Thanks to pre-readers Saotome Genma Saotome_Genma@hotmail.com
And Vampire666 vamp.666@wanadoo.fr
That's Not What Happened
Chapter 2 Revised
History:
Written on September 1, 2001
Revised on September 5, 2001
By Oberon
Ffml_use@hotmail.com
When it comes to Setsuna a lot people thanks she is uncaring and may be even callous or cruel. However, to the people who know her best, Setsuna is one of the most caring of individuals. On the other hand, when most are asked to describe Setsuna bluntly, the words "has a stick up her ass" are most commonly used. That is not true, until recently.
"We're sorry Setsuna; we let the Messiah of Silence escape again." Michiru apologized. For the most part Michiru walked away from the debacle at Mugen with some minor scratches and a set of ruined school uniform.
WAMP! The sound of flesh hitting the wall got the attention of the two talking outer senshis. Well they were not exactly talking; more like one was apologizing while the other could not do anything but listen.
"Damn it! We would have had her if Satan's leech haven't interfered." Haruka growled with her fist still attach to the wall.
"At least we found their nest." Michiru said trying to calm her lover.
"Yea? What good is that? The next time we show our faces there they'll be waiting for us with a legion of daemons." Haruka countered.
"Hmm… May be the next time we could try to sneak in while they're distracted?" suggested Michiru.
"That may not be an option. The silence is coming; the Witches 5 will no doubt make their move soon. We can't wait for them to make a mistake."
"Then we have to move NOW. We could use one of the school functions as a cover." Michiru made her way to a stand by the door where the daily mail kept for later reading. Going though the small stack of junk mail Michiru came to what she was looking for. With a conveniently place letter opener, Michiru took the school newsletter out of its envelope and began to skim though its pages. "There's a student gathering tonight. We could get in with the crowd."
With a nod, Haruka signified her agreement to Michiru's plan. Giving Setsuna one last look, Haruka tried to reassure the Senshi of Time. "Don't worry Setsuna; we'll get her this time. And if Ranma interferes we'll sent him back to the hell that he spawned out of."
Closing the door behind them, Setsuna could still hear Haruka and Michiru's conversation as they walked down the hall. "Being used as a human soccer ball had got to hurt." commented Michiru to pass the time.
"Yea but I'm sure having that thing stuck in her… in her… you know… have got to hurt more. Hmm… I wonder how that thing could fit inside."
"I wonder how she got it out." Thinking it over for a moment Michiru then gave her partner a dirty smile, the kind of smile that promises something naughty later on. "Want to try something like that tonight?" she asked to the astonishment of her lover.
After a short pause, a similar smile appeared on Haruka's face. "Nay, I'm not into that." said Haruka teasingly.
"Come' on, it'll be fun." Michiru said playing along.
"You know me Michiru, I'm never cared much for homemade dairy products." replied Haruka with a lewd smile. (It's a reference to the slang, "Turning the brown butter." which in itself is a reference to something else. If you don't know what that something else is email me at ffml_use@hotmail.com and I'll be happy to explain.)
"Ooo!! I love it when you talk nasty."
Setsuna wanted to scream for all she was worth but the full body cast made that impossible. "Damn you Ranma, you're screwing everything up." Just the effort from curse alone is enough to cause pain in her abused jaw. "You're so going pay for this!" already Setsuna was playing ways of torturing Ranma once she is better.
Usagi's voice had been coming though Ami's communicator for the past half an hour but Ranma ignored it. It is not that he is ignoring it on purpose but he just does not have the strength to respond. After barely managing to drag him self out of Hotaru's former throne room, Ranma had to practically craw around Mugen Academy looking for the other inner senshis. It was really a wonder that Ami's mother did not interrogate him or the others when the other girls carried him back to Ami's house. It would have been a real disaster if Mizuno-san had forced him or the other girls to come up with some plausible lie to explain Ranma's state. Beside it would not feel right for him to lie to Mizuno-san especially after she took a sick day from the hospital in order to look after him.
Lying on Ami's soft comfortable mattress Ranma used first ki to repair the damage left by Viluy's nanites. Checking the states of his health Ranma signed. "Sorry Usagi, it's gonna be a few more hours before I could even move. You're gonna have ta take care of this one without me."
Inside Mugen Academy…
In mass, the students of Mugen marched like zombies to the tune of Witch Cyprine's command. "Devote your heart your heart crystals to the Death Busters." Cyprine repeated her hypnotic message repeatedly. "Soon I'll take my place at the side of our great master." she cheered inwardly as the plan proceeded perfectly. "In a few minutes their will be more than enough heart crystals to satiate the Messiah. I'll be the master's favorite for sure." Cyprine could not help but laugh at the thought of her alone reaping the reward of their triumph. "HaHaHa. Yes. Yes. That's right, with the pure heart crystals the Death Busters will rule!" this time aloud so that all present could share in her joy.
Unbeknownst to Cyprine the Sailor Senshi in civilian form managed to infiltrate the crowd. Lurking behind the support columns the sailors watched futilely as thr population of Mugen walked, not of their own free will, toward their doom. They knew that it would be impossible to free the enslaved students unless the witch is defeated. They also know that to attack the witch now is suicide, that and it would most likely lead to the death of the students they were here to protect. So they waited, waited for the perfect time to strike without endangering the students. However, the sailors also know that they could not wait too long, for any moment now the witch will start harvesting the heart crystals.
Before the opportunity attack arrives, the students were in position for Cyprine to harvest their pure heart crystals. "Yes that's it. Devote your heart crystal to the great Messiah!" commanded Cyprine. One by one, the students released their heart crystals to Cyprine's control. Floating though the air the heart crystals moved toward the statue of the Messiah even as their owners lay dying on the ground they once stood on. "Ah, the senshi are here. Good we could finish this before dinner time." With a snap of her fingers, Cyprine summon an intense beam of red light over the statue of the Messiah. "My darlings, entry of non-students into the building is not permitted." As the beam of light struck the senshis the inners where wrapped in an energy bubble which lifted them into the air. Phasing though the domed shaped roof the bubble left Cyprine alone in the ceremonial hall. "Everyone, please donate your pure hearts." Cyprine added as she began to leave.
What Cyprine was unaware of was that a small portion of the ex-student body was unaffected by her hypnotic commands and among them is Haruka and Michiru.
"Upstairs?" asked Haruka.
"Yes." Michiru replied.
Phasing through the floor the inner senshis found themselves in an office overlooking the city.
"Where are we?" asked Sailor Mars.
"Welcome Sailor Senshis." Cyprine said interrupting Mars. Whirling around on her leather chair from behind the desk, Cyprine faced the people responsible for the downfall of her predecessors. With her head resting on her left hand and legs crossed, Cyprine began her introduction to the Sailors. "How do you do? I am Cyprine, the last member of the Witches 5. Hmm… I see we're one short. Call your friend, I want to finish you off all at the same time. Don't worry I'll wait."
"We can't call Ranma. He's still hurt." Usagi said while getting on her feet.
"We'll just have to do our best without him." Rei agreed.
