Enjoy :) Note: the use of the names Endymion/Mamoru are significant. Mamoru is always himself, whereas Endymion is the name given to the shadow of the prince created by Metallia's power.

Edited 22/07/2014 - Beyond this point, chapters without this prefix will not follow on chronologically.


"You are excused Endymion. Kunzite will show you to your room, but I expect you back here later this evening."

"Very well my Queen," he murmured, rising slowly and turning, leaving the room in step with Kunzite.

"What do you remember?" Kunzite asked quietly as he shut the door behind them.

"Bits and pieces," Mamoru frowned, "It's as though there are two forces in here," he pressed a hand to his chest, "Fighting for control."

"That is the power of Metallia combined with the power of your own crystal," Kunzite told him, "Warring for dominance. You are strong, and your crystal will triumph unless the opposing power is backed by a direct order from Beryl or Metallia." Mamoru felt his heart sink as he remembered the words Beryl had spoken to him as he knelt before her.

"You may not go out of your way to see or speak with Serenity unless I tell you to do so. You are in no way to communicate to her that you are under my control. If you see her, you must attack to kill on sight."

"It will not be easy," Kunzite sighed, "I only wish it were."

Mamoru looked at his feet, wishing more than anything that he had merely stood and left when he had first seen Kunzite, but instead his curiosity and trust of a man he barely remembered had brought him here.

"I'm sorry," Kunzite shrugged as they reached another door, "If I could have fought the control, I would have done so. We continue to resist where we can, however."

"It's not your fault," Mamoru shrugged.

"I will add my strength to yours, master." Kunzite bowed, "In the hope that one day we will be free once again."

"You don't expect to come out of this alive, do you?" Mamoru asked. Kunzite smiled wryly.

"We died thousands of years ago Prince. We are here now only through a quirk of Queen Serenity's power and that of Metallia. Death would be far preferable to our current existence."


"So nothing yet?" Usagi asked, somewhat deflated.

"Nothing huge anyway," Minako shrugged, "I found the remains of the dark kingdom – pretty shambolic if you ask me, and Katrina and I were able to sort that out pretty quick. If I'm honest I think that's probably what was causing the disturbance, so I'll contact Ami when we're done. And how come you didn't mention how cute Katrina and Allan were?" Minako winked, "They're such an adorable couple."

"Yeah," Usagi smiled, distracted for a moment, "I introduced them actually."

"Well as the sailor scout of love I fervently approve," Minako winked.

"Hey! You're not the only sailor scout of love, remember?"

"True, but I am the only sailor scout of love AND beauty! See you soon," and the communicator screen went dark. Usagi clicked it closed and yawned, her mouth opening so wide that she could barely cover her mouth with a single hand.

"Usagi," Luna said gently, "You're working too hard. Take the night off. If there's a youma fight then the others can handle it."

"But…"

"One night, Usagi. I insist." Usagi nodded, secretly grateful, and didn't even bother changing into her pyjamas before she climbed into bed, descending almost instantly into fitful sleep.


"Trust them to come back the night Moon's got permission to stay at home!" Rei shouted beating back the youma before it could reach Ami.

"I think it's called Murphy's law," Ami shouted before sending a stream of bubbles at it.

"This is no use," Rei shouted, "We need more power."

"Did I hear my name," Makoto grinned as she leapt onto the scene. "Supreme thunder!" she shouted and her attack charged through the bubbles already obscuring the square, leaving the youma nothing more than a charred pile of dust on the ground.

"Impressive," a lazy drawl came from behind them and the senshi whirled around to see Zoisite, clapping slowly. "Even without Moon and Venus you are quite the formidable team."

"And if I were you I'd remember that we've already whooped your ass," Rei shouted.

"And that was before I got here," Makoto cracked her knuckles.

"Princess Amalthea," another familiar voice made them jump as they spun to see who was approaching them from beyond the charred remains of the youma. "What a pleasant surprise."

"Tuxedo Mask?" Makoto asked, frowning.

"That name is behind me," he snapped as he emerged from the shadows, revealing the uniform he had worn in the past life, "I am Endymion now."

"Whatever," Rei waived the comment aside, "Are you going to help us kick shitennou butt or not?"

"Why would I do that?" he asked, his head tilted questioningly.

"Umm, because he's an evil little shit?" Makoto asked.

