This is the sequel to my earlier work, "Mars Fire Ignite". If you
haven't read that one, you probably should. Some parts of this come
from my first work.
Also, if you are wondering where this fits in in the Sailor Moon
timeline, don't. It doesn't fit anywhere in that universe. The Inner
Scouts are around 17 years old right now, some two to three years
after "Mars Fire Ignite".
Disclaimer-wise, Sailor Moon and her friends are the property of Naoko
Takeuchi, and they're copyrighted by her, and to a lesser extent, DiC
(those manglers!). Also, there is a good bit of Forgotten Realms
flavor in here, and they belong to TSR (or Wizards of the Coast,
depending on how you look at it). Most of the other things spawned
from my own imagination, so I'd like credit for such. Enjoy!
Note: For those of you familiar with Forgotten Realms, and more
specifically, the drow warrior Drizzt Do' Urden, I would like to make
it clear that Chaszmyr is NOT, I repeat, NOT a copy of that
copyrighted and fabulous hero. Chaszmyr was a character created by my
best friend long before I made him read the Drizzt novels. Both of us
were rather surprised at the likenesses.
Comments, criticisms, compliments to schoudh@eos.ncsu.edu
-------------------------------------
Quest for the Silver Imperium Crystal
by Soumitra Choudhury
Chapter 4: Mortal Combat
-------------------------------------
"Kami-sama!" whispered an awestruck Sailor Moon. No one else
could add anything more.
Mars' transporting globe carried them out of the waterfall
that dropped from the fountain chamber above. They emerged into a
cavern far larger than anything they could have imagined.
The water fell nearly three hundred feet from the ceiling,
landing with a ferocious roar in the center of a small underground
lake. Of course, small was in relation to the cavern itself, which,
being vaguely circular in shape, had a diameter of roughly half a
mile. The lake was only a mere five or so hundred feet in diameter.
Still, as impressive as the size of the cave was, that didn't
compare to the hills and mounds of piled treasure strewn about between
the lake shores and the cavern walls. They knew there was that much
wealth because the whole chamber was lit with literally hundreds of
torches about the outskirts, held in wall sconces. The flickering
flames lent the chamber an eerie mood, as there were many corners
cloaked in darkness, though the glint of gold, silver, and gems aided
in lessening the oppressiveness.
Hundreds of thousands of coins lay about in great heaping
mounds, saturated with gems and jewelry ranging in all the colors of
the spectrum. Ancient weapons and armor rested with haphazard care,
lying next to a king's fortune in artwork or pretty little baubles of
minor worth. Crowns, scepters, and ermine robes, goblets, chalices,
and tiaras, coins, bars, and gemstones, anything one's heart desired
lay here, lost in this vast cave for anyone to find, but at what
price?
"We're rich!" Sailor Moon cried, gleefully jumping up and
down. Though it didn't disturb the passage of the transport globe,
Mars grew irritated nonetheless.
"Stop it, Serena! Have you forgotten that we're already rich?"
Moon stopped jumping. "Oh yeah... well, now we're more rich!"
The leapings began again.
By this time, the globe had found a clear patch of land near
the shore, and settled to the ground. With a small pop, it
disappeared. Mercury instantly dropped her visor over her eyes and
started typing at her keyboard. "If anyone is interested, there is
over $3 billion worth of gold in this cave," she said blandly, her
concentration focused on finding the Crystal.
Szaravel also scanned about the area, using her sight to
distinguish between the mundane wealth and the enchanted. She didn't
seem too disappointed. Every few minutes, she would push an object
aside with the tip of her staff, idly searching through the piles.
Meanwhile, Sailor Moon and Xune went to the shore to help
Chaszmyr and the remaining Scouts back to dry land. When Jupiter and
Venus managed to flop down, breathing hard, Venus gasped out, "Want to
try that again, Jupiter?"
"Anytime, Venus, though let's make sure to keep our Scout
suits on. I think they may have saved us from serious pain."
Mars muttered something foul about stupidity in accordance to
brunettes and blondes.