"Let's transform." Makoto urged the others.
"Jupiter Star Power." Makoto shouted with her hand extended above her.
"Mars Star Power." shouted Rei as she duplicated Makoto's action
"Venus Star Power." duplicated the actions of the two previous Sailors
"Moon Cosmic Power." Usagi shouted her transformation phrase as she glided her hand over the Mystical Silver Crystal inside her broach.
"Make up!" the four Sailor Soldiers shouted the final phrase of their transformation simultaneously. After the momentary light show, four Sailor Soldiers for love and justice replaced the four teenage schoolgirls.
"In the name of the Moon the Sailor team will punish you!" vowed Moon as she finishes her transformation.
"I was so hoping I would be able to finish you off all at once but I guess I'll just give Mercury my undivided attention once I'm finished with you. She's that Mizuno girl isn't she?" Cyprine challenged the Senshis never fearing her disadvantage in terms of numbers.
"Foul villain, I'll never allow you to harm our friends. Burning… Mandela!" Mars shot rings of fire toward Cyprine. The rings of fire struck true to its mark, shatter the windows behind Cyprine while leaving a cloud of black smoke after the explosion. "Did I do it?" not believing that she was able to vanquish the enemy with one hit but happy that her opponent seems to have been vaporized in the attack.
To Mars' chagrin, a pair of lights, one red the other blue, appeared though the dense smoke. The pair of lights sailed though the space between itself and Mars, smashing into her before she realized they were even there, knocking her into the wall.
"Sailor Mars!" the other soldiers reacted in concern.
Before Mars could recover from the initial blow, another red orb of energy was sent toward her. With all her strength Mars moved out of the way of the red orb, hit the ground a few feet away, barely avoiding the red orb as it exploded behind her. Looking up, Mars saw another orb of energy heading her way. Grunting from the effort Sailor Mars leaping off the ground, barely avoided the blue orb of energy by inches as it sailed pass her destroying the furniture beside her.
"Sailor Mars!" the others shouted as they ran towards their comrade. Above them Cyprine looked as she prepared another attack.
Of the three concerned girls, Venus was the only to spot Cyprine floating in mid air. Seeing as her friends had completely forgotten about their enemy, Venus acted to cover their backs as Jupiter and Moon rushed to the side of Mars. "Venus Love Me Chain." Venus sent a chain of energy toward Cyprine, ensnaring her in its iron like grip. "You can't get away!" said Venus thinking that she had Cyprine secured in her magic.
"If you thank that. You're mistaken." countered Cyprine without the slightest of doubt.
Cyprine was right. A blast of energy from Venus' left knocked her off the ground, effectively freeing Cyprine. "What?" Venus could only wonder what happened as she hit the ground. The other senshi gasped, before them stood two Cyprines. The one on the lift had blue hair the one on the right had red but besides the difference in hair color, the two were identical. The two stood in a pose with their hands touching; the blue haired Cyprine had her right arm extended to her twin while the red haired Cyprine had her left arm extended.
The two Cyprines raised their arms above their heads while their hands were still joined. They spin in a circle; right became left, left became right, front became back and back became front. While they span their arms became further intertwined, becoming more complex, changing the space of the office. What was once an office with shattered windows was now a vast field of stars. When the spin was completed, the blue haired Cyprine was in front of the red haired Cyprine, obscuring her. They stepped apart, revealing the red haired Cyprine.
"I'm Cyprine." The blue haired one announced.
"I'm Puchirl." announced the red haired one.
"One is two." said Cyprine.
"Two is one." added Puchirl.
They raised the staffs that each held, causing them to glow.
"One or two, there's no difference!" Jupiter challenged the duo to prove her wrong. "Take this. Sparkling Wide Pressure!" she tossed a ball of electrons toward the two.
Cyprine swung her staff to counter the attack while Puchirl followed suit. Their staffs met at the space between them causing the staffs to glow even brighter. "These things have no effects on us." the two announced as Jupiter's attack was absorbed by the staffs. Swing the staffs to above their heads, Pichirul and Cyprine counter attack. The purple blast of energy released by the two staffs easily sent Jupiter flying. With Jupiter temporary stunned, Pichirul and Cyprine turned toward their next closest target: Sailor Moon.
Taking to the air, Pichirul and Cyprine each fired an orb of energy at the panicking Sailor Moon. With her wild flapping arms and random body movements during an attack situation, Sailor Moon was able to avoid the blue orb in her usual fashion. Jumping into the air at opposite direction of the blasts, Sailor Moon was swatted into the ground by the red orb even as the blue orb missed her. "Arrr!" Moon screamed as the pain of the blast almost made her cry.
Standing in a pose Cyprine and Pichirul began to taint their recovering enemy. "The Sailor Scouts are just running!" Cyprine said with the same smirk on her face as her twin's.
"How disappointing!" Pichirul added.
Elsewhere in Mugen Academy…
"Look professor, I have one of the Sailor Senshi." Kaolinite boasted as she phased into the security office of the Mugen holding the unconscious form of Chibi-Moon by the Sailor's left feet. "With her pure heart crystal we'll be able to satiate the Messiah's appetite." Kaolinite fully expected a word of praise if not a dedication of love when she presented her potential lover with Chibi-Moon.
"Look Kaolinite, Look. Cyprine is just about to finish those meddlesome Sailors." Tomoe never looked away from the monitor showing an event that unfolded elsewhere.
"Damn you Cyprine. I hope the Sailors kill you slowly and painfully." Thought a brooding Kaolinite while still holding on to Chibi-Moon.
Back where the action is…
"They're too strong!" admitted Jupiter.
"We've go to do something different." suggested Sailor Moon.
"They just keep absorbing our attacks." Venus commented.
"Then we'll just have to beat them with our fists." said Jupiter as she smacked her fist into her palm.
"The warm up is over!" Cyprine continue to taint as she held lovingly on to her counterpart's shoulders.
"Here comes the real show!" announced Pichirul while holding on to the small of Cyprine's back.
"Your deaths will be so beautiful when we hit you with our true power." Pichirul and Cyprine said together.
"You can't intimidate us!" cried Mars.
"That's right." added Venus.
"Burning… Mandala."
"Crescent Beam."
The two Sailors fired their attacks simultaneously.
"You fool!" said Pichirul and Cyprine as they moved their staffs into position to absorb the two attacks.
The instant Venus and Mars' attack left their caster's hands Jupiter and Moon took off running at different direction. For Jupiter her mission was to use the moment Cyprine and Pichirul spent absorbing the two attacks to get close to one of them. Then while avoiding their counter attack, because there was no way she could be fast enough to get their before they too action, distract them long enough for Venus and Mars to physically attack one of them from behind. As Jupiter took off toward the enemy, Moon ran off to the side and disappeared into the darkness. She was not running away because of cowardice, far from it, she had a role to play in the battle and that role demands the greatest of stealth on her part.