"Not what I remember," Endymion shrugged. He flicked his wrist and a rose appeared. It was not, however, the beautiful red that they were used to. This rose was black.

"What the hell is with you?" Rei shouted as he threw it straight at her, meaning she had to leap to the side in order to prevent herself being speared by the black electricity that crackled about the stem.

"I've finally come to my senses," he snarled, conjuring another rose.

"Not what it looks like from here," Makoto yelled, dodging the rose. "Supreme thunder!" she shouted, sending lightening back at Endymion, who jumped high into the air until he landed by Zoisite.

"So you've been brainwashed too?" Rei asked, "Just what we needed."

"Pass the message to Serenity," he called as he grabbed Zoisite's arm and pulled him away. There was a moment of stunned silence before Rei finally spoke. "Well I'm not gonna be the one who tells Usagi."


"You did very well master," Zoisite nodded as Mamoru let go of his arm.

"It was surprisingly easy," he replied after a moment, subconsciously rubbing his chest, "I thought for a little while that I genuinely wanted to attack them."

"You must remember that there is something inside you that wants them dead. There will be times when that power takes control. When you see Serenity, Metallia's power will compel you to attack the way it compels me whenever I see Princess Minerve. Luckily for me, and my fellow shitennou, that power has lessened over time and we have some freedom over ourselves. You, however, will have none when that day comes." There was a moment of silence before he continued, "Nephrite is going to look for the holder of a rainbow crystal in a couple of days. Beryl wishes that you go with him."

"Lucky me," Mamoru replied dryly.

"Sailor Moon is Serenity, isn't she? You lied to Beryl yesterday."

"I did," Mamoru nodded stiffly."

"She will ask you, and you will have no choice but to answer."

"I will fight her," Mamoru began but Zoisite cut him off.

"Your father died under Metallia's control, remember?" he said, "He had the golden crystal. You do not. If Metallia could defeat him then it is unlikely that anything other than the silver crystal itself could overcome her strength."

"Then all our hopes lie with Serenity," Mamoru sighed, wishing he could do more to help her.


"Psst, Usagi. Wake up sleepyhead."

"What is it?" Usagi jerked upright and stared at Minako, "is there an attack? Why are you back early? What-"

"Usagi, calm down," Minako said, "I needed to talk with you."

"Is that why you're back early?"

"Yeah, I suppose so."

"Well?"

"I've literally just got back," Minako said, and Usagi nodded, noting the bags under her eyes, "But this needed to be said."

"What is it?"

"We found Mamoru."

"You did? Where-"

"Usagi, it wasn't me who found him," Minako butted in, "it was the others. They asked me to tell you as I've known you the longest, but… Selene I don't know how to say this…"

"He can't be dead," Usagi said, her voice flat, "I'd have felt it."

"He's not dead," Minako sighed, "but he's… he's fighting alongside the Shitennou."

"No he's not," Usagi said frowning, "Don't be stupid."

"Usagi, he attacked Rei, Ami and Makoto. They said his roses had turned black."

"He wouldn't turn against me," Usagi said stubbornly, "Anymore than I could ever turn against him."

"You've fallen in love with him again, haven't you?" Minako asked tentatively.

"No!" she protested. Minako's eyebrows rose and Usagi sighed. I guess... I guess it just took me so long to come to terms with it. Now that he's gone, I know that there's nothing I want more than just to see his face." Usagi looked away and Minako guessed she was hiding tears. She hadn't seen Usagi cry in a long time – not since she came back from England two years ago for certain.

"Usagi," Minako found her own eyes were damp as she drew her friend into her arms, "We're all here for you, no matter what happens. Right?"

"Always," Usagi sniffed, but even as she spoke she saw flashes of that day upon the moon. Almost as if she knew what Usagi was thinking about, Minako hugged her even harder, trying to convey as much reassurance as she could muster. Unfortunately reassurance was something Minako was a little lacking in at the moment, worried as she was about the confrontation with Kunzite that was bound to come soon.


"So who is the crystal holder?" Mamoru asked.

"I believe the indigo crystal is held by the old man running the Hikawa temple in Tokyo." Mamoru's eyes widened.

"Hikawa?" he asked, "Definitely Hikawa?"

"Yes – why?"

"Just been there a few times," Mamoru said nonchalantly.

"Sailor Mars first appeared by the shrine," Nephrite continued, "So we'd best keep a look out for the senshi."

