Fall From Grace

by Emporess

All the Senshi, humor, drama, ecchi, ect.

4. Double Vision

Thank you for going on to Chapter: 3.
Sailor Moon ain't mine.

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Fall From Grace
By: Emporess
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"Excuse me, who are you?"
-Perfect Blue

Chapter 3:
Double Vision

A yellow roadster streaked through the night, taking turns
at dangerous speeds. It wove it and out of traffic, dodging cars,
heedless of the chaos its passing caused. The drivers around
it cursed, laying heavy hands on their cars horns. "Turn," Her
passenger on the left stated, as calm and unruffled as the driver.
The tires squealed and gave off smoke as she rounded the turn.
"15 more minutes till destination." Neptune stated.
"We'll make it in 10," Uranus said confidently.

"You sure this is a good idea?" Valka asked nervously,
glancing around the park. Scores of people lay face down on
the ground, drained of their energy. A few still fled in terror,
trying to avoid the persistent phantasm that Dagon had conjured.
Dagon was calmly filing one of his fingernails. "What are
you so afraid of?" He glanced at the pacing Valka. "Our main
objective was to capture this 'Gatekeeper' Toro-sama referred
to. To do that we have to wait for it to reappear. Might as
well collect some energy while were at it."
"They'll probably show up though."
"They? Pretty Sailor Soldiers?" Valka let out a peel of
laughter and then glanced at him with disdain. "I hope they do.
I'd like to see whats gotten you so frightened. Besides, it'd
be a good chance to see how our energy agrees with them."
They watched in silence as their phantasm dragged down
a young man and eclipsed him in blue light. The mans struggles
faded as he fell to the ground. The phantasm was happily making
slurping noises as it bounded off for the next target.
"Hold it right there!" called out a voice.
Dagon turned to glance in the direction as Valka let out
a yelp and jumped behind him.
"I am the beautiful Sailor Senshi, Sailor Moon! I won't
tolerate you stealing energy from innocent people enjoying a
night in the park! In the name of the Moon-" cried out the
same voice, holding up her hands in a pose.
"In the name of Jupiter-" the taller girl said.
"...ZZZZ...." said the one in blue, leaning over on
the tall one.
"Mercury," hissed Jupiter, shaking her awake.
"... nani?" she glanced around sleepily. Seeing where
they were she blushed. Dagon grinned slyly to himself. "Oh,
gomen. Where are you at?"
Jupiter sighed. "Introductions."
Mercury cleared her throat nervously. "And in the name
of Mercury!" She glanced at them to make sure they were doing
the poses as well.
"We will punish you!" They all finished together.
In the time it had taken them to say their speech, the
phantasm had drained 3 more victims. Dagon was laughing now.
"Nice speech. Perhaps we should introduce ourselves as well."
He paused, and glanced up at Valka, who was sitting on top
of his shoulders, clinging to his hair. "You can get down
now, baka." Valka sheepishly jumped off of him. "I believe
you already know Valka-chan. My name is Dagon, but you can
refer to me as Dagon-sama if you like." He then grinned
charmingly and bowed before them. He looked very handsome
when he did that.
"Sugoi," exclaimed Jupiter, Moon, and even Mercury,
little hearts appearing in their eyes.
Valka snorted in disgust. "Don't worry, Valka-chan. I
only have eyes for you." Dagon whispered, too low for the
love-sick senshi to hear.
Valka blushed. "Knock it off," he hissed back.
Before Dagon could tease him more, a voice cut through
the night. "World Shaking!"
A giant yellow ringed ball smashed through the Earth
and headed directly for them. Dagon with cat-like reflexes
grabbed Valka and fell with him to the ground, narrowly
missing being hit. "Arigato, Dagon." Valka gasped.
"You can thank me by practicing this position later."
Dagon said flirtatiously before rolling back up to his feet
to check out his new adversaries. "And who am I meeting now?"
Cherry blossoms flung through the air as he stared at
a tall senshi with short blonde hair. "Brought by a new age,
where the heavens touch the Earth, Sailor Uranus, acting
gorgeously."
To her side, a shorter, somewhat more elegant woman
held a mysterious smile. "Acting gracefully, Sailor Neptune."
At that point the first three senshi were shaking
their heads to try to get the star struck looks off their
faces. "A pleasure to meet you all. I dare say, with so
many lovely ladies I'm not sure which to address first."
Uranus stepped forward with Neptune right behind
her. "We'd be honored to be first," she drawled,
an evil grin lighting up her face as she called out for
her talisman. She wasn't surprised her World Shaking had
missed them, given what the others had said about their
bouncing attacks. She wasn't taking any chances. Neptune
brought her mirror out.
Dagon stepped away from Valka. 'Take care of the
other 3,' he telepathed to his associate. "Ladies first!"
He challenged, darting over towards them, his hands glowing
as he charged up his energy.
"What a gentleman," Neptune remarked slyly to Uranus
as they moved in for a strike.

Valka smiled at the other Senshi. "Don't worry my
lovelies! I haven't forgotten about you." He held his crystal
high over his head as energy cackled. "The odds are off, but
I believe I can set them right."
Before they could react three bubbles burst from his hand
and captured their forms. They all felt like they were floating in
midair. The world beyond the bubble seemed to dim as it spread out.
Before they knew it, each appeared to be alone, in dark empty space,
with no idea of which way to turn or where their companions could be.
"Now the fun starts!" They heard him laugh.

Venus was darting across rooftops as fast as she dared.
She was making good time, but not good enough. Kiro had driven
them way across town, and even being above the buildings it
was taking her a half hour to get there. She cursed whatever
crazy chromosome it was that made her act so impulsive at times as
she ran. She couldn't believe she'd blown off a meeting and put
Usagi's life in danger for a date. A date!
'So?' a voice in her head asked. 'Normal people go on dates
all the time.'
"Normal people don't have to defend love and justice by
running on rooftops." She answered the voice out loud bitterly.
She didn't hear a reply. It occurred to her that it was odd to
be having an argument with herself, but she pushed the thought
aside. She could worry about checking in with a psychologist
later. Saving the world was a bit more important.

Sailor Mercury stifled a yawn as she activated her visor.
Being lost in a dimensional vortex was not a good place to be.
Knowing a little bit about physics, she realized there had to
be a way out of there. All she had to do was find it. She could
think a lot clearer if she wasn't so tired.
'Why not lay down and take a little nap right here.'
"Who said that?" She asked, searching with her visor.
She couldn't find anything.
'I did.' The voice called out again.
She glanced right and left, even took off the visor to look
around with her own eyes. She made out a dim shape ahead of her.
It looked like a female form, with short hair and large haunted
blue eyes. She gasped. "You look like me!"
'I am you.' the voice answered her, giggling.
"H-How can you be me?"
The figure was right up next to her, and it indeed looked
exactly like her. When it first approached it'd seemed naked, but
on closer inspection it was wearing what looked like one of her
nightgowns. 'I'm the you you don't look at very much, the
private you.'
"The private me...?"
It put a hand to her cheek and gently smiled. 'Hai. I'm
how you really feel. Do you know how we're feeling right now?'
Trance like Mercury shook her head.
'We're feeling tired.' She yawned as if to emphasize this,
and Mercury found herself doing the same. 'What with school, and
our friends, and being a Senshi, were wearing ourselves out! When
is the last time we got a full night's rest?'
"I like to study at night..." Mercury told herself, dazed.
"I don't get to bed till very late. This has to be some sort of
trick..."
The other figure shook her head. 'No trick Mercury. We've
been tired all day. Remember when we practically fell asleep in
the hospital hall? We've been trying to catch up on our sleep
all day, and nows our chance!'
The other Mercury was getting her to lay down on the floor,
where pillows and blankets were suddenly appearing. She was nice
and tucked in. "But what about the others..." The pillow felt so
soft.
The other Mercury lay next to her, resting on her own
pillow. 'They'll be OK. Hey, would your own self lie to you?'
Mercury fought to stay awake, to think things through, but
her eyelids were getting so heavy...
'Goodnight.' whispered her double, its eyes closing.