As expected Pichirul and Cyprine's glowing staffs absorbed the Crescent Beam and Burning Mandala just like all previous attacks. Like before, once the attacks were absorbed the duo again raised their staffs above their heads and fired at the approaching Jupiter. The huge ball of energy sailed from the two staffs toward Jupiter and if it had connected, serious injury would no doubt be the result. As the ball of purple energy that was almost twice as deadly as the ones before approached, Jupiter maintained her run at top speed. Jupiter new that she could not stop or slow down for the smallest of hesitations at this point will mean even greater danger for her and her friends.
With the destructive energy closing in on Jupiter, both parties became more certain of the result. Cyprine and Pichirul both had absolute confidence in their abilities with very good reasons. First, they were the last and the strongest members of the Witches 5. How is it possible that these weak opponents, the same ones that they had on the run earlier, have a hope of defeating them? Second, at such a close range there was simple no way for Jupiter to avoid their attack. Thus, in the minds of the two villains, the only possible outcome was that Jupiter would be struck down by their attack.
Equally confident in one's own abilities was Jupiter but unlike Cyprine and Pichirul, she did not have a good reason to be so confident. Her only reason was that she could not afford to doubt her abilities, especially when her friends' lives were on the line. She was not given the luxury of doubt. To quote the words of a little green creature, Jupiter had only two choices: "Do or not do, there is no try."
When the moment of judgment came, it was Cyprine and Pichirul that was surprised. Just before the energy connected with Jupiter, who was expecting the attack, she made an impossibly fast jump into the air and flipped over the energy. Using their close proximity Jupiter extended her leg toward Cyprine while she was still in mid air from avoiding the jump. With one fluid motion, Jupiter managed to avoid the energy and connect with Cyprine.
A grunt of pain was all that Cyprine was able to give off as Jupiter's movement sent both of them into the ground. Cyprine had never expected Jupiter to be able to avoid their attack, it was simply impossible. That is irrelevant now; all that is important was the pain on her face where Jupiter's foot had made contact and what she would do to Jupiter to get even. She never got the chance; before she could recover, Jupiter has already started to pound into her body. She manages to get on her feet, but Jupiter never stops raining punches and kicks on to her body. Battered and bruised, Cyprine could only give ground as she got her ass whipped.
When Jupiter took out Cyprine with a flying kick to the head Pichirul was already moving to defend her double. Raising her staff into the air Pichirul had planned to knock Jupiter off Cyprine with an energy orb but that was interrupted when two fists met the back of her head as she turned to attack Jupiter.
Mars and Venus, after having completed their attacks moved to join Jupiter in the melee. Taking off in a mad dash, they saw the impossible as Jupiter leaped over the energy ball and kicked Cyprine in the face. Taking care to allow the energy to pass in the space between them the two senshis used the momentary distraction to get close to Pichirul. Seeing that Pichirul had her back to them, the two senshis took advantage of the situation; each simultaneously threw a punch at the back of Pichirul's head.
The force of Mars and Venus' punch was enough to sent Pichirul stumbling forward but not enough to knock her out. Before Pichirul was able to respond, the two senshis continue to exploit their advantage. With double tackle to the back of Pichirul's back, the two senshis sent her flying toward Cyprine.
"Sailor Moon, now's your chance!" Jupiter shouted as she delivered one last uppercut to Cyprine that sent her crashing into Pichirul.
Jumping out of the darkness where she was waiting to ambush the duo, Sailor Moon was at point blank range when she delivered her attack.
"Moon Spiral Heart Attack!"
When the blast cleared only the Sailors where left standing. "Dusted" Sailor Moon proclaimed as she pointed her fingers at where Cyprine and Pichirul were moments before.
"That's it. Now we're pissed." Pichirul's voice came from above, interrupting the sailors' little celebration.
The Sailors' look up and to their horror floated Cyprine and Pichirul who looked liked they have had better days. Their cloths were scorched and their hair was undone. They were obviously injured in the blast seeing as how Pichirul was barely holding on to her staff and blood was flowing out of Cyprine's nose freely, although that could have been from Jupiter.
Before the Sailors could even gasp a column of energy struck the ground around them, the resulting explosion sends them flying into different directions. The force of the explosion tore through their sailor fukus and burned their skins as it propelled the Sailor Senshis through the air.
To say that Ranma was no awareness of the feelings of others is slander. Indeed, he could feel the pain of others especially that of Usagi. He could feel their desperation as their situation turned from bad to worse. He could feel them scream out as the latest volley of fire torn into their skin. Above all, he could feel this irresistible need to go to them.
How can he feel these things; neither he nor Mercury is psychic. Is he simply imagining it? No, this is too real for a simply trick of the imagination or guilt. This is something that is actually happening. He could feel a pull in their general direction. He could almost hear their scream as they were blasted. The burning pain on their skin is as real as it were his own skin that was being burned. Could it be the bonds of family, Ranma mused. Is it the kind of bond between a mother and her child? Is it the kind of bond that enables one to feel the other's distress? He would not know. His mother had never been a very large part of his life. At any rate, Ranma had to keep thinking of other things to keep the urge to go to the others from becoming all consuming. As people who know Ranma know this is an uphill battle.
The urge was getting worse now. Without any particular deep thoughts to occupy his mind, Ranma could not control his feelings or to be more precise Mercury's feelings. Intellectually, he knew that going to the aid of the others would be suicide while in his current condition. He simple exhausted too much ki and overworked his muscles to be able to deliver a decent punch. With mobility only possible half an hour ago, Ranma thought he would only do more harm than good. "But if I transform…" the situation is desperate enough and Ranma was never one to ignore the cry of the needy. "I wouldn't be at full strength. It'll have ta do, besides they need me." Reaching into the place where Ami kept her henshin rod Ranma had a firm grip on the magical tool.
"You want to go to them don't you?" a voice asked from across the darkened room nearly scaring Ranma to death.
"Wha… What?" Ranma stuttered in a panic. Sitting up on the bed, Ranma confronted the voice. Looking at the women holding a teacup in the doorway, it took Ranma a moment to realize it was Ami's mother. "Got'a stop doing that." Ranma thought inwardly. It is not that Ranma had trouble recognizing Ami's mother but for some reason something about the women always throws him off. Every time he looked at Mizuno-san he always takes notice of her odd appearance instead of recognizing who the woman was. "May be it's the blonde hair." Ranma concluded.
"With your current power, you are not strong enough face the coming Silence." Ami's mother said.
"You know?" Ranma asked with some fear. "Does she know about me?" he asked himself.
Walking though the doorway that was the only source of light in the room, Mizuno-san approached her daughter's bed with a look of supreme confidence. Her mood was not exactly what Ranma would have expected for someone who was about to confronting his or her daughter on the subject of vigilante justice. This is especially suspicious if the daughter was the vigilante.
Sitting on her daughter's bed beside Ranma, Mizuno-san offered the cup of tea to the blue haired girl. "I know you can't help but feel your friends' distress but right now you can't do them any good. You must have faith in your friends' own abilities to overcome their troubles." Seeing that her daughter was not taking the tea but rather eyeing it suspiciously, Mizuno-san tried to alleviate her wayward daughter's fears. "Don't worry, it's just something to help you sleep." she said while moving the teacup closer to the blue haired girl.
