Greetings! ^_^
Well, here we go again. As always, I shall take this opportunity to beg for
any and all C&C, secure in the knowledge that most of you have already
skipped this part to get to the story, and aren't really listening to me at
all. ^_^
That's, I say, that's a JOKE, son. Laugh a little! And, while you're at it,
see that little button up there marked 'Reply'? Try tapping it, and send
some C&C! Believe it or not, I actually like the stuff for some reason!
But enough of this begging ; my knees are getting dirty. On with the fic!
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-- Attached file included as plaintext by Listar --
OBLIGATORY LEGAL DISCLAIMER : None of these guys are mine. The Sailor
Senshi belong to DIC and Kodansha, while the Yoroiden are owned by
Sunrise and Graz Entertainment. Okay? So don't bother suing me. I'm a
student.
RONIN SUMMER 4 : INNER BATTLES
A Sailor Moon / Yoroiden Samurai Troopers cross-over
by Morgan Hudson (dataraven_659@excite.com)
Part 3 : Waking Up
Nasuti Yagyu wandered down the hallways of the hosptal in a
state of shock. Seiji... in a car crash? It just didn't seem to make
sense, as if she had never realised that Seiji Date and tragedy could
be mentioned in the same breath before. Fighting the growing sense
of unease in her stomach, she rounded the corner to the waiting room,
and shook her head in disbelief.
The room was packed with women. Blond women, brunette women,
women with green hair, women with blue hair... women every shape, size
and colour of the rainbow, it seemed. They were all beautiful, they
were all concerned, and they were ALL talking about Seiji. She sighed.
It figured, it really did : the flirt king of Ha'na High goes to the
hospital. Was she expecting a room full of teamsters?
"Nasuti!" Pushing his way past a girl with twin pigtails and
buns on top of her head, Touma weaved past the candy machine and
worked his way over to her. Along the way, he had to duck a pink-haired
little girl on her way to said candy machine, and the frail raven
haired girl trying to keep her under control. "How have you been?"
"All right, I guess." Nasuti caught her breath and brushed a
strand of long brown hair back to join its fellows. "How's Seiji?"
"Nobody knows. They aren't telling us anything." Touma
shrugged. "Some of the girls are getting really worried, too. Minako's
off interrogating one of the nurses, and I think Makoto and Haruka
might start causing some property damage if we don't get a status
report soon..."
"Touma," Nasuti asked, "no offense, but why are you the only
man here? Where are the other Yoroiden? And Jun, and Seiji's family?"
"Seiji's family is on the first train to Tokyo, but they won't
be here for a while. Shin's in Yamaguchi, and Shuu had to work late
at the Golden Dragon. Jun is catching a ride with him. Ryo isn't
answering his phone, and he hasn't spoken to any of us in days."
**********
Ryo Sanada had been in bed for the past day. He vaguely
considered getting up, but just didn't see the point. For about the
eleven thousandth time, he buried his face in his hands and groaned.
How could he have been so stupid, so weak? How could he have let Arago
do those things to his friends? And worse...
He still wasn't sure, but last week, when he had looked in the
mirror, he hadn't seen himself. For a split second, he could sworn
that Arago was sneering at him from the silvered glass. He hadn't had
the nerve to look in any mirrors since. Could... could Arago's spirit
still have some kind of a foothold in his soul?
Nearby, the yoroi crystal of Rekka mocked him with its gleaming
red kanji. Virtue... Ryo snorted and rolled over. Yeah, right. He knew
better that to be fooled like that. He should give up the armour, hand
it over to someone who still deserved it. Someone who wasn't tainted.
A knock sounded on the door. Ryo looked up and squinted in
confusion through the dim shadows of his lightless room. Yes, his
chair was still propped under the doorknob. Well, that was good then.
"Ryo? It's Mamoru Chiba. Open the door."
Ryo chuckled humourlessly and covered his face with his pillow.
"You don't seem to understand my position here, Ryo. When you
get like this, Ami gets unhappy. Then Usagi gets unhappy." There was a
brief pause. "Ryo, I'm counting to three and then I'LL be unhappy. And
I'm warning you, that won't be pretty."
"Go away!" Ryo groaned, and threw his pillow at the door.
"Leave me the hell alone!"
