Life's Lessons A Sailor Moon fanfic by Kristin Renee Taylor Chapter 6 - It had started with the knife. It sat on Ami's desk, a wicked, lethal looking thing, with a blade the length of Ami's forearm, and a hilt that seemed made to fit Ami's hand. Set into the pommel was a faceted crystal sphere, clear as any diamond, yet made of nothing that Ami's tests had been able to figure out. Ami brushed the sphere with a fingertip, and watched as a spark of blue ignited in the depths of the orb, swirling to become a miniature blizzard of blue lights. A year ago, she had found it buried to the hilt in one of her redwood trees. Angry and annoyed, she had reached to pull it out... 'And that's when my life became a frozen Hell,' Ami thought. She touched the hilt, let her fingers curl around it, and picked the knife up. Her hands were shaking. Holding the knife in her right hand, she carefully pressed the point into the palm of her left. Gritting her teeth, she applied pressure. Someone pounded on the door to her office. Ami swore and yanked the knife away, a single drop of red staining the tip. "Who's there?" she called out hoarsely. "Who the Hell do you think it is?" Makoto bellowed. Ami laughed nervously. "I don't think you want to know." She stood, slipping the knife into her lab coat, and flexed her left hand, fingers stiffening as cold radiated from the pinprick in her palm. She opened the door. Makoto shouldered past her, and flopped into Ami's desk chair. "Got anything to drink?" Ami closed the door and flexed her fingers again. "Not here, no. But I suppose I can get one of my aides to bring you some water or tea." Makoto glared at Ami. She laughed sourly and slumped, "Damn, I knew I should've raided Rei-chan's bar before coming over here. Probably would've taught her a lesson, too." Ami stopped massaging her wrist. "What do you mean? What happened?" Makoto stretched. "Nothing. Rei-chan just pissed me off, that's all." She grunted painfully, and gingerly explored her left shoulder. "Urgh. Feels like I pulled something. Care to check it out for me, Doc?" Ami moved to stand behind Makoto, shaking her left hand as she walked. "Sit up." Makoto obliged, and Ami carefully felt along Makoto's shoulders. Finding a patch of knotted muscle along the left shoulder blade, Ami set to work smoothing it out. 'It would be easy to kill her right now,' one part of Ami's mind said. Ami frowned. 'Shut up. You're not me.' 'But she knows. You know she knows. She knows you know she knows. Kill her.' She could almost feel the knife's presence, weighting down her lab coat. It's awareness pulsed and grew in her mind, in sync with the muted throbbing of her left hand. "Shut up," Ami hissed. "Did you say something?" Makoto asked. "I'm just talking to myself. You know, giving myself a little verbal reminder of something I need to take care of later." "Huh. Don't let Minako-chan catch you doing that. She thinks that people that talk to themselves are crazy." The voice in her mind sniggered. Ami thrust it as deep into her unconciousness as she possibly could, but she could still hear the echoes. 'I have to get out of here,' Ami thought despretly. 'I have to get out before I hurt somebody.' A clear black panel set into the top of Ami's desk chimed softly, and a yellow light flashed. Makoto glanced at it. "Your desk is making noise, Ami-chan. You should fix that." Ami took her hands off of Makoto's shoulders and the laughter in her head turned into a sigh of dissapointment. She swallowed and said as calmly as possible, "Just because you don't use the holographic system doesn't mean I don't have to. Computer?" "Yes, Doctor Mizuno?" A male voice answered from nowhere. Makoto grinned up at Ami. "Ami-chan... I didn't know you had your boyfriend programmed as your computer's voice. And here I thought you had forgotten all about him." Ami blushed. "You leave Urawa-kun out of this." Makoto smirked. Ami cleared her throat. "Answer the call, computer." The yellow light cut off, and the panel turned a soft green. The sound of static filled the room. Makoto frowned, "What the?" Ami sighed, "Minako-chan must be trying to use the system." Minako's voice broke through the static. "How...hell...use this damn...? Maybe...red...button..." Something exploded in the background. They both winced. "Yeah," Makoto said, "That's definitly Minako-chan." Eventually the static faded and a miniture green Minako hologram stood on the panel. Wisps of holographic smoke drifted up