Close acquaintances of Ranma knows that he is one of most trusting person in the world and two years living with Nabiki did not change that much. Perhaps it was his childhood or it could just be his naive nature but for the life of him, Ranma could not differentiate between lies and truth. Completely ignoring Mizuno-san's odd behavior Ranma accepted the tea from Mizuno-san's hand. Taking a sip from the cup Ranma found the dark brew bitter but surprising refreshing.
Giving her daughter a knowing smile Mizuno-san continued. "You must be ready for tomorrow. For now your friends can take care of themselves." Sitting up from the mattress Mizuno-san turned to leave but then suddenly stopped. She reached into the pocket of her robe and retrieved something. "Oh yea, almost forgot. You'll need this in the morning." she said as she handed the object to her daughter. Taking the object from Mizuno-san's hands, Ranma examined it. It was only a small obsidian rock with intricate carvings but Ranma recognized it instantly.
"This is the…" Ranma look at the stone with astonishment.
"Yes." Mizuno-san replied, not appearing to have the intent of offering any explanations.
"But…" Ranma asked not noticing Mizuno-san leaving the room.
"Finish your tea, dear. You could just leave the cup on the desk when you're done." She said as the door closed, returning the room to darkness that it once was.
"She's tough." Venus said in between coughs.
"I thought we had her." said the smoking Jupiter.
"Are you alright Sailor Moon?" Mars asked their leader in concern.
"Lunnna, just five more minutes." Their fearless leader muttered in reply.
"HaHaHaHa!!!" Pichirul's evil laughter sounded over them. "Let's finish them." Pichirul voiced her and Cyprine's intent. Cyprine did not respond. Raising their staffs into the air, they readied another attack. Instead of instantly discharging their energy, they opted for building their attack into greater intensity.
"Wake up Sailor Moon!" the three senshis shouted in unison.
"WAKE UP!" they shouted once more but Sailor Moon still did not respond.
"Sayonara." Pichirul said cheerfully. By this time, the duo had build two balls of energy each approximately two meters in diameter. With their attacks readied, Cyprine and Pichirul decided to finish the senshis off sooner rather than later not wanting a repeat of the last round.
"SAILOR MOON!" the senshis shouted one more time. Their latest attempt managed to stir the unconscious Sailor Moon. Seeing that they were final able get through to their leader, the Sailors continue their wake up call. "SAILOR MOON!" they repeatedly shouted.
It was too late. As Sailor Moon begins to awaken, Cyprine and Pichirul began launching their attack. Even as the shouting for Sailor Moon continued below, Cyprine and Pichirul released the barely contained energy of the staffs. The two fat balls of energy left their staffs and descended on the Sailors.
"SAILOR MOON!" they shouted one final time.
"Crisis… Make Up!" a bright flash of white energy marked Sailor Moon's transition into Super Sailor Moon.
In the short time it required Sailor Moon to transform into Super Sailor Moon, the twin boulders of energy are already meters away. Moon saw the incoming energies and realized that she would not have time to perform the Rainbow Moon Heart Ache attack. With the safety of her friends on the top of her mind, Moon had to improvise. Pushing all her energy into the palm of her hands, Super Sailor Moon poured the energy into two rivers of power.
The energies released by Moon were just in time to meet the giant twin balls of energy. The two powers collided, white met blue and red. For a moment, neither energies gave ground but soon the power of the Holy Grail was able to over power that of Cyprine and Pichirul. The power of the Grail reversed the trajectory of the two orbs and sent them flying back to their casters.
Cyprine and Pichirul had never expected their attacks to be used against them. They thought it would finish the Sailors off for sure. They had the Sailors on their knees, unconscious and weakened. They had an overwhelming amount of energy invested into their attacks, attacks that would have easily overpowered any of the Sailor's resistance. However, the one thing they did not fact in was the power of the Holly Grail. To their horror, the Grail was indeed as powerful as the professor had claimed. As their own blast approached them, Cyprine and Pichirul could only scream. In the most horrifying event of their lives, even Cyprine was able to get out a sound through her shattered jaw. Their screams of fear suddenly ceased as they were vaporized by their own attacks.
The death of the two witches caused the statue of the Messiah to shatter. With their container broken the pure heart crystals held within the statue burst forth. Like a shower of light, the crystals returned to their original owners, reviving them.
"Well Kaolinite it would seem that the little Sailor will be useful after all." said Tomoe while looking away from the monitor.
"We did it." Venus cheered.
"Barely." Jupiter added.
"Everything has turned back to normal." said an exhausted Sailor Moon.
"Look!" Mars shouted as a black hole appeared before them.
"What's this hallway?" Venus asked. Appearing through the black hole is the image of a darkened basement. Presumably another part of the Death Buster's head quarters.
"Can we get to the other side." Mars asked.
"Let's see." replied Jupiter. Picking up a random piece of debris on the floor, she chucked it through the hole. When they say it bounced off the floor on the other side of the black hole they got their answer. "This must be the Death Buster's nest."
"Stop it! Stop it! Chibi-Moon!" Sailor Moon shouted in plea. Rushing forward, she tried once again to go to the aid of her daughter.
Slowly a hand of pure energy expended from the lamping form of Hotaru. The claw shaped hand reached into the chest of Chibi-Moon, passing through her chest cavity without resisted. Chibi-Moon screamed in pain for a moment, her hand instinctively reaching for the energy that was violating her. Her scream lasted for no more than a moment as her heart crystal was ripped from her heart.
"I'm here." Ranma announced to the girl on the other side of the communicator. The panicky voice of Usagi can be heard coming from the communicator. It accrued to Ranma that not everything went will last night; at least they are fine. Clearly Usagi is frightened and irrational at the moment. "Hay, slow down. I can't make out a word you're saying." The other end paused for a moment then continued. "What! They stole Chibi-Usa's heart crystal? And they turned Hotaru into a Death Buster?" A moment of hysteric crying passed. "You can count on me, Usagi. I'll meet ya at the shrine."
Refreshed after a night of sleep Ranma began his preparation for the final confrontation with the Death Busters.
To Be Continued
Author's Note: Well, I know some of you still thinks that you'll will never see another chapter but here it is. It took longer than expected due to the increase amount of time that I spent with it and I got lazy. What I am interested in now is to what you think when this is finished. Specifically what you will think if all the scenes were written in chronological order instead of Pulp Fiction style. I feel that it is necessary to explain to you about Setsuna's current state. As you can see, she got beat up real good. I know that something of you are thinking this is going to one of *those* stories. The kind that has Ranma beating on the outers or the outers beating on Ranma because neither one can understand the other's point of view. Well let me tell you this: it's not that kind of story. B.S. some of you might say. I would counter that you should look to the previous chapter for contradicting evidence. Let me point them out for you. First, if Ranma had beaten up Setsuna, Uranus and Neptune would have said something about it when they confronted him in the basement. Second, if Ranma had beaten up on of their own there is no way the inners will still be buddy buddy with him. As always C&C is welcome at ffml_use@hotmail.com
And Vampire666 vamp.666@wanadoo.fr
That's Not What Happened
Chapter 2 Revised
History:
Written on September 1, 2001
Revised on September 5, 2001
By Oberon
Ffml_use@hotmail.com
When it comes to Setsuna a lot people thanks she is uncaring and may be even callous or cruel. However, to the people who know her best, Setsuna is one of the most caring of individuals. On the other hand, when most are asked to describe Setsuna bluntly, the words "has a stick up her ass" are most commonly used. That is not true, until recently.
