"Sooo, why are we going to the Headmistress's office again?" Serena asked as she and her fairy acquaintances made their way up a small staircase the next morning.
"She said she had important news," Bloom replied. "Maybe the specialists finally found Baltor's hideout!"
"They'd better have." Serena's eyes narrowed. She was starting to get pretty sick of this wretched Baltor. At least if they caught him then everyone would shut up about how evil he was. Seriously, every time someone mentioned his name she was starting to feel the desire to strangle herself with her own pigtails.
"That's the spirit!" Musa cheered, misinterpreting her tone.
However when they arrived they found the whole senior class gathered around the Headmistress's desk. Faragonda herself looked at them with a grim expression.
"Come in girls," She ushered. "Late last night Baltor attacked Light Rock Fortress. I'm sorry to report that after a fierce battle, he took all of their magic spells!
"Light Rock has one of the most powerful spell collections in all the realms!" Flora said worriedly.
"And they have one of the most powerful defence systems as well!" Tecna added.
Serena kept quiet, she knew Baltor was just assaulting these places in a poor attempt to reassert his manliness after getting his ass kicked by one of her Sailor teams.
"Both of those facts are true. Baltor is amassing more and more power."
"Wait a second, what about the attack on Mermaid?" Layla remembered. "Didn't he manage to take any power from there?"
Faragonda shook her head. "Fortunately Mermaid was well protected by the planets Chu, Coronis and Mau, due to an old agreement they share. Nonetheless, Baltor is powerful even without Mermaid's magic, and we have to stop him before he gets hold of all our magic spells and becomes invinicible!"
"But how?" Bloom asked. "We can't even find him!"
"We'll start with the last place he attacked, Light Rock. There must be some magical traces that he left behind that will give us a clue."
"Alright! When do we get started?" Serena cheered enthusiastically. She'd always loved field trips, as they were an excuse to get away from studying. However as she looked around at everyone her demeanor couldn't help but droop at their sympathetic expressions, as if she was missing something.
"Serena I think it is best if you were to stay here at Alfea while we search Light Rock." Faragonda said gently.
"Huh? Why?"
"I'm afraid it will be too dangerous for you, the traces of Baltor's magic could also alert him to your presence."
"AGAIN?" Serena mentally facepalmed in frustration. It was bad enough hearing this lecture from people her own age let alone a teacher. "But everyone else is going!" She exclaimed, gesturing to the large crowd of fairies being informed of the expedition.
"Don't worry, the pixies are staying here too!" Layla remembered. Brightening, Flora turned to the Moon princess. "They'll be able to keep you company!"
"Joybunnies." Serena muttered grumpily.
000
Later Faragonda had assembled the class of Seniors outside the gates of Alfea with Griselda. The pixies had come to see them off and, after much deliberating on whether they deserved it or not, so had Serena and Luna.
"Ok Pixies, listen carefully," The headmistress instructed them. "Baltor might take advantage of our absence and sneak into Alfea. So, be on the lookout!"
"Don't worry Ms Faragonda! You're talking to the pixie of passages!" Lockette proclaimed, brandishing her hairclip key. "I'll go and put a spell on all the entrances and exits in and out of the school!"
"Thanks anyway but we already have a powerful spell protecting the school!" At this Faragonda activated the force field barrier with a flash of green magic. "Although I would be grateful if you and the other pixies would look after Serena while we are away!"
"Hmmph!" Serena turned away so the others couldn't see her scowl. Luna rested her head on her shoulder sympathetically.
Meanwhile Bloom was saying her own goodbyes. "I'm sorry Kiko but you can't come! You're too tiny!" She placed her hands on the barrier.
"What is going on today? You'd think we shrunk the way everyone keeps calling us tiny!" Digit was getting more and more put out.
"Tell me about it, I'm normal size and I still get left out!" Serena said indignantly, causing Ms Faragonda to look in her direction.
"Serena, I hope you understand. This is for your own good! Imagine what would happen if Baltor were to get his hands on you!" She said with concern.
"Hmm." Serena kept quiet, thinking about what had already gone down when she met the dark wizard.
She turned to all of the pixies. "For now I'm counting on you to keep an eye on her until we get back."
"Don't worry, I think we should be able to handle that!" Digit remarked, crossing her tiny arms.
000
The one good thing about being left behind was that now Serena was free to talk to Luna and practice her energy sensing without having to hide her secrets from anyone.
Well she had thought that at first, but with the pixies following her it had become impossible to find a moment alone.
"Look I know you're doing your job but I didn't think Ms F meant for you to be this thorough!" She told them as she opened the door to the ladies bathroom. "Take a little break, no one will know!"