from her clothes. "Can you guys hear me now?" "Yes, Minako-chan," Ami said. "Um... are you okay?" "I'm peachy, Ami-chan, thanks for asking. But I swear that there's something wrong with this terminal thingy of yours. Is it supposed to be spewing smoke and sparks all over the place?" "I'll... I'll have somebody take a look at it," Ami said faintly. "Cool. Spiffy, even. Hey, can the two of you beat feet to my office? I gotta talk to ya'll." Makoto saved Ami from trying to answer. "Sure thing, Minako-chan. We'll be there in a few minutes." Minako smiled brightly. "Keen! I'll see ya then. Now... how do you turn this blasted thing off? Maybe it's this-" The small hologram suddenly vanished admist holographic smoke and flames. The display cut off. Makoto leaned back and looked up at Ami. "Isn't Minako-chan's terminal entirely voice-activated?" Ami closed her eyes, and the voice giggled with glee. Terri clung tightly to Shouji's back as the snowmobile crested, and hopped, a small hill. She grunted as they landed and came to a stop. "You okay back there?" Shouji's voice came from the headset she had on underneath her helmet. He glanced over his shoulder at her. She shifted position, and gave him a gloved thumbs-up. Kiyomi appeared to their left. She coasted to a stop and looked at them. "Have you two lovebirds checked out the sky to the west?" Shouji and Terri turned, and Terri made a sound of dismay. "Look at those clouds. It's gonna storm soon." Shouji nodded. "A fierce storm, from the looks of it." He looked at the others. "We need to seek shelter." "But we haven't scouted Ami's coordinates yet." Kiyomi said, "We won't be scouting anything if we freeze to death." She revved her engine. "The last time I was out here on a mission, we took shelter in a bunch of tunnels. They shouldn't be too far from here." "Do you remember the way there?" Shouji asked. Thanks to the helmets, Terri couldn't see if Kiyomi was grinning, but she could easily hear it in Kiyomi's voice. "We'll find out, won't we?" She shot off, Shouji and Terri trailing behind. Luckily for them, Kiyomi did remember. They drove the snowmobiles into a huge hole set in the side of a snowbank just as the first few cannonballs of hail shattered in the snow behind them. Shouji looked around. "This looks like an old subway tunnel." "It is." Kiyomi pulled her helmet off and took a deep breath. "The air smells wierd, but I think we'll be okay." She shut off her snowmobile and stretched. Terri dismounted, pulling off her own helmet as she walked closer to the entrance. She frowned. Outside, balls of hail easily the size of her head continued to rain down, crashing into tunnel's ceiling high overhead, making the air vibrate with the concussive noise. If it kept up at this pace, Terri figured that the tunnel might collapse. "Hey, Terri," Kiyomi said behind her. "You wanna maybe help us with the snowmobiles?" Terri ignored her, peering out into storm, looking for something. Kiyomi grabbed her arm. "Earth to Terri. Anybody home?" Kiyomi looked at her intently, then said quietly, "What's wrong, Terri?" "This storm isn't natural," Terri said softly. "Somebody's creating it." She looked at Kiyomi, then turned to include Shouji in her gaze. "We can't stay here." "Where else can we go?" Kiyomi asked, surprised. "If we head back out, we'll get our brains splattered all over the snow." "Then we'll go deeper into the tunnels," Shouji said calmly. "And when we get lost? The last time I was here, my group stayed right here till the storm was over. There's no telling how deep these tunnels go. And we've only got enough food for three days. Two, if you count the fact that Shouji eats like a pig. And I don't exactly relish the idea of *carrying* our supplies, since the snowmobiles won't work on the old train rails." Terri smiled at Kiyomi, "Geez, Kiyomi. It sounds like you're actually afraid of these tunnels." Kiyomi wasn't smiling. "I am. When I was younger, I got my star seed stolen while down here." Terri flushed and looked away, "I-I'm sorry." "Don't be. Galaxia's attacks weren't your fault." She released Terri and went over to her snowmobile. Unstrapping the bag on the side, she flashed Terri a strained smile. "Well, don't just stand there. If we're going to be doing this, we might as well get going." Rei decided that one day, when Minako was nowhere in the area, she was going to break into Minako's office and redecorate it. It wasn't that Minako's office was ugly. After all, her