Reunions
Chapter 3
"Return to Earth Realm"
Jedite roamed around his surroundings, looking for anything that could be useful to him. But all he founds were large rocks and clouds of mist. "Much has most certainly happened since I've...been away," he said to himself. "It would seem everything is in ruins here...nothing that I remember must even exists anymore...which means Queen beryl must be dead...along with Nephlite, Zoycite, and that idiot Malachite!...How convenient for me!" He continued searching the ruins, but still found nothing but clouds, rocks, and complete darkness. "Nothing...nothing at all! What can possibly do me any good in this desolate place!?!" Suddenly, his leg brushed up against something that sizzled with gray electricity. Jedite looked down at it in surprise. "What the--?" He knelt down on the floating rock to get a closer look at it. It looked like only another cloud of mist, but as Jedite ran his hands back and forth through it, more gray electric sparks flowed. He finally realized what it was. "Hmm...how very interesting..." he thought. "Excess human energy!...Must have been left behind when Beryl was destroyed by Sailor Moon...wait a minute! How did I know that SAILOR MOON destroyed Queen Beryl!?!" As he ran his hand through the cloud, an image of Princess Serena battling Queen Beryl ran through his head. At first, Jedite couldn't figure out why this happened. "Very interesting..." he said. "It must be from when Beryl ruled the NegaVerse...and it must contain memories from the past...things I was not around to witness...Which gives me an idea..." Jedite held his hands within the heart of the energy cloud. His hands glowed white for a moment, and then the energy itself was absorbed into his body. Jedite threw his head back and exhaled deeply, feeling a little stronger from this energy boost. "AH...I needed that...now let's see..." He concentrated as hard as he could. Instantly, various images of his successing generals, Nephlite, Zoycite, and Malachite, ran through his head, as he learned about their outcomes. "Intriguing...Nephlite fell in love with a human...Zoycite was killed by Queen Beryl for trying to kill Tuxedo Mask...and Malachite was destroyed by Sailor Moon..." he thought, "...I was right...this energy patch contains memories from the time Queen Beryl ruled the NegaVerse! And now that I've absorbed it, I can know everything that happened up until then...and there's more, simply within this one cloud..." Jedite concentrated harder. Now images of other Sailor Scouts flowed through his mind. Two of whom he already knew; Sailors Mercury and Mars. But there were two others he didn't recognize. But from the information within the energy cloud, he found out who they were. "So...they found all five Inner Sailors..." Jedite thought. "Jupiter and Venus!! So...that little teenage pest Sailor V that gave me so much trouble before 'Moon Girl' is a Scout too, eh? This information will come in handy!" Jedite got up and looked around. He turned his head left and right, and saw something that pleased him very much. Countless clouds of energy, varying in size, scattered throughout the entire NegaRuins. Some were miniscule, others were gigantic. Either way...Jedite found something VERY useful. "I think I've found what I'm looking for..." he thought, as a wide, maniacal grin crossed his face.
*** Serena slammed the door behind her as she walked into her apartment. It had been a VERY long, VERY hard work day. As she plumped down to the floor, she huffed and puffed as if she'd just run a marathon. She leaned up against the door and caught her breath. She was so tired that she didn't even notice the tall person standing in her living room, in front of the fake bookcase. "What's with you, Meatball Head?" he said. "You look like you've just swam the English Channel...twice!" Serena looked up and saw Darien. She smiled and got up off the floor. "If you can compare the day I've had to doing that, than I guess you could say I did!" she replied. She walked over to him and they hugged each other. Darien pushed her back a little. "It couldn't have been that bad, could it?" he asked. "You had to have been there," she said. "Four of my employees quit for the day right in the middle of a mid-day customer rush! You'd think there was a worldwide food shortage or something! Those guys are lucky I didn't send them flying all the way down to the unemployment office for doing that to me!" "Well did you?" "No, I'm just going to bawl them out tomorrow!" She giggled. She looked past him, and saw the hidden glass case, displaying the Transformation Locket, the Crescent Moon Wand, the Moon Sceptor, and the Imperium Silver Crystal, open for all to see. "I see you found my hidden display," she said. "Actually, on accident," Darien said. "Luna ran under my feet and tripped me. It stumbled into the book case, and the display opened up." He let go of Serena and turned to the display again. "So I've just been looking at these old relics for a while...remembering all we've been through..." Serena put her arms around him and looked at the display with him. She sighed deeply. "Kind of makes you wish for the good old days. when I first became Sailor Moon, doesn't it?" she asked. "Hmph!" was Darien's reply. "When Jedite kept sending all those monsters to suck humans clean dry of their energy? When you kept getting beaten around by some intergalactic mutant?...When I wasn't in love with you?...I don't think so!" Serena looked up at him and smiled. She loved it when he talked like this, just to let her know just how much he loved her. She reached up and kissed him lightly on the lips, then they both looked back at the display. "Where's Amy?" Serena asked. "Out with Lita and Mina," Darien answered. "Raye would be with them, except she and Chad had some things to take care of at the temple." "Go figure..." said Serena. "What about the cats?" "Right behind you!" a familiar voice said. Serena turned her head, and two cats were sitting behind them. One of them, Luna, the other, a white cat with the same crescent moon shape on the forehead.
"Artemis!" Serena cried. Darien turned his head and smiled at the
sight of the white cat. Neither he nor Serena had seen him, even after
he and Mina got into town. Serena bent down on the floor, and Artemis ran up and jumped into her arms. Serena hugged him tightly, Artemis purring with satisfaction. He jumped down and stood next to Luna. "How're you doing, Artie?" asked Darien. "Pretty well," he replied. "Life is pretty hectic when you live with a star like Mina. You wouldn't believe how much traveling we have to do together. We've probably been all over France several times! Germany too!" "Still the same old jokester, eh, Artemis?" said Serena with a smile. "Same as always, just the way he should be," answered Luna, as she rubbed her head affectionately against his white fur. Artemis blushed. "So I'm dying to know," said Serena, "How did Mina EVER find the time to fly over to Tokyo just to visit us?" Artemis smiled, because he knew what she was getting at. Mina WAS very busy when she was working, and it was very rare for her to get any free time for 30 seconds, let alone 30 days! "I asked her the same thing," he finally answered. "All I can say, if something's important to you, then you MAKE the time!" "Well said," Luna commented. "And it shouldn't be that surprising either," Artemis continued. "All of the Inner Scouts took time out of their busy schedules to come here, just to see you! Even Darien did what he had to do to get here!" "Oh come on, Artemis," said Darien. "Even Serena is smart enough to know THAT!" Serena suddenly sneered at him. "And what exactly is THAT supposed to mean!?!" Darien laughed nervously. Artemis simply shook his head in disgust, then turned to the black cat sitting next to him. "Some things never change..." he said. Luna nodded. "Anyway..." Luna interrupted, "Artemis and I are about to out for a little stroll. Either of you want to come?" "I would, Luna," said Serena, getting up from the floor, "but I've had a long day. I just need to lay down in bed for a while, then I need to go grocery shopping. I've been running on empty here since I had the others over for dinner that one night." "Doesn't the market supply you with what you need?" asked Darien. "They would," Serena answered, narrowing her eyes angrily at the thought, "except they have this ridiculous policy about not letting employees shop there!" "Sorry to hear that," said Artemis. "What about you, Darien?" "I'd like to, I seriouly would," he answered, "but some stuff I sent over here from New York is arriving today, and I need to be there to pick it up. So I have to leave soon too." "Too bad," said Luna. "Well, we're off. See you two love birds later!" "Takes two to know two!" Serena said with a wink. The cats groaned and walked out the open door. Darien, meanwhile, wrapped her arms around Serena, who glanced back at him. "I need to get out of here too," he said. He then reached into his jacket, and pulled out a red rose, and held it before Serena. She took it from him, then he continued, "I'll see you later, Meatball Head." He reached down and kissed her lightly on the lips, then let go of her and walked out the door. Serena watched as he left. She closed her eyes and inhaled the rose's sweet aroma. She then jumped into the air and squealed with joy. "Oh, GOD I love that man!" she cried.
