Chapter Seventeen:
All Quiet on the Downtown Front
A heavy rain beat against the pavement of Roanoke's downtown area. The city was unusually quiet: the heavy storm had driven all but the most devoted diners home. A burst of lightning lit the streets for a brief moment, followed moments later by a loud roll of thunder. The feeling of power on the air was almost tangible to even the merest of mortals.
If any of those mortals had been in the park, they would have seen that power.
The downtown park was not exactly a premiere destination in the pouring rain, so was quite deserted save for a homeless woman on her way to a shelter. She took no notice of the glowing light coming from behind the bushes, assuming it was simply a malfunctioning light meant to illuminate the nearby wall. She could not have been more wrong.
It began with a soft luminescence centered about two feet off the ground and grew into a crackling ball of green-white energy. The rain fizzled and evaporated into steam as it struck the strange light, causing a steady halo of steam to form around the area.
The strange ball of energy suddenly burst in a brilliant show of light, expanding to the size of a man and stabilizing momentarily. As it did, a hand appeared, reaching out as if to see whether or not there was empty space on the other side. The hand withdrew, and a figure came hurtling through the portal at breakneck speed, landing face first in the soggy grass. His cheeks were puffed out and his eyes squeezed tightly shut, as if he were holding his breath underwater. Ever-so-carefully he cracked open one of his eyes. When it did not explode or burn in agony, he opened the other and looked at the trees and the tan stucco wall. His face began to turn red.
"Hyagh!" Sitting upward, the man expelled the stale air from his lungs and gasped at the strange atmosphere, seeming to gag and choke at first. He soon dissolved in a short burst of coughing which subsided after a few minutes. When he looked back, the portal had disappeared. "A thousand curses of Herzig fall upon you!" he shouted, pointing his arm at the area where the portal had been. Then he pointed upward. "And a million curses to you!"
Looking thoroughly disgusted, the disgruntled man rose to his feet. He was garbed in an emerald green bodysuit with a red sash and purple cape. His long purple hair was plastered to his yellowish skin; he brushed it behind his triangular ears and away from his yellow eyes.
"Well, I'm here, what in Herzig's name am I supposed to do now?"
Munching contentedly on a cracker, Timocharis the Mouse was enjoying the rainy day in Tibby's room. He was taking a late afternoon tea, sipping contentedly at a cup of Earl Grey with his roommate, Thomas. Thomas was more than amused by the fact they were sharing this particular tea break with a mouse.
"Y'know, it's downright rum to be necking splosh with that wild mouse sitting there. `E treats us like we're `is family; `e's the most casual creature I've ever seen."
"Must be used to us."
"`E prob'ly sticks around `cause you feed `em so much of the damn time."
"She," corrected Tibby, emptying his cup.
"An' `ow would you know, Tibby? You're not a bloody biologist."
"Just seems like a female."
"You mean `ow `e's always hanging around, askin' for stuff? Yeah, I s'pose you're right." Thomas leaned back in his chair and studied the mouse from beneath his tousled dirty blonde hair. "Let's call `im Sharky."
Suddenly, as if disliking the proffered name, the mouse sat straight up and dropped the cracker, running across the shelf to Tibby and jumping onto his shoulder. She quickly made her way to Tibby's pocket, where she crouched down and shivered.
"Blimey! It's like you got `im trained or something!" Thomas exclaimed, nearly choking on his tea. Tibby sat motionless, unable to devise a reasonable explanation for this phenomena. he looked down at his cup.
"I'm out. D'you want another cup?"
Thomas seemed flabbergasted and dumbly shook his head. Standing quickly, Tibby turned and left the room.
"Blimey," Thomas muttered, burying himself into the remainder of his tea.
A short ways down the hall, Tibby stopped and jumped into the janitorial closet, closing the door behind him and waiting a few moments to make sure it was safe. Timocharis crawled out of his pocket and up onto his shoulder.
"Charis, what's going on?" Tibby asked, his voice a mixture of concern and excitement.
"I s-sense something!" she squeaked, brushing her whiskers nervously.
"Another senshi?"
Charis shook her tiny rodentile head. "N-no-- like that, but-- but something different! S-something... D-dark."
"Dark?" he repeated.
"Like-- Like all the s-strength was g-g-gone from me and-- and there was n-never going to be a-- a sunny tomorrow! Oh, Tibby, I'm scuh- scared!"
A little at a loss, Tibby reached up and patted Charis's head lightly. "Don't worry. It was probably just some lightning that scared you for a moment." Charis's whiskers quivered.
"I-I don't think so."
"Is the feeling still there?"
"N-no, i-it's gone now." Her voice regained a small bit of confidence. "You're probably right. I shouldn't have reacted so badly."
"Don't worry about it," Tibby smiled, taking out another cracker from his pocket. "I'm sure you'll feel better once the storm's blown over."
Watching Sophie read a magazine in her room was far from the most exciting thing, but Perdix was happy to be sitting in her warm room under a quilt rather than outside in the pouring rain. Sometimes, when Sophie was mad, she would stick him out there in the most deplorable conditions. He remembered the last time he had been stuck out there in a hailstorm. That had been pretty miserable. Pea-sized balls of ice had pelted him for half an hour before her mother finally let him back in with a surprised, "Look, Sophie, that bird of yours was stuck outside in the hail!" Sophie had promptly shoved Perdix into his too-small cage and put it in the basement. She had been extremely upset that particular instance.
Perdix was extremely grateful to Sophie's mother. Had it no been for her persuading Sophie's father, Perdix would probably have never been allowed in the house. As it was, he constantly amazed the family with his use of the designated litterbox, despite the fact he was considered a "wild" animal.
"Well, okay, but the first moment that bird lays a stinky egg somewhere in the house, it's out," Sophie's father had pronounced.
An abrupt wave of fear and pain hit Perdix, jolting him out of his thoughts. "Sophia?" he said suddenly. Sophie looked up.
"What?"
"I... I just..." He flapped his wings a few times to free himself from the quilt. "I..."
"What!" she barked, growing annoyed.
"I felt something."
Sophie rolled her eyes. "Probably your stomach from that disgusting Twinkie you ate today."
"No, something different. Almost as if an enemy senshi had just transformed. More like I was dead."
"Pity it wasn't real," she muttered, returning to her magazine.
Despite Sophie's dismissal of his concerns, Perdix could not shake the thought that this was something of the utmost importance.
Wade awoke when something cold and wet landed on his face. As anybody who has ever been woken by something cold and wet landing on your face knows, this was not a pleasant experience, especially when one has just settled down to nap. The blue-haired boy looked up ito the beady eyes of a vengeful tropical turtle.
"Wade, deah, wake up!"
"I'm 'wake, I'm 'wake," Wade grunted, picking up the turtle and looking at her blearily. "Whas' up, Livvy?"
"Wade... ai sense something."
"I showered this morning."
The turtle gave a long-suffering sigh. "Wade, ai sense something wrong. Inherently wrong, mai deah. It's giving me goose-pimples, ai declahre."
"Is it the chills again, y'know?" Wade offered helpfully. "'Cause I can turn your heater up."
"WADE!" the turtle finally shrieked, losing all trace of false accent. "Wade Salter, I sense something incredibly wrong and if you don't check it out right now I'm going to give you some pain therapy, so stop acting thick!"
"Yes, m'am!" Wade Salter was out of bed and struggling into his jacket in under five seconds.
Livia paused, having been left on Wade's pillow. "Uh.. Wade, deah?" she suggested delicately.
"I'm right on it, yup, here I go, look at me goin' - "
"The feeling's gone now, deah. Ai think yoo can go back to bed. Maybee ai ate some bad weed?" she suggested lamely.