Sailor Jupiter glared into the darkness around her. This
was not a good situation. Her friends were gone, and she was
stuck in- well whatever the hell this was. All day she'd felt
wound up like a rubber band, stretched tight. Whenever she
DID find a way out of here, someone was going to pay dearly for
this.
'I see we've blown it again,' a voice called out.
She brought her fists up to a defensive position.
"Show yourself!"
A green light flashed before her, and she was staring
at someone who looked exactly like her, clothed in her gui.
The figure sneered at her, its own arms were raised, but in
an offensive position.
"What is this?" Jupiter asked, more angry then nervous.
'What do you think, baka?' the voice called out
sarcastically. 'I'm you, as much as it pains me to admit it.'
Jupiter glared back at the apparition. "Bullshit." She
raised her arms and called upon her power. "Jupiter Oak
Evolution!" she cried, going into her spin and sending the
leaves cartwheeling towards her foe. She expected it to pass
right through it, but instead it slammed the other Makoto
off her feet.
At the same time she clutched over in pain. She hissed,
feeling her doubles agony as the glowing orbs rocked against
her. The double rose to its feet and laughed at her snidely.
'Baka! If you hit me with magic, you only hurt yourself!'
Jupiter was kneeling with one knee under her. She gritted
her teeth as she rose to her feet. "Your not me."
The other Jupiter came flying at her, a knee slamming her
back down in the ground, a move that she herself had practiced
with Haruka and never mastered. 'I am you. The better, stronger
you.' The figure tried to grind its heel into her face, but
she rolled away at the last second. She was gasping, trying
to get up after getting the wind knocked out of her. 'I'm
tired of you lousing everything up for us. We don't have a
boyfriend because of you. We can't protect anyone because
of you. Its time we became what I am. The real Senshi Jupiter.'
To Jupiter's amazement, her double was now clad in her fuku.
'Prepare to defend yourself.' The image called, in the old Moon
Kingdom adage to a foe. She came flying at her with her fists
held high, and Jupiter had nowhere to turn.

"Jupiter? Mercury? Uranus? Neptune?" cried out Sailor Moon
as she nervously clutched at the Eternal Tier in her hands. Her
wings fluttered behind her. She didn't like this cold, dark
place. Not in the least. She wished Mamo-chan or one of the other
Senshi were here.
"Sailor Moon..." She whirled around, finding herself face
to face with Valka. She jumped back, startled. "It is all right
if I call you Sailor Moon, isn't it?"
He was standing arrogantly next to her, a grimace on his
lips. "Where are we?" she asked, ignoring his question. "Where
are my friends?"
"Didn't your mother ever tell you its rude to answer a
question with a question?" He asked, picking some lint off
his designer jacket. He looked up at her then. "Where do you
want to be?"
She stared at him, a confused look on her face. "Nani?"
He flung an arm out, gesturing around him. As his hand
moved, the space around her shifted, showing beautiful colors,
each one bright and indistinguishable with the last. They swirled
and pulsed in a strange rhythm. "Sugoi," Sailor Moon murmured.
"Its so beautiful."
He seemed delighted with her reaction. "Yes, isn't it
though." Off to the side he seemed to mumble, "I'd like to see
Dagon top that."
Sailor Moon broke her gaze from the lovely spectacle
and turned to him. "Why are you hurting people?" She asked,
almost innocently. "If you can make such wonderful things,"
she gestured to the display, "then why cause pain to others?"
He paused and seemed to consider this before answering.
"Thats our way."
"Whose way?" She asked.
"The way written in the scrolls of Toro." He said this
flippantly, with no respect where obviously there should be
some. "It is said that one day will come the one who will
control the very earth itself with power. That no dimension
or person will be more powerful."
"What does that have to do with stealing energy and
other people?" Sailor Moon wished Mercury was here. She'd
understand more of this.
"We look for the key Sailor Moon. The key to the gates,
the key to the one. My whole life, and that of the others who
serve the master I do, have been devoted to finding the key."
Sailor Moon gasped. She hoped to Kami-sama it wasn't
another group after her crystal. She didn't think she could
tolerate that.
"To find the key we need power. We've always stolen the
power in small bursts to assist us." He continued. "Now however
we have to step things up, cause we think we've found what we've
looked for so very long."
She was silent as she waited for him to finish.
"I don't know who you female warriors are, or why you insist
on challenging us. I have no quibble with you, nor does my master."
He stopped and gave her a warning look. "For the moment. Should
you continue to interfere with his efforts things could get most...
ugly."
"Where are my friends?" She asked, irritated by his threats.
His expression looked wicked in response. "I'm afraid that
its too late for them. They weren't so fortunate to receive a
warning." He licked his lips. "The chaos energy inside them will
set them to destroying themselves. And what a pity too. It was
a mistake when we tried grabbing you and that young man. They'll
die in vain, for we've already zeroed in on the one we really
want."
"No they won't!" She cried out at him, bringing the Eternal
Tier up and beginning the spins for her attack. "Starlight
Honeymoon Kiss!"
To her shock and dismay he held his crystal aloft and it
glowed with an eery purple light. The attack dissipated
around him, vanishing. Before she could recover he closed
the gap between them and shot his arm out, shoving her
so she fell backwards in a heap.
"That was foolish of you..." He whispered, coming
towards her. "I might have to teach you a lesson after all."

Mamoru parked at the girl's apartment. He had ran late
because of all the traffic. For some reason, things were
backed up from Azabu Park for miles. He'd just stepped out
of the car and locked the door when he felt an all too
familiar wave of nausea hit him.
He produced a rose and transformed into Tuxedo
Kamen. He dashed down the street, ditching the car as
useless with all the traffic around town. Even without
his love's siren call, he would have been able to
guess where the trouble was.
"Hang on Usako," He called out aloud and in his
thoughts, hoping somehow through their link, she would hear
him. As he raced through the streets, he felt something
nagging at him. He was feeling a pull in the opposite direction
of his love. It seemed to be calling out stronger to him.
He shook of the thought. Regardless of what he was feeling,
Usako and her safety came first.
"Don't be a baka," whispered a voice in his ears.
"Nani?" he quit running and leaped to the top of
a building to get an overview of the street. "Who said
that?"
"The Princess will be fine Endymion. Her friend is in
danger." The voice was very distant, flat.
"She needs me." He argued irrationally with a voice
only he could hear.
"She would want you to help her friend more."
He waited in silence for the voice to go on, but it
seemed to be finished. He cursed, feeling the pull from
the other direction getting more insistent. While
Usagi was far away, whatever else was speaking to him was
only a few blocks over. He gasped as he realized exactly
what direction that was, who lived there. "Rei-chan!"
"Serenity would want you to save her friend first,
ne?" The voice faded out, and he no longer felt its
ghostly pull. He seemed paralyzed with indescion, wanting
to go to both. He thought of what Usagi would tell him to
do.
He picked up speed again, running to the Hikawa Shrine.
Hopefully, he could help them both.

"Damn!" Uranus cried out in frustration as her sword
swished through the air that Dagon had occupied a few seconds
before hand. The little devil was certainly quick. She hadn't
gone all out on him yet, still testing her enemy. She doubted
he was as fast as her, but she didn't want to let him know
that. Let him think he had an advantage for the moment.
"Uranus!" Neptune cried out a warning. She jumped away
just in time to miss an energy blast from behind. Dagon was
floating above their heads a few yards away and chuckling.
"Now, now 'gorgeous Senshi'," he called. "Don't let
your emotions run away with you. It could very well end
your lives, and I'd hate to see that happen."
"DEEP SUBMERGE!" Cried Neptune, sending a glowing
ball of blue light at him. He held up a hand which was
clutched around a crystal sphere. Purple light flared
and Neptune's power reversed directions heading right
back towards her. She dived out of the way but still
got clipped by it on the shoulder.
"NEPTUNE!" Uranus called out, hurrying to the
now still form. She was OK, just knocked out from the
force of the blow. Uranus eyes were enraged with
fury as she brought her sword up to point at the
enemy. "No more playing around." She hissed dangerously.
He grinned with dark humor. "My thoughts
exactly."

