Disclaimer: What's mine is mine, what isn't isn't

"A new chapter for the new year. Be happy."

"Spoken,"
'Thought'
"Telepathy"
# Memories or Dreams #

Usagi lifted her head and glanced towards the shore, treading water. They'd all decided that as long as they were out at the lake, they might as well go for a swim. A vicious water fight had ensued and the blonde girl had been in hot pursuit of Seiya after he had pretended to be a lake monster, pulling her underwater from below, that is, until something in the forest had caught her attention.
"Odango! Think fast!"
Usagi had no time to move as the dark haired boy soaked her with a huge splash and cracked up laughing at the sight of her. Usagi immediately forgot whatever it was that had concerned her and continued her furious chase of the laughing star.

Chapter 21: Past Life Quagmire

Feril looked up at the dark sky, having finally emerged from the labyrinth under the mountains. She stood in silence a long while, as if waiting for someone or something to call to her.
"Have you heard, Serenity?" she asked aloud after a while. "I thought, just maybe, I might be able to be with you, to stand by your side. I thought I'd finally be able to put to rest this demon eating at my heart, ever since that day and you would never have to question my loyalty, ever again."
Feril knew it was dangerous to speak aloud like this, especially to someone like Serenity. She just might be heard. But she didn't care. It hurt, horribly. To be denied once again. She hung her head, falling silent again.
And slowly, as if some great river was breaking through a dam, she began to laugh. Bitter, cruel laughter, self-deprecating and harsh.
"Do you hear me Serenity?!" she laughed. "I came so close, I could almost reach you! I could have stood by your side, protected you! It's coming back, don't think you can fool me, Sisters! I see the darkness, even without your divine threads leading my sight! I won't fail again!"
Feril sensed Serenity's presence shifting, searching for the being calling out to her, but she continued anyways.
"I knew the King would die! Do you remember Serenity? I tried so hard to save him the first time, I knew it would make you sad to lose him. I never wanted that. That was the first time I was allowed to comfort you, remember? Ever since that day, I knew! I knew the Moon Kingdom would fall! And I knew I would do anything to stop it, to protect you and the princess! But I failed, still. My brother, the Fates chose then to make him act against me, to let his hatred of me blind him and I fell….. I would have rather you had let Uranus kill me that day then fail you again Serenity. That's why I have to lie, I can't let you know, you'd never approve of what I was doing. I couldn't bear that! I have to use the same methods as our enemies, fight the dark with my own darkness!" Feril felt Serenity's mind near her's, focusing, listening. And she became aware of her situation, what she was saying as well as where she was.
'I can't let her find me!' she realized. Frantically, her mind flared out, scanning for the powers she knew.
'What are they doing? They should have been back by now…..' she noticed both Haruka and Michiru's presence were out of place and took in a quick check of what they were thinking. 'No, not yet my dears. That would jeopardize everything I've done. I need a distraction.' Serenity's mind was very close now, coming closer by the second. So Feril did the only thing she could think of, knowing she would regret it.

Haruka gasped as a pain shot down her spine and she doubled over against Kazi's neck in surprise. The pain receded, replaced by a churning unease in her gut. Something was wrong. The wind had changed, it felt almost like it carried something….. "sinister" with it.
Glancing over, she noticed Michiru seemed to have suffered a similar experience. They'd just started riding for the other edge of town to find a place to sleep for the night.
"The princess," the aqua-haired girl managed and Haruka nodded, understanding and being completely lost at the same time. All she knew was that she had to return to the school, to protect….. Usagi. Usagi was in danger. She didn't know how she knew, but the information was there. She needed to go back, to defend Usagi, the princess. It was her duty.
The pair wheeled their mounts around and took off in the opposite direction, heading back towards the school, back to the world they'd planned to leave behind, grim faces set in determination. Back to do their duty.

