Disclaimer: All characters and locations belong to their respective owners.

10.
CHRONOMANTIQUE

"So," Kino Makoto tentatively began as her eyes followed Minako's automatic, ceaseless turning, "how much longer you think she's going to be at this?"

"It's been twenty minutes," Mizuno Ami noted. She removed her gaze from the clock and joined her friend at her side. "I doubt Minako is okay, even if she's insisted time and again she is so."

"Your mom's not gonna be happy when she sees how flat that patch of lawn has gotten. Who knows," Makoto joked, "maybe she won't notice the difference. You did cut it the other day."

"Mother has a very keen sense of perception. If she can find Wally in half the time Minako makes her revolutions, you can bet she'll spot it."

"I wonder how well she'd do if we put her in a room with a hawk and have them go through a bunch of I Spy books. What do you think?"

"I'm wondering how that's relevant to Minako."

"C'mon, guess. Who would spot the most objects, your mom or the hawk?"

Ami sighed. "Well, as much as I love my mother I don't think she could win. Hawks can see up to a far greater distance and their visual acuity is eight times stronger than that of a human's. It would be like trying to swim upstream against a current traveling in the opposite direction."

"Really? I never thought of it that way."

"It is the way it is. What are you trying to get at?" Ami watched as Minako plopped down on the lawn and laid her head on her knees, appearing as though she were sulking. Artemis was at her side, ears folded back and whiskers drooping sadly. "I'm not following your analogy."

"I'm saying if we don't do something about Minako making circles in the grass, Miss Saeko's going to sink her talons into her and tear her limb from limb. And Miss Saeko can give the devil a run for his money when she's angry." Makoto shuddered. "She's so scary when she's like that. I'm glad you didn't take after her in that department." She laughed nervously and rubbed her arms. Ami glared at her, but said nothing.

Makoto exhaled a weary, drawn-out sigh. She watched from the window, and so did Ami, as Minako proceeded to lie on her back and put her arms behind her head. "Should we go as one?"

Ami nodded. "I think that would be a good idea. It's better than having one of us go alone. I can probably pick them up on the scanner."

"No need to. I can sense them just fine," Makoto jabbed a finger at her temple, grinning. "Think you can handle them?"

"It's not so much different from Martian technology." She turned to the door. "I'll see what I can do. But if it's timed or motion-activated—"

"Don't worry. I've got your back." Makoto offered her a thumbs-up. "We Jovians understand the earth better than any other planet. Well, except the Old Terran Kingdom. They had some pretty swift spotters and digouters, as far as I can recall."

"I just hope Minako is okay," Ami said quietly. "It's easy when you're following someone, but to be suddenly thrust into the position to lead…it's a whole different story." She put her hand on the doorknob and, with a reassuring nod from Makoto, turned it.

Thousands of years ago, in a previous life, Aino Minako was a hunter. The details were vague and distorted like a rain-splattered windshield, but there was enough information to provide a somewhat understandable chronicle of what had brought her to this point in her eighteen years of existence.

Minako squinted against the sun but continued to stare at the sky. Her first memory was standing to attention in Castle Magellan, shoulders squared and back ramrod straight as Artemis – then human – relating to her the contents of a mission she was to undertake. She had been nervous, apprehensive, and was unable to keep both feet planted on the floor without the other fidgeting, but she couldn't determine whether or not this mission was important or had been her first. A black gyrfalcon was perched in the nook of the room they were in, and she felt comforted and secure when she had chanced to meet its wild, impassive gaze. His name was Illidan, and next to Artemis he was her constant companion, her faithful brother-in-arms.

She was Princess Venus and she had enrolled in the planetary army to help fight against a darkness festering on the Moon Kingdom, an ancient evil from another dimension called Metalia. She was placed among a group of youths who were also hunters, boys and girls with tattooed bears, armored dogs, and horned drakes. There were other youths who were not hunters: warriors blessed with the strength of oxen, magi branded with marks of the arcane and glowing with mana stored in their bellies, rogues that could blend into the shadows and strike at the enemy with nary a sound, and many more who were of a different class. Together they were the 19th Cohort of the Venusian Royal Forces, one hundred strong and willing to sacrifice their lives for the safety of everyone in the Solar System that tried to live and prosper in a war threatening to boil over.

