Note: This is a spin-off of "The Anime World," so keep in mind that Yugi is now a part of Vegeta's family.
Part 3: Power of Saturn
Hotaru grunted and slowly opened her eyes. "D-Duo? Ryoko?"
There was no answer.
Hotaru made it to her knees, ignoring the pain in her limbs as best she could. "Guys, where are you?"
"They cannot hear you, my child," a strange voice answered.
Hotaru gapsed as an old man suddenly appeared in fron of her. "Who are you?"
"A friend," he replied, helping her up. "You must hurry, Hotaru. Mistress Nine is on her way to Earth. If she is allowed to establish a power base there, she may become impossible to stop."
"But how? She has my power! She called on Guardian Saturn earlier!"
The old man sighed. "I'm afraid Mistress Nine was able to access that power because she still has a connection with you, my dear. Though she is no longer restricted by your body, she does share the same power as you. That is only one of your concerns, though. We will need to free your friends first."
"Why are you helping me?" Hotaru asked. "And how do you know my name?"
"Very well. I suppose it is best that I tell you the truth. I am the physical manifestation of your power source. In short, the spirit of Saturn."
Her eyes widened. "You're Guardian Saturn?"
"That is one of my names, yes. As I said, we must hurry. Mistress Nine has put a great strain on my powers. I have divided my remaining strength into three portions. The first shall go to you, since you will need it battle Mistress Nine. The last two will go to your friends."
"But what will happen to you?"
The old man smiled. "I will be fine." He placed his hands on her forehead. "Remember, my child. You alone now possess the power to stop Mistress Nine. Your friends can help you reach her, but you must face her by yourself. It is the only way to stop her for good."
Hotaru gasped as she felt energy flowing into her body. "Is this dangerous?"
"Not for you," he replied. "Now, lift the meteor and free your friends."
"With my hands?" she asked, looking puzzled.
"No. With your mind."
Hotaru stared at the meteor. "Can't you do it?"
"If I did, I might not have enough power left to share with your friends."
Hotaru swallowed noisily and closed her eyes.
After a few long moments, the meteor shifted and rolled away.
Ryoko was the first to rise from the crater. "I'm never going anywhere with you people again," she muttered, dusting off her clothes.
Duo slowly got up and winced. "I wouldn't complain. Us humans don't exactly have automatic shields."
"Sounds like a personal problem." Ryoko dragged him out of the crater.
"Duo! Ryoko! You're okay!" Hotaru ran over and threw her arms around them both.
"Takes more than a pebble to take us out, kid." Ryoko patted the girl's head. "Hey, who's the old guy?"
"He's Guardian Saturn! He gave me the power to move the meteor!"
"Wait. YOU moved the rock, babe?" Duo asked.
Hotaru nodded.
"There is no time for conversation," the old man said. "We must act quickly. Show me your sigils."
"Our what?" Duo asked.
"That," he replied, pointing to the tattoo on Duo's hand.
Ryoko held up her wrist. "What are these things for, anyway?"
"The power transfer, of course." The old man grabbed Duo's hand and Ryoko's wrist. "This might sting."
That was an understatment. When the transfer was done, Duo and Ryoko fell to their knees, gasping for air.
"It didn't hurt when he did it to me," Hotaru said, looking confused.
"You were already infused with the power of Saturn, child. These two were not."
"Just as long as we don't have to do that again," Ryoko muttered.
The old man placed a hand on Ryoko's forehead. "I name you Chaos, Bringer of Destruction. No enemy can escape your wrath."
Ryoko's eyes took on a red glow.
"Now that is creepy," Duo said.
The old man touched Duo's forehead. "I name you Death, Thief of Life. No creature can resist your touch."
Duo's eyes grew cold and empty, taking on a black glow.
The old man finally turned to Hotaru. "I name you Silence, Ender of All. Nothing can ignore your commands."
While Hotaru's eyes didn't really change, their violet light was brighter than usual.
"Go, my children. Save the Earth from Mistress Nine before it is too late."
