Moon of Destiny

by Lord-Mandrake

Post Galaxia, The Senshi learn the history of the universe before the Moon Kingdom. Powerful enemies and Allies awaken, and destinies are fulfilled

7. Aftermath

Chapter 7 : Aftermath

Thanks to all who reviewed, I enjoy feedback more than I anticipated. We now near the halfway point for the story where things begin to move a little faster. There was a bit of a disagreement with one of my beta's about this chapter, so I release it with a bit of reservation.

Even so, I'll dedicate this chapter to Liz, the first non beta to brave my temperament and tell me what she thought.

********

The slap echoed through the now quiet park. Most of the assembled Senshi stared at Mina in shock, though they agreed with her sentiments. Tenjin on the other hand appeared distraught.

"I can't believe you've been lying to me from the beginning!" Mina continued her tirade.

"I never lied to you." Tenjin replied hotly. "I may have led you to the wrong impression, but I have never, ever lied to you."

"How about telling me your name was Tenjin, that was a lie."

"Not exactly," Tenjin equivocated, "My name translates into Tenjin. I just didn't bother to mention I'd translated it."

"Not that I don't find this amusing, but shouldn't we take this somewhere more private?" Konjou asked. When there was a general sound of agreement he snapped his fingers and teleported the entire gathering, including two cats that thought they had been very well hidden, to the front room of his and Tenjin's apartment.

"There," he said, "you may now return to your regularly scheduled rant." Mina glared at Konjou before she continued. He was very happy he wasn't Tenjin right now. Mina looked ready to peel the skin off of him slowly. His happiness lasted only until he glanced at Makoto. The look in her eyes made Mina look cheerful. Both he and Ami were included in the glare. He swallowed nervously as her eyes narrowed further.

"You used me." Mina accused. "You lied to me and used me to get information on us. Just how long have you known I was a Senshi? From the very beginning I bet."

"Actually no. I've only known you were a Senshi since we first made love."

"You've known for a month!" she screamed. "A month and you never told me!" The golden aura that had surrounded her near the end of the battle had returned.

"You never told me you were a Senshi so I didn't feel it was any more dishonest than you were being."

"I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't. It wasn't just my secret. But you already knew, so why did you hide it from me that you knew who I was." Though her voice had calmed slightly, no one believed that she was any happier. "Were you hoping I would accidentally give something away who the others were, perhaps?"

"There was no need for you to give them away. Once Neko and I knew who Venus and Jupiter were, figuring the rest out took less than two minutes. The only tough part was figuring who was who, oh and figuring out Setsuna was one of you."

"You knew about all of us? And you still fought us? I can not believe you would do something like that. I thought you were nice, and kind and loving." She punctuated each adjective by drilling her finger into his chest. "I thought you were different from all the other boys, I was right. You are different, you're worse than they ever could be."

"And just how am I worse!" Tenjin had finally given into the urge to yell back at her. "Who came on to whom? Who contrived to spend every night at her boyfriend's apartment? And who did his best not to hurt the woman he loved despite the fact she was trying to kill him!"

Mori's temper storm lashed at the windows. Usagi was cowering into Mamoru's side from the thunder. The rest of the gathering seemed completely unconcerned, well the rest of them save Haruka. Haruka flinched at every flicker of lightning, and seemed to be trying to mimic Usagi's posture only using Michiru as the shield. It would have been funny had it not been so pathetic.

"I wasn't trying to kill you!" Mina shouted. "I couldn't even hurt you. You smiled at me when I hit you."

"You weren't trying to kill me?" Tenjin's voice had taken on a tone frustration, anger was buried under mountains of sarcasm. "If that wasn't trying I hope to Dallak you never give it effort."

"You want to see me give it effort?" Mina yelled at the top of her lungs. "You want me to try?" With that, Mina hauled back and slapped him as hard as she could. Her arm blurred into invisibility to all but Ami and the Primarchs. It caught Mori across the face and knocked him to the floor. He landed hard on his injured arm and gave a shout of pain.

"Tenjin!" Mina cried out in shock at his pain. She noticed again the bloody bandage on his arm, and realised the significance of its location. "Oh Kami, Tenjin I'm sorry." She wailed as she sat down and pulled him into her lap. She made sympathetic noises and cradled him to her as he slowly brought his pain under control.

The golden aura around Mina flared brightly when she carefully touched Tenjin's arm. His aura flared in response, and quickly the two seemed to merge. It became obvious a few moments later that Mina's aura was being consumed by Tenjin's. The assembled people watched in fascination as the bandage covering the wounded arm disintegrated, revealing the bone deep wound. Amazingly the cut began to slowly close, causing the other Primarchs, except Hikage, to gape in wonder. When Mina's aura had been completely consumed Tenjin's arm hardly showed any sign of ever being injured, only a light scratch remained.

"Mina that was amazing!" Tenjin said as he turned to take her into his arms. She smiled at him once before falling asleep with a look of happiness on her face. Tenjin picked her up and strode from the room, ignoring the protests from the majority of the Senshi.

"What in the hell just happened?" Jander spoke for the first time.

"I would also like to know." Lor agreed.

"While everyone is asking questions, why is Sailor Pluto still asleep?" Endymion asked.

"She healed him." Hikage supplied very drolly to Lor and Jander's question. "And to answer your question Mamoru, because the conditions of the spell have yet to be met."

"What spell?" Usagi asked.

"The Eternal Slumber spell Mori cast on her during the battle."

"Eternal Slumber! You mean she's going to sleep forever?" Usagi asked horrified at the prospect.

"No," Lor replied. "The name Eternal Slumber is somewhat misleading. The spell only makes the person sleep for a thousand years, or until a fairly bizarre condition is met. Knowing Mori I can make a couple of guesses what that condition would be."

"A thousand years?" The girls replied in unison.

"Well, a thousand years if the spell is allowed to run its course," he equivocated. "All we have to do is have Mori tell us the release condition and free her. It really should not be that difficult."

"Back to the healing Mori." Jander interrupted. "Just how did she heal him? We've tried every method of healing allergen wounds imaginable, it doesn't work."

"You were simply unable to imagine this method." Hikage commented with a sly smile.

"You're not going to tell us are you?" Jander asked with a frustrated tone.

"No, it's too easy for you to figure out through observation. What did you see?"

"She had an aura like his, they sort of merged, and he was healed."

"Incorrect, try to remember the flavour of her aura more clearly."

"It wasn't similar to his aura, it was exactly like his aura." Konjou noted. "It was more like he had transferred some on his aura into her."

"Exactly." Hikage agreed with a smile. "His own energy healed him, but that energy was stored elsewhere. Now all you have to do is determine how he was able to transfer his aura into her, and you'll have the answer to your question."

Ami had listened to their discussion with her full attention, she was very intelligent, and had a strong personal interest in what was going on. Besides, it kept her mind off the fact that Makoto was glaring at her.

"I think I know the answer." She ventured shyly.

"You just might," Hikage said with a smile. "Feel free to share your opinion of the situation at any time."

"Sex." She said only blushing slightly. "She started acting different right after she and Tenjin became intimate, and recently her powers have gotten much stronger. Only one other Senshi has demonstrated symptoms like that, and the common factor is intercourse with a Primarch." She was looking at the floor by the time she finished.

She carefully raised her eyes to the gathering, and noted Hikage smiling happily at her deduction, of course Makoto's expression had grown even darker. Her eyes practically drilled holes through Ami. It was only a matter of time before she exploded, and Ami hoped that Konjou was still nearby when it happened, he deserved at least half the blame.

"That's impossible, I can guarantee that having sex with someone doesn't transfer our power to them." Jander replied. "If that were true Mori, Neko and I would have made half the Ulterran female population glow in the dark." He looked directly at Ami and finished. "You don't seriously think that you were the first do you?"

"No, but there is no other reasonable explanation. My powers have increased dramatically, though not as far as Mina's have. The only change that both of us have gone through is intercourse." She managed not to die from embarrassment, but only just.

"Ami-chan!" Usagi said in shock. She couldn't believe the things Ami was saying. For as long as she had known her, Ami had been very shy of any topics involving romance, and now she was speaking almost casually about having had sex. The entire idea was more than Usagi could believe.

The other girls except Makoto looked on in a sort of shock. The had seen too much today for anything as minor as learning Ami had lost her virginity to make any impression. Makoto was just angry.

"For once Jander, I'm going to side with a mortal against you. She's correct. Now as soon as you learn why Mina was able to store Mori's energy you will have the answers to questions you never knew you had."

Tenjin walked back into the room without Mina. He intercepted the angry questioning glares with total indifference. In an act of bravery that only the other Primarchs recognized Tenjin grabbed Hikage and pressed him against the wall.

"I'm only going to ask once, and it's not even going to be politely. Is she going to be ok?" When Hikage smiled in a friendly manner and nodded affirmatively Tenjin set him back down and nodded to him in apology.

"If the macho posturing is over, can one of you tell us how to wake up Pluto?" Michiru's voice cut through the group like a knife. Tenjin smiled innocently at her as her responded.

"The father of her baby has to kiss her." He said simply

"Would you please say that again?" Michiru asked very carefully.

"The man who got her pregnant has to kiss her." He repeated.

"That's what I thought you said," Michiru replied as she fainted.

"Not to be picky Mori, but what was the exact wording you used?" Lor asked.

"Umm, it was 'You will sleep until the father of your child awakens you with a kiss.' I was a little rushed for time, and you know I didn't bother to say the whole thing out loud, but that's the spell condition. Why?"

