6/15/01

I have no idea how to convert dollars into yen, so just assume they use American dollars, all right?

"Thank you"s go to PriestessMars, for inspiration and proofreading, and to everyone who reviewed my fic, because they gave me motivation to write the next episode!

One quick note: I know that the settings are getting a little repetitive, but I am running out of ideas of places to put the Scouts, so if you can help with that, it would be greatly appreciated.

Standard disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. Naoko Takeuchi-sama does. I just wish I had Ami-chan. My birthday is next month, Naoko. *hint, hint* Anyway, I do own Prince Neptune, the Knowledge Ruby, the Caretakers, and the L'Tari. Any unauthorized use of them will be prosecuted with extreme prejudice.

Episode 7:

Time's Up

The relatively warm roll sliding down her throat was a sharp contrast to the milk poured in afterward. They made her shiver as she finished packing the rest of the basket. This being one of the first warm days of spring, Makoto had been invited to a picnic with everyone else. She had made enough for twenty, which she would probably need. She had seen the guys eat twice as much as she thought they would. At times, she thought they had taken lessons from Usagi.

Hefting the heavy basket, she reached in and shifted a few things around so it wouldn't be so awkward to carry. Heading for the door, she heard the doorbell ring. 'Excellent timing.' she thought, wryly. She opened the door to see John standing there, waiting for her.

"Ready?" he asked. Makoto smiled at him.

"Sure. And you can carry this for me." She handed him the basket. She had to stop a grin from appearing on her face. She found it so funny that he would do anything for her, if he thought she wanted him to do it. She also found the look on his face hilarious. Whenever she asked a favor of him, he always seemed like he never saw it coming.

She guided him down to his car where they had to come up with an inventive way to stuff the basket in his trunk. The thing was huge! They drove to the park where they were to meet everyone else. They had no idea that they were being monitored from high above.

* * * * * * * * * * *

The Third irritably rounded on the First. "Well?" He asked, "Are you going to put this highly talked about plan of yours into action?"

"Yeah!" agreed the Second. A profound feeling of anger toward the First obscured her usual serene nature. "When is this little plan of yours going to work? And who are we supposed to send down to implement it?"

The First coolly regarded his companions and smiled, "Why, we are going to oversee this one." The other two Caretakers couldn't believe their ears.

"Us?!" said the Second at the same time the Third said, "You must be crazy!" He silenced them with a wave of his hand and held up a small crystal vile. It seemed to contain some sort of white powder.

"This, my friends, is the powder that gives our minions the power to infect the humans we target."

"I knew that," said the Second, "I created the damn stuff." The First continued as if he hadn't been so rudely interrupted.

"This powder, of course, has been altered. This vial contains powder ten times more potent than what our minions use. We will use this to infect our next target." The others just looked at him. They still couldn't get over the fact that he was going to oversee this mission. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some work to do."

* * * * * * * * * * *

Stretching out on the blanket, Usagi basked in the sunlight filtering through the leaves of the tree that towered over the area that Mamoru had selected for the picnic. She turned her head to look at him. She loved to look at her Mamoru. He turned around and their eyes met. He leaned over and kissed her. It felt like the moment would go on forever.

"Will you two get a room?!" said Rei. Whoops! Usagi had forgotten all about the others. She felt her face grow warm. Everyone had their eyes on her and Mamoru. Haruka had an amused smile on her face, but then again, she almost always did whenever someone was caught in a compromising situation. Usagi noticed that Mamoru looked a little embarrassed, as well. Finally, everyone went back to what ever it was they were doing.

It really was quite a picturesque scene. She noticed that Makoto and John were doing what Mamoru and her were just doing. Making an irritated noise, she realized that Rei was just being mean, again. She continued to observe the scene. Jeff and Ami had found a tree to sit against. Ami was leaning against Jeff and he had an arm around her. It would have seemed normal, except they both had books. Jeff had a thick fantasy novel and Ami had a small book of Spanish phrases. Leave it to those two to make an outing into a lesson. Shuddering with sudden thoughts of unfinished schoolwork, Usagi turned her attention to what everyone else was doing. Haruka and Michiru were having a conversation with Rei, but Usagi couldn't hear what they were saying, no matter how she strained. Minako was playing with ChibiUsa. 'Good,' thought Usagi, 'That'll keep the little brat busy.'

Sitting up, she reached for the basket again to get another one of Makoto's culinary creations. She found what she was looking for and she was about to shove it in her face when she looked up and saw something she didn't expect to see, at least, not at this picnic. She called for the other's attention and they all had similar expressions on their faces when they saw what Usagi was gaping at.

