The stone walls reached high to the ceiling, a few torches attached. Their eerie glow cast shadows throughout the room. It was a cave turned into a well-crafted room. Inside it, one could not tell how deep underground they were actually were. The ventilation system was well enough, leaving only a musky tang in the air.

In the center of the room were a few black leather coaches and a couple wooden chairs. A table sat in the middle of the arrangement, holding a glowing stone along with a thick book. Three men sat on the coach while the fourth was situated on one of the chairs.

The one on the left of the coach twisted long dirty blond locks in his hand. A piercing gaze focused on the man to the right, "I heard that your major operation you have been planning completely flopped, Jade."

"Shut up Zoi," was the only answer. He had shorter and slightly lighter blond hair and is face was marked in a scowl. Jadeite had been working on that operation as soon as he heard about it and it failed. He crossed his arms over his chest, kicking his feet up on the table.

"You didn't plan enough for it, simple as that. You lost your touch."

"I did not expect it too need extensive planning. I put up the security measures to work out any threats and sent a youma based on those reports." He irritably plucked at the arm rest, almost ripping into the leather fabric.

"And what did those reports tell you?" The man in the middle spoke up. His long brown locks framed his sharp features. He flicked his hand and the book lifted and drifted over. Nephrite flipped through the pages, annoyed at being in between the two arguing.

"There were a few dormant powers in the building and a couple active. One of them was a dormant one a few minutes before the attack." He leaned back into the coach, still trying his hand at destroying the leather.

Nephrite marked a few notes at the end of the book. Zoicite conjured a small ball of energy, flicking it in the two men's direction. It dissipated in front of the other blonde's nose. "So according to the information it was a senshi that caused the destruction of the operation?"

"Yes," Jadeite continued. "However, with the information that came, it does not match up with any that we dealt with in the past. Seeing that there were a few dormant powers we can figure out who they are before they become active."

"We just go through the list of who was at the event and kill every person that was on there. That would get more attention toward our operations that we need." Nephrite said sarcastically before closing the book. A frown marred his features as he put it back in its original place. "Kunzite, what do you think?"

The man on the chair looked over. He was easily the tallest of the four with an ornate uniform and silver hair that fell to his shoulders. He also was clearly in thought. Nobody could tell what exactly that was and confused looks went around when he suddenly stood up.

"I'm going to check on something." Kunzite walked swiftly out of the room. His voice held commanding authority and left no room for argument.

"I wonder sometimes what makes him an agreeable leader." Jadeite muttered darkly.

X_X

Usagi stared blankly at the cat, Luna. Her chestnut eyes were drowsy from sleep. This was not happening. It was all supposed to be a dream. "You're still here," her voice was hollow in shock.

"Yes, I am." Luna replied coolly. She was not impressed that the young woman refused to acknowledge her and let her explain. "Are you ready to listen to me?"

Blinking her eyes, Usagi nodded. There was nothing she could do about it. She was stuck and she might as well learn what she was stuck into.

"You are a senshi. Your duty is to find the others like you and to protect the princess."

"Who's the princess?" Usagi asked.

"She was sealed away for protection and I don't know where she is."

"Well, that's helpful."

Luna scowled, showing her sharp canines. Usagi flinched. "Also there is the Ginzuishou. It is a mythical stone belonging to the royal family. It has always been a target of capture due to its immense power."

"Where does the power come from?" Luna almost did a face plant. "I'm serious! This is all… freaky. And like… it is not supposed to possible. What makes the power? This is so unreal! I need a better explanation besides what I'm supposed to do." She promptly stuffed a pillow to her face.

"I can give you a long explanation on the theories of senshi power but I doubt you will listen." Luna rolled her eyes, in a way only a cat can. The black feline jumped up unto the bed, padding closer to the pillow-human mass so she could be heard.

"The powers derive from the planets and each of the planet's power derives from an elemental source. It is bestowed onto one female, a senshi, and they use the powers for the good of the universe."