Wade stared at his guardian with an incredibly dirty look, threw his hands up and stalked off to the kitchen.
Livia just sighed. She hoped it'd been just some bad waterweed. Any other option was too wrong to contemplate.
The Reese household had slowly wound down for the night. Everyone was in their bedrooms either asleep or about to fall asleep. Kanene's bedroom door was slightly a jar and the light from her bedside table lamp spilled out onto the floor and into the hallway as a thin stream. The rest of the light spilled onto the bed over Kanene's dozing form. Her snoring at the time being was moderately quiet. She had fallen asleep while reading a hardcover book on the French Revolution which still lay open on her chest.
Suffering from restlessness Tycho had made his way on top of the bed and paced the foot of it. There was a forboding chill in the air and it was working its way to his bones. Tycho paused in his steps and glanced up to Kanene. Without a second thought he changed his flow of movement to pad up the quilt to the pillow and Kanene's head.
"Kanene..." he whispered. Out of all the members of the family Kanene was the only one who wasn't a light sleeper. Tycho prodded her by nudging his head against her neck. Kanene stopped her snoring briefly, muttered something of an apology in her sleep before turning over onto her side. The book spun off of her and hit the wooden floor with a thud. Tycho snorted in annoyance. He manoeuvred himself onto the other side of the bed to position himself before her face. With the few options he had Tycho shifted himself and smacked Kanene across the face with his tail.
"Uh... who?" Kanene groggily woke up, blinking her eyes to clear the blurrines from her vision. "Oh it's you Tycho. What do you want?" After pulling herself into a sitting position she raked her fingers through her messy hair.
"Something is wrong. I've been able to sense a foreign energy for several hours now," Tycho explained as he pushed himself up onto Kanene's legs to face her again.
"Well, you did eat that taco filling that Oni offered you. I told you not to take it, my sister doesn't know how to cook at all," Kanene pointed out.
"It's not indigestion that's causing my bad feeling. I can only hope that it was one of the enemy senshi," Tycho continued, unable to shed his uneasiness. Kanene rolled her eyes and lifted the salamander up to eye level, leaving it's small legs to dangle in the air.
"That's all you ever talk about, the enemies. I ask you time and time again that if they are our enemies what caused it; you never give me any answers. I'd hate to say it but I can not believe you," Kanane said softly. She placed her guardian back onto the bed to her side, upon the soft quilt. "Now unless you have any proof otherwise, I'm going to sleep." Kanene started drawing her self back into her bed while stretching her arm out to turn out her lamp. Tycho silently agreed and displaced his dread for the time being. She had to be right, the storm was just working its intensity into his psyche. Tycho shivered and scurried under the blankets and sheets to find warm.
About an hours distance away, Priscilla Gwidon lay in her upstairs bedroom, watching a documentary on the Civil War. What appeared to be a black blob, which was actually a rabbit, lay sleeping on her carpet.
Yawning, Priscilla rolled over, after switching off the T.V. with her remote, "That was pretty good, but it needed more blood. G'night, Aeneas."
Getting a muffled response, Priscilla closed her eyes to dream of life on the battle field.
On the floor, Aeneas's ears shot up suddenly, as he opened his eyes. His body began to quiver, as he sniffed the air around him. Snapping out of this state, he launched himself up on Priscilla's bed, and onto Priscilla's back.
"Pri," Aeneas nudged her, "Priscilla! WAKE UP!"
Shooting up into a sitting position, Priscilla knocked Aeneas off, along with a barrage of "Peanuts" stuffed animals, "Sir, yes, sir!"
Shaking himself and hopping back onto Priscilla's bed, Aeneas glared at her the best he could in the dark, "Priscilla, I am not a drill sergeant."
"Aeneas," rubbing her eyes, Priscilla stretched, "Whaddya want? I need my sleep, y'know."
"I sensed something... something dark." Aeneas began to quiver again, "Priscilla, I'm slightly..."
"Overweight?" Grinning in the dark, Priscilla petted the rabbit.
"Now is not the time for wisecracks," Aeneas growled.
"Look," Priscilla sighed, laying back down, "just sleep up here with me tonight, and tomorrow, we'll go check it out. S'alright?"
Sighing, Aeneas burrowed beneath the covers. He knew he'd get nowhere with Priscilla if she was tired. "S'alright."
The computer screen gave the room an eerie blue glow. Amir nudged the door open with his foot-- his hands were occupied by a large glass of Coke and a plate with three chicken sandwiches heaped onto it.
He shut the door with the side of his foot-- gently, as he noticed Leo napping at the foot of his bed.
Cat-hairs, he thought, wrinkling his nose. Despite Leo's obvious intelligence in all other realms-- it was impossible to get it through his brain that the bed was off-limits, and he should find somewhere else to sleep.
He slid into his chair and began clicking through the different applications he had running. Instant messages to respond to... five new emails in the last ten minutes... Ah, his cd had finished burning. He exchanged the freshly-burnt cd for a new one and began the burning process all over again.
Perhaps software piracy wasn't the best thing for a senshi to do in his spare time, but hey.
Amir thought about printing out a new label for it, but decided against it. What was Leo doing? It wasn't even midnight yet... weren't cats supposed to be nocturnal?
It was like having a roommate all over again. He thought he'd escaped from the dorms to get away from that sort of thing. Still, Leo was better than those freaks he'd been saddled with his freshman year, although Leo *himself* wasn't exactly what anyone would call normal--
As Amir watched the slumbering feline, Leo uttered a piercing scream. His eyes flew open and he somehow managed to leap several feet straight into the air before landing back on the mattress on all fours. His ears were pressed flat against his skull; his fur bristled and puffed and stood on end; he hissed and spat, his teeth bared.
Amir was shocked. Leo had always been the model of decorum.
"Leo!" he said sharply, half-rising from his seat at the computer. "Are you okay?"
His voice seemed to bring Leo back from wherever his mind was, for he calmed down slightly. His fur was still on end, and his ears still a bit flat, and-- Amir noticed with discomfort-- his claws were still out and probably tearing up little threads from the bedspread.
"I didn't know you could look that big," he said, with a half-hearted attempt at humor.
Leo never acted like that... what got into him?
The guardian didn't seem to be in the proper mood for joking. It's there... it's there... I feel it... it's there... the cat telepathically informed him. Even without a voice, Amir couldn't deny the intensity that was transferred into his mind.
"What's there?" he asked aloud.
I don't... I can't... it's gone. Just as suddenly as the feeling had come, it passed. Leo slumped to the bed for a few moments before leaping up again, almost back to normal.
"What was it?" Amir pressed.
I don't... I can't... Didn't you feel it, too?
"I didn't," he replied, spreading his hands apologetically.
Leo shook his head. It's gone now. There's nothing we can do about it... but if it comes back, I want you to look into it.
Amir nodded, a bit concerned. Leo had had issues before, but nothing like this...
The two gazed at each other silently for a few moments, each lost in their own thoughts. The persistant sound of instant messages accumulating brought Amir back to the present, and he returned to his computer, satisfied that things were fine... for now.
Leo paced back and forth along the floor, looking through the window, but not seeing what he wished to.
"...porting live from downtown Roanoke, where the scene is one of intense chaos. As you can see from the scene behind me, downtown has been beset by a small mob which is growing steadily by the minute, despite the fact it is currently 6:30 am. We will continue to bring you live reports--"
The large window behind the young reporter shattered suddenly under the force of a street sign, still attached to the pole. She screamed and covered her head, the camera jerking up and down as the cameraman rushed to help. The perpetrator was an overweight man of middle age dressed in a business suit with a toupee sliding halfway off his head. He glared menacingly around the downtown newsroom, eyes wide and mouth foaming. With a furious scream, he jumped on the reporter, scratching and biting.
