Libris Demonica


Chapter 5


by Weirdbard



The first thing Serena did when she reached her house was to make sure that all the windows and doors were barred, all of them except the one in her room. She didn't bother to go to her room to lock that one because she wanted to leave a way for Luna to get inside when she reported back. Finally coming to a rest in her livingroom Serena fell to her knees and started sobbing.


After a short time Serena lifted her head. The confusion and suspicion put there by the book was starting to clear.


"My friends and my future daughter can't be planning my death! I just don't believe it! Not after all we have been through together. Something is not right here. I feel like I am trying to think through a wall of cotton candy." Serena thought to herself. She started to get a slight headache as her mind tried to make sense of the jumble of emotions she was suffering with. Getting up from the floor she climbed the stairs to her bedroom. Opening the door she stepped inside.
Just for a split second she thought she could see a red hazy bubble as she stepped into it but the thought disappeared instantly as the book once again took control of her mind.


As though Serena was suddenly sleeping walking she walked over to the desk and sat down. The book lying flat on the desk sprang open and turned to a page on it's own. Serena with only the slightest frown on her face to show she was struggling against the book's control started to read out loud. The page had a picture of a being dressed in highly formal wear. Top hat and cape included but the drawing's face was not that of a man but a hideously deformed monster. As Serena finished reading out loud the final word, she was thrown back by the explosion of darkness that came pouring out of the book. She landed on the bottom of the bed and slid off to land in the floor, out cold.


As the darkness in the room cleared, the monster in formal wear was seen standing beside the desk where the book was looking down on the fallen young woman. The creature had a mouth filled with jagged and yellow teeth. It's eyes were different sizes and one was slightly higher than the other one on it's face. All in all it looked a young child had tried to sculpt a man out of clay but got the dimensions slightly wrong. As the creature continued to stare at Serena a thin line of drool dripped out of it's mouth to land with a hiss on the floor burning new holes in places the previous monster's drool had missed. The creature looked over at it's master, the evil book, which was now closed and standing on end so the face could see the room clearly. The eyes of the book looked at it's creation and the mouth moved.


"No. Do not harm her. I am having far too much fun destroying her soul. Go out into the world and bring me energy." The book hissed at the creature.


The creature nodded it's head and leapt out of the bedroom window and was gone.



Back at the Raye's temple:


Luna was slightly proud of herself. I mean it took a creature of great stealth and ingenuity to sneak into a room filled with Sailor Scouts and mange to climb into the rafters of the building without being spotted. Well okay, it helped that those same Scouts were not paying much attention at the moment to anything but a fight going on between a very young girl and a hot tempered black haired Scout.


"Why do you treat my mother so badly?!" Rini shouted not for the first time at Raye.


"I don't treat Meatball Head badly!" Raye shouted back, again not for the first time today. "I am just worried about her! I want her to take things more seriously and be more careful!"


Luna's ears twitched. This certainly didn't sound like two people who were planning on killing Serena when she least expected it.


Artemis noticing when Luna snuck into the room had followed her into the rafters silently. Sitting behind her and watching as Luna obviously tried to eavesdrop on the scouts. "Luna? What are you doing?" He finally asked.


Luna with a screech of surprise leapt to her feet from where she had been crouched on a rafter, lost her footing and started to plummet to the floor. Luckily Amy looked up and managed to catch the cat before she could hit the ground.


"She was listening and watching you all." Artemis voice called out from the rafters.


Luna in Amy's arms closed her eyes tightly. If Serena was right and they were out to kill her Luna knew they would not hesitate to kill her too. After a few moments Luna opened her eyes to see the concerned eyes of all the scouts watching her.


Amara was the first to speak. "What are you doing here Luna? I thought you left with Serena? Serena needs someone to be with her if our enemies have singled her out for attack! You could call us for help on your communicator!"


Amy's eyes grew large. "I didn't even think of Luna's communicator! If Rini's and Serena's were burned out by negative energy then there is a good chance Luna's is as well."


The door to the room swished open to reveal Darien standing there.


"Daddy!" Rini shouted with glee and raced over into his arms.


Darien hugged his future daughter for a moment and then looked at the gathered scouts. "What is going on?" He finally asked.


Raye with a glare at Luna replied. "That is just what we were wondering. Serena has been acting funny and just a few moments ago we caught Luna trying to spy on us." Raye walked over to where Luna was trying her hardest not to cringe in Amy's arms. "Spill Luna! What is going on?"


Before Luna could respond, it was Rini who spoke. "Mommy has been acting weird ever since she got that new book. I don't like it myself. It gives me the creeps!"