*** "Ah...I love this time of year," said Mina. "You always say that," replied Lita. "Well, it's true," she continued. "I love summer. I love everything about it. The color of the trees, the people walking about, the golden sun shining down on everything...it's just so great to be a part of!" "I agree," said Amy. "Summer is the best time of year to be out and about. We all picked the perfect time to come back to Tokyo!" "I was lucky to be able to come back now," said Mina. "It's hard enough for me to get ANY time off of work, but I still manage to get around." "You can say that again," said Lita. "Things can get pretty hectic over at the restaurant. People shouting orders, finding good chefs, getting supplies all the time so I never run out, plus I've got this international proposal thing to deal with. It's a little too much of a rush, even for me." "Now there's a stretch!" Mina exclaimed. Lita gave her a look. Amy shook her head in disgust. "Can you two ever NOT insult each other?" she asked. "There was a period of about two years, it was wonderful..." Lita said, "...then, unfortunately, we saw each other again!" "I guess that answers my question," Amy thought to herself. She glanced at her watch. "It's getting late, you guys. We should at least call Serena and tell her where we are." "Not problem," said Mina, as she whipped out a cell phone, and dialed up Serena's number. Lita and Amy waited for her, while they continued their conversation. "Of course," Lita continued, "the good thing about it is, if the whole deal pulls through, with restaurants all over the world, I could move back to Tokyo like I've always wanted! I mean, with worldwide locations, they've GOT to put one here, don't they?" "I know what you mean," Amy replied. "Sometimes, Greg and I talk about after we're married, we could work up the money to start our own practice here in Tokyo. Of course, number one, we've been engaged for over a year now, and the possibility of our actually tying the knot are slightly dimming, and, number two, it takes a lot more than two doctor's salaries to start your own business; even a small one!" Lita gave an "Mm-hmm" of approval, having fully known the expenses of running your own business. She WAS, after all, the owner of her own establishment in the middle of New Orleans. They would have gone further with their talking, when suddenly a beeping sound caught their attention. "I know that sound anywhere!" said Lita. "That's your pocket computer, isn't it?" Amy reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a blue rectangular object, her Mercury computer. The beeping got louder, indicating it was the source of the sound. "It sure is," she said. "It must be picking something up." "But what?" Amy opened up the computer and started pressing buttons. What appeared on the screen surprised her. "It's reading some kind of strange energy source, but it can't pinpoint it, let alone say what it is." Amy closed the computer and put in back in her pocket. "Must have just been a solar flare," she said. Lita shrugged, knowing nothing of the subject. Meanwhile, Mina got off her phone and turned to her friends. "I got her answering machine," she said. "She must be out with Darien or something. What's with you guys?" "Amy's computer picked up something weird," answered Lita. "It was probably nothing at all," said Amy. "What could it possibly scan NOW that could be of any danger?" "I guess so," Lita answered. "C'mon, let's just go." Lita and Mina turned and started walking in the other direction. Amy started to follow them, but she stopped and turned around again. She tapped on the side of her blue earing, and her transparent blue scanning visor covered her eyes. She scanned all around the area, and finally picked something up that made her stare wide-eyed into space. For a moment...just a MOMENT...she could make out an energy source, six and a half feet tall, in the shape of a man. It quickly dissolved from her vision, but she could barely make out a face before it did. It was an all too familar face, one she hoped she'd never have to see again. She then shook her head and regained her senses. She retracted her visor and said to herself, "I've been working way too hard." She ran and caught up with Mina and Lita.
*** "So much energy..." said Jedite, "...and so much to do with it!" He surveyed the area he was in, examining the countless clouds of energy scattered throughout the NegaRuins. "But what to do with it FIRST..." he said. "None of it can got to waste. I must use ALL of it!" His face then lit up, as he was just hit by inspiration. "Aha!" he exclaimed. "I've got it!" Jedite outstretched his body, and his eyes began to glow a strange white color. He strained his body to do something...but anyone who was watching could only guess WHAT. Suddenly, it was heard all throughout the eerie blackness of the ruins...a soft, low rumbling sound. Jedite kept struggling, as his arms and legs started vibrating violently. Whatever he was trying to do, he was doing it with all his might. Then it grew louder. The rumbling sound increased, and suddenly, everything in the blackness of the ruins began shaking. As the sound of the rumbling continued growing louder and louder, the shaking of the NegaRuins continued getting more and more violent. Jedite shut his eyes as he stuggled more and more to do what he was trying to do. Then, finally, it happened. All the countless clouds of energy, lost by former rulers of the domain, starting moving inward...toward a definite source in the middle of the ruins. That source was Jedite. The clouds suddenly starting spinning around and around, swirling in thin, tornado-like streams, flowing closer and closer to Jedite's vibrating body. He yelled out into the blackness as he continued forcing his body to its maximum in this desperate attempt. Then, all of the massive energy streams started flowing INTO Jedite's body! He screamed in pain as his body was being pumped full of the thick clouds that he had drawn to himself like metal to a magnet. As the energy was absorbed into his body, Jedite glowed like a light bulb. He continued screaming as he was energized. Finally, after a full five minutes of absorbing the massive clouds of energy that were once scattered throughout the NegaRuins, all of it was now in one man's body, flowing through one man's bloodstream and nervous system. However, after the absorbtion, though Jedite had stopped screaming, his body was still vibrating violently, as if something was going on inside. Suddenly, a sound reminiscent of something ripping filled the air, and Jedite grew...his height increased by a full 12 inches, and his physique was improved. His shoulders and hips grew outward, the muscles in his arms, legs, and torso looked as if they had been given a large dose of steroids. And surprisingly, his uniform, from the purple shirt to the brown boots, all grew to fit his new stature and physical form. But that wasn't the end of it. The costume itself started changing as well. His belt grew a silver plating, complemented by a silver beltbuckle. On his boots, a pair of silver shinguards appeared, completely encasing the front of his lower legs. On his forearms, a pair of silver armored gloves materialized. On his shoulders, two silver shoulder pads appeared as well, and a black cape sprouted out from behind his back. As the transformation completed. Jedite relaxed his body, and opened his eyes, only to have them suddenly glow brightly, and turn a blank white. "Wow," he said, in a slightly deeper voice. "What a rush..." He opened his hands, and stared at them. They now glowed with a strange, white electrical charge. "I feel..." he said, "...I feel...Oh, words just don't describe it! I feel...like a god!" He then looked at the strange new armor on his hands, then stared down at the rest of his new costume. He grabbed the side of the cape and whirled around, and continued admiring himself. "What...what's happened to me?" he asked himself. "I don't remember my shoes being this far from my eyesight...have I grown? And what's all this new armor? I need to see myself in full..." He turned his head, to a six-foot-tall boulder, floating in space. Jedite raised his glowing right hand in its direction, and shot a white beam of energy from his fingertips. The beam made contact with the boulder, and after a gigantic burst of light, the boulder was no longer a boulder for Jedite had magically turned it into a long, mirrored glass. Jedite flew in front of the mirror, and examined himself and his new attire closely. "This is certainly a change," he said. "I look better than ever!" He whirled around and saw his backside, then whirled around again to see his front. "Something has definitely affected my body structure from absorbing all that energy," he said. "I've not only grown a full foot, and gained some interesting additions to my uniform...but I feel stronger and more powerful than ever!" A grin crossed his evil face. He pointed his hand at the mirror again, and shot another white beam of energy. The mirror flashed, and in the place of Jedite's reflection, there now was a life-size picture of Sailor Moon, moon tiara discus in hand. Jedite floated to a distance of six inches from the picture, and curled back his fist, as if ready to strike. "Get ready, Moon girl," he said menacingly, "It's gonna be a hot time in the old town tonight!" With that, the new, more powerful Jedite threw his armored fist forward, and smashing the face of the picture of Sailor Moon to pieces. He then turned and started floating away. He waved his hand through the air in front of him, and instantly, a bright white light flashed, illuminatin the entire area. The light quickly dimmed, but as it did, what looked like a swirling, gray portal opened wide. Jedite began walking in through it, but stopped halfway and hesitated. He whirled around, threw his hand forward, and blasted a beam of white light at the Sailor Moon picture, smashing the rest of it to smithereens. Another grin crossed Jedite's face, as he turned and walked through the portal to Earth...
