Chapter 33
Enter Venus: The Last Sailor Guardian
In the fortress of the Dark Kingdom, Zoisite stood before Queen Beryl, Maleficent, Pete, and Sephiroth, in the dark throne room viewing a projection of Tuxedo Mask, always rushing to Sailor Moon's aid, which made Beryl furious.
"Enough of this!" she shouted, destroying the projection.
"Uh, I think Beryl's mad, Maleficent," Pete whispered.
"Explain yourself, Zoisite, what is the purpose of this!? Why would you think I would wish to see those images!?" demanded Beryl.
"Well, Queen Beryl, everytime we have Sailor Moon within our grasp, Someone comes to her rescue. And it's always the same person as those scenes reveal," replied Zoisite.
"I see, but what's your reasoning?" asked Sephiroth.
"Yes, so it's Tuxedo Mask. Have you finally figured out his true identity?" Beryl asked as well.
"Unfortunately no. We still don't know who he is. But, my queen, I know one thing for sure, and that is he'll only appear when Sailor Moon is in great danger. All we have to do is place Sailor Moon in peril, and Tuxedo Mask will come to us," explained Zoisite.
"And if he does reveal himself, will he bring the two Rainbow Crystals with him so that you can reacquire them?" asked Maleficent.
"You do realize that this is the last chance you have to succeed, right Zoisite?" added Queen Beryl.
"Yes, and I won't fail you," replied Zoisite.
"Not so fast, Zoisite," Kunzite said as he arrived.
"Lemme guess, you want in on this too, Big K?" asked Pete.
"Yes Pete, if Zoisite's plan is to lure Tuxedo Mask out into the open so that he can deal with him, then the first thing we need him to do is to separate him from the Sailor Guardians," replied Kunzite.
Then he turned to Queen Beryl.
"With your permission, I'd be happy to take on that part of the job, my friends," said Kunzite.
"Very well, bring us all seven of the Rainbow Crystals, and do not fail us this time," replied Beryl.
"For if you do, Queen Beryl will be more than happy to grant me an excuse of turning you into Heartless," added Maleficent.
"As you command," the two warlords said, but Zoisite was still adamant about his conviction to Kunzite.
In Tozai Bank, the sound of gunfire was heard due to some robbers causing trouble, when a boomerang stopped them. Then a figure wearing a Sailor Guardian costume emerged, and knocked them all out. In Usagi's house, Luna heard a report on the television saying that Sailor Moon had stopped some bank robbers, waking her up, and filling her with shock when she believed that Usagi was acting like a Vigilante, just as Sora arrived.
"I hear you, Luna. The Usagi I know would never try to play hero. All she'd do is run crying out for help, even as Sailor Moon," he said.
Back in town, Usagi was munching down crepes, with Makoto, and Sora's friends at her side.
"Now this is my idea of how a school girl should spend her day off, eating every desert she wants," she said.
"Yeah, well, you're going to need a bigger school uniform, if you keep it up," replied Makoto.
"Uh, Makoto, I don't think that's a nice thing to say to Usagi," said Goofy.
"Oh, sorry about that, Usagi," apologized Makoto.
"Thanks, Goofy, but I still wanna try all of them," smiled Usagi, as everyone chuckled quietly amongst themselves.
Above them, two window wipers were cleaning the window panes, while Mamoru was reading a book about where he could find the Silver Crystal, when he saw two crystal daggers cut the cables, making the workers grab onto them, and hold on for dear life. Below, Usagi, and the others watched the same thing, until Mamoru noticed another crystal dagger, cut the wire the first worker was holding onto from below, and fell. Suddenly, the false Sailor Moon appeared, swinging down from a rope, catching the worker and carrying him to safety, causing several people to cheer for her, when Sora arrived, a look of suspicion on his face.
"I don't know who this person is, but something seems off about this Sailor Moon," he said quietly to himself, as he watched the false Usagi leap away.
"Could she have cut those ropes herself?" wondered Mamoru, when he stepped outside, and raced off into the distance.
"Why in the world did she have to dress up as Sailor Moon? Now everyone thinks she's some huge hero, and I'm not even getting any credit for it!" wailed Usagi.
"Ah, quit your whining and get your act together!" quacked Donald.
"Yeah, Donald's right, Usagi, right now we have to tell Luna about this, and go find that faker," added Makoto.
"You don't. She already knows," replied Sora, as Usagi nodded sadly.
But none of them noticed another girl with a white cat at her side. Meanwhile the false Sailor Moon was running across the rooftops, heading to the port, where Kunzite was waiting with Pete and Sephiroth.
