Demiurge

The ghouls rushed in and Usako tensed in his arms, half raising her wand to meet them, but he held out a hand and directed energy outward in a concentrated burst, dragging the golden beam of light around in a half-circle in a move he took out of her book to afford them more time. Deftly he sent another burst out behind them, though there were not nearly the same density of beings from that direction. The spirits had been attempting to force them back, to move towards the edge of the building and the rush of sound and crackle of energy that Adonaios had left in his wake. So far they had resisted but at this rate… He dropped his arm, not in exhaustion but to keep up a false sense of control. He could barely catch his breath now, his body far beyond its limits, but as long as he could keep going, Earth had a chance. With every burst of energy fueled by the planet stories beneath their kneeling forms came Helios's prior warning about using too much of it, reinforced by the memory of fire in his veins when he had detransformed earlier that day. He had used a lot more energy now than he had then. The effects now, of course, would be more than then. The pain would be worse, but it would be worth it. He wasn't giving up, no matter what. He'd save Earth. He'd save it for the people who had nothing to do with this. He'd save it for his friends. He'd save it for her . There wasn't another option.

Rin cried quietly, squatting on the ground close to them with his eyes shut tight as he cradled Helios to his chest to keep him safe, just as he had been charged. The poor kid shouldn't even be here - he had nothing to do with this; even if he knew more about them than he ever should, it was clear from Adonaios's reaction that whatever mess Rin was mixed up in, it wasn't this, and yet here he was, front and center for this nightmare no kid his age should ever imagine, let alone witness firsthand. Of the many things Mamoru wished he could change in those moments, not the least was that he could take the kid somewhere safe before Demiurge arrived, but he could do nothing like that for him now; he could only keep trying to keep him alive for as long as he could.

The enemy gathered like a ghoulish tidal wave, massing beyond the rooftop as they rose as a solid front and prepared to rush in. He held up his hand again and prepared another blast, refusing to acknowledge how fast his heart beat in his chest or how extraordinarily vivid the colors around him were despite the gloom of the storm surrounding them, but Usako rolled up out of his arms, her lacey sleeves brushing his breastplate, the cool pearls lining her tall gloves glancing the bare skin beneath the gaping hole in his shirt where Adonaios's blade had pierced as she raised her moon wand and prepared her attack. Her hair whipped in the wind, her voice wavered with such strain it made his heart ache even as he admired her bravery. Usako . She had just come into her power, just started getting close to the friends who had been so important in her last life. He put his hand out beside hers to spare her the energy, holding her close in selfish determination to be as near to her as he could before the inevitable happened - only for them to be surrounded at close ranks, four presences popping into existence less than an arm's length away, the light from their sudden appearance fading as quickly as it had appeared.

"Mamoru !" Kaito shouted in concern, and just as Mamoru looked up, not quite able to believe what he heard, his friend dropped to kneel beside him, sharp green eyes behind a black and green mask examining him on his level. Kaito? But how?!

"East! " Khalid's voice sharply commanded, and he looked up and around just as Nero shook his head in acknowledgement and the pair of them shot off towards the incoming creatures, keeping them at bay with long polearms - no, tridents?! They moved like the weapons were extensions of themselves, whirling them around with no obvious difficulty. Nero's was suddenly longer and he used it knock a swath of the ghoulish tidal wave aside; Khalid dual-wielded his new weapon with his old scimitar, and together West and East King extended the perimeter with ease -

"Mamoru," Kaito repeated assertively, drawing his attention back to his friend's face and his familiar calculating gaze, but while the curled brown-blonde hair that framed his features was the same, the rest of North King's attire had changed from blue-grey to black - even his Zoisite pendant pinned on the left breast had changed from blue to a green stone veined with black. The change threw him, made him wonder if he had actually passed out - was this a dream? But the others were the same - East and West wore black with half capes, South - South?! He jerked around to find him, to make sure he was there -

But he was. He had helped Usagi to her feet, and when he saw him, Yuu caught his gaze and, his voice impossibly calm against the howling background noise, stated quietly, "You called, we're here."

