~*~*~*~
A tall woman with long, flowing hair the color of black with a green tint approached two large, grayish-black doors that looked to be sealed shut with there being no way to possibly open them. In her hand, she held a long staff, which was almost as long as her body but only came up to her chin. Her green eyes told all that she was not one to be fooled around with. They were fixed upon these double doors as if she were protecting it from something. It was as if she was waiting for something to come in, or maybe even go out. Whatever it was she was waiting for, she was going to be ready for it when it happened to come waltzing through those doors.
Seeming satisfied with herself, the woman relaxed her back as she slightly hunched over to rest on her staff. She didn't look quite as intent upon watching the doors anymore. Her eyes turned upon a small opening in the blackness around her. Inside, she could see into the world known as Earth. She could see the two people whom she had been watching very closely for the past few weeks. She was very interested in how they had grown not physically but as soldiers; the newest additions to the group of soldiers known as the Sailor Senshi. She had been there when they had first transformed, and would be there until the end. She too was what you would called the "silent Senshi". She, along with these three, were known as the Outer Senshi, while Usagi and her gang were called the Inner Senshi.
When the Silver Millennium was still in existence, the Outer Senshi would need to know where their Princess was at all times, as well as her court, the Inner Senshi. The two groups generally did not mingle with one another, as the Outer Senshi were more powerful. It was their duty to protect the Princess silently, on the outer rims of the solar system. They were to make sure that nothing got in close enough to the Moon to do any damage to their Queen and Princess. Unfortunately, when the Dark Kingdom had struck, they were unable to defend their part of the solar system and had gone down with the entire Moon Kingdom.
Their only job was not just to protect the Moon Kingdom, however. They had another and, possibly, more important duty to their Queen. They were to protect the solar system from one of their own, Sailor Saturn. She was known as the Senshi of Death and Rebirth for one very important reason. Her power was incredibly strong, possibly stronger than the Queen's herself. However, this was not a blessing. Her power was so strong that it was capable of destroying the entire solar system itself if she allowed it to. She was, by far, the most dangerous Senshi to be alive. When she used her power, she would die but was reborn as a baby almost immediately after. It was the Outer Senshi's duty to make sure that Saturn was never allowed to use her powers for they feared that the entire Solar System would disappear if they didn't. After everyone was reincarnated, however, the Senshi of Death had been lost, and even the Timekeeper herself did not know where she was.
Her greatest fear was coming fourth, however. The Keeper of Time, known as Sailor Pluto, was foreseeing something very deadly happening in the near future. She could see it happening, Sailor Saturn awakening in response to the latest attacks, but her visions weren't clear. All she saw was an explosion with no sound backing it up, which meant one thing; Sailor Saturn was bound to wake up at any time if Sailor Uranus and Neptune were unable to stop the recent attacks. They would surely get a hold of the most destructive Senshi, and then the world would be doomed. She could not be allowed to wake up.
"The Sovereign of Silence." She chanted calmly under her breath. She feared even the name. She had only witnessed the powers of this Senshi once, and what she saw even frightened her. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the girl's face from her vision, but it wasn't happening. Each time she saw it, the girl's face was covered by smoke and debris.
Opening her eyes, she looked back into the hole that looked in upon earth, but not before looking back at the two large doors in front of her to make sure that they were still safely sealed. Inside the hole, she noticed that the two girls had transformed into Sailor Senshi to fight off the Heart Snatchers. It had been happening a lot, lately. Those who were behind the creation of these strange creatures seemed to be getting wiser by the day. They had finally realized that they needed to install some sort of offense/defense system for their monsters to help defend against the newly awakened Senshi, but it wasn't much. The way things had been working out before, whenever they had created their monsters, they had somehow anticipated people being able to attack it with their spirit energy. They seemed to have been able to manipulate the power they received from the Heat Crystals and turn it into a stronger defense against regular spirit energy. That much Pluto had inferred on her own. It was the only explanation for Haruka and Michiru being unable to do much damage the creatures they were up against. However, the creators of these creatures obviously did not anticipate the Senshi getting involved, or they had just not known exactly what type of energy they were up against. This meant either one of two things. Either the creator was a genius in knowing the mechanics of spirit energy, or he had access to someone who possessed this sort of power and could experiment with such power manipulation. Whatever it was, she didn't think it was anyone the Senshi personally knew. She had no reason to think that. But the person behind these antics posed a serious threat to the wellbeing of the planet, for if Sailor Saturn were to be awakened, the planet would be doomed.
~*~*~
Six long months had passed since Haruka and Michiru had become part of the Sailor Senshi. Their work hadn't been too insane after Haruka had become a Senshi. The Heart Snatchers had wanted to hang low for a while to create a defense system against them in hopes to battle their power. The down period had last for about three and a half months. Haruka and Michiru had wondered where the attacks were, though they didn't make it the center of their thoughts, they still wondered what was happening. The silence in the attacks was a bit unnerving for them. They sensed that something was up, but what was it? Was it that they wanted to fake the Senshi out by trying to make them believe that they had been beaten, or was that really the case? Had they decided to move their operations elsewhere, and if so, where? They would need to be found before they got what they were looking for.
The attacks started up rather slowly. Some of them were successful, while some of them were not. The Senshi stopped as many as they could. In just a matter of weeks after the attacks started up again, the pace in which they were coming had quickened, and it seemed like there was an attack every three to four days. The Senshi noticed that most of the people targeted were people from their school, which had made it oddly strange. They had come to realize it must have been someone working inside the school, someone how had access to these kids everyday, but who could it be? Could it be a teacher or faculty member? Or could it have been one of the students themselves? Whoever it was, they were sure, had to be a sort of genius to create the monsters that were attacking. Each one was unique; completely different from the one before it and the ones after it.
The two college students hadn't quite figured out who was behind the attacks yet, but they were sure of one thing; as long as they stuck together, they would come out on top of these new enemies.
~*~*~
An echoing sound was made as two feet beat against the marble flooring of the new office building across the street from Mugen School. The walls were tall; and the hallways long, which only worked to make the echo's of footsteps louder and carry throughout the entire complex.
Mamoru whistled to himself as he slowly made his way from the front desk of the building to a small office in the back. He kept his eyes downward as he slumped his shoulders; his arms in his pockets. At the end of the long hallway, next to a Pepsi machine, Haruka stood leaning against the wall with her school jacket strung over her right shoulder. On her face she wore a sly smirk, as she always had. Mamoru looked up just to barely notice her and grinned, but did nothing more to acknowledge her presence as he continued his way down the hall.
