Tuxedo Mask stood upon a rooftop looking down over the destruction. The world had been consumed in darkness and this seemed to be the source of the dark enrgy covering Tokyo. The bay looked as if a bomb had exploded and the surrounding woods had been damaged by immense waves.
"Do you think it was Mitsuko?" He asked, Sailor Moon came up beside him as he looked to her for an answer. Sailor Moon shook her head.
"No, my guess it is either Deep Blue, or The Fates." She said. "Her powers seem to revolve around fire, this is a cold darkness." Tuxedo Mask nodded in agreement.
"We have to get down there!" Sailor Chibi Moon stood off to the side of them. "We have to help the others, and be ready for when Mitsuko does appear." She jumped down to a lower rooftop, and the two adults followed her lead. Mamoru felt a sense of apprehension, he had awoken with this apprehension, and the closer they got to the bay, the stronger it became. It was as if today would herald what their future would be, and Mamoru knew that this might not be their most difficult battle, but it might be the most heartrenching. As they descended down upon the city he looked over to Sailor Moon whose hair fly back behind her and her eyes pentrated deep into the city. As he looked at her though, his eyes precieved a change in her appearance, but only for a moment: a premonition of the days final outcome.
Neo Queen Serenity... The vision had only lasted a millisecond, but Mamoru was sure that was what he had seen. Sailor Moon noticed his gaze and she flashed him a soft smile, but he could tell it was for his benifit alone. He knew, that in the inside, she felt the same as him.
"Sailor Moon!" A group of voices called out and the sight of Sailors Venus, Mars, and Jupiter greeted them on a nearby rooftop. A girl Mamoru did not know stood next to them, she wore a skimpy blue outfit and a pair of bird wings came from her back. Mamoru knew that this must be one of the Mew Mews, but he was unsure as to which one. The blue girl flew to their rooftop and straight to Sailor Moon.
"Have you seen Mew Lettuce or Hotaru?!" She asked urgently. Her hands were cupped together in worry and she hovered in place beside them.
"No," Sailor Moon said. The Mew Mew turned away from them and began to fly rapidly down towards the destruction below. The other Sailor Senshi joined the royal family on their rooftop and Sailor Moon looked to them for answers. "What about Hotaru and Lettuce? What happened here?"
Sailor Jupiter looked hesitant to speak of what had happened but the other two looked at her expectantly. Jupiter sighed.
"We don't know what happened exactly, the earth beneath us shook and the water began to swirl, Hotaru fell in and Lettuce jumped in after her." She said, Mamoru realized that this was just the shorthand of the story.
"And then there was the explosion?" He finished for her. Jupiter nodded.
"The waves crashed everywhere and the dark enrgy has made it impossible to communicate with each other." She paused. "I'm not sure Lettuce and Hotaru are alive."
"Mew Minto has been our messanger between us and another group on the ground: The other Outers, Mew Zacro, Pudding, and Ichigo. Mew Berry and Sailor Mercury havn't even been seen yet." Sailor Mars informed them. Mamoru looked at Sailor Chibi Moon who had stayed silent during the entire conversation. She seemed to be observing the bay. "We are meeting up with the group on the ground before heading towards the center of the bay."
Mamoru looked at the bay where a large black ball of energy sat growing bigger and bigger. A larger ball had covered the whole city and this smaller ball seemed to be the main source, the place where Deep Blue must be.
"What will we do when we get there?" He asked suddenly. "This Deep Blue seems to be a victim in all of this, will we simply destroy him?" Sailor Moon's fist clenched.
"I will not let that happen." She said. "I will fight in Mew Ichigo's place, I will save him in her name." She said, and this part of her was just one reason why he loved her. She could be a soft crybaby, but also a determined soldier.
"Okay then, lets go meet the others." Usagi looked at him, her eyes shining brightly, and again Mamoru saw her transformed for a moment in his mind's eye.
Hotaru's eyes were now constantly open, it seemed that when Clotho had sent them back to the surface, she had also given them a surge of power and healing. Hotaru had gone from almost dead, to being able to sit up, and maybe in a bit, able to stand and fight once more. Lettuce herself felt as if she could take on anything that she came across.
This power, Clotho's power, seemed to have a similar affect as the Mew Aqua, maybe, even an identical affect. As Hotaru recovered Lettuce thought about this. The Mew Aqua had been created long ago, Shirogane had suggested that perhaps the aliens had created it, but as Lettuce felt this new power the thought occured to her that perhaps Clotho's people had something to do with it. The powers were so similar and powerful that Letuce was sure that they were somehow related. They just had to be! This made matters even worse for Lettuce, if Clotho's power was related to the Mew Aqua, how could she let it be destroyed?
"We should be looking for the others, to help them." Hotaru began to try standing up and Lettuce supported her under her arms. Masha sat on Lettuce's shoulder, but did not speak. He had not spoken the entire time since Lettuce had gotten him to wake up, and Lettuce suspected that he may have broken something inside him. If they survived this last battle, Shirogane would have to take him apart and fix him. Lettuce felt unsure of what direction they should take in order to search. They hadn't seen or heard anything, and they could not tell what direction was the harbor. Lettuce looked to Masha.
"Can you fly high enough to see where we are?" Masha flew up above them towards the tops of the trees. "He wont be able to tell us, but at least he can point us in a direction." Lettuce explained to Hotaru, the girl nodded and they waited for Masha to come back down, which, he didn't. A minute turned into two, and the two turned into five. Lettuce felt uneasy with his absence. Hotaru was now standing with little support now, and Lettuce was tempted to go after him, but at the same time, she did not want Hotaru to be alone.
