Chapter Twenty-Three
LadyPrin
Disclaimer Applies.
"I can't reach Pluto through my mind link!" Serena cried. "Something is blocking me! I can't even reach my mother!"
"What do we do now?" Mars asked. "We can't hold off these monsters forever, and they just keep on coming. Beryl could already have killed Prince Alan by now!"
"And the Moon Kingdom and Earth could be in pieces too!!!" Venus cried.
There was silence for a moment.
Everybody had thought that possibility, but only Venus had been scared enough to cry it out loud.
Serena thought for a moment as the others continued to pelt the monsters with fireballs, heart shaped chains, huge water balls, and lightening bolts.
"I know how we can get to them!" Serena suddenly cried. "Close the cell door!"
Mars threw the door shut, and Venus locked it in place using her Venus Love Me Chain Encircle attack.
Then Mercury threw water on the metal bars, and then Jupiter hit them with lightening.
The electrified bars held the monsters back for a few precious moments.
Jupiter and Serena helped Ann to her feet, luckily for them she could stand on her own.
"Ann, stand in the middle. Scouts form a circle around her. Hold hands with each other." Serena directed.
When the Scouts touched hands with each other and the Princess they knew immediately what Serena had in mind.
They closed their eyes as Ann watched in silent anticipation.
She had heard about the Sailor Scouts, and their amazing powers. She had also heard about the Moon Princess, though not much because she had to be mostly kept secret for the first fourteen years of her life.
The Scouts and Serena began to glow their respective colors, and it looked like invisible wind blew as their skirts and hair flew upward.
Ann's long pink hair billowed as well, all up in front of her face to where she couldn't see anymore.
Then the wind suddenly died down, and she brushed the hair from her eyes, only to see a scene that almost broke her heart.
The other Ann, and the Prince were almost to each other.
The Sailor Scouts didn't need to be told what to do, they all knew what they had to do, and they did it as one.
"Mercury Aqua Illusion!!!" Mercury cried and a whole group of bubbles descended upon the room to hide the running Ann from the Prince's eyes, and the eyes of the Queen and Endymion.
Alan stopped short when he couldn't see where he was going. Endymion pulled his sword from its sheath in one swift silent motion. Queen Serenity's moon symbol started glowing as she powered up with the Impearium Silver Crystal.
"Venus Love Me Chain Encircle!"
Pluto watched in silent shock as Venus used her heart shaped chain to grab the other Ann and yanked her toward them.
Jupiter tackled the other Ann when Venus had pulled her closed enough.
Together Jupiter and Venus tied her up in the chain.
She protested a lot, and loudly.
"What are you doing? You just saved me! Why are you tying me up now? What's gotten into you?" She cried.
The bubbles lifted to show Alan, Endymion and Serenity what was going on.
Everyone was in surprise to see two Ann's, one in chains and the other standing beside Serena.
Mars quietly moved Serena away from the Ann who was still standing.
"How do we tell which one is the real one?" Jupiter cried from the floor where she sat on top of the chained up Ann. "I mean; the one standing beside you could be the fake one for all we know!"
Serena looked at the standing up Ann.
"You'll be able to tell in a moment." The standing up Ann explained. "She only copied my memories and looks. She didn't take them completely. She used this spell mainly because it was quick to use and cost less energy, but it's very short lived. The spell will wear off in a moment and you'll see for sure who the real Ann is."
Everyone in the room stayed still as a statue, waiting, watching.
The moments ticked by in a painful slowness as they all stared at the two Ann's.
The two Ann's stared at each other.
Jupiter had gotten off of the chained up Ann and was standing with the other Scouts, her muscles tensing in anticipation of a fight.
'Nephrite, Jedite, Kunzite, Zoisite.' Endymion called via his mind link to his generals.
They all answered in union.
'I'm in the Moon Palace's ballroom. I may need your help. Beryl is about to make an appearance.' Endymion stated.
'We're on our way to the portal!' They answered quickly.
A couple more minutes passed, then one of the Ann's started to change.
Her pink hair turned a dark shade of red, and turned wavy. Her skin started going purple. Her clothes started transforming from rags into the dark purple gown Beryl favored. Her body began to lengthen and change shape in places.
Yes, this time the Scouts had not made a mistake. The chained up Ann was really Queen Beryl.
Fury showed on the face of Prince Alan as he realized he had come so close to embracing pure evil.
"Hey! We have the enemy tied up!" Venus cheered happily.
But before anyone else could celebrate, Beryl vanished from her chains in a puff of dark purple smoke.
As the chains clattered to the floor with chinks and clanks, Venus turned to the others looking dejected.
"I knew it wouldn't last for long." She muttered.
Everyone heard the evil laughter that reverberated off the walls and echoed around the high domed room.
But only Serena could see the huge glowing red eyes that hung in the air in the middle of the room, staring straight at her.
This time Serena knew whose eyes they were. She knew this was no dream.
Fear pierced her heart like a knife, and she staggered back and fell over her own feet.
Queen Serenity felt the fear like it was her own, and using the Impearium Silver Crystal saw what Serena saw.
As Endymion and the Scouts rushed to Serena's side, Queen Serenity started glowing pure white.
White mist filled the air.
Serena could still see the eyes, but the eyes were now looking upon Queen Serenity.
The fear Serena felt started pulling out of her heart, and she was able to think clearer.
She wasn't a baby anymore. She wasn't helpless.
She had her friends and mother beside her, willing to help her.
She had her full powers now and she knew how to use them.
And those were just big eyes.
The evil behind them couldn't hurt her so long as she believed in herself and her friends and family.
The others helped her to stand up.
Queen Serenity threw a ball of energy at the place in the air where the eyes should be.
The eyes vanished before the ball could hit them.
That's when the generals rushed in through the ballroom entrance.
"Don't tell me, we're too late?" Nephrite said jokingly.
Jupiter snickered.
"NO!" Pluto cried as she spun around to look at the Time Gate she had forgotten to close.
Monsters started pouring out of it by the dozens.
"It seems you're just in time." Beryl's voice mocked them from the air, as the Scouts, the Moon Princess, Moon Queen, Earth Prince, Earth Generals, Showma Prince, and Ann prepared for another battle.
Would this be the one Galaxia had warned about?
The one that would tip the scales of good and evil back in the right direction?
If so, what sacrifice would good have to make?
Who would have to die?