Upon seeing his grin, Haruka shifted away from the wall and stepped out toward her approaching friend. "You didn't show up to class today," she scolded.
Mamoru's grin widened as he paused in his steps. "I didn't feel like going today." After Mamoru had finally landed himself a nice job and an apartment, he no longer had anything to busy himself with. Sure there were jobs that had come and gone. He had helped out with a few martial arts camps for kids and then there were those menial jobs that teenagers usually take up, but he had soon found that having just a high school degree wouldn't get him very far. That's when he had decided to enroll in college with his friends. It had worked out great for him because at the time of his enrollment last quarter, a new office building was opening up just across the street, and the recruiters for clerks went directly to the college to look for possible employees. Mamoru hadn't wasted any time jumping on the deal and found himself a representative from a small law firm that was opening up in the building. Although law wasn't exactly his major, the firm had cut a deal with him since he needed the job. Currently he was working as a clerk doing miscellaneous jobs for lawyers. The deal was that he would work for the firm half time, and go to school half time. It worked out great for him because he was finally able to afford a nice apartment.
Working at the firm had caused Mamoru to learn a bit about law, which in turn caught his interest in the subject. He had decided to take a few courses in law, but one of the prerequisites was to learn more about his language, so he decided to take a few courses in English, the class he had decided not to attend that day.
Haruka grunted as she stared into the eyes of her friend. Her smirk slowly turned into a deformed frown. "Excuse me? You didn't feel like going? You left me to sit alone with all those preps without telling me?" She had taken up the same English course as Mamoru after he had begged her to so he wouldn't have to take it alone. It worked out great with Michiru's schedule since she was in Orchestra while the English class was offered.
Mamoru chuckled as he stepped to the side to allow someone from another office to pass by. "I had some work I needed to take care of."
Haruka let her rising angry show as she shifted her weight, "No, you just didn't want to do that stupid skit in front of the class. you wanted me to embarrass myself by making me do it alone."
Mamoru's grin grew as he began to walk down the hall once again. "You know me all too well."
Haruka frowned as she crossed her arms over her chest and stepped to the side to make room for the passing man. "You ass."
Mamoru chuckled as he gave a backhanded wave to the girl. "You too."
~*~*~
"Come on, Usagi! You have to get serious about this already!"
Usagi stared at Rei with bright, wide eyes. She blinked twice and managed a blank expression. Minako giggled at her friend's antics, but Rei wasn't quite as lighthearted about the situation. With the high school entrance exams nearing, the five girls had begun getting together regularly after school to study. Chi-Chi had no problem allowing her daughter to do her homework with her friends if it meant that Usagi would learn something, and that she would study for those dreaded exams.
Most of their study sessions took place at Rei's, considering it was the only place where they could find some quiet time. It provided a comfortable, peaceful environment where they could focus on nothing but studying. But even with the calm surroundings, one amongst their group was still fussing over the whole situation.
Usagi hated to study and hated any form of studying, even if it was a game. It wasn't for any one reason in particular, but for two. Schoolwork was becoming more and more difficult now that she was in her eighth year of school, which made it increasingly harder to study. It didn't help that the infamous Mr. Koch was piling on the math work like crazy; he had no mercy on them, in fact, he seemed to be rather enjoying his torture of them. When Usagi didn't understand something, it going boring quick and she lost interest. It seemed to be happening a lot more lately.
Usagi leaned back in her chair and continued to look into the girl's deep red eyes, which didn't look too happy. "Come on, Rei. We've been doing this for hours. Let's do something else for a while," She whined. She casually placed her hands behind her head with a refreshing stretch.
Rei didn't look as amused at Minako. She glanced at Makoto and Ami who had both grown accustomed to Usagi and Rei's bickering during their study sessions and were no longer phased by it. They were still working quite diligently on their own homework in preparation for the exams. Rei grunted as she glared back at her Saiyan friend, who was currently the exact image of her father with that dumb smile on her face. "Oh please, Usagi! You've just been sitting around all day whining about how you hate studying!" She paused as she looked past Usagi and frowned at the girl sitting next to her, Minako, whose giggling had erupted into laughter. "I'm sorry, but do you find this funny?"
Minako nodded furiously as she threw her pencil on the table. "Rei, you two go through this every day. Why don't you just give her a break?"
Still looking as dumbstruck as her father, Usagi leaned forward once again upon hearing Minako's defense for her. "Yeah, Rei; Every day. Can't we have one day where we don't study; where we just hang out like good ol' times?" Usagi tried to muster up a pitiful face of plea, but Rei wasn't buying it. The only person that worked on anymore was her father, who never could say 'no' to her.
Rei frowned even harder at her friend with a sigh of frustration. "Look, Usagi, you don't seem to realize how important these exams are."
Usagi shot back a glare of her own as she stood up. "No, I do know how important these stupid tests are, Rei! You don't think I hear about it from my mom? I just want one day where we don't have to do anything."
Ami was distracted from her history homework by Usagi's outburst. She slowly looked away from her notebook where she was previously taking notes in. She hadn't really minded Usagi's complaining. She had learned to put anything sounding remotely like a complaint in the back of her head and just shut it out, but there were those times where the girl's obnoxious attitude toward schoolwork took the priority of her attention. Although she could sympathize for the girl. Usagi had never been one for studying for long periods of times; she had learned that the hard way when they were younger when she herself tried to tutor the girl, but things had gotten a bit better when they realized she was able to concentrate on what she was doing if she was listening to music. "I find that I have to agree with her, Rei. We have been studying a lot lately. You know how Usagi is; she needs a little fun mixed in with her studying to keep things going."
Rei turned her head to look at Ami in surprise. "Excuse me? I thought you said studying like this was a good idea."
Makoto too was distracted now. She lifted her head from her own notes and agreed with Ami. "I think we could all use a bit of a rest. I think we're getting a bit snappy with each other."
Usagi smiled wide. "Thank god somebody here has some sense." She directed her comment toward Rei, who was sulking over her loss.
Before any of the girls could reply to Makoto's suggestion, there was a knock at the door of Rei's room. Since Usagi was already standing up, she took the liberty of answering it. It was Yuuichiro at the door. He seemed to be coming around to the room lately with random news. He seemed to be poking around for any reason to come and visit them. The girls still weren't exactly sure of him; after all, he was a beggar at heart. Everyone just figured he wanted something from them, or was scouting out anything that he could steal and pawn off for money.
