Part Five, Chapter Two:
Hallie walked into her classroom the next day and sat down wearily in her seat, letting her head fall forward onto her desk.
"Oh, Hallie!" she heard Molly say from across the room. "Are you okay? You look tired! The circles under your eyes look as if you painted them on!"
"I didn't," said Hallie dryly. "More like I did all I could to paint them over."
"You must be really tired! Did you not get much sleep last night?"
"No . . . and I was up really late going to that concert with Avaris."
"Ooh, was that fun? Serena, Amy, and Lita went too - I guess it tired them out so much they decided not to come to school!"
"Serena, Amy, and Lita aren't here?" Hallie asked sharply, sitting up so suddenly she got dizzy.
"No . . ." said Molly, looking at her strangely. Hallie swiveled to look at their seats. It was true, none of them were there, and class was starting. She asked to be excused to use the restroom, and after making sure that all of the stalls were empty, she called Avaris over the communicator.
"Hey, what's up?" Asked Avaris.
"Serena, Lita, and Amy aren't here today - and I doubt it's because they were tired from the concert last night!"
"They're not there?" Arianna asked.
"No!" Said Hallie.
"Come to think of it. . . . Rei isn't here, either. I have her first period, and she wasn't there . . ."
"I bet Mina isn't at school, either," Said Hallie.
"There's only one way to find out," said Avaris. "Hermes?"
"Yes, Avaris?" His voice came in over the line.
"Will you check the records of Mina's school and see if she's there today?"
"No problem," he said, and a faint clicking sound was heard over the radio line. "Absent today . . . and the slip was turned in only five minutes ago!"
"All the Scouts home sick on the same day?" Asked Mamesa quizzically. "For some reason, I doubt it's coincidence!"
"Me too," said Hermes. "Let's all meet at the mall in fifteen minutes! Don't worry about being excused - Mamesa and Hallie have just been diagnosed with strep throat, and Avaris and Arianna have to go to a funeral. The notes are being sent to the school via e-mail. Be ready to go!"
The mall was deserted, and they quickly met up at the spot the battle had taken place the night before.
"How do we know where they went?" Asked Avaris.
"I'm working on it," said Hermes, clicking away on a minuscule computer. The tiny machine whirred quietly, and Hermes eyes widened.
"My scanner shows that a portal was opened into another dimension in this exact spot eight hours ago!"
"A portal?"
"Where did it lead to?"
"That's what I'm trying to find out now!" The computer beeped, and Hermes looked up at Avaris gravely.
"The NegaVerse!" He said.
"The Scouts must have gone on a rescue mission for Celeste!" Exclaimed Mamesa.
"Idiots!" Growled Hallie.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Hermes demanded. "Transform!"
"Soul Crisis Arrow Power!"
"Aqua Crisis Horn Power!"
"Fire Crisis Staff Power!"
"Sky Crisis Blade Power!"
The Super Sailors of the Elements now stood in a circle.
"I can not believe they did such a stupid thing!" Avaris growled, grinding her teeth.
"Nevermind that now!" Hermes chided. "Teleport!"
They found themselves in the throne room of Queen Beryl, in a such a state of magnificent, evil splendor as they had never seen. Black and purple silk draperies covered cold stone walls, and a black carpet let to two thrones on a raised dais five steps high. The thrones were impressive - in an evil, cruel way. The one on the right appeared to be made of blackened human bones, and the one on the left was made of thorns the size of daggers, each black as midnight. Two shadowed forms sat on the thrones, but it was far too dark to see what or who they were. Behind the throne, a humongous statue of a human skull rose high up to the cavernous, vaulted ceiling. They approached the thrones, all knowing full well who would be sitting there. When they reached the steps, it was still far too dark. Sailor Flame's Staff offered the only light. She held it high in the air and said quietly,
"Flame Staff Burn!" The ball of flame roared and rose higher, and half of it seemed to separate from the other half and rose high into the air, getting larger the higher it went. When it reached the top of the ceiling, the room was flooded with the orange, flickering light of fire. And the two people sitting of the thrones were revealed.