"Oh this is going to be fun." Lor said and magically conjured himself a chair.

The remaining Senshi stood with mouths agape staring at Setsuna. This addition to the long list of astonishments had completely shaken them to the core. After several minutes of staring at the sleeping Sailor Pluto Ami realized that she, among all of her friends, was the only person that could solve the mystery of the father of Setsuna's baby.

The Senshi gathered around as she activated her visor and brought her scanners to full power. Several minutes passed before Ami spoke. "It's no good. Her transformation and Glamour are interfering with my computer. I just can't get a clear scan."

Hotaru sighed and shook her head. As intelligent as Ami was, she sometimes missed the obvious. Hotaru quickly took Setsuna's transformation rod away, and Setsuna reverted to normal. Ami blushed at her forgetfulness and resumed her scan. A few minutes later she nearly dropped her computer in horror at the results.

"That's impossible!" Ami screamed. Konjou looked concerned, but she pushed him away when he began to rub her shoulders. Ami looked up at Usagi with fear and trepidation. "Usagi-chan, remember it's bad to kill the messenger, ok?" When Usagi nodded Ami gulped and continued. "I found out who the father is. It was actually fairly simple, but I ran the tests ten times to make sure. It's. well it's Mamoru."

Mamoru began to sputter and shake his head back and forth frantically. Everyone turned their heads to pin their most hateful glares on him. His sputters took on a note of desperation. Finally he collected himself enough to point at Ami and scream his denials.

"She lying Usako, you know I'd never cheat on you!" He began to plead with his fiancée. Her expression didn't lighten in the slightest. Mamoru grabbed Ami by the front of her shirt and began to shake her. "Tell them you were only kidding Ami! Tell them!" he screamed in terror. The glares he was getting from the Senshi, both inner and outer, promised him a slow painful death.

Konjou grabbed Mamoru's wrist and squeezed it painfully, making him release his hold on Ami. He continued to denounce Ami's conclusions and pleaded with her to tell the Senshi she had been joking.

"Mamoru, I refuse to lie to save you from your own indiscretions. My scans indicate that you are the father. The evidence is indisputable."

"No no, she's lying Usako! I would never betray you." He begged Usagi to believe him.

"You mean like you did when you broke up with her right after Chibi- Usa showed up." Rei said coldly.

"Or when Nehelenia brainwashed you it took us a week to realise you were acting any worse than usual." Ami added.

"And we can't forget your decision to leave your fiancée and your responsibility to protect her to spend a year in America. If Galaxia hadn't interfered you'd still be gone." Haruka finished.

Mamoru was beset on all sides by hostile Senshi. He knew he hadn't slept with Setsuna, but both Ami's computer and his past actions, were working against him. Usagi had yet to say anything, but her eyes were filled with pain. She trusted both he and Ami equally, so though she would give him the benefit of the doubt, he knew she believed him guilty.

"You know there is a way to prove this once and for all." Tenjin said at length. Mamoru looked at him with hope in his eyes. If Tenjin had some way for him to refute the evidence of the Mercury computer, then Mamoru would cheerfully accept his assistance. "The answer is simple, I told you only the father of her child can wake her, all you have to do is have Mamoru kiss Setsuna. Whether or not she wakes up will give you your answer.

The Senshi looked at one another and slowly began to nod. The Primarchs, despite their actions against the majority of humanity, were honest. Though they had misled the Senshi, they had never lied. If Tenjin said only the father could awaken Setsuna then having Mamoru kiss her would definitely provide the answer.

Usagi stared at Mamoru silently. She didn't want Mamoru kissing anyone but her, but if this would prove him innocent he needed to do it. The other Senshi would never believe him over Ami, and truthfully she was torn. Ami would never lie to her, but she didn't believe Mamoru would either. She thought of one other point in favour of him kissing Setsuna. If he truly was the father then they needed him to do it. They couldn't risk having Setsuna out of action for a thousand years.

"Please Mamo-chan," she said, knowing this to be one of the hardest things she had ever done. "Ki.kiss her."

Mamoru stared at Usagi in surprise. He hadn't expected her to ask him to do it. He knew that this was his only hope, but he couldn't suppress a feeling of dread when he leaned over and lightly brushed Setsuna's lips with his.

Mamoru stepped away from Setsuna and looked at the Senshi angrily. He knew that he wasn't guilty, but their lack of faith in him had hurt. Especially since it had caused Usagi pain, from the doubt it raised in her and from having him kiss Setsuna. Usagi gasped as he stepped closer to her. She stared past him to some point behind his back. Tears sprang into her eyes and she quickly ran out of the apartment. Rei hesitated less than a second and followed Usagi out the door, but not before glaring at Mamoru with unmistakeable hatred.

Mamoru turned in confusion and nearly fainted. Setsuna now sat up, eyes heavy but open her fingers lightly tracing her lips where he had so recently brushed his own against. He hardly had time to shake his head in disbelief before Haruka drove her fist into his stomach hard enough to bring him to his knees.

"I knew you were a worthless bastard Mamoru, but even I didn't think you would have hurt Usagi-chan like this. I hope you're proud of yourself." Haruka snarled at him. She barely refrained from doing him any more bodily harm.

Michiru and Hotaru helped Setsuna to her feet. Michiru's eyes never left Mamoru however. Her glare carried almost as much violence as Haruka's fist. Hotaru refused to even glance in his direction, she instead concentrated solely on helping the still groggy Time Senshi.

"Do you want assistance back to your home Hotaru-chan?" Hikage asked her gently.

"Hai Hikage," she said softly.

"Ok," he replied in the same tone. "Gather closer please Michiru- san, it's considerably more difficult for me to do something like this than it is for Neko," he said with a wry grin. Once the four girls were close enough all five of them disappeared.

Mamoru looked around, and took stock of the situation, of the Senshi, only Ami and Makoto remained, and neither seemed very happy with him. Only Hikage was missing from the Primarchs, but that hardly made him feel any more comfortable. Konjou's expression seemed divided between worry, when he looked at Makoto, and disgust, when he looked at him. Tenjin kept glancing back towards where he had taken Mina. It wouldn't be long before he went to check on her. Jander seemed bored, he had little to do with events on earth, and it showed. Lor on the other hand watched him with an amused look. There was some meaning to it he was sure, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what Lor found so funny about the complete ruination of his life.

"I'm going to find Usagi and try to figure out what happened." Mamoru said as he headed towards the door.

"Try not to get anyone else pregnant on the way Mamoru." Makoto said coldly. Mamoru didn't even acknowledge her remark on his way out.

Lor and Jander both soon made their excuses and teleported to places unknown. Ami did her best not to think too much about those two. Jander was a total unknown, and Lor had been disguised as her P.E. sensei. The thought of how many times he had seen her and the other Senshi naked in the last seven weeks made her ill. She wondered why Konjou, and even more strangely Tenjin, had allowed it. She would have thought they would have put a stop to his peeping on their girlfriends.

She smiled at Tenjin as he excused himself to check on Mina. She knew that Mina was angry, but those two obviously loved each other, things would work themselves out ok. Her own situation was far more uncertain. Now that everyone else was gone, it would not be long before Makoto had her say.

"So Ami," Makoto began. Her voice carried an obviously fake cheeriness. "Just when were you planning on telling me that you were screwing my boyfriend?" Oh yes, she was definitely not happy.

"Makoto-chan." Konjou began, but she cut him off with a withering glare.

"I'll get around to you in a minute Konjou-chan." She said harshly. "Well Ami? Does it make you proud? Does using sex to destroy the one beautiful thing I had in my life make you feel more like a woman?" Her words were sharp as razors, cutting deep into Ami's heart.

"Mako-chan," Ami began, "I didn't set out to hurt you." She started to explain.

"You didn't? You did a damn good job of it."

"I was just trying to prove he was Neko." She whispered.

"By fucking him?" Makoto retorted. "My that's a unique way to deal with your enemies. Maybe we should have tried that with Beryl's generals. I bet you would have liked that too. Were you hoping to wear him out so much he couldn't fight, or maybe you just wanted to have sex with someone besides your imagination."

Ami clenched her hands at her sides. She knew that Makoto didn't mean what she was saying. She was hurt and lashing out at the person she believed was responsible. It took considerable effort not to respond.

"Did you enjoy flaunting yourself Ami? Or did you blackmail him into sleeping with you." That was it, Ami thought.

"No, Makoto I didn't. In fact I didn't have to do much at all. You see before you threw yourself at him he was interested in me. When you left him because of your own fear, I did my best to help you out. While you sat in your room and cried, I went over to his apartment to learn the truth, and to get back at him for you. While you moped I was doing my job as a Senshi, learning everything I could about our potential enemy. Yes my methods were wrong, yes I fell in love with him, but originally I did it for you."

"You seduced my boyfriend, and you did it for me? Wow Ami-chan, who's next on the list, Mamoru. No wait Setsuna already did that for you. Maybe you can get Tenjin while Mina is still asleep. You know just to make sure he's Mordaki."

"That's enough Mako-chan." Konjou interrupted. "I think you need to calm down."

"Really, I was just getting to you. Were you so hard up for a woman that you'd settle for her?" Makoto said snidely. "I know how ready you were but couldn't you have waited for me for more than a week? Did you ever care about me, or was I just the first girl that walked by after your little nap."

"I cared about you Mako-chan." He began

"Obviously not enough to turn down sweet innocent little Ami-chan. Do you have a thing for bookworms, or was she just too easy to pass up?"

