Konnichi wa, minna! I know updates are slow, but I, again, just want to voice my appreciation for your support and lovely reviews! A special thanks goes out to cardcaptor eternity for sending me a lovely email that inspired me to pick up the pace a little since you were all patiently waiting! And wow, 72 reviews only 4 chapters in! I'm floored! Thanks everyone for the encouragement!
I just want to remind everyone that this is an extremely complex piece. It deals with the issue of time which is extremely complicated and confusing. So updates are slow because I have to make sure everything in my story is completely consistent. It's tedious.
By the way, for everyone who's asking, "kooin ya no gotoshi" is Japanese for "time flies." And those were, as you will remember, Serenity's last words before lapsing into the time sickness… significant? You bet!
REVIEW REPLIES
WingsofaDream: Looks as if you're leaving for a trip… I can't wait to see what happens in your charming review story! I love it so much! And thank you for all your kind words! Hope you like this chapter!
Yami Chikara: You will find out soon enough! Thanks so much for reviewing! .
cardcaptor eternity: Thanks for the email! I needed that. And as I said above, kooin ya no gotoshi means "time flies." Ciao! Thanks for reading!
the online dreamer: That's what a cliffhanger is supposed to feel like! So I guess I accomplished my goal in that respect! Glad you like it so far, and thanks for reviewing!
MoonBunny777: That's a very high compliment to pay to an aspiring writer! I'm humbled and very grateful for your encouragement! Please, enjoy this chapter! Thanks for reviewing!
angel313: Glad you liked it! Hope my update wasn't too slow…
Lady Wise: Thanks! I'm glad you're enjoying yourself! Hope that trend carries on for this chapter too!
Nazi Hater: I hope all of your questions are answered in this chapter! And please, come up with more so I can keep all my details straight! I love careful readers like yourself—you help me keep up consistency! Thanks for reviewing and enjoy!
Moonmoore: Thanks for reading! And I hope I managed to answer most of your questions… And more clarification will come soon! And it will all come together at the end! Thanks for reviewing!
Midnight: Thanks for all your kind words! I wonder which story you are speaking of… I'd probably love to read it! I hope my story isn't too dusty! Enjoy!
Serena7: Omgosh, I'm sorry it took so long! I didn't mean to torture you! But I hope you like this chapter, Thanks for reviewing!
GeminiWind: I hope I didn't take too long! And I'm glad you like is so far! Thanks for reviewing!
unspoiled rini: Glad you like it! And I'd be glad to tell you what happens… in painfully suspenseful installments of course!
JadesRose: Your review made me laugh. At myself of course. Because when I said rearview mirror, I meant one of the side mirrors on the outside of the car. Silly me! And yes, she's supposed to be writing everything down… and she is.. .but I just forgot to mention it. Again, silly me! What would I do without you! Never mind, I don't want to think about it. Thanks for your support!
IssaLee: Kooin ya no gotoshi is Japanese for "Time Flies". And I don't think I've been called cruel so many times before… but since I've been writing fanfic for years, I've begun to take that as a compliment! So thanks! Enjoy!
Starlit Warrior: Man, I know it's depressing… a world without Usagi! But if you feel it's depressing, then I'm effectively getting across the idea of the world without her. So I guess that's good. But soon, everything will be made right! Thanks for all your constant encouragement!
Neonlights: Oh, so many questions! Ye of little patience, you must wait like all the others to find out! LOL! Thanks for reading though, and I hope I doing a good job of keeping you on your toes!
Well, thanks again everyone, and here's the newest chapter! Enjoy!
Chapter Four: The REM CycleThe battle didn't deserve to be named with that particular term. It was less than a scuffle and over momentarily. The visitors from the future hid behind the warehouse, the color draining from their faces. Nephrite tucked his wife under his arm, and held her bodily in place, feeling her desire to throw herself into the alleged fray. Jadeite just tried to hold Rei up. Combined with the shock and despair at seeing the temple utterly desecrated and the pathetic sight before them, even for the feisty Queen of Mars.
Jupiter was the only one to throw an attack and it was lethargic at best. She missed. Makoto was fairly seething at her past self's incompetence. Sailor Mercury wasn't there at all, and neither were the Outers.
The youma looked vaguely familiar to Rei and Makoto, but neither acknowledged that nagging feeling. They were too humiliated.