Setsuna glanced over at her Queen, noticing the frown now residing on the regal woman's face, a look of concentration on something outside the present conversation. The school heads had gathered to speak of transferring students among the schools and the like and asked Serenity to be present as well as Princess Thetis.
"Serenity-sama?"Setsuna asked, sending out her mind to the Queen so as not to alert the others gathered there of anything. After a moment, Serenity's eyes cleared of the far away look and she glanced over at the green haired woman that served her.
"I heard Feril. She was upset about something, but I could not find her in time to hear her exact words. I believe something has gone awry in her plans though, so it would be wise for us to be on guard….." The Queen answered in Setsuna's mind, her thoughts as hesitant as her words would have been, telling Setsuna that Serenity was hiding something from her, that perhaps she'd heard Feril's words better then she claimed. Setsuna's curiosity rose, but she knew it was not her place to pry. Catching sight of Kaori Night watching them, both fell silent, sure the woman was trying to "listen" in on their thoughts.
"I mean no offense, but I'm not sure I would want to risk any of my students to the Moon Kingdom, let alone this school." Elios StarRaven announced. "Despite the fact that the Moon Kingdom is the most peaceful nation I have ever known, it is still plagued with an unusual number of strange incidents and phenomenon, such as monster attacks and magical accidents. And I don't think it is wise for me to place my pupils in the way of such things. Were it not for this school's affinity for malady in these forms, I would still be hesitant….. after all, you have such a close connection to the herald of storms….."
"Your point, Headmaster?" Kaori asked, her eyes gleaming. "Feril-sama has proven a valuable ally to all of our schools at some point or another. Just because Serenity-sama seems to have wooed her into a closer service to the Moon Kingdom, I see no reason that would be anything but an incentive to want our apprentices here, where they might chance learning from her."
Queen Serenity remained unruffled by Kaori's obviously pointed remark, though Setsuna thought she registered a very slight and brief change in the Queen's demeanor.
"What I meant was, I do not want my students influenced by one who still has rather dubious relations to the Pit." Elios amended darkly. A silence fell on the room, thick and menacing.
"Am I to understand, Elios-sama, that you will not take part in the exchange because you feel your students would not be in good hands?" Serenity asked softly after a long moment, disappointment evident in her expression. Elios lowered his head slightly, holding back a scowl.
"Of course not, my lady. It is simply that times are….. changing, something malevolent is growing in the world and I would not what to expose my young charges to unnecessary danger. Even you must admit, that woman is suspicious." He defended.
"I have to do nothing of the sort, sir." The Queen answered quickly. "I trust Feril with my one and only daughter, and I trust her to protect my kingdom as well. If you mean to judge her simply because she spent fifty years in Hell, then please say so. I knew her before then and I know her now. I have no reason to doubt her."
Setsuna caught herself staring at the Queen and quickly hid the fact. 'Could Serenity-sama possibly mean that? After all that's happened?' The Queen's gaze was troubled, but her words had seemed sincere.
At that moment, something oppressive and chilling wrapped around the room, filling the air with a putrid chill and a sickening feeling. Something was wrong. And Queen Serenity recognized a feeling she hadn't experienced in fifty years.

"Something isn't right." Rei rose to her feet, her eyes scanning their surroundings. "There's an evil aura in the air….."
Ami shivered and Makoto squeezed her hand in a covert gesture of reassurance as Minako solemnly moved closer to Usagi and Hotaru, Seiya following suit as Yaten and Taiki shared a look. They'd long since left the water and dried off, packing up to head back to the school.
The chill was suddenly thrown off by a wave of suffocating, hot air, sending their stomachs plunging in distress. It shook their limbs, bringing sweat to their brows and filling them with a nauseous sort of exhaustion.
"What's happening?!" Usagi cried weakly, trying to shake the feeling.
Minako was the first to notice them, which was what saved the odango-ed blonde. A dark, scaly shape suddenly shot from the woods, straight for Usagi, a jaw full of gleaming, razor teeth opened for her throat. Minako tackled the girl to the ground and Hotaru leapt back, the creature missing her by mere inches. The blonde lifted her hand and aimed.
"CRESCENT BEAM SMASH!" she cried and the attack annihilated the thing instantly.
"What the hell was that?" Seiya demanded, helping the pair to their feet.
"I don't know, but you could try asking them." Yaten gestured to the treeline. They were surrounding by bristling, snarling, snapping beasts. Demons, what looked to be hundreds of them, all focused on them.
"Shit." Seiya noted eloquently.

