Only A Dream
Nothing made sense anymore. It was a dream spiralling within a dream, or were they memories? Deja vu was becoming a constant companion, and he could remember everything and nothing at the same time.
Everything felt foggy, distant except for moments that pierced his memories with a vividity he didn't want to face, didn't want to think of and didn't want to relive like he kept being forced to do.
There was a small burst of red energy, and Nephrite's sword vanished. The redheaded shitennou fell forward through the space his sword had been a moment earlier, hands curled as if they still held it in position, plunged through his middle. Eyes glazed over, and Nephrite lay still.
They were helpless to do anything but stand and stare in horror.
Beryl didn't bat an eyelash to the dead shitennou, but there was a wicked grin. It bubbled into a laugh. That's right, she had control here. Nephrite had killed himself for her. She opened her arms to the man standing there. "Endymion!"
"Master!" Zoisite shouted to the man crossing the field. Jadeite's eyes rose from his dagger at his own throat. Dread rose bitter in the back of his throat. That man dressed in black, a mockery of the prince he used to be, he was supposed to have been. He wasn't coming to save them.
Behind him, Beryl's red lips turned and twisted a little in uncertainty, somewhere between the angry demand she was making and the incredulous laugh that escaped because he was coming to her.
Kunzite broke from the hold on him and started towards Endymion, sword raising and face twisted in anger. Beryl's magic caught him again and held him fast, but Endymion was faster. The only sound that followed was the body of the leader of the shitennou hitting the ground with a heavy thud, and his sword as it clattered against a few small rocks, landing far from his hand.
Jadeite's mouth opened wide, but he could make no sound, couldn't move at all. What was happening? Metalia had made Endymion dumb but for one word. "Destroy."
That manic grin faltered on Beryl's face. Endymion lifted his sword, and she took a step back. "Stop!" she demanded, panic evident in her eyes. "Stop! You can't--!" The attack forming at her fingertips sputtered like dying embers and faded. She fell as the shitennou had before, eyes wide.
"Destroy."
"Master!"
Zoisite's hair looked strangely pretty, fluttering loose from it's binding as he fell, but that red that blossomed across his uniform was an ugly stain. "Destroy."
The spell on him had been released at Beryl's death, and that was what allowed Jadeite to crumple to his knees. But something else held him then. He still couldn't move at all, and his dagger fell from his hand.
The senshi, those stupid girls, snapped to their senses and threw themselves at Endymion, attack after attack. But it did no good. The sky was dark, roiling clouds blocking the sunlight as fire erupted in the distance and the ground began to crumble beneath them, for the hundredth, maybe thousandth, time. And each time Jadeite saw it in his mind, again he was powerless to stop it.
When the darkness swallowed him yet again, this time, something shifted.
Everything was blurry. Blue eyes opened and saw nothing for a moment, only fuzzy colors as hot tears escaped the corners of his eyes. He didn't move, and the only thing that might alert anyone to his awakening was the fact his heart monitor had begun to show a little more activity in heart rate and breathing.
Everything felt foggy, distant except for moments that pierced his memories with a vividity he didn't want to face, didn't want to think of and didn't want to relive like he kept being forced to do.
There was a small burst of red energy, and Nephrite's sword vanished. The redheaded shitennou fell forward through the space his sword had been a moment earlier, hands curled as if they still held it in position, plunged through his middle. Eyes glazed over, and Nephrite lay still.
They were helpless to do anything but stand and stare in horror.
Beryl didn't bat an eyelash to the dead shitennou, but there was a wicked grin. It bubbled into a laugh. That's right, she had control here. Nephrite had killed himself for her. She opened her arms to the man standing there. "Endymion!"
"Master!" Zoisite shouted to the man crossing the field. Jadeite's eyes rose from his dagger at his own throat. Dread rose bitter in the back of his throat. That man dressed in black, a mockery of the prince he used to be, he was supposed to have been. He wasn't coming to save them.
Behind him, Beryl's red lips turned and twisted a little in uncertainty, somewhere between the angry demand she was making and the incredulous laugh that escaped because he was coming to her.
Kunzite broke from the hold on him and started towards Endymion, sword raising and face twisted in anger. Beryl's magic caught him again and held him fast, but Endymion was faster. The only sound that followed was the body of the leader of the shitennou hitting the ground with a heavy thud, and his sword as it clattered against a few small rocks, landing far from his hand.
Jadeite's mouth opened wide, but he could make no sound, couldn't move at all. What was happening? Metalia had made Endymion dumb but for one word. "Destroy."
That manic grin faltered on Beryl's face. Endymion lifted his sword, and she took a step back. "Stop!" she demanded, panic evident in her eyes. "Stop! You can't--!" The attack forming at her fingertips sputtered like dying embers and faded. She fell as the shitennou had before, eyes wide.
"Destroy."
"Master!"
Zoisite's hair looked strangely pretty, fluttering loose from it's binding as he fell, but that red that blossomed across his uniform was an ugly stain. "Destroy."
The spell on him had been released at Beryl's death, and that was what allowed Jadeite to crumple to his knees. But something else held him then. He still couldn't move at all, and his dagger fell from his hand.
The senshi, those stupid girls, snapped to their senses and threw themselves at Endymion, attack after attack. But it did no good. The sky was dark, roiling clouds blocking the sunlight as fire erupted in the distance and the ground began to crumble beneath them, for the hundredth, maybe thousandth, time. And each time Jadeite saw it in his mind, again he was powerless to stop it.
When the darkness swallowed him yet again, this time, something shifted.
Everything was blurry. Blue eyes opened and saw nothing for a moment, only fuzzy colors as hot tears escaped the corners of his eyes. He didn't move, and the only thing that might alert anyone to his awakening was the fact his heart monitor had begun to show a little more activity in heart rate and breathing.