7. New Protectors





Usagi used to enjoy riding, but that was before she came to Earth. Back home she often went out on picnics with her friends either to the lake or to waterfall by the forest. These excursions were done twice to three times a week, sitting on a purebred Jupitarian mare and a specially made saddle. It did not include bouncing astride up and down on a crude seat each day with a stupid horse that could not distinguish the difference between left and right and enjoyed poking his head on everything that shot up from the ground. Her backside was sore and she was sure that by this time the skin on the inner part of her thighs had been scraped raw. She hated riding and the only thing she knew she hated more was the black haired demon riding in front of her.

She couldn't figure out what this Prince Endymion's problem was. You would think that after weeks of having worked for him like a slave, fetching this and fetching that, she would have worked off her debts, but no, she was still the prince's personal pageboy. Surely no pastry in the world could cost that much?

Actually working at the Royal Earthen Palace wasn't so bad. The people were quite nice to her and the food was great. In particular, the servants in the kitchen seemed to find her skinny form a personal insult and had taken it upon themselves to feed her. She had never been better fed in her life! Certainly she sometimes missed Lita's cakes but then again she never did get to enjoy it much with her friends constantly complaining that she was being too greedy and never leaving anything for them. Here it seemed to delight the cooks when she devoured their food.

Aside from the kitchen servants the people she seemed to spend most time with was the four Guards: Kunzite, Jadeite, Nephrite and Zoicite. One, if not all four were always around the prince. As far as Usagi had figured it they seemed to have the same kind of role her friends had for her, which was a strange coincidence, but that was where the similarities ended.

Though there were differences too, the girls for example never tried to pound each other the way these four seemed to do so often. Usagi wondered at how these men seemed to like settling their differences by fighting. She was also astounded by the quick way they seemed to become friends again. While sharing a toast they would be still sporting the black eyes or split lips they gave one and other, received barely five minutes before.

Usagi liked them though Kunzite still made her a bit wary. Older than the other men, he seemed to be a bit more serious and aloof then the other three. Nephrite was a fascinating source of information. He knew quite a lot of the lore and knowledge of Earth, especially about the constellations in the sky and Usagi was never able to resist a good story. Still her favorites just had to be Zoicite and Jadeite. They were just too funny, always getting themselves into trouble or playing jokes on others and each other. Things were never dull with them around. Though Kunzite seemed to be the leader of the four there was no question about who was doing the leading when the prince was around. All four immediately deferred to him. Usagi had to admit that she sometimes envied him having that authority.

The four guards weren't so bad. Watching them interact with each other truly reminded her of Mina, Rei, Lita and Amy. The easy companionship, the way they bickered among themselves to show the deep affection they had.

All in all she would say that her life on Earth was all right. If only there was no prince that is.

At that thought her blue eyes shot daggers, not for the first or the last time, at the broad back of the man riding in deep blue hunting clothes in front of her. If ever there was a more arrogant man than the prince, Usagi had yet to meet him. She had never met anyone more spoiled, annoying, irritating or rude in her life. It seemed that he had made it his life's mission to make her existence utterly miserable. He was always sending her to do some foolish errand and if not then he used her to fetch him things from his room. Didn't the idiot man know how to put on his own boots? The worst part was that the whole castle seemed to know about it and called her good naturely whenever they saw her on her errands. He had turned her into the laughing stock of the castle. Spirits, she really wished there was a way to teach the guy a lesson.

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"You know Dare, you should really try to cut the kid some slack." Jadeite told his friend with a chuckle having just glanced over his shoulder at the boy riding behind them. "He's glaring at you with enough force to bore a hole in your back."

Darien gave an indifferent shrug and tried not to roll his shoulders to ease the strain he was feeling. Damn the kid could stare. He had felt the glares he was being given ever since they left the castle that morning and it was mid-afternoon now. "Travis needs to learn his place." It was a job Darien was determined to see done even if it took him a lifetime. Unfortunately, it was turning out to be the case.

