Jaedite's Revenge

Sailor Mars struggled against her bonds as she sat alone in her cell. Her head ached and her wrists were tied uncomfortably behind her back. Aside from the sound of her movements, everything else was still. She hadn’t seen or heard anyone since she regained consciousness and the silence unnerved her.
She cursed viciously to herself, “How could I be so stupid?”
The Senshi of Fire continued to try and work around the tight ropes holding her captive as she pushed the haze from her memory and thought back on the events that led her to her current predicament.

*****

Earlier that day Rei Hino, high school student, priestess of the Hikawa Shrine and Sailor Mars, was walking back from school with a group of friends when she heard her communicator go off. Not wanting to reveal herself, she made a quick excuse about forgetting her books and took off from the pack. As she rounded the corner she pulled out her communicator wondering what was going on.
Ami Mizuno’s face stared back at her as the screen activated, “Rei-chan?”

“What’s up Ami-chan?”

“There’s an emergency, meet us at the park near the shrine.”

Rei opened her mouth to reply, but the communicator went silent. That was odd, she thought. Ami was never so abrupt. Shrugging it off she pocketed the device and slipped it back into her bag. It must be sailor business; Ami would never use that method of communication for anything else. Usagi on the other hand…

Rei pushed this thought from her mind and started to run to the meeting spot. It wasn’t far enough to take a bus to but it was hardly walking distance. Briefly she thought about contacting the others but Ami was always the responsible one. No doubt she would have already alerted the troops.
The young senshi’s lungs burned ten minutes into her run. She had always been in good shape but something about Ami’s message disturbed her and she wanted to know what was going on. Being a priestess, her senses were usually right on but she couldn’t quite place the feeling she had. Breathing heavily, she spotted the park as she rounded a corner. No one was there. No children, no parents, not the other senshi, transformed or otherwise. She slowed her pace a dozen yards back and came to a halt just before she entered the park. That feeling hadn’t gone anywhere. It was just after school, there should be kids playing. Even in the crisp winter air there were always people using the playground. If nothing else, a sailor emergency should have been fairly obvious, youma weren’t usually the most discreet creatures. Even the park didn’t look quite right, hadn’t they just repainted the equipment? How had the paint cracked and faded so quickly? And where the hell were Ami and the rest of the group?

“Sailor Mars!” came a deep, gruff voice from directly behind her.

She turned around and found herself face to face with a large, man sized youma. Years of experience caused her senses to kick into overdrive. The creature was clearly humanoid but stood a good seven feet. It had reddish skin covering rippled muscles and a mouthful of razor sharp teeth. A dark patch of hair covered its chest and the creature smelled dank and musty. She took a step back and prepared to transform but the creature was too fast for her. Rei gasped as she felt the creature push its powerful arms into her slender frame and she staggered backwards. She fell backwards and landed hard on her back as pain shot through her. She winced, ever so briefly but quickly got herself back on her feet. This wasn’t the first time she had been in a fight with youma, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to let this be the last time.

As she recovered from her fall she realized why the park had looked so strange. Some sort of barrier had been erected around the park and only an image had been projected outward. Within the barrier the sun didn’t seem to shine quite as bright, there was no wind and it was silent except for the sound of her breathing. Not wanting to waste this brief moment of respite, she quickly dropped her school bag and thrust her hand into the air.
“Mars Star Power! Make-Up!”

In a brief flash of light Rei’s school uniform disappeared and was replaced by her red sailor fuku. She was now Sailor Mars, protector of Sailor Moon and erstwhile Princess of the Red Planet. She looked around in search of the youma who had pushed her into this place. She could see through this barrier into the outside world but the creature was gone. A terrible feeling shot through her and for the first time today she trusted her instincts and spun around deftly on her high heels.
Just in time. The creature was behind her again and brought its powerful leg up to drive into her, but she was able to block it and used the force of the momentum to push herself back and put a few feet of distance between them. She wasn’t going to let this bastard out of her sight again. This time it made no attempt to get behind her and came barreling at her. She pranced out of the way just in time but could not keep her footing as she landed on a loose patch of dirt and tumbled to the ground. That was all the time the youma needed and a split second later it was upon the prone girl. It howled in victory as it pressed down on her and pinned her arms on the ground. Reflexively the
young senshi brought her knee up as hard as she could.