He just stood there and stared in on the occupants of the room, particularly Rei. She tried not to look him back in the eye, as she was very embarrassed every time they met his. Usagi waved her hand in front of his face to get his attention. "Hello? Can we help you?" She didn't really care for this guy too much; not that she knew him all that well. All she knew was that he kept finding ways to interrupt them, which wasn't all that bad after she thought about it. It got her a few precious moments away from the books.
Yuuichiro took his eyes off of Rei and placed them on the brunette next to her. "Yeah, Makoto, someone's on the phone for you. I think it's your dad." And with that, he turned around to leave the room. He could tell from the girls' glaring gazes that he was interrupting them yet again. He hadn't always met to interrupt them, but he was bored, and these girls were rather interesting. He had never had any siblings, and watching these girls was quite fun for him. He wished he could be a part of their group, or at least talk to them. He didn't have any friends of his own. When you grow up on the street you start to not trust people. It's a world different from the civilized one. Everyone is out to help themselves and screw over as many people as it takes. He made his departure quick and left the girls to themselves.
Makoto stood up with a quick stretch of her arms behind her back. "What a bother that man's become. When will he get it through his head that I'm not coming home until mom's better? She's in no condition to hear dad and me fighting all the time; hell, she's in no condition to have to fight with him over me either. This is the second time this week he's called. Mom just got out of the hospital last week. What's he thinking?"
Minako rolled her eyes as she toppled onto Rei's bed with a sigh of final relief now that she was taking a break from her studies. Like Usagi, Minako hated to study, but she did it anyway. She didn't want Rei to be on her back like she was with Usagi. "He's probably doing it on purpose, you know? He just wants a reason to yell at you again. He probably misses taking his anger out on you."
Ami frowned as she took the opportunity to stand up and stretch out her legs as well. "I don't think he would go that low after what happened at the hospital. You kind of have to give the guy some credit. I mean, he is your father."
Makoto frowned as she made fist. "Yeah right, that little fact that never stopped him before. It's been thirteen years and he still doesn't treat me like a human being, let alone his child." She grunted as she made her way to the door, where Usagi was still standing, though now with a frown on her face. "Let's face it, the man will never change. He's probably just going to ask me to come home to make mom happy with him again, like he's really changed or something. He's always thinking of himself and that's it." She pushed Usagi to the side with a word and left the room.
Rei, who was the only one left sitting, looked around at the books on the floor. She had finished her homework long before then and was just purely studying for the exams. She had picked up a few books from her school library that were made especially for study aids and had them spread around. She looked over at her friends' books and it seemed that Usagi was the only one who wasn't finished with her homework. It was true that they hadn't really just hung out together after school outside of studying, but the teachers were really becoming quite serious about colleges. She hated that Usagi wasn't taking things more seriously. She didn't know what she would do if Usagi didn't get into the same school as them, or if any of them were split up. That was why she was being so hard on Usagi lately. She had noticed the girl slipping behind everyone, regardless of her smarts. "You haven't even finished your homework yet?!" She exclaimed.
Usagi rolled her eyes with a growl. "Oh come off it!" She shouted back.
~*~*~
Makoto found herself in a small room with a telephone in it and nothing more. It was known as just 'The telephone room' by Rei and her Grandfather. She had been living with Rei for just about six months now; ever since her mother had been hurt in the crash. Her mother hadn't made as swift a recovery as everyone at the hospital had expected. Her injuries were worse than they had first been tested as, which made things more complicated. She was just recently released in the past week to go home; Makoto hadn't wanted to go home quite yet. Her mother was still in a very bad condition. Her burns were finally healing, though they left her skin tinted with a reddish color. Her bandages were able to come off just three weeks ago. Her skin was still quite red then, but it was healing very nicely now. She had gone blind in her left eye as a result of a piece of burning metal flying into it. The doctors were able to repair the damage, but the eye was no longer usable. Her arms and legs had been broken in several spots, and had just recently healed. She was unable to get up and walk around, and still is. Her bones are weak, and the doctors claim that she must go through therapy to learn how to reuse them. Makoto hated the thought of her father being the one responsible to get her two and from her appointments, but she didn't want to put any unneeded stress on her mother. She knew that if she went home she would blame all of her mother's injuries on her father, since they were technically his fault. She still couldn't understand how he escaped so much of the explosion without being hurt too bad. She could just picture her father being a weak baby and crying out while her mother threw herself on top of him. She liked to think of her mother going down like a hero.
Sighing with a frown, she closed the door behind her and reached out for the phone receiver that was lying on the floor. "What is it?" She yelled rather harshly. She didn't care what her father had to say to her, she wasn't going to take his crap from him anymore. She had saved his life and yet he was still ungrateful. He didn't even take a second thought of his own wife when she was near death.
The voice on the other end of the line started out rather quietly, like it was unsure of itself. "When are you planning on coming back?"
Makoto frowned as she let the receiver sit between her ear and her shoulder so she could fold her arms over her chest. "I told you two days ago that I'm not coming home until mom is fully recovered. Can't you get that through your thick scull." The other side of the line was silent, but she could hear heavy breathing. "Why don't you worry about mom instead of when you'll get a chance to chew me out?" Without taking even a second to hear what the man had to say in reply, she slammed the phone down.
~*~*~
Mamoru was shuffling through a pile of papers on his desk that needed to be distributed when Haruka walked in with Michiru. "What do you want?" He looked up, but barely noticed that Michiru had joined Haruka. She had just come from her Orchestra class, which had released about ten minutes late. Haruka had told her to meet her with Mamoru after class. They were going to patrol the school grounds, like they had been doing a lot recently since the attacks were beginning to pick up again.
Michiru carefully picked up a manila file-folder from Mamoru's desk and began examining it. Mamoru snatched it from her grasp and placed it into his shabby-looking briefcase. "What?" She questioned.
Mamoru glared at the girl with a slight hint of a smile. "Keep your grubby little hands off my stuff."
Michiru returned the smile with a grin of her own. "Right, like you haven't had your hands all over my stuff."
Mamoru rolled his eyes as he shut his briefcase. "I gotta go, you two. I promised Rei I'd swing by her house tonight and help the girls out with their homework. I guess Usagi's really falling behind."