"The only ones that are capable of catching her are the Sailor Guardians, the Keyblade Wielders, and Tuxedo Mask himself. And the minute he shows up, that'll be that, the end of Tuxedo Mask," he said.
Below, Mamoru was running across the port, searching for the imposter as dark clouds gathered overhead of him, causing thunder to boom, and the lightning to flash.
"I could have sworn she came this way, but now I've lost her," he said.
"So a Sailor Moon Imposter has appeared?" asked Ami, now aware of what happened, thanks to Sora's intel.
"Yeah, I saw her on the news catching that bank robber. That was when I was sure it was the fake and not our Usagi," replied Rei.
"Yeah, you got that right," said Makoto.
"Still, this is starting to be rather strange. Someone arrives with the same hairstyle as Usagi, dresses up like Sailor Moon, and then stops bank robbers from causing trouble? As much as I hate to admit it, but our Sailor Moon wouldn't do any of those things, without our help," pondered Riku.
"That's a valid point, Riku," said Sora.
"What I want to know is, what is this imposter after? Whose side is she on anyway?" asked Ami.
"I don't know, Ami. But we'll find out when we see her," replied Kairi.
"Kairi has a point, Ami," said Rei.
"Hey Luna, if she's the final guardian, we may have to help her," Roxas said to the cat.
"Huh, well let me think about that," replied Luna.
"Standing around and doing nothing while this false Sailor Moon's on the loose will make Usagi the laughing stock of all Sailor Guardians," said Sora.
"Yeah, Sora's right. How dare this fake Sailor Moon go around using my name without my permission. I'm about to call a lawyer and sue her for stealing my act!" agreed Usagi, who was furious.
"Now hold on Usagi, we can't just go around making false assumptions here and there, it'd make that Zoisite fella catch us off guard," warned Mickey.
Suddenly they heard a scream, and Makoto motioned everyone to follow her. When they arrived, they could see the false Sailor Moon being raised up by a crane with her hands tied by a strong rope, under a hook, with Kunzite overseeing the operation.
"It's her!" gasped Makoto.
"Then that guy must be part of the Dark Kingdom," added Sora, looking up at Kunzite.
"Come on we have to help her," urged Usagi.
"Yeah! Trap or no trap! We have to help! Cause that's what heroes do!" agreed Sora, making Usagi smile at him.
"Agreed," replied Rei, and the others nodded.
"Sailor Guardians, transform and roll out!" cried Sora.
"Moon Prism Power Make Up!" called Usagi.
"Mercury Power Make Up!" announced Ami
Mars Power Make Up!" Chanted Rei.
"Jupiter Power Make Up!" shouted Makoto.
In an instant they were all surrounded by light and became Sailors Moon. Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter.
"Let's go!" Sora called to his friends after the four girls transformed, and they charged into the battlefield.
On the crane near the false Sailor Moon, Kunzite scowled at the city, believing the light to be a curse, as he believed that darkness was the true power of every living being in the Realm of Light, when Sailor Moon called up to him.
"You up there, let my imposter go! You're one sick puppy to tie up a girl and leave her hanging from a crane, you know that!? I am the pretty guardian who fights for love and for justice! I am Sailor Moon!" she said bravely.
"That's right! And I'm Sailor Mercury!" announced Sailor Mercury.
"And don't you forget Sailor Mars!" added Sailor Mars.
"And last, I'm Sailor Jupiter!" finished Sailor Jupiter.
"And now in the name of the moon, we're all granting you your punishment!" Usagi cried out.
"Got it memorized!?" added Axel.
"I have been expecting you, meddlesome heroes, I am Kunzite, one of the Four Kings of Heaven. It's nice to meet you, but now you will perish!" Kunzite said, as he encased the four girls in a dome of darkness.
Sailor Moon was shocked to see that she and her friends were trapped, while Sora and his friends had kept clear.
"NO!" cried Sora.
"Behold, I bring you darkness. Isn't it beautiful?" sneered Kunzite.
"That's pretty impressive," Rei replied sarcastically.
"She unleashed her Fire Soul attack against it, but the flames died as it struck the barrier.
"We'll try to get you out of here, just hang on!" called Sora.
Kunzite chuckled, sending explosives down at them, forcing them to dodge and weave.
"He's strong," said Sailor Jupiter.
But despite Kunzite's taunting, she tried to use her Supreme Thunder attack, which proved ineffective.
"The darkness is just swallowing our attacks!" gasped Ami.
"And now, you can watch Sora and his friends get Heartlessified first, before you join them," laughed Pete.