"We're sorry Setsuna; we let the Messiah of Silence escape again." Michiru apologized. For the most part Michiru walked away from the debacle at Mugen with some minor scratches and a set of ruined school uniform.
WAMP! The sound of flesh hitting the wall got the attention of the two talking outer senshis. Well they were not exactly talking; more like one was apologizing while the other could not do anything but listen.
"Damn it! We would have had her if Satan's leech haven't interfered." Haruka growled with her fist still attach to the wall.
"At least we found their nest." Michiru said trying to calm her lover.
"Yea? What good is that? The next time we show our faces there they'll be waiting for us with a legion of daemons." Haruka countered.
"Hmm… May be the next time we could try to sneak in while they're distracted?" suggested Michiru.
"That may not be an option. The silence is coming; the Witches 5 will no doubt make their move soon. We can't wait for them to make a mistake."
"Then we have to move NOW. We could use one of the school functions as a cover." Michiru made her way to a stand by the door where the daily mail kept for later reading. Going though the small stack of junk mail Michiru came to what she was looking for. With a conveniently place letter opener, Michiru took the school newsletter out of its envelope and began to skim though its pages. "There's a student gathering tonight. We could get in with the crowd."
With a nod, Haruka signified her agreement to Michiru's plan. Giving Setsuna one last look, Haruka tried to reassure the Senshi of Time. "Don't worry Setsuna; we'll get her this time. And if Ranma interferes we'll sent him back to the hell that he spawned out of."
Closing the door behind them, Setsuna could still hear Haruka and Michiru's conversation as they walked down the hall. "Being used as a human soccer ball had got to hurt." commented Michiru to pass the time.
"Yea but I'm sure having that thing stuck in her… in her… you know… have got to hurt more. Hmm… I wonder how that thing could fit inside."
"I wonder how she got it out." Thinking it over for a moment Michiru then gave her partner a dirty smile, the kind of smile that promises something naughty later on. "Want to try something like that tonight?" she asked to the astonishment of her lover.
After a short pause, a similar smile appeared on Haruka's face. "Nay, I'm not into that." said Haruka teasingly.
"Come' on, it'll be fun." Michiru said playing along.
"You know me Michiru, I'm never cared much for homemade dairy products." replied Haruka with a lewd smile. (It's a reference to the slang, "Turning the brown butter." which in itself is a reference to something else. If you don't know what that something else is email me at ffml_use@hotmail.com and I'll be happy to explain.)
"Ooo!! I love it when you talk nasty."
Setsuna wanted to scream for all she was worth but the full body cast made that impossible. "Damn you Ranma, you're screwing everything up." Just the effort from curse alone is enough to cause pain in her abused jaw. "You're so going pay for this!" already Setsuna was playing ways of torturing Ranma once she is better.
Usagi's voice had been coming though Ami's communicator for the past half an hour but Ranma ignored it. It is not that he is ignoring it on purpose but he just does not have the strength to respond. After barely managing to drag him self out of Hotaru's former throne room, Ranma had to practically craw around Mugen Academy looking for the other inner senshis. It was really a wonder that Ami's mother did not interrogate him or the others when the other girls carried him back to Ami's house. It would have been a real disaster if Mizuno-san had forced him or the other girls to come up with some plausible lie to explain Ranma's state. Beside it would not feel right for him to lie to Mizuno-san especially after she took a sick day from the hospital in order to look after him.
Lying on Ami's soft comfortable mattress Ranma used first ki to repair the damage left by Viluy's nanites. Checking the states of his health Ranma signed. "Sorry Usagi, it's gonna be a few more hours before I could even move. You're gonna have ta take care of this one without me."
Inside Mugen Academy…
In mass, the students of Mugen marched like zombies to the tune of Witch Cyprine's command. "Devote your heart your heart crystals to the Death Busters." Cyprine repeated her hypnotic message repeatedly. "Soon I'll take my place at the side of our great master." she cheered inwardly as the plan proceeded perfectly. "In a few minutes their will be more than enough heart crystals to satiate the Messiah. I'll be the master's favorite for sure." Cyprine could not help but laugh at the thought of her alone reaping the reward of their triumph. "HaHaHa. Yes. Yes. That's right, with the pure heart crystals the Death Busters will rule!" this time aloud so that all present could share in her joy.
Unbeknownst to Cyprine the Sailor Senshi in civilian form managed to infiltrate the crowd. Lurking behind the support columns the sailors watched futilely as thr population of Mugen walked, not of their own free will, toward their doom. They knew that it would be impossible to free the enslaved students unless the witch is defeated. They also know that to attack the witch now is suicide, that and it would most likely lead to the death of the students they were here to protect. So they waited, waited for the perfect time to strike without endangering the students. However, the sailors also know that they could not wait too long, for any moment now the witch will start harvesting the heart crystals.
Before the opportunity attack arrives, the students were in position for Cyprine to harvest their pure heart crystals. "Yes that's it. Devote your heart crystal to the great Messiah!" commanded Cyprine. One by one, the students released their heart crystals to Cyprine's control. Floating though the air the heart crystals moved toward the statue of the Messiah even as their owners lay dying on the ground they once stood on. "Ah, the senshi are here. Good we could finish this before dinner time." With a snap of her fingers, Cyprine summon an intense beam of red light over the statue of the Messiah. "My darlings, entry of non-students into the building is not permitted." As the beam of light struck the senshis the inners where wrapped in an energy bubble which lifted them into the air. Phasing though the domed shaped roof the bubble left Cyprine alone in the ceremonial hall. "Everyone, please donate your pure hearts." Cyprine added as she began to leave.
What Cyprine was unaware of was that a small portion of the ex-student body was unaffected by her hypnotic commands and among them is Haruka and Michiru.
"Upstairs?" asked Haruka.
"Yes." Michiru replied.
Phasing through the floor the inner senshis found themselves in an office overlooking the city.
"Where are we?" asked Sailor Mars.
"Welcome Sailor Senshis." Cyprine said interrupting Mars. Whirling around on her leather chair from behind the desk, Cyprine faced the people responsible for the downfall of her predecessors. With her head resting on her left hand and legs crossed, Cyprine began her introduction to the Sailors. "How do you do? I am Cyprine, the last member of the Witches 5. Hmm… I see we're one short. Call your friend, I want to finish you off all at the same time. Don't worry I'll wait."
"We can't call Ranma. He's still hurt." Usagi said while getting on her feet.
"We'll just have to do our best without him." Rei agreed.
"Let's transform." Makoto urged the others.
