"The powers to be have spoken!" Blade exclaimed as he stepped into his chambers with Sailor Mercury following close behind, "And they
say that the time is at hand!" Mercury looked at him as if he'd gone crazy but decided that if she were to be truly appreciated she would have
to get used to it.
"Rad! Come here, I need you!" Blade commanded and the same man whom Mercury fought in the park appeared.
"Yes, sir?" He asked.
Sailor Mercury was shocked, "What's he doing here?!" She asked.
"Relax, my dear." Blade said, "He works for me. His methods of persuasion are slightly different than mine. I assure you that he will not attack
you." He then whispered to himself, "Unless ordered."
"Excuse me?" Sailor Mercury asked.
"Huh? Oh, I was just mumbling to myself." He turned to his servant, "Rad, take our guest to the room we've prepared for her and see to it that
she's comfortable." He turned back to face Mercury, "I really must go now, I have duties to attend to." He then walked into an adjacent office
and closed the door.
"Please come with me." Rad said, and walked out. Mercury felt that she might be able to trust him when she heard a very small voice in her
head, "No! Don't!" It said. She ignored the voice and followed the servant.
He led her to the end of a hallway when she realized that this was a simple mansion, one that could be found almost anywhere in any rich
section of a city. Rad stopped in front of a door, "In here, please." He said and opened it for her. Sailor Mercury walked into the room and
gasped,
Some accommodations! She thought bitterly as she saw a strange device with electrodes protruding out of it as well as several other gadgets
which use she didn't want to think about.
This is a torture chamber!
"What do you think you're going to get out of me!?" She yelled and started to turn around to attack but Rad was way ahead of her. Right
before she was able to face the man the last thing she saw was his arm swinging some sort of bludgeon and hitting the back of her head. The
blow wasn't quite enough to knock her out but she lost her balance and stumbled, this gave Rad enough time to push her over to the machine
and the next thing Sailor Mercury knew she was strapped onto it.
"I'm sorry for this," Rad said, "But my orders were to learn as much as possible about your friends from you."
Why did I act so stupid! Mercury thought, I should've listened to Dav. It's all my fault, my selfishness covered the truth. Tears began to
fill her eyes as she watched Rad power up the electrodes.
Inside his office Blade worked on the new formula for his ultra-addictive drug and completely ignored the cries of the imprisoned Sailor Scout
that echoed through the entire mansion.
Back at the temple Raye had laid a still-unconscious Dav on a cot in a room next to the fire-room. She didn't dare call an ambulance since she
didn't know exactly whom he was, where he lived, and there would've been no way to get in touch with his family. According to an earlier
conversation right before entering the arcade today he had said that his family was on vacation and he decided to stay and not miss school
since he hated doing make-up work. He hadn't told any of them where they went.
"Any changes?" Asked Lita who had just entered the room after notifying Serena and Mina.
"I thought he was going to come around a few minutes ago. Right after I set him down he went into a set of spasms and shouted something but
I couldn't understand exactly what."
"I wonder what possessed Sailor Mercury to turn against us. I had really bad vibes from that guy Dav was fighting. What could've happened?"
Raye pressed a damp cloth on the young man's forehead, I really have no idea. But his eyes were glowing with the symbol of Mercury, that's
proof he lived with us 1000 years ago."
"Then Serena was right." Lita knelt down next to her friend, "Is there anything else I can do while you work?"
"Prepare some tea or coffee please." Raye sighed, "Someone may have to be with him in case he wakes up."
"That may take a while. That blast was pretty strong."
"Lucky for him you managed to whack that guy before the second shot could be powered up more or he'd be dead."
"Hey, it was your fire reading that told us where they were."
"But why did Mercury say that 'the bookworm would overpower us'? We've never said anything like that about her, ever. Not even behind
her back."
"That freak man must've tricked her somehow, like showing her a projection of us but changed the dialogue."
"But now I've got this terrible... emptiness... is the best way to describe it. This terrible 'empty' feeling that Amy's in trouble." Raye sighed
again.
"She'll be okay. With her brain power she'll get out of there easily, but unfortunately her brawn can't make do for any dangers where it's
needed as well." Lita put a reassuring hand on her friend's shoulder.
