Chapter 2

'I never dreamed or thought other heroes would be drawn into this fight…' Katsuro thought to himself as he waited for the group. He leaned against a large tree in the shade, his eyes closed, reflecting on the events this morning. "Man I'm going to get an ass chewing! I was supposed to just be a reconnaissance mission. We aren't supposed to blow our cover yet an engage! Ugh!" He smacked the back of his head against the tree then let a slight sigh from his lips. "I couldn't help it though. If I hadn't had acted, they would have been in trouble and all of that power would have been drained and taken." He turned his gaze to the ground.

The five, still in transformation entered the park. They first made sure there was no on lookers around to be sticking their noses in everything. Once the coast was clear they continued into the park, seeing a tree that stood by the lake where the red haired boy stood against.

"Remember to stay on guard in case this is a trap." Mars warned as the other four nodded.

"I don't think that it is though. If he wanted to trap us or cause harm, I feel that he would have back there." Sailor Moon quietly replied as Jupiter placed her hand upon her shoulder.

"Usagi…you should know by now things aren't always what they seem. Even so, we need to be careful for our sakes. We can't afford something to happen to you and be put into a position where we can't do anything." She gently warned her friend as Sailor Moon nodded.

"I don't sense anything else around, and my scanner isn't picking up any other powers or life forms. Everything seems to be clear." Mercury stated looking back to the group as they continued towards the meeting spot.

Venus stepped forward of the group, she was the leader after all. "Alright, we're here, now spill. What was up with those creatures back there? And who are you? Where did you get your powers from? How did you know where to go?" She threw one question right after the other as he stood up to face them, his hands up in front of him.

"Woah, easy there. One question and subject at a time please." He gave a nervous laugh, then taking in a deep breath. "To answer your last question first, I was back at school about to strike up a conversation with a group to make friends. I over heard them talking about some sort of attack…and then bam. Out of nowhere they transformed…into you all, Minako." He said, his gaze locked on her as she froze in place, her eyes wide. The others gasped as well in shock. They had no idea someone had been near when they transformed.

"Wait, you saw us transform?!" Venus asked with slight shock and fear in her voice. Before anything else could be said or done, Jupiter rushed from the group and pinned Katsuro against the tree, her forearm against his neck.

"So you were sent to our school as a spy to find us! You tracked us down so you could catch us when we're vulnerable and off guard! You sleeze ball!" Venom and anger filled her voice as Mars placed her hand on Jupiter's shoulder to pull her back.

"No, I don't think that's the case. Is it Katsuro?" Mars asked, pulling the brunette girl back gently.

He coughed, gasping for air for a moment as he gripped his throat. "That's…right…" He coughed more before finally regaining his composure. "What I saw was completely by accident. I didn't even know who you all were or that there were any others here with powers. I remembered about the Sailor Senshi only after seeing the transformations. When I saw you guys take off, I knew something was going on. I wasn't sure if it had anything to do with what my mission was or not, so I followed." He explained, shrugging.

"Ok, well, I suppose if you already know who we are, then it'd be safer to go ahead and change back to normal just in case people snoop around here." Venus explained as she closed her eyes. In a flash of orange, she now stood back in her school uniform.

The others followed her example, Mars being the last one to do so, standing in her sailor fuku still. She took a deep breath, then exhaled. "I suppose I should as well and introduce myself." She closed her eyes, a red light flashing over her as she returned to normal. "I am Rei Hino. Sailor Mars." She stated, her eyes locked onto Katsuro.

"I see. Well, I'll reintroduce myself. I'm Katsuro Takahashi. I am one of four warriors chosen by the Four Symbol Gods to protect this planet from evil threats. More specifically what attacked all of you. Those minions belong to an evil known as Zeo. He's not really a demon, though he isn't actually mortal either. It's a long story going back to ancient times. Times where demons roamed the Earth thousands of years ago." He began to explain, crossing his arms as the five gathered around him.

