Chapter 12:

Rei grumbled thanks as Lita passed her, her cup of tea. All of them had been up all night, but nothing much had been said. Darien finally decided to kick off the conversation by asking Lita and Ami what they thought about Serena's behaviour. They glanced nervously at each other.

"Don't," Darien said. "I saw it in your eyes…" He explained.

"Well, it's just that…" Lita began. "It's not really like Serena to say those things and…" She looked to Ami to explain.

"Well, she just didn't look like she believed what she said herself." Ami whispered. They eyed the two girls cautiously. But even through the fatigue they were suffering from the late night, it made sense.

"Serena wouldn't say those things…" Rei muttered.

"She would never yell at us like that, and tell us she doesn't need us…" Mina admitted. They all slowly began to realise that Serena wasn't acting like herself. After much deliberation, Artemis was sent to watch over the emotional teenager until someone else took over. They all still felt there was danger and the need to keep Serena safe. While he left the rest of them went to sleep.

Serena rose slowly to stand before the tall, elegant woman in front of her.

"Hello Princess." She said, Serena noticed the smile widening on her face. "You've done so well! Though your friends got in the way a bit, you handled the situation well." Serena dropped her head and spoke quietly.

"I was so horrible to them. I need them so much and… I miss them…" She felt a tear glide down her cheek.

"Don't worry Princess, the time has come. It will all be over soon…" Serena looked up in wonderment. "Soon everything will become clear and your pain will be over. I need you to travel outside the city, I will meet you there. You must get there before Midday." Serena nodded slightly. "When you wake you will feel better, but immediately you must transform and come to meet me." With that everything blurred and Serena's world went dark.

When she woke her dream was fresh in her mind. She transformed immediately and headed out her window. Instinct told her which way to head out of town and in her agile Sailor form she made her way swiftly. The journey was bound to be long and tiring, but Sailor Moon felt in her Sailor form, so much more powerful than any other time in her life.

Artemis approached the modelling agency, his eyes scanning the area for any sign of the long hair Sailor scout. He caught a glimpse of her long blonde hair in the distance and recognised the uniform as she leapt out of sight. In panic he turned tail and pelted back to the hotel to try and warn the others in time.

Upon arriving he received nervous glances all around, in a breathless voice he told them what he'd seen. In moments all had transformed and were travelling by roof top in the direction Sailor Moon had travelled. But if the journey was long for her, they had only a little chance of reaching her in time to help.

Sailor Moon reached the end of town about a quarter to midday and immediately saw the woman from her dreams. She landed, amazingly, gracefully next to her. She was worn out. The woman smiled gently.

"Just wait a few moments Princess." She looked up towards the sky. Sailor Moon sat on the grass for a moment to rest. Her heart filled with nervousness. She looked up at the woman, now illuminated by the sun. Sailor Moon had a suspicion that the woman in her dreams may have been her mother, but she was wrong. Though this woman resembled Queen Serenity a little, her hair was a blue-silver and was done in several 'meatball' ponytails so they formed almost a crown around her head. But she was taller and had the air of being tense and high strung; whereas whenever Sailor Moon had seen her mother she was less… cold. After a few minutes she asked Sailor Moon to stand and a strange aura glowed around her.

"Thank you for coming Princess, I have waited a long time." She said facing Sailor Moon. "You did well; you destroyed those enemies trying to destroy the police station." As she spoke she summoned the brothers and sisters beside her, though they were so faint images that it was as if they almost weren't there. "Bow to your Princess." She demanded of them. They looked at her confusedly.

"She is not small lady!" The Red Smoke man demands. The lady smiles.

"Of course, to you she would be known as Neo Queen Serenity, which is," She adds to their confused faces. "her future position." They look stunned at Sailor Moon who is watching open mouthed.

"Princess, these are smoke spirits. They often assist you in battle in the future, but they decided, to make your future easier they would come to the past and destroy what gave you the most trouble when Crystal Tokyo was being created." She said softly. "This of course was bad for both you and me… as you wouldn't want innocent people hurt," A look of disgust spread across her face. "And I would have more trouble trying to destroy Crystal Tokyo." She finished. Sailor Moons heart sank and horror filled her.

"You… you?" She stammered. The woman smiled.

"I am Lady Distress." She said calmly. "I was created by all of your enemies, those who hated you. Now I am all that is left of them. The scrap of their soul that wasn't destroyed. I have their ambition to rule and their will to destroy. And now I have you, alone and friendless. You've never won all alone and now you've shunned your friends and I can destroy the one person who always wins. Who always makes sure good triumphs over evil." She grinned down at Sailor Moon, who fell to her knees. The defeat sinking in. Her heart filling with sadness, she couldn't believe she fell for this, but she thought this was her mother and she wanted to resurrect Crystal Tokyo. The smoke spirits rose up towards the sky. She called out her deepest regrets to them. But nothing could be done. They opened a rift in the sky and dark energy poured out of it and into Lady Distress. Sailor Moon stood and pulled out the Silver Crystal. She held it in front of her and let her soul pur into it. Drawing out it power. She stood waiting for the final attack. Knowing that she would never defeat this enemy, tears sliding down her cheeks, she resolved to fight with every breath in her body, to save at least one last bit of good. As she promised this she transformed into her princess form. She felt the attack hit her hard. She stood, her eyes closed, her body weakening with every moment passing, until she felt herself fading and she knew this was the end…