Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon Eclipse 17
http://hizashi.net/eclipse/
By: Jackie Miller

Discovery

A beautiful woman with long fire-red, although no longer sparking with live flames, hair lay on a low bed. The sun just peeked through the half-open sliding door to strike her peaceful face. With a twinge, her eyes opened slowly, revealing crystal-clear ruby eyes. She sat up slowly and rubbed her eyes. Her whole body felt strangely light and free, she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off of her. 'What is this new feeling?' she thought dazedly. She looked down at herself, instead of her usual red uniform; she was wearing a loose white cotton shift.

Suddenly the door slid open the rest of the way and Luna walked in, carrying a tray with a steaming pot and some muffins. She glanced at Fire and smiled slightly, setting the tray on the low table in front of the bed, and poured the hot tea into a cup. Fire watched silently, before speaking.

"Where is Usagi-sama?" she asked quietly. Her own voice shocked her; it sounded completely different from before! Luna sat by the table and smiled at Fire, "She is sleeping, she was weakened by the battle." She said softly, no judgement in her voice. Fire looked down guiltily and frowned, "Will she be all right?" she asked delicately. Luna nodded and handed the teacup to Fire, "Here, drink this. It will make you feel better."

Fire took the cup and sipped it slowly, "I feel…strange. Different." She said suddenly. Luna nodded in understanding, "That is because your soul has been cleansed of all it's evil." Fire looked up in surprise and then smiled for the first time, "That must be why I'm not thinking about hurting anyone, for the first time in my life." She replied. Luna chuckled slightly and offered Fire a muffin, "I need your help." she said softly. Fire looked up quickly and nodded, "Anything!"

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The senshi all gathered in front of the shrine, minus Hotaru and the missing Setsuna. Karei stood nervously by the other inner senshi, wringing her hands. 'I'm so afraid, what will happen? I can't believe Luna actually wants us to go to the Moon! How can we trust her?!' she thought, her eyebrows creasing as she remembered what Luna did to her aunt. Minako put her arm around Karei's shoulder, "Daijoubu, Luna will always do what's best to defeat the enemy, we can definitely believe in her." She smiled cheerfully, as if she could read Karei's mind.

Karei looked up at Minako, surprised, and then looked over at Luna who was talking quietly with Usagi and Fire. She took a breath and released her doubts, "Whatever you say, Minako-chan." She smiled trustingly, and shook her head, her green hair rippling in the light breeze.

"Minna!" Luna called over the gentle murmur of the conversing senshi. "We need to get our plan under way, henshin yo!" she smiled. The senshi nodded as one and transformed….

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A cold wind blew across the white surface of the ruined moon. It was completely silent, and in the distance the renewed moon palace could be seen, the only living thing in sight. Suddenly a shimmer of bright white light came into being, in the shape of a large circle. Suddenly there was a low popping sound, and the ring of senshi appeared, each glowing in their planetary color. With them was Fire, who had an aura of flames in spikes all around her, and also Luna, who had a gentle yellow aura around her.

They all opened their eyes and separated hands, their eyes widening in wonder as they looked around. Fire eyes held a look of fear and wary apprehension. She stepped out of the circle and faced the senshi, "I will go and distract Planet. And you can go rescue your friend; she is being held in the lower level of the palace. But be careful, Planet has assigned one of her strongest controllers to guard her." She said softly.

Sailormoon nodded and smiled at Fire, "Be careful, what will happen if she finds out?" she said, taking Fire's hand and squeezing it. Fire smiled a little sadly, "I can take care of myself, don't worry." She answered. "I have to go now." She said, turning and running off before Moon could answer.

Moon made to go after her, but then stopped and turned back to the senshi, "We have to rescue Setsuna! Who knows what they are doing to her!" she said. Tuxedo Kamen nodded and put a hand on her shoulder, " We can definitely save her." He reassured her. Moon nodded but she didn't look convinced. The senshi all turned and walked towards the palace.