The trio bowed to him, then faded in a flash of red light.
The old man smiled faintly. "It is done." Then, his eyes rolled up into his head, and he collapsed to the ground.
* * * * *
"So let me get this straight," Sasami said. "You're a superhero, but you don't have a secret identity?"
Sakura blinked. "Well, there's only a handful of people that have seen me as a superhero. So it is a secret, but I don't need another identity, since I can trust those people."
"Must be nice," Sasami murmured wistfully.
"Sometimes." Sakura glanced at the console. "Shouldn't you be...y'know...flying the ship?"
"Oh, there's no need. My guardians take care of that."
"Princess Sasami?" a voice asked.
"Yes?"
"We've run into some debris. It looks like the remains of a ship."
Sakura's eyes widened. "You don't think...?"
"Let's hope not." Sasami turned to the console. "Scan for survivors."
"Scanning...done. One survivor found."
"Bring them aboard, then. Prepare the infirmary."
"At once, princess."
Sasami stood up. "You should probably come with me. I only know Ryoko; the other two are mysteries to me."
"Right." Sakura followed her to the rear of the ship.
The airlock slowly slid open, revealing a girl lying on the floor. She was covered in blood, most likely her own. Several parts of her body were badly burned.
Sasami leaned down and checked for a pulse. "She's barely alive. Is this the person we're looking for?"
Sakura stared for a long moment. "Well, she isn't dressed like a Sailor Scout, and her eyes are brown instead of violet...although her hair looks dark violet. No, I guess this isn't her. But we can't just throw her back out there, can we?"
"Of course not. We'll take her with us." Sasami peered closely at the girl. "I think she was attacked, and her ship exploded. I wonder how long she's been out there?"
"Readings indicate the wreckage to be three weeks old, princess."
"That long?" Sakura asked. "How could anyone survive in space that long?"
"She's either very lucky, very strong, or both."
* * * * *
Reenie snatched up the phone on the first ring. "Hello?!"
"Reenie? It's Guy. I've got some news."
"You found Hotaru?" she asked hopefully.
"Well, no. But I've sent out a search party to look for her and the others."
"What happens if they can't find her?"
"I'll lose my job."
"Other than that."
"Um...I'll be homeless?"
"Never mind, Guy. Who did you send after them?"
"Sakura and Sasami."
"Sakura and WHO?"
"Aren't all you princesses in some sort of elite social club? You people really have to start coming to the Rising Sun planning meetings."
"That doesn't tell me who she is, Guy."
"She's a friend of Yugi's. She's the closest thing to Sailor Scout we have left, too."
"I guess that's good. Why didn't Yugi go with them?"
Guy hesitated. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
* * * * *
"But it's not fair!" Yugi whined. "I wanna be one!"
Vegeta stared down at her. "Yugi, I already said no. Don't make me repeat myself."
"But why? You used to like the Sailor Scouts!"
"And I still do. Which is precisely why no daughter of mine will ever become one. I will not allow you to be drooled over by thousands of men and boys."
Yugi pouted. "You're mean!"
"Thank you. No."
Yugi turned to Trunks. "Help me out here!"
"Shh! Sailor Moon is on!" he hissed, pointing at the TV.
"Some big brother YOU are." Yugi grabbed Vegeta's hand and pulled him over to the TV, where Sailor Mars had just finished transforming. "Can you HONESTLY say you have a problem with me dressing like that?"
Vegeta glanced at the TV. "Yes."
Yugi narrowed her eyes. "Give me one good reason."
Trunks rolled his eyes and muttered quietly, "Because I said so."
"Beacause I said so!" Vegeta shouted.
"That's not a reason!" Yugi cried.
"I am the parent, and you are the child! You will obey me!"
"Make me!"
Trunks dove behind the couch as an energy blast sailed over his head. "I bet Gohan doesn't have to live like this."
Yugi scrambled behind the couch. "Okay, so I shouldn't have said that."
"What was your first clue?"
Yugi frowned. "It's his fault! I should be a Sailor Scout if I wanna be!"
