BIRTHRIGHT
Chapter 11: "What Makes A Monster"
A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

In the Crystal Palace Crisis Monitor Room, Artemis, Diana and Luna coordinated reports from all over the city, from robot monitor drones, from CDP units, civilian reports and reports from Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. The two outer senshi were trailing Av'Rith, trying to keep her whereabouts known and trying to keep her from harming anyone else in the city. The civilian death toll was seventeen people from the Promenade, people who got too close and had their very life energies absorbed.

"What is the creature's current status?" Luna radioed while Artemis studied telemetry reports and Diana monitored incoming communications.

"She's still westbound headed out of the city," Sailor Neptune reported. "It's obvious she's trying to avoid all populated areas and CDP has done an excellent job evacuating ahead of her path."

"Yeah, but tell them to stop firing on her," Uranus broke in. "All they're doing is feeding her!"

"Then the report Sailor Juno gave us is accurate?" Diana asked, turning from the operators at the communications bank.

"Yeah, it's pretty obvious now," Artemis responded. "Any energy seems to store in her body and deform her just a little more. She's registering at thirteen and a half feet tall now and her body weight is nearly four hundred pounds. And the more she grows, the larger her field of influence grows. When the senshi first confronted her, she was drawing in every erg of energy within six feet of her. I calculate it's up to seven now."

"Surely there has to be a limit to her growth?" Luna countered.

"Who knows?" Artemis replied. "Obviously the Tevrii never let one get big enough to consume the planet, but theoretically her absorption rate could start growing exponentially. If that happens, she could eventually become a black hole and consume the planet - - possibly the galaxy."

Luna and Diana stared at the white cat with shock and horror.

"Copy that," they heard Neptune say over her communicator. "We'll try to do something at our end."


"Do you suppose the Princess is all right?" Sailor Pallas asked. She, Sailor Juno and Sailor Ceres were walking down a corridor on the way to the infirmary. An unspoken fear had until now stilled their tongues since leaving the Crisis Monitor Room. Now Pallas had given voice to the fear and it gave them strength, if only to reassure her.

"You know how hard it is to keep a secret in this place," Ceres said. "If something had happened, the staff would be a lot more down than they are now."

"Yeah," Juno nodded. "But we can't worry about that. We have to collect Saturn and get back out after Av'Rith."

"What good is that going to do? We're not exactly the biggest guns," Ceres sighed. "This looks like something the King or Queen is going to have to handle."

"But I doubt they're going to leave Sailor Moon's side until she's all right," Juno argued. "So the duty falls to us."

"Pallas is sure Miss Av'Rith-Ma'am would stop if she could," Pallas murmured in a child-like voice.

"You know, I was thinking," Ceres began. "Maybe I could put her to sleep with a plant attack."

"Won't the plants just wither and die?" Juno asked.

"That's the point. If I can surround her with henbane plants, when they wither they'll turn to dust with a good gust of wind. And if enough dust particles get on Av'Rith's skin, they can be absorbed and knock her out. Or I could combine the henbane plants with opium poppies to give it a bigger kick."

"It's worth a shot. Nothing else has worked. But what do we do with her when she's asleep?"

"I don't know," Ceres replied with distaste. "Pallas drops a slab of marble on her?"

Pallas looked at her, horrified.

"I know, Pallas," Ceres said. "But unless Mizuno-Sensei has come up with a cure, we might have to do it. I want to save Av'Rith, too, but it may come down to her or us!"

The trio entered the infirmary. Saturn and Dr. Mizuno were watching Serenity use the Silver Crystal to boost Sailor Moon's life energy while Endymion used the Golden Crystal to keep her life functions intact. Rei was still hovering, but the other elders were gone.

"How is she?" Juno asked. Saturn seemed to acknowledge her presence for the first time.

"Better," Saturn answered, but timidly, as if she feared to jinx the progress.

"Then we need to go," Juno advised her. Saturn looked at Juno in shock. "Av'Rith is still out there. We have to try to stop her." Saturn was about to protest, but Ami intervened.

"She's right, Saturn," Ami told her. "You have a duty. And Sailor Moon is nearly out of danger. Go ahead. Just - - be careful."

"Yes, Ma'am," Saturn said, looking down. She and the three Asteroids left. But she paused at the door for a last look at her friend.


Usa opened her eyes - - at least she thought she must have, because she was conscious and seeing something. It was Helios, looking down into her face with such concern. He was so dear to her and all she ever seemed to do was worry him.

But why was he tinted in gold?"

"Helios?" she thought she said.

"Maiden," Helios replied insistently. "You had me quite concerned."

"Sorry about that. I thought I could help Av'Rith. But all I can remember is getting close to her." Usa scowled. "Why are you gold?"

Helios smiled. "The effects of your father's crystal, Maiden. Do you not notice our surroundings?" Usa looked around. They were surrounded in a sea of silver light.

"Is that Mom?" she asked. "Am I dreaming?"

