SailorStar9: You ladies wanted this chapter, so here goes. This is Chapter 33 of this fic; and please be a dear and review.
Disclaimers: I do not own the animes. But I do own the pairing, I hope.
Chapter 33: Coming Terror! The Dark Queen's Evil Approach
In her 'Dream Mirror'...
"Helios..." Nehellenia looked at the body of her obsession. "Exactly whose dream are you hiding inside? Your body has fallen into my hands and you no longer have the means to go against me. So irritating! This chance that I get only once in several centuries, I no longer have any time to waste, and yet...! Zirconia!" she barked. "When exactly are you going to find the owner of the Golden Mirror?"
"Yes..." Zirconia stammered.
"I can't leave it in your hands any longer!" Nehellenia snapped and proceeded to reach out to the outside world, before retreating her hand when the light of the outside world burnt her hand.
"Nehellenia-sama!" Zirconia gasped.
"How irritating." Nehellenia growled. The light that fills this world does away with all the powers of darkness inside my body. If only I could get out of this place, I could make sure all of those from the White Moon are dead. If only I had the Golden Crystal, turning this world into that of complete darkness would be easier than twisting the arm of a baby. "Damnit!" she cursed. This world filled with accursed light, become that of shadow befitting of me, the Queen of the New Moon! She cast her spell, covering both the Dead Moon Circus and the outside world with spider threads.
In the Tsukino household...
"Chibi-Usa, you're going to be late." Ikuko called.
"Oh boy, I don't want to do this marathon." Chibi-Usa whined.
"Usagi said that she'll treat you to anything if you successfully finish the race." Ikuko reminded. "So, do your best."
"Oh brother, if it would rain, they would cancel it." Chibi-Usa sighed.
"Too bad." Ikuko chuckled. "It looks like you''ll have great weather all day. When there is dew glistening on a spider web, it mean it'll be a sunny day." she added, looking a a spider's web between two branches.
"Drats." Chibi-Usa pouted.
"Now, don't waste your time any longer." Ikuko prodded. "Be on your way."
"Yeah..." Chibi-Usa sighed and went her way.
"Take care." Ikuko called. "Oh?" she blinked. "But it's strange, a spider web at this time of the year?"
In the marathon...
"Do your best!" the girls cheered. "Hang in there, Chibi-Usa! Go, go! Go for it! Woowo! You can do it!"
"Oh, there she goes!" Usagi beamed. "There she goes!"
"Was that it?" Minako was disappointed.
"You want to head over towards the finish line?" Makoto suggested.
"But would we make it there in time?" Ami wondered.
"Mamoru and the guys are waiting over at the finish line, right?" Minako reminded. "How about we head over to the Crown now and wait for them there?"
"Yeah, let's do that." Usagi agreed. "But, they sure work themselves really hard on a Sunday morning with this marathon and all."
"But, it feels good to run at full strength." Makoto pointed out.
"Minako, I'm sure you did a lot of that when you were on the volley ball team." Rei noted.
"Of course I did." Minako replied. "But, now I don't think I want to run on my own will at all."
"Yeah, you're so right." Usagi agreed.
"Let's see, I don't think I like running all that much either." Ami remarked.
"Oh, that's unusual." Minako noted. "I thought that you would be one to like that kind of stuff, Ami."
"I think it fits me better to leisurely swim than get all sweaty running." Ami reasoned. "Maybe I'm a sloth at heart."
"You don't call someone who brings a book along to cheer on a marathon a sloth." Usagi stated as another spider thread descended down and Ami walked right through it.
At the finish line...
"Oh, there she comes." Aurora pointed enthusiastically at the incoming Chibi-Usa.
"Small Lady is in first place!" Diana squealed.
"She's amazing." Eos agreed.
"You did your best, didn't you?" Enyo asked, the chibi Senshi approaching the exhausted Moon Senshi with their fathers in tow.
"Small Lady." Diana added.
"Guys!" Chibi-Usa beamed.
"You were amazing, Small Lady." Kore gushed.
"I was touched!" Psych agreed. "Nothing less from the future Princess."
"Oh Psych-nee-chan." Chibi-Usa waved the praise aside.