"Okay..." The door exploded, and a red rose stuck quivering
in the opposite wall as Mamoru stepped into the room, immaculate in his
white mask and black tuxedo. "We do this the ugly way, then."
Striding across the room, Mamoru yanked up the curtain covering
Ryo's window. The black haired youth winced and hissed as streams of
sunlight lanced through the grimy glass and burned his eyes.
"Look at you. You're a mess. Your room looks like a bear's been
hibernating here for the past three years! And turn off that damn
music : it's depressing." Mamoru reached out and swatted off the
stereo system with his cane. "Now let's get this over with. You're
being an idiot..." His cane extended to its full length. "And I'm
going to hit you until you stop. Then we're going to go to the
hospital, and you'll tell everybody we had some kind of male bonding
experience, and that you're all better and never going to act like this
again. And everyone will be happy, and I can finally get a break.
Sound good?"
Ryo looked shocked. "Wait a minute! Ami's in the hospital?"
**********
Minako looked over Makoto Kino's shoulder and gulped. "Uh-oh,"
she said, and dove behind the couch.
"What's the problem?" Makoto glanced behind her, her long tail
of brown hair swaying as she turned.
"Just don't tell them I'm here! In fact, don't tell them
Seiji's here either!"
Makoto barely had time to respond to that before a pair of
hands grabbed her shoulders and spun her around, where she got a
close-up view of a man with grey hair as he yelled at her.
"WHERE IS MY GRANDSON? TELL ME WHERE SEIJI DATE RESIDES!"
Behind him, a young woman in a three-piece suit twirled her
bokken and laughed maniacally. "Grandfather, you're scaring the poor
girl! By all means : allow me!"
"Yayoi!" A prim and proper woman, her hair pulled back in a
black bun, shuffled forward and restrained the cackling girl with a
single finger. "You remember your promise : no psychologically scarring
anybody until we know if little Sei-chan's all right!"
"You're no fun, mother." Yayoi pouted, and Makoto began to
wonder if there was room behind the couch.
**********
Jadeite reclined in his throne and smiled to himself. This was
turning into a very good day. His little recruitment drive had gone
even better than he could have dreamed, as evidenced by the wraith in
crimson samurai armour standing next to him and toying with its
harpoon.
"Nise Suiko," he asked the wraith, which turned its visored
face towards him, "how fare our elite troops?"
"They are on guard as we speak, Jadeite." Nise Suiko stopped
testing the point of his harpoon with his thumb and stood at attention.
He did it not out of any actual loyalty, Jadeite knew, but merely
because he enjoyed playing soldier.
"Then bring them in, Nise."
Slowly, five figures entered the room and stood at attention,
their hands clasped in front of them. Each looked perfectly human, and
Jadeite had to smile.
"Boys," he said gently, "let's get to know each other. You all
have two things in common right now : you're the vilest scum the
universe has to offer, and you belong to me."
He gestured, and Nise stepped forward. "Meet your new
commander. This is Nise Suiko, also known as the Red Torrent. He has
the strength of a whale, the speed of a torpedo, and the attitude of a
shark. Get him near water and he's ten times worse. He's also poison
incarnate, as the poor inhabitants of Hagi can attest."
"Serves them right for breathing," Nise Suiko growled.
Jadeite grinned. "I suppose it does."
The first of the troops stepped forward. "I am called Vepres,
my lords." In his natural form, he was formed entirely out of rustling
plant material, his eyes mere glowing slits in the shadows of the thick
and waxy leaves that covered his face like a ninja's mask. His body
was a tower of vinelike muscles, with thick leaves sprouting over his
shoulders, elbows, and knees like armoured plates.
"I found him in Rome," Jadeite explained behind his hand in a
stage whisper. "He was just lurking around in the ruins of an old
dungeon, killing tourists. Kind of sad, really : real waste of his
talents."
"What does he do?" Nise Suiko asked.
Vepres responded by thrusting his arm forward. Before anyone
could blink, a trio of thorn covered vines lashed out from his wrist
and cracked a pillar of marble into dust.
"Hey!" Jadeite looked annoyed. "Do you mind? Those things
aren't free, you know!"
"Also," Vepres hissed, "I am one with the creatures of this
fine land. They conceal me, and obey my orders."