Luna giving a shudder nodded her head. "Me too! I have never seen such a ugly and horrible looking thing."


"Book?" Trista asked.


"What can be creepy about a book?" Amy asked as she started to pet Luna's fur to calm her down.


"It has a face on it." Rini answered her.


Trista's eyes grew wide. "Why does that sound familiar?" She thought to herself. Out loud all she said was, "I don't like the sounds of that."


Raye started to open her mouth to say something but was interrupted when everyone heard a scream from outside. Racing outside they spotted at the base of the temple stairs some young girls being crowded against the rails of the stairs by a tuxedo clad man wearing a cape and top hat.


"Tuxedo Mask?" Mina shouted in shock and then looked over at where Darien was standing with Rini still in his arms.


The creature hearing the shouting turned his attention away from the young girls giving them a opportunity to escape, which they smartly did. Turning it looked up at the scouts revealing it's misshapen face.


"Whoa! Definitely not Tuxedo Mask!" Mina shouted again.


The creature debated silently with itself. To go after the young women and the man at the top of the stairs or run across to the park where it could feel the life-force of dozens and dozens of young people enjoying themselves. Finally deciding that the larger energy traces of the park were more attractive it turned and raced off in that direction.


"It's time to kick youma butt!" Amara shouted eagerly.


"Wait!" Trista stopped her as she went to transform. "I think the inner scouts, Tuxedo Mask and Rini should handle the youma and Uranus and Neptune should go check on Serena!"


"You think the creature showing up might to be to draw us off while something attacks Serena?" Michelle asked.


"Could be. It seems odd that it should appear outside Raye's temple were we all are."


Amara and Michelle nodded their heads and quickly pulling out their transformation pens changed into Uranus and Neptune.


As the now transformed inner scouts and Artemis and Luna raced off to the park to fight the creature, Uranus and Neptune raced towards Serena's home. Trista watched them for a moment and then opening a doorway to the Gates of Time she stepped into it to do research on a book with a face.



Serena lying on the floor entered another one of the book's dreams. This time she did not find herself in a hallway of doors but found herself.....in her own room. The book controlling the dream recreated every last detail of the real world bedroom. Down to the book itself lying on the desk.
Serena glanced around the room curiously. She had a sense that there was something vital that she was suppose to be doing but she could not remember what. Looking at the window, the dream Serena watched as a battered and badly beaten Luna came sailing through the open window.


"You were right Serena! The other scouts are planning on killing you! They caught me after I heard their plans. I barely managed to escape with my life to warn you. They are coming here now to finish you off!" The dream Luna shouted.


Suddenly it all came flooding back to Serena. The hall of doors. The overheard plans of the scouts. The horrible sight of what Amara and Michelle had planned for her.


"What should I do Luna?!" Serena pleaded with the cat.


"Run Serena! Run! You are no match for all the scouts. You have to get out of her and run far away!" The dream Luna shouted at her.


The dream Serena shook her head yes in a wild manner and turned to gather up some things to take with her. She didn't see the dream Luna's eyes glow a evil red color for a moment or see the sadistic look of satisfaction cross the feline's face.


Suddenly the sleeping Serena's eyes shot open wide and Serena leapt to her feet. Looking at the window she noticed that Luna was no where in sight now.


"She must have went to try and hold off the scouts to give me a chance to get away!" Serena said with a sob. She prayed Luna would be all right.
For reasons Serena could not even explain to herself, she found herself grabbing up her book bag and quickly stuffing the book on the desk into it and then strapping it to her back. Running to the window Serena peeked out and spotted a quickly moving Uranus and Neptune as they entered her house's front gates.


"Oh my god! They are here already!" She whispered to herself.


Racing out of her bedroom Serena made a mad dash for the attic. A part of the house that had been converted over to Rini's room. Serena spared a moment to look sadly at her future daughter's room.


"I still can't believe my own daughter wants her mother dead." Serena sobbed. Pulling herself together she held up her broach and transformed herself into Sailor Moon. The book bag containing the evil book stayed with her and unfortunately so did the red hazy bubble of the distortion spell. Pushing open the roof access hatch Sailor Moon silently waited.


Uranus ran to Serena's front door and pounded on it loudly. Waiting a moment and not hearing anything she then stepped back and summoned her 'World Shaking Attack' and blew the door off of it's hinges.


Neptune looked at the fallen door for a moment and then shrugged. If it turned out Serena was in trouble a lost door would be a very small consideration and if it turned out that Serena was in her bedroom quietly asleep? Well she knew that Amara could rehang the door easily enough.