Haruka snorted. "Since when do you care about those bubble-headed girls?"
Mamoru wasn't so quick to retort as he had usually been in the past. The truth of the matter was that he wasn't so hateful toward them as he used to be. Ever since he found out that he was the Prince of the Earth he had grown kinder little by little. He still resented Usagi for his past, but he was finally growing up, though he would never admit to it. "What can I say? I'm just a nice guy."
Haruka grunted with a chuckle. "Yeah right! Don't make me hurl."
Michiru giggled. "Come on, Haruka. We too have business we need to attend to."
Haruka nodded. "Gotcha." She saw the look of confusion on Mamoru's face, but decided not to say anything. She remembered Michiru telling her of what happened when she first became a Senshi; how they were to tell no one of their little secret. So far she had been able to keep that secret, and she didn't plan on breaking that secrecy any time soon.
~*~*~
"She's growing weak! Why haven't you brought me any Heart Crystals?! You haven't brought me anything in weeks, Kaori! Do I need to find a replacement?!" Professor Tomoe was wearing his white lab jacket, as usual, as he was hunched over his newest creation. It was a new kind of Heart Snatcher, one that was hopefully going to be stronger than any of the others that he had ever created.
Kaori squirmed in her spot as she looked upon the Professor. It was true that she hadn't come back with a Heart Crystal in weeks. In her search for one of the Pure Heart Crystals she had come to face two of the most menacing Sailor Senshi in the business, Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus. "It's those damn Sailor Senshi, Professor. They show up every time I try to get a possible candidate."
Tomoe didn't turn around to face the woman behind him. He could sense how uneasy she was becoming, but he wasn't phased. His mistress was becoming increasingly angry over the fact that she was being weakened. Hotaru was feeling the effects more than ever too. Both of them were weak, Hotaru was falling ill at school almost every day. These events hadn't gone unnoticed by her teachers, who began to become too inquisitive for their own good. "That's why we've got to move our searches elsewhere. Every time you get one it turns out to be the wrong thing anyway. That means it wasn't right to begin with. So now we're going to expand outward. I've found you a starter for this one time. I think she might have one."
Kaori quirked an eyebrow. "She?"
Tomoe nodded as he put the finishing touches on his creation. "Yes. She lives at this address." He finally turned around to hand Kaori a piece of paper with a few words scribbled on it in red ink. With the paper he slipped her a picture of the target.
Kaori gasped at what she was looking at. She knew this girl. It was one of Hotaru's little friends. "You mustn't be serious. Do you realize who these people are?" She immediately turned up to look at the Professor, who didn't looked the least bit amused. "You know then?"
Tomoe nodded, but said nothing. He knew who she was, and that was why he was going after her. She would be the perfect candidate for a true Pure Heart Candidate if she was able to make friends with the brat. He reached back to his research table and pulled off the silver suitcase Kaori was so used to seeing and threw it to the woman, who caught it. "Don't mess up this time."
~*~*~
Makoto slowly began making her way back to Rei's room, but was stopped by Mr. Hino on the way. He was a short man, shorter than her even. Of course, she was tall for her age and towered over all of her friends and classmates. "Did you need me to do anything before I go back to Rei's room, Mr. Hino?" She asked sweetly, even though she was quite angry. She was trying to hold some of her anger in.
Mr. Hino could sense the girl's anger; he had seen it come out and develop over the past few months. Even if she had decided to go back home he probably wouldn't have advised it at the moment. She had been hurt too many times in the thirteen years that she had lived by her father, and that wasn't something you could just up and get over at the wish of. well. anyone, especially by the person who gave you the most trouble. "I couldn't help but overhear the words you exchanged with your father."
Makoto frowned; she didn't appreciate anyone listening in on her conversations. "Excuse me?"
Mr. Hino detected the rising anger in her tone of voice and quickly rethought his tact, or rather lack of. "I think you might try being nicer to your father next time you speak with him."
Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing. This man knew exactly what she had gone through with her father, he had heard the stories since she had started living with him, and yet he still believed in that whole give respect to your parents thing. What was he thinking? She didn't feel that she was in the wrong. "I'm sorry, but I don't think it's any of your business." She wouldn't have normally been rude to one of her best friend's grandfather, but he wasn't exactly making things easy on her by telling her she should try to be nicer to her ass of a father.
Mr. Hino cleared his throat with a smirk. "Whoa there, Makoto. I wasn't trying to tell you what to do. I was just simply expressing the fact that your father may actually feel bad about what he's done to you. After the story you told me I'm sure that I would be sorry for anything I had ever said to you. No parent wants to hear that from their child."
Makoto frowned. "He's not much of a parent in the first place."
~*~*~
While Makoto had been on the phone, Rei had stepped out to do her chores. She saw Yuuichiro entertaining some of the guests that had arrived, which left her to sweep up around the courtyard to make sure things were clean. She was already sweeping things up when she noticed a shadow lurking in the distance. "Hello," she called out to see if it was a visitor who had gotten separated from the group. There was no answer and Rei didn't really want to bother herself with doing Yuuichiro's job so she ignored the shadow and continued to do her own job. She took a deep breath of the fresh air, remembering exactly why she had always loved living at a Shrine. Things were so peaceful; not a lot of noise was heard other than the wind flowing through the tree branches and a few birds chirping.
She went back to her duty of sweeping and began humming a very tranquil song to try and rid her thoughts of Usagi and the whole studying thing. Maybe Ami was right; maybe they should take more breaks in between study sessions to ease some of the stress of doing constant schoolwork. Maybe they could go to the arcade every so often instead of studying every single night after school. She had to admit that she too was growing tired of the whole idea of constant studying.
Shortly after she had begun her duties, she noticed the shadowy figure lurking at her side again. Finding it somewhat bothersome, Rei sighed. She set her broom against a small cart, which held leaves, and as she was turning around, she was face to face with a huge, gaping monster. That was definitely not something that she had expected.
Startled, Rei jumped back and tripped over the cart full of leaves, causing it to fall over and spill its entire contents onto the concrete yard. Rei was caught so off guard that she couldn't help but let out a piercing scream, breaking the once silent courtyard.
~*~*~
Usagi and the others all exchanged glances with one another as they sprang into action upon hearing their friend's distress. Makoto, who had just arrived in the room, let out a cry of frustration. She preferred to deal with one crisis at a time; and this one was more than unwelcomed.
