You can guess the crossover. Ranma won't wear a fuku, and also no tuxedo. He won't be some re-incarnation. He is just... Ranma. I want to avoid numerous stuff that became the norm in these crossovers but that actually is pretty stupid. I also will make it clear that while Ranma and the Senshi learn new techniques, I won't sink to the insane levels of the canon, where it became an absurd arms race in the later parts of both series. It's a common weakness in anime series that the power level increases to ridiculous levels. (In my opinion, DBZ is the worst offender in that regard in the anime world) I will try to stay on Earth and try to give everything a bit more realistic feeling (as much as it as it is possible) but don't worry... hilarity will still ensure!

Needless to say that I will slaughter the canon of both series, but I guess you expected this. Also I don't have any rights to both series, but I guess you know that, too.

This one thankfully took less time than I feared it could. Two months isn't too long, although I know I could do better.

I do have a page for the story at TV Tropes, the link is found in my bio. Please help to contribute to it if you feel like it.

As always, I try to answer all reviews and I'm always happy for reviews.

Note that specific notes are at the end of the chapter, to avoid spoilers.


Chapter 28: Conflict of the Evils

"Now that everyone is present and not actively trying to kill each other, can we finally start?" the Professor asked, looking at the five women sitting at the desks as if being in a school environment, with him standing in front of them like a teacher before his class. Kaolinite stood at the side, giving the women displeased looks.

Said women gave each other annoyed looks. It was no secret that they didn't get along. Despite being called the 'Witches 5', each of them was trying to be on the top, making actual teamwork between them next to impossible. Not that the Professor cared of course. After all, their petty rivalries only made them easier to manipulate. Little wonder that their great Pharaoh had deemed them unworthy of his biggest gift - it would have been wasted on them anyway.

However, all five of them did have their use for the moment, even if it was tempered by their chronic backstabbing disorder.

Eudial was the smartest and most scientifically-minded of all of them, possessing the sharpest mind and analytical skills. Mimete in comparison was rather ditzy, but made up for it with a sense for human nature that enabled her to correctly interpret motives and future actions. Tellu was a master with plants, capable of shaping them to every need desired - which for them would be the nasty sort. Viluy's knowledge of computers and technology was unsurpassed, having improved much of their equipment. Finally, Cyprine, while not suited for subtle work, made up for it with the unique change that had come to her when receiving her powers.

"You are unusually serious, Professor," Eudial said, unused to him being this calm.

"My instruments noticed a strong energy discharge today, is this the reason for calling all of us together?" Viluy wondered, still trying to make sense of what the sensors had caught.

"Right to the point. Good." The Professor noticed Kaolinite giving the Witches 5 looks of contempt he understood too well. "Just under two hours ago, the Senshi struck and killed Mistress 9, taking control of the Messiah."

There was some shocked silence, then Cyprine jumped up from her seat. "Impossible! No way she could have been destroyed by these... these little girls!"

"Well, it clearly did happen," Kaolinite snarked from the side. "And just for your information, at least one of them is an adult and quite skilled according to our sources, so don't underestimate them."

Stupid bitch, she added in thoughts.

"Oh yes, Kaolinte is correct. Never underestimate them. They have shown their hand and revealed more power than at first anticipated," the Professor explained, being frighteningly collected compared to his usual antics.

"Professor, what do we do now?" Mimete asked while clutching a lifestyle magazine to her chest, her eyes appearing much bigger due to her large glasses.

"Well, our Pharaoh has spoken. He wants the grail and he wants it soon. We have to re-take it from the Senshi in order to enable our master to arrive in a timely manner," the Professor explained.

"Professor, with all due respect, we currently don't have the resources for this," Eudial reminded him. "We simply lack one crucial component to bring alive enough helpers for this cause. After all, the expected number of losses will be high."

"You speak of the spark that brings my creations to life... Don't worry, I do have a plan for that, too. Our Daimons will still fulfill their purpose, only they will now harvest heart crystals to fuel our production rate," he explained like a teacher explaining something that should be obvious to his students.

"So what are we supposed to do?" Tellu asked, failing to see what their role in this would be, apart from scouting out targets.

"Are you really this stupid or is it an act?" Kaolinite finally said, having enough of this. "You of course have to direct the Daimons once being at your target. After all, they are artificially created and lack the brains of the natural ones. We have to make sure we get these crystals. Got it?!"

The Witches 5 gave Kaolinite a sour look, making no secret of that they disliked her for being above them in the pecking order. Then Eudial spoke up. "Professor, I won't need a Daimon. I developed a special gun that can literally blast the crystal out of a person, and I can operate that on my own."

The Professor looked pleased. "Good. That means you get right to work, Eudial. Still, I'll prepare something for you in case there is trouble and load it into your car. The rest of you: start scouting."

The Witches 5 left and Kaolinite gave the Professor a concerned look. "Do we really have to trust them with this? After all, they are cannon fodder and I trust them as far as I can spit. They are bound to screw up, I know it."

Now the Professor smiled. "Of course I know that, Kaolinite. While they are bound to bring in more than enough energy, my concern about them is very limited. Them getting killed in the field saves us the bother of getting rid of them. Hm-hm-hm, ah yes, a win-win situation!"

"You are devious, Professor," Kaolinite said, looking at him quite impressed.

"Oh yes, that I am. Ha ha ha ha!" he chuckled, clearly enjoying being a monster. Stopping for a moment, he seemed to listen to something only he could hear. "Oh no, your precious daughter has only gained time. We will be triumphant at the end. ... You think otherwise? Too bad for you."

"I take it he thinks we will fail?" Kaolinite observed, having seen this behavior often enough to interpret what had been said.

"Oh, of course he does. Stupid fool, inviting us in his hour of greatest despair. This is why compassion is so overrated." He laughed again and this time Kaolinite chimed in.

o

The court of the Dark Kingdom felt that their queen was about to announce something important. No other reason was imaginable why she would gather all three Generals and all five remaining Great Youma in the throne room. Apart from the court, the huge room was also packed with Youma, all of them curious what their leader would announce. Ever since that defeat at the hands of the Senshi they had waited for what would happen next after recovering their strength.

Beryl meanwhile looked at those gathered before her throne.

All five of the Great Youma were present; Devilbot, Rocco, Binah, Techniclone and Catian. Even though some of them had disappointed her in battle, she knew what she had of them. Besides, after 'encouraging' all of them, they had worked hard to buff up. Even Binah and Techniclone looked a bit bulkier, despite not exactly being front-line fighters. She would give them their orders later.

Then there were her three Generals. Zoisite was making an effort to stand as close as possible to Kunzite, which Beryl tolerated as long as they would do their work. She then gave Jadeite a questioning look when seeing Tethys standing beside him, looking quite nervous to be in the spotlight like this. By now it had become a running gag how Tethys preferred her human form, as she was again wearing it right at the moment.

"I didn't summon you, Tethys," she remarked.

"I told her to be present, my queen, because I do have a request concerning her," Jadeite answered in Tethys' place, since the Youma seemed too nervous to speak.

"Hm, really?" Beryl wondered what Jadeite could want. "What is it you want to ask for?"

Jadeite gave Tethys a look, before explaining "Queen Beryl, Tethys has proven to be very valuable to me. Thanks to her help, the Youma under my command are now successfully harvesting energy in cities all over the world without needing anymore guidance. I ask you, my queen, for making her my personal assistant on a permanent basis."

