DISCLAIMER: I don't own Sailor Moon. NOTE***The author of the
story, TRAINING CAMP is Dianne Artillo. I got two things from
her story, and both were in chapter 1. 1)The wartime idea.
2)The way Serena and Darien met.

Serena found a patch of ferns and hid beneath the large
leaves, pressing herself to the lush ground. Sean was a few feet
away from her. Sunlight filtered down through the tree foliage
overhead, the rays touching the ground plants and making them
seem to glow. Two butterflies fluttered about Serena's head as
she sat quietly, waiting. Now! A rustle in the brush to their
left. She let an arrow fly. Poof! There was a slight thud and
a cloud of red powder, which meant she had hit her target. She
kept low, and motioning for Sean to follow her, ducked behind a
tree. Sean grinned at her as they heard a muted cursing coming
from the person she had just hit. She looked up at the tree they
were leaning against. It could be climbed easily enough. She
motioned for Sean to climb the tree. She scampered up behind
him, perching on a big branch and letting her legs dangle. She
spotted Malachite crawling through the dense tangle of ferns.
She tapped Sean on he shoulder and nodded at Malachite. His
goofy grin broadened and he aimed the arrow directly at
Malachite's rump. Poof! It took every ounce of control they
could muster not to fall all over each other laughing
hysterically at the dazed look on Malachite's face. She jumped
down from the tree, with the dense growth to cushion her fall.
She scrambled to a patch of ferns and hid herself in it. She
glanced up at the tree. Sean wasn't there. She shrugged and
figured he'd found another hiding place. To her far right, she
heard men whispering to each other. At first she thought it was
Malachite and Darien, but then realized that the voices were more
gruff, older. She peered out of the ferns and saw one of them
sneaking up behind Darien, sword in hand. "Darien!" All four men
turned to her in surprise before the one closest to her took aim
at her chest with a crossbow. Fffttt! The arrow flew strait at
her. She dodge it and rolled to the ground, the arrow only
slightly grazing her shoulder. She hadn't calculated her fall,
however, and the force of her fall knocked the wind out of her.
She looked up and saw Darien and Malachite fighting the other
man. She reached for one of her arrows and aimed it at the man's
face. It wouldn't do much, only dazed him for a moment and
temporarily blind him. The archer howled in surprised and
clutched his eyes that were filled with the red powder. She
didn't have much time. She threw down her longbow and ran to the
man. She tackled him to the ground and gave him a hearty punch
in the nose. It wouldn't last long, but she knew he would try to
be blocking that nose bleed for some time. Serena pinned the man
down with his hands about his head, and her knees pinned his legs
down. She glanced over at Malachite and Darien. They were
coming towards her. The tip of Darien's sword was tipped in red.
Sean was suddenly kneeling beside her. He motioned for her to
move away. He picked up the man roughly and braced him arms
around his prisoner's arms and his hands were clasped together
behind the man's neck and head. A very effective form of
restraint. The man's arms flailed wildly, but he couldn't reach
Sean and stopped struggling when Sean pushed his head down hard.
Serena stepped back and said, "Look at he patch on his arm. He's
a scout." Sean said throatily into the man's ear, "What business
do you have so close to the camp? Answer me or I won't hesitate
to snap your neck and leave you here immobile for the creatures
of the forest to finish you off." The man trembled, but put his
chin high and clenched his jaw. Serena sighed. "We wont be
getting anything from him any time soon." She turned back to the
prisoner as if to further question him, when the man simply went
limp. Sean wasn't expecting this and stumbled to the ground with
the man. Sean felt his pulse. A baffled expression crept to his
face. "He's dead." "What?! That's impossible!" Serena bent down
to check for herself. He was right. Panic overcame her. "But
that's impossible! He can't have just died! He doesn't even
have a wound!" Darien nodded solemnly. "Yes they can. The man
Malachite and I was fighting died just when we thought he was
coming for another attack." Serena was frantic. "What about the
blood on your sword?" "I stabbed him in the shoulder, and he was
pretty mad. He started swinging at us, and then just fell."
Serena stood up and leaned against a tree. "We'd better get back
and report to Barendieu." Before anyone could answer, the
gleaming tip of a dagger was at Serena's cheek. A burly arm
encircled her slim neck and choked her. "I couldn't let that
happen, pet. I'd miss ye too much."
*****************************************************************
Serena's spine went rigid with fear. She couldn't mover her
head or the knife was sure to bite into flesh. She could hear
the boiling rage in Darien's voice. "Let her go." The big man
laughed cruelly. "Why would I want ta do that? An' lose a right
pretty lil thing like this?" With that statement, his free hand
boldly clutched her. Now it was Sean who demanded that he let
her go, slow rage creeping up into his voice. Serena managed to
choke out her own protest. "Let me go, now," she hissed icily.
She swung her legs behind her and felt her heel connect with his
shin. She could have easily overpowered him, had she been in the
position to, but with her hands behind her back she couldn't
quite get herself in that position. Instead of letting her go to
clutch his bruised shin, he pushed the point of the dagger closer
to her skin, and nicked the skin just below her eye. She could
feel the sticky warm blood run down her cheek. She couldn't see
Darien, but it took all of him will not to run up to the man and
wrench out his throat with his bare hands, and rip Serena away
from him and hold her in his arms. The drop of blood on her
cheek, streaming down her face like a tear nearly drove him
insane. Serena nearly cried out in surprise when he nicked her
cheek and then started backwards, but she wouldn't let her see
how afraid she was. She stumbled over her own feet as he dragged
her backwards, her fighting him every chance she got. The knife
slid down to her neck and she could now turn towards Darien and
Sean and Malachite. They were walking advancing at the same rate
they were retreating. The deep voice behind her was ominous as
he declared, "Stop right now an' if ye take another step forwar',
ye can watch er lovely throat be slashed into pieces." They
stopped, apparently unsure if he would truly carry out his
threat. Serena gathered her courage. "He'll do it Sean. I'll go
with him. I can take care of myself." Serena took a ragged
breath. She knew that she was only trying to reassure herself,
because she didn't know how well she could take care of herself
in this predicament. The man laughed. "Ye listen to the chit.
She know what she be talkin' bout." She mouthed to Sean and
Darien, He's a scout. I'll be at the enemy camp. Darien gave a
barely noticeable nod. They all stopped as he dragged her deeper
into the brush. When Darien and Malachite and Sean were no
longer visible, they came upon a gray mare. Her captor slung her
across the horse's withers like a sack of potatoes. She kicked
at him, but a sledgehammer blow across her back silenced her
curses and her attempt at escaped. The horse's hard back jabbed
into her stomach as they bounded through the undergrowth. She was
grateful she was wearing her breeches instead of long skirts that
would only hamper her attempts at a later escape. Her long
braid had become untucked and hung loosely at her back looking
like a long rat tail with loose hair flying out every which way.
The thick braid bumped rhythmically at the horse's legs. She
prayed the braid wouldn't become entangled in the horse's legs,
pulling her down and possibly being trampled by the beast. For
reasons she couldn't quite grasp, she felt suddenly exhausted,
and slipped into unconsciousness.

***********Dum de dum dum Dummm!!!!What will become of our
heroine? Will she escape the evil clutches of the enemy whom she
has no idea really is? Find out next week in,... WARTIME HEROES
(and heroines)!!!!! I really really really really really want to
start receiving more e-mail!!!!