"Jupiter Star Power." Makoto shouted with her hand extended above her.
"Mars Star Power." shouted Rei as she duplicated Makoto's action
"Venus Star Power." duplicated the actions of the two previous Sailors
"Moon Cosmic Power." Usagi shouted her transformation phrase as she glided her hand over the Mystical Silver Crystal inside her broach.
"Make up!" the four Sailor Soldiers shouted the final phrase of their transformation simultaneously. After the momentary light show, four Sailor Soldiers for love and justice replaced the four teenage schoolgirls.
"In the name of the Moon the Sailor team will punish you!" vowed Moon as she finishes her transformation.
"I was so hoping I would be able to finish you off all at once but I guess I'll just give Mercury my undivided attention once I'm finished with you. She's that Mizuno girl isn't she?" Cyprine challenged the Senshis never fearing her disadvantage in terms of numbers.
"Foul villain, I'll never allow you to harm our friends. Burning… Mandela!" Mars shot rings of fire toward Cyprine. The rings of fire struck true to its mark, shatter the windows behind Cyprine while leaving a cloud of black smoke after the explosion. "Did I do it?" not believing that she was able to vanquish the enemy with one hit but happy that her opponent seems to have been vaporized in the attack.
To Mars' chagrin, a pair of lights, one red the other blue, appeared though the dense smoke. The pair of lights sailed though the space between itself and Mars, smashing into her before she realized they were even there, knocking her into the wall.
"Sailor Mars!" the other soldiers reacted in concern.
Before Mars could recover from the initial blow, another red orb of energy was sent toward her. With all her strength Mars moved out of the way of the red orb, hit the ground a few feet away, barely avoiding the red orb as it exploded behind her. Looking up, Mars saw another orb of energy heading her way. Grunting from the effort Sailor Mars leaping off the ground, barely avoided the blue orb of energy by inches as it sailed pass her destroying the furniture beside her.
"Sailor Mars!" the others shouted as they ran towards their comrade. Above them Cyprine looked as she prepared another attack.
Of the three concerned girls, Venus was the only to spot Cyprine floating in mid air. Seeing as her friends had completely forgotten about their enemy, Venus acted to cover their backs as Jupiter and Moon rushed to the side of Mars. "Venus Love Me Chain." Venus sent a chain of energy toward Cyprine, ensnaring her in its iron like grip. "You can't get away!" said Venus thinking that she had Cyprine secured in her magic.
"If you thank that. You're mistaken." countered Cyprine without the slightest of doubt.
Cyprine was right. A blast of energy from Venus' left knocked her off the ground, effectively freeing Cyprine. "What?" Venus could only wonder what happened as she hit the ground. The other senshi gasped, before them stood two Cyprines. The one on the lift had blue hair the one on the right had red but besides the difference in hair color, the two were identical. The two stood in a pose with their hands touching; the blue haired Cyprine had her right arm extended to her twin while the red haired Cyprine had her left arm extended.
The two Cyprines raised their arms above their heads while their hands were still joined. They spin in a circle; right became left, left became right, front became back and back became front. While they span their arms became further intertwined, becoming more complex, changing the space of the office. What was once an office with shattered windows was now a vast field of stars. When the spin was completed, the blue haired Cyprine was in front of the red haired Cyprine, obscuring her. They stepped apart, revealing the red haired Cyprine.
"I'm Cyprine." The blue haired one announced.
"I'm Puchirl." announced the red haired one.
"One is two." said Cyprine.
"Two is one." added Puchirl.
They raised the staffs that each held, causing them to glow.
"One or two, there's no difference!" Jupiter challenged the duo to prove her wrong. "Take this. Sparkling Wide Pressure!" she tossed a ball of electrons toward the two.
Cyprine swung her staff to counter the attack while Puchirl followed suit. Their staffs met at the space between them causing the staffs to glow even brighter. "These things have no effects on us." the two announced as Jupiter's attack was absorbed by the staffs. Swing the staffs to above their heads, Pichirul and Cyprine counter attack. The purple blast of energy released by the two staffs easily sent Jupiter flying. With Jupiter temporary stunned, Pichirul and Cyprine turned toward their next closest target: Sailor Moon.
Taking to the air, Pichirul and Cyprine each fired an orb of energy at the panicking Sailor Moon. With her wild flapping arms and random body movements during an attack situation, Sailor Moon was able to avoid the blue orb in her usual fashion. Jumping into the air at opposite direction of the blasts, Sailor Moon was swatted into the ground by the red orb even as the blue orb missed her. "Arrr!" Moon screamed as the pain of the blast almost made her cry.
Standing in a pose Cyprine and Pichirul began to taint their recovering enemy. "The Sailor Scouts are just running!" Cyprine said with the same smirk on her face as her twin's.
"How disappointing!" Pichirul added.
Elsewhere in Mugen Academy…
"Look professor, I have one of the Sailor Senshi." Kaolinite boasted as she phased into the security office of the Mugen holding the unconscious form of Chibi-Moon by the Sailor's left feet. "With her pure heart crystal we'll be able to satiate the Messiah's appetite." Kaolinite fully expected a word of praise if not a dedication of love when she presented her potential lover with Chibi-Moon.
"Look Kaolinite, Look. Cyprine is just about to finish those meddlesome Sailors." Tomoe never looked away from the monitor showing an event that unfolded elsewhere.
"Damn you Cyprine. I hope the Sailors kill you slowly and painfully." Thought a brooding Kaolinite while still holding on to Chibi-Moon.
Back where the action is…
"They're too strong!" admitted Jupiter.
"We've go to do something different." suggested Sailor Moon.
"They just keep absorbing our attacks." Venus commented.
"Then we'll just have to beat them with our fists." said Jupiter as she smacked her fist into her palm.
"The warm up is over!" Cyprine continue to taint as she held lovingly on to her counterpart's shoulders.
"Here comes the real show!" announced Pichirul while holding on to the small of Cyprine's back.
"Your deaths will be so beautiful when we hit you with our true power." Pichirul and Cyprine said together.
"You can't intimidate us!" cried Mars.
"That's right." added Venus.
"Burning… Mandala."
"Crescent Beam."
The two Sailors fired their attacks simultaneously.
"You fool!" said Pichirul and Cyprine as they moved their staffs into position to absorb the two attacks.
The instant Venus and Mars' attack left their caster's hands Jupiter and Moon took off running at different direction. For Jupiter her mission was to use the moment Cyprine and Pichirul spent absorbing the two attacks to get close to one of them. Then while avoiding their counter attack, because there was no way she could be fast enough to get their before they too action, distract them long enough for Venus and Mars to physically attack one of them from behind. As Jupiter took off toward the enemy, Moon ran off to the side and disappeared into the darkness. She was not running away because of cowardice, far from it, she had a role to play in the battle and that role demands the greatest of stealth on her part.