"You must have impressed him a lot if he is trusting you this much, Tethys," Beryl told the Youma in question, since Jadeite wasn't of the trusting kind.

"I am just doing the best I can, my queen," Tethys confessed, blushing a little. "I also enjoy working with Master Jadeite."

"Of course you clearly enjoy it," Beryl mused when seeing the slight blush on the human features of the Youma. "Who am I to stop such a fruitful connection? It is, after all, to our advantage."

"Thank you, my queen," Jadeite and Tethys said at the same time, before noticing what they had done.

"'Working well together'... My ass. Jadeite always had a hand for Youma. Was only a matter of time before that happens..." Zoisite whispered to Kunzite while rolling her eyes.

Kunzite snorted. "Not everyone can have good taste." He didn't say more when Beryl turned her attention to them.

"Zoisite, I hope you have found suitable replacements for our losses?" she asked her, hinting that she otherwise would be very displeased.

"Certainly, my queen," Zoisite reported. "Recruitment is still going on as well. I transformed the easy cases right away with the Black Crystal and they are already working hard to be of use to us. There are a number of more powerful individuals that need more care. They are right now encased in cocoons and, once done, will never sway from your side."

"Excellent." Looking pleased, Beryl looked to Kunzite. "What about your search for the Golden Crystal?"

"Sadly, I can't report much progress. The sheer amount of time has erased many leads. I was able to recover some hints however, after raiding archeological archives. As far as I was able to decipher, the crystal is said to be kept at a tree of great power and that several tasks have to be done to gain access," Kunzite reported to his queen.

"Very interesting..."

"Yeees. Very interesting indeed."

The eyes of the skull sculpture above the throne had lit up, glowing dark purple. Right after hearing this voice, everyone keeled and even Beryl left the throne to kneel before it. "Master..."

"I finally see... Guarded by the guardian of dreams, at the roots of the tree of magic, lies the Golden Crystal."

"We shall find it. We'll spare no effort in doing so," Beryl promised.

"Seek out more clues. Strong powers surrounding the crystal are still blinding my sight. For the time being, listen to my commands."

"What is your bidding, my queen and master?" Beryl asked while looking into the glowing eyes, mesmerized by the sight.

"Keep making me stronger by harvesting energy. Observe our enemy. They want to claim the prize as well. Follow them when the time comes to get what we want. These are my orders." The eyes then lost their glow, Metallia having left.

Getting up, Beryl looked at her gathered subjects for a moment before she gave her commands. "The Master has spoken! Until our enemy makes their move, here are my orders. Jadeite!"

Jadeite quickly stood at attention. "Yes, my queen?"

"Perhaps we need to... convince our enemy that their need for the Golden Crystal is so great they try to find it. You and Tethys are given command over a large number of Youma. Commence operations in Tokyo to provoke the Senshi into becoming desperate enough that they feel the need to search for the crystal. Should the chance present itself to claim the Silver Crystal, act on it. However, take no unnecessary chances. I won't tolerate too many losses," she commanded.

"My queen, what if the time-witch appears?" Tethys asked, remembering the report of the last confrontation. No one was gunning for fighting against her, which was a very thankless job.

Beryl looked sour at the reminder about Pluto. After all, it was Pluto's fault they hadn't managed to capture the Silver Crystal. "Then retreat. Engaging her will mean certain death. Only our strongest troops are allowed to go against her."

Not waiting for a response, she turned to Kunzite next. "Kunzite, continue your research. Also concentrate on this 'guardian of dreams' our Master spoke of. It has to be important. Follow every possible lead, even if it sounds ridiculous at first."

"I'll do my very best. I do have a vague memory that I heard of this before," Kunzite answered, knowing this would be a time-consuming task.

"Zoisite, you continue to fill our ranks. We need the numbers to be firmly on our side once we bring the war to our enemies."

Zoisite took a look at the Black Crystal in her hand. "Yes, Queen Beryl. I'll do as you command."

"Good, that leaves you five." Beryl turned to the five great Youma. "Each of you shall have a task assigned by me. All of you right now are too powerful for simple field work but not strong enough individually to resist our enemies."

Devilbot, Rocco and Binah looked embarrassed at this reminder of how badly they had fared in battle.

"Thus these are my orders: Techniclone, you continue in our research. Knowledge is power and we need every advantage we can get."

Techniclone adjusted her monocle, looking pleased that she could use her high intellect. "As you wish, my queen. I already have something in mind that can raise the efficiency of our troops. However, it'll still take some time."

"As long as you do get results, I don't care." Beryl looked to Rocco next. "You take over the training of our troops, especially the new ones. Our losses have to go down."

"Once I'm through with them, this sorry lot will be almost unrecognizable. Trust me on this," Rocco acknowledged, actually happy that he could use his talents to good use. Though fighting was his main specialty, this was being a close second.

"I hope so... Binah, I hold you responsible for keeping ahead of our enemies. You are to analyze their movements and ensure they won't catch us off-guard."

"As you wish, my queen," Binah said, not seeing the need for more words.

"Good, that leaves you two," Beryl said, looking to Devilbot and Catian. "Both of you are mainly suited for combat. After the... loss of the DD-Girls, I'm in need of a new strike and elimination team. Both of you are to select three more Youma you think capable of this. There will be a test, so don't disappoint me." The slight lightning over the surface of her crystal ball showed that she meant it.

"Of course we won't disappoint you, Queen Beryl!" Devilbot said a little too eager, as if to make sure. "Once we are ready, our enemies will tremble."

"I hope so, after all you last performance was less than stellar." These words did the trick when she saw him deflate. "Well, what are you waiting for? - Everyone, leave. I need time to think."

Watching everyone leave - even though the court did look reluctant - Beryl leaned back and closed her eyes, enjoying the quiet to sort her thoughts.

Our foolish enemies won't stand a chance. Even with the time witch and the Silver Crystal on their side they'll lose in the end. Even if they fight back successfully, once Queen Metallia has broken her chains, it's all over.

Something else drifted into her mind. Endymion's picture appeared in her crystal ball and she looked at it in bitter disappointment. Endymion, you should not have chosen her over me. Only when your head is put onto a pike will you understand to not underestimate a woman scorned.

Even if there were setbacks, no one would stop them this time.


...at the same time...

"Uuuaaarghhhh -gloarb- When you said ... it would hurt ... -retch- I had no idea ... it would be this bad," Haruka complained while coughing up bile into the toilet she was kneeling before. After throwing up violently, her body had insisted on trying to choke up more. Still, after the pain of talisman extraction this was harmless.

Michiru was not far better off, leaning against the wall with her skin trying to emulate her hair color. She constantly held her hand in front of her mouth and looked like she would lose her lunch at any moment. Suddenly she belched loudly and, seeing as the toilet was still occupied, ran to the sink before vomiting into it.

Setsuna looked with a little guilt at her two companions being as sick as dogs.

After Mistress 9 being dealt with and Hotaru at a safe place, she had wasted no time in deciding that now would be the best moment to get the damn talismans out of Haruka and Michiru without causing them harm in the process. Well, they were not injured, but the pain and resulting sick spell from the careful extraction still was bad enough. Thank all goodness they had done it in the privacy of their home, thus if these two felt this bad, they at least could go right to bed and sleep it off.

