Empire of the Dark Ami

by amiwakawaiidesu

(Based on characters and situations from "Sailor Moon", created by Naoko Takeuchi and not owned by myself.

As an aside, I thought I might clarify how much time has passed in the two dimensions so far; only two days have passed in the world left by Usagi and Ami, but four days have passed in Kuroiami's world since Usagi and Ami first arrived there. I realize I was a little fuzzy about that, so I'm sorry if that was unclear.

Since time passes at the same rate in both dimensions (the original world, and Kuroiami's world), the events in Chapter 10 actually occurred 2 days before the events in Chapter 9; therefore, it follows that the Luna in Chapter 10 either hasn't figured out how to send a rescue party after Usagi and Ami yet, or the rescue party has already come to Kuroiami's world and just hasn't shown up in the story yet. I'm sorry if that was confusing, but I didn't want readers to think that Usagi and Ami's friends had completely forgotten about them.

This story is almost done, I promise--there's just a few more chapters to go--so once again I thank everyone who was kind enough to comment on the story so far.)

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CHAPTER ELEVEN

After Ami heard that Hoshi had come to visit the Tsukino house, she fell into a state of shock that surprised no one so much as herself. She wanted to participate in the discussion of the Moon trip with Usagi and the Outer Senshi, but she was simply too overwhelmed to focus.

"You should rest," Hotaru suggested, taking Ami by the hand.

"I don't know what's come over me..." Ami said, shaking uncontrollably; "I'm usually not like this..."

"Don't worry," Hotaru replied, guiding Ami to the master bedroom. "If you lie down for a bit, I'm sure you'll feel better."

With Usagi looking on from the door of the bedroom, Hotaru then helped Ami into bed and closed the blinds on the windows.

"Gomen nasai," Ami said, "I don't mean to be such an inconvenience..."

"It's the least I can do," Hotaru said. "You took care of me, after all."

Hotaru then leaned over Ami on the bed and kissed her lightly on the forehead.

"Your son is very handsome," Hotaru said softly, "and very charming; I'm sure he'll look forward to seeing you too, when we get to the Moon."

Ami smiled, and Usagi smiled as well. Soon Ami's eyes were closed and she appeared to be asleep.

Is that Hotaru's healing power? Usagi wondered. Perhaps I *was* wrong about her...

Haruka then walked up behind Usagi and gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

*"How is Ami?"* Haruka whispered.

*"She seems to be resting,"* Usagi whispered back.

*"I'm glad. Can you come with me for a moment?"*

Usagi obliged, following Haruka back to the kitchen with Haruka, where Luna, Michiru and Setsuna were waiting.

"Usagi," Luna said, "I think we should discuss Kuroiami's invitation to join her on the Moon."

"Shouldn't we wait for Ami and Hotaru to join us?" Usagi asked.

"That depends," Luna said. "Have you ever been to the Moon yourself?"

"I went there once, with my friends. We met a hologram of Queen Serenity, who told us of the last days of the Moon Kingdom."

"Well, you obviously know more about the Moon Kingdom than any of us; please, join us at the table."

Usagi moved to join Luna and the Outer Senshi at the kitchen table; Michiru--ever-gracious--gave Usagi a cup of green tea before sitting down herself.

"I know that I once lived on the Moon," Luna said, "but I only remember bits and pieces..."

"Likewise for us," Michiru added.

"...so, what can you tell us of the Moon, in your world?"

"Well," Usagi said, "we weren't there long, but Queen Serenity awakened our memories of the Moon Kingdom, and the terrible war with Queen Beryl. The Moon Kingdom was a peaceful place, ruled by the wise and beautiful Serenity, but the people of the Earth were envious of the Moon Kingdom, and Beryl took advantage of that envy to justify her war against the Moon."

"We know that Sailorsaturn destroyed the Moon Kingdom after its defeat," Setsuna said. "Did this also happen in your world?"

"Yes."

"If we accept Kuroiami's invitation, though," Haruka said, "will we not require space suits or some form of life support?"

"I asked Ami about that once," Usagi said. "She said the Moon Palace is still surrounded by a breathable atmosphere, sustained by the same magic that hides the Moon Kingdom from space probes and lunar landers."

"Still, Kuroiami could just purge the atmosphere, couldn't she? She could kill us just like *that*."

Haruka snapped her fingers.

"I've thought about that," Luna said, "which is why I've been working on a little invention..."

Luna dashed off to her workshop, and returned with a small golden bracelet.

"It's pretty," Haruka said, holding up the bracelet. "What's it do?"