"Haven't you girls ever heard the term, 'The greatest defense makes for a better weapon'?" asked Mina who had just appeared and noticed
that she now had three pairs of eyes giving her questioning looks (one courtesy of Artemis), "What?" She then said.
"Mina remind me to buy you a dictionary of all of these little quotes." Raye sighed, "It goes 'The best defense is the greatest offense'."
"Well," Mina laughed, "It could easily be said that way too, I suppose."
"Enough with your ditzy moments." Artemis said and turned to the other two, "Why the urgent call, girls?"
"Take a look for yourself," Lita said and she and Raye moved to reveal the unconscious Dav.
"That's pretty urgent!" Mina exclaimed as she ran up to him, "What happened?! Is he all right?!"
"Calm down, Mina." Artemis said, "We don't need you to hyperventilate from shock, you know."
"That's not all," Raye said, "He was fighting some guy who tried to blast him and Amy but he took two shots and Amy transformed, told us
that she was through with our team and went with the attacker."
"This is something that definitely can't be taken lightly." Said Luna, who had just walked in with Serena, "Mercury must've been utterly
convinced that we were against her or she would've stayed with Dav. I wonder what those two were doing there alone anyway?" Raye and
Lita exchanged glances as they realized that those two were alone in the park at 8:30 PM.
"I was just about to complain about how you made us all come here so late," Serena said, "But I have to say that sleep can wait." Everyone
gave Serena a very surprised look.
Dav opened his eyes, he had no idea where he was, definitely nowhere physical. All he knew is that he must be dead or dreaming. He looked
at himself and noticed that he was still wearing his casual T-shirt and jeans and was standing on some sort of cloudy platform. He looked
around and realized, based on his fighting instincts, that he wasn't alone. He quickly spun around and saw a young woman standing about ten
feet away from him. She had long green hair and wore an outfit that looked exactly like what the Scouts wore but held a staff that sort of
looked like a key.
"Who are you?" He asked.
"You have nothing to fear from me," she said, "Although I'm not surprised you don't remember me."
"Where am I? Why am I here?"
"We are in your subconscious memories. I was told to guide you to your forgotten moments. What do you remember before three years
ago?"
"N-nothing. But you still haven't told me who you are."
"An old friend. But we have no time for idle chatting, your destiny is awaiting you."
"Destiny? What're you talking about?"
"Enter the Door of Time and regain all of your knowledge, Dav."
"You know my name but I don't know you."
"There is no time! Go now!" The girl stepped aside and a large gate with ornately carved doors appeared. "Remember, once you go in you
cannot leave until you remember. Go!"
"I will. I want to remember." Dav held his head up high as he walked into the now-open doors. As he disappeared Sailor Pluto smiled.
Dav had no idea exactly what was going on, he couldn't move his body when he realized that he wasn't in his body! I get it, he thought, I'm
watching my memories but can't control 'em. He saw himself standing amongst a crowd of people, wearing a very formal outfit, dancing
with a beautiful young woman whose head was turned away from his set of "eyes". The young woman and he made a very beautiful couple.
When was this? He thought, I never remember attending a dance as formal as this. Considering I look as old as I do now. But that
girl I'm with... blue hair?
Could it be...
The dancing couple began to twirl to the soft music of the orchestra, it was then that Dav's "eyes" realized whom he was dancing with...
Amy?!
Flicker...
The scene suddenly shifted to the outside of a palace, only this was a different one. Dav saw himself as a much younger person, most likely
seven or eight. Fountains of clear, blue water surrounded the place he was in. It was his favorite place to come to in all of Mercury. Mercury?
Dav thought, is this the planet Mercury? This must be what it looked like a long time ago. The young Dav was excited as he heard the
procession come by the streets of the city. Today was the anniversary of the signing of the peace treaty between all of the planets, the start of
the Silver Millennium. Every holiday a parade would come through the streets in front of the palace and Dav would always be there to watch
them. But today the streets were unbelievably crowded and so the young boy decided to climb into a nearby tree in order to get a better view.
The small one didn't realize his mistake until stepped on a branch that looked strong, but appearances can be deceiving. With a loud "Crack"
the branch snapped off. And since everyone was so busy watching the parade, they didn't notice a small kid fall inside the palace walls.