Sailor Venus ignored the presence of the youma, and stared blankly up at the sky. Sailor Mars was sobbing violently, and fingered one of her scrolls, but tossed it over her shoulder instead of at the monster. She threw herself at the youma who easily threw her into a tree. She didn't get up again. Jupiter's eyes were slightly glazed over as she attacked.
The youma sidestepped Jupiter's sloppy "Supreme Thunder" and then easily blasted all three Senshi to the ground. They didn't even bother to get up.
Instead of attacking again, the youma just laughed at the Senshi. It's cackle echoed through the deserted town, rattling the fallen houses and the dust covering everything remotely joyful.
"All the better for her that Serenity is dead!" the youma sneered. "She would be ashamed of the weaklings you have become!"
With another arrogant cackle, the youma disappeared. And the four observers from the future watched, stunned, as the three raggedy Senshi, without a word or another stray tear, just walked away.
A growl escaped Makoto's throat. "That was pathetic!"
Nephrite eyed his wife, his eyes mirroring her own anger. "No kidding. Our past selves," he said, motioning to himself and Jadeite, "didn't even show up. Neither did Sailor Mercury. Or the Outers. Or Mamoru, for that matter. Where are they!"
Furious tears threatened to breech Rei's carefully constructed barriers. "I am ashamed to be called a Senshi after seeing that waste," she stated, eyes flashing. Jadeite gently laid a hand on her arm.
"We can't forget that the past Senshi have lost Serenity!" he reminded his comrades. "She was their whole motivation, their whole reason to fight!" He looked Rei and Makoto in the eyes. "Am I right?"
Rei grasped his hand tightly, her eyes boring holes into him. "Sure, but now we know that in the case Serenity's death, we would only have to fight harder to preserve the safety of the universe, which is our second calling after protecting Serenity. She would wish it! We know that!"
"You do now, firefly. These Senshi are younger. Inexperienced. Jupiter attacked with Supreme Thunder. That's her first attack. We must be pretty far in the past. In this timeline, your past selves are young and idealistic and most likely don't have the conviction that you do now. Yes, even if Serenity had died in our own time, you would have been devastated. But most likely, you would have continued on harder than what we just witnessed because of age, maturity, and experience. Not to mention, in the present, you are controlled by your duties to your planet and to the Crystal Millennium Royal Family. You would have distractions to devote your energy to. You would have to move on.
Jadeite's expression darkened slightly. "Plus, we can't ignore the fact that Serenity is thousands of times less likely to die in our present. Which is most likely why the enemy chose to come to this era. This was most likely the most vulnerable time any of us ever faced."
Rei was silent as she processed this, but Makoto's eyes flashed with realization. "Oh, Kami," she whispered.
The Warrior Princess began to tremble as the truth of Jadeite's prediction impacted.
"Nani, Ma-ko?" Nephrite gently prodded his wife.
Makoto looked up, and locked eyes with Rei. "I know what timeline we're in." A shaky exhale fell from Rei's lips as she realized as well.
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Ami sat down slowly, as if she was suspicious of what she saw. Her husband came to stand beside her, placing his hands on her shoulders as they waited for an explanation.
"Well?" Ami prodded.
The younger Zoisite answered haggardly. "Amiko is in a coma. She suffered an extreme blow to the head in the first battle after Usagi…" he trailed off, his voice ragged.
"So I have been out of commission since the beginning of this nightmare?" Ami asked incredulously. Zoisite's fingers tightened slightly; he was disturbed by the sight of a comatose Ami, even if it wasn't his Ami… per say.
"Yes. Without you, the Senshi had no idea of how to investigate Usagi's death. They had no strategy. Nothing. Without Usagi, everyone looked to you for guidance."
"What about Minako? Rei? Mako? What about you!" Ami asked disbelievingly, a slight accusatory tone icing her voice.
Zoisite was unsurprised. "Minako, even in the Silver Millennium days, had always leaned on Serenity for support. Rei suffered severe emotional trauma, first by Usagi's death, and second by the destruction of the temple, and then, the death of her grandfather. Jadeite is the only reason she hasn't harmed herself. Makoto remains in a constant state of outrage and can't concentrate on anything else.
"And me?" He motioned to the bed with the pale, slip of a girl. "I have no reason to fight."