"But Ms Faragonda told us to look after you!" Chatta proclaimed. "We can't let her down!"
At that moment Tune flittered over. "Chatta, a lady needs her privacy!" She scolded, before smiling at Serena.
"We will be in the courtyard if you require any assistance!" She told her sweetly before departing, firmly steering Chatta in the same direction.
Once safely inside a cubicle Serena crouched down on the closed toilet seat with a sigh of relief.
"Is the coast clear?" Luna squeezed herself into the already small space from under the green door.
"Yeah," The girl relaxed her posture slightly against the wall. "I thought they'd never leave! Seriously if I'd known there was gonna be this much sneaking around and keeping power secrets I would have joined the Rare Hunters!"
The feline rolled her eyes. "Wait a minute, where's the Luna book? I thought the whole purpose of finding an empty space was so you could practice strengthening your magic!"
"Way ahead of you there!" Serena winked as she pulled out a tiny white square from her pocket. Luna gasped as the girl made it levitate into the air and revert to its original size with a snap of her fingers. Slowly the book floated back into her hands.
"See Luna?" Serena grinned. "Sometimes I do pay attention in class!"
000
Following a few hours of trying to practice strengthening her aura in a cramped cubicle, Serena decided that she deserved a break. After all, Luna had to admit she had made some progress with energy sensing, and even she was impressed at how much the aura meditation had worked in such a small space. All she needed now was some company to see if it worked.
Sure enough, on strolling out into the sunshine, she could feel waves of disgruntled disappointment emanating off a few of the pixies that were gathered on a nearby bench.
"Rough day huh?" She sighed, sitting herself down.
"They're treating us like we're some kind of little dolls who don't know how to behave on the battle field!" Tune remarked, delicately dusting the space next to her.
"I don't know about you guys but I for one am offended!" Digit exclaimed.
"Just because we're small doesn't mean we're not tough!" Chatta added crossly.
"You know, I don't think it's just about being small," Serena looked up at the blue summer sky.
"So how come you're stuck here like us?" Digit asked, flying up to the girl's face.
"Some crap about Venusaur wanting my powers, last time I checked he wanted Bloom too and no one's stopping her going anywhere!"
"Huh? A Venusaur? My data banks say that such a creature only exists in Earth video games!" Digit was confused.
"Oh, you know," Serena snapped her fingers. "Evil guy, goes round stealing magic, maroon coat, I could never remember his name!"
"Oh you mean Baltor!" The pixie sniggered. "Good one!"
"Whoa." Suddenly Serena sensed a strange feeling of foreboding washing over her. She bent forward as she placed a hand on her forehead.
"Serena? Are you ok?" Amore flew over worriedly.
"Whoa, headrush," Serena was still spaced out. "I can't help but feel something bad is going down and someone's in danger.
Just then they heard a bang on the barrier and they looked up to see Livy floating by the gate. Digit flittered over to her.
"Hey Livy! Are you here to deliver a message to us by any chance?" Digit spread her tiny arms, eager for any news.
After a few moments of mixing up the word order, the small messenger perked up at realizing the original message. "Oh yes that's right! Now I remember! You're supposed to come quickly because the witches are getting ready to attack the village and the pixie spell treasure is there. All the pixies are at the harvest ceremony and the village is empty, we need your help right away!"
"We've got ourselves a mission!" Digit exclaimed happily at the other pixies.
"Come on little creatures of the forest! We've got to defend our village!"
"Yeah, sure, you guys go, I'll be there in a sec," Serena waved them off with one hand, the other covering her forehead. She squeezed her eyes shut in concentration, trying to find the source of the distress magic.
"Serena? What's wrong?" Tune flew over to her. "You can tell us!"
Suddenly Serena looked up at Livy. "You were there in the forest with some others, right? Who else was with you?"
"Hmm, let's see now, Zing was there, she told me to get help because the witches had captured Glim!"
"Huh?" Serena gasped. "So that's where the energy is coming from!" She thought. "Because she's my bonded pixie we must have some kind of connection!"
"She's my bonded pixie!" She exclaimed aloud. "I've got to find her!"
With that she raced into the forest.
000
Glim looked up at her captors in terror as they towered over her. If she hadn't been caught in Stormy's twister she would still be safe in the trees. Not to mention Darcy had carved a creepy image of Baltor's face onto a nearby rock. She wished Serena or the Winx were here to make fun of it and therefore make it less scary.
"Hey aren't you one of those mini-fairies that hang out with those Alfea losers?" Stormy was saying, unconsciously tightening her hold on the pixie.
