"I don't believe it! It's Pluto!" gasped Sailor Chibi Moon.
The little moon guardian then quickly rushed over to her, her eyes filled with tears of joy. Sailor Pluto smiled, kneeled, and met the little girl in a heartfelt reunion hug. Sailor Chibi Moon then looked up at Sailor Pluto.
"Am I dreaming right now?" she asked her. "Are you really here, Pluto?"
"Yes, Small Lady. You're not dreaming," replied Sailor Pluto. "Or rather, Sailor Chibi Moon."
"But... how are you here? What are you doing here?" asked Solaris as he walked up. "I thought you couldn't leave your post over by the Doors of Space and Time."
"That is true, Solaris," explained Sailor Pluto. "But I was sent here to the present by order of the great Neo Queen Serenity to fulfill a new mission."
"Somehow, Sailor Pluto seems different than before," Sailor Chibi Moon thought to herself. "It's like she's changed to someone greater and stronger."
At that moment, the tiara on Sailor Moon's forehead disappeared, revealing her signature crescent moon mark, which began to glow brightly. Then, her sailor uniform transformed into a beautiful white gown, and a small silver tiara appeared on top of her hair. In addition, Solaris's armor transformed into a white suit with gold trims and a cape, much to the amazement of the other guardians. Then, Sailor Uranus and Neptune came down from above, landing on either side of Sailor Pluto.
"Uranus!" gasped Sailor Venus.
"And Neptune, too!" said Sailor Mercury.
Then, Sailor Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto stood before Sailor Moon, who was now Princess Serenity, bowed while kneeling before her.
"Princess Serenity, Prince Taiyou, the ones who will become our queen and king, it is an honor to meet you both," Sailor Uranus spoke humbly. "Protected by Uranus, Planet of the wind, I am the guardian of the heavens and the outer planets. I am Sailor Uranus."
"Protected by Neptune, Outer planet of the seas, and guardian of the deep sea. I am Sailor Neptune," she said.
"And protected by Pluto, Outer planet of the underworld and space-time, guardian of revolution. I am Sailor Pluto," she also said.
"We, the Three Guardians of the Outer Planets, have arrived!" the three of them said together.
Princess Serenity and her group were speechless, unsure what to make of this given Uranus and Neptune's recent behavior.
Sailor Uranus then spoke up again. "Your royal highnesses, we understand that our actions have been deplorable and are prepared to atone for them in any way you see it. But know that everything we've done was to protect the two of you and this planet. So, please forgive us."
"Since ancient times, our task as guardians was to watch over Silver Millennium from afar," said Sailor Neptune. "And to protect it against incoming invaders and threats from the far reaches of the Solar System."
"But was way back when prince and princess," said Sailor Pluto. "And just like you and the rest of the court, we too were granted rebirth and were awakened anew on this planet to fulfill our duties once more."
Sailor Neptune then frowned. "However, it would seem that we arrived too late," she said. "By the time we were fully awakened and sensed the threat, the invasion had already happened, and our enemies were already among us."
"With nothing to stand in their way, and without us seeing, they've nestled themselves deeply and silently within their stronghold right under our noses," Sailor Uranus cut in bitterly. "Overlooking that was a mistake on our part, and we take full responsibility for it."
"And this enemy you're talking about is the Death Busters, correct?" asked Prince Taiyou.
The Outer Sailor Guardians nodded in response.
"Please tell us. What exactly are the Death Busters?" asked Sailor Venus. "What in the world are they, and where did they come from?"
"They're aliens from the Tau Star System," replied Sailor Neptune. "They came from a dimension far from space-time to take over this world."
Sailor Mercury then suddenly remembered. "The Tau Star System? I've heard that name before."
"We don't know much about them, but the entire Mugenzu area is shrouded in a mysterious aura," continued Sailor Pluto. "A powerful and enormous one that was most likely the reason why they were drawn to this world. The space-time in the area is heavily distorted, by accident or design, I cannot say, but it seems to be their point of entry. Whatever the case, we must remove this tear quickly. If we don't, the invasion will only get worse from here."
"We've been posing as academy students to try and keep tabs on the enemy," went on Sailor Uranus. "But I'm afraid that's impossible now that we can't keep up that facade.
"We're sorry that you ended up getting caught in the middle of it," apologized Sailor Neptune. "We never meant for that to happen. However, these Death Busters are our enemies, so we'll deal with them ourselves."
