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Mars Fire Ignite:
Chapter 4: Soul Burned 
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Cole felt horrible. He didn't know anyone could feel this bad at all, but 
apparently one could. His stomach was all knots, he felt alternatingly angry and 
worried, confused and rejected. He kept breaking out into chills and sweats. And 
his overactive mind was not helping him any either. 
In general, Cole was thinking about Rei and what had happened to her, or rather, 
what he thought was happening to her. 
It was the night of the explosion that had rocked the building, tearing a hole 
in a good portion of the seventh floor, the floor that Rei had been staying on. 
In fact, when he had run to investigate, it was Rei's room that had literally 
been dashed to the four winds. In near panic, he had searched the whole hospital 
over for her whereabouts, fearing the absolute worst. Luckily, a patient who was 
at the scene when Sailor Mars and the masked intruder had had their bout told 
him that Rei had been carried off by four girls and a guy fitting the 
descriptions of Serena, Darien and the rest of Rei's friends. 
Somewhat rational by that time, Cole had returned to his room at the urgings of 
several police and doctors, puzzled and worried at the girls' action. Why would 
they take Rei away from here? Surely she was not ready to leave the hospital 
yet. The fight had been right next to her room. And what did that patient mean 
by "carried off"? 
His concern grew as he was moved to a more secure room in a lower level, and he 
had sent William to go find the girls, and Rei if possible, and either bring 
them back here, or take them to the penthouse. He would be leaving soon anyway, 
and this whole thing could be straightened out then. He dearly missed his 
alluring Rei, so much that it almost hurt. 
After the doctors had left, his concern took a 180 degree turn and transformed 
to blazing fury. Again, Sailor Mars had gotten his beloved hurt, perhaps nearly 
killing her, with her antics! This is getting out of hand, he thought to 
himself. Sailor Mars is supposed to be a superheroine, along with the rest of 
the Sailor Scouts, and Sailor Moon. They are supposed to help people, not bring 
their fights so close as to injure the innocent. Why did she keep ending up 
hurting Rei? 
A small part of him rationally considered that perhaps this was not Sailor Mars' 
fault, but that was a VERY small part of him. The thought vanished as a wisp of 
smoke. 
William had returned later on that night and reported that he could not find the 
girls anywhere, but that he thought perhaps they were hiding at one of their 
houses, which he did not know the locations to. Cole sent him off to go find 
out. Now, here he was, laying in his bed, itching to go help William find Rei. 
He felt it would be a good time to tell her his feelings about her, something he 
had meant to do after the banquet, but the timing had not been correct after the 
accidents and attacks. Later, though... 
Cole fell asleep after a few moments. 
* * * * *
A knock at the front door startled Mina and Serena, munching on appetizers that 
Lita had prepared while she cooked dinner for everyone at the apartment. Mina 
stood and went over to the door, motioning the others to be quiet, and peered 
through the peephole. "It's William, Cole's butler." 
Puzzled, Mina opened the door. "Uh, hi Mr. William. What can we do for you?" 
William smiled down at her. "This might take a moment or two. May I come in?" By 
this time, Lita had emerged from the kitchen with Ami, and she motioned in the 
affirmative. 
The man stepped in, Mina closing the door behind him, and he took a seat on the 
couch opposite Serena, the others crowding in around to listen. Taking a deep 
breath, William began, "Is the Lady Rei alright?" 
"I'm fine, William," replied a haggard, but rested Rei being led in by Darien. 
Her injured arm hung in a sling, and dark circles under her eyes spoke of her 
exhaustion, but she threw him a comforting smile, running a hand through her 
unkempt hair. She took a seat next to the butler. "What brings you here?" 
"And how did you find us?" added a perturbed Lita, removing her apron. 
"Well, as to the second question, Gishumi has an extensive database system, 
enough to find anyone in the country, and a couple other countries as well. It 
was simple enough to find all of your addresses, and then go to each of your 
houses to see if you were all there." 
He cleared his throat nervously, then continued. "As to your first question, 
Cole is extremely worried about you and your whereabouts." 
Rei blushed slightly, and a look of pleasant surprise passed over her face, but 
it quickly subsided. "Well, as you can see, I'm in good hands, and I'll be 
alright." 
"Then why aren't you at the hospital?" 
She opened her mouth to reply, but Lita interrupted. "Why all the questions? You 
know she's safe, so why don't you just go back and tell Cole such and leave it 
at that?" 
William ignored the tall girl's bluntness. "Because Cole will not accept that 
answer." He turned to Rei and held her in a fatherly gaze. "Rei, Cole thinks 
very much of you. He has been beating himself up about not being there to help 
you when you needed it at the banquet, and then today at the hospital." 
Rei laughed nervously. "That's ridiculous. It wasn't his fault, and he couldn't 
have done anything more than he did." 
"Love does strange things to people," he replied softly. 
The dark-haired girl gave William a startled look, all her composure evaporating 
away at the words. She had waited months for those words to show themselves, and 
now she didn't know whether to jump up in joy or groan in despair. If it weren't 
for the current predicament of the Grell and such, she would have had William 
take her to see him, but she knew that would be too dangerous, for both of their 
sakes. She let out a deep sigh, and a whimper escaped her. 
Ami stepped up. "That will be nice and all for after the resolution of the 
current situation, but only afterwards. For right now, we have a powerful 
assassin trying his hardest to kill Cole and Rei." Everyone, including William 
and Rei, gave her alarmed looks. 
