Death, Be Not Proud
Underneath Society
aka
Black Beyond
~;~
Alright! I admit it! Seven right guesses, odd number of wrong, and I'm willing to announce the news.
I'm Black Beyond. NYAH!
~'~
Une paced in the length of the hallway and back, for the hundredth time. Kagami and Kage were late today, something they had never been before in their entire presence. And stranger yet, Zechs Marquise could not be found either. She didn't dare hope that the pair had actually pulled off the suicidal mission she'd given them. So far every single assassin, thief, soldier, and spy she'd sent after the handsome man had met their ends.
But..... Marquise had never been late....
"I *told* you he was a screamer!"
"Who would have known he'd scream at the last moment, Kagami! I can't believe I bet against you."
"You bet against me because you love me, baka. Now.... back to the original argument. She's sexy!"
"Kagami!"
Une straightened up and adjusted her glasses as the voices of the strange duo came down the hallway, coming towards her. She slipped inside her office and sat down behind her desk, and managed to look extremely busy as the knock at her door came.
"Come in!" She snapped, in the harshest tone she could manage while gigantic butterflies of victory were having a nuclear war in her stomach. The door swung open and Kagami entered first, her uniform crisp and perfect, and following her with a slight slam of the door was Kage, also faultless in appearance.
The giggling smile on Kagami's face vanished as she crossed the threshold, once more a soldier. The frigid glint in her eyes was frighteningly clear, the set of her lips hard. Kage's face was cool and level, however.
"Mission Accomplished." Kagami announced, before Une even opened her mouth. "And quiet easily. He allowed us to lead him away from the base without a single argument, and we disposed of him in the forest." She said, in a tone that was so unnatural mixed in with a voice that could have been sweet and girlish.
*I still say she's dead sexy.*
-Do you see me arguing? The point is, there's no way you'll convince her to kiss you!-
*I bet you I could.*
Une's eyes shot to Kage as his eyebrows quirked slightly. -Oh, really? Fine. I'll take you up on it. What's the prize?-
Usagi struggled to keep her face even. *First dibs on Zechs.*
Koto surprised her. -Deal. But you only have until she makes us leave.-
*Alright, lover dear. Until she makes us leave. And I'll throw you a bonus. I won't use magic.*
-Oooh. My darling little bitch, you're something else. -
*Save it for later.*
Une looked at Kagami as a rather feral grin spread over the girl's face. "Are you pleased, Colonel?"
Une was being to get rather uncomfortable for no reason at all. It was something in the way the two were eyeing her, and a strange feeling of helplessness she had never felt before. What was it about these two that made her feel so inferior?
"Yes, of course I am pleased. This was a rather difficult mission and I honestly didn't expect either of you to return. General Khushrenada will probably want to commend you personally. Zechs has been worrying him for some time."
*He's supposed to be dead sexy, too. Roses, you know.*
-Focus, girl.-
Kagami nodded, and stepped closer, right up to the desk. She leaned over to stare into Une's eyes. Oh, Ko-chan, this lady is sexy. You just have to get a load of her eyes. Without further ado, a fluid arm lashed out and snatched the glasses right off Une's face.
Une gasped in outrage and went for the holster at her side, but Kagami's arm flashed again and caught her by her wrist, stopping her. Une struggled in the steel-like grasp, only to find that she could not get free.
"Une-sama, I respect you so much. Why do you hide?"
"I don't know what you're talking about! Unhand me this instant or you will have the barrels of eight guns on your neck!" She gasped again as Usagi swept the desk clean with her free hand and then flung herself on it, scooting closer until she almost nose to nose with the most dangerous woman in all of OZ.
Koto was sure that in all of history there had never been such a staring match as that one. It went on for a timeless eternity, gray into brown, brown into gray.
*She's going to break....!*
-Evil little-- you're right.-
Right on cue, Une's eyes darted away in a confession of surrender, and Usagi jumped back, smiling. Une jumped to her feet immediately, her gun drawn and leveled precisely at Usagi's head.
To her rage, Usagi didn't flinch.
"That won't do much good." Kage's voice broke the stalemate this time, making both women glance at him. "She only wants to kiss you."