Mercury's eyes were closed, but she wasn't sleeping.
She was desperately trying to hold on to consciousness. In
her mind she was trying to work out a plan, anything that
could get her out of the mess she was in. Her body felt like
lead, too heavy to even sit up, let alone get out of here.
*Think*, she hissed at herself. She was supposed to
be so smart, a genius. She couldn't even stop herself from
falling asleep!
"Sailor Mercury! Come in Sailor Mercury!" called a
voice. She opened her eyes and found herself in a large room
with mats strown across the floor. The walls were made of
white stone. A hand was being waved in front of her face.
"Ah, so you were just day dreaming, ne?"
She couldn't see the person in front of her. The
form seemed to be cloaked in shadows, even though she could
see the rest of the place perfectly. 'I must have fallen
asleep' she thought dejectedly. What she was seeing had to
be a dream.
Without thinking about it her body began to move
forward to where the other form was beckoning. "I guess
I can let it slide this time, since your usually my
most attentive student." The voice teased her.
"Hai, Sensei!" She giggled, having no control
over her speech or movements. She looked up and took
in the black void in front of her. "What is that?" She
asked.
"That, Mercury, is a dimensional warp. I'm sure
you've come across them in your studies." Ami felt
herself nodding. "Well this one is man made, designed
especially by myself for your training." She snapped
her fingers and the void came to life swirling around
in a circle above her. "This void will become more erratic
the longer it remains here. You must stop it Mercury,
by any means at your disposal."
She felt her hand reach up and touch her earring,
her visor appearing before her eyes. The settings on
it were the same as when she had first worn it so long
ago. The words rapidly going down the screen which had
been indecipherable at the time were now easily read.
She gasped inwardly, realizing she was reading in the
Moon Kingdoms language. On the outside her body
seemed unaffected as she read through the data and
seemed to be determining the best course of action.
"Sensei-" She heard herself say as the void got
dangerously closer. "Sensei I'm not sure what the proper
thing to do is. The data is inconclusive."
"Screw the data."
"Nani?" She gasped. The void was getting ever closer.
"Don't think, just act."
She felt the sweat begin to bead on her forehead.
Her target was still coming towards her, and it seemed like
whoever Sensei was, wasn't going to step in and help her.
She touched the earring and the visor came down. She took
a deep breath and whipped into her spin. "Shine Aqua Illusion!"
She cried out, blue frosted water flying at the void. Glancing
at it in horror, she realized it was still there, towering above
her. "SENSEI!" she shrieked.
The void disappeared before her eyes as Sensei snapped
her fingers again. She came up to the shaking Senshi and put an
arm around her. "I'm sorry I had to do that Mercury. You did very
well."
"B-but I failed." She stammered, upset.
"You did everything you could to stop it, and you stood
your ground." The shadowed figure's voice was even and level.
"There was no way for you to stop that void Mercury. It was a
test. You didn't back down. Remember, sometimes you
can't analyze. You just have to act."
"Next time you'll be ready," came another voice from
behind her. She turned around, and there was a regal figure
in white.
"Queen Serenity-sama!" she gasped, falling to one knee
before her. Normally, she wouldn't have been so formal, but
she still felt some shame from failing in her task.
The Queen looked benevolently down at her and lay a hand
on her head. She was surrounded by a pink glow. "I trust you'll
use this when the time is right, Mercury." She felt a shockwave
of energy, and then her body was falling forward. "I hope your
right about this." Queen Serenity said worriedly.
She heard Sensei's voice answer back, "She'll remember
when she needs it. I don't want them to use it until they
must. Its dangerous to have that knowledge."
Their voices seemed to fade away as she passed out. "Yes
my love, power corrupts even the most innocent." Queen Serenity
sounded so sad.
"Let me kiss those tears away," came Sensei's voice, and
then there was only darkness.
Mercury's eyes flew awake, if she had been sleeping at
all. She still felt tired, unbelievably exhausted, but her
eyes remained open. She didn't have to think about how to
get out of here, or why she was so tired. She just had to
do it, like Sensei had said. Whoever she was.
'Mercury? Are you sleeping?' came the wary voice
of her double.
"No." Despite her heavy limbs she began to rise to
her feet. Pink light shined around her, changing her costume
and reenergizing her. Words floated across her mind. "MERCURY
CRASHING TSUMINI!" She cried, a tidal wave bursting from her
fingertips and arching towards her double.
'AHHHHH!' screamed the apparition right before it hit,
changing shape into a white phantasm. It turned to dust,
disappearing under the onslaught of the powerful attack.
The world around her changed, turning from the black
void to the park. She was about 5 minutes away from where
she'd been abducted.
Her feet were unsteady after the shift at first. She
glanced down at her uniform, noting the changes. Underneath
her skirt there was now a thinner one the color of her bow,
made of chiffon. The shoulders of her uniform also had taken
on the color. Before she could consider the implications of
this and her new memories she heard a scream farther away.
"NEPTUNE!" Uranus' voice cried out.
She ran towards the fray, hoping she wasn't too late.

The man lay on the hospital bed, twitching. His hair
was matted with perspiration, his eyes jerking underneath the
lids as he called out from his dreams in a weak voice.
"Rei... Rei..."
No one came to check on him, as par their orders.
Through the open window to his left, a man came in,
dressed in gray with a black cloak. He wore a black hat on
his head that shadowed his face. Soothingly he placed a
gloved hand on the man's temple, whispering words of
encouragement. "Be still my friend."
A golden glow sprang from his fingertips and spread
across the other's body. After a few minutes it stopped.
"I'm sorry, I wish I could do more. I'm not as strong as
our Prince you see." He gave the now resting body a tired
smile. "Soon tho', you'll be ready to be moved. I'll bring
you home." He gave the man's hand a friendly squeeze and
jumped out the window, to the night.
"Mikel...?" murmured the one on the bed. As usual,
no one could answer him before he fell back into dreams.

Jupiter was losing, and badly.
She had learned the hard way that not only did using
her powers hurt her more than her double, but the double
could hurt her without it effecting it. The situation gave
the word double standard a whole new meaning.
She growled as she narrowly missed a Sparkling Wide
Pressure the clone threw. She hadn't been able to take the
offensive at all during the battle, only still going because
of some lucky moves. Eventually, her luck would have to wear
out.
'Give it up Jupiter!' hissed the evil Senshi. 'You
can't beat me! I'm you! The you you should have been!' She
moved in with an elbow that caught Makoto by surprise,
knocking her down for probably the 10th time.
As Makoto landed and pitched herself away she thought
furiously. She was caught in a Catch-22. Mamoru had explained
the phrase once for the girls. She was damned if she fought
it and damned if she didn't.
Makoto knew that whatever she was facing wasn't really
a part of herself. The enemy did something odd to her, causing
this Invasion of the Body Snatchers demon to come after her.
Just like the two enemies they'd fought before, it bounced
her attacks. She remembered Ami mentioning something about a
twist of dimension surrounding them. Unfortunately she had no
idea what they had been talking about.
*Think Makoto, think!* she berated herself as she jumped
away from the double. She had to know something about dimensional
properties, anything. She glanced up at the clone, and even as
she did, everything seemed to blur. One second she was looking
at it, and then the next she seemed to be looking through it,
from its eyes. The world lurched as her perspective changed.
She came down hard on the figure below her, and even
as she landed it disintegrated beneath her. She felt her face
break out into a grin as she put a hand to her forehead to wipe
the sweat away. Someone to her left threw her a towel. "Thanks
Sensei." She heard herself call out.
A shadowy form stepped up to her. "Beautiful Jupiter! No
enemy would have avoided that spin kick."
She could feel her smile turn a bit nervous. "Thanks,
Sensei. I've worked on that move for awhile. It felt a little
funny kicking at myself though."
She couldn't make out any features on the other woman,
so she couldn't tell if she was smiling or not, but she heard
her laughter. "Yea, the new training program Mercury worked
out sure does give you some surprises doesn't it!" She swung
an arm around her shoulder and led her towards the back of what
Makoto had to assume was a practice room, away from the exit
that she had been heading for.
"Is Mercury doing better now?" She heard herself ask,
wondering what was wrong with Ami.
"Oh she'll be fine! You can visit her today. Shes up
and talking, studying...You know Mercury, always on the
ball. The only reason shes still lying down is we want to
make sure shes OK from passing out yesterday."
"Why did she pass out anyway?"
"Exhaustion. I think we pushed it a little too hard.
A little rest, maybe a little of your delicious cooking,
and she'll be right as rain!" The voice was light and airy.
Suddenly she felt a presence behind her and tried to
turn around but found the other woman holding her still.
She felt someone touch her head and then a rush of power
flood through her body. Her knees gave out on her, and she
would have fallen if not for the other woman holding her
up.
"Are you sure this is a better way?" she heard a
voice ask the woman she called Sensei, a familiar voice.
"Anythings better than putting them in the hospital,
my love." The woman answered, and then she knew nothing but
darkness.
Suddenly she was back where she had been before, as
if time had stopped at that moment. Her clone was still above
her, coming at her with the spin kick she had yet to fully
master in this life. She dodged away from her, feeling
energy cackle around her body, pink light flaring out,
and all over.
"There is one Kino Makoto, one Senshi Jupiter." she
uttered, as the clone began to back up from her. "And I'm
her, bitch." With that said, she raised her hands above her and
yelled the words that came to her mind. "JUPITER ELDRITCH
BOLT!" Green light slammed into the clone, who had turned
white and transparent right before it hit.
The blackness around her disappeared as she landed
on the firm earth of the park. She was disoriented at first.
With one hand to her head she shook it clear as she saw Mercury
appear over a hill. "Mercury!" she called out shakily.
"Jupiter! Your fuku!" Jupiter glanced down and noticed
the pink chiffon underneath it. She also took in the fact that
Mercury was similarly attired. She was going to comment on it
but Mercury grabbed her hand and started pulling her along.
"No time! I heard Uranus scream over this way! Come on!"
She trailed towards the sounds of battle.