"How do you know he's trying to kill Rei?" the butler asked. 
"Because she was with Cole at the banquet, and can identify him," Ami lied 
easily. Lita and Mina breathed silent sighs of relief, having thought Ami had 
slipped and almost given away their secrets. 
William thought this over for a moment. "Well, if I could find you this easily, 
then this assassin should be able to find this place just as easily, especially 
since he managed to find Rei at the hospital. It was a good thing that Sailor 
Mars was there to stop him." Serena smiled knowingly at Rei. "Perhaps it would 
be a better idea to take Rei somewhere more secure." 
"Like where?" Lita asked. 
"Our home." 
Rei turned to William. "The penthouse?" 
"Sure, why not? We have a top of the line security system, and the only way to 
the top is the elevator. We'll be notified and ready for any intruders long 
before they can get to Rei. Plus, I have been teaching Cole in the martial arts 
for quite some time now, so between us two guys, Rei will be more than safe." 
Rei fidgeted with her fingers. "I don't know." 
"There's plenty of room for your friends to come and go whenever they please, if 
that will make you feel better. We have a number of guest rooms." 
Serena jumped up. "That would be great, right Rei?" 
Ami added, "You would be safer there, and we could come visit you after school 
everyday." 
Rei considered this. It was a good thing her grandfather was taking his 
spiritual journey around the world that he managed to make every decade or so. 
He wouldn't be back for a few weeks at least. Grandpa definitely wouldn't 
approve of me staying at Cole's place, she thought in amusement. 
Still, this would be a good time to have a heart to heart talk with Cole. That 
thought made her feel strangely electrified, and she considered that a good 
thing. 
Finally, she shrugged. "I guess it would be okay. I don't have much of a choice, 
do I?" 
Darien smiled at her. "Nope." 
"What about these Sailor Scouts," William interjected. "Does anyone know how to 
notify them where we are, just in case they are trying to get this assassin?" 
Mina grinned. "Don't worry about it. The Sailor Scouts always seem to know how 
to handle the problems. They'll probably be around to add their protection." 
"All except Sailor Mars, though," William said, getting up from the couch. "Cole 
seems to have developed quite a hatred for that one for all the pain she's 
brought upon Rei." 
Everyone fell silent. Rei's face paled, and her eyes widened, aghast. She hadn't 
known that her lie had been taken this far. It hurt her tremendously that Cole 
felt this way, but what could she do? Telling him her secret identity was out of 
the question... or was it? She shook her head. No, telling him would do little 
good, and bring more harm than needed. Cole would be in danger for the rest of 
his life if he knew. Still, it hurt. 
William noticed her chagrin. "What's wrong?" 
Ami came over and wrapped an arm around Rei. "Oh, it nothing. It's just that 
Sailor Mars is Rei's hero," she lied smoothly. 
Serena glanced at Lita and Mina. Two lies in one day? This was a part of Ami 
none of them had seen before. 
Darien cleared his throat. "Well, in any case, we should get her over to the 
penthouse right away and settle her in. When will Cole be getting there?" 
"Sometime tomorrow. I'm sure he'll be eager to get home." 
They helped pack up some overnight things for Rei and Lita, so that Rei wouldn't 
be there alone tonight, and prepared to visit the rest of the girls' houses to 
get some other stuff. It would be a regular sleep over at Rei's temple, or so 
the parents would think. Darien, of course, returned to his apartment. 
* * * * *
Jade, Opal and Pearl spent a good portion of the night seeking out the one known 
as Rei Hino, but they came up empty-handed. It didn't bother them too much, 
though. They knew where she lived, and they knew that she was close to Master 
Grell's primary target. So, in the end, they posted scouts at both the Cherry 
Hill Temple and the Gishumi Electronics Building, and were rewarded when late 
that night, a limo carrying their target and her friends drove into the supposed 
sanctity of the underground parking deck. 
"How do you suppose we can lure the Sailor Scouts out here?" Jade whispered, the 
three ninjas crouched behind a dumpster across the street. 
"Perhaps a strike against the one known as Sailor Mars?" offered Opal. 
"Mmmm, that sounds delicious," purred Pearl, fingering the hilt of her short 
sword. 
They watched as the garage door to the underground lot closed shut with a 
metallic grind, then silently padded across the street, three dark shadows in a 
city of light. When they reached the great metal garage door, the ninjas 
stopped, remaining motionless. They entered a trance-like state, and in moments, 
their bodies became non-corporeal and wisp-like. In unison, they stepped through 
the door. 
* * * * * 
"Be careful with her," said a concerned Lita as William helped Rei out of the 
car. William merely grunted in reply. Rei threw her a wan smile, looking quite 
exhausted as he drew her into his arms. 
The girls stood around him, duffel bags in hand, waiting patiently for William 
to lead them away, so they didn't notice the attack until it was too late. Rei 
was too tired to register the sense of evil that suddenly invaded the 
surroundings. 
A dark shadow-like figure swept through their midst, slammed a powerful kick 
into William's back, and leaped over the falling man to land nimbly upon the 
hood of the limo. Two other dark presences silently grabbed Mina and Ami about 
the throats in a strangle hold, and pulled them back, away from the others. 
"So," whispered the figure on the car, "you are the famed Sailor Mars? You are 
much weaker than we have suspected." She slid a short sword out from its sheath. 