"She grows up so fast." Aurora told her sister, wiping fake tears off her eyes.
"Now, let's hurry." Thomas chuckled at his daughters' antics. "Nymph and the others are waiting over at the Crown."
"Mamoru-sama!" Diana gasped when Mamoru winced after getting hit by a spider web.
"Mamo-chan?" Chibi-Usa asked. "What's wrong?"
"No, I just tripped over myself." Mamoru replied. "It's alright."
"Are you sure?" Thomas asked, doctor instinct kicking in.
"Yeah." Mamoru assured.
"Mamoru-sama." Diana stated.
"No need to worry." Mamoru got to his feet. "Now, let's go."
Chibi-Usa nodded, unconvinced as more and more spider threads descended.
In the Game Center...
"Oh damnit!" Minako cursed, struggling against a fighting arcade. "Why can't I get any of the moves out?"
"Hey guys, let's get going soon." Ami reminded. "We'll be late."
"Oh geez Ami, you're such a worrywart." Usagi chided. "Ami..." she trailed, noticing the torn off spider web in Ami's hair. "Because you're nit-picking so much..."
"Usagi, what's is it?" Ami inquired.
"A gray hair?" Usagi picked the spider web out of Ami's hair.
"You're kidding!" Minako gasped.
"Wait, really?" Ami blinked.
"It just has to be because she studies so much." Makoto concluded.
"This isn't gray hair." Ami inspected the strand.
"It's not a hair, but more like..." Makoto agreed.
"A spider's thread." Rei finished.
"But at this time of the year?" Ami wondered. "I wonder where it got stuck."
"There's a huge one up there." Usagi pointed to a spider's web on a wall.
"How does it get on Ami's hair from there?" Rei deathpanned.
"But in any case, that's huge." Makoto noted.
"I wonder if Motoki isn't cleaning up around here." Minako mused.
"This is what you get from guys, I tell you." Makoto sweatdropped.
"Let's get going now." Ami chuckled. "We'll really be late."
"Yeah, you're right." Usagi agreed.
Outside the Game Center...
"Huh?" Usagi blinked as the girls stepped out. "Isn't it a little dark out?"
"Considering we just encountered a spider's (kumo) web, we're seeing some clouds (kumo)!" Minako joked. "Just kidding!"
"Minako..." the girls sighed at the lame joke.
"But, there aren't that many clouds up there." Ami pointed out. "We probably feel that way because we suddenly came out into a bright area so suddenly. Well, let's go."
"Yeah." Usagi agreed. "But it sure is like you, Ami. What you say is so scientific."
In Crown...
"You're late!" Chibi-Usa fumed. "I'm sure that you guys were just wasting time somewhere along the way. You promised, right?" she reminded Usagi who was looking through the menu. "That if I finished the race, you would treat me to anything I want."
Outside Crown...
"Oh brother, why did we come all the way out here?" Makoto sighed, the group exiting.
"It's all Usagi's fault." Rei stated. "You were the one who wanted to stop by the arcades for a little bit."
"Rei, you tagged along, too." Usagi reminded.
"Oh brother..." Mamoru sighed.
"Mamoru-sama?" Diana echoed when Mamoru was hit by another spider thread and stumbled against the railing.
"Mamo-chan?" Usagi hurried back. "What's wrong?"
"No, nothing." Mamoru assured.
"You're acting somewhat strangely today, Mamoru." Thomas stated.
"You did this earlier too." Kouki agreed.
"Earlier?" Usagi echoed.
"No, it's really nothing." Mamoru assured.
"This is..." Usagi plucked the spider's thread from Mamoru's shirt.
"Mamoru, what's wrong?" Rei asked, the girls hurrying back.
"Are you alright?" Minako inquired.
"A spider's thread?" Hitoshi peered at the string.
"A spider's thread again?" Rei blinked.
"We're really coming across them a lot today." Minako added.
"It is strange after all." Ami concluded.
"Why?" Makoto wondered. "It's not like spiders are that uncommon."
"But..." Ami voiced.
"Oh, what's wrong, guys?" Unazuki poked her head out. "All standing around there like that?"
