Author's Notes: What's up, people? Yeah, I know it's been awhile since I updated but a lots been going on. So deal with it. I'd like to remind you that this takes place between Sailor Moon S and Sailor Moon SuperS. In case you didn't read the author's note in the last chapter, I know Venus and Mercury have no moons. My solution is using Crosser Asteroids. Okay, I'm down blabbing. Enjoy and review please!
Disclaimer: I think I've down this already. Eh, I'll just do it again. Sadly, Sailor Moon Ain't Mine. Sailor Moon Manga is © Naoko Takeuchi and Kodansha. English version is © Tokyopop Manga. I do not own any of the characters contained within the manga or anime version of Sailor Moon. The anime is © Toei and Kodansha. English adaptation is © DiC entertainment and Cloverway.
However, the Moon Scouts, Villains, plotline, and Fan-Fiction are MINE! And if you steal them……I'll through my printer at you.
The day was rainy. Dark clouds covered the large expanse of sky that usually glittered like an endless ocean, as well as the big bright disk that usually warmed the Earth. All that was in the sky now were dark clouds and rain descending down toward the surface. And it wasn't light rain either.
Rain came down in bathtubs; rivers were beginning to form on the streets and sidewalks. Rain could be heard pounding against the roof and streets. Wind could be heard howling loudly, causing trees and even buildings to sway back and forth. You would be- to say the least-drenched if dared ventured outside to day. Anyone with a goat's common sense would stay safely snug inside their homes.
Of course, not everyone was given the choice.
Larken watched the rain outside her window as it journeyed from the sky to the street and sighed. Her hair was down and covered her shoulders like a shawl. Her misty green-blue eyes were gazing outside thoughtfully, and her lips were shaped into a frown. Behind her, sat Emily. Her blond hair was tangled and dirty, the ends almost seemed brown. Her hazel eyes stared at her friend with wonder and worry, and beside her was a cat, gray as ash with paws white like snow. On the cat's forehead was the most peculiar thing, a golden crescent moon that seemed to glisten even in the dark. They were silent for a moment, before Larken spoke.
"It's raining," She said in a soft voice. "Thalia always strikes when it's raining."
Emily nodded. "Yeah, it's like a sign that she's coming. And it means we have another chance to get our hands on a Moon Crystal."
Larken nodded again, uninterested. She was tried of her mission. She was tried of searching for the Moon Crystals. She was tried of trying to get the Cosmic Crystal. She didn't want any of it, but she had to go through for her friends and for the universe. If the Dysnomia Kingdom discovered the Crystals first, nothing would remain. Sighing, Larken stood.
"You girls be careful," The cat cautioned.
"We will, Apollo, quite worrying." Emily assured. "We'll be back before 3 o'clock, just you watch!"
"Still," Apollo continued. "I want you to take Europa with you. You'll need all the power you can get if you do find a Moon Crystal."
Emily rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll call James, just quite worrying. Nothing bad is going to happen." Larken watched as Emily produced a silver and blue watch and flipped it open. She wondered how her friend could be so positive that no harm would be done tonight. Somehow, Larken didn't feel so sure.
BSSM: Shards of a Cosmic Crystal
Episode 3:
"Heart of Black, Thalia Strikes Back"
Lita Kino darted down the wet sidewalk, doing her best to avoid over-large puddles. She held a magazine over her head so that her hair would remain somewhat dry, though the plan failed immensely. Her chestnut hair was soaked, and Lita could no longer make out the idol on the front of the magazine. In her hand was a plastic bag filled apples that were now drenched to the core. Her long brown skirt and white shirt dripped water off their ends. Lita scowled as she continued down the street. Why, she wondered had she felt the urge to make an apple pie? Why couldn't see have used her senses and stayed at home? It didn't matter now, Lita thought. She was out, in the rain, getting soaked.
An abrupt cry caused Lita to jump and skid to a halt, which was hard to do on the wet sidewalk. The cry was short and shrill, and sounded as if the owner of the cry was in danger. Lita scowled. She had heard about her friend's incidents with the Moon Scouts, could this be them again? Better safe than sorry, Lita thought. She produced an emerald stick with a golden star mounted on top. Inside the star, the symbol of Jupiter was embedded. Lita scanned the area quickly, making sure no one was in sight, then held the stick aloft.
"Jupiter Star Power!" She called. Lightening emerged from the stick and raced over her slender figure. Her school uniform was ripped away, replaced by the Sailor Suit of Sailor Jupiter. The lightening ended in a flash of bright light that revealed Sailor Jupiter in the rain. The scout smiled down at her familiar outfit before racing off toward the cry.
