Last Time: Two for the price of one! Sakura defeated the Water Turtle and in her rush to find Kero, ended up finding the Fire Dragon. Sakura and Kero fought side-by-side (for the last time?) and beat the Fire Dragon. Meanwhile, the rest of Sakura's friends found out what she wanted to wish for and they were shocked. And Li wants to have a talk with her. But what they don't know…is that Malachite, an old enemy of Sailor Jupiter's, is about to come out of the shadows.


Hunt For the Crystals: Episode 13


Sakura stayed silent. She didn't want to say anything and she had a feeling that she wouldn't get much of a chance to plead her case. Her friends were all bringing up the rear, leaving Sakura to walk side- by-side with Li.

"Sakura…why didn't you tell me?" Li asked sadly.

Sakura hung her head down. "Because I knew you'd react this way. And I didn't want you to make me change my mind."

"I'm not going to force you to change your mind," Li said softly. "I'm only asking that you think about what you're doing."

"What's there to think about?" Sakura asked indignantly. "Li…I've had it with being the Sakura Card Mistress. I can't take having everyone I care about getting hurt. Tori's still in the hospital. Madison was almost killed trying to save me from the Darkness Panther. And that's not counting all the times that I've almost gotten everyone killed when I was out capturing the cards.

"Meanwhile, everyone's out living a normal life. I can't do that because I have to focus on my magic. And when I think of everything that I've seen…the magic, the incantations, the reincarnations, and all the battles…I just can't take it anymore. No one ever let me choose any of this! I was forced into this! I want to be in control of my destiny for once! I don't want any of this anymore! It's not worth it! Name one good thing that's happened to me since I found the Clow Book!"

Li stopped Sakura in her tracks. He turned her head so they could gaze into each other's eyes.

"Me."

Sakura was taken aback. "You…?"

"Sakura…think about it. If you had never opened the Clow Book…I would have never had to come to Japan. And I never would have met you. Have you ever thought about that? Without the Clow Book…there would be no us."

Sakura nearly turned white. "No…us?"

It was unbelievable. Sakura already had her mind made up for so many days. She knew what she wanted to wish for. And she was so sure that it would make her life better. It would make her life normal.

And in five minutes, the love of her life, Li Shoran, had brought something up that Sakura never thought of. Sakura had been blinded by the negatives of her life as the Sakura Card Mistress. She never thought that…without the Clow Book…she would have never found true love. But after everything her family and friends have had to endure…was it truly worth it? Sakura felt so conflicted. She didn't know what to do anymore.

Sakura didn't say anything. She fell into Li's arms, making her friends stop in their tracks. She was so confused now. But Sakura was sure of her next move.

"Everyone meet by the giant Penguin slide in an hour. I have to get the rest of the crystals."


~--------------------~


An hour later, everyone was right by the slide in Penguin Park. Everyone was a little nervous, knowing that the quest was almost over. But that wasn't the only reason, and Sakura realized that. She knew that everyone was on edge, because they didn't know if Sakura would still make that wish. And to be honest…Sakura didn't know herself anymore.

Sakura took the seven crystals she had and started to put them together. They all came together…in the shape of a diamond. There was only one piece missing and that was the end piece at the top. But once the eighth crystal was recovered, that would no longer be a problem. The eighth crystal would be placed with the others…and Sakura would make one fateful wish.

"We're going to get this over with," Sakura said, breaking the silence. "We'll spend the rest of the night if we have to…but this all has to end. We have to find the last crystal. Are you ready?"

Everyone nodded and got ready for what was sure to be the biggest test of their lives. Sailor Jupiter sighed deeply, not knowing what to expect. Eriol closed his eyes…knowing anything could happen between now and the time this was over. Suppi stayed on his shoulder and he prepared for what was sure to be an intense fight. Madison had even forgotten to recharge the battery on her camera. She didn't know what was going to happen. Kero stayed in Madison's pocket, knowing that when this all ended…it was likely that he would end up back in the Clow Book…maybe forever. And Li brandished his sword…getting ready for a fight.

