"... So, is that every that had happened so far?" Haruka asked.
Usagi nodded. Apart from Rei and Minako, all the senshi were together at Usagi's place.
"Yeah. Then after we captured Mimete, Eudial attacked us, and they both escaped."
"Does she know your secret identity? Or where your hideout is?" Michiru asked.
"I don't think so," Makoto answered. "She had only interacted with Minako-chan, but she doesn't seem to have realized she is Sailor Venus. As for the rest of us, she has only seen us in our senshi form."
"And in the midst of Eudial's attack, I don't think she realized where she was. So our hideout remains safe," Ami added.
"We should keep it that way then," Haruka began. "Eudial already knows most of our secret identity, and I can't say I trust Mimete. So I'd rather prefer only to have one witch to worry about with my identity."
"Then it's better if we remain in our senshi form whenever we interact from now on," Setsuna said. "Thankfully, she doesn't seem to be an ally of Eudial, so it's unlikely she will learn our real identity through her."
After the outer secured Mimete, the witch was brought to Rei's house as planned, upon the excuse that it was a temple Minako knew and could freely use. Mimete didn't seem to have any questions regarding that or even think whoever own the temple was a senshi. She seemed to just have assumed whoever it was was a friend of Minako. If they wanted to keep their identity a secret, then it was better that way. They could thank Mimete's obliviousness for that.
"So only Minako-chan can stay untransformed around her huh," Usagi said. "We can't help it."
"I'm somehow surprised you guys want to help. I thought you'd kill her on sight for sure," Makoto said.
"Oh, we were about to," Haruka replied nonchalantly. "But then, those two realized something."
As she said that, she gestured to Michiru and Hotaru.
"I can't say for sure, but Mimete definitely wasn't always the person we know her as," Michiru said. "She was someone else before, and this person is innocent. If it's possible to help her, then I'll take it. if she was an unredeemable monster who could never be changed, it would be another story…"
"And we can't just purify her, is that right?" Setsuna asked.
"Unfortunately, no," Ami answered. "She doesn't have a heart crystal, so her only life source is her daemon egg. Purifying her would essentially kill her."
"That's very inconvenient then," Michiru said.
"Even so… if there's a chance she can go back to her former self, it's still worth it," Hotaru said softly.
She herself once was a host for a daemon egg- Mistress 9. And her own father perished because of the daemon who took over his body. She didn't want someone else to suffer the same fate.
"I suppose we can count ourselves lucky Mimete doesn't seem genuinely evil even in her current state," Makoto said. "She's still a threat, but more manageable than let's say Eudial…"
"If Mimete is cooperating with us, then I'm sure we will find a way!" Usagi exclaimed, optimistic.
"Then we still have an issue with Eudial," Haruka said. "If she's the same as Mimete, what do you want to do about her?"
"Isn't it obvious? By helping Mimete, it will help Eudial too! If we find a way to purify one, then we can do it to the other too!"
"Somehow, I doubt Eudial is interested," Setsuna said.
"We will find a way. For now, let's focus on Mimete!"
The others nodded.
"So let's go see her," Michiru said. "I still have a few questions I'd like to ask her…"
"... Are you going to tie me up again?" Mimete asked.
Sitting down in one of the temple's rooms, Mimete was being carefully watched over by Sailor Mars.
"Are you telling me you intend to escape?" Mars asked, threatening.
"O-Of course not! I have the whole senshi squad after me, as well as Eudial-senpai. I'm much safer here so I have no reason to escape- that and I do want to redeem myself, of course."
That last part sounded disingenuine, but no one could deny Mimete's will to survive. She wouldn't do something that would put her at risk, especially going against the senshi who were merciful enough to help her.
"Then this should answer your question," Mars replied. "You won't try to escape- and if you, then I won't hesitate to eliminate you."
"Eek…!"
"What she means is that we trust you for now, right, Mars?" Minako said, trying to calm things down.
Mars didn't bother to answer that. Minako sighed. Before she could anything else, they were joined by the other senshi.
"Speaking of the whole squad…" Mimete mumbled.
"Mimete, was it? If you don't mind, we'd still have a few questions for you," Neptune said.
"... I suppose I don't actually have a choice, huh…?"
"You do not, in fact. Unless you don't wish for our help, in that case, we'll deal with you quickly," Uranus threatened.
"Ahh…! What kind of heroes of justice are you…!? … Fine. But I already told everything I knew to those much friendlier senshi. I swear I didn't know about Eudial-senpai!"
"That we do believe you, and this isn't really about that," Neptune replied. "Are you… did you use to be human?"
Mimete genuinely seemed taken aback by the question.
"Again with that? Obviously I'm not human! Do I even look human to you!?"
"Yes, you do. And this is very off-putting," Uranus confessed.
"What!? How do I even look remotely human to you!?
"Everything. Your emotions, the way you behave, your appearance, your will to survive… You are obviously not just some monster who was conjured like those other daemons. You have too much individuality and desire to live. You are definitely a person," Neptune explained.