"But it's too risky you three to do that!" protested Sailor Venus. "We can help you if we fight them together-"
"Stay out of it," interrupted Sailor Uranus curtly. "You'll only get in the way."
"This is our job, and we'll handle it," insisted Sailor Neptune calmly. "Princess, Prince, for the mission to go smoothly and swiftly, we can't afford to waste any more time."
"We understand that, and that's why we're saying that you should let us help you," said Princess Serenity.
"That's right. There's strength in numbers, and we're a lot stronger than you give us credit for," pointed out Prince Taiyou. "Not to mention, we've been growing stronger-"
"Do you really want to be in danger that much?!" Sailor Uranus suddenly burst out. "Once the Death Busters figured out we've left the academy, there's no telling when they'll try to come after us!"
Princess Serenity and the others were speechless. But Sailor Uranus's expression softened.
"The three of us each live in one of the condo towers that surround Mugenzu, keeping constant surveillance," she went on gently. "I promise you; we won't fail.
Princess Serenity and Prince Taiyou could only stare at Sailor Uranus, the two of them looking very worried. Sailor Uranus then walked over to Princess Serenity gently on the top of her head.
"Please don't look so sad, Princess," soothed Sailor Uranus. "Honestly, I didn't mean to confuse you."
Princess Serenity then remembered the instances in which she was with Haruka, including the kiss, which made her cheeks slightly rose pink.
"Sailor Uranus isn't one gender or the other. She is both," explained Sailor Neptune. "As a sailor guardian, she possesses the strength of both a man and a woman." She turned to Prince Taiyou. "And I owe you an apology as well, my prince," she said humbly. "I never meant to confuse you either."
"We three aren't like you. We all possess special abilities that none of you have," continued Sailor Uranus. "We've also been given greater power and stronger items too."
"Which makes us better equipped to deal with these threats," joined Sailor Neptune. "So just leave to us."
"And these stronger items you're talking about," spoke Tuxedo Mask. "Are they the talismans that will bring destruction?"
Sailor Mars suddenly remembered. "That's right! The oracles we've been seeing have been warning us repeatedly not to collect the talismans. So at least tell us what exactly are your talismans, Uranus and Neptune? Are they weapons or something more? What is your mission? And where exactly is the third and final talisman?"
"I think I can answer at least one of those questions," said Prince Taiyou. "In regards to the third talisman, I may have an idea as to where it could be."
Everyone looked across to Prince Taiyou in surprise.
"Hold on. You know where the third talisman is?" spoke Sailor Jupiter. "Well, where is it?"
"I would have thought it was obvious," said Prince Taiyou. He then looked at Sailor Pluto and pointed straight at her. "Sailor Pluto's holding it in her hand."
Everyone, excluding the outer guardians, looked at the prince in surprise and then across to Sailor Pluto, who smiled while lightly chuckling.
"How perceptive of you, my prince," Sailor Pluto said as she held up her rod. "This is indeed the third talisman, or rather what rests on top of my rod is." The gem on top of it floated off of her rod and hovered just over the palm of her hand. "This is my talisman known as the Garnet Orb. Sailor Uranus's is known as the Space Sword, and Sailor Neptune's is Deep Aqua Mirror."
"These talismans are more than just weapons," replied Sailor Neptune. "They are the keys to completing our ultimate mission."
"Of which you should already know," said Sailor Uranus. "To end our greatest enemy, the Messiah of Silence, also known as the guardian of destruction."
As the other guardians went silent, they couldn't have known that Specter was watching in the shadows, keeping a vigil in the shadows.
"Oh no! I'm late again! Why didn't you wake me up, Mom?!"
Another day had come and gone, and as usual, Usagi had woken up late for school while Harusuke had gone ahead of her. Ikuko and Chibiusa could only sigh and shake their heads in exasperation, and Kenji paid no mind as he watched TV. Chibiusa then took notice of the TV, which was showing a news broadcast.
"Now for our next story. Parents and legal guardians of the students who attend Mugen Academy are showing concerns about the number of students that have been going missing," the news reporter said. "In response, the school is now closed and its grounds sealed off."
Hearing this, Chibiusa came over to the living room to watch and, having finally managed to get herself dressed, Usagi came down as well, happening to glance at the TV, too. The news reporter started speaking about Professor Tomoe no sooner than she did as his picture came up on the screen.