As he touched her, a change came over the reporter. She screamed back at the man, her eyes furious, spittle flying in every direction from her mouth. The cameraman, caught in the scene by his own camera, stepped back from the two in fear.
The two fighters grappled on the floor a moment before the woman managed to twist away.
"Veronica, are you al-" the cameraman began. He never had the chance to finish. Veronica grabbed a handful of heavy cables from the studio floor and tore them in half, eletrocuting herself in the process. "Veronica!"
The now-bald rabid man jumped at the cameraman, knocking the technician to the floor.
As the technician pushed the larger man away, he began to systematically tear out his own hair.
"Oh, shit, no!"
Jack Reilly jerked upright in his bed, green eyes alight with fear. The cool air of his room immediately chilled his naked, sweat-covered chest and he shivered. The nightmare still felt like it was all around him; he still heard the agonized scream of metal tortured out of its natural shape, the shattering of glass, the cries of his friends. Shaking more but not from the cold, he wrapped his thin arms around his upper body and rocked slowly, head dipping down so that his unkempt dark hair fell over his face. "No, no, no," he muttered. The nightmare cut into his very soul every time he had it, reminding him of how he was the only survivor of that car wreck. How he was so damnably unlucky as to make it out of an accident that killed three of his closest friends. Lucky, unlucky, lucky. The words resounded in his head as he reached up hesitantly to trace the scar over his shoulder and the one at his forehead, the physical reminders of that night. The touch seemed to pull him back slightly into the real world and his eyes smoothed out.
That's when he realized that the sounds from his dream were still continuing. A frown creased his forehead and he swung his legs over the edge of his small bed, wincing as his bare feet hit the cool wooden floor. Gotta get a rug, he reminded himself absently. Hitching up his boxers, he padded over to the window and looked out. What he saw shocked him. Pure madness out on the city street. People running, screaming, crying. Panic, anger, pain. He leaned his forehead against the cool glass of the window. Damn, it's the apocalypse, he thought drily. And I'm the senshi of luck. He reached up to run a light, artist's finger over the penny hanging at his throat. And I'm not feeling particularly lucky at the moment...
"Sophia! Sophia! Sophia, wake up!"
Sophie's eyes cracked open just enough to encourage Perdix to yell at her louder.
"SOPHIA!"
"I'm up!" Sophie groaned, rubbing her eyes. She glanced at the glowing red number on her alarm clock. 6:30. "Go to hell, Perdix." That said, she rolled over and pulled the sheets over her head.
"Sophia, don't go back to sleep! There's something huge going on downtown! We have to get down there! It's the same thing I sensed last night! SOPHIA!"
This time, not only did Sophie roll over, she sat up. "How the hell am I supposed to go back to sleep with you yelling like that? Shut up before my parents hear you."
Perdix hopped over to Sophie's clock/radio and hit the buttons with his beak. "Just listen to this," he instructed, dialing up the volume.
"Mass chaos strikes downtown Roanoke; a mob has descended upon the city, destroying everything in sight. They don't seem to have any leader or purpose. Whatever you're doing this morning, folks, don't go anywhere near downtown! I mean it!"
In momentary, sleep-ridden confusion, Sophie said nothing. "If this is a joke, you're going to get it, bird. And I'm not joking."
"I can tell," Perdix replied meekly, cringing. "I wish it were a joke, but it's something bad, and it's got senshi involved, so we should get down there as soon as possible."
"How?"
"Doesn't Rick wake up early to feed his horses? He can drive you."
"Oh man," Sophie groaned, "I'm not going to have a boyfriend much longer for all the ferrying around he does for you... Well, come on, bird. If we're lucky, we'll be down there in twenty minutes."
Priscilla turned around slowly as she heard her commanding officer call her name: "Priscilla... PRISCILLA!"
"YAH!" Priscilla sprang up in bed, "Sir, what are my orders?!"
Aeneas glared at her from his position on the foot of her bed, "Snap out of it, you idiot! We have to get to downtown Roanoke, pronto!"
Priscilla blinked, rubbing her eyes, "Aeneas... what? What time is it?" She rolled over and peered at the clock, "6:30?!?! Are you nuts?!"
Aeneas sighed,"No. I sense something... evil. Just like last night." He shuddered softly, then hopped to the T.V. on her dresser, and pressed the power button with his nose: "Besides, look what's happening."
Priscilla began to yawn, but stopped in the middle as she watched the destruction on the news. It was downtown Roanoke, of course, but the carnage was amazing; it looked like people were just tearing things down randomly.
"You want me to go THERE?!"
Aeneas glared at her again, " I know it seems dangerous, it is, but you have to go! This is senshi stuff! It's your civic duty!'
Priscilla groaned. Leave it up to Aeneas to wake her up at 6:30 on a Saturday, no less - and make her go fight.
"Oooooh.... alright. Lemme get the keys to the car and we'll be off."
Aeneas hopped into Priscilla's backpack, and without a complaint allowed her to zip it up as she made her way past her parents bedroom and to the car...
"Off we go."
Kanene's reddish-purple hair hid her head completely, cloaking one side of her face while the rest was pretty much smothered into her pillow. During her sleep she had turned onto her side to hug her pillow tightly. She was fast asleep still and Tycho was frantically trying to wake her up.
"Like waking the dead!" He cried out to himself. While he was trying to be loud enough to wake up Kanene he had to keep his voice down so no one else of the household could wake him up. Kanene shifted in her sleep, causing her tank top to slip a bit lower down her back, exposing toasty warm skin that had been buried under her blankets for the whole night. Tycho took his chance and pressed his forepaws and face against her warm shoulder.
A cold sensation rapidly spread through Kanene's chest and upper back, causing her to squeal in protest. "Cut that out!" She demanded as she jumped out of her bed in one single swift movement. The matress bounced briefly and Tycho scaled up the pillow onto the headrest.
"Hurry up and get dressed! We need to get to downtown Roanoke!" Tycho ordered, his short tail flicking back and forth impatiently. Kanene glared at him angrily, much annoyed that she had wake up before day break.
"Why should I do that? It's the weekend and I deserve to be sleeping in," Kanene reasoned. She sat back down on the side of her bed and was about to pull up her sheets to slip back in when Tycho jumped off of the bed to drag a few sheets of paper out from underneath the bed. "What are you... What? That's my geography paper!"
"Do what I say and it won't get hurt!" Tycho snapped. Kanene attempted a swipe at her research but Tycho snatched it back up into his mouth and started scurrying out of her room.
"For crying out loud... come back here!" Kanene hurried after her guardian down the stairs. For such a small creature Tycho was startlingly fast. Kanene came to a halt as she almost fell over him as he stopped in his tracks in the family room. On the television there was a news broadcast taking place reporting carnage in the downtown area. "Is this.... what could have caused that?"
"Your answers will be answered more quickly if we head down there and find out what happened! If my hunches are right, that was the cause of my uneasiness last night. I knew something was off," Tycho explained. Just watching the report gave him the chills all over again and even Kanene felt a quavering sensation in her stomach. "Now get dressed and hurry!"
"Closer," Livia urged her charge, sitting in her usual little pink bucket of water in the passenger seat beside Wade. "We're not quaite there yet, dahling."
Wade sighed and kept on driving straight where his turtle directed him. "Wish I coulda called 'ayya," he reflected. "She coulda come along."
"It was too layte. Besides, yoo wouldn't have gotten anything done."
"Li-ivvy!"
"It's troo, mistah calf-eyes."
"Ain't the time to discuss this," Wade said primly. "We haveta find out how I'm gonna get into all that crash."
