II

The Eyes

She gave a shuddering sigh, wobbled for a moment, and then proceeded to topple over, and only the steady arms of Makato saved her from cracking her skull against the hard floor.
"Usagi!" Rei shouted, immediately going to her knees to help Makato as she eased they're friend to the floor. Minako and Ami joined in the circle, looking down worriedly as Usagi slowly opened her eyes. She blinked a few times, clearing her vision, and then slowly sat up.
"What happened to you?" Minako asked, placing a hand on her fellow blonde's shoulder to help her up.
"What…" Usagi said, looking at her quizzically.
"You fainted." Ami explained. "Did you feel light headed? Or dizzy?"
"I don't know…" Usagi said, her voice distant as she tried to pierce the cloud shadowing her mind, "I just got this terrible feeling…like someone was screaming…"
The tense mood was shaken by the beeping of a cellular phone. Minako reached for her purse, dug around till she found the source, and then held it to her face.
"Hello? Setsuna! How are you? You're what? Are you sure? All right, we'll try…" she placed it back in her purse, and then addressed the curios eyes of her companions. "Setsuna say's that Haruka and Michiru went out on a date, and left her with Hotaru. She wanted to call them on the car phone so Hotaru could say goodnight before she went to bed, but they aren't answering."
"Let me guess, she wants us to look for them?" Rei asked, and received a nod of affirmation.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Makato said, rising to her feet. The others followed suite. Only Usagi remained, her face drooping in uncertainty.
"Usagi? Come on!" Ami called, and finally she went after them.

With an agonized shout, he flailed about, smacking his books away and knocking over the glass of still fizzling soda pop. Momaru scrambled back against his couch and then sat, breathing heavily in the darkness. His head snapped about, scanning over the interior of his apartment, dreading to see those eyes still gazing at him from beyond his dream.
He looked down at his papers and books, now scattered, and then closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as he tried to calm himself. He hesitated before opening them, fearing that he would see the face he had just encountered in dreams right before him. But no, it was just his own home, empty save for him.
He rose to his feet and searched blindly for a moment before he found the lamp. The light tore through the gathering darkness, giving him further comfort. He resolved to try not to fall asleep while studying ancient mythology ever again.
He went out on the balcony. It was a warm night, but he still trembled from his dream. He tried to distract himself, thinking of other things. But nevertheless, he could not shake the form that had been grasping for him in his nightmare. But at the same time, he found himself also unable to shake the picture of Usagi from his mind. He tried to tell himself it was for pure reasons, but it was impossible to deny his natural instinct. Fear often makes people desire sex, its one in the eye for whatever is being feared. He shook his head, as if trying to throw the images away, and went back inside.