When Darien first took on the boy it was just to make sure that he did not get into more trouble out there on his own. With that kind of naiveté and lack of thinking before speaking, the boy might get himself killed. Of course the job was turning out to be far more difficult than Darien had first anticipated. Towards everyone else Travis behaved like an angel but Darien knew Travis was a demon in disguise. He very much remembered the nasty critters that the kid had put in his bed. He would definitely not forget the itching powders in his clothes, though he was fervently glad it was only his shirt and pants and not in his loincloths as well. The hot sauce in his tea this morning was also memorable. Not that the kid ever got himself caught doing it, but Darien knew it was him. After all, all these surprises never existed in his life before the kid turned up. Now he was learning to be cautious of everything he ate or touched.

Darien wished he could just chuck the kid out on his pointy little behind. But he could not do that. From the day he took the little demon into his custody at the market, Travis became his responsibility. Until he found the kid's parents he could not let him just wander off on his own. Darien might live a secure life at the castle but he was no fool. He had been outside the shiny walls and he had seen what was out there, what it was really like. The world was a lot nastier and crueler than people thought and someone like Travis would not be able to survive long.

Yet finding the kid's parents was not turning out to be easy. Nobody seemed to know who he was, just as if he appeared out of the thin air. Nor did Darien dare ask the kid anymore about his past. The last time he did that Travis had bolted like a scared rabbit, it took a whole day to find him and that was mostly due to Zoi's new invention: the tracking device.

Darien sighed. He really had no idea what he was going to do with the boy. He was a pain to have around and cramped his way of living. Though he might be a highborn born to the privilege that his status brought him, Darien was not used to having people serve on him. He much preferred to do things himself, a legacy given to him by his old training master Gavin, he supposed. Among other things, Gavin was the one who taught Darien to take his responsibilities seriously and always finish whatever he started. But he had had to come up with a reason to have the kid around, one that would justify his presence close to Darien, so he sent the kid out on meaningless errands. Errands that Darien hoped would keep him occupied and out of mischief. His good intentions were however, not without a price. It included headaches and tensions.

Shifting on the saddle slightly so that he could turn, he looked at the boy riding behind him, "Haven't you sulked enough for one day?"

The sharp intake of breath had him smiling grimly. Sometimes this kid was just too easy to annoy. He was as touchy as most females.

His satisfaction didn't last for long however when the kid fired back a retort. "It depends, are you satisfied on how much time we've killed doing something so pointless?"

From beside him, Darien could hear both Jadeite and Zoicite choke and he seriously hoped that there was something stuck in their throat that might kill them off. At times like these he really had to question the loyalties of those two.

"Travis, answer the prince properly. As his pageboy it's not your place to question him." Nephrite told him in a stern lecturing tone. Thank God for some loyal friends. "If he wants to waste his time roaming around the countryside, enjoying the view and being the main course of the bug-life around here, as his loyal subjects we do not question. We just follow."

Darien whirled around to scowl at the last of his bodyguard, so much for loyal friends. The other two traitors were already shouting with laughter. Those two had never been dependable when it came to having fun on Darien's expense, but he had been sure he could rely on Nephrite's sense of duty. It seems however he was seriously mistaken there. Ever since a mysterious girl had ditched the guy a few months ago, Nephrite's sense of humor had taken on a warped direction. Darien really wished his father hadn't decided to send Kunzite off as an ambassador to Moon. True, he wasn't as close to the guy as he was with the other three, but at least he was given the respect that was due to him and more importantly the older man would have known how to handle this bunch. Darien relished the thought of the sweaty backbreaking training Kunzite would put them through.

"Yes sir, I shall remember that. Never question the prince even if he's doing unnecessary and meaningless things." Travis said with a face that looked suspiciously mischievous.

Was no one gonna take him seriously today?

Darien did not get much time to feel sorry for himself because just then his warrior instincts kicked in and he had just enough time to dodge to the side as something black and furry came launching at him from the top of one of the trees.

"Shit, trolls!" Jadeite growled under his breath, drawing his sword just as more of the creature's friends came crashing down on them.

All of a sudden the peace was dead and chaos took place. Darien barely had time to register where all his companions were, he was loosing control of his horse. His quick instincts had saved him from being hit but the creature had still managed to claw his steed and the poisonous injury was driving the animal insane.

From behind him he heard a panicked cry from a horse and he only had time to turn around to see a black mare gallop straight into the thick dense forest ridden by a small figure with blonde hair on his back. Darien swore under his breath and tried hard to steer his mount after the rider but just then another creature jumped down from the tree straight at him. A bright object whizzed past Darien's ears, cold breeze following closely, and suddenly the creature stopped its descent and slumped down on the ground with a crystal dagger impaled between the eyes.

