Payback: Part 7
A ray of sunshine hit Sage right in the eye, and caused him to become conscious. He sat up and looked around him. He, Rowen, and Amanda were in a small lagoon about three hundred feet away from the waterfall. It was a miracle that they had survived that drop, and Sage had no clue how it had happened. He was soaking wet, and really cold. He crawled onto a rock, and began to squeeze the water out of his clothes. He heard Rowen mumble, and saw him roll over. He had momentarily forgotten about his companions. There must be something wrong with my head.
Amanda rose from the water about twenty feet from Rowen and Sage. “Ow... Why does stuff like this always happen to me?” She stood up and spun around. Water droplets were sent flying everywhere.
Rowen sat up and was hit with the oncoming water. “Hey, watch where you’re throwing that.” He rubbed his head, and suddenly realized he wasn’t in Kansas anymore. “Sage, what happened! Where are we?”
“Like I know. All I remember is going over that waterfall, and now we’re suddenly down here with nothing more than a few scratches.” He stood and let some more of the water drip from him. “Well, I think we’re really far from where we’d like to be, and they’re probably postponing the search for Ami and the other Sailor Scouts just to look for us.” He slammed his fist into a rock. “Why did this have to happen? We were so close!”
“Hey, calm down, Sage. There’s still a lot we can do. That fall must have injured your brain.” Rowen turned to see Amanda walking up from behind.
She smiled. “That’s right. We said Beryl probably put this whole river-jungle thing here to keep people out of the castle. So, that means we’re no farther from the castle then we were before. We just have to find a new door into the castle.” She sat down on the rock next to Sage.
Sage turned and pulled back some hanging tree branches. Sure enough, there was the castle. Only this time they were on the right side of the river. “You guys are right!” He jumped off the rock, and stepped toward the castle. “We just crossed the ‘moat’ in our own way! Come on, we’ve got a job to do!”
“Yeah!” Rowen and Amanda got up to follow him. There wasn’t exactly a gate waiting for them to enter like the others, but they were determined to find their own way in.
* * * * *
Kento shoved open the gates to the castle. “Thank goodness we’re not in that stupid jungle anymore!” He and the other three ducked behind a pillar, as several red dust creatures flew past them. “Wow, they’re pretty clueless, aren’t they?” Ryo covered his mouth, but it was too late. The creatures flew toward them.
Ryo swords glowed, and then he sliced them through the three dust creatures. They screamed and then dissolved. “Man, there’s no challenge in this castle.”
Candice left the pillar’s cover, and trudged deeper into the castle. “Don’t worry, Ryo. We’ve still got Talpa and Queen Beryl to deal with. So, save your strength.”
“I guess your right, but it couldn’t hurt to have a little practice.” Ryo began walking but stopped. There was a three-way split in the hallway. “I say we go right. Kento?”
Kento opened his mouth to agree, but suddenly a flash of green, red, and orange light came from the middle path. “I have to disagree, Ryo. There’s something weird going on this way, and I don’t plan on missing it.”
They ran toward the source of the light, and came upon a door. They got ready to attack, and cautiously glanced into the room. There they saw Tred and the others. Candice ran in and gave Tracy a big hug. “Great, now we don’t have to be in those stupid groups anymore!” She jumped as a light blue glow filled the room, joining the other colors.
Danielle blinked and looked blankly at the group. “Where’s Rowen, Sage, and Amanda?” She leaned outside the door, and looked down the hallway. “Are they slow or something?”
“Yeah, we need Amanda to complete this weird glowy thing.” Erica turned to Ryo. “Where are they?”
Ryo stared at the floor, so Cye answered for him. “I’m sorry, but they aren’t with us anymore. They... might be dead.” Now it was his turn to look away.
“No way!” Tracy ran from the room. “They’re not dead, and I’m going to find them!” She stopped, and slumped to the ground. “Nevermind, it’s probably a lost cause anyway...”
“Find who?” Sage walked up, with Amanda and Rowen close behind.
“Sage!” Tracy gave Sage a hug, and then dragged him toward everybody else. “Hey guys! They’re alive, and they’re here!”
