by Haruka

The slaves were quiet as they waited for the Trio to return from settling Nuriko in a bedroom. Haruka had an arm around Michiru's shoulder, and the green-haired girl was nestled against her. Setsuna and Zoisite were holding hands and sitting close together. The Quartet, too, were huddled in a tight group, as if guarding against anyone grabbing one of them again. Erios had come to the slaves' quarters with the others to await news on Nuriko.
The door opened, drawing everyone's attention. Tiger Eye and Hawk Eye walked in. They glanced at Erios in mild surprise, then sat down.
"How is he?" Zoisite asked.
"The binding Haruka put on his ribcage is uncomfortable for him, but he knows it's necessary," Hawk Eye said, running a hand through his spiky pink hair. "I wish we had painkillers for him."
"Yeah, and antibiotics, too," Tiger Eye added grimly.
"Why antibiotics?" Setsuna asked.
"None of us knew that Nuriko was brutally raped just before he was brought downstairs," Tiger Eye explained, his blue eyes darkening. "No lubricant or anything."
"That's causing him as much pain as the ribs," Hawk Eye said. "He was still bleeding a little. He'll be lucky if he doesn't get an infection."
"Where's Fish Eye?" Michiru asked.
"He's staying with Nuriko," Hawk Eye answered. "We don't think he should be left alone just in case the Lights go in to torture him some more. Besides, they might object to his being in a bedroom rather than in here."
"I don't care if they object or not!" Haruka said hotly. "He needs to be comfortable! Especially in light of what you just told us!"
"Don't worry," Hawk Eye told her firmly. "We've all had it with this slave treatment after what happened today. Fish Eye said that if the Lights try anything with Nuriko while he's there, he'll stop them no matter what it takes."
"The Lights can be hurt," Tiger Eye said. "Nuriko proved that. As long as magic is left out of it, maybe we'll have a chance."
"And we outnumber them!" Jun Jun spoke up. "If we all gang up on 'em at once--"
"Hold it, hold it!" Zoisite interrupted. "Don't get carried away! Even if you don't use magic on them, they still can use magic on us. Plus, one of us is badly injured!"
"But we do have some advantages they don't know about," Haruka remarked. "Like the Talisman. Maybe we can't use the Holy Grail ourselves, but the Talisman are still powerful on their own. They should be stronger than their magic!"
"Problem with that is we need to be Sailor Scouts to use their power fully." Setsuna sighed. "And the Lights still have our transformation sticks."
"Not necessarily for long," Erios said softly.
Everyone looked at him. "What do you mean?" Michiru asked.
"Our other advantage," he said. "Two allies the Lights don't know about yet."
"Like who?" Ves Ves asked.
Alan and Ann appeared. "Like us!" They grinned.
"EEEEEK!" Cere Cere cried.
"They're green!" Jun Jun declared.
"Palla Palla thinks they look weird!" the little Amazon exclaimed.
"Look who's talking," Ann retorted with a sniff.
Zoisite had gotten up and rushed over to hug the tree sprites. "I can't believe you're here! When Setsuna told me you'd disappeared after the teleport--"
"I don't know how we got separated, but Erios found us and brought us to the stables," Alan explained.
"Having you two here is going to turn things around!" Haruka said. "You can pop to where our transformation sticks are and bring them to us!"
"But how will they find them?" Tiger Eye said. "Only the Lights know where they are."
"Which brings us to your other new allies," Alan said.
Ann nodded. "You won't believe what we just heard ...."