"Sounds like one messed up sci-fi fantasy plot to me," mumbled the pillow.

Luna ignored the comment. "For example, Mars derives its power from fire-"

"The moon's not a planet." Usagi's head popped up from the pillow, hair sticking up all over the place.

"The Moon is a special case. It is a unifying power and that makes you a special senshi, a leader." The black cat extended a claw. "You better take it responsibly."

Usagi pulled back, fear of the claw flashing through her eyes. "I will! I will! This is all so sudden though. I don't know how to take it in."

The cat's eyes softened and she settled down on the bed. "It's fine. I will let that sink in. I would explain further at a later date." The black feline settled down on the bed. Part of her was afraid that if she fell asleep, she would have been kicked out or Usagi would have left without giving her a chance to state her side.

Usagi slipped out of bed and headed toward the bathroom. She gave a disbelieving look at the cat on her bed before closing the door. She started the shower. After last night, becoming all sweaty, she needed a good wash. The shower took just under fifteen minutes when she stepped out. A fluffy towel surrounded her form a second later.

Leaving the bathroom, Usagi placed her hair in her customary odongo style. She grabbed a yellow shirt to wear and a pink pleated skirt. She now looked fully awake; ready for the day.

Her phone rang. Luna picked up her head as the young woman answered the phone. "Moshi, moshi."

"Hey Usagi-chan!" A cheery voice answered from the other line.

"Naru-chan! How are you? How's America?" Naru was a childhood friend of Usagi's who went to study abroad after high school. She still had a year left of study before coming back to finish college in Japan. Usagi missed her terribly.

"Fine, it's all going fine. I have a date set up with a nice guy from a café. The weather is nice but I miss home."

Usagi nodded in agreement. "Ne, that sounds nice. I miss you! There's a lot of strange stuff going on around here lately. But everybody is fine. I recently bought a bracelet from your mom's place. You know that pink diamond one we obsessed over in high school? It's like that one but so much cheaper! Half of the stones are beads but the centerpiece is a heart-shaped white diamond."

Luna stared amazingly at the woman on the phone, amazed at how long-winded she was. Naru was used to this and only laughed. "Awesome Usagi-chan, I recently received a necklace for my birthday. Mama really misses me. But I'll be back before you guys know it."

Pouting, Usagi nodded, forgetting that her friend could not see it.

"Well, I have to go. International call rate is a pain and I promised to do a couple other calls. Ja ne!"

Usagi hung up the phone. She sighed. Her whole world was changing and- to her- a conversation to one of her closest friends was too short. Shaking her head, she started picking up her room. Throwing things into their proper place, another fifteen minutes passed when her phone rang again.

She picked up the phone, holding it up to her ear.

"Usagi-chan?"

"Ami-chan!" Guilt swept through her. With the world turning upside down, she forgot that she was supposed to meet up with her friend today. "I am so sorry! Where do you want to meet up? Don't tell me you want to cancel and go back to studying?" Her voice turned desperate.

"No, I will meet up with you. You won't like the library. How about the shopping mall a kilometer from it? That way I can drop off my book before meeting up."

"Sounds good! Gomen, I can't believe I almost forgot. I'll be there soon."

She grabbed her jacket, heading toward the door.

"Usagi!" She turned around, staring at Luna. "You cannot forget your locket! I have a list of places that had youma sightings and one of them is near-" Usagi held up her hand to make the cat shut up.

"OK, I get it." The light haired brunette grabbed the locket she disposed of on the table side counter the night before. She looked at it properly for the first time. It was circular in shape, fitting snugly in the palm of her hand. An upturned gold crescent moon was on the center. Painted around the edge was a silver vine, with golden leaves. It looked like it was a ridge but running her thumb across it the surface was smooth.

She put the locket on, giving Luna a nervous smile. It turned genuine at the thought of meeting her friend and went out the door. A moment later, the black feline followed.

