~Mamoru~
Outside, the night sky had covered the whole city. Mamoru hated waking up from his nap seeing how much time had passed. He hadn't intended to rest this long but doing 2 night shifts in a row had taken a heavy toll on his body.
Maybe it was a good thing he had to work long hours after seeing Ken. Otherwise, his mind would have been preoccupied too much with Kunzite doppelgänger. Taking his mind off this matter for a day and a half gave him the distance he needed.
He took a shower, letting the hot, steaming water washed away his fatigue. He needed a fresh mind to handle this situation.
He got out of the shower, some water still dripping from his hair.
Finally, Mamoru took out the small box from his desk drawer. He sat cross-legged on the floor next to his bed. He closed his eyes, concentrating. A few minutes later, nothing happened even though he was sweating already. He felt a surge of panic coursing. He shook his head, trying to squeeze any doubts out of his mind. He continued concentrating for a few more minutes. Finally, the four spirits manifested.
Master." The four generals knelt down.
Mamoru nodded to his shitennou, beads of sweats noticeable on his forehead. Tiredness washed over him.
"Master, you looked in distress," Kunzite said as he stood up. The other three shintennou followed suit.
Mamoru shook his head. "Nothing's wrong, but it took more energy to summon you guys than usual. I must be too tired from yesterday's shift," Mamoru said, rubbing his temples.
"But Master, you've been studying and working hard all these times. You've never had problems summoning us," Zoicite said.
"Maybe my power is weakening," Mamoru said, his face grim.
"Not fighting every day has a negative effect too, it seems." Mamoru plastered a smile. Being a warrior meant being ready to fight at any time. He should have kept up his training, at least to keep maintaining his power and stamina.
The four shitennou took an awkward look at one another. Finally, Kunzite spoke up. "Perhaps it's not your power weakening. It might be us."
Mamoru furrowed his brows. "What do you mean?"
"Lately, we have been feeling like we are losing ourselves."
"Losing yourselves?" Mamoru tilted his head, eyes fixed at his generals.
Kunzite nodded. The other three remained quiet. Nephrite crossed his arms. Jadeite looked down at the ground, seemingly lost in his thoughts. Zoicite had one arm across his chest, his chin resting on the other hand.
"All of you are spirits. How could you lose yourselves?"
"This is difficult to explain, but I will try my best." Nephrite stepped forward.
"I feel something is missing. Something deep inside me is missing," he continued.
"This is something new. We've never felt this way before." Zoicite stepped forward to explain as well.
"We feel we're being pulled away, bit by bit," Jadeite chimed in.
"Do you think it relates to the guys the senshi met last week?" Mamoru asked.
"We do not know," Kunzite answered, but his eyes said otherwise.
Mamoru touched his chin, locked in thinking mode, contemplating whether to tell Kunzite about his encounter with Ken.
"I saw Ken yesterday." Mamoru eyes' look straight at Kunzite, who remained stoic as was his nature.
"He seems harmless. I sensed no evil vibe from him. I'm inclined to think him harmless."
Kunzite looked down for a moment. Then he looked up to face Mamoru.
"Yesterday I was in a sword fight."
Mamoru furrowed his brows and narrowed his eyes. "I didn't summon you yesterday. How could you be in a fight?"
"Not a real fight. But I felt myself engaging in one, wielding the sword like I used to. It felt similar to dreaming, yet somehow felt real."
Mamoru sighed, starting to recognize a connection. "Ken was in a fencing competition yesterday."
All four generals swiftly turned to look at their master.
"Yesterday?" Kunzite asked, still keeping his voice calm.
Mamoru nodded. "Minako and I went to see him compete." Mamoru locked eyes with his head shitennou. "He looked like you. Moved like you. Fought like you."
Kunzite took a deep breath and let out a long sigh.
"There's a connection there." Nephrite touched his chin, lowering his gaze to the ground. His thinking mode looked so much like his master's that other shitennou teased them sometimes.
"I felt Mercury's presence this afternoon," Zoicite chimed in.
Mamoru raised his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"
"Well." The graceful general paused. "I felt a strong bond between Mercury and me. Her presence filled my mind. It was like I was spending time with her."
Everybody fixed their gazes at him, leaning in eager to hear more.
"It was blurry. I couldn't even see her clearly, but I felt it. I felt it was her." He turned to gaze out the window.
"They are connected to us somehow. Could these guys be us?" Jadeite said.
"That sounds so crazy. How could it be possible?" Zoicite said.
"I think Jadeite might have a point," Nephrite said.
"Think about it. When Metallia killed us, our bodies just vanished. Yet our spirits still talked to the senshi. Then after the battle, we were back here in the stones. Where were our bodies?" Nephrite said.
"Maybe these guys were us reincarnated. Like Master, the princess, and the senshi. But because our spirits were trapped here, only parts of us were reincarnated?" Jadeite said.
"That sounds far-fetched, but not impossible," Mamoru said.
"You think that makes more sense than enemies disguising as us?" Zoicite asked.