Seiya stroked Yaten's hair softly. After the two of them were dismissed by Taiki, they'd gone out to the orchard to sit under a tree. Neither of them had been able to speak since leaving the house, but Seiya knew there were things that had to be discussed.
"Yaten," he said softly, "we're in big trouble, you know."
"Yeah," the blonde boy replied in a whisper. "We were masters, now we're slaves. And our best friend has become our worst enemy."
"I guess he always was," Seiya said. "We just didn't know it. But look how he sucked us in to this whole master/slave thing. I know we got into it readily enough, but he made it seem so normal and ... okay."
"Being on the other side, it doesn't seem so okay," Yaten said. "It was one thing with Michiru. Deep down I knew I could stop her if I wanted to. But I don't know what Taiki is going to do. Especially not now that he's threatening lives."
Seiya shook his head. "We've really fixed ourselves up great. Our magic protection is gone, our powers are useless against Taiki, and we don't even have a place to go."
"Yeah." Yaten gave a half-hearted snort. "Taiki won't let us keep our bedrooms, but we sure can't stay in the slave quarters. The others would kill us after all we've done to them."
"They might be merciful compared to what Taiki has in mind," Seiya said dryly.
"Yo, Master!"
The two boys looked up to see Haruka and Michiru approaching. They got to their feet. "What are you two doing out here?" Seiya asked.
"Breaking the rules, just like you," Michiru said, then held up a hand as Yaten started to protest. "No, don't bother. We know all about Taiki and his betrayal, and we've all agreed to bear no grudge against you."
"Despite the way you brutalized Nuriko," Haruka added seriously.
"Why?" Yaten asked in a suspicious tone.
"You'll find out," Haruka said. "Come inside so we can talk."
"To the slaves' quarters?" Seiya asked cautiously.
"Yes," Michiru answered firmly. "It's the only place where all of us can be together at once to devise a way out of this."
"And you want us to be part of it?" Yaten said in disbelief.
"It's more than just wanting you," Haruka told him. "We need you."

Taiki didn't like it. He'd been passing by the glass doors leading out back and spotted Haruka and Michiru strolling around outside. When he stepped out to go after them, he realized things were more serious than that. The Sailor Scouts were headed straight for Seiya and Yaten, who had apparently been hiding in the orchard. Taiki watched the four of them talk for a few minutes, then saw them going back toward the house. He slipped into the kitchen and waited until they passed, then watched them go upstairs together. They were just going into the slaves' quarters as he reached the top of the stairs.
So the slaves were uniting, were they? He hadn't expected the others to accept Yaten and Seiya at all, let alone immediately. Taiki frowned. How did the others know about their former masters' new status, anyway? Everything had just happened a short time ago, and he was certain no one was listening at the door. He decided to do some listening of his own, and headed toward the slaves' room.
He was almost there when he heard voices coming from behind a closed bedroom door. Pausing to listen, he recognized Fish Eye and then Nuriko. He couldn't make out what they were saying because their voices were too low, but it seemed to be just the two of them. Considering Nuriko's physical state, he surmised that the slaves had put him in a bed and posted Fish Eye as a nurse/guard.
Taiki pondered his options. The slaves were preparing themselves for some kind of uprising--that much was obvious. Their blatant disregard for rules was a sure sign, what with Haruka and Michiru walking outside and Nuriko being given a private room. Besides, if they were willing to accept Seiya and Yaten so readily, it could only be because they needed their help.
And what help could that be but telling them where the transformation sticks were?
He began walking up the stairs to the attic. He'd taken Seiya and Yaten's transformation sticks and needed to add them to the others, anyway. He would simply take the opportunity to move all the sticks to another location.
The lock on the attic door was difficult to open, even with the key, but it finally creaked his success. Foolish slaves, he thought. Seiya and Yaten didn't have keys to this room, how did they think they were going to get in? He opened the door and stepped inside, then froze.
The box containing the transformation sticks was gone from the mantel, as was Sailor Pluto's key-shaped rod.
Impossible! Taiki rushed around the room, looking left and right, but there was no sign of them. How they done it? And when? He'd just seen Seiya and Yaten go into the slaves' quarters a few minutes ago! No one had come out or passed him coming up here. Even if they had, they couldn't get past the locked door.
All right, he thought grimly. If they were going to get serious about plotting a revolt, he would have to strike first. And he knew two vulnerable slaves in a bedroom below who would make ideal examples.