Chaz removed his helm, shaking his head to let his flowing
hair free of tangles. "My, my. This little fortune can buy quite a bit
of Sembia, now couldn't it?" He picked out a gleaming bracelet of
emeralds and held it out to Xune. "A trinket of love to match your
beautiful eyes."
Xune smiled, a bit foolishly. Mars leaned over and whispered
into her ear, "If I were you, I'd consider keeping him."
If there was a response, it was lost in the sudden roar of all
the torches flaring in brilliance, bathing the vast cavern in a fiery,
hellish glow.
"WHO ENTERS MY DOMAIN WITHOUT PERMISSION?"
The voice tore through their minds, dropping them to their
knees. In the center of the lake, the waters erupted in a boiling
froth.
"What in the Nine Hells is that?!?" screamed Xune, though her
voice was tiny compared to the dull roar of the torch flames. On her
back, Orthae Abban burst into a pure silvery white glow that
illuminated even through the leather scabbard.
No sooner had he seen that then Chaszmyr had Lyonesse and
Azariel drawn. "It seems we are trespassing!!" he cried back.
"Yes, but trespassing on whose property?!?" Mars yelled. As if
on instinct, Jupiter, Venus and she had surrounded Sailor Moon,
attempting to shield her from whatever danger was about to pose
itself.
In the center of the lake, a colossal serpentine head broke
through the surface, a full hundred feet in length. In the glow of the
flames, darkened blue scales, the hue of the deepest sea, shone with a
dull polish, contrasting frighteningly well with the pearl white
orbs. Those eyes, pupilless, were much bigger than any one person
standing straight, perhaps bigger than two people one top of each
other.
The head gave way to a sleekly muscular snakelike body covered
in the same dark scales. It rose another few score feet, until it
towered over the party. A pair of long slithering arms emerged from
the lake also, so long, in fact, that they reached to opposite shores
of the lake and braced the creature at its overbearing height.
Mars felt a wave of mind-numbing fear wash over her,
threatening to paralyze her into helplessness, but she fought hard to
push the feeling back. Looking at the others, she could tell they were
faring just as well.
Whimpering, Moon dropped to the ground, her head in her
hands. Likewise, Venus was having a hard time trying to keep from
tearing away at a sprint. Jupiter remained stoic, facial features
locked in a straining rictus of concentration. Even Mercury, cool,
level-headed Mercury, wobbled a bit, attempting to tear her eyes away
from the monstrosity to continue scanning for the Crystal.
The drow seemed to be doing better. Chaz had relinquished his
blades in favor of his crystalline bow. Xune was praying for guidance
to her goddess, and Szaravel was busy chanting softly, her staff's
crystal sphere blazing with eldritch light.
"AHH..." purred the deep voice within their minds. "A FINE
REPAST MEETS ME BEFORE I SLUMBER."
Mars whirled on the blue haired Scout. "Have you found the
Crystal yet?!?" she whispered harshly.
The computer bleeped a few times. "Yes! It's on the left side
of the lake from us, three hundred and fifty-seven feet from here!"
"HO HO! YOU SEEK THE CRYSTAL, DO YOU?" The draconic creature
grinned, revealing a hideous maw of bone white fangs and sword-sharp
teeth. "PERHAPS YOU SHOULD ASK NICELY AND I SHALL GIVE IT TO YOU."
"What is your name, noble being? We seek no quarrel with you,
only that we may retrieve what is ours and return from whence we
came."
The creature languidly focused on the male of the group. "NO
QUARREL? YOU ARE IN MY TREASURE VAULT! HOW CAN YOU SAY THERE IS NO
QUARREL? AND YOU ADMIT THAT YOU WILL STEAL FROM ME? I AM YOUR DEATH,
MORTALS! I AM THE DRAGON ONE!" And with that, it bellowed out a
thunderous roar that crashed through the cave like a crushing
mountain. Ponderously, it dragged itself forward, feet by feet.
"Scatter!" Szaravel cried, diving for the puny safety of a
gold mound. Chaz and Xune sprinted for other mounds, while all the
Scouts did likewise.
All except one.
Sailor Moon huddled in fear, sobbing into her hands, unable to
move away from imminent death. The sheer aura of such an overwhelming
creature grounded her to the floor.
