RETURN OF THE JEDITE
by Tuxedo Alex
AUTHORS NOTES
This story is supposed to provide an alternate story line to the Sailor Moon series. It starts after the Sailor Moon R series ends (the Death Phantom is destroyed and Rini goes home to Crystal Tokyo). The next events are of my own creation and do not relate to the Sailor Moon S series (at least not intentionally).
I finished this fanfic over a year ago, before the S and SuperS seasons were dubbed in America. Please excuse any attack names that are DiC-ish, because that is what I had to work with at the time. ;) This story, after looking back, seems a cross between Japanese and American references. So, please excuse the term "Negaverse" as opposed to "Dark Kingdom", because the story focuses on Jedite.
Also, each part posted here will contain two chapters.
Anyway, please enjoy the story!
PROLOGUE
Within the deep recesses of the Negaverse stood a prison of lost souls. This wasn't a normal prison, however, for the condemned souls were forced into large, green crystals, frozen in time. They were servants of Queen Beryl who were sent there for betrayal or failure; forced to sleep forever. They were all put on display to the general public to show what happens to anyone the Queen doesn't like.
Ever since the Queen had been defeated, the Negaverse had halted attacks on the Earth realm. Without a leader, and no foreseeable heirs to the throne, there was no one to initiate attacks at all. The prison still stood in memory of the Queen, though.
A woman in a cloak stepped up to one crystal in particular. The soul within it wore a uniform symbolizing a member of the Queen's army. It was gray, except for a red insignia of the collar, white gloves, and black shoes. He had short, blond hair, and a surprised expression on his face. "That must have been what he looked like the second he was frozen", she thought to herself. At the bottom of the crystal was a small plaque with his name etched on it. It read "Jedite".
"Oh, Jedite," said the woman aloud, "I'm so sorry for what the Queen put you through. I was the last surviving member of her empire, so I saw everything that happened. From when you were frozen, to when she was defeated. Now here it is, over a year later, and you're still like this." She put her hand upon the crystal where his hand was. "I'll get even with those Sailor Scouts for you. I'll even set you free. All I need is the Imperium Silver Crystal. I'll get it, too, or my name isn't Lilithite!"
CHAPTER 1
Luna and Artemis stood at the edge of a cliff, along with the Sailor Scouts, who were losing badly. The shadowy figure in the distance had nearly torn them apart. Flames surrounded them, uniforms were ripped, and Tuxedo Mask was nowhere in sight. "Come on, Sailor Scouts," encouraged Luna. "We can't let the Negaverse win!"
Sailor Moon lifted her head up. "I know, Luna, but he's just too strong! None of us were able to even scratch him!"
"I know," Luna responded, "but we must press on!"
Sailor Moon and the rest of the Scouts tried their best to stand up. "You're right!" shouted Sailor Moon as she the crew joined hands to pool what was left of their powers together. "MOON CRYSTAL POWER!" she shouted.
"MERCURY STAR POWER!" shouted Sailor Mercury.
"MARS STAR POWER!" shouted Sailor Mars.
"JUPITER STAR POWER!" shouted Sailor Jupiter.
"VENUS STAR POWER!" shouted Sailor Venus.
"SAILOR PLANET POWER!" cried them all.
Five huge beams of energy streaked toward the dark figure, but from one lift of his hand, the energies stopped in mid-air, and converged into a huge ball. "This is the end of the Sailor Scouts!" he boomed triumphantly.
He flung the energy back to the Scouts, engulfing them all. Luna and Artemis could only watch in horror as the energy dissipated. The symbols of the Scouts flew in a circle, Moon, Mercury, Mars, Venus, and Jupiter. They flew faster, and faster, until the symbols broke apart.
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Luna woke up with a start. It took a while to get her bearings, but she figured out it was only a dream. She was still in Serena's room, and nothing had changed. She decided as long as she was up, she'd look around a bit. It was a beautiful starry night. Not a cloud could be seen. She went toward Serena, and just stared at her for a second. "Look at her," she thought to herself. "She's matured so much in such a short time. And yet, she still contains some of her ditzy qualities. I guess some things just can't be changed. However, her improvement is very commendable."
Her focus shifted toward Serena's picture on her desk. It was her and Darien, sitting by the tree. "Serena and Darien," she thought. "Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask. Neo-Queen Serenity and King Endymion. A love that has transcended through time, that can never be broken. Serena's a lucky girl."
This made her think of Rini. The future daughter of Serena and Darien. "She's such a wonderful little girl, when she chooses to be," Luna thought. "Now that Serena stopped the Death Phantom, her future looks very bright. But here it is, three weeks later, and I still miss her."
She then gazed out the window once more. "I just hope my dream didn't mean anything. The universe would be doomed if the Negaverse won." She then shook that image out of her head. "No, no, no, that would never happen. The Sailor Scouts are strong. Even without their powers, they are very resourceful, and could get out of any situation. And if anything should happen, their guardian planets would guide them to victory."
Suddenly, Luna heard a loud crash downstairs. She sprang out of Serena's room, and peered downstairs. A window in the living room was broken, and a few feet away was a figure dressed all in black. "Oh, no!" Luna thought to herself. "Somebody's broken in!"
Luna ran back into Serena's room, and tried to stir her awake. "Serena!" Luna shouted into her ear. "Serena wake up! There's a burglar in the house!"
Serena was still half asleep. "Oh, Luna, it's too early to get burgers. Go back to sleep." Serena turned over to one side.
"No, Serena!" Luna shouted. "Someone's broken in!" Frustrated, Luna bit Serena's ear and pulled on it, hard.
This brought Serena out of her sleepy state. "OWWW! Quit it!" she shouted. "What's the big idea, Luna?"