"O-Obviously I'm a person, but that doesn't mean I'm human…!"
"Sure. But, everything about you seems very human. But even so, you are a person. Tell me, if you aren't human, where do you come from?" Neptune asked.
"Eh, easy. I was created in a lab by the professor."
"Created…?" Uranus asked.
"Yep! The Witches 5 are perfect daemons with a fully functional humanoid body. The fact we look humans is just to deceive our target, obviously."
"Huh… allow me to doubt that," Neptune said. "So, was your body fully created?"
"Eh, I guess so…?"
"And you don't remember anything until the moment you were 'created', correct?"
"Of course! I can't remember anything if I didn't exist yet, duh."
Neptune remained pondering, looking suspicious.
"To me, it seems more likely that your body is human, and it's currently being possessed by a daemon egg," she finally said.
"Ehh!? No…! … Right? If I used to be human somehow, I would remember, right? Right!?"
"I don't know about that," Pluto added. "It seems easier to manipulate your underlines if they believe they were created to serve you, rather than being possessed and brainwashed."
"No way…! Me, a human? I can't believe this!"
"Think about it. Our personality is shaped by our experience. Daemons usually didn't have much depth to theirs because they were only just created. They lacked individuality and personal desire as they were created to serve a specific purpose. You, on the other hand, do not act like someone who was just created. There is too much depth to you to be a mere monster. Even if you don't remember, the experience from your life before still shaped you. And it didn't go away, even after being corrupted," Neptune said.
"But…! Ugh, I just can't… accept this. I never once considered I could have been… human. From as far as I can remember, I always was me- Mimete, a daemon, from the Witches 5…"
"And this is the point. If you can't remember being anything else, then it's easier for you to serve a cause. You have been deceived, Mimete. And I bet it's the same for your fellow Witches 5," Neptune added.
"So, even Eudial-senpai… if we used to be human, then what I did was… wrong…?"
"You mean trying to kill her? Or do you mean going after people's pure heart crystal? Because both were wrong, yes," Uranus said.
"Huh!? Did they tell you about that…? Ugh. Anyway, I bet now you'd all have preferred if I actually succeeded in killing her. It'd be one more problem for you to deal with, right?"
"Well…" Jupiter began to say.
"Of course not! If we can find a way to save you, we will save Eudial too!" Sailor Moon declared.
"Uh!? You want to… help senpai? Ah, good luck with that! I think she made her intention very clear. She's not looking for redemption- she wants retribution. And not only against me. You're all her targets as far as I'm concerned."
"You're not looking for redemption either but survival," Mars corrected.
"Regardless, if Eudial also used to be human, then once she's back to normal she shouldn't be a threat to us. So it doesn't matter if she wants it or not- we will save her regardless!" Sailor Moon added, even more determined.
"Ugh… fine. But I'm still not fully convinced any of us used to be human," Mimete conceded.
"Perfect. Then we can proceed by neutralizing Eudial. It shouldn't be long until she tries to attack us again," Uranus said.
"Hopefully she doesn't cause any more damage with her car-" Sailor Moon commented.
"Ha, good luck with that! She and her stupid station wagon are a menace! She nearly ran over me so many times with it! She was such a danger to her coworkers!" Mimete complained.
"... Compared to you who actually tried to murder a coworker?" Mars commented.
"I should totally sabotage her car again."
"You won't come anyway near my car," Uranus commented.
"You have a car?"
"Anyway, it is getting late. Mars we're counting on you to keep an eye on her," Neptune said.
"Leave it to me. And Minako-chan will stay here to keep a closer look, right?" Mars said.
"Eh? Oh, of course!" Minako replied, uncertain. "You can count on me!"
Minako couldn't fall asleep. With everything that was going on, saying she was on edge would be an understatement. First there was Eudial being out there planning nothing good, and secondly, she was sharing a room with Mimete.
Not that she didn't want to trust Mimete and believe she could redeem herself, but sleeping right next to her was another story. The latter hadn't realized yet that she was Sailor Venus, and it was for the best. Who knew how Mimete would feel about her being a senshi, especially since she had been hiding it from her. Mimete was more likely to cooperate with them if she trust at least one of them- in this case, Minako. Trust was a much better motivation than fear, in Minako's humble opinion. But if Mimete felt betrayed, there was no telling how she'd react.
"Hmmm… Aino-san, you're still awake?"
Mimete sat up in her futon, rubbing her eyes.
"Uh, yeah… I can't fall asleep," Minako replied.
"Yeah, me neither. And I don't even need to sleep anyway- same with eating. Those are just fun things humans do that I somehow like to do too from time to time."
Huh. Interesting.
If Michiru's theory was right and Mimete used to be human, then those were most likely due to her old habits as a human that she couldn't remember. Even as a daemon, her human body remembered doing those.