The older Zoisite felt his jaw clench in frustration and anger. "Your duty is to protect Endymion!" he growled through clenched teeth. But he noticed curiously that his former self didn't ask them any questions about their timeline.
A tormented sigh deflated the former Zoisite even more. The young man was utterly listless, and the mention of his Prince only pushed him into ragged tears of shame and despondency.
"Believe me, Mamoru has more protection than he needs. Protection from himself. We couldn't give him that."
Ami decided to leave that alone since Mamoru and Setsuna were investigating that angle. But she had one more question.
"What about the Outers?" she asked.
The younger Zoisite stared at her blankly. "Who?"
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Haruka crossed her arms impatiently as her past self climbed out of the car, not blinking an eye as a string of profanity passed the younger Haruka's lips.
"Kuso! What in Kami's name were you thinking, you insane—," Suddenly, the younger Haruka looked up from the dent in the hood of the car to who she was speaking to.
"Holy crap. Are you some kind of stalker? Or is this like some freak twin thing separated at birth thing?"
The younger Haruka circled the older version of herself. The older version was stunned. She hadn't considered that she wasn't a Senshi yet…
Michiru and Hotaru approached cautiously. "Well?" Michiru asked her soul mate, slightly amused. "Why are you blowing off the battle?"
The younger Haruka laughed. "Okay, I see what's happening. I must have beefed my practice run and smashed my car. And now I'm hallucinating. Okay. Now, that that's settled, I'm ready to wake up now."
The older Haruka looked distastefully on as her former self plopped down onto the hood of the dented car and sat there, waiting to wake up.
"I'm guessing in this time me and you haven't met," Haruka noted.
Hotaru rolled her eyes. "Unfortunate. What else?"
Haruka almost smiled at the youngest Senshi's sarcasm. But she remembered why they were here screwing around with the timeline and was sobered.
"Well, apparently, the three of us aren't Senshi yet."
Michiru nodded thoughtfully. "After Beryl, everyone's memories were wiped except Usagi's and Setsuna's. That seems consistent."
"Nothing in this timeline is consistent," Haruka snarled. "Usagi's dead."
With this, she looked around, and picked up a crow bar from the nearby pit. Before the younger Haruka could say anything or dodge, Haruka swung the crowbar at her head, carefully aimed, with just enough force to knock her unconscious.
"What the—!" Michiru exclaimed, her hand flying to her mouth. "What was that for?"
Haruka tossed the crowbar aside. "We can't have her running around telling people about her 'hallucinations.' Someone might figure it out. I only hit her hard enough to wipe her short-term memory."
On second thought, Haruka picked up the crowbar and smashed the windshield.
"She had a wreck and went through the windshield. Anyway, it's almost time to meet back up with everyone. Let's head back."
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With a deep breath, Kunzite pulled up the trap door to the control room and hopped in. When Minako hopped in after him, he caught her easily, then gently lowered her to the ground.
She looked around and breathed a sigh of relief. "At least it doesn't look ransacked."
In fact, the alternative they'd discovered was possibly worse. All the computers and equipment were covered with a thick layer of dust. But the desk on the corner of room looked used. A worn notebook sat on the desk.
Minako picked it up and opened it as Kunzite inspected the equipment.
"No one's been in this place for months," he stated flatly. "That can't be good."
"Someone has!" Minako exclaimed, and began to read from the first page of the journal.
"Kami. Today has to be the worst day in the history of the planet. Not even Beryl's invasion of the Moon all those years ago compares with this. Usagi was murdered."
Minako looked up. "Murdered? It wasn't an accident or a youma attack?"
"Keep reading, love," Kunzite encouraged her.
"The police are idiots and they have no idea who did it. All they know is that Usagi's window was open and someone climbed up the tree, through the window, and shot her straight once in the head while she slept."
With a gasp, Minako dropped the journal. She began to tremble and sank to the floor, crying quietly.
Kunzite dropped the item he was inspecting, and ran to her. He sat beside her and wrapped her tightly in his arms.
"Who could do such a thing to Usagi! She never did anything to anyone!" Minako sobbed.
Kunzite held her tightly, stroking her hair. "I know, I know. But we'll get them, Mina. We will."
He picked up the journal, and with a shuddering breath, picked up where Minako left off.