office had been built from the same blueprint as everbody else's, which meant four walls, a strange color for the carpet that Rei had never heard of, but reminded her teal-green puke, and a very nice faux-mohagany desk that was currently smouldering (Rei was afraid to ask why.). But it was the bookshelves that drove Rei nuts. Normal people had books on their shelves. Minako had animals. Dozens and dozens of little stuffed animals that only Kami knew from where they had been collected. And whenever Minako went Kami only knew where, she'd always return with another one. Rei, Makoto, and Ami watched as Minako, perched on a chair, re-arranged several of the animals on one of the highest shelves to make room for something that looked like a cat crossed with a warthog. Rei asked the question that was probably on her friends' minds. "You didn't call us down here just so we can watch you put that... thing... up there, did you Minako-chan?" Minako shot Rei a look. "No, Rei-chan. I wouldn't do something as pointless as that." She gave the cathog a final push and nodded in satisfaction. "I've been checking out the outposts near the Barrier, y'know, to give the people we've got there kind of a morale boost. I want you to double the number of people stationed there, Ami-chan." Ami sat in the other chair. She massaged her left hand with her right as she asked, "Double them? For what purpose?" Minako hopped down and went to lean against her desk. She folded her arms. "The Senshi are up to something." "That is probably the stupidest statement I've heard all day," Rei remarked. "We *all* know the Senshi are up to something. They've been up to something since day one." "Shut up, Rei-chan," Minako said angrily. "Can we *please* go one hour with arguing?" Makoto asked wearily. Rei folded her arms and gave Minako a scathing look. "I'll stop when Minako stops acting so immature." She smirked at the furious glare Minako shot her. Ami interrupted Minako's retort, "We're here to talk about the Senshi, remember?" Minako stared hard at Rei. She turned towards Ami and they started discussing who to send to the outposts. Rei felt like she had been slapped. When had Minako learned telepathy? "We'll start evacuating in two weeks," Minako was saying. "All non-essential personnel first, along with those that are injured." "And where are we sending all of these people?" Makoto asked. "Oh... I don't know. Up north should be good enough." Rei straightened with a start. "Are you crazy, Minako-chan?" Makoto asked, looking as shocked as Rei felt. Strangly, Ami looked confused. Minako smiled, "Not as crazy as you guys think I am. Don't worry, I've checked the place out. It's clean." "But... the D-point?" "What better place to hide our people than in the one place not even a Senshi would dare go? I mean, heck, *we* don't even wanna go there!" Ami looked around. "I don't understand. What's so bad about the D-point?" Did Ami just ask what Rei thought she just asked? Rei joined the others in turning an incredoulous stare at Ami. "Did you-" Minako began. Ami shoved a hand into her lab coat's right pocket. Lights exploded in Rei's mind, and she fell to her hands and knees, suddenly weak. "You are truly incredible, Hino Rei. A lesser human would have died from such a powerful Mind Bomb, yet you haven't even lost conciousness. I had heard that your mental defenses were stronger than most, Rei, but, until now, I had not believed it." Drops of red appeared on the carpet, and she gingerly touched her mouth. When she pulled her hand away, her fingers were slick with blood. "Normally I would be upset with these circumstances. However, with your two companions out of the way, I find that I am enjoying myself." Rei looked up. Makoto slumped against the wall near the door, blood running from her nose and dripping onto her shirt. Minako lay on the floor in front of her desk, the faint rise and fall of her chest the only indication that she still lived. Ami still sat in her chair, running her thumb along the flat of a long knife. She smiled coldly at Rei. "So what gave me away, Rei? Was it my question about the D-point? I must admit that I was surprised when I realized that this vessel had actually managed to conceal information from me. And here I thought I had Ami under my complete control." "Ami-chan..." Rei said thickly. Needles of pain stabbed along her spine. "Or was it before? I seem to have noticed that you and your fellows have been watching what you say around