Nephrite watched the battle. "What the...what is that girl doing?" he muttered. "Youma, wasste no time, drain her NOW!" he cried. *This doesn't look good.* he thought. he noticed Guardian not far from the battle, trying to attack. "We'll see about that. I want that girl's energy!" he scowled and teleported in front of Guardian. "I won't let you interefer in my plans any more boy. Today is the day you shall die!" he cried sending a blast of energy towards Guardian.
Watching his mentor, Zoisite grinned cheerfully. Not only was Nephrite happy with him.... that in itself was a red letter day... but it looked like they might actually be able to reduce Guardian to a tidy pile of ashes. Lifting his hands, razor petalled sakura blossoms rushed out from his palms towards Guardian as well, accompanied by a darkly joyous shout of "Zoi!"
Guardian brought his blade into play, the blade absorbing the center, and most deadly portion of the blast, sending the rest of the energy sprawling outwards around the mystic blade. He gritted his teeth to the pain and kept his breathing calm and shallow as the energy died away. Not a sound escaped except a minor grunt of pain as the blossoms tore into his legs. Falling to one knee he glared at Nephrite from underneath his cowl, his face not visible, "Impressive. Although perhaps you should re-think your plan of my doom."
The monster cackled in Jakurin's face as it held up her precious prize. "Poor human. You won't be around much longer to enjoy thissss!" Jakurin grew angrier and angrier, until the sign that flared on her forehead flashed brightly, and her whole body's outline traced in a yellow aura. With a yell, Jakurin's energy blasted out in all directions, sending the surprised monster sprawling backwards in the air. "What part of MINE don't you understand, you smoke machine reject?!" growled Jakurin, picking up her 'pretty stone'. It was in fact, a large white opal set in silver, with seven colored jewels all around the frame. She gripped it hard as her sign disappeared, unnoticed by Jakurin, scrambling to get away from the freak and to pick up her briefcase. ~What the heck came over me?! I guess I'm braver than I thought!~ she smirked.
Nephrite sent a swirl of stars in Guardian's direction. "By the Power of the Heavens, you will not leave this battle field ALIVE!" he cried.
Springing with his usual spooky speed, Zoisite narrowly dodged the incoming youma. Rolling his eyes, he centered his glare on the creature, "You're supposed to be going after them, not us, you worth hunk of flesh. Now get back in there and kill them!" Shaking his head as Wasuremono rose to his feet, the youma decided to take a different tact this time. All youma came into being with special abilities, the mists clinging to this one being its. Instead of charging in, it opened its hands towards both Guardian and Kitsune. Fogs the shade of the river guarded by Mnemosyne rolled from its palms, carrying with it the power of forgetfulness... oblivion. Turning back to the battle, Zoisite let out a slow whistle of appreciation as the starlight blaze headed for the two. Not to be outdone, he added an outwards blossoming of deadly sharp ice shards.
Jakurin gulped as the monster(s) came rushing forward, and before she could blink, her eyes were covered by a blue, swirling mass of fog. Her eyelids drooped as her arms dropped to either side. ~... must... get away...!~ her brain told her feet, but they wouldn't comply. The 'face' of Wasuremono appeared in front of Jakurin's half-dead one. "Well, little girl, looksss like we won thisssss time..." it grinned, placing a cold 'hand' around her neck with full intentions to choke her to death. Jakurin's mind pleaded, but Jakurin could make no sound. ~Please! Hey! Can anyone hear me? I don't want to die! Help me!!~
In her quarters, Gaia watched the fight. *I can't..i can't allow this!* she thought. *She has the power, she just can't awaken it...where is the Benefactor, why won't he help her! I can't get involved, if I do, my love will be angry, but if I sit aside and do nothing...* she thought and a few tears fell as confusion hit her mind. ~Child, you hold the power to defeat this being in your hands. Tap the power and use it well.~ she sent to Jakurin.