There were other memories, brief as a lightning strike and swift as hurricane-force winds. Grainy slideshows filmed in sepia and cracked with age. One was of the Cohort bringing up the rear as the 108th Strike Battalion charged across the blackened forest, steel slipping a farewell kiss to leather as swords flashed into the air and the sound of battle rang lustily throughout the settling twilight. She was racing to the epicenter, shadowed by a massive war elephant with blunderbuss in hand and Illidan cawing in her ear. Sweat ran cataracts between her eyes, heart pumping luscious hellfire in her veins.

Another fragment, another battle. People were fighting, people were dying. Minako was setting bear traps enchanted with wyvern venom and Neptunian naga frost glands. It was created crudely, hooked with needle-thin redstone wires planted along a mile-wide radius that, when tripped, launched the darts from its turrets. It would paralyze the enemy for five minutes max; enough time for motion sensors to spill clouds of the blue mist, freeze them in place, and have the mages or warriors make quick work of them.

Same time, different area. A squall was rolling in from the north, lightning splitting corpse grey clouds and thunder snarling after. The tide was relentless and unforgiving. Artemis was mobbed, his mana reserves run dry; one man against ten youma with nothing but a shortsword and buckler his only aid. In front of him, she and the White-Haired Man traded blows, steel clenching steel, spell canceling spell. His name was Kunzite, a brigadier general serving His Majesty the Prince Endymion of Terra, or so the report described him. He ripped from him the sash of medals and honors and deserted the Kingdom, lured with promises of power and renown from a disgraced warlock Luna Intel 7 learned was called Beryl. Nicknamed 'White Tiger of the Prairie' for his hard-hitting, brutal swordsmanship, he was hailed as one of four heroes who rallied together loyalist forces in the Battle of Shepherd's Hill and reclaimed the holy ground from Metalia's fel army. He fought as true as his name declared, breaking through her defenses with strikes that vibrated in her wrists and up her arms like a tuning fork, fighting tooth and claw to push her back and into the frothing mass of demon flesh. But she would not give in. She strained and she bled and she was beginning to crumble, but she would not allow the traitor passage. She would protect and she would retaliate, for Artemis and Illidan and all who had fallen.

Flash! Slipping in and out of consciousness, hot with fever and shivering with cold, mocking victory. "She's been poisoned," the nurse tells Artemis in hushed whisper. "What kind of poison?" he asks, fear tangling knots in his throat. "The worst kind," says the nurse with a shake of her head. "What would that be?" presses Artemis. "Grim blight," says the nurse. "The kind that strikes without a second suspicion. If the couriers are ambushed and the antidote is contaminated, then there is no hope. She will fade like the rest." "Damn that Beryl!" Artemis curses, nails dredging half-moon trenches in enclosed fists. "Damn Metalia! Damn them and their forsaken ilk!"

Flash! Rising from her cot, taking tentative steps as she shakily goes over to the rack and hugs the blade's pommel into callused hands. "You're still weak," Artemis admonishes her gently. "You've yet to fully recover." "I can't stay here," she answers defiantly. "I can't. Not while the Negaverse continues to stalk among us." "Mina." "I don't care what happens to me. I need to be out there. I have to help. You can't stop me."

Flash! The Cohort's leader has fallen from the blight and chaos ruled among the ranks, a snake without its head. What are we going to do? The Negaverse outnumbers us twenty to one! We need to retreat, call for reinforcements! No, we must surrender! We don't stand a chance! "THERE IS A CHANCE!" she calls out. Artemis tries to pull her away, wants to tell her what she's doing is brave and foolish and suicidal; but she hauls herself up on the outcrop, draws out her sword, and points it beyond their line of sight where the enemy waits. "Our numbers may not be many, our strength crippled and unequal, but our will to survive is just as strong as Metalia's! As long as our hearts continue to beat, there is still hope! THE WAR CAN STILL BE WON!"

Flash! "Illidan, no!" She bore the gyrfalcon in her arms, not caring that she was knee-deep in mud and in the heart of youma territory. An arrow protruded from Illidan's chest and blood stained the barbed metal head sunk into his plumage. Tears spilled and cut through the soot and blood caked on her cheeks. "Stay with me, Illy! Don't go! DON'T LEAVE ME!"

Flash! "…we of the Seat of Shukra award you, Private Mina Aphrodi, this honorary medal, for your outstanding courage and valor displayed in our darkest hour…." She felt the silk ribbon slide over her hair and rest on her perspiring neck. She exchanged bows with the Prime Minister and saluted, smile bright and chest swelling with pride. The medal weighed cold and heavily.