Glim continued to struggle. "What did she say?" Stormy was confused. "Did you understand that?"
"No she's talking baby talk." Icy shook her head in disdain, her long ponytail waving side to side behind her.
"Hold up I just had a major brainstorm. Don't these pixies have a bunch of ancient spells and charms and whatnot?
"Yeah just the same as all other magical beings, so what?" Icy made it clear she didn't know nor care about where her younger sister was going with this.
"So I propose that the one who gets their spell treasure first also gets Baltor and all of his power! What do you think? Is that a perfect solution or what?"
"Wait a second!"
"Huh?" Icy and Stormy both looked up at Darcy, who was looking at the pixie in Stormy's hand with a thoughtful expression.
"I have a better idea. If its in distress, that will alert its bonded fairy!" She told them, pointing at the pixie. "If I could intervene, I could find out who it is, and maybe get them to find Pixie village for us!"
Icy raised an eyebrow. "So what? You're just gonna swipe the advantage and take Baltor all for yourself?"
"It's better than trying to decipher baby talk." Darcy pointed out, gesturing to the pixie in Stormy's hand. Scowling slightly the youngest witch handed Glim over to her older sister.
Darcy focused her power. She tried to hone in on the connection between the pixie.
Suddenly an image of Serena flashed before her eyes. "Oh this is too perfect!" She inwardly lit up at the opportunity. "If I take on this Sailor Moon and get the crystal I'll get over this slump for sure!"
"Well?"
The enquiry made her eyes snap open to see Icy and Stormy staring at her expectantly.
"Did you find them?" Stormy pressed.
"I… you see…INSTANT DARKNESS!" Darcy quickly threw a spell at them, encasing them in a black mist in their imaginations and knocking them off their feet. When the fog had cleared she was gone.
"…That wiatch!" Stormy exploded.
000
"Glim? Gliiim! Where are you?" Serena called desperately, holding up a low hanging branch of a tree to make her way deeper into the forest.
"Well, well, you showed up after all!" The smooth feminine voice remarked from behind her.
"Huh?" She whirled around to see Darcy standing in the clearing, grinning evilly as she held up the squirming pixie in her gloved hand.
"Hey! Let her go!" The blonde pointed at Glim angrily.
"I'll make you a deal, I'll release the pixie if you hand over your crystal, Sailor Moon." The witch replied.
"What?" Serena froze as a panic shot through her like an electric bullet. Glim's huge amber orbs widened as she looked up at her captor, still struggling to get out of the tight gloved grip.
"Sailor Moon," Darcy repeated with a nasty grin. "I know your little secret."
Serena stood, frozen to the spot as her brain whirred into overdrive, desperately trying to think of a solution.
"Bu-but that's impossible!" She gasped. "How-"
"Your little transformation on Mermaid." Darcy said smoothly. "You're lucky I haven't told Baltor…yet!"
"How did she find out?" Serena was asking herself. "I can't let that loser wizard find out who I really am! But if I don't do something then Glim will get hurt!"
"Let her go!" She ordered the dark witch. "This is between you and me, she has no part in this!"
"Then seal the deal sailor." Darcy ordered. "Transform and fight if you're brave enough!"
Serena produced her brooch with a hard glare, flashing the reflected light on the golden surface in Darcy's direction. The witch nodded and uncurled her fingers, releasing Glim. The pixie instantly fluttered over to Serena's side with an anxious expression.
"Stay back Glim!" Serena turned to the pixie. "This could get dangerous!"
Glim looked a little put out but obligingly flew over to a hole in a nearby tree where she could still keep an eye on her fairy, as the blonde assumed her beloved battle stance.
"MOON ETERNAL POWER!"
Darcy had to keel backwards to shield herself from the bright flash of positive energy that surrounded her opponent for a brief few seconds before it dissolved, leaving the famed intergalactic Senshi herself. Curiously this time she was not wearing a mask, without it, her face was still the same as Serena's except for the golden Crescent Moon engraved on her forehead.
"Ok ok," The brunette signaled a time out with her purple covered hands. "How did I not get that sooner?"
Sailor Moon shrugged. " There's a special shield magic that comes with the transformation, prevents anyone finding out my secret id. I never had to wear a mask back home! Of course it helps that no one in this dimension has never heard of me before," She added as an afterthought.
Darcy fired a dark energy blast but Sailor Moon skipped neatly out of the way. This battle continued for a while, with the witch desperately trying to hit her target and the Sailor Scout dodging or deflecting the dark magic.