That calm claim of validity grounded him, and when Kaito called for him again he met his gaze as solidly as he could, trying to quiet his breathing despite knowing it wasn't going to work. He had called and they had answered, having overcome whatever trials they had moved through in order to make it back here to help, apparently stronger for it. Kaito was breathing exaggeratedly slowly in through his nose and out through his mouth, green eyes on his encouraging him to do the same, but he couldn't slow his breaths despite trying. "How much energy have you used?" North asked, the simple question - one that Mamoru would treat as rhetorical - letting him know that Kaito knew exactly what was going on. The blond frowned, the expression putting a crease between his brows as he wrapped his white gloves wrapped around Mamoru's bicep as he stood, helping him to his feet on the way up. Kaito removed his hand and briefly touched Mamoru's neck as though reading a pulse, the frown deepening. "You're burning up. You're already -" he paused, swallowing as he looked aside, towards the gaping hole, "We're too late."

Mamoru took the hand that hesitated and squeezed it appreciatively, turning the narrative around. "Demiurge hasn't won yet. I couldn't stop them from summoning it, but I won't let it have Earth." He looked to the edge, an idea hitting him, an epiphany born of accidentally powering up one of their crystals, brought to the forefront of his mind after using his power to call to his friends. They weren't going to like it - he didn't much care for it - but it was better than letting it eat the world. "I just need a minute."

North shook his head, opening his mouth to say something, to call him out, but whatever he was going to say was interrupted -

"North, they're piling higher. We need to set up a barrier," South stated, striding away before North could answer, a halberd appearing in one hand.

"A barrier?!" East called back incredulously, as though he had been the one addressed. "Can we even do that?!"

The wind grew louder, more energy rushing out from the triangle of space between the three towers of Infinity Park. Demiurge was coming. It wouldn't be long now, but they could buy him time.

"Why not?" West sharply replied, a sentiment that caught Mamoru off guard. His silver-haired friend had glanced once towards Yuu before he continued confidently, projecting to be heard, "I'll hold them off here - armor up and get around the complex to the Eastern side."

Before his eyes energy rushed over East King like a mirage and formidable armor formed over his new black uniform, a helmet flattening his curly hair to his head before he bounded away to the south, pausing by South King to ask something that was lost in the cacophony of wailing sounds before the pair of them disappeared from sight beyond the hurricane of darkness that erupted from between the buildings.

"North!" West called.

Kaito's eyes were near glaring at him, challenging him to keep thinking what he was thinking, but there was no way around it. Mamoru smiled at him and Kaito's jaw visibly clenched before he strode off, armor materializing around him, a disk of green flame forming behind his head before he dashed off, jumping the space between buildings before he, too, disappeared from sight. He was going to do great things, no matter what happened here.

He loved them, each of them, and he was confident that they'd take care of things.

As they had spread, Princess Sailor Moon had ushered Rin and Helios further from the dark void, closer to the middle of the roof, speaking quietly to the kid before she stepped back, holding her wand, and fired one last Princess Halation into the airspace above them, chasing off the straggling creatures as she jogged back towards where he stood just a few steps from the edge. He took her hand when she got close. Her eyes scanned the skies; his eyes were only on her. "They're making a barrier to keep them out?" she asked.

He nodded his head, squeezing her hand gently in support.

She looked up at him and nodded, just like that believing in them without question. She was amazing like that - able to so fully believe in people and trust that they could do what was right and what needed to be done.

He smiled, gently tracing her cheek, wishing they had more time. A tingle of energy sparked from the rooftop edge as suddenly energy pulsed and flowed. He looked to West King and saw Khalid looking over his shoulder at him, expression fierce. He solidly met his gaze and Khalid nodded once before turning aside. He didn't agree, but he understood. Extending his arms to either side, scimitar in one hand, trident in the other, the King of the West glowed blue-white and a thin line of matching energy shot away from him in either direction, reminiscent of the purple leylines created by the crystals at the star points... and of the ghostly senshi who had protected Serenity less than a week ago from the attacks of her mother. Less than a week ago . He returned his attention to Usako, the hurricane of energy only growing stronger beside them, counting down what time he had left. Her hair, long and golden and perfect, whipped away from her, her uniform - the symbol of the responsibility and powers she had accepted and wished upon herself in no small part to protect him - disturbed by the forces that would soon be upon them. He stepped lightly, easily placing himself between her and the energy of the portal, to spare her what he could, his cape blown back towards her with the power of the summoning spell. She watched East's light shoot outwards and twisted around to see where blue met red to the south and green to the north, and then back towards the west, where the creatures were unable to penetrate the invisible wall they had created. "See?" he prompted, reclaiming her attention for himself, then used her earlier expression on her- "Easy as eating cake."

