Stone Ashes

Chapter 4

by - DreamHeart (a.k.a. - smileybecka)

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Sailor Moon or any of its characters, BUT I DO OWN the story. Remember plagiarism is bad, and I will hunt you down.


Leaning against an ornate garnet staff a tall woman with a curtain of dark emerald hair furrowed her brow and sighed. 'She'll be here soon.'

Not a moment or two later another woman joined her. She was quite a bit shorter than her counterpart standing at five feet five inches tall. Her deep violet eyes raked over her silent companion filled with compassion and understanding. They were two kindred spirits, both incarnates of the inevitable – Time and Death. Running a hand through her shoulder length ebony hair, she decided that there was no time like the present. Clearing her throat she gently pounded the ground with the butt of her glaive effectively announcing her presence.

Shutting her deep magenta eyes, Setsuna mentally and emotionally prepared herself for her next mission. "Hello, Saturn. Did you feel it too?"

"Yes, Pluto, I felt it. We both know what must happen next."

Opening her eyes but still never turning to greet her long time friend and leader, Setsuna could picture her there in her mind's eye. Dressed in their old Senshi uniform complete with purple bows, short skirt, tiara and her favorite knee high boots reminded Setsuna of times long since past . . . . Despite everything the girl was like a daughter to her.

"I await your orders."

Saturn smiled. She may have been millennias younger than her fellow Senshi but she was still the undisputed leader of the Outers. "You will go to the past. Warn the Outer Senshi and take them to the Prince and Princess. Then lead them to safety and guard them until the Awakening. I trust I do not have to lecture you on meddling with the time stream."

"Of course not."

"All right then, I will guard the Time Gate until your return. You have your orders now go."

Turning then Pluto grasped her staff, bowed a quick goodbye to Saturn, and walked into the mists of the Time Gate.

"Good luck, Setsuna-mama."


Mina stared in disbelief at the shattered remains of the stone that had once rested in the palm of her hand. She had been expecting to see the ghost of her long dead lover and to interrogate him and the rest of the Shitennou. If they thought Beryl was hell it would be nothing compared to the wrath of four heart-broken love-starved Senshi. True, she wasn't exactly heart-broken but then again she hadn't been tormented by memories of that final battle. There was a succinct difference between knowing that she had slain both Kunzite and Zoisite and that he had repaid the favor and actually reliving it. Besides unlike her fellow Senshi she had fallen back in love with the man who haunted her dreams . . . . But that by no stretch of the imagination meant that she was going to be tricked into ever allowing these men into a position where they could hurt them again. "What the hell happened?"

She was the first to break the uneasy silence, her icy stare pinning Darien to the spot demanding an answer.

Gulping he ran a hand through his dark locks and opened his mouth to respond . . .

"They glowed, glowed with the same golden light that you used to heal Ami. Explain that exactly," Lita effectively cut him off.

"You were talking about bringing them back just moments before, what did you do?" Ami accused.

"Sere," Rei said keeping her voice deadly calm. "You didn't have anything to do with this did you?"

"Rei, I didn't even know that – "Serena began to answer.

"That's not what I asked. No wishes, no nothing, Serenity. Tell me that you had nothing to do with this."

Dead silence. All eyes were on the pair.

"Rei, I –"

The door to Rei's room flung open then and there stood Setsuna.

"You don't have to answer that, princess, at least not yet." Walking into the room, she beckoned for someone to follow her. The Outers – Haruka, Michiru, and Hotaru – quickly followed suit. "There are more pressing matters at hand."

"I will be the judge of that," Mina growled, surprising even herself.

"Not when it concerns the safety of the princess. Stand down, Venus. I know recent events have been rather unnerving." Setsuna motioned for the Outers to sit with the others. "We don't have much time. The Outers already know what I'm going to say, I filled them in on the way here. An asteroid strike has begun. Three have already hit, each a kilometer in size. One hit the eastern seaboard of the United States, another landed in the Tasmanian Sea just south of Australia, and the last one hit Moscow, Russia. War has been declared on Earth. More will come in the minutes to follow and in less than an hour a ten kilometer asteroid will hit the Earth."

Ami gasped and all eyes turned to her. "Ten kilometers? Are you sure, Pluto?"

Pluto nodded.