Lita and Serena, dazed and awed at the sheer speed with which the ninjas had 
disabled them, remained planted on their feet. Mina and Ami said nothing, firmly 
held as they were. William groaned as he tried to get up off the floor, and Rei, 
who had fallen where William had dropped her, managed to clamber up to her 
elbows, pretending to look confused. "What are you taking about? What Sailor 
Mars?" 
Jade's eyes flashed angrily through her mask, and her grip tightened on her 
blade. "Don't play us for fools, fire-child. Or, should I say, Rei Hino." 
Rei's eyes stayed firm, betraying nothing, but the surprised gasp from William 
told her that her secret was out. Slowly, she rose to her feet, using the limo 
for support. "What do you want?" Rei hissed menacingly. 
A twinkle of laughter escaped the masked woman. "Why, we want Sailor Moon and 
her band of empty-headed scouts." 
"Why?" grated Lita, taking a step forward. 
"Because they are a thorn to our beings! We are the Ninja-Witches. It is our 
duty to promote havoc and chaos wherever we go, taking what we please, killing 
who we must, instilling fear where we can. The Sailor Scouts are our 
arch-nemeses, undoing what we have spent so much time promoting!" Jade's tone 
wavered on the verge of hysterics. "We must determine who is the better! We 
must, no, we will destroy them!" She seemed ready to pounce on Rei, but held 
back, calming herself. "Except you. The Master wishes to deal with you himself." 

Rei sighed in exasperation. "Your master wouldn't be the Grell, would he?" 
Jade chuckled. "Indeed he would. Woe to you who has raised the ire of such a 
foe. I almost pity you." Her eyes suddenly hardened. "Now, where are your 
friends?" 
Rei's mind whirled. She couldn't just transform and attack, or else Ami and 
Venus would suffer. Plus, she was still much too weak to do any good. Lita and 
Serena couldn't transform because the ninjas and William would see them. She 
needed to somehow get Tuxedo Mask over here to help, but she couldn't do that 
without talking to Darien, which was out of the question, or get Serena to 
change into Sailor Moon, which looked well nigh impossible. On the other hand, a 
little bluffing might give us some time, she thought. 
"They won't know to come unless I transform," Rei lied, making it sound like 
this was vitally important information. She reached into her pocket for her 
transformation pen, but Jade jumped off the hood and landed catlike near her, 
the tip of her sword pointing to her throat. 
"Any tricks, fire-child, and you will die." 
Defiantly, Rei reached out with her bad arm and shoved the blade aside. "You 
forget. Your master has requested that pleasure for himself." 
Once again, the ninja's eyes blazed in fury, and she stepped around Rei to kick 
William solidly in the temple. William grunted and fell back to the ground, 
unconscious. "Then these people will die instead." 
Though truly sorry that William had been dealt with in such a manner, Rei's 
spirits rose slightly. The ninja had unwittingly aided her cause in knocking out 
the man, for now Rei didn't need to worry about William witnessing anything out 
of the ordinary. 
Also, the woman had stepped a bit too close to Rei, and the transformation would 
not accept such a near and present evil. Smiling to herself, she brought out the 
pen and raised it high. 
"Mars Star Power!" 
Beams of red light strobed into being, twirling and whirling at a maddening 
pace. They combined with streams of flame which swirled about Rei and aided in 
the transformation. The light and heat forced Jade to turn away and step back, 
stumbling over William's prone body. 
Sailor Mars emerged from the vibrant show of power, and immediately took 
advantage of Jade's clumsiness. Quickly removing two small pieces of scrolled 
paper, each inscribed with ancient scripture, she yelled, "I call upon the power 
of Mars!" The scrolls stiffened straight, and she threw them unerringly at the 
twin ninjas holding Ami and Venus. Caught off guard by the display, the dark 
garbed women loosened their grasps upon the girls, who promptly dropped to the 
ground, ducking. The scrolls slammed into the ninjas' foreheads, and instantly 
they were paralyzed. 
Lita and Serena didn't waste any time themselves. The taller girl reached for 
her own pen, and yelled, "Jupiter Star Power!" Next to her, Serena cried, "Moon 
Prism Power!" Their corresponding transformations engulfed them. 
Meanwhile, Jade recovered enough of her balance to fight back. Sailor Mars 
looked drained after releasing the scrolls, and couldn't block the kick that 
slammed her in the kidney. She collapsed in pain, writhing on the ground. 
Jade turned to examine the battlefield. As soon as Mars dropped to the ground, 
the ninja's sisters were released from their paralysis, but in that time, Ami 
and Mina had managed to transform also. All the scouts were now accounted for. 
The resulting battle was mesmerizing to watch. The triplet of ninjas fought with 
astounding grace and agility, parrying away the energy attacks of the scouts 
with great effort. The scouts, though outnumbering the ninjas four to three, 
could not seem to gain the upper hand. Both sides took fearsome hits, ranging 
from slashes from blades to scorches from lightning and light attacks. Sailor 
Moon spent most of her time dodging madly from flung throwing stars and precise 
sword thrusts. 
"Mars!" Sailor Moon cried as she sidestepped a blade thrust. "Get up! We need 
you!" 
The flame scout groaned, trying to get to her feet. She felt stupid for falling 
for the kidney kick, an incapacitating blow which was intended for a surefire 
knockdown with little permanent damage. She also felt her powers waning, the 
anti-evil scrolls and the transformation having taken a lot out of her. When 
will I get a chance to rest? she thought numbly, and slid to a sitting position. 