Mars and Jupiter were the first to notice their illustrious
leader's immobility. "Sailor Moon! Get up NOW!" the sorceress
screamed, stopping in midstride and sprinting back. Jupiter was a step
behind. By then, The Dragon One had halved the distance to the shore.
Mars and Jupiter each grabbed an arm and dragged Moon to her
feet. "There's no time for this, Serena!" Jupiter yelled, pushing
while Mars pulled the distraught blonde. "We've got to find cover!"
"Get out of there, you fools!" Szaravel cried, waving wildly
and pointing at the creature. "He's breathing!"
'Well, that made no sense,' Sailor Moon thought to herself as
she wiped away her tears, until the was a sharp intake of air behind
them. She glanced over her shoulder and saw the dragon inhaling
deeply.
Mars, realizing the sound for what it was, knowing they
wouldn't make it to safety, threw the blonde into Jupiter's
grasp. "Go!" The brunette hesitated, but Mars had already shoved past
her, back to the shoreline.
The sorceress raised her arms to the ceiling forcefully, and
suddenly her red cloak billowed behind her in the grasp of an
unnatural galeforce. From her outstretched fingers, pencil-thin beams
of scarlet raced out, curving in and out, to and fro, until they
formed a web-like dome around her.
Just as the intake of air finished, Mars clapped her hands
together, and each strand in her dome burst into flames, drowning her
out into nothing but a silhouette. A vortex of wind erupted from the
dragon's maw, crashing into the web-dome with thundering force, nearly
extinguishing the flames. The dome bent inwards quite a bit, and
inside, Mars' shade crumpled slightly, but the protective barrier
held.
Behind the mounds of gold, Szaravel gaped in awe at the
display of defensive magic. Few things in the world were known to hold
back the breath of a dragon, and only the most skilled wizards could
attempt them. For this foreigner to be able to wield such magic was
awe-inspiring.
Still, from her vantage point, Szaravel could tell that the
human would be needing a great deal of help in this. Quite frankly,
she expected a few of them to die, as any dragon is no laughing
matter. Szaravel would simply make sure that none of the drow died on
her vigil.
She murmured the words to a spell, weaving her delicate
fingers in the air.
A sphere of magical darkness popped into being, masking out
The Dragon One's left orb. Quickly, Szaravel spouted the words for
another, and seconds later, another darkness globe covered the right
eye.
The breath of galeforce sputtered away as the creature roared
in outrage, whipping its head back and forth in a futile effort to rid
itself of the blinding globes. Great waves of water splashed about
from the thrashing, spraying chilling liquid over those close enough
to feel it.
Chaz touched his earring. 'Keep it occupied while I get the
Crystal,' he telepathed to Xune. From another mound, Xune replied an
affirmation.
The web-dome shattered, releasing Mars from its protective
shell. The raven-haired sorceress, legs wobbly from the beating her
spell took, stumbled back through the treasure and plopped down near
Jupiter and Moon, her breath coming in ragged gasps. "Such
power... very strong," she whispered so low, none heard her.
"Love and Beauty Shock!"
A glowing golden heart shot from behind a pile, angling
upwards towards the beast's snout, and crashed resoundingly with its
upper lip. A shower of sparks exploded on impact, causing the dragon
to rear back in pain.
Suddenly, the orbs of darkness dissipated, revealing the
flashing pearl eyes. "AN IRRITATING TRICK. NOW, FEEL MY POWER!" He
raised one of his long, gangly arms and spread his claws, the hand
coming to nearly three score feet in span.
Jupiter, Moon and Mars scurried to their feet and dove out
from under the descending claws. The enormous hand crashed down,
scattering numerous items of wealth in all directions, showering the
three in a hale of coins and treasure.
A marble candlestick holder smashed into Sailor Moon's temple,
knocking her out instantly. She fell to the ground with a muffled
grunt.
"Sailor Moon!" exclaimed Jupiter, sliding to a stop and
picking up her injured leader. A smear of blood dripped down the
blonde's temple and down her ear.
The great draconic claw raised once again, ready to smash the
trio of Scouts to a messy pulp.
"Venus Crescent Beam Shower!"
"Mercury Aqua Mirage!"
