CHAPTER 1

It was exactly ten days since Sailor Moon and the others had defeated the alien invasion and restored Darien's memories. Now he and Serena were enjoying a nice boat ride together out on the lake in Mr. Baxter's park. As he pulled gently on the oars, Serena looked into his face and said swooningly, "Oh Darien. This is so romantic. I love spending time together with you."
Darien smiled in return. "I do too. You make my life so perfectly complete."
They leaned in together for a gentle kiss very carefully so as not to upset the boat.

In the meantime the mysterious little girl with pink hair was being handed a big, blue ball and a key on a chain around her neck by the tall woman with green-black hair. "Take these with you Small Lady and good luck," she said opening the big door.
The little girl thanked her and just as she plunged through the doorway a very loud voice shouted out.
"There she is Rubeus. We've been searching everywhere for her."
The woman shut the door behind the little girl to behold three figures standing several feet away from her.
There was a man with a head of bushy red hair the colour of a bright red ruby. He was the one referred to as Rubeus. Two strange women stood on his right and his left. One of them had a weird yellow horn protruding from her forehead and she had a large two-sided drum strapped in front of her. It was she who had yelled out.
The other had light-blue skin and hair and a very much larger curved yellow horn in her forehead.

But the woman stood in front of the door brandishing her scythe and declared, "You are too late. Rini, otherwise known as Small Lady is on her way to the past in the 21st Century and I won't let you follow her."
The woman with the drum prepared to bang it with her drumsticks and the other woman moved forward as if to charge with her horn.
Rubeus laid a cautioning hand each on their shoulders. "Wait Thunderclap and Hypnotica. Don't be so rash. She is literally a one woman army. She could kill you both in an instant with her immense power."
The woman held her scythe before her and said, "That is correct. My death scream is potent and never fails to destroy its intended target. That is why the Queen of Crystal Tokyo asked me as a personal favour to guard this door to time. I will strike you all dead rather then let you follow Small Lady."
Rubeus said, "Very well. We're off. But even though we can't use that door we still have time travel abilities of our own bestowed upon us by our mentors. We don't need to throw our lives away for nothing."
As soon as he said this Hypnotica and Thunderclap smiled and turned to follow Rubeus.

As they left the woman sighed. She could have killed those three before they left but she wasn't a cold-blooded killer. Her duty was to guard the door but she hoped that Small Lady would be all right. She wouldn't leave her post but she couldn't stop the enemy employing their own means to follow their prey. She would do her very best to help and guide her friend through the communications she had given her.

At that very moment the little girl and her ball appeared out of thin air above Serena and Darien's boat. While they were having their gentle kiss Darien was surprised as the ball gently landed on his head and fell onto the bottom of the boat behind Serena. But a split second later the girl herself fell on top of Serena pushing her painfully face down into the boat with a crash. Darien found the girl suddenly embraced in his arms and the shock and surprise made him fall backwards out of the boat with her. The splash sent a wave of water flying up into the boat drenching Serena and she rose spluttering in a daze.
Darien still holding the girl, lifted her as a gentleman into the boat before holding onto the edge and carefully pulling himself inside really fast without tipping it over too much. As he struggled to get onto the seat maintaining the vessel's equilibrium he asked the girl, "Where did you come from kid? Did you fall from a balloon or something?"
"I'm very sorry sir," she apologized but Serena was extremely annoyed and also rather perplexed when she took a closer look at her.
"Hey! You look like me! And you also have my hairstyle!"
To this the girl replied, "It's my mother's hairstyle."
"What did you just say?" Serena gasped.
But the little girl suddenly became stern and looking at her said, "Never mind. I can tell be your hairstyle that you must have the Silver Imperium Crystal. Give it to me."
Serena was suddenly flabbergasted and practically shrieked, "WHAT?"
"You heard me. I want that Silver Crystal and I want it now."
"How do you possibly know about the Silver Crystal?" Serena cried thinking of her transformation locket concealed inside her clothes.
Darien was also getting nervous and worried but before he could say or do anything the girl threw herself at Serena grabbing and grappling with her like a wild tiger. "I want that crystal!"
As Serena screamed and tried to fight back, Darien attempted to intervene and the boat was completely overturned, hurling the three of them into the water. The girl took hold of the key around her neck and rose into the air leaving Serena and Darien flailing in the water. As her ball floated up next to her she cried out, "This is not over. I will get what I desperately need." Then in a flash of light she was gone.