A second crash from downstairs answered her question. "That's the big idea!" shouted Luna. "There's a burglar in the house!"
Serena froze in her bed. "A b…b…burglar?" she said, scared out of her wits. One million scenarios played out in her head at once. "What am I going to do? What if they take everything? What if they take our TV set? I'll never watch my favorite shows again!…"
"Calm down!" shouted Luna. "We have to get that person out of here before it steals everything!"
"Aa…aaa…all right," stuttered Serena, She instinctively reached for her neck, and her transformation broach. She then remembered it was lying on her desk. She got out of bed, and slowly went over to her desk, so she wouldn't stir suspicion from downstairs. The broach seemed to bring her good luck, whether she was Sailor Moon or not. When she picked up her broach, however, the Imperium Silver Crystal started to glow. "Luna, it's glowing!" she whispered loudly.
Luna gasped. "Oh, no!"
"Is this bad??" asked Serena frantically.
"Very!" uttered Luna. "Our little 'burglar' may not be human!"
"That's impossible," said Serena. "We defeated that monstrosity Phantom-guy, and the Negamoon Kingdom weeks ago!"
"I know," Luna responded. "But maybe we missed someone along the way!" The crystal began to glow brighter. "The burglar is coming closer to us! We must act quickly!"
"Right," said Serena. She held the Broach high, and began to transform. "MOON…CRYSTAL…"
But before she could finish, her bedroom door burst open, and a figure rushed through. Within an instant, the figure used its speed advantage to knock over Serena and take her broach. Luna tried to attack, but she was batted away as well. The figure made its way to the window, and started to yell triumphantly once it was at the sill. "It's mine!" it cried. "The Imperium Silver Crystal is finally mine!" The figure than disappeared into the darkness.
"Oh, no!" Serena cried. "Where is it? Where's my broach?"
"That thing took it," muttered Luna, who wound up behind Serena's bed. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you."
Serena turned on her light, and started to fumble through all her things. "Ohhhh, I hope it didn't take my communicator!" Looking though all her things, half scared, half worried, she found it in one of her drawers. "Got it!" she said.
Just when she was about to call someone, someone else burst into room. It was her mother, Irene. "I heard noises," she said. "Is everything alright?"
Serena began to cry. "Oh, Mom, someone broke in the house, came in here, and stole my broach! It was horrible!"
Irene instinctively came to Serena's side. "There, there," she said, trying to console her. "We can always get you another broach."
"But Mom, it's my…" Serena caught herself in the nick of time. "…uh,…lucky broach!"
"Well, I'm sure whoever stole it will be caught, and you'll get it back."
Serena started to mutter under her breath. "I don't think we can."
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A few blocks from Serena's house stood the figure. She had been running so long that she had to catch her breath. She didn't want to take any chances of being caught, so she ducked into an alleyway. Breathing hard, she pulled two items from her pockets. In one hand lay a dark, twisted crystal. In the other, Serena's transformation broach.
"Ah, Lilithite, you've outdone yourself this time," she said to herself. "The Locating Crystal worked like a charm." She paused to kiss the black crystal. "I have managed to do what all others could not! I have stolen the Imperium Silver Crystal, and the source of Sailor Moon's powers! That little brat I took it from is probably weeping in her ditzy blonde hair right now!" She gave an evil laugh as she headed down further into the alley. "Now, Jedite, you shall be free, and you'll have your revenge!"
She uttered a single word of magic, was surrounded in black light, and disappeared into the Negaverse.
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While Serena's mother tried to comfort her, Luna snuck off into the hallway with the communicator. She had to contact someone about this. But the problem was who? It was three o'clock in the morning, and everyone was probably asleep now. Then she remembered Artemis. He was usually up this time of night, on the prowl. She punched in the code to call Mina, and frantically called Artemis' name. "This is Luna calling Artemis! Artemis, please respond! Artemis…"
Suddenly, Artemis came onto the miniature screen. "Whoa, whoa, calm down Luna!" he said. "What's wrong? It has to be major this time of night."
"Something is wrong! Something terrible," stuttered Luna, nearly choking over her own words. "Someone broke into the house, and stole the Imperium Silver Crystal!"
Artemis gasped. "Oh, man, this IS major! Do you know what this guy looked like?"
"I…I don't know," said Luna, a bit shaky. "That thing that took it was all dressed in black, and had a woman's voice. I tried to stop it, but it was too strong, and Serena was knocked down on the floor, and…" Luna began to ramble hysterically.
"Luna! Pull yourself together," shouted Artemis. "Try and calm down."
"Calm down?" Luna said "What's there to calm down about? In the wrong hands, the Imperium Silver Crystal could be a very dangerous weapon!"
"But we don't know who has it!" said Artemis. "Which is why you should calm down. For all we know, it could be a misguided friend."
Luna thought it over, and realized the same thing. "Well, you may be right," she said. "But I want an emergency Scout meeting in the morning. We'll meet outside in the park at 8:30. Okay?"
"Gotcha, Luna," said Artemis, keeping his cool. "Mina and I'll inform the other scouts. Tell Serena about the meeting, and try to get some sleep."
"I will," said Luna. "Thank you for helping me get my head together."
"See you in the morning," said Artemis as he shut off the transmission.
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Mina was stirred awake by their conversation. "Artemis?" she asked, half-asleep. "What's going on?"
"It looks like we got a crisis on our hands," said Artemis, bleakly.
CHAPTER 2
Luna awoke again, the sunlight filtering in her eyes. She was surprised that she could sleep last night, with her strange dream, and the theft of the Imperium Silver Crystal figured in. She looked at Serena's clock. "Five minutes before 8:00," she thought to herself. She let out a big yawn, and went to wake Serena. "Come on, Serena," she said aloud. "We have to get ready for the meeting."