"No way…there's just no way…"
"It's just impossible…"
"It can't be…"
These were some of the disbelieving phrases that the five said breathlessly when they saw what was unfolding before them. They all fought with the reality of it, tried to convince themselves that they were not seeing what was in fact right in front of them.
Haruka was currently being stretched out like a rubber bad, yanked aggressively at her arms and legs by the black hair that writhed like snakes along her skin. It gave another yank, causing her to cry out in pain, and then her tormentor turned to face the newly arrived saviors, giving the final confirmation of just who it was.
"Welcome, Sailor Scouts." Mistress 9 said, her lips curling up into a cruel smile. As she came around, it brought into view Michiru, also captive in her clutches. She held the aqua-haired woman against her body, cupping her chin and face with her hand. Michiru's head lolled limply from side to side with the movement, as if all the strength had been drained from her.
"But…this is impossible!" Usagi said, her hand going to her mouth in sheer disbelief.
"Nothing is impossible, you should know that by now." Mistress 9 responded. She then raised a hand and snapped her fingers, summoning a bolt of lightning from the cloudless skies. It tore into the ground between the girls, throwing them all to the ground. Usagi struggled to rise to her feet when Mistress 9's fingers wrapped around her throat, raising her up from the ground, her feet dangling, desperately trying to writhe her way free.
As the world started to grow blurry, she reached up to her chest, grasping for her brooch. But just as her fingers scraped the smooth surface, Mistress 9 clamped her hand down on hers, crushing it in a vice-like grip. "We wouldn't want that, would we." The witch chuckled.
There was the sound of air being torn and a streak of red. But the rose did not slash Mistress 9's hand as it had been intended to. Instead, another hand caught it in mid air, pinched between two fingers.
"A rose, for me? Momaru, you shouldn't have." Wicked Lady said, and then held the flower to her nose, sniffing delicately. Tuxedo Kamen grit his teeth in frustration, showing no apparent signs of surprise at his enemies, and leapt down from the street lamp to face them on equal footing.
"I don't know what it is you are after, but you won't get it!" He said, handling his cane as if it were a sword. Mistress 9 scowled and tossed Usagi aside like a rag doll.
"What we want doesn't matter in the least." She sneered. They both started to move for him.
"Mars Flame Sniper!" Came the battle cry from Rei, now transformed into Sailor Marts.
The two harpies gave almost no reaction to the sudden attack. Wicked Lady calmly placed two fingers to her lips, and then blew a kiss at the oncoming wave of flame. The soft blow of her lips turned into a blast of air, and blew the flames right back toward they're source of origin. Mars screamed, but was knocked out of the way just in time by Jupiter. The two she-devils then turned to face Mercury and Venus, who stood, ready for combat.
"On behalf of…" Venus started to say when Wicked Lady reached up, pulled a hair pin from her
locks, drawing it out like a sword from its sheath, and threw it at them. They both ducked, allowing it to sail past them. "Planet Venus, I shall…" she resumed, and then screamed in pain when the pin turned in mid air, came back, and buried itself in her thigh. She collapsed, grinding her teeth, holding back tears of pain as she tried to pull it out. Mercury knelt down alongside her and tried her best to help.
Mistress 9 chuckled with wicked amusement, but her laughter ceased when the tip of Tuxedo Kamen's cane pressed against her throat.
"Release Haruka, now!" he snarled.
"We do not take orders from you" she said, her eyes rolling over to look at him, "But I will grant your request." And with that the coils of her hair hurled Haruka straight into him, sending them both tumbling down.
"That's enough!" Came another voice now, and again the villainesses turned, this time to face Sailor Moon herself. She struck her dynamic pose and then pointed a finger at them.
"It certainly is." Wicked Lady said, that same smile forming again.
"We have all we need to know." Mistress 9 added. And with that, the coils of her hair that had previously held Haruka wrapped about the two of them, and then vanished.
Sailor Moon remained in her combat ready position, a sweat-drop of frustration and confusion forming. She snapped back to reality quickly, and moved to help Michiru.
"Hey, hey, are you all right?" she asked, giving her friend some light slaps on the cheek. Michiru moaned and slowly opened her eyes.
"Th-that was Mistress 9!" Haruka said as Tuxedo Kamen helped her to her feet.
"But how, they're both dead…aren't they?" Venus asked as Mercury helped her hobble over.
"True evil never dies, I guess." Mars said, sighing in frustration.
"Maybe they never died." Jupited said, scratching her chin.
"Maybe they were just dormant, waiting inside Rini and Hotaru…" Mercury started to say when Haruka straightened up, ripping herself away from Tuxedo Kamen's helping hands.
"Hotaru!" she shouted.
"And Rini!" Sailor Moon screeched as her thoughts came into sync with Haruka's.

Setsuna jumped when the door burst open. Haruka and Michiru both came galloping into the livingroom. She rose, the book she had been reading falling out of her lap to the floor.
"Hotaru!" Haruka screamed.
"Haruka, Michiru, what do you mean coming running in here like…" Sestsuna started to say, when she began to notice the obvious. "You look terrible! What happened to you?"
"Hotaru!" Haruka screamed again, and went running for the staircase.
"You'll wake her!" Setsuna said, but was silenced when Michiru grabbed her by the shoulders and gave her a firm shake.
"Setsuna, something's happened to Hotaru!"
"What are you talking about? She hasn't left her bed all evening."
"No, tonight, we saw…"
"Michiru!" Haruka's call came from the top of the stairs. Michiru released Setsuna and went running to respond, leaving Setsuna standing alone, feeling a confused dread that ate at the pit of her stomach.
Michiru scrambled up to the top of the stairs and down the hall to Hotaru's bedroom. She joined her lover in standing in the doorway, looking in at the sight of they're adopted daughter laying asleep in her bed, her skin seeming to glow in the light of her multiple night lamps. They both stayed, rooted to the spot, struggling for answers.
"How…?" Michiru whispered, clutching Haruka's arm for comfort. Haruka herself could only frown with uncertainty.

Somewhere else…

Mistress 9 and Wicked Lady strode through the shadows with total comfort, as though they had done this a thousand times. They stopped several feet from where the shadows lightened, to give clear view of the throne that sat in the middle of the darkness.
"We serve The Dynasty of the Black Sun…" Misterss 9 intoned.
"In all things." Wicked Lady finished. Then the abased themselves, going down onto one knee each, they're heads lowered in reverence.
"We have done as you willed my Lord…" Mistress 9 spoke quietly.
"We have gauged they're strength." Wicked Lady said, and then smiled as she went on, "At they're best they could not hope to match you."
"And they do not know you are coming." Mistress 9 added.
Somewhere in the darkness above the throne, it seemed as though two balls of fire blazed to life as the a pair of shadowed lids opened to reveal two yellow eyes, the pupils burning red like a pair of coals on a fire. The light from the eyes glinted off the fanged teeth as a pair of lips curled up in a grin that promised pure evil.