Cosmos turned her attention to the blue and green planet near her old home. It had been a long time since she last visited it. She longed to see what its inhabitants were now like and find out if she could somehow help with their mortal problems. Although she was the supreme guardian, she felt that she couldn't interfere too much with their fate. Just like what she told Beryl, the Snow Queen, Nehelenia and many others, life might be ridden with pain and suffering, but it was through them that everyone felt most alive. That at the end of a dark and lonely tunnel, there was always a light. She should know. She had been there many times.
Making sure that no evil lurked anywhere near her domain, she called forth her precious Ginzuishou. When the precious crystal appeared, she cupped her hands around it and commanded it to bring her to Earth.
On Earth, Aya signalled his comrades to go ahead and enter one of the many mansions of Takatori Reiji. It was almost midnight and they had just finished destroying the headquarters of Korin, a company that was responsible for turning unsuspecting humans into savage monsters. Masafumi, Reiji's first-born, was a medical doctor who had a grandiose plan: to make himself god in a monster-infested world. He was, at the time, being consoled by his doting girlfriend. Apparently, Shreient, his secretaries and professional mercenaries, had perished against Weiss Kreuz a while ago.
"There, there, Fumi-chan." She gently stroked his hair. "Don't worry. Everything will be perfect. You can always get more. We can always get more girls to replace them."
"I know. But I've grown rather fond of them, especially Tot. She was so childlike. I still remember all those times she called me Papa like I was really her father. Wasn't that nice?"
"Of course, darling. Now tell me about your plan again." She deliberately changed the topic of conversation. She never really liked those blasted girls. They always seemed to compete with her for Masafumi's attention. It was a good thing that they'd been taken out of the picture. 'Hmm, might as well thank those blasted Weiss guys sometime. They saved me the trouble of getting my hands dirty.' She smirked.
Masafumi didn't seem to notice this for when he heard about the plan, his eyes shone maniacally and his lips curved in a sinister way. "That's right! Just as soon as I make that snobbish drunk with power see my way, everything will be perfect. If not, well, I could just kill him. Anyway, talentless people shouldn't be allowed to live. After all, they're just wasting the air they breathe. Yes?"
His girlfriend smiled seductively and wrapped her arms around his chest. As things were about to heat up, Aya burst into the room. "TAKATORI!" he exclaimed. He brandished his sharp katana and was about to strike the cowering Masafumi when the woman blocked his way. Masafumi immediately grabbed a vial from his desk and fled. But he didn't get very far so he used the shadows to hide his shivering form.
However, Aya noticed him and was now readying to deliver the fatal blow. A vial fell to the ground and shattered. The woman gasped when she realized the implication of what Masafumi had done. She turned to their red-headed pursuer and shrieked. "See what you've done! You've ruined everything! Damn you!" She emitted a battle cry and ran toward him, ready to inflict as much pain as possible. As she was about to reach him, a sound of flesh tearing could be heard.
She looked down at herself and, to her utter horror, saw something sharp protruding in her stomach. She craned her neck to see what had caused it and gasped again. Because Masafumi, in a fit of helplessness and insanity, had taken his own creation, a potion capable of changing a person's genetic makeup, he was now hideously mutated. He had grown much, much taller and his body was now covered with green scales. His arms had been replaced by tentacles and his chest displayed sharp, canine teeth. It was truly a frightening sight to behold. "Fumi-chan?" she whispered.
"Quiet, woman! You are no longer allowed to live in my world." He disregarded the betrayed look on her face or the fact that she just exhaled her last breath. Instead, he cackled, "Yes! I am god!"
The other Weiss Kreuz members (Ken, Yohji, and Omi) who had witnessed the transformation, stared at Masafumi in disbelief. If the latter could kill his doting lover without even breaking a sweat, what chance did they have in defeating him? Their stupor was short, however, for they were now being targeted by his unmerciful tentacles.
