Author's Note: If you wish to comment on my story, either positively or negatively, don't hesitate to contact me at treetop@voicenet.com. Sailor Moon and all related characters are the property of Takeuchi Naoko, Toei Animation and DIC. So, please, don't sue me because I haven't any money. I do this strictly for entertainment purposes, not copyright infringement.
The Resurrection Dilemma
by Jeffrey C. Branch
Chapter Five: Love And Anguish
Rating: R
Time seemed to move in painfully slow motion for Sailor Moon.
Wide eyed and numb from shock, Moon stood motionless like a statue as Sailor Venus' crescent beam came straight at her. Moon watched the approaching beam with an almost rapt fascination, to her, it was like viewing a movie one frame at a time. The beam was bright, pristine, beautiful....and deadly.
"No...." Moon whispered, realizing too late she was about to die.
"Get down!" shouted Sailor Mars, throwing herself at Moon and tackling her as the beam whizzed past, clipping her right shoulder. The two Scouts tumbled behind a stack of crates, the familiars close behind.
"Mercury Bubbles....BLAST!" shouted Sailor Mercury, bringing her powers into play and calling down a thick, freezing fog that blanketed the entire area. That bought time for her and the others to flee.
Dharsite scowled from the sudden cold and blinding mist. "Dammit! The blue mouse and her fog again! I hate it! Mina! Find your friends and bring them to me! I don't care what condition they're in!"
The entranced Venus nodded. A wicked grin curled her lips. "Consider it done, mistress."
The Scouts and the familiars ran a good hundred yards down the pier and ducked inside a warehouse to rest.
"Serena, you numbskull! What on Earth were you thinking? You could've been killed!" an angry Mars yelled at Moon, ignoring the sting of her singed shoulder.
Moon, heartsick at having been attacked by Venus began to weep. "Mina....she....she fired at us!"
"No kidding! Dharsite's brainwashed her! What did you expect?"
"Shut up, you two!" Mercury snapped. Her VR visor in place, she set it for x-ray mode and scanned through the wall of the building where she saw a silhouetted female form with long hair prowling some thirty yards away. "Mina's close by. She's looking for us. Guys, you won't like this, but I'm afraid we may have to fight her."
The others were openly horrified. "What? Fight Mina! No! We can't!" cried Luna.
"We don't have a choice. The only way to end this nightmare is to subdue Dharsite. This is our best chance of pulling that off while she's down here alone," Mercury explained in a hurried whisper. "If we don't overpower her and she summons the Demons, we're dead. Plain and simple. But to get to Dharsite, we'll have to get past Mina."
"That won't be easy," said a glum faced Artemis. "Venus has the most combat experience from our crime fighting days over in England. Depending on how much of her skills have been dulled by Dharsite's brainwashing, Mina will be hard to beat."
Mars set her jaw. Her mind was made up. "Like Amy said, we have no choice." The Scout of Fire winced as she slowly climbed to her feet. Her words of several minutes ago when she called herself a liability were coming back to haunt her. Mars knew she was in no condition to fight due to her injuries suffered up at the North Pole, but she toughed it out. "We have to take Mina down....or take her out."
The implication in Mars words stunned everyone into silence. Was it possible the situation could deteriorate to the point that the Scouts might have to kill their teammate? Their friend?
An instant later, the question became moot when the wall nearest to the Scouts imploded with a loud boom, blowing the Scouts off their feet. Through the dust and smoke, Venus sauntered inside. Her expression feral, she stared briefly at the downed Scouts, sprawled and senseless on the floor, Luna and Artemis nearby.
"My mistress sent me to bring you to her," said Venus in a snarl. "She didn't specify in what condition though. You can be smart and give up, or we can do this the hard way. I rather hope you decide to put up a fight."
Moon, her heart in her throat, slowly got to her feet and walked cautiously up to Venus. "Mina, it's me, Serena. Your friend. You have to break free of Dharsite's power. Just like Amy, Raye and Lita, I love you like a sister. I'd rather die than fight you. Come back to us. Please."
