The Light of Love Grows Ever Stronger. The Dead are Alive.

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"

"Blue Solar Flames Incinerate!"

The pair of attacks hit the cornered group of youma, which all evaporated in a chorus of shrieks. Sailor Mercury and the taller Sailor Blue Sun exchanged an enthusiastic hi-five.

"It's amazing how much more effective we are now as a pair. Having counterparts work together rather than against each other is amazing!" Mercury observed as she pulled out her mini-computer, searching for the next group of youma they would defeat.

Blue Sun laughed lightly. "With this combined help, we should be done with this in no time," She agreed.

"Jupiter," Sailor Green Sun panted, "Wait up!"

Sailor Jupiter halted mid-step and turned to wait for her green-haired companion. "Sorry," she apologized earnestly, "I keep forgetting—"

"That I am not the fastest runner," Chou completed for her breathlessly, catching up. "How are you finding these things anyway?"

"Intuition," Jupiter answered, "After being under almost constant onslaught by various enemies for the past several years, we know when and where enemies are; even though only Rei has the real sixth sense."

Chou opened her mouth to speak when a blast of dark energy shot by them, narrowly missing her. She yelped instead of speaking, eyes wide.

"Well, here we go!" Sailor Jupiter said, her eyes dancing with excitement.

"Let's go!" Green Sun exclaimed and sprinted around a street corner to see a large group of youma before them, Jupiter at her heels.

"Green Flares Auroras Dance!"

"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"

Artimis, Luna, Solara, Helia, and Apollo perched themselves atop the many computers in the control center beneath the Crown Game Center. While Helia, Apollo, and Artimis scanned outer space and the Sun, Solara and Luna scanned the Tokyo area for pairs and trios of senshi who couldn't seem to find any youma to destroy.

Luna watched two yellow dots and a teal one move as a group across the screen the opposite direction of a group of very near youma. She leaned up to the microphone, "Haruka, Michiru, Kigai, there's a group two blocks behind you near Osa-p. Go check it out."

Uranus' voice fuzzed back through the speakers, "Gotcha Luna. We're on it now!"

The trio of dots on the screen abruptly spun around and headed for the mass of Negaverse creatures that Luna had directed them to.

A few minutes later, Solara let out a slow whistling breath.

"What is it Solara?" Apollo asked from his perch next to Artimis, still waiting for the scan of the sun to complete and return data on if there was life there or not.

"There's someone else in Tokyo that is not good and isn't a Negaverse youma, though I can't tell how strong it is," the yellow cat explained.

"Huh," Helia commented uninterestedly, "Let's just worry about the present problem."

Luna nodded and glanced over the screen again. A group of eight dots that had been doing very little recently started moving and caught her attention. The group was moving very quickly and behaving very unlike youma. As the dots moved closer and within a better scan radius, they each took on a color: white, black, gray, opalescent, brown, bronze, gold, and silver. "What the—?" Luna gasped, squinting at the screen. "Solara, what can you make of this?"

Solara leaned over to Luna's screen, her blue eyes widening. She whispered, "It can't be! Luna, hurry, we have to find Princess Aiji and Princess Usagi and get to them before they do!" With that, she leaped to the floor and scurried through the door. With one more glance at the screen, Luna bounded out the door after her.

"Wait!" Apollo called after them, "It's almost done scanning!"

Helia swished her tail irritably then leaped over to the now unoccupied screen. She glanced at the dots and gasped. "No!" she said in a hushed voice, "I don't believe it!"

Both Artimis and Apollo swiveled their heads anxiously to stare at the midnight blue cat.

Usagi, Aiji, and Tsute had grouped together to hunt down and destroy the youma. They had only met a couple small groups of the dark monsters; the combined purity and power of the two princess as well as a Sun Color Senshi seemed to frighten them away.

"Sailor Moon," Sailor Pink Sun started as they walked briskly along the mostly empty streets of downtown Tokyo, "So how many enemies have you faced since you defeated the Negaverse that had captured us?"

"Well," Usagi responded thoughtfully, "There was Ann, Ali, and the Doom Tree; then The Black Moon Family; Fiore and his flower; The Death Busters; Snow Queen Kayuga and her Ice Dancers; The Cryo Clan, Badayanu and her faeries; and the Dead Moon Circus."

Tsute whistled in amazement. "You've all been busy then, haven't you?"