Yohji released his wire and wrapped it around the tentacle approaching him, but it broke. "Lousy piece of... If that thing misses me, I won't pester a girl for a week. I swear!" He jumped to the left and barely dodged what could have been the death of him. 'Whew! That was a close call. I'd better be more careful.'
Meanwhile, in another part of the room, Ken leapt onto the enemy's back and tried to use his claw-like weapon. However, Masafumi's thick scale-covered skin is preventing him from doing any damage. He was lifted violently by one of the tentacles and was helplessly trapped by it.
Seeing his comrades in imminent danger, Aya leapt, his katana in hand, but was lifted by one of the tentacles as well. He was then flung like a rag doll onto the solid wall. His weapon merely inches away from him. 'So close.' His eyes closed briefly. Oh how his body ached.
Omi backed away and used his darts, but like Ken, discovered that they didn't work like he hoped they would. The darts weren't able to sink deep into the skin because of the scales and the fact that they were short in length. Being the brains in the group, he tried to plan some way to free his team mates. While he was distracted, however, a tentacle crept behind him and latched onto his ankles. He was then pulled upside down and directed near Masafumi's chest. It wasn't a pretty sight. The chest that looked like a mouth was salivating. Huge canine teeth glistened in the dark. Omi was doomed. Who else was there to help?
"FLAME SNIPER!"
Just as Omi was about to be eaten, the essence of Cosmos shimmered into existence. She was no longer dressed in her fuku, but in a black leather one-piece suit that fitted her like a second skin. Her long silvery hair was still in her usual odango style, but her forehead wasn't adorned by a nine-pointed star with an upturned crescent moon in it anymore. She didn't want to reveal her true identity. Her interference was bad enough.
Her stance resembled Mars' when she used that attack. The fiery bow was still in her hand, waiting if the target should try to retaliate. But Masafumi only howled and clutched his chest in pain. He immediately dropped his captives, but they landed safely and kept their distance.
Yohji's jaw dropped when he glanced at their saviour with interest. He had to admit, even though she looked deadly, she was beautiful. With the help of the moonlight seeping into the dark room, his eyes slowly traced the contours of her body and appreciated what they saw. His gaze then travelled to her arms holding that fiery bow... 'Wait a minute! How is she able to hold that thing?'
Ken looked at the newcomer with respect. Her eyes showed so much determination. She was willing to help them even though they were mere strangers. A question popped into his head. When they scouted the mansion, no one else was there besides Masafumi and his girlfriend. Was this beautiful stranger able to evade their honed senses? But then again, she just appeared out of thin air! How?
While Masafumi tried in a futile way to ease the pain, Aya, having regained his senses, leapt once more into the air while holding his katana. With as much force as he could muster, he plunged it deep into what he hoped was Masafumi's heart. He was successful for the latter howled again like a beast that he was. The newcomer once again fired her deadly arrow and, with impeccable aim, hit its target right in the forehead. Masafumi keeled over and died.
Omi studied everything about the mysterious girl who somehow looked familiar. The unique hairstyle, the determination shining through her eyes... They reminded him of a girl that started haunting his dreams lately. A crown princess, a wise and noble queen, a beautiful kingdom, the moon? What did these have in common? For an instance, their eyes met and a sort of recognition flashed through his mind. He uttered the name that completely changed everything in the other person's world. "SERENITY!"
Cosmos looked at him with surprise. She was sure she has never met this guy before so how could he have known her real name? And besides, this was her first visit to Earth since her senshi died and that was a long, long time ago. She had to escape soon. She only came to this place because she felt something unnatural and now that she had done the deed, she needed to leave. And with that thought, she vanished.
Four men stood on a nearby cliff overlooking the now burning mansion. They have witnessed the whole scene unfold. Masafumi's transformation and everything else were expected, but the appearance of the exquisite girl was not.
The one with the bright orangey-red hair voices what all of them were thinking. "Well, well. This has certainly gotten more interesting."