As soon as Sailor Moon heard her front door get blown inward, she knew that her fears were real. "Uranus and Neptune must have been convinced by the other scouts to kill me as well or they are here to make me their slave. Either way I have to get out of here!" She thought to herself as she leapt on top of her home's roof and from there starting running along the tops of the other houses in the neighborhood.


Sailor Moon running silently for a moment finally pulled to a stop. She had no idea where she could run to.


"Go to the temple. They would never think to look for you there. They will be searching everywhere else and you will have time to think of a plan." The book whispered into Sailor Moon's mind.


Not realizing that she was under the control of something else Serena made up her mind to hide at Raye's temple and began to run as fast as she could there.



Back at the fight at the park:


Mars and the other scouts quickly helped to evacuate the park and then corner the creature near the water. The creature with a snarl removed his top hat revealing a head shaped like a lumpy potato and then threw the hat at Jupiter.


Jupiter almost felt like laughing but out of instinct anyway ducked as the hat sailed towards her. Her amusement at the creature's 'feeble' attack was wiped away as she saw the hat cleave easily through a statue that had been behind her. The hat then sailed obediently back to the creature's hand. The statue's head fell off and landed at Jupiter's feet.


"Someone has been watching too many James Bond movies." She muttered to herself before yelling out a warning to the others to be careful of the hat.


"Hey you! Formal wear is meant to be worn for times of great happiness and joy. I will not let you besmirch the image of a tuxedo to do your evil!" Tuxedo Mask's voice rang out.


Luna standing off to the side with Artemis and Sailor Mini Moon looked at him and then rolled her eyes. "I think his speeches are getting more and more cornier all the time." She muttered.


"But they are at least getting shorter." Mini Moon replied.


Tuxedo Mask paused for a moment. He could feel the usual energy surge he felt when Serena transformed herself into Sailor Moon. "Uranus and Neptune must have found her and told her about the youma. No doubt they both will be here soon." He thought to himself.


Tuxedo Mask pulled out one of his roses and threw it at the creature confident that would stop it or at least slow it down. His confidence turned out to be misplaced however as the creature without a blink of it's misshapen eyes swatted the rose out of the air with it's walking cane. The creature then pointed the cane in Tuxedo Mask's direction and it suddenly extended.


"Hey that is my trick!" Tuxedo Mask managed to get out before he was struck in the stomach by the cane and knocked backward.


"Flame Sniper Arrow!" Mars shouted and fired her flaming arrow at the creature.


The creature for it's part only took off it's hat and allowed the arrow to disappear into it. Then like a magician he made a few passes over the hat with one hand and pointed it back at Mars. Mars' flame arrow shot out of the hat straight back at her. Throwing herself to the side Mars managed to avoid the arrow. The creature then replaced the hat on it's 'head' with a laugh.


"How do we beat this creature Mercury?" Venus shouted as she tried to get around behind the creature.


"I'm working on it!" Mercury shouted back as she wildly typed on her computer.


Suddenly the creature's hat fell over the creature swallowing it completely. The hat then sailed over the scouts heads to land behind Mercury, who was still trying to get a scan of the monster. As though the hat was 'throwing up' the monster, the creature appeared out of it standing behind Mercury.


"Love chain and encircle!" Venus shouted and quickly shot out her chain to snare the creature before it could attack Mercury.


"I've got it!" Mercury shouted excitedly and then noticed that the creature was right beside her struggling against Venus's chain to attack her. Leaping backward Mercury yelled. It's the rose on his lapel! That is it's weak point!"


Tuxedo Mask still holding his stomach where the creature's cane had hit him, shouted. "The rose? That is my area I think." Pulling a rose out he threw it at the rose in the creature's lapel.


The creature finally breaking free from Venus's chain started to turn to try and protect his rose but he was a fraction too late. Tuxedo Mask's rose smashed into his rose turning it instantly into ashes. The rest of the creature quickly turned into dust and was sucked up into the hat which continued to rotate in mid air for a moment before it too exploded into dust and was gone.


"Moon dusted!" Venus shouted with joy using Sailor Moon's favorite saying.


Mars looked around worriedly. "Shouldn't Neptune and Uranus have found Serena yet and called us?"


"I felt Serena change into Sailor Moon a short time ago. They are probably on their way here." Tuxedo Mask said.


A few seconds later the before mentioned Uranus and Neptune came running into the park.
Before any of the scouts could ask, Uranus said. "We found no signs of Serena or a book with a face at her house but there are some weird acid like burns in her carpet near her desk."


"That is where the book was." Sailor Mini Moon said worriedly.


"I think we should go back to the temple and consult the Sacred Flame." Mars said.


All of the scouts nodded and knowing they could travel faster as scouts than their normal selves they decided not to de-transform.