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Hell On Earth

Summary:

At the final battle between the Senshi, Shitennou, Beryl, and Metallia. The bad guys win. Sailor Moon is gone. The Shitennou, Queen Beryl, and Metallia rule the world in war. The girls are scattered, powerless and battle to save the Shitennou and the world from further destruction. They now live in a world with no hope. Chaos reigns.

Notes:

When the girls battled Beryl they were 17-18 years old.

This idea was brought to life by Cluckster, she wrote the whole outline and then gave me free rein to go with it as I pleased. The original idea for this fic is in big credit to her. <3

**TRIGGER WARNINGS - TALK OF DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, LOSS, VIOLENCE, DEATH AND BLOOD THIS FIC IS DARK PLEASE BE WARNED ***

Chapter Text

~Chapter 1~

 

            Everything turned to disaster as soon as she had lost her hold on Kunzite. He was finally remembering her, she had seen the twinkle in his gray eyes, a hint of a smile and then, nothing. All the boys had stopped mid-stride as they were all remembering their past lives. Minako took a tentative step forward, she wanted to reach out to Kunzite but then stopped. The others were as confused as she was.

“Don’t…” he said, his voice hoarse.
“Kunz…” Tear burned her eyes.
“Get away, please… she’s back…” He looked at her, pain in his eyes. She read his face, he was sorry, he was going to give up.
“No, no Kunz! Please, fight her!!” She took another step forward.
“Stay back! I… I can’t keep her at bay, run! Run before she takes over again!” he pleaded. “I don’t want to hurt you again!” Tears filled his eyes.

She then heard Serenity scream. Endymion was still being controlled by Beryl and Metallia and he now had Sailor Moon by the throat. ‘No!’ she screamed inside her head. She watched as her Princess clawed at her past lovers’ hands, trying to breathe. His arms not budging.

“NO! SERE!!” she yelled.

Then she heard a laugh that brought back all the nasty memories of her past. The laugh that had come for her that fateful night. That laugh that rejoiced as it plunged his sword into her gut, spilling her blood. She closed her eyes to that memory. No, no, no! Not again! Not again!! She turned around and faced Kunzite. Metallia’s hold was back and the man she loved was no longer present. Tears fell from her eyes.

“Run! Get to Serenity! Now!” she yelled to the others.

The girls snapped out of it and ran towards where Serenity was, struggling to get Endymion’s hands off her neck. But before they could reach her a barrier flew up in front of them. Jupiter and Mars pounded on the invisible wall. She could hear Beryl laughing in the background. Mercury’s visor was up and she was calculating things on her mini-computer.

“Watch your Princess die!” she laughed.

The girls threw all their attacks on the barrier. The Shitennou were slowly creeping up to them, evil smiles painted on their faces, their eyes soulless. Venus started to panic; it could not happen again. She would not die at his hands again. She would not watch her Princess die again. They had come back for a reason. To live a normal life, not to have the past happen once more. She felt a sharp pain in her back, her breath caught in her throat, she turned around to see Kunzite, his sword in hand, her blood now covering the blade and a diabolical smile on his face. “There is no escape.” He hissed.

She summoned her sword and stood at the ready. She needed to save Serenity, she needed to blast through that barricade. She could hear her friends yelling out Usagi’s name and throwing all of their attacks at that wall. Time was running out she had to save her princess. She ran at the wall and began slashing at it with her sword. Sweat beading over her body as she continuously hit the wall with no sign of it weakening. She yelled and cursed. Mercury was still trying to figure out its weakness, but time was slipping by.

Sailor Moon with the little strength she had summoned her crescent wand, held it in both shaking hands, her lips were turning blue, tears pooled out of her eyes. She barely managed to get a sound out but the words were effective, a bright light shone from her wand, the power of the Silver Crystal bursting a blinding light between both her and Endymion.

Venus had to shield her eyes and fell to the ground, the pain in her back too much. Kunzite had slashed across her whole back. She could feel her blood oozing out of her wound. She slowly got up and looked around. Her friends were scattered on the ground, the boys had been blasted farther away. She flipped her hair away from her face and frantically looked around for her Princess. She managed to push herself off the ground and get up on trembling knees. She finally caught sight of Sailor Moon farther away with Endymion, both of them unconscious. Her back throbbed as she slowly limped towards her princess.

Then she heard it, Beryl’s laugh mixed in with Metallia’s. Venus kept her eyes on her Princess, but Beryl materialized next to Sailor Moon and smiled. She knelt down and placed her hand on Endymion. He stirred and woke up; his eyes still soulless. He looked at Beryl and smiled. She smiled back then grabbed the Crescent wand and yanked the crystal off, she threw the wand away, it clattered away into a pile of rubble and then she held the Silver Crystal in her hands. A look of triumph plastered her face, Endymion got closer and placed a hand on her shoulder, Beryl slapped it away and she clenched the jewel in her palm, relishing in its power. She walked away and laughed.

“It’s mine! It’s finally mine!” she cackled. She started to absorb the energy radiating from the Silver Crystal, cackling away, a look of pure evil and triumph a set mask on her face as the energy of the jewel was being adsorbed by her. A roar echoed off the walls of the cave they were in. Venus stopped in her tracks, she could feel the blood dripping from her back, down her butt and legs. She was going to pass out from losing too much blood. She fell to her knees; she couldn’t stay up. She didn’t know what to do anymore, her friends were all unconscious, the strength was leaving her body and now Beryl held the silver crystal. Was her Princess even alive? A roar echoed throughout the cave.

“BEERRYLLLLL!!!” Metallia shrieked. “BRING IIITT TOOO MEEEE NOOOWWW! BRING ME THE CRYSTAL!!”

Beryl glanced at the far end of the cave where it was the darkest, a look of annoyance now on her face, she didn’t want to give up the crystal, Venus could see it. She was lusting for its power. She finally turned and made her way to the end of the cave where Venus presumed Metallia resided. Venus was desperate, Metallia could not take hold of the Silver Crystal’s power, it would be the end of the world. They had already wiped out the Moon all those millennia ago, she couldn’t let them do it to the Earth, she had to get to Sailor Moon. She prayed to the Gods that she was still alive. She began to slowly crawl in the rubble, frantic. As she crawled over, she watched as Endymion finally acknowledged his past lover on the ground. He looked at her as he seemed to recognize her and at the same time didn’t.

Beryl finally reached her destination and reluctantly lifted her hand to the darkness hovering over her, the clear crystal shining like a beacon, red eyes appeared in the shadows, then a red mouth, smiling. Shadowed hands stole the crystal from Beryl and swallowed it. Beryl then quickly walked away, before she did something that she would regret. Metallia cackled, her voice bouncing off the walls, echoing through Venus’s ears and body. Venus coughed and spat out blood, this was not good. She had to reach Sailor Moon. She then felt pure terror. Metallia was absorbing all the power that the Silver Crystal was giving her. ‘I can’t let this happen again.’ Venus thought as her arms shook and trembled as she used the last of her strength to get to her Princess.  Endymion spotted her crawling over and walked up to her, his foot landing on her left wrist with a hard crunch. She screamed in pain, tears burning her eyes. She coughed up more blood, Endymion smiled.

Sailor Moon stirred; her body began to glow a pure white. She slowly sat up, her hand went to her throat, it hurt and it was peppered in bruises. She looked at herself, she didn’t know why she was glowing, something wasn’t right. She looked around and saw Endymion crushing Venus’s hand. She tried to get up but found that she had no strength.  

“Endymion! Please stop!” she said with a horse voice. Endymion had done more damage then she thought. Endymion finally turned his head towards her. She looked at him pleading, she searched his eyes, but her Endymion wasn’t there. He saw that, smiled and then crushed Venus’s wrist even more. Venus screamed out in pain once again.
“Venus!!” she said as she started to slowly lift off the ground. She didn’t know what was happening. Her brooch was blinking in and out, her fuku as well. She put her hands to her chest, searching for the Silver crystal, it wasn’t on her, she then turned to the corner where Metallia was growing in size, she could feel the crystal there.

“No!” she whispered.