After a minute of walking, they reached the palace, in the dead quiet of the marble hallways, the senshi's booted feet clicked and echoed down the hallways. "Senshi, listen to me." They all turned and looked at Luna whose face held a look of seriousness. "This is what we have to do, Sailormoon and the Inners have to go to the Prayer room in the center of the palace, you will know what to do when you get there. The outer senshi need to come with me to rescue the Setsuna. All right?" she looked around, but now one seemed confused. "Let's go."

The senshi all nodded, "Ganbatte!" Moon whispered as the two groups ran off in separate directions….

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Fire walked down the hallways of the palace, her face was flushed and her heart was pounding furiously. All around her she kept hearing noises and jumping, thinking it was Planet. She was walking soundlessly, when she heard a soft moaning. She stopped in her tracks, shaking slightly as she listened closely. She heard it again; it sounded like the moaning of someone in pain. She walked forward a few steps and peered cautiously through the open door.

She gasped as she saw who was moaning. The room was strewn with clothes, recklessly tossed everywhere. The huge bed in the center was a mess as well, the covers half-off the bed and pillows everywhere. On the edge of the bed, Matter lay half-dressed with deep cuts across his chest, looking almost as if a wild animal had attacked him. His blood was dried on his chest and had dripped off onto the bed and on the floor.

Fire's eyes filled with tears. She knew whose bedroom this was, and she knew what he must have done. Her hand formed a fist and she hit the doorframe; she closed her eyes and rested her head on her fist, "Doushite…." She whispered, a single tear trailing down her face. She took a deep breath and walked towards Matter, as the doorframe behind her crumbled where she had it it, and pieces of it fell to the ground.

She knelt carefully by his side and looked at his pale face. "Matter, I know you couldn't help yourself. You have always been weak. I forgive you." She whispered. She kissed his face gently, and placed her hands on his chest. A beautiful red glow surrounded her and Matter in turn, the cuts on his chest slowly closed. "Ai shiteru…" she whispered, looking at his face with longing. She stood up shakily and smiled down at Matter, whose face was slowly returning to its usual color. "Sayonara." She turned and ran out, pale red tears falling down her face….

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The Inner senshi ran down the cold marble hallway, their boots clicking with sharp staccato beats. Sailorearth lagged slightly behind, her eyes wide as she looked around her at the luxurious splendor. "Earth! Hurry up!" Sailormars called, turning her head back. "Hai!" Earth said smiling, running a little bit faster. But a moment later she started to slow down again. Ahead of her the senshi rounded a corner as her head was turned, and when she looked back, they were gone. She gasped slightly and stopped, listening.

'Why can't I hear them running?' she thought, echoing silence surrounded her, becoming oppressive in it's closeness. Suddenly, for the first time, a sharp pinpoint of fear pierced her heart. She took a step forward, the sound of her boots unnerving her. She gasped with fright and quickly opened the nearest door, and ducked in.

She backed away from the door, watching it, holding her hands to her chest. After a moment, her heart slowed and she took a deep breath. She turned around slowly, and her eyes widened when she saw where she was. Surrounding her were dozens upon dozens of paintings, sparkling with vitality and life, so much that the people in them almost seemed ready to walk out of the frames. She smiled and walked slowly around the room, inspecting the paintings. She was so absorbed by the paintings that she didn't even remember where she was, or that she had to be somewhere.

Earth came upon a portrait of Queen Selenity; hanging next to it was a similar one of Princess Serenity. She smiled softly when she saw this one, "Usagi…" she whispered. "So this is where your power comes from." She murmured.

She moved onto the next painting, her steps slowing. This one was one of the largest, as it was of an entire family. On the plaque below it said "Portrait of the royal family of Earth, presented as a gift to Princess Serenity of the Moon by Prince Endymion of Earth." Her face paled slightly, and she looked up at the picture and her eyes trailed slowly over each member of the large family. She paused on the central young man, "Mamoru…" she whispered, smiling slightly. Standing behind him was a couple, obviously his parents. His mother had beautiful green hair with Mamoru's facial structure. And standing next to his mother was another couple.