Ami had taken enough abuse. She grabbed Konjou and spun him around, once he was facing her she drew him into a deep kiss. Quickly he forgot all about the audience and began to respond. His hands wandered out of polite territory and into regions that they really had no business being in with people watching.

"You're just jealous Makoto, jealous that this 'bookworm' can do something you never could. Have Konjou fall in love with her" she said as she stopped kissing Konjou. "Enjoy watching, because that's all you'll ever do."

Makoto screamed in outrage. Seeing Ami kissing her boyfriend made her blood boil. She ignored the little voice in her head that reminded her that she had broken up with Konjou. She charged over shouldering the still dazed Konjou out of her way and slapped Ami across the face. Ami hardly even moved, she on the other hand was in agony. Her hand felt like it was broken. She couldn't even make Ami suffer for hurting her. She slumped to the ground at this final insult, the tears ran freely down her cheeks.

Konjou shook his head at the display. He liked having girls fighting over him as much as any guy, but injuries during it were a big no no. He bent down and lifted Makoto into his arms. She struggled for a second before pacifying. He gave Ami a rueful glance, mouthed he would be right back, and teleported to Makoto's apartment.

It was the first time he had ever been here, so he took a moment to look the place over. It was small but cosy. As he expected knowing Makoto it was very clean, yet still had a feeling of being lived in. The effect was quite pleasing. He could easily see himself curling up on her couch and napping in the sunlight. He shook himself from his musings and continued his task.

Her scent permeated the place but its greatest concentrations had been the bedroom and the kitchen. It made locating the room easy. Konjou carried Makoto through the apartment and into her bedroom. He laid her gently on the bed and held her as she vented her tears. After a long while she spoke.

"Why Konjou? Why couldn't you wait for me?"

"It wasn't a matter of waiting Mako-chan. I could feel your fear. I knew it was me you were afraid of. You must have subconsciously remembered seeing something that night that frightened you."

"Your eyes. I saw your real eyes at the end, and you did something to me didn't you?"

"I made you sleep with a spell. I thought you might have seen me lose control then, and I didn't want to risk you getting afraid. I guess I failed."

"Did you know I was Sailor Jupiter before I came into your room?"

"No, I knew you were probably a Senshi, but not for certain, and not which one. Mori told me about it when he came in to get a drink."

"Oh Kami, you were speaking Aleph. Why didn't I ever notice, why didn't Mina?"

"The Glamour, it kept anyone from noticing anything that would give us away. Even if you did notice it kept you from making the correct connection. Ami escaped its force because of her computer, but it still messed with her head."

"Don't talk about her, don't even mention her name to me."

"Mako-chan."

"No, I understand you, a little. I broke up with you and you didn't know for sure if I would come back, but she knew I still loved you. She betrayed me in a way I doubt I'll ever forgive."

"She did it to help you Mako-chan. You wouldn't believe how much she cares about you and the rest of the Senshi. She sacrificed her self respect, her innocence, and her morality for you."

"She didn't do anything for me, she did it for herself."

"Mako-chan, you have no idea how scared she was. She was terrified when she started. She knew I was her enemy, and was afraid I might figure out who she was, but even with all that she did everything in her power to get proof of my identity."

"I'm positive I don't want to know any more details."

"Mako-chan, originally she had only you and the other Senshi in mind. It was only later that her heart became involved. Is falling in love with someone a betrayal of your friend? When your friend claims to have broken off the relationship? Try to see it from her perspective. I know she's looked at it from yours."

Makoto was near tears again. She didn't want to talk about Ami. She didn't want to think about Ami. All she wanted was Konjou back. When she broke up with him she hadn't wanted to lose him, especially to one of her friends. How had Ami ever managed to keep him?

When the answer occurred to her she knew what to do. The battle for Konjou was about to heat up. Ami had used her body to steal him. The same tactic would work for her.

She wasn't conceited when she thought about how much better she looked than Ami. Ami was undeniably beautiful, but Ami had nothing compared to her. Makoto was very proud of her body. She worked very hard to keep in shape. Better still, she knew Konjou found her attractive. It was time to use that to her advantage.

Makoto turned over and pulled him tight to her. She allowed her body to rub fully against him as she leaned up to capture his lips. The kiss was gentle and could have been mistaken for something less serious, if she hadn't deepened it when he tried to speak. Her breasts pressed full against him eliciting the expected response. She knew she could tempt him back, this proved it.

She slid her hands under his shirt and began to drag her nails across his back. Anyone else would have been in pain, but Makoto knew he enjoyed the feeling. She grinned wickedly when he began to purr from her caresses. She brought her lips to his neck and scraped lightly with her teeth. She was rewarded with his hands pulling her tighter against him.

She knew there had to be a way to get out of her Senshi fuku. There were no closures, no zips, no snaps, and no ties. It had to be magical. Knowing that she concentrated hard on removing it, she was elated when she succeeded. She was gloriously naked in his arms, and he had yet to realize it. His hands continued their caressing hold on her, but where they were on her fuku and skirt, they now caressed her back and butt. She moaned softly at the contact.

He shifted his hands to her front and began to firmly kneed her breasts, it was then he realized what he was doing, and with whom. Konjou shook his head to try to throw off the desire that burned within him. Makoto's full bodied press against him, and the magic she was working on him with lips and hands made it just next to impossible. He nearly lost the battle outright when she moved her hand down to cup him through his pants.

She could feel him beginning to resist her. She didn't know what she was doing wrong, but obviously it wasn't enough to completely get his attention. She began to stroke up and down on the hardness she could feel in his pants. His purring deepened, and he once again began to return her caresses. She unfastened his pants and quickly drew them down taking his underwear with them. She took his now freed manhood into her hand and began to slowly stroke him.

It was the flesh to flesh contact that woke him completely from the seductive pull of her caresses. He quickly pushed her away and gaped at her in astonishment. This was the girl that had refused him several times, it took him several long seconds of holding her away to realize why she would change her mind now. With a thought his clothing once again covered him. He stood from the bed and stepped away from Makoto, his eyes never leaving hers the entire time.

"Mako-chan, this isn't what you really want."

"Yes it is. I want you. I can't lose you Konjou. I just can't."

"There's nothing to lose Mako-chan. We had our chance, but for now it's over. We both know you can turn me on, Mako-chan, but if we went through with what you just tried to start, all that would happen is we would end up hurting all of us. Because you see, right after I got out of bed with you, I would have teleported back to my apartment, where Ami is waiting for me, and I would have told her how badly I messed up. I love you Mako-chan, and I'm very attracted to you, both physically and mentally, but I love Ami more."

Konjou leaned over and kissed Makoto on the forehead, then teleported away. Makoto sat in the middle of her bed, naked and alone, wondering if anyone would ever love her that much.

******** Ami paced another lap across the floor of the front room. She knew very well it didn't take this long to teleport Makoto home and come back. She could have run to Makoto's house and back by now. Obviously something had gone wrong. She tried not to dwell on the fact that he had been Makoto's boyfriend first. She knew he loved her, but she didn't know what he felt about Makoto. The wait was killing her.

Konjou was tackled before he fully materialized from the teleport. Fifty kilos of gorgeous young woman moving just slightly slower than a bullet tended to do that. He felt a strange sense of déjà vu, but couldn't quite place it. Ami straddled his hips and began alternating kisses with questions.

"What took you so long? Is Makoto ok? Are you ok? Why do you smell like Makoto's perfume?" Of course it was that question that stopped the kisses, as Ami considered the implications of her own observation. It took less than a second for her to verify that yes he did in fact smell strongly of Makoto's perfume.

"Konjou-chan," she said too calmly, "I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and allow you to explain, but I should warn you that if I don't like the answer you'll be in a great deal of pain very soon."

Konjou could have pretended ignorance, but he knew she was serious about the pain threat. He quickly told her of the events that had transpired. Her expression became dark as he described Makoto's actions and his own lack of control, but lightened to one of love when he explained his eventual fighting off of his desire.

"Ok, you did good, despite coming very close to me having to kill you. There is one thing I would like to know though. If you're the Primarch of Will, why did you have so much trouble getting your body back under control?"

"I may be the Primarch of Will Sprite, but I'm also male, and no heterosexual man could fight a woman like Makoto off easily. She's kind, intelligent, and very beautiful. I consider myself lucky to have gotten away without anything else happening." He smiled at her despite the frown she again wore. "Think of it like this Sprite. Both of you, in fact all of the Senshi are beautiful beyond reason, but I came back here to you. That should tell you where my heart lies."

******** She opened her eyes in confusion. Though she recognised the room she was in easily enough, for the life of her Mina couldn't remember how she got in Tenjin's bedroom. The last thing she remembered was holding Tenjin in her arms after she knocked him down. His arm had been badly hurt and she had touched it. Now she was lying in his bed. That wouldn't have been all that odd if she hadn't had her clothing on.

She carefully sat up, and looked around. Tenjin, correction Mori stood on the other side of the room glowing like a small star. He didn't seem to have noticed that she was awake. She watched him as he moved in some intricate dance like steps. His movements were slow, but the light from his aura trailed behind him like smoke. It formed a strange pattern in the air, seeming at once beautiful and dangerous.

She had difficulty connecting the man she looked at with her lover. There were certain similarities, but her memories of his Mori appearance were filled with rage and pain, while her memories of Tenjin were of love, pleasure and happiness. The duality of her emotions involving him gave her a bit of a headache.