Just then, a rose flew from the rafters and slashed across Opal's hand as she 
was about to decapitate Sailor Mercury. Dropping the blade, she twirled around 
and saw a handsome masked man leap down and stalk forward. "Who dares to attack 
the pure-hearted Sailor Scouts?" he shouted, raising his cane as a weapon. 
Pearl sent a mental note to her sisters, "I believe we are outnumbered and 
outmatched for the moment. We must flee!" 
"No!" returned Jade harshly, "we are better than they are! We WILL destroy 
them!" And with that, she renewed her furious attacks, this time augmenting her 
sword with magical energies that flowed from her body. The blade took on a 
sickly mauve glow which hissed as it sliced through the air. 
With the other ninjas also focusing their magic through their swords, the Sailor 
Scouts and Tuxedo Mask found themselves in dire straits. These women could fight 
two, sometimes three, of the heroes at the same time, their weapons and arms a 
blur of attacks and parries, thrusts and dodges. In fact, Venus and Jupiter took 
a number of painful cuts from their weapons, and the mounting number of injuries 
were starting to take their toll. 
Meanwhile, Mars had managed to get to her feet, knowing that her enemies had 
forgotten about her in the midst of battle. Even though her vision shifted 
dizzily from the effort, she struggled against falling to the black void of 
unconsciousness. She was needed right now, perhaps more than ever. 
She mentally scrolled through her repertoire of powers, but none seemed to 
handle the situation... except for her celestial fire-rings attack. Mars chewed 
on her bottom lip, vaguely frightened about what she was about to do. The 
fire-rings attack was quite powerful, perhaps more than she had left in her 
weakened state. Plus, she needed to modify it so that the various rings would 
strike at three different targets, which would require a better control of her 
energy than she probably had. There was a very real possibility that this would 
require too much of her. 
Valiant to the end, though, Sailor Mars shrugged off the consequences. Sailor 
Moon, the princess of the Moon Kingdom, was in definite danger, and wasn't it 
her duty to protect her, no matter the costs? She gritted her teeth and raised 
her arms before her. Farewell, my friends, she sighed silently as the proper 
phrase entered her mind. 
"Mars Unerring Flames... Strike!" 
All of the combatants stopped in mid-strike and twisted in shock towards Mars. 
Three flaming spheres of light shot forth from her hands, flying purposefully 
for the surprised ninjas. Even before the last sphere left Mars' hand, she was 
falling, the blanket of darkness snapping shut before her eyes. She never saw 
the results of that powerful blast. 
The first two balls of fire struck Opal and Pearl squarely in the chests, 
tossing them back on the ground. With the distraction of a burning torso, 
neither of them saw the killing strokes of energy that destroyed them by Jupiter 
and Venus. 
The third ball, weaker than the first two, clipped Jade in the side, and she 
threw herself backwards, alertly landing on her toes and dodging the attack from 
Mercury at the same time. Seeing her two sisters decimated, and the odds greatly 
out of favor, she retreated away, disappearing into a nearby wall. 
"Damn!" cried Jupiter. "We've got to go after her!" She turned towards Sailor 
Moon for support, and stopped dead in her tracks. 
Moon had Mars' head gently cradled in her lap, yelling for her to get up. Tears 
were streaming down Moon's face, dripping down and splashing on Mars' ashen 
form. 
"Get up Mars! Open your eyes! Tell me you're okay!" she cried between sobs. 
Mars was not responding. 
Mercury rushed over, Venus, Jupiter, and Tuxedo Mask a step behind. The blue 
haired intellect quickly checked for vital signs, first her pulse, then her 
breathing. "She's not breathing, and I can't find a pulse!" Mercury shouted back 
hysterically. She ripped out her computer and began making scans, her fingers 
trembling as she tried to punch in the proper sequence of commands. 
Sailor Moon looked stricken. "No! Rei, can you hear me! Don't do this to me!" 
She started shaking Mars, attempting futilely to wake her up. 
Mercury dropped her computer and grabbed Moon's arms. "Stop it! She's drained! 
She doesn't have enough energy left in her to make her heart beat! Her brain is 
barely registering any reactions at all!" 
Jupiter gasped behind her. "What are we going to do?!" 
The blue-haired girl slowly turned to the brunette, infinite grief threatening 
to engulf her face. "I... I don't know," she whispered. 
There was a shocked moment of silent. Ami had never uttered those words, and 
they sounded horridly final to the fire-child's dear friends. 
"No!" screamed Sailor Moon, and she tore out her broach. Before anyone could ask 
her what she was doing, and upon hearing her plan, stop her, she summoned the 
power of the Silver Imperium Crystal, and everything disappeared in a flash of 
white light. 
* * * * *
Sailor Moon found herself in a ghostly, deserted environment. Stark, drab, and 
thoroughly devoid of color, it surprised her to realize that it was her 
neighborhood, nearby Rei's temple. The sky was overcast and grey. She herself 
was dressed in her Sailor Moon outfit, but that was also grey and and 
lusterless, as was her skin and hair. The houses were familiar, but grey, and 
even a bit transparent. In fact, as she continued watching the surroundings, she 
noticed that things were slowly fading away. She turned around to regard the 
distances away from the direction of the temple, and was desperately shocked to 
see that, miles away, the neighborhoods sloughed into darkness. And the darkness 
was slowly approaching. 
