Act 15 - The Battle Begins

Once she was safely back in her bedroom in Delos, Midnight allowed herself to open the small golden box, releasing the soft light of the Dream Crystal. It certainly was beautiful, and after all this time, it was finally theirs. Daddy was going to be so pleased, especially when she told him that she managed to kill King Helios in the process.

Closing the chest, Midnight sat it down on her bed and began primping in front of her golden mirror. After all, she wanted to look her best when King Scorpio rewarded her. It was about time she got what she so rightly deserved.

There was only one thing that prevented this from being the happiest day of her life: Shadow. Somehow, her idiot brother had managed to escape from the Chamber of Nightmares and warn the princess about her plans, putting the whole mission in jeopardy. She didn't know how he did it, but she did know that she would not be entirely happy until his head joined the rest above her fireplace. Pouting at her reflection in the mirror, Midnight's lavender eyes narrowed. Shadow would pay dearly for all the trouble he caused her…

Phantom cleared his throat as he approached the seductive teen. "Mistress Midnight-sama, your father wishes to have a word with you," he said in a dull monotone.

"Good, because I have some very good news for him," she commented, putting on a fresh coat of red lipstick. She then grabbed the box from off her bed and struck a pose like some kind of supermodel. "How do I look, Phantom?"

"Gorgeous, my mistress," he replied softly, not really meaning it. Yes, on the outside, Midnight was still as stunning as always. However, on the inside, she was absolutely hideous, as ugly and corrupt as her father.

With a final glance in the mirror, the sorceress teleported into her father's room, Phantom following closely behind. They found the king sitting on his throne, the queen's spot beside him strangely empty.

"Midnight, my favorite daughter, I've been waiting for you," Scorpio said, walking over to her and taking the box from her hands. "I presume the attack went well. Is this what I think it is?"

She nodded as her father slowly lifted the lid of the small chest. The room was suddenly filled with the beautiful white light of the power of dreams, practically blinding them. "The Dream Crystal is finally yours, my king," Midnight said, the pride evident in her voice.

"You have done well, Midnight."

With greedy hands, King Scorpio reached into the box and grabbed the crystal, carefully examining every flawless inch. He could feel its energy surge through his veins, giving him unbelievable power. After all these years, the power of dreams which he had so longed for was finally his. Nothing could stop him now.

"I also have some more news which I believe will please you very much," she continued. "King Helios of Silver Millennium is dead by my hand."

"Helios is finally dead?"

As Midnight nodded her head, the king's eyes turned an evil blood red, and the room was filled with the terrifying sound of Scorpio's maniacal laughter. A soft gasp emerged from the shadows, barely audible except to Phantom's sensitive ears.

"Helios is dead, Helios is dead, Helios is dead," the insane king repeated over and over again in an incredibly off-key singsong voice, chilling Midnight and the black cat to the very bone. Neither of them had ever seen him acting so strangely. It was like he was possessed or something.

"King Scorpio-sama, are you feeling well?" his daughter asked, her violet eyes wide with fear. "Maybe you should get some rest."

She slowly moved toward her father, trying to lead him toward his bedroom, but Scorpio violently pushed her way. "I've never felt better!" the king insisted, calming down somewhat. "Leave me, Midnight. I'll call you back once I've thought of the proper reward."

"As you wish."

After Midnight and Phantom orbed out of the room, Scorpio turned toward the spot where the gasp came from. A bruised and battered Nyx, who was chained to the wall, struggled to hold back her tears as her husband roughly took her chin in his hand, forcing her to look into his fiery eyes.

"What, no tears for your fallen lover?" he asked, the hate evident in his voice. When she gave him no answer, Scorpio slapped her across the face, causing Nyx to yelp in pain. "Cry!"

"I never loved Priest Helios," she whispered, tears clouding her eyes. "I loved you. Or at least who you used to be…"

"Don't lie to me, Nyx. After all that I've done for you, I want to hear the truth. Remember, if it weren't for me, you would have been dead a long time ago. You owe me."

"I owe you nothing!" she said defiantly, showing the first spark of resistance since she began her sentence of servitude. "You wouldn't know how many nights I've wished that you had let me die, instead of keeping me to satisfy your sick urges. You didn't save me from the guillotine for my sake. You did it for yours!"

Scorpio slapped her again. "You ungrateful little bitch!"

Despite her efforts not to let him see her cry, a tear rolled down her pale white cheek, stinging the still sore area.