Mars and Mercury saw Moon stare at Venus. Neither they, or the familiars uttered a sound. After what felt like an eternity, Moon saw the menacing look in Venus' eyes fade, replaced by one of confusion. "Serena?" she whispered.
"Yes, Mina! Yes! You can beat her! I know you can!" Moon then held out her arms to Venus. "Come to me."
With an agonizing slowness, Venus took a step towards Moon, then another, then another. Moon broke out in a smile of relief, as the did the others. It appeared to everyone that Venus had returned to normal and was about to walk into Moon's waiting arms. When Venus was only a foot away, she suddenly stopped short and, with an animalistic snarl, she backhanded Moon across her face hard. The sound of the blow reverberated throughout the warehouse as Moon was sent tumbling to the ground.
"Mina!" cried Artemis.
"Stupid twit. Fell for the oldest trick in the book," said Venus, her voice dripping with contempt. "Get this through your empty little head, Serena: I belong to Dharsite!"
Moon, dazed, tasting blood in her mouth from a split lip was crushed. She failed to break Dharsite's hold on Venus, failed to rescue her friend. For a second time, a loved one had betrayed her. Had hurt her.
"No. No. Not again," she said before collapsing into tears.
Mars and Mercury had seen enough. Struggling to their feet, they realized Venus was lost to them, just like Tuxedo Mask had been when he was enslaved by Queen Beryl.
Venus turned to her teammates and smirked. "So, you want to play? Think you can get past your feelings long enough to put me down? Frankly speaking, girls, I don't think you can."
"That's what you think, traitor!" growled Mars. "I can fight you!"
"Oh, please, Raye. Give me a break. You're the last person I should worry about." Venus paused to laugh. "Not counting your bitchy disposition which I've never liked, you're all bark and no bite. You'll never touch me."
"Yeah? Try this on for size!" Infuriated by Venus' words, Mars launched herself at the brainwashed Scout, wanting nothing more than to tear her throat out. Venus' twisted smile never budged as she dodged to her left, avoiding Mars' telegraphed charge. Mars wheeled and fired a palm thrust blow which Venus blocked with her forearm. Next came a spinning roundhouse kick, the spiked heel of Mars' shoe coming within inches of Venus' face as she dodged it with considerable ease.
"What's wrong, Raye? Not moving as fast as you normally do," jeered Venus. "Those burns slowing you down?"
Mars scowled. Venus was right, and she knew it. Her speed and timing were severely off because of her injuries. Mars also knew Venus was toying with her, and that only served to further enrage her.
Desperate for a strategy that would work, Mars switched from martial arts to simple street brawling, hoping to take Venus by surprise by throwing a right cross. However, she was too slow and Venus ducked. As she did, Venus rammed a fist into Mars' wounded side. The Fire Scout screamed from the blistering pain and crumpled semi-conscious to the ground.
"Nice try, girlfriend. But not good enough." Venus then turned to Mercury, the last Scout standing. "Your turn, Amy. Or will you live up to your reputation as a genius and surrender? You know you don't stand a chance against me."
With a look of utter defeat on her face, Mercury dropped her head. "You're right. Only a fool fights in a burning house. So I won't try."
Smirking devilishly, Venus walked up to the disheartened Scout. "That's real smart, Mercury. You just saved yourself a lot of pain."
"I know when to surrender, Venus," said Mercury. Then, moving in a sudden blur, the Scout of Water grabbed the unsuspecting Venus by her hair, pulled her close enough to drive a knee into her solar plexus, and, with a grunt of pain, Venus doubled over. Mercury then finished the job with a hard chop to the back of Venus' neck and she collapsed. Everything was deathly quiet as the Scouts and the familiars looked on in shock at Mercury standing over the body of her fallen teammate.
