Title: Usagi is Dead II Dead is Usagi Part: 14 - The Door to Paradise episode 4 Author: Dark Day for Anime (Mark A Page) Email: ayanami@merlin.net.au ICQ: 9845111 IRC: Saitou^Hajime on DALnet's #ajas, Nueno_M on EFnet, DDFA on Austnet Fic Rating: R - Violence, Graphic Descriptions of Gore and More Psychological Hocus Pocus ------------------------------------------------------------------- USAGI IS DEAD II DEAD IS USAGI by DARK DAY FOR ANIME Disclaimer - Sailormoon is owned by Takeuchi Naoko and Bandai, so these characters really belong to them, except ones I made up. This means I'm only using the Sailormoon characters for purposes benign. (And if you believe that, you'd believe anything. ^_^) ------------------------------------------------------------------- S T A R T ------------------------------------------------------------------- Looking at the world through a filter of blue.... Having it stare back through a filter of green.... -------------------------------------------------------------------- The verger opened his eyes. For some reason, he felt a disturbance.... a presence nearby. Unable to put this feeling from his mind, he sat up from his small bed, throwing away the thin blanket covering. He stood and raced over to the window of the small cottage that lined on side of the church, and stared down at the old lakeside township. There were people there. He bit his lip, nervously. Why did people ALWAYS come to this church? Why did they ALWAYS have to disturb him in his efforts to reach the door? He knew why. It was them.... The angels that sang.... He placed a hand to his forehead, trying to erase the sound from his mind. They were particularly noisy, today. They'd attracted a whole bunch of people.... He counted them.... Four. Four and a small white thing. Still, it didn't matter that much. They would merely be added to the growing pile in the church, like the girl he'd killed only yesterday. "Did you call me?" Said the voice of the girl, standing behind him. He spun to her, angrily. "What are you doing here? Why aren't you in the church?" "But I was bored.... Is there anything to eat?" She looked at him, hopefully. He gritted his teeth as he clutched his head. "Go back to the church. You are dead. Leave me!" "But I don't want to go back.... I've seen what lies beyond the door, and I chose to return to this world." The girl stepped forward, smiling. Holding out his hand, the verger started to murmur a prayer. The girl looked sad as he did this. "Having slaughtered me so violently, you could have, at the very least, given me the opportunity to partake in your existence for just a little while." "Go back, girl. I demand it." The verger stepped forward, making the girl back away from him. She closed her eyes and turned, then disappeared. The verger swallowed, the allowed himself the luxury of taking an easy breath. it wasn't long, though, before the sounds of angelsong started ringing through his head once more. "Dammit! Why must you torment me like this?" He shook a fist in the air. "I shall join you, soon.... And when I do, I shall silence you, once and for all...." ----o Part Fourteen The Door to Paradise IV ----o It was the fresh coolness of the air that she first registered, followed by significant amounts of pain. She had to have broken an arm, and cracked a couple of ribs, not to mention her skull.... Well, that was what it felt like. She was certainly bleeding. She could feel it running across her face, mostly from her nose and mouth. It was a little difficult to breathe. Blood was running down her throat, congealing and blocking her airways. She coughed and spat, trying to get it out, turning over onto her front. She attempted to lift herself onto her hands and knees, and almost succeeded, which actually surprised her. After falling as far as she had, and hitting the object that had been floating through the clouds below her, she was surprised that she hadn't been sprayed all over its surface. Something had cushioned her blow, obviously. Her attempt to use her own powers to glide down, maybe. Wind rushed past her. Heavy wind, almost blowing her prone form along the surface of the.... She looked up, blearily. It could be construed as a kind of ship. Not a spaceship, as she thought of them.... From what she could see, this one was open to the atmosphere.... There were entryways leading to catwalks that criss-crossed the bulkheads of the ship. Nearby there were large, thick glass viewports.... larger than viewing windows at an airport. She turned and looked to her right, reviewing the massive funnel-like structures that sat, face-forward, on the front of the ship. They couldn't have been the exhaust ports for the ship's engines, if indeed the ship had any engines of the type she understood. They were too large and numerous for a vessel of this size. If they had been the exhaust ports, then they were a classic case of design overkill. The were on the wrong end of the ship, anyway, so they had to be a form of collection device. She couldn't even begin to imagine what it was they were collecting in this atmosphere. At that moment, she felt she was not alone. She didn't know what it was.... Some kind of sixth sense, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up, but she knew there was something behind her. Which she also knew to be impossible, since there was nothing but open space behind her. Shakily, she craned her neck around. All her pain and weakness was forgotten in a moment as she spun onto her back in surprise and momentary fear. It