Act Fifteen - Together Again
Thanks to Ami's computer, the Sailor Soldiers easily found the old mansion on the other side of town, the nighttime giving the place an even more sinister appearance. Rei shivered as the group approached the rundown, Gothic-style building. She definitely felt evil forces being emitted from the area. It was the same kind of feeling she used to get whenever she sensed the Dark Kingdom at work. There was no doubt about it. The Dark Kingdom had somehow been resurrected.
"So, this is the place," Haruka commented, leaning against a nearby telephone pole. "Definitely looks the part. It reminds me of the haunted house in that movie we watched a couple of weeks ago, don't you think, Michiru?"
The musician smiled playfully. "Um…I wasn't exactly paying much attention to the movie, if you remember correctly."
"Oh…yeah."
Hotaru rolled her eyes at her adopted parents. If she didn't love them so much, she would be beyond mortified with all the innuendo that passed between Haruka and Michiru, but she was used to it by now. "What exactly is the plan, anyway?" she asked. "I highly doubt that knocking on the door and politely asking Queen Jade to give back the Silver Crystal is going to be effective."
Beside her, Usagi sighed. If only it were that easy. She had absolutely no idea how they were going to be able to defeat Jade when she couldn't even transform into Eternal Sailor Moon. Luna managed to find a replacement for her first locket, which allowed her to transform into Sailor Moon, but with her low level powers, even Sailor Mercury had more firepower. It was only because she insisted on going that the others even consented to bringing her along, much to Rei's and Haruka's dismay.
The black cat sitting on Usagi's shoulders jumped down to the ground and started pacing. It was beginning to become a habit of hers. "Well, it's obvious that the only way we will be able to get inside the mansion is by Sailor Teleport, but with Usagi's powers significantly lowered and Setsuna unable to fight-"
The guardian of time crossed her arms over her chest. "I already told you that I will fight, whether you guys like it or not," she said, interrupting Luna's speech. "It is my duty to protect the princess, and I'm not about to let my pregnancy get in the way of that. Besides, without my powers, there is absolutely no way you all will have enough energy for a teleportation."
"She does have a point," Mamoru admitted. Setsuna gave him a grateful smile. He understood that it was important for her to do this, for her sake, as well as Usagi's.
"Nobody asked for your opinion, Mamoru-baka," the raven-haired priestess spat. Rei didn't care if he had almost single-handedly saved Usagi's life after the attack; in her book, he was still a no-good lying cheater. "Why don't you just go home to your lover and leave the fighting to us? Then we'll have one less person to teleport."
"Rei-chan!" Ami exclaimed. "That comment was way out of line. I'm sure Mamoru-san wants to protect Usagi-chan and the crystal just as much as we do."
Mamoru held up his hands in silent surrender. "It's okay, Ami-chan," he replied. "I suppose I deserved that after what I did."
Feeling sorry for him, Setsuna gave her former lover a sympathetic look, her garnet eyes meeting his sapphires. It really wasn't fair to let Mamoru take all the blame when she was as much as fault as he was. Maybe it would be better if they just confessed everything…
Slowly, Mamoru shook his head. He knew exactly what she was thinking, but this was the way it had to be in order to keep the peace between the Sailor Soldiers. Haruka, Michiru, and Hotaru were already upset with the Inners for not telling them about the ring. If they were to learn that Setsuna was carrying his child, there was no doubt in his mind what would happen. The Outers would support Setsuna, while the Inners would stand behind their princess. Disputes then would certainly arise, tearing apart the entire team. It was just too risky.
"Fine, Setsuna-san can fight if she wants, as can Mamoru-san," Luna finally decided, ending the arguments that had broken out between the various members of the group. She wasn't happy about it, but Usagi needed as much help as she could get, even if it was from her cheating ex-fiancé and an expectant mother. Rei huffed and turned around, not even wanting to look at Mamoru. "We don't have time to argue about this. The very fate of the world depends on you getting back the crystal. Now, everybody, call upon your powers and get ready for teleportation."
Slowly, the group formed into a large circle and closed their eyes as the astrological signs of their planets formed on their forehead. The guardian cats sat on the outside, worry written all over their faces. They weren't going because there wasn't enough power, but Luna was concerned for Usagi's safety all the same. She wished with all her heart that she could go.
MERCURY CRYSTAL POWER!
MARS CRYSTAL POWER!
JUPITER CRYSTAL POWER!
VENUS CRYSTAL POWER!
URANUS CRYSTAL POWER!
NEPTUNE CRYSTAL POWER!