"The one that killed the dinosaurs was only five kilometers. This could wipe Earth clean of every living organism. Nothing would survive. I'd be surprised if Earth wasn't destroyed."

"There's no choice then," Serena whispered. "I'll use the crystal. We could teleport to it. The same way we destroyed the one Fiore sent."

"No, that's exactly what he wants – to draw you out into the open," Setsuna chided. "Not even the combined powers of the crystals would guarantee that both or even one of you would survive. Not to mention the fact that this is an asteroid strike. There are several asteroids on their way to Earth. There is no guarantee that we would be able to teleport to the right one. It is an option that no one in this room would be willing to take."

"Then what do we do?" Lita asked in a voice that seemed too small to belong to her.

"There's an underground cavern nearby, that I'm sure you're familiar with, Rei."

Ami furrowed her brow in confusion. "But even if an asteroid were to hit we still would be killed."

Pulling Serena into his lap Darien held her tightly. "You know something that we don't. Don't you Setsuna?"

"Very perceptive, your majesty," Setsuna bowed slightly to him. "I am here to lead you to safety and guard you during the Great Freeze."

"What about your duties to the Time Gate?" Mina questioned.

"All will be revealed in due time, Venus. For right now, let's just say that a kindred spirit is tending to it for me. Now let's get going we don't have much time."

With that Setsuna turned and was about to walk out the door when Serena's voice called her back, "Wait! What about our families and friends? You said that we have an hour that should be more than enough time to warn them."

Turning in the doorway to face her Setsuna reminded herself of her duty and her vows. It was not the first time she had done this and it would not be the last. "Your safety and Endymion's are our priority. The two of you must come with me and the Outers. The Inners can carry out your wishes if you like."

Biting her lip, Serena looked to Luna for advice.

"You must do as you see fit, princess," Luna replied to her unspoken question.

"All right then, Darien, I, Luna, and Artemis will go with you. Mina and Lita will go and warn her parents. Rei and Ami will go warn her mother. Whoever gets done first will go and warn my family. Bring everyone back to the cavern, understood?"

"No," Luna glared at her charge with tears in her eyes. "That is unacceptable. Artemis and I will warn them."

"And how will they take it when you show up on their doorstep claiming to be their cat or as their cat claiming that their daughter is Sailor Moon? They'll think you're crazy and slam the door in your face. I need them to come, Luna. I need them to be safe. I love them so much. I can't imagine life without them. So please, let one of the Senshi do it. They are more likely to believe one of them. Please?"

"She understands, your majesty," Artemis answered stepping in between Luna and Serena.

"No, I want to hear it from her."

Luna hung her head fighting back tears and then looked to Serena. "I understand."

"Thank you. Now let's get moving. I want everyone to know where this cavern is in case you get separated. Lead the way, Setsuna."


Already knowing that the group was headed into the woods behind the Hikawa shrine, Rei furtively let Ami know that she would catch up in a bit. Standing alone beneath the sakura trees she wondered if she was doing the right thing. Shaking her head to rid her mind of doubt, she told herself that in the very least he was her friend and that she didn't want him to die.

"Phobos! Deimos!"

Almost instantly her two crows appeared cawing happily in reply. Extending a hand to them, Deimos landed lightly upon it, while Phobos opted to perch on her shoulder.

"I need you two to do something for me," Rei cooed as she absently stroked Deimos' feathers. "I need you to find Chad and warn him about the asteroid strike. Tell him to bring as many people as he can to the cavern behind the shrine. He'll know what you're talking about. Then come back here and go to the cavern. Wait for me there. If I should not return -"

Both birds squawked in dismay, begging her not to talk like that.

"Shh, I have no intentions of dying today. But if anything should happen you are to guard the princess. Now go warn Chad."

Phobos nudged her head in protest, as if to say he hurt you.

"You will do as I say, won't you?"

In reply both birds left their perches and took to the sky to begin their search, though begrudgingly, for Chad.

"Thank you!" Rei called as she watched her guardians fly off into the horizon. "Please be safe."


"Ok, here we are," Setsuna called to the group behind her as they entered a clearing in the woods. Once they were all there she pointed over to a relatively small hole in this side of the mountain. "The cavern is right over there. Do you think you can find your way back here?"

Four nodding heads answered in reply.

"Good. We'll give you a few moments alone," Setsuna offered gently ushering the Outers into the cavern.