Flicker...
Again?! Dav thought, I'm back at the dance?! He could see himself still dancing with the girl who did look exactly like Amy. Could this
have been a previous life? The two finally walked off of the dance floor to the applause of the spectators. The couple walked over to where
another beautiful young girl and her partner stood. Dav looked at the second girl and immediately recognized the hairstyle! Oh no! On
n-n-n-n-no! It can't be Serena! Then that means the other three girls have to be around here somewhere. But I can only focus on
me... and Amy.
"That was beautiful," Serena said, "You two will make an excellent bride and groom next week."
"Thank you, Princess Serenity." Dav said with a bow of respect, "I'm honored to have the privilege to escort a member of your court to this
banquet."
"We are glad to have you here," Serena spoke, "I am sure Amy does not mind at all."
If Dav's spiritual form could reach his hair he'd start pulling it out! Why didn't Princess Serena contract her words?!
"I don't." Amy laughed, "Imagine, I'm the only one who is going to marry a normal citizen. You and Prince Darien will also secure your alliance
with the Earth while the others are betrothed to other princes."
"It just shows how unpredictable you Mercurians are," the man named Darien said, "I'm sure you two will be happy."
"Same for you." Dav said, "When is your wedding?"
"Five days from now," Serena sighed, "It will seem like an eternity."
Flicker...
Glad to be out of that one, Dav thought, I only heard her speak a few lines but how could she sound so corny? I guess I was used to it
back then. Whenever this was. Dav saw the eight-year-old him lying semi-conscious on the grass directly inside that second palace's walls,
only he wasn't alone. He saw a small girl kneeling by him.
"Hello?" She said, "Can you hear me?" The young Dav started to stir and slowly sat up.
"Ugh," he moaned, "Where am I?"
"You're in the palace. I heard a 'thump' directly behind me. You really gave me a scare."
"Who are you?"
"I'm the princess. I hid back here in the garden so I wouldn't have to attend the parade. My parents don't make me go but some of my
attendants think that I belong to them and not my parents, so I have to come here to hide out."
The young Dav noticed the redness in the girl's cheeks and eyes.
"Are you all right? You look like you've been crying?"
"Oh it's nothing. I was just trying to play this," she picked up a small instrument that was placed on the grass beside her.
"A potato?"
The princess giggled, "No, silly. This is Mercury's Ocarina. My father told me that only the one who I was destined to marry can play it. I
once read something about how the ocarina chooses its holder. I've tried to play a lot but for something you just have to blow into it sure isn't
nice."
The young Dav eyed the blue instrument with intense curiosity, until he finally spoke. "Can I see it?"
The princess looked hesitant, "All right, but please be careful." She slowly handed the royal treasure over to him. Dav suddenly had the
strangest feeling. Must be what the little me is feeling, he thought, it's telling me to play. He did, the melody was one of five notes,
repeated, with a closing of nine...
Flicker...
Many more images and scenes appeared to Dav. He saw himself often sneaking into the palace to play the ocarina for the princess. He did
this routine for two years before her father finally found out. The king wasn't mad since he had met his wife the exact same way. The king
immediately took to the young boy and soon discovered that he was an orphan. Dav never knew that until now, out of all of those scenes he
never knew his parents had died right after he was born and he was raised in an orphanage. The monarchy of Mercury accepted him as the
chosen one to marry the princess and gave him their second royal treasure, Mercury's Royal Blade when he was 12 and he swore to defend
her. Even more memories were revealed, his first dance with the princess and the first meeting with the other Guardians who later became his
friends despite his status. A most cherished one of a picnic with just him and Amy, their first kiss at age 14. But the most important memories
were next...
Flicker...
"We're under attack! We're under attack!" Shouted Luna. The two cats ran through the ballroom calling a warning that the Moon Kingdom
was under siege. Dav realized that he was no longer in his spiritual "eyes", but was now seeing things from first person.
"We're going to need everyone we can get! Hurry! To the armaments!" Artemis ordered. Dav and Amy turned around to see the two cats run
into the next room.
"I need to go," Amy said, "The Scouts need me."
"I understand," he said, "I'll fight alongside the others."