"That's Hotaru's dad!" Usagi thought, recognizing him.
Chibiusa also recognized Suichi from hers and Harusuke's last encounter.
"Oh boy. Is that mad scientist causing trouble yet again?" sighed Kenji. "Wonder what he did this time?"
"Hold on. Do you know him, Dad?" wondered Usagi.
"Of course. He was once a world-renowned scientist in the field of genetic engineering," explained Kenji. "But that was a long time ago, and he hasn't been heard from until now."
Usagi and Chibiusa looked at each other, feeling curious and well as concerned.
Later, at the Hikawa Shrine, Usagi, Harusuke, and Chibiusa decided to talk to the others about Professor Tomoe. Ami then looked up Tomoe's information using her computer. In a matter of moments, she found his article.
"Hey, everyone. Take a look at this," said Ami. "I managed to find info about Tomoe."
Everyone came over to inspect.
"It says here that his life's work was developing "super life forms," said Artemis as he looked at the screen. "However, his unethical experiments on animals, including gene manipulation, got him expelled from the academic community around six years ago."
"He's also sold data of his research to several foreign companies overseas," continued Luna. "And using the profits he gained, he purchased what is now known as the Mugen District."
Then, as Ami scrolled down on the webpage, Chibiusa saw something that made her flinch. On the side of the article were pictures of not only Professor Tomoe but also two more. One of them was a young woman with long black hair, fair skin, and violet eyes, and the second was a familiar someone she recognized, but she was younger and wore a cute purple dress and had a white ribbon in her hair.
"Hey! That's Hotaru!" she thought. "What's she doing on there?"
"It says here that a fire occurred two years ago during one of the construction projects at Mugen, most likely because she's one of its victims," said Ami. "Not long after that, Professor Tomoe founded Mugen Academy, becoming its headmaster and hasn't made any public appearances since."
Luna then looked towards the pink ordango. "Chibiusa, I need you to do something for us," she said. "I need you to keep an eye on Tomoe's daughter. I honestly don't think that she's a part of the Death Busters, but her home seems right at the center of their activity. We need to search that area if we want to know more about our enemies as well as stop them."
"That may be so, but I think Professor Tomoe is pretty suspicious," warned Ami. "Especially with what I've seen the last time I went to Mugen."
"Not to mention, after what Usagi and Harusuke told us, Kaolinite's over there, too," said Rei. "I still can't believe she managed to survive that last battle."
Chibiusa was worried, not sure entirely sure if she was up for the task, but then Usagi bent down on her knees so that she was at eye level with her.
"Chibiusa, I know this won't be an easy mission, but will you be able to do it?" she asked.
The little girl was silent for a brief pause, but her eyes lit up with determination. "I will," she said bravely. "As a Guardian, I'll do my best."
"And if it's all the same to you guys, I'll be going with her," said Harusuke, as she gently patted Chibiusa's head. "After all, she's gonna need some backup if things go wrong."
Chibiusa looked up at Harusuke and smiled as if she was relieved. "Thanks, Uncle Sunny."
At the Death Busters laboratory, Kaolinite was with Tomoe focusing on their experiments. But Kaolinite wasn't focused on her work. Instead, she was staring at her clipboard while thinking about the day before back when Usagi, Harusuke, and Chibiusa came along and the Silver Crystal in Chibiusa's possession. She was so lost in her own world that she didn't realize that Tomoe was calling her.
"Did you not hear me, Kaolinite?"
Kaolinite finally looked up. "Apologies. I wasn't paying attention. Can you please repeat what you said?"
"Listen, Kaolinite. There's should only be one thing on your mind right now," Tomoe spoke in a scolding demeanor. "And that's eliminating those sailor guardians and finding the last talisman. After all, you're the Master's favorite. Then again, perhaps they've proven to be too much for you and your witches to handle. It would certainly explain why you keep disappointing him."
Tomoe then walked away chuckling snidely, leaving Kaolinite fuming. However, she knew that Tomoe was right.
In the spatial room, Kaolinite went over to see Master Pharoh 90 for her orders and strategize her next move. But, unfortunately, master Pharoh 90 did not appear happy.
"Our life source, the Taiyron Crystal, continues to waste away, Kaolinite!" Pharoh 90 boomed. "We must hurry and obtain the light similar to our crystal! Get me the powers of those guardians planets now! After finding safe haven on this world, I will not give it up to anyone!"
