Sailor Moon Aeons.
Book 2: Rebirth.
Act 8: Hunting Season.
Episode 118: Memories of the future.

By Razor Knight
Last update: July 28, 2016
Last edited: June 14, 2017

She woke up and noticed two things. First thing was, Hotaru wasn't there. She wasn't worried, though, it wasn't like there was anything in the city that could be a threat to Hotaru. Second thing was, she had slept until noon. She was sure Diana was going to give her an earful for that later on.

Speaking of her guardian, the small cat walked in and sighed. "Oh, you're awake. I was starting to wonder if you would wake up at all today."

"Uh, yeah. Where's Hotaru?"

"The Queen wanted to speak with her," Diana said. "She also told me about... Well, the reason you were sleeping more than usual."

The Princess could feel her cheeks heating up as she remembered the night before. "Uh..."

"Don't worry, Prin- ChibiUsa, I won't scold you or anything."

"Oh. But mom-"

"You should know by now- If she was against you and her going that far, she wouldn't have let you move in to Hotaru's house."

ChibiUsa thought about it for a minute as she dressed up. "I guess you're right."

"And you're sixteen. Mom told me the Queen was your age when-"

"Diana, please, that's not an image I want to have in my head right now. Or ever."

"Sometimes, you can be quite a child," Diana mused. "you wouldn't be here if they had never-"

"Sometimes, you can be quite a pest," ChibiUsa said, but then chuckled. "Sorry, you're right. I'll go see if I can find Hotaru."

"Have fun," Diana said as the Princess teleported out of the house.

The Princess found Hotaru in one of their favorite spots. The tallest spire of the crystal palace. "Good morning."

Hotaru looked at her with a neutral face. "Good afternoon, you mean?"

"Same difference," she gave her a kiss and then looked at the city below them. "You'll never get tired of this view, huh?"

"Yeah, it's the only place from where you can see the whole city and the forests around it. Well, other than if you fly above it."

"It's been my favorite spot in the city since I was a kid, too."

"I told Serenity about-"

"Oh. You're still alive, that's a good omen."

Hotaru smiled at that. "I must admit it's the first time in several centuries I see Serenity being lost for words, if even for a few seconds. But don't worry, she wasn't mad or anything like that."

The Princess saw Hotaru fall silent, and, thanks to one of her 'skills' could see there was something bothering her. "... Something on your mind?"

"Damn, I forget that you do have a bit of your mother's 'people reading' skills. Serenity sensed an alien ship heading for this system. They're not here for sightseeing."

"She can sense them from that far?"

"Yes, which means their magic is strong enough for her to sense it."

"When will they get here?"

"If they keep their current speed, they'll be here by tomorrow. And I mean here, in Crystal Tokyo. Ami already calculated their trajectory, and Aiko double-checked it, not that it was needed."

"Still, there's a lot of magicians here. We'll be okay-"

"I would have thought, after what you've been through and what you've heard from the others about the past, that you would know taking victory for granted is a bad habit."

"I... Sorry."

Hotaru smiled at her. "Don't worry, Princess. For whichever reason, your big ego is one of the things I like about you."

"My ego isn't that big," ChibiUsa muttered.

ChibiUsa looked at her friends, and saw they were all thinking about what she had told them thus far. She hadn't included the bit about her and Hotaru's 'fun times' because she didn't think they needed to know - she would probably tell Hotaru later on - but still, she knew her friends were waiting to hear the rest of the story. "I had the feeling something was odd, but I chose to ignore it and enjoy the day. Looking back, that was a good call."

"Wait, are you sure you can tell us all that happened?"

"It may not matter," Setsuna said, before ChibiUsa could answer Chie's question. "The future itself seems to be shifting. Events from that day may not happen for us the way Small Lady is telling us."

Mamoru frowned. "Wouldn't that be bad? I mean, future being changed, you always said it's bad."

Setsuna was aware she understood how time worked a lot better than anyone in the room, so she didn't mind the interrogation. "An event such as a time paradox - usually caused by time travel - could affect time itself. Think of it as throwing a stone into a lake. The bigger the stone, the more ripples it will cause. Right now, I can't see the future, even events which will happen tomorrow. I must admit it makes me feel uneasy, but all I can do - what we can do - is wait until the ripples pass. If the universe was meant to collapse due to this event, it would already have."

"But wait, how did this one paradox do that, when the past ones didn't?"

ChibiUsa looked at Mako. "That's a good question, and I think Setsuna could guess the answer, but you may understand it yourselves if you listen to what happened after that."