*** Serena looked out upon the lake, thinking back upon the many times she and Darien had sailed alone together on those waters; all the romantic moments they had; all the times they'd been together at all. She loved looking back on these things, and she knew Darien did too, even though he wouldn't admit that. As she looked at the setting sun over the lake, she didn't notice a man walking up behind her. The man raised his hand, revealing something red in his fingertips. He then threw it forward, over Serena's head, sticking it in the ground in front of her. Serena, casually looked down, and saw a rose in front of her. She then looked behind her, at the tall, black-haired man with the dark blue eyes standing behind her. "You always like making that entrance, don't you?" she asked him. "Of course," said Darien. "It was how we met, isn't it?" "Actually," she corrected, "we first met when I hit you in the head with a failed test paper that I threw out." "True," he said. He then stuck out his hand to help her up. Serena took it and got to her feet, then reached up and kissed Darien lightly on the lips. He put her arms around her, and she did the same. "I love being here," she said. "It brings back so many happy memories." "I'll admit, it feels good to remember all the times we've been here as a couple." Serena turned her head and looked at the lake again, and saw a couple in boat, rowing their way across it. She then turned back to her boyfriend and put her head on his chest. "It's almost 7:30," said Darien. "Wanna get some dinner? I heard a new restaurant just opened across town." "As long as it's with you." she answered. "How sweet," he said. "Come on. My motorcycle's over this way." "Your motorcycle?" Serena asked, looking up at his face. "Your Harley Davidson? The one you bought when you visited Milwaukee? How'd you bring it here?" "It was one of the things I had shipped over here the other day." he said. "Y'know, the day we saw Artemis?" "Oh, yeah," she said. "But I didn't know the Harley was one of them." Darien smiled and returned, "Like I'd go anywhere without it." "Well, I'd love to see it," she commented. "I've only heard about through your letters and phone calls." "Well, come this way, my dear," he said, "and see it for yourself." They walked together, hand in hand, across the street to where Darien's motorcycle was. Serena saw it for the first time, and gasped with delight at the sight of it. The side plates and wheel covers where painted with a blue color, with stars and a crescent moon painted under the seat. Right next to that, in silver-plated letters, was the motorcycle's given name: MOON PRINCESS. "Oh, Darien, it's beautiful!" she exclaimed. "I named it after you," he said. "If I couldn't have you personally by my side, I at least wanted a Moon Princess of SOME sort. And while it's nowhere near as wonderful as being with YOU, it tides me over until I actually do visit Tokyo. Do you like it?" "Like it? I love it!" "Glad you approve," he said, and he walked behind her and suddenly flashed something in front of her. She saw what he was holding and gasped again. It was a bike helmet, in her size, painted like a fading twilight sky, with a crescent moon painted on each side. On the lower half of the left side, there were silver letters spelling out "SERENA". "For you," he said. "It's the law to wear one of these, y'know." "Wow!" she said. "This is...this is just too cool!" "It was hard to find your size, with your not being there when I had it customized, but I think I got it just right." Serena put the helmet over her blonde-haired head, and fastened it tightly. She then took it off and stared at Darien with a smile on her face. "A perfect fit," she said. She then put her arms around him and kissed him lovingly on the lips. Darien put his arms around her, then swung her around and swung her backwards, returning the kiss. He then set her back onto her feet, and they pulled away from each other. "I take it you like it?" he asked. "Oh, I like, I like!" The two of them then headed for the motorcyle. Serena hopped on behind her boyfriend, and put on her new helmet. Darien then reached behind his seat, and pulled out his helmet; painted black, with a red rose painted on either side. Darien started the motorcycle, and they zoomed down the street, towards the opposite side of town, Serena screaming with delight and arms tightly wrapped around him.
*** The portal opened in the middle of an empty construction site. From its wide, black center, out Jedite stepped, fully dressed in his new, "updated" uniform, from his black cape to the silver shinguards on his brown leather boots. He stared out at his surroundings with his hollow white eyes. This construction site was a place he'd been before, that he knew, but to him, there was something different about everything else. "Things have certainly changed," Jedite thought, eyeing several distant skyscrapers that he knew weren't there before. "I've only been on Earth for several seconds, and that's obvious..." With a wave of his armored hand, Jedite magically closed the portal behind him. He then floated upward towards the distant skyline. He made his way between the buildings like the Dark Angel of Death itself, ready to strike on any innocent victim it chose. But that wasn't Jedite's plan, at least not for now. Right now, he simply floated high above the streets of Tokyo, eyeing the tall buildings he was between, and the ant-like pedestrians miles below his feet. Finally, he flew upwards even more, before he finally landed on the very, VERY top of the Tower of Tokyo. There, he "perched" like an evil bird of prey, looking down and around on the rest of the city miles below. "Things HAVE changed..." Jedite said. "I remember this tower being tall, but it has to have been built more since I saw it last." He contined looking downward, noticing buildings, billboards, radio towers, even an entire airport that he knew he'd never seen before. "It has to have been at LEAST ten years since my imprisonment," he said. "So many new sights...which must mean more people..." He grinned mischievously. "...which means more life energy for me to drain from them!"
He looked to the east of the massive tower, and he saw a lighted billboard, that said, in lights, "COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS 2003" and then, spelled in more lights, the exact number of years, months, days, hours, and minutes it would be to the exact moment when it would be Christmas. Jedite's eyes widened as he made the calculation in his head of what year it was now. "It HAS been ten years!!!" he thought. "That would explain the changes I've seen here..." He stood up straight on the top of the tower, then acrobatically leaped off it, in spread-eagle position. He plummeted to the ground below, and flipped through the air, the cold night air zooming past him. Finally, he landed noiselessly on his feet in a dark alley, where no one was to be seen. No one would be able to see him in the darkness. He walked out of the alley, but anyone who saw him then would think he was just a normal man walking around at night. He was no longer in his uniform; he magically changed his clothes while in the alley. He now wore a brown business suit, black dress shirt, and black sunglasses to hide his hollow eyes. He slightly removed them, and his eyes glowed white. "Sailor Moon is still here," he thought, smiling. "I can feel it in my blood. The energies I've absorbed are telling me so..." He walked out onto the sidewalk, and down the street. "I'll search for her now," he thought. "I know I WILL find her...it's only a matter of time until I do." He made his way through the people walking past and beside him, wondering in his head if he even knew who he was looking for. "I'm not sure I know what I'm doing," he finally admitted to himself. "It's been so long, and my memories have a few holes in them. I'm not sure I remember what Sailor Moon looks like behind her tiara. This is will not be easy..." He grinned. "...but it will DEFINITELY be worth it!!!" He made several shortcuts through the city, using interspace portals he would would open and close in empty alleyways. He would then emerge in another part of the city, and continue his search. "This is getting tiresome," Jedite though impatiently. "I've been searching for over an hour, and found nothing." Just then, he stopped in his tracks, as something inside him told him to do so. His eyes glowed as well, brightly enough that it could be seen even through the black sunglasses he wore. "She's close..." he thought. "...VERY close..." As he thought this, he whirled around at the sound of voices behind him. Two of them, one male, the other female. But he could swear they BOTH sounded VERY familiar. Jedite didn't want to take the chance to be seen. He looked to his left, and saw a conveniently placed dark alley. He jumped into it and concealed himself, just as two people turned the corner. From the darkness, Jedite watched closely with his hollow, glowing eyes. Two people then walked by the opening to the alley. One, a male, about a foot shorter than Jedite was, with dark black hair, and wearing a green jacket and black shirt. The other, a female, a foot shorter than he was, with bright yellow blonde hair, styled in the most interesting of fashions: two "spheres" of hair, one on either side of her head, with a long yellow ponytail coming down from each one. She was holding the man's arm, and he had his arm around her. They were obviously a couple, but that wasn't what Jedite was concerned with. "They both look familiar..." thought Jedite. "But the girl...I know I've seen her before before..." As the couple walked by the alley, Jedite imagined the girl in different attire; a shrunken school girl uniform, white gloves, red boots, a short blue skirt, and a golden tiara on her forhead, with a pink jewel in the center. Jedite grinned. "Oh, it's her all right!" he thought, eyes glowing even brighter. Jedite walked out of the alley, now dressed in his purple uniform, and watched as the girl and her boyfriend walked down the street, not even noticing him behind them. Jedite then jumped into the air, and disappeared among the darkness of the night sky above.