A tall woman with long, flowing hair the color of black with a green tint approached two large, grayish-black doors that looked to be sealed shut with there being no way to possibly open them. In her hand, she held a long staff, which was almost as long as her body but only came up to her chin. Her green eyes told all that she was not one to be fooled around with. They were fixed upon these double doors as if she were protecting it from something. It was as if she was waiting for something to come in, or maybe even go out. Whatever it was she was waiting for, she was going to be ready for it when it happened to come waltzing through those doors.
Seeming satisfied with herself, the woman relaxed her back as she slightly hunched over to rest on her staff. She didn't look quite as intent upon watching the doors anymore. Her eyes turned upon a small opening in the blackness around her. Inside, she could see into the world known as Earth. She could see the two people whom she had been watching very closely for the past few weeks. She was very interested in how they had grown not physically but as soldiers; the newest additions to the group of soldiers known as the Sailor Senshi. She had been there when they had first transformed, and would be there until the end. She too was what you would called the "silent Senshi". She, along with these three, were known as the Outer Senshi, while Usagi and her gang were called the Inner Senshi.
When the Silver Millennium was still in existence, the Outer Senshi would need to know where their Princess was at all times, as well as her court, the Inner Senshi. The two groups generally did not mingle with one another, as the Outer Senshi were more powerful. It was their duty to protect the Princess silently, on the outer rims of the solar system. They were to make sure that nothing got in close enough to the Moon to do any damage to their Queen and Princess. Unfortunately, when the Dark Kingdom had struck, they were unable to defend their part of the solar system and had gone down with the entire Moon Kingdom.
Their only job was not just to protect the Moon Kingdom, however. They had another and, possibly, more important duty to their Queen. They were to protect the solar system from one of their own, Sailor Saturn. She was known as the Senshi of Death and Rebirth for one very important reason. Her power was incredibly strong, possibly stronger than the Queen's herself. However, this was not a blessing. Her power was so strong that it was capable of destroying the entire solar system itself if she allowed it to. She was, by far, the most dangerous Senshi to be alive. When she used her power, she would die but was reborn as a baby almost immediately after. It was the Outer Senshi's duty to make sure that Saturn was never allowed to use her powers for they feared that the entire Solar System would disappear if they didn't. After everyone was reincarnated, however, the Senshi of Death had been lost, and even the Timekeeper herself did not know where she was.
Her greatest fear was coming fourth, however. The Keeper of Time, known as Sailor Pluto, was foreseeing something very deadly happening in the near future. She could see it happening, Sailor Saturn awakening in response to the latest attacks, but her visions weren't clear. All she saw was an explosion with no sound backing it up, which meant one thing; Sailor Saturn was bound to wake up at any time if Sailor Uranus and Neptune were unable to stop the recent attacks. They would surely get a hold of the most destructive Senshi, and then the world would be doomed. She could not be allowed to wake up.
"The Sovereign of Silence." She chanted calmly under her breath. She feared even the name. She had only witnessed the powers of this Senshi once, and what she saw even frightened her. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the girl's face from her vision, but it wasn't happening. Each time she saw it, the girl's face was covered by smoke and debris.
Opening her eyes, she looked back into the hole that looked in upon earth, but not before looking back at the two large doors in front of her to make sure that they were still safely sealed. Inside the hole, she noticed that the two girls had transformed into Sailor Senshi to fight off the Heart Snatchers. It had been happening a lot, lately. Those who were behind the creation of these strange creatures seemed to be getting wiser by the day. They had finally realized that they needed to install some sort of offense/defense system for their monsters to help defend against the newly awakened Senshi, but it wasn't much. The way things had been working out before, whenever they had created their monsters, they had somehow anticipated people being able to attack it with their spirit energy. They seemed to have been able to manipulate the power they received from the Heat Crystals and turn it into a stronger defense against regular spirit energy. That much Pluto had inferred on her own. It was the only explanation for Haruka and Michiru being unable to do much damage the creatures they were up against. However, the creators of these creatures obviously did not anticipate the Senshi getting involved, or they had just not known exactly what type of energy they were up against. This meant either one of two things. Either the creator was a genius in knowing the mechanics of spirit energy, or he had access to someone who possessed this sort of power and could experiment with such power manipulation. Whatever it was, she didn't think it was anyone the Senshi personally knew. She had no reason to think that. But the person behind these antics posed a serious threat to the wellbeing of the planet, for if Sailor Saturn were to be awakened, the planet would be doomed.
~*~*~
Six long months had passed since Haruka and Michiru had become part of the Sailor Senshi. Their work hadn't been too insane after Haruka had become a Senshi. The Heart Snatchers had wanted to hang low for a while to create a defense system against them in hopes to battle their power. The down period had last for about three and a half months. Haruka and Michiru had wondered where the attacks were, though they didn't make it the center of their thoughts, they still wondered what was happening. The silence in the attacks was a bit unnerving for them. They sensed that something was up, but what was it? Was it that they wanted to fake the Senshi out by trying to make them believe that they had been beaten, or was that really the case? Had they decided to move their operations elsewhere, and if so, where? They would need to be found before they got what they were looking for.
The attacks started up rather slowly. Some of them were successful, while some of them were not. The Senshi stopped as many as they could. In just a matter of weeks after the attacks started up again, the pace in which they were coming had quickened, and it seemed like there was an attack every three to four days. The Senshi noticed that most of the people targeted were people from their school, which had made it oddly strange. They had come to realize it must have been someone working inside the school, someone how had access to these kids everyday, but who could it be? Could it be a teacher or faculty member? Or could it have been one of the students themselves? Whoever it was, they were sure, had to be a sort of genius to create the monsters that were attacking. Each one was unique; completely different from the one before it and the ones after it.
The two college students hadn't quite figured out who was behind the attacks yet, but they were sure of one thing; as long as they stuck together, they would come out on top of these new enemies.
~*~*~
An echoing sound was made as two feet beat against the marble flooring of the new office building across the street from Mugen School. The walls were tall; and the hallways long, which only worked to make the echo's of footsteps louder and carry throughout the entire complex.
Mamoru whistled to himself as he slowly made his way from the front desk of the building to a small office in the back. He kept his eyes downward as he slumped his shoulders; his arms in his pockets. At the end of the long hallway, next to a Pepsi machine, Haruka stood leaning against the wall with her school jacket strung over her right shoulder. On her face she wore a sly smirk, as she always had. Mamoru looked up just to barely notice her and grinned, but did nothing more to acknowledge her presence as he continued his way down the hall.