Sailor Jupiter halted as she approached the area where the cry had originated from. She paused and examined the clearing with her emerald eyes. A few meters away a young boy was laying, his eyes agate and emotionless. Jupiter knew he had to be the target of whatever monster had done this.
"Boo," A voice hissed in Jupiter's ear.
Sailor Jupiter whipped around, lightening rod poking out of her tiara, ready for usage. Behind her, hanging upside-down from a tree was a girl that Sailor Jupiter knew had to be Thalia. She was exactly as described by Serena; from the silky black hair to the dark eyes and magenta clothing.
"What did you do to that boy?" Jupiter demanded.
"I thought he might have a Moon Crystal, but he didn't," Thalia replied somewhat sadly. "And now his life energy will be used to power the Dysnomia Kingdom." She brightened at this part. "Is that so bad?"
"Jupiter Thunder Dragon!" Sailor Jupiter cried, hoping to use the element of surprise. Electricity from the lightening rod in her tiara spiraled upward, a huge dragon materializing in the air. It growled loudly, its eyes menacing and blank, and tore through the air toward Thalia, whom was not surprised. She simply held out a hand, revealing bright purple nail polish, and caught the dragon. It roared once more, and tried to escape her grip, but Thalia crushed it.
"I was trying to be nice, gosh," She sneered sarcastically, jumping down from her place in the tree. "You Planetary Soldiers are no stronger than the Moon ones! Now that's sad!"
Jupiter clenched her fists, and in the process collected thunderbolts that were compacted into a highly charged and destructive orb in her gloved hands. "Jupiter Thunderclap Zap!" She cried, tossing it thunder ball in turn at Thalia.
Thalia yawned and stretched, and as doing so created a small curtain-like shield of purple ripples that absorbed Jupiter's thunder attack.
"If you're finished, it's my turn now," She said, holding her arms out in front of her. Her ghostly pale hands began to glow in a dark magenta aura and a beam of purple energy was shot from each of them. Sailor Jupiter rolled out of the way, the beams soaring over her shoulder and colliding with an oak tree behind her and causing it to burst into flames. Thalia frowned. "Poo, I missed!"
"I won't!" Jupiter replied, standing, the lightening rod on her tiara surrounded by thunder. She crossed her arms and called, "Jupiter Thunder Crash!" Quickly, Sailor Jupiter uncrossed her arms, sending a volley of thunder and lightening rocketing at Thalia. Thalia scowled and held her arms out in front of her and was instantly covered in a veil of rippling purple energy, which absorbed her attack. Jupiter was now the one left scowling.
"I'm getting very tired of you!" Thalia hissed, clasping her hands together as if in prayer, though Jupiter was sure prayer was something Thalia hadn't heard of. Sailor Jupiter noted the purple energy leaking out from the cracks where Thalia's fingers were held tightly together, and didn't need to be told that her attack was powerful, nor she had to stop it. The lightening rod once again sparkled with Jupiter's element and the green scout crossed her arms above her head. Thunder from around the tiara spread outward, then quickly returned inward, then outward again, but this time formed a huge, menacing dragon. It roared ominously, lightening flashing in its eyes, and charged at Thalia.
At this moment, Thalia also released her attack. A bright purple flash-that was all Sailor Jupiter could make out. In fact, it was so bright that Jupiter had to shield her eyes in order not to be blinded from Thalia's power. She kept her emerald eyes shut tightly for a few moments, before hesitantly opening them again. The light was gone, so Jupiter no longer had to fear being blinded by it. She hadn't even seen what it had done! But she did notice that the lightening rod on her tiara was cracked. Jupiter scowled, and glared at Thalia. Her enemy, however, paid no attention to this. She was simply examining her heavily polished fingernails when she finally realized Jupiter was still there.
"You're still alive!" Thalia shrieked in angry, pointing a finger at her. "I killed you! I did!"
"No, you killed my attack," Jupiter replied, figuring her attack must have collided with the dragon before hitting her.
Thalia's fists clenched, Jupiter saw the energy once again swelling up inside her palms, but Jupiter also realized she wasn't preparing the same attack over, something different, less powerful, but still dangerous. Without her lightening rod, she couldn't do anything. All of her attacks involved thunder and lightening, and that's why she had her lightening rod-to collect her element! Without it, Jupiter realized, she was lost.
I'll just have to go physical this round! Jupiter thought, tensing. Thalia screamed and threw two orbs of energy at her, which Jupiter dodged easily and lunged. Thalia, though, was no pushover. She avoided in return and spread out her arms.