Fish Eye carefully placed a cool cloth on Nuriko's forehead and felt the side of his face.
"I have a fever, don't I?" Nuriko said softly.
"I'm afraid so," Fish Eye said. "I don't think it's too bad."
"What you're not adding is the 'yet'." Nuriko shifted slightly and winced. "Damn these ribs! I hate feeling helpless!"
Fish Eye smiled affectionately. "You could never be helpless, Nuriko."
"But even I can be slowed down, pet. And right now I feel pretty slow." Nuriko closed his eyes wearily. "I wonder how the others are doing."
"They're worried about you," Fish Eye told him. "Stop thinking about us and get well."
"Old habits are hard to break, Fishie," Nuriko said, then chuckled. "Wish I could say the same for bones!"
"I wish you were a Changechild. At least we heal faster."
"Speaking of Changechildren," Nuriko said, "I want to be sure that no one is blaming Erios for this."
"At first, maybe, but not now," Fish Eye assured him. "I guess we're all finally learning that we need to stick together if we're going to make it."
Nuriko turned his head toward the door.
"What is it?" Fish Eye asked warily.
"Trouble," Nuriko answered seriously. "And it's headed our way."
Fish Eye went to the door and peeked out. He quickly shut it again and stepped back, taking a defensive stance.
"Who's there?" Nuriko asked.
"Taiki," Fish Eye said, "and he looks fit to kill."
"You can't hurt him with magic," Nuriko warned. "If you try--"
"I won't use magic," Fish Eye promised. "I won't do anything unless he tries it first."
The bedroom door opened and Taiki stood framed in the doorway. He regarded Fish Eye with amusement.
"What's this about, little fish?" he asked. "Planning a kamikaze attack?"
"Just making sure Nuriko is left alone to heal," Fish Eye said, his huge blue eyes fixed on Taiki's.
"It's Nuriko's own fault he was hurt," Taiki said. "He should never have defied me."
"I'm asking you to leave," Fish Eye said, still holding his position.
"I'm sorry, but it's you and Nuriko who are going to be leaving," Taiki said, a nasty smile forming on his lips. "The world of the living, that is." He took a step forward then stopped as something hit the doorframe by his head. His eyes shifted to the knife that had missed him by less than an inch.
"The next won't miss," Fish Eye warned, holding up three more knives. "I can hit a target with my eyes closed, Taiki. No magic involved."
"Very impressive, Fish Eye," Taiki said calmly. "But I've modified my protective shield. Even mundane attacks are useless now."
Horror washed over Fish Eye's face. In desperation, he hurled another knife, aiming between Taiki's eyes. It bounced off the shield and clattered to the floor.
"See?" Taiki said. "Now let's get down to business." He advanced on Fish Eye.

"Man, it feels good to be able to transform again!" Sailor Uranus declared as she turned to grin at Sailor Neptune, who winked back at her.
"Thanks for getting them the transformation sticks, guys," Zoisite said to Alan and Ann.
"We wouldn't have known where to find them if it weren't for Seiya and Yaten," Alan said.
"It's the least we could do," Seiya said quietly.
"That's for sure," Jun Jun grumbled.
"We have to find Taiki and put an end to this," Sailor Pluto said firmly, gripping her Garnet Rod. "There's no time to waste."
"You're the best judge of anything to do with time," Sailor Uranus joked. "So I guess we'd better listen to you." She held out her hand. "Talisman."
The other slaves gasped as the Space Sword with its bejeweled sheath formed in her hand.
"Talisman," said Sailor Neptune. Her Deep Aqua Mirror appeared, reflecting the amazed faces of her fellow slaves. She turned it around so she could look into it. "Show me where Taiki is," she commanded. Her image in the mirror blurred, and when the picture cleared, she saw Taiki throwing Fish Eye against Nuriko's bedroom wall.
"He's with Fish Eye and Nuriko!" she cried.
Sailor Uranus charged out of the room with Neptune and Pluto close behind. Zoisite and the others followed closely, leaving Seiya and Yaten behind.