"Darien, you'd better change." his rescuer, Zoicite told him briskly as more crystal spikes started to form in his hands. The blonde man was already dressed in his gray uniform.

A quick look around and Darien realized that he was the only one that had not transformed. Jadeite was using his powers to create invisible barriers that trolls kept knocking themselves senseless over and used his sword to take care of those closer by. Nephrite was a bit further away fighting side by side with Taurus, the creature that he had summoned. The large bull was doing a great job of knocking the small trolls around like pebbles and impaling the rest with his horn.

Darien agreed with the wisdom of Zoicite's suggestion and quickly transformed. Light shimmered around him for a short while and when it had disappeared so had the riding garbs he wore. Instead he was dressed just like his friends in a uniform except that his was black not gray. Power surged through him and as one of the trolls got past Jadeite's shield, he held out his arm and felt the power concentrate on his hand. Without much effort or thought he let the power leave his fingers and a single red rose shot out from his hand to hit the troll right in the eye. The creature let out a piercing scream and clutched at his eye. Smoke was sizzling from its head and there was the unmistakable smell of burning flesh that suddenly started to fill the area the more roses Darien threw. He barely paid it any mind though as he was frantically looked around.

"Which way did Travis head off?" He demanded of his friends. With all the confusion going around he was having trouble seeing more then three feet in front of him.

"West!" Zoicite, the person ever careful of details, said as he used his sword awkwardly to fight off one four-foot tall troll that was breathing close to his leg. Tired of the annoying creature he spit at the troll's eye and while the little critter blinked he kicked him hard in the face sending it flat on the ground and a second later a crystal shard was protruding from its exposed throat.

"And where the Hell is west?" Darien growled even as he finished off two more.

Impatiently Zoicite waved his hand to Darien's right about forty-five degrees. A crystal shard shot out and hit a trunk.

Jadeite having not missed that, snorted, "Uh oh. Somebody seems to be skipping his training. I don't think Kunzite is being thorough enough in his supervision."

Heat rose up slightly on Zoicite's face. "Shut up, smart ass. You're not doing much better either. Half of those bastards is getting through your shield."

"That's coz I want to exercise my arm muscles. What's the fun in fighting if you can't give them a chance to learn a lesson or two?" The other man shot back and nearly sliced a troll in half with a swing of his sword.

Darien ignored the two as they continued their bickering, knowing from experience that this was their way of de-stressing themselves. Instead he steered his mount towards the direction that Travis had disappeared to and shouted over his shoulder, "Guys take care the rest of them. I'm going after Travis."

He kicked his mount to motion and shot towards the thick vegetation, dispatching two more trolls on the way. From behind him he could hear Nephrite shouting, "Darien, no!" Then swearing "Damit, after him!" Right before the thick forest vegetation swallowed him.

As Darien thundered across the forest, branches whipped at his face and clothes and some more creatures jumped out to attack him. Those he took care easily enough, but the worry in his heart however did not diminish. It was easy enough to follow Travis, it was obvious that the horse had been the one leading from the wide tracks they left behind but as he was able to spot neither rider nor horse, fear settled in his heart and he started cursing himself.

Whatever had possessed him to take a boy out on a hunting trip? It was one thing to bring the others along, they were trained soldiers, but Travis did not have any sort of training at all. He should have thought about the risks before he brought the kid along. It was all because of his stupid pride. He had wanted to teach the kid a lesson for the stunt he pulled earlier today and what better way of punishing him than taking him out riding the whole day, knowing how much he hated it? God, if something happened to the kid he was never going to forgive himself. And with those grim thoughts Darien pushed his horse to a greater speed as he tried valiantly to search for his pageboy.

Despite following the trails Darien was not able to find Travis anywhere. However he stumbled across something completely different when he entered a clearing. It was a vision of incredible beauty.

She was dressed in a sailor shirt of white and blue. There was a matching blue skirt, a very short skirt that showed of what looked like miles of gorgeous long legs, enveloped in blue boots. Her hair was incredibly long, longer than anyone's he'd ever seen before wear them including his sister Terra. She wore her blonde hair up, split up evenly and rolled into a bun on each side of her head to fall down along her back like twin rivers of gold. Jewels glittered on her everywhere, from a brooch on the front of her shirt and small earrings on each of her earlobes to the gold tiara resting on her forehead. Her face was beautiful, the skin creamy smooth, the mouth…full, lush and pink, and her eyes, her eyes were large pools of rich sapphire.