Ami. Was that accidental, or did you warn them that something was unusual about Ami's behavior?" She stood and nudged Minako's body with a foot. "Or was it this one? Ami's memories seem to indicate that Minako has always had some sort of special intuition. Of course, I tend to call it extreme luck. Luck which is about to run out." She gestured and Minako rose to her feet, jerked upwards by unseen strings. Rei struggled to stand and failed. "Stop... it..." Ami looked down at her. "Or what? You'll punish me in the name of the Moon? Ah, but isn't the person that originally started that phrase dead? Why is it that whenever your friends die, all you ever do is watch? Are you truly so craven that you won't help them?" Rei seethed. "YOU BI-" Ami pressed the knife blade to Minako's throat. A thin ribbon of red worked its way down her neck to join the rest staining her jacket. Minako grunted, and slowly opened her eyes, freezing in place as she felt the knife bite into her flesh. "Watch your tounge," Ami said harshly. "You are in the presence of a Lady." Suddenly she looked up, "What is it? Can you not see that I am busy?" Slowly, Ami smiled. "I see..." Her eyes refocused on Rei. "Well, it appears as though Minako's luck will see all of you through for one more day. Since this vessel is now worthless, I shall leave her with you." She pulled the knife away. Blue light flared, and a crystal set in the pommel shattered. Ami's eyes rolled up to the whites, blood abrubtly gushed from her nose, and she would have collapsed had Minako not caught her. Rei managed to stand, bracing herself against the wall. "Minako-chan? You... okay?" Minako carefully lay Ami down, and sat down next to her. She put a hand to her throat and winced. "I think so. But I'll feel better when you tell me what just happened." A soft chime. Minako looked at Rei, and said wearily, "Computer, answer. Audio only." "This is Robert, reporting back from a scouting run. I just spotted a big mess of CTDF Enforcers headed our way." "Where and how long?" "They're coming in from the west. They'll be here in about an hour." "Thank you, Robert. Get some rest and report to my office in half an hour. End conversation." She smiled weakly at Rei. "You still want my job?" Rei sighed heavily. "If we get out of this alive, I'll answer you." Shouji stopped and lifted his flare high above his head. "Listen." Terri looked up at the shadowed ceiling, high over their heads. "It's stopped hailing." She looked at him. "Think we should try to go back?" "No point," Kiyomi said over her shoulder. "Even if we could dig our way through that collapsed tunnel, our snowmobiles are buried under a ton of rock. We've got no choice but to keep going." "Then we should at least take a break. We've been walking for hours." "I want to make the most of our flares... while we've still got them." Kiyomi stalked off. "But Kiyomi-" Shouji grabbed Terri's arm and shook his head. Terri sighed heavily. "We can't let her go off on her own." "Then talk to her," Shouji said, "I'll stay here and fix us something to eat. Don't get lost." "Same to you." She slipped her pack off, let it fall to the ground, and jogged off after Kiyomi's retreating back, the light from her flare making her shadow lurch along the ground. She caught up to Kiyomi easily, and fell in step alongside her. They walked in silence, careful to avoid the edge of the cement that marked the border between their elevated pathway and a steep drop down to the old railways below. They passed the occasional side tunnel, circles of blackness leading to only God knew where. Kiyomi never even looked at them; she was too intent on her destination. Terri was worrying about how far they were going when Kiyomi veered away from the walkway and went to stand at the edge. Terri joined her in looking down at the railway floor, their flares reflecting dully off of what remained of the tracks. Terri closed her eyes. 'A truly devoted person will stand by their friends,' Makoto had told her, 'A friend, that is a true friend, will always do her utmost to be there for those who need her.' Then Makoto had smiled sadly at her. 