Success! Evidently this youma wasn’t too anatomically different then human males if the wail that erupted from its mouth was any indication. Using this time she was able to shift the creature’s massive weight off of her and roll out from underneath it. Not giving the monster a moment’s chance she put her hands together, index fingers outstretched, and cried, “Fire Soul!” An intense plume of flame erupted from her digits and engulfed the creature. It shrieked ever louder for a few moments but soon stopped moving.

Sailor Mars let out a deep sigh of relief and tried to center herself. She had been in worse situations before but she usually had her friends at her side to rely on. Where were they? Hadn’t Ami-chan, Sailor Mercury’s human identity, told her to come here? Just then a horrible thought raced through her mind, had that creature been the one who sent that message? It certainly was ready for her when she got to the park. Had it followed her? Was she ambushed? What is the reason for this barrier?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a slow clap. She spun around to see a tall man with short, blonde hair, dressed in some a grey military looking uniform. He had a sinister smirk on his face as he continued to clap mockingly. She had seen this man before, but who was he? Suddenly she recalled who it was.

“Jaedite?!” she cried. “How? We defeated you long ago!”

“Yes you did.” Came the acidic reply. “And now I’ve come back for my revenge.”

Sailor Mars laughed with bravado. “Plan to face me yourself? Or are you going to send more monsters at me?” She pointed to the smoldering corpse of the defeated youma.

“Oh, you will get your chance to fight me Sailor Mars, but not now. I have plans for you.” He snapped his gloved fingers and a half dozen youma, all identical to the one that had just been defeated, appeared around the sailor senshi. Mars snapped into a fighting stance and prepared to face them.

“Shit!” was the only thing she could manage to think before the first blow came. One of the monsters off to her left drove its hefty frame into her knocking her off balance. She found herself reacquainted with the ground and gasped in pain as her breath left her. She tried to get back to her feet but luck wasn’t on her side this time. She felt the crushing weight of the youma on her and she found herself unable to move. She struggled violently but there was no give to the iron grip of these creatures. Panic began to overtake her as she realized this might be her end, she was unarmed and she needed her hands free to use her sailor attacks. Then came the horrible sound of Jaedite’s victorious laughter.

“You’re coming with me Sailor Mars.” He said as he approached her.

“What’s the matter Jaedite? You can’t fight like a man?” She shrieked, desperately hoping he’d take the bait.

“Like I said Sailor Mars, you’ll get your chance at me.” He reached her location and knelt down so that she could see him from under the pile of youma currently restraining her. He picked up her chin and his eyes bored into hers as she flushed with humiliation at her defeat.

“Good night, Sailor Mars.” He said with mock gentleness.

A blow to the back of her head sent a shockwave through the young girl’s form and immediately the world went black.

*****

When Sailor Mars recovered, it was in her current situation. She was still in her Sailor Fuku, her arms were tied behind her back, and she sat alone in a small, stone cell. Her head throbbed where she had been hit and her arms were sore from being in this unnatural position. She had no idea how long she had been unconscious or any clue as to where she was. Her prison had no windows and the door only had a small section cut out of the middle for looking in as well as a section at the bottom, presumably for passing food through. There was an undersized bed on one side of the room, which she noted she hadn’t been put down on by her captors, and what could only be some form of toilet on the other. The room was no bigger then a walk-in closet, it was lit by two small torches set into the walls on either end. They were odd though, as they produced no heat whatsoever. Sailor Mars awkwardly got up onto her feet and looked out the small window. The view wasn’t much, just a hallway made out of the same stone as her cell. She couldn’t see any guards and couldn’t hear anything.

“Hello?” She called out into the empty hallway.

She heard her voice echo back at her but little else. She tried again but with similar results. Sighing she walked over to the tiny bed and sighed. What had she gotten herself into? She had always trusted her instincts; her senses were highly developed as a priestess and a sailor senshi after all. But today she had ran all alone, straight into a trap, against her better judgment. How could Jaedite possibly be here? True they had never actually defeated him, but Sailor Moon had defeated Queen Beryl and Queen Metallia and with them, the Dark Kingdom. If he had been alive why hadn’t they faced him at that time? Worse then that, what was with that message from Ami? Was she the one who sent it out? If so, where was she? Had she been captured too? If it wasn’t her, how had Jaedite managed to send the message?