“Serenity… I’m sorry!” Venus said. The mixed pain of her bleeding back and crushed wrist were too much. She could hardly keep her eyes open. Her breath now shallow.
“Venus! Stay with me, I need you. I’m… I’m going to try something.” She said but then screamed in agony. Venus snapped out of her daze; Endymion had removed his foot from her wrist. Something was wrong.
“She’s… accessing… “ Sailor Moon said, unable to finish her words. Her body pulsed out white light, her fuku flickering in and out. Pink ribbons appearing and disappearing.
“No!” Venus screamed. Metallia was locking into the core of the Silver crystal, absorbing its life force. Serenity being part of it and all of them as well. She then saw her friends all start to glow in their respective colors, her as well. Venus panicked. Mercury’s powers where the first to be absorbed. Her fuku flickered out, then burst out into a sea of blue ribbons then she was back into her civilian clothes. Then Mars and Jupiter. And then herself. Her power leaving her body was like a part of her soul had vanished. She felt empty and cold. No will to go on.

She watched as Sailor Moon was about to go through the same fate. She could see her struggling to keep a hold of her power. She couldn’t stop the tears that were pooling from her eyes. She couldn’t believe that this was happening once again. But this time, Queen Serenity wasn’t here to save them. She felt powerless and she hated herself for it. She was going to watch her Princess be devoured by this evil and she was helpless to stop it. She let out a sob. Endymion watched Sailor Moon in pain and smiled. Beryl watched nearby finally watching the Moon brat in pain and dying in front of her.

Sailor Moon closed her eyes and hugged her chest. She was not going to let Metallia devour the crystal, she needed to make this last leap to save it and destroy Metallia and Beryl. Even if it meant it would destroy her. She had to do it. She couldn’t let them win.

‘Venus. Please take care of Earth for me.’ She sent to her friend. Minako looked up, her eyes blurry from all her tears.
“No! Serenity don’t!” she said into her sleeves.
‘I need to do this. I need to give Earth some hope.’
“It’s not worth it!” she sobbed.
‘It will be ok. Tell Endymion I’m sorry. Take care of everyone for me.’
“Serenity! Noo, please!! Don’t leave me.” She sobbed as she finally lifted her face to see her.
‘I trust you. Help the Earth be better again. I love you.’
“NNNOO!!” she said as she reached out with her right arm.

She watched her friend use the last of her energy to fly into Metallia, tears falling from her eyes, the crescent moon shining from her forehead, the sign of her lunar royal heritage. Minako screamed as she watched her friend sacrifice herself to save them all. Sailor Moon entered the massive shadow being that was Metallia. Beryl didn’t like this. She disappeared and reappeared next to Endymion, grabbing him and the both of them vanished. Metallia was laughing and growing, slowly regaining her powerful form that was destroyed all those millennia ago.

“Puny Moon Princess, you cannot stop this. I have the crystal now; the power is all mine!” she bellowed.  “The crystal and Earth are mine now. You cannot win.”

Metallia continued to laugh as she slowly regained her form.

“VENUS POWER!” Minako yelled as she thrust her good arm up in the air. Nothing happened. She tried again and again. Her powers were gone. She yelled out in rage as she tried to reach for the power that was usually there, now an empty void. She was the only still conscious person in this hell hole. Not one of the girls or Shitennou had woken up since. Why did she always have to be the witness to all of this destruction and death?

Metallia started screaming. Minako looked up, the dark shadow had stopped growing. Her shadow arms had gone to her chest trying to pull something out it. “GET OUT! GET OUT! THE CRYSTAL IS MIIINNEEE!!!” Metallia screeched as she clawed at her shadowed chest trying to rip Sailor Moon out of her body. Minako was slightly hopeful that she would actually do it. “YOU WILL NOT WIN!”

Her body pulsed between shadow and bright light. The light of the Silver crystal was piercing through, Metallia was losing control.  And in an instant time seemed to freeze. In a flash, white beams shot out of Metallia.

“NNOOO!!!! THE CRYSTAL! YOU LUNAR BITCH!!!” she shrieked. Minako realized what had shot out of Metallia. They were shards of the Silver Crystal. Sailor Moon had shattered it, rendering it useless. Minako buried her face in her arms and heaved a sob.

“AAARRRGGG!!!!” Metallia shrieked again, her body pulsing faster now between light and darkness to finally exploded in a blinding white light. It was the last thing Minako saw before passing out.

 

*          *          *          *          *          *          *            *          *

Minako woke up in a gasp and almost fell out of her broken bed. Her body was covered in sweat and she was out of breath. Her tank top was stuck to her. She ran her hands through her hair and she held her head. Tears stung her eyes. This dream plagued her on most nights. But it wasn’t a dream though. It had actually happened. Five years ago, Usagi had shattered the Silver Crystal and sacrificed herself to save Earth.

But that sacrifice was made in vain. Beryl and Metallia were still alive and Earth was in complete war and chaos. Beryl was now Queen of Earth with Endymion at her side, they reigned war all across the world. The only good thing that had come out of this was that the crystal could no longer be used for its power. No one had ever located any of the broken pieces. Minako was sure they all turned to dust as they burst out of Metallia that fateful night.

She dried her tears with her blanket and then looked at the clock on the broken table that was next to her. It was 3:38AM. She hadn’t fallen asleep until at least 1AM, she laid down back into her makeshift bed and brushed her hands over her face. She had to get up at 5AM, but she knew it was going to be hard to get back to sleep now that she relived her worst nightmare yet again. She had made this old abandoned apartment room hers. Things were falling apart but it kept her warm and safe during the night. The building they resided in was considered dangerous and unstable but it was still standing after 4 years of them making base and camp here. She rolled over to her side and faced the wall.

Usagi’s last words echoed in her head. ‘I trust you. Help the Earth be better again. I love you.’ She hated herself. The Earth was far from being better, it was the exact opposite. Her last words had so much faith in her that it destroyed her every time they resonated in her head. Fresh tears slipped out her eyes, she pulled the blankets over her head and cried herself to sleep, it was far from restful.

Chapter 2: Chapter 2 - The Plan

Summary:

The girls are now 22-23, living in a post-apocalytic world.

Notes:

This idea was brought to life by Cluckster, she wrote the whole outline and then gave me free rein to go with it as I pleased. The original idea for this fic is in big credit to her. <3

Chapter Text

~Chapter 2~

The Plan

 

            She was up before her alarm yet again, her eyes burned from her crying only an hour or so ago. She glanced at her clock; it was 4:54AM. She sighed and rolled out of bed and pushed her blankets aside. She closed off the alarm set for 5AM and began her morning stretches. The world had gone to hell and back. Sailor Moon’s sacrifice only had a partial healing effect, it had partially healed the wound that Kunzite had inflicted on her back, her shattered wrist by Endymion and had transported them all out of that cave and back to Tokyo.

Since then Minako had built her own army here in Tokyo to help battle off Metallia’s youma and all the brainwashed and turned population. As she was now powerless, she had to turn to normal resources. Without her powers and the Crystal, they had to resort to human defense and weapons. Hand to hand combat and a variety of weapons. She had taught herself multiple types of combat skills, how to use knives, a hand rifle, and a sniper rifle. Sadly, there was no saving the population afflicted by Metallia’s and Beryl’s reign. The only option was death. She hated it. Sometimes she would see the faces of those she had killed, haunting her. Never in her life, she thought that it would come to this. She felt damned and cursed. She hated herself every day.

When she had woken up after Sailor Moon’s sacrifice, she found herself in the middle of Tokyo, she immediately began to search for her friends. She found Rei first, then Ami, and lastly Makoto. They had finally all got their memories back; she gave a quick thanks to the crystal’s last power for that. All of them had taken time away from each other to digest everything that had happened. She respected their wishes. It was something hard to go through, she had gone through it as well. She gave them the time they needed, as much as she wanted them by her side. She had searched and searched for Luna and Artemis, they were nowhere to be found. She had declared them dead. They would have made their way to her by now and as the days went by, they didn’t show up. She felt so alone.

