The next two weeks went by in a blur for Mina. Her days were spent at school, her afternoons at various soup kitchens with William and her evenings with her friends. For once in her life, everything seemed perfect.

Only one thing marred it. Mina couldn't quite shake what the old woman had told her about the trucks. So every afternoon, she would casually ask the staff and the homeless in the soup kitchens. The story was always the same: Black trucks came at night. The homeless were offered food, shelter and, sometimes, work. Once they went to get what they were offered, they were loaded into the trucks and never seen again.

"Maybe they found a place for them to move to," Rei said dismissively after Mina had mentioned her concern to her friends. "Besides, I would have had a vision if something was wrong."

Lita put a hand on Mina's shoulder. "You're just overthinking it."

Ami looked up from the math book she and Charlotte were going through. "I'm sure it's fine," Ami said cheerfully. "There are plenty of places they could have gone. Besides, someone would notice if people were vanishing."

Luna didn't even bother lifting her head when she added "Artemis and I will look into it, but I seriously doubt anything sinister is going on."

That night, after they were done studying, Mina bade her friends goodnight before heading to the Sanya district. She found a small park, full of the homeless, lept up a tree and settled in to wait for the mysterious trucks to appear.

She didn't need to wait long.

Within an hour, three solid black trucks pulled up. Several people stepped out of each. Mina observed silently from her perch, making sure to note as many details as possible. Most notably, were the vacant expressions and the earpieces with blinking blue lights.

An elderly man stepped into the center of the park. "People of the street," he said in a deep, booming voice. "We have come to offer you food and shelter. Please, step onto the trucks and we will take you to the shelter and food."

After a moment of hesitation, the vagabonds began shoving their way onto the trucks. The people with the blinking earpieces quickly organized the homeless. Within minutes, the entire park was emptied and the trucks were driving away.

Mina gracefully leaped out of the tree and tried following the trucks. They were too fast and she was quickly left behind. The roar of a motorcycle engine made her turn around. The rider stopped next to her and flipped up the visor. Darien's puzzled eyes met Mina's.

"What are you doing here Mina?" Darien asked. "It's not safe to come here alone."

"People were loaded onto those trucks," she said rapidly, the words almost mingling. "I think something bad is going to happen to them."

Darien tossed her a helmet. "Hop on."

Mina crammed her head into the pink helmet, clearly meant for Serena, before hoping on behind Darien. She wrapped her arms tightly around him to keep from falling off as he sped off after the trucks.

She could feel the steady beat of his heart and hers fluttered at their proximity. Mina, like all the other scouts, had a small crush in Darien. He was handsome, smart, funny and mysterious. But she knew that Serena and Darien belonged together. A girl can dream, she thought, wrapping her arms more tightly around him to keep from falling off.

They followed the trucks block after block. Yet, no matter how fast Darien drove, the trucks always stayed the same distance ahead. Finally, they turned into a fenced lot. Within moments, Darien drove in after them.

The lot was empty.

Mina ripped off the helmet as she hopped of Darien's made a circuit of the lot once, checking to make sure there wasn't another way out. Darien did the same.

"Nothing," Mina spat as she kicked at the dirt and gravel.

Darien frowned. "Same." He turned to glance at the full moon as it rose. "Perhaps we only thought we saw the trucks come in here. It could have been a shadow or trick of the light. They were a ways ahead of us."

Mina frowned as she made another circuit of the lot. "Maybe. But I have a feeling about this."

"Sleep on it," Darien suggested. "Maybe the answer will come to you tomorrow. Come on, I'll take you home."

Mina replaced her helmet before hopping back on the bike. Darien turned the bike around before driving off.

The Cyberman and the Cyber-leader watched silently from their position behind the fake wall. "Probability of discovery has increased beyond acceptable parameters," the Cyber-leader droned. "Initiate phase two."


"I'm so happy it's Friday!" Serena squealed as the final bell rang.

Lita tossed her bag over her shoulder. "So what's the plan?" she asked.

Serena smiled. "We're taking Char to the arcade so she can learn about one of the greatest inventions humans have ever made. Then Darien is meeting us for pizza and a movie at Rei's. Mina, you can invite William."

Mina quickly packed her bag. "I'll find him and ask," she replied.

It didn't take her long to find him. As usual, he was waiting for her underneath the tree by the entrance. He smiled as she approached. He waved casually with one hand, while keeping the other behind his back.

As always, her heart fluttered when he smiled. It was such a warm, honest smile it was impossible for her to not smile back. "Hey Mina."

"Hi William," she replied.

He hesitated for a moment as his face furrowed in concentration. He quickly resumed his smile as he moved the hand behind his back into sight. In it was a bouquet of roses. Mina gasped at the sight of them. Hesitantly, her arms reached up to take the proffered gift. She took a whiff of the flowers before holding them close. William pulled two tickets from out of his pocket.