Sailor Moon looked up at a leering Valka. She still
had ahold of her Eternal Tier, for all the good it did her.
If he came any closer, she was going to use it as a club
and slam him in the head with it.
"You know Sailor Moon, I must say your one of the
loveliest women I've ever seen," his expression turned thoughtful.
"Almost as lovely as your friend with the chain. What was her
name?"
He didn't look threatening at all right then. She
decided to try to appease him. "Sailor Venus."
"Yea, Sailor Venus. Where is she anyway?"
She shrugged, and he looked a little forlorn. "I'd really
like to see her again. Too bad."
"You like her don't you?" She asked, her face breaking
out into a sly smile. Despite the fact that this guy had just
threatened her, she couldn't stop herself from talking to him
like this. Usagi liked nothing more than playing matchmaker.
She was rewarded by him blushing furiously. "I knew it!
You do! This is so great, she thought the same thing about you!"
"Really?" he asked before he could stop himself. "What'd
she say?"
"She said, 'If he wasn't an enemy, I'd think he was kawaii.'."
Usagi didn't mention that all the girls had thrown pillows at her
when she made that remark.
"Sugoi," he whispered, little hearts flying into his eyes.
"You know, if you could give up this evil society of
yours, I could probably arrange a date with V-chan..." Usagi
asked. If Rei or Haruka could have heard this conversation,
they would have rapped her upside one of her odango. She didn't
care. Despite his threatening talk, something about him made
her think he wasn't really evil.
"I wish it was that simple, Sailor Moon." He murmured.
"I'm not like Dagon or Toro-sama. I don't want to control the
power." His voice became almost wistful. "I just want to be
there, to see it. I want to be on the threshold of a new
mankind."
She was speechless listening to his justifications.
"And unfortunately you had to interfere." He raised the
crystal over his head. "I like you, I really do. I don't want
to hurt you, but its the only way. If you could fight back-"
"You don't have to do anything! Theres got to be a
better way, don't you see?" Sailor Moon implored.
He shook his head and smiled sadly. "Your so innocent,
Sailor Moon. I wish I could be like you. Dagon will know if
I let you go, and that would be the end of me. I'm sorry."
The crystal in his hand began to glow with an eery light.
She held her breath, putting her arms up above her. The blow
didn't fall. She glanced at him and saw him hesitating, trying
to build up the resolve to go through with it. 'Come on, Usagi.
He won't wait forever. Think girl!' she racked her brain for
any plan.
Valka seemed to be frozen in time. His features seemed
to shimmer and fade with the rainbow colored world around her.
She closed her eyes, putting down the feeling of nausea that
threatened to overwhelm her. When she opened them she found
herself peering through a tiny window attached to a stone door.
Inside the room lay Ami, propped up on a bunch of pillows,
reading from a heavy text book.
She tried to shout out to Ami but her vocal chords didn't
seem to want to respond. She tried moving her arm to open the
door, but her muscles weren't working either. "What are you
doing there Princess Serenity?" Called a voice behind her.
She felt herself whip around, a grin spreading across
her face as she addressed the shadowy form in front of her.
"Oh, I was just walking by and I thought-"
"You thought you'd come bother your friends right?"
She heard laughter from the figure, though she couldn't
tell if it was smiling since she couldn't see its features.
"But she didn't see me! Shes too busy reading her book!
I would have visited Jupiter, but shes still sleeping!" She
pleaded.
The figure held up a shadowy hand and tweaked her cheek.
"Its OK, I won't tell anyone. Come on, her majesty is waiting."
"Arigato, Celeste-mama!" She exclaimed, clapping onto the
other woman's hand and leading her down the hallways. Usagi
couldn't effect the turning or movement of her body. It seemed
she was just along for the ride.
They stopped just outside an ornate set of doors.
"Hime-chan, remember what we talked about earlier. Don't call
me Mama outside of these doors. Its our secret, ne?" She
nodded, and the woman gave her shoulder a friendly squeeze.
She then knocked on the set of doors.
"Enter." Called a voice from inside.
She felt herself walk in and curtsy gracefully in front
of Queen Serenity. "Konnichiwa, your Majesty." She held
the pose for a few seconds before flying into her Mother
for a more informal greeting.
"Your learning your manners well sweetheart!" She
said, returning her embrace warmly. "It must be because
you have such a wonderful teacher." She glanced at the
woman who followed her in.
"Your Majesty," the shadowy shape bowed low,
then stepped forward to plant a kiss on the monarch's
forehead. Her mother's head twisted up to meet the other
woman's lips, where they locked and held for sometime.
Something about the scene reminded her of another
kiss, a very recent one. She gasped as she remembered the
woman is silver's words to her the day before. "Do you
want the power, little one?" and then the gentle pressure
on her lips. Then the anguished cry, "Serenity!"
The scene faded, her mother and her lover disappearing
as she floated back to reality. Valka was still standing
there, crystal raised. She felt energy searing through
her, that same hot light from the woman's touch. Perhaps
the woman hadn't given her what she planned, but she still
felt power going up and down her body. Pink light shot
out all around her as she glowed.
She glanced up at Valka, who had just began to look
alarmed. She grasped the Eternal Tier and held it
before her, aiming at the little rock in his hand, not
wanting to hurt someone so reluctant to shoot her.
"STARLIGHT HONEYMOON KISS!" She called out.
"Shit!" cried Valka, dropping the now smoking and
useless crystal to the floor. Around her the rainbow
room shattered, leaving only the park where she'd been
taken from.
She was nearly ran down by Uranus who was chasing
Dagon. Uranus slashed at him with her talisman, just seconds
to late as he vanished. "Come out and fight you coward!" she
growled at the empty air around her.
"URANUS!" screeched Sailor Moon in warning as Dagon
appeared behind her, savagely kicking her in the leg.
He watched her fall to the ground with glee.
"Who said I was hiding?" He glanced up, surprised to see
Sailor Moon and Valka. "Whats she doing back?" he asked
angrily.
"It wasn't my fault! She disintegrated my crystal,
just like the other one-" He abruptly stopped as Dagon
slapped him across the face. The force of the blow
propelled him into a nearby tree, where he lay dazed
afterwards.
"Baka. Don't move till I take care of this mess." Dagon
muttered, wiping his hands on his tunic. He glanced at Sailor Moon
and clenched the crystal in his fist. "Must I do everything
myself?"
Sailor Moon held her Tier out, about to call her words of
power when two voices broke the silence.
"MERCURY CRASHING TSUMINI!"
"JUPITER ELDRITCH BOLT!"
The two powers slammed into him knocking him up and back.
"What the hell?" he hissed the crystal in his hand glowing.
"STARLIGHT HONEYMOON KISS!"
Sailor Moon's attack disintegrated the crystal, turning
his hand a fiery red in the process. Valka ran over and opened
a portal behind them. "Come on, Dagon. We've got to go back."
He tried to shake his companion off. "No! I don't need
a crystal to deal with them!" His eyes were red with rage.
Sparkling purple energy cackled off of him. Before he could
act however Valka tackled him, stuffing him into the warp
he had just created.
"Give my regards to her, Sailor Moon." His eyes held
a strange longing in them that made Usagi want to cry. Before
she could respond he turned and went through the hole.
She glanced back to her friends and saw them helping
Uranus and Neptune to their feet. "Anybody get the number
of that truck?" asked Uranus ruefully. She looked up at
Neptune. "You OK?"
Neptune gave her a weak smile and nodded. "Take a lot
more then that to hurt me." They held each other's gazes.
Ami fiddled with her computer, scanning the park to make
sure the energy stealing youma had disappeared with it's
masters. She found no trace of any abnormal readings.
"So," Uranus asked, wincing as she flexed her knee,
"How'd ya'll defeat these guys if we can't even touch them?"
Mercury seemed preoccupied, so Jupiter decided to
fill her in. "When I was in the other realm fighting
off Valka, I had a flash of memory. It was like I was
transported to the Moon Kingdom, and I remembered a
power capable of hurting them."
Neptune looked confused. "You got another power
boost?"
Jupiter shrugged her shoulders as Mercury finished
her scannings of herself and Jupiter. "No, I don't think
thats what happened. Were not any different then we were
before, besides the new costumes. It seems like we just
remembered a new attack, with the capability to smash
through their dimensional defenses."
"Well, as long as it works," Jupiter said, smiling.
Sailor Moon had been uncharacteristically silent during
this exchange. "Guys, did you feel anything... strange
about these memories?"
Jupiter shook her head, then seemed to pause for a
second before adding, "Well, there was this woman who I kept
calling 'Sensei' in the dream. I assumed she was one of our
teachers." She glanced at Mercury and both seemed to agree
not to mention the words that Serenity and the woman had
exchanged.
Sailor Moon did not catch the glance. Inwardly she was
hoping none of them knew of her mother's relationship to the
woman. She would have to try and remember more before she
discussed it with them. "Anything else?"
Mercury sighed. "Nothing, other then I think the
form the dark energy took on was ironic considering how
we gained out last powerup. When I confronted what was
supposed to be my other self, I thought I was getting
another energy boost." She smiled slyly. "I guess
indirectly I did, huh?"
Everyone but Sailor Moon laughed. Behind them they heard
footsteps echoing down the pavement. They turned around,
taking a defensive stance.
A blonde head with a red bow came running over the
hill. Soon it was revealed to be an exhausted Senshi Venus
who stopped in front of them. "Are. You. Guys. OK?" She
panted in between breaths. She put her hands on her knees
and leaned over trying to get air in her lungs.
"So you decided to show up," Uranus dryly noted as
Mercury bandaged up her leg with the first aid kit she pulled
out of her dimensional pocket. "Ouch, that stings Mercury."
Mercury smiled at her after adding on the extra
antiseptic. "Oh, gomen Uranus. You were so busy talking I
thought you wouldn't notice." She said airily. Jupiter and
Moon both giggled.
Venus sighed, not noticing her friend's attempt to shut
Uranus up. "I'm sorry everyone, I really am. I ran all the
way here as fast as I could after receiving Artemis' call. I
was all the way up on Lake Cangi and-"
"Lake Cangi? Isn't that also called Lover's Lake?" Jupiter
asked.
"Oh V-chan," gasped Mercury, pausing in doctoring
Neptune's shoulder.
Uranus gave her a pointed look. "Yea, I bet that call
dampened your night." She snorted.
Venus couldn't see Neptune's face, but she did catch
Usagi's. She looked so sad, so disappointed that she wanted
to cry. "No! Its not what you think! I've felt so strange all
night. I've been hearing these voices-"
"Voices?" Neptune asked skeptically. "First you blow off
a meeting to get laid, and then you hear voices?"
"Did the voices tell you to let him take off your shirt
and bra, Venus? Did the voices tell you to spread your legs?"
Jupiter had joined in on taunting her, looking at her with
disgust.
"No! I didn't do it I swear!" Venus cried out in
horror. "How can you all think such things about me?"
"You are the one always talking about two-timing. Ne,
Venus, did you have more than one up there with you?" asked
Mercury, a sneer coming across her face.
"Sailor Venus, champion of love and fucking!" Called
out Uranus laughing.
"NO! Thats not true! Usagi-chan!" She fell on her knees
before her friend, grabbing onto her hands, forgetting that
other people might hear her and recognize Sailor Moon.
"Usagi-chan, please. You believe me don't you? You know I'd
never do those things." She pleaded with Usagi to answer her.