However, Serena wasn't in her bed. Or in her room in that matter. "Serena?" Luna called. "Wonderful," she muttered. "First the Imperium Silver Crystal is missing, and now it's owner." Once again she exited Serena's room, and peered downstairs. Serena was by the front door, waiting for her.
"I was about to leave without you," said Serena.
Luna was shocked. "What are you doing up so early?" she asked.
"I couldn't sleep," Serena responded. "I was worried about the crystal. Besides, we got some Sailor business to take care of!
"Well, I'll be," Luna thought to herself. "Serena was actually up before me!" Luna jumped upon Serena's shoulder as they headed toward the park.
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"Good-bye, Grandpa!" shouted Raye as she left out the front door.
"Have fun with your friends!" yelled her Grandfather.
Raye left her home, her transformation stick and some food in tow. She felt bad that she had to skip breakfast, but this was more important. Serena's broach had been stolen, and the Imperium Silver Crystal along with it. She knew the consequences if the crystal fell into the wrong hands. "I hope we get the crystal back safely," she said to herself. "We're losing a lot of strength in our team without Sailor Moon."
When she arrived at the entrance of the park, she heard a familiar voice. "Raye…over here!"
It was Amy. She ran toward the entrance, towards her friend. When she got there, she began to gasp a little for air. "I'm not late, am I?" she asked. "I forgot my watch."
"Not at all," Raye responded. She checked her watch. "In fact, were ten minutes early."
"That's good," said Amy. "Shall we go in?"
Raye and Amy entered the park side by side. They enjoyed eachother's company. "We're supposed to meet by the fountain, right?" asked Raye.
"Right," said Amy. "I nearly forgot myself. It's hard to remember when you're woken up at three in the morning!"
Both chuckled at the thought. "I hope the meatball head didn't just hand over crystal in her sleep."
"Of course not," Amy retaliated. "You know she guards the Imperium Silver Crystal with her life. Even in her sleep."
"Your right," said Raye. "Well, to change the subject, how's your summer vacation going?"
"Okay, I guess," responded Amy. "All the summer schools in the area can't teach at my level, so I applied for a part time job at the hospital near here. I'm working under my mother!"
"Congratulations, Amy!" Raye said. "I guess it pays to have family in the business."
Amy turned a slight shade of red. "I didn't get the job just because my mother works there," she retorted.
Raye laughed slightly. "Sure, you didn't," she teased. Seeing Amy curling up her fist, she decided to stop for the time being. "How's work there?"
"It's okay," she said. "It may not be perfect, but at least I'm one more step toward becoming a pediatrician! How's your summer going?"
"I've been helping out my Grandpa a lot. Chad's helping out a lot, too. The temple has never looked better. I still catch Grandpa swinging from trees now and then."
Amy started to giggle. "That aside, it seems that you and Chad are becoming a good 'team'."
Raye started to turn red, her medicine firing back upon her. "What do you mean by that?"
"Oh, nothing." Amy started to laugh more.
A few minutes later, they approached the water fountain where they were supposed to meet. It had the body of a beautiful angel, water gushing from a water pot it had grasped in it's hands. "I suppose we're the first one's here," Raye said, turning to Amy.
Amy looked a bit shocked. "Uh, I don't think that we're…"
"So I guess we'll wait for that meatball head to show up," Raye said, cutting her off. She sat on the edge of the fountain, unaware of the figure standing behind her.
"And just who are you calling 'meatball head'?"
Raye turned around. It was Serena, with a disgusted look on her face. Raye nearly fell over in her seat. "Oh my! She's actually early!"
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Within a few minutes, Lita and Mina, and Artemis arrived at the fountain as well. They were shocked that Serena was the first to show up as well. Lita quickly assumed that Serena wasn't feeling like herself. As everyone gathered near the fountain, they began the Sailor business. "I skipped breakfast, so I took along some of these muffins to eat while I was here." said Raye. "Would anyone like one?"
Serena was the first to speak. "No thanks, I'm not hungry."
Everyone in the party gasped. "Serena refusing food?" said Lita. "Now I know she's not herself!"
"Very funny, Lita," Serena retaliated. "I was up early this morning, so I fixed something on my way out. Is that against the law?"
"And she's up early!" said Mina, starting in on the fun. "Okay, who are you, and what have you done with the real Serena?"
Everyone got a much needed laugh out of that one. Even Serena chuckled a little. "Alright guys, I can take a joke," she said. "I was just worrying about my broach and the crystal, that's all."
Artemis rose his head up, tears still roaming down his face from the laughter. "She's right," he said. "That's what we should be talking about, anyway."
"So what exactly happened last night, Serena?" asked Amy. She had her notepad out, ready to take notes.
"Well," Serena began, "I remember Luna waking me up." She then held her ear, which was still a little red. Luna blushed. "Then I heard a crash from downstairs. I got my broach, and the Crystal started to glow. I began to transform, than someone, or something, knocked me over. It took my broach, and it left, screaming something about 'The Imperium Silver was finally theirs' and left through my window. I was about to call one of you, than my mother came in to see what all the ruckus was about. About everyone was awake by then. It was about four in the morning when the police came. I told them my story, then Luna told me there was going to be a Sailor meeting tomorrow, and that I should get some sleep. But I couldn't. I kept punishing myself for losing the crystal." Serena held her head low. "I'm sorry, guys. You probably think that I'm a total dunce now, huh?"
"Of course not," said Mina. "It's that person's fault."
"Yeah," said Raye. "Besides, I knew you wouldn't give up the crystal voluntarily."