At the moment, those blue eyes of hers were sparkling with anger as she looked at the group of trolls that surrounded her. She had yet to notice Darien who was hidden behind the trees. She was saying something to the trolls and though Darien could not hear what she was saying because of the guttural sounds the little critters were making, her voice still reached out through the distance, enveloping him and capturing him. His heart took a leap but the rest of him was stunned, unable to move. It was not until his vision staggered turning grayish and blurry that he realized that he had also stopped breathing.

He took a much-needed breath of air. Oxygen surged through his body and reached his brain, making him once again able to function normally. His warrior's instincts kicked in again and he realized that while he had been immobile the trolls had not. The girl was busy fighting as well as dodging the small green furred monsters. She moved with an ease and agility that told him she was experienced at fighting or at least had had a lot of training in the area, though not to the extension that Darien had been through. She used her tiara as some kind of a boomerang, throwing it towards her attackers. The golden jewelry rotated in the air like an arch to come swinging back to its mistress and the monsters that blocked its way all turned to dust the moment they touched it. She fought well but she was outnumbered.

Darien saw one troll sneak up behind the girl and without thinking he nudged his horse into motion. The girl startled at sound of an approaching rider looked up and gasped at the vision of the dark clad rider that was galloping towards her. While her attention was divided, the troll behind her attacked. Swift as lightning, Darien created a rose in his hand and threw it. Darien heard her let out a cry and stiffen her stance as she raised her arms to her face, her tiara still in midair out of reach. The rose flew by close to her and connected solidly against the troll's neck. It let out a guttural sound.

"You fight well, but a battle is always best fought in company, then someone can help watch your back." Darien told her as pulled his horse to a stop in front of her. The girl stared at him, a dumbfounded statement on her face. He nodded his head towards the twitching troll on the ground, and then he turned his attention back towards the trolls.

While he fought, part of his attention was still kept on the girl. He told himself it was because he needed to watch her back but the truth was he just liked looking at her. There was something about this strangely dressed girl that fascinated him.

He watched as she with a dazed look in her eyes, looked over her shoulder and at what remained of the troll that tried to attack her. Half of his body was already melted away. "Um thanks." He saw her glance back at him.

"No problem" He replied as he threw more arsenal towards the enemy. "Now shall we take care of the rest of these creatures and teach them the lesson you promised them?" Okay, so some of what she said had stuck in his head.

Heat rose up to her cheeks, a becoming flush that made her look youthful and innocent. She didn't say anything but nodded her head. They moved at once, standing back to back as if they had done it many times before. Together they worked to take care of the group of trolls that was left.

It did not take them long. It seemed that the trolls were not as dumb as they looked and once a sizeable number started to die the rest of them quickly scattered.

"Phew, I haven't had that kind of exercise in a while." The girl said as she bent over resting her arms on her thighs and breathing heavily. Perspiration clung against the side of her temples and a drop slid down her cheek. Her face was rosy and her eyes shone with a mischievous light as she looked up at Darien with a smile.

Darien was barely in a better state than the girl, he might have been in good physical condition but calling upon his powers like that and using them in a constant flow did take its toll. Though weary in mind, Darien studied her face. He could have sworn that just then when the light shone through her eyes at a certain angle, she had looked familiar to him somehow.

"I'm sorry but have we met?" He blurted out before he could stop himself.

The smile faltered on the girl's face for a split second only to warm up in degrees. "No I don't think so."

Darien frowned. "Are you sure? Because for a moment there you reminded me of someone."

The girl jumped up startling him enough to take a step backwards before thinking. She laughed and waved her hand in front of her even as she backed away from him. "Oh, um, I get that a lot. No, I'm definitely sure we haven't met. I mean I would certainly not forget a nice looking hunk – What I mean to say is, is…is my memories are very good and I would certainly remember you if we've met before. You were just mistaken, I might just remind you of someone. I get that a lot you see, yes, I look so ordinary that people tend to mix me up with other people."