Usagi looked down at Venus, not sure what was going on.
Ever since she'd ran up, she was acting funny. She didn't hear
anything anyone said to her. Several times the other senshi
had tried to help her, but she never answered them. Usagi
knelt down next to her friend in the grass and held her.
"Daijobu, V-chan?"

Venus clutched at her friend, relieved. Even if the others
didn't understand, atleast Usagi did. Usagi drew back from her
and smiled softly. "Your a slut, V-chan."
"N-nani?" Venus gasped, nearly choking on the word.
Usagi now looked concerned. "A whore." She was once again
trying to bring her back into an embrace.
"No... No Usagi-chan, you can't mean that, no." Venus
began to sob, hot tears flowing down her face. "N-n-no..."
She looked up at the other faces of the girls, who all had
angry expressions as they crowded around her.
"Slut."
"Tramp."
"Whore!"
She backed away from all of them, crawling backwards
across the grass. "How can you all say this to me, think
these things. I-I thought you were my friends." She looked
desperately at Usagi's benign and caring smile. "Usagi-chan!"
"You thought wrong, bitch."

A flash of light appeared in an alley near the Crown
Fruit Parlor. In its wake stood a group of Senshi, 6 of which
stood fidgeting. The tall green haired one with the staff
faced their leader with vacant eyes. "You will deliver
my message?"
"Hai, P-" the senshi hesitated. "Pluto." Her friend with
the violet eyes put a comforting arm around her shoulder.
Pluto nodded and watched them scurry off, heading
towards the park. She took in a deep breath, her eyes closing
in pain. This was the hardest task she'd ever undertaken.
She felt the whoosh as the air around her was charged with
electricity. The figure in silver appeared briefly,
twisting in midair and vanishing. Pluto raised her staff
to follow, but found her knees almost go out from under
her.
"The first time, in so long-" she whispered outloud.
The static in the air was fading, as the energy grew dimmer
the longer time went on. Pluto gritted her teeth and
strengthened her resolve. Tapping the Garnet Orb to the
ground she disappeared, following the silver light.

Sailor Moon gasped as Venus' face turned from sad
crying tears to fury. Her eyes turned so cold she looked
dead. Her pleas stopped as she glared at each one of them
with hatred. "V-chan please, please tell me whats wrong.
Minako-chan-" She moved forward to try and hold her again.
"DON'T TOUCH ME!" she screamed, shoving her back.
"STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!" She looked in a frenzy
now, as she moved to her shaky feet. "I see how you all
are now, oh I see!" She pointed at all of them, shouting.
"Especially you!" She wagged her finger at a stunned
Sailor Moon. "I wasted all my time, years and years
of my life on YOU. And now this is what you do to me?!"
"Venus, calm down-" Uranus said gently, holding
up her hands.
"Well I'll show you what I can do!" She ignored
Uranus and brought up a hand. "VENUS CRESCENT BEAM!"
"Get down!" screamed Uranus, grabbing Moon and
Neptune and pulling them under her out of the way. Jupiter
dived at Mercury, throwing them to the left as the beam
shot past them.
"She must be infected with dark energy," came
Mercury's muffled voice as she spoke from underneath
Jupiter. "She can't hear us. She thinks were saying
things were not!"
"How do we uninfect her then?" called out Neptune.
"She has to do it herself," answered Jupiter, sounding
scared. "The dark energy is using her fears and hurt to try
to get her to destroy us, just like it did to me and Ami."
"I missed! Well I'll just have to try it again!"
Venus laughed, completely devoid of humor. She had a mad
look to her eyes as she began to twirl around, calling
out her most recent attack.
"No." Usagi crawled out from under Uranus, ignoring
the other Senshi's protests. She remembered Valka's statement,
that the energy would taint her friend's and kill them. She
touched her broach, powering down from Sailor Moon to plain
old Usagi. She held her arms out to Venus as she walked forward.
"No, you won't V-chan. I believe in you."
"VENUS LOVE," she called out, bringing her hand up to her
lips where glowing hearts began to form, ignoring Usagi.
Usagi stepped right in front of her, at point-blank
range. "I love you Minako-chan."
"AND," She said, pulling the heart back to throw.
Uranus pulled shakily to one knee, leveling her sword at Venus.
If she called on her power, Minako was going to get a Space
Sword Blaster right through her heart.
"BEAUTY-" She cried, intending to finish it. She stared
directly at Usagi's sad eyes, her innocent expression. The
world seemed to shift then and blur. One minute she was
preparing to hit Usagi, and the next she found herself walking
down a marble corridor. She could hear her heels make clicking
noises as she walked.
She stopped abruptly in front of a non-descript looking
door. Without knocking she opened it and rushed in. Sitting
at the desk was a dark form, a woman's shape. It was strange,
almost as if a shadow had been super-imposed on the figure.
Bent over a cluttered desk, the figure's head jerked up to
meet Minako's angry glare. "Can't you knock?"
"NO!" Minako heard herself shout.
The form sat back rather heavily and sighed. "What
is it, Venus? I don't have much time."
"Then make time!" She slammed a fist down on the table
for emphasis, making the pens and pencils spill out of their
holders. "What the hell is going on? Two Senshi knocked out
by mysterious illnesses while practicing with you?"
Although she couldn't see anything but a dark outline
of the woman's face, the body language conveyed seemed calm,
no tension to belie any guilt. "Yes."
"...." Venus jumped to the next offensive. "Sensei,
am I not the leader of Serenity's court?"
"Hai, you are."
"So don't you think you should tell me whats going on?"
"What do you want to know?" the woman asked, sounding
rather irritated. She'd gone back to looking at the papers
she'd been working on before Venus had came in.
"SENSEI!" Minako heard herself cry out again. "You can't
ignore me! If you don't tell me why the others are sick, I'll-"
"You'll what?" the woman's former irritation was gone,
the voice now deadly serious. Her face was tilted up at her
expectantly, and Minako was suddenly glad she couldn't see
the woman's eyes bore into her.
Venus seemed to calm then, her anger dissipating under
the glare. She flopped into the seat across from the woman and
took her hand. "Please Sensei, talk to me. I'm sorry I got
carried away and acted so rudely, but I'm worried. If my friends
are in danger, I want to know about it."
The other woman she referred to as Sensei seemed to
lighten up at the heartfelt plea. "Venus, you don't have anything
to worry about. Your friends aren't ill, their just exhausted,
getting the rest they need. Soon they'll be good as new."
"Did they really get winded at practice?" she asked,
suspicion returning to taint her voice.
"No." Sensei stated it, snatching her hand away and
leaning back in her chair. "No, if you must know. They didn't
collapse from exhaustion. They were overloaded with a new force
of magical energy provided from Queen Serenity-sama."
Venus was stunned. Despite her suspicions, actually
hearing the truth in them was a bit of a shock. She paused
and then asked softly, "Sensei, was it for a good cause?"
The woman across from her nodded firmly. "The best.
I would never endanger any of them, you know that don't
you?"
Minako felt a hesitant smile spread across her face.
"Hai." So absorbed was she in the conversation that she didn't
notice the other person standing behind her until it lay
a hand on her cheek.
Sensei leaned over the desk and gave her hand a squeeze
even as she felt the energy from the touch flood through her
body. "Thank you for believing in me Venus. Sleep well." And
then Minako felt only darkness.
Like blinking, it seemed she appeared back at the
scene in the park. Her hand was still raised, radiating with
the power she'd almost used on Usagi and her friends. She
felt the new energy which she had to assume Queen Serenity
had fed to her charging inside her. She wasn't sure why she
had been so angry, so mad.
'Kill them,' she heard the voice in her head whisper,
the one she had thought was her own. 'Make them pay as you
have paid. Let them suffer as you have. Punish them, all
of them!' On and on it was going in a litany, which she
hadn't been able to hear without the extra energy boost.
The ramifications of what she had been about to do hit
her full force, fueling her fury at the demon that had
possessed her even more.