From somewhere behind another pair of mounds, blazing beams of
concentrated gold light seared forth, joined by streams of chillingly
blue bolts. The storm of firepower smashed unmercifully into the
beast's hand, driving it back. Several crystalline scales shattered
under the Scouts' power, ensuing a pain-filled scream from the
serpent.
Meanwhile, Xune sheathed her sword and clasped her hands
together. "Eilistraee, grant me your strike of flame to smite this
evil!" she prayed fervently. Once again, her circlet sparkled with the
glint of silver.
From a point several feet above the dragon's head, a whirl of
fire winked into existence, then showered down in a single fiery
pillar, striking it directly between the eyes. As soon as the fire
touched its scales, however, the pillar sputtered in strength, and
fluttered away, as if snuffed by a pair of giant fingers.
Ignoring for the moment the trio of girls it had meant to
squash with one blow, the dragon whipped its head about and inhaled
ferociously, settling its gaze upon the mound hiding Sailor Venus.
Mercury dashed out and shoved Venus out of the way just as a
superheated cloud of dust belched forth, engulfing the blue-haired
Scout in a suffocating mass.
Venus, being the closest, watched in horror as Mercury
clutched at her throat, coughing and gagging, her eyes bulging at the
lack of air. Her skin blistered almost instantly, reddening
painfully. Even her hair and parts of the Sailor suit curled up and
melted under the scorching heat.
The Ice Scout's gaping eyes raised to plead for Venus' help,
then rolled into her head as she fell heavily to the treasure-strewn
ground, her corpse smoldering in the heat of the cloud.
For a few eternal seconds, time stopped for the rest of the
Scouts, as each saw with pristine clarity Mercury's death flash
through their minds hundreds, maybe thousands, of times.
The Dragon One used the scant moments to grab hold of the
smoking body. "THIS IS THE RESULT OF YOUR TRESPASSING." A definite
sneering note dripped from his tone. Negligently, he tossed the corpse
aside, and it flopped dully upon a suit of mithril plate armor.
The first to recover from this outrage was Szaravel, shaking
her head at the stupidity of trying to save someone else's life over
your own. "A pity," she mumbled to herself, assaying the situation.
"The human had potential." A plan of attack materialized itself in her
mind, and so she proceeded to cast a few spells, the last of which
winked her out of view.
Jupiter's first instinct was to scream her grief and pound the
dragon with all the force she could muster, but one glance at Mars
reigned in her impulse.
The latter's eyes had become pure milky white.
"Get Sailor Moon out of here, Jupiter," the sorceress hissed
coldly, a slight tremble catching her body. Her tone brooked no
argument. The brunette picked up her friend, tears streaming down her
face, and shuffled out of the way. Before she left, though, she turned
to Mars and whispered quietly, "No mercy."
Mars' did not respond, but white wisps of fire crackled and
coruscated over her body.
*****
On the far side of the lake, Chaz silently picked his way
among the gold, silver, and platinum coins, drawing upon every ounce
of dexterity and concentration in his being to avoid making any
sound. Dragons were notorious for sensing the presence of ANYTHING
within their lair, but he hoped the others were keeping it distracted
enough for him to find the Crystal before anything truly went wrong.
From this angle, he couldn't know that one of his friends had
already fallen.
Quite suddenly, Chaz noticed the fist-sized diamond crystal
partially hidden beneath a polished shield of some red metal. Reaching
hesitantly, he touched the gem, the prize of their search, and lifted
it with a great deal of pride.
It felt warm to the touch... almost alive.
Suddenly, Chaszmyr found himself covered in a glittering cloud
of sparkles that stuck to him with a magical tenacity. Every inch of
him glinted and glowed in the stuff, but it was the rising trill of
bells surrounding him that made him realize the trap that had been
set.
By then, The Dragon One had whipped its head about and located
his frail form amidst its wealth.
*****
Xune was torn between going for Ami's body to see if there was
anything she could do, and aiding the others in the battle, but when
the creature turned to Chaszmyr, the matter was settled. She scrambled
atop the largest nearby mound and leapt towards the beast, Orthae
Abban drawn high above her. Using the power of her enchanted sword,
she enacted her ability to levitate into the air. Like a gliding leaf
in a slight summer breeze, she floated towards the dragon, albeit
slowly and lazily.