There, they saw two women. Well, one was a woman, but the other no more than a girl. The girl, about thirteen years old, was dressed in very dark clothing, with a deep purple, wide brimmed hat resting on her head. She was carrying a small picnic basket in both hands. Her face, peaking out from under the shady brim of her hat, was pale when compared to the deep black and purple hues of her clothing, but she was smiling enough to make the deepest night seem like day.

The woman was easily as tall as Mamoru, with long dark hair falling to her knees. She wore a lavender jacket over a white blouse and a matching skirt. At first glance, one would have said that she seemed to be about twenty-five years old, but upon closer inspection, she seemed ageless. She, too, was smiling brightly. The others couldn't believe their eyes. They were all about to speak, but ChibiUsa found her voice first and yelled to greet her friend.

"HOTARU!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Hotaru barely had enough time to put the basket down before ChibiUsa barreled into her. After a fierce hug, ChibiUsa immediately began questioning her friend about where she had been and what she had been doing. Setsuna watched the two for a moment and then turned her attention to the group of Scouts before her.

"So," said Haruka, "You two are finally back."

"The apartment feels empty without you," said Michiru.

"Yes, but you have another roommate to fill the space," said Setsuna. She turned to the person in question. "Hello, Jeff."

Jeff nodded and smiled, "It's a pleasure, Setsuna." All of the others could only gape at the two of them. How the hell did they know each other? Setsuna and Jeff looked at their companions startled expressions and Jeff quickly explained. "The Ruby told me." Damn Ruby. Almost everyone's expressions changed from disbelief to mild irritation. Setsuna quickly spoke, in order to take attention away from Jeff. A few of the Scouts looked more than just irritated.

"When Hotaru and I saw all of you having a picnic, we decided to join you. We needed a break after watching the Time Stream for so long."

Over where she was playing with ChibiUsa, Hotaru suddenly looked up and scanned the area for something. She didn't know what, but she was sure it was dangerous. It was a faint feeling, but it was there.

"Hotaru, what's wrong?" asked ChibiUsa.

"Something is not right here. There is something evil here." The tone of Hotaru's voice wasn't very convincing. Luna and Artemis looked at each other. They didn't feel anything. Rei closed her eyes and tried to sense something in the area, but she, too, felt nothing. Jeff and the Ruby didn't feel anything and Mamoru was sure that if whatever it was threatened Usagi or ChibiUsa, he'd be sure to feel it.

"Are you sure?" said Rei, "I can't sense a thing."

"Maybe your time in the Time Corridor has just made your senses get a little rusty," said Setsuna, "I'm sure you're just imagining it."

"If you say so, Setsuna-mama."

Back among the bushes the entity that set off Hotaru's alarm, namely the First Caretaker, readied his device. It was small, compact, and shaped like a water pistol. In fact, that's exactly what it was, an incredibly accurate, high-tech, water pistol. It contained a solution made from the concentrated powder that he showed to the others that morning. Reaching forward and pulling back a few braches from a bush, he took careful aim at his target. Just before he pulled the trigger, a bird lit on a branch next to him and the little creature gave him an idea. Slowly, he crawled to the base of the tree under which the blanket, and his target, were situated.

Usagi maneuvered herself into what she considered the perfect position. The picnic basket was right in front of her, she was leaning against Mamoru, the tree looming over them provided an excellent amount of shade, and she could see Hotaru and ChibiUsa a few meters in front of her playing. Somehow, they had got Haruka and Minako to participate in some game that they had obviously made up five minutes before they started and they were still making it up as they went. Every time Haruka or Minako tried to leave the game, or at least suggest a rule to make it easier on them, the little girls just said no because it was their job to say who did what and when they did it. After all, it was their game. Usagi was about to take another bite of her third sandwich, she felt some thing clod hit her back. Something cold and wet. Something cold, wet, and seeping through the back of her shirt.

"Ah, gross!!!" screamed Usagi. Whatever it was, it was very unpleasant. She looked up into the trees to search for the winged beast that did this to her, but she only saw the rustle of leaves where the culprit was just a moment before.

"What's the matter, Usagi?" asked Mamoru. He was used to Usagi's outbursts, but this time he was caught off guard because he was thinking about something he had just felt. It was a vague feeling, like something was watching him.

"Some bird just shit on me!" Everyone's attention instantly turned to Usagi. They had never heard her swear before. Never! Not in the thousand years they had known her. No one quite knew how to react to that. Rei's first thought was to scold her for swearing where children cold hear, but then she thought differently. If Usagi was this mad, she didn't know how she would react to a lecture. Jeff thought someone had taken away his princess and replaced her with an imposter. Haruka wanted to applaud and Michiru, knowing her love so well, stopped her before she said anything. Minako could only gape at Usagi. She had no idea that Usagi even knew those kind of words! ChibiUsa leaned closer to Hotaru to ask what that word meant. Hotaru could only shake her head, still staring at Usagi.