Instantly, Jupiter felt something dig into her skin. Looking down with alarm, she saw purple hair-thin wires had wrapped tightly around her in random places, trapping her against a nearby tree. Snarling, Jupiter attempted to break free of her bindings. This didn't work. They simply tightened around her slender body and more emerged from the shadows, coiling around her like a snake does its prey. Jupiter halted; realizing if more wires kept coming, she'd be wrapped up like a cocoon in no time.
Thalia smiled, her lips curled up in an evil position that just screamed Defeat. She advanced on Sailor Jupiter slowly, allowing her lose to sink into the green scout's skin. "Now let's see," Thalia pondered. "First-I'll take your Moon Crystal, and then I'll drain your life energy and give it to my Mistress! She'll be so happy!" As she spoke, Thalia raised her cupped hands high into the air, eclipsing the sun from Jupiter's view. Thalia began, slowly, to bring down her hands on Sailor Jupiter. Jupiter readied herself for the impact.
"Luna Shimmering Crescent Cascade!"
"Io Double Drill!"
"Europa Electric Eruption!"
A combination of shrill voices exploded in Jupiter's ears. The attack started with Sailor Luna's command-tiny, disk-like crescent moons rained down on Thalia, followed by a beam of fire and ice, swirled together into the most majestic color. Lastly, came electricity, like Sailor Jupiter's own element, but different. Rather than green, it was bright orange, and was compacted into a small, explosive orb.
Thalia's eyes widened in terror and she started to lift her right leg to run, but didn't move fast enough. The attacks bombed down on her like a bird making a dive for a worm. Jupiter was forced to shield her eyes from the bright flash made by the attacks, but could still hear Thalia's shrill screams.
Moments passed before Jupiter dared to look again. Thalia was still standing in front of her, but her magenta cloths were torn and Sailor Jupiter saw blood leaking from her wounds, though rather than vivid red, Thalia's blood was a timid shade of violet. Her dark eyes glowed with hate at Jupiter's rescuers. Sailor Jupiter looked behind her, examining them.
Sailor Luna was just as Serena had described; two blond pigtails with misty eyes and her gray skirt with the pale yellow bows. She stood at the head of the group. Behind her stood two others, a male and female. The girl had blond hair, too, but her was worn strait down and extended just below her shoulders. She wore a brilliant silver skirt, with a deep blue bow on her chest and another on the back of her skirt. Long gloves covered her slender arms, and ended in three strips of silver fabric. She, like Sailor Luna, wore knee-high boots, though rather than gray hers were silver, lined with blue at the top. She appeared almost ghostly. The male was tall, but still shorter than Jupiter, and had unkempt blond hair that stuck out in several directions. He wore a long, orange following cloak and iron armor that was also orange. A white mask obscured his hypnotizing blue eyes, and his face was emotionless. Thalia pointed at them with a shaky finger, blood dripping from the tip of it.
"You," She hissed, her voice overpowered with venom. "I'll get you!" Purple mist then coiled around her ankles, slithering up her body slowly until she was complete engulfed in the violet mist. The mist then glowed brightly before vanishing.
Jupiter let out a sigh of relief and turned to her rescuers. "Thank you," She breathed.
"Your welcome," Sailor Luna told her briefly. She was kneeling on the ground, cradling a agate crystal in her gloved hands. Sighing, she stood. "Here, take this and return it," She then through the gray crystal to Sailor Jupiter, who caught it. Luna then gave a small nod toward her team and they turned to leave.
"Wait," Jupiter called out boldly. They halted. "Who are you?"
"Sailor Luna," Luna replied. "Guardian of the Moon of Light and Sanctity."
"Sailor Io," said the girl in silver. "Guardian of the Moon of Fire and Ice."
"Europa Knight," the boy wearing orange finished. "Guardian of the Moon of Thunder, Lightning and Willpower." With that, they left.
"Serena!" Luna called into the bathroom. "You're going to be late! Serena" The black cat nudged the door open and slipped inside. Serena was floating in the bathtub, her hair tied in two blond lops and the rest up in a pink bathing cap. Her blue eyes were closed, and she was humming an unfamiliar tone.
"Serena," Luna hissed impatiently.
Serena lazily opened one eye at the cat, then closed it again and asked in an annoyed tone, "What is it Luna?"
"The study group at Raye's begins in 10 minutes," Luna told her. "And you're not out of the bathtub yet!"
At this, Serena's ocean-blue eyes snapped open. "10 minutes? I thought I had 30!" She cried, clumsily leaping out of the bathtub, and in the process splashing Luna with the steaming water.
"Do you mind?" Luna hissed venomously, shaking water from her shining black coat.