It was then that everyone should have been on their way to search for the final crystal, the Earth Crystal. But they were cut off…by sinister laughter…that echoed throughout the park.

"Why waste your time searching for that last crystal? Why not save yourself the trouble…and give them to me!"

Everyone stopped at the sound of that voice. They started to come closer together while a figure in the shadows leaped out and revealed himself. It was a long white-haired man in a suit and he had a look on his face that could have intimidated the fiercest of warriors.

"Who are you?" Eriol demanded.

Jupiter gasped. "No! It can't be!"

The man grinned evilly. "I see you remember me, Sailor Jupiter. You haven't forgotten Malachite."

"But how?!" Jupiter exclaimed. "My friends and I killed you! There's no way!"

The warrior, Malachite, didn't answer…but rather waved his hands, creating a large dome above everyone's heads. Sakura looked up and saw the tremendous clear dome and tried to run out. But the dome was solid. There was no escape.

"You have no idea how much it irks me that you ultimately won the war," Malachite sneered. "It irritates me to see that Queen Beryl was right! You really DID end up defeating the Negaverse! That sickens me. But tell me, Sailor Jupiter…before I destroy you all…where are the rest of the Sailor Scouts?"

Jupiter sweatdropped. "On…vacation."

Malachite chuckled. "Tough luck. Not that it'll matter anyway. Because once I crush you…it'll be a simple matter of just picking the crystals up and subduing that final Crystal Beast myself." Malachite suddenly spotted Sakura. "And who are you supposed to be? An amateur?"

Sakura growled. She handed the seven crystals to Madison and summoned her wand. She held her wand bravely and glared at the evil Malachite. "I'm Sakura, Mistress of the Sakura Cards…and you'd better let us go!" There were times when Sakura could panic…but there were other times when Sakura could be really brave. This was one of those times. After coming so close, she wasn't about to be taken out of the picture by a creep in a suit.

"An amateur," Malachite repeated. "You cannot overcome my magic."

With those words, Malachite began moving his hands slowly. Sakura and her friends looked up to see that the dome was starting to shrink. Malachite was trying to crush them.

Sakura took Malachite's words as a challenge. "Yeah, we'll see! Windy!"

Windy came out and tried to escape the dome, but it was no good. Windy couldn't penetrate it and Sakura could only recall her.

"It's no good," Jupiter said. "The only way to get out is to attack Malachite directly."

"How do we do that?" Madison pointed out. "We're all stuck in here!"

Jupiter didn't know how to answer…but she instead asked another question. "How did you do it, Malachite? How did you survive? We beat you! We saw you die!"

Malachite shook his head as the dome began to shrink further. "You and the other Scouts thought yourselves to be so strong. You couldn't stay out of our affairs. You had to keep interfering against the Negaverse. Queen Beryl knew it would only be a matter of time before you all infiltrated the Negaverse…so she made the only move she could make. She sent me into the future to recover the eight crystals…and wish for the Negaverse to engulf all! And now…I shall finish the job. I'll crush you all, take the crystals, subdue the final Crystal Beast, and wish for the Negaverse to rule over all forever!"

Sakura gulped. This guy…came out of the past. And none of them saw it coming. And now it seemed like there was no way for any of them to escape.

Sakura desperately looked at her friends for support. Li held his sword, but couldn't do anything with it. Eriol looked around, trying to find an escape, but could find none. Madison held the crystals…and cringed, knowing what was about to happen. Kero and Suppi couldn't do anything either, for if they transformed into their true forms, they would take up a lot of space in the rapidly shrinking dome.

There seemed to be no escape.


~--------------------~


Julian was trying hard not to fall asleep while he sat on a chair in the hospital room. He didn't sleep often, but he had gone at least two nights without sleep. He had to keep an eye on Tori. He wanted to be there in case he woke up.

Of course, Julian wasn't the only one who was there. Nakuru was also there and she was concerned for Tori also. However…it also seemed as if Nakuru was trying to get some alone time with Tori.

