Silver Millennium Life Bonds
Rocky Oberlin
Chapter 11

Disclaimer: If I owned Sailor Moon or Ronin Warriors, I would have air conditioning and a bigger room. Since I don't have said air conditioner or the room, I really DON'T own said animes. Now I have to deal with the humidity like I did last year. *Looks around* Hey! Where did my fan go?!

Anubis watched his successor as she tried to meditate. At first she would go into her trance, but a dark look would cross her face and she would come back out with an oath. After the fifth time, Anubis finally stopped the last Ancient. "What's troubling you, Kayura?"

"Nothing," denied the girl. She tried one more time and promptly failed. This last attempt angered her so that she swore enough to make a marine proud.

"Want to try that answer again?" asked Anubis evenly.

"I don't know why Windy didn't trust me to go with her into the Nether Realm. I am just as good as Cale is and I would have been more helpful than that little girl," Kayura snarled out.

"Have you seen that 'little girl' fight?" asked Anubis. At Kayura's negative headshake he continued. "She is deadly with her chosen weapon. I had a talk with her fellow guardians one evening and they told me of her power. Did you know that in the Silver Millennium she was put to sleep to keep her power from being used? The queen of the Silver Millennium feared her. Serena didn't know her until this incarnation. That 'little girl' has enough power to destroy the armor of Inferno and the rest of the world. Only her sense of duty keeps her from using that power."

"So, I should give her a chance; is that what you're saying?" asked Kayura with a sigh.

Anubis nodded. "That would help."

The young Ancient flung her hands up in the air. "Fine," she breathed heavily. "I'll give her a chance and trust Lady Windy's judgment a little more. Happy?"

"A little, but I can work with it," answered Anubis just as a chuckle came from the door.

"I don't think that the Windwalker would appreciate being called 'Lady'," said one voice close to the floor. The two Ancients turned to see Luna and Artimas standing in the door, laughing quietly.

"I think I agree with you," said Anubis. "She seems to be the type that would punch you in the face for calling her 'Lady'."

Luna shook her head. "No, just give you a scathing look. I remember one courtier calling her Lady and he soon ran for the door while she stared at his back. He later told the queen that Windy was a menace and should be sent away for threatening defenseless people. Apparently Windy gave the idiot a dark look and twitched a hand to one of her open knives."

Artimas fell to his side laughing at the memory. "That pompous buffoon left for Mercury quickly after Queen Serenity said that the Windwalker would be staying as long as she pleased. I didn't see him again."

"But the Mercurain Court did request that the Windwalker stay away from their ambassadors while armed," said Luna.

"And knowing Windy as we do, even if she didn't look armed, she was," concluded Anubis.

"Got that right," laughed Artimas.

"So, what brings the advisors of the Silver Millennium to our door?" asked Kayura, wanting to get to the point of the visit.

As Artimas was still chuckling, Luna answered. "Sage, Setsuna, and Michiru were going to see what Windy, Cale, and Hotaru found. It sounded like they were in the kitchen last we heard."

Anubis looked at his partner and said, "Well, since we aren't getting anywhere here, we might as well find out what Prince Endymion and Chaos are doing." Kayura gave him a sheepish grin and quickly rose to her feet, to be joined by Anubis seconds later. They followed the two cats down the stairs to the growing crowd gathering in the kitchen.


Quiet words and worried looks were still being traded between four individuals as Sage, Setsuna, and Michiru entered the living room. Haruka and Dais were the first to notice the three additional people in the room just listening to them. The look on Sage's face convinced Haruka that she had better keep any thoughts of Lita to herself while around him until anything was proven. Her decision was reinforced by the quiet looks from her partners. Dais came up with the same conclusion from the traded looks he witnessed between the blond and the three newcomers. Seckmet was the first to voice his opinion in front of his still unknown audience.

"I still don't trust the wench. She could still turn on us. Once a betrayer, always a betrayer."

"Look who's talking, Seckmet," said Sage quietly from the door. "I do believe that you did some betraying in your past."

"Stay out of this Halo. You don't know the circumstances in which I was in," shot back Seckmet.

Haruka looked uncomfortable and Michiru had a sad look on her face. Dais was the one that saved them from saying something at the moment. "But _I_ do know the circumstances and while I don't trust her, she is here. We know the signs; we will watch her. If she does think about betraying the Princes and Princess, then we can stop it before it affects the rest of us."

"Oh, that's just great; the Cyclops and snake man watching Lita for signs of betrayal. May be we should let someone else do that. You may get too jumpy and make a mistake."

Sage was surprised by common sense coming from his simple friend and the shock on Dais and Seckmet's faces showed that they were sharing the same boat. Since when did Kento become a voice of reason?

A small smile graced Setsuna's face. "There may be hope for you yet, Kento of Hardrock." She looked up to include the rest of the group to say, "Come. Our friends are back and I think that they may have news about what they found in this Nether Realm Endymion is now residing in."

Sighs and grumbles accompanied four distrustful and uneasy people. But they did join their friends in the fast becoming crowded kitchen to hear the reconnaissance report from the three weary spies.


