Hey there! Sorry for the longer wait than usual, here's the new chapter! Hope you're gonna like it ^^
Makoto delicately laid down the unconscious Lulu on the couch in Rei's living room. Mercury stepped closer, conjuring her magical glasses.
"You should detransform too," Mako said. "She could wake up at any moment."
"I just want to take a quick glance," Mercury replied.
She pulled up her mini computer and started typing some calculus to adjust the frequency of her glasses' vision.
"What do you see?" Usagi asked.
"Well, at first glance, there's some sort of mass inside her… that looks like a daimon egg."
"So she's still a witch, she was lying!" Minako exclaimed.
"Let's not jump to conclusions!" Mako retorted.
"I don't feel any evil energy coming from her… if there is, it's very faint. Very unlike an actual daimon," Rei explained.
"Maybe I could try to purify her, just in case," Usagi proposed.
"This could be risky. Whatever this mass is, maybe she needs it to survive," Mercury replied. "It would be best to run some tests first."
She typed on her mini-computer before pressing the side of her glasses.
"I'm taking some scans to analyze with the supercomputer at Setsuna-san's university."
Once she was done, Mercury put away her mini computer and untransformed. Ami bent closer to the unconscious Lulu and delicately and carefully, pulled one single hair from her head.
"I could also do some genetic tests," she added.
"While you do that, we will keep a close watch on her," Usagi said.
"Just make sure not to stress her out. We don't want to trigger whatever is inside her to come out again," Ami warned.
"Don't worry, we got that. We already met and were getting along so I think I can reassure her," Mako replied.
"We'll need to come up with an excuse first as to why we brought her here," Rei said.
"That's gonna be alright! I'm great at making up excuses," Usagi bragged.
"Not something you should be proud of…"
"I'm going now, be careful with her," Ami said.
"We will," Mako reassured.
As Ami left Rei's house, the four remaining exchanged a glance. There was only one thing left for them to do.
Wait for Lulu to wake up and come up with an excuse.
Lulu groaned as she weakly opened her eyes. She quickly realized that she was in an unfamiliar place and started to feel panic arise, but calmed down a bit when she noticed Makoto's presence.
"Kino-san…? What, what happened? Where am I…?"
"Oh, uh, I wanted to visit you at the garden but I found you unconscious. I couldn't just leave you there and since I didn't know where you live, I brought you to my friend's place, Rei-chan."
Rei waved at her.
"And what about them?" Lulu asked, referring to Usagi and Minako.
"Oh, we're just friends who happened to be hanging out at Rei-chan's place, nothing more," Usagi nervously replied.
"I see."
Lulu rubbed her head.
"Well, thanks for taking care of me while I was… unconscious. I'll be on my way now. Sorry for the bother-"
"W-wait! You can't leave now!" Usagi exclaimed.
"Huh? And why's that?" Lulu asked, somewhat defensive.
"W-well, because…"
"Because you were attacked!" Mako suddenly declared.
"Eh? I was…? … right! Those weird girls in cosplay! They attacked me at the garden!"
"R-right, they were… cosplayers," Usagi said.
"Yes! In miniskirts!" Lulu exclaimed. "What a bunch of weirdos!"
"... Huh-uh," Minako muttered.
"Those… cosplayers, might still be out there, waiting to ambush you again," Rei suddenly said. "If they knew where you work, they might know where you live. It might be safer for you to stay here for the day and let the cops catch those dangerous… cosplayers first."
"Uh… I guess you are right. What a pain…"
Lulu sighed and sat back on the couch, rubbing her head.
"They hit me pretty hard. I have no idea why they'd attack me. I'm literally just a normal high school girl who is volunteering at a local garden… and what they kept telling me made no sense! They were crazy! Well, I guess one cannot be sane and dress that way…"
"Mmm…" Minako glared.
"You're sure you don't know why they might have attacked you?" Usagi asked.
"Nope. I have no idea why the anime convention weirdos would be after me, I'm not even that kind of otaku! I'm a flower nerd! We're in no way related!"