*** After dinner, Serena and Darien decided to walk around before heading back to the lot where they had parked the motorcycle. "It feels good to walk down this street again," said Darien. "It's been so long since I was in Tokyo last; I hardly remember how to make my way through it." "I've walked down this street a zillion times before," said Serena. "I can't say it feels good, but it doesn't feel bad. Right now, it feels good only because you're here with me..." She held him tighter. Darien smiled, and put his arm around her. "Likewise," said he, "it just isn't as much fun without you." He reached down and kissed her on the forehead. Serena blushed and giggled.
"Do you have to be so public about it?" she asked. "What's so public about this?" Darien replied. "There's no one around. And even if there were, I still would be as public about it as I always have. I'm not scared to show that I'm in love with you." Serena blushed again. She never knew Darien to be like this, but she liked it. They turned a corner, and walked down another section of the street, past a dark alley, and further along the block. About a minute after they passed the alley, Serena suddenly looked up, a surprised look on her face. She turned her head backwards, in the direction of the entrance to the alley. Strangely, there was nothing there at all. Darien turned to Serena. "Something wrong?" he asked. "I..." she said, "...y'know, I'm not really sure. For a second, I could have sworn...we were being watched." "Watched?" Darien asked. He looked to the left, to the right, to the front and back, even above and below them. "There's no one around as far as I can see," he said. "I don't THINK there's anyone watching us." "Never mind," she said. "Just my imagination, I guess." They both smiled at each other, and continued their walk. As they passed another dark alley along the sidewalk, they were suddenly knocked off their feet as something emerged from the alley and rammed right into them, sending them both crashing to the floor. They landed on each other, and looked up at the back of the man who bumped into them. "HEY!" Darien cried. "Watch it, buddy!" "Yeah!" Serena added. "Why don't you watch where you're going!?!" It was then that they realized the man was wearing a long, black cape, on top of a purple uniform. From the side of the man's body, hidden by the cape, a purple-clothed arm came out, the hand of which, covered in a metal armored glove, balled into a fist. Serena gasped as she saw the armored fist, because it was EXACTLY like the one she'd seen before! "Oh, I'm so very sorry..." the man said sarcastically, in a sinisterly familiar voice. The man then slowly turned around, revealing the side of his blonde-haired face. The face turned around completely, and looked directly at Serena. She gasped again when she saw the man's face, from the blonde hair, to the blank eyes, to the wide, maniacal smile on his lips. "...SAILOR MOON!" the man finished, as he started laughing evilly. Serena's eyes and mouth opened even wider, as did Darien's, for he knew who this man was too. The man's laughter grew louder and more maniacal, as he turned and walked away from the terrified couple. As he walked away his body suddenly started glowing white, then disappeared in a burst of flame. Serena and Darien were left behind, only to wonder what they had just seen.
*** "I'm telling you, Raye, it was HIM!" "Are you sure?" "Yes!" "Are you positive?" "Yes!" "Are you..." "Oh, for the last time, Raye, YES!!!" Serena shouted. "Serena," the raven-haired woman said, "it's...it's just impossible! He's gone, dead, defeated, for the last TEN YEARS!!!" "We may have defeated him, Raye, but that doesn't mean he died!" Serena replied. "And I know he didn't because I SAW him! Both me and Darien saw him!" "Serena, if you're kidding me here..." Raye began. "Oh, please, Raye!" Serena snapped. "In all the ten years we've been friends, have you ever ONCE known me to so much as JOKE about something like this!?! Now I am serious here! It was HIM!" "Serena,..." "And that's not the worst of it!" "What do you mean?" Raye asked, casually pouring hot tea into her cup. "Remember in the dream we both had?" Serena asked. "At the end of it, after you died, when those two giant armored gloves made that shockwave?" Raye frowned. "How could I forget?" "He was wearing them, Raye! Jedite was wearing those gloves when we saw him!" Raye gasped and dropped both the teakettle and the cup. They hit the ground, sending brown-clear liquid spreading all over the white tile. Raye whirled around and faced her blonde friend. "Please tell me you're joking!" Raye begged. "PLEASE tell me your not serious!" Serena simply looked at her with a straight face, arms crossed. "Do I LOOK like I'm joking?" she asked. "But..." Raye tried to speak, but couldn't get the words out. Finally, she did manage to get out, "But...why come to me about this?" "Because we both had the same dream about it, Raye," Serena answered. "About the wave of destruction, about everyone dying except me, and those two giant hands...the same ones I saw Jedite wearing!" She then solemnly looked away from her raven-haired friend. "I don't know exactly how to say this, but..." "But what?" Raye asked anxiously. "But..." Serena finally said, "...I think it was a vision...of the future."
Raye's eyes widened as Serena spoke these words. She never knew Serena to have premonitions of the future, not like Raye did. And it was rather frightening to hear her start. "You mean..." Raye started. "I got a good look at him when he rammed into us today, Raye," Serena said. "He had all this new armor, this long cape around his neck, and I could have sworn he grew another foot or so. It's bad enough he's still alive at all...but from what we both saw in that dream...I'd say that's the least of our problems." "What are you talking about?" "When I saw him, Raye, I...I could feel...power. Unimaginable formidability beyond which I KNOW I've ever seen." Serena explained. "He's not only back, but he's powerful...and not just because he's awake up and pretty angry! I mean, he's become even MORE powerful than he was before! If you had been there, Raye, and been able to see into his eyes, you'd feel the exact same thing I did!" Raye shuddered. She could tell Serena was being serious about the matter, and she was afraid to think about what if she was RIGHT. Jedite was always a powerful enemy, as were all of Queen Beryl's general's. But if he was bigger and more powerful than before, she could tell...they were in a lot of trouble. "I know you probably don't think I'm being serious about this, Raye, but..." Serena started. Raye grabbed her by the arm, and dragged her out of the room, stopping her in the middle of her sentence. "On the contrary, old friend," said Raye, pulling Serena down the hall with her. "I don't think you could possibly be MORE serious about this..."
*** Raye dragged Serena into the fire room, where she promptly kelt down in front of the rising flames. While Serena watched, Raye closed her eyes and put her hands in prayer position. "Great spirits of the burning fire," Raye chanted, "show us...show me...the evil we must face...show us the form of our enemy..." Serena watched in awe as the flames of the fire looked as if they were getting brighter, then dying back down, as Raye continued chanting. Suddenly, in a burst of light, the flames spewed out of the fire, right at Raye, who opened her eyes and jumped backwards just in time to avoid the fire shooting at her! She landed on her back several feet from Serena, who gave a short scream and ran to her friend's side. "I'm okay," Raye said, a little short of breath. The two then looked at the burning fire, and gasped at what they saw. From out of the fire, now burning at a height of about ten feet, a tall, black form walked out, laughing a maniacal chuckle. The form's blonde hair and black cape flowed behind him from the force of the flames, unaffected by their scorching. Finally, the form completely revealed himself and he walked out of the fire and faced the twosome. Everything, from his purple uniform, to the silver shoulder pads, to the brown leather boots could clearly be seen. His white, hollow eyes stared down evilly at Raye and Serena. Raye narrowed her eyes on the evil form, while Serena stared wide-eyed and open-mouthed. "Jedite..." Raye whispered. "How wonderful to see you again, Sailor Mars!" Jedite replied. "You're looking rather lovely, even after TEN YEARS!" "What do you want?" Serena demanded. Jedite replied with another maniacal laugh. "You'll find out soon enough, Sailor Moon!" he said. "Until then, you can tell all your fellow Sailor Scouts...that just like the two of you...THEY ARE DOOMED!!!" Jedite continued laughing, as he turned and walked back into the burning fire, disappearing completely in its midst. As he vanished, the flames died down to their normal level, leaving Raye and Serena behind, frightened for their lives. "What do we do now?" Serena asked. "Only thing we can do at this point..." Raye replied.