On the one made of bones, sat Leander, legs crossed, smiling grimly at the Elementals. One hand lay on the wrist of Lady Darkness, who sat on the throne of thorns, smiling benevolently at them.
"The Sailors of the Elements," she said happily. "How nice of you to drop by."
"We've been expecting you," said Leander, his voice like oil on ice.
"Where are the Scouts?" Demanded Avaris. Leander gestured carelessly to his right. Looking over quickly, Avaris saw both the Inner and the Outer Scouts, imprisoned in a golden bubble. They all were standing, staring defiantly at Leander, frozen, except for their hair, which rippled eerily in a nonexistent breeze. Avaris's eyes drifted to Sailor Moon, who stood, a determined look on her face, with Tuxedo Mask's arms around her, holding the Daystar Wand. The wand was glowing brilliantly, and it was what created the golden bubble. Avaris saw now that it was Celeste's spirit at work, defending them all in the best way possible - to protect them completely, without putting them at any risk at all. Avaris sighed.
"Looks like Sailor Mars was right," Mamesa muttered. "Leander is only next in a long line of deranged, typical bad guys." Leander half rose from his seat, but Lady Darkness quickly put a restraining hand on his wrist. He glared at Mamesa, but contented himself with slamming his fist on the arm of his throne.
"So, you're kind of in a jam, aren't you, Leander?" Inquired Hallie. "Now you've only got yourself and your 'Lady'," she said scornfully. "Kind of low on your fighting force, aren't ya?"
"On the contrary," said Lady Darkness, crimson eyes glittering. "We are now more powerful than ever before." She waved a hand, and the fog cleared from the corner on her left, revealing rows upon rows of what looked like crystal coffins, each containing some sort of person, from a youma to a soldier, who wore uniforms of ebony black silk, decorated with black medals.
"Feast your eyes on the fighting force of Darkness," she hissed. "A snap of my fingers will awaken the entire army. When faced with this problem, the Sailor Scouts decided to retreat. What will you choose?"
"We choose to fight!" Said Hallie, raising her horn to her lips. Before she could blow it, a black disk of NegaEnergy shot between her hand and her mouth, causing her grip on the Horn to slip, and it fell back to her hip.
"Not so fast," Lady Darkness snarled balefully, still smiling luminously. "You get no head starts."
"Screw that!" Said Arianna, unsheathing her sword. "Tornado Whip Snap!" She said, whipping the thrones out from under Leander and Lady Darkness. They jumped into the air, and hovered there. Suddenly the magical darkness fell over them all, illuminated only by the glowing golden bubble that immersed the Sailor Scouts. Mamesa lit her Staff again, and it counteracted against the Darkness, leaving them in a misty gray light, like twilight.
They looked up at Lady Darkness, who smiled smugly at them.
"I was going to use them as a last resort, but I see you wish to fight now," she said, and snapped her fingers. The first row of the crystal coffins dissolved, and they found themselves surrounded with simple Shadow youmas.
"Soul Bird Attack!"
"Fire Dragon Roar!"
"Sea Serpent Thunder!"
"Eagle Talon Slash!"
They summoned their guardians and quickly demolished half of the Shadow youmas. Moving on to their original commands, they cried,
"Shining Soul Burn!"
"Crimson Flames Burn!"
"Tsunami Wave Roar!"
"Hurricane Winds Roar!" And defeated the rest of the warriors.
"Is that all, Darkness?" Demanded Mamesa, waving her staff up at them. "If so, we might as well just kick your ass now and leave - we wouldn't be missing anything!"