When she saw them, her face paled even more and her eyes looked glassy. The man was tall and very regal looking, with dark brown hair and deep black eyes. He had his hand on the shoulder of the most beautiful woman Karei had ever seen. She had extremely long light green hair, which tumbled around her like a cape. Earth's mouth opened in shock as she saw the baby in the woman's arms. 'That must be Mamoru's aunt, and that would make the baby his…cousin.' She thought. Her mind reeled and all of the sudden flashes of memories poured through her mind,

*A young girl of about 6 with beautiful green hair, playing with a young prince Endymion, adoration in her emerald eyes.*
*A taller girl, around 8, being held by her mother, her father in front of them, protecting them. "I will never give in to evil like you!" the man yelled, shaking a sword. "How could you have betrayed us so, Kunzite?" he yelled. In front of him a tall white-haired smirked, and blasted the family with energy.*
Karei staggered back from the picture and grasped her head, her mouth open in a silent scream. All of the sudden she stopped moving and slumped to the floor in a dead faint….

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Sailormoon and the Inners ran down the hallway quickly, following the intricate pathways going towards the center of the palace. The Inners themselves did not know how to get there, they were entirely following Sailormoon's lead. Finally they reached it, the door was closed and dirty, but the handle itself seemed cleaner and it shone gently with a silver light. Sailormoon reached out a shaking hand and grasped the handle. She felt a rush of energy through her body and she smiled. The Inners just watched in awe, she did not know it, but Sailormoon was now glowing gently with a silver aura. They walked into the small room, at the center was a broken pillar. They all gathered just in the door, staring with awe around them. The room was perfectly quiet, and it seemed a sacrilege to break this silence. 'Why did Luna send us here?' Mars thought as she looked around.

Sailormoon stepped foreword, for some strange reason, her boots made no noise in this place, all sound was instantly absorbed. She walked up to the pillar and knelt before it and clasped her hands, behind her, the Inners dropped to one knee and bowed their heads in respect. 'Mother, Queen Selenity…' Moon prayed in her mind. 'Please help us defeat this great evil, give us the power! Onegai my dear mother…' she prayed, a single tear forming in her eye. It dropped to the ground, almost in slow motion. And when it struck, it made ripples of silver energy in the white floor.

The floor seemed to ripple as if it was water, and a sword slowly emerged. A soft voice echoed in all of their minds, 'My dear princess, this is a tool of great power. Use it well. Sailorvenus, as leader of the guardian senshi, this is a weapon for you. Please continue to protect and serve your princess as you have for so long.' The voice faded away like an echo. Sailormoon slowly opened her eyes, and stared at the handle of the sword, which was sticking up in front of the base of the pillar. The senshi all started as they saw that the pillar had grown to its full height, and shone with a soft radiance. Sailormoon gripped the handle and tried to pull it out, but it seemed to be stuck. Venus jumped up and grasped the handle along with Moon. They both pulled at it with all their strength. After a minute, the sword came out with a smooth rasping sound. Venus held it in both her hands and felt an immense power surge through her. The sword glowed gently with a heavenly radiance. It was a light silver color, almost looking like a crystal, and the handle was gold, bedecked with many jewels. She looked at the other senshi and nodded. They all ran out the door together…

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Uranus, Neptune and Luna ran down to the lower level of the palace. Luna directed them to a heavy metal door and Sailoruranus opened it slowly. They walked in cautiously. The room was very dark and damp, it was hard for them to see anything at all. In the center of the room is a very large golden cage, glinting slightly in what little light there was. There seemed to be a figure lying in the center of the cage. Luna hung back slightly as Uranus and Neptune ran up to the cage. Setsuna lay in the cage, her clothes ripped and dirty. She was emancipated and bruised, it was clear that she had been tortured and beaten in her captivity. Uranus gasped and gripped the bars, shaking them. "Setsuna-san! Setsuna-san!" she cried. But she gave no reply. Neptune put a hand to her mouth, "Is she?" Uranus got a dark look on her face. "No! Never!" she yelled. She circled around to the door and tried to open it. But it would not budge, even though there was no lock to be seen on it.

Suddenly the thud of shoes could be heard, Uranus stopped and she and Neptune turned around. Luna cringed and ducked further into the shadows. A tall thin man, very pale with long stringy black hair, with a twisted smile on his face walked out from the shadows. He was wearing a dark grey uniform, with spiked gauntlets around his wrists. He laughed when he saw the two senshi.