Chapter 3
"Return to Earth Realm"
Jedite roamed around his surroundings, looking for anything that could be useful to him. But all he founds were large rocks and clouds of mist. "Much has most certainly happened since I've...been away," he said to himself. "It would seem everything is in ruins here...nothing that I remember must even exists anymore...which means Queen beryl must be dead...along with Nephlite, Zoycite, and that idiot Malachite!...How convenient for me!" He continued searching the ruins, but still found nothing but clouds, rocks, and complete darkness. "Nothing...nothing at all! What can possibly do me any good in this desolate place!?!" Suddenly, his leg brushed up against something that sizzled with gray electricity. Jedite looked down at it in surprise. "What the--?" He knelt down on the floating rock to get a closer look at it. It looked like only another cloud of mist, but as Jedite ran his hands back and forth through it, more gray electric sparks flowed. He finally realized what it was. "Hmm...how very interesting..." he thought. "Excess human energy!...Must have been left behind when Beryl was destroyed by Sailor Moon...wait a minute! How did I know that SAILOR MOON destroyed Queen Beryl!?!" As he ran his hand through the cloud, an image of Princess Serena battling Queen Beryl ran through his head. At first, Jedite couldn't figure out why this happened. "Very interesting..." he said. "It must be from when Beryl ruled the NegaVerse...and it must contain memories from the past...things I was not around to witness...Which gives me an idea..." Jedite held his hands within the heart of the energy cloud. His hands glowed white for a moment, and then the energy itself was absorbed into his body. Jedite threw his head back and exhaled deeply, feeling a little stronger from this energy boost. "AH...I needed that...now let's see..." He concentrated as hard as he could. Instantly, various images of his successing generals, Nephlite, Zoycite, and Malachite, ran through his head, as he learned about their outcomes. "Intriguing...Nephlite fell in love with a human...Zoycite was killed by Queen Beryl for trying to kill Tuxedo Mask...and Malachite was destroyed by Sailor Moon..." he thought, "...I was right...this energy patch contains memories from the time Queen Beryl ruled the NegaVerse! And now that I've absorbed it, I can know everything that happened up until then...and there's more, simply within this one cloud..." Jedite concentrated harder. Now images of other Sailor Scouts flowed through his mind. Two of whom he already knew; Sailors Mercury and Mars. But there were two others he didn't recognize. But from the information within the energy cloud, he found out who they were. "So...they found all five Inner Sailors..." Jedite thought. "Jupiter and Venus!! So...that little teenage pest Sailor V that gave me so much trouble before 'Moon Girl' is a Scout too, eh? This information will come in handy!" Jedite got up and looked around. He turned his head left and right, and saw something that pleased him very much. Countless clouds of energy, varying in size, scattered throughout the entire NegaRuins. Some were miniscule, others were gigantic. Either way...Jedite found something VERY useful. "I think I've found what I'm looking for..." he thought, as a wide, maniacal grin crossed his face.
*** Serena slammed the door behind her as she walked into her apartment. It had been a VERY long, VERY hard work day. As she plumped down to the floor, she huffed and puffed as if she'd just run a marathon. She leaned up against the door and caught her breath. She was so tired that she didn't even notice the tall person standing in her living room, in front of the fake bookcase. "What's with you, Meatball Head?" he said. "You look like you've just swam the English Channel...twice!" Serena looked up and saw Darien. She smiled and got up off the floor. "If you can compare the day I've had to doing that, than I guess you could say I did!" she replied. She walked over to him and they hugged each other. Darien pushed her back a little. "It couldn't have been that bad, could it?" he asked. "You had to have been there," she said. "Four of my employees quit for the day right in the middle of a mid-day customer rush! You'd think there was a worldwide food shortage or something! Those guys are lucky I didn't send them flying all the way down to the unemployment office for doing that to me!" "Well did you?" "No, I'm just going to bawl them out tomorrow!" She giggled. She looked past him, and saw the hidden glass case, displaying the Transformation Locket, the Crescent Moon Wand, the Moon Sceptor, and the Imperium Silver Crystal, open for all to see. "I see you found my hidden display," she said. "Actually, on accident," Darien said. "Luna ran under my feet and tripped me. It stumbled into the book case, and the display opened up." He let go of Serena and turned to the display again. "So I've just been looking at these old relics for a while...remembering all we've been through..." Serena put her arms around him and looked at the display with him. She sighed deeply. "Kind of makes you wish for the good old days. when I first became Sailor Moon, doesn't it?" she asked. "Hmph!" was Darien's reply. "When Jedite kept sending all those monsters to suck humans clean dry of their energy? When you kept getting beaten around by some intergalactic mutant?...When I wasn't in love with you?...I don't think so!" Serena looked up at him and smiled. She loved it when he talked like this, just to let her know just how much he loved her. She reached up and kissed him lightly on the lips, then they both looked back at the display. "Where's Amy?" Serena asked. "Out with Lita and Mina," Darien answered. "Raye would be with them, except she and Chad had some things to take care of at the temple." "Go figure..." said Serena. "What about the cats?" "Right behind you!" a familiar voice said. Serena turned her head, and two cats were sitting behind them. One of them, Luna, the other, a white cat with the same crescent moon shape on the forehead.
"Artemis!" Serena cried. Darien turned his head and smiled at the
sight of the white cat. Neither he nor Serena had seen him, even after
he and Mina got into town. Serena bent down on the floor, and Artemis ran up and jumped into her arms. Serena hugged him tightly, Artemis purring with satisfaction. He jumped down and stood next to Luna. "How're you doing, Artie?" asked Darien. "Pretty well," he replied. "Life is pretty hectic when you live with a star like Mina. You wouldn't believe how much traveling we have to do together. We've probably been all over France several times! Germany too!" "Still the same old jokester, eh, Artemis?" said Serena with a smile. "Same as always, just the way he should be," answered Luna, as she rubbed her head affectionately against his white fur. Artemis blushed. "So I'm dying to know," said Serena, "How did Mina EVER find the time to fly over to Tokyo just to visit us?" Artemis smiled, because he knew what she was getting at. Mina WAS very busy when she was working, and it was very rare for her to get any free time for 30 seconds, let alone 30 days! "I asked her the same thing," he finally answered. "All I can say, if something's important to you, then you MAKE the time!" "Well said," Luna commented. "And it shouldn't be that surprising either," Artemis continued. "All of the Inner Scouts took time out of their busy schedules to come here, just to see you! Even Darien did what he had to do to get here!" "Oh come on, Artemis," said Darien. "Even Serena is smart enough to know THAT!" Serena suddenly sneered at him. "And what exactly is THAT supposed to mean!?!" Darien laughed nervously. Artemis simply shook his head in disgust, then turned to the black cat sitting next to him. "Some things never change..." he said. Luna nodded. "Anyway..." Luna interrupted, "Artemis and I are about to out for a little stroll. Either of you want to come?" "I would, Luna," said Serena, getting up from the floor, "but I've had a long day. I just need to lay down in bed for a while, then I need to go grocery shopping. I've been running on empty here since I had the others over for dinner that one night." "Doesn't the market supply you with what you need?" asked Darien. "They would," Serena answered, narrowing her eyes angrily at the thought, "except they have this ridiculous policy about not letting employees shop there!" "Sorry to hear that," said Artemis. "What about you, Darien?" "I'd like to, I seriouly would," he answered, "but some stuff I sent over here from New York is arriving today, and I need to be there to pick it up. So I have to leave soon too." "Too bad," said Luna. "Well, we're off. See you two love birds later!" "Takes two to know two!" Serena said with a wink. The cats groaned and walked out the open door. Darien, meanwhile, wrapped her arms around Serena, who glanced back at him. "I need to get out of here too," he said. He then reached into his jacket, and pulled out a red rose, and held it before Serena. She took it from him, then he continued, "I'll see you later, Meatball Head." He reached down and kissed her lightly on the lips, then let go of her and walked out the door. Serena watched as he left. She closed her eyes and inhaled the rose's sweet aroma. She then jumped into the air and squealed with joy. "Oh, GOD I love that man!" she cried.