X_X

Usagi was running full speed down the sidewalk. She knew Ami would not mind if she was a little late and because they have not set a time she technically wasn't. Still, she felt bad that her mind lapsed back into what it was like in her middle and high school days. In her rush she failed to notice someone else intersecting her path.

"Itai!" she screamed, falling back onto the pavement. Standing up, she rubbed her bottom. Glaring at the young man that she careened into, Usagi tried to look offended but it was hard. For one, it was her fault. The second thing was that the guy was a little handsome. Maybe it was the angular jaw, or the intense grey eyes or maybe…

"Watch it, odongo atama."

Or maybe, he was an ass and there were no sorry feelings at all. "Gomen," she mumbled. The words came less graciously then they would have before he spoke. The glare returned, "And it's Usagi, not odongo atama."

"What's with the hairstyle anyway?"

Usagi was fuming, all the feelings going toward him. He looked a couple years older than her with his black hair trimmed short, bangs brushing against his eyes. Wearing a tailored white shirt, grey vest and pants, it was a handsome look but the rude comments made her refuse to further acknowledge the fact.

"Who do you think you are?" She denied answering the question.

"Chiba Mamoru," his deep voice resonated in her ears and she shook it out in annoyance.

"Chiba-san for your information, it's fashionable, it's unique and it is me- so there." Incoming the childish comebacks she had while young. Her whole day was like it was happening in her prior years. Would she be happy of how she was acting when she got home later? Probably not, but she knew she could handle herself better.

Mamoru blinked a few times almost looking amused. Then he gave a cocky grin and bowed in his apologies. "I'm sure that you need to be somewhere in a hurry if you weren't bothering where you were going. I myself am going to be late. Sayonara." He walked away.

Usagi placed her hands firmly on her hips. What nerve! Not understanding why he was getting under her skin she sighed, brushing it off. She bolted away once more, in a hurry to meet Ami.

'My prince charming will be polite!'

X_X

Ami was leaning back on the wall when Usagi ran over. She looked up at her friend, a small smile on her lips. "Hey, how are you? I heard that the charity event ran into some trouble."

"Uh, yeah. There was this freaky youma thing but it was taken care of." Her voice was high and Ami looked at her strangely. Usagi did not want to say anything that she partaken any more in the attack then a bystander. There was no way her logical friend will believe the truth.

Deciding to shrug it off without pestering, Ami nodded. She knew that Usagi was poor at lying or keeping secrets. It would not be that hard to pry a better answer out of her. That was not the kind of person to do that to her friend.

"I'm glad that you're doing well. I called Mako-chan earlier and she was worried after she failed to see you afterward." She adjusted her small black purse on her shoulder. "Where do you want to start? You're always a leader on these shopping expeditions."

Usagi paused momentarily. It was clear the young woman was deep in thought. It was amusing what she would put her focus on. The priorities weren't the same as others and times like these kept her teenage tendencies.

"That way!" she pointed. Then they were off.

X_X

A half hour later the two friends were well equipped with a couple shopping bags. Ami had made a point not to go overboard. They were college students now, living away from home and could not go overboard on shopping expeditions. The balance between the two spending views, frugal and excited, was a good thing for both of them.

Ami switched her bags to the other hand. She watched as Usagi motioned to another store, a kid smile on her face. If she did not have her patience, the med student may have gotten irritated with her friend. As it was, they were close knit and Ami found it easy to let loose a little bit around her. She brushed her black hair out of her face, returning the smile, albeit a shy one.

"Oh! Ami-chan! That will look great on you." Usagi pointed to a light blue outfit. It was a tank top with a low u-shaped neckline- a little too low for her- along with sporty slightly darker blue skirt. It looked nice and that will transfer when she wore it but not quite her style.