"Sorry it made you sick. I knew the extraction wouldn't exactly be pleasant, but I didn't expect the two of you reacting this badly to it," Setsuna apologized.

Waiting until both of them were done, rinsed their mouths and looked somewhat presentable again, they moved back to the living room, where two objects sat on the coffee table. Setsuna picked them up. "You better take good care of these. Haruka, the Space Sword goes to you. It's a really powerful weapon, so use it with caution."

"Ahhh, well, that was worth it, though I dread the sword fighting lessons Ranma's mother and Mamoru will give me. Still better than accidentally cutting off my own hand." Haruka tested out the sword, finding it did fit perfectly into her hand. "Is that some kind of magic?"

"Of course it adapts for your use." Setsuna then looked to Michiru. "The Deep Aqua Mirror is yours. It can help you to concentrate your precognitive powers on something specific, although I have to admit even then it is less powerful than Rei's natural powers."

Michiru had to admit the mirror looked nice and certainly came in handy to concentrate her rather limited precognitive powers, but she doubted it would be that useful in the struggles ahead. "You know, I feel kind of left behind. Everyone, even Usagi, got some kind of weapon. I'm the only one left without one."

Setsuna felt a little itch in her head that she knew by now was a sign of a memory of the altered timeline emerging. "To be honest, you originally didn't hold a weapon. Now however I remember you do have one. Maybe you should just try to really wish for it to appear? It worked for the others."

Michiru rolled her eyes, clearly not believing Setsuna. "You mean like: 'I really, REALLY want my weapon to appear'? I'm not even transformed..." She then noticed them looking strangely at her. "What?" Holding up the mirror, she saw the symbol of Neptune glowing on her forehead.

Out of nowhere, something appeared in her other hand. Michiru looked at it. It was a trident, like the symbol of Neptune, looking like the one Triton uses in movies. "Oh, that's... Isn't that a bit stereotypical?"

Haruka laughed, remembering it could be worse. "Well, it's certainly better than using a chain where each link looks like a heart. Minako looked ready to die from embarrassment when she told me what her weapon is actually called. Well, I wonder if this thing can throw around lightning like in the movie."

Setsuna couldn't help but giggle. As Michiru had told her, some time ago she had roped Haruka into coming with her to the cinema for a showing of Disney's 'The Little Mermaid'. The funny part was, that Haruka, despite her tough image, had really loved the movie. Each time when being reminded of this, she defended herself that while she is a tomboy, she can enjoy girlish things as well.

Setsuna finally got herself back under control. "Sorry, no lightning. Makoto would be offended if it could. However, beside being a strong magical weapon, it does give you far greater control of water, forcing it to do your bidding. Perhaps you should train that with an indoor pool first."

Haruka saw her mate's expression. "She said 'pool'. Don't even think about you trying to use our furo for training and setting the apartment under water in the end."

Putting down the trident, Michiru held up her hands defensively. "What makes you think I thought that?"

Haruka laughed a little, feeling the answer was rather obvious. "Because I know you. Like me, despite being an adult, you at times get ideas you didn't think through."

Watching the interaction between these two, Setsuna felt great relief how much more relaxed these two were compared to the original timeline. Being carefully eased into their duties and generally enjoying more support, being two years older and wiser didn't hurt either, made Haruka and Michiru much easier to relate to. They certainly were much happier now.

Everything is going well here. Hotaru is in good hands, too. She's getting all the loving care needed in this difficult time for her. Setsuna felt an inner peace, feeling that she did make the right choice when almost breaking the universe and now everyone was better off.

o

"Well, how is she?" Nodoka asked when seeing her friend Saeko descending from the stairs, holding a medicine bag in one hand.

Saeko Mizuno knew this question would come. She had been asked in advance to be available on this day, since after what everything knew Hotaru would not be in the best of conditions after having been saddled with a parasite leeching on her very life energy for this many years, not to speak of possible injuries during the exorcism. After checking the girl as best as possible under the circumstances, she knew it was not as bad as it could have been, but still bad enough.

"First off, she'll be down here shortly after she is done with re-dressing. She was very cooperative and went through the entire check-up without any complaint," Saeko told them first.

"Guess after what happened she felt this would be for the best," Naru remarked, feeling that in Hotaru's place she would also want her health to be checked. "So no injuries?"

"She's not injured per se, but that thing leeching on her for this long did quite a number on her body and development. She's smaller and much frailer than a girl her age should be. Her body mass is far too low. While I have no doubt her body can mend the damage over time, she needs help... at least after we find out where she can stay," Saeko explained.

"You would be surprised how resourceful Setsuna is. She said she'll make sure no one asks any questions," Makoto said, then looked to Nodoka. "Also... Isn't it obvious?"

Nodoka sighed. "At first Haruka and Michiru offered taking care of her, but then had to admit that they could hardly take care of a preteen as young as they are themselves, nor do they have actual space for her in their apartment. Thus I offered to let her stay here, although she doesn't know that yet. We have a room directly under the roof and... well, I do care a lot for her."

Saeko gave her look for a moment that said 'are you sure you are up to it?', before deciding that it indeed was the best choice available. She then saw Hotaru walking down the stairs, looking a bit unsteady on her feet. "Oh dear. Come, better sit down."

Everyone moved to the family room and once Hotaru was seated comfortably, looking quite pale after today's hardships, she finally asked the important question. "Where do I go? That... thing is still in father. I'm at a loss right now."

"Setsuna said for your own safety you need to stay hidden until this mess is over. Not that means locking yourself into a room; just lying low is enough," Ami explained.

"Hotaru, dear. How would you like staying here with us? I know it won't be home, but it is a good place for you until your father is freed from that monster," Nodoka offered.

"Really?" Hotaru's mood brightened and then she suddenly hugged the older woman, acting like the preteen she was. "Oh, thank you! I had no idea where to go!" She then noticed what she was doing and blushed a little. "Oh, eh..."

"Don't worry, I do not mind at all." She actually found the girl's enthusiasm quite cute, as it proved without doubt she was a 12-year old.

Saeko then spoke up. "You can right away think about how to make her better." She then looked to Hotaru. "This monster sucked out your health and it shows. Hotaru, your body shows the same signs as someone who is severely malnourished. As much as it sounds over the top, besides a daily dose of vitamins you have to almost eat like a pig in order to make up for all the body mass you lost."

Every girl present grimaced at the mere idea. Most girls were trying to not be gluttons - well perhaps with exception of Usagi - and were quite concerned about their weight. A girl being told that she needed to eat much more was almost like blasphemy to their ears. However, considering how thin Hotaru was, none of them could dispute Saeko's decision.

"I sound like a girl with bulimia, only I don't do the throwing up-part," Hotaru grimaced, remembering how despite eating well she had lost weight over time, becoming dangerously thin, which didn't help her bouts of weakness at all.

"Why does everyone makes it sound like eating a bit more is bad?" Usagi grumbled a bit, having heard that way too often.

Rei rolled her eyes. "Considering your eating habits, your opinion doesn't surprise me," she said snidely, wondering why Usagi hadn't been overweight when they first met. This good zinger was worth the dark look Usagi gave her right now.

Saeko decided to ignore the antics of her daughter's friends. "Normally I would suggest a stay in hospital, but since this isn't a normal case..."