Of course, the Moon Princess wasn't listening. Instead, she was venturing into her closet in search of something to wear. What a way to ruin a Saturday, she thought as she pulled her long blue skirt up. Wearing your school uniform! It would have to do. Next Serena attempted to brush her long, blond hair and white teeth at the same time. That didn't work out to well. The brush got caught in the rather large tangles of Serena's hair and the tooth brush fell out of her mouth as Serena tried to free the brush. Finally, Serena was ready.
"Okay Luna, let's go!" She stated energetically, opening the door. "I'm ready!" The downpour had changed into a slight drizzle of raindrops falling from the sky and already the sun was beginning to peek out through the fluffy white clouds that looked like a flock of lambs in a endless blue field. Serena quickly started running down the drying street.
"Wait Serena, the shrine is that way!" Luna called out after her.
"Right!" Serena responded, halting and turning, then continuing to race down the streets. Luna sighed and followed, her four slender legs carrying her quite faster than Serena's two.
Finally, the duo reached Raye's temple. The fiery priestess was standing outside the wooden doors, her arms crossed over her chest and a scowl on her face. She wore her usual temple robes, but today an anti-evil charm hung from a string around her neck.
"You're late," Raye growled.
"Sorry," Serena apologized. "But hey-I got here within thirty minutes didn't I?" She asked almost excitedly. Raye rolled her violet eyes and trailed inside. Serena followed, skipping up the temple stairs with Luna at her heels.
Amy was seated on Raye's bed, her gaze downward at a medical book. Mina sat on the floor, elbows on Raye's table and a dreamy look in her blue eyes. Raye placed herself next to Mina, and Serena sat on her other side. Luna and Artemis were positioned side-by-side next to Amy, who closed her book and gazed around.
"Where's Lita?" The blue haired girl asked. At this, Serena raised her head slightly and too looked around. Sure enough, the brunette wasn't among them.
"Maybe she's running late." Mina suggested, though they all knew Lita was hardly ever late.
"I'm here." A familiar grunt echoed.
"Lita!" Serena exclaimed happily, turning around the see her tall friend.
"What kept you?" Raye asked, sounding annoyed rather than relieved. "Even Serena got here before you!"
"Sorry," Lita apologized, though she didn't sound apologetic at all. "I ran into some trouble on the way here."
"Trouble?" Amy echoed.
Lita nodded. "That girl, erm, Thalia, and the Moon Scouts." But now, everyone was listening immensely.
"What happened?" Luna questioned curiously.
"Well," Lita began, looking at each individual in the room in turn. "I was going to the store to buy some apples for a pie, and then I heard a scream and ran off to check it out. It turned out to be Thalia stealing someone's, er, Moon Crystal, and then I tried to stop her but she kept stopping my attacks until my lightning rod broke and I couldn't attack anymore. I thought she had me cornered, but then two Moon Scouts and a knight showed up and saved me, though they only seemed interested in the Moon Crystal, really."
As Lita finished her tale, she took a deep breath while Luna and Artemis filed this in their minds. After all, the two cats had been trying everything to remember something from the Silver Millennium about a team of Sailors known as the Moon Scouts. As Amy and Raye listened, they were reminded of their own encounter with the Moon Scouts. The one they had run into were attempting to open a portal, and Raye was fixed on them being evil, so the two had tried to stop them with a less-than-successful result. Raye had been badly injured, but was healed by one of their attackers. Serena remembered her incident with Sailor Luna, who claimed to be the proper owner of the Silver Crystal, and Mina, who had not met the Moon Soldiers, just listened contently as the others interrogated Lita.
"What were there names?" Amy questioned, wondering if perhaps they were the same trio Raye and she had seen.
"Europa Knight, Sailor Io, and Sailor Luna," Lita recited. At Sailor Luna's name, Serena raised her head, her blue eyes wide.
"What did they say to you?" The Moon Princess asked.
"Nothing really," Lita replied. "They just told me to give to Moon Crystal back to the victim and their names."
"So you didn't learn anything about them?" Luna sighed in disappointment. Lita shook her head sadly.
"Nothing,"
"Should we tell Michelle, Amara, and Trista about our new enemy?" Mina questioned. "They might know something."
"I doubt it," Artemis meowed. "But they might like to know."
"I'll tell them," Amy told Luna and Artemis. "I usually see Michelle at the pool, so I'll be sure to mention it to her." As Amy spoke, Mina looked nonchalantly down at her watch, and then let out a yelp of surprise.
"Oh no! I'm going to be late! See you later guys!" She cried, raising a "v" sign with her fingers before running off.
"Where's she going?" Raye asked. "A date?"
"No," Artemis sighed. "She volunteered to help coach some students in volley-ball at the elementary school, and it begins today. I better go make sure she doesn't get into any trouble. Bye guys," More slowly then Mina, Artemis leaped of his spot from the bed and took off after the blond-haired girl.