Kagami glowered at him. "Oh, like she'll kiss me *now*, you moron! You cheated! The bet is so off."
"You were about to be shot at! I did *not* cheat!"
Une stepped back, thoroughly startled as the two began to bicker back and forth like a pair of teenagers. The gun clattered to the floor, unnoticed by them all, and her hand went up to feel where her glasses should have been. They were off... but she didn't feel any different. She usually felt calmer when she wasn't wearing them, but she was still Colonel Une. And-- these beautiful young soldiers-- they were currently arguing over who got to kiss her?
Needless to say, it had never happened before.
"Did you ever give any thought that you could quite possibly be a succubus?!"
Kagami's silver eyes blazed. "If I am, we can certainly owe it to your antics!"
"MY antics?!" Kage roared. "How on EARTH did I make YOU become a raging nymphomaniac?!"
"About the same way you taught me to CURSE, you pompous, handsome man! I was completely INNOCENT before all of this started, if you'd care to remember! I hadn't even been properly KISSED!"
His eyes smiled and a smirk played around his lips. "Oh, but you certainly had enough twisted fantasies to make up for it. Remember that one with Mamoru and Motoki in a *mud pit*, of all things?"
Her face colored. "Those don't count!"
"If anything," He continued, confident in his victory now. "I simply gave you the confidence to believe in your fantasies. You were a closet nymphomaniac, love, admit it!" He crowed.
Une blinked. As interesting as this was, their fight was getting louder by the minute, and pretty soon the guards would burst in to find her looking utterly dazed and that was simply not acceptable. She remembered what decorum demanded and brushed it aside. Her little mysterious assassin wanted a kiss? Une had been raised in a brutal fashion, and she would show Kagami exactly was a kiss was not supposed to be.
Usagi was a bit confused. One moment she had been retorting to Koto with a nasty little remark and the next something strong had grabbed her by her shoulder and shoved her against the wall so quickly she wasn't sure of what to think as she looked up into Une's hard eyes.
In that moment, Usagi looked exactly like an innocent little girl.
And Une didn't care.
-This is *nice*.-
*Who's the closet nymphomaniac now--- ack!*
Usagi's eyes went incredibly wide as Une's lips crashed down upon her own with bruising force and her mouth was forced open, the taste of coffee and vanilla flooding her senses for a moment.
-She kissed you. Does that mean I win?-
Usagi caught he bearing and grinned in a rather evil fashion. *Not on your life!*
Needless to say, Une was a bit surprised when Usagi began to kiss back under the brutal assault, actually guiding Une's hands as they ravaged her body.
Five minutes later, Koto was tapping his foot very impatiently. -BREAK IT UP ALREADY! That Colonel needs *oxygen* to live, Usagi! He glared quite evilly until Usagi pushed Une away and looked back at him, grinning triumphantly.-
*I SO have first dibs on Zechs! WHEEE!*
Une opened her mouth to say something scathing then the door opened and four extremely buff soldiers entered, followed immediately by Treize Khushrenada.
-That's certainly convenient. Oooh. He's pissed because he can't find his loverboy. Oooh! Une didn't *know* they were lovers! Koto looked absolutely enthralled. This is bloody perfect!-
Usagi had a rather calculating expression on her face as she straightened her uniform. *I think Une will be very happy that we lied to her and kept Mr. Hunky Ass at our place to be ravaged by two servants.*
-Yeah, but why say anything? This ought to be interesting as is.-
*You're positively evil, my love.*
-And you're a hopeless romantic AND a nymphomaniac. -
*Like you complain.*
-I do, actually. You're kissing the Colonel and we haven't even groped.-
*And whose fault is THAT?!*
-Hmph. Shut up and let's watch Une get toasted. Oooh. Smell that cologne? Roses. Mmm. I have a thing for handsome men and roses....-
*Careful. You might drool on him.*
Koto didn't even bother to glare at her. He was busy watching Treize with a very unrelenting eye. Usagi, not for the first time, was grateful she knew his thoughts. To anyone outside of their little bond, it certainly did look as though he were plotting against the general.
Une attempted to straighten her uniform and reached for her glasses only to remember that blasted girl still had them. Never mind, She had proven she could be a Colonel without them, and would continue on.