"It would be way too risky. Hotaru appearing in a place where her personal data is flagged would be like painting a big target on her - especially while she's still vulnerable," Ami concluded for her mother.

Hotaru sighed while looking at her thin arms, then feeling at her ribs. "I can heal other people, but not myself..."

Hotaru of course had told them of her healing powers, the one part of Saturn's powers she already had access to. It was a bit of a cruel joke that the person who would need it the most, the healing wouldn't work on. Even Mamoru trying resulted in him simply concluding that a body which had been robbed of its strength and mass over years can't be fixed with magic instantly. Ami had added that magic could only be used to speed up the recovery - though it would still take considerable time.

Usagi felt sorry for the girl a sat down beside her and held her close. "Is that why you don't want to become Saturn yet? You feel right now it could probably be way too much for your body?"

Hotaru didn't protest Usagi's display of compassion, it after all felt great someone did care. "Well, what can I do when a single sneeze could fell me? I doubt even being a Senshi would help me right now."

"Even once you do, I sincerely doubt you can be at the front line. Let's face it, you are four years younger than we are and even if you recover you'll be way more vulnerable due to your age alone. All of us are going through intense physical training, which would send you into a coma right now. Sorry to say this, but I can't see you as a melee fighter for a long time to come," Makoto told her.

Ranma, leaning against the door frame, had watched Hotaru's body language closely. "I think it's more than that. You said you're not ready for this. Way too much responsibility?"

Hotaru gulped hard. "When I touched the glaive, it showed me what Saturn can do. It's an awesome responsibility. My whole life got turned upside-down... No, deep inside I'm not yet ready for that. Plain Hotaru right now needs to sort out her life first before that happens."

"Well, at least I can give you something for being such a good girl and not complaining once while I checked you." Reaching into her bag, she pulled out a lollipop. "Here, it's cherry-flavored."

"Ohthankyou!" Hotaru said, feeling happy even with such small gifts. Sucking on it, she couldn't help but to smile at the taste.

Naru laughed when seeing this. "Some things never change. We girls do have a weakness for sweet things."

Through the open sliding doors, the animal advisers had watched everything before retreating deeper into the garden to confer with each other. Not that they were afraid of being spotted - Genma and Mamoru were on the outlook to make sure the house would stay undisturbed. These two didn't really want to be present, not exactly being comfortable with too much touchy-feely stuff.

"Poor Hotaru. I understand why she doesn't want to become Saturn yet. Right now her life is a mess," Deimos said, looking sad to the house where Hotaru was taken care of.

"When Pluto told us about her, I hadn't expected it to be this bad." Luna then grimaced when remembering Setsuna explaining some parts of the old timeline. "No wonder she was again reborn in the previous timeline. Confronting a cosmic horror in her condition? She probably knew she wouldn't survive it."

"The strongest Senshi of all, and yet our enemies managed to weaken her beyond belief. Even though they lost her to us, they are still spiting us." Phobos being serious meant that he was depressed by the thought as well.

Artemis shook his head. "Hotaru is not our only problem. I approached the priest today. He was open to the idea. Minako really needs help and she's too prideful and embarrassed to seek him out on her own."

They knew what he was talking about. He had finally told them in confidence about Minako's problem with the curse that Danburite had put onto her in their final confrontation. At first they had been skeptical about the curse-business, until Artemis had described how right after the battle, boys no longer seemed to think of Minako as dating material. Sure, as the short-lived worshipping at her new school proved, they still saw an attractive girl, but no boy felt compelled to ask her out.

"I sincerely doubt she'll go for it and accept, even if you do arrange everything. After all, as you said, she's highly embarrassed by this curse," Luna reminded him.

Artemis sighed. "I know... Which means when the time comes the others have to drag her there, even if she's kicking and screaming. It's for her own well-being after all."

Deimos could only shake her head. "What could have moved Danburite to not only side with the Dark Kingdom but to also put such a horrible curse on her? I had thought Adonis was rather nice back in the Silver Millennium. Where did his re-incarnation go wrong?"

"I don't think it's a single thing that caused this. It's more likely that his bad luck with Venus in the past got added to an already dismal love life when he remembered and he felt like taking what he thinks he rightfully deserves. When that failed, he acted out of spite: 'If I can't have her, no one should'," Phobos explained, disappointed at how that had worked out in the end.

"What a shame..." Luna sighed, before yawning. "I must be more tired than I thought. Usagi is already making fun of me since the previous days I slept far longer than she used to. Seems that all the stress is tiring me out."

Stress? Maybe that explains why she's a bit moody at times recently. Artemis had never before seen her like this. He hoped Luna wouldn't get sick.


...two days later, streets of Minato ward...

"Boy, I'm completely wiped out. I swear that old crone is doing this on purpose in order to make up for three weeks of missed training," Usagi complained while she walked down the street with Makoto and Naru after one of their training sessions in the basement under the Neko-Hanten.

Today had been weapons training and Khu-Lon had obviously made it her goal to drive them to total exhaustion. The old woman had argued with everyone of them having a weapon, they would have to learn how to fight more effectively with them. They had earned their food after this torture.

There was a good reason the old crone was intensifying their training.

Starting shortly after the rescue of Hotaru, worrying news arrived from within Tokyo. At various places in the city, people were found dead, their skin horribly pale and their hair turned white, without a reason for their deaths being obvious - clear signs that they were victims of the Dark Kingdom draining them to death. In other places people had simply dropped dead, as if they had stopped living all of a sudden - Setsuna believed that to be the work of the Death Busters. Additionally, various monster attacks happened, which probably came from both of their enemies at the same time.

As concerning as these news were, there was little they could do. They simply couldn't go to the other side of the city on a whim and Setsuna simply did get the news too late to do something. After all, her precognition only kicked in when the lives of the Senshi and those around them were at stake. This did limit her options

They didn't like this, but there was nothing they could do for the time being.

"Not only you," Naru agreed. "Although I could have lived without these funny looks Haruka and Michiru have given us."

Well, Haruka and Michiru certainly seemed to have enjoyed the show of the girls only wearing a loincloth. Thankfully this had been tempered by the fact that both of them had been totally naked, not yet having earned the right to wear a loincloth. It was clear that as much as they enjoyed looking, training in the nude was not their idea of fun.

"I don't know why you girls are complaining. It wasn't that hard," Makoto said innocently.

Usagi gave her an annoyed look. "Not everyone can be as strong as you or Akane. I still wonder where she gets all that strength." Usagi then remembered something. "Although, have you seen fast Ami was eating before running out? I bet Ranma wants to show her something."

"It's really great to have a boyfriend..." Makoto said, looking a bit dreamy.

Naru laughed. "You only say this because there is a certain someone who waited on you personally after our training," Naru teased, remembering how Mu-Tsu and Makoto had looked quite happy. "When are you taking him out on a date?"

Makoto now looked a little shy. "We- we are taking our time. I admit it's not like in my fantasies, where Prince Charming sweeps me off my feet, but it feels far more personal this way."

Usagi gave her an interesting look. "Hey, that's what Mamoru and me figured out as well. It's far nicer when you do this in your own pace. No way as well that we feel obligated to Serenity and Endymion." She then looked to Naru. "By the way, what is it with you and Umino? I would have never thought after all these years..."