Everyone watched in horror, as dozens upon dozens of Heartless arrived, forcing Sora and his friends to fight them.
"Take out the Heartless!" cried Namine.
"Move it!" shouted Sora.
"We can't let our friends down, Sora!" replied Donald.
"Right!" replied Sora.
All thirteen of them nodded, and began fighting the Heartless with everything they had, as the Sailor Guardians watched in horror.
"Now that your friends are occupied with the Heartless, I can finally end you all," laughed Kunzite.
Using his dark power, he began to shrink the dome down until they all stood back to back.
"Now, beg for your lives," Sephiroth said, filling Sailor Moon's heart with fear.
In another part of the docks, Tuxedo Mask was searching for Sailor Moon. Suddenly he saw the imposter hanging from above, and believing it was the real deal, came to her rescue, despite his fear of a trap.
"Hang on!" he called.
With a great leap of faith, he caught the imposter in his arms, and carried her to safety as a bolt of lightning surged down towards him, But the bolt missed him, and only sent debris flying in all directions, rather than towards him. Suddenly the imposter awoke, summoned a crystal dagger, and plunged it into Tuxedo Mask's shoulder. She jumped away, as the caped crusader winced in pain.
"You're not Sailor Moon!" he gasped.
Then the imposter shed her uniform, revealing Zoisite had deceived him.
"Oh you poor thing, that must have hurt. Don't worry, in just a moment you won't feel anything!" he said, his eyes wild and bright with joy.
Zoisite tried to strike him, but the wounded Tuxedo Mask quickly fled.
"Run all you want, but you won't be getting away with those Rainbow Crystals, Tuxedo Mask!" cackled Zoisite.
Summoning his crystal Sword, Zoisite began hunting him down, while Kunzite was busily keeping everyone else occupied with Pete and Sephiroth's help.
"We're all trapped in here!" cried Sailor Moon.
"Not if I can help it!" replied Sailor Juptier.
'She tried unleashing her Supreme Thunder attack, but the results were still the same.
"It won't work! You're attacks just aren't cutting it!" called Goofy, who struck down a Shadow Heartless with his shield.
"He's right, our attacks are having no effect," admitted Sailor Jupiter.
"You're finished, my barriers impenetrable," chuckled Kunzite.
"And with all three of you together, my Supernova attack will reduce you to ashes," added Sephiroth.
"Not if I have a say in the matter, Sephiroth!" called Cloud.
Sephiroth turned and faced the blonde swordsman.
"Kunzite, maintain the barrier. Pete, keep bringing more Heartless to deal with them, I'll deal with Cloud," he said.
"With pleasure, Sephiroth," replied Kunzite.
Then the One-Winged Angel charged at Cloud, his Masamune striking against Cloud's Buster Sword, and the fight was on. Inside the storage building, Zoisite was attempting to draw out Tuxedo Mask, by cutting down boxes and sand bags that were between him. When the caped crusader raced out of his hiding place, he lunged furiously, trying to bring him down, but his attack was blocked by his cane. Then suddenly, Zoisite blasted Tuxedo Mask's mask, revealing Mamoru's face beneath it, which shocked Queen Beryl, who was watching.
"It can't be!" she gasped.
"Well, well, what a handsome face you've been hiding, but it still won't save your life," snarled Zoisite.
He began to channel more power into his blade, in an effort to finish him off, when he heard a voice that sounded unfamiliar to him.
"Crescent Beam!" it cried.
A beam of light struck Zoisite knocking the blade out of his hand, giving Mamoru a chance to flee. Glancing up, he saw the silhouette of the girl who attacked him, but realized that his prey had escaped, making him cry out in unrelenting fury.
"I don't know who you are, but you'll pay for making a fool out of me! I'll tear you to pieces! You hear me!?" screamed the warlord.
Back with Sora and his friends, the Keyblade Wielders were slowly tiring out at the number of Heartless that were appearing, while Kunzite maintained the barrier, and Sephiroth and Cloud fought furiously around them. Sailors Moon, Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter saw that their options were now limited, as the air began to grow thick with darkness.
"How do you like the taste of my darkness?" Kunzite chided them.
"Kunzite we may have a problem. I had Tuxedo Mask, but he got away again, and there's another enemy as well" said Zoisite when he arrived.
"Sounds to me like you screwed up that one job, Zoisite! How could you let Suit boy escape!?" Pete replied furiously.
"I'm sorry I let you all down, but I'm not done!" protested Zoisite.
He then began growing furious.