"What the hell are you all staring at?!" She did it again. This time, no one knew what to think. Mamoru decided he better try to handle this.

"Usagi, honey," the glare she turned on him made him swallow, "Maybe I should take you home."

"Yeah, maybe...Oh, DAMN IT!" Setsuna covered Hotaru's ears, who, in turn, covered ChibiUsa's. "There is nobody home and I don't have my fucking key!" Even Haruka was shocked. Jeff was so startled that he choked on a mouthful of salad and Ami started patting him on the back to help him dislodge a piece of carrot.

Everyone just watched as Mamoru guided Usagi to his car to take her to his place so she could wash her shirt. The Outers agreed to take ChibiUsa to their place, which was fine by ChibiUsa because she wanted to play some more with her friend.

During the whole ride home, Mamoru remained silent, afraid that one word would get Usagi going again.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Dropping himself onto the couch in his living room, Mamoru let out a long sigh. After Usagi had tripped and almost fallen down a few dozen flights of stairs, she had let out a string of curses that would have made the most crude construction worker cover his ears in embarrassment. He could hear her moving about the apartment. First, she was in the laundry room, putting her shirt in the wash. Next, she took a good long shower. She complained about feeling dirty, due to the, uh, crap. Mamoru couldn't blame her. As long as she was going to be in the same spot for a while, Mamoru decided that he could relax a bit. He went into the kitchen to find a snack. Being a bachelor's kitchen, there wasn't much in it. There was a box of crackers in the cupboard, and a few assorted items in the fridge, nothing that would make a decent snack. Mamoru considered Usagi's present mood, he thought it would be a good idea to have some food in the house when she got out of the shower, so he dialed up the pizza place and ordered a 12-cut with pepperoni on all of it and mushrooms on half of it. He hung up the phone and he heard the water in the bathroom shut off.

As he heard the bathroom door open, he called out, "Usagi, grab one of my shirts to wear, if yours isn't done, yet." He didn't get a response, but he did hear Usagi's footsteps go into his bedroom and Usagi shutting the door. 'Geez, she must really be mad, if I'm not even getting a response.'

Sitting down on the couch again, he heard his bedroom door open. He thought it was odd because he didn't think she could get ready that fast. Women always take an hour and a half to get ready for anything. His second surprise came when Usagi entered the living room wearing only one of his shirts and nothing else. It hung down to her knees and her hair had been taken out of the odangos, letting it fall freely down her back. The biggest surprise was the wicked little smile on her face.

"Oh, Mamoru, I feel so bad for what I said earlier," if anything, the smile got even more wicked, "I just want to make it up to you, somehow." By this time, she had made it to the couch and she was in the process of sitting down next to Mamoru when Mamoru's brain started working again. 'Wait a minute!' the thought screamed inside his head, 'She never acts like this! And she's only sixteen. She can't possibly mean what I think she means, could she?'

He looked over at his girlfriend and the look on her face and the gleam in her eye said that she most certainly did mean exactly what he was thinking. Mamoru froze like a deer in the headlights. He had always wanted something like this, but he never dreamed of getting it because she was only sixteen. His mind divided and argued with itself. Finally, the gentlemanly side won out and he decided to cling to his ethics. As she inched closer to him, he moved farther away. This went on until he was pushed up against the arm of the couch. When he had no more room, Usagi moved so she was right up against him. She leaned up and whispered something that made his ears burn. And then the doorbell rang.

Thank God for the pizza guy. Mamoru bolted for the door. He opened it so fast that the delivery guy was startled and took a step back.

"Uh, large pepperoni and mushroom?"

"Yeah, thanks," said Mamoru, "Here." Mamoru thrust a twenty at him, not caring about change. The guy deserved a huge tip for unwittingly saving Mamoru from his slowly crumbling ethics.

The pizza served as an excellent distraction. Usagi's mind was now thinking about her stomach and she promptly tore into the pizza. Sitting back down on the couch, Mamoru let out a sigh of relief. 'This is going to be a long day.'

* * * * * * * * * * *

Staring at the main viewer, the Second Caretaker couldn't believe her eyes. That little blonde girl was acting so bizarre. Even under the influence of one of her creations, she shouldn't be acting this odd. Still, it was pretty funny, watching the poor guy trying to retain his morals while dealing with his extremely emotional girlfriend. She was actually a bit disappointed when the pizza arrived.

"You're becoming a voyeur." From behind her, she heard the voice of the Third. She couldn't believe that he'd have the nerve to mock her! With a grin, she turned to retaliate, but she never got a chance to, due an exclamation from the officer from tactical.