"Do you think… Eudial-senpai is also experiencing the same thing I do?" Mimete suddenly asked. "Running out of life force, being on the verge of perhaps dying…"
"I mean, I would think so? If you both relied on the Taioron Crystal and it's gone, then Eudial is probably in the same situation as you."
"Hm, I see…"
Mimete remained quiet for a moment.
"She really does hate me huh… Maybe I shouldn't have cut her brakes."
"Huh, you think so?" Minako replied sarcastically.
"She wouldn't be after me if I didn't… And now, somehow, I'm starting to think it really was wrong…"
"Well yeah. Actions have consequences. If you treat people badly, you won't get anything good in return."
"Yeah but if she truly had died, then it shouldn't matter, right?"
"... No. That would still be wrong."
"Eh, thought so. Killing people sure isn't good when you're trying to redeem yourself. But somehow… the fact I failed made me feel like it might not be too late for me. If she truly was dead, I don't think… that I would have been worthy to be saved."
Maybe Mimete genuinely wanted to change. Or rather, deep down, a small part of her lost humanity wanted to. This thought only made Minako more certain that she did the right thing.
"Mimete, you-"
She was interrupted by a sudden explosion coming from outside.
"Burning Mandala!"
Minako immediately recognized Sailor Mars' attack. She was fighting outside. And it was more than obvious who her opponent might be.
"FIRE BUSTER!"
Both fire attacks caused another explosion to occur.
"How did she find us!?" Minako exclaimed.
Minako couldn't just stand by while Mars was fighting alone. She had to do something. She immediately rushed outside the temple and grabbed her transformation tool.
"Venus pow-"
"Aino-san, what are you doing!? This is too dangerous!"
Minako only noticed now that Mimete had followed her outside and cursed herself for forgetting she didn't know she was a senshi.
"I'll be fine. Just, stay inside. I can't let Mars fight on her own-"
"You don't have any power! I can't let you go get killed just to defend that sailor senshi! If anything, I should go fight with her! Senpai is my problem."
As she said that, Mimete turned into her witch form. Even if Minako somehow felt happy that Mimete seemed concerned about her well-being, this situation wasn't for the best. Sure, Mimete had powers, but she was critically weakened by her limited amount of life force. She was the one who was far more at risk to get killed.
"Mimete, wait-"
But Mimete was already making her way to the fight scene, conjuring her witch staff.
"Charm Buster!"
Mimete aimed her attack at Eudial. The latter, firmly holding her flamethrower, jumped backward to dodge the dark stars sent her way.
"Mimete!?" Mars exclaimed.
"You're finally showing yourself, Mimete!" Eudial exclaimed. "You got tired to hide behind the sailor senshi like a coward, or you just couldn't bear to not be the center of attention?"
"Shut up, senpai! If you have a problem with me, deal with me directly!"
"Why do you think I've been tracking you down? Thank you for showing yourself so easily, you fool."
"Ugh…! How did you manage to find me anyway…!?"
Eudial grinned proudly at that question.
"I managed to locate the Talisman, remember? You really think I can't use my device to locate daemon eggs?"
"... Yikes. Building a device just to find me? What are you, a stalker? Gross!"
"I don't want to hear this from you. Prepare to perish!"
Eudial aimed at her with her flamethrower, ready to launch another fiery attack. Mimete was getting ready to do the same, aiming her staff at her senior.
"Mimete, come back here- whoa!"
Minako had just arrived on the scene too. She was not expecting to be confronted with Eudial so soon, thinking she was still fighting Mars alone.
"Minako-chan, transform, now!" Mars cried out.
"... Transform?" Mimete mumbled.
"Ah, here's the other one… You can perish first!" Eudial yelled, now aiming at Minako. "FIRE BUSTER!"
The devastating Fire Buster was heading for Minako, who was currently vulnerable. Mars immediately rushed towards her friend, but Mimete was closer and pushed Minako out of the way. Both of them fell to the ground, relatively unharmed.
"Aino-san!? That was dangerous! I told you to let me handle this…"
Mimete then turned to Eudial.
"Hey, senpai! If you got a problem with me, take it with me! I don't care if you want to get revenge on the sailor senshi too, but leave Aino-san alone! She's just a normal human-"
"That's a sailor senshi too," Eudial interrupted, pointing at Minako.
Silence. Mimete slowly turned back to look at Minako, who seemed hesitating.
"Aino-san…?"
Minako looked away for a moment before she revealed her transformation tool.
"Sorry, Mimete. I didn't mean to hide it from you, but since you hadn't noticed, I thought it was for the best."
"So, you really are…?"
Minako nodded before raising her hand.
"Venus Power, Make up!"
In an instant, Minako was now Sailor Venus. Mimete could simply stare at her in disbelief.
"No way… Aino-san…" Mimete mumbled. "You were actually a sailor senshi all along!?"
Eudial vs Mimete, round 2. Mimete finally learned Minako's secret identity! How will she react? The answer next chapter ^^