That was when Beryl and Metallia took over all communication devices and announced themselves to the world, and declared that they either surrendered to them or faced death. Panic hit the streets all over the world. Many didn’t know what was happening, some thought it was a hoax, and others began hiding away and stocking up on anything they needed. Minako had tried to calm the citizens of Tokyo but not much listened to her, the panic had set in. The select few who had a clear head joined the start of her army. Beryl took over the base of Mount Fuji, creating her Dark Crystal Castle there, where she ruled over Japan with Metallia, who had somewhat found her original form. She had to continuously drink the lives of humans to keep her form and she didn’t care how many lives it took. Once Beryl’s Dark Crystal Castle was formed, she announced that she was sending her generals out across the world to take over and reign on her behalf while she sat in Tokyo. Kunzite was sent to Asia, Zoisite was sent to the UK, Nephrite to Africa, and Jadeite to America. They took over each country, wreaking havoc and death everywhere they went. They destroyed homes and families, landmarks, historical buildings and cities. They didn’t care. She watched most of the destruction through reports and TV footage. It was one of the things they kept alive, means of communication. Beryl and Metallia wanted everything broadcasted to the world to show that they meant business and that they were now the rulers of the world. Beryl had declared herself Queen and Endymion her King.

After the Shitennou had taken over, some had come back to Tokyo a year or two ago. Kunzite would come and go, Jadeite had stayed to continuously rage hell where ever Rei was stationed. Zoisite had stayed in the UK and Nephrite in Africa.

The girls had come back to Minako after the first couple of months, having survived the first wave of chaos Beryl had sent to Tokyo. Minako had begun building an army, saving the people she could. She helped train the others in hand to hand combat, showed them how to use some weapons, but then let them decided what they wanted to learn more about. Minako had recruited some people with military and police background, those who didn’t turn. They had been an asset to her army and for training all the new people who would join every day. She had first set up camp in St. Luke’s International Hospital, the biggest Hospital in Tokyo. She had found some doctors and nurses hiding out, they had barricaded a good part of the Hospital, and a good part of the staff where still alive and secretly helping people who needed it. They had made the Hospital look abandoned so that was one of the reason’s why Minako had headed there with the girls. She also wanted to stack up on medical supplies and discovered what home some of the doctors and nurses had made for themselves there. They eventually moved the army to the hospital, in small waves so that they wouldn’t get caught by the youma patrolling the streets.

The first year and a half that they resided there she saw how her friends were suffering. None of them would have thought that things would have come to this. Rei had taken over the hospital’s chapel had built her sacred fire there and spent most of her days reading the flames. Her sacred crow Phobos had survived the chaos, Demos sadly hadn’t. Rei had become violent and angry; she lost her temper most of the time and would stay in the chapel. She would spend nights practicing sword fighting and archery. Ami had become silent and cold. She spent most of her time tending to the sick and injured and in the medical labs researching/playing with poisons and cures. She didn’t talk much and kept to herself. She trained on how to be stealthy and silent as a mouse so should sneak up on her enemies and poison them. Minako didn’t want to get on her bad side. She had never seen this dark side to Ami, would have never even thought it possible. Makoto would do her best to keep a smile on her face. She had started a garden on the top floor of the hospital and was able to produce many fruits and vegetables to help feed their ever-growing army. She also had another garden that grew flowers and herbs and other plants for healing and cures. She would help supply Ami with the things that she needed; she was the only one who could really talk to Ami on the rare occasions she decided to speak. Makoto also spent her time working out and training with multiple firearms.

The friends she knew were pretty much gone. Three different girls had emerged when hell took over. Minako did her best to keep the girls together even though they were not all as close as they used to be. Their presence in the Hospital was enough for her. Minako and Rei would plan the raids, the defense, the strategies, and the offense. Also, both of them would help train the new recruits, Makoto would help as well. Ami would teach the ones who bravely wanted to learn her trade.

This had gone on for the first year and a half, then they got attacked by a hoard of youma and brainwashed humans, the infected they now called them, they had not seen coming and had to grab what they could and evacuate as fast as possible before it got blasted to bit by bazookas and army tanks. They were lucky enough to have all evacuate safely, only a handful of their army didn’t make it. They had all split up for a couple of months before Minako found their new current residents. She knew that the Shinjuku Park Tower was condemned and marked as unsafe by some experts, she decided to check it out anyway. Some floors weren’t safe and it had some surface damage in other places but from what Minako could see it looked ok to live in and make as their new base. It took her a couple more months to find everyone who had scattered and secretly move them to the tower. Ever since Beryl had not found out where they were hiding. They had stayed safe and had made all of their routes back to the base hidden and they had utilized the sewers as well and created hidden tunnels. They had done everything to make sure no one paid attention to the Shinjuku Park Tower. The youma and the infected population were always on the lookout for the former Senshi, their photos plastered everywhere, always on the lookout and being hunted.

 

After her morning stretching was done, she went in the shower, they were lucky that the electricity, plumbing, and power was still functional. They did their best to use minimal lighting during the night but if they did, they made sure that the blinds and windows were covered. She let the hot water pour over her head and back. She quickly washed up and dried her hair with a towel. She quickly redressed the wound she had on her left thigh due to a raid from 3 days ago, she leg had got caught on a protruding pipe in the sewers as they made their retreat back to the base. The doctors had given her antibiotics just in case and cleaned out the wound. She got dressed, tied on her gun holsters, and strapped her sword to her back. She made her way to the 52nd floor where Rei would be waiting for her. Ami and Makoto had been gone for a couple of months now. Ami had gone on a rage and kill mission after Zoisite and Makoto had left to get Nephrite, she had been determined that she could break the hold Metallia had on him. Told them that she wasn’t coming back until he was himself again. Rei had yelled at her that it was futile to try, due to her many encounters with Jadeite, she knew it wasn’t going to work. But Makoto left anyway, with some sliver of hope.  

Minako walked down the unlit hallways to their war room. They had bunched a couple of tables and screwed them all together. Plastered the top and painted the world map to it. They used it to keep track of what was happening. They had brought up all the computers and TVs and connected them to the satellites and internet that was surprisingly still working. They had surprising took in a couple of computer geeks and hackers and they were able to make all their connections secure and untraceable from any off Beryl’s goons and search teams. She walked in to hear the familiar hum of the electronics now on sleep mode. She went to the main computer and activated it. After a couple of seconds, the room lit up, most of the windows of the room were painted black, the others were covered with dark drapes. From this floor, they had a good view of their surroundings. She took a quick peek outside, the sun was starting to rise, she saw more buildings smoking in the distance. It seems that Jadeite was busy last night. Rei would have a field day with this one. She turned on the sound to the TVs, reporters from all over the world were talking about all the events happening in their respective countries. The UK had been somewhat quiet for the past year or so. They hadn’t heard from or seen anything related to Zoisite. She wondered if Ami had found him and finally put an end to him. There was also the same pattern with Africa, nothing from Nephrite. Even though the youma kept up the chaos on both continents. She hoped that Makoto had found him and was successful in her mission, but she wasn’t going to keep her hopes up.

“So, anything new?” Rei said from the door frame.
“Nothing much, Jadeite seems to have some fun last night, a couple of buildings are smoking.”
“Son of a bitch!” she said under her breath.
“I know, I thought he was going to calm down… I guess I was wrong.”

Rei grumbled and went to the screen as well, looking them over. Minako could already see the anger on Rei’s face. She knew Rei was getting better at controlling her anger around her.

“Any news on Ami or Mako?” she asked going from screen to screen, looking at the news reports.
“Nothing yet…” Minako replied switching over to the computers. Looking for any codes from their allies.
“I hope they are ok…” she said sounding a bit worried.
“Me too.”

Rei continued to monitor the screens and jotted down notes on a note pad. She looked as tired as she was. They did their morning routine for the first hour, noted down any sort of improvement and irregularities. Nothing out of the normal this morning. Minako got out of her chair and was about to head out.

“I’m going to go grab some breakfast at the cafeteria, you want me to bring you anything?” she asked her raven-haired friend.
“Hum, no I’m ok.”
“Are you sure? I think Kagame was making muffins this morning.”
“Oh yeah? Ok, grab me one then. We need to talk, don’t we?” Rei asked her.
“Yeah, and you’re not going to like it, so the muffin is a peace offering.”
“Hum… ok.”