Naru blushed a little. "I know we've known him since middle school, but I didn't expect him to be this different from his public image. Right now we are just friends; still testing out the waters. If there is something, it'll take time for us to discover."

"You are not the only one," Makoto remarked.

Everyone knew she meant Akane with this. The girl, while really liking Ryo, was quite a bit shy when it came to that kind of interaction with boys. While part of it clearly was because of the gauntlet she had suffered, the girl also seemed to be naturally shy around the matter, trying to cover it up with bravado. An odd contrast to her otherwise outgoing personality.

"Hey, girls, you three are friends of Ranma, correct?"

Interrupted in their conversation, they looked up, seeing an elderly shop owner having stepped out of his grocery shop. "Yes, but how do you know him?" Naru asked.

"Well, his mother has been a regular customer of mine for way over a decade now. I even remember Ranma when he was a little kid, clinging to his mother's kimono and looking around in wonder when they were at my shop. He certainly has become a fine young man, doing the shopping when his mother doesn't have the time," the shop owner explained.

Usagi had the feeling this wasn't a social call. "Is there something wrong with him?"

"Not with Ranma himself, but there is something you need to know." He looked a bit troubled. "Ten minutes ago, a boy only a little older than him asked for directions to the Saotome house, claiming to be Ranma looking for his home."

They had to admit that this was really suspicious. "What did he look like and what did you do?" Makoto asked.

"He looked like your average boy, but his outfit was strange. He was wearing military-style pants in camouflage colors and a muscle shirt, carrying a backpack. I did tell him I don't know any Saotomes and he left; I was unsure if I should notify the police, even though identity theft and pretending to be someone else is a serious offense."

The girls knew they should better tell Ranma straight away. It smelled of trouble.

Short time later saw Ranma giving them strange looks while processing what he'd been told.

"Let's get this straight. There's some guy out there pretending to be me and he's looking for our house?" Seeing the girls nod, he looked to his father. "Pop, any idea? That smells of one of your skeletons being dragged out of the closet and the description was not exactly helpful."

Genma scratched his head while trying to see if he could remember anything. Finally he admitted defeat. "Honestly, I have no idea who he could be, though we clearly won't have to wait for too long to find out. After all, sooner or later he will find his way here."

"Just great. Do me a favor and own up to whatever happened. After all, there's a ten to one chance that this is your mess," Ranma sighed.

At least he's no longer trying to make me straighten out his messes, Ranma added silently. That was a big plus to his father's new lifestyle.

Nodoka shook her head in resignation. "It's like we have to get used to your past transgressions catching up with you." -rrrriiiing- The doorbell interrupted the silence following following her observation. "That's probably him. Let's see what really is behind this."

Opening the front door, she was greeted with a young man fitting the description. "Excuse me, are you Nodoka Saotome?" he asked her, although she could tell his insecurity was just an act.

"Yes, that is me."

"Oh, finally! I'm Ranma, your son."

Nodoka didn't want this farce to continue for any longer. "Well, you are certainly not, since my son Ranma is right here," she told him coldly while Ranma appeared beside her, giving the pretender a cold look. "Who are you really and why are you pretending to be my son?"

The nervous facade dropped right then and the stranger's features hardened. "He's here... That means his father is here as well. Where is he?!"

Genma right then had walked around the house and appeared at the front. "What is your beef with me, boy, and how dare you to drag my family into it?" It was clear that Genma wasn't amused.

"YOU!" Clearly the stranger did recognize him. "Where is it!? Hand over the scroll before you regret it!"

Genma still had no idea who that guy was, although demanding a scroll sounded familiar. "Nobody demands things from me in my own home. Better be more specific before I remove you from this place."

The stranger pulled a scroll out of his pocket and showed it to Genma. "THIS! I'm Ryu Kumon and this scroll you gave my father caused the whole disaster! Give me the other scroll, or I'll force you into doing so!"

Finally it clicked for Genma. "I gave that to your father, thinking he would be careful enough. No, I won't give you the other scroll; this is nothing to be toyed with."

"You gave me no choice!" Dropping his backpack, Kumon attacked Genma and the battle was on.

Ranma was about to jump into the fray, but Nodoka held him back. "Mom?" he wondered.

"This is your father's fight. Whatever happened, he is taking responsibility for this mess and wants to subdue this hooligan himself."

"If you think so..." Ranma was itching to jump into this fight, but he wouldn't dare to disobey his mother. "Still, you'll probably need to remodel the garden after they are done."

"I know..." she sighed, feeling annoyed that this would be the second time her garden would get ruined.

The girls by now had joined them, watching in sick fascination how Genma and Kumon were starting to decimate the garden with their attacks. Kumon was the far more destructive of the two, using attacks that cause tremendous damage to his surroundings. The guy clearly didn't care for the damage he was causing. Genma did seem to study him, not yet going all-out.

"What did he learn to cause this much damage?" Ami wondered when seeing Kumon ripping a trench into the garden without much effort, and very much to Nodoka's horror.

"Better question would be what happened that he's so pissed at Ranma's father," Makoto added, finding all the property damage from a fight without magic strangely fascinating.

"Well, one thing is clear: if you want the garden back to normal, that's Pop's job" Ranma told his mother. Her pained look at seeing her garden getting reduced to a wasteland the second time couldn't be worse.

Finally Genma knew everything he needed to. "Boy, you are using the technique but are clearly ignorant it was never meant to replace years of training and experience."

What followed was downright brutal. For a man of his bulk, Genma was obscenely fast and his sheer muscle mass gave him a strength advantage. Blows rained down on Ryu Kumon left and right and whenever he tried to attack Genma with a destructive blast, Genma blinked out for a second before appearing several meters away, cleverly using his invisibility as if it was meant to counter Kumon's technique.

"You won't beat me by being a one-trick-pony," Genma scolded Kumon for his very one-sided fighting style.

It finally ended when an exhausted Kumon was sent to the ground, from where he he couldn't get up due to how tired he felt. "Dman it..." he groaned.

Pulling the scroll out of Kumon's pocket, Genma looked at it. "I gifted your father with this scroll so he can stabilize his finances. So, what happened?"

Kumon growled but gave in. "He trained with it in the dojo and your damn techinque caused it to collapse! You are responsible for his death. So I set out to find those names mentioned on the back of the scroll and avenge him by getting the other scroll."

Genma shook his head. "Deluded fool..."

"You're one to talk," Kumon spat.

Genma gave him a look of pity. "Well, you now have to take responsibility for your actions." He then seemed to deflate a bit. "We all have to do that... It is something I finally understand."

Some time later Ryu Kumon had been collected by the police, since identity theft and especially attacking someone in their own home were serious offenses. After everyone had given their statements, and the officer in charge had commented this house seemed to attract weirdos, they had gathered in the family room. The whole story didn't make any sense to anyone except Genma, therefore they all waited for him to finally explain what was going on.

Seeing this, Genma put the scroll from Kumon onto the table, then pulled a very similar-looking scroll out of his pocket, putting it beside the first scroll. "This whole mess started during the training trip. Kumon's father owned a dojo which had fallen on hard times. When we said our goodbyes, I gifted him with the very scroll the young fool had on his person."

Ami took a closer look at both scrolls. "What's so special about these scrolls?"