Darien helped Serena swim to shore, then he saw to it that the overturned boat was safely retrieved by the man in charge of the rowboat hire while Serena checked and saw to her immense relief that her locket was safely tucked inside its pocket. What a close call. "I'll have to go straight home and get changed now," she thought. "Grr. My little brother Sammy will tease me when I have to admit I accidentally fell into the boating lake. Thanks to that mysterious brat. Who does she think she is anyway? I'll never let her have my crystal."

Meanwhile in some mysterious place in a huge crystal palace a group of strange people were gathered before a figure seated on a throne hidden in shadows. "Rubeus! Come forward!" called the obscure stranger and Rubeus stepped forward and bowed on one knee.
"At your service my prince."
The shadowy prince gave further command. "Catzi! You and your sisters also come forward!"
Four women also approached. They, like Rubeus, had a strange symbol upon their foreheads. It looked like a black upside-down crescent moon. It also resembled the shape of a frowning mouth.
They prostrated themselves on one knee two on each side with Rubeus in the middle. "We are yours to command," said one with a mop of black hair. She was Catzi and part of her hair style even looked something like two pointy cats' ears.
The strange prince said, "I will allow our mentors, my trusted advisors, to speak my commands for me."
With that a pair of similar looking, sinister hooded figures materialized at the foot of the throne. One was waving his spectral hands in front of a crystal ball and the other was holding a hideous scythe making him resemble the Grim Reaper. The one with the crystal ball spoke first. "I, the Wiseman and my colleague, the Grim Man, have seen that Neo-Queen Serenity's daughter has escaped into the old city of Tokyo nine centuries into the past. She is searching for the Silver Imperium Crystal. She cannot be allowed to find it. It will free the queen and all her people. Your hold over Crystal Tokyo must not be overthrown."
The Grim Man spoke in turn. "We appoint you Rubeus and you four sisters to be entrusted with the task of going back in a spaceship time machine and capturing her. Dead or alive."
Rubeus spoke for them all. "We swear to succeed Wiseman and Grim Man."
The Wiseman resumed his speech. "Then all of you rise up onto your feet. We also command that half of our Droid Warrior force accompany you, while the other half stay behind to oversee all our prisoners and fight against those who still threaten to rebel against us. Choose who you want to go with you."

Rubeus turned and smiled. "Who else would I pick but my loyal friends, Thunderclap and Hypnotica?" The two women who had accompanied him earler were already approaching him. They knew he was going to ask for them.
One of Catzi's sisters immediately spoke up. "I also have my choice already made. My very best friends Droido and Frosty."
Two other ladies came running with open arms and the three of them all cuddled laughing. "We knew you'd pick us Birdy."
"There was never any doubt at all."
Rubeus, Thunderclap and Hypnotica frowned heavily. They disapproved of the way this other trio showed affection. They considered themselves to be friends, but they thought it undignified to cuddle and giggle together like that.
The Grim Man said, "Very well. You other three sisters make one choice each and that will finalize your team."
Catzi said, "I choose Rhonda."
One of her other sisters said, "I choose Jellax."
The last sister said, "I choose Avocado."
Once the team was all gathered the Wiseman said, "All of you prepare to leave at once. Your ship will be ready for departure in half an hour."
They all raised their right fists in the air and shouted, "We will succeed for our prince and for the desire of revenge we all mutually share with him!"

Getting back to Serena, she had more shocks in store for her when she arrived home. Her parents were sympathetic to hear about her accident at the boating lake and indeed as she had feared, her brother Sammy couldn't resist following her up the stairs teasing her a little as she headed to get changed in the bathroom. He laughed and said, "Next time you go boating you should ask if they can let you use a submarine Serena. Then maybe you'll manage to stay dry at least if you suddenly lose control of it. Better have a radio to call for help if you get stuck on the bottom of the lake though. HA HA!"
"Can it Sammy!" Serena snapped, though at the same time Sammy was actually rather helpful in that he went into her room and gathered some fresh clothes to slip through the bathroom door's open crack while Serena made herself dry. She handed out the wet clothes for him to carry down to the laundry after she carefully placed her dry clothes on top of the lavatory with the seat lid down so they wouldn't get wet or crumpled. Serena realized even Sammy genuinely loved her at heart and so she thanked him.
"My pleasure dweeb." He laughed as he ran off with the laundry pile and Serena groaned with a half smile.
"What a pain in the neck. But a somewhat likable pain in the neck."
So with that she dressed herself and brushed her hairstyle back into place. But her next big shock was waiting for her when she went back downstairs.