"Sir, I have a number of ships on long range sensors, possibly L'Tari. I estimate about a dozen ships."

The Third jumped to his feet. "Where are they?"

"They are a few light-years off, sir. They appear to be sweeping the area, sector by sector."

"How long until they discover us?"

"I estimate about fourteen earth hours, sir. They don't appear to be in any hurry."

"Still," interrupted the Second, "We don't have much time. We must tell our comrade about the situation."

"Yes, of course." The Third was inclined to just leave him on the surface and get out of the system, but that might be a tactical error. Leaving a source of information on the surface to be interrogated wasn't a very good idea. "Open a channel."

* * * * * * * * * * *

Blowing on his slice of pizza to cool it off, Mamoru continued to mentally thank the pizza guy for arriving when he did. Usagi was happily stuffing her face, miraculously not getting any sauce on Mamoru's clean white shirt. As she ate, Mamoru marveled at how it was like watching a black hole. Nothing was able to escape. She saw him looking her way, and she flashed a huge smile. Mamoru heaved a mental sigh of relief that the wicked smile she had shown earlier hadn't resurfaced.

"This...pizza...is...delicious. Thank you...Mamoru," Usagi managed to say between mouthfuls. Mamoru laughed. She was so adorable like that. He was about to say so, when the doorbell rang, again. Mamoru was puzzled. He wasn't expecting company. Before he was able to get up and answer the door, he heard it swing open, someone small come through, and shut the door. He recognized those footsteps. The pink haired little girl came into view, with a bright smile on her face as she ran to give her future father a big hug.

ChibiUsa followed Mamoru into the living room. She stopped short when she saw the delirious look on Usagi's face. Her eyes opened a little wider when she saw that her future mother was wearing only one of Mamoru's shirts, and nothing else. She wondered if this was one of those things she would understand when she was older. Grown-ups seemed to say that quite a bit when they didn't want to explain themselves.

'Oo, she always has to come and ruin my time with Mamoru,' thought Usagi, 'I bet she wants the last slice of pizza, too!' Sure enough, ChibiUsa did. Usagi wasn't even able to stop her. Not only did Mamoru offer it to her, but ChibiUsa had her mother's affinity for free food, and her speed, as well.

"So, um, what are you two doing?" asked ChibiUsa around a mouthful of pizza.

"Uh, we were, uh..." Mamoru couldn't come up with an answer. However, Usagi provided a magnificent distraction because she, all of a sudden, burst out laughing.

"You are so funny, Mamoru!" Usagi was now laughing so hard that she had tears in her eyes. She thought that his broken speech and uncertainty were the funniest things in the world. Somewhere in the back of her mind, a little voice told her that this wasn't really that funny, but it was a little voice, and easily ignored.

Mamoru and ChibiUsa could only stare at her. What was wrong with her? They just looked at each other and sighed.

"Well, Usagi's just Usagi, I guess," offered Mamoru as if that would explain everything. ChibiUsa only nodded and began finishing her pizza.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Minako and Rei were sitting in a cafe in downtown Tokyo. They were sipping at their drinks and watching the people go by. Well, mostly, they were watching the guys go by.

"This sucks," said Minako, "Everyone else has a guy to keep them company, and here we sit doing nothing!"

"Michiru and Haruka don't have guys," replied Rei. She had to say something to keep her from thinking about not having a boyfriend.

"You know what I mean."

"At least you have company," said Rei, "Ami's off with Jeff somewhere, probably reading, or something. Makoto's at the park with John," Minako smiled at that. John was always being forced into one thing or another, just to satisfy Makoto. "And Usagi is, of course, with Mamoru," finished Rei.

"Yeah, well you have Chad," said Minako. She knew that would get some kind of comment out of Rei.

"What?! He wishes!!!" Yep. Minako was right. As Rei continued to go on and on about not liking Chad - she denied it so vehemently, she might as well admit that she was attracted to him - Minako's thoughts wandered back to that man she saw in her last 'Dream'. He was attractive enough, but he was so maniacal that Minako was a little repulsed. She was surprised to find that she wasn't as repulsed as she should be. Sipping on her drink and only half listening to Rei's little speech - she was onto how he dressed. She was able to describe it in so much detail, that it was obvious that she paid a lot of attention to it - Minako continued to think about the strange 'man of her dreams' while she watched the people go by.

* * * * * * * * * * *

On the Caretaker's ship, everything was in a heightened state of awareness. With over a dozen enemy ships not forty lights years away, the small craft was in danger of being discovered.

"Hail him again!" The Third was barking out orders. The First was not answering hails. That could mean a few things. One, he was refusing to answer, which was likely, but why would he do such a thing? Two, his communicator was broken. This possibility was just as likely. Three, he was either captured or killed. The Third didn't want to think about this possibility, but there it was.