"Thank you," Serena murmured before launching herself into Mina's open arms. "You will be careful, won't you? You'll stay together?"

"Yes, don't worry," Lita cooed as she joined in the hug.

"We'll be careful and be back her in no time," Ami sighed as she too wrapped her arms around Mina and Serena.

"Where's Rei?" Serena sniffled.

"Right here," Rei called as she entered the clearing.

Tearing herself from their grip Serena ran to Rei. "You can't go off by yourself anymore. Stay with Ami and come back safe." She begged as she cried in Rei's arms.

"Shh, I promise. Now go with Darien into the cavern. We'll be back soon," Rei murmured. "Take care of her, Darien."

"I will, I promise. You are like my sisters. Be safe and come back soon," Darien assured them as he gathered his wife in his arms and led her to the safety of the cavern.

Clearing his throat Artemis walked over to Mina and rubbed up against her leg. "Don't do anything rash today," he whispered to her. Then turning his attention to the entire group he continued, "This is no ordinary asteroid strike. Remember war has been declared on Earth. You need to be extra careful. No going anywhere without your buddy. You all know that we love you."

"Now get going," Luna ordered as tears started to blur her vision.


Chad was dressed in a three piece gray business suit as he stood on the balcony of his old room. Leaning against the railing to any observer it would have appeared as if he were merely admiring the sunset. But that was not the case. He was utterly oblivious to his surroundings as he was utterly consumed in his thoughts. Berating himself for his behavior that morning and his previous treatment of Rei, he was utterly out place in the beauty and tranquility that surrounded him.

This is the man that Phobos and Deimos found – an utter shell of his former self. Landing on the railing they noisily announced their arrival.

"Hello, Phobos, Deimos." Sighing Chad turned to them. "I'm not coming back." With that he shoved his hands into his pockets and began to walk inside.

Suddenly a flash of red and blue light caught his eye causing him to turn in the doorway. The two crows were no longer there. Instead two young women with alabaster skin and long ebony hair stood on the railing. He could only guess that they were twins because the only difference between them was their eyes. Phobos' eyes were blood red while Deimos' were icy blue and the uniforms they were wearing matched them perfectly. Each wore a one piece sleeveless body suit with a high collar with sheer bows of their respective colors at their shoulders and lower back. They resembled Rei in so many ways that it made his mouth go dry with longing . . . . But it was their eyes that forced him back to reality and it was those same eyes that now pinned him in place.

"You presume too much," Phobos almost growled.

"We are not here to bring you back to Hikawa. We are only here at our mistress' request," Deimos assured him.

"Then get on with it. I don't have all day."

"Of course, we have already wasted enough time looking for you. Our mistress wishes that you and as many people as you can convince to come with you to come to the cavern near Hikawa," Phobos answered stoically.

"Is that so? She thinks I am going to come just because she wishes it? I am long past that."

Tossing her hair over her shoulder Deimos was off the railing in an instant. Her black high heels clicked against the stone floor ominously announcing her approach. "Watch your tongue. You will not speak of the princess in such a manner. She sent us here because she cared about your well being."

"Deimos . . ." Phobos warned from her perch on the railing.

"No, he needs to know," Deimos called back to her counterpart as she continued to approach him stopping just a couple of feet away from where he so smugly leaned against the doorframe. "There is a ten kilometer asteroid headed for Earth as we speak. She could have chosen not to warn you and crushed you as harshly under her heel as you did to her this morning. But she chose not to. No matter what she sees you as a friend and wishes you no harm. Remember that Chad Kumada."

"If you choose to come, heed our warning. If you as much as look at our mistress the wrong way we will skin you alive. She has been hurt by too many men and this time we will not stand idly by and watch. Do I make myself clear, Chad?" Phobos threatened all the while keeping her voice icily calm and even.

Silence.

"Answer! Or do I need to remind you how to speak?" Deimos demanded.

"C-crystal," Chad managed to choke out.

"Good, then we have an understanding. Good day, sir," Phobos curtly replied before reverting back to crow form.

Leaning forward to close the gap between them Deimos narrowed her eyes making them seem like two hard chips of sapphire. "It would be in your best interest to come to the cavern, if you know what I mean. Do not take our warning lightly." Then heeding the fervent squawking of her twin she too reverted back to her crow form and together they made their way back to Hikawa shrine to fulfill the last part of their promise.