"Oh Serena. We have a relative who's come to stay with us," said her mother greeting her with a cheery smile at the bottom of the stairs. "She's in the living room with Dad and Sammy and she's looking forward to seeing you again."
Serena was instantly curious. "What? I wonder who it could possibly be?"
"You'll find out in a moment dear. Follow me."
Serena walked after her mother into the living room but when she saw who their visitor was she half gasped and half choked. It was that strange little girl from before.
"W-who is she and what is she doing here?" Serena only just managed to control her voice's decibel level.
Mum, Dad and Sammy all stared at her in surprise.
Dad said, "Why don't you recognize her Serena?"
Sammy added, "Yeah. This is our little cousin Rini."

"Cousin" Rini was innocently looking up at her from a chair and smiling, her blue ball upon her lap and her arms wrapped around it.
She acted shy saying nothing but Serena went on almost spluttering over her own words. "Since when do we have a cousin named Rini?"
Her mother placed a compassionate arm around her shoulders and said to her with concern, "Serena, Rini is the only child of my elder sister Trista."
Serena felt like she was cracking up. "Y-your s-s-sister Trista? But Mum. You don't have a sister!"
"Are you truly losing your memory Serena?" asked her mother, sounding very worried. "Trista is my elder sister. Her husband walked out on her a long time ago just before Rini was born."
Dad chimed in. "That's right. Aunt Trista sent Cousin Rini to have a holiday with us and they sprang it on us as a surprise."
Serena just stood there in her mother's embrace with her eyes and mouth wide open.
Sammy held up a big photo album and said, "If you really don't believe us take a look at these Serena. Rini brought photographs from when she came to stay last year when Aunt Trista accompanied her."
Serena sat down and flipped through the photos unable to believe what she saw. There were many pictures of her family and herself with Rini and a tall elegant woman with black hair and streaks of green within her long strands and a rather tanned-tone to her skin. This was allegedly Aunt Trista. But Serena couldn't remember any of the incidents depicted in the photos. "Aunt" Trista didn't even look anything like her mother or anyone on her side of the family to Serena. But she said nothing out loud. She didn't want her family to think she was really losing her marbles.

"I-I guess I must have suffered a mental lapse of memory," she hesitatingly admitted. She knew Sammy would relentlessly tease her further about this, but at least her parents may not want to get her checked by a doctor straight away.
Mum and Dad said they hoped everything would come back to her as she spent time with Rini. Rini spoke up then. "I hope so too. I've really missed you big Cousin Serena."
Serena was getting very worried. She determined to take one of these photos over to Raye's temple tomorrow. It was school holidays of course, so she could call the other girls and ask to hold an emergency meeting about this mystery.
Luna herself, quietly watching and listening while pretending to be an ordinary cat, was also worrying about what this could all mean and Rini was thinking to herself, "I'll search Serena's room for the Silver Crystal as soon as I get an excellent opportunity."

Later while Rini was having a bath, Sammy was reading in his bedroom and Mum and Dad were in the garden mowing the lawn and and hanging out the laundry, Serena took the chance to remove one photo of her smiling happily in pose with "Cousin" Rini and "Aunt" Trista. She and Luna figured that if anybody noticed it missing at least she could say as an excuse she wanted to have a look at it herself for awhile to help refresh her memory. But thankfully not even Rini had a glance at her Photo Album. Serena slipped it inside her bag ready to take it to the Cherry Hill Temple tomorrow. That night before going to sleep she and Luna quietly talked about her.
"Are you sure this child specifically demanded you give her the Silver Imperium Crystal Serena?"
"Beyond all shadow of a doubt Luna. It's really got me all worried. Is she an enemy? It seems hard to imagine a kid like her an evil being. But why does she want my Crystal?"
Luna said, "I agree. But let's see what Raye can tell us tomorrow. We'll get the girls all together so they can help us. Try to get some sleep Serena."
As Luna curled into a ball at the foot of her bed, Serena closed her eyes. She did sleep, though she was troubled with dreams about Rini falling on top of her head whenever she was out on a date with Darien and shoving him roughly aside while she cried angrily, "Give me that Silver Crystal! I want it right now!"