PLUTO CRYSTAL POWER!
SATURN CRYSTAL POWER!
GOLDEN CRYSTAL POWER!
MOON PRISM POWER!
SAILOR TELEPORT!
In a flash of bright light, the Sailor Soldiers were gone.
Jade looked down at the group of ten, a scowl on her face. She should have known those Sailor Brats would discover her hideout eventually. Antaeus was such a fool. Why couldn't he have killed those bothersome weeds when he had the chance?
In her hand, the golden finish of Sailor Moon's transformation brooch shone dimly in the pale moonlight. The queen clutched the brooch to her chest protectively. There was no way they were going to take the crystal away from her. She would make sure of that. Nobody would take away her victory.
The queen hurriedly entered Damian's room next door, not even bothering to knock, and turned on the light. The little boy sat up and rubbed his tired eyes. "Mommy? What's going on?"
"Get dressed, Damian," she ordered roughly, yanking the blankets off his bed.
Damian looked out the window. "But it's still nighttime."
"Don't ask questions. Just do what I say."
The boy quickly jumped off his bed and went to his dresser, pulling out a pair of black jeans and a turtleneck. His mother was acting strangely tonight. He didn't like it at all. Quickly, he got dressed, not wanting to upset his mother, and grabbed his favorite toy, a stuffed black cat, from his bed.
By that time, Jade had finished casting a spell, creating a dimensional warp hole through one of the walls. Damian's eyes widened in wonder and horror at the fantastic sight as his mother grabbed his arm. She pulled him toward the warp, despite his resistance, and pushed him through.
"Come on, Damian. We're going home."
Downstairs, the Sailor Soldiers materialized in the front foyer, surprised to find the place empty. There was absolute dead silence. Sailor Moon felt a chill run down her spine as she looked around the darkly decorated room. This was definitely not what she expected.
Beside her, Mercury pulled out her mini-computer as the others slowly broke apart from their circle, investigating the area for possible youma. Mars and Uranus stayed near the princess, their attacks ready in case they were needed.
"Hello?" Venus called out. "Is anybody here?"
Jupiter shushed her loudly. "What do you think you're doing, Venus? Do you want Jade to know we're here?"
"No, but I don't think anybody's here," she replied, walking up the first two steps of a flight of stairs. "It's too quiet."
"So, Jade's just disappeared? That's just great."
Mercury came up behind him, a worried look on her face. "I'm afraid Venus is correct. I just did a thermal detection scan over the whole house, and other than us, nobody's here."
"Now, what are we going to do?"
The blue-haired soldier sighed as she typed a command into the computer. "I'm not sure, Jupiter, but there has to be some logical explanation."
Across the room, Pluto suddenly paused. Something didn't feel right. She held up the Time Staff and closed her eyes, allowing her access to the realm of time and space. A few seconds later, the Garnet Orb on top began glowing a bright red. It was just as she suspected.
"There's been a disruption in the time-space continuum," she announced. "Somebody has just used a space warp. Mercury, perform a dimensional scan on the house and check for a disturbance."
"Right." A few seconds later, Mercury snapped shut her computer and sent it back into null-space. "Pluto is correct. The computer detects a dimensional warp located on the second floor. It is set to close in about fifteen minutes, so we better find it soon or we may never be able to get the crystal back from Jade."
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Uranus said, cracking her knuckles. "Santa Claus? Let's get upstairs and find that witch."
The team broke up into three groups when they reached the top of the stairs, deciding it would be faster to locate the warp if they separated. There were many rooms on the second floor, doors lining up one after the other down the three separate corridors, making it illogical for them all to go through each of the rooms one by one. There wasn't enough time.
After a few seconds of discussion and debate, it was decided that Sailor Moon, Mars, Uranus, and Neptune would continue walking straight down the longest hall. Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn decided to take the left corridor, leaving Mercury, Tuxedo Kamen, and Pluto to explore the one on the right. They agreed to call each other on their communicators when one of the groups found the warp before separating.
Pluto's group turned right and began the long trek down the dark hallway. Mercury, with her computer in hand, took the lead, allowing the former lovers to talk in relative privacy. The green-haired guardian of time glanced sideways at her tuxedo-clad companion, a small smile on her face.
"Thank you for sticking up for me out there," she said in a low tone so that the blue-haired warrior in front of them couldn't hear. "I really appreciate it."
Tuxedo Kamen returned the smile, although there was a look of sadness in his eyes. "It was nothing. I'm sure you probably could have convinced the others to let you fight eventually."