More than a little frightened, she found herself running towards the Cherry Hill 
Temple, away from the growing darkness. Down the street she ran, turning corners 
and and leaping over fences, trying to get to the temple before it was too late. 
Too late for what, Sailor Moon wasn't exactly sure, but she knew instinctively 
that Rei was in the middle of all this. 
She rounded the last corner, and there it was. Cherry Hill Temple. The only part 
of the whole landscape that was vibrant in color and texture. Gauging the speed 
of the darkness, she figured she had about 10 minutes before it would arrive, so 
she needed to hurry. Even more than that, the tug of the Silver Imperium Crystal 
became perceptible. It was using her own energy to propel her into Rei's mind, 
but that power had a deadly price if not managed properly. Sailor Moon would be 
in danger of dying if all her own energy was expended before she could 
accomplish her task and get out. 
She leaped to the top of the stair and quietly opened the front sliding door. 
Inside was just as she had always seen it: a wide room with hardwood floors, 
devoid of any furnishings except for the hearth fireplace on the eastern wall. 
In the fireplace, a cheery, pleasantly warm fire was crackling away. 
Rei was about to step into those flames. 
"Rei! Stop!" cried Sailor Moon, running forward. 
The young priestess turned around, surprised at another's presence. When she 
turned around, she was shocked to find out it was her klutzy friend. "Serena! 
What the hell are you doing here!?" 
The blonde came forward and wrapped Rei in a great embrace. "Oh Rei! It's so 
good to see you! We thought you were dead, but now I found you and you can come 
back!" 
Moon expected an "Okay" or grumbling "Alright". What she didn't expect was for 
Rei to gently disengage the hug and look at her with serene sorrow in her eyes 
and to say, "No." 
Serena's mouth dropped open. "What do you mean 'no'?" 
"Can't you see the portal, Serena?" Rei asked, pointing to the flames. "It's 
there. THEY'RE there." 
"They who?" 
"My parents. My family." 
It all hit Serena like a brick. "You want to die?" 
Rei didn't answer immediately. Her sorrow shone through her eyes, along with a 
flicker of confusion. "I... I think I do. I'm so tired." 
"What about us?" Serena cried, grabbing a hold onto her friend. "What about the 
Sailor Scouts? What about Cole?" 
Rei's look of confusion grew. "Who?" 
"WHO? Cole Gishumi! The guy you're in love with!" Sailor Moon was getting 
flustered know. Rei didn't seem like she remembered very much, and the princess 
didn't think she had too much time left. The power drain was starting to take 
its toll. 
Closing her eyes, Serena started again. "Do you remember being Sailor Mars?" 
Rei strained to bring back some recollection of such a person, and something 
flitted through her thoughts. "Sailor...Mars?" 
"Yes," replied a tired Sailor Moon, the energy dangerously low. 
Suddenly, the color drained out of the temple, leaving only Rei and the flames 
as the lone bastion of hues. 
"I'm sorry, Serena. I don't know how you got here, but you should go back. I 
must leave now." And with that, Rei turned around and stepped towards the 
flames. 
"How dare you!" shouted a firm voice behind her, stopping her in her tracks. 
"Serena?" 
"You have sworn to protect me, the Princess of the Moon Kingdom. You have sworn 
fealty to me!" a commanding Sailor Moon shouted. 
Suddenly, all of the memories which had faded away from Rei with her oncoming 
death swooped back to her, and she remembered. Just as suddenly, the drab greys 
washed away, replaced with the sharp vibrancy of colors that were common for the 
surroundings. 
Rei twisted around, and gazed at Sailor Moon. "I... I remember. I am Sailor 
Mars. It IS my duty to protect you. I can't die just yet." For the first time, 
she realized what she had been about to do, and it frightened her. "My god, 
Serena! What have I done! I was going to-" 
The blonde put a finger to Rei's lips gently. "It's done. Don't... worry... I 
must... go..." and Rei watched as Serena faded away, back to the realm of the 
living. 
Some deep part of Rei's mind wondered if Serena would be okay, but the thought 
fluttered away. She instinctively knew that her best friend, her dear leader, 
would be just fine. Destiny would see to that, with a little help from the 
sailor Scouts, of course. 
The twittering of birds filtered through the air, and Rei strolled to the temple 
doors. She slid them back to reveal a gorgeous day, the sun bright and warm in 
the sky, cottony clouds scattered throughout the azure expanse. Children played 
in the street beyond the temple, laughing gayly at things only children could 
laugh at. 
A delicate breeze slipped through the cascade of onyx silk that Rei took 
considerable pride in as her hair, and she closed her eyes to the feel of 
strands wafting in the wind. A gentle smile played at her lips. 
Her life, only moments ago slipping away, returned to her command fierce 
determination, reminding her of the many things she had to be thankful for, 
first and foremost, Serena, her princess, or rather, her queen. 
As Rei's thoughts wandered about her friends, ghostly images of those same 
individuals materialized and floated about her, offering lines of conversation 
that the priestess remembered from her life. They were remnants of her memory, 
and she clung to them tenaciously. These were the reasons she had nearly 
sacrificed her life using powers beyond her limit. 
Not one regret entered the soothing caress of Rei Hino's mind. 
* * * * *
"Sailor Moon! Sailor Moon! Why isn't she waking up, Mercury?!" cried a 
distraught Tuxedo Mask as Mercury scanned both Moon and Mars. Only minutes 
before, their blonde leader had used the Silver Imperium Crystal, and she had 
fallen into some trance-like sleep. Tuxedo Mask had gone into a fit, thinking 
the worst had happened. Venus and Jupiter stood over them like helpless 
sentinels. They had no idea how to handle this, being warriors to the heart. 