"So, what you're saying…are you all reincarnated from past warriors? Were you reborn in this world, in this era to pick up where you left off in the past?" Usagi asked, her hand over her heart. She, and the others knew all too well what it was like being thrown back into life to be doomed or expected to live out a certain fate and continue on.

"Not exactly. We didn't exist in the past, but we were born for the sole purpose to be vessels the gods could use to stop this evil. Back in the past, as I said, the world used to be over run by demons. One man was chosen by the gods to fight these demons. He was given a certain limited power to do so. Only to be used to fight darkness and evil. Nothing more. As he battled though, he craved more power. What he had wasn't enough for him, and the reward for his actions were too small. Being a 'tool' of the gods wasn't enough for him." Katsuro began to explain.

"So what you are explaining, is that this…enemy of yours, was good once?" Ami questioned, trying to gather all data possible. "But isn't that what you and these three others you described are? 'Tools' of these gods?" She wanted to know both sides, especially if what he is describing could happen again to him and these others.

"He was once good. Though what they say is true, absolute power corrupts absolutely. As he battle demons, he began studying the dark arts on the side to try and amp up his abilities even more. He opened his mind, and his soul up to the darkness. A demon he fought during one battle had the ability to absorb and drain energy and powers, and even copy techniques. During his studies trying to gain more power, he found a way he could utilize this ability. He made it seem like he destroyed the creature, in reality, he captured it for his own experiments." Katsuro stopped in thought after explaining this.

"Is that how that creature was able to pull our power and life force out?" Rei questioned him, standing close to Usagi, seeing how uncomfortable and worried she was starting to look.

"Yeah, he found a way to pass that trait and ability onto other creatures and even create his own hellish warriors. That's the shadow warriors. They were once live people, an army he conquered in the past. Even after defeating them here, they're able to be brought back. An endless cycle of servitude to him." There was disgust in his voice.

"That's terrible…" Minako whimpered quietly, her hand covering her mouth.

"Zeo perfected a way to trap the four gods and lure them in, pretending to still be on their side. From there, he used his new found ability to take the powers of the gods and create and opposite negative version for himself. Nearly killing them. He absorbed this dark power, any bit of good left in him was gone. Inside of him is powers equal to that of the gods, perverse and turned dark for his own ruthless enjoyment." Katsuro growled slightly, then looked up to the five.

"If he had them trapped and had copied their powers into evil versions for himself, then how are you able to use your abilities? How are the other three able to use them?" Makoto asked with confusion, trying to get all the facts straight.

"He didn't completely drain them. Only take a fraction of power from each and absorb them. His body wouldn't be able to contain all of that. Though between the trap and that, it left the gods weak. He brought forth his army of shadow warriors and began his assault on the inhabitants that were close by. The gods were able to break free with his attention turned elsewhere. His power though was rampant and wild. Suzaku, Byakko, Genbu, and Seiryu only knew of one way to stop him. Using the last bit of their life force, they created a seal to put him away in." Katsuro explained to the girls.

"So I'm guessing this seal was only a temporary fix that would not last long or forever?" Ami asked as the boy nodded.

"Correct. The four were transformed into these jewels that contained their power. They lost their physical bodies and what life force they had left. The jewels disappeared from the face of the earth that night, waiting for the day the seal would begin to weaken, or break." He pulled the phoenix shaped jewel from his pocket.

"So then, how did you and these other three come to possess those jewels and powers? It couldn't have been tossed up to pure luck I'm sure." Rei crossed her arms, her gaze turning to the jewel.

"You'd be right to assume that. Though I suppose luck does come into play somewhat. It was before we were even born, the seal began to weaken. The gods began to intervene even back then, preparing us. We were infused with small bits of power while still in the womb, everything after that depended on our own decisions. Hell we could have turned out just like Zeo for all they knew. But it was a chance that had to be taken. We continued to grow, the seal continued to weaken and leak out into our world. I was the first to awaken." Katsuro explained.