He stopped moving, and she noticed for the first time that his eyes were closed. His aura lessened in intensity, and she could now see his injured arm more clearly. The wound was almost completely healed. She nearly growled at the unfairness. She had wounded him badly with the Moon Sword, yet here it was less than a half of a day later and he looked nearly healed.

She thought for a moment about the wound she had caused him with the sword. Everything else they had ever tried against him had met with minimal success, but the Moon Sword had carved through his phenomenal defences like they weren't even there. His aura had died on contact with the blade. Despite common opinion Mina wasn't stupid.

During the time of the Moon Kingdom no one had known what the Moon Sword was made out of. Its blade was some silver like metal that cut easily through the strongest steel. It was laden with bizarre symbols, that Mina would be willing to bet were actually Aleph runes. All the evidence pointed to the Moon Sword being a weapon from the time of the Ulterran, and if that were true it probably at one time belonged to Lunari.

Lunari was the adopted daughter of Niccolai, one of the Primarchs. The only people that would definitely know Mori's allergen were the other Primarchs. Neko would have wanted Lunari to be able to defend herself against anyone that might have tried to hurt her. The best way for her to defend herself against Mori would have been with a weapon made of his allergen. That made understanding how she had hurt him so severely easy. The Moon Sword was made out of whatever Mori was allergic to.

"~hey beautiful~" Mori's voice spoke inside her head.

"Wha.." she responded before he cut her off.

"~Not out loud, you'll disturb the matrix, and trust me that would be a Bad Thing. Just think what you want to say, I'll hear it.~" She could feel his smile inside her.

"~LIKE THIS?~" She ventured.

"~Yikes, There's no need to shout. Think calmly or you'll give me a headache.~"

"~Is this better?~" She tried.

"~Much, did you have a nice nap?~"

"~I think so. What happened, the last thing I remember I was trying to apologize for hurting your arm again.~"

"~You did something wonderful. You healed me.~"

"~I did?~"

"~Yes. You know, until today I thought allergen wounds couldn't be healed. What you did was a miracle.~"

"~How did I heal you?~"

"~You blush if I tell you.~" He thought to her smugly.

"~Tenjin.~" She thought irritatedly at him.

"~Ok, but remember you made me tell you. You touched me, and almost all of the power I'd given you came back and healed me.~"

"~Just how was that supposed to make me blush? And just when did you give me any power?~"

"~You see, lucky for you I can answer both of those with one word, sex. According to Mordred every time we've made love I've been giving you some of my energy.~"

"~How?~"

"~Think about it koishii. My body is something like ninety five percent magical energy, every time we made love it was like giving you an injection of my energy.~" Mina looked like she would burst something if she became any more embarrassed. "According to what Mordred told me, you and Ami have been experiencing major upswings of power lately. That's why.~"

"~YOU SLEPT WITH AMI!~" She shouted mentally at him. "~I THOUGHT YOU LOVED ME!~"

"~Calm down koishii. I didn't sleep with Ami, Neko did. Before you ask, it started last week, and she's known who we were ever since Neko beat the hell out of the guys who tried to rape Hotaru.~"

"~Why didn't she tell me?~" Mina thought. Her mental voice sounded hurt and angry.

"~You wouldn't have believed her. We have a very powerful Glamour up. If I hadn't changed forms in front of you, no amount of evidence would have been able to convince you of who I was.~"

"~Oh.~" she though ashamedly, "~I guess that's a good reason.~"

An inscrutable look passed over her face and she quickly lay back down. Her face felt hot to her, yet her feet and hands were freezing. A wave of nausea passed over making her feel very weak.

'~Tenjin~" she thought weakly.

Mori was at her side before the thought was even finished. He put his and on her head, and she could feel tendrils of magical energy weaving their way through her. After a moment he sighed and put his hand on her cheek. She shivered looking at him. She was used to seeing that expression of love on Tenjin's face, not Mori's.

"~Well, I have both good and bad news for you.~" he thought to her. "~The bad news is you're going through a really bad case of energy crash. Picture the energy you've been absorbing from me like a drug. You're body has become adapted to it, and since you gave it all away, you're going through something like withdrawal. The good news is I have the perfect cure for your symptoms.~"

"~What's that?~"

He responded by drawing her into a kiss. When he paused for breath he lightly traced his fingers over her face. She was ready, obviously so, but her expression was torn between fear and desire. He knew the reason. All of her memories of his 'Mori' appearance were ones of fear and dread. She loved Tenjin, not Mori.

"~Mina-chan~"

"~Yes Tenjin?~

"~I'm going to do something that's very important to me, and will help you get used to this form.~"

"~What?~"

"~I'm going to give you some better memories of my 'normal' appearance.~" He thought as he began to undress her. He was glad she had lost her Senshi transformation after passing out. He had no idea how to get those sexy little fukus off, and given his lack of patience his answer would have likely been to disintegrate the thing.

He didn't tell her one important piece of information Mordred had passed on to him. His energy was quite like a drug to her, that much was true. But now that her body was acclimated to it, she had stopped producing her own life energy. He did his best not to dwell on what would happen if they were separated for very long. Without regular infusions of energy from him she would quickly die. He only hoped that this cessation of energy production was a prelude to her changing to energy similar to his. If not she would likely be dependent on him for the rest of her life.

******** "I still say this is the worst idea you've ever had. I can think of a hundred ways this could go wrong." A male voice complained.

"Oh do be quiet." His female companion replied. "We have to save her."

"From what? She doesn't look like she wants rescuing to me."

"That's the point. He must be using some sort of mind control on her."

"The only control he looks like he has is something she freely gave him, love."

"He's the enemy, she's far too intelligent to become involved with him of her own free will, now be quiet so we can sneak up on him."

Two shadows detached themselves from behind the chair. They cautiously approached the couple currently occupying the couch. They skirted around the discarded clothing and stalked through the near darkness and approached their target, who was quite distracted trying to talk his lover into powering down.

"Sprite, you know that anklet will protect you, why won't you be you?"

"Because you're not you," She said simply. Konjou instantly shifted back into his Neko appearance and resumed his seduction attempts.

"Better Sprite?" He asked seductively.

"Hai." She said breathlessly and changed back into her unpowered form.

Things were getting interesting. He was playing a game trying to remove all of her clothing one handed, without breaking the kiss. He was doing quite well until two small hostile cats attacked his face and chest. Ami shrieked at the sudden interruption, and at the fact that she was mostly nude when the attack occurred. Neko on the other hand was just angry. The cats' claws didn't truly hurt. They couldn't penetrate his skin. The effect it had on his lover's mood was another story.

"You two better have a very good explanation." He said warningly lifting the cats by the backs of their necks.

"Release Ami-chan now." Luna commanded with stern authority despite the position she was in. Her white furred companion covered his face with his paws and almost wept.

"As you can see little kitty, I don't have her in my hands just now, thank you very little." His voice was anything but friendly.

"Release her from the spell you have her under!" Luna yelled in frustration at his comment.

"Sprite, do I have you under any spells?" He asked mildly.

"Well, sort of. If you consider love to be magical." Ami said as she tried her best to retain modesty with the little clothing she had on.

"You're not helping." Neko told her dryly as Luna redoubled her efforts to get free and claw him at Ami's words.

"Gomen, No Luna, I'm not under any spell. In fact, I'd say if anything I enchanted him."

"You got that right Sprite."

"Release us this instant!" Luna shouted when all of her attempts to free herself met with failure.

"I'll get around to you kitty. Now you," he said looking at Artemis, "just what's your excuse?"

"I'm just following orders?" Artemis asked hopefully.

"Sorry cat, you have a brain and free will, I don't believe in just following orders."

He hissed as Luna managed to turn in his grip and sink her teeth into his hand. Before either cat could react to the sudden change in grip Neko shape shifted into an enormous black cat. He was very close to the size of a panther, yet still maintained the basic proportions of a domestic cat. He causally pinned the two struggling felines under his massive paws.

"Now, you want to try that again kitty cat?" He asked Luna. His grin was all teeth.

"Neko, don't eat Luna. She's Usagi's advisor. Without her Usagi would never make it to school." Ami said.

"I'll take it under advisement. Now kitty, just what in the hell were you trying to accomplish, besides interrupting my sex life that is."

"That's exactly what we were doing." Luna said primly. "I will not allow you to defile Ami-chan. You may have defeated the Senshi, but we will not allow you to use their defeat to satisfy your baser. what are you laughing about?" Luna was truly angry by this point.

"Kitty, if anyone is getting used here it's me. Your sweet little Ami-chan is the one that started this. I really don't think you want the details though."

Artemis looked like he was about to object to the lack of details when he noticed the colour of Neko's eyes. He stopped his struggles and began to carefully look over Neko's cat form. He felt like crying when he noticed the slightly silver sheen to Neko's fur. He whimpered as he took note of his housecat build and panther size. He gibbered and did a fairly good impression of the American puppet character Beaker from the Muppets when he fully opened his senses up to the feeling of Neko's aura.

Artemis tried his best to get Luna's attention to warn her of his observations, but it was to no avail. Between her dismay at Ami's actions, her anger at the man that obviously had Ami under his control, and Artemis's inability to articulate with anything other than 'meeps' Luna failed to receive anything resembling a proper warning against making Neko any more angry.

"Let me up this instant you cretin!" Luna yelled at Neko. When he failed to release her she scratched vainly at the polished wooden floor, trying to gain enough leverage to force him to comply, or at lease get a nip in. When all other options had been exhausted she tried something she had never used on any one other than a Senshi, a mind melding. Her intentions were to confuse him by flooding his mind with images. She failed badly.

