The power didn't dwindle even as the physical bodies of the fighters began to show the effort of the attacks. Being struck repeatedly was having its effect, wearing, bloodying, and wearing at them constantly.
Suddenly Solar froze as an object appeared in Sebradon's hand. It was a staff, one that they had seen before. Bands of ribbon began to fall over the flame inside the staff, and the sailor began to wince. With a dull roar, the flame was covered. It exploded.
The force blew both Solar and Sebradon back into the walls of the shield. The brutal winds roared over them mercilessly, but somehow they stood. Staring, they prepared their powers for one final onslaught. Solar rose her hands above her head. The mass of power that grew there didn't even seem real, nor did Sebradon's. The winds died suddenly.
There was complete silence. "Sebradon!" Solar's voice sounded stronger than it should've been.
"Yes?" He sounded tired.
"One thing." Were those tears in her eyes? "No matter what you do or say, I will always love you. I'm not fighting you out of hate. I'm fighting you to make you see what you've done in hopes that someday you'll realize it yourself. You can kill me, destroy my friends, and blow up planets, but I will still love you." The tears ran down her cheeks now. "This is for the Silver Millennium."
Sebradon, unfazed, released his powers at the same time she did. The explosion shook the theater to its roots. The globe was filled with light. The ground rumbled, and the shield exploded upwards, blasting a hole through the ceiling. Through the noise two faint screams were heard, followed by crushing force of bone against bone.
When the senshi could see again, they were astonished to see Sebradon and Solar laying side beside each other, thrown together by the blast. Solar was on her side, surrounded by her own blood. Sebradon groaned and hauled himself onto his elbows. "Atia. God, Atia, please wake up!" He gently rolled her onto her back. Sailor Moon shook her head, then ran up to them, falling to her knees and shaking.
"Nnnn...." Solar's right eye opened, focused hazily on Sebradon. The other was bloodied and since non-responsive. "Se?"
"Atia!"
Solar smiled in relief. "It's you."
"Atia, I-"
"Hush." She rose a bloodied hand and touched it to his lips. "I know. I know."
Sebradon sighed and leaned down, touching his lips to hers before laying back down. "I hope you can forgive me. And, princess? I love you too. Forever." He lay his head on her shoulder and seemed to go to sleep.
"Sebradon...oh, don't you dare....you can't....Sebradon!" Her voice rose shrilly in fear and disbelief. Tears ran out of her open eye. "No." Her body convulsed, and she gave a soft groan as blood ran from her mouth. She was dying, and she knew it.
"Atia." Solar looked at Sailor Moon wearily. "Atia, if you hang on for just a minute, we can get help...you don't have to die too, please..."
"Princess, nobody can help me now."
"If it's power you need-"
The entire theater started shaking violently. It was old and the fight had caused it to become unstable. "Go!" Solar pleaded. "Go on! Get out of here!"
Sailor Moon found herself getting up and turning, then running. When she tried to stop, to jam her legs, they wouldn't. She glanced around and saw the other senshi running too. There were miniature explosions as the ancient building began to cave in. "Solar! No!" She planted her feet into the ground but to no avail.
"She's still alive! We have to go back!" Destruction cried as they were all propelled out the door.
They looked to the doorway just in time to see a rafter fall and block the sailor and her love from view. The part of the theater above them gave out completely, and the roof fell in. They were forced to look away as the rest of the ceiling and the walls fell in, creating a whirlwind of dust and flying splinters. When the tremors finally stopped, they stared in dismay at the leveled building. There was no trace of either man or woman, but there again, how could there be?
"It is done," Artemis murmured, blinking rapidly to clear smoke from his eyes.
"No. No, it can't be! Not her and Pluto both! We've lost more than we've ever gained! She's still alive, she has to be!" Sailor Moon cried.
"Serena, look at it," Uranus said shakily. "Do you think she could've survived a cave-in like that in her currant condition? It probably knocked the stage out from beneath them. They're buried under all of it."
"Hardly a fitting grave," Neptune whispered.
Suddenly two figures appeared on the rumble, looking around frantically in the debris. A blonde woman began yelling something in a language they did not understand, pointing at the spot where they had last seen Solar. She ran to it and began shouldering large rafters away, much larger than even the strongest person would've attempted. Layers of wood chunks spilled away with it. Giving up in a cry of dismay, she made a sweeping motion as the other woman tried to prevent her from doing so. An explosion of upwards wind made them both step back.
"Oh, no," Luna groaned. "Not now, not now..."
"They're going to kill us," Artemis agreed, sitting down hard. "I can just hear it now..."
The blonde peered down into the huge hole she had created and jumped away, blubbering something. The other woman glanced down and shuddered, falling to her knees and staring down in it.
It was like this before the ground began shaking mal-violently. The two women nimbly leaped clear of the rubble, though regretfully, and watched as the building totally disappeared into the ground, falling into its own basements.