Other than having no filter while talking, Lulu did seem honest. Regardless if she used to be the witch Tellu or not, she genuinely didn't seem to remember.
"Well, you're safe here," Mako tried to reassure her. "I can assure you no weird cosplayers will bother you here."
"Thank you, Kino-san. I don't know what would have happened to me if you didn't come to check on me… I knew I could count on a fellow flower enthusiast!"
Makoto nodded at that.
"No one who likes flowers can be a bad person," Mako said.
"That sure is true!" Lulu agreed.
As Makoto and Lulu seemed to share the same thought, Minako remained suspicious. Rei and Usagi exchanged a glance.
All there was left was to wait for the results of Ami's analysis.
Ami was finishing up analyzing the scans she took. As suspected, the mass she saw inside Lulu was a daimon egg. And yet, not quite so.
"It's as if the egg is still asleep," Ami thought. "As long as it's in this state, she shouldn't be any different than a regular human…"
And yet, Lulu had displayed some of her witch abilities earlier. Upon looking closer, Ami noticed something on the egg, some sort of spot… no, a crack.
"I see. That explains why Rei-chan could still sense a faint dark aura coming from her without being quite like a daimon. The egg has cracked. Not enough for her to turn into a witch, yet."
Ami concluded that the pressure of being confronted probably caused a crack in the egg. So she was right to fear further stress imposed on Lulu.
"She shouldn't need that egg in order to survive. She was living just fine when it was inactive, so she somehow got her human heart back…"
Now that it was cracked, the egg could hatch at any moment. They had to act fast.
"Sailor Moon should be able to purify her safely, but there's no time to lose!"
Ami reached for her phone and dialled Rei's number.
"Rei-chan? Is Usagi-chan there? I finished my analysis. We have to-"
The phone was suddenly smashed to pieces by some sort of long stick. Ami barely had the time to turn her head when she got violently hit in the back, the only thing she could see before collapsing was a blue blur…
"Rei-chan?" Ami's voice was coming from the phone.
"Yeah? Ami-chan?" Rei replied
"Is Usagi-chan there? I finished my analysis. We have to-"
The communication was suddenly interrupted, preceding a crashing sound.
"Ami-chan? Ami-chan!?"
"What's wrong?" Usagi asked.
"I don't know… it suddenly hung up! After this weird, crashing noise…"
"Hey, that doesn't sound too good!" Minako exclaimed.
"That sounds like she got attacked!" Mako added.
"What, attacked? What's going on?" Lulu suddenly asked, confused.
The senshi realized that they were just among themselves and went silent.
"Did someone else get attacked? By those same crazy mini skirt-wearing cosplayers!?" Lulu asked.
The senshi exchanged a quick glance with one another.
"Y-yeah…!" Mako finally replied. "Our friend… also got attacked by those… cosplayers…"
"So if you'd excuse us, we have to go check on her," Rei said more urgently.
"Wait!" Lulu interrupted. "What about Mimi?"
"Huh? What about Hanyuu-san?" Minako asked.
"Well, those girls, they mentioned Mimi when they attacked me… maybe they also went after her!"
"Uh… do you think…?" Minako asked, more to her friends than to Lulu.
"We don't know for sure who could have attacked Ami-chan, if it's related to you know what then maybe Hanyuu-san is in danger too," Rei said.
"Yeah… huh? What?" Lulu said.
"Some of us gotta go to the university to check on Ami-chan, while someone will go to the hospital. Someone else gotta stay here to protect Teruno-san-" Mako began.
"Hey! I'm not staying here if Mimi is in danger! I'm going to the hospital!" Lulu insisted.
"That's too dangerous!" Rei argued.
"I can protect myself! I used to be in charge of the Physical Education Department back at Mugen Academy! I'm at peak physical health, I'm stronger than I look! And it's not like you could do more than me anyway…"
If she knew they were actually sailor senshi, she wouldn't say that. But of course, they couldn't tell her.
"I'll go with her," Mako said.
"I guess I'll too, if Hanyuu-san might be in danger," Minako added.