"You heard them – stay together. Communicators are to be on at all times. I'll be checking in periodically to make sure you're all right," Venus stated as they left the clearing. "Understood?"

"Understood," Mars and Mercury chimed.

"This is where we leave you. Be careful." With that Venus and Jupiter headed off in the direction of Venus' home.


"Ok, Mercury, where are we headed?" Mars asked as they began to run in the opposite direction that Venus and Jupiter had taken.

"Mom is supposed to be giving a lecture over at Tokyo University, But I'm not sure if we're going to catch her before she leaves. If we miss her, then she'll be at the hospital making her rounds."

"Then let's hurry."


"Venus," Jupiter called as they ran flat out on the busy sidewalks of Tokyo.

"Hmm?"

"What if they're not there?"

"I'm praying that they are. Daddy should be home by now."

"We'll find them." Jupiter smiled and gave her a reassuring glance. "Don't worry, they'll be fine."

Nodding Venus was just about to respond when she saw it - a massive burning chunk of rock streaming through the sky, an asteroid. Pluto had been right and she couldn't help but think that it reminded her of one of Mars' fireballs. "Get down!"

Obediently Jupiter hit the pavement covering her head with her arms. And that's when felt it. The Earth shook furiously under them for what seemed to be ages. They heard the people scream in terror as the Earth roared in pain. Nearby buildings imploded or began to crumble from the magnitude of the shock waves.

After it passed Jupiter looked over at Venus, who was only a few feet away from her, to making sure she was all right. "You ok," she managed to choke out.

Standing up and brushing herself off, Venus nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. You?"

Jupiter nodded.

"Good. Get up quick before the panic sets in, you don't want to be trampled."

Sure enough as soon as the words left her lips the screaming and running began. Hurriedly helping Jupiter up the pair began to run.

"Venus, this is too dangerous, even for us," Jupiter called over the constant screaming as she and Venus tried to run against the current of people struggling to get as far away from the impact site as possible.

"There must be another way." Frustrated but determined Venus' eyes searched for another means to reach her home. The buildings? They could travel by rooftop but that was just as dangerous. There was no way to tell the building's integrity without Mercury. Any one of them could cave in under their weight giving them little or no time to escape. Not to mention the fact that it would make them easy targets if the enemy was out looking for them. Frowning she grumbled to herself – there didn't seem like there was any other way. There was no telling where they would end up if they teleported. They could end up in a crater for all they knew. Groundwork was getting them no where and was just as dangerous. It was the only choice. "See that building over there? I'm going to see if I can make it to its roof. If it's safe, meaning it can hold both of our weight, I'll wave you and you follow me."

"Ok."

Taking a deep breath Venus propelled herself from the chaos below to the rooftop of a nearby building. It didn't buckle or groan under her weight – a good sign. 'So far, so good.' Just to be safe she began to jump up and down on various parts of the roof to make sure that it could hold both of their weight. Thoroughly satisfied she signaled Jupiter to join her.

Once she was safely on the rooftop Jupiter surveyed the chaos below and shook her head. "Shouldn't we tell them something?"

"It would only make matters worse. Besides do you think they'd really listen?" Pulling her communicator off of her belt Venus pressed the button labeled Mars. "We need to check on them."


"Mercury, are you ok?" Mars called frantically as soon as the dust settled from the impact of the asteroid. "Mercury?"

That's when she heard the coughing a few yards behind her. 'Thank the gods.'

"I'm ok, Mars," Mercury managed to choke out and then all hell broke loose. People were running, screaming, panicked and just trying to survive.

"We've got to get out of here. Scan the surrounding area for safety," Mars ordered as both of them leapt to their feet to keep from being trampled.

"Right." Summoning her visor with a press of her left earring Mercury did as ordered. "There's a storefront a couple of doors down that should be safe for a little while."

"Well, 'a little while' is better than nothing," Mars sighed as they began to struggle against the sea of frightened people to safety. She heard her communicator go off in their struggle but was afraid that she would drop it and let it go unanswered.

Not a minute later Mercury's communicator went off. "Guess Venus is trying to reach us," Mercury called over the tirade of noise and people.