"These are the two styles I created myself. The Umisenken and the Yamasenken. I'll spare you the details. The Umisenken puts an emphasis on stealth and is where my invisibility comes from. The Yamasenken puts an emphasis on power and is what the fool used so carelessly," Genma explained.

"You developed something this destructive?" Usagi asked, suddenly realizing that there indeed was much more to Genma Saotome than it seemed at first.

Genma grimaced. "I'm not proud of it. I created them during my time with Happosai and their purpose is highly colored by his influence. The Umisenken essentially is for stealthy theft and burglary and the Yamasenken would have been used for breaking into houses with brute force."

"Genma..." Nodoka had never learned about this, although she could see her husband was quite embarrassed about this fact by now.

"I learned them, but never used them for that. Nonetheless, I gifted Kumon Senior with the Yamasenken in a strange logic that he can fill up his coffers with it and gave a warning to be careful when training it. Considering he trained it inside his dojo and caused it to collapse on him, I wasn't clear enough on my warning."

All of them looked at these scrolls; which looked so harmless and yet contained such deadly secrets.

"Some time later I grew uncomfortable keeping the other scroll on my person, so I sent it home and recently found it in storage here," Genma finished his explanation.

"Oh, now I remember," Nodoka said when taking a closer look at the scrolls. "I was quite confused when I got this with the mail. It looked important, so I put it to your other things which I had stored under the roof."

"So, what do you plan with these now?" Ranma asked and no one could miss the hope in this question.

"I had originally planned to burn them." Ranma looked alarmed at this, but Genma held up his hand. "However, considering your recent change of career... They are yours. You'll need them."

"Really?!" Ranma had expected his father to put up a fight, but to just give them for free?

"They used to be burglary tools, but maybe you can use them for something better," Genma admitted.

"Husband, you have grown so much I sometimes can't believe it..." Nodoka said with pride at his decision.

Ranma and the girls quickly left so they wouldn't have to witness the following public display of affection.

"I know Mom has no qualms about embarrassing me, but that was a bit sudden even for her. She's been a bit strange recently. More emotional and set on keeping the house clean," Ranma said while not wanting to imagine his parents kissing.

Ami and Usagi sighed. "Not only your mother," Ami confessed. "My mother recently acts different from normal as well. Not that you notice it a lot, especially when she acts professionally, but at home she insists I don't make a mess, despite her knowing I never do that."

"My mother as well. Good thing Shingo is the usual target of her strange mood. She's grown far less tolerant of his antics recently," Usagi added.

Ranma had a strange feeling about this. "I hope it's not spreading."


...September 12th, Saotome house...

"Congratulations Ranma and Ami to your 17th birthday!" was written on a banner hanging on the side of the house.

While most of the garden still looked like a mess thanks to Kumon, the area next to the family room had been spared from destruction and now housed the birthday party in question. The still good weather and fact that it would have been difficult to make enough room inside the house were the main reasons for the outside location. Technically, Ami's birthday had been two days ago, but she had agreed that having one big party instead of two separate ones made much more sense.

For both of them this was a first.

Ami had always celebrated her birthday with just her parents in a very private setting due to never having friends for most of her life. Ranma couldn't even remember having ever celebrated his birthday and only recently even understood the significance of it. Their friends thus wanted to make sure it would be a great day for both of them.

Ami had technically known what to expect, but this being the first time her birthday got celebrated big, she felt very, very happy. It felt like a great warmness around her that she now got so many people caring for her. Even her awkwardness when she had no idea how to act was not seen as something bad - instead her friends seemed to see it as a sign they had to help her and gently ease her into all of it.

Ranma at the same time couldn't help but to wonder how much he had missed in life due to the trip. Ever since returning home, he had found that all the simple things in life, that others took for granted, felt like a huge revelation to him. He couldn't even imagine now to ever return to the road. This... this was now his world. While the art would always be a big part of his life, he now had more than just it and wouldn't want it to be any other way.

Both of them were happy and through the bond between them, it felt like a bright sun had risen and now gave them warmth.

The celebrations also gave them something to enjoy, since the continuing news of attacks happening outside of their range of reaction was starting to make them painfully aware how the Dark Kingdom had vast resources at its disposal. The enemy no longer had to fear getting interrupted by them, which was a sobering thought.

Amidst the celebrations meanwhile, Usagi looked downright astonished at Hotaru, who was busy with the remnants of her current cake slice.

"Three huge slices of cake... Hoartu, where does it all go?" Usagi finally asked her, wondering how someone her size could eat so much without any trouble - Horatu even looked like she could want some more.

Hotaru gave Usagi an innocent smile. "I was really hungry."

That was an understatement. Ever since her getting freed, Hotaru had developed a big appetite, which actually was seen as a good thing since she seriously needed to gain weight. To their astonishment, someone a petite as Hotaru being such a big eater seemed downright impossible. The girl however didn't seem bothered by their curiosity at all, simply finding delight in being well-fed finally actually doing something.

"Looks like you've got some competition in that regard, Bunny, " Mamoru joked, then saw the look the girl gave him. "What? It never bothered you to admit it. After all, you've still managed to stay as slim as you are."

Usagi couldn't help but to blush a little at being called slim. After all, like every girl, she was concerned about her looks and getting positive feedback was good for her ego.

Hoatru couldn't help but to find this all very interesting. People forgot the kid in the room quite fast whenever they got sidetracked. She hadn't witnessed normal human interaction for most of her life, so this all was a first for her. Being around so many people who were all friendly to her and found her cute and adorable was almost overwhelming. For the first time in years, life was great.

Akane and Ryo meanwhile got teased mercilessly.

"You have to admit, it does look like you two are on a date," Minako teased in good spirit while talking with Akane and Ryo.

"Minako! I sincerely doubt a birthday party counts as a date," Akane protested, then added a bit more quietly "And we are only friends. There's really nothing going on with us."

"Yes, only friends," Ryo said, looking uncomfortable with being teased like this. "Even though I saw something for our future, that's not now."

Minako giggled. "Well, that means it's only a matter of time."

Ryo groaned and Akane could only shake her head. "You are taking your whole thing about love a little too serious."

Minako didn't show it and didn't blame Akane for the reminder, but she was a bit hurt nonetheless. After all, her powers of Venus were now crippled for almost half a year already. She was convinced the curse was real; stopping her from ever finding love herself. Of course she was now was overcompensating for it by being overly interested in the love life of her friends.

After Minako had excused herself, Ryo shook his head. "I know she means well, but she really needs to find a boyfriend. This can't be healthy."

"Good luck finding someone who can keep up with her." Akane then took a bite from the food. "I really envy those who can cook. I guess I'll never get there."

"Aren't you getting better? I thought you told me you got around the problem you can't get sick from bad food," Ryo observed.

"I finally got the basics down. However, don't expect me to become as good as Ranma's mother or even Makoto. Learning as little as I did already was a chore."

She did remember Makoto's cooking lessons after she'd returned to Minato ward. Makoto, after several failures which had nearly driven the girl to despair, had found one way she could hammer some cooking skills into her. Makoto had turned into a drill sergeant who made sure that she would do exactly as told, do exactly as was written in the instructions, stay focused on what she was doing and not get creative. This harsh regime of command and obedience had worked in so far, in that she finally got the basics down - at least it was a start.