"Magic…"

The king did not seem to notice Nyx's use of his former name. Instead, he opened the little box, and the room was once again filled with light, lifting the shadows that concealed her from view. Rusted chains bound her arms to the wall, and she was still wearing her silk robe, though it was tied loosely around her waist, offering little modesty. Her chest and legs were covered with dark bruises and scratches, some of them still fresh from this morning when Scorpio had discovered what she had done, and her long, beautiful white hair, which she considered her pride and joy, had been crudely chopped off into uneven layers. Nyx's enchanting violet eyes were filled with sadness and pain, robbing them of their unusual beauty.

"Look at it, Nyx," he ordered, taking the Dream Crystal in his hand and showing it to her. "Once I use its power to destroy what is left of Elysion, Silver Millennium will finally be mine!"

"You already got your revenge, Scorpio," Nyx declared bitterly. "King Helios-sama is dead, killed by your own daughter's hand. Isn't that enough?"

"No!"

"You will not win if you continue this battle."

Scorpio raised an eyebrow at his wife, somewhat amused. What in the world was she talking about? He had the power of dreams in the palm of his hand. Nothing could stop him from doing what he wanted to do. "I believe you are mistaken, my dear," he replied, chuckling lightly.

"I wouldn't laugh if I were you. Shadow and the Sailor Dream Soldiers will defeat the nightmare that possesses you. I swear they will!"

Again, he laughed. "I sure would like to see them try."


Outside the room which held Helios' body, Shadow took Yumeko in his arms, pulling her close as her tears soaked his shirt. He kissed the top of her head, knowing there was nothing he could do or say to make things better.

The queen had gone up to her bedroom, unable to deal with her husband's death, while the court began preparing for the funeral, which according to royal tradition would take place a week from today. The Sailor Dream Soldiers were in the room, paying their respects.

"Yumeko, I'm so sorry," he whispered, brushing a loose blue curl behind her ear. "I should have told you sooner. If only I had gotten here earlier, King Helios-sama might still be alive…"

"Shadow, there's nothing you, or I, or even my mother could have done to save him," Yumeko said, wiping away her tears. There was a noticeable change in her tone of voice, almost as if she accepted what had happened. "It was destiny, and if there is one thing I've learned, it is that you can't change your destiny, no matter how hard you try."

"Excuse me, Yumeko," a soft female voice said, lightly tapping the princess on the shoulder. "But we need to speak to Shadow, if you don't mind."

She turned around and found herself staring into her cousin's tearful garnet eyes. The rest of the Dream Soldiers and Elysia were standing behind her, their faces distorted in various stages of grief. Everyone had loved King Helios so much, and his death had affected them all deeply. Yumeko nodded her consent, pulling from her lover's embrace.

"Who are you really, Shadow-kun?" Kagami asked, her voice non-threatening. "I mean, we know your name, and that you're obviously very special to the princess, but that uniform is not seen in these parts. Are you our enemy, or an ally?"

Shadow's dark brown eyes lowered, ashamed of his past. Not even Yumeko knew the complete story. "I am Prince Shadow, the son of King Scorpio of the Delian Nightmare Alliance, and until a few weeks ago, commander of the army," he finally revealed. "It was me who tried to steal the crystal at the ball and who attacked Mercury and Venus in the days after that."

"What do you mean when you say you are no longer commander?" Ryoko inquired. "What happened?"

"My sister somehow managed to discoverer that I had fallen in love with the beautiful princess of Silver Millennium." He took a moment to smile at Yumeko before returning to his story. "You see, Midnight has always been a thorn in my side, always trying to make me look like a fool in front of our father. Well, she blackmailed me with the information. I gave her my position in the army on the condition that she not reveal our affair and not attack Earth or Elysion. I realize now that it probably wasn't the best decision in the world, but I didn't have much of a choice. It was either give into her demands, or be executed at the guillotine."

"But if the condition was not to attack Earth and Elysion, why did Midnight break her promise?" Hana asked.

"You obviously don't know my sister very well," he replied with a small chuckle. "She never keeps her promises. I did something to make her mad, so she decided to reveal my secret to Scorpio and to take complete control of the army. I tried to stop her, but it was too late. She had already begun the attack on Crystal Tokyo."

Elysia, who had remained quiet throughout the interrogation, huffed, still distrustful of Shadow's true intentions. "Why should we believe a word you say? How do we know this isn't some kind of trick you and your sister cooked up? After all, you weren't exactly honest with Yumeko until after Phoenix's death."

Shadow sighed. "I guess there really is no way to know whether or not I'm telling the truth. You'll just have to trust me. I came here today not only warn you about Midnight, but to ask for your help."

"Our help?"

"My mother…"

His voice quivered as Shadow remembered the sight of Nyx's bruised body. He had to help her get away from Scorpio.

Yumeko reached for his hand. "What about your mother, Shadow?"