"She's probably just checking to see if we're ok and probably sick with worry now that neither of us has answered."

"We're almost there though. We'll call her from there."

A few minutes later they sighed in relief in the safety of the store's large entry way with Mars' communicator beeping once more. Unbuckling it from its place on her hip, she opened it and was greeted by Venus' worried face as it appeared on the small screen.

"Oh, thank heaven," Venus breathed. "Are both of you all right?"

"Yes, we're both fine."

"Good." Sighing Venus felt her relief being replaced by anger and bellowed, "Now would you care to tell me why the hell you didn't answer your communicators? You had us scared to death. Didn't I explicitly order you to keep them on at all times?"

Mars felt her temper flare at the accusation. Venus knew better, she would never disregard or disobey any order given by her. She was their leader, second only to Serenity. But she knew her friend had good reason to be upset. She had feared the worst at their silence and for that reason alone did Mars keep her temper in check. "I'm sorry, Venus, for not responding sooner but we were in no position to answer you. We were trying to get to safety despite the throng of chaos that now grips the city."

Nodding Venus' face softened. "All right. I think it's best to take to the rooftops. Have Mercury scan each building before you jump. It's safest that way."

"What about you? You can't have her scan the building's integrity beforehand. Don't you think that teleporting would be safer?"

"My chain should be able to bail me out of any trouble should the need arise. I know that it's not the safest way but it's all we've got. We're risking detection. Who's to say that this new enemy isn't going to make use of this state of panic to search for us? The ground offers us some protection from that but it's too dangerous. It won't be hard for them to spot us, but teleporting would be like sending up smoke signals saying 'Here I am come and get me!'" Pausing she took a deep breath and continued, "Besides you would be teleporting blind. Who's to say that the area hadn't been leveled or worse was the point of impact. We don't know who this new enemy is, Mars. All we know is what Pluto has told us. They want the crystal and we can't protect Serenity or our families if we're dead or captured. Proceed by rooftop. Call me as soon as you find Mercury's mom. First to get back to the cavern goes back for Serenity's family. Venus out." And with that the small screen went blank.

Mars shook her dark locks and scowled, "I still think teleporting would be safer."

"We're almost there anyways," Mercury assured her. "I'll scan for a secure building."

As Mercury stepped out of the enclave to scan the surrounding area once more something caught Mars' eye. It was streaming through the sky hurling itself just miles ahead of them. "Mercury, get down now!" she screamed as she tackled Mercury to the ground bracing herself for the impact.

Hitting the pavement once more they could feel the heat emanating from the explosion. Fire swept over them, the surrounding people and buildings. The flames roared in their ears amidst the screams. It was only power of Mars that kept them from being roasted alive. The Earth groaned and trembled below them. The buildings that had survived the last asteroid were consumed by the flames, imploding, exploding, and crumbling all around them. Daring to glance up Mars had the good fortune to spot a chunk of the building that they had just taken shelter from speeding towards them. Gripping Mercury's shoulders tightly, she shut her eyes and screamed, "Roll!"

Mercury obeyed without a second thought never hearing it slam into the ground as it was lost amongst everything. She knew these people were dead, dying, or at the very least unconscious. Their Senshi strength combined with the sheltering power of Mars had saved them from such a fate. She was extremely grateful. Then she remembered her mother. The asteroid had hit only a few miles ahead of them. If she was still lecturing or . . . . 'No! It couldn't have. Please, Mom, be at the hospital. Be anywhere except at the university.' Riding out the rest of the fury her fears only grew. And then came the eerie silence – no screams of terror or pain, no more explosions, buildings crumbling, nothing but the sound of fire crackling.

Rolling off of Mercury, Mars laid her head back on the scorched pavement. 'I guess I am flame-retardant after all.' She frowned. Why had she remembered his snide remark? Why had she felt compelled to answer him, now of all times? She didn't know. Frustrated she pushed it to the back of her mind deciding to deal with that later, if at all.