She looked back up at him, and her returning smile made him happy and sad all at once. He had wanted so many things for them. He had wanted to date her properly - treat her to sweets that would rot anyone else's teeth, take her dancing, watch more sunsets together. He had wanted to marry her and make her happy every day for the rest of their lives, to have kids together and grow old together and have a house with family portraits on the walls. Maybe their love really was cursed by the gods; maybe that was why this was happening again . But still… still he didn't regret it. He'd never regret falling in love with her, no matter where it lead them, or how much his heart ached at the thought of separating from her.

The rush grew stronger behind him and he kissed her, softly, urgently, his hands cupping her face, his senses taking her in for the last time as wind and water and dark crackling energy snapped all around them from the gaping hole growing beneath their feet. He tried to put everything into that kiss goodbye - how much he cared, how he wished there was another way, how she meant the world to him. This time, he'd protect her. Pulling away, he said his soft farewell to his Princess, "I love you," and then took two steps backwards and stepped off the edge of the roof to fall into the void. His cape whipped around him he looked up, watching as her golden-haired form appeared and reached for him, but Rin's screams, incomprehensible, kept her from following him over the edge, pulling her back and out of his sight. He closed his eyes, waiting to hit the bottom, glad that she hadn't been able to follow him into this. He had hoped that would happen.

She was safe. His friends were safe. Her friends were safe. They could all live on in peace in this future they had fought hard to have. They could complete school, live out their dreams, grow old together and be happy - he just needed to take care of one thing to keep that future within their grasp: overpower Demiurge. And, yeah, he would miss them, and they'd probably never forgive him for this choice, but there was no other option. With all the energy he had been using there was a chance he wouldn't survive powering down anyway - at least this way he could be sure they were safe.

As his back hit a barrier and started to fall into it, he thought he heard his name through the storm.

"NO! " Rin screamed, the primal cry tearing out of him gut-wrenching as Mamoru stepped back and fall over the edge; it echoed her own terror, the hot, tearing emotion that ripped at her chest, pulled her heart right out of her, but rather than cry she burst forward, trying to catch him before he disappeared. But there he was, falling away into the eye of the unnatural storm towards the creature that wanted to eat their world. She was too late, but that didn't mean he had to go alone - but before she could jump, Rin crashed into her, his arms wrapping tight around her legs as though trying to weigh her down so she could not follow after him, the young boy's heart beating so fast and hard she could feel it through his chest. Mamoru disappeared, his dark armor lost in the utter blackness of the portal to the otherworldly creature, and her heart tore in half in her chest. There must've been another way! She pushed Rin back, fell to her knees, and clung to him as hard as he did her, her silent, painful sobs lost in the guilt-ridden stream of half-intelligible apologies the boy tried to make. " All my fault! " he kept repeating, sniffling loudly and clinging to her as he cried about coming too soon and something about butterfly wings, but she couldn't take the time to understand what he was saying.

He was gone. In his attempt to stop the world from ending all around them, he took hers away .

"MAMORU! " Nero screamed from across the void, making it even more real that he was gone.

Mamochan.

It was like falling into pudding - slow and thick and suffocating - until finally he was violently ejected into the space beyond the vortex that connected this place - wherever it was - back to Tokyo. He twisted quickly, putting the connection point behind him as he searched the darkness for Demiurge, having to compensate his every movement as he seemed to float in the raging nothingness of this dimension. He peered into the darkness, but he seemed to be alone here -

A crack of energy lit the face of an enormous snarling monster and he reflexively threw Golden Crystal energy at it out of sheer terror. It was a gigantic head with skin tight over a skeletal frame, bulging eyes that stared at him hungrily, seeming to be halfway popping from its head over a thin nose with nostrils that twitched at him, causing the rest of the face to wrinkle and stretch. As his energy reached it a mouth opened and swiveled to catch it squarely on its tongue, where sat a crystal of deep purple that matched the stones that had been used in Tokyo to summon it. It closed its maw and swallowed, then increased its speed towards him, crawling forward eerily. It was still a good ways off, moving through the space as though crawling through a tunnel that ended in the portal Mamoru now guarded. His heart was already pounding, his breath already hard and uneven, but the effects of using so much energy was normal compared to the horror he experienced upon viewing this "great artisan" Demiurge.