Not wasting any time, Kaolinite dipped the Taiyron Crystal into the water of the fountain. As she did, several little different colored lights appeared all around it. Five of them were pink, red, blue, orange, green, and gold, representing Sailor Moon and the Guardians. At the same time, three brighter lights began to shine around it, each one being yellow, aquamarine, and purple.
"More and more lights are gathering in the area," Kaolinite said to herself. "And what are those three new guardian lights that appeared? How ominous. They're the strongest I've seen."
Then, the three lights each began showing a Sailor Guardian with her talisman, Uranus being the yellow, Neptune teal, and violet Pluto. In that brief second, the water exploded, catching Kaolinite by surprise.
"What was that?!" Kaolinite thought. "The lights these guardians are generating are so intense; they're disrupting my Aqua Mirror! Perhaps it's because of those lights as well as them that caught us, and we're unable to escape from them. And, the last guardian I saw, she was holding an item like the others, which lead me to believe that she possesses the last talisman."
Kaolinite then gave the fountain two taps with her wand, causing the water to ripple, and in its reflection appeared the last member of the Witches 5, Cyprine.
"You called for me, Magus Kaolinite?" asked Cyprine. "How may I be of service to you?"
"Listen well, Cyprine. The failures of your fellow witches have disgraced me," said Kaolinite. "My wish is for you to make up for their disgrace."
"Rest assured, as the last member of the Witches 5, Cyprine, I promise I won't fail you," the girl spoke with a bow. "I will eliminate those Guardians, gather their Hosts, succeed in getting the power similar to the Taiyron Crystal, and get those talismans. Master Pharoh 90 will be pleased."
"I shall leave it to you then," acknowledged Kaolinite. "But before you do that, there's something else you need to do."
Kaolinite then dropped the Taiyron Crystal into the water again on Cyrprine's reflection, which she caught in her hand.
"Two students have rewritten our academy data and vanished," went on Kaolinite. "They would have been suitable vessels, but now we've seen their treachery and are considered dangerous. Find them and eliminate them!"
"As you wish," said Cyprine, as her reflection faded away, setting off to complete her mission.
Back at the Tsukino house, Usagi lounged around the house reading a manga with Luna on her lap while Ikuko was making dinner. Then, Chibiusa called out to her.
"Mommy Ikuko, I'm going with a friend to the movies tomorrow, so I'll be home late."
"Sounds good, Chibiusa dear," said Ikuko.
Usagi looked up from her book. "Oh yeah? Who are you going with?" she asked.
"Hotaru," replied Chibiusa.
"Well, that seems unexpected," said Usagi. "Did Hotaru ask you out?"
"Yeah, she did," said Chibiusa. "I was a bit surprised myself. I don't even know why Hotaru asked me in the first place. Maybe there's something that she wants to tell me?"
Then, Harusuke came into the room. "This would be a good opportunity to get her to open up about her dad," said Harusuke. "So, naturally, I'm going with them. Hopefully, she will."
Then, Kenji came into the room, noticed the Holy Grail sitting on top of the bookshelf, and inspected it.
"Chibiusa, this is beautiful," said Kenji in amazement. "What is it?"
Chibiusa then trotted over to Kenji. "You like it, Daddy Kenji? Usagi and Mamo helped me make it," she said proudly. "It's the legendary holy grail!"
As the two continued to converse, Usagi, Harusuke, and Luna couldn't help but smile.
"Just look at her," said Luna. "Chibiusa's growing up to be a fine guardian, don't you think?"
"I think she is," Harusuke smiled. "After all, she is the daughter of another fine guardian I know."
Usagi couldn't help but chuckle in agreement.
The next day in the evening, Chibiusa and Harusuke were in town waiting for Hotaru to come, but they didn't see any sign of her anywhere.
"Hotaru's running late," Chibiusa spoke worriedly. "We were supposed to meet an hour ago."
"Yeah. I know," said Harusuke. "I hope everything's all right with her."
"You think we should call her Uncle Sunny?" asked Chibiusa. "Hotaru gave me her phone number."
Harusuke answered with a nod, and the two found a payphone that wasn't too far away from them. Chibiusa then tried calling Hotaru on the phone, but no one answered her. This made her even more worried as she hung up the phone.