No longer feeling Mars' weight on top of her, Mercury took a deep breath and pushed herself onto her knees. Shooting Mars a small smile of thanks, she surveyed the surrounding area with wide eyes. It was desecrated. What was left was scorched beyond recognition as the flames continued to rage. She had expected a few survivors, not that they would be the sole survivors. Inwardly she thanked the gods that they had survived. She couldn't even make out the charred remains of any of the other people who had been present. As she continued to stare at the ruins, the flames, her thoughts returned to her mother. A ragged breath escaped her lips, causing Mars to throw her a worried look. 'Mom could be . . . ' A surge of panic ran through her system urging her to get up and run, to make sure that her mother was fine . . . with or without Mars. She shook her head and glanced over at Mars. Mars had saved her life, how could she repay that by leaving her? Venus' orders and Serenity's pleas rang loud in her ears once more. 'Stay together.' 'You can't go off on your own anymore. Stay with the others.' Mercury remembered the death she had relived less than an hour ago. She had left Jupiter, would she leave Mars too? No, no, she would not repeat the mistakes of the past. She would not let her heart or even fear guide her this time. That decision made she gave Mars a half smile. "I'm ok. Just thinking, I guess."

"Mmm, I'm sure she's fine, Mercury. We'll find her." Sitting up Mars surveyed the surrounding area. "Why don't you put out these fires and then estimate how far away from us it hit?"

"Right." Standing up she took a deep breath and shouted, "Shine Aqua Illusion." Water rushed from her hands and extinguished the flames. 'Now all we have to worry about are flash fires,' she thought as she pressed her left earring once more. Her visor appeared. Quickly doing the calculations she gasped. They were no more than two, maybe three, miles away from the epicenter. Any closer and not even their powers could have saved them. 'If Mom was still . . . . ' Her worst fears seemed to be confirmed.

"How far are we?" Mars interrupted her thoughts.

"No more than a few miles from the epicenter," Mercury managed to choke out.

"We'll still look." Mars stood and put a comforting arm around Mercury's shoulder. "Don't give up hope. Remember you said that she might not even be there. She could be safe and sound doing her rounds at the hospital."

Nodding Mercury knew she was right. 'There's still a chance Mom could still be alive.' "Then let's moving."


Venus ran up the stairs that led to her Western style home and kicked the front door open with Jupiter close on her heels. The house was eerily quiet, too quiet. Her cornflower eyes frantically searched for any signs of her parents. "Jupiter, search the upstairs. Search everywhere, but be careful. Something's not right here."

"I know. I feel it too," Jupiter whispered as she mounted the stairs.

Entering the bedroom nearest the stairs, Jupiter readied herself for anything. 'Empty. Damn it!' Sighing she checked the closet and under the bed. Everything checked out. She was thankful that she hadn't found some crony holding Venus' parents hostage or worse yet blood. A shiver went down her spine. 'Don't think like that,' she scolded herself.


Meanwhile in a room down the hall, a tall woman with a mane of rich red hair that cascaded in waves down her back hid amongst the shadows. She was no fool. She knew that someone else was in the house. The noise earlier was enough to wake the dead. She would make her master proud. He would not regret giving her the crystal, which now glowed green on a silver chain at the base of her throat. Jupiter was close by. Fingering it lightly, she went over her plan once more in her head. It was foolproof. She would defeat the thunder senshi and force her to reveal the location of the crystal. Now all that needed to be done was to put her plan in action. Smiling her emerald eyes turned their gaze to the center of the room coming to rest on her bait.

A middle aged woman sat on her knees with her chin resting on her chest, totally dejected. She was gagged and her hands and feet were bound. There was no way she could escape. Her soft azure eyes were puffy and red from crying, her normally neat shoulder length wavy blonde hair was horribly disheveled, and her crisp white apron was stained with blood.

Smiling from the shadows the red-haired woman sent a wave of dark energy at this pitiful figure causing the blonde-haired woman to begin to whimper in pain.


As Jupiter re-entered the hallway the noise caught her attention. 'Some sign of life. Thank the gods.' Making her way towards the sound, which was coming from Venus' room at the end of the hall, alarm bells began to go off in the back of her mind. It was definitely crying. Someone was in pain, physical or emotional, but pain nonetheless.

Taking a deep breath, Jupiter prepared herself for the worst and peered into the room through the partly closed door.

In the middle of the room, Venus' mother writhed in agony as wave after wave of dark energy coursed through her body. Her arms and legs were twitching violently within their confines. Her eyes, which mirrored Venus', were rolled up into her head. It was almost as if the woman were having a seizure.