"And how did that come about? Did you know the moment you awakened what your destiny was? I bet you came out swinging and taking down bad guys left and right!" Minako exclaimed, flexing a bicep playfully.

"Hell no I didn't. I was a wreck. But I awakened making a sacrifice. One of his monsters were attacking some people. It was about to drain a girl of her life energy and without even thinking, I took action and jumped in the way. I thought I was dying, but then this thing came out of my chest as if it had always been inside me. Suzaku showed himself to me in a vision, briefly explaining everything I just told you. I was given the option to turn it down, but at the time, I was putting myself in danger for someone I cared deeply for. The girl." He quietly stated.

'His whole demeanor just changed…' Usagi thought to herself. She knew this tone and look all too well. Whenever something were to happen to Mamoru or her friends, this is how she got. Something must have happened to this person.

He shook his head to snap himself out of the mood he was beginning to fall in. "So I told Suzaku I accepted, just as long as I was able to protect her and people around me. I demanded the power to be able to do so. From there, my body became infused with energy from the jewel and I transformed. It was…a sloppy fight. I didn't know what I was doing or how to use any of those powers but, I fumbled my way around and managed to take the monster down. It was the same with awakening the others. We learned to fight and work together as a team and stand our ground against Zeo and his army."

"That's quite a story…" Makoto quietly stated, her arms crossed, then running her hand through her hair.

"So why are you here by yourself then? Where's the rest of your team?" Ami asked.

"A few months ago, we confronted Zeo to try and finish everything. We had no idea how powerful he had become though, he was too much for us. He wiped us out, or so we let him think. We decided to let him think we were dead and gone, and he had disappeared. So we each went our separate ways to search for him. Just happens to be my luck I find him first. " He sighed.

"Well then what are you waiting for? Why don't you contact your team and get together to stop that asshole?!" Jupiter exclaimed.

"It's…complicated. After that last battle, I'm not so sure the others are as rearing and ready to go as I am. That kind of power, it really shook them to their cores. They seemed willing to continue on, but as the months have passed, I've heard less and less from them. So as their leader. I'm taking it upon myself to finish this fight. I don't want to involve…or lose anyone else…" He trailed off.

"That's really stupid. They're your friends, your teammates. You should all shoulder this burden together." Rei angrily spoke out.

"No, they've sacrificed enough. I wont involve anyone else in this." He argued back, swinging his arm back and smashing the tree with his fist.

"Well, you've already messed up in that area. We are now involved. This is our town, and they made the mistake in attacking us. So no matter what you say, we are a part of this now!" Minako yelled then made a V with her fingers and winked.

"Minako is right, you can continue to do whatever, but you're going to have to deal with our help. This is our city and people here are in danger. This is our jurisdiction so deal with it." Makoto stated.

"Fine…but I don't want you endangering yourselves unnecessarily, so if it gets to be too much, then please, get out." He begged, knowing they wouldn't change their minds. Why would they? They're heroes and this is their territory. He would have to abide by their rules here.

"You got it. So where do you stay?" Usagi questioned, they needed to know everything about this new ally in case things went wrong.

"Actually…just staying in a hotel for now. I wasn't sure how long I'd be around so I didn't really want to settle in somewhere." He explained.

Rei heaved out a sigh. "Well we can't have that. We need to all stay close and communicate. You should stay at the Hikawa Shrine. It's my family's place and there is room. I'll talk it over with my grandpa as long as you help with chores. We had someone else staying but, Yuuichirou just up and left one day…" She trailed off.

"Really? That would help a lot…fine. I'll accept." He agreed.

They had missed the rest of the day class wise, the teachers would surely be asking questions tomorrow. "We should probably come up with a story why we all had to leave for tomorrow. And catch up our studies." Ami explained to the others as they all laughed nervously.

"Alright, lets all go get some rest and meet up tomorrow." Minako said as they all waved, going in their own directions. Katsuro began to walk with Rei.