was floating, like some ethereal spirit, gossamer wings spread almost the entire length of the ship, yet its body was no larger than her own. It had no legs, not that it looked like it needed any, merely a torso that tapered off, like the abdomen of a butterfly, or a moth. It had arms, with long, tapered fingers, slowly rolling in an expression of its own emotions. The arms rose to soft shoulders and a thin, long neck. Its face rose from a sharp chin to a featureless expression, sans mouth, nose and ears, and it had three sharp, oval eyes, jutting out from a common point and coloured the same soft green as its long mane of hair. For a good half a minute, they stared at each other, as if unable to break the deadlock of surprise they were both, obviously, feeling. Then the entity motioned towards her, reaching one of its long, thin hands out to touch her face. Sailorjupiter screamed. Her voice was already hoarse from the effort of her descent, but she gave it her best shot. The entity backed away in surprise, making distance between them, but keeping a watch on her. It made Jupiter feel a little stupid, and she promptly shut up. Dazedness started to overcome her, and she realised that her injuries were starting to take their toll. Nervously, she reached out a hand to the entity, not knowing how it would react to this gesture. "H... help me...." Her voice wasn't much more than a whisper. "Help me.... I think.... I think I'm dying." She swallowed, feeling pain within her throat. "Do you.... understand me? Please help me...." She fell back against the bulkhead, her arms no longer able to hold up her weight. The entity started to move forward once more, cautious in its approach. It looked aside for a moment, and seemed to relax. She could hear approaching footsteps, and a shadow fell over her. A man, dressed in a dark uniform, kneeled down beside her. "Where in God's name did you come from?" He reached down to feel her pulse. Her eyesight was becoming hazy, and she couldn't see his features. "Oh my lord, you really ARE in a bad way." He lifted her up into a seated position, cradling her head in his arms. "We'll have to get you into the infirmary straight away. Can you understand me?" "The angel...." Jupiter lifted a hand to the sky. "What did you say?" The man reached under her legs with his other arm and picked her up. "What angel?" "The angel.... Is it still there?" Jupiter felt her consciousness dissipating. The man turned and looked up, where she had been pointing. "There's no angels up there. You're badly hurt, girl.... You're seeing things." Jupiter felt the man turn, carrying her up onto one of the catwalks. With what little vision she had left, she searched the sky for the entity, but did not see it. As they entered an open accessway, darkness fell over her. ----o "I don't like the look of that church." Umi hugged Mokosagi as she trudged up the small hill, overlooking the abandoned lakeside township, alongside Usako. "What's wrong with it?" CereCere leaned over her shoulder, following along behind. "It's just the same as the town." "No, it's not. There is something bad about that church." Umi stuck her tongue out at CereCere, who sighed and waved a finger at her. "Now now, Umi-chan.... There is no need to be rude...." She put her hands on her hips, nodding. "Have you learnt nothing from Lady Arachne?" "I got a weird feeling.... We're being watched." Natsagi said as a visible shiver ran down her spine. CereCere felt the wind being taken out of her sails. "Look, we don't need you making Umi feel worse." CereCere grabbed Natsagi's collar, shaking her. The catgirl put up her hands, placatingly. "I was just telling you what I felt." "Is this what your 'feline instincts' tell you?" "Hai...." Natsagi swallowed as CereCere clenched her fist. "Why is it that everyone around here can 'feel' things, except me? I'm supposed to be a damn Sailorsenshi." "It's probably because you're missing something." Usako paused, Umi alongside her. CereCere let Natsagi go, frowning. "What do you mean by that?" "You're holding something back within yourself, or are missing an aspect, or aspects, of yourself, that are necessary for you to fully utilise your senses, as a Sailorsenshi." Usako's expression was flat, albeit with a hint of sadness. "Perhaps your sisters?" CereCere's expression became solemn, and she turned. "Don't mention them. They're dead.... For the time being. I deal with things on my own in the meantime, alright?" Usako paused, considering CereCere, then turned and continued on. "Come on Umi, Natsagi.... Not far to go, now." CereCere listened as their footsteps disappeared over the next rise. She clenched her fists, screwing up her face. "Why, Princess?" She choked back a sob. "Why do you always taunt me with their memory? Why?" ----o It was the woman who spoke first. Not that any of them were surprised, as her two companions seemed unlikely to have anything to say of any worth, especially what Hotaru had already categorised as 'Gorilla Man', bounding around on his immense arms. "You're still here?" Her voice had a husky crackle to it that was singularly soporific and threatening, both at once. She had stopped, motioning her companions to do the same some short distance away from their potential opponents. "We're not acquainted with the speed in which news travels in this town." Hotaru said with the occasional jab in their direction of her Glaive. With her other hand, she gestured to Kaorusagi, and whispered.... "Quickly.... Tell Jupiter we have a situation going