"Treize." She nodded, wondering with a sudden blush exactly when the clasp on her bra had been unhooked. She squirmed, and chanced an evil glare at Usagi, who was leaning against the wall with a very self-satisfied look on her face.
"Good morning, Treize-chan!" She looked over the man who would help her build Crystal Tokyo and nodded thoughtfully. "Not half bad at all. I was *wondering* when I got to meet you." She glanced over to Koto. "Oi, I'm game to give up the farce. You?"
Koto shrugged. "I was just running from your Sailor Senshi. Now that I'm mostly sure of the fact they're not going to rip my genitals off and do nasty things to the rest of me, I'm good for anything."
Usagi nodded. "So, you want to ask for their help now or force them into it later?"
Koto stretched languidly and suddenly, his hair was back to a wondrous sunset and he was wearing the same strange alien clothing he had been when Usagi first created his body, a strange black kind of armor that was form-fitting and classy, something that could be mistaken both for formal wear or for armor and yet he pulled it off with a beauty all his own. With a wink, Usagi's hair was a brilliant silver and back up into odango, her clothes morphing into a long, dark purple velvet gown slit up her thigh, sleeveless, with a neckline that plunged dangerously low. A small silver cornet was now on her forehead.
Treize's jaw hit the floor, his dignified rant about Zechs seemingly less important now. Une sighed and sat back down at her desk and let her forehead hit the top of the desktop.
"Allow me to introduce myself, General Treize. My name is Serenity, and I have a proposition for you that you'll find very difficult to refuse..."
~'~
A hour later, the four soldiers were playing poker in a corner of the room, Koto was lounging in a chair while Treize and Usagi chatted with Une in the other three chairs. It was a rather strange picture for anyone who knew either Une or Treize, but one that could be accepted with only minor fainting spells.
"So, you're really the sovereign of the moon? Why haven't you spoken up before?"
Serenity shrugged. "I haven't been here to notice you people polluting my home. I'm very displeased about it, actually. I'm just glad you haven't blown it up yet. I do believe with warning and threat, everyone there can be evacuated within a matter of days.
"Just remove them." Koto decided to pip up with a sadistic grin. "Now, let me do it for you..."
Usagi gave him a cold glare. "If you do, I'll remove any chances of you having children ever again!"
Koto winced. "It was just a suggestion, love..." He amended, and sighed. "I never thought I would see the day when I took orders from a woman. Let alone love her."
Treize smiled. "I think we can agree with your ideas, Neo-Queen Serenity. After all, it would be a mostly bloodless end to a long war. And for some reason I have the feeling we don't have much of a choice."
Usagi's smile was just a tad smug. "Actually, you have a choice. Help me out or I'll have my consort here--"
"HEY!"
"--make you all mysteriously vanish never to be heard from again. Oh, you have a choice. It's just not much of one." She smiled at them warmly. "Besides, this way it's all much better. Yes, there are better ways, and there are worse ways, but this one suits fine enough."
"But you do have the gundam pilots to contend with." Une pointed out. Usagi giggled.
"Considering, I don't think they'll be much of a problem." Usagi shrugged. "I can't be killed, and if they try to resist, they will be eliminated."
Koto looked at the two Oz officials seriously. "Two months ago those words would have never come out of her mouth. You people have no idea." He sat up, grinning. "I have turned her from a shy schoolgirl to a horny teenager without scruples and with the power of forty-three white suns. Aren't you proud of me?"
Usagi swatted at him. "Evil bastard."
"Nymphomaniac." He shot back, smiling at her.
Une looked at Treize as the word began a war of words. "Why does it feel as through we are entrusting our fate to a couple of teenagers?" She asked seriously.
Treize smiled, looking not at all perturbed. "We are. And perhaps that is the best thing to do."
Une sighed and nodded. "If you think so."
"OH! Speaking of bananas--" Usagi's hand covered her mouth. "We forgot to tell them we have Zechs!"
Une counted to ten. "You what?" She congratulated herself on her level voice.
Usagi grinned and looked abashed, and Koto nodded. "We figured that we didn't want to kill off someone that exquisite, so we hid him. Don't worry, he's safe and happily occupied."