Sailor Moon smiled. "I've started to wonder what leading a normal life would be like."

"As far as I can remember," Pink Sun responded, "We didn't have nearly that much trouble on the Sun."

Sailor Sunlight shook her head, "We really did not. It was peaceful. Mother never told us why she brought together such a large and powerful team."

Pink Sun just nodded and the three of them quickened their pace slightly.

"It's funny that I couldn't remember you at all in this life time, yet you know us all," Usagi panted.

"Not funny at all," Tsute said and shook her head gravely.

"Mother did not encourage relations between the Gold Millennium and the Silver Millennium very much," Aiji explained slowly, "That's something else she never explained. She did make sure we knew who all of you were though."

"That's—," Sailor Moon started to respond but was interrupted.

"Princess! What is it?" Sailor Pink Sun asked urgently as she turned around to look at Sailor Sunlight, who had stopped dead in her tracks and was staring vacantly towards the sun in the sky.

"Something is very near," she answered, her sky blue eyes still fixed on the steadily lowering sun. She seemed to adopt a haunting tone of voice, almost like a medium.

Sailor Moon stopped as well and was giving both girls a confused look. "What? What's going on?"

Just then, Luan and Solara came bounding around the corner just in front of the three senshi.

"Usagi-chan!" Luna called, out of breath still running towards them.

"Tsute! Princess!" Solara called, right on Luna's tail, "We've got news. Here in the city, it's..." Solara's eyes widened and she paused long enough to curl into a submissive ball then added in a much less cheerful, almost fearful voice, "them."

Luna had also stopped and was staring fixated at something behind Sailor Moon, Sailor Sunlight, and Sailor Pink Sun.

"Eternal Sailor Moon," a calm and musical voice called from behind them.

Aiji's eyes widened, Sailor Moon began to turn slowly and cautiously around, and Pink Sun spun to face the newcomer as fast as she could with tears welling up in her eyes. She was the first to speak. In a shaky voice she began, "Princess Enogu? That can't be you. If you aren't I'll... I'll..." Tsute trailed off before turning her speech into quiet sobs. As if she couldn't bear to look at the person who had just spoken, she bowed her head towards the ground and closed her eyes, tears dropping slowly to the ground.

Sailor Moon glanced nervously between Pink Sun and the group of eight silhouettes on the roof of a small near-by building while Sailor Sunlight only stared with her mouth wide open in surprise at the foremost figure.

That figure stepped forward on the building and spoke again, "Sailor Pink Sun, you can believe it." She stepped forward again, but continued and leaped down to the street, now in plain view to Sailor Moon and the others.

"Enogu," Sailor Sunlight gasped quietly and the seven other figures leapt down to the street as well.

Sailor Pink Sun let out a sob of joy and lowered herself to one knee in a respectful bow.

Princess Enogu was at the front and center of her soldiers, standing regally and clearly their leader. Neither she nor any of her soldiers had hair bows like the Spectrum Senshi. Enogu herself had royal purple hair done in a thin and low ponytail down to her waist. Her bows were a striking black color with a white collar, tall green boots, and a skirt displaying all the colors of the spectrum across the pleats. The seven other senshi seemed distinctly more powerful than the Spectrum Senshi as they stood behind their princess.

Farthest to Enogu's left was a senshi in brown with long red-brown hair and cheerful violet eyes. Directly next to the brown senshi was another dressed in gray with fluffy light gray hair hanging to her shoulders, her midnight blue eyes shining knowingly. Directly behind Enogu stood a solemn pair of soldiers: one in black and the other all in white. The senshi in black had long straight black hair that hung down almost to her waist and was much shorter than the white senshi, who had glacier white hair in a simple bun on top of her head.

To their leader's right stood a trio of senshi: one in gold, one in silver, and one in bronze, all with varying shades of teal or green eyes. The bronze girl, tallest of the trio, had her mustardy-gold hair wrapped into a short, low ponytail. The gold senshi had bright gold hair that hung no lower than her ears in short messy locks. The third had blue-silver hair done in a short, round ponytail at the nape of her neck.

When Sailor Moon regarded the group of senshi with a confused look, Enogu stepped forward and began again, "Eternal Sailor Moon, I see you have found my sister, her soldiers, and my one lost soldier. I also see that the power of the Ginzuishou has already blessed them."

"But who are—?" Sailor Moon stuttered.