"Usagi-chan and I will go to the university then. Stay safe!" Rei said.
They all nodded in agreement and left the house, heading for their respective destination.
Ami whimpered on the floor. Her back was pulsating in a painful way. The hit didn't knock her out but it still knock her down. She painfully managed to get on all four, trying to look at her assailant.
The first thing she noticed was their boots. They were white, with slightly high heels. Looking higher, she saw cyan leggings, followed by a strange, mosaic ornament around the waist.
"Wait, is that…?"
She then saw a black tight dress, a blue choker with a black star, and finally, saw the face of her assailant.
"No… that's impossible! I saw you died! Your whole body… eaten away by nanomachines!" Ami exclaimed.
Viluy snickered at her, holding a witch staff, which was probably the weapon with which she struck Ami. Her blue eyes glimmered with malice as she looked down at Ami.
"Ah, yes, how could I ever forget… you looking down on me as you watch me die in agony while lecturing me about some platitude!"
Viluy violently kicked down Ami to the ground.
"Ugh!"
The witch sneered even more.
"This is all I dreamt about ever since I'm back, Mizuno Ami-san. I'm glad you were the one who got separated from your group. We can finally finish what we started! You know, I hate leaving unfinished tasks!"
Viluy kicked her once again and Ami rolled over on the floor, groaning. She pulled out her transformation pen and raised it.
"Mercury Planet Power, Make-"
Viluy immediately struck down her staff right on Ami's hand, making her drop her pen.
"Argh!"
"Tsk-tsk, who said you could transform? I have currently business with Mizuno-san, not Sailor Mercury."
"Ugh… so you'd rather… beat down someone helpless instead of… fighting on equal ground!?" Ami taunted.
Viluy stopped smiling for a moment.
"Life isn't fair. All shots are allowed when you want to win! Only a fool would give any sort of advantage to their opponent."
Ami weakly scoffed at that.
"Those are the words… of someone who is insecure about their own abilities. It sounds like you're nothing more than a coward, Bidou-san!"
Viluy kicked down Ami once again.
"Who do you think you are!? Just because you got nicknamed the "girl genius" doesn't mean you can pretend to be my equal! I'm smarter than you, I'm better than you in every aspect! Your pathetic feelings you value so much are holding you down! But me, I'm devoid of such concept as a "heart', which you seem so fond of. And it make me infinitely superior to you than you will ever be!"
Viluy struck Ami a few more times, this time with her staff. Ami curled up, trying to protect her body from the hit.
The assault finally stopped. Ami heard Viluy chuckle.
"Does it hurt, Mizuno-san? Don't worry. I'm far from being done with you."
Viluy grabbed Ami by the hair and forced her to her knees.
"Do you know what is the most painful way to die, Mizuno-san?"
Ami didn't answer. Viluy slipped the tip of her staff under her chin.
"People are still debating that question. It seems that the most likely would be crucifixion or being burned alive. But quite honestly, I don't think any of the known human methods could be quite comparable to being essentially eaten alive on a molecular level."
Viluy slightly lifted Ami's chin.
"I could feel every cell of my body getting eaten, Mizuno-san. Every nerve getting slowly ripped apart. And there was no peace until my entire being was nothing more than microscopic particles. But you know what was the worst in this? Worst than the pain of having my body dissolved? It was to have your pathetic moralist speech as the last thing I'd hear before dying!"
She suddenly seized Ami's throat, lightly squeezing it.
"Ack…!"
"You thought you were better than me and you had to have the last word while I was dying huh, while you were watching me dying in agony!? Did it make you feel righteous, Mizuno-san? Did you feel good about yourself, while you were looking down on me in my last moments? Did you enjoy watching me suffer so much that you had to add salt to the injury!?"
"Ugh… no…! You… got it all wrong…! I didn't enjoy this, far from that… I only felt bad for you!"
Viluy started at Ami for a moment.
"Tsk! So you pitied me. That's somehow even worst…"
"Bidou-san, please-"
Viluy suddenly slapped her.