Usagi stood there, her arms raised to Venus pleading
with her mutely. She knew Uranus would not hesitate to cut
her friend down to protect her. She didn't understand
Minako was eclipsed in dark energy.
Venus had paused, letting the attack fade without
being executed. The strangest look had taken over her
face, dreamy, as if she wasn't there. The malevolent
energy she was infected with seemed to hover behind her.
Then it reared forward, turning white as Venus
shone with an inner pink light, her fuku changing in
appearance to resemble Mercury and Jupiter's. She
caught the glimpse of the phantasm before Venus
turned around to face it, crying out, "VENUS PLASMIC
CHARGE!" A ray of orange hearts disintegrating the ghoul
on contact.
"V-chan!" yelled Usagi as she blindly groped
out for the other blonde, her vision clouded by the
bright spectacle. Venus fell into her arms, sobbing
and holding onto her for dear life. "Oh, Usagi-chan,
I'm so sorry! I didn't-"
"I know, V-chan. Its all right." She held her.
Mercury and Jupiter both came to them, each adding
to the group hug. Neptune watched Uranus put the
talisman away, thinking that Haruka probably
wouldn't have been able to fire in the condition
they were in if she had had to.
"I hate to interrupt the festivities," whispered a
familiar voice, "but we still have a problem."
"Luna-chan!" cried out Usagi, as she spied her limping
painfully out from under the hedge she and Artemis had
taken refuge in. "Your hurt!"
She only winced a bit as Mercury examined her leg. "Its
nothing, just got caught in Neptune's deflected attack.
Artemis, that lazy feline, clunked his head and is now calling
out for catnip" she rolled her eyes. "Nevermind me,
we have bigger fish to fry. Have any of you seen Mars?"
They all looked at each other and around, shaking
their heads. "She never answered Artemis' distress call. From
what I've heard you girls talk about, I think theres a strong
possibility that Mars was infected as well."
Everyone gasped except Usagi. For some reason, she had
the feeling that Rei wasn't alone. She couldn't explain where
the thought came from. It was like she just knew. Jupiter
glanced at the two Outer Senshi and the cat. "You guys are
in no condition for combat."
Uranus opened her mouth to protest but Usagi held up
her hand. "I don't wanna here it. Your staying here." She
ignored the grumbling she heard and knelt down before
Venus, who was wiping away her tears. "Are you going
with us?"
Venus stood up and gave her a V-sign. "Definatly."
Usagi transformed into Sailor Moon and smiled at
her friend as they began to run down the street. "Oh,
Venus?" She turned towards her. "I have someone to tell you
about when this is over."
Venus passed her a curious look as they raced by.

Tuxedo Kamen had made his way into the shrine through
an open window in the baths. After averting his eyes from
Yuichiru singing off-key he continued through the rooms,
following his instinct. He looked through one door and
heard Rei's grandfather chanting in front of a flame,
asking the sacred fire for more shrine maidens. If Rei
had heard him he'd need to pray for mercy.
Soon he found himself in front of the main fire,
the sacred flame where Rei did most of her fire readings. He'd
been here once or twice, most notably the time when Rei
had messed up his apartment with a fire extinguisher. That
was not one of his most memorable moments.
He went in through the open doorway, sticking close to
the shadows before springing up to a window near the ceiling.
Seated before the flame were two figures, both remarkably
similar. He could see a side of Rei's face as she glanced at
the other woman, who had the same dark hair of Rei. He gasped
as the other woman turned towards him. She looked exactly
like Rei!
He moved in closer as they both looked into the flame.
He strained his ears to catch the voice that sounded like
Rei's but deeper, twisted. "How many nights have we spent
lying in bed, remembering? How many?"
Rei's voice was weak, dazed. "Too many."
The flames shot up nearly to the ceiling. Inside them
a picture was forming, hazy. He gasped as he saw himself
walking down the street. Suddenly Rei came running towards
him. Unfortunately she fell on her face, and he stepped on her.
He winced for her, remembering her look of embarrassment. Then
the Rei on the ground got up and took his arm.
"Our first date," Rei said dreamily, as the scene
switched to the rowboat. Even Mamoru had to admit it looked
picturesque. He didn't understand what was going on. The
other Rei was obviously a spirit of some sort. It was opaque,
a kind of milky shaded version of her. He'd heard the other
girls talk about speaking to the spirit versions of themselves
before. Was that what she was doing? And if she was, why was
she talking about him?
The picture froze as he suddenly seemed to go into
convolutions in the boat. The spirit version of Rei's
face twisted in an ugly fashion then. "Do you remember why
he did that?"
Rei nodded, that vacant look still in her eyes. "Usagi
transformed."
"Usagi..." The other voice hissed, and in the fire
was a vision of his love, and not a very nice one at that.
She seemed to be laughing, a snide smile on her face as she
looked down on them. "Baka Odango Atama."
Rei said nothing in response to this.
"Shes the one," The voice snarled. "She takes everything
that is ours away. Selfish, irresponsible, gluttonous Odango
Atama!" The voice reached a crescendo as the flames leaped up.
"No..." Rei whispered, not disagreeing with any real
conviction.
"No?" The other Rei pointed at the flames, where visions
of Usagi were racing by. Her being late, not having her homework,
stuffing her face. In one she was wailing. Finally an image of
her and Mamoru kissing below a street light so passionately that
he felt red flush his cheeks below the mask. He didn't know
whether to stop what was going on or not. If Rei was really
speaking to her conscience, then maybe it was good she got
this all out. "What about that?"
Rei bowed her head then. "Shes my friend..."
The spirit seemed to grab her by the hair, force
her head up. Mamoru twitched. Apparitions weren't supposed to
be able to do that. "Your not seeing her for what she really
is. Shes evil, rotten, thieving little tramp!" That larger
then life image of Mamoru that had first been in the flame
sprang forth. "Take whats ours Rei! What we rightly deserve!
What we want!"
He should have swooped down then, stopped the demon
from whatever ideas it was planting in Rei's mind. But he held
back. He wanted to know what Rei really thought. Something
inside stopped him. Rei's eyes closed as she murmured,
"What I want?"