"What was that?!" the headmistress demanded, getting shakily to her feet.
"Demons." Serenity answered quietly. "A Pit Summoning spell, a rather large one at that."
"But Pit Summoning hasn't been used since the Demon Wars….." Kaori eyed the Queen critically, not quite ready to believe her. "How would—?"
"Trust me. Once you have experienced one, you never forget what they feel like." Serenity cut her off. "We would do best to round up the students to high ground." She moved for the door, Setsuna following wordlessly behind her.
"High ground? Shouldn't they be gathered in the castle?" Elios asked, moving after the Queen.
"No." Serenity's tone left no room for further questions. "As powerful as this school's defenses are, it is never a wise thing to make these demons come looking for you. They have quite the disabling effect of feeding off fear and spread it even more effectively when their prey is hiding." As she reached the door, it was opened by a dark haired boy in armor with a sword strapped to his side.
"The school's been evacuated, Serenity-sama." he informed, holding out his hand to take hers. "Excluding this room, of course. Protective barriers have been set on the mesa overlooking the school, the griffins are waiting to take all of you there. We should hurry, the forest is crawling with them."
Serenity nodded, placing her hand in his and heading out the door.
"You're full of surprises, Serenity-sama." The headmistress of the Amazon Institute spoke up. "Here I was under the impression that Prince Endymion had died with his family. But here you have his exact image, in the armor of his kingdom no less."
The boy flinched slightly, glancing back at Serenity, who simply continued down the halls.
"Indeed. But he goes by Chiba now, Mamoru Chiba. We were very lucky to find him after he disappeared following the death of his family. Now, if you please, we should make haste, once I'm sure everyone else is secure, I will be able to see to my daughter." The white-haired woman explained coolly. Both Setsuna and Mamoru turned to her in at that.
"You may go, Mamoru, see to it that you take care. They're fighting on the other side of the lake, at the camp." She informed and he gave a quick bow before sprinting away as fast as he could to find a way across the lake to save Usagi. Setsuna gave the Queen a questioning look, but the regal woman shook her head.
"I need you here with me, to direct the older students in an attack and keep order."

Now, had they been paying any mind, Haruka and Michiru would have noticed they were making far better time then was possible for their given situation, and that a path had been created to speed them on their way once again, back to the school. But they were not of the state of mind to currently notice such a thing and it seemed like an excruciating long road keeping them from their endangered friends, their princess in peril.