Une was outraged. "You *lied* to ME?" She glanced over at a now beaming General and lost a lot of air. "Oh."
Koto grinned. "We didn't know he was banging the general. I only saved him because Usa-koi here wanted to boink him. And he was awfully pretty when we clouded his mind with the lust enchantments."
Usagi shared his grin for a moment. "Oh, boy, the way he was panting..." She went off into daydream land. Koto thought about breaking her out of it, but she was broadcasting rather nice images to him, so he thought better of it.
He slapped all the silliness that Usagi had a strange way of implanting in him out and turned to the two adults.
"So, what was this conversation about in the first place? Oh, right." Koto waved his hand as to make it vanish. "What does politics really matter? Let us speak of something important. Tell me, General, have you ever watched an opera...?"
~'~
Haruka was pacing the length of the floor of Rei's bedroom, muttering under her breath. Makoto was ignoring the death glares that both Mamoru and Luna were giving her as she chatted with Ami and Rei. Minako was not helping matters any by dancing around the room swinging Artemis around with Hotaru are her side, discussing baby names.
Michiru and Setsuna watched, amused.
It's been half an hour?! Where are they!?" Mamoru muttered.
Michiru's soft smile went unnoticed by all except Setsuna, who wore her own smile.
"They're going to get quite a shock, aren't they?"
Setsuna nodded, a mysterious smile on her lips. "They should arrive any moment. I've never had this much fun since her mother started running off to Charon for nocturnal fun and I had to cover her for her father." She sighed dreamily. "Wait until you see the expression on Mamoru's face."
Michiru shook her head. "You've been having fun since you started breaking rules, haven't you?"
Setsuna nodded. "It isn't like Neo-Queen Serenity doesn't change them anyway." She defended herself. Her trained eyes caught the slight murmur in the air, the signal of a temporal rip forming.
She stood up and wordlessly became Sailor Pluto.
Michiru watched as she assumed a dignified pose that was so natural on the senshi of time, summoning her key and watching an empty space in the corner of the room. She too, turned slightly to see. There was something odd about the corner, but she hadn't the training Pluto had.
Everyone in the room had turned, eyes to Pluto, who by all outward appearances did not notice.
She was the only one not truly surprised, too, a moment later, when a swirling vortex opened and three people stepped out.
The first was easy enough. Koto did not change. Chaos had no rules to follow.
And the woman.
They felt her before they saw her. Koto, in a room by himself, was hard enough on the senses of even an ordinary person. His presence was enormous, unsettling, twisting and stroking the darkest fantasies in the depths of the mind, bringing forth all the things you wanted to forget. It was seductive, darkness, and something smooth, like luscious desire.
To the senshi, it was like nothing they had ever felt before.
With Usagi and Koto in the same room, before, there was an uneasiness before that touched them all, the feeling of two north magnets forced together, the feeling of impending explosion.
But this was not Usagi.
The sense that this creature created, on the arm of Koto, was inane.
It was beyond words. It was having the sun and the moon in the same dark sky, snow falling on the hottest day of summer, the taste of bitter chocolate and cream, the scent of metal and lavender. It was seduction with angel wings, Satan wearing white.
And she certainly looked it.
The senshi had not known what to expect of the neo-queen.
But they had most certainly not expected this. Even Pluto blinked.
Hanging from her body, hugging it in all the right places with just the right flair, was a gown of crushed velvet, the color of dried rose petals, with long, long sleeves that brushed her elegant fingertips and a hem that swept the floor. The neckline swooped to reveal cleavage that no being, be they mortal or god, should have been allowed to possess and continued around her enticing shoulders to plunge down once again, showing off the flawless, creamy skin of her back.
Her hair was shorter, and loose, falling just below her waist, the natural wave catching the light and adding a bluish tint to silver hair, making her gray eyes jump out of her face with an eerie sense of perception, which in turn led the eyes down to the alluring curve of her lips, outlined in blood and colored with rose.
Once the eyes of the senshi were torn from their new leader, they found the third person.
The silence was broken only by the thunk of Luna's unconscious body hitting the floor.