Jupiter's eyes widened as she forced down the bile that had risen in her throat. 'Patience,' Jupiter reminded herself. 'You need to know where Venus' father is and if he's alive. Patience is a virtue.' She almost growled as she remembered one of Luna's various lectures. Patience was not a virtue she possessed; she would have liked nothing more than to take her chances, storm into the room and help the poor woman. Sighing, she silently apologized to Venus and her mother as her emerald eyes began to desperately search for any sign of Venus' father. Instead she caught sight of a pair of long shapely legs clad in tight black pants and black high heeled boots just as they launched a kick at her head. Jumping back she just narrowly escaped the blow with merely a scratch on her cheek.

Laughing the red-haired woman towered over Jupiter. "I would have expected more from you, Sailor Jupiter. I am a little disappointed, though, that you didn't storm into the room as I had planned." Waving her hand a ball crackling with dark energy appeared in her palm. "No matter, tell me where the crystal is."

Glaring up at her attacker, Jupiter almost laughed. 'Does she think I'm going to tell her just because she asked? Idiot.' Then kicking the legs out from under the woman, she smirked and jumped up. "Not so high and mighty now are you? Who are you and what do you want with the crystal? And how did you find this place?"

The air crackled with electricity but the woman lying at Jupiter's feet was unafraid. 'Note to self – don't get cocky,' she scolded herself. "It's crawling with your energy signals." Hurling her ball of dark energy at the senshi, she quickly rolled away and got up.

Side-stepping the attack Jupiter decided to use one of her own. "Sparkling Wide Pressure!"

Throwing a shield up, the woman easily blocked the attack. "Surely you can do better than that. After all you are one of the legendary Senshi, the warriors who have defeated countless enemies with a wave of their hand. The least you can do is let me have a little bit of fun. Killing you just won't have the same sense of satisfaction of you don't put up a decent fight." A sword of dark energy suddenly appeared in her free hand. 'Don't get cocky,' she reminded herself as she lunged at Jupiter.

"Tell me your name," Jupiter growled as she evaded the woman's barrage of assaults.

"My name is Eris," the woman bit out stopping her attack. The sword in her hand transformed into another ball of dark energy. "My crystal has the ability to detect your energy signals, your auras." Turning abruptly away from Jupiter, she hurled it in the direction of the stairs.

Not missing a beat, Jupiter clutched her hands together and brought a well aimed hit down on the middle of Eris' back sending her sprawling down the hallway. Then bringing her heel down on that exact spot she effectively pinned the woman to the ground. Lightning crackling at her fingertips she called, "Venus, are you ok?"

Popping her head out of the stairwell Venus smiled. "Yes, quick thinking." Approaching her fellow senshi, the smile was quickly replaced with a mask of indifference. Kneeling about a foot away from their fallen enemy she demanded, "Who do you work for? What do they want with the crystal? Why the asteroid strike? Why not try and conquer Earth like all the others?"

Eris was silent. Her mind was racing, trying to figure out how to get out of this desperate situation.

Grinding her heel into the woman's back, Jupiter snarled, "Answer the lady's questions."

There was only one thing to do and even then she would still most likely die at the hands of these two senshi. Slowly and softly she began to chant in a language that that neither Venus nor Jupiter had ever heard before. It sent a shiver down their spines.

"What are you doing?" Venus roared as she grabbed Eris by the hair in an attempt to disrupt the chant.

In fact it was a feeble attempt at best. Haughty emerald eyes met Venus' blazing sapphire eyes as the chant's tempo increased.

Suddenly a scream tore through the air. Jupiter's face fell in horror. She had forgotten that Mina's mother was still bound and gagged in the room behind them. Too concerned with pumping this woman for information she had neglected to inform Venus of the hostages.

Releasing Eris a second after the scream echoed throughout the house, Venus shot Jupiter a look that told her to stay with their prisoner. Standing up she made her way past them, towards her room. Hesitating for only a moment at the doorway her eyes revealed the sea of emotions coursing through her veins before reverting back to ice. Stepping into the room only her senshi training stopped her crumbling to her knees.


Author's Notes: First off I need to credit "Crystal Tokyo for the Baka" at ASMR for the asteroid idea. Thanks guys!

Yes, the size of the asteroid suspected to have killed the dinosaurs is 5 kilometers.

Eris is my original character. A minion of who? You'll have to wait and see.