"And hope they don't come?"

"Not this time," Nephrite said regretfully. "As I've been ordered by Beryl to find these crystals I have to extract it from the old man. Doing so will transform him into a primal form that could easily lead to the deaths of many innocents."

"Let me guess: Sailor Moon is the only one who can heal him."

"Wrong," Nephrite nodded, "Serenity is. To return him to himself the moon wand would be required." Mamoru's mind flicked back to the wand Usagi had removed from the sub space dimension and prayed to Selene that she still had it.

"Well then let's go," he sighed, "Get this over with."

"Indeed," nephrite nodded in agreement. Mamoru was still not comfortable with the power granted to him by Metallia, but he had to admit that being able to teleport across the world in an instant was useful. They appeared in the courtyard of the shrine and Mamoru felt his heart sink as he saw the blond head peeping over the edge of Rei's windowsill. Even without the odango she had worn her hair in for years it was clearly Usagi. He felt something stir inside his chest, something dark that seemed to creep through his veins. His breathing became fast and panicked, black lightening crackled across his skin and Nephrite's eyes widened as he realised what was happening.

"This is Metallia's power, master," he said quickly. "You are best to give into it; it won't last so long if you try and keep the strength of your crystal as high as you can before it gains control."

He screamed as the power seemed to pierce his heart and he fell to the ground, his fists clenched as he continued to fight for control, desperately urging on a crystal that he knew was nowhere near powerful enough to fight the darkness. The door before him burst open and five girls spilled out into the courtyard. "Shit," he heard Rei swear as she spotted him in his uniform. "Mars power!"

"Jupiter power!"

"Venus power!"

"Mercury power!"

"Make up!" the four of them transformed together, but Usagi merely stood and stared, seemingly transfixed by his very presence.

"Mamoru?" she asked, her eyes widening as they traveled over his uniform, "Endymion?"

He simply snarled in response, summoning a rose into his hands and throwing it at her in one swift motion.

"Fire soul!" Rei's fire met the rose and deflected it, causing it to bury itself into the shrine wall. Usagi's eyes shone as she stood rooted to the spot.

"You take care of this," Nephrite shrugged, "I'll go and get the crystal."

Inside his head Mamoru was screaming for release, forced to watch as the power possessing him continued to attack the senshi. Last time at least he had been in control of himself, able to limit the power he actually put into his attacks but not this time. The rose flung at Usagi was as powerful as any he had ever thrown as Tuxedo Mask and had Rei not deflected it the thing would have caused immense damage. He struggled for control as the battle began in earnest, watching as Minako stood directly in front of Usagi, deflecting all attacks that came her way. Still the power controlling him aimed all the strength it had at the princess. Mamoru had never been more thankful that the scouts were good at their job.

"Shabon spray!" As Mercury shouted mist filled the air, obscuring Mamoru's vision. He thanked whatever god there was that he didn't wear the mask as Endymion. As the fog blocked his view of Usagi, he felt the power recede into his chest, felt strength and control flowing through him. The moment he felt strong enough to do so he turned and ran, reaching Nephrite just as he took the indigo crystal from the man's chest.

"Go," Nephrite said as soon as he saw him, "I'll take care of this." Mamoru nodded and vanished. Nephrite pocketed the crystal as the scouts, except Venus and Moon, ran into the room.

"Where did he go?" Makoto shouted, blood trickling past her eye from a deep cut from one of Endymion's roses.

"How should I know," Nephrite shrugged, turning to face her. The blank shock on her face was soon replaced by a look of loathing and anger. He resisted as the power within him itched to bring all the might of the stars down upon her head, using all his concentration just to keep his hands still. He heard a low moan from behind him and knew that the old man was stirring. He saw something flicker in Sailor Mars' eyes and guessed that she had only just stopped herself running towards the old man; clearly she knew him. He had the crystal and the senshi had found the old man. Whatever happened next, he had done as Beryl had asked as well as give the man a way to survive. He blinked and was gone.

"Grandpa," Rei sobbed as she fell to the ground beside him, pulling her glove off and pressing her hand to his forehead. "He's burning up," she said.

"Rei move away from him," Ami said sharply.

"But…"

"Rei, just do it." Rei scrambled to her feet and stepped back just in time. A flash of indigo light filled the room and before them stood not her grandpa but a youma, small and monkey like with thick, muscular arms. It roared and began to charge at Jupiter.