"You're a great leader," said Amy. "Even without the broach, you're still the greatest asset to the team."
"We'll get the crystal back," chimed in Lita. "Don't you worry."
Serena felt a wave of reassurance about her. "Thanks a lot. I pays to have friends like you."
"But now we have a problem," said Luna. "We don't know who stole the crystal, and we don't know where to start looking."
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Darien's morning jog came to a sudden halt when a strange feeling came over him. Something in his gut cried out to him. "Serena?" he thought to himself. "Something's happened to Serena!" A vision of her came into view. He knew something was wrong, but he couldn't quite place it. Pictures of her, the Imperium Crystal, and the park near her school circulated in his mind. "Please let my instincts be right," he muttered to himself as he changed the direction of his jogging route…
@@@@@
"I'll use my computer to scan for residual energy the crystal may have left behind," suggested Amy.
"I'll consult the fire spirits for some answers," added Raye.
"Mina and I'll do anything we can do to help," said Lita.
Serena felt at a loss. Her broach was gone, and with it her powers. She felt she couldn't contribute anything to the group. "But what can I do?" she asked. "After all, it's my broach we're looking for!"
"You can come with me," said Amy. "You can show me where you lost your broach so we can start the search."
"Okay," said Serena. "We should get started pretty soon….Darien?"
Amy looked confused. "What about him?"
"There he is!" Serena exclaimed. She was right. Darien was jogging up the path to where the scouts were. Serena was a bit confused. She had been with him on his morning jogging route, and it usually didn't go this way. She ran up to him anyway. "Darien! How are you?"
"Hi Serena, everybody," he said, motioning toward her friends. "You're all here. Is anything wrong?"
"You came just at the right time," said Luna. "Serena's broach was stolen last night. We're afraid it might be a new enemy."
Darien was shocked. He knew something wrong, but he never imagined it would be this bad. He put on a guise for the scouts to show them he wasn't worried. "That's awful," he replied. He reached out for Serena to console her. Serena happily took him up on the offer. "Do you know who took it?"
"We couldn't tell," Serena explained. "It was dressed in all black, and had a woman's voice."
"That should narrow it down a bit if 'she' decides to attack again," Darien suggested.
Mina came forward to the two of them. "Not to interrupt, but Lita and I came up with a plan," she said. "While the rest of you are tracking down the crystal, we'll keep an eye out if any monsters come from the sky, or something."
"Yeah," added Lita. "We'll watch from the rooftops and get a good eye-view."
"That's a great idea, Mina," said Artemis. "Just remember to be careful up there on those high ledges!"
"We will," said Mina.
"I think I can help you on that," Darien suggested.
"Great," said Lita. "The more lookouts, the better."
"Oh, Darien," said Serena, starting to kid around, "you're not going to leave a small, helpless, fair lady down here all by herself, are you?" She pretended to faint, overacting badly.
"Don't worry, Meatball-head," said Darien. "You'll be okay."
Serena gave him the evil eye, knowing she didn't like being called Meatball-head. But coming from Darien, she didn't seem to mind as much.
"Well, shall we get started?" suggested Amy.
"Oh, alright," said Serena, brushing the leaves and grass off her clothes.
"Good luck to you all," wished Luna.
Raye left back to her house as Lita and Mina pulled out their transformation wands.
"JUPITER STAR POWER!"
"VENUS STAR POWER!"
Within a flash of light and ribbons, they became Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Venus. "Catch you later guys," said Jupiter as they bolted toward the city to keep watch. Artemis tagged along.
"Well, Amy I guess that leaves us," said Serena.
"Right," Amy responded. "Let's head over to your house, now."
"Okay," said Serena. "Luna, you coming?"
"I'll be along in a minute," Luna shouted back.
As Serena and Amy left, Darien started to take his leave too, but Luna stopped him. "Hold on a minute, Darien."
"What is it, Luna?" asked a puzzled Darien.
"I always wanted to ask you this," she said. "It seems that every time you join the Sailor Scouts on a fight, you just appear out of nowhere, and with no warning. How do you know when and where a fight is going to be?"
Darien didn't want to give too much away. "I have my ways," he said in a mysterious tone. "Besides, it's just my style."
"Come on, Darien," Luna demanded. "You're a master of keeping secrets. Just let me in on this one. I won't tell Serena, if that's what's bothering you."
Darien said nothing for a moment, trying to decide if he should tell her. Finally he conceded. "Okay," he said. "It may sound weird, but here goes. It seems that every time Serena's in trouble, I get this weird feeling over me. It's like we have a special bond, or something like that. I can just sense where and when to appear." He lowered his head just a tad. "That's how I knew to come here."
Luna smiled. "I don't see what's so silly about that. You have a bond that has lasted throughout time. I can't blame you." She raised her head. "However, if worse comes to worse, I want to give you this."
Luna proceeded to do a backwards somersault. In the process, something materialized out of thin air. A black object fell to the ground as Luna landed. She picked up the object, and handed it to Darien.
"What is this?" he asked. He flipped the contraption open. "It looks like an electronic organizer."
"It's more than that," said Luna. "It's a communicator." She proceeded to explain to him how it worked. "You see, by pressing this button, the top part becomes a screen, and by pressing these symbols on the bottom will enable you to call the respective Sailor Scouts." She was pointing to the planet symbols on the bottom.
"Thanks, Luna," said Darien. "I really appreciate it."
"Your welcome," said Luna. "I'd better go join Serena and Amy, now."
She ran away, feeling proud as Darien headed towards the rooftops, a red rose clutched in his hand…
NEXT TIME, ON "RETURN OF THE JEDITE"...