As expected Pichirul and Cyprine's glowing staffs absorbed the Crescent Beam and Burning Mandala just like all previous attacks. Like before, once the attacks were absorbed the duo again raised their staffs above their heads and fired at the approaching Jupiter. The huge ball of energy sailed from the two staffs toward Jupiter and if it had connected, serious injury would no doubt be the result. As the ball of purple energy that was almost twice as deadly as the ones before approached, Jupiter maintained her run at top speed. Jupiter new that she could not stop or slow down for the smallest of hesitations at this point will mean even greater danger for her and her friends.
With the destructive energy closing in on Jupiter, both parties became more certain of the result. Cyprine and Pichirul both had absolute confidence in their abilities with very good reasons. First, they were the last and the strongest members of the Witches 5. How is it possible that these weak opponents, the same ones that they had on the run earlier, have a hope of defeating them? Second, at such a close range there was simple no way for Jupiter to avoid their attack. Thus, in the minds of the two villains, the only possible outcome was that Jupiter would be struck down by their attack.
Equally confident in one's own abilities was Jupiter but unlike Cyprine and Pichirul, she did not have a good reason to be so confident. Her only reason was that she could not afford to doubt her abilities, especially when her friends' lives were on the line. She was not given the luxury of doubt. To quote the words of a little green creature, Jupiter had only two choices: "Do or not do, there is no try."
When the moment of judgment came, it was Cyprine and Pichirul that was surprised. Just before the energy connected with Jupiter, who was expecting the attack, she made an impossibly fast jump into the air and flipped over the energy. Using their close proximity Jupiter extended her leg toward Cyprine while she was still in mid air from avoiding the jump. With one fluid motion, Jupiter managed to avoid the energy and connect with Cyprine.
A grunt of pain was all that Cyprine was able to give off as Jupiter's movement sent both of them into the ground. Cyprine had never expected Jupiter to be able to avoid their attack, it was simply impossible. That is irrelevant now; all that is important was the pain on her face where Jupiter's foot had made contact and what she would do to Jupiter to get even. She never got the chance; before she could recover, Jupiter has already started to pound into her body. She manages to get on her feet, but Jupiter never stops raining punches and kicks on to her body. Battered and bruised, Cyprine could only give ground as she got her ass whipped.
When Jupiter took out Cyprine with a flying kick to the head Pichirul was already moving to defend her double. Raising her staff into the air Pichirul had planned to knock Jupiter off Cyprine with an energy orb but that was interrupted when two fists met the back of her head as she turned to attack Jupiter.
Mars and Venus, after having completed their attacks moved to join Jupiter in the melee. Taking off in a mad dash, they saw the impossible as Jupiter leaped over the energy ball and kicked Cyprine in the face. Taking care to allow the energy to pass in the space between them the two senshis used the momentary distraction to get close to Pichirul. Seeing that Pichirul had her back to them, the two senshis took advantage of the situation; each simultaneously threw a punch at the back of Pichirul's head.
The force of Mars and Venus' punch was enough to sent Pichirul stumbling forward but not enough to knock her out. Before Pichirul was able to respond, the two senshis continue to exploit their advantage. With double tackle to the back of Pichirul's back, the two senshis sent her flying toward Cyprine.
"Sailor Moon, now's your chance!" Jupiter shouted as she delivered one last uppercut to Cyprine that sent her crashing into Pichirul.
Jumping out of the darkness where she was waiting to ambush the duo, Sailor Moon was at point blank range when she delivered her attack.
"Moon Spiral Heart Attack!"
When the blast cleared only the Sailors where left standing. "Dusted" Sailor Moon proclaimed as she pointed her fingers at where Cyprine and Pichirul were moments before.
"That's it. Now we're pissed." Pichirul's voice came from above, interrupting the sailors' little celebration.
The Sailors' look up and to their horror floated Cyprine and Pichirul who looked liked they have had better days. Their cloths were scorched and their hair was undone. They were obviously injured in the blast seeing as how Pichirul was barely holding on to her staff and blood was flowing out of Cyprine's nose freely, although that could have been from Jupiter.
Before the Sailors could even gasp a column of energy struck the ground around them, the resulting explosion sends them flying into different directions. The force of the explosion tore through their sailor fukus and burned their skins as it propelled the Sailor Senshis through the air.
To say that Ranma was no awareness of the feelings of others is slander. Indeed, he could feel the pain of others especially that of Usagi. He could feel their desperation as their situation turned from bad to worse. He could feel them scream out as the latest volley of fire torn into their skin. Above all, he could feel this irresistible need to go to them.
How can he feel these things; neither he nor Mercury is psychic. Is he simply imagining it? No, this is too real for a simply trick of the imagination or guilt. This is something that is actually happening. He could feel a pull in their general direction. He could almost hear their scream as they were blasted. The burning pain on their skin is as real as it were his own skin that was being burned. Could it be the bonds of family, Ranma mused. Is it the kind of bond between a mother and her child? Is it the kind of bond that enables one to feel the other's distress? He would not know. His mother had never been a very large part of his life. At any rate, Ranma had to keep thinking of other things to keep the urge to go to the others from becoming all consuming. As people who know Ranma know this is an uphill battle.
The urge was getting worse now. Without any particular deep thoughts to occupy his mind, Ranma could not control his feelings or to be more precise Mercury's feelings. Intellectually, he knew that going to the aid of the others would be suicide while in his current condition. He simple exhausted too much ki and overworked his muscles to be able to deliver a decent punch. With mobility only possible half an hour ago, Ranma thought he would only do more harm than good. "But if I transform…" the situation is desperate enough and Ranma was never one to ignore the cry of the needy. "I wouldn't be at full strength. It'll have ta do, besides they need me." Reaching into the place where Ami kept her henshin rod Ranma had a firm grip on the magical tool.
"You want to go to them don't you?" a voice asked from across the darkened room nearly scaring Ranma to death.
"Wha… What?" Ranma stuttered in a panic. Sitting up on the bed, Ranma confronted the voice. Looking at the women holding a teacup in the doorway, it took Ranma a moment to realize it was Ami's mother. "Got'a stop doing that." Ranma thought inwardly. It is not that Ranma had trouble recognizing Ami's mother but for some reason something about the women always throws him off. Every time he looked at Mizuno-san he always takes notice of her odd appearance instead of recognizing who the woman was. "May be it's the blonde hair." Ranma concluded.
"With your current power, you are not strong enough face the coming Silence." Ami's mother said.
"You know?" Ranma asked with some fear. "Does she know about me?" he asked himself.
Walking though the doorway that was the only source of light in the room, Mizuno-san approached her daughter's bed with a look of supreme confidence. Her mood was not exactly what Ranma would have expected for someone who was about to confronting his or her daughter on the subject of vigilante justice. This is especially suspicious if the daughter was the vigilante.
Sitting on her daughter's bed beside Ranma, Mizuno-san offered the cup of tea to the blue haired girl. "I know you can't help but feel your friends' distress but right now you can't do them any good. You must have faith in your friends' own abilities to overcome their troubles." Seeing that her daughter was not taking the tea but rather eyeing it suspiciously, Mizuno-san tried to alleviate her wayward daughter's fears. "Don't worry, it's just something to help you sleep." she said while moving the teacup closer to the blue haired girl.