on here, will you?" "H... hai...." Kaorusagi replied, breathlessly, and clogged back towards the smashed entrance of Miste's townhouse. The woman and her two companions watched her leave without reacting. "Calling for reinforcements, are we?" The woman shrugged. "Ah well, I suppose Mister Gaga and Mister Koko need the exercise." She gestured to her companions. "Of course, I suspect you are not, as yet, acquainted with my friends, here. The big lump with the attention deficit disorder is Mister Gaga." She gestured to the 'Gorilla Man'. "And the tall, silent type is Mister Koko. Say hello, boys." "Ahuh ahuh ahuh ahuh...." Mister Gaga jumped up and down, leaning on his arms for support as he drooled and giggled, inanely. Mister Koko said nothing, merely stood, staring into space, as if he hadn't heard the woman's voice at all. "Ah, that's my boys." The woman chuckled. "And, of course, my name is Delah Manapalan, but don't let that come between us, Senshi of Light." The woman crossed her arms in front of her chest, her clawed fingers rolling expressively. "It's nice to see that there are still some people in this universe who like to introduce themselves before they try and kill you." Usashin's expression hardened. "I suppose you're expecting us to reciprocate?" "That's entirely up to you, of course. We only really came to collect DuPrae." Delah gestured to the figure whose head was still firmly ensconced in the ground. "I have to say, his rear end really is the better angle from which to view him. What do you say?" "I say I have absolutely no doubt that Senshi of Darkness, such as yourselves, would have absolutely no qualms about attempting to kill us if we so much as try to retreat, now that we have allowed you to get this close to us." Usashin turned aside to Hotaru and Michiru as Delah burst out laughing. "Watch out.... These ones won't be as easy as DuPrae was." "What do you mean?" Michiru swallowed. "You speak as if you've heard of them before." "I have. These three are wanted for various murders across the planet.... They have... weird powers." Before any more questions could be asked of Usashin, Delah clapped her hands together, applaudingly. "You vague attempt at psychological warfare is most admirable, I must say. But we are here to do a job, and I'm afraid you might get in the way. So, if you will excuse me for a moment whilst Mister Gaga attends to you...?" Delah stepped aside as Mister Gaga bounded around, insanely happy. "He's going to charge us. Step aside when he does." Usashin whispered. Her words were fractionally prophetic as Mister Gaga shambled forward, then started rolling at them like a tenpin ball. They only just had enough time to get out of the way before he plowed on through, then came to a dead stop as he used his massive hands as anchors. Throughout all this, Delah had made her way to DuPrae's side, where she immediately started wrenching his form, a little unsuccessfully, from the ground. "Bugger.... He's really jammed in." She gasped after letting go. "Hey, Koko.... Are you just going to stand there, or are you going to help me with this dickhead?" Mister Koko slowly turned and stared at her. Delah sighed, disliking the way Koko would look through her, like he was some kind of zombie.... which wasn't an entirely incorrect assumption to make.... Koko's origins were more that of an animation than a birth. "Listen, you lazy sod, you can't expect me to do all the hard work." Almost reluctantly, Mister Koko started in her direction, his tall, thin body walking with its unnatural, stiffened gait. As he reached her, she gestured to DuPrae's arse. He looked at her, then at him, and reached down with his massive, flat hands, gripping DuPrae's hips like a vice. With one hard yank, DuPrae was out of the ground and on the other side of the street, sitting against the wall with a goofy expression. "That was a little hard, I think." Delah put her hands on her hips. "Ah well, it did the trick." She smiled at Mister Koko, who went back to staring at Mister Gaga's attempts to flatten the girls. For whom things were not going all that well. Gaga had managed to bowl over both Usashin and Michiru in their attempts to use their attacks on him. Much to their surprise and regret, nothing they did had any effect on him. Now Hotaru was his target. She turned from Michiru to Usashin, both of whom were attempting to get to their feet, as Gaga rolled towards her like a juggernaut. A little insanity entered her mind, and she lifted up her Glaive like a baseball bat. "Batter up." She cried, as she swung the flat of the Glaive in his direction. To everyones' surprise, Mister Gaga was sent flying into the nearest building, letting out a wailing cry of surprise. "Now that's what I call a homer." Hotaru smiled as she watched him pop his head out of the rubble, his smile replaced by a bewildered look. Delah shrugged. "Oh well. I guess it's your turn, Mister Koko. Kill the bitch in black for me, there's a good fellow." Hotaru turned to them both, bouncing the polearm of her Glaive off her shoulder. "You sure you want to try me on, LITTLE girl?" She whipped the Glaive blade-forward. "Come on then, ugly.... Lets see if you fly as good as your partner does." "BE CAREFUL, SATURN...." Usashin shouted as she leaned against the wall for support. She felt a hand on her arm and turned to see Kaorusagi looking at her with a worried expression. "What is it, Kaorusagi-dono?" "Jupiter, and the Kiele woman.... They're...." "They're what?" "They're missing. I can't find them