"Oh, no," whispered Lady Darkness silkily, her eyes glowing. "I have much more." She snapped her fingers again and the second row of crystal coffins dissolved. Avaris quickly knelt and released three arrows into the chests of the men emerging. They appeared to be human soldiers. She notched another arrow and let it fly, seeing out of the corner of her eye that Arianna was fighting fiercely with another man with her sword. There were two loud snaps, and a glaive appeared on Mamesa's staff, making her solely magical weapon a hand-to-hand combat weapon as well. A spear appeared before Sailor Sea, and she hurried over to Sailor Soul, who was kneeling behind a tipped-over throne for cover. She threw her spear with amazing accuracy, and just as it passed through the chest of a man, it appeared in her hand again. Avaris let loose yet another arrow - the supply seemed not to be depleting at all - and destroyed the last of these soldiers. Now panting for breath, they still managed to glare scornfully at Lady Darkness.
"Are you tired of leading from behind yet, Darkness?" Arianna demanded, brandishing her Sword. She giggled charmingly.
"Oh, no, not at all! I quite enjoy watching you waste your energy!"
"This is ridiculous!" Hallie said, and rose the horn quickly to her lips. Blowing hard on it, a screeching, wailing sound emitted from it, and the next several rows of the coffins shattered, and the shadowed forms within it shimmered and disappeared.
"No!" Cried Lady Darkness, no longer smiling.
"Is that all?" Asked Sailor Sky incredulously. "Well, in that case - Clouded Blade Lightning Blast!" The focused beam of light shot through and shattered the next three rows of coffins.
"Flickering Firelight Attack!" Shouted Mamesa, and yet the next few rows melted into oblivion.
"Shining Soul Burn!"
"Sea Serpent Thunder!"
"Fire Dragon Roar!"
"Eagle Talon Slash!"
"Soul Bird Attack!" Their guardians wreaked havoc on the remaining coffins and then Hallie finished the last few standing off with another blow on her Horn.
"Damn," pouted Lady Darkness. She sighed and floated down to them. "Now I suppose I will have to fight you."
"No," said Avaris, stepping forward. "You we will not fight. Sky?"
"Tornado Whip Wrap!" She said, and she was encircled by a writhing gray rope. Arianna leapt forward and put the sword to her throat. Mamesa put her glaive to her stomach, and Hallie trained her spear on her back. Avaris turned to Leander.
"Do not interfere." She said, and paused. "But I don't trust you. Sky?" She imprisoned Leander in her Tornado Whip as well, and Avaris asked Mamesa to place her glaive on his breast bone.
"Do not be kind," she said, smiling grimly. Mamesa applied the tiniest pressure. Leander winced. Avaris walked over to the Scouts, imprisoned in eternal sleep.
"Celeste," she said. "Celeste, release them. Now is the time for your revenge." the golden bubble shimmered, flickered, then disappeared all together. The scouts blinked, and sank forward.
"Sailor Moon, Sailor Venus," said Avaris. "I need your help. Sailor Moon, bring the wand." Sailor Moon and Sailor Venus obeyed without question, but they weren't sure quite why they did. Avaris reached for the wand, and Sailor Moon gave it to her. Avaris focused intensely on it, and a glowing light began to emit from the crystal in the center. A sudden beam of light shot down onto the floor in front of her, and a person appeared from that light. But it wasn't Celeste, or Sailor Sun, or Super Sailor Sun, or even the Princess of the Sun. It was Sailor Daystar.
She was dressed entirely in white, the only color in her fuku was in her choker and tiara, both of which glowed gold. She smiled at Avaris and took the wand from her. Touching it to her forehead, Avaris felt herself transform into something new, and she found herself in her ultimate form, Sailor Phoenix.
She, too, was dressed entirely in white, except for her choker, which was pink, and her tiara, which was golden. Sailor Daystar moved on to Sailor Moon, who transformed into her final form, Sailor Cosmos. Finally, she moved onto Sailor Venus, who became Eternal Sailor Venus. The three women approached Lady Darkness, who glared at them, completely without fear. Leander struggled against his bonds. Sailor Daystar turned to him, and for the first time he saw her face.