"He rapes her," he said softly, causing a couple of the girls to gasp. "For the past fifteen years, Scorpio has kept her as his personal sex slave, although I wasn't aware of it until last night, when she helped me escape from the Chamber of Nightmares. All these years, she has suffered silently, never complaining or crying. I want to save her. She doesn't deserve to live like that. My mother is pure goodness, which is more than I can say about Scorpio, who is the devil incarnate. Please, I'm begging you to help me defeat the nightmare of Delos. It is the only way we can save both my mother and Elysion."

Yumeko reached up and wiped away a tear that managed to roll down his cheek. "I made a promise to my father to protect the beautiful dream of Elysion," she said. "If the only way we can do that is to defeat Scorpio, then I'm prepared to fight."

"Princess!"

Elysia's eyes filled with tears of pride as she looked up at her beloved mistress. After all this time, Yumeko was finally ready to fight like a true Sailor Soldier. It was like a dream come true.

"The time has come for destiny to arrive."


Serenity reached up and touched the beautiful locket that was draped around her neck as she stared out the window at the gardens. The scene that greeted her was gruesome. Some thousand-odd men from both sides laid dead on the ground, their blood dyeing the green grass a dark red. It was just like a scene in her worst nightmare. How could this have happened?

"Helios, what should we do?" she asked her husband, turning away from the window. Her garnet eyes saddened as she remembered that he was no longer there to give her advice. Helios was dead…

The metal of her star locket felt cool in her hand, just like his hands felt against her cheek when he told her goodbye for the final time. It was so hard to believe that he was gone. Glancing at their wedding picture, which stood on the nightstand, she let out a loud sob and collapsed on the bed. Helios…

A soft knock at the door interrupted her cries. The queen quickly wiped away her tears as Yumeko entered the bedroom and took a seat on the bed.

"We're going to Delos," she stated bluntly. There was no easier way to break the news.

"What?" the queen exclaimed, completely caught off-guard. "No, Yumeko. You will do no such thing!"

"You can't make me change my mind, Mama. I made a promise to Papa to fight for the dream of Elysion and that is what I intend to do."

Queen Lady Serenity shook her head violently. "I've already lost your father, and I'm not about to lose you too. It's simply out of the question."

Yumeko reached for her mother's shaking hand, the look in her eyes softening. She knew this must be hard for the queen, but there was no other way. "Mama, I have to do this," she whispered, her voice choking back her tears. "Please try to understand. You were always the one telling me that it was my destiny to become Sailor Moon, that someday I would become the new champion of love and justice. Although I always tried to run away from my fate, I finally understand. The day has come. I have to fight."

Moved by her daughter's words, Serenity glanced up at Yumeko. Her golden eyes, so much like her father's, were filled with determination and hope. Though she was reluctant to see her only child go off into battle, Serenity knew it was hopeless to try to stop her. After all, she had been a Sailor Moon as well. Now she finally understood what her parents must have felt the day of her awakening.

"You must go…"

Before she left, Yumeko wrapped her sobbing mother in one last tight hug, tears running down her face as well. "I'll make you proud, Mama. I promise I will."

The queen smiled, holding her daughter close. "You already have, my beautiful golden dream."


Yumeko rejoined the other girls, Elysia, and Shadow in the garden, where they were preparing to transform. The other Dream Soldiers had already said goodbye to their parents.

As the princess took her spot in the circle, Shadow took her hand and gave it a small squeeze. She then pulled out her transformation brooch and held it high in the air. The others raised their transformation pens in response.

Moon Dream Power!
Mercury Dream Power!
Venus Dream Power!
Mars Dream Power!
Jupiter Dream Power!
Saturn Dream Power!
Uranus Dream Power!
Neptune Dream Power!
Pluto Dream Power!

They were then covered in a rainbow of colors as they morphed into the Sailor Dream Soldiers, the most powerful warriors in the universe.

Shadow gasped when Yumeko finished transforming into Sailor Moon. He had never seen her transformed before. She was absolutely beautiful.

Her fuku was similar to the others in that it consisted of a short, sleeveless dress with a sailor-style collar, gloves, a choker with a moon charm, tiara, and a pair of knee-high boots. However, her costume was pink, blue, and gold, while the others wore only one color combined with white, and a strand of pearls surrounded both of her meatballs.

Sailor Uranus, who was standing next to Shadow, elbowed him in the side. "Quit drooling over her," she ordered lightly. "We've got a battle to fight."

"Right."

The Sailor Dream Soldiers and Shadow all joined hands and concentrated their power on the teleport. Elysia, not one to be left behind, jumped on Sailor Moon's shoulder. This was it. They were going to Delos.

"It's time to defeat the nightmares!"

SAILOR TELEPORT!