"Sir, if we keep sending out transmissions, we risk the chance of being discovered."
"DO IT ANYWAY!"

"Aye, sir." The comm officer tried to make himself as small as possible. He didn't want to be target of one of his superior's infamous 'tantrums'.

The Second was a little more reserved. She was considering the possibility that they might have to go down to the surface to search for him. She hoped that that wouldn't be necessary. If it was, though, she would do it. The First had gotten them out of the tightest situations, and if he needed her help, she would give it, gladly, and she was sure that the Third felt the same way.

The comm officer continued to hail the First, with no response.

* * * * * * * * * * *

As soon as the Outer Senshi had arrived home, ChibiUsa said something about her mother needing special attention, and she took off. Hotaru was a little depressed about ChibiUsa leaving so abruptly, but she had other things to occupy her time, like getting settled in her old room, again, so she quickly forgot about it.

Haruka was wondering why Setsuna and Hotaru had returned so soon. They were supposed to be gone longer. When she asked Setsuna about it, Setsuna hesitated.

"C'Mon, Setsuna. Out with it."

"I'd like to say that it's only because I missed my family." Her smile included everyone, including Jeff. Seeing that no one was going to let the topic drop, she continued, "Well, you see, there is a...problem in the Time Stream." Everyone in the room tensed. A problem there could mean a problem everywhere, and every-when. "Usually, when I want to watch someone from the Time Stream, I can see them clearly, even in the lowest light or around the most concealing obstructions."

No one knew what she was getting at. Jeff, being the one with the least prickly sense of tact, was the one to ask what the hell she was talking about. Setsuna hesitated again before answering.

"I can't see the Sailor Scouts clearly at all. When I want to check up on them or their, no, your future, all I get are fuzzy half-images. I can only see what is going on right now, so for that purpose, at least, the Time Gate is useless. It's as if events are shifting around all of you so quickly and violently that the future for us is uncertain, at best. I returned to Tokyo to keep a closer eye on things."

"What about Crystal Tokyo?" asked Michiru. Setsuna shrugged.

"I don't know. Depending on what we do now, it may never exist."

"We have to tell Usagi and the others about this." said Jeff.

"No! We shouldn't!" snapped Haruka, "You know them. If they get wind of this, then they'll all try something stupid to change it. We just have to make sure that nothing happens to the Princess." When he looked ready to provide a counter argument, she continued, "I don't think you want her, or Ami, to put themselves in danger for some vague promise of stopping a threat that might not even exist." He failed to come up with a response for that.

"Could this have something to do with those emotion-draining aliens?" asked Michiru. If she was going to be the only one focused on the real problem here, then so be it!

"I don't think so," said Setsuna, "In fact, when I looked ahead a little, I didn't see the Caretakers, at all." She noticed the blank stares she got and realized that they didn't know that that was what the aliens called themselves. She explained it to them. Again, she hesitated about telling them something they shouldn't already know. It was dangerous to mess with Time. But seeing as though it was already messed with, it couldn't hurt to provide a little extra information.

"I can tell you that this is only the beginning. The Caretakers aren't the real threat. Be on your guard during the next few weeks. It's going to get ugly."

* * * * * * * * * * *

The First ignored his communicator again. He damn thing was going off every five seconds! Did they not trust him to accomplish his mission? He kept his attention on the small gathering inside the apartment. The target was there, wearing surprisingly little, a former target, who had yielded depressingly little energy, and another potential target, who had been rejected due to her young age, and therefore, volatile emotions.

The First checked his gauge again. Another fifteen Earth minutes until this target yielded maximum energy output. When he looked up again, the target was gone, including the other two. Where did they go? He let some particularly vile curses slide between his lips, and he quickly scanned the area for her.

* * * * * * * * * * *

High above, the other two Caretakers had a slightly larger problem on their hands.

"Status on the approaching ships!" yelled the Third.

"They have spotted us, sir! They have raised shields and are charging weapons!"

"Dammit!" the Second cursed, uncharacteristically, "Raise shields and charge all weapons!" The Third frowned at the Second for taking away some of his duties. He knew that it was a childish thing, but he wanted to give the order to charge weapons. He didn't say anything about it though, this was no time to be arguing about such things.

The first hit rocked the ship.

The tactical officer reported, "They've opened fire!"
"I know that, you moron! Return fire!" bellowed the Third.

"Status report!" commanded the Second.

"Shields at 87%. Damage to decks 8, 12, and 16."

Another shot made the ship seem to tumble. The crew was tossed to the deck and fires sprouted from many of the consoles on the bridge. The Second looked at her comrade and, in his eyes, she saw was she knew was mirrored in her own. This was the end of the Caretakers.

