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From down in the alley below, Themis called up to Taranis about the state of the civilian. A stolen starseed? It brought memories of the night Magellan was attacked flashing back to him, but he swallowed them down. There was a rabid squirrel on top of him; that helped distract his dark thoughts.

A gloved hand curled into a fist and sailed into the creature's wet jaws. The strike sent the youma off of him, allowing him to get back to his feet. It also sent a jet of white hot pain through his chest. And, most importantly, it revealed a dull pink glow emanating from the belly of the youma.

Great. It looked like Taranis would be youma-diving tonight.

The squirrel youma was poised on all fours, shaking out the pain in its head. "Taranis Sand Blast!" he shouted, shooting a twirling orb for the thing's hit. It struck its marks, and the youma collapsed to the roof, growling. The rubber soles of his boots squeaked across the ground as he ran to the youma. There wasn't much time.

One hand pried open the thing's gaping maw, and the other did the dirty work. "******** gross," he murmured. His arm made a wet squick as it slid down the youma's throat. His fingertips waded through bits of goo and mess until his nails scraped against something crystalline and warm. "I've got it!" he shouted, wrapping his fist around it.

It was at that precise moment that the youma also snapped back to attention. Teeth clamped down on his arm, and Taranis let out a frazzled wail. The squirrel shook him like a chew toy. His ribs screamed in pain, but he didn't let go of the starseed, not even when he was thrown several feet away. Landing in a heap, his eyes fell to the glowing starseed in his hands.

No time to waste.

Sailor Taranis staggered to his feet, ran to the edge of the roof, and tossed the starseed down below. "Heads up, Themis!" he shouted. Behind him, the youma also charged, knocking Taranis off the edge and sending both boy and beast cartwheeling down to the alley below.

This was bad. This was really really really bad.

Grappling mid-air with a youma was terrifying, but watching the pavement get closer and closer was much worse. At the rate they were falling, the youma and senshi were going to land splat in the center of the alley with nothing to buffer their fall. Against the wall of the alley, there was an open dumpster. It wasn't the most glamorous option, but Taranis didn't want to get a concussion -- or worse.

His hands struggled to form magic. "Taranis Sand Blast!" He aimed it at the far wall away from the youma, and the force of it rocketing away propelled him closer to the dumpster. Sand rained down on the alley below. He needed just a bit more. "Taranis Mud Blast!" Again, he bumped a few more feet toward the direction he needed.

The dumpster was within reach -- it was almost there. "Taranis Sand Bl--" BAM! Taranis managed to get his torso and head inside of the dumpster, but his calves were not so lucky. They cracked against the side of the dumpster with a sickening snap before slumping into the dumpster after the rest of the boy. The lid slammed down from the impact, trapping Taranis inside its stinky stomach.

The youma did not have such luck. It tried to use its spit to cling to a wall, but it was too late. The squirrel hit the cement with the full force of the impact and promptly exploded in a flurry of glittery dust.

A banana peel blinded Taranis when the lid was opened. His arms were shaking, but he pulled it away. "Oh, hi," he said weakly. It sounded like he was trying very carefully not to move or breathe too hard. "Is it dusted? I don't hear any slobbering so... I'll assume." He laughed horsely, but the effort brought a cringe to his face.

His head pounded like a drum, but Taranis tried to keep his thoughts straight He didn't want to show weakness in front of the person he was supposed to be training. "The civilian?" he offered quietly. It was an unclear question. He just wanted to know if she was dead or alive.

The sound of the senshi walking on top of the dumpster made Taranis slam his eyes shut. Everything hurt, and the noise just made it worse. If he wasn't in so much pain, he might have made a snappy remark about it. As it was, he just sort of laid there, praying that his legs weren't broken. He gave a cautious toe wiggle. There was soreness, but it wasn't the same as a break. Well, that was good news.

Still, he shot the hand that Themis offered a skeptical look. "No, man," he said, grimacing as a pocket of mystery dumpster water soaked through his jacket. "Just call the ambulance now and get the ******** out of here. The civilian needs assistance and..." He hesitated. "I do too. I don't want to move until a paramedic sees me. I, uh... I'm afraid I broke something."

Cerulean eyes fought contact with Themis. This had all been his idea, and how look how it had turned out. "I'm serious, Themis. You did fine. Just call an ambulance and get lost. I'll henshin down and wait. It's fine. Just... call them."

The night had not exactly gone as the senshi of sand expected. He just wanted to talk to someone about Serenity. He had talked to Magellan about it constantly. She had insisted on knowing every detail and repeatedly bemoaned the fact that she had not be allowed to go herself. Taranis knew that Magellan probably felt like she would have gotten the crystal, if she had been there. Her competitive spirit knew no bounds. It was one of the reasons he cared about her so much. Her confidence made him more confident by association.

Perhaps he was looking for more from Themis than was fair. Taranis didn't have many senshi friends to speak of. He wasn't even sure if Castor was his friend anymore. Maybe he just wanted a connection, a reminder that senshi were more than just fighters, that they could be people too. Well, it had all backfired.

When he heard Themis make the call and climb the roof, Taranis let out a sigh of relief. He waited until after he heard the phone call end to slip out of his henshin. It took him entirely too much time to hide it back in his pocket. Out of his fuku, the terrible smell of the dumpster got worse. It seemed to take forever before the ambulance whistled up to them. The paramedics found the girl immediately.

Then Parker called out. "Over here," he said. One hand draped weakly out of the dumpster.

The round face of a paramedic popped into existence above him. "Sir, are you all ri--- oh, man, this smells... ugh."

"Yeah," Parker mused, waiting for the man to compose himself. "You're telling me."

What a night. He only hoped Dani wouldn't be too angry with him...