Disclosure: We do not own Sailor Moon nor Survivor. We have not obtained any form of material recompense for this work.
AN: Welcome to the first, in hopefully a long line of collaborative works between Ceara Ivory and Mephibosheth. Thanks for reading.
Sailor Moon Survivor
Prologue
Bitter, triumphant laughter echoed through the black maelstrom. "Finally! I have won!"
"Not yet, you haven't," announced a small, silver star.
"Oh, but I have!" The black voice replied, "for I have captured the keystone! Sailor Moon and her Ginzuishou are mine!"
The silver star drew closer, brighter. It revealed itself to be Sailor Cosmos. "You may have Sailor Moon, but that means nothing. For even if you destroy her, others shall rise against you and battle against you Chaos!"
"Do you think me stupid or ignorant my enemy?" Chaos laughed again, but bitter this time. "I well know that as long as the Ginzuishou exists, you and I shall forever be at war, because it will insist upon being reborn again and again and again!"
Chaos mused momentarily on the multiple times that it had been on the verge of triumph only to have victory swept away by that small, glowing crystal. And Sailor Moon certainly glowed. Even within Chaos' shadowy clutches, her passion and love continued to burn. Had Chaos looked more closely still, it would have noticed that the light was much smaller than usual, as if it was only a fragment.
Chaos continued, "But this time, I have won both! Both lie in my clutches, waiting for my will to extinguish them completely!"
Sailor Cosmos was weary of this endless battle. She had lost friends and family and loved ones in this latest war, and she longed for it to be over so that life could be reborn anew. "Your victory is not as complete as it seems, Chaos! Look more carefully at your prize."
So Chaos did. It examined the captive body of the Moon Princess, but upon closer examination recognized the diminished glimmer as significant. "The Ginzuishou!" it roared, "what have you done with it?"
"It has splintered, although not irreparably. Small fragments of the stone have flown to those which possess it, flown to both allies and enemies, while one remains within Sailor Moon and I, I hold the last."
"Who possess them? WHO?"
"Servants of yours, and allies of mine. Your servants who had been previously defeated have now been revived, and the loved ones of Sailor Moon."
"Show me!"
Sailor Cosmos waved a hand and revealed the ones that possessed the fragments of the legendary Silver Crystal.
"Endymion, now Chiba Mamoru." A tall, black haired man, faced shadowed in concentration. Alone, terribly alone in a barren apartment.
"Diamond, of the Black Moon Clan." On a throne sat the white-haired man. His eyes focused lustfully on one target, the queen of Crystal Tokyo.
"Sailor Mars, now Hino Raye." She sat before the sacred fire, her long dark hair pulled back, eyes shut, chanting. Her long, slender fingers made arcane gestures, but the fire persisted in showing nothing.
"Kunzite, Shitennou of the Middle East." He stood in one unidentifiable canyon, scowling. His army had dwindled to fanatic men, hiding their faces from their heretic enemies. Although willing to die, it seemed to Kunzite that it would have been more powerful to have servants who were willing to live for their cause instead.
"Sailor Venus, now Aino Minako." She hit the volleyball brutally, her wrist turning red. This was done over and over until she bent from exhaustion. She brushed her bangs from her face, pale eyes bleak.
"Esmeraude, of the Black Moon Clan." A laugh, a particularly loud, grating laugh was heard to echo. Then a fan appeared, revealing only a pair of cruel brown eyes and flowing green hair.
"Sailor Pluto, Guardian of the Gates of Time, now Meioh Setsuna." She sat designing clothing at her table, but each drawing only revealed another aspect of Queen Serenity. Serenity sitting at tea, Serenity laughing with Small Lady, Serenity staring lovingly into King Endymion's eyes. Setsuna's pencil slashed viciously through the drawings, then held her head in grief.
"Jadeite, Shitennou of the Far East." People. Power. Oh the power that comes from ruling over billions of people! In just China and India along, he controlled over a quarter of the world's population. The power was intoxicating.
"Sailor Mercury, now Mizuno Ami." For the first time in her life, Ami had less than an A+ on a test. She stared at the "B" in numbed disbelief. Yet, to the surprise of her teacher and classmates, she meekly slid it into her schoolbag. Ami had far more important things on her mind.
"Rubeus, of the Black Moon Clan." He leaned against a wall, smirking. He didn't know what had happened, but that didn't matter. What did matter was that he was back. And whoever was responsible for his previous defeat. Wiseman, those annoying Sailors… Diamond and Esmeraude who had betrayed him! They would all pay. He smiled. They would definitely pay.
"Sailor Uranus, now Tenoh Haruka." A car slid around the racetrack, drafting dangerously around the curves. She didn't care that it was reckless. She didn't care that the slightest mistake could destroy hundreds of thousands of dollars of merchandise that she didn't own. She was running. Running again from life, from everything…. From her mistake.