"I guess. But I have enough for the day. How about you look around for yourself a little more?" They had different style views and her money for the day was running thin. She did not want to offend her companion with continuous denying what she brought to her attention. The best she could do was let Usagi focus on her wardrobe and stop her from attempting to buy a 30,000 yen dress.

As Usagi was sorting through some outfits, Ami found a chair to sit down in. It was amusing to watch the excited woman and at the same time she wished she had brought a book with her. The book would have been snatched away and would have been given a lecture over needing to loosen up. That was the usual way things went when she attempted to bring a book to one of these outings.

"Ami-chan!" she was brought out of her thoughts at the sound of her name. She glanced up at Usagi as she held up a pink frilly dress. "Do you think I should try this on?"

Ami made a face she could be more sophisticated than that. Fashion was not her forte but Usagi would look like a kid in a design like that.

"No, I guess you're right." Before Ami could utter a word the other woman disappeared within the racks once more. A smile formed on her face and she raised her hand to her mouth. There were some things that only Usagi could get out of her. She was relaxed around all her friends but she was able to pull the aspiring doctor fully out of her shell. Some conversations were best saved for others though she was most lighthearted around Usagi.

"Ok, this one should be good." She looked up once more to see her friend already changed into a different outfit. She wore short shorts, denim in material. The top was light magenta color with cap sleeves and a V-neck collar. A stylized black splatter print covered the left side and front. Chestnut eyes shined over at her searching for positive feedback.

"It looks nice." Ami said lamely. She pursed her lips for a second, "How much is it?"

"Come on, you always are like that. It isn't that much." Usagi pouted, moving back to the dressing area to change back into her normal clothes. "I will buy this and that will be enough for shopping."

Usagi was thinking of what else the two of them could do when a growl and screams erupted outside. "Oh no, no, no," her voice was hoarse. It was possible it wasn't a youma. Just some ruckus the police could take care of.

"Usagi!" Luna slipped under into the dressing room. Her feline eyes stared up at the young woman. "You need to transform!" She had been looking for her the last half hour, having lost the new senshi on her short feline legs. The black cat had eventually sensed her energy and just in time.

"I was hoping you wouldn't say that." The small woman mumbled, searching through her clothes for her locket. She decided there was no point chastising the cat for walking in on her while she was wearing nothing but her undergarments. She grabbed her locket, holding it up. "Moon Prism Power!" a second later Sailor Moon stood in her place. A gloved hand went to her forehead, feeling the cool touch of her tiara through the fabric. It was official. She was thrown into some fantasy like circumstances and she had to deal with it.

Outside, the youma stood high over the crowd. It had a sturdy trunk like body with equally thick legs and arms. The head looked small compared to everything else and bloodshot eyes glared at the surroundings. It was robed in a thick cloth, pale skin only showing with its hands and face. Eyes burned red before beams shot out.

Ami dodged to the side. She had planned to wait for Usagi outside, figuring her friend will guess where she was. Now, she was torn in deciding if her friend was hiding safely inside or if she should wait and make a sprint together.

"Moon Tiara Action!" Her eyes went over to the senshi, mind whirling like crazy. She never though she would be witness to any battles between the supernatural light and dark. The logical part of her mind quickly died out. The part that was willing to believe and took interest in these events took over. Still, what could she do about it?

The tiara bounced off the youma and it turned its attention to Moon. Their eyes met, the red eyes glowing once more. Suddenly, she screamed in pain. The more intense the glare got, the higher the scream. Attempting to advert her eyes, she failed the senshi gave up trying to think of what to do and focused on getting the pain in check. It felt like a hot flame searing through her system.

Luna maneuvered through the crowd desperately looking for the other energy she sensed. This was turning for the worse, quickly. Ami in an uncharacteristic look, gaping at the black cat, she blinked in shock. Not only did it have a crescent moon on its head but it started talking to her.

"Take this and call out Mercury Power, Make-up. There's no time to explain." Ami looked down at the blue pen that appeared at the cat's paws. She decided the best course of action was to just do it. Second guessing the situation was a bad idea.