"If you're a Sailor Scout, then throw something that will turn him to moon dust, and do it quick!"
"Okay, but it was your idea." Yugi formed a ball of energy in her hands and threw it over the couch. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!!!" she shouted, ducking her head.
An eerie silence followed. Trunks slowly peered over the couch. "Uh oh."
Yugi climbed up on his shoulders. "Yikes."
"You do know I was kidding about the dust stuff, right?"
"Really? I didn't know that."
"If you two are done," Vegeta said from behind them, "I have a daughter to punish."
Yugi turned pale, and Trunks swallowed noisily. "Uh oh."
Vegeta grabbed Yugi and tucked her under his arm, despite her kicking and screaming about the new child abuse laws. He walked out of the room, leaving Trunks by himself.
"Hey, wait a minute!" Trunks cried. "Where's the TV?!"
* * * * *
Mistress Nine knew that in order to start an evil empire, the first thing you needed was someone to do the grunt work. Unfortunately, she also knew just where to get grunts to do her bidding.
No one gave it a second thought when she walked into the Midnight Run planning meeting.
Guy looked up when she came in, but he kept on reading the agenda. "One more thing, guys. You have GOT to stop cursing. We're Cartoon Network, and we can't get away with that."
Gene Starwind leaned back in his chair. "We don't do it on purporse. It just slips sometimes."
"Only if you replace 'sometimes' with 'every week'," Jim Hawking muttered.
"Hey, shut up!" Gene shouted, smacking the back of his head.
"You two are so childish," Suzuka groaned, closing her eyes.
"I agree," Mistress Nine said silkily, placing her hand on Suzuka's shoulder.
"She a friend of yours, Suzu?" Aisha asked, sniffing at the woman.
"Stop calling me that!" Suzuka hissed.
Aisha stuck out her tongue, even as Mistress Nine placed a hand on her head.
"Hey, who are you?" Gene asked, peering at Mistress Nine.
Mistress Nine smiled. "Show them, my dears."
Aisha and Suzuka rose from their seats.
"That's not good, is it?" Jim asked.
"No, partner, I don't think so," Gene replied. "You got any Castors on you?"
"Nope."
Aisha hopped onto the table and growled menacingly at Jim, while Suzuka drew her wooden sword and pointed it at Jean's neck.
"Damn," Gene muttered, shooting Guy a look.
"I heard that!"
Mistress Nine chuckled evilly. "I do love my work."
* * * * *
"Target sighted," Ryoko announced as she spotted the glowing building in the distance. "Looks like Mistress Nine chose Cartoon Network HQ as ground zero for her evil empire."
"Which means she's probably enslaved half the employees and just about all the characters by now," Duo added, a frown on his face.
"That doesn't matter," Hotaru said quietly. "We still have to stop her."
"You sure you're up for this, babe?" Duo asked, sounding concerned. "You haven't been yourself since we got here."
"Yeah, you actually sound confident, for once," Ryoko pointed out.
"Aren't friends supposed to encourage you?" Hotaru asked.
"Good friends, yes," Ryoko replied. "But if it means anything, we'll be here to doubt you every step of the way, kid."
"Thanks, I think."
Duo slipped an arm around Hotaru's waist. "How 'bout a kiss for luck, then?"
She smiled up at him. "Okay."
Duo closed his eyes and leaned forward, smiling as his lips met hers. However, Hotaru's lips felt...different. Duo opened his eyes and screamed.
Ryoko laughed. "What? You said you wanted a kiss, Romeo!"
Duo gagged and tried to force himself to vomit.
Hotaru giggled. Then her smile was replaced by a serious look.
Duo and Ryoko stopped fighting and turned toward Cartoon Network HQ, which was beginning to look like something out of a Ghostbusters movie.
Hotaru transformed into Sailor Saturn, gripping the Silence Glaive tightly in one hand. She narrowed her eyes. "Saturn Scouts...move in."
The trio flew forward with a sudden burst of speed, heading straight for the front door.
