Gackt Camui, you make me laugh. ^-^ If I were a man, I would marry you. And then we could lock ourselves up in our house and write sappy Usagi/??? fanfiction all day long. Then we'd invite the rest of you guys over for tea!

After this fic is finished, I need to give up writing for a while, just so I can get a little exercise and get out of sitting with my lap top day after day. It doesn't help that it was Thanksgiving today, and I ate four desserts. I'm getting fat. *-*;

Chapter 16

Taking her by the hand, they sped through the halls of the fortress-palace, Demando leading and the fey princess doing her best to keep up with his large strides. Time was everything. They paid no heed to the gaping faces or astonished gasps in regards to the pregnant Moon Princess. They needed to find Saffir.

He was in his laboratory, perfecting weaponry, just as they had expected. Wasting no time, Demando dropped his wife's hand and addressed him directly, ignoring the bewildered glance the young man sent at Serenity.

"Saffir, there's been a change of plans."

But Saffir was gazing at the princess intently. "Your Grace . . ." his eyes trailed down her form. In their hurry, the cloak had flown back over her shoulders. She was not yet at her fullest, but the origin of her bigness was beyond obvious.

Serenity approached and embraced him, kissing him sweetly on the cheek, like a sister – or perhaps a sister-in-law. "Please Saffir-sama. Listen to him."

Demando continued briskly, thoughts speeding through his intelligent mind as quickly as he spoke. "We need all able-bodied men and women to fight. The only way we are going to survive the onslaught is if we ban together. Now. We're going to divide the ranks. Half will instigate an attack on the ships probing the force field, but only as a distraction."

"What of the other half?"

"The other half of the forces we'll send as secretly as possible to the aid of the Moon Kingdom. That's where the brunt of the attack is taking place," Serenity offered.

Demando continued, "Injure the enemy there and we've won a significant victory. I need you to gather Rubeus and the Ayakashi and lead the main attack. Serenity and I will be going another way. While you are assaulting the enemy lines, we are going to hit the heart of the enemy – with the help of the jakokuzuishou and the ginzuishou."

"Together?" Saffir was incredulous. "How?"

"We've found a way," Serenity assured him.

"But," he turned his head sharply to his brother, lowering his voice as though the princess would not be able to hear him, "you know that overuse of the black crystal could kill you, Onii-chan."

"That is not a factor."

Serenity probed Demando with her gaze, but he didn't respond to her in either normal language or their private one.

"Very well. But – does the Moon Queen know of this?"

"No. You are to contact her as soon as possible and inform her of our plans."

"What if she declines?"

"She will not," Serenity stated.

Saffir nodded. "I will do so at once."

"Good. And I will issue the call to arms."

Saffir departed.

Serenity tugged timidly at his shirt sleeve. "Tell me what I should do."

Demando hesitated, breathed in slowly. "There is something – if you're up to it."

She nodded earnestly.

His hands slid down the sides of her arms and into her hands. "I need someone to speak to Esmeraude. I need her to lead the diversion here on the home front."

"I will give her your orders."

He smiled vaguely. "If she tries to hurt you, don't hesitate to jolt her."

She let out a short laugh, but it was genuine.

They lingered in the laboratory long enough for Demando to grip her by the upper arms and gather her mouth upwards into a hard, fervent kiss. Then they parted.

* * *

She ran into Cooan in the hallway – literally.

"Hey, watch it-," the fierce sister started, then started when saw who had bumped into her. "Serenity-hime!"

"Cooan!" She threw her arms around the taller woman.

"What are you doing here? What's happened to you?!" Cooan touched her protruding stomach apprehensively, as if she suspected it wasn't real.

"I had to come. It was the only way. O, there's no time! Cooan, where's Esmeraude?"

"The last I saw here, she was in the windowed hallway. She swears we're all going to die and won't move from that spot: always the drama queen. But who the hell cares anyway?"

"The Prince Demando requires her service."

Cooan's eyebrows lifted in interest. "Then . . . he knows?" She needn't have gestured. Serenity instantly knew of what she was speaking.

"Yes."

"How did he take it?"

Serenity smiled softly. "Rather well."

"He did?!" Cooan half yelled.

Serenity waved her hands. "No, no, no!" she laughed. "The child's his, of course! He knows this."

Cooan breathed out in realization. "Of course . . . have my sisters seen you?"