"It's a teleportation device," Luna replied. "I only have this one now, but I'll have the rest ready by the morning."

"How does it work?" Michiru asked.

"It's really quite simple," Luna said, hopping up onto the kitchen table to explain. "The bracelets store a portion of your teleport energy when you teleport, then release it again if you need to make an emergency teleport back to Earth."

"Handy," Haruka said.

"But not perfect," Luna replied. "If one of you teleports home, the whole group will teleport with you--whether they want to or not. Obviously, you'll have to use the bracelets carefully."

"Actually," Usagi asked, "would our Senshi powers work in a space suit?"

Luna and the Outer Senshi looked at each other and shrugged.

"I don't know," Luna said. "But I don't know how to build a spacesuit, so this will have to do."

* * * * *

Although the discussion in the kitchen set the stage for a visit to the Moon, the Senshi agreed not to make a firm decision until they could speak with Ami and Hotaru as well. That came later in the evening, after Ami woke up. At dinner, Ami and Hotaru both agreed they should get to the Moon as soon as possible.

"Are you sure you're feeling up to it?" Usagi asked Ami.

"I'm fine," Ami replied. "I just had a little shock there."

"Hoshi is probably up there, you know," Haruka said. "What will you do if you meet him?"

Ami considered that question for a long moment before responding.

"I don't know; what would *you* do if Michiru died right in front of you, then you found out she was still alive?"

"Well, I'd be upset if she died," Haruka said, glancing at Michiru, "but I'd be happy she was still alive."

Michiru smiled at Haruka.

"I'm sure Ami will be fine," Hotaru said. "She's very strong inside."

"Arigatou," Ami said--though she also lifted an eyebrow, wondering just exactly what Hotaru knew about her and how she knew it.

* * * * *

Early the next morning, Luna's bracelets were ready and the Senshi (as-yet untransformed) put them on before walking to their staging area in the back yard.

"You should probably transform now," Luna recommended, and the Senshi agreed.

"Mercury Crystal Power, Make-Up!"

"Pluto Planet Power, Make-Up!"

"Uranus Planet Power, Make-Up!"

"Neptune Planet Power, Make-Up!"

"Saturn Planet Power, Make-Up!"

"Moon Eternal, Make-Up!"

This last transformation astounded the Outer Senshi; not only did Sailormoon look very different than the Sailormoon they remembered (especially with her wings), but she also radiated far more power than the Sailormoon of this world.

"It's been a while since I transformed," Sailormoon said to Sailormercury. "I almost forgot what it felt like..."

"Is that your normal form?" Sailoruranus asked.

"I think so," Sailormoon said, looking at herself and turning back and forth. "Why, is there something the matter with my fuku...?"

"Sailormoon's power evolved over time," Sailormercury explained to the Outers. "She was once like the Sailormoon in this world, but your Sailormoon was defeated and captured by Kuroiami before she could experience a similar evolution."

"So much the better," Sailoruranus said, inviting the Sailor Senshi to join her in a circle. "Maybe Kuroiami will get a shock if she messes with you."

Luna, meanwhile, hopped up into Sailormercury's arms, then climbed up onto her shoulders to address the group.

"Minna-san, we should prepare for the teleport."

The Senshi nodded and stepped closer to form a circle; in the process, Sailormoon accidentally poked Sailoruranus in the side with one of her wings.

"Do those wings actually *do* anything," Sailoruranus asked, "or are they just decoration?"

"Mostly decoration."

"How charming," Sailoruranus replied, reaching out to hold hands with Sailormoon and Sailorneptune. Sailorneptune, in turn, held hands with Sailorpluto, Sailorpluto held hands with Sailorsaturn, Sailorsaturn held hands with Sailormercury, and Sailormercury held hands with Sailormoon.

"Is everyone ready?" Luna asked.

"Hai," the Senshi replied, closing their eyes.

"Sailor teleport!" Luna exclaimed.

* * * * *

Expecting a trap, the Senshi decided not to teleport directly to the ruins of the Moon Palace, but rather to a point several kilometers to the south. This placed them on a gently rolling gray moonscape north of the Haemus Mountains, overlooking the slightly less-gray expanses of the Sea of Serenity.

"We can breathe," Sailorneptune noted, taking a step to test her weight. "And the gravity is just like on Earth."

"It's magic," Sailormercury replied, letting Luna hop down off her shoulders, and taking out her minicomputer to scan their surroundings. "The same magic sustains the atmosphere, and hides the ruins of the Moon Kingdom from astronomers on Earth..."

