Stars in a New Sky

Chapter 33: Final Battlefield

"Mamo! You have to listen to me!" Usagi cried as she dove to the side, narrowly avoiding the blade of Mamoru's sword. 

"I am not Mamoru! I am General Endymion!" He roared, lunging for her once more. He couldn't fathom how this weak young girl could have caused his mistress so much trouble. She didn't have the killer instinct. Her eyes were too wide and innocent. She looked more suited to taking tea in a delicate rose garden than a battlefield. This was going to be embarrassingly easy. It was no matter, he would destroy her and rid his queen of this annoyance.

Wincing against her collection of scrapes and bruises, Usagi scrambled back out of reach. Just as Mamoru charged, the heel of her boot slipped out from under her. She hit the ground hard. Panicking, she summoned the only thing she could think of to block his attack. The force of his blow nearly knocked the moon stick from her hand. She allowed herself a small measure of relief that the moon stick held up against his sword. 

"Mamoru, please! Stop this! You don't belong here." She gasped in dismay as Mamoru adjusted his grip on the hilt of his sword and knocked the moon stick from her hand. It slid across the floor, the Silver Crystal glittering despite the shadows. 

Metalia was on her feet. The Silver Crystal. Her greedy heart hungered to feel its power thrumming inside its crystal depths. She grinned. That silly girl hadn't even thought to use it against her poisoned prince. Instead she was pleading with a total stranger. The boy she knew was gone. He had been buried by his new persona. A perfect, cold, killing machine. "Finish her off Endymion and bring me the Silver Crystal."

This was it! Her black soul soared in triumph. Soon her revenge would be complete. Princess Serenity's beloved would spill her blood and present the Silver Crystal to her enemy. The thought was enough to warm her icy heart. The moon would die and the barrier between this world and Earth would vanish. Her demons would pour into the human world and destroy everything in their wake. Earth would become her Dark Empire.

Usagi's eyes widened in fear as Mamoru raised his sword. With a burst of panic and adrenaline, she kicked her leg out and caught the back of his knee in a move Mako had taught her. He fell to the side with a grunt. She stumbled to her feet and ran for the moon stick. It had been foolish not to have tried to purify him the moment he'd attacked, but fighting Mamoru was unthinkable. Just before she reached the moon stick, a thorny vine wrapped around her arms and legs. She cried out as she hit the floor, thorns digging into her flesh. 

She looked down the length of her body to find herself trapped. Blood oozed from the wounds in her pale flesh. Her heart sunk in despair when she caught sight of Mamoru's roses. Where they once had been red, they were now black. "Mamo! It's me! Usagi Tsukino! Your bunhead, remember!"

He approached, his blue eyes holding nothing but hatred for her. "The moon is dead, your highness. Soon you will be too."

Before she could speak, the thorny vine tightened. An incredible pain arced through her body, stealing her breath with its intensity. Tears rolled down her face as she fought to stay conscious. If she didn't do something soon, he would kill her and Metalia would have the Silver Crystal. Despite the pain and the thorns digging into her arm, she struggled to reach for her tiara. 

"Moon..." She gasped through the pain.

"...tiara...action!" She screamed, releasing her tiara directly into Mamoru's chest. 

Mamoru's cry of pain tore through her heart, but it had to be done. The vines released her as Mamoru collapsed to the ground. The tiara clattered harmlessly to the ground beside her. "Mamo?" She leaned up get a better look at him. His fisted hand was pressed against his chest as he struggled to breathe.