Mercury had quickly began scanning over the downed scouts, worry creasing her 
face repeatedly. 
"Mercury! What's going on?!" Tuxedo Mask cried again, this time grabbing her 
arms. He jarred her and caused her to drop the computer. She blazed a furious 
glare at him and roughly pushed him back. 
"I'm trying the best that I can! Now, leave me alone!" she screamed. Venus and 
Jupiter took a step forward, stepping between them. Venus picked up the computer 
and handed it back to the genius, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. 
Jupiter helped a devastated and shocked Tuxedo Mask to his feet and lead him 
away. She threw a concerned and sympathetic look to Mercury before she moved 
away, and the blue-haired defender slumped in exhaustion and shame. 
"He'll understand," offered Venus quietly, kneeling beside her. "We know you're 
doing your best." A weak smile came to the golden-haired scout's face, but it 
dimly masked the deep fear she felt. 
Mercury took the proffered computer and went back to her work, more determined 
than before. 
Just then, Sailor Moon stirred, and everyone rushed to her side, Tuxedo Mask 
gently cradling her head. "Sailor Moon?" he whispered fervently. 
With great effort, she opened her eyes and saw everyone gathered around her, 
tears shimmering in their eyes. She then turned to Mars, who still lay 
unconscious next to her, and witnessed the slight smile that touched the 
fire-child's lips. Sailor Moon knew that she would be alright. 
"Mars will be back soon," Moon replied tiredly. "She needs to... rest." And with 
that, the fearless leader of the Sailor Scouts fell asleep. 
* * * * *
The Grell had watched the whole battle through a mental link with Jade, and he 
was not pleased. The foolish ninjas had nearly been the death of Sailor Mars in 
their need to satisfy their own pride, and such were not the orders he had 
given. The incineration of two of the ninja-witches did nothing to satisfy his 
rage. 
He summoned his prized pet to his side, and waited patiently for Jade to return, 
tapping his index fingers together in a semblance of thoughtfulness. His pet, 
difficult to see in the shadowed dimness of the assassin's study, rumbled a deep 
contralto that nearly shook the expensive wooden desk apart with its resonance. 
"Patience, Droc'uh, patience," he telepathed to it, placing a soothing hand upon 
its ridged brow, knowing instinctively where it was despite the creature's 
camouflage that rendered it nearly invisible. "You will have your fun." 
Almost an hour later, Jade quietly knocked upon the Grell's study, and he bid 
her enter. She slunk into the room, looking like a beaten dog with her tail 
between her legs, her eyes downcast in apparent shame. 
She knew a second too late that she had overstepped her bounds. She tried to 
draw her sword, to block the great mass of the almost-visible beast that 
launched itself at her from behind the desk, but it slashed away the pitiful 
blade, along with a good portion of her hand and forearm, and bore her to the 
ground. She screamed out at the explosion of pain, gazing up at the face of her 
death, though the camouflage power of the creature prevented her from seeing 
even that. The body rippled slightly in the light with a watery consistency that 
forbade the eye from connecting the image of the creature, so all that was seen 
was a huge, blurry, four-legged beast of water that changed color to quickly 
adapt to the surrounding environment, in this case, the study. The only thing 
visible were those horrid orbs on the side of the head, those coldly pale 
pupilless eyes that nearly hypnotized the prey. 
"Master!" she pleaded hoarsely, the creature's weight pushing out the air in her 
lungs. It didn't attack her... yet. 
The Grell stood up, walked over, and kneeled beside her. He placed a gentle hand 
upon her head, and she thought, momentarily, that everything would be better 
now. 
He ripped her mask off, revealing the beautiful woman beneath. 
"I will keep this... to remember you by, my dear." 
Jade's wondrous eyes widened in horror and tried to bellow her rage, but all 
that came out was a terrible gurgling and a gout of bright crimson blood as the 
beast rammed its pincered maw into her chest, slashing through skin, bone and 
lungs. It was careful to avoid the heart, which still beat rapidly in plain 
sight. It rather enjoyed listening to death throes of its victims. 
Jade spent many minutes in agonizing pain, drowning in blood, before Death 
finally claimed her. 
* * * * *
William came to soon after Sailor Moon passed out again. He didn't question 
anyone about what happened when he revived, and no one offered to fill him in. 
They all wondered, though, if he remembered that Rei was Sailor Mars. He 
silently carried Rei and led the way to the penthouse. Once there, he nestled 
her snuggly into one of the guest rooms, a spacious and plush room with a great 
canopied bed of red and black silks. 
Silently shutting the door behind him, William led Darien, who held Serena (she 
had reverted back after passing out), into an adjacent room of like 
extravagance, and left the two there. Once that was settled, he relented to Ami, 
who insisted upon checking the ugly bruise that was developing on his temple, 
and led the rest of the girls to the kitchen, a crisp and sterile affair of snow 
marble, alabaster drawers and cabinets, and white appliances. It was much bigger 
than any kitchen the girls had seen before. Lita emitted a longing sigh. 
William sat at the breakfast table and allowed Ami to administer his wound, all 
the while keeping his eyes closed in deep thought. A quiet fell over the 
kitchen, one that made Lita and Mina squirm uncomfortably. 