"Exahctly. Hmm... hmm... turn left!"
Wade rolled his eyes and obeyed. It would just create problems if he informed her that he knew where he was going.
Grimacing, Jack pulled away from the window and walked back to his rumpled bed. No more sleep for me, he thought. No more sleep for anyone. What a damned mess out there. With a loose-limbed flop, he landed in a seated position on the bed. After a second's pause to consider the entire situation, he leaned back and dug in a shoebox resting on his milk carton nightstand. This sort of wake-up call warranted one of his rare cigarettes. Suddenly, he winced as he put the cigarette to his mouth and lit it. Oh, damn. What the hell was that? He rubbed his forehead and glanced back towards the window. Then he looked ceilingwards. "What was that, huh?" he muttered to no one. "A reminder that I'm a superhero now and supposed to be out there saving the world? Ker-ist..."
Another shot of forked pain ran in circles through his skull and he grimaced. "Fine, fine. I'm going." With a resigned sigh, he stubbed out the cigarette. Then he set about the delightful task of finding clean clothing on the floor of his budget apartment. I'll just pop downtown and find out what's up, he thought. Maybe I can help someone. There's gotta be a use to these powers other than beating each other up...
Amir frowned as he inched his car forward. He didn't care much for driving downtown during morning rush hour... not to mention, he was usually asleep at this point in time. His first class wasn't until 11.
But Leo had been insistent that something was amiss, and Amir was convinced to go downtown even before the morning DJs had verified it on his car radio.
He had reached the outskirts of the mob; it seemed bigger than what the radio had reported on his initial hearing. The chaos *was* bizzarre... there were cars sitting abandoned in the street; there were people smashing storefronts; there were people trying to topple street signs; and pretty much everyone looked rabidly insane.
Amir glanced at Leo, who had his paws up against the window glass and was peering out intently. His whiskers quivered and his tail twitched; Amir could tell by the feline's ears that he was trying to concentrate on the crowd, trying to get a feel for was had drove so many normal people... well... berserk.
Frankly, Amir didn't feel like getting out of the safety of his car. Heck; he didn't feel like leaving his car anywhere *near* this mob. He had just bought some expensive new computer periphorals, and didn't have enough cash to spare for new window glass or a paint job.
The decision wasn't a difficult one to make. He made an illegal U- turn at the first opportunity, drove the wrong way up a one-way street, drove up the wrong ramp of a parking garage, and parked his car safely on the top floor.
A mob would attack what was convenient; they probably wouldn't climb seven flights of stairs or take an elevator to find something to smash.
Amir took the elevator down, and Leo hopped in after him.
But at the bottom, it was Ariel who exited the elevator.
He took a deep breath and peered out of the parking garage towards where a segment of the mob had congregated, not quite comfortable enough with the situation yet to interfere with them, and frankly unwilling to do so alone.
Then again, there was no one else to help.
Common sense and a healthy feeling of self-preservation had forced Jack to transform in the lobby of his apartment building. After edging out the door, however, and seeing some of the glancing looks shot his way by those not yet affected by the madness, he regretted it. Somehow, a six foot plus guy wearing an outfit straight out of the movie Maverick didn't seem to inspire confidence in people. Even if he was wearing a white hat... Resigned to this course, though, Tyche gripped his walking stick tighter, automatically holding it up in a defensive position. There seemed to be some sort of gathering at the parking garage a block away. Ah, that would be the place for super-heroing. Tyche started off, his long legs eating the distance, and smiled the devil's own smile.
Show time, he thought.
"Come on, lift those legs up and hurry! Your legs are long enough!" Tycho sounded exactly like an over-bearing coach as he somehow managed to rest securely on her shoulder without falling or slipping. He yelled the commands into her ear and although his voice was heard by pedestrians he was hidden by Kanene's hair as it had fallen out of her clip.
"Stop your nagging Tycho. I honestly can not run any faster then this," Kanene gasped. As much as she wished to take a brief break to catch her breath she knew she shouldn't. Something awful was happening and it was her duty to get to the source and help stop it. Her steps faltered for a few seconds as she slowed down to a pace that she could breathe normally at.
A torrent of curses flowed out the mouth of one Sorcha Keegan. She smacked her hand against the steering wheel, continuing to curse.
"Sorcha!" barked her dog, Beckett.
"Sorry, Beck. But this is really frustrating!" Not twenty minutes ago, her guardian had woken her up, telling the girl that "something was happening downtown" and that, as a senshi, it was her duty to go downtown and stop it. Whatever it was. Sorcha scowled blackly. To top it off, she'd left the house without eating breakfast, and she was still in her pajama shirt.
With one last curse, she took the nearest turn and zoomed down a back street, going far above the speed limit.
"TURN!" Beckett barked. Sorcha slammed on the brakes and stared at him.
"Oh, so now you develop some guardian radar?" Sorcha snapped. Without waiting for an answer, she took the next turn, driving the car into the bottom level of a parking garage.
"Now what?" she asked, frustration ringing out in her voice.
"You transform."
"In here? Is there enough room?"
At the look from her guardian, Sorcha sighed. She got out of the car and retreated into the shadowy depths of the garage, quickly transforming. Rubbing her arms - this skimpy costume just wasn't warm enough for the garage - Nathanael waited to see what would happen.
Moments after her transformation was complete, a figure stepped into the garage entrance. "I know you're in here," a strange girl's voice yelled angrily. The cry echoed off the garage walls, followed by the sound of a bird squawking. "There better be someone in here, bird."
"Hey, Sophia, don't kick me! They're in here, I can sense it. Someone we don't know. It's not the person controlling the mob, though." The second voice changed, addressing the garage now. "We're not looking for a battle here, we just need to know what's going on!"
"That's something I'd like to know, too," a new voice drawled. A lighter flashed in the shadows mere feet from Nathanael in a dramatic flair. Then, with a flick of his wrist, Tyche closed his Zippo and tucked it back into the pocket of his vest. Slowly, he pulled away the newly-lit cigarette, casually dropped his walking stick from where it was tucked under his arm into his hand, and grinned dashingly. "Hey, darlin'," he added. "Nice outfit."
Unfortunately, before Nathanael could respond to the compliment, loud arguing was heard about 10 yards away from the three.
"Aeneas, you moron! I knew I shouldn't have taken your directions!"
"Well it's not my fault two suits tried to make Romanus flambe out of us! Maybe if you hadn't shrieked like a banshee and tossed your lighter at them, they would've left us alone..."
"Whatever. I thought you said you sensed senshi in here."
"I do, Clio. Walk over there... you know how to walk... you move your feet, one at a time..."
Growling was heard, as was a soft "ow", as two forms moved towards Tyche, Nathanael, and Beckett. Slowly, Sailor Clio stepped into the light of Tyche's lighter, and squinted at the other occupants of the garage.
"Howdy. I'm Sailor Clio. Do any of you know why everyone down here has suddenly gone beserk?"
There was a soft rustle of fabric from behind one of the garage's support columns. Ariel stepped into view from behind a pillar he had been hiding behind.
Leo was at his feet, but the pair made no movement to draw closer to the others.
Tyche glanced around, tipping back his hat to study the sudden influx of senshi. "My oh my," he muttered. "Is there a convention in town that I didn't know about?" He grinned roguishly and cut a shallow bow towards the females present. "Hello, ladies." Then he nodded to Ariel. "Gentleman. And, no, I've got no idea about the current madhouse." He slouched against the concrete pillar, still keeping his walking stick at ready for any sudden attack.
"I told you we were going to be late," a voice muttered from somewhere within the parking lot. At the moment the direction from which the voice was approaching from was unknown but it was getting closer. Yet in a few seconds however a senshi clad in a tan-coloured leotard with purple accents emerged from behind a parked car.