Thalia was furious. She paced back and forth her magenta dorm. Her heels made loud clicking noises on the floor and her black hair swished around her. How, how could she have been defeated by the Moon Scouts again? She had been so close-even if the Moon Crystal wasn't real, it could have provided her mistress with great power, and she had had the Planetary Scout cornered. Then, the Moon Scouts appeared and had defeated her. Scowling, Thalia pulled back the long purple sleeve of her shirt and examined one of her many wounds. It was swollen and red and not improving, despite the many medicines Thalia had used on it. Sighing, she pulled back the sleeve again and continued pacing.
"How could I have been defeated by those little runts of scouts?" She hissed. "How? I'm much stronger than them!"
Thalia! Her master's voice cut through the room. Thalia's violet eyes widened and she flinched before disappearing in a cloud of violet.
Thalia reappeared in the throne room. It was gloomy and dark, as always. The throne loomed before and over Thalia. It was tall and large and black, made of smooth marble, yet the base was stained with blood of the fallen. Tiny, gloomy jewels decorated the throne in various places.The mistress sat in it, her long skinny fingers drummed impatiently against the arm of the marble chair and shadows hid her face, as if she were wearing a sheer, dark veil.
"You summoned me, milady?" Thalia asked, bowing.
The Mistress fumed. "Thalia, you have failed to bring me but one Moon Crystal and have been defeated many times over!"
Thalia's stomach sank. "I know, master. I can do better!"
"For your sake, I hope you can!" The Mistress continued. "Also, you have failed to destroy the Moon Scouts, which I ordered you to do long ago! I'm disappointed in you, Thalia, terribly so. Your sister are doing their jobs wonderfully. Should I replace you with one of them?"
Thalia tensed. "No, please don't! I'm sorry, my lady!" She tried.
The Mistress cut her off. "You have one last chance, Thalia. Bring me a Moon Crystal and don't come back until you have one."
Thalia bowed. "Thank you, my lady. I have already found a target." With one last bow, she vanished.
Nathan froze, his eyes narrowing. He was a medium sized boy, neither tall nor short, and had nicely kept sandy hair matched with lake-blue eyes. Shivering, Nathan pulled his jacket around his shoulder. Though the air wasn't cold, he shivered anyway. He could feel the tenseness in the air, and knew something was coming.
Picking up the pace, Nathan continued down the streets. He needed to reach his sisters-fast. Then he could discover what in the air was terribly wrong. But as Nathan hurried down the streets, he realized he didn't have time to go for his sisters. Rain was beginning to fall, slowly, just a drizzle, but was picking up. He knew very well what rain meant.
Quickly, Nathan scurried down an alleyway. Sorry Cammie, Julia, he thought, but I'm going to be late.
Mina took a deep breath. She wore a plain white T-shirt tucked in to a pair of red shorts. Her usual red ribbon held her hair out of her deep blue eyes, and she held a volley ball under one arm. In front of her stood a group of female 2nd graders, wearing similar clothing and talking contently to one another. Beside her stood a teacher, tall and slim with chestnut hair contrasting deeply with her lime-green eyes. They were all standing behind the Juuban District Elementary School, were a volley-ball net had been set up.
Sighing, she turned to Mina and said, "Well, good luck Mina." Then the teacher raised a bright red whistle and blew. At once, the students stopped talking and stood tall and proud in a straight line before Mina. They were about 5 of them, Mina saw.
"Everyone," The teacher called out. "This is Miss Mina. She's going to help me coach all of you." Mina shifted uncomfortably at her name. She wasn't going to be used to be called 'Miss Mina' for awhile, she thought. Mina was brought back to reality as she realized the teacher hadn't stopped talking. "I expect all of you to treat Mina with respect, understand?" Everyone gave a quick and brief nod. The teacher smiled. "Well, anything to say Mina?"
"Um," Mina began, feeling everyone's eyes on her. "Why don't you all tell me your names?"
"Good idea," The teacher commented, then the students in the line recited their names. The first was a short, stubby black-haired American girl named Amanda, the second a taller violet haired named Hanako. The next was very short, but had a sweet smile and short red-brown hair. Her name was Coral. The other two were both nearly the same height. One was a brunette, and seemed very energetic. Her brown eyes were as big as plates and gleamed with excitement. She was named Julia. The other was a timid Blondie, whose blue eyes were focused on her shuffling feet. Her name was Cammie. Mina felt little a bit strange around them, though was unsure why. The both seemed nice, but they both seemed to have a strange aura about them. Mina chose to ignore this.