Lilithite manages to awaken Jedite...just not the way she intended. And the hunt is on for the Imperium Silver Crystal!
by Tuxedo Alex
AUTHORS NOTES
This story is supposed to provide an alternate story line to the Sailor Moon series. It starts after the Sailor Moon R series ends (the Death Phantom is destroyed and Rini goes home to Crystal Tokyo). The next events are of my own creation and do not relate to the Sailor Moon S series (at least not intentionally).
I finished this fanfic over a year ago, before the S and SuperS seasons were dubbed in America. Please excuse any attack names that are DiC-ish, because that is what I had to work with at the time. ;) This story, after looking back, seems a cross between Japanese and American references. So, please excuse the term "Negaverse" as opposed to "Dark Kingdom", because the story focuses on Jedite.
Also, each part posted here will contain two chapters.
Anyway, please enjoy the story!
PROLOGUE
Within the deep recesses of the Negaverse stood a prison of lost souls. This wasn't a normal prison, however, for the condemned souls were forced into large, green crystals, frozen in time. They were servants of Queen Beryl who were sent there for betrayal or failure; forced to sleep forever. They were all put on display to the general public to show what happens to anyone the Queen doesn't like.
Ever since the Queen had been defeated, the Negaverse had halted attacks on the Earth realm. Without a leader, and no foreseeable heirs to the throne, there was no one to initiate attacks at all. The prison still stood in memory of the Queen, though.
A woman in a cloak stepped up to one crystal in particular. The soul within it wore a uniform symbolizing a member of the Queen's army. It was gray, except for a red insignia of the collar, white gloves, and black shoes. He had short, blond hair, and a surprised expression on his face. "That must have been what he looked like the second he was frozen", she thought to herself. At the bottom of the crystal was a small plaque with his name etched on it. It read "Jedite".
"Oh, Jedite," said the woman aloud, "I'm so sorry for what the Queen put you through. I was the last surviving member of her empire, so I saw everything that happened. From when you were frozen, to when she was defeated. Now here it is, over a year later, and you're still like this." She put her hand upon the crystal where his hand was. "I'll get even with those Sailor Scouts for you. I'll even set you free. All I need is the Imperium Silver Crystal. I'll get it, too, or my name isn't Lilithite!"
CHAPTER 1
Luna and Artemis stood at the edge of a cliff, along with the Sailor Scouts, who were losing badly. The shadowy figure in the distance had nearly torn them apart. Flames surrounded them, uniforms were ripped, and Tuxedo Mask was nowhere in sight. "Come on, Sailor Scouts," encouraged Luna. "We can't let the Negaverse win!"
Sailor Moon lifted her head up. "I know, Luna, but he's just too strong! None of us were able to even scratch him!"
"I know," Luna responded, "but we must press on!"
Sailor Moon and the rest of the Scouts tried their best to stand up. "You're right!" shouted Sailor Moon as she the crew joined hands to pool what was left of their powers together. "MOON CRYSTAL POWER!" she shouted.
"MERCURY STAR POWER!" shouted Sailor Mercury.
"MARS STAR POWER!" shouted Sailor Mars.
"JUPITER STAR POWER!" shouted Sailor Jupiter.
"VENUS STAR POWER!" shouted Sailor Venus.
"SAILOR PLANET POWER!" cried them all.
Five huge beams of energy streaked toward the dark figure, but from one lift of his hand, the energies stopped in mid-air, and converged into a huge ball. "This is the end of the Sailor Scouts!" he boomed triumphantly.
He flung the energy back to the Scouts, engulfing them all. Luna and Artemis could only watch in horror as the energy dissipated. The symbols of the Scouts flew in a circle, Moon, Mercury, Mars, Venus, and Jupiter. They flew faster, and faster, until the symbols broke apart.
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Luna woke up with a start. It took a while to get her bearings, but she figured out it was only a dream. She was still in Serena's room, and nothing had changed. She decided as long as she was up, she'd look around a bit. It was a beautiful starry night. Not a cloud could be seen. She went toward Serena, and just stared at her for a second. "Look at her," she thought to herself. "She's matured so much in such a short time. And yet, she still contains some of her ditzy qualities. I guess some things just can't be changed. However, her improvement is very commendable."
Her focus shifted toward Serena's picture on her desk. It was her and Darien, sitting by the tree. "Serena and Darien," she thought. "Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask. Neo-Queen Serenity and King Endymion. A love that has transcended through time, that can never be broken. Serena's a lucky girl."
This made her think of Rini. The future daughter of Serena and Darien. "She's such a wonderful little girl, when she chooses to be," Luna thought. "Now that Serena stopped the Death Phantom, her future looks very bright. But here it is, three weeks later, and I still miss her."
She then gazed out the window once more. "I just hope my dream didn't mean anything. The universe would be doomed if the Negaverse won." She then shook that image out of her head. "No, no, no, that would never happen. The Sailor Scouts are strong. Even without their powers, they are very resourceful, and could get out of any situation. And if anything should happen, their guardian planets would guide them to victory."
Suddenly, Luna heard a loud crash downstairs. She sprang out of Serena's room, and peered downstairs. A window in the living room was broken, and a few feet away was a figure dressed all in black. "Oh, no!" Luna thought to herself. "Somebody's broken in!"
Luna ran back into Serena's room, and tried to stir her awake. "Serena!" Luna shouted into her ear. "Serena wake up! There's a burglar in the house!"
Serena was still half asleep. "Oh, Luna, it's too early to get burgers. Go back to sleep." Serena turned over to one side.
"No, Serena!" Luna shouted. "Someone's broken in!" Frustrated, Luna bit Serena's ear and pulled on it, hard.
This brought Serena out of her sleepy state. "OWWW! Quit it!" she shouted. "What's the big idea, Luna?"