One dark brow arched up in disbelief. He doubted that there were many people around that had that kind of weird hairstyle and strange dress. He knew she was lying, he could see it in her panicked eyes.

She backed away from him ready to bolt, he grabbed hold of one of her one gloved hands, "Wait," he said.

A spark appeared quickly and then disappeared as their hands connected. He felt the power flow through him, warmth that moved from his hand through his body and settled slowly against his heart. He stared down at large deep blue eyes, drowning in their rich depths even as she stared up at his. Neither of them moved.

"What's your name?" Darien asked slowly. He stared down at her with a mixture of confusion and fascination. Was it his imagination of where there like silver flecks in those blue eyes? Not gray, but actual silver?

The girl stared up at him, spellbound and whispered. "They call me Sailor Moon."

"Sailor Moon." He said the words slowly as if tasting the name with his lips. The name seemed familiar to him somehow, though he could have sworn this was the first time he heard the name and yet he was sure he had always known the name, somewhere at the back of his mind, in the deepest part of his being.

He leaned closer to her as if drawn by a mysterious force. "And who may I ask is Sailor Moon?"

"Nobody. Just a traveler passing by, minding her own business when she got attacked." Came her slow reply. She seemed to be just as mesmerized by him as he was of her.

There were a million questions he wanted to ask her but the more he stared at those sapphire eyes, the less important the questions became. The world seemed to vanish and all that remained were the two of them. He could hear his heart beat steadily against his chest. It seemed to match the pulse that fluttered delicately along her slim creamy throat. A movement caught his eyes and he watched at the tip of pink tongue darted out and wetted equal pink lips. He studied the lush lips, the lower half fuller than the upper. He wondered how lips were able to look that pink naturally. They looked soft, lush and inviting.

Darien leaned closer and –

"Hey Darien! Where the heck are you?" A voice shouted and broke the silence like shattering glass. The natural life around them filled the air once more.

Both Darien and the girl jumped back with a start, their hands breaking contact. Darien blinked and shook his head as if trying to clear it. His thoughts felt clouded and heavy as if stuffed with cotton.

"Hey, there you are!" The same voice shouted again and with his dazed mind it took Darien a while to recognize the voice as belonging Jadeite. "Guys! He's over here!" There was a sound of an approaching rider and then someone dismounting. "Jeesh, you really went far. It took us a while to find you, you know. If we still hadn't found you in five more minutes, Nephrite would have called in the cavalry." Jadeite looked down and peered at his friend's face. "Hmm, you really don't look well. You okay? You're not hurt are you?"

"I'm fine." Darien waved aside his hands when he was about to look for injury.

"Good, or else Kunzite is really going to have my head. I've just survived hell for that fiasco at the market with Travis, when he left me in charge. I doubt I will be able to survive another punishment this close."

"You're not in charge this time. Neph is, remember?"

"Oh yes." A devilish glint lit his blue eyes. Scanning their surroundings he added, "Though I doubt he's going to get in to much trouble. It seems you really kicked ass here."

Remembering the fight earlier, a tiny smile danced across Darien's lips. "Yeah we sure did."

Jadeite frowned. "We? You mean Travis helped out? I got say I didn't think the scrawny kid had it in him." He grinned. "Well he's just full of surprises isn't he? So where's the kid now?"

"What? No I wasn't talking about Travis, I - Shit!" Darien swore as he remembered his first reason for riding out here to begin with. The thought about his pageboy had completely slipped his mind. "No I was referring to her –" He stopped in mid-sentence and finally took a real look around.

The clearing was empty. Aside from him, Jadeite and their mounts there were only some body parts that remained of the trolls around. There was no sign of the girl. Where did she go? He looked around frantically but there was no sign of her.

"Hey Darien, are you alright?" Jadeite asked his face now all serious as he took a real look at his friend. The fact that he was looking slightly dazed as if he had been poleaxed did nothing to reassure him. Maybe Darien had received injuries that were not visible. Better have Zoicite take a look at him.

"Where did she go?" Darien demanded and looked at Jade as if he knew the answer to his question.

"Who?" Jadeite asked nonplussed.

"The girl! The girl that was with me."

