usagi pleaded as the other scouts formed a circle around her.
"YOU'RE TOO LATE!! NO MATTER HOW MUCH POWER YOU THINK YOU HAVE, YOU WILL NEVER DEFEAT ME, THE MOST POWERFUL BEING IN THE UNIVERSE!!" The Demon Lord let loose his energy blast, but Yomi and Tessha were prepared and quickly followed up with their specialty attack.
"…SUPREME SUPERNOVA EXPLOSION!!!" The attack collided with the demon's and pushed it back.
"NOW! QUICKLY!," Yomi shouted over her shoulder to her teammates. The second wave came almost as soon as the words left her mouth, slicing through the air way over her head and completely nullifying the Demon Lord's blast. It struck him with a blinding light and exploded on impact, filling the sky with an array of bright colors as every molecule in the demon's body was torn to shreds. There wasn't a speck left of him by the time the dust cleared, all that could be seen was a beautiful Aurora Borealis flowing across the sky in his place. Exausted, Yomi sunk to her knees and dropped her staff. It was over…
The sun was shinning brightly when the Senshi returned, minus Setsuna – she returned to the Time Gates after wishing them luck. It was as if nothing had transpired nearly two hours ago. Not a blade of grass was out of place. And this was all thanks to the wonderful powers of the Mystic Senshi Io. In order to retrieve the lost souls of the departed, Yomi had to tap into her dark powers. But this time, the Death Black Wings did not appear and she brought back all of the dead souls from beyond the Underworld Gates with no incident.. They all stood in the property of Yomi's Uncle's Shrine, now reverted back to their normal selves. The battle was over, and there was time for mourning. Yomi sat down on the cool grass and rested her forehead on her palm.
"I-I probably could have saved her…Sirius was my friend, and I feel like I let her down," the young Mystic sighed. She pulled her hair back and tied it into a ponytail. Tessha swayed lightly from side to side before joining her sister.
"Come on, Yomi. Stop blaming yourself for this…It's all over now. Besides, she's not really gone you know. Sirius and I are one and the same now. So, it's like she never really left," the athlete assured.
"Uh, yeah she's right. Don't be sad, okay? I don't think Sirius would want that," Minako smiled and lay a friendly hand on the girl's shoulder. Yomi looked her sister in the eye, her expression hardened.
"Tessha, I don't want this for you. I said that I agreed to be a part of this team if you stayed out of it. I'm afraid that I'm going to have to erase your memory so you can be a normal teenager and leave the protection of this planet to us…"
"What?!," the track runner quickly stood up and backed away until she bumped into Haruka, '…NO WAY! Forget it, there's now way I'm letting you do that. We're in this together! If you can be a Senshi then so can I. You saw how strong I was, didn't you? I want to help you guys. And what about Sirius? You think that's what she would have wanted!?" Yomi stared at her sister, than looked passed her at the concerned faces of her friends.
"She has a point, Snowflake. The kid's proven herself…but," Haruka stopped herself.
"But what!?" Tessha demanded. She moved away from the group and raised her arms, ready to fight for her position as a member of the Sailor Senshi.
"Maybe you should listen to your sister. You've been through an awful lot today…"
"That make's no difference to me! I can do it, and if I have to fight all of you to prove my worth to this team, then bring it! I'm not afraid!" Yomi couldn't help but smile. She got to her feet and stepped up to her, wrapping her arms around the young girl's neck.
"I'm sorry, you're right. There's no need for you to get so defensive. I'm just worried about you, that's all. You're my only sister and if anything happened to you, I'd go crazy."
"Aw, knock it off Yomi, you're embarrassing me…" Yomi hugged her sister for a little longer before letting her go and turning to the group.
" Is it all right with the rest of you, to welcome one more Senshi?"
"Sure! The more the merrier!," Minako said as she patted the shorter girl's head.
"I don't see why not," Makoto stated with a smile.
"Hey, here's a question…Is she an Inner Senshi or an Outer Senshi?," Usagi wondered.
"Is that important right now?," the pig-tailed girl's best friend Rei asked. Tessha sighed, but smiled lightly – she'd be spending a lot more time with her sister's weird friends now. She wondered how else her life was going to change. Well, she supposed it didn't matter to her so long as she could be a part of it all. But she felt that she couldn't really poke fun of the fan-girls at her school now. She bet that if they ever found out that she was now one of those legendary Sailor Senshi, she'd never hear the end of it.
END
AUTHOR'S NOTES
Yay, I've finally completed a story. I hope all that have been reading this and any of my other fics have been enjoying them. Although this it the official last chapter, I'm planning a special chapter devoted to Tessha…It's an excuse to develop her character as Sailor Sirius. Thank You for reading.