Flash! "…being transferred to the Ninth Legion stationed on Luna at Selene Point," Artemis somberly says. "LI:5 has confirmed a five-hundred percent increase in terrorist activity, portals popping up all across the globe." He ceases pacing, unbuttons the top buttons of his uniform, sighs. "It's getting bad, Mina. It may not sound like it, but Queen Serenity's running out of options. Reinforcements can only hold for so long. The strength of Metalia and Beryl combined…if this keeps on…."

If this keeps on, Minako echoed dully, mouth falling the same applied to Usagi, if Usagi didn't wake up soon, what would happen to the Sailor Senshi? To Usagi? What would happen if she never woke up? What then?

At her peripheral vision, Artemis's tail slashed a worrying pendulum through the grass. Back and forth, back and forth, like a planet's unstoppable axis.

Not long thereafter she was relocated, and it was at Selene Point she saw the wholesale extent of the Negaforce's destruction. The land surrounding the royal family's castle, Millennium Hold, and the Sea of Serenity was still as lush and green due to the All-Defense Barrier activated via the Eternity Main System, but everything outside it – everything as far as she could see through the telescope Artemis always carried on him – had been razed. The earth was dry and scorched, the trees broken and blackened like singed candle wicks. The air shimmered with heat and smoke rose in spiraling columns over the horizon, so thick and dark it blotted out the eternal night sky.

To Minako, it appeared as though the End Times was finally at hand. (And it had, the countdown had begun, but she was unaware of it. None of them were.)

There was hardly if any fighting at all while residing within Millennium Hold. Beryl's warlocks worked diligently to break through the All-Defense Barrier, and more than once their youma minions managed to breach it and make a mad dash toward the castle. Queen Serenity's wizards retaliated in response, quashing the saboteur as quickly as they could before it could cross the drawbridge and cause irreparable damage to the building…or worse, the royal family.

As the war progressed, so did the attempts. Minako's memory of that time was extremely vague, almost nonexistent like a word left blank on an exam. The only instance she could recall lending assistance to the Queen's army was when Beryl herself summoned a pit lord from Metalia's dimension, the Negaverse. Information dredged up by Serenity's turncoats revealed it to be a towering, mechanical beast known only as a fel reaver, and it was making the inevitable march toward Selene Point in an effort to destroy the force-field and lay waste to the most important base in all the Solar System. As the pit lord was bound to the physical world, Queen Serenity had pulled her trump card: a group of the most elite and magically inclined soldiers she had personally reviewed and handpicked, a group simply christened Enchant Sect, or E-Sect. They were to step through the barrier and set up a grid-work of hexes and traps along the perimeter and neutralize the threat when it arrived.

They were fast, very fast. Minako shifted through the haze and unveiled a fragment, an intense scene of herself tearing hide and tail across the battlefield as the shadow of the pit lord's smoking foot dropped like a bomb. Screams assailed her eardrums and the earth wept blood, sweat, and oil. Her heart begged to burst from her bosom. It was one of the few times she was really, truly afraid to die.

She survived. She didn't know how. She just knew she had lived through the Battle of Selene Point – scrapped, bruised, with three ribs cracked, a sprained ankle, and a broken arm, but otherwise unscathed.

The day after being discharged from the infirmary, she received a visit from Queen Serenity herself. Minako fought to bring the woman's image to clarity, then stopped and kicked herself. Of course, there was no need to. All she had to do was slap on Usagi's face and odangohairstyle. Had it really been that long since she last saw the Queen? Time, as always, never stopped for anything.

This memory Minako could recall like the lines on the palms of her hands. She had been surveying the ruins outside the All-Defense Barrier, leaning partly on the red crutch she had been given and partly against a column with grooves digging into her cast. Her mind had been drifting off, glazed over with the veil of philosophic contemplation, when the Queen's voice startled her to wakefulness.

("Good evening," she greeted with a dip of her chin. Her voice was smooth as glass and rich like liquid gold. "You are…Mina Aphrodi? The stars are lovely tonight, aren't they?"

(If Mina hadn't been in rough shape, she would have collapsed to her knee and wait until the woman had bid her stand. She tried to but almost stumbled in a heap, so instead she lifted her free arm and saluted. "Y-Yes, Your Highness!" she bumbled excitedly. "Ah, I mean, yes this is her, Third Class Hunter Mina Aphrodi of the Venusian Royal Forces 19th Cohort a-and Princess of Venus." Her throat clicked as she swallowed back nervous laughter. "I-I agree, Milady, the stars are quite the sight to behold. Well, at least inside the barrier, if you'll beg pardon, but still lovely nonetheless!"