"But this isn't one of them," she growled. Mercury's expression then changed to one of bottomless remorse. Of all the Sailors, Mercury hated using physical force, relying instead on her mind and her powers to overcome an enemy. Even though it was her idea to confront Venus, Mercury's heart shattered at having struck down one of her closest friends in the world. With tears pouring from her eyes, Mercury dropped to her knees and gently gathered the unconscious Venus in her arms. "I'm sorry, Mina. I'm so sorry."
Moon, somehow finding the strength to push aside her own anguish, staggered over to Mercury, as did Mars and put a hand on her shoulder. "Amy? Are you okay?" Moon asked.
Mercury slowly shook her head. "No, Serena. I'm not. I hurt my friend. Someone I care for. Someone I love. How can I be okay after this?"
"You did what you had to do," said Artemis, barely managing to keep his own grief in check. "There was no other way around it."
"If you think that'll make me feel better about what I just did, Artemis, you're sadly mistaken!" Mercury replied bitterly.
"And if you think you were going to overpower me, like you did Venus, you're equally wrong," came Dharsite's voice, echoing throughout the warehouse. An instant later, a phalanx of Steel Demons, ten in all crashed through the walls on all sides, surrounding the Scouts, the barrels of their laser weapons trained on them.
"For whatever it's worth, you never had a chance from the moment you arrived," said the madwoman in a casual voice as she strolled inside and up to the Scouts and familiars. "Venus was just a pawn to test just how far you'd go to get to me. I must admit I was surprised you actually chose to fight her, and that the pacifistic Mercury was the one who felled my puppet. In any event, I was never in danger from the start. The game's over, and you're all mine."
"What are you going to do with us?" a worried Moon asked.
Dharsite smiled wickedly. "Oh, all sorts of wonderful things. Wonderful for me that is." Her eyes then began to glow. "This won't hurt....much."
The minds of the Sailors and the familiars then exploded in mind numbing pain that caused all of them to scream from agony before collapsing. Dharsite giggled fiendishly.
"Oops. I lied," the madwoman said. She felt warm all over from the pain her enemies suffered. "Mmm. Delicious."
The deep, rumbling boom that woke Miko from a sound sleep unnerved her. At first, she thought it was thunder, but the weather report she saw on television before going to bed said nothing about inclement weather. When she looked to her left for Jed and saw he wasn't there, Miko became worried.
Hurriedly, Miko switched on a lamp on her nearby nightstand and looked around the room. Fear clutched tightly at her heart that her lover was nowhere in sight. The thought of being alone again after rediscovering the joys of life with a man terrified her. Miko then saw Jed's clothes, neatly folded in a chair in the corner, his work boots sitting under it. That helped to calm Miko's fears, but not her concern over Jed's whereabouts.
Getting out of bed, Miko threw on a thick robe to cover her naked body----she started going to bed nude as she loved the feel of Jed's strong yet gentle hands caressing her bare flesh----and left the bedroom. Padding downstairs, careful not to wake her father or Toshi, Miko saw the front door was open and a shadowed figured standing on the porch. She cautiously approached the open doorway.
"Jed?" she asked in a whisper.
"Yes. It's me," he replied softly.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Miko rushed out onto the porch and embraced Jed. She hugged him with all her strength, tears glistening in her eyes. "Thank God. When I woke up, and you weren't beside me, I feared the worst."
"I'm sorry to have worried you, Miko. That was cruel of me," Jed replied, clad only in a pair of sweatpants, despite the chilliness of the evening. Feeling bad for having caused Miko so much distress, he kissed her. "I was on my way to the kitchen for a glass of water when I heard what sounded like an explosion. Look. Over there."
Miko looked in the direction Jed was pointing and saw a bright, pulsating orange glow over the horizon. The sounds of sirens could be heard off in the distance. "Good heavens! The Takeshi plant is in that direction! What could have happened?"
Jed shrugged. "I don't know. Some sort of accident I guess."