As soon as Neko felt her attempt to intrude into his mind, he reacted. He casually batted the distracted cat across the room like a tennis ball. She rolled across the hardwood floor without slowing until she impacted the side of a chair.

"Ite." Luna moaned from where she landed

"Was that really necessary Neko?" Ami asked.

"Probably not, but she really should have asked before trying to link with my mind. It's considered quite rude among psychics to do what she did."

Artemis had used the distraction to carefully wiggle free and go over to Luna. He seemed able to articulate his news now, and had no intention of allowing Luna's temper and pessimism to lead her into further stupidity.

"Luna.Luna, can you hear me."

"Ite."

"I'll take that as a yes. Look at him Luna. Look at him and remember our history lessons as kittens. Forget about the Senshi for a second and really look at him."

"Oh Kami-sama, he looks exactly like."

"Yep, he looks like the archetype of the Guardian form our elders took to defend our people, but feel his aura, it's the same, only a thousand times greater. It gets worse Luna. Remember his name?"

"Niccolai?"

"That's part of it, Niccolai Bastian Re. Bastian, Bast, I think this is the being our ancestors worshiped as a god Luna. Could you have possibly picked a worse person to annoy?" he asked scathingly.

"Actually yes she could have." Neko interrupted. They jumped at the sound of his voice. They had never heard him move over next to them. "She could have irritated Mori, or Enkil forbid, Mordred. If you think I have a bad temper neither of those two have any concept of the word restraint. And about the worship, I told your ancestors countless times I neither need nor want it."

"Meep." Was all Artemis could say.

"I am sorry Neko-sama for bothering you." Luna said. "If I would have had any idea of who you were."

"It is forgiven. I could hardly expect your people to have done any better a job of remembering me than the Humans did remembering Mori. Where are your elders?"

"Dead Neko-sama, they were destroyed over ten thousand years ago when an invader tried to steal the gift you gave our people." Artemis answered.

"Let me make sure I got that correct. Ten thousand some odd years ago your world was invaded?" the cats nodded. "How do you know this?"

"We were there Neko-sama. We were kittens at the time. We've spent a very long time in suspended animation after the fall of the Moon Kingdom. Serenity-sama felt her daughter may need our services when she awoke." Luna quickly said before Artemis could reply.

"Ok, how did the invader destroy your elders? They had access to some of my power."

"He summoned a force of Yugoloth. They slaughtered the Guardians."

Luna and Artemis cringed back in terror at the full throated roar Neko let out upon hearing that. His silver aura burst into brilliant radiance. For several long seconds he stood there, until Ami began petting his back. The aura faded quickly, but both of the Mau could see unshed tears in Neko's eyes.

"I apologize for your loss, kittens. It seems the gift I gave your people wasn't enough."

"It's not your fault Neko-sama." Luna began.

"That's where you're wrong kitty. Your ancestors were guarding something very important for me, me. When I went to sleep I transferred myself into your people. My power was spread throughout your people, but I obviously didn't teach them well enough to use it. I was the only thing I gave your people, it wasn't a gift kitty, it was a responsibility. If they were killed for that, then I am responsible for their destruction, however indirectly. Know this though kittens, the Yugoloth will pay for their actions."

A thrill filled the Mau at Neko's words. They readily remembered the near total destruction of their kind. They remembered the horror of the Yugoloth. And they remembered that Mina killed one of the seemingly indestructible monsters recently. Neko was far more powerful than Mina. It would be a slaughter, and they would be there to celebrate.

"Thank you Neko-sama." Luna said with tears in her eyes at the thought of vengeance for her people. "If we may be excused it seems that we are no longer needed here, and Usagi most probably does need our support."

"Go ahead kittens. Would you like me to teleport you to her?" He asked as he resumed his human form.

"Oh please Neko-sama. We would be very grateful." Artemis nodded in total agreement. Finding Usagi would be simple enough, but it was a very long way to her house from here. With no fanfare at all Neko sent the cats to their princess.

"I hope you don't expect me to start calling you Neko-sama." Ami said with a smile once the cats were gone.

"No, I'll settle for Neko-chan. Now where were we."

******** Haruka watched Hikage as he sat next to Hotaru. It was difficult to reconcile him with the being capable of giving orders to Mori and Neko. Currently he was just holding Hotaru's hand and staring dreamily into her eyes. It was very disturbing.

"I must thank you for the offer of dinner Michiru-san." He said giving a formal seated bow. "You cooking is far superior to my efforts. You would think that with a few billion years of practice I would do better at it, but I actually eat so infrequently that it never became an issue."

"You're quite welcome, Hikage." Michiru said with a smile.

It seemed to Haruka that she was the only person that felt odd about having one of the enemy at the dinner table. Even Setsuna smiled and talked with him like an old acquaintance. In fact Setsuna seemed happy to have him here. It was creepy to see her smile like that.

Dinner soon ended and the group moved into the living room to talk. After a while the conversation turned to something Haruka would have much rather avoided, today's battle.

"You actually did much better against them than you had any right to do." Hikage said. "Of course they weren't allowed to use their true power, but even so you did very well. The wound you gave Mori was a nice surprise, Haruka. Honestly I hadn't foreseen you touching him."

"Thanks." She said dryly.

"Hikage, right after the battle you said we did not exactly lose. Would you please explain?" Michiru questioned.

"Oh, I'm sorry. The excitement from Mina's healing of Mori and of Setsuna's condition sidetracked me, I apologize. What I meant was that though you lost the match, you did well enough to win some concessions. Of course they would have to be mutually agreeable to Mori and Usagi, as they are the principal parties involved in the dispute, but I can guarantee that one of them will likely be that no humans will be killed in the cleanup efforts, unless the human in question does something that leads to their own death that is."

"I can easily see Usagi demanding that." Setsuna replied. Everyone nodded in agreement.

The conversation quickly turned to the events of the past. Hikage entertained them all with tales of events before the moon kingdom. They were surprised to learn that Lunari was a foundling. Neko had adopted her the moment he saw the infant being sold in a slave market. It put a new perspective on the grand ladies of the Lunar royal family. A little later on Setsuna began asking about the Primarchs themselves. Hikage laughed at the first question.

"Do you believe that Mina is safe with Mori, Hikage? He seems a bit unstable to me."

"She's perfectly safe. In fact if anyone were to try to hurt her you'd all learn why he's considered the second most dangerous Primarch." He explained. "You see, we are all marked by our duties. Setsuna and Hotaru are prime examples among your group of this same phenomenon. Lor is the Primarch of Time, or Creation. His duties within the universe were to begin the motion that set everything else up. Now that he has completed that task, the only thing he has to do is monitor the time stream for disturbances. Paradox if left unchecked could unravel all he has done, so he tends to stamp them out." Setsuna shivered at the description. She knew she had created several paradoxes, what did Lor have to say about that?

"Because Lor has so little to do in his opinion, he tends to fill his time with practical jokes. Take his being your P.E. Sensei for an example. He isn't doing it to peep as much as he's doing it to see how you react. He probably spends quite a bit of time imagining what would happen if he took his real form with one of his classes watching, preferably while they were in the locker room. It would be total chaos."

"Next up would be Mori, but we'll hold off on him and Neko for a bit. Jander is the Primarch of Corruption. It sounds like a pretty bad job, and it is. Corruption is seen by most sentient races as a bad thing, but without it everything would stagnate. Stagnation would lead to destruction just as fast, if not faster than his activities. Imagine a world where no one grew old. There was no disease, and accidents didn't claim lives. There was no evil, so crime didn't exist. Sounds like a utopia right?" The girls nodded thinking it sounded quite a bit like Crystal Tokyo. "It would be hell. The population would soar without end. In a matter of a few decades the earth would be overcrowded. There would be no way to reach out to other worlds in time to act as a relief and humanity, and everything else on earth, would die. That's a microcosm of what the universe would be like without Jander." He said simply.

"The effect this has on Jander's personality however is pretty extreme. He tends to be sarcastic, rude and very arrogant. People expect the worst from him, and he enjoys exceeding their expectations. Bad things happen around him, so he gives new meaning to keep your enemies closer. If he doesn't like you you'll never get rid of him. If I remember right, he woke up near the inhabited world of Kinmoku. One thing he really hates is Mori and Neko's power of shapeshifting. He rarely ever changes his appearance and anyone that does it as a matter of course get on his nerves. You can imagine how he feels about the Starlights. If you think Galaxia did a number on that poor little planet you haven't even begun to imagine the nightmare of Jander in a bad mood." Haruka hated the Starlights, but not even they deserved what Hikage had just described.

"I on the other hand represent Entropy. Hotaru-chan understands what that is like quite well. I spent eons being depressed. Until you have the job of ending all life in the universe, or in Hotaru-chan's case the solar system, you'll never understand the horror of it. First people seem to think that just because you can kill everyone, that you will kill everyone. It leads to a fairly nasty reputation, and makes having friends, or getting a date sheer hell." He directed a smile at Hotaru, who looked sad at the memories his words invoked.

"Neko is the Primarch of Will. It means that his job only came into being with the creation of the Ulterran, before they came along there was no sentient life other than us. He spent the first six billion years with absolutely nothing to do. He is the youngest of us and acts exactly like you would expect a little brother to do. He loves to taunt and torment Lor, and he and Jander hate each other. Neko only gets serious when something threatens one of two things. The first are cats." He said with a grin. "Cats are about the archetype of free will. They are about the only thing that think of humans as their pets. He loves cats so much that his name means cat in Aleph. When he chose a Japanese name he simply translated his. The only other way to really make him angry is to threaten free will itself." His expression became very serious as he said that. "I don't even want to imagine how badly he would react if he were to find out that say, someone was planning to cleanse all the evil out of humanity. That would destroy their free will, he wouldn't like that at all."