*** "Ah...I love this time of year," said Mina. "You always say that," replied Lita. "Well, it's true," she continued. "I love summer. I love everything about it. The color of the trees, the people walking about, the golden sun shining down on everything...it's just so great to be a part of!" "I agree," said Amy. "Summer is the best time of year to be out and about. We all picked the perfect time to come back to Tokyo!" "I was lucky to be able to come back now," said Mina. "It's hard enough for me to get ANY time off of work, but I still manage to get around." "You can say that again," said Lita. "Things can get pretty hectic over at the restaurant. People shouting orders, finding good chefs, getting supplies all the time so I never run out, plus I've got this international proposal thing to deal with. It's a little too much of a rush, even for me." "Now there's a stretch!" Mina exclaimed. Lita gave her a look. Amy shook her head in disgust. "Can you two ever NOT insult each other?" she asked. "There was a period of about two years, it was wonderful..." Lita said, "...then, unfortunately, we saw each other again!" "I guess that answers my question," Amy thought to herself. She glanced at her watch. "It's getting late, you guys. We should at least call Serena and tell her where we are." "Not problem," said Mina, as she whipped out a cell phone, and dialed up Serena's number. Lita and Amy waited for her, while they continued their conversation. "Of course," Lita continued, "the good thing about it is, if the whole deal pulls through, with restaurants all over the world, I could move back to Tokyo like I've always wanted! I mean, with worldwide locations, they've GOT to put one here, don't they?" "I know what you mean," Amy replied. "Sometimes, Greg and I talk about after we're married, we could work up the money to start our own practice here in Tokyo. Of course, number one, we've been engaged for over a year now, and the possibility of our actually tying the knot are slightly dimming, and, number two, it takes a lot more than two doctor's salaries to start your own business; even a small one!" Lita gave an "Mm-hmm" of approval, having fully known the expenses of running your own business. She WAS, after all, the owner of her own establishment in the middle of New Orleans. They would have gone further with their talking, when suddenly a beeping sound caught their attention. "I know that sound anywhere!" said Lita. "That's your pocket computer, isn't it?" Amy reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a blue rectangular object, her Mercury computer. The beeping got louder, indicating it was the source of the sound. "It sure is," she said. "It must be picking something up." "But what?" Amy opened up the computer and started pressing buttons. What appeared on the screen surprised her. "It's reading some kind of strange energy source, but it can't pinpoint it, let alone say what it is." Amy closed the computer and put in back in her pocket. "Must have just been a solar flare," she said. Lita shrugged, knowing nothing of the subject. Meanwhile, Mina got off her phone and turned to her friends. "I got her answering machine," she said. "She must be out with Darien or something. What's with you guys?" "Amy's computer picked up something weird," answered Lita. "It was probably nothing at all," said Amy. "What could it possibly scan NOW that could be of any danger?" "I guess so," Lita answered. "C'mon, let's just go." Lita and Mina turned and started walking in the other direction. Amy started to follow them, but she stopped and turned around again. She tapped on the side of her blue earing, and her transparent blue scanning visor covered her eyes. She scanned all around the area, and finally picked something up that made her stare wide-eyed into space. For a moment...just a MOMENT...she could make out an energy source, six and a half feet tall, in the shape of a man. It quickly dissolved from her vision, but she could barely make out a face before it did. It was an all too familar face, one she hoped she'd never have to see again. She then shook her head and regained her senses. She retracted her visor and said to herself, "I've been working way too hard." She ran and caught up with Mina and Lita.
*** "So much energy..." said Jedite, "...and so much to do with it!" He surveyed the area he was in, examining the countless clouds of energy scattered throughout the NegaRuins. "But what to do with it FIRST..." he said. "None of it can got to waste. I must use ALL of it!" His face then lit up, as he was just hit by inspiration. "Aha!" he exclaimed. "I've got it!" Jedite outstretched his body, and his eyes began to glow a strange white color. He strained his body to do something...but anyone who was watching could only guess WHAT. Suddenly, it was heard all throughout the eerie blackness of the ruins...a soft, low rumbling sound. Jedite kept struggling, as his arms and legs started vibrating violently. Whatever he was trying to do, he was doing it with all his might. Then it grew louder. The rumbling sound increased, and suddenly, everything in the blackness of the ruins began shaking. As the sound of the rumbling continued growing louder and louder, the shaking of the NegaRuins continued getting more and more violent. Jedite shut his eyes as he stuggled more and more to do what he was trying to do. Then, finally, it happened. All the countless clouds of energy, lost by former rulers of the domain, starting moving inward...toward a definite source in the middle of the ruins. That source was Jedite. The clouds suddenly starting spinning around and around, swirling in thin, tornado-like streams, flowing closer and closer to Jedite's vibrating body. He yelled out into the blackness as he continued forcing his body to its maximum in this desperate attempt. Then, all of the massive energy streams started flowing INTO Jedite's body! He screamed in pain as his body was being pumped full of the thick clouds that he had drawn to himself like metal to a magnet. As the energy was absorbed into his body, Jedite glowed like a light bulb. He continued screaming as he was energized. Finally, after a full five minutes of absorbing the massive clouds of energy that were once scattered throughout the NegaRuins, all of it was now in one man's body, flowing through one man's bloodstream and nervous system. However, after the absorbtion, though Jedite had stopped screaming, his body was still vibrating violently, as if something was going on inside. Suddenly, a sound reminiscent of something ripping filled the air, and Jedite grew...his height increased by a full 12 inches, and his physique was improved. His shoulders and hips grew outward, the muscles in his arms, legs, and torso looked as if they had been given a large dose of steroids. And surprisingly, his uniform, from the purple shirt to the brown boots, all grew to fit his new stature and physical form. But that wasn't the end of it. The costume itself started changing as well. His belt grew a silver plating, complemented by a silver beltbuckle. On his boots, a pair of silver shinguards appeared, completely encasing the front of his lower legs. On his forearms, a pair of silver armored gloves materialized. On his shoulders, two silver shoulder pads appeared as well, and a black cape sprouted out from behind his back. As the transformation completed. Jedite relaxed his body, and opened his eyes, only to have them suddenly glow brightly, and turn a blank white. "Wow," he said, in a slightly deeper voice. "What a rush..." He opened his hands, and stared at them. They now glowed with a strange, white electrical charge. "I feel..." he said, "...I feel...Oh, words just don't describe it! I feel...like a god!" He then looked at the strange new armor on his hands, then stared down at the rest of his new costume. He grabbed the side of the cape and whirled around, and continued admiring himself. "What...what's happened to me?" he asked himself. "I don't remember my shoes being this far from my eyesight...have I grown? And what's all this new armor? I need to see myself in full..." He turned his head, to a six-foot-tall boulder, floating in space. Jedite raised his glowing right hand in its direction, and shot a white beam of energy from his fingertips. The beam made contact with the boulder, and after a gigantic burst of light, the boulder was no longer a boulder for Jedite had magically turned it into a long, mirrored glass. Jedite flew in front of the mirror, and examined himself and his new attire closely. "This is certainly a change," he said. "I look better than ever!" He whirled around and saw his backside, then whirled around again to see his front. "Something has definitely affected my body structure from absorbing all that energy," he said. "I've not only grown a full foot, and gained some interesting additions to my uniform...but I feel stronger and more powerful than ever!" A grin crossed his evil face. He pointed his hand at the mirror again, and shot another white beam of energy. The mirror flashed, and in the place of Jedite's reflection, there now was a life-size picture of Sailor Moon, moon tiara discus in hand. Jedite floated to a distance of six inches from the picture, and curled back his fist, as if ready to strike. "Get ready, Moon girl," he said menacingly, "It's gonna be a hot time in the old town tonight!" With that, the new, more powerful Jedite threw his armored fist forward, and smashing the face of the picture of Sailor Moon to pieces. He then turned and started floating away. He waved his hand through the air in front of him, and instantly, a bright white light flashed, illuminatin the entire area. The light quickly dimmed, but as it did, what looked like a swirling, gray portal opened wide. Jedite began walking in through it, but stopped halfway and hesitated. He whirled around, threw his hand forward, and blasted a beam of white light at the Sailor Moon picture, smashing the rest of it to smithereens. Another grin crossed Jedite's face, as he turned and walked through the portal to Earth...