"Well, if it helps, I have not foreseen any disasters caused by you in a kitchen," Ryo added innocently, causing Akane to give him an irritated look. Ryo gave her an innocent smile in return.

"Ah-em!" Nodoka asked for attention. "If you allow me, I need to kidnap the birthday children for a few minutes. There's one final gift I want to give them together, but it's quite private so we'll go upstairs for a moment."

Ami and Ranma followed her into the house, unable to ignore the gossiping that sprung up as soon as Nodoka had finished her announcement. of course a private gift was food for speculations, especially the way in which she would reveal it to the pair. Some of the girls clearly had a bit too much of an imagination as well, judging by the blush some of them sported.

What kind of gift would need us to go inside? Ami wondered.

I have the feeling Mom is about to embarrass us in some way, Ranma felt, knowing her too well by now.

A few minutes later Nodoka walked back downstairs alone. It took a few more minutes before Ranma and Ami entered the upper floor corridor, trying to keep their blushes after control, which proved to be very difficult.

"I can't believe she bought us that," Ami said, mortified.

"Well, I can. You remember how happy she was that we finally decided to make this last step," Ranma reminded her. "Would have been less embarrassing if it hadn't been a gift from my Mom."

Ami swallowed hard. "It... certainly looked well-made, especially with all of it in that wooden box. I was surprised it was made so that the attachment could be swapped."

"Remember, she said the various thicknesses make it easier for both of us. Honestly, I can understand me using it on you and you on me when we are both girls, even though I'm still a bit spooked at the idea, but the sheer idea of me as a guy back there..." Ranma grimaced.

Ami knew what he was talking about. "Don't forget she said it's about equality in a relationship, and besides that said we should also try it there while we are both girls. At least that bottle was included to make it easier... back there."

Ranma gave Ami a long look. "You are actually thinking we should use it in time."

If possible, Ami blushed even more. "I admit... I'm curious."

If Ranma had to be honest, he was a little curious as well. "Maybe when we feel more comfortable about that. My Mom really knows how to embarrass us. What a birthday gift... No way we'll even breathe to anyone what her gift is."

"Yes, no way." Ami did remember how the girls had grilled her about her first time with Ranma - especially embarrassing when Haruka and Michiru had given some 'suggestions' to spice it up - and she had no wish to live through this again.

Ranma then groaned. "Man, we'll have interesting dreams... Let's hope our bond won't act up, otherwise that would be kind of messy for both of us."

Ami knew exactly what Ranma was talking about. They hadn't had any shared dreams for quite some time, so they had to expect one soon. Now with this gift, this was bound to be a very interesting experience. The gift, which was now resting in its wooden box under Ranma's bed, had caused their imagination to start working. Who said being horny teenagers would be easy?

They loved each other, but they could live without causing a mess in their beds thanks to a shared dream.


...the next day, another ward of Tokyo...

"Better hurry. No need to awaken sleeping dogs," Jadeite called down to several Youma, who were busy with dragging their kidnapping victims to the tubes where they would be drained of all their energy.

"We are working as fast as we can, Master Jadeite," one of the grunts called back, straining with the struggling man he was holding on.

"Wouldn't it be better to stun them first? That way we would not have to endure them struggling," Tethys asked, being a bit puzzled about this strategy.

"It's a good point, but doesn't apply to our current situation," Jadeite explained. "We need to spread terror in order to draw out the Senshi and make them desperate enough that they the work for us by starting the search for the Golden Crystal. The energy gain is just a bonus. The sheer looks of terror on the bodies helps a lot to convey the message."

"I didn't think of it this way," Tethys admitted while trying to ignore the screams from the portable draining tubes. "Well, a few more of them, then we re-locate again."

That was another part of their tactic; to never stay in one place for too long. After all, they were not eager on unwelcome visitors and they were not meant for a full brawl anyway. Their mission was terror, not trying to confront the Senshi and gain the Silver Crystal from them. That would be left to a proper strike team with high-power hitters.

-scccreeeeetttchhhhh- "What ...?" Jadeite wondered when hearing the sound of screeching tires nearby. -CRASSSHHHHH- Several Youma had to run when suddenly a white station wagon smashed through the roller gate of the place in which they had set up shop. Screams filled the air when the victims they'd transported, and now let go, ran away in terror through the destroyed gate.

As soon as the car had stopped, a redhead, wearing a lab coat and holding a big, strange gun, jumped out. She then saw what she had gotten into. "Damn! Just wanted to get another one and now I have run into our competition."

Jadeite had no idea who this was, but to be honest he also didn't care too much. That bitch had disrupted their operation and would now pay for it. He jumped down to the ground level and all Youma quickly gathered around him. "You must either be really brave or really stupid to bust in like this. Who do you think you are?"

The woman smirked. "Oh, I know exactly who I am. I'm Eudial, a member of the Death Busters, and you were using my target. This is unacceptable."

"You must be completely stupid..." Tethys bristled at the sheer gall this woman had: first crashing their operation and then acting like this. She would have loved to rip her a new one for this, but Jadeite held her by the shoulder to show to keep back for now.

"I honestly don't know how stupid you are. For disrupting our activities, you won't leave here alive anyway. Better pray now that there is anything you can do to stop my Youma from ripping you into pieces," Jadeite told Eudial coldly while the other Youma slowly advanced towards the car.

"Oh." Eudial only now seemed to realize that she was in quite a fix.

"Any last words?" Tethys gloated.

"Yes." The redhead regained her cool. "Daimon, emerge!"

Suddely the tailgate of the station wagon sprang open, right away followed by a metal box in the cargo compartment. Thick smoke rushed out of the box, swirling like a tornado before forming into a humanoid shape. When the smoke dissipated, the creature standing before the Youma looked female in stature, but with wax-like skin - which was literal, as melted wax dripped down from her constantly.

"Candelabra, take care of this problem!" Eudial commanded while fleeing back to her car.

The Daimon said nothing, but aimed her arms at the Youma and suddenly flames and jets of ultra-hot wax shot out of her palms. Faced with sudden danger, the Youma scattered - but one still got caught and engulfed in flames, burning him down to a piles of ashes in mere seconds.

Jadeite now was pissed. In the chaos that had ensued, this bitch had escaped into her car and with screeching tires fled the scene as fast as possible. The simple infiltration Youma he had taken on this little mission, not suited for battling something like this, had trouble against something like this. He'd already lost two more of them.

"Damn it...!" he growled, preparing to cut down this thing, when Tethys stopped him. She had turned to full-Youma, her red eyes burning with anger.

"Allow me, Master Jadeite..." she said, then jumped into the fray.

Jadeite watched impressed how Tethys first blasted the monster with several water jets, putting out the fire and causing the wax to harden significantly, before attacking with a fury of claw strikes, ripping out entire chunks with ease. The monster howled and tried to shake her off, but Tethys was no rookie and continued to rip her foe apart. Some moments later it was over and the monster was reduced to a pile of wax, a crystal seed breaking on the floor and the dark energy dissipating.

"Very impressive," Jadeite commented while Tethys morphed back.

"Really? Thank you, Master Jadeite!" Tethys said, actually blushing at being praised.

Jadeite then looked around and knew the whole operation was a bust. Several Youma got destroyed, the new victims had fled and soon the authorities would rush in. It would be time to cut their losses. He also wanted to report to Queen Beryl as quick as possible, since this concerned him deeply. They had not counted on running someone else who had magical powers as well - someone whose intentions were obviously quite dark as well.