Minako made her way to the 47th floor where they had built a cafeteria with the equipment they had found in the lower level cafes and restaurants. She walked off the elevator and made her way to the dining hall. She could already smell the muffins baking. She was happy that Makoto had made new gardens at the top of the tower, its glass roofing’s made the perfect environment. Makoto had taught a bunch of willing students to learn her trade before leaving on her mission. She got to her destination and saw Kagame pulling out trays from the ovens and placing them on the counter to cool off. The other cooks were handling the prepping of ingredients and making other things before the morning crowd arrived.

“Minako-san! Good morning! Muffins are almost done!” Kagame said with a smile.
“Morning Kagame! It smells delicious.” She said grabbing a stray chair and parked herself in front of the counter.
“I made some apple cinnamon muffins; I hope you’ll like them.” She smiled.  
“I’m sure they are delicious, everything you make never disappoints,” Minako admitted.
“You flatter me. Thank you. I learned from Makoto-sensei she showed me everything.”
“I can tell. It smells divine. Once they have cooled down, I’ll have six please!” she said with a smile.
“Sure thing!!”

Minako watched the morning crew chop, dice, wash, and cook away. She was never that talented when it came to cooking, so watching masters at work always fascinated her. When she was on her own she survived on canned foods, instant noodles, granola bars, and stale bread. On rare occasions, she would be able to steal some meat and fruits from some still open hidden restaurants. After a couple of minutes, Kagame put 6 muffins on a tray with one cup of hot coffee and one of green tea. Minako thanked her and made her way back up to the war room.

“Hey! Look what I have!” she said with a small smile. Rei was still concentrating on the screens in front of her. She made her way to Rei’s desk and placed the muffins and the green tea in front of her. Rei wrapped her hands around the teacup by habit. She then took her eyes away from the screens and placed them on Minako.

“You’re going after him, aren’t you?” Rei asked grabbing a muffin.
“How did you know?” she said sitting in the chair next to her.
“The fires might have mentioned it to me a couple of weeks ago, I was just waiting for you to make up your mind.”
“Oh… yeah, he’s finally back in Japan, I want to take a chance and try getting him back. I haven’t had the courage to do it in the past 5 years… you three have been braver than me on that front.”
“It’s not an easy task, my heart gets ripped out every time I see him. I understand how you haven’t done it yourself.”
“I know, it’s not going to be easy… but I want to try.”
“I know. I’m not happy with you leaving, but… I understand.”
“You’ll hold the fort for me then?”
“Of course, you know I will.”
“Thank you.”
“But please be safe and careful, the flames showed me something dark is coming. When, I do not know yet… but I don’t like it. It doesn’t feel right.”
“You know I’m always careful. I’ll keep in touch when I can. Can you get me a encrypted cell phone connected to our network?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’ll get Yoshiki on it. I think he found some cell phones on his last raid to the electronic store.”
“Thank you.”
“When do you think you will be leaving?” Rei asked taking a sip of her tea.
“I’d like to leave tonight but if I can’t tomorrow night for sure. I’m picking up a drop-off from our American allies, they should be dropping some ammo and I want to make sure we bring it here safely and undetected.” Minako said holding her coffee.
“Ok, please make sure you have everything you need before leaving,” Rei said.
“I will, are you genuinely concerned for me?”
“Oh shut up, I may be a raging queen but I do still care about my friends.”
“Aw, that’s so sweet of you.” Minako teased.
“Don’t push it Mina.”

Minako smiled and reached for a muffin. They enjoyed the rest of their small breakfast in peace until the rest of their crew started to appear for their tasks.

The morning went well for once. Minako had contacted the American allies and they were scheduled to arrive on time. Minako prepared her crew and they were set to leave at 11:45AM, they had 15 minutes to get to the rendezvous point, collect the drop-off, and quickly bring it back to the compound. Hopefully, everything will go to plan and there won’t be too many youma and infected around. The snipers went off ahead of them to get into position, Minako grabbed more of her weapons, brought her hair up into a ponytail, rearranging her red bow, and slipped into her protective gear. She collected her team in the basement and they made their way through the tunnels. They all ran with weapons in hand, keeping their eyes open, just in case they found any youma or infected roaming the tunnels.

They were close to the opening where the rendezvous point was, Minako looked around, gave the all-clear and made her way up the ladder. She unlocked the lock on the grate and took a look through it, nothing seemed out of place, she lifted the grate and stood out of it quickly and had her gun at the ready. She quickly assessed the location; she spotted her snipers at the ready and clearing the area she finally gave the ok for her team to come out. Her senses had heightened ever since that fateful day, having to rely a lot on her eyes and ears much more then before. She kept her ears open for any slight change of sound in the air. She looked at her watch, it was 11:59AM, the US Army silent grade plane should arrive any second now. The US Army was able to save some high-tech aircrafts and get away, they had been using these silent and fast planes to deliver things to the resistants all around the world. Minako’s team was their first drop of the day and they needed that ammo. They still had some in stock but it was always better to have a bigger backup. She had learned that the hard way a couple of years back.

As if on queue the plane silently appeared and made its way to the rendezvous point, Minako gave them the signal and the merchandise door to the plane opened and lowered down a big wrapped up crate, swiftly and fast. As soon as the crate hit the ground, Minako unlatched it and gave the ok and thanks to the crew and pilot with hand signals and they disappeared as quickly as they arrived. Once the plane was gone her crew started to unravel the crate and take it apart and fill up their bags. The radio clipped to her jacket started to click in a warning pattern, one of the snippers was warning them that enemies were on their way. She signaled her team to hurry and get everything back in the tunnels. She heard one of her snippers go off, the enemies were getting closer. She cocked up her gun and held it in place, keeping an eye on the area, she told her team to hurry, she didn’t want to lose anyone on this trip. She kept her eye looking through her scope, looking into the distance, watching for any youma that the snippers missed. She spotted one jumping over some cement blocks and was headed their way, eyes blazing red with hatred. She aimed her gun and let out two shots, one to the head then one to the chest before it fell. As soon as it hit the ground it began to disintegrate into the air. She looked back to the crate, only three boxes left, she shouted a hurry as she spotted another youma, she shot it down quickly.

She looked back again, two more left, she continued to survey the area, she heard another snipper go off in the distance, then another. A pack was probably on their way to them having heard shots fired. Minako was starting to panic a little as she continued to look out for her crew, one more box left, she spotted an infected human, eyes blood red, mouth black, and fingertips stained black as well. She took a breath and shot it, it went down in a pool of blood, but these bodies didn’t disintegrate, they stayed there because they were once one of them, the human race. One of her crew tapped her on the should and she looked back quickly, the crate was empty and they were good to go. She told her team to go down before her, they all hurried down and called out to her that they were all good and she slowly backed to the manhole. More shots were fired from the rooftops, more youma were climbing over the rubble and making their way to her. She shot them down and once they were gone, she quickly made her way down the ladder and locked the grate and jumped down into the darkness where her crew was waiting for her. They didn’t move for a couple of minutes, waiting and listening if more youma were on their way but none of them came. The snippers must have gotten the rest and once they were cleared, they would make their way back to the base.

Minako double-checked her crew and made sure everyone was alright, they packed up the rest of the boxes securely in their packs and made their way back to camp. They brought the ammo to the armory and started to unpack. Minako left them to do their work and dropped her excessive weapons and armor in her room and then met Rei back in the war room.  

Rei was still sitting in the same chair that Minako had left her in an hour ago. There was a box on the world table.

“I got you an encrypted phone from Yoshiki. He said you should be good to go as soon as you input your code into it.” Rei said her cup of tea in hand.
“Thanks, Rei.”
“Everything go well with the drop?” Rei asked finally peeling her eyes away from the screens.  
“Yes, the cargo is secure, there was a small hoard of youma and some infected. But nothing we couldn’t take care of.”
“The crew ok?”
“Yes. No one got hurt.”
“Good. So, you are leaving tonight I presume?”

Minako nodded as she took the box on the world table. “Yeah, I’m going to catch one of the cargo trains heading to Mount Fuji, Kunzite has taken over the Oshino Hakkai Springs a couple of days ago, I’m sure I’ll find him there. Anyways, it’s the first place I’m going to look.”
“Please be careful, Mina. And please… keep in touch, at least give me one sign of life every day.” She said with a hint of worry in her voice.
“I will do my best.” She promised, it was the best she could offer. She didn’t know what she would encounter.
“Just… just don’t go off radar…” she said going back to her screens.