But the following day after breakfast Serena announced that she was going to meet up with her friends at Raye's temple for a private gathering.
Her parents said that would be fine. "Hope you all have fun," said Dad.
"Give your friends our best wishes," said Mum.
Serena picked up her bag, in which the photo was still concealed and headed out the door. "I will be sure to tell them Mum. Bye for now."
When she was at least a block away she pulled out her communicator and alerted the others. They all promised to meet as quickly as possible. Luna had stayed behind. Serena had agreed to give her a full report when she arrived home. Mina had promised to do the same for Artemis. As for Luna she was resting on a chair in Serena's room.

Rini thought this was a perfect moment to search Serena's room for the crystal. She crept up to it and inside. Luna had dozed off where she was curled up and didn't wake while Rini searched as quickly and quietly as she could. When she heard footsteps approaching from outside the door, she zoomed under the bed just as it opened and Serena's mother entered with the feather duster. She had been intending to dust around but when she saw all the drawers and cupboards open and everything pulled out and thrown haphazardly all over the place she gave a double take and said, "Oooooh! That Serena! I'll give her a piece of my mind when she gets home. She will come up here and tidy up this mess immediately."
With that she exited and after a few minutes when things were as quiet as could be Rini crawled out and carefully slipped out and downstairs unseen. Luna had slept through everything.

Rini hadn't found the crystal and figured Serena must have taken it. While Mum was telling Dad about the shocking state in which Serena had left her room, Rini innocently came up and asked, "Dear Aunt and Uncle. Will it be okay if I go to visit the Cherry Hill Temple. I promise I will not go where Serena and her friends are socializing in privacy. I just want to have a look at what sort of things they have for sale."
Mum said, "I guess that will be fine. Here. We'll give you some money if you want to buy any charms or novelty ornaments."
As she and Dad each gave her ten dollars spending money, Dad added, "But if perchance you do see Serena when she leaves the meeting, you can kindly let her know from us that if she ever leaves her bedroom looking like a pigsty again, we will either ground her or cancel her pocket money." He and Mum both scowled in annoyance as he said this and Rini said, "Okay. I'll pass on your message if I see her." Then picking up her ball she set off towards the temple trying to formulate a plan to get the crystal.

In the meantime Raye had the photograph Serena had brought on a small table in front of the Sacred Fire. Serena, Lita, Mina and Amy were all kneeling in a row behind Raye as she sat on her own knees in front of the photo on the table. She gestured in appeal to the Fire praying, "Oh Sacred Flame! Please reveal to me the truth about this child and this woman in this photo! Show me who they really are!"
However the Sacred Fire didn't reveal anything. It gave a tiny flicker, but nothing appeared.
Raye said, "It isn't working."
The girls were very disappointed, but Serena was getting rather agitated. "The fire told you nothing? But Raye. I'm not really crazy, am I?"
Raye said, "Well to be honest you sometimes do act crazy Serena."
The others became all tense fearing another one of their old fights may be in the making. But Serena just waved her fists and shouted, "Come on Raye! I know she exists and I know what I've heard her say! I'm not being crazy about her! I need to know the facts! Even just some of the truth!"
"Okay. Okay." Raye waved her hand pacifyingly and said, "The Sacred Fire is infallible. The only possible explanation I know of for the failure of my reading regarding this photo is that it's a complete fraud. It won't be able to tell us anything about the people in it since it isn't a genuine article. We'll have to get the child and bring her here ourselves for questioning."

But although none of them were aware of it Rini was listening in to their conversation as she was on her way to the temple. She accomplished this by means of a pair of headphones that she produced out of a little door that opened up inside her ball. A radio antenna rose out of the top and it somehow picked up everything Serena, Raye and the others said broadcasting it through the ball and along the cord leading to Rini's headphones. She didn't like the way their conversation was going one little bit.
She thought, "I'd better come up with a way to drug them with my mind control magic formula before they all prepare to team up against me." By this time she was ten minutes away from arrival at the temple and Serena had called her friends on her communicator and arranged for their get together twenty minutes ago. While Rini had been searching Serena's room they had all been on their way and their meeting had more or less begun when Rini had asked permission to go out. She had tuned in just in time to catch the beginning of Raye's attempted fire-reading. She continued to listen as Raye suggested they discuss the matter further over some tea and muffins in Raye's personal room. Rini quickened her pace. She had an idea if she could reach the temple in time to put it in action.

