"We have to get our children back!"
Serenity echoed her best friend's enthusiasm. "And we will Raye. I want my daughter back too."
"We all do." Mirchiru added. "The twins are missing too. We all know how you feel Raye."
Raye nodded, "I know, I know." She paused, "Mina?"
Everyone turned to the soldier of love. She had been quiet throughout the meeting and was staring at her hands.
"You all know where your daughters are. They're with Maggie. I don't know if mine is even alive."
Lita wrapped her arms around her best friend's shoulders. They thought they had it bad off but at least their children weren't in the enemies' clutches.
"we have to do something," Mina declared, her voice cracking. "We can't sit here while our children could be in pain…or worse." She added with a shudder.
Serenity spoke, "Hai, I know. But we no longer can transform."
Before anyone could say another word, a loud thud was heard. Amy screamed,
"HOTARU!"
Setsuna, Haruka, and Mirchiru were on their feet in an instant. As they ran around the table, the other Senshi in close pursuit, they saw Amy on the ground, their grown daughter's head in her lap. The mark of Saturn had appeared and the girl was breathing heavily.
Haruka knelt by Amy and the physician, seeing no damage aside from a bump, allowed the soldier of the heavens to gather her daughter into her strong arms. Amy noted that Haruka still held her as she would a baby, with her arm supporting the neck.
"Hotaru. Answer us!"
The girl remained silent to Mirchiru's demands. Setsuna held one of Hotaru's hand sin hers. Haruka had moved Hotaru so she was cradled in her arms, her legs over Haruka's over arm. The Senshi of heaven slowly rose to her feet, gently. The soldier of destruction made no reaction for a moment.
Then all at once, Hotaru's eyes fluttered open. Her deep violet pupils seemed frightened, terrified even.
"Hotaru!" Mirchiru gazed at her daughter with relief present in her eyes. The small woman gazed about and then said,
"Iie."
"Nani?"
"The defenses, put up the defenses."
"Hotaru?"
"Please…Mirchiru-mama…I saw a vision….hurry…"
But the girl's warning came too late. The wall was crashed inward. Haruka dropped to her knees, shielding Hotaru as best she could.
Hiroshima gave them a smile and released a blast of Mars' Burning Mandala.
FutureThe Chibi Senshi wer ein the middle of a discussion when a bright flash interrupted them. When it faded, they were looking at two generations of Senshi. They could recognize the now grown Crystal Senshi and by the way they stood close to their counterparts, they guessed they were related.
Rayna stepped forward.
"We came to
help you. Yes, it's me Rayna. And we can hold the secret no longer. Chibi
Senshi, we, the Crystal Senshi, are your grandchildren."
A collective gasp was heard
but Crystal Moon was not finished,
"These Senshi, the Elysian Senshi, are our mothers and your future daughters."
The Chibi Senshi rose. But before they could say anything, Elysian Pluto interrupted.
"But we've got no time for shock recovery. If we don't hurry then, this future will become irreparable."
Elysian Moon closed her eyes,
"Cosmic
Senshi, here, now."
The said Senshi piled in
shortly. But before any of the Pluto Senshi could activate the Time Gates, the
door flew open.
"Wait for me."
Neo-Queen Serenity the Second plowed in. Without preamble, she screamed,
"Moon Cosmic Power! Make-Up!"
In a flash pf pink ribbons, Eternal Sailor Cosmic Moon stood in her place.
"But," Cosmic Jupiter insisted, "You can't come. You're our queen."
'I'm coming Daisy! Case Closed!"
The Cosmic Senshi nodded. The queen turned to their younger counterparts.
"But you must transform too."
"Rini…" It was ariel that spoke, "we can't."
"Yes, you can. Hope has proved that much. It is painful but necessary."
"I…that's true," Maggie concluded. She turned to her friends.
"Mars Power!"
"Mercury Power!"
"Jupiter Power!"
"Neptune Power!"
"Uranus Power!"
"Pluto Power!"
"Saturn Power!"
In unison, they declared,
"Make-Up!"
Nothing happened. Daisy growled,
"See? Rini's the only one who can transform and that's because she has the Crystal."
Crystal Moon stepped up to stand by her grandmother,
"You can. Focus your hearts and your souls."
"We are!" Daisy screamed, "Nothing!"
Crystal Moon nodded to her grandmother. Her eyes were wet with tears. She hated to have to do this but if this could not inspire the power and determination they needed, nothing would. The girl removed the silver crystal.
"Then, see what you are allowing to happen."
Ariel felt her heart freeze and tears erupted down her face. "MOMMY!"
What she saw was a vision of her mother, attacked by Hiroshima and lifted into the air. The woman let the soldier of Mercury drop and then, using Ariel's own power, she made Mercury icicle spears form over the floor.