The day went by pretty quickly, Mina thought. The coach was immensely kind and pleasant. Whenever a kid failed or messed up, she just told them to keep trying. Her name was Coach Asuka. The two had spent the day teaching the kids how to set and pass, with the promise of moving on the serves the next week. Keeping in mind the kids were beginner, they were pretty good. Each rarely missed the ball, and almost always got it over the net.
"Well, that's enough for today." Coach Asuka sighed, wiping sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand. Mina nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, I think it's time to call it quits." She panted. After all, the Blondie was tried and looking forward for some sleep.
"Oh please, just a little longer!" Julia begged, her eyes brightening and widening, making them appear just like puppy-dog eyes.
"Yes please!" Coral added, her dark eyes widening as well. Coach Asuka sighed.
"I'm sorry kids, but I promised your parents you'd be home by 6:30." Everyone let out a long, dramatic groan.
"How about if I show you something cool?" Mina asked. "Then will you go home?"
Everyone looked up so quickly it almost made Mina feel uncomfortable. "Oh yes please, Miss Mina! Please, please!" They all begged. Mina smiled and tossed the volley ball to Coach Asuka, who caught it. Mina then readied herself.
Asuka tossed the ball over the net at a high speed. Mina paused, stepped back, then ran forward and jumped, close to the ground, as if trying to fly. She then hit the ball up with her right wrist, and brought her left arm over, slamming her wrist into the ball and causing it to fly over the net. Then, Mina brought her legs over her head and flipped, landing smoothly on her feet. With all this done, she placed one hand on her hip victoriously and flashed a "v" sign at the kids, who cheered and applauded her.
"That was awesome, Miss Mina!" Julia, who was jumping up and down, cried out. Even Cammie, who had been silent the entire lesson, was beaming at Mina.
"Yeah," Coral agreed. "Can you teach us?"
"Maybe some other time," Mina told them. "Anyway, you all have to go home now!"
Everyone groaned, but Coach Asuka stepped in. "Go on, children. Your parents are waiting. Come on," Asuka herded everyone around to the front of the building, where some people stood. Coral ran over to a rather short woman, took her hand, and waved good-bye to Mina. Amanda and Hanako found their fathers and waved too as they walked off. Eventually, only Asuka, Mina, Julia, and Cammie were left.
"Cammie, Julia, where are your parents?" Asuka questioned. The four were sitting on the sidewalk, waiting for Julia and Cammie's guardians to come for them.
"Our big brother was going to pick us up!" Julia told them. "But he's late. I wonder what's holding him up." She and Cammie exchanged worried glances, and the strange feeling Mina felt as she first met the two returned to her.
"Well, I hope he gets here soon," Asuka said, smiling down at the two, who smiled back.
"I'm sure he will," Cammie said, so quietly Mina wondered if she imagined it.
At that moment, it began to pour. Immense rain fell from the skies and came down on the streets and buildings and people unfortunate enough to be caught in the showers.
"Rain?" Mina cried, covering her head with her hands. "But it already rained today!"
"Looks like it's raining again," Asuka replied. "Let's go. We can wait inside the school for your brother." She then began gently pushing Cammie and Julia toward the doors. Mina followed, but more slowly. She had a bad feeling about all this, but tried shaking it off. Asuka quickly ran forward and pulled a keychain from her pocket. Then she slipped one of the many keys into the slot and turned it, then pushed the doors open for the others.
"Thank you, Asuka-sensei." Cammie spoke up timidly.
"You're welcome, Cammie," Asuka answered sweetly, but was cut of by a bang of thunder, followed by a streak of lightning that lit up the whole sky. When it died down, there was a figure standing next to Asuka. She was tall and slender and had dark hair that matched her dark eyes. She outfit consisted of magenta pants and long-sleeved shirt. Mina's eyes narrowed at the sight of her, for she had a strange feeling that this girl was Thalia-the one who had given Lita and Serena all the trouble.
When Asuka spotted her, she jumped then blushed at her foolishness. "I'm sorry, you scared me!" She said, smiling.
Thalia smiled back. "I'm afraid I'm about to scare you a lot more." She spoke sweetly, stepping back and holding her arms high above her. Her hands glowed in bright purple auras, and two small beams were shot from them. Time seemed to slow for Mina as the beams hit Asuka squarely in the chest and she fell, pure shock dancing over her ghostly-pale face. When she hit the ground, her eyes turned agate and a small stone hovered above her, which matched her now-gray eyes.
"NO!" Thalia shrieked, stomping her foot and causing a loud bang of thunder while doing so. "NO! NO! NO! I've failed again!"
"Asuka-sensei!" gasped Cammie.
"Coach Asuka!" Julia cried out in horror. Thalia continued raging and thrashing until she noticed the two girls staring horror stricken at her. Then an evil smile found its way onto Thalia's lips.