"Chibi-usa?!"
Underneath Society
aka
Black Beyond
~;~
Alright! I admit it! Seven right guesses, odd number of wrong, and I'm willing to announce the news.
I'm Black Beyond. NYAH!
~'~
Une paced in the length of the hallway and back, for the hundredth time. Kagami and Kage were late today, something they had never been before in their entire presence. And stranger yet, Zechs Marquise could not be found either. She didn't dare hope that the pair had actually pulled off the suicidal mission she'd given them. So far every single assassin, thief, soldier, and spy she'd sent after the handsome man had met their ends.
But..... Marquise had never been late....
"I *told* you he was a screamer!"
"Who would have known he'd scream at the last moment, Kagami! I can't believe I bet against you."
"You bet against me because you love me, baka. Now.... back to the original argument. She's sexy!"
"Kagami!"
Une straightened up and adjusted her glasses as the voices of the strange duo came down the hallway, coming towards her. She slipped inside her office and sat down behind her desk, and managed to look extremely busy as the knock at her door came.
"Come in!" She snapped, in the harshest tone she could manage while gigantic butterflies of victory were having a nuclear war in her stomach. The door swung open and Kagami entered first, her uniform crisp and perfect, and following her with a slight slam of the door was Kage, also faultless in appearance.
The giggling smile on Kagami's face vanished as she crossed the threshold, once more a soldier. The frigid glint in her eyes was frighteningly clear, the set of her lips hard. Kage's face was cool and level, however.
"Mission Accomplished." Kagami announced, before Une even opened her mouth. "And quiet easily. He allowed us to lead him away from the base without a single argument, and we disposed of him in the forest." She said, in a tone that was so unnatural mixed in with a voice that could have been sweet and girlish.
*I still say she's dead sexy.*
-Do you see me arguing? The point is, there's no way you'll convince her to kiss you!-
*I bet you I could.*
Une's eyes shot to Kage as his eyebrows quirked slightly. -Oh, really? Fine. I'll take you up on it. What's the prize?-
Usagi struggled to keep her face even. *First dibs on Zechs.*
Koto surprised her. -Deal. But you only have until she makes us leave.-
*Alright, lover dear. Until she makes us leave. And I'll throw you a bonus. I won't use magic.*
-Oooh. My darling little bitch, you're something else. -
*Save it for later.*
Une looked at Kagami as a rather feral grin spread over the girl's face. "Are you pleased, Colonel?"
Une was being to get rather uncomfortable for no reason at all. It was something in the way the two were eyeing her, and a strange feeling of helplessness she had never felt before. What was it about these two that made her feel so inferior?
"Yes, of course I am pleased. This was a rather difficult mission and I honestly didn't expect either of you to return. General Khushrenada will probably want to commend you personally. Zechs has been worrying him for some time."
*He's supposed to be dead sexy, too. Roses, you know.*
-Focus, girl.-
Kagami nodded, and stepped closer, right up to the desk. She leaned over to stare into Une's eyes. Oh, Ko-chan, this lady is sexy. You just have to get a load of her eyes. Without further ado, a fluid arm lashed out and snatched the glasses right off Une's face.
Une gasped in outrage and went for the holster at her side, but Kagami's arm flashed again and caught her by her wrist, stopping her. Une struggled in the steel-like grasp, only to find that she could not get free.
"Une-sama, I respect you so much. Why do you hide?"
"I don't know what you're talking about! Unhand me this instant or you will have the barrels of eight guns on your neck!" She gasped again as Usagi swept the desk clean with her free hand and then flung herself on it, scooting closer until she almost nose to nose with the most dangerous woman in all of OZ.
Koto was sure that in all of history there had never been such a staring match as that one. It went on for a timeless eternity, gray into brown, brown into gray.
*She's going to break....!*
-Evil little-- you're right.-
Right on cue, Une's eyes darted away in a confession of surrender, and Usagi jumped back, smiling. Une jumped to her feet immediately, her gun drawn and leveled precisely at Usagi's head.
To her rage, Usagi didn't flinch.
"That won't do much good." Kage's voice broke the stalemate this time, making both women glance at him. "She only wants to kiss you."