"Good luck," she quickly said, gave him a final kiss, and ran out into the battlefront transforming mid-way. Dav stood there for a few seconds,
that kiss was short but to him it felt that it would be the last one he'd ever receive from her. He quickly suppressed those thoughts and put his
Courage before Love and ran out, drawing Mercury's Royal Blade, Dav held the sword hilt high above his head and shouted,
"MERCURY ROYAL POWER!!!"
A column of water immediately enveloped his body and seemed to solidify into a cape with the outer lining being dark blue and the inner lining
white. Dav threw the cape back to reveal a full set of lightweight yet durable armor that was light blue and the blade appeared. After his
transformation Dav joined his friends in the battle.
Flicker...
"Incoming!" Guardian Mars shouted as the Seven Shadows proceeded to turn the entire palace into rubble. Prince Darien had managed to
retreat far enough to help his princess while the rest fought on to the end. But the Negaverse warriors all joined as one and shot out a blast
that rocked the entire moon! Dav managed to take cover behind the only column that was still standing. The explosion that took place was
completely ear shattering, shrapnel everywhere, screams of his friends and allies as they died all over him. He couldn't take it! He kept hearing
voices crying for help but in his fear he couldn't move for what seemed to be years, even though it was only a few seconds. He knew he didn't
have much longer when he heard the echo of Queen Serenity's call of "COSMIC MOON POWER!!!" and the monsters all disappeared,
every single one screaming in pain. When he managed to open his eyes he noticed that the only thing left of his cover was a small chunk of
marble that barely managed to cover him. He then noticed that his right arm had been embedded with a chunk of shrapnel, it cut partway into
the muscle, he removed it and, using a piece of his cape, bandaged it the best he could. He stood up, looked around, and saw the entire
palace reduced to rubble. But that wasn't what made his jaw drop to his knees. The site of the battlefield was completely horrid! Dead bodies
everywhere, his friends, his allies, all gone! The tears couldn't be prevented, he sorely mourned their losses. The silence was deafening, the
only sound he could hear was his heart beating with fear.
Hoping to find someone who was still alive he started running all over the battlefield. The queen had managed to remove all of the monsters
but he felt there was not much time. He passed hundreds of people, none moving. He ran and ran, and before long he reached the four Sailor
Scouts, but one was still trying to move.
It was Mercury.
"M-Mercury!" Dav shouted, knelt down beside her, and held her in his arms, "Come on, you can't leave me. Not you, you can hold on!"
"I-I'm... sorry..." She said, weakly, "But... we're all destined to go... sometime."
"No! You have to stay with me! I can't lose you!" More tears started forming in both of their faces.
"I can't make it... Dav..." she started coughing up blood, "I was... at the rear lines... didn't get the full force of the blast... so I managed to hold
on for a few extra minutes."
"The Queen banished all of them! I can't be the only survivor! My right arm was impaled deeply and that's all I got, surely there's got to be
someone else."
"No... they're all gone..." Mercury was resting her head on his chest, "Here..." she reached into her dimensional pocket where she kept her
transformation stick, "Take this," she opened her hand to reveal the ocarina.
"Mercury's Ocarina? I can't, the princess and her betrothed get only one of two of the planet's treasures I can't take this. The power of the
two will keep me at my age forever."
"You must. Please... play for me once more."
Dav looked at his dying love, "I will, my princess." He took the instrument and played a slow tune, one that represented his life with her after
the first time they had met. This is what I was playing when we ran into each other both times, the spiritual Dav thought, so I put my
emotions into my music then.
The song continued for only a few minutes but both Dav and Sailor Mercury felt that it lasted a lifetime. Another perfect moment in time.
Mercury coughed up more blood and began to close her eyes, "Thank you..." she said. Dav couldn't handle this anymore, he held her tighter.
He said quietly, "Amy... Goodbye... I've always loved you and always will..." the tears wouldn't stop as she simply smiled at him, closed her
eyes, and went limp. The silence heard a cry of total and complete despair that echoed across the lifeless battlefield. He had lost everything!
He wanted it to end...
After another minute he lifted his head and spoke,
"Sailor Mercury... Amy... If we ever meet each other again I promise I'll return your treasure to you." He said just as a yellow light surrounded
the entire area and everything became dark.
Flicker...
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