"Oh, we forgot to introduce ourselves. You don't know us after all," she said and smiled, then gestured back to her left.

The senshi in brown began, "Protected by the Sun and its color regions: Sailor Brown Sun!"

The gray senshi announced herself next and they continued left to right, "Sailor Gray Sun!"

"Sailor Black Sun!"

"Sailor White Sun!"

"Sailor Bronze Sun!"

"Sailor Gold Sun!"

"Sailor Silver Sun!"

Then the princess introduced herself, "Sailor Spectrum, Second Princess of the Golden Millennium! We already know about you, Sailor Moon.

"But first, Tsute," Spectrum gestured to the trembling girl in pink and beckoned her closer.

Sailor Pink Sun did not wait even a moment before she stood up and hurried over to Sailor Spectrum sobbing, "You're alive! I took you for dead ages ago! I failed you princess, Aiji, and the queen. I should have done better."

Spectrum grabbed the girl before her and wrapped her in a large hug, "Cheer up Tsute-chan! It's as much my fault as it was yours."

Tsute sniffed and pulled back with a small smile, her tears receding, "I guess you're right, as always." For the first time, it finally registered with her who all was there. She gasped looking around, "Akari! Hanryo! Kumori and Mikomi! Sanmi, Toumoku, and Boshi! You're all here too! I feel almost as if the Golden Millennium has returned!"

"But it has," Kumori, the soldier in black, said with a half smile, but so quietly that only her white partner, Mikomi, could hear her. Mikomi shot her a brief but entertained look.

Not hearing Sailor Black Sun, Pink Sun paused as she scanned the row again, and her salmon eyes darkened. "Kashoku?" she asked, not seeing one of her previous partners in the ranks of Sun Color Senshi.

Sailor Brown Sun met eyes with her and sadly shook her head. Pink Sun pressed no further.

Finally Sailor Spectrum spoke again, "Sailor Moon, Sailor Sunlight, there is so much to tell you both—"

Just then, three streaks of color darted around the corner: one white, one orange, and the third midnight blue. "Usagi!" Artimis called as he skidded to a halt, "The scan finished! There is—!" He broke when he saw what Helia and Apollo were gaping at then finished slowly, "life on the Sun..."

Sailor Gold Sun grinned and laughed, "Welcome to you three as well."

Once again, all the senshi were gathered up in a large room in the Shinto shrine but it was more crowded this time. Now there were twenty-eight girls and five cats crammed into the thin-walled room.

"So what now?" Rei asked with a curious impatience.

Furea and Bengosha both shot her dangerous looks.

She began again a little more politely, "Well, I mean, we just got everything sorted out now there's more complications."

"So we're complications, are?" Sanmi, the mustardy-bronze haired girl asked slowly with one eyebrow raised.

Enogu ignored her and responded to Rei with refined politeness, "I realize that you have had some recent troubles here, but we also have the pressing business of returning these people to the Sun."

"So it is true," Itazura breathed quietly.

At the same time, Haruka mumbled rather loudly and accusingly, "Not without explaining what's going on."

Sanmi, who's light green eyes were still lazily scanning the other girls, met Haruka's gaze, raising one eyebrow once again.

Toumoku brushed her shot and unruly bright gold hair into place with one hand and cleared her throat politely. Once everyone was looking at her, she said, "It's really a simple matter, Uranus-san. Before accepting defeat, our Queen Astra used the Sun Prism to put the entire sun into a protective dormancy to reawaken when the time was right. That time came about five or six years ago. At that point everything resumed as it had been when the dormancy began. We've been monitoring the Sol System since then for any signs of Princess Aiji and the other senshi as we detected Beryl had returned. We had hope that our fellow senshi would as well."

"We found you, and so we came," Boshi, the silver-haired girl concluded tersely.

There were tears in Itazura's eyes. "I can't believe it," she said, sniffing loudly, "After ages of darkness and torture, I am myself again and my home is back as well; everything I wished for while I was locked up."

Finally Tsute asked the question that had been bothering her since she had been reunited with her princess, "But what happened to Kashoku, Teal Sun?"

Akari twitched, her brown hair falling in front of her face while Sanmi scowled, and Kumori and Mikomi exchanged troubled glances. The soldier of the Brown Chairoi Prefecture brushed her long hair out of her face but stared down at the floor as she spoke, as if fascinated by it. "Kashoku died," she started quietly, explaining to Tsute, one of her lost partners, "She died defending the Queen's life before the long dormancy. I'm afraid she's gone for good."