"What would you have suggested Sailor Draco, get a drive from one of your parents? That wouldn't have aroused any suspicion, especially since we're coming straight to the centre of this madness," Tycho commented, his voice tinged with sarcasm. Draco cast a quick reprimanding glare down to him. "I'm not dumb but still you could have picked up the pace," she simply replied. She shook her head in aggravation and looked up from the asphalt where Tycho walked beside her to the other senshi. "It appears that we didn't miss too much. Can anyone determine where the disturbance started?"
Nathanael looked from person to person, her initial shock as people arrived melting into a wary suspicion. Her eyes lit on Tyche, and she gave him a wide smile that was tinged with a smirk. Privately, she thought that he was far too flirtatious for his own good... but that could be a plus. Shivering, the angel of fire hugged herself, partly out of modesty and partly because she was freezing.
"Nothing's happened. We're all just arriving," she told Draco. Nathanael narrowed her eyes at the lizard-carrying senshi. "You don't look like an Angelus." The statement was almost accusatory in tone, daring her to answer to the contrary.
Why, would that be a problem?" Sailor Draco inquired, smiling innocently although she already knew the answer to her question. Tycho rested in her arms and was relaxing at a slow rate but was giving a death glare to Nathanael. He opened his mouth to yell at her but Draco, knowing him too well, grabbed a hold of his jaw and shut it tightly. Tycho tried to back out of her hold but his attempts proved to be futile.
"If you're so curious to know who I am you could just ask," Sailor Draco continued with her amused smile still in tact. Tycho flailed angrily in her arms but she ignored him point blank. "The name's Sailor Draco, Astronomia senshi for your interest. Don't be threatened about me because we have more important things to be concerned about."
Tycho finally managed to break free of Draco's gloved hand and before he spoke he gasped for air. "The disturbance - the crazed people! Who are behind it? If we're all here, who is out there? We should be out there!" Sailor Draco cocked her head to the side, narrowing her eyes in annoyance as Tycho continued rambling.
Clio peered at the gathering collection of senshi, "We can't go out there until we gain a little knowledge of what the hell is going on."
Aeneas nodded, giving death glares to the other senshi, as well as the guardians. Clio glared down at him, "And, we can't go out there until we agree not to fight amongst ourselves. Believe me, there is a feeling inside, telling me to rip out your hearts and laugh as you die, and I'm sure you are all feeling the same towards me. But, something is going on outside that will kill us all if we don't agree to a short truce for the time being..."
Aeneas stared up at Clio in shock, "Pr... er, Clio, that was amazing. Can you remember what you just said?"
Shaking her head, Clio smirked, "Unfortunately, no."
"Well, the little lady has a hell of a way with words," Tyche drawled, idly spinning his walking stick in his fingers. "But she does have a point and I don't need any critter to tell me that. Things are seriously wrong out there in the so-called real world." He studied the assembled senshi for a second and then added, "If it's a truce, count me in. I'm Tyche of the Graikos, by the way."
Draco rolled her eyes as the one senshi who was carrying a rabbit in her arms spoke up. "A way with words indeed," she murmured to herself. Tycho was still restless in her arms, anxious to get outside and find out the real cause of the madness. Call it a hunch but both were positive that it wasn't disgruntled senshi causing the mess. "Is everyone in on the plan?"
She had barely finished her sentence before there was a shriek of rubber and a smell of burning tyres as a little white car spun half- out of control, doing a rather scary half-turn before braking - but only just before imminent death for the senshi.
The door opened and yet another rather sheepish-looking senshi stepped out of the stopped car, towering over most of the others and pulling a triton out of the second seat. "Um, hi?" he said nervously, brushing a lock of blue hair over his ear. "Wow... I didn' mean t'do that, y'know, but I didn't wanna hit any of you, I only saw you guys at the last minute, don't you look like a big gatherin', never saw so many different colours in my life, am I interruptin'?" he babbled.
Draco spun around to witness the white car pirouette to a halt with the bumper only a few centimetres away from crashing into her legs.
Tycho was frozen in fear, both at the near fatality and at the senshi's grand height. Draco however narrowed her eyes, her blood slowly beginning to boil. "You've got to be blind because I can't see any reason for not seeing a group of people ready for a costume party," Draco replied angrily. She managed to keep her voice low enough to prevent yelling at the incompetent driver. "And no - you aren't interrupting. At the moment we're still trying to figure out what to do with all of the possessed people and find out what the source of the problem is!"
Ariel cast a disdainful glance at the driver before returning his attention to the small-yet-growing group.
"I suppose we're all going to stay in the parking garage, where we're safe from everyone except bad drivers?" he asked dryly.
Why did he always get surrounded with teeny-bopper children?
He raised the Staff of Ariel slightly, then struck it down on the cement floor. The silver flashed in the dim light, and the dark green orbs set atop it seemed to glow slightly.
"Let me see what I can find out," he suggested. With a jerk of his head indicating the Outside World at Large, he added, "It would be stupid and pointless to run around randomly looking for things."
Again, the green orbs seemed to glow. A haziness seemed to emanate from the top of the staff, and its decorative gold streamers stirred slightly in a breeze that came from nowhere. The hazy cloud grew into a large, amorphous shape, hovering slightly above their eye-level.
"Taamir," murmured Ariel, addressing the shape. The misty tendrils shivered slightly, and solidified for a brief moment into something that looked very nearly human.
Ariel fixed his gaze on the cloud, staring intently, yet not speaking any further. The cloud's shape collapsed once more into a formless entity, and it rolled towards the chaos which was taking place outside.
Ariel's stern features relaxed, and he looked almost pleased with himself for a moment. "Taamir will tell me what he sees."
The assembled senshi seemed at ill ease, uncertain of what to expect, eyeing one another warily. The only one with any semblance of certainty was Ariel. He knew that Taamir would not fail, and while the children around him glanced about nervously, the demon began to send him some information of use.
Their communication was not vocal; Taamir simply sensed things and conveyed them back to his master. Ariel focused his mind on the demon's actions and observed the general feeling of direction Taamir sent in return.
From what Taamir sensed, Ariel now knew the downtown area to be saturated with what could only be described as a shadowy energy. It loomed over the heads of the mobs that roamed the streets. It was spreading, but already the effects were wearing off on some of the afflicted.
Taamir was quickly centering in on the source of the energy. It was roughly southwest from the parking garage and not all that far. If the group headed in that direction, the guardians might be able to "pick up the scent" and pinpoint the source further.
Curious, though. This type of energy was not completely unfamiliar to Ariel. There was a definite sense of senshi.
"So, um," Neptune broke in, obviously uncomfortable and trying to break the tension. "What does the big green thingy see, y'know?"
Taamir traveled slowly, and Ariel kept his eyes closed, concentrating on the mental images flickering through their psychic connection.
But Neptune's voice broke into his mind, utterly destroying the channel of information... right when it was getting to the good part.
His eyes opened and he scowled at the younger male. "The good part is, whatever's afflicting the people is wearing off. The strange part is, it's... it's like a senshi energy signature. It was kind of fuzzy, but definitely senshi."
He pointed with his staff. "The source is coming from that way," he said, striding away from the gathering. "If anyone wants to investigate... come along; and if you don't, you might as well stay in the garage."
Leo prowled alongside him as they exited the safe haven.
"Well...no use staying here and waiting for the source to come kill us, right?" Clio grinned at all of the other senshi nervously before scooping Aeneas into her arms and hurrying after Ariel.