Sailor Mars was so deep in thought that she hadn’t heard anyone coming down the hallway. She jumped in surprise as the door opened and Jaedite walked in. Instinctively she rose to her feet and tried to get into a fighting pose but was instantly reminded of her predicament.

Seeing this Jaedite laughed, “Still ready for that fight? Good. You’ll get it soon. Come with me.” He commanded.

“Where are we?” she demanded, her voice as pointed as her heels.

“You will see shortly.” He replied. Without a word further he walked out of the cell and left the door open. She stayed only a moment longer before deciding to go with him. Where else was she going to go? Fighting wasn’t much of an option like this and she had no idea where she could run to. She walked out into the hallway she had seen and noticed it was much shorter then she had originally thought. There was enough only enough room for three more cells that matched her own before the hallway ended in another heavy door. She followed Jaedite out stole glances inside the other cells. Were the other senshi in them? She sighed in relief; they all appeared to be empty.

“Get out here now!” Jaedite’s voice boomed.

Mars jumped a little but did as she was told. She had to get her hands free somehow. As she left the small prison she was led down another long, empty hallway. Jaedite walked down it paying little attention to the sailor senshi that followed behind him.

“Where are we, Jaedite?” she tried again.

“The Dark Kingdom.” He said offhandedly. Mars’s heart sank. Even if she did get away how would she get back to Earth? She had seen the Dark Generals open gateways between the worlds before but had no idea how to do it herself and she highly doubted anyone here would just open one up for her.

“But we destroyed the Dark Kingdom.” She said plaintively.

Jaedite didn’t change his pace or look back, “You destroyed Queen Metallia, but the Dark Kingdom is very large and you’re in the middle of it. So don’t try to run away, you won’t get far.”
With that they reached the end of the hallway and Jaedite lead her through another door. This opened up in to what seemed to be an antechamber for something. The construction was the same as the cell and hallways had been and there were no decorations but there were small benches that lined the walls and a much larger door at the far end. For the first time she could hear something, it sounded like a low roar on the other side of the large door. Where were they going?

Jaedite finally turned and properly acknowledged her, “Sailor Mars, I told you you’d get your chance to fight me and here it is. You and your little friends defeated me once before, but it wont happen again!” With that, the doors opened and Mars found out what that sound was. The gate opened to reveal a large, expansive area ringed by high walls. What must have been thousands of creatures filled the arena and were shouting menacingly. Apparently there would be witnesses to this fight between her and Jaedite. A wave of dread washed over the young senshi. Even if she won this fight, they probably aren’t just going to let her go.

Sensing her thoughts Jaedite said, “Don’t worry,” he smirked, “if you win you will be released.” He waved his hands and her bonds immediately fell away.
Sailor Mars tried to rub the feeling back into them as quickly as possible. She doubted what Jaedite had said and knew that the odds would be stacked against her, so she had better take every opportunity she got.

“After you.” He said with mock courtesy. She glared at him for a moment and readied herself mentally. She was ready to kick his smug ass back to whatever void he had crawled out of. Head held high, the Senshi of Fire strode out into the middle of the battle field ready for what she knew would be an endeavor. As she made her way to her position she took in everything around her, hoping an opportunity would present itself. She didn’t trust that bit about her release for anything, the Dark Kingdom had never been anything but her enemy. The arena was large, at least the size of a soccer stadium. The wall separating the howling masses of youma from her and her opponent was a good ten feet high. She looked up into the open air and saw the darkened sky. It wasn’t that there was no light, she had no trouble seeing anything, but there was no sun or moon in the sky. It was like a rainy day when everything was enshrouded in gloom. She couldn’t feel any wind either. It was exactly the same as the park had been; devoid of life. The Dark Kingdom seemed to be made of space and matter but little else. It was cold and it felt cold and forlorn, even if the masses of beings around her howling for her death were ignored. “No wonder they were trying to take over earth.” She thought to herself.