Kagami glowered at him. "Oh, like she'll kiss me *now*, you moron! You cheated! The bet is so off."
"You were about to be shot at! I did *not* cheat!"
Une stepped back, thoroughly startled as the two began to bicker back and forth like a pair of teenagers. The gun clattered to the floor, unnoticed by them all, and her hand went up to feel where her glasses should have been. They were off... but she didn't feel any different. She usually felt calmer when she wasn't wearing them, but she was still Colonel Une. And-- these beautiful young soldiers-- they were currently arguing over who got to kiss her?
Needless to say, it had never happened before.
"Did you ever give any thought that you could quite possibly be a succubus?!"
Kagami's silver eyes blazed. "If I am, we can certainly owe it to your antics!"
"MY antics?!" Kage roared. "How on EARTH did I make YOU become a raging nymphomaniac?!"
"About the same way you taught me to CURSE, you pompous, handsome man! I was completely INNOCENT before all of this started, if you'd care to remember! I hadn't even been properly KISSED!"
His eyes smiled and a smirk played around his lips. "Oh, but you certainly had enough twisted fantasies to make up for it. Remember that one with Mamoru and Motoki in a *mud pit*, of all things?"
Her face colored. "Those don't count!"
"If anything," He continued, confident in his victory now. "I simply gave you the confidence to believe in your fantasies. You were a closet nymphomaniac, love, admit it!" He crowed.
Une blinked. As interesting as this was, their fight was getting louder by the minute, and pretty soon the guards would burst in to find her looking utterly dazed and that was simply not acceptable. She remembered what decorum demanded and brushed it aside. Her little mysterious assassin wanted a kiss? Une had been raised in a brutal fashion, and she would show Kagami exactly was a kiss was not supposed to be.
Usagi was a bit confused. One moment she had been retorting to Koto with a nasty little remark and the next something strong had grabbed her by her shoulder and shoved her against the wall so quickly she wasn't sure of what to think as she looked up into Une's hard eyes.
In that moment, Usagi looked exactly like an innocent little girl.
And Une didn't care.
-This is *nice*.-
*Who's the closet nymphomaniac now--- ack!*
Usagi's eyes went incredibly wide as Une's lips crashed down upon her own with bruising force and her mouth was forced open, the taste of coffee and vanilla flooding her senses for a moment.
-She kissed you. Does that mean I win?-
Usagi caught he bearing and grinned in a rather evil fashion. *Not on your life!*
Needless to say, Une was a bit surprised when Usagi began to kiss back under the brutal assault, actually guiding Une's hands as they ravaged her body.
Five minutes later, Koto was tapping his foot very impatiently. -BREAK IT UP ALREADY! That Colonel needs *oxygen* to live, Usagi! He glared quite evilly until Usagi pushed Une away and looked back at him, grinning triumphantly.-
*I SO have first dibs on Zechs! WHEEE!*
Une opened her mouth to say something scathing then the door opened and four extremely buff soldiers entered, followed immediately by Treize Khushrenada.
-That's certainly convenient. Oooh. He's pissed because he can't find his loverboy. Oooh! Une didn't *know* they were lovers! Koto looked absolutely enthralled. This is bloody perfect!-
Usagi had a rather calculating expression on her face as she straightened her uniform. *I think Une will be very happy that we lied to her and kept Mr. Hunky Ass at our place to be ravaged by two servants.*
-Yeah, but why say anything? This ought to be interesting as is.-
*You're positively evil, my love.*
-And you're a hopeless romantic AND a nymphomaniac. -
*Like you complain.*
-I do, actually. You're kissing the Colonel and we haven't even groped.-
*And whose fault is THAT?!*
-Hmph. Shut up and let's watch Une get toasted. Oooh. Smell that cologne? Roses. Mmm. I have a thing for handsome men and roses....-
*Careful. You might drool on him.*
Koto didn't even bother to glare at her. He was busy watching Treize with a very unrelenting eye. Usagi, not for the first time, was grateful she knew his thoughts. To anyone outside of their little bond, it certainly did look as though he were plotting against the general.
Une attempted to straighten her uniform and reached for her glasses only to remember that blasted girl still had them. Never mind, She had proven she could be a Colonel without them, and would continue on.