"You know," Moon eventually leant against a tree to catch her breath. "I never did get your name!"
"It's Darcy." The young witch was equally exhausted, if not more so than the Sailor Scout, and also irritated at her inexplicable inability to catch this wretched warrior. "And since I've given you something personal now you pay me back! Now give me the silver crystal!"
"Yikes!" Moon jumped back yet again to stop her precious item from being swiped. "What's with her energy?" She wondered, feeling the restricted yet conflicted emotions swirling around the dark witch. "Maybe I can use that, and then no one gets hurt!"
"Why?" She asked aloud.
Darcy sighed. "Look, I've got a job to do, if I get that crystal, Baltor will get his power and rule the universe!"
"And then what's gonna happen to you?"
The one fear that had been plaguing Darcy's mind since Baltor had been released, the source of all her doubts, that she had refused to confront for so long, was voiced outright by this Alfea trainee.
"I…uh… My sisters and I will rule the universe of course! And Baltor will make me his main witch!"
Serena looked at her sadly. "Is that really what you want?"
"…What?!" Darcy stopped in her tracks. Did she really just hear that question? That brutally honest question she'd been desperately trying to ignore?
"I said is that what you want?" Sailor Moon repeated calmly.
"Uh- of course it's what I want!" Darcy was quick to retaliate; a little too quick to sound believable.
Serena focused her energy hard, and sure enough began to feel the soft white aura surrounding her. "Do you still want it so badly?" She asked sadly. "All those years of failing, worth it for just one moment?
Darcy stood there, frozen the spot where she stood. No matter how hard she tried to deny it, she was trapped. Her silence spoke volumes.
"You know you don't have to do this," Serena told her. Darcy desperately tried to avoid eye contact but the calm even stare of her company was too much. "You still have your life, you can live it however you want."
"What are you talking about?! I have no choice in this!" The dark witch spluttered.
Serena remained undeterred. "Why? Your life shouldn't be someone's plaything, it belongs to you, and only you can decide how to spend it!"
"But if I don't do it then…"
"Here." The soft soothing aura of Sailor Moon spread out around her as she extended a white-gloved hand. Darcy automatically winced away from it for a second but then stared at it in a mixture of tentative fear and hope. She began to raise her own hand in awkward twitchy movements, as if she wanted to take it.
FOOLISH GIRL!
"Aaagh!" Suddenly her body convulsed violently as a dark spirit emerged. Looking closely it resembled a haggard old woman, straggly strands of unkempt hair falling over her yellow eyes. Darcy fell to the ground, gasping.
"Who are you?" Sailor Moon demanded,
"I am Lysslis, one of the great ancestral witches!" The spirit shrieked. "And I have been forced out of my dormant state thanks to you! Not to worry, my vessel was weak from the start, now I can see you would make a much better choice! Keeper of the Silver Crystal!"
"Vessel?!" Moon looked at Lysslis in disgust. "You were gonna possess her?! That's sick!"
"Once the time was right." Was all the abomination gave for a reply before raising her ghostly arms.
"PREPARE TO BE PLUNGED INTO INSTANT OBSCURITY!"
All around her the sky became pitch black like a starless night, the trees became knarled and foreboding like the area was surrounded in a giant shadow.
Sailor Moon stared at her surroundings with great apprehension. "Huh." Was all she could say.
"THAT'S IT?" Lysslis screeched. "YOU HAVE BEEN EXPOSED TO POWERS BEYOND YOUR WORST NIGHTMARES AND THAT'S ALL YOU CAN SAY?"
"Meh, Negaverse, Negamoon, shadow realm, same difference." Sailor Moon shrugged. "But back to business, MOON SCEPTRE ELMINATION!"
With that she launched a series of crescent energy blades at the being, slicing it at the sides.
"AAAARRRRRRAHAHAHA!" Sailor Moon's eyes widened as the spirit's howl of pain turned into insane laughter.
"I warned you not to test me!" It taunted. "Now you will feel the full extent of my wrath! TOTAL DARKNESS!"
"Aaaah!" Moon couldn't help crying out as she was hit by the shadow-like energy, sending her skidding a few feet back, right behind Darcy. Thinking quickly she summoned a small white force field, separating herself and Darcy from the whirlpool of dark magic around them.
"Shit, I knew I shouldn't have tried one of my easier attacks first!" Sailor Moon complained, channeling all her strength into keeping the force field strong.
"What's the point?" Darcy to keep herself heard above the howling wind. "The ancestresses are too powerful! And if you keep that up soon you'll lose all your energy!"