"I think this is all a waste. I think this travesty was staged to look like a serial killing. I'd bet my life that whoever killed Usagi knew she was Sailor Moon."
"This must be Motoki's journal," Kunzite guessed. "I wonder where he is now."
He flipped to the last entry. It was dated a few days ago. "I can't stay here. Someone from the enemy knows that I have information. With Usagi gone and Ami in a coma and Mamoru in the nut house, there's nothing much I can do for them. There's no joy here, no reason to stay anyway. I just pray to Selene that someone will save us, because the Sailor Senshi cannot."
Stunned by the new information, the couple was silent for a moment. Then, holding hands tightly, they took the journal and left to meet up with the others.
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"What enemy was Usagi facing when she died?" Setsuna asked carefully.
Kenji Tsukino cocked a wearied eyebrow. "Senshi of Time and you do not know?"
Mamoru gently defended Setsuna. "The timeline is corrupted by Usagi's death. Nothing is certain anymore."
Ikuko nodded sadly, tossing her husband a cautioning glance. "That's true." She turned back to Setsuna. "Setsuna, she was fighting the Black Moon."
"Diamond…" Mamoru growled.
Setsuna held up her hand to silence him.
"What happened after she died?"
Ikuko thought back over the past year. "The Senshi fought for a while but after Ami was injured and landed in a coma, they were too disorganized and too full of grief to accomplish anything. The attacks came more and more frequently. The Senshi lost more and more battles. The city turned on them. But soon after that, the three of them began to ignore the attacks completely. Without Usagi, they are nothing. And Mamoru is… unable to assist. So the city has pretty much been under siege for the last six months. We are cautious even when leaving our homes. Kenji and I do not let Shingo from our sight. Not that he has any desire to do anything anymore… The Black Moon utterly controls all aspects of our lives."
Mamoru was highly disturbed by one detail. "What about my Shitennou!" he demanded.
Kenji made an indignant sound. "They refuse to fight. They say that with Serenity gone and you… locked up, they have no reason to fight."
"WHAT! By Kami, those are their future wives! And I ordered them long ago to fight for justice, and not just for me!"
Ikuko sighed. "Our daughter's death has made everyone act differently than they usually would."
Setsuna's eyes were mauve holes of swirling anguish and guilt. "It is to be expected," she said despondently.
Mamoru stared at her, his eyes boring into hers, giving her a strict stop-blaming-yourself look. "Come, Setsuna," he said, rising. "It's time for us to meet up with the others," he clarified, voice stern.
When they reached the door, Mamoru turned and shook Kenji's hand vigorously, then took Ikuko's hand in both of his own.
"In my timeline, the two of you, Shingo, Usagi and I are all one family, bound by love and contentment. Hold on to that future, and I will make sure it doesn't slip from your fingers."
With these last words, King Endymion left, Setsuna a step behind him.
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The palace was cold. Naru shook herself awake and her notebook fell to the floor. The Senshi had been gone almost three hours. She picked up the notebook, and sighed, reading over all of the things she'd recorded. Things Usagi has gasped as she hovered between life and death.
She'd said things about Mamo-chan killing her several times, and once she'd mentioned something about the Crown Arcade…
"The Crown…Motoki…a trap!"
Although she assumed her friend was just having a nightmare, Naru recorded it anyway, in between reading from the book of legends.
But the phrase she'd muttered over 25 times since the Senshi's departure rang in Naru's ears.
Serenity's voice was haggard and frantic and her close eyes were clenched worriedly. Every time she said it, she struggled fiercely against her bonds, then, as the last syllable passed her bluish lips, she became still again. The phrase seemed to float around the room, haunting Naru and hovering over her fallen Queen.
"Kooin ya no gotoshi!"
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Well, that's it for now! It's a tad short, I know, but don't worry, I'll make it up for you next time, when the Senshi meet up. What they will do next, I know, but you'll have to wait and find out! And yes, this is the last chapter that has like six different endings! They're all coming together, so that's done with. But now, I'll have to write one big cliffhanger at the end! LOL! Yes, this is the last of the slow-ish, divided up chapters as far as I can tell at this point. Glad about that?
And don't worry, Serenity is not out of commission for the entire story… and yes, that is possible… You'll see!
Thank you everyone for reading! Please review!
-rosa lunae