Close acquaintances of Ranma knows that he is one of most trusting person in the world and two years living with Nabiki did not change that much. Perhaps it was his childhood or it could just be his naive nature but for the life of him, Ranma could not differentiate between lies and truth. Completely ignoring Mizuno-san's odd behavior Ranma accepted the tea from Mizuno-san's hand. Taking a sip from the cup Ranma found the dark brew bitter but surprising refreshing.
Giving her daughter a knowing smile Mizuno-san continued. "You must be ready for tomorrow. For now your friends can take care of themselves." Sitting up from the mattress Mizuno-san turned to leave but then suddenly stopped. She reached into the pocket of her robe and retrieved something. "Oh yea, almost forgot. You'll need this in the morning." she said as she handed the object to her daughter. Taking the object from Mizuno-san's hands, Ranma examined it. It was only a small obsidian rock with intricate carvings but Ranma recognized it instantly.
"This is the…" Ranma look at the stone with astonishment.
"Yes." Mizuno-san replied, not appearing to have the intent of offering any explanations.
"But…" Ranma asked not noticing Mizuno-san leaving the room.
"Finish your tea, dear. You could just leave the cup on the desk when you're done." She said as the door closed, returning the room to darkness that it once was.
"She's tough." Venus said in between coughs.
"I thought we had her." said the smoking Jupiter.
"Are you alright Sailor Moon?" Mars asked their leader in concern.
"Lunnna, just five more minutes." Their fearless leader muttered in reply.
"HaHaHaHa!!!" Pichirul's evil laughter sounded over them. "Let's finish them." Pichirul voiced her and Cyprine's intent. Cyprine did not respond. Raising their staffs into the air, they readied another attack. Instead of instantly discharging their energy, they opted for building their attack into greater intensity.
"Wake up Sailor Moon!" the three senshis shouted in unison.
"WAKE UP!" they shouted once more but Sailor Moon still did not respond.
"Sayonara." Pichirul said cheerfully. By this time, the duo had build two balls of energy each approximately two meters in diameter. With their attacks readied, Cyprine and Pichirul decided to finish the senshis off sooner rather than later not wanting a repeat of the last round.
"SAILOR MOON!" the senshis shouted one more time. Their latest attempt managed to stir the unconscious Sailor Moon. Seeing that they were final able get through to their leader, the Sailors continue their wake up call. "SAILOR MOON!" they repeatedly shouted.
It was too late. As Sailor Moon begins to awaken, Cyprine and Pichirul began launching their attack. Even as the shouting for Sailor Moon continued below, Cyprine and Pichirul released the barely contained energy of the staffs. The two fat balls of energy left their staffs and descended on the Sailors.
"SAILOR MOON!" they shouted one final time.
"Crisis… Make Up!" a bright flash of white energy marked Sailor Moon's transition into Super Sailor Moon.
In the short time it required Sailor Moon to transform into Super Sailor Moon, the twin boulders of energy are already meters away. Moon saw the incoming energies and realized that she would not have time to perform the Rainbow Moon Heart Ache attack. With the safety of her friends on the top of her mind, Moon had to improvise. Pushing all her energy into the palm of her hands, Super Sailor Moon poured the energy into two rivers of power.
The energies released by Moon were just in time to meet the giant twin balls of energy. The two powers collided, white met blue and red. For a moment, neither energies gave ground but soon the power of the Holy Grail was able to over power that of Cyprine and Pichirul. The power of the Grail reversed the trajectory of the two orbs and sent them flying back to their casters.
Cyprine and Pichirul had never expected their attacks to be used against them. They thought it would finish the Sailors off for sure. They had the Sailors on their knees, unconscious and weakened. They had an overwhelming amount of energy invested into their attacks, attacks that would have easily overpowered any of the Sailor's resistance. However, the one thing they did not fact in was the power of the Holly Grail. To their horror, the Grail was indeed as powerful as the professor had claimed. As their own blast approached them, Cyprine and Pichirul could only scream. In the most horrifying event of their lives, even Cyprine was able to get out a sound through her shattered jaw. Their screams of fear suddenly ceased as they were vaporized by their own attacks.
The death of the two witches caused the statue of the Messiah to shatter. With their container broken the pure heart crystals held within the statue burst forth. Like a shower of light, the crystals returned to their original owners, reviving them.
"Well Kaolinite it would seem that the little Sailor will be useful after all." said Tomoe while looking away from the monitor.
"We did it." Venus cheered.
"Barely." Jupiter added.
"Everything has turned back to normal." said an exhausted Sailor Moon.
"Look!" Mars shouted as a black hole appeared before them.
"What's this hallway?" Venus asked. Appearing through the black hole is the image of a darkened basement. Presumably another part of the Death Buster's head quarters.
"Can we get to the other side." Mars asked.
"Let's see." replied Jupiter. Picking up a random piece of debris on the floor, she chucked it through the hole. When they say it bounced off the floor on the other side of the black hole they got their answer. "This must be the Death Buster's nest."
"Stop it! Stop it! Chibi-Moon!" Sailor Moon shouted in plea. Rushing forward, she tried once again to go to the aid of her daughter.
Slowly a hand of pure energy expended from the lamping form of Hotaru. The claw shaped hand reached into the chest of Chibi-Moon, passing through her chest cavity without resisted. Chibi-Moon screamed in pain for a moment, her hand instinctively reaching for the energy that was violating her. Her scream lasted for no more than a moment as her heart crystal was ripped from her heart.
"I'm here." Ranma announced to the girl on the other side of the communicator. The panicky voice of Usagi can be heard coming from the communicator. It accrued to Ranma that not everything went will last night; at least they are fine. Clearly Usagi is frightened and irrational at the moment. "Hay, slow down. I can't make out a word you're saying." The other end paused for a moment then continued. "What! They stole Chibi-Usa's heart crystal? And they turned Hotaru into a Death Buster?" A moment of hysteric crying passed. "You can count on me, Usagi. I'll meet ya at the shrine."
Refreshed after a night of sleep Ranma began his preparation for the final confrontation with the Death Busters.
To Be Continued
Author's Note: Well, I know some of you still thinks that you'll will never see another chapter but here it is. It took longer than expected due to the increase amount of time that I spent with it and I got lazy. What I am interested in now is to what you think when this is finished. Specifically what you will think if all the scenes were written in chronological order instead of Pulp Fiction style. I feel that it is necessary to explain to you about Setsuna's current state. As you can see, she got beat up real good. I know that something of you are thinking this is going to one of *those* stories. The kind that has Ranma beating on the outers or the outers beating on Ranma because neither one can understand the other's point of view. Well let me tell you this: it's not that kind of story. B.S. some of you might say. I would counter that you should look to the previous chapter for contradicting evidence. Let me point them out for you. First, if Ranma had beaten up Setsuna, Uranus and Neptune would have said something about it when they confronted him in the basement. Second, if Ranma had beaten up on of their own there is no way the inners will still be buddy buddy with him. As always C&C is welcome at ffml_use@hotmail.com