"Aren't you hungry?" Nakuru asked sourly, obviously trying to push Julian out of the room.

"I'm not hungry," Julian said softly.

That almost surprised even Julian. He knew things were at their worst when HE couldn't eat.

"I'll let you know if he wakes up," Nakuru persisted.

"I can't leave Tori," Julian insisted.

Nakuru sighed. She wanted to be the first face Tori saw and for that to happen, she wanted Julian OUT.

Julian walked over to the window and looked outside. The night wasn't young anymore. But sunrise was still hours away. Julian would stay with Tori for however long it took, though. He would wait until he opened his eyes.

But he wouldn't wait much longer…because Julian started to sense something. He started to get that feeling again as he started to feel dizzy.

"It's happening, isn't it?" Nakuru guessed.

Julian didn't get a chance to answer…because soon there was no Julian. The wings came out and the transformation took place. There was only Yue.

"Why did you suddenly come out?" Nakuru asked.

"I sense the Mistress is in grave danger," Yue said. He looked over to the hospital bed. "I wish he would wake up…and I wish I didn't have to leave him."

"If Sakura's in trouble, then Tori would want you to leave," Nakuru pointed out.

Yue knew she had a point. He sensed that Sakura was in deep trouble and he sensed that even SHE wouldn't be able to escape. So he had to find her quickly.

"Watch over Tori," Yue instructed. "I hope this doesn't take long…but I have to save Sakura." He started muttering as he walked towards the window. "Clow wouldn't get himself in this much trouble."

Without saying anything more, Yue flew out the window…and followed his sense.


~--------------------~


It was an easy matter of following them, but Xander found himself hiding again. He saw that man again, the one who came through the portal. He revealed himself as a warrior of the past and he was trying to crush that Sakura girl and her friends. To be honest, Xander didn't care who collected the eight crystals. But he didn't want Sakura and her friends to go down like this…because stealing the eight crystals from this evil warrior would prove to be much more difficult.

Then Xander looked to the sky to see that someone was coming to the rescue. It was that same guardian whom he saw fighting the Wind Eagle. He was coming with great speed and seemed poised to fight this warrior.

The guardian called Yue was here…and he looked like he was ready to fight.


~--------------------~


Sakura finally saw that some help had arrived. It was their last hope and Sakura was glad he was here.

"It's Yue!" Kero piped up.

Malachite was caught by surprise. "Yue?"

He turned around and his face was met with the guardian's staff. Despite that crushing blow, Malachite maintained his position and the dome was still shrinking.

"Yue!" Jupiter cried out. "His hands! Hit his hands!"

Yue found that it was Malachite's hands that were controlling the dome, so he swiped up with his staff. Malachite's hands were thrown in the air and Sakura saw that the dome was starting to fade. Yue continued by throwing his ice crystal shards that sent Malachite falling back. The dome finally faded.

Sakura stepped forward…and so did Li, much to her surprise. It was a pleasant surprise. Sakura smiled his way. "Ready?"

Li nodded back. "Let's go!"

Sakura and Li rushed forward, leaving Eriol, Madison, Kero, and Suppi to keep an eye on the crystals. Sakura suddenly noticed someone was missing. Then she found that Sailor Jupiter had moved at the speed of lightning to confront her old enemy.

"Stand back…" Jupiter said. "He's mine!"

Malachite chuckled. "You wish to challenge me? It's your funeral."

Jupiter and Malachite faced off, while Sakura, Li, and Yue stood back. There wasn't anything Sakura could do…but watch.


~--------------------~


It was a long wait, but finally Wilson Fisk was ready to strike…along with his ally (as dimwitted as he may have been). But when The Kingpin followed those young people to the park, he didn't expect to find that other person. That person who was currently about to battle with the one called Jupiter. But that didn't matter to Fisk.

What mattered was that they were distracted. The only ones guarding the crystals…were that blue-haired boy, his girlfriend, and what looked to be two floating stuffed animals.