* * * * * * * * * * *

The General watched as his fleet tore into the last remaining ship of the Caretaker's forces.

"Scan them again. Are you sure that only two of them are aboard?"

"Aye, sir."

General Parlos had to be certain that all three of the accursed Caretakers were aboard that ship.

"Confirmed, sir. Sensors show only two of the Caretakers aboard that ship."

"Destroy it. Start scanning the planet for the last one." Destroy them. Those were his orders. It was truly a blessing to him, really. The Caretakers had scourged his planet, killed his family. He only had his brother left.

The expanding cloud of iridescent gas shown on the viewscreen, which was formerly the Caretaker's ship, made the General smile.

"Only one left to go. I will have my revenge."

* * * * * * * * * * *

The dryer had shut off, and Usagi jumped up to get the clothes. As soon as she was dressed, the three of them headed out the door.

"Where do you want to go, girls?" asked Mamoru.

"I don't care, as long as it's with you, Mamoru," said Usagi, dreamily. ChibiUsa just sighed at her future mother. She was acting so spacey, even for her!

Usagi seemed to be leading Mamoru somewhere, but on closer inspection, she didn't seem to know where she was going, either. She just kept on clutching Mamoru's arm, like she was afraid he'd run off if she let go. Their wanderings lead them to a secluded, wooded area, some distance from Downtown Tokyo, about a half-hour's walk.

The first thing Mamoru felt was a tremendous felling of unease. Something was wrong here, something evil. He could feel it. ChibiUsa had the same feelings of unease. Mostly due to the way her future father was cautiously eyeing the surrounding landscape. Usagi still seemed unaware that anything was wrong.

"ChibiUsa, call the others. We might need their help," Mamoru told ChibiUsa. He didn't know what was out there, but he knew that whatever it was, it wasn't here for a walk in the park. ChibiUsa did as she was told, all the while, trying to keep an eye on...well...whatever it was that was out there.

"Mamoru? What's wrong?" Usagi finally felt the heaviness in the air, and she was beginning to get worried, too. A voice answered her question from the cover of the bushes.

"Nothing at all, my dear. Nothing at all." A small being stepped out from his cover. He was small, green, and hideously ugly. Usagi gave a small shriek when she saw him, and he laughed at her reaction. "In fact, everything is going according to plan."

He held up the high-tech squirt gun again and opened a small panel on the side. He pushed the button he had uncovered, and Usagi froze in place, shock painting her face. He pushed it again, and she disappeared in a brilliant flash of light.

Mamoru and ChibiUsa had to turn away and cover their eyes to avoid being blinded. When they looked back, they saw twin Sailor Moons looking at each other like they had no idea what was going on. The strange being was laughing harder, now.

"I will bring the L'Tari to their knees!" L'Tari? Who the hell are they? Mamoru and ChibiUsa exchanged confused looks.

"Well, we can't wait for the others to get here. Let's get on with this," said Mamoru. ChibiUsa nodded, took her brooch and transformed. She found that by the time she was done, Mamoru had already transformed and was standing in front of the alien an demanding that he answer the questions.

"What have you done to her?!"

"Nothing, really. I just want her energy." He alien smirked at Tuxedo Kamen. It wasn't a pleasant sight. ChibiUsa was infuriated. How dare he do this to her mother?! She pulled out the small wand and aimed it at the offender. She had no idea what she was going to do with it, it only fired those annoying little pink hearts, but she had to do something to save Sailor Moon. She felt a new power grow within her.

"Moonlight Razor Ribbons!"

The result was a set of glowing, pink ribbons that flowed from the wand that made razors seem like feathers. The alien jumped out of the way, almost avoiding the attack. The ribbons caught him in the chest and on the chin. His hand flew to his chest, and he felt a sticky wetness. He pulled his hand away to find it covered in blood.

"That wasn't very nice." His voice sounded surprisingly calm. "You shouldn't have done that." As he finished the sentence, he began to change. His body began pulsing and growing. ChibiUsa and Mamoru weren't sure what was happening, but it chilled them to the bone.

Both Sailor Moon and Sailor Moon were looking at her respective counterpart. They had identical confused looks on their faces. Neither had any idea what was going on. They had absolutely no desire to harm one another, even though they know that was how the doppelgangers worked.

"This isn't right," said one.

"I know. Shouldn't we be doing something?" said the other. Before the first Sailor Moon could answer, their attention was drawn to the increasingly hideous beast facing Tuxedo Kamen and Sailor MiniMoon.

It was snarling, drooling, and a thick, viscous slime coated it from head to toe. Both Sailor Moons felt a tremendous repulsion towards the beast, and the Silver Crystal, which was now floating halfway between the two, flashed with a brilliant light.