"Not yet. Tell them I'm here, and gather them to Rubeus. The five of you are to lead an attack under Saffir on the enemy at my home. Esmeraude will man the defense here . . . Demando and I have our own agenda."

The Ayakashi nodded. "You should find her where I told her. Good luck, Serenity-hime." Then she paused thoughtfully, "Although, I rather feel you don't need luck." She smiled and went on her way.

Esmeraude was just where Cooan had indicated. Slowing, Serenity composed herself and took a few deep breathes. This was going to be quite a challenge.

"Esmeraude."

In a swirl of green waving hair, the glowing eyes flashed at her. "You – what the hell are you doing here?"

"Only trying to survive – the same as you."

Esmeraude snorted. Serenity came closer, and the poisonous gaze found its way to her belly. For a moment Serenity thought the woman would slash her with her long nails, but Esmeraude only glared daggers.

"Esmeraude, your help is desperately needed."

"Is that so? Why should I care?"

"I know that you do. Please don't act like this. Don't take your anger on me out on yourself and your people. I know you can be capable of selflessness."

Esmeraude's eyes narrowed. There was more changed to the young Lunarian other than her figure. She was regal, queenly – she had come into herself.

"Hn. Why would I trust you."

"Because you know Demando does."

Esmeraude's eyebrows twitched angrily. "Just love rubbing it in, don't you?"

Serenity recoiled. "Oh no! I didn't mean it like that! Please, Esmeraude! . . . Won't you at least hear me out?" She pleaded.

"I don't understand," Esmeraude spat bitterly. "How I could toil and strive for his attention, and then all you do is come trotting by and his eyes are locked on you, and you alone! You – nothing but a silly, wispy, frivolous weakling!"

Serenity lowered her eyes. "I know."

Esmeraude's widened dubiously. She was actually agreeing with her?

"I haven't done anything to especially deserve him," Serenity continued. Then she looked up and locked gazes with the proud woman, determined, sincere. "But it's certainly not because you are any less worthy. Demando trusts you, Esmeraude. He knows you're powerful . . . in fact, that's what I'm here for. Your Prince is placing you in charge of the defense and offense here on Nemesis, while he and Prince Saffir attend to the assault on the Moon."

"Did he . . . say that himself?" Esmeraude was astonished at herself for even suffering to listen to the trumpet. But that was another one of the many reasons she distrusted her – the way this moonchild had of focusing in on her, making her feel significant, and even, she dare thought, loved. Esmeraude was not familiar with love. Even in her pursuit of Prince Demando, her intentions had been mostly lustful. Now this chit of a girl was stirring up feelings in her that she had forced herself into thinking that she was content without.

Honestly, she answered, "He sent me here especially to ask this of you."

The snake-woman was placated. Sighing, she relented "What are my Prince's orders?"

* * *

The senshi sensed the Queen's danger. Leaving their kingdoms in capable hands, they came to her aid straightaway. The way by which they traveled was only at the disposal of the Sailor Senshi. They were all there, in a matter of moments, including Prince Endymion.

On a balcony of the graceful palace, they stood, warily regarding the ever-growing shadow.

"I don't understand," murmured Uranus, "how it could have gotten this far."

"It was pride," Saturn stated. "Our pride is our downfall."

The Queen stood among them, white and stately as a skillfully carved work of art. She was nature's work of art. "We thought we were invincible. We thought we were safe. Ultimately, it was our over-confidence that did this."

Endymion shook his midnight head violently. "If only I hadn't been such a fool. I should have heeded the warnings, should have seen this coming through the growing unhappiness of my people. Instead, I turned a blind eye to it; thought nothing truly important could come of it."

Uranus met his eyes consolingly, in her masculine way. "Pride. We're all guilty of it. Don't you go blaming yourself, Prince Endymion."

"Besides," added Sailor Neptune, light-colored hair whipping around her face in the rough winds. "Blame solves nothing."

Venus appeared from below, limping slightly, and Pluto drew up the rear.

"So . . .," she smiled bravely, like sunlight straining to shine through a cloud. "Are we ready to slay ourselves a sorceress?" She had been advised to rest, but no one could convince her to stay out of battle any longer.

They all laughed sullenly, forcefully.

Pluto drew near, her staff clinking, hitting the smooth marble floor as she walked. "My friends," she said calmly. "This is it."

"All plans are made. The ranks are set." Mercury nodded.

"The people will do as we say," Jupiter frowned prettily. "They will do the best they can and offer it up. The rest they leave to us."