Her mother was impaled as she landed, dead on impact.
"MAMA!"
Annika began to cry hysterically. Brooke wanted to run to her but knew she couldn't, that she mustn't.
"NO!" Annika couldn't believe this; her mother couldn't die. She couldn't! but what Annika saw was her mother, fighting with her bare hands, only to have her Flame Sniper arrow plunged through her heart. She gave a last cry of, "Annika…" and then the life left her eyes.
Daisy collapsed to her knees and cursed the images she saw. She saw her mother, with her clothing torn, loyal to end leap at Hiroshima, in protection of the queen. With a swipe of her Lightning Bolt, her mother was blown to bits, without even one piece left whole. The girl threw up.
Madelyn was weeping, silently. Her bright eyes were misted over with tears. She was visibly shaking, trembling. Hotaru had been yanked out in front of the Haruka, Mirchiru, and Setsuna. With a gesture, Hiroshima summoned up what Madelyn realized was her glaive. With a 'Destructive Ray' she split her mother, right in half.
"IIE!"
Hope and Faith saw the same thing. Mirchiru, overcome with grief over Hotaru's death fell to her knees, while Haruka lunged for Hiroshima, screaming words that the twins had never heard and guessed that they should not repeat. Hiroshima flung a 'Tidal Wave' and 'Earth Tremors' at them and due to their unrestrained power, their parents' lungs burst and they slowly suffocated.
Setsuna was the second to last. Using Maggie's new attack, her mother was made younger, defenseless, until finally being destroyed by Maggie's 'Scream of Destruction.'
"No…MOM!"
Not even Rini was spared the horrid image. Her mother, overwhelmed by her friends' deaths, knocked Hiroshima down, and using her bare hands, tried to kill her, all the while, demanding, "BRING THEM BACK!" A simple original Senshi planet attack, killed her immediately.
Crystal Moon took a breath,
"I'm sorry I had to ask Grandma to show you that…but do you still believe you cannot transform?"
The eyes that greeted her were full of anger and determination, even little Annika's.
"MARS POWER!"
"MERCURY POWER!"
"JUPITER POWER!"
"URANUS POWER!"
"NEPTUNE POWER!"
"PLUTO POWER!"
"SATURN POWER!"
"MOON COSMIC POWER!"
The Chibi Senshi lifted their arms to heaven and howled, a unison of voices so full of hate and anger that it made their future selves shake,
"MAKE-UP!"
Eight auras of bright light filled the room. The Chibi Senshi screamed in pain but their anger, swiftly overwhelmed any discomfort.
Annika had never felt such a down right rage before. Not even after she went through that traumatizing experience. She was full of hate towards this Hiroshima. While she usually would have been saddened, as the force of Mars rushed through her, her thought was only on saving her mother.
Ariel let the icy cold power of Mercury cut through her veins. She wanted to freeze this Hiroshima, freeze her and make her suffer. Her mother would not be taken from her. No! For the first time in a long while, Ariel felt any fear she had from past enemies vanish and she narrowed her deep blue eyes.
Daisy, her arms stretched skyward, let eh electricity bubble her blood, and let the awesome power of the henshin fill her soul. She was angry beyond angry, feeling hatred beyond hatred. None of her past enemies made her feel this way. Usually it was her mother protecting her. Now, it was time for a reverse situation.
Hope let the familiar pull of the tide pulse through her body. Her thoughts were on Haruka-papa, Mirchiru-mama. No! it would not end that way! They would not die! They had to live to see her child and her grandchild. There was so much Hope wanted to do with them and she would not let this…this demon steal that!
Faith let Uranus fill her again. Her scar was another reminder of hate. But that vision…that horrid prediction…never! Never! Not while this Senshi had air in her lungs! Take what it might, that vision would not come true, Faith would strangle Hiroshima with her bare hands first!
Madelyn grasped her Silence Glaive as soon as she was able. Ina rage, she thrust it skyward, as if to fill it with more power. Her mother had been through so much as a child, only to find happiness as an adult. Madelyn loved her mother as greatly as Hotaru loved Madelyn. That vision was an illusion because Madelyn would end her life in her forbidden attack before she allowed that to happen.
Maggie was not one to anger easily but now her calm temper flared and exploded. She squeezed her Time Key hard, until her knuckles turned white. Her deep eyes filled with anger and rage, rage that only a Senshi could use to fulfill right. She would stop this, even if it took her life.
Rini let her fuku form. Her heart felt torn, shattered and full of rage, a rage that a Moon Senshi generally did not feel, being Senshi of Forgiveness. But she would avenge this…she would stop this massacre. She felt new butterfly wings tear through her skin. She leapt to her feet and flexed her wings with all the appearance of an Angel of Justice.
The Chibi Senshi faced their elder selves and said coldly,
"This demon is ours."