Continued in Part 4: The Sadist Scouts
Part 3: Power of Saturn
Hotaru grunted and slowly opened her eyes. "D-Duo? Ryoko?"
There was no answer.
Hotaru made it to her knees, ignoring the pain in her limbs as best she could. "Guys, where are you?"
"They cannot hear you, my child," a strange voice answered.
Hotaru gapsed as an old man suddenly appeared in fron of her. "Who are you?"
"A friend," he replied, helping her up. "You must hurry, Hotaru. Mistress Nine is on her way to Earth. If she is allowed to establish a power base there, she may become impossible to stop."
"But how? She has my power! She called on Guardian Saturn earlier!"
The old man sighed. "I'm afraid Mistress Nine was able to access that power because she still has a connection with you, my dear. Though she is no longer restricted by your body, she does share the same power as you. That is only one of your concerns, though. We will need to free your friends first."
"Why are you helping me?" Hotaru asked. "And how do you know my name?"
"Very well. I suppose it is best that I tell you the truth. I am the physical manifestation of your power source. In short, the spirit of Saturn."
Her eyes widened. "You're Guardian Saturn?"
"That is one of my names, yes. As I said, we must hurry. Mistress Nine has put a great strain on my powers. I have divided my remaining strength into three portions. The first shall go to you, since you will need it battle Mistress Nine. The last two will go to your friends."
"But what will happen to you?"
The old man smiled. "I will be fine." He placed his hands on her forehead. "Remember, my child. You alone now possess the power to stop Mistress Nine. Your friends can help you reach her, but you must face her by yourself. It is the only way to stop her for good."
Hotaru gasped as she felt energy flowing into her body. "Is this dangerous?"
"Not for you," he replied. "Now, lift the meteor and free your friends."
"With my hands?" she asked, looking puzzled.
"No. With your mind."
Hotaru stared at the meteor. "Can't you do it?"
"If I did, I might not have enough power left to share with your friends."
Hotaru swallowed noisily and closed her eyes.
After a few long moments, the meteor shifted and rolled away.
Ryoko was the first to rise from the crater. "I'm never going anywhere with you people again," she muttered, dusting off her clothes.
Duo slowly got up and winced. "I wouldn't complain. Us humans don't exactly have automatic shields."
"Sounds like a personal problem." Ryoko dragged him out of the crater.
"Duo! Ryoko! You're okay!" Hotaru ran over and threw her arms around them both.
"Takes more than a pebble to take us out, kid." Ryoko patted the girl's head. "Hey, who's the old guy?"
"He's Guardian Saturn! He gave me the power to move the meteor!"
"Wait. YOU moved the rock, babe?" Duo asked.
Hotaru nodded.
"There is no time for conversation," the old man said. "We must act quickly. Show me your sigils."
"Our what?" Duo asked.
"That," he replied, pointing to the tattoo on Duo's hand.
Ryoko held up her wrist. "What are these things for, anyway?"
"The power transfer, of course." The old man grabbed Duo's hand and Ryoko's wrist. "This might sting."
That was an understatment. When the transfer was done, Duo and Ryoko fell to their knees, gasping for air.
"It didn't hurt when he did it to me," Hotaru said, looking confused.
"You were already infused with the power of Saturn, child. These two were not."
"Just as long as we don't have to do that again," Ryoko muttered.
The old man placed a hand on Ryoko's forehead. "I name you Chaos, Bringer of Destruction. No enemy can escape your wrath."
Ryoko's eyes took on a red glow.
"Now that is creepy," Duo said.
The old man touched Duo's forehead. "I name you Death, Thief of Life. No creature can resist your touch."
Duo's eyes grew cold and empty, taking on a black glow.
The old man finally turned to Hotaru. "I name you Silence, Ender of All. Nothing can ignore your commands."
While Hotaru's eyes didn't really change, their violet light was brighter than usual.
"Go, my children. Save the Earth from Mistress Nine before it is too late."
The trio bowed to him, then faded in a flash of red light.