"For the Glory of Eilistraee," she whispered to herself,
nearing the dragon's gigantic head just as it turned its attention to
her. She raised her sword for a striking blow, unmindful of the
dragon's hand reaching out to swat her aside.
*****
Venus finally tore her gaze away from the spot Mercury had
died, her mouth gaping like a fish out of water. Her voice wouldn't
come to her, no matter how hard she tried. All she saw were her
friend's pleading mask of agony, boring into her for any kind of
help. Over and over, that look seared itself to her brain.
It threatened to drive her mad.
Nearly thirty feet away, she saw Jupiter drag Sailor Moon's
unconscious body behind a pile of red gemstones. She saw the brunette
glance her way, and move her mouth to demand something of her, but
Venus couldn't hear. The only things filling her ears were Mercury's
pitiful chokes, sucking in nothing but heated dust.
<"Come on, Ami! It's time for you to stop studying and go
shopping with me!"
"Sorry, Mina, but I need to finish this Chemistry- Hey! Give
that back!"
Mina ran all over the park, giggling joyfully as Ami attempted
to catch her, indignant but amused.>
Venus screamed... and screamed... and screamed.
Somewhere in her shrieks, she stood up and added words to her
screams, pointing at The Dragon One.
"Love and Beauty Shock!"
"Venus Crescent Beam!"
"Venus Crescent Beam Shower!"
"Love and Beauty Shock!"
"Venus Crescent Beam Shower!"
Suddenly, The Dragon One was assailed by a barrage of stinging
blows, slamming it all over. Its scales cracked in some areas, pain
lancing as exposed flesh sizzled under the beams. It had never known
this kind of agony before.
A roaring cry thundered from its maw, causing dust to filter
down from the cavern ceiling at the rumble. It turned its attention to
the insolent women who DARED cause it such pain, ignoring the theft of
the Crystal and the floating gnat of a drow. It called upon its own
innate powers.
An invisible force grabbed hold of the Scout of Beauty, lifted
her ten feet in the air, and threw her back, slamming her terribly
into the unforgiving solidity of a ruined galleon. So strong was the
impact that the wood splintered and shattered, as did several of the
blonde's bones.
Before Sailor Venus could fully lose her sanity, the darkness
of unconsciousness settled over her mind.
*****
More power.
More power.
More power.
MORE POWER!
*****
Something was wrong. It realized this as soon as it released
the telekinetic force that had dealt with the human girl. A vastly
magical being, nearly godlike in strength, The Dragon One had some
affinity to the manipulations of magic in its vicinity, and right now,
someone was drawing on a frightening amount of magical energy.
Its left pearl orb settled on the brilliantly shining figure
of the raven-haired human girl, and widened at the display.
All around her, tendrils of white lightning and flames waved
and reached out, crawling several feet from her, drawing on every
speck of energy in the surrounding weave and pulling it into her.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?"
A slight sting diverted its attention to the troublesome drow
who continued to float about its head, stabbing at it with her
blade. It reached up with its claw to finish this insect.
*****
"No, no, no," Chaz murmured, analyzing everything he could do
to help his love. His bow would not reach, and he lacked the ability
to levitate as she did.
"Help her!" he screamed to no one in particular, hoping one of
the Scouts, or Szaravel, would hear.
To his surprise, the Crystal in his hand burst into a star,
and erupted in a blazing gout of cosmic energy. The beam drove through
the air, angled for the claw, and speared through the beast's hand,
severing it cleanly through the wrist.
This time, the serpent's shriek of pain dropped many rocks,
cracking the walls in weaker places. Xune was tossed backwards from
the eruption of sound, tumbling in mid air before settling calmly out
above the shore.
The Crystal winked back to dormancy, its reaction to
Chaszmyr's plea completed, and it was only then that the drow fell to
his knees in excruciating suffering at his bittersweet triumph.
The hand and forearm that had grasped the Crystal had been
charred down to the bone.