It howled at him, the sound like a maelstrom, and Mamoru snapped out of the state of shock caused by its appearance. He didn't know what, exactly, he had been expecting, but it wasn't that . The look of the thing changed nothing. He just had to move past it. He held out one hand and then reconsidered, holding out both and willing the Crystal to appear between them, feeling like its physical presence would help him focus; it did as he bid, the pyramidal shaped stone shone with inner light as it slowly rotated in place between his outstretched palms. The monster Demiurge snarled something, creeping closer faster, throwing itself forward. He steeled his reserve, took a deep breath, and channeled energy out through the Crystal in a concentrated beam.

The stone at the Shrine had resonated with his energy - he was unexpectedly able to send power into it when he had been trying to destroy it. There was a frequency, then, that he could use to amplify the energy of the system. It was simple wave physics - at the natural frequency a little tap could increase the energy tenfold and more, eventually able to tear the structure apart through resonance. If it worked to power the crystals used to summon Demiurge, he believed that it could work against him, too -

Only… something wasn't right.

The energy rushed away from him and the great monster opened his mouth to receive it, as planned, but the reserves Mamoru had hoped to tap into simply weren't there. It felt like it had in weeks prior, as though he were pulling the energy from himselfrather than the planet - and that's when it clicked. He was no longer on Earth. He didn't have the planet's reservoir to pull from - there was no planet beneath his feet for him to act as a conduit. It was just him. The fear passed quickly through him, realizing it wouldn't work, but then… that's what Plan B was for. He shifted his plan, setting his jaw and doubling the energy output. He couldn't keep up the blast as long as he believed was necessary to destroy the being through resonance - he didn't have the resources to back that up; he only had what energy was stored within him. In the scheme of what was needed, while greater than at any other time before today, his current energy was not enough to carry through his resonance strategy. But there was another way. He kept the energy flowing, glaring at the creature, keeping his arms out straight ahead of him and willing this last plan to be enough.

Demiurge fed on the planet until it drained all of its life force through the guardian of the planet, or so Luna had said. So even if he couldn't pump out enough energy from Earth to make Demiurge resonate and destroy itself, if he fought back until he died, separated from Earth, the Demiurge couldn't do anything to the planet anyway. It needed him and his crystal to feed on Earth's energy. He didn't exactly like the plan, but it wasn't as if his chances of surviving detransformation were stellar, so, either way, jumping into the void had been for the best. Resonance could have destroyed the being, but without it, he could at least end it all with just his life, rather than the lifeforce of the entire planet.

The monster grew closer and closer, betraying its true enormous size bit by bit in the crystal's steady golden glow. Its great eyes stared only at him, creeping fingers pulling it closer and closer at a run now, its wide open maw growing louder and louder until it was near deafening. Mamoru yelled back, willing his energy outward even when his arms started shaking. The creature was moving faster and slower in bursts: he had found it, the resonant frequency - if only he could hang on just a little bit longer, he could ensure this thing didn't get Earth or any other planet, but as his vision darkened he knew he didn't have much time left. Defiant, he cried out, " Golden Crystal Power! " and the light burst out once again in a concentrated stream of energy. It struck the tongue of the great beast, but rather than move down his gullet it went through him, burning a hole into the creature's mouth. It shrieked an unholy cry and stopped it's approach, skidding as the energy blazed on and Mamoru's vision faded.

Blue Kunzite Power!

Red Jadeite Power!

Orange Nephrite Power!

Green Zoisite Power!

Bright colors shot out of the void behind him, their glow bending around him to funnel into the Golden Crystal, and suddenly his light strengthened again. The laser-like blast grew in size as echoes of familiar voices coursed through him, adding their energy to his last push as though they were right there with him. As the energy coursed through the Golden Crystal the stone changed, opening like the bud of a flower that suddenly bloomed. Barely able to see anything anymore, he could make out its new flower shape and thought it beautiful and satisfying against the horrific backdrop of Demiurge, for as their energy bomb reached the gruesome creature, every surface that it came in contact with dissolved, destroying the evil being and sending what remained back down the tunnel in the resulting shockwave.

Or, at least, that's what he thought he saw in the moments before his crystal shattered and everything went black.