Finally, William broke the silence. "So, what do I tell Master Cole?" 
Ami kept silent, but Lita and Mina jumped at his voice. "Er, about what?" asked 
Mina sheepishly. 
"Well," sighed the burly man, "about Sailor Mars... or rather, Rei Hino." The 
girls suddenly looked extremely uncomfortable, and avoided his piercing gaze. 
Ami managed to compose herself first. "You must be mistaken," she replied 
nonchalantly, continuing with her medical attention. 
The other girls and William gave her a shocked look, speaking volumes of 
disbelief with their stares. She shrugged it all off, however, and added, "You 
got an awful blow to the head" 
"But, she's... she's Sailor Mars!" he returned, outrage creeping into his voice. 

"And I tell you, she's not! You were hallucinating!" Ami shouted back. 
William glanced at the brunette and blonde, but they wore masks of pity, 
pretending that he had gotten hit a little too hard. The outrage slipped into 
doubt. 
He shook his head, as if to clear it. "I'm sure I heard that mugger say Rei was 
Sailor Mars," he mumbled aloud. 
Ami gave him an amused grin. "Do you always listen to what muggers have to say?" 

William cracked a slight smile. "No, I guess not." 
"Good. You have a mild bump on your head, and it's possible that the blow caused 
you some confusion. I think you should go rest." 
The butler, a burly and well-built man, suddenly looked aged, immensely tired. 
"I suppose you're right." He got up to leave, then stopped as if remembering 
something. "But-" 
"We'll find the guest rooms just fine. Go on to bed," interrupted Ami 
motheringly. William grunted and sidled off. 
As soon as he left the room, Lita and Mina exhaled in relief. "Wow! That was 
close!" whispered the brunette, collapsing into a wicker breakfast chair. Mina 
did likewise, and flashed Ami with a sly grin. "You know, Ami, this lying is 
starting to get into a habit." 
Ami flushed rosily, and wrung her fingers. "I know, but I didn't have a choice. 
We can't let anyone know about us, especially Cole. He already hates Sailor 
Mars, and that could get a bit touchy if he found out that Sailor Mars was 
really Rei." 
Lita nodded in agreement, then stretched cat-like, and yawned. "Well, I don't 
know about the rest of you, but I'm beat. I think I'm going to go to bed... er, 
as soon as I fix something to eat. You guys hungry?" 
The girls proceeded to make omelets, knowing in their hearts that Sailor Moon 
and Mars were going to be alright. 
They didn't notice William eavesdropping outside the kitchen, or hear him walk 
away to ponder this interesting development. 
* * * * *
Serena awoke early the next morning, fatigued but recovering. Darien made sure 
that his love was going to be fine, then promised to come by later after work 
and left. 
William made them all breakfast (except for Rei, who was still out in a 
coma-like state), then notified them that he would be going to pick up Cole. 
The girls spent most of the morning exploring the vast penthouse, making sure to 
periodically check in on Rei to make sure she was comfortable, though they 
needn't have concerned themselves. Already, Rei's color had returned to her, and 
she looked like she was quietly asleep. Ami was very pleased with this, for she 
knew that the longer Rei slept, the more she would recover from the last few 
days. It truly was a healing sleep. 
One thing they had forgotten to do, however, was come up with a plausible story 
for incident in the garage. 
Cole burst through the elevator door, startling the girls, who were having a 
snack in the kitchen. They ran to see what the commotion was, and caught a 
glimpse of him running up the stairs to Rei's room. 
When they got to her room, they found Cole gently caressing her face, holding 
tightly to one of her hands. It spoke of a tender love that did not escape the 
gathered scouts, or William, who quietly watched from the hallway. 
Finally, Cole turned to the girls, and they were surprised by a fierce and cold 
glint in his eyes. "Will she be okay?" he asked tremulously, contrasting his 
hard look. 
Ami nodded. "She's recovering quite well." 
He turned back, and softly kissed Rei on the forehead. Then, he stood up, and 
marched out, motioning for the girls to follow. 
Closing the door quietly behind him, he calmly walked down the stairs, through 
the foyer, and into the library, and sat down tiredly into his chair. The girls, 
somewhat unnerved by his manner, remained standing. 
"What happened?" he asked after a moment of silent. 
Realizing that they hadn't come up with a story to cover the truth, the scouts 
glanced around nervously at each other, until finally, Ami stepped forward. 
"Well, William had found us at Lita's apartment, and convinced us that it would 
be safer to bring Rei here, just in case the assassin was looking for her," she 
began, settling into a convincing tone and series of half-truths that were 
slowly becoming second nature to her. "We came here, but a trio of muggers 
managed to get into the garage with us, and held us up." 
"Muggers?" Cole raised an eyebrow questioningly. 
"Well, I guess you couldn't quite call them muggers. They were more like bushi, 
for lack of a better term (*bushi is an old oriental term hired mercenaries, 
sell-swords, etc.). Apparently they worked for this assassin who has been so 
interested in you, and thought that if they could take hold of Rei, then they 
could use her to get to you." 
"Use Rei?" 
"Well," Ami returned with barely perceptible humor, "some people seem to think 
you and Rei are something of an item." 
Cole's face remained stony and unamused. 
Shrugging nonchalantly (Ami felt that this simple motion helped carry her lies 
more convincingly), she continued. "Anyway, they knocked out William, and would 
have kidnapped Rei, if the Sailor Scouts had not arrived." 