"FLAME SNIPER!"
"SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"
"SHABON SPRAY!"
"CRESCENT BEAM SMASH!"
The four fell back, Usagi and Hotaru in the center of their protective circle, feeling heavy and slow against the horrors they were fighting. It took so much effort to kill just one, these were unexplainably and undeniably stronger then any they'd fought before. Their mere presence seemed to sap their strength, making the girls exhausted and their hope was slowly ebbing away as they worked stoically to protect Usagi, who was distraught watching her friends struggle, holding Hotaru close. The Lights had disappeared in the fray a while ago, a terrible blow to the girls' morale, though Ami had pointed out that the number of demons they were against had been split, meaning the boys were probably still fighting them elsewhere.
Another leapt at them, from Rei's side and the weary girl faltered. Realizing her mistake, she dove to take the monster full on to prevent it from reaching her friends, her attack glowing at the ready for one last shot.
"Rei-chan!" Usagi turned to stop her but she was too late and could only watch as the demon descended on her best friend.
"SERIOUS LASER!"
The girls looked up as the demon howled in pain and fell away from the raven-haired maiden, defeated.
"SENSITIVE INFERNO!"
"GENTLE UTERUS!"
Their attackers fell back under the newcomers' barrage. Enraged, the monsters went into a frenzy, sneaking out what had pushed them back and destroying everything they could lay their hands on, including one another. Once again, the girls were pushed back, though now the sounds of others fighting near by could be heard, three new voices and despite the new ferocity in their onslaught, the numbers of their enemy seemed to be falling.
The sound of a sword hitting demon flesh came to their ears and they looked to see Mamoru wading into the fight, which raised their spirits immensely as Usagi lit up at the sight of her love and began using what small magicks she knew to reach him. But their foe surged again, reigning in from the frenzy and focusing on their prey.
"WORLD SHAKING!"
The golden attack sent demons flying in its wake as Haruka soared into the fray astride Kazi, who was kicking and rearing at anything that tried to cause his rider harm.
"DEEP SUBMERGE!"
Michiru followed suit, her attack flooding over the demons. The addition to their side helped, but the Tower Dormers were still being overrun.
Minutes later, they were all together, Haruka and Michiru both having dismounted, their horses fighting besides them, kicking and biting any demon within reach. Haruka was careful, using Kazi to shield Usagi, as well as herself, while Mamoru fought, protecting the princess from the other side. They were back in a tight circle, magic, power, and steel filled the air. But it wasn't nearly enough. And then, once again, the strange attack broke the demons' ranks.
"STAR SERIOUS LASER!"
This time, the monsters seemed to have had enough, hesitating, as if listening to some voice only they could hear, then falling back, hissing and howling.
"Who's there?" Usagi called.
"Penetrating the darkness at night…"
"The air of freedom breaks through…"
"We are the three sacred shooting stars!"
"Sailor Star Fighter!"
"Sailor Star Maker!"
"Sailor Star Healer!"
The Tower Dormers were finally able to see who fought on their side. Three women stood along a tree branch, high above.
"'Sailor'..…?" Michiru whispered. "Are they….. Sailor Senshi, like the ones of legend?"
Similar thoughts were racing through the minds of all the Tower Dormers. They'd never heard of these Senshi though, these were not the legendary Senshi of the Moon Kingdom, with their guardian planets. But there was one thing Haruka knew, though she couldn't say why, but she knew it somewhere in the very core of her being, a place still hidden from her. She did not like these Senshi being here. They did not belong.
She moved to block Usagi from them, and Michiru automatically did the same without even registering why.
"What do you want?" Haruka demanded fiercely. 'They're not supposed to be here!' her mind repeated over and over, making her skull ache with something she couldn't quite remember. All she knew was something was wrong and all she had to blame were these Senshi who were not supposed to be there. 'Senshi….. Sailor Senshi. They should have never passed the Outer planets, how could I have missed them?' A part of her, a voice ancient and hauntingly familiar whispered and Haruka pushed it away in the back of her mind.
"Leave the this to us." The dark haired one, Sailor Star Fighter she'd called herself, said, almost kindly. "None of you should be awakened just yet."
"Awakened?" Hotaru spoke up. "What do know about our awakening?" The others looked at her, surprised by her tone. She seemed to know what they were talking about.
"It is not yet time for you," The tallest, Sailor Star Maker answered softly. "We can say nothing more."
"And now, we'll leave you to finish up what's left here. That's not to hard for you, is it?" the shortest, Sailor Star Healer asked sweetly and Haruka felt her anger rise. The demons were practically disappearing now, as if whatever had been directing them were gone. What few remained were of the weaker, stupider variety, still hissing and gnashing their teeth, hoping to get a chance to attack.
Before any of the Tower Dormers could reply, the three women leapt into the night air and disappeared into the trees. Haruka swore under her breath and vented her frustration on the remaining demons, which the Tower Dormers quickly finished off.
"I don't sense them anywhere now." Rei sighed. "It's as if they were never here….. I wonder what made them pull back."
"Perhaps they were working with those women," Haruka mused to herself. "A trick or something to try and kidnap the princess." Mamoru heard her and looked solemn.
"Whatever the reason, they didn't retreat because they were afraid or defeated. A few more minutes….. No, they were definitely called back by something. Probably the one who summoned them." He told her quietly, making sure Usagi and the others couldn't hear.
"Summoned?"
"Hai. Queen Serenity-sama said told the visiting headmasters it was a Pit Summoning, something that hasn't been used since the Demon Wars. Whoever summoned them probably called them back, they may have been a diversion of some sort."
Haruka fell silent, letting his words sink in. She'd heard about Pit Summonings and it did not comfort her in the least that there was someone about who had the necessary power and knowledge to perform them, even if they seemed to have backed out this time around.
"Look."
Ami pointed across the lake, towards the mesa that towered above the school. It was lit with power, magic crackling in the air and the dark hoard that had covered its walls fell back, dead or fleeing. But then, all other magic ceased. After a long pause, a silvery white light, blinding and strong, engulfed the mesa, spreading out over the grounds, reaching even over to where they stood.
"Queen Serenity-sama….." Minako whispered in reverent wonder as the light washed over them. Haruka closed her eyes, feeling blissfully at peace. The light was comforting, soothing to the soul, calming the beating ache in her, the burning questions in her mind. It was beautiful, so very beautiful and surreal, like moonlight breaking through a pitch black night.
When the light faded, the night was calm again, peaceful and quiet, all signs of the demons erased, as if they were simply waking from some nightmare.