"I'll just take your Moon Crystals too!" She yelped in joy. "Surely one of you will have a real Moon Crystal!" Thalia then advanced slowly on the two girls, who stood petrified.
"You won't touch them!" Mina roared up, causing Thalia to stop and glare at her. "If you even think about harming children, your heart must be black!"
"And you're going to stop me?" She sneered. Mina returned the cold stare.
"Julia, Cammie, run! Get out of here!" She told them, not once looking away from Thalia.
"But Miss Mina!" Cammie protested.
"Just go!" Mina cried.
Cammie and Julia, who were too scared to protest, scurried off, Julia in the lead dragging Cammie by the wrist behind her. "But Miss Mina…" She trailed.
"Don't worry about Miss Mina," Julia told her. "We can go back for her!" Julia then turned and pulled Cammie into an alley. "Let's power-up!" She called. Cammie nodded.
Their eyes connected.
Mina was determined to win.
"So," Thalia hissed her voice like ice. "You think you can steal my prey?" She then began to advance, slowly, on Mina. "And you think you can face me and live?" Mina's gaze fell on Asuka's lifeless body, then returned to Thalia.
"Of course! I'll win and live and safe Asuka!" Then, she produced a bright orange stick topped with a golden star. In the center of the star was a orange dot, where the symbol of Venus was engraved. "Venus Star Power!" She cried.
Mina held the stick aloft and was instantly surrounded in a chain of yellow stars that circled her body. Then, the chain fell to her ankles before exploding into an outbreak of golden stars that surrounded her slender body and created a sailor suit of yellow. Sailor Venus was left standing triumphantly. "In the name of the planet of Love and Beauty, Venus, I will punish you!" Sailor Venus cried.
Thalia's dark eyes widened, then narrowed. "So, you're a planetary soldier. Still think you can beat me?" She sneered.
"Of course!" Venus called out, producing a chain made of tiny yellow hearts connected together. "Venus Love Chain Encircle!" The chain was flung into the air, the hearts that made it up spiraling, then fell again toward earth, but aimed directly at Thalia. It wrapped around her, squeezing tightly. Thalia only grinned, and held a hand out in front of her. The chain was then thrown aside by an invisible gust of wind. Scowling, Venus pointed at Thalia.
"Venus Crescent Beam…" She began, energy sparkling at the tip of her gloved finger. "Smash!" she roared. A golden beam was instantly shot from her finger and flew toward Thalia, who dodged, but the tiny beam followed her. Hissing, Thalia raised an arm and was covered in a sheer veil of purple that absorbed Venus' attack.
"What?" Venus gasped.
Thalia grinned. "I told you that you couldn't beat me!"
"Asclepius Love Arrow!" A shrill, timid voice called out. Thalia's eyes widened and she teleported out of the way- not a moment to soon. An arrow, blinding golden, had landed where she had been standing moments ago. Venus looked over the arrow once more and saw the arrowhead was actually an orange heart. Venus and Thalia both looked over at the attacker.
There were two of them, and neither was very tall. They appeared to be only children. One was blond with shy, but determined blue eyes. She held out a shimmering golden bow, that Venus thought was made only of tiny golden particles. She wore a usual white body suit, with a bright yellow skirt and high heels that spiraled up her legs in ribbons. There was a hazel bow on the back of her skirt, and another on the front that held a shining locket of gold. Long, elegant white gloves covered her skinny arms and ended in three striped of yellow fabric, and she wore jewelry much like Sailor Moon's. Lastly, a golden tiara graced her head, and a yellow jewel that Venus thought to be Ammolite engraved in the center.
The other was dressed similar, but her color scheme was different. Her skirt was orange, and she had a pair of ankle boots on rather than high heels. Her collar was bright green, as were the bows on the rest of her outfit, and the tiara on her forehead contained a single piece of Amber. She was a brunette, and her eyes were wide with excitement.
"Representing the Moon of Joy and Beauty, Sailor Castalia!" She called out.
"With the glory of the Moon of Love and Purity, Sailor Asclepius!" called out the girl in yellow timidly.
"The Moon Scouts!" They cried together.
"Not again!" Thalia raged. "Why does this keep happening?"
As Thalia spoke, Sailor Castalia stepped forward and held out her arm, taking aim. "Castalia Beauty Blaster!" She cried, a orange beam emitting from the tip of her finger and split into many beams that all spiraled toward Thalia, who hissed in anger.
"You won't get me this time!" She held out both hands, and the beams froze mid-air.
"What?" Castalia cried out in horror. Thalia grinned, and pointed at her. The beams began moving again, but this time they flew toward Sailor Castalia, Sailor Asclepius, and Sailor Venus. Venus snarled and jumped out of the way, the beam following her.