Light shone from below, the golden glow bursting out amidst the wind and shadow that erupted from the space between the Infinity buildings, and Usagi squeezed Rin tightly as the little boy's violent sobs quieted. She didn't need to look down at that mop of red hair to know that he was watching the light, too. They were safe here for the moment: the Heavenly Kings were protecting them from the ghouls from without, and Mamoru now fought the evil creature that threatened everything from within. They had worked so hard to stay where they were, and the moment the ghouls were no longer pushing them in that direction, he went there himself to fight Demiurge alone. He shouldn't be alone - she would never let him be alone again. She could help. Rin had held her back before, but not anymore.

She gently separated herself from his tight embrace, standing despite the ache in her muscles and the exhaustion in her bones, fueled by the absolute certainty that she would help him. She approached the edge of the rooftop, but her boots slid back across the surface as the forces from within pushed her, snapping at her, energy crackling and pulsing, throwing her away. She crossed her arms before her, set her stance and tried again -

"Usagi-chan? " Helios's mental voice called groggily, the unexpectedness of his awakening drawing her attention, glad that he was alright. " What's -? " the unisus stood shakily, looking around as though trying to puzzle things out, but he had always been quick to put things together. With a start he jumped into the air, wings barely catching him in time as he looked to Khalid behind them and exclaimed, " He's fighting it alone?! "

"We can't let these through," Khalid replied sharply, pain and regret clear in his tone, "After everything we've gained, we still can't -" he broke off suddenly as Usagi's heart skipped painfully: the golden glow snapping and breaking through the darker forces emitting from the portal was fading. Mamochan!

"KINGS! " Helios shouted, but even as the call still rang, Khalid shouted out a phrase of power and the blue light emitting from him burst with such intensity that the entire rooftop was bathed in blue. Yuu called next, then Nero and Kaito, and all at once the power they generated combined in the space between the Infinity buildings and shot down into the void, going to help. Helios had grown in size and winged down after it - she reached up to catch hold of his mane, to go with him to help, but as soon as the multicolored light disappeared down into the vortex the wall of power holding the creatures back was gone, and the wailing monsters burst in. West King had slumped forward, the impressive armor gone, and the creatures flung themselves into him, surrounding him as they rushed in.

She cried as she held out her hand, the wand materializing there with barely a thought, and held it above her head. She wanted to be with him, but if she left now Khalid and the others would… "Moon Princess Halation!" she screamed as Helios disappeared over the edge, the bright moonlight swelling larger than any she had produced before, the light fighting against the encroaching mass of creatures, singeing them and driving them back from their friends. Or, at least, from Khalid, Kaito and Yuu. She couldn't see Nero. As she ran along the edge of the Tennou building the light coming from the portal became blinding and she squinted her eyes against it; their combined power must have reached Mamoru and he used it. The moment she saw the cluster surrounding Nero she aimed her wand and fired, the light leaving her as the golden burst faded. Moonlight threw the creatures away from the downed East King, and Usagi prepared to blast them again if there were any movement, but her attention was split between watching for the ghoulish forms and watching the space between the towers.

The golden light was gone, but so, too, was the darkness that had been crackling. Wind still poured out, but the clouds above Infinity Park had begun to disperse in the Golden Crystal's light and now that it had faded, the stars shone overhead, unimpeded by light pollution in the blackout caused by the leylines. It was over. Or, almost. She blasted another group of the ghoulish creatures, panting against the energy expenditure but embracing it - he was going to be tired when Helios got him out of there. She would take care of the cleanup.

Or, she could have. The creatures were disappearing on their own, fading under the natural light as though they had never been there; no matter where she looked, the ghouls were becoming transparent, their effect on the world lessening to nothing - but why?! "Usagi!" Khalid called, and she started to move towards him, reacting as though it were a call for help, but from where he lay he pointed with a white gloved hand - "The portal!"

The portal was closing, the wind lessening dramatically. That's why the ghouls were disappearing. She had already made it to the edge of the rooftop; she searched over the side for any sign of Mamoru or Helios but in the shrinking swirl of darkness below she saw neither. She wanted to scream or cry or both - he had won ! It wasn't fair! But then she could do something about it, couldn't she?! Their powers went to help him, she could use hers to keep it open. She didn't give it a second thought - " Moon Princess Power, Make Up !" Keep the portal open! Give Mamoru a way to come home! Show Helios the way!