Grandfather had just finished making five mugs of tea for his granddaughter and her friends. He placed them on a tray, set them on a table and filled a plate with big, round, tempting blueberry muffins. This he added to the tray in the center of the tea mugs and then picked it up and headed outside to walk along the landing edge of the temple to deliver the goodies to the waiting girls. Rini was racing up the staircase built into the hill and saw the old man's back as he was walking and humming, carrying the tray. Rini knew she must act at once.
Bouncing her ball really fast she threw it into the air and said, "Mini Magic Tricks. Make a weeping and wailing double of me ahead of that old timer."
Grandfather's ears pricked up and turning his head to the left towards the gardens beside the temple he was very surprised and much concerned to see what looked like Rini standing there, crying bitterly and sounding like her heart was going to break.
"Oh dear me." He carefully lowered the tray setting it down upon the wooden floorboards and made his way off the landing. "Little girl. What is the matter?"
As he approached the double turned and started to run away. Grandfather was such a caring soul that he began to run as fast as he was physically capable. "No, wait! Don't run away! I want to help you!"

This is just what the real Rini was counting on. As Grandfather disappeared she bounced the ball again saying, "Mini Magic Tricks. Make me look like that old man and give me some of my magic formula." Throwing the ball into the air once more it changed into a vial filled with a clear liquid and a valve at the top for shaking out drops. She had also changed into the exact size, shape and form of Grandfather. Quickly she measured out three or four drops in each mug. "This will initially make them sleep for a few hours. But when they awake I'll be able to direct their minds and make them believe anything I tell them."
With that she picked up the tray still in her disguise. The vial changed back into her ball which rose and hovered beside her. "Show me where to find them," she commanded and the ball moved ahead leading her to the door to Raye's quarters. Things were turning out smoothly for Rini.

As she approached Raye's door, Serena was staring at the photo and pestering Raye some more. "Are you really sure there was no message in the fire at all Raye? You sure you didn't make some mistake with the Hocus-Pocus?"
Raye was struggling to keep her temper. "Serena. First of all I never make mistakes and second, don't call my fire reading Hocus-Pocus. It's not witchcraft. Do I look like a witch?"
Before Serena could open her mouth and make one of her silly, facetious remarks that might have upset Raye even further, Rini knocked on the door and called out, "Hello. I've brought you your snacks."
Raye stood up and ran over to open the door. Rini met her with a big smile. She not only looked like her Grandfather. She sounded perfectly like him too. The blue ball was hovering above the roof of the temple out of sight. Raye smiled and bent down to pick up the tray from where it lay on the floor. "Thank you Grandfather. Your muffins look delicious as usual."
"You're most welcome," Rini said as the door closed and she turned back into her normal self. Her ball made its way back down to join her outstretched arms and she giggled to herself.

As for Grandfather he had been trying to catch the little girl he had observed crying, but the magical clone of herself that Rini had produced had only lasted just long enough to lead him down the stairs far away from the temple. He was puffing and panting as he carefully descended after her. "Stop! Wheeze! Gasp! Who are you and why are you crying? Please tell me!"
Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs the figure stopped and turned to face the exhausted old man. As he staggered towards her, to his bewilderment she suddenly vanished before his eyes. The surprise and the toll upon his stamina combined caused him to collapse in a dead faint. Though Raye wouldn't find out about it for awhile some visitors coming to the temple came across him by good fortune. They recognized him as the old priest and manager of the Cherry Hill Temple Shrine and they called for an ambulance. The ambulance officers arrived and took Grandfather to hospital where he would get the care and the rest he needed to recover, so he was going to be all right in the end.