"I have to shake it off," She muttered to herself, jumping once again out of the way. But dodging didn't work at all. At full contact, the beam hit Venus, knocking her to the ground. The Moon Scouts weren't having much luck shaking off the beams either. Each could only avoid as it came their way.
"Cruithne Crystal Winds!" A new voice cried. Immediately, winds picked up and formed two buzz-saws in the air, spiraling toward Thalia. As Venus watched them, she realized that crystals were materializing around the edges. Thalia screamed in terror and ducked, one of the blades flying over her head, but the other hitting her in the back and sending her flying. The beams that were chasing Castalia and Asclepius vanished, and the two scouts sighed in relief. Venus quickly scrambled to her feet and looked over at Thalia. She lay motionless, but Sailor Venus wasn't taking any chances.
"Crescent Beam Smash!" She roared, pointing at Thalia. Golden energy sparked at the tip of her finger, then a whole beam of light shot from it, topped with a crescent moon, and flew toward Thalia.
The two little Moon Scouts followed Venus' lead.
"Ascleupius Love Arrow!" cried Sailor Ascleupius, aiming another of her golden arrows at Thalia.
"Castalia Beauty Blaster!" Sailor Castalia shouted, many beams of golden light shooting like stars out of her fingertips. Castalia's beams wrapped around Ascleupius' arrow, causing it to shimmer more than usual, and both shot into the motionless heap of Thalia.
Thalia screamed once more and pulled Ascleupius' arrow out of her, revealing a large, blood-stained hole in her shirt and gave a death glare toward Sailor Venus and the Moon Scouts. "I'll get you…I'LL GET YOU!" She shrieked, pointing at them, and then vanished in a cloud of magenta.
Sighing in relief, Venus turned toward the Moon Scouts. A third was standing with them now, a boy, not so tall, but still handsome. His sandy hair was neatly kept and a white mask, like the one Tuxedo Mask wore, hid his kind eyes. He wore sparkling yellow arm, shimmering dazzlingly in the sunshine that was piercing the rain clouds and a long golden cloak blew out behind him in the wind.
"Thank you," Venus told them. "I probably couldn't have defeated her without you."
"It was no problem!" Sailor Castalia replied energetically. "It was fun, too." Venus couldn't help but smile. Somehow, this little scout reminded her of someone she had met before, but she couldn't quite place it right now. Later, she thought.
"I need to thank you, too," the boy said. "Without you, my sisters might have been defeated while I was gone."
"Oh no, I didn't help them at all!" Venus protested.
"Still, thank you," he said.
"Could you tell me your name?" Venus asked curiously. Hey, here was a night in shining armor, how was she suppose to go without a name?
"Cruithne Knight." He said. Though his voice was cold, he smiled.
"Cruithne Knight," Venus repeated. "Thanks. Anyway, see you around?"
"Perhaps," he replied. "But for now, we must go."
"Bye!" Castalia called waving as the knight hurried her away. Smiling, Venus waved back. She walked over, picking up the crystal Thalia had left behind, and held it over Asuka. The crystal glowed and drifted slowly toward Asuka, before vanishing. Sailor Venus paused for a moment, before she heard Asuka groaning and rubbing her head.
"What happened?" She grunted.
"It doesn't matter now," Venus told her. "You're safe." With that, she flashed a "v" sign and left.
"What do you mean you were attacked?" Artemis cried as Mina explained to her feline friend what had happened.
"I was attacked," Mina replied, staring into her mirror as she adjusted the red ribbon in her hair. "It's simple, Artemis."
"By who?" The feline demanded.
"By Thalia," Mina said, sounding quite annoyed. "And then the Moon Scouts and a knight showed up to help me."
"What else happened?" Artemis interrogated.
"I told you already," Mina sighed. "Thalia showed up, stole Asuka's Moon Crystal, I transformed and tried to stop her, failed, the Moon Scouts showed up, tried to help, failed too, then a knight came and helped us defeat her."
"That's all?"
"Yep, ever last bit!"
Artemis sighed. "Mina, I want you to keep a sharp guard up around the Moon Scouts. They may seem friendly, but after what happened with Serena and Sailor Luna, we can't be sure. So-"
"I know, I know, be careful." Mina sighed.
"You're catching on," Artemis meowed, grinning.
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Author's Note 2: Sorry all, but there's probably a bunch of grammar/spelling errors in this because I didn't proof-read this time. I was exhausted when I finished and tried to, but couldn't. Terribly sorry. I'd also like to let you know that it might be awhile until I update again, because I'm going to try to squeeze all the outers into the next episode. Until next time!