"Treize." She nodded, wondering with a sudden blush exactly when the clasp on her bra had been unhooked. She squirmed, and chanced an evil glare at Usagi, who was leaning against the wall with a very self-satisfied look on her face.
"Good morning, Treize-chan!" She looked over the man who would help her build Crystal Tokyo and nodded thoughtfully. "Not half bad at all. I was *wondering* when I got to meet you." She glanced over to Koto. "Oi, I'm game to give up the farce. You?"
Koto shrugged. "I was just running from your Sailor Senshi. Now that I'm mostly sure of the fact they're not going to rip my genitals off and do nasty things to the rest of me, I'm good for anything."
Usagi nodded. "So, you want to ask for their help now or force them into it later?"
Koto stretched languidly and suddenly, his hair was back to a wondrous sunset and he was wearing the same strange alien clothing he had been when Usagi first created his body, a strange black kind of armor that was form-fitting and classy, something that could be mistaken both for formal wear or for armor and yet he pulled it off with a beauty all his own. With a wink, Usagi's hair was a brilliant silver and back up into odango, her clothes morphing into a long, dark purple velvet gown slit up her thigh, sleeveless, with a neckline that plunged dangerously low. A small silver cornet was now on her forehead.
Treize's jaw hit the floor, his dignified rant about Zechs seemingly less important now. Une sighed and sat back down at her desk and let her forehead hit the top of the desktop.
"Allow me to introduce myself, General Treize. My name is Serenity, and I have a proposition for you that you'll find very difficult to refuse..."
~'~
A hour later, the four soldiers were playing poker in a corner of the room, Koto was lounging in a chair while Treize and Usagi chatted with Une in the other three chairs. It was a rather strange picture for anyone who knew either Une or Treize, but one that could be accepted with only minor fainting spells.
"So, you're really the sovereign of the moon? Why haven't you spoken up before?"
Serenity shrugged. "I haven't been here to notice you people polluting my home. I'm very displeased about it, actually. I'm just glad you haven't blown it up yet. I do believe with warning and threat, everyone there can be evacuated within a matter of days.
"Just remove them." Koto decided to pip up with a sadistic grin. "Now, let me do it for you..."
Usagi gave him a cold glare. "If you do, I'll remove any chances of you having children ever again!"
Koto winced. "It was just a suggestion, love..." He amended, and sighed. "I never thought I would see the day when I took orders from a woman. Let alone love her."
Treize smiled. "I think we can agree with your ideas, Neo-Queen Serenity. After all, it would be a mostly bloodless end to a long war. And for some reason I have the feeling we don't have much of a choice."
Usagi's smile was just a tad smug. "Actually, you have a choice. Help me out or I'll have my consort here--"
"HEY!"
"--make you all mysteriously vanish never to be heard from again. Oh, you have a choice. It's just not much of one." She smiled at them warmly. "Besides, this way it's all much better. Yes, there are better ways, and there are worse ways, but this one suits fine enough."
"But you do have the gundam pilots to contend with." Une pointed out. Usagi giggled.
"Considering, I don't think they'll be much of a problem." Usagi shrugged. "I can't be killed, and if they try to resist, they will be eliminated."
Koto looked at the two Oz officials seriously. "Two months ago those words would have never come out of her mouth. You people have no idea." He sat up, grinning. "I have turned her from a shy schoolgirl to a horny teenager without scruples and with the power of forty-three white suns. Aren't you proud of me?"
Usagi swatted at him. "Evil bastard."
"Nymphomaniac." He shot back, smiling at her.
Une looked at Treize as the word began a war of words. "Why does it feel as through we are entrusting our fate to a couple of teenagers?" She asked seriously.
Treize smiled, looking not at all perturbed. "We are. And perhaps that is the best thing to do."
Une sighed and nodded. "If you think so."
"OH! Speaking of bananas--" Usagi's hand covered her mouth. "We forgot to tell them we have Zechs!"
Une counted to ten. "You what?" She congratulated herself on her level voice.
Usagi grinned and looked abashed, and Koto nodded. "We figured that we didn't want to kill off someone that exquisite, so we hid him. Don't worry, he's safe and happily occupied."