Amanda approached at a slightly slower pace. “Jeesh, I feel so loved.” She paused as she approached the room. “What’s with the colors? Am I missing a party or something?”
“Hey, that’s right. Now we get to see what’s up with this stupid room. Come on, Amanda!” Erica pulled her into the room, and they were greeted with a blinding dark blue light. Suddenly, all the colors flowed together, and white light filled the room. The floor opened up to reveal a pedestal. It had two little circle-shaped grooves in it. Erica stared at it, and suddenly remembered the silver disk. “Hey! I wonder if that’s what this thingy is for!” She brought out the disk, and shoved it into the groove closest to her.
“Oh yeah, I’ve got one of those, too!” Amanda reached into her quiver and pulled out the golden disk. She examined it closely. “Only mine is prettier.” After receiving several impatient glares, she finally put her’s in as well. The wall behind them opened up. Hanging from the ceiling were the Sailor Scouts, including Ami.
“Hey, all right! We found them!” Danielle sliced through the chains with her lightsaber. The Sailor Scouts rubbed there wrists in an attempt to return the blood to them.
Mina walked over toward the others. “Thanks guys. Now we can go defeat Queen Beryl and Talpa for good!” Everyone stared at her blankly. “Don’t you guys know where they are?”
“Uh... not exactly, but we will soon! Cuz we’re going to find them right now, come on guys!” Tracy led the group out of the room. They walked for a few minutes down what seemed to be a never-ending hallway. Suddenly, the floor dropped from underneath them. “Arrggh! What’s happening?!”
They landed in a dark and dingy room. A sinister voice filled their ears. “We grew tired of waiting, so we decided to simply bring you to us. Is there a problem with that?” Queen Beryl floated down from above, and Talpa walked out from in front of them.
Ryo looked at Sage. “They seem a lot more powerful, Sage. Do you think my Armor of Inferno can handle Talpa this time?”
Sage looked thoughtful. “Hmm... it could, but if it didn’t, then maybe...” He looked at the five girls, who were staring at Talpa and Beryl with a defiant look. “Maybe they can help make it stronger.” Ryo didn’t seem to understand, so Sage explained further. “Their gems are created from the combined power of the Ronin Warriors and the Sailor Scouts. If we fight Talpa, while the Scouts fight Queen Beryl, then they can give back some of that power to boost ours.”
“Yeah, that just might work!” Ryo ran to tell the girls about Sage’s plan. They seemed confused at first, but they finally understood. “So, do you think you can pull it off?”
Amanda smiled. “Of course! We’re the best there is at what we do!” She turned toward their newly found enemies. “Hey, are you guys gonna just stand there, or are you gonna fight us!”
Beryl smiled grimly. “No offense, but you guys are just no match for us.” She laughed evilly. “We still have scores to settle with these meddling fools, so step aside and we’ll surely deal with you later!” She floated toward the Sailor Scouts. “Prepare to meet your end, Sailor Sluts!”
“You should talk!” Serena and the other Scouts prepared to fight her, as Talpa approached the Ronin Warriors.
“Let’s see if your puny armor is good enough to defeat me now!” Talpa pulled out a huge sword and began swinging it at the group. He was highly skilled and they spent most of their time dodging his swings.
Cye ran under his oncoming sword and sunk his yari into Talpa’s torso, but it had no effect. “We can’t do this without the Armor of Inferno! Even if it doesn’t work, it’s better than what we’re doing now!” Just as Cye said this, Talpa used his free arm to bat him away. He landed hard a few hundred feet away, but quickly regained his strength and ran back toward the battle.
“Okay guys, you heard what Cye said! Let’s do it!” Ryo’s eyes glowed with power as the other four Ronins gave their power to him. He was engulfed in flames, and his Wildfire armor disappeared. It was replaced by white armor that sent a chill down his spine. Since Whiteblaze wasn’t around, Ryo’s Swords of Fervor simply appeared in his hands, as if he had called them there. The transformation ceased, and Ryo stood in front of Talpa. Damn, this better work! He connected his two swords and jumped into the air. “Rage of... Inferno!” Talpa was blasted with a giant beam of fire, but it seamed to just pass right through him.