"Argh…"
"Don't call me that! That'd not my name!"
"It… it used to be… not just as an alias, but as your real name… you used to be human!"
Viluy gave her a blank stare before bursting into laughter.
"You're telling me this as if I didn't already know already! How hilarious!"
"W-what… you knew…? Then… why? Why are you doing this!?"
The witch seized Ami's chin between her index and thumb, forcing her to look at her in the eyes.
"Poor, innocent, Mizuno-san. You really don't get it, do you? Humanity is a plague. Feelings and emotions are a disease. Even when I was a human, I knew it, I knew I saw the world differently from the other lowly humans. Getting rid of my humanity was the gift I always wished for. Becoming a daimon, a superior being, free from those pesky sentiments, was a true blessing!"
"I… can't believe… this is how you truly feel! It has to be… the daimon egg influencing you! Don't you see? It's corrupting you! It's messing with your mind and your heart! You have to fight it, Bidou-san!"
"Hm."
Ami closed her eyes, bracing herself for getting struck again. But no such thing came. Instead, Viluy gently wiped the blood coming from her lower lip, smiling softly at her in such an uncharistically way.
"You really are such a softy, huh, kind-hearted, Mizuno Ami-san. I still can't believe someone like you would score as high as me on the national exam."
Viluy was now caressing Ami's cheek.
"Killing you would be a waste. Your brain is a treasure. You are above those lowly humans, Mizuno-san. You are too intellectually superior to let yourself dominate by your emotions."
"No, you're wrong… intelligence… without feelings… is meaningless. I'm no better than anyone else. I'm like every other human on this planet… and I only seek to help others. That's why I'm working so hard, not for myself, but for my fellow humans!"
Viluy looked disappointed.
"You fool. Those below you only know one thing, and it's to be envious of those better than them and of what they don't have. They will either despise you for reminding them how worthless they are, or they will seek to exploit you. Trust me. I know."
"Even if you are right… I still want to help people. I won't stop working to help others and seek for a better future for humanity!"
Viluy's gaze turned bitter.
"Tsk. Such naivety is unfitting of your intellect. You disappoint me, Mizuno-san. You don't deserve your intelligence, this superior brain of yours… it's going to be a waste with you."
Suddenly, Viluy started digging her nails into Ami's scalp.
"Argh…!"
"If only I could take your brilliant brain for myself…"
"You, stop right there! Leave Ami-chan alone!"
Viluy smirked to herself.
"There they are," she mumbled.
Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars made their entrance in the room.
"How dare you torment a helpless girl so callously!?" Sailor Moon exclaimed. "In the name of the Moon, I shall punish you!"
"Likewise, I am the Pretty Guardian who fights for Love and for Passion, Sailor Mars! In the Name of Mars, I'll chastise you!"
Viluy suddenly turned back and Sailor Moon and Mars remained shocked.
"You… impossible…"
"We watched you die!" Mars exclaimed. "Reduced to nothingness!"
"You sure did," Viluy grinned. "Missed me?"
"Absolutely not! Burning Manda-"
Viluy was faster and raised her staff.
"DEATH FREEZER!"
The black star at the top of her staff shined blue as a powerful gust of cold wind blasted towards the senshi.
"Ahhhh!"
Sailor Moon and Mars felt their body starting to freeze upon such cold impact.
"You are lucky, freezing to death is one of the less painful ways to die," Viluy taunted. "If you ever get the choice between burning alive or freezing to death, choose freezing!"
"Tsk! Just you wait, I'm gonna burn you alive!" Mars shouted.
"Bidou-san, stop!" Ami begged.
"No, you're going to watch as I freeze alive your dear friends! See where your futile emotions and friendships brought you!"
"Deep Submerge!"
"Huh!?"
The attack directly hit Viluy, who barely managed to remain on her feet.
"Ugh… you!"
"Protected by Neptune, the Outer Planet of the Seas, Guardian of the Deep Sea. Invited by a new age, Sailor Neptune, fighting gracefully!"