"Is stuffed animals supposed to float?" Fisk's partner asked ignorantly.

The Kingpin shook his head. "Well, I didn't bring you out here for your intelligence. But you know what to do. The ones with all the power are distracted. Now go get me those crystals!"

The Kingpin walked along behind his partner in crime and waited to reap the rewards of his persistence. Soon it would The Kingpin who would have the seven crystals and it would be HE who would hunt down the final Crystal Beast. And once Fisk put that crystal together with the other seven, then he would have his wish. He would take over the world!

But for now…it was up…to Rhino.


~--------------------~


Madison couldn't understand why Sakura, Li, and Yue weren't moving in. But she had a feeling that Sailor Jupiter wanted this cretin, Malachite, to herself. Meanwhile, it was Madison along with Eriol, Kero, and Suppi who were left to watch over the seven connected crystals.

"Youse two…give me dem crystals!"

Madison turned her head and gasped. She stepped back when she saw a hulking individual…in a rhino costume. He had a menacing look on his face and despite his initially comical appearance, he looked like he meant business.

"I said give me dem crystals!"

Eriol stepped forward and was ready to defend Madison, but two others stepped forward, too. Kero and Suppi had taken their positions and began to change into their true forms. The rhino man was now backtracking when he saw that he was facing off with Keroberos and Spinel Sun.

"What were you saying?" Keroberos growled.

The rhino man obviously wasn't very bright, because he started to charge. Keroberos ducked his head down and lifted the oncoming man into the air. The rhino man was knocked into a nearby tree. He staggered on his way up and when he got up, he met with the guardian beasts again.

The rhino man tried again. He started to charge Keroberos and Spinel Sun again. But this time, the two guardians had something in store for this guy. They sandwiched him…and picked him up into the air. The guardians were almost out of sight.

By this time, Madison started to keep her distance, as did Eriol. But she soon found out that wasn't such a good idea.

"I knew that imbecile would serve as a perfect diversion," a gruff voice said.

Madison turned around and saw a bigger man. He looked to be a huge rotund individual in a trench coat and white suit. He had to be a massive three hundred plus pounds.

"I've been watching you," the man said. "And I've stood by and let you take the first seven crystals. But now it is time you hand them over."

"Who are you?" Eriol demanded.

"Who I am is none of your concern," he responded. "But did you think I'd really give up even after you managed to somehow beat Doctor Octopus?"

"Doctor Octopus?" Madison repeated. Then she gasped. "YOU sent him after me!"

"It's good to see you can at least put two and two together," the man chuckled. "But playtime is over. Give me those crystals!"

Eriol stood in front of Madison and started to warm up a fireball. He wasn't about to let anybody take the crystals or let anyone hurt Madison. But before he could throw anything, both Eriol and Madison were in the clutches of this enormous man. He was squeezing the life out of both of them with a tremendous bear hug. Madison could almost feel her ribs cracking.

"Make this easier on yourselves!" the man grunted. "Give me the crystals!"

Madison felt as if she was about to suffocate, but she wouldn't give up. No matter what happened…she wasn't about to give up the seven crystals.


~--------------------~


Sakura, Li, and Yue stood watching the beginning of the fight between Jupiter and Malachite. They were both exchanging blasts and blows and neither of them wanted to interject in what Jupiter said was HER fight. But they weren't distracted for long.

"S…S…SAKURA!!"

Sakura gasped upon hearing the agonized voice of her best friend. Sakura turned around to see a huge man who had Eriol and Madison in his clutches. He was squeezing them within an inch of their lives.

Without waiting for Li or Yue, Sakura ran up to the big man. But before she could strike, Sakura saw Eriol striking a blow of his own. He tossed a fireball towards the ground and gave the big guy a hotfoot that loosened his grip. Eriol and Madison fell to the ground and gasped for air while Sakura ran over to do the rest.

"What do you want?!" Sakura demanded, as though she needed to ask.

"I want the crystals!" the man shouted. "Give them to me!"