A beam of soft silver light surrounded her before shooting down into the darkness of the portal and beyond, a string tying this world to wherever Mamoru had gone to fight the Demiurge. For every second it kept alight she felt her energy fueling it; she concentrated on keeping the flow steady, needing to keep it open for as long as she could - as long as they needed to find their way back home. She closed her eyes against the draining sensation, feeling empty, like she was on the edge of losing it - and then someone's hand was on her shoulder. Her eyes shot open and she turned, his name half on her lips, but it was South King. Her heart sinking in her chest, she followed his gaze to Mamoru's prone figure and immediately staggered, moving towards him even as she cut off the power that had kept the portal open for long enough. Beside him, having lowered him to the ground, was a young man with feathered white wings that she had never seen before, but only a small part of her attention was spared for him, because Mamoru was… he wasn't…

She fell to her knees beside his still form, wrapped her arms around his shoulders to pull him into her lap, feeling for anything - his heartbeat, his breath, his warmth - but there was nothing. One hand curled into his cape, the other summoned her crescent wand again.

"The crystal shattered," a familiar voice was saying, odd only in that the voice sounded in her ears rather than straight into her head. The young man's form was starting to fade, his sad garnet eyes, lavender-silver hair and white uniform shifting and changing into the form she was more used to seeing, but while he still had hands he gently dropped shards of a golden crystal atop the breastplate of Endymion, then completed his transformation back into a horned pegasus. He stood weakly beside them. " I gathered all that I could, but… "

But nothing.

The Silver Crystal could perform miracles. It resurrected her friends' bodies when only their crystals remained - it could do the opposite. It could reform his crystal and bring him back. It had to. She held the wand and Silver Crystal high above her head, recalled the phrase her mother had used, the phrase she had used, and even as the words of power formed on her lips her Princess Sailor Moon uniform fell away, melting to her royal garb from her past life, giving her full access to the Crystal's powers without limit. She wanted him back. "Cosmic Moon Power!" she intoned, and light radiated out in all directions, blinding and pure and filled with her hope.

As the power faded the roof lights came back on and her arm fell to her side, her body exhausted. She blinked in the sudden light but kept her hold on Mamoru's cape - "The buildings have been reformed!" Nero marveled from where he knelt somewhere on Mamoru's left. "The damage done in the fight - it's all restored -"

"Mamoru?" Yuu cut in, and Nero's nervous words immediately stopped, sticking in his throat.

The crystal pieces were still scattered. His body too still. Kaito, beside her, reached over to feel for a pulse, then tore his glove off his hand and felt for it again, pressing dutifully against Mamoru's neck with one hand even as he covered his mouth with the other to muffle the sound of his crying.

"He's not -" Nero's words came out hard, forcing out the question around a knot in his throat, "He's not -" He broke off as Yuu's hand grabbed his shoulder and they both fell silent.

"Cosmic Moon Power!" she tried again, thrusting the Silver Crystal back into the sky. Bring him back! There was a briefer flash, but nothing changed. He was still unconscious - still sleeping, his beautiful face so peaceful but too still, too unnaturally still. "COSMIC MOON POWER! " She hesitated to touch him - not like this. "COSMIC MOON POWER!" she yelled again, and again nothing happened at all. Nothing except her tears landing on his cheeks. "Cosmic -"

Another hand wrapped around hers, gently taking the Moon Stick from her grasp. Slowly she lowered her arm, her vision blurry as she looked down at the still form of the only man she had ever loved and would ever love, her soul's match: her Endymion, who had stopped the world for her; her Mamoru, who restarted hers again. He meant everything to her - he made everything brighter, made her heart pound in her chest and butterflies swarm in her stomach. Her hand lightly grazed his black hair and it was like her whole heart hiccuped, knowing he couldn't feel her anymore. He teased her and annoyed her and frustrated her and surprised her constantly, a steady force that grounded her and made her feel safe and secure and happy , and now he... She had wanted to - Her dream was to marry him and live happily together forever, whether that meant defending the world they loved as superheroes or leading beautiful, perfectly ordinary lives together - whatever else may be, her dream was to face the future with him , and now…

She hugged him tightly, her face brushing his, and hoped he had known in the end how much she loved him.