"No use standing by while those people get themselves hurt," Tyche added as he pushed off the concrete pillar and strolled after Clio and Ariel. After a few long strides, he spun on his heel and grinned at the others, hanging back. "You all in or out?" he asked, shouldering his walking stick. "Time to put your cards on the table and save the world... Or at least downtown Roanoke." His grin broadened impishly and he turned to resume his walk with Clio and Ariel.
Nathanael looked down at Beckett. He looked up at her with worried eyes. She smiled nervously back at him. "Don't worry, Beck. I'll be fine. Now, come on, let's go whup.... er.... whatever it is, all right?" Beckett murmured a soft assent, and Nathanael strode after Tyche and the others. She didn't see the mutt shudder rapidly, before he trotted after her to follow at her heels.
"Or the remains of Roanoke," Draco commented quietly as she looked up and down the street while trailing the other senshi. If it was possible the condition had deteriorated even more while they had all met in the protected parking lot. Now they were back in the wilds. Not one to be lost behind Draco quickened her pace and caught up to walk a few steps behind Ariel. Tycho settled down a little closer on Draco's shoulder. He could still sense the disturbance in the air and was not one bit confident that they were walking into the eye of the storm where everything would remain unharmed.
As the other senshi gradually fell into line and the group moved down the street, a few seemingly normal, albeit dazed, people watched them. What Ariel had said was true, the effects were indeed beginning to wear off. These normal humans had been the first infected and were thusly the first to recover.
This line of travel was taking them towards the park, a vibrant patch of green amongst the low city skyscrapers. The sun was well up now. An air of silence descended upon the group as they listened for audible sign of the enemy and considered this unlikely alliance.
The birds who lived in the park were making their presence known with happy chirps and calls when suddenly the stillness was punctuated by an angry yell.
In the front, Metis motioned for the others to stop and keep quiet. She broke into a run and ducked behind a discarded car. Slowly, cautiously, she rose her head and looked through the window, eyes squinting to make out the scene from behind the dirty window.
A figure was standing in plain sight, his fists balled, his long purple hair knotted and frizzed out in all directions. He was wearing the most peculiar costume. Metis motioned back for the others to wait and stressed the urgency for silence with a finger to her lips. She dashed back towards the group, keeping low to the ground.
"It's our target," she gasped out.
"How do you know?" someone asked.
"Funny costume."
Draco made a slight face of annoyance as Metis made them stay behind but she let it fade once Metis got back. Either this target wasn't much of a threat or he didn't see Metis. Draco opted for the former but still couldn't help but be relieved.
"Maybe two of us can approach him first. Try to strike up conversation to determine if he's any danger. I would guess he would be though if he sent the masses to temporary insanity," Draco suggested, while keeping her voice low so only the others could hear her. She was about to add more when Tycho piped in.
"The others can move into position around our target while two of you are talking with him. If he proves to be dangerous or attacks us you all should rush out and start doing an organised attack." Tycho had pushed himself up from Draco's shoulder to make sure he could be audible. Draco blinked in surprise at hearing her guardian's words. Was he - of all animals - suggesting that the teams co-operated? She smirked slightly and marvelled in the miracle that had occured.
Tyche tilted his hat back on his head and grinned. "I'll talk," he offered. "I've got my luck backing me if our frilly friend out there fancies a fight." He grimaced for a split second as if someone inside him was completely disgusted by the abuse of alliteration. Quickly, he continued, "'Sides it's not right to put you ladies out in the open when I can do it for you." He tilted his head, rolling his shoulders in preparation for the confrontation. "Who's joining me?"
Clio frowned, peering over at their new friend...he seemed harmless enough, but if she'd learned anything from all of the wars she'd studied, it was not to underestimate your enemy, "I'll go. You talk to him and if he tries anything funny, I can attack..."
"Nuh-uh," the blue-haired Neptune warned her. "Don' try anythin' without the rest of the group, or that guy'll jus' take you out. Kaboom, an' all that."
A dark eyebrow appeared above Tyche's mask as he grinned at the larger senshi. "I'm hurt," he drawled. "You think I'd let anything happen to her during our truce? Not hardly." Adjusting his grip on his walking stick, he faced Metis and nodded. "You going to be alright with these guys?" he muttered. She nodded her assent.
There was a glint of humor in Ariel's eye as he addressed Tyche. "And exactly what do you plan on asking him?" he queried. "Politely ask him if he'd like to take his chaos over to the next city? Hardly. And will hiding do much good? If Taamir could trace *his* energy from so far away, there's an equal chance that he'll be able to sense something from you, hidden or not. I don't know... an energy signature, or an aura, or something."
Tyche shrugged and idly spun his walking stick through his fingers again. "Why not invite him over to our tea party here?" he suggested dryly, a sharp smile directed at Ariel. A beat passed and then Tyche straightened to his full and somewhat imposing height. "It's the game, man. We tell him he has two options. Knock it off or get his ass kicked from here to kingdom come. There's no asking in this sort of thing." A dark eyebrow appeared above the half-mask. "And I'm trusting you all to watch Clio and my rears," he added. "Who cares if he knows you're there doing that or not? I just care that you are. Especially since I have no clue if my luck'll cover a Romanus."
Clio winced slightly at the Romanus remark. Enemy or not, it still stung to have someone she didn't even know dislike her. Frowning, she stepped forward, "Well, we'll just have to hope for the best then, won't we? C'mon, peoples, lets get this show on the road..."
"Yeah!" said Neptune enthusiastically before he realized he was the only really enthusiastic one and shut up.
Advancing towards their new "friend", she glanced at her two companions. Thoughts of We look like escapees from an asylum circus danced through her head.
Smiling grimly, Tyche quick-stepped ahead of his Romanus partner and tapped her on the shoulder lightly. "Hey, Clio?" he muttered, just low enough for the others to miss it. "How 'bout you stay one step behind? I was the first brainchild to volunteer so it's only fair that I get any flak first." His smile widened suddenly and a eyebrow shot upwards teasingly. "Anyway, some guys won't hit girls and, if this dope is one of 'em, we'll need a good reason to kick his head in. Him going after me is as good as any, eh, kiddo?"
Clio smirked, returning the eyebrow raise, "Showing concern for an enemy, Tyche? I never thought you Graikos had it in you..." Shrugging, she nodded, that moment of playfulness past, "Alright, you go ahead. Just remember that I have your back, alright? Flattened Lucky Charms isn't my idea of a good way to start the day."
"Not mine either." With a final charming smile, Tyche stepped slightly ahead of Clio, heading towards the figure in the distance. As they approached, the figure's features became visible. He was tall, over six feet, with long purple hair and yellow skin. His purple cape swirled about him as he turned to face Clio and Tyche.
There was something odd about this man (and he was a male, by all best estimation). He carried himself in a strange manner, holding his hands out in an unfamiliar gesture, and when he spoke, his voice had a strange duality about it, as if his voice box resonated at two separate and distinct tones at the same time. "Who are you?" he asked shakily. "You--you're senshi, aren't you? Where am I!?"
Tyche slung his walking stick over his shoulder and shifted his weight to one hip in an instinctively defensive gesture. "Let's get this straight, man," he drawled. "You know who we are but you don't know where you are... And yet you're raising five kinds of hell around here. Care to knock it off and explain what the hell you think you are?"
"Who am I?" Now the odd man's voice took on an illustrious tone. "I am none other than Bjerlo Ge'dall'istra, Guardian of Mis'ell'prat, General Demantoid!" The man--Bjerlo, Demented, or whatever he wanted to call himself--poofed out his cheeks and looked disdainfully and Tyche and Clio. "And who are you that you think you've any right to tell me, Bjerlo Ge'dall'istra, Guardian of Mis'ell'prat, General Demantoid, what to do?"