"Mori on the other hand would probably be considered insane if he were human. His job is Nature, in all its glory. Every natural force is his duty to command. From the warmth of the sunlight shining through your window, to the terrifying power of a tsunami set to wipe out a city, and even more. Like the forces he commands, Mori can be gentle, loving and nurturing, or he can shift in an instant into a towering rage, a psychotic frenzy that can only be satiated with death. He is very unpredictable. When you add to it, that he is also the Primarch of Form, well things get a little strange. Nature determines form, it is a fact of adaptation. Imagine of you will, a man with a severe case of bi-polar disorder complicated by psychotic tendencies, a perfect memory, an I.Q. of about five thousand, the ability to become anything he desires, and the power to control the elements. It's not a pretty picture."

"Your original question was is Mina safe, and this will finish the answer. Mori may be insane, but he actually loves Mina. Anyone that attempted to bring her to harm would learn the terrible truth of Mori's greatest power. Gravity is a force of nature, and for sheer destructive potential nothing, and I do mean nothing, rivals the raw power of the fury of a singularity."

The older girls soon left to follow their own pursuits for the rest of the evening, leaving Hikage and Hotaru alone. Haruka wanted to complain, but her common sense, read as Michiru, stopped her. It was pointed out that Hotaru was a teenager now, and should be trusted to a certain degree with her choice of companions, besides no one in existence could stop him if he decided to do anything anyway. Hotaru led Hikage up to her room, where she closed the door.

"So," Hotaru said anxiously, "were finally going to."

"If you really want to, but remember it's very hard to stop, and will be a little painful at first." He reminded her. "I still believe you are a bit too young for this."

"Hikage, you told me you'd never let anything harm me, should I believe you or not."

"Oh you should believe me. I know it for a fact."

"Then go ahead and start."

"Fine." He replied.

Hikage drew Hotaru over to her bed where they quickly sat down facing each other. Hikage raised his hands up palms facing her. She mimicked his positioning, and he slowly moved his hands forward until they touched hers.

"Look directly into my eyes, and whatever you do don't blink until it begins." He whispered.

"Hai." She said as she complied with his request.

"~Dahak, Lord of Entropy, Father of Destruction, Master of Oblivion, heed my call.~" He spoke in Aleph, but somehow she could understand them. She supposed it was due to what they were doing. "~Dahak I call to thee, and beseech thee. Grant upon our chosen one a glimmer of our power!~

The entire house began to vibrate at the termination of Hikage's spell. Streams of black light flowed from him into her. It felt like she was being mildly electrocuted, not exactly pleasant, but far less than some of the pain she had been in.

"~Bands of Entropy stretch and encase. Strengthen that which is fragile." Hotaru gasped as flame seemed to rush through her veins. ".empower that which is weak." A feeling of fullness seemed to stretch her entire being. ".awaken that which sleeps!~" In an instant the tingling brought on by the electricity magnified a thousand times. She gasped at the feeling.

For several long seconds afterwards she simply sat there, staring at Hikage in shock, trembling slightly at the memory of the sensation. Her hair was in total disarray and she had a bit of a wild look in her eyes now, but she had never in her entire life felt better than she did right then.

"Sugoi! That was the most amazing thing I have ever felt!"

"I can think of a few things better, but you're a bit too young for any of them."

Hotaru blushed at the implications of his words. She knew what he was talking about, and as embarrassing as it was, she somewhat disagreed with his opinion that she was too young. From his perspective she was less than a child. Though she was actually fourteen years old now, there was really no telling how old she was physically. In the last year and a half she had gone from a slightly malnourished twelve year old girl, to an infant, to a six year old, to her current appearance. She was more than a little confused about her physical age to say the least.

"I realise the desires you have Hotaru-chan, but we will take no steps towards a physical relationship until you are physically mature enough to handle it." Hotaru became even more embarrassed that he had picked up on her thoughts. "This first infusion of power will do little more than begin to counteract the weakness that Mistress Nine and her subordinates created within you. It will take several more to begin to gift you with the same kinds of boosts that Mina and Ami enjoy. You do remember the consequences I told you of correct?"

"Hai, you told me that until we completely finish I'll be dependent on you to survive."

"Yes, but that side effect won't begin until after you start to demonstrate boosted energy levels. Before then you can still choose to back out."

"I won't back out Hikage." She sounded completely serious. It was a tone no one would have expected from a girl as young as Hotaru. "How will you know that the process is completely finished?" she asked for the first time.

"Do you promise not to even hint to anyone what I am about to tell you?" Once she nodded he smiled at her and continued telepathically. "~It's actually very easy. You will finish right after you have the baby.~"

"You mean this will get me pregnant!" she whispered frantically.

"No, that will only happen in the usual way, I simply mean that the transformation will complete itself when our baby is born."

Hotaru didn't know what to think. Usagi might have understood fate and destiny inspired romances, but being fourteen years old, and knowing that you not only will spend the rest of eternity with someone, but knowing who he is, was a bit scary.

"I think I need to lie down now." Hotaru said a bit faintly.

"You'll dwell on this for a while Hotaru-chan, but don't worry, I'll never push you." He said. She believed him.

He teleported away and she sighed. It was a little creepy having a boyfriend that knew absolutely everything there was about the future. According to him the only things he couldn't foresee when he tried were paradoxes. She smiled as she lay back. It was a little scary, but it was sort of nice to know they would eventually have a baby. Like all girls she wanted to someday hold one of her own.

As she drifted off to sleep she remembered something Hikage had told her when he first brought up the energy transfusions. He had told her it would be completed before her nineteenth birthday.

******** School was never her favourite place, but for this entire week it had been far worse than usual. One of the few things in the world that made school tolerable to Usagi was her friends. Ever since Saturday though not even that had helped.

First was the fact that Makoto refused to speak to Ami. Any time they were in the same place Makoto refused to even acknowledge that she was even there. It went so far that Makoto had turned down several invitations to spend time with the rest of the scouts. She had said that she was busy, but the truth was obvious. She felt that Ami had betrayed her, and no longer wanted anything to do with her.

The looks Makoto gave Konjou throughout the week were heartbreaking. It was depressingly easy to see that she still loved him. It was strange to Usagi that Makoto had been so afraid of him before the battle that had revealed him to be Neko, yet now that the truth was out, it was like his true identity was unimportant. Usagi didn't know what to make of it, but the fact that it was tearing apart the bonds that held her Senshi together was frustrating her to no end.

Mina seemed a little strange all week. She was not her usually overenthusiastic bubbly self. She seemed a bit tired and slightly more spacey than usual, even for her. One thing that didn't change was her affection for Tenjin. She seemed to constantly be touching him. If touching was impossible she seemed to always be looking at him. The few times that he wasn't in the same room as her, she simply stared at the last place he'd been, looking a little lost and frightened.

Usagi was very worried by Mina's actions, but Luna and Artemis both agreed that Mina was not under any sort of control. They mentioned something to her about it being a side effect of Mina healing him, but she couldn't understand what they meant by that.

Rei also worried her. Usagi would have thought that Rei would have transferred back to Thomas Aquinas once the power was restored, but Grandpa Hino had decided to leave her where she was for now. He simply stated that changing schools again would likely harm her education. Since he was smiling when he said it, Usagi privately believed he really did it to let her stay with her friends.

What worried her about Rei was that she kept noticing her looking at Tenjin with a wistful expression. Usagi knew that look well. She had seen it on the faces of every girl in the school last year when the Starlights transferred here. She had seen it on Makoto and Mina's faces every time they saw a cute boy. It was the look of a girl with a crush, and she had it on Tenjin.

Usagi was admittedly a little ditsy, but even she could see how bad that would be. Mina would react very badly to learning that Rei was crushing on Tenjin. Rei had Mina's inexplicable illness to thank for her not noticing already. Usagi thought it was a bit strange for Rei to fall for Tenjin now. She had expressed nothing but friendship for him all this time, why only after the battle would she develop feelings for him?

She didn't even want to think about her own situation. Learning the man you are destined to spend the rest of your life with is a lying, cheating, two timing waste of space was depressing. Having proof of his infidelity shoved in your face was even worse. Having the woman he cheated on you with be someone that supposedly is one of your closest friends added insult to injury, but the worst was knowing that despite all of that, she still loved him.

The Inner Senshi were self destructing around her and there were three things at fault as far as Usagi could tell, Konjou, Tenjin, and love. She couldn't really be angry at love, but the boys needed a talking to. She knew they hadn't really done anything to her Senshi. At least they hadn't done anything that the Senshi in question hadn't asked for, but something had to be done.

"Konjou?" Usagi asked during lunch on Friday.

"Yea?"

"Can I talk to you and Tenjin alone for a minute? It's very important."

"Sure, lemme just go pry him away from Mina." He gave Ami a grin and stood to gather Tenjin.

Ami looked at Usagi and noted the completely serious look on her face. She knew from talking to Konjou that Mori and Usagi had yet to discuss the concessions they had supposedly won, but she strongly doubted this had anything to do with that. The Primarchs had yet to take any action since the battle, and an unstable peace seemed to settle over the two groups.

Konjou and Tenjin returned a short time later but, contrary to Usagi's request, Mina was still at Tenjin's side. Mina gave Ami a funny look and waved her to stand up. When Ami complied with a confused expression Mina elaborated with words.