“I see you still haven’t got any new tricks, Ryo!” Talpa stood unharmed before the bewildered Ronin Warriors. “Time to see some real power!” Talpa raised his sword into the air, and dark energy poured into it. He then drew it back, and after a few moments of gathering strength, plunged it forward. Waves of energy were flung at the warriors, who were powerless to stop it.
“Arrghh!” Sage screamed as they were all blasted away from Talpa. He landed just a few feet away from Erica. He lifted his head to look at them with some effort. “Now, Erica! Tell them we need their help now!”
“I’m sorry, Sage, but we’re still figuring out how to return power to you! We are trying but we just can’t do it! We need just a little more time!” She helped Sage to get back up. “Come on, just a little longer. We’ll come through, but you’ve got to give us time to try.”
“Okay, the Ronins will do the best they can to stall for you, but you better hurry up!” Sage got up and went to discuss this with the others, but they were already approaching Talpa once more.
Meanwhile, the Sailor Scouts were doing just as bad against Queen Beryl. She was pelting balls of energy at them non-stop, and there was nothing they could do but wait for a chance to attack. Beryl paused for a moment to look over at Talpa and the other battle that raged on.
Mercury noticed this pause, and saw it as her chance to attack. "Mercury Ice Bubbles... Freeze!" She brought her hands together, and from them came bubbles which surrounded Queen Beryl. The bubbles hit her and caused her to freeze, but after only a moment she glowed with energy, and the ice cracked and flew in all directions.
"Ha! You'll have to do better than that! I've never seen you any weaker and stupider than you are now!" She focused and then began throwing energy at them once more.
Sailor Moon looked down at her crystal. "This just isn't working. I'll have to use the Silver Crystal's power!" She took the crystal into her hands, and held it out in front of her. Light burst from it, and transformed her into the Moon Princess. She looked up, and saw Queen Beryl snarl.
"Not even you, Sailor Moon, can stop me now! Try your best, for it will never work!" She began to throw even more powerful, and more frequent, balls of energy.
The rest of the Sailor Scouts gathered around Sailor Moon. They all took hold of her outstretched arm, and put their energy into fueling the crystal's power. They each took turns giving their power.
"Mercury Power!"
"Mars Power!"
"Jupiter Power!"
"Venus Power!"
"Moon Crystal Power!" Sailor Moon looked up at Beryl. Then, they all shouted, "Sailor Planet Power!" The beam of power they created flew towards Queen Beryl. She crossed her arms in front of her, and held the beam back. "She's stopping our attack! We need more power!"
Venus looked toward Amanda and the other girls. "Don't worry, it will come! Just keep it up!"
Amanda watched the ongoing battles. She pushed her mind to the limit to try and donate her power, but she just couldn't seem to do it. Tred was trying his best to coach them, but even he was a bit confused as to how it would be done.
"There has to be a way to give them your power! You just have to try harder! Concentrate!" Tred thought about it, and realized he would be more useful elsewhere. The Ronin Warriors were in bad shape, and he could heal them with what remained of his strength. "Keep trying, guys! I'm needed somewhere else!" He ran off toward the Ronins.
"Damn!" Danielle hit a nearby wall. "This is so hard!" She saw a beam of orange come from her forehead, and reached up to feel the jewel on her headband. "That's it, you guys! When we transform, our jewels transform to! And then they link to our suits! So, all we have to do is remove them, and maybe it will release the power into the others!"
"That's brilliant, Danielle!" Erica's jewel had also began to glow. She put her hand on it and willed it away from her. It fell into her waiting hand, and she held it out in front of her.
All the others did the same, and as their jewels came close to each other, their light brightened. All the colored beams swirled together, and a huge white ball of energy was formed. It split up into ten separate parts, and rushed into each Ronin and Scout.