There were two places when one could always expect to find more than one magician in the city. The palace, and the place where the Princess and Hotaru were now. Kino's restaurant. Mako had, in the distant past, turned one of her hobbies into a full-time job, and what started as a small restaurant - run by a Senshi, which ChibiUsa knew, back then, would have quite the effect on popularity - became a national brand first, and soon enough, a world-wide corporation. Still, the main restaurant, the "headquarters," had never moved from Tokyo, and Mako had never forgotten the old days.

Hotaru smiled as Mako walked to their table. "Been a while since we saw you here."

"I wish I could just let my company run itself, but I still have to make sure things run smoothly."

ChibiUsa looked at Mako. "You know, you didn't seem like someone who would have an easy time running a business this big. No offense."

"None taken," Mako said. It was fortunate and unfortunate that there weren't many customers that day. Unfortunate because a 'slow day' was never good for business, but fortunate because she could actually talk to her customers for a change. "I'll never be as good with numbers as Ami, or be able to handle every aspect of my business, but fortunately, I had friends who could teach me those things. Both those friends who are still with me, and... Those who aren't."

ChibiUsa saw Mako's momentary sadness, even though her friend tried to hide it. It was one of the bad things about being a Senshi, she had been told. Even Serenity herself had gone through it. Meeting someone, becoming friends with them, and then - well, natural lifespans happened. Science had advanced greatly, but immortality was something that was still out of its reach. And the few times Serenity had offered immortality to those she grew to like and respect, it had always been rejected. Humans were used to life and death, and even if some would dream of immortality, when given the choice, they would shy away from eternal life.

"Hello? Earth to Chibi?"

She saw Mako and Hotaru staring at her and blushed. "Uh, sorry, I was just lost in thought for a minute there."

"Anyhow, I suppose I should take your order, so..."

"Surprise us," Hotaru said.

"You never make it easy for me, do you?" Mako joked. "Okay, I'll be right back."

Yukiko looked at ChibiUsa. "So wait, are you saying some of us were not around-"

ChibiUsa sighed. She wasn't upset at the interruption, but she had hoped they wouldn't ask. "Even if what Setsuna says is true - no, specially because of it, there's no point in telling any of you if you'll still be alive or not."

"That's..." Hana was still trying to make sense of what ChibiUsa and Pluto were saying. "... If the future changes, then why not tell us? Heck, even if somehow things stay the same-"

Setsuna saw ChibiUsa staring at her, and could understand what that stare meant. "Tell them."

"But-"

"Small Lady, I know I've hid things from you before, but could you still trust me on this?"

"It's not about trust," ChibiUsa said, "but you know, I see no reason not to tell them. At this point, telling them may actually help-" She stopped and looked at Setsuna. "Damn it, I see what you mean."

Setsuna nodded. "Knowledge of the future would, usually, be bad, since it could steer us away from the future that information comes from. In this case, however, we may want to avoid that future."

Usagi wasn't afraid to admit she was a rookie when it came to those things, but she still decided to ask something she had thought about. "Wait, if ChibiUsa tells us all that, wouldn't her future vanish? Wouldn't she vanish?"

ChibiUsa looked at Usagi, and it was clear that she was not in the mood to hide her feelings. "You may be shocked, even terrified, to hear your own daughter say this, but... Frankly, if ceasing to exist makes it so another version of myself... Heck, if it means the me in the future never has to go through what I went through, then I would happily disappear."

"You can't really mean-"

"How the hell would you know that? You barely know me!"

"ChibiUsa Tsukino, that is no way to speak to your mother."

ChibiUsa turned to Setsuna, then looked at Usagi, who was staring at her in shock. "I... I'm sorry."

Usagi smiled at her, a warm smile. "You should know I can see things about people others can't. I can't be mad at you because I've already felt the way you're feeling. Heck, I was close to losing it and becoming the monster my enemy wanted me to become."

ChibiUsa gasped at that. "Wait... You already fought Chaos?"

Diana had been silent through it all, but decided now was a good time as any to speak her mind. "You know, Princess, you can be quite dense at times."

"Diana?"

"Look at Usagi," Diana said, "haven't you sensed it yet? She can't use her magic."

ChibiUsa felt like slapping herself, both for not realizing that, and for shouting at her mother for 'not knowing' what she felt like. "Damn it, I..."

Diana cringed as ChibiUsa started crying. "The next part of the story may be too painful for her to recall, so I'll-"

"Stop it."

"Princess?"