"Shatter all of our equipment! Leave the dead bodies where they are! Once this is done, retreat to the Dark Kingdom," he ordered.

"Master Jadeite, I honestly have no idea who had just attacked us," Tethys said, finding the entire thing quite puzzling. After all, as far as they knew, there shouldn't have been another faction capable of creating such monsters.

Jadeite looked quite unhappy. "That's what's concerning me. We have to report to the queen as soon as possible. Regardless who they are, they are clearly dangerous and we can't let this stand. No one attacks the Dark Kingdom and gets away with this."


...Dark Kingdom, shortly after the battle...

"Master! I bring grave news," Beryl reported as soon as she was kneeling in front of Metallia's container.

Once Jadeite had relayed the report of the attack on his Youma squad to her, she knew her master had to be informed right away. This was a serious problem, one that Metallia had to be informed of as soon as possible. They had not planned for someone else to cause them trouble. This was as unfortunate as it was dangerous; that much she knew.

"I do sense great disturbance within you," Metiallia observed.

"Master, someone else not from this world is claiming what is rightfully ours. There was a confrontation and while victory was ours, a few of our infiltration Youma got destroyed," Beryl reported, greatly unsettled by this turn of events.

Metallia was silent for a moment, as if to ponder the ramifications of this revelation. "Who would be foolish enough to stand against us and try to claim what is ours?"

"They call themselves the Death Busters and operate under the symbol of a black, five-pointed star," Beryl described the only hints her troops had gathered.

Suddenly the liquid in the container looked like it was boiling, the shadowy mass in it taking the form of a skull. "Pharaoh 90..." Metallia hissed, clearly angered. "An interstellar destroyer of worlds known to me. These are his minions. How dare he to interfere in our matters?!"

Beryl was a bit surprised at this strong burst of anger. There had to be some sort of history. "What are your orders, master? We are now entering a two-front war."

"The Pharaoh is dangerous. Begin to aggressively increase your numbers. Kill the minions of the Pharaoh whenever possible." Metallia then stopped for a moment. "Yes, yes. Known to me is the perfect dupe who can distract the Senshi so that we can regroup - a queen so vain, that the truth is the greatest weapon against her."

"Her? She was defeated by Queen Serenity without much effort. How could she buy us sufficient time?" Beryl found that a bit difficult to believe.

"Yes. Foolish Queen of the Dead Moon, bathing in her own self-deception. The perfect dupe she is. Not only a good distraction but also good to drive our enemies to do what we want them to."

"I do not doubt your decision, Master, yet I cannot help but to think she will turn against us in time."

"No long-time problem, since she of course will get destroyed by our enemies, but it never was intended to have her a permanent player anyway. She is the perfect distraction for our enemies. Leave her to me and concentrate on your tasks. My strength is already great enough for this matter."

Beryl bowed to her queen and master. "As you order..."

o

No one understands true beauty. No one expect for me...

Nehellenia floated in this void created by Queen Serenity, who had felt that instead of death, being trapped within her own delusion would be a more fitting punishment for her crimes. Countless mirrors in this realm would only reflect her narcissistic desires, thus keeping her content. Nothing did disturb her her from her dreams, from imagining herself being the forever young, beautiful ruler over everyone else. She didn't even know she was in this place any longer, this long she was already floating in this place. Time meant nothing in this place.

While she could be described as beautiful, the sickly purple skin, pointed ears and slitted pupils of her eyes were really off-putting. Add to it her strange sense of fashion - her dress looked like being made for a funeral as black as it was and it seemed crossed with a dominatrix outfit - and she no longer held the interest of any man without even revealing her nasty personality.

However, her delusion was about to get interrupted.

"Queen of the Dead Moon, Nehellenia."

Slowly she opened her eyes. "Who... interrupts my beauty? My world?"

"You cherish your beauty, yet you continue to live in darkness."

"Who dares to disturb me in my happiness?" Looking around, Nehellenia spotted... something in the darkness; faintly glowing eyes watching her.

"Someone who knows you were wronged. Someone who can help you to fulfill your greatest dream."

"My dream...?" Suddenly the mirrors around her shattered, as did the darkness. Shielding her eyes, Nehellenia only daring to open them after some moments... to see that she was looking down on Earth itself. "What is this?! Why are you doing this?"

"You pride yourself with your beauty, yet you missed something which will forever put you into the shadows."

Before her eyes she saw pictures... Pictures of the Senshi. Looking different than she remembered them. "They are alive? But I rule over everything! They should no longer exist!" She looked to the eyes. "Why are you doing this? Do you intend on humiliating me?!"

"Poor Queen of the Dead Moon. Serenity left you in the darkness, kept silent with lies, while she lived on and her legacy came of age. For all these years you never realized that she made you live a great lie."

Nehellenia looked shocked at Sailor Moon and her then turning into Princess Serenity. Bathed in the light of the Silver Crystal, she looked shockingly beautiful. Nehellenia trembled. "But, that means I lost... She made a fool of me."

"Yes, poor Queen of the Dead Moon. Look how her beautiful daughter is living on, laughing, happy and thus making fun of your failure. Do you really want to forgive them?"

"No..." She trembled, tears of rage escaping her eyes. "NEVER!"

Screaming this as loud as she could, light burst out of her chest, forming something in front of Nehellenia. Looking at it, she saw a mirror which she could hold comfortably in her hands. It didn't look that out of the ordinary, with the exception that its ornamental frame was black. She looked at it in wonder, pondering where it could have come from.

"What is this?" she wondered, taking hold of the mirror.

"This is your dream mirror; an embodiment of your true self: as black as pitch, exactly like your heart, full of anger and hatred. This will be your instrument of revenge."

Nehellenia looked into the mirror and felt its powers. It indeed was her own dark heart she held in her hands. "Yes... YES! Now they will pay... SHE will pay for what her mother did to me!"

"Be warned however. Like the mirror can give you tremendous power, its destruction will rob you of your life..." The voice then faded away.

"I won't keep it in harm's way..." Nehellenia whispered while looking down at the planet in hatred, knowing the ones she hated - especially one in particular - were down there somewhere. No, they would not be able to escape her.

She would make sure of that.

to be continued...

Next Episode:

"Dark Mercury"


Notes:

Here the notes.

Due to how much exposition was needed in this chapter, I couldn't do as much character development. Thankfully, now that all the exposition is finally done, I can again concentrate more on the characters. Next chapter will be character-heavy anyway, as the title already hints.

Now, before you think so: Nehellenia won't be here for too long. As Metallia said, she'll be a sacrificial pawn. I always hated her character as not nearly as interesting as the previous big bads. However, I did find a use for her in the context of the story.

I also never liked Ryu Kumon, whose father was a complete moron for killing himself like that. Since I inject relaity anyways, his identity theft is treated as a crime. Of course attacking someone in the own home is even more of a crime. It also gave me the chance to show how much Genma has changed and he's now taking responsibility for the messes he created.

That was the first blow between the Dark Kingdom and the Death Busters. They'll now clash regularly.

Finally, concerning the birthday gift... I was interntionally vague. Use your imagination. Of course if you think you got it, tell me in your reviews. I didn't spell it out, since they two deserve some privacy (he he).