"If you all felt connections with these guys and what they did, then yes," Mamoru said.
"Energy does not vanish, but it doesn't have to be together. Maybe a part of your energies got trapped here. Other parts were not," Mamoru continued.
"What are we going to do? We need to dig deeper into this," Jadeite said.
"There's nothing to do," Kunzite said, shaking his head.
"I think you meant there's nothing we can do," Zoicite said, his face bitter.
"How are the senshi?" Kunzite asked his Master.
"I think they are still figuring out things, both about your spirits and the new guys," Mamoru said.
"This is so weird," Jadeite said.
"Thank you, Jadeite. That is such a helpful comment," Zoicite said, glaring at the younger shitennou. Jadeite rolled his eyes.
"Stop bickering, you two," Nephrite yelled.
Mamoru shook his head. Even when discussing such a heavy issue, they managed to bicker. He couldn't help but chuckle.
"I'm glad you find this funny, Master." Zoicite crossed his arms.
"I miss hanging out with you guys." He looked at them.
"Us too." Kunzite nodded and smiled. The head shitennou was like a big brother to Mamoru. He felt protected being in Kunzite's presence.
"Neph, are you ok?" Mamoru said, noticing Nephrite lost in thoughts.
Nephrite turned to Mamoru. "Let me look at the stars," Nephrite said.
Mamoru knew what that meant. His third-in-command was a stargazer and could interpret prophecies from the stars.
"I can't let you out on the balcony. Might scare people," Mamoru said.
"They won't see me if you don't let them," Nephrite said.
"But the girls saw you."
"That's because you wanted them to."
Mamoru thought about it for a moment. "Ok." He nodded.
Everybody went silent while Nephrite was out on the balcony. More likely than not, his stargazing came out accurate. Zoicite would say, of course, that it was accurate because of its vagueness, but the rest of them took the stars' warning seriously. Nonetheless, sometimes warnings were not enough. Back in the Golden Kingdom, they received the warning about Metallia too. But only Endymion managed to escape her mind-control.
Nephrite floated back through the glass door.
"A big change is coming."
"Very helpful, Neph," Zoicite said, eyes rolling.
"He's not finished, you cynical, sarcastic jerk," Jadeite yelled.
"Shh, shut up boys," Kunzite said.
Nephrite remained quiet for a few seconds. "Reunited with the beloved. That's what the stars said."
They all looked at each other.
"That's it?" Jadeite asked.
Nephrite nodded.
"I'm sure it means our spirits will return to the intended bodies and be whole again." Jadeite said, looking hopeful. His eyes gleamed, even if it was just a hint.
"But those guys already have souls," Kunzite said.
"It's still possible," Zoicite said.
Mamoru was surprised that the brain of the group had finally dwelled on the possibility of their returns. Zoicite had been pessimistic and skeptic through this whole conversation.
"Souls or spirits are not something definite with a clearly defined border. One does not have to replace the other. One plus one could still be one," Zoicite said.
"That makes sense. Let's hope that's the case. I can't wait to be with Mars again," Jadeite said, looking optimistic.
"I hope so, too. You all deserve another chance," Mamoru said.
"Tell Mars to wait for me." Jadeite smiled and said to Mamoru.
He shook his head. "I will not tell them anything. This is merely speculation. I can't get their hopes up only to be let down again."
Jadeite looked disappointed, slumping his shoulders. But Mamoru knew his youngest general would not give up hope. Jadeite was usually the most optimistic of them all.
"If the stars want this to happen, it will," Nephrite said.
—
~Sailor Pluto~
Small Lady said, "Wow! They got it right."
Sailor Pluto's gaze fixed at the event unfolding before them. She nodded and smiled. "Indeed, they did."
"Who would have thought uncle Jadeite would be the one who figured it out? He's not the smartest," Small Lady said, a playful smile on her face.
Pluto smiled, "He's cleverer than he lets on. And that was not a nice thing to say, small lady." The senshi of time sent a stern, but motherly warning to the young princess.
Small lady made herself small and said, "Sorry." This child always had a way to get others to forgive her.
Small Lady kept her eyes on the scene in front of her. One hand pointing at the scene of her father's past self and his generals. "Can't we just go and tell them? I can't wait to have cousins to play with."
"You know very well we cannot tamper with the past," Pluto said even though they did that several times, but if the situation were not gravely enough, she would not let anyone affect the past events. Even herself.
"But things will work out. Right, Pluto? They will get their happy endings, right?" Small Lady asked.
Pluto waved her Garnet Rod, and the scene disappeared, leaving behind only the fog of time and space.
Pluto sighed. "They will have to decide that themselves."
—
AN: Another chapter done. I hope this clears things up a bit. Thank you for all your comments. It's helpful to know what I need to put in the story to help readers understand it. The story has been in my head for a long time, so everything is obvious to me. I really need someone to tell me when it gets confusing. Thank you again for your comments and reviews. I appreciate you all for bearing with me and continuing reading.