Shaking her head, Clio folded her arms over her chest, giving General Demantoid an extremely patronizing look, "I am Sailor Clio, Romanus senshi of History, and this guy here is Tyche, Graikos senshi of Luck. And we think that we have the right to tell you what to do because you're on our planet, and usually guests obey their hosts or hostesses. Now, please be polite and stop screwing with our city."
Tyche grinned disarmingly. "And that's our asking nicely. First option. You won't like the second option nearly as much. So what's your choice?"
Demantoid looked less than thrilled about the options. His hands tightened up, his cheeks puffed out, and his mouth twitched. "But I'm General Demantoid!" he blurted at last, "Representative of the Dark Universe which will bring order to all the life on your planet!" It seemed he had little else to say; he kept repeating his name as if it had some sort of great meaning to it.
"And I'm sure we're all impressed," Tyche chuckled. Lazily, he began spinning his walking stick between his fingers. "This is a limited time offer. Countdown starts now."
"Urgh--" choked Demantoid, glancing about. He thought he saw something in the corner of his eye. Could it be? Yes, there were some more senshi in hiding. Demantoid desperately closed his eyes, mind searching for some kind of solution.
"Thirteen, twelve, eleven..."
Something in Demantoid's mind clicked.
"Damn it, I can't hear a thing!" Sailor Draco cursed silently, from her half-crouched position near the ground. She attempted to brush a twig out of her line of vision but only succeeded in poking it in Tycho's direction, nearly poking his eye out.
"Quiet, don't draw attention to yourself!" Tycho reprimanded, whispering harshly into the senshi's ear. She grumbled quietly, scowling to the not-so-distant point of the back of Demantoid's head. She fidgeted slightly, tightening her fingers into loose fists. Within seconds her fingers had vanished, having been replaced by long and dangerously sharp claws.
"Come on... do something!" she whispered impatiently. With little effort and noise she dropped to her knees and began crawling closer, still camouflaged by the bush. As she moved forward Tycho got knocked off by a low-hanging branch, forcing him to the ground flat on his back.
"Get back!" he called out, as quietly as he could muster without grabbing Demantoid's attention. Sailor Draco, whether not hearing him or simply ignoring him, continued onwards. "Get back!" Tycho cried out, only a tad bit louder. He got onto his feet and looked around pleadingly for assistance there was no other senshi close to where they were hiding.
Despite whatever Tycho may have wished, it seemed Demantoid was well- aware of Draco's situation. He smiled cruelly at the two senshi facing him. "I have my answer for you. There!" He pointed his finger (his pinky, oddly enough) in the direction of Draco's movement.
Draco froze in her position, hunched over close to the ground. Even though she was still hidden her presence was known; she was the hunt for the hunter. Her eyes widened in shock, almost doe-like in their trembling. A golden glint flashed across her face as she pulled the leaves apart, a small shaft of sunlight striking her eyes.
Much to Tycho's horror, and insistent orders to retreat, Sailor Draco stood up, the branches breaking as she stretched out to full height. Twigs were in her hair and tucked under her vest with leaves decorating her torso. The prey rose to the challenge, stalking forwards to attack.
Before anyone realized what was happening, Sailor Draco was frozen in place, her clawed hand poised before Tyche and Clio. A surprised gasp filled the air. Sailor Nathanael, who had been standing towards the back, clutched her hands to her chest as red blood poured down her torn fuku. She fell to her knees, hands still tightly pressed in a vain attempt to stem the flow of blood from the gash in her chest. A soft murmur filled the confused crowd.
The sudden amount of movement behind them distracted Clio from the deranged pinkie-pointer, who used the immediate confusion that ensued among the gathered senshi to slip away so quickly he could have teleported. Turning her head ever-so-slightly, she jumped to see a clawed Sailor Draco and a bloody Sailor Nathanael on the ground.
There were various gasps of horror; a few of the senshi abandoned their hidden defence line as a knee-jerk reaction, staring at mortally-wounded Angelus and the cold-eyed Astronomia, with which something had obviously gone very wrong. "Oh, my God," muttered Neptune with numb lips.
"What the hell?" was the dignified comment that escaped Clio's lips as she unwisely jerked around.
"Got me, darlin'," Tyche hissed as he spun with her, instantly dismissing the idea of giving chase to the stranger in favor of dealing with the suddenly lethal Draco. "I think someone supposes the truce is off." He raised his walking stick to point at Draco. "Shall we?"
Ariel cursed under his breath as he watched Nathanael fall. Teamwork wasn't his favorite hobby in the world, and he could think of people whose company he vastly preferred to that of his teammates--- but he could hardly stay in his safe little vantage-spot behind the tree and let this go unremarked upon.
Nathanael needed help. But there was something else to do first.
Leo, a short distance aways, made it to Nathanael's prone form as though a mere feline could do much of anything to staunch the ugly wound. Ariel, on the other hand, made a beeline for Draco. He swung the heavy staff at her head as hard as he could, furious at her-- all the moreso because she had seemed like a reasonably decent person the first time they had met.
Ariel didn't know why Draco had suddenly decided to violate the truce, but he certainly knew that she wasn't going to get away with it.
Sailor Draco didn't flinch at all when Tyche turned his attention to her. Even as Ariel's heavy staff swung closer to her she didn't step out of the way or look up, thus resulting with a strong hit to head that sent her crashing to the ground.
"Don't hit her!" Tycho demanded, his eyes flashing angrily. He rushed forwards in attempts to aid his apprentice who obviously hadn't completed the spell by re-entering her body. Swinging his tail about he entwined it around the closest ankle, conveniently Ariel's, and pulled backwards.
An invisble force swept through the vicinity, only detectable to those who possessed the rare sixth sense. For an instant everything seemed to be alright; the attacker was down on the ground, unable to get up. But within seconds, a blow was taken to Sailor Clio in what would feel like a strong roundhouse kick to the torso.
With a cough, Clio stumbled into Tyche, gripping her sides. Gasping for air, her eyes opened skyward in a frightened stare. As the ability to breath slowly came back to her, she swallowed the precious oxygen in heaping gulps, sobbing slightly as she hunched over to steady herself.
Automatically, Tyche grabbed at Clio with his free hand, propping her up and pushing her behind him. "Is that her?" he hissed in disbelief, walking stick pointed menacingly at Draco's throat.
Ariel nearly stumbled as he tried very hard not to step on Tycho, who had his tail wrapped around his foot. Vaguely, in the back of his mind, he wondered if salamanders were of any relation to monkeys.
"Don't hit her! She did a lot worse to Nathanael!" exclaimed Ariel angrily, shaking his foot in an effort to dislodge Draco's guardian. His eyes darted from Draco to Leo and Nathanael, then to Clio and Tyche, his grip on the silver staff tightening.
How dare you say that! I was blinded into believing that the four teams were meant to fight as one whole unit but my eyes have been opened! You'd all turn your backs to save yourselves, letting another person fall because of your self-interest. You're taking this as the opportunity to kill me, aren't you?!
Tycho's tail fell slack, loosening about Ariel's ankle. He didn't know what he had heard but as he looked down to where Sailor Draco supposedly lied he knew that she wasn't coming to. She was still in the spirit world, not because she couldn't get back to her body but because she decided to. "Stop playing around! You're going to be killed if you don't get back!" Tycho demanded. He swung his body around, trying to detect where her spirit just was.
No! It was your fault, Tycho, you did this to me - you tricked me! Sailor Draco's voice rang painfully in the salamander's head. He continued moving his head about, trying to find out just where she was. It wasn't too hard, just follow the domino effect. Someone fell aside as if someone had brushed up against them too hard and punch was taken to the person who blocked her path.