Jakurin's mind cleared a little, as before her eyes a white light flashed. She could see through her slightly blurred haze that her hands were wrapped in red gloves. A fuzzy object approached her with yellow atop the moving solid. "I enjoyed your show; you must perform at my wedding party!" said the girl's voice. "It... would be... a pleasure," said Jakurin slowly, confused. The object moved out of the haze as another suddenly pushed Jakurin aside. "The forces of the Dark Kingdom have arrived!" shouted the bulky stone. "Dark... Kingdom...?" slurred Jakurin. "What is...?" ~Remember, dear girl~ the voice in her head prompted. ~I'm... trying~ she thought back. The haze grew a bit more fuzzy, then sharper as unidentifiable people rushed around in what seemed a large marble hallway. Jakurin glanced down at herself, dressed in an odd assortment of reds and greens. "Errr, gomen, what's going on??" she asked aloud. "You idiot!" said a black-haired girl abruptly, turning on her heels. "Run for your life, get out of here! The Dark Kingdom's going to attack the Moon! Get out of the Palace!!" Jakurin blinked. "Attack this palace?! .... I remember..." Somewhere, Lady Gaia smiled with fresh tears. Jakurin blinked, as her 'view' suddenly changed to that of the Palace outside. A large blast shafted through the roof as yet another senshi ran to join the other girls outside. "I remember that. I had thrown myself at the girl in order for her to survive, not thinking that I could be cooked to a crisp... which I was." A soft, pink and yellow light filled Jakurin's eyes, as she gazed up to see her mother's stone above her head. "But... something happened. I wasn't supposed to be a warrior... something had happened to the real senshi..." ~You need to reawaken, and battle the evil. Whether you consider yourself a warrior or not, you have regained your memories~ came the soft voice. "But what happened?" said Jakurin. "I thought that the sailors were supposed to be handling this. The ones from the Silver Millenium..." ~This dimension has been tarnished by the Dark Kingdom, their forces run amuck. Jakurin, they need you now~ Jakurin gazed up at the stone, as it suddenly flashed and formed into a seven-pointed star crystal, slightly opalescent in its look.
Meanwhile, the youma paused at the stone in her hand glowed, then suddenly zapped her. In pain, it reeled back into the blue fog as Jakurin suddenly gabbed it and said angrily, "NO one is going to tarnish anything, THIS time..." The youma bounced on the ground and shook its head, as suddenly a red blur leapt out into the air. With a yell, the girl pole-vauted with one foot of the head of Nephrite, then landed in a tuck and roll and smashed Zoicite in the ribs with a large staff. Standing and holding her pole out on guard, she growled with a grin, "Hey! It's not nice to have a hazing party when you haven't ordered any entertainment! Allow me to introduce myself. Coming back for her millennial debut," she smirked, as she did a few impressive camera spins. 'The 'sailor' know as Jurei-Jurei!! I cater to the side of good, with occasional interest." The youma growled. "SSSSHIN'NE!!!" it rasped rushing her. "Not today, London Fog," she said, raising her staff to the sky. A large ball of energy formed, and it suddenly took on the shape of 2-dimensional line. With a grin, she held it in front of her as the youma ran right into it and disappeared. Bending over she quickly zipped up the line and said, "Look! Space Pocket!" she grinned. "Now, where did the monster go?" she glanced skyward. On cure, a battered Wasuremono landed with a whump on Zoicite.
"Get off of me, you yarou!" came the pained cry from under the creature. Shoving him off irritably, Zoisite remained on the ground. Breathing hurt, feeling as if fire were burning merrily within his stuck side, to mention the mass of bruises he had become by having a youma nearly three times his size land on him. Curling up in a hurting ball, all he wanted at present was Kunzite to come and snuggle away his pains. Imagine his joy at remembering that only Nephrite was present.
"You idiot Youma..what are you doing over here!" he demanded. The youma just pointed in Jakurin's direction. "What the..." he started to say and was cut off when the for started to disappear showing a sailor suited girl. "Oh great..the court jester is here.." he muttered. He gathered dark energy in his hands and fired four shots at the girl. "Don't just sit there, you baka! Get her!" he ordered.
With a slight wink at the armored man who was leaning on the ground, her motley fool cap changed into a checkered golf's cap as she dodged three shots. Rearing back with her staff, she yelled, "*FOUR!!!*" at the top of her lungs and smashed the fourth energy shot back at Nephrite's head. It missed by a good foot and sailed off into a tree branch, causing the branch fall down to the ground, ashen. Jurei-Jurei winced. "Talk about your dead wood," she cracked, going to the man's side and taking a defensive stance. "*Summon... Illusional... STAMPEDE!!!*" The youma, Zoisite and Nephrite all looked down, as the ground began to slowly rumble. Jurei-Jurei looked smug as she turned, a large group of cows barreling down on the battle, mooing their lungs out. Jurei-Jurei quickly used the edge of her staff and planted it into the ground, then nimbly leapt atop it, balancing on one foot. "Special Delivery!" she chirped. "Hey, Mr. Hero, I suggest you move, and quick!!"