(Queen Serenity smiled. "At ease, soldier. I am not as strict as the rumors make me out to be, but with this war escalating to fever pitch I have no choice but to harden my heart and lead my people deeper into the eye of the storm. It is not an easy task, ordering my people to march and die for their planet."

("I understand the feeling," Mina said, and she glanced at the sky. "I lead my Cohort in many battles back home. They listened when I spoke and they charged headlong when I commanded them." She sniffled and stamped the urge to cry. "I lost a few good friends in those days, one of them being my combat pet. It's one of those disadvantages you have to take in stride, no matter how much you hate it or how much you beat yourself up over it. You just have to take a deep breath and keep moving forward, because that's what everyone in the Solar System wants. Fighting may be in our blood, but it's peace we desire the most. A peace they can endure until they pass away and move on to the next world. She looked at her feet, cheeks flush with embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I tend to ramble…but, you know, it's part of the job. Rousing speeches are good for stirring up the morale, least that's what my mentor tells me."

(The Queen nodded. "I've heard about him, Artemis Damascus Shepard. I can see he has taught you well. He reminds me of my advisor, Luna Hawke. She was overseeing the injured troops during the reaver's assault."

("Luna," Mina echoed. The name caused a ripple in the dark screen of her mind. "She's that tall woman with the cat ears. I think…I think she hauled me to the tents when that machine fell." She trailed off, uncertain if that was indeed the right person. "I don't remember."

("Luna is an exceptional healer, one of the best on the Moon. You were one among many in critical condition she started treating. Artemis was worried you wouldn't make it through the night."

(Mina gave a single bark of laughter. "But as you can see, Your Highness, I am still standing! Kunzite couldn't take me down and neither did that fel reaver. A soldier doesn't fully rest until the head of the cow is chopped off and the white flag is raised!"

("I believe you meant 'head of the snake', Princess Aphrodi."

("Beg pardon?"

("If you wish to dispose of a leading figure and throw his followers into disarray, you cut off the head of a snake. A snake is often represented as a symbol of evil."

("…Oh," Mina said dumbly, eyes shifting left and right. "So…all this time it was a snake and not a cow. Like in that one story about the group of people that built and worshiped a gold calf…but I guess the animals mixed up." She rubbed her neck and gave the Queen a sheepish smile. "Well, I learned something new today."

(Serenity laughed, and to Mina it was like a ringing of church bells signaling dawn's first light. "You're something else, Princess Aphrodi. I don't believe I have had a genuine laugh in…quite some time, actually. The war tends to lead me astray from more important matters, not as a sovereign but a mother." Her face darkened, and the air grew somber.

("How has she been?" asked the hunter. "Your daughter?"

("Serena is faring well," Serenity answered, "and for that I admire her strength. She's just like her father, always calm in times of crisis." It was her turn to sniffle. "Sometimes I think it's unhealthy of her to remain so impassive…but my foremothers have been reputed to have been strong, unflappable creatures in their time of reign." A rueful smile touched her lips. "I suppose the gods have decided to pass on this suffering widow…."

("That's not true!" Mina exclaimed. "It's not your fault things have turned out this way! The sack of the Bay of Rainbows, the King's assassination, the Cosmic Pantheon's razing, those were beyond our control. But we're still here! Selene Point and Millennium Hold are still standing. If we can just push back a little harder, I'm sure we can take back what was lost and rebuild them!"

("But therein lays the problem: Metalia has the ability to conjure droves of maleficent beings with only a mere thought. We as humanity are limited in number."

("What about finding the entrance to the Negaverse? If we can open a big enough portal, we can send our forces to the other side and put a stop to Metalia once and for all."

("My councilors and I have thought the same thing, but you must remember it takes a lot of warlocks – and even more mana – to conjure a gateway to the Negaverse. As for Metalia, she is a creature comprised of pure dark matter. She is, in a way, the source of fel magicks in the galaxy."

("Have you ever actually confronted Metalia?"

("No, but we as a global force are aware she cannot be physically damaged. I don't believe even the strongest magic can harm her."

("Then how do we go about this?" Mina posed. Defeat surely sounded like the proper option, but heavens and hell below knew Mina was not the kind of person to surrender so easily. No, she would not give up. There had to be a way. Every enemy had a weakness, even tough ones like Kunzite; Artemis had hammered that into her brain so many times it made her want to pull her hair out. If Metalia couldn't be hurt neither by solid weapons nor fazed by arcane spells, what could?