"Don't attack him!" Rei shouted, "He's all I've got."

"Get Usagi, quickly," Ami said, "The silver crystal may be able to reverse what's happened to him." She sent out bubbles to confuse the youma while Makoto ran outside and came back with Minako and Usagi who was already transformed, the moon sceptre in her hand. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, ready before the bubbles had completely gone.

"Moon healing escalation!" she shouted, spinning the staff before her and then stopping it very suddenly with the golden moon aimed at the youma. White light blasted from the crystal, filling the chamber with a pure, cold light. There was a scream as the light faded, but once it had gone the youma had also vanished, replaced with the unconscious form of Rei's grandfather.

They each let their fukus fade to their normal clothes as they moved him through into his room. "He should be fine," Ami informed Rei, "his energy levels are just severely depleted."

"Thank goodness," Rei sighed in relief, "What the hell did Nephrite do to him anyway?"

"I'll be honest I don't know," Ami frowned, "I'll head to the arcade and do some research on it. We need to know if they can do this to just anybody."

"Well we definitely have to be careful when fighting youma in the near future," Usagi pointed out, "In case they're actually human."

"Are you alright Usagi?" Minako asked gently.

"I'm fine," Usagi snapped, "why wouldn't I be?"

"If I'm honest I can think of a few reasons," Makoto called from the bathroom, where she was stood by the mirror dabbing at her forehead with a cloth.

"Really, I'll be fine," Usagi smiled a little, "Anyway I've got to be off. I need to talk with Motoki," and she hurried from the room.

"You know," Minako said after a minute, "I used to think she was a good liar."


"Hey Usagi," Motoki smiled as she pushed open the door to the arcade. He looked at her concern flashed across his face, "What's wrong?"

"Toki can I speak to you in private?"

"If you wait five minutes for Unazuki to actually show up then yeah," he smiled at her. She settled down at the end of the bar and refused a shake. She didn't think she could take any sort of food or drink right then.

Unazuki finally arrived about ten minutes later and was handed an apron by Motoki before he lead Usagi through into the back room. "So what is it?" he said, smiling.

"Toki," she bit her lip, "This is going to be really hard to say and I bet it's kinda hard for you to hear, but…"

"You're breaking up with me, aren't you?" he asked sadly. Usagi looked down at her feet and nodded.

"Well I'd be lying if I said I hadn't seen it coming," he sighed, "Who is he?"

"What?"

"The other guy. I'm not stupid Usagi."

"It's really complicated Toki."

"I've got the time," he shrugged.

"Really, really complicated."

"I think, if I'm honest, I guessed a long time ago."

"You what?" Usagi frowned, suddenly taken aback.

"I… I guess I just didn't want to believe it," he said, his shoulders slumping. He took a deep breath and then looked into her eyes, "You're Sailor Moon."

"How did you guess?"

"Little things," he shrugged, "You kept disappearing very suddenly. You've changed a lot since she started appearing in Tokyo and you came back from London about the time she disappeared."

"Oh. There's actually more to it than that," she swallowed, a lump hanging painfully in her throat. "I always thought you were the one for me, but two years ago when I first found out I was Sailor moon, I got a lot of new memories with my powers. I remembered my past life."

"Past life?"

"I was Princess Serenity of the moon kingdom," she said, her bearing changing very slightly as she said the title, her posture becoming straighter, more regal.

"What happened in this past life then?"

"I died," she looked down again, "Committed suicide, actually. There was a battle on the moon and Prince Endymion as well as the senshi were killed." Her eyes filled with tears once more, but these were tears she had promised herself when she saw the memories that she would never shed.

"So who are the others?"

"I'd need to talk to them before I told you," Usagi said, shaking her head.

"Right, that seems fair." He paused for a moment, "You said you committed suicide before…"

"Yeah,"

"You're not going to do that again are you?"

"What? No!" Usagi said quickly, "I've changed a lot well, not changed I suppose. Grown, I think. Being Sailor Moon has taught me a lot about myself and I know I'm stronger than that now. And anyway, I still have my friends in this lifetime."

"Who is he then, this prince? Has he been reborn?"

"That's just it," Usagi bit back a sob, "He was reborn and I kept telling myself that I didn't have to love him just because Serenity did in the past, but then I found him and he was just like he was in all my memories."