Coloured lights danced in front of Fish Eye's vision as his head exploded in pain. He felt Taiki grab the front of his bodysuit and tried to claw at his blurry face. His fingers met solid resistance with a screech like nails on a blackboard. He tried to knee Taiki in the groin and succeeded only in bruising his knee.
"You're pathetic, Fish Eye." Taiki's hand moved up under the smaller boy's chin. "Pretty, but pathetic." He slammed Fish Eye's head back against the wall, then did it again.
"Stop!" Nuriko screamed.
Sailor Uranus burst into the room ahead of the others. She unsheathed the Space Sword and brought its golden blade of light down toward Taiki. The sword met the magic barrier and sparks flew. Taiki dropped Fish Eye and turned, eyes widening at the blade being forced against his barrier. His sinister smile returned at the determined look on Sailor Uranus' face.
"Give it up, Uranus. My barrier is impenetrable."
Sweat trickled down Sailor Uranus' face and her arms shook with the effort of pressing the blade into the barrier. She knew none of the others could get past her to help, and if she let up at all, Taiki would seize the moment and blast her. It was a stalemate.
A large object suddenly slammed against the barrier to the left of Taiki's head. At that instant, the Space Sword drove deep into Taiki's shoulder. His expression registered shock, then horror. He screamed. Blinding light filled the room, and when it faded, all that was left of Taiki were his clothes under an overturned bedside table.
"The barrier couldn't stand up to two simultaneous attacks," Sailor Pluto said. "The moment the bedside table struck it, the Sword was able to penetrate."
"But who could throw such a heavy table ...?" Zoisite said, then gasped and quickly turned toward the bed. Nuriko lay slumped over the edge. "Nuriko!"
Everyone rushed over. Zoisite bent over Nuriko. "Are you okay? Nuriko!"
The purple-haired boy tried to sit up, gasping for breath. Zoisite and Hawk Eye eased him up and saw a trickle of blood at the edge of his mouth. His face was ashen.
"Fish ... Eye," he gasped. "He ... okay?"
"I'm fine, Nuriko," Fish Eye said softly as Sailor Neptune supported him against her shoulder.
"Taiki's gone," Sailor Uranus said. "Thanks to you."
"Had to ...." Nuriko grimaced. "C-Couldn't ... let him ... des-destroy you all." He coughed and blood droplets landed on his chest.
"What's wrong with him?" Palla Palla asked Sailor Pluto softly.
"One of his broken ribs must have pierced a lung when he threw the table," she answered solemnly.
"Is he going to be all right?"
Sailor Pluto didn't answer. She put an arm around Palla Palla and pulled her close.
"Nuriko, hang on," Zoisite urged, tears slipping down her cheeks. "We're free now. We can get a doctor."
"Not ...necessary," Nuriko whispered, wincing as he tried to draw breath. "T-take care of ... the Amazons ... Zoisite. They have ... no one ...." He closed his eyes as he breathing became even more laboured.
Sailor Uranus looked up from where she was taking Nuriko's pulse. "Damn it, we're losing him!"
"Nuriko, stay with us!" Zoisite cried, both hands on his shoulders. She could almost feel his life force draining away. Wrapping her arms around him, she buried her face in his chest. "NURIKO, DON'T DIE!"
The others gasped. Where Zoisite's arms encircled Nuriko, a soft green glow had begun to radiate. It spread outward from her arms to engulf Nuriko's entire body until he was barely visible within it. Zoisite's ponytail fell free and her white slave dress shimmered and reformed into a silken, mint-coloured blouse and pants. When she raised her head, they saw that a delicate chain encircled her forehead, and a tiny crystal hung from its centre.
The jewel in Sailor Uranus' tiara began to glow, as did Sailor Neptune's and Pluto's. Zoisite's crystal glowed in response.
"It's Zoisite," Cere Cere said softly. "She's their Earth Princess."
"Could have fooled me," Jun Jun remarked.
The light from the jewels and crystal faded, as did the light covering Nuriko. He opened his eyes and slowly sat up. "Zoisite?"
"Nuriko, are you okay?" she asked.
"I feel fine." He rubbed his midsection. "My ribs don't hurt anymore. I can breathe." He stared at her. "What did you do?"
"I - I didn't do anything!" she stammered.
"Zoisite, look at yourself," Sailor Uranus told her.
Zoisite suddenly noticed the green silk that covered her arms. She sat up and stared down at the matching pants, then her hand flew to her loose hair. "What the hell happened to me?!" she demanded.
In response, Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune both got down on one knee.
"What are they doing?" Zoisite asked warily. She looked up as Sailor Pluto moved in front of her.
"Paying respect to our Earth Princess," she said with a smile, then slid gracefully down on one knee herself. "As do I."
"Earth P--Have you all gone whacko?!" Zoisite looked around the room, and was met with expressions of amazement.
"Zoisite, you healed Nuriko," Hawk Eye pointed out. "Just by wanting to, you saved his life."
"As the Earth has healed itself millions of years over, so the Earth Princess has the capability to heal others," Sailor Neptune remarked.
"Is this for real?" Zoisite asked. Sailor Pluto took her hand and squeezed it comfortingly.
"It's very real, darling," she assured her. "Even the crystal you wear on your forehead is symbolic. A crystal found only on Earth, from within the earth. A genuine piece of zoisite."
The seventeen-year-old reached up to touch the crystal in wonder. A slow smile began to spread across her face. "If only Malachite could see me now."
Sailor Pluto hugged her, and everyone else leaped onto the bed at once. It crashed to the ground under the collective weight, but no one cared as they celebrated their freedom, Nuriko's recovery, and Zoisite's newfound power.
And from the doorway, Seiya and Yaten watched in silence.