"What girl? You were all alone when I found you, well aside from that ugly beast you call a horse over there." The ugly beast in question let out an affronted sound and moved his hooves threateningly towards the blonde man. Jadeite stood his ground but he mentally made sure he had a shield ready to pull up just in case. "Seriously I think you should sit down and have Zoi take a look at you when he gets here." When his friend only snarled at him, he put up his hands in the air as a sign and backed off.

Darien didn't miss the rolling eyes Jadeite was making but he was not in the mood to even be ticked by it. "Come on, we need to find Travis and fast. It's getting late and if there are trolls around, there might be something far uglier when night comes."

The two mounted their horses and moved off. Darien could however not resist the urge to look over his shoulder trying to find a glimpse of white and blue.

Where did she go? She was real. He was sure of that. Even if there weren't dust left on the ground from the monsters she vanquished, he could still feel the tingle in his hand from when they touched.

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Finally running out of breath, Sailor Moon stopped and leaned back against a heavy trunk to catch her breath. Her vision was unsteady and she was not sure it was entirely from running.

Darien? That dark, handsome man was actually the same arrogant snotty prince that she had been waiting on for the past month? But how was that possible? Sure there were some similarities in the face but prince Darien was young, a …a boy! compared to her rescuer. The man had been taller, stronger looking. The hair a rich hue of black and lavender. The eyes dark blue, while the prince's hair and eyes were only dull black. The voice was different too; his was deeper, warmer and richer in texture. Plus she had never felt anything all those times she had come in physical contact with the prince, not like what she just felt back then.

Even as she thought back to the very moment their hands had touched, Sailor Moon felt a warm feeling spread over her body, a tingling feeling that settled in her stomach. It was a strange feeling and not unpleasant at all. She rather enjoyed it. A dreamy look appeared on her as she remembered that handsome face, the strong jaw, the chiseled nose, the winged brows and those deep pools of dark blue eyes and not to mention those lips. Maybe if they had not been interrupted she might have known what those lips tasted like. She was sure that was what his intention had been from the way he was looking at her.

A flush rose up her cheeks. It was not she had never been kissed before but those pecks stolen by the court dandies back home were hardly called a real kiss. She certainly didn't feel anything wonderful the way Lita and Mina described it. Rather she felt a bit disgusted at the feeling of their saliva on her face. Yet somehow she knew that it would be different with her rescuer.

She thought of him as her rescuer, because she refused to believe what she had heard. He was NOT the prince. Most probably the prince had been close by and had been spooked by the sudden appearance of newcomers. Yes that was it. The prince was most probably spying on them, that would just be typical of him and then he got caught. She should not have run like that, she should have stayed behind and faced him and given him tongue-lashing that would put Rei to shame, for having the nerve to hide while she and her rescuer fought off those monsters. No, she could not do that, because she could not risk revealing the existence of Sailor Moon.

She was not certain that the Earthlings have even heard of the Sailor Senshi since the concept was old, part of legends. There had not been Sailor Senshi for over hundreds of years now and certainly never a Sailor Moon as far as the records went. Even the records of the Sailor Senshi were not many, aside from folklore of the planetary guardians. Earth, who had cut off its associations with the rest of the planets might not even know much about the senshis. Yet she did not dare to take that risk. She could not risk them finding out and maybe sending her back as a gesture of good faith and upholding the Treaty. So she had to keep up her charade for as long as possible. At least until she found another solution or her mother changed her mind.

First thing she needed to do was to get back to her horse, ditch the disguise and find the prince and his party. She just hoped that the stupid horse was still where she had hidden him and not spooked up again like earlier.

Sailor Moon pushed herself away from the trunk and started heading back towards her horse. As she walked with ease and stealth that her powers gave her, she tried to make a mental picture of exactly which route she had taken since she got separated from the others. Not realizing she had made a wrong turn she pushed her way through a group of bushes, looked ahead and stopped dead.

In front of her was a small clearing. There was a dark cave on the right with thick moss and vine covering most of the opening. She noticed the smell of something foul and not all came from the swamp-like pond to the left. Bones were scattered on the ground, small as well as big ones, some belonging to animals and some looked strangely humanlike. Yet that was not the sight which unnerved her the most. It was the large group of small monsters that greeted her, some on the ground, more hanging down from the many branches above and at the guttural cry from one of them even more poured out of the cave.

Her hands whipped straight up towards her tiara even as she took a hesitant step backwards. But deep in her heart she knew it was too late for that. Damn, why couldn't she have paid more attention to where she was headed?