Minako knew what she meant, to not lose contact like Ami and Makoto did. She knew Rei secretly missed them but didn’t want to show it to her. Minako missed them too and she prayed to all the Gods out there that they were safe and still alive. Once she would get Kunzite back she would go on a mission to bring back her friends. She opened the box with her new cell phone and powered it up. Once it was loaded, she set it up with fingerprint and facial recognition. Once the security screen popped up, she inputted her security code and it connected to the base, satellite, and internet. Once she was set up, she pocketed the phone and the charger and went next to Rei.

“I’ll come to see you before I leave ok. I need to go pack.” She said placing a hand on her shoulder.
“Thank you.” Rei said as she noted down more notes.

Minako smiled and went back to her room. She began packing and picking out the stuff that she was going to bring with her. She went to the armory to grab the additional weapons and ammo she needed for this trip. After she hit the cafeteria where Kagame supplied her with some travel food. She went back to her room and went to the bathroom, she opened up the cupboard and grabbed a box. It was a box of temporary hair dye, a medium brown, she had been debating dying her blond locks for weeks now. Her blond hair was her pride but she needed all the cover she could get to make sure she wasn’t caught. She began to rip open the box and started to dye her hair. Once done, as she waited for the color to activate, she finished up her packing, her backpack was now full. Her traveling clothes and armor were laid on her broken bed. Once the timer on her phone went off, she hit the shower and began washing her hair, she watched as the dark dye pooled down her legs to her feet. Once the water was running clear she got out and began drying herself. She went over to the broken mirror to look at the damage she had done to her head. She didn’t like what she saw but it was needed for her mission. She looked away and wrapped her hair in a towel. She began putting her clothes on but before she put on her armor or equipped her weapons, she went to go dry her hair. Once that was done the braided it back tightly. She looked at the red bow now lying on the counter, the red bow that she had worn for years, would now have to sit here until she came back. Leaving a piece of herself behind. She grabbed another box of the counter. Colored contact lenses, these were brown as well to mask her beautiful blue eyes. She put them in and then looked at herself in the mirror again. She didn’t like what she saw, she was a different person with just a different color of hair, hairstyle and eye color. It was crazy. All this would pay off once she brought back Kunzite.

The sun was starting to set so she went back down to the cafeteria to grab her last diner there for a while. Kagame had made some spaghetti, Minako stuffed her face enjoying her last big meal. Kagame had almost not recognized her when she had ordered her diner. Minako was happy that her disguise was working. Once full she made her way back up to the war room and went to see Rei. She had moved onto the computers now, someone had brought her a plate of spaghetti, she hadn’t touched it yet.

“Hey.” She said. “Don’t forget to eat again, ok?” Minako said approaching her.
“Yeah, I’ll take a bite soon,” Rei said as she turned around to face her friend. “Woah!”
“Too much?” she asked.
“No, no! It will certainly help on your mission!” she said looking her over.
“It’s what I’m going for.”
“So, you all set?”
“Yeah, I came to say goodbye.”

Rei got up, her face a mask of neutrality with a hint of anger. She walked up to Minako and hugged her, held her tight. Minako was in shock. Rei hadn’t shown this type of affection since before hell broke loose. Minako wasn’t sure if she should hug her back or if Rei would rip her arms off. She slowly wrapped her arms around her friend, tears burned her eyes. She missed her old friend.

“Please, come back…” Rei whispered in her friend’s ear. Minako hugged her tighter.
“I will! You stay safe ok?” Minako said struggling to keep her tears in.
“You are all I have left right now…”
“Same.”

Rei stepped away and wiped away a stray tear, her nose pink. Minako smiled and dabbed at her threatening tears. Rei then hugged her again gave her a kiss on the cheek and went back to her computer. She grabbed the plate of food and took a bite. Minako smiled and made her way out of the room.

“I’ll send you a message once I’m on the train.” She said as she turned the corner to leave the room.

Minako got back to her lodgings, strapped on her armor, equipped her weapons, and slung on her backpack. She grabbed her beanie and tucked her braid into it and slipped it over her head. She made her way down to the tunnels, gun in hand, and set on the course to intercept the cargo train that was supposed to pass by at 8:50PM. The tunnels were quiet as she made her way through them. She only had to shot one lonely infected. She had made it on time for the train. She hid while the front of the train passed, by then ran up to the tracks and got a grip on one of the ladders on one of the carts. She moved from cart to cart until she found one she could hide in and then slipped in.

This ride was going to be a long one. These trains didn’t go fast to not upset the cargo or have anything move around too much. She finally settled between some crates and sat down. The nights were still warm for now so she wouldn’t freeze too much tonight.

Minako mentally prepared herself for her meeting with Kunzite. She wasn’t 100% sure if he was still there but she was going to take the chance. She had been weak to not face him since. She had to make him remember, break Metallia’s hold on him. She felt in part responsible for the terror the Shitennou have been inflicting over the world. Usagi was gone and that left a gaping hole in her heart. She hated herself that she couldn’t prevent her from sacrificing herself yet again to save them from war. That she had to witness it in a second lifetime. She felt like a horrible leader and useless. She was so sure that they would have won that battle. But the hold that Metallia had on the boys was too strong.

She knew that Metallia had not regained her form 100% and that she continuously had to feed on humans to sustain her. She was hoping that this would help her bring Kunzite to her. If not, she would make another plan to infiltrate the Dark Crystal Castle and put an end to her. Even if it killed her. She couldn’t let the world live like this anymore, she hated feeling the way she did. The people of Earth didn’t deserve this, they never did. She had to make this right. She wanted her normal life again, she wanted her friends back, smiling. Usagi, her Princess. The thought of her brought back the pain of that night. The one that haunts her every night. Usagi was gone… and she would never see her smile again. Hear her laughter. The one she had sworn to protect, in two lifetimes, and she had failed. She pulled a small blanket out of her pack and wrapped it around herself. She took out her phone and sent an encrypted message to Rei saying that she had made it on the train and was on her way to the Oshino Hakkai Springs, then put it away. She set her alarm on her watch to wake her in 2 hours. She closed her eyes and hoped that she would have some dreamless sleep. She needed to be rested for what she had to do. And so, she drifted off.

Chapter 3: Chapter 3 - Ami

Summary:

At the final battle between the Senshi, Shitennou, Beryl, and Metallia. The bad guys win. Sailor Moon is gone. The Shitennou, Queen Beryl, and Metallia rule the world in war. The girls are scattered, powerless and battle to save the Shitennou and the world from further destruction. They now live in a world with no hope. Chaos reigns.

We now follow Ami.

Notes:

When the girls battled Beryl they were 17-18 years old.

This idea was brought to life by Cluckster, she wrote the whole outline and then gave me free rein to go with it as I pleased. The original idea for this fic is in big credit to her. <3

**TRIGGER WARNINGS - TALK OF DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, LOSS, VIOLENCE, DEATH AND BLOOD THIS FIC IS DARK PLEASE BE WARNED ***

Chapter Text

~Chapter 3~

Ami

 

              Ami pulled her long blue hair into a messy bun atop her head. She had let her hair grow out, not caring about her short bob anymore, it now hung to her lower back. She’d been scoping out Buckingham Palace for the past weeks now, committing to memory all the rounds the youma and infected were doing during all times of the day. She knew that Zoisite was inside the Palace, the youma had tied him up in one of the rooms, his mind not fully taken over. They took turns in torturing him, letting him heal just enough to make him bleed again. They moved him from room to room just for a change of scenery.

The wind rustled the loose strands of her hair as she sat atop the Victoria Memorial. The paths around her were barren for the moment. The grounds were destroyed, parts of the wall surrounding the Palace were crumbling down, the memorial gardens around her no longer lived. She double-checked the secret pockets in her sleeves, vials were tucked in nicely for easy access, she had brewed this poison last night making sure it would work at 100%. They had one name on them, Zoi. The other vials tucked into various pockets were for the youma and infected.