"You are semi-conscious, Maiden," Helios informed her. "Since I share your form when you are Sailor Moon, I am here inside you."

"Were we hurt bad?" Usa asked.

"Quite badly. Your mother and father have brought us back from the brink."

"And I was so sure," Usa thought forlornly.

"Av'Rith did not strike us down intentionally," Helios assured her. Suddenly Usa became quite animated.

"We have to help her!" the girl exclaimed. "Av'Rith!"

And she was awake. Both her parents pulled back in surprise, their crystals out and glowing. Rei looked up in shock. Ami turned from studying her vital signs monitor. Sailor Moon realized that she must have said Av'Rith's name out loud.

"Oh Honey, you're awake!" Serenity cried and hugged her little girl. Endymion contented himself with holding her hand.

"Sorry I worried you folks," Sailor Moon whispered. "Boy, I seem to say that a lot, don't I?"

"Right now, I don't care! I'm just so glad to hear you say anything!" Serenity whimpered.

"Did anybody else get hurt?" Sailor Moon asked anxiously.

"No," Endymion assured her.

"And Av'Rith?" She didn't need an answer. Sailor Moon could tell by the way her father's face fell. "I've got to get to her before it's too late!"

"Hold on," Endymion said, rising up to press his daughter back into the bed. "You're not going anywhere."

"But Pop!" Sailor Moon protested.

"Endymion is right, Sailor Moon," Ami advised. "You're far too weak to be getting up just yet. And in this condition, you won't be any kind of aid to your team."

Sailor Moon flopped back onto the bed in frustration. "But Av'Rith needs help! If she keeps going like this . . .!"

"We'll go," Serenity told her. "You've done all you can for her, Honey."

"Please don't kill her!" Sailor Moon gasped.

"Of course not," Serenity smiled at her. "There's always another way besides killing." Then she turned back into Sailor Moon's mother. "Now PLEASE get some rest."

Sailor Moon sighed loudly, but didn't argue any further. Serenity extended her hand to Endymion. He took it and together they levitated toward the ceiling of the room and through it. Ami turned from watching them back to her patient. With a shaky hand, Sailor Moon had engaged a holographic computer window. Rei was downloading a vid-stream of coverage of the crisis for her. For a moment, Ami considered turning it off.

"No," the doctor thought to herself. "She needs to be involved. Let her be involved this way."


Av'Rith shambled along a residential path, her trail of dead plants and animals clear for anyone to see. Ahead of her were Civil Defense and Protection officers, evacuating the general path ahead of her. Pacing her on either side at a safe distance were two senshi she recalled didn't trust her. They had attacked her earlier, but for now were content merely to observe her.

The alien girl had grown to fourteen feet now. Her shoulders were four feet across and her muscles and upper torso bulged so much that breathing was difficult and moving her arms was limited. Her legs were similarly massive and bloated. They were difficult to lift high enough to walk. But she pressed onward. The girl didn't know where she was going. Her mission was to get out of the city, away from the living creatures on this planet so she didn't hurt anything else. But it seemed like the farther she went, the denser the population was. If only she could ask someone like her friend, Princess Usa.

But Princess Usa, she feared, was dead - - dead at her hand. Av'Rith wanted to get sick at the very thought of seeing the being on this world who had done the most to befriend her collapse before her eyes. Av'Rith knew she was responsible. She'd felt the rush of energy nourishing her monstrous form as her friend collapsed.

If only she'd never ran from the cruiser. If only she had let them kill her and cast her into the sun.

The sound of an air car caught her attention. As she turned, she saw it caught the attention of her two senshi pursuers as well. They looked and saw more senshi disembark the vehicle. It was Princess Usa's friends, Pallas and Ceres and Juno, and Friend Hotaru, too. The alien girl felt her spirits lift a little. Friend Hotaru was all right. Maybe there was a chance Princess Usa was all right, too.

"Not too close, girls!" Neptune warned. She was south of Av'Rith, while Uranus bracketed her to the north.

"Av'Rith!" Saturn called out. "Please stop!"

Av'Rith tried to shake her head. She wasn't intentionally hurting people.

"I know you're trying to get away!" Saturn continued. "You're trying to get away from everyone so you can't hurt them!"

She did understand.

"It won't work," Saturn told her, water welling in her eyes. "You can't run from what you are, and there's no place in the world that's totally devoid of life. Please let us try to help you."

"Juno," Ceres whispered as the Asteroids looked on from behind Saturn. "Did she just get bigger?"

"Yeah," Juno whispered back. "She must be absorbing sun light, thermal energy from the ground, kinetic energy from the air flowing around her. And judging by her path, her area of drain has grown, too."

"The bigger she gets, the more she absorbs," Ceres summarized. "And the more she absorbs, the bigger she gets."

"Huutahroo," Av'Rith croaked out. "Huuuurrrrts! Neeed tuh feeeeed! Caaan nooottt sstoppppp!"

"We'll find a way to help you, Av'Rith!" Saturn cried.