"I hope no one was hurt."
Jed, his face hard and impassive couldn't bring himself to say anything. He knew differently. Ever since he returned from the plant, Jed had been plagued by a new and troublesome feeling deep in the pit of his stomach, a feeling he could neither ignore or shunt aside as it relentlessly haunted his mind and ate away at his soul. Guilt. The memories of those innocent people he murdered only a scant few minutes ago ruthlessly tore at his insides. The screams of the dying echoed endlessly in his head.
Just like old times from my last stay on Earth, Jed thought grimly. I could've easily destroyed that plant without harming anyone. But I wanted to kill, I even enjoyed slaughtering those people. Especially those security guards at the main gate. I even felt justified in my actions. Dear Lord, am I still the heartless beast from the Negaverse I once was?
"Mommy?" came Toshi's voice from behind the couple. Jed and Miko turned to see Toshi walk out in his pajamas, laden with logos of NBA teams. He was rubbing sleep from his eyes and looked upset as he walked up to his mother. "A loud bang woke me up."
"That's alright, dear. There's nothing to be worried about," said Miko, giving her son a hug.
Toshi's eyes were filled with concern. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely!" Jed replied. Forcing himself to smile, he put away his grim thoughts and clasped the boy's shoulders. "Cheer up, youngster. Everything's just fine. Since I came downstairs for some water, want to have a glass with me before going back to bed? My treat."
"Yippee! That's be great! C'mon!"
Jed laughed out loud as he followed the boy back inside. He couldn't help but feel good while in Toshi's presence, something he really needed right now to lift his sagging spirits. Miko smiled as she followed them inside, her heart aglow to see the two special men in her life so happy.
As the trio headed for the kitchen, they failed to notice Shigeiru standing halfway down the stairs, partially engulfed in shadow. The look on his face was a combination of gnawing suspicion, and naked fear.
An accident? At the Takeshi plant? That can't be just a mere coincidence, he thought. The old man shivered. I don't know how he did it, but Jed was somehow responsible for that catastrophe! I know he was! The man reeks of evil, yet Miko and Toshi are hopelessly blind to it! What sort of monster have we welcomed into our home?
Jed enjoyed some small talk in the kitchen over water with Miko and Toshi, and that helped to soothe the grim feelings of guilt he had in his heart. After taking Toshi up to his room, the walls covered with posters of NBA stars, the most prominent being Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers, Jed tucked the boy into bed and playfully tousled his hair. Just as Jed stood to leave, Toshi called to him.
"Jed? Can I ask you something?"
"Of course. Anything you want," answered Jed.
"Are you gonna be my new daddy?"
Jed was stunned, not expecting such a question. "I....I hadn't thought of that. Why do you ask?"
'Well, you've been spending a lot of time at night with mommy, and she likes you a lot. Do you like mommy?"
Jed nodded and smiled. "Yes, I do. Your mother is the most special woman in all the world to me."
"So, does that mean you'll be my new daddy?"
"Well, I won't lie to you, Toshi. I'd like that. Would you want me to be your father?"
"I sure do! I think you're the best!" said Toshi with a broad smile. "I love you, Jed! Please say you'll stay!"
Jed, feeling the unconditional love radiate from Toshi was left pleasantly reeling. "If your mother will have me, I'd love to stay. Besides, I'm just dying to have you teach me how to play basketball."
"Oh, wow! That's be great! I'm so glad you're here!"
"That makes two of us," Jed replied in a voice thick with emotion. A tear trickled down one cheek as he hugged Toshi. "As long as I'm around, you'll always be safe, and happy. I swear it!"
After returning to Miko's room, Jed took off his sweatpants and slid into bed naked with her. Smiling, Miko curled up to Jed, resting her head on his chest and letting out a sigh of contentment. Jed enjoyed the feel of Miko's warm breath against his skin and the fresh, fruity smell of her shampooed hair as he held her close.