ChibiUsa wiped the tears off her eyes and sighed. "Diana, please... Stop trying to pretend you're not affected by it. You lost your parents too. You lost as many friends as I did."

Diana smiled. "I know. Different people deal with grief differently, Princess."

"That is true," Terry said. "Dad didn't cry when my grandfater died... At first I was shocked, but Hana told me her mother was also like that."

"Just because the tears aren't there, it doesn't mean you feel nothing," Rei said. "It also doesn't mean you're stronger or 'better' than others. You just keep your griefing to yourself."

"Speaking from own experience there?" Terry asked. He wasn't joking, and Rei knew it.

"Yeah."

ChibiUsa shook her head. "Fuck, I really keep messing up. Diana, I'm sorr-"

"Princess, after what you've been through, I understand. I was there."

"Can you please stop calling me that? I know you think it's funny, but right now-"

"If it bothers you that much, ChibiUsa, then I'll stop using your title."

"It's not like it means a damn right now," ChibiUsa muttered.

Ami had been bothered by something, and decided to speak her mind. "If I may ask... You seem to curse a lot. Is that just the grief, or..."

"Every word has its uses, but not everyone will agree on when and how they should be used," ChibiUsa said.

"I think I know what you mean," Ami admitted. "It's just that I rarely see Usagi-"

"She said it before, remember?" Usagi interrupted, "that she's not a carbon copy of me. That's good, I would hate it if my own daughter tried to emulate me so much people couldn't tell us apart."

ChibiUsa smiled at that. "Okay, if you guys don't mind, I'd like to get to the bad part of the story, and since I know I won't be able to stop myself from shouting at someone if you do, please, don't interrupt me until I'm done."

"Still like your mother in many ways," Rei mused, "you ask, don't order."

"I think we can all agree that we want to hear about what happened. We won't interrupt you," Usagi said.

"Thanks. So as I was saying, things were rather calm until the next day, but it was the calm before the storm."

ChibiMoon had to admit this was something she had never seen before, at least in this era. All the Senshi were there, along with their magic-using allies. Even the Younger Senshi, the few children the Senshi had through the centuries. Only ones missing were the three Demon Huntresses, but ChibiMoon knew their position as leaders of the Demon Hunters kept them quite busy. Even her mother was there, using her Senshi suit for the first time in centuries, as far as she knew.

The ship was rather plain-looking. A black, egg-shaped craft with no visible weapons, protected by a shield which - as Ami had already explained - would be able to withstand attacks from Senshi of their level. ChibiMoon flinched at that. 'Their' level, not hers. She almost felt out of place, the one Cosmic Senshi amongst Holy Senshi. Even the non-Senshi were far stronger than her, had more combat experience, and-

"I don't need your skills to know what you're thinking. You are a Senshi, you are a Serenity, you should not underestimate yourself. Overconfidence is fatal, but so is insecurity."

She nodded at that. Saturn was right. She was a Serenity, even if young and not as experienced as the others. But most of them had many centuries of life behind them, it was obvious she would not be able to compare. "I know, Hotaru. I'll do my best."

"I know you will. I would not have fallen in love with a slacker."

"Here they come!"

She heard Venus' words, and saw several figures appear. Five men and two women. They looked human enough, but ChibiUsa had seen that plenty of times. They were most likely from a planet which had once, an eternity ago, been a part of either the first wave of mankind's colonization, or remnants of the Golden Imperium. When isolated, humans would evolve differently, but they would often still keep many human features.

"I am Rex," the bald man in the center of the alien group announced, "our group is called the Senshi Hunters, and we're here to eliminate any Senshi in this system. Anyone who isn't a Senshi will not be targeted, as long as they don't fight us."

"We'll fight you if we must," Serenity said evenly, "but do you care telling us why?"

"Senshi are a disease, an evil that spreads through the galaxy. It's a disease that must be cured."

"Good luck trying," Mars snapped.

Rex ignored that and turned to the one with the beak-like nose. "Vulture?"

"They're Holy level Senshi. The ones who aren't Senshi are at least as strong as an Eternal Senshi, but..." He looked at ChibiMoon. "You, kid, what are you doing here?"

"If you mean to tell me I'm too weak to fight you, then you would be making the same mistake a few enemies in the past made. Power isn't everything."

"We'd still have to kill her," one of the women said, "it's nice of them to gather like this, it'll make our hunt easier."

"Okay, I'm tired of diplomacy," Jupiter said and summoned a dragon made of electricity - which was almost as large as the aliens' ship. "If you want a fight, you're in for a shock!"