Enraged by the purest of Light, the monster lunged at both Sailor Moons. They both braced for impact, but none came. Tuxedo Kamen had placed himself between them and the beast and he was currently exchanging blows with it. Suddenly, the monster reared up and threw Tuxedo Kamen against a nearby tree. He fell to the ground and didn't move. Sailor Moon, both of them, tried to run to him, but the evil being got in front of her. In some strange, guttural voice, it spoke.

"I will have you and my victory!"

Just then, nine voices cried out in unison.

"Hold it right there!"

The cavalry had arrived. The Sailor Senshi stood proud and defiant against the evil creature. They had surrounded the beast, and they were preparing to attack. Normally, this would have had the bad guy worried, but this time, he grinned. If such a thing could be called a grin.

Sailor Uranus, Sailor Jupiter, and Prince Neptune were the first ones in. The Trident making a blue blur around Prince Neptune's body, the Sword flashing in the sun in Haruka's hands, and Jupiter's fists balled up tight, they charged in and tried to take it down, hand to hand. The beast, almost contemptuously, swiped at the all a few times, and knocked them out of the way. It continued it's slow pace towards the twin Sailor Moons.

Each time one of the Senshi tried to either rush the beast and overwhelm it, or try to knock it back with one of their attacks, it defended with ease and threw them back against a tree, or into the bushes, whichever was the most convenient landing point.

Among the dozen or so groans from the foliage, Sailor Moon, both of them, could pick out each Senshi. Over there, with her leg sticking out of the bushes, was Venus. Slumped against the same tree, she heard Jupiter and Uranus. She could see that both of them had numerous small scratches and cuts. All of the Senshi were in similar condition. The monstrosity took a moment to look at its handiwork, and then turned to the Sailor Moons and smiled. Deep down inside, they both knew what they had to do.

Both Sailor Moons look at each other. "Ready?" one said.

The other nodded. "Yes! Let's do it!" Both Sailor Moons raised their hands high above their heads, their palms tilted toward the crystal. The beast continued its slow pace toward them.

The Senshi, who were struggling to get up, looked at the Sailor Moons.

"No, Sailor Moon!" Sailor Venus shouted. "If you use the Silver Crystal..."

"You'll die!" Mars finished.

"It's ok," the Sailor Moons said simultaneously. "I won't die." They looked at each other with hope in their eyes. "I'll be fine!"

Prince Neptune yelled, "But how do you know if it's enough? Who's to say that you still don't die?"

Sailor Mercury comforted her love, "Trust in Sailor Moon. If she says she will be ok. She will be ok!"

"But..."

"She will be ok!" she interrupted, "Don't worry."

"Cosmic Moon Power!" Both Sailor Moons shouted the words like talismans. A beam of pure white light shot down from the sky and into the Crystal. The Crystal pulsated with a brilliant glow before the light radiated from it. Each of them could feel their lifeforce ebbing away, but not as severely as it would have if there had not been two of them. The Light slammed into the last Caretaker. He felt like he was being torn apart, like the very fiber of his being was being picked at like so much thread. He had time for one last rueful thought about how the mighty had fallen, and then he was no more.

The Light hadn't finished it's cleansing of the Caretaker's energy on this planet. It coursed through both Sailor Moons, and discovered which one wasn't meant to be. Then, with twin smiles on their faces, they thanked each other for the help and said their goodbyes. And then, there was one.

* * * * * * * * * * *

A bright flash on Ensign Comataki's screen caused him to jump in surprise.

"S-Sir!" he stammered. He cleared his throat and tried again, "Sir! Sensors have picked up a massive energy discharge on the planet. There seems to be traces of Caretaker energy!"

"Where?!" The General was on his feet, "Where was it, Ensign?" Comataki quickly rattled off the coordinates of the blast. He feared that if he was any slower, the General would have his head.

Parthos wheeled around to his security officer to ready a shuttle and a security detattachment. They were going to go down and investigate.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Prince Neptune forced himself to his feet, plucked the Trident out of the bush he had landed in, and then went to help Sailor Mercury up. He groaned when the dull ache all over his body flared for a moment. He heard various similar noises come from the girls.

With a horrible thought of the possibility that the Princess had been hurt, he quickly scanned the area for her. It didn't take long. She was standing in the same place he had last seen her, with a sad smile on her face. He went over to her.

"Are you all right?"

She looked at him, her expression never changing. After a moment, she blinked.

"I'm all right. I was just thinking, that's all."