"She's not answering," she said.
"Maybe she's not in her room," Harusuke said thoughtfully.
Then, Chibiusa had a thought that made her gasp. "What if she's having another attack or something?! She could be in pain all alone?!"
"Calm down, Chibiusa. Don't think like that," Harusuke spoke calmly. "You don't know that for sure."
"But what if that's the reason?" insisted Chibiusa. "I'm not taking any chances!"
Before Haruuske could stop her, Chibiusa took off, running as fast as her little legs could carry her.
"Chibiusa, wait!" he cried. "Wait for me, at least!"
Harusuke then took off after her. As he did, the low rumbling sound of thunder was heard, which caused him to look up at the sky. Dark clouds were looming ahead, making everything grow a bit darker.
"That's odd," he thought as he ran. "It was clear a moment ago."
At the Tomoe residence, Hotaru was lying in bed. She was there because she had just undergone surgery and was now resting in bed while Tomoe checked her over.
"How do your new parts feel, Hotaru?" asked Tomoe. "Are they working all right?"
"Yes, Daddy," replied Hotaru. "I'm getting used to them."
"They're made of cells and neurons that I've recently developed, so you're equipped with the latest technology," Tomoe went on proudly. "Hopefully, they should put an end to all of those rejection pains."
Tomoe then stepped out of the room, leaving Hotaru by herself. As she sat up from her bed, she looked out the screen door of her room and remembered Harusuke and Chibiusa. She also removed the covers of her blanket and looked at her body, her skin temporarily going see-through, revealing under the pale skin of her arms, wrists, legs, and thighs was almost nothing but muscles and machinery.
"I wonder if Chibiusa and Harusuke gave up and went home?" Hotaru thought to herself as she looked at her arms.
Then, Hotaru heard someone gasp, which in turn made her jump. She snapped her head towards the screen door, and her eyes widened in horror. Standing in front of it was Chibiusa, whose eyes were wide with shock, most likely from seeing her limbs. At the same time, Harusuke came up to the window, and when he saw Hotaru as well, his eyes went wide.
"Chibiusa! Harusuke!" gasped Hotaru.
"I just... We just..." stammered Chibiusa as she stepped back. "We were worried. And... we didn't mean to barge in on you!"
And with a turn on her heel, Chibiusa scampered away.
"Chibiusa, wait!" cried Harusuke. "Come back!"
Hotaru got out of bed to try and stop Chibiusa, but the girl had already disappeared. As Hotaru sank to her knees in shame, Harusuke quickly opened the door and went over to Hotaru.
"Hey! Hotaru! Are you all right?" Harusuke asked. "Talk to me!"
The boy started to reach out to Hotaru, but the girl shooed his hand away.
"Never mind about me," Hotaru spoke bitterly. "Just leave me. Go ahead and run."
Harusuke was confused, but then he saw that tears began to fill Hotaru's cheeks as she started to cry. He wanted to look for Chibiusa, but he couldn't after seeing Hotaru in this sorry state. He then pressed the button on his bracelet and contacted Usagi while making sure Hotaru didn't hear.
"Usagi, are you there?" Harusuke spoke. "Please respond."
"What's up, Harusuke?" Usagi wondered. "Is something wrong?"
"Something like that," said Harusuke. "Listen, could you and Mamoru go downtown and look for Chibiusa? Things have gotten... complicated, and I want to stay with Hotaru for a bit."
"Sure thing, Bro," said Usagi. "But is there trouble? I can contact the girls if I need to."
"No need. I'll catch up with you later," replied Harusuke. "Over and out." He then turned off his communicator and turned to Hotaru. "Hotaru, I'm not going anywhere," he said firmly. "Right now, I'm more concerned about you."
The girl looked up at Harusuke in surprise as he sat down in front of her.
"But... aren't you afraid of me?" she asked tentatively. "I mean, this must seem abnormal to you."
"Yeah. I'll be honest, I've never seen anything like this before," said Harusuke. "But don't worry. I'm not afraid of you. I've no reason to be." He then looked at Hotaru's arms. "So, I take it that this is the reason why you didn't show up?"
Hotaru looked at the floor and answered with a nod while wiping her tears.
"I see. That would explain why you always dress up in dark clothing," Harusuke said. "So, if you don't mind me asking, are your arms and legs like this because of the fire that happened two years ago? I read about it from an article online."