"Well, I'm still grateful. I don't know what I would have done if I had to stay with Luna and Artemis, knowing that Usagi-chan was in danger. I have to protect her, Tuxedo Kamen-sama. It is my duty and my life. I couldn't just turn on her in this time of need, no matter what the circumstances are."
He nodded slightly, understanding what Pluto was saying. It was exactly the way he felt. Though he and Usagi were no longer together, he still loved her very much and would risk his life to protect her. They shared a special bond with each other, one impossible to break. Even if they were no longer lovers, Tuxedo Kamen knew he would always be there to protect her.
Ahead of them, Mercury stopped in her tracks. "We'll probably get through this faster if we split up," she said. "I'll take the left side of the hallway. You two take the right. Okay?"
The other two nodded their agreement as the girl opened the first door on the left and peeked inside. Pluto then took the first door on the right, while Tuxedo Kamen checked out the adjoining room.
They continued the pattern for a few minutes, seemingly getting nowhere. Pluto sighed as she turned the knob of the second to last door on the right, hoping that they would find the warp soon before it closed up. They didn't have many other options left. Saturn's group had already checked in with the others, unable to find the warp down the left corridor. That left only the this room and the one next door, plus the handful of rooms down the center hall. If the warp wasn't in one of them, they would have no way to find Jade and get back the Silver Crystal.
Entering the room, Pluto was surprised to see that it appeared to be the bedroom of a little boy. While the other rooms were immaculately neat and decorated with a decidedly 17th century French touch, this one actually looked lived in. There were Pokemon posters hanging on the walls, toy trucks on the floor, and dirty clothes spilling out of the large hamper in the corner. Even the racecar style bed was unmade, as if its owner had just woken up after a good night's sleep.
"Who lives here?" the time guardian mused to herself has she picked up a cute Pikachu plush toy and tossed it back on the bed.
A few seconds later, Tuxedo Kamen popped his head inside. "Pluto, Mercury, and I are finished. Did you find anything…?"
His question lingered in the air unanswered once he walked inside and looked around the strange sight around them. "A kid's room?"
"Apparently," Pluto said, leaning against one of the walls. Much to her surprise, she found herself falling backwards into the seemingly solid foundation. If Tuxedo Kamen hadn't been there to grab her, she would have certainly been sucked into the vortex.
Her red eyes widened as he gently pulled her away from the wall. It looked like they finally found the dimensional warp. Pluto immediately pulled out her wrist communicator, calling the other Sailor Soldiers.
"Girls, we found it."
Mercury, of course, was the first to arrive a few seconds later. By that time, the vortex had completely materialized, making it easy to spot. The soldier of wisdom, always on the quest for knowledge, pulled out her handy little computer and began analyzing the strange appearance while they waited for the others to appear. She had always wanted to study one of these dimensional warps villains were so fond of using.
Shortly after, the rest of the Sailor Soldiers crowded into the room, amazed by the sight. Venus cautiously put her arm though the warp, alarmed to discover that it felt like her entire hand was disintegrating. She quickly pulled it out again and jumped back. "Do you think that this is a good idea?" she asked dubiously.
Pluto couldn't help but hide a small smile. "It's perfectly safe, Venus. The idea behind a dimensional warp is the same as the Sailor Teleport, only the vortex is less specialized in that most people can use it without any problems. It creates havoc on the time-space continuum, but other than that, physically harmless."
"Well, then, I guess we should get going before the warp closes up," Sailor Moon said in a somewhat shaky voice. Even with Pluto's assurances, it was obvious that the princess wasn't happy with the idea. However, she quickly pushed back her fear, closed her eyes, and walked through the wall, the others following her example a few seconds later.
A short time later, they found themselves on a cold barren planet somewhere in deep space. Other than a forbidding castle looming on the horizon, it appeared the tiny world was uninhibited. Using her computer, Mercury pinpointed their location as the planet Hades in the Andromeda Galaxy.
"Hades, huh?" Uranus commented. "They sure knew what they were talking about when they named this place. It certainly is a hellhole."
Mars shivered, but it wasn't from the extreme cold. An evil aura surrounded the area, stronger than she ever felt before in her life. It was as if the entire planet was permeated with negative energy. "You sure got that right, Uranus," she agreed. "I guess that's Jade's castle up ahead. Should we check it out?"
The princess nodded her head as she stepped forward, heading toward the rundown palace. Her hands were shaking, but she clenched them into tight fists so the others wouldn't notice. No matter what, she had to be brave. She could do this. All she had to do was believe in herself. The others began silently following her until they reached a wide moat surrounding the castle.