Despite the pain, Viluy managed to smirk.
"More of you came huh…"
Viluy quickly turned back, blocking Garnet Rod with her witch staff before it could hit her.
"Well well, you thought you could catch me by surprise?" Viluy taunted.
"No, I was only the distraction," Pluto replied.
"What?"
"World Shaking!"
The shattering attack hit Viluy who this time collapsed to the floor.
"Argh!"
"Protected by Uranus, The Outer Planet of Wind, Guardian of the Heavens. Invited by a new age, Sailor Uranus, appearing magnificently!"
"Likewise, I am the Keeper of the Door of Space and Time. I am Sailor Pluto. Guardian of the Underworld."
Viluy gasped in pain on the floor. Sailor Moon and Mars immediately went to check on the battered Ami on the ground.
"That girl… that's the one who got eaten by her own nanomachines!" Neptune exclaimed.
"How is that even possible…" Uranus added.
"Hmf, I got that a lot lately…"
Then suddenly, Viluy started to laugh.
"What's so funny!?" Mars asked with fury.
"Nothing, it's just that… is this the entire group? Are every sailor senshi here?" Viluy asked.
"Why… why are you asking?" Pluto replied.
Viluy looked at Pluto, smirking.
"Because just like you, I was only a distraction."
"What!?" Uranus exclaimed.
"As much as I'm delighted that Mizuno-san happened to be the one who went on her own first, anyone would have been fine. She never was our true target. We just needed you all busy for a while."
Sailor Moon realized with horror what she meant by that.
"Oh no… Hanyuu-san, Teruno-san… they are in danger!"
Viluy got back on her feet, holding her staff.
"Congratulation! But you're too late! And it's time for me to bid my farewell!"
"As if we will let you get away with this!" Uranus exclaimed, rushing towards her.
"A witch has more than one trick!"
Before Uranus could catch her, Viluy hit the floor with the bottom of her staff and she was suddenly surrounded by blue smoke. When it disappeared, so did Viluy.
"How…?" Mars began.
"Well, she is a witch," Neptune replied.
"Ugh…" Ami grunted in pain.
"Ami-chan!" Sailor Moon exclaimed.
"You're injured, don't try to move too much," Mars scolded.
"No, we have to hurry… Teruno-san… could turn back into a witch at any moment!" Ami revealed.
"Huh!?" Uranus exclaimed.
"The daimon egg inside of her… is cracked. If she experienced any more stress, it's gonna hatch. It's only a matter of time. Sailor Moon has to purify her as soon as possible!"
"What!?" Mars let out.
Sailor Moon nodded.
"Understood," Sailor Moon said. "We have to go to the hospital, quick!"
"But Ami-chan is injured," Neptune said.
"I'll stay with her," Pluto said.
The others nodded and they rushed outside the room, leaving Pluto to tend to Ami's wounds.
When Lulu, Minako and Makoto stepped inside Mimi's room, they had the panic of discovering that the room was empty.
"Where's Hanyuu-san!?" Minako exclaimed.
"Don't tell me we're too late," Makoto said.
"The cosplayers got her!?" Lulu let out.
"Huh… what are you guys doing here?"
The three girls immediately turned back to discover Mimi in the doorframe.
"Hanyuu-san… what are you doing out of bed!?" Minako asked.
"What do you mean? I was out for a walk. I'm amnesiac, not paralyzed…"
"Oh, right."
"So, what is this all about?" Mimi asked as she walked inside the room.
"Uh, well…" Mako tried to find an excuse.
"Let me explain."
Minako and Makoto were certainly not expecting Eudial to just walked in the room.
"What… who are you?" Mimi asked.
Eudial cocked her head.
"Huh. You don't remember? Not that it mattered for what's going to happen to you…"
"Whoa, Arimura-senpai!?" Lulu suddenly exclaimed. "What are you wearing? Don't tell me… you became a cosplayer too!?"
Eudial chuckled.
"Nice to see you too, Teruno-san. Or should I say, Tellu."
Lulu froze.