Ever since that horrible day, Ami had never been the same again. The events still scarred her, the loss of Serenity, the Shitennou turned, the world went to hell. She broke. Her powers were gone, water still gave her some comfort but it wasn’t the same anymore, the connection she had with it was gone. She felt empty and dead, why she was still going, she didn’t know. Maybe killing youma was the only way to redeem herself. Why the others still stuck with her, she didn’t know. Ami had been horrible to them. But they stuck around and didn’t kick her out. She guessed that she was still somewhat useful. Only talking when she had to, explaining her research to those who wanted to learn and didn’t fear her too much. On one side she hated being this way, but on another, she embraced it, she spoke more with Makoto as they both tended to the herb gardens. She envied her friend for doing her best to keep smiling at a time like this, Ami couldn’t remember the last time she smiled. She had become a shell.

She checked the laces on her black stealth boots, tight and tucked in. She zipped up her leather jacket and checked her gloves, everything seemed in place. She was ready to enter the Palace and find Zoisite. She was on a mission to end him. The Silver Crystal was gone, her powers were gone, there was no saving him. Even if he fought, Metallia still had a hold and would not let go. Ending his life would be a mercy, she told herself that if she could do this one task, maybe, just maybe she could start to heal. The pain had gone on for too long, it had to end.

Ami slipped off the statue and landed without a sound. Pulling up her black scarf to cover her face she made sure the place was still clear. She looked at her watch, she still had 2 minutes before the next march would come by. She quietly made her way through the rubble, trash, upturned earth, and anything else that was lying around. Slipping through the broken gates she made her way around the right side of the Palace, part of that section had been blown open by a bomb at some point in time when the humans outnumbered the infected.

Ami jumped from rock to rock to get inside the 1st floor. She wasn’t too sure where they were keeping Zoisite this night but she was going to find him. As she made her way through the shadows of the hallways, she admired the remaining artwork that still hung on the walls of the Palace. Some still hung broken or burned, unrecognizable. The lush wallpapers and curtains were rotting and falling to pieces. The beautiful floors were broken and cracked. She silently made her way through rooms, looking for any signs of her former lover. She found 2 infected in one of the rooms, snacking on whatever they found. She slipped into the room, took out the dagger that was tucked into her pant leg, and made her way to them. She knew there was no saving them, without her powers or the Silver Crystal, it was a gift she was giving them, Metallia wouldn’t be feeding on them anymore, sucking them dry. She slid in behind them, slit their throats and let them fall. She wiped the blade on her thigh and moved onto the next room.

She went on like this for the next 2 hours, slowly making her way through, killing the infected she came across and poisoned the youma. She made her way to the second floor and that’s when she heard it. His screams. The ones she’d heard for the past couple of weeks and had done nothing about it. She padded down the hallway to where the screams were coming from, then noticed the streaks of blood staining the floors. The youma and infected had dragged him from one room to the next, the streaks darker.

Ami peeked into one of the vacant rooms and saw the aftermath of one of their torture sessions. The sent of dried blood and fluids stung her nose. Her eyes went wide as she looked closer at the room. It was like they had used his blood to paint the room. How he was even alive after this she didn’t know. Metallia must have helped him heal every night, or he would have been dead weeks ago. No one could survive this much blood loss. Horror shuddered through her body and she suddenly felt sick. She walked away from the foul-smelling room and hid in the shadows for the nausea to pass. She had witnessed worse things than this, why was this making her sick? Maybe it was because it was Zoisite’s blood, someone she had once cared for and loved. She pushed those feelings down, deep down into the darkest pit inside her, like she did every time they surfaced. Ami didn’t want to feel those emotions, not anymore, they were useless to her and made her weak.

‘Get a grip Ami!’ she told herself. ‘Breath and let it pass.’

She closed her eyes and concentrated on her breathing, calming herself until she felt better. Once she did, her eyes opened and surveyed the hall she was in before she continued onto her path. Nothing in sight yet. She walked in silence until she reached the room where Zoisite was. She could hear him now. She could tell his throat was hoarse.

“Just end it…” he said, “You have… no need for me.”

She could hear the blood dripping to the marble floor beneath him. Something caught in her throat but she shook it off. Pushed those feelings down even though her eyes stung with tears she would never let show. Blinking them away she peered into the room. Zoisite was chained to the wall, shirt in ribbons, his pants in tatters. His blonde mane was a knotted mess, stained with dirt, blood, and who knew what else. He was bleeding from everywhere. Six youma and 2 infected were in the room, his jailers and tortures of the night.

No, we cannot end you. Pain will be your friend. Metallia said so.” One of the youma said its voice from the depths of hell. When they talked goosebumps ran over her body, nothing about them was human.
Give in, let Metallia have you. No more pain.” Another said.
“No…” it was barely a whisper from his bruised and swollen lips.

Ami couldn’t believe that he was resisting her so much, to go through all this torture. He had been a maniac on the run for these past years, destroying everything in sight. Killing and laughing while doing it. The man she saw from the corner of her eye was not that fiend she had battled for the past couple of years. How and why he was resisting her she didn’t know. So many questions spinning around in her head to which she had no answers to. She shook her head clear and looked back into the room, taking in every enemy in sight, pinpointing where they were in the room. She made a quick map in her mind and determined which needed to fall first. She would take out the ones hanging out in the back, laughing and snickering. Then she would make her way to the closest ones until she would destroy the ones cutting up her former lover with their claws.

She calmed herself and blocked out his voice. She slipped in and executed her plan. Creeping in the shadows she made her way to the back, grabbing 3 pouches of youma poison from her belt, she quickly took them down, shoving the powders down their throats. They all fell to the ground in pain and screeching. Now she had to act fast. She grabbed her dagger and then went for the 2 infected in the middle of the room, she jumped onto one, bring it down with her weight, diving the blade into its neck, black blood spilling. She rolled off him and then tripped the other, it fell with a thud, Ami wrapped her legs around it and ended this one too. Now the 3 youma who were occupied with Zoisite were turning around and were wondering what all the commotion was about. Ami rolled away into the shadows, her heart beating fast in her chest, she tried to calm down. She’d never had to take down so many targets at the same given time. But she had trained for this, hours and hours until she couldn’t stand anymore. She just hoped that the dying screams of the other youma wouldn’t attract the others walking around the palace that she had missed. She hoped that the walls were thick enough.

Who is there…” one said, venom dripping from its black teeth. The others scanned the room and saw their comrades lying still on the marble floor.
Come out, come out.” Another added sniffing the air.

Ami’s breath caught in her throat. She tried not to breathe too hard, but her heart kept thundering in her chest. She hoped they wouldn’t hear it. She swallowed down some of her fear, grabbing 2 vials she popped the lids off with her thumbs in one quick motion, the plastic stoppers falling to the ground with minimal sound. The 3rd youma heard them fall and its head now pointed in her direction, its mouth a grotesque smile.

I see you, little shadow.” It said taking a step forward, “Come out and join us.

Zoisite tried to lift his head to see who was there but his left eye was swollen shut and the right had blood dripping into it, he couldn’t see much. His body ached, his head was spinning from the loss of blood, he could feel Metallia inside him, slowly knitting the bigger damage and replenishing his blood supply so he wouldn’t die. It was like this day after day, he just wanted it to end, but she wouldn’t let it. He would suffer like this until someone actually ended him or he gave back into Metallia. Through his blood-soaked eye, he could see that 2 of the larger black shapes had fallen to the ground, shrieking in pain and gurgling.

Ami had taken down 2 more youma, their mouths foaming a black and red substance. It smelled horrific; she was glad to have the mask across her face to help with the smell. She was covered in black blood; she would have to change soon before it melted off her clothes. She looked up at the giant youma in front of her, its glowing red eyes boring into her, acid dripping from is jaw, these youma were grotesque creatures. Its taloned hands dripping with Zoisite’s blood.

Pretty little girl, come to play?” it said, showing more teeth.

Its voice made Ami’s skin crawl. Of course, she had to keep the biggest creature for last. She mentally checked her inventory. She still had some poison to kill this beast. She slowly stepped out of the shadows, loose strands of hair falling around her face.

Ah! There you are, pretty.” It took a step closer; its clawed foot screeching on the marble floors.