anywhere in the building." "What did you say?" Usashin's mouth dropped open. Kaorusagi didn't have an opportunity to say any more, as Mister Koko strode forward, holding out his large hands. Hotaru scowled at him, wondering what kind of attack the freak would come up with. Her question was answered almost immediately as he swung his hands, in a cutting fashion, in her direction. Blade-like beams of energy were deflected by the flat of her Glaive only at the last minute, at the precise moment she realised the depth of the shit in which she had found herself.... ----o There wasn't much light to greet Jupiter's eyes when she finally got around to opening them again, for which she was eternally thankful. She wanted to go back to sleep, but her surroundings reminded her that that might not be a very good idea. She didn't know where she was. No, scratch that, she did know where she was. What she really wanted to know was, why the hell was she back here, after all this time. Somewhere where she didn't want to be, because of the memory of the events that took place here.... Only she couldn't remember what it was that had actually taken place. Swallowing, she tried to sit up from the soft, hospital-like bed, and found she was connected to a dozen apparatus of no initially obvious purpose. She also found that her senshi uniform had been removed, replaced by a simple blue-green gown, with the name 'Perseus' stitched onto the front. She reached up to touch her face, feeling the tube that ran from a form of ventilation machine, into her nose and mouth. Drool had run down the side of her face, making her feel a little embarrassed.... She didn't like the feelings of being weak and infirm, and even less liked to display them physically.... More tubes ran into both of her arms, which were also wrapped in a kind of blue plastic covering that prevented too much flexing, only the most limited movement. Slowly lifting up the thin bedsheet, she could see the same applied to both her legs, and a cursory jab at the front of her gown revealed that her chest was likewise covered. A kind of futuristic plaster for broken bones, she surmised. There really didn't seem to be any other reason for it, other than to simply limit her ability to move around. Which was a distinct possibility, but for some reason she didn't think so. There didn't appear to be any bars on her movement from the room. In many ways, it appeared to be an operating theater, with large overhead lights and instruments sitting on metal trolleys sitting in the corners. There were windows lining the open doorway, which gave a clear view of adjoining rooms and corridors. Much of the place had a light, airy feel about it.... An atmospheric usage of pale interiors and windows, yet tinged with a sense of abandonment. Only the lights in the corridor beyond the open doorway were on. Elsewhere, the light was the brilliant blue of the sunlight, making the place feel sterile and unused. The place even sounded dead. Just the quiet whisper of air conditioning, the sound of the machines that she was connected to, and the wind outside. It all made her feel rather edgy. She gripped the tubes leading to her nose and mouth, and pulled them away. This took a bit of doing, since the tubes went a fair way in. She hadn't realised in, of course, but the tubes had actually been making her breathing easier, as she discovered upon her first natural breath. She clutched her aching chest, like it was laboring under a heavy weight. Ignoring the pain, she proceeded to remove the tubes and monitors from her arm and chest. She heard the monitors flatline as soon as she did so.... An annoying little whine that would have, had this been a proper hospital, brought nurses running from all directions, to see what the problem was. But even that failed to raise a soul. She threw the bedsheet aside and swung her legs over the side of the bed. The sudden movement sent sparks of pain along ever nerve fibre, and she made little gasps in an effort to quietly vent her feelings. Slowly, she slid her feet to the cold, hard floor. Almost immediately, she knew this was not going to work. She could FEEL the physical weakness in the constitution of her legs. It was just as bad in her arms, as she attempted to take some of her weight by holding onto the bed. She looked around the room for something, anything, that would brace her against the pain. Behind one of the light stands, she could see a wheelchair. "Aha..." She croaked, softly. "Now we're cooking with gas...." END OF PART 14 ------------------------------------------------------------------- S T O P ------------------------------------------------------------------- Next Chapter - "The Door to Paradise V" Notes It would seem that dreams have a great deal of effect on my writing. Almost everything within this chapter is the product of various dreams, as apocalyptic as it all may seem.... The "Door to Paradise" and the "Ship in the Clouds" are two dreams that have remained with me for a number of years, both striking in their vivid tones of darkness and light. I could be flippant and say they were nothing more than the product of something I ate the night before... If that were the case, I'd love to know the recipe. _________ / @ \ DDFA (The Right Dishonourable Mark A Page) / / ^ ^ \ \ darkdayforanime@hotmail.com /\ Chief Propoganda Officer of the \/ \/ AustrALIEN Alliance \___________/ "I want only two things from you, your /_/ \_\ PU submission, and your obedience to my will"! Version 1.0 - Wednesday, 3rd March 1999