"I have to try!" Moon grit her teeth and looked determinedly ahead. All she could see was the tornado of twisted shadows trying to wrap around the force field and seal it into the centre.
"Serena!"
"Huh?" Moon suddenly heard a small voice. Although it was soft and sweet it also sounded very young like a child, and no one she could recognize at that moment.
"What?" She looked down at her chest in alarm to see that her gold brooch was glowing! Looking up again she suddenly caught sight of a tiny ball of light trying to make its way towards her. As it succeeded in coming closer the Senshi could just make out the outline of a familiar being…
"Glim!" She gasped, watching the pixie finally enter the force field and stop right in front of her. "H-how did you get past all that?" She gestured to the forces being thrown at her with a shake of her head.
Glim held out her tiny arms with a smile. "My powers are of the light. Please allow me to help you win this battle!"
As soon as she gave a small nod Moon felt the symbol engraved her forehead glow pure gold as she felt the connection between them. For a fleeting moment she thought she saw a girl about her age in the pixies place in a flowing orange dress but in the blink of an eye it was gone.
Instantly she felt a rush of power surge through her fingertips and up her scepter.
"Right," She turned to grin at Glim, who had flown to her shoulder. "Thanks for the boost!"
"SILVER MOON CRYSTAL POWER!" Sailor Moon shouted, raising her scepter high and releasing the bright lights of energy.
"Noooo!" The entity shrieked as its corporeal body weakened by the light, burst out into a vapor, making Darcy fall to the floor. Immediately the forest returned to it's normal thriving exterior. "You haven't seen the last of me, I will return!" It promised threateningly as the dust slunk away into the shadows. Moon stood staring at the direction in which it had gone for a moment, shivering at the breezy silence.
"It'll be back." She said quietly to herself. "But I'll have to be ready!"
She turned to look at Darcy, who was still lying, shaking on the ground. The witch barely managed to bring herself to her knees to face her.
"It won't attack you again." Serena told her.
Darcy looked up at her. In those few moments Serena could not only see the pain and depression in her golden eyes but also a tentative hope, a hope that all of that suffering was finally over. Then they were filled with water as she broke down. Serena silently moved in and put her arms around her.
"I don't want this anymore!" Darcy sobbed. "I-I don't want to do this anymore!"
"You don't have to." Serena whispered soothingly.
"But I'll lose everything! My sisters will still go ahead with the plan, and Baltor has them under his control, I feel so weak by myself!" Darcy looked at the ground in shame, not noticing how much her purple eye makeup had smudged, making her look like a wreck.
"But you're not alone. You have me now. And I promise I will help you through things, one step at a time!"
"But why? Why are you helping me? I've done so many bad things!"
Serena moved back slightly to look at her. "Even though I am a Senshi, I believe that violence and hurting people is never the answer. And I've met criminals way worse than you! Some are actually pretty funny stories if you ever get a spare moment!"
"I'd like that." Darcy gave a small nod before suddenly losing her energy and lolling forward.
"Oh my head," She groaned. "Ancestress- must've drained my powers- I don't feel so-"
She lay on her side, desperately trying to keep consciousness.
"Darcy?" Serena asked in alarm, moving forward to check for a pulse.
"This is not good!" Her eyes widened at the witch's fever. She was no doctor but she knew she had to act fast if Darcy was going to survive. She touched her brooch containing the crystal and focused on channeling all of her energy. With that she placed her hands on both sides of Darcy's head and focused on draining all of the negative energy the spirit had left behind. She was lucky she had practiced controlling her energy before, but she still needed work before completely mastering it, nevertheless she tried her best. When she was done the witch groggily opened her eyes with a groan.
"I've managed to heal the fatal parts, but there's not a lot I can do." Moon told her. "I have to get you to a safe place, now. D'you think you can hang on for a little bit?"
"I- I think so," Darcy gave a small nod. "Th-thank you for saving me, Sailor Moon."
Sailor Moon merely smile before looking up at the sky with a grim expression. She knew that she was more than strapped for options, as the whole of Magix knew Darcy as a hardened criminal.
Suddenly she smiled to herself as she got a brainwave. "Glim," She turned to her bonded pixie. "Think you can cover for me? I'll try not to be long."
The little pixie nodded determinedly.
"Good." Without a second thought the Senshi fired up her teleport. She knew exactly where to go.
Just a dimension away in Tokyo outside Hikawa temple Raye was quietly sweeping up some stray leaves when a large flash of light appeared in the foyer to reveal her leader and best friend, still in her Sailor fuku, supporting a sickly looking girl in a strange purple suit. Instantly she met the eyes of Serena.
"Raye I need your help."