"Sapphire, of the Black Moon Clan." A slender man stood staring at a crystalline form. How odd that he was back. He flexed his bare hands. What an odd sensation. His eyes drifted off into the distance.
"Sailor Neptune, now Kaioh Michiru." She laid down her violin. Nothing helped. Not music, not art, not swimming. Nothing could ease the sense of loss and grief she felt.
"Nephrite, Shitennou of North America." He stood looking down at the richest nation in the world, and laughed. No one could dispute his pure power. Now if only he could make that nation the greatest once more. He clenched his fist symbolically. The rest of the world would cower at his might once again!
"Sailor Jupiter, now Kino Makoto." She sat alone in her tiny apartment weeping, the dust and debris evidence of her despair. Normally perfectly maintained out of her feminine pride, the room now was utterly disorganized, and worse her plants wilted for lack of care and water. But she didn't care. Usagi was gone, and it was all her fault. Makoto wrapped her arms about her knees and cried until she had wept herself to sleep.
"These sixteen possess a fragment each of the Ginzuishou, Sailor Moon has another and I possess the last."
Chaos growled in frustration.
"It seems, dear opponent, that we are once again at a stalemate." Sailor Cosmos sighed.
"Not necessarily. Are you willing to wager that your friends could possibly beat my servants? It would be a contest not of power, but of physical and mental strength, as well as pure cunning."
"What do you propose?"
"Gather your friends to Elysion. I shall do the same for my servants. And there, we shall see who can Outwit, Outplay and Outlast the rest! The remaining Survivor shall be the victor, and that one shall decide the fate of Sailor Moon, the Ginzuishou and the world!"
Sailor Cosmos nodded once and disappeared.
Alone once again in the darkness, Chaos chuckled darkly. Stripped of their powers, those Sailor Senshi would never be able to be a match for her servants' strength, intelligence or cunning! Victory was once again at her fingertips!
Mamoru and all the senshi had gathered at Raye's temple. For the first time since Usagi had disappeared, they had all felt the desire, no, the need to gather once more at the Hikawa Shrine.
Together, they greeted one another. Most were silent, and unable to meet the other's eyes. Even Makoto's melt-in-your-mouth cookies tasted like ash. Such is the impact of despair upon the friends.
"Dammit!" cried Haruka. She slammed a fist against a wall. "Where has Usagi gone? It had to be dark forces at work!"
Michiru laid a gentle hand on her partner's shoulder. "The sea is stormy, but silent at the same time. It cannot, will not tell me anything!"
"I sense the same from the fire," said Raye quietly. "It knows something is wrong, but cannot give me a clear response. It only tells me that Usagi is gone. Somehow, the fire feels hollow. I can't say any more than that."
This was a bad sign. For both Raye and Michiru to experience such silence was both expected and unexpected. Each person had hoped against hope that someone would have been able to find out something about Usagi's whereabouts, but each attempt came up blank. It was almost as if she had never existed. Even her family and classmates seemed to have no recollection of her existance. It was only the fact that they all remembered her clearly that confirmed that she was truly a friend, and not a figment of their imagination.
Mamoru sat, head bowed and fingers laced through his hair. "She can't be gone. Usako can't be!"
Apart from the others, Setsuna stood pensively. "The only clue I have is that she is no longer in this time. But I'm not sure where she is! She's not in the future, she's not in the past and she's not in the present. It's almost as if she's outside time!"
"That's precisely where she is!"
A senshi stood, dressed all in white. She wore heart-shaped odangos in her silver-white hair, and carried a staff that vaguely resembled Sailor Moon's scepter. At her forehead, heart and throat were golden stars. Eight mouths gaped at her appearance. Who was this mysterious warrior?
"King Endymion, Sailors Mercury, Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto… I am Sailor Cosmos. Your dear friend, Sailor Moon, Usagi, is held in the grasp of Chaos at the far edge of the galaxy. You must come with me to save her! Chaos has proposed a contest in which your strength, wits and cunning must be used to the utmost extent to survive and rescue her. Come!"
"Wait!" Ami stood, grasping her schoolbag to her breast, "Please tell us why it is that no one else remembers Usagi! Why is it that only the eight of us know her and miss her!"
Sailor Cosmos bowed her head then raised it, with crystal tears sliding down her cheeks and catching the light. "It is because of what is at stake," she said. She opened her hand revealing a shard of the Ginzuishou.
Ami gasped. "The Ginzuishou! Then is she dead?"
The others cried out at this statement. She couldn't be dead, she couldn't!
Sailor Cosmos smiled tiredly. "No, your friend is still alive and safe, as long as I hold this. But the reason that you remember her is that you too possess fragments of the ginzuishou. You must fight, because each one of you that is defeated will yield up his or her life and crystal shard to the side of Chaos. If Chaos wins enough pieces of the Ginzuishou, then our lives and hopes will be over forever!"
Makoto stood, fists clenched. Her eyes were red-rimmed and nose swollen from tears, but she leapt to her feet ready to fight. "Then we mustn't cry anymore. We must fight."