Ever since she was discovered to have the same planetary powers as her friends three years back, she had been put through the same hard training as the rest of them. She started much later than them however and as she fought, Sailor Moon realized that the lack of training just might make a difference. Her arms were aching and her breathing was turning shallow and fast as she fought to keep up with the horde that were coming towards her.

Goddess what she would not do to have her friends with her now. The five of them would have kicked these monsters' ass with their combined powers.

Sailor Moon backed up once again as another swarm attacked her, her legs gave up from underneath her and she fell down on the hard ground. She lost her concentration and missed her timing; the tiara grazed her fingers and landed a few feet away on the ground. She lunged for the tiara even as she sensed someone launching towards her back. From the close sound, she knew she was not going to make it, but she refused to give up and reached for her weapon even as she stiffened her back and prepared herself for the pain that would come.

"Deep Submerge." A musical voice carried from out of nowhere and water came flying towards the creature. The great amount of water increased as it moved and swallowed the group of trolls, clearing a wide path as it moved forward. Gurgling sound could be heard coming from the mass of water as the trolls caught inside drowned.

"World Shaking." Another voice deeper sounding joined the first and a golden light appeared from Sailor Moons right side. A globe seemed to hang at the front of the light and as it moved, the very ground seemed to shake. Trolls that were caught in the golden light either exploded or were crushed as the power pushed a group together by its force.

Sailor Moon stared with fascinated horror as together the green water form and the golden globe of light moved through the clearing and killed the tribe of trolls that she had stumbled across. She was not new to power, being around friends that could call upon elements such as water, fire, lightning and light tended to make one used to things like that, but she had never in her life seen this kind of destruction.

The place was cleared within a short amount of time. All that was left were the lifeless bodies of dead trolls and two women dressed in sailor suits similar to the one she wore. They were both tall, much taller than her even if they had not worn those heels. One was blonde, her hair short and much like a guy's except that there was nothing manly about her. The other a bit shorter had green hair, shoulder length and curly. She looked really beautiful, not that the blonde one looked ugly but there was something very graceful about the green-haired one. They were standing on large boulder and looking down at her.

There was a deadly quiet, even the forest seemed to have gone silent.

"If you don't want those men to find you I suggest that you start moving." The blonde said with a throaty voice, breaking the silence.

"Who are you?" Sailor Moon asked with awe.

One blonde brow arched up. "Are you sure you want to waste time asking questions? You have about five minutes before they come crashing down here to find out what happened." She answered dryly and nodded her head in the direction where Sailor Moon had come earlier, "I'm sure they would love to hear the explanation you give them."

Sailor Moon turned her head in the direction the blonde had pointed, when she turned her head back she could only blink and move her mouth wordlessly. The pair was gone. From behind her she could hear the distant sound of riders approaching fast, reminding her of the fact that she did not have time to linger around wondering.

Grabbing hold of her tiara she hurriedly left also.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

High above, standing at ease on a pair of branches two women watched the blue-white sailor clad girl run away.

"Tell me again why I agreed to take on this job?" The blonde one said to her companion.

Turning her head to look at her lover as well as best friend, the green- haired woman smiled, "Because, Haruka. We owe her that much and more. Besides, it wasn't as if we had made any other special plans. This is just as good as any way of making a new life for ourselves."

Haruka sighed. "There are plenty of things we could be doing like enjoying ourselves."

Michiru did not say anything and Haruka did not expect her to either. They both knew that despite Haruka's complaints she would stick to this job, they both would, because they could not do anything else. They owed it to the person who had asked them. They owed their lives to her and if guarding the princess Serenity was the only way they could pay her back for that then that is what they would do.

"Come on lets head for the castle. Time to make our living." Haruka signaled to Michiru and after she nodded her head they started to jump from tree to tree with an agility that was both beautiful as well as frightening.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

A week after the excursion, Usagi was standing in a small courtyard on the training guard. She was wearing a white shirt and gray pants just like the other twenty people there, but that was the only thing she had in common with them. While each boy wore eager, indifferent or even frightened looks as they stared at the instructors in front of them, she wore a sullen one.