*** Serena looked out upon the lake, thinking back upon the many times she and Darien had sailed alone together on those waters; all the romantic moments they had; all the times they'd been together at all. She loved looking back on these things, and she knew Darien did too, even though he wouldn't admit that. As she looked at the setting sun over the lake, she didn't notice a man walking up behind her. The man raised his hand, revealing something red in his fingertips. He then threw it forward, over Serena's head, sticking it in the ground in front of her. Serena, casually looked down, and saw a rose in front of her. She then looked behind her, at the tall, black-haired man with the dark blue eyes standing behind her. "You always like making that entrance, don't you?" she asked him. "Of course," said Darien. "It was how we met, isn't it?" "Actually," she corrected, "we first met when I hit you in the head with a failed test paper that I threw out." "True," he said. He then stuck out his hand to help her up. Serena took it and got to her feet, then reached up and kissed Darien lightly on the lips. He put her arms around her, and she did the same. "I love being here," she said. "It brings back so many happy memories." "I'll admit, it feels good to remember all the times we've been here as a couple." Serena turned her head and looked at the lake again, and saw a couple in boat, rowing their way across it. She then turned back to her boyfriend and put her head on his chest. "It's almost 7:30," said Darien. "Wanna get some dinner? I heard a new restaurant just opened across town." "As long as it's with you." she answered. "How sweet," he said. "Come on. My motorcycle's over this way." "Your motorcycle?" Serena asked, looking up at his face. "Your Harley Davidson? The one you bought when you visited Milwaukee? How'd you bring it here?" "It was one of the things I had shipped over here the other day." he said. "Y'know, the day we saw Artemis?" "Oh, yeah," she said. "But I didn't know the Harley was one of them." Darien smiled and returned, "Like I'd go anywhere without it." "Well, I'd love to see it," she commented. "I've only heard about through your letters and phone calls." "Well, come this way, my dear," he said, "and see it for yourself." They walked together, hand in hand, across the street to where Darien's motorcycle was. Serena saw it for the first time, and gasped with delight at the sight of it. The side plates and wheel covers where painted with a blue color, with stars and a crescent moon painted under the seat. Right next to that, in silver-plated letters, was the motorcycle's given name: MOON PRINCESS. "Oh, Darien, it's beautiful!" she exclaimed. "I named it after you," he said. "If I couldn't have you personally by my side, I at least wanted a Moon Princess of SOME sort. And while it's nowhere near as wonderful as being with YOU, it tides me over until I actually do visit Tokyo. Do you like it?" "Like it? I love it!" "Glad you approve," he said, and he walked behind her and suddenly flashed something in front of her. She saw what he was holding and gasped again. It was a bike helmet, in her size, painted like a fading twilight sky, with a crescent moon painted on each side. On the lower half of the left side, there were silver letters spelling out "SERENA". "For you," he said. "It's the law to wear one of these, y'know." "Wow!" she said. "This is...this is just too cool!" "It was hard to find your size, with your not being there when I had it customized, but I think I got it just right." Serena put the helmet over her blonde-haired head, and fastened it tightly. She then took it off and stared at Darien with a smile on her face. "A perfect fit," she said. She then put her arms around him and kissed him lovingly on the lips. Darien put his arms around her, then swung her around and swung her backwards, returning the kiss. He then set her back onto her feet, and they pulled away from each other. "I take it you like it?" he asked. "Oh, I like, I like!" The two of them then headed for the motorcyle. Serena hopped on behind her boyfriend, and put on her new helmet. Darien then reached behind his seat, and pulled out his helmet; painted black, with a red rose painted on either side. Darien started the motorcycle, and they zoomed down the street, towards the opposite side of town, Serena screaming with delight and arms tightly wrapped around him.
*** The portal opened in the middle of an empty construction site. From its wide, black center, out Jedite stepped, fully dressed in his new, "updated" uniform, from his black cape to the silver shinguards on his brown leather boots. He stared out at his surroundings with his hollow white eyes. This construction site was a place he'd been before, that he knew, but to him, there was something different about everything else. "Things have certainly changed," Jedite thought, eyeing several distant skyscrapers that he knew weren't there before. "I've only been on Earth for several seconds, and that's obvious..." With a wave of his armored hand, Jedite magically closed the portal behind him. He then floated upward towards the distant skyline. He made his way between the buildings like the Dark Angel of Death itself, ready to strike on any innocent victim it chose. But that wasn't Jedite's plan, at least not for now. Right now, he simply floated high above the streets of Tokyo, eyeing the tall buildings he was between, and the ant-like pedestrians miles below his feet. Finally, he flew upwards even more, before he finally landed on the very, VERY top of the Tower of Tokyo. There, he "perched" like an evil bird of prey, looking down and around on the rest of the city miles below. "Things HAVE changed..." Jedite said. "I remember this tower being tall, but it has to have been built more since I saw it last." He contined looking downward, noticing buildings, billboards, radio towers, even an entire airport that he knew he'd never seen before. "It has to have been at LEAST ten years since my imprisonment," he said. "So many new sights...which must mean more people..." He grinned mischievously. "...which means more life energy for me to drain from them!"
He looked to the east of the massive tower, and he saw a lighted billboard, that said, in lights, "COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS 2003" and then, spelled in more lights, the exact number of years, months, days, hours, and minutes it would be to the exact moment when it would be Christmas. Jedite's eyes widened as he made the calculation in his head of what year it was now. "It HAS been ten years!!!" he thought. "That would explain the changes I've seen here..." He stood up straight on the top of the tower, then acrobatically leaped off it, in spread-eagle position. He plummeted to the ground below, and flipped through the air, the cold night air zooming past him. Finally, he landed noiselessly on his feet in a dark alley, where no one was to be seen. No one would be able to see him in the darkness. He walked out of the alley, but anyone who saw him then would think he was just a normal man walking around at night. He was no longer in his uniform; he magically changed his clothes while in the alley. He now wore a brown business suit, black dress shirt, and black sunglasses to hide his hollow eyes. He slightly removed them, and his eyes glowed white. "Sailor Moon is still here," he thought, smiling. "I can feel it in my blood. The energies I've absorbed are telling me so..." He walked out onto the sidewalk, and down the street. "I'll search for her now," he thought. "I know I WILL find her...it's only a matter of time until I do." He made his way through the people walking past and beside him, wondering in his head if he even knew who he was looking for. "I'm not sure I know what I'm doing," he finally admitted to himself. "It's been so long, and my memories have a few holes in them. I'm not sure I remember what Sailor Moon looks like behind her tiara. This is will not be easy..." He grinned. "...but it will DEFINITELY be worth it!!!" He made several shortcuts through the city, using interspace portals he would would open and close in empty alleyways. He would then emerge in another part of the city, and continue his search. "This is getting tiresome," Jedite though impatiently. "I've been searching for over an hour, and found nothing." Just then, he stopped in his tracks, as something inside him told him to do so. His eyes glowed as well, brightly enough that it could be seen even through the black sunglasses he wore. "She's close..." he thought. "...VERY close..." As he thought this, he whirled around at the sound of voices behind him. Two of them, one male, the other female. But he could swear they BOTH sounded VERY familiar. Jedite didn't want to take the chance to be seen. He looked to his left, and saw a conveniently placed dark alley. He jumped into it and concealed himself, just as two people turned the corner. From the darkness, Jedite watched closely with his hollow, glowing eyes. Two people then walked by the opening to the alley. One, a male, about a foot shorter than Jedite was, with dark black hair, and wearing a green jacket and black shirt. The other, a female, a foot shorter than he was, with bright yellow blonde hair, styled in the most interesting of fashions: two "spheres" of hair, one on either side of her head, with a long yellow ponytail coming down from each one. She was holding the man's arm, and he had his arm around her. They were obviously a couple, but that wasn't what Jedite was concerned with. "They both look familiar..." thought Jedite. "But the girl...I know I've seen her before before..." As the couple walked by the alley, Jedite imagined the girl in different attire; a shrunken school girl uniform, white gloves, red boots, a short blue skirt, and a golden tiara on her forhead, with a pink jewel in the center. Jedite grinned. "Oh, it's her all right!" he thought, eyes glowing even brighter. Jedite walked out of the alley, now dressed in his purple uniform, and watched as the girl and her boyfriend walked down the street, not even noticing him behind them. Jedite then jumped into the air, and disappeared among the darkness of the night sky above.