She touched her poisoned dagger; she would be able to stun it enough to move over to its head and shove down the rest of her concoctions down its throat. But before she could make a move it lunged for her, she barely got out of the way, its sharp claws slicing through her jacket. She cursed and rolled away clutching her left arm, she gave it a quick look, only ripped her jacket, she sighed in relief. Ami looked back in time to shield her face from the youma’s backhand blow which knocked her across the room next to where Zoisite was bleeding. The wind knocked out of her she did her best to regain control of herself, her head slightly spinning her arms ached from the hit. She shook the spots away from her eyes and searched for the youma. It was coming at her. She pushed her pain aside and jumped as high as she could, the creature running under her, she twisted in the air and did her best to land on the thing’s shoulders but it twisted as well. Ami landed on its back and grabbed at some of the spikes protruding from its head, her heart was drumming in her chest as she fumbled for her poisoned dagger.

Let go!” it hissed.

Ami held on for dear life, teeth clenched, as the demon twisted and tried to grab at her. Her arms screamed in pain but she didn’t let go, the creature stopped moving enough for her to grab her dagger and plunge it into its spine. Its screams echoing off the walls, Ami let go, fell to the floor, and pushed herself between its legs as it struggled to remove the dagger from its back. Once she was in front of it, she rocked herself on her back to her hands and pushed her body up, her right leg colliding with its jaw, a loud crunch was heard, it staggered backward losing balance. Ami had landed back on her feet and kicked the youma in the chest as hard as she could finally making it tip over to the ground. Its shrieks of pain ringing in her ears, she did her best to block the sound out and she pawed for the remaining poisons she had for this monster.

Grabbing what she needed she then threw herself at the demon turtling on the ground, she landed on its chest with a loud crack, knocking the wind out of it, her hands and arms trembling in pain, she shoved her left foot on its nose and top teeth and using her right hand she locked its jaw open, the smell and the sounds that it was making made her gag and her ears ring. Ami hurried with her remaining hand to remove the stoppers from the 3 vials that were now in her hand. The youma wiggled in pain, trying to knock her off but she held on, stoppers now off she crammed the vials and dripping poison into its putrid throat, the smell burning her eyes. She unhooked her foot from its top teeth and with her hand she slammed the jaw shut making sure that the liquids made their way down. Sweat covered her body, her breathing labored, her heart still hammering in her chest as she flipped off the demon and let the poison do its work. Ami backed away and then met the wall that Zoisite was chained to. She slid down to sit, her legs giving out, trembling, the ache in her arms blooming back into existence.

The youma was twisting and turning in pain, trying to spit out what it could but it was too late, the poison was already at work. She only had to wait a minute or 2, the bigger ones took longer to die. Its screams making the walls and floors tremble, she could feel it. She swallowed down the bile that was threatening to go up, the smell was getting to her, to smell this bad they had to come from the deepest bowels of Hell. She put her arm over her already covered nose to block off the sent. She hated this part, such wretched creatures, made so much noise when they died and smelled like a mixture of too many rotting things. She was going to need a nice hot shower after this.

 

Finally, the screams were dying down, the youma only twitching, it wouldn’t be too long. Her muscles screamed in pain, she had some healing tonics with her, but she wasn’t going to use them until she knew the beast was dead. She brought her knees up to her chest preparing to jump up if she needed to, she had to stay alert. Swallowing the ache in her limbs she kept her sapphire eyes on the dying creature, all sorts of liquids pouring out of it, bubbling over the floor.

 

‘Ugh, why did this one need to smell so bad?’ she thought, bile threatening once again. She didn’t have a large diner that night and she was going to make sure she kept it down. Finally, she saw the youma take its last sigh of breath, its body starting to collapse into itself. Her legs fell in front of her in a sigh of relief. Her trembling fingers went to her leg side pocket for some healing herb mixture and liquid pain blockers. She still had one mission left to do and it was hanging to the wall next to her, breathing hoarsely and dripping blood. He didn’t so much as move while she had fought off the youma and infected. They must have done a number on him.

 

Ami pulled down her scarf, swallowed down her tonics, and let the vials fall out of her hand, clinking to the ground. The only vials she had left were the ones she had brewed for him. She took a moment to breathe and relax and let the medicine settle into her stomach. Ami unzipped her jacket and pulled off her scarf to breathe better, the cool air hitting her, she felt better. Her tank top was soaked in sweat. She shrugged off her stained gloves and threw them in front of her, landing with a wet smack. Letting her skin breathe was helping her relax. Ami slid the vials for Zoisite out of her sleeves and put them in her pocket, she slipped out of her jacket and left it next to her, she re-examined her arm where the thing had sliced through, only bruises were peppering. She looked at her other arm, bruises were forming there as well. She sighed and pushed herself up. She needed to get this over with.

 

Her hair was a mess, she removed the elastic from the bun that was coming undone and let her blue waves fall down her shoulders and back. With unsteady legs she walked up to Zoisite, taking in the sorry sight of him.

“Wake up.” She said, her voice a command.

He didn’t stir. The bleeding was slowing down. The floor was sticky around her. She grabbed his tangled mess of hair and pulled his face up to hers. His left eye was swollen shut, the right was partly open. Green eye soaked in blood not registering. She shook his head.

“Wake up.” She said again.

His right eye fluttered, searching, trying to see.

Ami kept her calm, blocked away her emotions. She needed him awake.

Zoisite felt a tugging at his hair. A long-ago familiar voice telling him to wake. But he didn’t want to. In this state, he was in a somewhat peaceful place, where Metallia couldn’t break through. Again, the tugging of his hair, his head being shaken, the same voice echoing in his head. The voice painted a beautiful face, with sparkling sapphire eyes and hair to match. Princess Mercury. Ami. His past lover. Laughing and smiling at his side. His hand in hers. No, he had to wake up. He couldn’t let Metallia take this away from him. He wouldn’t let her see those precious memories.

His eye fluttered open, trying to register who was in front of him, holding his head up. He blinked at the remaining blood staining his eye. Metallia was still slowly healing his body. He looked at the emotionless face staring back at him. Those eyes. He knew those eyes. He must be dreaming again.

 

“Stay awake.” She spoke.

He tried to smile, a cut laugh escaping his lips. He coughed out some blood. Was this Metallia messing with his head? He did his best to regain his full attention. It wasn’t easy, but he willed his body to react, the bite of metal stinging his wrists over his head, still shackled to the wall. He could hardly feel his legs, cut up and knees damaged from all the kneeling the height of the shackles made him do. His body groaned in pain, but he had to make sure if she was real or not. He just wanted to see her one more time, see those eyes he loved to lose himself in, those cupid bow lips he could kiss forever. Just one more touch of her skin.

Ami had watched as Zoisite did his best to regain consciousness, deeming him awake enough she let go of his hair and crouched down to his height. She knew he wouldn’t be able to stand just by the sight of them. She debated unhooking him from the wall, but she didn’t know how much hold Metallia had on him. Finally, his eye registered that she was there, she grabbed his face and wiped the blood away from his eyes hoping it would help.

Zoisite felt a hand grab his face and clean the blood away from his eyes. His left eye throbbed. He knew that touch, those fingers. But there was no way she would be here. He had come here to make sure he wouldn’t see her again. Once he blinked away the blood screen, he finally saw the shape of the woman he loved in front of him. Her emotions concealed, those sapphire eyes on him, her face dirty, stained with blood and dirt, her hair cascading waves around her frame, he had never seen her with long hair before. He was tempted to smile again; he loved this new look.

“My… ocean goddess…” he croaked out.

A rush of emotions rippled across her body at the mention of that name. A name he used to call her oh so long ago. Tears burned her eyes but she blinked them away. This was not the time to break down.

“Don’t call me that…” she whispered, her throat hitching.
“Is that really you?” he managed to say.
“Yes…”

“So… I’m not dreaming…” he breathed, head lolling as he tried to stay awake.
“I’m here to end you.” She said, the words burning her tongue and throat.
“Thank you…” he muttered.

Ami was slightly taken aback by his response. Why would he be thanking her? He should be raging after her. Try to kill her. But he wasn’t. How much of hold did Metallia have on him at the moment? She couldn’t be sure, but this was not the Zoisite of the years that had just passed. What happened?

“Zoisite…” she whispered, she didn’t know what to expect.
“It’s me… Ami…”
“But… how?” she now knelt in front of him, her body not listening to her. All she wanted to do was take him into her arms and hold him for dear life.