*****
Szaravel popped into view next to Jupiter, who was busy
shielding Sailor Moon with her body from falling debris. The drow
sorceress tapped her staff to the ground and whispered a few arcane
words, and suddenly there was a nearly transparent square barrier
hovering above them, protecting them from the falling rocks.
"What is Mars doing?!" she screamed at Jupiter, pointing at
the glowing figure.
"I don't know! She's never done this before!"
"Well, it had better be good! That dragon is going to tear us
to shreds!"
The brunette grunted in response. "We need to buy her some
time!" She stood up defiantly, and raised up her arms.
"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"
The blasts of emerald exploded in sparks upon the creature,
but didn't seem to add to its injuries. It was hard to tell anything
as it whipped about in a frenzy as it did.
"MY HAND! YOU'VE DESTROYED MY HAND!"
Seven spheres, each nearly twenty feet in diameter, each
glowing violet-blue with electricity crackling inside like caged
animals, materialized around the dragon at exactly the same distance
of thirty feet from it.
"WHAT IS THIS?!? YOU CANNOT DESTROY ME!"
A sneer of contemptuous rage crossed Mars' face, and she
gestured with her arms.
Elemental lightning surged from each sphere to the next
sphere, until a ring formed around the dragon. Then, with a tremendous
clap of sonic pressure, a pillar of electric blue energy drilled from
the ring, both up to the cavern's ceiling, and down into the lake's
depths. Thousands of bolts of sizzling electricity arced from the
inner walls of the pillar, slashing and shocking the great beast
without mercy.
The Dragon One writhed and squirmed, squealing in horrible
pain. Every time it tried to burst through the pillar, a tremendous
explosion of sparks blasted it back to the center.
From around the cave, the conscious members of the group gaped
in awe at the phenomenal show, all except Mars, who continued to pour
everything she had into the raging spell.
The dragon would not go down just yet, however. Through the
haze of suffering, a part of its stubborn draconic pride held
tenaciously to rational thought. Concentrating like it had never
concentrated before, The Dragon One drew on its ability to change its
shape into something else completely, something that could withstand
the awful beating it was taking from this spell.
The scales smoothed and changed color from crystal blue the
dull grey of iron. The arms filled out to a pair of muscular limbs,
rather than the gangly long ones it was used to. Even the body, long,
sinuous and serpentine, broadened into the proper torso of a humanoid
construct of iron. Below the lake, its great tail split and became
hulking metal legs.
When complete, no longer was there a 500 foot long dragon of
majestic power, but a 500 foot tall giant iron humanoid creature of
immense strength.
"Dear god!" exclaimed Szaravel, "An iron golem! It's
transformed into an iron golem!"
"So?" the brunette inquired. "It still can't get through that
pillar."
The drow turned to Jupiter with a near hysterical look upon
her face. "Yes! Yes it can! An iron golem is among the most durable
constructs known to this world! They are nearly immune to magic of any
kind!"
As if on cue, the golem punched one arm through the
pillar. This time the explosion did not give it pause, and it began to
methodically push its way through.
Realizing the spell was having no effect upon the creature
now, Mars dropped it and watched the golem carefully. She still glowed
with the light of a blazing star.
In this form, the creature, though immune to the spell,
plodded with agonizing slowness, as if moving through very thick
mud. Reaching the dark-haired sorceress, for that was obviously its
target, would require some time, a few minutes perhaps.
"WHAT NOW, MAGE? I WILL GROUND YOUR FRIENDS TO DUST AS YOU
WATCH, MY DEAR. WHAT WILL YOU DO TO STOP ME NOW?"
"It will take physical blows to defeat it now," Szaravel said,
her shoulders slumping. "Even then, that thing will kill more than one
of us if we dally. We have to flee."
"No! We can't leave without Venus and Mercury! They didn't
deserve this!" Jupiter cried back.
"None of us deserved this, but it has happened nonetheless!
Chaszmyr has the Crystal! I can teleport us home!" Szaravel sighed
softly. "I am sorry about your friends, but there is nothing we can do
for them while the dragon rages."
Xune came into view, struggling to carry Venus' pained form
over her shoulders. "She is correct, my friend Lita. We cannot hope to
defeat such an immense foe."