Getting back to the girls, as soon as Raye had set the tray down on the table Serena had gone ballistic. "CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS! HOORAY!"
Before the other four knew it she had snatched and taken a bite out of one muffin after another until she had five muffins with enormous bites out of them in her arms.
Suddenly she noticed her friends staring wide-eyed at her. With her mouth still full she struggled to swallow and stammered, "W-what are you staring f-f-for?"
"Serena," said Lita in dismay. "You've just gone and half eaten each of our muffins as well as your own."
Then Serena sheepishly realized that there was only one plate of muffins and there were indeed five of them, to go with the five mugs of tea.
"Oh. I'm very sorry girls. I love anything chocolate chip so much I became carried away. Here. You can share what's left among yourselves."
"Thanks I suppose," Raye sighed exasperatedly as she and the others reached for their tea while Serena was putting the mangled muffins back on the plate still muttering embarrassed apologies.

The next thing Serena knew her friends began to gasp and collapse either slumped forward onto the table or smack dab on their backs hitting the floor. Serena was horrified as she took in the scene noting the overturned tea mugs and sensing somebody's shadow on the other side of the sliding temple style door. She quickly tipped her own mug over and fell on her back playing possum. Rini poked her head in and chortled. "It worked. I got them all, including Serena."
She walked inside with her ball floating behind her. "I may as well search Serena for the Silver Crystal," she said out loud and walked over to her with twitching fingers eager to go through her pockets and other places where her prize might be concealed.
But when she bent over she shrieked in fright as Serena jumped up and grabbed her. Serena sprang to her feet lifting Rini by the neck. Rini's eyes widened in fear and her little hands clutched vainly at Serena's hands. There were wrathful tears in Serena's eyes that poured down her cheeks as she glared at the cowering little girl. Daggers may have been shooting from her eye sockets and though her voice was sobbing, there was venom in her words directed towards Rini.
"So now you've shown your true evil colours. But too late for my friends. They were by far the very best friends I ever had and you poisoned them while trying to kill me too for my Crystal. I ought to squeeze until you turn blue and croak you evil fungus in cute kiddie clothing. You killed my friends."
"No no no!" Rini desperately pleaded. "I haven't killed your friends! They're only knocked out! They'll awaken in about two hours! That is the truth!"
Hearing this Serena pulled Rini up close to her face and snarled. "They had better awaken for your sake. I'm going to tie you up and if they turn out to be truly dead, so will you be."
Upon this terrible threat Rini snapped and began to cry and wail just like the clone she had created earlier. But as she cried something weird began to happen.
Serena was amazed to see a crescent moon appear glowing golden yellow on Rini's forehead. It was not upside down like those upon the foreheads of Rubeus and those four sisters. It was right side up and as Serena watched it began to glow brighter and brighter. Serena was blown backwards releasing Rini as golden light burst forth illuminating the whole room and to the astonishment of Chad, who was managing the temple and serving any visitors in Grandfather's absence, a brilliant beam shot up above into the sky making everything so bright he had to cover his eyes. "Hey. What is going on?" He couldn't believe it.
Nor did Serena. She curled up in a ball to shield her eyes from the intensity of being directly in Rini's presence. As Rini stopped crying the light dissipated. But Serena still had difficulty seeing and blinked rapidly to clear her vision's blurriness.
"W-w-what just happened?" she asked in a daze.
But Rini wasn't answering her. "Oh no! They've tracked me down!"
"Why, what did you expect little munchkin?" said a woman's voice. "You basically led us to you with fanfares."
Serena shook her head and tried to focus on the figure who was standing in the open doorway. "Who are you?" she yelled out demandingly.

As Serena's vision came clearly into focus she saw that the woman was dressed in a pink body suit with a purple tutu just above her legs. Her black hair had two points that stuck up on her head and she had an upside down black crescent moon in the middle of her forehead. "My name is Catzi," she said. "And I've come for that kid."
Rini trembled as Catzi pointed her finger at her. Serena said, "So what do you want with her?"
Catzi said, "It doesn't concern you."
Serena shot back with a sharp retort. "I think I am entitled to know exactly who you are and what you want with this little girl."
Catzi frowned heavily. "I have no reason to attack you. I just need to take the child and leave."
Serena would not back down. "You can't have her until I know what this is all about lady."
Catzi said, "We don't want to hurt you or anybody in this ancient Tokyo city. But let this be a warning to you."
With that she raised her hand and Serena jumped back up against Raye's wall of bookshelves in fright as a burst of bluish-coloured flame shot out from Catzi's open palm.