ChibiMoon flinched. The huge dragon had rushed to the aliens and exploded once it reached them, releasing its electricity on them all. Still, most of the aliens were seemingly unaffected by it. "Damn..."

"Okay, the hunt starts now," Rex said, and his allies all spread out, each targeting one of the Senshi.

The battle was fierce, and even though the aliens had numbers against them, it was clear they could keep up even with Holy Senshi. Nova had tried her psi skills on them, but they weren't quite affected. Warwitch and Phase were having little luck hitting one of the men - who moved incredibly fast, almost as fast as Venus could - and everywhere she looked, one of those Hunters was at least fighting two of her friends. Still, she realized something, none of the Hunters had targeted her. She saw Saturn helping Dragon Sun and Dragon Mars fight one of the female aliens, but she suddenly screeched, knocking them all down. ChibiMoon saw this woman aim her hand at Saturn, magic gathering in it quickly, and growled. "Like hell I'll let you do that!" She called upon her Earth powers as she run, and kicked the woman as hard as she could. The woman staggered back but then smirked at her. "Leave her alone, bitch!"

"Name's Hyena, kid."

"I didn't ask, and I don't care," ChibiMoon snapped before trying to punch her again. The woman simply grabbed her fist and then elbowed her, knocking the air out of her lungs. "Fuck..."

"Hyena, stop playing with that kid and kill the others."

Hyena turned to the one other female Hunter. "Unlike you, Boa, I like to keep the best for last."

ChibiMoon was about to try again, when she heard a scream. Turning to the source of it, she could see Venus staring at Dragon Venus' limp form, and it was clear from Venus' face that the man was dead. The Hunter who had killed him was about to gloat, but Venus used her speed to... She flinched, she didn't know Minako could be so- No, all things considered, she could understand. By the time Venus was done, the male Hunter she was attacking had cuts and gashes all over his body, and was bleeding heavily. He slumped to the ground, spitting blood as he tried to speak, and didn't move.

ChibiMoon saw the other woman, Boa, stare at the scene in shock for a second. "Lynx, no!"

Things got worse after that. First Boa killed Venus, then Jupiter killed Boa, but then, the Hunters brought in countless robotic creatures, and while those weren't as strong as the Hunters, their numbers made up for their weakness. ChibiMoon saw her friends fall, one by one. Only a few of them were left, but even then, she wasn't going to give up. They could bring them back, there was always a way.

"Watch out, Chibi!"

She had been fighting two of the robots, but one of the Hunters - whose name was apparently Jaguar, since that's what his allies had called him - had tried to sneak up on her. Saturn had been faster, and used her glaive to stab him through.

ChibiMoon saw the man fall to the ground in a heap. "Damn, sorry, I should be paying more attention to-"

"Nobody's perfect," Saturn said, but then noticed something. Jaguar was gone. The other two hadn't vanished when killed, so-

"Hotaru!"

"You're quite right, Senshi bitch, nobody's perfect," Jaguar said from behind her, just as Saturn saw his fist coming out of her chest.

Usagi wasn't surprised when ChibiUsa broke down into tears again. "Damn, that's just... Take your time, ChibiUsa."

Hotaru was paler than usual. It was hard for her to not go looking for those Hunters right then and there, but... No, she needed to know what had happened. The Senshi Hunters they were facing now didn't seem to be that strong. Were they just fooling around?

Diana sighed. "I know the Princess wasn't quite herself after that, so I'll tell you the rest of what happened, and she can fill in the details when she calms down."

Diana had been fighting along with the others, from the moment things started to escalate. Shade and Artemis were dead, and while she wanted to help the Princess, she had a figurative wall of robots between her and her protegee. "Mom, can we win this?"

Luna looked at her daughter and sighed. "I-" she frowned. "They're too strong. But I'll still fight, I'll do as much harm to them as I can and hope Usagi can finish the job."

She hadn't quite answered her question, and Diana knew it. She saw Pluto appear in the battlefield, and frowned. Pluto. The one who fought only when the situation was truly dire. And she was apparently not enough to kill the Hunters, since her attack was shrugged off. "Damn it, that's just..."

"It's natural," Luna said, "I know Pluto's power was beyond our reach back then, but right now, Serenity and Endymion, at least, are more powerful than her."

"So, they can beat them."

"No, I can't."

Diana flinched as she turned to the woman who had just phased next to them. "Serenity?"

"Pluto just told me, we'll lose this war."