Tsute gaped at Akari as the rest of the group kept a shocked silence. Apparently the subject had been taboo for the Sun Color Senshi. She was stunned. Kashoku had been the oldest of all of the Sun Senshi, next to the queen, and had become one of Astra's soldiers even before Tsute. Because they were the first two soldiers as well as partners, Tsute and Kashoku were very close, growing close to Akari when she joined their trio as well.

Usagi cleared her throat and tried to break the painful silence. "So does this mean you are all leaving?"

"Yes," Enogu answered almost immediately, "as soon as we can."

Usagi looked crestfallen.

"Wait!" Kigai protested from across the room, "We promised not leave until all of the youma have been destroyed. The Silver Senshi have helped us this much already. We at least owe them that."

Enogu opened her mouth to protest, but Boshi was faster, "We need to get you back to the Sun before something else happens to you. Sailor Moon and her soldiers are strong enough to face those creatures easily."

"We promised!" Furea argued, "And we do owe them for their kindness."

"Really Furea-chan—," Enogu protested calmly.

Jika cut her off, "I'm with Furea."

"And so am I," Aiji agreed. Enogu closed her mouth as she was just about to argue further. "What does a couple more days mean anyway?" she asked, "We have our friends the Silver Senshi to consider as well. It would be rude to leave without proper goodbyes."

Aiji's older sister looked like she wanted to protest, but resisted and let out a long slow breath. "I suppose it would be alright," she started with a slight tone of doubt in her voice, "but where would we stay."

Rei sighed loudly, "I suppose you could all stay here too with the rest of your friends."

Michiru laughed and put a hand gently on Rei's arm, who was sitting next to her. "Rei," she said cheerfully, "you don't need to worry so much. These are all friends and they seem to be anxious to be out of here. I'm sure they won't overstay their welcome."

Rei blushed.

"I'd say we should start getting rid of those youma right away, but it's getting dark," Haruka observed, "We could start tomorrow morning right away."

Usagi yawned. "I'm so tired!" she whimpered, "I don't want to try to go all the way home. Rei-chan, can I please stay here tonight too?"

Rei sighed, "I guess. Anyone else want to stay then?"

"Me! Me!" Minako exclaimed.

"Oh!" Makoto exclaimed, "Me too! We could have a senshi sleep-over!"

Rei looked worried and frantic.

"Oh, calm down Rei," Setsuna reassured her, "We're all responsible people. It would be nice to spend some time with the Golden Senshi before they leave again any way."

"I guess you can all stay then," she submitted and several of the girls cheered.

Usagi settled her pile of blankets serving as a sleeping bag near Tsute and Enogu's. She wanted to have a chance to talk with the oldest princess of the Sun. Despite her warmness, she always seemed to speak with a careful politeness that reflected much training in etiquette, so it was difficult for Usagi to tell how sincere she was.

"So you've just been back for five or six years," Usagi asked, trying to strike up a conversation.

Enogu smiled sweetly and answered, "Yes. It's odd starting a new life already having lived in the past. Few officials speak directly of the defeat of the Sun in the past. It's an odd and awkward taboo, I say. They mention the past little as well, and try their best to avoid mentioning all of the Sun Senshi that no longer dwelled on the Sun. It's as if we've been living straight on from the past, before the war."

"That's really strange," Usagi said, struck with the odd behavior. "Wouldn't people want to talk about and it figure out what happened."

Tsute shook her head, "Although the courtiers in the Golden Millennium love to gossip, they never want to offend the Queen or displease her, as she has supreme power there. The loss of her kingdom in its prime as well as her soldiers was very hard for her, and they all know it. Society on the Sun is very much based on social rankings and politics."

"What do you mean?" Usagi asked. She'd never once considered politics of her old kingdom, the Silver Millennium.

"Well," Toumoku, who was lying on her blankets near by, joined in, "Unlike you Silver Senshi, we aren't princesses or anything. Our families are High Families of our prefectures just by the grace of the royal family of the Sun."

"Some of us aren't even of the High Families," Kumori corrected her, who was leaning against the wooden panel wall a short ways off, "I for one—"

"Too true," Mikomi agreed, nodding slowly.