Upon seeing his grin, Haruka shifted away from the wall and stepped out toward her approaching friend. "You didn't show up to class today," she scolded.
Mamoru's grin widened as he paused in his steps. "I didn't feel like going today." After Mamoru had finally landed himself a nice job and an apartment, he no longer had anything to busy himself with. Sure there were jobs that had come and gone. He had helped out with a few martial arts camps for kids and then there were those menial jobs that teenagers usually take up, but he had soon found that having just a high school degree wouldn't get him very far. That's when he had decided to enroll in college with his friends. It had worked out great for him because at the time of his enrollment last quarter, a new office building was opening up just across the street, and the recruiters for clerks went directly to the college to look for possible employees. Mamoru hadn't wasted any time jumping on the deal and found himself a representative from a small law firm that was opening up in the building. Although law wasn't exactly his major, the firm had cut a deal with him since he needed the job. Currently he was working as a clerk doing miscellaneous jobs for lawyers. The deal was that he would work for the firm half time, and go to school half time. It worked out great for him because he was finally able to afford a nice apartment.
Working at the firm had caused Mamoru to learn a bit about law, which in turn caught his interest in the subject. He had decided to take a few courses in law, but one of the prerequisites was to learn more about his language, so he decided to take a few courses in English, the class he had decided not to attend that day.
Haruka grunted as she stared into the eyes of her friend. Her smirk slowly turned into a deformed frown. "Excuse me? You didn't feel like going? You left me to sit alone with all those preps without telling me?" She had taken up the same English course as Mamoru after he had begged her to so he wouldn't have to take it alone. It worked out great with Michiru's schedule since she was in Orchestra while the English class was offered.
Mamoru chuckled as he stepped to the side to allow someone from another office to pass by. "I had some work I needed to take care of."
Haruka let her rising angry show as she shifted her weight, "No, you just didn't want to do that stupid skit in front of the class. you wanted me to embarrass myself by making me do it alone."
Mamoru's grin grew as he began to walk down the hall once again. "You know me all too well."
Haruka frowned as she crossed her arms over her chest and stepped to the side to make room for the passing man. "You ass."
Mamoru chuckled as he gave a backhanded wave to the girl. "You too."
~*~*~
"Come on, Usagi! You have to get serious about this already!"
Usagi stared at Rei with bright, wide eyes. She blinked twice and managed a blank expression. Minako giggled at her friend's antics, but Rei wasn't quite as lighthearted about the situation. With the high school entrance exams nearing, the five girls had begun getting together regularly after school to study. Chi-Chi had no problem allowing her daughter to do her homework with her friends if it meant that Usagi would learn something, and that she would study for those dreaded exams.
Most of their study sessions took place at Rei's, considering it was the only place where they could find some quiet time. It provided a comfortable, peaceful environment where they could focus on nothing but studying. But even with the calm surroundings, one amongst their group was still fussing over the whole situation.
Usagi hated to study and hated any form of studying, even if it was a game. It wasn't for any one reason in particular, but for two. Schoolwork was becoming more and more difficult now that she was in her eighth year of school, which made it increasingly harder to study. It didn't help that the infamous Mr. Koch was piling on the math work like crazy; he had no mercy on them, in fact, he seemed to be rather enjoying his torture of them. When Usagi didn't understand something, it going boring quick and she lost interest. It seemed to be happening a lot more lately.
Usagi leaned back in her chair and continued to look into the girl's deep red eyes, which didn't look too happy. "Come on, Rei. We've been doing this for hours. Let's do something else for a while," She whined. She casually placed her hands behind her head with a refreshing stretch.
Rei didn't look as amused at Minako. She glanced at Makoto and Ami who had both grown accustomed to Usagi and Rei's bickering during their study sessions and were no longer phased by it. They were still working quite diligently on their own homework in preparation for the exams. Rei grunted as she glared back at her Saiyan friend, who was currently the exact image of her father with that dumb smile on her face. "Oh please, Usagi! You've just been sitting around all day whining about how you hate studying!" She paused as she looked past Usagi and frowned at the girl sitting next to her, Minako, whose giggling had erupted into laughter. "I'm sorry, but do you find this funny?"
Minako nodded furiously as she threw her pencil on the table. "Rei, you two go through this every day. Why don't you just give her a break?"
Still looking as dumbstruck as her father, Usagi leaned forward once again upon hearing Minako's defense for her. "Yeah, Rei; Every day. Can't we have one day where we don't study; where we just hang out like good ol' times?" Usagi tried to muster up a pitiful face of plea, but Rei wasn't buying it. The only person that worked on anymore was her father, who never could say 'no' to her.
Rei frowned even harder at her friend with a sigh of frustration. "Look, Usagi, you don't seem to realize how important these exams are."
Usagi shot back a glare of her own as she stood up. "No, I do know how important these stupid tests are, Rei! You don't think I hear about it from my mom? I just want one day where we don't have to do anything."
Ami was distracted from her history homework by Usagi's outburst. She slowly looked away from her notebook where she was previously taking notes in. She hadn't really minded Usagi's complaining. She had learned to put anything sounding remotely like a complaint in the back of her head and just shut it out, but there were those times where the girl's obnoxious attitude toward schoolwork took the priority of her attention. Although she could sympathize for the girl. Usagi had never been one for studying for long periods of times; she had learned that the hard way when they were younger when she herself tried to tutor the girl, but things had gotten a bit better when they realized she was able to concentrate on what she was doing if she was listening to music. "I find that I have to agree with her, Rei. We have been studying a lot lately. You know how Usagi is; she needs a little fun mixed in with her studying to keep things going."
Rei turned her head to look at Ami in surprise. "Excuse me? I thought you said studying like this was a good idea."
Makoto too was distracted now. She lifted her head from her own notes and agreed with Ami. "I think we could all use a bit of a rest. I think we're getting a bit snappy with each other."
Usagi smiled wide. "Thank god somebody here has some sense." She directed her comment toward Rei, who was sulking over her loss.
Before any of the girls could reply to Makoto's suggestion, there was a knock at the door of Rei's room. Since Usagi was already standing up, she took the liberty of answering it. It was Yuuichiro at the door. He seemed to be coming around to the room lately with random news. He seemed to be poking around for any reason to come and visit them. The girls still weren't exactly sure of him; after all, he was a beggar at heart. Everyone just figured he wanted something from them, or was scouting out anything that he could steal and pawn off for money.