"Come on Ami, we both know that Konjou would tell you everything anyway, so why drag it out." She smiled at Usagi and continued. "I'm just 'elevating the middleman'." No one made comment of Mina's massacred idiom. Things like that had happened more in the last week than in the previous two years that Ami had known her.

"Fine." Usagi said. "Let's go sit down somewhere private. This is important."

Everyone nodded their heads and followed Usagi. It was sad Ami thought, how much Usagi had changed since learning Mamoru had cheated on her. The happy bubbly teen had turned literally overnight into this. This of course was a too serious girl. She was still quite friendly, but the innocent joy she found in life despite all the horror she had seen was gone, destroyed by losing faith in the one person that could truly hurt her.

Usagi led them to a pair of benches located under a shade tree in the courtyard. She waited until the others were seated on one, then, took her place on its twin. She looked directly and unflinchingly into their eyes. They could see a pain inside her that made even Konjou and Tenjin want to sooth her pain.

"What is it Usagi?" Tenjin asked. As usual he instantly assumed leadership of the small group.

"I'm not sure how to say this." She began. "My. my Senshi are falling apart, and it's your fault." She ignored the sputtering denials and continued. "I know that you didn't mean to do it, but before you woke up we were a team, we were closer than sisters. Now Mako-chan pretends that Ami isn't there. Rei-chan walks around torn between making calf eyes at Tenjin, and being mad at herself for liking Mina's boyfriend. Mina-chan spends so much time with you that besides school I haven't even seen her since Saturday, and Ami-chan, the only person I think could help me fix all this mess, has been almost as distant as Mina." She paused to gather her breath, and the others could see tears in her eyes.

"Luna and Artemis keep telling me it will work itself out, but it doesn't seem to be getting any better. Michiru just smiles and pats me on the head like a child. Haruka looks terrified any time I even mention Mori. I don't even want to think about Setsuna right now. I can't do this on my own. I need help and it looks like the only people I can ask are the people right in the middle of all of the problems. Please help me." Usagi begged with tears running down her face.

"What do you want us to do Usagi-chan?" Konjou asked her softly. He had moved over to her bench and had pulled her into his arms as soon as she started crying.

She looked up at him, her bottom lip trembling as tears leaked down her face. Her expression was one of abject misery.

"I don't know." she whispered. "I just can't think of any way to make it go back."

"Maybe it can't go back Usagi-chan." Every head whipped around and faced Tenjin at his use of the simple endearment. Tenjin was usually very distant from anyone other than Mina. His calling of her Usagi-chan was a first, and very shocking. "Maybe instead of trying to make it the way it was, we need to change it into something else."

"I don't understand." Usagi said.

"I think I do." Ami said. "Every problem we have right now has to do with relationships. Makoto is angry with me about Konjou's and my relationship. Rei is brooding about her lack of one, and Mina's success with the man she's attracted to." She ignored Mina's frown at the second mention of Rei being interested in Tenjin. "Even Usagi's problem with Mamoru is a relationship dispute, though theirs is far more serious in my opinion."

"What we need to do is come up with some way to straighten this tangled mess out." Tenjin added.

"Does anyone have any ideas how to begin?" Ami asked. "I don't personally have any idea how to deal with the issue with Mamoru. I must admit to being somewhat distracted lately attempting to figure out a way to help Makoto adjust, though with her ignoring me it's been hopeless so far."

"I think we need to get Mako-chan and Rei-chan their own boyfriends." Mina said sullenly. "Then they'd leave ours alone."

Everyone stopped and stared at Mina as she finished her complaint. The idea was simplistic in the extreme, but it was also brilliant. Tenjin pulled Mina into a kiss that had the others politely clearing their throats.

"You're a genius Mina-chan!" he said.

"It just might work." Konjou agreed.

"We would have to be careful. The boys in question would have to be someone they could fall in love with. Otherwise we would soon be back to where we are now." Ami added.

"And Mako-chan and Rei couldn't know we set them up. Rei-chan would be very mad at us if she found out." Usagi replied.

"Also, whoever we find has to be able to know that they are Senshi. If they didn't know it would put a strain on the relationship." Konjou said.

"And it would be best if they were capable of defending themselves somewhat. I know Rei well enough that she couldn't tolerate a boyfriend that she had to constantly protect." Tenjin said

"That would also apply to Makoto." Ami supplied.

"What we need is more information on what they like. Together we can accomplish nearly anything minna, but without more information we're flying blind." Tenjin stated with fervour.

"I know a way, but it's not exactly nice, and it's against a whole bunch of rules of etiquette that we followed for about six billion years." Konjou replied.

"I think I get your meaning." Tenjin said. "Mina-chan, Usagi-chan, I want to ask your permission to do something that is about the worst invasion of privacy you can imagine." When they stared wide eyed at him he continued. "I want to probe into your minds and discover everything I can about Rei and Makoto. The problem is I'll learn much more than that while I'm there."

"Sprite, I'd like permission to do the same to you." Konjou said when Tenjin paused.

The girls looked at one another and considered the implications. If they allowed them to do it there would be no way to hide anything from them. They would know everything there was to know about them. Their thoughts, their memories, their dreams and desires, their fears and hopes, all would be laid bare before them.

Mina and Ami reached their decision in seconds. The boys already knew more about them than anyone else. They had no fear of their loves abusing anything they learned about them. If anything it would bring them closer together, allowing a greater understanding than years of a normal relationship would bring.

Usagi took time to decide. Unlike Mina she didn't love Tenjin. In truth she was still afraid of the Primarchs. She had many things in her head that she wanted no one to know. Her insecurities were her own, and allowing another into her mind to see them frightened her greatly. Also was the consideration of the bond she had with Mamoru. They sometimes, when the need was great, were able to share thoughts and dreams, even communicating telepathically on occasion. She had no idea what that would cause if Tenjin probed her. In the end the decision came down to one thing, it might be the only way to save her Senshi.

"Do it." Usagi said firmly. Mina and Ami quickly nodded their assent as well.

"We don't have the time right now. How about you come over after school today Usagi. I know Ami and Mina will be there." Konjou said with a smile.

"Fine."

******** The moon shown full upon Neko's balcony, he could just make out Ami's sleeping form through the curtain. He knew that her mother worked the emergency ward tonight making it possible for her to once again stay with him. He shook his head at the plethora of memories he now possessed.

"Trying to sort yourself out again?" Mori asked from his side.

"Yea, Kami Mori, I just didn't really want to know all of that."

"I know the feeling. I have both of them in my head now. It's like, wow, I've lived most of their entire lives with them now. It has the unfortunate side effect of making me feel a lot more for Usagi than is safe."

"I hadn't considered that." Neko said with sorrow in his voice. "Will you be able to handle it?"

"Yea, but man, I want to go downstairs and rip Mamoru's liver out and make him eat it right about now."

"You realize that Lor has something to do with that weirdness right?"

"Yea, but for the life of me I can't figure out what he did, or even better why.

"Me either. Did you learn what we needed?"

"Not really. They had this really nasty block in their memories. It was hell taking it out, but when I removed it I got flooded with Memories from another life of theirs. I don't know if I got it back in place when I left. Their might be a little leakage across that barrier now."

"Yea I had the same trouble with Ami. I know I didn't put it back exactly right. The damn Silver Crystal put it there. I could see the spell weavings easily."

"You know, I think Lunari's descendents might have been abusing the Crystal. I saw some pretty serious evidence of it in Usagi's memories."

"Yea. You do realize that Lunari herself made the first Senshi, right?"

"It looked like it to me. I just want to know where she got the idea to link mortals to an elemental power source. How many did she accidentally kill trying to work that out?"

"It must have been thousands. The Crystal was never designed to do things like that." Neko said with disgust. "She altered them so much I don't even know if they're actually human. That has to be the reason they can absorb our energies. She turned them into energy sponges. Sure it was intended to only be elemental energy of a predetermined type, but she never counted on them ever running into us."

"I agree." Mori said at length. "You know what we have to do now right?"

"Yep. The only way to find out what we need it to probe the girls themselves, but I'd like to mention that I really hate that idea."

"So do I." Mori remarked. "Well, we might as well get started. I'll go handle Rei." Mori waved goodbye as he teleported away.

Konjou turned and looked at Ami through the sliding glass door of his balcony. She was so beautiful, and when she slept she seemed totally at peace. Knowing he didn't have long before she noticed his absence, even in her sleep, he teleported directly to Makoto's bedside and began his probe.

******** As the Carnaloth tore its second victim apart and began to drink her blood, it decided that it loved Juuban. Not only could it indulge in it's favourite pastime of indiscriminate killing, it could also feast on the fear. It fed almost as much on fear as blood, and the tenth street shopping district was a buffet for it.

The fear had started instants after it had appeared, and the sheer number of people made escape impossible for all of them. Several her down and injured from being trampled by the fleeing crowds. It would have all the blood it could drink.

"Mars Flame Sniper!" A voice called out from above it, and a bolt of fire singed its hide causing it to miss its grab for victim number three.

It could feel other magic being summoned around it. Mostly elemental based. It seemed that the defenders of this place had finally arrived. Oh well, it thought, time to do what it was really here for.

The creature moved with astounding quickness. Like the Yugoloth they had faced recently it was both fast and agile. It lacked the near human appearance of the Yugoloth, and instead appeared somewhat doglike, very much similar to Neko's Man-cat appearance. It's fur dripped blood from its disgusting meal and bits of gore still clung to it.