"I guess you do have to really pay attention to court politics on the Sun," Usagi said. She yawned and slipped down into her blankets. "I really should sleep..." She yawned again, and closed her round eyes. After one tired sigh, she slipped into sleep and was silent for the night.

Tsute and Enogu glanced at eachother then over at the sleeping blond. Enogu smiled and Tsute nodded in response, taking down her odangos. Then both of them laid their heads on their pillows, reaching for sleep after a surprising day. Toumoku had already lightly closed her eyes again, only just paying attention to the conversations around her.

Meanwhile, Mikomi and Kumori surveyed the now nearly quiet room. Everyone was curled up peacefully in their blankets or sleeping bags except Ami, who had her nose in a thin book, paying no attention to the rest of the room, Rei, who was just settling in from frantically preparing the shrine for all of her guests, and Haruka and Michiru, who were carrying on a hushed conversation not far away.

Mikomi gently released her hair from its tight bun and the glacial white hair cascaded down to her shoulders smoothly. Kumori sighed. She did have gorgeous hair. Mikomi pulled out a brush and her dark-haired companion wordlessly took it from her and began running it through her white hair. As she brushed Mikomi's hair, Kumori's eyes strayed to the other pair of girls still awake and talking. It was clear from the way the two were near each other that Haruka and Michiru's relationship was much like that between Kumori and Mikomi. She smiled slightly as she noticed for the first time how gorgeous Michiru was.

Haruka noticed Kumori's wistful glance and shot her a warning stare, then she leaned down to Michiru, who giggled after her partner muttered something in her ear. She also glanced over and Kumori and blushed.

Mikomi noticed Haruka and Michiru's actions and knew exactly what was going on. She turned her head to look back at Kumori and smiled sweetly at her. "Don't you start that!" she said quietly with a slight grin, "Don't you remember how Princess Uranus was about Princess Neptune in the past? I wouldn't want to provoke Haruka."

"Oh," Kumori teased into Mikomi's ear, "I can't help it. Of course you're much prettier than she is."

Mikomi just giggled.

"Now turn around so I can finish brushing your hair," she commanded.

Mikomi giggled again then obliged and Kumori continued in her job. Kumori met eyes with Haruka again, who rose from where she sat and strode quietly over to where Kumori and Mikomi sat, Michiru following shortly after.

Kumori quickly finished up her brushing and handed the brush to Mikomi, who stowed it away, while Haruka and Michiru settled themselves on the floor near by.

"So you two girls have been living on the Sun just as you were before Beryl?" Haruka asked casually, but quietly, so that she wouldn't wake any of the other sleepers.

"Almost the same," Mikomi answered, eyeing Michiru with one eyebrow raised, "I mean, most of our old companions were gone for the last several years. It is a bit different, but it's mostly back to normal after the cities were reconstructed." When she realized that Michiru was watching her, she quickly glanced back at Kumori.

"We miss our old life, but it will be almost complete with the return of the Spectrums, Aiji, and Tsute. I've known Tsute for a long time," Kumori explained, "Even longer than Mikomi." Mikomi blushed as she paused, then turned the subject back, "You girls must miss the old kingdoms as well, I'd bet."

Michiru chuckled. "I rather like this life," she said lightly, "It's much more exciting and I'm not nearly important. I don't need to worry about making a bad step every moment and causing my planet to loose face. I can devote more time to my music as well. There's less court to worry about."

Haruka nodded, "I agree with Michiru. I can do things that would not have been allowed in the old times. For one, I'm not confined to dresses all the time." Kumori laughed and Haruka continued, "But I also have freedoms as well. Court was never my thing back then."

"But don't you think the old system of the planet kingdoms should be brought back again, when you senshi are all ready for it?" Mikomi protested.

"It may be a good idea," Haruka commented, "But I don't think Earth is ready for it. Maybe some day."

"Your princess," Kumori gestured to the sleeping Usagi, "She is still a princess in this day and age, no matter how things are. She has the Ginzuishou, and is destined to purify and rule. That is her destiny as the Moon Princess."

"So she will be queen then..." Michiru said quietly, almost to herself if no one else, "I always wondered about that when we discovered that she was the true messiah..."

Haruka glanced at Michiru, startled, but said nothing.

Kumori smiled and broke the difficult silence again, "It would be nice if you girls could visit us some time back on the sun. It's beautiful there."

"Maybe we will," Haruka responded and smiled.