He just stood there and stared in on the occupants of the room, particularly Rei. She tried not to look him back in the eye, as she was very embarrassed every time they met his. Usagi waved her hand in front of his face to get his attention. "Hello? Can we help you?" She didn't really care for this guy too much; not that she knew him all that well. All she knew was that he kept finding ways to interrupt them, which wasn't all that bad after she thought about it. It got her a few precious moments away from the books.
Yuuichiro took his eyes off of Rei and placed them on the brunette next to her. "Yeah, Makoto, someone's on the phone for you. I think it's your dad." And with that, he turned around to leave the room. He could tell from the girls' glaring gazes that he was interrupting them yet again. He hadn't always met to interrupt them, but he was bored, and these girls were rather interesting. He had never had any siblings, and watching these girls was quite fun for him. He wished he could be a part of their group, or at least talk to them. He didn't have any friends of his own. When you grow up on the street you start to not trust people. It's a world different from the civilized one. Everyone is out to help themselves and screw over as many people as it takes. He made his departure quick and left the girls to themselves.
Makoto stood up with a quick stretch of her arms behind her back. "What a bother that man's become. When will he get it through his head that I'm not coming home until mom's better? She's in no condition to hear dad and me fighting all the time; hell, she's in no condition to have to fight with him over me either. This is the second time this week he's called. Mom just got out of the hospital last week. What's he thinking?"
Minako rolled her eyes as she toppled onto Rei's bed with a sigh of final relief now that she was taking a break from her studies. Like Usagi, Minako hated to study, but she did it anyway. She didn't want Rei to be on her back like she was with Usagi. "He's probably doing it on purpose, you know? He just wants a reason to yell at you again. He probably misses taking his anger out on you."
Ami frowned as she took the opportunity to stand up and stretch out her legs as well. "I don't think he would go that low after what happened at the hospital. You kind of have to give the guy some credit. I mean, he is your father."
Makoto frowned as she made fist. "Yeah right, that little fact that never stopped him before. It's been thirteen years and he still doesn't treat me like a human being, let alone his child." She grunted as she made her way to the door, where Usagi was still standing, though now with a frown on her face. "Let's face it, the man will never change. He's probably just going to ask me to come home to make mom happy with him again, like he's really changed or something. He's always thinking of himself and that's it." She pushed Usagi to the side with a word and left the room.
Rei, who was the only one left sitting, looked around at the books on the floor. She had finished her homework long before then and was just purely studying for the exams. She had picked up a few books from her school library that were made especially for study aids and had them spread around. She looked over at her friends' books and it seemed that Usagi was the only one who wasn't finished with her homework. It was true that they hadn't really just hung out together after school outside of studying, but the teachers were really becoming quite serious about colleges. She hated that Usagi wasn't taking things more seriously. She didn't know what she would do if Usagi didn't get into the same school as them, or if any of them were split up. That was why she was being so hard on Usagi lately. She had noticed the girl slipping behind everyone, regardless of her smarts. "You haven't even finished your homework yet?!" She exclaimed.
Usagi rolled her eyes with a growl. "Oh come off it!" She shouted back.
~*~*~
Makoto found herself in a small room with a telephone in it and nothing more. It was known as just 'The telephone room' by Rei and her Grandfather. She had been living with Rei for just about six months now; ever since her mother had been hurt in the crash. Her mother hadn't made as swift a recovery as everyone at the hospital had expected. Her injuries were worse than they had first been tested as, which made things more complicated. She was just recently released in the past week to go home; Makoto hadn't wanted to go home quite yet. Her mother was still in a very bad condition. Her burns were finally healing, though they left her skin tinted with a reddish color. Her bandages were able to come off just three weeks ago. Her skin was still quite red then, but it was healing very nicely now. She had gone blind in her left eye as a result of a piece of burning metal flying into it. The doctors were able to repair the damage, but the eye was no longer usable. Her arms and legs had been broken in several spots, and had just recently healed. She was unable to get up and walk around, and still is. Her bones are weak, and the doctors claim that she must go through therapy to learn how to reuse them. Makoto hated the thought of her father being the one responsible to get her two and from her appointments, but she didn't want to put any unneeded stress on her mother. She knew that if she went home she would blame all of her mother's injuries on her father, since they were technically his fault. She still couldn't understand how he escaped so much of the explosion without being hurt too bad. She could just picture her father being a weak baby and crying out while her mother threw herself on top of him. She liked to think of her mother going down like a hero.
Sighing with a frown, she closed the door behind her and reached out for the phone receiver that was lying on the floor. "What is it?" She yelled rather harshly. She didn't care what her father had to say to her, she wasn't going to take his crap from him anymore. She had saved his life and yet he was still ungrateful. He didn't even take a second thought of his own wife when she was near death.
The voice on the other end of the line started out rather quietly, like it was unsure of itself. "When are you planning on coming back?"
Makoto frowned as she let the receiver sit between her ear and her shoulder so she could fold her arms over her chest. "I told you two days ago that I'm not coming home until mom is fully recovered. Can't you get that through your thick scull." The other side of the line was silent, but she could hear heavy breathing. "Why don't you worry about mom instead of when you'll get a chance to chew me out?" Without taking even a second to hear what the man had to say in reply, she slammed the phone down.
~*~*~
Mamoru was shuffling through a pile of papers on his desk that needed to be distributed when Haruka walked in with Michiru. "What do you want?" He looked up, but barely noticed that Michiru had joined Haruka. She had just come from her Orchestra class, which had released about ten minutes late. Haruka had told her to meet her with Mamoru after class. They were going to patrol the school grounds, like they had been doing a lot recently since the attacks were beginning to pick up again.
Michiru carefully picked up a manila file-folder from Mamoru's desk and began examining it. Mamoru snatched it from her grasp and placed it into his shabby-looking briefcase. "What?" She questioned.
Mamoru glared at the girl with a slight hint of a smile. "Keep your grubby little hands off my stuff."
Michiru returned the smile with a grin of her own. "Right, like you haven't had your hands all over my stuff."
Mamoru rolled his eyes as he shut his briefcase. "I gotta go, you two. I promised Rei I'd swing by her house tonight and help the girls out with their homework. I guess Usagi's really falling behind."