"I think Toshi likes me," Jed said matter of factly.
Miko giggled. "That much is obvious. You have quite a talent for understatement, darling."
Jed chuckled and kissed Miko on her nose. "Ha, ha. Very funny. Seriously, Toshi just asked me if I was going to become his new father."
"What?" said a startled Miko. "Oh, Jed! I'm so sorry! Toshi shouldn't have imposed on you like that!"
"It's okay. I didn't mind. In fact, I told him I want to stay. Toshi needs a father, and I'd like nothing more than to help him grow up. Of course, that's all up to you." Jed paused to stare deeply into Miko's eyes. "Never in my life have I known anyone who's captivated me like you have. Your kindness is without bounds, your heart as large as all outdoors. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be dead right now.
"I realize that I'm still very much a stranger to you, and, in some ways, even to myself due to the gaps in my memory. However, I consider that a blessing as there's nothing about my past that I particularly care about, or cherish. I was penniless when you found me, a shell of a man with no hope for a future. Other than a strong back, and a somewhat sound mind, I have nothing to offer you but my love, which is yours. Forever."
"Jed. Are you....are you proposing to me?"
Jed nodded. "Yeah, I guess I am. I love you, Miko, more than life itself, and I want to spend eternity with you. Will you spend it with me?"
Miko burst into tears of joy and she smothered Jed's face with kisses. "Oh, God, yes! Yes! YES! Nothing would make me happier than to be with you! Forever and ever!"
Jed also wept as he held Miko, his heart filled to bursting from happiness unlike anything he had ever known before. He then thought that perhaps it was possible for him to change, to put aside his violent past filled with blood, death and destruction and start anew. As far as he was concerned, his old life as a general from the Negaverse was over. No more would he kill or callously take life for granted. Jed now had a future, as a devoted husband and a loving father, he felt that his life was now complete.
Or was it? An old memory lingered deep in the recesses of his mind. One he couldn't fully recall, or forget. A disjointed memory of teenage meddlers in colorful sailor suits who somehow doomed him to oblivion. Jed couldn't understand why it nagged at him the way it did.
As much as she tried to prevent it, old and painful memories crashed through Moon's defenses to torment her weary mind. Memories she fought with all her power to forget, yet she couldn't. Suddenly, Moon was back in the tower, as Serena, lured there as was Darien by Zoicite who sought the remaining two Rainbow Crystals he happened to have. But at the time, she didn't know that, like she never knew Darien was actually Tuxedo Mask, the dark suited mystery man who always came to the rescue of the Scouts.
Once inside, the starcrossed couple were forced to reveal their secrets to each other in order to save themselves from a death trap sprung by Zoicite. Shock followed shock for Serena to see Darien, a man she vacillated between often loving and sometimes hating change into Tuxedo Mask, just as he was shocked to see her morph into Sailor Moon. During the battle, Moon came into possession of the seven rainbow crystals which formed the powerful Imperium Silver Crystal, but at the cost of Darien's life as he was killed by Zoicite, impaled in the back by a crystal spear.
That was only the beginning of the real nightmare for Moon as Darien's body had been whisked away by Zoicite and Malachite. The man she adored was gone, and the agony of that loss nearly destroyed her. But he wasn't gone for long as Tuxedo Mask returned a short time later to save Moon from a trap set by Malachite in, of all places, a beauty parlor. At first, Moon was overjoyed to see Darien alive, but it was short-lived when he admitted to being an agent of the Negaverse who was after the Silver Crystal and that she and the other Scouts were now his enemies.
Moon shuddered at the cold ruthlessness in Mask's voice, the insidious evil that radiated from him. It had been like losing Darien all over again. Serena had felt so much pain from losing a loved one to treachery. Pain that increased to an infinite degree when that loved one turned to evil. First Darien, now Mina. It was too much for Moon. Far too much for her to bear.