The old man smiled faintly. "It is done." Then, his eyes rolled up into his head, and he collapsed to the ground.
* * * * *
"So let me get this straight," Sasami said. "You're a superhero, but you don't have a secret identity?"
Sakura blinked. "Well, there's only a handful of people that have seen me as a superhero. So it is a secret, but I don't need another identity, since I can trust those people."
"Must be nice," Sasami murmured wistfully.
"Sometimes." Sakura glanced at the console. "Shouldn't you be...y'know...flying the ship?"
"Oh, there's no need. My guardians take care of that."
"Princess Sasami?" a voice asked.
"Yes?"
"We've run into some debris. It looks like the remains of a ship."
Sakura's eyes widened. "You don't think...?"
"Let's hope not." Sasami turned to the console. "Scan for survivors."
"Scanning...done. One survivor found."
"Bring them aboard, then. Prepare the infirmary."
"At once, princess."
Sasami stood up. "You should probably come with me. I only know Ryoko; the other two are mysteries to me."
"Right." Sakura followed her to the rear of the ship.
The airlock slowly slid open, revealing a girl lying on the floor. She was covered in blood, most likely her own. Several parts of her body were badly burned.
Sasami leaned down and checked for a pulse. "She's barely alive. Is this the person we're looking for?"
Sakura stared for a long moment. "Well, she isn't dressed like a Sailor Scout, and her eyes are brown instead of violet...although her hair looks dark violet. No, I guess this isn't her. But we can't just throw her back out there, can we?"
"Of course not. We'll take her with us." Sasami peered closely at the girl. "I think she was attacked, and her ship exploded. I wonder how long she's been out there?"
"Readings indicate the wreckage to be three weeks old, princess."
"That long?" Sakura asked. "How could anyone survive in space that long?"
"She's either very lucky, very strong, or both."
* * * * *
Reenie snatched up the phone on the first ring. "Hello?!"
"Reenie? It's Guy. I've got some news."
"You found Hotaru?" she asked hopefully.
"Well, no. But I've sent out a search party to look for her and the others."
"What happens if they can't find her?"
"I'll lose my job."
"Other than that."
"Um...I'll be homeless?"
"Never mind, Guy. Who did you send after them?"
"Sakura and Sasami."
"Sakura and WHO?"
"Aren't all you princesses in some sort of elite social club? You people really have to start coming to the Rising Sun planning meetings."
"That doesn't tell me who she is, Guy."
"She's a friend of Yugi's. She's the closest thing to Sailor Scout we have left, too."
"I guess that's good. Why didn't Yugi go with them?"
Guy hesitated. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
* * * * *
"But it's not fair!" Yugi whined. "I wanna be one!"
Vegeta stared down at her. "Yugi, I already said no. Don't make me repeat myself."
"But why? You used to like the Sailor Scouts!"
"And I still do. Which is precisely why no daughter of mine will ever become one. I will not allow you to be drooled over by thousands of men and boys."
Yugi pouted. "You're mean!"
"Thank you. No."
Yugi turned to Trunks. "Help me out here!"
"Shh! Sailor Moon is on!" he hissed, pointing at the TV.
"Some big brother YOU are." Yugi grabbed Vegeta's hand and pulled him over to the TV, where Sailor Mars had just finished transforming. "Can you HONESTLY say you have a problem with me dressing like that?"
Vegeta glanced at the TV. "Yes."
Yugi narrowed her eyes. "Give me one good reason."
Trunks rolled his eyes and muttered quietly, "Because I said so."
"Beacause I said so!" Vegeta shouted.
"That's not a reason!" Yugi cried.
"I am the parent, and you are the child! You will obey me!"
"Make me!"
Trunks dove behind the couch as an energy blast sailed over his head. "I bet Gohan doesn't have to live like this."
Yugi scrambled behind the couch. "Okay, so I shouldn't have said that."
"What was your first clue?"
Yugi frowned. "It's his fault! I should be a Sailor Scout if I wanna be!"