(An idea illuminated the corridors of her mind. "What about Beryl? She's a warlock, a very powerful one at that. What if we capture her? Does the Lunar army have its own T&I unit? If we take her prisoner, we can force her to create a door to the Negaverse. We can learn the secrets on how to best deal with Metalia!" Minako's chest swelled with pride. It was on the spur of the moment, but it was a brilliant plan. It was sure to work!

(Except the Queen shook her head and the featherless weight the hunter carried in her was instantly crushed by strength-enchanted steel. "It is a sound plan, but I'm afraid it cannot be done. Beryl is corrupted by Metalia and has become an extension of her." She pressed her lips to a thin, firm line. "I have seen it myself. I have felt it…and it is nightmarish. It is far beyond anything the Solar System has ever witnessed. And with the way things are—" she paused, inhaled a lungful, sighed—"if the war continues like this, then the galaxy will be lost, and so too will our freedom."

(Mina clenched her fists, heard the leather of her gloves creak and crackle. "There has to be something we can do."

("No," said the Queen in a too calm voice. "There is nothing we can do. We are too few and stretched too far to return the favor in our hand."

(She ground her teeth. A muscle in her cheek twitched like an irregular heartbeat. "Then what do you suggest we do?"

("There is nothing you can do," Serenity reiterated. "But I can."

("You?" Mina sputtered, then more composedly, "How can you end the war? You're just one person…and Metalia…!"

("I understand. My power alone cannot compare to the might of an abomination. I am, of course, merely human." A beatific smile suddenly spread the lady's mouth. "There is only one thing that can and it lies at the center of the moon, sleeping eternally until a time requires it to awaken and casts its light into the deepest darkness."

("And what's that?"

("The Holy Silver Imperium Crystal: the crown jewel of the Goddess Selene…and the royal family heirloom."

("The Silver Imperium Crystal?" Mina exclaimed. She took a step back, toppled back, and caught herself on the pillar. In a lower voice she added, "You mean it's real? It actually exists?"

(Serenity nodded. "It does. It has been under the satellite for over a thousand years, well before my ancestors established its place in war-torn Luna. The Silver Crystal was a gift presented to my forefather the first King from Selene Herself, that Her Light would always banish evil to the shadows of the universe should we ever be unable to overcome insurmountable odds." She turned and gazed out at the stricken land. "This is one of those times, Princess Aphrodi. Selene must be called once more." The Queen whirled around and pinned Mina with the bluest pair of irises the latter ever held. "I will journey tomorrow and retrieve the crystal. With it in hand, I shall confront and destroy Metalia and Beryl permanently."

("You can't do that!" Mina cried. "You can't," she whimpered. "If…If the stories are true, then by using the crystal you'll—"

("All is fair in love and war," said the Queen, unfazed by the outburst. "I shall throw away the vessel of my life, and in my place the world shall know peace. The skies will no longer rain blood and fear."

("What about your daughter? Who's going to be there when she ascends the throne? Who's going to be there when she weds in holy matrimony and her only flesh and blood isn't present to congratulate her?" She clenched her fists, and with a frustrated growl threw her arms out before her, indicating the Sea of Serenity and the mainland. "Your royal guard is nothing compared to Beryl and Metalia. Who's going to protect her?"

("Why, you are, Princess Aphrodi."

(A thunderclap of shock reflected on her face like an open book. "…What? But…why me? Can't you assign a few soldiers from E-Sect? They're the best of the best and I'm…I'm just a hunter! I don't know how to use magic!"

("Power and magic alone are not what makes a soldier," said the Queen sagely. "Rather, it is the courage that shapes the person for who she is. Determination, honesty, loyalty, kindness, and trust; these attributes as a whole create potential, and with that potential comes great promise. That is what I see in you, Mina Aphrodi. In you, there is a desire to protect those you love and those who are weaker than you. In you, you yearn to not destroy but to recreate."

(And before Mina could react the Queen Serenity stepped forward and took the hunter's hands in her own. "You're not the only one. I have spoken to three other young women throughout the Solar System, and they have agreed to join together in a single, united force called the Sailor Soldiers. These women I have collected are the strongest and most resourceful among their kin, and as Sailor Soldiers they would represent their respective planet as both warrior and morale standard. However, they do not have the years of experience that you possess. They need someone to guide them, to teach them. A great leader makes for an even greater force." She squeezed those hands, and said, "Will you lead the Sailor Soldiers, Mina Aphrodi, through times of peace and times of war?"