Oh, God! I'm tired of always suffering, thought Moon. I can't stand being hurt anymore! Please! Please! Why won't you just let me die?
Moon awoke with a start, finding herself in a large, dimly lit space. She could hear the steady hum of machinery but was unable to make out anything for more than five feet around her.
The first sensation Moon felt was of warm moisture on her cheeks. Was I crying in my sleep after Dharsite zapped me? Moon remembered the flashbacks she just had, triggered she believed by her disastrous encounter with the brainwashed Venus. Moon's memories weren't about her death, or the deaths of the other Scouts at the North Pole, but her heartache over losing Darien to the Negaverse.
My friends mean the world to me. They willingly sacrificed their lives so I could stop Queen Beryl, yet all I could think about was Darien. I feel so ashamed, thought Moon.
The second sensation Moon felt was a sharp, throbbing pain in her shoulders, as if her arms were stretched almost out of their sockets. Moon looked to her left, then to her right and saw that her arms were indeed outstretched, her wrists tightly encased in thick chrome shackles. She looked down where her legs were shackled together at the ankles. The conclusion was as simplistic to her as it was frightening. She had been crucified.
"And the Lord said: 'Let there be light'!" a female voice rang out, and the space was suddenly illuminated by harsh, fluorescent light that temporarily blinded Moon until her eyes adjusted. Suspended high above the floor against a wall, Moon looked down upon a huge circular room, it's walls made of a silvery, gleaming metal which housed all sorts of sophisticated electronic equipment. "Welcome to my home, currently one mile above Tokyo proper. Enter freely and of your own will."
In the center of the room stood a grinning Dharsite, one arm around the waist of a smirking Venus. Surrounding the madwoman and her drone were the others, all strapped into black metal chairs while Luna and Artemis were in a large glass cage. The familiars, their faces taut from anguish were yelling, but no one could hear them. Mars and Mercury scowled at Dharsite while Lita, still dressed in her hospital gown looked hideous. Her head tilted to one side, drool trickling down her chin, her body occasionally twitching, Lita's eyes, sunken and hollow were open, but were vacant and glassy. There was no semblance of life, or sanity in them. When Mars and Mercury saw Moon, they were horrified.
"Oh, no! Sailor Moon!" cried Mercury.
"SERENA!" Mars screamed.
Despite the pain, Moon somehow found the strength to give her friends a small smile. It looked more like a grimace. "Hi, guys. Don't mind me. I'm just hanging around."
Dharsite chuckled. "Smiling through the agony. How noble."
Mars stared at Lita and was sickened by her terrible appearance. "You stinking whore! What did you do to Lita?"
"Nothing much, Raye. I simply introduced you aviophobic friend to the wonders of flight. Unfortunately, I'm afraid she didn't particularly enjoy the experience." Dharsite walked over to Lita, gently lifted her chin and stared into her seemingly dead eyes. The sight made the madwoman giggle delightedly. "What's that saying earthlings use? The lights are on, but no one's home."
"You fiend! Leave Lita alone!" Mercury cried.
"Mina, for the love of heaven, how can you just stand there and allow this to happen?" Moon demanded.
"Easy. Like I said before, I belong to Dharsite," Venus replied casually.
"Enjoy yourself while you can, Dharsite. Somehow, we'll find a way to free ourselves and put a stop to your madness!" Mercury snapped. Before today, the Scout of Water never truly hated anyone like she did Dharsite. Not even Queen Beryl and her generals disgusted her as the madwoman did. While Mercury always kept her emotions firmly under control, the anger, the hatred, the rage she felt for Dharsite was like an erupting volcano.
Dharsite picked up on Mercury's turbulent emotions and laughed. "I have no doubt that you will, my little blue mouse." The madwoman pressed a button on a control box in her hand and a Steel Demon lumbered into the room. It walked up to Mercury's chair and stood at attention.