"Didn't the Americans land quite close to here?" Luna asked.

"Indeed. As a matter of fact, the descent stage from Apollo 15 is probably still standing just beyond those mountains to the south there. If they'd been off-course just a little bit, they would have gotten quite a surprise."

"Nonetheless," Sailorneptune said, "this seems like a very bleak place. Was it like this during the Moon Kingdom?"

"No," Sailormoon said. "There was an ocean here, and this would have been the shoreline where we are now. Sometimes it was very cold; during the wintertime, the lakes near the palace would freeze and people would skate on the ice. But usually it was very pleasant."

"This was Saturn's work, then," Luna said. "When the Moon Kingdom came to an end, she must have used her power to annihilate all traces of the older world."

"Do you remember that?" Sailorpluto asked Sailorsaturn.

"Only vaguely," Sailorsaturn replied. "But I'm sure that Mercury is correct."

"Anyway," Sailormercury said, "we want to head north. The Moon Palace is just over the horizon."

With Sailoruranus in the lead, the Senshi then headed north toward a horizon that was surprisingly close (since the Moon's circumference was less than a third that of the Earth, and the horizon was therefore much closer). The sky was a deep velvet black full of stars, beautiful in its own way, but Sailormercury couldn't help but marvel at the terrible loneliness of this place where nothing moved or even lived. The gray lunar regolith--a powdery mixture of rock fragments and dust--covered everything like a shroud.

But the palace hadn't quite come into view when Sailormercury's computer started beeping. Activating her VR visor, she looked around quickly.

"What is it?" Sailoruranus asked.

"There's something approaching--something radiating a lot of energy..."

Then suddenly it came into view, and none of the Senshi needed a minicomputer to tell it was trouble. Formed of flames, it had the rough shape of a four-legged beast, and a snarling sound issued from its vaguely-formed head.

"What the hell is that?" Sailoruranus asked Sailormoon.

"I don't know," Sailormoon admitted; "I have no memory of such a creature..."

"Perhaps it isn't native to the Moon," Sailormercury speculated.

"It doesn't look friendly, whatever it is," Sailorsaturn said, lifting the Silence Glaive. "I'll put up a forcefield..."

The flaming beast leapt before she could act, though, hurling itself through the air at Sailormoon. Sailormoon shrieked, then shrieked again as the flames of the beast enveloped her.

"Mercury! Help!"

"Yoshi!" Sailormercury replied, forming a ball of ice with her hands; "Mercury Aqua Rhapsody...!"

But the ice simply flew through the monster when Sailormercury launched her attack.

"It's not a physical creature," Sailormercury said, after *World Shaking*, *Deep Submerge* and *Dead Scream* all failed to have any effect on it. "It's more like a field of energy, or a ghost..."

By then, the flames had overwhelmed Sailormoon and she collapsed.

"How do we fight a ghost?" Sailorsaturn asked, holding the beast at bay with her glaive.

What we really need is Sailormars, Sailormercury thought. Damn it! My powers are useless here...

But then, suddenly, a strange voice rang out behind the Senshi...

"Galactica Super String!"

...and something like the light of a thousand suns came flying across the sky and blasted the beast--consuming it in the mouth of whirling vortex. For Mercury--who was looking right at the beast with her visor--the sight was awe-inspiring, as she realized that the awesome power had unfolded space-time itself to consume the entity before them.

Then Sailormercury collected herself, turned to the source of the power and was stunned to see a beautiful woman in a gleaming white gown and extremely long red hair standing atop a nearby mound--Queen Galaxia. Two soldiers with golden staves [SailorChi and SailorPhi] stood beside her, and the three of them blazed with energy in Sailormercury's VR display.

"Oh my God!" Luna exclaimed; "it's Queen Galaxia!"

The Outer Senshi--who knew of Galaxia only as a distant ruler they had never seen--were just as awestruck as Sailormercury for a moment, but quickly collected themselves and dropped to one knee before the queen.

"Your Majesty," Sailoruranus said.

Even Luna bowed--after a fashion--so Sailormercury quickly followed suit.

"Please rise," Galaxia said; "there's no need to stand on ceremony here."

Galaxia then descended from the mound with her escort, and walked directly to Sailormoon. Still awed, Luna, Sailormercury and the Outer Senshi could only look on as Galaxia knelt beside Sailormoon, touched her head and brought her back to consciousness

*"...just five more minutes...* Sailormoon muttered.

"You've had quite a shock," Galaxia said. "Are you all right?"

Sailormoon's eyes focused on Galaxia's.