Haruka snorted. "Since when do you care about those bubble-headed girls?"
Mamoru wasn't so quick to retort as he had usually been in the past. The truth of the matter was that he wasn't so hateful toward them as he used to be. Ever since he found out that he was the Prince of the Earth he had grown kinder little by little. He still resented Usagi for his past, but he was finally growing up, though he would never admit to it. "What can I say? I'm just a nice guy."
Haruka grunted with a chuckle. "Yeah right! Don't make me hurl."
Michiru giggled. "Come on, Haruka. We too have business we need to attend to."
Haruka nodded. "Gotcha." She saw the look of confusion on Mamoru's face, but decided not to say anything. She remembered Michiru telling her of what happened when she first became a Senshi; how they were to tell no one of their little secret. So far she had been able to keep that secret, and she didn't plan on breaking that secrecy any time soon.
~*~*~
"She's growing weak! Why haven't you brought me any Heart Crystals?! You haven't brought me anything in weeks, Kaori! Do I need to find a replacement?!" Professor Tomoe was wearing his white lab jacket, as usual, as he was hunched over his newest creation. It was a new kind of Heart Snatcher, one that was hopefully going to be stronger than any of the others that he had ever created.
Kaori squirmed in her spot as she looked upon the Professor. It was true that she hadn't come back with a Heart Crystal in weeks. In her search for one of the Pure Heart Crystals she had come to face two of the most menacing Sailor Senshi in the business, Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus. "It's those damn Sailor Senshi, Professor. They show up every time I try to get a possible candidate."
Tomoe didn't turn around to face the woman behind him. He could sense how uneasy she was becoming, but he wasn't phased. His mistress was becoming increasingly angry over the fact that she was being weakened. Hotaru was feeling the effects more than ever too. Both of them were weak, Hotaru was falling ill at school almost every day. These events hadn't gone unnoticed by her teachers, who began to become too inquisitive for their own good. "That's why we've got to move our searches elsewhere. Every time you get one it turns out to be the wrong thing anyway. That means it wasn't right to begin with. So now we're going to expand outward. I've found you a starter for this one time. I think she might have one."
Kaori quirked an eyebrow. "She?"
Tomoe nodded as he put the finishing touches on his creation. "Yes. She lives at this address." He finally turned around to hand Kaori a piece of paper with a few words scribbled on it in red ink. With the paper he slipped her a picture of the target.
Kaori gasped at what she was looking at. She knew this girl. It was one of Hotaru's little friends. "You mustn't be serious. Do you realize who these people are?" She immediately turned up to look at the Professor, who didn't looked the least bit amused. "You know then?"
Tomoe nodded, but said nothing. He knew who she was, and that was why he was going after her. She would be the perfect candidate for a true Pure Heart Candidate if she was able to make friends with the brat. He reached back to his research table and pulled off the silver suitcase Kaori was so used to seeing and threw it to the woman, who caught it. "Don't mess up this time."
~*~*~
Makoto slowly began making her way back to Rei's room, but was stopped by Mr. Hino on the way. He was a short man, shorter than her even. Of course, she was tall for her age and towered over all of her friends and classmates. "Did you need me to do anything before I go back to Rei's room, Mr. Hino?" She asked sweetly, even though she was quite angry. She was trying to hold some of her anger in.
Mr. Hino could sense the girl's anger; he had seen it come out and develop over the past few months. Even if she had decided to go back home he probably wouldn't have advised it at the moment. She had been hurt too many times in the thirteen years that she had lived by her father, and that wasn't something you could just up and get over at the wish of. well. anyone, especially by the person who gave you the most trouble. "I couldn't help but overhear the words you exchanged with your father."
Makoto frowned; she didn't appreciate anyone listening in on her conversations. "Excuse me?"
Mr. Hino detected the rising anger in her tone of voice and quickly rethought his tact, or rather lack of. "I think you might try being nicer to your father next time you speak with him."
Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing. This man knew exactly what she had gone through with her father, he had heard the stories since she had started living with him, and yet he still believed in that whole give respect to your parents thing. What was he thinking? She didn't feel that she was in the wrong. "I'm sorry, but I don't think it's any of your business." She wouldn't have normally been rude to one of her best friend's grandfather, but he wasn't exactly making things easy on her by telling her she should try to be nicer to her ass of a father.
Mr. Hino cleared his throat with a smirk. "Whoa there, Makoto. I wasn't trying to tell you what to do. I was just simply expressing the fact that your father may actually feel bad about what he's done to you. After the story you told me I'm sure that I would be sorry for anything I had ever said to you. No parent wants to hear that from their child."
Makoto frowned. "He's not much of a parent in the first place."
~*~*~
While Makoto had been on the phone, Rei had stepped out to do her chores. She saw Yuuichiro entertaining some of the guests that had arrived, which left her to sweep up around the courtyard to make sure things were clean. She was already sweeping things up when she noticed a shadow lurking in the distance. "Hello," she called out to see if it was a visitor who had gotten separated from the group. There was no answer and Rei didn't really want to bother herself with doing Yuuichiro's job so she ignored the shadow and continued to do her own job. She took a deep breath of the fresh air, remembering exactly why she had always loved living at a Shrine. Things were so peaceful; not a lot of noise was heard other than the wind flowing through the tree branches and a few birds chirping.
She went back to her duty of sweeping and began humming a very tranquil song to try and rid her thoughts of Usagi and the whole studying thing. Maybe Ami was right; maybe they should take more breaks in between study sessions to ease some of the stress of doing constant schoolwork. Maybe they could go to the arcade every so often instead of studying every single night after school. She had to admit that she too was growing tired of the whole idea of constant studying.
Shortly after she had begun her duties, she noticed the shadowy figure lurking at her side again. Finding it somewhat bothersome, Rei sighed. She set her broom against a small cart, which held leaves, and as she was turning around, she was face to face with a huge, gaping monster. That was definitely not something that she had expected.
Startled, Rei jumped back and tripped over the cart full of leaves, causing it to fall over and spill its entire contents onto the concrete yard. Rei was caught so off guard that she couldn't help but let out a piercing scream, breaking the once silent courtyard.
~*~*~
Usagi and the others all exchanged glances with one another as they sprang into action upon hearing their friend's distress. Makoto, who had just arrived in the room, let out a cry of frustration. She preferred to deal with one crisis at a time; and this one was more than unwelcomed.