Mars's eyes became slits. She focused through the dense turmoil and heavy oppressiveness of the gathering evil and sensed another power. Not a malignant power, not the enemy, but neither was it their own.

At the same moment, Luna came flying out onto the balcony, forcing against the brutal winds. "My Lady Queen," she said in short bursts, out of breath. "The Nemesians – are coming – to offer aid – to our cause."

The Guardian of Time smiled faintly. "Her Grace the Princess Serenity shall be arriving shortly."

* * *

The armies clashed: the evil army against the army of light, a war of good against evil. The senshi joined the ranks for the time being. No sooner had the fighting taken a turn for the worse, then the black ships of Nemesis arrived exactly as they had promised. A cheer rose up from the people of the Millennium. The tide of battle had turned.

Rubeus gazed distastefully down on the combatants from his place in the observation deck in the black flagship, evil soldiers and Lunarians alike. "It's true, what they say. Life is hell; and then you die," he told himself. He was bitter.

A quiet voice behind him caught him off guard. "You know what they also say?" Cooan was eerily serene. Rubeus considered her doubtfully, never having seen an Ayakashi in such a state of forlorn peace. "What do they say?" He was equally surprised at his own resistless cooperation.

"They say: life is hard, but what else is there?"

"Hm," he let out a short laugh in recognition.

Cooan smiled strangely. "It's true. At least . . . we are alive."

Rubeus tossed his flaming hair awkwardly. Now that he was facing the possibility of his own death, he found he regarded things differently – and it made him uncomfortable. "Is that daft princess finally getting to you too? I thought only Prince Demando had caught the disease."

"She's not daft," Cooan defended. But, still strange, she was not overly-emotional, but calm and thoughtful. "She's wise, and she cares: she's the best thing that has ever happened to Nemesis."

Under normal circumstances, he might have snapped at her, or retorted with a witty comeback. But he furrowed his eyebrows in concentration. Was she the best thing that had ever happened? He certainly could not find any thing other than good surrounding her presence. Could it be that Cooan was right? It seemed his whole life philosophy was coming shattering down around him.

"Ayakashi," he said, a slightly humorous, though not insincere, lilt to his voice, "remind me to promote you when this is all over."

* * *

The distorted, warped shape of a lovely woman could be seen manifesting in the torrid clouds. The heat was sweltering.

Almost as if by intention, the senshi and the Earth prince hung back from battle to return to their Queen, and were replaced by the Ayakashi. The sisters were not without their own devastating abilities. In a way, their powers matched those of the four Lunar ladies-in-waiting. So smooth was the transition, that the enemy would not have even noticed their departure.

Prince Endymion was glad to get out of the battle. Through the bodies he had seen his friends, his own generals: traitors. It pained him terribly and he longed to be rid of the sight of them. Such an evil that was able to dement the minds of good moon was an overwhelmingly powerful evil indeed.

Rubeus led the attack from the air, and both ground and air factions were under the supervision of the Prince Saffir.

On Nemesis, Esmeraude was successfully distracting a large section of the Dark Kingdom's army while at the same time maintaining the force field and the planet's safety.

The Queen was in a trance. She left the palace and returned to the shore of the lake, closing the distance between herself and the disembodied fiend called Metallia. Some straggling Nemesian ships had stumbled upon her energy and attempted to attack her – only to be blasted from existence within a matter of seconds. She was ready.

Queen Serenity only just noticed the black gaping portal that opened a little ways before her in the lake. Through it, a silver light flashed, like a giant fish beneath the surface of the lake: Serenity appeared seemingly out of thin air and dashed into her unsuspecting mother's arms. The White Prince came after, the portal dissolving into the tortured, murky waters.

It was so hot.

"Mother!"

"My Serenity!"

"The key to our salvation – I've had it all along!" she cried.

The senshi straggled towards them, one by one, from all different directions.

Hovering over the choppy surface of the lake, a figure appeared with long, twisting red locks and glinting cruel eyes. Masses of darkly blue fabric churned around her lithe, tally feminine body. The very mass of cloudy, brooding malevolence seemed to bend over her, lending its power.

A shrill, haunting cackle piercing enough to travel on the vicious wind without being lost reached their ears. "We meet at last, Queen Serenity," it hissed dripping poison - the fiendish voice so malicious, so hateful, utterly bent on their suffering and destruction.