Limping and leaning on Michiru, a now detransformed
Uranus made her way to her car. Police and medical teams
were making the scene. They had wanted to check over the
two, who politely declined. "This is some mess," Haruka
stated, glancing around at the melee. The crowds were
buzzing with the news that the Sailor Senshi, thought to
have been out of commission after their 2 year absence,
had been spotted. News casters eagerly reported live
with the chaos in the background.
Michiru nodded in agreement. She looked with concern
at Haruka. "We parked the car pretty far away to avoid
something like this. Sure you can make it?"
Haruka grinned winningly. "With you supporting me,
it won't be hard at all."
"I will always be there to support you, Haruka."
Their eyes both got dreamy. They were basically alone,
having left the scene a few paces back. Their faces inched
closer to each other.
A rustle in the bush made them stop and turn quickly.
A move Haruka could not perform without wincing. Standing
there was a Sailor Senshi, hair done in pink rabbit ears,
to match her pink and white uniform. She was blushing in
embarrassment. "Gomen nasai! I didn't know you would be-"
"Sailor Chibi-Moon?" called out Michiru in disbelief.
She had gained atleast a foot since they last saw her. Her
hair was much longer, her figure filled out. She looked as
old as when Usagi had first began her career as Sailor Moon.
"You've grown up!"
"I can't call you squirt anymore," said Haruka with
a smile. "A very pretty young lady." She teased, only
stopping when Michiru's elbow found her stomach.
Chibi-Moon grinned at the compliment. "Arigato. You
both look very good as well."
"Do the others know your here?" Asked Michiru.
"Did you land on Usagi-chan for an entrance?" Haruka
laughed.
"No, they don't know." Her expression became serious.
"I'm here on special business which just concerns you two.
I'd prefer it if the others didn't find out. It would only
make them sad that I couldn't stay." She looked unhappy as
she said this. It was obvious she wanted to see the others
as well.
"What business do you speak of?" asked Haruka, passing
Michiru a look.
Chibi-Moon dipped into her dimensional pocket and
brought out a manila envelope. She tossed it to Haruka.
Haruka looked for any message on the outside. There was
none. "Whats it say?" She questioned, as she tore it open.
"I didn't read it," Chibi-Moon said hesitantly. "Pluto
said it was only for your eyes."
Michiru wondered why she had quit calling her Pu. Her
eyes turned to the letter that Haruka held out for both
of them to read. It was written in a dark ink on what felt
like very high quality paper:

My friends:
Gomen nasai on not being there for you at a time
when I'm sure you most need me. I regret that I
have been detained with something of the highest
importance. I'm afraid I can't tell you anymore
then that.
I must however, send you this warning. Do not,
I repeat, DO NOT under ANY circumstances allow
the being who wears a silver cloak anywhere near
their Majesties or the Inner Senshi. It may go
by the name of 'Sensei' or 'Celeste'. Often
this person is dressed as a vagrant and can
be seen in the very park you are standing in.
No matter what name or what the other Senshi
may say about it, or what YOU may feel about it
do not hesitate to eliminate it on site. It is
dangerous, and could cause more complications
than the silence.

"Kowaii," whispered Michiru shivering. "I can't imagine
anything more devastating than the silence.
Haruka looked annoyed. "No matter what we feel? Why would
we feel anything towards it. I think we proved our loyalties
with the Death Busters." Michiru shot her a disapproving look
which she didn't see since she began reading again.

Please don't tell the Inner Senshi about this
note, or its messenger. Should they ask about
me, disavow any knowledge. I have complete
faith in both of you and I hope to join you
soon.
Pluto

"Thats it?" Haruka angrily asked. The damn letter brought
about more questions then information.
"Except for the line at the bottom." Answered Michiru.

PS: Hotaru-chan says hi.

Haruka smacked her head with her palm. Michiru had to
restrain herself from doing the same. Showing her own frustration
would just get Haruka more riled up. She was about to ask
Chibi-Moon more when she heard a commotion from where they had last
left. People were yelling, "Sailor Senshi! Sailor Senshi!" All
3 of them glanced at each other before heading in that direction.
What they saw when they got there were 4 senshi with
strange hairstyles swinging high above the crowd. They were
leaping and bounding from the nearby trees doing fantastic
tricks. The crowd was cheering and whistling. A girl next to
them spoke to her companion, "Sugoi! I never knew the Senshi
could do that."
Haruka and Michiru glanced at Chibi-Moon, who sighed and
pressed a button on the watch near her wrist. Instantly the
Asteroid Senshi glanced at their own and disappeared from the
crowd, who groaned in disappointment. They reappeared in front
of their leader flushed with joy. "Yo, Sailor Moon!" called
one with light green hair. "Why'd you stop us, it was just
getting good!"
"Pallas likes to perform!" The one in blue giggled
happily, oblivious to Chibi-Usa's anger.
"You guys!" She hissed. "Were supposed to be trying
not to make a scene!" She groaned. "I bet Luna-chan and
Artemis saw you!"
The one with yellow flowers in her hair smoothed out
a crease in her fuku. "Relax. We saw them leave a few minutes
ago. The Senshi won't find out." She turned and smiled at
the bewildered Outer Senshi. "Konnichiwa, Haruka-san,
Michiru-san, I am Sailor Ceres."
The one in red who had been looking around bored
said, "Sailor Vesta."
The giggling senshi in blue waved, "Sailor Pallas!"
Last came the rather aggressive one. "Sailor Juno."
Haruka looked confused. "Nani? Aren't you the Amazon
Quartet from the Dead Moon Circus?" She'd seen Ami's pictures
before the final fight with Nephrenia.
She was shot some deadly looks by Vesta and Juno, tho'
Pallas just looked ashamed. "Formally. Now the Asteroid Senshi,
Princess Usagi's court." Sailor Ceres stated diplomatically.
She turned to Chibi-Moon. "Ready?"
Chibi-Moon still looked pretty perturbed but she decided
to let it go. "Hai. Goodbye Michiru-san, Haruka-san. I'll be
seeing you." Before they could ask any questions the Senshi
disappeared, leaving them alone.
"This night just keeps getting stranger and stranger."
Haruka said warily.
Michiru came up behind her and began to rub her shoulders.
"Forget about that. Where were we before they interrupted?" Haruka
showed her exactly where they were.

"Move over! I wanna see!" Vesta complained as she tried
to look over Juno and Pallas' shoulders.
"Children," sighed Ceres.
"Nevermind that, wheres Hot- eh Saturn?" stumbled
Chibi-Moon. Remembering the Senshi names is going to take some
getting used to.
"I'm right here, Sailor Moon." Called Saturn, landing
next to her from a nearby tree. "I didn't want them to see me."
She glanced at her friend. "Are you sure we should stay here?
Setsuna-mama told us to use the time key to go back."
Chibi-Moon gave her friend a sly smile. "No, Saturn, she
told us to finish our business and not see the Inner Senshi. She
didn't SPECIFICALLY say we had to go back to the future. We'll
just stick around for awhile, in case anything happens. If Pluto
really wants us back, she'll know where to find us. She always
does." Saturn sighed.
Sailor Ceres read Chibi-Moon's expression perfectly. "C'mon
guys, time to move out."
"Pallas doesn't understand. Why are they taking off their
clothes?" asked Sailor Pallas confused.
"NANI??" Came Ceres, Moon, and Saturn's voices as they ran
to the bush knocking the others out of the way.
"YOU GUYS! NOW I REALLY CAN'T SEE!!" Screeched Vesta.