Une was outraged. "You *lied* to ME?" She glanced over at a now beaming General and lost a lot of air. "Oh."
Koto grinned. "We didn't know he was banging the general. I only saved him because Usa-koi here wanted to boink him. And he was awfully pretty when we clouded his mind with the lust enchantments."
Usagi shared his grin for a moment. "Oh, boy, the way he was panting..." She went off into daydream land. Koto thought about breaking her out of it, but she was broadcasting rather nice images to him, so he thought better of it.
He slapped all the silliness that Usagi had a strange way of implanting in him out and turned to the two adults.
"So, what was this conversation about in the first place? Oh, right." Koto waved his hand as to make it vanish. "What does politics really matter? Let us speak of something important. Tell me, General, have you ever watched an opera...?"
~'~
Haruka was pacing the length of the floor of Rei's bedroom, muttering under her breath. Makoto was ignoring the death glares that both Mamoru and Luna were giving her as she chatted with Ami and Rei. Minako was not helping matters any by dancing around the room swinging Artemis around with Hotaru are her side, discussing baby names.
Michiru and Setsuna watched, amused.
It's been half an hour?! Where are they!?" Mamoru muttered.
Michiru's soft smile went unnoticed by all except Setsuna, who wore her own smile.
"They're going to get quite a shock, aren't they?"
Setsuna nodded, a mysterious smile on her lips. "They should arrive any moment. I've never had this much fun since her mother started running off to Charon for nocturnal fun and I had to cover her for her father." She sighed dreamily. "Wait until you see the expression on Mamoru's face."
Michiru shook her head. "You've been having fun since you started breaking rules, haven't you?"
Setsuna nodded. "It isn't like Neo-Queen Serenity doesn't change them anyway." She defended herself. Her trained eyes caught the slight murmur in the air, the signal of a temporal rip forming.
She stood up and wordlessly became Sailor Pluto.
Michiru watched as she assumed a dignified pose that was so natural on the senshi of time, summoning her key and watching an empty space in the corner of the room. She too, turned slightly to see. There was something odd about the corner, but she hadn't the training Pluto had.
Everyone in the room had turned, eyes to Pluto, who by all outward appearances did not notice.
She was the only one not truly surprised, too, a moment later, when a swirling vortex opened and three people stepped out.
The first was easy enough. Koto did not change. Chaos had no rules to follow.
And the woman.
They felt her before they saw her. Koto, in a room by himself, was hard enough on the senses of even an ordinary person. His presence was enormous, unsettling, twisting and stroking the darkest fantasies in the depths of the mind, bringing forth all the things you wanted to forget. It was seductive, darkness, and something smooth, like luscious desire.
To the senshi, it was like nothing they had ever felt before.
With Usagi and Koto in the same room, before, there was an uneasiness before that touched them all, the feeling of two north magnets forced together, the feeling of impending explosion.
But this was not Usagi.
The sense that this creature created, on the arm of Koto, was inane.
It was beyond words. It was having the sun and the moon in the same dark sky, snow falling on the hottest day of summer, the taste of bitter chocolate and cream, the scent of metal and lavender. It was seduction with angel wings, Satan wearing white.
And she certainly looked it.
The senshi had not known what to expect of the neo-queen.
But they had most certainly not expected this. Even Pluto blinked.
Hanging from her body, hugging it in all the right places with just the right flair, was a gown of crushed velvet, the color of dried rose petals, with long, long sleeves that brushed her elegant fingertips and a hem that swept the floor. The neckline swooped to reveal cleavage that no being, be they mortal or god, should have been allowed to possess and continued around her enticing shoulders to plunge down once again, showing off the flawless, creamy skin of her back.
Her hair was shorter, and loose, falling just below her waist, the natural wave catching the light and adding a bluish tint to silver hair, making her gray eyes jump out of her face with an eerie sense of perception, which in turn led the eyes down to the alluring curve of her lips, outlined in blood and colored with rose.
Once the eyes of the senshi were torn from their new leader, they found the third person.
The silence was broken only by the thunk of Luna's unconscious body hitting the floor.
"Chibi-usa?!"