Serenity clutched at her mother and Prince Demando instinctively faced her back to shield them. Eight senshi fell into place around the threesome, into a circle of protective energy: they were the guardians of the line of the Moon, and this readiness to defend the Lunar royalty inherited. A humming luminescence arose from their elemental auras and melded into a force field of significant strength. Only one, Prince Endymion, was left outside the circle.

Angered at pulse of benevolent energy, Sorceress Beryl let out an inhuman shriek and blasted a counter-wave of pure venomousness toward the shield. But the Sailor Senshi remained strong, and the attack bounced right off them.

"Endymion," the Princess cried, eyes wild with fear.

But he was paralyzed at both the sight of his princess and the drowning, deadly miasma. The evil originated from Earth, therefore elementally it was most similar to his own life force, and to him it was the most immobilizing.

"Endymion, enter the circle!" Serenity tried again, but it was no use.

In a spell of decisiveness, Demando burst through the ring, so unexpectedly he even caught the witch-sorceress of guard. Grabbing the handsome man roughly by the arm, he jerked him back into the protective circle with him, safe for now. They were just in time to avoid another blast from Beryl.

Demando and Endymion considered each other somberly, Demando's hand still on the Prince. In each others' eyes they reached a vague, private understanding. The Nemesian dropped his hold.

"Little soldiers," the sorceress mocked, "you cannot hold your shield forever. Sooner or later, it will weaken, and then I will strike."

The four monarchs huddled in the center of the powerful ring. Serenity let go of the queen and grabbed Demando's forearms. She needn't thank him out loud. He understood it from within her.

Then the Princess said, "She's right. It's wasted energy – this shield around us. We've already lost so much time. If only we'd come sooner."

"Don't waste more time with 'if onlys'," Mother chided her.

Endymion nodded. "We need to do something – quickly."

Serenity glanced at her friends and guardians surrounding them with concern, swallowed hard. To Demando, she said softly, "I need to time to get a good hold on the ginzuishou. Metallia is too powerful."

The Queen said, "I can help you. We can both lend are energy to it." No one missed her concerned glance down to her child's ripening stomach.

Demando narrowed his eyes at the malignant cloud form. He said, "I can drain it."

"What did you say?" Queen Serenity frowned at him.

"I can drain her using the jakokuzuishou. Its energies and Metallia's are not completely incompatible, unlike the ginzuishou's. Then in its weakened state, it will not be as much a dangerous strain on the silver crystal."

"Are you certain that it's safe?" Serenity's eyes betrayed her concern.

He could not lie to her, not even in his mannerisms.

Serenity griped his shirt fiercely. "You act as the mediator for the jakokuzuishou while it's still on Nemesis. You plan to absorb this evil energy into your body and use the black crystal in union with my own as we originally intended? Its overuse will kill you!"

He clasped her hands, pressing them further into his chest. "It's either my risk or yours. The latter's not even an option." It amazed her how collected and even-headed he remained under the direst of circumstances.

They all started as another blast from Metallia through the sorceress puppet collided into the senshi field. This time, the planetary warriors were visibly injured, but they held fast.

Recovering quickly, Serenity attempted to shake the pallid man, but only managed rock him ever so slightly. She wanted to scream at him that she couldn't just allow him to put himself in that kind of danger, but however rational it sounded to her, she knew it wouldn't convince him. She needed a sounder argument, and fast. "Demando – we have to overcome this together, like before! If you waste yourself on just draining her, what good will it be to me to use the ginzuishou without her help?!"

He frowned subtly, in his signature way. She knew she'd scored a little victory.

He responded, "How and where will we give you enough to time to generate the silver crystal without draining your warriors?"

The Princess's face fell.

Placing each hand on either side of her face, he took her head and leaned his own against it, forehead to forehead. "I'm going to do it." His quiet tone of voice informed her that there would be no use in arguing.

"No."

The two turned in the direction of the smooth voice.

Prince Endymion, standing next to the refined Moon Queen, set his jaw and furrowed his brow resolutely. "I will be the one to weaken the Enemy. That way it will give you both the opportunity to focus the energies of your gems and allow the senshi to recover – if only momentarily. Besides, I have a score to settle with this Sorceress Beryl. She poisoned my own subjects against me and ravaged my home: this is my fight."

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

Why don't they call cherries cherryberries? They're the only berries without the word "berry" attached to them (as far as I know). Quite frankly, it's un-democratic! Unless you count grapes . . . do grapes count as berries?