"He's a chameleon, and he can order around vegetables. Check."
Nise Suiko nodded curtly and looked over the next creature in line.
"That's a pretty tough act to follow. What's your story, sailor?"
The creature simply looked at its leader. A red gleam softly
emitted from the V-shaped visor in its silver helmet. A fan of
blade-like antennae spread from either side of its head, and its
body appeared to be covered in dark blue chain mail. Silver armour
gleamed on its shins and forearms, as well as shoulderplates.
"Don't mind him," Jadeite offered, "he's not much of a talker.
The American CIA thought they were building an android super spy, but
someone crossed a few wires. Poor thing turned out psychotic. Only
good news is he shows a real talent for killing. Practically an
artist, especially when he gets those blades of his going."
"Blades? What blades?"
"You'll find out soon enough." Jadeite smiled. "Trust me, he's
good people. I just call him Kamasori."
"Okay." Nise Suiko continued walking down the line. "How about
you? What did you bring to Show and Tell today?"
"I am the end of all things," the cowled figure intoned, "the
darkness that swallows light and kills hope. I am the chill of the
Void, and the endless night of the Abyss..."
"I see." Nise Suiko turned to Jadeite. "So what did he bring to
Show and Tell today?"
"His name is Abadon. Aside from being melodramatic, he does
things with shadows. I think he's some kind of night shade, but only
his hairdresser knows for sure..." Jadeite grinned, and drummed his
feet on the floor. "Isn't this fun? It's just like day camp!"
"Yeah," Nise grumbled under his breath, "just like we're the
evil freakin' Mouseketeers, or something..." Muttering several foul
things, he continued down the line and glared at the last two members
of his team. "So what the hell's your story? You're twins?"
"Yes, actually." The taller man was dressed in a black jumpsuit
overlaid with torso armour and had a sword strapped to his belt. A long
red cape brushed the floor behind him as he moved forward and saluted.
His brother was dressed simply in black pants and a dark purple
sleeveless turtleneck. Their skin was as white as snow, and their
long, pointed ears swept back and away from their manes of red hair.
Twin pairs of amber eyes seemed to be analysing their commander for
the first oppurtunity to kill him.
The younger brother smiled, revealing sharp canine teeth. He
wore a pair of black gloves which stretched past his elbows, and a
wicked set of curved claws glowed faintly in the light. "Do you have a
problem with that?"
"They're here to settle an old score." Jadeite chuckled. "It
seems Princess Serenity killed their mother..."
**********
Rei Hino lowered her book and looked over at Shin as his grip
on her hand tightened suddenly. "What's wrong?"
Shin Mouri bit his lip and squeezed his eyes shut. A sheen of
sweat covered his face, and his other hand was clutching his shoulder.
"Nothing, Rei," he groaned through his teeth, "I'm fine. Just a little
trainsick, I guess." He forced a smile.
"Oh..." Rei looked at the handsome young man suspiciously for a
moment, then shrugged. "Well, try to hang on. We'll be back in Tokyo
in no time, and then you can lie down for a while, or something..."
"Thanks, Rei." Shin's smile was a little shaky, but less
forced this time. "I am feeling kind of tired. Guess that fight with
Nise Suiko took a lot out of me."
**********
Two men in motorcycle leathers entered the waiting room and the
hum of conversation came to a sudden halt. Even Seiji's grandfather
stopped hollering, which was a feat in and of itself. All nine Sailor
Senshi watched in mute astonishment as the taller of the two slowly
pulled off his helmet. Mamoru Chiba was smiling, despite the fact that
he had a black eye. "Hello, ladies."
"Mamo-chan? What happened to your eye?" Usagi's bottom lip
began to tremble, and the man decided to speak fast, while he could
still be heard.
"Relax, Usagi! Ryo and I were just... bonding. You know,
letting out our aggressions and getting in touch with our masculine
sides.."
"You beat the crap out of each other, didn't you." Makoto said,
no question in her tone. Mamoru blinked.
"Isn't that what I just said?"
A piercing pair of blue eyes peered out from under Ryo's
mirrored visor as he slid it up and looked around, taking off his
gloves and tucking them in a pocket. "How's Seiji doing?"
"We don't know." Ami sighed, wrapping her arms around him.