"Mercury Power, Make-up!"

A cool rush of water surrounded her, energy flowing through her veins. The second transformation passed with a gasp. Checking her outfit, it was similar in design to Moon's with two shades of blue for her primary and secondary color. Black hair took a medium shade of blue. Mercury could tell from her bangs but now was not the time to think about what happened to her body.

She was unsure of how she knew what to do. The knowledge of what she needed to do and her identity brushed the corner of her mind. Arms going up, touching her shoulder briefly, eyes closed in concentration. "Shabon Spray!"

A thick fog covered the area and with the eye contact obstructed, Moon fell to her knees in relief. She did not know where the help came from and did not have much time to think about it.

"I think you should aim for the eyes!"

'You think?' Raising her hand she summoned her tiara, it coming to her hand through the mist. The red eyes started to glare red once more, visible in the fog and preparing to send out another energy beam.

"Moon Tiara Action!" she tried again. A low growl turned into a shriek from the youma before crumbling then disappeared.

Mercury raised her hands making the fog disappear. She walked forward, looking around before dropping her transformation. Uncertainty marked her face, the battle over her mind started going crazy on what was going on. It was a lot to take in even for the genius.

"Ami-chan!" Moon called out in delight, grinning ear to ear to see who it was. She received a weary gaze and let out a small giggle. "It's me, Usagi!" She turned back to the store. "Let me grab my bags and we can get going. I don't know how to explain because I hardly can understand it! Luna can though despite being a pushy kitty." She slipped back into the store, aiming to grab her possessions. Ami turned to give the cat a curious look, who was growling in frustration at the other woman's comment.

After a minute passed, Usagi came back outside right as the other two were deciding to go in and check on her. She was blushing, tugging at one of her pigtails in embarrassment. "So I transformed before I finished changing and was mortified with the thought. It took a minute to get my bearings back. All good now plus nobody was there anyway."

Ami gathered up her own things with a shaky smile. "I should get back home I have a few more pages of homework to do. Tomorrow I should be free and you can explain things there. I need to clear my head. I don't think I could absorb what happened or any more information otherwise." She gave a bow in apology.

Luna gave a cat-sigh at another senshi pushing back what happened for later. The feline reasoned it was a better reaction than Usagi's. Ami appeared to accept what happened and was willing to go along with it. She would give her time to mull it over.

The two friends settled on a time to call and meet up tomorrow. Usagi waved cheerfully, watching as Ami walked away. Turning toward home, she huffed, rubbing her arms tiredly. "This is going to be tougher and longer than anticipated." The excitement of figuring out the next soldier was already a good friend died turning into exhaustion. Her muscles ached from whatever the youma did to her with the gaze. She glanced at the mirror while dressing and no visible injuries showed. It was pain.

Luna purred reassuringly, rubbing against her calf. The crowds were slowly starting to take up the street again and the cat was not going to risk talking. Usagi picked her up, snuggling against her cheek. Some comfort shared between the two and they headed home.

X_X

The traffic at the shopping center returned to normal. A blond man appeared on a nearby roof from where the attack to place. Jadeite narrowed his eyes at the scene. He had detected the loss of energy coming from the area. It was a shame but there was enough success from the unit the last couple days to avoid a complete failure. The goal was to get everybody else to see it.

He snapped his fingers a green rectangle shard appeared at hand. Examining it he gave a tiny nod. He was glad some security disks got put out. Hopefully this will provide some information on what happened.

A/N: Only a couple notes to say for this chapter. First Mamoru appearance and still a little cliché, eh, I couldn't help it. Mercury and Tux deserve their own separate limelight introduction so no male heroes for this chapter. Next chapter will probably be a long wait I just had extra time and creative muses to finish this chapter. I have a long list of other things to get done before the next chapter. Sorry. -_-