Hotaru wrapped herself with the blankets from her bed while remaining silent.
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up something so traumatic," Harusuke relented. "It's okay if you don't want to talk about it."
But then, Hotaru spoke. "I was injured badly in that fire," she spoke quietly. "The last thing I remember was everything in my home being in flames. They felt so hot. I also remember my mommy trying to save me, but then she was taken by the flames and died, and everything went dark. When I woke up, I found my arms and legs like this. My dad told me that they were severely damaged, so he replaced them with biomechanical parts. Most of the time, they don't show, but sometimes my skin seems to fluctuate, and you can see what's underneath it."
She looked at her hand as her eyes began to fill with tears again.
"I didn't want anyone to know about my body being like this, so cold and lifeless," she spoke, her voice quivering. "That's why I've kept it to myself for so long. But then, you and Chibiusa saw me. She's the only friend I've ever had, but now... she must think I'm a freak like everyone else, and she thinks I'm a freak; what's the point of living? Does my life have any meaning at all?"
A brief moment of silence fell as Hotaru began to cry again. Then, Harusuke gently touched Hotaru's shoulder, which made her look up at him.
"Hotaru, you're not a freak. Not at all," Harusuke spoke kindly. "You're just a little girl who wants a friend more than anything. Someone that will accept you for who you are. And your life has meaning too. All life does. Sure, you went through some pretty tough stuff, but there's no reason for you to give up, especially since you're so young. Also, I know it looked bad, but Chibiusa would never think of you as a freak."
"Then why did she run away from me?" Hotaru asked.
"Most likely because she saw something that she shouldn't have, albeit unintentionally, and probably thought you'd be upset at her," went on Harusuke. "And besides, Chibiusa's not the only friend you have, you know. There's Usagi and the others too. And if you still don't believe me, I'm your friend."
Hotaru looked up at Harusuke with a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "We're... we're friends?"
"Of course we are," said Harusuke. "I mean, sure, we've only known each other for a short time, but I've seen how kind, sweet, and caring you can be. And after what you did for Chibiusa when we first met, I've considered you a friend ever since, and that's not going to change no matter how much you think of yourself."
Hotaru stared. "Do... you really mean that?" she asked. "You're not just saying that, are you?"
"Of course I do mean it, and I'm not lying to you either," Harusuke spoke with a smile as he gently petted Hotaru's head. "I promise you, everything I said is the truth. You'll always be my friend, no matter what."
As he continued to pet her, Hotaru started crying again with a bit more joy than sorrow.
Meanwhile, Chibiusa had finally stopped to catch her breast when she got back into town. Her heart was pounding not only from running but also from what she saw.
"What should I do?" Chibiusa thought to herself. "I get the feeling she didn't want me to see that. I was just so shocked; I had to run away and even left Harusuke behind. I didn't mean to hurt her. What should I do?"
Then, the little pink ordango girl heard a strange sound of multiple things falling coming from the sky. Chibiusa looked up and was surprised to see that hail had started to fall, showering down everywhere. She held up her hand as a couple of the bits of ice landed on her hand, but then, the ice dissipated in a puff of black smoke, indicating that it wasn't your run-of-the-mill hail. Then, a sudden wave of vertigo hit Chibiusa's body, forcing her to fall to her knees, while the other citizens of Juuban collapsed to the ground unconscious.
"M-My body! It's going numb! This hail must be the cause!"
Luckily, her brooch began to glow brightly while letting out a chime as it shrouded her in a bubble of aura, protecting her from the hail's effects. Knowing that this was the cause of the Death Busters, Chibiusa was about to call the others for help on the communicator when Usagi and Mamoru came running up to her.
"Chibiusa! Are you all right?!" Usagi spoke. "Harusuke asked us to look for you, and then it started hailing!"
Before Chibiusa could answer, the citizens of Juuban began to wake up one after another, getting back up on their feet. However, all of them had blank looks on their faces while having a black star right in the middle of their foreheads.
In her apartment inside the Tenohzu building, Haruka was inside her room watching the hail fall outside. Then, as quickly as the hail began raining down, it stopped. Haruka was puzzled, but as she looked out her window, Cyprine suddenly appeared, hovering just outside of her window, surprising her.
"You thought you could escape from me, Haruka Tenoh, fugitive of Mugen Academy, but I finally found you!" crowed Cyprine. "Now, die!"