"Are you all ok?"
They all looked up to see Seiya running towards them, the other two boys close behind. The boys looked relatively untouched compared to the cuts and minor wounds the Tower Dormers were sporting.
"We could find you after we got separated, are you ok?" Ami stepped forward, checking for any visible harm done.
"We're fine Mizuno-san." Taiki assured. "Though I think we should make haste back to the school in case something else decides to happen."
"Wait." Haruka stopped them as they turned, heading for the trail back to the other side of the lake.
"Did you happen to see anyone else in there?" she pointed towards the forest.
"Someone else?" Yaten asked, looking at the other two.
"Like who?" Seiya rubbed his neck, glancing back at Taiki and Yaten. The Tower Dormers were watching Haruka.
"Three women." Michiru answered. For some reason, she stopped herself from saying they were Senshi, though she didn't know why and none of the other Tower Dormers seemed to feel the need to say anything about it either. The boys shared a look with each other, as if each one was questioning the other two if they had seen the three women, then shook their heads in unison.
"No, we didn't see anyone. Why?" Taiki asked.
"It was nothing," Haruka assured before any of the others could say anything. "We should get back now, make sure everything's alright."
The other's followed her lead easily, without thinking much about it, as if it was natural to them, just as she had moved as if she was in charge, naturally and without thinking. But the three Lights shared yet another look as they trekked back to the other side of the lake. They recognized her in that moment, definitely. They knew who she was and knew it wouldn't belong until she joined their number, until she awaken as the legendary Senshi she was. Meaning the others would too, and the Sailor Senshi of the Moon Kingdom would rise again.

The students returned to their dorms that night, tired and their minds full of questions. The ones that had sustained slight injuries were treated and sent to bed, no one receiving anything too dire. But as she lay in her bed after wishing ever one a good night, Haruka felt it sink in. Her chance was gone, the cage door shut.
'I wonder if we really could have…..' she thought to herself as her eyes closed and sleep slipped in. 'It would have been nice to try.' But somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew something had prevented them, something had stopped them and she knew she couldn't fight whatever it was and that knowledge hurt her somehow. A small wound, far off in the dark.

Setsuna sighed, walking back to her room, tired from the night.
"I blame Feril….."

I'll try to update again soon, R&R