Act Sixteen - Wedding Bells

Sailor Moon was speechless, absolutely speechless. What was she supposed to do? Was she to give up the chance to save her mother's kingdom to spare Helios' life? Or was she to sacrifice the man she loved in order to save the lives of billions? Either way, she was bound to lose.

Sensing her indecision, Damian walked over to her and cupped Sailor Moon's chin in his hand. This time she did not resist. "It's over, my dear princess. Let us stop this war between us, and perhaps I will spare the life of your mother as well."

"What are you talking about, Damian?"

Damian pointed to the crystal ball that stood in the center of the room. "Go and see for yourself, Sailor Moon."

Sailor Moon slowly approached the glowing sphere as an image appeared inside. She gasped. It was her parents' bedroom. She could see Neo-Queen Serenity laying on the white bed, her eyes closed to the world. Her father, King Endymion, was sitting beside the queen, holding her limp hand up to his cheek as tears rolled down his face, and Luna was snuggled up close to her beloved mistress. The guardians and their husbands were also there, crowding around the bed with their heads bowed as Rei led the group in prayer.

"Mother…"

The tears flowed freely down her face. It couldn't be real, but deep in her heart she knew it was. There was no hope left, everything was lost.

There was only one choice to make. Sailor Moon wiped away her tears and took a deep breath. "You win," she said softly. "I give up. Silver Millennium and my heart are yours."

"Maiden, no!"

Sailor Moon looked over to her right, where Helios had remained standing silently until that moment. Again he repeated his plea. "You must not surrender to them, Serenity. Don't marry Prince Damian. Don't allow him to destroy your beautiful dreams!"

His words fell on deaf ears. She had already made her decision. It was her fault that he was here in the first place, and she would not let Helios pay the price for her mistake.

With tears in her eyes, she walked over to the handsome priest and kissed him softly on the cheek. "I'm sorry, Helios, but I love you too much to let you throw your life away."

"Serenity…"

As Helios watched Sailor Moon take her spot next to Damian, he couldn't help but feel a pang in his heart. She loved him, yet she had decided to marry another man in order to save his life. He almost wished Damian had killed him. What was the use of living if the one he loved belonged to another?

Seth, the guard with the keys, came up behind Helios and unlocked the handcuffs. Then he and his friend pushed the priest toward another golden door, leaving the room.

"Where are they taking him?" Sailor Moon demanded. "You said you would let him go!"

"We will," Damian promised, laughing evilly. "But someone has to perform the ceremony, so why not the great priest of Elysion?"

"I don't have a good feeling about this," Sailor Saturn said. "Something bad is happening to her. I can feel it!"

"Stop saying stuff like that, Saturn," Jupiter exclaimed. "I know you're worried about Sailor Moon, we all are, but you have to stop putting these ideas into our heads. I'm sure she can take care of herself until we arrive."

"Sorry."

Saturn peeked over Sailor Mercury's shoulder to get a better look at the map. They were getting closer to the entrance to Jade's lair, but it seemed as if it was taking forever to reach it. She prayed that they would make it there before it was too late.

"It won't be much longer now," Mercury assured them as they turned another corner. "The door should be at the end of this hall."

"Finally!"

Saturn ran ahead of the other, anxious to save her cousin. Even in the darkness, she could see a faint outline of a door right where Mercury said it would be. They had finally made it!

"Hey, Saturn!" Neptune shouted as she dashed to the door. "Wait for us!"

She barely heard a word Neptune said. The important thing was that they had found the door and not a second to soon. A breathless Saturn tried to turn the knob, but it was obvious it was locked. After all they went through, it looked like they wouldn't be able to get inside.

Uranus, the runner of the group, reached the door next and tried his luck, as the rest of the Neo-Soldiers and Diana finally caught up with them. Despite his strength, the door wouldn't budge. It was sealed shut. Mercury quickly scanned the area and saw that it was surrounded by another invisible barrier.

"What are we going to do?" Pluto asked, leaning against the wall. "We know Saturn's attack won't work against the barriers."

Mercury typed a few calculations into her computer, a plan forming in her head. It appeared that only the wall was protected by the barrier. The door was vulnerable, so if they could somehow break it down, they would be able to enter the lair.

"Uranus and Jupiter, do you think you have enough strength to knock the door down?" she asked the two physically strongest scouts.

"We can try," Uranus said.

"Don't exert yourself too much," Venus said, still worried about his wounds. "You still haven't regained all your strength."

"I'll be fine."

Jupiter and Uranus backed up and prepared to kick the door.

"Ready, Jupiter?" Uranus asked.

"Ready," she answered. "We go on three, okay?"

ONE, TWO, THREE!

Chibi-Usa could hardly bear to look at Helios as he ascended the raised altar in the center of the room, dressed in the traditional garments of a Dark Kingdom priest. Her heart was breaking. It was him she wanted to marry, not Damian, yet to save the life of the one she loved, she would have to give her body and soul to another man.

A tear ran down her face, concealed from her groom's eye by a couple of layers of black netting shielding her face. As an organ began to play a dissonant version of the Wedding March, Damian took her arm, and they began the long walk down the aisle, with Queen Jade and a handful of soldiers the only witnesses.

She could feel Helios' eyes focused on her as they moved closer to the altar, but hers remained downcast. Chibi-Usa was afraid that if she looked up, she would lose her courage to go through this marriage.

The music ended as the bride and groom reached the altar. This was it. It was her wedding day, which was supposed to be the happiest day of her life, yet she couldn't help feeling as if she were attending her own funeral. Damian reached over and pulled the black veil off her face.

Unintentionally, Chibi-Usa looked up and found herself staring into the priest's beautiful golden eyes, which were filled with sadness. Never had she seen such misery. Damian grunted, signaling Helios to begin the ceremony. Almost mechanically, he opened the book in front of him and began reading a passage in a dull monotone.

"Let's say we just get to the vows, old man," Damian ordered after a couple of minutes. "We don't have all day here."

Helios turned to the vows and told Chibi-Usa and Damian to join hands, which she reluctantly did. Damian's hand was as cold as death. She might as well marry a corpse.

"Do you, Prince Damian, agree to take Princess Lady Serenity as your wife and slave for the rest of your life?"

"I do."

"And do you, Princess Lady Serenity, agree to take Prince Damian as your husband and master for the rest of your life?"

After a short pause, Chibi-Usa nodded her head, not trusting her voice to answer for her. The pain was evident in Helios' face as she agreed to become Damian's wife. Why was Damian putting him through this misery? Wasn't her soul enough?

"If there be anyone present who believes these two people should not be married, speak now or forever hold your tongue."

"WE OBJECT!"

Chibi-Usa turned around, her heart jumping for joy. She knew those voices. Her friends had come to help her. Sailor Saturn, now the temporary spokesperson of the group, stepped forward.

"We are the Sailor Neo-Soldiers, sworn protectors of Princess Lady Serenity and Crystal Tokyo, and, in the name of love, we demand this wedding be stopped!"