Mina's eyes widened as she read the name on the tickets. "How did you get those?" she demanded. "They've been sold out for months!"

William smiled. "My uncle is their stage manager. When I heard they were your favorite band, after Three Lights, of course, I asked for a pair." his smile faded slightly. "Unfortunately, they're for the very back. I hope you don't mind."

In response, Mina hugged William tightly. He seem surprised for a moment but quickly returned the hug. For a brief moment, she let the perfection of the moment wash over her. "Thank you," Mina said happily before reluctantly stepping back. She stretched up and kissed his cheek.

William blushed as he grinned. "You're welcome."

"I'll meet you here in two hours and we'll walk over," Mina said.

As Mina made her way home, she contacted her friends know about her change in plans.

"You aren't missing much," Serena groaned. "Char is further in the Sailor V game than any of us have ever gotten. It's humiliating… being beaten by a droid."

"When we get a chance, I'll show her how the real Sailor V does it," Mina grumbled, irritated that Charlotte could do better than her. "At any rate, I should be heading out."

"Have fun," Serena said, waving farewell.

Mina delicately placed the bouquet of roses on her dresser before she turned her attention to picking an outfit.

She held one up for Artemis' approval. "What do you think?"

Artemis regarded the outfit for a moment. "I'm sure you'll look lovely in whatever you pick." he replied.

Mina laughed. "Thanks Artemis, but you're too sweet." She put the outfit down and picked up another. "How about this?"

Artemis sighed internally. All I wanted was to take a nap, he thought glumly. He humored his young charge and friend anyway. She genuinely valued his input and opinion and it was something he treasured. He stretched and yawned before sitting on his haunches. "I think that shirt would work best with the blue shorts and the matching sandals."

Mina assembled the suggested outfit. After a moment of contemplation, she stepped into the closet to change. She stepped back out and struck a ridiculous pose. "How do I look?"

Artemis chuckled as his tail swished back and forth. "You look lovely, as always." He said.

Mina laughed as she scooped Artemis up in a hug. "Thanks Artemis," she said.

"Careful there," Artemis purred as Mina scratched him below the chin. "It wouldn't do to get cat hair all over your outfit."

Mina put Artemis down. "I'll see you later," she said as she left.

Artemis considered following her for a moment, but discarded the idea. She wouldn't appreciate it, might even kick him out of the bed. He yawned again as he glanced at the clock. "Naptime," he grumbled as he curled up on Mina's bed.

William was already waiting for her at the school. He proffered an arm to her. She quickly slipped her arm through his. The two of them made their way to the building where the concert was.

Shortly after, they were sitting at the very back in chairs that seemed like they had been put in as an afterthought. It was cramped, hot and uncomfortable, but Mina didn't care. She was having the night of her life.

Halfway through, as one of the band members started to speak about how much he loved Tokyo, a harsh mechanical clanging started. The audience waited in excitement for something to happen while the band members looked confused as the sound grew louder.

The doors around the auditorium burst open, revealing giant men, all in identical silver armor. Mina craned her neck to get a better look at the one nearest her. "What's with the robots?" she asked.

William shrugged. "No idea. My uncle didn't say anything about robots."

The speakers squealed before an emotionless drone boomed over them. "The humans will submit for upgrading." The silver men marched in perfect unison as they filed down the empty rows. "Resistance is futile. We will remove your pain, your fear, your suffering, your sadness. You will be superior. Submit."

The silver men began seizing members of the audience. Mina watched as one woman tried shoving a silver man's hand away. In response, there was a burst of electricity from the silver man's hand. The woman screamed before her lifeless body fell to the ground.

Mina gasped as people around her began to scream and panic. I need to transform, she thought. There weren't many places for her to transform without being noticed. The lights that were flashing coupled with everyone's focus on the silver men gave her something, at least.

Reluctantly, she ducked away from William and behind a pillar. She contacted her friends before she transformed in a flare of light.

Once in her senshi uniform, she stepped out. She glanced over to where William stood, He looked confused as the silver men ignored him. She didn't have time to ponder it, so she clambered up to a better vantage point on the sound booth in the back. Sure she wasn't going to fall off, she addressed the silver men with far more confidence than she felt. "Listen up, you metal morons!" she shouted.

Most of the silver men ignored her as they began dragging members of the audience out the doors. The few closest to her turned their expressionless faces towards her. One of them stepped forward. "Sensors detect non-terrestrial technology," it said in a drone. "You will identify."

"I'm Sailor Venus, the champion of love and justice!" she exclaimed. The silver men continued to regard her without any indication that they cared about anything she said. "Release these people, or in the name of Venus, I shall punish you!"

The silver man remained motionless as it responded. "Cybermen do not take orders from inferior humans. Your technology is compatible. You will submit for upgrading and assimilation."