"Nobody will tell us anything. How are you, Ryo?"
"I'm fine." Ryo brushed her off, and stalked over to an
innocent orderly who was walking past. In a flash of motion, he grabbed
the young man's shirt and pinned him against the wall.
"Hello," he said coldly. "I'm looking for my friend. Seiji
Date. He's in room..."
"312," Nasuti supplied.
"312. What is his condition?" Ryo tightened his grip and slowly
turned the boy upside-down.
"Room 312? Uhm..." The orderly rapidly wracked his brain. "He's
the car crash, right? I think one of the doctors said he was stable,
but he's still unconscious. He can take visitors..."
"Cool." Ryo lowered the boy, and dusted off his clothes.
Clapping his hands together, he turned to the group and shrugged.
"Well, Seiji's fine. See ya." Before anyone could stop him, he limped
out of the waiting room and was gone.
"Damn," Mamoru muttered, and smirked down at Usagi, who had
glued herself to his chest during the scene. "Well, it looks like Ryo
Sanada and I have another talk in order."
Usagi beamed. "Because you're that concerned about our feelings
being hurt?"
"No, because I don't like to lose." Mamoru looked over at the
rest of the people in the room. "So who gets to see Seiji first?"
**********
Ryo shuffled his way down the stairs, oddly out of place in
his leathers, he knew, but it didn't matter. In a matter of seconds,
he would be on his bike and far away, back where he couldn't hurt
anybody.
"Remember," a voice hissed through the shadows of the garage,
"it has to look like an accident! Tuxedo Kamen's death must be above
suspicion, lest we be found out!"
"Relax," a second voice answered. "I think I can cut a brake
line without screwing it up!"
"Just make sure! When those other two sabotaged the wrong car,
you didn't see what Jadeite did to them!"
Sabotoged... car? Ryo scowled. SEIJI! His hand slipped under
his shirt and grabbed nothing. He winced, and very suddenly remembered
leaving his yoroi at home. Well, he thought as he began slinking
towards the motorcycle, staying low to avoid being seen, it looked like
he was doing this the ugly way, then.
Two of them, he noticed as he crept closer. Youmas. One was
covered in shaggy white fur and looked like a sick cross between a
gorilla and a crocodile, while the other appeared to be some form of
giant bug. The bug had razor sharp pincers, which it was busy using on
the brake line of Mamoru Chiba's bike.
He was in motion almost before he could stop himself, vaulting
over the hood of the car he had been hiding behind and landing on the
head of the big bug. Even as it fell forward, he tumbled across the
grimy, oil-soaked cement floor and popped into a handstand, driving
his heels right into the other youma's face and smiling at the sound
of breaking teeth.
"Steel-toed boots hurt like a bitch, huh?" Ryo snarled as
he flipped back onto his feet and kicked at the bug. "Do yourself a
favour and stay out of this, pal!" The youma responded by grabbing at
him, thus proving it was no smarter than any other youma he had ever
met. Ryo smirked behind his helmet. Sometimes he thought he was doing
evolution a favour...
**********
Minako Aino reached out and gently stroked Seiji Date's face as
he lay in the hospital bed. The Electrocardiogram machine next to the
bed drew the sine curves of his heart rate in glowing afterimages, and
the oxymeter attached to his index finger beeped softly to itself as it
measured his pulse.
Outside, she could barely make out Seiji's grandfather arguing
with the doctors as to whether Seiji could be released, or airlifted
to another hospital, possibly in America. The doctor in charge of
Seiji's rehabilitation, a nice man named Tofu something, seemed
surprisingly firm in the face of the older man's bluster.
"When I owned a practice in Nerima," he stated calmly, "I
treated people with injuries far worse than your grandson's. As far as
I know, none of them have killed each other yet, so I think I can
assure you that I am the best person to be looking after this boy."
"But you don't understand!" The old man bellowed. "That boy is
the last male heir of our line! He needs the best!"
"For the last time, Date-san, I AM the best." Dr. Tofu flushed
and adjusted his glasses. "I assure you, Seiji Date will be walking
out of this hospital in no time."
"He... sounds hopeful. I like that."
Minako sighed. "Maybe, Seiji, but I'm still..." She stopped,
and looked down. Seiji winked his exposed eye and smiled under the
plastic of his oxygen mask.