At this, Cole's hand clenched into fists. "Was Sailor Mars with them?" he asked 
coldly. 
Ami was taken aback, as were the other girls. This hatred for their fellow scout 
was getting a bit out of hand. 
"Well, of course Sailor Mars was with them!" Serena blurted out, giving him an 
exasperated look. "Since when do the scouts ever do things without all of them 
together?" 
"What about the banquet?" 
Serena opened her mouth to reply, then clamped it shut, realizing she had 
forgotten about that. 
Cole turned back to Ami. "So, once again this fire woman shows up, and Rei pays 
the price." 
"She would have been kidnapped if Sailor Mars and the others had not been 
there!" 
"Yes, but she would have been alright!" 
"You can't know that!" Lita shout back, frustrated that Cole was being so 
narrow-minded. 
William maintained his silence. 
Cole blinked, and seemed to change before their eyes. His features sagged, and 
he looked haggard. "I'm sorry, guys. I don't know what I was thinking. Of 
course, you're right. I'm just tired. You know, getting out of the hospital and 
all. I didn't mean to snap at you guys." 
"Well..." Lita murmured, somewhat mollified. 
"Would you guys please excuse me? I need to throw out a few memos that I need to 
give to the Board of Directors, and then I'm going to go to bed." he ruffled 
through some papers situated on the desk. 
"By the way, it's those same Board of Directors that hired the assassin," Ami 
said, wondering suspiciously at the sudden change of mood. 
Cole smiled sadly. "Yes, William told me. I'll be dealing with them soon 
enough." 
Satisfied, Serena turned around and walked out, pulling Mina in tow. "Thanks, 
Cole. I think we're going to go back to eating." Lita followed, as did Ami, 
though a bit more slowly. At the door, she gave him one last glance, but he had 
already swiveled his chair around and was staring out of the window. 
Something is not right, she thought to herself, but left anyway. 
Cole listened for the door to close, then proceeded to make a few phone calls. 
* * * * *
Outside, William followed the girls down to the kitchen, and watched impassively 
as the girls raided the pantry. They seemed such a close-knit group of girls, 
each complementing the others in style and personality. No wonder they were the 
Sailor Scouts, he thought. 
"William, are you alright?" questioned Ami, escaping from her jocular friends 
and noticing the butler looking distant and contemplative. She kept her voice 
down to avoid alerting the others of their conversation. William didn't seem 
like he wanted a gaggle of teenagers to talk to. 
He gazed down at the pretty girl, and motioned her to follow after a silent 
moment. Leading her to the dining room, he waved a hand, indicating her to sit. 
He remained standing. 
"When will you girls be heading home? Your parents are bound to get worried, 
especially if your school calls home and wonders where you've been," he began. 
"Rei's and Serena's well being is much more important than going to school," Ami 
replied airily, though a slight grimace passed over her face, bringing the 
glimpses of a smile to William's lips. "Besides, high school is a little more 
lenient than grade school about missing classes." 
"Ah, but what happens when the Sailor Scouts are needed and none of you are 
there to help out?" 
"Artemis and Luna will warn - " and suddenly Ami stopped, realizing the trap she 
had just walked into. She attempted to recover from her blunder. "Er, um, we're 
not -" 
William held up a hand. "No, no. I'm not interested in hearing your lies 
anymore. I overheard your conversation last night in the kitchen." 
Ami appeared nervous at that. She suddenly wished that the other girls would 
come see what was going on, and perhaps take this out of her hands, but she 
could hear them laughing away in the kitchen. "Well, what are you going to do 
now?" 
"Nothing. This isn't the kind of information that needs to be getting around. On 
the other hand, we still have this problem of Sailor Mars and Cole." William 
mouth twisted into a wry smirk. 
"Yes, I know. I can't imagine how she managed to tie herself up in THAT noose. 
How could he hate Sailor Mars so much? She's a heroine, for God's sake!" 
The butler shrugged. "I don't quite know myself, but it has a lot to do with 
what he feels for Rei. How many times does Rei normally fall prey to being 
incapacitated so much?" 
"Um, rarely." Ami didn't bring up the time that the Scouts died and were 
resurrected after the defeat of Beryl. 
"Well, then, it is only natural that he's extremely worried about her. Aren't 
you guys?" 
"Of course we are! It's just that, we've been doing this so long that we're used 
to it. It's part of our job, if you will." 
William smiled grimly at that. "Well, you'd better get rid of that part. I don't 
think Cole is going to be rational about this too much longer." 
* * * * *
Cole closed the door softly behind, and strode over to his laying goddess. 
Pulling up a chair, he gazed down upon her serene face, and fought desperately 
to contain his rage. He reached out a trembling hand and placed it upon her 
head, stroking through her hair gently, marveling at the way it fell like silk 
through his fingers. 
"I'm so sorry, my dear," Cole choked out, eyes misting over. "If I could whisk 
away your pain, take into myself, I would without question. I would keep it from 
you so that you would never have to know its claw again." Tears brimmed over and 
streamed down his face, blurring his porcelain image of her. He swept a sleeve 
over them to clear away the haze. 
"But I can't. With all the money in the world, with all the power money can 
provide me, I cannot." 
He stood up suddenly, and drank in the sight of Rei's peaceful slumber, her arm 
wrapped in a bandage and placed in a sling, the scratches and bruises that 
marked in creamy skin. He clenched his fists, shaking with fury. 
"Sailor Mars will pay for this. I promise you." 
=============
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