A second crash from downstairs answered her question. "That's the big idea!" shouted Luna. "There's a burglar in the house!"
Serena froze in her bed. "A b…b…burglar?" she said, scared out of her wits. One million scenarios played out in her head at once. "What am I going to do? What if they take everything? What if they take our TV set? I'll never watch my favorite shows again!…"
"Calm down!" shouted Luna. "We have to get that person out of here before it steals everything!"
"Aa…aaa…all right," stuttered Serena, She instinctively reached for her neck, and her transformation broach. She then remembered it was lying on her desk. She got out of bed, and slowly went over to her desk, so she wouldn't stir suspicion from downstairs. The broach seemed to bring her good luck, whether she was Sailor Moon or not. When she picked up her broach, however, the Imperium Silver Crystal started to glow. "Luna, it's glowing!" she whispered loudly.
Luna gasped. "Oh, no!"
"Is this bad??" asked Serena frantically.
"Very!" uttered Luna. "Our little 'burglar' may not be human!"
"That's impossible," said Serena. "We defeated that monstrosity Phantom-guy, and the Negamoon Kingdom weeks ago!"
"I know," Luna responded. "But maybe we missed someone along the way!" The crystal began to glow brighter. "The burglar is coming closer to us! We must act quickly!"
"Right," said Serena. She held the Broach high, and began to transform. "MOON…CRYSTAL…"
But before she could finish, her bedroom door burst open, and a figure rushed through. Within an instant, the figure used its speed advantage to knock over Serena and take her broach. Luna tried to attack, but she was batted away as well. The figure made its way to the window, and started to yell triumphantly once it was at the sill. "It's mine!" it cried. "The Imperium Silver Crystal is finally mine!" The figure than disappeared into the darkness.
"Oh, no!" Serena cried. "Where is it? Where's my broach?"
"That thing took it," muttered Luna, who wound up behind Serena's bed. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you."
Serena turned on her light, and started to fumble through all her things. "Ohhhh, I hope it didn't take my communicator!" Looking though all her things, half scared, half worried, she found it in one of her drawers. "Got it!" she said.
Just when she was about to call someone, someone else burst into room. It was her mother, Irene. "I heard noises," she said. "Is everything alright?"
Serena began to cry. "Oh, Mom, someone broke in the house, came in here, and stole my broach! It was horrible!"
Irene instinctively came to Serena's side. "There, there," she said, trying to console her. "We can always get you another broach."
"But Mom, it's my…" Serena caught herself in the nick of time. "…uh,…lucky broach!"
"Well, I'm sure whoever stole it will be caught, and you'll get it back."
Serena started to mutter under her breath. "I don't think we can."
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A few blocks from Serena's house stood the figure. She had been running so long that she had to catch her breath. She didn't want to take any chances of being caught, so she ducked into an alleyway. Breathing hard, she pulled two items from her pockets. In one hand lay a dark, twisted crystal. In the other, Serena's transformation broach.
"Ah, Lilithite, you've outdone yourself this time," she said to herself. "The Locating Crystal worked like a charm." She paused to kiss the black crystal. "I have managed to do what all others could not! I have stolen the Imperium Silver Crystal, and the source of Sailor Moon's powers! That little brat I took it from is probably weeping in her ditzy blonde hair right now!" She gave an evil laugh as she headed down further into the alley. "Now, Jedite, you shall be free, and you'll have your revenge!"
She uttered a single word of magic, was surrounded in black light, and disappeared into the Negaverse.
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While Serena's mother tried to comfort her, Luna snuck off into the hallway with the communicator. She had to contact someone about this. But the problem was who? It was three o'clock in the morning, and everyone was probably asleep now. Then she remembered Artemis. He was usually up this time of night, on the prowl. She punched in the code to call Mina, and frantically called Artemis' name. "This is Luna calling Artemis! Artemis, please respond! Artemis…"
Suddenly, Artemis came onto the miniature screen. "Whoa, whoa, calm down Luna!" he said. "What's wrong? It has to be major this time of night."
"Something is wrong! Something terrible," stuttered Luna, nearly choking over her own words. "Someone broke into the house, and stole the Imperium Silver Crystal!"
Artemis gasped. "Oh, man, this IS major! Do you know what this guy looked like?"
"I…I don't know," said Luna, a bit shaky. "That thing that took it was all dressed in black, and had a woman's voice. I tried to stop it, but it was too strong, and Serena was knocked down on the floor, and…" Luna began to ramble hysterically.
"Luna! Pull yourself together," shouted Artemis. "Try and calm down."
"Calm down?" Luna said "What's there to calm down about? In the wrong hands, the Imperium Silver Crystal could be a very dangerous weapon!"
"But we don't know who has it!" said Artemis. "Which is why you should calm down. For all we know, it could be a misguided friend."
Luna thought it over, and realized the same thing. "Well, you may be right," she said. "But I want an emergency Scout meeting in the morning. We'll meet outside in the park at 8:30. Okay?"
"Gotcha, Luna," said Artemis, keeping his cool. "Mina and I'll inform the other scouts. Tell Serena about the meeting, and try to get some sleep."
"I will," said Luna. "Thank you for helping me get my head together."
"See you in the morning," said Artemis as he shut off the transmission.
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Mina was stirred awake by their conversation. "Artemis?" she asked, half-asleep. "What's going on?"
"It looks like we got a crisis on our hands," said Artemis, bleakly.
CHAPTER 2
Luna awoke again, the sunlight filtering in her eyes. She was surprised that she could sleep last night, with her strange dream, and the theft of the Imperium Silver Crystal figured in. She looked at Serena's clock. "Five minutes before 8:00," she thought to herself. She let out a big yawn, and went to wake Serena. "Come on, Serena," she said aloud. "We have to get ready for the meeting."