Only Venus, Mars and Mercury were here yet, the others were close but they wouldn't arrive for several minutes. Venus smiled as she prepared to release her attack. Even Tenjin admitted that it hurt, and if it could damage one of the most powerful beings in the universe, then this thing had no chance. As she charged up her attack something felt off to her. When she released the energy she knew the answer. Her power was again back to normal.

The Heart shaped concussive blast struck the monster, and it actually snickered at it. Another fire arrow burned into it, again eliciting little response. Ami's supercharged Aqua Rhapsody got its attention, but it seemed somewhat resistant to the attack. It would take quite a few hits like that to take it down.

"Spread out!" Mina yelled. "Don't give this thing any chances."

The creature rushed at Ami. The strategy of destroying the enemy capable of causing the greatest harm seemed the order of the day to it. It got a rude shock when the human was capable of dodging out of the way. It was even more surprised by her strength. When it moved in to rend her limb from limb she quickly struck out with her foot in a lightning fast kick lifting the creature a dozen meters into the air, only to slam hard against the unyielding ground moments later.

Rei had had enough of being the weak link. Though Mina seemed to be in the same position as her today, it galled her to think that Ami was now ten times the Senshi she was. She absolutely refused to be seen as beneath her friends. The unknown creature was in for an eye opening experience if it though she was helpless though.

"Rin, pyou, tou, sha, kai, jin, retsu, sai, zen. Akuryou taisan!"

The Carnaloth froze in mid swing. The ward was unbelievably powerful. It had never in all of its life even heard of a ward that could hold one of its kind. It turned the full might of its magical power to breaking the warding.

Mina was overjoyed at Rei's success. Rei had been feeling worthless as a Senshi ever since the Primarchs showed up. Her powers both spiritual and magical had been useless against them, and it had hurt her. This creature though was held fast by they power of her spirit. She managed a smile at Rei before she collapsed from exhaustion.

Ami wanted badly to check on Mina, however the monster was showing signs of throwing off the ward so she didn't dare. She couldn't use any of her attacks on it for fear of damaging the ward, but that didn't mean she couldn't use her brain. She had just begun her scans when her computer screamed a warning of a massive incoming power wave.

Mori and Neko materialized in the middle of the battlefield in full combat mode. Their combined auras were giving off enough energy to put her scanners in danger of literally burning out. Mori took one look at Mina's downed form and he changed.

Neko dashed to the side to avoid the swelling of Mori's aura. Before the creature could be destroyed by his friend's wrath, he quickly cast an incantation penetrating deep into the Carnaloth seeking the bonds that had summoned the creature. He didn't have much time to act before the thing was reduced to less than it's component atoms to do what he needed.

The summoning was powerful and very familiar. The number of beings that could accomplish it should truthfully number five. Only an Ulterran Elder could have cast that particular spell, and as far as he knew only the Primarchs remained of that breed.

Mori was beyond angry. Angry was hearing someone insulting the woman you love. Angry was finding out a day late that a people you had promised to defend had been destroyed. Angry was knowing you had been betrayed, and being unable to find the culprit. Seeing Mina injured on the ground pushed him far past that, past enraged and into something he called 'The Blackness'.

Sounds began to echo weirdly, the colours seemed off. Ami desperately wanted to scan the area and learn what was happening, but she knew for certain that if she tried her scanners would melt. The power was so heavy in the air it made breathing difficult. Neko was shouting something at her but his voice sounded so strange, it seemed to overlap itself countless times, making comprehension impossible.

Suddenly she began to feel a pulling towards the creature. A quick look confirmed that it wasn't just her. All manner of cast aside debris from the stampeding civilians began to tumble towards the monster. The dead bodies of its earlier victims slid sickeningly across the ground towards it. Even the wind blew towards it.

Mori's aura became impossible to look at the brightness cast everything into relief washing out all colour under the golden radiance. She heard a tremendous cracking of stone, and wondered what was happening. She dropped to the ground as carefully as possible to keep the wind from pushing her any further into the strange disturbance. Even on the ground she could feel a pull that had her spreading out to create as much friction as possible.

"~Hang on Sprite. It's almost over. I have Rei safe, so you don't need to worry about her.~" Neko's voice intruded into her mind. She savagely suppressed a feeling of betrayal she felt when he said that he had Rei safe. She knew he trusted her to be able to defend herself, but he was her boyfriend dammit.

The event ended with a massive clap of thunder. When Ami looked up the monster was just gone. Well the monster, several yattai and a perfect hemisphere of street three metres across. Mori was holding Mina in his arms, and his eyes seemed wild. There was no question that approaching him right now would be suicide.

"What in the name of the Kami happened?" Rei whispered in some combination of awe and sick fascination.

"I dealt with the Carnaloth." Mori said coldly. "I wouldn't disturb me unless it is critical." He growled, and vanished.

"Neko? My scanners are picking up hard x-ray radiation, and exotic nuclear particles that they classify as theoretical. What did he do." Her voice was anything but calm.

"He sentenced it to the most horrifying death I can imagine. He created a singularity and had it eat him."

"Masaka." Ami said.

"Singularity?" Rei asked

"A black hole. He created a black hole, Rei." Ami simplified automatically.

"Kami, he can do that?"

"Oh yes, Rei. He can do that. That's the reason Jander doesn't ever try anything with him. He's unstable enough at times to do just that." Neko said still staring at the damage caused by the Carnaloth's execution.

"At least the thing died quickly." Ami said. "Nothing deserves to feel that kind of power."

"Quickly?" Neko said in a strangled voice. "You must be mistaking the effect of the event horizon for the maw of the singularity itself. An object on the event horizon of one would be in a sort of time stop, one second passing for them every thousand years or so for us, so yes, it would seem very quick. But once you pass the event horizon things become quite different. The maw itself works backwards. It's a property of time-space only theorized by current human science. Once an object enters the maw it would be moving at infinite speed. Time outside would seem to stand still for it. In the space of a second for us trillions of years would pass for the victim. They would literally feel it as every molecule was torn from their body one at a time and sucked into the singularity, it would take eons for them."

Ami felt sick. The implications of what she had just heard were just wrong. She didn't even want to imagine it. Unfortunately she had a very active imagination.

******** Neko found Mori in the subspace training room. He was working over one of their punching bags, and looked to have been doing it for quite a while. He was covered in sweat, something that rarely happened to them, and the bag showed definite signs of wear.

"We need to talk Mori. What you did today."

"It made her pass out. She used all of her energy trying to help her friends Neko. She could have died from the burnout." He growled.

"Was it really that bad Mori." Neko asked shocked. He hadn't had a chance to examine her before Mori had left, but if what Mori said was true his actions became far more understandable.

"She exhausted nearly everything she had healing me Neko. The energy she's getting from me isn't being absorbed fast enough to both keep her alive and use for battle. You know she's been tired all week. That's why. She wastes so much energy with those stupid attacks that it almost killed her."

"So teach her easier magic. You know spells she could use."

"That's not the problem. It's the language she uses. It eats so much power converting her spell into the proper forms that there's almost nothing left to fuel the attack. The stupid attacks are mid level parlour tricks and you know it. Any half competent mage can do better."

"If it's the translation of energy that's the problem, teach her to skip the step. You're really stupid today Mori." Neko said disgusted.

Mori growled at Neko, but didn't reply. He knew Neko was right, but it didn't make him feel any better. He was being forced to do something that was in his opinion terrible. He loved Mina with all of his heart, and he desired her constantly, but for the moment he had to use sex to literally keep her alive. That wasn't what it was about for him, and it disgusted him to see something beautiful reduced to a need.

"You have a good point." Mori finally admitted. "I'll begin teaching her Aleph tonight."

"We have something that might even be more important happening tonight, Mori, or have you forgotten?"

"Dammit, your right. Well at least it will give the Senshi a little more aid in battle."

"That's something else we have to discuss soon, but I want the rest of us here for it." Neko's eyes flashed when he spoke.

"Well are you ready to do this?" Mori asked.

"Sure."

******** Neko snuck through the apartment, the owner was asleep but it wouldn't have mattered if he had been awake. Neko was quite invisible, and very very quiet. It took less than three minutes to locate his goal and even less to open the sealed case. Nestled inside exactly where Mori had said they would be, were his targets. They weren't pretty at all, but they were exactly what they needed to fix the problem.

Neko teleported back to he and Mori's spell lab and began the long preparation. Neither of them would likely be done before noon. He only hoped that Ami-chan didn't get too curious about where he was. She would not be pleased with him over this one.

Hours later Mori had finished the preparations. The results of his labours lay before him. They had been victims of a terrible tragedy. Innocent souls swept up in a destiny far beyond their experience or control, but when the Senshi saw them all hell would break loose.

"Mori were going to have to do something to get the girls to do something other than kill first and not bother asking questions later."

"How about we have them play Tuxedo Kamen. If it could net a loser like Mamoru someone like Usagi, it might just do the trick for them too."

"Ok, but if Blondie here even thinks about."

"I understand completely. I share your concerns. Maybe we need to have a bit of a re-education for them before we send them into the wide world."

"Wide world my butt, I bought that apartment complex yesterday. Their getting moved in on the twelfth floor."

"Even better, if they misbehave I'm putting them back, only worse. Oh and what did you do about the display."

"Oh that?" Neko laughed. "Trust me they wont be missed"

In an apartment not far away at all, a young man slept while a locked glass case held only illusions of the stones once so carefully enshrined within.

End Chapter 7