“You…” he said, as he spat out some blood dribbling from his mouth.
“Me? I don’t… understand.” Emotions caught in her throat, eyes stinging, she couldn’t break. She wasn’t allowed to. That’s all that Metallia wanted, she would do anything to get a hold of the former Senshi of the Silver Millennium. Suck them dry of whatever celestial power they had left.

“It was… always you…”
“Stop it! I won’t… won’t let you say these things!” she said trying to keep her focus and command in her voice. She did her best to push down all the emotions that tried to surface. “You’re just her puppet, you need to die, so… that others can stay safe.” She managed to get out. Her heart screamed at her.

“Do it… before she takes… over again…” he said as he groaned in pain, the shackles continued to dig into his flesh, his wounds burning. He couldn’t believe that it was actually her. He was happy that he would die by her hand, he wouldn’t want it any other way. He would be at peace and wait for her in the heavens. Wait for his goddess to return to him once more. He had made a deal with Metallia, he had given himself over to save Ami, the evil mistress told him that she would spare the life of the one from Mercury if he handed himself to her, so he took it. He wasn’t even sure that the creature would keep her promise but he had to take that chance.

But in these past couple of months, he had started to resist her, it was small at first, inch by inch a little more each day, but he could always feel those claws in him, ready to pull him back at any moment. Why she let him be this way, he didn’t know. Maybe a sick game she enjoyed. Visions and memories of Ami and his past life with her were the only things keeping him sane. He blocked all of those from Metallia’s eyes. He had tried to take his life on many occasions but there was always a youma or an infected nearby to stop him and put him back in his place. And at times Metallia would sink her hands in deep and stop him herself. She enjoyed his suffering, she reveled in it and fed off it.

The swelling around his left eye was slowly going away, Metallia was speeding up the process of his healing. She knew who he saw in front of him, peeking in like a stalker. He closed his eyes so that she couldn’t use them to see her.

“Ami, please… “ he pleaded, “She knows…”

Ami stood up; fear crept into her bones. She stood there, looking at him, frozen, her hands were shaking. She couldn’t will herself to reach down into her pocket to grab the last 2 vials. Metallia was still inside him and he knew it. He was pleading with her to end him before she took over completely again. She turned around and started to pace back and forth. Why was she hesitating? She had one more step to take. He was right there, asking for her touch of death. But this wasn’t the evil creature that tormented Tokyo and the UK. This was her Zoi, the one she loved. It broke her heart all over again. The heart that she had set in stone that faithful day was starting to crack. She couldn’t let it happen. She whipped around to face Zoisite, her blue locks flowing around her.

“Turn!” she commanded.

Zoisite lifted his head to look at her, puzzled.

“What?” he said, hoping that he had heard wrong.
“Turn over to Metallia!!” she shouted, her eyes closed to keep the tears in.
“Ami… I… don’t…” he trailed off.
“It’s the only way. I… I…” she stuttered.

Zoisite blinked at her, his left eye almost back to normal, his lips no longer swollen. ‘She can’t be serious?’ he thought to himself.

“Ami… you, you can’t… mean that.” He asked, pain in his voice. He had opened his eyes to look at her.
“It’s the only way… I can end you.” She said, her eyes stinging so bad that she couldn’t keep them at bay anymore. They flowed freely down her stained face.
“You can do it now, it’s ok.” He said, taking in her beauty one last time. “I want you too.”

Ami wiped the tears flowing down her cheeks, but they still kept coming. They had managed to break through and now there was no stopping them.

“I can’t… not when you’re… you!” she managed to get out. She turned around again, trying to control her emotions. She had been doing so good these past years, keeping everything deep down in that dark pit. But seeing him like this, being him, helpless, injured, remembering things from the past. Her head couldn’t take it. Even now, as he was, pleading her to end him. She couldn’t do it, not when he was him, the one she still had these gods forbidding feelings for. Her body ached and she was exhausted, the tonics that she took were taking effect and she was starting to feel better, but they couldn’t help with the onslaught of emotions that raged in her heart.

“You need to do it now… she will send an army for you.” He said from his chains. The wounds had stopped dripping and were slowly knitting themselves back together, he was starting to feel his legs again. “Please… don’t let her take over again…”

Her hands shook, she was in pain, she was mad and sad, but her love for him was still there, too many conflicting emotions swirling inside her, she couldn’t stand it. Her whole body trembled. Too long she had kept everything down and hidden in the darkest parts of her and only a look from him and hearing his voice was her undoing. She had to regain control. She fell to her knees, kneeling, hands on her knees trying to control her thundering heart and her ragged breathing. She was stronger than this, she had proved it these past years. She was a mess, she closed her eyes and let the rest of the tears fall, she swiped at her face, the tears smudging all the dirt, blood, and grime. They had to end soon.

Zoisite couldn’t bear to see her like this. He didn’t like to see her cry; he had done what he could so that she could always smile with him. But these were other circumstances, a different time, he had no control over the situation, didn’t know what she had gone through these past years. The memories of the past years were a blur to him, many things he didn’t remember, or made sure not to remember. He knew Metallia had the power to make him live through all the moments if she wanted to. She would enjoy every minute of his suffering. He had only held onto the memories of Ami. He didn’t even know where his brothers were, didn’t know what happened to Endymion, his prince. He wondered if they were in the same situation as him or still causing chaos all over the world.

He snapped back to the present and saw his goddess on her knees, her back to him farther down the room, he could see her trembling and he heard her sobbing. He hated causing her this pain because he was the cause of it. He couldn’t save himself, he wanted her to take his life, it was the only way. He hung his head.

“Ami…. Please, I don’t… want to go on like this.” He pleaded with her. The blood on his body was drying and made his skin itch, the shirt he had been wearing was in ribbons, stuck to his chest by blood, sweat, and other fluids. His pants were in the same condition.

Ami passed her hands over her face and into her blue locks, the tears had finally stopped, her breathing somewhat back to normal, her heart still pounded but she would deal with it. She had to do it now. Her hand trembled as it reached for her pant pocket where the 2 vials sat. Slipping her hand in, her fingers wrapped around the objects in question and she slowly pulled them out. She took a deep breath and let it out. She could do this. She had to. Without the Silver crystal or her powers, there was no saving him. She hadn’t found any alternative and she hated herself for it. She turned around and faced him. Putting on her poker face, she slowly walked back to where he was kneeling, arms chained to the wall. He was looking better than a few minutes ago. Metallia must be healing him for his next torture session.

She popped the tops off the vials in her right hand with a flick of her thumb. The plastic caps bouncing away from her as she continued to get closer to him. She could do this, she told herself. Ami now stood in front of him and lifted his head to look at her. He was gorgeous as ever, even covered in blood and grime; hair matted as a bird’s nest. She swallowed down her feelings as she knelt in front of him. She looked into his eyes, she saw that there was still a red circle around his pupils, Metallia was still in there, but only a little bit, but she was still there.

“I’m sorry…” she whispered.
“It’s not your fault...” he said.

Ami’s bottom lip quivered, she bit down on it and looked away. ‘Breath.’ She thought. She then looked back up at him, he had tears in his eyes and a small smile.

“I’ll meet you in the next life, my love. I’ll always find you.” He said.

Ami’s trembling left hand went up to cup his face, he leaned into it, committing the touch to memory. Tears fell from his lashes. Ami grabbed his chin and kissed him deeply, her trembling lips on his cut ones. She could taste his blood and tears, she didn’t care, he kissed her back with the same burning, his mouth opening to hers. She savored every bit of it, his mouth exploring hers, everything so familiar but also new at the same time. They weren’t able to have this goodbye in their past life so she took advantage of the situation.

 Zoisite deepened the kiss, his breath hot and heavy, taking in everything he could. Gods he had missed those lips. He desperately wanted to touch her but the shackles dug into his newly healed wrists. He would content himself with what he could take, her soft trembling lips on his, he took it all in. She had caught his bottom lip between her teeth and he let out a moan, hungry for more.

Breathing heavily, she broke the kiss, silent tears flowing from her eyes, she grabbed his jaw.

“I love you, my ocean goddess.” He whispered, trying to catch his breath.
“I’m sorry my love…” her emotions caught in her throat. She lifted his chin and dipped the vials to his kiss swollen lips. Silent tears fell from his eyes.