"Galaxia--?! What are *you* doing here?"

"Forgive me," Galaxia said, helping Sailormoon to stand, "do I know you?"

"Well, sure you know me! We fought, then you left to guide the star seeds..."

"That sounds very beautiful," Galaxia said, "but I don't recall meeting you before..."

"Your Majesty," Luna said, "Sailormoon here--and Sailormercury--are visitors from another dimension."

"Yes," Sailormercury added. "There was a Sailorgalaxia in our world as well--a terrible villain bent on conquest--but she and Sailormoon were eventually reconciled as friends."

Galaxia's eyebrows lifted.

"A villain?" Galaxia said, turning to SailorChi and SailorPhi with amusement. "Well, I've been called worse."

"I'm not suggesting *you're* a villain, though," Sailormercury quickly added, "Your Majesty."

"How did you come to enter this dimension...?" SailorChi asked.

"...and why do happen to be here on this moon now?" SailorPhi added.

"Sailormoon was abducted by Kuroiami," Sailormercury replied, "my alter-ego in this dimension, and taken to the planet Earth. Eventually, with the help of my friends here--Luna, Sailoruranus, Sailorneptune, Sailorpluto and Sailorsaturn--Kuroiami's fortress on the Earth was destroyed, and Sailormoon was freed. However, the Sailormoon of this world is still enslaved by Kuroiami, and I have no idea how we'll return to our own world; so--when Kuroiami extended an invitation to visit her on the Moon--Sailormoon and I agreed to come along with the other Senshi here."

Sailormoon nodded.

"Yeah, what she said."

"That's very interesting," Galaxia said. "I myself was invited here by Queen Kuroiami, who claimed that local insurgents had destroyed her rightful kingdom and forced her to flee the planet Earth."

"And I suppose we're the 'local insurgents'?" Sailormercury asked.

"One imagines," Galaxia replied.

"Well, you don't believe her, do you?" Sailoruranus blurted out. "The woman is a treacherous--"

Sailorneptune's quick cough prevented Sailoruranus from finishing the sentence.

"Actually," Galaxia said, "I haven't even met Queen Kuroiami yet, so--as of yet--I have no basis to form an opinion."

"You must remember," SailorChi started to say, "Queen Galaxia is the queen of our entire galaxy..."

"...a galaxy," SailorPhi added, "with untold thousands of star systems..."

"...so she can't be intimately familiar with all local circumstances."

"But I shall endeavor to be fair," Galaxia assured the party from Earth. "In the meantime, it sounds like we're all headed in the same direction, so would you care to walk with us?"

The Earth party agreed, and presently the group--inflated to nine women and one cat--started on its way north once again.

"I was going to ask," Galaxia said, "what was that creature that was attacking you?"

"Actually," Sailormercury said, "I was going to ask you that."

"I think I know," Luna said. "It came to me after Mercury said it might be a ghost. Among her forces, Queen Beryl employed a beast called a spirit reaver--a type of demon that fed on the souls of the dead. Quite probably, this reaver has slumbered here since the end of the Moon Kingdom, crippled by Sailorsaturn but not destroyed."

"Because it was already dead?" Sailormercury guessed.

"Precisely."

"Lucky for us you came along when you did, then," Sailormoon said to Galaxia.

"Perhaps it was predestined," Sailorpluto suggested.

"Well, you're the Senshi of Time," Sailorneptune said; "wouldn't you know?"

"Well, Neptune, I haven't memorized *every* event in history," Sailorpluto replied. "Nor would I bother; some events are more likely to occur than others, but the future is never fixed in stone."

* * * * *

Meanwhile--on a hilltop not more than 500 meters away--a young man with blue hair, a blue cape and a military tunic and trousers was watching the progress of the party with interest. He had seen the arrival of the Sailor Senshi from the Earth, the battle with the spirit reaver, and the later arrival of Queen Galaxia and her party, but his eyes were always drawn to one person in particular--the smallest of the human visitors.

How beautiful she is, Hoshi thought; Sailorsaturn. Even her name is beautiful...

Sailormercury, he saw as well, but his feelings toward her were altogether different. Just this day, Kuroiami had confessed to Hoshi that Sailormercury was his true mother--far in the future of her own dimension--yet it was Kuroiami who had raised him, and who had brought him back to life after he was dead. Thus, Hoshi looked upon Sailormercury much as he might look upon a distant ancestor; he respected her, but she was not his true mother.

It is a dangerous game that Mother is playing. The combined power of these Senshi could easily destroy her, this Moon and the Earth altogether. But I owe my life to her; it is not my place to question her plans...