"That name… those girls called me that too… What does that mean!? Who's Tellu!?"
"It's you."
"No! My name is Teruno Lulu! I don't know who this Tellu is! Arimura-senpai, what's going on?"
"Eudial. My name is Eudial. And yours is Tellu."
Eudial then pointed at Mimi.
"And hers is Mimete!"
"Huh?" Mimi reacted.
"Ugh… what are you talking about…? Is this some kind of joke…"
Eudial suddenly conjured a fireball in her hand.
"... what?" Lulu reacted, shocked.
"Whoa, how is she doing that…?" Mimi asked.
"Mako-chan, we can't let her do as she pleases… we have to transform!" Minako said.
"But… Ami-chan said we shouldn't stress out…"
"It's better this than getting burned alive!"
"True…"
Both girls pulled out their transformation pens.
"Venus Planet Power, Make Up!"
"Jupiter Planet Power, Make Up!"
Both Minako and Makoto had turned into Sailor Venus and Sailor Jupiter.
"...Huh!? What….!? You… you were the cosplayers who attacked me all along!?" Lulu freaked out.
"Wait, Teruno-san, I can explain…"
"You too, Kino-san… I… I trusted you… and you lied to me!? You were among those who attacked me!?"
"Teruno-san, wait…!"
Jupiter tried to reach for Lulu.
"No, stay away from me!"
Suddenly, the daffodil on the window's corner grew in size and slapped Jupiter away.
"Ahhh!"
"Jupiter!?" Venus cried out.
"What… not again… it can't be real… did I really… do that? Urgh…!"
Lulu suddenly fell to her knees, gripping her head while moaning in pain.
"Argh…! What's happening to me!? Make it stop! MAKE IT STOP!"
A black star started to flash on her forehead.
"No… Teruno-san, you have to fight this!" Jupiter said.
"Hehe… it's too late. Her egg is about to hatch," Eudial said with glee.
"Huh… it's a dream, right? It has to be," Mimi mumbled.
"Ahhhhhhrrrghhhh!"
Lulu screamed in pain as her entire body was covered in a dark aura. Jupiter tried to get closer but got pushed away by the enormous daffodil again.
The dark aura finally disappeared. Lulu stood up. She wasn't wearing her regular clothes anymore. Instead, she was dressed in a black dress, green stockings, and vines-like leotards. A black star was decorating her forehead and her eyes flashed red.
She wasn't Teruno Lulu anymore.
"Teluno… san?" Jupiter called.
"Welcome back, Tellu," Eudial said.
Tellu giggled.
"Eudial-senpai. I wasn't expecting to see you again. I thought Mimete had… huh, Mimete? How did you get out of the device?"
"Eh? Mimete? Teruno-san, what are you talking about…?" Mimi replied.
"Huh? What are you talking about? Eudial, what's up with her?"
"I'll explain later. Just grab Mimete, we're leaving."
"Hm, I guess that works with me. For now."
The giant daffodil suddenly captured Mimi, the vines tying her up.
"Whoa! What!?" Mimi exclaimed.
"As if we're going to let you do that!" Venus exclaimed. "Give us back Hanyuu-san!"
"As if! Goodbye, idiots!" Eudial let out as she hit the floor with her staff.
Suddenly, a red cloud came out from the star, engulfing Eudial, Tellu and Mimi.
"Wait!" Jupiter yelled.
She rushed towards the cloud and jumped inside, but there was nothing inside. Those three had disappeared.
"Minako-chan, Mako-chan, it was a trap… huh?"
Sailor Moon had burst inside the room, followed by Mars, Uranus and Neptune.
"Where's Hanyuu-san? And Teruno-san?" Mars asked.
Jupiter looked down, clenching her fist.
"Teruno-san… she's back to being Tellu," Jupiter revealed.
"Oh no!" Sailor Moon exclaimed. "We were too late…"
"And it's not only that," Venus began. "Hanyuu-san… Eudial and Tellu kidnapped Hanyuu-san!"
Welp. Things ain't going for the best, huh. What do you think is gonna happen next?