"Boooodyyyy huuuuurrrrts," Av'Rith wailed, "buuuuutt caaan nooottt sstoppppp!"

Saturn stared for a moment. Uranus and Neptune studied her, trying to read what she planned. Then the slight senshi lunged forward, her glaive rotating in her hand in a single fluid motion until it was pointed directly forward. Av'Rith retreated a shuffling step, but Saturn's lunge sent the blade of the glaive into the powdered and broken pavement several feet in front of the alien girl.

"AZRAEL'S SLUMBER!" Saturn shouted, though it clearly upset her to do so.

Av'Rith began to shake. Her bloated head lolled back on her shoulders as far as it would go. Saturn's glaive blade began to glow. Av'Rith continued to shake, and as she shook, she seemed to contract. It was subtle at first, but the longer Saturn held her glaive to the ground, the more noticeable it became. The swelling of her face and limbs began to go down. Her distorted skeletal structure didn't change, but the muscles on her frame and the pustules on her skin shrank noticeably.

"Juno, she's doing it!" Pallas exclaimed happily.

"Yeah, but look at the strain it's putting on her," Juno said.

Saturn's arms were shaking now as well. Stress lines were forming around her eyes and mouth. Her white teeth clenched together and her brows clamped down on the top of her violet eyes. The blade of her glaive was bright yellow with absorbed energy and was shifting to white. Av'Rith continued to convulse helplessly before the glaive. She was down to one hundred and ninety pounds now and her limbs, though still deformed, were returning to a humanoid shape.

"Saturn!" Uranus cried out, her eyes wide and dripping with alarm. "Don't push yourself!"

But Saturn refused to back down. Summoning a strength not readily evident if one looked at her frail form, Saturn stood her ground and continued to siphon off the massive energy reserve Av'Rith had stored up. Her glaive blade was an intense white now, so intense that it was hard to observe. Even the handle was beginning to turn color. Though it must have been incredibly painful for her, Saturn kept her grip on the glaive and kept it buried in the ground.

Unable to contain herself any longer, Uranus lunged for Sailor Saturn. But Neptune managed to intercept her before she could reach the slender senshi. Uranus turned and looked at her mate, silently demanding an explanation.

"Let her go, Uranus," Neptune told her. "She's our best hope of stopping this alien right now. Just be ready," Neptune added, giving Uranus a particular look, "when the time is right."

Uranus hesitated, but realized that Neptune was right as usual. Grimly she nodded.

By now Av'Rith's appearance was that of an elongated bag of skin draped on bones. When Saturn positively couldn't take anymore, she wrenched the glaive out of the broken pavement and pointed it toward the sky. Energy discharged in all directions, bathing the area in a bright white light. Av'Rith collapsed in a heap onto the pavement.

"She did it!" Pallas cheered. Ceres moved to Saturn, ready to help in case her fellow senshi was overcome by her efforts.

Meanwhile, Uranus separated herself from Neptune and, Space Sword still in hand, began edging closer to the fallen Av'Rith.

"You OK?" Ceres asked, her hands bracing Saturn's upper arms as the senshi finally expelled all of the siphoned energy. Saturn was bent over, panting, propped up on her glaive.

"Yes," Saturn nodded. She glanced for her foster parents. That's when she saw it. Uranus had her Space Sword raised and was about to behead Av'Rith. "PAPA, DON'T!"

Uranus wheeled, startled. Saturn tore away from Ceres, avoided Neptune and dove at Uranus. She pressed up against Uranus, blocking the senshi from Av'Rith.

"Papa, please! You can't kill her!" Saturn begged.

"Yeah, she's not a threat anymore!" Ceres added.

"Isn't she?" Neptune asked. She pointed to Av'Rith. Already boils were forming again on her arms and face. "She hasn't been neutralized, only drained. She's still absorbing energy. We have to end it now, while her siphoning sphere is still small."

"But we can still try to save her!" Saturn protested. "Mama, this isn't the way! This isn't what Queen Serenity would do! We can't just execute poor Av'Rith! We have to try to save her! We have to stand for something!"

"Saturn," Neptune began, trying to be gentle and at the same time forceful.

"F-Friend Hotaru," gasped Av'Rith. Everyone turned to her. She was still laying on the ground, still weak. "Please - - do not stop them."

"Av'Rith?" Saturn gasped incredulously.

"It is best - - for all," Av'Rith wheezed out. "I thank you for all your help - - and friendship - - and I thank Princess Usa, too. But I no longer fear - - my destruction. Destruction is preferable - - to existing like this."

"But we can help you, Av'Rith!" Saturn protested.

"Do what none have done before?" Av'Rith choked out. "No. End this horror - - please - - while you can."

Before Saturn could protest further, Uranus took hold of her and moved her out of the way. She turned to Saturn.

"I'm sorry, Firefly," Uranus whispered. "It's gotta be this way."

Saturn turned away as Uranus raised her Space Sword.

Concluded in Chapter 12