Hotaru was leaning against Lita and Windy had her head down in her arms on the table. Cale was leaning back in the chair with his eyes closed when the last stragglers came into the room. Cye and Mia were busy making dinner and Ryo was studying the table with great intensity while chewing on his lower lip.

"If you keep that up, Ryo, you will burn a hole in Mia's table and then where will you be?" asked Sage.

"In the dog house," responded Mia absently as she chopped lettuce for the salad.

Cale and Hotaru smiled at the joke and a muffled bark of laughter came from Windy's hidden mouth. Hotaru straightened in her chair and looked at her old and new friends. She could see some of the quiet dissention already forming, but so far nothing was being brought into the open. A quick look showed that she was only slightly wrong. Rowen and Serena knew and the looks passed between Haruka and Michiru showed that the teal haired Sailor, Setsuna, and Sage also knew what had been said in the small group. Hopefully they weren't going to do any harm to the fragile emotions Lita was dealing with at the moment.

"I think, Windwalker, that we should give our report before someone decides to pull it out of us," mentioned Cale.

Windy lifted her head with a sigh and looked at the assemblage. "We were right about it being Endymion and Chaos, but Michiru's mirror was also right about there being a third person in the mix. Chaos decided to forgo the usual 'bring Tulpa back to exact his revenge for killing him' and called for someone a little more... ummm... 'smarter'."

"So who are we going against now?" asked Kento. "The smart bad guy turned after we defeated Tulpa the first time."

"Are you saying that we are stupid, Hardrock?" growled Seckmet.

"Takes one to know one," muttered Cale.

"Would you guys stop so Windy can continue?" interrupted Lady Kayura.

Windy smiled a thanks to the Ancient and continued. "We're going against Badamon. And we know, 'Ryo destroyed him, how did he come back?' Like I told Cye, Ryo, Mia, and Lita, Chaos doesn't care about the rules. If it wanted to bring someone back to serve him, then it will. Ryo has been seeing dark images in the fire since I came back with Lita. What he's been seeing is Chaos' influence on the Nether Realm and the Mortal Realm where it touches the Nether Realm. Basically Chaos wants to destroy what 'defeated' it so long ago."

"Will you have to bring Sailor Galaxia here as well?" asked Setsuna.

Windy shrugged. "I think I will leave that as plan B. Let's see what we can do against Tweedle Dumb and Tweedle Dumber first. Chaos will just have to be pushed back to where it is suppose to be."

"That will be comforting," groused Sage. "We defeat the lackeys, but have to imprison the one who brought them here."

"Even I couldn't destory Chaos," said Serena. "I fought it when it was in Sailor Galaxia's body and all I could do was send it back from where it came from."

Rowen wrapped his arms around his life bond and said quietly, "You won't fight it alone this time. I'll be with you. Always." Serena twisted to smile at her love and gagging sounds were made from the direction of Cale and Kento.

Sage glowered at the two and shot "shut up" out of the corner of his mouth. It was rare to see his best friend so happy and seeing his twin so happy was enough to make the bearer of Halo content at the moment. He stole a quick glance at Lita and saw the wistful look in her green eyes. His heart twisted in his chest so painfully that Sage had to look away from the tall Jovian. Dark blue eyes from a ghost were the only ones to see his response to Lita while everyone else was either enjoying the view of Rowen and Serena or teasing them.

"There is hope for you yet," whispered Windy to the separated pair.

"So, what else did you find out?" asked Lady Kayura as the group settled down.

Hotaru looked sadly over to the Ancient and said, "I don't think that you will be happy with what happened to the Nether Realm."

"What happened?" growled Dais.

"Badamon and Chaos turned it into the nightmare it was when Tulpa ruled," said Cale in quiet fury. "All our hard work was just smashed to bits."

"Then we will get rid of the interlopers and fix it again," said Anubis. Those that knew him could hear the anger suppressed in his voice. They didn't want to be the ones who had ruined what they had worked so hard on.

"So the tin cans are back?" asked Cye.

"And uglier then ever," affirmed Windy. "I would say a little more powerful too, considering that Chaos raised them."

"So we fight harder," said Haruka. "They at least won't be like the Animates or the phages that Galaxia made."

"That is a small blessing," said Setsuna.

"At least we won't hurt people," whispered Serena.

"Don't worry princess, we'll kick Badamon back to the spirit realm, Endymion back to his dimension, and Chaos to a tiny hole in space for it to inhabit, then you and Rowen can get to know each other again," said Ryo with false cheer. The armor bearers and Windy could see the concern in his eyes and the memory of pain from having to fight Tulpa in the Inferno armor.

"Right now I think that we should table the war talk and start on dinner," said Mia. "I think that it's ready although the table isn't. Any volunteers?"

Bodies scrambled to get to the dining room, but a few stayed to help get the table set. Ryo handled the plates, while Rowen grabbed some of the glasses. Serena gathered the silverware, Windy grabbed a few more glasses, and Hotaru gathered the rest. Michiru and Lita helped Cye and Mia bring the dinner to the table, while Haruka kept Kento from attacking the food before it was in place. Sage looked at the Seasonals and mouthed, "Dishes for us tonight."