"No!" He cried. "How could it be you?" Celeste smiled calmly without answering, and stood in front of Lady Darkness. Sailor Phoenix, Sailor Cosmos, and Eternal Sailor Venus joined her, and the Sailors of the Elements moved over to guard Leander, who was struggling fiercely against his bonds.
"Be still," growled Mamesa dangerously, and he quieted. The powers of Light and the powers of Love joined hands, binding Lady Darkness completely. Her eyes glimmered viciously.
"You can never destroy me," she said defiantly.
"That is not our purpose," answered Avaris calmly. For the first time, the features of Lady Darkness began to show fear. Pale golden light began to glow where hands were joined. The light traveled up through the arms of the warriors, pausing in the chest, where it gained intensity and purity. Then it continued flowing up into the faces of the four women, and their tiaras disappeared, revealing similar sigils on all of them.
Sailor Cosmos bore a star sigil, and Sailor Daystar accordingly had a star encircled with a very fine golden line. Eternal Sailor Venus wore the sigil of her planet, and Sailor Phoenix proudly wore the Venus sigil encircled with a fine golden line as well. The light seemed to gather there, as if waiting for something. Lady Darkness' eyes widened, and as if on cue, four beams of the purest light and love swirled out of their sigils and into Lady Darkness, entering her forehead and her chest. Sailor Daystar flickered, and faded, appearing to merge with Lady Darkness. A dark, misty form emerged from the body of Celeste, writhing in silent agony. Lady Darkness disappeared, and Celeste Stevens took her place in the center of the four warriors, whose ultimate forms flickered and disappeared, along with the Daystar Wand. Sailors Moon, Venus, and Soul fell to their knees, so great had been the effort of purifying Celeste. Celeste, too , wavered, and steadied herself on Mamesa's shoulder.
"Leander," she said. "Now, finally, I can fight you."
"No!" Mamesa said. "You are far too weak to fight! You could die!" Celeste shook her head.
"No," she said. "I must fight now. I will not get a second chance. Light Crisis Staff Power!" She summoned her Solar Staff, and transformed into Super Sailor Sun. She stood, pale but defiant, and motioned to Sailor Sky.
"Release him," she said.
"No!" Arianna said. "He will escape!"
"Release him," Celeste repeated. Reluctantly, Arianna let the bonds of the Tornado Whip fall away. Leander leapt into the air, and Celeste closed her eyes. An unearthly wind blew up, pulling her cape away from her back. There was a beam of light that sliced her cape in half, and with a shimmering burst of lightning, wings appeared in place of her cape. She jumped up into the air after Leander, and they hovered just a few feet away from each other. He glared at her furiously.
"How - how did you -" he could barely speak, he was so irate. It was clear that Celeste was weak, but she smiled serenely at him.
"You never destroyed me, you never brainwashed me, you never turned me to darkness. All you managed to do was attract the attention of Darkness and manage to possess me with her spirit. When that happened, I was driven out, and possessed the Sun Crystal. Every moment I gained more energy, and soon I was able to show myself to Avaris. Even now I remain a spirit only loosely attached to my body. Only your defeat will allow me rest. This is something I should have finished a millennium ago. And now . . . to battle?" She asked, cocking her head to one side. She gripped the Staff tightly. Leander shot purple lightning at her, and she easily dodged it, whispering something to her Staff. A golden beam of light shot out at Leander, grazing his arm and cutting into his cape. He winced as crimson blood flowed to the ground, well over twenty feet beneath him. Unsheathing his sword, he advanced on her, and she raised her Staff like a quarter staff. Before he could reach her, however, he ran straight into a forcefield, singing the edge of his cape and burning his eyebrows and hair. Bringing her Staff down decisively, she said quietly,
"Sunbeam Slash!" and another beam of golden light shot out from her Staff, slicing his other arm and making him drop his sword. It clattered to the ground, far out of his reach. Celeste was on him in a second, ready to deliver the command that would end his life.