Venus' response was to shoot her crescent beam It struck the Cyberman in the chest. Its only reaction was to look at the hole in its chest. "Damage minimal," it droned. "Function unimpaired."

It's head snapped back up, and its emotionless eyes fixed on Venus. "Unit is hostile. Delete, delete." It raised a hand. A small gun slid out and the Cyberman opened fire on Venus.

She dodged out of the way of the red bolts. A second crescent beam took out the gun. With the Cyberman distracted, Venus focused on delaying the other Cybermen until the other scouts could show up. She fired crescent beams as fast as she could, pausing only to keep track of William.

He was pressed up against the wall. Several unoccupied Cybermen passed by him without even glancing. Venus frowned. Something's off, she thought. Her thoughts were interrupted as another Cyberman shot at her.

She lept out of the way and kept up her barrage of attacks, using everything she could to slow the Cybermen down.

The Cybermen seemed mostly unimpeded. To stop her attacks, they began using their hostages as shields. With no way to get around them, she was unable to do anything but watch as the Cybermen dragged people away. She did her best to block out the screams.

Within minutes, only a few Cybermen were left. Venus tried to follow but the first Cyberman she attacked blocked her way. She tried to dodge around it, but a heavy steel arm swung at her.

It connected, knocking the breath out of her and tossing her backwards. Her back hit the benches, hard. She fell to the dirty floor. Placing her hands on the floor, she forced herself up, doing her best to wipe away the grit from her cheek.

Groaning in pain, she forced herself to stand and face the Cyberman. It marched towards her, hand outstretched. "Delete, delete!" It exclaimed.

Venus prepared herself to attack when a ball of water struck the Cyberman's legs and froze. The Cyberman stopped moving as it looked to the source of the ice. The other four scouts and Charlotte stared down at the Cyberman from the balcony above.

"You possess compatible technology, you will be upgraded," The Cyberman said.

Without any show of effort, it lifted its leg, shattering the ice that had stopped it. It continued its relentless march towards Venus, ignoring the fireballs Mars hit it with over and over.

Charlotte waved her arms in frustration. "Use electricity or gold!"

In response, Venus hurled her tiara at the Cyberman. The tiara struck and the Cyberman froze. While it was stunned, Venus wrapped her love chain around it, binding it in place.

The other scouts leapt gracefully down from the balcony. Unlike the others who landed on their feet, Sailor Moon tripped and landed on her back. While Sailor Moon groaned and sat up, Charlotte floated down.

Jupiter circled the Cyberman. "What is it?" she asked, keeping a safe distance.

Charlotte stepped over. "Cybermen, cybernetic beings from the planet Mondas. Or what's left of Mondas. It drifted out of your solar system twelve thousand years ago. The Cybermen travel from planet to planet as they grow their numbers. They prefer to remain in the shadows until they've built up a large enough force to capture the planet. Most worlds have kill on sight orders for Cybermen. All attempts to negotiate with them have failed."

Venus frowns "What do they want with those people?"

Charlotte hesitated for a moment as she glanced around at the scouts. She frowned slightly as she answered. "The people are used as labor. They're vital for the… erm... construction process."

"Correct," the Cyberman droned as it started to move again. The chain restricted it and it quickly stopped trying to break free.

"Then what's upgrading?" Venus demanded.

The Cyberman regarded her. "They become us."

Sailor Moon frowned. "What do you mean?"

"They become us," the Cyberman repeated. It broke the chain before the scouts could respond. It twisted and grabbed at Venus' throat. "Delete, delete."

Jupiter hit the Cyberman with a burst of Supreme Thunder. The Cyberman let out an electronic moaning howl as it fell to its knees. Once the attack had run its course, the Cybermen fell silent as it crashed, face first, into the ground and didn't move.

Charlotte regarded the Cyberman for a moment. "This unit is permanently inactive. Electric shock overloaded critical systems. It's little more than a pile of scrap now."

Mercury scanned it with her computer. "Maybe there's a way to trace it back to its origin point."

Charlotte shook her head. "Not likely. Cybermen are very good at not leaving a trail back to their factories. It's why they're so hard to get rid of."

Mercury frowned as she regarded her computer's readout. "Char is right. This Cyberman isn't giving off or receiving any signals. I don't think I could trace it back either."

At the whoop of sirens, the scouts and Charlotte made a quick exit. Only Venus stayed behind. She de-transformed and went looking for William.

He was out in the lobby, talking to a police officer, as were the many others. William glanced over as she approached. Without hesitation, he flung himself at her and pulled her into a tight hug. "I thought I lost you," he murmured.

She let him hold her, but she felt slightly distant from him. Why did they ignore you? she wondered.

She didn't know much about this new enemy except they were willing to kill, they didn't go down easily and somehow the black trucks were involved.

And, it seemed, William might be involved.