"Mew Lettuce!" The two girls looked up towards the sound of the voice and the sight of Sailor Moon and her group greeted them along with Masha leading them. "You're alright!"
Sailor Chibi Moon rushed forward and embraced Hotaru, and Sailor Jupiter walked up to Mew Lettuce looking a bit angry.
"A little warning next time?!" She said crossing her arms, but Lettuce could see the hint of a faint smile.
"I'm sorry, I just did it without thinking." She explained and Jupiter hugged her.
"You scared the living daylights out of us! And Mew Minto has been searching high and low for you two! I think she's going to kill you when she finds you, she was so worried." Lettuce nodded, she figured they were looking for them since she hadn't checked in.
"My Power Pendant hasn't been working, I can't communicate with anyone!" A man with a white mask whom Lettuce did not know offered her an explaination for this.
"No ones is, the dark energy covering the city has blocked all communications, everyone is out of touch and your friend, um, Mew Minto, has been our only connection." He explained.
"Tuxedo Mask!" Hotaru gasped beside Lettuce. "When did you get to Japan?" The man smiled.
"Only yesterday, seems like I got here just in time for the grand finale." Tuxedo Mask said. They all began walking towards the direction that the Sailor Senshi understood as the way to the others.
They did not get far before the whole world exploded once more.
When Ichigo opened her eyes, the world was full of darkness. The explosion had knocked them all down, but Ichigo remembered Mew Zacro's powerful body shielding her from the brunt of the blast. She tilted her head to observe her surroundings. Her eyes were unable to focus, but she could tell that the area around her was now barren. the trees were gone and only a few coloured blurs announced the presence of the others. Ichigo tried to stand up, but she found that something was on top of her, preventing her from moving freely. She starred at the obstacle and as her eyes came into focus, the face of Mew Zacro came into view.
"Onee-sama!" Ichigo pushed her in order to wake her up, but she only moaned softly. Ichigo looked around her and saw the full extent of the destruction. The trees were only charred stumps, and she could now see all the way to the harbor with no obstruction. The Outer Senshi lay around her, and Mew Pudding was off to the side. Ichigo struggled even harder to get Mew Zacro up and off of her. "Zacro-sama!" She pushed and finally the woman rolled off of her and Ichigo stood up. The others at her feet all seemed to be in the same state as Mew Zacro; all of them seemed to be breathing, but Ichigo doubted that they would be any help to her.
"Ichigo!" Ichigo's head turned around sharply at the sound of her name, and she saw Sailor Moon's group running towards her, and with them, Mew Lettuce and Sailor Saturn.
"Lettuce! Hotaru!" She embraced the two girls and tears ran down her face. "I was so worried!" She took Masha in her hands and cradled him, but he did not chirp happily at her like usual. "What happened to you guys? How did you survive the blast?" Sailor Saturn lifted her glaive.
"I used my glaive to protect us," she paused, "and an unknown power strengthened me." Ichigo did not ask anymore questions, it did not matter how they were alright, only that they were.
"Where did the explosion come from?" Sailor Venus asked. Ichigo looked back at the bay, and her view was not obscured by any trees and the ball of dark energy was now gone.
Ichigo's heart fell as she saw him standing within the water. He was about two football fields away from them, but his silhouette was plain to see. The group turned their bodies to face him and the soldiers took a defensive stance.
"This is the Deep Blue we have heard so much about?" Sailor Mars asked finally. Ichigo nodded.
"Yes." Her voice broke and she felt as if she were going to cry. She did not know how to help him, and without her powers she would have to watch from the sidelines as they attacked him, and tried to heal him. "Please," She grabbed Sailor Moon's arm. "save him!"
Sailor Moon looked into her desperate eyes and then she nodded.
"I promise, Ichigo. We'll save him." The Sailor Senshi and Mew Lettuce began to walk forward, towards Deep Blue. A man stood next to Ichigo who was still standing beside her fallen friends and held Masha in her hands. The man's eyes pierced into Ichigo and she knew that they had met before. His face was covered with a mask, but the eyes beneath it gave him away. They were the same eyes that had stared at Usagi with so much passion back at the airport.
"Mamoru-san." The man looked surprised and then he smiled.
"Tuxedo Mask." He corrected. Ichigo looked at the backs of the Senshi who were going to face her Aoyama-kun. "I'll be your guardian for the day." Ichigo's eyes filled with tears.
"I should be fighting to save him." She said. Tuxedo Mask put his hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him once more.
"Your power isn't always the one that lets you transform." He said, Ichigo closed her eyes and turned her head towards the ground. As she did so, the bell around her neck jingled. The sound of the bell contrasted against the rushing wind and ominous howl of the darkness. The sound filled Ichigo and her closed eyes opened. Her face was strong and determined.
"You're right." She let go of Masha, and her hands went to the back of her neck. Ichigo untied the ribbon around her neck and she held it in both hands. Already the fighting had begun with Deep Blue and Ichigo held onto the ribbon tightly. "This, and everything that it stands for is my true weapon." She said. "It is my most prized possession, and the symbol of Aoyama-kun's love for me." She began to walk forward and Tuxedo Mask followed a few steps behind. "I will save him."
Behind her, Tuxedo Mask was smiling. He had just seen exactly what Sailors Neptune and Uranus had. A light in Ichigo's heart so intense that it shone just as brightly as the Silver Crystal. He also saw what the other two Senshi had not, though, that this girl had the strength to save them all, and that this battle was hers to fight.