She hoped at least that Jaedite would fight her one on one, this must be some kind of demonstration he was staging. If he just wanted her dead he’d had more then enough opportunity already. Her throat was tight as she reached her mark but she would be damned if she let these demons see her fear. Sailor Mars stopped mid field and breathed in deeply trying to calm her nerves. Her arms ached, her head was sore, she was alone, deep in enemy territory but she was ready for this fight. Even if she was going to die today, at least she’d go down swinging.

She spun on her heels and faced Jaedite. The young looking, blonde General stood tall and self-assured. In another life she could have been attracted to this man and she felt a twinge of regret. But he was a committed enemy, a ranking officer of the Dark Kingdom, sworn to take over her beautiful, vibrant earth. She and her friends had defeated him before, she could do it again. Jaedite’s expression, however, was one of victory. “Damn his arrogance.” She thought to herself.

“Sailor Mars. Long have you and your friends opposed we, the glorious Kingdom of Darkness and our quest. You are our enemy,” He stretched his arms out to his sides drawing in the audience whose terrible howling grew louder still, “but if there is one thing we respect, its strength. This will be a fight to the death, but if you defeat me, I swear on my honor as a Dark General, you will be released. Now,” he brought his arms down into a fighting position, “Begin.”

Sailor Mars wasted no time. She thrust her hand into the air and fire erupted from her fingertip. In a fluid motion she swept her finger in a circle around her entire body causing the very air to ignite, “Burning Mandala!”

Tongues of intensely hot flame shot toward Jaedite. He side stepped them and they hit the ground a short distance behind him engulfing the spot in a brief, but severe conflagration. She cursed to herself, it wouldn’t be that easy.

Jaedite laughed inwardly at how easy this was going to be. He had watched her for several months. She had improved, but not nearly as much as he had. He dove toward her and thrust the palm of his hand out, dark, purple energy gathering in his hand. Seeing what was coming, Mars shifted her weight ready to jump when the attack came. Jaedite released the projectile and it raced toward his opponent.

“Too fast!” she thought as her heart skipped a beat. The young senshi dodged it, but not as easily as she would have liked to.

Jaedite came at her relentlessly and closed the distance. Opting for pure physicality he swung his powerful arm at her midsection.

Sailor Mars was no stranger to hand to hand combat, however. She nimbly dodged this attack and drove her elbow into his chest.

Jaedite grunted in shock but was more angered then injured. He shifted his weight deftly and drove his shoulder into her torso. He had twice the weight of this little girl on his side and he aimed to use it.

Mars took the blow hard but did not fall. She brought her gloved hand down in a swift chop to the back of the Dark General’s neck and she got the reaction she had hoped for. His neck snapped back in pain and he stumbled to his knee. Using this momentary lead she aimed her fingers dead center on his back, “Fire Soul!”

Jaedite cried out in rage and surprise. Her flame seared through the fabric of his uniform and burned his back terribly but he had suffered before and this was a tickle in comparison. He quickly brought his hands together and aimed at the ground in front of him. A quick but effective blast of energy exploded point blank sending him flying backwards, right into Sailor Mars.
She coughed violently as her back hit the ground several yards away from her opponent. The crowd roared with malice and delight. She had carelessly thought that last attack would have finished him, or at least done a lot more damage. The Senshi of Fire rolled to her knees and tried to right herself but was unable to get to her feet before another sphere of dark energy smashed into her form sending waves of pain through her body. Her body was bruised and sore, her crimson skirt was tattered and her fuku was shredded from her numerous trips to the ground. A wave of alarm washed over her as she realized she might lose. No! She pushed this thought from her mind, ignored the pain and scrambled to her feet. Jaedite was on her in a moment but somehow she managed to fend off his attacks. He was fast though, too fast. All she could do was parry, she had to think of something quick.

Jaedite was not happy with the show. He would still be the victor here but this fight should have already been over. If all he had wanted was a dead sailor senshi it would have been easy enough in the park. He had brought her here to the Dark Kingdom as a statement of his power. He would stand triumphant over a dead Sailor Mars and cement his position as the most powerful being left in this world and put an end to that fucking Variscite’s ambitions.

“To hell with this!” he thought. He’d stop playing around. She’s running scared right now; he’d have time for a crushing finishing blow. Thrusting his entire weight forward he aimed to ram her into the wall and destroy her with a massive energy attack.