"Then I hope the two of you are happy," Motoki said honestly, "I was never going to compete with that."

"That's just it though," Usagi whispered, "He doesn't want me anymore. He's fighting for them…"

"Them?"

"The ones who killed him in our past life," she sniffed.

"Tell me who he is and I'll beat the shit out of him," Motoki snarled.

"I don't think you could," Usagi giggled a little, "Mak... I mean Sailor Jupiter wants to do it herself."

"She'd probably do a better job than me anyway," Motoki shrugged.

"It wouldn't surprise me," Usagi smiled a little.

"See, there's the Usagi I know," Motoki grinned at her.

"So we're fine then?"

"Yeah, we're fine. If I'm honest I saw this coming a while ago."

"I guess I did too."

"I'll just do the manly thing and give Mamoru a bell so that we can go and get drunk or something." Usagi visibly stiffened as Motoki spoke his name, her eyes widening and her knuckles going stark white.

"Usagi, what's wrong?"

"Mamoru," she said looking down at her feet, "He won't be in when you call."

"Oh God I'm sorry," his hand flew to his mouth, "He got taken by the dark generals didn't he?" Motoki ran a hand through his hair, wishing he just hadn't said anything.

"Not quite," she sobbed, biting her lips, "He is Prince Endymion," she turned and ran from the room, out through the arcade leaving Motoki stunned and immobile, his hand half raised as though to comfort her.


"We need to do something about Usagi," Minako said decisively as she looked moodily down at the plate of biscuits Rei's granddad had just brought in, "To make sure there isn't a repeat of the past life."

"I reckon the best thing we can do is not die," Rei shrugged, "Maybe she wouldn't have killed herself if one of us had still been alive."

"Or at least not dying at the time," Minako agreed.

"So what can we do?" Makoto asked, "I mean we're none of us planning on going out of our way to die – I'd hope not anyway," she shuddered.

"I think the main thing we can do is to keep Usagi out of the line of fire. Did you notice that Endymion didn't ever attack us, he only ever tried to reach Usagi?"

"I did," Rei nodded in reply, "And that actually just makes me curious."

"Have you tried asking for help from the fire yet?"

"No I just thought I'd leave my biggest asset in gaining information standing in the corner. Of course I have, again and again," she sighed, rubbing her eyes with the heel of her palm.

"Perhaps we should try it with some extra energy," Ami suggested after a moment, "Remember in the past life when we fought an enemy that was particularly vulnerable to one of our elements we'd send energy through to them?"

"You think that might work here as well?" Minako asked, looking up very suddenly, her eyes bright with interest.

"It's certainly worth a try," she shrugged.

"I think it's fantastic," Makoto said firmly, nodding. "Where's your granddad likely to be at the moment?" she asked Rei.

"No idea, but he won't enter the fire room if I'm praying. He never does."

"Well then let's go do it now," Minako enthused, "The more information we can get the better." They stood, leaving the biscuits untouched, and moved through into the fire room. Instead of donning her miko robes as usual, once the door was closed Rei and the others transformed, knowing that the extra power their henshin afforded them could only be a benefit in this situation. As Rei knelt before the fire, the others removed the gloves they wore and knelt beside her. One by one they placed a hand upon the bare skin of Rei's arm and began to channel their energy through into her.

Visions began to flash before Rei's eyes, images of dark and damp tunnels. She saw two faces she knew very well both from the past and the present and she heard their conversations clear as a bell. As she listened, a name was spoken and it was a name that was so familiar, so heartbreakingly familiar, that she screamed and broke the connection.

"What is it?" Minako asked, holding Rei carefully as she shivered despite the warmth of the fire. Her henshin had faded so those around her let theirs fall, watching her closely for any sign of movement. Finally she blinked and carefully sat up.

"It's as we suspected," she said at last, "Beryl is back and Metallia is behind her."

"Shit," Minako said.

"I saw Mamoru," Rei shook her head to try and clear it, "and Kunzite. They were talking about Metallia's powers. I think she's possessing them. From what Mamoru was saying every time he sees Usagi the power will control him."

"Is it the same with the others?" Makoto asked hesitantly. Rei nodded.

"And Jadeite… he's already worse than dead," she choked, "eternal sleep." Hands flew to mouths as the full realisation of their situation came to them. This was going to be a lot harder than they had thought.