Raye stood too. "We must fight for our princess."
"For our hope," added Setsuna.
"And for our future," concluded Ami.
Minako stood and faced the group. She was, after all, the leader of the senshi, especially in Sailor Moon's absence. "Then we will go, and we will fight, and we will win," she announced.
Sailor Cosmos held up a hand, but looked over the group with hope beginning to burn in her heart and eyes. "Before we go, I must tell you the rules of the competition. You will battle not only yourself, but each other and also revived enemies from the past. The Shitennou and the Black Moon Clan have also received these crystal shards and will fight against you because they desire the power that comes along with victory."
"The Shitennou!" Minako said, eyes wide. "Then that means that Kunzite…"
"And Nephrite," said Makoto.
"Jadeite," whispered Raye.
"And Zoicite," said Ami, "are back."
"Yes, they are, along with Diamond, Esmeraude, Rubeus and Sapphire," said Sailor Cosmos. "You will battle in Elysion, with little more than the clothes on your back. There, you must find shelter and food, as well as fight in challenges."
Haruka, who enjoyed camping was excited. "That's not so hard," she said. "Camping in the rough's a piece of cake."
"However," continued Sailor Cosmos, "You will not be able to transform into senshi nor use your powers. You will be prevented."
Mamoru shook his head. "That doesn't matter. What matters is that whatever the cost, we can get Usako back again. With powers, without them, I will fight barehanded to the end for my Princess."
For the first time, a genuine smile graced the lovely face of Cosmos. There was hope, after all. "Then come."
Meanwhile, Cosmos had gathered its warriors as well. Each one was willing to fight the hated senshi once again, and were delighted to hear that she senshis' powers would be removed for the duration of the competition.
"Why not give us ours?" Jadeite asked. "Surely you aren't so hampered by something so mundane as 'fair play' are you?"
"It is not my choice," admitted Chaos. "Sailor Cosmos will have jurisdiction over your powers, as I have over the senshi."
"It seems to me that I really have no reason to fight for you," observed Nephrite. "I care nothing for the fate of the Moon Princess, nor of the silly crystal. In fact, I was quite content where I was, ruling over powerful nations."
"Power is what you seek?" Chaos inquired. Each of the eight before him nodded. "Then hear me. Power, wealth, youth… these are all things I can provide on an unlimited basis. You want to rule? How about ruling the world, and its wealth forever."
Rubeus pushed forward. "I think I can agree with that. How about I agree, and you can let everyone else go?"
"Impossible! The contest requires eight participants of my choosing, and you are the strongest, the most likely to succeed. Let me show you what your prize would be, should you win…"
Kunzite saw himself ruling the world, the Middle East returned to its former glory. Oases bloomed in the desert, and it became a place of power once more. Instead of a place of mere fear and ridicule, the world came to respect and honor the Middle East, to look upon it as the best the world had to offer. He bowed to Chaos in acquiescence.
Diamond saw the only thing he truly desired. He saw Queen Serenity. Queen Serenity at his beck and call. Queen Serenity as his wife. Queen Serenity in his bed…. He could not contain his lust. He too nodded.
Zoicite saw the world come to be his, but more importantly, he saw the rest of the Shitennou finally at his feet, as his servants. He saw Kunzite bringing him his food, Nephrite polishing his boots, and Jadeite as his amusement. That would definitely be an improvement from being the target of their ridicule and pity. He agreed to compete.
Rubeus saw the destruction and humiliation of the senshi. He saw them stripped, whipped and beaten, then made to dance for his amusement. The cruelties he would be able to inflict would be most pleasant. He nodded.
Nephrite saw the richest nations become more powerful, and then laying that power and wealth at his feet. He saw his power stretch to encircle the entire globe, to reach the stars and beyond. Intoxicating power… he smiled and nodded.
Esmeraude, as a woman desired a different kind of wealth and power than the others. She wanted to be desired, to be the most desirable woman in the world, to have nations and rulers and leaders fight for her amusement, approval and smile. She saw the very rich, old men and the very handsome, young men desire her and was flattered by Chaos' vision. She ignored the cringing expressions of seven men around her as she laughed, "Of course I will serve."
Jadeite saw people. He saw billions of people, the entire world population at his fingertips. With a snap of his fingers or wave of his hand, millions would die or live at his whim. The world would be remade in his image, and he could taste their energy, being expended at his every bidding. He smiled too, and agreed.
Sapphire. Sapphire was the difficult one. He didn't want wealth or power or glory. What he wanted was different, and his vision was one of peace. It was fulfillment of his brother's dreams and reflected glory. He saw his people out from under the terrible judgment thrust upon them by Crystal Tokyo. He saw that place emptied and repopulated by immigrants from Nemesis. But it wasn't until Diamond was seen upon the throne that Sapphire too nodded.
Chaos smiled. "Then go!" The eight disappeared, sent to Elysion to meet their first challenges and their opponents. At the very least, this would be very interesting.