'But, don't get it in your head that you can be everyone's friend, or that you can help all of those that you call your friend. There are times when, no matter how hard you try, you won't be able to help them. It's knowing the difference between those you can help and those you can't that will make you stronger. That's your fourth lesson.' "I used to idolize people like Michelle Kwan," Kiyomi said and Terri looked at her. "She, and Tara Lapinski and Irina Slutskaya and Midori Ito and especially Surya Bonaly. I wanted be an ice skater, like they were. Well, maybe not like Tara Lapinski. I never did like her after that Campbell's soup commercial." A faint smile appeared. "I wanted to marry Elvis Stojko, and raise young Todd Eldredge's." She looked at Terri. "Does any of that make sense?" "Well... if you overlook the fact I don't know who any of those people are... Sure." Kiyomi nodded. "I was born in Japan, but I moved with my father to America after my mother died. Dad did everything he could to help me realize my dream. He bought me my first pair of ice skates, got me a coach, he even took time out of his job to watch me practice. Practice!" She laughed bitterly. "Ah, God, I miss those days." Terri was afraid to ask, but she had to. "What happened?" "I was back here in Tokyo, visiting relatives. I was taking a train to the district where my grandmother lived." She looked down the tracks, staring at something Terri couldn't see. "We were in a tunnel when the train stopped. The power just... cut off. At first, it didn't seem that bad. Then the emergency lights cut off, too. "And then the *noise* started. Scratching on the roof of the car. Tearing at the metal. Trying to get in. It was horrible." Trapped in absolute darkness while something tried to claw its way into the passenger car. Terri shuddered and rubbed her arms, feeling goose bumps rise underneath her clothing. Kiyomi, too, shivered. "I didn't see when it fell in. All I could do was hear, and hearing was bad enough. People screaming, trying to get away from only God knows what, slamming into other people. I think the guy next to me fell down and got trampled. I don't know. All I remember is when I realized that IT was in front of me." Kiyomi's shaking was getting worse. In the harsh light of the flares, with half of her in shadow, she looked fragile and indistinct. 'Something's going to happen to her,' Terri thought with a sudden, sickening certanity. She put an arm around Kiyomi's shoulders, as much to comfort Kiyomi as to reassure herself that Kiyomi was still there, still alive. She said softly, "You don't have to do this, Kiyomi." If Kiyomi heard her, she gave no sign. "IT touched me. Here." She tapped a finger against her chest, directly between her breasts. "And then all I knew was pain. And IT was holding something. I found out later IT had taken my star seed. But I didn't know that then. All I knew was that there was a monster above me and I was gonna die. I think I passed out then." She took a deep breath, expelled it violently, and her shaking eased slightly. "I woke up in a hospital. I was fine, completly uninjured. But I didn't wanna ice skate anymore. When that... that thing... had taken out my star seed, IT took everything I wanted with it. All IT left was fear. Fear and pain." She laughed, a ghastly sound that seemed more like a sob. "I can't even sleep at night without a light on. Everytime it gets dark, I think IT's there, waiting for me to let my guard down so IT can finish IT's job. Can you believe it? I'm twenty-four and *afraid* of the dark!" Kiyomi looked close to a complete breakdown. Terri took her hand, and grunted painfully as Kiyomi crushed her fingers tightly. "And, if I recall correctly, it is precisily because of that phobia that the Re-education never took hold with you, Kiyomi." Terri and Kiyomi stiffened. They spun to look behind them. For the first time, Terri noticed that her breath was misting in the air. "Your fear simply grew stronger in the Re-education chambers, which is reasonable given that they are, in essence, sensory deprivation chambers. I suppose the total lack of light the chamber submits you to was simply too much for your conciousness to handle. I wonder how long you would retain your sanity if deprived of all light." They were surrounded by Enforcers, their black uniforms all but blending into the shadows. Mercury, accompanied by one of Her Priestesses, smiled coldly. She lifted Her hands, pressed the fingertips together in front of Her face, and a blue aura flared into existance around Her body. "NO!" Terri screamed and leaped at the Senshi. The Priestess moved, a hand swung out, and suddenly Terri was flying backwards. Her back struck the walkway, skidded, and then she was falling, Kiyomi's shrieks of pain chasing Terri down into darkness.