“Now’s my chance!” The battered Sailor Senshi thought. Jaedite had tried to smash her into the arena’s hedge but in a miscalculation he had overextended himself and missed.
With the speed of a cat Sailor Mars snatched a small strip of paper out from between her breasts, “Akuryoy Taisan!” She slammed the strip of paper onto his seared back and saw his body lock in place.

This was it! “Burning Mandala!”

Jaedite’s rigid body was again engulfed in Mar’s fire. The crowd roared in fury as the flames crackled and burned his body.

Sailor Mars breathed hard. Her heart beat with all the ferocity of raging Typhoon. She had won, barely. Jaedite’s body lay still at her feet. The crowd snarled and many appeared to be trying to jump over the walls and fight her themselves. Just then, above the rage of the crowd a thunderous howl rose from the last place she had expected it, right in front of her. The blonde general, a mass of burned tissue and smoldering uniform rose to his feet and turned to Mars. Vicious hate scorched his eyes and he threw himself into the unprepared warrior.

The dark haired soldier tried to react but her body was too beaten up. The General threw himself on her and flattened her to the ground still making that horrible clamor. He blasted the prone girl dead on with orb after orb of dark energy.

Sailor Mars screamed in pain as she was unable to shield herself from the countless attacks. Long after what it would have taken to subdue her Jaedite stopped. He was going to finish this bitch by hand. He would choke the life out of her now, in front of everyone.

Mars’s world was now nothing but pain. Every bit of her, body and soul, was consumed by mind splitting anguish. She had lost and now she was going to die, far from her friends and family in this terrible dimension. She stared up at the face of the man who had vanquished her and panic overtook her. She wanted to live!

“Please!” she mouthed, but could produce only incoherent sounds. “Please, don’t kill me!” The beaten senshi managed with great difficulty. What could she do now? What could she say?

“Die, Sailor Mars.” He moved his powerful hands, cracked by Mars’s numerous attacks, to her small neck.

“I’ll do anything!” she whispered, tears streaming down her face. Her large, still beautiful eyes pleaded with him, “Make me your slave!”

Jaedite’s eyes widened in disbelief. Had he heard her right?

The defeated sailor warrior seized the brief chance she had, “Let me be your slave, Jaedite!” She moaned in pain and desperation, “I’m begging you!”

The victorious man looked down at Sailor Mars with a strange mix of loathing, lust and ambition. This was even better then he had planned for. A dead sailor senshi was one thing, but an enslaved sailor senshi would be quite a testament to his power.

Jaedite stood up, victory coursing through his veins, shutting out the agony his body was in, and towered over his prize, “Kneel before me Sailor Mars.”

The conquered girl struggled to her feet, her body broken and bleeding. She could not meet the gaze of the man who had bested her and the deafening roar of the crowd was drowned out by the beating of her heart. Slowly, shamefully, the once proud Sailor Mars slumped to her knees. Her chest heaved and her eyes stung as she fought back bitter tears.

Jaedite used a bit of his severely depleted power to cast a spell that would amplify their voices throughout the arena, this was his moment. “What are you Sailor Mars?” he asked the extinguished Senshi of Fire, barely able to contain his malevolent laughter.

Powerless to hold herself back any longer, tears of humiliation and degradation streamed down the normally beautiful Sailor Mars’s face, “Your slave.” She paused momentarily, unable to believe the word she was about to pronounce, “Master.”

The last thing she heard before she lost consciousness, even over the booming roar of the crowd, was the horrible, hate-filled laughter of her subjugator enjoying his complete victory.

*****

Variscite stood and applauded. It would not do to appear angry at the moment of a Sailor Senshi’s defeat but his thoughts raged at the scene that had unfolded before him. He had hoped the crimson clad sailor warrior would have left the body of Jaedite smoldering on the ground so he wouldn’t eventually have to do it himself. But no, that incompetent failure of a general had just made a grand spectacle of himself and in a flash erased the taint of his previous dishonor before the entire Dark Kingdom. The execution of that girl would have been bad enough for Variscite, but a slave? Now Jaedite could hold this over his and the other general’s heads, constantly reminding them of his victory. And he would, of that Variscite was sure. Immediately his mind began redrawing his plans; two could play at this game.