"No, it's just something with spiders." Yuichiro replied.
"Spiders?" Unazuki echoed. "Again? I'm getting so sick of this! Where, where is it?"
"Unazuki, what do you mean, again?" Thomas asked, suspicion aroused.
"This is the fifth one today." Unazuki replied. "I feel like it's useless to get rid of one after another."
"It is strange after all." Ami concluded. "That there are so many spiders during winter. Usagi, can I have that thread? I'm going to analyze it a bit after I get home."
Usagi nodded and handed the thread to Ami.
"Hey." Hitoshi voiced. "Doesn't it seem like it really is getting dark out?"
"Yeah, come to think of it." Makoto agreed.
"It's not like it's cloudy." Kouki noted. "It's strange."
In her 'Dream Mirror'...
"What I have in my hands, I must make sure is worthy of being in my hands." Nehellenia stated. "Everything with a cursed glimmer, with the powers of me, Nehellenia, I will cover them all in the darkness of the New Moon. Zirconia!" she barked.
"Yes." Zirconia replied.
"Ride atop this darkness that I will create and find the Golden Mirror." Nehellenia instructed. "Find who Pegasus is staying inside. We must activate the Golden Crystal in these hands. There is no time to waste. Do you understand?"
"Yes!" Zirconia bowed.
Commercial Break.
The image is black for several seconds, then car engines start roaring in the background.
Voice-off Announcer: This time, the speed may be too much to handle.
The camera now switches to a highway, and we can see several cars racing through it.
VO A: This time, the adrenaline will run faster than ever.
The camera zooms in to one of the cars, a blue Lamborghini Diablo with some crescent moon-shaped blades strategically placed around it. The driver's none other than Usagi Tsukino.
VO A: This time, it doesn't matter who races the faster...
The camera shows some of the other cars: A red Lotus with razor blades on it's wheels, driven by Rei. A small yet strong-looking convertible that is constantly shooting ice into the ground, driven by Ami. A huge, green truck driven by Mako and an orange jet engine-adapted dragster driven by Minako.
VO A: This time... Winning is the only way of surviving.
Rei and Usagi's cars start hitting each other hard as they run, each trying to throw the other out of the road. However, Usagi suddenly brakes, barely dodging Mako's truck. Rei, however, ain't that lucky and her car's dragged forwards by it. Mercury's car takes the lead, shooting a patch of ice as it goes, and Mako's truck goes out of the road and right into a river.
VO A: This time, reflexes are the ultimate weapon.
Minako's dragster zooms by, knocking Ami's car out of the road, and Ami ends up hitting a tree. Minako starts laughing as she sees the finish line, but a red rose-shaped (?) car crosses her path, causing her to rapidly steer to her right and fly out of the road, ending up a good 100 meters away. The oddly-shaped car stops and Mamoru walks out of it, just in time to see Usagi's car cross the finish line.
VO A: Carmageddon: Crystal Tokyo Edition. In stores, January 2993.
End Commercial Break.
In her room...
"What is this?" Chibi-Usa exclaimed, having awoke the next morning to find that it was still dark out and the city was covered in spider webs. "Why?"
It looks like they finally have brought darkness into this world. Pegasus stated.
"Darkness?" Chibi-Usa echoed.
To capture me, they are trying to cover your world in darkness. Pegasus replied.
"This is the doings of the people who want to capture you?" Chibi-Usa gasped.
Yes. Pegasus answered. And I must now say goodbye to you.
"Why?" Chibi-Usa demanded.
I have a mission that I must accomplish. Pegasus replied.
"Mission?" Chibi-Usa echoed.
Yes, I must find the person who can unleash the power of the Golden Crystal. Pegasus replied. As soon as possible. I must accomplish this mission, or else this world and Elysian, my world, will be destroyed by the Dead Moon.
"The one who can unleash the power of the Golden Crystal." Chibi-Usa muttered. "If you can find that person, the world will be saved, right? Then, I don't have to say goodbye to you, right? I'll look for that person with you. I'll make sure to find that person. So, so... don't say this is goodbye!" she pleaded.
Thank you. Pegasus smiled. But...
"But?" Chibi-Usa echoed.
