Fate's Threads

Michiru and Lona staggered out of the stone passageway and onto a rough grassy hill.

“At last,” Lona breathed.

“I want to die,” Michiru moaned and collapsed to the ground in a pitiful heap.

“Stop saying that!” the blond girl snapped. “Can’t you see we’re out of the labyrinth? We just need to contact the others. I’m sure they’ve escaped by now.”

“Look at yourself! Look at me!” Michiru argued, straightening up, “We have nothing left but to die.”

It was true. The pair looked horrible. Much of Michiru’s right glove had been torn off and her hand was bleeding freely. Her skirts were tattered into shreds and her white boots were spattered with blood. One of her back bow ribbons had been cut short while her bodice had been ripped in many places, barely covering her decently. Michiru’s normally gorgeous hair was frizzed and disheveled.

Lona faired only slightly better, but she persisted, “We have our mission to kill those villains. We can’t just give up now! Here.” She ripped a piece from her silver skirt and seized Michiru’s bleeding hand. Binding the strip of fabric firmly around the wound, she tightened the knot with her teeth, as her own left hand hurt too much to move. Lona suspected that she had broken her wrist. The strip of silver quickly was dyed to red, not only from Neptune’s hand, but also from the dripping blood from the two deep cuts across Sagittarius’s cheek.

“Come on,” Lona urged and stood up, “That should help, and we need to get moving. We have this mission.”

Neptune just moaned and settled more comfortably onto the ground.

Sailor Sagittarius Zero Star’s eyes narrowed. “You should not be like this after what she did to save you.”

“Don’t bring her into this!” Sailor Neptune snapped, but still rose from the grass and began limping defiantly to the crest of the hill. She stopped short in horror when she reached the top. Lona quickly caught up with her, having the same reaction.

Instead of an open field, the walls of the labyrinth loomed up in front of them with a narrow passage at the center of the wall ahead. Where they stood, they now realized, was the central courtyard.

“All in vain!” Michiru wailed quietly while Lona kept a strong silence.

Out from the shadows at the entrance to the passage there emerged a chuckling figure. Her raven black hair and eyes glowed violet; a sign the senshi had already learned to fear. Her two loyal bodyguards followed at the woman’s heels. She laughed coldly, sending a chill up Lona’s spine. There was something insane and animalistic about her as she gazed up at the two battered senshi. “Had enough yet girls?”

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