Several of the girls covered their noses and gagged from the pungent smell arising from the dark, murky waters. It smelled like a cross between rotten eggs and dirty diapers. Pluto clutched her stomach, feeling a wave of nausea coming over her, although she didn't know whether it was from the odious smell or her pregnancy.
"Not exactly the French Riviera, is it?" Neptune said, holding a lace handkerchief to her nose. "We aren't going to swim across, are we?"
Her partner shook her head, pointing to some object twenty feet away. "I think that's a raft over there. We can use that to ferry across the River of Stink."
Mercury pulled a test tube out of null-space and bent down to fill it with a sample of the foul water as Tuxedo Kamen and Uranus ran over to a nearby tree to untie the abandoned raft. By the time they finished dragging the raft over, the genius had finished her analysis.
"Well, it appears that there's nothing particularly harmful about the water," she informed the others. "It's just normal H2O combined with some kind of substance to give it a blackish appearance. We could safely swim across if needed, but all in all, I'm glad Uranus spotted the raft. Like Neptune said, I'd rather not swim across if I didn't have to."
So, the group of ten piled on the small makeshift raft and started to slowly row across the murky waters, making sure that nobody would fall off. Uranus and Jupiter were paddling, using Saturn's Silence Glaive and Pluto's Time staff as oars, much to their respective owners' consternation. That was definitely not what they were intended to do, but in a pitch, the sacred weapons worked just as well. Even Neptune pulled her out her Aqua Mirror to help.
Things were going smoothly until they reached about halfway across the river. The smooth waters began to move ever so slightly, almost causing Jupiter to lose her balance. Those sitting on the raft grabbed onto each other so that they wouldn't fall in, as someone's deep voice boomed over the slowly building waves.
WELCOME TO THE RIVER STYX! PREPARE TO FACE YOUR DOOM!
Everyone's eyes widened, wondering where the voice was coming from. However, they didn't have much time to think because the raft was suddenly bombarded with speeding rapids, pushing them back to the shore. The paddlers frantically tried fighting against the current, but it was just too strong. "The river is possessed!" Mars cried out as she was splashed by a large wave. She spit out some water and coughed, unintentionally letting go of Sailor Moon's arm.
Another wave crashed against the tiny raft, causing the princess to be knocked off into the freezing cold abyss. Mars screamed as she quickly put her arms in the water, blinding searching for her friend. Beside her, Tuxedo Kamen was already taking off his shoes and cape, preparing to go after her. Despite the others' pleas for him to stay, he jumped into the water after his beloved princess.
"Prince! Princess!" Venus yelled, her voice lost under the sound of a building thunderstorm. "We've got to find them."
Neptune and Mercury, the two strongest swimmers in the group, were already standing up and taking off their shoes, but Uranus grabbed her lover's shoulder, shaking her head. "It's suicide, Neptune!" she shouted. "You won't be able to find them."
"But we can't just let them drown!"
Pluto stared down at the crashing waves, calm despite the chaos surrounding her. "He will find her," she said confidently. "I know he will. Love will save them both."
Underneath the water, Tuxedo Kamen opened his eyes, searching for his one true love. It was dark and hard to see, but if he concentrated hard enough, he could just make out the shadow of the raft above him. He quickly flipped and began swimming toward the bottom, praying he would find her soon.
Usako, where are you? he thought to himself as he approached the darkness. It was becoming more and more difficult to see, and he knew that he didn't have much time before he would have to come up for air. His lungs were already burning. Tuxedo Kamen judged he could probably hold his breath for about another thirty seconds.
He sped up his pace, finally touching the soggy bottom. It was now impossible to see, but he held out his arms, waving them around blindly. A few seconds later, his left hand became tangled in what he suspected to be one of Sailor Moon's long pigtails. He grabbed the hair and pulled it toward him, finding it attached to a cold female body.
Usako…
Tuxedo Kamen wrapped his arm around her slender waist and began swimming toward the surface, his lungs on fire. Once he popped his head above the water, he took a huge gasp of air before glancing down at the unconscious woman in his arms.
He choked back a sob at the sight. Sailor Moon's normally rosy skin was pale, and her lips were turning a frightening shade of blue. He pulled her closer to his body, hoping to warm her with the little body heat he had left.
"Usako, hang on," he whispered, as he began swimming toward the shore. "Hang on a little while longer! We're almost there."