Nothing had gone well since the riding adventure last week, the prince was being even more rude to her, having shouted at her for taking off, as if she had had any choice in the matter. Was it her fault that her mount when nuts and decided to bolt? According to the Prince, yes it was and to make matters worse, he decided that she needed to learn how to fight, and so put her on military training along with the other young recruits. The man was mad! Purely insane! Did he even have any idea about what these monsters put them through? After last week's training she had barely been able to move without groaning in pain for three days and on top of that he decided to make her training a daily ritual.

The only good thing this change had brought was the fact that she no longer needed to carry out that many of his errands. Though she would have liked the opportunity to be close to him if only to stick something sharp into that sadistic heart of his. No, there was absolutely no way could he be the man that rescued her.

"Alright troops, we just got a group of new recruits." Captain Feeney called out with his booming voice.

Like everyone else, Usagi quickly pulled herself up and focused her attention onto the captain. One only made the mistake of not listening to the captain the first time. The punishment he dealt out made that a lesson everyone remembered.

The captain introduced the boys only with their first names and then told them to take a place among Usagi's group, who lined up in front of the captain. There were six of them altogether and some looked younger than she even was, she found herself wondering whatever possessed these boys to decide to become recruits and willingly put themselves in the hand of the Demon. That was the nickname that Usagi secretly called captain Feeney.

One boy caught her attention, maybe it was because he seemed older than all of them. He was tall, maybe not the tallest in the group and a little on the slim side. His hair was wheat blonde and he had pale brown eyes that looked nearly golden in the sunlight. His was quite handsome and as he came to stand on the right, one row ahead of Usagi, she noticed that he had the most incredibly long lashes she had ever seen on a guy. What was his name again? Oh yes, Alex. It was a nice name, much easier to remember than some of the weirder names she had come across there. And he did not look so bad either.

Usagi felt a giggle bubble up inside her throat at the thought and she had a hard time controlling it. She wished the girls were here with her now. She was sure they would agree with her on that.

Just then Alex turned slightly and their eyes met and locked. For a moment there Usagi felt something click in her head, something familiar and then it was gone as Alex broke eye contact with her. She did not get a chance to pay much attention to it though as captain Feeney started speaking.

"Alright troops since we have some new people around. Let's say we start off welcoming them with a nice warm up? How about two rounds around the Pit?"

There was a chorus of groans coming from different directions; Usagi's was one of them. Captain Feeney did not seem to pay that much mind to it, at least that was what they thought until he said absent mindedly, "What two rounds is not enough? Very well then, make it five."

They learned their lesson and nobody made the slightest sound of protest. The courtyard had never been quieter. Captain Feeney waited for a while and when he was satisfied that none of them was going to complain, he signaled for them to move out.

They ran in a double file to another part of the castle. The Pit as captain Feeney called it was a maze of contraptions the size of a ballroom. One had to move from one side to the other doing everything from climbing, lying on the ground and moving forward with your elbows, swinging, jumping through holes, hanging on a rope and at the same time moving forward with the help of your arms and legs; the list went on. The worst part was not getting yourself from one end to another but what happened when you failed doing some of those obstacles. Captain Feeney had provided some very nice incentives to make sure you were fast and that you did not fail.

Alex, who happened to be paired right next to Usagi, took one look at the pit and murmured softly, "He's sure got a twisted sense of humor."

Fortunately for him Feeney was too busy yelling out orders to catch it. Usagi however gave him a friendly smile, she did not dare to make any kind of sound. With her luck prince Idiot probably asked the captain to pay special attention to her and she definitely didn't want to do the pit from sunup to sundown.

Alex looked at her for a while and then a reluctant smile tugged at his lips also. "Oh well might as well get to work. Don't want the old geezer to get off on our misery and have too much fun. I don't think his body will be able to handle too much enjoyment."

The line started to move as the recruits began to enter the pit. As they passed by captain Feeney, the older man called out, "Alex make sure you do this fast. Since you got two rounds more than the others I don't want you to lag behind."

To Usagi's admiration, Alex only shrugged his shoulder and picked up his pace. She tried valiantly to keep her face straight, but as she jogged along a pond of stinking mud, Usagi found herself grinning from ear to ear.

Maybe training was not so bad after all. At least she did not have to be in the same company as the prince and who knows, maybe she'll turn out strong enough to even beat Lita in hand to hand combat? Wouldn't that surprise her friends?