When the rumbles ceased, Destruction let out a high-pitched whistle that sounded like the call of a bird. This caught the attention of the newcomers immediately. Within moments they stood before the senshi, looking upset and shocked. "Autahna?" the blonde whispered, looking near tears.
"Sky." The woman stared at the girl as though she spoke a different language. "Luna, Artemis, tell them it's Japanese. They know so many different languages..."
"But there's one they know the best." Luna came forward and stared at them evenly. "Skie, Oshawna. Ka wastino lan Janase?" she asked quietly.
"Ah..." the dark-haired woman looked momentarily confused. "Janase, Janase...oh! Right."
"I'd forgotten this one," her companion admitted, then frowned and stepped back. "Luna?" Her haunting silver eyes stared at the other feline. "Artemis?"
"What happened? Where's Trista?!" Ocean's voice rose in fear.
"Ocean, Sky, please..." Artemis started
"No! Where is she?!"
"She and Atia are both dead. Sebradon killed them," Diana said bluntly, but the hurt showed in her voice.
"And you know perfectly well what happened and why," Luna agreed softly.
"No! No, no, no! They're not dead! They're not! They can't be!" Sky shrieked hysterically, tears running down her face. Staring at their grim faces, she sank to her knees and began to sob.
"Oh, God..." Ocean groaned, covering her face with her hands. "This can't be happening. It can't be. She's too strong. She'd never let Trista get hurt. She'd never hurt Sebradon." Her voice broke. "She'd never leave us!"
"I'm afraid she did all that. Ocean!" Artemis yelped as Sky jumped up and looked ready to run back into the collapsing debris. No sooner had he spoke than the distraught woman whirled around and grabbed her blonde cousin firmly, knocking her legs beneath her and forcing her to sit, hard, on the ground.
"Why did you warn me?" Ocean fought her relative to keep her sitting, but her voice showed neither stress or effort.
"We want to apologize. For acting like we did in the Silver Millennium," Luna blurted. "We realized that Atia..."
"Is not a sorceress and loves the prince and princess so much that she would die for them - like she just did? I'm going to guess you didn't give her or Trista the satisfaction of knowing that," Ocean replied in a shaky voice. The two cats stared submissively at the ground. Sky had given up sobbing and struggling and just sat miserably, tears still coursing down her face.
Before anyone could react, an arc of light shot out from under the rubble of the theater and soared right into the heavens. For a fleeting moment they thought they saw a familiar figure beside Sky. She shoved something into her cousin's hands, then vanished with the light.
Sky stared at the objects in her hands. They were two well-loved CD cases, shiny black with plenty of scratches. The items were about the size of notebooks with the word 'Selruntous' written in neat silver print on the covers. One said 'CDs' and the other said 'Concerts.' She gasped and held them as though they were sacred relics. "Ocean...look." She held them above her head, and her shaking cousin took them from her. "How'd she get them?" Her voice shook.
"I'd be damned if I knew." She looked at the senshi, and they saw a small light of happiness on her face. "Do you guys have DVD players here?"
"They're still new, but yes, we do," Mercury replied.
Sky sighed in relief and wiped her eyes, doing little to stop the flow. Mini Moon stared at her in wonder. She felt drawn to her for a reason she couldn't have put her finger on if she'd tried. She walked over to and knelt down beside her. Sky regarded her quietly, then reached out and held her. Mini Moon leaned against her and put her arms around her neck, feeling oddly safe. She reminds me of Puu...
Sirens wailed in the distance. Sky stood up uncertainly. It was then the senshi noticed the two women were garbed in fuku outfits identical to their own. In unspoken agreement they all detransformed.
"You two can stay with me, if you want," Darien said kindly, squeezing Serena's arm as she began to protest instinctively.
"Thank you, prince," Ocean smiled sadly. Her eyes had a sudden golden tint to them. As though realizing it, her eyebrows raised, and she wiped her eyes hastily. She held the CD cases against her almost protectively.
"Please, call me Darien. Oh, that's right. We have new names here. This is Serena, Raye, Mina, Lita, Amy, and she's Rini. She's our daughter from the future. And this is Diana. She's Luna's and Artemis's daughter, from the future as well. I see you both recognize Autumn." He looked ready to say more, but the sirens got louder. "Let's get going." Darien gently nudged Serena.
"What...oh, never mind," Sky started, then glanced over her shoulder at the theater. Ocean's gaze followed hers, then dropped as she followed the senshi. "Little princess, they didn't suffer, did they?" she asked quietly.
"No. Puu died quickly, and Atia died with him beside her. They were...my best friends..." her voice trailed off as her tears came back.
"Sky! Come on! We're going home!"
"Home." The blonde's eyes hardened as she began to walk. "Home is no more."