"And think of your princess. Will you let her die here, away
from her home, because of your stubbornness? You must get her
back. Perhaps later, we can return..."
Jupiter growled, but the sensibility of the drow's argument
eeked through her mind. The golem was only a few score feet from the
shore. They would have to leave before it reached them. She made her
decision.
"Mars, we've got to get out of here!" she yelled, hoisting
Sailor Moon up into her arms.
The sorceress, still glowing, still analyzing the movements of
the approaching danger, did not reply.
"Mars! Hurry! We've got to go!"
"Two can play at this game, Beast," Mars whispered, and she,
too, morphed her form to that of another.
"Dammit! What does she think she's doing?! She can't fight
that thing!" Szaravel shouted, waving her staff in exasperation. The
others watched in awe.
When she was finished, Mars had transformed herself into a
silver phoenix, exactly as she had during her battle with herself
nearly three years ago, though this time, she was nearly five times
bigger. With a wingspan of nearly two hundred feet, Mars sped them out
and blasted forth a clarion call of challenge before rising to the
air.
The backlash dropped everybody to the ground, covering their
faces from the unsettled dust. "She gives us time," Xune said after a
gagging cough. "I'll get Chaz. Jupiter, go find Mercury's body and
bring her here." The latter nodded and took off.
Though there wasn't too much room to maneuver about, the
phoenix managed quite nicely, raking its diamond-sharp beak and talons
about the golem's body, while buffeting it with her powerfully strong
wings.
All was not going well, however. For all of the creature's
lack of speed, it more than made up in sheer strength. Because of the
reduced mobility, the golem was able to land several heavy blows to
the grand phoenix, each one punctuated by a high-pierced shriek of
pain.
The silver bird circled away, fluttering shakily, readying
itself for another pass. Both combatants looked the worse for
wear. The phoenix bled from several gashes to its torso and wings,
while the iron golem had great gaping tears in its metallic armor.
"SURRENDER YOURSELF, MAGE. YOUR END IS INEVITABLE."
"Perhaps, but with my end, I will have given them the
necessary time to escape," returned the phoenix in Mars' voice.
"I WILL HUNT THEM DOWN FOR THE REST OF ETERNITY SHOULD THEY
ESCAPE!"
The bird made a parody of a shrug. "Then I will have to take
you with me to Death." She dove forward, talons exposed to rip the
golem's throat.
Xune reached Chaz just as he was struggling to his feet.
"Chaszmyr! What's happened?!" she cried, reaching for him and spying
his horribly burned arm. She pulled out a flask of healing potion, but
he waved it away.
"No, not yet," he hissed, gritting his teeth, his eyes glued
to the titanic battle over the lake. He raised the Crystal
again. "Help her!" he cried, and the gem burst to life again.
Streams of starlight seared the air, driving in a single blast
through the back of the golem, and piercing through its chest. At the
same time, Mars passed over, tearing through the face of the creature,
and ripped out nearly half of its head.
The arm that still had a hand swung out and grabbed the
phoenix by a leg, causing her to cry out and lose her balance in the
air. Flailing wildly, she scrapped along it arm to dislodge herself,
but the golem, even as it toppled under all the blows it had received,
gripped tighter, crunching the bones noisily.
Mars, lost in a pyrotechnic concussion of agony, relinquished
her spell of shapechange, and the phoenix shrank back to the form of
Sailor Mars. Her leg, mangled and crushed, slipped out of the golem's
grasp, leaving her falling hundreds of feet into the churning waters
of the lake below.
Suddenly, she felt herself slowing, and finally stopping, as
some force gently halted her fall and carried her across the lake
towards Szaravel and Sailor Moon's prone form. Grateful for the escape
from death, Mars slipped into the darkness.
"I WILL... FIND... YOU...," came a hoarse mental whisper
before the golem, battered and beaten, sank below the waters. It was
many moments before the lake returned to a sedate state. There was no
sign of the dragon below its depths.
"Thank you, Blessed Eilistraee, for seeing us through this
nightmare," Xune murmured through her tears as she cradled a senseless
Chaszmyr in her lap, his entire arm blackened and burned. His skeletal
fingers still clutched the Silver Imperium Crystal.
To Continue Later...
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