However, Serena wasn't in her bed. Or in her room in that matter. "Serena?" Luna called. "Wonderful," she muttered. "First the Imperium Silver Crystal is missing, and now it's owner." Once again she exited Serena's room, and peered downstairs. Serena was by the front door, waiting for her.
"I was about to leave without you," said Serena.
Luna was shocked. "What are you doing up so early?" she asked.
"I couldn't sleep," Serena responded. "I was worried about the crystal. Besides, we got some Sailor business to take care of!
"Well, I'll be," Luna thought to herself. "Serena was actually up before me!" Luna jumped upon Serena's shoulder as they headed toward the park.
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"Good-bye, Grandpa!" shouted Raye as she left out the front door.
"Have fun with your friends!" yelled her Grandfather.
Raye left her home, her transformation stick and some food in tow. She felt bad that she had to skip breakfast, but this was more important. Serena's broach had been stolen, and the Imperium Silver Crystal along with it. She knew the consequences if the crystal fell into the wrong hands. "I hope we get the crystal back safely," she said to herself. "We're losing a lot of strength in our team without Sailor Moon."
When she arrived at the entrance of the park, she heard a familiar voice. "Raye…over here!"
It was Amy. She ran toward the entrance, towards her friend. When she got there, she began to gasp a little for air. "I'm not late, am I?" she asked. "I forgot my watch."
"Not at all," Raye responded. She checked her watch. "In fact, were ten minutes early."
"That's good," said Amy. "Shall we go in?"
Raye and Amy entered the park side by side. They enjoyed eachother's company. "We're supposed to meet by the fountain, right?" asked Raye.
"Right," said Amy. "I nearly forgot myself. It's hard to remember when you're woken up at three in the morning!"
Both chuckled at the thought. "I hope the meatball head didn't just hand over crystal in her sleep."
"Of course not," Amy retaliated. "You know she guards the Imperium Silver Crystal with her life. Even in her sleep."
"Your right," said Raye. "Well, to change the subject, how's your summer vacation going?"
"Okay, I guess," responded Amy. "All the summer schools in the area can't teach at my level, so I applied for a part time job at the hospital near here. I'm working under my mother!"
"Congratulations, Amy!" Raye said. "I guess it pays to have family in the business."
Amy turned a slight shade of red. "I didn't get the job just because my mother works there," she retorted.
Raye laughed slightly. "Sure, you didn't," she teased. Seeing Amy curling up her fist, she decided to stop for the time being. "How's work there?"
"It's okay," she said. "It may not be perfect, but at least I'm one more step toward becoming a pediatrician! How's your summer going?"
"I've been helping out my Grandpa a lot. Chad's helping out a lot, too. The temple has never looked better. I still catch Grandpa swinging from trees now and then."
Amy started to giggle. "That aside, it seems that you and Chad are becoming a good 'team'."
Raye started to turn red, her medicine firing back upon her. "What do you mean by that?"
"Oh, nothing." Amy started to laugh more.
A few minutes later, they approached the water fountain where they were supposed to meet. It had the body of a beautiful angel, water gushing from a water pot it had grasped in it's hands. "I suppose we're the first one's here," Raye said, turning to Amy.
Amy looked a bit shocked. "Uh, I don't think that we're…"
"So I guess we'll wait for that meatball head to show up," Raye said, cutting her off. She sat on the edge of the fountain, unaware of the figure standing behind her.
"And just who are you calling 'meatball head'?"
Raye turned around. It was Serena, with a disgusted look on her face. Raye nearly fell over in her seat. "Oh my! She's actually early!"
@@@@@
Within a few minutes, Lita and Mina, and Artemis arrived at the fountain as well. They were shocked that Serena was the first to show up as well. Lita quickly assumed that Serena wasn't feeling like herself. As everyone gathered near the fountain, they began the Sailor business. "I skipped breakfast, so I took along some of these muffins to eat while I was here." said Raye. "Would anyone like one?"
Serena was the first to speak. "No thanks, I'm not hungry."
Everyone in the party gasped. "Serena refusing food?" said Lita. "Now I know she's not herself!"
"Very funny, Lita," Serena retaliated. "I was up early this morning, so I fixed something on my way out. Is that against the law?"
"And she's up early!" said Mina, starting in on the fun. "Okay, who are you, and what have you done with the real Serena?"
Everyone got a much needed laugh out of that one. Even Serena chuckled a little. "Alright guys, I can take a joke," she said. "I was just worrying about my broach and the crystal, that's all."
Artemis rose his head up, tears still roaming down his face from the laughter. "She's right," he said. "That's what we should be talking about, anyway."
"So what exactly happened last night, Serena?" asked Amy. She had her notepad out, ready to take notes.
"Well," Serena began, "I remember Luna waking me up." She then held her ear, which was still a little red. Luna blushed. "Then I heard a crash from downstairs. I got my broach, and the Crystal started to glow. I began to transform, than someone, or something, knocked me over. It took my broach, and it left, screaming something about 'The Imperium Silver was finally theirs' and left through my window. I was about to call one of you, than my mother came in to see what all the ruckus was about. About everyone was awake by then. It was about four in the morning when the police came. I told them my story, then Luna told me there was going to be a Sailor meeting tomorrow, and that I should get some sleep. But I couldn't. I kept punishing myself for losing the crystal." Serena held her head low. "I'm sorry, guys. You probably think that I'm a total dunce now, huh?"
"Of course not," said Mina. "It's that person's fault."
"Yeah," said Raye. "Besides, I knew you wouldn't give up the crystal voluntarily."