"You're not getting them without a fight!" Sakura declared boldly.

The man started to advance towards her, but Li made the first move. "Now, element: Wind!"

Li's wind spell held the big guy in place, while Sakura quickly reached in for her best card. "Erase Card! Release and dispel!"

Erase came out and started to work magic on the rotund man. Before he could react, he found himself unconscious. Sakura wasn't sure what to think of what just happened. But it looked like once again, she came within inches of losing the crystals.

"Who was that?" Li asked.

"Same guy who sent the octopus man after you," Eriol answered. "But I don't think he's with that other creep over there."

Sakura looked around. "Where are Kero and Suppi?"

"We're over here!" Suppi called out.

Suppi and Kero, in their false forms, were floating up right behind Eriol. It looked like they had just finished up with something…or someone.

"Where's that other guy?" Madison asked.

Suppi smirked. "We dealt with him."

Just then, everyone heard a gruff voice. "HEY! Get me outta here! I'm gonna get youse for this!"

Sakura peered over to see a man in a rhino costume was buried in the dirt with only his head above ground. She absolutely had no idea what to make of it and she wasn't about to ask. Because she realized she had more pressing matters.

"We have to help Jupiter!"

Sakura ran back to where Sailor Jupiter and Malachite were still battling. Sailor Jupiter had tried to strike with her lightning spell, but Malachite was easily dodging the attacks. Malachite then unleashed a series of boomerangs that hit Jupiter directly. The boomerangs were powerful and they left Jupiter cut around her face and with a deep wound in her arm.

"No!" Sakura shouted.

Eriol shook his head. "She can't survive this. We have to do something!"

"Sakura…there is one thing we can do!" Li suddenly suggested. "If he's from the past…?"

Sakura knew exactly what Li was trying to say. "That's it!"

Sakura took out the one card that would save the day and she slowly approached Malachite. The evil one didn't see her coming as he was getting overconfident.

"Nothing," he muttered to Jupiter. "You are nothing! I don't know how your friends beat the Negaverse, because it's obvious you don't have the power to beat me. You are weak!"

Jupiter saw Sakura coming…and smirked. "You're wrong, Malachite. It's not because I'm weak. It's because we beat you…as a team. Just like now…you'll be beaten…by a team."

Malachite could see through the subtlety and turned around. But by that time it was too late. Sakura was ready to release…

"Return Card! I order you to send Malachite back where he belongs! Return Card! Release and dispel!"

A black hole opened up behind Malachite, much to his shock. The portal began to suck him in and there was nothing he could do about it.

"NO! I won't…be…beaten!"

Malachite tried everything in his power to fight it, but by this time…Sailor Jupiter got to her feet. And she reached over to deliver the final blow. And what a blow it was.

The ground started to rise…and one of the fragments of the ground flew up into the air and collided with Malachite, sending him back into the black hole.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!"

Malachite fell back and the black hole closed. The Return Card had done its job and sent the evil Malachite back into the past…where hopefully he would remain.

Sakura was in awe. "Wow…that was amazing, Jupiter."

Jupiter blinked. "Um…that…wasn't…me."

Sakura gulped. "Uh…Li?"

Li shook his head. "No…wasn't me."

Sakura looked back. "Eriol?"

Eriol took a step back. "Wasn't me, either."

"Then who…?"

**ROAR**

Sakura and her friends almost jumped at the fierce roar. They all turned around…and found out what had thrown that rock. Sakura nearly turned white…at the sight of what had to be the next and final Crystal Beast.

Sakura gulped. "Um…that's…that's…"

Eriol finished for her. "That's…the Earth Gargoyle!"


Next Time: It's the final Crystal Beast and WHAT A BEAST! Sakura and her friends all take on the Earth Gargoyle with the final crystal on the line. Can they beat it? And if that happens…then what? They don't know that a certain alien's waiting in the shadows.


Any comments? Then mail me at AmericanCaptor@hotmail.com and don't forget to review below.