With a wave of her hand, she generated a blue sphere of energy from her hand and flung it straight toward Haruka's window. A tremendous explosion made the air tremble as smoke billowed everywhere, but amongst the smoke and fire, Haruka's voice cried out.
"URANUS PLANET POWER MAKE UP!"
Transformation Sequence: Haruka
The symbol of Uranus glowing yellow spins onto Haruka's Lip Rod. Haruka's hand takes hold of it, her fingernails azure blue and the orb releasing a brilliant flash of light. Haruka is enveloped in a glow, and using her Lip Rod in her hand, spins around, tracing a circle outline of wind. She closes her arms around herself as the wind erupts, surrounding her body. Her sailor leotard, gloves, tiara, and boots immediately appear, the coloring being white, dark blue, and yellow. The transformation complete; Haruka flips her hair back as her lip gloss appears, spins around, and finishes with her signature pose.
Sailor Uranus shot straight to the top of the building, barely managing to survive the attack, and landed on the roof as Cyprine landed in front of her.
"Protected by Uranus, the Outer Planet of the wind, guardian of the heavens! I am Sailor Uranus!" she proclaimed.
Not long after that, Sailors Neptune and Pluto joined their comrade, ready to fight as well, much to Cyprine's surprise.
"Well, this certainly is unexpected. I didn't realize that you would be sailor guardians!" Cyprine gasped. She then smirked with confidence. "This works out perfectly because now I can kill all three of you at once! Like killing three birds with one stone! I am Cyrpine, level nine hundred and ninety-nine, the most powerful member of the Witches 5! And you guardians don't have a prayer in winning!"
The three Outer Guardians braced themselves as their showdown with Cyprine began.
Back in town, people were rioting all over town, either fighting one another or vandalizing stores. Amidst this chaos, Ami, Rei, Makoto, Minako, and the cats were watching it all happen, and they were shocked.
"This is awful!" gasped Minako. "The whole town is in chaos!"
Ami using her computer, quickly analyzed the hail using her laptop as well as the frenzied citizens. "It's the hail! It has to be the cause of it!" she said. "My laptop's picking up evil energy in it."
Then, Ami saw something else on the screen. On top of one of the buildings in Mugenzu, she saw various flashing lights and explosions. She zoomed in, and she saw what was causing them, or rather who. Sailor Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto were jumping and dashing around while Cyprine launched one attack after another, not giving them a chance to counterattack.
"Girls! My computer's picked up something else!" said Ami. "Uranus and the others are fighting against a Death Buster on a rooftop in Mugenzu!"
"So what? They're on their own," scoffed Makoto, who hadn't forgotten what they said before. "They can do just fine without our help. They don't need us."
Before anyone could object, Usagi, Mamoru, and Chibiusa appeared.
"Come on, everyone! Let's go!" Usagi ordered. "We have to go and help them!"
"But Usagi...!" protested Makoto about to refuse.
"We have to help the city! And that includes the three of them!" Usagi interrupted firmly. "This isn't the time to be selfish!"
The others were surprised by this, especially Makoto, but they knew that Usagi was right.
Meanwhile, at Hotaru's place, Hotaru finally calmed down and was resting in bed talking with Harusuke. Then, Harusuke's communicator began to beep in his pocket. He quickly answered it.
"Harusuke! Head for the Tenohzu building in Mugenzu!" he heard Usagi speak. "The Death Busters are attacking, and Uranus and the others need help!"
"I'm on my way!" acknowledged Harusuke. He then turned to Hotaru. "Sorry, Hotaru, but an emergency just came up, and I have to go! Are you going to be okay now?"
"Yes. I'll be fine," replied Hotaru. "And Harusuke, thank you for being so kind. You're a good friend."
Harusuke smiled. "Sure thing," he said. "See you."
He then dashed out of the house as fast as his feet could carry him.
Back on top of the Tenohzu building, even with the three of them working together, the outer guardians were having a hard time with Cyprine, who definitely had the power to back up her boast. Cyprine attacked the guardians with multiple blasts of energy that contained incredible strength and power enough to shoot down Uranus and her group whenever they tried to counter. As a result, the three outer guardians were finding themselves outmatched.
"This is all too easy!" Cyprine cackled as she began gathering energy into her hands, generating a giant sphere of blue energy. "Now, time for you all to die! RIBBON BUSTER!"