"You're a great leader," said Amy. "Even without the broach, you're still the greatest asset to the team."
"We'll get the crystal back," chimed in Lita. "Don't you worry."
Serena felt a wave of reassurance about her. "Thanks a lot. I pays to have friends like you."
"But now we have a problem," said Luna. "We don't know who stole the crystal, and we don't know where to start looking."
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Darien's morning jog came to a sudden halt when a strange feeling came over him. Something in his gut cried out to him. "Serena?" he thought to himself. "Something's happened to Serena!" A vision of her came into view. He knew something was wrong, but he couldn't quite place it. Pictures of her, the Imperium Crystal, and the park near her school circulated in his mind. "Please let my instincts be right," he muttered to himself as he changed the direction of his jogging route…
@@@@@
"I'll use my computer to scan for residual energy the crystal may have left behind," suggested Amy.
"I'll consult the fire spirits for some answers," added Raye.
"Mina and I'll do anything we can do to help," said Lita.
Serena felt at a loss. Her broach was gone, and with it her powers. She felt she couldn't contribute anything to the group. "But what can I do?" she asked. "After all, it's my broach we're looking for!"
"You can come with me," said Amy. "You can show me where you lost your broach so we can start the search."
"Okay," said Serena. "We should get started pretty soon….Darien?"
Amy looked confused. "What about him?"
"There he is!" Serena exclaimed. She was right. Darien was jogging up the path to where the scouts were. Serena was a bit confused. She had been with him on his morning jogging route, and it usually didn't go this way. She ran up to him anyway. "Darien! How are you?"
"Hi Serena, everybody," he said, motioning toward her friends. "You're all here. Is anything wrong?"
"You came just at the right time," said Luna. "Serena's broach was stolen last night. We're afraid it might be a new enemy."
Darien was shocked. He knew something wrong, but he never imagined it would be this bad. He put on a guise for the scouts to show them he wasn't worried. "That's awful," he replied. He reached out for Serena to console her. Serena happily took him up on the offer. "Do you know who took it?"
"We couldn't tell," Serena explained. "It was dressed in all black, and had a woman's voice."
"That should narrow it down a bit if 'she' decides to attack again," Darien suggested.
Mina came forward to the two of them. "Not to interrupt, but Lita and I came up with a plan," she said. "While the rest of you are tracking down the crystal, we'll keep an eye out if any monsters come from the sky, or something."
"Yeah," added Lita. "We'll watch from the rooftops and get a good eye-view."
"That's a great idea, Mina," said Artemis. "Just remember to be careful up there on those high ledges!"
"We will," said Mina.
"I think I can help you on that," Darien suggested.
"Great," said Lita. "The more lookouts, the better."
"Oh, Darien," said Serena, starting to kid around, "you're not going to leave a small, helpless, fair lady down here all by herself, are you?" She pretended to faint, overacting badly.
"Don't worry, Meatball-head," said Darien. "You'll be okay."
Serena gave him the evil eye, knowing she didn't like being called Meatball-head. But coming from Darien, she didn't seem to mind as much.
"Well, shall we get started?" suggested Amy.
"Oh, alright," said Serena, brushing the leaves and grass off her clothes.
"Good luck to you all," wished Luna.
Raye left back to her house as Lita and Mina pulled out their transformation wands.
"JUPITER STAR POWER!"
"VENUS STAR POWER!"
Within a flash of light and ribbons, they became Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Venus. "Catch you later guys," said Jupiter as they bolted toward the city to keep watch. Artemis tagged along.
"Well, Amy I guess that leaves us," said Serena.
"Right," Amy responded. "Let's head over to your house, now."
"Okay," said Serena. "Luna, you coming?"
"I'll be along in a minute," Luna shouted back.
As Serena and Amy left, Darien started to take his leave too, but Luna stopped him. "Hold on a minute, Darien."
"What is it, Luna?" asked a puzzled Darien.
"I always wanted to ask you this," she said. "It seems that every time you join the Sailor Scouts on a fight, you just appear out of nowhere, and with no warning. How do you know when and where a fight is going to be?"
Darien didn't want to give too much away. "I have my ways," he said in a mysterious tone. "Besides, it's just my style."
"Come on, Darien," Luna demanded. "You're a master of keeping secrets. Just let me in on this one. I won't tell Serena, if that's what's bothering you."
Darien said nothing for a moment, trying to decide if he should tell her. Finally he conceded. "Okay," he said. "It may sound weird, but here goes. It seems that every time Serena's in trouble, I get this weird feeling over me. It's like we have a special bond, or something like that. I can just sense where and when to appear." He lowered his head just a tad. "That's how I knew to come here."
Luna smiled. "I don't see what's so silly about that. You have a bond that has lasted throughout time. I can't blame you." She raised her head. "However, if worse comes to worse, I want to give you this."
Luna proceeded to do a backwards somersault. In the process, something materialized out of thin air. A black object fell to the ground as Luna landed. She picked up the object, and handed it to Darien.
"What is this?" he asked. He flipped the contraption open. "It looks like an electronic organizer."
"It's more than that," said Luna. "It's a communicator." She proceeded to explain to him how it worked. "You see, by pressing this button, the top part becomes a screen, and by pressing these symbols on the bottom will enable you to call the respective Sailor Scouts." She was pointing to the planet symbols on the bottom.
"Thanks, Luna," said Darien. "I really appreciate it."
"Your welcome," said Luna. "I'd better go join Serena and Amy, now."
She ran away, feeling proud as Darien headed towards the rooftops, a red rose clutched in his hand…
NEXT TIME, ON "RETURN OF THE JEDITE"...
Lilithite manages to awaken Jedite...just not the way she intended. And the hunt is on for the Imperium Silver Crystal!