*** After dinner, Serena and Darien decided to walk around before heading back to the lot where they had parked the motorcycle. "It feels good to walk down this street again," said Darien. "It's been so long since I was in Tokyo last; I hardly remember how to make my way through it." "I've walked down this street a zillion times before," said Serena. "I can't say it feels good, but it doesn't feel bad. Right now, it feels good only because you're here with me..." She held him tighter. Darien smiled, and put his arm around her. "Likewise," said he, "it just isn't as much fun without you." He reached down and kissed her on the forehead. Serena blushed and giggled.
"Do you have to be so public about it?" she asked. "What's so public about this?" Darien replied. "There's no one around. And even if there were, I still would be as public about it as I always have. I'm not scared to show that I'm in love with you." Serena blushed again. She never knew Darien to be like this, but she liked it. They turned a corner, and walked down another section of the street, past a dark alley, and further along the block. About a minute after they passed the alley, Serena suddenly looked up, a surprised look on her face. She turned her head backwards, in the direction of the entrance to the alley. Strangely, there was nothing there at all. Darien turned to Serena. "Something wrong?" he asked. "I..." she said, "...y'know, I'm not really sure. For a second, I could have sworn...we were being watched." "Watched?" Darien asked. He looked to the left, to the right, to the front and back, even above and below them. "There's no one around as far as I can see," he said. "I don't THINK there's anyone watching us." "Never mind," she said. "Just my imagination, I guess." They both smiled at each other, and continued their walk. As they passed another dark alley along the sidewalk, they were suddenly knocked off their feet as something emerged from the alley and rammed right into them, sending them both crashing to the floor. They landed on each other, and looked up at the back of the man who bumped into them. "HEY!" Darien cried. "Watch it, buddy!" "Yeah!" Serena added. "Why don't you watch where you're going!?!" It was then that they realized the man was wearing a long, black cape, on top of a purple uniform. From the side of the man's body, hidden by the cape, a purple-clothed arm came out, the hand of which, covered in a metal armored glove, balled into a fist. Serena gasped as she saw the armored fist, because it was EXACTLY like the one she'd seen before! "Oh, I'm so very sorry..." the man said sarcastically, in a sinisterly familiar voice. The man then slowly turned around, revealing the side of his blonde-haired face. The face turned around completely, and looked directly at Serena. She gasped again when she saw the man's face, from the blonde hair, to the blank eyes, to the wide, maniacal smile on his lips. "...SAILOR MOON!" the man finished, as he started laughing evilly. Serena's eyes and mouth opened even wider, as did Darien's, for he knew who this man was too. The man's laughter grew louder and more maniacal, as he turned and walked away from the terrified couple. As he walked away his body suddenly started glowing white, then disappeared in a burst of flame. Serena and Darien were left behind, only to wonder what they had just seen.
*** "I'm telling you, Raye, it was HIM!" "Are you sure?" "Yes!" "Are you positive?" "Yes!" "Are you..." "Oh, for the last time, Raye, YES!!!" Serena shouted. "Serena," the raven-haired woman said, "it's...it's just impossible! He's gone, dead, defeated, for the last TEN YEARS!!!" "We may have defeated him, Raye, but that doesn't mean he died!" Serena replied. "And I know he didn't because I SAW him! Both me and Darien saw him!" "Serena, if you're kidding me here..." Raye began. "Oh, please, Raye!" Serena snapped. "In all the ten years we've been friends, have you ever ONCE known me to so much as JOKE about something like this!?! Now I am serious here! It was HIM!" "Serena,..." "And that's not the worst of it!" "What do you mean?" Raye asked, casually pouring hot tea into her cup. "Remember in the dream we both had?" Serena asked. "At the end of it, after you died, when those two giant armored gloves made that shockwave?" Raye frowned. "How could I forget?" "He was wearing them, Raye! Jedite was wearing those gloves when we saw him!" Raye gasped and dropped both the teakettle and the cup. They hit the ground, sending brown-clear liquid spreading all over the white tile. Raye whirled around and faced her blonde friend. "Please tell me you're joking!" Raye begged. "PLEASE tell me your not serious!" Serena simply looked at her with a straight face, arms crossed. "Do I LOOK like I'm joking?" she asked. "But..." Raye tried to speak, but couldn't get the words out. Finally, she did manage to get out, "But...why come to me about this?" "Because we both had the same dream about it, Raye," Serena answered. "About the wave of destruction, about everyone dying except me, and those two giant hands...the same ones I saw Jedite wearing!" She then solemnly looked away from her raven-haired friend. "I don't know exactly how to say this, but..." "But what?" Raye asked anxiously. "But..." Serena finally said, "...I think it was a vision...of the future."
Raye's eyes widened as Serena spoke these words. She never knew Serena to have premonitions of the future, not like Raye did. And it was rather frightening to hear her start. "You mean..." Raye started. "I got a good look at him when he rammed into us today, Raye," Serena said. "He had all this new armor, this long cape around his neck, and I could have sworn he grew another foot or so. It's bad enough he's still alive at all...but from what we both saw in that dream...I'd say that's the least of our problems." "What are you talking about?" "When I saw him, Raye, I...I could feel...power. Unimaginable formidability beyond which I KNOW I've ever seen." Serena explained. "He's not only back, but he's powerful...and not just because he's awake up and pretty angry! I mean, he's become even MORE powerful than he was before! If you had been there, Raye, and been able to see into his eyes, you'd feel the exact same thing I did!" Raye shuddered. She could tell Serena was being serious about the matter, and she was afraid to think about what if she was RIGHT. Jedite was always a powerful enemy, as were all of Queen Beryl's general's. But if he was bigger and more powerful than before, she could tell...they were in a lot of trouble. "I know you probably don't think I'm being serious about this, Raye, but..." Serena started. Raye grabbed her by the arm, and dragged her out of the room, stopping her in the middle of her sentence. "On the contrary, old friend," said Raye, pulling Serena down the hall with her. "I don't think you could possibly be MORE serious about this..."
*** Raye dragged Serena into the fire room, where she promptly kelt down in front of the rising flames. While Serena watched, Raye closed her eyes and put her hands in prayer position. "Great spirits of the burning fire," Raye chanted, "show us...show me...the evil we must face...show us the form of our enemy..." Serena watched in awe as the flames of the fire looked as if they were getting brighter, then dying back down, as Raye continued chanting. Suddenly, in a burst of light, the flames spewed out of the fire, right at Raye, who opened her eyes and jumped backwards just in time to avoid the fire shooting at her! She landed on her back several feet from Serena, who gave a short scream and ran to her friend's side. "I'm okay," Raye said, a little short of breath. The two then looked at the burning fire, and gasped at what they saw. From out of the fire, now burning at a height of about ten feet, a tall, black form walked out, laughing a maniacal chuckle. The form's blonde hair and black cape flowed behind him from the force of the flames, unaffected by their scorching. Finally, the form completely revealed himself and he walked out of the fire and faced the twosome. Everything, from his purple uniform, to the silver shoulder pads, to the brown leather boots could clearly be seen. His white, hollow eyes stared down evilly at Raye and Serena. Raye narrowed her eyes on the evil form, while Serena stared wide-eyed and open-mouthed. "Jedite..." Raye whispered. "How wonderful to see you again, Sailor Mars!" Jedite replied. "You're looking rather lovely, even after TEN YEARS!" "What do you want?" Serena demanded. Jedite replied with another maniacal laugh. "You'll find out soon enough, Sailor Moon!" he said. "Until then, you can tell all your fellow Sailor Scouts...that just like the two of you...THEY ARE DOOMED!!!" Jedite continued laughing, as he turned and walked back into the burning fire, disappearing completely in its midst. As he vanished, the flames died down to their normal level, leaving Raye and Serena behind, frightened for their lives. "What do we do now?" Serena asked. "Only thing we can do at this point..." Raye replied.