(Shyly, Mina lowered her gaze. "I don't know," she said quietly. "I don't think I have what it takes to carry that kind of responsibility. If I lead those girls and I make a mistake, it could cost us more than just our lives; one false move would mean the death of you, your daughter, and the fall of the Kingdom. I…wouldn't want that on my conscience."

("It's not easy being a leader," said Serenity, "least of all governing an entire satellite. A leader has to listen and solve peoples' problems, attend meetings with various planetary figureheads, and fill out tons and tons of paperwork." She giggled. "Sometimes it's so boring I find myself wishing I had been born to a normal lifestyle. Still, being a leader has its benefits. She can choose to ride into battle or direct the course of war from her throne. She can change the way a team works with just a few words, so long as she discusses it with her consorts beforehand. She can strengthen the bond between sisters off the field. Most of all, and most importantly, a leader must know when it is time to die, for each battle she fights is a like traversing a tightrope over a yawning gorge. Your choices could either mean everyone's survival…or their deaths.

("Were it under different circumstances I would allow you privacy to contemplate, but time is not on our side. A decision must be made, Princess Aphrodi, so what say you? Will you or will you not lead the Sailor Soldiers?"

(Mina sighed; time really wasn't with them, was it? Thoughts and possibilities raced through her brain like an antivirus scan, epileptic flashes dissipating and resurfacing between blinks. Then, she arrived at an impasse, and asked, "How far is it from here to where the Silver Imperium Crystal is?"

("It depends on the mode of transportation," answered the Queen. "By ark it would take several hours; however, I do not trust the skies to treat us kindly, for Metalia's aspects may lay in wait. I will go by steed and bring with me a retinue from E-Sect so that they may hide our presence from unkindly sights. The journey will cost two days on the road, and while I am gone I shall have you, Luna, and Artemis oversee the council and war efforts. I should like to hope it will only be two days, because that is how long it usually takes, but that is if we are not intercepted. It could be a week before we reach the Moon's center."

("Forgive me if I'm being rude, but this whole plan seems to have been cobbled together rather suddenly. Wouldn't it have been better if you had brought this to my attention sooner?"

("I admit the plan was made in haste and without prior judgment, but…whether or not I had told you at an earlier time, the outcome would still be the same: you would not have understood then, and you will not understand now."

("Of course I'd understand! We're allies! Our views are different and some people may not agree, but I'm a pretty open-minded person, see, so surely your right can't be that bad. All's fair in love and war, you said so yourself. It's all for the sake of the Kingdom and our freedom."

(Queen Serenity shook her head. "You are a kind girl, Mina Aphrodi, but I can't tell you. Not yet. Somewhere, someday, it will all make sense. You'll understand, I promise you so." She turned her gaze heavenwards and settled upon the blue-green jewel that was Terra.

(Mina frowned. She hadn't expected any of this to be happening. She didn't think the war would come so close to the Kingdom, but that was how war worked, didn't it? It rears up like some looming, herculean wave, and when its shadow is thrown across every pane and flower and shrouds day in twilight it descends like a blazing meteorite and devours every beast and person and object beneath a tide of crushing suffocation. War had always been that way, and it would never change save the art of war.

(Mina didn't want that. This was not the life she wanted for anyone to lead, now and in the future. She didn't want anyone to suffer, regardless of the hypocrisy that particular thought presented. Thus she decided. "I'll do it, Your Highness. I will lead the Sailor Soldiers to the best of my ability. You have my word as a Princess of Venus and fellow compatriot of the Solar System Alliance."

(And so was Mina Aphrodi's fate sealed.)

Not long after she had made that announcement, Queen Serenity led her to a chamber beneath Millennium Hold. There the three other girls waited – paladin Raye Gradivus of Mars; priestess Amy Enodios of Mercury; and warrior Lita Fulgens from Jupiter. They were gathered around a pedestal that held a beautiful red gem, and this gem, Serenity explained, was called the Roseate Imperium Crystal. It was presented as a gift from the first King of Terra to the first King of Luna in ages past, when they signed a treaty that would open all airspaces to travel between planet and satellite. The Roseate Crystal, the legend goes, was said to be created by the Old Gods, which contained a fragment of the entity's power as they took turns forging it from the most ancient, raw materials in the universe. This jewel, with a simple yet lengthy incantation, could transcend the mortal spirit and imbibe them with strength unlike anything they had ever seen or known.