"Well, that's cause for alarm, she never does that!" Rei called from where she was getting up. Despite herself, Usagi felt a surge of relief at the fact that everyone was feeling good enough to crack jokes. She stood and smiled. She was about to comeback with a sarcastic remark when a vessel of some kind appeared in the sky above her. It had no landing gear to speak of. It had odd-looking cylinders attached to its sides that were parallel to the ground. They glowed with a blue light. She knew there were windows because she could see the sunlight reflecting off of them, but she couldn't see in.

The craft landed a few meters away. Squinting, Sailor Moon could make out shapes in the windows. The windows were tinted for some reason, but from what she could see, whoever was in there looked at least close to human.

A door on the side of it opened up and the occupants of the craft filed out of it. 'Marched' was a more appropriate word for it. About ten of them, in neat precision, marched right out and stopped a short distance away from the entrance to the vessel. They seemed like they were waiting for something, as if they were just here to announce it.

Sure enough, after a few minutes, a large, imposing figure stepped out of the vessel. He was tall, handsome, and he certainly had a high opinion of himself. His pants were clean and pressed, his shirt and jacket, from what you could see under the medals, were equally laundered, and each and every one of his medals were buffed and cleaned until they shown brightly, as were his black, miMakotoristic boots. He strode across the clearing with a confident air about him. His expression, from his closely cropped hair, down to his angular chin, was one of total confidence in his position, which, he though, was almost certainly above everyone else here.

He scanned the group in front of him. He gave no outward sign that he noticed their battered appearance. He seemed to be confused as to who he should speak to. His gaze lingered on Sailor Venus for a moment, for some reason. Eventually, he decided that Tuxedo Kamen was probably in charge.

"Greetings. I am General Parthos, Commander of the Expeditionary Force to find the Caretakers of the Emotion, and High Commander of the Infantry for the L'Tari forces. I take it that you are the leader of this group?"

Tuxedo Kamen blinked and stared at him for a moment. His momentary lapse gave Prince Neptune a chance to bark a laugh before he caught himself and restored his composure.

"Me? Oh, nonononnononono. I'm not the leader," said Prince Neptune, "She is." He pointed to Sailor Moon. The Ruby gave him a little idea, inspired by the General's entrance. If he liked titles, let him have titles. "Princess Serenity of the Moon, Blessed of the Light, and Wielder of the Silver Crystal."

General Parthos looked to the girl that the young man with the trident gestured to. She was their leader? Well, stranger things have happened.

"Greetings, Princess." He glided over to her and made a formal bow. "Now, let me be blunt. Where is he?"

Sailor Moon blinked. "Where is who?"

"The last Caretaker. Where is he?"

"Who are the Caretakers?"

"What?" General Parthos was confused, "You don't know? We found traces of their energy in this very spot. You must have run into him."

Sailor Moon gave this a little thought. There was that thing she just dusted.

"Do you mean that little green alien thing?"

That was descriptive of the Caretakers. Perhaps they just didn't know the proper names of those fiends that almost destroyed his homeworld.

"Yes, that could be descriptive of them. Where is he?"

"Oh, we destroyed him."

This time, it was the General's turn to blink. "What?"
"We destroyed it," said Sailor Mars, "You don't believe us?" The General felt that something was wrong here. How could these children - most of them seemed to be quite young, especially this Princess - defeat the leaders of a horrific force that decimated a whole star system?

"You can't be serious," he said, "How could you have done it?"

Sailor Moon held out the Silver Crystal, "Using this, of course."

The General stared at it for a moment. When he asked what it was, she told him that it was the Silver Crystal that the trident-boy spoke of. That defeated the last Caretaker?! Impossible!

"you're hiding them."

"What?!" Sailor Moon's mouth hung open in shock. She heard similar exclamations echoing her own. Mostly about challenging their words and having scrapes and bruises as proof of their recent battle.

"Things like that can be faked. There is no way you could have defeated the last Caretaker. You are in league with them and you are denying me my rightful prize!" He drew himself up to his full height, towering over Sailor Moon. She felt truly intimidated by this man. She couldn't even speak because terror had clamped her throat shut. "You will produce them in one of your earth-days, or I will have to take them by force."

He briskly strode back to the shuttlecraft. Before he entered, he turned back to Sailor Moon, while his men filed back into the ship.

"Remember. One day." With that, he entered the vehicle, and it took off.

Looks passed between the Scouts with a chill. This guy was intense. Significant looks passed between Setsuna, Haruka, Michiru, and Jeff. The real threat had arrived. His name was Parthos.

AN: I am so unbelievably sorry for the length between posts! I promise that the next chapter will be out in under a month, instead of the two months that this one took. It was a combination of things, really, including lack of inspiration, a great deal of distraction by various RPGs, and work. Well, I think I'll take a nap, now. It's getting late and I have to work in the morning. Until next time!

- Prince Jeffrey Kaiou of Neptune