Sage, Kento, Cye, and Rowen's armors turned a deeper shade of the color they already were, and sparkled with energy. When the energy reached Ryo, his Armor of Inferno grew larger, and turned black with yellow streaks. Ryo glowed with energy as he once more gathered the strength to use his Rage of Inferno.
The Sailor scouts received similar results as the energy entered them. Ami, Rei, Lita, and Mina's sailor outfits changed color, and glowed with energy. Their new power was again poured into the crystal. The remaining energy entered Sailor Moon, and she closed her eyes and sent it all rushing toward Queen Beryl. The beam grew to an incredible size.
"Argh! I do know if I can hold this off much longer!" Queen Beryl winced.
Each Ronin Warrior approached Talpa and prepared to attack.
Sage raised his nodatchi. "Thunder Bolt Cut!"
Cye drew back his yari. "Superwave Smasher!"
Kento swung his naginata. "Ironrock Crusher!"
Rowen notched an arrow, and aimed for Talpa. "Arrow Shockwave!"
Ryo connected his swords, and jumped into the air. "Rage of Inferno!"
All the attacks combined and flew at Talpa. He screamed in pain and agonized defeat as the overwhelming power blasted him into nothingness. The five Ronins slumped to the floor, as Ryo's Armor of Inferno disappeared, being replaced by the Armor of Wildfire.
Just then, Queen Beryl strained against the ever-growing beam. Her arms were weakening, and she finally let go. She was thrown back, with the power pushing her, and put a hole in the castle wall as she was pushed far away into the sky. Her voice’s echo came back to haunt the Sailor Scouts. "You haven't seen the last of me!" They too fell to the floor in fatigue.
Candice ran to the fallen Cye, and Erica went with her. The others checked on the Scouts. Candice shook Cye’s shoulder lightly. “Hey, are you okay?” He groaned, and she smiled.
Cye opened his eyes, and seeing that the danger was over, reverted to his normal clothes. “I’m alright, just a little tired, that’s all.” He looked at the pile of ash that used to be Talpa. “He’ll probably come back... He always comes back. At least it will take him awhile to do it though.” The other four Ronin Warriors changed out of their armor also, and joined Candice, Erica, and Cye.
Erica suddenly froze. “Wait a minute! Where’d our gems go!” She looked around frantically, and brought her hand to her headband. “Oh, spiffy! It sealed back into place by itself!” She turned as the others approached with the Sailor Scouts. They were carrying an unconscious Serena. “Hey, is she going to be all right?”
Rei laughed. “Yeah. This happens every time, the stupid ditz.”
“Then I guess it’s time to go home now...” Amanda looked at everyone, as they nodded. “I hope we’ll see you guys again someday. You know, now that our enemies have been defeated, there’s really no reason to fight together.” She stared at her feet.
“Hey, we’ll visit you all in a few weeks, ok? It’s not like you can’t just teleport to Japan.” Kento’s attempt to cheer them up worked, because everybody smiled.
“Okay, well... see you then!” Mina and the other Sailor Scouts watched as Tred made a portal to Japan, and then jumped into it while waving farewell.
Candice looked sort of sad. Cye noticed this and gave her a small hug. He kissed her lightly and whispered, “Don’t be sad, Candice. I will be back.” He did his best impression of an evil cackle, causing her to giggle. “Bye guys.” He jumped into the portal, followed by Kento and Ryo.
Sage and Rowen paused before entering the portal. They turned toward the girls and Tred. “It’s been fun, right Sage?”
“Yeah, see you guys later, okay?”
“Yeah, bye!!!” They jumped into the portal grinning.
Tred sweatdropped. “What a crew we have, eh?” He looked at the others. They weren’t very enthusiastic looking. “Aw, come on. You’re depressing me!” He opened another portal after closing the first one. “Alright, let’s go home. We deserve some rest.”
They looked at him and smiled. Danielle and Erica walked into the portal. Tracy and Candice backed up, and then did a running jump into the portal. Tred looked at Amanda. “After you.”
Amanda nodded, and ran toward the portal. “Whoohoo!! Home, or bust!!!” She jumped in, and was followed by Tred. They went on to their separate homes, looking forward to the days ahead.