"Listen to me, Tuxedo Mask! I know you're out there somewhere hiding! Come on out!" he shouted.
Sailor Moon was surprised to learn that Tuxedo Mask had arrived, just as Sephiroth forced Cloud back, and prepared to return to Kunzite, Zoisite, and Pete. from his hiding place, the wounded Tuxedo Mask glanced out to see Sailor Moon, Sora and their friends were in trouble, as he placed the mask back on his face.
"Your precious friends are almost gone! Wanna save them!? Just give yourself up and hand over the Rainbow Crystals, or else!" Zoisite demanded.
"No! Don't do it! You've got to stay away! Don't give up the Crystals!" choked Sailor Moon.
"Sailor Moon!" cried Luna and Sora.
"Wait!" Tuxedo Mask called out, as he limped out from his hiding place.
"Well, well, well, look who's decided to join us. You see, Kunzite, I knew we would defeat these blights in the end," smirked Zoisite.
Inside the doom the darkness was growing stronger, causing the four Sailor Guardians to cry out in anguish.
"Say goodbye," said Sephiroth.
"Stop this at once! No matter how hopeless things may seem, you must never give up!" cried the voice of the girl who attacked Zoisite.
"Her again? Come out you!" yelled Zoisite.
"I know that voice!" gasped Luna.
"I know it too, Luna!" agreed Sora.
There standing before them, was another girl who's mask and hair seemed very familiar to Sora. She wore the same outfit, as the others, but the skirt, collar and hem of her gloves was a bright orange, while her bows were dark blue, with a topaz brooch on her chest, while her feet had high heels like Rei, with an orange strap around her ankles.
"A Sailor Guardian!?" cried Kunzite.
The girl jumped down, to the ground, revealing herself.
"I am the fifth and final Pretty Guardian who fights for justice! I am Sailor Venus!" she said, removing her mask, to reveal her blue eyes.
Sailor Venus unleashed another crescent beam at Kunzite forcing him to drop the barrier, just as Cloud unleashed his Omnislash on Sephiroth, defeating him.
"The barrier is broken, I can breathe again!" Rei said, feeling relieved.
"Are you okay!?" called Sora as he rushed towards them, just as his friends dispatched the last of the Heartless under Pete's command.
"Wait a minute, you're Sailor V, aren't you?" gasped Usagi.
"That is correct! She's Sailor V, known as the Guardian of justice! But her true identity is the Pretty Guardian, Sailor Venus!" said the white cat.
"Hey Artemis!" Sora said to the white cat, who dropped down towards Luna.
Then he turned towards Kunzite, Zoisite, and Pete who warned them to back away as they prepared to fight them to the death.
"Zoisite! Kunzite! Pete! Sephiroth! Cease operations Immediately!" Queen Beryl's voice echoed around them.
"Queen Beryl!?" gasped Kunzite.
"Retreat, there has been a change in our plans!" she said as her image appeared in the sky.
"Who are you!?" demanded Sora.
"I am known as Queen Beryl, leader of the Dark Kingdom, and your demise, Sora, Riku, Kairi, Aqua, Roxas, Axel, Ventus, Terra, Donald, Xion, Namine, Mickey, Goofy, Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Venus, Sailor Mars, and Sailor Jupiter," replied Beryl.
"But my Queen!" protested Zoisite.
"Quit your yapping and let's get outta here!" snapped Pete.
"Understood," sighed Kunzite.
"But we almost had them," complained Zoisite, just as Sephiroth appeared.
"You may have won this battle, but you'll never win the war. But always remember… I will never be a memory," the One Winged Angel said to them.
"Oh, and Sora, if you do transform into Vanitas, I'm sure that Queen Beryl will be more than happy to have you on our side," added Kunzite.
They soon vanished into the Corridor of Darkness, while Tuxedo Mask lumbered away, clutching his wounded shoulder.
"Tuxedo Mask, where are you?" called Sailor Moon.
"Let him go, Sailor Moon. What matters is that we're all safe and sound," said Sora.
"That's right, at least we all survived to fight again," agreed Sailor Jupiter.
At last, all eighteen warriors of light assembled near the lighthouse.
"The team is complete. The five Guardians, the Thirteen Saviors of the Worlds, and the two cats are all together," said Artemis.
"Yeah, and welcome Sailor Venus," added Sailor Jupiter.
The other blonde smiled at them, until Sailor Moon saw the moon over Sailor Venus' head.
"Wait a minute, could you be the Moon Princess?" she asked.
But Venus smiled, her gaze not on Usagi or anyone else, but towards Sora.