"I've had enough..." Zoisite muttered as he vanished in a whirlwind of pinkish white cherry blossoms. Reappearing in the hall of Sanjouin Estate, he stumbled a few steps before simply curling up on the floor. It wasn't the most comfortable of places, but his battered and bruised body refused to cooperate in going any further with him. "I really hate the Senshi," he snarled to himself before consciousness faded out from him.
Jurei-Jurei grinned as the stampede blew by... turning into a mass flurry of yellow sparkles and white confetti. "And that concludes this portion of our program!" she grinned, taking a hop down and facing Nephrite and the youma squarely. With a mighty impressive spin of her staff, she gave them a forced smile/grimace. "Who are you, and why have you caused so much hell that I, the court jester, had to be awakened??"
Nephrite smiled. "Wouldn't you like to know." he said and teleported away with his youma following.
Jurei-Jurei took a step forward too late, and growled with agrin. "Awwww, and here I thought I was going to get his autograph!!" she snapped her fingers. With a quick raise of her arms, she looked at herself. "*Holey moley, what a get up!* I look like a checkerboard gone wrong!!" she griped, turning to the man who was on the ground. She gave him a cock-eyed look and slowly went to poke him with the butt end of her staff.
Guardian simply rose to his feet, refusing to to show any emotions and turned to her, speaking in his calm, emotionless voice. A voice that communicate all business, no joy, all professional, "Be thankful they bored easily. Had the two chosen to fight you would have not stood a chance." With that he simply turned and walked away calmly, and taking to the rooftops once he could, returning home, letting nothing distract him.
In surprise the jester's green eyes followed the man as he leapt deftly away from her. "'Bored easily'...?" she repeated, crossing her arms, enfolding the staff with the crook of her arm. She stuck a tongue out in the man's general direction, as he was soon gone from her sight. "I didn't even get a freaking thank-you," she grumbled. "It's not everyday I conjure up a whole herd of cows." With that, Jurei-Jurei took another look at herself. "*Wowee, look at me!!*" she grinned, gazing over her shoulder at her heels and back bow, and then down the front of her fuku, then up at the end of her staff. She ran a gloved hand over the tip of a wing. "The famed Jester Lance... all my tricks... everything... I know who I once was..." she said to herself, the sun beams making a really cool effect off of the giant ruby. With a small turn of the head, she saw ambulances and fire trucks beginning to pull in. She quickly looked back to the wall for her briefcase, and made a hasty retreat. "Hey, it's Kitsune!" A large crowd of guys and girls banged on the tables and yelled hellos as Jakurin walked through the door at Tudo's with a slight wave. "Hey, Jaku-chan," said a brunette waitress, steering her over to the counter. "Where the heck ya been all day? You look like crap!" she teased. "*Bite me*, Ureshii," said Jakurin, smiling sweetly and handing over some photos. Ureshii took them and began going over each one. "Nothing new here... hey, what's with the guys on the fence?" "Typical male; once they get a dare stuck in their egotistical brains--" "Honto?" laughed Ureshii, when she came upon a picture of a jester. "Na ni? Who's this??" Jakurin gave her a sincere smile this time, and took the picture from her friend. "Another girl to add to my scrap-book," she said, opening the case and taking out the leather-bound book. She passed the articles written by newspapers and her penned ideas, along with a few blurry polaroids of girls in fukus. She added Jurei-Jurei onto the page with a glue stick, and sighed at her handiwork. "What kinda senshi is that?" asked Ureshii, holding the book up to the light. Jakurin leaned back in her seat and smirked. "...Let's just say that she's definitely one for the books." Ureshii shrugged, and handed Jakurin back her book. Jakurin put away her scraps as Ureshii said, "I gotta bed all set for you, but you have to help me serve tonight; place is crowded tonight." "Maybe it's the pizza." "Maybe it's because we wanna hear another night routine," said Tudo, passing by the girls' table. "Get up there, Kitsune." Jakurin grinned, as people began to howl and whistle. She strolled up to the small corner stage, and bowed before grabbing the mic. "So... who HASN'T heard of the Sailor Senshi?" she said loudly. The group roared along; they knew this one. Jakurin grinned, running a hand through her hair and placing her other hand on the hip of her brown suit. "I'll assume that's a big yes. You know, it really is a switch. Ladies of the night coming out during the day, y'know? And what about that one guy as of late who's been hanging around with the hookers, I mean heroines!" She grinned, as some of the men whistled while still others laughed. "The masked man is obviously their pimp. But seriously..." And so, the jester had come back. Back to fight the evil that had thrown her for a loop a millennia or so ago... and the world was never the same again... *grins* Not that that's a BAD thing, mind you.