"No! There must be something we can do, we-"

Serenity smiled at Diana. "Promise me you'll protect my daughter."

"You don't even have to ask that of me, Serenity, but-"

"Here's what will happen. ChibiUsa will go back in time, to warn us about it, so we'll be ready for it."

"But if- You knew about it?"

"No."

Diana turned to look at Luna. "Mom, I can't just run away, I- The Princess won't do it, either."

"What the hell?"

Diana saw ChibiMoon was near them, along with Pluto. Endymion, Dragon Saturn and Phase - the only other three of their friends still standing - were trying to keep the Hunters busy. "Setsuna, we won't do what Serenity told me. Even if she orders me to. Maybe Small Lady was a bad influence for me, but I don't care if she's the Queen, I won't-"

"I know you won't agree. You don't have to agree," Pluto said. "And we are not going with this plan because we want to, but because it's the only way."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

Pluto turned to smile at ChibiMoon, not fazed at all by her tone or her cursing. "It means you must disregard most of what I taught you, Small Lady. Go back to the past. Tell our past selves everything. Stop this from happening."

"We don't have time for this," Serenity said. "I'm sorry it has to be this way, but... I can't let this be the end for all of us. I won't let it be the end. I've always said destiny is never set in stone, and I still believe it. I trust you, Princess Serenity, I know you can do it. Make sure this dark future never happens."

ChibiMoon suddenly turned to look at the battle, and paled. Endymion was lying on the ground. Dead. "Dad, no!"

"Good luck, Small Lady," Pluto said.

Diana knew better than trying to talk her out of trying. She had been with ChibiUsa since they were both toddlers, even if she had not been able to go with her to the past on her first trip. And also, what the Princess was doing now, using her magic to try and break through the Time Gate, was something Diana would also be doing right now. But no, she had to protect her, she couldn't let grief take over, her Princess needed her to guide her.

ChibiMoon stopped, suddenly, and looked at her. "It's useless. Let's just go."

Diana saw her power down and sighed. "You know, it's the first time I hear of someone powering up like that without having to shout out their transformation."

"Wow, lucky me, all it took for me to get to Guardian level was to lose everything I cared about!"

"Usagi Tsukino, stop it!" Diana snapped, and the girl stared at her in shock. "I know what you're feeling, my dad is also dead, remember?"

"I... Sorry, Diana. Let's... Let's just go and-"

Diana sensed it and knew, from her protegee's face, that she had also felt it. "Mom... Serenity... They're also..."

ChibiMoon tried to keep walking, even as her eyes filled with tears. "I have to grant her wish. I have to stop it all from happening."

"You do know that, if you do, there's a chance-"

"I know. I don't care. If you're scared of it, by all means, just stay here."

"Don't worry. I'll follow you, Princess Serenity."

"Because it's your mission?"

"No. Because you're my friend, and because I also want that future to be a lie."

Just then, ChibiMoon sensed something else, and that made her stop dead in her track. "No. No. No, they can't- Damn it!"

"What's wrong?"

"Those assholes, they're going back in time!"

Diana winced. It was unlikely, but she knew the unlikely happened a lot around the Senshi. "Maybe... Setsuna wasn't the first Time Senshi they killed. Can you sense where they're heading?"

"They're going... Back then? Not too long before I came back from my second trip."

"Damn. The Senshi back then won't have a chance-" Diana stopped as ChibiUsa started laughing. Humorless, tired laughter. "Princess?"

"Told you to stop calling me that," ChibiMoon said. "Remember how mom screwed up Wiseman's plans?"

"You mean how Serenity weakened him enough so he wouldn't be able to kill her past sel- No way, she..."

"She may have even done that as she was dying," ChibiMoon said, a single tear rolling down her cheek. "It... In a way, it makes me proud to be her daughter. I hope I can, one day, be as strong as she is."

Diana knew she wasn't talking about magical power, or physical power. "ChibiUsa, you will be. Now let's go, Serenity's actions may have been enough, but better safe than sorry."

ChibiUsa had recovered enough by the time the 'story' ended, and was looking at her friends in turns. "And after a long trip, I got here right in time to kill Black Lady. Not that I planned for that."

"Hope this question doesn't offend you," Hotaru asked, "but why did you only show up now? These Hunters have been around for a week now."

"It had been years since I last gone back in time, and my mind was a mess, I had a hard time focusing and the few times we stopped to sleep, all I got were nightmares. I got lost, that's why they showed up long before I did. Sorry."

"Don't apologize," Mamoru said, "you saved Usagi."