Rei was in a daze, and had been for sometime. Every painful,
bitter memory seemed to be playing itself out before her eyes.
There was all the humiliations and defeats she had to suffer over
her life. It seemed each piece of suffering could be linked to
one person: Usagi.
A dull throb began near her head as her other self lifted
her by the hair. The room was spinning and she was feeling weak
and confused as the other berated her. "Take what is ours! What
we rightfully deserve! What we want!"
The room finally began to blur, as the pain left her,
the scene changed. She was no longer sitting, feeling the
wooden floor underneath her. She couldn't feel the heat of
the flame turning her skin a faint rose color. She opened
a cautious eye as she whispered the words, "What I want?"
"Yes, what do you want Mars?" A woman's voice asked.
She found herself walking through a garden under
a starlit sky. All around her were white roses, hundreds
of them scattered everywhere. Stone statues crafted by
artisans were placed on pedestals, having lost some of
their luster with age. She was glancing at the woman who
had spoke, who seemed cloaked in dark shadows which hid her
form. She could only make out that the woman did not wear
a formal gown, but what seemed to be a men's suit. She also
noted it couldn't be Haruka, for she could see a trail of
dark colored hair coiling down her back. A bitter laugh
escaped Rei's lips, which made her alarmed. She had no
control over her body's movements! "I want what I can't
have."
She felt her body turn to a couple in the distance.
Mamoru and Usagi! Rei was in shock. It was her dream, but
it seemed to be happening in real life. Unlike the fuzzy
images of before, she could smell the flowers, fell the
stone walkway beneath her. The figure next to her must have
been the person who caught her spying. She sounded sad as
she replied to her. "Forbidden fruit is often the one
with the sweetest taste."
The woman put an arm around her, leading her away from
the couple. "Shouldn't I watch them? I'm the only one on duty
tonight you know. The others are still recovering." Rei
wondered what could have happened to the other Senshi.
The woman gave her shoulder a squeeze. "Its all right,
the Prince's new guardian is watching them as well. He got
stuck since the other ones are all visiting their lovely's
rooms. He didn't seem to mind too much though, it gave him
a chance to watch you all night."
Rei felt a blush creep into her cheeks. "I have no
interest in Jedite." Inwardly Rei blanched. She had heard
Mamoru mention that all the Inner Senshi had dated one of
his Guardians. Obviously, this was before Rei had been
with her future enemy.
"Ry-chan," the other woman began, using her first name
as she almost never did. "I can see why you wouldn't
be interested in him. I have only one question for you:
which one of them were you watching?"
Rei got a vision of the ground as her former self
avoided the other woman's gaze. "Sensei, I don't want to
discuss this."
"Regardless you will." The woman's hand lifted her
chin up and made her look at her. "Ry-chan, I didn't think
you would keep secrets from me. I only want to help you,
not hurt you. Which one is it?"
She felt tears going her past-selves cheeks. "I-I don't
know Sensei. Honestly. Please don't press me about this. Let
me handle it my own way, all right?"
The other woman seemed to nod, leading the girl around
to the main hall. "Hai, Mars, I'll leave it to you. Now
about this Jedite-"
"Sensei!" Mars hissed sharply.
"Now come on. Hes a delightful young man. He seemed
very skilled when I squared off against him and the others
at practice today. Of course, they all can beat your poor
Sensei when it comes to magic usage."
Rei felt her body relax as her Sensei stopped pressuring
her for information. "Sensei, its not your fault you don't have
natural magic skill. You make up for it completely in combat,
even if that attack of yours is kind of cheesy-"
"Moon Tiara Action!" snorted Sensei. "Give me a good
drop-kick any old day."
"Your unstoppable in combat, really!" Rei heard herself
exclaim enthusiastically. "You really tore up the Guardians."
She seemed to pause. "Sensei, whose watching the Queen?"
Rei felt a cool touch on the back of her neck, and
she winced. "Mars, your intuition is just as legendary as
I've been told." Power flowed through Queen Serenity's
fingertips. "Poor girl, so confused. Do you think she'll
figure things out?"
Mars was passing out, already gently being lowered to
the ground. "My Queen, I think she already knows. Hopefully,
she'll turn to that boy. You can learn to love another
even if someone else holds your heart."
"Don't sound so bitter." She heard the Queen plead,
as she finally lost consciousness.

Rei's eyes had closed completely as she seemed to
contemplate the other's words. Mamoru sensed a shifting
in the air as her eyes opened, and she looked into the
flame, and than at her double who was yelling at her
furiously. "She is the reason for all our pain! She
must be punished! She must suffer! Don't you see!"
He read in Rei's eyes what the other ignored.
The indignation. "I see." She was filling with an inner light,
a pink glow that was surrounding her. "You fool! Your not me!
You don't know who I love!" She raised a hand up, calling on her
henshin stick. "Mars Crystal Power, Make-up!"
The lights came, the fire encircling her body. Before
the ending of the her usual transformation, pink light added
new touches, like a purple under-skirt made of chiffon, and
some transparent lavender sleeves. The sacred flame roared
to life behind her, disintegrating the picture of Mamoru
and placing one of her true love in its place. The picture
was lovingly rendered, clearer then any of the others he
had seen. She didn't glance at it as she made her way
to the now panicking clone. "Look apon what is real and
pray for your soul, demon. MARS COSMIC FLARE!" The new
attack arched from her fingertips, just as the other turned
to its true milky white form attempting to flee. It vanished
leaving only Mars to stand before the roaring flames.
Tuxedo Kamen jumped down next to her. She blushed at
seeing him. "Tuxedo Kamen-sama." He could tell she was still
feeling weak. "I-...G-gomen nasai..." She stuttered, trying
to find the words to apologize for all he had probably seen.
"Rei-chan," He smiled gently, taking her in his arms
for a hug. Eagerly she accepted it. He ran his finger's
through her hair a few times as he whispered, "Don't worry,
Rei-chan, I know your not my Usako's rival." He pulled
away from her as the look of relief donned her features.
She was so glad he understood.
Before she could say anything he whipped a rose out
from his coat and sent it sailing above her, into the
heart of the rippling flames. She turned just in time to
see the tall picture of her love dissipating to just
the normal fire. It was Usagi, in a long gown, radiating
purity and kindness. She gasped and turned back to Tuxedo
Kamen, unsure of what to say.
He grabbed her shoulders firmly and lay a kiss on her
forehead. He then let go and his blue eyes stared straight
into her amethyst ones. A quirky smile was on his lips.
She heard voices calling her name from outside the temple,
getting closer. "You are my rival, ne?" He tipped his hat
to her, then jumped to the window as she stood rooted
where she was, unable to move.
Her friend's ran into the room, Usagi in the lead,
throwing her arm's around her. "Rei-chan! Are you all right?
I was so worried!" The others asked the same questions,
forming a small circle around her as she tried to answer
all their questions at once.
Mamoru watched from the shadows for a few moments
before he bounded away. He was not upset in the least by what
he had seen. He had suspected for sometime Rei's feelings.
He knew she'd never do anything dishonorable, or hurt
Usagi in any way. There would be no jealousy between the
two of them. In fact, he was a little ashamed at himself
for being unable to resist having a little fun with her
at the end there. He chuckled at the memory of the look
on her face. Sooner rather then later he would have to
reassure her that he ment no harm, and was just caught
up in the moment.
His thoughts turned more sober as he thought of
the voice that had led him to that little scene. Who
was it? Why lead him there? Rei hadn't needed his help. She
destroyed the demon on her own. No matter how long he
racked his brain he could find no answers.

Nanako ran down the courtyard of school, hot tears
filling her eyes and flowing down her cheeks. She couldn't
understand why anyone would do things like this to her. She
hadn't done anything wrong! Nothing to deserve this kind
of horrible treatment! She didn't even care about the soriety,
not when it caused problems like this!
She should have paid more attention where she was going.
Running full-speed she slammed into Saint Juste who was
busy messing with her ever increasing intake of pills. The force
of impact sent them both to the floor, pills scattering
everywhere.
"Gomen nasai!" cried Nanako alarmed, finding herself laying
on top of Saint Juste. "Daijobu?"
"Pills," whispered the other girl.
"Pills?" Questioned Nanako. She looked around, then saw the
package lying on the ground. She handed her what hadn't scattered
across the floor. Saint Juste placed on in her mouth, chewing it
mechanically. Nanako opened her mouth to ask her if she was all
right again when a flash of silver light caught her eye. Before
she could focus it disappeared. She gasped as another explosion,
this time purple, followed. A woman in what looked like a black
sailor fuku appeared.
The figure glanced right and left, not even pausing on
Nanako or her companion. She slammed the staff in her hand
into the ground with what seemed to be frustration. "Too late.
Always to damn late." She murmured.
Saint Juste didn't notice the spectacle, so dazed from
her narcotics. Nanako got up from her side and tentivly
strolled over to the woman, whose back was turned to her.
"A-are you...?" She trailed off, not knowing what to ask.
The woman finally looked at her. Nanako gasped, putting
one shaking hand to her mouth to try to hide her horror. The
woman smiled sympathetically then, as if she understood how
Nanako viewed her. She stepped back, twisting the staff in
the air as if it was a baton, disappearing.
Nanako sank back to the floor, kneeling next to Saint
Juste for some time. All she could think of was the woman's
eyes, which burned with more sadness then she could even
begin to imagine.

================================================================

Questions? Comments? Arrows?
Angst88@aol.com
http://www.geocities.com/emporess888/

-Age and treachery will always overcome youth and skill.

==============================================================