She screamed but the fire disappeared, fizzling out before it reached her. Still Rini took advantage of the distraction to run for it, ducking underneath between Catzi's own pair of legs. "Hey!" she cried. "Come back here!"
Before pursuing her she quickly said to Serena, "See how I could hurt you easily? But I have nothing against you. So mind your own business please while I catch that kid." With that she ran off.
Serena didn't waste time. She very quickly examined the bodies of her friends. "It seems like I misjudged that child very badly. My friends all seem to be breathing and they have pulses. She did not slip them a fatal poison, just like she terrifyingly begged me to believe."
Serena felt horrible and ashamed of herself, but she steeled herself and said, "That weird woman may not mean me any harm, but still I'm not letting her abduct that poor child. Not now that I know how wrongly I threatened her. MOON CRYSTAL POWER!"
Having transformed Sailor Moon leaped and bounded out the door in pursuit of the hunter and her prey.

Rini was running for all she was worth with her ball clutched to her chest. Suddenly another figure loomed up in front of her and she desperately ran to the side as the massive woman swung at her in a grabbing motion. She just barely missed. It was Rhonda, the Droid Warrior Catzi had personally selected for their team in the future. She was almost seven feet tall, very muscular, with light green skin, long blonde hair styled in a buzz-cut and orange slashes and an orange star painted on her face. She had no dark crescent moon mark on her forehead like Catzi, but she did have a jewel of some kind built into a belt she was wearing round her waist and it had a similar symbol engraved into it somehow.
As Rini ran off in the side direction Rhonda looked at her, only turning her head back to acknowledge Catzi as she ran up to her. "Let's catch her Rhonda. She mustn't get away."
"Yes Catzi," said Rhonda and Catzi gave a tremendous leap and soared high above Rini landing in front of her, making her pull up to a terrified stop. Looking behind her she trembled to see Rhonda right behind her. Catzi laughed.
"Ha ha! It's no use little girl. Rhonda and I have you surrounded. Surrender to us or we will be forced to kill you."
"No! Leave me alone!" Rini sobbed as the two women prepared to close in the gap.

Suddenly a voice stopped them in their tracks. "Back off you freaks!"
Rhonda raised her eyebrows while Catzi turned to look behind her. "Who are you?" Catzi demanded.
"I am Sailor Moon. Champion of justice. And I won't let you take that little girl away."
Catzi and Rhonda both reacted with amazement. "Did you say Sailor Moon?"
"We know all about you," said Rhonda.
"Oh you do, do you?" Sailor Moon responded just a little bit smugly, I must say and she let her guard down for a second.
It was almost a fatal second. Catzi shouted, "You are our sworn enemy and we must destroy you!" With that she shot more of her blue fire at Sailor Moon.
Sailor Moon was very shocked and desperately leaped into the air as she realized that unlike when Catzi had shot at her when she wasn't transformed, this time she meant deadly business. Rhonda leaped up after her and punched her in the face sending her spinning to the ground.
"Rhonda! Beat her up while I capture the little brat! If she's still alive when I'm done I'll help you finish her off!"
Sailor Moon was dazed as she landed with a crash and feebly tried to get back up. But she screamed again as she saw Rhonda's big, heavy boot preparing to come connecting to her with sickening impact and Rini herself was trying to run away as Catzi brutally decided to aim her fire attack at her.

But before Catzi could shoot at Rini there was a cry of anguished pain, not from Sailor Moon. But from Rhonda. Catzi recognized the sound of Rhonda groaning and snapped around and observed to her horror, Rhonda landing on the ground in a crumpled heap. Sailor Moon climbed joyfully to her feet exclaiming, "Tuxedo Mask!"
Her saviour landed beside her brandishing his cane. He had hurled himself at Rhonda and struck her in the belly with the end of it as hard as he could before she knew he was there. She placed one hand upon her tummy while she struggled to rise.
Catzi tried to shoot her fire at the new intruder with his mask and fancy clothes. But he sent three red roses her way and as she raised her arm she gasped as the stems stabbed her in three places between her wrist and armpit. "Aaaaargh!" Catzi stared at the flowers sticking in her arm in dismay and her legs began to shake like jelly.
"I thought you could use some help Sailor Moon," said Tuxedo Mask.
"Your timing was impeccable. Thank you Tuxedo Mask," said Sailor Moon.
Rini had stopped running and was watching the fight with wide eyes. She herself recognized Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon. And she didn't just admire them. She loved them.