She then unleashed a powerful beam straight towards the guardians with the intent to kill, but then...
"MARS SNAKE FIRE!"
"JUPITER COCONUT CYCLONE!"
A mighty snake made of flames and a sphere of blue lightning came shooting out, colliding into Cyprine's attack and canceling it out. Then, Sailor Moon and her gang arrived on the scene, ready to fight.
"What are you doing here?!" demanded Sailor Uranus in surprise. "Get out of here!"
But Cyprine quickly took advantage as she summoned her wand, holding it up as it sparked with her magic. She conjured two black ribbons of energy with a single wave that turned into rings, and before the guardians could react, one of them wrapped and bound Sailor Moon and her party and the other Uranus's group. The Death Buster then made the Taiyron Crystal materialize in her hand, and it began to shine brightly. The Guardians' eyes then started to glow red except for Sailor Moon, whose brooch began to glow brightly. The rings then shattered, setting them all free, but then, all of the Guardians, excluding Sailor Moon, gazed grimly at each other,
"So, it would seem that you girls are eager to die," Sailor Neptune spoke coldly.
"If you've got a death wish, we're happy to oblige!" snarled Sailor Uranus.
Even Sailor Pluto had a cold demeanor, her eyes filled with intent. "We'll kill you all!" she challenged.
"I'd like to see you try!" Sailor Jupiter shot back. "Bring it on!"
Sailor Moon was confused as well as alarmed. "What's going on with you guys?!" she exclaimed. "Calm down, all of you!"
But the Guardian of the Moon's words fell on deaf ears as the two groups took to the air, and an all-out brawl ensued. Both sides started attacking each other mercilessly, using their strength, powers, and speed to try and kill each other.
"It's no use! My magic amplifies the darkness in people's hearts and brings them to the surface," Cyrpine smiled with malice. "Let them show their true feelings and destroy each other!"
Sailor Moon scowled at the Death Buster and summoned her Spiral Heart Moon Rod and aimed it directly at Cyprine.
"MOON SPIRAL HEART ATTACK!"
She unleashed a mighty blast of hearts with the intent of destroying Cyprine. However, just before the blast hit her, Cyprine suddenly split into two, and Sailor Moon found herself staring at not only Cyprine but a copy of her as well. She looked just like her, but her color scheme was red.
"We are Cyprine and Ptilol," the two of them said together. "The two of us make one witch."
Sailor Chibi Moon then turned her attention towards the other Guardians. "Everyone! Please stop fighting!" she begged. "You've got to stop!" She then summoned her Pink Moon Rod, aiming for Sailor Uranus and Jupiter. "PINK SUGAR HEART ATTACK!"
A blast of hearts shot forth from her rod, forcing the two to fly out of the way. Jupiter glared towards her and generated her Coconut Cyclone in her hand.
"Stay out of this, you brat!" she roared in anger as she flung the ball of thunder straight at her.
Tuxedo Mask quickly moved in front of Sailor Chibi Moon, but at the last second, before it hit, someone jumped in front of them, taking the attack head-on, resulting in a powerful explosion. Luckily, Solaris was revealed to be standing in front of the two, arms crossed and in his Jupiter mode, when the smoke cleared.
"Solaris!" gasped Sailor Moon. "Are you okay?!"
"Don't worry! I'm fine!" Solaris spoke while wincing a bit. "And so is Chibi Moon and Tuxedo Mask!"
Sailor Moon then turned her attention back towards the battle while Cyprine and Ptilol watched from afar.
"I don't understand. Why are we fighting like this? Why are we constantly at odds with each other?" Sailor Moon thought to herself as she watched. "Do we really think of ourselves as enemies?" She clenched her fists in determination. "No! At one time or another, they saved our lives! Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto have always watched over us, and they want to protect what's precious to them, just like us! We all fight for the same reason!"
Tuxedo Mask then held Sailor Moon's hand, and Sailor Chibi Moon touched both of theirs, and Solaris put his on top, each giving Sailor Moon a nod.
The Guadian of the Moon then smiled and closed her eyes, concentrating on the love and bond between herself and her family. A light slowly began to materialize in the middle of their joined hands which grew brighter with every second.
Then, appearing on top of their hands, a familiar object faded into existence, shining amidst the light.
It was the Holy Grail, similar to the one Usagi and the others made a while ago.