"Stop her!" Tycho demanded, racing towards where she was escaping. "That is not Sailor Draco, not the girl who I trained!"
Ariel's mind was elsewhere. He had unleashed his anger with the one strike-- something uncharacteristic for one who usually took pains to avoid a conflict. Now, he dropped to his knees next to Nathanael, shooing Leo away slightly so he could get a better look at his fellow senshi's state, murmuring encouragements which sounded remarkably un- Ariel-like to even his own ears.
Today was just a weird day.
Not to mention, he hadn't checked his email for hours.
Closer inspection revealed Nathanael's breath had stopped. Her eyes were open, glazed and staring blankly at the sky overhead. Her chest was lacerated far too badly to attempt any kind of resuscitation. As Ariel watched, her fuku glowed slightly before disappating into thin air, the last of her life gone with it.
Amir's mental levity evaporated along with Nathanael's fuku.
It was easy enough to treat this like a game--- a game he had been unwillingly pushed into by an accident of birth, something beyond his control that had designated that he would someday be a player, whether he wished to or not. It was easy enough to treat his fellow teammates with a certain degree of indifference, even arrogance, especially when they took this senshi thing seriously. It was easy to push his own teammates aside, saying he had more important things to do than engage in pointless fights and running around in funny clothes... important things, like checking email and burning CDs and spending long hours playing Everquest. It was easy to ridicule them, when they took such things as senshi duties seriously.
It was never really real.
Until now.
Nathanael was no longer Nathanael; she was now in her human form. Her tattered fuku was no more, but her regular clothes were equally gashed and bloodstained. It didn't take her unresponsive form, or Leo's pained expression, to tell him that she was dead.
He held her tightly, trying to wrap his mind around the concept.
Dead.
Dead?
Dead.
Senshi battles were not supposed to result in death. They were supposed to be like those National Geographic specials, where animals puffed themselves up and displayed their fine plumage, but never actually destroyed one another.
Ariel felt inordinately guilty. He should have been watching her back. He should have kept his guard up. He should have kept closer to her. He should have done a thousand things differently--- taken back the put-downs, the nasty smirks, the lofty attitude. Should have been nicer. Should have been there for her. Should have been more human. Should have been more like a teammate. Should have been more like... more like a friend.
With one hand, Ariel wiped at his eyes, which had become suspiciously misty, and gently eased her back onto the ground, rocking back onto his heels in a crouch beside her still form. There was nothing he could do for Sorcha, but at least he could make it easier on her parents when she was found.
Leo stood guard, quickly joined by Beckett, each guardian daring anyone to interrupt him as he worked. Ariel concentrated on Sorcha's wounds, placing his hands gently over each in turn. His fingers glowed with warmth as the power slipped into his former teammate's body. The great, ugly gashes slowly began to mend, although it would do nothing to bring the girl back to life.
Though he hesitated, and paused more as he looked at the two guardians, eventually Neptune shook his head and moved past them to crouch at the dead Angelus' feet. "C'mon, man," Neptune Knight muttered. "Let's get her out of the line of fire, hokay?" Already damp blue eyes grew huge as he stared at the girl's face; "Oh. Ohmigod. That's Sorcha Keegan. I sit next to her in - "
Neptune shook his head to keep himself from becoming hysterical. Glancing up at the still-fighting combatants, he let out a shuddery breath. His mind was completely blank; it was all he could do to keep his hands from trembling as he watched the other senshi work. "The Lord is my shepherd," he muttered suddenly under his breath, a deep quick drone, ignoring whatever look he got from Ariel. "I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters..."
"FUCK YOU ALL!"
Sailor Metis, who had been knocked over moments earlier, grabbed Neptune's trident and let out a fierce scream of determination. She twisted her body around as she brought the weapon down, throwing every ounce of strength she had into the blow. Draco's motionless form never had a chance. The sharp spikes went straight through her torso and into the ground beneath. "Fuck you," she said in a quieter voice, knees wobbling, her body leaning against the trident for support. Beneath her, Draco's fuku shimmered.
A whisper of a breeze ruffled the treetops, almost as if it was a fading breath. Draco's body lurched up for a moment as it was impaled but the eyes never opened. Her fuku shimmered, dissipating like a morning mist. The tendrils of energy peeled away to reveal a form that could have been asleep as it was still wearing pyjamas.
Tycho's stomach turned over, a bitter taste coming to his mouth. He tentatively moved to the body. The closer he got he could see a faint aura surrounding her body. "Ka... Kanene?" Tycho whispered, his mouth hovering over her cheek.
You.... betrayed me, her voice choked out. Whether it was choking on a last breath or tears was unknown. What sounded like a sob dug deep into his heart. You led me into believing that I was doing the right thing - what is the right thing? Getting killed by the people who I thought I was to be helping? Tycho couldn't respond and merely closed his eyes, praying that some kind of a miracle would happen.
"... and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever." The cracked whisper of Neptune's last prayer was suddenly loud in the silence resulting after Draco's death; her body lolled on the ground, blood soon pooling. Metis' shot had told and the main point of the trident had pierced Kanene's heart.
Neptune got up from his knees and stared at Metis, holding his bloodstained weapon deep in Kanene's body, and suddenly he backed away into the night away from the slightly-stunned senshi. "I'm gonna go call 911," he muttered and left into the night, leaving Metis still with his weapon in hand.
At first, Metis did not move. Here eyes remained locked on the dead body beneath her and her hands gripped the trident tightly. Perdix hopped forward. "Metis?" he began. His voice dropped into a lower tone. "Sophia?"
At long last Metis's fingers relaxed and she straightened. Wrenching the trident free, she growled, "That's for Sailor Hades." Her masked gaze swept across the assembled senshi, daring any to challenge her.
Rubbing her sore ribs slowly, Clio stared numbly at the two fallen senshi.
This was insane.
Two people who were supposed to be on her side were dead. This wasn't a game anymore. This was real. Watching Metis's silent dare, she gulped. Hopefully, Metis wasn't going to be out for the other culprit of Hades's death, or else she'd be in trouble, being a Romanus and all.
"M-maybe," she cleared her throat, "Maybe we should leave... Neptune's gone to call the paramedics. They'll be here soon, and we shouldn't be seen with the bodies..." She shivered. She'd never thought she'd have to say something like that. Be seen with the bodies, she thought, I sound like I'm--we're murderers...
Ignoring his former charge's stammerings, Tyche moved quickly, all charm and grace obliterated in the need for decisive action. A rough gesture got him past Clio and to Metis' side. "C'mon, Metis," he murmured, reaching out to pry the trident from her fingers. The heavy weapon fell to the ground with a faint clatter. Tyche met Metis' eyes with cool stoicism. "C'mon. Before the cops get here." He glanced down at Perdix. "You, too, man. Let's blow."
"Yes, we need to leave," agreed Perdix. "All of us."
Slowly, in pairs and small groups, the senshi began to disperse.
When the ambulances came and the policeman came and the forensics team came, Kanene Reese and Sorcha Keegan were pronounced yet another two deaths in the short-lived riot, attributed to drug use; no trace of any known substance was found in either the girls or the other rioters, but there was assumed that there had been a cover-up. Conspiracy theories came from witnesses who linked the two deaths to the violent warfare of oddly-dressed gang-members who fought at night, but these were dismissed early on. Neither of the families of the deceased could shed light on the situation; neither knew that the girls had indeed been out of their beds, or what Sorcha was doing walking her dog so late at night. Both were inexplicably wearing their pajamas. The dog in question was found next to the body, unhurt but seemingly dazed; it was unfortunate, one policeman said wryly, that he couldn't talk.
The entire city was thrown into mourning only briefly before yet another incident broke out; both were, of course, not related.
Right?