I really appreciate your feelings. Pegasus replied. But, I don't want to put you into any more danger. I'll be going now. If I stay any longer, I will make you even sadder.
"Wait!" Chibi-Usa cried, grabbing the vanishing Stallion Rêve. "You can't go! Don't go!"
I can't. Pegasus replied. Release your hands.
"I won't let go." Chibi-Usa insisted. "I'll never let go! Because..." she let a tear fall. "You told me, you said that you needed the light from my dreams. That as long as I believe in my dreams, you will stay by my side. So, I won't let go! I'll never let go!"
On the streets...
"To think it became this bad overnight." Minako remarked.
"This looks like a completely different city." Makoto added.
"An evil aura covers the city." Rei felt the evil presence.
"Is this their doing?" Makoto frowned.
"Our enemies?" Rei finished. "If so..."
"We have to fight." Usagi finished.
"If I trace back the location of the energy released by the threads originated from," Ami consulted her compact computer.
"The whereabouts of the enemy." Rei noted.
"Will be apparent." Makoto finished.
"It's over there." Ami stated after her computer finished its analysis.
"That's..." the girls gasped.
"That circus..." Makoto trailed.
"Is the enemy's headquarters?" Minako finished.
"In any case, let's go check it out." Ami frowned.
In the Dead Moon Circus entrance...
"Voices?" Usagi blinked, hearing laughter.
"It's coming from the back." Chibi-Usa concluded.
"Where shall we put these kids?" VesVes asked, dragging her captives into the tent.
"The ones we haven't checked out go on the right-hand pile." CereCere replied.
"Oh man, we have to look through all of these?" JunJun complained.
"And look at just how many of the wrong mirrors we have." CereCere sat on the pile of extracted 'Dream Mirrors'.
"If the Lemures eat this many, they'll get stomach cramps." PallaPalla added.
"Oh brother." JunJun sighed.
"You guys!" Usagi started.
"Huh?" VesVes gasped.
"You are..." CereCere blinked.
"What in the world are you doing?" Usagi asked.
"What?" CereCere shrugged. "This is our job."
"Yup, yup." PallaPalla agreed.
"Don't think of getting in our way." VesVes warned.
"Yeah, if you value your life." JunJun agreed.
"What does this mean?" Usagi inquired.
"That reminds me, we never introduced ourselves." CereCere remarked. "CereCere, the flower master." she reverted to her original form.
"PallaPalla, the ball rider." PallaPalla added.
"JunJun, the acrobat." JunJun continued.
"VesVes, the beast-tamer." VesVes finished.
"The Amazoness Quartet." the Quartet chorused.
"You're kidding right?" Usagi gasped in disbelief. "That you guys are our enemies?"
"Now, it's time to work." CereCere declared, raising her cue stick.
"Stop it!" Usagi hollered.
"Colliding Ball!" the Quartet fired their Amazon Stones, the said balls stopping before Usagi, before splitting up and extracting the captured children's 'Dream Mirrors'.
"What?" VesVes whined. "None of them are it?"
"Oh brother." JunJun sighed.
"I'm bored of all this." PallaPalla complained.
"What should we do with this mountain of fake mirrors?" VesVes wondered.
"How about we make one giant trash pile out of them?" CereCere suggested.
"That sounds like a great idea." JunJun laughed.
"I can't forgive you..." Usagi hissed. "Guys, let's go!" she revealed her henshin brooch.
"Yeah!" the group nodded.
"Moon Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"Mars Eternal Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"Mercury Eternal Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"You're kidding!" PallaPalla exclaimed when the Senshi transformed.
"Jupiter Eternal Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"You guys are..." JunJun blinked.
"Venus Eternal Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"The Senshi?" CereCere finished.
"Solar Eternal Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"Enyo Eternal Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"Kore Eternal Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"Psych Eternal Dream Weaver, Make Up!"
"Kids full of bright hopes!" Chibi-Moon declared.
"To treat their dreams in the same way as trash!" Moon added.
"Many evil doings in the darkness." Jupiter and Kore continued.
"Even if you're children, this is too much mischief." Mars and Enyo remarked.
"We, the Senshi..." Venus and Psych trailed.