And by the Gods, did it ever. It felt as though every pore in her body had opened and screamed bloody murder, such was the agony that swallowed her whole like a behemoth waterfall. Sliding bamboo splinters under fingernails was like pinching the skin on the underside of a person's arm. Minako thought she saw herself writhing on the floor, legs kicking and thrashing, hands pulling at hair to reveal the grey matter causing her so much pain so she could throw it and hear the slick, juicy impact as it splattered all over the wall.

Then the pain subsided, and gradually she awoke to the glow of a warm light. She felt weak, exhausted, but at the same time more alive than she had ever been in her short life. It was though her blood had been drained and replaced with sweet, liquid fire, her nerves sparking with electric nirvana. Her body weighed no lighter than a wisp of cloud.

It was the most amazing feeling in the world. And it was all hers, no one else's save their own.

That was the day they became the Sailor Soldiers. No longer were they Mina, Raye, Amy, and Lita, but Venus, Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter. They were the Inner Court Senshi, and they guarded Princess Serenity – Serena – with their lives.

Then a month passed, and Metalia appeared above Millennium Hold. It was not an invasion, but a cataclysm.

It would have been worse, much worse. The damage would have spanned entire galaxies had it not been for the Queen's intervention.

"A thousand years sure doesn't feel like a long time," Minako said aloud. She raised an arm and stretched her hand out toward the sun. "What do you think happened to us before we reincarnated? Were we in heaven? Hell? Or were we in limbo, sleeping until the day we returned to the physical plane of existence?"

"I couldn't tell you, Mina," sighed Artemis. "Nobody knows the answers to those questions. It's one of those things people tend to avoid for good reason." A heavy, awkward pause hung in the air. "Why do you ask?"

"I wonder where Usagi is right now," Minako replied. "What sort of dreams she's having while the heart monitor is operating at her bedside. Must be nice, being inside your own head while the world around you passes by."

"Mina…!"

"Hey, I never said I condoned her being attacked. What happened to Usagi was horrible, and because of that we're minus a damn good leader. Had it taken place in the Silver Millennium during wartime, Queen Serenity would have drilled the unlucky fella under a spotlight until he wet himself with terror. But me, I don't play that way. You attack the Princess you attack all the Sailor Soldiers, and when you attack us you attack me. Gods help the poor bastard who did this; when I find him,"—Minako closed her fist on the sun—"I will make him rue the day he was conceived!"

Artemis's ears dropped even lower, as low as they could possibly go. "But…Mina…the Sailor Senshi aren't totally helpless. You're a leader, too. The original leader, when you look back on its founding."

Minako scoffed. "How can I be? A leader's supposed to be brave and fearless, keeping her calm in even the most hopeless situations." She looked away and let her arm drop to her side. "All I've been doing is making circles in the floor wherever I go. A leader shouldn't have to worry so much."

"You worry because you're human," said Artemis. "It's only natural for anyone to feel that way when something bad happens to them. That's nothing to be ashamed about."

"And I know I shouldn't…but….it shouldn't be this way. Not now. Not ever." She sat up and wrapped her arms around her knees. "Usagi didn't ask for this. Usagi just wants to live her life the way she wanted, you know? Because sooner or later time's going to go by and Crystal Tokyo will be here before you know it. When that time comes, Usagi will have to stop being a Sailor Soldier and become a woman, a Queen among people." She stared into Artemis's blue eyes. "It's a long time coming, but Usagi needs to be loved and protected by her retinue until then. If we don't, what will become of Earth? What will become of Chibi-Usa if Usagi is lost? I can't let that happen. I can't let any of that happen. To allow those events to pass will be not only my biggest failure but Queen Serenity's as well, and that's not something I want to live with for the rest of my life. I won't allow the other Senshi to carry that burden."

"Oh, Minako!" Artemis cried. He walked up and brushed the top of his head against her leg. "I have faith in you. I always have and I always will! I'm your friend, remember? You can always talk to me if you're ever feeling blue; that's why I'm a cat and I have big ears!"

That line had broken down the barriers. It made Minako break out laughing with in a gorgeous, sunny smile as she scooped the cat into her arms and hugged him. "Artemis Damascus Shepard, I don't know what I'd do without you…!"

KA-BOOMF!

"Aaah!"

"Ami, your hair's on fire! Stop, drop, and roll! STOP, DROP, AND ROLL!"

"Dropping and rolling!"