"Glowing . . .Sun . . .Super . . . Nova!" She yelled, just as he yelled out the words, "Forces of Darkness Attack!" The two opposite attacks flew towards each other, and when they met in the middle, there was an explosion of light and darkness. Thousands upon thousands of gold and black light and darkness beams flew in all directions, weaving together, crossing, interlacing, to form a webbed ball around both Celeste and Leander. The light and dark beams continued to wind around and around the two of them, tighter and tighter. Finally it stopped moving, and the ball hung there, suspended in mid air. Faint bursts of light and darkness could be vaguely seen exploding through the semi-transparent web. finally there was a silence, and the ball suddenly dimmed, then brightened, then dimmed again. Then there was a flash of light, a burst of darkness, and all the Scouts had to shield their eyes from the brightness that began to consume the globe from the inside out. There was another explosion of light with a sense of finality, and finally the Scouts could look again. When they looked, the sphere, Celeste, and Leander were gone. All that remained was a small pile of golden dust covering Leander's fallen sword. A faint wind caught up, and the sword dissolved into dust, and was blown away with the fine golden sand. As they watched, a feather drifted down and rested quietly on the floor where the sword had just lain, and there was a tiny glimmer of light. Avaris leaned forward and scooped something up.
It was the Sun Crystal.
At a Scout meeting the next day, everyone was rather subdued. They stood at the beach, watching the sun set. It seemed a fitting end, they supposed, as Sailor Soul approached the shoreline. The lip of foam gently licked her bare toes, and she lifted the white feather up to the wind.
"This is a ceremony in the memory of Celeste Stevens, Sailor Sun, Sailor of Light, of Life, Sailor Daystar. She was the Protector of the Moon, she represented our star, the Sun, and was always a source of guidance, leadership, and hope. She gave her life for a cause greater than any that I could ever serve, and I hope to live up to her example. Sailor Elementals, Salute!" The four girls solemnly drew their weapons and held them high into the air. Without a word or a command, a fountain of each element sprung from the tips of all their magical weapons. Avaris brought the feather down to her lips, and gave it a slight kiss.
"Good bye, Celeste," she whispered. She lifted the feather up to the wind and let it go. The wind caught it, and it spiraled up into the air, dipped down, and floated slowly westward, towards the sun set, towards Nirvana. Sailor Sea blew a forlorn farewell note from her horn, giving Celeste her final salute. Sailor Soul gave the Crystal to Hermes.
"Here," she whispered. "Keep it. I have a feeling we might need it later on." Hermes smiled secretively and stored it magically away. The Sailors and the Elementals all eventually drifted away, leaving only Avaris and Hermes standing on the beach, watching the sun set until it was out of sight. As the moon began to rise to the east, Avaris sighed and turned from the waves. When she reached the top of a rolling dune, she turned for a final look at the sea. She blinked and looked again.
A figure stood silhouetted in the sand, gazing to the west. Shoulder length hair waved gently in the wind, quietly in sync with her billowing cape. She had a staff set defiantly in the sand, in a business-like posture. As Avaris watched, the figure turned her head to face Avaris, but it was too dark to see the face Avaris was sure this person would possess. Avaris turned to Hermes.
"Hermes!" she said. "Did you see that?"
"What?" He asked, turning back to look at her quizzically. He gazed down at the shoreline. "Avaris, what are you talking about?" He asked. Avaris turned to look, and the figure was gone. She had disappeared into the night.
"Nevermind," said Avaris, smiling quietly. "I thought I saw someone I recognized." Hermes frowned up at her, then sighed and began walking back to the city. Avaris followed, not looking back.
Moonlight shimmered on faint pink lips smiling in the night, as a feather, white as clouds, drifted to the sand and landed in a footprint left on the edge of the sea.