"In the name of the moon..." the girls chorused.
"We'll punish you!" the two Moon Senshi posed.
"But you know..." JunJun remarked. "Why do we have to be punished for this?"
"What was that?" Jupiter retorted.
"It looks like you won't understand unless you really get a punishment!" Venus snapped.
"Jupiter..." Jupiter readied her attack.
"VesVes!" CereCere called.
"Oak Evolution!" Jupiter fired her attack and VesVes and CereCere jumped to avoid the attack.
"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" Venus released her attack.
"Sealing Ball!" VesVes countered, absorbing the attack into her Amazon Stone.
"Pelting Ball!" CereCere fired numerous balls from her Amazon Stone.
"Sun Plasma Buckler!" thew two Solar Senshi raised their shield.
"Now, PallaPalla." CereCere instructed.
"Okay!" PallaPalla beamed. "Controlling Ball! Here! Now, I have all your lives!" she grinned, having turned the Senshi into puppets. "One and two!" she controlled the Venus doll. "Three and four!" she forced the Senshi to replicate the doll's movements. "Then, I'll have you all die!" her grin turned evil as she pulled the arms of the Venus doll. "Here we go!" when Tuxedo Kaman's rose knocked the doll out of her hands.
"Sunlight that nurtures all creature's lives." Dragon Solaris started.
"Shutting that out, clouding people's dreams, you little devils." Dragon Mars added.
"We will not forgive you!" the remaining two Dragons finished.
"Late, as usual." Venus chided as the five male heroes jumped in.
"At least we're here." Dragon Venus grinned.
"Are all of you alright?" Tuxedo Kaman inquired, before he winced.
"We have five other people in our way." CereCere complained.
"I got hurt!" PallaPalla whined.
"Come back, you little wretches!" Zirconia barked. "The biggest event of the century is about to begin. What are you wasting your time for?"
"Old hag Zirconia." VesVes blinked.
"That's right." CereCere agreed. "Let's go, guys."
"Yeah!" the Amazoness nodded and vanished via their Amazon Stones.
"Oh, wait!" Moon called.
"What in the world are they going to begin?" Mars wondered as the 'Dream Mirrors' returned to their respective owners.
"The kids' mirrors of dreams..." Venus blinked as the children awoke.
"First off, we need to help these children." Mercury concluded.
"You're right." Mars agreed.
Those girls...were our enemies. Moon mused.
On the streets...
Tuxedo Kaman winced and fell to his knees in pain.
"Mamo-chan?" Moon and Chibi-Moon hurried over. "What's wrong? Does your chest hurt?"
"Since those spiderwebs appeared, my heart started hurting." Tuxedo Kaman replied.
"Look!" Mars voiced as the sun started to get covered up.
"The sun..." Venus trailed.
"It's fading away!" Jupiter finished.
"An eclipse?" Mars questioned.
"Impossible." Mercury gasped. "The next eclipse isn't for quite a while yet."
"The event they were talking about just now..." Moon trailed. "Did they mean this?"
Dead Moon... Chibi-Moon mused. The magic of the New Moon... will the world be engulfed in the darkness of the New Moon now?
"We can't let them go on as they wish any longer!" Venus retorted.
"You're right." Mercury agreed.
"We can't sit quietly and watch this happen." Mars concurred.
"Alright." Jupiter concluded. "Let's go, guys!"
"The symptoms... "Dragon Solaris frowned, recognizing the dead-giveaway signs of Tuxedo Kaman. "They're the same as when Metallia's darkness infiltrated the Sun."
"Does this mean..." Dragon Mars realized when his fellow Dragon meant.
"The light of Earth..." Dragon Jupiter looked at Tuxedo Kaman.
"Is being covered?" Dragon Venus finished.
"Pegasus!" Chibi-Moon blinked as the winged-horse manifested.
"Helios..." Dragon Solaris gasped as the other form of his cousin.
The Dragons are right. Pegasus stated. People of the White Moon, you should not head for the Dead Moon right now.
SailorStar9: Now that's done, read and review. In the next chapter, the Senshi infiltrate the Dead Moon Circus and are confronted by Zirconia.