"Of all the Scouts, you possess the greatest danger to me, Amy. With your vast intelligence, you'd find a way to escape and take your revenge on me," said Dharsite. "Oh, I know what you're thinking. Literally. Right now, you want nothing more than to put your fingers around my throat and squeeze for all you're worth. Tsk. Such vile thoughts."
Mercury just glared at Dharsite, not trusting herself to speak.
"Your rage, which I can actually feel would spur you on to find an escape. With that brain of yours, nothing is beyond you. However, what if your mind was preoccupied with something other than escape? Let's find out, shall we?"
Dharsite stepped aside and operated her control box. The shackle on Mercury's left arm unlatched, allowing the robot to clasp a metallic paw around that arm. The Scouts, the familiars, and, most of all, Mercury, her eyes wide from terror knew what was coming next. Mercury closed her eyes and braced herself as the madwoman pressed another button.
The robot squeezed. Hard. The sound of bones grinding and snapping was drowned out by Mercury's screams as waves of white-hot pain flooded her body. The room echoed for what seemed like hours from the Water Scout's horrific shrieking. Her cries only stopped when Mercury passed out. The others, watching helplessly were beside themselves with grief. However, Venus chuckled while Dharsite was elated, having nearly fainted from ecstasy from the suffering she felt.
"Think your way out of that," she said gleefully.
"DAMN YOU!" roared a heartsick Moon, tears streaming down her face. She felt Mercury's agony as if it were her own and it nearly overwhelmed her. It was the North Pole all over again. Her friends were suffering, and all she could do was watch.
Dharsite stared up at Moon, her face dark and grim. "You're too late, Serena. I've long since been damned."
"If you're gonna kill us, then for God's sake, do it already! Don't torture us like this! It's inhuman!"
"That's just the point, my dear. I'm not human. That's why I'm doing this." The sensation of Moon's anguish soothed Dharsite. "I've no intention whatsoever of killing you. That would be too quick, too easy. I'm going to keep you alive for as long as I can and subject you to torment the likes of which you have never known before. In a very short time, you will beg me for the sweet release of death, a release I will not grant. That is to be the punishment you little sluts are going to incur for murdering my beloved Queen Beryl."
"Beloved? You've gotta be kidding me!" said an incredulous Mars. "Beryl was a cruel and heartless monster who would've destroyed Earth, maybe even the universe if we hadn't wasted her first! As far as I'm concerned, the miserable bitch deserved to die!"
Dharsite, her face turning purple shuddered from a great rage. Then, she exploded. Roaring like an enraged beast, the madwoman spun around and drove a fist into the center of Mars' face, breaking her nose and spraying blood on the maniac's uniform. But that wasn't enough as Dharsite continued to pummel Mars, shrieking like a banshee as the blows rained down on the helpless Scout. Venus merely looked on, but was no longer smiling.
"Stop it! Please! STOP IT!" Moon screamed, her grief raw and bottomless. As with Mercury, Moon could feel the terrible beating Mars absorbed and it made every cell in her body ache. The emotional pain was so great, like a hole had been carved into her very heart, Moon felt like she was dying. "YOU'RE KILLING HER!"
The sound of Moon's plea made Dharsite stop in mid-blow. Breathing heavily from exertion, her eyes wide as saucers from shock, Dharsite stepped back and stared down at Mars, barely conscious, her beautiful face reduced to a battered, bloody pulp from the madwoman's attack. Then, Dharsite did something no one expected. She fell to her knees, buried her face in her bloodstained hands and sobbed.
The Scouts and the familiars, openly shocked looked on as Dharsite cried non-stop for a solid five minutes. When she lifted her face, it was streaked from her tears, Mars' blood and was twisted from rage and insanity.
"You don't understand! None of you understand the pain and the anguish you caused me when you murdered Beryl!" she shouted, her voice thick with menace. "Beryl was more than just my queen. No, she was more, much more than that....SHE WAS MY MOTHER!"
Next: Sowing The Harvest