"Please," he rasped, "tell me that Yayoi's not here."
Minako smiled. "Sorry," she said, fighting back the urge to
laugh in relief, "but she is. She's torturing the other Senshi even
as we speak."
"I wonder if there's time to have a relapse before she gets
in here..." Seiji chuckled, and Minako finally joined in.
**********
Ryo hopped back as the youma swiped at him with its claws, and
flipped behind another car. The insectile youma hissed angrily and
tried to push the two cars he was between together. "Sorry, bug!" Ryo
laughed as he scrambled out of the way seconds before the two vehicles
were permanently fused, "but I'm kind of attached to my legs. Mind if
I keep it that way?"
Running along the hoods of the parked vehicles, Ryo managed to
stay a few feet ahead of the insect's slashing pincers. A furry arm
clotheslined him unexpectedly, and he berated himself for forgetting
about the other youma as he fell. Halfway to the ground, he felt its
paw clamp around the back of his head and he was flying, striking the
ground with his shoulder and skidding across the parking lot.
The Yoroiden of Rekka moaned as he struggled onto his feet.
His head was swimming, his left arm felt about as strong as boiled
cabbage, and he was pretty sure Tuxedo Kamen had broken his nose
during their earlier 'discussion'. Shaking his helmeted head like an
enraged bull, he charged forward and slammed his shoulders into the
row of motorcycles, gasping as his already injured arm began to scream
in protest.
The motorcycles, of course, tipped like dominoes and took down
the insect-like monster. Once on its wide, beetle-like back, the
creature began to flail wildly, unable to regain its footing. Ryo
smiled to himself and quickly leapt to the right as the other youma
hurled itself over his head and through the windshield of another
parked car. He whistled softly to himself and hoped nobody tried to
make him pay for all these damages.
Searching around, he found exactly what he'd been hoping for :
a car with the trunk partially popped open. The puncture mark in the
metal and accordion-like folds told him exactly how this trunk had
been popped, too : that one must have been closer than he thought.
Staggering over, he reached in and began stretching for
something he could use as a weapon. A flashlight, a crowbar, anything!
Turning his head, he saw the furred youma slowly pull itself free of
the shattered windshield, purple blood pouring down its face.
His fingertips brushed something as the youma began to advance
on him. Was it... yes! The sweetest feel in the world, he thought as
his hand made out the cold metal shape of a tire iron. Drawing it, he
rolled away from the car and back to his feet, lifting the steel tool
and swinging it at the youma's gaping maw.
"Stay back, or I'm making a dentist somewhere very happy!"
The youma rubbed its already shattered mouth and seemed to
consider its options. Stretching its arms wide, it roared in anger and
pain. Ryo stepped back, and a bolt of energy flashed between the two,
burning a hole in the cement.
From his perch atop one of the overturned cars, a man slowly
raised his smoking gun. His grey cape flapped dramatically behind his
black and silver armoured form. A dark tinted visor covered his eyes,
and his helmet's pointed cat-like ears and gleaming golden eyes aped
the visage of an owl.
"Perhaps you don't understand your position here," the man
snarled visciously. Levelling his pistol, he fired again. The youma
couldn't even scream before its head evaporated in a cloud of debris.
Ryo blinked and let the tire iron slip from his fingers as he raised
hands in the air.
Ignoring Ryo, the armoured figure jumped down from his perch
and floated over to the beetle which lay flailing on its back. He
clenched his fist, and a set of three razor claws snapped into position
against his wrist. Grabbing the youma by its antennae, he yanked it to
its feet.
"I," he said, "am giving you a chance to live. Go back to the
Dark Kingdom and tell your friends. Tell them that the Owl has arrived,
and to stand with Jadeite is to choose death!" He gave the insect a
harsh shove, and it stumbled backwards, shrieking into the distance.
"Okay," Ryo said calmly, "I figured out you're not here to kill
me -I mean, I'm not dumb- but who the hell are you?"
The figure simply turned and growled, roughly pushing Ryo
back against the cool, damp cement of a divider. "Forget what you saw
here, boy. This is a rebellion we've got going on, here. You're getting
involved in something you can't begin to understand."
"Try me," Ryo responded, "I'm a very understanding guy."
To Be Continued...