Once they reached the other side, Tuxedo Kamen dragged her motionless body out of the water and searched for a pulse. It was there, but very faint. She didn't have much longer. He immediately began mouth-to-mouth. Don't you dare leave me, Usako! Not now, not ever. You are my life. Don't you know that? You can't die and leave me here. Please, fight! he prayed.
There was no response. In his head, he calculated that she had been without oxygen for about three minutes. The brain couldn't handle being without oxygen for much longer. He continued, tears watering his eyes. Fight, damn it! Usako, I love you.
Finally, Sailor Moon slowly opened her eyes and coughed up the water that had filled her lungs. Tuxedo Kamen thought his heart would burst from happiness.
"Mamo-chan…" she whispered, weakly raising a hand to wipe away the tears that was running down his smiling face.
"Usako, I love you so much," he said, barely able to get the words out without crying. "I was so afraid I lost you. So very afraid."
"You saved me…"
He nodded his head. "Of course I did. I will always be there to protect you, Usako. Don't you know that?"
Sailor Moon sighed, brushing back a few strands of wet ebony black hair from his face. Her eyes filled with tears as it finally dawned on her that he truly did still love her. He had always loved her, just like Setsuna said.
However, Tuxedo Kamen's eyes darkened at the sight of her tears, suddenly remembering that they were no longer lovers. For just a few moments, he had been able to forget what had happened, but now that he was sure that she was going to be alright, all those feelings of guilt and sadness came running back, even stronger than before. "I've been such a fool these last few weeks," he muttered. "It was like I was under some kind of spell or something. I don't know what came over me…"
The blonde shook her head and pressed a finger to his lips, shocking her prince. There was a small smile on her lovely face. "I love you, too, Mamo-chan. I could never stop loving you."
Hesitantly, the prince of Earth bent down and brushed his lips across those of his princess. "I'm sorry," he said softly, staring into Sailor Moon's beautiful blue eyes. "Can you forgive me?"
Instead of answering him, she pulled him down against her body and gave him the most passionate kiss in his entire life.
Soon afterward, the rest of the Sailor Soldiers caught up to Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen, glad to see that the prince and princess were alive and well. They'd finally made it ashore somewhere downriver from the spot where Sailor Moon fell off the raft and Tuxedo Kamen jumped in after her. When they approached the two lovers, they were still wrapped in a passionate embrace.
Pluto felt her eyes water at the sight, but she blinked back her tears, knowing that was the way it was supposed to be. The prince and princess truly did love each other, in contrast to what she and Mamoru had, which was only deep friendship and attraction. It never would have worked out anyway. Still…
Her hand found its way to her flat stomach. Still, for at least one night, she knew what it felt to be in love, and that meant more to her than anything in the entire world. Deep in her heart, she supposed she would always love Mamoru in some way, but she was comforted by the fact that she would always have a part of him in the form of their child.
Once Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen finally realized they had an audience and broke apart, blushing brightly, Mercury pulled out her VR goggles and began scanning the castle for the entrance. She frowned at the results, detecting a very strong protective barrier surrounding entire palace.
"What is the problem, Mercury?" Jupiter asked.
"Well, I found the entrance, but I'm afraid that we won't be able to enter. There's a magical barrier that I'm not sure we can break through."
"We could teleport again."
Saturn shook her head. "Bad idea, Jupiter. It will take up too much of our energy, and we need as much power as possible if we want to defeat Jade."
The guardian of time and space turned toward the palace, an idea forming in her head. It would take up most of her energy, but it just might work. "I can open a dimensional warp," she declared softly.
Mercury did not look happy with the idea. "But, Pluto, won't that deplete most of your power?"
She nodded. "It's true that it will certainly require a lot of energy on my part, but we don't really have much of a choice. It's better for one of us to lose a great amount of power than for everybody to lose much needed energy. You all need to conserve the energy you do have. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."
Before anybody could convince her not to go through with the plan, Pluto raised the Time Staff high in the air, concentrating all her energy on the polished Garnet Orb sitting on top. The orb began glowing as she began chanting a spell in an unfamiliar language, most likely Plutonian, and a few minutes later, another vortex appeared before them in a bright flash of light. The garnet-eyed woman leaned heavily on her staff, completely drained from opening the warp.
"Pluto, are you okay?" Neptune asked, wrapping an arm around her waist just in case she fainted. Pluto nodded her head as she pulled away and slowly walked toward the vortex. "I'm fine, Neptune. Just a little tired. Let's go."
Though none of the Sailor Soldiers were convinced Pluto was telling the truth, they reluctantly followed the time guardian through the dimensional warp.