Catzi grimaced in pain but she snarled. "You are our enemies. We will destroy you."
"Oh shut up!" Sailor Moon launched herself at Catzi's face like a torpedo. Her arms were crossed in front of her chin and she struck Catzi in the face knocking her onto her back. As Catzi lay dazed with Sailor Moon standing over her, she cried out, "Help me Rhonda. Help. Help me Rhonda."
Rhonda however had her own troubles. She was trying to clobber Tuxedo Mask. However he agilely dodged and avoided her powerful fists and swung his cane knocking her off her feet onto her own back. Then he punched her hard in the stomach again and she almost felt like she wanted to throw up.
"How c-can this b-be? I've, urgh, never lost to an opponent ever before."
Sailor Moon took her tiara and it became her scepter as usual by the magic. "Look you two," she said pointing it from one to the other where they lay, "if you try any more funny business, this scepter I'm holding is a powerful weapon. Potentially deadly. I'm going to give you a chance to admit defeat and depart. I suggest you accept it."
Catzi and Rhonda looked at each other. Their expressions were mutually agreed. It was time to back off. For now. They clambered painfully to a standing position and walked towards each other slowly. Leaning in balanced support Catzi said, "We are leaving for now. But we will return and next time we will destroy you Sailor Moon. And we will get that brat."
Then the pair of them dematerialized.

Rini ran up to them both. "Tuxedo Mask! Sailor Moon!"
"You know us both?" Sailor Moon gasped.
"Yes Sailor Moon. I was told you would be here when I came from the future. You are to protect me and help me save my mother and all my friends in the future. Those people are trying to catch me to prevent me from finding the Silver Crystal to defeat them. I am still trying to acquire the crystal Sailor Moon. I will keep trying."
Sailor Moon was all the more gob-smacked at all this. Tuxedo Mask only stared hard at Rini. He didn't understand it, but he felt there was some mysterious connection that she had to him.
Sailor Moon knew she had to return to her secret identity, so she said, "That's all right. Just keep trying and I'll be watching out for you. I must go now."
Tuxedo Mask stayed behind as Sailor Moon ran off to re-join her friends and wait for them to wake up. He and Rini spent at least one hour together before they said goodbye. He was baffled, but he knew he felt strongly attached to the little girl.

Rini cautiously returned to find Serena all calmed down now to her relief and awaiting her friends recovery. Serena spoke kindly to Rini saying she was very sorry for the abusive treatment she had given her and also that she was glad to hear that Sailor Moon had saved her from that mad woman.
Rini was sorry for doping the other girls too and when they woke up, she did not attempt to exert any control over them. Though Serena was amazed at how very easily she was able to persuade them not to do anything to Rini. Especially Raye, knowing how hot-tempered she was by nature. Little did she realize that was the magical effect of the knockout drug, though Rini was very pleased and relieved about the way it all turned out.

Then the two of them walked home together. Serena was mulling things over in her mind. If these people Rini mentioned had ruthlessly invaded her future world, then why had that Catzi spoken as if they had no desire to hurt any of the people generally here in the past? It didn't make any sense at all.
Suddenly Rini said, "Oh Serena. I just remembered something I was supposed to tell you."
"What's that?" Serena asked.
"Your mother and father are very unhappy with you regarding the messy state of your bedroom."
Serena couldn't believe it. "What are you talking about? My room is in a perfectly neat and tidy arrangement."
Rini said nothing else and Serena was thinking this a rather sick joke as they were walking up to the front door. Rini stayed outside halfway along the front path and turned her back as Serena entered and was met by two very cross voices yelling, "SERENA!"

Later as she lay in her bed with Luna that night Serena reprimanded her. "I can't believe you slept through it all while that fungus trashed my room. I was never so shaken up in my life."
"How embarrassing. I must be picking up your sleeping habits Serena. You could easily sleep through a tornado."
Serena was too exhausted after having been forced to clean up the mess that Rini had made to get mad at Luna's remark. She just said, "Never mind Luna. But I will say this. I don't believe she's evil, but if she keeps getting me into trouble I definitely do not like her."
With that she dropped off into a disgruntled sleep.