"If you're a Sailor Scout, then throw something that will turn him to moon dust, and do it quick!"
"Okay, but it was your idea." Yugi formed a ball of energy in her hands and threw it over the couch. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!!!" she shouted, ducking her head.
An eerie silence followed. Trunks slowly peered over the couch. "Uh oh."
Yugi climbed up on his shoulders. "Yikes."
"You do know I was kidding about the dust stuff, right?"
"Really? I didn't know that."
"If you two are done," Vegeta said from behind them, "I have a daughter to punish."
Yugi turned pale, and Trunks swallowed noisily. "Uh oh."
Vegeta grabbed Yugi and tucked her under his arm, despite her kicking and screaming about the new child abuse laws. He walked out of the room, leaving Trunks by himself.
"Hey, wait a minute!" Trunks cried. "Where's the TV?!"
* * * * *
Mistress Nine knew that in order to start an evil empire, the first thing you needed was someone to do the grunt work. Unfortunately, she also knew just where to get grunts to do her bidding.
No one gave it a second thought when she walked into the Midnight Run planning meeting.
Guy looked up when she came in, but he kept on reading the agenda. "One more thing, guys. You have GOT to stop cursing. We're Cartoon Network, and we can't get away with that."
Gene Starwind leaned back in his chair. "We don't do it on purporse. It just slips sometimes."
"Only if you replace 'sometimes' with 'every week'," Jim Hawking muttered.
"Hey, shut up!" Gene shouted, smacking the back of his head.
"You two are so childish," Suzuka groaned, closing her eyes.
"I agree," Mistress Nine said silkily, placing her hand on Suzuka's shoulder.
"She a friend of yours, Suzu?" Aisha asked, sniffing at the woman.
"Stop calling me that!" Suzuka hissed.
Aisha stuck out her tongue, even as Mistress Nine placed a hand on her head.
"Hey, who are you?" Gene asked, peering at Mistress Nine.
Mistress Nine smiled. "Show them, my dears."
Aisha and Suzuka rose from their seats.
"That's not good, is it?" Jim asked.
"No, partner, I don't think so," Gene replied. "You got any Castors on you?"
"Nope."
Aisha hopped onto the table and growled menacingly at Jim, while Suzuka drew her wooden sword and pointed it at Jean's neck.
"Damn," Gene muttered, shooting Guy a look.
"I heard that!"
Mistress Nine chuckled evilly. "I do love my work."
* * * * *
"Target sighted," Ryoko announced as she spotted the glowing building in the distance. "Looks like Mistress Nine chose Cartoon Network HQ as ground zero for her evil empire."
"Which means she's probably enslaved half the employees and just about all the characters by now," Duo added, a frown on his face.
"That doesn't matter," Hotaru said quietly. "We still have to stop her."
"You sure you're up for this, babe?" Duo asked, sounding concerned. "You haven't been yourself since we got here."
"Yeah, you actually sound confident, for once," Ryoko pointed out.
"Aren't friends supposed to encourage you?" Hotaru asked.
"Good friends, yes," Ryoko replied. "But if it means anything, we'll be here to doubt you every step of the way, kid."
"Thanks, I think."
Duo slipped an arm around Hotaru's waist. "How 'bout a kiss for luck, then?"
She smiled up at him. "Okay."
Duo closed his eyes and leaned forward, smiling as his lips met hers. However, Hotaru's lips felt...different. Duo opened his eyes and screamed.
Ryoko laughed. "What? You said you wanted a kiss, Romeo!"
Duo gagged and tried to force himself to vomit.
Hotaru giggled. Then her smile was replaced by a serious look.
Duo and Ryoko stopped fighting and turned toward Cartoon Network HQ, which was beginning to look like something out of a Ghostbusters movie.
Hotaru transformed into Sailor Saturn, gripping the Silence Glaive tightly in one hand. She narrowed her eyes. "Saturn Scouts...move in."
The trio flew forward with a sudden burst of speed, heading straight for the front door.
Continued in Part 4: The Sadist Scouts