Hoshi then dematerialized and reappeared inside the Moon Palace in a shower of cherry blossoms. Not unlike the days of its former glory, the Moon Palace now shone with light and various ornamentations had been added to the interior to show respect for the visiting queen of the galaxy. Indeed, Generals Zoisite and Nephrite were supervising the work of several youma as Hoshi appeared, and they exchanged bows with Hoshi as he passed.

*"You see?"* Zoisite whispered to Nephrite, *"cherry blossoms. Obvious proof that I'm his actual father."*

*"What nonsense,"* Nephrite replied. *"I taught him how to teleport myself when he was just a baby."*

*"Ah, but he didn't make cherry blossoms back then."*

*"Perhaps--being an impressionable youth--he thinks you're cool. An easy mistake to make."*

*"Such jealousy,"* Zoisite said airily, walking away from Nephrite.

Hoshi, meanwhile, entered the throne room and found his mother discussing something with a pair of servant youma.

"Oh, Hoshi Dear," Kuroiami said, "do you have your report?"

"Yes, Mother," Hoshi said, bowing slightly. "Galaxia's party, and the party from Earth, have both met and are approaching the palace."

"How delightful. Almost as if I had planned it that way."

"Did you *not* plan it that way?"

"No. Just a happy accident of fortune. So tell me, is Sailormercury with them?"

"Yes, Mother, and Sailormoon as well. She is more powerful than our Sailormoon--the one you hold in captivity."

Kuroiami shook her head, walking across the floor toward Hoshi.

"Hoshi, dear, she's not my 'captive'. It's simply the case that she can no longer function on her own, apart from the dream world of her imagination."

"Which you yourself imprisoned her in."

"Such a precocious child," Kuroiami said, placing her hand alongside Hoshi's cheek. "But let us not speak of such unpleasantness. I want everything to be *perfect* for our honored guests."

Kuroiami then spun away from Hoshi and caused her black fuku to transform into a silver ball gown.

"Do you think this suits me better?" Kuroiami asked. "Or this...?"

Her dress changed once again into a deep blue evening gown, slit up the side.

"I think black suits you better."

"Perhaps you're right," Kuroiami said, changing into a strapless black gown that was also slit up the side. "This was the very dress I wore the night you were conceived. Or re-conceived, I should say."

"How pleasant. May I go prepare to meet our guests now?"

"Oh yes, please do."

* * * * *

A few minutes later, the combined Galactic and Earth parties left the soft sand of the Haemus foothills and entered the rocky plateau surrounding the Crystal Palace (especially appreciated by the women wearing high heels, such as Sailorneptune and Galaxia herself). As for the palace itself, it was not at all what Sailormercury expected; instead of a jumble of ruins, the palace stood fully intact and restored, shining with illumination and bedecked with festive bunting and other ornamentation.

Strangest of all, though, was a feature that definitely hadn't been there in days of old--a huge chessboard easily 50 meters on a side. Activating her VR visor once again, Sailormercury discerned that the playing pieces were holographic images--some even taller than Sailoruranus--but she was much more interested in the projection system itself; it was radiating some very unusual energy--not unlike the radiation from Galaxia's *Galactica Super String* power.

"Queen Kuroiami must like chess," Galaxia noted.

"We played a few games," Sailormercury said, shutting off her visor, "when I was her 'guest'."

"Mercury is a very good player," Sailormoon interjected.

"We must play some time then," Galaxia suggested to Sailormercury, with a smile.

Sailormercury didn't have time to reply, for suddenly a blare of trumpets rang forth and the Senshi found themselves surrounded by a blur of activity. A red carpet appeared out of nowhere, along with dozens of youma in ceremonial attire, and suddenly four men and a teenage boy were standing at the top of the stairs leading into the palace itself--Jadeite, Nephrite, Zoisite, Kunzite and Hoshi.

*"The enemy!"* Sailormoon whispered, bracing herself.

*"They're just Kuroiami's generals,"* Sailormercury reassured Sailormoon--though she was no less shaken by the site of Hoshi, now indeed much older than she last remembered him.

"Honored guests," Hoshi said, "greetings. Queen Kuroiami welcomes you."

Hoshi, for his part, tried not to stare too obviously at Sailorsaturn, but he didn't do a very good job of it and Sailorsaturn blushed accordingly. But Sailorsaturn wasn't the only one who noticed that.

Oh my goodness! Sailormercury thought, blushing as well; does my baby have a girlfriend...?