Zoisite leaned her head back and closed her eyes, enjoying the soothing hum of the engines. What a change from when she last rode a plane! Then she was a new slave with no idea what was going to happen. Now she was free, healthy, and a princess.
With no idea what was going to happen.
Oh well, so not everything had changed. Feeling Setsuna's hand in hers, there were things she wouldn't want to change, anyway.
"Soooo ...," came Nuriko's teasing voice from behind her head, "when we move into this new estate do you and Setsuna plan to share a room and live in sin?"
"Damn straight," Zoisite replied, grinning over at Setsuna. "We've waited long enough to be together. No one's going to break it up now."
"Between Taiki's money and what you inherited after Malachite booked it, we should be able to get a place where everyone can have their privacy or be together as they wish," Haruka said from her seat in front of Zoisite. She smiled rakishly and gave Michiru's shoulders a squeeze. "Although privacy certainly gets my vote right now."
"You're just anxious to try out some of the kinky sex you learned from Seiya with me," Michiru teased.
"How'd you guess?" Haruka joked.
"I still think Seiya and Yaten should have kept Taiki's share of the money," Zoisite said. "They didn't even want this plane! And it's their band that earned it all."
"They felt they had more than enough money for themselves," Setsuna reminded her. "They can get ten other planes if they want. Besides, you're going to be providing for a lot more people." She glanced over to where the Trio and Quartet were playing video games.
"I thought they'd all want to go back to the Amazon," Michiru said. "Erios chose to return to his home, and Seiya and Yaten decided to get right back into recording and touring as a duet."
"Even Alan and Ann had to move on," Haruka said. "Their Tree finally decided it was time."
"I'll miss them, but the Tree's decision doesn't surprise me," Zoisite remarked. "I think they were brought to me in the first place to change my life, and they did. You all did."
Nuriko tweaked Setsuna's bun. "Are you sure your other Scout friends won't be needing the three of you?"
"They managed just fine before we joined them," Setsuna told him, reaching up to yank his braid. "Besides, the Holy Grail still has a purpose and now we know Zoisite's the one to use it. We're her protectors now, and when the need arises for the Grail, we'll be there to provide it to her."
"Sounds like you all know exactly what you'll be doing." Nuriko sat back with a sigh. "Starting over is going to be strange for me. I've been a slave my entire life."
"Nuriko!" Cere Cere whined. "Tiger Eye's cheating!"
"I am not!"
"Nuriko!" Fish Eye cried. "Jun Jun broke the controller!"
"Don't listen to him, Nuriko!"
Zoisite grinned over her shoulder at Nuriko. "Somehow I don't think you'll have too much adjusting to do!"

End of Scouting Out Life

Story contents (C) 1997 Tenou Haruka
Sailor Moon characters (C) Naoko Takeuchi
Fushigi Yuugi characters (C) Watase Yuu
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This fanfic is for your private reading enjoyment only. Please do not post it on the internet in any form or otherwise distribute it.