What the hell? Minako looked over her shoulder and did a double take. Makoto and Ami were ten feet away, and, sure enough, Ami was on the ground, rolling back and forth and back and forth like a pig in mud. And her hair was indeed on fire – not ablaze, but as though she was wearing an orange, dancing, burning sort of crown.

It was the strangest sight, seeing Ami move like that.

"Huh," said Minako. "So that's where I put the Explosive Trap at."

"You set a trap?" Artemis exclaimed.

"I didn't want to be bothered! Besides, I was in the mood for something fiery!"

"Is it out yet?" Ami asked when she got to her feet. She ran her fingers through her hair and shook her head of ashes.

Makoto licked her thumb and forefinger, reached out, and pinched a sizzling blue strand to smoke. "You are now."

"What are you two doing?" Minako asked. "Better yet, how long have you been standing there, listening to me ramble on and on?"

Makoto's eyes widened. "You noticed?"

"I'm a Sailor Soldier. We have the same talents, you know. Well, almost the same talents." Her gaze dropped to Makoto's bosom. The latter squeaked and folded her arms over them, her face cherry red.

Ami sighed. "It's true, Minako, we've been here for a good while. We heard everything you said while I was, erm, trying to deactivate the trap. About the Silver Millennium, the creation of the Sailor Senshi, you being made leader by Queen Serenity…."

"I didn't say anything. I was thinking to myself."

"Quite the contrary, actually," said Makoto. "We just want to let you know that if there's anything troubling you, you can always talk it over with us."

"Eh?"

"We're all under a lot of strain right now," said Ami, "but we'll get through this, Minako. We're Sailor Soldiers and as a team we have to support each other every step of the way."

"Yeah, you don't need to worry! That's why we're here, so we can lift the weight off your shoulders and make your job as leader a little easier!" Makoto clapped a strong hand on Minako's shoulder.

Minako pouted. "You really shouldn't. As a matter of fact, nobody offered to help Heracles when he had to bear the weight of the world beneath him and he's done a pretty good job keeping global destruction from happening!"

"That would be Atlas, Mina," Ami corrected her. "Heracles was a hero in Greek mythology that searched for atonement by committing himself to the Twelve Labors."

"Oh, what difference does it make? They're both men and very strong!"

"We're going to help you either way," Makoto chided the girl gently. "You'll do more than hurt yourself if you stress too much, and we can't have that if you go down for the count. What would Usagi say?"

Minako averted her gaze and stared at her hands. She thought for a moment, sighed. "I guess I can ease off my high horse a tiny bit," she mumbled reluctantly. "'S not like we're gonna be fighting for a while, anyway."

"That's the spirit!" Makoto gushed. Minako rolled her eyes.

"But we can't be too lax," Ami added. "There's still the matter of who – or what – attacked Usagi."

"Ami is right," said Artemis. "We have to vigilant at all times for the enemy may still be in Azabu-Juuban. He may be watching us right now, reading into our words and actions."

"Could we be facing a rogue, then?" Minako asked curiously.

"It's very possible; that or we could be dealing with one who is light of foot and clever of mind. Enemies don't have to be supernatural to be considered a threat."

"So we could be overanalyzing this. It could have been some punk off the street for all we know."

Artemis nodded. "That is also likely…but I wouldn't hold my breath. Stranger things than this have occurred before."

"Then let's assume your previous theory is correct." Minako scanned the street, left to right, right to left. "We'll have to come up with a schedule that won't interfere with our civilian activities."

"That's going to be pretty difficult to manage," said Ami.

"That hasn't stopped us before," countered Makoto. "All that time spent eliminating youma and otherworldly, and we still have time to study for exams."

"We'll find a way around that problem," said Minako. "I'll text Rei and let her know. You two should do the same for—hey, is that Mami over there?" She strained her neck forward and caught a glimpse of a blonde head tilted back studying the clouds.

"Mami?" Makoto parroted confusedly.

"Tomoe Mami," said Ami. "Rei introduced us to her at Crown Arcade the other day, remember?"

Makoto's eyes alighted in recognition. "Oh! You mean the girl with her hair done up in drills." She laughed. "I was wondering why I kept thinking about Gurren-Lagann after we left."

"Yeah, that is Mami!" Minako gushed, ignoring the exchange between the two Inner Senshi. "She looks like she needs somebody to talk to. I'm gonna go see what's up!" She dropped a startled Artemis to the ground, hopped to her feet, and flew across the trampled lawn. "MAMI! HEY, MAMI!"