"I was about to jump in and save her," Setsuna noted, "but I saw the Princess was good enough to-"

ChibiUsa looked at Setsuna. "Setsuna, I know I can't force you to do it, but please, for my sake, could you drop the title? At least for the time being. It reminds me of all I lost that day."

Setsuna stared at her for a few seconds before nodding. "Even if my future self has known you for longer, I still respect you, and care about you too much to not do as you ask, ChibiUsa."

"Good." She looked around the room. "Now, isn't it someone's birthday today?"

Usagi smiled. She knew her daughter wasn't in the mood for a party, and honestly, Usagi herself wasn't quite jolly after hearing the 'news.' Still, she knew what her daughter was trying to do, and she had to admit it was one of the things they shared. Focusing on something bad would only make it seem worse, so she could, for her own sake, her daughter's sake and that of all her friends, try to take her mind out of that and enjoy the party.

Hotaru, however, decided to do something she needed to do. She walked to ChibiUsa and stared at her in the eyes before kissing her deeply. "I know my future self had been through things I've yet to see, and she must know things I still don't, but there's one thing I know from listening to your story, one thing that never changed. I love you, ChibiUsa Tsukino, and I'll be here for you when you need me."

ChibiUsa hugged her tightly. "Thanks, old woman... Ugh, damn it."

"Old woman?"

ChibiUsa shook her head. "Just a nickname I gave your future self."

"For the record, I don't like it."

"For the record, your future self didn't like it, either."

Setsuna, or rather Pluto, walked to them. "I have to go back to my post, need to keep an eye on things just in case."

Hotaru saw the way Pluto was looking at ChibiUsa before she vanished, and frowned. "What-"

"Don't," ChibiUsa said. "Even though I told you guys that all our mage friends will still be alive in the future - or at least, they were in the future I come from - there are still things I can't tell you. There will be wars in the future that I heard about. I may tell you what I know about them, or maybe I won't. It all depends on what happens after the time 'ripples' end."

Hotaru looked to the side and saw Usagi stuffing her face with food. "You know, at risk of sounding heartless, something good came out of this. Usagi missed you."

"And you didn't?"

"I won't lie, I've come close to trying to go to the future for a visit," Hotaru said, "but just like you, I respect Setsuna too much to risk messing things up like that."

ChibiUsa smiled and saw everyone was enjoying the party, or at least trying. "I won't lie, either, a part of me missed this era. Since I can't go back now, I think you'll have to keep my company."

"Wait, you can't go back?" Chie asked.

Usagi sighed as she saw Ami was about to go into 'lecture mode.' "It's obvious, isn't it? If the future doesn't change, she'll go back to a place where we're all dead and she may not be able to fix that. And if the future changes, it will be a future where she's around, since she would have not left to begin with, so her current self will be out of place there."

Ami blinked a few times as she looked at Usagi. "That is actually right, Usagi. How-"

"Guys, I may not understand what you're talking about at times, but I listen. And sometimes, what you say makes sense to me later on."

ChibiUsa smiled at that. "I remember Serenity saying something similar. That she was wise and old, and being wise was both a consequence of being old, and paying attention to what those wiser than her had told her."

Mamoru looked at her for a few seconds then shrugged. "I'll risk ruining the mood, but I need to ask this... What are you planning to do about the Hunters?"

"As I said, I'm not like mom. She would probably try to find a way to make them leave or to convince them to stop killing. Me? If I get the chance, I'll rip their hearts out of their chests and make them eat them."

"That sounds like a lot of fun. I'll help you," Hotaru said.

Usagi noticed some of her friends looking at her. "What? After what I did to Beryl, and what I almost did when fighting Chaos, I'm in no position to tell her that's wrong. And, right now, she's our strongest warrior, not counting Pluto. Even if I had my powers, I would not forbid her from killing our enemies. Not enemies so wicked they even travel back in time just to have more of us to kill."

"Well, when you put it like that," Ami admitted, "still-"

Terry nodded. "Don't let revenge control you," he said looking at ChibiUsa.

"I won't," ChibiUsa said, "that would make me look like a fool in front of my girlfriend."

A/N: I think this is the fourth time I write 'this' episode - different versions of it, for the different versions of this story I've written. It still wasn't an easy episode to write. What's next? ChibiMoon is the strongest Senshi on Earth (not counting Pluto) and she's got a score to settle with the Hunters. Things will get interesting. Also, a few major (and minor) changes I made to the plot will make it hard to guess what's going to happen from now on, even if you read Cyber Moon before.