"Are you here to rescue your friend?" he said. His voice was very unpleasant, low and scratchy at the same time. "Don't worry. She's alive, barely. I had a lot of fun taking care of her." He rasped. Uranus's eyelids lowered and she glared at the man, hate seething from her blue eyes. He ignored her and walked up to the cage. He rattled the bars and yelled at her to wake up.

Setsuna started and suddenly crawled back to the far corner of the cage, fear in her eyes. "What have I done? Don't hurt me anymore…" she begged, her voice holding none of its former strength and calmness. "Shut up! Your stupid friends are here to try and save you." He barked. Setsuna's eyes widened slightly and for the first time she saw Uranus and Neptune. "God, save me!" she begged, tears falling from her blood-shot eyes.

The man laughed and turned to Uranus and Neptune, who both stared at him with hate. "Let me introduce myself before I kill you. I am Controllerpain. One of the oldest of Planet-sama's. I'm almost as old as the element controllers!" he boasted. Uranus smiled in her special way, "Nice to meet you. Your long life will soon end." Controllerpain smirked, "If you can stand it, I will congratulate you." He lifted one of his arms, a pillar of dark grey and black energy rose from his hand. He lowered it and pointed his hand at the two of them. The pillar raged out and struck the two senshi with incredible power and speed. They both flew back and hit the far wall. "I will kill you for that…" Uranus cursed, wiping blood from her mouth.

"Eternal Wind Storm!" she cried, her eternal attack hit Pain full on. He fell back and skid on the floor. After it was over, his uniform was ripped and his face was bleeding profusely. But he laughed at his own pain.

Meanwhile, Luna snuck out of her corner and ran over to the cage. She laid a hand on the door and it opened easily. Setsuna cringed when she saw Luna and shrank back, "Onegai Luna! Don't hurt me again….." she wept. Luna's eyes filled with tears, "Setsuna-san! It's me!" she whispered, "Sailormoon has healed me, look!" she lifted her bangs so Setsuna could see that the black crescent moon was gone. "I know nothing I can do can make up for the things I did to you, but I will try. I have come to heal you!" Setsuna looked at her warily, but put up no struggle as Luna walked closer and knelt in front of Setsuna. She hugged the trembling woman gently. A soft yellow aura surrounded her and Setsuna. It faded slowly, and Luna slumped over in Setsuna's arms, unconscious. All of Setsuna's wounds were gone, and her eyes no longer held the haunted fearful look. "Arigatou, Luna." She whispered. She kissed Luna's cheek and stood up, making a fist.

Uranus and Neptune were still fiercely battling Controllerpain, they were getting hurt, but Pain was worse off. But he somehow managed to stay on his feet and keep attacking. The sharp click of boots was heard and the three turned and watched in shock as Eternal Sailorpluto ran up. She stood next to Uranus and Neptune, whose mouths were agape slightly. Pain's eyes widened, "How can this be?" he whimpered, looking afraid for the first time. "You won't live to find out." Pluto said coldly, "Chronos Time Blast!" she cried. Uranus lifted her hands and yelled, "Eternal Wind Storm!" Neptune narrowed her eyes, and said, "Neptune Tsunami!" The triple-attack feared throughout the universe raged towards pain, who screamed as he got blown away.

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Sailormoon and the Inners stood in the central hallway, waiting nervously for Uranus-tachi. Suddenly Sailoruranus ran, carrying Luna in her arms, Neptune and Pluto were close behind her. "Pluto! I'm so happy!" Moon cried, throwing a hug around her. Pluto smiled and hugged her in return, "I wouldn't be here without Luna. She healed me." She said softly. Moon gave her a teary smile, when Sailorjupiter suddenly broke in, "Where is Sailorearth?" she gasped. Sailormoon's eyes widened and she looked around, "I thought she was with us!" Sailormercury bowed her head, "Now that I think about it, I haven't seen her since right before we got to the prayer room." "Where could she be?" Mars gasped. "Minna!" Venus cried, pointing down the hallway.

Controllerplanet walked slowly towards them, her eyes a dark black visible from where the senshi were. And she was holding Controllerfire by the throat…..

To Be Continued